Never A Memory

~Of Mice and Men~



“Don’t fret, precious; I’m here…

…Step away from the window…

…And go back to sleep…”



Minutes later…

***



Number Twelve Grimmauld Place…

~*~



Dinner was quiet as they ate in the kitchen, stealing looks of barely-masked anticipation. Harry knew Draco must be nervous because his usual back-handed innuendos had all but disappeared and the blond Slytherin Prince was unusually silent.



Harry was surprised to find how calm he was despite the inner battle that had raged in him about even considering taking Draco as a lover. Yet, when he had decided the day before, Harry felt languid, the game suddenly turning in his favor. The history of his experience versus Draco’s virginity gave him a sense of control; the upper-hand perhaps. Although, as Harry finished his soufflé—which was delicious, by the way—he was grounded, knowing that he needed to take a care with what the night would bring. Harry would not shatter the fragile trust they had built between them.



After Harry placed his dish in the sink to be cleaned later by Slightly, he turned back to Draco, who was still seated at the kitchen table and pushing his unfinished dinner around on the plate. Walking around the table, Harry picked up Draco’s plate and put in the sink as well. When Draco put his fork down and raised his eyes to Harry’s, Harry couldn’t read the feeling that perfect grey was exuding.



Harry reached out and entwined his fingers with Draco’s and urged him to stand with his eyes. Then, still gently holding Draco’s hand, Harry led them both back upstairs.



***



“Safe from pain and truth and choice…”



U.S. MLED, Madison, Wisconsin. Muggle Affairs…

~*~



Byrne glanced up when Williams dropped a file on his desk.



“The man goes by the name Michael Deans,” Williams said and, though his voice was controlled, years of being his partner told Byrne that Williams was livid.



“And that’s bad?”



“Michael Deans is dead,” Williams said through his teeth. “Killed in his second year during a Potions accident at Sequoia’s School for American Witchcraft and Wizardry.”



“The school you went to,” Byrne said with a nod. “But I thought you recognized the guy? Did he go to the same school?”



“Not only did he go to the same school,” Williams said, “he was the student responsible for the accident. His actual name is Maximus Cure. He was expelled and his wand confiscated. I was in my seventh year at the time. That’s how I knew his face.”



Byrne scratched at the stubble on his chin. “Is he using magic?”



Williams dropped another file on his desk and Byrne picked it up, thumbing through it as he listened to his partner speak.



“Nothing on file,” Williams said with a shake of his head. “However, there is a potion called the Inversion Enchantratem that causes the drinker to lose control of his or her magic and it is forced outside the body, separating itself from form. This is what killed Deans. Cure had experimented with the forbidden potion at Sequoia.”



“Is that what happened to Malfoy at Willow Station?”



“So it seems.”



“’So it seems’ isn’t the answer I’m looking for, Williams.”



“Yes, Joe, it was. We thought it was a psychological defect. But no, all the evidence points to that potion.”



“Does the potion always kill?”



“No.”



“Explain.”



“It renders the drinker harmless and the magic, transferable. It is extremely harmful to children and can kill as with Deans. It’s illegal not because it’s harmful but because it is a way for someone, even a Muggle, to steal magic.”



“Merlin’s Balls,” Byrne swore.



“My question is,” Williams continued, “how did Cure know that Draco Malfoy would be at St. Mary’s? Why him? Why now?”



Byrne gave Williams a shrewd look. “You think someone hired him.”



“I do.”



Byrne ran a hand through his sparse hair and sighed heavily. “If someone is interested in Draco Malfoy and Harry Potter, that someone is interested in Lord Voldemort’s surviving army. We can’t let that mess from England come onto our soil. Find Cure. I want answers.”



“You got it.”



***



“…And all those poisoned devils…

…See? They don’t give a fuck about you…

…Like I do…”



Number Twelve Grimmauld Place…

~*~



Harry and Draco faced one another in the darkening bedroom. A single candle on the nightstand sent shadows flickering across the room and their faces as they stared at one another.



Harry lifted a hand and ran a finger down the side of Draco’s face. Draco’s eyes fluttered closed and he leaned his cheek into the touch.



“Are you frightened, Malfoy?” Harry whispered, no trace of mockery in his voice whatsoever.



