Work Text:
The bell chimed as Draco entered the coffee shop. The now familiar barista greeted him, “Welcome to Cecelia’s Cafe, nice to see you again.” She’d been working the last three times he came by. Apparently she now considered him a regular. Aside from the barista, there was another person he recognized. A tall, broad man hunched over a Muggle device, just as he had been the other days. Draco decided to choose a nearby table. He’d been living in a Muggle neighbourhood nearby the cafe while he planned his triumphant return to wizarding prestige. In a Muggle establishment he was unlikely to run into any wizards who could spoil his plans. But maybe a Muggle would be fine to work with, it had been getting a bit lonely just sitting by himself each day.
He sat down and arranged his notebook and pencils on the table. It had been odd at first not using quills, but they would have stuck out too much. He was getting used to pencils, but they would never have the same gravitas as a fancy quill. He greeted the other man and received a nod in return.
They worked in silence for a while.
“Do you really like that?” the other man asked, gesturing to Draco’s drink.
“Why would I buy it if I didn’t? It’s actually very good, maybe you should try it next time.”
The man shuddered. “Grapefruit, eugh. Anything but that.”
“As if I’d take ordering advice from a man who orders hot chocolate every single week.” Draco hoped he’d given off the right mix of joking, instead of coming off as genuinely judging. It really was much easier to make friends when people wanted to get close to your family.
Luckily the other man just laughed. “So what brings you here every week?”
Draco paused, trying to figure out the best way to explain things to a Muggle. “My family… they picked the wrong side in a conflict. We used to be influential but now our name is an embarrassment. It’s not right.” By now he'd accepted that his family's beliefs about blood purity were wrong. But just because the Malfoys weren't superior because of their pureblood status did not mean they weren't still superior for other reasons. Or at least should be superior. He was still working on convincing the rest of the wizarding world of that. It was admittedly a lot more difficult without blood status to fall back on. But they still had their wealth and surely that had to mean something. If Draco ever had children, he wanted them to be able to invoke the family name to put whoever was bothering them in their place. He wanted them to be confident, knowing they would inherit money, prestige, and definitely not an obligation to join some maniac’s murder group. But first he had to restore the Malfoy name.
“I get it, I’ve been chasing past glory too,” the other man responded. “Back in school everyone respected me. But I had to leave my school early and since then it’s just not the same. I lost all my influence. Everyone’s moved on. But I have a cousin. He’s successful in his uh field. I just know he has the answer to get me back to the top.” He gestured to his device, “I’ve been trying to make a plan, but it’s harder than I expected. I don’t know, maybe we could help each other?”
This was the perfect opportunity. Draco had been finding it difficult to come up with schemes without anyone to run them past. And while it might be a bit difficult explaining things to a Muggle without giving too much away, him being a Muggle also means that he didn’t already have an opinion about the Malfoys.
Draco reached out his hand. “I'm Draco. I'm sure we could help each other a lot.”
“Dudley.”
“What exactly are you trying to do?”
Dudley began to explain. “My cousin has some niche skills, I won't get into the specifics. But it shouldn’t be too hard for him to pull some strings and help me out some. Except he’s a bit resentful over our childhood. So I have to figure out how to get past that. And you?”
“I have a former classmate. He was pretty influential in my family's downfall. Honestly it's for the best that he succeeded. I don't mind that part. But now he has a prominent role in the government and every time he does something publicly, everyone is reminded of my family's mistakes. The goal is to get him to quit his job. If he would just go live in private I think we could all move on.”
“Yeah, that makes sense. I’m sure we can convince both these men to do what we need.”
They began meeting at the cafe each week to work on the plans. Draco could tell that Dudley was hiding some things, but he had been very vague as well. Neither one pushed the other for specifics. Despite the secrecy surrounding the goals, the weekly meetings soon covered far more than just planning. Dudley talked about his time boxing in school, and Draco shared that he too enjoyed playing sports in school (even if he was vague on what sport in particular). They worked their way through the cafe's menu comparing all the items (though Dudley never tried the grapefruit). And they each talked about struggling with parents they increasingly disagreed with on certain things.
