glory & derision

“We definitely have purple. That’s a fairly common orchid color. Are you getting it for your wife or girlfriend? I don’t know if anyone would be satisfied with black if they were hoping for purple.” 

“Wife.” As much as Lucius would like to dismiss the opinion of the other witch, he realized she was most likely right. “I’ll... consider your recommendation. May I see the flowers?” 

regaldaffodil:

“Your gardens look quite heavenly, but they are no match for the beauty of your gown, dear. Everyone wants to know who designed it" 

“We are.” Narcissa exchanged a small smile with her husband and paired it with a gentle squeeze on his hand, there were prying eyes watching then. 

“I’m terribly lucky to have found this venue at such a short notice, and the dress. It’s from Lavinia’s, and they were all quite accommodating.”

@luciusofmalfoy​

“They were delightful finds - and Lavinia’s ought to be grateful for your patronage,” Lucius added with a smirk.

Narcissa flashed him a dangerous look when he snapped at her, she would not be treated like a little girl who asked for a gift she could not have. “You never think about what I want.” She fired back, even though that at the bottom of her heart she believed he really did consider her wellbeing and safety, most of the time. 

She was about to snap at him again, - what was so awful about having a son or a daughter who looked like them? - but held her tongue quickly enough to listen to his decision.

“We might not have a year ahead of us!" Narcissa clenched her jaw, pulling her hand away from his touch almost immediately. Did he take her for an empty-headed girl? She knew what was at stake, better than he did, it seemed. "You just don’t want to have children… Or maybe my health is now how you refer to my apperance…” The blonde mumbled incoherently under her breath, not thinking about what she was saying.

Catching a glimpse of his move to grab the bottle from her in the corner of her eye, she anticipated his wishes grabbing the shoving the bottle in his hand. “Take your bloody potion, drink the whole bottle if you want, but I assure you that you won’t be needing it any time soon!”

Lucius’ hand clenched around the bottle for a moment - caught in the act, he was slightly abashed but remained convinced he was right. Noting the look Narcissa was already giving him, he suppressed the urge to say something snide in a reminder that he had no desire to drop dead in a year.

“It has nothing to do with what I want,” he said at last, “You know I’d give you what you wanted if I could. And I am not so asinine as to consider your appearance when it comes to matters that could threaten your life.” 

He turned and set the bottle down with a deliberate click on the cabinet next to him, not opening it.

“I’ll resume when we require it, then,” he said dully as he laid down in bed at last, “Anyway it tastes like...” He muttered something that sounded suspiciously like Gurdyroots. Which house-elf had arranged for the potion to be put in Narcissa’s cabinet anyway? He would see that it ironed its fingers.

She wished to be immune to the charming manner he treated her, to be indifferent, but Narcissa lacked the strength to keep impassive when he acted that way.

She turned again, alarmed, and raised her face to look at her husband. Her eyes were two blue globes searching his countenance for clues.

Your family. She could feel her heart beating in her ears, like an alarm. There was no doubt regarding who he wanted to talk about, somehow, she always knew that day would come, that at some point he would want to talk about her, ask Narcissa what happened. 

She had postponed this conversation for so long it was understandable that Lucius had questions. He even brought her up during their awful argument… It was inevitable, yes, but did they really need to discuss Andromeda? They were not together, they weren’t even friends when she left… 

“I never talk about that.”

Lucius felt Narcissa’s gaze pass over him and tried to look at ease. He wanted to have a point of reference with Narcissa on this topic. It was clear it affected her, and Lucius suspected more greatly than he imagined. Yet because they had ties to St. Mungo’s, where, most conveniently, the blood-traitor also worked, encounters could not be avoided. Without knowing Narcissa’s mind, Lucius did not know how best to act.

He summoned the nearest seat and sat down on the velvet pouffe.

“I - realized it can’t be a pleasant subject to discuss,” he nodded slowly, “but it occurred to me it might be equally unpleasant for you to keep silent about it. Never, you say… Not to anyone?”

“Huh.”

“Do give it some thought.” 

Kingsley shrugged slightly at Lucius’ question. “Kind of, yeah,” he politely conceded. “I was making sure it was just weather-related and not caused by something else.”

“We can only hope,” Lucius nodded, “Though between the two of us, perhaps we can ward off a rogue Dementor or two...” he joked, careful not to smirk too broadly. There was something deeply satisfying in watching one of the Dark Lord’s plans impact every witch and wizard’s life...

“I don’t know, I’d like to think there’s a line. To a certain point a person knows they’re delusional, they simply can’t stop it.”

“You’re the expert - I imagine you had ample opportunity to observe delusion working at the Minister’s office,” Lucius smirked conspiratorially.

“Slinkhard.”

“I’m just graduated. So, school’s not a problem. You’re just… Not a decent liar.”

“Miss Slinkhard,” Lucius nodded, recalling at once where he had heard the name, “I see.” He paused for a moment - mediocre liar was not a criticism often levied at him, these days. If he hadn’t met far too many Legilimenses already to not know the difference, he would have suspected Slinkard of the ability. 

“Perhaps I can better impress with my skills in clairvoyance, then.” he smirked, recovering, “You are Wendy Slinkard, formerly of Ravenclaw house. How is your writing coming along?”

Their embraces always seemed so brief, one minute she felt safe, protected, and the next his hands were on her shoulders making her feel more fragile than porcelain. He had a way of coaxing people, if he wanted he could make their enemies sign a peace treaty under his terms using his eloquence as his only weapon. It was so easy to give in and agree with him, it would be as though they had never argued. 

