The King and I

Disclaimer: What I do and do not own should be very clear by now.

Thank yous: Writer Chica, Preetoaka Raven Potter Weasley, NeedlePoint, Eleonora1, Marblez, Sarahamanda, Ceyxa, Muthru, and Orlin.

Eleonora1: I think we have established that subtlety is not something I am good at :-P Especially considering the title of the last chapter. Yeah, Sev being pregnant would have been funnier, but I can't imagine him being submissive to James; I can only imagine Sev bending over for Voldemort, Lucius and Sirius. I think you are better at updating than I am.

I have been thinking of putting in a flashback of how Lucius and Sirius came together, I am not sure when I will put it in though.

Narcissa is the same age as Lucius, by the way, at least for this story. So they are both 40.

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Chapter 5: Speech

It had been two very long days since Sirius had woken up and found his little son was missing, and the distraught parent was not fairing well at all. Sirius had practically given up sleeping and eating for worrying about his baby, he did not want to talk to anybody and he was working himself towards a temperamental explosion. The friends who had been with Sirius the last two days, if only briefly, could tell that when this kidnapper was caught he or she would probably not survive Sirius's temper – he was ferociously protective of those he loved and he did not take it well when they were hurt.

It was now late in the afternoon of the second day of Draco being missing and Sirius was curled up at one end of his couch staring blankly and miserably at his bookcase, absentmindedly picking at some fluff on the arm of the couch. He was not alone in his apartment, however, because his brother, Regulus, was now sticking to his side like glue to make sure his older brother didn't do anything stupid in this state. As he had no job to speak of, he was perfectly able to stay with Sirius and keep an eye on him, and to be with him when Lucius couldn't or when any news came.

Regulus was sitting at the table, the Daily Prophet laid out in front of him, he was only half reading it though, glancing up at his brother every few minutes to see if there was any change in the man. But to no avail, Sirius seemed to be completely shutting himself off to all around him; there was only a slight change in him when Lucius turned up to see how he was. "Do you want something to eat, Si?"

"…No…"

Regulus sighed and went back to his newspaper, but he glanced up again when the apartment door opened and James appeared; he was looking a bit worse for wear as well, but Regulus couldn't see why. "Hey."

"Hey," greeted James; he leaned over the back of the couch so that he could see Sirius's face, and he put a hand on his best friend's shoulder. "How are you feeling?" a slight shrug of the shoulders was all the answer he got, so he looked worriedly over at Regulus who nodded towards the kitchen. The unruly haired man brushed a hand through Sirius's unusually messy hair in an attempt at comfort before following Regulus into the kitchen; once there he lowered his voice and spoke again. "Have you heard anything yet?"

Regulus leaned against one of the benches and shook his head, he too spoke in a hushed tone, "No, nothing…or at least nothing that's telling us that they're any closer to finding Draco. Narcissa, apparently, did prove useful and she does know exactly who did the kidnapping, on her order no less."

James lightly bit the inside of his cheeks, a habit of his, "So she definitely knows about the affair then?" Regulus nodded before going about the kitchen and getting some glasses and a bottle of Firewhiskey. "If she wants Lucius to herself, I don't see how kidnapping his son would help, that's just driving him further away."

Regulus smirked slightly, "Narcissa is not the brightest of women, and she often acts on impulse rather than thought."

"I guess…"

"Drink?"

James shook his head, "No, I can't."

Regulus raised his eyebrows before pouring one for himself and Sirius, "I don't think I have ever heard you turn down alcohol before, James."

James gave a shrug; "There's only been one time that Sirius has turned it down."

Regulus stayed silent for a moment before glancing at James, "Congratulations," James gave a small smile. "Though I can't say I can see Severus as the paternal kind…"

"No neither," agreed James, knowing full well how his husband felt about most children. "Though I didn't think Lucius would be the paternal kind either, but look at him."

