Light in Oblivion [Narcissa/Lucius, Second Wizarding War]

Chapter Ten: Spinner's End

Several days passed in which Narcissa weighed her options. She didn't want to allow Draco to embark on a mission so potentially disastrous as the one with which he had been tasked, though she knew he had no choice. It bothered her deeply that her son didn't appear to see the danger he was in, whether he succeeded or failed. If he managed to kill Dumbledore, either the Ministry or the Order of the Phoenix would see him arrested or worse, and if he failed, he would be at Dumbledore's mercy. Given the longstanding ill-will between Dumbledore and Lucius, Narcissa didn't believe entrusting Draco's safety to the Headmaster was at all wise.

Shortly after he'd given the order, the Dark Lord had passed on the knowledge through Bellatrix that Draco's task was to be kept a secret.

"He seemed quite surprised you hadn't filled me in on it already," Bellatrix had said, frowning, "and he told me everything about what's supposed to happen. But we aren't to tell another soul. He was clear about that."

"Yes," Narcissa had said, fighting the urge to roll her eyes, "of course he was."

The Dark Lord was always clear about what he wanted. It didn't matter if one disagreed with him, because his word was law. Therefore, in her letters to Lucius, Narcissa gave few details about what had been asked of their son. She used terms such as "our friend" to describe the man who was moving them all like pieces on a chessboard and "thinks Draco shows great promise" as a euphemism for the more accurate "wants to use Draco to punish us." She didn't want the Aurors shoving their noses in her family's business more than they already were by perusing the letters, and she didn't want to endanger Lucius further by giving the Dark Lord another reason to be angry with him. The less he knew about things that were supposed to be kept secret, the better it would be for all of them.

Still, though, even with limited information, Lucius had deduced enough to begin allowing panic to trickle into his writing, and it was clear to Narcissa that he was sitting in his cell thinking too much about the problems outside and blaming himself for them. He didn't need these issues on his conscience when he was surely already suffering. Though Narcissa wanted him to believe she'd done the right thing by letting him know part of what was happening, she regretted mentioning anything at all.

As she sat across from her sister in an armchair, Narcissa contemplated what she could do to rectify the situation or at least set it on a path to improvement. She herself would be powerless to assist her son in his task, as it would have to take place after he'd returned to school. He hadn't yet begun his training, and she knew he had a long path ahead of him before he was anywhere near ready to attempt this mission. She wondered momentarily whether the Dark Lord would allow Draco to complete his training or whether he would deliberately send the boy off before he'd had the chance to learn enough to properly defend himself. At the risk of becoming angrier, she redirected her thoughts.

If she could not be present to help Draco, who could? Who, that was, out of the slim number of people she trusted?

"We can't let him do this alone," she said, more to herself than to Bellatrix. Still, the elder sister glanced to the younger with a brow raised.

"What is it you imagine you can do?"

Narcissa rolled her eyes. What an impressive level of confidence you have in me, Bella, she thought. "I don't recall saying I would be the one to do it," she said instead.

"Then what are you suggesting?"

Narcissa looked away, considering. The majority of the people she would've turned to for help eliminating someone were imprisoned alongside her husband, and she knew Bellatrix would never intervene in a task the Dark Lord wanted performed in a specific manner. The only other person she could think of who was free... would be absolutely perfect.