Disclaimer: I do not own the characters, settings, or Harry Potter related mentions in this story. Those all belong to JK Rowling - if they did belong to me, I probably wouldn't be here. Just saying.

Lucius Malfoy considered himself to be a fairly lenient parent. He had been strict with Draco, but he was reasonable when the occasion called for it. Perhaps that was where he went wrong. He had been too lenient with Draco and allowed Narcissa to spoil the boy far too much. He should have been sent to Durmstrang rather than Hogwarts, a school that Lucius blamed for fostering the insolent brat that Draco had become after his fifth year and Lucius's imprisonment. Lucius's lips curled as he listened to his lawyer prattle on, wondering if it would be considered illegal for him to use a Time Turner to go back and correct his parenting style. Although, he would certainly settle for going back one month to stop Draco from rutting Romilda Vane.

He rested his cane against his desk and rubbed his temples before raising his hand to silence his attorney. "Patrick, I will take care of this issue."

"Mr. Malfoy, sir, with respect to your persuasive skills, I'm not sure that at this—"

"Patrick, allow me to stop you before you land on my list of people to fire today." Lucius steepled his fingers and stared at Patrick with a blank expression. "These unneeded persuasive skills of mine are the same ones that kept me from spending time in Azkaban after Lord Voldemort fell at the hands of a teenager. I've used them on many other occasions. In fact, without them, I would not be the married man that I am today."

"I'm terribly so—"

Lucius raised his hand again, eyeing the sweating man curiously. "Patrick, after delivering the missive that you just did, do you find it in your best interest to interrupt me?"

"No, I'm sorry, sir," Patrick said hastily.

"As I was saying, these persuasive skills are handy and precisely what I need to get my way." Lucius paused for a moment and picked up his cane, setting it in front of his chair and resting his hands on it. "However, I will not be using these skills to deal with Ms. Romilda Vane."

Patrick, after a moment of silence passed, felt it safe to ask, "You won't?"

Lucius smiled, his white teeth gleaming in an unsavory way. "No, Patrick. You see, pregnant assistants are of no use to me, and, as you should know, there is a clause in Ms. Vane's contract that specifically states she will be released from her services if she is found to be with child, unless I decide she can stay on."

"Sir, that doesn't quite solve all—"

"The problems? Yes, I know." Lucius waved off Patrick's issues. "I shall deal with the issues of the paternity. My son may be careless with his choice in women, but he is careful when it comes to protection. Make an appointment at St. Mungo's to test the paternity of the child. I'll be sending Ms. Vane along in a moment."

"Of course, sir," Patrick said with a nod.

As Patrick exited the room, Lucius leaned back in his chair and pondered his current predicament. Because of his son's constant womanizing, Romilda Vane had publicly declared the fact that she was pregnant with the next Malfoy heir. If it had been announced to Draco only, the problem would not be a problem. Paternity could be easily determined with a quick spell, and Lucius could silently rid himself of her presence. However, the young girl, figuring she would sink her claws in the Malfoy estate, decided to release a statement to the press about the bundle of joy that would grace the Malfoy household—at least that was how the Prophet was spinning the story.

Lucius reached a hand out to the letters on his desk, pausing when his door opened and a regal blonde stepped into the room. Her blue eyes shone with undisguised anger, and her long blonde hair flowed freely about her, which Lucius had long since learned meant that she was upset. He had a penchant for her having her hair down and found pleasure in the fact that outside of the bedroom, his wife didn't let her hair out, except on occasions such as this—ones where her anger prevented her from doing anything with her hair.

"Have you seen this drivel?" Narcissa dropped the paper on his desk with unnecessary force. "I can't believe that horrid Skeeter woman is still on the staff at the Daily Prophet."

"Yes, well she's done quite well for herself as far as scandals go," Lucius said lightly, eyeing the picture of Romilda Vane clinging to his son's waist with disgust. "I shall take care of it, dear. Don't worry."

"It's not a matter of taking care of it, Lucius." Narcissa unbuttoned her jacket and sat in the chair in front of his desk. "It's a matter of our image and the companies image. We've been skating on thin ice since Potter did his noble duty and did away with the dark lord. Draco's frequent escapades are reflecting poorly in the eyes of the conservative population."

Lucius turned the Prophet over and stared at his wife. "I think it would be a good idea for you to step in down at the PR department now. I know you trained Lidia yourself, but an expert hand is needed to deal with this particular scandal."

"Flattery will get you everywhere, darling." Narcissa stood from her chair and rounded the desk, placing a chaste kiss on Lucius's lips. "Dinner tonight at the Golden Coral?"

