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Dataset card Data Studio Files
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"But she practically pounced on us with the news when she was pregnant with Minerva," Harry defended himself.
"She was three months along then. That's a normal time to tell people you're expecting. Plus, she was over four months along when she told us about Rose," Ginny said reasonably.
Hermione was accepting congratulations from Blaise and Tracey and didn't notice the look that clouded Harry's face when Hermione's pregnancy with Rose was mentioned. Draco watched as Harry looked down the table at Rose. A smile returned to Harry's face after a moment and Harry met his gaze.
"Five children," Harry said, "Are you going to be able to handle all that work?"
"Well, I was hoping to start my own Quidditch team, but I think Hermione isn't on board with that plan," Draco quipped.
Hermione patted his hand and said sweetly, "Darling, if you want any more to round out your Quidditch team, you can carry them. My womb is closed for business after this."
Draco grabbed her hand and brought it to his lips. Draco was pleased with the breathless, glazed look that came over Hermione as he stared into her eyes while he kissed her hand. "Whatever you want, love," Draco said quietly to her.
Something smacked Draco on the side of the head and clattered onto his plate. Draco broke his eye contact with Hermione to throw an irritated look at Theo and the bread roll lying on his plate.
"What was that for?" Draco asked indignantly, feeling to see if there was butter in his hair.
"There are children present," Theo said with a grin.
"I'm well aware that my daughter is present," Draco said irritated.
"Studies have shown that children whose parents are affectionate in front of them go on to develop healthy relationships in adulthood," Luna spoke up from down the table.
"See," Draco said smugly, "We're furthering Rose's development. Luna says so."
Draco never thought he'd use the words "Luna says so" to make a point in an argument. Theo apparently thought it was hilarious and dissolved into guffaws of laughter.
Daphne crossed her knife and fork over her dinner plate. A quiet pop sounded from outside the dining room. Mr. Carson appeared with three house elves following behind him, one in a tuxedo similar to Mr. Carson's and two in starched black dresses with white aprons.
They filed out of the dining room. Draco grabbed Blaise's arm and gestured to a door across from the parlor everyone was filing into. Draco opened the door, and the lights flared on to illuminate Theo's study.
Draco always teased Theo about the sparsity of books in his study. Instead of floor to ceiling shelves of books like in Draco's study at Spinner's End, Theo's had waist-high shelves, drawers, and glass covered cubbies where scrolls could be seen resting inside. Prints of magical creatures lined the walls.
Blaise and Tracey sat down on one of Theo's black leather sofas. Hermione sat down opposite them. Hermione took his hand in reassurance.
Draco wasn't looking forward to this conversation with Blaise. Blaise was overprotective of his only daughter, and Draco worried that the news that Florence was possibly Scorpius" soulmate would not be received well. Draco could pretty much guarantee that it wouldn't be accepted calmly.
"I have a bone to pick with you, mate," Blaise said, all affability gone from his face. Blaise snapped the word "mate" as he looked at Draco. He started pointing angrily at Draco. "Why is it your son gave my daughter a bracelet for Christmas?"
"Actually, that's what we wanted to talk to you about," Draco started trying to sound calm.
"I'm not betrothing my daughter to your son, Draco," Blaise interrupted.
"No, that's not what I wanted to talk to you about," Draco said. He gestured to Hermione's bracelet. "It's about the Malfoy cuff. There are signs when a Malfoy has met his soulmate, long before the cuff appears."
"What do you mean?" Tracey asked with curiosity. Blaise kept his gaze on Draco and looked suspiciously at him.
Hermione started to explain, "Before puberty, it's straightforward, just a sense of comfort and friendship when they're around one another."
"And after puberty?" Blaise interrupted harshly.
"A more romantic interest can develop," Hermione said slowly.
Blaise stood up and started pacing the room. Draco could hear him muttering Italian to himself.
"And you are telling us this specifically because..." Tracey said, ignoring Blaise's tirade behind her.
