Poisonous Kiss (check description,DISCONTINUED)

Chapter 15: Worries

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Lucius was lounging in bed. He did not usually indulge himself like this, meaning getting up late from bed and ordering the house elves to bring him breakfast in bed but the blond truly wanted to savour the feelings he had from the night before. The plan had gone off without a hitch and the aftermath was amazing. He was still basking in the afterglow of his time with Harry. He could still taste the sweetness of Harry's lips, the softness of the teen's skin, the silky softness of his hair, the view of that tantalising body. He had gotten a glimpse the night before and the promise of more with the teen had kept Lucius awake for a while after he returned from Hogwarts.

But now that it was morning the feeling, still strong, was a bit dulled by the image of the Dark Mark on Lucius arm. The blond was eyeing the tattoo with a mixture of distaste and regret and no small amount of revulsion. It was getting darker these days and Lucius knew that it could only mean one thing and one thing alone. The Dark Lord was getting stronger.

Harry rubbed his forehead when he woke up. There was a dull ache there and it reminded Harry of the pain he had felt earlier that summer. There had been no vision this time and the green eyed teen was not disappointed by this, more like relieved about this, but the worry lingered. It was why he had decided to write a couple of letters before even getting dressed. One for Sirius, one for Bill and one for Lucius. In each letter the Gryffindor mentioned the pains with his scar, the dull feelings he received. He knew that Sirius at least would tell Harry to talk with Dumbledore, but the teen could honestly now say that he did no longer trust the Headmaster explicitly, not like he used to. Harry was willing to believe Bill or Lucius more nowadays. Between the two of them, the green eyed youth hoped that he could find out what was happening with his scar and put an end to it.

As the situation would have it, it was a few days since the Yule Ball, a few days since the night he had given in to the pull that existed between him and Lucius and the teen did not regret it, for most of the day at least. But whenever he came across Draco Malfoy, his feelings of inadequacy and the feeling that what he and Lucius were doing was wrong in so many ways returned and Harry felt guilt towards the blond Slytherin and his mother. Each time he came face to face with Draco it was harder to ignore the fact that Lucius was in fact his father. That was one concern he had not shared with Lucius and had instead discussed with Bill. The red headed Curse Breaker had advised him to actually talk this through with Lucius and that the blond Head of the Malfoy family might even surprise him.

Lucius had still been admiring his gifts when the owl he used to write to Harry and Harry alone, returned carrying a letter from Hogwarts.

The blond wizard had received all kinds of trinkets, again the house elves had been tasked with shelving the items. His son, Draco, had once again opted to gift him with something rare, a pocket watch made of white gold and gems, with a delicate thread chain to attach to his vest and the Malfoy coat of arms decorating the outside. It was beautiful work and Lucius already planned to wear it to the New Year Ball at the Ministry that Narcissa had managed to convince him into attending.

His wife had opted on practical as well, gifting him with his favourite perfume, straight from the parfumerie that made it in Paris. He had been running low as it was and her thoughtfulness had been nice.

Severus for all the disagreements they had been having lately, had gifted him with a collection of potions centred around skin care and hair care. It was both a nice gesture and a teasing comment towards the blond who had a much younger lover.

Speaking of Harry, the green eyed minx had been a surprise. The teen had sent him a book in Latin about sex magic, one Lucius had not read yet. Harry had not stopped there. He had sent Lucius a comb made of ivory and the blond recognised it for what it was. Harry had grown attached to Lucius' hair and every opportunity he got he would sink his fingers in them. Only one time he had managed to comb the silky strands, after a session between the two of them in Severus office. Seeing the comb had been a message to Lucius, a message of intimacy. The blond already had a plan concerning the teen and this comb only cemented his decision to go through with it.

What Lucius cared about more now, was the trouble Harry seemed to be in.

The blond checked the letter he was holding yet again. Harry's lightning shaped scar was acting up, causing the teen pain. Lucius knew about the dream/vision Harry had received during summer and he was now getting more worried. Conscious of the wakening mark on his arm, Lucius decided it was high time he started looking around, asking questions. If the Dark Lord was back on British soil, he wanted to know. Then he had to plan accordingly.

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"You have more presents this year," had been Hermione's apt comment about the pile of gifts at the foot of Harry's bed.

The witch had decided to gather her pile and go the boy's dorm and open her presents along with Harry. She had wanted to try this to get a more homey feeling out of the holiday. Harry had been surprisingly accommodating. Or perhaps not. Ron had been giving him a harder time now, ever since Harry took Bill to the Yule Ball. Ginny was being a pain as well. It seemed the green eyed wizard had gotten better at ignoring people that bothered him because Harry did not seem disturbed by the glares coming from those two Weasley's. Or all the looks that he had gathered from the entire school when he decided to show up at the Ball with an older male at his side. Hermione had questions about this and Harry had been frank with her.

"I wanted to go to the Ball and have fun," Harry had told her the next morning. "I could never take a girl because I would hate to give her false hopes, same with any boy from this school. Bill... He's my friend, he offered a way out. I took it. And you know what Hermione? I had a great time. Bill was fun!"

"He certainly made for a lively dinner," Hermione had admitted.

"He made for a great night," Harry had told her.

And Hermione supported Harry. She did not accept Ron's questions or Ginny's harsh words. In her effort Neville helped her, a lot.

"I may have taken Ginny to the Ball, and I may like her, but I don't agree with her actions. Harry has no obligations towards her or Ron, especially Ron after the way he treated him," the shy Gryffindor had confided to the witch after he had helped her turn a furious Ginny away.

Despite her attitude, Ginny would not dare confront Harry and Hermione had a hunch that her eldest brother had something to do with this.

Back to the presents, Harry had been ecstatic.

"Some are from Snuffles, others from Bill and Charlie, from Remus too," Harry had told her.

"And this one?" Hermione had asked, pointing at the delicate chain made of platinum and a small Egyptian Falcon hanging from it.

Harry had just smiled and put the jewellery on. "This one? It's precious."

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Lucius was reading a letter from Hogwarts again.

His son was particularly chatty in his letter, rambling about classes, his housemates, the Tournament and how the Second Task was approaching. Lucius knew that Harry had managed to hear the egg's message. They had been preparing for a while now for it but the blond was apprehensive. A lot of things could go wrong in the lake and he would have no way of knowing or helping. He dreaded the Second Task and most of all he dreaded the end of the Tournament.

The replies from his former associates were clear on one thing. The Dark Mark was getting stronger and the Dark Lord was gaining strength. Now Lucius had no doubt that Harry's involvement in that blasted Tournament was the Dark Lord's work. One thing Lucius knew was that the wizard was flashy, always trying to make a point, cause a commotion. So Lucius knew that Harry was safe during the Second Task. After that, anything and everything could happen. And the time was approaching that Lucius would have to choose on a stance.

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Word count
~*1522*~

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