A/N: Hey everyone! Thanks for bearing with me as I update my stories. Much appreciated! Grad school began again, and you all know how that goes…As promised, 100th reviewer gets a shout-out: Thanks VenusInHerHair (and go check out our collab story on my profile). To show I'm not just biased haha, thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter: Benkins, Eclipse000, Narutoske, onecelestialbeing, katarina97, and Hexe09. You guys rock!

Also, I only got one response regarding who you all imagine Lacey to look like in your heads…so lay it on me! Who do you picture her as?

Now on we go…

~o0o~

"You are fucking out of your mind!" Lacey ranted, red in the face as she stormed into Grimmauld place with Remus right on her tail. After Remus had lied to everyone and pretended they were a couple, Fred had nearly exploded, fired Lacey on the spot from the shop, and disapparated before he could be reasoned with. She just hoped to Merlin that he wasn't splinched somewhere. But besides that awful image, she had more pressing issues to deal with.

"I did what I had to do!" Remus argued back with her, following her into the dark library. Lacey agitatedly flicked her wand at both of the lamps and they lit, better illuminating Remus' scarred, sorry looking expression.

"Bullshit!"

"Lacey, please don't be upset with Remus…"

The new, smaller, and sweeter voice caused both Lacey and Remus to turn and see Hermione in the hallway, looking into the library.

"You've got to be bloody kidding me," Lacey groaned under her breath and she flopped down on a chair by the dark fireplace, proceeding to ignite it with flames possibly a little too intense for the situation.

"Hermione, what are you doing here?" Remus asked her softy, ignoring the way Lacey was cursing and throwing pillows around. Besides the three of them, Grimmauld was empty, and he could only assume Ginny and Sirius had escaped somewhere for peace and quiet and reprieve from what had transpired at the Burrow.

"I just feel awful…it shouldn't have to be this way!" Hermione said and Lacey looked back over the arm of the chair at the bushy-haired brunette, looking longingly at Remus. It was enough to make her sick- too many people she knew were in love with someone they couldn't really have: Fred with her, Hermione with Remus, Harry with Ginny, and herself with Lucius.

"Look, Hermione, thanks but this really isn't any of your concern. There was nothing you could do without blowing everything and it was Remus' stupid decision, not yours. I can take it from here…" Lacey snapped. She knew she would feel bad about it later and would apologize when she could, but right now she was livid and honestly didn't want Hermione to get caught in any crossfire.

Remus sighed as he watched Hermione rock back and forth on the balls of her feet with nervous energy, "She's right, Hermione. I'll talk to you later okay? Could you go and see if you can try and find Ginny and Sirius?"

Not exactly pleased, Hermione nodded and left, leaving Remus to walk in front of the chair where Lacey was sitting and cross his arms over his chest.

"Why hello boyfriend, need something?" Lacey looked up at him, snark dripping from her words, her eyes glaring up at him dangerously.

"Drop the attitude Lacey, it doesn't suit you."

"I'll drop the attitude when I'm good and ready to Remus. You don't just get to make choices like that and expect me to be happy with them, alright?"

"You know as well as I do it doesn't mean anything."

Lacey shook her head, biting the inside of her cheek so hard she could taste the iron of her blood, "I am already telling so many lies…and now I have to pretend in front of all of our friends that I am your girlfriend. Now that you've put it out there, we have to do it. We have to hold hands whenever we are in public, we have to pretend like we are intimate…we…"

"I thought I was doing you a favor!" he cut in. It was clear to him that Lacey wasn't interested in Fred and he thought his abrupt decision would ultimately prevent Fred from looking any deeper into Lacey's love life...and finding something he didn't want to.

"A favor? Fuck you," she slumped even further down in the chair, her eyes watching the dancing flames instead of his helpless expression.

"I had to. I had no choice. No one can think I have anything to do with Narcissa…it would ruin everything!"

