Proud As A...

[purestpeacock]

                                                        Once upon a time there were three sisters.                                The eldest two were named for stars and laired with snakes                                           and their veins thrummed with strong magic.                                                                  The youngest was named for a flower                                                                         and she had no magic at all                                                              save what her sisters cast on her behalf.                                                                                        Once upon a time…

@moinsquepur

[proudasa]

OOC: The Resignation of Lucius Malfoy

I'm very sorry, everyone, I just don't have time for this any more, and it's not fair for me to sit and fill character roles that I can't devote proper attention to. I'm going to have to withdraw, so that players who can play can have them. I apologize deeply, and wish you all luck and much fun and drama and good story-lines.

I'll just finish up the long-delayed para with Cissy and Zach to bring that little bit of drama to a closing point, so that the next Lucius can pick-up where that leaves off--with poor Lucy and Cissy bitter and separate--without any dangling plot threads that need to be dealt with, but that I fear will be the end of my Lucius Malfoy.

Goodbye, and good luck.

[neverdogood-deactivated20130925]

A Necessary Involvement || Narcissa & Zach

[neverdogood-deactivated20130925]

Zach still had his wand pointed at Lucius and as the other male shifted his stance, his own moved easily into his own dueling stance. He was no stranger to the art either. And he wasn’t that bad at it, honestly. 

He was still in that cold place, where nothing really mattered. Not the words that Lucius was spouting, and not the threats, either. “I was meaning on the more of being unable to control yourself,” he drawled. “Say what you will about me, there’s nothing you can say that I haven’t heard before.”

He didn’t look away from Lucius, but shifted just so to get out of Narcissa’s way. “If you would be so kind as to take the lead, love,” he said, obviously not speaking to Lucius despite having his eyes trained on him. “I believe we’re done here, unless you’ve anything else you’d like to say while Malfoy is throwing a tantrum befit of a two year old?”

He hated idiots who believed in this love bull shit. They always got their hearts broken. Surprise! Love didn’t exist. Grow up. You were just a stepping stone, a tool to be used. That’s all anyone was. That’s all anyone used anyone else for. 

Well, that and a little fun. You needed that sometimes. Not that fun couldn’t be used as manipulation.

[beauty-likeice]

Her first instinct, when all the wands came out, was to get out of the way in case they kept trying to blow each other’s heads off. She struggled, though, with the desire to protect Lucius—which, surprisingly, was stronger than the desire to protect Zachariah, whom she should have wanted to protect first.

When Zachariah spoke to her, shifting as if to indicate they were about to leave, Narcissa stepped forward and caught at his arm, tugging it down a little. “Don’t do this," she murmured to him, glancing at Lucius through tear-studded eyes.

She blinked them away furiously, willing herself not to break down now. But she felt like her soul was dying, his words echoing in her head in his voice and her mother’s voice and Bellatrix’s voice, too—his words and theirs, making her feel as worse as she had ever felt, guilty for her sisters’ transgressions and entirely crushed.

"You’re an awful person," she said, louder now, looking straight at Lucius. “You hurt people when things don’t go your way. I needed space. You won’t even give me that." Narcissa looked towards Zach, then down at the floor, eyes veiled by the hair that fell over her face.

She dropped her hand from Zach’s arm and took deliberate steps toward the exit, going around Lucius, avoiding coming into any contact with him.

[proudasa]

The frozen sneer on Lucius's face as he coldly watched the two of them together held until Narcissa started whining. Lucius's jaw dropped, and he pivoted on his heel, turning to keep her (and the other wizard) within view as they moved past him. Lucius's wand was still up, still braced for a duel, but he had almost forgotten about it in the shock of her words.

"Space?!" he snarled, the word bursting from his lips like a curse. "You call him 'space'?" He jerked his wand toward Scarborough, just pointing with it though, not hexing; at the moment, Lucius couldn't think of a hex foul enough, nor did he know which of the pair he would most like to hurt first. "You lied to me, Narcissa. You accepted my apology, asked for space, and then threw yourself into his arms while you laughed behind my back! You toy with me, tease me, torment me, betray me--and then you have the gall to try and blame me?"

Lucius shook his head, stepping back, no more eager to touch Narcissa than she was, him. "You are a loathsome creature," he said coolly, "the very worst kind of petty, scheming witch, and I pity Bellatrix that she must be saddled with two such shameless hussies for her sisters. I cannot believe I was so taken in by your games and pretenses to actually think that you were worthy of me!"

He stepped close to them suddenly, cutting off their exit; his eyes flickered between Narcissa and Scarborough, checking to make sure that neither of them would be foolish enough to throw a spell. Lucius loomed over the short girl; nor could the other boy match his imposing height. He practically stepped on the toes of Narcissa's dainty shoes, but took care to keep his robes from brushing hers; he wanted none of her filth to contaminate his person.

"You disgust me," he whispered icily, quite nearly meaning in. Lucius's eyes blazed with even more rage than they did hurt, the pain of Narcissa's betrayal swamped beneath his anger at having been so thoroughly fooled by the manipulative little witch--at having been foolish enough to love her.

Well, Lucius was done with that; done with foolishness, and love, and with Narcissa Black. She was nothing to him, now, and she would clearly always be nothing. Look at the scum she was willing to settle for, as replacement for him. Zachariah Scarborough was not even worth having for an enemy. Lucius did not know the other wizard's secret but, for once, Lucius decided not to care; whatever shame Zachariah brought the Scarborough family, it did not matter to Lucius. He did not care about either of them. Let them both rot together; Lucius was done.

He spun on his heel, his black robes swirling furiously around him, and stalked to the door. He did not hesitate, not caring if one or both of them threw hexes; in fact, he would relish the excuse to turn back and attack them, and he knew that he would make them both very sorry for braving his wrath if they were stupid enough to do so.

Lucius wrenched the door open so hard it creaked, then slammed it shut harder. He stomped down the corridor, his boots ringing loudly on the flagstone floor, the wand in his hand trailing green sparks that, wrapped in his bitter rage, Lucius did not even see.

[neverdogood-deactivated20130925]

A Necessary Involvement || Narcissa & Zach

[neverdogood-deactivated20130925]

Zachariah was done with this. He was down in the cold, desolate place deep within him where nothing really mattered. Death was not a deterrent and neither was pain. He didn’t even second guess himself as his wand came up as Lucius continued on and on. Not a word escaped him as he used a ventus jinx to attempt to blast Lucius towards or into the back wall. 

“The only scandal is that i was born out of wedlock,” he spat, not at all happy. “If you must know, it was to a witch in Spain. To preserve her honor my father took me rather than let her name be sullied. Not that I’d expect you to understand how a witch of worth is supposed to be treated.”

He kept his wand up in case he needed to protect himself or Narcissa, stepping forward to move between her and Malfoy just on instinct. He’d deal with hurt pride later if she made a fuss. 

“It’s a shame, really. To think a Malfoy would stoop so low as to need to dig to sling mud. If anything, the Blacks are better than you. You want to go on about fraternizing with someone lesser than you? You should be honored that Narcissa even gave you a passing glance. Instead you tossed it aside and then act like a spoiled child when you’re caught and sully your name. I would suggest you start acting your station. Unless, of course, you think your own parents would enjoy hearing about your behavior.”

Zach’s voice was flatter than it should have been. He didn’t sound angry at all, despite his outburst. His face was entirely relaxed too, not skewered up in emotion. 