“Oxymoronic,” Draco murmured, turning his face in and placing a kiss on Harry's palm. “Malfoy’s are never frightened.”



“Are you frightened, Draco?” Harry uttered, the syllables slipping passed his lips in a breathy whisper.



Draco opened his eyes and let Harry see the fear in his eyes. “A little.”



Harry closed the space between them and slid his fingers beneath the folds of Draco’s robe, pushing it off and letting the robe pool at their feet. Tenderly, Harry ran his fingers up the length of Draco’s neck and curling them into the blond hair at the base of Draco’s neck. Harry pressed a kiss to Draco’s temple and felt Draco begin to relax against him.



“Don’t be,” Harry murmured.



***



“Count bodies like sheep…

…Count bodies like sheep…”



Fifty-Fourteen Waldemere Way, Madison, Wisconsin…

~*~



Maximus Cure, otherwise known as Michael Deans, felt the prickling on his skin of approaching magic before the two Aurors Apparated inside his studio apartment.



Smiling, Cure waved lazily at them and stood from his seat on the couch. “I had expected you sooner,” Cure said. “We have much to discuss, I expect.”



The older, shorter Auror, whose badge marked him as Byrne, stepped forward, his wand raised. “Maximus Cure, you are under arrest for the illegal use of magic, for the attack of Inversion Enchantratem on one John Smith, and suspicion of taking a deceased Wizard’s identity. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you…”



***



“Count bodies like sheep to the rhythm of the war drum…

…Count bodies like sheep…”



Number Twelve Grimmauld Place…

~*~



Undressing one another was a deliberately slow process. Harry took care to kiss every bared part of Draco’s skin as he shed layer after layer of clothing and allowed Draco to dominate his mouth as nimble fingers quickly undid the fixtures of his own robes, shirt and trousers.



Despite their unrushed pace, they were breathless as they stood naked in front of one another, the flickering light of the sole lit candle causing shadows to dance upon their skin as they drunk one another in with their eyes.



Harry tried to concentrate on his breathing to control himself as Draco’s eyes roamed over his naked skin, that piercing gray caressing his body with more effect than anyone’s fingers ever had. Hesitantly, Draco lifted his hands and placed them on Harry’s chest, gazing up into Harry’s forest green eyes with a question in his own. Harry placed his hands over Draco’s pressed his touch more firmly onto his skin.



His courage building, Draco ran his hands down the length of Harry’s bared chest and flat stomach and stepped in to kiss Harry full on the mouth as his hands wrapped around Harry’s waist.



Harry groaned when their erections pressed against one another, the feeling electric and sudden, no fabric to bar the sudden spike of arousal between them. Harry growled into the kiss and nearly crushed Draco to him when Draco rocked his hips slightly, pressing closer and tipping his head back to allow Harry more of his mouth. Harry moved away from his lips and begin a trail of kisses down the side of Draco’s neck and shoulder and Draco’s hands found themselves tangled in the thick tresses of Harry’s black hair.



Harry bent lower and ran his teeth over a nipple, taking it into his mouth and sucking slightly, eliciting a sharp gasp from the Malfoy heir, a sound the made Harry's blood feel like fire.



Harry’s kisses continued to move lower and Draco’s entire body quivered as his mind tried to process where, exactly, Harry was headed.



Then, Harry was on his knees, his kisses small and sweet on the inside of Draco’s thigh, his cheek brushing against the length of Draco’s erection as it bobbed, aching for more touch. Draco’s fingers clutched painfully in Harry’s hair as he waited for his hot mouth to engulf him; however, Harry continued his small teasing kisses, his eyes raised towards Draco’s upturned face, watching and waiting. Finally, Draco opened his eyes and looked down; only then did Harry turn his face in, keeping his eyes locked on Draco’s, and pressed a tender kiss to the base of Draco’s aching phallus.



Draco shivered, fighting to keep his eyes open and on Harry’s as his mouth moved over, almost reverently, his erection. However, when Harry tongue emerged from that teasing mouth and flicked inside the slit on the head of purpling erection, the muscles in Draco’s neck turned to liquid and his head fell back with a groan.



