Adult-FanFiction.org : Harry Potter

Well, Ain't That Strange?	By : SpeedyTomato Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male Views: 56074 -:- Recommendations : 2 -:- Currently Reading : 12
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter and make no money off this story

Chapter List
- 1
- 2
- 3
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Beta'd by the most amazing Tenchi, who I can't thank enough for all the hard work she does for me!

Chapter 1

Standing in the shadows that surrounded the small play park not far from the house he knew Potter resided in, just outside a ward that he could tell Black had created to protect the two of them, Lucius was watching the pair. The curious thing, though, was he could see through the ward, something that you weren't supposed to be able to do, something he was well aware of.
After another glance around to ensure he wasn't noticed by anyone, though he was sure that Black and Potter would know he was there because of the connection and other oddities he was experiencing, he sighed. Looking down, he rubbed his eyes in a weary way. This was beyond bizarre and he didn't know what to do, honestly. Since the encounter with Potter in the Hall of Prophecy, it had gotten worse.
The first thing that had happened was he had gone to the Dark Lord about what occurred. As the whole debacle had been a right cock-up that had failed to do what they wanted, the Dark Lord was not happy, at all. Then there was the fact that Bella and a couple others had been caught then tossed into Azkaban. That had him right furious, no doubt there. Though reluctant to tell Voldemort that it was him that had cast the spell that dropped Bella, thus allowing her to be caught by the Aurors, he had. Luckily, the Dark Lord was now in possession of almost all his sanity after that ritual in the cemetery and he had been given a chance to explain why he had done it. With what he now knew of the connection that was there, it was a damned good thing that he had too. Though it would have probably killed Potter if Black had gone through the Veil, it wouldn't have him. He wouldn't have emerged unscathed, though. From what they had been able to find out, he would have probably dropped into a coma that he wouldn’t ever have come out of. That was, quite frankly, frightening to contemplate.
After that, though still not happy about how pear-shaped an operation they had honed for so long had gone, the Dark Lord had sat with him to figure out what the hell was going on and just what the connection was. With the help of Narcissa, someone who was better at research than either of them, they had found it. There wasn't much there, just expounding on what he already knew slightly. However, the reaction he had did indeed match exactly. What they were running into a road block on was finding out just what could come with it or what to do beyond that. The latter part had more to do with Black and Potter than anything else. Potter, from their short talk, seemed to know something as he had been dealing with it. Getting that information, though, was going to be a mess. Not to mention just what to do with Potter and Black. As the connection with him was there, they couldn't harm them or he, himself, would be injured as well. Though the Dark Lord had plans for many things, not necessarily what Dumbledore thought either, especially since he knew Voldemort was feeding Snape false information because he was aware that the man was in Dumbledore's pocket. The best for all of them would be to get Potter and Black to join their end. That he doubted would happen so they were going to try for the next best thing; get them out. And how to do that was beyond all of them.
Lifting his head, he looked at the two seated at the picnic table, doing some heavy snogging, and sighed. He wanted to join them. He needed to join them. The pull to do so was almost overwhelming. He was just at a loss as to what to do here and how to go about it. Shaking his head, he watched for a few minutes, feeling his arousal growing. It had been there since he had stepped into the play park, but as he watched, it had grown as his desire to join them had. Now he didn't know what to do.
From what little intelligence they had gotten from Arabella Figg on the matter, someone that had been recruited after the bit in the cemetery, as she was disgusted by the way Dumbledore seemed to be playing with Potter's life, they learned that Black was staying with Potter until Dumbledore deemed that they could leave for the summer. They were told that Black was going to be seen around in his animagus form so that everyone would assume he was a guard dog to protect the young man. It was a good plan, Lucius admitted that, he was also sure that Black had come up with it so he and Potter wouldn't be separated. If they had consummated the connection already, as Potter had said, the two would be experiencing pain if they were apart for too long. Which also told Lucius that the two probably had some kind of plan to get out of this mess to be together. He doubted that either could stand being separated for a whole school year again without it being a form of torture.
