The Family Jewels

Chapter 60
Back to Black

Harry had enjoyed the sumptuous breakfast the Connaught sent up to Hermione’s suite. He almost felt badly that Malfoy was standing them their hotel stay. Almost. He had been a bacon and eggs man for years, but he had eaten his fill of the Belgian waffles with blueberries, lemon curd and whipped cream that Blaise had ordered to tempt Hermione. Actually, it looked as if Blaise had ordered the entire breakfast menu, just on the off chance she would actually eat something. Harry had been a bit surprised by the miso soup, rice and vegetables. Hermione had been entranced, however, and ate some of the food, explaining that the Connaught often had Japanese business travelers as guests. He was just glad that he would be able to report that she had eaten, talked and relaxed while Blaise and Draco were gone.

“What are you going to do with your last day of freedom in the big city, Harry?” Hermione asked.

Harry looked down briefly and then answered in a low voice, “I thought I’d go to Gringotts. Have a look in the Potter vault. You and Pansy are both wearing expensive jewelry these days, I thought perhaps Ginny might like something.”

“Don’t do that, Harry,” Hermione admonished.

“What?” Harry looked up with surprised eyes.

“Don’t cheapen it. I’m not wearing these things because they are intrinsically valuable, I am wearing them because of what the givers mean to me. And Pansy just got the best of both worlds, she’s engaged to the man she’s in love with and she gets to wear her grandmother’s ring as a symbol of their commitment.” Hermione smiled at Harry. “I’m sure that Ginny would be thrilled to wear anything from the Potter vault because you gave it to her. Perhaps you’d like to symbolize your commitment as well?”

Harry nodded to himself a few times. “Perhaps I would,” he allowed.


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Ron adjusted his collar, again, and tried to look confident as his fiancée charmed his entire family. Her family was a bit more imposing, and he’d sweated buckets when he’d had to ask Pansy’s father for her hand in marriage. Thank Merlin that was over. Now, everyone was smiling at them.

“Although the kids aren’t married yet, Rose and I would like to give them a townhouse in London as a wedding gift. It was the house we received from Rose’s parents when we were first married, and we have many lovely memories of the years that we lived there before we moved into Parkinson Manor,” Pansy’s father said with a rather nervous smile.

Castor Parkinson wasn’t a tall man, but he had been handsome when he was young. The years hadn’t been very kind to him and he looked ten years older than he was. He was from an old Pureblood family and had skated the line between the Ministry and the Death Eaters for too long. The Death Eaters had lost, and now his daughter was aligning his family with another Pureblood family that was firmly on the winning side. He couldn’t have planned this better himself, and she wasn’t even doing it for political gain! She was in love with the Weasley boy, and his family approved of the match because of that alone. With the genes that boy had, he would have a passel of grandsons: tall, athletic, intelligent, Pureblood grandsons. It was only years of conditioning that kept him from dancing around his own drawing room.

“Sir, that is very generous, but we couldn’t, I mean, it’s too much. We haven’t even graduated from Hogwarts.” Ron was stuttering now, he must be making a terrible impression on Pansy’s family. If only that fancy carpet would open up and swallow him whole.

Pansy’s hand clasped his and Ron felt the calm that only her touch could provide. “Daddy, that is very kind of you both, but we aren’t sure where we will want to live after we graduate. Ron is being scouted by several professional Quidditch teams and I will want to be wherever he is.” Pansy’s voice had the right combination of pride, affection and indifference.

Castor smiled wryly and leaned forward to commiserate with Arthur Weasley, “Kids today, all this nonsense about independence. But professional Quidditch! I can see that you wouldn’t want to let that opportunity go by. The house will be there, and you might decide that you wouldn’t mind having a place of your own to call home.”

Ron nodded faintly, his eyes firmly on the young woman next to him. “I think home will be wherever Pansy is, sir.”

“Yes, we can see that,” Rose Parkinson said softly. She knew that this young man had her daughter’s heart, she was glad to see that his was in her possession as well.

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It was with some relief that Blaise, Hermione and Draco sank down onto the sofa in their sitting room at the Connaught. Draco moved so that Hermione’s shoulders were supported against his chest and Blaise removed her shoes. She sighed and nuzzled her head against Draco when Blaise began to massage her insteps and ankles with his strong hands. Draco settled her more comfortably against himself, smirking at Blaise over Hermione’s head.

“Hermione,” Blaise said.

“Please don’t concern yourself with the look on Draco’s face, Blaise. Rubbing my feet will earn you a just reward.” Hermione opened her eyes and Blaise saw a spark of mischief that had been missing. He couldn’t help but grin back at her, especially when Draco frowned at them both. Two could play at this game. He ran a finger from the back of her head down her neck and followed her spine to her lower back. Hermione moaned in spite of herself.

“If the two of you are now going to compete to see who can give me the better massage, all I can say is, may the best man win.” Hermione was even struggling to talk as their strong hands went to work on her tense muscles and sore joints.

Draco exchanged a glance with Blaise and began to add some gentle kisses to the skin he was rubbing. Blaise shifted his body forward and raised Hermione’s skirt a few inches, kissing the inside of her knees. They had to go back to school today, perhaps they should see how relaxed they could make her, say, after a few orgasms?

Hermione had thought that they would talk, perhaps have a snack. Now she was certain that she wanted the pleasure they were offering, not to make her forget what had happened to her, but to help her remember what was important in her life, or to be exact, who.

Hermione moved her foot out of Blaise’s hand and pushed against his erection, already noticeable in his trousers. He spread his legs and slid down slightly, his fingers moving to her thighs as her nimble toes touched his balls.

