There's No Life after You

A/N: HAPPY VALENTINES DAY CAITLIN! :D I hope you enjoy this fic! ;)

This is my first shot at Lucissa so I hope it's not dreadful! It is AU, but I had fun writing it, and I hope it's fun to read!

The title comes from a song by Daughtry called 'Life After You'.

Enjoy!

'I don't know why you look so nervous.'

Narcissa Black rolled her eyes at the blond-haired woman who was currently lying on her bed watching her inquisitively, 'You don't know why I'm nervous?'

'It's just a date,' Almina Crouch, Narcissa's best friend, said with a slight smirk, 'you've been courting Lucius for a year now, there have been plenty of them.'

Narcissa shot her friend a glare, 'It's Valentine's Day, Almina,' she said as she smoothed down her dress and tucked her blonde hair behind her ear, 'this isn't just any date.'

Almina grinned, 'Cissy, you've known since you were 17 that you were to marry him for crying out loud.'

'Oh shut up,' Narcissa said half-heartedly, 'you were betrothed to Pollux for two years and I still remember you screaming when he proposed!'

Almina smiled, 'Well, he is a Greengrass, one of the wealthiest and most influential families around. Second only to the Malfoys, I should add.'

Narcissa breathed deeply, 'Exactly, now you see why I'm nervous?'

'You'll make a perfectly wonderful trophy bride,' Almina teased, 'it helps that he actually loves you after all.'

'Not every woman is so lucky,' Narcissa agreed as she slipped into her high heels.

'Pollux and Lucius are the only two exceptions I've seen, and I've been to a lot of arranged marriage weddings,' Almina said as she pushed herself off the bed, 'you're lucky you can marry for love and status, it's rare.'

'I know,' Narcissa said with a smile, 'you're right, I have no reason to be nervous.'

Almina smiled back, 'We'll be wonderful…the two most powerful families in the wizarding world and then our children can get married!'

Narcissa laughed, 'You are getting awfully far ahead of yourself Mina,' she said fondly as they descended the stairs of Black Manor where Narcissa had grown up with her sisters Bellatrix, and Andromeda, her Aunt Walburga and Uncle Orion, and her cousins Sirius and Regulus. Her two elder sisters were married now and had houses of their own, and her two younger cousins were at Hogwarts. Sirius had been all but disowned already for being placed in Gryffindor by the sorting hat, unlike Regulus who was a year younger than him and in Slytherin.

'Is Lucius here yet, Mother?' Narcissa asked her Mother politely as she arrived at the bottom of the stairs.

'He is talking with your Father in the drawing room, Narcissa,' Druella said with a knowing smile.

Almina grinned and said, 'Breathe Cissy.'

'This is the moment we've been waiting for,' Druella said with a smile, 'you must have impressed him, Narcissa.'

'Well of course she has,' Almina said a little indignantly, 'he's fallen in love with our Cissa.'

'Of course he has,' Druella said condescendingly, 'this will bring our family far more power and wealth than either of your sister's marriages. You always were the prettiest one, Cissa.'

Narcissa rolled her eyes, 'Lucius hasn't even proposed yet, Mother,' she said quietly.

'But he will,' Druella said knowingly, 'and then all you have to do is make sure you give birth to a male heir. Surely even you can handle that, after all your eldest sister shows no sign of having children, and the other one has had a half-blood girl.'

'Yes, Mother,' Narcissa said with a sigh.

Her Mother was about to reprimand her for the tone she had used, but then the door to the drawing room opened and Narcissa's Father exited with Lucius. He looked particularly handsome tonight in dress robes with his long blonde hair pulled back into a ponytail.

'Narcissa,' Lucius said with a smile, 'I apologise for keeping you waiting. I was just discussing business with your Father.'

'I bet you were,' Almina muttered under her breath.

Narcissa hid a smile as Druella snapped, 'Almina! I think you ought to be going home now.'

Almina smirked and said, 'I'll just go grab my stuff, have fun you two.'

Narcissa smiled at her, 'I'm sure we will,' she said.

Lucius held out his arm to Narcissa, 'Shall we?'

Narcissa nodded, taking his arm and letting her escort her from the house. They apparated to their destination, a lovely (and very posh) wizarding restaurant in London. They were finally free to drop the façade now Narcissa's parents were out of sight and earshot.

'I finally feel like I can breathe,' Narcissa said with a chuckle as they walked into the restaurant which was decorated in red, with rose petals on each table in light of the date.

'Your parents are very strict,' Lucius said with a smile, 'and I do get the impression they have eyes all over that house.'

'Of course they do,' Narcissa said, 'they ask the portraits to listen to conversations and report back to them.'

'They aren't very fond of Mina,' Lucius noted.

Narcissa chuckled, 'They believe she's a bad influence on me. However, they are forced to put up with her now that she's engaged to be married to Pollux Greengrass.'

'Ah yes,' Lucius said with a smirk, 'an instant status boost.'

'Exactly,' Narcissa chuckled.

He pulled out her seat and helped her in, taking his seat across from her at a beautiful corner booth with views out over London, 'this is lovely Lucius,' Narcissa said with a smile, 'although the date surprised me. I never saw you as a traditional romantic.'

'Even I follow some traditions, Narcissa,' Lucius said with a slight smile.

Narcissa smiled back, now fairly certain tonight would be the night as he ordered a bottle of wine.

'So, when is the lovely Mina marrying Pollux?' Lucius asked conversationally as they drank the wine.

'This July,' Narcissa told him, 'She has asked me to be her Maid of Honour, her sister is of course outraged about it.'

