L'amour Toujour
C31: Education Is Important
Standard Disclaimer: I don't own any of the reconizable characters
A few days later when Draco had returned to Hogwarts and the family had regained some energy from the holidays, Bellatrix brought Hermione and Luna back to her private training room on the roof of the Manor.
She knew that her daughters didn't really need more theoretical lessons, even though Cissa insisted on them completing their schooling, hence she had volunteered to take care of both their theoretical and practical Defense lessons the moment the two girls had made the decision not to go back to school.
She could see that the girls were a bit nervous about their lessons and decided that it would be better if she would calm them down before they got started. Nothing had an a more negative impact on spell work than nerves after all. "Before we start, we're going to do some exercises to calm you both down, because I can feel you two are nervous about this."
Both Luna and Hermione blushed a little at that. "We are, but not because we're nervous to learn anything new, it's just that it feels like everything has a new air of finality to it, and that is what makes us nervous." Hermione said softly.
The raven-haired witch smiled sweetly at her daughters as she gathered them close. "We understand that my sweets, and you are also right in that sense. Everything we're going to do now is for our final goal of change, and it will not be a pretty affair."
"We know Mama, and we're ready to do our part in the War. We're just nervous about everything that is expected of us." Luna said softly as she cuddled into their mother's side.
Bellatrix smiled as she sat down and pulled them both into her lap. "Perhaps we should do a little bit of Black bonding before we get started. It'll help you both calm down enough to keep an open mind for your lessons."
Hermione and Luna nodded and cuddled in close to them as Bellatrix rendered them all naked before leading their heads to her neck, the sisters almost immediately relaxing against their mother. "Does that feel better my sweets?" Bellatrix asked softly.
They both nodded and smiled at her. "Much better Mama, but will you be okay. You and Mummy said that these bonding times take a lot of energy."
"I'll be fine my sweets. Your mother and I prepared for something like this already, and I do have to ask. Have you two been intimate lately?" Bellatrix asked softly.
The girls blushed and shook their heads. "Not since Christmas, Mama. We needed to reaffirm our bonds with Fleur and Gabrielle first before we could think about our own bond again." Hermione said softly, almost in a whisper.
"Then you two should focus on that before we do anything else. With the things I need to teach you it is important that you both are as relaxed as possible, and that your minds are as open as they possibly can be, but I understand if you two are a bit uncomfortable in doing that in front of me." Bellatrix said softly, a slight blush creeping up her cheeks.
Hermione and Luna shared a look and smiled at her. "We wouldn't be embarrassed to do this in front of you Mama, we only worry about getting carried away. That has happened a few times when we have been intimate and it has been a while since we've had the chance to do so." Luna said softly as her blush darkened a little.
Bellatrix smiled sweetly at them as she waved her wand to conjure up a bed in one of the corners, big enough for all three of them. "If you two are okay with having your mother as an audience, we should get your minds centered again."
"Feel free to join us if you want Mama. We're quite used to having our audience joining in these days." Hermione said with a soft smile.
Bellatrix smiled at that. "I have no doubt about that, but I don't think your mother would be very happy if I joined in without her here, for now I will be close by to make sure you two don't get carried away." She said kindly as she stood and carried her daughters to the bed."
"You're so strong Mama. I don't think there are a lot of women who could lift us both at the same time." Luna said softly.
"Featherlight charms are a wonderful thing, my sweets. I may have missed out on being able to carrying you both when you were babies, but now that we have you here, we're going to do a lot to make up for lost time, and while I know we've been doing that for most of the holiday, there is a lot that we still feel that we have to make up for." Bellatrix said with a soft smile.
Hermione and Luna smiled at their mother. "We don't mind Mama. We've come to realize that we'll always be connected on a deeper level to you and Mummy, and we're okay with that, no matter how it evolves. It is one of the things we've discussed with our mates at length a couple of days ago." Hermione said softly.
Bellatrix smiled at that. "We had expected as much given how quickly everything has evolved."
The girls smiled and pressed a kiss to their mother's cheek. "It has, but now that we've talked about everything and left nothing on the table, we can move forward in exploring all of our bonds without fear of hurting our mates." Luna said with a soft smile
"That's good to hear, my sweets, but may I suggest talking about this after today's lessons?"
They nodded and pressed another kiss to their mother's cheek before turning their gazes on each other. "So 'Mione, what are you in the mood for today?" Luna asked softly.
Hermione smiled at her sister. "I'm in the mood for some naughty time with my baby sister. The past few times you've taken very good care of me, and it is high time I return the favor, so just lie back and enjoy." She said as Luna laid back and she started kiss her way down her sister's chest and belly.
