Chapter 25 - Adulteress
"Evening, Weasleys!" said Arthur happily as he entered the kitchen of the burrow, just home from work
"Hi Dad" chimed the family back.
"Hello Daddy" said little Ginny softly
"Hello Arthur" said Molly "Fred, George, stop poking each other with forks, you'll have one of your eyes out! Ron stop tickling Ginny she'll laugh her self sick. Percy put that book down at the dinner table! You're just in time for dinner Arthur"
"Good good. Difficult day at work today, but I believe the muggle protection act is beginning to catch on. I have everyone in the office's attention about it now. I know its only three people but it's a start"
"I think it should catch on fairly quick" said eighteen year, old Bill as he received his plate of food. "Most people want to be kinder to muggles"
"No, people are still scared of the old days. There is of course, still the separation of muggles and wizards left over; it's a barrier seriously in need of breaking. But unfortunately, people don't seem to like change"
"Speaking of work and people against the muggle protection act, I bumped into your best friend today Arthur"
The Weasley boys sniggered. And Arthur looked curiously up at Molly
"My best friend, dear? Who would that be?"
"Lucius Malfoy" she laughed
"Oh him"said Arthur miserably "Where did you see him?"
"Flourish and Blotts" she said sitting down at the table "You never told me he was married"
"You saw his wife?" asked Arthur interestedly
"Yes, Ginny got out of her pram again; Mrs Malfoy found her and helped her back to me"
"That was kind of her" said Arthur coldly. Not wishing to believe that anyone from that family could possibly do anything good in this world.
"Yes, she told me I should keep a better eye on my child. Huh what does she know about parenting, she was far too young to have had children yet"
"No I believe they have a son, about uh… Ron's age. I've never seen him though, but I saw his wife once. A few years back, she was about nineteen or twenty"
"Oh, where did you see her?"
"At the ministry, she's a friend of that Zabini woman. The one with all the husbands"
"Oh yes?"
"Well I believe that Mrs Malfoy was accompanying her friend to a murder case. Well we all know the rumours about that woman, don't we?"
"What rumours?" asked Percy looking up from his dinner
"Oh, she's a witch who's been married about three or four times, she keeps finding them dead under the most unusual circumstances"
"So she killed them?" asked Percy "Why don't they put her in Azkaban?"
"Because my son, sometimes…money and a pretty face make a biased court."
The family but Molly, who found the discussion most unexciting, and Ron and Ginny who were too young to understand, laughed heartily.
"But actually believe it or not, Charlie, you know your friend Nymphadora Tonks?"
"Yes" replied the boy
"Her mother is Mrs Malfoy's sister"
"What!" Molly burst out "But Andromeda Tonks married a muggle born. Surely this horrid Lucius Malfoy you keep going on about wouldn't marry a woman whose family stood by that?"
"Well I don't believe they did, she was disowned. The family tried to cover up her entire existence"
"The poor woman"
"I know" said Arthur solemnly
"Charlie dear, you should invite your friend Nymphadora and her family around for tea more often" said Molly seriously
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A few days later, at the Malfoy Manor
"Okay Draco its your birthday soon and Daddy and I want to give you a party" Narcissa smiled as her son grinned. "Who do you want to come?" she asked getting a quill and parchment out.
"Uh…Blaise" he said smiling
"Of course" said Narcissa grinning and writing down Blaise and Francesca's name. She smiled over at Lucius who was smirking softly at them from across the room
"Who else?"
"Pansy" said Draco, remembering his friend that he had met when Narcissa was at a tea party at the Parkinson's house.
Draco continued to name a few other children he knew when suddenly he said
"Nymmy!"
"Who dear?" asked Narcissa
"Nymmy with the funny hair"
Narcissa froze and glanced at Lucius, his brow was furrowed
"Who is this girl Draco?" he asked
"Nymmy, she has hair which changes colour. We went to her house and she gave me cookie dough, don't you remember Mummy!"
Narcissa swallowed
"Just an imaginary friend of his Lucius" Narcissa said, but her voice shook slightly
"What does imjanery mean Mummy?"
