The holidays have started for our heroes!
Thanks again for the awesome reviews, guys. It really makes my day. Keep them coming!
Not much to say here, so we'll just get on with the show!
If Someone Cared Enough
Chapter Forty-Seven: No Place like Home for the Holidays
One fine wintery morning found Severus standing with his first coffee of the day, staring out the Evans's front window in befuddlement. Always an early riser, Severus tended to wake up before most of the family and relish an hour or so of peace and quiet while everyone else still slept. Usually armed with a good book and a strong cup of coffee, he laid claim to the settee by the living room window and watch the neighborhood slowly begin the day.
This morning however, a very odd sight block much of Severus's vision of the outside world.
A gush of cold air swooped into the room from the front hall as the door as someone came inside. Turning his gaze to the living room doorway, Severus raised a brow as a coat yeti trudged into view, a lock of red hair spilling loose from their cap.
"Lily," Severus asked casually, "What is this?"
"Hm?" was Lily's muffled reply, the girl pulling a large wooly scarf away from her face, "What's what?"
"This," Severus reiterated, pointing to the snowy mass obscuring his view of the street, "What is it?"
Lily followed his gaze, a smile breaking out across her face, "Oh that? What else would it be? It's a snowman."
"I can see that," Severus said tonelessly, "But why does it look like me?"
"Because it is you," Lily declared.
The meticulously crafted man of snow resembled Severus as closely as one could with bulky, messy snow. Standing around his height, the shape of the head included his hairstyle, set apart from the rest of the snow by lines drawn in it by a twig or finger to resemble locks of hair. The face bore a set of button eyes in charcoal black. A straight line made of rocks shaped the mouth. Overall it made for a stern faced, unenthused looking snowman.
"Do you think he should be smiling?" Lily asked, hand cupping her chin in thought, "I thought smiling would look out of place. But do you think the neutral look is in character enough? Should he be frowning instead?"
"Let's not focus on that," Severus said, "And instead focus on why…as in, why did you make a snowman of me?"
Lily held her arms out to the side, as though that would help her friend see the big picture, "It's tradition! At least it used to be. Back before Hogwarts, my family would always make our family out of snow. I thought I'd get an early start on my part."
"But why would you make me instead of yourself?" Severus asked, perplexed.
Lily rolled her eyes, "That's how it's done. We each make each other's snowmen. Dad always makes mum's, she makes his, I make Tuney's and she makes mine."
"Still doesn't explain how I'm in the mix," Severus pointed out.
"Because you're family," Lily huffed, "Naturally the order had to change. You'll make mine, mum will makes dad's, dad will make Tuney's and Tuney will make a snowman of mum. That way we're all included."
"I still don't understand why you don't just make your own snowman," Severus said matter of factly.
Lily shot Severus a look of exasperation, "Because it means more to have someone else make you; it lets you see how much they care about you by how much work they put into the snowman. You still haven't told me what you think of yours, by the way." Lily put her hands on her hips, pouting.
Severus put his mug down and stepped closer to the window. The snowman of him had certainly had a fair amount of time spent on it. Looking closely he saw a nose sculpted out of snow, a bridge and nostrils shaped out of the white powder. Fine, individual lines scratched into the snow above each button eye to formed his eyebrows and there was even some contouring on the sides of the face for his cheekbones.
At face value it was still a rather average snowman; nothing that would win awards, but it was clear Lily had put her all in it.
"It's…good," Severus said, honestly not used to giving praise, "Really good. I can tell you worked hard on it. I…I like it."
Lily beamed.
"Perfect!" she cried, clapping her hands together, "Now you can make mine. Come on, get dressed," she demanded, dragging Severus by the arm and out into the hallway. She gave him a playful shove towards the stairs, "Put on something warm. I'm going to grab a quick snack and then wake everyone else up."
Severus climbed the stairs obediently, already hearing Lily puttering around the kitchen humming to herself. In the upstairs hall, he passed Petunia as she exited the bathroom, still half-asleep.
"Heads up," Severus warned her, "Winter Lily is on her way up; says it's snowman time."
