Disclaimer - I own nothing you recognise.
Written for Hogwarts Assignment 11 - Arts and Crafts, Task 3 - Someone smoothing out a rough situation.
Other Prompts at the Bottom.
Word Count - 842
Beta'd by the lovely Jen
The Smooth To His Rough
He was trembling. Every step he took was painful, and he was amazed that he'd even made it up the stairs when he pushed open the bedroom door..
Narcissa was lounging on the bed, looking even paler than usual against the dark grey of the sheets beneath her, a pained look on her face when she took in his appearance. He saw a flash of anger in her eyes, a wish for revenge that she would never have against the man who had done this to her husband.
She got up, every move she made elegant, and approached him slowly.
"He hurt you even worse than usual," she commented quietly. "What was he angered by?"
Lucius shrugged then regretted it immediately. He winced at the shooting pains in his spine. "I don't know. Possibly one of the reports before my own."
"And yet he took his anger out on you. He's going to damage you beyond repair one day, Lucius. He is ruthless."
Pressing a kiss to her temple, Lucius sighed. He wanted to take her in his arms, but he daren't. Not only was he bloody, but the thought of lifting his arms was enough to send a tremor through him.
"Sit," she ordered softly, guiding him to the antique chair at her dressing table. She spelled away his torn robes and set to work removing his shirt as gently as she could.
He could see the sadness in her eyes as each new injury was laid bare to her. When he wore only his trousers, she left him there to enter the ensuite, and moments later he heard water running in the bath.
The very first time she'd done this, he'd asked her why she didn't have the house elves do it for her.
Her reply, "you are my husband, it is for me to make you better, not the house elves," had left him with a warm heart and an even deeper love for the woman he called his wife.
She returned to him, helping him to his feet and unfastening his trousers. While he wished it was for better reasons, he couldn't deny that he enjoyed the feeling of her hands against his skin. She lowered his clothes to the floor for him to step out of, and then led him by the hand to the bathroom.
The beauty of their bath was that it sunk into the floor and require no climbing into it on Lucius' part.
The temperature of the water was perfect, and the scent of the relaxants Narcissa had put into the water was heady and potent. She sat beside the small ledge as he sat on the corner seat. With gentle hands, she washed his hair, her thin fingers massaging his head until he was putty in her hands.
As the bubbles from the shampoo washed away, Narcissa cleaned up his skin with a soft towel, wiping away the grime and the blood.
She left him to soak, and he knew she was preparing him some light pajamas that wouldn't irritate his skin, as well as calling the house elves for the potions and salves she needed to help him recover.
There would also be hot chocolate waiting, a favourite of his that Narcissa only really indulged him with when she was healing him.
True to pattern, she returned to help him from the bath and used a spell to dry him, not wanting to hurt him with a towel. Even the softest of towels hurt against open cuts.
He watched her work as she sat him back down on her chair, and got to work. She was stunning like this, taking care of him. She murmured healing spells and gently applied salves, her gaze trailing from one injury to the next, eyeing her work critically.
When she finished, she helped him into his pyjamas and pulled the sheets back, before helping him to bed.
His hot chocolate, laced with a sleeping draught, waited on the side table.
As he drained the last dregs, he could feel his eyes blinking more and staying closed longer each time.
"I love you," she whispered, climbing into bed beside him. Usually, she would snuggle into his side, but on these nights, she left a space between them, unwilling to risk hurting him further.
"You are, forever, my heart," he replied softly.
As he settled beneath the covers, Narcissa's dainty hand on his arm on a small patch of unbruised skin, he couldn't stop his lips tilting into a smile.
He'd made the worst mistake of his life when he'd taken the Dark Mark, a folly of youth and arrogance that he wished he could go back and change.
Narcissa made that better. She soothed him when he thought it impossible. She took care of him, looked after him, she made him want to be better.
She was the smooth to his rough, but with her, he knew that in the end, it would be okay. As long as he had her, it would all be okay.
Also Written for;
The Brand's War - Punisher - Revenge / Hurt / Damage / Dark Grey / Ruthless.