Chapter 35: Truth and Reconcilation

Narcissa held it together until Dagmar left her room. She'd had a feeling that was coming, since Dagmar's soul was showing signs of becoming stronger within her body. It didn't make it any easier to face when Narcissa couldn't do a thing to help her.

There was no answer at Hildegard's bedroom door. Narcissa poked her head in, but the room was indeed empty. She made herself comfortable on the bed. Just when she was about to nod off, the door opened. Hildegard gasped in minute surprise, but quickly recovered. Rather predictably, her eyes looked unable to produce anymore liquid beyond what they already had tonight.

"All right?" Narcissa asked her.

Hildegard shook her head with a sniffle. "What're you doing here?"

"I wanted to check on you. I take it Dagmar cut in pretty deep."

Without looking at Narcissa, Hildegard went around the bed to the dresser. She dug around for a nightshirt. She kept on even after finding one.

"Are you mad at me?" Narcissa asked.

"She's my daughter," Hildegard stiffly replied. "I don't like you treating her like she's yours."

"I can't help that she came to me." Narcissa stood. "It's not like I'm trying to take your place. She just needed someone to talk to."

"She was talking to me before she ran off to you."

"Hildegard."

Hildegard bowed her head. Maybe Narcissa had been wrong that Hildegard couldn't produce anymore tears. She certainly seemed in the mood for it, although tensed when Narcissa moved up beside her.

"I'm on your side in all this," Narcissa told her. "We're both on Dagmar's side. I'm not her mother. I know that and she knows that. You can't have honestly expected her to be happy when she realized what happened."

"No." Hildegard said it tersely and glanced at Narcissa. "What did she say to you about me?"

"Nothing, really." Narcissa shrugged. "She asked me how you could have done this to her, but she was at a loss for words when she tried to say what you weren't currently doing to fix it. She feels betrayed. You need to give her time to realize you didn't do it to her on purpose. At the same time, you need to be prepared that that might not matter to her. I'm sorry to tell you that, but I think it's something you already know."

Hildegard just sniffled, sighing when she exhaled. Narcissa took it as a good sign that Hildegard's irritability had subsided.

"I just want her back," Hildegard said quietly. "I want things to be like they used to be. I miss my little girl. I'm so tired of letting her down all the time. I used to be a good mum. We've been together for centuries. How can four bad years ruin all that?"

"She doesn't remember anything before this life, right?" Narcissa asked. "She doesn't have the context, and it's not like you can tell her what you intend to do once you find Bjorn. He might hear. I told her that she needed to trust you. She didn't get mad when I did, so she must to some degree understand that she has to."

"She doesn't have much of a choice."

"So let her say whatever she's going to say until you can get to that point." Narcissa risked putting a hand on Hildegard's back. "She doesn't understand. She can't understand for now. Dagmar has her own mind, I think. There's still a line between her and the Dark Lord. She was asking me things that she probably should've already known if she shared thoughts with the Dark Lord. She must realize that you're working for her, not him."

"I hope so." Hildegard paused. "I'm sorry. I don't mean to take it out on you. It's hard not to be selfish when she's all I have left. I can't imagine Bjorn will want anything to do with me after everything it might take to pin him down once we figure out where he is. Dagmar's right. He'll have his own family and friends. He won't care about his birth mum, especially with all the baggage I'm about to bring into his life."

Narcissa rubbed her back.

"I've had to think about it," Hildegard said. "If he grew up well, I mean. . .I should be happy for that. I thought he was with Magnus, and Magnus was a good father figure. But who raised my son, since he didn't? It's a scary thing to wonder. I can only hope he was okay."

"I get it."

Narcissa didn't hold it against Hildegard for having a tough time in such an emotional situation. She couldn't personally stand the thought of hurting Draco the same way Hildegard had done Dagmar, intentional or not. It would be so uncomfortable that Narcissa would want to slip right out of her skin. That was Hildegard's current lot. She still grieved Erik's death too. Even though Narcissa wasn't happy with her own situation, she had to admit that she didn't have the worst deal on this island. She hadn't been fooled into essentially handing over her first-born to the Dark Lord. She hadn't lost a second child by way of kidnap, uncertain if he was being adequately cared for or if he was even still alive. Draco didn't hate Narcissa. His suffering wasn't paraded in front of her like Dagmar's was in front of Hildegard. Narcissa's husband was still alive. She'd had a lover in the meantime.

