Just Breathe

Chapter Twenty

Draco pulled at the robes that felt too tight on his neck. If he had been nervous about the first meeting with Rodolphus, he was ten times more nervous now. He and Harry had decided that he would take his glasses to Rodolphus as his token of seriousness. They had duplicated the pair so Harry still had his to transform.

He was about to make the change when Kingsley stepped into the room.

"Do you know what questions you're going to ask him?"

"I'm going to work my way around to asking where his brother is. I don't want to come off too strong, but I'll get there."

"You'll have less time this visit. We don't want him to think it's easy to get in and out of there. We don't want him to become suspicious."

"And it's still only the one Auror who knows of the plan?"

"Yes. But he will still be accompanied by the guard, though it wont cause any problems."

"Okay." He pulled on the sleeves of the robe again, hating the feeling of the weight of it. He felt like he was suffocating. He pulled at his collar again but stopped tugging when Harry pulled on his hand. They hadn't been able to have another date since their breakfast and he would much rather be at a quiet dinner with him than traveling to Azkaban.

As if reading his mind, Harry slipped his hand in his and gave it a reassuring squeeze. Too soon though, he used his wand and tapped himself on the top of the head, changing his appearance and unsettling himself even more. He handed forward the copied pair of glasses and Draco help them carefully. They were an exact replica, down to the worn metal over the nose where they had probably been broken and mended multiple times.

"If that isn't enough to convince him, use this." Kinglsey passed forward his Minister's pin that was always pinned to his cloak. "But only if the glasses don't work. We may need to use that later on if we still need more information or if he doesn't comply tonight."

"Okay." He tucked it in his breast pocket and pulled the Aurors robes tighter around him. He turned to Harry and nodded. "I'm ready when you are."

"Let's go." He held out his hand and Harry grabbed it, whisking them from the room.

The hall they had come into before was darker than it had been the first time. There was a torch still, but the light from it was so low, he had to put his hand on the wall to help him along. He didn't turn to look at Harry, trusting him to follow carefully and not make a sound.

At the cell bars, he looked over the mattress, but it was flat; unoccupied. He narrowed his eyes, adjusting to the dark. He didn't see anything until a hand grabbed the hem of his robe and yanked it hard.

"What do you have for me?" Rodolphus was crouched on the floor, his black eyes gleaming desperately.

"A little eager, aren't you? I told you I'd be back." He yanked his hood down and reached into his pocket, pulling out the glasses and handing them through the bars.

"Are these...?"

"Harry Potter's glasses, yes." Rodolphus snatched them from his hand and held them up, looking at them closely in the dim light.

"Is he dead?"

"No. If I had tried to kill him, I'd be right in here with you. I'm not saying his time won't be here, but it's not here yet."

"What does this show me, then?"

"It shows you how close I am to their side. I can be whoever I want out there, look however I want, get as close as I need to make things happen. The Dark Lord never got this close, not without failing."