Dolasitas

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Lucius was the first to speak and break the silence. “I am so sorry, Lexy,” he finally said heavily, moving towards her.

Lexy flinched and broke the contact. “Sorry does not even begin to cover it, Lucius,” she replied disbelievingly. “Do you have any idea how much you hurt me tonight?”

“I have some potions for your pain upstairs,” he said tentatively.

Lexy stared at him. “I wasn’t talking about the physical pain,” she said disdainfully.

Lucius hung his head in shame and sat down next to the fire. “Please, Lexy, sit next to me at least, even if you cannot bear for me to touch you.” She did as he requested, sitting stiffly at the end of the chair. He sighed slightly. “I never had any intentions of acting the way I did towards you, Lexy, I swear.”

She chuckled harshly. “Is that supposed to make me feel better or forgive you?”

“No!” he roared frustratedly, wincing as she shrunk back into the chair. Insistently, Lucius took hold of her hands and stared into her eyes. “Princess, please. I had had a bad day, and then when you were late it just seemed to push me past that breaking point… I always fear that one day you won’t come back to me, and today I thought that might be it…” he trailed off quietly.

“What?” she asked blankly, thrown by his comment. “Lucius, the only thing that would drive me from you is behaviour like that which you exhibited tonight. And you didn’t even ask me why I was delayed for those few minutes.”

“What was your reason then?” he asked, trying to stay calm.

Lexy bit her thumbnail nervously, fidgeting in the chair. “I was asking Ginny for her advice on conceiving,” she muttered.

Lucius groaned as he finally realised the truth of what had happened; that he had inflicted such terrible pain upon her simply for attempting to help them conceive, something which he knew she didn’t really want. Gods, he had messed up, he thought to himself heavily. Voldemort’s words came back to him, and he realised that he was now in grave danger of losing the thing that he cherished most in the world. There was no way that he would let that happen. Something had to be done, he mused. Inspiration struck him. “Princess, go on up to bed. I will send an elf up shortly with your pain potion, and then I will follow shortly to speak with you. After that, I will leave you in peace if you desire it, I promise you,” he said softly, rising from the chair and offering her his hand.

Lexy hesitated briefly before accepting his assistance and standing gingerly. She sighed deeply before leaving the room, and Lucius looked after her disappearing figure regretfully. His resolve set, he bent down to the fireplace, throwing in a handful of Floo powder and calling, “Severus Snape’s office, Hogwarts!” as he put his head into the flames.

Severus appeared instantly. “Lucius, how are you both?” he asked, and Lucius saw Ginny hovering nervously in the background. He smiled ruefully.

“No doubt you have heard about my performance earlier,” he replied with a wry smile. “You and Mrs Snape will be pleased to hear that Lexy is fine, tucked up in bed with a warm drink coming to her. Lupin will be able to confirm that for you. However, I would like a quick word with you, Severus, now if that is not a problem.”

Severus frowned but inclined his head, and Lucius withdrew from the flames before stepping into them entirely and emerging into the office. He stared pointedly over at Ginny who disappeared into the living quarters with a petulant grimace. “I hope I can rely upon your discretion in this matter, Severus,” Lucius said abruptly when he was sure that Ginny was out of earshot.

“Of course.”

“We had a visit from the Dark Lord tonight,” Lucius said haltingly. Severus, who had not yet heard from Remus, was genuinely surprised.

“Indeed?” he enquired.

Lucius nodded, and a look of pain washed over his face. “He indicated that if my Lexy has not conceived in six months time, he will allow others to petition for her.”

“But you are bound together…”

Lucius held up his hand. “Until death parts us, as our master reminded me earlier. Now do you understand the enormity of my situation?”

Severus nodded, his eyebrows raised. “What do you expect me to do to help you though, Lucius?”

“I know that there is a potion to increase the chances of conception. I would like some for Lexy,” Lucius replied, his face taut.

“Will you be informing your wife of this?” Severus asked, knowing how Lucius operated.

