Chapter 18
Hermione was glad to be home. Her bed at Grimmauld Place had been fine, but it was small and the mattress was thin. At the Manor, Hermione slept diagonally across a queen-sized bed, with a thick, memory foam mattress that was just the right amount of soft, and with plenty of room for Crooks to lay at her feet. Her blankets at Grimmauld Place had been threadbare throws and patchy quilts that left Hermione shivering even under layers and layers. Her comforter at the Manor was goose-feather down and charmed to stay cool on hot nights, warm on cold ones.
And it was quieter at home. There was no thunderous herd of footsteps up and down the staircase at the crack of dawn, no screaming, no broken cups. If Hermione wanted to, she could sleep until noon before anyone would come and collect her more in concern than in an insistence she get up.
Which is why it was so strange to have someone knocking on her door at a quarter to six. Hermione honestly tried to ignore it, but whoever it was, they just kept knocking this polite, steady, soft knock. It wasn't an elf, because an elf would have just popped into the room. Hermione pressed her head further into the pillow and tried her best to ignore it. The knocking kept up. So she rolled over, threw her comforter off, and stumbled to the door.
In hindsight, she should have grabbed her dressing gown. Opening the door in her nightgown - dark, emerald green with lace at the hem and over her chest - would have been embarrassing if her visitor was Toma, and downright scandalous if her visitor was Draco or Theo, but Hermione’s brain hadn’t yet caught up with her desire to make that incessant knocking stop.
It wasn’t Draco or Theo, and it wasn’t Toma. It was Narcissa, looking amused and fond and mischievous as she took in Hermione’s sleepy appearance.
“Were you expecting someone else?” Narcissa teased, and Hermione stared at her, uncomprehending.
“May I come in?” the older witch asked after a beat of silence, and Hermione immediately stepped back to allow Narcissa in the room. She shut the door after her and grabbed the dressing gown at the end of her bed, hurrying to put it on and cover herself up a little more. Her cheeks were bright and hot with embarrassment.
“Good morning,” Hermione said. “Did you need something?”
“Well,” Narcissa said, picking at a loose thread on Hermione’s curtains as she passed the window. “I wanted to get you ready for the day.”
“What?”
“It’s not every day a girl signs a formal arrangement, after all. You’ll want to remember this day as something special, and you’ll want to look the part. And, frankly, they boys will go simply mad for you all dressed up, if the Yule Ball was anything to go by.”
The morning was a blur of embarrassing moments after that, each one worse than the one before. Hermione had been instructed to start the bath and to put a healthy portion of rose-scented bubbles in the water, and she’d only just gotten settled under the overflow of bubbles when Narcissa shouldered into the bathroom. Hermione slipped even further into the bubbles and pulled them close to cover more of her chest.
“Narcissa!”
“No worries, love,” Narcissa said, rolling up her sleeves. “I have seen it all before, and my mother prepared me for my signing as a girl, too. I’m just going to make sure you look like the princess you are.”
Hermione barely had time to process that before Narcissa had pulled out her wand. A clear, clean stream of water cascaded down Hermione’s head and back. Hermione gasped, and shivered, and Narcissa hushed her.
“Let me wash your hair,” she said. “Stay still.”
As if having Narcissa wash Hermione’s hair wasn’t embarrassing enough, she then asked Hermione if she used a Muggle razor for shaving or if she knew the hair-removal charm. Hermione had a Muggle razor in the little cabinet above her vanity counter, but the hair-removal charm seemed like an easier option at that point. And, frankly, Hermione wasn't keen on the idea of sticking her whole leg out of the bath to shave manually. She said as much, and Narcissa just nodded and gestured with her wand. Narcissa had Hermione stick her left leg out of the water and taught the charm to her, practicing with a small section of Hermione's lower leg, and let Hermione take care of the rest with the charm.
After Hermione's hair, legs, and legs were all taken care of, Narcissa washed Hermione's face with a cloth, making gentle sweeps over her cheeks and nose and forehead. When the bath water ran cold, Hermione wrapped herself in a thick, soft robe and she sat on the edge of the tub while Narcissa dried her hair.
