( iron king. )

lucius a. malfoy. seventeen. slytherin. pureblood. prefect. future death eater. "Words aren't enough to describe him. He is a nebula, incredible and terrifying. He is an endless sky of stars, put into constellations, and you can't fathom him."

[sebastianprkinsxn-blog]

“Oh don’t mind me, I’m deducing whether I should be honest or not,” Sebastian said with a slight smugness appearing on his face. There was a mischievous twinkle in his eye and a brooding aura in his posture. No one needed to speak about the condescending arrogance of the young Parkinson, it was expected. 

[lvcius-blog]

Lucius’ brows arched at the other boy’s words when their gazes met. His expression was schooled into one of haughty arrogance to combat Sebastian’s apparent smugness. “About what?” he countered, not missing a beat. “How heartbroken you are to see how stunning Emma looks tonight?”

[blxckfleur-blog]

Her footwork was precise as usual. At this time she felt more comfortable since the first dance. One hand rested on his broad shoulder as the other, gripped tightly to his palm. The way their hands intertwined together intrigued her. Her slender and narrow fingers carved to statuesque proportions were quite small in comparison to the wideness of his own. Yet they interlocked like a puzzle piece - as if it was meant to fit. The sound of his voice echoed to her ears as she resisted the tug of her lips.“Flattery, well this doesn’t fit the characteristics of the picturesque ice king.” A light observation she made out loud. Through her mask, her mahogany eyes glimmered in curiosity. There was no point in being so kind. Therefore, what was his motive? She wanted to laugh, he had picked up on her academic reflection, it almost made her think he gave a bloody damn. But that would be idiotic, all of this was to speed up time. Dancing in silence, now that was misery she didn’t want to bestow neither upon him nor herself. “Of course I wouldn’t dare refuse a dance with you, I’m quite sure I could appreciate no other.” Head tilted she paused to see what kind of response she’d garner.“Perhaps another suitable synonym for appreciate is value. I must admit, I have started to value this time more than I thought I would.” It was a understated comment that meant more than it seemed. Of course, Narcissa had been interested in Lucius Malfoy. But she had never voiced it as boldly. Even now, she was carefully treading on water, each syllable had been enunciated with tangled nuances.

[lvcius-blog]

It was during times like this that Lucius was almost thankful that he wasn’t arranged to marry anyone else. It was true that Narcissa wouldn’t be his first choice and that there were perhaps one or two other who he would rather marry had he been given the choice, — namely, a certain Belladonna Burke who he knew would be able to handle him at both his worst and his best — but seeing her keep up with him made him think that he could’ve done worse. The youngest Black girl was at least capable of matching his strides, not seeming to set him back in the slightest just so that she could become the perfect pureblood wife. Lucius supposed that it was more than he could ask for. Or really, it was the most his father could’ve done for him, and he was going to take it as it was — considering that being arranged to a Black also meant a strong alliance that would come with the union of their families. And the fact that Narcissa was capable of keeping up with him made him thankful that the arranged marriage he had wasn’t completely not in his favour in terms of everything other than power. 

Which was what caused the expression on Lucius’s face to grow a little more genuine, more like the expression one would see him wearing when he was in the company of his parents or Belladonna and Emma. A small smile flitted across his lips briefly at Narcissa’s words, noting how it had sound almost teasing than mocking to his ears. “Doesn’t it?” he countered. “My father taught me that all politicians must be capable of utilising flattery to get them far. Perhaps I was merely practicing the theories he had imposed on me.” The lightness she had held in her words was returned with one that accompanied his own. For a brief moment, he let himself relax into the dance, tearing his gaze away from his dance partner to once again made an observation of their surroundings. This time, though, he did it out of mere curiosity as opposed to the practiced movement that he had pulled earlier, the condescending air he usually carried replaced with something a little less arrogant ( of course, it was still present, but just not as much as it was a few moments ago ). The gazes placed upon them seemed to blur a little more now that he was capable of losing himself further into the rhythm he and Narcissa had fell into. “I must say, I’m pleasantly surprised that flattery happens to suit you well, though. I’m delighted to hear that you’re enjoying this time.” Once again, his head was dipped in a brief nod of acknowledge, lips pulling into half a smile a second time when he brought his gaze back to her face.