Bellatrix on her turn settled herself next to her daughters and smiled at them as she watched them lose themselves in each other again, and she had to admit that watching her daughters go at it brought back a lot of memories.
An hour later, once Hermione and Luna had brought each other to multiple orgasms and had taken some time to catch their breath again, Bellatrix sat them in the center of the room. "Now that you two have found your focus again, we shall continue with what we had planned to do this morning. I know there is very little I can actually teach you in terms of spells and casting, because I've seen you possess that in abundance. I can however teach you new ways to cast and make your actions less predictable. It will help you a lot in the coming battles. If your opponent does not know what your next spell will be, you will always have a big advantage. Come and stand next to me and I'll show you exactly how to always keep the upper hand."
The girls nodded and smiled as they took up a spot on either side of their mother as they both summoned their wands. "First off is your stance. Never use the rigid stance you were taught in school. It is far better to stay mobile and loose in your stance so you can react to threats better. Remember that above all the Order is very classically trained and will expect a certain combination of spells to be thrown at them, and that is something we will be working on for the foreseeable future." Bellatrix said as she slipped in teacher mode.
Hermione and Luna nodded and smiled at their mother, listening with rapt attention as Bellatrix showed them the basics of what would be their new form of dueling.
…
Later that afternoon the two girls made their way to the greenhouse, having spent nearly three hours being taught by Bellatrix how to stand when dueling multiple people and also how to be not as predictable in their spellcasting, which they apparently had made a good start with according to the raven-haired witch.
Pandora was already waiting for them with a soft smile on her face. "Hello my sweets, I can see Bellatrix took you through your paces this morning?"
Hermione and Luna smiled at their mother. "She sure did, we've learned more in one morning than we ever learned at Hogwarts."
Pandora smiled at her daughters. "I can imagine that my sweets, your mother is a bit enthusiastic when it comes to teaching about anything spell related, and I have a feeling that she would be doubly excited because it is you two. Ever since Hermione was born she would be making plans to teach you everything you would need to know before going to school."
They smiled at her. "I could've seen that happening to be honest, given how long she spent making sure we just got the stance right."
Pandora smiled at that as she led them into her sanctuary. "She's a bit of a perfectionist, which I am sure you are more than familiar with.
The two girls nodded and smiled at her as they undressed, as was usual when they were in the greenhouse, where Gabrielle was already waiting for them. "Hey baby. Did you have fun with your Mama?" The young Veela asked as she gave her mate a kiss.
Luna smiled and nodded. "Very much so love. I'm sure you're going to love your lessons with her when they start next week."
Gabrielle smiled at that. "I have no doubt about that mon amour. You'll be there too after all."
Luna smiled and kissed her mate softly as Pandora gathered their attention before the two blondes could lose themselves in each other. "Today, we'll focus our attention on several plants that will aid in curing the effects of a variety of curses, because while we have a good supply of potions at the ready, those will have some fatiguing after effects, which we obviously can't have in the final battle.
By knowing these plants and the things they can cure, you'll have an extra edge in battle and especially in the few moments of rest you'll have between battles. Luna and Gabrielle, for you two I have prepared a few pots of Mallowsweet and Dittany. They are nearly ready for harvesting and I think you two will be able to make them bloom to full effect."
The two girls nodded and smiled at her before they got to work, while Pandora led Hermione to a few big pots that were in the brightest corner of her greenhouse. "For us I have something very special in mind. I've been hard at work cultivating one of Fleur's Christmas gifts, and I was hoping you would help me grow it a bit more."
"Of course Mummy. What kind of plant is it?" Hermione asked softly.
"It is a very special plant found only in France apparently. It's called Veela's Touch, and for good reason. It reacts very peculiar to a Veela's presence, and apparently also to that of a Veela's mate. Your mate was very interested to see how it would react to you." Pandora said with a sweet smile.
Hermione smiled at that as she examined the plant, and she almost felt like it was judging her at the same time. "It is a beautiful plant Mummy, and I think that this is the first sentient plant that hasn't tried to kill me or bring me to heaven."
Pandora smiled at that. "I'm very sure that this will do neither, sweetie. This is as much a case study as it will be actually trying to accomplish our secondary goal, which would be to try and get a petal from her. From everything I've read about the Veela's Touch, it's petals are highly sought after for its healing properties, but due to the difficulty in procuring one, those are rare. Only someone she trusts would be able to procure them."
