A/N: Eight months! Yes, I know it's been that long since I have put up a new chapter and I'm sorry, believe me, I am. I have hardly done any writing at all since August because my creative energies have been directed elsewhere. To those of you who have been with me from the beginning, thanks so much for sticking with me! The end is in sight and I hope to get us there without so much delay in future. Please review! It might prompt my muses to stop leaving me high and dry… -J

oOoOo

The ministry was abuzz as Lucius emerged from one of the fireplaces and looked around the busy foyer. Knots of witches and wizards stood gossiping, some wearing black bands on their left sleeves or black ribbons over their hearts. He caught the eye of one young wizard and the boy actually smiled at him. That was a rare enough occurrence these days that Lucius was taken aback. He tried to give a pleasant nod in response but he wasn't sure how well he managed.

Malfoy had been summoned by the minister himself and thus felt that it wasn't a good idea to dawdle long enough to find out what the people were buzzing about. He made his way without further hesitation to the bank of elevators and as luck would have it, a pair of the brass doors stood open. Lucius hurried inside, asking the elderly witch nearest to the floor buttons to press the correct one for him. She too gave him a smile before doing as he'd requested. The receipt of two smiles in one day was more than mere coincidence; there had to be a reason for it. Somehow Lucius did not find that thought reassuring.

The young secretary in the minister's outer office – Miss Patil, Lucius thought her name was – smiled at him as well (Did three smiles mean he was headed to the gallows?) and asked him to wait for just a moment. She rose and went through the door behind her, leaving Malfoy to fidget nervously with his walking stick as he waited. It was only a minute or two before she returned.

"The minister will see you now, Mister Malfoy."

Lucius didn't want to go in all of a sudden, but he forced himself forward and through the open door. Shacklebolt was standing behind his desk at first but as Lucius came closer, the minister swept over to shake his hand.

"Mister Malfoy, thanks for coming."

Lucius was not quite sure if he trusted the grin the minister was giving him but he shook Kingsley's hand all the same. "I couldn't very well refuse a summons from the Minister of Magic, could I?"

"You could have refused if you'd wished," Kingsley gestured to the empty chair by his desk as he strode back to his own seat, "this isn't a summons to appear before the Wizengamot, after all."

"You'll forgive my curiosity, I hope, but just why did you ask me here?"

"Your curiosity is forgiven, of course. I suppose I should come straight to the point. Young Potter tells me that you saved his life in Belgium."

Lucius gave a shrug, hoping that it conveyed a sense of nonchalance. "It was the least I could do."

"On the contrary, you could easily have ignored his plea for help and nobody would have been the wiser."

"True, I suppose," Lucius drew the words out as if he were musing on the thought, "but he did save my son at Hogwarts and he was willing to speak on my behalf in court. All in all, he's been quite magnanimous in regards to my family so helping him in Bruges really was the least I could do to repay him."

"I'm glad to hear that you feel that way, and I'm certain that Mister Potter is very glad for your help in his time of need." Kingsley watched him for perhaps half a minute before going on. "I believe that you are planning to petition the Wizengamot for a new wand, is that correct?"

Lucius nodded, wondering where this line of questioning would take them. "I have. The hearing is next week."

"Hmm, yes, about that," Lucius' nervousness grew as Kingsley pressed a little button on one side of his desk and Miss Patil entered right on cue with an envelope. She handed the envelope to the minister before exiting again and Kingsley picked up the thread of his conversation, "I've drafted a letter to Mister Olivander informing him that you will soon be visiting his shop. It suggests that if any of his wands are…inclined to be partnered with you, you should be allowed to purchase it." Kingsley flashed another smile, apparently at the look of disbelief on Lucius' face. "I also discussed the matter with a short-notice convention of the Wizengamot last evening and we all decided that your magic use will not be monitored except for the normal protocols that govern all magic users in our jurisdiction. You do understand, however, that any future wrong-doing on your part will be judged very harshly."

