A/N: When I first read the Harry Potter books, I cheered when Dobby protected Harry from Lucius. When I watch the movies, it is still one of my favorite scenes from Chamber of Secrets. At the end of the fifth book, I was saddened by the death of Sirius Black, annoyed that it wasn't Bellatrix or Lucius. By the end of the last book, I wasn't so bloodthirsty regarding Lucius but still wanted him punished along with his wife.

I am not saying Lucius is a good guy in the books, far from it. It's more, I find myself feeling a bit more tempered about things as a result of how he is so desperate to find his son and how humiliated he is by the last book. It's why I find myself so sympathetic to the character in my stories. I am using the character to write the story, but am not blind to his fault, after all my other stories are about what are little more than criminals finding happiness, so please no FLAMES.

When I was asked to write a romance for Harry Potter fan fiction; I considered all of the standards involving the kids, but realized that I didn't want to write about teenagers falling in love, I do that already in my other stories and I didn't want to write a story with the primary characters aged again.

While on sabbatical from posting due to outside issues, I have still been writing and will be posting updates to my stories, starting with Society of the Vestas, since it is the one closer to being finished. Then I have a series of stories that are partially finished from one where

Now for the legalese: I am only borrowing the characters and playing with them, all familiar characters belong to Jo and her publishing company.

Lucius vs Grim Reaper

Chapter One-George the Reaper

Lucius Malfoy, the former Death Eater, sat in the waiting room, more patiently than he ever would have in life. As he sat there, his mind went over his now ended life and while he had huge regrets, he did have what he considered most important, a son who had a son of his own. Draco had had a rocky start to his adult life thanks to his father's choices, but his son had proven the ability to rise about his reputation and soar. His wife Astoria had given birth to their grandson and while they didn't often agree on how they were raising young Scorpius, he at least had to be appreciative that his family line WAS still pure and that it would continue into the next millennium.

"Malfoy. Lucius Malfoy?" Lucius stood and stumbled for a moment, his eyes landing on his damnable weakness resulting from an injury he received during the first war.

A small blond moved in his direction, looked him over and with a shake of her head, directed him to follow her. Once they were in the small bland office, she shut the door behind them and went around to sit behind the desk. "My name is Georgia Lass, I am your Reaper."

Lucius gritted his teeth, annoyed at the disrespect he was being shown. When the young woman who just tilted her head to the left and bit her nails instead of speaking, he finally snapped "Well?"

"Do you really want me to begin your evaluation, Mr. Malfoy?" She asked. "Even you with your spectacular sense of self-delusion have to know that you did not live your life up to your full potential."

"How dare you speak to me that way." He roared at the girl who looked like she was the age of his grandson. "How old are you anyhow?"

"If you are asking how old I am, well on my last death day, I was sixty-four. If you were asking how old I was when I died, I was eighteen." She replied as she leaned back clearly not scared by his anger. "Sit down, Lucius."

"I expect to be treated with respect." He snarled.

She let out a small chuckle and then flipped open the folder on her desk, removed the yellow post-it notes and stuck it on the corner of her desk and began to read out loud. "Lucius Malfoy, age 56 and six months."

When she stopped reading, he let out a loud sigh and then snarled "Well get on with it."

"You, Lucius Malfoy were meant to live to the ripe old age of a 125." She answered. "You didn't even succeed to manage to live to half that."

"Well, that rat bastard Ron Weasley killed me while my back was to him." He snarled. "What do you expect from a Weasel like him?"

Shaking her head in disappointment, she answered: "Ron Weasley would have never become an auror if not for your mistakes."

When she saw him perk up, she let out an exasperated sigh of her own and said: "He would have never had Hermione Granger to keep on his case about his schoolwork and would have flunked out during his fifth year but for your mistakes and the mistakes of your son."

When she saw him about to protest this statement, she said "This will go a lot faster if I talk and you listen. And by listen I don't mean ignore what I am saying, no I mean, listen and take my words and the warning to heart."

