A Creature's Justice

Chapter Eight; Guilt

                                                                           ~Lucius Malfoy~
I felt my heart clench as Harry spoke about wanting his parents. Truthfully, I was feeling incredibly guilty. I had once been a death eater, but not by choice. My father, Abraxas had been one of the original Death Eaters and had insisted that I would be doing the family proud if I joined, despite my hidden differences in opinion, I did so. Mainly because Abraxas was insistent, and had even slyly hinted at killing me or even my wife, my soul-mate, if I refused.
I had participated fully until the death of my father, ironically due to dragonpox, when I had tried, and failed to drop back in rank. I had never been so grateful in my life when he disappeared, but I had never truthfully considered the toll it has taken on the child who lost both his parents in one night and lived in a house with people who hated him for ten years afterward. Now? Now I wanted to keep him safe and sheltered within my wings for the rest of his life.
I gently squeezed his shoulder and said, "I understand, Harry, but please know that your parents and your godfather all loved you very much."
Harry looked over his shoulder at me and said, "I'm grateful for you reminding me, Mr. Malfoy."
I knelt next to him, pulling him into a hug, and said, "Your godfather was a good man, and so was your father. I believe one of your fathers friends still lives, perhaps we could write to him and ask him if he would like to visit? You can never have too many caring adults in your life."
Harry's face lit up before slowly dimming. After a moment he said, "Why didn't he ever come visit me?"
Grappleclaw cleared his throat and said, "Albus Dumbledore has kept your location a secret, Harry. No one outside of his circle and again not even many then, knew your location. He claims it is for your safety."
Harry's face dropped into a scowl and he muttered darkly, "More likely for his safety. Probably didn't want his social standing to be affected if people found out what he had done to a child, let alone a publicly known child. What sort of home life he had willingly subjected me to. What he had done to me."
Grappleclaw sighed and said, "You are probably right, Harry. However, I believe we should continue with the lordship rings. Next is Gryffindor, I believe, and then McKellen."
It took almost twenty minutes for Harry to finish accepting his Lordships and heirships and placing the rings on his fingers. In that time I watched carefully, waiting for the time that the power boosts would render him unconscious. I was surprised he lasted this long, but I had a hunch it was out of sheer will of wanting it done.
As he placed the last ring, a visible shiver went over him and he swayed in his seat. Draco made it there before either Narcissa or I, carefully scooting him to one side of the chair and squeezing in next to him, letting Harry rest his head on his shoulder as Draco wrapped a protective arm around his waist to make sure he didn't fall forward.
Grappleclaw sighed and said, "Perhaps he should nap again until the team gets back with the signatures?"
Narcissa shook her head and said, "I think decorum can be forgotten just this once, don't you? I have a pepper-up potion in my purse. Harry, love, do you want to take the potion? It acts as an energizer and will help you stay awake while we shop for clothing and such after they come back and guardianship is passed to us."
Harry yawned and nodded, holding out a hand for the potion. Narcissa passed it to him, watching as he sat up and downed the potion, wincing at the steam that poured out of his ears. "That is the weirdest feeling ever." He made a face.
Just then, a knock sounded on the door and Griphook's voice sounded, "Grappleclaw, the team is back. May they enter?"
Grappleclaw replied, "Send them in, Griphook. Thank you."
The only wizard to enter was a tall, red-headed wizard with a fang earring. I smiled slightly and said, "You must be William Weasley."
He looked at me, making a face, and said, "Is that the only line you know? Can't you get another? I'm not here to banter words with you, Mr. Malfoy."
Harry stood, leaning heavily on Draco, and William's eyes widened as he said, "Ten lordships???" He narrowed his eyes in my direction and said, "This better not be a ploy to get a hold of more Wizengamot seats."
I felt my eyes darkening, the claws already pushing against my fingernails, but before I could say anything, Harry spoke harshly, "Who are you to judge him? How many times have you met him? This is the first, isn't it? He acted as though you were new to him. Form your own opinions, sir. Mr. Malfoy helped me a lot today, but more than that, he and his family are the first to make me feel like I'm more than the dirt under their shoes. I don't like people who judge others without knowing them-the true them, not a public persona."
William looked uncertain, but eventually sighed and turned to me, "I apologize, Mr. Malfoy. Mr. Potter is right, I've never met you, only heard about you from my father."
I nodded and said, "Your father speaks through a lens of hate and blame. Your family is as poor as it is because one of your former lords broke a marriage contract with my family, and the lord of my family took them for nearly everything they had in retaliation-mainly because they had been only months from the wedding, and much planning and purchasing had already been done. I hold no grudges against your family other than the new ones that I now hold for any family that follows Dumbledore."
William nodded, looking a little shell-shocked, but asked grimly, "Dumbledore is to blame for placing Harry with those awful muggles, isn't he? I don't think I'll be visiting Hogwarts any time soon, unless it's to make sure that Harry and my little brother are okay." He shook his head and said, "A lot of people look up to Dumbledore, and I think many believe that he can do no wrong, but I'm not one of those people."
He turned and walked over to Grappleclaw, handing him a sealed roll of parchment. A smile spread across the face of Grappleclaw, a truly terrifying sight to behold. "We are all set, Mr. Potter. You are now the ward of Gringotts, and soon you will be the ward of Mr. And Mrs. Malfoy. We are one step closer to the end goal."