Marrying Lucius Malfoy

Life passed at a blissful pace. One afternoon Selina came home--she had been helping the constantly moving Riley to make last minute adjustments to the still nameless café--to find that Lucius planned to whisk her away for a weekend on the French Riviera. They visited Lucifer then, which was altogether enjoyable but just the slight bit strange. Lucifer wasn't one for company, and he made many excuses during their sojourn to leave Selina and Lucius alone.

'Oh well,' Selina always thought. 'We found productive things to do in his absence!'

Riley finally settled on a name for her café. Because her interior designer had encouraged her to paint the walls a dusky pink and use black lace for curtains and tablecloths, the inside of the café looked like some sort of den of iniquity. Riley thought it gave the place an edge. In a moment of cliché brainstorming, she decided to call her café "Femme Fatale". A silly name, Selina thought--a stupid name, Lucius said--but if anyone could run a coffee shop by that name, it was Riley, who was something of a femme fatale herself.

The day Femme Fatale opened, Selina dragged Lucius to Diagon Alley. He wasn't at all pleased by his wife's insistence, but, to keep her happy (and willing to make love) he had conceded. When they arrived, the café was packed. Riley was too busy to come and talk to them, so Lucius and Selina had to wrestle up a table of their own. When they managed, at long last, to sit down and order, they began to talk of the upcoming events in the month of April. This was how the stumbled upon Selina's birthday.

"The twenty-second of April?" Lucius asked. "You might have been told that. Hmm...So you are turning twenty on the twenty-second."

"When's your birthday?" Selina questioned.

Lucius made a grim face. "The ninth of June. Bloody hell, I'll be turning forty-two!"

"Twenty-two years older than me," Selina murmured. "That's not so bad."

Lucius snorted. "That's much easier for you to say," he assured her, "you being the younger one. Me? I'm the one they mistake for your father!"

Selina smirked. "Oh, Lucius, honey, you I don't think anyone will mistake you for my father! You're too damn handsome!" Though Lucius seemed to like hearing that, he still looked bothered. Selina reached out and took his hand in hers. "You know," she said after a lot of considering, "we could skip my birthday this year."

As adverse as he was to the idea of their age difference being celebrated, Lucius disliked the idea of passing up Selina's birthday even more. "Nonsense!" he assured her. "I might not want to run around all of London's clubs again, but I do want you to feel special. Merlin knows you deserve it." He mulled the possibilities over for a few moments, then said, "Why don't you invite some of your old friends to Britain? Those schoolgirls you told me about...And perhaps one of Ms. Bryce's sisters? Whomever you wish to have by your side while we celebrate your twentieth year of life."

Selina smiled and stroked her husband's hand. No one could have guessed how adoring Lucius had become with her; the man in front of her was a world apart from the one that all-but-raped her on their wedding night. He sounded so genuine about his idea that she couldn't help but accept. "That sounds perfect," she told him. "Divine!" She looked around for Riley; in a few moments her best friend had managed to battle her way towards the table.

"What can I rustle up for you two?" she asked. Despite addressing them both in her question, Riley looked only at Selina. She seemed determined not to see Lucius.

"Oh, let's not worry about that!" Selina laughed. "What I wanted to tell you is Lucius's plan for my birthday! He says I should invite some of our old school friends out to the manor for a week or two! Your sisters, too!"

Riley crossed her willowy arms cautiously. "I can pay for my own sisters," she said softly. She still avoided looking at Lucius.

"No need," Lucius retorted. "It's Selina's birthday, and I am her husband. I insist on paying. Where do your sisters live?"

"Penny lives in France, Sara lives in Georgia, Luella moves around too much to have an actual city of residence, and no matter where Rebecca lives, Selina won't want her at her birthday."

"Oh?" Lucius arched a fair eyebrow.

"Yes." Riley shot Lucius a forced glance. Her face was grim. "Selina and Becky had a falling out a few years ago. They were never close, but when their argument took place, it was extremely severe."

"What happened?"

Selina looked down at her glass of water. "There was a boy...Both of us liked him. Loved him, even. His name was Tucker Ranch. He was best friends with my cousin, Bruce. "We...It's complicated."

Lucius stared at his wife. After depositing a small amount of money on the table--even though they hadn't ordered anything he felt it necessary to help support his wife's best friend's new business--he stood and helped her up. "Selina," he said softly, "let's go home."

