UNDESIRABLE MISSION Title: Undesirable Mission - Chapter 1
Author: dragontara
Beta: gusx217
Pairing: Harry/Draco
Fandom: Harry Potter
Genre: Suspense, romance
Word count: this chapter 1,652
Rating: From PG-13 to R towards the end
Disclaimer: Harry Potter characters are definitely not mine. I just like to play with them.
Summary: Auror Harry Potter and Unspeakable Draco Malfoy are assigned to a mission by The Minister of Magic. Harry can handle about any danger in his job, but can he take on Draco Malfoy?
While Harry was preparing to Apparate to the Ministry from his cozy little apartment, he still tried to find a way around Head Auror Shacklebolt's ridiculous suggestion – or an order, as Harry preferred to describe it.
The Minister of Magic was totally fed up with the rumors and public accusations about how the Ministry was hiding the hostility between the Auror Department and the Department of Mysteries. Both departments were having some heavy arguments and rifts when working together on some difficult cases. Although that was usually just because of their different working methods. The Daily Prophet had written some offensive articles accusing the Minister of not interceding until the situation got to out of hand. According to the Prophet "the Minister had caused the whole ominous situation himself by hiring a suspected former Death Eater Draco Malfoy to the Department of Mysteries. Malfoy was rumoured to be the source of all hostilities between these two Departments". The Prophet was worried about the safety of the Chosen One and demanded that the Minister get rid of Malfoy immediately.
The Minister wanted to get over all the ruckus by publicly showing that Auror Potter and Unspeakable Malfoy were on amiable terms and actually were befriended over the time they had worked together. Of course that was not the case, in reality Harry and Malfoy ignored each other and spoke to each other only if it was necessary. That's why Harry didn't understand why the Prophet had made him and Malfoy the main culprits of the situation even though it had been entirely different employees of these departments who had been at each other's throats during the cases.
Shacklebolt had summoned Harry and Malfoy into his office earlier that day. He informed them that the Minister demanded they had to show they were getting along perfectly well and this evening's party was a good place to start. As Kingsley had put it, "I don't care how you do it, you start to act like friends or whatever you usually do given your preferences, and stop this nonsense as soon as possible."
Malfoy's smug smirk had irritated Harry to no end, but he had no choice but to accept the challenge. He was sure that it would take only a couple of friendly evenings at a pub with Malfoy or something like that to calm the press, and then he could go on with his life as usual.
Harry arrived at the huge atrium of the Ministry a little bit early and waited for the Malfoy git to arrive. He bitterly expected Malfoy to arrive with his usual arrogance and make a show of his arrival. He was a bit surprised when Malfoy appeared almost unnoticeably at his side and greeted him with a curt nod.
"Potter."
"Malfoy."
"Shall we go then?" Malfoy asked after a short moment of awkward silence.
Harry nodded and they headed to the party hall side by side.
At first no one seemed to notice anything weird about them showing up together at the party, but as soon as the Minister and Shacklebolt stopped by and chatted a moment with them, all of the party guests' attention seemed to focus on them. Harry wasn't very comfortable being the target of attention even when it was just random people staring at him in the street, but now when hundreds of people were watching him, Harry was really squirming. Feeling nervous Harry left Malfoy's side for a moment to get them drinks and that's when Rita Skeeter attacked him with her blunt questions.
"Mr Potter, why are you showing up at the Ministry party with an ex-Death Eater? Did Mr Malfoy use some sort of spell to force you to come as his date? Did the Minister himself make you two become an item? Are you befriending the enemy? Mr Potter, how..."
"Miss Skeeter," Harry interrupted her babbling with a weary sigh, wanting nothing more than to set her annoying quill on fire at that very moment, "don't make any drama out of nothing. I have been friends with Draco Malfoy for a long while now and I don't understand where on earth you got the impression that we were some sort of enemies? The war ended almost five years ago and I suggest that you should notice that as well."
Skeeter backed away for awhile and Harry got his escape, but he wasn't fooled that her attack would be over yet. Harry collected their drinks and went back to Malfoy to see him trying to get rid of another reporter as well, so he felt a bit sorry for him.