Petunia groaned, "We haven't done that in years. Why now?" She trudged back to her room, muttering something about the importance of beauty sleep and annoying little sisters.
Severus entered his room and shut the door behind him. Turning to his wardrobe, he shrugged out of his sleep shirt and set it in the hamper before selecting a gray pullover. Grabbing a pair of lounge pants lined with wool—a hand me down from Hank—he toed off his slippers and kicked them towards his bed. He made a mental note to make his bed later, for now focusing on dressing weather appropriate.
Just as he was tugging on his coat, he heard footsteps racing up the stairs and the sound of something knocking open Petunia's door. Lily was on the move.
"Wake up," she cried from the threshold of her sister's room, "We have to make a snow family."
"Noooo," Petunia could be heard whining, "Snow days mean sleep for University students."
"That's while you're at Uni," Lily point out, amusement creeping into her voice, "On the holidays we play. Now up!"
Something thudded heavily against the floor, followed by a pained groan from Petunia.
"Give me back my blankets," Petunia demanded.
"Not until you get up," was Lily's chipper reply.
Severus heard her skip past his door, heading further down the hall.
"Mum, dad," she called, knocking on their door, "Time to make a snow family."
A pair of muffled, sleepy groans answered her.
Ever the diplomat, Lily already had her bargaining chip at the ready, "There's fresh coffee and cinnamon toast waiting in the kitchen for you."
"I'm up, I'm up," Hank said from within, "Just putting on slippers."
Lily stopped at Severus's door last.
"You better have not crawled into bed, lazy bones," she warned through the door.
"Nope," Severus said, opening the door for her, "Just getting ready."
"Great," Lily smiled broadly at him. She paused, looking him up and down.
"That sweater looks nice on you," she said.
Severus looked down at his attire, "Really? It's just something I snagged from the closet."
Lily nodded, "The color works on you. Makes you look like one of those intellectual types from the University."
"The type with a pair of thin, wire rimmed glasses perched at the end of their nose?" Severus asked with a snort.
Lily giggled, "Don't tease me, I mean it. You look great. The color, the fit, it shows off your muscles so it—" Lily paused her thoughts catching up to her words. Flushing scarlet, she turned on her heel and hurried away.
"See you outside," she called over her shoulder as she ducked into Petunia's room again.
"Get up, Tuney!" was the next thing Severus heard, followed by more whining on Petunia's part.
Severus took one last glance at himself in the mirror. Admiring the tightness of the sweater across his arms and chest, he decided he did look good, a surge of smug pride welling up inside him as he walked past the room Lily and Petunia were squabbling in.
"Not so ugly now, am I, Potter?" he thought to himself.
{page break}
"No, daddy, you can't put breasts on my snowwoman!" Petunia cried angrily. She stood in front of her creation, arms outstretched wide to shield it, "We aren't going for anatomically correct. It's just supposed to look like mum."
"Exactly," Mr. Evans defended, "And whenever I used to make your mother's snowwoman, I always complimented her best features."
"That's sick, daddy!" Petunia snapped, refusing to budge. She hurled a snowball at her father, already preparing to throw another.
"Dear, quit being thirteen years old and focus on your own snowman," Mrs. Evans scolded fondly.
"I'll have to make a big mean scowl on this one," Hank said, looking at his rendition of Petunia, "Because she's a big old spoilsport."
"And you're weird!" Petunia shot back, "Mum, put a big weird face on yours."
"This is supposed to be sweet, not vindictive," Lily reminded her family, making some last minute alterations to her Severus snowman; she was never satisfied with her work.
"I think yours is done, Lily," Severus suggested, bemused.
"The chin's still not right," Lily fretted, "Your jawline is more pronounced then this, and your brows…you always look like you're thinking about something important."
Severus sighed, "Lily, its three spheres stacked on top of each other. It's not like you're going to make Michelangelo's David."
Lily huffed, reluctantly stepping away from her snowman, "Fine. How's yours coming along anyway?"
"Almost finished…" Severus mumbled, carefully shaping off the head, "Just need to make some finer adjustments…"
Lily peered around Severus at his work.