Selina nodded. Suddenly the prospects of her birthday didn't seem so bright, especially with Riley's sisters present. It had been a good two years since the "Tucker fiasco " as Riley had dubbed it, and she was madly in love with Lucius, but what had happened still hurt. They got into Lucius's Ministry of Magic--he used it whenever they needed to get around without being noticed by muggles--and, after a silent ride, they pulled up at the manor.

Once inside, Lucius took her to their new suite. He sat her down on one of the couches and stroked her hair. "You said you loved this boy," he said softly. "Tell me more. This is something important, I can tell."

Selina sighed. "When Riley and I went to Serendipity's, and Tucker and Bruce went to Legerdemain's, the all-boys brother school. From the get go Tucker and I were considered the more steady, sturdy couple. We rarely argued, whereas Bruce and Riley were off-and-on every other week. They were barely official until they were sixteen. Tucker was a hopeless romantic. Bruce forgot his and Riley's anniversary every year.

"By the time graduation rolled around we were engaged in all but title." Lucius drew in a nervous breath. "One night the Bryces were having a pre-graduation party. It was the first time any of Riley's sisters had met Tucker. I wanted them to approve of him, because we were family friends. As it turns out, one of the Bryce sisters approved of him a little too much."

"Rebecca Bryce, I assume."

"Rebecca had always been a strange deal. Severe and serious, like your Snape friend. When she saw Tucker, though, she saw something she liked...And so they...They had this sexual thing for a few months. And when he tried to end it she came to me. Showed me pictures...Showed me a tape! All these things. And I confronted him, and her, and...Like Riley said, it was complicated."

"You must have hated me when I cheated on you," Lucius murmured, stroking her hand. It was clear he felt like a complete bastard.

"I hated you, but not in the same way that I hated Tucker. When he cheated on me, I was in love with him. When you cheated on me, I already hated you, so the infidelity was just another stepping stone." Selina clenched her fist. "But now I love you, and-"

"After Narcissa's death, I never had sex with Arielle DeSanders." Lucius said it suddenly, and with meaning. He and Selina had never discussed his infidelities, but now he had to make her understand that he wasn't completely like Tucker Ranch! "I just couldn't. There was once or twice when it might have happened...But I swear to you, it never went beyond a few kisses."

Selina gave him a smile that promised numerous rewards to come. It meant so much to her that Lucius had only ever been with her after their marriage. "I love you," she said dotingly. "More than I ever loved, or thought I loved, Tucker Ranch."

Lucius reached out and caressed her cheek. "You are so beautiful," he murmured, "and precious. I treasure you. I love you. I do not know how to say it better than that."

Selina gave a coltish, inviting smile. She moved over the couch to straddle her husband's waist. Into his ear she purred, "You can't say it better than that." In a swift move she'd been practicing for two weeks she reached back and unzipped her pale green dress. Lucius reached around her chest to unclip her bra. When all clothing fell away from her breasts, he gave her a smoldering look that made her heart beat ten times faster.

Right before he put his mouth to her nipple, he whispered, "What a lucky man I am!"

~*~

After that night Lucius and Selina began to function as a one. As the days counted down to her birthday everyone in high society began to recognize the new Mrs. Malfoy and the effect she had on her temperamental husband. Selina began making more appearances on Lucius's arm. One night she even played hostess to a small dinner party Lucius put on. That night Ms. Laverne had been forced to admit that Selina was coming into her own; all evening Selina carried on intellectual conversations with Lucius's business associates and their wives.

"Quite the elocutionist tonight, aren't we?" she had asked as Selina passed her, on her way to the bathroom.

‘If only she knew that I spent the entirety of last night pouring over Lucius’s boring business magazines for research!’ Selina thought with a certain amount of self-satisfaction.

~*~

One afternoon, while she was sitting in Riley's café, a flurry of owls hurtled through an open window. They caused a general ruckus, and if they had been looking for any other customer than Selina, Riley would have torn them a new one. As it was, she moseyed over to Selina's table and sat down to take a break.

"What are those, Selly?" she asked.

Selina grinned eagerly as she tore open the first small envelope. They were all red with silver lettering. "They're my replies!" she answered. "For my birthday. I sent everyone a plane ticket--don't tell Lucius, though, because he thinks they're coming by portkey--and told them that if they wanted a free trip to Britain to come on over the pond! Or, in Penny's case, the channel! These are their RSVPs."

