Disclaimer: I only own the plot and Morgana.

I Built My Life Around You

**Narcissa's Thoughts**

Chapter 16

The rest of Narcissa's summer was relatively trouble free; they spent a very dull two weeks in a villa in the south of France with the Goyle family. By the end of that Narcissa was quasi-suicidal and even Lucius looked like he'd had enough of them. Patricia Goyle was a pretty, petty woman who had married her husband for his money and it was clear she would have preferred Lucius. Frankly Narcissa would have preferred she'd had Lucius. Draco was on the verge of trying out hexes on Goyle Jr. when Narcissa suggested she take her son to Paris to get him some new robes. Lucius had looked horrified at the idea of being left alone with three Goyles, thankfully Gregory's older sister, Gwendolyn, had not joined them. Narcissa and Draco spent a fun few days spending Lucius' money in Paris buying things they didn't need but felt the urge to purchase and running up a room service tab in their hotel that was the size of the GNP for a small country.

They returned to the villa to find Lucius had not actually resorted to killing anyone in their absence and then headed back to Paris with Gregory in tow, as Patricia had sunstroke and Lucius and Roger had 'business' to discuss. Goyle Jr. wasn't quite the nightmare Narcissa had expected, though he certainly wasn't the sharpest tool in the box and he had unfortunately inherited his looks from his father rather than his mother but at least he didn't have her petty tendencies.

Narcissa was still immensely grateful to get home though. On the first evening back she and Draco collapsed in his room and pigged out on chocolate and toasted marshmallows over the fire, even though it was boiling hot outside, laughing at the events of the last few weeks even though they hadn't been very funny at the time.

*******

All too soon the summer drew to an end and Draco was due to go back to school in a week or so. Narcissa had no intentions of leaving him there for Christmas this year. She had heard all about Black's escape and couldn't help but be slightly nervous that the man would be out for revenge on those who had killed his friends, Lucius didn't seem worried but then Narcissa wasn't entirely sure she should be trusting his judgement on anything.

Lucius seemed more put out by a report in the Daily Prophet saying that the Weasleys had won their annual prize draw. Narcissa however had been delighted at their good fortune, she honestly couldn't think of anyone who deserved a little luck more than Molly and her family.

Narcissa took her son shopping for his school equipment in Diagon Alley and was somewhat baffled at his requiring what appeared to be a biting book. **What on earth?**

"Who teaches Care of Magical Creatures?"

"Professor Kettleburn but they did say he was retiring."

"Well it looks like the new teacher has quite the sense of humour," Narcissa commented as the poor shop keeper in Flourish and Blotts fished around inside the cage trying to catch hold of one without getting too badly bitten. Eventually one clamped itself to his leg and he was able to remove and capture it. Narcissa would have laughed but realised she still had to find a way of getting it home.

**Hmm, perhaps I could buy one for Lucy for Christmas, I wouldn't mind setting a biting book on him!**

Once they had left Flourish and Blots the book tried to escape from the bag it was in. Narcissa decided enough was enough, she still had shopping to do and she refused to be humiliated by a book.

She withdrew her wand and muttered a spell causing the book to collapse in Draco's hands limply.

"You killed it!" he said rather indignantly.

"Draco, it's a book, it isn't alive no matter how much it tries to bite you. Besides the spell's only temporary it'll wear off."

It certainly did wear off, and the book managed to wreak havoc in her son's room before he re-captured it and tied it shut with a length of rope.

*******

Narcissa had hoped that it might be a quiet year at Hogwarts for once, with no adventures in the forbidden forest, or heirs of the founders running amok. However, Draco had not been at school a week before she received news that Hagrid had been made the teacher for care of magical creatures and that Draco had been attacked by a hippogriff. Narcissa flew into a panic until she realised that if he was writing to her then he was clearly alive and kicking.

However, she was getting sick of hearing of her son being injured and endangered at school and was on the brink of sending Dumbledore another howler when she realised she just couldn't be bothered. She was too tired to deal with the man at the moment and she had the horrible feeling that once she began talking to him she would finish having let slip the events of summer and, after all, the events of the previous year had been her husbands fault so she felt somewhat hypocritical complaining.

