Once again, everything was spinning but Hermione had a sweet in her hand this time and sucked on it as soon as she felt solid ground. She staggered a bit but didn't fall over and for that she was grateful. She was determined to get the hang of this Apparition business. Mrs Malfoy conjured up a chair for her to sit in while her body recovered but it didn't take as long this time.
"You'll get used to it," Mrs Malfoy told her, smiling a little.
Hermione looked around curiously as she rose carefully from the chair. They seemed to be outside, on a path of some kind with flower beds running alongside it. Around them was nothing but fields.
"We thought you might like to see Malfoy Manor from the outside," her new foster mother told her. Hermione followed her and Draco down another path, with walls on either side, relieved to see that Mrs Malfoy was still holding the backpack, with all her belongings in it. Then she looked up. She'd been expecting a stately home of some kind, like the ones she visited with her parents sometimes but this was a gloomy looking castle with towers sticking out at each corner and narrow windows in the dark walls. There was nothing friendly or welcoming about it.
The sight of the Manor made her stop in her tracks. She was going to be staying in this huge house and her parents wouldn't be here. She could not imagine spending a single night without them. Suddenly she just wanted to run but where would she run to? They were out in the countryside and she had no idea where to go or how to get home. The Malfoys had gone on ahead but Mrs Malfoy seemed to realise the child wasn't with her and turned around.
"What is it now, Hermione?" she asked, with a note of impatience in her voice.
"It's so big," she whispered, her eyes wide and fearful.
Mrs Malfoy chuckled. "Yes, it is, isn't it? And this is our estate." She gave an elegant wave of her arm to signify the vast area. "We'll show you around, don't worry. Just think; this is your new home."
Hermione did not have time to think about the way her foster mother had called it her "new home" or how Mr Malfoy had spoken about how she would be "living" with them, rather than "staying". Still in awe, she was led by the hand towards a huge door which opened on their approach and led into a large hallway with paintings on the walls. The paintings were mostly of people although she saw a few that showed rivers, mountains or other nice scenes.
"Now, our paintings are a bit different," Mrs Malfoy explained to her as they passed a stern looking man with a moustache and whiskers. His eyes seemed to be boring into her. In fact they seemed to be following her. Instinctively she stepped back, accidentally stepping on Mrs Malfoy's foot.
"His eyes!" was all she could manage to say.
"That's what I was about to tell you, dear. Our portraits and photographs are different to the ones you're used to in the Muggle world. The people in them can move and sometimes even talk. It's a special kind of magic that's hard to explain but I'm sure you'll learn about it in time."
Right at that moment Hermione did not really want to learn much about these portraits that all seemed to be glaring at her. Her attention was diverted when Mrs Malfoy removed her coat, which her mother had insisted on putting on her before she left, and sent it flying into what must be a cloakroom of some kind, along with her and Draco's cloaks. But she could still feel those eyes on her and was glad when she was led into a large sitting room, away from the creepy hallway. Then another door opened off the living room opened and a figure appeared. Hermione could only describe him as a creature, not a person. He was small, wrinkled and ugly with big eyes and ears and seemed to be wearing a cloth of some kind, with a hole in it for his head. It turned out to be a very faded pillowcase.
"Hermione, this is Dobby, our main house elf. He does the cooking and cleaning for us, and anything else we ask of him. He will also be serving you from now on. Dobby, remember we I told you about this?"
"Yes, mistress, Dobby will serve the little miss as well from now on. Dobby is very pleased to serve her," he replied in a squeaky voice as he bowed repeatedly before her.
"Very good, Dobby. Now where's the other one? Twinkle!" She shouted the last word, making Hermione jump. Suddenly there was a popping sound and another house elf appeared in the room. This one had long hair and was wearing a piece of cloth that had been turned into a dress.
