Marketing Malfoy's, Chapter Eight
Title: Marketing Malfoy's, Chapter Eight
Author/Artist: digthewriter
Word Count: 1430
Pairing: Draco/Harry
Warnings: Modern!Au/Muggle Au - Non magic.
Disclaimer: Harry Potter characters are the property of J.K. Rowling and Bloomsbury/Scholastic. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.
Notes: READ CHAPTER ONE, CHAPTER TWO, CHAPTER THREE, CHAPTER FOUR, CHAPTER FIVE, CHAPTER SIX, CHAPTER SEVEN
Summary: Draco gets bad news.
[Additional Notes]I know it was a short chapter and it's bit of a cliffhanger. Also, don't hate me, this series will be back in January. I'll be taking the rest of the month to work on the story. And finish it before it's all posted in Jan. 2016! Thank you.
Draco didn't know what was worse, the betrayal he felt from Harry, or the apathy his company received from the twins. He sagged in his office hair and loosened his tie-something he almost never did at work. At work, he was determined to always be put together, but today wasn't one of those days.
"Hey," Neville said walking in through the door and closing it behind him. "What's the plan?"
In the beginning, things were looking up. That's when Draco thought he should have realised that something was wrong. Things didn't always go as planned. His association with Harry, outside the business aspect of it, was going well. It wasn't a big deal, and neither of them was making it out to be. Things were ameliorating. Harry helped take Draco's stress away, and Draco enjoyed his conversations with Harry.
He knew that they'd crossed the line of just fucking to somewhat dating, given that they'd get dinner before going over to Harry's place, still, he didn't dwell on it. He had work to focus on.
At first, the sign was small. It was just an ad placed in the UK papers, and no one had noticed it. No one right away, of course. Sheila was the one that'd pointed it out to Draco and Neville at their staff meeting.
Marketing Malfoy's were representing Potter and Friends, Inc, which was a toy company that focused on early-childhood development. So when they saw an advert similar to theirs in the paper for a company-Nott Your Average Toys-they had almost dismissed it. Marketing circles were small and when focusing on a particular type of brand, similarities was common.
Except, the next piece of advertising that was on television, was hard to miss. It was exactly like the plan Draco and Neville had come up with for Potter and Friends. But, it wasn't for Potter's company, it was for Nott's.
Draco knew Nott once when they were growing up. He'd dated Pansy for a about a minute. But, they hadn't seen each other in nearly a dozen years. How in the world would Nott's company follow the same marketing plan as Draco's? It wasn't even a formula Draco knew that was so common with his father's former business dealings. It was new, and original, and concealed.
"Didn't you email our proposal to the Potters?" Sheila had asked and that was when both Neville and Draco had remembered it. They had. They'd sent it to Z. Smith. Potter's PA.
Neville had immediately called Harry and asked to set up an emergency meeting. By the time Draco, Neville, and Sheila went over to Potter Industries, they already knew. And they had already dropped Marketing Malfoy's contract.
-*-*-
"It's not us, we didn't leak anything," one of the twins said. He was respectful but firm at the same time. That's all they kept on saying throughout the meeting. They had apparently decided to go with the other company that had also reached out to them.
They'd already given the contract to Patil & Brown.
"Their proposal wasn't as strong as yours, but, at least this way we won't look like we're just copying Nott," the other twin said. Draco was so much in disbelief that he didn't even bother to register which one was Fred, and which one was George. Harry, on the other hand, was awfully quiet.
"I don't understand," Neville said. He was calm enough for both Draco and himself. Sheila was busy flipping through her mobile looking at the social media sites, seeing how far this had gone. "We received an email from Z. Smith, who had asked on your behalf, Harry. He said that you'd requested the marketing tools. That you wanted to go over the presentation-"
"Zach Smith is no longer an employee at Potter Industries," the twins said at the same time. "We did not advice-"
"He must have stolen the presentation and sold it to Nott's PR company," Harry said. "He must have taken it right before he-"
"Harry," one of the twins tried to warn him. "We can't-"
"It's not our fault. But it is," Harry said, and Draco thought that Harry's voice shook a bit, as if he was devastated. What did he have to be upset about? Their business would continue booming, it was Marketing Malfoy's that'd suffered the loss. All the tools were set for implementation. The cost for labour, and supplies, and... Draco sighed. He didn't even want to think about that at the moment. It wasn't about the money. It'd never been. But the way the twins had acted, it obviously was to them.
"Draco..." Harry whispered his name and the twins turned to look at him. Surprise clearly registered on their faces and Harry hesitated. "I..."
"Fuck. Off." Draco pushed his chair back and away from the table and it screeched against the wooden floor. "It's not your bloody problem, is it? This is not personal. This is business." Draco watched Harry's face cringe at the words.
Good.
He turned to walk out of the conference room, and didn't wait for Neville and Sheila to follow. They would follow him, he was sure of it. By the time he reached the door, he heard Neville's voice.