Lucius’ face tightened yet further. “I will discuss it with her if I feel it necessary. However, I do not wish to distress her without reason, and she is already worried about her failure to conceive. Further stress will only make it even less likely.”

“That is true…” Severus mused. “Very well, Lucius. I happen to have a bottle with six months’ supply in my store cupboard. One drop a day will be all that is necessary though, do you understand?” he asked sharply.

Lucius nodded impatiently. “Would you fetch it now then, Severus? I am in rather a hurry to get back to Lexy.”

Severus shook his head slightly, but disappeared to get the potion. Less than a minute later he returned, pressing a small purple bottle into Lucius’ hand. “Remember, just one drop a day, Lucius,” he said warningly. “And I strongly recommend that you speak to Lexy about this.”

Lucius waved his hand dismissively. “Thank you, Severus. I am sure, however, that you yourself will not speak of this to Lexy when she returns to Hogwarts after the weekend…” he said imperiously as he walked to the fireplace and Flooed home to the manor.

He could not forget Voldemort’s words. Lucius’ hands shook as he poured a glass of wine and uncorked the purple bottle, holding it over the glass of wine. Surely it could do no harm to put in two drops instead of one? He vaguely recalled hearing of multiple births as a result of overuse of the potion, but that would be no bad thing, he thought with a small smile. Decidedly, he poured in two drops of the potion, hid the bottle in his robes and carried the glass up to Lexy.

“Princess?” he asked quietly as he opened the door to the bedroom. Lexy lifted her head off the pillow slightly but did not respond. “I thought perhaps you would like a glass of wine to help you sleep?”

Unbidden memories rose in Lexy’s mind of the first night they drank wine together, and she closed her eyes as the climax to the night played out in her mind, causing her to think on the care and respect he had shown her on that night and since, not to mention the wonderful physical pleasures he had opened her eyes to. She knew in that moment that she would forgive him. Lexy resignedly opened her eyes and sat up in the bed. “Thank you, Lucius,” she replied quietly, holding her hand out for the glass.

He smiled and sat on the bed next to her. “Has the pain relieving potion helped, Lexy?”

“Yes, the physical pain has gone, at least,” she replied, her eyes clouding over. Lexy refused to let him off lightly from this.

“It is fortunate that you got away from me when you did, Lexy,” Lucius said soberly. “My temper can become uncontrollable at times.”

“Yes, I…” Lexy stopped abruptly. She was about to say that she had heard of it, but that would lead to all sorts of uncomfortable questions. “I was lucky,” she finished lamely, taking a large sip of the wine to hide her discomfort.

“How did you get away?” Lucius questioned her with a small frown, fighting to prevent a smirk as she drank the wine. “I remember… ah… everything else,” he said delicately, “but my memory is hazy until our master came in with you.”

Lexy started as realisation hit her that Remus must have hit Lucius with a non-verbal memory modification spell so that he wouldn’t remember her wandless magic. Thank Merlin, she thought to herself. “Oh, you dropped my wand and I snatched it and Stupefied you, Lucius. Perhaps my spell was a little strong, but I was panicking,” she replied, her eyes dropping.

“I am not angry with you!” he explained hastily. “Your actions were perfectly understandable. But… Lexy… were you truly planning to go?” Lucius asked hesitatingly, wary of what the answer would be.

“Honestly, I don’t know what I was planning to do. I just wanted to be out of the manor,” Lexy replied, shaking slightly.

“I cannot fault you for that, princess,” Lucius said, holding his head in his hands. “What happened next?”

“Remus was coming down the path just as I was going in the opposite direction. He managed to calm me and was about to bring me back inside when the Dark Lord appeared,” Lexy said, skimming over the details. What had Remus’ plan been, she wondered uneasily?

“Did he have much to say to you?”

“The Dark Lord? He expressed his displeasure at my injury, but that was it. We came in; he awakened you and the rest you know.”

“Quite. What did you think of what he had to say, then?” Lucius asked, finally voicing the thought that had been troubling him the most.

