you can have manhattan

[Deleted]

i think the spotlight always gives you stage fright
WISH THIS ALL WOULD END RIGHT

STOP MAKING MY HEAD SPIN
it's over but what if we just pretend

Diagon Alley. Andromeda couldn’t remember the last time that she had been here, to be honest- in fact, she was fairly certain that it had been when Dora was still in school, which had been years ago. How had time flown so quickly? She pulled her jacket tighter around her frame as she headed down the street, fighting the chilly March breeze. She didn’t often go out to go shopping, as it might mean running into old family members she had no desire to see, but apparently what she was seeking wasn’t available in any of the catalogs she got in the post.


As she headed further down the street, she couldn’t help but notice that the street became more deserted. With most of the kids in school, the only people out and about were housewives like herself looking to grab what they needed and go without dallying. Andromeda usually was one of those very housewives, but if she was honest, all the time she had been spending at home was starting to suffocate her. She needed to get out or she was going to go crazy.



Catching sight of Flourish and Blotts, Andie couldn’t help the smile that played across her face. Ever since she was a little girl, she had found most of her entertainment in books, a trait that she shared with her husband even if they weren’t attracted to the same type of reading material. Today, Andie was looking for a particular title for her husband as a sort of apology for freaking out on him. She had replayed the night of the riot over and over in her head- what if he had died? What if he had been even more seriously injured? Andie hadn’t meant to yell at him quite as much as she had, but he had scared her- the thought of losing her husband was one that gave her constant nightmares, and Andie knew that she owed him an apology. However, Andie had never exactly been good with those particular words, so she was going to apologize in a way that she knew he would understand- through books.



She opened the door and walked inside, inhaling the smell of freshly sheaved pages. Maybe while she was there, she would pick up a few books for herself. Feeling like a little kid on their birthday, Andie trailed her fingers down the spines of the books. It didn’t take her long to find Ted’s book, and clutching it to her chest, she meandered down the aisles to the potions section. She knew if she let herself she could spend hours in this one section, and making sure she wasn’t in the way, she knelt on the floor, selecting several books to flip through before she headed toward the series of small chairs. She turned the corner, an empty one in her vision, when she plowed straight into a man that she not only recognized, but definitely did not want to talk to: her brother-in-law, Lucius Malfoy. Tilting her head back to look at the much taller man, Andie licked her dry lips, taking a moment to make her face completely blank. “My apologies, Mr. Malfoy.” She said evenly, readjusting her hold on her books. “If you’ll excuse me…”

( WORDS ) 544
( TAGGED ) Lucius!
( BANNER ) © BRYBERRY of caution 2.0
( LYRICS ) camera shy by school boy humor
( LAYOUT ) © BRYBERRY of caution 2.0
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[Deleted]

It had been quite a bit of time since he had been to Daigon Alley and not gone into Knockturn Alley, where the darker things sold to Wizards were kept. Yet he was still mostly trying to keep his head down so people didn’t recognize him as much. It was difficult since even before he was put in Azkaban Lucius Malfoy was noticeable, and he used to prefer it that way. Now though, he more wished to simply disappear into the woodwork whenever he went out. Should the wrong person spot him, it was entirely possible that he would be arrested by the Auror and put back into that Hellhole that he had been taken out of by Lord Voldemort. Yet Lucius needed to get out of his Manor, a Manor no longer was feeling like his home, and simply do something that could be considered somewhat normal. So he had given very specific instructions of who the House Elf was allowed to tell where he went. He did not need all the Death Eaters trying to find him. Actually they could try and find him as long as they didn’t actually find him. No, he would rather eat his own eyes before he would be at anyone's beck and call beyond his wife and the Dark lord, though he was rather begrudging towards the latter. So he had slipped into Flourish and Blotts, allowing a smirk on his mouth when he remembered getting into a fistfight with Arthur Weasley. The workers there recognized him but quickly avoided him when he gave them a rather menacing glare. The other customers seemed to want to give the Malfoy patriarch wide berth, something he did not mind in the slightest. He wanted to see what there was here about werewolves. The sight of Fenrir eating Avery not that long ago was rather fascinating in a very disturbing way. Yet someone bumped into him as he was going around some shelves. He stared down at Andromeda, his wife's disowned sister. He glared at her. "Apology not accepted, blood traitor." His voice was low but a growl and he did not even move. He couldn't fathom why anyone would want to lower themselves by marrying a Muggleborn and then having a child with them, especially an oddity like his niece, not that he actually considered her his niece. He had no issue with simply ignoring her relation to himself and his family. Personally, he thought that Cygnus Black should have just hunted down Tonks and had him offed by some thug before his daughter could be tied to such filth. He stared down at her with a curious look. "Why did you leave everything for some Muggleborn? You could have married any number of Pureblood Wizards." He knew about love but how could she feel anything but disgust for non-Purebloods? He was glad that the woman he loved was a Pureblood. Of course, her family had quite a few blood traitors, but then again his likely did as well.

