Ally Without a Choice

-Draco's POV-

It was a cold Saturday morning, the sun had barely risen and a windswept raven flew over his head. He pulled the dark hood deeper into his face. His steps were long and quick.

At first, Draco really hadn't cared about these tacky pocket watches and only joined in on solving the mystery to please Y/N but the more questions they faced, the bigger his curiosity grew.

Somebody was clearly trying to hide information, so it had to be important.

Soft rain started drizzling down from the sky. He had sneaked out of the castle and was now on his way to Hogsmeade. Draco regretted not taking his broom as the softening dirt was sloshing under his shoes but flying might have caught somebody's attention.

It must have been around 7 am. The streets of the town were empty, it seemed as if everyone was still asleep. If he got lucky, he'd be back before anyone would notice that he was missing.

The windows of The Three Broomsticks were dark but the blonde knew that there was life inside.

He pounded against the door and grabbed his wand.

It took a while before something happened.

The door swung open. "We are clo- oh."

Madam Rosmerta seemed to recognize Draco. She raised an eyebrow. "What do you want? Do you even have a right to be here? Should I inform you teach-"

"Immobulus!"

Madam Rosmerta, who had not seen the spell coming, froze, her mouth still half open but her eyes were widened in shock.

Draco grabbed the stiff body and pulled her inside and into the bathroom.

"If I were you, I wouldn't tell anyone anything. I'll be back."

He took one last look at the paralyzed woman and closed the door behind him before he walked over to the empty fireplace.

The bottom was covered in ash and soot but his shoes were already dirty, so what difference did it make?

He pulled a small pouch out of his coat and emptied the content in his hand.

Securing the floo powder with a fist, he raised his arm and closed his eyes.

"Knockturn Alley."

*****

A woman screeched and stumbled back as Draco almost fell into her.

He wanted to bawl her out for standing so close to the fireplace but noticed how strongly she was tottering and reeling. Drunk skank.

He scanned his surroundings shortly and noticed that he must have landed in one of those disgusting shady pubs that are always open, always filled with the scum of society and always reeking of vomit and alcohol.

He quickly made his way outside when the bartender noticed him.

"Ay, aren't you too young to-"

"I'm busy."

He pulled the hood back over his face and stepped into the morning.

Knockturn Alley was one of the most repelling places one could find themselves in and for a second Draco questioned if it really was worth it but he saw no other solution. He wanted to help Y/N and also please his own curiosity.

There were a few eyes that followed the boy as he made his way down the road but Draco ignored them.

Finally, he reached his destination.

Borgin and Burkes.

He pushed the door open, stepped inside and took off his hood.

The air inside the shop was stuffy but he was used to it. Draco had been here before a few times, accompanying his father.

At the sound of the bell, Borgins stumbled out of one of the dark corners. He looked at his customer with wide eyes.

"Mr. Malfoy, what a surprise! Pleasant surprise." The man bowed deeply but Draco only rolled his eyes. He knew that Borgins despised him and his family but was too scared to show it.

"It is quite early, I'm afraid I haven't had a chance to clean the shop yet. Please excuse the-"

"I need your help."

The man paused and then stooped over. "Would you like to sit?"

"No. I need information on an artefact."

The owner's eyes lit up and a smile appeared on his face. He was smelling money. "Of course, what artefact?"

Draco pulled the pocket watch out of the coat. "Are you familiar with the Eyes of Orcus?"

Borgin was grinning at the piece in Draco's hand, he stepped even closer.

"Oh, I am. I am. Quite rare and…peculiar. Can I take a look at it?"

"No."

Draco let the pocket watch glide back into his coat. The shimmer disappeared from Borgin's eyes.

"You don't know what you're carrying around, young man."

"Which is why I came to you. Tell me what you know."

"For free?"

Draco's mouth turned into a thin line. "Preferably."

Borgin looked at him for a while, he narrowed his eyes.

"I do not think that you have a right to be here. You'd get into quite some trouble if someone found out."

"You dare threaten me?" Draco took a step forward, Borgin recoiled, immediately regretting what he had said.

"No, I'm just making conversation. Forgive me. Of course I'll give you the information you seek."

He hurried over to a shelf and picked up a book. Borgin put it down on his counter and started flipping through the pages.

He stopped and when Draco stepped closer, he saw an image of a pocket watch.

"The Eyes of Orcus are a series of five pocket watches that were crafted in Italy hundreds of years ago. They are named after the Roman God of the underworld and hold one of the most terrifying powers."

