Angry canoodling, rules and regulations and slapstick comedy! Cory is still fighting his fate tooth and nail! The boys are told their boundaries. What the bloody hell is an icebox? And why is Granger inside it?

Fyi, the icebox is a stand up freezer that has been magically expanded inside.

pMrs. Weasley had made a rule the day Kingsley first told them who Hermione's match was. The girls had to start dressing up for meals. The boys were purebloods and would be expected to rejoin social gatherings. The girls had to be prepared for that. Just a few minutes earlier, the matches for Rowle and Mulciber had been brought to the house. They would all live together for the time being as Kingsley wanted to keep the boys in a group.

/p

p Why she did it, Hermione wasn't sure. It wasn't as if she seriously liked him. She certainly didn't want to dress up and look good for someone who hated her! Still that didn't stop her from slipping into her softest, green silk shirt and matching miniskirt. It just happened to be her favorite outfit, that's all! It had nothing at all to do with the fact that the outfit was Slytherin green.

/p

pHermione went up to their floor. Kingsley had told her they were all gathered in HIS room. She went to unlock their main door and let them come down. Before dinner, Kingsley and the Order were going to set down some rules of conduct for them. She knocked and briefly opened the door. The boys were sitting in a group, staring at her. "Time to learn some rules, boys". She told them. She left the door open for them and started back down the stairs. She didn't think anything about turning her back on them. After all, they currently were wandless.

/p

pYaxley looked up at her and was glad he had on loose trousers because they had instantly tented at the sight of her in that short, stretchy skirt. 'What the bloody, fucking hell was she wearing! That was definitely NOT something a pureblood witch would be caught in!' He looked at the other boys, smiled wickedly and said "Take your time, boys". It was the perfect chance to spook her into possibly sending him back to Azkaban.

/p

pMulciber and Rowle instantly began stretching and 'rolling the kinks and tension' out of their shoulders. They knew what he was about to do. Much as they hated the thought of it, if he really was that much against marrying the girl, they would follow him right back to Azkaban. He hopped up and walked out of the room. He looked down and realized they were on the second floor. They made it down to the first floor landing before he made his move. He waited until she was off the steps before bouncing down them and pinning her to the wall.

/p

p"Hello, Granger." He whispered in her ear. "Have you signed the dotted line yet? You do realize, don't you, the minute you sign those papers, you're MINE, forever and always. There is no divorce in the Yaxley family. The only way out is death." He kissed her neck as he slid his leg between hers. Hermione twisted until she was looking at him over her shoulder. "You know, Granger, when we do marry, you'll be in this position a lot. We might never get around to using the bed! Wouldn't that be a shame? Its such a nice, huge, soft bed, too." Her eyes widened and she started to tremble as he ran one hand down her body and kept the other arm clamped firmly around her shoulders. "What's the problem, darling? Too scared to scream? Or too turned on to scream? Maybe we should duck into one of these empty rooms." He kissed her cheek and chuckled. "Get a bit of a head start on a little Yaxley, aye?" /p

pHermione's heart was pounding. 'Why, why, why had she turned her back on him? Why?' She should have known he'd do something like this! He'd been fighting them ever since they brought him from Azkaban! 'Did he seriously WANT to go back there?!' He was certainly acting as if he wanted to. She'd thought his act at Azkaban was just that, an act! Now she wasn't so sure! All she knew at the moment was that he apparently enjoyed picking fights!/p

p"Hands off of her, Yaxley!" Ron snapped. /p

p"Do it NOW!" Harry snapped at him, too. They had come out of the kitchen in time to see Corbin trap Hermione on the wall. Thorfinn and Jaron, coming down the steps, had frozen in preparation for jumping to his defense. /p

pCorbin felt the two wands at his back. He simply laughed at them. He smoothed his cheek against Hermione's and whispered to her. "Tell your bloody little friends to back the fuck off before I throw them back down the steps. You KNOW I can do it, too. You've seen me fight. This little tiff is between you and me. It doesn't concern them."/p

p"Harry, Ron. Go back to the kitchen. We-we'll be there in a minute." Her voice was trembling as she told them to leave her alone with him./p

p"Hermiome? Are you sure? We can take him." Harry told her. /p

p"No, Harry, you can't. It took five Aurors to subdue him at Hogwarts. It took four of them at Azkaban. He's too strong for you and Ron. Please. I can handle this. He's just trying to spook me. It's NOT going to work." Hermione felt him stiffen behind her. She laughed softly as he pushed away from her. /p

