Department of Magical Creatures Case #625369
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Chapter 9
Draco was sipping a latte at a café between Ponte Vecchio and Ponte Saint Trinita, far enough away to enjoy the view of the market bridge as well as the view of the Tuscan hills, while managing to avoid the high traffic tourism a mere block away. He had spent the afternoon playing tourist himself, wandering the wizarding section of the Galleria degli Uffizi and was relaxing until sundown, when he would go in search of Blaise.
For the moment, though, he was sitting back and enjoying the lovely afternoon. He took another sip of his drink and watched the two gentlemen at the table next to his attempt to chat up passing females. He watched with only mild interest; the various reactions from the women they chose to call out to were losing their humor, and he had little other interest in blatantly straight muggle men. His eyes moved to the hills in front of him, but his view was obstructed by an unexpected wizard standing nearly on top of his table.
“Malfoy, what are you doing here?”
“I might ask you the same. I don’t suppose the Ministry has finally decided to reprimand me for sleeping with a vampire? You know, I was beginning to think it wasn’t illegal, what with the fatal allergy and all.”
Harry frowned at him. “Why are you involved with vampires? Not enough excitement in your teen years, you need to risk your life as an adult, as well?”
“I am perfectly safe. Blaise has never laid a hand on me in any manner that I did not thoroughly enjoy.”
“Zabini? You’re still with him? But you were with him at the Greengrass wedding…” He sat in the chair opposite absently, much to Draco’s dismay.
Draco raised an eyebrow at him. “How do you know about the Greengrass wedding?”
“I was there undercover. In fact, I owe you some thanks, you introduced me to Regina.”
“Regina Greengrass?”
“Yes, we’re together…well, sort of… at least, we’ve been sleeping together for eight months now…” He looked uncertain and Draco rolled his eyes at him.
“Sleeping together is as far as Regina will allow any relationship to go. She’s a terrible flirt, you know, not to mention a whore.”
Harry immediately looked about to start a duel over her honour, but Draco distracted him before one could take place. “How exactly did I introduce you? I do not remember seeing you at the party.”
“I was polyjuiced as Roger Mortimer. You set me up as her dance partner in your place so you could go shag with Higgs and Zabini. Speaking of which, if anyone’s a whore, it’s you,” he growled, glaring as though he wished lightening would strike the blond down.
“I am not a whore, I am a veela who does not have his mate. I can become ill if I am not intimately touched by another on a regular basis and my senses do not allow me to remain with the same person for extended periods of time. Regina has no such excuse.”
Harry sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. “Why do you always have to be a bastard?”
“Because I’m hoping that you will one day stop speaking to me, though it doesn’t appear to be working.”
“Maybe one day I’ll come to my senses.”
“Indeed.”
“How’s that mate thing going, anyway? Found him yet?”
“Not as of yet, but I’ve been a bit too distracted by vampires lately to really look.”
A smirk crept onto Harry’s face that looked distinctly as though he was hiding a very delicious secret and near bursting to tell it. “I’ll bet ten galleons he’s a muggle.”
Draco let out a puff of frustrated air. “Don’t be absurd, the universe would not choose a magically-inert being to be my life partner.”
“Oh? Why do you say that?”
“Because the universe knows, I’m sure, that I would rather suffer the fate of a veela rejected than to be mated with a muggle.” The blond was impatient to change the subject, displeased and uncomfortable with the fears Potter’s suggestion brought up.
Harry, on the other hand, looked as though he was more than happy to continue along the same thread. “What if he’s a muggleborn?”
Draco wrinkled his nose and shifted in his chair. “I would not be… averse to mating with a muggleborn, as long as he lived exclusively in the wizarding world. I could not abide living anywhere where I would have to restrict my magic. A lover of mine from America lived in a muggle neighbourhood and I hated not being able to apparate.”
Harry looked mildly surprised, but not deterred in his quest to make Draco uncomfortable. “What about a Hufflepuff?”
The blond looked at him in horror. “Don’t joke about things like that! You could subconsciously cast a spell that could make it happen.”
Harry could no longer hold back his laughter. “You’d accept a muggleborn, but not a Hufflepuff? That’s the oddest thing I’ve ever heard.” He took note of the serious, tense expression on Draco’s face and began to feel a little guilty. “Stop worrying, that would never happen. Magic doesn’t work that way.”
“It most certainly can! My grandfather told the Dark Lord that he was cautious enough to not die doing his bidding, and he died of dragon pox a week later. My mother always said he willed it so that he could leave the Dark Lord’s service.”
Harry rolled his eyes and gathered his baggage to him in preparation of leaving. “You’re being superstitious, don’t worry about it. I ought to go, though. I’m due back in London this evening.”
Draco still looked worried, but nodded and brushed him away with a flippant hand gesture, brows contracted in thought.
As Potter passed his chair, he caught a whiff of that familiar spicy scent that had previously caused him to kiss the other man. Momentarily caught, he seized Potter’s wrist and looked up at him. “Have you been to Egypt lately?”
“Yeah, Ron had a falling out with his boyfriend. Why?”
“You have that smell, again. I’d almost forgotten it.”
Harry looked warily at him. “You’re not going to kiss me, again, are you?”
“No, no, of course not. Once was traumatic enough.”
“I agree. I have to go, though. My port key’s in half an hour and the station’s about that far away on foot.”
“Go, then. We wouldn’t want you to miss it.” Harry nodded, waved, and was gone, leaving Draco to sit, pondering what he was going to do. He was stalling, pushing off the inevitable; he could not stay there much longer. Blaise was not his mate and there would come a time when his body became impatient and would reject the vampire. He didn’t want that, didn’t want to hurt or be hurt that way. And so he would have to leave, but where? He didn’t think his mate resided in England. Potter had come back from Egypt twice now smelling irresistible; perhaps his mate was Egyptian. Yes, perhaps that was the answer. He would go back to England for a month to assure himself of his mother’s health and the health of the estate, and then he would go to Egypt. His heart began fluttering; he had the distinct feeling that he was at last on the correct path.
/
Blaise had already risen and was speaking in quiet voices with his sire, both huddled on a settee in the sitting room. Blaise’s eyes went to him immediately and a soft smile crept onto his face. Adriano looked up warily and whispered fervently for a moment more before rising and leaving the room. His relationship with Draco was one of cautions tension. The nature of Draco’s blood put the vampire at ill at ease and he was constantly trying to urge Blaise to leave him, though Blaise denied that he did so. Draco was unconcerned; he was not leaving at the behest of a two-hundred-year-old vampire, but that of his own heart. Blaise gestured him into the seat his sire had just left and wasted no time in kissing him. Draco was momentarily distracted by the intensity of the kiss, but only momentarily.
“I need to speak to you seriously for a moment.” Blaise raised an eyebrow, but made no other motion to deter him. “I’ve begun to feel something… uncomfortable. Not for you particularly, but there’s a general sense of stalling. I need to leave soon, to continue looking for my mate.”
Blaise’s face was a mask of indifference, but a slight tightening of his hand indicated his displeasure. “This is not the fault of Adriano I hope.”
He denied the fear immediately, but did not deem it necessary to mention Potter’s influence. “No, no, of course I have no interest in his discomfort with my species. My leaving is entirely my own decision. I will never be content without my mate and I know that he is not here. Staying here any longer only results in my not finding him sooner.”