"What power?"

The shop owner slowly turned his head to look at Draco. He was grinning, baring his yellow teeth. His eyes were frozen.

"They show the person who takes a look at them…the time of their death."

The boy's heart started beating faster. "Reliably?"

"Good question, Sir. Good question. It has never been reported whether the prophecies ended up coming true. Sometimes, the time would change, which was a sign of fate adjusting. But the constant uncertainty drove anyone crazy who possessed an Eye of Orcus. It caused paranoia that ate itself into the brain until those people were unable to live a normal life. It is even rumoured that some took their own life to either escape their future - or to defeat it."

"And what happened then?"

Borgin closed the book. "No one knows. Over time, the knowledge of their locations got lost. Today we only know of one which is said to be somewhere inside Gringotts. And now…we know about yours. Tell me, where did you find it?"

Draco turned up his nose. "It shouldn't concern you. I have got all the information I need."

He turned to leave but Borgin called him back.

"No you don't."

Draco sighed. "I'm not going to sell it to you."

"Oh, I have already accepted that. But there is something I didn't tell you yet."

Curiously, the boy turned back around. "And what is that?"

Borgin seemed pleased by his interest.

"Every Eye of Orcus has its own ability. Something the owner can profit from if they don't lose their sanity. If you show me yours I can tell you how to utilize it."

Draco stood there unsure. He really didn't want to hand over the pocket watch but he couldn't just leave either.

Reluctantly, he gave in. Borgin looked at it piously. His eyes were billowing with excitement.

Draco noticed how he covered half of the front with his hand, avoiding seeing the time.

"It is blue." He handed it back.

Draco held in a 'I could have figured out that much on my own' and let the artefact glide into his coat.

Borgin opened his book back to the page he had shown Draco earlier and turned it around.

"Look," he whispered.

Draco walked over and saw that five pocket watches were drawn onto the page. They all looked the same with the only difference being the colour of the dial.

"Ah." Borgin smiled. "You are in possession of the Eye of Knowledge."

"What does that mean?"

"Once activated, the watches bind themselves to their owners until their death. From that point, nobody else will be able to use them. The second the eye of Knowledge is activated, it ascertains the owner's most dearest goal and gifts them with the knowledge necessary to achieve it for a limited time."

"And how does one activate it?"

"You're curious, I see." Borgin pointed at a sentence on the page. "One needs to drink a tea brewed with three berries of belladonna in a quarter of a gallon of water, sweetened with honey."

Draco furrowed his eyebrows. "The berries that cause hallucinations?"

Borgin grinned. "It's a double-edged sword, isn't it? One might overdo it and…who knows…fall into an endless sleep?"

He threw Borgin a hostile glance. The man would surely like it if Draco never woke up again.

He looked back at the book. Another watch caught his attention. It's dial was green and looked exactly like the one Flitwick had given to Y/N.

"Eye of Time. What does this one do?"

"Ah." Borgin looked at his book lovingly. "Eye of Time. Probably the most powerful Eye of Orcus. It allows the owner to stop time. But it's a skill that needs to be practiced and mastered. It activates with a spell."

"What spell?"

Draco's question might have come out a bit too quickly, Borgin looked at him suspiciously.

"Are you in possession of the Eye of Time as well?"

"No, I am not." And it wasn't even a lie. Afterall, Flitwick had it. "Forgive my curiosity. I had looked all over the library and couldn't find anything."

Borgin chuckled maliciously. "Of course you couldn't. Most people have long forgotten about these pocket watches. And even if such knowledge was stored at your school, I'm sure your teachers wouldn't want you to find out."

"Which is why I came to you. You're the most competent in your field."

Borgin seemed to like the fake compliment. He looked at Draco for a while.

"Congelare. That's the spell."

"It's Italian I assume."

"Oh yes. But like I said, mastering the Eye of Time takes a lot of practice."

Draco nodded quickly like he didn't care for that piece of information. But there was one more question burning on his mind.

"Theoretically speaking, what if one of these was to break? For example, what if the glass was shattered? Would it have any effect?"

Another grin appeared on Borgin's face. He stepped closer until Draco could feel his dirty breath on him.

The man lowered his voice.

"I'm not much for Muggle mythology but it was said that activating an Eye meant that the owner struck a deal with Orcus and took a step into his world. Now, if you break one of them…maybe he won't let you out again."