A/N - Hello. This is chapter one of a short six chapter story about how far the Black family will go to prove a point. Updated once a week on Saturdays. Cross-posted to AO3, if you prefer that format.
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As the owl who delivered the Daily Prophet left, Hermione opened the paper and took a sip of her coffee. Saturdays she typically slept in a bit later, but on this particular Saturday she had a number of things to do. Her plans for the day however, were to take a sudden and unexpected detour.
Malfoy heir set to wed youngest Greengrass daughter
News spread last evening on the agreement between the soon-to-be Lord Malfoy and Astoria Greengrass. The union will continue the storied legacy of the Malfoy family. Some questions have been raised regarding the announcement as it was not done with the typical Malfoy flair. In fact, at the time of printing, no official statement has been made from the offices of the Malfoy family.
This silence makes more than one reporter wonder on the voracity of the story. While no official statement has been made, recently the youngest Greengrass and the Dowager Lady Malfoy have been seen in each other's company on more than one occasion in all the fashionable locations looking at formal attire and quietly comparing various card stocks at the most high end of the stationary shops. It seems the plans for the wedding of the century are already afoot and we are only now catching up.
Hermione stopped reading and her eyes drifted to the photos of the supposedly engaged couple and she snorted, "It's too early to expect me to understand if that snort was in derision, disgust, or … I can't think of another word that starts with the letter d." Hermione looked up and smiled at the man who pressed a kiss to her lips. "Oh, and good morning love."
An amused hum reached his ears, between the snort and the hum, it only could mean something both annoyed and amused the brunette woman. "Caffeine first, you've gotten me addicted, then you can start with whatever that ridiculous paper printed." As a smile played about her lips, she handed her mug to him while waving him off to the kitchen. A few short minutes later, Hermione was no longer the only person at the table. "Ok, now what…"
The ring of the floo alert sounded and Hermione looked to her watch, then shrugged. She flicked her wand toward the floo and activated the new feature that didn't require a person to stick their head into it to speak, "Yes I've seen it and showing him now. Give me ten, no fifteen and then you will all be allowed in." Hermione flicked her wand again, "You should probably read this first."
Hermione handed the paper over and Draco's first response was to the photos, "That photo is at least six years old! Look at that suit, what was I thinking Hermione? How could you let me wear something like that in public? I need to get a photo session set up and provide a more current headshot if this is the sort of photo they insist on using." Hermione tapped the headline and pulled Draco's attention from the suit that looked like every other suit he ever owned to the important part of the paper.
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Narcissa Malfoy read the article in sheer delight, not that she ever let the emotion play on her face, that was for the proletariat. And Merlin forbid Narcissa Malfoy (née Black), only child of Cygnus III and Druella (née Rosier) give the slightest hint of commonness. She quickly looked around and noted with the exception of the elves, she was alone. All the better, though it wasn't like there was anyone else who would be around.
Narcissa looked at the paper again, it was playing out exactly as she planned. It didn't matter if Draco wished to remain single, she'd ensure the family continued and if a bit of social blackmail was the only way, then so be it. Apparently the rumors she started about him being in a relationship didn't force his hand. He simply rolled his eyes when she'd ask him on the topic. It was like he didn't even care what people thought.
Luckily for her, the Greengrass family was desperate to get rid of Astoria. Apparently she was not the perfect pureblood daughter, which was fine. The girl was a pureblood and really that was the only thing Narcissa had as a requirement. Lady Malfoy, she didn't acknowledge the dowager title many used, arranged a very beneficial agreement between the families. It did favor the Malfoy family and that shouldn't surprise anyone.
Not that she could actually finalize it, after Lucius passed she held the role of Regent to Malfoy House, however, once Draco became seventeen she lost any authority granted to her by the role. To be honest, she was unsure if her regency would allow her to authorize the contract, but again it didn't matter, Draco would fall into line.
Narcissa sipped her tea and thought about the lovely arrangement. The Greengrass girl didn't realize her father more or less paid Narcissa to take his daughter off her family's hands. Not only did he include the dowry created at the girl's birth, the agreement also included a large portion of the family vaults and numerous parcels of land. The properties were the pride of the Greengrass family and Anthony struggled in agreeing to include them.