'I expect when the time comes, you will ask her to be your Maid of Honour,' Lucius said, and the subtle hint didn't go unnoticed by Narcissa. However, as Almina had said Narcissa had known since she was 17, and since Lucius was 18, that they were to be wed. The marriage contract was outstanding from two generations previously, a Malfoy must wed a Black. Andromeda had disappeared off the face of the earth after marrying a Muggle-born straight out of Hogwarts, and Bellatrix had been tied to the Lestrange family since she was very young. This left only one female Black available to marry the one male Malfoy, Narcissa.

'I expect so,' Narcissa agreed, 'although I don't expect that to go down well with Bellatrix.'

'Oh, of course it won't,' Lucius smirked, 'but there is no rule saying you must make your sister your Maid of Honour.'

'No rule,' Narcissa agreed, 'just tradition.'

'Well you know that I believe some traditions ought to be broken,' Lucius smiled, 'the more important ones, concerning purity of blood however, must be preserved.'

'I'm aware of your views, Lucius,' Narcissa said, not really wanting a political discussion or a rant about Muggle-borns on this particular night.

'I am aware Narcissa, that this was an arrangement,' Lucius said as he took her hands across the table, 'and I am also aware there was no choice for us but to marry. However, I feel blessed because I think we have actually come to care for each other. Something not many Purebloods can say about an arranged marriage.'

Narcissa smiled, recalling her earlier conversation with Almina, 'We should feel very blessed, Lucius. We were lucky enough to know each other throughout Hogwarts. This all feels very natural to me.'

Lucius returned her smile, 'As it does to me. That is why I spoke with your Father earlier Narcissa, and why I am observing tradition for once in my life. This may be an arrangement, but I want it to be more than that.'

Narcissa was not at all surprised as he walked around the table and easily dropped down onto one knee, smiling at her with that charm she loved about him, 'I want this to be an equal marriage, one where both participants love each other and are happy. So Narcissa Druella Black, will you become my wife?'

Narcissa smiled and said fondly, 'Oh Lucius, only you could make a proposal sound like a business deal.'

His smile faltered, but Narcissa didn't keep him in suspense long, 'Of course I will marry you, for love, not just because of the arrangement.'

Looking relieved, if a little flustered, Lucius slipped the diamond ring onto her finger and got to his feet, kissing her very lightly on the lips, 'Thank you,' he said sincerely.

Narcissa was lying in bed attempting to get to sleep when the floo in her bedroom activated. She knew her Mother regulated the floo line so she would probably barge in here any moment now.

'What happened?' the familiar voice of Almina asked eagerly.

Narcissa chuckled and climbed out of her bed, sitting down on the hard wood floor in front of the fireplace, 'Well he proposed to me,' she said.

Almina grinned, 'You're kidding? Show me the ring!'

Narcissa held up her hand, and the ring sparkled in the light coming from the flames.

'Merlin, Cissy!' Almina said happily, 'it's beautiful! This is fantastic! When is the wedding?'

'I have no idea yet Mina,' Narcissa laughed at her friend's eagerness, 'I expect it will be next summer.'

'I'm so happy for you Cissy!' Almina said, still grinning, 'we'll have kids and we'll have garden parties and they'll be best friends and-'

'Mina!' Narcissa interrupted through her laughter, 'there you go again with the getting too far ahead of yourself!'

Almina laughed, but said no more as the door to Narcissa's bedroom opened, 'Almina! This is an absurd hour to be calling!' Druella snapped as she put an abrupt end to the floo call, 'Narcissa, go to bed!'

Narcissa sighed, 'Yes, Mother,' she muttered as her Mother left the room. She was 20 years old, yet she was being treated like a child. At least soon she would be married to Lucius and out of her Mothers clutches.

July 1975 brought a beautiful wedding in the sunny garden of Greengrass Manor. Narcissa took her rightful place beside her best friend as Almina prepared to walk down the aisle and marry Pollux Greengrass. She and Lucius had now been engaged for a few months now and would be getting married in June the following year.

'Cissa, I'm nervous,' Almina said as she stood in a beautiful, long, elegant wedding dress.

'This sounds familiar,' Narcissa said with a slight smile.

'Don't Cissa,' Almina said weakly, 'I'm getting married to Pollux. That's the rest of my life, I'll be married for the rest of my life.'

Narcissa smiled and grabbed her best friend's hand, 'And you're marrying a great man Almina. He makes you happy, and you make him happy. Plus he's one of the most powerful, wealthy, handsome men in the wizarding world.'

Almina smiled at her best friend, and squeezed her hand, 'You know how to cheer me up,' she said.

Narcissa laughed, and then it was time for Almina to walk down the aisle. She let go of Narcissa's hand, took a deep breath and began her walk towards married life.

The ceremony was beautiful, as was the meal in the great dining hall of the Manor. The reception in the grand ballroom was fantastic and as Lucius and Narcissa danced they found themselves discussing their own wedding day.

'This is beautiful,' Narcissa said as she looked around the ballroom.

'It is rather impressive,' Lucius agreed, 'but ours will be far better.'

Narcissa raised an eyebrow at him, 'It isn't a competition, Lucius.'

'Of course it is,' Lucius said smoothly, 'and we have the advantage because Almina and Pollux married first.'

Narcissa narrowed her eyes at him, and he defended himself, 'You know that the Malfoy's and Greengrass's have always been rivals, my love.'

'Well, not anymore,' Narcissa said firmly.

Lucius raised his eyebrow, 'and what, pray tell, do you mean by that?'

'I mean that I fully intend to have a marriage contract drawn up once you and I have wed,' Narcissa said truthfully, 'one which states that when there is next a Malfoy and a Greengrass in the same generation they must marry.'

'And how do you intend to do that when the head of house is required to sign and authorise any marriage contract?' Lucius asked her smoothly.

Narcissa grinned and whispered suggestively in his ear, 'Oh, I have my ways.'

Lucius smirked at her, 'I'm sure you do, but I can assure you, I am a very persistent person, Narcissa. You will not beat me on this one, no child of mine will marry a Greengrass.'

