Hermione woke up the next morning feeling happy. A great weight had been lifted off of her the night before and she could feel the peace which had settled in her bones. She thought about what Molly has said the night before about contacting Narcissa Malfoy for guidance on traditional Pureblood marriages.

Getting up, Hermione showered and dressed for the day in a pale blue sun dress. She had developed rather nicely over the last few years, and although she knew she wasn't what people would call a classic beauty, Hermione knew that she had an appeal of her own.

Sitting down at her desk Hermione pulled out two pieces of parchment with a quill and ink bottle. She thought carefully about what she was going to write and filled one piece of parchment with drafts of her letter until she settled on just one of them.

Dear Madame Malfoy,

First let me congratulate you on the upcoming marriage of your son, Draco. I am writing to you because I have a problem which needs to be remedied. I am sure that you are aware by now that I, Hermione Granger am about to be bound to Rodolphus and Rabastan Lestrange. I have very little knowledge of traditional pureblood marriages, and the information I have read so far seems insufficient. I initially asked you son's future mother-in-law for guidance, but she reminded me that she and her husband did not adhere to many traditional practices and as such recommended that I ask you. I understand that you will have limited time on your hands due to Draco's engagement and wedding plans, and I would not wish to take you away from that, but I feel this is something that I should understand. If you were to consent to this then I would be extremely grateful and could you send me an owl with a time and place convenient to you. I am available any time over the next two weeks.

Yours sincerely,

Miss H. Granger

She re-read it to make sure it sounded okay and then put it in an elegant envelope.

"Athena." Hermione called her owl over. The bird landed on the desk and stuck her leg out for Hermione to attach her letter to.

"This is to go to Narcissa Malfoy. Don't wait for a reply." She said softly as she tied the letter to the leg and stroked her feathers before Athena flew out of the open window.

A few hours later Hermione was reading in the Black library in Grimmauld place when Athena returned bearing a letter. Hermione had not expected Narcissa to respond so quickly.

Opening the letter she read,

Dear Miss Granger,

Thank you for offering your congratulations on my son's wedding. My family and I offer our own congratulations to you on your upcoming wedding. I was surprised by your letter, but I would be delighted to help you out. I am touched that my son's future mother-in-law recommended myself as a tutor and I hope that we can manage to put the past behind us. I have a free afternoon next Tuesday if that is amenable you. Would you be able to come to the Manor, or should we arrange to meet somewhere else? I know that the Manor will most likely hold terrible memories for you, and I will not think any less of you for choosing to meet somewhere else. I feel the need to inform you though that the room which you suffered in is completely unrecognisable.

Sincerely,

Narcissa Malfoy

Hermione finished the letter and searched for a piece of parchment and a quill in the old desk at which she was sitting. She wrote a brief note saying that she would be at the Manor next Tuesday afternoon and that she was grateful for the help.

Tuesday had rolled around faster than Hermione had expected it to and now it was ten minutes before she was expected at Malfoy Manor. She was slightly nervous at going but knew that it was something she would have to do at some point if she wanted to visit Ginny once she and Draco were married. After another five minutes she apparated to the front gates and walked to the front door which opened seemingly on its own.

"Hello Missy Granger. I is taking you to Madame who is waiting for yous in the sun room." The house elf which greeted her said leading her to the sun room where Narcissa was waiting.

"Madame, Missy Granger is here to see you."

"Thank you Mipsy. Hello Miss Granger." Narcissa said kindly.

"Hello Madame Malfoy." Greeting the witch formally.

"You may call me Narcissa, Miss Granger."

"Then I insist that you call me Hermione." Hermione replied extending the informal invitation to her tutor.

"Why don't you take a seat and tell me what you specifically need instruction on."

"As I stated in my letter I know very little about traditional pureblood marriages and the information I have found is insufficient. I want to know what will be expected of me in the role of Madame Lestrange, what my duties will be, and what I can expect from my husbands." Hermione said knowing that there would probably be a lot of information to take in.

"May I talk to you as if I would my own daughter Hermione?" Narcissa asked.

"Yes, of course."

"There are two types of traditional ceremonies used for marriage. The ceremony used the most is a verbal exchange of vows in front of a crowd and a blessing from a High Priestess from the temple of Aphrodite. The second is seldom used in today's culture as the bride has to be pure for it to work. A pure bride could choose the first ceremony but the bond with her husband, or in this case husbands, will not be as strong." Narcissa explained.

"What does the other ceremony involve?" Hermione asked curiously.

"Am I to take it that you are pure Hermione?" Narcissa asked.

Hermione blushed a little before answering. "Yes, I am."

"It is nothing to be ashamed of child; it adds another positive to your character. A witch who saves herself for marriage shows that she has great strength and resilience, and is not someone who is easily swayed. Unfortunately, virginity in a bride is something desired rather than expected in this age. I should imagine that Rodolphus and Rabastan would want to marry using the virgin ceremony." She paused briefly before explaining the ceremony. "Your parents would present you to your future husbands at the altar on their grounds and you union would be blessed by a High Priestess from one of the temples of Aphrodite. Your husbands would then take you to the marriage bed and take you virginity. The vows of the ceremony occur silently when they enter you the first time. The primary vows are love, protection, faithfulness, and family. There are some others, but they are not as important as the ones I have mentioned."

