Set during the events of OotP, This is a reply from a request in the gift ficlet cookie jar where Narcissa has a secret she's been hiding for ten years. Lucius discovers it accidentally and it forces him to change the way he thinks about her.
Narcissa sat at the breakfast table sipping her tea quietly watching her husband reading the Daily Prophet. His eyes creased in amusement as he read the latest slandering of Dumbledore, he had skipped the headline, the large text on the front page that had made her grab the paper in wide eyed shock when she had seen the paper lying innocently on the breakfast table next to Lucius' chair.
MASS BREAK OUT FROM AZKABAN – MINISTRY FEARS BLACK IS RALLYING POINT' FOR OLD DEATH EATERS.
Well the bit about Sirius is obviously nonsense, like he would help any of the Dark Lord's supporters she mused. She stood their transfixed on the picture of her sister, and she remained there until her husband entered the room. He looked at Narcissa, and frowned, she didn't normally read the Prophet, she tended to prefer Witches Weekly. He peered over her shoulder to see what she was reading.
She turned round and looked at him accusingly "Did you know about this?" before he had a chance to reply; she turned from him and shook her head coldly. "Of course you did. Did it not occur for you to tell me? She's my sister Lucius and you didn't tell me."
"Darling" Lucius beseeched "I wanted to, but it was forbidden and I didn't dare defy the dark lord."
She seemed to accept this excuse, but Lucius made a mental note to be cautious about bringing the subject up about the Lestranges. Narcissa sat down at the breakfast table and poured herself and Lucius a cup of tea, "I'm surprised that the ministry haven't called yet." She commented coolly, "Should I be expecting them?"
"No" said Lucius firmly. "I received an owl from Fudge late last night, enquiring about the nature of the relationship between you and Bellatrix."
"And what did you tell him?"
"That you have had nothing to do with her since you found out that she had become a death eater, and that the subject of your sister was very painful. They have agreed that there is no need bothering you about the subject."
Narcissa sipped her tea calmly as Lucius picked up the paper and started reading it. When he had finished he got up, walked round the table and kissed his wife's forehead gently. "Goodbye darling" he smiled to her and he began walking towards the fireplace.
"Wait" Narcissa called firmly, Lucius halted in his tracks. "Am I likely to be expecting any guests for dinner tonight?" she called sweetly.
"Two" answered Lucius, relieved, although it had gone unspoken between them it was clear to the couple that Narcissa could expect the Lestranges to be dining with them tonight.
With the absence of her husband Narcissa went upstairs to prepare herself for today's events. This morning she was going for coffee at Clarice Macnair's, the wife of another prominent death eater, her husband Walden was a close friend of Lucius'. Then there was a charity luncheon for the patrons of St Mungo's, which she was to attend with Lucius, then this afternoon she planned to write to Draco, to enquire if he was coming home for the Easter Holidays. As she brushed her hair, she wondered what to get Lucius for their upcoming anniversary, next week they will have been married for twenty years. Narcissa shook her head, not knowing where the time had flown by to. It seemed only yesterday that she was Miss Narcissa Black, but for nearly twenty years she had been known as Mrs Lucius Malfoy. And make no doubt about it Narcissa enjoyed being Mrs Malfoy; she enjoyed the privilege, the power and the respect that came with the Malfoy name.
She stood at the wardrobe, deciding what to wear slowly, respectable wife was the game today. Eventually she chose a simple black knee length shift dress, black broad rimmed hat and black shoes. The outfit was completed by black elbow length gloves, a set of simple black robes and a string of the Malfoy pearls, being a Malfoy certainly had it's advantages.
At midday Narcissa found herself wandering through the shops in Diagon Ally, waiting for Lucius to accompany her for lunch, she was standing outside Gladrags wizarding wear, looking at a set of white silk robes in the window when a smooth voice spoke into her ear, "They would look beautiful on you Narcissa."
She whirled around expecting to see her husband, but when she faced the man he had dark hair, not Lucius' blonde mane. There was something familiar about his face, but she couldn't place it.
"You don't recognise me" he said crestfallen. He drooped, "I know it's been a long time but I thought at least you would recognise me." He seemed to be angry now. "For Merlin's sake we had a child together."
Shock, that was the only way to describe Narcissa's face, she was shocked. But she soon regained control over her emotions. "Keith" she said after an eternity. "How are you?" she enquired with a stiff awkward smile.
