Disclaimer: HP and Co. belong to J.K. Rowling, not myself.
A/N: Special Thanks to my beta cocobyrd87. So here's chapter 12 for you guys, hope you enjoy. There's a bit of a time skip in this chapter, as it starts off with Sirius and Remus at the Weasleys for Christmas dinner before jumping forward to current events with the Malfoys.
R/R
Chapter Twelve: Consequences
Sirius and Remus stepped out of the floo into the crowded living room of the Burrow. Remus, who flooed through first, was met with the sight of the entire family sitting in the small living room. The entire room was covered in Christmas decorations, a large tree crammed into the corner of the room. Molly's favourite singer (which no one else could stand) was warbling over the Wizarding Wireless Radio, and the entire room had a remarkably festive feel to it.
"Sirius, Remus, welcome," Molly said as she pulled herself up from the love seat she'd been sharing with Arthur and bustled to meet the boys. Remus greeted her demurely while Sirius tried to adjust to all the sights and colour.
Being cooped up in dank, dark Grimmauld place sort of wreaked havoc on one's senses, and even Christmas at the Malfoy's had been sedate, with tasteful decorations-not this. This room looked like someone had vomited Christmas cheer all over the place.
Chuckling at the thought, Sirius greeted Molly and Arthur as the matriarch of the Weasley family manhandled the pair to the nearest available couch (Fred and George and been forcibly vacated with shouts of 'hey' and 'oi' ) and settled the pair of men down, before bustling into the kitchen to make hot chocolate for everyone.
Soon the family was filling the kitchen table. The table was laden down with numerous dishes and Sirius was convinced that the table had to have reinforcing spells on it, or the entire table would have collapsed.
"Dig in," Molly said with a grin as she bustled about, putting certain foods on plates and pointing out items she thought someone would enjoy. Remus and Sirius would have both relaxed and enjoyed the evening if they hadn't known what was coming. The entire evening Molly and Arthur had been shooting one another covert looks, as well as looking intently at Remus and Sirius but they hadn't said anything yet.
Finally as dinner came to a close and the younger kids were chased off, Fred pressing a note secretly into Remus' hand as they walked past, Molly served coffee and Arthur pinned the two men with a stare.
"Are you going to tell us?" The man asked curiously. "Albus mentioned that you spent the last few days at Malfoy Manor celebrating Christmas with Harry." Sirius cringed; Orion hated being called Harry now that he was no longer a Potter.
"Tell you what?" Remus asked in that calm, even tone of his. "That we saw a happy, healthy young teen? A child who is, arguably for the first time in his life, content and safe? Because if you want us to tell you that Orion"-he stressed the word 'Orion'- "is being abused or mistreated by his real family, you shouldn't hold your breath. The Malfoys are treating him and Draco exceptionally well, just like any good parents," he stated, tone becoming stern towards the end of his little spiel.
Molly looked scandalized, as if that weren't exactly what she and Arthur weren't getting at.
"You can report back to Albus that we said nothing," Sirius growled, sounding much like his dog counterpart.
"My godson is happy and healthy and he is finally with his real family. That is something you and the rest of the Order have to accept and move on from. Harry Potter no longer exists; hell he never really did. The light just has to find some other way to deal with the dark faction rather then expect some teenage boy to do it. It was wrong to heap that kind of pressure on Harry Potter, and it is even more wrong to try and slander his home life in an effort to get him back, just so he can retake that mantle once again. Just let him be happy. If you ever really cared for him as a person, not just an icon or name, you need to let him be happy," Sirius argued, ignoring Remus' surprised look at the eloquence of his speech.
Molly frowned, shaking her head vehemently.
"That boy has a job to do. Just because his name has changed doesn't mean he doesn't have responsibilities. He has a responsibility to the light, to our cause and he needs to come back and deal with that. When he's done his job he can go back to having his little home life," Molly snarled.
"Could he really Molly?" Remus asked calmly. "Could Orion go back to being Harry Potter just to kill Voldemort?" He ignored the flinch at the man's name.
"And then would the public, would all of you, let him go back to being Orion Malfoy? Don't pretend; he'd do the job and the public would turn on him, just like they always do. Turn on him, declare him insane or a killer and then have him tossed in Azkaban. Hell Molly, you'd probably lead that charge, trumpet on and on about how he's endangered your family, dragged your son and daughter along for the ride. You all profess to care about him, but the minute he steps out of line or does something you all deem to be 'dark' or 'evil', you all change your opinion," Remus stated calmly, setting his mug back down on the table and patted Sirius on the shoulder.
