Chapter Twelve

It was the night before Halloween and Hermione was nervous. In mere hours, she was going to be getting married. It all seemed so surreal to her, as though she was dreaming. Shaking her head, she stared at the wedding dress that she, Selina and Kezia had finished the week before. It was dark purple and fell to the floor. It was fitted tightly to show off her curves but allowed her to breathe properly. The dark purple fabric stopped at her shoulders, looking as though it had thick straps, before it turned into the long lilac sleeves. The material was translucent and sewn in a type of bell sleeve that gave the gown a buoyant look about it.

With Selina and Kezia's help, Hermione had been able to decorate the bodice with the lace and ribbon she had bought. Staring at the gown with pride, Hermione bit her lip as she wondered if Clopin would like it. She really hoped so considering how much effort went into making it. Pacing back and forth in her tent, she was certain that Djali was going to go cross eyed if she kept it up. Sitting on her bed, Hermione couldn't help but wonder if she should be marrying Clopin when she was disguised as someone else. A tapping on the cloth snapped her gaze towards the entrance.

"Chérie? Are you awake?" Moving towards the gap in her tent, she gave Clopin a small smile as she poked her head out.

"What are you doing? Isn't it another tradition to not see me for two days before the wedding? Then again, I'm surprised you've lasted this long!" Clopin rolled his eyes but gave her a white Iris.

"As if that would stop me, mon amour. I live to break the rules."

Hermione beamed at him. His comment reminded her of her time at Hogwarts. Whilst she had believed in the rules, she had ended up breaking a lot of them. Biting her lip, she held up a finger.

"One moment."

Letting go of the cloth, she hid his view of her tent. Grabbing her dress, she folded it up quickly but carefully before hiding it in her trunk once more. Darting back to Clopin, she held the material open, allowing him inside. Hermione started to feel a little giddy as she twirled the flower in her hand. Before anything was said, Clopin pulled her into a heated snog.

Feeling something burn within her, Hermione moaned loudly, drawing out a chuckle from Clopin. He softly bit her bottom lip, making her gasp, before letting go. Hermione could feel her breathing was uneven and her gaze was heated. Trying to shake herself out of it, Hermione groaned when Clopin brushed his thumb against her swollen lips.

"You're beautiful when aroused, mon amour. However, I did not come here for that."

He pulled out a thin, silver chain from his pocket. As he held it up, Hermione could see a small aquamarine gemstone hanging from it. Blushing slightly from their kiss, she gently touched it as Clopin kept it held up. He took her hand and placed the necklace in her palm. Rubbing the back of his neck, he tried to hide his blush from her.

"This belonged to ma mère. I would be honoured if you would wear it tomorrow."

Blinking away the tears that gathered, Hermione could only nod. Handing it back to him, worrying him slightly no doubt, she put his worries at ease as she turned around and held her hair up. Hermione heard a little sigh of relief before he clasped the necklace around her neck. Looking down at the gem, she smiled before turning back to see what he thought. Clopin gave her a sentimental smile.

"Beautiful."

Hermione bit her lip before taking a deep breath. She couldn't get the words out though. Seeing her concern, Clopin took her hand and led her to sit down on her bed.

"What is it, mon amour?" Hermione glanced at him before muttering.

"I won't be able to marry you as me. It'll be Esmeralda." Clopin gave her a small smile.

"We've spoke about this, Hermione. True, Esmeralda will be stood with me, saying your vows. But, it is Hermione who I love and am marrying."

Hermione's lips twitched into a small smile before she rested her head against his shoulder.

"I know. I do know that, it's just hard to know that you'll be saying 'I do' to Esmeralda and not Hermione."

Clopin pulled her into his arms and stroked her hair. Smiling at the gesture, Hermione savoured in the moment. Knowing it was growing late, it wasn't long before Clopin left her tent. Leaving with one last kiss, he bowed to her, sweeping his hat to the side as he did so.

"I'll see you at the church, mon amour."

Chuckling as she watched him leave, Hermione soon turned and headed to bed herself. She knew Selina wouldn't be happy with her if she looked tired the next day.

Hermione was rudely awakened by the two women who had come to mean so much to her, but were also the banes of her life. Being crushed by Selina was not how she had planned to wake up but then again, she hadn't exactly planned to wake up until late anyway!

Clopin had managed to convince one of the priests to marry them on Halloween night. Only a few of the gypsies would be attending the actual service but they would be having a mini service back in the Court afterwards. That being said, why the hell was she being woken up!?

Pushing her friend off of her, Hermione chuckled when she landed with a loud thud. Sitting up, she stared down at Selina with a slight glare.

"It had better be after noon, Selina."

The woman pouted but nodded whilst Kezia chuckled as she entered the tent. The older woman smiled at Hermione but froze when she spotted the necklace around her throat. Gaping at it, Kezia gulped before she could speak.

"Where did you get that?" Selina followed the woman's gaze and spotted the necklace. All gypsies recognised it. Hermione tilted her head in confusion.

"Clopin asked me if I would wear it today. He said it was his mother's."