"Now, as I was saying, Lucius Malfoy whose family line will end by the year 2075 when your grandson dies without issue due to consanguinity." She read on and ignored his muttering. "The records show that this is also different than what was supposed to be your life. You should have has four children of your own and a total of seventeen grandchildren."

"My wife and I could not have more children." He snapped.

"Actually according to my file, the issue wasn't biological." She answered as she went back to reading this time silently and Lucius would growl when she would shake her head at something and tsk quietly to herself.

When she read the final page in her file, she closed it and looked at him yet again. "You, Mr. Lucius Abraxas Malfoy have lived an unfulfilled life. You have harmed innocents and murdered in the name of a madman. When you received a second chance at the end of this madman's life, you simply refused to face that you were wrong."

"I don't understand what you think you know, but you are wrong." He replied.

"Really?" She asked. "Well, I have someone who needs to speak to you. If after you have spoken to him, we will talk again, Mr. Malfoy."

With that, she stood and went to the doorway. Opening the door, she invited in the gentleman standing there and greeted him. "Albert, this is Mr. Malfoy. He is your newest charge."

"Thank you, Lass." He replied and entered the room, closed the door and sat down at the desk. He read the same file that George had read and then sat back to look at the man sitting across from him. "Mr. Malfoy, my name is Albert Einstein. My name won't mean a thing to you, my family fled Germany to escape Grindelwald and his followers but my mother was Greta Sununu a pureblood witch connected to the Rookwood line. So what I am about to tell you was studied by my family line for years."

Lucius was annoyed as the wild-haired wizard began to go through his family line, highlighting the different marriages and who they were connected to in various colors as he went on and on about marrying your cousins.

Two hours later, Lucius snapped. "I get it, I get it, Marrying your cousins is wrong. However, I didn't do that and neither did my son."

"Wrong. If you look here, Astoria Greengrass family line interconnects to the Black family tree at least four times." Einstein stated, moving his pointer to those particular marriages.

"So, what you are saying is that if I had wanted my line to continue to the future, I should have checked to see if my daughter-in-law was related to the Black family?" He asked sounding doubtful in spite of agreeing a half hour before.

"The problem is that every few generations there is that one large pureblood family that has several children who marry into many different families making them all connected," Einstein replied.

"I would never let my son marry a muggleborn and it sounds like that is what you are suggesting is necessary." He sneered.

"No, no, that isn't what I am saying, Mr. Malfoy. Quite frankly the short-sightedness of your British magical world is astounding in that you failed to realize that disowning squibs and sending them out into the muggle world without keeping an eye on them for potential magical children was naive. Most of your so-called muggleborn children are really the children of discarded squibs."

That threw the dark wizard for a loop. "What are you saying? That mudbloods are really purebloods?"

"No, more like half-blood wizards who if they trace their lines back, would find a pureblood family who disowned them. It's why in spite of all of Molly Weasley's manipulations, the grandchildren she received from her youngest son Ronald and Hermione Granger were nothing more than average. Ms. Granger was the child of a squib line that interconnected back to the Weasley line on her husband's side."

"Compared to their father, the children are an improvement, they would have to be." Lucius acidly sneered.

"Yes, well that was a marriage not meant to happen. It was only through the heavy-handed manipulation of Molly that it did so that she could achieve her goal of her daughter being married to the oh so famous Harry Potter and because Dumbledore was convinced that Potter needed a pureblood wife to keep him connected to the magical world." Einstein replied.

"Now back to your own family, there were a few choices that were available to young Draco that would have improved your bloodline."

"Let me guess, the aforementioned Granger chit." Lucius spat out.

"No, no, Ms. Granger's future was not meant for your son," Einstein replied. "In fact, there was a choice of several pureblood witches who would have extended your line that you ignored."

Lucius scoffed and then said, "Let me guess the Weasley bint."

"No, no, she is related to the Black family, just like the Potter boy. It's why their own children never lived up to their father's potential." Einstein answered. "I am not going to give you a name, just to tell you that natural selection, allowing your son the freedom of true choice would have given you what you longed for."