"When Zach Smith emailed us asking for the presentation, he was an employee at your company. You, the three of you, signed the confidentiality contract. He being Harry's PA at the time, was covered under the same clause. Whether or not he worked here while he shared the private info with another company, is irrelevant. You signed the contract. You are liable for this breach. We will be filing a suit."
Draco didn't turn, but he waited until Neville was by his side. They walked out together, and Draco heard the click of Sheila's heels following their silent footsteps.
-*-*-
"What's the plan?" Neville asked.
Draco looked up at him and he saw the look of pity in Neville's eyes. He knew that Neville didn't mean it like that, but it was the same look he'd received from people when his father had been caught. His father had been stupid, and people had pitied Draco. Now, he had no one to place for those looks. He deserved them, even. His gaze returned to his desk.
"You've already filed the motion with the solicitor?" Draco asked, not looking up. If Neville nodded, he didn't know.
"Yes," Neville said. "Sheila's team is going to follow up on it. Her cousin works at Wood and Bell, LLC. So they'll keep up updated on their dealings with Potter's firm, Weasley and Granger."
Draco looked up again then.
"Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger are married, obviously, Ron is the twins' younger brother."
"How big is that bloody family?" Draco asked. He didn't really expect an answer but it looked like Neville was counting in his head.
"Seven kids. I think. Yeah. Seven," he said.
Draco didn't respond. He didn't care. Seven Weasleys and their adopted Harry Potter. He only had Neville and Hannah in his corner. It was a good thing that Astoria had been willing to be on good terms with Draco since Oliver Wood's company had come highly recommended from her. They'd been dealing with Marketing Malfoy's from the start.
"Well, we have Oliver Wood," Neville said, as if he'd read Draco's mind. "He's the best we can afford. Ron and Hermione are new at starting their firm. If we ask Oliver to press them, I'm sure he won't have any troubles."
"They are your friends," Draco said. "I don't know-"
"Yeah. And you're my business partner, and my family, Draco," Neville said, stern. "We'll get through this."
Draco's heart swelled up at the words. Family. It was mostly a joke to him, but when Neville said it, it felt like something solid.
"I think I'm going to take some time off," Draco said, closing the file he was obviously not working on. "Give this to Sheila to follow up. I'm going home. If the lawyers need anything, let me know. I'll keep checking my messages and emails."
"Where will you go?" Neville asked. He looked relieved as if he was worried that Draco was going to just dive back into work and over exert himself. That's what old Draco would have done. Determined Draco. Now, he was just a defeated Draco. He needed to take a step back, sort out his priorities and come up with new ideas to take on a bigger firm. Bigger than Potter Industries.
"Barcelona. I'm going to go and spend some time with my son." CHAPTER 9
Author/Artist: digthewriter
Word Count: 1430
Pairing: Draco/Harry
Warnings: Modern!Au/Muggle Au - Non magic.
Disclaimer: Harry Potter characters are the property of J.K. Rowling and Bloomsbury/Scholastic. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.
Notes: READ CHAPTER ONE, CHAPTER TWO, CHAPTER THREE, CHAPTER FOUR, CHAPTER FIVE, CHAPTER SIX, CHAPTER SEVEN
Summary: Draco gets bad news.
[Additional Notes]I know it was a short chapter and it's bit of a cliffhanger. Also, don't hate me, this series will be back in January. I'll be taking the rest of the month to work on the story. And finish it before it's all posted in Jan. 2016! Thank you.
Draco didn't know what was worse, the betrayal he felt from Harry, or the apathy his company received from the twins. He sagged in his office hair and loosened his tie-something he almost never did at work. At work, he was determined to always be put together, but today wasn't one of those days.
"Hey," Neville said walking in through the door and closing it behind him. "What's the plan?"
In the beginning, things were looking up. That's when Draco thought he should have realised that something was wrong. Things didn't always go as planned. His association with Harry, outside the business aspect of it, was going well. It wasn't a big deal, and neither of them was making it out to be. Things were ameliorating. Harry helped take Draco's stress away, and Draco enjoyed his conversations with Harry.
He knew that they'd crossed the line of just fucking to somewhat dating, given that they'd get dinner before going over to Harry's place, still, he didn't dwell on it. He had work to focus on.
At first, the sign was small. It was just an ad placed in the UK papers, and no one had noticed it. No one right away, of course. Sheila was the one that'd pointed it out to Draco and Neville at their staff meeting.
Marketing Malfoy's were representing Potter and Friends, Inc, which was a toy company that focused on early-childhood development. So when they saw an advert similar to theirs in the paper for a company-Nott Your Average Toys-they had almost dismissed it. Marketing circles were small and when focusing on a particular type of brand, similarities was common.
Except, the next piece of advertising that was on television, was hard to miss. It was exactly like the plan Draco and Neville had come up with for Potter and Friends. But, it wasn't for Potter's company, it was for Nott's.
Draco knew Nott once when they were growing up. He'd dated Pansy for a about a minute. But, they hadn't seen each other in nearly a dozen years. How in the world would Nott's company follow the same marketing plan as Draco's? It wasn't even a formula Draco knew that was so common with his father's former business dealings. It was new, and original, and concealed.
