Posted on: 13/04/2014 at 15:02 UTC/GMT/Zulu.
AN: Thank you to my reviewer angel897 and those who have favourited or followed this story. This chapter is far later than I planned it to be. Sorry about that. Unfortunately I had food poisoning this week. I'm better now though so here it is.
Next chapter should be up on or by the 18/04/2014. Have a good Palm Sunday.
The Marriage Curse
Family Affairs
Hermione looked around at the group milling about in the guest dining room in the castle's east wing. Dumbledore had called a family meeting. It had been an interesting week.
Draco was mostly fine. He had a few scrapes and bruises from the Slytherins and he and the boys in his dorm had had a fist fight over his use of mudblood in the first few days but they all seemed fine with each other now. Draco had agreed to try and stop using that word and had given Harry and Ron permission to hit him with a stinging hex whenever he slipped. They took far too much glee in agreeing. However he was saying it less. She thought it was more a matter of surviving in Gryffindor though than an actual change in his views about muggleborns.
The rest of the Gryffindors were beginning to warily accept him. They had stopped paying much attention to him when he came and went and were mostly civil. Some ignored him completely. He didn't complain.
The Slytherins were another matter. They didn't wait to hear any explanations. When Nott told them that Draco was a Gryffindor now and they saw it themselves he became their instant enemy. With the exception of a few like the Greengrasses and Tracy Davis.
Tracy didn't dare appear to be openly friendly with him but she was at least able to stop some of them hexing him on sight, in the corridors between lessons, on the pretence of keeping them from losing points. The Greengrasses had tried to stay completely under the radar and pretend to be very reluctantly involved because they were engaged to him.
Hermione was unable to determine how much of that reluctance was real and how much was false. She was glad that they had their help in defending him though. He couldn't go anywhere without a bodyguard much to Harry and Ron's delight, they were enjoying the effective open season they'd been granted on Slytherins who tried to hex him, and to Hermione's surprise he was beginning to form a friendship with Seamus and Dean. He asked Dean a lot of questions about football and seemed fascinated by the fact that it was played on the ground and had only one ball. Honestly boys.
"Your attention please." Dumbledore said.
People stopped milling around and took seats around the dining table. Hermione sat up a bit straighter when Lucius sat next to her with a wink. She blushed unable to help it which made him smile. When she glared at him his smile became a full blown smirk. She huffed and turned to Harry who had sat on the other side of her hearing a quiet chuckle as she did.
Once everyone had settled down Dumbledore smiled around at them all and spoke.
"Good morning everyone. We are all here today to discuss our clan's living arrangements and start planning our weddings." He said.
"First I'd like to know if anyone has any objections to this idea. As we have to be married to our respective spouses in six months I think it would be a good idea to space the weddings out evenly over those six months. It will give everyone time to get used to each new spouse of theirs after marrying."
There was some discussion but no one objected. Hermione thought it was a good idea but she was nervous about marrying anyone. Harry seemed to sense that as his hand found hers under the table and squeezed briefly before letting go.
"Excellent. We'll plan the first weddings for a couple of weeks time and decide who should marry who first after everything else."
"Splendid. The next thing we need to agree on is where we will live in the summer." He said.
"My house," Lucius said with a pause as he remembered he was now the secret keeper and didn't want to give the secret away yet, "Is large enough for all or us and any children we might have in the next few years." He said.
"What about the Black Manor or the Potter Manor?" Sirius asked.
"The Potters have a manor?" Harry asked wide-eyed.
"It hasn't been used in centuries but yes they, I mean you, do." Sirius said.
"With all due respect Sirius I don't think the Black Manor is a good idea." Kingsley said.
"Why not?" Sirius asked offended.
"With your families unfortunate inclination towards the Dark Arts it is more than likely that it has been overrun by dark creatures and has several dark and dangerous artefacts in it." Kingsley said calmly.
"Has anyone been there in living memory?" He asked.
"Well no. Alright then. Not the Black Manor." Sirius conceded.
