Out of Hand II: A Matter of Time by relativelypositive

Disclaimer: I do not own anything Harry Potter related and I make no money from the use of the characters created by J. K. Rowling.

Chapter 4

"What would it matter if I had a hymen? That's just stupid. It doesn't prove anything. If I'd had sex I'd be engaged, right? That would be proof in itself that I wasn't 'pure' so what's the point?"

"It was a different time, Hermione. First of all, girls past the age of seven were in training to become ladies. Most girls weren't very active. Even if you lost your…that…it didn't really matter. The findings weren't the test. Submitting to the test was the test. If you went into the test willingly, you were innocent. If you fought, you weren't the type of girl the old families wanted to acquire."

"But I'm already engaged. What point would there be to doing the tests?"

"Who said they were going to do the tests?"

"You—"

"No, I asked you if there were going to be tests."

"Were you just trying to scare me, then?"

"No. I just wanted to know!"

Hermione looked at Lavender. Finding someone to speak plainly to her about anything was priceless, but why did it have to be Lavender? She'd lived with the girl for years without her being the least bit helpful.

"I can't believe I know something you don't!"

"Is that what's really important here, Lavender?"

"Damn straight! Is this what you feel like all the time?"

"What do you mean?"

"I want to lord it over you. Is that bad?"

"Lavender!"

"What?"

"Can we focus?"

"I'm totally focused. I also want to jump up and dance around you singing 'I know something you don't know! I know something you don't know!'"

"Go for it."

Lavender froze, then darted her eyes around the library. Most of the students were still at lunch, but there were a few students finishing up their homework, as well as Madam Pince.

"I couldn't," she meekly muttered as though she were contemplating something sinful.

"You seem to find this feeling so novel, you should just go for it, Lavender."

Lavender met Hermione's eyes and slowly stood up. She sauntered around the table and started to whisper/sing to Hermione.

"I know something you don't know," she started quietly. She swayed her hips in small movements as she moved left around Hermione.

"I know something you don't know." She got a little louder. She put her hands in Hermione's hair and started flinging it up in the air.

"I know something you don't know." The other students were now taking notice.

"I know something you don't know." She turned her back to Hermione and shimmied back and forth while dipping.

"I know something you don't know," she sang at normal volume, finally catching Madam Pince's attention. She must have sensed her chance was coming to an end and upped her game.

"I know something you don't know!" She yelled as she finished by hugging Hermione. Both girls laughed until Madam Pince reached their table.

"Miss Granger! Miss Brown! You must leave immediately!"

Hermione stood and beckoned the librarian closer. "Madam Pince?" She stepped even closer to the woman and whispered conspiratorially. "You've known me for five years now. You're not my biggest fan." She paused to make sure she was given the proper amount of attention. "Lavender has to live with me. We sleep in the same room. We eat at the same table. We have the same class schedule. She can't get away from me. She was just taking her shot." She stepped back. "We'll be quiet now. Promise."

"No more shenanigans!" the librarian ordered. Then she winked at Lavender. "You must have the patience of a saint."

"I've always wanted to smother her in her sleep."

The two girls watched the surly librarian return to her post.

"Thanks, Hermione. It is hard living with you. I don't mean that in a bad way, I mean you're nice and all. You're just always the best at everything, and we've always been standoffish with each other. There was about a year there where I really did want to smother you in your sleep."

Hermione laughed nervously and sat back down.

"Now that you've finished your cathartic release, let's figure out what I have to do to get out of these Courtship Mandates."

"There's no getting out of them."

"Of course there is. I just don't know how to do it yet."

"So when your chaperone is magically linked to you and you can't lie to her, and you literally can't be more than ten feet from her, how do you think you'll escape?"

"What?" Hermione squeaked.

"If the Courtship Mandates are all reinstated, and believe me, they were revoked for a reason, you will be in hell until you are married."

"Why does this have to be so bad? Maybe she'll be supportive."

Lavender sighed and shook her head.

"I am about to teach you everything I learned from my grandmother. It was hell. Every day she kept going on and on and on."

"Lav! Focus!"

"Sorry. So it's really very simple. Chaperone. You can't lie and you're stuck together like glue. If you and Draco want to spend time alone you better do it now. You have to plan the wedding—"

"Oh, no. Narcissa is planning the wedding."

"But that's really all the bride has the right to do!"

"The right to do?"

"Well, everything else is up to his family. Where you live, when you have children, how many, what you name them, where they go to school, what charities you support, where you shop, what you wear—"

"Back up the bus! First of all, we are not living where Narcissa wants us to! Second of all, no one decides how many children I have but me!"

"Do I not get a say?"

Hermione whipped her head around to see Draco and Blaise preparing to sit next to them at the table.

"Lavender has been telling me about the balance of power brought about in the Courtship Mandates."

"You mean my mother will have all the power."

"Yes. You don't think I should be mad about that?"

"I think you should be madder! If my father gets out of Azkaban, he's the one that will have the power. We need to stop this from happening."