Being so close to someone with such horrible problems made Narcissa feel silly about her own. Narcissa had sat with Hildegard a few times now as she needed a rock while grieving Erik. Meanwhile, Narcissa crossed paths at least three times a day with her own estranged husband. Maybe Lucius was doing it on purpose, but the distance and silence between them made Narcissa think frequently of him. She knew more now about his situation. She at least knew enough that she wanted to visit things with him anew.

It just didn't feel like her place to initiate that. Narcissa had definitely done more wrong by Lucius than the other way around. The wait to find out if Lucius cared to be with Narcissa anymore was becoming excruciating.

She was up in her room digesting after dinner the next evening when a knock came at her door. Narcissa's hope that it was Dagmar made for unprepared surprise when she blinked instead at Lucius.

He leaned against the frame, studying her. "Expecting someone else?"

"I thought Dagmar, maybe," Narcissa said. "Erm, need something?"

"Can we talk?"

Narcissa opened the door all the way and closed it behind Lucius. He stood with his arms folded near the end of the bed. He remained standing when Narcissa sat down, despite the invitation. She wasn't sure that that boded well for her.

Lucius exhaled through his nose as he regarded Narcissa. "How is Dagmar?"

Narcissa shrugged. "Disoriented, angry. She has no idea what's going on or why this is happening to her. She told Hildegard to go fuck herself, essentially."

"So about as well as could be expected, then."

"Yeah."

"Well, I'm glad that she isn't gone."

Eyes growing heavy at the thought, Narcissa nodded. She'd needed that ray of hope.

Lucius pressed his lips together briefly. "Can we talk about us?"

"I assumed that's what you were here for," Narcissa replied. "I hoped, too. I won't lie. It's been hard waiting to see where you'll land on everything."

"Maybe that answers my first question, whether or not you want to try and work on this."

"I do." Something still made Narcissa hesitate, though. "I'm just worried that Draco will think I think you hitting him was acceptable."

"I plan on apologizing to him when I can. It'll be sincere, but I can't guarantee he'll trust that." Lucius stepped up closer. "It was a one-off. I think all of us realize it was different from when he was punished as a child. Draco always knew what to expect then. We had a system. This was me lashing out. It'll never happen again. I know I'll be lucky if Draco gives me a chance to prove that."

"We can cross that bridge when we get there, if it's all right with you." Narcissa toyed with her fingers. "I understand more now where you're coming from. I'd like to think for the sake of our family that he will too, once he knows what you were trying to spare him from. Even if there wasn't a reason behind it, you're allowed to make mistakes. You're only human."

"Think it'll help if I bring Dagmar home to him?"

"So long as it's not in bad faith."

"What, like a bribe?" One of the lines around Lucius' mouth found its place as he lightly sneered. "There's no ulterior motive to get our son his fiancée back, Narcissa. He loves her. That isn't good enough?"

"It is," Narcissa said. "We're working on this, right? That means getting everything out on the table. You had to keep a lot from me. On top of that, I don't really know where you stand on all of it. We've always had certain perks in society. We used to hold sway because of our wealth and lineage. I don't know what kind of news you had access to in Azkaban, but that's all irrelevant now. The Malfoy name would be completely worthless, were it not for Draco. Our wealth might as well be gone. Draco still receives his entitlement disbursements and has access to everything, but outside of that it's all frozen. All we have—all we've had for almost a year now—is what's on our backs. We haven't even had each other. It doesn't really matter if the Dark Lord succeeds. We'd be fine either way. We know what life is like without him. It wasn't all bad, was it?"

Lucius toed the floor, his gaze stuck there too. "Compared to how it's been? No."

"Wasn't it just fine on its own in hindsight?"

"I guess, yeah."

"You guess?" Narcissa pressed. "We had a good life. We had a good marriage and a strong family. We didn't want for anything at all. Now we have nothing. You'd really trade it all for the Dark Lord? When he asks for your loyalty, are you really going to put him above your wife and son?"

