As You Wish - Chapter 9
Ginny stood in the foyer of Malfoy Manor, suddenly feeling very small. She didn't consider herself petite by any stretch of the imagination and she was solidly of an average height for a woman, but she wasn't used to being in a home of such a scale.
The foyer, alone, could probably swallow up most of the Burrow, with it's high-vaulted ceiling and accompanying columns. She could imagine Fred and George having a blast riding their brooms in between the glistening marble cylinders, trying to convince the family to join them for a game of pick up Quidditch. Ahead of her was a large staircase covered in plush black carpeting, trailing up to the second floor. As she followed where the stairs led, she could see hallways on either side of second floor of the foyer. It was all stylized like a balcony, with the occasional door leading off to a room of some kind or another mysterious hallway. Malfoy Manor was a lot for Ginny to take in all at once. If left to her own devices, she'd probably get lost.
"Never been inside a manor before, Weasley?" The use of her last name brought Ginny back to reality. She turned to glare at her master. They were beyond the use of last names as an insult.
"If you must know, Malfoy, I haven't been in a manor before." She stuck her tongue out for added effect. The genie pursed her lips together before speaking again. "Your family is still rather rich, aren't they?"
"Yes… ?" Draco shrugged. He didn't mean for his reply to come out in the form of a question, but he had spent most of his life surrounded by the cultural elite of Wizarding England. He supposed that even with all of the punishments the Ministry levied on his family after the war, old money is hard to keep down for too long and being the main trade company for all of said country probably helped with his financial rehabilitation.
Ginny slapped him on the arm. "You have goddamn peacocks walking around in the gardens outside, your mother's atrium apparently doesn't even comprise a quarter of the land that makes up the property, and Astoria told me about the ballrooms Daphne wants to commandeer in the winter. She even said that your family home is still larger than Greengrass Manor and they're supposed to have more money than you now. I obviously always knew that your family had money, but I guess I just naively thought that it meant that you had a much nicer house than mine and you could afford things, but still had to be mindful of finances here and there. But, in actuality, you're, like, rich rich. Old as balls rich."
The blond man rolled his eyes. "Will it help if I acknowledge that yes, my family was able to make some of our lost money back?"
"I mean, yes, that would definitely help."
Before he could continue, Draco was interrupted by a high pitch throat clearing. He looked down to see his mother's house elf, Fizzy.
"The Mistress of the house is waiting for the Young Master and the Young Miss in the atrium. Please follow me."
Ginny flicked her hair, mouthing Young Miss? as she walked past her master.
He shrugged in response, figuring it was just a turn of phrase for the being that had been his mother's main companion since his father was sent off to prison.
The house elf took the pair through a number of hallways, one of which passed by the ballrooms, toward the very back of the manor. The entrance to Narcissa's atrium was a set of white French doors with additional door-length windows on each side, allowing for plenty of light to cast a warm glow in the otherwise dimly lit hallway. Fizzy opened both doors with ease before stepping to one side. As she stepped forward, Ginny could now feel how comforting it was to be in that space.
The Malfoy matriarch had a fondness for plants that Ginny wasn't expecting and it was beautiful to experience. It was clear that Narcissa enjoyed both wizarding herbs and Muggle flora as all manner of plant life filled the large glass room. The initial archway they walked through featured roses creeping up the sides and popping through the holes of the arch, immediately setting the tone as a place of beauty and serenity. Ginny could smell their lush fragrance as she walked past. Low, well-kept bushes lined the paths they walked, broken up by displays of what Narcissa grew in large, white vases so the eye was always drawn to the colorful flowers. As they walked toward the center, the genie spotted a section filled with what she realized were carnivorous plants: large Venus Flytraps and hanging Pitcher plants, next to clumps of tentaculas. They probably helped keep any pesky pests at bay and made for an exciting addition to an otherwise picture perfect garden. Even closer still to the center was a patch of flowers and herbs that were clearly meant for tea: lavender, chamomile, more roses, mint, and even a bit of jasmine. It was a bit too on the nose for Ginny's liking, but she also supposed that being able to pick and brew on the spot was a novelty that never grew old.
Their destination in the center was a large, wrought-iron gazebo, covered in continuously blooming wisteria to provide shade on sunny days. Underneath was the reason for their visit: Narcissa Malfoy, reading through The Daily Prophet with a pair of glasses resting close to the tip of her nose.
Fizzy cleared her throat again and Narcissa looked up, smiling as she saw her son. She folded her paper in half and rose to greet him.
"Draco, darling, how kind of you to visit your dear mummy." She enveloped him in a hug as he tried to give her a kiss on the cheek.
"My apologies, Mother. I'm sure you know how preoccupied I've been lately."
Narcissa broke away and glanced at Ginny. "Preoccupied, yes. I see you still have Miss Weasley as your genie." She gave the young woman a smile.
