Beauty and The Dragon

Beauty and The Dragon

Part One: A Curse

"Some say Love it is a river"

---from The Rose by Bette Midler

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There was a time for your children, and there was not a time for your children. Lady Narcissa Malfoy suspected that this was one of those latter times, and her son, Draco, was not helping. Then again, neither was her husband.

Lord Malfoy was handsome, intelligent, and a pureblood; everything her own mother had forced her to learn about politics and aristocracy seemed to be the epitome of Lucius. He was also shrewd, cruel, and an arrogant bastard. Just looking at him sometimes made Narcissa's blood boil. She was no princess herself, despite the traces of royalty that ran in her family, but Lucius had snubbed her from the very beginning when their parents began making arrangements for their marriage and they were only small children. Unlike the other boys at the manor who pulled Narcissa's golden braids and brought her presents, Lucius ignored her and it had hurt. Her ego had been bruised and she never forgave him, even after they had grown into teenagers and Narcissa had her share of suitors, while Lucius pushed aside both women and men in his hunger for power.

Then of course, her parents would always remind her of her engagement and she was stuck in a smiling façade of serenity, as she was dressed in rich white silk. Her body was adorned with the Malfoy stones: diamonds and moonstone and her family stones: lapis luzil and alexandrite. She had been inwardly screaming even as she uttered the marriage vows and looked into the priest's blank brown eyes. She had been crying as she had looked down at her baby for the first time, not out of joy, but at the reality of what the child meant. She had watched him grow with resignation and guilt.

Now he was standing in front of her, a young man of sixteen who had grown taller then her five foot nine frame, tall, blonde, and slender. He looked as if he were her son, although his hair was Lucius' white-blond, and his eyes an odd silver that did not resemble either of his parents' blue eyes. Something in his eyes made Narcissa cold, like the lining of clouds before a storm.

"Mother?" Draco asked, his voice strangely torn from being deep and soft.

Narcissa inwardly shook her head and let her painted lips curve upwards as she folded her hands in her lap, "Yes, Draco?"

He sat down with her grace and smiled openly, although his eyes remained that cool silver that Lucius had taught him. It made her sad, but she wasn't sure why. "Do you think we could go out riding?"

"Not today, Stardust is with a colt, and you know how Comet can be." Stardust was Draco's riding horse, a pure white mare with a silky mane and short feathers around her black hooves. She had recently given birth to Nimbus, a creamy colt that looked promising. Comet was one of Lucius' many stallions, although he rarely rode the chestnut anymore, best used for breeding he said.

"Why do I not ride Firebolt?"

Narcissa raised an eyebrow, "Why are you so eager Draco?" Firebolt was named rightly with its chestnut coloring and the way the young folly refused to be trained. The young fiery stallion was kept only for its speed and ancestry, a promising match for any horse breeder.

"I'm restless, what is Father doing tonight?" Draco asked, looking uncomfortable.

"He will be having a guest, so do your best to stay within the West Wing. Come with me to the gardens," Narcissa stood up and shifted her heavy dress as she walked.

"Okay." His voice was annoyed, the way it got before he had a temper tantrum and Narcissa inwardly frowned.

The petticoats and silk slippers used to bother her but she had long grown into them, she moved gracefully out of her parlor, past her receiving room, and into one of the vast hallways. Her eyes traced the glittering stone frieze of a white heron opposite her chamber doors as she went towards the stairs.

Draco followed her silently, only the soft swishing of robes alerted her as he drew up beside her. When they had finally made it to the garden Narcissa relaxed and looked over at her son, the sunlight spilled down from its high vantage point with no trees to block it as they stood at the entrance of the gardens. She considered her options before catching his arm as he went over to the greenhouse, where they normally went together. She had never shown him her private garden, the rose garden, and she had always enjoyed the solitude.

Now, something was telling her to show it to him.

"Mother?" Draco asked, puzzled but still locked in that icy shell. Narcissa smiled and didn't worry about wrinkles as she hushed him and lead him past the glass greenhouses, their frames shimmering in the heat like they were made of spun sugar and she stopped before the maze, taking a left and pushing aside the tendrils of morning glories that made small chirping noises as she opening the door.

The small fragile purple flowers clung to her and caressed her face and she felt the small thrill of magic as the door swung open for her. She looked behind at Draco, who was looking at her in surprise. Perhaps it was the plants that were cooing and rubbing against her, or maybe it was the hidden doorway, she wasn't sure which one.