"Why are you even telling me this? It's not like I can go back and change things." Lucius stated. "Quite frankly I can't think of the purpose of this ridiculous meeting."

"Well, I think that you are now well primed to speak to your next interview," Einstein said as he gathered his papers and walked towards the door. Stopping just as he was about to leave, he looked at Lucius and said: "You made a good choice with your wife even if your marriage never lived up to its potential, trust your son to do the same."

Outside the door, George Lass, aka Grim Reaper received a nod from their wizard scientist and sent in her next 'helper'.

Lucius looked over and saw the man entered the office and rolling his eyes as he sat down across from him behind the same battered desk that the others had used. "Don't you have anything better to do?"

"I am sure there are a plethora of more interesting activities I could be indulging in, Lucius." Snape drawled while smirking at the man who sent him to the dark lord to meet his death. "If this was my freely given judgment you would have already been sent where it is nice and toasty. Upon my arrival, I too had an adjudication hearing. At it, I learned enough to make me accepting if not happy I was no longer among the living."

Lucius looked down at the marble floor and then over at the man who had once been his friend. "I did what I needed to protect my son."

"I am aware of that," Severus replied. "Lucius, you are going to be shown several scenes from your life, if at the end you believe you were anything more than a minion of our former master..."

"I am well aware of my past mistakes." Lucius sneered. "I was a foolish young man who never wanted to face that he had no intention of sharing power with anyone. We were simply his to do with as he pleased. I knew that before the end of the second war."

"We were less than even that, Lucius. In truth, his hatred of muggles was a fallacy. He loathed everyone, wizard, muggle, creature. We were all beneath him." Severus replied.

"When in truth, we were better than him," Lucius replied. "He was nothing more than a half-blood, one with a muggle father in fact."

"No." Severus denied that statement to the older wizard's shock. "Yes, his ancestry was as you stated, however, Lucius he was a powerful wizard. I believe you already had a consolation with Albert."

"Yes, yes, his whole spiel about how we are interconnected," Lucius replied. "I am well aware that the dark lord's mother was the child of a brother and sister."

"Lucius, listen to what he is saying. He was speaking the truth." Severus replied.

"It does not matter, Severus, I am dead," Lucius replied.

"Relax, look at the memories and see how our world was sent on the false path of our mistakes," Severus replied as he used wandless magic to call forth the same pensive he had been shown.

Lucius shook his head at this complete waste of his time but accepted the pensive before Severus stood and exited the small office leaving him alone. Lucius felt his curiosity get the better of him as he dipped his head forward and looked at the memories left for him.

Memories of his life and family, including the well-hidden secret about the true state of his marital life; memories from others, mainly Dumbledore if he had to guess; finally the last memories had to have been from Potter. Removing himself from the pensive, Lucius grimaced and wondered how they had memories of the living here in the afterlife.

"Mr. Malfoy, shall we start again." George Lass asked as the young girl sat down across from him. "Now, you have several options. You should be aware that each comes with its own set of restrictions and provisos."

"How many options could there be?" He scoffed. "I am dead."

"Yes, you are." She replied, her eyes met his and he saw that she might look like a teenager, but there was an agelessness to her that had him curious what she had seen that made her the way she was.

"Are you a witch?" He inquired.

She smirked for half a second and then said "No, a muggle I believe you call my sort. I grew up in Seattle, in the States. Had a mortifying death only to be told I wasn't passing on just yet, instead I was a reaper for several years. I was promoted to premature death accounts when your former master returned and sent many to us way before their time."

"Now, we have wasted enough of my time, let's begin with what your options are," George stated. " The First option, you stay dead. You go to purgatory and work to earn your way. That was the option taking by your former friend, Severus Snape. He refused to go back when given that choice."

"What are my other options?" Lucius replied, curious as to what she would tell him. As far as he had always known, dead meant you were dead.

"Second Option, reborn into a muggle soul." She saw his outrage and allowed a small smile to grace her lips and said: "I am guessing that isn't a choice you would accept though, I should tell you, that option has you as muggle prime minister by the end of the century."