Draco took a deep breath. His gaze flicked between Blaise and Tracey. "I believe that Florence is Scorpius" soulmate."
"Nope. No way. Not happening," Blaise exploded. He stormed over to Draco and got up in his face and started poking Draco in the chest. "I'm not taking my daughter's choice away. She's going to marry for love... when she's thirty-five, and I'm dead."
"Blaise," Tracey chided, "come sit down, please. Stop threatening Draco."
Blaise backed off of Draco and went to flop down on the sofa beside Tracey with a sullen expression.
"When does the cuff appear?" Tracey asked, looking at Hermione.
"Within twenty-four hours after their first kiss," Hermione said. Blaise looked like he was going to interrupt again, but Hermione pointed her wand at him, and Blaise closed his mouth. "After they are seventeen," Hermione added.
"I'm taking her out of Hogwarts. She's going to Beauxbatons next year," Blaise said sullenly. "There's no way that little shit is getting anywhere near my baby girl."
Tracey gasped at Blaise's statement. Draco stood, about to beat some sense into his friend. Hermione reacted faster than him. She shot a stinging jinx at Blaise from her place on the sofa. She snatched Draco's wand out of his hand and held both while she shot another stinging jinx at Blaise. Streams of red sparks shot out of both wands and hit Blaise in the chest. Blaise fell off the sofa and writhed on the floor at Tracey's feet.
Hermione stopped her assault and moved the coffee table out of the way so that she could look down at Blaise. Her hair billowed out around her. Draco could hear her magic crackling from the ends of her hair.
"How dare you talk about my son that way," Hermione said with quiet menace. She shot him with another stinging hex.
"Stop, stop," Blaise panted, clutching at his chest and wincing when his hands made contact with the welts beneath his shirt. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean it. I'm sorry."
Draco stood behind Hermione and placed his hands on her arms. "Lioness, give me the wands," he said quietly, "We don't want to hurt Blaise anymore."
Hermione dropped her arms and allowed Draco to guide her back over to the sofa. He took both wands from her unresisting grip. Hermione panted, and her hair crackled as she came down from her anger.
"Shit, she's scary when she's angry," Blaise exclaimed, wincing as he sat up.
Tracey looked dispassionately at her husband and cast a cooling charm on him. "You were out of line, Blaise," she said firmly.
"I know," Blaise said glumly, "I'm just not thrilled that this curse is going to take my baby's choice away from her."
Draco wanted to interrupt, but Hermione placed a finger over his mouth. Hermione was breathing deeply and looking contrite. Now that she'd calmed down, Draco thought that she was probably feeling guilty for attacking Blaise. Draco didn't feel remotely sorry for Blaise. He deserved the welts that were no doubt peppering his chest right now.
"It's not a curse, Blaise," Tracey said impatiently, "When she's older, Florence can be with the one person she's meant to be with. Isn't that what you want for our daughter?"
"This is too soon," Blaise said, grumpily, "She's only eleven."
"It's not like she's getting married tomorrow, Blaise," Tracey said with a smile.
"We just want to be able to talk to you about this, be open, so that we can prepare the kids for when they're older," Draco said placatingly, "The children can make their own decision about what they want to do when they're older, when they're ready. If our suspicions are correct."
"No betrothals," Blaise said to Draco.
Hermione made to lunge for the wands Draco held in his hand.
"Don't hex me!" Blaise squealed in terror, throwing his hands up to cover himself.
Tracey smacked Blaise with a throw pillow as she said each word, "Then don't say stupid things!"
Hermione pointed a manicured finger at Blaise. "Let me make one thing perfectly clear, Blaise Zabini. I will not entertain any more nonsense about betrothing my son to your daughter. It's not going to happen."
"I think we should return to the group," Tracey said. "Thank you for taking us aside to tell us." She glared at Blaise before turning back to look at Hermione and Draco. "I'm sure Blaise will be much calmer when we discuss this in more depth later."