Knowing his options for Astoria dropped after each story detailing her exploits, Anthony became desperate to keep Narcissa at the table. The older woman smirked, a few well placed comments about other families asking about contracts with Draco and asking if the recent story about Astoria was truly accurate kept the man willing to give up his family name.
The properties were nice, but now merely another line item on the extensive Malfoy property listing. The agreement also included clauses forcing Astoria to act as a proper wife should. That is to say, act in a manner expected of a Malfoy bride and wife.
Astoria believed herself to be too special to be bound by one man. Or actually by a single person, rumors were also relatively widespread about her dalliances with the fairer sex. The gossip would be pretty intense over the next year or so. With Draco's apparent disinterest in the important things, Narcissa knew he'd not even know. With Narcissa at the helm and a few comments related to Astoria learning her responsibilities, the rumors would quickly fall to the side.
Given the knowledge of Astoria's penchant for the beds of others, she shouldn't have a problem bedding Draco. He was a catch and hopefully within the year Astoria would provide the next generation of Malfoy. And if not, there was more than one fertility potion on the market. Narcissa made a note to pull a few books from the library to determine which would be the best.
A honeymoon baby would be ideal for all parties really. After that, it didn't matter what the girl did. Narcissa certainly didn't care. The role of Lady Malfoy would remain firmly in her grasp for decades to come. If her future granddaughter-in-law was lucky, she'd be allowed to take up some of the responsibilities after spending time learning the expectations placed on her. The title and responsibility would completely bypass Astoria.
Picking up the paper again, Narcissa flipped through the rest of the day's stories and when she reached the section dedicated to the latest fashions, she found herself absorbed in the articles. It seemed a bit fortuitous the section was discussing the latest styles for the coming spring. A spring where she would be the mother-of-the-groom.
Her eyes flickered to the shelves and the masked muggle binder holding all the details to get Draco's wedding moving. Not that she would admit it, but the muggles had some very ingenious ideas on organization. Seeing the time, Narcissa stood, she had an appointment soon.
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Harry Potter stood in front of his best friend and laughed. "She really thought this would, I mean …" Hermione shrugged as she continued to mend the cuts on Draco's hand. Harry's question wasn't finished and he started another one, "Malfoy, so you did what, actually, no, I'm not even going to guess what you did. Hermione can tell me how you ended up with all that glass in your hand later. Do the two of you need anything from me? From any of us really?"
Draco glared at the paper for another couple of moments, "No, —" looking up and at the others in the room, a slow smirk slid across the blond man's face before it disappeared with his hiss as Hermione extracted another sliver of glass, "— actually Potter yes, would you mind going into the Ministry and see if any marriage licenses have recently been either requested or submitted with my name? Obviously I didn't do it and they should be rejected since, —" Draco waved to Hermione with his uninjured hand, "— but I wouldn't put it past either of them at this point."
With a little salute, Harry bounced over to the floo calling out the Ministry of Magic and was gone in a flash of green. Draco watched as Hermione pulled out what he hoped with the last shard. Once she finished tending to Draco's wounds, Hermione turned to their friends, "George and Fred get to the store, you need to be there anyway, it's Saturday. Let us know if you hear anything of interest. More than just gossip," with a telling look the two men copied Harry's move and flicked their hands to their foreheads before leaving for the Weasley store in Diagon Alley.
Those remaining in the room, two more Weasleys, a Parkinson, a Nott and a Lovegood, stood waiting for instructions. Honestly, Luna Lovegood wasn't waiting for instructions, she flipped through the Prophet shaking her head, "Obviously this writer is infected with nargles." The rest rolled their eyes, they long ago gave up the discussion on Luna's mythical, magical animals.
"Of course she is Luna. But that said, I believe it might be time to pay the woman a little visit to see if the infestation is natural or not." A wholly innocent look morphed into a terrifyingly evil smile, "If I go, I believe it will give away secrets before we are ready for them to be known." Pansy Parkinson then got a very determined look in her eye.
