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The Conflict of Hermione Granger	By : TheLadyRed Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female > Lucius/Hermione Views: 18154 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I own nothing of Harry Potter and all recognizable characters and situations are property of JK Rowling. I make no money off of this fanfiction.

Chapter List
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Chapter 12

Parting Words

Hermione sat nervously in her office, waiting for the Weasley matriarch to arrive. She had been putting off this visit for a few weeks, and she knew she could put it off no longer. Molly was coming to finalize all the plans with Hermione.

Originally, Hermione had planned to do all of the arrangements herself, but at first she just couldn't get up enough interest to do it and then as her days began to fill with Lucius, she had passed more and more off to Molly and luckily enough, the older woman had been more than happy to oblige her and take care of everything.

"Hello love!" a cheerful voice exclaimed from the doorway, and Hermione looked up to see the kind face of Molly Weasley.

"Molly! Come in, come in!" Hermione urged, ushering her with her hands.

"Now, you know dear, after the party I'm going to insist you start calling me Mum," Molly replied with a wink, while Hermione smiled stiffly, not sure how to respond.

"All right, now let's get started," Molly began helpfully, pulling piles of parchment out of her handbag and passing them to Hermione.

"There's the caterers, the tent and marquee people, the menu we chose..." Hermione began to tone Molly out as she shuffled through all the parchment absentmindedly. Molly had really taken care of everything, she realized, even down to the floral arrangements and table decorations. Granted, there were choices that weren't exactly Hermione's style, but that's just the price you pay for letting someone else take of everything, she thought.

"Oh, and here's the RSVP list!" Molly squealed, passing it to Hermione. "There are some big names on there, dearie. Some big names indeed!" she crowed. Like Ron, Molly enjoyed some of the after effects of the war and being in the spotlight. Luckily, the years since the war had brought some affluency to the Weasley family with Arthur's big new promotion and prominent position at the Ministry, and there was plenty of noteriety for members of Order of the Phoenix, so on both counts, the Weasley family was something worth mentioning, which Hermione suspected that Molly enjoyed very much.

"Oh yes," Hermione murmured, running her eyes down the list, glad to see a few 'dignitaries' on the list that she couldn't stand who had RSVP'ed no, and stopping, her blood going cold when she saw 'yes' next to Lucius Malfoy's name. She had assumed he had the good sense to say he wasn't going to come. Merlin, what is wrong with him? she seethed. Why does he think it's all right to come to this? she wondered, wishing desperately for Molly to stop prattling so she could deal with the situation.

Thirty minutes later, Hermione was merely nodding 'uh-huh' to everything, as Molly droned on and on about clothing, even down to what Arthur was wearing, which Hermione couldn't care less about, even in the best of times.

Finally, Molly rose from her seat, "Okay, dearie, I think that's it. We'll see you in France!" she said excitedly, finishing with, "I can't believe soon you'll finally be a Weasley!" gathering Hermione in her arms as she said it. Hermione felt a rush of gratitude for Ron's mother in that moment. It was a lovely thing to feel the acceptance of such a tight-knit family and she had been included as a member since early in her Hogwarts years, and she didn't take the years of committment from the extended Weasley family lightly.

Kissing Molly on the cheek in farewell, Hermione returned her hug and watched her go, knowing she was heading to pop in on Arthur next.

Hermione returned to her desk, trying to stay calm as she looked over the guest list again. She had intended earlier that morning to not return to Wiltshire or Lucius again, but how could she ignore this? How could she let it go? I can't! she realized, grabbing her things, running a hand over her curls and heading to the Floo Network to pop into the Manor. One last confrontation and then we are done, she told herself with finality.

Checking to make sure no one was around to overhear her Floo request, she stepped into the green fire and called out Malfoy Manor, the world almost immediately turning into a sickening, spinning green.

Lucius heard the Floo Network activate, and turned his chair, expecting it be Draco, home early from the office with news, and was honestly floored when the angry figure of Hermione Granger exited. Her eyes were on fire, and her chin was in the most determined set he'd ever seen and Lucius was momentarily lit by her passion before controlling himself. He could tell she wasn't there for him in that way, and he had a feeling she had nothing good to say to him.

“What do you have to say for yourself?” she demanded, waving the guest list at him, angrily crossing the room towards him.

“I’m not sure what you are talking about, my dear?” Lucius responded silkily.