[luweascl-blog]

There was always a feeling of inadequacy when it had come to comparing herself with Lucius, and she had half a mind to snap at him, yet thought better of it. As such, a bitter smile crossed her lips, as Alecto turned to half-glare at him, her resentment towards him resembling some sort of cauldron - controlled to a point, before one wrong move that could have catastrophic results. “My mistake, Lucius. But I assure you, my misbehaviour towards events like these has no impact on how far I’m going to get in life. You’d be a fool to think otherwise.”

[lvcius-blog]

A chuckle left his lips at Alecto’s blatant discontent of the comment he had made. He took a step back, gesturing toward her as if he was giving her space. She wasn’t wrong, one mistake wasn’t going to cost the girl her entire reputation, but he marvelled at how much less careful she was with her words than him. “Apologies for simply trying to look out for you, Alecto.” Of course, the sarcasm lacing his tone wouldn’t go unnoticed. 

[feminavirum]

Ariadne jolted back in surprise when a drink was thrusted in front of her, a delicate smile curling at her lips as she took the glass from Lucius and raised it to her lips. “Thank you, Lucius.” There was a note of hesitation to her voice as she responded, that momentary fear that she would call her housemate by the wrong name on the off chance he wasn’t who she thought he was seeping in. “Are you enjoying yourself?”

[lvcius-blog]

Following the blonde girl’s example and taking a sip from his glass as well, Lucius gave her a slow nod. He knew the response that was to be expected from the question, for many times before he had heard someone ask the very same question and he no longer had to think before offering them a charming smile and saying that he was indeed enjoying himself. This, however, was different. This wasn’t a gala only for the highest in their society, but rather a common party with the entirety of Hogwarts. Haughtiness seeped into his tone when he responded to Ariadne with, “I surprisingly am, thought I’m certain that you would agree with me when I say that the balls we attended last summer had been far more entertaining.”

[xeniaadair-blog]

Approval seeking. The thought alone made Emma want to scoff. The only person she wanted approval from was herself – and the person she was seeking to make a connection with, but that was different. Approval needed to elevate her social standing was different to approval about her looks. The first she sought, the second was laughable. She was Emma Isadora Vanity, and she needed no one to tell her she was beautiful. But, that didn’t mean she didn’t enjoy hearing it. Sure, compliments might not change her opinion of herself, but they nevertheless fed her ego and made her smile. Lucius was being infuriating, not that Emma actually expected anything less. Emma rolled her eyes, allowing a small, exasperated huff to slip past her elegant composure. It was Lucius, she could allow such breaks in the mask.

 “I suppose I can live with that,” a note of intentionally exaggerated but mock petulance coloured her tone, but it wasn’t serious. Lucius was right, after all. She didn’t need compliments – she was not insecure, and thus did not desire approval –, and as frustrating as his lack of indulgence of her ego could be, it wasn’t something that warranted sulking like a petty child. Emma had f a r too much pride for that, and she could not afford to ruin her reputation. Not over something so petty. But, in the company of those who had the privilege of knowing her, Emma didn’t mind loosening up. Emma raised a brow at Lucius. “Are you going to ask me to dance, or are you going to stand there and poke holes in my ego all night?”

[lvcius-blog]

Had it been anyone else to talk to Emma like this, Lucius was sure that she would’ve been actually irritated. But he and Emma knew each other, and he was as sure as that as he was of the fact that the blonde girl would know that he was only teasing her and meant no harm. After all, wasn’t that what friends do? Lucius didn’t have a lot that he could genuinely call friend, but somehow, over the years, Emma had been one of the few who had the privilege to be called so by him. He was certain that the privilege came with fond teasings and mock grins thrown at each other’s way. 

His shoulders relaxed even further back as he fell into a comfortable rhythm of banter with her. If he had been without the mask tonight, then maybe one would be able to see the way his eyes lit up at Emma’s challenging tone. It rare for him to have someone talk back at him without meaning any harm the way the Slytherin Quidditch Captain did, and though he was reluctant to admit it, he was grateful of it. His head dipped into a slight nod as he offered his arm for Emma to take. There was amusement lacing his tone while he murmured, “Miss Vanity, would you please kindly honour me with a dance?”

