Helen McCrory was one of my favourite actresses. She was so inspiring and such a phenomenal talent. I was absolutely heartbroken to hear that she is no longer with us and my thoughts are with Damien, her children and anyone who was lucky enough to know her.
Narcissa Malfoy is a comfort character of mine, and so I decided to write this oneshot in memory of Helen. Before you read on, this isn't a Draco fic or a Draco x OC fic, I simply wrote it for the purpose of Narcissa; anything else is just to help the story along and so there may be a couple of plot holes.
Rest in peace Helen. Heaven has gained a beautiful human being x
Draco's half-blood girlfriend is invited to Malfoy Manor, and receives unexpected kindness from a certain Malfoy.
I stand outside the mansion, staring up at the colossal building. I've always wondered when this day would come, when I would find myself at Malfoy Manor, suitcase in hand, going over and over in my head what conversations I'm planning on starting with the owners.
The building is practically a castle, rectangular turrets on either side of the main part, the walls made of a dark stone. Light is brightening up a majority of the windows, casting strange shadows onto the floor in front of me.
I drag my suitcase across the cobbles, taking a deep breath with every step I take. My hands are shaking. I'm terrified. This highly respected family is letting me into their home, unbeknownst to the fact that I am indeed not a pureblood.
My nerves are calmed a little when I see Draco waiting for me at the door, arms crossed over his chest, a smile brightening his face. He doesn't smile much, but when he does, it fills me with tranquillity.
I'm in front of him in no time, his head bending down to look at me. He presses a kiss to my lips, snakes an arm around my waist, offers to take my suitcase. A true gentleman.
"Mother is so excited to meet you," he mutters into my hair, another kiss landing on my temple. "Remember what I said though."
How could I forget?
I can't yet reveal to his parents of my blood status, let alone my Hogwarts house. Draco thinks that once they warm to me, they'll accept me for whatever I am. It hurts me a little that he feels he has to hide me from his family, but the fact that he's even with me at all proves his love. Still, introducing a Gryffindor half-blood girl to your Slytherin pureblood family is a dangerous move.
However, I know I must do as Draco says, earn their trust, their love, before revealing myself to them. It'll be extremely difficult, but I'm must try my best, for the sake of our relationship.
We enter into the hallway, a vast, vast space, two huge staircases curving up to the first floor. A chandelier hangs from the middle of the ceiling, the source of light in the particular area in which we are stood, each diamond decorating it creating strange shapes on the walls. Even though the place seems dark, eerie even, there is an element of homeliness to it all.
Draco calls up to his mother, his voice echoing through the room. In seconds, she appears on the landing, gliding down the staircase ever so gracefully, the hem of her dress brushing along each step.
Narcissa Malfoy is indeed where Draco gets his good looks. She is very beautiful, sharing Draco's white blonde hair, adding her own touch by having half of it an off black colour. Her brown eyes are ever so welcoming, her arms open out to me even before she reaches to where Draco and I are stood. A wave of comfort comes over me as she pulls me close, for some reason feeling safe in her arms.
It occurs to me while I'm held in her embrace that there is no sign of Draco's father anywhere. I refrain from asking where he is, expecting he will arrive to meet me at some point.
When we break apart, a hand reaches to my face, briefly caressing my cheek.
"You're so pretty, my darling," she says with a smile.
"Thank you," I reply nervously, attempting to mirror her face.
I am taken aback by such a nice comment. I don't receive them often, and a woman who I've known for less than a minute has just graced me with the kindest of words. She flashes me another smile, before she turns to stand beside me, looping her arm with mine.
"Draco will take your suitcase up to where you'll be sleeping," she says to me, recieving an eye roll from Draco, "And I'll show you around."
Amused by Draco's disappointed reaction, I nod to her, watching as Draco trails up the stairs, my case thudding up each step. It seems Narcissa wants to get to know me away from the company of her son.
She leads me through an archway, into a long corridor, with deep green walls and a black carpet along the floor. Many, many paintings hang on both sides, each portrait staring me down with beady eyes.
"They're all Lucius' ancestors. Previous owners of Malfoy Manor," Narcissa explains, catching me looking at them all. That is understandable; they all bear the Malfoy likeness.
"Lucius is away at this moment in time. You'll meet him soon enough," Narcissa says, breaking me from the thoughts.
"Ok," I reply. I feel like I'm being rude. Hopefully it's obvious that my blunt answers are nerves rather than stubbornness. Taking a subtle breath of air, I try to carry on the conversation.
"Where are the photos of your family?"
I watch Narcissa's perfect smile falter slightly, her gaze drop to the floor. In seconds, she picks herself back up, as if the light didn't just fade from her eyes.