Eventually the plans began to come together. For Dudley, they had decided the best course of action was to fake an emergency and call his cousin for help. This way it was harder for the cousin to come up with an excuse to cancel on the visit. Dudley assured Draco that his cousin wasn’t the type to refuse to help someone in danger, even if it was someone he disliked. Dudley would attempt to use this visit as a chance to lay the groundwork for future favours. Meanwhile Draco would sneak into Potter’s work office while he was away for lunch and carefully place a set of Muggle fireworks Dudley had acquired. He hoped that it would be harder to trace the Muggle items back to him. He'd charmed them to go off the next time Potter spoke in his office. The benefits of Potter being so famous was that his office and location was fairly easy to learn. They chose a day Draco knew the Ministry was likely to be busy. It would be easier to sneak in and out undetected, and would be more of a nuisance to Potter. Dudley admitted he didn’t know much about his cousin’s schedule or what days would be best for his own plan, so they decided they would do them both on the same day.
Today was the day. Draco gathered all his supplies and set off for the Ministry. Potter wasn’t there. He never missed work and yet, today of all days, he wasn’t here. “Could he have known about the plan?” Draco wondered. He quickly dismissed the possibility. Only he and Dudley knew anything about it, and Dudley certainly hadn’t warned him. After a few subtle questions he learned Potter had left at lunch for a “sudden obligation” and wasn't planning on returning for the rest of the day. There wasn't really anything to do but leave and work on an alternative plan. He contemplated leaving the fireworks behind anyway, but without Potter there to set them off, they would likely be discovered unexploded and more easily traceable. It was too risky.
Despite the utter failure of his plan, Draco was looking forward to seeing Dudley again. He could at least hear about how Dudley's own plan went. Dudley looked up at the sound of the chime and broke into a grin as soon as he spotted Draco.
“How’d it go? I think I'm off to a good start. My cousin showed up to help me out. I think he was a little annoyed that the emergency wasn't as serious as he thought, but he worked on it a bit before leaving. Now we just have to work up to the big favour.”
“At least one of our plans worked. Mine was an absolute failure. He left work early so all the work was for nothing.”
Dudley didn't seem too upset by this news. “That just means we'll have to come up with something new. Maybe something that doesn't require him to be at work on a specific day.”
They easily fell back into the scheming routine. Dudley hoped to invite his cousin over a few more times, then lead into the request. Meanwhile, Draco had decided to inundate Potter’s office with irrelevant owls. Each day he would arrange for another useless message to be sent to the office. Hopefully this would gradually wear him down. Unfortunately Potter did not seem affected by the letters. He certainly hadn't quit to avoid them. Dudley too was struggling.
“No luck yesterday. My cousin didn't show up.” Dudley turned to his notes, crossing out a few ideas. “Harry just can't be bothered I guess,” he muttered to himself.
Draco dropped his fork. “Who?”
“Sorry, my cousin. Harry Potter.”
“Harry… Potter,” Draco repeated flatly. Dudley didn't seem to realise he'd said anything noteworthy. “Your cousin is Harry Potter. And you never mentioned it?”
Dudley frowned. “Why would it matter? He doesn't know many people, just…” A look of horror spread across Dudley's face. “You know him. You're a…” He cut himself off, seemingly unwilling to say anything more.
Draco felt similarly. He was fairly certain he knew what Dudley had been about to say. But crossing that line by actually voicing it seemed impossible. Surely a relative of Potter had to know about magic. But if he didn't? Draco wasn't sure if he could bring himself to modify Dudley's memory, even if he learned something he shouldn't know. Conversation from the other groups in the cafe trickled over as they sat in silence. After what felt like hours, Draco finally spoke up. “Do you… Would you like to continue this conversation at my place? We could talk in private.” Dudley didn't immediately respond. Instead he looked wary, almost fearful. Draco's stomach twisted. He would do anything to go back to the easy camaraderie they had before this revelation.
“OK. Is it far?”