[beauty-likeice]

After Lucius’ brutal speech, she wasn’t sure whether she wanted to kill him or herself. All this talk of mud and Lucius going so far as to call her a two-timing slattern—Narcissa was somewhere in a confusing swirl of loathing Lucius and loathing Zach and loathing Andromeda and Bellatrix and herself most of all.

Luckily, before she could break down, Zach stepped forward, absolving her of the responsibility to react. Narcissa, though reluctant to let him fight her battles, realized that this was as much about him now as it was about Lucius’ selfish, betrayed misunderstanding of why she had moved on from him.

Narcissa shrank back, reaching for her wand in case things got nastier than they already were.

[proudasa]

Lucius jerked his wand out of his pocket, easily batting the spell away. He practiced dueling with Narcissa's eldest sister, for Merlin's sake; the thick-faced Ravenclaw was going to have to do better than that if he wanted to trade wand-blows with Lucius Malfoy. Not that Lucius intended to give him the chance to...

Lucius settled comfortably into a dueling stance, one foot slightly in front of the other, balanced on the balls of his feet; his wand arm extended straight out, the tip of his elm wand pointed unerringly right between Scarborough's beady little eyes; the other was bent loosely at his side, ready to balance should he have to dodge a return curse--not that he thought that was likely. Surely a Ravenclaw would be smart enough to know his limitations.

"I will give you that one as a warning shot," Lucius said calmly, his normally lilting drawl gone flat with displeasure. "After all, a half-bred brat such as yourself cannot be expected to know how civilized people behave, not with an upbringing such as yours. If you draw on me a second time," Lucius cautioned him coldly, "I will not be so lenient."

His eyes flickered toward Narcissa only once during his speech; Lucius knew that it was risky to take one's eyes off of an opponent, even for a moment, but he had wanted to be sure that the witch was not going to interfere. After all, not only had Lucius learned that she could be magically unpredictable, he had also recently discovered that she had no concept of proper behavior, either.

Imagine, to lecture him on infidelity for a kiss before they had even committed to one another, and then almost immediately upon renewing their temporarily estranged bond, she had thrown herself into the arms of some disinherited illegitimate pauper. It was not just deplorable, it was disappointing. At least now Lucius knew why she had said she wanted space.

Lucius focused his attention on Scarborough, dismissing Narcissa entirely. If she was not perfect, she was worthless.

"Do not presume to lecture me, boy," Lucius sneered. His lips twitched into a thin, sharp smile. "You want to tattle on me to my father?" he asked, his cool voice rich with amusement. "By all means," Lucius drawled, "do so. Tell him how his son and heir has come to his senses before he could let the Malfoy name be brushed by the muddy taint that currently besmears that of Black. I'm sure he'll find the news quite pleasant.

"But of course," Lucius added, with a sly twist to his smirk, "it's no wonder you think that a threat, is it? It's not like you have any idea what son and heir mean, so..." He shrugged, his grey eyes glittery and hard. "How could a pathetic reprobate such as yourself have any idea of the import of such a thing?"

[proudasa]

Dance and Distraction

[missmarymacc]

Marie Fay laughed at his astonishment. Two small giggles and the shake of her head was all she could manage, but it was enough to make her feel better for the moment. There was always something charming about taking a pureblood by surprise. It was as if confusing them helped her to feel smarter. He didn’t understand her mother, but really, Marie Fay was the only one who did. She was the only one who could understand that bone-crushing, overwhelming desire to throw everything away on a chance. A chance she could make it in the muggle ballet world. She had made it five years and someodd months without backing down on her choice to go to Hogwarts, but, sometimes, leaving it behind sounded so tempting. Clara would be the only one to miss her, but Clara had Fabian and they would be fine.

“A girl has to have options,” She declared, feeling like she had just quoted Clara fisting two bottles of different alcohols, “It isn’t as if the wizarding world offers much in the way of ballet. In fact, sometimes, the wizarding world is much smaller than the muggle world. More…crowded.” Maybe it was that tiny bit of fire in her boiling up, but she wanted to get him off his edge again. When he was shocked, she felt some power in controlling the conversation. She almost laughed again, controlling it to a small, delicate smile. It was obviously controlled, something she would show to someone on stage instead of a friend. “If we’re nothing more than animals to breed, that makes me a mule. Horses are purebloods, donkeys are muggles, and I’m a mule. Funny. Brice was always the stubborn one. Fighting, misbehaving, saying obscene things. I’ve always been much more elegant and refined. Funny just how that works. I suppose blood-genetics cannot control all of it.” “Lucius,” She sighed, “Blood doesn’t talk. Have you seen Lily Evans? The girl can whip up a potion faster than any Lestrange.” She wasn’t purposefully trying to be defiant, but once she started, she felt something that made her want to continue. “Have you seen blood, Lucius? It all bleeds red.” It took every inch of her body not to pull back when he touched her shoulder. The Montgomerys were not a touchy-clan. Even if Marie Fay never hesitated to throw her arms around someone upset, that was on her terms. Something about the way he talked and then tried to comfort her only succeeded in making her feel ill. She was sure her discomfort showed on her face. 

[proudasa]

Lucius stepped back a pace, tucking his hands into his pockets, his face going hard again. "I have seen blood," he said coldly. "I imagine I'll see a great deal more of it in the future." He unconsciously tensed his left arm beneath the concealing sleeve of his robes, as if feeling for a Mark that was not there.

"The fact that it is all red only means that the Mud-bloods among us can hide all the easier," Lucius continued harshly, "which makes their threat all the more insidious. Don't tell me you approve of their attempts to destroy magical society?" he asked, one sharp eyebrow arching up in accusation.

Lucius shook his head. "Options," he sneered, "the only options the Muggles and their filth will leave us with, if they have their way, is to snap our wands, or burn. Tell me, Marie Fay," he said, looming suddenly close to the small Ravenclaw, "which of those options sounds more pleasing to you? Does your mother's blood hold enough sway to make you willingly hand over your wand, or will you burn like your brother when the hunters come? Are your pretty little ballet shoes worth that choice?"

[neverdogood-deactivated20130925]

A Necessary Involvement || Narcissa & Zach

[beauty-likeice]

Of course he wasn’t going to leave. Malfoys always stood their ground when their pride was hanging on the balance. She should have known he’d just dig the knife in deeper, and Zachariah was making it even worse.

Narcissa found herself with a twisted feeling in her stomach and disdain for both boys who were vying for her—affection? attention? She didn’t know or care anymore. Of course, the tired irritation she felt toward Zach didn’t even match the intensity of negative feelings currently swirling in her stomach for Lucius Malfoy.

It was a good thing Bellatrix had already taught her to control her emotion-fueled powers, because Narcissa could have created an even worse fireball in that moment than she had the last time she’d confronted Lucius. She considered it, because the image of a huddled, broken Alice Fortescue was a tantalizing reason to turn the arrogant Malfoy boy into char—but she didn’t want to end up expelled for killing a student.

But if he was going to talk to her like that—insult her family like that—Narcissa wasn’t about to let him go without some kind of repayment. Free from Zach’s embrace, she stood—rendering her taller than anyone else in the room, since she’d had her feet resting on a stool—and felt the cold air from the ceiling of the dungeons sizzling against her hot skin. Well, maybe she wasn’t perfectly in control of herself yet, but at least she wasn’t sparking.

Narcissa’s anger shut down into cold, steely rage, the picture of glacial elegance as she stepped down from the stool and approached Lucius Malfoy.