"I am a wizard, not some bloody muggle." He spat out.

"Okay, so I will draw a line through option two." She said picking up a quill and doing so in dark green ink. "Option three, reborn as a wizard, a muggleborn wizard."

When he grimaced but stayed silent, she read the next paragraph and announced "Option four, you return to your body at a time predetermined by the higher-ups and work to achieve whatever assignment that they give you. This would allow you to return to your family. However, the downside is that if you fail in your assignment or you try to deviate from their requests, you end up in Hades, no intervention, just straight to hell."

"How long do I have to decide?" He inquired.

"Mere minutes." She replied as she leaned back in her chair and looked at the wizard sitting across from her. "Quite frankly, as your premature death account representative, if I were you, I would choose option three, because I doubt that you have it within you to stay the course and obey the strictures that would be put upon you for option four."

Removing a small hourglass that lasted for three minutes, she sat it down between them on the desk, flipped it and said: "When the last grain of sand lands in the bottom, you have to tell me your choice."

Lucius didn't want to relive his life, but he also didn't want to live as a muggleborn wizard, either. Those were, unfortunately, the best of the options he had been given. Glaring at the grains of white sand dropped way too quickly for his peace of mind, he still hadn't made his choice when she looked at him and with a professional looking smile on her face asked "Your choice?"

Lucius wanted to say he needed more time but to his shock, he heard himself say "Option four."

"Good, good, let's go then. We need to see if they want you." She said as she picked up the file on her desk and briskly led him out the door and down a long marble corridor to a set of large brass double doors.

The Reaper knocked on them and after a small delay the large doors were flung open and there stood the strangest creature that Lucius Malfoy had ever seen, it looked like a cross between a goblin and a house elf. "A new recruit for us, I see."

The Reaper bowed and announced "Lucius Abraxas Malfoy, British Wizard, for your consideration."

The small green thing creature took the file and scanned it, clearly debating between accepting him and staring hard at Lucius. Lucius felt something a small tug at his memories and before he could complain saw the creature looking at all of his personal memories.

The creature pulled out of his mind and then looking at George Lass announced: "On behalf of the Altered Fates Correction Service, we thank you for this wizard and hope that he proves honorable."

"Good luck," George said to him then Lucius found himself floating forward to his shock. When he started to speak, he heard the loud gong sound echoing through the chamber as the brass doors closed.

"Welcome, Lucius Malfoy, to your last chance at a successful life."

TO BE CONTINUED

A/N: Georgia(George)Lass was a Grim Reaper on a canceled Showtime television show called Dead Like Me. I needed a reaper, she came to mind. Oh, she will be back later on in the story to annoy Lucius. The last chapter had a reaper, this chapter has a Jedi, but they are briefly part of the story, this is not a crossover fanfic, I just needed characters with certain characteristics, and those I choose make brief appearances as needed in each chapter.

Lucius vs Yoda and Minerva

Chapter Two-Bonds of Love/Knowledge is Gained

Yoda looked at the man whose own magic was holding him flat on the stone altar, his memories and emotions wide open as Yoda looked to find what he needed to know before choosing when to send him.

Searching for his strongest emotions, he soon found the man's love for his family. Looking at the events that had shaped the man, he found the many, many forms of love that this man had blocked off to keep from experiencing pain.

Agape, the general love for your fellow man was completely missing from his life. There was literally no love for humankind, but there was also no manic love, not even for his former master. In truth, Lucius Malfoy was a fairly normal wizard, true agape love, was rare.

Pragma love, the pragmatic sort of back-scratching love was also rare in Lucius Malfoy's life. He had a need to dominate that Yoda was rather curious about, as it usually stemmed from a lack of self-worth but the one characteristic he could see was that Lucius Malfoy had a very high sense of self-worth. The thing was, most humans needed this type of love, it was the result of day to day contact with others.

Stordic love, the love of a friend, was a more common sort of love, but it was a rarity in Lucius Malfoy's life. He had had it once, with Severus Snape until he had betrayed him to protect his son. Lucius had covered up his emotions regarding this event and when Yoda opened that tightly closed box, what he saw in there had him smiling as he realized that there was a good chance that this man could be reformed into what they needed.