Sighing as he looked at the two locked in a passionate kiss, Lucius shivered. He couldn't take anymore, all there was to it. So he decided it was time to let the chips fall where they may and reveal himself. Making sure his wand was tucked into the hidden pocket in the Muggle trousers he was wearing, he stiffened his spine then stepped through the wards and made his way in their direction.

Feeling the ward around this corner of the park shimmer as Malfoy passed through it, Sirius broke off the heated kiss with Harry and looked in that direction. They had known Malfoy was there before they could see him and were wondering when he was going to join them. Shifting around to where Harry was straddling the bench in front of him, leaning back against his chest, he waited for the man to come take a seat. Giving Harry a reassuring rub on the stomach under his shirt, he didn't say anything as no reassurance or anything was needed. After all, Malfoy couldn't do anything to hurt them. The only thing there right now was some apprehension over the newness of what was to come.
Taking a seat across the table from the two, facing them, Lucius pulled his wand out and sat it on the table in front of him then clasped his hands. He hoped that if there was some apprehension or they were wary he was going to do something to them, this would help to alleviate it. Looking between the two, he didn't know what to say or how to start out the conversation. There were so many questions he wanted to ask that he didn't know where to start with them and didn't want to jump right in as the stress level, for all of them, was probably high.
Looking at the man, Sirius said, “We were wondering if you were going to join us or were just content to watch.”
Glancing at Black then to Potter, who didn't seem at all uptight, he asked, “You could see me?”
“Of course,” Sirius snorted, shaking his head. “We knew you were around before we saw you.”
Lucius nodded, he liked having confirmation of what he had been thinking. Sighing, he said, “I would like to know what information you have on this connection. I've been able to find some, just not a lot.” Stopping, he looked between the two again and asked, softly, “How long have you known about yours?”
As this wasn't information that could harm them and Malfoy couldn't use it to hurt them, Sirius gave it up. With a shrug, he said, “Since he was a baby. When he was a couple weeks old, we began to notice something strange. If I was around, he would literally scream bloody murder until I held him even though at that age they have no real idea who is who other than, maybe, their mum. At first, we just thought it was something about me he liked. Then Lily began to notice that if I stayed away too long or didn't come around, he would get into a state where no one could console him. He would just scream until he wore himself out and fell asleep, not even eating right. When I would show up, he would stop and go back to the way he was before that; a normal infant. A few times of that was enough to get us checking into some things. That's when we discovered the connection through our magic.”
Taking that in Lucius nodded slowly. “That's why you were made his godfather. They knew you would protect him with everything you had.”
“Yeah,” Sirius confirmed with a grin. “They knew no one, nowhere, would hurt Harry if I was with him. Remus and a couple others mentioned might have been more suitable for raising a child than I was, but they wouldn't have protected him the way I would have.”
“Did you do a bonding of some kind to solidify it slightly?” Lucius inquired. One of the things they had read about was some did that with the child to ensure their protection and other things with it.
“With what was going on at the time, we didn't want to chance that,” Sirius told him with a shake of his head. “Though the first part of that connection was there and we knew it, we thought it best not to. If something happened to me, Harry would have survived that way. With what came of it, it's a good thing we didn't. The suffering both of us would have gone through would have been horrific. Plus, we wanted to give him as much of a normal life as we could. It would have eventually pulled us together, but he would have time before he reached that point to act like everyone else his age and date, have crushes, whatnot.”
“Very true.” Lucius sighed. “I didn't think about that part.” Looking between the two, he asked, keeping his voice low and neutral, “When did you consummate the connection? I know you left after his third year and weren't around after that.”
