Fathers Son: Part 2

Chapter 16

How life had changed in the past five years for Lucius Malfoy. Once a happily married Death Eater he was now a respectable widower in the eyes of most of society.

After he had been found not guilty he had found it easy enough to rebuild his political life and his social. He was a young, handsome, rich man. People had wanted to believe he was innocent and free of sin. It made him perfect in their eyes.

He knew different. But it was what people believed. And he let them. To destroy that made no sense for him or his son. The Malfoys as ever had to be on top in his eyes. Second place was no good. It had to be first.

Waht society really wanted to know was when he was going to remarry. After all it had been five years since the passing of his wife. And his son needed a mother the women said. So he told them what they wanted to hear. When he found the right one he would of course remarry.

Luckily for him he knew that would never happen. The right one had been and gone. She had been sweet and she had been beautiful. A goddess among women. But she was no more.

No there was only one person left in the world he truly cared for.

His darling son.

Draco was his life.

The five year old little boy had grown up at an alarmingly speed. To fast for his father. Despite only being thirty Lucius at times now felt much older. Especially when his son was running about. The boy was forever full of energy, brimming with life, asking questions.

Draco was the spitting image of him at that age as well. He had soft blonde hair and grey eyes. They weren early always full of laughter. His father tried to make sure of that. Lucius did often feel he had to make up for the loss of his mother even if fit hadn't been his fault. It had been no ones fault that Narcissa had died. It was a tragic accident. And at last Lucius had come to terms with that fact.

It was a chapter of his life he could never change no matter what he did. He had been so happy with her. He wouldn't have changed their time together for the world. All he had to do was wait to join her and bring up their son in the mean time.

It was in this frame of mind that Lucius begun Draco's fifth summer. He had arranged for the two of them to go out of the country for a while. They were going abroad to France for there weeks, accompanied by the boys nurse and a few of the other house hold staff, as well as Eliza. His nurse, Lucius pondered.

Lucius had not wanted one at first, he had wanted to look after him himself when he got back from jail. It had not been practical though.

He had to keep the money coming in so that when Draco inherited there would be plenty for him. There was of course enough for them to be more than comfortable. More than comfortable…but still… Lucius liked to work to keep his head busy.

Jane was a young women, plump and blonde. She was maternal enough and it was obvious she cared a great deal for Draco. Over the past years she had come to be trusted by Lucius, and they got on well enough to make small talk. Eliza had in the end got to old to look after the lad when he had begun walking. He had been too quick for her and so she left her post.

Not the family though. She made the walk up to the manor most weekends or they went to her. She saw them regularly and was still beloved by both of them.

Now walking down in the gardens he was on the search Draco and Jane to tell him his plans for them. Jane he knew would have nothing better to do than come with them. Poor girl.

He found them in the rose gardens. It was Draco's favourite place because he had been told it was once his mothers. And while it stung Lucius to see another women in his wife's garden he smiled at the sight of his son.

"Daddy!" called Draco on sight of him and run up to his father.

Draco through himself in to his fathers arms in a way that left his nurse in no doubt who it was he trusted most in the world. The smile on his face spread. Draco adored no one else more than his father. Perhaps because no one else in the world was more important to Lucius. The Malfoy men stuck together like glue.

"Hello." said Lucius as Draco stopped squirming. "Work has been slow today so I thought I would come out and make sure you were being a good boy for Jane."

"I am always a good boy daddy." he said with all the innocence of his five years.

It was moment like those that made Lucius almost glad the Dark Lord had fell when he had. If he had not then Draco would not be as innocent as he was. And that would be a very sad thing. There was not a boy sweeter than his son.

"Are you?"

"Yes."

Lucius chuckled indulgently. Kissing his sons forehead Draco took the opportunity to put his head on his father shoulder and nuzzle into his neck as he had when he was a baby.

They didn't seem to get enough time together any more. His father was working more and more and even though he knew it wasn't his fault it did seem to make his daddy more irritable. Not only with the servants and the elves but at times even with him. Yet in that moment he knew what he had always been told. That he was the greatest joy of his fathers heart.

"I know that. So does Jane don't you?"

"Yes sir. "

Kissing his sons nose he spun him about. He hated the fact his son was soon going to be too big to spin about soon.

"Have you come to play with me?" Draco asked his father. No one was more fun to play with than his dad.

"Would you like me too?"

"Of course I would." he said with a bright smile.

"What have you been playing dragon." he asked him.

"Hide and go seek," he said to him.

"And you want daddy to hide or seek?"

"Hide!"

Lucius set his son on the ground.

"Count to ten then…"

-

Draco was exhausted by the end of the day. All the fresh hair had worn him out. Jane had gone home and Lucius found himself on the edge of his sons bed just watching him sleep. In the end he hadn't told him about the holiday he realised. He had been to involved in their game. Stroking through Draco's hair, he drunk in the moment. It had often been his habit ever since his sons babyhood to watch him sleep at night and he dreaded the day when Draco told him he was too old for his father to watch sleep, should he ever wake up. But he had done it ever since he had returned from jail, just to ensure that his son was still there. He still had nightmares the court case had gone the other way.

But that was not the case. On feeling his fathers hand Draco subconsciously leant towards him drawing closer to his dad even while he slept.

He wasn't so big really, not yet. He was still a child and would be for a another six years before he went to Hogwarts. But when they got back after summer there were going to be some big changes. One of them was that Draco was going to have to start taking lesson ns with a tutor. He was going to have to get ready for Hogwarts. There was no way getting about that. These were the last days Draco was going to be able to play without worrying about what was coming ahead of him. He wished his son was still a babe in arms.

But it was not to be. Lucius could no more keep his son as a baby forever than he could call his wife back from the dead.

His wife…

An ache sprung in his heart as it always did when he thought of his gentle Cissy. His memories thankfully had not yet faded and he could recall her in a heart beat. With her sparkling smiling and her excitable eyes, her long blonde hair running down her back…

Don't. he told himself.

It did no good to torture himself.

No good at all.

"Sleep tight baby Dragon." he said as he got up, kissed his son forehead, turned out his night light and left the room.

Tomorrow was another day.