One-shot.

Disclaimer: Don’t own; don’t sue.

Xenophobia

“I do not approve of this guest list,” Lucius said, frowning over the sheet of parchment Draco had sent him. “There are barely any pureblood families here.”

“The Weasleys will be there,” Narcissa said.

Lucius’ eyes widened. “No. He wouldn’t do this to me!”

“Darling, the Weasleys are Harry’s family. They must attend.”

“All these people in my house,” Lucius groaned. “How will I ever withstand it?”

Narcissa reached across the table and touched Lucius’ hand.

“You forget one important guest.”

“I suppose I can put up with all the strangers in my house,” Lucius replied, kissing his wife’s palm.

Ostentation

Everything was ready for tonight. The ice sculptures carved into the Malfoy and Potter family crests, the water fountain in the center of the ballroom, even the 50-piece Austrian orchestra arrived without a hitch.

“What do you think?” he said with a smug smile.

Draco, still not dressed for the ceremony, looked nervously at his husband-to-be. Potter returned the look with a supportive nod.

“Er… Dad? Are the ice sculptures really necessary?”

Lucius turned to his son, confused. “You don’t like them?”

“I think he means you should tone it down, dear,” Narcissa said.

“I suppose it’s a bit much.”

Jollification

Lucius Malfoy could hold his liquor. However, the other wedding guests were an intoxicated mess, swaying dangerously close to the fountain and singing loudly over the now eight-piece orchestra.

He was pleased to see his son and Potter enjoying the ceremony at least, slow dancing to a song of their own invention.

“Must you always have that expression?” Narcissa asked at his side.

“Of what?”

“Of constant disapproval. Can’t you enjoy the night?”

Lucius caught the flush in her cheeks, the shimmer on her eyelids, the gentle graying of her hair.

“If you join me for a dance, I’ll reconsider.”

- end.

Author’s Note: This was written in response to Potter_Place’s Dictionary Drabbles Fun Challenge for April 6. Many thanks to Southern_Witch_69 for beta-ing this. Rules for the challenge are below.

Rules:

1. Use some or all of the following words in a drabble (doesn't have

to be 100 words--anything under 1k is fine

2. Word list changes every Saturday

3. Upload your drabbles here or at the Petulant Poetess under the

Potter Place Fun Categories (any other archive is fine as well).

Remember, SH has a Potter Place Category.

4. Have fun, baby! Whoot!!

It should be interesting to see what we can come out with using

dictionary.com's daily words while boosting our vocabulary. Teehee

The word list (swiped from the past week's list):

1. excrescence

2. obsequious

3. xenophobia

4. jollification

5. deus ex machina

6. bellwether

7. ostentation

Words with definitions below:

excrescence \ik-SKRESS-uhn(t)s\, noun:

1. Something (especially something abnormal) growing out from

something else.

2. A disfiguring or unwanted mark, part, or addition.

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obsequious \ob-SEE-kwee-us\, adjective:

Servilely attentive; compliant to excess; fawning.

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xenophobia \ZEN-uh-FOE-bee-uh\, noun:

Fear or hatred of strangers, people from other countries, or of

anything that is strange or foreign.

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jollification \jol-ih-fuh-KAY-shuhn\, noun:

Merrymaking; festivity; revelry.

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deus ex machina \DAY-uhs-eks-MAH-kuh-nuh; -nah; -MAK-uh-nuh\, noun:

1. In ancient Greek and Roman drama, a god introduced by means of a

crane to unravel and resolve the plot.

2. Any active agent who appears unexpectedly to solve an apparently

insoluble difficulty.

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bellwether \BEL-weth-uhr\, noun:

A leader of a movement or activity; also, a leading indicator of

future trends.

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ostentation \os-ten-TAY-shuhn\, noun:

Excessive or pretentious display; boastful showiness.