Familial love was one of the few types of love Lucius allowed himself to feel, Yoda saw but when he went to follow the last pathway, the one that led to Eros, the passionate love that often began most marriages, Yoda ran into large wall, one that he even with all of his skill couldn't scale without work.

Taking a break, moving to sit and meditate, Yoda thought over what he saw. Yes, there was potential in the wizard on the altar and he was certain that whatever he was hiding behind that last solidly built impenetrable brick wall was the way forward to understanding if this man was worthy of trust.

Waking the wizard up, Yoda questioned him about his love for his wife, which the older wizard evaded, only replying that of course, he loved his wife. He was more verbose about his son and grandson.

Yoda bowed to the wizard, called for one of his staff and sent the wizard to his private quarters suggesting that he have a rest explaining that he would speak to him in eight hours.

Eight Hours later, Yoda retrieved the wizard himself and began to once again plow through his memories and emotions this time looking at who he hated.

There was the blind hatred of muggles and muggleborn, a learned emotion that Yoda knew only knowledge and familiarity would cure. He soon opened the pathway that had been closed by Lucius being raised by his father.

There was the hatred of individuals. Looking at those memories and emotions, Yoda could see that most were the result of a simple insult or event which combined with how Lucius Malfoy overreacted due to his pride led to this antipathy for certain individuals.

The emotions resulting from pain, fear, betrayal, and death had created this man, now Yoda had to make him realize that he had also experienced joy and the simple pure happiness that one feels in life. Unblocking but leaving closed those pathways, knowing that the wizard had to find the path to happiness on his own, Yoda released him from his spell and sent him back to his chambers.

Speaking to his compatriot, Dr. Freud, they discussed the dreams that the man had had and both were uncertain he would be able to follow the guidelines he would be sent back with. "It should be left up to him. He needed to be given his options again and if he stays the path, we send him on."

Lucius listened to what the odd creature and the old man smoking a smelly pipe had to say and this time, he was even more definitive as he answered he wished to return as himself.

"I will think on it, I will," Yoda announced as he exited the wizards chambers,

Soon alone in his meditation chamber, Yoda looked through the man's memories, yet again and this time, he found it. A pathway that was well hidden and barely navigable. What he eventually saw had him sending a message to those who needed to know. "Lucius Malfoy, British Wizard, has passed his qualifications."

Lucius followed the small creature to yet another set of doors, this time of they looked to have been cast out of iron. The creature that called itself Yoda closed his eyes and within seconds the doors opened and when the person within looked at Yoda he announced "Lucius Abraxas Malfoy, British Wizard, for your consideration."

The tall thin woman that reminded Lucius of his former transfiguration teacher seemed to be assessing him for a moment then turned back to Yoda and said: "On behalf of the Altered Fates, Wisdom and Strategy Division, we thank you for this wizard and hopes that he proves honorable."

"Wizard Lucius, do or do not, there is no try. May the force be with you." The green creature bowed to Lucius and he once again found himself being enclosed by a set of doors behind him.

"Welcome, Lucius Malfoy, I am the Goddess Minerva, I shall endeavor to impart the wisdom and truth you shall need on the path you shall forge."

The platinum blond wizard was fed and ordered to bed like a toddler, wishing to protest, he didn't dare as the ageless woman in front of him seemed to know his every thought as she let out a low chuckle and then announced: "You will learn as you sleep."

The next morning, he arose, holding his head as he dealt with all the knowledge that had been dumped into his brain overnight. The woman who was his guide only led him to a nearby table and asked: "Do you have any questions?"

"Why are you showing me this?" He asked not understanding why if they wanted him to return to the magical world would they be teaching him so much about the muggle world.

He had seen what seemed like a millennium's worth of history in one night and as the data settled into various parts of his mind, he was gaining access to it and finding he really wasn't happy about it.

"You will understand when time progresses." She serenely announced and then led him to a nearby natural hot spring than told him to undress and soak.