"Oh, Sev," she breathed, "It looks wonderful."
Though no artist, Severus had put his heart and soul into making Lily out of snow. Still sporting the three-sphere form of traditional snowmen and snowwomen, Severus has utilized the nearby leaves and twigs sticking up from the snowy ground to accessorize. Drawing indentations around the shoulders and waist, it looked like the Lily snowwoman wore a cardigan decorated with leaves and twigs arranged to look like flowers and butterflies. The head had snow packed heavily onto it to shape Lily's long hair, Severus taking a page from Lily's book and drawing lines in it to represent strands.
Severus paid special attention to crafting Lily's face, smoothing out the sides of her face and indenting the hollow of her cheekbones. He made a small, upturned nose for her and actually carved out her eyes, trying to make them look as real as possible. The mouth curved upwards into a large, happy smile, a cupid's bow shaping an upper lip.
"Sev, I love it!" Lily gushed.
Severus smiled, quite proud of himself, "If we could use magic at home, I would have made one that look exactly like you."
"This is perfect," Lily assured him, "I love the cardigan; it looks just like the one mom bought me last Christmas."
"That was the intent," Severus told her, "I know it's one of your favorites."
"This was really sweet, Sev," Lily said softly, "You really put your all into it."
Severus looked sideways, a faint redness to his cheeks, "I knew this whole thing was important to you; figured I should take it seriously."
"My belly is not that big!" Hank insisted from behind them.
"Unlike some people," Severus added, prompting Lily to giggle.
"Seriously, it isn't that big," Hank repeated.
"It is after all those sweets you've been sneaking from the kitchen," Willow stated, packing snow around the middle of her snowman of her husband.
"If that's how it's going to be…"Hank turned to his eldest daughter, "Pet, add some more snow to your mother's backside. We want accuracy here, right?"
"Scoundrel!" Willow gasped dramatically. She scooped up some snow in her hands and chucked it at her husband.
"Oh, so that's how you want to play it?" Hank asked challengingly, his eyes lighting up with childish glee. He began furiously making his own snowballs, lobbing them one after another at his wife.
Willow squawked as she was bombarded with cold ballistic ammo, shielding herself behind her snowman, "Petunia, defend your mother!"
"Coming, Mum," Petunia leapt to her mother's defense, hurling a snowball of her own at her father.
"This means war!" Hank declared, ramping up his attack.
"And we're the children," Severus said wryly, observing the chaos with amusement.
Lily laughed, "Well, you know what they say, you're as young as you feel."
"I don't think that's quite how the phrase goes—" Severus was cut off by a snowball straight to the face. Startled, he took several hasty steps back, only to trip over a snowbank and into the hedges.
Willow, Petunia, and Hank stood frozen in the yard.
"…Oops," Willow said sheepishly.
"Daddy threw it," Petunia lied.
Hank glared playfully at his daughter, "Did not."
Lily stared down at Severus, the boy attempting to pull himself out of the hedges ineffectively. Turning back to her shame faced family; Lily bent down and carefully gathered some snow into her hands.
"Revenge!" she shouted, pelting a snowball at her sister.
By the time Severus managed to extract himself from the hedges, the front yard had become an all-out winter war.
{page break}
"Tighter, Coro," Mrs. Mnemosyne demanded, standing behind her daughter at the vanity, "I want that corset tighter."
"Yes, Mistress," the trembling house elf said, her aged, bony fingers pulling on the corset strings with all her might.
Thea let out a gasping breath, bent over the vanity with her hands clenching either side, "I can scarcely breathe, mother."
"No back talk," was her mother's clipped reply, "Beauty is pain." She grabbed her daughter harshly by the chin and applied a dark lipstick to her lips.
'Then I must be truly beautiful right now,' Thea thought ruefully. The dress her mother forced her into was the tightest, somber frock she had ever seen. It button all the way up the neck, making swallowing a challenge and the sleeves constricted her arm movements; she doubted she'd be able to raise her arms past elbow height. The corset compressed her waist so impossibly tight and narrow that it pressed painfully on her ribs and made it difficult to breathe. The entire dress was black and the look completed by toe pinching Victorian style ladies boots.
