Chapter Fourteen – The Malfoy Manor

A tiny pair of footsteps was making way towards the dining room. Lucius looked up from his copy of the Daily Prophet just in time to see Jessica making her morning appearance. She smiled at him half dreamily, clearly not remembering nor caring that she'd bid him a sour goodnight the previous evening.

"Good morning, Jessica," Lucius greeted happily before taking a delicate sip of black coffee.

"Morning, Mr. Malfoy," Jessica returned, sounding far more cheerful than he'd anticipated. "A beautiful morning, isn't it?"

Lucius cocked an eyebrow, secretly knowing what could have placed her in such agreeable spirits. "Indeed," he agreed. "I trust you slept well." He watched her carefully as he raised the edge of his coffee mug to his lips again.

"Yes, thank you," Jessica replied. "And yourself?" Although she hardly cared whether or not Lucius had had a good night's sleep, she blamed her forthcoming pleasantness on the vivid dream she'd had of Severus nibbling on her neck and kissing her in a new and uniquely passionate way. She raised her fingers to her neck and gently began to stroke the skin his lips had touched.

"Quite well," Lucius answered and keenly watched as Jessica began absentmindedly tracing her fingers up and down along the trail of last night's kisses. Lucius took a small bite of his croissant and remembered feeling quite content going upstairs to Narcissa to fulfill the needs his encounter with Jessica had generated.

"Have there been any messages for me?" Jessica asked in a voice that was readily anticipating a disappointing answer.

"No," Lucius said and shook his head like Jessica knew he would. "But if you would like to sit down and write your dear Severus before we begin today, I'll have a quill and parchment brought to your rooms."

"I'd like that. Thank you," she said quietly before dropping her hand back to her lap.

"You're quite welcome," Lucius assured.

"While you are a guest in my Manor I intend to be most accommodating, as you very well know."

Jessica looked up at him and put all of her effort into trying to read his mind. It used to be so easy. In fact, her uncle had to teach her how to stop it from being so easy. But now, the brand new sensation of being completely unaware of Lucius at an empathic level still left her feeling especially awkward and vulnerable.

"Why don't you have yourself a spot of breakfast," he suggested. "We will be beginning Spell practice later on in the day. It can be very exhausting work." Lucius set his coffee down on the table. "Dobby!" he bellowed.

Jessica jumped slightly at his voluminous voice. Only a few seconds after he'd been summoned, the tiny house elf by the name of Dobby entered the dinning room dressed in something that looked like an old, tattered pillowcase.

"What does Master wish of Dobby?" he asked in a high, squeaky voice.

"Miss Van Eden will be joining me for breakfast," he told the house elf without looking down at him. "Fix us something appropriate, and bring her something to drink. Coffee? Tea, my dear?" he asked, directing his question to Jessica.

"Tea, please," she said. "With a touch of honey." Jessica looked over at Lucius as he turned a page in the paper and watched his eyes scroll across the new page.

"Where is your wife this morning?" Jessica questioned.

Lucius turned another page and his eyes darted across the pages eagerly as if looking for a particular article. "She's down at the McKenzie manner having tea with some of the other ladies from the neighborhood," he answered without looking up. "She wanted you to go along with her, but I promised Severus I would keep a close eye on you and ensure that your training is on schedule."

"How responsible of you," Jessica said unenthusiastically, but Lucius didn't appear to hear her sarcasm, or even a single word of her response. His eyes stopped for a moment and he quickly began perusing the article Jessica assumed he'd been looking for. His eyebrows bent in speculation and Jessica wondered now more than ever what was going through the man's mind.

Still, she smiled to herself, it was worth not knowing. Even if she'd known before hand what she had to sacrifice in order to take Severus as her lover, Jessica would not have hesitated. Being and empath and a telepath wasn't nearly as rewarding as it was being the lover of Severus Snape.

Jessica closed her eyes and rolled her neck to the side as she glided the back of her hand across her throat again remembering just how real it felt to have Severus' lips graze across her last
night.

"Something amuses thee?" Lucius asked from behind the newspaper. He peeked around the edge of the paper and watched curiously.

"No," she said and put a straight face on. "Sorry, nothing."

"There's no need to feel embarrassed," he said. "You've got a charming smile. It's a pity you don't bear it more often."