"What do you want me to say?" Lucius asked. "They were once one in the same. I did all the quiet work after the Dark Lord disappeared because his ideas were in our best interest. We still had a rightful place at the top of the wizarding world's hierarchy. Everything I did was for you and Draco, so that we could all enjoy the fruits of it."

"Are they still one in the same?"

"I didn't lose you and Draco because of that. It's not like you gave me some sort of ultimatum and I chose the Dark Lord. We didn't want Draco involved in all this, so I honoured that. That's where everything unraveled." Lucius glanced down at Narcissa's arm. "You're playing a very dangerous game talking like this when you have his mark."

"Talking like what?" Narcissa was starting to feel annoyed. "I don't think it's unreasonable I find out how you're feeling now you've suffered some real consequences for your service. You've been so quiet."

"Might have something to do with finding out my wife was shagging one of my best mates while I was in prison."

The heat that broiled in Narcissa's stomach rose up into her cheeks. She stared at Lucius, swallowing in attempt to hold it all back. "I find it really hard to believe you came here looking to reconcile if you're going to throw that in my face. Just call me a slag and go."

"It's an objective fact. You can't hide from that. I can't and won't deny how much that hurt to find out. I knew we were in bad shape, but not that bad."

"I was moving on after what I saw as the end of our marriage. It's not like I jumped in bed with Wes right away, or like when I first did it was because we were in love. I missed having someone. I was lonely. It started with a shag and went from there."

Lucius set his jaw. "Who started it?"

"I did," Narcissa said. "I literally just asked him if he wanted to shag. He regretted it the next morning. I didn't."

"Did you sleep in the same bed?"

Narcissa shook her head. "I went back to mine."

"Did you ever?"

"Eventually. We did up until Wes broke it off at the beginning of the month."

Lucius' folded arms tightened, and he paced a little bit. Narcissa sighed through her nose.

"Would you sit down?" she asked. "You're making me antsy."

"How?"

Narcissa shrugged. "You look like you're going to bolt out of the room as soon as I say something you don't like, and I don't know how we're going to get anywhere like that. I want you on the same level as me."

Lucius dropped down beside her, but Narcissa wasn't sure what good it would do. If he was bitter about Wes, were they right back where they had started? Irreconcilable?

"Do you want to work on this?" Narcissa asked him. "You must have if you wanted to talk. Right?"

"I do, but. . ." Lucius ran his fingers back through his hair. A few pieces came loose from his ponytail. "It hurts."

"I'm sorry."

"Are you?" Lucius leaned forward over his knees, head heavy as he cupped his jaw. "You don't seem like you are."

"You asked for details. I assumed that meant you wanted them."

"It's not that. You don't act like you're too riddled with guilt, is all. Like how you say I've been quiet. The only time you really seemed to care that you hurt me was when you first told me."

"I have a lot more going on than our marriage being in shambles," Narcissa said. "The Dark Lord put me in charge of feeding this entire house. I've been beside myself with worry about Draco and what the Dark Lord is going to do with him in the end. I've watched the Dark Lord walk around in Dagmar's body for two months, all the while waiting to find out if she's dead or alive. Hildegard is falling apart. I'm supposed to get something out of Shacklebolt, but he's a broken record of 'okay's. Need I say more?"

"But do you really feel bad?" Lucius pressed. "From what you've told me, I'd get why you don't. You ended our marriage. I was gone. Wes was here. You were lonely, you said."

Narcissa toyed with her fingers again. She guessed if she and Lucius were going to have any chance of working things out, she had to be completely honest. There was no place here for sparing his feelings. "I feel bad in ways, and then in some ways I don't. The first time we shagged, Wes said that we shouldn't have out of respect for you. I told him it didn't matter. I'd ended our marriage. Bella had made remarks here and there about you not being in Azkaban forever, but I didn't really know how serious that was. She might have just been saying that. So I didn't think there would really be any consequences.

"It was impossible to think about the long-term while I was stuck here," Narcissa continued when Lucius didn't say anything. "There was no sense of time. No sense of a future. I was just being held here indefinitely while Bella and the Dark Lord ran off doing whatever they were doing. Wes and I got close because he felt bad to leave me here alone. He didn't have anything to go home to either. Theo and Daphne were off traveling.