“When do you intend this departure?”
“Perhaps next week? I am not certain; I have only just decided as I was returning here.”
Blaise nodded and his indifference turned to a smile. “And did you have a pleasant day out? Was the sun shining?”
“It was. I watched ridiculous muggles paddle around in boats poorly and took a tour of the Uffuzi.”
“Did you finally reach the end of it?”
“Yes, it was lovely. I even wandered a little into the muggle sections out of curiosity.”
“Was there anything of interest?”
“A few works were quite lovely, but it was distracting to have the paintings so still. I don’t know how they stand it, really.”
/
Narcissa was sitting in her usual seat, looking paler than usual, but otherwise reasonably well. He noticed she wore Lucius’s scarf around her neck, covered in preservation charms to hold his scent, and thought perhaps appearances were not always to be trusted. She only wore the scarf when she was at her lowest. He would have to send Potter some sort of gift for jolting him enough to get him home just in time.
His mother glowed upon site of him and rose up to meet him and wrap her arms around him, though the embrace was a weak one. “I’ve missed you, Mother. How have you been?” he asked, looking her face worriedly.
“I have been as well as I usually am. I’ve not seen you in too long, my love.”
“Yes, I know. I was unduly distracted for the last month, I am sorry. I am home for a month, though,” he apologized as they both sat on the settee.
“Indeed? Have you had a falling out with Mr. Zabini?”
“No, but I’ve had a new lead on my mate and I’ve come home to make plans to follow it. And there is, of course, the matter of my missing you terribly.” They shared a warm smile and Narcissa took his hand. He could already see some of her colour returning and summoned an elf for tea in celebration.
“Has much happened in your absence? You say you have found news of your mate. What is it and where did you find it out?”
“Oddly, I received a hint from Potter, if you can believe it. We stumbled upon one another in Florence and I was struck by a certain scent he carried. It isn’t his own, I know, because he only smells of it when returning from visits to his Weasley acquaintances in Egypt. As I have already ruled out Potter himself, I can only conclude that he is in some way connected to that country.”
“Egypt? But it’s so dirty there. The desert wind does not agree with our skin at all, dear, are you certain you must go there?” She looked beseechingly at him, as though she really were worried for the fate of his skin rather than his leaving the country once more.
“It shan’t be for long, I promise. If he is there, I do not anticipate it taking long to find him. I can’t imagine their wizarding society being very large.” She still looked crest-fallen and seemed to be fading a bit at the edges. Worried, he sipped his tea in thought. It took him a moment to notice that his mother was not touching hers. Perhaps it would be best to change the subject and return to Egypt when he had had a longer time to think. “You aren’t drinking your tea, Mother.”
“You know why,” she whispered frigidly, a hint of the cold, poised society woman she once was shining through.
“Mother…”
“I would rather not speak of it. The potion helps as much as anything else has and I am no longer going to live under the farce that I can be helped. Were Severus to make the potion, I doubt it would make a difference.”
Draco’s head snapped up at the name. They had not spoken of Severus since they had gone into hiding. He had not thought she even knew what his fate had been. “Severus, Mother? I do not think he is exactly in a state to make a proper cleaning potion, let alone your calming draught.”
“I do not know about that. He was fairly coherent in the letters he has sent me, given the situation he has been placed in.”
“The letters… Severus Snape sent you a letter?”
“Yes, several actually. He sent the first three weeks ago by this horrible, dirty owl. It quite scared me out of my wits at first, but Barneby retrieved the letter and cleaned it up enough to be read. For all that he is being put through, he has retained his mind quite well.”
“May I see the letters?”
“”If you so desire.” Weena popped into existence before she could even be summoned and held out a short stack of very grimy-looking envelops. Draco quickly took them and opened the first. The hand writing was shaky, but still recognizable as his professor’s, and the style was his same stoic, straight-forward voice, though it was a bit darker than usual and at times not entirely coherent.
“He sounds to be doing remarkably well. I was not aware that prisoners were allowed correspondence, though.”
“Until recently they were not. According to a later letter, the Ministry has changed the prison restrictions. The letters are still heavily examined for any untoward material, though.”
“What made him write to you?” She averted her eyes and took a sip of her tea, doubtless cold by then. Draco’s suspicion went immediately up. “Mother, why would Severus Snape write to you?”
“Perhaps I am the only person he thought likely to answer.”
Draco’s eyes narrowed. “Perhaps you’ve visited him and he knew you would answer.” From the slight flinch of one hand, he knew he was right and concern and fear immediately sprang in him. “Mother, Azkaban is the last place you need be visiting! You are weak and, Aurors or not, the Dementers would no doubt delight in making a meal of you.”
“I had protection; Harry Potter was with me, though he was most upset to be so near Severus.”
“Potter escorted you to visit Severus? Why didn’t you mention this?”
“I knew you would react this way. I was perfectly safe. He never left my side.”
“Why was he even there? You’ve never been introduced.”
“He insists on being present any time Severus is taken from his cell. I had to wait three weeks before going specifically so that he could be there. I can not understand why, though. He was so polite when greeting me, but he became very tense as soon as Severus was brought into the room. It is clear that he dislikes him.”
“He was present at Dumbeldore’s murder, if you will remember.”
“As were you, and yet he does not hate you.”
“We’ve slowly been resolving our differences. There was a very long time during which he did.”
“Indeed?” Draco nodded and refilled his mother’s tea, pleased that she had been distracted enough to finish it. The potion would do a great deal towards bringing some of her vibrancy back, maybe even combat the damage her visit to Azkaban had no doubt caused.
“He’s sleeping with Regina Greengrass.”
Narcissa looked almost shocked by the news. “Where on earth did you hear that?”
“From Potter, when I ran into him in Florence. He thanked me for introducing him to her, which I apparently did at Daphne’s wedding.”
“Indeed? Well, at least he has distracted her from her new son-in-law. I do hope he knows of her reputation, though. I would hate to see him become a victim of her coquettish behaviour.”
Draco raised an eyebrow in surprise. How polite had Potter been to her that she would show any sort of concern for him, stranger that he was to her? He would have to remember to ask him what precisely went on at the prison the next time they met. “I was quick to inform him that she is a whore, though he was decidedly displeased with me for it.”
Narcissa narrowed her eyes. “Language, dear, you may call her what she is without using vulgarity.” Draco resisted the urge to roll his eyes and kissed her cheek instead.
/
The sun was shining beautifully that afternoon on a table in a small café somewhere in the middle of Covet Garden. Justin sat at one of the outermost tables, a cup of tea sitting untouched in front of him and a very disgruntled look on his face as he tried his best to placate the very infuriating Mr. Pranskin of the Muggle Ministry.
"Yes, I understand that, sir. I'm really not sure why someone would charm all the photographs to move in lewd ways, sir. I will contact Arthur Weasley immediately and have him send an agent to the photo center. This will be fixed right away and no one will be the wiser, you have my word. Yes, of course, sir. No, sir, none of the muggles will remember the incident. Sir, that was not a derogatory remark, my parents are muggles. Please, sir, if you will just lower your voice. I promise, I will go to Arthur's office as soon as I am off the phone with you. Of course, sir. I am very sorry that this has happened, sir. Yes, yes, of course. I will contact you as soon as I have spoken to him. All right, good day, sir." Sighing, he rubbed the bridge of his nose and set the phone down on the table. This had been a long day and now he couldn't even finish his tea.
