Harry Potter: How I Met Your Mother Marilyn s Wedding
DISCLAIMER: The world of Harry Potter and its characters are the creations of JK Rowling. They are the property of JK Rowling, Wizarding World, and Warner Brothers. I certainly don't profess to own them. I do lay claim to my Original Characters. Hands off, please.
Also, I don't really like the Dramione genre. That's why I'm writing this story.
This work of fiction is written for my amusement and ego gratification, not for profit. If you are enjoying it, please write a review.
-How I Met Your Mother—How I Met Your Mother—How I Met Your Mother-
My cousin Marilyn got married a few days after I'd returned from my memorable bus trip. It goes without saying that I attended. I think I would have gone to it even if my parents hadn't made me. She was my cousin after all.
I have heard Muggle-born witches and wizards say that the most striking features of the Wizarding World isn't that we have magic and then try to conceal the fact that we do, but that most of us are related to each other. And it was so, particularly before the First and Second Wizarding Wars. The majority of us were descended from long lines of witches and wizards stretching back centuries, howbeit with the occasional Muggle ancestor that was disparaged or discounted. The more wizarding ancestry you were known to have, the higher was your social status. This form of accounting ignored unpleasantries such as that you could have long, noble bloodlines and be in dire financial straits or that your bloodline could be riddled with congenital physical infirmities or prone to emotional instability. This might sound ridiculous to you, but many people, particularly the older families, still believed it when your mother and I were younger.
And so it was with Marilyn's husband Abaris. He was Old Blood, loosely related to the Selwyns and the Herrings. You may not have heard of the Herrings, but they were a Pureblood family that died out before the Grindelwald War. Not that much money in his family's purse, but he was sufficiently well connected to have good job prospects at the Ministry. Luckily for Marilyn, he gained employment after their honeymoon and so she was well provided for.
You might wonder about marriage ceremonies in the Wizarding world. Well, I must tell you: just as in the Muggle world, there is no one way to perform a marriage ceremony. As a rule, Muggle-born and the next few generations after them tend to marry by ceremonies sanctioned by one of the three Abrahamic religion, although Hindus and Buddhists have other rites. The Old Religion once practiced in Britain before the Christian missionaries arrived on our islands died out, although some wizards and witches and wizards said that they were trying to revive it.
What they came up with was a very simplified and sanitized version of what they claimed were the beliefs of pre-Roman Britain. There were two Gods: Mother Earth in her main aspect, and the Sky God, who was the God of weather, male wizardry, war, smithing and crafts. He also held sway over the oceans. Both were co-creators of the universe and their union brings forth children. Most of the old Celtic Gods are sublimated into either Mother Earth or the Sky God and the old unpleasant and grisly rites such as are occasionally noticed when Muggles drain some old bog or another and summon the archaeologists are discreetly ignored.
Marilyn's and Abaris' wedding was neo-pagan. Unlike the Abrahamic religions, their weddings were officiated by not one, but two priests—or a priest and a priestess if you want to get technical about it. Marilyn's wedding dress followed ancient designs: a loose-fitting white dress with a high collar, a skirt hemmed at the ankles, and bare arms. Fashionable it was not, although your Mother told me that it would have been a smash hit at one of those Muggle reenactment events you see here and there at some historic sites or other. Abaris wore a traditional wizard's robe. The priest and priestess made Marilyn and Abaris exchange rings, bound Marilyn's and Abaris' wrists together, invoked the Old Gods, asked them to make and affirm their vows, then called on the Old Gods to bless their union. That being done, the priest and priestess pronounced them married.
I won't tell you much about the reception afterwards A lot of your relatives from both my Mum's and my Dad's families were there, as were people from Abaris' family. There might or might not have been a Muggle present: if so, he or she was extraordinarily discreet. Other than that, most of us had at least two sets of wizarding parents and our blood status, which we used to think was extremely important back then ranged from second-generation Half-blood to old families where the Muggle connections were safely concealed in generations long past.
I remember looking at all the pretty faces and all the pretty clothing and that I later drank too much.
-How I Met Your Mother—How I Met Your Mother—How I Met Your Mother—
That evening I went to sleep alone. Hermione had some political do on the Continent and I stayed behind to care for the children. I looked in the mirror—a gift to Hermione from my Mum—and it was almost like I could see some of the later events of the day.
Camilla had been at the wedding. She was related to both Abaris and Marilyn. We'd sat on opposites sides of the aisle during the open-air ceremony and I thought to join her after the ceremony. I did get to greet her right after the ceremony, but she was swept off by her cousin Drew, a big hulk of a fellow who'd make a Muggle Rugby player think twice about bothering him even if he didn't have a wand on his person.
It wasn't until later until Camilla drifted away from some of her cousins that I got to chat with her.
"So they finally did it," I said.
"Yes, it was a lovely little ceremony," Camilla replied. "I thought it was quaint."
"I'm glad you liked it," I replied. "I like Marilyn."
"It had certain rustic charms," said Camilla, "but I didn't really care for her dress. I thought it was plain. Even the Muggles have more elaborate designs. I've seen some of them."
"I didn't think you cared for Muggle things," I said.
"As a rule, I don't," said Camilla. "But sometimes I think a couple ought to put on a show and as far as I'm concerned, they didn't."
"Camilla, they've been together for a year and a half," I said. "That counts for something, doesn't it?"
"Not really," said Camilla. "If we get married, I want something fancy that will get a two-page spread in Witch Weekly."
"That would take a lot of lucre," I said.
"If some of your schemes work out, we'll have it," she said.
I remember that the clouds rolled in and that the party broke up when it started to rain.
Author's notes: Yes, the pre-Roman Celts did practice human sacrifice. Every now and again, some victim's body is excavated from some bog in the British Isles and on Continental Europe.
Wrist binding as part of the marriage ceremony was once part of pagan marriage ceremonies and into the Christian era as well.