"Know this Arthur, Molly: we stand behind Orion, just like we always have, regardless of his name or family- we stand behind that young man. Whether he chooses to be dark, neutral or light, he will always have our support. And since we know that that won't go over well with the Order," Sirius took a deep breath and grinned maliciously, "I, Sirius Orion Black, Head of the Ancient and Nobel House of Black, do hereby revoke the rights of the Order of the Phoenix to use the Ancestral Black Home, Grimmauld place, as their headquarters."
With that final, parting remark, making sure the Order no longer had access to the house (or could even remember where it was thanks to the Fidelus Charm), the pair quickly headed outside and past the apparition wards. They were thankful that their little speech had stunned the pair into submission, and apparated a way.
Landing on the top step of stairs into Grimmauld Place, Sirius de-solved into near hysterical giggles as Remus dragged him inside.
"D-Did you see there faces? Oh Merlin's balls that was funny," Sirius said as he collapsed into a dusty chair in the sitting room. Remus chuckled, nodding in agreement.
"I think it was your mannerisms that threw them, to be honest," The werewolf said sagely. "You were so eloquent and coherent. No screaming or shouting, threatening them with your wand. It was rather impressive." Remus explained at Sirius' curious look. The Dog animagus grinned, having the grace to look slightly ashamed.
"I figured if I want to integrate with society once again, I have to control my temper. I channeled my inner Lucius Malfoy," Sirius said with a grin.
"Well I'm proud of you," Remus said with a smile. "It will be good to tell Orion what happened when we see him next, he was rather worried about us going to see the Weasleys. He's been having run-ins with Ronald and Ginevra at school."
"We'll floo them later to work out our next visit. They're fairly busy with parties for the next few days, or so Lucius said." Sirius piped up. Remus nodded in agreement and the pair spent the rest of Christmas night talking and joking, sharing a bottle of Ogden's finest between them.
-Blood-
Lucius and Narcissa were sitting together next to the bed that housed their two sons. Neither had felt comfortable splitting up the family unit just yet, not since the boys were attacked.
Miraculously, when the pair had woken up, Orion had been able to talk in sort of a husky whisper, which was a lot more then initially expected. Draco still had a mild case of the shakes, which was understandable since he'd been hit with numerous Crucios in a short amount of time.
The attack had been two days ago, and still the family refused to split up. Draco and Orion were very close and it soothed them to be near one another. Lucius and Narcissa were just happy that the boys were both on their way to full recoveries, but they still didn't feel comfortable being away for a long time.
Tom had stopped by daily, spending a few hours with the family at a time, before he went off and did whatever it was a Dark Lord did. Severus jokingly (yes Severus jokes) said that he was knitting in his spare time, but that was just Severus. Speaking of the feared Potions' Master, he had been staying at the Manor, though he normally left after Christmas to return to Hogwarts to prepare for the return of students. This year, he had stayed in order to keep an eye on the boys and make sure they had their potions.
Bellatrix was still being held in the dungeons of Riddle Manor. No one had approached her per the Dark Lord's orders, since he had agreed to let Narcissa be the first (besides himself) to 'talk' to her. They were waiting until the boys were doing a little bit better before Narcissa and Tom went to show Bella the error of her ways. Until then, they were content to leave her sitting in a dank, dark, and musty dungeon with a house elf occasionally popping in to check on her and toss some food at her to make sure she didn't die before Narcissa or Tom got that pleasure.
"Mum?" Draco's voice sounded hoarsely from the bed as the blond slowly sat up, stretching as he did so. His sore and achy muscles were finally gone, thanks to Severus and his incredible potions. His parents were still hovering protectively however, making sure he got plenty of rest and took copious amounts of potions, not that he blamed them. Being hit with the Cruciatus curse, courtesy of his own aunt, had been an eye opening experience.
He'd always known Bella was insane, everyone had, but she had never lashed out at her own family before. Normally she cooed and bounced around them, cackling insanely, but she'd never attacked them. She argued with Lucius, yes, but this was a whole other ballgame for Draco. He sort of understood her animosity towards Orion, since in Bella's mind, he was Harry Potter and a threat to her master, but it was still stupid.
"Yes Draco?" Narcissa asked as she rose from the couch and went to help her son. Draco gently shrugged off her fluttering hands, though he offered her a small smile.
"M'fine Mum," he murmured. "I was just seeing if you and Dad were still here." It wasn't uncommon for their parents to watch them while they slept. Lucius chuckled softly, drawing his son's attention.
