When Hermione Fights

The Right Hand

Chapter beta: Dani

Chapter translator: Aivy

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Lucius' POV

I sat in my salon as usual and ruffled Duke's amazingly soft fur. I liked my Wolfhounds; they radiated such a deep, inner peace, and yes, I enjoyed it to the fullest that Severus hated them as he hated everything!

It was always wonderfully amusing to wind him up with my pets. I will never forget his face when I showed him that the peacocks had laid eggs for the very first time and since that day their population on my land had increased exorbitantly.

He had only growled that, should he now grill one, at least I would still have enough. It had been very, very funny, for me, of course. Severus had looked more like he had consumed something inedible.

What had made me think of that?

Well, Severus had just hurried out of that door with his most closed off and sullen expression, as only he could, and that very expression had reminded me of earlier times. He was not at all happy about the development, I just did not understand why.

Very satisfied for my part, I now looked into the blazing red, golden yellow flames and heard their crackling. A log collapsed noisily, bursting into orange-red sparks and the woody smell of the burning logs spread throughout the room. While the play of colours captivated me and I thought of the night and the following day, I could not see what had caused him to become so obstinate again, but Severus had always been like that.

He was certainly not a simple man, but he was brilliant, a valuable unique specimen, just like me, only in a different way. We complemented each other splendidly.

He was not only my kinsman, no, he was my brother in spirit. Many would be horrified if they knew how close we really were.

I would have done so much, if not everything, for Severus. For the first time, I had proved it when I wiped his father, that inferior scum, from the face of the earth and let us say, it had not been a clean or quiet goodbye that had befallen Tobias Snape. No one did, to any member of my family, what that Muggle had presumed and dared to do to Eileen and Severus.

I had only waited until all who could have stopped me from taking revenge were dead and I knew Severus was grateful, happy and simply glad never to see that man again. He had also never asked, had only accepted that I had settled the matter to everyone's complete satisfaction.

And that brought me back to my starting point, because a part of my life had also found a spontaneous end yesterday. I was free as I had not been since I was nineteen years old.

Narcissa was dead!

I got rid of that nagging, evil woman once and for all! I was very pleased. Why had I not eliminated her earlier? Or had her eliminated by someone else?

Good question, but this woman I hated, or rather, had not cared for, had been Draco's mother. I had respected her in that role and over the years the ignorance had moved in as well. It was a well-coordinated arrangement that I could live with, but thanks to my newest family member I had regained an unimagined freedom that was frightening in its extent.

Yes, Hermione Granger, a Mudblood, had freed me from my proper, pure-blooded wife, and if Draco had not claimed her so vehemently, she would have been MY by now!

I gritted my teeth and squeezed the silver snake that formed the head of my cane until it cut painfully into the palm of my hand.

There was something about that woman that I was desperate to possess. Severus and Draco would be amazed if they knew how much I wanted her by now. I was glad Draco had accepted her into the family. If I had got my hands on her, I would have made the mistake, the unforgivable mistake, and not taken that step. That would have been the first mistake, but also the biggest in my life; I was willing to admit that with a heavy heart. Groaning angrily, I still looked into the flames while I admitted to myself that all this would not be easy. But nothing was impossible, nothing at all!