They entered the dining room and found the elves to have prepared a feast. The six elves waited for them standing in order. They looked overly excited. Kiki handed Hermione a small book. The young witch found it to be filled Hiragana and numbers, some code she couldn't decipher. She would have to inspect it later. She handed the elf a coin and praised them for their hard work before dismissing them.
The Malfoy patriarch crooked and eyebrow. "You do realize that they are playing you."
"Don't be ridiculous."
"Tut, tut, tut. You give them far too little credit. I would never forget that house-elves are closely related to goblins. You know, those nasty little greedy creatures who spread chaos and animosity."
"You do speak Gobbledegook," Hermione reminded him.
"Do not ever mention that again!"
"But why not?! It is something you should be proud of. It's never easy to learn a foreign language but doing it gives you a better understanding of their culture. It also shows you're educated and interested in others."
The older wizard rubbed his temple. "Multiculturalism is an idea propagated by white-elitists to rid them of the guilt of the nazi-regime. It only hides the still-present desire to colonize and bring culture and civilization to the world under the disguise of ethics. Wizards value segregation since hybridization threatens the existence of most magical races."
Hermione wondered if his having access to science might actually be a bad thing. "Still, there are many groups who need my help and I will not give up on elfish-rights!"
"That is racist."
"How is not wanting others to be enslaved racist?!"
"Because it devalues their entire culture and existence. All people should live like they want to."
"But they don't have a choice! They are born slaves and they die as slaves."
"That is exactly where you are wrong. Everything knows exactly how to get what its heart desires. The only reason as to why you are still here is that those elves like you, despite your oddities. You helped them regain strength and self-esteem and in return, they accept your money and keep that strange glass pig in shape. If they were in a stronger position, like having an old master, and they had not liked you, they would have bullied you out. Elves know all the loopholes in their bond and naturally, exploit it. I remember Dobby being rather creative when it comes to causing trouble. I knew there was something wrong with him. None of my other elves wanted to get anywhere near him and neither did Narcissa. That is why I ended up watching over him…"
"And why didn't you simply grant him his wish to be free?!"
"Multiple reasons. For once he played a crucial role as a deflector, also he might have become loose of his bound to secrecy, and then, of course, it looks bad. What kind of people cannot even make a house-elf stay?"
"Why do you have to magically bind them, to begin with? Can't you just employ them as normal people?" Hermione asked.
"First of all, try to think about it as a measure to keep the creatures stable. You know how everything magical tends to be chaotic. Being bound to a family helps them to be productive."
"Goblins can be productive all by themselves."
"Well, they have their moments and the rest of the time they spread chaos. The history is full of instances and reading through the ministry's archives will clearly prove my point. As for being employed, unlike muggles, magical contracts are almost always also magically binding. All contracts have some sort of secrecy clause in them. It is a standard procedure in the business world. From what Mrs. Edgecombe told me you are familiar with those."
Hermione looked at him for a moment. "Does this mean you want me to take a vow of secrecy as well? Why haven't you asked me?"
"I would like you to, but I will not force your hand. It is also not a very strict vow, otherwise, questions might arise. It states '…to protect all secrets family as long as it serves the family's interest and will…' And that is exactly the point. We make vows to secure our interests. They are reliable and necessary for society to work. Marital vows are not so different from the ones elves are under."
"That's not true. We both had to consent to marry and we both have to agree to divorce whereas house-elves can be bound or expelled against and without their consent."
"Touche"
"So all we have to do is change the law on that one point."
"That is not that simple as it sounds. Witches, unlike their muggle counterparts, are almost equal to wizards in all points. The reason for that is magic itself and elf-power. Before washing machines became available in the 50s, a muggle woman was chained to the kitchen. Back then a wife had to spend 75 hours working every week of the year, without a single day of holiday, nor payment and simply no time to raise and educate her children. The fact that you or your mother could even dream or choose to pursue a career is solely due to white appliances becoming available. While magic makes it easier, in most poor families it is still the witch doing those chores, social change is very slow or maybe it is a woman's nature to tolerate being a housewife, centuries of women's liberation should have made more of a difference… however, in middle-class families, it is the house-elf who is doing all he housekeeping, effectively freeing witches. If the majority of families lose their elves, witches will be the ones replacing them operating under very much the same or even worse conditions than elves today. With other words, once the oil price drops and many Saudi families will no longer be able to afford a driver, leaving the unappreciated tasks like driving the kids to school or buying groceries to the next lowest in the hierarchy, the women, which means they have to allow their females to drive an automobile. It has always been that way. Girls like horses because autos were invented and boys found in them a new obsession leaving the outdated version to the weaker sex. The same happened with pink."