"I doubt your mother will be willing to leave you two alone until you're on the train back to Hogwarts," the blond aristocrat said with a soft grin. Draco snorted but nodded in agreement; he knew his parents were worried about them, especially since they were still dealing with the nightmares surrounding their youngest son. The fact that this attack had happened, and by someone in the family, if not someone they trusted, had shaken them.
"I need something to eat," Draco murmured, rubbing his throat lightly; it was still sore from the screaming he'd done.
"Let's go get some lunch," Narcissa murmured to Draco. "We'll send an elf to bring you and Orion something." She added, glancing at her husband. The youngest Malfoy was still asleep, though he'd awaken soon, now that Draco was out of the bed. Lucius nodded in agreement, Orion had grown accustomed to waking up with someone in the room the last few days; it helped ease his nightmares since the attack.
Narcissa and Draco walked sedately down the hall, the demure woman watching her oldest son warily. Draco was healed, minus the sore throat and occasional shakes which would disappear in time, but she was still shaken. Seeing her sister attack her sons had done something to Narcissa, she loved her sister but knowing what she was capable of, knowing she had willing gone after and hurt the two people that mattered more to Narcissa then anyone or anything in this world, had destroyed whatever bond the pair had had. She wanted to strip the flesh from her sister's bones, make her feel the pain a mother felt when someone attacked or harmed their child.
-Blood-
Tom watched Severus curiously; the man was brewing some experimental potions he'd created in order to help heal Orion's throat. Though the teen was recovering, physically, faster then any of them had dared to hope, the date of returning to school was rapidly approaching and Severus wanted Orion to be as healed as possible for that- they all did.
Dumbledore and his Order were still looking for every excuse to get their Golden Boy back, and if they found out about Bellatrix's attack, they may just have the ammunition needed to go to the Ministry and have the Malfoys declared unfit parents. It was unlikely, since everyone had seen what Dumbledore's manipulations had done to Harry Potter, but it wasn't a risk any of them were willing to take.
"Shall we go have lunch now Severus?" Tom asked curiously as the man stepped away from the cauldron, looking at the smoke spiraling off of it critically.
"Yes, this needs to simmer for an hour," the dour potions' master said, spelling the area around the cauldron with a shield, just to be safe. He'd been working on this all morning and it was his fifth and hopefully final trial. If it worked, it would repair the damage to Orion's vocal chords by targeting the burnt areas. The flesh in his throat was so sensitive, it couldn't be grown back by means of a regular skin-regrowth potion or spell, hence the special potion Severus was making.
Talking softly, the two men slowly made their way towards the small dining room, both pausing in pleased surprise as they saw Narcissa and Draco chatting quietly over a lunch of soup and sandwiches. Settling at the table, the two men were served quickly by the elves before talk turned to Potions and Severus and Draco started a lively debate over the merits of using salamander's blood over newt eyes in a potion.
Sharing an exasperated, yet fond look, Narcissa and Tom started the slightly more serious discussion of what was to happen to Bellatrix.
"We need to wait till the boys return to Hogwarts," Narcissa murmured, sipping her tea. "We can't risk something else happening. Orion's terrified of her, not that I blame him. He heard rumors about her when he was living as Potter." Tom nodded in agreement.
"She can last in the dungeons till then. She's getting food and water whenever the elves feel she deserves it; they reacted poorly to some of the things she called them. They have orders to keep her alive however, if not healthy," the Dark Lord murmured, grinning lightly. Narcissa nodded in agreement.
"Have you decided if you want her to continue to live?" The blonde woman asked curiously. She knew what she wanted, but Bella had been a faithful, if not sane, follower to the Dark Lord and she was extremely useful in some situations.
"Yes," Tom murmured. "As useful as Bella has been, her insanity is getting to be too erratic to control. She has overstepped the line this time and she needs to be punished for it. We can't risk anything else like this happening again- if that means death, then so be it."
The grin that graced Narcissa's face was enough to startle the Dark Lord and draw shivers from both Draco and Severus. It was moments like this that reminded Severus and Tom that the lovely, aristocratic woman seated in front of them was also a Black.
-Blood-
"That insane BITCH!" Sirius roared as he withdrew from the fire, inhaling a mouthful of ash as he did so. A startled Remus rushed forward and began pounding Sirius on the back, not that the action was overly useful. Finally, Sirius' lungs were cleared and Remus steered the aggravated man towards a chair, demanding answers all the way.