"Trouble in muggleland?" A smooth voice asked as its owner slid into the chair opposite him.
Justin registered a minor amount of shock, "Malfoy? Since when do you set foot in Muggle London, let alone this far in?" He stared at the sleek blond leaning over the small table and swivelling the stirring spoon in his tea lazily.
"My wanderings know no bounds. What brings you here? And please, do explain precisely what this contraption is. I've seen at least a hundred muggles talking into them and I can't figure out what they are." He had left the spoon to swivel idly as he picked up the mobile phone, looking it over curiously. He was still leaning a little close for Justin's comfort.
"It's called a mobile phone. You use it to talk to other people."
"Really? Like a two-way mirror?" He looked fascinated, his grey eyes large and glinting with wonder as he experimentally pushed buttons.
"Kind of, except it isn't connected to just one phone. Each phone has a specific number attached to it and you dial that number to contact the person holding it."
"Really? How inventive… I don't think I give muggles enough credit."
"Yes, well, they aren't stupid, you know."
"Of course not…" He smirked seductively and slid the phone back to Justin, turning his eyes to his face. “Why don't you tell me more about how that contraption works?"
"I'd love to, really, but I have to get back to the office. Trouble in muggleland, as you put it." He stood and pulled out his wallet to drop a few pounds onto the table.
Draco stood as well, shortening the distance between them rather easily. He trailed a finger teasingly down the buttons on Justin's dress shirt. "Perhaps over dinner then?"
Justin once more looked shocked. "I'm sorry, are you asking me out on a date?"
"Indeed, I am. Is there anything wrong with that?"
"Well, you hate muggle-borns, which would include me, so yes. There's something very wrong with that."
Draco's smirk turned predatory as he leaned in closer. "Let's just say my ideals have… changed."
"Really? Just like that? Twenty-two years of prejudice gone in an instant so you can get into my trousers? I don't think so. I may have been a Hufflepuff, but I am certainly not ignorant."
"Justin, Justin, Justin, honestly, don't be so hasty. I stopped caring about muggle-born prejudices long before now. A little after school ended, actually… A few things have… come to light, and all my prejudices just seemed to sort of melt away."
"Really? And what was this epiphany then?"
He shook his head, leaning a little closer. "I can't tell you that; that would be cheating. Now will you come to dinner with me tonight or not?"
Determined to stay firm in his refusal, he opened his mouth only to shut it again when his head became a bit foggy. Draco did look incredibly sexy, and agile, and sensuous, and did he mention sexy? Those lips were just begging to be ravished. What would one dinner hurt? He was being pleasant, if a bit touchy. "What time?"
"You can pick me up at 8. I'm sure you can find out where I live without a problem? If anything else, Ernie MacMillan could scrounge it up from his Magical Creatures file."
"Why would they have your address in the Magical Creatures department?"
Draco only smiled lasciviously and leaned up to place a tiny kiss behind Justin's ear, "You'll see." He turned to go, leaving Justin standing next to the table transfixed for several minutes before remembering what he had been meaning to do before Draco swaggered into his life. He quickly grabbed his things and apparated back to the Ministry. Once the situation was settled with Mr. Pranskin and the muggle photography shop, he made his way down to the Magical Creatures department to discuss Malfoy with Ernie. The man was sitting at his desk, shuffling through paperwork, and he looked as if he had yet to eat lunch. Justin knew he hadn't because Ernie was one of those workers that never knew when to stop and now that he was running the department, his ruthless work ethic was bound to have expounded. He figured now was as good a time as any to force his friend into a break.
"You'll never guess who I ran into today." Ernie, having not seen or heard Justin's entrance into the cushy office, jumped about a foot in shock and searched around until he caught sight of him.
"Merlin, Fletchly, trying to murder me? What's with the stealth?"
Justin only laughed and shook his head, plopping down in one of the leather chairs in front of Ernie's desk. "You were too engrossed in your work to notice me. Time for a break, I need some information."
"And what information would that be?"
"Well, it's the strangest thing. I ran into Malfoy today and you'll never guess what happened…"
"He tried to hit on you?" Ernie looked tired by the notion and rubbed at one of his eyes as he began shuffling again.
"Yeah, how'd you guess?"
"He's been pretty active since his instinct came in. He's searching for his mate. Apparently, you're the next target."
"Target? Mate? What?"
"As odd as this might seem, Malfoy is half veela. Both his parents were half, which explains a lot about how Lucius was able to persuade so many people to do his bidding. He hit 'puberty' about three years ago and, since veela mate for life and are never completely content without their mate, he's been on the look-out for his ever since. Been travelling around, luring innocent men into his bed. He hasn't fully grasped the concept that it isn't necessary for him to have sex with every wizard on the planet just to find out who his mate is yet, and since I pretty much despise the git, I haven't deemed it necessary to explain. Since we regulate the breeding of magical creatures and he's technically a magical creature, he has to check in every few weeks and let us know what he's doing, if he's found him, who he's gone through, that sort of thing. A male veela's never actually successfully been able to reproduce without another veela before, but we're still watching him just to make sure."
"So wait… he's a veela? Why's he looking at me?"
"You're potential in his book. Like I said, he doesn't grasp the concept of scent very well. He thinks you have to have sex in order to know. It's really a lot easier than that. All he has to do is be within the vicinity of his mate's scent and it'll hit him like a jelly-legs curse. He won't be able to function properly until he's made physical contact with him. But, like I said, I don't like him enough to let him know. And I think he likes all the mind-blowing sex anyway. He certainly raves about it in his reports." He rolled his eyes and opened a drawer to riffle through a few files.
"He thinks I might be his mate then?"
"Yes, but I doubt you are. Was he acting like he was a little bit drunk when you talked to him?"
"No, he was very smooth. Acted like his normal self, minus the hitting on a muggle-born."
Ernie nodded and finally found the file he needed, handing it to Justin. "Then you're safe. Although, if you want to go anyway, here's his address. Like I said, the sex is amazing."
"Do I look like a manwhore or something?" He raised an eyebrow, glancing at the folder he had just been handed. A small card was paper clipped to the front with Draco's name, date of birth, residence, classification, and a picture that smirked up at him, but otherwise looked rather bored.
Ernie rolled his eyes and leaned back in his chair. "You don't have to be a whore to appreciate veela sex, believe me; it's irresistible."
"Have you… with him?" His eyebrows had managed to make it all the way into his hairline and his eyes were slightly larger than normal.
He straightened and smoothed down his shirt sleeves, avoiding Justin's eyes. "He wasn't exactly pleased when we informed him of the necessity to register with us and turn in weekly reports. He rather resents the reports, which I can entirely understand. They can tend to be rather… intrusive. Anyway, at our first meeting, he was sullen and, unsurprisingly, not cooperative at all. He cursed me from here to India and back when I started probing into his sex life. He turned on his pheromones to bend me to his will, I guess, and the next thing I knew, we were naked and sweaty in a stall of the men’s room, going at it. Rather embarrassing, actually. He was my first veela case and no one bothered to inform me that they use their power of attraction against you if you piss them off. Some sort of ridiculous initiation, bloody ruthless if you ask me." He sniffed and flipped a wisp of hair to the side of his forehead. "Regardless, it was quite good and I most certainly recommend trying it. If anything, he's not exactly bad on the eyes."