"True," Regulus placed the Firewhiskey bottle back into the cupboard where he had found it. "But you would think the git would be here more due to the fact that it is also his son that was kidnapped. I mean, Sirius needs him, and he's only been here a total of about an hour and a half since I came back here last night."

James chewed his bottom lip lightly for a moment before speaking again, "I'm not with his decision of not being here for Si, don't get me wrong, but we should at least give him the benefit of the doubt. I mean, his wife is apparently the cause of all this, and I'm sure he's doing something to help even if we don't know it."

"Maybe so…but I still don't have to be fond of him."

"You grew up knowing him, it's understandable," said James before he followed Regulus back out into the living area of the apartment, to see if the two of them could make any change in Sirius's mood. Though this really turned out to be a rather big waste of time on their part, as Sirius just about ignored their entire presence in his apartment, let alone not talking or responding to them.

…

A while later Regulus had gone out for some take away food for the three of them, or at least for him and James seeing as Sirius didn't seem to like food at the moment. James sat in an armchair flipping through a magazine, when there was a small flash of light above the coffee table – both he and Sirius looked up in surprise, as a rolled up piece of parchment fell to the small table, it was bearing the Malfoy Crest.

Sirius, showing the first signs of being at least partially human since James had arrived, leaned forward and picked up the piece of parchment; he broke the seal and unrolled it, a frown on his face.

Sirius,

I understand that this is probably the last thing you would wish to do while you are feeling the way you are, but I would appreciate your being at the Ball tomorrow night, and I also need your permission for the speech I plan on making. I plan on making our relationship public knowledge, I think doing so could greatly help us in getting our son back; it is the last thing that Narcissa and her little cohorts would want us to do. I want your permission to make this speech because you know exactly what is going to happen when we come out; we, and you especially, are going to be setting ourselves up for a lot of negativity and animosity. I hope you have yourself ready for what will happen.

Please, come tomorrow night, a little earlier than the usual eight o' clock start, if possible. I would like to talk to you properly first, before we do anything too drastic; I am, of course, assuming that you will allow me to make the speech, but if not, then we can still discuss what to do. I do hope that you are doing all right, personally, I am a nervous wreck; I never thought that I would feel so much protectiveness over such a small being, but I hope for Draco's sake that he is unharmed.

We will get him back, Sirius, I promise you that.

Owl me back with your reply.

With love,

Lucius

James watched Sirius carefully for a moment, there was an unreadable expression on his best friend's face, "What does it say?"

Sirius sighed, and for the first time since yesterday morning, he spoke in full sentences. "Lucius wants me to attend his Ball tomorrow night, he says he wants to let the public know about us to see if it helps in getting…getting Draco back," he finally made eye contact with James, there were unshed tears in his sad grey eyes. "He wants my permission to make the speech…"

James frowned a little, "What if it doesn't help though? What if coming out to the public just makes it worse?"

Sirius gave a shrug, "We won't know what will happen if we don't try though. Luce was being blackmailed into doing things a while back so that someone who did find out wouldn't tell, but if we make it known then no one has anything to hold over us…least, I don't think they will…" he sniffled and wiped his eyes on his sleeves. "I just want him back, James…"

"I know you do," James moved over to the couch and hugged Sirius. "You will get him back, I know you will. He is your son, and if he is anything like you, he is not going to let himself stay lost."

Sirius had his face buried against James's shoulder as he gave a shaky and muffled little laugh, "He is only four months old…"

James rubbed Sirius's back, "And he's my godson, I want him back as well," he heard the door open and close. "I hope they catch this bastard so that I can watch you kill him."

"Oh progress, thank god," said Regulus from behind them. "How did you do it?"

James smirked slightly, "A letter from Lucius did it."

Sirius lifted his head and sniffed again and then his eyes saw the bag in Regulus's hand, "Is there some for me?"

