Time to Kill

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Time to Kill: Chapter 7

~Johnny Doggspitt~

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"I still don't see why we're coming out here," an invisible Harry grumbled to a similarly invisible Draco. They were walking hand-in-hand down to a secluded spot on the lake, surrounded by a grove of trees and bushes so that no one would see them. Not that anyone could see them, mind you, but when one is supposed to be dead, and one is trusting one's life to a potion made by one's enemy, one shouldn't take any chances.

"We're coming out here because I don't feel like going to classes today, and no one's going to notice you're gone," Draco answered smoothly. "So we're going to spend some quality time at the lake."

Just them, from behind them, the castle doors opened and the morning's Car of Magical Creatures class tromped out. Gryffindors and Slytherins had the class together this morning, and the personalities clashed even more than usual.

The Gryffindors walked slowly, all huddled together in a group, the center of which was Hermione and Ron. Both looked as though the world had exploded into tiny, bite-sized pieces. Tears ran unchecked down Hermione's cheeks, but Ron stared straight ahead, as though in a daze.

The Slytherins, however, had never looked happier. Sure, there were the odd few that stood off to the side, unwilling to be a part of the group, but the majority of them were acting as though Voldemort had just taken over the world.

"Hmm...you've got to hand it to Ron and Hermione: they certainly have the acting thing down," Harry commented. "Hermione must have given Ron lessons.

Suddenly, Ron burst into tears, fell to his knees, and cried out, "No, Harry! Why?" He buried his face in his hands as Hermione embarrassedly tried to pull him to his feet.

"You were saying?" Draco said sarcastically.

"I take it back," Harry answered numbly. Draco felt a pull on his hand and followed Harry as he led them over to Ron.

Ron was still on his knees when they reached him. The rest of the group had kept walking, looking back over their shoulders every now and then, apparently embarrassed at being associated with such an emotional person. Suddenly, Ron fell over, yelping in pain, and Draco could only assume that Harry had kicked him.

"Get up!" Harry hissed quietly. "You're embarrassing yourself!"

"That hurt!" Ron muttered back.

"Don't be annoying and you won't get hurt!" Hermione scolded him, smiling secretively.

"You're such a wanker, Weasley," Draco commented.

"Hey now!" Ron said hurtfully.

"Harry, keep your boyfriend in check," Hermione demanded.

"Alright, alright. We're going to hang out by the lake, so take good notes for me!" Hermione made a disapproving look but kept silent, and Draco took that as permission to drag his boyfriend over to their secluded spot on the lake.

They found a small clearing on the far side of the lake. Draco flopped down and pulled Harry down next to him. Harry plopped down in a clump and dropped his head comfortably in Draco's lap.

Can you pick your huge head up for just a moment?" Draco asked fondly, stroking his boyfriend's hair.

"My head's not huge! And besides, why should I? I don't want to! You're comfy!" Harry whined.

Draco rolled his eyes (not that Harry could see-it was just a habit). "Oh, good lord, your life is so hard, isn't it? It's just for a moment. I want to take this damned cloak off."

"But what if someone sees you?" Harry asked worriedly.

"Oh, please! Who's going to be out here at this time of day? And even if someone else were out here, they'd have to be skiving off classes too, so they couldn't possibly rat on me. Now remove your head from my lap or face my wrath!"

"Ah, yes, the famous Wrath of the Ferret," Harry said sarcastically. "Don't want to get in the way of that!" Draco swatted him as he sat up and yawned. "Ok, I'm up. Hurry up and get that stupid cloak off so I can have my pillow back!"

"I am no one's pillow, Potter," Draco replied matter-of-factly, pulling off his invisibility cloak and folding it up neatly.

Harry plopped his head back into Draco's lap and sighed. "Well...now I'm bored. Again. You're really not the most interesting person to be around."

Draco rolled his eyes. "Yes, because I care so much about what you think."

