Chapter 4: New Beginnings

On the morning of the 31st of August in one of the Malfoy´s Cottages in France in the Great Hall, Caesar Malfoy was having breakfast. The platinum long blond of his hair was nearly white, just like his eyebrows. He was a tall and thing man and in his 65 years old he looked magnificent.  Wearing silver robes with the Malfoy´s crest of arms in the front, the oldest member of the family took a sip of his earl grey tea. It was seven ó clock in the morning, the perfect time of the day. His wife was still having his morning bath and his son and guest were about of being waken up. Biting a piece of toast, Caesar unfold the Daily Prophet and read the headlines.

"Good morning, Dear. An excellent day, don´t you think?" The sweet voice of Moira Malfoy echoed in the high ceiling room. Her lavender robes reflected in the platter as she move across the place. The 60 years old woman sit in front of his husband at the table, smiling softly as she fix her perfectly combed light brown hair

"Lovely, my darling. Are the guests up yet?" Caesar asked, folding the newspaper again and eyeing his wife.

"If I am correct, Narcissa will be here anytime with Mrs. Lestrange with her" Moira replied taking a sip of her ginger lemon tea. Before she could put her cup in the table again, the doors were opened by two elegant women, a radiant blond dressed in red robes and a brown haired woman with light blue robes

"Good morning, Caesar, Moria"  Narcissa said smiling to them before sitting next to her mother-in-law, motioning her companion to sit beside her. Mary nod to them and have her a sit in her place.

"Good morning, Dears. Do you have any ideas of where are your lousy husbands?" Moira inquired motioning the house elves to serve her guests breakfast.

"I'm proud to said that I am not a lousy man, Mrs. Malfoy." Angelus responded entering into the room. He kissed his wife in her forehead before continuing "But I'm not so sure about your son".

"Lucius is the most lousy person I've ever met. He is not going to get up until the clock marks 8. I already know that, but I was hoping to have a chat with Severus. He don't have any excuses for not came to visit us, as you have". Caesar said, eyeing the doors suspiciously almost conjuring Severus into the dinning room.

"Good morning to you too, Caesar" The Potions Master reeled walking to the table with long and elegant strides. He kissed Moira´s hand before taking a seat and a long sip of black coffee. "I see that you are as pleasant as usual".

"You have to forgive him, Severus. He missed you, but he is to proud to tell you that or to go to England to see you" Lucius´s mother said smiling. "By the way I see that you are all wearing your new robes. You look great. It seems that my son still has a nice taste"

"The day I lose my 'excellent' taste, I will be dead" Lucius protested from the door at the same time that the clock marked eight. "You should be proud of me. Mother, Father I hope that you are having a good morning".

"We have excellent guests, why wouldn't have pleasant breakfast" Caesar responded smirking at his younger son. "It's a pity that you came for such short time 'and' every decade".

"This is not a healthy time to argue about this, not now, nor ever. But if I am not mistaken you could come to visit 'us' from time to time" Lucius replied taking a cup of Darjeeling tea and making himself comfortable at the table.

"True, true my son" Caesar replied smirking softly. "Are you going to stay from lunch?" Moira asked to her guests turning her head to her son.

"I don't think so. We need to make a stop at the manor before our meeting with Dumbledore" Lucius said biting his toast. "I don't think we have that much time"

"Draco must be a little worried about us…" Narcissa commented after being interrupted by a laugh from the potions master.

"He probably thought a party and all the Slytherins were invited. He will be sleeping until lunch"

"He is as sleepy as Lucius?" Angelus asked trying to cover his laugh with a glass of juice.

Mary looked at her friends smiling and laughing. She tilted her head to the left and said seriously. "That is impossible. The Prince could sleep in the middle of a battle. He once felt asleep in a mission. Mary had to lift him with the stick to the top of a tree."

"It wasn't a pleasant experience, I 'felt' with all the noise and 'broke' my arm!!" Lucius protested almost yelling to be heard above the uncontrollable laugh of the presents.

After that incident, they finished their breakfast and around ten am they leaved France and apparated to Malfoy Manor, where they met a fuming Draco in the main doors.

"Good morning, son. What are you doing awake this early?" Narcissa asked kissing her son.

"Grandfather called 'right' after you left to let me know that I should make the elves clean the disaster that was made on yesterday night. The supposed disaster" Draco complained to the group in front of him with black bags under his eyes. "Who give him that 'incredible' idea??"

"Are you going to tell me that you didn't have a party here last night?" Severus asked with an eyebrow raised. He was sure that every Slytherin arrange parties when their parents were out of town. It was some sort of tradition.

"Of course I had. But do you think that I'm so stupid to let the manor in a complete mess?" The young Malfoy responded smirking slightly "I'm not some kind of Gryffindor, you know?. You should know better than that, Godfather."

"We sorry to say that we forgot about your great intelligence, Draco" Lucius said while he walked pass the door and into the manor with the rest of the group after him.

Draco nodded in response and followed his father, trying to cover a yawn unsuccessfully. "If you don't need my services anymore, I'm going to have my rest. Feel free to knock you heads in the walls before trying to enter to my rooms"

With that the teenager climbed the stairs tiredly to his bedroom, not bothering to turn around to hear the others goodbyes. Narcissa excused herself and walked to her study. She was suppose to received new evidence for a case and she wanted to arrange a meeting with her client and companions after revising the material. She would see Lucius at the train station tomorrow morning and meet the rest of the group in the weekend.

After sending a couple of house elves to pack all his things, from robes to personal stuff, Lucius turned to his friends and motioned them to follow him.