Hermione nodded with interest as she gently touched one of the petals, barely suppressing a giggle as the flower reached out a vine to wrap itself around her finger. "I think she likes you sweetie. Every time I've tried to touch her after putting her in the pot that she wanted she's literally slapped my hands away." Pandora said softly.
Hermione smiled as the flower seemed to crawl up her arm and wrapped its vines around her forearm. "Hello little one."
Pandora watched on fascinated as the flower gently extended a vine down to Hermione's hand, wrapping around her little finger. "She seems to respond well to you sweetie. I think she can feel that you are mated to Fleur."
Hermione smiled at that. "I think so too, because she seems adamant on crawling up to my shoulder." She said as she tickled one of the petals, causing the flower to vibrate in clear joy.
Pandora smiled and made a few notes in her journal, while the Veela's Touch crawled back down her daughter's arm and settled into its pot once again, now more in bloom than she was before. "Amazing. In all my years of working with sentient plants I've never seen something like this before."
Hermione smiled at her mother. "I think only a Veela or a Veela's mate could bring her to full bloom, although I have a feeling that Fleur or Gabi will be able to tell us more about the more intricate details of this particular flower, and I have a niggling feeling that my dear mate was named after this particular flower."
Pandora smiled at that. "That particular lover's discussion I would keep myself far from, although I can admit that it is a similar discussion I've had with your mother."
Hermione smiled and nodded at that. "I can imagine that. You and Mama seem like polar opposites."
Pandora nodded at that. "In most things we are, which is exactly why we work so well together. We've never really argued about anything, discussions sure, but never arguments or fights. The only point of contention we ever really had was how we would raise you and Luna, which ultimately and unfortunately didn't matter."
Hermione gave her mother a hug and nuzzled into her side. "While we can't exactly do that again, we've got all the time in the world to make up for lost time, and I have a feeling you and Mama will both do that and more after the War."
Pandora only nodded and pressed a kiss to the top of her daughter's head, cradling the young brunette close to her body.
…
When the three girls walked into Narcissa's Potion Lab after a quick lunch, the blonde was already waiting for them, a list of ingredients at the ready. "Now I know that this seems like a bit overkill, but this will be new for me too, so it's a bit of an experiment on how to best conduct these lessons, which is why we will start with something relatively simple. I want you to prepare a vial of Advanced Wiggenweld Potion. The ingredients are in the cupboard over by my own cauldron."
The girls nodded as they took up a spot at their desks to get their cauldrons to the boil before doing anything else.
Narcissa knew that they wouldn't take long to do the necessary preparations, and that all three of them could brew these with their eyes closed, so she had to come up with something educational to fill a few hours, preferably something non theoretical since there was little in that sense that she could teach them.
As a proper teacher she checked in on everyone's potions although she knew that they could all brew these potions with their eyes closed. That didn't however stop her from giving them all some pointers. "If you would ever need to, you could replace the Mongrel's Fur in your potion with fresh fairy wings, but only if there are no other options of course, since fairy wings are more rare and precious then Mongrel's fur is."
Hermione smiled at that. "While I doubt we'd ever have to make that substitution, it is good to know."
"I'm sure your fiancee has an extensive list of substitute ingredients for the majority of known potions. I just need something else to talk about since I know that this is a relatively easy potion to brew." Narcissa said softly.
Hermione smiled at her aunt. "I'm sure that you'll find something interesting to talk about aunt Cissa. Potions is such a broad subject after all."
Narcissa smiled at her niece. "That it is, but I also know that there is very little I can still teach the three of you when it comes to theory. There is however something I would like to show you all once you are done with your potions. It is my own creation that I would like to show you."
They smiled at that. "We'd love to learn your special potion, aunt Cissa." Luna said softly.
"Thank you for the vote of confidence, my sweet, but first I want to see your Advanced Wiggenweld Potions. Those might save your lives one day." Narcissa said in her best teaching voice.
The three girls smiled at the older blonde as they turned their attention back to their potions, making sure that it was perfect for Narcissa once it was done.
Hermione especially was driven to perfection because Potions was one of the subjects she had always struggled with, even with Luna and Fleur's help over the past couple of years and she wanted to prove to her aunt, and probably more so to her mate and sister that she too could make a perfect potion when it was necessary.
Narcissa of course noticed the look of concentration on her niece's face as she carefully added her ingredients and decided to take a closer look on how she was doing. "Are you doing okay Hermione? I don't think that I've ever seen you concentrate so hard on something before."
Hermione smiled at her aunt as she wiped some hairs out of her face. "Potions has never been my best subject, which is why I always try so hard to make my potions perfect. Before everything was revealed I was always worried for not living up to Snape's expectations, which pushed me to be better."