"Well, you should! I'm your boyfriend! You're supposed to keep me entertained."

"Unfortunately for you, the only way I can think of to keep you entertained is- Uh-oh."

"Uh-oh? That doesn't sound very-"

"Shut up, Potter," Draco said sharply, covering his boyfriend's mouth and shoving him off his lap.

Striding quickly down the lawn toward the two boys was Lucius Malfoy, the kind, caring, selfless man himself.

"Father!" Draco addressed him, sitting up straight. "What are you doing out here?"

"I might ask you the same, Draco," Lucius said off-handedly. "Shouldn't you be in class?"

Draco snorted. "It's only Care of Magical Creatures with that great oaf, Hagrid-"

"Draco, how many times must I remind you that Malfoys do not snort?" his father interrupted.

"I'm sorry, father," Draco grumbled, angry at himself for forgetting again.

"They also do not grumble." Lucius smiled. "I should hope you remember that when you present yourself to the Dark Lord this evening."

Draco gulped. "This...this evening? Did I forget that we had a meeting?"

"No. The Dark Lord just announced it. He's very proud of you, Draco." He smiled fondly. "As am I. I suppose you're not as useless as I thought you were."

"Um...thank you?"

"Lucius reached down and pulled Draco to his feet. "Today, I am proud to call you my son." And for the first time in his live, he hugged his son.

Draco was startled for a second by this completely uncharacteristic move, but there was no way he was going to complain. Feeling Harry's distrusting stare on his back, he hugged him back, basking in this one rare moment of affection.

"Now," Lucius said, releasing his son all too soon, "you must look your best tonight. You will be officially inducted into the ranks of the Death Eaters. I don't need to impress on you what an honor this is."

"No, father. I know."

"His Lordship looks upon you very fondly now. I would hate for you to mess this up for yourself."

"I won't father. I'll not disappoint you...like I have in the past."

"I know you won't," his father replied, gracing Draco with a rare smile. "Seven p.m., sharp. Severus will Apparate you." With that, he swept off towards the castle.

Once his father was safely out of sight, Draco flopped to the ground, inadvertently landing awkwardly on Harry.

"Oww, Draco!" Harry protested.

"Oh, shut up. You know you like it."

"How did he know you were out here?" Harry asked, nudging his boyfriend off his knee.

Draco scowled. "My father has a tracking spell on me. He can always find me, anywhere."

"Wow," Harry said uninterestedly. "I'm glad you weren't the one to have to fake his death!"

"That certainly would have been a chore," Draco agreed.

Harry was silent for a few seconds. "Draco...?" he started.

"What now, Harry?"

"Are you going to be alright tonight?"

"God damn it, Harry!" Draco cried suddenly, causing Harry to jump.

"What?" Harry asked worriedly. "What did I do?"

"I came out here to relax and possibly snog you silly, not to discuss my wellbeing!"

"Well I can't help it if I'm worried!" his invisible boyfriend sulked.

Draco sighed exasperatedly. "Come on. Let's go back inside," he said, standing up.

"What? Why?"

"Because my father ruined this. We might as well go learn something," Draco said sarcastically, rolling his eyes.

"No, no, no!" Harry said quickly, grabbing Draco's hand. "We can stay out here! I'll shut up! I promise!"

"Yeah, sure, that's possible," Draco replied sarcastically. "It's a disaster waiting to - mmph!" Harry had pressed his lips against Draco's as hard as he could.

"See?" Harry said softly after they had broken the kiss. "I can be reasonable."

"Wow..." Draco said, at a loss for words for one of the first times in his life. "That was...weird...!"

"W-weird?" Harry asked, taken aback.

"Well, yeah! I mean...you're invisible! Kissing an invisible guy...you're got to admit, that's weird."

"But you've done it before!" Harry reminded him.

"Yes but I've never really thought about it. And it was never on the lips."

"Well then, I'm just going to have to get you used to it, aren't I?" Harry asked and kissed him again, deeply this time, sliding his tongue into Draco's mouth.

