The Thai takeout had been filling, and Greg was just the right company to soothe Hermione's frazzled nerves. Hermione suggested they watched a few Muggle movies until she fell asleep.

After about the third movie, a personal favourite- Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, Hermione was noticeably drifting in and out of sleep.

"Come on Hermione, let's get you into bed," Greg said.

She nodded consent but snuggled back into the couch pillows.

He chuckled as he bent down and scooped her up bridal style. She only moved to loop her arms around his neck so she didn't slip. He moved her carefully through the doorway and balanced her as he used one arm to pull down the bed covers. Once lowered, she flipped over and sprawled across the bed on her stomach. He covered her and left the room while leaving the door propped open. Greg made his way back to the couch and transfigured it with Hermione's wand into a single bed since her flat was one bedroom.

Hermione had explained the constant company clause, as she called it, over dinner. It was designed to keep the female safe. If she were ever alone, there would be an unavoidable pull that would manifest any number of partners to her location. She reasoned that if she had at least one partner around her at all times the problem could be sidestepped. Greg had been curious about the other 'rules', but Hermione had said that she didn't want to keep repeating herself, and she would tell everyone over dinner tomorrow night, a real proper dinner at a table and everything she had joked while they'd eaten out of container on the couch.

About an hour after Greg had slipped off to sleep, a piercing scream shocked him, and he fell out of bed. A second scream filled the house and he took off running towards Hermione.

He found her tangled in her sheets, back arched and sobbing, but still very much asleep. He cautiously approached her and gently untangled the sheets, ignoring the low whimpering noise she was now making. Just as he removed the sheet, she twisted again and let loose another screech. Greg swooped in and pulled her onto his lap. He stroked her hair and comforted her until the new wave of sobbing had subsided. He felt her hand grab the fabric on the front of his t-shirt.

"Thank you. I normally don't get saved at the end," Hermione whispered.

Greg pressed his cheek into her hair and rocked her gently. Her hand started to go limp, but just before she dropped off, it tightened again.

"Can you please stay with me?"

"Of course, Hermione," he said as he shifted them so they were both facing each other. Hermione curled into his chest and he rested his chin on the top of her head and his arm on top of her waist. It wasn't long before they both drifted off.

After waking up ten hours later, and extracting herself gently from Greg's grip, Hermione took a quick shower. Once she was done Greg slipped in so she had a chance to get dressed. Breakfast for the pair consisted of dry Nutri-Grain, which Greg found he quite liked and ate about half the box.

Hermione's outfit for the day was comfy. She had chosen an old top she'd picked up from an Op-Shop in Australia, the NASA logo emblazoned on the front. The shirt stopped mid-thigh. It was thinner now than it had been when she got it, but it made her happy all the same. She'd paired it with a pair of Scandi inspired knitwear leggings in blues, and whites. She kept her fringe out her eyes with a chunky head band of similar colours to the leggings. Lastly was a wand holder for her arm that had been charmed to look like a leather cuff. She'd designed the charm herself so that she could have her wand on her always, even around Muggles. The top half held and invisibility charm for inanimate objects and deposited the wand into her hand with the flick of her wrist. She was considering patenting it and selling them. She hadn't bothered with shoes as she had floorboards and she really didn't want to slip over in front of everyone. Her toenails shone a brilliant black and matched her manicure.

Just as she opened the window in the kitchen a n owl flew through and did a few laps of the room before landing on the counter. Completely ignoring the owl perch she had set up right next to the window.

Grabbing the note off the owl's leg, she turned to get a bacon bit from the fridge while she read the short message.

Miss Granger,

I am now able to compile a list of houses and would like your input on the subject. Send my owl Hera back with your response. Please include anything you like to include or exclude so we are able to make a broad shortlist.

Yours

L.M.

Writing quickly, she replied,

Mr Malfoy.

Thank you for contacting me so promptly.

Considering the number of people involved, and the rules of this union, I say that we need to go big. There need to be at least twenty-five rooms if we consider a maximum of two children to every male being a possibility, and that's with a significant amount of doubling up. I would like it to be open and spacious, lots of windows and light. Any materials will do, though I am a fan of stone. I'd like land, as much as possible really. I don't believe I have anything specific of what I'd like to exclude off the top of my head but I can assure you that I don't like something you'll know about it. Luckily with magic anything is possible so as long as there is a good foundation we can create anything we'd like.

Thank you again Mr Malfoy

Yours,

H. G.

The owl flew off.

