L'amour Toujour
C6: Coming Home for Christmas
Standard Disclaimer: I don't own any of the recognizable characters
When the train rolled into Kings Cross a week later, Nymphadora and Andromeda were the ones to pick Draco, Hermione and Luna up since Narcissa was making the last preparations to the guest room for Fleur, since the blonde would stay with them for the entirety of the Christmas holiday and thus in Narcissa's mind deserved a bit more than a simple guest room.
"I wonder what Hermione will think of the decorations. From what she has told me in the past her Muggle parents never did anything spectacular during Christmas." Dora said as they walked onto the platform.
Andromeda smiled at that. "Then she'll surely be in for a surprise, and I am sure Cissa will walk her through the entire holiday program."
Dora smiled and nodded at that as the train rolled into the station. "That and try to squeeze her into one of the dozen dresses she has prepared for her."
"Knowing what we do, I think she will welcome it with a smile and an open heart." Andromeda said with a soft smile.
Dora grinned at that as the train rolled to a stop with a big burst of steam. "Aunt Cissa will also enjoy having someone to teach again, since none of us have ever been particular good students in that area. Hermione will be a bit of a blank canvas in that regard."
"Narcissa promised me that she would only teach her the things she would need to know for Christmas and the Ball. Everything else she wants to wait with until the summer holidays, when she and Luna had time to reconnect with their mothers." Andromeda said softly.
Dora nodded as students started filing out of the train, everyone clearly glad to be away from Hogwarts for a bit, which given everything they had read in recent months was completely understandable.
They patiently waited for the three students to come out of the train, which since their luggage was already at home, shouldn't take too long but to both their surprise the three were almost the last ones off the train with Hermione looking quite angry while Luna seemed to try and calm her down.
As the three made their way to their family, Andromeda adopted her most kind smile, not wanting to add to whatever Hermione was going through right now.
The brunette in question smiled brightly as she saw Dora and her mother standing there waiting for them. "It's good to see you again Dora."
Dora smiled at her. "It's good to see you too Hermione, is everything okay?"
"Weasley and Potter thought it would be funny to try and antagonize us before we got off and they said some pretty nasty things, so of course there were some things said that got pretty heated. I'll be okay once we're at the house. This was not the start of the holidays I had imagined." Hermione said softly.
Andromeda smiled kindly at her. "I can imagine, and I promise you that we shall do everything in our power to make your first Wizarding Christmas a memorable one."
Hermione smiled and nodded at the brunette, who she had to admit she had a lot of similarities to. "I can't wait to be honest, for a multitude of reasons."
"Then let's go home. I'm sure Narcissa is bursting at the seams to meet you. We also shouldn't linger too long for more than one reason." Andromeda said with a smile as she gently wrapped an arm around the younger brunette's shoulder and led her family to the apparition point.
When they appeared in the living room of Black Manor and had shaken off the after effects of apparition, Hermione could only look around in apparent awe. "Wow, everything Luna told me did not prepare me for the reality of things."
"I will admit we have gone a little bit overboard this year, we have much to celebrate after all, not in the least that we have finally found a missing member of our family." Andromeda said kindly.
Hermione smiled at her. "I'm glad to finally be home. It's been so difficult to act like I am ignorant to the things Luna and I have discovered."
Andromeda smiled at that. "We can understand that sweetie, and while you are here you don't have to pretend to be anyone else than you are and we will gladly answer every question you have within our knowledge. Unfortunately we don't know everything, so we can't paint a complete picture just yet."
Hermione nodded and smiled at her. "I understand that, and I am okay with not knowing everything yet. I know I have plenty of time to learn everything about the life that was stolen from me."
"And learn of it you shall, Hermione. We are happy to finally have you home." Narcissa said with a kind smile as she walked into the room.
"As I am happy to finally be home where I belong aunt Narcissa, and I look forward to finally learn everything about the family I was stolen from." Hermione said with a soft smile.
Narcissa smiled kindly at her. "And you will have every opportunity for that Hermione. I trust your sister has explained what our schedule is for the coming days?"
Hermione nodded and smiled at her. "Yes, Luna told me everything, but I'll admit it is a bit daunting."
"I can understand that, and I promise to try and not to overwhelm you immediately. I cannot make promises though. We've all been very excited to get to know the real you." Narcissa said kindly.
Hermione smiled at that. "I've had time to get used to everything, so I doubt that will happen."
