melfinatheblue (melfinatheblue) wrote in luciusfqf, @ 2007-12-23 13:02:00 |
|
|||
Entry tags: | fiction: lucius/narcissa, fiction: lucius/severus, het, slash |
Lucius Malfoy and the Cauldron of Doom 5/?
Title: Lucius Malfoy and the Cauldron of Doom Part 5
Author/Artist: melfinatheblue
Rating: PG
Pairing: Lucius/Severus, Lucius/Narcissa, Draco/Pansy
Summary: The aftermath of the explosion.
Warnings: PG.
Prompt: Lucius has been a bad boy and as punishment, The Ministry force him to take over the job of Potions Master. No-one ever said The Ministry had any sense.
Notes: Sweeney Todd is awesome (seriously, Snape can sing!). Oh, and sorry for taking so long with this bit, I had a brain malfunction on Friday and left the USB drive (complete with stories) at work.
Word count 1700
last bit here
His head hurt. That was new. New pains were not a good thing. He cracked open one eye cautiously, and immediately shut it. There was a lot of bright white out there. Way too much bright. It hurt.
'Now, what do I remember? I went to bed, and then I woke up here in the incredible white. I was at Hogwarts, so I'm probably still there. It's too early for snow, and my bedroom doesn't have a large enough window for this much light anyway. And why does my head hurt? I'm sure I didn't hit it last night. Did something happen?'
"Headmistress, he appears to be awake."
'Ow. Voices loud. Okay, so McGonagall's involved. I know, it's all her fault! Or maybe not.'
"Malfoy?"
The voice was really loud now. He tried to clamp his hands over his ears, and discovered he couldn't move them.
"Well, he's certainly awake. And moving. Good signs, both."
"Aurghgrug."
'Alright, so I can't talk. That's not good. And I can't move my arms. What the hell happened?'
"Lucius, listen. There was a potions accident."
'Figures.'
"You're tied down because you've got some nasty burns on your forearms. I'm going to untie you now, but only move your right arm, and do so gently."
He felt something being removed from one arm. He slowly moved his hand over his body.
'Let's see. Both legs as far as I can tell, torso bandaged, and bandages on face. That explains the white. So it looks like I still have all body parts. But why can't I talk?'
He began to probe his face more closely.
"Lucius, don't! You've got a broken jaw."
'So that explains that. Bloody hell.'
"I think Malfoy would like a full accounting of his injuries."
"Well, one broken jaw, a fractured skull, broken ribs and a few internal injuries, a nasty leg wound, and some burns to face, both forearms, and the left hand. I've mended the ribs and skull, but there's only so much knitting your bones are willing to do at once, so the jaw's going to wait for a couple of days. The burns on your forearms will scar, but the ones on your face won't. You'll look like you have a nasty oddly shaped sunburn for a couple of months though. Your leg's the worst, you'll need to stay off it for at least a couple of weeks. On the plus side, you no longer have a Dark Mark. The hot potion burned it right off. As far as your students go, the only one seriously injured was George Weasley, and he'll be up and about in a couple of days. Do you remember what happened?"
Lucius thought about shaking his head, and decided it was a bad idea. He moved his arm side to side instead.
"Is that a no?"
The arm went up and down.
"Is that a yes?"
The arm kept going up and down.
"Alright, that's a yes. So you have no memory of what happened in your first class. Well, you'll be relieved to know that the explosion was caused by a substandard cauldron heating far too quickly. Neither you nor Mr. Weasley was at fault. Slughorn has agreed to substitute until Madam Pomfrey gives you a clean bill of health, and your wife is free to stay as long as she likes until you're well but, and I want to be quite clear about this, there will be no hanky-panky in this infirmary! Your wife's visits are a privilege, not a right. Are we clear, Malfoy?"
The arm went up and down.
"Good. Now you need to get some rest."
A potion was poured gently down his throat and the world went black.
////////////////////////////////////////
Narcissa had been surprised when Draco had shown up in the fire. She had quickly gone to worried sick when she got a good look at him. He had that 'I am calm, I am not going to panic, my world is not crashing down around me' face she had gotten so used to in the last two years and had hoped to never see again.
"Draco, what?"
"Father, Hogwarts, Infirmary, now!"
He grabbed her and pulled her towards the fire.
"Draco, wait, explain."
"Potions accident. Father seriously hurt. Come on!"
