A/N: Hi everyone! I hope you like this chapter and, again, I'm really sorry for taking so much time to write and post it! Also, there is something I'd like to add: I study law in College here in Brazil and our criminal procedure is very different from the one used in England and America. So, you might notice some differences in the story about Lucius' incarceration and such! I kind of mixed both systems and, well, let's just pretend that's how wizards do it!
Lucius startled with a loud 'pop' echoing in his study. "Useless elf! Why did you take so long to bring Kreacher here?"
"Chilly is sorry, master! That man Sirius was at the kitchen, Chilly had to wait, wait a lot until she could talk to Kreacher, and then…"
"Enough". Lucius raised a hand for the elf. "I don't want to hear your ridiculous excuses anymore! Where is Kreacher?"
"At the living room, he's talking to Mistress."
Removing his reading glasses, Lucius adjusted his robes and left the study, directing himself to the living room. He had to give Kreacher strict orders to make sure the plan would succeed. It was extremely important to keep Sirius Black occupied the whole day in order to guarantee that Potter wouldn't contact him, making the boy believe that his dearly god father was stuck in the Department of Mysteries.
"Hello, Kreacher!"
Hearing Lucius' voice, the old elf made an effusive reverence, causing his wrinkled nose to touch the floor. "Master Lucius, always a pleasure to see you!"
] Narcissa watched the scene and tensed a little. She knew what kind of business Lucius had to treat with Kreacher and that it only could mean one thing: that infamous mission was about to take place. And this was what she feared the most. Sensitive as she was, Cissa never had good feelings about her husband invading the Ministry of Magic with a bunch of Death Eaters, willing to get a prophecy from a well-protected place. Besides, Potter was a major plot of the plan and, miraculously, that boy had never been defeated, not even by Lord Voldemort himself. If it was by pure luck or by some occult protection, she couldn't tell, but the fact was that Harry Potter wasn't an easy target.
"Kreacher, please listen carefully to what Master Lucius has to tell you." Saying that, she stopped by the door and, this time, directed herself for her husband - "If you need something, just call me." He nodded in agreement and she left, the clicking sound of her heels echoing through the Manor.
Lucius took almost an hour to explain everything that Kreacher needed to do, fearing the elf couldn't comprehend exactly the importance and the dimension of his task. It became accorded that Kreacher would break Buckbeaks' wing (for Lucius, after the accident involving the beast and his son, the elf could even kill the hypogriff, if he wished to). This way, they assured that Sirius would be busy the whole day and far away from any communication means that Potter chose to use.
After the elf left the house, Lucius collapsed on the couch, burring his head on his palms and sighing loudly. He was absolutely exhausted, that mission was draining every inch of energy he possessed: he had to be constantly reporting every single course of action to the Dark Lord, and was responsible to instruct and control the Death Eaters that were involved on the plan, what wasn't an easy task, considering that Bellatrix, for example, was on this group (due to Voldemort's orders – and not by Lucius' choice, of course).
Lost in his thoughts, the man felt gentle hands caressing his shoulders. "Is everything fine, Lucius?" He smiled with the feeling of her soft skin on his, the gentle touch of her thin hands being the only happiness that remained with him during those rough times. After all, Narcissa and their son were the only constants in his life, even if he failed giving them the attention and love they needed and deserved. "I'm fine, Narcissa. Come here, dearest, sit with me."
She did as he asked, taking a seat by his side and holding his hand. They just sat there, hands linked and no words spoken, for quite some time. She diverted her eyes from her husband and staring at the opposite wall, finally said what was stuck on her throat: "Lucius, I am so scared."
He smiled weakly and squeezed her hand. "I am scared too." Upon hearing that, Narcissa looked at him, almost in disbelief, because during their marriage, she couldn't remember another time when her husband confessed so openly his own fears… It only intensified the bad omen she felt about that damned mission. Lucius could tell that Narcissa was shocked by his confession. After so many years, he could read it perfectly from her features: the eyebrows contracted just a little bit, the thin mouth slightly opened and pale and the big blue eyes wide and fixed. He turned himself on the couch to look into her eyes, gathering all the sincerity he could, yet trying to be soft and tender.
