Chapter 52: France
That was not, however, the last surprise awaiting me. The following morning, Penny and Nymphadora showed up at my place, shooting rather unkind looks at Fleur. Fleur had spent the night in the guest room. I could at least understand Penny's reaction. I'd dropped hints, and really, more than hints... I'd all but told her directly that I was interested in her romantically, though I'd also warned her that her chances of marrying me weren't especially high. But why my little sister was giving Fleur that look was a complete mystery.
The celebratory breakfast did, in any case, smooth things over somewhat.
"Now then, my dears... You have one week before your lives become a living nightmare."
Bella smiled at everyone present with such extraordinary warmth that it was, for precisely that reason, all the more terrifying.
"Bella, don't frighten the children..."
Cissy looked at her sister with mild reproach, though there was none in her voice. Anticipation was closer to the mark. We, meanwhile, had already settled into the dining room and were eating breakfast.
"...I think it will be much more pleasant for them to know now that the training they have been scheduled for begins in exactly one week. And we will spend this week at a private beach in France."
"Yahoo!"
Nympha actually jumped in her seat.
"A vacation and a beach! That's brilliant!"
I could only shake my head. On the one hand, I understood her completely, but on the other, I still had six years ahead of me, whereas Nympha had only one year of school left. If anyone should have been working harder than ever, it was her right now.
Still, it was her life... and my mother, as far as I could tell, meant her no harm, so she wouldn't have delayed her training if it would harm her future.
"What kind of beach is it?"
I decided to ask, since the answer would determine how I should pack. The fact was that British wizards, at the very least, held a rather... unfavorable view of the minimalist Muggle approach to swimwear. Things were likely much the same in France.
"A private beach. Essentially, it'll be just us and a few other people..."
"Mother..."
I frowned slightly.
"...if you want to play at keeping secrets, I have no objection. Simply tell me what to bring: swim trunks or a swimsuit? What sort of company will it be? Hidebound reactionaries who'll start frothing at the mouth the moment they see me in trunks and cause nothing but problems, or sensible people who know what century they're living in and would sooner raise an eyebrow if I turned up in full bathing dress?"
"Ha, trunks, my boy... bring trunks. Though as it happens, once we arrive today we shall all be heading to a mall to buy suitable swimwear. So you need not worry about that."
I gave an understanding nod.
"They've decided to finish me off..."
"Did you say something?"
Bella ruffled my hair with a tender smile.
"I was merely noting my impending death from an excess of pleasant emotions brought on by watching such beautiful young ladies try on swimwear."
"Oh, please!"
Nymphadora snorted, making her feelings about my words abundantly clear.
"Yes, yes... I believe you, little sister."
"Right, enough of this. Let's finish up, get ready, and get going. We still have shopping to do..."
With those words we all finished breakfast quickly and went to get our things together.
"Is everyone ready?"
Cissy looked around at the group and, giving a satisfied nod, gestured for us to follow her. Before long we left the house and made our way to an inconspicuous little street, where we all took hold of the Portkey together and were transported elsewhere.
"What the...?"
I was momentarily disoriented, but recovered very quickly. I had read about this sort of Portkey effect before. I had simply never used one that deposited its users high in the air while casting a slowing charm on them for a brief period, allowing them to descend from a height of several hundred meters quite comfortably and without injury.
I performed no aerial acrobatics and simply held still, letting gravity bring me down to earth. Nymphadora, on the other hand, was doing loops in the air and laughing with delight. Bella and Cissy, like me, simply stood and waited for their feet to touch the ground, while Fleur made a point of reclining against the air as though on a sofa. Penny Clearwater and Daphne took a different approach, stepping lightly through the air as though descending an invisible staircase.
"Now then, allow me to welcome you!"
When we had all landed, Fleur spread her arms wide and announced this with a broad smile.
"This is the Delacour estate, and for this week we invite you to be our guests."
I gave her a grateful nod.
Honestly, I didn't know what had been arranged between the parties involved, or how Penny Clearwater and Nymphadora Tonks came to be included in the invitation. But I certainly wasn't unhappy about it. I would need to think about how to repay such a generous gesture.
It wasn't that I had helped Fleur during the tournament, or rather, stood up for her on several occasions. What mattered was that...
Well, perhaps it had simply been Fleur herself who wanted Penny Clearwater and Nymphadora Tonks there. She had always gotten along well with them, even if she considered Penny Clearwater a rival.
"Thank you..."
I smiled at her.
"...for your hospitality."
"Oh, think nothing of it..."
Fleur dismissed the thanks with a wave.
"...it is simply..."
"Draco!"
A miniature version of Fleur came flying at me, and spotting her just in time, I ducked and caught her in my arms, spinning her around.
"Hello there, little one!"
"Hee-hee, ha-ha, hee-hee!"
Genuine, joy-filled, adoring laughter rang out across the meadow where we stood. The little one was truly glad to see me. And I was glad to see this small bundle of happiness.
"Gabrielle, how many times have I told you... Draco is not your brother. Call him by his name, or people will get the wrong idea."
"Not yet..."
I'd already set her down, and she looked up at her sister with a very serious expression.
"It's only not yet... but one day either he'll be your husband, or, if you're foolish enough to let him slip through your fingers, I'll grow up and marry him myself."
"Ahem..."
I cleared my throat at the little one's candor.
"Gabrielle!"