"To the owlery, Luc??" Severus said after recognizing the way that they were taking. He spend a lot of time and summers in this manor, he as well as Angelus knew it as well as a Malfoy.

The master of the manor smiled to his companion, and kept his pace without slowing a little bit answering. "I think that our friend would love to see his familiar. What do you think?"

Realization hit Angel like a hammer. He blinked a few times and watched his friend amused "Thanatos is here? I thought that he was killed by the aurors or lost…"

"That was the government's idea, but… Let's said that to be a Malfoy has his benefits" Lucius smirked turning in a corner and began climbing up the monogamy stairs. Reaching upstairs the group met with a huge ebony door with all kind of birds craving in it, adorning the mark. The Malfoy chest of arms, a royal gray eagle with his wings spreaded, sitting on a rock with his talons lining the stone; was in the middle of the door.

Lucius put his right hand in the chest and the door opened itself revealing an enormous room filled with all kind of owls and eagles. The birds were standing in the suspenders of the roof making the scene a little bit gloomy.

The sun was shining, illuminating the room through the high windows. The group walked into the owlery and took two right hands leather gloves from a cupboard and a silver whistle.

Lucius put one of the gloves on, he extended his arm and blow the whistle, which emitted an almost soundless melody. He stood high and proud like a hero from the old times. In less than 30 seconds a cream like royal eagle flow to his master and stood perfectly erect without blinking his brown eyes.

"Good morning, Lucifer. How are you being? Did the others give you any problems?" The bird ruffled his plumage and stood even higher than before, making a smirk appear in his master face.

Even the bird is a Malfoy, thought Severus laughing inside. They are totally true with the proverb that all the things looked like his owner.

"I know, I know. You are perfect. Do me a favor and look for Angelus's familiar, Thanatos. Do you remember him, don't you Lucifer?" The eagle nod in response and flow into the room to pleased his master.

The group didn't have o wait much time before the return of the bird. With Lucifer came a black hawk who has piercing frozen blue eyes. They flow together in perfect harmony and landed in their master extended arms at the exact same time.

Angelus eyed his familiar with bright eyes. For him to see Thanatos it was the sames as seeing his long lost son or his dead father. He was a gift that Mary gave him for his thirteenth birthday and until now tha hawk kept being loyal to him. A huge smile illuminated Angelus's face while he started to pet his familiar.

"It has been to long, my friend. Thank you for waiting for me" Angel muttered. In response the bird closed his eyes letting himself lose in the warm touch of his master.

"Little Angel is back with us?" Mary asked hopefully seeing Thanatos in his husband touch. "Mary missed you, Little Angel. Mary's last home was cold and boring"

Her friends turned to her and sadness invaded their bodies as a shiver went through Mary's spine and made her tremble. Severus was about to reply to her last comment when a gray owl with yellow eyes came flying rapidly straight to Lucius. As a reflect, all of them took their wands, pointed to the bird and eyed it suspiciously, while Thanatos and Lucifer's eyes glowed in a predator way to the intruder. The owl in question planted itself in the floor with one of his legs extended looking at the Malfoy Master to take away the letter it carried.

Mary knelt before the owl and took the parchment ruthlessly from the bird. She glance at the animal murderously.

"You bad, bad bird. You don't make the Prince kneel. Bad bird. Mary should have attacked you with her stick for your offence. Slytherins don't kneel. Not them" She pointed to he Lords before continuing "And certainly not Mary"

With a fast and fluid movement, Mrs. Lestrange  left the owl a few centimeters and cracked it's neck in a swing of her hands.

The Lords smirked at her antics. Not all is lost after all. Thought Lucius as Mary stood up from her position discarding the bird's body in the floor without noting the loud thud. She clapped her hands happily.

"Bad owl is not going to do mistakes any more" Mary extended the letter to the Prince and started to pet Thanatos affectionately.

Lucius unfold the parchment after seeing his friends nods of confirmation.

        Malfoy,

                Beware of your dear ones. Betrayal in 'not' forgiven.

                Remember: Once a Death Eater, Always a Death Eater.

               

                'Our' Lord send his regards to you and to Snape.

                                        Sincerely,

                                                        Avery.

 Lucius let escape a bitter laugh from the bottom of his throat while Severus raised and eyebrow and Angelus struggled in amusement.

"Avery thinks that he can threaten me" He lend the Potions Master the letter and continued "Now that he is second in command he believes that I am going to tremble in fear for his words"

"He is a fool, Luc. And our dear 'master' is it to if he believes capable of making us fear him" Angelus said taking his hair from his face.

"True. I think that he forgot about who we are or he finally became totally insane because of his obsession with Potter" Severus added after incinerating the parchment with a flick of this wand.

Mary's head snapped after hearing the last comment "Potter? As is Gryffindork Deer Mudblood lover Potter?"

Lucius laughed at his friend concept of the marauder taking off his glove. "No, Potter as in Gryffindor Boy Who Doesn't Want To Die, Mudblood savior Potter"

"Good description. It fit him perfectly" Severus added amused, closing the cupboard door after put Angelus glove in place.

"It's getting late, and before you said anything, it's more late than fashionably late" Lucius raised his hand in defense seeing his friens try to cover his laughs. "We have to head downstairs to took my things before those useless house elves start packing furniture"

"You can go to Hogwarts and wait for us with Hades. You do remember the way, don't you?" Angelus inquired to the birds who looked at him in annoyance and flow as fast as they could to the windows heading to the school.