She inhaled processing all the information and giggled. He looked confused.
"You know Mr. Malfoy-"
"I know what, Madame Malfoy?" he teased.
"OK, Lucius, it's just that we have a bonding ceremony today and we spent breakfast debating elfish-rights…" She chewed her lip in the innocent yet sensual manner he adored and felt drawn to. "If the rest of our marriage is like this, I'd be very happy. I like having a decent conversation, or in our case debate. We might just be fine, despite everything."
Hermione leaned forward gently stroking his cheek with her left hand and placed a soft kiss on his lips. She found no reason to run after all.
The former Death Eater did not understand what just happened. He seemed perplexed and stared at the young witch who lowered her head and was blushing. There was a smile on her lips telling him she was proud to have taken the initiative. He nodded in acknowledgment.
They finished their meal just in time before the requested binder arrived. He was an about a century-old wizard, his hair was crisp white. He was wearing a dark kimono and gesture wildly with his fan. He was followed by a middle-aged witch with a camera and an older one who arrived with lots of luggage.
"Marufuku-sama, it is an honor to bind you and your beautiful wife. We are grateful for your services to or country. Today is a lucky day. Although I have to admit, clearing my schedule on such a short notice posed a challenge, especially since everybody wants to take their vows on the 8th of August."
"We appreciate your effort," Lucius said
Hermione started calculating. "-so two days ago was the 6th. The 6th of August, that sounds familiar…"
"We did not marry on the 6th of August!" He insisted.
"Why? What happened on the 6th of August? What am I missing?"
Her wizard was oddly quiet. He took a deep breath. "It is the anniversary of Hiroshima."
"Crap." They all went still and lowered their heads.
"'Scuse me. Can one of you explain what Hiroshima was?"
The two English looked at the witch with raised brows. Lucius was about to throw an insult when the lady defended herself.
"Sorry, I ain´t no Japanese, only here to work. Am from Detroit."
"Hiroshima is a city in the south of Honshu. To end the war the US destroyed the city using a new kind of weapon, called an atomic bomb, 80.000 people died immediately countless more died of radiation sickness and cancer over the last decades."
"No Majs can do that?! They can kill so many of their own kind?" The witch sounded amazed.
"Not just their own kind, many witches and wizards died as well. While our long term survival odds are much better, the initial blast was enough to even evaporate a dragon," Lucius explained.
"WOW! I never knew No Majs could be dangerous."
Hermione was about to say something but luckily Lucius stopped her.
The older witch turned out to be a stylist and dragged the confused teenager to a separate room. Before Hermione could say anything, she had already golden hairpins in her mane. With a few gestures, white powder started to apply itself onto Hermione's face, meanwhile, her clothes disappeared. She couldn't even protest because new clothes began to roughly attach themselves to her lean body.
Everywhere, something was tugging or brushing on her. The war-heroine hadn't even heard the name of the witch dressing her, In fact, the lady had not spoken a single word so far, a detail that would not change as the morning progressed. A big part of her wanted to hex the witch, but she also didn't want to embarrass her husband. Fortunately, Hermione was never the kind of girl who dreamed of her wedding, since that was certainly not what she would have envisioned.
She looked beautiful in the richly decorated red outer robe she was wearing over a white silk kimono that had a delicate pattern woven in. The red Iroushikake was adorned with cranes, tortoiseshells, and other auspicious objects that symbolize longevity and prosperity. The long sleeves and trail were pretty but a long way from being practical. Luckily, magic prevented everything from dragging on the ground. The assemble was extremely heavy due to the real gold used in its fabrication.
Hermione was lead outside, away from the castle into the well maintained Japanese garden, towards one of those typical Japanese red gates. It was still small and far away on the horizon when the witch got tired of walking. The countless layers of fabric were too heavy, the obi was bound too tightly and the shoes were simply wired, but at least it wasn't sunny.
There were no clouds to be seen instead the sky was colored evenly in a light grey. It was humid and her already wild hair curled a little further. She slowly moved closer to their destination. The wedding kimono made it a very slow pursuit. Why can't they simply take their vows in the genkan? Hermione nearly made it when she heard a loud crack. Lucius appeared right before her eyes.
"Please, tell me you didn't apparate for this short distance when this old hag made me walk!"
"Don't forget to smile, she might think we are talking about her."
"Well, I am."
He mustered her. "You look exquisite. Are those golden butterflies flying through your hair-do?"
"Yes, they are. I often wonder why magic has to be so disgusting or painful, various body fluids from various species are used, but when I look at those and the elegant movement in the silk, I feel very happy to be a part of this world... This may sound stupid, but what exactly does today's ceremony contain?"