“Over Christmas break last year,” Sirius told him honestly. “When he turned fifteen, he was, apparently, biologically ready to take that step. We just wanted to stave it off a while and work with what was there before we did that. Plus to make sure Harry knew what was coming.” Stopping, Sirius looked down then said, “There was also the fact that it was a logistical thing. We were going to have problems with the prolonged absence with him at school and knew it. If we did it over Christmas break we would have time to let it settle slightly then we could be together over Easter break to ensure that we didn't stay apart too long. What happened was bad enough, if we had done it over the summer, it would have been much worse.”
“That makes sense,” Lucius told him, looking between the two. He then asked the next thing that came to mind, “Did you know there was a third? I had no idea though there had been some contact over the years.”

“We didn't,” Sirius admitted honestly. “What we think is this—what contact you did have wasn't close enough for you to feel it, either of you. From what Harry told me after you two discovered it, there was only a brief touch when he was much younger. I don't think that was enough to set it off. What I had with him was more 'intimate', for lack of a better term. It's just a guess on our end, honestly, but it does seem to fit.”
“It may, yes. There wasn't much touching done. In fact, I think the only time it happened I had gloves on,” Lucius told them, looking between the two.
“That might have played a part as well,” Sirius admitted, nodding. “Add that to when the connection tends to activate and it was probably a combination of all of it I think.”
“Do you have anything or some kind of idea on titles of books where I can look this up? I want some idea of what is coming here.”
Reaching into his pocket, Sirius pulled out some books then unshrunk them before pushing them over to Malfoy. “We assumed that you would show up quickly after term ended and didn't think you would chance trying to get through the wards.” Quietly, he added, “We think you can get through them, actually. Since you can't hurt either of us, you can't use that to your advantage.”
Grateful to have something to work with, Lucius took the books then pocketed them after shrinking them once again after he glanced at the titles. “I won't, you have my assurances. With what I've been able to find, I don't think I would want to deal with the consequences if I even tried to do that.”
Nodding at that, Sirius shifted around a little then said, “Time to give us some answers, Malfoy. We've given up plenty here, so we want some from you.”
Seeing that as fair and expecting some questions, Lucius motioned for him to continue.
“Just what the bloody hell is going on? You know something here and it's doubtful that it's what's being told to us on the topics. We have some information on that end of things, but it sure as hell isn't matching up with some of what we saw and heard from you. Like with that bit about you apparently knowing the prophecy was invalid,” Sirius told him in a firm voice that was quiet.
“I do,” Lucius admitted. “I knew going into this mess the prophecy was invalid. The whole point was to prove to your side it was invalid.” Eyes shifting to Harry who hadn't said anything, but was listening intently, he added, “What happened with Harry and the others showing up shouldn't have. That was not the plan. He was supposed to get the vision, but it was supposed to end up passed to Albus' spy in the school then end up being told to Dumbledore. Harry wasn't supposed to end up anywhere near the Hall of Prophecy. Which means someone threw a large spanner in the works somewhere. Who that is, I don't know. Trust me, we didn't want them there and drawn into the mess.”
Looking at the man intently, Sirius asked, “You know about a spy on your side?” As he didn't say the name or lean anywhere close to revealing who it might be, he thought that it might be alright.
“We know Severus is a spy, yes,” Lucius admitted, smirking. “I can also tell you that what information he gets from us is wrong. It’s what the Dark Lord wants Albus to know, not the truth, other than bits that are buried so deep under the rest that they won’t be found. They also wouldn’t be useful anyway, as it isn’t anything that is going to help that side.” Giving a soft snort, he said, dryly, “Severus thinks he is good, but he is no match for the rest of us. He just hasn't found that out yet.”
Rubbing his eyes, Sirius sighed, shaking his head. “What the hell is really going on then? The cemetery—Harry said that was bad.”
“It was,” Lucius confirmed with a nod. “We all admit that. It took time for the resurrection to complete. What is really back isn't what was in that cemetery. He's not like he was during the last war.” Stopping, Lucius looked down then said, tone distracted as he tried to think how to word this, “He's not dark anymore, more like a grey somewhere on the dark side, though not far. Some things haven't changed, like how we want the world to change in some ways, but most have. Like the way he wants to go about this.”