They walked in silence. Once they arrived, Draco directed Dudley to the table and they both took a seat. He wanted to offer Dudley something to drink, but realised he didn't know how to make anything without using magic.
Dudley spoke first. “You're like him. Harry.” Draco nodded. “Except you said your family was on the losing side. Did you work with Vol-whatever?” Draco nodded again slowly. “And you see yourself as better than me. Because I can’t do magic.” The pain was clear in Dudley's voice.
“No, no!” Draco heard how frantic his voice sounded, but couldn't bring himself to care. “I won't lie to you. I used to believe that. I don't anymore. I promise, I've changed. I'm happy Voldemort lost and forced me to reconsider.”
“That’s why I left school, you know. My family went into hiding because of the war.”
Draco couldn’t hide the flash of surprise from his face. “But Voldemort didn’t target individual Muggles. They weren’t important enough.” He immediately winced and corrected himself. “Voldemort didn’t consider them important enough.”
“Did you forget my cousin?
That made sense. If there was any Muggle who could manage to capture the attention of Voldemort it would be them. But there was still something that didn't make sense. “If you knew what my family used to stand for, why did you follow me alone into the house?”
“Because I trust you,” Dudley said.
“Thank you. I promise to live up to that trust. But there’s just one more thing. My classmate? He’s your cousin.”
Dudley burst out laughing. “I’m sorry what? We’ve been scheming against the same person this whole time? That certainly explains some things.”
Draco found himself smiling as well. “What are the chances? I mean of all the Muggles, I run into you? Also, when you said you wanted a favour from your cousin… from Potter, did you mean magic?”
Dudley nodded. “Growing up, my parents despised magic. And Harry for having magic. I hated it too, although I think I was a bit justified after a few bad encounters. But as time went on, I realised my parents were the unreasonable ones. I might not be completely comfortable with magic, but at least I know about it. And it would be so easy for Harry to do some quick magic, and set me up for life. Just something I could monetize somehow.”
“Would you want me to try and do something?” Draco asked. Dudley appeared to be considering it, then shook his head. Draco felt oddly hurt. It wasn't as if Potter had somehow superior magic.
Dudley must have noticed because he hesitantly began to explain. “It’s just, if you do something for me then there won't be any reason for us to meet up together anymore. I don't want that.”
“Oh. We don't have to only go to the cafe and work on the plans. We could do other things.”
Dudley smiled. “I'd like that. Although I better head out, it’s getting late.” As he walked towards the door he turned to say, “I’m glad you don’t hate normal people anymore.”
Without the barrier of the secret of magic, they could be much more open with each other. Each of their plans began to fall by the wayside as each meeting was derailed by off-topic discussion. Dudley hardly seemed to care about his plan, and Draco similarly found it difficult to motivate himself to work on his own. It wasn’t as if he’d had much success anyway. Instead they began spending more and more time away from the cafe. Despite Dudley’s assertion that he didn’t want Draco to create something magical for him, Draco wanted to show Dudley more about magic. The first time he used magic around Dudley, to summon a chocolate frog, Dudley flinched, unable to hide his lingering fear of magic. But he asked Draco to continue performing simple spells, wanting to get used to it. Draco was happy to oblige, and he found himself spending time figuring out which spells Dudley would most enjoy. In turn, Dudley introduced Draco to the Muggle world. He got great amusement over Draco’s confusion over what Dudley called “the simplest things.” In Draco’s defence, how was he supposed to know the people in videos couldn’t hear him like a wizard portrait. Normally he would be embarrassed for anyone to see his ignorance on a topic, but he found he didn’t mind if it was Dudley.
Draco’s birthday was approaching, and he knew he would be expected to spend the day with his parents at Malfoy Manor. It had been some time since he'd seen them and he found they still couldn't understand his goal in living in the Muggle world temporarily or his plans (not that those plans had been very successful lately). He carefully avoided any mention of Dudley, knowing they would understand that even less. Draco wasn't sure he completely understood it himself. How had a Muggle become his closest friend? If friend was even the right word. He’d casually mentioned his birthday to Dudley, and suggested they do something together the following day. He’d also learned that Dudley’s birthday was only a few weeks after his own.