"I believe you are correct Granger. Allow me to make some subtle comments and delicate inquiries into her sources and see if we can get the rat to squirm." At the snort of a redhead, Pansy shrugged, "Fine not a rat, but a bug. Bugs squirming isn't something people say." When the redhead again raised an eyebrow to indicate it wasn't the bug term causing him snort, the black haired socialite shrugged. With an unconcerned wave of her hand that was absolutely, positively and no way a salute, Pansy followed the other three and left the home.
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Rita Skeeter was very pleased with herself. Her not-so-accidental discovery of the Malfoy engagement was something she'd been chasing for months. There were so many rumors swirling about Draco Malfoy, Rita needed to get something or her editors were going to find someone else.
At first the rumors were simply how he was taken with an unknown and mysterious witch. Not surprising, the man was attractive, rich and unattached. Any witch worth her magic would be begging the man for a chance. But as the weeks turned into months, there was never the slightest indication of him being in a relationship, serious or otherwise.
Doing what she did best, Rita attempted to access the Malfoy grounds and found them protected against animagi. An odd enchantment to be sure, but nonetheless it proved effective and kept her from crossing into the lands owned by the Malfoy family for almost a millennia.
After that failure, Rita found herself tracking her query using old school methods. She followed him relentlessly. What she could tell Draco's days were boring and monotonous. He arrived at the Malfoy offices every morning via a private apparition point and left the same way. There were occasional dinners with his school friends, but nothing of note.
The only time he seemed to garner even the slightest hint gossip were the times he was seen accompanying Harry Potter and his little clique of friends. Rita hated that group, but they hated her as well, which effectively removed her from knowing anything about them.
Pushing beyond that, Rita read the front page article once more. She was sure there was more to tell and now she needed to figure out what. Her plotting was paused when she heard a voice, "Well done Rita, you need to get some real insight on the upcoming wedding and pictures would be better than us pulling stock photos from years ago like we had to do this morning." Rita nodded and glared once her editor left. She hated him, he really seemed to think her stories were exaggerations or all out lies. He wouldn't understand journalism if it bit him in the arse.
But, he was right. Photos were a necessity. Packing up her things, she grabbed more than a few cameras, Rita figured finding Astoria Greengrass would be easier. As she departed from Narcissa Malfoy the evening prior, the younger woman mentioned an appointment in under an hour at the newest bridal store in Diagon. A store where it was impossible to get an appointment for months. Having one this morning would mean it was something in the works for months. Hopefully Narcissa would be there as well. A photo of the pair of them looking for the perfect gown would be clincher and guarantee Rita's place as the top reporter for a few months.
Rita grabbed her bag and went to the single apparition point in the building owned by the Daily Prophet. She should have enough time to get in the shop and settled before they arrived, if there wasn't a line at the point.
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Pansy Parkinson arrived at A Mostly Bridal Affair fifteen minutes before the first appointment of the day. She'd been surprised when she saw who scheduled a bridal consultation when she reviewed the appointment book the evening before. Not that she was surprised now, but it was an awfully ballsy move. "Good morning Glitter, I suspect there will be an unexpected visitor today during the first appointment." When the elf nodded slowly, Pansy smiled, "When Rita shows up, either as herself or the beetle, make her comfortable in the back room. If needed, ask Hermione for suggestions."
"Of courses, by comfortable you mean as uncomfortable as I can?" Glitter hated that woman, she always made bad comments about her Pansy and if Glitter was told she could, the elf would make that horrible woman pay. When Pansy smiled with a shrug, the elf gave a twisted grin, "Of courses, the most comfortable possible. I maybes visits your friend."
Pansy set about making the consultation area ready once Glitter left. Most brides appreciated the out of the way room, they didn't want their dresses to be known until they walked down the aisle. Pansy assumed Astoria wouldn't like the idea, but too bad really.
While advertising was always a plus, Pansy refused to be part of a plot against one of her oldest friends. Plus, given what was probably going to happen, Pansy was relatively positive the store would get mentioned. Even if that only happened because Pansy forced the issue. A move she wasn't above doing, especially if the consultation went the way Pansy suspected.
Though, the day's mission actually consisted getting whatever information she could from the not-so-blushing and never-to-be bride and also Narcissa, if she appeared. When the chime rang indicating someone's arrival, Pansy looked to the large clock and muttered, "Just on time." Stepping into the showroom, Pansy plastered a wide fake grin on her face, "Astoria good to see you. Oh Narcissa you're here as well, what an absolute surprise."
