Thank you for reading one of my first fanfics! I sadly do not own Lucius as a character (although it would be nice to own him ;)), nor do I make any money off of these.
I made a Pinterest page with photos to go along with each chapter. I do my best to utilize some photoshop :) I'm VersaillesPixie on Pinterest as well.
Enjoy and please review!
Aria De La Cour's life was starting at last. She was on her way to England to begin her new career as an ambassador at the British Ministry of Magic representing the American Ministry of Magic, more specifically the Western region of the United States. Her dream job; she still couldn't quite believe it. Aria had just recently graduated a few months prior from her school of Witchcraft and Wizardry from the small but beautiful Californian school called Solemmari. Aptly named after the sun and sea, her school had sat atop one of the sprawling mountains of Malibu, California. Every day the sun shone down upon the witches and wizards of the school and the sea air flowed through their robes and hair. Her school years had been so peaceful and easy, and even easier for her, as she was the top student of her year, if not the whole school. She always knew she had wanted to travel abroad to continue her immersion into the wizarding culture. When she saw that there was a new program for recent graduates, to live abroad for a year a work and research at the Ministry for Magic in Britain, she knew that was what her next step would be. Of course she knew of the famous Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry. It made her school look like the size of a grain of rice in comparison. She also knew the turmoil of the Wizarding War and the fight against Lord Voldemort which had taken place 6 years earlier. She knew parts of the British wizarding world were still on the mend from those events. The British ministry had created career programs such as the one she was about to be in, in the hope that they would help strengthen the bonds between witch and wizard kind from not only in England but around the globe.
A few days before Aria had left for England, an owl had arrived at her small apartment in Los Angeles. The owl dropped off a survey sent from the Ministry of Magic in England and sat perched on the window. This survey was a questionnaire all about her interests and hobbies, as well as what her hopes were for her time to be spent abroad working at the Ministry. Aria questioned why they might need all of this information, when she saw at the bottom of the message that the reason was that each new employee would be getting a mentor. The note at the bottom of the survey stated: We request that each new employee fill out these surveys immediately and send back as soon as possible so that we may pair you with a mentor which most suits your interests and your goals. Think of these mentors as guides, to help fuel your learning and work as well as integrate you into our British wizarding culture. By pairing you with a mentor who shares similar interests as yourself, we hope to allow you to have someone you can always rely on during your work here. Aria smiled. That seemed lovely. It would be nice to have an automatic "friend" of sorts.
She was a friendly and social young woman, but she did have the occasional shyness and social anxiety that one often gets in new situations where one doesn't know anyone else. She filled out the survey as best as she could. She didn't have an enormous list of varied interests. Her interests all sort of suited one another. She loved history. She loved classical music, architecture and gardens, fashion, art. She supposed she was somewhat of a culture aficionado. She was definitely an old soul at heart. She always had thought she lived in the wrong time-period. Her interests in these categories tended to focus in the 1700s. She adored the times of the kings and queens of Versailles, France, in the courts of King Louis XIV and Marie Antoinette. She adored the equally rich culture of the similar Georgian period of England as well. Her other interests she supposed seemed quite typical of a native California girl. She loved the beach and the bright sun and sea air. She loved taking long walks whether it was on the beach, hiking in the Hollywood Hills or strolling through a pretty garden. It was bittersweet to mention these interests as she knew the second she stepped onto British soil, constant sunshine would be a rare commodity. She didn't mind though. Her main interests of culture and history still outweighed all of the rest. She smiled as she rolled up her survey. She looked towards her window and noticed that the owl was still there. Probably waiting for a reward which she felt bad she had neglected when it arrived. She tied it to the owls leg and gave the bird double the treats, to which it seemed to happily accept and it flew off back to deliver her answered survey.
She looked around her now empty apartment. She had packed all of her clothing, although she knew she sorely lacked for warm clothing. She would have to get some new items when she arrived. She had sold all of her furniture and was not going to renew her lease on renting out the place. She realized the program abroad would only be a year, but she hoped deep down that she would be able to get hired on past the year and maybe even become a resident of England, if she landed a permanent job after the year was up. If not, she wasn't too worried. There was always plenty of apartments to be had in California if she had to move back. On the day of her departure, Aria looked one last time in the mirror. Her long blond hair fell in beachy waves, practically down to her waist. She wore little makeup but her green eyes, shined brightly with excitement and her full pink lips turned up at the corners in a slight smile to herself. Aria was always a very humble person, part of her slight shyness that she had, but she was always reminded by others or by the stares she often got that she was a natural beauty. With her exceptionally beautiful looks and her bright intuitive mind, she often found it hard to make friends, whether it be jealously from other girls, or whether it was men being intimidated by her beauty and knowledge. Yes, she was blessed with great genes, but that didn't make it any less difficult for her to realize that these genetic gifts would often make people turn away from her. That is why she was so excited to take this job in England. She sincerely hoped that the people there were different from the often-superficial witches and wizards from where she was from. Aria was excited to take an airplane for her travels. She could apparate, but with 2 large suitcases full of clothes and her buzzing nerves, she knew it probably wouldn't be the safest to attempt that or floo powder.