Hermione nodded as she took information in.

"What is the altar also used for?" Hermione asked.

"The altar is like a dias which channels magical energy from the ground. It is where you make offerings to the Gods, where a marriage is blessed, and where a child is presented to family and friends. Now tell me what you have found out about the marriages so far."

"I know that the primary motivation is to produce an heir to carry the family name on. A secondary motivation is to forge an alliance between families. The wife does not have formal employment but usually offers some of her time volunteering for various charities. I also know that the husband, or eldest husband, is the dominant force in the marriage and his word is law."

Narcissa nodded throughout.

"You have a good grasp of how the marriages are so far but there is on point I must elaborate on. Although Rodolphus's word will be law, you won't have to follow it if what he orders violates your wedding vows. For example, he could not order you to harm Rabastan in any way or vice versa. He also couldn't ask you to put off having an heir with him because producing a family is part of the vows too."

"Okay. What would my other roles be as Madame Lestrange?" Hermione asked.

"You would be expected to run the household, direct the house elves, arrange social event such as ball and dinners, and generally be a visible presence in society. It is something which is usually learnt during the actual marriage rather than beforehand. Some things such as the running of the household is discussed between the wife and her husband so she can make sure his needs can be fulfilled. The planning of the first few social events is usually done between the wife and her mother until the she is able enough to take the lead. I would be very happy to assist you in this respect as there seems to be no one else eligible for the role."

"I would be grateful for your help Narcissa. Thank you for taking the time to explain all of this to me. Is there anything else you think I should know that we haven't talked about already?" Hermione thanked the older witch.

Narcissa smiled at Hermione's eagerness to understand the role and responsibilities she would have in a pureblood marriage. It was refreshing for someone outside of their circle to be interested in it.

"It is tradition that they will court you up until your wedding day. Gifts of jewellery and flowers are usually given regularly to the bride-to-be. You should probably request a chaperone to be present when you spend time with them as you are pure. The chaperone is usually a male member of the bride's family. As your father is a muggle you would be best asking the elder Weasley's as Ginevra has done," Narcissa further explained.

"Thank you once again for telling me this. I felt ignorant and thought it would look bad if didn't understand anything." Hermione said sincerely.

"It was no problem Hermione. It is mostly pureblood families who follow the old ways who are the only ones who practice this now. Would you like some refreshments?"

"No thank you. I have to get home and compose a few letters." Hermione declined.

"I will walk you to the floo then. Will you be attending Draco and Ginevra's engagement ball? It is to be held in two weeks time on the Wednesday." Narcissa asked.

"I would be delighted to." Hermione answered.

As they walked along the corridor they could hear voices up ahead. Coming into the hall they found Lord Malfoy in the presence of Hermione's fiancées.

The men stopped talking once they noticed the women in the room.

"Miss Granger, it is nice to see you again. Are you well today?" Lucius Malfoy asked.

"Thank you Lord Malfoy, it is good to see you again too, and I am more than well today." Hermione replied formally.

Rabastan came and took her hand and kissed the back of it. "My lady, it has been our intention to arrange a meeting with you these past few days, however, other issues have kept us from you. Would you be able to spare us some time this evening and dine with us?"

"I will be able to dine with you this evening, and I have been informed to let you know that a chaperone would be needed." Hermione answered. She was not embarrassed that Lucius Malfoy was there watching and listening to the exchange. Since Narcissa had stated that virginity was something to be desired she felt less self conscious about letting people know the truth.

"You are pure my lady." He stated looking into her eyes.

"Yes I am."

"Then we shall dine together once a chaperone has been arranged. It will probably be too late to find one available now." Rabastan said gently. "I would not want speculation to hover if we did not have one."

"Thank you. I have decided to ask the elder Weasley's like Ginny has done. They are the closest thing I have to a real family in the wizarding world." Hermione told them.

Rodolphus stepped forward at that point and stood by his brother.

"Owl us with a time and date that both you and a chaperone will be available and we will talk about the wedding ceremony." He said smoothly.

Hermione could tell that some of the warm demeanour had left him since she had seen him last. Hermione supposed that he was still not used to the fact that he would be marrying Miss Mudblood, and was struggling with this match just as much as she seems to have been.

"I will talk with them later on and owl you tomorrow morning."

"Goodbye my lady." Rabastan said kissing the back of her hand once again.

"Goodbye Hermione." Rodolphus said slightly stiff.

"Goodbye Rabastan, Rodolphus. Goodbye Lord Malfoy." Hermione said walking to Narcissa. "Thank you for your guidance, and hopefully I will see you soon Narcissa."

"It was my pleasure Hermione. I am looking forward to see you again." Narcissa replied.

With the end of the goodbyes Hermione took a handful of floo powder and said 'Grimmauld Place' as she stepped into the emerald flames.