Jessica's tea arrived with a small spoon and saucer. There was a small slice of lemon on the side of the teacup and the sweet scent of honey all of a sudden made Jessica very hungry. Warm croissants with butter came to follow, and then two plates of ham, bacon, omelets and delicious looking hash browns.

The empty fruit bowl in the middle of the table suddenly filled with a variety of fresh, bright colored fruit. Her reluctance to eat anything at the Malfoy Manor suddenly vanished as Jessica realized just how hungry she was. She had promised herself before arriving that she was not going to enjoy a single moment of the time she spent living with Lucius Malfoy, but the meal in front of her looked and smelled far too wonderful to not enjoy.

"Is everything all right?" Lucius asked as he cut through his large slice of ham.

"Yes," she answered, "everything's just swell."

Lucius gave Jessica a peculiar look but then began to chuckle before beginning to eat his ham. He chewed quickly and then swallowed hard before pointing his fork at her plate. "Go on, don't be shy. You barely touched your dinner last night, you must be starving."

Jessica picked up her fork and gently poked it through one of the soft cubes of her hash browns. They were seasoned with fresh chives and herbal spices and tasted better than she had imagined. "This is wonderful, thank you," she said and sampled the vegetable omelet.

"You're most welcome, Jessica," Lucius said and poured himself a glass of fresh orange juice. "Once you're finished there's something I'd like to show you." He sipped his juice and then gently set the glass down on the table.

"And what might that be?" Jessica asked, feeling slightly apprehensive.

"Something to keep you from slipping into boredom while you're here," he said. "I know you enjoy reading, so I thought I'd show you to the library. Then from there I'll take you on a tour of the manor."

The tour of the Malfoy Manor ended up with the library being the last rather than the first room Lucius had shown Jessica. It had been Quick and Easy Remedies that Lucius was particularly anxious to show Jessica. She recalled that he had once told her it was a gift to Lucius from her father, Lord Voldemort. Jessica had already read some of the magical remedies out of the book Madam Pomfrey kept in her office in the hospital wing, but like most magical things, the idea of using magic for any means did not intrigue Jessica.

A fire burned across the way from the large wall-length window, and although it wasn't even noontime yet, the thick, gray clouds had brought one of the year's first snowfalls and brought an evening-like darkness into the room. Jessica stood by the window for a moment and watched as the snow covered the earth in a thick, fluffy white blanket.

Hogwarts castle was a lot farther north than the Malfoy Manor and Jessica could only imagine how much snow had fallen on the grounds by now. Sometimes when the Hospital Wing was free of patients Jessica would sit by the window in the office and watch the rain, the snow, or the breeze blowing through the trees. Whatever the weather, Jessica enjoyed watching it… except for today. It wasn't because it was blizzarding out or because winter was finally here. It was because she was so far away from Hogwarts, so far away from Severus.

A tear dripped from her right eye as she thought of how far away this wicked heir of Slytherin character had taken her away from what she called home. Jessica spun around on her heel and collapsed on the long, Victorian couch that sat across from the blazing hearth. The book was still in her hand and Jessica began flipping through the pages to try and calm her frustration.

Quick and Easy Remedies was practically useless to someone like Jessica who knew nothing about brewing potions, unlike her lover. Although to Severus Snape, Quick and Easy Remedies was probably too trivial to entertain him. He probably knew each and every formula by heart.

Jessica hastily close the book and tossed it on to the coffee table adjacent to her. She leaned her head back into the arm of the couch and closed her eyes. She breathed in deeply and exhaled slowly and just listened to the calm crackling of the wood burning fire. It was as close as she had come to relaxing in the Malfoy Manor.

Except for last night when Pinky had brought her a cup of tea with a dash of Severus in it. Jessica smiled to herself as she remembered thinking about him as she sipped her tea in bed last night. Jessica didn't remember anything after finishing her tea, she must have fallen straight to sleep.

And then, what a dream she had dreamed! It was so real, as if Snape were in bed with her kissing and caressing her. It felt so good to have such a vivid dream of him on her first night in the Malfoy Manor. She had been sure that she would spend the whole night awake, anxious and worried that Lucius would perhaps have some evil trick up his sleeve to make her even more uncomfortable in his home than she already was.

Dear Severus,

Why were you not at the Entrance Hall to see me off? I don't understand that, Severus. We don't know how long it will be before we can see each other again and you couldn't even say goodbye to me! I can't begin to tell you how much that hurt me, Love. Perhaps if you were here you would feel it.