Narcissa smiled sweetly at her. "You're very much like your mother then. She too doesn't have the greatest affinity for Potions, but also has a fear of failure, as well as a very competitive personality that pushed her to be the best anyway, which got her the same title you got early in your school days, although I admit that a lot of the reason she didn't get perfect grades in Potions was because of our teacher back then. He was far more interested in his connections and as he called it, his collection that he often oversaw those with real talent for the craft. I didn't get top marks either, and I would like to think that I'm a decent Potion Master."
Hermione nodded and smiled at her. "You're one of the best I've ever seen aunt Cissa, probably even better than Snape."
Narcissa smiled sweetly at her niece. "Thank you sweetie, but honestly I'm not near the level of Severus. He was truly a Potion's Prodigy."
"That would explain why Draco is quickly going in that direction too. Snape is his Godfather, isn't he?" Hermione asked softly.
Narcissa nodded and smiled as Hermione pulled her cauldron from the fire so it could cool before she bottled it. "I can already see that this is a perfect batch sweetie."
Hermione smiled at her aunt as Luna and Gabrielle joined them. "I had no doubt about it. You're far more adept at Potions than you give yourself credit for, sister." Luna said with a soft smile.
"I will never be as good as you though Lu. To you it almost comes natural." Hermione said softly.
"I've grown up with brewing potions, 'Mione. That is the only thing that separates our talent for brewing, and I am sure that together with Fleur you'll invent a whole slew of new and interesting potions." Luna said with a sweet smile.
Hermione only smiled at her sister as they gathered around Narcissa's table, where a variety of ingredients were waiting. "As promised I will now show you my specialty, something I started working on when I was just a student at Hogwarts myself. In those days Bellatrix had a bit of a reputation of being unstable, and back then it was true too, and not only she was unstable, but so was her magic and when she lost control, the results were often devastating. One of such instances involved a fire that left some scars. The potion I created and perfected over the years completely heals any and all burn marks to such a point that there will be no mark to be seen, and this includes scars created by Fiendfyre, and while it is a complicated and above all lengthy potion to brew, I will explain the ingredients and in which quantity and time frame they need to be added.
Hermione, Luna and Gabrielle nodded and watched with fascination as Narcissa explained the process of brewing her specialty potion.
…
After dinner that evening, the first thing Hermione did was seek the arms of her mate, needing to relax a little after a long day of lessons, something that amused the blonde Veela a lot. "How is it that you are fine with doing full days at school but are exhausted after just one day of lessons?" Fleur asked as they cuddled together in bed.
Hermione smiled at her love. "Because usually Defense Against the Dark Arts isn't so magically exhausting. Mama covered a lot of things that Hogwarts never even touched on, and it was a bit exhausting to say the least."
Fleur smiled and nuzzled her mate's neck. "It'll get better, mon amour. In a few weeks you'll be used to it. Until then I'll be here to alleviate your exhaustion every night. Do you want to take a bath together?"
Hermione nodded and gave an adorable yelp as Fleur scooped her up and into her arms in a practiced move carried her love into the bathroom. "Sometimes I forget how strong you are."
Fleur smiled and kissed her softly. "It's not that I'm strong per say love, it's just that you as my mate weigh next to nothing for me, and of course the reverse is true too. You could do the same to me if you would want to."
Hermione smiled at that as Fleur sat her back down on her feet. "I don't know if that's a good idea baby. If you get an even bigger head if I carry you everywhere, we'll need an even bigger bed."
Fleur quirked an eyebrow at that as she flicked her hand to the tub to fill it up. "I'm not that bad, mon amour."
Hermione smiled at her. "I was teasing baby. You're not as bad as you were when we first met."
Fleur smiled and kissed her mate softly. "I'll give you that. I was a tad arrogant when we first met, and I know full well that I did not ingratiate myself to you in those early months."
"You quickly made up for that once I managed to see past that aloof exterior, my love. Even before we became friends you invaded my dreams every night, which was seemingly very amusing to my sister." Hermione said with a soft smile.
Fleur smiled at her as they stepped into and then lowered themselves in the tub. "Trust me that it was the same for me. Gabi teased me relentlessly because of how I acted around you."
Hermione giggled at that as she relaxed against the blonde. "Given how you two interact on a daily basis I'm honestly not surprised."
"We've always had that back and forth between us, ever since she learned how to talk she clung to me like a shadow and we did everything together, and I know that a lot of her mischievousness is my fault." Fleur said with a soft smile.
Hermione smiled at that. "I can just imagine you two conspiring together. It is truly one of the things I've missed out on in my childhood."