'Whatever you say, Lucius,' Narcissa said with an innocent smile.

Nearly a year had passed since Almina had become Lady Almina Greengrass. It had taken her a surprisingly short time to get used to the luxury, and the parties, and the power, and wealth. Narcissa was now in a wedding dress in a small antechamber that led off of the drawing room at Malfoy Manor. She was nervous, and taking deep breaths as she had that night a year and a half ago when Lucius had officially asked her to marry him.

'Well, someone looks nervous,' Almina smirked.

'Oh, shut up Mina,' Narcissa said weakly as she looked at herself in the mirror.

'You look gorgeous, you don't need to worry about that,' Almina said with a smile as Narcissa stood before her in a beautiful and elegant wedding dress. Her blonde hair was pulled up into a bun and she wore a beautiful tiara which she had inherited from Lucius's Mother.

Almina smiled and said, 'Hey don't worry about it. This life is great, the parties are fantastic, and the Manors as you can see are amazing.'

Narcissa chuckled, 'I know the material aspect of it is appealing, to say the least. I'm worried about the marriage part of it, that's the scary aspect.'

'He's a good man, like Pollux,' Almina said as she held her friends hands, 'and he loves you very much Narcissa. You are both going to be very happy together.'

Narcissa smiled, and nodded, 'You're right,' she said as she took another deep breath.

'There is another thing…'

Narcissa looked at her friend, noticing the grin she was trying to contain, 'What is it?' she asked curiously.

'I wanted to tell you before you went on your honeymoon with Lucius,' Almina said with a smile, 'I'm pregnant!'

Narcissa's eyes widened, 'Oh Merlin, that's fantastic Mina!'

Almina grinned, 'Well we've been trying since we got married, and it's finally happening!'

Narcissa hugged her friend tightly and asked, 'How far along are you?'

'3 months,' Almina said, 'we had the St. Mungo's appointment yesterday.'

'I'm so happy for you Mina,' Narcissa said happily as the door to the antechamber opened and Narcissa's Father, Cygnus walked in.

He smiled at his daughter, 'You look beautiful Cissa,' he said as he kissed her on the forehead.

'Thank you, Father,' Narcissa said, feeling far less nervous than she had a few minutes ago.

'Your Mother would have been very proud to see you today,' Cygnus said with a sad smile, 'I am sure she is watching down on us now.'

Narcissa smiled slightly, 'I think she must be.'

Druella had died not long after Almina's wedding after contracting a cold which became something worse, by the time she went to St. Mungo's it was too late.

'Are you ready?' Cygnus asked, offering his arm to his youngest daughter.

'I'm ready,' Narcissa said with a smile, taking her Father's arm as Almina winked at her and grabbed her train.

They left the antechamber and the music began as Narcissa walked down the aisle that had been set up in the drawing room. It was bigger than Almina's, but Narcissa had tried to stop Lucius from being overly competitive.

Lucius smiled at her from where he stood in black and silver dress robes, she smiled back as she walked towards him and took her place by his side. They said their vows, and the blood vow took place, binding them for life.

Their meal was lovely, and Lucius murmured in her ear that the food was better than that at Almina and Pollux's wedding. Narcissa kicked him under the table for his comment, and he smirked at her. They moved to the ballroom for the reception and Lucius whispered, 'It's far bigger than Pollux's.'

'Size isn't everything, darling,' Narcissa teased as he drew her in for their first dance.

'It's far grander too,' Lucius said smoothly.

Narcissa merely chuckled and fell into step with him, aware that all eyes were on them as they shared their first dance.

'I don't care if it was better than Almina and Pollux's wedding or not,' Narcissa said with a smile, 'all I care about is that it has been perfect, and I've enjoyed every minute of it.'

'Well Mrs. Malfoy,' Lucius smirked, 'it isn't over yet.'

'It's the start of the rest of our lives,' Narcissa said as she stood on her tiptoes to kiss him.

He smiled down at her as he replied, 'Yes, it is.'

Almina was glowing throughout her pregnancy, and Narcissa was actually jealous of her best friend and found herself wanting what she had. This led to her and Lucius agreeing to start trying for a child of their own fairly shortly after their wedding.

As the year wore on, and November brought in the cold, frosty air from the North, Almina went into labour. Pollux remained in the waiting room with Lucius and Narcissa there for moral support. He paced for hours as he heard her screams through closed doors. After around 2 hours a Healer emerged and told Narcissa that Almina was asking for her.

Narcissa sat by her best friends side, offering her support in whatever way she could and half an hour later Almina had given birth to a beautiful little boy. Her Husband was delighted as he kissed her and Lucius smiled at them as they sat with their newborn child.

'Now that we have you both here,' Almina said, looking exhausted and dishevelled, 'will you be the baby's Godparents?'

Narcissa beamed and answered on behalf of them both, 'Of course we will!'

Lucius smiled and nodded, 'We would be honoured, Mina,' he assured her.

'What are you going to name him?' Narcissa asked, looking at the little boy who had Almina's blue eyes, and Pollux's dark hair.

'I think…Bartemius, after my Father,' Almina said, glancing to her Husband.

'Bartemius Cyrus Greengrass,' Pollux said with a smile, 'for your Father, and for mine.'

'Barty, for short,' Almina agreed, smiling down at the little boy.

The year wore on, and Cygnus, Narcissa's Father, got sick. After a short illness in St. Mungo's he passed away, far before his time. Narcissa was distraught as she had always been close to her Father. The funeral was particularly devastating, but Lucius was there for her throughout it. Things between them were fantastic until they hit their first bump in the road, and it was a big one.

'What do you mean, you have something to tell me?'

Narcissa was crossing her arms as she stared at her Husband. He had just come into the Manor very late at night looking incredibly guilty.

Lucius was pacing, unsure what to say, aware of Narcissa's eyes following his every move.

