And there's no remedy for memory//MALFOY MANOR

[LUCIUS PHINEAS MALFOY]

It was like being a father of two. He watched her soothe Draco with cloyingly sweet platitudes before going to work taking Lucius’ belongings back into the closet. He was already all-too-aware of the climate in his surroundings, with the way Draco fretted about awkwardly, and the mode in which Narcissa spoke when she emerged minutes later to make a small speech of what the coming circumstances would be. How like a petulant child. He was neither amused, nor irritated by it. He merely waited for her to finish before turning to her and staring at her down the length of his nose. He didn’t take kindly to the obvious manipulation, but it was like Narcissa to be so passive-aggressive and penchant to this type of melodrama. It was yet another thing for Lucius to be nostalgic over, but not right now. He didn’t appreciate the insinuation of his unwelcoming nature, especially after all the steps he had taken to procure her comfort. He raised an eyebrow.

“I take offense to the suggestion,” he told her flatly, his expression stony. “You’re getting much too ahead of yourself, Narcissa. Why would I ever allow that to be your arrangement for the duration of your stay? So be it, if it is what you desire, but I would appreciate if such misplaced misapprehensions were not directed toward my hospitality.” Lucius wasn’t certainly used to her, but he didn’t want to lose her either. The circumstances would certainly take some getting acclimated to, but it wasn’t impossible. And should the arrangement be permanent, they would find their way. Lucius gave a brief glance to Draco, curling his lip upward into a smirk.

“Besides,” he breathed, his voice light and haughty, “You’re going to force the poor boy into fits if you continue to speak in such a manner. Would you say that is accurate, Draco?” He cocked his head slightly, as if expecting some sort of reaction, but began to move again before Draco could even be given a chance to speak. He began to undoing the clasps of his buckle as he addressed the boy again, staring down toward the floor in the meanwhile. “I will remind you now, before Narcissa distracts my attention again, that you are not not allowed to speak of this situation to anyone.” His tone dripped heavily with veiled threats, considering the warning sufficient enough without any explanation as to why it was imperative to not speak on such matters. “Should I hear word that you have run your little mouth, the punishments will be dire.”

Lucius reached into his pocket, taking out the only bit of content that mattered – the engagement ring that he had collected. He looked down at it briefly, rolling it across his palm with his thumb, before glancing up at Draco again. “Am I clear?” he asked, every word emphasized deliberately, as he hung the ring on the tip of his forefinger and offered it to Narcissa, his eyes still fixed on Draco.

[NARCISSA VIRGA BLACK]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style,width: 350px; padding: 10px; background-image: url(http://i.imgur.com/w6MZf.png);] Every time I close my eyes it's like a dark paradise “I meant no offense in regards to your welcoming hospitality,” Narcissa said quickly, refraining from using an overtly sharp tone. It was so very like Lucius to instantly take offense to something as simple as her planning ahead. While her younger, previous self (as she was starting to believe) already had a majority of her life well planned right down to the color palette, this one did not. She was unaccustomed to being practical, to planning for things such as her living expenses in the future. Her master plan- education, marriage, child birth, and society life- had undergone few modifications over the years (mostly to create specifications for married life, really). Surely seeking to create a new plan, one which was unobtrusive to a man who had already had created and cemented his life plan, was no slur on his damned hospitality. It had been nice for him to take her in, she supposed. But then again, this was Lucius. Whatever the time, whatever the setting, did they not owe each other certain forms of hospitality? He could not toss her to the streets knowing full well she was supposed to grow up to become his wife. He was kind for doing this all, but certainly there was an intense moral dilemma to not do so. She chewed her lip, her nose crinkling. “It wasn’t a question of allowing anything, it was an honest suggestion to make your life easier because you have been compassionate enough to take a mere shadow of your wife into your home.” That had come out slightly more snippy than she had intended. She was frustrated at this all. Misplacement, loss of time, loss of bosom alliances, thrust upon a boy who deserved his mother in such a time in his life, and now an ever-so-gentle set down about her practicality. She bit the inside of her cheek, her eyes switching to the boy before her. She only stopped because she did not want the boy in any sort of fit- his earlier display had been an all too honest peek into his possible reactions to losing any sort of mother figure (if he were to ever regard her as such, as Lucius seemed to believe, because she was hardly a handful of years older than he). Narcissa doubted very much that Draco would actively seek to let anything slip about his new family arrangement, if that was what it could be called. This was personal and if he was anything like his father, Lucius’ son was no doubt adamant against sharing personal details of his life. No wanting to incite anything further from the man before her, especially with the pending chastisement that she knew surely to come for her tone, she stayed quiet this time. Instead she moved, ever so slowly, toward Lucius. Her eyes watched the ring sparkle as the shine from the setting sun outside hit the brilliantly clear diamonds. The silver band fit only just on the tip of Lucius’ masculine fingers. Boy-Lucius’ hands were not much different, other than size, from her own. She marveled at her dainty, white-tipped fingers before back to the man’s. When did one shift from adolescent boyhood to manhood? When had Lucius, who had always seemed fully-grown to her, become the man before her? Had her older self noticed the change, or did it come like seasons, only a surprise when one realized summer had become winter? She extended her arm, grasping the ring between two fingers. Narcissa’s hand pressed against Lucius’, as if there was something bigger taking place than a mere retrieval of property. Even if his eyes, cool and assured looking, were fixed on his son there was something between them. She licked her startlingly, surprisingly dry bottom lip before sliding the ring onto her finger. She waited until Lucius was done, clearing her throat. Her fingers played with the circle elven-silver, not looking up. “Draco, I am sure you’ll want to tidy up for dinner. As will your father and I. And time to reflect on this afternoon, of course.” words: 680 - tags: MAL-FAM - outfit: ---- .

[fid3ns]

Draco knew better than to tell anyone about their situation. He knew that, as a Malfoy, he had certain duties, one of which being to uphold his family's name. And this would certainly bring them unwanted attention. As far as anyone else was concerned, everything was going swimmingly in their household, and it had to stay that way.

“Yes, sir.”

His grey eyes followed Narcissa's hand as she took the ring from Lucius and slid it on her finger. He supposed this finalized everything. She was his mother – always had been – and things were going to play out just like nothing had ever happened, at least in regards to the public. And even if he wanted to talk to someone about the situation, about how it made him feel, he couldn't. So he had to deal with these emotions on his own. Just like always.

At the mention of dinner, Draco's stomach growled softly. He reached a hand up and covered it, scrunching his face a little. “Dinner,” he mused. “Right.” He walked toward the door, turning to face the two when he reached the threshold. “Father,” he nodded. He looked toward Narcissa. “Mum.” With that, he turned and headed for his room.

Better start now.