TAG | 505 | NOTES

[Deleted]

i think the spotlight always gives you stage fright
WISH THIS ALL WOULD END RIGHT

STOP MAKING MY HEAD SPIN
it's over but what if we just pretend

"Apology not accepted, blood traitor."


Andie returned his glare measure for measure, her lips baring back into a cold, cultivated smile. “Still as charming as ever, aren’t you?” She simpered at him, rolling her eyes. “You know, I never did understand what my sister saw in you. Maybe she hoped you’d share some hair tips with her- you do have such lovely, pretty hair, Goldilocks. I see jail hasn’t ruined that- good for you. I was so worried.”



Okay, maybe it wasn’t smart to be poking at him, given that he was a convicted criminal and all, but everything about Lucius Malfoy set her teeth on edge. She had never liked him, though Merlin knows she had tried for Narcissa’s sake. She found him to be too pretentious and arrogant, even for pureblood standards- and the Fabio jokes were entirely too easy to make (granted, it had been Ted who had even had to explain Fabio to her to begin with. As far as she was concerned, it was a point for the muggle world, because the resemblance was uncanny- a distant Malfoy cousin, perhaps? It was worth looking into.)



"Why did you leave everything for some Muggleborn?



She made a move to walk around him, stopping short at his question. For as long as Andie could remember, Lucius had never so much as spoken to her, even before she had been blasted off of the family tree. She wasn’t even on his radar. To hear him ask her a genuine question caused her to turn around and blink at him, making her momentarily forget that he was, for all intents and purposes, the enemy. Apparently he took her silence as an excuse to keep going.



You could have married any number of Pureblood Wizards."



“Since when are you concerned with what I’ve done with my life?” She raised a brow, her suspicion evident despite her blank poker face. “What, worried Narcissa might have learned from me and is cheating on you with a- gasp!- mudblood?” She sat her books down on the table next to her, folding her arms over her chest. Andie was tired of being judged for her relationship with Ted- it wasn’t anyone’s business, least of all this man who would have happily killed him without a second thought. “Here’s a newsflash for you, Lucius- I love him. I know that’s probably a foreign concept to you, love, but there it is. And as for those purebloods my father would have had me marry, I’m sure the McClaggens and Crabbes of the world are weeping into their piles of galleons that they lost their chance at the last Black heir.” She shook her head, sighing. Of all the people she could have run into, why did it have to be Lucius? It was practically killing her that the one person most qualified to tell her about her sister was also the one person that Andie hated the most, other than the Dark Lord himself. At least if it had been Rodolphus, Andie could have walked away without feeling like she was ruining her only chance at something.



“Speaking of my dear, sweet, backstabbing sister- why isn’t she with you?” Andie asked bluntly, examining her nails. “I wasn’t aware you were allowed this far off her leash.”

( WORDS ) 550
( TAGGED ) Lucius!
( BANNER ) © BRYBERRY of caution 2.0
( LYRICS ) camera shy by school boy humor
( LAYOUT ) © BRYBERRY of caution 2.0
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[Deleted]

As Andromeda started to insult not only him but his wife, Lucius gave a low warning growl. She could insult him all she wanted but she better not drag Narcissa into it. "Perhaps, Andromeda, she chose me because she loves me?" He said her name like it was a curse, something that to him was not far off. He had been there to see Cissa fall apart when Andromeda had betrayed her family. And he was still rather angry at the woman for doing that to his Cissa. Though he was getting tired of people making fun of his hair, but he mostly ignored the jabs about it. He did tense slightly at hearing about prison. "Do not presume that you know anything about what it was like in that hellhole." His voice was a hiss and full of dark warning.

She stared at him for asking her a question and he was actually a bit surprised that he had done so as well. He never really interacted with her at Hogwarts before she married the Muggleborn and then refused to have anything to do with her afterwards, glaring at anyone that dared to bring it up around him when he was with Narcissa. "I'm not concerned with you. My wife, you sister, was devastated when you married the Muggleborn. She felt as though you betrayed her personally." He gritted his teeth. "Cissa would never, ever cheat on me with anyone." His eyes softened very briefly at her talk about love, though they flashed with warning when she mentioned that he didn’t know anything about love. "It may come as a surprise to you but I love your sister and always will." Of course, he didn’t really need the whole world about it, not that he was ashamed to his feelings for her but rather he was a private man.