"I'm better, now" he replied bitterly before rounding on her "I thought for years what I would say to you if I ever saw you again."
"And what would you say?" she questioned him.
"Does it really matter now?" he questioned her, "but I would ask one thing". Narcissa nodded her approval of his question. "Why?"
Narcissa's face softened for a moment before hardening again. "I would have thought that was obvious."
"Blood" he spat bitterly.
Just at that moment to Narcissa's joint dismay and relief Lucius chose to make an appearance. "Narcissa my darling, there you are, I've been looking all over for you." He kissed her cheek tenderly, to keep up appearances if nothing else, Narcissa mused. Lucius then looked at Keith questioningly and Narcissa inhaled deeply before introducing the two men, her cheerful and light voice displaying none of the dread she felt about this meeting.
"Lucius, I would like you to meet Keith Harrington, Keith and I were at school together. Keith, I would like you to meet my husband Lucius."
Lucius held his hand out and Keith hesitated then took it. "Pleased to meet you Mr Harrington". Though his words were cordial, it was obvious that this was not the case, he turned to his wife, "Narcissa dear, we really must be going" and with a firm grip on his wife's elbow he lead her through Diagon Alley.
Later that afternoon, Narcissa had finished writing to her son, urging him home, as she did so much want him to meet his Aunt. She sat in the study reflecting on this afternoon's events. Meeting Keith like that, it was totally unexpected, and Narcissa didn't like the unexpected. Lucius hadn't mentioned anything about it, nor was he likely to, but he had radiated disapproval. She had never told Lucius about Keith, or their daughter, and it wasn't a subject that she planned to bring up anytime soon in the near future. Her relationship with Keith had ended over twenty years ago, the day that she had given up her firstborn child. The day she had reluctantly agreed to marry Lucius. And she enjoyed being Mrs Malfoy, in hindsight choosing Lucius over Keith was the best decision that she had ever made, true she wasn't in love with Lucius, and she never would be, but she cared for him, especially after twenty years of marriage.
A soft knock on the door and a house elf appeared. "Excuse me Mrs Malfoy, but Mr Malfoy requests that you join him in the drawing room."
"Of course, I will be there shortly."
She left the room, as she passed the mirror she checked her appearance, she wanted to look her best for Lucius, before entering the drawing room. Lucius sat on the couch elegantly sipping a cup of coffee with another man, but it was the dark haired woman who was standing in the corner awkwardly that drew Narcissa's attention. On Narcissa's entrance, the woman turned and stared at her. "Narcissa" the woman spoke coolly.
"Bella?" Narcissa's voice was little more than a whisper.
And suddenly the two women were embracing each other warmly. "Oh Bella." Narcissa choked out "I never thought I would see you again."
"Awww baby don't worry any more, I'm here now" Bellatrix comforted her little sister with a tenderness that would have surprised many.
"I missed you so much"
"I missed you too"
Lucius watched the reunion between the two with pride, Narcissa had always been close to Bellatrix, and when she had been taken to Azkaban it had been a devastating blow to his wife.
Narcissa had now, predictably, Lucius thought, moved on to the state of Bellatrix's appearance. "Oh my goodness look at you, look at both of you you're positively filthy. Let's get you cleaned up."
Narcissa took Bellatrix upstairs and commanded a house elf to run a hot bath for her sister. After her sister had bathed, the two women went into Narcissa's dressing room, where Narcissa started to brush her sisters tangled mane gently.
"You've done well for yourself" Bella commented as she looked around the opulent room.
"Being a Malfoy certainly has it's perks" Narcissa smirked.
Bella looked at her strangely for a moment before she replied. "If I remember rightly you didn't want to be a Malfoy. You were obsessed with that mudblood boy, what was his name again?"
"Keith" Narcissa whispered turning white. "But that was a long time ago." She quickly recovered herself.
"If memory serves, you really loved him. I never understood why you chose Lucius, especially after you had another mans child"
"Keep your voice down!" Narcissa hissed angrily. "After Andromeda ran off with that Tonks boy, Mother and Daddy were so disappointed. I couldn't put them through that again, and I didn't want to be cut from the family. So I chose Lucius, I knew that I would have no life with Keith."
"So you made the decision with your head, not your heart."
"Not everyone in the Black family is incapable of thinking rationally. I know it's not a skill you or Andromeda possess, but I do."