"I didn't go to him to start because of feelings. We were friends, and I just wanted a shag. We didn't again for a while after that first one. The conversation came back around and he warned me that he had feelings. I went for it anyway because I was a little fuzzy about him, but I don't really know if those went anywhere on either side. I couldn't ever tell him that I loved him, and he couldn't tell me that either. We talked about giving things a proper try when we were out of here."

Narcissa paused again. Lucius' gaze was stuck to the floor, his lips pressed as he tried to absorb all that. She kept on, since he had nothing yet to contribute.

"I don't think I could ever have another relationship like ours," Narcissa said, which drew Lucius' gaze. "Married twenty-five years, together thirty. We have a kid, and we went through hell together trying to have a second before dealing with the heartbreak of accepting it wouldn't happen. Thing is, I wouldn't want another relationship like that. I never wanted to erase the good parts of our marriage or replace you. I was open to the idea of something else, is all."

Lucius studied Narcissa. She didn't have anything else to put out there at the moment. Narcissa was satisfied that she'd explained her position well enough. At least if it was too much for Lucius, Narcissa could rest well knowing she'd been honest.

"Does that mean you're closed to the idea of what we had?" Lucius asked.

"No," Narcissa replied, "although I don't think things will ever go back to the way they were. We can't just ignore the last year and a half. Draco might be an adult now, but he's still my priority."

"He's both our priority." Lucius sat up straighter. "He always has been. I did everything I could under the Dark Lord to avoid the hurt he's going through. You and I are both doing that right now. I've given you my word that I'll never strike him again and that I intend to apologize to him. So can we shelf him as a factor in this discussion?"

"I guess." Narcissa ran a fold of her shirt between her fingers. "I just want to be very clear that I expect to see follow-through."

"Of course," Lucius replied. "I want to talk about Wes."

Narcissa steadied herself with a quiet breath. "Okay."

"I kind of understand." Lucius said that carefully, studying Narcissa again as he did. "It would be very different if our marriage had been solid when I went to Azkaban. If you deemed it over, I don't know that I can really call it cheating. It doesn't sound to me like you two were even really serious when you tried to be."

"No, but that's maybe not what I was looking for," Narcissa reiterated. "I would've been fine to treat it more casually. I get exhausted at the very thought of marrying again if you and I were to ever divorce. When Wes and I made it a more regular thing, I had the thought that I would be completely fine to separate being friendly and having sex. I really like him, but. . .I don't know. Maybe those two things didn't click together. Given how easily he ended things, maybe that went both ways."

"So would you be able to say that it's over with him?"

"It's over." Narcissa chewed briefly on her lips. "It still hurts to say that. Really though, it ended after I came back from Bergen. I wasn't in a place to be anything for him. We weren't even shagging at that point, just sleeping in the same bed mostly. You're not mad at him for any of it, are you? He held off on your account until I talked him into it. He broke things off when he heard you were going to be here because he wanted me to give you an honest chance at reconciliation."

"I haven't sorted that out yet. I wanted to focus on you and me."

"How're you feeling about it right now?" Narcissa asked. "You're a lot calmer than I expected."

"I thought I'd hate the details, that they would just make everything worse," Lucius said. "I'm kind of relieved, actually. It's not exactly that, but I don't know what else to call it. It's just. . .okay."

"And I think I know enough now about what led to everything falling apart with us." Taking the chance toward it, Narcissa slid a little closer to Lucius on the bed. "I trust you to do all you can to make things right with Draco. If he's half as forgiving as you are, it should work out."

Lucius' gaze softened as he and Narcissa regarded each other. The wall he had placed around his emotions prior to Narcissa opening her bedroom door was slowly coming down. Narcissa expedited the process by moving close enough for their sides to press. She rested her head against his shoulder. His head was heavy on hers in turn. Narcissa figured it was probably safe enough to take his hand.

"I love you," she told him.

"I love you too."

Lucius was becoming heavy enough against Narcissa to nearly push her away. She put her hand on his shoulder as warning she was going to move. She only did enough to turn more toward him and bring him into a tight hug, her eyes brimming. Narcissa had never wanted to end her marriage. She just didn't see that she had a choice. To have finally reached some sort of middle ground came with vindication. When things started going wrong, Narcissa had thought that her marriage was strong enough to get over a bump like that. She'd taken it for granted. After all this, she never would again.