The two woman looked a bit put out when Pansy waved them toward the back of the store, an area without a view of the windows lining Diagon Alley. Pansy barely contained the desire to roll her eyes when Astoria longingly gazed at the large plate glass window.
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"Seems as if our plan is starting a bit sooner than we expected. Are you really ok with this?" Hermione smiled and leaned into Draco at his question. "I hate you making, —" Hermione placed her fingers over his lips and stopped him from speaking.
"You aren't making me do anything. We both knew this day would come. I've been laying the groundwork for me for months now and Kingsley is aware. He'll take care of the rest assuming you don't go too far off the rails today." His scowl was adorable, "But really, this gives you a perfect reason and Kingsley plays the game as well as anyone." Hermione smiled and hoped Draco understood she wanted this as much as he did.
To give him a little boost, Hermione brushed her lips over his cheek and whispered into his ear, "And now you can unleash the drama queen inside of you. I know you keep it pretty bottled up, but we both know it's there. I mean you're half Malfoy and half Black. Both families are ridiculous in their desire to be overwrought about any and everything."
Draco glared and shook his head, although he didn't have a chance to speak, "No you keep forgetting I'm best friends with Harry. Harry Potter whose father is James Potter. James is half Black through his mother. Harry's godfather is Sirius Black. So I'm well aware of how the Black family likes attention. And don't forget your father pranced around Diagon Alley more than any person I ever saw. And that includes Gilderoy Lockheart when he had that ridiculous book signing when we were twelve."
Draco deflated, "Not to mention I knew you in school. Let's not talk about third year and Care of Magical Creatures class." At her glare, his nose scrunched remembering the bloody chicken. She leaned in and kissed his pouting lips, "You have my permission, not that you need it, but you can be as loud, dramatic, and obnoxious as you wish to be. I'm pretty sure if you wanted, Sirius would weep in the middle of the Alley for us. He's been quite the advocate on ridding our world of marriage contracts. You may even get him to begin quoting some historic speeches to get those other traditionalists on board with him."
Draco began to slowly nod at Hermione's words. He suspected she withheld this idea earlier in order to make him feel better about being called a drama queen. Draco sighed and thought about what Hermione said about Sirius. His cousin had long been one of their most ardent supporters. Sirius quickly accepted the relationship with Hermione and loved the fact the amazing witch was part of the family.
Draco suspected Sirius wanted Hermione in the family for two reasons. The first was she made Draco happier than he ever expected. But the second reason was much more personal and directly related to the loss of his status in the house.
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Sirius Orion Black, eldest son of Orion and Walburga Black, was supposed to be the head of the House of Black. He was raised with all the necessary instruction and expectations, but was removed as the heir when his relationship with Remus Lupin was announced.
Regulus, younger brother of Sirius and now head of House Black, was a staunch bachelor with no intention to marry or have children. This decision was based solely on his mother's behavior more than a desire to never marry. More than once he said the family tree needed a bit of rejuvenation. What his dear mother didn't realize was the influx of new blood would be from the son of her niece and his muggleborn wife.
Arcturus Black, the head of the Black family at the time Sirius and Regulus were born, only had one surviving son, Orion. When Orion and Walburga's boys were younger, she lorded the fact the future for the House of Black remained with her family line. In fact, her sons were the only boys in the family and the only hope for the family name to continue.
While not entirely true, Walburga ignored the house rule the family name could continue through a son born to a daughter of the house of Black. Since that would not be needed with her two sons, Walburga happily ignored the fact. As the generation of Orion and Walburga aged, only five children were born across the entire family. Walburga's two boys and three daughters from Walburga's brother were the only hope for the future of the Black family. The three daughters, nieces to Walburga, were the children of Walburga's younger brother Cygnus and his wife Druella.
A younger brother whose marriage contract was not only finalized but he also married Walburga's greatest Hogwarts rival before their father secured his own daughter's marriage. And Walburga detested Druella Rosier from the moment the pair met first year after both girls were sorted into Slytherin. Druella's marrying first was a slap to Walburga's face. When the marriage agreement for Cygnus was announced, Walburga threw an absolute fit.