Uncle Albus told me that I was allowed visitors. Will you please come to see me as soon as you can? I have never felt so alone before. This place is so big, yet so empty without you. I want to come home right now. I want to be with you and never leave your side again. Why did this have to happen to us?

Has there been any news of the alleged Heir of Slytherin who has been terrorizing the school? I hope that something has or will happen soon just so that my innocence will be proven and I can return to Hogwarts. I don't want to stay here another minute!

There is so much more that I could tell you, but I fear that perhaps you will not appreciate all of the things I have to say, so I will wait patiently until I can see you again. I hope that it will not be too long. Christmas is just around the corner and I hope that we will be able to spend the holiday together. My only Christmas wish is that you and I will be able to be together. I can't possibly imagine that the Ministry or Uncle Albus will be unable to think of a way for us to be together at such a special time.

I miss you so much already, Severus! Please write back to me as soon as you can. Your words are all I have to look forward to.

Love,

Jessica

"How much has Severus taught you in regards to defensive dueling?" Lucius asked Jessica on the way to the training room.

"Not much," she replied meekly. "We practiced a few times. There's a Dueling Club starting at Hogwarts. He was going to take me to the first session to watch him, but I ended up here sooner than anyone had expected."

"You say that like being here is the end of the world," Lucius said and smiled. He saw the look of dissatisfaction on Jessica's face and new precisely why. "I apologize, Jessica. I shouldn't have said that. I know you detest being here."

They walked further down the corridor in an awkward state of silence. After each two steps, the base of his cane clicked against the marble flooring in a steady rhythm. Lucius walked with his shoulders back and his chin held high in a dignified manner. Jessica eyed him carefully and watched him, fascinated, as he walked with such poise and refinement.

He is rather handsome, Jessica found herself thinking as she looked into his glacier blue eyes, and a perfect gentleman when it serves his purpose. Jessica kept her look of disgust to herself as she thought about all the time he had been a complete slimeball to her. It's all just a show, Jessica convinced herself, he's nothing more than a selfish, audacious brute with enough money to persuade his superiors to look the other way.

As if he could sense her wicked thoughts, Lucius turned to look her way and curiously raised an eyebrow. "Something vexes thee?" he asked calmly.

"Not at all," Jessica assured him. Noticing how exceedingly close she had drifted towards him as they walked side by side, Jessica took a giant step away from him.

Lucius either didn't notice her abrupt motion or didn't care to acknowledge that she wanted to maintain a respectable distance between them. He carried on walking swiftly towards the room they'd be using for Jessica's training without noticeably paying her much attention.

Lucius pressed his hand against the large, oak door and pushed it open. It creaked faintly as it slowed to a stop and Lucius stepped aside, letting Jessica in first. She hesitantly stepped into the large room and looked around. The ceiling was high and the far wall was almost nothing but a large mirror. The floor was covered in mats much softer than the ones Snape used in the ballroom, and for that Jessica was grateful. She anticipated Lucius was going to be just as merciless as Snape had been, if not more so. The only reason she had to believe that Lucius would go easy on her was because he was afraid of hurting the Dark Lord's only heir.

As Jessica stood admiring the room, Lucius swept by her and let his shoulder brush delicately against her as he passed. A faint drift of his cologne lingered in the air around her and Jessica found herself breathing deeply at it. She closed her eyes as she breathed it in again, as if to commit the aroma to memory.

Lucius smiled and turned back around to catch her with her eyes closed. He quietly stepped back towards her. "Ardour," he breathed into her ear as he passed her by, torturing her with another waft of his rousing aroma. He pulled his wand from the top of his cane and carefully leaned the snakehead against the wall. "Narcissa finds it irresistible," Lucius continued. He glanced over at her, one eyebrow raised in amusement as if expecting her to somehow surrender to the aroma he was inducing.

"It's… rather pleasant," Jessica responded coolly, trying to shield her embarrassment. "Can we get started?" she said to change the subject quickly. She extracted her wand from her robes and tied her belt tight around her waist to keep the long folds of her clothing from billowing out and getting in her way.

I'll surely remember to wear sweatpants the next time, Jessica thought to herself as she realized what an inconvenience it was going to be wearing robes.

"My, my, aren't we eager this afternoon," Lucius pronounced approvingly.