"Come along, Draco."

"What...... what is this?" he asked, warily eyeing the flowers that are starting to notice him and straining to touch him.

"These are morning glories, and this is a hidden doorway," Narcissa answered wryly and Draco blinked before smiling and stepping closer. The glories left a trail of pollen on the blackness of his robes but they both ignored the plants and stepped through the doorway into Narcissa's retreat.

Draco gasped and looked around, stunned at all the rose bushes and the vines that covered the thick hedges that surrounded the small area, although only small in terms of comparing it to the rest of the garden. The floor was a stone mural in itself, but he couldn't see what it was off. Something bright caught Draco's eyes and he finally heard the steady trickle of a fountain. The stone was pearly white and carved into a dragon rearing upwards, it's wings half folded and it's head drawn back. It was about the size of a baby dragon, and water cascaded in a continuing waterfall from around the pedestal it sat on.

The dragon's eyes glittered and Draco felt his heart in his throat as he looked at it before he heard his mother's voice. Softly, "It was not stone, once."

He turned to her and stared questioningly, he knew that dragons were rarely seen and dangerous. He knew of no magic, Dark Magic or none, that could turn a dragon into a stone sculpture. "What do you mean?" he asked, her wording troubling him. He had been taught that dragons were powerful and as immortal as they get, and carried the very essence of elemental magic in their beings. Could this one still be alive?

"It is still alive, I think, inside of that stone casing. But it's fire is dying," she turned bright blue eyes on him. "Do you understand?"

Draco felt something in him chill at her cryptic words, and he nodded even as he stared into the eyes of the statue--- dragon. Something about it made him sad and he sat down on one of the benches, his mother sitting down next to him and looking at something he couldn't see. The roses were in full bloom and their scent carried heavily on the wind, it felt cooler, even though there was no shade, and he wondered if there was a magical canopy above them. It would make sense, and sense was something Lucius pressed heavily on.

He still felt mildly miffed at being restricted to the West Wing. Despite his mother's mild words, he knew it was a warning. His father's "guest" was someone Draco had never seen and came once a year, almost always in the summer. Whoever it was, his father always looks drained after the meetings and Draco always took special care to stay away as a child, and still did as a teenager.

He felt her hand touch his shoulder and he dipped his head in acknowledgement but kept his eyes on the blooming roses, drinking in the rich red of the petals.

"Dinner will be served soon. I...... you will be meeting your father's guest."

That made Draco's head snap to look at her, she was watching him carefully and he nodded before standing, smoothing over his black robes and the silver amulets that ran from his chest to his back again shone in the sun. He headed towards the door and didn't spare the garden or his mother a second glance as he left.

Narcissa stared at the stone dragon, her face impassive as she met the fury of the ruby-like eyes. She stood up and went to one of the larger bushes, caressing the lone rose that was half-budded; it's scent faint and sweet. Finally, she clipped the rose and let the thorns prick her hands, smearing the blood on the petals before she set it gently in her hands and withdrew her wand.

She knew what was to happen, Lucius had struck a bargain with the Dark Lord, and Draco would pay for it. She felt like weeping, but Narcissa did not cry, and if her plan went right not all hope would be lost for Draco. Out of one of her pockets she withdrew a small lock of light hair, Draco's hair, and she gently sat it on the rose.

"Fides Publica," she murmured and the rose glowed with a faint light before the hair and blood was absorbed into the petals. Narcissa hesitated before another Latin phrase came out of her mouth. "Percarum Mater Matris."

The rose glowed lightly again before Narcissa lightly touched the rose with the tip of her wand, whispering, "Draco." She then slowly tucked the rose in her palm, the stem against her forearm as she carried it out of the garden. She would use it tonight, if only for Draco, and she straightened her shoulders against the wave of dizziness. The spell was already binding itself, and Narcissa would get progressively weaker until it could be cast.

Nodding grimly to herself, Narcissa shut the garden door, not bothering to lock it, and ignored the morning glories. She could see the trapped dragon's eyes turning from red to silver in her mind, and it didn't take a mage to figure out what it symbolized. Her footsteps quickened and Narcissa disappeared from the garden for the last time, her pale frame slipping into the doors even as the sky began to darken.

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A/N: Please, please, please, please, please review! ^_^ Also, can anybody help me with HTML? Every time I do it, it always gets screwed up...... somehow....... Thanks!

*rere*