[feminavirum]

This was it. This was Ariadne’s moment to shine. Social events such as balls were the sort of things Ariadne waited with bated breath for, knowing they were her chance to further improve her reputation and lead people to the belief that she had taken that one step closer to perfection. Gliding into the room, with her head held high and her mask firmly in place, Ariadne made her way towards the drinks table, figuring that was always a good place to start when it came to socialising. 

[lvcius-blog]

Though Lucius tended to prefer moving about to where he could see people who he would be comfortable spending long conversations with, he had chosen to give himself a break from the conversations and headed to the drinks table alone after a few dances. He was picking up a drink for himself when a blonde girl—not Narcissa, he noted—approached the table, and in one practiced movement, another glass was in his other hand and thrusted toward the girl. “A drink, Ariadne?” he offered.

[blxckfleur-blog]

Alternating between his countenance and those around her, she caught a quick flash of prominent Malfoy arrogance smothered upon the corners of his lips. “I wouldn’t say I’m the only one, I’m sure there are others who would adore to be in your company,” there were a certain few that came into her mind but Narcissa knew she had little interest in making their small talk even more, awkward. One didn’t need to hear to know about Lucius’s lady friends. Despite the stubborn nature within her, waiting to submerge to the surface and break away - she couldn’t help but indulge just a bit in the attention. It was almost natural (almost) to smile but it was barely seen. The girl forced back a stoic expression where she reminded herself of her original intention: to look elegant, composed and sophisticated. “A second dance? I never knew the famous Lucius Malfoy would dare ask for another,” she murmured, humoring herself. The movement of her arched brows paralleled with her eyes - revealing a rather beguiled and sarcastic reaction. “Love, a strong word used to describe a passion. No, not quite love. Perhaps appreciate is a better term. It is far less sentimental.” At this moment, Narcissa had realized she had been rambling like a ninny, “pardon my nonsense.” She wasn’t per-say embarrassed, but nonetheless she felt vulnerable. Rarely would she speak so openly about her thoughts. “But if you wish for another dance, then I shall accept.” She tilted her head ever so slightly. The longer their time progressed together, the quicker her nerves were reacting to the build up of her body temperature. Intimacy with another had been rarely prolonged for this long. It was frighteningly new. 

[lvcius-blog]

Indeed, he did know that there were eyes on him as there were eyes on Narcissa. That, however, did not mean that he paid them any mind. Besides, Lucius was fully aware that a lot of the attention that he was receiving came from being the Malfoy heir, and the young prince had no time associating with people who were desperate for power, vying for his attention for that very reason. They thought themselves subtle, perhaps, but he knew better. At least he knew that Narcissa wasn’t in his company for that reason. If anything, her lack of will of being in his presence was almost refreshing. It was almost as if the two of them had an unspoken agreement of some sort, that they both knew that this was just for the show and nothing else. There were no lies, except the ones they sold to the public’s eyes. “I’m afraid that I can’t say the same about them,” he mused lightly, not missing a beat as he fell into another dance with Narcissa when the next song started. He noted that she fell right into step with their banter, and felt somewhat triumphant about this. He would rather have this than a dry conversation. At least his future wife was capable of keeping up with him. “I’d very much rather bask in the jealous eyes of others while I dance with the flower that they’ve been waiting to dance with all night. Unless, of course, you’d rather dance with them instead rather than appreciate all these attentive gazes that they seem to giving us?” It was a question that both of them knew didn’t need to be answered.

[luweascl-blog]

Balls were never her thing. In fact, dresses weren’t either, yet there Alecto was, enduring both. Considering it was Halloween, she supposed she had to at least make an effort, show her rather beautiful face around, get a glimpse of all her… friends, if any, and try to at least be sociable. “I hate social events like these,” Alecto murmured to herself from the corner of the room, boredom laced within her tone, conveying the similar emotion etched on her face. “And I definitely loathe dresses, I cannot wait until I’m able to burn it.” 

[lvcius-blog]

“Be careful, Alecto,” Lucius reprimanded, though his tone remained somewhat light as his lips quirked into what could’ve been a smile had he tried harder. It was almost second nature for him to be able to behave during social events, and without realizing it, his words had slipped through his mouth when he saw Alecto behaving not accordingly to what he was taught. “You wouldn’t want anyone to hear that if you want to get far in life.”