Riley looked at the envelope Selina had opened first and snorted. "Georgiana Soonray? You invited her?"

"She was a sweet kid!" Selina protested. "And you had better be nice, because she's coming!" Selina had invited seven people: Georgiana Soonray (old schoolmate), Sheila Mardone (also an old schoolmate), Luella Bryce (Riley's party girl sister), Penny Bryce (Riley's career woman sister), Sara Bryce (Riley's homemaker sister), and Mr. and Mrs. Bryce (Riley's parents). After reading Georgiana's reply, Selina found that Sheila, Luella, Penny, and their parents were all eager to come. She ran into a smidge of trouble when she opened Sara's RSVP. Like most of the other invitees, Sara had written a short message after checking off "yes" or "no." Unlike the other invitees, though, the reply was less than friendly.

Selina,

As much as I thank you for considering me in your twentieth birthday celebration, I must admit that it's a little selfish for you to ask me to take time out of my busy schedule so that I can gallivant around Europe for a few days. Nothing takes priority over my children, not even you. Maybe when you have children of your own, you'll understand! Are your husband and you trying yet?

Sincerely,
Sara Bryce Hadley

When Riley saw the note she burst into a string of profanities. "That little bitch!" she cursed angrily. "I told her about your miscarry! She did that out of spite!"

"I'm better off without her," Selina said quickly. She didn't want to think about the insult. "She wouldn't have favored the weather," she added in an effort to seem at ease.

Riley shook her head angrily. "I don't care! She's being a horrible person, and she knows it! When I show my mother this-"

"Oh, God! Please don't!" Selina begged. "The last thing I want to start is a Bryce family war. Please, let's just discuss further arrangements."

Riley sat down in a foul temper and shoved the note towards her best friend. "Fine. I'll let it be. But only this once. Next time-"

Selina cut her off in an attempt to change the subject. "Housing arrangements!" she said brightly, but Riley knew her mood was anything but.

"My mother," she said. "Your husband knows of my heritage, does he not? And my mother's muggleborn heritage?"

"He does." Selina slammed her fist onto the table. "He makes me so angry when he acts like this! All high-and-mighty because his blood is so pure!" She couldn't help but think, though, that some of her anger was really directed towards Sara. Finally, "Could they stay with you?"

Riley considered this. "Yes. My sisters wouldn't mind, I'm sure, and Mother would love to go over the house with me. She's taken up interior decorating, you know, as a new hobby."

Selina nodded absentmindedly. It was obvious that Sara's note still bothered her. "I'll at least pick everyone up at the airport."

"Sure," Riley said. Now that business was finished, her attention had drifted back to her café. "Listen, I've got to get back to work-"

"By all means!" Selina stood and dropped some money on the table. "I should get going, anyways. Ms. Laverne wants me to help her pick out some new china patterns." She winced. "Artemis and Apollo destroyed one of the centuries old sets we had last night."

Riley grinned. "Have fun, then!" she called to her friend's retreating back.

Halfway down Diagon Alley Selina met up with Ms. Laverne. The stern head-maid nodded brusquely to her in acknowledgement; their relationship was most a mock-rivalry now-a-days. Ms. Laverne now respected Selina as the new Mrs. Malfoy.

"I'm glad of it, too! I couldn't imagine having a Mrs. Danvers on my hands!" Selina thought ruefully as they turned down a narrow street way and came to a stop in front of prim, dusty looking china store.

"This is it," Ms. Laverne said. "Barnaby and Sander's Fine China, the best china place in all of Britain. If you can't have a family heirloom, then you might as well have B.S. china!"

"Oh!" Selina held in a rude snort. "Is that what they call the stuff?"

"Miss Selina! B.S. china is not just stuff!" Ms. Laverne told her.

Selina looked at the ground as she stepped inside the shop. Well, at least it would be an amusing afternoon!

~*~

"Lovely patterns, my love," Lucius purred as she displayed their new china dishes in his study that evening. "But not nearly as lovely as you are. That dress is rather formfitting! I hope you didn't wear it in public?" It was a question, not a statement.

"And what if I did?" Selina asked. "It isn't as if anyone was looking!"

"Lucius's silver-gray eyes gleamed possessively. He moved closer to his wife. "Everyone looks at you," he informed her. "Surely you have noticed."

Selina shook her head. "I'm not that beautiful."