“Of course you were wrong about me,” she said, her voice like water flowing over a glacier just before it cracks off into the ocean. “I already know what you pretend to be such a scandal.” The smile on her lips looked painted on, her teeth smooth and straight but reminiscent of daggers. “Can’t you hear the gossip already? The beautiful third daughter of the hard-beset Blacks, distraught after that horrible womanizing Malfoy boy broke her heart, finds solace in the arms of a handsome, stalwart boy whose parents never appreciated him as they should. Oh,” she sighed, fluttering her eyelashes, “it is not to be, however, because just as his parents take notice in him, her parents put an end to it, seeking to engage her to a better man to cover up the disappointing failed engagement of their second daughter to the violent Mr. Carrow…” Narcissa’s hand went to her breast with affected emotion. “I do so love a story, Mr. Malfoy.”

And it would be a thrilling one, especially if Lucius Malfoy reacted in jealousy, as he was now—even his insults betrayed that.

Narcissa could have been ten years older, by the way she held herself and controlled the situation. Something in her demeanor was more like that of an adult Narcissa, a hint of what she would be someday: beautiful and sharp and dangerous, hidden beneath this veil of perfect composure and respectability. “Don’t you see, Mr. Malfoy,” she said sweetly, “this is my design. Stirring the rumors, not letting the dust settle on my name, and fostering a wonderful little tale for the tabloids.”

Of course he was wrong about her. He assumed she was settling, when all she was doing was finding the opposite of him—finding someone who was reliable and simple and predictable and treated her like a human instead of an object, as Lucius did. “Who could say what end that tale has, though?” Narcissa shrugged delicately. “Once the Scarboroughs realize Zachariah has the potential to attract the interest of the likes of me, and my parents retrieve me as their crown jewel, the story could go anywhere.”

Narcissa did truly love stories, and while she was spinning this tale inside her imagination, it was a thrilling one the more she considered it. And the best ending she could weave—though she would never admit it now—would be the humbled Lucius Malfoy, now reformed after pining for his lost love, returning to sweep her off her feet with a grand show of apology.

She could see the same ending starting to form in Lucius’ eyes, too. She could always count on him to be as calculating—or almost as calculating—as she was.

But for good measure, she whipped her hand across his cheek, slapping him with all the fury she could channel. Narcissa’s expression never changed. “Don’t ever speak of me or my sisters like that again,” she said pleasantly.

[neverdogood-deactivated20130925]

Lucius’s words did more than strike a nerve for Zachariah. They were both a slap to the face and a punch to his gut. His face hardened as he started sinking deeper into that cold place inside him, shutting the weak emotions like hurt and fear out. Instead, he stewed in his anger, his jaw clenching as he took in a slow breath. 

He bit off his own words before he’d even gotten started as Narcissa started talking. Even like this, he was unwilling to interrupt her, his manners winning out. Instead her words were given only a cursory glance before being set aside to properly inspect later. All he needed to know is she claimed to use their relationship as a tool and he’d already known that. 

He didn’t know when his wand had come to hand, his fingers rolling it slowly. He didn’t point it to anyone though. No, he forced himself to keep his arm down and relaxed - only the subtle rolling indicating just how badly he wanted to use it. 

Zachariah shifted to lean against the desk, using it as a way to ground himself, to keep his world from spinning. He could see everything was stationary, yes. But it felt like he was slowly spiraling downward, deeper into the hole he’d never wanted to step foot in in the first place. 

[proudasa]

Lucius's pointed chin rocked back slightly under Narcissa's blow; he blinked once, slowly, then looked away, pointedly dismissing her. Lucius stared right over the witch's pale head, his eyes bored and cold and promising death as surely as did black ice in a frozen lake as they fixed on Zacariah Scarborough's putrid face. Lucius didn't bother looking down at the other wizard's drawn wand, not deigning to see the burly Ravenclaw as a threat, no matter what kind of rage or horror was spinning through his eyes.

"Put your stick away, boy," Lucius drawled pleasantly. "If you raise a wand to me, I'll leave you dead on this floor," he promised, his words flat and final. Lucius's face twitched sideways into a small smirk. "I doubt your parents would care enough to even put up a token lament," he added coolly, "not over some disinherited brat they can't even be bothered to do away with properly.

"I wouldn't be surprised if they thanked me, in fact, for sparing them the trouble of washing their hands of you themselves. I wonder why they haven't done so already," Lucius continued lightly, his tone as conversational as his gaze was threatening. "Does keeping you around keep you quiet, maybe? Is pretending they still hold some small scrap of affection for you the best way to keep whatever scandal you carry quiet?" His genteel voice twisted in a sneer as he added, "Or are they just cowards like you--hiding behind a pathetic pouting witch before you'll draw a wand--and they haven't the guts to disown a boy properly?"

Lucius treated Zachariah to one last bright, blistering smile, then dropped his eyes slowly to the witch in front of him again. "As for you, my darling Narcissa," he said, his voice dragging languidly, "I'll say what I please about Andromeda. There's nothing but truth in my words, so if you want to object to them, object to your sister--she's earned what I say. Everyone knows what kind of filth she's chosen to go around with.

"She's an idiot for doing it," Lucius added coldly. "It may well dissuade the Carrows as she hopes, granted, but there are better ways to get out of an unwanted marriage--ways that won't leave a girl tainted from rolling in the filth. Ways," he hissed, leaning in close to the dainty blonde witch, "that won't end with her own sister leaving her corpse at the Dark Lord's feet as a token of her esteem." Lucius did not so much as flinch at presenting that cruel picture of fratricide to Narcissa Black, his lips curled in a faint smirk, as though he looked forward to the prospect.

"And as far as your pretty little stories go," Lucius went on, his eyes flashing and his features hard and cold as he loomed over the girl in front of him, "you can keep them tucked up in the pages of your useless storybooks. 'Crown jewel'?" he scoffed. "Not likely, my dear, not once you've revealed your true colors to be so tarnished. Say what you like, spin your tales, it doesn't change the truth. You're the two-timing slattern here, Narcissa, not me. You want to go behind my back with some feckless idiot? Fine, enjoy yourself grubbing around in the mud, it seems to run in the family--no wonder poor Bella is so high-strung all the time, with sisters like that. I, on the other hand, choose to be no longer tied to you in any way, so I don't care what you do."

He shrugged, as though severing his relationship with Narcissa did not pain him in the least, his sharp eyebrows twitching dismissively, and Lucius finished by saying, "I have no interest in anything that isn't perfect and you, my dear, have proved to be disappointingly so much less than that."

Lucius stood back, raising his chin, his small smirk as smug as the glitter of his cold grey eyes. He smiled icily at them both and waited for their reactions, his own anger now leeched away, replaced with the shining, confident superiority that came with the name of Malfoy.

[neverdogood-deactivated20130925]

A Necessary Involvement || Narcissa & Zach

[beauty-likeice]

Faced with this kind of enraged, selfish behavior from Lucius, she wasn’t even sure how to feel—she only knew that what she was feeling was hard and sick and angry and unpleasant. Narcissa was torn between hating him so much she hated herself and being so disgusted with him she felt superior in every way. She would never behave like this.

Her mouth opened in surprise at his comment likening her behavior now to his, but Narcissa snapped her jaw shut immediately. Did he think they still held some connection, some vague promise to each other? That they were still together? She would have laughed if she wasn’t so furious. This was ridiculous, even from Lucius.

She would have responded to tell him that they were decidedly not together anymore and she was free to date whomever she wanted, and so was he for that matter, but he moved on before she could get a word in. And what he said was such a cutting blow that Narcissa found herself blinking rapidly, fighting against the sudden hot prickling in the backs of her eyes.

