What Shakes The Elephant

What Shakes The Elephant

Chapter 29 – What Makes Him Tick

Harry was caught up his feelings. He couldn’t think clearly. The peripheral world was blurring and all he could see was Draco and his promises. He wanted to listen and forget everything else. But he couldn’t do that. He had to think of his family, his children, his job. He couldn’t give it all up to while away the time with Draco. He couldn’t forget about the promise he had made to Ginny.

Earlier that day, Harry had been sitting, staring at their bed once more. His eyes never left her pillow. It had been hard. He hadn’t slept in that room since her death, preferring to sleep on the sofa in the sitting room than there. He couldn’t deal with the memories at all.

But what nagged at him more than the loss of his wife was the issue about Draco. Did he want the answers? If he did, at what price would they come? Was that not always the question? How much is anyone willing to give up, willing to suffer for solutions? Nothing is ever easy.

He found himself, without realizing it, apologizing to her, not in a whisper, not in his thoughts, but loudly. He spoke aloud as though she was sitting in front of him and he apologized. He apologized for how he felt and how much of a coward he had been. He didn’t know when, but he felt as though he had lost his courage. Somewhere during nineteen years of a stable job and happy family life, he lost the drive that made Harry Potter who he was. He apologized for that too.

He admitted that he cared for her and always would, but not in the way he was meant to. She had been his childhood sweetheart and, even when he did not feel the same passion for her, he ignored it and stayed with her because it was safe and it was convenient. He had not had any problems; he had not faced any other attraction and so it had never occurred to him that Ginny might not be his soul-mate –if you believe in that kind of thing.

He found himself apologizing again and again for all the things he wished he could have done better, how he wanted to be more honest with the both of them and how he wished he could, even now, understand his own emotions better. So, in some kind of pay back for his mistakes, he made her a solemn promise.

He told her that he would solve this case and find a cure to further protect all Weasley girls, along with all the other purebloods that suffered from family curses. No matter what your blood lineage, no one deserves to face things like that. It was the right thing to do. Plus, even if his own children did not face the precise effects of the curses, they still did not know what effects the mixed bloodline has on them.

All in all, Harry promised to do everything in his power to protect his children and their future. He promised to be honest with himself and everyone and learn to understand the things he did not. He, once again, apologized to Ginny and hoped that she was at least happy beyond the veil with his parents, Fred, Sirius, Remus, Dumbledore, Snape, Mad-Eye, Cedric, Tonks and so many others that they had lost over the years. He hoped that, much like Al wished for Hogwarts, past feuds and quarrels could be forgotten once they each had conquered Death.

So, to fulfil his vow, here he was, sitting dangerously close to Draco Malfoy, asking for answers and receiving gifts in their place. He had not expected that at all and it rather disconcerted him. He held the cool metal ring in his hand, carefully studying the grooves of the serpent’s mouth as it consumed its own tail.

He felt as though this must have some other meaning than death and rebirth. He knew there was more to it. But he felt guilty. He had nothing to offer Draco, nothing to repay him and he did not deserve a priceless family heirloom. People trusted him too often with these things and look at what happened to the watch the Weasleys had given him. It just stopped one day. What if the snake suddenly gave up its mission to eat itself and the ring broke? What would that mean then?

“Draco…” Harry whispered, looking back up at the man. As soon as he did so, he regretted it. The drawing power of Draco’s eyes was far too much and he could hardly fight the need he felt growing in his stomach. “I haven’t anything for you…”

Draco chuckled softly and leaned closer, which made Harry’s heart race and yet caused him more discomfort. He could not be this close to the other man. He could not. It was not… appropriate.

“You need not have anything for me,” he answered smoothly, tossing a lock of hair from his face. Harry could not help but notice that Draco always wore his hair down when he was around Harry. Though, in all fairness, he had not expected Harry’s visit this time around. “Your company is more than enough. I just thought that it was appropriate for you to have this.”

Harry nodded vaguely and let his eyes fall back to the snake.

“Oh wait,” he said quietly, remembering something in his robe pocket. “I do have something for Scorpius though. I though he might enjoy them.”

He pulled out a brightly coloured sack filled with Shifting Suckers and handed it to Draco. The blond took the back and tilted his head, looking at the candy.

“It’s a Weasley product,” he admitted. “George and Teddy have been working on these for a while. They aren’t on the market yet, but he gave all the children some for Christmas.”

“What do they do?” Draco asked, apparently slightly worried for his son’s health. He had right to be, many of the candy products George sold had unpleasant effects.

