Hey, happy Monday! You're getting two chapters this update :) I'll actually probably shift to doing two-chapter updates on Sundays and Wednesdays (ish). Anyway, thanks for sticking around and I hope you enjoy!

Hermione looked over at Harry while they walked back to Gryffindor Tower. "So… something you want to tell me about Evangeline?"

Harry blushed brightly awkwardly trying to explain. His nerves were showing as he stammered and tripped over his words. "I… errr… right… I meant to tell you about that… She and I… well, we're kind of hanging out… a lot. Like, we're kind of dating... I think. Girls are kind of complicated."

"Ha, tell me about it!" Hermione gave a throaty laugh of agreement but she still raised an eyebrow at him. She was curious why he hadn't told her. And that somehow she totally missed the signs of the growing relationship between her best friend and the brunette part-Veela. Oh, right, planning for the apocalypse took priority.

Harry misunderstood her gaze as disapproval and hastily went on to explain "I know I'm supposed to be focused on this tournament and all but at the Yule Ball we realized we have a lot in common actually. She was raised part-Muggle and we get to joke around about stuff… and she's the Seeker for one of the Beauxbatons Quidditch teams!" Harry's face lit up brightly as he recounted what he had learned about the Frenchwoman and things he and Evangeline had done. Thankfully not in great detail. Mostly just talking and a little snogging. All pretty innocent stuff.

Hermione couldn't help but smile at her friend's happiness. "I'm glad for you both, really!"

"I guess I was worried to tell you because you know, she's Fleur's friend and all… she just makes me really happy inside."

"That's great, Harry! For Morgana's sake you deserve some good in your life after everything you've been through!" She grinned mischievously and nudged him in the ribs with her elbow "so… are you telling me that you are actually in loooove ? Which I will remind you, you denied so furiously when I first asked you..."

Harry rolled his eyes and playfully shoved her back "I dunno, I mean, she's going back to France after this. But I really do like her!"

"I'm sure you two will figure something out."

By this point they had reached the Gryffindor Common Room. Gratefully everyone was still at the Lake or on their way back. Soon the place would be full of celebration in Harry's honor. With a smile and hug they went their separate ways.

Once in her room, Hermione decided to let Rita sit and wait for a bit before launching the plan she was quickly forming in her head. One of the benefits of spending so much time on the run for the last year and change? She had had a lot of free time on her hands. She used that time to work on charm theory and she had managed to modify a number of spells. Seemed like the perfect time to finally use them.

She was glad to see that, like the rest of the Gryffindor students, Lavender and Pavarti had not returned from the Lake yet. She shoved the glass vial under her pillow for safe keeping, she didn't trust Crookshanks with it, then she took a nice hot shower. She was sure to take her time, letting the water soothe her aching muscles. Whatever spell they used to paralyze them this time had some really nasty after effects.

Feeling slightly rejuvenated, she returned to her area and changed into warm clothes. She drew the drapes and cast a strong silencing charm, along with several other defensive wards, to fend off eavesdropping and interruptions. Once the spells were in place, she took the vial out from under her pillow, not particularly caring if she jostled the tiny occupant. She held the glass tube up and stared at the green beetle in the face, noticing a subtle pattern over its eyes that looked like Skeeter's horn-rimmed glasses.

"Listen here, you… I'm going to let you out and we're going to have a little chat between girls. But I warn you, I've got my wand on you. If you try to escape or do any funny business, I won't hesitate to squish a bug. In this form no one would be the wiser, anyway… especially since you're unregistered… isn't that right, Miss Skeeter?"

The beetle glared, or gave the impression it was glaring if it could make facial expressions. Eventually it nodded.

Hermione uncorked the vial and dumped the insect unceremoniously into the bed, her wand tip hovering inches away. In a flash, a full grown Rita Skeeter was sitting there.

"Ugh, that was most undignified." She huffed, straightening her hair, glasses, and lime green jacket before fixing Hermione with a proper glare "and you, little girl… how dare you. Capturing me like that? You think I'm afraid of you? You think you can threaten me?"

Hermione shrugged nonchalantly "Yup, I sure do… because if you don't comply, I'll tell the Ministry that you're an unregistered Animagus. And you and I both know the punishment for failure to register…"

Skeeter gulped slightly "Fine… what do you want? Money? Fame? I'm very influential, I can get you whatever you want. I have my sources."