For a moment, rage and hurt blended into a terrible cocktail and her head was pounding so painfully her ears started ringing and her peripheral vision was black. Narcissa felt like throwing up and screaming at the same time, and she wanted nothing more than the wipe Lucius off the face of the earth in that moment, for daring to insult her sister (she did not care what he said about her, but Andromeda was off limits).

Her anger was too great, so the tears never escaped her eyes, pooling instead at the edge of spilling over and blurring blue and black and bloodshot red and white, Narcissa wanting to let them flow but incapable of letting go. She was shaking with rage at this point, staring at Lucius with eyes that couldn’t see straight anymore and her jaw was so clenched she was afraid her teeth would crack.

If she hadn’t learned to control herself already, Narcissa would have sprung at him and hexed him to oblivion, or at least the Hospital Wing. She considered it, her wand arm jerking toward her sleeve but stopping before she could draw her wand out. He didn’t deserve for her to hex him. He didn’t deserve anything from her anymore.

“How dare you,” she said, voice low and trembling with warning, as dangerous and dark as a dragon’s breath just before it breathes fire. She couldn’t even decide what to say—order him to leave, threaten him, demand an apology, tell him that he had as good as ruined his chance at ever earning her respect again? If he thought he deserved her now, he was more wrong than he had been before he walked into the room minutes before.

Surely he knew that insulting her sister had sealed his death sentence in her eyes. She couldn’t even muster the composure to spit out an explanation, one of her bitter speeches that left people slack-mouthed with apologies. Instead, she could only manage a vicious order: “Get out of my sight.”

[neverdogood-deactivated20130925]

Well… So much for that idea. The more Lucius talked, the deeper he dug his grave. Surely the Slytherin realized that if he kept acting the fool he would dig himself so deep he could never recover that ground. There was only so much mending one could do. And only so much dirt to put back in a hole you couldn’t even see the top of. 

Zachariah’s jaw clenched at the snide comment about Narcissa’s sister. It wasn’t really hard to guess which sister he was speaking about. The comment made him drop his arm from Narcissa - provided it wasn’t held and straighten his back. His hand would shift how it was laying against his pocket so that he was in easier reach of his wand if need be.

It was one thing for Lucius to degrade him - he was used to it and honestly deserved it. But to attack the integrity of not just one of the Black ladies but two? That was too far. Andromeda was simply confused and Narcissa? Well, she was a cut above even this sniveling excuse of a wizard. 

There was nothing left to Zach’s trademark smirk, his easy stance or even the light air he always had around him. All the warmth the boy carried was gone, leeched out and replacing him with the deadly calm. The eyes pinning Lucius were nothing but cold calculation and not an ounce of fear or anger. It was the same look he’d given Katherine when he’d tried to ‘convince’ her of the error of her ways. The same look his father used on him when he toed the line too much. It was merely a glimpse of the cold man he could become. 

“I would suggest you follow the Lady’s advice and leave before you disgrace yourself further, Malfoy.” His words were clipped short and full of disdain for the older male - a tone he would never have taken considering their difference in social standards. “Unless, of course, you wish to further destroy any excuse for a relationship you have left?”

He honestly couldn’t believe he was trying to give Lucius a hint after what the idiot was doing to himself. He was seriously beginning to believe that Malfoy may, in fact, be entirely daft. Why else would the idiot continue on like this? 

[proudasa]

It took Lucius a moment to tear his eyes away from Narcissa's form, dragging his gaze sideways to glower icily at Scarborough. His lips curled with disdain and his eyebrows raised in a sharp, derisive arch. "I don't take suggestions from the likes of you, Scarborough," Lucius snapped, his words dripping with so much scorn it was a wonder there were no puddles of it on the floor. "I, unlike dear Narcissa here, have no interest in some piece of rubbish so idiotic he's managed to get himself disinherited in favor of his young brother..."

Lucius glanced back at Narcissa, his smile mockingly sweet. "Did he mention that, my dear? Did Scarborough tell you that he's been all but kicked out of his shabby little money-grubbing family? Did he explain how he's obviously only courting your favor in order to win himself some of the regard he can't earn through his paltry, unimpressive family name?"

The blond wizard folded his arms, now radiating smugness despite the sour twist to his smirk and the bitterness lurking in the dark depths of his pale grey eyes. "What did you do, Scarborough?" Lucius asked lightly, his eyes still fixed on Narcissa, watching for her reaction. "Did you gamble away what little fortune your family had? Maybe you were caught flirting with something muddy...or maybe you're muddy yourself. Is that it, Scarborough? Is your blood thick with mud?" He grinned at the boy, then looked back almost immediately at Narcissa, as if he could not keep his eyes off of her.

Lucius shook his head, false-pity thick on his pointed features. "What a scandal that would be," he mused, "for two Black sisters to be muddying themselves at the same time...still, I suppose family must stick together, musn't it? Especially when it's been coated in filthy, sticky mud..."

His smile was cold and sharp and utterly without affection as he stared at the girl he had thought he loved. “I don’t know what I saw in you in the first place,” Lucius sneered. “Clearly I was wrong when I presumed you perfect. If you think so little of yourself that you’re willing to settle for some disinherited idiot boy from a family of grubby little mud-coated social climbers…you never deserved me in the first place.”

[proudasa]

Promises to Keep

[allie-fortescue-blog]

For a moment, it was silent as Alice stared up at Lucius as he loomed over her, his hand still gripping her jaw. Her heart was racing—and not in a good way. She wanted to run away, but she knew she had no hope of getting away—not unscathed, at least.

She let out a cry of pain as his grip suddenly tightened exponentially, and she swore she could already feel the bruises forming. She clenched her eyes shut, tears prickling the corners. She flinched when his nose brushed against hers, letting out a whimper. He was too close.

“I-I-I didn’t,” she choked out, still not opening her eyes. “I j-just told her that it was her d-decision—no one else’s. Th-That’s all.”

[proudasa]

Lucius probed the girl with his eyes, his gaze intense, searching, and quite possible augmented by his recent Legilimency lessons. He raked Fortescue's face for any sign of dissembling, of desperate lies told to save her skin.

He found only honest fear, and pain.

"It had best be all," Lucius said, his snarled words one long lash of a whisper, like a whip--or a snake. "Or I will make you suffer until you regret it with every single drop of blood in your body which, by the time I am done with you, will not be many."

Abruptly, Lucius tore his hand from the witch, spun on his heel in a flurry of dark robes, and stormed away down the hall. His bootheels rang out like plague gongs across the flagstone floor, the hem of his black robes dragging behind him like shadows. Rage brimmed within the pale wizard, tightening his eyes and drawing his elegant fingers into clawing fists.

If Fortescue was lying to him--if she had been in any way responsible for Narcissa's spurning of his love--then Lucius was going to have to write Amycus the most heartfelt letter of apology that had ever been composed, because "dibs" or not, he was going to murder her.

[proudasa]

Promises to Keep

[allie-fortescue-blog]

Alice winced, letting out a small, quiet whimper when his grip on her chin. She felt her insides untwist a little bit, though, relaxing slightly when his grip finally loosened a bit. She was still frozen where she was, whether or not his hands were still gripping her chin and arm. She was truly scared, afraid of what he might do.

