This story is building slower than I expected…(I'm chomping at the bit to post something new, but I refuse to have three stories going at once, I'd go mad). That said, there are at least two chapters left…I say 'at leas't because I have two chapters planned and roughed out, but those of you who know me know I tend to add chapters to my original estimates.

It's rated 'M'…oh forget it…if you're still reading it at this point another warning from me won't do a darn bit of good.

Lucius woke abruptly the next morning after an enlightening dream.

"Damn, damn, damn."

His body was thrumming, and even through his embarrassment, he had to admit why.

He wanted the witch.

"Damn, damn, damn…"

Tansy, the head elf at the manor, eyed him reproachfully as she delivered his breakfast. Lucius sighed.

His best friend's lover.

All other considerations aside, he could barely wash and feed himself. He looked down at the visible welts on his body. He was turning into one of those randy old bastards that lusted after younger witches.

He'd had lovers…young nubile witches, the occasional lusty wife of another wizard…that widow in Surrey…he'd chosen them carefully, bedded them, and left them when interest waned on either side. There was no emotion, no attachment…just decent sex with a willing partner…the fulfillment of a nagging, physical need.

The past four years he'd met regularly with a discreet divorcee who was a few years older than himself and in excellent shape. She cared little or nothing for him as a person, wasn't interested in his wealth…she was an Auror. She wanted a lover with skill who could keep their trysts quiet. The wizarding word still looked at a woman's sex life if she were unmarried…having the affair known might limit her rise at the Ministry. He'd ended the arrangement months before the accident, the sex had grown to be a chore and he found he'd rather spend time with people who mattered. He was spoiled after living and working Severus and Hermione for years. He was accustomed to rational conversation, friendly banter, and people who gave a damn about him because he was Lucius…not because of his last name or the fortune that went with it.

"Damnation and hellfire."

There was nothing for it. He'd simply have to find another lover. He'd spent most of his life with his emotional needs satisfied by one woman and his physical needs met by another. There was no difference in this…he'd known for some time that he was emotionally invested in the witch…it shouldn't surprise him that he wanted her on other levels as well…she was passionate and full of life…and he wanted to be near that fire.

Perhaps he should contact a discreet brothel…surely a high-end establishment could provide him with a vivacious and engaging companion interested in a few hours of mutual pleasure. He tried to imagine the scene…a French château, a fine wine on the sideboard, perhaps music…but the mystery courtesan morphed into Hermione almost as soon as she entered his mind's eye.

"Merlin…I am in trouble."

LMHGSS

Lucius decided that going down to dinner was a bad idea in light of his new understanding. All of his motivations were suspect. He had Tansy invite Severus up to his rooms, but he stayed in bed.

"Lucius, are you well? Hermione was worried."

He sighed. He needed to stay away from the witch until he was in control of his baser instincts.

"I need a favor old friend…and you can't tell Hermione."

Severus frowned at him. "I can't imagine what you could possibly need that I'd want to hide from her."

"I need you to go to a brothel and bring me a girl."

Severus looked like he'd swallowed a live fish. "No."

"Severus…"

"Lucius, that the most ridiculous idea you've ever had…and that includes the pureblood bullshit you spouted at Hogwarts. You're a respected member of the business community, you have a contract with the Department of Mysteries; your son is speaking to you. If the papers found out they'd crucify you. You've been alone before…"

"It's different this time. I don't want a lover…simply a release. I'll wait until I'm well enough to go myself…you are right, it was unfair of me to ask. You have more to lose than I do…"

"Why the sudden need for a lover? Have you been spending all of your time reading Playwizard since we've gone back to work?"

Lucius chortled. "Hardly."

Severus smirked. "I thought being hard was the problem…or is not being hard that is the issue?"

Lucius rolled his eyes. "The truth is I'm a bit randy and I don't want to be around your sweet little witch until I've taken care of the issue."

Well, that was part of the truth anyway. No need to tell Severus that the 'issue' was caused by the witch in question.

Severus laughed. "She's no blushing violet. True, she was a virgin when we…"

Lucius felt his mouth drop open. "You're joking."

"I rarely joke…most of my humor is dispersed in the form of sarcasm."

"I would have thought Weasley or Krum…"

"Stop it Lucius, you're making me ill…"

He couldn't help himself. "How was it?"

The dark man sighed. "You pick now to ask questions about sex?"

Severus sat down on the edge of the bed. "It was intense, mind-blowing…amazing. Being the first and only one to touch her…it's like a page from someone else's life."

Lucius smiled. It was so odd to feel such envy, and at the same time, such joy. "I'm glad. The only virgin I've ever been with was Cissa…and that's a memory I wish I could obliviate."