Although Narcissa doubted she looked any better when they pulled away from each other, she chuckled at Lucius' appearance. He was always so well put together anywhere other than in complete privacy. To see him in a more natural state of being was less about how he actually looked and more that he was allowing it. Lucius looked unsure about her amusement, although softened again when Narcissa cupped his jaw.

Her heart quickened when Lucius leaned in. She wet her lips before their foreheads touched, but it felt useless against how chapped they'd become with so much emotion. Lucius' were the same. They scratched against hers, but Narcissa didn't care. She melted anyway.

Narcissa's lower abdomen burned hot when Lucius dipped down to her neck, nibbling the sensitive skin there. "Lucius."

He let off. "What?"

His sudden uncertainty was mirrored in his gaze. Narcissa stood up and pulled him with her. Lucius regained his confidence when Narcissa led him by the hand around to the side of the bed.

She hesitated there. "We're okay enough to do this, right?"

"I think so," Lucius said. "We're on the same page, aren't we?"

Narcissa nodded. "I just want to be sure. I don't want to cock things up before we've really started fixing them."

"If you aren't ready, we don't have to. But don't look to me to say it shouldn't happen. I've missed you way too much to not want you."

With an exhale of amusement, Narcissa drew herself up closer again. She could feel that sentiment in the way Lucius' arms tightened around her middle. He nuzzled her shoulder, which hit Narcissa strangely in the throat. It was a silly thing, but she'd missed it horribly. When she kissed him again, Narcissa felt much more sure about what should happen here tonight.

She worked his shirt off. They had to break apart while it came up over his head, which made Narcissa pause as she ran her fingers over Lucius' chest. It remained sunken still in the wake of Azkaban.

Lucius returned to Narcissa's neck. As much as she wanted him, Narcissa hesitated. Something still hovered between them that kept her from falling in. Lucius seemed to understand that as he tapered off. He studied her anew.

"I feel like there's something you need to know, that I can't keep from you if we're going to be completely honest with each other." Narcissa lowered her voice. "The Dark Lord isn't going to survive this war. Hildegard intends to destroy his soul when we find Bjorn."

Lucius' eyebrows rose. "She told you that?"

"And showed me." Narcissa grew uncertain. "Why? You don't think she will?"

"I wondered if she would do something like that." Lucius exhaled with something that sounded like relief. "Thing is, if I suspect it, the Dark Lord must too. My best guess is that the Dark Lord will have a wand to her head about it. Probably Bella's, because she wouldn't hesitate to react."

"I don't think Hildegard cares what happens to her." Narcissa slipped her fingers into Lucius' hands anew. "You don't seem surprised."

"I didn't know if we should talk about it, is all," Lucius whispered. "He doesn't see it in your mind?"

Narcissa shook her head. "I think I'd know if he did. I've never been sympathetic, but he still gave me the Dark Mark. He trusted me to advocate for Dagmar when she wasn't awake yet, and to put the runes on her body. He lets me sit meetings. He confided in me things about when he was younger. He doesn't see past love."

"He hasn't had to. He's had leverage with the kids."

Narcissa's throat tightened to think about Draco again and how the pain he was currently experiencing had only been a matter of time. "You need to be with me on this if you want us to have any kind of life after the war. You need to help me, Hildegard, and Wes. I get that might be difficult when it comes to Wes, but Dumbledore had reached out to him. He couldn't do anything at the time because he was the only person I had to bring me food and keep me company. I don't know where you stand on the beliefs that drew you to the Dark Lord in the first place, but they're just going to land you in Azkaban for the rest of your life if you don't let them go. I'm having a hard time feeling like I should get too invested again in our marriage if we're only going to end up working against each other. There's no point if you're not going to be around for me to grow old with."

Lucius' eyes misted and his mouth tightened. "Okay."

"You're sure? You're not just saying that because I'm giving you the ultimatum?"

"I was doing this for you and Draco. It's always been for you. If I have to make a choice, there is no choice."