Kezia nodded slowly before beaming at her. Wincing at the sudden change in demeanour, Hermione wondered if she would get whiplash. Selina spoke up, fairly quiet, which wasn't like her at all, as she stared at the pendant.

"It was the last gift Clopin's father gave his mother before she was arrested and executed. She was accused of being a witch and hanged. His father, the previous King, went mad with grief. Some say he was drunk when he walked along the bridge, others say he jumped."

"We do not speak of such things, especially not on such a joyous day, Selina." Kezia hushed the woman quickly. Hermione frowned, wondering why Clopin hadn't told her any of that but figured that he would when he felt ready to. Hermione rubbed the sleep out of her eyes just as Kezia grabbed her gown. Beaming at it, she tried her best to stay still as the two women helped her into it.

Selina managed to snap out of her daze and smirked at Hermione, tapping a finger on the pendant.

"So, when did he give you this then? I didn't see it yesterday."

Hermione sent the woman a glare as she felt Kezia pause behind her. Silently vowing to smack some tact into the woman, Hermione slowly turned to look over her shoulder at Kezia, giving her a sheepish smile. Kezia simply rolled her eyes.

"I've told you, Esmeralda. I know that boy better than he knows himself. I knew he was going to come and see you at some point during the two days. However,' Kezia moved around to look her in the eye. 'if anything happened, we need to know. Otherwise, you must wear a shawl."

Blinking rapidly, Hermione didn't quite understand what she meant until she mentioned the shawl. Groaning, she smacked her forehead and shook her head. Putting on a shawl was a sign to her fellow gypsies that she wasn't a virgin, she had learnt that pretty quickly when she mentioned possibly wearing one.

"No, Kezia. Nothing like that happened. I promise."

Kezia stared at her for a long moment before nodding. Selina had been sniggering in the corner of Hermione's tent, earning her another glare from the witch. Kezia started on Hermione's hair once she was ushered onto a stool. Hermione was originally going to leave her hair down but ended up being talked into having it up by the two women. Whilst she was having her hair pulled up into a messy bun, Hermione took the garter off of Selina and slipped it on as well as the purple flats she had bought just for that day.

Once Kezia deemed her ready, Hermione twirled on the spot.

"What do you think?" Kezia smiled softly at her.

"You look beautiful, Esmeralda." Selina frowned at her though as she pulled some strands of Hermione's hair out, to frame her face. Similar to how she had done at the celebration party for Hermione.

"You do look stunning, but something's missing."

The two women stared at her for a long minute but couldn't figure out what. Huffing, Hermione knew they were going to be there a long while. Then, her gaze fell on the Iris that Clopin had given her the previous night. Smiling softly, she jerked her chin towards it.

"Kezia, could you put that in my hair, please?"

Quickly doing so, Kezia nodded alongside Selina. Now, she was ready. Beaming at the two women, Hermione pulled them into a tight hug, unable to tell them how much she appreciated all their help and their friendship. The two women knew though, it was clear by the tears in their eyes and the smiles on their lips. Right then, Duke interrupted the sentimental moment.

"Are you ready in there?" Blinking, Hermione frowned.

"Oui, but surely it's not time just yet?"

Duke stepped into the tent and let his jaw drop at the sight of Hermione. Letting out a low wolf whistle, he was promptly hit by Selina. Feinting injury, he pouted at his girlfriend before giving Hermione a beaming smile.

"You look stunning, Esmeralda. It's not quite time but Clopin and Bartley have already left. The people are wanting to see how their Queen looks on her wedding day before the party later."

Smiling softly, Hermione just nodded and made to follow him out of the tent. Stunned by the crowd that had gathered just in front of her tent, Hermione beamed brightly as they all cheered at the sight of her. Feeling the tears gather, the young witch did her best not to let them fall. She was so touched by how these people accepted her without question, and are so incredibly happy for her.

Everyone came up to her at various intervals to tell her how pretty she looked. Hermione thought her heart was going to burst when the small group of children stepped forward with a small bouquet of white Iris'. Giving them all a kiss on the cheek, Hermione had to wipe a few traitorous tears that escaped. Before long, Duke appeared at her elbow.

"It's time to head off, Esmeralda."

Nodding, Hermione waved goodbye to the people, making promises to see them later on at the party before following Duke. When they arrived at the exit, where Selina and Kezia were waiting for them, she paused.

"Where's Djali?"

Looking around for her companion, her head snapped up at Duke's groan as he handed a couple of silver coins to Selina and Kezia. Frowning, she raised an eyebrow whilst Selina taunted her boyfriend.

"We told you she would look for him!' She turned to Hermione and smiled. 'He's already at the cathedral with Clopin and Bartley."

Hermione nodded as Kezia passed her a cloak. Throwing it on, she followed the trio through the maze of tunnels until they arrived at the opening they needed. Duke went first to make sure the coast was clear before ushering the three women out. Making a dash for the Cathedral, Hermione followed the trio around the corner instead of through the main doors. Kezia smiled at her once they were pressed up against the stone building, waiting for guards to pass.

