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CHAPTER 23

Heads turned, jaws dropped, fingers pointed, and loud whispers followed them as they entered the Ministry.

Draco's hand squeezed hers as she smiled up at him.

"Did a celebrity walk in?"

"Yeah, one Hermione Granger. War heroine. You've probably heard of her."

"Nope." Hermione shook her head. "Hermione? Really? What kind of name is that? Sounds pretentious."

"You have no idea," Draco laughed. "Just ignore them. They'll all just look at you and then gossip about you later."

"I'm fairly certain they've all been in my shop to look at me already. Apparently none of them knew what I looked like before I became an Alpha."

They stopped in front of the bank of lifts and Hermione rolled her eyes at the sudden flood of people who needed to go upstairs. She leaned closer to Draco and whispered, "Do they think we're going to fuck in the lift?"

Draco almost choked, pressing his fist to his mouth disguising his surprise as a cough. "You can't say things like that."

"Why not?"

He leaned down and murmured close to her ear, "Because I might have to hire a lift and find out if that's something you like."

"Maybe you should put it on your list."

"Fuck," he swore under his breath as the door slid open and they stepped in. Several people followed them and Draco deliberately stood in the centre, pulling her in front of him.

Hermione pressed the button for the second floor. Then the third floor. Then the fourth. Draco laughed as she continued to press each button, ensuring everyone would be inconvenienced since they were getting off on the second floor.

"I do hope no one's in a hurry," Hermione snickered.

The doors opened at the second floor and they were met with the smiling faces of Molly and Arthur.

"Here you are!" Arthur clapped Draco on the back while Molly embraced Hermione. "Are you ready?"

Hermione nodded, but her nerves kicked in as Arthur led them into the Family Services Department. There was no way it could be this easy. And she knew the instant she saw Arthur approach a wizard at the end of the hallway that something was wrong.

The man's face was set and he wouldn't meet her eye.

"Reed, tell me you have good news!" Arthur's jovial voice boomed in the hallway.

"Maybe if you all come inside—" he indicated the open door to what Hermione assumed was his office "—I'll explain the… details."

Hermione's stomach sank. She should have known better than to get her hopes up. Nothing about what she'd been dealing with had been easy; why should this be any different?

"Are the papers ready?" Arthur asked and the man he'd referred to as Reed held up his hand.

"It's not as easy as that, Arthur." Reed turned to Hermione. "Ms Granger, Arthur explained his and Molly's intention to adopt you to enable some kind of bonding ceremony. However, your birth parents are still alive and therefore, without a dissolution of that child-parent bond, the adoption can't take place."

"But my parents don't know who I am. Their memories have been Obliviated and they have no idea they have a daughter."

"Unfortunately that doesn't change the fact that you are still bound to them," Reed explained. "Obliviated memories are retrievable—"

"Theirs aren't," Hermione said. "The charm I used was too strong and even the most capable Healers haven't been able to reverse it."

"I understand that, Ms Granger. However, as I said, the only way to enable this adoption is to dissolve the parental bond."

"How do we dissolve it?" Arthur asked but Hermione shook her head.

"No. They might not remember me, but they're still my parents and I won't allow that to change."

"Couldn't they be declared incompetent?" Arthur asked.

"We thought of that, but since Ms Granger is an adult, their competency isn't the issue."

"Surely there's a way around it." Arthur glanced between Hermione and Reed.

"Sorry, Arthur, there isn't," Reed apologised. "Unless Ms Granger or her parents agree to a complete separation, there's nothing to be done."

"Then there is nothing to be done," Hermione said firmly. "I won't agree to this."

"Hermione, dear," Molly began cautiously. "The bond with Draco might not work if you refuse this."

"Molly, Arthur, I really appreciate that you were willing to do this, but bonding with Draco isn't more important than my parents." Hermione fought to keep her voice even as she looked up at Draco. "And I will not give them up for anyone."

"And nor should you," Draco assured her. "There'll be another way."

Her voice rose in panic and she shook her head. "Even if there's not, Draco, I won't dissolve my family. I won't do it."

"Hey, it's okay." He pulled her to him, folding his arms around her. "I would never ask that of you."

Molly took her hand and smiled warmly. "None of us will force you to do this, dear. Family is more important than anything. We all know that. We'll keep searching for another way."