Jessica nodded affirmatively. "I have things I would like to do before dinner," she explained.

Her excuse, although legitimate, amused Lucius, for he already knew of the half-written letter to Snape sitting at her desk. He chuckled softly and nodded his head. "Very well then." Lucius backed up until he was standing roughly twenty paces away from her. He tucked his wand under his arm and reached up to his neck and untied his cloak before throwing it aside onto the coat rack next to his cane. His shiny, leather boots left foot imprints on the padded mat, as he stood parallel to Jessica.

Lucius pulled each of his brown leather gloves tight and flexed his fingers. He was left wearing a white, Musketeer or pirate-like dress shirt with long sleeves and elegant ruffles running along down the middle. His smoke-gray pants fit him so perfectly Jessica could easily make out the profile of his strong legs and rounded behind.

For a moment Jessica completely forgot that this was a man she truly despised and she found herself watching the backside of him avidly as he walked. It wasn't until she felt the surge of electricity soar through her body and strike her core with a bout of moist heat that she realized what she had just done.

"Hold you wand at the ready, like this," he instructed and spun around, immediately taking Jessica's attention away from scrutinizing his lower body and demonstrating with his own wand how she should hold hers.

Jessica turned her head and squeezed her eyes shut, trying to erase what she just saw from her memory. Angrily, she grumbled at herself before looking back at Lucius. With her wand in her right hand, Jessica bent her arm and raised it over her head while holding her left arm out straight in front of her with her rigid fingers pointed directly at Lucius. She stood with her weight on her left leg while the ball of her right foot bounced readily against the padded floor behind her, prepared to thrust forward in an attack at any moment.

"Good," Lucius said. "Now, I'm going to disarm you, so be prepared and watch me carefully." His wand wiggled anxiously in his hand as he waited for Jessica to acknowledge him.

She nodded confidently and pressed her right heel back into the mats to test its softness one last time. It'll have to do, she told herself as she prepared herself for the hard fall she knew was coming.

"On three," Lucius warned.

Jessica squeezed her hand around her wand and swallowed hard on one… took a deep breath on two…

"Incapatatus!"

Lucius whipped his wand around his body and struck towards Jessica, sending a flash of white light her way. Jessica instinctively stepped back and drew her wand up in front of herself as if to protect her body from Lucius' swift magic.

Before she had time to respond, an invisible power pulled Jessica's wand right out of her hand and forced her body backwards. She fell gracelessly to the floor, slamming her back into the softness of the mat beneath her.

"Ah!" she cried, feeling the wind being knocked out of her chest. She gasped as she struggled to refill her lungs with another breath but found it exceptionally difficult. Each breath came in short, desperate gasps until a gloved hand slipped under her neck and carefully hoisted her up into a sitting position. "Was that really necessary?"

"Relax, Jessica," Lucius instructed as he cradled her upper body in his arms. He pushed her jumbled locks of hair behind her shoulders and delicately rubbed her back as she tried desperately to get her breathing back to normal. "You'll be happy to know, that was one of the least powerful Disarming spells."

Jessica coughed into her hand as she finally managed to sustain a regular breathing pattern. She looked up quizzically at Lucius and coughed one more time. "I thought you said you were – cough – going to dis – cough, cough – disarm me," she said. "Not knock me – cough – silly!"

Lucius smiled and brushed his gloved hand through Jessica's hair. "At times disarming and disabling go hand in hand," he assured. "That's why I told you to be prepared," Lucius said proudly as he helped Jessica up onto her feet.

Jessica rolled her eyes as she found her balance. She knew she was going to have a welcoming encounter like that with the mats, which didn't seem to feel so soft anymore.

"If that's so, I know just the spell to take you down," she said confidently, remembering how Snape had also sent her soaring across the way after disarming her previously.

"You're welcome to try," Lucius said. He began walking back to the spot he'd been standing in before, where he still had at least ten feet of padding behind him. He raised his wand and motioned for Jessica to do the same.

Still feeling a bit wheezy, Jessica prepared herself as Lucius had. A tiny smile crept onto her face as she imagined how much she was going to enjoy this if it went right. Jessica hadn't anticipated this much satisfaction since watching Lucius suffer in Diagon Alley after she'd bit him.

"On three," she said eagerly. Lucius nodded in agreement and paid her close attention. "One."

He glared readily at her.

"Two."

He took a deep breath.

