GODLESS

Chapter 12

October and November's Azkaban visits were rather prosaic; no arguments or Veritaserum-fueled confessions occurred. Hermione was distracted with her NEWT study schedule, although she'd decided against taking Muggle Studies and/or sitting for the exam. Draco and Theo Nott, who were required to take the subject as part of their probation, explained that the new professor—who was from the Salem Witches' Institute, not Ilvermorny—was working at Hogwarts as part of a reciprocal agreement with MACUSA. She was from the American South and very outspoken during class, but reserved otherwise. Hermione had seen her in the hallway; she superficially resembled Tonks as she had brightly-colored hair (which seemed to change weekly). Meanwhile, the alliances and antipathies that had arisen at the start of their Eighth Year continued; Hermione carried on and hoped that things would eventually improve.

Ginny, Harry, George and Angelina became Hermione's regular dinner companions and occasional overnight guests at the Hall. Harry's overtly disparaging comments about Corban decreased as the months wore on. Reemy had taken to Harry and always made certain there was a treacle tart at pudding, just for him. The four friends had begun making arrangements for a double wedding to be held at some point in the summer. As Ginny had invited Hermione to be in the wedding party, she immediately requested that they wait until after the NEWTs; thus, the tentative date was the Summer Solstice. Meanwhile, Ginny told her, Ron was getting rather serious about Romilda Vane; Mrs Weasley had taken to inviting her to Sunday dinner even though she was still in school. Hermione had glimpsed the black-haired witch a few times in the library and elsewhere, and had gone out of her way to avoid her.

In December, an overnight Azkaban visit was permitted in honour of the holiday season, during which Hermione came to two realizations: first, the bed in the conjugal visit room was barely sufficient for a full night's sleep, and second, unfortunately, Corban snored rather loudly, which would have been fine if she'd been able to cast a Silencing Charm, but wands were still not allowed in the room. She chose not to discuss either subject over their slightly festive yet unsatisfying breakfast (provided by the prison kitchens) the next morning and simply skipped a day of classes in favour of getting more rest.

The trials began in January, prior to the scheduled visiting day, and continued on through March. The Ministry, as both Mr Pucey and Corban had suspected, had chosen to keep the docket alphabetical. Avery was given a life sentence and granted a divorce on the same day. Dolohov's trial was short; he was deported to Russia post-haste. Crabbe and Goyle received fifteen-year sentences and the Lestranges received life sentences (with possibility of parole). Macnair was also deported, and he and the former Mrs Avery relocated to the United States; they were permitted a short wedding ceremony at Mr Pucey's office, which Hermione attended. The Malfoys, Selwyn, Travers and Corban were all sentenced to house arrest; Corban's was set at ten years. Mr Pucey recommended that he take it; in return, he was able to negotiate Corban's early entry into the Restricted Wand Program, beginning in September, and they made arrangements to work on the appeal process.

And thus, Corban returned home on the Spring Equinox, with a full fanfare of Ministry bureaucracy accompanying him. Fortuitously, as Hogwarts' Easter holiday occurred the week after that, Hermione had made arrangements to be out of school for three weeks, rather than the customary two-week period. The same Aurors who had captured Dolohov (including Ron) escorted him to the gate, where Hermione and the house-elves awaited. Harry smiled broadly and Robards gave her a polite nod, but Ron installed a permanent grimace on his face and refused to meet her eyes, especially when Corban rushed forward and took her in his arms. He was carrying a small bag of magically-reduced possessions and wearing a plain black robe (which Hermione had brought him to wear at the trials).

"Sweetheart," he whispered in her ear, between kisses. "Once they're done with all their nonsense, let's go upstairs so I can get cleaned up a bit, and then we'll go to the clearing." Hermione smiled and nodded and kissed him back, all the while attempting to ignore Ron's glowering. Luckily, the Ministry requirements didn't take that long; Hermione signed a large stack of parchment, hugged Harry, and shook Robards' hand. Corban remained silent and compliant until Ron looked straight at him and made a comment under his breath just as the group turned to leave.

"Pardon, Mr Weasley, but did ya have something ya want ta say ta me?"

Proudfoot and Dawlish had already stepped through the front door, but Harry, Robards and Ron turned.

"Ron—"Harry said, putting a hand on his arm. "Remember what we talked about before we came here. Let's just go, mate."