Rudely dismissing the house elf with an impatient wave of her hand, Mrs. Mnemosyne gathered Thea's long hair in her hands. Carding her thin, spidery fingers through the soft strands, she pulled it all into one hand grabbed the mother of pearl comb sitting on the dresser.
"You must look your best," she stated, running the comb through Thea's hair, "The Malfoy's are a prestigious family; we wouldn't want you embarrassing us all."
Thea winced as the comb's teeth dragged roughly over her scalp, "I would never dream of shaming you, mother."
"See to it that you don't," her mother said sternly. She managed to bring her daughter's thick hair into a tight bun at the back of her head. Reaching down to rummage through the vanity drawer, she pulled out an ornate comb depicting a snake twined around a staff turned on its side. Sticking it carefully into place at the top of Thea's hair bun, she stepped back to survey her handiwork.
"That's as good as it's going to get," she said dismayingly, scrutinizing her child's appearance, "You'll just have to make up for it with perfect manners."
"Yes Mother," Thea said robotically.
"Now come," her mother said, turning on her heel and sending houses elves running in her wake, "You're father is waiting with the Portkey."
With the travel being blissfully short, Thea didn't have to make small talk with her parents, something for which she was eternally grateful. Unfortunately, this also meant they arrived at Malfoy Manor even faster while Thea would have given anything to delay it for as long as possible.
The heavy and ominous wrought iron gate opened on its own as they approached, revealing a long walkway encompassed by low rolling fog.
As they traversed the perfectly manicured lawn, a caw in the distant caught Thea's attention. Turning to her left, she spotted a large white bird with massive, fanned out tail feathers.
"White peacocks," her father observed, "A rather expensive import."
"Only the best for those of noble lineage," he mother added approvingly.
Thea didn't share their sentiments. If you asked her, the ridiculous birds just seemed showy and gaudy; a desperate cry for attention.
A house elf in ragged clothes opened the front door before they reached it, giving a sweeping bow.
"Welcomes, Lord and Lady Mnemosyne," he croaked in a raspy voice, "My Lordship is accepting you." Leading them through the grand entrance and to the left, he brought them to a huge dining room, a roaring fire and a few candelabras the only source of light.
Abraxas Malfoy was a tall, pale man with a narrow build and pointed face. Ever immaculate, his silvery blonde hair was plastered to his scalp with rigid stiffness and his mustache waxed into fine points on either side.
"Roman," he greeted, rising from his seat, "Appollonia. So glad you could come."
"We're happy to be invited," Appollonia said sweetly, extending her hand for Abraxus to kiss, "Your home is simply marvelous."
"Thank you, my wife has excellent taste," Abraxas said proudly, gesturing to a demure woman seated at the table. She barely glanced up at them, treating everyone in the room as if they were not worth her time. Abraxas seemed not to mind.
"And this must be your lovely daughter," Abraxas, said, turning to Thea. His smile was insincere, carrying an oily fakeness that made Thea's skin crawl.
"Yes, this is Theadosia," Appollonia said, almost apologetically, "She recently returned from school for the Holidays."
Abraxas nodded, "Ah yes, Hogwarts. My old alma mater. Good school," he chuckled, "At least it was back when I was there. I'm not so sure now."
"It certainly isn't like it used to be," Roman agreed.
"Indeed," said Abraxas, "Well, sit down. The others shall be here shortly."
'Others?' wondered Thea as she sat down.
"Back straight," Her mother hissed from besides her.
For the next ten minutes, Thea sat listlessly while her parents and their hosts made idle chit chat. It bothered her very little as she preferred to be ignored by her present company. Instead, she busied herself with following the patterns of the table cloths with her eyes, admiring but never touching the plates of fruits and cheeses as her mother said that ladies never snack.
When the doors to the dining room opened again, Thea and her family watched expectantly as Lucius strolled into the room, greeting his parents with the slightest tilt of his head. Following after him was his new wife, Narcissa, who practically floated into the room as her in-laws praised the vision of loveliness she made.
