Title: Marriage Binds
Author: Blemery
Rating: R
Pairing(s): Arthur/Lucius
Beta: Rogue Rouge
Spoilers: sort of for OtoP but probably a bit AU off of that
Summary: There Weasley's and Malfoy's haven't always hated each other it didn't come from some long lost unnamed relative. Unknown to any of the present Weasley or Malfoy children Arthur and Lucius used to be best friends and even lovers but what happened to change all of that.
October 22 1963
The redhead adjusted his tie in the Head Boy's mirror even though he only partially paid attention to whether or not it was straight. His thought had drifted to his best friend and secret crush; the manipulative little prat that had the entire student body watching what they did with suspiciously narrowed eyes. Though he knew Lucius far better than anyone else, he knew his secrets and knew how to act to avoid his wrathful temperament. Perhaps that was why he often dreamed that they would make such good lovers. Lucius, however much he argued it to the public, was not superior to himself, and he felt that despite the show of arrogance, Lucius could him trust with all his secrets without having to threaten him with his own. All of these little things allowed Lucius to be his self around Arthur; a truly rare and private side of him where even when alone he could not act that way, but around Arthur it was more then safe and that made all the difference.
The door to the private bathroom creaked open behind Arthur and a raven-haired boy peaked in.
"Tell me you're dressed?" he demanded impatiently.
"I'm dressed Rabastan," Arthur muttered turning to face the Slytherin, "Is Luke waiting?"
"Oh yeah, when you say 'I'll meet you by the entrance at nine', try not to not show up twenty minutes later. If you were anyone else he would have left," Rabastan held the door open for him, "No open's quite sure why that is though."
Arthur shrugged lightly; it was most likely that his best friend just did not want to have to be stuck with Bella, Crabbe, Goyle, Avery, Augustus, and Walden alone.
"Finally," Bella exclaimed snobbishly, skipping over to meet them, "We're wasting precocious Hogsmeade time."
Arthur glared at her irritably. "Is she coming with us?"
"Ignore her," Lucius growled and he stood in the doorway with his two younger henchmen, Crabbe and Goyle. Avery, Augustus, and Walden had already left before them, and so the remaining five followed Lucius as he made his way toward the double doors of the castle.
"Where were you anyway?" Lucius asked curtly, his long strides bringing him across the grounds and causing the others to practically run to keep up; except, Arthur who knew how to keep up with Lucius without looking like an idiot.
"Head Boy things you know, thinking about how I'll torture the prefects," Arthur grinned. Lucius was a prefect of his own house as was Bellatrix, but she hardly mattered.
"Bumblebore is clearly off his rocker, making you head boy," Lucius sneered. Arthur threw his arm around Lucius shoulders with the, you-know-you-like-it look, but the blonde just rolled his eyes and snorted.
"You wish Art."
"Oh fine then," Arthur moved away, enjoying the suppressed complaints from the other boy at the lost of contact, "I wouldn't torture you."
"What were you really doing?" Lucius muttered the four other students were out of earshot by now; do to Lucius' fast paced steps.
"Thinking about you - us," Arthur's hot breath showed in puffs in the autumn air as he spoke, "What are we going to do Luke? Everyone keeps telling me that I should want to be married and that I'll learn to love her. But I won't! And I hate this arrangement!"
"Arthur let's not think about that, it only upsets us," Lucius declared, but Arthur shook his head.
"I have to think about it! I mean, come on. I don't want to go through this, and neither do you." Arthur glanced nervously at Lucius and took a deep breath. "I love you, Luke and I want to be with you and I'm just dreading every day that brings us closer to graduation!" There. He'd said it.
Lucius's steps halted and he turned to face Arthur sharply. "You what?" There was a certain half startled, half disbelieving expression on his pale face. Arthur dejectedly bowed his head in shame, knowing that Lucius was probably disgusted with him now.
"I love you Luke," Arthur repeated quietly, his gaze fixed on the gravel path. He was shocked he had said it but he was not going to take it back now. He wanted Lucius to know.
The blonde reached out hand, cupping his friend's chin as he lifted his head gently, "I feel the same way."
"Well a lot of good that will do us considering we're going to be married in the next seven years! Now not only will we be married, we'll also be suffering from unrequited love!" Arthur flung his arms in the air, whacking Luke in the head and sending him to the ground. Arthur gasped at his actions, blushing immensely, "Luke, ah Luke, Luke I'm sorry!" he knelt beside him.
Lucius held his left hand to his nose, glaring draggers at the other boy even though he knew it hadn't been intentional. He pulled his hand back, revealing a bleeding nose. "Merlin, Arthur!" he leaned his head back taking the handkerchief that the redhead gave him. "You stupid prat!"
"Sorry, Luke I never meant to…" Arthur sighed and looked away, noticing that their four companions were still a ways back, walking leisurely at their own pace. He turned back to Lucius who was trying to stop the blood, and all the sudden, the whole situation seemed quite ridiculous. So ridiculous that it was actually kind of funny. He began to laugh at this friend's predicament, and his helplessness, earning a bewildered frown from the blonde.
"What are you laughing about?" Lucius tilted his head forward to give Arthur an inquisitive look.
Arthur chuckled, shaking slightly as he tried to suppress it. "You - we - I…"
"You, we, I is not a sentence!" Lucius snapped angrily and then paused, his lip twitching before he too broke into a laugh, muffled by the bloody handkerchief. Ironic was it; that the day the two had mustered up the courage to confess their love to each other, was the day that Arthur had given Lucius his first bloody nose.
"Git," he said between gasps; his sides hurt from laughing so hard that he had lean his forehead against the other's shoulder to try and regain himself.
Arthur stopped immediately and looked at the other boy touching him, a small smile creeping onto his face before lifting Lucius' head gently and placing a soft warm kiss on his mouth. Lucius moaned appreciatively and leaned into the kiss, hungry for more of the sparks that filled him from the small kiss. But Arthur quickly pulled away and stood up, brushing himself off and extending a hand to help Lucius up off the ground.
The blonde tilted his head in confusion before realizing that Bella, Goyle, Crabbe, and Rabastan were now close enough to see what they were doing. He reached up and took his hand and was soon on his feet as well.
The two boys continued in silence, striding down the path towards Hogsmeade and quickly putting a growing distance between themselves and the rats they had for friends. The silence was not awkward or uncomfortable and both had much on their minds that they wanted to say to each other, but neither also wanted to take the chances of someone overhearing them.