It was approaching Christmas, and they had now been married for about 5 months. Narcissa had moved into the Manor as soon as they had gotten back from their honeymoon and she, like Almina, was finding it very easy to get used to her new lifestyle.

'Lucius,' Narcissa said in a dangerous tone of voice, 'have you been with another woman?'

'No…no…' Lucius said with a shake of his head. He caught her eye, a desperate look in his own eyes, 'I've done something terribly wrong, Narcissa.'

'What have you done?' Narcissa asked quietly.

Lucius breathed deeply as he pulled up his sleeve and showed her a tattoo of some sort. It was a skull, and it seemed to be moving, Narcissa frowned, 'Lucius…I…I've seen that before…on Rodolphus's arm…'

He didn't say anything as his eyes bored into hers, the look of desperation deepening.

Narcissa stared at him in horror, 'Lucius…no, you haven't.'

'I had no choice,' Lucius said desperately, 'he threatened you Narcissa. He threated to kill you if I did not comply with his conditions.'

'Conditions?' Narcissa asked angrily, 'so it gets worse!'

'I didn't think it would come this far!' Lucius said, 'I thought he wanted to purge the wizarding world of Mudbloods, I thought he was a revolutionary. I never knew Narcissa, I never knew he was a murderer.'

'So you killed someone?' Narcissa asked coldly, 'am I sharing a house with a murderer? Is my Husband a murderer?'

All the colour had drained from his face, he opened his mouth to speak but no words came out.

Narcissa turned away from him, breathing deeply, 'You killed someone, Lucius,' it was a statement, not a question.

'It was only a Muggle-'

'Lucius!' Narcissa snapped as she turned around, 'the blood status of the person you killed doesn't matter! You still took someone's life and if you can do that once you can do it again!'

He was silent as he fell into an armchair in the drawing room, he looked like a shadow of his former-self, 'Narcissa-'

'Don't ask me to forgive you Lucius,' Narcissa said angrily, 'I thought I was marrying a strong man, someone who would be Minister for Magic one day! I thought you were a leader, but you are just a coward, just a follower, murdering people all on the orders of some psychopath!'

'Narcissa!' Lucius snapped, pushing himself to his feet, 'you do not understand why I had to do this! I had no choice! Would you rather I let him kill you, and our unborn child with you?'

Narcissa's eyes widened, 'How did you…'

'I'm not blind, love,' Lucius said quietly, 'I noticed the adjusted waistlines on your dresses, I noticed the lack of food you've been eating in the morning…I was waiting for you to tell me of your own accord.'

Narcissa swallowed, 'I'm 2 months pregnant Lucius, and I'm faced with the fact that our child will have a Father who is a murderer.'

'How am I any different from Frank Longbottom?' Lucius asked angrily, 'he murders people to keep his wife safe!'

'He's an Auror, he murders people like you who kill Muggles!' Narcissa shouted.

'I killed that Muggle to save your life, and that of our child!' Lucius said desperately, 'do you honestly think I wanted to do it? Can you not see how much I regret what I did? But you and that child are the most important thing in this world to me Narcissa, I would do anything to protect that.'

Narcissa sank down heavily onto the sofa, 'Then stop this, run away from it.'

'I can't,' Lucius said quietly, 'once the mark has been given and the ritual has taken place there is no backing out.'

Narcissa blew out a breath of air, 'Then what are we to do Lucius?'

'We weather the storm, he will be defeated by the light,' Lucius assured his wife, 'and then we can get on with our lives.'

'So this is really going to become a war?' Narcissa asked weakly.

'I am afraid so,' Lucius said, sitting down next to Narcissa, 'please, Narcissa, try to forgive me.'

'I understand why you did it, Lucius,' Narcissa said quietly, 'but that doesn't mean I will forgive you right away.'

Lucius nodded, letting his head fall into his hands, 'What have I done?'

'Merry Christmas, Mina!' Narcissa said to her friend as she and Lucius arrived at Greengrass Manor for their Christmas meal together.

'Merry Christmas Cissa!' Mina said, pulling her friend in for a hug, 'try to keep your voice down, Barty has just fallen asleep.'

'Oh, of course,' Narcissa said with a smile, 'I have news for you, Mina.'

Almina's eyes widened as she read her friends mind, 'Oh my! Are you expecting a baby?'

Narcissa nodded, a smile spreading across her face, 'I'm 3 months pregnant.'

'Oh, Cissa!' Almina said as she hugged her once more, 'I'm so happy for you!'

'Thank you,' Narcissa said, still grinning as they entered the drawing room where the men were talking.

'Lucius, you fool!' Pollux was hissing, 'you should have stayed neutral-'

'Pollux, I had no choice!' Lucius hissed back, 'it was that or he killed Narcissa, and she's expecting. It's a boy too, and we need an heir.'

'You always have a choice,' Pollux muttered, 'you should never have gotten involved with him in the first place.'

'You don't understand,' Lucius said darkly, 'he has methods of making people submit to him, they are unthinkably cruel and manipulative. He will come for you soon Pollux, and mark my words it will be impossible for you to remain neutral.'

'Just watch me,' Pollux hissed.

Time passed, and Lucius continued to work for Voldemort. Although, by February 1977 he had yet to kill another person. His beloved lord had him working mostly reconnaissance missions and wherever he could he stunned or used non-lethal charms. He was constantly terrified he was going to be caught out and his family murdered, and he had been losing weight due to the fear and the stress.

Things took a turn for the worse in the middle of February when Almina stumbled through the floo, her face red and her eyes puffy as if she had been crying.

Narcissa panicked and rushed to her, ushering her onto the sofa in the drawing room, 'Mina! What on earth is wrong?'

'It's Barty,' Almina sobbed, 'we had his 3 month check-up at St. Mungo's, and he's sick.'