“Well, George was always fascinated by Metamorphmagi,” Harry explained, feeling more relaxed now. “And Teddy is one so they studied his blood and the magic he uses for it so that they could replicate the concepts in a sweet. You suck on these and as long as the candy lasts, you have the ability to change your appearance like a Metamorphmagus can.”

Draco weighed out the bag in his hand as that characteristic smirk drew up the corners of his mouth. This was the smirk Harry had come to know well, the one Draco put on when he was plotting something dastardly. Harry found himself smirking as well and very crude thoughts flashed momentarily through his mind.

“Thank you,” Draco said to him, nodding his head. “I’m sure Scorpius will have endless fun with these.”

Harry smiled and nodded, remembering that they were there for a purpose other than to engage in idle chat. He took a deep breath and turned back to Draco.

“So, what did you find out?” he asked more calmly this time. Draco considered him, his grey eyes reminiscent of a storm.

“I think I’ve found the cure to the curses,” he said very slowly but without gilding the lily. “Or, at least I’ve found a very strong possibility.” Harry’s jaw dropped. He knew this was coming but he did not really believe it. His heart beat faster and he wanted to know but at the same time he couldn’t stand to. He had only speculated that Draco knew the answer to the curse but… “I took my father to the hospital just over a week ago for his assessment. That’s when I found out.”

Harry’s anger rose inside of him, raging like a pent-up bull and demanding freedom. Draco had known. Had he known from before Ginny’s death? Had he been keeping it to himself? Had he wanted Ginny to die or had he wanted to use the information to gain positive standing in the public’s eye? Was it all meant to be used in hopes of advancing in the Ministry? Or did he really have such a disregard for human life that he could wait until it suited him to reveal the information?

All these thoughts were irrational but Harry could not control it. He knew better, but did not want to know.

“Exactly when?” he demanded harshly, his eyes flashing dangerously. Draco stayed calm and looked directly at him.

“I found out the day your wife died,” he said softly, in barely more than a whisper (if a whisper at all). “I ran to send word to you as soon as I had all the information but it was already too late.” He looked away from Harry now, his eyes no longer stormy but flatter than before. He was not full of the grief that Harry inexplicably expected to be there, but instead he was calm.

“It was… too late,” Harry repeated, running his fingers through his thick black hair, trying to take it in. The answer might have been staring them in the face for all this time and they had never noticed. It definitely was too late. It had been too late for Ginny from the moment Harry began studying the cure with Draco.

He knew this to be true… he knew, deep down, that he had never concentrated hard enough, with enough passion, or vigour to find a cure. He’d been far too distracted by something else.

“Harry… are you alright?” Draco asked rather lamely. Harry frowned slightly.

How could he answer that question? Truthfully?

He could answer with the obvious and say that he was not alright and it would be a long while before he was. He could answer and say that his wife has just passed away and his life has been turned upside-down and the answer that might have saved her was sitting in front of his eyes all along. He could answer that he was angry and upset and frustrated and full of rage. He could yell and be harsh and demanding.

But none of that was truth.

In reality, Harry was alright. He did not feel the rage he wanted to. He did not feel the panging disappointment or grief. He did not feel hurt. He did not feel betrayed. He felt much too ‘alright’ for what he was finding out.

“I’m fine,” he answered, deciding that he wasn’t even fooling himself any more.

He did not look at Draco but suddenly a hand rested on his back, near his shoulder, and the weight of it, along with knowing to whom it belonged, was enough to reassure him that no matter how ‘wrong’ his feelings might seem, it did not matter. He was alright.

“Do you want to know more, or should it wait?” he asked soothingly, careful not to push Harry too fast. This seemed telling in some way but Harry paid little mind to the idea.

“No, go on,” he said slowly, taking even breaths as he tried to ignore the strange tingles that erupted under his skin where Draco was touching him.

There was a pause, a hesitation, a moment’s peace, but Draco did not move his hand. Instead he gave Harry a gentle squeeze and leaned in closer. The proximity was both comforting and frightening to Harry but, if ever given the option, he would opt to keep the closeness and deal with the awkward feeling.

“Well, I told you before,” Draco began, still maintaining their positions. Harry forced himself to look up, refusing to seem like a frightened child any longer, no matter how painful the whole situation was. His eyes were bright and determined and Draco’s voice faltered slightly before he continued to speak. “That the Malfoy curse is high blood pressure.” He took a deep breath, their eyes locked as he spoke. “But when I took my father in, Luna’s spells indicated that his blood pressure was not only lower than usual, but completely normal. It was perfect for his age and build, but he is on no medication for it. Furthermore, every complication to his health that was related to his blood pressure was gone. He is now healthier than he was before he was poisoned.”