He did raise his eyebrow at her description of his wife, an apt one but surprising nonetheless. "She decided not to come with me." Not exactly a lie but not completely the truth. He hadn’t really asked Cissa if she wanted to come, needing to get away from the Manor and everything for a few hours. Her words about a leash made him blink, unsure who was supposed to keep who on a leash. "Neither of us keeps the other on a leash. Does your husband keep you on one?"

[Deleted]

i think the spotlight always gives you stage fright
WISH THIS ALL WOULD END RIGHT

STOP MAKING MY HEAD SPIN
it's over but what if we just pretend

She was more than a little bitter, and Andromeda knew that if Lucius caught on, there was no way for her to win their verbal battle at all- and while that wouldn’t be the end of the world, Andie knew that giving Lucius any toehold on her weaknesses could be detrimental. It was one of the earliest lessons she had learned from her mother: at all times, keep a façade of disinterest.


It seemed she had hit a nerve, judging by the low growl Lucius gave her. If she hadn’t been so on edge, she would have laughed.



"Perhaps, Andromeda, she chose me because she loves me?"



Andie studied him evenly for a moment before giving a small nod. “I have no doubt in my mind that she does, in her own way- but I have to wonder, what’s in it for you?” While Andromeda had been staring at the Hufflepuff table, her sister’s gaze had wandered more close to home- and Cissa had a way of getting what she wanted, one way or another. Andromeda might not understand what it was about Lucius that Cissa found at all attractive, but to be fair, Narcissa had thought the same about Ted, no doubt.



"Do not presume that you know anything about what it was like in that hellhole."



“Did you ever think that maybe you shouldn’t give them a reason to put you there?” She asked innocently. “Perhaps then you wouldn’t know what it was like, either.”

She had turned to once again leave him, her run-in with Lucius making her long for her home and husband, but once again he spoke up- stopping her short yet again. Perhaps he was a lot more clever than she gave him credit for, given that he had stymied her twice now.



"I'm not concerned with you. My wife, you sister, was devastated when you married the Muggleborn. She felt as though you betrayed her personally."



“That’s really funny that you mention that,” she snapped, her eyes narrowing dangerously, “as I’m fairly certain it was Narcissa who turned me in to begin with.” While Narcissa had never admitted it, and Andromeda didn’t have proof, it was the only thing that made sense- Narcissa had been the one person she had trusted with the truth. She and Ted had been so careful when it came to everyone else. “If Cissy was so worried about me, she would have kept her mouth shut.”



"Cissa would never, ever cheat on me with anyone. It may come as a surprise to you but I love your sister and always will."



“It does surprise me,” she sniffed, but something in her face wavered uncertainly for a moment before it solidified back into annoyance. “But I’m happy for Cissa, then, if you mean it. She deserves that in her life.” Her words were sincere, despite her dark expression. As much as it pained her, given what happened, Andie did love her little sister and want the best life for her possible.



"She decided not to come with me."



Well, Andie was grateful for that- seeing Lucius was one thing, but Narcissa was not someone Andie wanted to run into. In fact, she had managed to avoid it ever since she had graduated Hogwarts. To Lucius, all she did was raise a brow.



"Neither of us keeps the other on a leash. Does your husband keep you on one?"



“Certainly not, but we blood traitors are a bit less restricted.” She grinned wolfishly. “Not quite like the pedigreed crowd at all.”

( WORDS ) 592
( TAGGED ) Lucius!
( BANNER ) © BRYBERRY of caution 2.0
( LYRICS ) camera shy by school boy humor
( LAYOUT ) © BRYBERRY of caution 2.0
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[Deleted]

The blood traitor at least seemed to believe that Narcissa loved him though he bristled at 'her own way.' His brow furrowed at the question about what was in it for him. "What is in it for me?" What could she possibly mean? "I know that many do not believe it, Andromeda, but I do love Narcissa more than anything." Why would he woo and marry someone if he didn’t love them, even a little. Otherwise, he would have just ignores her, married her, and after they had Draco, be with other women. But no, he had been and was and would be faithful to his wife, no matter what other Pureblood Wizards may do.

He glared at her words about him not doing anything to be put in there and he refrained from lashing out and putting the blame on the one he truly thought was the reason he was put in Azkaban. His eyes were slightly haunted. "No one should be put in that place." Perhaps it was odd that he did not support the place since he had been put in it when he had before but also understandable. He hated the place and frankly wished that it would be destroyed.

