Chapter 17
"I would like you to take Astoria to Diagon Alley today." Narcissa demanded of Draco the next day at breakfast after Hermione joined the son and mother.
Narcissa raised an eyebrow at both disgusted expressions. "You two need to learn to be a unit. That is how a marriage works, every marriage has trouble in the beginning, you both just have to learn to deal with your differences. Your father and I had our trouble in the beginning as well."
Like what, his Deatheater buddies were dragging mud through the house, Hermione thought bitterly.
"I have to go to work, mother." Draco said icily.
"You can take some time off, Draco." Narcissa said haughtily. "Your marriage is important. Possibly the most important thing in your life."
Draco snorted, but settled down when Narcissa gave him a scorching look. "Now, I expect you two to leave the house soon, I have people coming." With that she left.
"Why haven't you told her?" Hermione asked.
"Told her what?"
"About the situation?"
"What situation?"
"Don't play thick with me, Draco." Hermione said. "Instead of reconciling 'our marriage', I would rather spend time of figuring out how to get out of this mess."
"I'm not really sure getting out of it would be on mother's agenda. She likely wouldn't care if you thought you were Grinwelda the Fair." Draco said. "It won't achieve anything if we told her. She would just think you are one lucky little mudblood."
"Oh charming." Hermione said with narrowed eyes. "I'm pretty sure it would motivate her to help find a way out of this."
"As far as my mother is concerned the only way out of this marriage is death."
"And Astoria achieved that." Hermione said. She didn't like where this conversation was going. She was expecting something a little more productive.
"Even if I convinced my mother 100% that you were the Mudblood extraordinaire, my mother would not resolve this marriage between these two bloodlines." Draco said. "My grandparents planned this marriage. It was in place before I was born."
"That's barbaric." Hermione said with shock. "Children aren't cattle."
"No, children are there to serve the family." Draco said. "That is our, my obligation."
"That is insane." Hermione said, serious this time.
"That is the way it is, welcome to the family."
"And your children will have to be indentured into marriage as well, to breed like some farm animal?"
"Yes."
"How could you do that to your children?"
"It is how things are done. How it has been for centuries, it has served us so far."
"Really, how exactly did your marriage to Astoria serve you?"
"Her bloodline will strengthen us." Draco said. "And that makes up for the fact that she was a vacant conniving whore."
"There is something really off with you people. Your priorities are completely screwed up."
"Oh, but darling, we're your people now." Draco said. "And you are king, or rather queen of this hill now. And as a dutiful wife of high wizarding society, you do not get let off your obligation to produce an heir. Not for anything."
"You can't be serious." Hermione said with a jaw drop.
"What's the matter?" He asked. "You seemed pretty keen on it before."
"That was before."
"Before I was aware of your machinations."
"There are no machinations I am responsible for here." Hermione said. "And don't you dare try to foist this all off on me."
"Really, for all I know, you did this." He said with arrogant certainty. "I don't know how, but you did. Aware or not, duty still stands. You do realise that getting you out of this means that there is no body for you to go back to, it means game over. Well I will need my heir before that."
"But i you could have your heir with someone of your kind. Your second wife."
"And wait around for you to effectively commit suicide. Hmm, I don't know." He said. "You might chicken our, or worse, send me to Azkaban for your murder. Either way, I think I will need my heir first. With an heir in place, I could probably pick my wife from a larger pool of candidates. So, next time you're ovulating, wife, you will have to lay back and think of the joys of serving your duty."
"This wasn't a duty I signed up for." Hermione yelled.
"Doesn't matter."
"You're a pig."
"Yes, but I am your pig." He said with a fake smile.
"I am not going to Diagon Alley with you." Hermione categorically stated, because she was too shocked to think of anything else to say.
"Fine." Draco said and stormed out of the room.
Hermione left through the door to the garden and stomped around for a good half hour. She called him every name under the sun.
As she calmed down, she grudgingly admitted that he had been right about the fact that sorting this mess out would mean that she left Astoria's body and that would mean she didn't have another body to go to. Her soul would be released to follow its natural course, which was to go wherever souls go. Unless she chose to haunt Draco, which had a certain appeal just at the moment.