With a raised eyebrow he looked at her and said "Do you intend to stay? If so, please turn around."

"Oh get over yourself, Lucius. I have lived for over three thousand years, trust me. I have seen many a naked man. I know it will come as a shock to you, but frankly, you all have the same twigs and berries, but if you are so worried about it, I will, of course, turn my back."

The next few days and nights, the pattern set the first day was followed. Every night he would be ordered to bed and he would awaken with knowledge of many things, both magical and muggle.

Once awake as he soaked in the hot springs, his body healed from the damage that had been inflicted on it in his youth and his mind acclimated to the knowledge he had gained.

Twenty-six days later, he was ordered to wear the robes he found when he awoke, then once dressed, Lucius followed Minerva to a different room where he was ordered to be seated.

"Lucius Malfoy, do you consider yourself worthy of this honor?" He heard the dark voice sneer. The former Death Eater looked around, seeing no one, he didn't respond.

"You were asked a question. I am awaiting an answer." The voice stated.

"Who are you?" Lucius inquired, refusing to answer someone he couldn't see. "Show yourself?"

There was a sardonic chuckle from the far corner and a dark-haired man moved forward with a grace that belayed the marks on his skin. "I am the person who is going to decide your ultimate fate, Lucius Abraxas Malfoy. I am Hades."

When the blond had dealt with his introduction, Hades looked at him and asked. "So do you consider yourself worthy of this honor."

"I intend to honor my commitment but who is to say that anyone is worthy of anything." Lucius smoothly replied in what he hoped was the accepted answer.

Clapping his hands together in a way that made Lucius feel like he was being mocked, Hades moved to stand in front of the wizard. "Nicely said, but we both know that deep down you feel like you have a right to this honor. A right that in truth if we didn't need to send someone back to fix the mistakes of the past, you wouldn't be receiving."

Hades moved around Lucius to stand next to what looked like a large window and touched it on the lower right-hand corner. "We considered plenty of others, but they were either too in awe of Albus Dumbledore or wanted to return to avenge the wrongs he allowed to happen by ending his life prematurely. Unfortunately, Dumbledore must survive until the spring of 1997."

"What is to be my task?" Lucius inquired, hoping to finally get answers he had longed for.

"It's quite simple really. You are going to go back to May 1991 and in June your son is going to receive his acceptance letter to Hogwarts. Once that happens, you will use that letter to locate Harry James Potter and while you cannot remove him from the residence in which he abides, you will be watching over the young wizard and making sure that his relatives leave him alone and that he isn't steered into dying at too young of an age. If he befriends your son, it matters not. What is more important is that you must be seen as an avenue to protection for the young wizard. If you do this, when things finally come to a head, your family will be protected from your past follies."

"Sounds easy enough," Lucius replied wearing a frown on his face. "What is the downside?"

"The Headmaster will surely try to interfere, Molly Weasley will definitely try to interfere and of course, there are the ones you call muggles. I believe when you see what is truly going on, you like many others before you including your good friend Severus Snape, you will wish to end their existence on earth. Unfortunately, you cannot." Hades stated.

"This is all I am required to do? Rescue the boy who lived?" He asked doubtfully.

"No, Lucius Malfoy, that is your main goal but once you have achieved this, you have a secondary goal. The goal of righting the wrongs of your family. You were meant to father four children with your wife, stand as the grandfather for four times that amount but in order to do this, you must overcome your own ego."

Lucius frowned at that statement but Hades kept speaking. "You also must allow your children free reign in who they marry. If you do so, you will gain what you secretly long for."

With that, Hades placed his hand on the window again and Lucius saw his wife and son, mourning his loss. "Your family grieves for you. Your son feels regret that he never had a close relationship with you in spite of how often the two of you attempted to gain this. Your wife, well she has long wished for a closer relationship, a better marriage, but you allowed your fear of loss to take over your life... take this chance you have been given to right these mistakes. Your reaper will be there if you should have any questions, otherwise, we will be sending you back during the next time slip."

TO BE CONTINUED