The Houses Competition
House: Hufflepuff
Class: Herbology
Category: Drabble
Prompt: [Event] Engagement Party
Word Count: 984
You are hereby invited to the engagement party of
Lord Theodore Nott
Lady Hermione Granger
Saturday the 4th of February at Nott Manor
May you join the couple in this joyous occasion
Harry stared blankly at the invitation held in his hand, he blinked once, twice, trying to understand, make sense of what he was reading.
Hermione and Nott! How is that possible? How did Hermione know the snake?
Even though he hadn't spoken to her in years, he couldn't imagine her marrying Nott. She was a muggleborn and Nott, a pureblood. It didn't make sense to the boy-who-lived, yes, he hadn't spoken to Hermione in more than 5 years, but that didn't make this understandable for him.
After the end of the war and after the breakup between Hermione and Ron, he had sided with his best mate and his surrogate family. He knew he had been wrong to do so, but the Weasley's were the only family he had ever known. Molly was like a mother to him and Ron a brother. He couldn't imagine his life without them and with how things had gone between Ron and Hermione, he knew that siding with her would mean finding himself ousted from the family as well.
Harry hadn't heard anything from her ever since that fateful day, but his mind had wondered about her many times.
Hermione had just vanished, she hadn't returned to Hogwarts, but he later found out that she had passed her NEWTS with the highest recorded scores in 300 years. She hadn't taken a job at the Ministry like she had said she would, and no trace of her was ever seen in Wizarding Britain. He had thought that she may have gone back to the Muggle world, but he could never be sure.
And now, there was an invitation to an engagement party—her engagement party—and he had no clue what to do or think.
The party was in two days, and he was debating going. On one hand, he would get to see Hermione once again, on the other hand he was sure he would be the sole lion in a snake pit.
Thinking a bit more about this, he made his decision. He wanted to see Hermione, he wanted to apologize and maybe, get back the friend who had stood by his side to matter what.
The day of the engagement came by quickly, Harry took his time getting ready and selecting appropriate wizarding robes. At 7 pm sharp, he took hold of the invitation which was a portkey that would activate at a precise time and said "Nott Manor".
He felt the uneasy feel of the portkey and he was transported to the desired location. Harry stumbled a little when he touched ground again, he wasn't used to traveling by portkey, he preferred apparating or just using his broom.
He looked around and found himself facing a big Manor, it was larger than Malfoy Manor and had a brighter feel to it. It was surrounded by a large garden and farther down acres upon acres of trees. It reminded him of old muggle castles surrounded by their walls and land.
Everything was pristine and had a warm feel to it. A soft pop sounded near him making him jump before a voice startled him.
"Mister Potter Is here, please follow me, the Mistress and Mastress are greeting guests in the hall." With that the elf turned around and marched into the house, expecting Harry to follow without question. The dark haired man was surprised by the attitude of the elf but then again, he supposed he had Hermione as a Mistress. He doubted his childhood friend would treat her elves badly.
He followed silently looking around at his surroundings, they entered the Manor and Harry was hit with a wave of warmth and magic. The doors to the reception hall opened and he found himself in a room filled with the elite of Wizarding Britain. He may have been a war hero, but he and the Weasleys had never been able to achieve a high enough status to enter this part of Wizarding society. Ginny had wanted to, she had expected it but had found herself rejected each and every time. Weasley's had a bad reputation in these circles and nothing could remove the 'taint' the family carried. He wasn't sure what the actual story was, Molly always clamed up when the upper class events were mentioned so he let it be.
The hall was extremely well garnered and everything was perfectly placed. It screamed money and prestige, he wasn't sure how Hermione had ended up in such a place and marrying Nott for that matter.
"Harry! You made it!" Came the voice of his childhood friend, she was smiling at him warmly and her eyes didn't hold the resentment he expected them to hold.
"Hermione, I've missed you," he said just above a whisper.
"I've missed you too Harry, this is Theo, I don't think you've met before." She gestured toward her fiance who was standing next to her, he was elegantly dressed and he protruded an air of superiority and elegance.
"Mister Potter, it's a pleasure to finally meet you," Nott said in a velvety voice. Harry wasn't sure what to think of the man standing in front of him. He would have never imagined Hermione with someone like him. She was a bookworm, a know-it-all that loved to have her head stuck in a book. And this, all of this, was out of character for her. She was wearing a beautiful set of wizarding formal dresses, her hair was perfectly set and she even had make up on. She looked beautiful, elegant and fit right into the image the Lady of Manor should have. He was awestruck.
He extended his hand and with a firm nod he said, "The pleasure is all mine."