Narcissa studied him closely for any sign that he was only saying that. He knew the same things Narcissa did, though. He'd seen the same things, and worse. Maybe he hadn't come to this conclusion for the same reasons, but Lucius wasn't stupid. He'd been concerned when the Dark Mark showed up at the Quidditch World Cup, subsequently followed by the darkening of the one on his arm. Death Eater business remained segregated then from their marriage, but Lucius had reassured Narcissa that things would be all right either way they panned out.

Everything had changed since then. Their only child was involved in the worst way possible. He was thankfully on the other side of this, but that he was on a side at all was not what Narcissa had wanted for Draco.

Her want for Lucius swelled again in the wake of fresh understanding, and there was a new feeling to his mouth when it was against hers. It bordered on hunger, enough for Narcissa to pull on Lucius' bottom lip with her teeth. She grew impatient too in how their clothes came off. The room was cold against her breasts when she unhooked her bra, but it became bearable between Lucius' mouth on them and his body on top of hers. Narcissa moved as she needed to for her leggings and knickers to come off. Lucius doing the same for his trousers and pants turned them clumsy. They got in each other's way.

Lucius inhaled sharply when Narcissa ran her hand over him. "Ohh, be careful."

Narcissa chuckled breathlessly. When she sat up, she kissed his hip instead. "Come here, then."

She couldn't recall in recent time Lucius having a hard time holding off, but she supposed a year and a half without sex would do that. Narcissa invited him against her when she laid back down. She was content to keep on snogging and just enjoy his company while they reacquainted. Lucius' breathing became more steady, although his pupils remained dilated. His mouth and hands certainly hadn't lost their muscle memory for Narcissa's body. She already felt like she radiated heat before Lucius' head fell between her legs like a starving man.

Narcissa would've turned giggly if she had any extra breath to spare. Instead, she wormed her fingers into his hands where they gripped her thighs to keep her in place. Lucius wouldn't let off. Narcissa met his gaze when she looked down. The steeliness of it held her, especially when he slid a couple fingers inside of her. Narcissa couldn't decide if she needed to keep watching, propped up on her elbows, or if she should use a pillow to muffle herself. That was decided for her when a pounding came on the wall Narcissa shared with Bella and Rod.

Her ability to think got a little lost from there. The glowing heat in her lower abdomen flowered up in form of a flushed chest, and Narcissa felt it in her neck and face. All she was really aware of after quivering and pounding against Lucius' tongue was that she grinned like an idiot. He did too when he came back up the bed, his chin still a little wet when they kissed again.

Narcissa exhaled heavily. "You're certainly not out of practice."

"My tongue is. I nearly pulled it."

Narcissa snorted against his shoulder as she squeezed him. "So what about you, then?"

"I think it was about half a lifetime ago the last time I worried this much about finishing too fast." He nuzzled her shoulder.

"Oh well," Narcissa replied. "Other than meals, my schedule is pretty open tomorrow."

The two of them laughed together. Lucius lifted his head. "Mine too, unless the Dark Lord calls a meeting."

"Yeah, I guess there's always that."

That was about a million miles away from Narcissa's mind for now. She reached down between them to guide Lucius inside of her, grinning again at the look on his face.

A handful of minutes was still enough time to appreciate being together, and Narcissa experienced that sense of pride again of turning a man so quickly into a puddle. Lucius even drooled a little when he panted against her shoulder. He had to wipe his mouth on the back of his hand. Him rolling off Narcissa disappointed her, but Lucius didn't go far. Between the two of them, they managed to get themselves under the blanket.

Narcissa leeched off Lucius' body warmth. "Staying the night?"

"Mm."

They were content to warm each other up for a while before Narcissa needed to get ready for proper sleep. While she washed up in the bathroom, Lucius nipped out to fetch a few things from his room across the hall. He found Narcissa while she brushed her hair in front of the mirror. Narcissa went on longer than needed so that she could watch Lucius' fascination with her body. He started with his head on her shoulder and arms wrapped around her middle from behind. He ran his hands over her hips and thighs. Narcissa snorted when she realized that Lucius wasn't looking down to watch himself. He was peering down the top of her nightshirt.

"Subtle," she teased him.

"Wasn't going for that."

