Sang Sacré

Chapter 13

Hermione decided to accompany Daphne back to Nott Manor since it was getting late and she had a feeling that Draco wouldn't be waiting for her back at the flat.

She was embraced by Moppy as soon as they crossed the threshold, the small elf winding her arms around Hermione's knees as she babbled excitedly about her unexpected return. Moppy popped away to fetch Tiberius after informing Hermione that he had been worrying about her more and more as each day passed without news.

At the sight of her uncle, she bounded into his arms and tightly wrapped herself around his middle. She had grown used to seeing and spending extended amounts of time with him and she hadn't realized how much she'd missed him until he was standing right in front of her.

"Oh, Mia," he chuckled fondly, smoothing down her curls. "How is my girl? How have you been faring?"

Daphne slipped out the door quietly to give them some space.

"I'm okay. There's so much I want to talk to you about if you're not busy."

"Nothing is more important than seeing you right now," he grinned and they started walking in the direction of the library. "The house feels so different without you here. Strange how quickly our 'normal' can adjust, yeah? It had just been Theo and me for years before you came, but the manor longs for you as we do."

As they fell into the plushy chairs near the fireplace, Tiberius waved his hand to start the fire. "I've missed you both so much," Hermione confessed, tucking her feet up under her as she settled in.

"What is on your mind, dearest? Does this have to do with Draco?" Tiberius' soft question made it easy for the words to fall from her lips.

"Yes. I don't know what to make of everything. The bond has been challenging enough without his confusing behavior. When I tried to talk about it earlier with Daphne, her response wasn't what I was expecting. I know there's still so much about this whole thing that I don't know," she frowned, throwing her hands up in exasperation.

"What's going on with your bond?" He perked up and leaned towards her in his seat.

"I don't know," she groaned. "We couldn't get out of bed until today, for starters," catching how Tiberius' eyes lit up at the news. "There's also the matter of all of the physical affection, which has all been really unexpected. And last night, we shared a dream together."

"You two shared a dream?" Tiberius choked and clutched at the armrest.

"Yeah, freaked Daphne right out when I told her," Hermione murmured, shifting in her seat. "Do you know anything about that?"

"Mia, you two have a strong bond indeed. I told you that me and my bonded partner also weren't able to completely heal for almost a week during our pairing. We never had shared dreams, but another couple in our cycle did, which speaks to a very high level of compatibility. You and Draco will be very powerful together."

His words sent a shiver down her spine. "But, surely it can't be that rare. We've never had much interaction besides all this, and the time we spent together before the ritual wasn't what I would call 'pleasant.'" She sniffed. "Who was the other pair, if you don't mind me asking?"

"Narcissa and Lucius," Tiberius smiled. "And believe me, it is rare. This type of bond usually skips a few generations before presenting itself again."

Hermione grimaced and rubbed absentmindedly at the throbbing ache in her sternum. Tiberius noticed. When she spoke again, her voice had dropped to almost a whisper. "How do I know that any of this is real?"

Tiberius frowned, his hands now clasped in front of him, his pointer fingers tapping together in a steady staccato. "Of course it's all real. I'm not sure I follow what you're getting at."