Lucius reached out and pulled her into a tight embrace. He whispered into her ear, "Maybe not to them--because you are to me but you are passionate. People can tell that about a woman...They can see the fire in her eyes."

"And, in my case, my hair!"

Lucius smirked and kissed the top of her head. "How many times must I tell you? You've instilled within me a certain...fetish...for red hair." Less seriously, "And knowing a family like the Weasleys, that is a harder task than it would seem."

'Ah, to be loved!' Selina thought happily as Lucius proceeded to show her--on his desk, no less!--just how much he cared for her ruby locks.

They fell asleep in his study afterwards. Selina curled up on his chest and let out a satisfied sigh before drifting off. Later, much later, a little past the witching hour, she woke up to a total darkness. The fire had burned out. It was a moonless night.

Lucius was no longer at her side.

Before she could call out for him, he called out for her. "Selina?" His voice came from the other side of his desk. He had probably moved to his chair. "Are you awake yet?"

"Yes," she replied. She stood up and tried to peer at him through the darkness. "Why did you move?"

"I didn't expect you to awaken for another hour," he replied. "I was going to do complete some of the business that I neglected in lieu of our earlier rendezvous."

"In the darkness?" she queried. She still could not see him.

"My love, we Malfoys do our best work in the darkness," he told her. There was a moment's silence before he told her, "I found the replies in your jacket."

A small pit of unease began to blossom in Selina's stomach. "Oh?" she asked, though she had a fairly good idea at where this was headed.

"I found the reply that Sara Riley sent you. I hope it didn't upset you." His voice was toneless, emotionless.

"Riley says that she told Sara about my miscarry." She heard Lucius draw in a quick, angry breath. "But I'm alright now."

"She had no right-" Lucius began, but Selina cut him off.

"She was close with Rebecca. It's her petty revenge, I guess. Don't dwell on it."

"I cannot help but! It goes beyond Ms. Bryce's classless low-blows. It goes into what she said...Are we trying for children now? I know we said we'd like some if we were ever close enough."

Selina walked around the desk. By touch and feel only, she located her husband's chair and lowered herself onto his lap. His arms wrapped around her curvy build. She felt safe and loved in his hold.

"I'm so young," she reminded him.

"But I'm not getting any younger," Lucius countered."

"I want children. I really do. Especially now that we're in love and we could be supportive, happy parents." Selina shifted on his lap. He kissed her cheek and let his tongue trail from her ear to her chin. "But I feel like, if I were to get impregnated tonight, that I wouldn't be the mother I could be in five years. I'm still dealing with loosing our first pregnancy, and I need to grow up a little before I could handle another."

"Good points, my love." Lucius told her. "Now, let me say my piece. Ever since we became a happily married couple, and even a bit before then, my desire to have babies with you has increased tenfold. Before I wanted to have a child incase something should ever happen to Draco. Now I want to have a child so that we can become parents together.

"Selina, you know that I'm much older than you. In our world it doesn't matter as much as it might in the muggle world, but I feel the age difference often enough! I don't want to be eighty before our last child moves out! In truth, my body will only be forty, but I want to spend as much time being with you as possible!" He kissed her again, this time on the lips. "But I love you too much to hurt you by pushing you farther than you're ready to go. If it pleases you, I will visit an apothecary in the morning and purchase some heavy-duty, long-term sterility potions for myself."

Selina radiated warmth. "Thank you," she said softly. "I'll try and do this growing as fast as possible. I want to have as much time together as possible, too."

"This is one matter in which I'd ask you not to rush." Lucius might have smiled; Selina could feel his lips, pressed against the nape of her neck, move. "And do not worry, my love, about being with child. Since we returned from our honeymoon I've been taking some potions that my father kept in our storerooms to guarantee my sterility. These potions, however, only last for a few hours, so I'll need to get some stronger ones soon."

Selina turned around so that she was straddling her husband in the chair. She reached for her wand, which was somewhere on his desk. "Lumos!" she murmured. A soft, pretty light illuminated their faces. Lucius was leering at her.

"Nox!" he said, brandishing his own wand. Then, "What we are to do now, I want to do in the darkness."

Selina was clothed only in a thin camisole; he disposed of that quickly. He worked his stiffness out of the boxers he had slipped into but remained in his undershirt. Their lips joined at the same moment their nether regions did. Selina moaned. Lucius whispered a wordless comfort into her ear.

Selina could not have been more satisfied.

For a glimmer of a moment, her world peaked at perfection.