"Great! How do we do that?"

"I have no idea."

XXXXXXXXX

Draco pulled Hermione into his lap in the Arithmancy section at the back of the library. No one but Hermione ever went back there, so it was relatively secluded. Blaise was running interference for them a few aisles away.

"Can we get out of this somehow?"

"Hermione, I don't know if there's anything we can do."

"You could try to get your mother to swing her weight around again. She thought she was pissing me off, but now you're getting hurt by her actions."

Draco's hands were sliding over her hips, making him remember the sweet moment of waking up in bed with her early this morning. It was making it hard for him to think.

"I can try. I can't imagine anything will happen. She enjoys having all the power."

Hermione grabbed his face to help him focus. "Do you understand that I'm scared?"

Draco stared into her pretty eyes. She was scared. He hated it. He just didn't know what to do about it. He wanted to fix this more than anything in his entire life.

"Okay. Let's make a plan. Do we submit to the chaperones?"

"Do we have a choice? Dumbledore is enforcing this."

"That's what I don't get. He knows how horrible the Mandates are. Why isn't he fighting against this?"

"What do you know about the Mandates?"

"Only the horror stories I've heard. It was a different time, the expectations were different. I think we should go talk to Dumbledore. There are four or five separate Mandates. I can't remember all of them. The attachment of chaperones is actually the second Mandate. The first is that only through your parents can you meet eligible spouses."

"But at Hogwarts—"

"I know, Hermione. You've read Hogwarts: A History. The creation of Hogwarts as a school for both witches and wizards was not without scandal. That was just eclipsed by the decision to allow Muggleborns."

"I would have remembered any mention of Courtship Mandates. They are not mentioned."

"No, they wouldn't be. Hogwarts made it very hard to enforce the Mandates. That's one of the reasons why they fell out of favor. The aristocracy knew Hogwarts was the highest level of education available for their children, so they pushed for the dissolution of the Mandates."

"How did your mother get the Wizengamot to agree to this?"

"Not all of the Mandates could be reinstated in today's society. She must have only pushed for this one. My letter only mentioned the chaperone ceremony after breakfast tomorrow. Yours doesn't mention submitting to testing, does it?"

"Ugh, Lavender warned me about that. No, my letter just said to get ready to move and to meet after breakfast tomorrow."

"Well, part of being 'eligible' for marriage in the first Mandate is physical examination. If anyone approaches you about testing, you tell me immediately."

"I will. If I didn't show up for the chaperone thing, what would happen? We're already engaged! It wouldn't really change anything."

"Not between us, but you'd be kicked out of Hogwarts. Dumbledore said you had to comply."

"Draco, what are the other Mandates? What else should I be watching for?"

"I can't imagine the transfer of property would be happening in this day and age. This would be for every engagement, not just ours. No one would think giving all of the lady's property to her new husband's family would be right or fair."

"That's awful!"

"It was the merging of families and fortunes. Anyway, the only other one I can think of my mother already mentioned. If you don't provide an heir within three years you could be…replaced. Before you get mad, I don't know how it's done! We should really find a book. And we just happen to be in the library!"

"Let's go ask Madam Pince, then!"

Hermione started to get up when Draco pulled her back to him.

"Hermione, give me ten minutes."

"Why?"

"I want to kiss you for a while. I don't know when I'll get another chance."

"Oh. That's sweet."

"It's not, it's selfish. Instead of spending the energy to solve this problem, I'm going to make out with my fiancée."

"I'm all for it, but just for a bit!"

Draco smiled as he pulled her closer. He was surprised when Hermione pushed herself fully into him to give him a deep kiss.

They spent the next half hour caught up in each other and ignoring Blaise and Lavender when they came to check on them.

"Oi! Hermione! Blech! That's gross!" Ron burst down the aisle toward them with Blaise and Harry on his heels.

"It's called kissing, Ron!" Hermione scolded as the extricated herself from Draco. "What do you want?"

"Since when do you make out in the stacks, then act all nonchalant?"

"It's none of your business, Ronald," Hermione scolded. "What do you need from me?"

"This situation is beyond fucked up! Can't you see?"

"Oh, I'm living it. If you're not going to help, just leave."

Hermione and Draco linked hands and pushed past the group to leave.

"You two running around like lovebirds? What do you think this is going to achieve?"

"Stop now, Ron!" Harry interrupted. "We came to tell you that McGonagall wants to see you immediately, Hermione."

"Why?"

"She said she had something to give you that would help the situation."

"Can she get me out of the chaperone thing?"

"What chaperone thing?"

"Oh, Harry, so much has happened. I'll catch you up. You and Ron should meet me after."

"That'll be a conversation filled with laughter."

"Ron, why are you rhyming?"

"I'm not rhyming. You'd better hurry up to McGonagall's office. That's a lot of climbing."

A/N:

Thanks for reading, everyone! And than you to Lucifeeer, Kermit 304, ASJS, and Chester99 for reviewing!