"Yes…yes, of course." Lucius felt such a sensation of shock and unbridled joy that he was hardly able to breathe. "How can I ever thank you, Minister?"

"I'm very glad you asked that, Lucius. There is one thing that you could do for me, or perhaps I should say for the ministry."

Ever the Slytherin, Lucius was at once on his guard. He should have known that nothing good in life would come for free. "What might that be, Minister?"

"We're coordinating a raid with the Belgian Ministry of Magic to seize the warehouse where Dolohov is running his operation. We're already debriefing Mister Potter but it would be good if you were willing to lend a hand."

Lucius did not offer a comment at first but as the silence stretched and the minister continued to look at him expectantly, he felt the need to fill the void. "What sort of assistance are you looking for?"

"Ideally we would like a guide to lead us inside the location. The only two people who can do that are you and Potter. You'll appreciate, I'm sure, that Potter could use a rest after what he's been through."

"Minister, Dolohov threatened to kill both of us if he saw us there again. I do hope that you don't blame me for not wanting to put him in a position to carry out that threat."

"I can't force you to help us, of course," Kingsley sighed, "I'll just have to tell Potter that he's needed again."

"You misunderstand. I don't want Dolohov to carry out his threat against either of us."

"Then what do you suggest?"

"What about a map? Potter and I can collaborate."

The minister pondered this for a bit and when he spoke, it was clear that he wasn't dismissing the idea completely. "We wanted someone who could help guide us on the ground, but I suppose if a map had the proper enchantments, it might do."

"I can discuss the matter with Potter and see what we can come up with." Lucius hesitated for a few moments before taking a deep breath. "If we can't come up with anything, I suppose that I could lead you if you provided me with polyjuice potion or some form of disguise. I agree with you that Potter needs to have a chance to recover from his ordeal and I am grateful for the trust you're placing in me."

"Excellent," Kingsley flashed his grin once more and reached out to shake Malfoy's hand, "I'll have Miss Patil summon Harry straightaway."

"Actually, Minister, I can just as easily go find him. There is another matter I'd like to discuss with him if it's all right with you."

"That will be fine. Keep me informed of your progress and remember that we'd like to get this operation underway as soon as possible."

Lucius nodded and rose from his chair. The minister rose with him and took the opportunity to shake his hand once more. "Thank you again, Mister Malfoy."

"You're welcome, Minister. I'll see you soon."

After Kingsley ushered him out of his office, Lucius made his way straight down to the aurors' office and over to Harry's cubicle. "Mister Potter."

"Mister Malfoy?" Harry looked up in surprise.

"Do you think that I might have a private word with you? I just received some news that I'd like to share.

"Oh yeah?" Harry looked around briefly and then nodded. "All right. I can probably spare a minute or two."

Potter led him off down a narrow hallway and then into a small conference room that was stuffed with a table and several chairs.

"What did you…?" The auror's voice cut off abruptly as Lucius tugged him into a fierce kiss. Caught off guard, Harry flailed for a moment before giving in with a hungry little moan. "What on earth was that for?" he wondered several minutes later.

"They're giving me a new wand!" Lucius hugged Harry tightly and placed a kiss on the boy's ear. "I'm so happy that I'd take you right here in this closet if I thought we wouldn't get caught."

Harry laughed. "This isn't a closet. It's a conference room."

"It's a closet with a few chairs in it," Lucius teased and then helped himself to another kiss, "and a highly tempting table."

"Tempting as it might be, I can't let you molest me on it."

Lucius pouted, "Are you sure?"

"Quite sure, yes. We had the memorial service for Erind Bagley this morning – he's the auror that was captured with me – and it has set all of us behind in our work. I'm still writing up my report of what happened in Belgium for the minister."

Well that explained the reason for the mourning bands and also why everyone had been milling around in the lobby when Lucius had arrived. Lucius nodded and let go of Harry so that he could take a seat at the table. "Reports will have to wait, Harry. Minister Shacklebolt has set a task for us that's far more important than paperwork."