"Fleur!"
"I'll lock you in your room!"
"I'll tell Draco!"
Both blondes stared at each other furiously, though they calmed down remarkably quickly and seemed to lose interest in the quarrel altogether.
"Draco, come on, I'll show you our estate!"
"The estate ought to be shown not just to Draco, but to all the guests. So if you've volunteered for the duty, dear sister, be so good as to give everyone a tour while I go powder my nose and have a word with Mother and Father about your behavior."
"Bleh!"
Gabrielle stuck her tongue out at her sister and waved for us all to follow her.
The Delacour estate was quite sizable. We were first taken through the grounds, which were planted with fruit trees. The paths were laid with fine gravel. There was a neat lawn and several clearings with garden pavilions. One of these stood beside a small pond where frogs splashed about.
We were then brought to a fairly large house in the classical style.
"What do you think?"
Fleur and her parents were waiting to greet us at the entrance to the house. Fleur asked.
"Very beautiful..." I nodded. "I think one of our country houses would benefit from a park like this, with a pond."
"We are delighted that you like it. Now please let us invite you inside."
We went into the house for a brief tour, after which Fleur took us to a shop. I quickly chose a pair of swim trunks for myself. The girls, however, approached the selection of their swimwear with the utmost seriousness. While Nymphadora chose not to show me hers, the others...
"Damn."
I had died and gone to heaven.
I simply sat on a pouf and watched as the girls changed into one swimsuit after another, appearing from behind the curtain. I wasn't required to say anything. They emerged, saw my somewhat glazed expression, smirked with satisfaction, and disappeared behind the curtain again.
Damn. Even Cissy and Bella did exactly the same as the other girls, and thoughts began creeping into my head that incest was, all things considered, practically a family tradition.
The moment I caught myself thinking that, I shook my head sharply, got up at once, and walked straight out of the shop.
"Young man, where are you going?!"
A young French shop assistant tried to block my path.
"I need something cold to drink... preferably something ice cold..."
Having mentally calculated the total of whatever the girls had taken into the fitting rooms, I pulled out several bills and handed them to the assistant.
"That's for whatever they decide to take. It should more than cover it."
"Ah... yes..."
She nodded, looking a little flustered.
"Right, that's that... although, no..."
I fixed the girl with a hard stare.
"...if I find out you charged my companions anyway, I'll come back. I'll come back with some large gentlemen I've hired, and they'll do a great many unpleasant things to you."
"I... I... I understand..."
The girl took several steps back and nodded rapidly. After that, I finally left the shop and made my way to the nearest café, where I cooled off with iced drinks and ordered something for my companions.
And just as I'd expected, the moment I began to relax, Mother Cissy settled into the seat beside me.
"Darling, it was extremely shortsighted of you to simply get up and leave like that. What if someone had bothered us while you were gone?"
"Mother, honestly, at the moment I left, I had rather more pressing concerns. When you and Bella joined the game with the others, who were already nearly my peers, you only made things worse. And when I caught myself having thoughts entirely unbecoming of a son..."
I shook my head.
"...that was when I realized I needed to put some distance between us rather urgently and clear my head."
"Ooh-hoo-hoo... Darling, I am of course flattered, but there is no need to pay such crude compliments."
"That wasn't a compliment..."
I shook my head.
"...it was a statement of fact."
Just then, my order arrived, and Cissy gave a grateful nod as she took her little cup of coffee.
"I hope they didn't take any money from you?"
"No..."
Mother smiled, the corner of her mouth lifting.
"...you needn't have frightened the poor girl quite so thoroughly."
I only shrugged.
"Oh, come now. When I offered to pay, she practically fell to her knees begging me to put my money away."
"Pff..."
I shrugged.
"I merely suggested it would be unwise to try to swindle my companions."
"Yes, yes..."
Bella settled in beside me, followed by the rest of the girls, all looking at me with slight smiles.
"...did everyone find something?"
"Yes... a shame you missed seeing our choices, but I imagine tomorrow, when we reach the beach, you'll be able to appreciate them properly."
I sighed.
"Yes... I imagine I will..."
At that moment, I felt pretty good about choosing swim shorts instead of proper briefs. I figured that would give me a bit more freedom of movement...
"I don't hear a lot of enthusiasm in your voice..."
"Fleur... let's not. It's just that I have this feeling that if there are any other men on that beach, I'm going to spend the whole time running interference against guys who want to meet you, which means no rest for me whatsoever."
"You really don't need to worry about that..."
She waved a hand dismissively.
"...defending our honor definitely won't be required of you. If anything, we might end up defending yours..."
"What do you mean?"
I felt uneasy. I couldn't quite grasp what she meant, yet it seemed impossible that things could turn out the way she suggested.
"You really should have stayed with us. Then you'd know..."
A mischievous smile crossed Penny's lips.
"...as it is, you'll just have to wonder."
========================================
------------------------------------------
Chapters on Patreon progress: Currently at;
1. Harry Potter: Satan? Nah, Just My Family Crest = CHAPTER 257
2.Marvel: Cosmic Forger of Infinity = CHAPTER 178
3.Harry Potter: Beyond Good and Evil in the Wizarding World = CHAPTER 258
4.Harry Potter: Reborn as Draco Black = CHAPTER 106
support me on Patreon for instant access to the 120+ advance chapters: patreon.com/redofic