Chapter Eight
With a flash of green flame, Hermione opened her eyes to a sight so comforting and familiar she almost wanted to cry.
She wasn't sure what she'd expected when she was to appear, but it might have been something exactly along the lines of what happened. Ginny was the only one in the kitchen when Hermione materialized. The others were nowhere to be seen, but it was evident that Weasley life was still present and very little-changed.
Ginny looked up for a moment and blinked. "Hermione?" she nearly gasped.
"Ginny!" Overwhelmed with longing to hug her friend, the two girls embraced.
Ginny smiled a very wide smile. "We were so worried about you! But you seem to be doing really, really well. How's Aunt Dora?"
Hermione's face fell, "Do I have a lot to tell you…"
"Do you want me to get Ron, too?"
"No, just hear me out. I just need to tell someone – in fact, maybe it's best if what I tell you, you don't tell Ron just yet." Hermione was apprehensive of her friend's reaction to her news.
Ginny nodded, "Come on, let's go to my room."
Hermione was practically dragged by an eager Ginny to the second floor.
...But something caught her eye on the way there...
Mrs. Weasley was alone in the sitting room and she was crying softly, silent tears rolling down her cheeks. She was clasping a handkerchief in both hands and peering longingly up at a portrait on the wall of the twins, Fred and George.
Just George now.
Hermione felt slightly ill all over again, remembering that final battle – Fred had not been the only casualty of that match.
And suddenly, she was seated opposite Ginny on her friend's bed, covered by a huge, red and gold homemade quilt. Just like that, marrying Draco didn't seem so bad.
I have lost my parents, Hermione thought, but Mrs. Weasley lost one of her sons. A parent should never have to bury their own children…
Ginny seemed to sense what was on Hermione's mind. "Did you spot Mum?"
Hermione nodded. "Does she do that often?"
Ginny was grave, "Every day. Sometimes Dad, too." She lowered her voice to a whisper, "But George is worse. He's moved back in, but he almost never leaves his room." The redhead shook her head sadly, "He sometimes forgets to eat. Don't get me wrong – we all miss Fred something horrid, but George and Mum are worst. Though Percy feels really guilty: He thinks it's his fault."
A lump formed in Hermione's throat: What she wouldn't do to have Fred back with his family. The Weasleys were precious to her – possibly some of the only real family she had left. Such people did not deserve a sorrow of this magnitude. Poor George…
"So what did you want to tell me?" Hermione could tell Ginny was both curious and looking for a distraction from the thoughts in her mind.
Halfheartedly, Hermione launched into her story. Ginny's eyes grew wider and wider, until her eyebrows almost disappeared beyond her bangs.
When Hermione had finally finished, Ginny paused a moment to take it all in. "Well what are you going to do? Where are you going to go?"
"We don't know yet." It struck Hermione as odd that she had said "we" – her and Draco Malfoy.
"I could ask Dad if he knows somewhere," Ginny suggested brightly.
Though Hermione wasn't sure exactly how much help Arthur Weasley would be, she felt somehow relieved. Glancing at the clock on the wall however, she realized that if she stayed much longer, George the butler would come looking for her.
Explaining this to Ginny, Hermione watched a little frown etch itself onto Ginny's face.
"I'm going to talk to Dad, but don't worry, I'll do it in private. I can see why you don't want Ron to know right now."
"Is Harry coming this summer?"
Ginny nodded. "He's actually here already. But at the moment, he's out in Godric's Hollow, rebuilding his parents' house."
Hermione slyly caught the look on Ginny's face and silently wished things between her and Ron had worked out. Ginny was still very obviously in love with Harry.
"You're finishing Hogwarts this year, right?" Ginny asked.
Hermione snapped out of her reverie, "Of course. It IS me after all, Gin."
Ginny giggled, "It's going to be so weird – you'll be Eighth Years. But still, I guess it's just good that your year is allowed to finish up. It would have been impossible for anyone to think of finishing last year."
Hermione agreed, very glad to be returning to Hogwarts, but at the same time wondering how on earth she COULD if she was running away from marriage to Malfoy. Going back to Hogwarts would be like forgetting the summer; Forgetting the summer meant escaping from Alan and his twisted life, as well as the death of her parents.
Determined to straighten the details out later, Hermione implored Ginny once more to talk to her father in private, then took her leave of the Burrow.
.
.
Upon returning to the Black Manor, a sense of dejectedness immediately rendered Hermione quite depressed. When she thought of it, she was glad she hadn't seen Ron – things were a little awkward between them after their break-up.
