Written for the Wand Wood Competition; Apple: These wands are not made in great numbers. They are powerful and best suited to owners of high aims and ideals, as this wood mixes poorly with Dark Magic. It is said that owners of apple wands are well loved and long-lived. Write about a reformed character; (In this case, both Narcissa and Draco would be, I suppose.)
Also written for the Monthly Drabble A Thon Challenge. Prompt; Narcissa Black
Narcissa Malfoy had never claimed to be unprejudiced. It was a well known fact that the Malfoy family held a strong dislike, or hate even, in her husband's case, for muggles and muggleborns. She and Lucius were raised that way, and in turn that was how they'd raised their only son, Draco.
She'd not been thrilled when Lucius had become a Death Eater, nor when he'd installed in Draco that was the right path to be on. While she believed that Pure-Bloods were far superior to muggle decent and those of lesser blood, she did not wish harm on them. And she most certainly did not wish her darling boy to grow into the man his father had become. But Narcissa was brought up to be the perfect pure-bred wife, her job was to keep quiet and support her husband's decisions, including the future he'd decided to force upon Draco. Her only saving grace was seeing that her son did not completely believe in his father's cruel ways.
She would never admit it, but the day Lucius had been arrested after the Dark Lord's fall was a turning point of sorts for Draco and herself. It was as if a cloud had been lifted and they could breath easier. She could let her hair down and found herself genuinely laughing more. Her Draco seemed happier as well, smiling often and growing out of the arrogant bully facade into a confident, successful young man. It was right after his final year at Hogwarts that she'd found out why.
When he brought Hermione Granger home for the first time, Narcissa was willing to admit she hadn't taken to the idea of their relationship. In her eyes, her son could do so much better. The Granger girl was muggle-born and far too fiery for her taste. Stubborn and with a know-it-all attitude too. She was plain as could be, with wild brown hair and muddy eyes. Nothing spectacular, not particularly gorgeous. She felt Draco was slumming it.
As time went on, she got to know the young girl better. Hermione had begun to spend more time at the manor and in order to appease Draco, both women put aside their differences and were cordial to one another. After many months, Mrs. Malfoy found herself warming a little to the Granger girl. She made Draco happy and in the end that was what mattered most.
Hermione was a good girl, down to the core, one that brought out the better man in her child. She saw the way his eyes would light up whenever his girlfriend was brought up, or the hearty laugh he'd let out whenever she said something cheeky to him. She witnessed their explosive arguments, and was secretly amused when the muggle-born would call out her son or scold him for something he'd said or done. They challenged each other, both intellectually and in their relationship.
If she thought about it, Narcissa couldn't deny they were good for each other. So when her son asked Ms. Granger to marry him, she gave them their blessing, though if she were being honest, she still held on to a bit of that old prejudice.
It was only once Madeline Nymphadora Malfoy was born and Narcissa found herself gazing adoringly at the newborn baby in her arms did any prejudice the older woman have go flying out the window.
Draco had excused himself to run to the restroom, leaving the three most important women in his life in the cramped hospital room at St. Mungos. They had sat in silence, the new mother propped up in bed watching Narcissa rock her grand-daughter gently. The child, with wide, inquisitive chestnut eyes and curly blonde hair, stared up at Mrs. Malfoy with innocent curiosity.
The only other time Narcissa had felt such love and joy was when her son was born. She turned her gaze to Hermione, who was watching them with a tired smile on her flushed face. "Thank you, Hermione." the older blonde woman had whispered earnestly, wanting nothing more than to convey to her daughter-in-law how grateful she was for bringing this little angel into their lives.
Hermione smiled wider, shaking her head in confusion. "Whatever for?"
Blinking back tears, Narcissa reached over and squeezed the younger girl's hand. "For filling the void in my Draco's life." The new grandmother looked down once more at the now peacefully slumbering baby against her chest, feeling her heart swell in absolute contentment.
"And in mine as well."
A/N: Okay, I know this is super corny, but this idea just wouldn't leave my head until I wrote it.