Private Message to Lucius Malfoy

[alt_antonin]

С днём рождения, my dearest. I wish you joy without measure, for this day and the rest of your life.

(To save you the trouble of asking -- I am well enough, and growing stronger each day, though I will be better once circumstances change enough that we are able to rid ourselves of that woman; it cannot be soon enough.)

I hope you have something pleasant planned for the day. When next I am free, we will celebrate.

Comments

[alt_lucius]

большое спасибо. At present, am merely thankful that this year's day is, thus far at least, passing with no adverse incidents. Narcissa has planned an intimate supper with friends. We are neither of us much inclined to an ostentatious celebration when so many are treating the anniversary of the Games with kid gloves.

That is its own particular mess, you might imagine. Dominic wished to acknowledge the day in a sombre but understated way; Prophet sniffed sensationalism and wished to capitalise; Claudius has insisted on iron-fisted crackdown against all vendors trotting out the trash they produced so hastily last year. Oh, but you were not yet back among us, bratishka. Certain Raz can provide you with the highlights. Do not recommend viewing anyone's memory. There are things one wishes one could Obliviate, from time to time.

Could not agree more about the current siege against the castle; more the pitiful for its being conducted within the walls. (Ah. Reminds me: Must smuggle Minerva in to access her office in short order. Shall notify you and Razzer when we make our foray; interference would be most appreciated. Cannot expect either of you to willingly suffer the woman's company - but some pretext to distract her or send her on a fool's errand might well serve.)

Have wrestled with taking her to task over her treatment of Miss Parkinson; confident Pansy shall understand why have elected not to sail in as a protector. Knowing Dolores it would only bring about further retaliation on her part. Saw Sunday's from her as well: Trust that Harry and Draco are not too hard-pressed by her yet. Rely on you and Razzer to tell me if that changes.

Has Barty told you what Dolores wanted with him? She must be desperate or else she thinks that in giving him his leash with the Fleet girl, she won him over.

Well. Your wish for a pleasant birthday is one of the most welcome presents I could have and does not deserve such morose topics in answer! Must head to luncheon with Stephen and Spencer-Wells. It is good to see you writing again and to know that you are doing what you can to protect Draco and his cohorts.

[alt_antonin]

My dearest of brothers, I know you will not take it amiss when I say that I am wishing for you to have a day full of nothing more taxing than deciding what you'd like for supper. (Did I think it possible, I would wish you a week of such, but that would be akin to wishing water would flow naturally uphill.)

As for the rest -- I have heard tale of the Games, and their ending. I do not blame you for wishing for a comfortable distance from the memories. I have not yet had the chance to read today's Prophet, but I trust you were successful in keeping them in check -- or that you will know the reason why not. (But if there are heads to be knocked together, do hold off on it until tomorrow! As that would definitely be more taxing than deciding what you'd like for supper.)

I am still fuming that Our Lady of the Pink Unpleasantness should dare to oust Minerva -- even if dealing with the woman were not dreadfully tedious at best and tooth-grindingly awful at par, and even though Minerva has clearly not been at her best as of late, the precedent it sets is disturbing -- but what she has done to Raz is simply beyond the pale. Not to mention the ways in which it has bound our wands in dealing with her. We've yet to figure out how she faked that 'evidence', but once we do, perhaps I will host a dinner party of my own, with lightly crisped pink toad as the centrepiece. In the meantime, I am pleading ill health to spend as little time with the cow as possible, but for Minerva, I will swallow my irritation and play distraction wholeheartedly; only say the word as to when.

The children, meanwhile, are finding the situation intolerable. As well they should, really: the woman is a menace to education, and I find myself faced with the prospect of not only making up a lost month in my own subject but filling in what she is not teaching in Razzer's. (One must sourly observe that she harps repeatedly on qualifications for those professors who are not her -- I have never been so grateful for the academic distinctions various institutions keep heaping on my shoulders as when I could haul them out to club her to rhetorical death with them -- while possessing none of her own, academical or pedagogical.) I am doing everything I can, but -- like you -- am loathe to object too strenuously; I cannot shelter the children constantly and the toad has proven surprisingly inventive in her methods of retribution.

But that does not mean I do not have plans. And in the meantime, I am certain the little darlings will find sufficient ways to drive her mad through pure obedience -- particularly when their lectures in the Noble Arts seem to be quite coincidentally making mention of all the ways in which the magic we are studying might be deployed in service to that goal.

And now I'm the one who is turning morose! Rest assured, I am watching out for Draco (and Harry, and Pansy, and Hydra, and the rest of my ducklings) to the best of my ability, and have already planned to remind each of them that they should come to me if that woman oversteps herself too far. (And no, I have not spoken with Barty yet this week, but barring disaster -- and please, let there not be disaster! -- I will be in town this weekend; I will find out what she wanted from him then if not sooner.)

I hope you've enjoyed your luncheon -- if you are able, go home early and let Narcissa pamper you a bit. The two of you more than deserve a relaxing evening.

Your,
T

[alt_lucius]

Still chuckling, Tosha - not because you must endure the misery she is making of Hogwarts but at the thought of her inevitable evisceration at your hands and that of your guidance of the students in the art of insurrection.

Not surprised Barty did not think it wise to trust his intelligence to owl or private message, for she intends to monitor the former and has designs on controlling the latter (to the extent she can do, of course: Massopust has his orders from Dominic directly not to allow her reading access to private material). You might warn Raz, for while Barty has no reason to stop her opening the post each morning, there is neither any cause to provide her with additional 'evidence' or data that she might build into a further pad on which to rest her overly wide arse.

[alt_antonin]

Why, Lyoushka, I would never dream of openly inciting insurrection; that would be wholly wrong of me. Whatever sort of example do you imagine I am to give the children?

Far better to lay out a trail of hints and see which of the darlings are swift enough to follow -- not only more amusing, but an excellent exam in the arts that are so difficult to test for save in practise.

As for the thought of her opening my mail, I am minded to begin placing a number of orders for thoroughly unpleasant goods for owl delivery. And to instruct the merchants not to be overly careful about the packaging for transport.

Your,
T