Well it has been waaaay to long since I posted anything...
So I'm back!
And also, I have a tumblr account now! If you want to check it out, it's called flamingos-are-cool. Thanks!
So, Lucius and Cissy. I always wanted to explore the idea of their relationship, and the time they grew up in what with the changes in the muggle world and the consistency of the Wizarding world, and that is how this fic was born.
Enjoy!
Lucius tugged at the collar of his shirt, loosening the tie. Merlin, he hated these stuffy formal events… He leant back against the wall, and surveyed the hall in front of him.
It was one of his parents' typical balls, which kept increasing in number. Lucius suspected this was partly because now he was in his last year at Hogwarts, his mother wanted him to find someone to settle down with. But all the girls she liked, he didn't. They were too artificial, too giggly, and too girly. He knew he was being picky, but wasn't there at least one girl whom mother deemed acceptable that he liked?
He caught the eye of his sister as she led – or rather dragged – Patrick Parkinson around the floor. She rolled her eyes at him, and he laughed quietly. Their father wanted her to marry into the Parkinsons, to make another rich and pureblood family connection, but Lucius knew his sister, and there was no way she was going to marry someone as boring and pretentious as Patrick.
"Not found a partner yet Malfoy? Pity, I'd loved to laugh at that." He heard a voice behind him. He turned to behold Andromeda Black, black sheep of the house. She sauntered towards him, deliberately throwing her hips out to the side in a flirty way to make him laugh, then help out a glass of champagne, raising an eyebrow.
"Want one?"
"I shouldn't…" He said smoothly, taking it from her and looking at her over the glass, "But for you…"
Andromeda laughed. "Oh, you can't pull one on me, my dear Malfoy. I'm too clever for your seductive little tricks!"
"Oh yes… you're not really into my type, are you now?" He said, his smile dropping, his words becoming a little more disdained. "Oh don't bother me with that now Malfoy – not when I'm having so much fun!" She said sarcastically, then took another long drink. Lucius couldn't help but chuckle.
"Well, if you're here, that must mean your far more charming and far less intrusive-" she laughed "-sisters are here as well." He said.
"And if they are?" She asked, taking another sip. "Well…" said Lucius, locking eyes with someone behind her. "That means I have found my dance partner."
He handed her his drink, and strode off, just in time to hear her say "Oh you charm me off of my feet Malfoy, you really do."
He pulled to a stop at the base of the steps, where two other young women were being greeted by his parents. Bellatrix had dark burgundy robes on, her black hair tied up, loose strands tickling her throat. Her sister Narcissa stood out in stark contrast, her light blond hair loose, tumbling down the back of her silver dress robes. The two sisters were smiling at his mother and father, thanking them for the invite as they had been brought up to do, but Narcissa's eyes were flitting onto Lucius's.
He sauntered over, approaching Bellatrix first. "Miss Black." He smiled with a sarcastic edge, kissing her hand. "Malfoy." She replied in the same tone, disdainful and removed. Lucius turned to the blonde beside her. "And my dearest Narcissa." He smiled this time without reserve, placing his lips upon her hand as well. "Lucius." She replied with a beam to match his own, the smile reflected in her dark blue eyes.
Before Lucius could whisk the girl away, his parents came over. "And Narcissa Black!" His father boomed, greeting her in the same manner as his son, but with far less tenderness. "Mr Malfoy. A pleasure to see you again." Narcissa replied with a curtesy, exactly how they'd all been taught - going through the motions again.
Lucius's mother, after a brief greeting to Narcissa, came over to him. "Lucius!" She hissed, sounding mortified. "Look at the state of you! Tie your tie well, this second, or will I have to do it for you? And button up your shirt!" She frowned at him. "Sorry mother." He replied.
As his parents moved on to the next guests, Lucius felt a hip bump against his. "If you ask me, it looks better undone." A voice came from beside him. He smiled down at Narcissa, who offered her hand to him. "Shall we dance, Lucius?"
He took her hand, and placed his other on her waist. They made their way onto the dance floor, and began working through the waltz. Out of the corner of his eye, Lucius could see Andromeda winking at him.
"Your sister seems very anxious to see me fall." He remarked as they swept around the room. Narcissa looked in the same direction he was glancing, and met her sister's eyes with a frown. "Yes, well, she would." She said with obvious anger in her voice.
"Something wrong?" Lucius asked. "Well, I mean, the whole school knows about her and that awful Tonks boy now, so it won't be long until Mother and Father find out. And then all hell will break loose. She's sworn Bella and I to secrecy, but I don't know how much longer she expects to get away with it." The girl replied, turning to face her partner once more, worry evident on her face.