"Have Astoria make the reservations," Lucius answered. He grabbed her wrist as she moved to walk away. "Also, how is Astoria doing?"

"I've been priming her to take my place, secretly of course. She still believes that she is my assistant," Narcissa said thoughtfully. "I think she will make a fabulous Malfoy bride. In fact, I think Draco should take her to dinner tomorrow evening."

"I'll have a word with him," Lucius said with a nod. "He's turning 25 in exactly two months. It's time for him to start acting like the Malfoy heir."

"I couldn't agree more," Narcissa said, smoothing down her shirt. "Tell Draco to make reservations at the Golden Coral as well for tomorrow evening. Astoria likes that restaurant. I haven't quite gotten her to the level of hiding her emotions."

"I'm sure in time, she'll make the perfect Malfoy bride," Lucius said, teeth gleaming as he smiled. "And she's—"

"Retained her innocence?" Narcissa nodded firmly. "Yes, she is rather prudish."

Lucius frowned thoughtfully. "I wonder if there's anyway to find out for sure."

Narcissa smiled and patted his shoulder. "Dear, I handle our personal affairs a lot better than you do. I've already taken care of it."

Lucius chuckled. "Of course you have."

"Never doubt me, Lucius." Narcissa leaned down and gave him a final kiss. "I shall see you later tonight. Hmm, I suppose if I'm around for lunch we could dine together as well."

"Or have lunch in my office." Lucius winked at his wife. "Romilda will be gone by then, and our privacy will be doubly ensured."

"Lucius, desks are far too uncomfortable." Narcissa smiled and moved towards the door. "But with the right motivation, I could be persuaded to take lunch at home."

"It will certainly be delightful," Lucius murmured, eyes hooded.

Her tinkling laughter followed her out the room, and Lucius had to shake his head in wonder. Narcissa Malfoy nee Black had not been his first choice in brides. He had found her to be far too docile and meek in school. But she had proven him quite wrong. It was merely a facade, one that ensured that people did try and bully her. When they did though, they never attempted it again. She had a certain cold fury about her that made people back down, even before she took out her wand. He had found himself on the receiving end of her wand from time to time, and it was not a pleasurable experience at all.

Figuring he should try and sort out the mess his son had put them in, he opened his bottom drawer, revealing a slim journal. The book held the name of every employee that worked for Malfoy International, including the ones overseas. He pressed a quill to the first page, writing down the branch and the position that he sought. In an instant, words began to appear on the blank page. It was a list of every worker in the building with assistant in their job title, along with their department, supervisor and the amount of years they had been working for the company. They also had a small star next to their name if a complaint had ever been filed about them. His finger ran down the list, and he frowned as he realized that most had been working for the company for less than a year.

"That won't do at all." Lucius scribbled across the page once more, writing a small one and a plus sign. The list narrowed considerably. "Well, I suppose this makes my job easier."

He eliminated the employees on the first page before turning to the second and stopping. Instantly, his eyes were drawn to one name, and the smirk that appeared on his face was nothing short of sinister. He recalled a moment a few years back of hearing that Ginevra Weasley was currently employed at his company. However, he had thought that by now, considering the Malfoy name and the hatred she shared for him and his family, she would have quit. However, that did not seem to be the case. He dipped his quill into the nearby inkpot and circled the name 'Ginevra Molly Weasley' before flipping back to the first page.

He waited a moment for the words to finish appearing on the page, reading through them carefully. She was the assistant to Magnolia Flint, a relative of his good friend Darius Flint and the head of the real estate division. Lady Flint seemed to think highly of Ginevra. There was a small blurb that stated she was efficient and always on time. She had only missed work on four occasions in the past four years that she had been working in the company. A picture of her was provided as well, and she stared blankly up at him, dressed conservatively in a loose collared shirt, not quite as stylishly as Romilda or his wife. Prior to working for Malfoy International, she worked for Weasley Wizard Wheezes.

At the name, Lucius's smirk seemed to light up, and he closed the book, standing from his chair and turning to look out at Diagon Alley. His office building, consisting of ten floors, overlooked Diagon Alley, and he could point out all the stores that they currently held investments in. The final battle had taken place in two different places: Hogwarts and Diagon Alley, the mecca of Wizarding Britain. Shops and buildings had burned to ashes and others, like Gringotts and, ironically enough, Weasley Wizard Wheezes, had remained standing.