Regulus nodded, "Mmhmm, I'm glad we don't have to force it down your throat, I must say," he didn't mean to sound so harsh but he was worried that his brother would do something stupid. The youngest of the Black brothers also just wanted to look after his brother and return the care that he had gotten from Sirius when they were younger. "What did his Majesty want?"

Sirius was not too fond of the tone that Regulus was using, but he could understand it, sort of, "He wants me to go to his Ball tomorrow night so that we can make our relationship public."

Regulus put the bag of Chinese takeout on the table, "Aren't you being put through enough at the moment? Everyone is going to go berserk when they find out that he's been having an affair with you. People are going to stone you in the streets, Sirius! You do realise that, don't you?"

Sirius looked very close to tears again and he averted his gaze from his brother's, not attempting to say anything, instead, James spoke for him. "Regulus, calm down-"

"I will not calm down!" snapped Regulus at the messy haired man. "I am sick and tired of seeing you get hurt, Sirius! I know Lucius is the cause of most of it and you're just letting that cold-hearted bastard do it again!"

The next person that spoke was none of the three dark haired men that were already in Sirius's apartment; it was a calm yet rather cold voice coming from the blond man leaning against a cabinet.

"As much as I agree with your sentiments, Regulus, I do not appreciate being insulted, especially not when I am present in the room."

Regulus had his fists clenched at his sides, his nastiest glare fixed on his face and aimed at the regal blond on the other side of the room; he was not at all fazed by the words of his King. "You stopped scaring me long ago, Lucius, if that is what you were aiming for."

Sirius was glancing worriedly and teary-eyed between his lover and his little brother, while James had his face buried in his hands; he was silently hoping Regulus would shut up before he got himself thrown into Azkaban for a few days or longer for verbally or even physically assaulting the King.

Before Lucius could open his mouth to retort Sirius spoke in a small voice, "Please don't fight…just…shut up, Reg, please…"

Regulus was breathing hard, he was still glaring at the calm blond, "Fine," with that said, he headed for the door, deliberately pushing passed Lucius, who was not actually in the way. "I'll see you soon."

Sirius flinched when the apartment door slammed shut, and then he nearly whimpered when James got to his feet.

"I'll go after him," James gave Sirius's right shoulder a reassuring squeeze, he grabbed his winter robe before heading for the door, as he passed Lucius he muttered under his breath. "Look after him."

Lucius gave a small incline of his head to show that he had heard, and after James had left the apartment with far less petulance than Regulus, he spoke again. "May I inquire as to the cause of that outburst?"

Sirius sniffed, "Your letter…"

"Ah, yes," Lucius went over to the couch and sat down next to Sirius who was once again gazing miserably at the bookcase; he pressed to a kiss to Sirius's forehead. "I can see Regulus's opinion of the letter is not high at all, but how do you feel about it?"

Sirius rested heavily against the backrest of the couch and folded his arms over his stomach, he sighed and sniffed again, "I don't know…I guess it's worth a try to get him back…right?"

"That was my thinking," Lucius put a hand to Sirius's head and brushed some of his younger lover's fringe back from his forehead. "If you do not want me to do it, Sirius, then I won't."

Sirius nuzzled his head into the palm of that elegant hand, "I don't care anymore, Luce, I just want him back…" he gazed at Lucius out the corners of his eyes. "Just do it."

Lucius nodded, one hand still in Sirius's soft hair, "If you're sure, then tomorrow night I will make the announcement," he leaned forward and gently kissed Sirius on the lips. "I want you to come back to the palace with me tonight."

Sirius shook his head a little, "No, what if there's news? I need to be here for it…" he trailed off when Lucius placed a well-manicured forefinger to his lips.

"I don't want you to be alone," replied Lucius honestly. "And the idiot in charge of the investigation is under strict instructions to contact the both us if there is any news. If they can not get a hold of you they will come to me."

Sirius tried to swallow but it felt like there was a lump in his throat, instead he gave a small nod, "All right…but what if Reg or James come back?"