“What about Harry? How is he involved? He apparently still is if he's getting the visions,” Sirius commented.
“Those were something the Dark Lord couldn't avoid doing. In order to work what we did, we needed him to get the visions.” Stopping, he looked between the two then said, firmly, “Arthur was in no danger. It was a bite, yes, one that was venomous, but it wouldn't have killed him. It took time to heal, nothing more. We made dead certain of that. Think about it; Harry is not getting a mass of visions, just a select few that were leaning him towards the Hall of Prophecy. That's what was needed. I give you my word; he was not supposed to end up there! We didn't want him there. We wanted Albus and the rest of you, not Harry and other school children.” Lowering his voice, he said, “I have a son the same age as Harry. I don't want him involved in this mess and wouldn't want to involve others the same way. We are trying to keep school-aged children out of this. I don't know who threw what spanner in this, but it was not supposed to end up the way it did!”
Looking intently at the man, using one of the new 'gifts' this connection had given them, Sirius realized that he was telling the truth and nodded. “Gotcha. I'll buy it. What do you want here, Malfoy? This isn't going to go away, we all know this by now. I'm not sure how to work this either.”
“That is a quandary,” Lucius admitted. “Let me be honest here and say that the Dark Lord knows of the connection. I told him. He and Narcissa, both, helped me look this up. He won't hurt either of you. To solidify that in your mind, let me tell you this; he knows that I'm the reason Bella is back in Azkaban. That it was my spell that hit her to protect you. He is not going to do anything to either of you. His target is not you, but Albus. You, yourself, just said what you're being told does not line up with what you have seen so far. I'm not asking you to join this side or go to the Dark Lord. All I'm asking is for you to listen then observe, nothing more. We will then work from there.” Sighing, looking at the table then clasping his hands and resting his elbows on the edge of the wood, he added, “This isn't going to go away. The three of us know it. Which means, in some way, at some point, we're going to have to be together. I'm not willing to go to Dumbledore. I don't like the man, that is obvious. I'm also not willing to be a pawn for him to use.” Stopping, he looked at the two then said, “You are all pawns to him, nothing more. I think you know that, though.”
“We do,” Harry said softly, jumping in for the first time. Though there was more, he didn't say it. Sirius was better at dealing with these kinds of things than he was as he had experience in the area. The bit about Voldemort knowing unnerved him, but if it was as Sirius explained all along, that Malfoy couldn't hurt them and would have to protect them, he was going to let Sirius lead here. So far, he wasn't getting anything from Sirius through their connection that told him to worry. Instead, his godfather was telling him it was alright.
Pleased with that, Lucius nodded. Looking between the two, he asked, “You're trying to find a way out, aren't you? I assume most of it is because of the connection and the need to be together, but I would bet my magic it's more than that.”
“We are, on both counts,” Sirius admitted, looking at the man. Shaking his head, he said, “By the end of summer, it's doubtful the two of us are going to be able to separate for long. It's already pulling and solidifying, making up for the time we spent apart. As we follow that, it's going to make it to where we can't go our separate ways.”
Rubbing a hand over his face, Lucius tried to think. As this was the first time he had encountered the two since that whole debacle, there were lots of questions, but some were best left for later on. Trust needed to be built and foundations laid for him to get what he required. “Does anyone else know about the connection? I assume Lupin does as close as the two of you are.”
“Remus knows,” Sirius confirmed. “As does Arthur.”
“Really?” Lucius asked, stunned, looking between the two.
“Ginny,” Harry sighed. “We needed her to back off and the crush to die down. It was—well, on Sirius' end there were problems. We didn't want to make them worse than they were.”
Not having thought of that, Lucius sighed. “Understood. Not something I would have considered there.”
“A word of warning now; Narcissa is going to be a problem as well once this presses further,” Sirius told him softly. “I can handle it fairly well, but I’m not sure about Harry as he's not had the life experience of either of us.”