Lacey suddenly sat up in her chair and stared Remus down, her light eyes extremely intimidating, "Do you remember who is helping you and Narcissa be together? Oh, that's right…me. If we are out in public and act like a couple to keep up appearances for our friends, word will get in the Prophet and Lucius will read about it. When that happens, I will no longer be his mistress and the two of you no longer have a distraction while she pushes through a bunch of red tape. Smart move, Professor."

Remus paused, thinking about her words and letting his anger abate. He knew she was right in some senses, but she was still far too emotional about it. He knew he was the last man on earth Lacey would ever want to be paired with, but still…something wasn't right in the way her eyes looked wet as she stared off past him.

Remus paced, took a seat in a chair opposite her, and finally it hit him. "You are in love with him aren't you?"

Her chin perked up but she said nothing.

"I don't know why I didn't see it earlier. I know what it's like to be in love with a Malfoy, and that look is written all over your face," he tried to be gentler with his tone, vividly recalling the sheer terror he felt when he had realized he was head over heels for Narcissa. Along with it came the exquisite feeling of happiness, and mixed together they resulted in an awful, never ceasing stomachache. He saw it in her eyes the most, and realized that a flash of softness had come over them a moment ago when she said his name. She clearly cared for him.

"Does it matter?" Lacey finally spoke, her voice bitter and angry, "It's all going to go to shit in a couple of days now…and even if it doesn't…I'll lose him when Narcissa decides she's ready for the next step. Hell, it's probably over already…" the last part was said more to herself than to Remus, as she thought about their little meeting in his office and the argument that had ensued.

Remus steepled his hands and placed the tips of his fingers against his forehead, letting out a long breath, "Merlin…I'm sorry Lacey. If I would have known I wouldn't have said anything to Fred…I wouldn't have…"

Lacey had stopped listening to his apology, as sincere and sweet as it was. Her mind was solely focused on something else and as it dawned upon her—the conversation from that morning with Lucius replaying in her mind-she looked over at Remus, "He knows, did you know that?"

"What?" he jerked his head up.

"Lucius…he knows Narcissa has a lover. He doesn't know it's you…yet, but he knows…" her heart thudded erratically against her chest as the realization of a great many things bombarded her mind all at once, "Shit Remus, everything is so completely fucked…"

He was up from his chair and at her side within a half second. He never liked seeing anyone distraught, especially not a woman, and he bent to push her wild hair out of her eyes as tears fell down her panicked face.

"Slow down, Lacey, it's alright. Tell me…how does he know?"

"I'm not sure but he does and he said it didn't matter because he had me…but we got into a fight today and he could…" truthfully, she didn't really want to think about he was doing or could do out of anger. There really was nothing scarier than a pissed off Malfoy with nothing but time on his hands. For all she knew he could be tracking down Remus as they spoke, "It's just…the sooner he knows about you, the sooner the divorce will happen and then I'm gone. Remus I just thought I had more time."

Remus crouched awkwardly on the floor in front of Lacey, not exactly knowing how to help her. He had never seen her this upset. Her usual look was care-free and flirtatious, but now she looked exactly how he felt inside: in too deep. Except he was fortunate enough to walk out of the situation liberated when the time came. As he watched her sigh deeply and rest her head back into the old chair, he knew he had to do something. After all, he was living proof that love knew no bounds and he didn't want her to needlessly suffer from a favor he had partially asked of her.

"Lacey, look at me," he coaxed her in a calming voice and she eventually picked her head up and stared straight into his eyes, "When the time comes I promise you…I swear it…that you won't have to lose him…"

Remus never imagined himself saying something like that about Lucius Malfoy, but he knew the girl in front of him was the only reason for that. "I will though…don't you fucking get it? I've lied too much. He'll never forgive me when he finds out I was only a catalyst for his divorce," Lacey groaned, putting her head in her hands once again and letting herself succumb to tears. Remus rubbed her back as he thought about the mess figuratively spread before them.

"I made a rash decision tonight that only further buggered things up, and so I promise I will do what I can, Lacey. I'll do whatever I can."