“Cut the crap, Lucius. You know what I’m talking about! You RSVP’ed that you are coming to the engagement party.” Hermione shot back.

“Of course I responded yes. Draco did too. I’m not sure what the problem is?” Lucius asked innocently.

“What do you mean, of course you responded yes?! You can’t come!” she roared back, taken aback by his calm responses.

“Hermione, I am a pillar of society and this particular fete will be one of the events of the season, I can’t possibly miss it.” he explained calmly, struggling to retain his collected exterior.

“You can’t be serious! You know what happened the last time you, me, and Ron were in the same place. That can’t happen again. Consider yourself uninvited to the party,” she spat back, turning to leave.

“I am Lucius Malfoy, and I decide where I’ll go. I don’t need your permission, and I’m not some boy you can boss around. I have the upper hand here, between us, and everywhere, my dear," and with these words, he stood up, drew himself to his full height, looking every bit of the Lord she knew he was.

Ire rising, she shot back, “We’re not discussing this. You can’t come. You know what will happen if you come - if I have to see you in those formal robes, me in a backless gown, you know what will happen between us - and I’m not fucking someone who’s not my fiancé in a coat closet at my bleeding engagement party!”

“How is it my fault that you can’t control yourself? Who said I would pursue you?” he responded, an offhand calm still in his voice.

Taken aback, Hermione began to stutter, “Well, well -”

“As a matter of fact, I will probably be so unwell at having to put up with such false displays of love and trust between such ill-suited individuals it will most certainly put off my appetite for anything,” he retorted airily.

“How dare you? Who the hell do you think you are? You can talk about me all you want, but leave my relationship with Ron out of this!” jabbing her finger in the air as she spoke.

“My insights are hitting a little too close to home, aren’t they, my dear?” he shot back smoothly.

“You are so wildly off the mark I won’t even deign to respond to that. Ron and I are meant to be together and what has happened with us has been a mistake that has no reflection on his and mine’s relationship!” Hermione began to gesture wildly, long past furious at this point.

“You’re really going to defend your farce of a relationship to me? I know you better than that Hermione. I know what makes you happy, what turns you on, what makes your world go round, and I would put my fortune on a bet saying that dim-witted boy knows less than a tenth of what I know about you!” Lucius' voice finally began to lose the calm overtones as he lost his self-control, anger rising at the beautiful young witch in front of him.

“You know nothing, you git! He knows me and we have a happy future ahead of us. I can’t believe you are so fucking arrogant that you think you know everything about me!” Hermione yelled back at him, voice now raised enough for anyone nearby in the Manor to hear.

"Say what you will about me, but I'm not asking you to diminish yourself! How long do you think it'll be before the Weasley boy tells you to stop working? A month, six months after your marriage?" Lucius retorted hotly, eyebrows raised in question at Hermione.

"How can you say that about him?! He knows me better than you ever will and he respects me! He would never ask me to stop doing what I love! He has done nothing to deserve what I've done to him! I am the awful person in this relationship! How dare you insult him!" she stormed back, seeing red at his accusations."

"There's something here! Something real between us, and don't lie and say you don't feel it, because I know you do! I know you feel it in the pit of your stomach every time I touch you!" Lucius' tone rose to meet hers, and he punctuated this claim by waving his hand, gesturing between himself and Hermione.

"All that is is the lure of forbidden interaction! There's nothing more than sneaking around! It's not real! Not like what I already have!" Hermione yelled back.

"Defend him and your sycophantic relationship all you want, but you know I'm right, Hermione! Do you really think you'll be happy, sitting in some hovel, a brood mare for the Weasleys? Turning into another Molly?" Lucius asked, now genuinely angry at Hermione and wanting more than anything else to shake sense into the woman he loved.

At these words, Hermione went into a rage that she wouldn't have thought possible. The implied insult at Molly, who she did love, was too much for her to bear, and she spat back at him, "I don't ever want to see you again! Ever! And if we do have the misfortune of running into one another, remember that you are no one to me. I am indifferent to you, Lucius. You are nothing," and with these cruel words, she turned on her heels and walked out of the Manor, eyes trained forward until she reached the apparition point.

She found herself at home, rushed up the stairs and grabbed her bags. She had a port key to catch. It was time she got to France.

********************

A/N: I'll have the next chapter for you on Tuesday. Happy Independence Day to all the Americans out there! :)
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The Conflict of Hermione Granger