"It means pretend!" answered Lucius
"But she's not pretend Daddy, I went to her house and her hair changed colour!" he stood up. Desperate for his Father to believe him
"Draco sit down, she can't come" said Narcissa, "Who else do you want?"
"SHE CAN COME MUMMY YOU'RE LIEING! AND I WANT SILVIO TO COME TO! IT'S MY PARTY!" he shouted
Lucius looked at Narcissa. Narcissa felt suddenly nauseous
"Draco, who exactly is Silvio?" Lucius asked with a suspicious whisper
"Oh he's Mummy's friend in Italy"
Narcissa stood up before she could hear anymore. She marched past Lucius and out into the entrance hall and up the marble stair case. She ran into her bedroom.
She clutched the wall for support. There was no doubt Draco would only have refreshed Lucius' suspicions about Silvio and Narcissa's relationship, if not tell him a thing or two about how he had seen them together.
Narcissa closed her eyes and allowed her head to loll against the wall. Her breathing was shallow and her head felt heavy.
She heard her bedroom door open.
"Narcissa" came a cold voice. Narcissa's eyes shot open she turned around to face her husband and took steps backwards, edging away from him.
"Lucius I-"
"Just a silly crush on his account was it?" Lucius said bitterly "Draco told me all about the little chat you and that silly muggle had on the balcony and the little dinner date you had, when you were back long after Draco had gone to bed. Did you think I wouldn't find out Narcissa?"
"No…Lucius it wasn't like that-"
He lurched forward and grabbed her arms and threw her down on her quilted bed. She screamed and tears fell hot down her face
"YOU'RE A SLUT! A HUSSY! YOU DEFIED ME! ME! YOUR HUSBAND!"
The anger in his cold grey eyes flared like icy fire "WHAT DID YOU DO?" he shook her "DID YOU SLEEP WITH EVERY DISGUSTING MUGGLE YOU MET?"
"No Lucius I didn't-" she cried. His hands were biting into her shoulders. "Get off me; you have no right to treat me like this!" She tried to push him off her, but he was much stronger than she.
"YOU SHAME ME NARCISSA, YOU SHAME YOUR OWN FAMILY AS WELL!"
"LISTEN TO ME LUCIUS, I NEVER DID ANYTHING!" She yelled. Lucius stopped, as if hearing her for the first time. His grip loosened. "Yes, I spoke to him on the balcony, and yes I went out to dinner with him, we danced, kissed and that was it. I took it no further. All the time you were in my mind when he touched me, when he kissed me. I'm sorry Lucius…I really am, what I did was wrong." He stood up straight and turned away from her, running a pale hand through his silvery white hair "But what I did in Italy will never be worse than how you have treated me throughout our whole marriage."
"Perhaps" he whispered "But I will tell you this now…there was never anyone else"
"W-what?" she asked
"I have never in the seven years of our marriage had another woman"
"Y-you haven't?" Narcissa had always suspected Lucius of having affairs. She was not angry about it; it was rather common for loveless marriages between betrothed spouses to have lovers. Sometimes it made her feel rather alone, but she tried not to think about it. Now she had committed a sin which Lucius never had.
"No never" he whispered. Narcissa sat up on the bed. Lucius walked over to her and sat beside her. "Forgive me for losing my temper Narcissa"
Narcissa shook her head
"You told me you'd change, I said I'd leave if you went back to your old ways" she stated
"Narcissa, I acted as any man would if he found out his wife was having or had an affair"
"But I didn't actually commit adultery Lucius. You could have heard me out"
"Then I over reacted" he said protectively. Narcissa nodded and a tear joined her wet cheeks. Lucius wound and arm over her back and pulled her towards him. He kissed her blonde hair. "Shall we put it behind us?" he suggested. Narcissa nodded.
"I don't want to ruin Draco's birthday party next week; I want everything to be perfect"
"And it will be Cissa…It will be"
Ha! So much for the new sweet Lucius, I added this chapter to make sure you lot realised that Lucius was going to be out of character for the rest of the story. Lucius has a temper, and is very controlling man. Just because he won't always be abusive, does not change his ways.
LuciousLadyLucius xxx
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