"I really am sorry, Ms Granger." Reed smiled sympathetically. "Arthur is well respected here at the Ministry, but we can't bend this rule. Not even a little bit."

"It's not your fault." Hermione sighed. "I appreciate everything and I don't want rules bent for any reason."

"That's a change from your school days," Draco said, trying to lighten the mood.

"Not funny." Hermione looked up at him, but she was smiling.

"School days." Draco all but slapped his forehead in exasperation. "I'm an idiot."

"Draco, what's going on?" Hermione asked, alarmed.

"We've all missed the obvious." He gripped both her shoulders and grinned. "We're not the only Alphas and the other one is already bonded."

"Alexander," Hermione said.

Draco nodded in agreement. "Alexander."

"But what if I react to him like I did with Lucius?"

"Lucius is my father. You reacted to him like you did because of me."

"But what if it wasn't that?" Hermione asked. "What if the Alpha in me actually wants Lucius but can't have him because of Narcissa, so it just settled for you?"

"Highly unlikely, Granger. Your… performances to date tell me the Alpha knows who it wants."

"Okay, but what if three Alphas together becomes a clash of egos? What if us all being together makes… I don't know… the world explode?"

"You need to stop," Draco finally said, laughing. "The world won't explode. I've been in a room with him and we're all still here."

"But what if I'm the catalyst? What if—mmph!"

Draco covered her mouth with his hand. "We are simply meeting Alexander. Yes, he's an Alpha and yes, you might react to him. But since he's bonded, it will most likely be similar to my father. And nothing insane is going to happen. Other than you being ridiculous."

"Sowwy." Her voice was muffled behind his hand.

"I know you like to be prepared and ask questions, but questions that make no sense won't help." Draco moved his hand away. "Are you going to stay calm?"

"Yeah. Sorry." She pursed her lips making him laugh.

"You have one more question?"

"What if I do react to him? How will you handle that?"

"I'll probably rip his head off," he said with a shrug. "But I think you're worrying for nothing."

"You're very confident about this."

"Because I know nothing's going to happen." Draco held out his arm and Hermione curled her hand around his elbow. "Are you ready?"

"How do—" Her question was cut off when he Disapparated them to Alexander's doorstep.

"I just know, Granger." Draco knocked on the door. "And you'll see why in a second."

The door opened and Alexander Avery's smiling face greeted them. Hermione's jaw dropped; he was most certainly an Alpha.

He stood at least a head taller than Draco, his chest was broad, and his solid frame filled the doorway. His mere presence commanded respect, but his smile was so warm and friendly.

"Draco, it's good to see you again."

"Alexander, thanks for this." Draco shook his hand. "And I'd like you to meet Hermione Granger."

"Hermione, it's lovely to finally meet you." Alexander said and Hermione's hormones went into overdrive.

His voice was deep and rich, melting over her like warm chocolate. And as hard as she tried, she couldn't stop herself from scenting the air. There was the sharp scent of pine, of freshly sawn wood. It was so different from Draco. Earthy and grounding. Simple.

But there was something else. Something… biting and acrid.

"What is that?" she asked, scrunching up her nose and both men laughed.

"That is a bonded male," Draco explained. "Oddly, I scented it when I first met Alexander. It goes away after a few minutes."

"It's different from Lucius. It's..." Hermione sniffed the air again. "It's like a warning to stay away."

"That would be my fault," a feminine voice said, coming from the hallway behind Alexander. "And invite them in, Alexander."

"Of course, sorry." Alexander stepped aside and ushered them in. They were met with the smiling face of a gorgeous woman who could have been mistaken for one of the Patil twins. "This is my wife, Zahira."

"I'm glad to be finally meeting you." She reached for Hermione's hand. "Parvati spoke of you often."

"I thought there was a resemblance." Hermione smiled warmly.

"She's my cousin. Our fathers are twins actually — it's why the resemblance is so strong," Zahira informed her. "She and Padma raved about you the first summer they came home from Hogwarts. You were a bigger hit with them than Harry Potter was."

"Hardly," Hermione said with a laugh, following her into the sitting room. Two small sofas sat opposite each other with a small coffee table separating them. "I was just a know-it-all swot."

"From what I hear, you were much more than that."

