A Rose By Any Other Name

Chapter 8

Stepping out of the ancient contraption which he now knew to be called a lift or an elevator in America thanks to Arthur Weasley. He had never been fond of Weasley, his relaxed outlook on muggles made Lucius uncomfortable but muggle contraptions were all Arthur wanted to talk about. It now wasn't surprising that Lucius knew so much about them. Standing alone he was overcome by a tsunami of different emotions ....

Hate

Love

Regret

Happiness

Anger

He made his way down the hostile hallway towards room 12 where he knew his wife was residing. Approaching the door, he now noticed a crack where it hadn't been closed. Inside lay the alive, warm wife he had always known. Her platinum blonde hair now tied back in a neat braid that laid gracefully over her left shoulder. She looked less sickly and even without the enhancement of harmful cosmetics, her face could make any man jealous. This is what made him love her and hate her at the same time.

"You are still alive then ?" He sneered harshly with a slight hint of sarcasm as he perched on the end of the bed like a little bird would on a branch he was unsure of.

"The hint of disappointment in your voice that I am indeed alive and well is the saddest part. Do you hate me that much?" Wheezed Narcissa, still weak from the anaesthetic, which showed as she failed to lift herself form her laying position on the lumpy mattress. Taking her hand off of the cot next to the bed, she ran her fingers through the small strands of hair that framed her face. She had not yet failed to take her eyes of the sleeping infant beside her.

"I saved your life remember"

She rolled her eyes, taking them off of her heartless husband to focus on the book in her lap she had been reading before  her husband had entered.

"You shouldn't have bothered"

He ignored his wife, looking down at his daughter, noticing now her rather odd appearance. She bore no resemblance to himself, not like his son Draco did. Draco had his father's looks but his mother's warm, compassionate heart. This one had blonde hair, sky blue eyes and small delicate features. Baby photos of Narcissa could have easily been mistaken for this baby. This fact did not scare him, more confused him. The  Malfoy family had incredibly dominant genetic traits which had shown in all of their previous children, even the ones who didn't make it passed infancy or even the end of gestation. Their first daughter Lyra had been killed by the Dark Lord but to everyone else outside their circle, even Narcissa's father and mother, Lyra had died due to an unknown health condition. She had her mother's hair and face but Lucius' cold stone grey eyes but not this one. No. This little girl was destined to be different.

"She is beautiful" he started as he went to pick her up, only halting as his wife stopped him in his tracks "what is the matter with you?"

With a loom of disgust she replied "I do not want you to touch her". It was as if he was some sort of tropical disease.

Instinctively but self counscienly he slapped her around the face leaving a red mark which he knew would soon turn purple with age.

"She is my daughter, I can do what the hell I like with her"

She turned, edging away to protect herself from future predicted inflictions "she is not like me. I will not let you treat her like a possession like you have done to me all these years"

He was about to think of a cunning and snide remark but decided not to aggravate his wife anymore. He left his daughter sleeping, allowing her to dream and not open her eyes to this cruel, vast and ignorant world.

"We need a name for her. We always knew what we were going to call Draco, even if he was a girl. Any ideas?" He asked turning towards Narcissa, not looking directly at her as the look of not just her physical but her emotional pain was too much to bear.

"I don't know"

He thought " I have always had a soft spot french names since my mother insisted I learn french. Sort of names like Cecile, Aurelie or Lucille but well, what about you?"

Narcissa looked down, not wanting to look at the sympathy she could in her husband's eyes behind his painfully cold visage of power and wealth "There is one name I like"

"What is it" but Narcissa refused to reply, frustrating him somewhat "come on. It doesn't matter if I don't like it. What is the worst that could happen?"

Lucius waited with baited breath and fell silent as he saw his wife reply

"Evangeline. Evangeline Lily"

He looked back at his wife, starting to smile. He did to his surprise like the name. It suited her. He wasn't the biggest fan of her middle name choice, he had never enjoyed the name lily; preferring more obscure flower names like a Narcissa which meant daffodil in Latin or even Rose which was his pet name for his wife. Lucius however knew why Lily had been his wife's number one choice for her middle name: it was Harry Potter's mother's name. Throughout her youth, Narcissa had become incredibly close to Lily especially throughout the short period whilst Henry Potter, James' older brother, and Narcissa had been betrothed to each other. Narcissa often wished she had the chance to go back and thank Lily; She was the reason why her and Henry's partnership had been broken by her father, Cygnus. All because she was a muggleborn and her father didn't want Narcissa marrying into a family that would soon be tainted. Narcissa wished she didn't have these thoughts. These were dangerous times and this sort of mindset was pernicious. Lucius often wondered what secrets Lily Potter took of his wife's to the grave.

"Yeah. Yeah I like it"

Narcissa's eyes beamed like that of the rising sun, before picking her daughter up and cradling her as she started to coo and fuss. "Well then, that is your name darling. I love you Eva."

Lucius relaxed into the uncomfortable chair a little more. Even with the hate he felt for his wife's selfishness, he couldn't help but smile at the fact the love Narcissa had always felt for Draco was now also being shown for Evangeline. Also he felt bad. He was the one who was constantly drugging her and confining her to her bed. He had made her a prisoner in her own home.

A nurse entered the room, shooing Lucius out as she went to sit down. He exited the room and headed for the exit to the hospital, hanging his head low. Glumness and shame had been let into his life for the first time in forever. These sorts of emotions were foreign to Lucius and he wasn't coping well. He dissapaparated and once he was home he collapsed into a troubled heap on his bed, not knowing where to turn, or even ...

Who to call?