Narcissa didn't bother pulling her hair up as she'd planned. She turned around instead, her lower back pressed against the counter as she snogged Lucius again. It surprised her that they were able to fall back in together so quickly to the point Narcissa felt nostalgic for their earliest days as a couple—and yet, it didn't surprise her. Narcissa had been through her own journey in the last year, searching for a new place as her world changed. All she'd ever wanted since she and Lucius' marriage degraded was to understand and to feel like he was still on her side. She'd done her part in seeking that out. It hadn't left much for Lucius to explain on the other side of it, just confirm what Narcissa already knew.

She slept like a rock once she and Lucius could actually settle down enough for that. He groaned when her alarm went shortly before seven. Narcissa had to placate him with a snog before she could get him to let her go.

Narcissa was just turning on the stove to use as a warmer for sausages and bacon when footsteps trailed into the kitchen. She expected Alecto or Hildegard, but it was Bella. Narcissa looked away before Bella could see her roll her eyes in reaction to her gloating expression.

It was audible in Bella's tone too. "Good morning."

"Get it out of your system," Narcissa told her.

"Get what out?" Bella turned saccharine. "I can't be happy for my baby sister? Just remember a Silencing Charm next time, yeah?"

"Mhm." Narcissa glanced at her. "While you're here, start some yeast to rise. We'll only have enough bread for breakfast."

Bella sighed in annoyance to be put to work, but she had to know the cost of coming down early to bug her. "So that's it for you and Wes, then?"

"Guess so," Narcissa replied. "We'll have to figure out a way to get along. The Dark Lord was very clear that he wouldn't allow our personal affairs to interfere with his work."

"I think it'll be easier than you expect," Bella said. "Wes had to know what would happen, especially as you've become more aware of everything Lucius had to keep from you—and why. It ate him up, I think, when you two started bickering. I didn't know you were at the time, but looking back I can see it. The Dark Lord was very clear. Only me, Lucius, Rod, and the Ramstads knew everything. Nobody else could be trusted. Imagine what would've happened if Hugo and Everett knew the whole story, huh? Other than everything going sideways with Lucius, you were probably happier not knowing, weren't you?"

"Life was certainly easier."

"Oh well." Bella was in high enough spirits to give Narcissa a sideways squeeze about the shoulders. "Soon enough, things can go back that way. I actually miss Draco. He's a good kid. Always brought me crisps home from the market when I asked him to, and sweets even when I didn't."

"That's your measure of good?"

"He knew how to treat his old auntie, is all I'm saying. It felt like a holiday at his house."

A yearning budded in Narcissa's heart. "It did."

The kitchen fell quiet spare Bella's humming until Alecto and Hildegard made their way downstairs to help out. Narcissa tried to ignore her dread about how awkward breakfast could potentially be. She hoped that nobody else made a spectacle out of her and Lucius. Maybe out of respect for Wes, Lucius didn't dip into the kitchen to say good morning before taking up a spot in the dining room to wait for breakfast. Narcissa's stomach fluttered when she heard his laugh in response to something someone else said.

Wes never bothered to come downstairs for breakfast. Although the majority of the table ignored it, Narcissa grew nervous when she noticed the Dark Lord glance too often at the empty seat.

She and Lucius sat together. Even without Wes there, they remained respectful of the table. It was hard for Narcissa to keep her hands to herself even for so much as to touch Lucius while talking to him. He followed her into the kitchen when she took her plate to the sink.

"So what's the plan, then?" Narcissa quietly asked him since they had the kitchen to themselves. "Slip off upstairs?"

"It's me and Rod on cleanup," Lucius replied. "Find you after?"

"Mhm."

Narcissa glanced at the doorway leading into the dining room before leaning up to kiss Lucius. They managed to sneak in a quick one before someone approached. Narcissa moved away in time for the Dark Lord to come in. He didn't have his plate.

"A word?" he asked Narcissa.

She nodded and followed him to the library.

"Don't bother closing the door all the way," the Dark Lord told Narcissa when they got there. "We'll just wait for Bella."

Narcissa's expectation that this had something to do with Dagmar dried up. She lingered toward one of the shelves, folding her arms eventually for comfort. The door opened again with Bella's arrival. Narcissa's stomach dropped when Wes, looking like he'd just been woken up, followed her in. He glanced in her direction before fixing his gaze instead on the Dark Lord.