Narcissa's stomach churned, 'Sick?'

'He has a disease of the blood, Narcissa,' Almina said through her tears, 'it is incurable.'

Narcissa frowned, 'I don't understand Mina…'

'The Healers called it Haemophilia, or the Pureblood Disease, as it is more commonly known,' Almina said and then it sunk in for Narcissa.

'Oh my…' Narcissa trailed off, 'I'm so sorry Almina.'

'I must have been a carrier for the disease, through my Mother,' Almina said weakly, 'the last person in my family to have it was my Uncle, but I never knew,' she took a breath, 'I never knew until today that females carry the disease yet only males can get it.'

Narcissa shook her head, 'No, neither did I,' she admitted, 'I thought it was just something that happened periodically in Pureblood families.'

'Has anyone in your family ever had it?' Almina asked through her tears.

Narcissa nodded, all colour drained from her face, 'My Uncle…my Mother's sister.'

Almina's sobs got louder, 'Your Mother must have been a carrier for the disease, Narcissa, which means you may be.'

Narcissa didn't know what to say, she was frozen. The disease known as the Pureblood Disease only affected males, that much had been widely known. However Narcissa had assumed it was just a natural occurrence due to inbreeding. The fact that it was passed down through female carriers made it easy to see why it was so common in Pureblood families however because of the fact all the families were interlinked by marriage and children. She had no way of knowing whether it would affect her because Bellatrix had no children, and Andromeda only had a girl.

'It gets worse, Cissa,' Almina said, her face a red, puffy mess, 'the Healers said they believe it to be most common in the first born male.'

Narcissa swallowed hard, she was expecting a boy and it would be her first-born. The disease highly restricted the lifespan of a child, it was possible to live with it, but rare. It stopped the blood from clotting, meaning a small fall could be life threatening, no child with that disease would grow into a strong healthy adult, and that was exactly what an heir needed to be. In the worst, and most severe cases children could have brain haemorrhages, leaving them either severely brain damaged, or dead.

'How bad is it, for Barty?' Narcissa asked in a choked voice.

'Severe,' Almina said miserably, 'the Healers don't expect him to live beyond 5 years of age.'

The Crouch's, who Almina had contracted the disease from, and the Blacks, all had common ancestors, they were as interlinked as any other Pureblood family tended to be. Narcissa was now acutely aware of the fact that the child she was currently carrying could be in real danger.

'I'm so sorry Narcissa.'

Narcissa had never seen her Husband cry. She knew him to be strong through everything, she had seen him get angry, she had seen him scared. But she had never, ever, seen him cry.

When she told him what Almina had told her, however, about Barty, and her own family history, Lucius shed a few tears. His tears scared Narcissa, they told her how serious this was. Lucius was a smart man, he knew more about the disease than Narcissa did, he knew how likely it would be that their child would be born with it.

He was silent as they sat together in their bed, he didn't look at her and her heart fell. Did he blame her for this? He had every right to do so, it was through her family, in her genetics, it was her-

'Stop it,' Lucius said weakly, looking at her with red, bloodshot eyes, 'this is not your fault, you cannot change your genetics, Narcissa.'

Narcissa looked at him with tears in her eyes, 'But I am the reason for this, Lucius. If you had married someone else, someone better-'

'No,' Lucius said gently, he held her hand in his, 'Narcissa, you and Almina both have an ancestor with the disease. A Black, and a Crouch, do you have any idea how many other families you are linked with? The Potters, the Longbottoms, the Crabbes, the Prewetts, the Rosiers, the Bulstrodes, the Macmillans, the Yaxleys, the Flints…it would not have mattered who I married Narcissa, this would always have been a risk.'

Narcissa sighed as he held her in his arms, 'What do we do now, Lucius?'

'We wait, and we pray that when our son is born he is free of the disease,' Lucius said honestly.

'And if he has it?' Narcissa asked, the feeling of dread setting in.

'Then we deal with that as it happens,' Lucius said, kissing his wife on the forehead and trying to remain strong for her.

The months dragged by, and Narcissa found herself dreading her due date. When July finally rounded the corner and the days ticked by she got more and more nervous. Almina had been supportive, and Narcissa had been supporting her too as Barty learned to deal with his illness. He was still only a baby, but Almina had grown very protective over him and never let him out of her sight in case he hurt himself.

On the 10th of July Narcissa went into labour, and Lucius tried not to panic as he got them to St. Mungo's and floo-ed Almina and Pollux. Almina immediately went into the delivery room and Lucius and Pollux stayed together in the waiting room. They were both praying that the baby would be born healthy.

After a fairly long labour they were allowed in, and Lucius smiled, despite his worries, when he saw Narcissa lying in the hospital bed, looking exhausted, yet still beautiful somehow. She was holding a little boy in her arms, and with blonde hair and blue eyes he looked incredibly like them both, and he also looked very healthy. However, Barty had looked healthy and then things had gone terribly wrong.

Lucius sat down by her bed, kissing her on the forehead, 'you did great,' he said, pushing her sweat soaked hair away from her face.

Narcissa smiled half-heartedly at him, and Lucius frowned, 'What's wrong?'

'The Healers checked, as soon as he was born since we knew there was a risk,' Almina said weakly.

'He has the disease, Lucius,' Narcissa choked out.

'How bad is it?' Lucius asked, looking into the eyes of the child and trying to keep tears from coming to his own eyes.

'Severe,' Narcissa whispered, 'like Barty, they don't think he'll make it past 5 years of age.'

A sad silence overcame the room, and that moment which was supposed to be happy was filled with sorrow.

'What are you going to name him?' Pollux asked, in an attempt to break the silence.

'Abraxas?' Lucius suggested, trying to hold himself together for the sake of his wife.

'Abraxas Cygnus Malfoy,' Narcissa said quietly, and Lucius nodded, taking his hand in hers.