~o0o~

The weekend had been unbearable for Lacey, even though she tried to pretend like she wasn't bothered in the slightest. She had avoided Diagon at all costs and instead made use of the little market in Swindon outside of her new home for things as she didn't think she could handle running into Fred, or any Weasley for that matter. Beyond that, she hadn't heard from Sirius or Ginny, Narcissa had taken off to Paris to see to some of the property there with her lawyer, Harry and Hermione had tried to visit her (to no doubt talk about Remus, Ginny, and Sirius)…looking in the wrong place above the apothecary, of course…which had suddenly caused suspicion on her whereabouts. And to top all of that off, she hadn't heard from Lucius at all. Nothing. No owls, no floo calls, not a single word.

It was enough to cause her to pace in front of the fireplace all of Sunday morning and lie in bed clutching her pillow to her chest the rest of the afternoon. And it forced her to face the thought she had tried to bury deep inside of her-that she was in love with him. Now that he wasn't speaking to her, she realized that it wasn't only the sex she was missing, but all of him. Without her knowing it, he had become such a constant in her life over the last month that it was now unbearable to be away from him.

Not even with Oliver had she felt such a gaping hole in her heart when he was gone, and it scared her.

When Monday morning finally came, Lacey ate breakfast at the pristine white marble island in the kitchen and dressed for her first Quidditch practice in months. When she arrived at Bodmin Moor stadium, she was thrust into many introductions by Eddie before finding herself standing in a semi-circle in the middle of the pitch with the rest of her teammates…minus one. The man in question jogged up to them a few minutes later, broom in hand, and gave Eddie a slap on the shoulder before the manager retreated to watch the practice in the stands.

"Alright then, first pre-season practice!" Oliver Wood's thick accent stumbled over some of the words when he made eye contact for the first time with Lacey, but he continued, "And we have a new addition to the team this season…our new Chaser, Lacey Delaney. Let's all make her feel at home. Now, training is going to be rigorous and…"

Oliver went on, but Lacey stopped paying attention to his pep talk and looked around at the group. She hadn't known he had been promoted to captain, and her chest constricted in the utter mortification of playing alongside her ex, under his rules.

It was strange though, that even as she listened to the voice that used to make her slightly weak in the knees, that she now felt nothing. It was a relief, but it still didn't change the fact that she was pissed at him. More like beyond pissed.

She was the last to kick up into the air and as she rose higher and higher above the pitch, Lacey felt the anxiety of the weekend leaving her and being replaced with sheer joy as she bent over the broom and sped towards the hoops to run some drills with the other chasers. Suddenly, it didn't really matter how many times Oliver yelled at her, or gave her odd looks when she sent a particularly well-thrown quaffle through a hoop. All that mattered was that she was where she wanted and needed to be for that moment.

Three hours later and absolutely dripping in sweat, Lacey dragged her feet behind the rest of her team into the changing rooms. With a small, proud smile, she walked over to her locker, running a hand over her newly painted surname, and opened it. Without ceremony, she was stripping off her shirt down to her sports bra when she felt a tap on her naked shoulder blade. Awkwardly caught in her shirt and not able to see who startled her, Lacey quickly flung it off over her head and turned with messy hair strewn over her face only to see Oliver standing inches from her.

He was half naked, standing only in boxers, and she was even more excited that his well-defined body did nothing for her anymore…and simultaneously petrified about what that meant…that she was long gone for a certain blonde that wasn't speaking to her.

"I think it might be a good idea to talk," he shrugged sheepishly as she crumpled up her shirt and threw it in her locker.

"Ya think?"

"Look, Lace, what I pulled on you…it wasn't right…" he began and she tried her best not to seem self-conscious as she stood in front of him in just as little of clothes.

"Damn straight it wasn't right. Why did you do it? I know we had a fight and I know things weren't working out…but why did you lie to me the whole time?" she placed a hand on her hip, tapping her fingers on the curve over her hip bone, "And a better question…why would you cheat on the woman you wanted as a fiancée?"

Oliver looked around the locker room, noticing some of the girls were lingering and trying to hear their conversation so he further lowered his voice, "Honestly Lace, you were great fun. Really. But that's all it ever was."

