Jigsaw

CHAPTER 10

Harry sat quietly in the grass chewing a dry cracker with a smidgen of cheese. Three whole days he’d followed Draco around, and in that time he’d found nothing accept what he already knew. Draco was as he’d said he was working in property. Harry had seen no less than ten clients a day coming and going from the little house on the hill. The clientele varied, from muggles to wizards both rich and poor. Some brought their families and stayed only an hour, others brought nice looking women and stayed for dinner. All in all Draco was doing nothing the ministry would consider illegal, even his paper work seemed to be all above order. Harry had taken his time to look over the place too, and had found nothing untoward. Harry had followed Draco into town, and even into Diagon Alley for his weekly shopping excursion. Harry had almost swallowed his tongue when he’d watched the blonde go into KnockTurn Alley but he’d merely been picking up his supply of potion, which he stowed in his cloak pocket along with everything else. Harry noted that the potion he picked up he placed on the mantel above his brandy decanter. There was a set routine Draco went through during the day and at night and Harry had become accustomed to it within the first 24hours. Today however there was a change in air, Harry could feel it.

Draco had risen early and taken a quick breakfast in the kitchen. Harry had followed him round the house with a watcher charm from room to room as the blonde, washed, changed and dressed for the day ahead. Unlike the muggle trousers and vest he wore usually, today he dressed in his wizarding robes, royal blue with gold piping. Harry watched as the blonde collected all of the meal plates from the kitchen placing them in a large basket with a cloth draped over the top. Harry had watched the night before as the house elves had prepared the meals, each of them different but each carefully measured and placed on the plates. This morning however the plates had been wrapped in cheese clothe and collected together in the basket for Draco. Alone this meant nothing but it was as Harry saw Draco pick up the potion bottle from the mantel and stow it in the basket with the meals that Harry knew he’d hit gold.

Harry stuffed his half eaten cracker into his pocket quickly and stood up from his seat in the middle of the field, the invisibility cloak shifting easily with him. Draco tucked his cloak around him tighter against the brisk morning air as he set off down the hill towards the bridge. Harry followed him close enough to keep up but half a step behind so as to avoid possible detection. Passing over the bridge Draco paused a while to look down into the stream below before continuing up the steep slope on the other side towards the old manor. Harry moved quicker and got closer to Draco as the blonde reached the heavily warded hedge. Draco paused in front of the hedge and Harry watched as the blonde waved his wand in front of it. The air seemed to crackle with the intensity of the magic contained in such a small space. For a moment it didn’t seem like anything had happened but a second later a small space appeared in the tightly twisted branches of the hedge. Draco passed easily through, but Harry had to run to make it through behind the blonde before the space closed up again with a shuddering crackle of magic. Panting Harry paused to glance around the new area.

The place was desolate compared to the world beyond the barrier. The charred remains of a garden littered the ground and a crumbling water feature sat idle in the center of a paved garden path. Draco followed the path and Harry hurriedly ran to keep up with the blonde. The path wound its way around the crumbling old manor until finally it pitted out into longish grass. Harry continued to follow Draco, under what Harry assumed use to be a large arbor. At the far end of the arbor Harry could see a stone cottage. Smoke was rising from it’s chimney but the gray cloud never made it higher than the over grown willow trees surrounding it as a magical spell of some sort made it disappear. The entire place seemed to crackle with magic and Harry stuck as close to Draco as he dared. The blonde reached the door to the stone cottage and knocked twice. Harry was almost stunned to hear a very familiar voice call Draco inside.

‘Snape’. Harry whispered to himself as he forgot himself for a moment and lost his opportunity to get inside the cottage with Draco. Harry swore as he tried the door and found it locked. Harry had a feeling that if he used any sort of magic in this place the entire valley would shake with the wards, so instead of pulling out his wand in an attempt to get inside he clambered around the outside of the cottage to the nearest window.