[blxckfleur-blog]

“It certainly will not be,” fingers clasped against his. In her head, the only things that mattered was the rhythm of the music. Eyes averted, she found herself glancing at any place but his face. From the floor to her surroundings, it helped her focus on all the proper mannerisms to prove that she was truly pure. Twirling about on the dance floor, she felt icy glares as well as envious stares grinding against her back. “-it seems as if others have taken an interest,” it was quite obvious that they all admired him. For she was just the pretty thing that could be easily discarded as decoration. And for that, she was always lesser. The fact that she was even in his company was because of her name and her position. Daring to sneak a glance, she questioned what went on within the man’s mind that made him such heartless individual. “If it pleases you, there is no need for a second dance,” she muttered.

[lvcius-blog]

It was to the least of Lucius’ surprises that he and Narcissa had gathered an audience ( not that they had been subtle at all about watching their pair glide across the dance floor ) while he twirled her in his arms. He muttered a low hum in response when she uttered the observation, nodding his head and letting his lips quirk into a tiny smirk that only his dance partner could see. “I wouldn’t be surprised,” Lucius replied smoothly—almost as if he was doing this in one practiced movement. “After all, you seem to be one with quite a few admirers.” Though he knew that Narcissa wasn’t the only one that the others were eyeing, Lucius also knew that there were a number of people out there who would be glaring at him with envy for being the lucky bachelor arranged to the flower of the Black family. Had he been one to express his emotions more, he would’ve snorted at that and welcomingly let others try to take the youngest Black girl from him. But he knew that he had a game to play, and that game included marrying whoever it was that his father thought as most suitable for him. Dipping his head a little as a sign of politeness, he went on, “If you don’t mind, a second dance would actually please me. Don’t you just love the obvious jealous stares we’ve somehow attracted?”

[xeniaadair-blog]

“Can a girl not be confident in herself and enjoy compliments from others? Is that a crime now, Lucius?” Emma tilted her head slightly, her previous indignation was slowly fading to fond yet exasperated amusement. Truthfully she knew better than to expect more than nonchalance from Lucius, but that didn’t mean she wouldn’t try. Emma shrugged, a smirk pulling on her lips. “Oh just anything along the lines of beautiful, gorgeous, a goddess, and the like. Nothing outrageous or far fetched, obviously.”

[lvcius-blog]

Being somewhat more comfortable with Emma than he was with most others, Lucius let his shoulders relax as a snort escaped his lips at her words. The blonde girl was known to live up her name, incredibly vain to no ends. And Lucius, of course, had known this since childhood. “You can, but if one is confident in oneself, then compliment don’t really matter, do they? They’re only important when you are looking for approval from said complimenter, and I don’t believe that you need me to compliment you right now,” he countered easily, then eyed her up and down again and finally gestured at her dress. “Your dress is beautiful. Is that good enough?”

[haoxavier-deactivated20171003]

Though Bellatrix did not enjoy to admit it, she was grateful that the other had swooped in, had saved her from the annoyance that was the ravenclaw. Since when had ravenclaws have the bravery to come up to Bellatrix Black and bid her for a dance? Pushing the thought aside the eldest of the Black sisters cocked a brow ever so slightly. Ice returned to her voice, it was the only way she knew to live, “Don’t test your luck, Malfoy.” Arms crossing before her chest the dark haired woman added, “Of course I know how to dance, that does not mean I am going to dance with right about anyone. I have standards, unlike most people filling this room.” 

[lvcius-blog]

“I was merely teasing, Bellatrix,” he reassured her, though he then extended an arm for the dark-haired girl to take. “I take it that I’m up to your standards, then at least? I’m not Rodolphus, but I suppose that you wouldn’t mind dancing with me as much as you would with that boy, would you?” His head was cocked to the side, as if he was curiously waiting for a response to his invitation. Lucius was fully aware that his words might be pushing it a little, but he figured that he would at least be okay compared to that Ravenclaw boy. “You could always dance with me if you don’t want him coming back to bother you again.”

