Disclaimer: I just own the plot.
Review Responses:
Xia - You're right, my punctuation leaves something to be desired. My friend who has read the whole story thinks I don't use commas often enough and she's absolutely right, also full stops my sentences just carry on and on sometimes. Thanks for bringing it to my attention I wasn't sure how obvious it was, I'll have to try to stop that. As to description, it's difficult because the story skims over large portions of Narcissa's life that it would be deathly dull to go into. So do you mean more description in that way or in the way of the characters or their surroundings? Sev is funny isn't he? I love him, so sour and misanthropic, unfortunately he doesn't get any more chapters from his POV. Glad you're hooked. Thanks for reviewing and for the constructive criticism.
*Severus' Thoughts*
_emphasis_
Wedding Bells Just Turned to Rust
Chapter 16
The next few years passed surprisingly peacefully for Narcissa. She spent much of her time with her son but she also returned to her role of the society wife, enjoying the change of company every once in a while. Slowly she and Lucius began to go out again to ministry functions and dinner parties and Lucius even secured himself a place on Hogwart's governing body though he didn't return to his previous position at the ministry. A few lavish donations to causes close to the ministry's heart i.e. the ministry, put them back in everybody's good graces and the trial was forgotten much quicker than could have been expected.
Draco was still capable of being a bit of a handful but was pretty well behaved for the most part, though it always saddened Narcissa to think that the likelihood of him ever being able to know his godfather as anything other than a teacher was small.
Malfoy Manor still had the same astounding ability to look gloomy and depressing even on the brightest of days so she often took Draco out to Diagon Alley and indulged in a little retail therapy. It was on one of these trips when she saw him.
Sat outside a café glaring into a cup of black coffee was someone she had never expected to see again. She bit her lip then walked over resolutely to speak to him.
"Good afternoon, Severus."
"Good afternoon," he replied never glancing up from the paper he was reading.
"You don't seem very surprised to see me."
"I'm not. Diagon Alley is a relatively small place; I have run into half a dozen people I know in the last hour."
She was surprised when he met her eyes to see how pale he was, there were dark circles under the coal black eyes which had always seemed so unexpressive but now seemed even more so.
"You look so pale, almost unhealthy," he said after a moment of gazing at her critically. It had to be said she was no longer the young woman who had hugged him on her wedding day, she was still pretty and took care of her appearance but her skin refused to return to the healthy tan it had once had.
"So do you," she said quietly.
"I always did."
"That doesn't make it any better you know."
"Funny, I seem to remember a time when you weren't so concerned for my health."
"I don't really know what I can say to that. I am so sorry, I realise that doesn't change anything but I can't undo what I did."
"No, you can't."
"Do you want me to leave?"
"Do as you like."
She sat down and waved a waiter over ordering Draco a sundae and herself a glass of ice water. "I presume you got my letter."
"Yes. You asked me not to reply."
"I know."
"I never meant to hurt you. I honestly thought you'd never leave him, what was I supposed to do? I had no idea what was going to happen that night."
"I realise that now. The letter wasn't much of an apology was it Sev?"
"No. It wasn't, but it did explain why you did it. I still don't know why you lied for him at the trial though."
"Kind of backed myself into a corner didn't I? I had no one else. He was the only person who wanted anything to do with me. I'd just set up the only friend I had left. I was frightened, it was my chance to finally get away from him for good but I couldn't do it. How could I send Draco off to school with that hanging over his head? People have long memories Sev, why would they respect the son of a convicted deatheater?"
"Do you really think it benefits him to grow up with a deatheater?"
"I wasn't thinking straight, at the time I thought things might get better, you know with the Dark lord gone, but they haven't changed."
"Lucius never will."
"Think I hadn't noticed that? I love him, twisted as that is. Do you know how easy it would have been to simply walk away without facing him and how infinitely difficult it would be to look him in the face and condemn him to god only knows what? Actually, I do know what, they'd have given him the kiss I'm sure of it. No one belongs in Azkaban but how a culture can deem itself civilised when we would do _that_ to people is beyond my understanding. No one deserves that. He needed me, for the first time in his life he needed me, I looked at him and I just couldn't do it, I couldn't betray my husband to the dementors."
"You know, you are seriously delusional."
"I know."