"What do you mean, 'all it ever was'. We were together for a long time…" her heart plummeted and the blood rushed from her cheeks, leaving her paler than usual as he gave her a sorry smile and continued, "Really, you were amazing, but Katie is the type of girl I could take home to my Mum, you know?"

With a terrible swallow, revealing just how dry and constricted her throat was, Lacey fought back tears, "So…I was just sex to you?"

Oliver grimaced and put his hand on her shoulder but she violently swatted it off, "Lace, don't be like that…it was more than sex, I swear it was, but you've got to realize it…you really have to know…you just aren't marriage material…"

Even though she was hurt, and nearly boiling over in rage, she managed to raise her voice above a whisper and say, "Don't you dare try to make me feel like shit, Wood, when you are the one that cheated on Katie with me! Does she even know?"

"'Course not…" he said with hesitance in his voice, his eyes practically pleading with her to not tell anyone. Lacey just looked down and reached for her clean clothes, slipping a jumper over her bra and training her eyes on Oliver as she very purposefully yanked her shorts down and replaced them with yoga pants. When she was done, she grabbed her bag and slung it over her shoulder.

"Well, I hope the two of you have a bloody fantastic marriage, for her sake, because no matter how little you think of me or how much of a slut you think I am, if you cheated once, you'll do it again," she told him before brushing past him and making her way to the apparition point outside of the stadium as fast as she could.

~o0o~

"He knows."

It was the first thing out of an anxiety-ridden Remus' mouth when Narcissa stepped out of the Grimmauld floo on Monday afternoon. He had been sitting in the library, patiently awaiting her arrival back from France, as she had left right before the dinner from hell at the Burrow.

She was smiling to herself, not too concerned about Remus' confusing words or the pronounced circles under his eyes as she walked casually into the library, clutching a thick file, "Everything is set. I'll be getting the Avignon property, so we can honeymoon there if you want…"

"Narcissa, Lucius knows you have a lover, I'm not exactly too concerned about where we are going to honeymoon at the moment," Remus interjected.

"Oh, I know," she replied flippantly, walking over to the couch and sitting down before depositing her dragonhide purse on the coffee table.

"You knew? And when were you planning on mentioning that to me?"

"Today, at some point. I had a conversation with Lucius, but in all honesty it was taken care of. Sirius and Ginny were the main priority and it really just slipped my mind Remus, darling." She got up after toeing off her heels and moved towards him to kiss him, but he turned his cheek at the last moment, leaving the blonde gaping.

"It just slipped your mind?"

Now Narcissa's expression turned just as stony as her lover's, "How exactly do you know that Lucius knows?"

"Lacey told me…"

"Oh, did she now?"

"Well if you were around this bloody weekend you would have known that, right?"

"Yes, like I was sure to be welcomed with open arms into the Burrow. You know I couldn't go, so settling things in Paris was the best option," Narcissa tried to finish the argument and remain as composed as possible, but inside her mind was racing with what could have possibly happened while she was gone, "And how exactly does Lacey know this?"

"Lucius told her that he knows you have a lover, but he doesn't quite care. What exactly did you and your husband have a conversation about?" Remus couldn't have said 'husband' with more acid in his voice and Narcissa flinched.

"He caught me in a lie and I told him I know about his mistresses and now he knows about my lover. He does not know it is you and he won't, but he is aware of the situation. He doesn't know about the divorce yet, if that is your concern," she put a finger to her chin, trying to figure out the look on Remus' face. She had never seen his eyes so dark, and even though she knew the full moon was approaching, he had never looked so upset in her presence.

"I don't care about the divorce, I care that you decided not to tell me this. It could have prevented me from making a huge mistake," he blurted, pressing his palm to his forehead and then dragging it through his already ruffled, sandy hair.

"Remus…" she moved towards him again and this time he let her put her hand on his cheek, "What did you do?"

With a heavy sigh he said, "At the Burrow, things went to shite right away with Sirius and Ginny…and Fred Weasley accused me of being with Lacey. There was no way I could refute it…they know Hermione and I have not been together for a while and there is no way I could tell the truth, so I…"

"You what?" her voice was icy. She already figured out what he was going to say before he did, but she urged him on anyway.