Bella closed the library door, and the Dark Lord gestured Narcissa over. "I need you two for a quick moment, is all."

The Dark Lord stepped up to Wes and placed a palm on his forehead. Narcissa blinked as a blue glow developed between their point of contact. It clung to the Dark Lord when he retracted his hand.

"Narcissa," he addressed her.

Confused, Narcissa took the Dark Lord's hand between both hers. The blue light traveled up her arms, leaving warmth in their wake before she felt it all settle somewhere around her heart.

Wes' brow was furrowed as well. "My Lord, I—why?"

"People get silly when their pride stings," the Dark Lord replied. "They do silly things."

Wes blinked at him, lips agape. "You think I was going to try and leave?"

"I'm certainly taking no chances. You may go."

Although not the smartest thing, Wes didn't bother to hide how offended he was by that. He scoffed and headed for the library exit. His feet were heavy as he headed upstairs.

"Did you need me for anything else, my Lord?" Narcissa asked.

The Dark Lord shook his head with a glance in her direction. "That was all."

Narcissa had intended to go upstairs anyway. She hesitated for a moment at the bottom before sighing and carrying on. Breakfast still went on in the dining room, so that meant Lucius would be a while yet. If Narcissa stopped in for a quick chat with Wes, she wondered if she'd be too upset to spend the time she intended with Lucius later.

She knocked at his door anyway. At the moment, it was more important to Narcissa that she straighten this out.

"Who is it?" Wes tersely answered.

"Me."

There was a long pause before the door finally opened. Wes' brow was low, and the ends of his mouth were trending the same way. "What?"

"Let me in for a minute," Narcissa said.

He rolled his eyes but obliged. Wes closed the door harder than he needed to. He crossed his arms.

"I didn't say anything for him to think that was necessary." Narcissa figured it was best to get right to the point. "I don't know why you're mad anyway. Were you actually planning on leaving?"

"No." Wes remained short. "I told you I wouldn't."

"Then what was that all about downstairs? You're lucky he let you walk away when you were so disrespectful."

"I guess it just wasn't how I wanted to find out that you and Lucius patched things up."

Narcissa blinked, growing immediately uncomfortable. She hadn't even thought of that as a reason why Wes would be pissed off. "I assumed that's why you weren't at breakfast."

"Nope. Just was having a good sleep."

Narcissa folded her arms. "Oh."

"So that's that, then?" Wes approached her. "You two sorted it all out?"

"I guess. Yeah," Narcissa corrected herself. There was no sense sugar-coating it. "I'm sorry."

"It is what it is. I had a feeling it would happen."

"That doesn't seem to have made it any easier for you."

"I don't think I want to talk to you about it."

Narcissa deserved that for being the one to hurt him. It didn't feel right or good, even if she was over the moon about Lucius. "We haven't had a chance to touch base about anything in a while, so can I just get you in the loop before I go?"

"About what?"

"All the other stuff." Narcissa lowered her voice and jumped her eyebrows indicatively. "It's not just us anymore. Hildegard has a plan, and Lucius thinks the same way we do. It's all just gone on too long. This war's broken enough families up. Stay with us on this, and we'll all get back to our kids. Well, maybe not Hildegard. I really have no idea how Dagmar's going to land on everything once this is all over, or if Hildegard's even going to survive."

Wes' brow smoothed out a little at that. "Why not?"

"Lucius made a point that any of the Dark Lord's faithful followers might have a problem with Hildegard destroying him."

"Yeah," Wes quietly replied. He pressed his lips. "How's Dagmar?"

"About as good as you'd expect." Narcissa sighed. "Confused, scared, angry."

"Poor girl."

"Yeah." Silence fell between the two of them. It wasn't as uncomfortable as Narcissa expected, but she doubted she should overstay her welcome. "Anyway, I just wanted to give you an update on everything."

"Right." Wes nodded, scratching his cheek. He hadn't shaved yet, so it sounded louder than usual. Unprompted, it reminded Narcissa of when his cheek would scratch like that against her inner thighs. "Thanks."

Narcissa reached for the door knob and forced a smile. "I'll keep in touch."