Gently taking his wife by the hand, Lucius led her to a seat a house elf pulled out for her, kissing her knuckles before sitting down beside her.
Thea didn't focus on them for long, as it turned out the young Malfoy and his bride were not alone this evening. Thea watched in horror as Bellatrix Lestrange and her husband Rodolphus strode into the dining room, the former holding her head high and sporting a rather nasty smile.
Rodolphus's younger brother Rabastan followed behind them and suddenly Thea knew exactly why she was here.
Bellatrix flounced over to her seat, which happened to be directly across from Thea. She flashed the frightened girl a sickly sweet smile.
With growing horror, Thea sat ramrod straight as Rabastan took up the seat right next to her.
"Now that we're all here," Abraxas began when everyone was seated, "I'd first like to lead us in a toast, to my son's fortuitous marriage."
"Here, here," the others said, raising their glasses to the couple. Thea followed suit mechanically.
"Truly a perfect match," Appollonia praised, "Such powerful bloodlines. Your children will be blessed."
Lucius preened under the attention while Narcissa blushed coyly.
"Which leads me to our next bit of business," Abraxas went on. He turned to Thea's parents, "Your bloodline is very clean and your family's gift both envied and feared in many circles."
"Abraxas, you flatter us," Appollonia gushed.
"I only state the truth," Abraxas said, "Having your family tied with my own would be most beneficial. Alas, I have but one son, and I'm proud to say he is married to one of the noble house of Black."
Narcissa looked adoringly at Lucius, entwining their fingers.
Bellatrix side eyed her sister's loving display and sneered.
Abraxas nodded to his son and daughter in-law before continuing, "However, with the untimely and unexpected passing of Rodolphus and Rabastan's father—" Bellatrix let out a deranged cackle at that—"Governing the futures of his heirs falls onto his closest allies, the Malfoys and the Blacks. With Rodolphus already having wed the lovely Bellatrix, that just leaves his younger brother Rabastan in need of guidance to a proud and happy future."
He turned to Appollonia and Roman, "I have given your request much thought and council, and in talking it over with his only living family," he glanced at Rodolphus who nodded, "I am pleased to say you are right."
Abraxas gazed at Thea with an appraising eye, "Your daughter would make a most suitable bride for Rabastan."
Appollonia suppressed a squeal of excitement, wringing her hands together eagerly while Roman, Abraxas, and Rodolphus all shook hands.
Thea felt like the floor had fallen out from under her, sitting stunned and staring at Abraxas and her fathers' joined hands as though the gesture was her death sentence.
Rabastan looked thoroughly bored with the whole discussion, twirling his wine around in his glass and sending hexes at the help at random intervals. To him, marrying was just a formality that changed little in his life; all he'd be getting from it was an obedient wife he could push around and an increase in his family fortune. It matter little to him.
He cast a disinterested glance at Thea.
"Is she always this dull?" he asked his brother.
Thea ducked her head down with an embarrassed flush. Nearby, Narcissa giggled meanly.
Someone elbowed Thea sharply in the ribs.
"Try and look happy, for Salazar's sake!" her mother quietly scolded her through gritted teeth.
Across the table, Bellatrix threw her head back and laughed.
"Welcome to the family, little Thea," she said with a wicked grin.
{page break}
About a half hour after dinner hand concluded, Thea found herself lost in one of the upper floors of Malfoy Manor.
"It's preferable to being with him," Thea thought aloud. Lord Malfoy had suggested she and Rabastan walked the grounds together to give them some time to become acquainted. Though not very keen on the idea, Thea agreed after receiving a steely eye from her mother.
It didn't take long for Rabastan's unusual 'charms' to wear her patience thin. An insufferable braggart, Rabastan spoke very often and listened very little, oftentimes interrupting Thea before she even managed to reply to his questions. His hands had a habit of wandering and Thea had to repeatedly push them away from her backside and put some distance between her and the lech.