"This is Twinkle, Hermione. She usually looks after the upstairs rooms and will be looking after you and Draco. Twinkle, this is Hermione." Twinkle bowed over and over, telling her how happy she was to look after the little miss and the young master. Hermione could not help but stare in amazement at the whole scene although she could not help but notice that Mrs Malfoy used a sharper tone of voice with the house elves than she'd heard her use so far. The moment she dismissed them, they disappeared as quickly as they had arrived.
"Why don't we go and see your new bedroom, dear?" Mrs Malfoy asked her. "Dinner will be served later on."
Hermione simply nodded and whispered "ok" before Draco rushed upstairs ahead of her. They led her up another flight of stairs and down a landing before bringing her into a large bedroom decorated mostly in pink, with pictures already on the walls and a large four poster bed in the middle. She could not believe that this was her room. Gently she placed Lucy down on the pillow, reluctant to finally let go of her. At Mrs Malfoy's encouragement she looked out the window, only to see nothing but fields. There was a road off in the distance and a few buildings grouped together so maybe there was a village nearby? She could hear the Malfoys telling her all about the room and the pretty bathroom next door that was just for her but it was all so hard to take in.
Her foster mother took out her wand and used it to put Hermione's things away. The room had a wardrobe made of dark wood, with a key to open the door and a big chest of drawers. She found herself wondering if all wizarding houses had dark furniture.
"Why don't you show Hermione some of your toys, Draco?" Mrs Malfoy asked.
"All right," Draco replied, with the tiniest hint of a sulk in his voice. With a reminder that they would all be having dinner together soon, his mother made her way downstairs leaving the two children alone. Hermione's eyes widened as she followed Draco into the bedroom opposite hers. It was even bigger, with more toys than she'd ever seen in her life. He showed her his tin soldiers that could be enchanted to march by themselves and a whole pyramid of soft toys, along with a leaping frog, similar to the one they'd seen in the shop. He even had a wand of his own but he explained sulkily that it was just a toy one and all it did was make sparks when you waved it. He told her he couldn't wait to have a real wand but you couldn't get one until you were eleven and ready to go to Hogwarts.
Suddenly his face brightened a little. "Want to play Exploding Snap?" he asked.
Hermione had no idea what that was but she was interested in learning and as it turned out she got the hang of it quickly.
"We have to play it upstairs," Draco told her, "Father doesn't like the noise it makes."
After a few games they played Animal Snap which was like the card game she had at home except the animals in the pictures moved and made noises. She lost the first round but won the next few. After that they played a magic version of Snakes and Ladders which Hermione had started to play with her parents recently. This was a bit different though as the snakes and ladders moved around the board with each turn. If you rolled a six you could also make a ladder move to your space, or a snake to your opponent's space. Draco was not happy when she won two games but when she learned he was only four she understood. She was five so maybe it was easier for her to play?
She was fascinated by all the wonderful toys and games and after a little hesitation Draco cheered up and started telling her all about them and even demonstrating a few. They were in the middle of a jigsaw puzzle when they heard a noise that sounded like a bell.
"That's the dinner gong," Draco explained.
Both were reluctant to leave the puzzle but they made their way downstairs, with Hermione staying by Draco's side. She tried to remember the route they took as she was determined to find her way around this enormous house but the route seemed straightforward enough.
Mr Malfoy was there, as tall and as intimidating as ever. Just before he sat down she noticed that he had a cane in his hand, even though he didn't have a limp and wondered what it was for. The dining table was set with a deep red tablecloth and a wide selection of cutlery. Mrs Malfoy prompted her about which knife and fork to use but it was a lot fancier than what she was used to. Dobby brought out four small salads and the family tucked into them, making small talk about Diagon Alley and things that were happening in the Ministry. Hermione just listened quietly, which seemed to be the right thing to do.
After the small plates were cleared away, Dobby served them huge portions of some kind of meat, which Mrs Malfoy explained was roast pheasant. Hermione had never tasted this before and found it fairly stodgy especially as it seemed to be coated in some kind of rich sauce but she did manage to eat most of the vegetables and potatoes. Afterwards they enjoyed a delicious apple tart, made from apples from their own orchard, according to Mr Malfoy. There was also coffee and pumpkin juice at the end but Draco wanted to go and play for a little while longer so the two of them ran back upstairs to finish their puzzle.
