The Masked Lady

Chapter 3: Special Treatment









She had made the front page again, The Masked Lady Strikes Again! was emblazoned across the top of the page. Lucius had read the article twice before folding up his paper and laying it atop his desk. She had managed to lighten the pockets of over six wizards leaving the High Wizard Gentleman’s club, seven if you counted him. He hadn’t filed any complaints with the aurors, not even from the night at the theater. He couldn’t bring himself to do it, not when he enjoyed both encounters so much.







From the comments made and the gossip going around, the men didn’t mind so much. Every one of them were salivating at the thought of getting another look at her, of getting her into their beds. She was rather delectable even if she was a bold little chit. She had hit him up twice now, would she dare hit him again? God he hoped so.







“Father!” Lucius spun in his chair just as Draco shoved his way through the doors. “Can you believe the nerve of that…that woman? She robbed me!” He fell into one of the high backed chairs in front of Lucius’s desk and stared at his father in frustration.







“Did she now?” Lucius asked, curious. “Tell me about it.”







“I had taken Astoria to dinner so she would shut up about never going anywhere. After dinner I went out to call the carriage while she was in the ladies and this….this…demon woman in black leather jerks me into the alley beside the building and slams me into the wall!” He frowned as he told the story.







Lucius suddenly began to wonder if she flirted with all of her marks the way she flirted with him. Had she taunted and aroused his son only to leave him hanging? Was that the reason he looked so angry about it all?







“Rumor has it she is rather pleasant to her marks, and not exactly hard on the eyes.” Lucius said, trying to sound casual as he subtly fished for information.







“Pleasant? She was robbing me! How is that pleasant?” Draco looked baffled that anyone could associate the two. “And who cares how good she looks, she’s a criminal!”







“So she wasn’t….pleasant…to you?” He asked.







“She slapped me!” He said, shaking his head in disbelief. “I gave her all of the galleons in my pocket as well as my pocket watch and was she happy? No! She started to walk away then came back and slapped me!”







“Did you say or do anything to warrant it?” Lucius felt a bit smug and was highly amused.







“That’s just it, I didn’t! I was so shocked by this strange woman throwing me against a wall that I just emptied my pockets for her! I didn’t fight her, it was only a watch and a few galleons.” Draco crossed his legs, tugging his trousers down to cover his socks.







“Well, at least you are unharmed.” Lucius said, sitting up and smiling tightly. How curious her behavior was. How odd that she would treat him so much differently than she did the others.







“Has she targeted you?” Draco asked, his eyes narrowed in his father’s direction.







“Have you heard it said that she has?” Lucius asked.







“No….”







“Then there you have it. I am not one of her victims as of yet.” Lucius said softly. To say he was her victim would imply that he was unwilling and he was anything but.









~@~









Lucius Malfoy spent most of his morning calling in favors. It was a benefit of treading in the grey area of life, walking the fine line between being straight while still dancing just a little inside the dark. He was good at making things go away, fixing things for people. The benefit was that said people ‘owed him one’. In this instance it was one of the chief aurors whose son got himself into a bit of trouble with a pureblood’s underage daughter. Lucius was able to resolve the situation quietly and out of the press which was why he was on his way to a meeting with Harry Potter to discuss the Masked Lady case.







Potter’s office was small, his cloak wardrobe was larger than the office he was entering. The young man looked up and pushed his glasses up his nose. His messy black hair curled over his forehead but Lucius could see his famous scar peaking out from between the wayward fringe.







“You were expecting me, were you not?” Lucius greeted the young man. He didn’t wait for Potter to offer him a seat, he stepped inside and settled himself into a rather uncomfortable chair situated way too close to the desk to be comfortable. Not that Lucius revealed his discomfort, he was as arrogant and stoic as he always was.







“Just how did you get Auror Smythe to approve your request?” Harry asked, crossing his arms on top of his desk.







“I asked him.” Lucius smirked as he removed his gloves and laid them on Potter’s desk. Harry didn’t appear amused or impressed as he reached into his desk for his case file.









“What do you want to know?” Harry flipped open the file, clearly resenting the fact that he had been ordered to speak with Lucius. Malfoy wasn’t an auror or even a ministry employee, he just couldn’t figure out why he would be interested in the current investigation, it wasn’t like he had filed a complaint.







“What do you have?”







“Truthfully? I have nothing. Whoever she is she leaves no trace, nothing to follow by means of magic or muggle CSI technology. It’s almost like she is a phantom.” Harry sighed wearily and leaned back in his chair as a headache began to form between his eyes.







“She is definitely corporeal.” Lucius scoffed. Harry perked up instantly.







“You’ve encountered her?” Harry reached for his quill and parchment, ready to take down his account.







“I didn’t say that. It is obvious she is a living being as she has slipped off with a small fortune in currency and goods.” Lies slipped easily from his tongue after so many years of practice.







“So you haven’t been accosted by her?” Harry asked.







“I didn’t say that either.” He said, leaning back. “What I will say is that I was at the theater the night she struck there and I was at the High Wizard as well. I mainly wish to learn about the personal experiences. How was she towards the males she encountered?”







“Why would you care?” Harry was confused. At first he thought that perhaps Lucius’s interest was because he had been accosted. He thought he had a vested interest in the case, but now he was just baffled by the older man’s interest.







“My reasons are of no concern to you. But if it makes you feel better, color me curious.” His grin was rather frightening if Harry was being honest. Lucius Malfoy always made him wary, despite the fact that he had been ‘good’ for the last several years.







“There isn’t anything interesting in any of the accounts really. They say she is polite and always thanks them when they empty their pockets. The only person she has had physical contact with is Draco and apparently she slapped him.” He tried not to chuckle over the last bit since he was talking to Draco’s father.







“Yes, well I am not entirely certain Draco didn’t deserve it.” Lucius rolled his eyes. His son tried his patience, he could only imagine how he tried others. “So no one made claims of her…touching them or personally relieving them of their valuables?”







“No, she holds her wand on them and orders them to empty their pockets and remove their jewels. She then holds out a satchel for them to deposit their items into.” Harry was quickly becoming suspicious.







“And what of her spoils? Any clues as to what she is doing with them?” His ego was being stroked by the knowledge that he was the only one getting her ‘special treatment.’







“We have tracked down some of the items at various pawn shops and some have been found on fencers in Knockturn Alley. Though no one seems to have any recollection of how they came by the items. I suspect she obliviates them once she completes her transactions. She then takes the funds and delivers them to the Department of Charities in an unmarked envelope with a note directing how the funds should be used. No fingerprints, no post marks, nothing to identify her.” Harry closed the file and folded his hands on top of it, waiting for Lucius to say something.







“Hermione Granger is the director of that department, correct?” He asked, reaching for his gloves. “She contacts me no less than four times a year asking for donations….I believe I shall go pay her a little visit.” He got to his feet and looked down his nose at Harry. “Thank you, Potter. You have been a tremendous help.”































Thanks for having a nosy! This is a short one, only 21 chapters...not meant to be great literature LOL just a smutty, funny little story that I hope will make you smile while I work on other things...so, first 3 chapters up...of course its complete and yes, you will get regular updates as usual =)...so, hope you enjoy!!!