"We'll leave a note."

…

Meanwhile, just outside of the apartment building that Sirius lived in, James had caught up with Regulus who was about to start walking into a rather seedy part of London. It was pitch black now except for the streetlights and the nearly full moon hanging low in the sky.

"Reg! Wait!"

Regulus stopped mid-step and turned back to look at James who drew to a halt in front of him, "What?"

"What is wrong with you?" questioned James, he had known Regulus for a while now but he had never known the youngest Black heir to have outbursts like that; he was usually just soft spoken and cheeky. "Are you trying to make Sirius worse than he already is?"

Regulus put his hands up to his face and groaned, he then went and leaned against the wall of the apartment building and sighed; he dropped his arms down to his sides. "I just…I can't stand seeing him like that… I-the last time he was in that sort of state, that I was present for, is when…is when our father-" he broke and tried to gesture with his hands about what he meant. "You know…"

James nodded; he knew all too well what Regulus meant. After all, he had been the one that Sirius had come too after his father had violated him in such a horrible way, one too many times. He knew that Regulus had only managed to save himself from that horror by running from the House of Black at the same time as Sirius. "Yeah, I do know…"

Regulus ran his fingers through his hair, "…Seeing him like this again just brought back those memories…it just brought me into the sharp reality of how protective I am of him, I don't want to see him hurt again. I don't trust Lucius either."

James folded his arms, it was quite chilly this evening; though it was winter, "You've made your distrust blatantly obvious," Regulus managed a grimace. "Go home, Reg, get some sleep and let Remus console you, if anyone can talk some sense at a time like this, its him."

Regulus sighed and nodded, "Okay… If you see Siri before I do, tell him I'm sorry for shouting at him, please?"

"I will," James watched as Regulus ducked into the nearest alleyway and Apparate away home; he rubbed his forehead and decided to do the same. He too ducked into the nearest alleyway and Apparated to Hogsmeade; though he had no job to speak of and a perfectly good house in Lincoln, he practically lived at Hogwarts again now because that is where his husband is.

…

"How is he?" asked Remus croakily from his place in his and Regulus's bed; his full moon fever had started earlier this month, which annoyed him a bit because it meant that he had to have an extra day off work.

Regulus fell down onto the bed and buried his face into a pillow, "Miserable…and I think I made it worse…" his voice was muffled now.

Remus frowned and brushed his fingers through Regulus's hair, "What did you do?"

Regulus lifted his head and sighed, "I shouted at him and then I stormed out… I'm a horrible brother…"

"I assume that there was at least some form of a reason for your shouting at him, right?"

"There wasn't much reasoning behind it…"

…

"It is illegal to Apparate while pregnant, you know that, don't you?" said Severus from his armchair almost immediately after James had entered his quarters.

"As the only people who know I am pregnant are us two, Poppy and Regulus, I don't think that matters too much," replied James before flopping down onto the couch and closing his eyes. "Nice to see you, too, by the way."

Severus closed the book that he had been reading and gazed over at James through thought-narrowed black eyes, "You need some sleep, James."

"I slept last night."

Severus frowned a little, "You need a full night's sleep every night, and you need to look after yourself," he held James's sleepy gaze unblinkingly. "I know you are worried about Sirius and Draco, but our baby needs your concern as well," he got to his feet and held out his hands for James, "Come on, bed."

James yawned and took Severus's hands and let his husband pull him back to his feet, "Can I have a Sleeping Draft?"

"No," replied Severus as he steered James towards their bedroom. "Many potions are dangerous to take while pregnant, and a Sleeping Draft is one of the worst. Do not touch any potion without consulting me first."

"Yes, mother," James leaned into Severus's warm body when they stopped in the bedroom.

"I am merely looking out for you," Severus ran his hands up and down James's almost limp arms and pressed a kiss to the back of his neck. "Am I right in assuming that you are waiting for me to strip you?"

