The new face of evil - 8 years out

The man opened his eyes, blinked a few times, grabbed a Muggle gun from the nightstand and started to fire. Harry quickly summoned the gun, dispatched it to the floor without touching it and said, "I'm not here to hurt you. In fact, I'm here to offer you a deal where I would help you."

Malfoy turned and saw his wife hadn't woken up. "What have you done to my wife?" the man demanded.

"She's charmed to stay asleep, nothing more," Harry said calmly. Harry threw a cloak at the man. "Put this on, I want to show you something."

"I'm not going anywhere with you. How did you get in here anyway? I've got the most advanced anti-apparation wards on this house," Malfoy said angrily.

"It doesn't matter how I got in, and you are going with me whether or not you put on the cloak, not get up," Harry said starting to get angry.

"You won't get out of here without someone seeing us," Malfoy said.

Harry quickly grabbed the man's arm and the two instantly appeared in a dark, damp dungeon. Malfoy was still trying to adjust to the new surroundings when Harry said, "We got out of the Manor without anyone seeing us."

"Where are we?" Malfoy demanded.

"An unused dungeon under Azkaban," Harry stated calmly and saw Malfoy's eyes get huge.

"Why are we here? You said you weren't going to hurt me," Malfoy said not quite so angrily now.

"I've actually brought you here to ask for your help," Harry said hating every word.

Malfoy's attitude picked up a bit when he said, "Interesting, I'm listening."

"I hate every second of this, but I'm giving you a chance to save your son. He has done some things to people I care about, that have nearly caused me to remove him from existence. But, I want to give you one chance to keep him around. I want you to give the authorities enough information to put Draco in here for at least twenty years," Harry said this last bit very forcefully.

"You want me to turn over my son? Are you crazy?" Malfoy spat back.

"You were going to turn him over to Voldemort," Harry replied.

"Is that the deal you wanted? If I don't get him sent here, you'll kill him?" Malfoy looked amazed.

"I wish it was that easy, but I don't think you'd go for that. I'm willing to give you your magic back in exchange for locking Draco up."

Malfoy was obviously thinking about this and finally said, "Let me get this straight. I give the authorities enough information to get him locked up and you'll make me magical again?"

"Specifically you have to get him locked up for at least twenty years and then I'll make you magical."

"What if any of the information could cause me," the man hesitated, choosing his words, "embarrassment?"

"I'm sure it will be ignored considering the benefit you would be providing to the wizarding community."

"When do I have to give you an answer?" Malfoy asked obviously interested.

"Before I return you to the Manor," Harry said flatly.

"This is a different side of you Potter. I agree to the terms, give me my magic," Malfoy said with a smirk.

Harry laughed and said, "After Draco is locked up here with at least a twenty year sentence, I'll do it."

"How do I know I can trust you?" Malfoy asked.

"I've always done what I said I'd do. There is no way I'll trust you with anything, but I will give you my word that as soon as he's here, I'll come back and make you magical. That's the deal," Harry said with finality.

"I hate having to trust you, but I agree to your terms. How long do I have?"

"You have one month, after that I handle things myself. Some of the dementors would be willing to do me a favor and keep Draco in this dungeon without anyone ever finding out," Harry said feeling ill he just made a deal with Lucius Malfoy.

"Agreed. Take me back to the Manor now," Malfoy said and Harry grabbed the man's arm and they appeared back in the bedroom.

"One month and if it hasn't happened, I'll use everything I can get my hands on to track him down and take care of this myself and you'll never be magical again," Harry said standing toe to toe with the man.

"I want my magic more than anything Potter. I mean anything. I'm not happy with the way Draco has been doing some things and think he is a bit out of control and to some extent, he deserves what he will get," Malfoy said in a tone that Harry actually believed.

"I'll cast the counter on your wife just before I leave. She will not know anything happened. One month," Harry said before casting the counter charm and apparating back to his office.