'We'll do the best we can, Narcissa,' he promised her, 'we'll do all we can to keep him safe.'

The days passed, and the weeks passed, and the years passed. As Barty and Abraxas grew into toddlers their Mothers grew even more anxious about them getting hurt. They lived in the constant shadow of the fact their children would never survive their childhood, but they tried to give them all the love and care in the world while they could.

Tragedy struck first for the Malfoy family in January, 1979. Abraxas was 1 year and 6 months old, and he had been doing as well as he could considering his illness. One morning Narcissa had woken up and when she went to wake Abraxas found him having some sort of seizure. She had taken him immediately to St. Mungo's where Healers had saved his life but he had been left permanently brain damaged by the incident. He would never speak, and probably never walk either. It had been devastating for both Narcissa and Lucius, but it presented further problems.

'Narcissa, we have to hide this!' Lucius hissed one evening when Abraxas was asleep, 'the Dark Lord cannot find out! He does not approve of children who are not pure, who are not the best of the species!'

'So what, Lucius?' Narcissa snapped, she was tired and fed up.

'So he will kill Abraxas if he finds out about his condition,' Lucius hissed, 'who knows?'

'Only Pollux and Almina, and they have vowed not to tell a soul,' Narcissa replied, now realising the very real threat posed by this dark lord.

'Then it must remain that way,' Lucius said under his breath, 'you must promise me this.'

'I promise,' Narcissa agreed, breathing a deep sigh of fear. The war was now at its height, Muggles and Muggle-borns were dying, and the Ministry were trying in vain to fight back. She lived in constant fear, as did Lucius, and now this added to their fear all the more.

A few months passed, but then in March disaster hit the family once more when a man in a cloak turned up at the door. He demanded to be let in, and then only lowered the hood of his cloak when he was inside the house. Narcissa immediately recognised him and sighed in relief when she saw him, 'You scared me Rodolphus, are you here for Lucius? Is Bella alright?'

Rodolphus smiled, 'Bella is fine,' he assured her, 'I'm just here to see Lucius.'

'Is it about business concerning…him?' Narcissa asked fearfully as Rodolphus walked towards the stairs.

'It's nothing you need to worry about Narcissa,' Rodolphus said kindly, 'is he in his study?'

Narcissa nodded, 'He might have fallen asleep at his desk, but he's definitely in there.'

Rodolphus smiled and thanked her then made his way up the stairs to the first floor where Lucius's study was. Narcissa thought nothing of this and returned to the drawing room without a thought. She realised after around half an hour that Rodolphus was taking an awful long time talking to Lucius and curiosity got the better of her.

She made her way up the stairs and pushed open the door to Lucius's study, she frowned, he was alone with his head resting on his desk as he snored quietly.

'Lucius,' she said as she gave him a nudge.

He woke up and frowned, 'Oh, Merlin, I fell asleep again. Sorry love.'

'It's okay,' Narcissa said offhandedly, 'did Rodolphus leave already? I didn't hear him come through the entrance hall.'

Lucius's frown deepened, 'Rodolphus? What are you talking about? He hasn't been here.'

'But he came in…and came upstairs to find you, around half an hour ago,' Narcissa said, not understanding what was going on at all.

Lucius's eyes widened in fear and he got to his feet, running down the hallway to the room where Abraxas slept. Narcissa was hot on his heels, and the shout of anger and pain that he emitted when he saw the sight inside the room would stay with her for the rest of her life.

Abraxas lay in his cot, his eyes wide and unseeing, he had been murdered with the killing curse.

The funeral was a quiet affair with only Almina and Pollux present. They kept it as quiet as possible to avoid the papers finding out, and at the end of the day when they went home they felt numb and empty.

Lucius and Narcissa didn't talk to each other for about a week after the funeral. They both blamed themselves, but Narcissa also thought Lucius blamed her. While at the same time Lucius was certain Narcissa blamed him.

Then, on Monday night, a week and a half after Abraxas's death somebody appeared at the door to the Manor. Narcissa let the cloaked figure in but at wand point, when the cloaked figure dropped her hood Narcissa lunged at her, 'How dare you have the nerve to show up here!?'

Bellatrix looked pale, and like Lucius, a shadow of her former-self, 'Cissy-'

'Don't call me that!' Narcissa all but screamed, 'you are the reason my son is dead!'

'He was damaged Narcissa,' Bellatrix said, 'we were helping you-'

'Helping me? Your Husband killed my son! His own nephew!' Narcissa screamed, and by now her shouts had brought Lucius to her side.

'He would have died anyway, it was for his own good,' Bellatrix said in the same condescending voice she had spoken to Narcissa with since she was a child, 'the Dark Lord ordered it-'

'Of course he did!' Narcissa spat, 'and you and your sick husband do everything he says! You are psychopaths, just like he is!'

'Narcissa!' Lucius snapped, 'don't say such things about the Dark Lord!'

'She isn't in her right mind Lucius,' Bellatrix said knowingly, 'it's the grief.'

'Oh I wonder why we're grieving!' Narcissa shouted, 'perhaps because our son is dead, thanks to you!'

'But Cissy, I'm your sister…family looks out for each other,' Bellatrix said softly.

'You are not my sister!' Narcissa hissed, 'Andromeda is more of a sister to me than you are! Get out of my house! Get back to your sick husband, and the Dark Lord you admire so much!'

Something seemed to break in Bellatrix's eyes and with a spell more powerful than she had ever mustered before Narcissa pushed her sister from the house and slammed the door on her face, breathing heavily.

Lucius placed a hand on her shoulder, and said gently, 'What you said, that was risky. You are lucky Bellatrix took it to be grief, or else we could be in trouble.'

'We're already in trouble,' Narcissa hissed, 'because you are too much of a coward to do the right thing! He gave the order that killed our son Lucius, stop this nonsense and do the right thing!'