"Which is exactly why I chose you, Miss Skeeter. A woman with your connections and unique abilities is of great use to me."

"Well, spit it out girl, I haven't got all day."

"Actually you do because I say so… one owl is all it takes… but I digress. I want two things. First, all future coverage of the Tournament must be objective and factual and not slanderous toward any of the Champions. In particular, I would appreciate it if you stopped calling Miss Delacour a floozy and making Mr. Potter sound incompetent."

Rita opened her mouth to protest but Hermione held up her index finger and waggled it in front of her nose, causing the faux-blonde to go slightly cross eyed.

"I wasn't finished and It's rude to interrupt. This is a polite conversation after all."

Rita grumbled under her breath that there was nothing polite about blackmail.

"As I was saying, I want two things. The second is information. I need you to follow Professor Moody, no questions asked. All night, every night and report back to me. You're free to do with your days to tend to your other needs and responsibilities, but your watch will be 8pm to 7am. I think a check in every three days should suffice. We can meet at Hogsmeade at the Three Broomsticks."

"What?! What about my job? My life?"

"You'll have neither if you are in Azkaban. I suggest you write to the Prophet and tell them you'll be on holiday for a while." Hermione simply shrugged, otherwise keeping a calm and neutral expression.

Rita grit her teeth. "And what information do you want me to find out?"

"Anything you can find but particularly any communications he is having. Post, Floo Network, or just seemingly talking to himself. Anything. If it comes out of his mouth, I want to know about it. Also, if he leaves or does something out of the ordinary, you follow. I want to know what he is up to."

"For how long?" Hermione could practically see the steam jetting out of Skeeter's ears.

"Until I'm satisfied or get what I need. Whichever comes first."

"You can't possibly expect me to agree to those terms!"

Hermione just smiled sweetly "Au contraire, Miss Skeeter, that's exactly what I expect."

Rita pursed her lips and adjusted her glasses. She started speaking in an overly sweet, condescending tone. "Oh, so the little girl thinks she can blackmail me? Making ridiculous demands like this? Honey, that's my area of expertise. You're in over your head. You just messed with the wrong witch. The things I could write about you… I will ruin you!" She sneered and got up to stand, but Hermione shot her left hand out and grabbed Rita's right hand as the older witch turned away.

Hermione pointed around their joined hands with her wand and started muttering an incantation. Suddenly bright gold threads erupted from her wand tip, wrapping themselves around the hands and wrists.

"What are you doing!?" Rita shrieked and tried to pull away but the threads held her firmly in place.

"My version of the Unbreakable Vow… This spell ensures that you will do exactly as I say. It also prevents you from communicating any information you find out with anyone other than myself and that the information you give me is objective, completely factual, and shared in full. In short, it compels you to tell me the truth and only the truth. I also added a fun little bit about consequences for breaking this agreement. A letter will be sent instantly to the Ministry alerting them to the presence of an unregistered Animagus and where to find you. Even if you move locations the spell will track you."

"You can't have done all that. You're like, 12!" Rita scoffed, feigning bravado, but her eyes were wide and fearful of the consequences.

"15 actually, and I think you'll find that I'm not like any 15 year old you've ever met before. But go ahead, try your luck. Break the agreement if you dare. I'll be sure to write to you in Azkaban. I'm sure there is some great gossip to cover there, especially with an insider's perspective... I hear the cells are just lovely. Real five star treatment. 6 feet across and well furnished with a pile of hay. One grey-ish mystery meal a day… Oh and the company is great, too. Dementors? They're just charming. Had a run in with a few last year, actually. Great conversationalists, you could just give them a Kiss."

Rita was fuming "Well, I must say, Miss Granger, I misjudged you. You certainly know how to play with the big girls after all... I can see a career in politics for you if you keep this up."

"Wouldn't you like to know..." Hermione gave a sweet faux-smile.

The vile reporter glared at her, weighing her very short list of options "Well, consider Rita Skeeter at your service, Miss Granger."

As soon as Skeeter agreed, the golden threads joining their hands seeped into the skin, leaving no trace.

