Stronger Than Silver

Epilogue

"Grandfather! Look what I discovered!" the jubilant squeals of one playful Scorpius Malfoy filled an elder Lucius with intense joy and happiness.

They were relaxing in the garden of Malfoy Manor, now restored from the destruction brought about by the Dark Lord and no longer occupied by gruesome, ill-mannered Death Eaters who sometimes went as far as relieving themselves in the manor's pool.

The sun was bright, signaling a beautiful day of new beginnings, love, and fulfillment. Its rays caressed the folds and wrinkles of his now aged skin and set his graying blonde eyelashes aglow before his vision, dripping with glimmering sunlight.

A black fur cloak hugged his shoulders above the red velvet and gold. His hair was a wave at sea, flowing in the breeze.

He tucked a lock of silvery blonde hair, now full of life, health, and prosperity, behind his ear as he extended his arms to catch his grandson in a heartwarming embrace. The tiny blonde boy ran towards him with innocent joviality and hugged him with his little arms, bringing a smile of tranquilly to Lucius' lips.

His son Draco sat nearby the spraying fountain with his legs crossed, observing the tender scene before him with contentment and pride.

Lucius grinned. Over the years, his little dragon had become both taller in stature and more heavyset, his figure now complete with muscle. He had grown his hair long just like his father had. However, the most noticeable feature about him, Lucius had to admit, was the awkward yet astonishing presence of facial hair on his son's visage.

It had been eleven years, and Draco had become a man by now.

Lucius, on the other hand, had aged along with his wife Narcissa, who, at the moment, stepped out of the door of the Manor holding a silver tray of aromatic black tea and homemade biscuits.

"Would anyone care for some tea and biscuits?" she giggled, holding the tray effortlessly with one hand while she propped the other against her shapely hip. Lucius marveled at the sight. His wife looked absolutely gorgeous in the summer sun, wearing her cherished black lace dress, pearls, and milky white pumps.

He watched with a smirk while Narcissa handed Draco a cup of tea and a china plate with a biscuit drizzled with honey on top. He graciously accepted the treat from his mother with a polite nod and smile while little Scorpius ran to them from Lucius' arms, eager to take a bite too.

As Draco took a biscuit from the silver tray and handed it to his little boy, Narcissa playfully returned Lucius' smirk and pecked his cheek with delight, leaving a cheeky smudge of her red lipstick.

He blushed at the sudden display of affection and returned the kiss on her lips, causing Scorpius to giggle and Draco to glance around awkwardly.

As he pulled away from the kiss eventually, Lucius lifted his head and looked upward at the sky, taking in the trees, the pigeons, the doves, the clouds, the sun, and the clear sky.

He basked in the sunlight, living and enjoying the present moment for the first time in his life.

The past four decades had, if he wanted to look at it all in a negative light, been tragically wasted on superficial pride and service to one of the darkest cults he had ever known to assemble in the history of the wizarding world.

As much as he hated to acknowledge it, the Death Eaters he had grown so fond of and had thought considered the same of him were merely puppeteers with the ambitions of gaining pawns in their own twisted games, although, of course, the reason Lucius realized this was because he had the same blood on his hands.

In such a world so cynical, selfish, and mistrusting, was there ever hope for happiness, love, liberty, or freedom?

For years, Lucius had been blinded by the conception that the entire world was doom and gloom, full of liars, manipulators, murderers, and thieves with full self-interest and zero sincerity.

Was it true?

It seemed that for all the decades, Lucius had shielded himself from the light of the world, the side of the mundane world he so believed to exist that believed in love, happiness, friendship, justice, and the Truth.

It could have all been avoided so early on. Had he not tried to please his own father or ego to become the greatest wizard in mankind or to become a part of a cult of personality, he would have lived with half the chagrin.

Had he not lived to fulfill his self-esteem or lack thereof his entire life, he would have had a much smoother, happier existence.

Whilst he watched little Scorpius play with his father and his grandmother all the while nibbling on a sweet, buttery biscuit, he came to see such truth.

It was not about the riches, the appearance, the power, the influence or the status. Neither of those, despite his lifelong attempts at achieving all, had managed to paint a smile on Lucius' face as much as seeing his son and grandson thrive about with no care in the world did.

It did not matter who was watching; it did not matter if the entire outside world were to scorn and ridicule them. They had each other and their happiness, their joy, their merrymaking, and that was all that mattered.

Narcissa smiled tenderly at her husband, allowing him to enjoy the moment at ease.

For all he could afford or all he could accomplish, the inner turmoil did not seem to cease. The thoughts of self-destruction, the pain, the utter agony, the guilt, the fear, the hatred and jealousy, the bulimia, and the whole lot of it did not fail to penetrate his soul.

It was only harmony that led the way. Contentment, peace, and relief bloomed from neither glory or affluence but rather the simple virtues of care and togetherness.

Love did not have a price, but it was the cure.

For all the money in the world, he could not buy his way into his own paradise, but now he thrived.

His kin had led the way in a way that his pride could not.

Narcissa nestled her head against his shoulder, and Lucius sighed in contentment.

It was true the past fifty decades had flown by with anguish and a desperate greed for more from both self and society, but he had discovered the Truth now.

He was finally free.

As he shut his eyes beneath the glow of the sun that seemed to shine an aura of light and harmony around them, Lucius hoped the world would eventually break free from its shackles like he had.

After all, for all the strife that was worth and all the misery he had caused in over half a lifetime, he had awoken and seen light again.

He hoped they, too, would come to one day realize the truth as well.

It is never too late to change.