After some pacing and thinking, he apparated home around four in the morning and wasn't too surprised to see Ginny in his bed. Harry quietly got undressed and slipped into bed without waking her up. He still couldn't fall asleep and was still awake when Ginny woke up a couple hours later. "Morning beautiful," Harry said kissing her cheek.

"Harry! Where were you? I really wanted to see you last night," Ginny said kissing him deeply.

"Dealing with the devil. See, I told you it wasn't dangerous," Harry said stroking her head.

Ginny knew he was bothered by something, but didn't want to ask him about his work. Harry wasn't able to put his concern with dealing with Malfoy out of his mind, and spent a great deal of time at Marauders working. This bothered Ginny a bit since she hadn't seen him since the morning he came to find her in his bed. She finally convinced him to come over to her house one evening and the two were watching TV when Hermione popped in very excited, "There you two are!"

Ginny and Harry turned to each other and started laughing. "What's so funny?" Hermione asked.

Ginny composed herself and said, "We were just saying that Ron has finally learned his lesson about popping over here after he stumbled on us last week, and now we have to worry about you!"

"Oh, whatever. This trip was amazing!" Hermione said and then launched into telling her friends all about the trip.

Both Harry and Ginny quickly caught that every few sentences had something about Dr. Harlan and after Hermione finally wore herself out talking Ginny turned to Harry and asked, "Did we hear more about the trip or more about Dr. Harlan?"

Harry looked at Ginny seriously and said, "You know I'm not sure. I don't seem to recall her mentioning too many details about the islands, but a whole lot about Steve."

"Oh sush you two! The islands were great and I did too say a lot about them," Hermione blushed when she saw her two friends looking at her with smiles. "But, Dr. Harlan officially asked me out as well."

"Ah, the real reason our Hermione is glowing so much," Harry added and was quickly hit by a cushion from the couch, thrown by Hermione.

"I'm so anxious to get back to the office. Dr. Antoine and Dr. Harlan had some excellent ideas on the original potion we were working on, the one to help people with mental problems," Hermione said excitedly.

Ginny laughed and said, "So, you couldn't wait for your trip to be over so you could go back to work. You need to re-evaluate your priorities."

"Does this mean that you're going to stick around for a while? I expected you to go back into the big corporate world again," Harry asked.

Hermione kind of smiled and said, "I'm thinking about sticking around for a while. That is if I'm no bother to you guys."

"No bother at all," Ginny said. Ginny really wanted Harry to herself tonight but wanted to be polite so she asked, "Want to stay and watch some TV with us?"

Hermione blushed again and said, "Um... I can't. I'm meeting Dr. Harlan for supper. I just wanted to tell you guys how great the trip was."

"If you bring him back to the castle, you don't have to worry about Harry walking in on you. I intend to keep him here tonight," Ginny joked to her friend.

"Ginny! I haven't known him that long," Hermione exclaimed but then added, "But just in case, that's good to know." Harry and Ginny saw the smile come across Hermione's face just before she disappeared.

Joking with Hermione got Harry's mind off of Malfoy and Ginny sensed his improved mood and used it to her advantage. "So now you have to stay here," Ginny said kissing Harry's neck.

"Hmmm...What would you ever have in mind?" Harry asked clearly enjoying the kisses.

It seemed Harry wanted this as much as Ginny did because the two were soon naked on the floor in front of her couch. As often happened, their lovemaking had become quite physical and when they were both exhausted and lying on top of each other, Ginny joked, "I think you owe me a new end table."

Harry looked at the broken legs on the table and replied, "I believe it was your idea for us to get up on it." He kissed her and then added, "Next time we get a metal one."

The night and next morning had been great and Harry hadn't thought of his problems at all, but once back into the routine of spending time alone or at Marauders, his concerns quickly came back.

A few weeks after the meeting with Lucius, Harry was flying, trying to think about what to do in case Lucius didn't come through on his part of the bargain. As much as Harry hated the thought of giving the man his magic back, he really didn't want to take matters with Draco into his own hands. One such morning, he had been flying when looking down, he noticed Sirius flailing his arms outside of his back door. Harry quickly flew to the ground and heard Sirius shouting, "He did it! They got him!"