"Marvelous! I knew we could come to an understanding. I'll see you in three days in the Three Broomsticks. 7pm. Don't be late." Hermione wanted to grin, she was feeling very smug and proud of herself, but she did not. She remained cool and impassive.

Rita threw the drapes open and scooted off the bed. She turned on her heel and transformed into her beetle shape as Hermione cracked the window so she could leave Gryffindor Tower.

Once the beetle was gone and the window closed, Hermione flopped down on her bed, hands folded under her head. That went much better than expected. So, what next?

She had her potions in the works, and a number of plans and back up plans ready to go. All that there was left to do was wait for her first report from her little spy. Her thoughts turned to the questions raised by the Second Task. Why was she Fleur's treasure?

She decided that speculating would get her nothing but a headache and more questions. It was time to have the heart to heart chat with Fleur that was long overdue. If nothing else, she would finally get some answers at least.

She rolled over and pulled out a piece of paper from her side table and scribbled a quick note before folding it into the shape of a flower and casting her transportation charm. The paper caught on fire and disappeared in a poof of smoke and ash.

Fleur was hiding in her room, sprawled out on her bed, trying to avoid people and her feelings. She was confused by the way the Task has played out, specifically Hermione. She kept trying to convince herself that the treasures were selected because of the Yule Ball pairings, but even she was having a hard time fully believing that.

After eating at Ravenclaw table for the past four months she had gotten to know Cho again, so she knew that in this timeline she and Cedric had been dating for almost two years and were quite serious.

On their way back to the Carriage, Evangeline had come clean about sneaking off with Harry, though the part-Veela claimed everything was innocent... mostly. Just a few stolen kisses here and there, but they primarily just talked a lot. She knew that Evangeline had very different experiences growing up in both the magical and Muggle worlds and she was glad that her friend had found a kindred spirit in Harry. Plus, Harry was a genuinely good boy. A little young and naive at this time, but he had a pure heart and was loyal and brave. She hoped he would have the chance this time to grow into his full potential.

But that brought her back to her current worry, that the treasures had been chosen because of a deeper, more meaningful connection than just dates for a night. That meant it was still possible that someone suspected that Hermione meant more to her than she was letting on.

It terrified her to think that someone might have deduced the truth of their mate connection. She felt an uneasy knot in her stomach when she thought about it more. If the War has taught her anything it was to trust her gut and wasn't about to break that habit. She was not going to potentially bring Hermione to harm because she didn't take a possible threat seriously.

She would keep her eyes and ears open for anything suspicious. Starting with Moody. She had been keeping a passive watch on the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor but now she was going to double those efforts. She remembered the way he had observed them so closely early on. In recent months he had let up but that swiveling, mechanical blue eye was always watching. Who knows what he had already reported back to Voldemort.

She was pulled from her thoughts when there was a soft pop and a crackling sound coming from her desk. She propped herself up on her elbows to look, then gasped when she saw a small blue flame appear midair. Leaping to her feet, she prepared to cast Aguamenti, but the flame quickly burned out and a beautifully folded piece of paper dropped onto her desk.

Fleur was almost positive who had sent the note and she chuckled, impressed, even though her heart was hammering almost painfully against her ribs. She carefully unfolded the note, unable to contain her smile.

Fleur,

Can we talk, please? I'll be waiting for you tomorrow morning at ten, in the clearing when we first met while running. I understand if you don't want to come, but I hope you do.

-Hermione

Fleur read the short note several times, afraid the message would suddenly change. Hermione wanted to talk with her. Even though she suspected the topic that was going to come up, she didn't care. She had been going stir crazy wrestling with her Veela for the past two months. She missed the bookworm and she would take any opportunity to speak with her again.

She stayed in the carriage the rest of the day, having her meals sent in. She was content to rest and regain her strength. The magic she had performed had been very taxing on her body, not to mention the physical toll of swimming around for an hour. It also gave her time to try to formulate a plan for tomorrow's conversation. If Hermione used her necklace to ask the big question, she would answer in full. And even if Hermione didn't, it might be time for some of the other truths to come to the surface.

Fleur got to the snowy meadow early. It was a chilly day so she had bundled up in her warmest outfit. She was even wearing her Underarmour shirt and pants under her jeans and red cashmere sweater for extra warmth. She had also shrunk a blanket and fit it in her pocket, just in case it turned into a long conversation.

