Written for the Valentine Day's Date at Hogwarts (TomLucius). This is an AU where Tom is from Lucius' generation. I'm not sure for the Lestranges' ages, but this seemed right.
Word count: 1500
Dating Surprise
"Wow, you look terrible this morning Lucius," Rabastan noted, eyebrows rising nearly to his hairline.
Lucius barely restrained a scowl as he sat down next to the other Slytherin. "I hate Valentine's Day," he spat out, biting down viciously into the first pastry he could grab. The strawberry jelly stained his fingers red, but right now he didn't care.
"I think we can all see that," Rabastan's brother, Rodolphus said, staring at Lucius with disturbed fascination. "What happened? Singing roses again?"
Rabastan's laugh died in his chest as Lucius shot him a dark look. "Worse," he growled. "Someone thought slipping me Amortentia-tainted chocolate was a good idea."
Rabastan whistled. "Wow, that's messed up. You're fourteen, for Salazar's sake."
"He's also the heir to the Malfoy fortune," Rodolphus countered. To his two classmates' disbelieving looks, he shrugged. "I'm not saying it's right, just – well, you should get used to it. It's only going to get worse."
"Wonderful," Lucius sighed, putting down his half-eaten pastry. "You know what, I think I've lost my appetite."
"Don't worry, the House-Elves won't let anything actually dangerous reach your food," Rodolphus replied. In front of him, Rabastan set down his drink, eyeing it suspiciously as though he hadn't even considered that idea before.
"Wonderful," Lucius repeated, "now I've been reduced to trusting House-Elves."
"They're actually pretty trustworthy, you know," Rabastan mused, appearing reassured as he took another sip of Pumpkin juice. Lucius sent him a betrayed look while the boy's brother rolled his eyes.
"While we all disagree with my brother's fondness for the creatures, I have to see that I agree with him on this." Rodolphus sounded almost regretful, but his eyes twinkled.
"Maybe I would trust them more if they were actually mine," Lucius said, still grumpy. "Who knows what these one can do, owned by Dumbledore of all people."
Both Lestranges shivered. "That's a scary thought," Rabastan said, before he ruined the seriousness of the moment by reaching for the eggs and pilling half the dish on his plate. "What?" He asked defensively. "It's not like anyone's going to come after me – I'm the second son, and I'm taken. If they go after anyone, it'd be after Rodolphus there, and we all know that no one would dare."
"Only because your girlfriend would hex anyone who dared into oblivion," Lucius scowled.
Rabastan preened. "Bellatrix is terrifying," he agreed.
That didn't sound all that great but to each their own, Lucius supposed. He was so focused on his own thoughts that he almost missed the glint that lit up in Rabastan's eyes suddenly.
"Rabastan, no," he said, dread already pooling in his stomach.
Rabastan ignored him with ease, and Lucius knew it was already too late and resigned himself to hearing the boy's latest crazy scheme.
"I have the perfect way to rid you of your fangirls," he crowed, eyes alight with excitement. "Think about it, Lucius – what do Rodolphus and I have in common? Why don't we get bothered?"
The dread grew stronger as Lucius began to understand where this was going. He shook his head in denial, but nothing could deter his friend.
"It's perfect. Lucius, we need to get you a girlfriend. Or boyfriend. Which would you prefer?"
As Rodolphus burst into laughter, Lucius considered once again strangling the man's brother. Surely no one would miss the idiot – he had said so himself: he was only the second son after all.
"And what makes you think I'll agree to that?" Lucius somehow managed to say.
"It'll be fun?"
"Yeah, I pass," Lucius replied, supremely unimpressed. He rose from his seat gracefully. "If you're looking for me, I'll be in the Library. Don't look for me."
Rodolphus' laughter echoed in his mind well after Lucius had left the Great Hall, but Lucius managed to quell his anger by thinking of the peaceful refuge he was headed for.
.
"Is this seat free?"
The voice that dragged Lucius out of his Potions' assignment what felt like hours later was smooth like silk, but it contained an edge of exasperation he was only too familiar with. It belonged to Tom Riddle, the fifth year Slytherin prefect, and Lucius found himself nodding, clearing up some room for the older boy to set his things.