They were silent a moment before Severus spoke again, "Hmm. He certainly looks full of life."
She smiled at her son, "I know, he runs me off my feet, but he's so good."
Severus looked across at the little blond angel who was quietly eating his sundae with remarkably little mess. "You've got him well trained."
"Lucius doesn't like it when he's noisy."
"What Lucius wants Lucius gets eh?" Severus sneered.
"I don't like it either, you know."
"So stand up to him."
"Have you forgotten what happened the last time I did that?"
"No. After all I was the one who picked up the pieces."
"Something I'll never forget," she said covering his hand with her's. "I owe you a lot."
"You don't. Anyone would have done the same."
"Lucius didn't."
Severus finally smiled sadly at the woman sat across from him, "He's not going to turn around one day and profess his undying love for you and everything will just suddenly be alright."
"I know that."
"Don't you think about your son and what this is going to do to him?"
"You know as well as I do that there is no way in hell I'd win custody and I can't prove anything against Lucius now without ending up in serious trouble with the ministry myself and then what would happen to Draco? I can't win."
"You know I stopped being angry with you when I realised that you really made your own situation so much worse than mine. Narcissa, you blew your best chance to get away from him, you did that not me."
A single tear ran down her face and the little boy looked up suddenly and glared at Severus, *Good god I didn't know six year olds could glare!* he thought.
"You made mummy cry!"
"I'm being lectured by a six year old!" he raised an eyebrow intrigued by this child.
"He didn't make me cry sweetheart, this is your godfather. He's been very good to me."
Draco seemed reassured by this and smiled sweetly at Severus, "Sorry."
Severus smiled back, "That's alright. You enjoying school?"
Draco made a face, "No. Daddy said not to listen to my teacher, she doesn't know what she's talking about."
"Why?"
"She's a mudblood. We're better than her."
Severus felt a chill in the warm summer air.
"Draco, don't say things like that in public," Narcissa said tiredly.
"He shouldn't be saying that at all!" Severus snapped.
"Why not?" the child asked way too innocently for Severus' liking, "Daddy says it all the time."
"Sweetheart, why don't you go play in the play area?" Narcissa suggested, seeing he had finished his ice cream and was going to continue to search for something else to amuse himself.
"Ok," he slipped down from the table into the little play area to the side of the cafe.
"What the hell was that?" Severus asked once he had gone.
"Lucius' influence. I swear my child no longer knows how to think for himself. I'm watching him being brain washed and I can't do anything about it. He just wants Lucius to be proud of him and most the time he just ignores him, he only pays attention to him to yell at him or to spout propaganda. I'm watching my son turn into his father." Narcissa slumped down in her chair, her head in her hands.
Severus didn't know how to reply to that and after a few moments of uncomfortable silence he rose from his seat, "I should go, I need to pick up some potions ingredients."
Narcissa nodded. "Yeah, I should go too, I don't like leaving Draco alone like this. Tell you what, let me settle the bill."
"You don't need to do that."
"I want to."
"Alright, I'll get Draco for you."
"Thanks."
She watched as Severus gently lifted Draco and carried him over to her. She smiled as Draco laughed and cuddled into Severus' arms, she took him into her own and held him close. "Bye Sev, take care of yourself."
"You too, take care of _him_," he said pointedly.
Draco waved at him as he walked away and Narcissa was left standing on the sunny patio outside the café feeling utterly alone. It was only then that she noticed, with some irony, it was the same café where she and Lucius had first met.
*******
A/N: I was always touched that the only time Draco draws his wand on the golden trio is when Harry insults Narcissa and insinuates she doesn't care about her son, they insult Lucius at times but never provoke this extreme a reaction from Draco and I thought it was sweet that he stood up for his mother like that. That's why I had him glare at Snape, I just love the idea of him standing up for her.
I know, only one chapter again but you'll get two at once next time and then it'll just be the last chapter to post. This chapter just worked better alone and the next two work really well together. Chapter 19 will be the last but as I've mentioned I am writing a sequel which is coming along pretty well, I think I've written well over half of it now. The sequel will cover the timespan of the first four books beginning at Christmas book one.
Oh, if you were wondering what happened the last time Narcissa stood up to Lucius she's referring to the incident with the child in the dungeon.