Getting back on task, she went to the lounge room and transformed the single bed back into a couch. She rolled up the soft grey rug and moved it to the side of the room near the tv unit. Hermione braced herself and shoved hard against the arm of the grey, suede three-seater. It gave a little then suddenly a lot. Hermione stumbled but caught herself. That's when she noticed the two large, slightly tanned hands resting on either side of hers. She turned and looked up into the face of Adrian Pucey.

"Hello there Kitten," he said.

"Good afternoon Adrian. Thanks for the help," she said, ducking out from under his arm, her cheeks gathering heat and colour due to his proximity.

"Whoa Hermione, looking very Ravenclaw today," Neville said, coming up and placing a kiss on her cheek.

Hermione smiled warmly at him and punched him in the arm playfully. "If you know how I like my tea, then you know I was nearly one of the eagle army, imagine the horror I would have unleashed if I had of been a 'Claw," Hermione said wagging her finger at Neville.

"so Ravenclaw? I always saw you as a Slytherin to be honest. All ambition and proper to a fault," Draco announced from the loungeroom doorway. Slightly behind him was Marcus.

"I mean if we want to figure out why I was in Gryffindor I think we need to look at Harry. First glimpse of him and his broken glasses and I was determined to look after him," Hermione replied with a smirk. This wiped the matching one straight off Draco's face. He opened his mouth to retort but was cut off.

"I know you like teasing him Hermione, but perhaps you should be nice now that you're bound," Harry announced brushing soot off his jeans.

Hermione turned and poked her tongue out at Harry.

"Very Mature, you were head girl, right?" Harry asked.

"Only technically. Ginny held the actual position for her final year. Either way and regardless of my level of maturity, my house affiliation, or the reason behind it you're all here to work," Hermione said grinning.

Greg took this opportunity to walk into the room, and Hermione turned to face him.

"Greg, thank you so much for last night, I really appreciate it more than you'd know. You can spend that afternoon doing whatever you want. If you'd like you can stay," she said, wrapping her arms around his waist and pressing her face into his torso.

"No problem Hermione, after what you've done for me, I'll be here anytime and as long as you need. I'll stay if that's ok. I'd like to catch up with some of the guys while we pack," Greg said into her hair.

Untangling herself after one final squeeze, she looked at the men standing in her flat. Hermione started to pace. "Ok, so I think the most efficient way to do this is to assign items rather than rooms for you to pack. I will obviously be working on any personal items. Harry, you're on books. Adrian, you can have anything that is kitchen or dining related. Neville, you're back-yard, and Marcus you get furniture." Hermione was still pacing as she rattled off the orders. She looked up noticing that no one had moved. "What?" she asked.

"You've forgotten about me…again," Draco said, single eyebrow raised.

"Oh, sorry, I guess I've gotten a bit used to tuning you out. I'll work on it Draco. I suppose you can help me unless anyone else thinks they need help?"

Some men said that they did not need any help and the others just turned their backs and started packing.

"Lead the way to the bedroom slave driver," Draco said with a wink.

Rolling her eyes in return, Hermione lead them past the kitchen where Adrian had started shrinking various items.

They entered a hallway with several doors and Hermione took them to the last door and opened it. The room was a painted a dark grey, a dark stained wooden bed sat against one wall and a matching dressing table on the other. The third wall was taken up mostly by a large window and a small door. Draco gracefully landed on the bed, his arms folded behind his head. She huffed as he messed up her tidy bead spread one of the dove grey pillows falling over and another falling completely off the bed.

"Well Granger, here we are. So, shall I be sorting through your knickers or going through your bathroom potions? Oh, I know, I can watch you try everything on and tell you if I like it or not and then…"

"Then I can keep everything you say you hate and wear them constantly just to annoy you. Ok Malfoy… Draco, let's make a deal. We do as little as possible to annoy each other and I don't end up cursing you into the middle of next week," Hermione said as she crossed the room to the window. Pulling back the thick, grey curtains, light flooded in and reflected off the small chandelier. She moved to stand at the end of the bed, arms folded.

"Do we have a deal?" she asked.

Draco tapped a finger against his chin before rising fluidly and coming to a stop right before her. "Ok, but I get to go through the knickers," he said tapping his index finger against the tip of her nose.

Spluttering, Hermione took a step back and let out a huge breath. "No, but you can go into my bathroom and start unpacking the drawers," she said as calmly as possible.

Draco winked and sauntered to the small door next to the window.