Severus shuddered. "How did you stay with her all those years?"

Lucius shrugged. "There wasn't much choice, old boy. Once she produced an heir, father looked the other way when I had the occasional lover…he knew the score…used to grouse that he'd chosen the wrong Black sister for me…"

Severus chuckled. "I would have chewed my arm off to get away from Bella if I'd been shackled to her."

Lucius shivered. "Too right. And Andromeda fell in love and thumbed her nose at the lot of us. Wish I'd had that kind of courage…but then I wouldn't have Draco." He studied his oldest friend and changed the subject. "You know Hermione thinks you don't want to marry at all."

"Why would she think that?"

"You'd have to ask her…but you should hurry. If you lollygag much longer I'll ask her to marry me, just to keep her around."

Severus snorted. "Ah yes…your altruism knows no bounds."

Lucius inclined his head regally, knowing the effect was marred by his ragged hair.

Severus stood up. "Now get off your arse and get dressed for dinner. It doesn't do to keep our lady waiting."

LMHGSS

She was sitting in the middle of a veritable fortress of file folders. She smiled at him as he walked in. "Did you know that there are over two hundred different variations of legal marriage in the wizarding world?"

Lucius cocked his head at the little witch. "Why are you researching the marriage laws?" Surely there was a more subtle (or more likely, a more direct) way to bring up the subject with Severus…preferably when they were alone.

She jotted down something as she spoke. Severus handed him a cup of tea and wordlessly levitated a cup out of Hermione's way as she absently reached for a file. "I'm working on a counter-charm for a set of cursed wedding rings…four of them. Apparently polygamy was something of a fad in the Wizarding world during the Crusades. In fact, there isn't a combination of witches and wizards that isn't legal under one statute or another…"

Lucius took a sip of his tea. "The Wizarding world has survived with a relatively small breeding population. The inheritance laws are fairly strait forward…as long as you have a single heir and no other living relatives." He smirked.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "I don't even want to know why there is a law on the books for a non-connubial marriage between siblings requiring no less than two other non-related members…"

Lucius snorted. "That one is Roman relic. In order to keep the assets within the family line, the brother would 'marry' his sister and have children with a concubine or, if the male heir was unable to produce children, he would allow his sister to bear heirs from a lover." Hermione was flipping through files as he spoke. "The magical world just absorbed any marriage laws and customs we came in contact with. Under Gaelic law, a witch had a legal right to take as many lovers as she could feed and provide for over any given winter. And then there are the binding ceremonies…most of them are nothing but unbreakable vows preformed instead of a wedding ceremony."

"I wonder if I should cross-reference…"

Severus sighed. "You're over-researching again love. No doubt you can break the curse with nothing but the information at your finger-tips."

"Oh, I've already done it. The curse was foreign, Spanish or rather, Moorish in origin, placed on the rings in 1278 or thereabouts, when a certain witch was married to a foreign prince with an entire harem of wives. She was unwilling to allow any bloodline but her own to continue, she wove a curse into the wedding bands. Fatal accidents have plagued the bloodline, but since the ring sets weren't used in every generation no one caught on to the curse in the heirlooms until the jazz age when the heir of the family held an engagement party on an ocean liner. Everyone except the prospective groom drowned. Apparently that tipped them off that something was carrying a powerful curse. The rings have been waiting for someone to get around to breaking the curse since the family brought them into the Department in 1929."

Severus muttered "I'm going to hex Peterson."

Hermione turned her head, somewhat surprised. "Why? Researching the marriage laws wasn't nearly as boring as doing paperwork."

Severus shot Lucius a look. Peterson was baiting them by putting the witch on the scent of 'alternative marriage options.' Lucius nodded. The little man was going to require a strong message so he didn't upset their little lioness. If she figured out the man was using work to subtly mock them, there was no telling if they'd be able to piece Peterson back together. The man obviously had forgotten that he wasn't just dealing with Slytherins (who would take revenge, never doubt that) but he was also baiting a lion…and the results were rather messy when small, slow, stupid animals pulled on their whiskers.

Peterson would get his, but for now…Lucius grinned at his old friend, enjoying his discomfort. "Oh, I don't know Severus. I find the intricacies of the marriage laws fascinating. Did any particular arrangement catch your eye Hermione?"

She laughed. "Well, it does amaze me that a society that still judges single females based on the status of their hymen has such a plethora of available options." Her eyes focused on something far away.

"Do you think that is why the rumors about the three of us were so persistent and so mean spirited?"

Oh yes…Peterson would have to be dealt with quickly.

AN: I'll try to update Wednesday (as long as Severus and Lucius cooperate).