At the time the marriage between Cygnus and Druella was announced, Walburga's feelings carried no weight. She quickly found her importance diminished, she would not birth a Black and was only a first cousin once removed to the family head. In fact, Arcturus silenced the woman and had one of the elves remove her when she started to make a scene.
For reasons she never cared to learn, Walburga got a bit of her desired power back when she married Orion. Her father and Arcturus, who were first cousins, came to the conclusion this marriage would be in the best interest of the family. Luckily she and Orion quickly had the two boys proving magic wished the family to remain with her line.
She reminded her sister-in-law of the fact at every possible opportunity. Druella only was able to birth daughters, none of which would be able to lead the House of Black. As the years progressed, Druella's status in the family remained below Walburga. Walburga happily commented on even with birthing three girls, the only girl remaining on the family tree only had one child. A son, but still, Druella could only claim the one.
It wasn't to say Walburga's role was solid, until one of her sons had a son, the family's future was still unsure. To stabilize her position, Walburga began started to search for appropriate wives for both her boys once they started Hogwarts. She had years before either would marry and wanted to find a daughter-in-law meeting the stringent requirements of the house. After years of searching and badgering, Walburga finally talked Orion around on the idea.
Orion to agree to speak with his father on a marriage between Orion's niece, Molly Prewitt and Sirius. Walburga didn't care for her husband's sister, but Lucretia's daughter was available for somewhat obvious reasons. The girl wasn't the most attractive and had a bit of a problem with eating sweets, though Walburga did see that as an advantage. No one else was asking for the girl.
After months of nagging, Orion finally accepted his niece would be the best available option as a daughter-in-law. Walburga found herself disgusted by the daughters of the sacred twenty-eight. When Molly Prewitt became the front runner it was obvious there was a problem. Walburga even had the passing thought to look on the continent before settling on the Prewitt girl.
Getting Orion on board garnered only a short respite for Walburga. Her plans were then rushed when rumors started to spread about the girl wishing to marry into the Weasley clan. A pureblood clan to be sure, but poor. Sirius would be a better option for both families.
The Prewitt family could use the connections given their two boys and heirs recently were outed in an expose from the newest reporter at the Prophet. Such a scandal really, the Prewitts would be ecstatic on being approached now. With the heirs not marrying, therefore no children, Molly would be seen as the future of the Prewitt family. A future also wrapped up in Black ribbon.
Walburga planned for the marriage to take place after Sirius graduated from Hogwarts, meaning Molly would be getting a bit old. She would need to have a child or two before it became unseemly. Walburga was sure Ignatius Prewitt would bend over backwards to give the Blacks whatever they desired to secure the future of his house. Walburga salivated at the fact the Prewitt properties would fall to her son, and therefore to her.
It irritated Walburga when Molly Prewitt eloped with the youngest Weasley boy the day before Arcturus was to announce his intent to open marriage negotiations between the Black heir and Prewitt heiress. More than a few precious vases were blasted in the subsequent weeks. Worst of all, rumors on Arcturus's plans made their way to the Prewitts. Apparently Ignatius claimed he would never have agreed to any negotiations should they be offered as Molly and Sirius were too closely related for the marriage to be successful.
There was a bit of a divide between the Blacks and Prewitts from then on. Lucretia never voiced her opinion and Walburga took that to mean the woman never had what it took to be a Black. It was better for her to be off the tree. That was something Walburga happily facilitated with a bit of a special spell she created for the event. Arcturus didn't know why he decided to expel his daughter from the family but he did. It was something that grated on the man.
The spell could only be used once, but before long her son would be the family head and would do as Walburga wished. Moments after Lucretia's removal from the tree, Walburga gave Druella a pointed glare. A glare telling the other woman her own time on the tree could very well be limited if she didn't follow what Walburga decreed.
What the elopement did was restart Walburga's search. It also forced her re-evaluate the eligible daughters of the Macmillan family. It was annoying and it disgusted Walburga as she did not like her mother-in-law's family, but they were quite prolific. And the search continued.