"You and Luna certainly have made up for at least some of that lost time in recent months, and I have a feeling that once everything is over you'll continue to find these moments together, and of course Gabi and I will be right there beside you. Imagine what type of mischief we can get up to when the four of us put our heads together." Fleur said with an excited smile.
"I think the world and more importantly the rest of our family would not be ready for that, but I think we can definitely get a test run going during that final battle. I think we've proven that together we can cause a lot of chaos." Hermione said with a soft smile.
Fleur nodded and smiled at that. "Perhaps that final battle is not the best place to do that but we'll see what happens there. If something comes our way we can definitely try to disrupt the Order."
Hermione nodded and kissed the blonde softly before once again relaxing against her mate. "You're right love, we'll see what happens. First we have a few months of preparation to survive, and knowing my Mama, that'll be difficult enough. She made it very clear that she wants me and Luna to be on her level of dueling skill by the time we make our final move."
"That is honestly not surprising mon amour. Like you, your Mama is very competitive and wants you to be the best so you can survive and be who you want to be and do what you want to do. I'm sure that is why she is doing so much to ensure that you get the best education." Fleur said as she wrapped her arms around the brunette.
Hermione moaned softly at the intimate contact and rested her head against her fiancee's shoulder. "I know, and it's not that I am in any way disregarding anything my mother is trying to teach me. I was merely saying that it takes some getting used to, and as long as I have your embrace to return to at the end of the day I know I'll be more than fine.
"Always, mon amour. That is my promise to you even before we say our vows, something I will admit I am very excited to do very soon." Fleur said softly.
"So am I. I can't wait to call you my wife officially. I never thought I would be thinking of marriage at this age, but meeting you and having shared everything we have I can't help but think of everything that our wedding will be, and I was hoping to make a request before we get into that preparation." Hermione said softly.
Fleur smiled and kissed her. "Of course mon amour. Anything you want."
"Would you be okay with us not wearing dress robes, but actual wedding dresses? I don't think I could stand to wear a robe on the most important day of our lives." Hermione asked with a soft smile.
Fleur smiled at that. "Of course mon amour. I am also not a big fan of dress robes in general, not when dresses give so much more options. I'm sure we can convince Narcissa of this too."
"I sure hope we can, because I wouldn't want to get into an argument over wedding preparations with her when we haven't even started those properly." Hermione said with a soft smile.
Fleur just smiled and kissed her as the two witches spent almost an hour in the bath, until they started to prune, and since both of them had no wish to look like old ladies when lying in bed with their sisters and then have to put up with the relentless teasing that would surely happen, they decided to get out and spent at least half an hour drying each other and making out at the same time.
When they were back in their bedroom, they were unsurprised to see that their sisters had also gotten into bed already. "Judging by the state of your hair, I see you two had some fun while we were in the bath." Fleur said with a slightly bemused smile as they joined their sisters.
"Can you really blame us for that, sister. We're just as addicted to each other as you and Hermione are, and of course after our lessons today we were feeling a bit amorous, so we figured it would be a great use of our time." Gabrielle said with a soft smile.
Both Hermione and Fleur smiled at that as they too cuddled up together. "Of course we don't blame you. I was merely teasing. I'm sure Hermione and I would have done the same if our situations had been reversed, but I think that my darling fiancee is a bit too tired for any naughty activities for now."
Hermione nodded at that. "You would be very right in that, my love. Today took a lot out of me and since I have to be awake enough to pay attention again tomorrow, I would gladly take a rain check on another night of mind blowing sex, as much as that pains me to say it."
Fleur smiled at that. "That is more than okay love. I had an exhausting day too at the store, especially since I had some unwanted customers that asked me a ton of unwanted questions."
"Did Molly come in then?" Hermione asked softly.
"She did, and again she was accusing me of all sorts of nonsense, which of course I wasn't having anything of and I kindly yet sternly asked her to leave my store. I do however get the sneaking suspicion that she knows more than she is letting on." Fleur said with a soft smile.
Hermione nodded at that. "If that were true that would mean there is a traitor in our Lord's ranks, because no one besides the inner circle knows of what is really going on. It is something we should speak to my mothers about."
Fleur nodded and kissed the brunette. "And we will, I actually wanted to bring this up today, but I didn't get a chance to speak to Bellatrix about it just yet. I will do so tomorrow morning so she can inform our Lord."
Hermione nodded and smiled as she got comfortable against her fiancee. "Good, can we get some sleep now, because I honestly don't know how much longer I can keep my eyes open, and since our dear sisters are already asleep, it would do us both good if we'd join them."