Choices
"I don't like her, Lucius, and I don't want her in my house." Claudette Malfoy sniffed stubbornly.
"Why not? She's pretty. She's rich. She's pureblooded." Lucius glared at his mother.
"Oh, Lucius!" Claudette stood up and sighed dramatically. "My son, my only son. She may be rich. She may be pureblooded, and she may be pretty. But is that why you are marrying her?"
Lucius shifted uncomfortably in his seat.
"Partly."
Claudette laughed.
"Why are you marrying her, Lucius?"
"I have - feelings for her." Lucius admitted, bravely meeting his mother's eye.
His mother's face grew solemn.
"You love her." It wasn't a question, so he didn't answer her.
"Do you know what happens to love, Lucius?" she continued. "It fades. Quickly. This is why marrying for "love" is not wise. When your love for her fades, you will see that there were far better women to make your wife. Yes, she is rich. She is pretty. She is pureblood. But there are girls after you that are richer and prettier, with a more respected family."
Lucius' hands were now balled into fists. His nervousness was gone, replaced by anger.
"You don't want me to marry Narcissa because your marriage didn't work! Just because father's love for you faded it doesn't mean that mine ever will – besides, he probably didn't love you in the first place. You were richer, so he married you."
"Just like Narcissa! You're richer, so she snatched you up, didn't she?" Claudette hissed.
"No. Not at all like Narcissa." Lucius stood up. "I'll be going now, mother. I wish you all the best. You're still invited to our wedding, if you find it in yourself to come."
With that, he apparated out of Malfoy Manor and straight into his fiance's room.
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
"What's wrong?" Narcissa carefully slid the book she was reading back into it's place on the bookshelf.
"Nothing." Lucius responded quickly, but Narcissa could easily see how angry he was. The vein in his forehead was throbbing so hard she feared it would burst.
"O.K then." Narcissa promptly took the book back out and began reading again. Nagging him would not get him to admit what was bothering him; but he knew that she knew that something was wrong, and he also knew that she knew that he wanted to tell her about it, so if she sat camly and ignored him she was sure he would reveal what was eating at him.
A few minutes passed in complete silence.
"My mother doesn't want me to marry you," he said finally.
She dropped the book in shock.
"Why not?"
Lucius inhaled sharply. His hand went to massage his forehead and he paced up and down.
"It's not important," he said, "I'm marrying you no matter what she thinks. She can't tell me who to love."
Narcissa smiled at him, but inside she felt heartbroken. She really liked Lucius' mother, and she knew it meant a lot to him to have his mother at his wedding. Besides, it was tradition!
"Maybe she'll come anyway," Narcissa said gently.
"Maybe." Lucius sat beside her and stared at the floor. "Maybe."
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
It was the day of the wedding, and the church was filled with people. Fountains spewing expensive wine and custom-made sculptures of doves decorated the space, and rare, colorful birds flew about the room, tweeting happily. Lucius Malfoy stood at the end of the aisle, playing with the cuffs of his shirt and feeling sick with worry. What if Narcissa didn't want to marry him anymore? What if she ran out last minute? Forcing himself to stop pacing, he looked around.
His mother was not among the guests.
He froze, shocked. She actually didn't come. He took a deep breath and forced himself to stop thinking about her. If she wanted to disown him, it was her business – besides, his father had control of the fortune, so he'd still get his inheritance.
The music began playing, and the bridesmaids and flower girls began to come down. Lucius straightened up and tried his best to look presentable. Finally – finally, Narcissa made her way down the aisle.
Lucius was breath taken. He had never seen her look so beautiful before- and that was saying something. She was wearing a strapless satin gown with a embrodied corset-style bodice, dropping into a sweetheart neckline with an Basque waistline, ending in an embrodied ballerina skirt with a chapel train. Her hair was long and wavy, flowing down her back.
"Breathe, Malfoy," his best man, Severus Snape, whispered. Lucius flushed and took a deep breath, now knowing why his face had begun to hurt a bit.
He went through the vows without thinking, too busy staring at his Cissa to worry much about what the priest was saying.
"You may kiss the bride." The priest finally said, smiling.
Still feeling as if he were in a dream, Lucius lifted her veil and took a moment to take in the look of pure love and adoration in her eyes before pressing his lips to hers.
They took too long kissing- they knew it, the priest knew it, the guests knew it – but no wolf-whistles or chuckling occurred. All of the guests were too well behaved and proper for that. Some blushed and turned away, some grinned – but most just smiled knowingly.
It was clear to see that this was one union that would last forever.
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Draco was born a few years later. He was quite a stubborn baby, taking twelve full hours before poking his head into the world for the first time. He was small, bald and wrinkly, with an extremely strong grip.
"He's perfect," Narcissa whispered, breathless.
Lucius smiled.
"Just like his mother."
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Lucius, always the faithful son, went to visit his mother for the first time in years to tell her about her grandson.
"It's a boy," he informed her, "and his name is Draco."
Claudette didn't even look up from her issue of Pureblood Weekly.
"If he is the son of that ugly thing you call a wife, I will hate him."
Lucius' eyes darkened.
"Call my wife a thing one more time and I won't give you the opportunity to love or hate him."
Claudette sneered.
"You're right. She's not a thing. She's a whore. How do you even know the baby is yours? He probably some random gigolo's spawn."
With those words, Claudette Malfoy chose never to meet her only grandchild.
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Lucius couldn't believe it. His son – his 17- year old son- was in love and engaged. Just a year before, the entire prospect of true love between a man and a woman had made Draco grin boyishly and roll his eyes.
And now, a year later, Draco Malfoy was madly in love.
With a Weasley.
And as he stood there, watching his son stare up at him nervously, holding the hand of the a carrot-headed blood traitor, Lucius could think of a million reasons why he should throw the damn girl out of the window and deal with his son later.
To be truthful, he was extremely close to actually doing it – and he would of, if Narcissa hadn't smiled at him and said simply:
"You can't tell him who to love, Lucius."
With that short statement, she made him aware of his own hypocrisy.
"Well then," Lucius said, forcing himself to smile. "Congratulations, son."
Years later, as he watched his four beautiful grandchildren playing in the river outside Malfoy Manor, he still considered accepting Ginny Weasley as a Malfoy the best choice he had ever made.