More than once Rabastan commented on her looks, rudely comparing her to his more shapely sister-in-law Bellatrix or the fae-like Narcissa. He made it rather clear he felt Thea fell short of them. Being told she was built like a broomstick wasn't what Thea would call flattering.
Eventually, Thea managed to give him the slip by ducking into a servant's quarters while he was admiring a tapestry on the wall. Waiting until he was well out of sight, Thea was quick to retrace their steps in hopes of finding her way back to the dining room. She planned to lie and say she became lost in the vast, impressive estate, the flattery sure to allay any upset at her disappearance.
Alas, her lie ended up being very truthful indeed when she realized after a wrong turn or two that she had no idea where she was anymore. Now she wandered the dark halls of Malfoy Manor in worried confusion.
"The stairs must be around here somewhere," she said, looking around a corner.
Unfortunately, there was nothing at the end of that hallway but a wall.
"Drat," Thea muttered.
Spotting movement out of the corner of her eye, Thea turned to see a house elf watching for from the other end of the hall.
Realizing it had been spotted, the creature let out a panicked squeak and scurried away.
"Wait!" Thea cried out, dashing after the frightened elf, "I need your help."
Running as fast as she could in toe-crushing shoes, Thea rounded a corner to find…a completely vacant hallway.
"But, he was just here," Thea murmured, looking around searchingly, "Where could he have gone so quickly?"
As she was alone, Thea received no answer.
"So I'm still lost," she grumbled, "Great…"
Thea kicked the wall in frustration, cursing under her breath as she stubbed her toe. Distracted by the pain, she hardly noticed a portrait fall off the wall. Falling over sideways, the heavy gilded frame knocked into a vase stand, making a large flower vase fall off it and hit the floor with a clatter, catching Thea's attention.
Perplexed, Thea watched the vase roll across the floor and slammed into the foot of a suit of armor. When it made contact, the armored suit lurched forward slightly, the Polearm in its grasp swinging down and hitting a pedestal holding a crystal ball.
It was with disbelief that Thea watched the crystal ball jettison into the air and knock a painting sideways, causing a segment of the wall to receded and slid open.
"Of all the convoluted," Thea groaned, "You know what? No, just no," she crossed her arms, turning away from the secret passage way, "Whatever secret I'm 'supposed' to find, consider me uninterested. I want nothing to do with this family's secrets. Absolutely nothing!"
"Mistress shouldn't be here!"
Thea whirled around. Standing inside the hidden room was the same house elf she had being pursuing.
The house elf wrung his hands together worriedly.
"You were supposed to find this place," he stated, tugging on his ears, "Dobby was not to let anyone in here. Now Dobby will be punished."
"Only if they find out," Thea assured the frightened creature, "You didn't actually let me in anyway. Trust me, it wasn't my intention to find this place. I just wanted help getting back to the dining room."
She knelt down in front of Dobby, "We can just keep this as our little secret, okay? You didn't show me how to open the door, nor did you bring me inside, so it isn't like you disobeyed anybody. The fault is all on me; and I want nothing to do with this place."
"Then how did you be finding it?" Dobby questioned suspiciously.
Thea sighed, "It's the Mnemosyne family gift; we tend to uncover things that are hidden," she gestured to the room, "Apparently I was 'meant' to find this room. Believe me, though, I didn't come looking for it. This place gives me enough of the keeps without finding Malfoy's dirty little secrets."
"So you is supposed to find secrets?" Dobby asked, his eyes wide. He pulled at his dirty rags, looking up at Thea in renewed interest.
Thea shrugged, "Pretty much? I mean…it's not like I intend to find stuff out. My powers just sort of…do it for me."
"What is you be doing with those secrets?" Dobby asked in wonder.
Again, Thea shrugged, "Most of my family would choose to misuse any information they find, but I don't want to be like them. I hate hurting people."
"So, you is good?" Dobby asked.
Theas smiled, patting Dobby on the head, "I try to be."
Dobby smiled back, seeming to warm up to her.
"Tell you what," Thea began, plucking on of the many ribbons off of her dress, "You look like you could do with some sprucing up. Here," she tugged up a corner of Dobby's pillowcase tunic and pinned the ribbon to the underside of it.
