The girl felt nearly sick to her stomach once the spinning movement around her finally ceased. Her eyes had been closed throughout the Disapparation, but as she opened them, she found that she was in a magnificent, beautiful room that had yet to be known to her. Lucius Malfoy released her hand shortly afterwards once he was convinced that she could stand on her own. She hadn't been prepared to Disapparate so abruptly, and on top of that, her ailments were not helping matters.

"My home," Lucius spoke dryly before retiring to the next room that was the entrance hall. There was a winding staircase of marble that was located in the corner closest to the front doors. Without a single syllable, he led her up to the second floor. It was a chore to climb them, but Leveena didn't say anything. Soon, Lucius stopped in the middle of a long, spacious hallway, opening the second door to his left. "This will be your room for the night." His tone suggested he would not accept a decline. "Dinner will be ready soon, and you are no doubt malnourished, so I suggest you hurry and get changed into something more suitable." He nodded to an ornate wardrobe in the far corner of the room.

Leveena partially blushed as she passed over the threshold, hesitating. "I don't even know your family that well. I doubt they would be quite as welcoming as yourself."

"Draco is at the school, and my wife is on a vacation in France. It will just be the two of us." He still spoke with such an icy tone, it had caused her to shudder in discomfort. That was even worse. Talking to a man with as little emotion as Lucius Malfoy wouldn't prove satisfying - but she wouldn't argue. She was in too fragile a state to do that, snd she didn't want to insult his hospitality.

"I'll make it quick," she responded in hope to keep him away from any possible road of a rising temper. He didn't even do as much as nod, but nearly left as if she hadn't said a word.

She closed the door and walked over to the wardrobe. She swore it had to be as if she was expected, for the many dresses and gowns that hung neatly appeared to fit her perfectly. Perhaps they were all Narcissa's clothes when she was Leveena's age? Deciding not to linger on the thought any longer, Leveena picked out a deep, blue gown. It was somewhat tight, but the black lace on its torso had intrigued her. It was a beautiful dress. Perhaps doning something as luxurious and lovely as this might help her feel less miserable. She hadn't noticed until she put it on that there was a decorative slit up one side of the skirt, revealing her toned and smooth leg. This was almost embarrassing. Should she have chosen something a little less risqué? Most of them had that same style: one of a sensual, wealthy woman. Leveena certainly was not sensual, and she wasn't nearly all as wealthy as the Malfoys, either.

She was running out of time.

"Ugh, forget it," she muttered sourly, grabbing a pair of black heels and putting them on as she fixed her hair into a simple bun. She gave a nervous tug on the long sleeves of the gown, then opened the door and made her way back to the stairs. Staring down at the long trail of descending marble was intimidating her. She was in heels, for Merlin's sake! Suddenly, she felt a hand lightly placed against the small of her back.

"Let me help," Lucius spoke in a somewhat sincere offer. At least he was somewhat of a gentleman. Leveena slowly began to walk down the steps with the help of the owner of the mansion, who kept his hand at her back, his other hand holding her arm in case she lost her balance. She made it without as much as a stumble, placing her heels firmly on the leveled ground at the foot of the stairwell. She released a heavy sigh, which had put a faint grin on Lucius's face.

"Not used to the heels, I take it," he concluded, releasing her arm as he moved to an archway that led to the dining room. The amused curve of his lips had caught her off guard for a moment. If I didn't know any better, I'd say I'm blushing right about now, she thought miserably. She hoped she was wrong. Her lack of experience with heels was embarrassing enough.

Lucius had pulled out a chair for her at the furthest end of the long table that was clothed in a deep green. The silverware, of course, was perfectly-polished silver. The chairs surrounding the dining table were made of black oak, which, thanks to spells, was a little more stronger than the normal material. Leveena took her seat, seeing that dinner had already been served. She noticed a somewhat foul expression his face. Before she could question, he was already one step ahead of the game.

"This will be the last dinner my house elf will be cooking," he clarified sourly, sitting himself at the opposite end of the table. "Old age is getting to the poor fool. I was persuaded to simply put him out of his misery - put him to sleep."