"Bellatrix attacked Orion and Draco at the Parkinson's New Years party," Sirius explained to his anxious friend.
"What? Are they okay?" Remus demanded, jumping up, ready to storm back to the fire and floo to Malfoy Manor. Sirius grabbed his arm, pulling him back down.
"They'll recover," Sirius murmured. "Lucius said she hit Draco with a prolonged cruciatus and she hit Orion with the bruciato curse." Remus sucked in a breath; he knew a lot about curses and the bruciato was particularly nasty.
"They'll be alright though?" The werewolf asked, hands flapping nervously.
"Yes, Lucius said that Draco is almost one hundred percent, just a mild case of the shakes and a sore throat. Orion has damaged vocal chords, but Severus is creating a potion to repair the damage. They're confident they'll be healthy for returning to school in two days. They invited us for dinner tomorrow. Lucius knows we want to see them and he wants to discuss the Ministry and clearing my name, before Dumbledore does something similar to get us back in the Order's pocket," the dog animagus said, raking his fingers through his hair.
"Sounds good," Remus murmured, rubbing a hand over his face. Damn he wanted a piece of Bellatrix now; the bitch had hurt his pups. Yes, he now considered Draco to be part of his pack, and he wanted nothing more then to let the insane woman come face-to-face with Moony in a dark alley.
Shaking his head, Sirius stared into the flames, shoving his hands in his pockets as he contemplated his insane cousin. He knew she was dead; if Tom didn't kill her, Narcissa or Moony would. As his hands wormed their way into thread-bare pockets, his fingers brushed on the forgotten note that Fred had given him at the disastrous Weasley dinner.
Pulling out the crumpled paper, he spread it open and scanned the page, a small grin worming its way onto his face. Grinning, he glanced at Moony before handing him the note. The werewolf's brow furrowed as he read, before he grinned.
"We'll have to show this to Orion, he thought he'd lost all the Weasleys when all of this blood line stuff came into the light," Remus murmured, re-folding the note and tucking it away. He knew, from talking to Orion, the Weasley twins had never been mean to him at school once he had embraced his Malfoy-ness, however he had never expected them to retain a friendship with him, at least a close ones. He had assumed they were acquaintances, the twins and Neville.
This changed things though and Remus knew that the Dark (or at least neutral side) had gained two allies. People sold the twins short, believing their dreams of owning a joke shop were immature and pointless. Remus knew differently; the twins were clever, incredibly clever and they had created many different, ingenious products. They would be useful as either allies or knowing that they would be sitting out of the war. It was a win-win situation no matter how you looked at it and the werewolf knew that Orion and the rest of the Malfoy clan, including Tom (perhaps not Severus), would be pleased.
-Blood-
Albus scowled as he read the letter from Molly, their damn owl flopping around on his desk loosing feathers left, right and center.
Shaking his head, he crumpled up the parchment and tossed it on the floor in a fit of anger. He had felt the wards on Grimmauld Place change and reject him and the Order, which meant something had happened with Remus and Sirius. He had known that they were spending Christmas Dinner with the Weasleys and it seemed that it hadn't gone according to plan. Molly and Arthur had messed up and lost Albus not only a good financial backer (the Black vaults), but also a headquarters and an in with the werewolf groups. Damn the Weasleys anyway.
Shaking his head he rose, clutching Errol the owl in his hands and walked to the open window. Tossing the owl out, he watched it fall dispassionately before righting itself and taking off in limp towards the Burrow. Stupid bird, it had gotten feathers everywhere. He summoned an elf to clean his office before he swept down the spiral stairs and went to find Minerva; she may have some insight on the whole Sirius-Remus matter.
-Blood-
Orion grinned at his Dad as Lucius settled a tray over his lap as he propped himself up in bed. It was too late to go down and join the others for lunch, so Orion was enjoying a meal in bed with the company of his father.
The luxury of eating in bed was still something that Orion looked forward to with childish delight. He had often seen Dudley get to eat in bed when he was sick, or lazy, or just because he wanted to. And Vernon and Petunia had eaten in bed on special occasions like anniversaries or birthdays, but he had never had the chance until his first morning at Malfoy Manor.
-Flash Back-
Orion shifted slowly, wincing at the tight pulling of his half-healed scars. Eyes opened slowly, he was surprised to be greeted with a light blue ceiling, not the glaring white of St. Mungo's. Everything came rushing back, and he realized he was lying in bed in his family home, in Malfoy Manor. A small grin came over his features as he gingerly sat up, stretching as he did so.