Draco’s fingers tightened even more painfully in Harry’s hair as he continued to use his tongue and lips in slow, reverent patterns up and down the base of his phallus and Harry was certain Draco nearly ripped his scalp clean off when he took all of Draco into his mouth in one sudden movement.



The heat of Harry’s mouth was nearly impossible to bear and Draco found a new respect for Harry’s talented tongue as it continued to work around his erection, swirling, sucking, and dancing, the movements reminding Draco of how Harry used to fly in circles around him on the Quidditch Pitch until he was dizzy and thoroughly defeated.



The moans escaping past Draco’s throat was music in Harry’s ears, urging him onward with a growing passion to make the movements of his mouth, tongue, and throat as he took in more and more of Draco’s weeping erection to be perfection. Harry brought a hand up to run his fingers lightly under Draco’s balls, his mind singing with the sound Draco made when he pressed against that sensitive spot behind them, and his other hand ran up Draco’s stomach, the quivering muscles of Draco’s abdomen dancing beneath the flesh of his palm, and then around his waist to grip his hip and hold him steady.



The heat in the pit of Draco’s stomach was becoming unbearable and the muscles of his entire body quivered uncontrollably. Abruptly, with a gasp, Draco’s knees buckled and Harry immediately removed his mouth and caught him. Standing and in three quick strides, Harry had laid Draco on his back among the sheets of the grand four-post bed and resumed his task, the leverage allowing better angles and a faster pace. Knowing Draco was close, Harry gripped the base of Draco’s erection and pumped while working the head lavishly with his lips and tongue, the noises the Slytherin Prince was making beneath his ministries causing his own erection to become excruciatingly hard and impossible to ignore.



Abruptly, Draco’s hips convulsed and he gripped the sheets until his knuckles were white. A sharp cry was Harry’s only other warning before Draco came with hard, short spasms, his semen shooting down Harry’s throat in spurts. Harry swallowed greedily before pulling away and crawling beside Draco to wait for him to calm from the high of his orgasm.



“Are you still frightened, Draco?”



“Oh, yes,” Draco replied hoarsely. Harry could hear the definite smile in his voice.



***



“Go back to sleep!

Go back to sleep!

Count bodies like sheep to the rhythm of the war drums!”



U.S. MLED, Madison, Wisconsin. Muggle Affairs…

~*~



“Do you deny the charges?”



Cure smiled, his handsome face becoming cold and tight with the seeming innocent expression. “Even if I did, I’m sure you people would find a way to find me guilty.”



“Who hired you?”



Cure blinked. He had expected the question eventually; however, not nearly so quickly.



“Who hired you, Cure?” The same question but with more vehemence.



“The Gatherer.”



The younger Auror, Williams, slammed his fist on the table. “No games, Cure. I want to go home to my wife and kids tonight. Give me answers so we can end this.”



Cure pursed his lips. “So sorry to inconvenience you.”



“Cure,” the older Auror warned.



“He never gave me his name,” Cure said with a shrug. “He wore glamour, so he could be anybody. And he was only interested in Draco Malfoy. He called himself The Gatherer.”



***



“Don’t kiss me, don’t touch me, don’t kiss me, don’t touch me…

…Go back to sleep…

…Count bodies like sheep to the rhythm of the war drums…”



Number Twelve Grimmauld Place…

~*~



Butterfly kisses on Harry’s cheek told him Draco was wincing at the invasion when he pressed a finger into the Slytherin Prince’s entrance. Harry immediately pulled his finger out and, instead of re-lubricating it, shifted Draco’s legs to hook around his neck. Again, Harry had forgotten that Draco was a virgin, so active had he been in their foreplay thus far. And, again, Harry wanted it to be perfect. So, pushing his own need aside, Harry bent his head between Draco’s legs, lifted his slender hips, and began coaxing Draco’s puckered entrance to relax with his tongue.



“Shit,” Draco swore as Harry laved at his entrance, and rolled his eyes into the back of his head, electricity shooting up his spine. But damn, it felt good.



When Harry pressed a slender digit back into Draco, the Malfoy heir barely noticed it. Harry moved above Draco again and pressed his face into Draco’s shoulder, their breathing labored and their skin slick with sweat. Draco caressed Harry’s back and moaned periodically as Harry worked a finger, then two, and finally three fingers in and out of him, carefully stretching the tight ring of muscle.