He smirked at her narrowed eyes, even though he wanted to hex her for insulting Narcissa. "She was doing what she thought was best for you, if she was truly the one who betrayed you." He would be rather proud if his Slytherin wife had done so, like any good snake would do, but he wasn’t sure if it was her that turned Andromeda in. Perhaps Lucius would ask her the next chance he got.

He had a lot of people that were surprised by his genuine love for his wife and it seemed that Andromeda was no exception. He nodded stiffly at her words of Cissa needing it in her life. Her comments about not being kept on a leash made his raise an eyebrow. "Care to elaborate on that? Since I would dearly love to hear your opinion on those of us with better breeding." His words were highly laced with sarcasm and he crossed his arms over his chest and stared down at her.

[Deleted]

i think the spotlight always gives you stage fright
WISH THIS ALL WOULD END RIGHT

STOP MAKING MY HEAD SPIN
it's over but what if we just pretend

"What is in it for me? I know that many do not believe it, Andromeda, but I do love Narcissa more than anything."


Andie arched a brow, then shook her head. “My sister always was fiercely loyal to those she cared about- perhaps more than she should have been. Once she decides she cares about you, she will never, ever let go.” She fixed him with an even stare. “I won’t lie to you, Lucius- I haven’t been around or in my sister’s life for a long time, but I have a very, very hard time believing that a man who loves his wife ‘more than anything’ would spend so much time getting himself nearly killed by serving the dark lord- not to mention getting himself thrown into Azkaban. What about my sister then, hm? Clearly you weren’t thinking of her.”



"No one should be put in that place."



Andie returned his glare, her anger overtaking her apprehension at inciting Lucius. “I disagree. There’s plenty of people that should be put in that place.” She didn’t even have to include the very obvious “particularly you.” While Andie didn’t believe that everyone there was deserving of the punishment (Sirius came to mind,) she definitely believed that her brother-in-law was not in that small denomination.



."She was doing what she thought was best for you, if she was truly the one who betrayed you."



“Funny, perhaps I could say the best for the one who turned you into Azkaban, hm?”

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Andie’s pale face flushed angrily, but once her anger was incited, she didn’t seem to know when to shut up. Ultimately, it would probably be the end of her- but today was not going to be that day, and she’d be damned if Lucius was going to be the one to get the best of her. “If she truly wanted to do what was best for me, she would have kept it to her damn self.”



"Care to elaborate on that? Since I would dearly love to hear your opinion on those of us with better breeding."



She raised her chin at him, refusing to be daunted by the fact he was trying to tower over her. “You forget, Lucius, that I come from the same purebred background as yourself, love it or hate it. I would be careful about your ‘those of us’ comments- a tapestry can’t change blood.”


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( WORDS ) 399
( TAGGED ) Lucius!
( BANNER ) © BRYBERRY of caution 2.0
( LYRICS ) camera shy by school boy humor
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[Deleted]

He all but glowered at her words about him not think of her when he joined the Death Eaters. What did she know about tough choices? Apparently not enough since she seemed not to care how much it had hurt her family's reputation for her to run off with the Muggleborn. His voice was harsh as he spoke. "I did it for her and our family. And you're right; you have not been in her life for a very long time whereas I have. So don’t presume to know anything about me or Narcissa. She has changed since you last saw her." And he wouldn’t change that for anything.

If at all possible, his looks got darker. "Do you want to know what it was like in that place? The Dementors suck all your joy and happiness and leave in a quivering pile of despair and agony. And if you're lucky, they do it after you go mad. No, no one deserves to go to that place, no matter what they've done." He used to think that some people deserved to go to Azkaban but that was before he was put in that place and he was eager to do anything he could to stay out of that place. "Believe me when I say the best way to describe Azkaban is 'Hellhole." His eyes had taken on a haunted look as he talked about Azkaban before he blinked it away.

Lucius became furious as she all but threatened to put him back into Azkaban and he hissed, "You wouldn’t dare. If you care so much for your sister than don’t put her husband in jail." He would not beg her and would not hesitate to pull out his wand to defend himself if need be. He was after all a rather talented dueler. But he took as calming a breath as he could, closing his eyes briefly. "She was thinking of your future and she likely thought Tonks had you under a spell or something." He did smirk at that despite his anger towards his sister-in-law.

He gave her a surprised look. "I doubt you know since you were eager to turn your back on that you knew." He sneered at her. "Ah, but becoming a Blood traitor does."

[Deleted]

"I did it for her and our family. And you're right; you have not been in her life for a very long time whereas I have. So don’t presume to know anything about me or Narcissa. She has changed since you last saw her."