"Well, you can just relax and forget about it for tonight." Lucius said, as the final steps were played. "
In fact, we could both do with something to distract us at the moment - why not each other?" He added smoothly. Narcissa laughed. "True. Why not? You are as good a distraction as any."
The lilting music drew to a halt, and the pair sketched out a bow and curtesy vaguely. "Gosh, what I wouldn't do for some rock and roll..." Narcissa groaned as the next waltz began. Lucius laughed. "Wouldn't have had you pegged as one for a jive, Cissy." He replied, using the nicknames from their childhood.
"As much as I hate to admit it, there is something captivating about the new themes of music the mudbloods are bringing in." She shrugged, as her left hand climbed to his shoulder and he held her right up into the ballroom hold once more.
"A quick cha cha cha maybe? A short twist?" Lucius teased as she laughed again. "Well, don't tell Bella, but I did teach myself the steps in our bedroom when she was out." She smiled, a small flare of rebellion hidden in her eyes.
As they moved through the Viennese waltz, Lucius could feel the eyes of the spectators on them. He knew what they would be whispering: how well suited to each other they looked, with their matching platinum hair; how gracefully they moved across the polished floor of the ballroom; but also, how degrading it would be to match them with each other, with house Black's reputation being dragged through the dirt by Andromeda and that awful Sirius.
The thought made Lucius's mouth curl in distaste. It was terrible, really, that Bella and Cissy, both beautiful, well-mannered, courteous, pureblooded girls, could be so affected by the whispered rumours around their relatives. Even Andromeda wasn't so bad, once you got past the first layer of troublemaker. All three of them had been like cousins to he and Roxanne as children - even Sirius and Regulus, in their very early lives.
"What are you thinking about, to make you look so disturbed?" Narcissa probed, hoping for a smile. Lucius was always more handsome when he smiled - unlike his father, who's fierce features were unbecoming of a grin. Rumour had it that vanity was the main cause of his unhappy demeanour.
"I was just thinking about your cousin, actually." Lucius replied, pressing his lips together. "Oh. Sirius?" She asked, and her face hardened into the same disdainful expression.
"Yes. Narcissa, do you have any idea what would make him run off to that awful Potter's house?" Lucius shook his head, unbelievingly.
Narcissa thought for a moment. On the one hand, Sirius was staining the name of their house, causing her problems in how to get ahead in her own life. If she ended up married to some fat slob from a pure but poor house, she could easily blame it on him. On the other hand ... She knew what Sirius's parents were like. Even Regulus, who she owled regularly, struggled to keep himself from saying anything bad about them. She had a little sympathy for her cousin, even though that contradicted everything she'd been taught. But she couldn't tell Lucius that. House Malfoy was renown for their distaste of the lower class, including and especially blood traitors.
"I haven't a clue." Was the answer she gave.
Lucius could tell she did, from the look he saw in her eyes, but he decided to leave the subject. It was rather unpleasant to discuss. Noticing the final - and to be honest, screechy - note on the violin, he let go of Narcissa's waist and kissed her hand.
"What do you say to going outside? Relieving ourselves of the dullness of the waltz?" He asked brightly, a smile on his lips and laughter rekindling in his eyes. "That would be lovely." Narcissa replied, and they made their way to the door.
They didn't get far, however, before their path was blocked by Bellatrix. "Cissy!" She greeted delightedly, as if she hadn't seen her sister just ten minutes ago. "Did you know they have proper firewhiskey?" She giggled. Her voice still had the lightness of childhood to it, the clearness of the lightheaded.
"Oh Bella, you didn't!" Narcissa frowned. Bellatrix grinned at her and put her finger to her lips. "It's okay, Patrick offered me a glass. Poor fool is trying to flirt with me!" She laughed, glancing back at where the young Parkinson was still waiting at the bar.
Lucius frowned in confusion. "Now Bella, I'd agree that anyone who tried to flirt with you is a fool," Bellatrix gave him a withering look. "But why do you say so yourself?"
Bellatrix didn't answer the question immediately. She sighed, the scent of the firewhiskey still strong on her breath, and looked over to Narcissa. "He's here." She hissed. "And he's calling me Bella again." Narcissa rolled her eyes, and the other Black sister finally addressed Lucius.
"I, Malfoy, am betrothed." She said, tilting her head to the side with a defiant smile on her face - as if she was daring him to deny it. "No, really?" Lucius was surprised. To be honest, he'd always figured Bella, with her extreme tendencies and fiery personality, would end up an old maid. "To whom, may I ask?"
"Rodolphus Lestrange." She replied, a happy little smile playing on her lips. "Think about it. Mrs Bellatrix Lestrange. Nice ring to it, doesn't it?"