The 10-hour flight would have been fine, but she ended up seated next to a man about her age, who was relentlessly hitting on her the entire flight. Some women would probably find him attractive, she thought. He had a buzzed military style haircut and he was wearing a tank top that showed off his gigantic biceps and chest. She liked muscles but not this big and veiny. His skin was so fakely tanned that he looked almost orange. Even when she put her headphones over her head and an eye mask on, she could feel his eyes burning through to her. When mealtime came around, he tried desperately making small chat with her, trying to gain her interest. By the end, Aria practically raced off the plane, as she could hear him call after her, "Can I get your number?!" She pretended not to hear.
After she collected her luggage, she called a taxi and climbed into the muggle vehicle. "92 Birdcage Walk, please," she told the driver politely. Aria was so excited to finally see her London flat she had rented for the year. The flat was a located in a beautiful white building right across from St. James Park. The area was quite nice and although it was a little expensive, Aria was used to high costs of living, being from California. As long as she was comfortable, she didn't mind paying nicely, plus her job would be well paying, another reason why she had gone after the opportunity, and her new flat was conveniently located near the Ministry. As the taxi drove her from the airport to her flat, Aria gazed out the window. She couldn't wait to explore this city as well as the magical world which lay just beyond it all. The driver pulled up to her flat and helped her with her bags, to which she thanked him cheerfully. The driver smiled back and couldn't help but flush red, as her beautiful smile of thanks dazzled him.
She carried her bags up the two flights of stairs, with a little help from magic with a minor hovering charm. She made sure to be discrete always, when using magic around muggles, but there was no one else in the stairway. She opened the door to her apartment, #16, and breathed a sigh of relief. It was beautiful. Fully furnished, with furniture and accents of soft greys and crisp whites. It was simple but beautiful, with crown molding on the ceiling and beautiful grey wooded floors. It was very peaceful, she thought. After she unpacked, she stored her suitcases in the hallway closet shut the door and stumbled into the big bed waiting for her in the other room. Muggle travel sure was exhausting. Perhaps she should have risked the floo powder, was her last thought. She slept all throughout the rest of the day and the night.
Aria woke the next morning incredibly excited. Today was her first day of work at the Ministry. As she had thought when she was initially packing, she was desperately going to need to buy some warmer clothes, but luckily it was the end of August and still a decent temperature in London, although it was bound to rain sporadically. She put on a chic olive-green mid-length dress with short sleeves and a tie around the waist to accent her figure nicely. She wore some thin chained gold necklaces adorned with suns and stars and some matching earrings. She put on some mascara and a blushed lip tint but that was it. She didn't want to over-do anything today. She wanted to make a good first impression. She was going to use floo powder to get to the Ministry. She had chosen a flat with a small fireplace for that exact reason. She grabbed her purse and grabbed a handful of floo powder, stepping gingerly into the fireplace. "The Ministry Of Magic," she said clearly.
After a feeling of being sent through a wind tunnel, Aria appeared confidently at the Ministry in one of their many floo fireplaces. She walked out into the hustle and bustle of witches and wizards coming in to work. Her face broke out into a big smile. She was buzzing with excitement. The epicness of it all was a sight to behold. As she made her way to the center of the ground floor she looked up at some of the many statues of famous witches and wizards. There was Harry Potter of course, he was famous worldwide, as well as his friends Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley. She got a thrill just thinking that she could possibly have a chance of seeing them, she knew that they worked here as well. She also recognized a statue of the world-famous wizard Albus Dumbledore. The thing was, was that now Aria didn't exactly know where to go next. She looked around to see if she saw anyone else looking as lost as she was. She couldn't immediately spot anyone else in the crowd she could go up to and ask. She started biting her lip in nervousness. What was she to do now?! Suddenly a kind sounding voice behind her said
"Excuse me, but do you need help at all?" Aria turned around to see a pretty woman standing in front of her with wavy light brown hair and kind eyes that were about the same color as her hair. She was speechless as she instantly recognized the witch. It was Hermione Granger. Two seconds ago, she was hoping to meet her and sure enough she was standing right there next to her. It was an incredible turn of fates.