Lexy imagined being separated from Lucius, and despite all that had happened tonight she still found that the idea filled her with an aching pain. “Hold me, Lucius,” she murmured, a raw need in her voice. Lucius took off his outer robes and slipped under the covers, thankfully pulling his wife into his arms. Lexy rested her head on his chest. “I’m scared, Lucius,” she said frankly, trembling in his arms.

Lucius silently stroked her hair until she began to calm down. “As am I, princess. But I know that we will have conceived by the time that the six months are up.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“Trust me, Lexy. As long as we continue doing what we have been, we will get the child that we desire. Who knows, he or she could be here by this time next year,” he replied, his heart clenching.

Lexy suddenly felt a strong need for her husband, and without warning she turned around and began kissing Lucius passionately. “Make love to me, Lucius,” she demanded throatily.

Lucius paused. “Are you sure that you want this, princess? I will understand if you do not want me straight away…”

“No matter what happens between us, I will always desire you, Lucius,” Lexy avowed passionately.

“In that case, Lexy, let me show you how much I adore you. And perhaps tonight will be the night that we create the child we desire.” Lucius began to softly kiss her neck, gently undoing her gown to expose her collarbone before shifting his attentions there. She moaned quietly, and Lucius, encouraged, slid her gown off over her head.

They lay down next to each other, dressed only in their underwear, and Lucius gathered Lexy into his arms. She was still not entirely relaxed, so he began to tenderly massage her shoulders, easing the tension in them. After a few minutes, he stopped, and Lexy opened her mouth to protest. “Hush, princess, I know what I’m doing. We don’t want you to be too relaxed yet, do we?” he asked with a small smile playing on his lips.

Lexy nodded her agreement and shifted closer towards Lucius, her hands drifting downwards and slipping inside his silk boxers, enveloping his erection in her small hands. Lucius gasped and involuntarily bucked his hips as she slid her hands up and down his length with a satisfied moan. “I want you inside of me now, baby,” she whispered in his ear.

“I have never been able to say no to you, my angel, and tonight is no different,” Lucius replied hoarsely, pulling off his boxers and Lexy’s briefs. He slid one arm underneath her and with the other he pulled her hips close to his. “Are you ready for me, Lexy?” he asked.

She nodded. “As always.”

He could not wait any longer and slid slowly inside of her, closing his eyes blissfully as her hot wet muscles contracted around his cock. Usually, Lucius did not hold back when fucking Lexy, and she enjoyed it that way, but tonight he sensed that she needed him to be gentle, so he began slowly moving in and out of her, caressing her breasts as he did so. They continued that way for a blissful fifteen minutes or so, Lucius maintaining eye contact with Lexy all the way through.

Finally, Lexy felt her slow building orgasm begin to approach its climax, and she tightened around Lucius and began to shake, her back arching. “Make me come, Lucius, please!” she begged him, needing release. Her words were enough to hasten his own orgasm, and his thrusts became deeper and more urgent, bringing both to a shared climax.

They stayed as they were after their orgasms, Lucius unwilling to end the intimate moment just yet, and Lexy happy to stay held in his arms. Finally, she broke the comfortable silence. “Thank you, Lucius,” she murmured sleepily.

“So long as you feel better, that is all the thanks I need, princess,” he replied softly. “Get some sleep now, and I will see you in the morning.” He kissed her lips and withdrew, getting out of the bed and leaving her to sleep.


In the morning, Lexy awoke to the sight of Lucius sat next to the bed, a breakfast tray ready for her. “Good morning, darling, how do you feel today?” he asked concernedly, handing her a glass of orange juice.

She downed it in one. “Better, thank you, Lucius,” she replied, stretching out. “You are still feeling penitent then?” Lexy asked with a teasing smile.

Lucius looked down at the floor. “I still have a long way to go before I expect you to forgive me, Lexy. I know that I am extremely fortunate that you are still with me today.”

