The Greengrasses Chapter 4 (Patreon)

Daphne Greengrass sat at the desk in her room, trying to finish the potions essay she was working on. The keyword was trying, as at this point she had been working on it for an hour and hadn’t so much as written a single word.

Harry Potter. That name echoed through her mind as if it was an echo chamber. She simply couldn’t think of anything else at the moment, the thoughts of her betrothed simply dominating her.

He had only been living with them since the start of summer, and Daphne would admit that he had pleasantly surprised her. She interacted with him very little-if at all-in their time at Hogwarts, only ever seeing him from afar and being forced to listen to Draco’s rants about him in the Slytherin common room.

And it was only after living with the boy in the same home that she realized her mental image of Potter was completely different from who he actually was in reality. It took her a while to reconcile with that particular realization, but she eventually stopped relying on preconceived notions and instead made her own observations to figure out just who Harry Potter was.

Since she began doing this, her opinion of him increased drastically from where it was before, while at the same time her opinion of her Slytherin classmates(especially Draco) plummeted. She was reminded of how one of Malfoy’s favorite pastimes was to badmouth Potter for his ragged clothes, but since arriving at Greengrass Manor, he wore clothing that actually fit his station. When this was brought up, Potter claimed the muggle relatives he lived with before gave him his cousin’s hand-me-downs of all things.

Then there was the part about Malfoy and Professor Snape also claiming that Potter was an attention-seeker. Yet as she thought back over the years, Daphne realized that he always seemed somewhat timid, suffering from low self-esteem that showed he was the complete opposite.

Such a turnaround vexed her beyond imagining, and the more she learned about her betrothed, the more she thought of him throughout the day. He had changed a lot since arriving, filling out with the ludicrous amounts of food her mother insisted he eat at every meal, and becoming more used to wizarding customs and norms that he obviously had no knowledge of beforehand. If Daphne was being honest, she found the young man he was turning into to be very attractive.

She couldn’t help but blush at that last thought.

She wasn’t her sister though, and wouldn’t lower herself to throwing herself at him like Astoria did on a daily basis. Astoria had also noticed the changes in Potter, telling Daphne on multiple occasions how he had become even more handsome since his arrival. And it translated to Astoria making even more inappropriate comments at meals that were increasingly scandalous.

It was just who Astoria was as a person to do such a thing, leaving the table’s occupants reeling as she laughed at their reactions. Daphne had even choked on her food the previous evening because of it, and then there was her mother, who actually blushed before banishing Astoria to her room. And then there was Harry, who became a stuttering mess and refused to make eye contact with them in the aftermath.

While humiliating, it did give Daphne more insight into just who Harry Potter was after that. A normal boy, especially one in Slytherin, would have taken advantage of Astoria by this point. Potter, if anything, seemed wary of her motives, unwilling to acknowledge any of her sister’s blatant advances. It proved he didn’t want this whole betrothal mess, and wouldn’t be the first to forcefully initiate anything.

That said, Daphne was still bitter. Yes, Potter might be different that she first imagined, and might genuinely be a good person. But she could hardly swallow her pride and throw herself at him like her sister did. But at the same time it was clear he wouldn’t take advantage of their situation, and would leave her alone forever if she refused to meet him in the middle.

A small part of her mind whispered that this was good, and Daphne could live out the rest of her days without Potter. But the more rational side argued that it was better to get close to her betrothed, and at least get to know him rather than evading his presence altogether.

She let out a sigh at that, realizing that she was wasting more time lost in thought rather than working. She stood up, leaving her quarters and making her way through the manor and to a hallway that led to the study which her Mother used. The door was ajar, allowing her to see the room that functioned as a regular meeting place that her mother used to meet with political allies and business partners.

Daphne went to enter, but a cursory glance at the occupants inside made her gape in astonishment. Her mother was snuggled up close to Potter, nearly cuddling, as she tutored him. It was clear she was discussing something with him, but what it was Daphne couldn’t tell. Her mother had been giving him private lessons since he arrived, doing so throughout the week with him in her office.

But this was clearly something else, for Daphne watched as Aspasia Greengrass grazed his arm lightly with her fingers as she reached to grab a paper. Harry almost looked as bewildered as Daphne was, his face red as he tried to focus on whatever he was studying. Most likely it was a synopsis of how the goblin banking system worked or something equally lackluster.

Her mother suddenly leaned over and planted a kiss on his cheek and stood before walking over to the door where Daphne was watching. She hastily retreated, but it was useless at that point as her Mother exited and closed the door before turning to her with an amused look.

“Spying on your betrothed?” Aspasia Greengrass asked with a smirk.

“Erm…” Stuttered Daphne, not entirely sure what to say.

Her mother laughed. “I don’t blame you. He really is a powerful wizard if I say so myself, and you know what they say about powerful wizards… they need their witches.”

