Halloween Gift from Wisp of a Spook
Author: wisp_of_a_spook
Title: The Haunted Wood
Pairing: Lucius Malfoy/Narcissa Malfoy
Rating: PG for spookiness
Warnings: Ghosts, mention of death
Summary: Lucius is lost to the wraiths of the wood and Narcissa braves death to remind him of his humanity.
The forest rose dark and unforgiving around Narcissa. Her breath frosted the air. Thousands of bones littered the ground, ghostly white against the dark soil. Vertebrae scattered like marbles. The arcing curve of ribs like scythes. Teeth clustered like patches of snow that never melted.
Narcissa’s courage quailed yet she forged deeper into the trees. A whisper of wind swirled around her ankles with a hiss of warning.
Then the smell hit her, turning her stomach. Sour. Fetid.
Death.
A sob welled up in Narcissa’s throat. But she wasn’t leaving without her husband, dead or alive.
Movement caught her attention. The shift of shadow.
Lucius emerged from the trees. His face was faded, smudged like charcoal. His eyes were glazed milky white. When he opened his mouth, he let out an unearthly howl like a wolf on the hunt.
He descended, hurtling toward her with inhuman speed.
Narcissa felt something tear, deep inside her. Yanked. Broken. Cold filled her lungs, making every breath burn.
She was too late.
Her soul wrenched free of her chest. Lucius caught it in his hand, the blazing light caged in the darkness of his fingers. All he had to do was swallow it and she would be dead.
"Lucius," she croaked.
His head twitched toward her.
"It's me. Narcissa."
He clenched his teeth. Clutched her soul so tight Narcissa wheezed, crumpling to her knees.
"I’m here to bring you home."
Slowly, Lucius sank to the ground in front of her. He pressed his palm to her chest, holding her soul in place until it settled again.
Narcissa clutched his icy hand and buried her face in his shoulder. Haltingly, as if he’d almost forgotten how, Lucius brushed a kiss to her temple.
"My love," he rasped. "You came for me."