"Then I wouldn't hope you think me to presumptuous, but I have taken the liberty of making a few selections for you for Christmas Eve and dinner on Christmas Day, and I would like to see if they fit and if I made the right choices." Narcissa said with a kind smile.
Hermione merely nodded and followed the blonde out of the room. "Well, I think they'll be a while. Why don't you all unpack and get some rest. We'll talk later tonight."
…
After dinner the entire family gathered in the living room, and expectedly Draco was the first to speak, since he in comparison knew the least of what was going on. "So, now that we are away from prying ears. Could someone please explain things to me a bit?"
"Of course Draco. We're sorry to have kept you in the dark for as long as we have. It was never our intention, but there was never a good moment to tell you at school. From what Luna and I have discovered, I am the long lost Hermione Black." Hermione said softly.
Draco blinked a few times before he answered. "Really? That was certainly not on my short list of expectations. Are you sure about this?"
Narcissa and smiled at her son. "Everything we've found so far makes us believe it is true, key among those a Prophecy I recently found in our family's book that speaks of the lost child being raised by traitors, and was hidden among the light. Normally this wouldn't necessarily point to Hermione specifically, but there are a few other things that solidified our faith that Hermione is family, but we can't really talk about that yet."
Draco nodded at that. "I can understand that, I was merely curious."
"We understand dear, but I hope you know that at school this has to stay a secret for at least a little while longer." Narcissa said softly.
He nodded at his mother. "I understand mother, but I am afraid our hand will be forced when we come back. There has been talk of Umbridge ordering Heritage tests on the Half-Bloods and Muggleborns once the term starts up again, and I am very much inclined to believe her on that."
Hermione paled at that. "I've heard rumors, but she can't demand those right? That's certainly breaking some kind of school rule."
"Unfortunately with everything she's done to gain power so far, she can. It doesn't make it right, but it is unfortunately within her rights as High Inquisitor to do so, although that used to mean it was to investigate if Muggleborns were given the same opportunities as purebloods. We shall deal with the ramifications of this once it becomes known." Narcissa said softly, clearly conflicted about letting everything play out, but knew that she had to for the time being. Which also meant that she would do everything in her power to ensure that her newfound niece would be safe and happy.
Hermione merely sighed softly at that, and Luna immediately wrapped an arm around her sister's waist to try and help her deal with this influx of emotions. "I shouldn't be surprised really. When you're the one in power it is far easier to ignore the rules. I've seen Dumbledore do this for years."
Both Narcissa and Andromeda smiled kindly at her as they nodded. "Unfortunately you are right, which is why we are fighting so hard to make sure things finally change."
Hermione nodded at that. "I've of course heard a lot of rumors last year, but I honestly don't know which ones are true."
"Most of them are false, but for now there is no need for you three to be burdened with this just yet. There are more pressing matters for now." Narcissa said kindly.
They nodded at that. "We understand, family before business, am I right?" Luna said with a soft smile.
Narcissa smiled and nodded. "Indeed, and we do have some news that we want to share with all of you. We have met with the Dark Lord a couple of months ago and he informed us that soon he will work on bringing your Bellatrix home, and if I know my sister at least a little, she will stop at nothing to bring Pandora back too. When you all come home for summer break, our family will be complete once again, and the Dark Lord has given us his word to not push anything until he is assured that Bellatrix is healthy and ready to take up those duties again."
Both Hermione and Luna smiled brightly at that, but Narcissa knew she needed to temper their excitement a little. "I know this is wonderful news, but Azkaban is not only harsh on the body, but also on the mind. We honestly don't know what her state of mind will be when she comes home."
"We understand aunt Narcissa, but we're just glad that our family will finally be complete again. I know that mother has a long road to healing ahead of her, and I hope that having Mum there will help." Luna said with a soft smile.
Narcissa smiled at that. "I'm sure it will, and I have a feeling that it won't take until summer for them to come home. We suspect it will be around Easter they will both be home again and if I know Pandora even a little, she will want to ensure that her wife is healed up before you all come home for the summer."
Hermione and Luna both nodded and smiled at her as Jupi popped into the room. "Pardon the interruption Mistress, but your guest has arrived."
Narcissa smiled kindly at him. "Thank you Jupi, show her in please."
Jupi nodded and bowed before he popped away. "He is certainly a far cry from what I have seen in other Elves." Hermione said softly.