'It isn't that easy-'

'If you don't do this, then you aren't the man I thought you were when I married you,' Narcissa snapped as she stormed away from her Husband.

The day after the late night confrontation, Lucius disappeared early in the morning and did not return to Malfoy Manor until well past midnight. He climbed into bed next to his wife, he knew she was awake but she didn't move or say a word to him. They had barely spoken since Abraxas's death.

'I met with James Potter today.'

He wasn't met with a response, but Lucius continued, 'he's part of an organisation opposing the Dark Lord…I told him everything that I know about the Dark Lords movements, and I agreed to tip him off when I know about any attacks that will be made. He told me to make sure I'm discreet, if the Dark Lord finds out we will both be killed.'

Narcissa turned around, she was crying, 'Lucius…'

'I did the right thing, for you,' Lucius said as his voice broke, 'I am a coward Narcissa, but I cannot follow that man after what he did to our son.'

Narcissa nodded, unable to find words as she pulled him close to her.

Tragedy struck for the Greengrass family a few months later in May, 1979. Barty was 2 and a half years old, Almina wore herself grey worrying about him and watching him constantly. However, this particular day she had been forced to leave him alone for a few moments, he was inside his cot sleeping and she had felt uncontrollably sick. She rushed to the bathroom next door and emptied the contents of her stomach violently. Feeling truly rotten she dragged herself back into his room, she couldn't have been gone more than 5 minutes but in that time he had fallen and hit his head on the side of the cot.

They rushed him to St. Mungo's, but the fall had caused a brain haemorrhage and he had passed away. Almina had been distraught, and the funeral which had taken place three days later had been very small. Narcissa and Lucius had been among the very few people in attendance.

'What did we ever do to deserve this?' Almina asked as she knelt in front of her son's grave.

'I don't know,' Narcissa said honestly.

'We seem to have a grave misfortune upon us,' Almina said miserably, 'sometimes I wonder if we'll ever be happy.'

'We will be,' Narcissa said, taking Almina's hand, 'we just have to try again. I know having another child after losing one seems like the hardest thing in the world to do, but maybe it will heal these holes we have inside us.'

'Maybe,' Almina said quietly.

Narcissa frowned, 'What is it?'

'The reason I…when I left him alone, I swear Narcissa it couldn't have been for more than 5 minutes,' Almina said as fresh tears rolled down her cheeks, 'but I had no choice, I ran to the bathroom and threw up…I have done every morning since.'

Narcissa's eyes widened, 'Do you think…'

Almina nodded and sighed, 'I can only pray it's a girl. I can't go through this again.'

Narcissa nodded, tightening her grip on her friends' hand. They sat there in silence for a while, mourning the loss of their two sons.

Life moved on, but it wasn't easy to adjust. Almina's pregnancy progressed well, and she was relieved when she found out at her 3 month appointment in July that she was expecting a girl. It lightened both her mood and Pollux's, and despite the war raging and the death toll rising they had something to look forward to rather than dread. Even at this point, Pollux still hadn't joined the Death Eaters, despite the pressure they had put on him to do so.

Lucius's double life had been putting the pressure on both he and Narcissa. Things so far had been fairly simple at least. He had mostly been tipping off the light about attacks, and he had managed to save the lives of the Bone's family by doing so. He kept his life secret, and continued to meet with James Potter and relay information.

The summer passed, and the war reached unthinkable heights. Just when it didn't seem like it could get any worse, it did. Lucius had been pulled into more and more attacks, and he kept promising that he never killed anyone. Narcissa believed him, she just hoped she wasn't foolish in doing so.

Narcissa started to get sick in October, she put it down to a bad cold she had caught, but when the sickness didn't stop she realised it might be something more. She didn't tell Lucius that she had an appointment at St. Mungo's, she went instead with Almina who was by this point 6 months pregnant herself.

She was nervous as the Healer did the standard charms, but Almina was there as her moral support and she appreciated it.

'Well Mrs. Malfoy,' the Healer said with a smile, 'you are pregnant, 3 months along to be precise. I can tell you the sex if you'd like?'

Narcissa nodded, nervously awaiting to find out.

'It's a boy,' the Healer said, and Narcissa's face fell.

'Oh,' the Healer said with a confused frown, 'did you want a girl?'

Almina sighed, 'It's just…her last son had the Pureblood disease,' she told the Healer.

'Oh, I'm sorry Mrs. Malfoy,' the Healer said, 'I'm afraid I can't tell you whether or not this baby will have the disease. However I can tell you it is highly unlikely that it will, a child born directly after one with the disease tends to be healthy, its very rare for it to happen in that circumstance. The first born often has the disease, and often so does the 3rd or 4th child. Surveys show that the healthiest children are usually the 2nd and 5th.'

Narcissa smiled very slightly, 'I appreciate that, but I'll still worry.'

'I understand,' the Healer said, 'but please try not to, it might make the baby upset and cause you to go into labour prematurely.'

Narcissa nodded and thanked the Healer, then she left with Almina.

'Lucius, I need to talk to you…' Narcissa said that night after her Husband came home from a late night attack on a Muggle town.

Lucius sighed as he sat down in an armchair, 'What is it?'

Narcissa bit her lip, the last time she had been pregnant he had noticed. However with the war, and his double life he had been so tired and preoccupied all the time that he hadn't been noticing much.

'I'm pregnant Lucius, I had my 3 month appointment today.'

Lucius looked up in surprise, 'Pregnant?'

Narcissa nodded, 'I didn't realise until that bad cold didn't go away. I've been so caught up in all that's happening I didn't even realise…'

Lucius got to his feet and walked towards her, 'And is everything okay? Is it healthy?'

Narcissa nodded, smiling weakly, 'It's another boy…'

His face fell, as hers had earlier.