It was petty, this game of “I know her better!” that she and Lucius were playing, but Andie couldn’t let it go. It was more than just pride on her part that kept her from walking away from Lucius, it was a desperation- this was the last lifeline she had to her cherished little sister, her last chance to connect even though she had walked away from her so long ago. Andie would never give up Ted for Narcissa, but there were long nights that she laid awake, pondering why she couldn’t have both. “We’ve all changed, Lucius.” Andie kept her tone controlled. “Me, you, Narcissa- but that doesn’t change that for fifteen years, I was her sister and her best friend. There’s things about her that you’ll never know, that I do. I’m sure she’s changed, but I’m also sure that she could have done a lot better than you.” Of the three sisters, Narcissa had been the one closest to being happy, before Andie had changed her own fate. For reasons Andie had never understood, Narcissa truly and deeply loved Malfoy- and that was why Andie hated him as much as she did. Part of it was jealousy, but a bigger part, the part that bothered her the most, was that Andie had never been convinced Malfoy had felt the same. Did he love Cissa? Perhaps. But he loved himself more.

"Do you want to know what it was like in that place? The Dementors suck all your joy and happiness and leave in a quivering pile of despair and agony. And if you're lucky, they do it after you go mad. No, no one deserves to go to that place, no matter what they've done."

It wasn’t’ exactly a place Andie would like to go camping in, true, but to her, it sounded like the perfect place for him- and all the others of his kind. She pursed her lips and ignored the voice in the back of her head that reminded her, once upon a time, she was just like him.

"Believe me when I say the best way to describe Azkaban is 'Hellhole.

“Then use it as a learning experience. Change, Lucius. It’s not too late to join the winning side.” Despite her hatred of him, Andie was honestly offering him an olive branch. Ted had been the one to lead her out of the darkness, and if this was a small kindness she could afford her sister, then she’d stick her neck out a little farther than she liked in Lucius’ favor.

"You wouldn’t dare. If you care so much for your sister than don’t put her husband in jail."

Andie held up her hands, raising her brows at him. “Touchy. I never said I would be the one to do it- no matter what you think of me, I’m not a snitch. Unless you give me a reason to be.” As far as Andie was concerned, what Lucius did on his own free time was a problem for the Order and the aurors. Her interference would bring nothing but pain to her family, and that was something she wanted desperately to avoid. “I won’t say, however, that I wouldn’t cheer them on as they did it is all.”

"She was thinking of your future and she likely thought Tonks had you under a spell or something."

The idea of Ted having her under a spell was laughable, but Andie didn’t let her dark amusement cross her face. For her entire life, she had been told who to be, how to act, and what to do- and Ted had been the first one to let her make her own decisions. She couldn’t think of a single time in their entire relationship that he had ever pressed her on anything. “She knew I loved him.” She said simply. “If she gave a damn at all, she would have just stood aside.”

"I doubt you know since you were eager to turn your back on that you knew. Ah, but becoming a Blood traitor does."

“Only to those with weak minds.”

[Deleted]

Lucius nodded at Andromeda, not exactly pleased that he was agreeing with her but what she said was true. "We have all changed, for better or for worse, haven’t we?" His tone was tight and controlled, trying not to be displeased by what she was saying, or that he was agreeing with her. "And there are plenty of things that you do not know about her, as well." But he grit his teeth at hearing that Narcissa could have done better. Lucius might have been a highly selfish, self-serving man but there was one person that he would put above himself: Narcissa. You could say almost anything bad about him and it would likely be true but to say that he did not love his wife would the worst lie ever told. There was this temptation to take her up on the offer that he wasn’t sure that she knew she was offering, to free himself from the shame and sneering that he had put himself and his family through. But it squashed it like a bug, averting his eyes at her words, a frown on his face though it wasn’t exactly directed at anyone or anything in particular. He gave another terse nod at her saying that she wouldn’t turn him in unless he gave her a reason to do so. He however gave a smirk at hearing that she would cheer him on when he was. "Just as I would not use a Curse on you but neither would I stop another from doing so." No, Cissa would murder him if he hurt her sister, traitor or not. So he could honestly say that he would not use a curse on her unless he was under an Imperious Curse. A sigh passed through his nose at her continued insistence that Narcissa wasn’t trying to help her but rather hurting her. "She thought you were throwing away your life." His hand twitched in keeping him from rubbing his neck that was bothering him. "Why did you leave all you knew? Surely it was more than just for love?" He was honestly confused as to why she would willingly give up her life for love.

Andromeda | 365 | Sorry about the wait