Harry smiled against Draco’s shoulder when the body beneath him jolted violently and Draco cried out. Memorizing the angle mentally, Harry removed his fingers and Draco’s cry became one of disappointment. Positioning himself above Draco, Harry gazed down at his lover with passion clouded eyes before bending his head to kiss him slowly.



“Trust me,” Harry whispered against Draco’s mouth.



Draco wrapped his arms around Harry’s neck and pressed his forehead against Harry’s sweat-dampened brow. “I’ve never trusted anyone.”



“Trust me,” Harry repeated, feeling the magic between them become more energized and spike in red and white bolts of electricity around them.



Draco closed his eyes and nodded. The world seemed to come to a stop when Harry pressed his throbbing, impossibly hard phallus in. The magic between became thick and nearly oppressive as Harry continued to slowly press in until he was buried to the hilt. Then, when he pulled out and pushed back in, the dense energy exploded and lights danced and sped around them, flashing, spinning and crashing, faster and faster until they were lost in it. Draco’s shout was swallowed by the magic when Harry hit that spot and drove into it, over and over, losing himself to the energy that was wrapping them in a vortex of exploding magic, crackling, dangerous, passionate, everything white, and gold, and red, and black, and green, and no color at all. They were deaf, hearing their panting only in their minds, their moans only in their bodies, as the vortex swallowed them and lifted them higher and higher, faster and faster. Too much and not enough. Too much. Draco clutched Harry’s back, holding on against the spinning sensations and biting down on Harry’s shoulder against the dizzying energy that finally exploded into a brilliant expanse of nothing.



Harry and Draco found themselves holding one another tightly, their breath coming in hollow gasps, and bodies spend and uncoiling in exhaustion.



Eyes wide, Harry pulled back slightly and ran a hand through his damp hair. “Fuck me,” he whispered. “What the hell was that?”



Draco blinked as he tried to catch his breath. “It’s not like that every time?”



As Harry shook his head slowly, Draco managed to look very smug indeed.



Too exhausted to begin a row, Harry untangled himself from Draco’s limbs, muttered a quick cleaning spell, and collapsed against the sheets. Harry’s green eyes watched Draco do the same, albeit with a little more care, and smiled when he settled against the pillows and curled in towards Harry.



Slowly the smile faded as Draco shifted, and then shifted again, each time wincing as he tried to find a comfortable position.



“I tried to be careful,” Harry murmured after a while. “I’m not sure what happened towards the end but—“



“Shh, I know,” Draco said, his eyes drooping and his lips curving into a sleepy smile. “I know.”



***



“I’ll be the one to protect you from…

…Your enemies and all your demons…

I’ll be the one to protect you from…

…A world to survive and a voice of reason…”



London, England…

~*~



The Gatherer read the last page of John Smith’s journal twice before tossing it lazily into the fire. The angry flames ate the notebook greedily as they danced in the reflection of The Gatherer’s pale blue eyes.



Soon, the Dark Lord would return. Soon, His army could be rebuilt.



Soon.



***



“I’ll be the one to protect you from…

…Your enemies and your choice’s sun…”



Number Twelve Grimmauld Place…

~*~



Harry awoke in the small hours of the morning, his skin prickling with the cold air that washed over him in harsh gusts. Harry sat up straight, knowing instantly that Draco wasn’t in the bed and saw him standing before the window, the pane open and the curtains fluttering as the cold, night air swept into the room.



Harry immediately hopped off the bed and approached Draco. “Draco!” Harry ordered. “Snap out of it!”



Draco turned, his eyes dark and lifeless, and regarded the black-haired man before him.



Harry took a step back. “Draco?”



Those dark, colorless eyes stared on, dead and hollow and oppressive.



Harry moved forward and backhanded Draco across the face. When Draco’s head snapped back, it was Draco’s eyes, not the dark hollow ones, which regarded Harry with confusion.



“Draco?”



Draco looked around, his limbs beginning to shiver uncontrollably, and finally stepped into Harry arms. Harry led Draco back to the bed and curled under the sheets with him. Tenderly, he pushed stray strands away from Draco’s face and gazed worriedly on as Draco shivered beside him.



“What the hell is happening to you?” Harry whispered.