"We don't keep them along here. I have them somewhere else."
"Can I see?"
"Of course!"
We reach the end of the corridor and take a left, and another. Entering another room, I gather that it is the living area, a roaring fire at one end, velvet sofas facing each other in the middle. There is a bookcase leaning against the far wall, and Narcissa heads straight to it, picking out what appears to be a leather bound book. She holds onto it delicately, taking a seat on one of the sofas, beckoning me to do so beside her.
As soon as she opens the book, she relaxes, almost like she is in her element. I scan over the first pages of photos, my finger lingering over a photo of two young girls, one of which is holding a baby. All three are in high spirits, giggling, smiling at the camera.
"My sisters Andromeda and Bellatrix. And that's me." Narcissa points to the baby.
It's strange, they all bare vaguely similar facial features, but their hair is completely different. One older sister has jet black hair, curls dropping around her shoulders, while the other's is straight and a light brown. And then there's Narcissa with her icey blonde hair, half of which she still has now.
Narcissa moves on, flicking through the book at a quicker speed. I catch a glimpse of her mother, her father, pictures of the five of them together. As the book goes on, Narcissa gets older in the images, the sisters begin to disappear and Lucius arrives. Their Hogwarts days, their wedding. And then a tiny baby appears in Narcissa's arms. Draco.
His baby photos make me laugh, Narcissa laughing along with me. He seemed to be very disobedient at that age, most images involving Draco not doing as he's told, not looking at the camera, not smiling. Narcissa jokes that it isn't so different to now, causing us both to giggle hysterically. Suddenly, I feel much more at ease with this woman, her presence feeling like that of an old friend rather than a stranger.
While we are in hysterics, Draco decides to walk in, wondering what all the commotion is about. He showcases his famous eye roll when he sees what we're looking at, perching on the armrest beside me.
"Are you trying to embarrass me?" he says, his glare moving between Narcissa and the album, an air of amusement on his face.
"I'm your mother. It's what I do," Narcissa fires back with a smile. We sit in silence for a second, before she carries on speaking, "Why don't you get settled in your room? Draco will take you there. I'm sure Lucius will be back soon."
I nod, Draco taking my hand, helping me up. We leave the living room, back through the same corridor, into the hallway, up one of the staircases. The first door we come across is the one in which we enter, a rather luxurious bedroom for a guest. I'm so mesmerised in the expensive ornaments and silk sheets that it takes me a while or two to notice the item of clothing on the bed. Dropping Draco's hand I move closer, intrigued by the attire. When I am able to see it clearly, my mouth opens in awe.
It is a dress, a gorgeous one at that. Billowing black skirts, intricate lace on the sleeves, a bodice encrusted in jewels. I run my hand across the soft fabric, turning to Draco, eyes wide.
"Mother insisted you have one of her dresses," he shrugs, "She said you can keep it."
"It's beautiful," I gasp.
I pick it up, ever so carefully, deciding I am going to wear it for my first meal with the Malfoys. Slipping out what I'm wearing, I step into the new outfit, pulling it up over my shoulders. It fits well, very well in fact, tight in all the right places, loose in others.
There is a knock at the door; Draco goes to answer it. Narcissa stands in the doorway, hand on the wall.
"Draco, your father is home. Go and greet him."
Draco obeys, leaving myself and Narcissa alone. Her face lights up when she sees what I am wearing.
"Do you like it?" she asks brightly.
"It's gorgeous, thank you."
"You're welcome."
She makes her way into the room, over to the dressing table on the far left. Pulling out the chair, she pats the cushion, motioning for me to come over."
"Sit. Let me do your hair."
I do as she says, sitting down in front of her. She picks up a hairbrush from the table, beginning to let it run through my hair. Each stroke is gentle, she takes care in doing it, not wanting to hurt me. Pausing for a second, she looks into the mirror, hands on both my shoulders.
"I've always wanted a daughter, you know," she says simply.
I could tell that as soon as I walked into her home. She's so lovely to me, so kind, it's as if she hasn't been able to talk with someone the way she is with me in a long time. I smile back at her, as she leans close in a sort of embrace, holding me tight.
"Now I feel like I have one."
She begins to talk about her sisters again as she starts pinning up my hair, how she used to have such days with them, dressing up and making each other look pretty. I feel terrible. Narcissa is opening up to me, telling me everything about her life, and I am sat here hiding my true self. I thought she would have asked me by now, my blood type, my house. But she hasn't. Maybe that means she doesn't care.
My nerves build up, until I cannot face it anymore. I blurt out the truth.