Sirius stuck the Daily Prophet in front of Harry

Wizard/Muggle Crime Ring Busted

The crime ring that has been linked to many of the world wide smuggling operations that have terrorized Wizards and Muggles alike was dealt a major blow last night when a meeting between the top leaders was raided. The raid resulted in the arrest of five Wizards and seven Muggles from all around the world. The biggest surprise was that Draco Malfoy, Hogwarts graduate and heir to the Malfoy fortune was apparently the leader of the ring.

A top source within the Ministry was quoted as saying, "We always thought he was involved, but never could find proof. Thanks to someone close to Draco, we now have more than enough proof to send him to Azkaban for a long time. Also, many of the other people arrested have offered to give more information about Draco in exchange for lenient sentences. Currently, we should be able to lock him up for at least fifty years."

Now, sources within the Ministry have positively identified the person who turned over the information that tied Draco to many of the criminal acts. None other than Lucius Malfoy, Draco's father supplied the information. When Lucius was tracked down, his only comment was, "As much as it pains me to see my son arrested, I had to do what was in the best interest of the wizarding community which is where my sole loyalties lie."

We have learned that Lucius will be receiving a commendation from the Ministry for outstanding service to the community. Our community should look to him as an example of someone sacrificing personally for the benefit of the community.

Harry actually felt ill reading this. "A commendation! What have we done?"

Sirius put his hand on Harry's shoulder and said, "At least Draco will be put away. We didn't really have a choice."

"I'm not sure that in ten years we'll be so pleased with our choice," Harry said sitting on the ground still upset.

"The Ministry is rushing the trial and hope to start it next week," Sirius said clearly happy.

"Ron should be home from Quidditch practice before long, I should go over there to see how he handles the news," Harry said.

"Why wouldn't he take it well?" Sirius asked confused.

"Comments he's made recently have me worried. I'm afraid he'll be upset that he couldn't do anything to Draco personally. You know how Ron is."

"But Draco will get what's coming to him, surely Ron will let it go at that."

"Remember how you were when Wormtail made that deal? Even though it got you freed, you stormed around for months upset that you couldn't kill him with your bare hands."

Sirius thought for a minute and then said, "It still bothers me. If I ever see him, he'll regret it."

"That's what I mean. Ron has a temper at least as bad as yours and I think it's really going to bother him that he won't be able to confront Draco."

Harry apparated to Ron's backyard and Parvati let him in to wait. "Isn't that great about Draco being caught?" Parvati asked, clearly happy.

Harry tried to hide any regrets he had and said, "Definitely. I still say he won't be getting what he deserves, but hopefully he'll be locked up for a long time."

"I know I feel so much better now that he's locked up," Parvati added.

The two sat around talking for about another hour when they heard Ron apparate home. "Hey mate, what brings you here?"

"Just bringing some good news. The ferret was arrested last night and they have enough info to lock him up for a long time," Harry said watching his friend for any reaction.

At first Ron's eyes lit up like he just had Christmas. Ron grabbed the Daily Prophet and read the article, still looking very happy. "Lucius turned his own son in! Why would he do that?"

Harry didn't want to tell anyone what he had done yet so he just said, "I say he wanted to increase his standing in the Ministry."

"But how could he do anything with the Ministry, he's not magical?" Ron asked confused and continued to look at Harry. After a moment, Ron asked, "You said that you and Sirius were doing something to get Draco. It's too much of a coincidence that Lucius all of a sudden turns Draco over, just when you two are trying to get him. What did you two do?"

Harry sighed and said, "Nobody knows this other than Sirius, but we dealt with Lucius. If Draco gets put away for at least twenty years, I'll get Lucius his magic back." Harry hung his head.

"What!" Ron roared. "You're going to give the top Death Eater his magic back? Are you mental?"