The undisturbed snow along the way to the meadow told her that either Hermione had not arrived yet or the young Gryffindor was approaching from the other direction.

It turned out to be the latter.

Fleur's heart practically jumped out of her chest when she saw the Golden Girl walking toward her. She looked adorable in her jeans, thick, gray cable knit sweater, and matching scarf, hat and gloves, all Gryffindor red and gold.

"Hi, Fleur" Hermione came to a stop a few feet from her "I'm glad you got my message, thanks for coming."

"Bonjour, 'Ermione. I did, though I will admit I did not want to open it, it was folded so beautifully. And we apparently both got the message to show up 15 minutes early." She held her arm out to show her timepiece, which confirmed that they were both early.

Hermione laughed "yeah, I guess we did, didn't we? Would you like to sit? Or standing is fine if you prefer."

"Sitting works. I brought a blanket." She smirked when she saw Hermione look at her, her raised eyebrows betrayed her confusion when she didn't see a blanket anywhere. She dug in her pocket to find the small folded blanket.

"Voila!" She exclaimed proudly, holding the blanket in her palm.

"A shrinking charm. Very clever."

"It's been known to happen. Don't tell me too much, it might go to my head." Fleur grinned and turned to walk toward a sheltered grove of trees by the Lake's edge. She had missed their easy, playful banter so much.

Fleur found a dry patch under the trees and returned the blanket to its normal size and spread it out over the snow-free bit of ground. The blanket was big enough to give them both space to sit without touching, though she wanted to just wrap her arms around Hermione and hold her close.

"This is nice." She remarked as Hermione sat down a disappointingly large distance away. In reality it was just about six inches but to Fleur's Veela anything other than touching was too far away. Fleur shushed her other half and turned her attention to her mate.

"I'm sure you've guessed why I asked you here." Hermione started the conversation.

"I can think of a few reasons. How about you just tell me what you want to talk about so I am not randomly guessing."

Hermione took a deep breath "Okay, then. Why was I your treasure to find? Or why do you think?"

Fleur clenched her teeth, "Well, it looked like everyone was dated to the Ball. So that would make the most sense, I guess."

Hermione shook her head "See, I thought that too at first, but the more I thought about it, I just don't buy that reasoning. I heard the Egg's message, too. The clue referred to something that you'll sorely miss. Look, I'm not going to use a golden question-ring on this, so you don't have to answer. But I should tell you that when it comes to my friendships, I value trust and honesty."

"I know and I understand… and I wish I could be completely open with everything about myself. There are some things that I cannot say unless you ask the right question." Fleur sighed "You mean so much to me."

"More than your sister?"

Fleur furrowed her brow, taken a little off guard by the question. Did Hermione know something about the past timeline? That Gabrielle has been her treasure before? "Why do you say that?"

"Well, if I had a sister, I think I'd probably miss her more than some girl you met four months earlier." Hermione shrugged, fiddling nervously with something on her neck.

Fleur watched. This was it.

A moment later and Hermione has removed the delicate silver chain, the three gold rings still pulsing brightly in anticipation.

Fleur's heart was going crazy. Her eyes wide as she watched, her gaze flickering from Hermione's hand to her face. Her palms were sweating and her mouth felt like she had swallowed sand. The suspense was killing her. Goddess, please just ask me already!

Hermione was fiddling with her necklace, which was now resting in the palm of her left hand, her other fingers tracing the smooth gold rings. "Any question and you'll answer it?"

"Oui, I promised you fully truthful answers for any three questions you might have."

Hermione nodded and touched one of the rings as she asked her question. The ring glowed brighter when she touched it, then the light faded away once the question was spoken. "Am I your mate?"

Fleur sighed and looked out across the Lake. She was feeling both relieved and nervous. "Oui." She responded so quietly she wondered if Hermione had even heard her response.

"So that is why I was your treasure in the Second Task..."

"Oui… I think that." Fleur spoke again, a little louder this time. "But at the same time, I find it troubling if that was the actual reason behind them choosing you. Please don't take this the wrong way, but honestly, I wish it were something as superficial as the dates we took to the Ball. But like you, I cannot fully believe that. This situation… It is complicated. Until you, I haven't told anyone that I even found my mate, let alone your identity. Not even my family knows. It makes me nervous to think that someone might suspect our connection."