[blxckfleur-blog]

Many other certain girls (perhaps even boys) would be dying to be in her position. After all, a dance with the notorious ice king Malfoy, now that was something! But Narcissa knew better. His cordial invitation was nothing more than a ploy to make himself look good. It all came down to repute and image. And for all the answers she replayed in her head, so many came along the lines of ‘hell no’ but she couldn’t. She couldn’t do it. Her hands were clenched as she forced as much of a smile as she could muster. This tragically ended with a subtle grimace as she mechanically moved her hand to accept. Her skin felt frigid. “Of course Lucius, it’s only proper,” she overemphasized sweetly. 

[lvcius-blog]

He knew that he couldn’t win Narcissa over, but nor did he want to rile her up. So he settled with what he had best—to have her tolerate with him, and to remind her that they were in a partnership. Lucius’ eyes flickered to her clenched fists, noticing that the corners of her lips lifting seemed almost forced. He raised his brows behind his mask. “Of course,” he agreed, nodding as she took his hand. She wasn’t the only one who knew how to fake smiles, —though Lucius thought that she was doing a rather terrible job at faking, when it was crystal clear that she was unable to relax around him—and he threw her an amused look to return her overly sweet tone. “After all, this wouldn’t be the last of our dances, no?”

[xeniaadair-blog]

“Nice?” The word slipped from her lips with an indignant scoff. His lack of falling at her feet and showering Emma with compliments was hardly a surprise to the blonde, but she knew she looked so better than simply ‘nice’. Emma Vanity never looked anything less than perfect, after all. “The best you can come up with is nice?”

[lvcius-blog]

“Now, now. There’s no need to be bitter about it if you know that you look good, is there? Who needs compliments from others when you know that you — as you would put it — look like a goddess?” he teased, the smirk tugging on his lips still present as he adjusted his mask. “Tell me, then. What word was it that you were expecting?”

[haoxavier-deactivated20171003]

“–I don’t dance.” the dark haired woman added as the other seemed to be looking for something to say, features hidden behind a mask. A mask to hide the evil, what a joke. Crossing her arms before her chest the young woman laced her fingers around the silk sleeves of her dress. It was such a pain, that she had to wear them, that she had to cover up her arms, when there remained one of the most beautiful of designs – the dark mark. But soon, the time would come, where she could be more free, when Bellatrix Black could release the hidden darkness. 

[lvcius-blog]

His head turned to face the source of the voice. There she was, Bellatrix Black standing trying to intimidate whoever it was who was trying to ask her for a dance. Cutting in right between the conversation, he looked at the male in front of the eldest Black sister and cooly said, “Apologies, but I insist on speaking with her right now.” When the other man was out of sight, Lucius turned to look at Bellatrix again. There was amusement lacing his tone as he spoke. “Don’t you? I thought every pureblood lady knew how to dance.” 

[blxckfleur-blog]

Narcissa hadn’t realized it but she had been day dreaming. It was remarkable how unfocused she was. Her mind was roaming about in other things that were going on that she simply couldn’t enjoy herself. Dressed in fine silk and donning a lovely mask, her expression was rather lackluster in comparison. With her hands clutched together, she felt rather embarrassed to be standing alone. Though it hadn’t taken long for someone to approach her. “May I help you?” She asked, wondering why someone would join her in her boredom. 

[lvcius-blog]

“It wouldn’t be appropriate for Narcissa Black to be standing alone now, would it?” He offered his hand, cocking his head to study his betrothed. Lucius wondered what she was thinking behind that mask. “Dance with me, Narcissa. It would only be right to do so.” ( A request, but it wasn’t one that she ought to be denying. )

[xeniaadair-blog]

—– –– “If you’re going to stand there and stare at me,                                                   at least compliment my dress.”

[lvcius-blog]

“Hm.” His gaze swept from top to bottom, taking in the blonde in front of him. There was a smirk tugging on the corner of his lips when he finally let his eyes settle on her face again. “You look nice, Emma.”

[larmoyante]

I am too intelligent, too demanding, and too resourceful for anyone to be able to take charge of me entirely. No one knows me or loves me completely. I have only myself.

Simone de Beauvoir, Tête-à-Tête (via neverlandswriter)