pCorbin frowned at her darkly as he turned and went downstairs without another word. Thorfinn and Jaron slid by quietly, right behind him./p

p"How did you know that's what that was, Hermione?" Harry asked her./p

p"He's on parole and he's in a house filled with members of the Order of the Phoenix. Trust me. He knew what would happen if he really got too rough with me. He was just trying to scare me into not signing the marriage contract. I knew he was going to fight it. The warden at Azkaban actually told Kingsley it might be Yaxley that goes to the altar kicking and screaming, instead of me. I'm starting to think he might be onto something. I was already waiting for some kind of scare tactic. I just wasn't expecting him to act that soon or that aggressively." Hermione told him. /p

p"But why wouldn't he want you to sign it? I thought he was obsessed with you. He'll never get a better chance to make you his! He knows that, right?" Harry wondered. /p

p"I'm sure he does. I really don't know what's going through his mind about the contract. Maybe he just doesn't like not having a choice about signing it. I'm actually the one who can refuse to sign, you know." She reminded Harry./p

p"Ah, yeah. When you put it like that, I can actually see why he'd be acting out. I wouldn't like not having a choice, either." Harry agreed. /p

p"Plus, he has to go now and listen to a laundry list of do's and donts about how he's allowed to behave around me. Yeah, right now Corbin Yaxley is definitely NOT a happy camper!" Hermione laughed quietly. She, Harry and Ron went back to the kitchen. Molly, Dora and Amelia were there, getting dinner underway. The two girls matched to Rowle and Mulciber were already seated at the table. /p

pCho Chang and Katie Bell looked up as the Trio entered the kitchen. They were seated with Lavender Brown and Luna. After the shock of Shacklebolt's announcement, Hermione had asked Harry if she could invite Lavender Brown to stay with them. Harry had agreed and it hadn't taken long for Ron's interest to reignite. Lavender had caught up to Hermione and thanked her for helping her get back together with Ron. /p

p"Cho, Katie, hello. Welcome to Grimmauld Place. We're only going to be here another day or so. Just until the boys are used to their freedom. So who is matched to which one?" Hermione asked. /p

pKatie smiled weakly. "I, uh, I'm matched to Rowle. At least I know one thing we have in common: Quidditch."/p

pCho sighed. "I'm with Mulciber but, like Katie, I also have Quidditch in common with him."/p

p"Well, at least you two HAVE something in common with them. There's only one thing I can think of that Yaxley and I have in common: We both went to Hogwarts. That's it!" Hermione slumped into her seat. /p

p"Don't worry, Hermione. We'll talk to his friends. See if there's anything he likes to do that you could talk about." Cho told her. Katie nodded in agreement. /p

p /p

pIn the library/p

p /p

pKingsley Shacklebolt watched as the three youngsters walked into the room. He, Arthur and Remus exchanged looks. They had watched the entire incident go down just now. They knew it wouldn't be the last time that Corbin tried to scare Hermione. They also knew he could have been a LOT worse than what they'd just witnessed, if he'd REALLY wanted to scare the girl. It reinforced Kingsley's belief that the boy was just running scared. He was terrified of his father, with extremely good reason. Kingsley wished there was a way to reassure the boy his father would never leave Azkaban but even he knew how easy it had become to break out of the prison. All he could do was hope the boy's desire for Hermione was stronger than his fear of Yaxley Sr. He knew that Rowle and Mulciber wouldn't stay free, not without their friend. If it came right down to it, they would willingly follow him right back to the prison. He would hate like hell to have to escort Yaxley Jr. and his friends back to Azkaban. /p

pHe cleared his throat. "All right. It's time to set some rules. We all know that you've been matched up now. Rowle, Mulciber, your future brides are in the kitchen. Would you like to know who you're matched with?" Thorfinn and Jaron exchanged looks./p

p"Well. It might help. I'd hate for Thorfinn to beat me to a bloody, fucking pulp for kissing his girl. I'd hate to have to beat HIM to a bloody, fucking for kissing MY girl!" Jaron grinned at Thorfinn as he shrugged his shoulders. /p

pThorfinn burst out laughing. "As if you COULD beat me, you little wanker!" Corbin was looking at the floor to hide his grin. He was trying to figure out how Hermione had known he was just trying to scare her. Arthur and Remus were watching his face. They could see the wheels turning . He was already figuring out his next move. They'd have to watch him closely around Hermione. /p

p"For starters, please remember these girls are your future brides. Please treat them politely. You are allowed from now until they sign the contracts to get to know them. Your courtship formally begins from the time they sign the contracts. Yes, Corbin?" He'd known the boy would be the first one to ask questions. He braced himself for it. There was literally no telling what this boy might say!/p