"Expelliarmus!"

Jessica thrust forward, pointing her wand angrily at Lucius as the spell struck him. She'd never forget the look on Lucius' face as his wand flew from his hand and his body lifted from the floor and soared backwards all the way to the very edge of the pa mat mats. He landed with a crash. Jessica kept from giggling as she heard an extensive groan sound from his end of the mat.

Lucius was on his back and had one knee bent up and the other lying flat against the mat. His arms were spread out at awkward angles and he wasn't moving. Jessica smiled at her success and waited patiently for him to get up.

Lucius remained motionless, resorting only to low groans and mumbles.

Jessica set her wand down on the mat and slowly approached him. The mat squished under her feet as she stepped nearer. "Mr. Malfoy?" she called.

His eyes were closed and his chest was barely moving. Long tresses of platinum hair spread in a mangled web across the mat much like Jessica's hair did when he'd knocked her down.

Jessica knelt down beside him and tapped the back of her hand against his cheek. "Lucius?" she called softly.

He groaned again, assuring her that he was still conscious. A moment passed before he rocked his head back and forth and then slowly opened his eyes. He turned his head to give her a funny look but then closed his eyes again. Lucius began to chuckle.

"Very well done, Jessica," he congratulated. "Only next time, you're going to have to take your time bringing your wand around your body. Then, you won't hit your opponent with so much force."

"And why wouldn't I want to do that?" she asked and absentmindedly offered her hand to help him up.

Lucius gratefully took her hand and pulled himself up to his feet. "Because, my dear, that was a Disarming spell – not a spell meant to knock your opponent silly."

"That's not fair," Jessica declared. "You knocked me silly by disarming me."

"I'm simply trying to teach you the desired effect of each spell and charm as they are meant to function. Perhaps another day we'll get into the spells that are meant specifically to knock your opponent silly."

Jessica looked doubtfully at Lucius. "I don't quite think I fancy the idea of practicing that alone with you."

Lucius laughed again and put his hand on her back as he walked her back to the far side of the mat. "Very well then, I'll have Narcissa join us. She rather excels in combat."

Jessica casually reached her hand out towards her wand and it immediately lifted off of the mat and soared directly into her grasp. She turned to Lucius, expecting him to go back to his side to show her another Disarming Charm.

He was still standing next to her, staring fascinated at her wand. "Remarkable," he whispered. "Forgive me for being so blunt, but I thought you sacrificed your powers when you took Severus as your lover."

Jessica slowly shook her head. "Not all of them," she told him. "I lost the ability to read the minds and sense the emotions of everyone except Severus," she explained, although she had the distinct impression he knew before she did that this would result upon the loss of her virginity.

"I see," he said dully. He pointed a gloved finger at her wand. "I was referring to your ability of telekinesis."

"Oh," she said, guessing that he had seen her summon her wand wordlessly. "I'm sorry, I can't quite explain that. Somehow I am still able to summon my wand without the use of 'accio.'"

"And what of your Animagus ability?" he inquired, clearly interested in her answer.

"Still in tact," Jessica answered immediately. "Shall I enlighten you?" A devious smile spread across her lips as the memory of her last encounter with Lucius in the form of a Fierce Snake played in her mind.

"Perhaps another time," Lucius said calmly, completely maintaining his composure, although Jessica was certain the memory of Diagon Alley was just as fresh in his mind as it was in hers.

Lucius took another step closer to Jessica. He held his black wand in his right hand and lifted Jessica's arm up with the tip of his wand to shoulder's length. He eyed down the line of their parallel arms and put his left hand on her hip.

The sudden closeness made Jessica's heart skip a beat. She swallowed hard and flinched, anxiously wondering what he was going to do. "Hold your arm tight," he instructed, tapping his wand against her right arm. "Now, for the next Charm I want you to bring you wand all the way back," he held her by the wrist and slowly eased her through the wand movement.

Lucius whispered his instructions into her ear and repeated the wand motion several more times. His gentle voice tantalized Jessica's ears and she found herself paying more attention to his soft sounds than she was to the wrist movement he was showing her. His body was warm and acted as a painful reminder of the warmth and comfort she left behind at Hogwarts.

Noticing her lack of attention, Lucius smiled to himself and continued moving along with her body until she had the gesture mastered. "Perfect," he breathed into her ear. "Now, all on your own," he said and slowly began to back away.