"No," Ron said. "I do have something to say to you, Yaxley."

Everyone paused in an awkward little tableau for a bit after that; Hermione glimpsed Robards quietly slipping his wand out of its holster.

"Speak yer piece, Mr Weasley," Corban finally said, as Hermione clutched at his arm and attempted to meet Ron's gaze.

"You'd bloody well better treat Hermione right," Ron said, quietly, as he stared resolutely at Corban. "She's a loyal friend and an outstanding witch and she's too good for the likes of you."

"On most of that we agree," Corban said. Ron gave him a short, sharp nod and then shook Harry's hand off his arm and marched through the doorway.

"Sorry, Hermione," Harry said. "He'd promised me he'd be polite."

"That was far better than I expected," Hermione said, as she released Corban's arm and went over to hug Harry again. "You and Gin are coming for dinner on Saturday as usual, yes?" Harry looked at Corban, who raised his eyebrows.

"I haven't been apprised of me social calendar as yet, Mr Potter, but I have no issue with it; I look forward to seeing ye," he said. Harry nodded politely at him, then turned and walked through the door with Robards. Once the chime rang, indicating that everyone had exited the wards, Corban turned and started walking upstairs.

"Do you still want me to come with you?" Hermione asked.

"'Course I do—I'm just excited to get up there," he replied, as he turned and extended his hand to her. She took it and they continued up the stairs together. "Let's go open up me room. I do hope ye'll be sleepin' with me rather than in yer suite."

"Er…" Hermione began. "Only if I can put a Silencing Charm on you."

"Oh," Corban said, looking a bit sheepish. "Sorry, lass. There's a potion I can drink for that. Forgot to ask ye to bring it. Probably wouldn't have been allowed."

She smiled at him. "It's all right. I needed to take a day off studying, anyway."

When they reached the double doors, he indicated she should open them with her wand. His bedroom was large and airy and nearly identical to her room, other than that the furnishings seemed slightly larger, although that might have been an illusion, as they were all draped. Reemy and another house-elf appeared and vanished the coverings, opened the windows to air out the room, banished the dust, changed the sheets and coverlet, brought in a stack of clean towels, washcloths and robes, and took his bag of possessions away to clean and store them. Before the elves vanished, Corban smiled at Reemy and asked that she bring a tray of tea and savories in about forty-five minutes to which the elf replied, "Reemy is glad you is home, Master Corban." Hermione decided that she'd ignore the honorific this time.

Once they were alone, he led her to the bath and immediately stripped off his slippers and socks and robe and pulled the hair tie from his hair, tossed all the items to the floor, pointed at them with a scowl and said, "Please, sweetheart." Hermione promptly pointed her wand and Vanished them, then swung her wand over herself and intoned "Devestire." Her clothes disappeared and reappeared in a neat stack on the windowsill. "I'll have ye do that one next time," he said, chuckling. "Right now I need ye to join me in the shower; need to get that horrid smell off." She pointed her wand at the shower and started it up. "I understand," she said, as she took his hand and stood next to him under the hot spray. He scrubbed himself down thoroughly, and she scrubbed his back for him. He reached for an unmarked blue bottle and poured the contents over his head and sighed with pleasure. "Never felt clean while I was there," he said, as he worked the shampoo through his hair and then rinsed it out. "Never felt warm, either, except when I was with ye," he murmured, as he pulled her close and kissed her…their soap-slicked bodies slid together in an irresistible rhythm and she felt his insistent hardness poking at her belly. "Wanted to wait until we got to the clearing but I can't," he rumbled in her ear. "Would ye dry us off?" She summoned her wand wordlessly and flicked it over both of them as he picked her up and carried her to the bed.

"I stopped the potion last month," she murmured, as they lay down together.

"Oh sweetheart," he sighed, as he rolled on top of her and parted her thighs. His unbound hair slid over his shoulders and hung down between them. "Are ye…are ye sure?"

"Yes," she replied. "You're home, aren't you?"

"I am now," he growled, as he slid into her.

An hour later, clad in loose-fitting wool robes that Corban had taken from his closet, and with some blankets and pillows and a large jug of mead floating between them, they made their way through the woods to the clearing, which was an idyllic place ringed by old-growth trees. There was a small summer-house off to the side, but Corban led them directly to the center of the grove and directed Hermione to spread the blankets on the ground and add a cushioning charm under them. He then stood in front of her and took both her hands in his. "I love ye, and I wish to handfast with ye today; we can have whatever kind of marriage ceremony ye want when ye're done with exams, but I need to prove to ye that I don't wish for us to be parted." He looked directly at her; she inhaled sharply, shocked by the intensity of his gaze.

