The Mute Malfoy

ONE

   In the middle of a dark room, a woman lay propped up on an expensive bed. The woman rested one arm over her bulging stomach, the other gripping the bed post behind her. It was obvious to anyone who saw her that she was with child. Not to mention she had bragged shamelessly about the family her and her husband were to create. While they were on the wrong side of history, neither seemed to care in the moment. Their baby was coming soon enough. Sooner than the mother thought was safe. Her nurses had warned her that births this early could mean there was more that one baby. Impossible, thought the woman. She knew she was having one, her mother's intuition told her so.

   At least, that was what she would say when the idea of twins was brought up.  Oh, how she secretly prayed for just the one child. She knew the fate that came with a set of twins. Her husband knew the fate as well. And as she continued to grip the bed post everything became crystal clear. The nurses and house elves were silenced by the cries of a newborn. The woman smiled as tears rolled down her eyes. It's a boy, she heard them call out. A nurse took him from the room to clean him. A boy, the woman thought. How wonderful. A single boy. Her hopes came true. She knew her family would be free of fate's cruel hand.

   For ten whole minutes she went on believing she was fine. The nurses handed her the beautiful boy and she cradled him with glee. His little eyes barely opened. All of a sudden a harsh pain spread throughout her body, something she had never felt before. She screamed and her baby boy was quickly taken from her arms. The nurses returned to her quickly and assessed the situation. They tried to reach her, but failed miserably. She was blinded by the pain. She couldn't hear the nurses warnings.

   What she could see, though, was a silhouette in her mind. It moved closer and revealed itself to be a girl. She had long, platinum blonde hair, like the woman. She also had the woman's eyes; blue with a hint of grey. She began to notice other features they shared, along with the tears pouring down her face. You could tell the girl had been through hell and back just by looking at her. Just as the girl was about to speak, an infant's cry was all the woman could hear.

   She was instantly back from her "daydream" and saw one of the nurses holding a baby. Twins. A boy and a girl. The woman felt conflicted feelings of joy and fear. She knew what it meant if she were to bear twins. She also knew what she had to do in order to protect her babies.

   Unfortunately, her husband arrived earlier than she expected. She was speaking with one of the nurses when the doors to her room flew open. He stalked towards her, grinning. He stopped and her bedside and kneeled, grabbing her hand.

"How are you, my love?" He asked her.

"I'm fine, dear. Just a little tired." She smiled back at him.

"And the baby? How is the baby?"

She braced herself. "The babies are doing well."

"Babies?" He asked.

"Twins, Lucius. One boy, one girl." She watched as he grinned even more. She couldn't help but smile. Though she was very aware of the life her babies were to endure, the happiness that her husband felt in that moment was enough to make her forget.

"Oh, Narcissa," He composed himself. "We must notify the dark lord immediately. He will want to see the children."

   She nodded, knowing that even though she didn't want their lord anywhere near the twins, it had to be allowed. That didn't mean that the new mother couldn't stall for a bit.

"My dear, can't it wait til tomorrow," she petitioned. "I'm very tired, and I'm sure the children are too. We haven't named them. You haven't even seen them! We can notify the dark lord in the morning. Let us enjoy our first nights as parents."