Justin only stared at him, unable to say anything. The thought of beautiful Draco Malfoy allowing Ernie to have sex with him, of actually seducing Ernie, seemed… beyond all comprehensible thought. Ernie was all right, if one was a woman, he supposed, but Draco Malfoy was aesthetically perfect. Was he comfortable seeing someone who had slept with Ernie already? Would Draco want more than just sex? Could he handle being with Draco if it was just sex, especially after the fiasco with Orin? Sighing to himself, he stole a piece of parchment from Ernie’s desk and jotted down the address. He would keep the information and think it over when he got home. For now, he had to get back to work. “I’ll have to think about it, but thank you for the information. I should be getting back to my department before my supervisor starts wondering about me.”
“Not a problem; let me know if you go, will you?”
“’Course, you’ll be the first person I tell.” They exchanged a smile and Justin headed back down to his office, address tucked safely into his robes.
/
Justin walked hesitantly up to the address he had been given, wary of the haggard appearance of the building in from of him. It was a turn-of-the-century abandoned-looking factory with several broken windows and graffiti all along the lower floors. He peered at the buzzer and was surprised to see that D. Malfoy was the fifth option. He pressed it with some trepidation and jumped several inches when a house elf’s voice floated onto the street. “Master Draco is still dressing; he is wanting Mr. Finch-Fletchly to come inside and wait.”
Justin stared at the boarded-up door. “How?”
“Mr. Finch-Fletchly is walking through the door and taking the lift to the fifth floor.”
“But the door is boarded up.”
The house elf must have been confused because there was a muffled question, and then Draco’s clear voice. “Remind him that he is not a muggle and neither is this a muggle neighbourhood.”
Justin understood immediately and hurried to walk through the magical allusion and into the elegant lobby. A man who looked to be half-troll stood to the side, eyeing him menacingly. He gave the man a hesitant smile, made his way to the lift, and rode it to the correct floor. The doors opened to a sleek entry way and a tiny house elf who bowed low to him. “Master is welcoming you to his home. He is asking you to wait in the sitting room. Is you wanting a drink?”
Justin smiled and shook his head. “Thank you, but no. Do you know how long he will be?”
The elf looked hesitant. “Master is wanting to look perfect.” Reading him to mean that it could be a while, he took a seat on the soda and looked around at the elegant décor.
Fifteen minutes later, slim arms slid around his neck from behind and hot breath whispered into his ear, “Been waiting long?”
Justin turned in surprise and smiled at the sight of the blond. Grey, fitted robes clung to his every curve and certainly made him look every bit the perfection the elf had promised. “You look amazing.”
Draco grinned enigmatically at him. “Thank you. Shall we?” He nodded and stood as Draco circled the sofa. “I’ve not heard of the restaurant, so you’ll have to guide me,” he said as he wrapped his arms around Justin’s neck and pressed close to him. Justin was distracted enough to almost lose his concentration, but he managed to apparate them both in one piece.
The host grinned upon sight of them and quickly headed to them. “Mr. Malfoy, how lovely to see you. I had not seen your name on the reservation list.”
Justin raised an eyebrow, but said nothing. Draco let go of him long enough to kiss the man’s cheeks, no signs visible of his lying. “That is because our reservation is for Finch-Fletchly. This is Justin, my date. Justin, this is Alberto.”
They shook hands and Alberto took them to the best table in the restaurant. Justin waited until the waiter had gone to get their drinks before playfully kicking the blond under the table. “I thought you’d never heard of his place.”
“They’ve changed the name…” he murmured mysteriously, looking down at his menu with a little smirk.
Justin smirked right back. “No, they have not. We took Ernie here for his birthday two years ago.”
“Seduction is completely beyond you, isn’t it?”
The Hufflepuff blinked at him in surprise. “You were seducing me?”
“Yes, of course. I was tempted just to drag you into the bedroom without dinner, but I thought I might offend your Hufflepuff sense of propriety or the like.”
Justin snorted and held up his menu to hide his smirk. The rest of the evening went well and he didn’t hesitate before agreeing to come up. Not that Draco’s tongue shoved down his throat gave him any room to protest.
/
Draco woke the next morning to arms around him and for the first time in a long time, nothing nagged at him. He felt warm, comforted… safe. His eyes immediately flew open and he craned his neck to look at his bed partner. Justin was still blissfully asleep, snoring rather loudly; his nose was lifted an inch higher than what looked natural, as though it had been buried in blond hair until he turned his head. Snoring usually grated on his nerves like nothing else, but for the moment he remained unbothered. Carefully, he turned his body towards the other man, fingers splaying out on his chest. His cautious movement was in vain because a moment later the arms around him pulled him in tighter and brown, smiling eyes were peering back at him. “Hi,” Justin whispered voice still scratchy from sleep.
Draco nudged his nose against Justin’s cheek and kissed his jaw, unable to stop himself from touching as much as he could. “Morning,” he whispered back, distracted by the need to kiss. This was new, this draw to touch and be touched, so insistent where it had always been only a pleasant hum before. Justin didn’t complain, though, only arched his neck to allow better access and moaned into the nearest ear. The urge was made more insistent with the sound and Draco found himself crawling on top, kissing every part of his face, pressing his hips forward in a wanton way that he normally never felt the morning after a long and satisfying bedroom session. Justin was only surprised by his forwardness for a moment before he leaned up to capture his lips, pulling him down close. A spell was whispered and then Justin was pushing up into him, slowly but deeply. Draco was keening, feverish, almost resembling a cat in heat. Justin gently rolled them over, pressing the blond into the pillows, kissed him. Draco kissed back with open eyes, staring at him in a mixture of passion and wonder. When they pulled apart, Draco looked dazed and a word kept forming on his mouth, but no voice could be heard and Justin couldn’t read his lips, and so he kissed him again.
Orgasm hit without warning for both of them, triggered by a rush of hormones in the air, and they strained against each other in the rush. Justin dropped his forehead to the blond’s shoulder, felt lips hot on his ear, and a whispered “Mate.” He stared down at his lover, but Draco was already settling in to sleep again, dishevelled but beautiful, and he decided that he would ask later. For now, he moved to the side and gathered the blond in his arms. Sleep came faster than he thought it would.
/
Form: 83352739
Name: Draco Malfoy
Registry Number: 625369
Date: 14 Aug 2002
Age: 22
Mate: Justin Finch-Fletchly─ possibly. If he is, I’m killing Potter.
Current Location: London, England
Number of Sexual Encounter(s): 2
Name(s) of Partner(s): Justin Finch-Fletchly 2(M)
Age(s) of Partner(s): 21
Species of Partner(s): wizard
Description of Sexual Encounter(s): I’m reacting to Justin in a way I’ve never reacted before, almost as though I were in heat. Does this mean he is my mate?
Was non-Veela magic used during the encounter(s)?: Yes
If so, what spell or potion was used and what were its affects?: Standard lubrication charm.
Did any encounter result in pregnancy?:
Was Veela Power used in any manner not involved in finding a mate?: Yes
If so, how and why?: The usual.
Comments: I’m worried and would like an appointment to meet with you to discuss the possibility of Finch-Fletchly being my mate. Please owl immediately with an available time. Thank you.
>
PS- Thank you to my wonderful beta, domtheknight.