"Didn't you email our proposal to the Potters?" Sheila had asked and that was when both Neville and Draco had remembered it. They had. They'd sent it to Z. Smith. Potter's PA.
Neville had immediately called Harry and asked to set up an emergency meeting. By the time Draco, Neville, and Sheila went over to Potter Industries, they already knew. And they had already dropped Marketing Malfoy's contract.
-*-*-
"It's not us, we didn't leak anything," one of the twins said. He was respectful but firm at the same time. That's all they kept on saying throughout the meeting. They had apparently decided to go with the other company that had also reached out to them.
They'd already given the contract to Patil & Brown.
"Their proposal wasn't as strong as yours, but, at least this way we won't look like we're just copying Nott," the other twin said. Draco was so much in disbelief that he didn't even bother to register which one was Fred, and which one was George. Harry, on the other hand, was awfully quiet.
"I don't understand," Neville said. He was calm enough for both Draco and himself. Sheila was busy flipping through her mobile looking at the social media sites, seeing how far this had gone. "We received an email from Z. Smith, who had asked on your behalf, Harry. He said that you'd requested the marketing tools. That you wanted to go over the presentation-"
"Zach Smith is no longer an employee at Potter Industries," the twins said at the same time. "We did not advice-"
"He must have stolen the presentation and sold it to Nott's PR company," Harry said. "He must have taken it right before he-"
"Harry," one of the twins tried to warn him. "We can't-"
"It's not our fault. But it is," Harry said, and Draco thought that Harry's voice shook a bit, as if he was devastated. What did he have to be upset about? Their business would continue booming, it was Marketing Malfoy's that'd suffered the loss. All the tools were set for implementation. The cost for labour, and supplies, and... Draco sighed. He didn't even want to think about that at the moment. It wasn't about the money. It'd never been. But the way the twins had acted, it obviously was to them.
"Draco..." Harry whispered his name and the twins turned to look at him. Surprise clearly registered on their faces and Harry hesitated. "I..."
"Fuck. Off." Draco pushed his chair back and away from the table and it screeched against the wooden floor. "It's not your bloody problem, is it? This is not personal. This is business." Draco watched Harry's face cringe at the words.
Good.
He turned to walk out of the conference room, and didn't wait for Neville and Sheila to follow. They would follow him, he was sure of it. By the time he reached the door, he heard Neville's voice.
"When Zach Smith emailed us asking for the presentation, he was an employee at your company. You, the three of you, signed the confidentiality contract. He being Harry's PA at the time, was covered under the same clause. Whether or not he worked here while he shared the private info with another company, is irrelevant. You signed the contract. You are liable for this breach. We will be filing a suit."
Draco didn't turn, but he waited until Neville was by his side. They walked out together, and Draco heard the click of Sheila's heels following their silent footsteps.
-*-*-
"What's the plan?" Neville asked.
Draco looked up at him and he saw the look of pity in Neville's eyes. He knew that Neville didn't mean it like that, but it was the same look he'd received from people when his father had been caught. His father had been stupid, and people had pitied Draco. Now, he had no one to place for those looks. He deserved them, even. His gaze returned to his desk.
"You've already filed the motion with the solicitor?" Draco asked, not looking up. If Neville nodded, he didn't know.
"Yes," Neville said. "Sheila's team is going to follow up on it. Her cousin works at Wood and Bell, LLC. So they'll keep up updated on their dealings with Potter's firm, Weasley and Granger."
Draco looked up again then.
"Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger are married, obviously, Ron is the twins' younger brother."
"How big is that bloody family?" Draco asked. He didn't really expect an answer but it looked like Neville was counting in his head.
"Seven kids. I think. Yeah. Seven," he said.
Draco didn't respond. He didn't care. Seven Weasleys and their adopted Harry Potter. He only had Neville and Hannah in his corner. It was a good thing that Astoria had been willing to be on good terms with Draco since Oliver Wood's company had come highly recommended from her. They'd been dealing with Marketing Malfoy's from the start.
"Well, we have Oliver Wood," Neville said, as if he'd read Draco's mind. "He's the best we can afford. Ron and Hermione are new at starting their firm. If we ask Oliver to press them, I'm sure he won't have any troubles."
"They are your friends," Draco said. "I don't know-"
"Yeah. And you're my business partner, and my family, Draco," Neville said, stern. "We'll get through this."
Draco's heart swelled up at the words. Family. It was mostly a joke to him, but when Neville said it, it felt like something solid.
"I think I'm going to take some time off," Draco said, closing the file he was obviously not working on. "Give this to Sheila to follow up. I'm going home. If the lawyers need anything, let me know. I'll keep checking my messages and emails."
"Where will you go?" Neville asked. He looked relieved as if he was worried that Draco was going to just dive back into work and over exert himself. That's what old Draco would have done. Determined Draco. Now, he was just a defeated Draco. He needed to take a step back, sort out his priorities and come up with new ideas to take on a bigger firm. Bigger than Potter Industries.
"Barcelona. I'm going to go and spend some time with my son." CHAPTER 9