Lexy bit her lip. “I cannot disagree with you, Lucius, but I see no point in us constantly bringing the subject up. You know how much you hurt me last night, and hopefully that is all the lesson you need. But if we want to stay together, then we will have to put it behind us. I don’t know about you, but I am happy here with you, and I would hate for that to end,” she admitted reluctantly.

“It does me good to hear you say that,” Lucius said, his relief evident. “And I swear to you that I will do all I can to keep you with me. The thought of losing you…” he shuddered. “Frankly, it is unbearable.”

“It won’t happen,” Lexy replied firmly. “We won’t let it.” Lucius handed her the tray and she ate her meal in silence before dressing and walking down to the fireplace to Floo to Hogwarts. “I will see you at quarter past four,” she said resolutely.

Lucius grimaced. “If you wish to visit Mrs Snape tonight, that won’t be a problem,” he said forcedly.

Lexy smiled. “Not tonight, but thank you, Lucius.” They embraced before she stepped into the flames and Flooed into Remus’ office.

He leapt up from behind the desk as she emerged. “Thank Merlin,” he said heavily.

“You didn’t have any trouble with the Dark Lord on my account last night, did you Remus?” Lexy asked concernedly as he embraced her.

“Not at all. In fact, he was delighted with me for convincing you to return to Lucius after what had happened,” Remus replied grimly. “Well done for coming up with the cover story so quickly, Lexy, for Merlin only knows what would have happened had he suspected the truth.”

“And what was the truth, Remus?” Lexy gently probed. “What were you planning?”

Remus shook his head. “There is no point thinking about what might have been, Lexy. As long as Lucius treats you well from now on, it is irrelevant.” Lexy went to disagree, but he cut her off. “Did my memory modification spell work?”

Lexy’s face cleared. “Oh, that was you! I thought it must have been. Yes, Lucius remembers nothing of my wandless magic.”

“Good. That could prove extremely useful later in the war. Lexy, have you been practicing it at all or is it simply a natural talent?” he asked curiously.

She shrugged. “I’ve always been able to do it a little. When I was a toddler, Papa says I had a habit of disappearing all the water in the bathtub as soon as he took me anywhere near it. I used to hate bath time! It disappeared a little as I got older, but over the last couple of years it’s come back again. I don’t have any great degree of control over it, though. Last night was the first time I’ve been able to use it like that.”

Remus nodded. “We will have to work on that, then. Will you be Flooing back from here later?” Lexy thought then nodded. “Very well, we will discuss it then,” he said dismissively.

Lexy frowned, then walked towards the door to head towards her first lesson. She paused and turned back. “Thank you for everything, Remus,” she said quietly before she left.

Remus sat down again feeling extremely agitated. All night long he had laid awake worrying about her, and thinking of what might have been. Just think, this morning they could have woken up in America, safely away from it all. The thought of having Lexy to himself made his heart thump so wildly that he finally realised the truth. He had fallen inescapably in love with the one woman he could never have. His head dropped onto the table, and he began to sob.


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Lexy, Lucius and Will had a quiet Christmas in the manor, undisturbed by anyone else. All too soon, though, the break was over and Lexy returned to Hogwarts, still not pregnant. She was beginning to feel deeply uneasy, and in a way she blamed herself. Lexy wondered if the fact that, deep down, she did not want to have a child had something to do with it. Whilst she knew that she had to conceive to stay with Lucius, the thought of becoming a mother scared her, and she was unsure that she could even love a child that had been forced upon her in such a way. Recently, she had been dreaming of the life that she could have had had it not been for the Dark Lord’s victory, and she feared that she would end up resenting any children she had and blaming them for losing that chance.

She let her concerns eat away at her until Ginny sent her a letter inviting her to eat breakfast with her on the coming Friday. Lucius, still anxious to please her, gave her his permission instantly, so Lexy replied in the affirmative, Flooing there an hour before lessons were due to start.

Ginny pushed herself out of the chair with a little difficulty to rise and meet her. She was now six months pregnant, and it was beginning to be a strain. “Lexy,” she said happily, “How are you?”