When the day arrived, Dudley showed up at Draco’s house. Draco hadn't told Dudley what to expect. He wanted to show Dudley a real part of the wizarding world beyond just spells and had arranged for a portkey that would take them to Hogsmeade. When Dudley arrived, Draco explained how a portkey worked and where they were going. Draco reached for the small rock on the table and motioned for Dudley to follow. Draco soon felt the familiar tug of the portkey as they were whisked away. They landed just outside Hogsmeade and Dudley reached out to grab Draco’s arm to steady himself.
“Wow that was…” Dudley trailed off.
“Magical?” Draco suggested. “Just wait until you see the rest of the town.”
They walked together throughout the many shops, Dudley marvelling at things Draco had never stopped to notice. A child playing with a toy broomstick. Owls bringing mail to the town. Self-tailoring robes. Dudley’s face lit up at each small thing. He took him to Honeydukes where they bought a variety of candies. Finally, they found a table at the Three Broomsticks so they could eat before returning home.
As they were finishing up, Dudley spoke up, “I wanted to get you something for your birthday. It was difficult with you having magic and all. I’m sure you have magic versions of most things, but I hope you like this.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small rectangular box, wrapped in silver paper, and handed it to Draco. As Draco opened it Dudley explained further. “It’s a fountain pen, I thought it would be more similar to the quills you usually use. Except you can use this around anyone, not just wizards.”
Draco lifted the pen out of the box. It was heavier than a quill, but the tip was remarkably similar to a quill. Dudley was right, it would be much better than other Muggle pens. He ran his fingers along the smooth black surface. “You didn’t have to.”
“I wanted to.”
After seeing Dudley’s gift, Draco knew he had to come up with something equally thoughtful for Dudley’s birthday. He wanted to give Dudley something magic. He'd become much more comfortable with magic and even seemed to enjoy it. But it had to be something just for Dudley, and not something that could be seen as trying to enact Dudley’s goal when they first met. After a long deliberation, he finally came up with something.
The weeks between the two birthdays passed quickly and soon Draco was heading to Dudley’s to celebrate his birthday. Dudley had decided he wanted to take Draco to a movie, saying that it would be like getting two shows, the movie itself and Draco’s reaction. Dudley had chosen an action movie. The plot was simple, but Draco was left fascinated by the feats the on-screen Muggles could accomplish without magic.
Back at Dudley’s house after the movie was over, Draco handed Dudley a box. Inside was a small glass vial filled with Floo Powder. Dudley reached inside, the glittering powder smearing across his fingers. He looked up questioningly and Draco began to explain what Floo powder was. Dudley knew the basics already. “Of course, you can only use it on specific fireplaces. But I checked, there’s a shop near your house that’s owned by wizards. Their fireplace is connected to the network and is open to any wizard who needs it. With enough confidence, it wouldn’t be hard to use their fireplace. My house is connected, so all you have to do is name it and you’ll be transported there. You probably won’t be able to use it every time, but I wanted you to have the option.”
“Thank you. I didn’t know non-wizards could have this.”
“Well, probably don’t mention it to anyone.”
As Draco prepared to head home he turned to Dudley. “I hope you didn’t mind spending the day with only me. I don’t know if there are other people you wanted to spend the day with, but I had a great day.”
Dudley shook his head. “No, you're definitely my closest friend. I can’t think of anyone else I’d rather spend time with."
The word friend brought up a confusing mix of joy and discontentment. Ask him. Where's your Slytherin ambition? He didn’t think Dudley would abandon him if he didn’t feel the same way, but it could make things awkward. And yet, he had to know.
“Friend? Is that all you want?”
Dudley’s face reddened. “I… I don’t know how wizards do these things. Friends of course, but also, if you want, more?” He took a step towards Draco.
Draco closed the distance, and then they were kissing. It briefly struck Draco how unexpected this all was, a Malfoy kissing a Muggle. But those thoughts were soon swept away. They weren’t a Malfoy and a Muggle, but him and Dudley, and it made all the sense in the world.