James let his head fall back on Severus's shoulder and he smiled lazily, "You know me too well…" he trailed off into another yawn just as he felt Severus's nimble hands undoing the clasps on his thick winter robes; he felt his robes fall away from his body. "Mm…I feel like shit, Sev…"

"You look like shit, too, James, I assure you," said Severus; he was holding James around the waist with one arm in support as he used his other free hand to undo the messy haired man's shirt. "Could you perhaps give a little helping hand?"

James stiffened his posture a bit so he wasn't leaning entirely against Severus's lithe form, "But you're doing such a good job…" he kicked his own shoes off and undid his belt, as he felt Severus's fingers undoing his trousers. "Are you going to do something after you get my trousers off?"

Severus rolled his eyes, "Horny little git."

"Sourpuss," retorted James before turning around in Severus's arms and linking his own around his husband's neck. "Were you invited to that Ball tomorrow night?"

Severus nodded, "Yes, I was, why?"

James kissed the potions master briefly on the lips, "I thought I might tag along…"

…

"Don't you think you should at least be there for moral support?"

Regulus was sitting on his and Remus's bed pouting now, he shook his head vigorously, "Our parents will be there, they always are, I am not going. Anyway, it's a full moon tomorrow night, I want to stay here."

Remus sighed and lay back on the bed, "Suit yourself, I still think you should be there for Sirius though. I would be if I could."

Regulus chewed one of his fingernails almost nervously, "I'm sure James will make sure he's there…"

"You're hopeless."

"I know."

……

It was after midnight now and Lucius lay awake in his huge bed, which was very fit for a King, watching his younger lover sleeping peacefully. He had managed to get a Dreamless Sleep Potion into Sirius not long after they had arrived at the palace and he had been fast asleep since, with Lucius watching over him.

The blond gently ran his fingers through Sirius's unkempt black hair, as he thought; he was certain that he was making the right decision with coming out about his and Sirius's relationship but he could not help but be worried about what could happen to them when they did. He did not want Sirius to get hurt, and as he lay there he decided that he would make it very clear to his guests that there would be severe consequences if harm came to Sirius. There was also the problem of Sirius's family being there – cousins, parents, aunts and uncles – all of who hated him and Regulus with a passion; they would especially hate him after this. They would probably go out of their way to get rid of him.

Lucius sighed and settled down properly behind Sirius's curled up body; he pressed a lingering kiss to the back of Sirius's neck before pulling the slightly smaller body into his arms and closing his eyes. They would both be having a very long night after this one.

………

It was Judgement Day, or at least that's what it felt like to Sirius; it was early in the evening of the King's Ball and he was getting very anxious. He had not left the King's chambers all day because Narcissa had been allowed out of her holding cell at the Ministry today, on Lucius's orders. Apparently the blond wanted his wife to be present for the very public bombshell that he was going to be dropping tonight, not that Sirius could blame him, he wanted to rub Narcissa's face in it as well. It would teach her to mess with them and their son.

The dark haired man was broken out of his thoughts when he felt soft lips against his own, he focussed his eyes on the concerned looking blond gazing back at him, "Hey…"

Lucius sat down on the bed infront of him and cupped a hand under his chin, "How are you holding up?"

Sirius gave a little shrug, "I've been better…" he sniffed and rubbed a hand down his tired face. "What time is it?"

Lucius checked his gold heirloom watch, "Just gone six," he pressed a kiss to Sirius's forehead. "We should start getting ready. I'll be in the shower if you need me."

Sirius nodded, "Can I join you?"

Lucius gave him a sly look and smirked, "If you wish too."

……

It was half past eight now and Sirius was just down the hall from the palace ballroom, he had started to become reluctant to go to the Ball so Lucius had told him to take his time in getting down there; he was nervous as hell and he felt sick to the stomach. He leaned against a white and gold wall for a few moments and pressed a hand to his forehead, his eyes focussed on the velvety red carpet on which he was standing.

