Chapter Text
Lucius had been talking to his wife and had decided that at 6 years of age, Draco should begin learning exactly how a Malfoy should behave.
Although they always imposed on him the use of manners and etiquette, Lucius felt he now needed to know how to behave in public. To be impartial and unaffected by events around him. Or as he liked to say - How to keep his cool.
Draco was an adventurous child. He liked to tease and trick and he also liked to play dress up. So with this in mind, Lucius and Narcissa decided to suggest their game to Draco.
“Draco,” Lucius began at dinner that night.
“Yes father?” Draco beamed at his father, waiting for him to continue.
“Your mother and I have decided it is best for you to learn how to be a Malfoy in company. It is all very well to be a child around friends and family, but you need to know how to show outsiders only what you want them to see. You need to learn to keep your cool.”
Draco nodded enthusiastically. “I can do that. See.” And he set to impersonating his father as well as he could. His expression went blank, but for the happy sparkle in his eyes “We need to behave like Malfoy's should. We must always keep our cool, especially in company... Is that right father?” He looked hopefully at Lucius.
Lucius chuckled at his sons antics “Yes Draco, very good, but your eyes show too much emotion. Tomorrow, your mother and I are going to play dress up with you, and we all have to act like what we are dressed as for the whole day. OK?”
Draco nodded enthusiastically again. “OK father. I like dress up!”
*
The following morning after breakfast, the three family members all went to Draco's play room to be assigned a costume. They all agreed that Draco should get to choose, as the expert of his dress up box, he knew what he owned best.
Searching through his costumes Draco found what he wanted for his mother. Handing it over “Mother, you can be a fairy 'cos you are pretty.”
“Oh, thank you, Draco!” Narcissa took the proffered items, enlarged them to her size with a flick of her wand and left to put them on. Lucius boggled, when did Draco dress as a fairy?! Shaking his head he turned to take the second costume from Draco “Father, you are funny so you can be a funny man.” Draco beamed as Lucius valiantly tried to look pleased with the choice of a Jokers outfit, and went to put it on.
The three of them met again in Draco's room to find Draco sat on the floor dressed as a brown and black dog, with only his face visible amongst the fabric. Lucius found this exceptionally unfair, but didn't say anything. He had said they would dress in whatever Draco chose.
The bells on his hat jingled as he turned to look at Narcissa and his jaw dropped. His wife wore a mint green and baby pink leotard with an indecently short and very see through matching skirt. White wings on the back of the leotard fluttered occasionally as the charm within them dictated. A sparkly practice wand was in her hand. He was just thinking about confiscating that outfit from Draco's dressing up set when a dog started jumping up at him.
Lucius rapidly cleared his head, before his own tight outfit showed his thoughts. The bells in his hat jingled again. Those could get annoying.
“All right. From now, until the time we get ready for bed, we must all behave as our characters would.”
And so it began...
*
Draco loved this game. It was so easy. He crawled around on his hands and knees around his parents ankles. His father took him on as his assistant and trained him to do tricks for sweets. Then his mother asked them to perform some tricks for her, which she laughed at a lot.
Then he was taken for an adventure with his fairy mother all over the manor. His mother scolded him when he stood up to get a drink a while later and instead brought him a bowl to drink water out of. Lucius wasn't too happy about this development but couldn't do much without breaking the games rules.
Lunch time came and Lucius acted appallingly at the table, cracking jokes and pulling tricks, while the house elves and Narcissa struggled to determine how their dog would eat. Eventually they put a bowl on the floor between Draco's parents and put sandwiches in, for him to eat.
Just after lunch as they planned to go outside to play, the doorbell rang. Narcissa and Lucius froze. They weren't meant to have visitors today! Draco unfortunately had already crawled to the front door, barking, his charmed costume tail wagging enthusiastically.
They heard Draco trying to open the door but didn't move. Then they heard Dobby, their house elf, shooing the excitable pup away and opening the door. The voice of Mr. Parkinson wafted through to them
“Draco, are your parents in?”
“Woof!”
Lucius went red, he wanted to go out there and stop them but he would jingle and get seen!
“I see.” Said Mr. Parkinson.
“Woof!”
Then Dobby saved the day, Lucius would never, of course, admit he was thankful for the creature in that moment.
“Master and Mistress Malfoy is out Sir. I is taking care of Young Mister Malfoy until they gets back. Do you has a message?”
“No, I shall return at a later date.” The door shut and the threat was gone. Narcissa and Lucius slumped in their chairs. That was close!
Draco came gallivanting back into the room, then saw his parents and stopped “Hey! I kept my cool!”
Narcissa laughed “Yes you did. Well done Draco.” Then she became a fairy again. “Now young pup, how about we see what adventures can be found in the mighty labyrinth?!”
“Woof woof!” Draco rushed to the maze.
The fairy then turned to the joker. “Come along Mr. Funny-Man. We need your tricks and joy to help us battle the maze.” She offered her hand to the joker.
Lucius chuckled and took her hand “Well I could not very well allow a fair beauty as yourself roam through such lands without a joker at hand. You never know when laughter could become the saviour of the day.” Together they left to find their errant pup before he got too lost in the hedge maze.
*
Evening came, they ate dinner, and Draco got very messy doing so. Finally it was time Draco prepared for bed.
Narcissa picked up her tired little pup and took him upstairs to be cleaned and put to bed.
“Mother?”
“Yes puppy?”
Draco giggled “We're not playing now are? 'Cos I'm going to bed.”
“No we are not. But I like you as my little puppy.” Draco giggled again as Narcissa attacked his ticklish sides.
Draco had a quick bath and Narcissa put some healing slave on his sore hands and knees.
“Mother? Did I do good? Did I keep my cool?”
Narcissa smiled as she tucked Draco into bed. “I think you did very well. Better than your father and I.”
Draco beamed a smile at her.
“Go to sleep now puppy.”
“Woof!”
Narcissa chuckled before giving Draco his goodnight kiss and leaving.
“Is father coming?”
“He will be up in a moment. Goodnight.”
“OK. Goodnight pretty fairy.”
By the time Lucius had got to Draco to wish him a good night Draco was fast asleep. He made sure he was tucked in and gave him a kiss, before turning Draco's night candle on, as was tradition, then left to find his wife.
He found Narcissa in their room, sat on the love seat by the window.
“Finished playing already pretty fairy?”
She smiled at him. “Of course not. Do you want to finish?”
“No. After all, I still want to see what a fairy does at night. I hear they are quite mischievous.” He quirked an eyebrow.
“Well that depends entirely on whether you can keep your cool Mr. Funny-Man?” She smirked at him, mischief written all over her face.
“Oh, I'm sure I can,” he grinned happily, jingling the bells on his hat “I'm sure I can.”
After that night, Lucius ensured that dressing up became a frequent event, and confiscated Draco's fairy costume. He had far better uses for it.