"We carve the runes into each other's skin while speaking the standardized words of our vows. Then we wash those wounds with Japanese wine, please do not call it sake, collecting the fluid in those porcelain jars. We offer the fluid to each other take a sip and throw the rest into the rice-paste, which we will later form into cakes that fit well into our hands. We build a tower out of them and in a year we will burn it with tangerines and spread the ashes around the edge of the estate to strengthen the wards."
"I knew I shouldn't have asked. You do realize that for muggle blood is mainly considered a biohazard and not something to be played with," Hermione said.
"No need to worry, tiger, I have already transmitted all my diseases onto you."
"You're messing with me on purpose."
He chuckled.
Lucius guides her to a waist-high, moss-covered, cubical stone. They stood opposite each other. The old witch vanished and the white-haired binder placed candles in a circle around them. A strong wind blew and the thin wax-candles caught fire. Two shallow white sake cups and a bottle filled with one of the finest Japanese wines appeared on the altar.
The old wizard drew a long, skillfully crafted cutting tool with a thin, pointed tip and laid it carefully with both his hands in front of him. After that, he retrieved his calligraphy implements and placed one at the time on the altar in the same way. The binder wrote a Chinese character on cardboard and a golden circle formed around them.
Hermione offered her left arm, while Lucius lifted the knife equally elegant as the Japanese one did. At first, she didn't notice him having already begun cutting the rune guaranteeing his faithfulness into her arm. His soft words distracted her and there was no pain, even though he cut much deeper than just a scratch. It felt odder to watch a drop of blood forming on her skin and doing absolutely nothing about it.
He drew circles with his left thumb to distract her from what was about to come. He wordlessly levitated the bottle and spilled some of its content over her fresh wound. The young witch inhaled sharply. Her whole body tensed and her wide-open eyes met his. The moment their eyes met a small smile formed on his lips. His tiger has risen to the challenge. She would rather die than flinch or make a sound.
Being cut and carving runes into someone else's skin were to very different things. Even knowing it was not painful, the carving part at least, she felt reluctant to do so. Hermione took a deep breath before she places the blade on his arm. She was nervous and her hands were shivering, for a brief moment, her mind went blank. What were the words she had to say? What if she said them wrong? Her husband would surely abandon and humiliate her. Was he laughing at her?
Not wanting to let the former Death Eater win she placed the first cut and with that, the words she had practiced last night returned to her mind. It went well and Hermione managed to pour the alcohol over the wound with grace as if she had never done something else in her life. What was even more satisfying was to watch Lucius Malfoy struggle to maintain his mask of indifference.
After that, she lifted the cup with her blood in it, placed it near the tip of her three longest fingers, and slowly brought the reddish liquid close to his mouth. The dark wizard did the same thing and they took a sip simultaneously. They repeated the ritual with the remaining 3 vows.
The binder continued by summoning a bowl filled with blush pink, mashed glutinous rice. It would have looked appetizing if she hadn't known the ingredient responsible for the lovely color.
With a dividing gesture, the mass formed two uneven-sized lumps. The young witch picked up the smaller part and formed it into a round shape with flattened bottom and top. Lucius placed his cake onto the now otherwise empty altar, mumbling something about providing a stable foundation, and Hermione placed hers on top of it hoping it would mean he accepts her authority. Charms and wards were placed on the tower and the three of them went back to the castle where the unfriendly witch was waiting for them. Kiki served tea in the parlor. Hermione stayed behind.
"Does something bother you?" Lucius asked.
The young witch looked up to her tall husband, her red lips twitched and a tear threatened to fall from her beautiful brown eyes.
"I have done everything right. I haven't shamed you, god, I haven't even hexed that old hag. What else do you want from me?! Or am I to filthy to warrant a kiss?!"
"A kiss?" he asked.
"Yes, Lucius, a kiss. This was our wedding ceremony and you didn't even kiss me!"
"Is that some kind of muggle custom?"
"When muggles marry they usually get married once in a registry office and also have a bigger celebration with their friends and family at their church or something similar depending on their confession and believes, where they vow to stand by each other for better or worse and exchange rings. In both instances, the kiss is the highlight of every wedding."
"They do this publically?" He exhaled loudly and grabbed her hand. With a flick of his wand, he apparated them back to the cubical stone. He stroke her cheek and kissed her with earnest. "Better?"
She nodded.
"Got it!"
The couple turned around and found the American witch waving with her camera.
"Couldn't tag along. Your wards won't let me apparate. I'm Amy. By the way, you guys look kinda familiar. Are you famous or so? Could I get an autograph?"
"It is good to meet you, Miss… Amy. Have a nice day," Lucius dismissed her.