Her curls were smooth and soft, cascading down her back. Narcissa opted to put up the top half, an elaborate knot of curls at the crown of her head and held in place with a golden pin that looked like the antler of a deer. It matched the set of jewelry Narcissa had for Hermione, too, a pair of golden earrings and a golden necklace.
Narcissa also insisted on make-up, a lightweight foundation and a light blush to bring out her cheekbones, softly filled brows, a golden eyeshadow, and a sweep of mascara. Hermione watched Narcissa sweep brushes over her face, the feeling so different from when she did it herself. And then came red lipstick brighter and more pigmented than any Hermione had worn before.
The foundation and mascara were part of Hermione's usual routine, but the golden shimmer and the bright lipstick were both outside of Hermione's usual routine. And yet, looking in the mirror, she wanted to start wearing it all the time.
The gentle, careful way Narcissa worked on Hermione’s hair and make-up almost made up for the embarrassment before, until Narcissa presented Hermione with a thin, black box. When she opened it, it was a new bra and matching underwear, both in black. Hermione’s face burned and she nearly slammed the top of the box back on the lingerie set with her knee-jerk reaction to get them out of sight as quickly as possible.
Narcissa just laughed. “You deserve nice things, Hermione. Let me make you feel beautiful.”
Hermione resisted, she really did, but Narcissa’s comment made Hermione wonder if the bra was actually silk, or if it just looked like it. But no, it was expensive, soft silk, with soft, slightly padded straps so they wouldn’t dig into her shoulders. It was enough incentive to at least try it on, so Narcissa excused herself from the room and let Hermione change into the undergarments.
“There’s a dress for you in the wardrobe,” she said before she stepped into the hallway, and Hermione pulled open the wardrobe to find the most stunning dress she’d ever seen.
Narcissa’s vision for Hermione’s outfit for the day was gorgeous, princess-like and formal, if not a little overwrought. It was something Hermione might have seen her mother wearing to an event at the Dentists’ Association of London or for a fancy evening at the theater. A silken slip dress with a low cut back, slung with extra material so as to accentuate the curve of her lower back, in deep, ruby-red. When she put it on, she realized the gown was charmed - the back of Hermione’s bra and the straps were all glamoured away, leaving the dress as the main point of attention. Hermione had always loved this color of red, the intense, jewel-like tone of the color was brilliant against her fair skin and dark hair, and with the expanse of her back on display and the way the neckline made her neck and chest stand out, the color was even more striking.
With the gold jewelry and the soft glimmer of her make-up, Hermione well and truly felt that she’d stepped out of a fairytale story. It felt like she was her own Belle in the castle, or Cinderella at the ball. Narcissa had told her before that signing an agreement was something special, to be appreciated and loved, and Hermione hadn’t fully understood it. But looking at herself in the floor-length mirror mounted to the inside of the wardrobe, Hermione understood it.
She felt like she deserved the boys, like she was worthy of their love and care and dedication. Not that she didn’t when she was lounging in her Muggle jeans or her pajamas, but there was something intoxicating about the power that came from looking so good. In feeling like she looked like a proper, Pureblood witch. In the secure knowledge that both of the boys would be completely and totally focused on her in this ensemble.
It seemed like Narcissa had been right about making an impression on the boys because the moment Hermione stepped into the Library where Draco, Theo, and Lucius were waiting, the boys’ eyes were locked on her.
Theo looked rather smart in his black, Muggle suit and red tie, to match Hermione’s dress and undoubtedly Narcissa’s influence. And Draco was in traditional dress robes, with a red under shirt. They were all standing on the other side of the desk from Lucius, waiting for her. It wasn’t until Hermione made her way to stand between the boys that Theo seemed to find his words, and he smiled at Hermione in that way he only ever did before cracking a joke.
“Did you ever think you’d see the day when Drake wore Gryffindor red?”
Hermione let out an undignified snort of laughter that didn’t seem to match the elegant dress she was in, but it made Theo beam and Draco smile something beautiful.
Lucius cleared his throat from behind the desk he was seated at and passed Narcissa a stack of papers. The older witch went through it carefully, scanning the pages as she turned them. She finished looking them over and handed them back to Lucius, before gesturing for the three teens to take their own seats at the desk. Narcissa took her own seat next to Lucius and put her hands on the desk, facing the boys and Hermione.