"That is because we actually insist on paying them properly and treat them as what they are, which is valued members of our family. This makes us a bit of an oddity in our world, but few people care to say anything to us about it. We know very well that most families treat their Elves like trash, but unfortunately this is something we can do little about without resorting to methods Dumbledore prefers." Narcissa said kindly.
Hermione smiled at that. "I understand. It was merely a bit surprising to see. I haven't had much experience in dealing with House Elves."
Narcissa merely smiled at her as Jupi led Fleur into the living room, both Fleur and Hermione smiling brightly as they laid eyes on each other.
…
The following morning after breakfast Fleur and Hermione took the time to get reacquainted with each other, which had led them to the library with a few books tucked under Fleur's arm.
"I've missed you over the last months cherí. How 'ave the last months treated you?" Fleur asked as they took a seat.
Hermione smiled at the blonde. "To be honest, it has been hell at Hogwarts. Our new Defense teacher has been sent by the Ministry and slowly she is taking more power away from the teachers with every passing day and to make things worse she is going to force every Half-Blood and Muggleborn to take Heritage tests when we return, so the truth of who I am is going to come out far sooner than I would've liked to. But other than that the year has been okay. How have you been? Hard at work in your shop?"
Fleur nodded at her. "Yes, business is going very well. Apparently people love your idea of the improved Pepper-Up potions, which I have also brought a plentiful batch here to give to you and Luna to help you two in those long nights of study."
Hermione blushed a little at that. "Thank you Fleur. That means a lot to me and I have a feeling that they will come in handy in the coming months."
Fleur smiled at her. "You are very welcome cherí. It is also only fair, it was your idea after all. But I believe I also promised you that we would talk when we saw each other again. It is one of the reasons I brought these books with me, but before I can let you read them, I need to tell you a bit about Veela that you won't be able to find anywhere else. All Veela, no matter 'ow thin their Veela blood, 'ave a soul mate and for us all it takes is a single look to know who our soul mate is. I knew from the moment I laid eyes on you last year you were the one for me, but I also know that you are young and are not ready for such a relationship. I merely want you to know that no matter how long it takes, you will always be the only one for me."
Hermione blushed a little at that. "You know, that actually makes a lot of sense, because why else would such a beautiful young woman who clearly could get anyone she wants be interested in me."
Fleur smiled sweetly at her. "I'll be very honest and say that besides you being my mate, I fell in love with you for my own reasons too. You are a brilliant young witch that is beautiful and kind too. You are the complete package and I am 'onored to be your mate."
That only darkened Hermione's blush more, because never before had someone said such loving things to her. "You certainly know how to impress a girl, and you are right too, because I don't think I am ready for a relationship just yet, not with everything going on right now."
"I understand cherí, and like I said, I am more than willing to wait for you. If you want we can at least read the books now, because I have a feeling it will answer a lot of the questions I know you have." Fleur said sweetly.
Hermione smiled at her. "I can't deny that I definitely feel something more for you than just friendship but it also confuses me a lot because I've never felt like this for anyone before. I also don't want to hurt you, even on accident."
"You won't be able to 'ermione. Our bond will recognize that you are not ready to be with me yet, but will also ensure that we are unable to 'urt each other in any way. Our nightly conversations 'ave been enough for now and they will be until you are ready, whether that is in a year, or ten." Fleur said softly.
"That's the thing Fleur, I strongly believe in equality, and all you seem to do is give while I take, and I honestly don't like that feeling. I want to do right by you. Is there any way we can take this slow like we have already been doing so that my mind can catch up to my heart?" Hermione asked softly.
The blonde nodded and smiled at her. "There is, it is a bit of an ancient tradition among Veela that will help with the separation we will both feel. It requires you to pluck one of the feathers from my wings and swipe that feather on your arm. It will leave an impression that functions a lot like our bracelets, but with the addition of letting you feel closer to me while we are apart. It will also help me not feel as jealous towards other women, because Veela are by nature a very possessive species when it comes to their mates."
"I noticed, given how you reacted to some of the girls last year. That also makes a lot more sense now, as does why I was chosen as your target in the Second Task." Hermione said softly.
Fleur nodded at her, and it seemed like she was fighting the urge to pull Hermione against her. "It does make sense, but I have a feeling that was done deliberately because people knew of the rivalry between me and Krum. They knew he would go after you first, which I didn't give him the chance to do of course."
Hermione smiled at that as she noticed the blonde fidgeting, and figuring it wouldn't hurt either of them if she got used to this type of closeness, she crawled against the blonde, who immediately wrapped an arm around her waist. "He was an idiot that couldn't even pronounce my name correctly. When you say my name it sounds romantic."
