分卷阅读24（2 / 2）

Draco gulped. “We—” he glanced at Potter before answering. “We haven’t been introduced.” Draco looked back at Marwan and added, “Yet.”

Zivantus’ left eye twitched. “I see.” He studied them. “You’re Draco Malfoy,” he said to Draco. “And you’re sneaking onto my property with Harry Potter. Hmm?”

“Yes,” Draco nodded. “That does sum it up succinctly.”

The older man studied the two of them for over a minute. Draco realized they probably looked a bit ridiculous in their outdated, stolen coats from the cloak room, and him in his sunglasses. Zivantus seemed to come to a conclusion that Draco and Harry were at least credible enough to warrant further study. As a former member of the Eleven, he no doubt experienced odd meetings regularly. “Why don’t you two accompany me back to my house for a drink?”

Glancing at Potter, they agreed and Zivantus ordered them to walk in front of him the rest of the way. He’d been to the house a few times after Marwan had hired him, but never at night and never under such stressful circumstances. He could see the threads getting stronger between him and Zivantus, the threads connecting himself and also the ones extending from Marwan to the Draco he would hire in a few days’ time. Salazar, not just the sight of it gave him a headache, but understanding what he was seeing was bound to drive him insane. They needed to get what they came for and then go back to the future as soon as possible.

Draco thought he felt his bones quake when Marwan walked them in through the foyer. He couldn’t imagine what sort of wards the man had requisitioned when he’d been an active member of the Iniquitous Eleven, let alone the precautions he would take after falling out with the Ministry. They ended up in the main sitting room furnished with a few sofas, armchairs, a pianoforte, and a well-stocked cocktail trolley. Merlin, Draco would kill for a firewhiskey sour.

“So, Mister Malfoy, if you would illuminate me on why—”

“You’re dead,” Draco rushed, realizing there was no reason to hide the truth from the man who could inevitably jump to the future and find out himself.

Marwan’s face remained unchanged. “I see.”

“I’ve taken your place in the Eleven.” Draco lied. He held up the Timepiece and flipped it over, showing Zivantus the engraved number eight on the back.

“I see,” Zivantus repeated. He raised a brow. “And you’re breaking Article seven subsection four by coming here. Do the others know you’ve come? Did someone back in the Department of Mysteries authorize this, or have you followed in my footsteps and gone rogue?”

Draco panicked. “Bertrice is in danger.”

The older man’s nostrils flared. He’d finally gotten a rise out of Marwan. “Explain.”

“The cult you’re selling the inquollis anicorpus to is going to do something drastic. They want your Timepiece.”

“Malfoy,” Potter warned.

“Yes, Malfoy, listen to the Savior. I implore you to shut your trap before you create a paradox.” Something in Marwan’s demeanor had changed in the span of a few seconds. He walked to the bar, shoulders tensed, and said, “Shall I serve us some firewhiskey and wait for you two to be erased from my presence?”

A House Elf appeared with a pop and rushed to hand Marwan a sealed letter. Once he had it in hand, he started to walk in the direction of his office. Draco had spent hours talking to Marwan in that room, some about the case, and some about life for disgraced Purebloods in modern Wizarding Britain. Draco learned a few things from Marwan Zivantus; in his youth, his own drive to be better than everyone else was always going to conflict with his desire to be accepted by everyone else, and was responsible for many of his past problems. Ultimately, Draco had to strive to be better than his previous self if he could ever accept his place among those whose opinions mattered more than anything. Marwan had helped him see that.

Marwan waved to them as he left the room, “Excuse me.”

“Malfoy,” Potter rushed him and shoved him up against the nearby wall. He ripped the sunglasses off Draco’s face and threw them to the floor. “Are you an Unspeakable?”