Undefined

Chapter 7

The Order of the Serpent

Blaise cast Draco furtive looks over the next week, which only infuriated Draco further. He refused to acknowledge Blaise, and refused still to believe that he, Draco, was allowing himself to be used in this way. He never once considered he had used the many girls he'd slept with in the same way, and even if he had, the thought wouldn't have amounted to anything substantial. Still, the midnight trysts with Blaise continued, not out of fear on Draco's part, but, he came to realize later, his desire to protect Harry.

It was not something he seriously considered until he and Harry met again in the Rendezvous Room, Draco taking care to double and triple step his route. When Harry complained of the monotony of it all, Draco finally gave in and entered the small room. He pulled Harry onto the cushions and kissed him desperately.

Harry pulled away from the kiss, gazing down on him. "Does anyone know?"

"No," Draco said.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes," Draco said, pulling Harry into another kiss.

"How long can we go on like this?" Harry asked.

"As long as it takes," Draco said, in no mood to talk.

He'd been aching for Harry the entire day, and had seriously considered having Pansy suck him off after breakfast, but decided against it. He wanted to save it all for this moment.

Harry seemed content with Draco's answer and resumed the kiss, running his tongue along his lower lip. Draco moaned softly, and let out a gasp of surprise when Harry forcefully removed Draco's shirt and unfastened his trousers.

"Bit anxious?" Draco asked, unable to conceal his smile.

Harry said nothing as he slid his hand through the opening and began to stroke Draco; it was ironic, Draco noted fleetingly, how their roles had reversed from that first time in the Come and Go Room. He groaned as Harry's hand continued to move up and down with much more confidence than the previous day; perhaps he was more comfortable now, perhaps his inhibitions had left, or perhaps...Draco couldn't finish his thought as he drew dangerously close to his climax and Harry pulled away at the last instant.

"Do it inside me," Harry said, unfastening his trousers.

Draco pulled them roughly down, not bothering to remove Harry's shirt or tie, not bothering to be gentle or sweet, just penetrating him after minimal manual preparation, and pounding as though his life depended on it. It took everything he had to stay in control, but he held back, grabbing the back of Harry's shirt and pulling, finally exploding when Harry turned his head and their eyes locked. Still panting, Draco flung Harry around and went down on him, enjoying the sounds of his moans and the feel of his fingers gripping his hair.

Harry pulled Draco next to him, and rested his head on his chest.

"Don't you own a comb?" Draco asked as he ran his hands through Harry's hair.

"It always does that," Harry said, yawning, "no matter what I do."

"They have hair products and such for that," Draco said.

"Hair products?" Harry said, looking up at him. "You're not serious."

"I'm just making a point."

"I'm not going to use 'hair products'," Harry said, closing his eyes.

Draco continued stroking Harry's hair, staring at the ceiling. At some point, Harry's breathing grew deeper indicating he had fallen asleep. Draco smiled slightly then closed his eyes, enjoying the moment, the solitude, the feeling of Harry so vulnerable. Nothing, Draco decided as he yawned, would come in the way of this; he would do whatever it took so long as they could be together as often as they wished. He would allow himself to be taken by Blaise every night for a millennium if it meant Harry would remain. Just don't go, Draco thought, feeling pathetic, whatever happens, don't leave me. With that thought, he eventually drifted off to sleep, his arm still protectively wrapped around Harry.

***

The following evening, Draco sat in the common room perusing a massive text. He heard the door open and looked up to see Snape motioning him towards the door. Draco placed his book aside and followed Snape down the corridor, through his office, and into his private corridors, where Draco had never been before. It was, as most everything in the dungeons, dark and covered in shadow. In the middle of the room stood a hideous lamp with a crimson shade, nearly obliterating the light beneath it.

"Go on," Snape said, motioning towards the lamp. "We don't have much time."

He and Snape simultaneously touched the lamp, and it was, as Draco suspected, a Portkey. They landed in the middle of a sitting room, enclosed with crammed bookshelves, a number of people already there, sitting or standing around. They all turned, and Draco immediately recognized Avery, Doholov, MacNair, and Nott occupying the threadbare sofa and armchair. In a far corner, Theodore Nott emerged holding a flask of whiskey, and from another corner Fenrir Greyback stood licking what seemed to be blood off of his fingers.

"Welcome," Snape said quietly in Draco's ear, "to the headquarters of the Order of the Serpent."

Draco felt a hand fall on his shoulder and turned. "Father!" he said, feeling intensely pleased and surprised.

"Welcome, Draco," Lucius said smoothly. Behind him, Narcissa emerged and covered her son in kisses.

"Oh you're so stupid!" she said, shaking Draco slightly. "So stupid for doing this!"

"Knew he'd do it," Draco heard Avery mutter to Nott.

Snape motioned Draco to the sofa, and Nott immediately stood, relinquishing his seat.

"Katrina has proven invaluable in her position," Snape said, pouring Draco a drink. "When she approached me a few weeks ago, telling me of your meeting, I knew she had chosen wisely."

Draco drained his drink instantly and held it out for Snape to fill again, which he did.