"Padfoot."

Sirius looked up and saw his best friend coming towards him, "Hey…what are you doing here?"

"Sev was invited and I thought I might tag along for moral support," replied James before hugging Sirius. "Are you all right?"

Sirius managed a small smile, "You know, I'm starting to get sick of people asking me that, but yes, I'm all right for now."

James nodded, "Fair enough," he took Sirius by one of the arms. "Come on, his majesty is starting to get worried and he's anxious to make his speech."

Sirius groaned quietly and allowed James to tug him along, "My family are going to kill me."

"I consider you family and I'm not going to kill you."

Sirius gave his first genuine smile for three days, "Thanks… But I'll rephrase that, those that are related to me by blood are going to kill me after this speech."

"They wouldn't dare, they'd have the King to answer too."

……

By nine o' clock that night Sirius was on his third glass of champagne and practically clinging to James out of anxiety and a little bit of fear after seeing his parents; his father was looking him up and down in a rather frightening manner. It barely registered in his mind that every time James went for a glass of champagne Severus snatched it off his husband and smacked him around the head; he was too mindful of his own thoughts to care right now.

Sirius soon noticed that everyone was starting to quieten down; he was close to a raised platform at the front of the ballroom now, where a small orchestra was playing but even they had stopped now. He looked up and saw that Lucius was up on the platform gazing around the ballroom at his guests, waiting for them to all be quiet; those silvery eyes then caught his own briefly and Sirius knew exactly what was about to happen. The dark haired man gulped back the rest of his champagne and grabbed his fourth glass off the tray of a passing house-elf just as Lucius started to speak.

"Recent events and articles in media publications have brought me to make this speech to you all this evening," started the blond monarch; his posture rigid and half a glass of champagne still in his hand. "I am sure that many of you have now heard the rumours about myself having an affair, however unreliable the source was; I would first like to set this to rest because it bears great importance to what I will be saying next. Yes, I am indeed having an affair…an affair with a man," he paused a few moments to allow for a shocked murmur to pass through his audience, his eyes flickering briefly back to Sirius who was watching him intently. "I have been in a relationship with this man, whom I love dearly, for the best part of the last twelve years. He is here this evening and I am making this speech on behalf of the both of us to help us in the return of our child."

More shocked murmurs rose through the audience and several pairs of eyes watched their King walk across the platform to where three raven-haired men stood.

Sirius squeaked when his glass of champagne was removed from his hand, which was then taken by the King and he found himself being pulled up onto the platform, "Oh god, no…" he could practically feel the dirty looks coming from his relatives and the Queen. So much so that he forced himself not to look up.

Lucius removed his hand from Sirius's and placed it at the small of his lover's back; he could feel how tense Sirius was, "Four months ago, Sirius and I were blessed with the birth of our son, illegitimate yes, but he is also your future King. However," his voice grew a bit colder now. "Three days ago our son, Draco, was taken from us. Kidnapped. His kidnapping was due to a plan formed by my wife after having found out about this affair," he narrowed his eyes at Narcissa. "The man who took Draco on her orders is yet to be found, and I urge anyone with information to come forward immediately.

"This kidnapping is a personal attack on the monarchy, as such, those involved will be punished severely," continued Lucius; he was holding Sirius's hand again now, though his own was nearly being pulverised by the tight grip that Sirius had one it. "Let this be a warning to everybody, especially those few involved with Draco's kidnapping… Know this, if our son is harmed in any way, if so much as a single hair on his head is damaged the perpetrators will not be getting trials. They will be sent straight to Azkaban while they await further punishment, that punishment could very well involve reintroducing the death penalty into the Wizarding World, or the Dementor's Kiss. But as this kidnapping is affecting Sirius far more than myself, I may just leave it up to him to decide on the punishments; he is very creative.