"Oh, believe me," Draco said, sitting beside Hermione on one sofa. "She was much more than that."

"Sounds like my cousins weren't the only ones admiring her." Zahira chuckled.

"Oh, Merlin no!" Draco laughed. "I was not a fan back then." He paused and glanced at Hermione. "Well, not immediately anyway. Not until I realised how talented she truly was."

"I thought it was when I punched your nose," Hermione said with a straight face.

"No, that just pissed me off more." Draco kissed her cheek. "I was the laughing stock of Slytherin for weeks."

"I count that as a success then."

"How have you two not bonded yet?" Zahira asked. "You're perfect together."

"That's why we're here," Draco began. "We have tried, but it was a massive failure and we've no idea what went wrong. We thought it might be a pureblood thing, so Molly and Arthur Weasley offered to adopt her so Hermione could possibly be considered a pureblood, but that came with more issues. So we thought — if you don't mind — since there was one available, we'd ask a bonded pair."

"What was the reason the Weasleys couldn't adopt you?" Zahira asked.

"Actually they could," Hermione explained. "But I had to separate from my own parents so the adoption was legal, and I refused to do that. My parents had their minds modified before the war and they don't remember me at all, but I won't give them up."

"I'm glad you didn't." Zahira nodded towards Draco. "Sorry, Draco, but if that had been my choice, I wouldn't have given up my family either."

"I didn't expect her to," Draco replied. "And I'm fairly certain if I had asked her to, we wouldn't be sitting here with you. And my parents would be planning my memorial service."

They all laughed, and Hermione winked at him and ran her knuckles along his jaw.

"I don't think it's a pureblood thing," Alexander said. "Zahira is half-blood, and we had no issues."

"I'm Muggleborn though," Hermione explained. "There's no other magic in my family; I'm the first and only."

"I'm not sure why it would be an issue." Alexander frowned. "I mean, you're both Alphas, you've chosen your mate, that should be it."

"That's what we thought." Hermione looked at Draco and slid her hand into his. "How did it work with the both of you? I mean, an Alpha and a Beta, that would have had to be something different."

"It was," Alexander agreed. "Betas are what is considered normal; no glands to bite. But there are records that explain Alpha-Beta bondings."

"We had a traditional pureblood ceremony." Zahira glanced at Alexander. "Family circles, I think it was called—"

"That's what Daphne found." Hermione's stomach dropped. "It's why Molly and Arthur offered to adopt me. I need parents for this ceremony."

Alexander shook his head. "No, you actually don't. Zahira's parents were killed in the war, so her aunt and uncle stepped in."

"Oh, I'm so sorry, Zahira." Hermione winced in sympathy.

"We both are," Draco added and Hermione squeezed his hand; she knew he still blamed himself for the events of the war and the part he played. The guilt was buried deep, but their conversations had often brought it to the surface, and every time she assured him he wasn't to blame.

Zahira held her hand up. "Thank you, but it's fine. I miss them, but life has to go on. They would have hated for me to wallow in misery." She reached for Alexander's hand. "And this is exactly what we were fighting for. Purebloods, half-bloods, and Muggleborns being able to coexist without discrimination."

"But you still did a pureblood ceremony?" Hermione asked.

"We did." Zahira nodded. "We had to. Alphas have always been pureblood... until now, of course."

"So that's what bonded you, just the ceremony?" Draco sounded hopeful.

The pair looked at each other and grinned.

"Well, there was a little more to it." Alexander winked at them. "A blood bond still had to be made."

"How was it possible without glands on Zahira?" Draco asked.

"Was this not explained to you?" Alexander looked at him curiously. "You know there have been only a few Alpha-Omega pairings throughout history, right?" Draco nodded and he continued. "Alpha males have bonded with Betas more often, so the ritual is known."

Hermione glanced at Draco. "Does your mother not know this?"

Draco shrugged. "I guess not. She would have told us if she knew. But I wasn't the most receptive person when I changed and didn't listen to much of what she told me. I might have had a slight ego problem."

"Well, it was actually very simple for us," Zahira continued. "I took a potion which pretty much turned me into an Omega for a few hours. It enlarged a gland at my throat and I essentially went into a heat. Alexander knotted in me and the blood bond took place. It was a wild trip."

