Chapter 26- An Old Face

792 25 0
                                    

Four summers went by and Isabel found herself at the kitchen table of a new home, a newspaper in her hand. The chirping of birds softly sung in the background, only to be drowned out by the noise of a snotty child running around at the legs of the table. Married to an ambitious man with muggle work, she found life to be rather peaceful. No struggles, no disruptions, it was just smooth sailing. Her soon-to-be-husband was a man with short dark hair and warm honey eyes in which they raised their daughter together; who Isabel didn't share blood with. Isabel didn't catch herself drifting back into the past until recently where she saw a grass snake across slithering its way through her window sill. Looking her straight in the eye, it hissed at her like it was telling her something. Not that she spoke nor understood parsel-tongue, she sure took this as a sign.

As her partner kissed her good bye on the cheek before leaving to work and taking his child alongside him, she continued to skim through the headlines of the newspaper; 'Man of the Manor' followed by 'He is back.' Throwing the newspaper down on the table she gasped in shock. Surely not. Not the man she thought. He was dead. Grabbing an old letter and a dodgy pen from the side she began to write a note for her husband, 'Gone out for a bit, don't know when I'll be back!' She knew that an innocent note like this wouldn't cause too much worry or concern for him. She took a deep breath, steadying herself as she hoped that she still had it in her. That she wouldn't have forgotten her roots. With one deep breath she focused and with a puff of smoke she was gone.

Arriving in a back alley of Diagon, she winced at the smell of it. A grimy polluted smell which plunge itself up your nostrils, not caring if you like it or not. She most definitely did not miss that. It still looked the same. Nothing had changed, not one bit. Isabel hurried through the crowds of wizards until she got to a small stand that was set up outside a pub. Browsing through the papers on the stands, she scoffed at them. Still surprise that Skeeter still writes for the Daily Prophet. She wouldn't put it past her to write an obscene piece that she blew way out of the water, wouldn't be the first time she pulled that stunt, or the second or third. Swiping a paper from off the stand, she gasped at the front cover. It was true. He was back; it was just the other man. Lucius was back. She missed seeing his face, he's handsome charming face, but she would rather see it in the flesh. Fixated onto the photo of him, she lost total control of her body as it started to tremble and shake. Tears seeped out of her eyes as her nose began to run. She caused quite a scene as passers-by just stared at her; it wasn't until a sweet woman placed her hand on her back when Isabel realised what a scene she was making.

"Oh god!" she upset herself even more, "I am so sorry." Her tears made her vision blurred. The woman turned towards her, clasping her warm hands around Isabel's.

"It's fine. Don't apologise." She wiped her tears away when Isabel caught sight of her. The woman who was wiping her tears was the women whose marriage she had ruined.

"Oh god, I really am sorry." Her voice become even more solemn, surprised at who she was looking at. Before the other woman could console Isabel anymore, she was gone with the wind; whisked off far into the distance.

She found herself swept away and crammed into a corner of a pub booth; sipping something strong. Bourbon or whiskey, she still couldn't tell the difference. Whether it was comfort or confidence she was trying to gain, neither was working. She shouldn't have come back here. Why did she come back here? She was perfectly happy with her life, her new simple life. She was engaged and was looking after a child. It wasn't everything she ever wanted, or so she thought. Trailing the outline of the photo over and over again of Lucius features, she debated whether she would pay him a visit. 

 As Isabel fiddled with her left hand and twisted the ring on her engagement finger, she polished off the rest of her drink not daring to leave a drop in the glass. She needed every bit of what that elixir could offer to help her through this. Chest puffed, she slammed her glass down on the table and exited the pub. Heading out of the door, there it lied, her ring next to the glass. 

---

Authors Note: sorry this is a short and rubbish chapter, its kind of a filler :/

Lucius Malfoy - Well Darling...Where stories live. Discover now