Harry’s mouth opened slightly as he tried to take all the information in. He was not as quick at figuring these kinds puzzles out as Draco was, but he thought he had a pretty good idea.

“So, you’re suggesting that getting poisoned was the key to his health?” Harry asked, one eyebrow raised into his hairline. That seemed slightly far-fetched and he was not about to risk anyone’s life by poisoning them just to see if it would work.

“No, the poisoning itself was not the key,” he explained, ignoring the fact that his hand was still on Harry’s back. “But rather surviving the poison.” He paused and turned more to face Harry, pulling his hand, not away as Harry imagined, but rather down his back slightly. It was as though Draco was somehow glued to Harry now and refused to let him go.

Not that Harry minded at all.

“Surviving the poison…” Harry repeated, his eyes still completely entranced by Draco’s.

“Yes,” he went on softly. Harry’s body shivered and tingled from the sounds of Draco’s voice. The tone was so elegant and sultry though the words were the least seductive ones that Harry could possibly imagine right now, but it did not matter. “The Acromantula poison and Basilisk venom from the poison are mixed specifically to make use of the more advantageous effects of each ingredient. Working together they are quick and deadly, but, because of the speed with which we were able to react, Luna managed to save my father.”

“Alright,” Harry agreed, still lost as to how this meant they had a solution. They could not poison purebloods everywhere just to claim they were saving them. Draco seemed to read his mind.

“These poisons,” Draco attempted to explain, clearly seeming frustrated now. “the way they work to kill you is to destroy the blood. They paralyse and eat away at the basic components of your blood until you cannot sustain any longer. Normally, on their own, each poison takes a certain amount of time to react, but together they managed to attack your life force in a different way. It’s faster and more precise but it comes with a catch.” He leaned in closer to Harry as though about to tell him an important secret. “The first thing that the poisons destroy is the curse on the blood; they modify the purity and without that, the curse means nothing.”

Harry considered the words, understanding much better now but still wondering why this really seemed like a plausible option to Draco. Would they purposely poison all these people and then hope that they had enough Healers on hand with Luna’s expertise to be able to save them all before it was too late?

“How is this a cure, Draco?” he asked, running his fingers through his hair and inadvertently brushing Draco’s arm. “We cannot poison people. It’s not safe.”

Draco leaned back slightly with the mischievous grin. Harry distractedly wondered if he would ever get to see that grin on Draco in a situation that did not involve poisons…

“Obviously,” he said simply as though Harry was far too slow on the uptake. “But Luna’s remedy was the only one she could offer. That does not mean it is the only option we have. There is a safer and much faster way to counteract the poisons.”

Harry perked up and edged closer without realising it. Draco’s arm was now around his back and neither of them paid any attention to it.

“And that is?” he pressed on.

“Phoenix tears,” he replied as though it was as simple as daylight. “If we mix an adequate amount of Phoenix tears, they will negate the deadly effects of the poisons without making them completely ineffective. Too many tears would simply cancel out the poisons and then we might as well be offering water.”

Harry still saw a large problem.

“Too few, however,” he added. “And we’ve suddenly got a lot of dead purebloods on our hands.”

Draco nodded, mildly amused.

“Yes, but that’s what testing is for,” he replied. “I didn’t say it was perfect yet, but it’s a much headier start than we had before, what with our lack of information.”

Still, there was a rather massive problem.

“I see,” he agreed, for lack of a better counter-argument. “Alright, fine. Say we use your idea and decide to mix Acromantula poison with Basilisk venom and the perfect amount of Phoenix tears. Where, pray tell, do you plan to acquire all these incredibly rare ingredients?”

Harry looked into Draco’s eyes and saw a faint glimmer discomfort there, hidden just underneath the confidence he exuded.

“We go to the last person who attempted to do it,” he replied more quietly than before. “Hydra.”

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A/N: Ahh I’m falling behind. I’m afraid I might not be able to post two chapters a day very soon, but as it stands I shall keep trying! If I have to cut it down, it will likely be one chapter a day, but hopefully I can manage!

To Ritinha: I’m sorry to hear about your grandfather, though I am glad the fic could help you. It doesn’t sound odd to me at all. When my grandfather died I turned to writing/reading to soothe me too. This fic was a solution for me because a lot of my raw emotions came through, especially with Narcissa and Draco, not to mention Harry and Ginny. My thoughts are with you and I hope I can continue to help you! :)

I’m really glad that you are all still with me. It’s been rough so far I know, this fic is angst-city really, but things WILL improve and not to distantly. There will be amusing things and I promise you there is smut. I don’t write fics without smut anymore… except Ramalama (Bang Bang) but that was different, lol.

Thank you for all the reviews and support, I love you all!