Lexy smiled sadly. “Oh, not so bad. How are you and the baby?”

“Wonderful. He’s kicking away all the time now.”

“It’s a boy?”

Ginny nodded. “Yes, Severus is delighted. He didn’t want to find out but I insisted,” she replied with a beam. Suddenly, Lexy felt a wave of dizziness wash over her and she grasped the arm of the chair for support. “Lexy, what is it?” Ginny asked urgently.

She shook her head. “I… I just came over a little strange there for an instant.” Lexy blinked and sat down in the chair.

Ginny stared at her penetratingly. “You do look a little pale… Lexy, just out of interest, when are you due on?”

Lexy thought, then looked up and met Ginny’s eyes, barely daring to hope. “Er… two days ago, I think,” she whispered.

Ginny grinned. “I’ve been doing some Healer training with Madam Pomfrey these past few months, and I’ve learnt the pregnancy detection spell. Would you like me to cast it?”

Lexy’s hands began to shake as she nodded, unsure what to think. Ginny withdrew her wand and began to move it over Lexy’s abdomen, muttering incantations. Finally, she stepped back. “Blue light if you are, red if you’re not,” she explained quietly. Ginny took hold of Lexy’s hand and squeezed it tightly as they waited for the result. After what seemed like an age, a blue light finally enveloped Lexy, and she gasped.

“I’m… pregnant?” she said disbelievingly.

Ginny nodded, and hugged her. “Congratulations, Lex, you did it. Are you okay?”

Lexy nodded slowly. “Just a little surprised,” she said dazedly.

“Understandably! Right, you definitely need to get a good breakfast down you after that. Do you want to Floo Lucius first and tell him?”

She shook her head. “No, I’ll wait till I get home tonight and tell him in person,” Lexy replied, her eyes lighting up as she imagined her husband’s reaction to the news.

They sat down and began to eat slowly, chattering away, Lexy still unable to believe it. Her hand drifted to her stomach and she absently caressed it as Severus came into the room.

“Good morning, Lady Malfoy,” he said, nodding to her.

“Good morning, Professor,” she replied absently. A wave of nausea came over her, and she rose unsteadily. “Ginny, could I use your bathroom?”

Ginny nodded sympathetically and pointed her in the direction of it. As Lexy raced towards the door, Severus walked over and stood behind Ginny, bending down to rub her stomach. “Are my suspicions correct?” he asked her.

“They are, we did the test this morning. I was going to warn you, actually, because I know some of the seventh year potions are dangerous for pregnant women to be around.”

“Quite correct. Fortunately, today’s lesson will be fine. Has she told Lucius yet?”

“No, she wants to let him know in person.”

“He will be delighted. And more than a little relieved,” Severus said as Lexy re-entered the room. “Alexis, will you be alright to attend your lessons today?”

“Oh yes, Professor, I feel much better now,” she said brightly, sitting down to finish her breakfast. Severus and Ginny exchanged amused glances but remained quiet.

The meal passed without further incident, and when Lexy walked into Potions with Severus it was with a lightened heart and a spring in her step. She settled down into the lesson and was preparing the ingredients for the potion they had been directed to make when a sharp pain in her lower abdomen caused her to cry out loud.

Severus’ head snapped up instantly. “Alexis, are you alright?” he demanded.

She shook her head as the pain increased, and Severus sprinted towards her just in time to catch her as she collapsed backwards. “Class dismissed!” he bellowed as he rushed through the classroom to his office with Lexy in his arms.

The door to his living quarters burst open as Ginny heard him hurtle in. The sight of Lexy, deathly pale and unconscious in her husband’s arms, sent her into a panic. “Severus?!” she said urgently.

“I am taking Alexis to St. Mungo’s. Floo Lucius and tell him to meet us there immediately,” Severus replied with a grimace. Ginny threw the Floo powder into the flames for him and he kissed her cheek as he stepped into the flames and took them to the hospital.

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