Draco breathed deeply through his nose, relishing Harry's taste, feel...everything about him. Wanting only to be as close to him as possible, Draco pushed against him, accidentally knocking them both to the ground. Harry's mouth fell away from his for a second, but he quickly engulfed it again, struggling hungrily for that delicious taste. Even a second away from Harry was unbearable.

Harry bit down on his lip: a little too hard, perhaps, but it was enough to entice a deep, lustful moan far in the back of Draco's throat. Unable to stand the tension any longer, he reached down and ripped off the other boy's tie. As soon as it was off, it appeared in a flash of color, no longer invisible.

Draco broke the kiss long enough to smirk and say, "Nice potion, Potter," before liking and biting his way down Harry's neck.

"Don't thank me," Harry moaned breathlessly. "Your godfather made it!"

Draco stopped in mid-bite. "Harry...the last think I want to think about when I'm about to ravish you mercilessly is Severus Snape!"

Harry leaned forward and captured Draco's mouth with his own. "Don't let me stop you," he whispered seductively.

Draco moaned against his mouth, pushing strongly against Harry. But something Harry had said earlier was winking in the back of his mind. "Harry..." he said in between kisses. "Are" kiss "you sure" kiss kiss "you want to" bite kiss "mmm...do this?" he finished finally.

"Why wouldn't I?" Harry wondered.

"Well, you just got done saying you didn't want to yet, and now you're practically begging me not to stop!

Harry started kissing Draco's neck in a most distracting manner. "Is that...a bad thing?"

"Um...er..." Draco was stuttering horribly, and he wanted nothing more than to shut his mouth and let Harry continue, but he knew that he couldn't let Harry do something he might regret later. "It's not a bad thing per se, but..." He pushed Harry back reluctantly. "Are you sure you want to do this? I mean positive beyond a doubt."

Harry sighed. "Not entirely, I guess. But I do want this. With you.

Draco rolled his eyes. "You're such a hopeless romantic, Potter."

"Is that bad?" Harry asked, sounding worried.

"Not in the least," Draco replied reassuringly, kissing him deeply. Harry kissed him back eagerly, opening his mouth and grappling with Draco for control of the kiss. Draco smiled against Harry's lips and willing gave his mouth over to the boy.

~*~

Almost an hour later, laying on his back with Harry curled up in his arms, Draco reflected on the past few days, and how Harry and his relationship had grown. Draco had wanted (needed, his mind corrected him) Harry for longer than he could remember. And now that he had him, so many unexpected things had happened. He hadn't expected Harry to have to fake his death. He hadn't expected to be lying by the lake with an invisible boy in his arms.

He hadn't expected to fall in love.

He had thought he was in love before he and Harry had gotten together, but that feeling had been dwarfed in comparison to what he was feeling now. He wasn't sure exactly what love felt like, but he couldn't imagine that it felt better than this.

Harry's steady breathing told him that the boy as asleep, and Draco smiled, turning his head to rest against his boyfriend's hair. It had obviously been Harry's first time, and even though they had not gone all the way, Draco could understand why the boy was exhausted. He reached out, intending to caress Harry's cheek but instead nearly poked him in the eye. He sighed dejectedly. This invisibility wasn't as cool as he had supposed it would have been. He wanted to be able to see Harry whenever he wanted. His life...his soul was trapped in those emerald-green eyes. It was torture to be without them, even for a moment.

Love was a new concept for Draco. He had always been under the illusion that love was a weakness picked up by people who read too many fairytales. Well, maybe he'd finally read one fairytale too many.

He kissed the top of Harry's head. "I love you," he whispered, finally understanding what the words meant.

~*~

When Draco arrived at Snape's office, dressed in his best, he found the man bent over his desk, writing in a strange language on a thin piece of paper. A small, sparklingly gold owl perched on his shoulder.