"I'm sorry to hear it." It was somewhat sad. Then again, she knew that Mr. Malfoy would hardly be affected by this. He was surely a good definition for the word heartless.

"I'm not," he replied swiftly, confirming her opinion of him. She could've sworn she saw a glint in his silver-like eyes when he responded. "See, I think I might have already found my replacement." Another elf, surely.

"That's good to hear," she answered, voice void of enthusiasm, using the fork to pick at the green beans on her plate. She took a bite. It was truly exquisite, the taste. She hadn't really taken in real food like this for a long while - at least a couple of weeks.

"You do realize, Miss Glendale, that I am doing you a great deal of favors?" she heard Lucius continue. "Offering you hospitality within my home, providing you protection from the Dark Lord." She could tell this was getting serious, not only by the tone of his voice, but the context. She nodded her head to assure him that she was aware. "These do not go without payment," he went on, "I expect you would know that much. Prove to me that you deserve my shelter." Of course, no Malfoy could do anything out of the goodness of his heart. Leveena stared at him from across the table, unsure of how to respond. Was he indicating what she thought he was?

"What must I do?" she questioned almost timidly. She was partially afraid to ask, and it was obvious to tell that once she had set down her fork.

"Do whatever I ask of you," Lucius answered, "no matter how odd it may be. If I want something done, I expect you to be the one to make it as such."

"Dinner and cleaning?" she supposed with a meek smile, "I can do that. No problem." Perhaps the distraction would help keep her mind off of her brother's death.

Lucius laughed almost darkly, "Don't be so naïve to think my requests will be simple," he warned. Her spirit sank as he explained the terms. "I am not one known to be lenient, regardless of how much they do in my favor. You'll stay here, yes, but while you're under my roof, you'll find I am not a very fair man."

Leveena almost wanted to argue, but she knew that doing so would result in her being handed over to He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. Refusing to obey Lucius Malfoy's orders would surely be a foolish act of suicide. However, enslavement didn't thrill the girl much either. "I understand."

"Not to worry, Leveena," he cooed, his colorless, cold eyes boring into hers, glinting through the distance of the table between them, "unlike a house elf, you'll get your reward when you've gained the privilege."

"Privilege?"

"All in good time."

She was silent afterwards, uncomfortably picking and nibbling on her dinner occasionally. She had nothing else to say, and it was soon apparent that neither did Lucius. He had not uttered a syllable as he slowly finished his own plate. He left the dining room to her, obviously for her to clean it up once she had finished. Nothing had to be indicated. It didn't take a genius to know her enslavement started now. The dishes were removed from the dining room and to the kitchen. Unfortunately, she had left her wand lying in her own house, and could not retrieve it and use magic in order to get the chores done quickly.

The dining room was eventually as clean to the point that it appeared it had never been used before. The green cloth was wiped down with a clean rag, and was eventually removed of all tableware, save for a candelabra. She didn't know where else to put it, so she decided she'd leave it be. She blew out the lit candles - there wasn't very many, so it was quite dark to begin with - and then made her way up the stairs. She had hoped she would be allowed to retire to bed. Thankfully, Lucius was nowhere in sight, and that was a sure sign that he would not bring her to a halt and give her more work to do. It was already a quarter until midnight.

She changed into a clean nightgown found in the wardrobe and climbed into bed after putting her evening gown into a laundry basket. Perhaps tomorrow she would ask Lucius where the laundry room was, or wherever the hell she could clean clothes. There was no doubt in her mind that she'd have to clean his clothes. That thought was just as discomforting as many of the other thoughts she had this evening. She never even had to clean Aiden's clothes. It was one thing, cleaning your brother's clothes - but cleaning a man's clothes that was merely a stranger? Regardless of the fact that he was protecting her from the Dark Lord, it was obscene.

She closed her eyes with a small huff, pulling the quilt over her head. It was going to be a long, long stay here at the Malfoy Manor.