Chapter 7
HERMIONE'S POV:
Hermione sat at the Weasley kitchen table, her friends in various seats around the room. Mrs Weasley was alternating between trying to force-feed everyone and excusing herself to cry out of sight of the distraught young adults. It had been a little over twenty-four hours since the blasted ministry meeting and Hermione still hadn’t really processed what had happened. As soon as Harry had apparated them to Grimmauld, she’d broken down into ugly sobs that wracked her whole body. Harry rubbed her back uncomfortably, as he’d never been good around crying girls, and they’d sunk to the ground before he guided her to the couch. Crooks had seen them come in and cautiously jumped up beside her before promptly being grabbed. She’d held him a little tighter than normal as she let the tears fall into his orange fur. She wasn’t sure how long she’d stayed like that, but when she had woken up today it was 10:30 and she had a blanket over her and a crick in her neck. She’d been a bit of a zombie all morning, moving slowly with unfocused eyes as Harry let her know they were going to the Weasley’s and eventually apparating them there. Someone must have informed the Weasley parents about how bad the pairings were because when they arrived Molly Weasley took one puffy-eyed look at them in the doorway and rushed off in tears. Mr Weasley wasn’t looking much better.
Harry sat silently nursing a cold cup of oolong occasionally looking around the room before looking back at his tea in deep thought. Ron had recently made his way downstairs and eaten half a piece of toast before laying his head backwards on his chair and was now frozen staring at the ceiling. And Ginny had grabbed a bottle of rum and was alternating between sips of that and mumbling under her breath from her spot on the floor next to the kitchen door. Arthur had weakly protested on the grounds that no one should be drinking at two in the afternoon but gave up rather quickly. Hermione, for her part, was sitting on the chair with her arms folded over her knees and her chin leaving an indent on them while she stared at the wall. For once she wished her brain would turn off. Instead, it was going over every single interaction she and Malfoy had ever had; from the only time he’d ever been decent to her (when she’d asked him about Neville’s toad, Trevor, on their first train ride to Hogwarts), to the first time she’d heard him call her a mudblood (and the million times that followed). She could recall when he’d enlarged her teeth, and when she’d broken his nose over Buckbeak. Hell, even that last school year when they hadn’t said more than two sentences to each other (well…outside of arguing in class but she wasn’t really counting their academic debates as actual interactions). Everywhere she looked in their sordid history was violence and hatred. How was she supposed to be decent to him? Let alone marry the git! And she hadn’t even started to process the fact that within the next year they had to start having children.
All of her future plans were gone. Sure she’d still get the three children she wanted but at what cost? She’d never be able to love her husband, they’d never have the kind of relationship her parents had; no dancing in the kitchen at two in the morning when they couldn’t sleep. No shared smiles over funny inside jokes or musings. No easy going quiet time just enjoying each other's presence. None of it.
Her pity party for one was interrupted by a light tapping. All four heads snapped up as Mr Weasley opened the window. Two owls came in, dropped the mail on the table, and flew off. Mrs Weasley rushed into the room and collected them. Before everyone could go back to wallowing she let out a shocked breath and cleared her throat.
“Children, it appears that your ministry letters have arrived.” Mrs Weasley let out shakily. Ron and Ginny groaned.
“Ours too?” Harry questioned as he eyed the four deliveries.
“Yes, well, the owls must not have been able to find you at home, dear.” She replied absently, handing out the mail. Hermione took hers with trembling fingers and stared at the packaging for a few minutes before daring to open it. She began to read as she heard the others opening their own scrolls;
Ms Hermione Granger,
Thank you for attending the ministry pairings meeting on Monday, July 1st at nine am. We are pleased to have been able to pair you with a wizard of high compatibility. You have been paired with Draco Malfoy and your compatibility rating with this wizard is 92.7%. We believe that based on the answers you provided to us in the questionnaire, as well as the strength of your magic you will produce quite powerful children. We remind you that all couples will be required to have their first child by the 31st of December 2003 unless otherwise arranged by the ministry.
Your required fertility treatments will start at St Mungo's on Friday, July 5th, at 3:00 pm. Your first meeting will be held with your intended spouse present for initial fertility testing. You will also have your own treatment scheduled every four days following the initial appointment.
Your wedding has been scheduled for Wednesday, August 14th and the ministry officiate office will await your owl no later than Wednesday, July 10th with information on where and at what time you wish to hold your ceremony. If you need any assistance planning your wedding please feel free to reach out to your age group ministry representative. If needed please make an appointment with Marina’s Magical Bridal Wear in Diagon Alley for dress fittings and alterations.