"Love, I'm not willing to give you more empty promises. I'm planning tomorrow's mission for a long time and, hopefully, everything will be just fine. But I can guarantee nothing… It's really risky and involves so much more than just casting curses and spells, also there's always your sister to disrupt everything." – he chuckled, trying to diminish the tension. With her free hand, Narcissa cupped his cheek and kissed him passionately.
The couple embraced tightly, only breaking the kisses to regain breath and whisper sweet nothings on each other's ears, every single touch expressing more than they could say with words. At some point, Lucius kissed away the tears that were starting to trail down his wife's face and held her chin, the grey eyes meeting the blue ones. "Let's go upstairs, Narcissa. I need you more than ever. I need you to be my strength". She smiled and held her husband's hand, guiding him off the couch. "And so do I, my love."
Later that night, when Lucius managed to sleep, Narcissa rested her head on his naked chest, feeling relieved that they were finally recovering the closeness and intimacy after some troubled months, although something inside kept telling her that wonderful night felt like farewell. Oh, how she wished they could remain just like that forever and that nothing and no one would ever take her from the safety of her husband's arms or deprive her from his love.
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It was already nine o'clock p.m. and Lucius hadn't returned from the mission. Narcissa was laid on their bed, her nerves pulsing. She could almost feel that something went wrong on the plan, because they wouldn't need that much of time to get the prophecy on normal circumstances. Suddenly, she heard a loud "pop" on the room: Chilly stood there, her eyes were huge.
"Yes?" Narcissa's tone was cold and harsh. Not that the elf had something to do with her worries, but the woman was so easily irritated that night…
"Chilly is sorry to disturb mistress, but there's a man downstairs saying he need to talk to Master Lucius' wife."
"A man is demanding to talk to me? And whose man is this, Chilly? Speak up!" Narcissa jumped off the bed and gathered her thin silk robes before dressing it quickly.
"He says he is from the Ministry, mistress, but Chilly does not know his name."
"It's enough, creature. Tell him I'll be in the living room right away." Narcissa took a few minutes to make herself more presentable. Although she knew that something really bad was taking place, she still didn't want to appear absolutely disheveled in front of strangers. Lucius would never approve such behavior and she was a Malfoy, after all, she had to hold up her pride.
Descending the stairs she noticed the man, he had his back turned to her, but she could see clearly who he was: ginger hair, starting to get bald, it could only be Arthur, that prat! She was absolute certain he pleaded to give the bad news himself (whichever the news were), only to get back on Lucius.
"Weasley. Could I know the reason of your unwelcomed visit to my house? I can assure you that Lucius and I don't possess muggle artifacts, so there is no possible job for your pathetic department in this Manor." Her tone was pure ice and her face showed nothing but disdain.
"Good night, Narcissa." Arthur said formally.
"It is Mrs. Malfoy, if you don't mind."
"As you wish, Mrs. Malfoy. Fact is that the Minister entrusted me to give you some information about your husband, that's purely why I am here at your house at this late hour."
Narcissa felt her stomach sink. Deep inside she knew this annoying visit could only mean that Lucius was in danger or that he was… She didn't even want to think about it!
"What information about my husband could you possibly have, Weasley?" She felt her voice tremble, but she wouldn't give up in front of that man, she couldn't let her mask go down.
"To begin with the procedure, Mrs. Malfoy, I must ask if you can tell me the whereabouts of your husband this night."
"Lucius was at home until 5 p.m, then, he left. That is all I know and all I will say."
Arthur Weasley put on a smug face, he was convinced that Narcissa knew exactly where Lucius was and what he planned to do. That woman was unbelievable, as stubborn and despicable as her awful husband. "Are you sure this is all you have to say, Mrs. Malfoy?"
"What I am sure, Mr. Weasley, is that I have the right to be silent since you can and will pass on every single word I say, and the court may probably use it against me or against my family. Besides, you have no authority to interrogate me, you are a simple messenger of the Ministry, so don't give yourself more credit than you have. If you could only do your job and provide me with the information you have, I would be really thankful."
His face went red with anger and he decided it was best to give Narcissa the news, anyway. "In this case, if you don't know his whereabouts, I must inform you that your husband was caught tonight in his Death Eater activities. A group of them was in the Department of Mysteries, trying to steal a protected object from the Ministry of Magic. Due to this fact, Lucius Malfoy was arrested in flagrantand, by this time, he is probably arriving in Azkaban." His face was unexpressive, but Narcissa could sense the pleasure he felt in telling her those awful news. She also felt the tears starting to from on her own eyes, the despair and the loneliness hitting her instantly, but she swallowed it all, keeping her emotions well-hidden.