Later, Hermione got a tour of the house including a visit to the Malfoy library. Every inch of the walls seemed to be covered in books. There were some childrens books, but most of them were for older people, with every subject imaginable on display, from gardening to something called ancient runes. She couldn't help but notice some higher shelves filled with very old books with black covers on them but Mrs Malfoy told her very firmly that they were not for children and to not worry about them. Still, she couldn't wait to be able to read well enough to work her way through the other books.
After the tour Mr Malfoy agreed to teach them to play draughts. It was a Muggle game, he explained, but it was good practice for learning chess later on and then Wizarding Chess, which was a bit different. Hermione had played a couple of games of draughts but Mr Malfoy knew a few techniques to help them win. It was clear that he did not have much patience though, as he chided her a little for leaving her piece exposed, allowing him and Draco to take not just one, but two of her pieces. That was a hard lesson for her and she became more determined than ever to master this game.
She enjoyed the games but she could not help thinking that it was Saturday night and her parents would be at home watching their quiz shows on TV, drinking their cocoa and trying to guess the answers. But maybe they weren't doing that tonight? Maybe they were feeling sad because she wasn't there, snuggled between them as she usually was? Tears pricked at her eyes once more at the thought of them missing her. She looked around the room for a television set but couldn't see one.
"C-can I watch something on telly please?" she asked quietly. Suddenly three pairs of eyes were upon her.
"What's telly?" Draco asked.
"There is no…telly here," Mr Malfoy replied, his voice cold and stern.
"We don't have electricity," Mrs Malfoy explained, more gently, "So we don't have anything that runs on it, like television. But don't worry; there are lots of other things to do here!"
"Can I talk to my mummy and daddy?"
"I'm afraid not, dear. But I'll contact one of your Relocation Officers tonight and get a message to them, just to say you've arrived safely and to ask about your teddy bear. And you'll be seeing them in a few weeks anyway."
But Hermione could not stop worrying about them, and now she couldn't even watch the programmes they usually watched together. The current game of draughts suddenly lost its appeal and she disappeared into a world of her own, not even noticing when it was her turn. After a short while Mrs Malfoy remarked how she'd had a long, difficult day and called Twinkle to take her up to bed.
"Twinkle will run a bath for you and get you ready," she explained gently, "And we'll see you in the morning at breakfast, then we'll show you around the grounds, how does that sound?"
"That sounds nice, thank you," she replied, trying to stifle a yawn.
She did not object as Twinkle brought her upstairs but she did insist on using her own bubble bath which reminded her of baths at home and her yellow duck floating that usually floated beside her. There were no bath toys here so she allowed the house elf to scrub her clean and put her in a fresh night-dress.
"The little miss's parcels have arrived and her things are put away," Twinkle informed her politely, opening the wardrobe door where her new robes were already hanging up. She left her alone then, promising to wake her in the morning.
That night Hermione lay awake in the big bed with Lucy in her arms, wondering how long she would be living here. If she was staying for a long time she was going to miss a lot of school and most of her belongings were still at home. She wondered too if Teddy was lonely without her. Today had been very strange; she'd been to so many different places and seen real magic and now she was staying with a magical family. Mrs Malfoy was nice but Draco seemed a bit grumpy at times, although she reminded herself that he was only four. And Mr Malfoy was a bit scary but maybe he wasn't too bad when you got to know him? Anyway, tomorrow would be different. In the morning she would get herself ready and find her way down to breakfast without anyone's help. Then the Malfoys would see that she wasn't such a baby. Also, she was going to learn all she could about this new world so she didn't say silly things like she'd done this evening. With this plan in mind she eventually fell asleep in her new bed.
A shorter chapter but it felt like the right place to end it. I was going to add the Floo-call between Narcissa and Elsie but it felt unnecessary. Don't worry, Hermione and Teddy will be reunited at some point!