p"How soon can we fuck them?" he looked defiantly at him. Thorfinn and Jaron both had face palmed as soon as he spoke. Kingsley had to repress a chuckle. Arthur and Remus were both looking at the ceiling, lips twitching. /p

p"Well, Corbin. That's entirely up to your brides. I'd highly recommend getting to know them first. They might be more likely to invite you into their beds that way. In the meantime, you will not coerce them into your beds. Nor will you abuse them. Heavy petting will be allowed, as long as THEY are willing. You are not to even try to bed them before the contracts are signed. Do you understand?" he watched them closely. The boys looked at each other. Then they nodded as a group. "Good. Now go on into the kitchen. Rowle, you've been matched with Katie Bell. Mulciber, your match is Cho Chang." Both boys grinned hugely, recognizing fellow Quidditch players. Corbin rolled his eyes as he walked out. /p

pHermione had decided she was in the mood for ice cream. She went to the icebox she and Harry had brought to Grimmauld Place. As she was bent over, the three young men entered the room. Katie and Cho looked up at them. All three sets of eyes had zeroed in on Hermione. Thorfinn and Jaron were just confused. 'What the bloody hell was she DOING?' Katie was the first one to hide a giggle. Cho snorted as she watched the increasing confusion on two of the three faces. Obviously none of the young purebloods had ever seen a muggle icebox. Thorfinn and Jaron watched in concern as Corbin was the only one brave enough to approach her. Lavender, Luna, Harry and Ron were also keeping an eye on him. The older women watched him in the mirror above the sink. Corbin peered into the icebox as he paused beside her./p

pCho heard Thorfinn and Jaron whispering under their breath. "Please, please, please, Corbin. DONT push her in!" she and the others were about to burst out laughing at them. /p

pHermione was short enough that she was having trouble reaching the ice cream. Her feet were barely touching the floor. Corbin cocked his head curiously as he spoke. "Oi, Granger, what the bloody hell are you doing?" She screamed in surprise and fell into the icebox! Corbin jumped back in surprise. /p

p"I DIDN'T DO IT! I DIDN'T TOUCH HER! SHE FELL IN ON HER OWN!" he yelled at them, pointing at her. Everyone had burst out laughing. Even Harry and Ron had to admit. Corbin HADN'T laid a hand on her. Kingsley, Arthur and Remus had just walked into the room. /p

p"CORBIN YAXLEY! How dare you sneak up on me like that?! I know you don't want to marry me bit you don't have to try and give me a heart attack!" she screamed at him angrily. /p

pHe gaped at her, dumbfounded. "Sneak up on you? Me? Damn it, girl! I'm as big as a bloody house! How the fucking hell did you NOT hear me walk into the bloody room?!" By this time, Thorfinn and Jaron were laughing so hard, they were literally propping each other up. They started motioning to him frantically, holding out their arms and pulling them in. He frowned at them, holding his hands up. They grabbed Katie and Cho, laying them in the floor and offering them a hand up. He suddenly understood what they meant./p

pHe turned back to the icebox and peered inside at her. "Oi, Granger! You're down pretty far there. You need a hand up?"/p

pShe snarled at him angrily. "Oh, you think?!" At that, his friends completely lost it and hit the floor, rolling with laughter. "You can tell your two laughing hyenas over there, this is not one bit funny!" Apparently, she was down far enough that even he had trouble reaching her. He finally ended up laying on the lip of the icebox as both of HIS feet barely lifted off the floor. For a moment, everyone was sure he was going to fall in on top of her!/p

pThen he must have reached her. He pulled her up but he was off balance. As she came up out of the icebox, she pushed against it with her feet. It wasn't much pressure but it was enough to tip him over. He ended up on his back with her straddling his waist. He looked up at her and grinned wickedly. "Well, hell, Granger! You should have told me you were ready for bed. I would have conjured a mattress!" Arthur and Remus rushed into the next room where gales of laughter could be heard. Two young former Death Eaters were practically blue in the face, they were laughing so hard! She bared her teeth and growled at him as she jumped up off of him, beet red with anger and embarrassment. He slowly stood up and walked over to his friends. "Excuse me. I think I'll take my laughing hyenas and retire back to the library. Ladies." he bowed his head to Molly, Dora and Amelia. Then Katie, Cho, Luna and Lavender. Then he grabbed Thorfinn with one hand and Jaron with the other and dragged them out of the room./p