Your age group ministry representative is assigned to you based on your age as of the end of this calendar year (Year of Merlin, 2002). You will be 22 at the end of the year so your ministry representative is Minister Lucille Gimbal. (S)he can be reached by owling at the Department of Magical Artefacts.
You have also been given a vault at Gringotts for the purposes of your housing, marriage, and child-rearing. Your vault is number 2093 and can be reached with the assistance of the Department of Accounting following your first meeting with your representative. This account will hold 18,000 Galleons that will be available to you upon request. This amount is for one whole year. Any money used by the end of the year will be replenished for up to five years so that come January first of the new year you will once again have 18,000 Galleons. Upon request, we will also provide monetary assistance with purchasing a house and paying for any wedding monetary expenses.
You and your spouse will be required to attend a meeting with Minister Lucille Gimbal at 10 amon Wednesday, July 3rd. When you arrive at your meeting please have an idea of where you would like to hold your wedding, as well as where you would like to live as you and your spouse will be required to move in together following the wedding. Any further questions you have regarding any of the new policies and laws, etc., can be discussed then.
Thank you, have a wonderful day
Minister Ursula Johnson-Piebolt
“I already have to know where I’ll get married and live by Wednesday?” Hermione pipped up incredulously (her voice cracking from being silent all day).
“Yeah, me too! What the hell!” Ginny shouted angrily.
“Looks like it’s all of us then,” Harry interrupted as he looked over his and Ron’s paperwork. “I haven’t even had a full conversation with Astoria yet, how are we meant to know where we want to live?” Hermione glared.
“You think you’ve got problems.” She muttered. Harry sent her an apologetic look.
“Sorry.”
“For what? Getting a girl who’s actually decent looking? Or for getting someone who won’t roast you alive and dance on your grave before the wedding?” Ron growled out, his anger (as usual) misplaced.
“Hey, it’s not my fault you got stuck with Parkinson. Don’t get mad at me because you have to marry a dog!” Harry argued. Hermione and Ginny shared a look before promptly exiting the room. Ginny snagged a bottle of Molly’s Pinot Noir and a couple of glasses as the girls headed to her room, the boys arguing getting softer as they walked away. When they got upstairs and closed the door, Ginny lay down on the bed and handed Mione a glass and the bottle before she sat on the bean bag nearby. Both girls sipped in silence for a few minutes before Ginny broke the tension.
“I really thought the ministry was going to give us people we were actually compatible with. And now look at us, all marrying snakes.” She snorted into her glass. Hermione groaned.
“Yeah, can you believe they think Malfoy and I are highly compatible? Maybe in an alternate universe.” Hermione grumbled back.
“A what?”
“It’s like a- you know what, never mind. I don’t have the mental capabilities to explain it today. Godric, this whole thing is bollocks! All these so-called tests and what have you, it’s all crap. As if Malfoy and I could ever be ‘92% compatible’. Who goes, ‘hmmm two mortal enemies. I’ll put them together. They’ve got to be good together!’” Hermione ranted as she downed her glass and reached for the bottle to get a refill.
“Right? Like I’d believe Blaise and I are ‘98% compatible’. Pah-lease.” Ginny sniped back. Hermione frowned at her friend’s wording.
“When did Zabini become Blaise?” Ginny paled at this before her face was redder than her hair.
“Ok, so...don’t make fun of me. Promise me you won’t say anything judgy.”
“Fine, I won’t be judgy.”
“So, you know how I went out with Dean in my fourth year?”
“Yeah?” Hermione asked not really getting what Dean had to do with their current conversation.
“Right well...I didn’t actually go out with him.”
“Gin, what the hell are you talking about? Everyone knows you went out with him, you made out in front of everyone like a million times.”
“Except we didn’t really do anything when no one was watching. I’ve always known Dean was gay and I was still trying to get Harry jealous so I needed to parade someone around in front of him, so I figured Dean was a safe bet. I was his beard.”
“Huh? His what?”
“His beard. I went out with him so he could pass as straight. Anyway, while he and I were fake dating, whenever we were meant to be on a date alone we’d hide out somewhere in the castle. I don’t really know where he’d go but I always went to either the secluded part of the lake or the Astronomy tower.”
“Ok, but what does any of this have to do with Zabini?” If anything Hermione was now even more confused than when the conversation had started.
“I was getting to that. I would always go to those two places and one day Blaise showed up at the Astronomy tower while I was studying. He’d heard the gossip about Dean and me so when he found me alone when we were supposed to be on a date he started poking fun. ‘Hey, Red, aren’t you supposed to be with Dean? What, are you not woman enough for him?’ Or something like that. I can’t remember exactly what he said now. Anyway, we got into this big blowout fight and by the time we were screaming at each other I sort of... You know, kinda... dared him to kiss me.”