"Sirius and I talked about it Ron. Malfoy was the one who had a personal thing against all of us. He was more dangerous than his dad. We didn't have another choice."

"Yes you did! You could have brought him to me and let me pummel the little slug," Ron said still angry.

"Then you would have gotten arrested!" Parvati exclaimed. "I don't want you to be put away because of Draco."

Ron looked between the two of them and finally said, "What are you going to do about Lucius now?"

"Your dad and Sirius will try to watch him closely. I told him that if we caught him doing anything evil, we'd come after him."

"I don't like this at all. You should have let me have a chance at Draco," Ron said sounding really sad.

"It'll be better this way. Lucius was always concerned with himself, and Draco was obsessed with getting to us, so it'll be better," Harry said trying to convince himself this was true.

"When's the trial? I want to go watch him squirm," Ron added.

"Within a couple weeks, but none of us can go," Harry said this and saw Ron's face sink. "This can't look like any of us were involved. This has to be totally Lucius turning his Draco over to the authorities."

"So, I don't even get to see him sentenced! Bloody great," Ron said before storming into the back yard.

"Well, that didn't go well," Harry said to Parvati.

"I'll talk to him more later. He told me not to tell you, but he's been having nightmares about the kidnapping. It's bothering him more than Ruth or me," Parvati said with concern in her voice.

"Makes sense actually. You know how us guys are, if we can't protect you from everything, we blame ourselves. I'm actually glad he was the one to get you guys out. I hate to see how he would have been if he wouldn't have been involved." Harry said and then was silent for a minute. "Tell him to come over if he wants to talk more, I'm going to go to the office for a while," Harry said kissing Parvati on the cheek and then disappearing.

Harry had seen Ron nearly every day before the trial, trying to get his friend to realize this was the best they could hope for in dealing with Draco. Ron did understand this, but it didn't help his attitude much. He still felt cheated by not being able to even talk to Malfoy.

The day the trial started, Harry, Ron, the twins and some other friends got together and tried taking their mind off of the proceedings by playing Quidditch at the Burrow. They really weren't keeping score and just trying to pass the time. It was actually working pretty well since the antics of the twins could cause almost anyone to forget their worries for a little bit. It was late that afternoon when the Minister of Magic came out to the boys. Ron was the first to see his father arrive.

"So, how did it go? Is it over?" Ron asked expectantly.

Mr. Weasley got a strained look and said, "It's going to last another day. He keeps insisting that he wasn't the one calling the shots."

"What! They're not falling for that are they?" Ron exclaimed.

"It won't keep him out of Azkaban, but he's got everyone wondering," Mr. Weasley admitted.

Ron turned, grabbed Harry by the arm and walked off so the others couldn't hear and said "If he gets out of this, he's mine."

Harry could tell by the look in his friend's eyes that Ron meant every word. He tried to sound confident when he said, "He won't get out of it."

Ron wanted to go home and left quickly, so Harry went home as well. Ginny was there waiting when he arrived. "Hey, I didn't know you were coming over. I would have left earlier."

Ginny gave him a big kiss and said, "That's ok, I know Ron needs the company right now. Was there any news?"

"It looks like the trial will last another day, but that's it. Ron just wants it over."

Ginny kissed his neck and said, "How about I try to take your mind off of it for a few hours?" Ginny had the naughty look in her eyes that Harry loved so much.

"I don't know when Hermione will be back," Harry said trying to keep his willpower.

Ginny smiled broadly and said, "I do." She paused and could tell Harry wanted to know so she continued, "She's staying with Dr. Harlan."

Harry's eyes got big. "Really? That's great. He seems to make her really happy."

"Well, we'll see how happy he really makes her after tonight," Ginny joked. "But, that leaves us free to do whatever we want."

The two quickly went up to the bedroom where Ginny quickly took control of things and directed Harry as he brought her pleasure over and over before joining her into a final, vocal acknowledgement of their pleasure.

After recovering a bit, Harry kind of chuckled.

"What's so funny?" Ginny asked.