In the end she soundlessly passed the letter over to her husband who looked enraged then oddly pleased, **Oh, great, he sees this as another opportunity to rid himself of the curse that is Dumbledore. Ah well, let him do what he likes. I can't believe they made that idiotic prejudiced over-grown moron a teacher!**

Narcissa simply sent Draco some sweets and books to keep him amused and demanded that he promise her that he would be careful in future and not get hurt. She wasn't sure if the last bit was really fair as it wasn't his fault anyway. She was suddenly hit by the amusing image of Draco walking up to a hippogriff and insulting it. She laughed aloud, **who could be that daft? No, I'm sure the thing was just unsafe, Draco couldn't be that silly!**

*******

Narcissa felt a little better when Draco wrote to tell her that the Dementors were guarding the castle as this surely meant that Sirius Black would be unable to exact revenge. The ministry may have thought he was after Potter, but she knew better and if he'd really been repeating, "He's at Hogwarts," she was worried that he might have decided to take revenge on the children of those who had allowed him to spend fifteen years in prison and killed his best friend and his wife. She didn't like the idea of putting Dementors near children but she supposed that it was better than leaving the gates open for Sirius Black to just stroll in. She and Lucius were both puzzled as to what he could want at Hogwarts and for once he seemed to have no more idea than she did.

She wondered how Severus was coping, feeling incredibly guilty as she remembered how she had nearly managed to throw him to the Dementors. **I bet having them there isn't bringing up any pleasant memories for him this year.** She was also willing to bet that he would not be happy with the new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, as he was an ex-Gryffindor who had been close friends with James Potter and Sirius Black and in her last year at Hogwarts she had noticed that Severus seemed to particularly dislike the other boy, though she had never been sure as to why.

She had never thought badly of Remus Lupin, he had seemed a little quieter than the others and had appeared to have poor health, he did at least manage to be polite to her whereas James and Sirius had seemed to hold her in little to no esteem and Peter she had always seemed to be able to frighten into submission without even trying. **I cannot believe Voldemort would have wanted that worthless little rat as a spy, and how stupid must the Potters have been to have used such a weak, cowardly creature as their secret keeper? Frankly I think they were asking for trouble!**

Draco it seemed was not enjoying Defence Against the Dark Arts this year, claiming the teacher was always ill and missing lessons and that outside of class he always favoured the Gryffindors and especially Potter. **Well, I suppose that is to be expected, that boy is all Lupin has left of his three best friends. Actually he isn't, if only he knew Sirius wasn't guilty.**

Narcissa had never felt bad about leaving Sirius in Azkaban, the ministry would never have believed her even if she had tried to save him and she certainly had had no liking for him at school. She remembered Sirius Black as a disrespectful, cocky, and at times mean, child who had taken a dislike to Sev and his friends from day one. She remembered how in her final year he had asked Morgana to a Yule dance and had been flatly turned down in front of a large group of Slytherins and Gryffindors only to have Morgana ask Severus to accompany her to the dance later on that day.

**Still, he is innocent. But there's no use in my feeling guilty, what could I have done and positions reversed I doubt he'd help me. Positions reversed, if anyone ever found out how I'd lied and covered up for Lucius could that happen?** She felt her blood run cold, **No, I'll be fine I've done nothing wrong. Alright I committed perjury and withheld evidence but...** her thoughts trailed off, what would happen to her if the ministry ever found out what she did?

"I'm in this up to my neck," she whispered. Then again the likelihood of anyone ever proving anything against Lucius was minute so she resolved not to worry.

*******

A/N: Sev's in the next chapter! I know it says in chap 15 that you'd see chapter 17 this coming weekend but as I was unable to get the chapters to upload before the weekend I meant you'll see chapter seventeen soon but maybe not this weekend as it is Saturday evening now! Hope that made sense!

GNP - Gross National Product

The slight Hagrid bashing is because she hasn't forgiven him for his comments in Flourish and Blotts yet.

Please Review!!!

Ok, just me having a little panic attack but will you people continue reading this after the next book comes out? Please say you will! In case anyone's interested there will be no updates on the release weekend because I will be busy reading book five myself! Please tell me you'll keep reading!!