Chapter 9
Draco was sipping a latte at a café between Ponte Vecchio and Ponte Saint Trinita, far enough away to enjoy the view of the market bridge as well as the view of the Tuscan hills, while managing to avoid the high traffic tourism a mere block away. He had spent the afternoon playing tourist himself, wandering the wizarding section of the Galleria degli Uffizi and was relaxing until sundown, when he would go in search of Blaise.
For the moment, though, he was sitting back and enjoying the lovely afternoon. He took another sip of his drink and watched the two gentlemen at the table next to his attempt to chat up passing females. He watched with only mild interest; the various reactions from the women they chose to call out to were losing their humor, and he had little other interest in blatantly straight muggle men. His eyes moved to the hills in front of him, but his view was obstructed by an unexpected wizard standing nearly on top of his table.
“Malfoy, what are you doing here?”
“I might ask you the same. I don’t suppose the Ministry has finally decided to reprimand me for sleeping with a vampire? You know, I was beginning to think it wasn’t illegal, what with the fatal allergy and all.”
Harry frowned at him. “Why are you involved with vampires? Not enough excitement in your teen years, you need to risk your life as an adult, as well?”
“I am perfectly safe. Blaise has never laid a hand on me in any manner that I did not thoroughly enjoy.”
“Zabini? You’re still with him? But you were with him at the Greengrass wedding…” He sat in the chair opposite absently, much to Draco’s dismay.
Draco raised an eyebrow at him. “How do you know about the Greengrass wedding?”
“I was there undercover. In fact, I owe you some thanks, you introduced me to Regina.”
“Regina Greengrass?”
“Yes, we’re together…well, sort of… at least, we’ve been sleeping together for eight months now…” He looked uncertain and Draco rolled his eyes at him.
“Sleeping together is as far as Regina will allow any relationship to go. She’s a terrible flirt, you know, not to mention a whore.”
Harry immediately looked about to start a duel over her honour, but Draco distracted him before one could take place. “How exactly did I introduce you? I do not remember seeing you at the party.”
“I was polyjuiced as Roger Mortimer. You set me up as her dance partner in your place so you could go shag with Higgs and Zabini. Speaking of which, if anyone’s a whore, it’s you,” he growled, glaring as though he wished lightening would strike the blond down.
“I am not a whore, I am a veela who does not have his mate. I can become ill if I am not intimately touched by another on a regular basis and my senses do not allow me to remain with the same person for extended periods of time. Regina has no such excuse.”
Harry sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. “Why do you always have to be a bastard?”
“Because I’m hoping that you will one day stop speaking to me, though it doesn’t appear to be working.”
“Maybe one day I’ll come to my senses.”
“Indeed.”
“How’s that mate thing going, anyway? Found him yet?”
“Not as of yet, but I’ve been a bit too distracted by vampires lately to really look.”
A smirk crept onto Harry’s face that looked distinctly as though he was hiding a very delicious secret and near bursting to tell it. “I’ll bet ten galleons he’s a muggle.”
Draco let out a puff of frustrated air. “Don’t be absurd, the universe would not choose a magically-inert being to be my life partner.”
“Oh? Why do you say that?”
“Because the universe knows, I’m sure, that I would rather suffer the fate of a veela rejected than to be mated with a muggle.” The blond was impatient to change the subject, displeased and uncomfortable with the fears Potter’s suggestion brought up.
Harry, on the other hand, looked as though he was more than happy to continue along the same thread. “What if he’s a muggleborn?”
Draco wrinkled his nose and shifted in his chair. “I would not be… averse to mating with a muggleborn, as long as he lived exclusively in the wizarding world. I could not abide living anywhere where I would have to restrict my magic. A lover of mine from America lived in a muggle neighbourhood and I hated not being able to apparate.”
Harry looked mildly surprised, but not deterred in his quest to make Draco uncomfortable. “What about a Hufflepuff?”
The blond looked at him in horror. “Don’t joke about things like that! You could subconsciously cast a spell that could make it happen.”
Harry could no longer hold back his laughter. “You’d accept a muggleborn, but not a Hufflepuff? That’s the oddest thing I’ve ever heard.” He took note of the serious, tense expression on Draco’s face and began to feel a little guilty. “Stop worrying, that would never happen. Magic doesn’t work that way.”
“It most certainly can! My grandfather told the Dark Lord that he was cautious enough to not die doing his bidding, and he died of dragon pox a week later. My mother always said he willed it so that he could leave the Dark Lord’s service.”
Harry rolled his eyes and gathered his baggage to him in preparation of leaving. “You’re being superstitious, don’t worry about it. I ought to go, though. I’m due back in London this evening.”
Draco still looked worried, but nodded and brushed him away with a flippant hand gesture, brows contracted in thought.
As Potter passed his chair, he caught a whiff of that familiar spicy scent that had previously caused him to kiss the other man. Momentarily caught, he seized Potter’s wrist and looked up at him. “Have you been to Egypt lately?”
“Yeah, Ron had a falling out with his boyfriend. Why?”
“You have that smell, again. I’d almost forgotten it.”
Harry looked warily at him. “You’re not going to kiss me, again, are you?”
“No, no, of course not. Once was traumatic enough.”
“I agree. I have to go, though. My port key’s in half an hour and the station’s about that far away on foot.”
“Go, then. We wouldn’t want you to miss it.” Harry nodded, waved, and was gone, leaving Draco to sit, pondering what he was going to do. He was stalling, pushing off the inevitable; he could not stay there much longer. Blaise was not his mate and there would come a time when his body became impatient and would reject the vampire. He didn’t want that, didn’t want to hurt or be hurt that way. And so he would have to leave, but where? He didn’t think his mate resided in England. Potter had come back from Egypt twice now smelling irresistible; perhaps his mate was Egyptian. Yes, perhaps that was the answer. He would go back to England for a month to assure himself of his mother’s health and the health of the estate, and then he would go to Egypt. His heart began fluttering; he had the distinct feeling that he was at last on the correct path.
/
Blaise had already risen and was speaking in quiet voices with his sire, both huddled on a settee in the sitting room. Blaise’s eyes went to him immediately and a soft smile crept onto his face. Adriano looked up warily and whispered fervently for a moment more before rising and leaving the room. His relationship with Draco was one of cautions tension. The nature of Draco’s blood put the vampire at ill at ease and he was constantly trying to urge Blaise to leave him, though Blaise denied that he did so. Draco was unconcerned; he was not leaving at the behest of a two-hundred-year-old vampire, but that of his own heart. Blaise gestured him into the seat his sire had just left and wasted no time in kissing him. Draco was momentarily distracted by the intensity of the kiss, but only momentarily.
“I need to speak to you seriously for a moment.” Blaise raised an eyebrow, but made no other motion to deter him. “I’ve begun to feel something… uncomfortable. Not for you particularly, but there’s a general sense of stalling. I need to leave soon, to continue looking for my mate.”
Blaise’s face was a mask of indifference, but a slight tightening of his hand indicated his displeasure. “This is not the fault of Adriano I hope.”
He denied the fear immediately, but did not deem it necessary to mention Potter’s influence. “No, no, of course I have no interest in his discomfort with my species. My leaving is entirely my own decision. I will never be content without my mate and I know that he is not here. Staying here any longer only results in my not finding him sooner.”