"And when is he going to be released? Will he be allowed the benefit of a plea bargain? I wish to know if he already has a commitment for trial or if you are just planning to keep him locked there without any trace of legitimacy."
"It is definitely not that simple, Mrs. Malfoy. Your husband was charged with serious crimes, as you can imagine. His prison is now temporary, since he is a Death Eater and the judge on duty felt it would be risky to let him in freedom while he is being processed. I highly recommend you hire him a lawyer. It's almost a hopeless cause."
"And hiring him one will be my first course of action tomorrow morning. For tonight, I qualify as his lawyer. Would you wait here for a minute until I get my register number and sign the papers? I pretend to interpose a writ of habeas corpus in a few hours, please let the court know it. I don't doubt the lazy officers won't be there when I need them, even if on call."
"There is a judge on duty this night, Mrs. Malfoy, I just told you that."
"Better this way. I'll be right back, if you excuse me." Narcissa's mind was running so fast and incoherent that she couldn't focus on what she was doing. She took the way to Lucius' office before remembering that all her law documents were on her own office, on the other wing of the house. She couldn't believe that her husband was under arrest, how would she live without him? How would she tell Draco that, for Merlin's sake? And she still had to write the habeas corpus, in the middle of the chaos, because it would be quicker than going to find a good lawyer at 10 p.m. It worried her deeply, she had been an excellent student at the Wizard Law College, and kept up to date with all the important court decisions, but still, she had never worked in her life, and she feared she wouldn't be able to put all the theory in practice.
Grabbing everything she needed, Narcissa returned to the living room and signed the documents that qualified her as Lucius' temporary attorney. After she was finished, that horrid Weasley finally got out and she could at least cry without some idiot to mock her in return.
The woman went straight to her room, not bothering that the tears were soaking her face. She had to go to Hogwarts to tell Draco the news before he listened it from someone else; it was even more urgent than interposing the writ (deep inside, she knew Lucius had few chances on that, even if she was planning to write the best piece she could). She decided to dress a black knee-length skirt and a silk white shirt, choosing one of her best black heels to complete the look. Pearls adorned her ears and neck and she pulled her hair up in a structured ponytail. Using her wand, Narcissa disguised her swollen face from crying and applied minimal make up.
Breathing a few times before leaving, she tried to gather all the courage she had inside. Never in her life Narcissa Malfoy had to be so strong, but she was not planning to fail now, not when her family needed her the most.
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Narcissa arrived at the school when it was nearly 11:30 p.m. The old Filch was the one who opened the gates for her and informed that the Headmaster was away and that she'd have to look for Professor Minerva McGonagall if she had something urgent to solve. The blond woman politely thanked the information and took the way to the Transfiguration teacher's office; she had been there once, when Draco suffered the attack by the hypogriff. Narcissa knocked on the door, a little more fiercely than needed, and in seconds, McGonagall opened it.
"Mrs. Malfoy? What is the reason of this unexpected visit?"
"I am sorry to disturb you, Professor, but I need to talk to my son right now." Narcissa said it in her usual high class tone: her Malfoy pride and indifference weren't faded, even if deep inside the woman was devastated.
"I dare say that is not the common procedure of this school, Mrs. Malfoy. We instruct the parents to communicate the staff by floo or letters if any urgency occurs at home and a student need to receive a message. It's not recommended for the parents to drop by the school at this time of the night." McGonagall's tone was impatient, she always despised the petulant mannerisms of Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy, that couple acted like they were above any rule.
"I know it, and I would never come here so late if the matter wasn't urgent." The door of McGonagall's office opened again and the women saw a livid Severus.
"Narcissa, I didn't know you were coming here." After saying that, he saw the reprehension on his colleague glare. "I'm sorry, Minerva, forgive me for the intromission, but I think I can deal with Mrs. Malfoy from now on, after all, her son is a student of my house." Minerva didn't quite like Snape's attitude but nodded in agreement. She wasn't in the mood to deal with that woman, anyway.
