OWL: Once Upon a Time
Characters: Lucius Malfoy, Hermione Granger
Location: Respective
Date: 25th March, 2000
Status: Private
Summary: Lucius sends Hermione a little gift.
Completion: Complete
Lucius had been spending more time than usual in his mother's old library, most of it in conversation with her portrait, and most of that about Miss Granger. Eugenia was one of only two people (the other being Narcissa) that Lucius would have ever talked absolutely honestly to about the girl. He did still have reservations about her blood status, and about the fact that she was not known to his family in the way that the pure-blood girls of their acquaintance were, but he had to admit that she did possess some good qualities. Some of those qualities Lucius did have a lot of respect for: ambition, independence, the entrepreneurial spirit she had shown when talking about the cuff she had modified for Draco, and she appeared to be willing to work hard. He could find fault with none of that. And, more importantly, she did seem to love his son. If Draco could not -- or would not -- marry a pure-blood, then at least Lucius wanted him to marry someone he loved. More than that, though, Lucius wanted Draco to marry someone who loved him, and it appeared that he had found that with Miss Granger. Whether Lucius liked it or not, it seemed that the girl was going to become part of the family at some point, and he wondered whether it would not benefit them all if he were to be a little more welcoming.
After his meeting with Miss Granger in Flourish and Blotts, Lucius had, with his mother's blessing, selected a book of fairy stories from her personal collection to send to the girl. The book had been given to Eugenia as a birthday present when she was a girl: there was an inscription from Lucius' great aunt on the title page, and on some of the pages Eugenia had written her own commentary.
Despite having already decided that he was going to give the book away, Lucius had to admit he had difficulty parting with it now. Eugenia had obviously loved the book, and it had only dawned on Lucius just how much when he had leafed through it. In fact, he had spent a whole afternoon reading the book, and -- especially -- Eugenia's commentary. He suspected that his ancestors would have been scandalised by her additions, at the idea of a book being "spoiled" like that, but perhaps sometimes such additions were blessings in disguise.
Lucius had never really been a fan of fairy tales, but he did have to admit that some of them were well-written, and touched on a few of the more obscure wizarding traditions. Knowing his mother the way he did, it was no surprise that her favourite tale as a child had been The Vellum Butterfly, a story about a young witch with a talent for art whose magic first manifested in a picture of a butterfly she had painted. Eugenia had always loved painting, and now Lucius wondered whether her interest in it had been because of a desire to create something as beautiful as the Butterfly.
He picked up the book and flicked through it one last time before calling for a house-elf to wrap it for him, then put quill to parchment.
Miss Granger,
I believe the attached will interest you, given your fondness for the subject matter, and I ask that you accept it as a gift with my compliments. It is an older volume than you would find in Flourish and Blotts, and while there are few stories featuring dragons, I suspect you will find it an interesting read.
My apologies if this comes as something of a surprise.
Regards
Lucius Malfoy
Attached: book of wizarding fairy stories.
The house-elf reappeared soon after Lucius had finished writing the letter. Before he could think any more about it, Lucius summoned Helios.
"Hermione Granger," he said simply, handing the owl the package. Helios seemed to stare up at him with a rather quizzical and even slightly disapproving expression.
"It is what he wants," Lucius explained with a shrug, studiously ignoring the weary resignation that crept into his voice. Helios shuffled from one foot to the other, then took the package. Lucius felt the owl nip his finger, but in a way that was more affectionate than chastising. He scratched Helios behind the ear and watched the bird fly away.
Location: Respective
Date: 25th March, 2000
Status: Private
Summary: Lucius sends Hermione a little gift.
Completion: Complete
Lucius had been spending more time than usual in his mother's old library, most of it in conversation with her portrait, and most of that about Miss Granger. Eugenia was one of only two people (the other being Narcissa) that Lucius would have ever talked absolutely honestly to about the girl. He did still have reservations about her blood status, and about the fact that she was not known to his family in the way that the pure-blood girls of their acquaintance were, but he had to admit that she did possess some good qualities. Some of those qualities Lucius did have a lot of respect for: ambition, independence, the entrepreneurial spirit she had shown when talking about the cuff she had modified for Draco, and she appeared to be willing to work hard. He could find fault with none of that. And, more importantly, she did seem to love his son. If Draco could not -- or would not -- marry a pure-blood, then at least Lucius wanted him to marry someone he loved. More than that, though, Lucius wanted Draco to marry someone who loved him, and it appeared that he had found that with Miss Granger. Whether Lucius liked it or not, it seemed that the girl was going to become part of the family at some point, and he wondered whether it would not benefit them all if he were to be a little more welcoming.
After his meeting with Miss Granger in Flourish and Blotts, Lucius had, with his mother's blessing, selected a book of fairy stories from her personal collection to send to the girl. The book had been given to Eugenia as a birthday present when she was a girl: there was an inscription from Lucius' great aunt on the title page, and on some of the pages Eugenia had written her own commentary.
Despite having already decided that he was going to give the book away, Lucius had to admit he had difficulty parting with it now. Eugenia had obviously loved the book, and it had only dawned on Lucius just how much when he had leafed through it. In fact, he had spent a whole afternoon reading the book, and -- especially -- Eugenia's commentary. He suspected that his ancestors would have been scandalised by her additions, at the idea of a book being "spoiled" like that, but perhaps sometimes such additions were blessings in disguise.
Lucius had never really been a fan of fairy tales, but he did have to admit that some of them were well-written, and touched on a few of the more obscure wizarding traditions. Knowing his mother the way he did, it was no surprise that her favourite tale as a child had been The Vellum Butterfly, a story about a young witch with a talent for art whose magic first manifested in a picture of a butterfly she had painted. Eugenia had always loved painting, and now Lucius wondered whether her interest in it had been because of a desire to create something as beautiful as the Butterfly.
He picked up the book and flicked through it one last time before calling for a house-elf to wrap it for him, then put quill to parchment.
Miss Granger,
I believe the attached will interest you, given your fondness for the subject matter, and I ask that you accept it as a gift with my compliments. It is an older volume than you would find in Flourish and Blotts, and while there are few stories featuring dragons, I suspect you will find it an interesting read.
My apologies if this comes as something of a surprise.
Regards
Lucius Malfoy
Attached: book of wizarding fairy stories.
The house-elf reappeared soon after Lucius had finished writing the letter. Before he could think any more about it, Lucius summoned Helios.
"Hermione Granger," he said simply, handing the owl the package. Helios seemed to stare up at him with a rather quizzical and even slightly disapproving expression.
"It is what he wants," Lucius explained with a shrug, studiously ignoring the weary resignation that crept into his voice. Helios shuffled from one foot to the other, then took the package. Lucius felt the owl nip his finger, but in a way that was more affectionate than chastising. He scratched Helios behind the ear and watched the bird fly away.