She flinched as he spoke, trying to pull away from his grip. She wanted to run, but she couldn’t, as he was still gripping her pretty tightly. She felt her breath hitch in her throat when he pulled up on her face, now nearly nose-to-nose with the tall Slytherin. She swallowed dryly, flinching again when he spoke.

She wanted to yell at him, tell him how he was a bastard and how he really didn’t deserve Narcissa—even after everything that he had said, she just wanted to fight back. But she couldn’t do it. Fear had sunk in, and now, she could barely even move.

“Sh-She t-talked to me,” she stammered, staring up at him. “Sh-She asked for m-my advice.” She was shaking, the fear creeping in even more. “She asked me if I thought sh-she was right to b-break up with you.” She paused, swallowing dryly. “I t-told her that she had d-done what she thought was r-right. It was her ch-choice.” She paused again, taking a deep breath. “Y-You broke her heart, Malfoy.” She knew she would most likely regret saying what she was saying, but she still said it, anyway.

[proudasa]

For a long, frozen moment, Lucius just stared at the tiny Gryffindor girl who was practically dangling from his hands. His face was completely slack, his muscles locked in place, his hand held in a limp rictus around Fortescue's chin.

Then he blinked, and his eyes flared like smooth ice catching a sudden sun-beam, and his lip curled back from his teeth in a furious sneer, and his fingers clenched tight around her jaw, gripping hard enough to surely leave bruises behind. He didn't care anymore if he snapped her in two--or more.

Lucius leaned in even closer to the girl, his eyes fixed on hers, his pointed nose actually brushing against Fortescue's for a moment. His breath was hot on her face, but everything else about him was cold, even his anger, burning like frostbite. Lucius did not even realize that his free hand hand slipped into the pocket of his robe and closed, vice-like, around his wand.

When Lucius spoke, his words emerged as sharp, solitary snarls, each one grinding out between his teeth as a lonely sentence unto itself.

"You. Encouraged. Narcissa. To leave. Me. You. Did that."

[proudasa]

Dance and Distraction

[missmarymacc]

Marie Fay didn’t want to feel ashamed of herself for being a half-blood. In fact, most the time it wasn’t even on the forefront of her mind. The only times she ever did regret not being pureblood was when she walked by Brice in the hall and he tilted his head up high enough that she didn’t even cross the bottom half of his gaze. It was humiliating, especially when his friends paused to sneer at her. The first half-blood born into the Montgomery bloodline. How could she be seen as anything less than disappointing?

She snorted, an unpleasant sound. It was undignified, but also completely justified from her point of view. Lucius was responding the way that every other pureblood did, though a little less violent and hiding his true disgust behind pretty words. Still, the instant she had admitted to being of lesser blood, she no longer seemed worthy of interest. “Actually, my mother expects me to make my way in the muggle world. If it was up to her, I wouldn’t even be here right now,” She proclaimed, in some unconscious way trying to say that her mother disapproved of magic as much as purebloods disapproved of muggles. While her mother wasn’t going to go around murdering witches and wizards for her cause, she still abhorred magic. Dance was all the magic she needed, and it would be delivered to her by Marie Fay if it was the last task she ever accomplished. Marie Fay laughed at his next comment. Finding her a suitor? As if she was some sort of bitch to breed? And, according to Lucius, she was damaged goods that would have to be given away at a lesser price. Possibly begging would be involved to find anyone  who would be willing to consummate with a tainted individual. ”Brice isn’t concerned with me in the least bit. Unless you count taking careful measures to keep away from me. Think about it. Imagine that your father wanted nothing more than a dark-haired child. Some little raven-haired mystery child. Then you were born. Hair no darker than a wheat field, a cotton-field. By that gene alone, one you had no choice in the matter, he disowned you as his son. He was disgraced purely by your hair color. Sure, you could dye it. Pretend you were born dark-headed, but it’s not the same. On the inside you will always be blonde. That’s what I deal with, every day, with Brice. So, I could sit here and pretend that I hate all muggleborns and half-bloods and that I’m sick with myself for being tainted, but what good would that do me? He still hates me. Hates his father for making me.” She shrugged. Maybe if purebloods understood how it felt, what it really came down to, they wouldn’t be quite so rude. She cringed. “Why do you keep saying breeding as if we are all some sort of prized cattle?” 

[proudasa]

For several moments, Lucius just stared at the girl, his jaw working soundlessly. Finally, words burst forth, scandalized and horrified, his pointed face stricken: "In the Muggle world?" he repeated, as if the girl had just told him that she was planning to start a life as a culinary adviser to a tribe of cannibals while simultaneously taking a class in puppy-kickboxing--not that Lucius approved of puppies, of course, but still...

He shook his head. "I can't even dignify your mother's insanity with a response," he said, horror dripping from every syllable. Lucius shuddered delicately; he could imagine few more revolting fates in life than being consigned to live out one's days among Muggle barbarians. "Surely your father will step in and see that you're spared that, I would think! Even if the man is fool enough to pollute his blood, he has to have that much sense, at least."

Lucius shuddered again, actually nauseated at the prospect she presented. Marie Fay might be only a half-blood, but she was still a Montgomery witch, and there were standards that must be maintained under even those circumstances--standards that did not involve living with Muggles.

He raised his hands, as if blocking a blow or possibly surrendering--it was hard to say which mood Lucius was more in, with his thoughts still roiling in shock and horror at the girl's words. "I can't even process that nonsense," he muttered, shaking his head as if to clear it of the idea.

"But I'll have you know," Lucius went on primly, some of the customary drawl seeping back into his words, "not only did my father expect a blond, he was delighted to see the Malfoy bloodline remain strong, thank you very much." He smirked a bit, teasing as much to restore his own mental equilibrium as to bolster the witch's spirits. "I can't imagine why anyone would want a raven-haired child, let alone Abraxas Malfoy, no matter how much of an idiot my father otherwise is.

"And as far as breeding goes," Lucius went on, serious again, "my dear girl, don't be daft; of course it's like we're some kind of prized cattle. Almost exactly like that, really, except that we're infinitely superior to cows, of course. That doesn't mean we can't be bred in similar fashion, though." Lucius shrugged, not at all bothered by the idea. "That's the whole point, isn't it?" He smiled gently, not wanting to upset her.

"I suppose you can't be blamed for not understanding," Lucius told her kindly, "that must be your own blood talking...but please, try and wrap your head around it, my dear: the wizarding world endures because we endure--the great families that made this country, this magic. That doesn't come about by happenstance," he explained. "That takes breeding, careful breeding--breeding which your father apparently takes lightly, but which the rest of us understand the dire importance of. But don't worry, like I said, there are plenty of respectable half-bloods around, these days. Your prospects are hardly limited at all."

Lucius smiled at the girl, and gave her thin shoulder an encouraging squeeze. He wanted to cheer the little half-blood witch up. After all, like he'd said, it wasn't her fault that her father had shirked his duty in begetting a daughter with tainted blood. And Lucius did so hate to see pretty girls distressed, especially delicate blonde ones.

[neverdogood-deactivated20130925]

A Necessary Involvement || Narcissa & Zach

[beauty-likeice]

If she weren’t already up against the desk, Narcissa would have jumped away from Lucius’ open arms. The way he was acting—a spoiled child combined with an entitled adult—was revolting, and his supplicating actions made her want to crawl over the desk and run away from him. Or vomit.

Narcissa’s expression hardened, too, into ice-cold flinty eyes and a face made of stone, like real porcelain. “What are you doing, darling?” she shot back, words dripping with pointed sarcasm. Disgusted sarcasm.