He grabbed her, yelled "Headmistress's Office, Hogwarts!" and suddenly she was stepping out of the fireplace of McGonagall's office, very confused.
"Come on!"
He pulled her out, down the stairs, and she ran behind him to the infirmary. There was a crowd of students outside. He pushed through them, and suddenly she was inside the infirmary. Madam Pomfrey was running around, giving orders. Draco had stopped dead just inside the doors.
"Draco, where's Lucius?"
"I don't know."
"Madam Pomfrey, where is my husband?"
Madam Pomfrey stopped and looked at Narcissa. Then she pointed to a curtained-off alcove.
"I've stopped the bleeding, and he's stable for the moment. We've got some healers from St. Mungo's coming in, and one of them is going to take a look at the arms. The face won't scar."
"I don't care about scarring. Is he going to be alright?"
Madam Pomfrey looked at her, pity in her eyes.
"Hopefully."
Narcissa walked slowly to the alcove. She wouldn't have known it was Lucius. His robes had been removed, and the lower half of his body covered by a sheet. His face was distorted by swelling and there was an odd pattern of white and red skin. His arms lay by his sides. They had been bandaged from shoulder to fingertip, and his torso was also covered in bandages. He reminded her of a mummy.
"Why's his face like that?"
"He threw his arms up to protect it. That's why there's that sort of odd pattern. Red is where the potion hit it. "
She turned around. There was a ghost looking at her.
"Who are you?"
"Fred Weasley. It was my brother's cauldron."
"Oh."
"You don't really care, do you? You don't really care about anything but your own precious little family, you pureblood bitch! My brother could be dying over there for all you know and you don't care!"
Narcissa stared at the ghost for a moment. She could feel Draco behind her, bristling with rage. She knew she should be angry.
"Wait a few years, ghost, till you've watched the world you knew fall. Then you understand why I cling to what little is left of mine. And you're right, I care very little for the fate of a blood traitor, especially one who managed to injure my husband with his own stupidity. You and your brother may be somewhat competent businessmen, but that does not make me give one damn whether you live or die. So leave me be before you find yourself on the receiving end of a Disembodiment Hex."
She walked around to sit by the head of the bed. The ghost would either go away, or spend a couple of weeks pulling his ectoplasm back together. His choice.
"Mother?"
"I'm fine, Draco. Are any of your friends hurt?"
"No. We all had five years of potions with Longbottom. Teaches you great survival instincts, that."
"Oh. Good. Come sit with me, please."
Draco perched on the arm of her chair and leaned against her. She rubbed his back.
"Everything will be fine, Draco."
"Who are you trying to convince, you or me?"
Her voice was barely above a whisper.
"Both of us."
////////////////////////////////////////
He was awake again, and this time he could see. Narcissa was sitting in a chair next to him, reading a book.
"Mumph."
"Oh, Lucius, you're awake. You've been asleep for almost a day."
She reached out and patted his head gently.
"You know, you're not allowed to scare me or Draco like that ever again. We clear?"
"Murm."
"I'll assume that was yes. The explosion was caused by a substandard cauldron, and an inspection of the students cauldrons turned up 10 more like it, mostly in the hands of first-years. The Ministry is investigating, and all you need to worry about is getting better. Madame Pomfrey will be healing your jaw tomorrow. No one died, and everyone's expected to recover, including you. Now, would you like me to read to you for a while?"
"Murm."
Lucius drifted off to sleep to the sound of 'Cissa reading the Daily Prophet.
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
It was over a month before he had fully regained the use of both hands; the burn damage had been worse than the healers had first thought. But all things considered, it could have been much worse. He was heartily tired of Fortune making him her bitch though. Enough loss, enough pain to last a lifetime.
There was a bright side. When your first class ends in an explosion, nothing else seems quite as bad. He found teaching easier as he went along, and there was the Quidditch season coming up. Draco was going to kick that blood traitor Weasel's ass, he knew it! Slytherin was looking particularly good this year, and he spent some extra time terrorizing Smith into making sure they got enough practice time in.
Soon enough it was time for the first game of the season, Hufflepuff vs. Slytherin, and everyone knew Hufflepuff didn't stand a chance. After the "unpleasantness" last year, they'd lost quite a few players, including both beaters. The team was weak. And after the game, there was a night off to look forward to. All in all, Lucius mused as he bundled up in Slytherin colors, things were certainly looking up.
next bit here