"A potion did that?" Draco was astonished. "I've never heard of it."

"It's pretty rare," Zahira said. "It's only needed when there's an Alpha-Beta pairing, and that's usually only a few times each century. Silvers is the only place that makes it and only on request, obviously. It takes three weeks and is clearly only needed in these situations."

"Unfortunately, that's not going to work for us," Hermione pointed out. "I have the glands already. I don't need a potion to produce them."

"No, but maybe it's the heat thing," Alexander suggested. "A male Alpha probably needs that to recognise—"

"But I don't need that," Hermione cut him off. "I'm an Alpha, in case you've forgotten, and I recognise that he's my mate."

"I'm just guessing." Alexander held up one hand in apology. "It's just what we had to do."

"Yeah, but Zahira still had to become a submissive for you to be able to bond. It basically comes down to the male having to be the dominant one."

"No, it's not like that." Alexander was shaking his head. "I've never thought of Zahira as anything less than my equal."

"But she still had to be less than you for the bond to be completed." Hermione was incensed. "I'm an Alpha and to be bonded with my mate I have to be submissive. This is utter bullshit! I might as well have been a fucking Omega!"

"Hermione," Zahira said calmly. "This is what we did. It doesn't necessarily mean it's what you'll have to do."

"But everything points in that direction, doesn't it?" Hermione dropped Draco's hand and stood. "Everything I am doesn't matter. And it hasn't mattered since I changed. No one gave the same respect as the male Alphas — not even you, Draco. And now I have to be less again? Well, I won't do it. I won't do any of it."

"Darling—" Draco stood, but she shoved past him.

"Hermione, please don't leave," Zahira called, but Hermione ignored her.

She stepped out the front door, slamming it in frustration behind her, and Disapparated.

"Mother?"

Draco fought to keep calm. He'd left Alexander and Zahira with a hurried apology and Disapparated home. And of course she wasn't there. Nor was she at the shop. Or The Burrow, where he'd sent Molly Weasley into a panic at Hermione's disappearance.

He then Flooed straight to the Manor — which should have been his first stop, since his mother was Granger's confidante.

"Mother, are you here?" He sniffed the air, frowning at the lack of Hermione's scent. His parents were home, but it didn't appear that she was with them.

He found them in the solarium, his father flipping through the latest edition of the new Daily Prophet and his mother reading something that looked oddly similar to the book Granger had been reading the previous week.

"Draco?" Narcissa smiled at him. "This is a lovely—"

"Is Hermione here?"

"No, darling. We've not seen her. Did something happen?"

"We went to Alexander and Zahira's to see if they could shed some light on this bonding and it didn't go well." Draco sniffed the air again. Where the hell was she?

Lucius folded the newspaper and dropped it onto the side table. "She's disappeared?"

"Yes. She Disapparated when—" he growled in frustration. "Where the hell is she!?"

"Why did she disappear?" His mother's face became stern. "Did they upset her?"

"Not intentionally," Draco said. "They were explaining how they bonded. Zahira being a Beta, they needed a potion that essentially turned her into an Omega for a few hours and Hermione was horrified and had a fit."

"I don't blame her," Lucius said and Draco glanced at him in surprise. "She's an Alpha. Why should she be expected to lower herself to enable a bonding?"

"I'm not sure she even has to." Draco threw his arms in the air. "She stormed out before we could discuss it. She wasn't at home or the shop. I even went to The Burrow."

"Home?" Narcissa's lips twitched. "You consider her house your home?"

"I think we have more pressing matters right now, Mother, than where I consider my home to be."

"Of course, darling." Narcissa flicked her eyes quickly to Lucius, and Draco didn't miss the looks of glee on both their faces.

"You can decorate the nursery later, Mother," Draco said with a roll of his eyes. "Right now I just need to find her."

"What are you feeling right now?" Lucius asked.

"How do you think I'm feeling?"

"Draco!" His father stood and crossed the room, stopping directly in front of him. "What is it you're feeling? Right now? You've no idea where she is, how does that make you feel?"

Draco clenched his jaw. How the fuck did his father think it made him feel?

She was missing. Disappeared to who knew where. He was pissed off. He was fuming that she left the way she did. He was hurt that she didn't wait for him. He was desperate to know where she was. He was ching with not knowing where she was. He was...