Lucius placed his arms behind his back as he looked out at the colorful building that stood out against the stretch of shops on the cobblestone street. He could see a stream of people entering the building and knew that there were more to come. He had long since seen the profit in the joke shop that the twin Weasleys owned, and long since tried to sink his hands into the gold mine. He had offered them a large sum of money as well as promised the two twins that he would facilitate their international launch. However, they had vehemently denied every offer he sent them and refused to have anything to do with the Malfoys.

Perhaps with the help of Ginevra Weasley, he could finally convince the Weasley twins to sign the contract, which he felt to be the fairest contract ever composed under the roof of Malfoy International, a company that sought to gain from its investments in anyway possible. Of course, after the war, many fair contracts had been composed, especially after the Fair Business Act had been composed by the Ministry, which stated that all contracts dealing with business investments had to be thoroughly looked over by the Ministry before being signed by the two parties. It was the Ministry's way of looking out for the small businesses.

A knock sounded on his door and pulled him from his thoughts. "Enter."

"Mr. Malfoy, I have your schedule for today—"

Lucius observed the woman before him, who was reciting his schedule and steadfastly ignoring his gaze. She was pretty, dark, curly hair framing an aristocratic face. When she had first applied for the position, Lucius had not given her much thought. Her application had been average at best, and her work was subpar. But she had a pretty face and dressed in a way that was suitable to his tastes—and the tastes of some of his clients. He often found that pretty assistants distracted his clients and made them pay less attention to the fact that the contract they were receiving was barely legal. Law or no law, Lucius found the wormholes, and Romilda Vane helped him to make sure they weren't discovered by prancing around in incredibly high heels, tight shirts and fitted skirts. His wife had not approved, but she did see the benefit in having the, in her words, 'tart' around. Apparently, his son didn't mind either.

"Ms. Vane, clear my schedule for today, I have a meeting with Ms. Flint." Lucius smirked and stared at her stomach, which showed no signs of a child. "And clear your schedule as well."

"Will I be taking notes for the meeting?" asked Romilda, still not looking up at him.

"No, you have much more important things to take care of," Lucius said, his voice deceptively soft. "After all, you're supposedly carrying a Malfoy heir in your womb."

Her head snapped up, her eyes reflecting a bit of trepidation. "Ye—yes, I am."

"That's it, girl, have a little confidence," Lucius chided. "After all, did you not have confidence when you revealed to the press that you would bear my son a child?"

"I thought it would be happy news," Romilda said, straightening her spine.

"Happy news?" Lucius laughed, shaking his head. "No, my dear. My wife and I would be happy to welcome a child into the family, but we would much prefer someone more suitable for my son. While your open legs are a tantalizing temptation for my son, your personality is not—nor is your sexual history. A whore has never been part of the family, and I don't think we'll be changing that now."

Her mouth open and closed as she searched for something to say. "You can't speak to me in that manner."

"Yes, I can," Lucius said silkily. He motioned to his desk. "I've already signed the documents to release you from the services of the company. Your severance package will be as outlined in the letter you will be receiving."

"I—"

"You will, of course, need to go to St. Mungo's and have a paternity test, which will show that my son is not the father of the child you are currently carrying." Lucius glanced down at a slip of paper on his desk and smirked. "In fact, I believe I should send a congratulatory present to Mr. Zacharias Smith as the child is no doubt his. You were cavorting with him, were you not?"

"How did you—"

Lucius raised his hand to silence her. "Don't bother me with questions. I advise that you clear out your desk and head to St. Mungo's immediately."

Romilda's cheeks were flaring red, and her eyes burned with anger and hatred. "I am not a whore, and this child is your son's."

"Ms. Vane, don't make a fool of yourself. Take the test and go on to live a happy, normal, plebeian life," Lucius said with a sardonic smile. "You're not worthy of the Malfoy name. The closest you'll get to it is the short affair you had with my son. Look back on that time with fond memories."

"I have never been so—"

"Be sure to clear my schedule and notify the concerned parties that I will not be able to attend the meetings before you leave," Lucius interrupted.

Romilda, seemingly having nothing left to say, spun on her heels and exited the office. She hesitated at the door, and Lucius gave her a patented glare, one that ensured that she would not slam it. She closed it quietly behind her, and Lucius smirked to himself as he heard her stomping around in the outer office. There was the sound of glass breaking, no doubt from the picture frames that littered her desk, and the squawk of an owl. He had not expected her to actually clear his schedule but laced his fingers in satisfaction as he watched an owl soar past his window, scrolls tied to its legs.

His day was turning out quite well under the circumstances. Now he simply needed to get Ms. Weasley into his office, and he would consider it a day well spent.