The first story written for smilelaughread's Inspiration Challenge on the Harry Potter Challenges Forum. The challenge was "Use the prompt in three or more stores, each one a different genre. No restrictions after that." My prompt was close(r)(ed).

Author's notes: Since I have so many ideas I can't fit into any multi-chapter I write right now, here I am with another challenge.

I alone don't like the view of Abraxas here. I don't imagine him like that at all (actually, I imagine him being nicer than Lucius himself most of the time), but… well; I had the concept of the story in my mind, so I guess I can get over myself for once. Think of this as some kind of an AU fic, I suppose.

The song I used is Soulcrusher by Xandria.

I can't forget it - the pain and the dirt that I had to swallow
This is the limit - the soul you rape will once be strong
You never get it - the tears of the past are the hate of tomorrow
Cursed soulcrusher

"Will you for once do something worth losing your time?" his father hissed.

"I'm sorry, Father." Lucius muttered, avoiding Abraxas's pointed stare. He wasn't sure what he was to be blamed for now, but he did not want to upset or disappoint his father. He never wanted to. Actually, everything Lucius was doing was with the sole purpose to impress Abraxas; to show him that he's not absolutely worthless.

"What exactly of 'don't go down in the town' you failed to understand, boy?" Abraxas continued. "Your mother was searching for you the whole morning and half of the afternoon before you finally bothered to show up. Do you want me to send you there, Lucius?" his father's voice was barely more than a whisper; suddenly he had started to sound so well-wishing that the eight-year-old boy was even more terrified than before. "Do you want me to send you to live down in the town to live with the Muggles you seem to like so much?"

Lucius shook his head in panic; his eyes widened in shock. He couldn't understand what so horrific he had done. A Muggle boy from the town had appeared in front of the gates of Malfoy Manor and had asked him for money – Lucius didn't dare admit that to his father, of course – and then asked him if he wanted to come with him and show him his house. Lucius had agreed – he had been a guest in other people's houses with his parents that he didn't see anything bad in it – and returned after a few hours, because the Muggle town really seemed interesting to him. There were so many things that he had never seen – people were moving through the streets with some things the Muggle boy – his name was Charlie – called 'cars', and they wore different clothes, talked in a different manner… Lucius had been astonished. And everyone was greeting him as he was some sort of royalty – they called him 'the boy from the Manor' and he had felt as he was a prince or something like that. And Muggles seemed just as curious when they looked at him as he was when he looked at them.

He said nothing of that to Abraxas.

"No." he said quietly. "No, I don't want to."

"Well, if you go there again, the doors of this house will be closed for you when you return, you understand that, no?" the boy nodded hastily. "If I hear – even just one more time – that you've been there, you won't enter the Manor anymore. You won't be my son at all and I hold no responsibility of what happens to you after that. Understood?"

"I'm sorry." Lucius whispered again in a broken, desperate undertone. "I didn't want to do anything bad. I'm sorry." The boy felt the tears stinging in his eyes and falling down his hollow cheeks. He shivered when he saw his father getting up and leaving him sit on the chair where he was. Maybe he had forgiven him.

"Abraxas." It was his mother's soft voice coming from the doorframe of the dining room. Lucius raised his head and tried to smile and encourage her soundlessly; to show her that he was all right. "Don't be too hard on him. Maybe he'll outgrow it. He really hadn't done anything that unforgivable."

If even the slightest hope that this would save him had crawled into Lucius's mind, it was now gone. Abraxas turned back to him with the same furious, enraged look in his eyes – he seemed even angrier now and, once again, the boy wasn't sure why. Wasn't he done already?

"See what you have done?" the man shouted and Lucius winced again, the tears he was trying to hide so desperately, now running even faster down his face. "You had worried your mother so much and you don't even care, even since you know that we must keep quiet and try not to worry her about whatever thing at all. Do you care for anything but yourself sometimes, boy?"

The anger Lucius felt at these words was something he had never experienced before. It felt like a fury coming out of his chest, rising into his mind until he couldn't hold it anymore. Yes, he knew that Abril Malfoy was frail. Nobody should worry her at all, indeed, that was what the healers always said. But was his father the one to tell him this? The man who had did everything to ruin her life? He was even threatening him to disown his son, the only one in this house Lucius's mother cared about at all? Wouldn't that break her heart the most of all?

"Don't you dare talk to me like that." Lucius whispered, his hands shaking now out of anger, not fear. "Don't you dare talk about her at all, as if it's my fault. Don't you dare!" He hadn't realized that his voice was rising as he stood up from his chair and went straight to his father.

Abraxas just smiled mockingly at him when he stopped unsurely.

"Come closer, boy." He said and laughed; the sound echoed in the large room. Lucius shivered again when his father's laughter returned back to him by the walls. "Come on, come here." He said again, his smile even wider now. "What will you do?"

Lucius couldn't do anything, of course. He would never be able to do anything to his father, he couldn't hit back when he was being hit – Abraxas was way older, stronger, taller than him that all Lucius could do was keep quiet and hope that nobody would hear him crying at the dead of night.

"I can't do anything, Father." He whispered, so quietly that his mother in the other end of the room couldn't hear him. His eyes were full of despise and hatred, shocking for such a young boy and yet feelings Lucius was yearning to show after so many times of just nodding quietly and keeping his head down when he was yelled out. "Not now. But one day, I'll pay you back for this. One day you'll need someone to help you and nobody will be around. I'll look forward to that day."

Lucius expected a slap or at least any kind of a hit, or even just shouting, but he didn't care – the wicked, unfamiliar joy he felt of the words he wanted to say for so many years was worth any punishment he was about to be given. And yet, he didn't get any of that.

"Maybe you're finally showing some personality at all, boy." Abraxas said, still glaring at him, but with a small, appreciative smile curling his lips. Lucius saw his mother exhale in relief and close her eyes as she sat down in an armchair. "Go to your room now. I don't want to see you around for the rest of the day."

Lucius knew that he was supposed to be grateful for what he had got after so much shouting at his father, so he just left the room soundlessly. But he knew that everything he had said wasn't just empty words – he had meant it. Some day – sooner or later – he would be able to get his vengeance.