"Ruddy Rolph?" Lucius laughed. "Oh yeah, that's the match of the century there. He's going to be in for a wild ride..." He smirked, to Bella's glare. Beside him, he could feel Narcissa stifling her giggles. As his eyes swept the hall though, he caught his mother's eyes. She had obviously been within earshot. He sighed apologetically and mumbled. "I mean ... Congratulations. I wish you all the best."
"Yeah, sure you do Malfoy." Bella replied dryly. "Right, I'm going to see if I can squeeze another firewhiskey out of Patrick, before I tell him I'm a taken woman."
She sauntered off, trailing a hand along poor Patrick's shoulders before taking the seat next to him and throwing a wink at her sister. Narcissa laughed. "Oh, my bad bad sisters... So, shall we make our escape?" She said, and led him out of the hall.
They walked through the gardens, the first stars illuminating the leftover patches of snow on the sculpted hedges and polished marble steps. The last rays of sunlight were gone from the world, and twilight was beginning, washing out the colour of the world, until the trees were dark and bare and the water of the fountain black as ink. Tall and overhanging, the gates to the manor cast shadows far across the gravel path.
Lucius turned to Narcissa. The blackness of the world only made her shine more, pale and slender, her robes catching the light spilling from the open door. "You are stunning." He complimented her, shaking his head in admiration. "You have a honeyed tongue." She retorted happily, though her skin took on a rosy flush.
"You can't not have, after all those years of 'proper manners' being drilled into you." Lucius said, taking her hand and walking deeper into the garden. "Though of course, you'd know that."
"True. You boys are all so smooth, it's a wonder there are any virgins left at Hogwarts." Narcissa laughed. Lucius matched her laughter, and replied "Well, we wouldn't want any blood mixing now would we?"
"Yes. It's like Sirius compared to his Potter friend. It takes Potter six years to land Evans, whereas Sirius can woo a girl into bed in half an hour." She shook her head and ran a hand through her hair. "It's not appropriate at all, but it does have a sense of achievement to it."
"Well, you know what they say. Good breeding makes for charming children." Lucius smiled as they sat down on a little painted wooden bench in a grove of poplars. "You just made that up." Narcissa teased, as Lucius grinned.
"But you are right, blood mixing is a sin. Half bloods always seem a bit crass to me, it has to be something in their nature." Narcissa agreed, throwing her hair over one shoulder. "Yes, thinking about that, have you heard of the death eaters?" Lucius asked.
"No?" Narcissa replied, immediately curious. "Odd name."
"They're led by a wizard called Lord Voldemort." Lucius began enthusiastically. "They're a group in favour of eradicating the half bloods and mudbloods from our school system, to start with, and then the ministry, and then the wizarding world." He finished, his eyes aglow with the prospect of this dream.
Narcissa's eyes glowed to match his. "Actually, I think cousin Regulus mentioned them in one of his letters. He said he had joined their numbers, I believe - something about a snake tattoo?"
Lucius nodded. "That's there symbol: a skull with a snake coming out of it's mouth. I can't wait to join them, but mother and father said I must be seventeen. Say Cissy, would you care to join with me?"
Narcissa thought for a moment, mumbling "It would be quite an adventure, wouldn't it? Backing a great wizard to make great changes to our world. You know what Lucius, I will." She smiled at him determinedly, and as blue eyes met grey they both shone with the same misguided idea of the perfect, pure world.
The two talked late into the night, the occasional hoot of an owl, the trickle of fountain water, and the snatches of music from the ballroom the only other sounds. Lucius could have never found someone he enjoyed talking to more than Narcissa. She was witty and sarcastic, but with enough courtesy that she didn't get on his nerves, like Bellatrix did. Not to mention, she was a wonder in the looks department.
As the guests started exiting and the hosts bade them goodbye, the pair stood and turned to one another. "Well I must say Lucius, you make elven politics sound almost interesting." Cissy smiled, her eyes tinged with sarcasm. "Please, anything is interesting when I'm talking about it." The Malfoy heir boasted in good humour.
"I guess I will see you back at Hogwarts then." Narcissa said, twirling a fine piece of hair between her fingers. "Indeed. After all, we still need to figure out who the reigning champion of exploding snap is." Lucius replied. Leaning forwards, he kissed her cheek gently.
Returning to the ballroom once he had played his part as the son of the hosts, wishing everyone goodnight as they apparated away, Lucius turned to his parents with a spring in his step.
"Mother, I have made the best decision I will ever make. I am going to marry Narcissa Black."
And he bounded up the stairs and away, oblivious to his mother's shrieks of protest, his father grumbling rage, and his sister's drunken laughter, but filling his thoughts with a platinum blonde beauty instead.
Well, what did you think? Thanks for feedback!
Also, will be updating Nico's feeling book soon, promise.
Flamingo