“Let’s talk about what an agreement really is,” she started, looking between them all even though they knew it was mostly for Hermione’s benefit. “A formal agreement is mostly about protecting one another. We’re going to be talking about a timeline for the relationship, yes, but that is not the primary purpose of the agreement. We’re going to mostly be talking about general rules and agreements, making sure the needs of all parties are met.”
Hermione nodded, and the boys smiled, and Lucius clapped his hands. “Then let’s get started. Now, Hermione, I don’t want to jump ahead of ourselves but I have spoken to the boys a bit about a generalized timeline. Historically, agreements were put together on or around someone’s 15th birthday. There’s a tradition of keeping to the contract for a whole year before an engagement, and then a year after that is a wedding.”
Hermione knew this - Neville had mentioned it and Narcissa had mentioned it - it was the logical conclusion to the concept of an arranged match. Marriage would be a serious and inevitable end, and Hermione was okay with that. She wanted to be with Theo and Draco, otherwise she wouldn’t be in this room with them, dressed up like some kind of royal witch, and she imagined them with her forever. She imagined a Manor of their own one day, long nights in her own Library and a place for Draco to work on his potions, a place for Theo to experiment, a place for Hermione to continue her studies. She could almost picture the smile lines around Theo’s eyes now, the way Draco would look when his hair grew out like his father’s. She nodded.
“I know.”
“Wonderful,” Lucius said. “Draco, do you still want a traditional, two-year agreement?”
Draco gave a nod as Hermione suddenly realized the boys wanted to get married in two years. In two years. She’d be a wife before she was a graduate at Hogwarts, married to these two men before she was even-
“And Theodore? You’re amiable to this?”
Theo nodded and Lucius made a note, and Hermione’s heart was picking up, and then-
“Hermione?” Lucius was staring at her, concern in his eyes. “Are you comfortable with this kind of a timeline?”
Hermione opened her mouth to say something, anything, but all that made it past her lips was a strangled sound. She had known she was getting into an agreement. Marriage was part of the deal, it was the inevitable end. She had known, and she wanted it. But she had assumed- Neville said- in two years she wouldn’t even- Both Draco and Theo at her sides immediately turned to her, boxing her in, and it felt like she could feel their eyes on her face.
“I-” Hermione tried again, but all she could think about was sleeping apart from her husbands in Gryffindor tower before her NEWT level classes. Of trying to explain her ring to her friends, who she had been hiding from all this time.
“Hermione?” That was Draco, all gentle and sweet and thoughtful to her left, and Narcissa reached across the desk to take Hermione’s hand in hers.
“Hermione, look at me,” Narcissa commanded, and that command was easy to follow. Hermione found Narcissa’s eyes - blue, but brighter than both Lucius and Draco’s - and she tried to think about her own mom. “We seem to have skipped the first step in this conversation. Do you want to be in a relationship with Draco and Theodore?”
Hermione’s breath caught in her throat. Because she did want to be with the boys. She wanted to be with them, and one day, she wanted to be married to them. But she had never thought about it being so soon, not really.
The silence in the Library lasted just a second too long, and both Theo and Draco went pale and grew cold in their seats, and Hermione finally found her voice. “I do, Cissa.” She turned in her seat, first to Draco and then to Theo. “I want to be with you both, I do. I can’t think of anyone else I want to be with, of anyone who makes me feel happier, more appreciated, or who I find any more enchanting. I really do want this.”
Hermione trailed off, and Draco gave her a small smile. “But an engagement in one year is too soon?”
“I don’t-” Hermione cleared her throat delicately and turned back to meet Draco’s eyes. “I feel like I’m running a sprint to catch up to the marathon.”
Theo and Draco exchanged a look over Hermione’s shoulder, and her head swiveled around to Theo as he spoke from behind her. “I don’t understand that one, Mya.”
“I feel like I’m trying really hard to understand the parts of wizarding culture that I never understood very well to begin with,” Hermione admitted, quiet and almost ashamed. “And I want to be with you and Draco, I want to one day marry you. But it’s really hard to think that’s going to happen in two years’ time. In the Muggle world, that sort of thing is considered irresponsible. It’s like announcing that I am a silly, stupid girl who can’t make thoughtful decisions. But I know that’s not true, because every part of this process has been thoughtful so far.”