"Thank you for inviting me, Mrs. Malfoy. Your garden is incredible to behold." Ginny knew that Draco's mother didn't approve of their predicament and she couldn't blame her, so it was best to keep the peace as much as possible. Mentioning the garden seemed to be a good move, though, since Narcissa perked up immediately.
"Yes, well, it does keep me and Fizzy rather busy, so I appreciate your acknowledgement of my efforts."
"You manage all of this with your house elf?"
Narcissa brushed her still platinum blonde hair behind her shoulder. "Did Draco not tell you about my atrium, my dear?"
Ginny cast Draco a sideways glance before replying. "He doesn't really like to talk about this place much."
The older woman frowned. "Tsk, that's a shame. This is where he grew up. This is where I still live. It's where he will live once he starts a family of his own. It's unfortunate that he still finds it difficult to think about our home."
The young woman looked back at her master. He had placed his hands in his pockets and was looking down at the ground. He knew his mother wished that he was living in the manor, but there was too much hurt experienced there. Narcissa only stayed out of a sense of filial piety, but Draco didn't feel such a sense of duty. And he knew that his mother only put so much effort into the atrium because it was a way for her to escape. She could be the steadfast housewife if she was too distracted by her atrium to know all the details of her husband's personal affairs. Draco didn't have such a luxury growing up.
Although he never doubted his mother's genuine love for him, her reluctance to understand her son's complex feelings on the family home continued to be a point of contention in their relationship once he reached adulthood.
Narcissa could see that she may have been taking things too far. She linked her arm with her son's. "Come, darling; let's settle in for some lunch and we can finish catching up."
The Greengrass family sat at one end of their massive dining room table, about to enjoy a Sunday afternoon brunch. Daphne and Astoria had introduced the concept of brunch to their parents and they had loved it so much that they tried to get together one Sunday a month to enjoy it together. The fact that alcohol was heavily involved in the entire thing had absolutely no bearing on the decision to keep having brunch. None at all.
Astoria liked their tradition since it meant that she could sleep in longer and show up still in her pajamas and robe. Things were going quite well, with her parents reading through the Sunday edition of The Daily Prophet, letting her eat in near blissful silence. She may have had just a touch too much to drink in the bath last night and all she wanted to focus on that morning was the fluffy Belgian waffle taking up most of her plate.
"Astoria, sweeting, what were you doing with Harry Potter yesterday?" Mrs. Greengrass asked, breaking the silence.
Daphne, who had been taking a sip of her morning tea, started choking at her mother's question.
Astoria, who was about to place a bit of waffle in her mouth, almost forgot about who she ran into yesterday and dropped her fork back on the table.
The eldest of the two sisters was the first to regain her composure. "Who was it that Astoria saw, Mummy?"
"You know, that Harry Potter boy," Mrs. Greengrass repeated, handing her daughter the society section of the newspaper.
Daphne began scanning through the section before flipping it back to the front page. There it was, in all of its glory. A half page photograph of Astoria, that woman she met at the Ministry gala, and Harry goddamn Potter.
"Oooh, I should owl Crystal about this. We really did look fabulous yesterday." Astoria leaned over to view the photo before placing the nearly forgotten waffle piece in her mouth.
"You knew about this?" Daphne's voice was low and harsh, a sign that her younger sister knew foretold a tantrum.
"I don't know why you care so much, Daph," Astoria paused to sip her latte. "Running into Wonder Boy was a total coincidence and besides; it's not like you had a date scheduled with your precious Draco yesterday."
"Who cares if I didn't have a date yesterday?" Daphne's voice began to rise again. "You've never given a shit about being in the paper if it wasn't to your advantage! Why do you care —"
"Girls. Manners, please." Mr. Greengrass let his voice echo throughout the high-ceilinged room. He knew his daughters were competitive, but he disliked how it served to drive an unnecessary wedge between them.
"Yes, Daddy," said daughters replied in unison. Their mother was always the one to indulge their high society whims, but they should have known better than to squabble about it in front of their father.
The Greengrasses let the silence settle in the room. Which Astoria was, again, perfectly content with. She finished eating her waffle, ignoring the glares Daphne shot her way in between bites of her omelet.
The younger sister was about to rise from the table before her mother spoke up again. "Daphne, darling, your father and I were thinking that it would be lovely if you could invite Draco and his mother over for dinner soon." Astoria immediately sat back down, not wanting to miss the remainder of the conversation.
Daphne rolled her eyes. Her sister was so predictable. "Are you sure, Mummy? Draco and I have only been together for a little over a month, so I think —"
"Nonsense, sweetheart," Mr. Greengrass cut in again. "Draco and his mother aren't completely unknown to us and regardless of how long your relationship lasts, your mother and I would be more than happy to meet the man he is now." He finished by giving Daphne a raised eyebrow and a pointed look.