Hermione listened quietly "Why didn't you tell me?"

Fleur paused for a moment before speaking again "I could not because you are too young. Usually a mate is not identified until both parties are of age. You seem to be an exception to that rule. Regardless of why or how, my Veela recognized you as my one. I'm not sure the reason why but I physically could not speak to you about it. Probably some Veela magic to protect you from knowing the truth until you were old enough. I wanted to tell you, especially at the Ball, but it was like my mouth was full of cotton, preventing me from telling you anything directly. So I said what I could and tried to leave hints. I gave you that necklace with the hope that you might use it to ask me and I would have to answer. It was a loophole I found. I cannot deny my mate. But you had to ask."

Hermione nodded slowly, Fleur could see something in those chocolate eyes that she couldn't quite identify "I guess that makes sense. Wait… both parties? I thought you were 17..."

"I turned 18 a while back" Fleur was grateful that she had never actually told Hermione her birthday before, so she stretched the truth a little. She had turned 18 a while back… three years ago.

"Oh, happy belated birthday then."

"Merci" Fleur was glad that Hermione was not questioning it and seemed oblivious to her white lie. She continued explaining herself. "Even if I could have told you, I probably would not have. Not yet at least. I wanted to give you a chance to experience life and grow up without the pressure of knowing that you are my mate. And I would like to make clear that I have no expectations and I definitely do not want you to feel pressured or like you owe me anything."

"I appreciate that a lot…" Hermione murmured.

"Also, I do not mean to frighten you, but being my mate puts you in danger. You are still in school for several years and I won't be able to protect you after this year. I am sure you are aware of my position within the Delacour Clan?"

Hermione shook her head. "Not really. I know you come from a powerful Clan, or that's the impression I got when I talked with Evangeline a while ago. Otherwise I really don't know much about the Veela governing systems or hierarchy."

Fleur sighed "Well, when I was younger, my Veela presented as an alpha. That means that one day I will become the next leader of my Clan. A clan is a family line. Many clans form a Clan. Please don't ask me why our ancestors used the same word, it doesn't make sense to me, either. Sometimes I use the term flock instead to prevent confusion. So Delacour is both a clan and the Clan that is sworn to protect a number of clans in our area. Does that make sense?"

"Yes, actually. So… why is that dangerous for me?"

"Because I would do anything to protect you. It is rare to find one's mate, so a Veela is extremely territorial and protective, but especially an alpha Veela… so if the wrong people found out then they could use you as leverage against me. They might hurt you or worse to get to me. It is not unheard of for mates, real or suspected, to be killed to try to weaken their Veela partner…" Her eyes flashed a dangerous red at the mere thought of something happening to Hermione.

"Because you will die if I do?"

"Non, because just the thought of you in danger drives me insane and I will do anything to keep you safe. Also that bit about Veela dying without her mate is not true."

"But I read…"

"Books are not always right."

Hermione gasped, a bit of her world shattered in that moment. She had never really thought about that prospect before. She always trusted books!

"I'm sorry to burst your bubble, but when it comes to books written about Veela, very little is actually true. I mean, clearly they got the fact that we are all beautiful women right, but the accuracy pretty much ends there. For our survival we have had to become a secretive species. We guard our lore and heritage very closely, keeping information within both clan and Clan"

"Yeah, Evangeline mentioned some stuff about how wizards used to exploit the Veela…" Hermione offered.

"Yes they did. It still happens, but in different ways now. Our numbers have recovered and Clans have regained quite a bit of their former power, actually. Now we operate in the shadows and out of the spotlight, slowly influencing both Wizard and Muggle governments. We cannot be fully open about ourselves because prejudice, hate, and bigotry runs deep in most aspects of Wizarding society. Be that blood status, magical creatures and beings, sexual orientation, or anything else different from the 'norm.' All driven by fear of the unknown or what is perceived to be uncontrollable or dangerous. It's particularly bad in Britain and the United States. France is a little less conservative in our thinking and laws, but it's far from perfect.

