A storm raged outside, lightning bolt after lightning bolt rent the night sky. Narcissa Malfoy paced the room, too concerned to even bother with consoling her scared and screaming infant. 'Where was he?' He hadn't been listed among those arrested but that was no guarantee that he hadn't been, or that he wasn't lying dead, cursed by some Auror. She glanced at the immense grandfather clock, five minutes after two in the morning.
She considered sending one of the house elves to find him, but thought better of it. He had to remain undercover, that is why they wore masks after all, and an elf belonging to the family could be traced back to them. She wrung her hands and sighed wearily.
They had been married for three years now, but she never failed to have fits of panic every time he was late. People would never have suspected it by how they behaved in public, but her and Lucius were deeply in love with each other, had been since their days at Hogwarts. She did not care that he was a Death Eater, she partially agreed with what the Dark Lord was promoting, but some parts of his philosophy frightened her, though she never told Lucius that. If Lucius believed in it, so did she.
She stared outside the window, the cold winter rain hammering against the glass. The lightning and thunder had subsided, baby Draco had quieted down a little and in the relative silence after his wailing she found herself in even a more melancholy mood, she almost wished her son would commence screaming again, it would break the awful silence that was hanging over Malfoy Manor.
As if to comply with his mother's wishes the infant Draco began to cry once more. Narcissa sighed. Then the door flung open and in stepped a rain soaked Lucius Malfoy, still clad in the apparel of a Death Eater. She ran to him and held him tightly.
"I read the 'Prophet', I was so worried!"
"I'm fine Cissy, I escaped, they didn't see me" he said exhausted.
Lucius smiled consolingly at his wife, thought she couldn't see it because he had not removed his mask yet, and then he walked over to his son's cradle. The babe cooed and pointed. It was then that Lucius recalled that he was still wearing his mask.
"Here you go!" he said happily, as he took of the mask and handed it to his only child. "Smart little boy aren't you? You weren't frightened by the mask at all." He tousled the tufts of platinum blonde hair on his son's head and then turned to his wife.
"I'm afraid Draco likes you better than me, he was wailing all the while after you left."
"Nonsense Narcissa, it was just the storm" he said carelessly as they left the room together. Draco contentedly played with his father's Death Eater mask. Happily drooling all over it as he fell asleep, while down the hall his parents spent some quality time together. Time that was so rare in the troubled age in which they lived.