A/N: Thank you so much for your reviews, favorites and follows after last chapter! Huge thank you to lanamarymack for alpha/beta reading this chapter! Please let me know what you thought of chapter forty-seven and be on the lookout for chapter forty-eight soon!
Despite the Snitch being out of the box, there wasn't time to worry about what anyone thought of her betrothal to Rabastan, what with the NEWTs upon them after so many months of revision. In the blink of an eye, exams would be over and they would be out of school, ready to start their lives together.
But, to Hermione's relief, her roommates did not find the betrothal odd at all, just as Rabastan had promised they wouldn't. Instead, they were almost more excited than she was, wanting to extract promises of invitations.
"Of course you will be invited," Hermione promised each of them, thinking that it was preposterous that they wouldn't be there. At least, she hoped that her mother and Rabastan's mother wouldn't find a reason to mark them off the guest list.
In fact, it reminded Hermione that she needed to ask people to stand with her. Her mother had insisted that Narcissa be allowed to stand with Hermione. It was only fair to return the favor after all. And, it would mean a certain level of prestige to have a Malfoy in favor of the union. But, Hermione thought that she might like to have Elvira and Mallory stand with her, as well, if it could be arranged.
She wondered who would stand with Rabastan. Rodolphus, no doubt, seeing as he was his brother. And Regulus would probably stand with him, as well. But, who would be the third was a mystery to her. Probably Ansel or Angus. They were pretty close, after all.
The letters she received and exchanged with her mother were daily at this point — sometimes twice a day if Walburga Black was really on a roll. She would do nothing to hinder an absolutely perfect wedding day for her daughter. In between complaints about how much there still was to do, Hermione could see Walburga's joy at having a daughter to spoil. It just wasn't the same as having a son get married.
Her mother still had her measurements from Narcissa's wedding the year before, so much work had already been done to her wedding robes. They would hopefully only need one final fitting when she returned from school. Hermione was secretly excited to see how they would look on. The sketch that the seamstress had drawn and her mother had passed along looked stunning. She wondered if Rabastan would find her beautiful in them, too.
It was nice to not worry about the impending event, as Hermione did not have too much time to devote to the wedding, not when she had so many NEWTs to sit for. After she got through the first four during the first week of examination, she was certain that her brain was going to turn to mush from just how strenuous they had been. It had her dreading the following week, but pleased to know that she had a weekend in between.
It would give her a chance to spend a little time with her friends, her brother, and of course, Rabastan. She wondered if she could convince him to slip away to the Room of Requirement again for a night. She was longing for a chance to do something that required zero thought and only involved her feelings. Yes, she was quite certain that she could get lost in the sensations Rabastan was able to create.
Instead, they all piled into one of the back corners of the library, pushing two tables together to fit them all, under the guise of studying again. Hermione hastily threw up a couple of silencing and repealing charms, hoping to keep Madam Pince none the wiser to the disruption they were going to cause.
"Ooh, you always know how to think ahead, Hermione," Priscilla said, pleased with her quick thinking. "Wouldn't do to lose house points this close to the terms end."
"I wonder how she got the experience," Elvira said with a smirk, her eyes darting between Hermione and Rabastan.
"Elvira!" Regulus complained with a whine. "She is still my sister. Please, for my sake, let me imagine that they do nothing but hold hands."
"But they are so cute together," Elvira whined, waving her hand at the other side of the table to where Hermione and Rabastan were pressed next to each other.
"Oh! That reminds me!" Priscilla said, pulling her bag up from under the table and digging around in her papers. She plucked a photograph from the unorganized depths and slid it across the table, unable to help herself. "I took it after Slytherin's last game. You guys were so sweet, I couldn't help it."
Rabastan reached for the picture, holding it up so Hermione could see it. Rabastan was standing in his Quidditch uniform, leaning against his broom, staring down at Hermione with one of his crooked grins. Hermione was looking up at him adoringly, a smirk on her face, her cheeks red from the cold, with a Slytherin scarf wrapped around her neck. One side fluttered in the wind and Rabastan reached out to grab it, pulling it tighter around her neck and Hermione took the opportunity to stand on her tiptoes and catch him by surprise with a kiss that quickly deepened.
Hermione felt her cheeks grow red, looking at the picture. It was beautiful and perfect and she was so happy to have it. She took it from Rabastan's hands, her thumb caressing the photo paper approximation of her betrothed's face.
He plucked it back out of her fingers. "Thank you for the picture, Priscilla," he said, gratefully. "It will be nice to keep it on my bedside table this next month."
It was going to be a long month, without free reign of her boyfriend, to kiss — or more — whenever she wanted. Maybe it would have been better to wait until their wedding night. At least then she wouldn't know how breathtaking sex with Rabastan could be.
"Aw, just look at them. You can tell they are so in love," Mallory sighed, looking over Rabastan's shoulder to get a glimpse of the picture.
Regulus made a noise like he was going to faint.
Hermione sniffed in annoyance. "If you are going to be so childish about a relationship that you helped broker, I will just go be in love somewhere else," she said imperiously, standing up and reaching for Rabastan's hand. "Let's go revise somewhere else."
"Hermione, come on, I was only being childish," Regulus begged, frustrated that he had pushed his sister a bit too far.
"No use for it now, Reggie," she said with her nose up in the air. "Wouldn't want to upset your delicate sensibilities."
