The upbeat party had been going on for several hours now. Some people had left, as the hour was late. A majority of the remaining guests were drunk into oblivion. Severus was standing alone by the food tables, eating shrimp cocktail. He was one of the few people left who wasn't completely annihilated. He was admittedly surprised at these "pure-bloods" for drinking to excess and acting like children. Perhaps they all drank themselves silly at every party to forget about their boring lives.
A flicker of hope passed through him when he noticed Lucius and Bellatrix going out the front door, probably to have a smoke. Meanwhile, Narcissa was headed for the staircase. This was it...He was going to talk to her. He sure wasn't going to spill his feelings out, but he wanted to make sure that she acknowledged his presence. He was brave due to consuming some alcohol. Severus slowly made his way to the stairs, taking care to make sure nobody saw him follow Narcissa.
He hurried to the empty bedroom she had slipped into moments before. Snape surveyed the room, but didn't see her. Then his eyes drifted over to the sliding door, realizing that someone had opened it. She had presumably gone out onto the balcony to get some fresh air. Severus had not been prepared at all for what he saw.
Narcissa was barefoot, standing on the ledge. She trembled as tears ran down her face, and her hair blew in the wind. He came to the sudden realization of what she was intending to do.
"Hey! Hey, get down from there. You don't want to do this." Snape called, holding out his hand to help her down.
Narcissa gasped, and nearly lost her balance in fright.
"Just... just go away. This is none of your concern." she replied, looking down from the ledge into the sprawling, dark gardens below.
As she stuck one foot out, Snape wrapped his arms around her and forcefully pulled her back onto the balcony, despite her kicking and screaming. Why couldn't he have just left her be? He didn't have to tell anyone.
"Nothing ever goes my way!" she screeched, as she sunk to the cold cement in a heap, sobbing uncontrollably.
Snape immediately sunk to her level, and embraced her into a warm, inviting hug. Surprisingly, she gave into his kind gesture and returned it. Something about him gave her comfort. He allowed her to cry on his shoulder, feeling the wetness of her tears soaking through his outer robe. He had one arm wrapped tightly around her back, and the other was up around her shoulder, as he ran his fingers through her soft hair.
"Everything will be okay, Narcissa." Snape soothed.
"No...it won't." she choked between her sobs.
Narcissa pulled away from him, and scampered off into the bedroom, only to slump down on the bed and cry some more. She wanted to be alone now, but Severus went after her. He knelt down next to the bed, and stroked her hair until she finally stopped crying. Narcissa lifted her head up to face Snape, who instinctively wiped off the mascara that was streaked down her face.
"I'm sorry." she said, trying to regain her composure.
"There's nothing to apologize for. We all have moments of weakness." Snape replied, offering her a hankie from his pocket.
Narcissa wiped her dripping nose with it, and blinked back the tears that will still trying to escape. Why was Severus being so kind to her? She barely knew him.
"You don't love him, do you?" he asked, boldly.
Narcissa raised a light eyebrow at the fact that he'd even asked her such a personal question, though the answer was yes. She took a deep breath, and nodded her head in agreement.
"You don't even seem to like him." he added.
He'd seen them back at school. They barely talked, and he knew for a fact that Narcissa found him to be quite obnoxious. She surely had no interest in being his friend, let alone his wife.
"No. But I do love my family. You don't understand...You're free to be with anyone you want. I have to do what's right." she managed to get out, as a few more tears rolled down her cheeks.
"What's right or what's expected?" he questioned, as he wiped her fresh tears away with the sleeve of his robe.
Narcissa thought for a moment. She supposed it was both right and expected. Expected of her because it was right to her family
"Does your happiness mean anything?" Snape asked, incredulously.
"It means nothing to my family. Why should it mean anything to me?" she replied.
That wasn't honestly the way that she saw it. But what was she supposed to do?
"You can't tell me you've never dreamed of marrying for love." he stated.
"Of course have dreams of love. What girl doesn't? There's just nothing I can do about it. " Narcissa responded, finally sitting up and folding her hands on her lap.
"Yes there is." Snape whispered in her ear, before giving her a gentle kiss on the lips.
Narcissa was the one to pull away shocked, once it hit her that this was wrong. She couldn't let this happen! Snape noticed her eyes widen, and her cheeks flush. Then she stormed of the room, leaving him to sit on the bed pouting, thinking he'd messed up his only chance with her.
Meanwhile, the pair of Lucius and Bellatrix were out the garden, having a cigarette just as Snape predicted. They were attempting a very heated conversation concerning Narcissa.
"I'm not slow, Malfoy. I know you don't love my sister." Bellatrix stated, flatly, before taking a drag off her cigarette then blowing smoke toward the stars.
"Who's to say I don't?" Lucius argued, though he and Bella both knew he had no romantic feelings for her younger sister.
"She's just a trophy to you. A consolation prize because you couldn't have me." Bellatrix declared.
Lucius scoffed. Bella had always been so full of herself.
"Not everybody wants you, Bella." he informed her, even if he knew fully well that she was right.
"But you do. I can tell." Bellatrix whispered, coyly as she moved closer to him.
Lucius gulped and began to feel hot under the collar. He was actually relieved when the front door swung open before he could attempt to argue with her once more. It was Snape with a glass of red wine in his hand.
"Severus." Bellatrix said, letting his name roll off her tongue as if he were something to eat.
"Can I, uh.. bum a smoke?" he asked, before taking another sip of wine.
Bellatrix took a large gulp of firewhisky before inching up her dress, exposing slender white legs, and a pack of cigarettes held against her thigh by a small scrap of black lace. Both men averted their gaze to her newly exposed skin. Severus had to admit, her legs were to die for.
However, Bella didn't make a move to take the pack and give it to him. Severus just stood there awkwardly...Was he supposed to take it? But before he could, Lucius beat him to the punch. Damn him! He took a cigarette out and handed it off to Snape.
"Um.. thanks." Snape said, before lighting it with a non-verbal spell.
The pack was snatched out of Lucius's hand by Bellatrix, who put it back into place, then fixed her dress. She was annoyed that Lucius had fallen for her little trick, and not Snape. She'd never say it, but she would be quite thrilled to be underneath him, screaming his unworthy name. Though she couldn't explain why, she just got the feeling that he would be a good fuck. He was actually sort of handsome in some unusual way. It bothered her that he seemed to be pretty impervious to her charm.
"If you want another one, you know where to find them." she offered.
Then she threw her cigarette on the ground, stomped it out with a stiletto heel, and went back inside.
"Cock tease." Lucius scoffed, as soon as the door shut.
Snape gave a toothy grin in response.
"If I didn't know better, I'd say she was flirting with you." Lucius informed him.
"No...no way. Women don't flirt with me. Ever." Snape countered.
"If you say so. I think she wants you." Lucius replied, the bitter jealousy evident in his voice.
How could Lucius be jealous that Bellatrix was hitting on him, when he's the one that gets to marry Narcissa? Severus was completely baffled, and quite jealous himself.