"Oh my god…you're Hermione Granger," Aria breathlessly said but then realized how stupid she must have just sounded. "I mean….ah…I am so sorry that must have sounded incredibly American of me," she flushed. Hermione laughed it off shaking her head that it was no bother. "I'm Aria De La Cour, I am here on the Ambassador career program, I am one of the few witches and wizards they chose from the United States. I am afraid I am a bit lost and don't know where to go next!"
"Oh welcome!" Hermione said pleasantly and reached out her hand to shake Aria's. "We are so incredibly excited here. We really want to try and bridge our relationships with our magical counterparts around the world. We are so excited for this new program! Here let me take you to where you need to go!"
"Thank you so much!" said Aria as she followed Hermione over to the elevator banks. They stepped into an empty elevator.
"Level 5," said Hermione, and the elevator was off to their destination. "It's so exciting," continued Hermione, "They are creating a whole new department on this level just for the ambassadors coming in." Aria smiled. This program seemed to be very important to the Ministry and she was so grateful to be a part of it all.
"Again, sorry about earlier. I just wasn't expecting to meet someone so amazing right as I got here. You are quite famous in America, you know," Aria said smiling at Hermione.
"Really? I am very flattered!" Hermione responded back. "It was a scary time, and I feel like any good witch or wizard did what I did under the same circumstances." Aria smiled at Hermione's humbleness. "So Aria, where are you from? United States I've gathered, but where exactly? What school did you attend?"
"I went to Solemmari, over in Malibu, California."
"Explains your perfect beachy waves and sun kissed skin," smirked Hermione.
Aria laughed gently. She supposed she did embody the California spirit quite literally. The elevator opened and let them off on Level 5. Hermione led Aria down a marble hallway with golden walls with stained glass images of the world and its continents and oceans. It was such a beautiful and friendly environment. "Wow," Aria breathed out a breath of wonder.
"Right in here," said Hermione pointing to a large room which largely resembled a classroom at Oxford. There were wooden desks on either side and a wizard stood in the middle between the two sides. There was already a decent amount of people in there, but Aria was definitely not late. That was a relief.
"Well thank you so incredibly much Hermione for showing me the way. I would have been lost forever without you," said Aria turning to Hermione.
"Oh no problem. I was on my way here myself. I am one of the mentors!"
"Oh really!? That would be so cool if you became my mentor."
"Fingers crossed! Hopefully our interests match up in the surveys that we took. I am so excited for this myself, although I know a few of the other witches and wizards here had to be pressured into doing this program…especially some of them with a darker past. It is a part of their recommended rehabilitation program into the moral wizarding society."
Aria sincerely hoped she didn't end up with any of the previously darker wizards or witches. She was nervous enough.
"Well fingers crossed I get paired with you Hermione!" she smiled as she made her way over to where the other new ambassadors were standing.
She began mingling with a few and then grabbed a seat. The wizard in the middle of the room finally spoke after a bit, when it seemed as if everyone had made their way into the classroom. It was quite the mix of people.
"Good morning everyone, and welcome!" said the wizard. "I am Arthur Tedon, and I will be helping each new employee match up with their mentor. We have carefully gone over everyone's answers to their survey and we believe we have chosen very appropriate matches. We are excited to see you all get to know one another and help one another expand and grow their knowledge and interests. When I call out a mentor's name, please stand so that your mentee will be able come over to you. Then you are free to go off and get to know each other better."
With that he began calling off names pairing off wizards and witches. With a slight sinking heart, Aria heard Hermione's name being called, but she was not matched up with her. Aria frowned slightly but she saw that the witch Hermione was assigned to was beaming. She was a nice-looking girl who Aria had only briefly just met who said she had come from New York. Aria was happy for her. Just because Hermione didn't become her mentor didn't mean Aria couldn't get together and be friends with the two witches.
Arthur called out the next name. "Lucius Malfoy." Aria stared in wonder as the most gorgeous sight of a man stood up gracefully. It was as if she was watching him in slow-motion. How had she not noticed him the second she stepped into the room? He was a tall and fit looking man wearing the most exquisite black suede robes with a deep green shirt underneath. In his hand he held an impressive walking stick with the head of a silver snake. His long platinum hair fell shining past his shoulders and his eyes were a spectacular grey, and were noticeable even from across the room. He held an air about him of haughtiness but also of great knowledge, power and perhaps even danger. He was magnificent. Aria didn't know why but her heart started racing. Perhaps she had missed the sight of him because she was so caught up in talking with Hermione. Either way, her attentions were fully consumed by him now. She had never gotten a feeling such as this at the first sight of someone.
