Disclaimer: I, of course, own nothing. The title is taken from the song "Falcon in the Dive," from the musical The Scarlet Pimpernel.
"Chaos reigned […] and now the wizards, defenders of Hogwarts and Death Eaters alike, were being forced back into the castle."-Deathly Hallows, page 734
Lucius Malfoy had once prided himself on poise, dignity, and a certain amount of noble detachment, on carefully cultivating a public image that was smooth and cold as glass.
But this façade had shattered long ago, and the man who was present at the Battle of Hogwarts (for to even say that he fought would be a gross exaggeration) was a mere shell of his former self.
As he and Narcissa sprinted through the Great Hall, flashes of light and smoke and rubble blocking their way, he cared not for getting caught in the crossfire, or whose side he was on. This entire conflict had become meaningless to him when he had heard what the Dark Lord planned for Draco. The difficulty of his mission to kill Dumbledore, one of the most powerful wizards there had ever been, was patently too much for a sixteen-year-old boy, and Lucius couldn't help but believe that the Dark Lord had intended for Draco to die as punishment for his own mistakes at the Ministry. He could not intervene then, but if what Narcissa had said was true-that Draco was alive, and in the castle-he could save him now. Lucius had not inquired as to how Narcissa had known Draco's whereabouts after verifying Harry Potter's death; curiosity was beyond him now. He was shoving his way through the fighters, his wife gripping onto his arm and shouting their son's name, when suddenly the hall fell eerily silent. Lucius froze as Harry Potter appeared in the center of the room, standing face-to-face with the Dark Lord. The confrontation washed over Lucius; he listened, but the actual words had no significance, until something Potter said shook him out of his trance.
"The true master of the Elder Wand was Draco Malfoy."
Lucius's eyes widened in blank shock as he felt Narcissa's nails digging into his arm as her hand clenched. His eyes desperately searched the room for his son's face as the Dark Lord responded.
"…and after I have killed you, I can attend to Draco Malfoy…"
Narcissa made a soft, strangled sort of sound, between a gasp and a sob.
"But you're too late," Potter said. "You've missed your chance. I got there first. I overpowered Draco weeks ago. I took this wand from him."
Memories flooded back. The battle at the Manor, how he had lost Potter again, and the Dark Lord had been furious...his shoulders hunched forward almost compulsively, remembering the pain.
A blinding flash of light and a roar of sound, and the Dark Lord fell to Potter, who stood with two wands in his hands. There was a moment of disbelieving silence before the defenders of the castle cheered and rushed Harry Potter.
Lucius and Narcissa stood immobile in the tumult, their eyes still scanning the crowds for a silver-blonde head.
"Mother! Father!" The shout from behind them startled the Malfoys, and spinning around, they found Draco, looking tired, defeated, broken, but relieved. Narcissa screamed and fell upon the boy, sobbing out of joy. Lucius stepped beside them, placed an arm on each of their shoulders, and closed his eyes, and for a moment, there was no war, no causalities, and no memory of the chain of meaningless prejudice and strife that had been passed from father to son for generations. There was only a family, reunited at last.