But Narcissa would not yield, not this time. “Your plans, Lucius.” She jerked her shoulders from his grasp, raising her voice. “Why can’t you face the fact that everything changed for me after that morning? This is not about Orpingtion, this is about us. I wouldn’t have brought this up if I had not thought this through." 

Narcissa had to bite her tongue and take a long breath to stop herself from saying something she ought not to mention. "I have no reason to believe I will have trouble conceiving, but if I happen to have some illness, it is better that we find it out soon. This way we will have more time to… find other ways.” She said in a low tone of voice, calming her own temper. If he was so afraid of losing her, why couldn’t he understand her fear of losing him? He was the one risking his life on a daily basis. “Nothing will happen to me, and if I wasn’t, I would still want to have your child.”

That morning... Lucius was not proud of how he’d foolishly gotten them in that predicament. He took his hand back and decided it best to look chagrined and concede the point. Perhaps Narcissa was right. There was no sense in waiting. They could simply do it, they could... Her next words, however, had him scowling again...

“You - can’t think of yourself so carelessly,” Lucius snapped, before he, too, clamped down on his voice. “It’s not conception I’m concerned about. This will be nine months of your time - and of mine - but the physical toll will be on you. And afterward... who would know, we are not creating my doppelganger. We could have a daughter...” The image was suddenly so clear, so powerfully enticing, Lucius blinked and froze, staring at Narcissa. They could not make this decision in haste, he reminded himself. They had to keep to the original plan.

“Since this is about us, then,” Lucius said at last, “As pleasant as it would be to start our family, we’re not prepared for having a child in the middle of a war. We’d both be more focused, more relaxed - able to rely less on the doubtful abilities of beleaguered house-elves, if we waited for things to settle down. As they likely will in a year.” He put one hand on hers and tried to take the potion on the bed beside Narcissa with the other.

Small joys of domestic life with you. These six little words would have mean the world to her under different circumstances. Now they sounded like nothing but another card up his sleeve, another weapon to ensure he had his way. Domestic life with you, no children. 

“Sure you do.” The witch said bitterly, turning to see her reflection in the vanity’s mirror. 

Something about the way Narcissa spoke the last words made Lucius pause. He stood and walked to stand behind her so the vanity no longer showed her lone reflection.

“I do,” he said softly and bent and kissed the top of her head. Then he sighed as he straightened, knowing this next would not go over well.

Vera’s smile widened, charmed that Lucius respected her family so much. “I knew there was a reason I liked you,” she said, before quickly moving on to answer his question, “Oh, I love it so far. The work isn’t all that difficult, and the connections I’m making could be very useful for my future.”

Sometimes, of course, there were difficult and sometimes rather tiresome tasks that she would be given. She was only an intern, after all. But she knew it would all be worth it in the end. She had a goal and she wouldn’t stop working her hardest until she reached it. If that meant surviving some trivial paperwork or the occasional dirty fireplace that needed inspecting, so be it.

Lucius smiled politely and smirked inwardly. Narcissa disdained the Avery girl, he knew, but Lucius was certain the young witch was nothing to be concerned about. No doubt she would simply soon become another useful - perhaps exceptionally talented recruit. 

“Joining the Education Department was much the same, though I imagine the work is less technical. Have you had occasion to meet your highest superiors yet?” Lucius added casually. The Imperius Curse was not difficult for an inexperienced but reasonably qualified witch or wizard to perform.

Carolyn gave Lucius’ question some serious thought. She had already asked herself that same question many times and she gave him the answer she had given herself. “I think I can,” she said, nodding slowly, aware of the risks she was taking. “I’m as confident as I can be right now.” She shrugged. “And if I can’t control her, well…” She didn’t finish the sentence, it wasn’t wise to say certain things out loud. Accidents happened, after all. “Anyway, I haven’t given her a definitive answer yet.”

Lucius nodded. As ever, it was clear that Carolyn was not someone to act imprudently, and that she had thought through all the eventualities. “Well, you do have time on that front, I doubt her ambition is likely to fade.” Lucius snorted mentally at the memory of the over-eager half-blood. Then he looked at Carolyn calculatingly.

“But are you simply asking me for advice, or did you require some specific help with your project with her?”

“The DMLE usually has quite a bit on its plate though, doesn’t it?  Algernon replied.  “I’m sure many of my patrons would like the DMLE – or someone, at least – would like these problems wrapped up quickly so they don’t have to worry about anything.”

Lucius nodded. Certainly, his fellow Death Eaters kept them busy. He leaned forward slightly, “Are you guessing? Or is that truly the sort of talk that you’ve been hearing?” 

regaldaffodil:

“Thank you for sharing your happiness with us.

“Everything is flawless, Vivien, tonight is all about you. And Usi, but mostly you." 

“You both are far too kind.”

“Thank you. I hope you both are enjoying yourself thus far. I can hardly believe the weather—how lucky we are to be graced with such a lovely evening.”

@luciusofmalfoy​

“It’s sublime. The sunset positively transformed your gardens,” Lucius smiled, “And we’re very much enjoying the evening,” he looked towards Narcissa. Though it was expected, he was pleased to be paired with her for the event - it brought back fond memories...

Wendy stared at him, eyes lacking emotion. “Really?” A question far from being honest, sounding more like mockery. “I’m not that easy to scare. Try again… Next time.”

Lucius looked at the other witch more carefully - her self-assurance surprised him. He was certain he didn’t recognize her and had assumed she was some young half-blood or other. “Hm. Next time? Is school boring you so much, Miss...?”