The older sister could only smile in response. If her father was expressing an interest, then it was best to indulge her parents. Usually his interest meant business, so it didn't surprise her when she remembered what Draco did for a living. "Then it's settled. I'll coordinate with Draco and his mother so we can best determine when they should come over for dinner."
"Excellent," Mrs. Greengrass replied. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw her youngest daughter rise up from her seat again. "Astoria, you'll be expected to attend."
Astoria's chair squeaked across the parquet floor louder than she intended. Daphne had to stifle a laugh. "Why do I have to be there?" The youngest Greengrass was petulant. Why did she have to be at that stupid dinner with Daphne and her stupid boyfriend?
"Because Draco would be bringing his family over, so it is only polite that our family is in attendance," Mrs. Greengrass serenely explained.
If she was still seated, Astoria would have slunk down in her chair as she had been prone to do in her childhood. But she was an adult now, and standing, so slinking down to the ground didn't seem like the most becoming thing to do in front of her parents.
"Fine. Just let me know when you decide to host or whatever," she said, waving around a hand.
"There's my darling Astoria." Mrs. Greengrass gave her youngest a smile before waving a hand of her own to signal that her daughter could leave the room.
Astoria quickly strode out of the room, her silk robe billowing at her knees. She always tried to stay out of whatever nonsense Daphne liked to involve herself in. Her sister's form of social climbing felt so antiquated and she relied entirely too much on their mother's advise. But then Astoria thought about Wizarding England and how much positive press their family was getting thanks to her efforts, and figured that maybe Daphne was onto something with how she was orchestrating this whole relationship thing.
Not that she would ever let her sister know that.
Draco was on edge for all of lunch.
His mother definitely had a reason for inviting him and Ginny over and it wasn't to just make stilted small talk with his genie. His appetite seemed non-existent as he sat near the edge of his seat, waiting for the other shoe to drop.
"Ginny, dear, it looks like you've been rather busy lately." Narcissa brought her tea cup up to her mouth and eyed Ginny over the rim.
The younger woman could feel her throat go dry. "Whatever do you mean?"
In response, Narcissa pulled a newspaper out of what seemed like thin air and placed it on the table in between Ginny and her son. There it is, Draco thought to himself, as he looked at that same photo of Ginny as Crystal, next to Astoria at the Ministry gala.
"I have one more. Fresh off this morning's press," Narcissa quickly announced.
Oh, fuck. Draco knew exactly which photo his mother was going to show next. He had seen it himself this morning and made a point to not bring it up to Ginny lest she have another breakdown. He was hoping to mention it later today and only show her the photo if she was ready for it.
Ginny inhaled sharply as she absorbed the contents of the next article in front of her. She had forgotten about the fact that Astoria was having photographers follow them around all day yesterday, so of course they would get a photo of when she ran into Harry. Before she could control herself, she could feel the tears rolling down her cheeks again. She wanted to run and hide, but she still had the mental fortitude to remember that she was in unfamiliar territory.
The redhead nearly jumped out of her seat when she felt a hand larger than her own grasp her right hand under the table. She looked at her master to see him staring at his mother. He kept his gaze as neutral as he could.
"You should have been honest about your intentions with lunch today, Mother." His words were strong, but his tone was flat. He knew his mother bristled at being accused of ill intent and did not need her getting defensive at a time like this.
"I can see that I've upset your genie, so I'll apologize if I brought up a sore subject for her." Narcissa was not about to back down and be made into the bully. "However, aren't you concerned that her gallivanting about London with someone who has no qualms about being photographed may not be the brightest of ideas? What if she gets recognized? You've worked so hard, Draco, to maintain a neutral image for us since your father's imprisonment. Do you really want to ruin all of that on the off-chance that the Weasleys realize who Crystal is?"
"What others think of me is not our concern." Draco's tone became icy. He clenched his jaw and could feel himself beginning to grit his teeth.
"Is that so?" Narcissa's voice was shrill and her cheeks were turning pink from her frustration. "Then why are you going around Wizarding London with Daphne Greengrass? Why is Pansy Parkinson writing articles about how 'in love' you are with Daphne? I may be older now, Draco, but I'm not a fool."
The blonde woman was quickly heading toward irate. She knew her son liked to pretend that he was above it all. It had been helpful for him for most of his adulthood. But Narcissa also knew that he was still the same insecure young man Lucius had somehow molded him to be. Draco was always going to care, whether he wanted to admit it or not.
Draco placed his hands flat on the table, ready to stand, when he felt Ginny's hand on his shoulder. She gave it a squeeze and he looked at her. She was no longer crying and she shook her head. He was right yesterday about not being able to turn back now. The moment they shared allowed for something else to pass through them that made him realize that he already knew what Ginny was trying to say with her actions. It wasn't worth it for him to try to escalate things with his mother.