"I feel lost," he finally admitted. "I thought I was angry at her, but I'm not. I just need to know she's okay."

"As I suspected." Lucius gripped his shoulder. "The bond has already begun. Your magic is searching for her and causing you distress because it cannot find her."

"Would she be feeling the same?" Draco asked.

"It's possible, but her anger is probably masking the effect." Lucius took a breath. "And she has every right to be angry. The assumption she would have to become submissive to you for this bond to work is correct. Unfortunately submission is what all of this is about."

"Lucius?" Narcissa looked questioningly at him. "Do you know something?"

Lucius shook his head. "I'm not sure. It didn't make sense that Molly and Arthur could just adopt her to make this work. It wouldn't change her lineage—"

"Father," Draco warned.

"It wouldn't change anything, Draco. She is Muggleborn. And I don't say that as an insult — it's simply a fact. A pureblood family adopting her won't change that." Lucius stepped away to pick up his wand, Accio-ing a book from his den. "I've been reading all I can find regarding female Alphas, and while there's not much to go on, her being a Muggleborn isn't what's stopping this."

"You found something?" Draco didn't dare to hope.

"Maybe." Lucius flipped open the book. "In all cases of Alpha-Omega and Alpha-Beta bondings, the Alpha takes control—"

"Yeah, we already know that," Draco snarked.

"If you would let me finish." Lucius shot him a look of contempt. "In the male Alpha world, it's all about control and dominance, but the male Alpha holds his mate in the highest regard. It is only during the magical bonding that she submits to him. It appears that at all other times, she is the one in control."

"But an Omega is in danger of other males capturing her," Narcissa pointed out. "If she is in control, it's not until after the bond has occurred. Before that, she's a mindless mess."

Lucius shook his head. "No. An Omega is surprisingly sharp. The only time her mind is a mess is when her heat occurs and she's unbonded. And that's rare. An Omega is usually already paired before she changes."

"I'm not getting how this helps our situation," Draco said. "Hermione isn't an Omega."

"Contrary to the egos of the male Alpha, the female party in all of these scenarios has the power. Omegas and Betas alike. She decides who she wants her mate to be. She decides when it's time to be bonded. She is the one who allows the male to claim her. If the female didn't want to be bonded, she wouldn't be."

"But Tessie Prewett went insane because she refused," Narcissa said. "I don't see how you think that's having the power."

"Ah, but she did have the power. She chose not to be bonded. Yes, she went mad, but she still made the decision. She refused to conform and would not allow a bonding."

"This isn't making any sense!" Draco cried in frustration. "Hermione has decided that I'm her mate, she has decided it's time for us to be bonded, and it still hasn't worked!"

"Because neither of you submitted to the other," Lucius said calmly. "Because that's what this is all about. Submission. It's not about dominance, although that plays its part. But since you're both Alphas, you both have to be submissive."

"That makes no sense." Draco was shaking his head. "I allowed her to bite me, she allowed me to bite her. That would be submission."

"Clearly it wasn't." Lucius shrugged. "It might be a case of having to perform the pureblood ceremony first. And then you will have to figure a way that you are both submitting at the same time. I've no idea how you'll do it, but it seems to be the most logical scenario."

"Well, none of it matters right now when there's no female Alpha to be seen." Draco pressed his fingertips to his forehead, a dull ache was beginning to form behind his eyes. "I assumed she would be here."

"It is possible that she needed the comfort of her friends this time." Narcissa gave Draco a rueful smile. "Thinking she has to be less than you would have brought up some quite nasty memories for her. And this house — and this family — would have been among some of the worst times for her."

"I don't even understand why she chose me," Draco said quietly.

"Because you are her equal," Lucius replied. "You are both intelligent and talented and have an unwavering respect for each other. And, despite your colourful past, she knows that you are loyal only to her."

"Yeah, well, I'm not going into that coven. They'll rip me apart." Draco grimaced, remembering the girls' reactions to him and his treatment of Hermione at the start of all this.

"I don't think she's with the girls." Narcissa called for Keely, asking her to collect hers and Lucius' coats. The elf returned in seconds and wished the Malfoys well.

"And we're going where?" Draco enquired.

Narcissa smiled and indicated the floo. "Grimmauld Place."