"That being said, now that you know of this affair, any harm that befalls Sirius after this point in time will be punishable in the worst way that I see fit," Lucius gazed calmly around the ballroom, noting the different expressions on the faces of his guests. Some were fearful, some were angry (the Blacks, mainly), some were showing concern, and some, Severus and James in particular, were showing great amusement at the King's threats. "Thank you, for your time," with that said and done, Lucius tugged Sirius off the platform and back into the crowd of high society and Ministry folk. Once back on the ballroom floor, Lucius turned to his lover, rested his hands on Sirius's waist and kissed the still slightly scared man full on the mouth. In front of everyone.

"Aw," James put his head on Severus's shoulder and gazed at the couple adoringly; if Lucius Malfoy was willing to sacrifice his public image for Sirius and their little son then he couldn't be all bad, could he?

Severus rolled his eyes, not at the public display of affection before him but at his cooing husband, "Oh, keep it together, you soft prat."

James lifted his head and grinned, "You love it," for that he got no response but he knew the truth.

"Stop it!"

Lucius broke the kiss and looked to his right narrowing his eyes slightly; his arms still around Sirius's slim body, he felt Sirius bury his head against his shoulder, "Stop what, Narcissa? Showing my true colours?" he glanced passed Narcissa to a couple of Aurors that coming nearer. "For showing what happens to those that fuck with my life and my family?"

Sirius lifted his head and gazed curiously at the blond; he had been surprised enough when Lucius had confessed his love for him to the public, but now the King was also referring to himself and Draco as his family too. This was beyond what he had expected.

Lucius spoke again, this time to the two Aurors that had stopped behind Narcissa, "Put her back in that holding cell while I decide what to do with her," he looked back to Narcissa, his arms still firmly around Sirius's waist. "This time tomorrow, Narcissa, you will no longer be my wife or my Queen, therefore, you will no longer have access to the royal bank accounts nor any of the privileges that you have taken for granted these past twenty years of loveless marriage. I would like you and your family, bar your two male cousins, out of my palace, out of my eye line and out of my life from this day henceforth. The only correspondence that you will receive from me after tonight will be your punishment," he looked back to the two Aurors, one of which had taken hold of Narcissa already. "Before you go, there is someone else that I want you to arrest. Arsenius Black."

Sirius stiffened and tried to burrow against Lucius's body at the mention of his father, but he did chance a look over at his biggest nightmare and saw, with some degree of satisfaction, that his father was looking quite worried now.

"Arsenius," started Lucius once again, his voice was very cold and menacingly quiet now. "As long as I have known you, I have always thought that you are an absolute bastard. However, something mentioned to me this evening concerning Sirius has forced me to do this. You will be taken to Azkaban this evening where you will await the Dementor's Kiss for the physical and sexual abuse of your son. Now, get them out of my sight."

……

It was just after midnight, the Ball had come to an end, and now all that were left in the vast ballroom were Lucius, a still rather shocked Sirius, Severus and James.

"That was an interesting evening," commented James, though his head was a bit sore now from Severus smacking it every time he picked up a glass of champagne. He only had himself to blame really.

Sirius was frowning now, he looked to Lucius, "How did you find out about…what my father did?"

Before Lucius could reply, James spoke up, though he was cowering slightly next to Severus now, "I told him, it just…it slipped out, and I've been wanting to see that bastard rot for a long time."

Sirius folded his arms, "Me too," he then remembered something that he had vaguely noticed earlier in the evening. "When's the baby due?"

James practically beamed at the question, "About the end of July, and then, you know, Draco can have a little buddy to beat up until his heart's content."

Sirius managed a smile, he was glad for James's enthusiasm and optimism at this moment in time; it was something he needed from his best friend.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………

A/N: That was much longer than I thought it would be.

Next Chapter: Will there be any backlash from Lucius's speech? Is there any news of Draco's whereabouts? More with the three couples (particularly Remus/Regulus who haven't gotten much story time so far). Plus whatever else I decide to throw in.