The window was small, and grubby but Harry eagerly rubbed a small patch of dirt away so that he could see inside. The first thing he saw was Draco in what appeared to be a small kitchen unpacking the plates of meals and putting them into a small refrigerated cupboard. Pushing his nose closer to the glass Harry could just see a chair through the entranceway of the kitchen into a living room of some sort. There was a fire he could see but nothing much else. In the chair he could just make out a familiar top of black hair. Harry smiled to himself glad at least that the potions professor had survived. Not being able to see much through the dirty glass, Harry instead listened to the conversation going on inside.

“You said you wanted chicken this week so I had the butcher slaughter two fresh yesterday.” Harry remembered following Draco into the village below for the chickens and had wondered what they would be for. Now he knew.

“Thank-you.” Was the quiet reply, shortly before a sickly cough echoed around the cottage. Harry grimaced at the cough as he watched through the glass as Draco exited the kitchen with the potion vial in his hand. What Harry had thought about the potion was automatically confirmed as true as he watched Draco hand Severus the potion. When the vial was returned it was empty and Harry watched as Draco stowed the empty bottle back into his cloak pocket.

“You’ll never guess who came visiting on Sunday.” Harry saw Draco move out of eyeshot, the blonde obviously doing something else in the living room. Snape however remained in the chair, only the top of his black hair visible from behind the chair. “Potter!” Draco continued obviously accustomed to not waiting for a reply from Snape. Harry frowned as he watched Draco move back into view carrying a blanket, which he draped over Snape in the chair and began tucking it around him carefully. “Came snooping around the place asking for you. I told him to fuck off and that’ you’d skipped the country.” Draco smiled as he knelt down beside the chair Snape was sat in. “Wouldn’t you think they’d just let you be, without the bastards having to come looking. I thought we’d dealt with that after the last lot of Auror’s came asking questions.” Harry was stunned by what he’d heard and automatically his thoughts turned to Ron. His friend knew all along and yet he hadn’t told Harry. Trying to reign in his anger Harry concentrated back on the scene inside the cottage. “Don’t worry I doubt Potter will be back, and I’ll see to it personally that he doesn’t.” Draco smiled warmly at the man in chair in front of him, his hand automatically reaching up to clasp the hand that was resting on the arm of the chair. Harry had never in his entire life scene Draco Malfoy express compassion and it was a shock.

For the next half an hour Harry sat listening to the conversation inside the cottage. Draco doing most of the talking, telling Snape about his business, his clients and their whores. Occasionally Harry would hear Snape cough but very little else was said. Finally though Draco rose from his knelt position beside Snape and told the other wizard he’d see him again the same time next week. Harry quietly heard Snape acknowledge the blonde before a soft kiss on the forehead was exchanged and Draco grabbed his now empty basket and exited the cottage. Harry knew he had to leave knowing there was no way else out of the secret garden but he was extremely reluctant. Snape sounded ill, and Harry didn’t want to wait to speak to him, yet he was being forced to. With a glance back at the cottage Harry followed Draco back up the path and through the warded hedge back onto the main track leading to Draco’s home. Harry watched as Draco disappeared back down the hill and across the bridge to his own home before he pulled the invisibility cloak from his body and sucked in a large breath of fresh air. Harry didn’t know what to feel. Inside his heart broke for the man alone in the cottage but at the same time he felt hurt and angered that his best friend hadn’t told him he’d known about it all along. With a steadying breath Harry tucked his cloak back into his pocket having shrunken it and with a shake of his head to clear his thoughts apperate back to London with a sharp crackling pop.

TBC>>>>>>>>>>>

A/N *scratches head and looks around in a daze* Where did you all go, or is there something on TV at this time of the year that\'s better than fan fiction? *Grabs TV guide scanning uselessly*

Anyway some questions to ponder as we go boldly into the next chapter.... What did Ron know? Why didn\'t he tell Harry? Who is actually in the cottage? Is it Snape? And what exactly is Malfoy hiding? *Shrugs shoulders* When you find out answers to these and all the rest of the questions feel free to tell me cause I\'ve got no bloody idea.... my muse has but I haven\'t. I think it\'s sensibly cut me off after my last disaster of a story.

Oh well sorry it\'s only two chapters today hope you enjoy and I\'d love a review or two just to keep me going.

RIFFRAFF