"Come with me, Narcissa, please."
Mrs. Malfoy muttered an insincere "thank you" to McGonagall and left the room with Snape. When they were far away from the other professor's office, she finally felt safe to talk to her friend.
"I suppose you already know the reason I am here."
"Yes, Narcissa." Snape felt really pity for his friend, he knew Narcissa too well to know that, despite that cold façade, she was absolutely ruined. "And you're planning to tell Draco personally, right?"
"I don't want my son to know that his father is in jail by the newspaper, or worst, by the jokes of some other student."
"I'll bring him to my office, you will have more privacy there."
"Thank you, Sev." Her voice sounded more like a whisper since she couldn't avoid the tension and the sadness. Noticing the fragility of his old friend, Severus held her shoulders and made her look at him.
"Narcissa, I know it's probably being the hardest thing you had to endure on your life, but remember that you're not alone. I'll be here for you and Draco during Lucius' absence". Trying to cheer her up, even if just a little bit, he said: "Besides, if I did let any harm come to you two, your husband would probably kill me when he gets out of that prison."
She smiled weakly and took a seat on his office. "Severus, what about Bellatrix and Rodolphus? They were on this mission too, but when that awful Weasley told me about Lucius, he made no comments about them."
Severus clasped his hands, on a way Narcissa knew full well that meant discomfort. "Rodolphus is in Azkaban too and I suppose the Ministry reported the fact to his parents. As for Bellatrix, she escaped, Narcissa, unfortunately, if I can give you my sincere opinion."
"Oh, Sev, don't be like this! Bellatrix is a disturbed person, she doesn't know how to control her instincts anymore… you can't get upset by everything she says. But tell me: how did she manage to escape?"
"Apparently the Dark Lord himself went to the Ministry of Magic, due to some complications on the mission. When he escaped, he took only Bellatrix with him. You can imagine how insufferable your sister will get after that…"
"I have an idea." She sighed deeply. "Now, can you please get Draco for me, Sev?"
"Of course, Narcissa. I'll be right back with him."
Meanwhile, lying on his bed, Draco Malfoy couldn't be happier. It had been the last day of O.W.L exams, and the boy thought he did really well, what would certainly make his parents proud. If it wasn't for the incident with Potter and his stupid friends on that night (the group invaded Dolores Umbridge's office - apparently to use the fireplace – and Draco, as a member of the Inquisitorial Squad, had to fight the intruders off). But, after all, this was just Potter being Potter, and Draco decided that he wouldn't let the idiot ruin his day. Soon he would be home, enjoying his summer break in total peace, and this was all that mattered.
While Draco was at the dormitory, Blaise Zabini arrived at the Slytherin common room, a big grin spread on his face. "Guys, guess what! Malfoy's hot mother is here! After I finished my detention, when I was getting out of McGonagall's office, she was just arriving there! Apparently, Dumbledore is out of Hogwarts and she had to speak to McGonagall. She looked absolutely fantastic, her amazing legs on display!" Crabbe, Goyle and Nott looked stunned. Mrs. Malfoy was a fantasy of almost all of them and since Draco wasn't at the common room they could talk freely about the attributes of his mother. Zabini continued: "But what hot mother is doing here at this time of the night is still a mystery. If she let me, I could gladly take her to a tour at the castle, if you understand me" They boy winked and all the other guys started to laugh so hard that they didn't noticed the presence of Professor Snape at the room, staring at them with an infuriated expression.
"Stop making these sick comments about Mrs. Malfoy, or I'll be sure to arrange a disgusting detention for each one of you this night. It's utterly disrespectful to talk about a student's mother in such ways, oafs!"
In unison, the boys said: "Sorry, Professor." But Snape was already taking the steps down that led to the 5th year boys' dormitory. He knocked on the door.
"Draco?"
The blond boy opened the door completely intrigued by his strange visitor. "Yes, Professor?"
"Come with me, Draco. Your mother is here, at my office, she needs to talk to you." Draco's grey eyes widened in shock because he knew Narcissa would never come to Hogwarts at this late hour to discuss trivial matters: if his mother took her time to go personally there, the subject must be really awful. Immediately, horrendous thoughts started to run through his mind: his dad injured, his dead killed, his mother with a severe disease, the manor destroyed… He was startled by Professor Snape, who was also his godfather, patting his shoulder and gently saying: "Come, Draco, we don't want to make your mom wait further."