Luckily, Dora was out of her meeting with Marco Bartoloni, the Italian Minister of Magic. Hermione knocked softly on the already open door.
Dora looked up from some very prudent-looking document, her huge spectacles magnifying her eyes. "Hermione, darling! Oh thank goodness – come in, my dear, come in."
Hermione walked into the study, her eyes quickly taking in the place. It was very richly adjourned, like the rest of the house, though she took note of the portrait stretching across an entire wall, depicting a herd of zebra running across the plains of Africa.
"I wanted to follow up with you after last night," Dora said, removing her spectacles and gazing at her granddaughter with a look that Hermione felt could both pierce her heart or soothe it.
"I'm perfectly alright with your decision," Hermione answered. Her stomach wrenched at the lie.
Dora looked at her harder. "No you're not. Darling, ever since I'd learned you were born, I was quite excited. I was sure you were going to be the apple of your mother's eye and, in turn, my own."
Hermione lowered her gaze to the giant mahogany desk.
"And after the death of your parents – both dear people – and I learned I was to be your guardian… well, I must admit, I was a little frightened."
Hermione must have shown surprise very obviously, because Dora chuckled.
"Yes, I was frightened. I had never met you, but I had heard of your successes from your mother and father: Top in your class every year… taking every class Hogwarts offered in your third year, and making Prefect. I was proud of you and when we finally met, I knew you really were quite an extraordinary young lady."
Hermione felt her face grow hot as she blushed.
"You are a young woman with so much going on in your life. You have so much to offer! I wanted the perfect match for you, my dear. Purebloods have always done things this way: Arranged a marriage between their offspring and some suitable young person."
"But why Draco Malfoy, of all people?" Hermione questioned.
Dora looked thoughtful, "True, his family's name was slightly tainted after that awful business with the Dark Lord. They have many redeeming qualities, however. And I have known Draco since he was a very young boy; I held him in my arms when he was a baby. He is really quite amiable and a very good conversationalist. On top of that, he is clever and very intelligent; I also happen to think he's not too bad on the eyes." The older woman winked.
Hermione couldn't bring herself to say anything; The Draco Malfoy she knew was none of these things.
Dora sighed, "Darling, had I known a decision I had made would make you so unhappy…"
Hermione tried not to see things from Dora's perspective, but it seemed she couldn't help herself. Callidora Black was a traditionalist, still caught up in the past. Things were different now.
But Hermione still wondered, in a world so advanced, how arranged marriages even worked out. Surely there were at least a FEW purebloods who rebelled against the old-fashioned practice?
Offhandedly she remarked, "It's just that I thought arranged marriages were an out-of-date practice. Isn't it illegal?"
Dora observed her a moment, "Perhaps it is out of date; I'm not the best judge of that. But illegal is something it is not."
Hermione vowed to look up the exact law later on.
"Oh, look at me! I'm just a crazy old woman with too much on her mind." Dora looked very sad and old in that moment. "I should have consulted you first; How was I to know my decision would upset you? I would never wish to upset you, my dear."
Hermione almost felt bad for Dora – but she still felt more sorry for herself. "Isn't there a way to repeal the engagement?"
Dora looked horrified at the very idea, "Oh dear! Of course not! How rude would that be? Besides, such an agreement has been made with Binding Ink. Even if the parchment is destroyed, the contract itself will live on. I'm afraid we will all have to just grin and bear it."
Frustrated, Hermione nodded as though she completely understood. She had become very good at hiding her true feelings.
"I have some very important business that unfortunately, must be taken care of before dinner," Dora concluded. "I will see you at dinner tonight?"
Hermione nodded before exiting. Binding Ink – that would complicate things.
But there are some things about Hermione Granger that will never, ever change no matter what happened to her. One of these things is her determination.
Hermione was determined. It was time to head to Dora's extensive library. If it took all week, Hermione would find a legal way out of this contract…
She wouldn't become Mrs. Malfoy without a fight.
.
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Author's Note: Thanks so much RIPJameSiriusLupinTrueMarauder, sureynot, Readerforlife, SquishyGirl, xxDrAcO'sBaby4EvErxx, GoodCharlotte615, and CullenHaleLuvr94 for your reviews. You're awesome. You all deserve cookies or tacos, depending on your preference!
sureynot - The more I write, the less I think it will be like its original. I am trying though, but by making it Post-DH, some things will really have to change, especially in the end. Plus I kind of like Dora, so I'm not sure yet if I'll kill her or not. So best answer: I will have the same plotline, but most parts will be altered.