"We're using a side door. Hardly ever used so the soldiers don't bother doing their rounds near it."

Nodding, Hermione waited as patiently as possible for the soldiers to be far enough away before the group ran for the side door. Ducking through the doorway, Hermione lowered her hood and stared at the stunning hall. She could just make out Clopin and Bartley talking to the priest whilst Djali was stood by them, but knew that they couldn't see her. Duke patted her back and kissed her cheek.

"See you soon."

With a wink, he headed down the small aisle and greeted the three men. Taking a deep breath, Hermione took off the cloak and passed it to Kezia, who hung it by the other cloaks. Holding the flowers close, Hermione smiled as the two women moved to sit in the pew with Duke. Selina winked at her.

"Congratulations. We'll party hard later!" Chuckling, Hermione just nodded as Selina ducked down the aisle. Kezia remained for a moment before brushing a strand of hair out of Hermione's face.

"Congratulations, mon cher. Do me a favour,' she waited until Hermione nodded. 'look after him for me. He's a pain, but he loves you more than anything."

Tears rolled down Hermione's cheeks as she nodded. Kezia gave her a quick hug before she too made her way to her seat. Hastily wiping her tears away, Hermione took a deep breath before she began to make her way down the short aisle. It was just sod's law that Clopin was looking the wrong way. Chuckling, Hermione watched as Bartley's jaw dropped before he nudged Clopin a couple of times.

The second Clopin's eyes were on her, she beamed brightly at him. Watching as his jaw dropped, he beamed happily at her, Hermione felt her spine straighten and a blush develop but that did nothing to dull her own grin. Finally reaching him, Hermione accepted his hand and stood next to him in front of the priest. Catching a glimpse of his grin out of the corner of her eye, she heard him whisper as the priest did his thing.

"Love the colour." Smirking, Hermione whispered back.

"Thought you might."

The pair were left grinning like children whilst the priest went through the usual sermon. Eventually they recited their vows and everything went off without a hitch. Hermione was moved to tears when she realised that Clopin had rigged it so that Djali handed them the rings. The priest even looked genuinely pleased for them when he ended the ceremony.

"You may kiss the bride."

Clopin didn't even hesitate. Wrapping his arms around her waist, he dipped Hermione towards the floor before claiming her lips. Squealing, the young witch could only cling to him and hope he didn't drop her whilst reciprocating the kiss enthusiastically. Eventually, he let her stand back up. The pair had to sign the book. With a conspicuous wink, Clopin distracted the priest long enough for Hermione to write her real name and cover it with a glamour to say Esmeralda. The glamour was a specific one that would remain until her death before revealing who it was Clopin had really married. After it was done, she waited patiently for Clopin to sign his name.

Quickly thanking the priest, Clopin scooped Hermione up and carried her back through the church, leaving their friends to laugh at his antics. Calling her own thank you to the priest, Hermione clutched her husband tight as he carried her through to grab their cloaks. Forcing him to put her down, Hermione grabbed her cloak and threw it on whilst the others grabbed theirs. Djali danced about in excitement.

Running through the streets, the group of seven were careful when making their way to the tunnel. Hermione watched as Selina and Duke went first, then Kezia and Bartley, leaving her with Clopin and Djali. The trio rushed through the streets to the entry and were just in time for the soldiers appearing around the corner. Giggling quietly, Hermione followed the others towards the Court. Just before they arrived, Clopin picked her up in a bridal carry once more. Grinning at him, Hermione threw her head back and laughed as he called out.

"WE'RE BACK!"

Practically singing, Hermione could only shake her head at her husband. That felt strange yet oh so right to say. Beaming as the people rushed over to congratulate them, Hermione remained in his arms up to the point where they had Bartley go through the small service for all the gypsies to witness.

It was a mock service where there were jokes called out from the crowd and Clopin decided to make an exaggerated re-enactment of their kiss. After all was said and done, the alcohol was poured.

The grins never left the couple's lips. Hermione even decided to push some food into his mouth just like she would have done if they had gotten married in her time. However, once he tried to get back at her, she ran over towards Selina and Kezia who were ready to throttle Clopin if he tried to ruin her appearance. Giggling, Hermione danced the night away with drink after drink being pushed into her hands.

By midnight, Hermione was buzzed. Laughing loudly, she danced with everyone who asked, even some of the children decided to join in but were quickly ushered off to bed after their dance. Downing her drink, she wasn't surprised at all when Clopin placed his hands on her waist before pressing a kiss to her throat. Spinning her around, he declared it was his turn with a wicked grin. Rolling her eyes, Hermione danced a few songs with him before he whispered in her ear.

"Time for bed, femme."

Blushing a bright red, Hermione nodded before setting her drink down. Just before they left, Selina called out to her.

"I'll keep an eye on Djali, enjoy."

With the wink that was sent their way, Hermione didn't think she could have blushed anymore but it was apparently possible. Clopin took a hold of her hand and pulled her towards the tent with a happy grin.

"Everything starts tonight, mon amour."

Hermione beamed, agreeing completely.