"Whatever happened to that bastard child of yours?"
"I heard that she recently graduated from Durmstrang."
"So that's why young Draco went to Hogwarts then? So he wouldn't bump into his half-sister there."
"In part" murmured Narcissa, now deep in thought. "Bella?"
"Yes?"
"Not a word to Lucius on the subject, he doesn't need to know." Narcissa walked out of her dressing room, through the open door to the bedroom that she and her husband had shared for the last twenty years, and straight into her husband. "Lucius" Narcissa breathed, "How long have you been standing there?"
"Long enough" he clipped, his voice cold. Narcissa stared at him, his expression unreadable. This was what unnerved her the most, they had been married so long that she could read him like a book, it would be better if he was upset, or angry or both. But he was so cold.
He turned his back on her and walked away. Narcissa followed him slowly, and when he stopped in his study she put her arms around him, although he didn't return her embrace. "Lucius?" she said softly, calmly, as he didn't respond she tried again, "Lucius, I'm sorry."
He shrugged her away from him."Sorry?" he spat angrily, "I just found out that my wife had a dalliance with a filthy mudblood, and all you can say is sorry."
"And that's all it was" Narcissa turned on him, "A dailliance, as you put it. It was a fling, but it never had any future."
"So you just decided to marry me then?"
"Don't you dare even consider being angry for that. I married you because it was the best choice for all involved. And it's not a choice that I have ever regretted."
"But you don't love me" Lucius said softly, but bitterly.
"No more than you have ever loved me" countered Narcissa, "And if I remember you only married me because I was the only black sister left available."
"It was a good match" Lucius suddenly smiled to himself.
"It still is." Narcissa finished for him, "We have built a good life together, we have a happy marriage, an amazing son. I wouldn't change anything about my life, if you had asked me twenty years ago where I wanted to be I would have said here, with you."
Lucius stood and stared at his wife, they had been married for twenty years next week. To celebrate their anniversary he had bought her a diamond bracelet, not that Narcissa didn't have plenty of jewellery, but this particular piece was special. But in some way Lucius felt betrayed, she had soiled herself with a mudblood, and the worse part was the child. "And what of your daughter?"
"What of her?" Narcissa asked coldly, normally Lucius would have taken her tone as a cue that no further discussion would be needed, but today, the hell with what Narcissa wanted, she had lied to him for twenty years.
"Narcissa" he said warningly.
"She was put up for adoption, I made it clear that I wanted no contact with the child. I don't even know her name."
"You didn't want any contact with your own child?" Lucius asked, completely astounded by his wife's coolness.
"She wouldn't fit in with my life here, I knew that she, and I for that matter would never be accepted into pureblood society again. So I severed all ties." She paused for a moment staring at her husband. "This is to go no further Lucius, it stays within the family."
Lucius nodded curtly, "Agreed."
Narcissa continued, "I will tell Draco at my own leisure, if at all. The boy currently does not need to know, what good will it do him?"
Lucius again nodded, when it came to Draco's best interests, well Narcissa generally knew best, after all she was his mother, and as her only child her world revolved around him.
"Speaking of Draco," Lucius announced, calmly changing the subject. "I received an owl from him this evening, he will be returning home for the Easter holidays. It appears he is also rather eager to meet his aunt." Narcissa beamed at this piece of information. She would make preparations for his arrival in the morning.
Draco Malfoy returned home the day after his parents twentieth wedding anniversary. His mother, when she came to collect him from platform 9 ¾ was sporting a beautiful white gold and diamond bracelet, which on closer inspection was engraved on the inside:
To Narcissa, for all your devotion for the last twenty years. All my love. Lucius
When he returned to the manor however, things were different. His parents, although he was well aware that they had never been passionately in love, they were different. They were cold. When his father left for work he said goodbye to his wife, he didn't kiss her tenderly on the cheek, as was his habit. When photographers from the Daily Prophet's society section came round to take photos of the couple celebrating their anniversary, his mother didn't squeeze his father's hand affectionately.
The Malfoy Manor had become a cold place since his last visit, when he tried to bring up the matter with his father, he got only more riddles.
"You know that I love your mother, don't you?"
Draco merely nodded in reply.
"In my own way, I love her very dearly. I never really noticed that until recently. I always took her affection for granted. But I have always been a fool for love."