"Malfoy you are paired with… Aria De La Cour."
Aria's heart raced faster than ever, and her breath caught in her throat. She stood up slowly, still not breathing. She noticed Lucius Malfoy stare at her from across the room. She couldn't read any type of expression on his face, but she saw his eyes flicker for the briefest of a second up and down her slender form and back to her face. His grey eyes seemed to be mildly curious she thought. She made her way over to him, still barely breathing. They didn't break each other's gaze the entire time. It felt like they were the only two in the room. What was happening? Aria could feel her cheeks flushing. She finally made it up to him and looked up into his grey eyes with her equally as bright green ones.
"Hello, Mr. Malfoy. Nice to meet you." She held out her hand to shake his. The beautiful man looked down at her hand, took it in his for a second and let go.
"Miss De La Cour," his honeyed voice drawled out. It was the most delicious thing she had ever heard. She started briefly to panic. She had come here to learn. To get invaluable experience. Not get flustered and all a flutter over some good-looking wizard. What was she doing? She forced herself to snap out of her trance. She smiled up at him pleasantly. Her flush starting to fade a bit.
"Shall we head somewhere quieter where we can go over your survey and talk about the program?" Mr. Malfoy suggested. Being around this many people seemed to be annoying him, she noted.
"Oh absolutely," she agreed. Mr. Malfoy nodded his head towards the door.
"Follow me," he said and off he went. Aria followed quickly behind.
Lucius's Point of View
Lucius sat off in the corner of the room. He detested that he was here. He had not even wanted to be involved with this silly program, but much to his chagrin, he was basically forced to participate. Due to his dark past, the Ministry had insisted that all wizards and witches previously associated with the Dark Lord, and who weren't spending a lifetime in Azkaban, must participate. They believed it would be helpful in teaching them how to interact with a diverse group of people from around the world. It all felt so juvenile. As people started piling into the room, he paid no one much attention. He just wanted to get his partner and get out of here. He wanted as little to do with this as possible. He would show his face to get credit for being there, but as for mentoring, well let's just say he hoped his partner cared as little as he did. They would both do their respective jobs and get these next few months over with. One by one people were paired off. Finally, they called his name. He rose from his seat, ready to be paired off.
"Aria De La Cour." Lucius looked at the crowd of young ambassadors, waiting to see who would stand up to come join him. He couldn't believe his eyes at first. Towards the back, the blond head of the most beautiful woman he had ever laid eyes on stood from her seat. Master of the poker face, Lucius didn't let his emotions show, but her beauty made his breath stop short. Lucius always had a thing for blonds, perhaps it was the Malfoy in him that always appreciated the purest of blonds, just like himself. But then he saw her eyes that shone like emeralds and her sun-kissed skin. The way she carried herself, confidently but with a sense of calm as she walked over to him. It was enough to drive him insane. He had never had this immediate reaction to a woman before, not even his ex-wife Narcissa. What was that stupid muggle saying? Love at first sight. He laughed internally to himself. Love did not exist. But passion and lust sure did, and he instantly felt it. He would have to admit to himself that his curiosity was piqued. Obviously they were matched based on their interests. What could he possibly have in common with this girl? She exuded youth and sunshine. If she was sunshine, then he was snow. If she was light, he was dark. There had to have been a mistake, but he wasn't about to correct it. She finally made her way up to him. So close. Her cheeks were flushed pink. Good lord, she was gorgeous. Where did she come from? What part of the world could have produced such an angelic being?
"Hello Mr. Malfoy. Nice to meet you." Ah, she was American. He never realized anything from that country should be so radiant and luscious. He noticed her voice sounded slightly shaken. Was she feeling what he felt? She held out her hand to him. He took the delicate hand for the briefest of moments. Worried that his animalistic urge would make him take her right then and there in front of everyone to witness. No he mustn't do that. At least not in public. He smirked to himself inwardly.
"Miss De La Cour," he replied, ingraining her name into his mind. He had the sudden urge of not wanting to be in this crowded room any longer. He was very curious to get to know this young woman and most of all go over her survey to see how this match could have happened. His office here at the ministry would be the perfect spot to have a one-on-one chat. Perhaps this assignment wasn't the worst possible one he had ever had handed to him.