And now he insisted on a child, which was nothing but confusing, because it was her one and only desire, but having it with him, to provide him with an heir was just wrong. The thoughts of a child softened her as it always did. It still was the only thing she wanted in life. But these circumstances were probably as far from ideal as they could get.
If she had a child, she could not leave it behind to fend for itself in this heartless society. No, leaving a motherless child in this world was unconscionable. Who knows what kind of woman Draco would subsequently marry. Probably some evil, social climbing harpy with fake tits, fake hair, fake heart.
Maybe she could find out a little more from Draco what kind of woman he would choose to marry if he had an heir in place, just in case.
Hermione felt like her brain was going to quake open in confusion. She should have known better than to expect that Draco would actually work with her, no he served his goals exclusively. How could she have been stupid enough to expect anything different.
She tried to account for her options, but there were precious few. She couldn't leave, the wards wouldn't let her and she would only be allowed to leave with a member of the family. She could convince Draco that having a child right now was not a good idea, but she wasn't sure he would see it his way. After all, he would gain freedom if he had a child with her. Although she could perhaps convince him that he was stuck with her if he did.
It was all she had, really. Unless she went upstairs and slit her wrists right now, which wasn't really all that appealing. Then there was the small niggling hope of a baby. A bouncing, gurgling little bundle of life. A tiny person to pour into all the pent up love she had.
Leaving this world now would be such a waste. It was like she left no mark on it at all. Only leaving behind love for some friends who were getting on with their lives without her, even before she died. She wanted to leave this world loving something completely and unconditionally.
And there was only one way to achieve that.
Hermione tried to refuse the little party that was scheduled that evening, but Draco came to her room and told her she had to.
"Change." He ordered.
"I don't want to go."
"And yet, that still doesn't matter." He said. "Change or I will Imperio you."
Hermione expected that he was probably serious.
"Fine." She said with exasperation. "Turn around."
"No."
"Turn around, I would like some privacy."
"Its not like you have anything I haven't seen before."
"Do you want me to come or not?"
He grudgingly turned around while Hermione slipped on one of Astoria's dresses. "I hate these dresses."
"Get some new ones." He said.
"I don't want dresses at all. I don't want these stupid parties." She said.
"Then get pregnant."
"You're a pig."
"I think we already covered this topic. Really Granger, for being a smart girl, you're a slow learner."
"I hate you."
"Again, not relevant."
Hermione spent the evening at his side, with his hand on the small of her back.
"Are you going to spend your life at these endless, brainless parties?" Hermione asked him quietly.
"Probably." He said. "They are not completely brainless, you just have to learn to read the politics. That's always been the problem with Gryffindors, too literal to read the intricate clues of wizard world politics."
Hermione snorted.
"There are important decisions made in this room, influenced, blocked and subverted. The pulse of this society. Huge amounts of money involved with the decision make right here, as well as policies. You think that decisions are made at the Ministry, but you couldn't be more wrong."
Hermione haruphed again, but was slightly intrigued by what Draco had said. She had been completely unaware that anything was going on here other than people showing off their jewellery and talking about their new house extensions.
She started to pay more attention to his dealings with people. Started to notice things.
"Did Astoria know?"
"Know what?" He asked.
"About what you were playing here?"
"Astoria cared very little beyond the state of her nails."
"Pansy plays politics, doesn't she?"
"Yes, but she is not very subtle at it. And she is too distracted with school type politics. Who is popular and who is not." He said. "Its not where the real game is, but its what Pansy likes to spend her time doing."
"Have you slept with Pansy?" Hermione wasn't sure where that came from, but wondered as Pansy had played so hard for him.
"Yes."
"Recently?"
"Not for a while, why do you ask?"
"Does she use sex?" Hermione asked. "To get what she wants."
"Undoubtedly."
"What about Astoria?" Hermione wondered. Wondered what she had been doing with Nott.
"No she was too stupid and too well established." Draco said. "Pansy is playing for her next position, her husband is ailing and will probably cark it."
"Do you think Pansy is after you?" Hermione said, a tiny bit fascinated by their underhandedness. It would explain a bit of what had been going on.
Draco smiled. She wasn't sure she had seen him smile before and she kind of liked it. "You are definitely smarter than you look." He said.
It was kind of a compliment. Although it probably wasn't hard to be smarter than Astoria.