"Then I will make sure to call you by your name more often, 'ermione." Fleur said with a soft smile as she floated the books to them so they could read them in peace.
…
Fleur and Hermione stayed in the library for most of the morning and part of the afternoon, and when they came out, they had a firm understanding in place. For now they would continue as they were and use the time they had together to really get to know each other, until Hermione felt she was ready to be the mate Fleur deserved.
Hermione now had a shrunken down feather on her bracelet that she had plucked from Fleur's beautiful wings and had performed a small ritual that had left a permanent impression of Fleur's feather on the inside of Hermione's wrist, and she had to admit that it made her emotions feel a lot more settled.
Now she was on her way to Narcissa, who had several dresses ready for her that she was required to fit for the three big events this holiday, being Christmas Eve, Christmas day and the New Year's Ball after that, all of which required a very specific wardrobe.
Hermione didn't mind though, because it gave her an opportunity to get to know her newfound aunt and also ask some more questions about the family she had been stolen from.
As she entered her bedroom, her aunt was sitting primly on the edge of her bed, clearly waiting for her. "Good afternoon Hermione. I trust you had a fruitful morning?"
Hermione smiled and nodded. "Indeed I did aunt Narcissa. Fleur and I managed to talk about is going on between us and we have come to an understanding too."
Narcissa smiled at her, fighting the urge to hug her niece after so long, and apparently Hermione was fighting the same urge as she fidgeted a little.
Deciding to bite the bullet, Hermione stepped forward and wrapped her arms around Narcissa, who immediately returned the gesture. "I will admit I wasn't sure if you would be okay with this already, but it warms my heart to be proven wrong for once."
Hermione smiled at her. "I feel closer to you and the others already then I ever have with the Grangers, I can't deny that I finally feel at home."
Narcissa smiled kindly at her. "I promise that we will do everything in our power to find out exactly what happened and who was involved besides Dumbledore, and we always will make sure that you will feel at home here."
"I am home, and it will be hard to leave again in two weeks, but until that time I want to learn everything about our family, and hopefully learn a bit more about my mothers too. I don't really know anything about them because Luna was too young to remember them." Hermione said softly.
"We will gladly tell you everything you want to know sweetling, and I will definitely do so later, after you've tried on some dresses." Narcissa said kindly.
Hermione nodded at her as she took a critical look at the dresses Narcissa had selected for her, noticing a definite pattern in the blonde's selections. "For a moment I thought you would just have selected dress robes."
Narcissa smiled at that. "Honestly dress robes have been out of style for at least a century. The only ones that truly wear those are those that can't afford better or are very much stuck in their old ways. Most people actually prefer Muggle dresses because they are very stylish and comfortable."
"I honestly wouldn't know, because the only somewhat fancy party I ever went to was Yule Ball last year, and Fleur bought my dress for that, because the Grangers couldn't be bothered." Hermione said softly.
Narcissa's heart broke on hearing those words. "I'm so sorry sweetie. I know it means little now but I promise that you will never feel unwanted or unloved ever again and that we will do everything in our power to get to the bottom of this."
"I know, and it means a lot to me that you are willing to go to such lengths for someone you all barely know, family or not." Hermione said softly.
"While it is true that we barely know you, we also know that you have been through things you should never have been exposed to. Even if you weren't family we would want to find out what happened to you." Narcissa said with a soft smile as she took one of the dresses off the closet and handed it to the brunette.
Hermione took it with a smile and made her way to the bathroom to change while Narcissa thought about exactly how she was going to tell Hermione about her mother, and more importantly how much she could tell her, since she didn't want to rob Bellatrix of the chance to tell her daughter about herself.
When Hermione came out of the bathroom, Narcissa smiled brightly at her, because she looked exactly like Bellatrix when she was her age. All that was missing was a corset and Narcissa thought it might actually be a nice thing to add. "If there was any doubt if you were Bella's daughter, it is gone now. You are the spitting image of her in that dress. All that is missing is one of her favored corsets."
Hermione blushed a little at that as she rated her appearance in the mirror, for the first time seeing the resemblance between her mother and herself properly. "I don't think that I could ever pull off a corset properly."
"It's an acquired taste Hermione, I'm sure your mother will try to get you to wear one at least once when you all are reunited again, and honestly I think it would bring the look together nicely." Narcissa said with a kind smile.