"Need any help here, Mal.. Draco?" Harry realized almost too late that he and Malfoy were supposed to be on first name terms while they tried to convince everyone that they were friends.
"I can handle this perfectly well, Harry." Malfoy drawled and smirked confidently at him.
"Right. Well, here's your drink."
After Malfoy freed himself of the reporter, he and Harry mingled with other guests at the party and stopped occasionally to chat with people. Soon Harry had enough of the astonished stares and abruptly stopped conversations whenever he approached the other guests. He noticed Ron and Hermione standing near the door and headed toward them.
"Hi Harry, hi Draco", Hermione greeted them, and Ron just gave them a nod, clearly disapproving what he was seeing. Both Ron and Hermione already knew about the mission Harry and Malfoy were given, but where Hermione played along with them, Ron didn't seem to be ready for any friendly gestures towards Malfoy.
"Having fun, guys?" Hermione asked smiling sympathetically. Harry just grunted and looked sour, but Malfoy's smirk just widened.
"It's amusing how many different schemes people are suspecting I have put on our poor Golden Boy here. I think my favourite one is that I have enchanted him to be my sex slave."
Harry looked disgusted. "I think I've had enough of this farce for the night. I'm leaving."
"But you can't Harry!" Hermione exclaimed. "If you do, they will think the peace between you two isn't for real and that you and Malfoy are fighting again."
"Or that you just couldn't keep your hands to yourself and you dragged me out of here to have some wild sex all through the night." Malfoy's voice was teasing and Harry was surprised to notice that somehow he liked the way he sounded.
"Anyway, the press seems to be so curious about the two of you, that if you leave early, they will probably be following you and make their conclusions by that." Hermione stated.
"Maybe you're right Hermione, but I really want to get out of here. Any suggestions?" Harry asked exasperatedly.
"Wild sex at your place, Potter?" Malfoy suggested helpfully and that made Ron see red.
"Go fuck yourself, arsehole!" Ron fumed. "You are just enjoying this ridiculous ploy and taking advantage to get yourself much needed good publicity by befriending Harry!"
"I would never turn my back on good publicity whenever I can get it, but why shouldn't I enjoy myself while getting it?" Malfoy drawled.
"Oh stop it you two!" Hermione huffed and elbowed Ron's side. "I was thinking of a friendly pint or two at the pub, it would be a good way to end the evening and the press would be more convinced."
"Good idea, Hermione. Would you and Ron come with us too?" Harry asked hopefully, but Hermione shook her head.
"I think it's better we stay here and answer questions if people start wondering about your early departure." Hermione cast a hard look at Ron while grabbing his elbow and dragging him back to the party.
As Hermione had predicted, Rita Skeeter and two other reporters followed them out of the Ministry and to the small pub nearby. The Aurors used to have a pint or two in that same pub every now and then; the place was a bit worn and old, but Harry liked the atmosphere. The bartender greeted Harry like an old friend. Harry bought the first pints and they sat at the secluded table at the back of the pub. The reporters didn't bother them anymore with questions, but they didn't leave the pub either, observing them from the table near the front door and occasionally taking some pictures.
Surprisingly, Harry found out that Malfoy was good company. His dry sense of humor was oddly entertaining and after three pints Harry was ready to admit that he had enjoyed the evening much more than he had thought he would. Harry liked the way Draco acted when there were no other people around, his cold and arrogant behavior and sneering mask were gone. In front of him sat a man, who was quick-witted and perceptive, and that combination in Harry's old school time rival and enemy was quite irresistible. Harry started to see Malfoy – now Draco – in a totally different light and he desired to know more about the man. They talked late into the night, until the pub was closing and the reporters had given up spying on them. Harry and Draco walked side by side to the end of the alley where they could apparate safely to their homes, but not before they had agreed to go to dinner next day.
That night Harry stayed awake a long time thinking about how things had changed between Draco and him. All the hostility from the school was gone, all the ignorance from their work was gone as well and now Harry found Draco an attractive and charming man, whose companionship he desired. It seemed that the Minister's suggestion to become friends with Draco wasn't so bad after all.
tbc