A slight feeling in the air caused Narcissa to waken one night. Her eyes fluttered open, and she noticed that Lucius was sliding into bed as softly and as quietly as possible.

Narcissa did not usually feel her husband's presence when he returned home during the middle of the night. She had yet to meet someone who was quieter than Lucius.

But a quick look at Lucius's face showed that he was clearly troubled by something, which probably was the reason why he had not entered the bedroom with his usual stealth.

"Narcissa," Lucius spoke softly, seeing that she was looking at him, "I did not mean to wake you."

"It's all right, Lucius," Narcissa replied. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing."

"We both know that's not the truth," Narcissa responded. "Does it have to do with the Dark Lord?"

"Yes."

"I see."

Narcissa did not say anything further. Lucius did not keep many secrets from her, but before they had gotten married, they had come to the agreement that it would be for the best if she knew the least amount possible about his dealings with the Dark Lord. Just in case she was ever questioned.

"The Dark Lord is afraid about something," Lucius muttered.

"Surely not," Narcissa gasped in disbelief.

While Narcissa did not see the Dark Lord often in person, she couldn't imagine him being afraid of anything. It was just a foreign concept to her. To her, the Dark Lord was beyond feeling a normal human emotion such as fear.

"The Dark Lord has always had a quick temper," Lucius explained, "but lately he has been having even less patience or tolerance than usual. The slightest thing sets him off. That is not necessarily uncommon for him, but it has become noticeable to me that he doesn't have as much control over his emotions as he usually does.

"He has never been that forgiving, but he no longer waits to hear excuses. He just punishes us, even if we had not necessarily done anything wrong. And even more than usual, he has been giving us unreasonable orders. Something is clearly troubling him. Something is going on that he cannot control, and he does not like that. So, he strikes out at us with anger. My father is the same way when he doesn't get his way or when he isn't able to control something."

"Has the Dark Lord hurt you?" Narcissa asked in concern.

"Not tonight," Lucius answered. "I made sure not to draw any attention to myself. Avery, however, was not so fortunate."

"Well, Avery has always been a bit of an idiot," Narcissa said.

"That's true," Lucius smiled slightly.

"What now?" Narcissa pressed.

"I will do my best to keep the Dark Lord satisfied," Lucius replied. "I fear that is all I can do."

"Just keep yourself as safe as possible," Narcissa responded. "Don't do anything reckless."

"I will try my best," Lucius promised.

Months later, Narcissa heard the news that the Dark Lord had fallen at the hands of a baby.

Narcissa could not help but wonder if the Potters were what had made the Dark Lord so afraid. James and Lily Potter had definitely been killed personally by the Dark Lord, and it was clear that he had intended to kill their son as well. However, something had clearly went wrong.

Narcissa glanced over at Draco, who was crawling happily on the study floor, completely oblivious to the huge changes that had suddenly occurred in the Wizarding World.

Narcissa wished that she could have Draco's innocence.

She also wished that Lucius was at home.

It was no secret that the Aurors were rounding up all suspected Death Eaters. What if Lucius's name was to come up in their investigation? What would happen to him then? Would he be killed on the spot or would he be sent to Azkaban without a trial? Narcissa had to keep herself from howling at the thought of her beloved husband being forced to endure the horrors of Azkaban. And the thought of her precious Lucius being killed was just as horrible.

Narcissa knew how ruthless Barty Crouch Sr. was towards suspected Death Eaters. It didn't even need to be proven to him without a shadow of a doubt that a wizard was a Death Eater. All that was required for Crouch was that someone merely be suspected of being one.

"Calm yourself, Narcissa," she muttered to herself. "Lucius isn't like the others. He has power and influence in the Ministry. That has to be enough to keep him safe. It just has to be."

Narcissa had to struggle to keep her composure when she caught sight of her husband being led into the courtroom by dementors. He was then chained to the chair in the middle of the room, as if he was some sort of animal. Narcissa wanted to both cry in despair and scream in anger. She somehow managed, though, not to do either of those two things.

Narcissa was glad that she had decided to leave Draco with her parents. Draco had always been a sensitive, perceptive child, and he probably would have picked up on her inner stress and worry.

For his part, Lucius was sitting stiffly and rigidly, his posture completely perfect and straight. Even at a moment like this, his Pureblood upbringing and training would not be forgotten. And his face reflected the perfect combination of dignity and remorse. He was a proud Pureblood, but at the same time, he was horrified by what he had been accused of doing.

Lucius testified that he had been under the Imperius Curse and that he still had many gaps in his memory. He also spoke of the nightmares that he had been suffering from and how they had been keeping him from sleeping.

Narcissa testified that her husband had been acting differently lately. He had been distant from her, which was not like him. The thought that he might be a Death Eater, however, had not crossed her mind even once. Lucius was much too good of a man for that.

Narcissa was very good at acting like a naive, foolish woman when necessary.

There were several others whom were also quick to speak in Lucius's defense.

At the end, Lucius was cleared of all charges, and he was told that he was free to go.

Narcissa allowed herself to breathe ever so slightly in relief.