Pokemon Challenge: FleurNarcissa, fortune, "This could be the making of you.", fallen
Character Appreciation: Fleur Delacour
Shannon's Showcase: I'm Not Your Toy, "Wonder woman don't you ever forget. You're divine, and he's about to regret."
Showtime, A Heart Full of Love (reprise): "The worst is over now."
Buttons: dalliance
Ami's Audio, Limetown: experiment
Word Count: 415
"You cannot allow him to keep treating you 'zis way."
Narcissa stiffens. She knows that Fleur is right, but it doesn't make it any easier to accept. For years, she has held on to a loveless marriage, always finding reasons to stay.
She never expected to find a reason to leave. She had expected her dalliance with the French witch to be little more than just a brief affair, something to make her feel alive again. It had been something of an experiment, a way to answer a question that's plagued for years: is she incapable of love, or has Lucius failed her there?
"I'm scared," Narcissa admits quietly, her voice trembling.
Fleur holds her close, kissing her gently. There is a passion in the kiss she has missed. Lucius never kisses her like that anymore; he hasn't since before Draco was born.
Leaving Lucius is such a risk. Without the Malfoy fortune to keep her afloat, how will she survive? The amazing thing, however, is that she doesn't care. The world is scary and unpredictable, but Fleur is by her side, lending Narcissa her strength.
"'Zis could be 'ze making of you," Fleur tells her as they break apart. Her hand rests on Narcissa's shoulder.
"I can do this."
…
Leaving isn't easy. He yells, she cries, and Draco looks on in mute horror with his wife's hand in his.
Narcissa tells herself it's for the best. She has always deserved more. Why should Lucius' gifts matter if he cannot provide her with the love she needs? Now, she has fallen in love with someone who cannot give her all the little luxuries she is used to, but who will kiss her every second and remind her that she is a goddess, that she is powerful, that she is worthy.
…
"'Ze worst is over now," Fleur tells her as they walk along the canal, bathed in silvery moonlight. "We can make 'zings better now."
Narcissa rests her head on Fleur's shoulder, her thin arm wrapping around the younger witch. It feels like it's been so long since anyone has treated her as more than just a silly toy.
But now she has Fleur, and they have a future together. Slowly but surely, her world is beginning to spin again. The days of darkness are gone, and she knows she has nothing but bright days ahead of her.
"I love you," she whispers, and there's no questions or doubts when Fleur says it back.