Sirius threw an absolute bludger into her plans when he announced, in the Prophet by way of a photo and front page expose by that annoying Skeeter woman, his relationship with a dorm mate. A boy who was also a werewolf. A boy who would ensure her son never had a son.
Now with scandals surrounding her family, Walburga needed something drastic. And as her spell of preference was used uselessly on her sister-in-law, Walburga was forced to use the standby option. It didn't take much more than a well placed imperious to get Arcturus to disown the boy and make her perfect Regulus the new heir apparent.
Discovering the reason for why he disowned Sirius and suspecting Walburga the reason for losing Lucretia, but unable to do anything about it, Arcturus trained Regulus and turned the role over to the younger man once he turned twenty-five. In those years between when Regulus became the heir and taking the headship and with the assistance of Arcturus, the young man carefully updated the family rules effectively eliminating the ability for family members to bypass the house head.
It was something Arcturus drafted after his discovery and discussions with Pollux. Both men knew if they expelled Walburga from the family Sirius and Regulus would fall off the tree, so they needed to keep her. But, they worked together to ensure no member of the family could ever do what Walburga did again.
As far as Regulus was concerned, the changes blocked his mother's ability to enact any sort of negotiations on behalf of either the house or Regulus. A move frustrating Walburga as she finally found the perfect match. Regulus forbade her from even discussing it and her hands were then tied by her own Black blood and command from the head of the house. A command that could not be negated without an investigation initiated by an independent counsel.
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Returning his focus back to Hermione, Draco nodded slowly. Knowing what he did of the Black family history, Draco knew Sirius and probably Regulus would both happily assist him with the public manner in which he was doing this. "Yeah, Sirius will more than likely jump at the chance to be involved. Have you informed my cousins of the entire plan or were they initially intended to be part of the shocked and surprised masses?"
"Shocked and surprised, but they both can play that role. They will love the plan really. Especially Sirius, he's been wanting a little of his own since his mum did her thing. Plus Regulus being around should be a reminder to the Dowager Lady Malfoy how both of her houses are tied to you."
Hermione shrugged at the threat masked as a blasé comment, "Maybe it'll make her think about her plans. She can't disown you from the Malfoy family since you are literally the only blood Malfoy and are the head of it. Even if she doesn't realize you've been the head since turning seventeen. She won't get Regulus to disown you and even if she pulled what Walburga did, Regulus and Arcturus already addressed it with Gringotts. The documents require the goblins to review all disownments. The action can only be made official once the head has been verified to be of a free mind."
Hermione tilted her head to the side, "You know, —" Draco waited, he did always love when she said that, "— with the change Reg made about a member not being able to bypass the head of the family and you more or less copying that with the Malfoy family rules …" She paused
"Yes, very right love. A shame she did this, —" Draco tapped the paper, "— it would have been an excellent surprise if she tried to finalize an agreement." With a little sad pout, Draco shook his head, "You're right, it's a great idea really to get my cousins involved, would you mind speaking with them. I need a bit to get into the proper frame of mind for this. It will be, as I'm sure you're hoping, quite the show." Draco kissed Hermione once more before heading into their room to get ready.
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Hermione arrived at Grimmauld Place along with those who remained at her home. Draco needed privacy for his preparations and he wouldn't get it if Theo and Ron were kicking around the townhouse. "Ah, the kitten has arrived without her dragon. Although if the paper is to believed, her fair dragon is padding his lair with a second bride." Hermione shook her head.
"Where's Regulus and Remus? I need all three of you here. If you wish, you each have a part in what will happen in a few hours." Seeing a Marauder worthy look, Sirius began yelling for the other two residents of the home. Hermione waved toward the parlor to the small group she brought with her, "We will be in there, ask Kreacher to bring snacks."
Sirius nodded eagerly and called for the elf. When Remus appeared first, Sirius smiled, "Hermione and some of the others are here. She wants all of us. Something good is going on." The sparkling in his eyes told Remus something ridiculous was about to happen. He only hoped James wouldn't be involved, it would all go tits-up then.
The pair heard Regulus coming down the steps, before Sirius could get going again Remus began, "I don't know but Hermione's arrived and I suspect it's about that article." Reg nodded and turned toward the parlor where Sirius was already pulling Remus.
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