Unfortunately, these physical actions were things that Narcissa noticed, too, and it suddenly all started to make sense to her. She now had a feeling that Draco was trying to protect Miss Weasley from the last photo presented to her. She could also sense that something else may be brewing between the two, only complicated by her son's "relationship" with Daphne Greengrass and his strange contract with Ginny. Narcissa was tempted to point this out, but this was the first time she had seen the pair be supportive of one another. It reminded her of the boy Draco was before his indoctrination: protective, sensitive, and kind. Whatever was happening between the two young people would be hashed out in its own time and Narcissa would just have to wait and see what kind of decisions they would make. Thinking about how it may turn out, though, excited the older woman as she knew of the stubbornness of Weasleys and Malfoys all too well. There were only a couple of ways this could go and Narcissa hoped it was one that ended happily for her son. And maybe happily for Miss Weasley as well.
"No, Mother, you're not."
The words stirred Narcissa from her thoughts.
"Please don't blame Draco for this." It was the first time Ginny spoke since Narcissa revealed the photos of her as Crystal. It was time to be an adult. Part of that was not letting someone else take the blame for her actions. "I only meant for Crystal to be a one-time thing. I had suggested accompanying Blaise to the Ministry gala so Draco had some emotional support. I was the one who said that I could handle meeting with Astoria yesterday. I never intended it to be a long-term solution, but I think a part of me enjoyed being out in the world again."
Narcissa looked at Ginny with narrowed eyes and pursed lips. She noted how the redhead referred to her son and why she took on the false identity she did. Yes, these two may surprise her yet. She ultimately understood why Ginny did what she did. In her excitement, the young woman probably never anticipated being re-acquainted with her past in such a way.
"Fine," the older woman began. "I will hold off on passing any further judgement." The pair in front of her visibly relaxed at the proclamation. "However," a sudden tensing of shoulders, "I do want to know what you intend on doing should Crystal be requested for a future engagement."
"Ginny's already made it clear that she has no intention of acting as Crystal for any of the event invitations she's been receiving. The only person she's willingly interacting with is Astoria," Draco was quick to respond.
In response, Narcissa looked at Ginny for some kind of reasoning.
The genie shrugged. "I think she's pretty, but simple."
The unexpected reply prompted a very unbecoming bark of a laugh from Narcissa. Draco nearly spit out his tea at Ginny's statement and his mother's reaction.
His mother inhaled through her nose before continuing. "Yes, quite. Do you have any intention to meet with her on a frequent basis?"
Another shrug. "Not really. I think I'll just be more discerning now as to when I meet with her since this last outing showed me more than I expected."
"Another acceptable response," Narcissa replied. "I won't push the matter too much more then. I was simply a mother worried for her son, but I can see that I may not have to worry as much as I thought." She finished by giving the pair a pointed look.
Said pair didn't know what that look meant, but for Ginny, it caused the Kill Bill sirens to go off. Draco, on the other hand, could feel his face turning that particular shade of pink it liked to turn whenever he thought too much about Ginny.
Their reactions amused his mother to no end, but she did feel that it was only fair to end their time there, lest she cause even more of these moments. She stood and walked toward her son. "I think I've caused enough trouble for one day, so we'll end our lunch here." She held out her arms in anticipation of a hug.
On cue, Draco stood to accept his mother's hug, bringing her close before placing a kiss on her cheek. "I'll be more mindful about keeping you in the loop."
"That's all I ask for, sweetheart." She peeked behind him to look at his genie, a woman she never gave much consideration to when her son was growing up, but learned a lot about in the short-time she'd been re-acquainted with her. Today's meeting was especially illuminating and Narcissa realized that, for once in Draco's adult life, she didn't have to keep such a close eye on him. Whether he realized it or not, he was being taken care of. There was now another person in his corner besides her and Blaise who had a vested interest in his well-being. And while she was initially there by force, Narcissa saw that Ginny had begun to engage with Draco's life more often and entirely of her own volition.
The blond man moved out of his mother's way and he was pleasantly surprised to see her wrap up Ginny in a hug. She pulled away from the just as surprised genie. "Now, Ginny dear, don't be surprised if I pop by for a visit or if I ask you to stop by to help me in the garden."
A flustered Ginny could only nod in response, eventually blurting out, "Of course, Narcissa."
Narcissa stood under the gazebo as she watched the pair begin to walk away. "Draco, darling?" she called out, pausing when she saw her son and his genie turn around. "While you're here, why don't you give Ginny a little tour of the Manor? If she's going to be coming here by herself at some point, I'd want her to feel comfortable navigating around."
It was now Draco's turn to be flustered, providing a "Yes, Mother" as his only response before quickly turning back around.
His mother watched the pair with a satisfied grin as they walked further away. The seeds were already there and Narcissa was a very accomplished gardener. It was now time to watch them grow.
A/N - Thanks for reading! Please review :)