“What!? Ginny, how am I just now hearing this story? Did he kiss you, what happened?”
“Oh yeah, he kissed me. Merlin did he kiss me. I went absolutely weak from it. But when I realized what I was doing I pulled away, then I kinda, maybe, slapped him?” Hermione gasped and let out a shocked ‘Ginny!’ “Yeah, and then I ran away from him. I was so embarrassed I didn’t even look at him for weeks, even though we were flying partners during quidditch cross-team training. After about a month he sought me out and we made a habit of making out in the tower. Eventually, he took my virginity, and Merlin is that man a god in bed. I mean I think I came every single time. Harry was good, but he has nothing on Blaise.”
“What happened?”
“Dean and I had ‘Broken up’ metaphorically speaking. And Harry had finally asked me to go out with him, Blaise and I were always casual so of course I left him for Harry. He seemed fine with it! And then, when you guys all went on the run and Harry broke up with me for real, we were all hiding out in the room of requirement in sixth year. When I was out of the room he would always help me sneak food to the others and kept me safe from the Carrows. We started messing around again because it was...I guess it was comforting? It didn’t feel like the world was ending, it just felt like two teenagers doing normal teenage things.”
“Why did you stop seeing each other?”
“Well, around February the fighting started to get closer and closer to Hogwarts so Blaise’s Mum was forcing him to go back to Italy with her. He begged me to come with him but I couldn’t. I couldn’t just abandon all of my friends and family and ignore everything that was going on. Just stop being a part of the war when we were fighting for what was right. He took it really hard but he swore he’d come back for me. But when he did, the Battle of Hogwarts was over; we’d lost Fred, and Tonks and Remus, and Harry was back and he was safe and there. We were dating again and trying to make up for the lost time. I don’t think I ever really realized Blaise thought we would be together after the war. Mione, he came back and was livid when he saw me and Harry in the paper. He confronted me when we went back during seventh year and asked me if I ever really loved him or if it had always been Harry.”
“What did you say?”
“Of course I said it was Harry. I was sixteen, I’d just lost a lot of people who were really important to me and I’d always wanted to be with Harry, so when we had a chance we took it. Blaise didn’t reach out again and after our confrontation, we never spoke either. Mione, I really hurt him. I’ve thought of reaching out to apologize a million times but what would I even say? I tried to talk to him a few times when I ran into him at Harpy games but he always ignored me. Godric, Mione, how am I meant to marry the bloke when I can barely look at him?”
“Hey, at least you have something to build on! You have a history, it may include some bad but was decent and seemingly passionate at one point. All I and Malfoy have is anger, hostility, and resentment. At least Zabini has never publicly wished for your death in front of everyone you know.”
“Publicly being the operative word. I’m sure he’s wished it plenty when he was alone or in private conversation. I really screwed up with him, Mione. I don’t regret deciding to stay or going out with Harry, but I wish Blaise and I had been more honest with each other about what we were to each other. This is such a mess, and I have to see him again tomorrow!”
“I don’t know what to tell you Gin, I really don’t.” The two girls sat and sipped their glasses in silence, eventually finishing the bottle before heading back downstairs slightly buzzed. Hermione and Harry stayed for dinner with the Weasley’s before heading home. When Hermione finally got to her room she was exhausted and more than ready for bed. She’d just changed into her nightclothes when Kreacher knocked on her door.
“Yes?” She asked tiredly.
“Master's friend has letter. Mistress’ owl has left it while you was out.” Hermione wrinkled her brows in confusion before taking the letter.
“Thank you, Kreacher.” The elf walked away as she shut her door and looked at the letter in her hand. The green ‘M’ insignia that kept it closed made her stomach turn, threatening to show her what she’d eaten for dinner. She plopped down onto her bed and ripped the letter open.
Granger,
I’ve just gotten the Ministry’s owl and it appears that you and I will be forced to see each other a lot sooner than I would like. As we are being forced to attend this meeting in the morning, I have arranged for us to have breakfast at Le Gavroche at 8:30 am beforehand to go over any details we may need to know. I regret to say that while my Father and I tried, we could not get our pairing dissolved so unfortunately you and I are stuck together.
Le Gavroche, 8:30 am, tomorrow. See you then. PS Mother made the reservation for two, so do not bring any of your friends. And, for the love of Merlin, wear something formal.
Hermione fell backwards onto her bed with an annoyed grunt before grabbing her pillow and screaming into it obnoxiously. Stupid fucking ferret. Who does he think he is? I’ve half a mind to stand him up, thinking he can demand where and when I go. The absolute nerve. Hermione grumbled as she got under the covers and closed her eyes. Tomorrow was going to be a long day.
～Edited 19th Apr, 2022