Nothing Precious Is Ever Easy
Evening of January 16th
They returned to the parlor. Blaise gave Hermione a wide berth and Draco had a feeling he was practicing his shield charms just in case. The some of the group were gathered around a plate of cookies on the table.
Theo shot Draco a curious look when they entered the room again. Draco shook his head. Their conversation with Blaise and Tracey wasn't something that needed to be revealed right at this moment.
"Do you have it?" Draco asked Theo when he got close to him.
Theo patted his jacket pocket. "Is now the time?"
Draco looked around the room. Rose and Albus were getting whiney. Hermione was also looking a little tired after coming down from her adrenaline rush. Ginny seemed to be wilting around the edges too. Daphne's head was lolling on the back of her armchair, and she was snoring delicately.
"Yes, the kids are getting tired. We'll need to go soon," Draco answered.
Theo drew the roll of parchment out of his pocket and handed it to Draco.
"If I could have your attention for a moment," Theo called to the room. "Draco has something important he needs to say."
Attention in the room shifted to Draco. Daphne snorted as she jerked awake. Theo sat on the armchair beside her and wrapped an arm around Daphne's shoulders. Daphne leaned her head on her husband's hip and yawned delicately into her hand.
"If you could all take a seat," Draco started gesturing at the seats circled around the round coffee table. Draco waited until everyone took a seat, then he started again. "A few months ago, I promised Hermione a seat on the Wizengamot so that she could cast a vote for her own bill. It should have been given to her years ago."
That statement was met with a few "hear, hear's" from everyone in the room. Rose and Albus joined in repeating "hear, hear" several times before being shushed by their mothers.
Draco brandished the scroll to the room. "This is a deed giving Hermione and her heirs the right to occupy the Lestrange seat in perpetuity and rename it."
"Will it work?" Daphne asked, her voice full of concern. "No one's ever given a seat to a non-family member."
"The family magic worked into the seat has died since the last of the Lestranges died out. The seat itself merely waits for another occupant to claim it," Draco started to explain.
"Wait, wait," Greg interrupted, "Are you sure that's right? I remember the story of Barty Crouch, Senior's elder brother. Well, half-brother as it turns out. The seat damn near burned his arse off when he tried to take it over from his father. Well, the man he thought was his father. Caused quite the scandal to find out old Mrs. Crouch had a few cuckoos in the nest."
Draco remembered hearing the story. It had been passed around as a lesson not to try to take another's seat at the council table. It also served as a warning to the wives of the Wizengamot members not to cuckold their husbands. Or at least make sure children don't result from illicit liaisons. Not that he could blame some of the pureblood wives for seeking pleasure elsewhere. Draco was relieved that arranged marriages were a thing of the past.
"Yes, I remember the story too," Draco said, calling attention back to himself and not the buzzing conversation swirling around them. "Hermione's safety is my utmost concern. I wouldn't be suggesting this if I thought she would be harmed in any way." The reassurances seemed to mollify the group and Draco continued, "Magically speaking, the council seat will accept just about anyone in that seat now. Legally, as I inherited the Lestrange fortunes and properties and the Wizengamot did not strip me of my rights after the war, I can do anything I want with the seat. The seat is considered property, so it can be given over to another person or inherited."
"Alright," Theo interjected, "Does everyone understand what's going on?"
People stopped asking questions and nodded. Theo used his wand, and the coffee table rose to hip height. He stood on one side of the table facing Hermione and Draco.
"Draco, Hermione, if you'll stand here in front of the table," Theo directed, and they did as asked. "Draco, place the scroll on the table, and both of you place the tips of your wands on the wax seals beside your names."
Draco rolled out the parchment. He had to be the one to open it or the magic in the scroll would erase the deed to keep it from being found before Draco wanted it too. Across the top were the words "Deed of Conveyance" written in Old English script. The Lestrange family Coat of Arms dominated the center of the parchment with the Malfoy Coat of Arms on the left and a blank space with the outline for a Coat of Arms on the right. Below the Coats of Arms was all the legal jargon for transferring Draco's rights of the Lestrange seat to Hermione. Draco and Hermione's names were written in neat script down at the bottom of the deed along with two blank seals. Three seals lined each side under Draco and Hermione's with blank lines for their witnesses.