Review Please, let me know you care!
Review Responses:
Xia - You're right, my punctuation leaves something to be desired. My friend who has read the whole story thinks I don't use commas often enough and she's absolutely right, also full stops my sentences just carry on and on sometimes. Thanks for bringing it to my attention I wasn't sure how obvious it was, I'll have to try to stop that. As to description, it's difficult because the story skims over large portions of Narcissa's life that it would be deathly dull to go into. So do you mean more description in that way or in the way of the characters or their surroundings? Sev is funny isn't he? I love him, so sour and misanthropic, unfortunately he doesn't get any more chapters from his POV. Glad you're hooked. Thanks for reviewing and for the constructive criticism.
*Severus' Thoughts*
_emphasis_
Wedding Bells Just Turned to Rust
Chapter 16
The next few years passed surprisingly peacefully for Narcissa. She spent much of her time with her son but she also returned to her role of the society wife, enjoying the change of company every once in a while. Slowly she and Lucius began to go out again to ministry functions and dinner parties and Lucius even secured himself a place on Hogwart's governing body though he didn't return to his previous position at the ministry. A few lavish donations to causes close to the ministry's heart i.e. the ministry, put them back in everybody's good graces and the trial was forgotten much quicker than could have been expected.
Draco was still capable of being a bit of a handful but was pretty well behaved for the most part, though it always saddened Narcissa to think that the likelihood of him ever being able to know his godfather as anything other than a teacher was small.
Malfoy Manor still had the same astounding ability to look gloomy and depressing even on the brightest of days so she often took Draco out to Diagon Alley and indulged in a little retail therapy. It was on one of these trips when she saw him.
Sat outside a café glaring into a cup of black coffee was someone she had never expected to see again. She bit her lip then walked over resolutely to speak to him.
"Good afternoon, Severus."
"Good afternoon," he replied never glancing up from the paper he was reading.
"You don't seem very surprised to see me."
"I'm not. Diagon Alley is a relatively small place; I have run into half a dozen people I know in the last hour."
She was surprised when he met her eyes to see how pale he was, there were dark circles under the coal black eyes which had always seemed so unexpressive but now seemed even more so.
"You look so pale, almost unhealthy," he said after a moment of gazing at her critically. It had to be said she was no longer the young woman who had hugged him on her wedding day, she was still pretty and took care of her appearance but her skin refused to return to the healthy tan it had once had.
"So do you," she said quietly.
"I always did."
"That doesn't make it any better you know."
"Funny, I seem to remember a time when you weren't so concerned for my health."
"I don't really know what I can say to that. I am so sorry, I realise that doesn't change anything but I can't undo what I did."
"No, you can't."
"Do you want me to leave?"
"Do as you like."
She sat down and waved a waiter over ordering Draco a sundae and herself a glass of ice water. "I presume you got my letter."
"Yes. You asked me not to reply."
"I know."
"I never meant to hurt you. I honestly thought you'd never leave him, what was I supposed to do? I had no idea what was going to happen that night."
"I realise that now. The letter wasn't much of an apology was it Sev?"
"No. It wasn't, but it did explain why you did it. I still don't know why you lied for him at the trial though."
"Kind of backed myself into a corner didn't I? I had no one else. He was the only person who wanted anything to do with me. I'd just set up the only friend I had left. I was frightened, it was my chance to finally get away from him for good but I couldn't do it. How could I send Draco off to school with that hanging over his head? People have long memories Sev, why would they respect the son of a convicted deatheater?"
"Do you really think it benefits him to grow up with a deatheater?"
"I wasn't thinking straight, at the time I thought things might get better, you know with the Dark lord gone, but they haven't changed."
"Lucius never will."
"Think I hadn't noticed that? I love him, twisted as that is. Do you know how easy it would have been to simply walk away without facing him and how infinitely difficult it would be to look him in the face and condemn him to god only knows what? Actually, I do know what, they'd have given him the kiss I'm sure of it. No one belongs in Azkaban but how a culture can deem itself civilised when we would do _that_ to people is beyond my understanding. No one deserves that. He needed me, for the first time in his life he needed me, I looked at him and I just couldn't do it, I couldn't betray my husband to the dementors."
"You know, you are seriously delusional."
"I know."
