Narcissa Malfoy stepped back through the floo to where her son and the rest of the orphans were. Draco saw that thin, placid smile on her face, and knew it for approval.

It had worked.

He had scarcely dared hope. Dared believe that he'd managed it.

Ashley came through next, and Narcissa Malfoy looked fondly at her.

Fondly!

Narcissa Malfoy gave him a sharp-eyed look, "She'll do nicely, I must admit." She turned to Luna, "So how does this work? Is there paperwork?"

Luna smiled, "None here. You may wish to talk with the Ministry."

Narcissa Malfoy said, "Oh," sounding vaguely disapproving. "Ashley, I will be by within the week to truly greet you as my daughter."

Ashley smiled like a pretty princess, "Thank you. I would so hate to leave without saying goodbye."

Narcissa Malfoy continued, "With a little bit of luck, you'll meet with all your friends again."

Draco Malfoy knew that there never was luck where Narcissa Malfoy was concerned. She fashioned it herself, out of wood and twigs. His father love the hunt, and fashioned nets out of words. People struggled when caught in one of his father's schemes. In the end, they hated him for it.

Narcissa Malfoy was a different breed entirely. No fisherman, she was a bird who wove nests. And when she invited someone to sit in one, often they thought it was their own idea. She didn't need to force people to submit to her will. She considered it the finest act of a Slytherin to get someone else to do exactly what you wanted, without ever knowing you wanted it. And Narcissa held firmly to the believe that, where possible, you should build up your tools, strengthen their positions, and foster their trust in you. Narcissa had said to him once, when he asked why, "It will make the knife in the back all the sweeter." No one should, nor would, mistake Narcissa's kindness for Hufflepuff sugar.

Narcissa exited with another puff of floo-smoke.

Ashley's friends rushed up to her, with cries of "How did you do it!" and "You were wonderful!"

Luna and Draco looked on from a slight distance.

Ashley curtsied, a bob of her entire body, "I always did love the Queen on television. And there's so many stories about toff and rich bastards." Ashley's grin was no longer a restrained smile. "Turns out looking down your nose at the rest of the world works the same in all variants of Great Britain."

Luna looked at Ashley, smiling softly, "You weren't worried at all, were you?"

Ashley looked up at Luna, suddenly looking fierce, "Couldn't be worried. Didn't have time to be worried. Had to be on my numbers, had to get the cues just right."

Draco could see a Slytherin's attention to detail there, the attention to others just as much as to yourself. It had been why he'd chosen her, after all.

[a/n: Three choices is a standard game for marks. Gives them the illusion of choice. Don't do it if you don't know what they'll pick, and that it is the option you want as well. Leave a review?]