Choices Without Regrets

Chapter X: A New Era Dawns

Lucius sat before the fire again and beckoned Draco over; who sat across from him.

Lucius grimaced as his mercury eyes hollowed, "You are my son, Draco. I do care about you and your well-being. I want what is best for you to succeed in your life and to see you surpass even I at some point. To be able to achieve your own greatness. But as your mother must have informed you by now... our marriage was never something we wanted."

Lucius paused, "I can partner with either gender, but I heavily prefer another male over a female despite that. Unlike your grandfather; who was the reverse. He too; he saw the beauty in both male and female forms, and he could have partnered with a male as well, but Abraxas was more inclined to female company."

Lucius eyed the fire a moment, "For a very long time; and especially when I was much younger, I constantly questioned myself about why...why my father even arranged this marriage when he knew of my wants and preferences.

I didn't realize part of the answer until much later. Not until after I was married and you had been born. Then more reasons became clear with all the new recent events that are happening; Potter's actions to defect...they brought more realizations."

Draco was quiet to this; to realize that his whole bloodline was a mixture of so many conflicting personalities and preferences.

Lucius quirked his lips, "By these admissions, you know now that had I had a choice in my partner; you would never have been born nor would Narcissa have ever graced the halls of the Malfoy estates. Or, if I had been allowed a choice and had children with that supposed choice of partner; you might be very different from the person you are right at this moment in time. I have endured this marriage in order not to be disinherited and to protect Narcissa from the same fate; at least, at first that was why.

When my parents and hers had passed on; the necessity of our arranged marriage was no longer necessary. But the war...it had made things very unstable, and even I could not in good conscious have thrown Narcissa out to the road with nothing to her name.

She has been fiercely protective of us; you and I, and she kept her word. She stayed by me until you were born and until we knew that it might be safe to separate, so committing those actions would have been very dishonorable and would have shown me doing her a great disservice.

Nor could I have thrown her out with you so vulnerable. Narcissa would have demanded custody of you had I done so, and I would have; at the time, acquiesced to her demand. Despite being a Malfoy heir, you would've then belonged to the House of Black. But you would not have been heir."

Lucius idly gazed to the fire before eyeing his son, "That title also belongs to Potter. His godfather Sirius; despite being unofficially disowned, was never truly cast off from the Black family. His grandfather, Arcturus Black, lived beyond his parents and had known Riddle while he attended Hogwarts. He knew that the Dark Lord might not do all he promised and lose his way.

Leaving his acolytes astray and adrift; so Arcturus withheld his judgment on Sirius. Especially after his younger brother; who served Riddle, vanished mysteriously and never was seen again. He didn't trust Riddle; and he couldn't trust Bellatrix nor Andromeda. Narcissa was married to me at the time; Arcturus wouldn't have trusted her either.

Which means; had I cast her aside with you then...you both might already be dead. Potter would have been too young to do anything, and Sirius...he might've sheltered you both as he did always have a soft spot for Narcissa, but due to the war, it is unlikely."

Lucius breathed as Draco was silent to all this; he never realized how complicated all of this had been for his parents.

"I have derailed the topic I wanted to speak of now." Lucius spoke, "Your grandparents arranged my marriage as should be expected; or rather, it was mostly Abraxas who did so. But unlike them, I had no voice in the deals they made. Most pureblood children don't; but my family has always been an exception to that. Yet again, Abraxas Malfoy was a cold and very meticulously calculative man. He was among the first to serve the Dark Lord due to their shared interest, their attendance of Hogwarts at the same time, and the friendship they shared. It is also why I have maintained a revered place of influence in the Inner Circle.