"In Britain, Veela are classified as 'dangerous magical creatures of near human intelligence' and therefore all known Veela are registered, then closely monitored and regulated for the rest of their lives. Fortunately, as a French citizen, I am protected from your Ministry's rules, so even though I revealed my Veela form, I was not placed on that list. It did make a little bit of a headache for my family but we were able to control it from getting out of hand. Now if anyone speaks of it, it's just a rumor like anything else. No solid proof. Hardly credible."

"That's horrible!" Hermione exclaimed, her bright brown eyes darkening with anger at how Veela were treated.

"Ironically, one of the strongest factions of Veela operates out of Britain."

Hermione looked skeptical at this. Fleur just laughed and continued explaining.

"It's true! There are a few Veela in Britain who have chosen to make the sacrifice to come out of hiding and register themselves. They are without a clan so they chose to serve all the clans and their Clan instead. They have no offspring and are otherwise unconnected so there is no threat of accidentally outing another Veela. These brave women serve as representatives and liaisons for the Veela Clans in governmental affairs while the rest operate behind the scenes.

"Overlooking the fact that is extremely insulting and untrue to be classified right above 'mindless beast' status, it actually provided us with perfect cover. No one suspects us and we're not in any hurry to change that. They underestimate what the Veela are capable of and it allows us the ability to quietly manipulate systems to best serve our needs. It's similar to why I speak with an accent around others. It's like a cloak. A misdirection."

"Wow, I had no idea."

"That was by careful design…" Fleur chuckled. "We don't want wizards to know. We hide in plain sight. They don't know our actual strength or numbers. If they had their way, they would probably try to lock us up and throw away the key. It's happened before to other magical creatures and beings. Registration leads to abductions and disappearances and then… well, we both know what happens next."

"Sadly, that makes sense and because I'm Muggle-born, I know all too well what it's like to be on the receiving end of pureblood prejudice." Hermione clarified. "So the Delacours..."

"Are just a strong and powerful wizarding family with great genes... now rumored to be of Veela descent but that last bit is unconfirmed." Fleur finished the sentence, understanding what Hermione was asking.

Hermione nodded thoughtfully for a moment then changed the topic. "Can we go back to something you said earlier for a moment?

"Of course, ma belle."

"You said that not even your family knows that I'm your mate. I'd imagine that would be something you would want to tell them, why didn't you? Are you embarrassed by me?"

"Non, not at all! I am so very, very proud! But I could not tell them. The mating bond is one of the most sacred and revered connections in our culture and is a very closely guarded secret. It is almost as fundamental as our connection with our inner Veela."

Hermione blinked and nodded slowly.

Fleur just laughed "I know it's a lot to take in at once. We can take a break if you need."

"Yes it is, but it's so interesting, I want to know it all. Please keep going."

Fleur smiled and continued. "Anyway, back to the weird workings of Veela magic… There are ancient Veela spells that actually prevent us from divulging our mate's identity to others. Same with the identity of mated pairs we happen to know of."

Hermione's eyes were wide as saucers as she tried to absorb all of the information. The thought of fundamental or inherent magic made sense, wasn't that what magic was to begin with? An ability one was born with or without? Was it so big of a stretch to think that there was species-specific magic, too? She thought about the merpeople and Centaurs.

"Think of it like a Secret Keeper, except the two mates are the Keepers and they can only tell others together. So, for example, should you accept me as your mate, if we wanted to tell my mother, you and I would both have to be present and tell her together. She would become a secret keeper for us, but it ends with her. She could not turn around and tell Gabrielle or Grandmother. Alternatively, you alone could not tell Harry about us." Fleur explained patiently.

"So much secrecy… I mean, it makes sense. Like you explained earlier, it seems like a captured mate is the ultimate bargaining chip for someone who wants to do ill to a Veela since you would do anything for the mate to keep them safe."

"Yes, that is exactly it. Unfortunately, people can still guess or make assumptions without consequence to them. So many tragic stories…" Fleur trailed off and was quiet for a moment before continuing.

"In Veela culture, there is nothing more powerful than a fully bonded pair. Our minds, bodies, spirits, and magic are a perfect match for each other. In short, you are my complement and I am yours. My shortcomings are your strengths and vice-versa. I hate saying that we complete one another, because that implies that we are not whole or cannot function without the other, which clearly we can. It's more like we help each other unlock an even greater potential. Over time our spirits and magic bond and strengthen, morphing into something more than the sum of its individual parts. It will make us both exceptionally strong and powerful."