Riddle wasn't a pureblood, Lucius knew this, but looking at the boy now, he wouldn't have been able to tell. Riddle held himself with poise, and his features were fine enough to belong to royalty. He was powerful too – enough that everyone in Slytherin had learned to ignore his blood status and held their breath to see where the boy would go next.
"Thanks," Riddle said as he sat down.
They worked quietly until lunch, the only sounds to break up the silence the soft scratches their quills made against parchment. They worked strangely well as a unit, Riddle handing him the books Lucius couldn't reach for easily without prompting, Lucius lending the other boy his green ink when Riddle's dried out.
By the time they had to go eat, Lucius felt oddly bereft to have to leave this peacefulness he hadn't expected behind. They didn't really speak more than they already had while they walked to the Great Hall, but Lucius didn't feel like they had to. It was nice, which was why he should have expected the Rabastan's appearance.
"Lucius, you dog, I can't believe you actually found yourself a date! But," he laughed, "I should have known you wouldn't need my help in this department."
Lucius froze, standing awkwardly in front of the door to the Great Hall. "I'm not on a date," he choked out, feeling panic's icy fingers digging their ways in his stomach.
"Sure, sure," Rabastan had the audacity to wink. "You know I won't judge, there's no need to hide it."
Lucius noticed with growing despair that Rodolphus was nowhere around – the older boy could have at least reined Rabastan in a little, and stopped this disaster in its tracks.
Turning toward Riddle, deciding to ignore his friend for the time being, Lucius apologized profusely. "I swear, I didn't mean for this to happen. Merlin, Riddle, I'm sorry you're getting dragged into this, – I, this, I – This isn't a date," he repeated, struggling to find the right words.
To his surprise, Riddle only smirked a little. "Call me Tom."
"Tom," Lucius said, taking a deep breath. "Well, I'm sorry about this."
Tom's smirk only widened. "What if I wanted it to be?"
"What?"
"A date. What if I wanted it to be?" Tom's voice didn't sound mocking, only cautiously curious, like the older Slytherin didn't quite know what to think of this yet.
"You wanted to go on a date with me?" Lucius asked, eyebrow raised disbelievingly.
Tom rolled his eyes. "No," he admitted. "But I didn't… hate… the time we spent together earlier wasn't completely unsatisfying."
Despite himself, Lucius' lips quirked up in a smile. "So, just so we're in agreement – that really wasn't a date, right?"
"No, it wasn't," Tom replied, smirk still teasing at his lips.
"Good, that's good," Lucius said, feeling stunned. "Because it would have been a terrible first date. A real date would have been much better. Will be much better," he corrected himself.
"I'm looking forward to it."
Behind them, Rabastan made a high pitched noise that reminded Lucius the other boy was still there. Still, Tom's shadowed eyes were staring straight into Lucius, seeming peering right into his soul, and it was very easy to ignore him.
"So am I," Lucius confessed, surprising himself at how much he meant it. "Next week-end?"
Tom nodded. "And one last thing…" With one smooth step, Tom had bridged the gap between them, his fingers hovering close enough to Lucius' skin for him to feel their warmth. "May I?"
Speechless, Lucius nodded. Tom's lips were slightly chapped, but he kissed the way Lucius was starting to think he did everything else: with determination and nothing else but his best effort. It ended too quickly, stealing Lucius' breath and leaving his heart pounding in his chest as Tom walked away, rejoining his year mates at the Slytherin table.
"So, I'm betting you don't hate Valentine's Day anymore, right?" Rabastan quipped, trying to jab his elbow in Lucius' ribs when Lucius failed to answer.
"Hmm, what?" Lucius asked, batting away the attempt half-heartedly, fingers drifting to his mouth before he stopped himself.
"I said, I'm betting you don't hate Valentine's Day anymore, right?" Rabastan repeated, sounding too amused for his own good.
"Maybe," Lucius replied non-committedly.
"You're just saying that because you don't want me to know," Rabastan scowled.
"Maybe," Lucius repeated, smirking. Before Rabastan could push him any further however, he walked into the Great Hall himself and sat down. The food, as he had hoped, shut his friend up, leaving Lucius free to send a few looks Tom's way.
Tom returned each one, a secretive fire burning in his eyes.
Yes, maybe Lucius didn't hate this day as much anymore.