"I'm not a pureblood. I'm a half-blood. And I'm a Gryffindor, like the rest of my family."
Narcissa barely reacts. She takes a pin from her mouth, positioning it in my newly formed bun.
"You say that like you think it would bother me," she replies.
"Doesn't it?"
"Of course not. I couldn't care less. As long as you make my boy happy."
A wave of relief washes of me. She accepts me for who I am. It feels good to not have such a secret on my shoulders. Narcissa finishes with my hair, moving aside so I can stand.
"Now, it's time to dine," she says with a smile.
I follow her down the stairs, this time down a corridor on the right hand side. We travel all the way to the end, through a set of large double doors.
The dining area is excessively large, a long narrow table down the middle, a table that could fit more than thirty. A man stands talking to Draco. I gather that this must be Lucius, Draco's father.
He wears a permanent smug look on his face, making me feel a sense of discomfort as he marches towards me, quick and swift. His embrace is less welcoming than Narcissa's. He grips onto me, like a snake squeezing his prey. Pretty fitting, really.
Once I've been introduced, we all sit, Lucius at the head of the table, Draco and I on one side, Narcissa opposite us. We've barely tucked into our meal when Lucius begins to ask me questions.
"What house are you in, dear?"
I hesitate, glancing at the other two people in the room. Draco would want me to say Slytherin, just to please his father. But I hate lying.
"Gryffindor," I reply quietly.
I watch brow furrow, his lip curl. He isn't impressed.
"Blood type?"
He is so blunt, so rude. He speaks as if these questions define whether I am a good enough candidate for his son. They shouldn't be like that. I try to speak, but nothing comes out, scared that he may jinx me when he finds out the answer. So, Narcissa speaks for me
"One parent is pure-blood and the other Muggle born, am I correct?" she says, looking at me for agreement.
"Yes, my mum was Muggle born," I answer, giving her a grateful smile.
Lucius says nothing. He glares at me, then at Draco, then at his wife. Just hours ago, I felt so welcome in this house. Now I'm not so sure.
The rest of dinner is very awkward, no one speaking. Draco and I excuse ourselves, retiring to his room for the evening. He seems frustrated with me at first; I blew my cover, I wasn't supposed to tell them about me. But I simply tell him that I wasn't going to be able to lie to them forever, and plus, his mother wasn't affected by the reveal whatsoever. Draco gets over his mood rather quickly for once, and we sit and chat until the late hours.
Once I feel fatigue overcoming me, I say my goodnight to Draco and begin to take the brief walk back to my room. I'm beginning to get better at navigating my way around, the corridors becoming a little more familiar than they were before.
As I walk past one room, I notice a light on through the gap under the door, hearing raised voices from inside. I gather this is Lucius and Narcissa's room.
I know I shouldn't listen, but I just can't help myself. Edging closer, I tune in to what appears to be an argument.
"She's a Gryffindor AND a half-blood. Do you know what that'll do to our reputation?"
My stomach drops. I knew Lucius didn't like me, didn't see me fit. Narcissa's comeback arrives next, sounding infuriated, an emotion I didn't know such a kind woman could have.
"Are you really that insensitive? Our son is very much in love and with a beautifully kind hearted girl too."
She's trying her best to defend me. That gives me a little more hope.
"You know what, forget it."
Lucius seems to have given up. I hear footsteps pacing, not intitially realising they're heading straight for me. I jolt away just in time, seconds before Lucius slams open the door, revealing his sour, sour face. My mind panics, trying to come up with an excuse as to why I'm down this particular corridor.
"I'm just going off to bed. Goodnight," is the best I have.
"Right." Blunt from Lucius, as per usual.
"Goodnight, darling," Narcissa calls, attempting to smile at me. The smile doesn't reach her eyes.
My final walk to my room is much less enjoyable. I hate the idea of staying in a house where I'm not wanted, even if it is only one person who doesn't want me.
My bed looks like heaven when I get into my room; I practically run to it, getting under the covers, into the warmth. I don't know why I'm getting so cozy; it probably won't be my room for much longer.
A knock at the door breaks my thoughts. I call for the person, Narcissa walking into the room. She looks unhappy as she heads towards me, sitting down on my bed.
"I gather you listened to my disagreement with Lucius."
I nod. Narcissa looks terribly guilty, even though I know she's done absolutely nothing wrong.
"I'm sorry you had to listen to that," she carries on, "I'll bring him round eventually."
She leans close to me, pulling me into a hug. It is so comforting to me that she already feels protective of me, such a motherly instinct.
Then I begin to realise. I have another mother figure in my life. An unexpected one, but perfect all the same.