She jutted her pointed chin out at Lucius and tapped her fingers on Zach’s sleeve. “I’m minding my own business. You should take a hint. And put your arms down, you look ridiculous,” she snapped, beyond irritated at him now.

The hurt note to his voice evoked no sympathy from Narcissa—whatever he tried, whatever he felt, she felt nothing in return. Not with the selfish way he acted. He acted like he owned her, ignoring her free will and expecting her to act as he wanted her to. Like he was now. Brushing Zach off like a pest and addressing only her, as if she was a misguided little duckling who just needed to jump back into his arms to see the light.

It was sickening. Narcissa was tired of being pushed around and having people take advantage of her.

[neverdogood-deactivated20130925]

Zachariah wasn’t surprised at the dismissal, having half expected it. Instead of looking offended by Lucius’s attitude, he adopted his trademark care-free smirk, playing off that he was not at all intimidated by the older student. But then… Zachariah really didn’t see Lucius as too much of a threat. Someone else held that esteemed pedestal. 

The Ravenclaw shifted how he was standing with Narcissa - not quite moving away, but also shifting a little out of the path between the two. Not to back off, but he wasn’t going to shove himself between the two and piss both of them off, thanks. Besides. Narcissa was a big girl. She could handle herself just fine! And if she couldn’t… Well. He could step in if need be. 

All the same, he still kept an arm around her, his thumb brushing against her back as she talked. Zach turned his gaze to the blond in his arms, watching her curiously as she turned from a warm girl to a woman of steel and ice. Narcissa really was a woman of worth. Far more than he could ever deserve. He refrained from reaching out to toy with her hair again and instead looked back to the soured peacock. 

How similar their families must be. All so spoiled and spite coated in civility. It was strange to see Lucius not as refined as he normally appeared. He supposed it was much like his own family - all posturing. You never showed weakness. And if you had to? You exploited it before anyone else could. 

The smirk faded as he watched Lucius, studying for more fractures in his facade. He shifted to slip a hand to his pocket casually, though didn’t dip it in, just hooked a thumb inside it as he waited for some sort of response. 

This was their quarrel, not his. He was merely a pawn to get a desired result. And if all things went well? Lucius would realize his mistakes and atone for them properly rather than with senseless trinkets and gifts. Then, maybe, if Malfoy played his cards right and provided the right amount of simpering he’d get his girl back. 

Maybe.

[proudasa]

Lucius's arms dropped sharply to his side and his hands clenched into tight, white-knuckled fists. He trembled with the effort of fighting against the urge to reach for his wand, and his fingers twitched greedily toward the pocket of his robes. It took all of Lucius's icy self control to hold his magic in check.

He glared at Narcissa, his grey eyes burning with betrayal and anger. "I don't need a hint," Lucius snarled back at her. "There's only ever been one thing you were clear about in this entire escapade, and that's your opinion of this sort of low behavior. At least I have the excuse of ignorance. What's yours?" he demanded cuttingly. "Or did you just get tired of the moral high ground? I hope you enjoyed it while you had it, darling."

Lucius took another step forward, his taunt muscles simmering with rage. Grey eyes flicked sideways toward the loathsome wizard who dared to run his hands over Lucius's precious Narcissa, and Lucius restrained another jerky grab toward his wand. He crossed his arms instead, to hold himself back from murdering Scarborough then and there, and promised himself eventual revenge.

"Then again, perhaps you didn't," Lucius added coldly, his words knife-sharp with hurt and hatred. "After all," he said, pointedly raking Scarborough with his eyes, the expression in them disgusted, "you clearly share your sister's taste for slumming it with the lowbrow..."

[neverdogood-deactivated20130925]

A Necessary Involvement || Narcissa & Zach

[beauty-likeice]

She was enjoying the light press of Zachariah’s lips on hers, how soft he was, almost like he wasn’t sure how to kiss her or how hard to press, in case she shattered in his hands.

His touch grew firmer, his advances bolder, and Narcissa smiled up at him like a cat toying with its prey.

She didn’t answer, just leaned in to kiss him again—this time she would take charge a bit more—and was interrupted by a slam and bitter voice.

Narcissa looked around, mildly irritated. When she saw Lucius, though, looking thunderous and yet somehow liked a pouting toddler denied dessert, her eyebrows angled sharply downward and her mouth along with them.

“What you’ve done,” she answered coldly, not bothering to remove herself from Zach’s arms (and keeping one hand on his arm, so he couldn’t escape, either), “is barge in uninvited, deciding your presence was necessary despite all evidence to the contrary.”

Typical Lucius. He just had to run in and be an ass, digging his own hole and ruining any scant chance he had of winning her back.

[neverdogood-deactivated20130925]

Zachariah was certainly happy when she started to kiss him back with a bit more enthusiasm. He didn’t even pull back when the door first slammed and Lucius started to whine. He licked his lips when she pulled away to answer. He looked back to him, not moving just yet. 

“It is quite rude to interrupt,” he chided once Narcissa finished, not planning on moving from her just because he was there. “Really now, I thought someone of your caliber would have a better grasp on social graces.” The comment was as easy and friendly as silk - despite the biting insult. 

“In any case, I really don’t see how this is any of your concern, considering your marvelous display of mistreatment of Narcissa earlier,” he mused, keeping his tone light and conversational to counteract Lucius’s dangerous tone. Despite this, his words were carefully picked to both compliment and insult the other and give just enough to chip away at the older boy. He wanted Lucius to think about what he was saying. Sure, it more than likely wouldn’t be until later, but the words would stew on a back burner to hopefully snap Lucius to his senses. 

“I’m sure she’s made it quite obvious that she has no interest in associating with someone who refuses to award her the proper respect she commands. Now if you would be so kind,” he said with a smile, nodding his head towards the door to indicate that Lucius was dismissed. 

[proudasa]

"Silence, boy," Lucius snapped, all but dismissing Zachariah Scarborough from his awareness with the words. He focused on the only thing in that room that mattered, on Narcissa. Lucius stepped forward, hands outstretched plaintively, but the scowl on his face was accusatory, with none of the usual softening of his pointed features that happened when he looked at--or even thought of--his precious Narcissa.

The sight of her in another wizard's arms made Lucius's cold blood boil. That was why he held his hands out to her: it removed some of the temptation to reach for his wand and solve the problem by simply murdering the idiot boy where he stood. Lucius wouldn't have hesitated to cast the curse, were it not for the fact that some cool part of his brain was still working underneath the hurt and the anger, and it reminded him that Narcissa did not approve of hexing. He had a feeling that the Unforgiveables would not be immune to her displeasure, and so he kept his hands empty, but the thought of his wand burned like white fire in the back of his mind, and in the velvet pocket in which it lay. All Lucius needed to reach for it was the faintest of excuses; if Scarborough so much as twitched, he would be met with spellwork of the darkest sort before he could even draw, and Lucius would step right over his warm corpse without regret to sweep Narcissa back into his arms, where she belonged.

"What are you doing, darling?" Lucius asked. His usual drawling, amused tone was completely absent; the words came out raw and sharp and hurt, more wounded than accusatory; more curious than betrayed, as if he genuinely believed that Narcissa would be able to offer an explanation that would do something other than break his heart.

[proudasa]

Promises to Keep

[allie-fortescue-blog]

Somewhere in the back on her mind, Alice registered the fact that Lucius had stopped laughing, along with the sound of footsteps catching up with her. She let out a yelp when she felt a hand grab her arm, nearly losing her footing as she was spun around. She winced when another hand gripped her chin, her neck hurting as she was jerked up to look straight up at Lucius as he loomed over her.