Theo’s smile wasn’t bright, but it was warm and he nodded at her. “Okay. That’s fine, Mya.”
“We can make that work,” Draco said, but there was disappointment in his voice that hurt Hermione. He didn’t mean to sound disappointed, Hermione could tell by the way he smiled at her when she turned around. “Father, let’s say there will be a secondary conversation the eve of the year anniversary of the arrangement and we’ll revisit an engagement date then. Tentative agreement for next year, but nothing set in stone.”
“No,” Hermione said. “No. This matters to you, Draco. I’m going to catch up, I am. I just get overwhelmed.”
“Father, put it down tentatively,” Draco said again, and Theo put his hand over Hermione’s.
“Lucius, make it clear that we’ll postpone the engagement stage until-”
“Stop it right now, you two!” Hermione pulled her hand out of Theo’s and smacked it on the desk. “If Lucius is going to write anything down on that paper there, he’s going to write down that you’ll let me make my own decisions. I care about you both. I want to do this the right way. Lucius, please design the official timeline for the arrangement to include an engagement in twelve months and a wedding in July twelve months following that.”
“Ensure there is a clause for postponement should any party in the arrangement want for an extended relationship,” Narcissa said, ever the pacific mediator of the family.
Hermione smiled. “An extension to last no longer than six months.”
Draco let out a short, almost involuntary bark of laughter. It was so very Hermione to be setting terms so clear and so binding and so completely legal.
“Let’s move on,” Lucius said, making a short note on the papers in front of him. “Publicity? Do you want us to make a formal announcement of your match once we sign all the paperwork?”
“No,” Theo said. “Absolutely not.”
“Do not make arrangements for me, Theodore,” Hermione huffed. “What is traditional? An Announcement?”
Theo shook his head. “This isn’t about tradition or your friends, Mya. Until we are engaged, the bond magic won’t kick in and my father will be able to use his parental rights to end the arrangement. I don’t want this in the papers until we’re able to lean on the bond magic to keep us all together.”
“Smart,” Draco commented, and he nodded at Lucius. “I concur, let’s keep the arrangement silent until we’re engaged.”
“Bond magic?” Hermione asked, derailing the conversation of publicity. Lucius smiled at her.
“It sounds scary, but it isn’t. The magic involved in a relationship like this is actually quite interesting. When we sign this agreement, you and the boys will have a minor bond, something fairly weak but compelling to keep you from breaking the terms we set today. It’s also a rather good test for how compatible you three are together. Particularly strong affinity between partners leads to a quicker and stronger bond. When you enter the engagement phase, whenever that may be, the bond you’ve forged will be fortified and strengthened. You’ll be able to share magic, and you’ll be compelled not only to fulfill the terms of the relationship, but also to seek out your partners. It is akin to an open ward between you all, and you’ll be able to sense each other’s magic. Legally, bond magic is strong and it takes precedence over parental rights in certain circumstances. If Thoros Nott wanted to break the engagement, he’d have to petition the Ministry, but those challenges to bond magic are hardly ever successful. I believe the last time a bond was annulled by the family, it was because of abuse nearly a hundred years ago.”
“That isn’t to say you wouldn’t have an avenue to dissolve the relationship if you wanted,” Narcissa rushed to add. “You’d be able to break bonds as a party to them. It’s only external forces that would be incapable of breaking it against your will.”
“I’m not worried about that,” Hermione said with a smile. “Only fascinated by the magical theory involved.”
“Of course,” Draco said with an eye roll.
“Moving on,” Lucius said pointedly.
“I want dates twice a week,” Theo said. “Even at Hogwarts. We were able to see one another at least that often this last year, and I want to make sure I get to see Hermione.”
“At least two dates,” Hermione agreed. “But I want the boys to be able to have dates as often as they want without me involved. They have more opportunities to see one another in the Dungeons and I want them to be able to indulge in each other’s company without me and without any kind of guilt or feelings of impropriety.”
The morning and afternoon passed in the same way, debating specific terms and agreements, and making sure Hermione was comfortable at every step. In turn, she would circle the conversation back to Draco and Theo’s comfort, and they’d decide on some agreement that worked, and they’d move onto another point to be decided upon.