She grabbed him by his t-shirt and hauled him back. "That's the closet. The bathroom is in between the bed and the dressing table. Here I'll show you," Hermione said while making her way over to the seemingly blank wall.

Draco followed looking doubtful as she pushed against the empty space. To his surprise, the wall gave way and slid to the side, revealing a large sandstone and teal coloured bathroom.

"Start with those drawers, then get the things behind the mirror. I should be finished with the wardrobe by then," she said, pulling a matchbox-sized container off the bench and placing it in Draco's hand. "Stack everything neatly in here."

He looked around. "How will all this fit in here?" Draco asked as Hermione arched an eyebrow.

"You are a wizard, right? I'm pretty sure that a shrinking spell will solve that problem, maybe even try an undetectable extension charm, but then again maybe you aren't up to that," she said to Draco, turning on her heel and marching toward the closet, leaving him there with his mouth wide open.

Charming her own box, she began shrinking and putting her items in neatly. Working methodically, she finished quickly and put the box in the back pocket of her jeans and went back to the bathroom.

When she opened the door, she found Draco looking quizzically at her floss. To her dismay, he'd pulled all the string out and was shaking the empty container.

"Merlin help me," Hermione muttered to herself. "Draco, just shrink and pack, if you have questions you can ask me later. I'm going to see if Neville needs any help. Can I trust you to finish in here and start on shrinking the bed linen?" Hermione asked.

Draco nodded still looking at the empty container as Hermione rolled her eyes.

Once outside, she found Neville crouched next to her pond harvesting her Gillyweed. Childish fun seized her reminding her of days back at Hogwarts when they'd play silly pranks on each other, and she tapped his right shoulder from behind while jumping to the left. He whirled around, and she giggled, causing him to spin more. This made him take out Hermione's legs and bring her down on top of him.

"Oh my god… you fell for it... and then... it was…" Hermione choked out in between bouts of laughter.

Neville was laughing along and patted Hermione's back to calm her breathing. She calmed down and realised she was lying on top of Neville, with his hands resting lightly on her back. Sitting up too quickly, she ended up straddling him her sharp movement causing his hands to fall from her back to her thighs. She seemed locked in place for a moment just looking at him as colour rose in her cheeks. As if realising what position, they were in she stood abruptly. He chuckled and stood tucking the harvested Gilly weed into a waterfilled container.

"Well, that was fun. What are you doing out here? I thought you would be watching Malfoy like a hawk," Neville said as he bent down to gather his dropped cuttings.

"I left him in the bathroom completely confounded by floss. He's harmless enough. I came out to see if you needed any help. I know the yard isn't big, but I've jam-packed it. There are all sorts of hiding places. Also, I wanted to invite you to a big dinner tonight. I want to go through all the stipulations and rules of the 'Ames Serviles'," Hermione said, picking a few Puffapod pods off a low hanging vine.

"I think that's a great idea, I'll help everyone feel more comfortable, especially since I know you have more information that was released to the public," Neville said. He lowered himself to his knees near a Henbane bush to take a few leaves. "I know I wasn't really your first choice in this, but I do want to make this work," he said, facing the now frozen Hermione. "After all the horrible things we have been through, I think this is a good thing, for everyone." He playfully bumped his elbow into Hermione's hip and broke her trance.

"Neville, I don't like being told who to be with, but I am glad that you're one of them," Hermione said smiling up at him. He smiled back as he stood and gave her a friendly hug and placed a soft kiss on her forehead. Then a kiss on her cheek. Just as he was about to move to her lips he changed his weight wrong and ended dropping down to the ground. This left Hermione waiting with her eyes closed and breath held.

"Oh, Neville," she giggled as she opened her eyes seeing him shocked and sitting on the ground. She grabbed his hand and hauled him up.

"I found all your hiding places, let's go back in," Neville said, blushing furiously and turning her quickly so she couldn't see. He placed his hand on her lower back to guide her back into the house.

Neville excused himself to the bathroom. Once he had gone, Hermione was at a loss for what to do. A quick check in on Draco showed him still looking at her Muggle items with curiosity and still only halfway through packing the draws. Leaving him be, Hermione found her way into the library where she happily saw Harry neatly and gently gathering, shrinking, and packing her vast collection of books.

"Seeing this makes me think you're a closet bibliophile Harry," Hermione said from the doorway.