She had never seen Lucius like this. Sure, she had seen him angry that night on the grounds, but nothing like this. The look on his face made her blood run cold, and she clenched her eyes shut, whimpering softly as she felt his grip on her chin tighten. She opened her eyes when he spoke, taking in what he had said.

“Wh-Who do you think helped her into the infirmary?” she asked rhetorically, her voice wavering. She tried to hold his gaze, but it was hard when she was afraid of what Lucius might do if she angered him even more. Her mind kept wandering back to the thought of how easy it would be for Lucius to simply move his hand downwards a few inches and wrap his fingers around her throat, and she wouldn’t be able to stop him—her wand long forgotten.

“You left her there, Malfoy,” she said softly, her voice shaky and barely above a whisper. “She was lying there, burns all over her after nearly dying, and you just left her there. She barely let me help her get to the Hospital Wing.” She paused, wincing again from Lucius’s tight grip on her jaw. “You don’t deserve her.”

[proudasa]

Lucius stared at the girl, his expression a furiously featureless ice sculpture. He blinked once, doing little to break the intensity of his grey glare. His fingers twitched, just slightly, spasming at her accusation, pressing even harder into her jaw. Lucius made a visible effort to relax his grip a little; if he snapped Fortescue's jaw, there would doubtless be awkward questions that he did not want to have to answer.

Furthermore, if his father was written to about such an incident, Abraxas would be insufferable; he always was, when Lucius was caught doing anything by hand that he could have used magic for, instead. The cautionary thought, and the nauseating desire to foil all the old man's pleasures, flickered through the back of Lucius's mind in only an instant; it took far longer to loosen his fingers enough to stop her delicate bones from creaking.

It took nearly as much effort to unclench his own jaw enough to speak, and when he did, his words emerged in a flat growl: "I didn't leave her there," he sneered, "I got her out of there before she could be seen. That was all she would let me do, was take the blame and send her away. And I will not hear opinions from you about what I do or do not deserve, you idiot blood-traitor. You know nothing. Not about blood, not about magic, not about life, and certainly not about myself or Narcissa Black."

He pulled up a little on her face, drawing Fortescue up onto the tips of her toes, bringing their noses so close they almost touched. Lucius's eyes glittered dangerously, like silver masks. "And you had best take care not to soil her name with your muddy tongue again," he hissed, the words quiet and sharp as a knife blade in the dark.

[proudasa]

Dance and Distraction

[missmarymacc]

Marie Fay seemed to take it as a personal attack when he dumped on second children. “Maybe it isn’t all about carrying on the family name, but about raising and loving your children,” She explained, but felt the lack of conviction in her words as she spoke them. It was always a worry that her mother didn’t love her. She loved that Marie Fay could dance. If she were to lose that ability, what worth would she have for the woman she was to dance for? Shaking that thought from her mind so she wouldn’t have some embarrassing mental breakdown, Marie Fay smiled back at Lucius. “Besides, I was my mother’s first child,” She added on, as if it helped her point. 

She sighed, something sitting between nervous air and aggravation. Her eyes darted toward the top of the stairs, as if Brice would walk up any minute and all of her secrets would be revealed. It wasn’t easy walking around under his shadow. At first, people had expected her to be just like him. She would be strong, assertive, and superior. When she came, kind, meek, and bouncing on her tiptoes, it was almost humorous to those who knew.  For a while, Brice would roll his eyes and tell people, casually, to let her be. When she gathered some bravery, started stopping him from picking on younger years, she became more of an annoyance, a liability. He was mocked for having her. It just became too much. So, Brice abandoned Marie Fay. She broke. Went back to being timid and shy, not even sticking up for herself the countless number of times they made her “dance with the fishes”.   A scowl formed on her face. Not enough to be considered a threat, or showing that he had pushed her too far, but just enough to realize she was starting to become exhausted with the whole thing. How many times was she going to cover for him? Pretend she wasn’t his sister just to save his face? It hadn’t saved anyone from picking on her.  “Bloody hell,” She cursed, an extremely rare occurrence for the blonde, “I’m his half sister and a half blood. Now do you see why he hasn’t told me how to get in your bloody common room? I’m embarrassing. Surely someone like you, the perfect pureblood son can understand that.” Despite how she felt, her eyes had gone completely dry. She was still afraid of what Lucius might do, but it couldn’t be worse than what she had already been through for Brice. “Are you going to hurt me now? I’d rather be given two second warning. Fair is fair.”

[proudasa]

Lucius smirked at her first weak statement; even the girl herself clearly didn't believe her own words, so Lucius didn't bother to argue against her silly nonsense. As if anyone had children just because they wanted them, how absurd...

As the hesitation following dragged on, Lucius debated breaking the silence, but ultimately decided that if he let the girl fret, she would doubtless fret herself right into confessing the truth, so he kept his mouth shut and calmly studied her while she thought and fidgeted. The path her ideas traveled seemed to be an unpleasant one, judging by the frown on her pretty face, so Lucius wasn't surprised when she finally burst out with a torrent of words starting with a curse, but he was surprised by the confession itself.

Lucius's eyebrows crawled upward across his pale forehead as she spoke. When she finished, he stood for a moment, just blinking. So Brice Montgomery's sister was a half-blood, was she? That actually explained a fair amount, now Lucius thought about it, although of course he never would have suspected the Montgomery's of being victim to anything to shameful...

He shrugged when she braced herself for an attack. "Why should I hurt you?" he asked, his voice drawling languidly with amusement. "I'm sure you didn't ask to have tainted blood, and it's not as if you're some filthy, thieving Mudblood bastard, is it?" Lucius's voice remained light and casual, even as the words dripped with vulgar hatred. "So you're only a half-blood," he continued, spreading his hands wide in a graceful gesture of unconcern, "all right.

"It's a shame, of course," Lucius went on, nodding sympathetically, "but there are worse things one could be. At least your father's side of the family is good, so there's no reason you can't still make something impressive of yourself--you'll just have to try a little harder, and settle for a little less. There are plenty of useful, respectable witches and wizards out there whose family trees leave something to be desired," he said, thinking of the Abbotts and the Ollivanders and the Boneses, and even grumpy but brilliant little Severus.

"Obviously I can understand why Brice would be ashamed to admit such a thing of his own sister--and you understand as well, so you're no blood-traitor, whatever your own parentage may lack," Lucius said, assuming from very little evidence that Marie Fay naturally shared his prejudices in the presumptive manner of the truly arrogant, "but that's no reason for me to be cross with you. It's not my blood-line, and I'm not the one who's going to have to try and find a suitable husband for a half-blooded sister--not that that should be hard to do, these days," he added sourly. "There are plenty of fallen families out there who would be grateful for some of the Montgomery blood and fortunes, even if yours is a bit diluted."

He quirked an eyebrow at the dainty, skittish little girl. "What," Lucius asked, his voice low with languid amusement, "did you think that only pure-bloods were allowed in Slytherin? Ha, one might wish--but no. I'm friends with half-bloods myself, in fact," he admitted with a short shrug. "These days, one has to be. And, after all, why not? There doesn't seem to be anything overly objectionable about you, other than your unfortunate breeding, and I can hardly blame you for that."

[proudasa]

Promises to Keep

[allie-fortescue-blog]

Alice paused when she heard Lucius’s laughter, looking back at him over her shoulder. She suppressed the urge to send a hex at him. Of course he would find it hilarious that she had slapped him (Either that, or he had snapped). She let out a huff as she crossed her arms over her chest, glaring at the older boy.