By the time the sun was beginning to set, Hermione was feeling rather overwhelmed and quite confused as to why she’d gotten so dressed up for a day of paperwork.
“Well then,” Lucius said, finally turning to the last page. “Now we can-”
“Skip this page,” Narcissa said easily, pulling it out of Lucius’s hands. “It doesn’t pertain to this agreement.”
“What is it?” Hermione asked, constantly curious.
“Nothing,” Narcissa said at the same time Lucius said “dowry numbers,” and the two elder Malfoys stared at one another.
“We should go over finances,” Hermione said. “Obviously, I don’t have a dowry. I don’t have parents anymore. But I want it in the contract that I won’t take monetarily from Draco or Theo’s own estates, and I don’t want to be dependent on them.”
“That’s not how this works,” Draco said. “We’ll discuss it in greater detail towards the engagement, we don’t have to discuss accounts today.”
Theo, who had actually done a little bit of reading on Muggle marriage agreements before this meeting, just leaned into Hermione’s space. The Malfoys didn’t understand what Hermione was saying, but he did. “You misunderstand, love. There’s no such thing as a wizarding prenuptial agreement. There’s a lot of ancient magic still being used in the world even though people don’t talk about it or teach it anymore. One really clear example is actually Gringotts, the magic-”
“Oh!” Draco said suddenly, cutting Theo off. So he understood what she meant now that Theo had spoken up. “Oh, Hermione! Okay, so when families expand-”
“Births, marriages, whatever-”
“The magic that ties specific families to their vaults immediately acknowledges the magic of that new person,” Draco finished. “Its why some vaults at Gringotts are so old and how they pass between generations so seamlessly.”
“Magic seeks magic,” Hermione said quietly. “When I was learning blood magic, the drops of blood would seek one another out, even from across my desk. Like they knew it was all mine.”
“Exactly,” Theo said. “Magic that is bound by familiar lines of any kind, it recognizes itself. When you, Draco, and I sign this agreement, there will be a certain level of magical recognition happening at a more… more…”
“Molecular level,” Draco finished. “Signing this contract starts a process of bond magic. It’ll be very small and very weak at first, but by the time the bond magic from the engagement kicks in, you’ll likely appear on our family tapestries, and you’ll be allowed into our estate’s wards and our Gringotts vaults. Marriage would only make that bond permanent. There is no way to nullify that magic.”
“But-”
Before Hermione could finish her protest, Narcissa leaned over the desk and into Hermione’s space with a kind smile. “Hush, child. It’s just the way our magic works, but it is a part of why we want to have these relationships documented. Does that make sense?”
There was a truth to that - this was more than just keeping bloodlines healthy and ensuring assets were protected and that people were cared for and loved in relationships. The magic of agreements itself was old, powerful, and likely to change the very fabric of a family’s magical core. And it would be lasting, there would be no flings or hasty break ups. Arrangements weren’t so archaic then, they were living, breathing pieces of magic to protect the core of families. To protect the magic of these ancient lines of witches and wizards. Hermione wondered if that was why Pureblood families married Purebloods - would there be a problem with the magic if a wizard or witch married a Muggle? How would the bond magic acknowledge such a person, with no magic to contribute to the bond for themselves?
“It does,” Hermione said finally.
“And now we can finalize these papers and sign,” Lucius said. “I’ll perform the first of the bindings, Draco you should go and get the silver knife from my study, and then we’ll be done.”
Draco dashed off. Lucius only ever used his silver knife for rituals that required blood, and seeing as they’d be essentially binding their magic together, Hermione supposed it made sense they would need blood to accomplish that. She looked between Theo and Narcissa. “That’s it?”
“What were you expecting?” Theo asked with a laugh. “Some kind of mini-wedding?”
“No,” Hermione said. “But we got all dressed up just to sign some papers and do some magical ritual.”
“You got dressed up,” Narcissa said. “Because you and the boys are going to be going to a fine dinner after this. The first date of an arrangement is almost always a fine dinner and we thought you’d rather be dressed appropriately to leave as soon as the ink dries.”
“That’s when the fun starts,” Theo mock-whispered, theatrical and dramatic and not at all quiet. “I suspect you’ll have both hands held for the rest of the evening, and a kiss or two if you’ll allow it.”