That was another thing Lucius hadn't even thought to take into account. Nodding, he rubbed his face. “We'll work with that end, never fear. She knows what's there and what can come of it as she's the one that did most of the research. As with so much, she's accepted it and knows there is nothing that can be done. When we press further on we'll work with it.” Looking down at the table, he shook his head then muttered, “This is a right mess.”
“You don't have to tell us that,” Sirius snorted, grinning.
“We were just dealing with what was there when you dropped into it,” Harry told him quietly, looking at the man.
“I don't know what to do here, to be honest,” Lucius admitted, looking between the two. “The connection is bad enough, but adding in the rest is making it a nightmare. However, let me assure you this; I will protect both of you with everything I have. Those who know right now are limited and will not harm either one of you, I give you a vow on that. You are safe, at least from that side of this mess. To prove it, I'll give you a contact to get in touch with if there is a problem and you need help. Does that work for both of you?”
Looking at Harry, who gave a brief nod, Sirius said, “Works for me.”
“Arabella Figg.” Seeing Black's eyes widen, he held up his hand and said, “She just agreed to help in the last year. It's because she doesn't like what she sees with the Dursleys and what Dumbledore has asked her to do when it comes to so much. She's no Death Eater and hasn't betrayed anyone. She's just agreed to help us the best she can, nothing more. Her interest in this is Harry and his well being. All she is trying to do is help keep him safe. From our end, she has a vow that we aren't trying to harm him or you. Go to her if there is a problem or if you need to get in contact until we can figure out a way to send messages other than via owl.”

Shaking his head over the fact that Mrs. Figg was helping the other side, Harry sighed, “This is a mess. It's confusing!”
“Much has changed, trust me,” Lucius said softly. “I'll explain more as time goes on, I give you my word.” Looking between the two again, he said, “The Dark Lord is making it clear to everyone to leave Harry alone. He may not be what he once was, but you do not cross the man, take my word for it.” Lowering his voice, he said, quietly, “We're working on a way to get Wormtail into the hands of the Ministry. I won't go into details beyond that as the only thing we can think of that might work to protect us because of what he knows is something you don't want details on, trust me. That is the Dark Lord's peace offering to you. I know you don't buy it now or have any trust in that side, but it is.”
Malfoy was right about that; there was no trust anywhere with that end of things when it came to both Sirius and Harry. However, Sirius nodded, but said nothing.
Sighing once more, Lucius said, “I don't know how to proceed here, to be honest. We have much to work with before we make any move. And the time is limited. I don't see Dumbledore wanting Harry under your influence alone for too long, Sirius.”
“He won't,” Sirius agreed with a disgruntled grumble. “He's already mentioned that he's going to get him out of here fairly quickly this summer. I think that's some kind of plan to separate us. It won't work, honestly. The only option we can think of is the Weasleys and Arthur is going to ensure that doesn't happen because of the connection.”
Looking down, trying to think, Lucius finally said, “I assume there is more you know that you aren't saying yet.”
“There is. You have the basics and what you need to start out with. The rest—we'll work with that as time goes on,” Sirius told him, holding Harry close.
“I can appreciate that,” Lucius nodded. He was pleased, though, as it told him the two were willing to work with this and allow him to build trust. Sighing, he said, “How about this; I come over to talk with you each day. I imagine the pull is going to bring me here anyway. Each day we work out some of this until you grow comfortable with me and build at least a tiny bit of trust. Then we'll go on from there and try to find a better way to communicate so we can work more. Acceptable?”
Looking over his shoulder at Sirius, Harry then nodded, “Works on this end.” Stopping, he then added quietly, “We have a way. It's not the best and doesn't work well in places with a lot of magic, but it's better than anything else.”
“When we get more comfortable with this, we'll give up what it is. You might be able to find a way to improve it or find a better spell for it,” Sirius told him.