“When do you intend this departure?”
“Perhaps next week? I am not certain; I have only just decided as I was returning here.”
Blaise nodded and his indifference turned to a smile. “And did you have a pleasant day out? Was the sun shining?”
“It was. I watched ridiculous muggles paddle around in boats poorly and took a tour of the Uffuzi.”
“Did you finally reach the end of it?”
“Yes, it was lovely. I even wandered a little into the muggle sections out of curiosity.”
“Was there anything of interest?”
“A few works were quite lovely, but it was distracting to have the paintings so still. I don’t know how they stand it, really.”
/
Narcissa was sitting in her usual seat, looking paler than usual, but otherwise reasonably well. He noticed she wore Lucius’s scarf around her neck, covered in preservation charms to hold his scent, and thought perhaps appearances were not always to be trusted. She only wore the scarf when she was at her lowest. He would have to send Potter some sort of gift for jolting him enough to get him home just in time.
His mother glowed upon site of him and rose up to meet him and wrap her arms around him, though the embrace was a weak one. “I’ve missed you, Mother. How have you been?” he asked, looking her face worriedly.
“I have been as well as I usually am. I’ve not seen you in too long, my love.”
“Yes, I know. I was unduly distracted for the last month, I am sorry. I am home for a month, though,” he apologized as they both sat on the settee.
“Indeed? Have you had a falling out with Mr. Zabini?”
“No, but I’ve had a new lead on my mate and I’ve come home to make plans to follow it. And there is, of course, the matter of my missing you terribly.” They shared a warm smile and Narcissa took his hand. He could already see some of her colour returning and summoned an elf for tea in celebration.
“Has much happened in your absence? You say you have found news of your mate. What is it and where did you find it out?”
“Oddly, I received a hint from Potter, if you can believe it. We stumbled upon one another in Florence and I was struck by a certain scent he carried. It isn’t his own, I know, because he only smells of it when returning from visits to his Weasley acquaintances in Egypt. As I have already ruled out Potter himself, I can only conclude that he is in some way connected to that country.”
“Egypt? But it’s so dirty there. The desert wind does not agree with our skin at all, dear, are you certain you must go there?” She looked beseechingly at him, as though she really were worried for the fate of his skin rather than his leaving the country once more.
“It shan’t be for long, I promise. If he is there, I do not anticipate it taking long to find him. I can’t imagine their wizarding society being very large.” She still looked crest-fallen and seemed to be fading a bit at the edges. Worried, he sipped his tea in thought. It took him a moment to notice that his mother was not touching hers. Perhaps it would be best to change the subject and return to Egypt when he had had a longer time to think. “You aren’t drinking your tea, Mother.”
“You know why,” she whispered frigidly, a hint of the cold, poised society woman she once was shining through.
“Mother…”
“I would rather not speak of it. The potion helps as much as anything else has and I am no longer going to live under the farce that I can be helped. Were Severus to make the potion, I doubt it would make a difference.”
Draco’s head snapped up at the name. They had not spoken of Severus since they had gone into hiding. He had not thought she even knew what his fate had been. “Severus, Mother? I do not think he is exactly in a state to make a proper cleaning potion, let alone your calming draught.”
“I do not know about that. He was fairly coherent in the letters he has sent me, given the situation he has been placed in.”
“The letters… Severus Snape sent you a letter?”
“Yes, several actually. He sent the first three weeks ago by this horrible, dirty owl. It quite scared me out of my wits at first, but Barneby retrieved the letter and cleaned it up enough to be read. For all that he is being put through, he has retained his mind quite well.”
“May I see the letters?”
“”If you so desire.” Weena popped into existence before she could even be summoned and held out a short stack of very grimy-looking envelops. Draco quickly took them and opened the first. The hand writing was shaky, but still recognizable as his professor’s, and the style was his same stoic, straight-forward voice, though it was a bit darker than usual and at times not entirely coherent.
“He sounds to be doing remarkably well. I was not aware that prisoners were allowed correspondence, though.”
“Until recently they were not. According to a later letter, the Ministry has changed the prison restrictions. The letters are still heavily examined for any untoward material, though.”
“What made him write to you?” She averted her eyes and took a sip of her tea, doubtless cold by then. Draco’s suspicion went immediately up. “Mother, why would Severus Snape write to you?”
“Perhaps I am the only person he thought likely to answer.”
Draco’s eyes narrowed. “Perhaps you’ve visited him and he knew you would answer.” From the slight flinch of one hand, he knew he was right and concern and fear immediately sprang in him. “Mother, Azkaban is the last place you need be visiting! You are weak and, Aurors or not, the Dementers would no doubt delight in making a meal of you.”
“I had protection; Harry Potter was with me, though he was most upset to be so near Severus.”
“Potter escorted you to visit Severus? Why didn’t you mention this?”
“I knew you would react this way. I was perfectly safe. He never left my side.”
“Why was he even there? You’ve never been introduced.”
“He insists on being present any time Severus is taken from his cell. I had to wait three weeks before going specifically so that he could be there. I can not understand why, though. He was so polite when greeting me, but he became very tense as soon as Severus was brought into the room. It is clear that he dislikes him.”
“He was present at Dumbeldore’s murder, if you will remember.”
“As were you, and yet he does not hate you.”
“We’ve slowly been resolving our differences. There was a very long time during which he did.”
“Indeed?” Draco nodded and refilled his mother’s tea, pleased that she had been distracted enough to finish it. The potion would do a great deal towards bringing some of her vibrancy back, maybe even combat the damage her visit to Azkaban had no doubt caused.
“He’s sleeping with Regina Greengrass.”
Narcissa looked almost shocked by the news. “Where on earth did you hear that?”
“From Potter, when I ran into him in Florence. He thanked me for introducing him to her, which I apparently did at Daphne’s wedding.”
“Indeed? Well, at least he has distracted her from her new son-in-law. I do hope he knows of her reputation, though. I would hate to see him become a victim of her coquettish behaviour.”
Draco raised an eyebrow in surprise. How polite had Potter been to her that she would show any sort of concern for him, stranger that he was to her? He would have to remember to ask him what precisely went on at the prison the next time they met. “I was quick to inform him that she is a whore, though he was decidedly displeased with me for it.”
Narcissa narrowed her eyes. “Language, dear, you may call her what she is without using vulgarity.” Draco resisted the urge to roll his eyes and kissed her cheek instead.
/
The sun was shining beautifully that afternoon on a table in a small café somewhere in the middle of Covet Garden. Justin sat at one of the outermost tables, a cup of tea sitting untouched in front of him and a very disgruntled look on his face as he tried his best to placate the very infuriating Mr. Pranskin of the Muggle Ministry.
"Yes, I understand that, sir. I'm really not sure why someone would charm all the photographs to move in lewd ways, sir. I will contact Arthur Weasley immediately and have him send an agent to the photo center. This will be fixed right away and no one will be the wiser, you have my word. Yes, of course, sir. No, sir, none of the muggles will remember the incident. Sir, that was not a derogatory remark, my parents are muggles. Please, sir, if you will just lower your voice. I promise, I will go to Arthur's office as soon as I am off the phone with you. Of course, sir. I am very sorry that this has happened, sir. Yes, yes, of course. I will contact you as soon as I have spoken to him. All right, good day, sir." Sighing, he rubbed the bridge of his nose and set the phone down on the table. This had been a long day and now he couldn't even finish his tea.