In his silk pajamas, Draco went with Snape, every pair of eyes staring at the pair when they walked pass the Common Room, what made the boy's tension increase a lot. Snape's office was also in the dungeons and, in a few minutes, the pair got there. The professor opened the door but stood outside while Draco entered the room. He found his mother sitting on a chair, her thin hands folded over her lap. By seeing her son, Narcissa got up in one motion and hurried towards him, giving the boy a strong hug, while running her long fingers through his silk white-blond hair.
"What is it, mum? What happened? Is it dad? Is it you?" The boy's tone was apprehensive and Narcissa felt he was about to cry. Grabbing one of his hands, she directed them both to a sofa.
"It is about dad, angel."
Draco gasped. "What happened to dad, mum?" Draco sounded like a five year old kid, scared to death that someone took his father from him. It pained Narcissa to know that her boy was so desperate, and so she enveloped him in her arms, caressing his back while he rested his head on her shoulder.
"Hush, Draco… Daddy is fine, he will be fine." She could feel the tears sliding down his face and wetting her shoulder, and she did her best not to cry in front of her son, managing to be the strength he needed to live through that nightmare. "This night, your dad was on a mission for the Dark Lord, it took place in the Ministry and apparently something went wrong and they caught daddy in action. Arthur Weasley dropped by at our house with this official information from the Ministry."
Draco startled and pulled off her arms, staring intensely into her blue eyes, willing to hear more, willing to know exactly what happened to his father. "Go on, mother! Don't hide anything from me this time, I am no child and I am sick to be treated like I was."
Taking a long breath and closing her eyes for some seconds, Narcissa went on. Draco didn't have the right to talk to her in such manner, even if he was angry and somber with this whole situation. "Your father is under arrest, Draco. That's all I really know, I don't know in which detailed circumstances it happened or when he'll be released. They found his Death Eater identity and, and…. It's complicated, Draco. It really is." After finishing, Narcissa got up from the sofa and rested her head in a nearby wall.
"Of course it is complicated, mother, that I already knew, but what are you going to do?"
"I qualified as your father temporary attorney and I'm going to plea for his release tonight, but don't nurture high hopes, because under this case particularities, it will be really hard to success in this writ. Tomorrow morning I'll hire him the best lawyer money can afford and I'll find a way to at least visit him in Azkaban, I need to know what they did to him, I need to check if he is injured..."
They spent long minutes in silence, until Narcissa broke the tension. "Draco, I have to go now, I still have to solve a billion problems. Will you be alright?"
"I'll be fine, mother. Do everything you can for daddy, please. I can't stand the idea of him living in that putrid prison."
"I will do my best, son. Now come, give your mother a hug." She said that with her blue eyes glinting and that was when Draco really realized how fragile his once beautiful and omnipotent mother was. Her eyes were foggy and her expression showed pure exhaustion. He hurried towards her and hugged her tightly.
"I'm so sorry mum, I didn't mean to hurt you even more. Will you be alright?"
"I have to be alright, Draco, both you and Lucius depend on me now… But I must confess, son, I have no idea of how I'll live without your father by my side; I get so lost without him." Draco could feel her body trembling and he knew she was crying. He didn't let go of his mother, only remaining quiet and resentful; it was when he decided to make whoever made this happen to his family pay, and Draco knew that, without a doubt, Harry Potter was at least a bit responsible for all his current suffer.
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The night had been long for Narcissa Malfoy. After talking to Draco, she returned home and wrote the habeas corpus in Lucius' benefit. After, she went to the Ministry of Magic, where she had met the judge who gave her husband the order of temporary prison. From the talking they had, she understood full well that he did not intend to put Lucius in freedom or even would consider the plea with benevolence. That's why she decided to hire the best criminal wizard lawyer she knew. The man was Albert Jones, who was in her class during College and was absolutely brilliant in everything he did.