She stared at him, growing angrier and angrier with each passing moment. Letting her arms drop again, her glare intensified. “You’re despicable,” she said, not even caring if Lucius couldn’t hear her over the sound of his own laughter. “You’re selfish, cocky, and downright cruel.” She paused, narrowing her eyes at him as she turned to leave, glancing at him over her shoulder. Her voice was quiet when she spoke again. “Narcissa was right to break up with you.”

Glaring at him one last time, she started heading back towards Gryffindor Tower, wand still at the ready in case Lucius tried something. She hoped that she’d be able to deflect any spell he sent in her direction, but she knew that chances were that she wouldn’t be able to. But she didn’t let her doubts show.

[proudasa]

At first as Fortescue spoke, Lucius nodded along with her points, grinning smugly. Selfish, cocky, cruel--yes to all of those, he thought; she had assessed him accurately. Granted she had left out charming, gorgeous, witty, talented, and superior to ninety-nine percent of the students in the school (and the outside world as well for that matter), but Lucius cheerfully opened his mouth to remedy that oversight by adding those qualities to the list himself--

But then she said Narcissa.

The amusement dropped off of Lucius's pointed face so quickly it might well have Apparated away, Hogwarts-wards or no. Although she had not laid a hand on him this time, Lucius now looked like he had been slapped, unlike before when he had laughed too hard for the pain to matter. He jerked back on his heels, rocked as if by an actual blow, which gave Fortescue time to turn away from him before he reacted--but not enough time.

It only took the tall, lanky wizard three sharp strides to catch up with little Alice Fortescue. He grabbed her arm and yanked, spinning her around hard to face him. Before Fortescue could so much as blink, Lucius's hand shot out, quick as a striking snake, and his fingers fastened iron-tight around the girl's dainty chin. Lucius jerked her head up, pulling Fortescue nearly onto her toes while at the same time stooping down over the short witch, bringing his face to within a scant handful of inches from her own.

Lucius's pale face was twisted into a snarl, lips curled back over sharp white teeth and grey eyes bright and burning. A lock of ash-blond hair had slipped down over his forehead from his sudden, jerky movements, and for once Lucius did not care enough to fix it. The faint red mark from Fortescue's hand stuck out sharply against his bone-white skin, a smudge of fire amidst the snowy pallor of his cheeks. His whole frame had gone hard and rigid as stone, and the fingers that held Fortescue in place might as well have been carved from rock, slowly grinding tighter against her jaw bone.

"What did you say about Narcissa?" he hissed.

[proudasa]

Dance and Distraction

[missmarymacc]

“Well,” Marie Fay cleared her throat and straightened herself up. If he wasn’t going to harm her, she no longer needed to look like an easy target. The easier the target, typically, the weaker the spell. Like an opossum, if she played dead, she had an easier chance of getting away unscathed. Yet, there was always that one Slytherin that acted more like a vulture, preferring to attack more heavily after she was completely broken and defenseless. Thankfully, Lucius seemed to not be the type. 

“If you haven’t noticed, a majority of your house attacks first and asks questions later. It’s very difficult to explain to people who you are related to while attempting to dodge a spell that could very well send you into the hospital wing for a week or two,” She shrugged nonchalantly. The girl was still moving, a side effect of being a dancer and unable to keep still, but it was more of a gentle rocking instead of a blatant bouncing on her heels like a kangaroo.  She tilted her head and looked straight up at him, “You obviously don’t have any siblings. If you did, then you would understand that sibling rivalry is on the rise. Giving me access to his common room would only enable me to be a pestering younger sister.  I would constantly be begging him to spend time with me or let me borrow his shirts or help me with homework. You know, little sister things. He’s too smart to make things easy for me.” It sounded legitimate in her head. Why would a big brother want to spend time with a little sister? It was an easier explanation than getting into the big deal about her blood purity. If Brice hadn’t told Lucius yet, she certainly was not going to bring it up. “And I’m a sixth year, thank you. Closer than anyone has gotten in a while, honestly,” She sighed. 

[proudasa]

Lucius studied the girl for a few seconds, his expression utterly inscrutable. Then he smiled--again, a friendly gesture full of warmth, but none of it reached his eyes--and he shrugged casually. "No, no siblings," he said, his tone smug, "one heir was all my father decided to bother worrying about. Let lesser houses worry about having spares, it seems a waste of time to me. After all, if one raises a wizard--or witch--properly, then the spare is unnecessary anyway."

Lucius blinked at her, the cold expression almost reptilian. "I suppose I've just never really seen the point of younger siblings," he drawled, his tone cruel in its casualness. After all, sixth year or fifth, Marie Fay was still younger than Lucius's dorm-mate Brice, which meant that he was talking about her, however obliquely.

"However," Lucius added languidly, speaking again before the nervous girl could argue his point, "it still doesn't sound to me like you're being completely honest. That nonsense you just spouted about siblings was very good, yes, and frankly I've seen enough behavior like that from Roddy and Rabs to know it's an accurate assessment--but. As you yourself just acknowledged, my dear sixth year eagle, I am quite observant...and I observe that you are lying to me."

Lucius's smile suddenly seemed to be made of nothing but fangs. "And as I've already told you, I do hate people who are bad liars." He twitched his fingers in a graceful "come along" gesture, prompting her to speak. "Shall we try it again with the whole truth this time?" the Slytherin wizard suggested kindly.

[proudasa]

Promises to Keep

[allie-fortescue-blog]

Alice felt her anger rising within her with every word Lucius said about Frank. By the end of it, she couldn’t take it anymore. She stopped in her tracks, spinning around to face him. She didn’t even bother trying to hide her anger. She knew that their height difference made her far from intimidating, but that didn’t matter. She was angry, and she needed him to know.

Before she could think better of it, she brought her hand up and slapped Lucius, the sound echoing through the hallway. “Will you stop?” She hissed, glaring up at him. “You have no right to talk about him like that, and I’m not going to stand here and listen to you insult the boy I love. So leave me alone.”

Even though she should have known better, she turned her back on him and started back down the hallway, and towards Gryffindor. She paled as she walked, remembering what had happened the last time she had walked away from Lucius. She gripped her wand tightly, ready to deflect any spell he sent her way.

[proudasa]

The blow was loud, and it stung, and Lucius's left hand clapped instinctively to his cheek while his right darted into his robes for his wand, but before he could draw the thin stick, his brain caught up with his reactions and called a halt. Lucius pulled both hands back, letting them drop loosely to his side, and blinked at the angry girl storming away from him.

Then he doubled over, laughing.

This was no forced, polite chuckle, but rather a good, honest, hearty guffaw. Lucius's voice was normally light and almost lilting, his cultured drawl charming and seductive with just enough scorn to give it some bite, and his laughter was no different. The melodic tones echoed down the stone corridor, doubling back to the stooping wizard. He braced his hands on his knees as his shoulders shook with the amusement. Lucius could barely wrap his head around the absurdity of what had just happened.

Had little Alice Fortescue actually just slapped him?

He glanced up through his lashes, being still hunched half-double, and saw the angry witch's retreating back stalking down the hallway. Yes, Lucius decided, little Alice Fortescue had just slapped him.

He laughed harder, tears glimmering in the corner of his eyes.

Well, Lucius knew what happened when Fortescue was pushed too far, now. And, like he had suspected, it was nothing all that terrifying--but it certainly was hilarious.