"Trouble in muggleland?" A smooth voice asked as its owner slid into the chair opposite him.
Justin registered a minor amount of shock, "Malfoy? Since when do you set foot in Muggle London, let alone this far in?" He stared at the sleek blond leaning over the small table and swivelling the stirring spoon in his tea lazily.
"My wanderings know no bounds. What brings you here? And please, do explain precisely what this contraption is. I've seen at least a hundred muggles talking into them and I can't figure out what they are." He had left the spoon to swivel idly as he picked up the mobile phone, looking it over curiously. He was still leaning a little close for Justin's comfort.
"It's called a mobile phone. You use it to talk to other people."
"Really? Like a two-way mirror?" He looked fascinated, his grey eyes large and glinting with wonder as he experimentally pushed buttons.
"Kind of, except it isn't connected to just one phone. Each phone has a specific number attached to it and you dial that number to contact the person holding it."
"Really? How inventive… I don't think I give muggles enough credit."
"Yes, well, they aren't stupid, you know."
"Of course not…" He smirked seductively and slid the phone back to Justin, turning his eyes to his face. “Why don't you tell me more about how that contraption works?"
"I'd love to, really, but I have to get back to the office. Trouble in muggleland, as you put it." He stood and pulled out his wallet to drop a few pounds onto the table.
Draco stood as well, shortening the distance between them rather easily. He trailed a finger teasingly down the buttons on Justin's dress shirt. "Perhaps over dinner then?"
Justin once more looked shocked. "I'm sorry, are you asking me out on a date?"
"Indeed, I am. Is there anything wrong with that?"
"Well, you hate muggle-borns, which would include me, so yes. There's something very wrong with that."
Draco's smirk turned predatory as he leaned in closer. "Let's just say my ideals have… changed."
"Really? Just like that? Twenty-two years of prejudice gone in an instant so you can get into my trousers? I don't think so. I may have been a Hufflepuff, but I am certainly not ignorant."
"Justin, Justin, Justin, honestly, don't be so hasty. I stopped caring about muggle-born prejudices long before now. A little after school ended, actually… A few things have… come to light, and all my prejudices just seemed to sort of melt away."
"Really? And what was this epiphany then?"
He shook his head, leaning a little closer. "I can't tell you that; that would be cheating. Now will you come to dinner with me tonight or not?"
Determined to stay firm in his refusal, he opened his mouth only to shut it again when his head became a bit foggy. Draco did look incredibly sexy, and agile, and sensuous, and did he mention sexy? Those lips were just begging to be ravished. What would one dinner hurt? He was being pleasant, if a bit touchy. "What time?"
"You can pick me up at 8. I'm sure you can find out where I live without a problem? If anything else, Ernie MacMillan could scrounge it up from his Magical Creatures file."
"Why would they have your address in the Magical Creatures department?"
Draco only smiled lasciviously and leaned up to place a tiny kiss behind Justin's ear, "You'll see." He turned to go, leaving Justin standing next to the table transfixed for several minutes before remembering what he had been meaning to do before Draco swaggered into his life. He quickly grabbed his things and apparated back to the Ministry. Once the situation was settled with Mr. Pranskin and the muggle photography shop, he made his way down to the Magical Creatures department to discuss Malfoy with Ernie. The man was sitting at his desk, shuffling through paperwork, and he looked as if he had yet to eat lunch. Justin knew he hadn't because Ernie was one of those workers that never knew when to stop and now that he was running the department, his ruthless work ethic was bound to have expounded. He figured now was as good a time as any to force his friend into a break.
"You'll never guess who I ran into today." Ernie, having not seen or heard Justin's entrance into the cushy office, jumped about a foot in shock and searched around until he caught sight of him.
"Merlin, Fletchly, trying to murder me? What's with the stealth?"
Justin only laughed and shook his head, plopping down in one of the leather chairs in front of Ernie's desk. "You were too engrossed in your work to notice me. Time for a break, I need some information."
"And what information would that be?"
"Well, it's the strangest thing. I ran into Malfoy today and you'll never guess what happened…"
"He tried to hit on you?" Ernie looked tired by the notion and rubbed at one of his eyes as he began shuffling again.
"Yeah, how'd you guess?"
"He's been pretty active since his instinct came in. He's searching for his mate. Apparently, you're the next target."
"Target? Mate? What?"
"As odd as this might seem, Malfoy is half veela. Both his parents were half, which explains a lot about how Lucius was able to persuade so many people to do his bidding. He hit 'puberty' about three years ago and, since veela mate for life and are never completely content without their mate, he's been on the look-out for his ever since. Been travelling around, luring innocent men into his bed. He hasn't fully grasped the concept that it isn't necessary for him to have sex with every wizard on the planet just to find out who his mate is yet, and since I pretty much despise the git, I haven't deemed it necessary to explain. Since we regulate the breeding of magical creatures and he's technically a magical creature, he has to check in every few weeks and let us know what he's doing, if he's found him, who he's gone through, that sort of thing. A male veela's never actually successfully been able to reproduce without another veela before, but we're still watching him just to make sure."
"So wait… he's a veela? Why's he looking at me?"
"You're potential in his book. Like I said, he doesn't grasp the concept of scent very well. He thinks you have to have sex in order to know. It's really a lot easier than that. All he has to do is be within the vicinity of his mate's scent and it'll hit him like a jelly-legs curse. He won't be able to function properly until he's made physical contact with him. But, like I said, I don't like him enough to let him know. And I think he likes all the mind-blowing sex anyway. He certainly raves about it in his reports." He rolled his eyes and opened a drawer to riffle through a few files.
"He thinks I might be his mate then?"
"Yes, but I doubt you are. Was he acting like he was a little bit drunk when you talked to him?"
"No, he was very smooth. Acted like his normal self, minus the hitting on a muggle-born."
Ernie nodded and finally found the file he needed, handing it to Justin. "Then you're safe. Although, if you want to go anyway, here's his address. Like I said, the sex is amazing."
"Do I look like a manwhore or something?" He raised an eyebrow, glancing at the folder he had just been handed. A small card was paper clipped to the front with Draco's name, date of birth, residence, classification, and a picture that smirked up at him, but otherwise looked rather bored.
Ernie rolled his eyes and leaned back in his chair. "You don't have to be a whore to appreciate veela sex, believe me; it's irresistible."
"Have you… with him?" His eyebrows had managed to make it all the way into his hairline and his eyes were slightly larger than normal.
He straightened and smoothed down his shirt sleeves, avoiding Justin's eyes. "He wasn't exactly pleased when we informed him of the necessity to register with us and turn in weekly reports. He rather resents the reports, which I can entirely understand. They can tend to be rather… intrusive. Anyway, at our first meeting, he was sullen and, unsurprisingly, not cooperative at all. He cursed me from here to India and back when I started probing into his sex life. He turned on his pheromones to bend me to his will, I guess, and the next thing I knew, we were naked and sweaty in a stall of the men’s room, going at it. Rather embarrassing, actually. He was my first veela case and no one bothered to inform me that they use their power of attraction against you if you piss them off. Some sort of ridiculous initiation, bloody ruthless if you ask me." He sniffed and flipped a wisp of hair to the side of his forehead. "Regardless, it was quite good and I most certainly recommend trying it. If anything, he's not exactly bad on the eyes."