“Mother!” Gasped Daphne, causing the older woman to laugh.

“What? Don’t pretend you’re too good for him, I’ve seen how you’ve looked at him over the past week. Soon you’ll be like your sister if you’re not careful.”

She felt her face warm up. “Like you’re any better, I saw you in there… throwing yourself at him!”

Her mother almost seemed embarrassed. Almost. “Sweetie, when you’re as old as me and betrothed to a young and powerful wizard… the temptation can sometimes be too much to handle.”

“Well, perhaps you should handle it better.” She folded her arms, feeling petty.

“Don’t worry, you’ll have plenty of time to get close to him at Hogwarts.” Aspasia Greengrass rested her hand back on the office’s doorhandle. “For me, I only have this summer to enjoy his attention, and then you and Astoria will have him all to yourselves.”

/////

He had a lot more freedom living with the Greengrasses than he was typically accustomed to. He was afforded his own private section within the manor, which he could’ve easily lived out the rest of his days if Harry so chose. And then there was the freedom to use magic however he wanted, study out of their family library, and use the floo whenever. And with Aspasia and her daughters so frequently absent and attending to their own duties, he was left alone quite a lot.

And it was during this time that Harry got up the courage to send Sirius a letter with the help of his Snowy Owl. In truth, he had no clue as to what his Godfather was up to, where he was, and didn’t even know if his owl would be able to reach him in the first place.

But Hedwig did manage to somehow find him, and Harry soon received a response back. The letter didn’t have any specifics about his living situation, as expected, but did have an invitation to meet up in a discreet location.

He instantly agreed, and made sure to be careful as he left, traveling through the floo to the Leaky Cauldron, before taking the Knight Bus to a muggle town out in the country. Sirius had picked an obscure, rundown, old muggle pub to meet at, located in the rougher side of a village where criminals and vagrants typically resided.

The place smelled of smoke and liquor when Harry walked in, with its occupants being people you wouldn’t want to run into late at night. He soon spotted Sirius sitting at a booth in the corner of the pub, hidden enough that no one could eavesdrop or immediately spot them.

Making his way over and trying not to draw any attention, Harry immediately noted that his Godfather had actually managed to clean himself up since he last saw him, being several months ago now. That said, the man was still unhealthily thin, but at least he wasn’t wearing rags and his hair was actually washed this time.

“You actually look better.” He spoke first after sitting down, right as they finished pleasantries. “I’m sorry that I couldn’t do more, and that I didn’t find you a place-”

“Harry.” Sirius put a hand on his shoulder. “You’ve done plenty. I owe you already for saving me from those dementors, and then freeing me afterwards to top it all off. You hardly need to apologize for anything.”

“Still, just feels like I could do more.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “Where have you been since?”

“Heh, managed to find an old home that my Grandfather owned. The place is dirty and full of traps, but it works for now. After that I managed to contact my family’s old account manager at Gringotts and get some things sorted out. Soon I’ll be off to the Bahamas to an unplottable vacation home House Black has owned for years.”

Some time at the beach would do his godfather good. The sunshine and swimming in the warm ocean water would definitely be nice, and it made Harry wish that he could join him.

“Sounds great.” He remarked.

“But what about you?” Sirius asked suddenly. “I know that I mentioned that you could live with me, and I can bring you along if you want?”

“I probably could, but my life is a bit complicated at the moment.” He shifted awkwardly.

“How so?”

Harry took a breath, readying himself to explain. “Apparently, House Potter signed a marriage contract long ago that went unfulfilled, until now that is. It became outstanding around the time Hogwarts ended, and I ended up being betrothed without my knowledge.”

“You’re serious?! Marriage contracts usually last centuries until they become outstanding.” His godfather’s eyes were wide in shock. “They can have pretty harsh consequences too, what was it for you?”

“All unmarried members of both Houses have to marry each other.” He recited, before shrinking awkwardly. “So—I, erm, have to marry three witches.”

“I just realized that you are the only Potter, so it would fall to you.” Sirius was thinking through his explanation, before his eyes settled on him. “Can you tell me who the other House is?”

“House Greengrass.”

“So one of them would be Aspasia Greengrass?” Sirius asked with raised brows, before he muttered something about him being a lucky bastard under his breath.

“You know her?”

“Of her.” He nodded. “She married Burke… er, I think his name was Eustice? Whatever. She was definitely a looker though, being one of those pureblood Slytherin types that would sooner eat you alive than talk. I know she was the Greengrass heiress, and had to marry a third son so her husband could take her name, being an arranged marriage and all that.”

“What about her husband?” He asked, having not heard all that much about him. “All she said was that he died, and they never loved each other.”