Narcissa had sent him a letter asking for an appointment at 10 a.m. and, by that time – 8 o'clock – she was sat at the breakfast table, facing a huge amount of food, but incapable of eating any of it. She didn't sleep and didn't think about anything but Lucius during the night. She always feared that his involvement with Voldemort would end up on that, but she never expected to live to see her darling husband in prison What if he couldn't manage it? What if he got ill there? Lucius was a strong man, but he was really bad dealing with humiliation and this arrest would be his downfall, for sure. His name was already on the Daily Prophet and she knew that her husband, even if banished of all forms of communication, was aware of that. His incarceration and the public knowledge of his death eater activities would be the devastation of the Malfoy name. It was when she heard footsteps fastening approaching the room that she was taken from her reverie.
"Good morning, Cissy! Good to see this huge table, I'm starving!"
"Good morning? For whom, Bellatrix? My husband is in jail and you didn't even bother to come home to tell me that. Plus, I still don't know exactly what happened on that damned mission for him to be arrested."
"Slow down, Narcissa! I had other commitments last night, I knew someone would tell you he was caught, that poor excuse of a man that your husband is." – The brunette's voice was full of disdain.
"Look, Bellatrix, I've already heard too much rubbish from you during these months you're living here, so let me be clear now: I won't tolerate you talking like this about my husband in our own house. If you have no respect for him, at least have some for me, because I'm suffering and so is my son."
"Oh, little Cissy defending darling Lucius, how adorable!" Bellatrix sat and started eating. After some bites, she continued speaking. "Do you want to know what happened in the Ministry?" Not waiting for a reply, she started. "Well, Lucius decided not to use violence against the dumb teenagers and tried to convince Potter to give him the prophecy. Of course that idiot boy didn't hear to what your husband was saying. If only Lucius wasn't so stubborn and had let me torture those morons, we could have got the prophecy before the Order of Phoenix arrived."
"From what I know, Lucius was the responsible for the mission, and you shouldn't have pestered him. But how did the Order get there?"
"Apparently, one of the members discovered that Potter was caught in a trap and the rest of them came running in the boy's defense. Well, at least Sirius had his punishment… I finally ended that useless life."
Narcissa almost choked on the tea she was sipping. "I beg your pardon? Did you kill Sirius? What for, Bellatrix?"
"He always deserved it, Cissy. Did you forget the shame he put upon the Black family? He was a hopeless traitor, that's what he was. Besides, our Lord was very pleased that I killed him."
"I do not care what pleases or displeases your Lord." Narcissa rose from the chair, all the hate she felt for Voldemort making the blood boil in her veins. "And I do not wish to speak about this man in my house anymore! Look at the disgrace that fell upon my family, it's his entire fault."
Bellatrix also rose and closed the distance between her and Narcissa. "Don't you dare to insult the Dark Lord, little Cissy, or you might regret it." Narcissa laughed coldly, her face impassive. "Is this a threat, Bella? Because I'm not scared anymore; with Lucius in jail and Draco in danger, there's nothing I wouldn't do. Now, if you excuse me, I'm leaving. I have to hire a lawyer for my husband, and I think you should do something in Rodolphus' benefit too."
"I don't care if Rodolphus is in Azkaban, it was the Dark Lord's choice. He only wanted me with him, so, if he didn't bother with those useless men, it's not me who will."
Narcissa's mouth dropped open and she shook her head a few times, in disbelief. "I knew you were sick and hopeless, Bella, but not to that point. Rod is your husband, for Merlin's sake! Don't you have any compassion for him, at least?"
"No, Narcissa. Compassion is not an emotion I nurture. The only true feeling I have is loyalty, and this one I reserve only for my Lord." Bellatrix was about to leave the room when she decided to try and put some respect in her young sister's mind, that ungrateful woman. "If I were you, Cissy, I would not hire this lawyer. You know better than anyone that lawyers demand information about the clients, and you also know that Lucius' activities are not to be told to anyone… the Dark Lord would never approve such betrayal, especially not after Lucius' failure. You'll end up paying for your stubbornness; mark my words, Narcissa."
"I'll deal with the consequences of my own acts, Bellatrix. Now get out of my way, I don't want to be late for the appointment."
Narcissa got out of the room perplexed after the confrontation with Bellatrix. The woman knew now, for sure, that she would have to fight a lonely battle, but she was determinate to put all her forces in keeping her family steady and together.
Please let me know what you think about the story until now! Reviews - good or bad - are always welcome! Also, I'd like to thanks a lot my loyal readers and reviewers, you are awesome! :)
