Written for:
Lamia of the Dark for the August Oneshot Exchange
Prompts Used:
- (genre) Romance, (word) Blood, (pairing) Orion/Walburga

Quidditch Leagues:
- "Honey, you lied when you told me you loved me." - Elvis Presley
- (scene) a dance between two characters
- (word) Necklace
- (word) Delicate

"Oh, this is going to be tedious," grumbled Walburga as she and her husband headed up the vast steps to the enormous Malfoy Manor. "I've always detested this place. There is no need for such...such..." as Walburga was searching for the right word, a large, ivory peacock strolled by, ruffling its feathers proudly. Walburga hissed at the sight of it, and dragged Orion up the stairs quicker. "Bah!" she muttered, before pushing rudely past the doorman. "Hurry up. The quicker we get this over with, the sooner we can go home. Regulus, tout de suite!"

Regulus, their youngest son, mooched up the stairs behind his parents and fiddled with his tight collar uncomfortably. Orion had insisted that his fourteen year old child dress appropriately to the Malfoy's soiree, choosing to deck him out in a smaller version of his own expensive attire.

The Malfoy's young doorman shot Walburga a filthy look as they passed, clearly unimpressed at her ill-mannerisms. His disgusted glare didn't go unnoticed by Walburga, and Orion groaned inwardly as he saw her flaring up immediately.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" she snapped, her dark gaze fixed on the young boy. "Do you know who I am? Do you know the things that I have to do to be who I am?"

"I don't know—sucking dick and kissing ass?" he retorted rudely. Orion took in the mouse-coloured hair and the flat face of boy, noticing that he didn't look familiar. He opened his mouth to give the little fool a piece of his mind, but Walburga got there first.

"Why, you little—" Walburga suddenly lashed out her wand and lunged forward, stabbing her wand into the flesh of his neck, ready to draw blood. He recoiled against the wall, his eyes growing wide and fearful.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to."

"Do you know who I am?" she almost screamed, her eyes burning into him. "I am Walburga Black!"

"I'm sorry, Mrs Black. Won't happen again."

Orion groaned again—outwardly, this time. It didn't take much for Walburga to become so regal and outspoken, and to begin spouting off her Black family heritage to anyone who would listen. It wasn't uncommon for her to act like this either, and in any other situation, Orion might have allowed her to continue until she had calmed down. However, many of the Malfoy's guests that were crossing the lawn were eyeing them with suspicion, and Orion knew that their reputation for violence and unwarranted cruelty wouldn't improve if they were forced to witness her behaviour. "Walburga," he barked sharply. "The Malfoy's are awaiting us," he took her arm and began to lead her into the manor, while she glared contemptuously back at the doorman.

Regulus had already vanished into the party, probably to try and find some friends, and Orion didn't blame him. As much as he loved his wife, he just wished that they could go out for at least one family affair without her embarrassing herself—and him.

Once they had entered the wide ballroom of the Malfoy Manor, Walburga snatched a tall glass of champagne from the tray of a pacing waiter, and headed over to the centre of the room, where Orion could see a familiar curly haired witch staring around just as haughtily as Walburga often did.

"Druella," Orion heard her drawl in her smooth, silky voice. "How wonderful to see you."

"Evening, Orion," a familiar voice broke Orion's train of thought. He looked to the left of him and spotted his cousin and brother in law, Cygnus. The pair shook hands briefly, as was customary, and then headed to a quiet corner of the ballroom to talk, while they eyed their gossiping wives.

"It's been a while, Cygnus," Orion pointed out, and Cygnus nodded in response.

"Truth be told, I didn't really want to attend this party tonight. I've never really liked Abraxas Malfoy, and I'm not exactly sure why he invited me."

Orion knitted his eyebrows together. "Cygnus, this party is for Abraxas's son. They have hosted this party so that they can scope out a potential wife for young Lucius, and..." Orion scanned the guests quickly, and spotted two blonde heads dancing closely. "It seems little Narcissa is having the first dance with him." Orion pointed out his niece, and Cygnus stared for a little while, before shaking his head.

"You're lucky, Orion, with your sons. I don't know what I did to be given a house full of oestrogen. Those girls are always keeping things from me, or wanting something the next—I had to buy Narcissa a black diamond necklace just for this event."

"I don't understand. Didn't Druella tell you what the party was for?"

Cygnus let out a roaring laugh so loud that several guests turned to stare pointedly at him. "Oh, Orion, I haven't spoken to my wife in years," he told him. "I didn't want to interrupt her."

The two men shared a brief laugh, which was interrupted by Druella, who had appeared at Cygnus's arm. She pursed her lips, and nodded imperiously towards the centre of the room, insinuating that he was to dance with her. Cygnus whisked his wife away, leaving Orion alone.

"You seemed to be enjoying yourself with my dear brother," purred Walburga, and Orion realised that she had stalked quietly over to his side. "Are you still upset with me, my love?" Her eyes glittered as she spoke, and Orion knew that she was acting sarcastically coy.

"Walburga, you will be the death of me," he reiterated. "But it doesn't make me love you any less. Now come on, it's time to dance," he bowed his head slightly, extending his hand.

Walburga folded her arms. "I do not dance."

"Now, I know that's a lie. We danced for many hours on our wedding day."

"That was a long time ago."

"Oh, but listen," Orion crooned. A familiar tinkling of piano notes filled the air, and Walburga visibly softened.

"It's the song we had our first dance to," she breathed, and her face relaxed. Orion noticed how much more youthful she appeared when she wasn't wearing the hardened expression he was so accustomed to.

Her limbs softened considerably, and she grew as pliable as wax, allowing Orion to sweep her into his arms and whirl them gracefully amongst the other dancing figures. He clasped one of her hands and used the other to hold her waist as he followed the steps to the song, moving them delicately around the floor. As she began to enjoy herself more, her waxy exterior gradually firmed, and Orion was able to sculpt her into elegant shapes as they danced.

"I loved our wedding," she said quietly, her breath hot against the shell of his ear. "It was a wonderful day."

"I wish you could have enjoyed it as much as I did, however," Orion replied, leaning her back slowly to a low, plunging note of the music. "You were so angry at having to marry me."

"No," Walburga denied, turning her head to parallel Orion's. Many people were watching them now, possibly remembering from their wedding how well they could dance. "I loved you."

Orion stifled a slightly vindictive snigger, thinking back to the way that Walburga had hatefully repeated their vows all those years ago. "Honey, you lied when you told me you loved me."

A captivating smirk crossed Walburga's face, and Orion's heart skipped a beat. Perhaps he was wrong about her—perhaps there were emotions Walburga harboured that he just wasn't aware of.

Walburga was still smiling strangely as the music stopped, and Orion lowered her down, holding the small of her back to prevent her from falling. She cupped his cheek softly, and pressed a small kiss to his mouth, deciding she didn't care about the people who were watching them.

"No, dear. I loved you as all dark things are to be loved—in secret."