I came out from under the table long enough to write this chapter for you... Truce?
German words featured in this chapter(not that you really need to know them):
Willkommen- Welcome, Vater- Father, Herr- Mr., Frau- Mrs., Kinder- Children, Mein Engel- my angel, Mutti- mom... Okay, I think that's all that is in there... Don't really need to know it, but it's just FYI.
Beta did REALLY, REALLY AWESOME on this chapter! She basically took what I wrote and doubled it. So give her some serious thanks, becuase this would really suck ass without her work.
Hermione stood there frozen. The crowd had stopped staring and gone back to their business, but she could feel Draco's eyes on her. Nothing! Not one letter I've received has mentioned anything about marriage! Maybe this is just some New Years' joke that someone has decided to play on me! Yes, that's it! This is all just a big misunderstanding! I would know if I were engaged… right? No one seemed to notice anything was amiss, though, and, surely, if it was a joke, everyone else would be as surprised as I am. Right? Or maybe, just maybe, Imre had used the wrong word by mistake. Maybe he just was expressing his wish that his son and I would one day marry; if the Segurs are as pureblood fanatical as everyone says they are, that is...
Imre, still in the role of 'Host,' broke in again before either could ask what was going on. "Come! You must meet the family, Draco! And Leona and Adelino are so looking forward to seeing you again, Miss Mac- Hermione. Pardon me. It'll take me a while to get used to the change. Why, I'm still getting used to the idea of you being alive; we were told you were lost to us, like your parents." The man was halfway down the staircase before Hermione realized they were supposed to follow.
Draco bent down to hiss in her ear. "What the hell is going on here? I thought you didn't know these people!"
"I- I- I don't! I don't know what's going on, Draco. I'm as shocked as you." Shocked was an understatement to describe how she felt. Hermione was terrified. And confused. And more than slightly ill.
Draco shook his head. He had a very bad feeling about this 'engagement.' This guy doesn't look crazy… He seems much too confident about something that Hermione knows nothing about…
Imre led them to a small table where a raven haired beauty was sitting next to an equally dark-haired young man. The woman had long, pin-straight tresses that swept down her back, kept out of her face by what looked to be an opera necklace of silver and sapphire. Her equally dark eyes were matched perfectly with stunning red, pouty lips. As they neared, Hermione noticed how cat-like the woman's features were. She must be Leona, woman of the lions… She certainly is beautiful…
Hermione's gaze quickly shifted to the young man sitting beside Leona. Oh Merlin, he's gorgeous! Maybe I really am in a fairy tale…
The man, whom she could only assume to be Adelino, stood as they reached the table. Hermione noticed he was taller than Draco by about a head, and more muscular, it seemed, if only slightly; what her more Quidditch-inclined friends might call the difference between a Seeker's build and a Chaser's. His jaw was firm, like his father's, yet his mouth was soft, like his mother's. Raven colored hair topped his head in a very similar style to Draco's. Pieces hung over his brow and Hermione had to shake her head to dispel the images of her sweeping them from his eyes. "Willkommen." Adelino smiled and stepped forward to take Hermione's hand. In a manner that made her want to swoon, he bent at the waist, bowing until his back was parallel to the floor, and kissed her hand. As he rose, Hermione felt her heart stop. Adelino had the bluest eyes she'd ever seen. They closely rivaled Draco's eyes as the most beautiful she'd ever seen. "I am so very glad to finally meet you, mein Engel."
Draco, as rudely as he dared, cleared his throat and stuck out his hand. "Draco Malfoy. You must be Adelino." They shook hands, sizing each other up, before Draco turned back to Imre. "It seems there has been some sort of misunderstanding about your announcement…"
Genuine concern flashed across the faces of Imre and his wife. "Oh, whatever was the matter?"
Draco coked an eyebrow. These people must be mad! "Well, you, for some reason, just announced that my girlfriend is engaged to this buffoon!"
"I fail to see the misunderstanding, apart from you insulting my son."
Hermione piped in before Draco could cause more trouble. "We don't mean to be rude, Herr and Frau Segur, but I don't even know your son… How can I be engaged to someone I don't even know?"
The three Segurs chuckled. "Clearly, mein Engel, the two of you should take a seat so my father may explain."
Draco was furious and trying desperately not to show it. "No, I think we'll just be leaving now."
Leona purred across the table. "Come, dear Kinder, and sit for a bit."
Hermione slowly lowered herself in a chair. Draco stood, protectively, behind her chair while shooting death glares at Adelino.
"Now, Mac- Hermione, you and Adelino have been betrothed since your first birthday." Imre smiled warmly. "Your parents, Dannon and Mildred, were our dearest friends. Your mother and Leona met on, what was it dear?"
"A skiing holiday at Chamrousse. It was my first Christmas after I started Durmstrang and Vater wanted to do something special. The Kendalls had the same idea; though, of course, she was at Hogwarts. We were quill-pals for ages after that."
Imre smiled indulgently at his wife's memory. "They were good people, your parents, and, after you were born, it Mildred and Leona's dream for our son and their daughter to wed, to bring our families that much closer."
"B- but why have I never heard of you before? I mean, I found out about my parents months ago and there was nothing that mentioned you OR a betrothal..."
"Ah…" Imre and Leona looked slightly amused. "Well, it seems that the estate attorney left out that little detail. Perhaps she didn't want to overwhelm you so soon after your adoptive parents' death. Or, perhaps, she thought the contract had been voided, what with everyone thinking you were dead for the last seventeen years. Never worry; we still have the Binding Contract that you may have verified for yourself."
Draco coughed upon hearing Imre's statement. "No!"
Hermione became even more confused by Draco's outburst, which only frightened her more. "B- binding contract?"
"Yes, a Binding Contract was made by myself, my wife, and your parents, with both your family's blood, and ours, on your first birthday."
"I- I'm sorry, but I don't know what that is."
Adelino leaned forward and brushed the back of his hand along her cheek. "It means, mein Engel, that, unless the both of us agree to the termination of the contract, is must be completed. In our case, we will be wedded after your completion of school. Mutti has been rather frantic, to be honest, about the preparations… Complains she's missed out on years of planning, she has."
Hermione could feel herself shaking. She looked to her angel, terrified of the answer to her next question, yet it needed answered. "And if one party refuses…?"
Draco couldn't look at her, out of fear that his tears would escape. "You can't."
Opps... did I just ruin that little truce from up top...? My bad!
As usual: LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK! LOVE IT? HATE IT? LET ME KNOW! AND, LET ME KNOW IF THERE IS ANYTHING YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEE IN FUTURE CHAPTERS!
I'll go back under my table now... ;-)