“Very good,” Lucius said. “I can give you my assurances that I won't do anything to harm you, though I know that doesn't amount to more than a heap of dung right now. I won't, though. I read the consequences for betrayal and won't chance invoking them on myself. That you can count on, believe me.”
Knowing what those were, and some of them you would rather be dead than suffer with, Sirius snorted then gave a short nod. “You have a chance, that’s all we're giving you. Don't squander it. You'll suffer from this worse than we will because the connection has been consummated with us. In fact, we won't feel much of anything unless you're close. Remember that, Malfoy.” Sirius warned softly.
“I will, trust me. Sitting here right now is bad enough,” Lucius said, looking dour. Rubbing his eyes, he imparted quietly, “We won't talk about the effect it was having before I came closer while I was watching.” Sighing, he nodded then said, “I'll return tomorrow. I assume here is good with you?” Seeing both of them tip their heads at that, he was pleased. Standing, though he didn't want to go but didn't know what else to say, he imparted, “I'll return then.” With that, he walked away, planning to go home and talk with Narcissa about what he learned.

After dark, the two of them relaxed, reclining in bed in nothing but their boxers, with Harry sprawled out between Sirius’ legs, when Harry asked, “Why did you give up so much information to Malfoy? I wouldn't have thought you would do that.”
Stroking up and down Harry's bare chest, relishing in the way his godson's body felt against his own bare skin, Sirius explained, “It's his one chance. We can handle going on without him. It won't be comfortable for a while, though far less so than what we've already gone though, but we'll manage. It's him that will suffer, badly. It'll be even worse if he so much as dances close to the line of doing something to hurt us. We'll know quickly if he does that.”
Taking that in, Harry nodded. “You think he will? Hurt us, I mean.”
“I don't think so,” Sirius said with a shake of his head. “He was honest today, with everything. Though I'm not real comfortable with that whole being able to feel magic bit yet, it's helping me to tell when someone is lying to us. He wasn't. He was uncomfortable, no doubt there, and wary, but he told the truth.”
“That's good,” Harry said with a nod. “Maybe he means it.”
“If he's done some research and knows the consequences of betraying us, it's doubtful he'll chance it.” Sirius told him, continuing to stroke up and down Harry's bare chest.
“What's all this going to mean? Do you know? I mean, if Voldemort does know we have to be really careful here.”
“I don't know, Harry, I really don't,” Sirius said with a sigh. “Like I said, he was honest. I'm not going to lay blind trust there, that's for damned certain. We're just going to have to wait and see on some of this I think.”
Rubbing his eyes, Harry sighed. “Alright.”
“You get anything strange with him on your end? I mean, seeing the magic part? I know you can't on people usually, but you can on other things. So did you catch anything like eavesdropping spells or something like that?”
“Nope, nothing like that,” Harry told him. “Only thing odd was something I think we can attribute to the connection. It was like his magic was reaching out to ours. It didn't make it, but seemed to want to find us.”

“Yeah, that has to be the connection,” Sirius told him. “I'm the only one you can see magic on, aren't I? Other than that bit?”
“You're it,” Harry told him firmly. “I can see it on objects and detect spells before they're thrown, on the wand and that, like we've talked about. Not people though.”
“That might shore up what I got as well. At least I can hope. I sent everything off to Remus. He'll get it to Arthur, then the two of them will get together and see what they can figure out on it. They are good at nosing around and picking up things.”
“You tell them what Malfoy said about Snape?” Harry asked, looking over his shoulder at Sirius.
“No,” Sirius told him firmly with a shake of his head. “That's not something I can get across cryptically, so it's best to wait until we do it in person. I'll fill Remus in fully when he manages to get here this week sometime. He can then take it from there.”
“That was a bit blindsiding,” Harry chuckled, reaching down to scratch his stomach. “The same with Mrs. Figg.”
“It was, I admit it. From what I can tell, Dumbledore doesn't know Snape is being fed bullshite and it taking it as gospel,” Sirius chuckled. “It should help us though. At least I think we can use it to our advantage when we plan to get the hell out of this mess or do something to push Albus to where we stay together, one of the two.”