"Morning son." An amused voice sounded from beside him. Turning, Orion felt his cheeks flame as he saw his entire family standing right next to the bed. He'd been too focused on the ceiling colour to notice the three Malfoys standing next to the bed, watching him.
"Morning," he squeaked, face flaming more at the highness of his voice. Draco chuckled, but it wasn't the cruel, laughing at you he had done in the past. It was more of a fond chuckle, causing Orion to relax slightly.
"How did you sleep?" Narcissa asked, sitting down on the bed and smoothing his blankets absentmindedly.
"Really good," Orion responded, surprised. He rarely had a good night sleep, but for the first time in a long while, he had slept really well. Why, he didn't know, but he had a few suspicions.
Lucius grinned and sat down on Orion's opposite side, leaving room for Draco to squirm in next to his younger brother.
Orion looked mildly surprised at how affectionate his family was being, but over the last few weeks in the hospital he had learned just how kind the Malfoy family was, behind closed doors. Grinning, he let Draco carefully snuggle him into his side while Narcissa summoned an elf (why, he didn't know, he was too busy being caught up in the whirlwind of emotions that had surfaced with everything that had and was happening).
Moments later an elf appeared, baring a huge tray of different breakfast foods. A second later, everyone had a tray across their knees and was digging in to a delicious breakfast, except for Orion.
"What?" Draco asked, sipping his tea as he eyed his shocked looking brother.
"I've never had breakfast in bed before," Orion admitted, cheeks flaming once again as three heads whirled to look at him.
"Never?" Narcissa asked, surprised. It was a luxury the entire family enjoyed upon occasion, however thinking about how the muggles had treated her son, it shouldn't have been a surprise that Orion had never experienced this simple luxury. He'd eaten in bed before, but in a strictly medical sense, when he was too ill or to injured to leave the hospital bed.
This was different however, breakfast in bed with your family was something to be savoured and enjoyed -an experience everyone should have. Grinning, Orion took a careful spoonful of yogurt, since he was still on a diet of light, easy foods, and sighed contently. He could very easily get used to this.
-End Flash Back-
Lucius glanced at his son who seemed engrossed in his soup, a small grin on his face.
"What are you thinking about?" He asked his youngest curiously.
"First time I ever had breakfast in bed," Orion murmured. "My first morning here," he clarified.
"I remember," Lucius said with a grin; it had been a good memory. It was the first time they'd shared a meal as a family in their ancestral home, and it had felt like the Malfoy family was finally complete.
"Its one of my favourite memories," Orion murmured, grinning at his Dad.
"Is it? Why?" Lucius asked curiously. It was one of his as well, but he had had no idea that Orion felt the same way.
"It was my first real meal with my family. Sure we ate in Mungo's together, but I don't count that as a family meal," the young blond explained. "It was the first time we were all really together in the Manor, beyond the night when we flooed back from the hospital."
"Makes sense, its one of my favourite memories as well," Lucius said. "For many of the same reasons," he added, rubbing his son's blanketed knee fondly. Orion grinned, sipping his soup carefully, not wanting to spill the warm liquid everywhere.
Lucius sighed, pleased to hear that Orion's voice was recovering and he didn't seem as badly effected as they had thought he might be. The conversation was still hushed, and Orion's voice had taken on a husky tone, though Lucius wasn't convinced that it didn't suit him.
"You sound better, how's your throat?" He asked curiously, looking at his son as he continued to nibble on his food.
"Less sore," Orion replied. "Still hurts, but the soup helps. It gets worse when it's dry or if I try and talk too much. Like yesterday with Drake, when he was helping me with homework, I lost my voice half way through bugging him about potions," Orion murmured softly, accepting a cup of tea from his father, knowing it was laced with mild pain potions.
"Ah," Lucius said. He hoped Severus' potion worked; he knew Orion was worried about going back to school and not being able to communicate. He was still having problems with his hand, though it had improved slightly now that the infection was gone and Severus had developed a new balm to help with the residual soreness.
However, spells and writing were still an issue, though they were slowly improving the more Orion practiced. Without the full use of his voice, even temporarily, Lucius knew that Orion was worried about falling behind in school. If it came down to it, Lucius would keep him home until his voice fully recovered and then send him back to school. It was a last resort, but it was an option if Orion was truly worried. However, Lucius had a lot of faith in Severus and his potions, so they would just have to see where the cards fell.