“She’s most likely telling the truth. If I had to guess, he was probably a Death Eater who got killed in some raid.” Sirius shrugged, and Harry felt his stomach drop. “But I wouldn’t worry about it.”

“Why?”

“Because marriage politics in pureblood culture is ridiculous.” His Godfather waved dismissively. “You might think the stuffy witches from old families are bad enough, but the men are worse. Pureblood wizards are mostly raised by house-elves growing up, and only see their wives when they use them for breeding or attending balls. It’s what happens when generations of inbreeding leaves you looking like a troll with the intelligence to match. And Burke was definitely one of the dumber ones, probably couldn’t tell which end of the wand was which.”

That made Harry feel slightly better. Perhaps it was an ego thing, but being with a widowed woman made him somewhat insecure about her history. Aspasia was always brief when it came to the topic of her first husband, which didn’t help his worries.

“Aspasia’s on the Wizengamot, you know.” He brought up then, remembering that piece of information. “I was thinking that she could do something about your predicament. Maybe push for you to get a trial?”

“Do you trust her?”

He thought about that question for a long moment. “Mostly.”

He had been living with the Greengrasses for some time already, and other than their matriarch, he was getting closer every day to Astoria. The possibility of this whole situation being a trap at this point was very slim, especially when he was living under their roof and being around Astoria so frequently.

Sirius simply nodded. “You shouldn’t burden her with solving my problems. But when you do eventually tell her, and if she decides to help, then make sure to reach out to me. My account manager at Gringotts is already making some moves behind the scenes, and soon it will be ready.”

“Anything else you can tell me?”

“Mainly that you should keep your situation quiet for now.” The former Azkaban inmate suggested. “The Greengrasses are hardly the type to worship Dumbledore, and the Weasleys would probably throw a fit if they found out. Who are the other two witches besides Aspasia?”

He agreed with Sirius in keeping the situation with his marriage contract secret. While Harry was still sending letters to Ron and Hermione, he had yet to mention his change of guardianship along with how he was currently living at Greengrass Manor instead of Privet Drive to either of them. It would probably get out eventually, but Harry wanted to delay that day as much as possible.

“Both are Aspasia’s daughters. One is named Astoria, she’s slightly younger than me and in Ravenclaw. We get along the best, as she’s always energetic and in a happy mood. Daphne is her sister, in the same year as me but in Slytherin. I’ve tried to get closer to her, but she’s cold and acts like I’m beneath her every time we talk. Luckily, both Astoria and Aspasia said she’ll grow out of it, so there’s that. As for Aspasia, she’s actually the one I’m closest too. She picked me up from the platform and explained the whole contract situation to me, and ever since she’s been giving me lessons-”

“Lessons?” Sirius repeated questioningly.

“Yeah.” He nodded, while feeling his cheeks warm up. “She’s been teaching me about magical culture and etiquette. Some of it is fascinating, although most of it is dull.”

“Heh, I wouldn’t describe heirship lessons as fascinating.” The man joked. “Maybe it’s just your teacher?”

“Now that you mention it… She teases me more than she actually teaches.” He looked away to hide his growing embarrassment. “I actually think we’ve covered everything, but maybe she just wants my attention? Women are complicated.”

“There’s something you need to understand first, Harry.” Sirius began as he gained a lecherous grin. “Older women, all they want is to get fucked.”

He sputtered in reply, partly spilling his drink as he sat it down. “W-What?!”

“You know what I mean. They love a good pounding!” Sirius continued, a rueful grin on his face. “Rough and hard, nothing is off the table. Pull her hair, slap her arse. The louder they scream the better they cream, as they say...”

It felt like his brain was leaking out his ears in that moment, hard pressed to see how their conversation had devolved into this. “H-How do you even know this?”

“Oh, I don’t.” Sirius shrugged, earning an incredulous look from him. “My uncle, good ol’ Alphard told me. The man loved older women, used to pay extra for them at those brothels in Knockturn Alley.”

Harry didn’t even want to know the conversations Sirius regularly had with his uncle if this was what they usually talked about.

“The thing is, is that older women are extremely insecure.” His godfather continued on. “They’re terrified of their age, and that men will ditch them for younger ones. So if you manage to get one in bed, they’ll practically let you do anything to them. It’s all so they can please you enough so that you won’t leave, and also so they can try and feel young again.”

In a strange and twisted way, he could see it. Aspasia had certainly been the most forward out of all three Greengrasses. She worked hard to try and please him, and loved it when he gave her his undivided attention. That night when he stayed up late to greet her when she got home from the Wizengamot was especially memorable. The older blonde had practically thrown herself at him then, likely pleased that he would go out of his way to give her attention.

Part of him wanted to end the conversation then and there, but another desperately wanted to learn more. Harry leaned forward. “What else can you tell me?”

Sirius grinned.

Disclaimer: All Characters are over the Age of 18