"Sorry I'm not your master, so giving you this won't free you from these people," she continued, "But consider this a gift from your new friend."
Dobby stared in wonder at the ribbon, gazing upon it as if it was the most precious thing in the world.
"Theadosia?" Someone called from around the corner.
"Oh no," Thea fretted, looking at all the things that had fallen over, "They're going to know I found this room."
Dobby snapped his fingers and all the items righted themselves and the room sealed itself shut.
Just then, Lucius Malfoy came around the corner.
"There you are," he drawled, striding forward, "You disappeared from your walk with Rabastan; we've been looking for you."
He stopped in front of Thea, holding out her winter cloak, "Your parents are ready to leave; I told them I would bring you to them if I found you," he looked between Thea and the wall containing the hidden room, "I see you've found the study…" he observed.
"What?" Thea gasped, feigning confusion. Inside her heart was hammering in her chest, "No, I haven't found anything."
"No need to be coy," Lucius said, tilting the painting, "It's merely a place for me to have privacy while I see to family affairs and business," he stepped forward, crowding Thea's personal space, "It's not like you found anything…you shouldn't have."
Thea shook her head insistently, "Really, I didn't even know this room was here. I was just lost. This house elf was assisting me in finding my way back to the dining hall."
Lucius looked down his nose at Dobby, "Is that so?" he sneered, "How…kind of him. I shall have to reward him later."
Dobby gulped.
"Truly he's been most helpful," Thea interjected, "I might have been trapped in some hallway forever if he hadn't shown up."
"I'm sure," Lucius replied evenly, eyeing Thea coldly, "well, you're found now, let's return you to your parents."
He gestured for Thea to start walking. As she moved away, she heard him fiddling in the room and harsh whispers directed at a whimpering Dobby before the sound of the wall sliding shut came again.
"All is set to right, now," Lucius said, taking a place besides Thea and placing an unwanted hand on the small of Thea's back to guide her.
Looking over her shoulder, Thea bid a cowering Dobby farewell and followed Lucius down the hall.
"I'm aware you are less than pleased with your marriage arrangements," Lucius began.
Thea kept her eyes forward, "One is rarely prepared for such a big step at my age, you'll forgive me surprise at dinner."
Lucius chuckled, "Oh, I sincerely doubt that was the reason for your reaction. I'd dare say it has less to do with youthful surprised and more to do with where your loyalties lie."
"Beg pardon?" Thea asked.
"I'm sure you know by now that the Lestranges have some…powerful connections. In the world of…well, let's call it politics."
Thea watched Lucius warily.
"They, like me, share similar ideals, ones which our connection seeks to make a reality," Lucius said, "And it is no secret that you've been quite cozy with someone who as of this past summer rather openly opposed those ideals when he got two of my dear friends incarcerated."
"I-I'm sure I don't know what you mean," Thea denied. She looked around them desperately, "There's the dining room; I think I can find my way back from here."
Lucius placed a hand on her arm, freezing her in her tracks.
"I have a message for young Severus," he told her, "He's made a grave mistake in turning his back on the cause. One that has…dire consequences. However, we're nothing if not merciful; there is still use for someone of his caliber. If he ditches the Mudblood perhaps our Lord may let him live." Patting a terrified Thea on the cheek, he walked past her.
"Do consider where you stand as well," he called over his shoulder just as he reached the dining room, "After all, a difference of opinion could make your marriage a most unpleasant one."
He left Thea quaking in the hallway, none the wiser of the small leather book a certain he had slipped into the pocket Thea's cloak.
And so the plot thickens!
So some of you were pretty close to guessing what the intention of the Malfoys was. Indeed it was a marriage contract, but not one for Lucius. Now that Bellatrix and her husband have already made one strong alliance to aid Voldemort, the younger Lestrange brother needs a wife of wealthy connects (and useful magical gifts) to further strengthen Voldemort's side.
So let the panic begin! Who shall save Thea from her unwanted nuptials?
Read and review everyone!