"What—what's involved with that, exactly?"

"It's what me ancestors used to do long before there was ever the idea of a Ministry, before everything, including marriage, was regulated like it is now," he said. "We make a vow to each other. I was going to wait until I had me wand but we're here in the clearing and the magic will recognize what we're doing." He gestured at the small moss-covered standing stone near them. "That marks a line of magic, I'm sure ye know about them—"

"A ley line," Hermione replied.

"Aye," Corban said. "This is where me ancestors lived when they first came to these lands from the old lands, from across the sea; that wee house over there is built on the foundation of the original house. They found this area pleasant, as I hope ye do."

"It's beautiful and peaceful here," Hermione said. "I like it very much."

"I liked me mum's house," Corban said. "But I always liked it better here despite me father, and I look forward to spending the rest of me life here with ye." He leaned forward and kissed her lightly. "And so I do vow, on me magic," he added.

"And I vow the same to you, on mine," Hermione replied. He reached in his robe pocket and withdrew a ring identical to the one she was wearing on her ring finger, and handed it to her. She somehow knew to put it on his ring finger, and he smiled and kissed her again. "And now we seal it, "he said, as he knelt down and gently tugged on her hand. They sat together on the blanket and he poured out glasses of mead for them; the drink was strong and sweet and had echoes of summer in it. Hermione asked for another glass and he chuckled. "It has a strong effect to it, but I'm not complaining, mind ye…"

"What effect? What kind of mead is it?"

"It's woodruff mead, it's like a mild lust potion," he said, smiling. "Not that we really need it. I'll have another as well, though," and he drained his glass and poured out two more. She'd barely finished her glass when he grabbed her and pulled her up onto his lap, somehow moving his robe aside as he did so. "Ride me," he said, as he pulled her robe up and moved his hand down to position himself at her entrance. "Oh fuck yes, sweetheart, that's perfect," he growled, as she sank down onto him; he grabbed her and spread her wide and began to thrust into her, as they both groaned in pleasure….and they spent hours in blissful ecstasy, in every position that they knew and even a few that they imagined they'd invented, as the sun slowly moved toward the western horizon and the stars began to shine above.

The summer-house, in true wizarding fashion, was larger on the inside and featured a bath, a bedroom and a small kitchen, but they opted to sleep outside (after Hermione had Reemy bring a certain potion from the Hall). They spent most of the first week wrapped up in each other in the clearing. When an insistent, unseasonable cold front moved through, bringing chill rains with it, they retreated to the Hall and spent several days in the library; he quizzed her on Arithmancy and Runes, and stated that he was certain she could take both NEWTs then and there and pass them with flying colours.

On Saturday, Ginny, Harry, George and Angelina arrived for dinner and gaming, and Hermione and Corban decorously met them at the front gate. Once everyone filed into the receiving room and tea was served, Ginny pulled Hermione aside.

"You seem to have a glow about you, Hermione—should I even ask?"

"You can ask, but you'll have to wait for the details until witches' night in," she replied.

"Fair enough. He can't keep his eyes off you; it's rather odd to see him smiling like that, he seems a lot different from the pictures I saw in the Prophet. Ronnikins still keeps trying to insist to us that he's the next incarnation of the Dark Lord, but he eventually grudgingly admitted that he'd promised to treat you right. Strangely enough, Mum told Ron that he should just be glad his friend was happy. I think the next engagement's going to be with him and Romilda."

"I wish him all the best, and you can tell him I said that. He actually was fairly civil when he talked to Corban…but I suspect it'll be a while until we invite him to dinner."

"Yeah, I wouldn't go there just yet," Ginny said, as she hugged Hermione. The two walked back to the table and sat down just in time for Reemy to pour them tea.

THE END
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AUTHOR'S NOTES

And so we come to the end of this tale, which was originally supposed to be a one-shot. I hope you've enjoyed it….and many thanks to all who liked/favorited/(and especially) reviewed, you really make my day!

The Muggle Studies professor is my OC Inanna, for those who have read my old fic trilogy (originally published in 2002).