"So by having control of the mate, they would have control over a very powerful Veela?"

"Yes… It is both fortunate and unfortunate that it is so rare for a Veela to find her true mate. Unfortunate because she will never reach her full potential. But because it is so rare, the idea of mates and the mating bond has become something of a myth to anyone outside Veela society. Most people assume it doesn't exist anymore or is something we made up. It actually helps protect true pairs because people tend to assume that a Veela and her partner are just lovers or in a non-mate relationship. Most modern Veela do not find their mate and end up settling down with someone else. My parents are an example of this. While we are capable of loving someone other than our mate, it is not the same. But now that I know you are my one, I cannot love another."

"This is absolutely fascinating, there's so much to learn… You've told me so much and I still have so many questions… Will you tell me everything?"

"So curious! But yes, I will. I must. It would be irresponsible for me to not tell you everything about myself and my heritage. You won't need to use a question-ring either, I am compelled to inform you."

"Because I'm your mate?"

"Exactly and there is much you do not know. I want you to have all the information about what that means for you. You still have a choice to make. Just because you are my mate does not mean I am automatically yours. You do not need to accept me if you do not want me as your mate. And like I said earlier, I do not want you to feel obligated to accept me."

"So… the mating bond, does it have anything to do with why you didn't kiss me at the Ball?"

"Partially. There are some things you need to know about Veela affection. A Veela can kiss someone who is not her mate with no long term consequences. Take Evangeline and Harry…"

"Ugh, no offense but I'd rather not think about that." Hermione interrupted, earning her a scoff and a shoulder bump.

Fleur rolled her eyes and continued "The first kiss shared between true mates initiates the lifelong mating bond. It tells the Veela that her mate has accepted the bond. From then on, it is irreversible and our magic will start to merge. What I told you at the Ball still stands. Regardless of the reason why my Veela recognized you as my one, you are still a child. I cannot and will not take away your future, but I will wait for as long as it takes. Even if you do not accept me as your mate, I would still like to be a part of your life. As a friend or a protector, however you need me. It is very difficult for me to stay away from you. It goes against every instinct I have."

Hermione tilted her head, still trying to soak in as much information as possible. "Can we back up a second? You said you were worried that someone might hurt me. Who has enough power to challenge a whole Veela Clan? Especially yours."

Fleur paused "Voldemort. Or at least his Death Eaters and pureblood supremacists… I know that they are still out there and hatred doesn't go away because the leader is gone. Evil like that is like a Hydra. Cut one head and there are still others."

Hermione gasped, her eyes wide with shock.

"I'm sorry for using that name. I know you British are very... superstitious. But I assure you, thr name is not cursed."

"That's not it." Hermione shook her head and took a deep breath "Why do you think you could identify me as your mate when you said that your Veela shouldn't recognize their one until both are 18? You keep saying you don't know or hedging around the answer, but your eyes tell me otherwise. Even if you don't know for certain, I think you at least have a theory."

Fleur sat silent for a long time, gazing over the Lake again. She saw movement in the corner of her eye, Hermione was reaching for another ring. "Non, save your question-ring. I will answer. I just need a minute."

Hermione nodded and gave her time to process her thoughts.

"You're probably going to think me completely mad… I… Hermione. I'm so sorry… I have not been fully honest with you. I'm not who I appear to be. Well, I am, in a sense. I mean I'm still me… merde this is confusing. I'm… I'm from four years in the future. I don't know how but I somehow got sent back in time and trapped inside my 17 year old body…"

Silence. Pure, absolute silence.

Fleur sat quietly with her eyes closed. When she opened them she was surprised to see Hermione crying. She was immediately concerned. This was not the reaction she was expecting.

"'Ermione? What is wrong?"

"Fleur… I'm so sorry."

"What are you talking about?"

"It's my fault. It's all my fault! I didn't know!"

"What is your fault?"

"Fleur, I'm the reason you got sent back here."

"WHAT?! HOW?!"

"That's what I've been trying to figure out all year! That and finding a way to stop Voldemort from coming back."