Before he could open his mouth, Snape spoke. "You were not in my class today, Draco," he said without looking up from his paper.

"Yes, sir," Draco said humbly.

"Neither, I assume, was Mr. Potter?" the professor asked, glancing up at his godson.

Draco fought back a blush. "No, he wasn't either."

Snape nodded and went back to his paper. When he finished, he gently folded it and tied it to the leg of the owl next to him, which nipped his finger affectionately and swooped past Draco. He stood up, stared at Draco for a few seconds, and then walked over to his cabinet, from which he pulled a bowl of something wispy and moving.

"What's that?" Draco asked, unable to hold back his curiosity.

"This is a pensieve, Draco. I would have thought your little...boyfriend...might have told you about it."

"Oh, don't talk about it like you're not homosexual," Draco scoffed.

"No true Slytherin is homosexual," Snape sneered. "And that is entirely besides the point."

Draco smirked. "Well, I guess you're not a true Slytherin then," he said good-naturedly.

"Draco Lucius Malfoy, if you want to keep your secret safe, you will not aggravate me any further!" Snape roared.

Draco's eyes widened. "You wouldn't tell the Dark Lord, would you?"

Snape looked at him incredulously. "You think I want you dead?" I'm going to help you so that the Dark Lord can't access your memories, but if you continue to insult me, I'll let you fend for yourself!"

"Which would basically kill me," Draco said with a grin.

'Yes, it would," Snape agreed with what could almost be called a fond smile. "Now come over here and I'll show you how to use this."

~*~

Draco was terrified out of his wits as he stood in the middle of the Death Eaters' circle, awaiting the arrival of the Dark Lord.

"Don't be nervous, Draco," his father instructed. He was also in the middle, standing at his son's shoulder. "He will be in a good mood today. You're going to be awarded a special privilege!" Lucius said with a smirk.

"Really?" Draco asked, trying to sound excited. "What is it?"

"Can't tell you," Lucius said mysteriously. "It's a surprise!"

Draco crossed his arms impatiently. "I hate surprises."

"It's a good surprise. It's a surprise within a surprise." Lucius' face grew dark. "Actually, it's more of a disappointment within a surprise."

"But...it's a...good thing?" Draco asked, confused. "A...good disappointment?"

Lucius smiled. "You'll see what I mean."

"Ah! Young Master Malfoy!" the Dark Lord exclaimed, stepping gracefully into the ring of Death Eaters. Wormtail followed close behind him, looking for all the world like Igor following Dr. Frankenstein. Voldemort placed a hand on Draco's shoulder. "It is a proud day, Draco," he said, beaming down on him.

"Every day is a proud day that I am able to serve you," Draco replied politely, bowing slightly.

Voldemort smiled and turned to address the circle of Death Eaters. Draco noticed for the first time that there was an empty space in the circle, and he wondered who was missing. "Today, let it be shown that Draco Malfoy has been officially accepted as a Death Eater, and of the highest esteem!" The Death Eaters cheered and clapped. "And as such," Voldemort continued, "he will be awarded a great honor!"

Two Death Eaters broke away from the circle for a few seconds and came back dragging a third between them. He still had his mask on, but somehow, he looked familiar to Draco. "What's going on?" he asked.

"A traitor has infiltrated our ranks," the Dark Lord announced grandly. "We have known this for a long time. And for an equally long time, we have not been able to discover who he was. Until today!" he exclaimed, pointing at his bound minion. The Death Eaters roared and cheered at the capture of the spy, but all Draco could do was stare at the masked man and think, But I only know of one spy...

"And...my reward is..." Draco started, unable to comprehend what he was being asked to do.

"Your reward is the privilege - no, the honor - of ridding us of this foul form of worthlessness." Voldemort ripped the traitor's mask off and threw him down at Draco's feet.

Draco looked down and recoiled in horror as he met the eyes of his godfather. How did they find out?

"Draco, your reward is to kill him. Destroy Severus Snape!"