Away Childish Things

Chapter 13

June 2012
Harry Potter: 31 years
Draco Malfoy: 24 years

When Draco was twenty-four, he and Harry found the illegal supplier responsible for the warehouse and the potions ring.

They were both examining memories from the Ward Record in Tailored Tinctures when Draco's hand gripped Harry's shoulder, yanking him out of his Pensieve.

Draco had been subdued that morning. This had made Harry wary, such that when Draco pulled him out of the Pensieve, Harry was sort of prepared for another argument about how they weren't going to dry hump in Draco's shop. Meanwhile, Draco was saying, "Look, Potter, look!" and tugging on his arm. Since Draco seemed to want him to, Harry stood, then Draco pushed him over toward Draco's Pensieve and shoved Harry's face down in it. Harry plunged into the filmy grey of memory, which eventually resolved itself into the same warehouse lab he had been watching hour after hour, day after day.

In the memories, Vance had already gone in and out of the lab a few times. Harry had told Draco to separate those memories, but Vance was not what Harry and Draco were looking for. Neither Savage nor Ron were either, because Harry already knew Savage was involved, and Ron was being controlled. What Harry needed was the supplier, because that had to be someone outside the department. If Harry could find the supplier, he should be able to more easily trace everyone who was involved and where all the contraband ingredients were. He should also be able to find whatever mechanism was controlling Ron, Hermione, and Shacklebolt, and get to the bottom of the whole thing.

When Draco shoved Harry's face in the Pensieve, Harry was half afraid that whatever he saw would not be helpful. Maybe another Auror had got mind-controlled into being involved. Maybe Robards knew about the warehouse. Harry did recognize the figure who entered the lab in the memory, but it wasn't an Auror. It was Abel Alby.

Harry took his head out.

"He could be the supplier," Draco said. On Draco's timeline, Alby had only just sacked Draco. "It makes sense; he was always disappearing at weird times, but I never knew why. I didn't try to find out; I didn't care-where are you going?"

Harry had stood, pouring the memories back into the jar. "I've got to question him."

"Excellent." Draco put his arm out. "Side-along?"

Harry glanced at it, then up at Draco's face. "You're a civilian."

"And I'm helping you," Draco said. "Let's go."

Harry looked at his arm again.

Draco put it down. "I'm going. That spineless little worm, I want to see him taken down. I want to see him-" He bared his teeth, a brutal expression that Harry remembered from the teenage version, but never from Draco in his twenties. "You can't stop me."

"You know that I could," Harry said. He couldn't take Draco with him-not because of protocol. Draco could be hurt.

"You won't," Draco said. "You know what he did to me."

Harry wavered.

"I won't do anything," Draco said, detecting his advantage. "I'll be a bystander. Bystanders are allowed. I just want to see. I promise."

Harry still wasn't sure.

"You always want to help me," Draco said. "This time I'm asking."