“It's a ruddy mess, that's for sure,” Harry chuckled, shaking his head.
“That it is!” Sirius laughed, clutching onto Harry tighter. “We'll work with it, though, never fear. Remus and Arthur are more than up to the task of helping us. We can lay odds on that and go from there.” Ticking Harry's side softly, hearing him give a short bark of laughter, Sirius leaned down and kissed his bare shoulder then said, “We'll take it as it comes, don't worry. Let's find something else to do, what do you say?”
Grinning, knowing what that meant, Harry nodded then yelped when he found himself flipped onto his back with Sirius perched over him. Wrapping his arms around his godfather's neck, he pulled him down into a kiss.

Sitting in a comfortable chair, head down, snifter of brandy in one hand, Lucius rubbed his eyes in a tired way with the other, then shook his head. “This is a mess,” he muttered quietly.
“There is nothing you can do, Lucius,” Narcissa told him softly. “You're doing the best you can with what has been dropped on you.”
Leaning back, he took a large drink of the brandy then ran his free hand through his hair. Sighing, he shook his head, not sure what to say.
“Narcissa is right,” the Dark Lord told him quietly, crossing his legs and shifting around in his chair. “You handled the situation perfectly with what you were dealing with. They'll learn soon enough that you're telling them the truth then it can progress from there. What they gave you is good. Not to mention the books. The information there is what you needed.” Stopping, he waited a moment then added, quietly, “What you gave to them is fine. I take no issue with that. Tell them what they want to know.”
Looking over at the Dark Lord, glad the man had dropped the partial transformation he was using for now to let people know who he used to be, Lucius said, “I'll do that. Is there anything you don't want me to tell them?”

“Tell them everything if you wish,” Tom said honestly. “If they ask, tell them. If you feel it'll help you, tell them. I have nothing to hide, Lucius. I won't use what they told you against them, or the ones helping them either. You can pass that along as well. We'll work with this and help all we can.”
Looking at his wife, he said, “The part about you--” Trailing off, he sighed, sipping at his brandy.
“It's nothing you can help, Lucius. I understand that.” Narcissa soothed. “I'll ensure that they know I'll back away and won't make it worse.”
“A right ruddy mess,” Lucius sighed, shaking his head once more, running his fingers through his hair again as he didn't know what to do or say at this point.
“None of us will deny that,” Tom chuckled, grinning slightly. “Just work with it, Lucius. Let that connection guide you. I'm sure it will and will point you in the right way. Just keep showing up. If they need proof, I'll gladly give it to them or show up myself. I don't have a problem doing that.”
Nodding, Lucius said nothing for a few moments then sighed. “It's horrendous. That feeling is—you don't want to know how bad it is.”
Putting a hand on her husband's head, Narcissa stroked it then muttered, “I can only imagine.”
“Do what you need to, Lucius,” Tom told him firmly. “I'll handle Wormtail this week. That should give you something to point them to as a way to prove I'm serious. It won't work fully, but it should give you a hand. We'll then go from there.”
Sighing, Lucius nodded then rubbed his eyes again before setting the snifter aside. “Draco isn't going to handle this well.”
“No, he won't,” Narcissa admitted quietly. “He'll adjust though. There's no choice in the matter. He can't change it and it's not something you did willingly. It'll just take time.”
“I'll work with him when it comes to the point he has to face it,” Tom told him softly. “He'll listen to me more than he will anyone else.”
Hand over his mouth, Lucius nodded. Finally, after a couple minutes of silence, he said, “I think I need to get some rest. I'm exhausted and can't think straight.”
“Go on,” Tom told him with a nod. “We'll talk more tomorrow about it. Don't worry, Lucius, we'll handle it as it presents itself.”
Feeling Narcissa give him a kiss on the top of the head, Lucius reached out and took her hand then gave it a squeeze before standing and walking out.
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Well, Ain't That Strange?