"You know why you are here, Draco," Snape continued. "We need someone of pure-blood and considerable power and stature to face the Dark Lord. Believe me when I say this not as improbable as it seems. Allegiance within the Death Eaters has been tenuous since the Dark Lord was stupid enough to bring about his own downfall. Any idiot would have recognized the protection used by Lily Potter. I decided that night the Dark Lord's cause was no longer worthy. I refuse to pledge my loyalties to a leader who lacked proper foresight and allowed a mere baby to defeat him. I'm sure you have qualms in your position, but as Katrina said, you will not be alone. All of us have taken an Unbreakable Vow to preserve the movement and protect our leader at all costs. We have many allies within the school, those who keep the memory of the movement alive through carefully implemented rumor. Therefore, those outside this room only know of the Order as a mere whisper. Those you see here tonight knows of its actual existence, and that is how we are able to thrive under the Dark Lord's nose. I suspect you have many questions, but our time is limited, so be short about it," Snape said.

"Does Dumbledore have any idea?"

"He's suspected, yes," Snape said, pouring a drink. "But I have ensured that every lead he takes is false and I am swift to instill every doubt in his head. Dumbledore is a powerful wizard, no doubt, but he has his faults."

"How do I know this isn't a set up?"

"Excellent question, Draco, one I was hoping you'd ask," Snape said silkily, and pulled up his sleeve revealing his Dark Mark. He muttered a small incantation and the mark glowed red. Just like the jewels on my father's pin, Draco thought. "This is our sign, comparable in every way to the Dark Lord's except for color, of course. It is a sign of the Unbreakable Vow we took fourteen years ago, and only those within the Order have the privilege of exhibiting such a display on their mark. Our secret keeper, Avery, is the Dark Lord's pet and deliberate misinformant, so to speak. It is Avery's job to ensure the Dark Lord's plans never reach full fruition. We trusted Avery with this honor as he would never willingly betray us given his many punishments by the Dark Lord."

"How did you get involved?" Draco asked Greyback, who was still standing in a corner.

"Easy," Greyback said, coming to stand in the light. "The O.S. gives me and my kind no restrictions on attacks. As long as we remain loyal to them, we're guaranteed unlimited control."

Draco nodded then turned to his father. "You've been involved all this time, haven't you?"

"Yes," Lucius said, standing serene as a statue. "And I know you're going to ask why I never told you, but the answer is simple: a member of O.S. never betrays his knowledge, not even to those he loves."

Draco looked to his mother, who stood next to her husband, tears glistening in her eyes in the firelight. She looked as though she was pleading with Draco to run away and join them at the same time.

"And you!" he said, pointing to his mother. "You knew too?"

"Of course, darling," she said, clutching Lucius tighter. "I couldn't very well leave your father alone in all this."

"I gathered as much," Draco said, crossing his arms.

"I gather we have given you ample time to weigh the benefits and disadvantages of joining our ranks," Snape said coolly. "And now is the time for you to decide. If you agree, you'll be given the Unbreakable Vow and the Dark Mark at once; if not, MacNair will administer a Memory Charm and you will have no recollection of this meeting. The choice is yours."

Draco sat silent, weighing his options. He could fight against the Dark Lord, with his parents and attain everything he'd ever wanted and.... and? There was more, something pulling him to do it, something that was more powerful than anything he'd ever felt.

He remembered Harry sleeping against his chest the day before, so peaceful, so serene. And then he realized, if there was any way he could attach himself to Harry even further, if there was any way to keep him from fleeing or feeling betrayed by Draco, this was it. His allegiance to a movement against the Dark Lord could prove the means of showing Harry that he, Draco, wasn't the Death Eater sympathizer he appeared to be, but a disgruntled member of the very organization blindly devoted to the Dark Lord.

"I'll do it," he said at once. Snape smiled and he heard Avery sigh in relief.

"Good," Snape said, and beckoned Lucius to them.

He linked hands with Draco and Lucius served as the Bonder. Draco promised to uphold the secrecy of the Order, to never betray his fellow members, and to do everything in his power to bring about the destruction of the Dark Lord. When Snape demanded that he promise to never tell a soul of what went on in their meetings, Draco refused.

"You have my word; what more do you need?" he snapped.

Snape looked at him with dark eyes. "Every one of us in this room has made this same vow."

"Then forget it-I'm in the worst position out of the lot of you," Draco said, threatening to move his hand from Snape's. "Have MacNair administer the Memory Charm."

Silence fell upon the room immediately; no one moved. Draco looked up at his father whose cold, calculating gaze met his own.

"Look, I won't say anything. It's a stupid, pointless clause," Draco said.

"That's enough," Lucius said.

Snape said nothing and eyed Draco with horribly cold and knowing eyes. Without saying a word, Snape grabbed Draco's left arm and burned the Dark Mark onto it, a process much more painful than Draco had imagined. His mother moved toward him, but Lucius shook his head to stop her.

"Good," Snape said, finally letting go of Draco's arm. "It will hurt for a bit, but I'll give you something for it once we return to my office."

And with that, Snape stood and headed for the Portkey. Draco followed, without so much as a goodbye to his mother or father.