Her brother scoffed, but Rabastan was only too eager to get out of the library himself. With his own bag gathered, he wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her to his side. "Come on, sweetheart, let's go," he said, being especially immoderate with the pet name. He couldn't resist giving Regulus a wink either.
Once they were out of the library, there was only one destination in mind: The Room of Requirement. Hermione sighed in pleasure when she opened the door and saw that it was their little library once again, small changes having been decided over the last two weeks that they'd been visiting, like the green velvet wingback chairs near the fireplace that Rabastan liked, or the cozy little window seat that Hermione had imagined. It was beginning to feel more and more like home and Hermione couldn't wait to see it in real life.
"I think that when I get home, I am going to sleep an age," Hermione said, slipping into the comfortable settee. It was the place that they naturally gravitated to — the place where they could cuddle up next to one another most easily (though there had been that one night when Hermione sat on Rabastan's lap and his absolutely sinful fingers found his way up under her skirt).
"If our mothers let you," Rabastan said wistfully. "I barely do anything as the groom and my mother has already prepared an itinerary a mile long."
"At least it will make our time apart go faster?" Hermione said, an edge of disbelief in her voice. She was sure that her time apart from him would drag on and on and on. "It's strange. I was dreading the wedding part of this, but now I am looking forward to being your wife," she admitted, her cheeks flushed.
"You are more than I ever dreamed of," Rabastan answered, wrapping his arm around her shoulders and pulling her firmly against his chest. "I keep thinking that one day I will wake up, only to be disappointed that it was all in my head."
She grabbed his hand and pulled it to press a kiss to the flat of his palm. "Never," she said, with a mischievous grin. "You won't be able to get rid of me. I'll be like a limpet."
Rabastan laughed, the rich sound vibrating in his chest. "That might make work a little bit difficult," he said with a grin. "I don't know that I will be able to get a mastery if I have to drag you along with me."
"So you've decided then?" Hermione asked, knowing that Rabastan had several potential avenues of work that he could pursue. "Arithmancy?"
"Yes, Arithmancy," he agreed. "Father seems pleased, even. He's found a master to take me as an apprentice, if I don't completely fail my NEWT."
"Well, I don't think that's possible," Hermione said with a scoff. "It's clear you have a natural talent for the subject. I'd say you're even better than me. More creative at least."
He rewarded her with a smirk. "That's high praise, coming from you," he teased. "To think that I've finally bested you in something."
Hermione bit her lower lip, carefully considering her next words. "We haven't talked about what I will do after school," she broached the topic carefully.
"What do you mean?" he asked.
"Well, your mother seemed horrified that I might aspire to more than just popping out children," she said, scornfully. "And, although I am not opposed to the idea — far from it actually — I'd rather not be a mother immediately. So, would your family allow me to pursue a mastery of my own, should joining the workforce be too ghastly of a thought for them?"
Rabastan gave her a look. "With a couple as capable as us, how could Father complain?" he asked, nudging her with his shoulder. "I think he will be exceedingly pleased to know that his grandchildren will have such accomplished parents."
She gave him a shy smile. "Oh, good, because my father has already spoken to a Charms master and thinks that I might do well with a mastery," she admitted. Orion Black was a Charms master himself, and so he was only too excited to have one of his children follow in his footsteps. "Perhaps I might find work as a curse breaker once I'm finished."
"Yes," Rabastan agreed, sounding pleased with the idea. "And we can revisit things when children eventually come around. I think Father will be so glad to have this wedding done and dusted that he would be content to wait a couple years before pressing for them. It really is Rodolphus's responsibility, after all."
"He might come to his senses yet," Hermione said, darkly, wishing that he would walk away from the Dark Lord.
"Hermione," her betrothed said in warning, as he considered the topic settled.
"I just mean he might find a nice witch to marry," she lied. She was less interested in getting Rodolphus to turn his back on the Death Eaters, but she was still greatly committed to having the name Lestrange be known for something other than the torture of two Aurors.
Again, the weight of her future knowledge was heavy. Rabastan might understand her urgency in the topic if only she told him the truth. Regulus wanted her to keep it secret until the marriage was finished, but perhaps Orion would see things differently. It was something she should probably tell him sooner than later though.
"Remind me, there is something I wish to tell you after the wedding," she told him, leaning over to press a quick peck to his jaw.
"That sounds ominous," he said, with a nervous chuckle.
"It's a good thing," Hermione promised, thinking that it was actually a good thing to have future knowledge — to be able to avoid mistakes that were undoubtedly made. "But no point in getting excited about it while we are finishing our NEWTs."
"And how I am meant to do well on my NEWTs, knowing that you have some mysterious secret to tell me?" he asked, his own lips finding the sensitive skin of her neck, just below her ear.
"I am sure you'll be able to manage. You'll be so busy you'll forget," she said. "And then we will be busy with the wedding. It's better to wait until we have a bit of time to ourselves."
"Mm," he murmured, turning her head so that he could brush his lips against her. "And if those aren't sufficient distractions…?"
Hermione smirked at him before she pressed her lips against his more firmly. She caught his lower lip between her teeth in a playful nip. "I might have some ideas to keep your mind occupied."
She wrapped her arms around him, content to spend a bit of time snogging before they had to return to reality.