Draco scowled at his Auror partner unimpressed by his fit of laughter. Weasley was grinning from ear to ear, completely flushed in the face. Draco frowned, not two moments ago, his Auror partner had a concerned - almost worried look upon his face, that was until Draco finished telling him what happened.
'Weasley, I fail to see what is so funny, about me landing flat upon my back.'
Weasley chuckled. 'It's not that, that's funny. It's the fact that Ria is still able to best you, and she did so without even trying.'
'Well you didn't seem to happy to begin with,' Draco snapped.
Weasley merely shrugged.
'So ... what is Potter doing now, that enables her to place me upon my back without even trying or blinking? Umm?'
Weasleys' expression grew serious. 'The usual ... probably, took Teddy to school - then got on with her day,' he shrugged.
'That's not what I asked and you know it,' Draco said sternly.
'It doesn't concern you,' Weasley replied hotly.
'You never talk about her - her time with you as your partner - come off Weasley, I've been working with you long enough - clue me in would you. I'd like to know what's she's got stuck up her arse,' Draco said, calmly. 'I just tried to help steady her - but after I touched her - well you know what happened next.'
Weasley sighed. 'She was probably, under a Notice Me Not - she does that, stops her from being hassled, which explains why you didn't spot her - she doesn't like being approached -'
'Touched?' Draco added. 'I noticed at the party, no one hugged her or anything, there was no physical contact.'
Weasley ran a hand through his hair, making it look wild, he sighed once more. 'Yeah - that's right.'
'What happened?'
Weasley took a deep breath, 'On a case of mine, she was attacked, she got severely hurt - it broke her. It took her ages to recover - she's just funny about people touching her, and I'm not surprised given what happened to her.'
'And ...?'
Weasley's blue eyes looked into his own. 'The rest is classified - I can't talk about it.'
'But I'm an Auror.' Draco protested.
'Doesn't matter.'
'I'm your work partner!'
'Still doesn't count.'
'What if the case comes up again and it's too personal for you to handle ...'
'Classified!' Weasley said, glaring at him. 'What part of that do you not assimilate.'
Draco was slightly impressed, then he remembered who Weasley was married to.
'Well, I have a point!'
Weasley rubbed his temple. 'The case has been closed, the perpetrator has been dealt with - that's all you need to know.'
Draco sighed, then after a moments silence, he turned to Weasley. 'So what does Potter do now?'
Weasley rolled his eyes. 'It's classified!' he shook his head. 'Tell me about James Evans ... any luck getting hold of him?'
'No,' Draco said disappointingly. 'Seems he only exists in book form - and he has left no clue to his true identity.' For a moment, Draco thought Weasley looked relieved.
'OK, so we're on our own,' he said, ruffling his hair once more. 'Merlin I wish Ria was here - this was much more her type of thing!'
Draco's ears perked up. 'Was it?'
Weasley paled. 'I didn't mean that you weren't helpful or good at your job.'
'I knew what you meant,' Draco said, he had a better understanding of Weasleys' mind now. 'I've worked with you long enough, to know the difference. So why did you wish Potter was here?'
'Because ... she always knew what to do - Harr -' he shook his head, stopping himself. 'Ria just had a way of getting inside a criminals head - she could put pieces of a puzzle together using the tiniest of clues. Brilliant - just brilliant! I've never known anyone like her. You talking about her, just made me think about - well everything.'
'Then why don't we ask to have her assist us,' Draco said.
Weasley shook his head. 'She'll be busy.'
'Doing what exactly?'
'Malfoy for the last time,' Weasley shouted, losing his temper. 'IT IS CLASSIFIED! I'm not talking about it because I can't - full stop - end of story - got it!'
'Why not? Why can't you talk about it-?'
'Because ...' Weasley paused, 'because I promised, I wouldn't.'
'So?'
'I made an Unbreakable Vow!' Weasley snapped. 'there are you happy now? I can't talk about it, because if I do - I'll die.'
Draco stared at his partner - Auror's weren't allowed to make Unbreakable Vows, they could interfere with their work. 'Does Bentley know?' he whispered. Weasley would be in big trouble if their Head Auror didn't know.
'Of course, he knows!' Weasley snapped. 'Do you think I was the only one? Hell, even the Minister had to make one.'
Draco did not expect to hear that, he gaped at Weasley.
'Yeah,' he said. 'Exactly. What's the sudden interest in Ria anyway?'
Draco shrugged, he barely knew himself - other than her qualities being perfect, if only her behaviour wasn't so odd.
Weasley's eyes widened. 'You like her - bloody hell! I thought you got over your crush. Well, you told me you didn't fancy Harry anyway.'
'That's a point, where did her new nickname come from?'
Weasley blinked at him.
'Ria? A moment ago you called her Harry.'
'Oh, she doesn't like being called Harry now - not after the attack, reminds her - I slip occasionally, luckily not in front of her - anyway - as for the name someone important to her gave her it, and it stuck.'
'Who?'
Weasley shook his head. 'Sorry but that's classified also.'
'Make another Unbreakable Vow did you - I won't inform anyone of anything personal about Harianna Potter.'
'No!' Weasley muttered. 'It's just her business.'
Weasley stopped the conversation there, pulling out files from his desk drawer. At least he had been helpful in some ways, Draco now knew why Potter was acting so strangely - just what happened on that case that made her freak out about having physical contact with other people? Draco felt like he was getting more questions, then answers. Maybe it was time to pull a few strings - talk to some of his old school friends with connections, see what came up. And while he was at it, he might as well visit the NICU ward at St Mungo's. If James Evans was truly the Wizarding Publishing Company's best seller - why would the man give his money away to one ward?