"What's that?" Harry took the seat facing him and Lucius began to outline the conversation that he'd just had with Kingsley and the idea that they were now to design a map of Dolohov's smuggling den. When the older wizard finished speaking, Harry looked thoughtful. "When I was at Hogwarts, I was given a map of the castle that showed where anyone was to be found at any given time. If we can figure out the spell that gave the map that ability, we could make one of our own for Dolohov's hideout. Then, not only could we use it to spy on the operation but it would allow the team that goes in to close the place down to see both the layout and who is on the premises."

"That's brilliant. Can we talk to the person who gave you the map to find out how they created it?"

Harry made a little face and then sighed. "The boys who created the map are all dead now. We're on our own, I'm afraid."

"Ah, well. I daresay we'll manage. It's too bad Severus isn't around anymore. He was always good with puzzles."

"We could go consult his portrait. I'm sure Headmistress McGonagall wouldn't mind too much."

"Hmm, yes, we could. I hadn't thought of that. Let's see what we can find out by ourselves first though. You never know, someone here at the ministry might have heard of the kind of map you're talking about. If we can't find anything, then we'll make the trip to Hogwarts. Agreed?"

Harry nodded, thinking that Hermione's office would be a good first stop. "Agreed."

oOoOo

"The problem as I see it," in the portrait, Snape tilted his head to better regard the map Harry was holding up, "is that this is a map of Hogwarts that was created at Hogwarts. That may mean that you have to actually be within your location in order to make a map like this or it may mean that such a map of another locale is altogether impossible. I've seen a number of magically drafted maps but nothing like this. It is almost as if every person here has had an individual tracer spell applied to him or her - which we know is quite impossible."

"Especially considering that it updates itself to reflect who is present at any given time," Lucius ventured as he eyed the map and its constant state of flux. It was currently just before dinner time and many of the students were coming and going from the castle to the lawns and courtyards as they enjoyed the nice weather. The map showed some of them – though of course not all, otherwise it would have been impossible to pick anyone out – as they moved about. Two stationary dots in the Headmaster's office, labeled Lucius Malfoy and Harry Potter, had only appeared when they stepped out of the fireplace.

"And the fact that it almost appears to be sentient at times, like when it insulted you during my third year," Harry added, addressing the portrait.

"Indeed." Snape's lips thinned at the memory and he glared at the piece of parchment like it had just insulted him afresh. "However, I don't see how its sentience, if such a thing exists at all, would allow it to know and report the locations of anyone in the castle unless it was somehow communicating directly with a similar sentience in the castle itself."

He had a very good point there and Harry allowed himself a sigh, feeling defeated before they'd even really begun. Nobody at the ministry had been of much help either and Snape was their last resort. "Don't worry, Potter, if your father and his band of miscreants could create such a thing, the three of us should be able to do the same."

Lucius looked as though he was going to say something to mitigate Snape's offhand insult but Harry shook his head to forestall the gesture. Snape was still the same old Snape and Harry refused fault him any longer for being bitter. Besides, it wouldn't do them any good to get into an argument over niceties when there were more important things to be done.

"It would be much easier if I could handle the thing," the former headmaster was continuing in a tone of frustration, apparently not noticing the exchange between the other two wizards. "So many charms are only obvious upon close scrutiny and through trying different spells against them."

"Can't you just tell us what to do?"

"Telling you things to try and being able to hold the object in one's hands to try them yourself are two very different things, Mister Potter, but I'll attempt to guide you as I can. Third person trial and error isn't the ideal method for discovering how to reconstruct a magical object but of course here it's the only way. First though, we'll need some books from the library."

Once Snape had dictated the list, Harry made his way down to the library to collect the books, leaving Lucius and Snape to continue the discussion. It took him the better part of an hour to find everything and then to bring them back up to the Headmaster's office. By that time Lucius had sketched out a rough draft of Dolohov's lair as well as he could remember it from his brief visit.