"Just how much you've changed. For the first few years you knew me you could barely say two words to me and now you're giving me very explicit instructions on what you want me to do," said Harry kissing her forehead.

"God I was so stupid back then. I couldn't even walk straight when you were around," she said, shaking her head.

"Oh, I see and now it's no big deal to be around me," Harry said trying to sound offended.

"It's still a big deal, but I know that you won't think badly of me. I don't see any reason to hold anything back around you."

"Thanks. That really means a lot to me. I couldn't imagine you ever doing anything that would make me think less of you."

"I'll keep that in mind," she said and then looked thoughtful. "So, tell me one of your fantasies. Maybe we can make it happen." Ginny reached down and began stroking Harry.

Harry thought for a second and then said, "Well, since you put it like that, I think I've got one." He was already aroused and pulled Ginny on top of him.

Ginny gave a deep moan as Harry entered her, but she got a confused look and said, "But we do it like this all the time."

"Not exactly, hold on," Harry said with a sly smile and then Ginny felt them rising

She felt Harry sink even deeper into her as both of their bodies started rising off the bed. The full force of her weight pressed her down onto him as she wrapped her legs around his body and gripped his shoulders. "What are you doing!" she exclaimed.

Harry didn't answer until they were at least three meters off the bed, suspended in mid-air. "I always wanted to see if this would work," he said smiling and then moved his hips and continued, "and I'd say it has real potential."

Ginny's eyes were big as she sat straight up, trying to keep her balance and clearly enjoying the feeling of the pressure of riding Harry with nothing to rest her legs on. Slowly, she started grinding her hips back and forth looking into Harry's face and getting even more excited at the slight sense of fear seeing how high they were in the air.

Within a few minutes, they were both near the edge, the combination of the newness of this sensation and the slight fear factor adding to the pleasure. Harry was firmly gripping Ginny's hips and helping her to move with even more force. Harry knew he wouldn't last much longer and was just about to tell this to Ginny when he heard her cry out his name and say she was there. When his release finally did come, he lost concentration and the two suddenly dropped. Ginny gave a sharp scream and Harry was quickly able to recover and stop their descent just before they would have landed on the hard floor of the bedroom.

Concentrating hard, he directed them up and back onto the bed before saying, "Sorry about that, it just felt so great that I forgot what I was doing."

"It would still have been worth it," Ginny said with a sly smile. "Besides the sudden stop actually felt pretty good." She kissed him deeply and said, "I hope you've got a few more fantasies we can try sometime."

Harry got a really naughty look and said, "Definitely, but next time is one of yours."

"Hmmm....I'll have to give that some thought," she added while the two lay there lightly stroking each other and falling asleep.

The next morning during breakfast, Harry asked, "Want to come hang out with us today?"

Ginny got a sad look and said, "I can't. You know I've got those two dresses to finish before the fashion show. I really want to do good there."

"I'm sure you'll do great. Who's modeling them for you?" Harry asked.

"You're ex, Kristi. That fashion editor mentioned that my drawings looked like they would be worn by a very confident woman and I thought Kristi fit well. She seemed really excited about doing it as well," Ginny said clearly happy.

"Better than one of those dainty models, that's for sure. I'm sure you'll do well.

"I hope so. So, I'll see you this weekend, I'm cooking remember," she said kissing him goodbye.

Harry left for the Burrow early in the afternoon so they could again pass the time playing Quidditch. The twins weren't able to keep Ron's mind off of the trial as well today, so time seemed to drag by. Finally, Mr. Weasley and Sirius showed up late afternoon and were quickly besieged by Ron asking questions.

"Is it over? What did he get?"

"He got fifty years," Mr. Weasley said.

"Fifty years! That's great," Ron exclaimed.

Harry could see something in Sirius' expression so he asked, "But, something else happened didn't it?"

This brought Ron out of his excited mood. Sirius gave a sigh and said, "He made a deal. He gave the names of some important Muggles that were involved and they reduced his sentence."