They were silent a moment before Severus spoke again, "Hmm. He certainly looks full of life."
She smiled at her son, "I know, he runs me off my feet, but he's so good."
Severus looked across at the little blond angel who was quietly eating his sundae with remarkably little mess. "You've got him well trained."
"Lucius doesn't like it when he's noisy."
"What Lucius wants Lucius gets eh?" Severus sneered.
"I don't like it either, you know."
"So stand up to him."
"Have you forgotten what happened the last time I did that?"
"No. After all I was the one who picked up the pieces."
"Something I'll never forget," she said covering his hand with her's. "I owe you a lot."
"You don't. Anyone would have done the same."
"Lucius didn't."
Severus finally smiled sadly at the woman sat across from him, "He's not going to turn around one day and profess his undying love for you and everything will just suddenly be alright."
"I know that."
"Don't you think about your son and what this is going to do to him?"
"You know as well as I do that there is no way in hell I'd win custody and I can't prove anything against Lucius now without ending up in serious trouble with the ministry myself and then what would happen to Draco? I can't win."
"You know I stopped being angry with you when I realised that you really made your own situation so much worse than mine. Narcissa, you blew your best chance to get away from him, you did that not me."
A single tear ran down her face and the little boy looked up suddenly and glared at Severus, *Good god I didn't know six year olds could glare!* he thought.
"You made mummy cry!"
"I'm being lectured by a six year old!" he raised an eyebrow intrigued by this child.
"He didn't make me cry sweetheart, this is your godfather. He's been very good to me."
Draco seemed reassured by this and smiled sweetly at Severus, "Sorry."
Severus smiled back, "That's alright. You enjoying school?"
Draco made a face, "No. Daddy said not to listen to my teacher, she doesn't know what she's talking about."
"Why?"
"She's a mudblood. We're better than her."
Severus felt a chill in the warm summer air.
"Draco, don't say things like that in public," Narcissa said tiredly.
"He shouldn't be saying that at all!" Severus snapped.
"Why not?" the child asked way too innocently for Severus' liking, "Daddy says it all the time."
"Sweetheart, why don't you go play in the play area?" Narcissa suggested, seeing he had finished his ice cream and was going to continue to search for something else to amuse himself.
"Ok," he slipped down from the table into the little play area to the side of the cafe.
"What the hell was that?" Severus asked once he had gone.
"Lucius' influence. I swear my child no longer knows how to think for himself. I'm watching him being brain washed and I can't do anything about it. He just wants Lucius to be proud of him and most the time he just ignores him, he only pays attention to him to yell at him or to spout propaganda. I'm watching my son turn into his father." Narcissa slumped down in her chair, her head in her hands.
Severus didn't know how to reply to that and after a few moments of uncomfortable silence he rose from his seat, "I should go, I need to pick up some potions ingredients."
Narcissa nodded. "Yeah, I should go too, I don't like leaving Draco alone like this. Tell you what, let me settle the bill."
"You don't need to do that."
"I want to."
"Alright, I'll get Draco for you."
"Thanks."
She watched as Severus gently lifted Draco and carried him over to her. She smiled as Draco laughed and cuddled into Severus' arms, she took him into her own and held him close. "Bye Sev, take care of yourself."
"You too, take care of _him_," he said pointedly.
Draco waved at him as he walked away and Narcissa was left standing on the sunny patio outside the café feeling utterly alone. It was only then that she noticed, with some irony, it was the same café where she and Lucius had first met.
*******
A/N: I was always touched that the only time Draco draws his wand on the golden trio is when Harry insults Narcissa and insinuates she doesn't care about her son, they insult Lucius at times but never provoke this extreme a reaction from Draco and I thought it was sweet that he stood up for his mother like that. That's why I had him glare at Snape, I just love the idea of him standing up for her.
I know, only one chapter again but you'll get two at once next time and then it'll just be the last chapter to post. This chapter just worked better alone and the next two work really well together. Chapter 19 will be the last but as I've mentioned I am writing a sequel which is coming along pretty well, I think I've written well over half of it now. The sequel will cover the timespan of the first four books beginning at Christmas book one.
Oh, if you were wondering what happened the last time Narcissa stood up to Lucius she's referring to the incident with the child in the dungeon.
Review Please, let me know you care!