Hermione smiled at that. "I might give one a try then, because I would hate to look out of place with the rest of the family."
"I'm sure I have a few that will fit with the dress and will fit you too, if you want to of course." Narcissa said with a sweet smile.
Hermione nodded at her. "I would like to try it, because the sooner I get used to things like this, the sooner I can be the person my family can be proud of."
Narcissa merely smiled and pulled the young witch into a hug, taking a moment of rare vulnerability to bask in this moment with her niece.
…
After fitting her dresses and having approved of them, Hermione and Narcissa made their way to the den so they could talk about the more serious things they had planned to talk about.
Narcissa had requested Jupi to make them a couple of snacks and a cup of tea, having the feeling that they would need it for their talks. "So Hermione, what is the most pressing question on your mind?" Narcissa asked kindly.
"Honestly there are about a million questions at the forefront of my mind at this moment, but I suppose the most pressing one is the one you probably can't answer, so I'll go with this one. What exactly will be expected of me now? I know that the War is about to start up again and while I am sure that I would never voluntarily join the so called Light, I would like to know what the other side has to offer." Hermione said softly.
Narcissa nodded at that, having expected this to be one of her first questions. "To be very honest sweetie, we don't know yet. The Dark Lord has come to realize that the priorities of his followers have changed and he is reassessing how to best proceed. We have talked to him a few times over the past few months and from what we have gathered his focus is on bringing Bella and the rest of his inner circle home. A fair number of them were locked up in Azkaban after the First War and he will need them back if we're going to bring any form of resistance to the Order and in particular Dumbledore. What I am very sure of is that he will want to keep the younger generation out of it as much as possible, so as far as expectations, you will have all the freedom you want, and more importantly have all the time to bond with your mothers again."
Hermione nodded at her aunt. "Good, I will admit I was a bit worried about that, but it gives me a bit of peace of mind that we will not be required to do anything drastic just yet."
"The Dark Side is only called that because of the Order's propaganda, everything they did in the First War was in reaction to something the Order did to us. I am sure you've heard about the torture of the Longbottoms, and it was your mother's response to you being taken, or at least, that is what we suspect. We've never been able to ask her if that was the reason, but the timing of it all makes it the most logical explanation." Narcissa explained kindly.
Hermione nodded at that. "That actually makes a lot of sense, and I have to reassess everything I thought I knew about our side of this War."
Narcissa smiled at her. "I understand that dear. Shall I tell you about your mothers? That might make things easier to process.
Hermione nodded and took a sip of tea before getting comfortable while Narcissa tucked her feet under her. "I won't bore you with all of the tales of our childhood, because that is a bit painful for any of us to talk about. Your mother is the oldest out of the three of us and therefor had a lot of expectations placed upon her from a very early age, and she managed to shatter each and every one of them. She was not only called the brightest witch of her age, but also dared to defy our parents by marrying Pandora, which they could do nothing about since they are soul mates and those are both rare and powerful bonds that no one dares to interfere with, which is one of the reasons I fear what Bellatrix will do when she comes home. She's been separated from her soul mate for the better part of fifteen years.
Pandora was a different type of woman, she was raised more freely than we were and was a Seer on top of that. That alone made her special because true Seers are a very rare breed, only found in a handful of families. When they first got together both Andromeda and I had our doubts about her but we very quickly warmed up to her, because it is near impossible to even dislike her, let alone hate her.
She was also a stabilizing force for Bellatrix, who because of an ancient Curse on our house suffers from mental instability. The firstborn Black of each generation is prone to temper tantrums and sudden bursts of anger, which I think plagues you too. You are the oldest Black after all."
"That would certainly explain why I've been feeling so unhinged lately. It was getting harder and harder to control my temper and Luna seemed to be the only one who helped me keep calm." Hermione said softly.
Narcissa smiled at that. "That is normal too. The youngest will always be a calming presence for the oldest and you will also not be able to hurt her, no matter how angry you get."
Hermione nodded and smiled at that. "I'm glad, because I really don't want to hurt my baby sister."
"You won't Hermione, no matter how much your anger threatens to get the best of you." Narcissa said kindly.
Hermione smiled at that. "Thank you for explaining all of this aunt Narcissa. It really means a lot to me."
Narcissa merely smiled and stood to give the girl a hug. "Why don't you go prepare for dinner sweetheart, we'll talk more about your mother after Christmas."
Hermione nodded and bade the blonde goodbye before making her way up to her bedroom, happy to have some time alone to process things.