The group left their seats to gather on either side of Draco and Hermione. Harry stood close beside Hermione with Ginny, Neville, Hannah, and Luna beside him. Narcissa stood between Draco and Hermione. Greg, Helena, Blaise, Tracey, and Daphne lined up on the other side of Draco.
Theo tapped his wand over a blank seal between the places for Draco and Hermione's labeled "Officiator." Navy blue filled the blank seal. Atop the blue ink was a black circular shield with a Celtic warrior knot in silver. A circle topped the knot and inside was a pair of crossed wands and the phrase "Invictus Maneo" scrolled around the outside ring of the circle along with Theo's full name. (I remain unconquered)
Theo looked at Draco and said officiously, "Do you, Draco Lucius Malfoy, willingly cede all rights and responsibilities of the Lestrange seat to Hermione Jean Granger?"
"I do," Draco said to Theo and then smiled down at Hermione.
"Do you bestow these rights to Hermione and her heirs in perpetuity?"
"I do," Draco said again.
"As the House of Lestrange is no more, do you allow Hermione to change the seat to reflect the new house now occupying it?"
"I do," Draco said, and his personal seal appeared on the white waxy surface, a silvery-blue dragon standing guard in front of a golden tree with golden apples hanging from the branches. The tail of the dragon circled the trunk of the tree, its large barbed tail acting as a deterrent to those that would steal the apples. Around the outside circle of the seal were the words "Quaerite et redemptio" along with Draco's name. (I seek redemption)
Theo smiled and turned to Hermione. "Do you, Hermione Jean Granger, accept the seat of the former House of Lestrange?"
"I do," Hermione said with confidence.
"Do you vow to rule on the Wizengamot with wisdom and fairness?"
"Do you vow on your magic to put the concerns and the welfare of Wizarding Britain before your personal gain or beliefs when acting as a Wizengamot council member?"
"I do," Hermione intoned a final time.
Hermione's newly created personal seal appeared underneath her wand, and they all watched with rapt attention. Muddy waters appeared at the bottom of the seal. A fully-bloomed, red lotus flower floated on the muddy waters with a blue sky filling in the rest of the circle. The ring around the seal filled in with her name and the words "Ego perpetuo reside." (I am unbroken)
Ooh's and aah's filled the room as they all took in Hermione's personal seal. Quite a few looked like they wanted to start asking questions but were staved off by Theo's hands indicating they should wait.
"Hermione Jean Granger, you are now a member of the Wizengamot council. May you rule with justice and wisdom in your heart," Theo intoned. He looked over at Hermione and asked one final thing, "Would you like to change the naming of the seat now and create your family Coat of Arms?"
"Yes," Hermione answered, "I'd like to rename the seat. It's time to allow the House of Lestrange to fade into history."
Another round of "hear hear's" greeted Hermione's statement. Draco was pleased with this decision. They hadn't discussed it other than for Draco to let Hermione know that she could change the name. He didn't want to influence her decision one way or another.
"Place your wand over the blank Coat of Arms," Theo instructed.
Draco watched in wonder as the blank Coat of Arms started to change. A wyvern and an owl cradled a shield between outstretched wings. The shield was a quartered field of azure with a gold letter "G" in Old English dominating the center. Four heraldic symbols took up a quartered section of the shield. An open book occupied the top left quarter of the shield. A shooting comet took up the top right quadrant. A lion rampant stood on the bottom left. On the bottom right was a set of balanced scales. The wyvern and owl each clutched the end of a banner with a motto written across its length that read: Nihil pretiosum adeptus est facile. (Nothing precious is easily obtained)
"Very true," Theo said, looking at the banner across the bottom of the Coat of Arms. "We need three witnesses for each side now to make this deed official," Theo continued.