Draco tried to smile but failed, the muscles around his mouth refusing to work past the shivering.



“What the hell is happening to us?” Draco managed finally.



Harry bit his lip and pulled Draco closer.



“I don’t know.”



***



“One and the same and I’ll isolate you…

…Isolate and save you from yourself…” ~Count Bodies Like Sheep to the Rythm of the War Drums, A Perfect Circle.



~*~



a/n: (Lyrics edited by advice of snarrylover)



THERE! ARE YOU HAPPY? lol, nah, I'm just psyched I was able to play with an aesthetic with this chapter. So many of you wanted "TEH SMUT" and others are piqued with the "Deans mystery" and so this chapter was a "I hope this holds you over for a few days 'cause I probably won't be able to update until Monday" gift with a little of everything. I hope you enjoyed. :-P







snakevamp: Nothing interrupts "TEH SMUT". Lol, thanks for the great review! You rock!







Soria: Thank you! Hope you enjoyed the update!







Draco_Harry_lover: Thank you! The Time-Turner did help Draco alot with the timing. He explains this to Snape a few chapters back. I'm really glad you're enjoying the story! I hope you enjoyed the update!







Heero Yuy: Oh, Zypher, deary. *shakes head* You utter goofball. Your reviews always crack me up. Actually, I was under the impression that "blonde" with an "e" was used as a feminine placement and "blond" without an "e" was used for masculine. It may be different in Canada *shrugs* you guys do put "u"s in all sorts of strange places. Thanks for your review and I hope you dig the update!







tribebohemian: *blinks* WOW, THANK YOU! What a wonderful review! Usually when they're so long, they're flames and I was nervous about reading it. Then, when I did, I was completely awed and humble. Thank you so much! Yes, it was important to me to make sure minor characters, even Ron's and soon, Pansey's, have their own...story. They're their own people, not the shadow behind the major characters.



Harry's resentment was especially important to me. Harry just wouldn't be real in this fic if he didn't hold a little grudge. It's a human, egotistical thing to do and we ALL have our ego's.



Draco's my darling of the fic. It was a hard decision to make him a virgin because I wanted to keep making so cool and suave, but it just didn't make sense. Also, he's a person, like everyone else, and goddammit he's entitled his mistakes and feelings too, just like everyone else. Thank you for that feedback on him.



Ah, yes, Severus Snape. He has a role to play yet, don't you worry. And Rowling's story was so pristine, how could I alter it? It's so much more fun to try to dance around the small little holes and cross my fingers and hope that it would still make sense after Deathly Hallows comes out! Thank you!



*nods* Every word and catch phrase and joke has a purpose and a meaning. I did this because not every person understands any one thing clearly. If I am consistant, large archs will still make sense and the number of people left confused will be left to a seldom few. I hate to confuse my readers. It usually means I'm not doing my job. Thank you again.



Oh, look, another one. Let's see...YES! *does a dance* I wanted to play with that from the beginning, different lingo's and accents without having to say "said Draco in a British accent" you know what I mean? It's such great practice, man. Thank you, thank you, thank you.



I hope you're jumping for joy now, lol. And I feel like I can breathe again because I can start moving our boys out of Number Twelve Grimmauld Place and into new geography. The old Black Residence was really just to push them into a relationship. Sort of happens when you're in close quaters with only one other extremely sexy person. *grins* I ho[e you enjoyed the update!







Jan: Thank you! Hmm, sometimes one really can't classify a person as good or bad. Ghandi used to beat his wife yet he starved himself to stop a war. Is Ghandi a good or bad person? Or is he maybe an "effective" person? *shrugs* That's my weird philosophical side coming out. Sorry. :-P Thank you for the review and I hope you enjoyed the update!







airagorn charda: There really is two sides to Draco Malfoy. The one that's Malfoy and then the one that's Draco. I really wanted to put a line in there somewhere that said "Oxymoronic. Malfoy's are never virgins." Ha ha. But, you know *ducks* that would have been cheesy. Anyhoo, thanx for your awesome review and, really, sometimes being teased is the best part. :-P







snarrylover: Thank you! I know, I am a tease. *sigh* Good news is, this chapter didn't tease...to much. *grins* I hope you enjoyed "TEH SMUT" and thanx again for your review!