Family Matters

Family matters

'You sent for me, father.' Lucius Malfoy was standing in the doorway of his fathers study at Malfoy Manor and he tried in vain to keep the irritated tone out of his voice.

'Come in and close the door behind you.' Claudius Malfoy didn't look up at his son, but carried on reading the letter in front of him.

Lucius stepped in and waved his wand at the door irritably. Too late he realised that he hadn't been careful enough: the door closed with a loud snap which made Claudius jerk up.

'How often do I have to tell you not to stomp in here like some common troll!'

Lucius first instinct was to bow his head and mumble 'excuse me, father', but he controlled himself. Those times were over. He wasn't going to be intimidated by the old bugger, not any longer. Instead, he kept silent, his face as impassive as possible.

Claudius gave him a nasty look, read the last few lines of the letter, folded it and put it away with the slightest hint of a smile on his face. Finally, he turned to Lucius.

'Sit down,' he said, in an almost friendly voice. One fleeting second, Lucius was surprised; but he immediately became suspicious.

'I don't have time for this. I have got a lot of work to do and I don't understand why you couldn't simply have contacted me through the fire,' he said; his annoyance unmistakeably audible now.

'I said sit down, boy,' Claudius repeated. Lucius sat down extremely quickly. But he wasn't finished yet.

'I would appreciate it,' he sneered, in a voice just like his father's, 'if you would cease calling me 'boy'. It is hardly appropriate for an Undersecretary to the Minister for Magic.'

His father was perplexed for a second, Lucius noticed with relish, but he then put on a look so threatening he froze in his seat.

'I wish to remind you that I am still the Head of this family, boy,' his father said in a voice dripping with contempt. 'You had better start acting appropriately.'

Father and son glared at each other. Lucius tried to keep staring into those grey pools of cold and malice, but he couldn't. Too often they had made him cower under their hard and cruel gaze; too often he had been humiliated and ridiculed by them to be able to stand them unflinching for long.

'My apologies,' he said through gritted teeth, hating himself.

A cruel smile appeared on Claudius' face. 'You think you are quite something, don't you, mister Undersecretary?' he whispered. 'You think you've proved yourself, don't you? Well, I know better, boy. How you are ever going to take my position is completely beyond me.'

O, no. This was clearly the beginning of a rant. Lucius thought it best to stay silent at this. Whatever he said, it would be wrong anyway.

'I have done everything in my power to prepare you for your future role. You turned out to be a complete waste of time and money, and yet, I have never given up on you. I have made you, Lucius. Everything you are now, you are because I wanted you to be it. So I won't take any cockiness from you anymore, is that clear?'

Every cell in Lucius' body wanted to curse him, right there, on the spot. Preferably Cruciatus. Instead, he hissed:

'Crystal.'

Lucius had heard these words hundreds of times. If asked, he could recite them. So he was mildly surprised to notice that they still had the same effect: they made him feel small and insignificant.

Claudius smiled, contented for the moment.

'Now, why you are here. I have just received a letter by Klaus von Scharfenberg, confirming he will visit the Manor tomorrow. I want you present, Lucius.'

'Surely you won't need my help to discuss business matters with him?'

'He will be accompanied by his daughter.'

As he realised what these words implied, Lucius was filled with horror.

'No.'

'I beg your pardon?'

'Father, you can't do this. Everything has already been arranged. Narcissa and I are to be married next month!'

Claudius seemed unimpressed by this. 'Situations can change, Lucius. An alliance between the Black family and ours is no longer in our best interest.'

'But the Blacks can't possibly agree with this,' Lucius said, thinking quickly. 'They will be furious if we cancel the engagement!'

'The Black family can surely be coaxed into reconsidering the matter,' Claudius said indifferently. 'I daresay young Miss Black won't have any problems finding a suitable partner after a more than generous contribution to her dowry. This is none of your concern, however,' he said, searching for a quill.

Lucius had trouble thinking straight as his father was about to take one of his greatest joys out of his life. From the moment they were introduced to each other, he had felt something more than fondness for Narcissa Black. He had been enchanted by her intelligence, self-confidence and charm. Her smile brightened his days, and with her at his side, he was certain he could make the Malfoy family even greater than before. But he couldn't do it without her.

He stood up. 'I refuse.'

Claudius, who had started writing a reply to von Scharfenberg, stopped dead. Lucius braced himself as he saw his father grasp his wand in an impulse. Yet, two breathless seconds later, Claudius dropped his wand and looked up at him.

'I choose not to have heard this,' he said, barely controlling his voice, 'and you may therefore consider yourself very fortunate indeed! I expect you at the Manor at noon tomorrow. You are excused.'

But the fear and the anger that had seized him made Lucius abandon all caution. 'You heard me correctly,' he spat at his father. 'I've had enough. I'm not going to play your sick little games anymore...!'

He couldn't go on because of the nasty hex that grazed his cheek.

Claudius Malfoy had stood up and was pointing his wand at his son. 'Don't you dare defy me!' he roared, completely losing his temper, 'You WILL obey me, or I will make you!' He slowly advanced on him, whispering dangerously: 'You will, for once, prove that you are my heir, worthy of my name, instead of a useless piece of filth! If you can't, you will cease to be part of this family, do you hear? If you ruin this, boy, I will personally make your life a living hell.'

Lucius knew from experience that this wasn't an empty threat.

Slowly, he nodded.

'Now get out!' spat Claudius.

Outside, Lucius was overcome by hot, angry tears. Furiously, he wiped them away. But he had made a decision. He couldn't stand up to his father alone, but he knew somebody who could.

He knelt down with a grim smile on his face and offered his left arm.

'My Lord, I have come to pledge allegiance.'