'The Healer said it's highly unlikely he'll have the disease, Lucius,' Narcissa said gently, 'he said the 2nd and 5th born children are usually the healthiest.'

There was a glimmer of hope in Lucius's eyes, 'He's going to be okay?'

'He should be,' Narcissa said with a slight smile.

Lucius smiled slightly too as he wrapped his arms around her, 'I love you, Narcissa,' he mumbled into her hair, 'and I want this to be over.'

'Me too,' Narcissa whispered as she relaxed into his embrace.

Narcissa and Lucius spent Christmas with Pollux and Almina again that year. Almina spent most of the day sleeping since she was due to give birth in a week or two, and Narcissa of course couldn't drink. It was a nice break from the world, an escape from all that was going on around them.

They didn't ring in the New Year, because they didn't believe all the reports in the Prophet about how this would be it, 1980 would be the year that Voldemort would be defeated. Lucius threw it in the fire and said it was nonsense.

On the 3rd of January, 1980, Almina went into labour. Narcissa couldn't be with her because she herself was pregnant and it wasn't safe. So this time she waited outside with Pollux and Abraxas. Pollux paced nervously and when they were finally allowed into the room it was to a beautiful sight.

Almina looked absolutely exhausted, but she was smiling too as she held her little baby girl, 'she's 100% healthy,' she said happily.

Pollux grinned as he sat down next to his wife and kissed her on the cheek, 'She's beautiful...you're beautiful.'

Almina smiled, gently kissing his lips, 'Narcissa, Lucius. Be her Godparents?'

'You don't even have to ask, Mina,' Narcissa said softly, kissing her friend on the forehead.

Almina smiled, 'She's perfect, isn't she?'

'She's beautiful,' Narcissa said, looking at the blonde-haired, blue-eyed girl, 'she looks just like you Mina.'

'I think we should call her Daphne,' Almina said with a yawn.

'Daphne?' Pollux asked in surprise, 'after your sister?'

'You have a sister?' Lucius asked in surprise.

'I did,' Almina said, 'she died when she was young, but she looks just like my sister…'

'Well I like the name Daphne, it's a nice name,' Pollux said, 'and it suits her.'

'What about her middle name?' Narcissa asked.

'Well we're not giving her my Mother's name, I think Lucretia sounds like the name of a Vampire,' Almina said, making Narcissa chuckle.

'How about Lysandra?' Pollux asked, 'for my Grandmother?'

Almina nodded thoughtfully, 'Daphne Lysandra Greengrass…I like it.'

'Then that's her name,' Pollux said, kissing his baby daughter on the forehead, 'welcome to the world, Daphne.'

6 months passed, and Daphne looked more and more like Almina with every passing day. Her eyes were the same ice-blue and her hair the same pure blonde, she was beautiful and healthy, and she was developing fast.

Almina had been trying to avoid getting ahead of herself. She knew Narcissa's son would be in the same Hogwarts year as her daughter, she knew they would grow up together, but she didn't want to put these dreams in Narcissa's head. If this second son also had the Pureblood disease it would just devastate her all the more.

When Narcissa did go into labour, 6 months later on the 2nd of June, Almina was by her side holding her hand. Pollux had to stay with Daphne, so Lucius paced the waiting room alone for the first time as he waited for news. The birth was long, longer than her last, and longer than both of Almina's. Lucius grew more and more anxious as time passed and when he was finally let into the room he practically ran to his wife.

She smiled broadly at him when he walked in, despite her exhaustion. He took it as a good sign as he looked at his son, a beautiful little blonde-haired boy with grey-ish blue eyes.

'He's healthy,' Narcissa said, 'he doesn't have the disease, he's healthy Lucius!'

Lucius couldn't contain his joy as he sat down by her side, kissing her softly, 'He's healthy,' he breathed.

Narcissa nodded, her smile faltering slightly, 'but there is another thing…the birth was bad.'

Lucius frowned, 'Are you okay?'

'I'll be fine,' Narcissa said, 'I'll just need a few more days in hospital, but I can't have anymore children.'

Lucius smiled somewhat sadly, 'Well it's a shame he won't have any siblings, but at least we have him now, and that's all that matters.'

'He'll have siblings,' Almina said with a smile, 'he'll grow up with Daphne.'

Narcissa smiled at her best friend, 'Speaking of that…will you be his Godparents, you and Pollux?'

'Of course we will,' Almina said, 'I don't even have to ask Pollux to know he'll agree.'

Narcissa smiled, feeling like the happiest person in the world as she looked from her son to her husband, 'Lucius, I think we should break from tradition.'

Lucius smiled slightly, 'What do you want to call him?'

'I don't want to name him after a family member,' Narcissa said, 'I want to name him Draco.'

Almina smiled knowingly, as did Lucius, 'For the dragon star.'

'Dragons are strong, they are survivors,' Narcissa said, not taking her eyes off of her son, 'just like he is.'

'Draco it is then,' Lucius said, 'shall we give him a middle name?'

Narcissa nodded, slipping her hand into her Husbands, 'Do you have any suggestions?'

'Abraxas,' Lucius said quietly, 'for his Grandfather, and his brother.'

Narcissa got a little teary, but she nodded, 'Draco Abraxas Malfoy…' she whispered.

'It sounds right,' Lucius said.

'It sounds perfect,' Narcissa agreed as she kissed her son on the head and he shut his eyes, nestling into her to go to sleep, 'hello, baby Draco.'

End of Part 1

A.N: I'm aware that Cygnus is supposed to live until 1992 but I sort of needed to kill him off because I couldn't be bothered writing him into the story...The Pureblood Disease is based on the 'Royal Disease' Haemophilia, I watched a documentary about it and I figured it worked for the story. Hope you enjoyed part 1! Part 2 will be uploaded shortly! :)

Thanks for reading!