Justin only stared at him, unable to say anything. The thought of beautiful Draco Malfoy allowing Ernie to have sex with him, of actually seducing Ernie, seemed… beyond all comprehensible thought. Ernie was all right, if one was a woman, he supposed, but Draco Malfoy was aesthetically perfect. Was he comfortable seeing someone who had slept with Ernie already? Would Draco want more than just sex? Could he handle being with Draco if it was just sex, especially after the fiasco with Orin? Sighing to himself, he stole a piece of parchment from Ernie’s desk and jotted down the address. He would keep the information and think it over when he got home. For now, he had to get back to work. “I’ll have to think about it, but thank you for the information. I should be getting back to my department before my supervisor starts wondering about me.”
“Not a problem; let me know if you go, will you?”
“’Course, you’ll be the first person I tell.” They exchanged a smile and Justin headed back down to his office, address tucked safely into his robes.
/
Justin walked hesitantly up to the address he had been given, wary of the haggard appearance of the building in from of him. It was a turn-of-the-century abandoned-looking factory with several broken windows and graffiti all along the lower floors. He peered at the buzzer and was surprised to see that D. Malfoy was the fifth option. He pressed it with some trepidation and jumped several inches when a house elf’s voice floated onto the street. “Master Draco is still dressing; he is wanting Mr. Finch-Fletchly to come inside and wait.”
Justin stared at the boarded-up door. “How?”
“Mr. Finch-Fletchly is walking through the door and taking the lift to the fifth floor.”
“But the door is boarded up.”
The house elf must have been confused because there was a muffled question, and then Draco’s clear voice. “Remind him that he is not a muggle and neither is this a muggle neighbourhood.”
Justin understood immediately and hurried to walk through the magical allusion and into the elegant lobby. A man who looked to be half-troll stood to the side, eyeing him menacingly. He gave the man a hesitant smile, made his way to the lift, and rode it to the correct floor. The doors opened to a sleek entry way and a tiny house elf who bowed low to him. “Master is welcoming you to his home. He is asking you to wait in the sitting room. Is you wanting a drink?”
Justin smiled and shook his head. “Thank you, but no. Do you know how long he will be?”
The elf looked hesitant. “Master is wanting to look perfect.” Reading him to mean that it could be a while, he took a seat on the soda and looked around at the elegant décor.
Fifteen minutes later, slim arms slid around his neck from behind and hot breath whispered into his ear, “Been waiting long?”
Justin turned in surprise and smiled at the sight of the blond. Grey, fitted robes clung to his every curve and certainly made him look every bit the perfection the elf had promised. “You look amazing.”
Draco grinned enigmatically at him. “Thank you. Shall we?” He nodded and stood as Draco circled the sofa. “I’ve not heard of the restaurant, so you’ll have to guide me,” he said as he wrapped his arms around Justin’s neck and pressed close to him. Justin was distracted enough to almost lose his concentration, but he managed to apparate them both in one piece.
The host grinned upon sight of them and quickly headed to them. “Mr. Malfoy, how lovely to see you. I had not seen your name on the reservation list.”
Justin raised an eyebrow, but said nothing. Draco let go of him long enough to kiss the man’s cheeks, no signs visible of his lying. “That is because our reservation is for Finch-Fletchly. This is Justin, my date. Justin, this is Alberto.”
They shook hands and Alberto took them to the best table in the restaurant. Justin waited until the waiter had gone to get their drinks before playfully kicking the blond under the table. “I thought you’d never heard of his place.”
“They’ve changed the name…” he murmured mysteriously, looking down at his menu with a little smirk.
Justin smirked right back. “No, they have not. We took Ernie here for his birthday two years ago.”
“Seduction is completely beyond you, isn’t it?”
The Hufflepuff blinked at him in surprise. “You were seducing me?”
“Yes, of course. I was tempted just to drag you into the bedroom without dinner, but I thought I might offend your Hufflepuff sense of propriety or the like.”
Justin snorted and held up his menu to hide his smirk. The rest of the evening went well and he didn’t hesitate before agreeing to come up. Not that Draco’s tongue shoved down his throat gave him any room to protest.
/
Draco woke the next morning to arms around him and for the first time in a long time, nothing nagged at him. He felt warm, comforted… safe. His eyes immediately flew open and he craned his neck to look at his bed partner. Justin was still blissfully asleep, snoring rather loudly; his nose was lifted an inch higher than what looked natural, as though it had been buried in blond hair until he turned his head. Snoring usually grated on his nerves like nothing else, but for the moment he remained unbothered. Carefully, he turned his body towards the other man, fingers splaying out on his chest. His cautious movement was in vain because a moment later the arms around him pulled him in tighter and brown, smiling eyes were peering back at him. “Hi,” Justin whispered voice still scratchy from sleep.
Draco nudged his nose against Justin’s cheek and kissed his jaw, unable to stop himself from touching as much as he could. “Morning,” he whispered back, distracted by the need to kiss. This was new, this draw to touch and be touched, so insistent where it had always been only a pleasant hum before. Justin didn’t complain, though, only arched his neck to allow better access and moaned into the nearest ear. The urge was made more insistent with the sound and Draco found himself crawling on top, kissing every part of his face, pressing his hips forward in a wanton way that he normally never felt the morning after a long and satisfying bedroom session. Justin was only surprised by his forwardness for a moment before he leaned up to capture his lips, pulling him down close. A spell was whispered and then Justin was pushing up into him, slowly but deeply. Draco was keening, feverish, almost resembling a cat in heat. Justin gently rolled them over, pressing the blond into the pillows, kissed him. Draco kissed back with open eyes, staring at him in a mixture of passion and wonder. When they pulled apart, Draco looked dazed and a word kept forming on his mouth, but no voice could be heard and Justin couldn’t read his lips, and so he kissed him again.
Orgasm hit without warning for both of them, triggered by a rush of hormones in the air, and they strained against each other in the rush. Justin dropped his forehead to the blond’s shoulder, felt lips hot on his ear, and a whispered “Mate.” He stared down at his lover, but Draco was already settling in to sleep again, dishevelled but beautiful, and he decided that he would ask later. For now, he moved to the side and gathered the blond in his arms. Sleep came faster than he thought it would.
/
Form: 83352739
Name: Draco Malfoy
Registry Number: 625369
Date: 14 Aug 2002
Age: 22
Mate: Justin Finch-Fletchly─ possibly. If he is, I’m killing Potter.
Current Location: London, England
Number of Sexual Encounter(s): 2
Name(s) of Partner(s): Justin Finch-Fletchly 2(M)
Age(s) of Partner(s): 21
Species of Partner(s): wizard
Description of Sexual Encounter(s): I’m reacting to Justin in a way I’ve never reacted before, almost as though I were in heat. Does this mean he is my mate?
Was non-Veela magic used during the encounter(s)?: Yes
If so, what spell or potion was used and what were its affects?: Standard lubrication charm.
Did any encounter result in pregnancy?:
Was Veela Power used in any manner not involved in finding a mate?: Yes
If so, how and why?: The usual.
Comments: I’m worried and would like an appointment to meet with you to discuss the possibility of Finch-Fletchly being my mate. Please owl immediately with an available time. Thank you.
>
PS- Thank you to my wonderful beta, domtheknight.