Hermione was watching Blaise’s cock grow as it filled with blood with a faint smile on her lips, but her eyes were fairly shining with happiness. Blaise looked up and was happy with the look on her face, but the look on Draco’s face, rapt hunger, was a surprise.

A sharp rap on the door was not what the occupants were hoping for. Blaise’s shoulders fell as he looked at the other two. “Should we just ignore it?” he questioned softly.

“Mister Malfoy,” Severus Snape’s distinctive voice said in a disgruntled tone.

“No, I don’t think that would be wise,” Draco answered. They were all still clothed and the interruption of their Head of House had caused any telltale bulges in their trousers to disappear. Draco got up and began to walk to the door. “I would escape if I were you, I’ll find out what he wants.”

Hermione and Blaise hurried up the steps to the bedrooms, Blaise giving Draco a grimace at his fate. Draco moved one hand in a dismissive fashion. He had expected Severus, perhaps a bit later then this, but he was aware of the purpose of his mission.

After the bedroom door swung shut behind Hermione and Blaise, Draco opened the door. His godfather stood there in what could almost pass for Muggle attire, tailored black trousers and an elegant white shirt. His shoes were clearly dragon hide, but they would pass for the average Muggle. “Surely I am not inconveniencing you, Draco?” Severus asked in his usual sardonic manner.

“Sorry, Uncle Severus, I thought it best if this conversation was private,” Draco said.

They sat down in the sitting room and Draco tried hard not to imagine what had almost happened exactly where Severus was now sitting. He had to pinch himself to keep from smiling. “Tea, sir?” he asked calmly.

“Thank you, no. I don’t make a habit of drinking Muggle tea, and I suspect that it would take some time for it to be delivered from the kitchens. I am keeping you from something, am I not?” Severus couldn’t resist teasing a little.

Draco blushed, cursing his fair skin once again. “Perhaps, but you said you found something of interest in the chest?”

Severus nodded curtly at Draco, but he did pull a familiar velvet pouch out of a pocket. It was only by chance that he found something that Draco might have a use for, and he found the Divination aspect of the magic behind this endeavor to suspect indeed. If he had not been aware that the items in question were genuine, he would not have wasted his time. He had talked to Draco at some length after Lucius’ trial, he knew the boy was searching for reassurance that the unusual arrangement he found himself in was his destiny. Severus could have told him that every person who has ever fallen in love has wondered if this was what fate meant for him, but Draco was not satisfied with that, he wanted proof. He sighed.

“Your great-great-grandmother, Cassandra Malfoy, was a noted Seer,” Severus began.

Draco just gestured impatiently at him, “Yes, yes, I know that.”

“Yes, what you may not know is that she was also a Potions Mistress and had very strong magic, she could invent spells and charms, which she used in conjunction with potions to achieve her objective. A most determined woman, apparently,” Severus said. From what he had read of her notes, she had invented scores of potions, all kept secret by the Malfoy family. He was truly looking forward to perfecting the brewing of several of them; it had always been his true passion.

“Her son, your great-grandfather, found himself in love with two young women of good family and had great difficulty in choosing between them. She found his waffling tiresome and used her talents to help him in his match.”

Draco was smiling, these stories were not the ones that had been related to him as a child, he was much more apt to hear about Muggle baiting and the decisiveness of the Malfoy men who came before him. “She seems to have been extraordinary, which talents?” he asked eagerly.

Severus gave him a quelling look, “The ones I just mentioned, Draco, pay attention! Divination, Potions and Charms.”

Draco’s brows drew together slightly as he frowned, “I’m sorry, sir, but I don’t understand. How do those three come together?”

Severus opened the pouch and drew out two flat bundles of velvet, tied with ribbon. “One of these contains an amulet that alerts the wearer if he is in contact with the love of his life. She needs to be wearing one of the reciprocal necklaces in the other bundle, and both need to have imbibed of a potion she invented.” He drew out several vials with the flourish of a conjurer who knows his tricks are amazing. “The potion is quite difficult and tedious; I took the liberty of brewing it for you.”

The smile that Draco bestowed on Severus was everything he had hoped for. He had his heart set upon upgrading his position in Draco’s life from godfather to step-father, and he would do whatever he could to ensure it.

“Thank you, sir, I don’t know what I would do without you,” Draco said this carefully, and Severus nodded back, just as seriously.

“As much as it pains me to admit it, you would be fine without me. However, I hope to be there for you for many years.” Severus was perspiring; this room had to be unnaturally hot. He wanted to give Draco a hug, he settled for clasping both of his hands around Draco’s and giving him a rare smile. “Do not be disappointed if this does not work as you hope, Divination is notoriously inexact.”

“But…you just said it worked for my great-grandfather and everyone knows Cassandra Malfoy was a true Seer.” Draco shook his head, “There’s no reason why it shouldn’t work for me too. With the amulets and the potion, we will know if we are destined for each other.”

Severus Snape enjoyed making an entrance, but not as much as he craved a perfect exit. He got up and went to the door. As he opened it, he gave Draco a sidelong look. “You could always test it before you use it yourself.”

Draco looked up, “But I thought the jewels would only work for members of my family?”

Snape shook his head slightly, “For some of the more elaborate pieces, certainly, but I see no reason why someone else couldn’t wear the amulets and drink the potion to derive the desired effect. However, if you are concerned, you might ask Miss Parkinson and Mister Weasley to act as test subjects. They are recently engaged, are they not? Surely, they would test them for you?”

Draco was still confused. “I’m sorry sir, but how would that help me? Pansy is a very distant cousin and I thought the jewels were intended for the male line.”

Severus was really enjoying himself now. “Ah, that is true. However, I believe that Cassandra Malfoy’s magic will be just as potent for Mister Weasley as it would be for you. Her maiden name was Weasley before her marriage.” He closed the door very quietly behind himself.