He was sitting at the desk that Dumbledore had occupied for so many years – and in fact Dumbledore's portrait had taken an interest in their project and was quietly conferring with Snape over what charms they might try – with his sleeves rolled up and a mug of coffee nestled in the palm of his right hand. It was all Harry could do not to walk over to sit on his lap and give him a kiss. To distract himself from that appealing mental image, he concentrated on setting the pile of books that were floating behind him onto the desktop as he took the seat opposite his lover.

"Coffee smells good," he observed, still eyeing the mug in Lucius' hand.

"Help yourself, Harry," Lucius nudged the pot in his direction and Harry saw that there was a second mug on the tray.

The auror fixed a cup to his liking and then pulled the sketched map over to look at it as he sipped his drink. There were a few obvious errors but in general the map was good. Taking up the quill Lucius had been using, Harry made the necessary corrections and then sat back to ponder the drawing again. "I still don't see why they couldn't just use this map," he said to no one in particular.

"Well, they could if a simple map was all they wanted."

But of course that wasn't what the ministry wanted. They wanted Harry or Lucius to lead the raid and Harry had the sneaking suspicion that Lucius wasn't going to let him go. Since he didn't want Lucius going back either, that left the map as his only alternative unless he wanted a fight on his hands. He wished again that his father or Sirius were still around so that he could just ask them how they did it. After a moment he had to stifle a laugh. If James or Sirius were there, they would never have let him get into a relationship with Lucius Malfoy in the first place, let alone care if Dolohov chopped Malfoy to pieces.

"Something funny?"

"Just a passing thought. Nothing important."

Lucius nodded and pulled the top book off the pile so that he could start leafing through it. Harry followed suit with the next one. Albus and Severus teamed up to provide suggestions but as the evening wore on, they made no real progress. Finally Harry decided that they had all had enough for the evening. He closed his book and glanced over at Lucius. The older wizard looked as tired as Harry felt.

"Let's call it a night. We can have another go tomorrow when we're both more awake."

Lucius was perfectly happy with this suggestion and closed his book too, making sure to mark his place before putting it back on the dwindling stack of books they hadn't been through yet. Before standing, he reached his arms up and stretched, his sudden expression of bliss bringing a smile to Harry's face. Then he was on his feet and waiting for Harry to join him.

"Just a minute," the auror murmured as he drew his wand. Casting a quick spell, he sent the books that they were definitely finished with back to the library and tidied up the smaller stack so that they would be out of McGonagall's way. With that accomplished, he stood and moved over to Lucius' side. Dumbledore was already asleep and snoring inside his gilt frame. "All right, I'm ready."

"Potter…a word before you go?"

Harry looked back toward Snape's portrait and then to Lucius before gesturing the older wizard to go on ahead. Malfoy nodded, reached up to squeeze Harry's shoulder and then stepped into the fireplace. After the floo flashed green, Harry turned once more to talk to his former professor. Snape's gaze lingered on the fireplace and then redirected to the young man before him. "It appears that you resolved your issue with Lucius."

Harry felt a little embarrassed and therefore had some trouble meeting the portrait's eyes, "Yeah. Yeah, I did."

"And are you happy with your choice?"

"I am. Really happy." It was easier to meet Snape's eyes as he said it and he even felt a little smile creeping onto his lips. "Don't tell him I said this, but Lucius is in danger of becoming a good man."

Snape chuckled, a richly amused sound that was foreign coming from him. "A common occurrence around you, I find."

"What can I say?" the smile was becoming a full blown grin, "I must be a good influence."

The former headmaster snorted at this. "You must, indeed." After a moment, his face grew more serious again. "Take care of him, Potter."

Harry nodded without reservation, "I'll do my very best." The two men looked at each other for a long moment and Harry found himself wishing that he could shake Snape's hand. It just seemed like the moment for such a gesture. Instead he had to settle for another nod at the portrait and then glanced back to the fireplace. "I'd better go now or he'll come back to find out what is taking so long."

"Yes, heaven forbid we keep Lucius Malfoy waiting," Snape's tone dripped with sarcasm but a little smile quirked the corners of his mouth.

Smiling, Harry bid the former professor good night.