"Do you want to get out of bed?" Lucius asked his son as they finished lunch. "Draco is with your mother and Uncles in the sitting room; you two could play chess or something," Lucius suggested, chuckling at the brilliant smile that lit Orion's face.
Summoning an elf to get rid of their lunch things, Lucius and Orion headed down the hallway towards the family room. Orion was still in his pajamas, though he had slipped on some socks and a house coat. Heading into the family room, he made a bee-line to the couch nearest the fire, joining his brother who immediately began to set up the chess board. Orion was slowly getting better at chess; he had yet to win a game, but he seemed to enjoy it and Draco was a patient teacher.
"How is he?" Narcissa asked as Lucius settled next to her on the love seat. Severus had gone back to brewing while Tom was sat across from the Malfoy parents, sipping on some wine, his eyes drifting back between the boys and Lucius and Narcissa.
"His voice sounds a bit better. He says if it's dry or he talks too much he looses it or it hurts a bit more, but he is improving," the Malfoy Lord said with a grin.
"Well at least he's improving," Narcissa replied as Tom made a humming noise of agreement.
"Ah, I spoke to Sirius today," Lucius piped up suddenly. "He and Remus are coming for dinner tomorrow night. I've spoken to the Ministry and Amelia Bones about getting Sirius a fair trial, and its looking good," he added, smiling softly at Tom. Tom grinned; having the backing of the Black Lord in the war would be extraordinarily helpful.
"That's fantastic! If we can clear Sirius' name, we could help our cause. He'd be a lot more useful to have around then Pettigrew," Tom said thoughtfully. Perhaps he could rig it so Peter ended up at the Ministry when Lucius and Sirius went to speak to the Ministry.
"Did you tell them about the boys?" Narcissa asked curiously; she knew both men would be livid at the attack on the two boys.
"Yes. Sirius was far from impressed and I have a feeling Remus will be rather put out as well. He may wish to join you two in dealing with her. His wolf thinks of the boys as his pups; he won't take an attack on them kindly," Lucius murmured.
"Perhaps we can arrange something," Tom said with a grin. Death by werewolf may be amusing, especially since it may bring Remus further into the dark sect and into Greyback's pack. He knew the senior werewolf wanted that, wanted to reintroduce Remus to werewolf life and this may just be the shove the younger man needed.
He'd need to talk to Fenrir, although he had a feeling that Fenrir would also want a piece of Bella. He was rather fond of Draco and had wanted to meet Orion for awhile. Fenrir was angry with Remus for abandoning wolf kind; this might be the thing needed to bring the two into a better contact with each other. Mind whirring, the Dark Lord sipped his wine, plots floating through his mind as he tried to use torturing Bella and subsequently to his advantage.
-Blood-
Orion furrowed his brow and looked over the board, contemplating his next move. His tongue poked out between his teeth as he thought. It was a subconscious action, but one that Draco couldn't help teasing him about.
"Ready to go back to school?" The older blond asked his brother curiously. They hadn't really discussed Hogwarts since the attack.
"Dunno," Orion mumbled, sipping his tea as he did so. His parents made sure he always had something to drink to help soothe his throat. "I want to go back but I'm worried about this." He touched his throat gingerly.
"Makes sense," Draco said. "You know Uncle Sev'll help you though, he's working really hard on this new potion he's developing," he added before going into a mini-lecture about the potion Severus was making that Orion maybe understood a word or two of.
Tom resisted the urge to chuckle as he watched Orion's face take on a dazed expression as Draco began to lecture him on the finer arts of creating a potion. It was rather adorable (not that the Dark Lord used words like adorable) to watch, especially since Orion did, valiantly, try to appear amused. The youngest Malfoy was just not potions oriented like his older brother and Severus.
Continuing to watch his young god son, the Dark Lord resumed his quiet plotting, though he continued to listen to the boys conversation, enjoying the time with the only people he considered his family. Perhaps the wine was making him a bit sentimental, but for once he didn't care. It wasn't often that someone was powerful as the Dark Lord felt completely safe and content, but these times in Malfoy Manor were some of the most calming times of his long life.
They were also beginning to be some of the most enjoyable; he had a family here. He had a godson; someone had trusted him enough to raise their child if something happened to them. Yes, he had many followers and allies, however none had ever trusted him with something so precious. Many accused him of favouring Lucius as a follower (the Malfoy Lord being deemed his right hand man), which was true, but none of his followers or allies had ever favoured him like Lucius had. Hence why the Malfoys were more then just followers, they were family. They were the few people he actually cared about and he be damned if anything ever happened to them again.
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