"I lied and said that Lacey and I were, in fact, together. But if I just would have known about your conversation with Lucius, maybe I wouldn't have been so fucking freaked out!" his voice went from a mere whisper to full volume in a second and he broke away from Narcissa to pace and try not to take his anger directly out on her.

"You are right, that was a mistake. Lacey is becoming more trouble than she is worth," Narcissa sniffed, sounding every ounce the pureblood spoiled child she used to in her youth. Her change in tone shocked Remus and he came to a stop in the middle of the floor, turning on his heel to face her once again, "All she has done is what you asked of her. I don't think it's fair of you to blame her…"

"You could have made up something else, Remus. You could have kept quiet. But no, you thrust yourself into a fake relationship with Lacey for me…I don't buy an ounce of it. I understand Remus," she spat, trying to hide her emotion under a callous tone, "She's young and beautiful and when I found you two sleeping on the couch together it hardly looked platonic…"

Remus opened his mouth, but nothing but a confused stutter came out, "Wh…Cissa…are…are you jealous of Lacey? Yes it was a stupid decision, and trust me I have paid for it the past few days, but it wasn't done with any hidden agenda."

Inside, Narcissa felt embarrassed. She knew how much Remus loved her, that he would hang the stars for her if he could, but even though she knew she was still a beautiful woman, and that the signs of age hadn't caught up to her as much as they should have, there was one reason why she was suddenly so jealous of Lacey and she couldn't shake it.

When she had talked to her husband, it was more than clear that he had fallen in love with the brunette. Narcissa had hoped for lust on his part, but never love. She didn't even realize her husband still had it in him to love like that. And if Lucius could fall in love with Lacey, the part of her heart filled with love for Remus that blinded her and made her unreasonable, figured that he could just as easily fall in love with Lacey as well.

~o0o~

Over multiple cups of tea, Lacey spent her afternoon mulling over what Oliver said. Although he had been a right prat, she had to admit that his words resonated with her.

For so long she had tried to build up walls to prevent herself from being vulnerable in relationships because she had been so deeply hurt. She just hadn't realized that the walls had gotten a little too high. She hadn't exactly changed herself…as she knew there was no changing the stubborn, emotional, daredevil of a girl she was…but she had chosen to only highlight one part of herself to men. Lacey realized that she had made sex so casual that eventually men saw that as all she was made of and moved on. And if they did fall for her, she made it impossible for them to get close to her, and they moved on as well, or she left before they could.

Even though she knew that deep down, she wasn't a slag, or a party girl, or a girl that wasn't marriage material, she just hadn't shown any man the real her because she was afraid.

Oliver Wood had broken her heart, made all the wrong moves, and was a sorry arsehole of a cheater, but she owed him one for this.

Lacey downed the last of her fourth cuppa as her mind flicked to Lucius. The morning of their fight he had wanted to spend time getting to know her…and letting her get to know him, but she had ran because she was scared. She had been living in a lie for too long and just didn't know how to tell the truth anymore.

And you know what? I guess it's high time I faced that bloody fear, Lacey thought to herself, leaving the kitchen in favor of her bedroom and pulling her nightstand drawer open for the charmed copy of Lucius' calendar.

She had tried her best not to look at it over the weekend, as she didn't want to know his whereabouts, but now she flipped through it with a smile, realizing that dates and meetings that were previously in there in the past weeks had been scribbled out and replaced with her name.

Her name.

As her fingers moved to that afternoon, she glanced at the three o'clock timeslot and her smile faded.

Interview with Sarah Chittingham—new secretary

As quickly as her happiness had come, it disappeared, and she slammed the datebook closed. Promises to be more vulnerable aside, she would be damned if she let him replace her without a fight, even if she hadn't wanted the bloody job in the first place.

A/N: okay, don't hate on me, I know it wasn't the most exciting chapter…but the next one will be! What do you think Lacey will do? What did you think of Remus and Narcissa? How do you think Ginny and Sirius are holding up? I would love to know your thoughts!