Harry looked up and smiled softly. "I know how much they mean to you, plus you'd have my bollocks mounted on your wall if I was even to look at one the wrong way," Harry said, straightening and stretching.

"It looks like you've got it under control. Don't forget that I have books in the lounge and my bedroom as well." She said happily looking around at what he'd already packed up.

Harry came down from his stretch looking a little crestfallen as though he didn't know I'd have books everywhere Hermione though. A sudden determined look came over his face and he cleared the space between them in three large strides. His hand went under her chin and forced her to look up at him. "Hermione, look at me. This is a very different situation for us and I think we both know that nothing like this would have happened without the ceremony, but I can't think of anyone who I'd rather be spending the rest of my life with. We aren't strangers and we aren't just stuck together, we were obviously meant to be paired. I can't help but be ecstatic about this," Harry said as his face descended and his lips met hers.

Shock held Hermione still for the barest of seconds before she managed to regain control and respond to the kiss. She pushed back a little and Harry's arms came around her waist pulling her flush against him. The sensation of this caused her mouth to open slightly in a small gasp, but it was enough for Harry to run his tongue past her lips and lightly across her teeth. She responded by shuddering and placing one hand on the back of his head, pulling him closer. Just as he was about to deepen the kiss, a cough broke them apart. Standing at the door, blushing, but still with a smug look on his face was Neville.

"I didn't bring you inside to get distracted, Hermione. Adrian wants to know where you want the photos," Neville said, holding out his hand ready to guide her from the room.

With a sheepish grin towards the now ruby-faced Harry, she took Neville's hand and the left the room.

Adrian was waiting next to the kitchen island with no less than four boxes of individual photos and photo albums, both magical and Muggle.

"Hey Kitten, I know you wanted to do the personal stuff yourself, but I got it all collected for you, so you can decide where you want them," Adrian said whilst looking Hermione up and down, noting her slight blush and minutely swollen lips. Realising what had happened, he broke into a sly grin.

"Down Adrian. She's been distracted enough. You'll get a turn, same as the rest of us," Neville said with a half grin of his own.

"Not you then? Well it can't have been Marcus, he's in the next room, and Draco is not really in a position to be… distracting her, so it must have been Potter. Lucky bastard," Adrian said with a wink at Hermione.

Before she could get a word out, Marcus entered the room, sans shirt. The words died in Hermione's throat and came out as a small high-pitched whine and she stared at the extremely sculpted torso of the room's newest occupant. Neville laughed out right, and Adrian shook his head chuckling.

"If I ever need you to stop talking I'm just going to ask Flint to take his shirt off," Draco said as he came into the room.

Hermione couldn't take her eyes away from Marcus. Harry and Greg entered, deep in discussion about Hermione's nightmares from the night before. Once they noticed that no one else was talking they looked at the scene before them.

"Earth to Hermione, you're married to him. Technically you can look anytime you want. Don't want to use it all up now," Greg chuckled, bumping into her and forcing her attention his way.

"But, I just was… oh, Merlin, this is embarrassing," Hermione choked out from behind her hands.

Adrian, noticing that Marcus was still looking dangerously at their witch, he snatched the shirt from sticking out of his pants chucked at him. "Put it on, we already know you're the biggest here."

Regaining composure, Hermione shook her head and looked at her collection of boys.

"Right, well, that's that then. So I've told well asked- slash- suggested to Neville, but are the rest of you free for dinner? I want to go over all the stipulations and 'rules' involved in the ritual, and I thought it would be easier to do it all as one group. If you aren't free then that's fine, I understand if you have other commitments. I didn't expect anyone to drop what they were doing in order if accommodate me, and I mean, I'd be more than happy to repeat the information if not everyone was able to make it and…" Hermione's rambling was cut off with Draco's hand across her mouth. Not only did this cut off her voice but the arm across her stomach holding her against him certainly shocked her into silence.

"I think we can all agree that we will be there for dinner, and you do not have to worry about putting anyone out. Your house is all done now, go home with someone and send out invites, saying that dinner will be at the Manor at six o'clock sharp. I'd go with Adrian, if I were you, he can help you dress so that you'll completely knock everyone over tonight," Draco said kissing her cheek, before letting her go and walking back out. The Floo flared to confirm his departure.

" Drama Queen, I guess that settles that. Hermione comes with me, and we will meet the rest of you at the Manor at six," Adrian said, slipping the last of the now shrunken boxes into his pocket. Nodding to the rest of the wizards, he gripped Hermione's hand and Disapparated away before she could protest.