"The Potter Manor won't let anyone not of the Potter blood through the wards until the next heir turns sixteen." Dumbledore said.
"So that's out until at least your birthday Harry when you can visit and inspect the property and change the wards to allow others in too." He concluded.
Harry nodded. "Were you going to tell me about this?" He asked Dumbledore.
"I thought Sirius would have already told you." Dumbledore said.
"Sorry pup. It just didn't occur to me that you wouldn't know." Sirius said.
"Is there anything else you think I should know but I don't?" Harry asked.
"When the meetings over you can ask me anything you want." Sirius said.
"Anything?" Fred Weasley asked with a sudden glint in his eye.
"Just Harry." Sirius clarified.
"The Potter Manor probably wouldn't be big enough anyway." Sirius said. "The Potter family has never been particularly large."
"So that leaves Dumbledore Manor and..." Hermione paused because the name had gone out of her head. "The Malfoy's." She finished.
"Dumbledore Manor is in excellent repair and is quite large enough for all of us. The wards are already strong and I will put it under the Fidelius charm and give you all the secret." Dumbledore said.
"If you don't mind Lucius I'd like to keep your home as our safe house in case Dumbledore Manor were to be somehow compromised." He said.
"Very well then." Lucius said.
"Does anyone disagree?" Dumbledore asked.
No one did.
"Good. Now we need to decide on a clan name." Albus waved his hand and parchment and quills appeared.
"Write any idea's you have down and then we'll vote on them." He said.
Hermione wasn't sure what to write down and in the end didn't write anything down.
Luna seemed to be scribbling away quite happily and so did several others. After a few minutes the parchments were collected up.
There were about fifteen names suggested.
Several were shot down immediately like the twin's suggestions of Dragonheart and Lionclaw. Others were not so silly though and opinions were split. Eventually they decided that they would vote on the name at the next week's meeting and instead would now decided who to marry first.
The group stood and milled around as people talked and came to decisions.
"So who are you going to marry first Hermione?" Luna asked.
"Me." Lucius said from behind her making her start.
Hermione turned around. "You can't just decide that without asking me." She said.
"I'm going to marry Harry first if he agrees." She said.
Lucius caught her hand. "No. It has to be me."
"He's right. Although I can't tell you why. It's not my place." Luna said.
"You know something?" Hermione asked.
"Yes I do." Lucius said seriously.
Hermione looked up into his face. He seemed completely serious. His grey eyes held an intensity that she had never seen before and he had not let go of her hand.
"Will you tell me what this secret is?" She asked.
"I can't. Not yet." He replied. "I promise that it's nothing dark or dreadful and you'll find out soon enough."
Hermione could see an almost desperate fear in his eyes and it intrigued her. She wondered if this was a good idea but she trusted Luna and Luna seemed to have a way of knowing how things would work out.
"Alright." She said. "I'll marry you first."
Lucius relaxed and smiled.
"Good. I'll see you at the altar then." He said.
He kissed her hand and let her go.
Hermione found herself glancing back at him from time to time as she talked to Harry and explained. He and Narcissa were deep in conversation with Dumbledore and McGonagall and neither of them glanced her way.
Harry decided to marry Ginny first after a discussion with Luna who said she was marrying Sirius first and just needed to convince him of that. Harry laughed and watched her go and talk to Sirius.
Draco and Astoria had decided that since they were already betrothed it made sense to marry each other first.
Fred looked delighted when Angelina agreed to marry him first. George called him a slick git and agreed to marry Daphne first.
Hermione didn't hear anyone else's plans as she was too busy thinking about what Lucius Malfoy could be hiding.
Please review. Constructive criticism is welcome. Flames will be used to make toast.
So a mystery is afoot. :D.
I am not sure which clan name to choose and I always intended to get some reader input so please vote when you review for one of the following:
Blackwood, Blackthorn, Blackstone, Ravenwing or Rosewood.
Be careful which you choose because that's the one I'll go with.