Fic: Consensus Ad Idem
Title: Consensus Ad Idem
Word Count: 2,504
Disclaimer: Only the plot is mine
Pairing: Draco Malfoy/Hermione Granger
Rating: K
Summary: Hermione meets Malfoy in a Muggle University
Beta: twist
Offer
“We must distinguish an offer from an invitation to treat.” Professor Everton’s voice (which Hermione Granger secretly thought sounded very much like Tweety Bird) echoed off the walls of the Rattaray Lecture Theatre where approximately 300 first year law students at the University of Leicester sat and took notes on the Law of Contract.
“An offer,” the professor continued, moving to stand in front of the wooden lectern at the bottom of the lecture theatre, “is a statement by one party, the offeror, of his willingness to enter into a contract on stated terms provided these terms are accepted by the offeree.”
Hermione’s biro moved easily across her foolscap, taking down the professor’s words as the latter went on to explain an invitation to treat.
“Unlike an offer, an invitation to treat is merely an expression of willingness to enter into negotiations which, it is hoped, will lead to the conclusion of a contract at a later date. Of course, case law sometimes muddles things up, and if you’ll read further on the cases in your hand-outs, you’ll see it is not easy to apply at the level of practice.” Professor Everton beamed at her students. “My personal favourite, one which I tell every first year law student to read, is Carlill v Carbolic Smoke Ball Co. Now, Mrs. Carlill …”
Hermione stopped her note-taking when she spotted the white blond head of hair she was, since the beginning of term, on the lookout for. There he was, Draco Malfoy, as pale and pointy as ever, three rows down and several feet to her left. His head was bent studiously over his notes, hand moving quickly as he wrote down how Mrs. Carlill successfully sued the Carbolic Smoke Ball Co over their ineffective carbolic smoke ball.
It had been, Hermione recalled, at least a fortnight ago that she had first spotted Malfoy. He had been standing at the waiting area for Platforms 1 - 4 at the St. Pancras train station in London. He had not seen her, for she had ducked immediately into WH Smith once she determined that the owner of the white blond cap of hair and pointy features belonged to her old Hogwarts nemesis. She had wondered what he was up to, loitering at a Muggle train station, carrying a backpack and clutching a big travelling case. It looked like he was waiting for one of the trains heading to the Midlands. She had lost sight of him when a throng of chattering Asian youths (university students, she surmised; it was that time of the year) noisily walked towards Platform 2, putting themselves between her and Malfoy.
She had her answer when she boarded the train headed for Leicester. Not two minutes after she had taken her seat, Malfoy had walked towards her. He had hesitated, uncertainty and no amount of nervousness crossing his features before he sat down across the aisle from her. She hadn’t known what to expect, (a few insults, a sneer or two) but he had surprised her by leaning over and managing a polite “Granger” before clamping his lips shut. He had looked ill at ease, like he wanted to say more but couldn’t find the words.
Astonished at his polite overture, Hermione had only managed a nod in return. Malfoy must have been prompted by her silence because he then opened his mouth and apologised to her for the years of insults, her treatment at the hands of his aunt during the War, and his ever present vitriol against Potter, Weasley and her at Hogwarts. Would she be able to forgive him, he had asked fearfully at the end of it.
It must have been the Gryffindor in her, Hermione mused as she was pulled back to the lecture when the rest of the class laughed at something Professor Everton just said, for when Malfoy had finished his apologies she had bravely (or impulsively, depending on whose viewpoint) decided to forgive him. The forgiveness was not unconditional but she had decided to find out more about this seemingly penitent Draco Malfoy.
Acceptance
“Acceptance of an offer must be unconditional,” Professor Everton stated, “or it wouldn’t be an acceptance at all. A purported acceptance which does not accept all terms and conditions proposed by the offeror is not an acceptance but a counter-offer.”
Hermione again spotted Malfoy in the lecture theatre, this time two rows directly in front of her. This close, she could see him flipping through the lecture hand-out making a notation next to the case of Butler v Ex-Cell-O Corp.
After his apology on the train they had both lapsed into silence, broken only when they reached Leicester (a quick goodbye on her part, a nod in acknowledgment from him) and parted ways.
She had seen him again the next day, walking along Welford Road and heading towards the University of Leicester. Curiosity got the better of her and she had run up to him murmuring a quiet hello. He looked surprised but not unhappy at seeing her and they had walked towards the university entrance together.
“I’m heading towards Fielding Johnson,” he had said, nodding towards the ivy-covered square building ahead of them which housed the university’s law faculty.
“You’re reading Law? In Leicester?”
He’d nodded. “Seemed like something I would be interested in.” He had hesitated but then continued, “After the War, I mean, after the trial, I was sentenced to be rehabilitated.” He grimaced. “To learn more about Muggles, to be around them, interact with them. I wanted to finish my education, and well, one of the Wizangamot had a relative who worked in the Admissions Department to the Law School at the university and they decided it would be a good option to let me study here.”
“I see. I’m doing my LLB here as well,” Hermione had replied.
That revelation of something in common had somehow brought them together, Hermione realised, as she put a note to check out the cases Professor Everton mentioned. Perhaps it was because they were both at a new place, facing new challenges or perhaps it was because he had apologised, but Hermione had found herself spending time with Malfoy. They had lectures and tutorials together and more often than not, would be studying together in the library. They never really talked about their Hogwarts days but concentrated on important issues prevalent in every university student’s life: why wasn’t there an extra copy of Treitel on Contract when you need one (Hermione), we should join the Pub Crawlers Society (Malfoy), doesn’t Professor Everton remind you of Tweety Bird (Hermione), you mean there are dirty magazines on the top shelf at the newsagents (Malfoy), what’s a Tweety Bird (Malfoy).
As she shifted in her seat, Hermione acknowledged to herself that that Malfoy’s apology was not mere lip service. She observed from his actions towards her and other Muggles that he seemed intent on turning over a new leaf. He shared with her his dry sense of humour, was charming when he wanted to be, and seemed eager to try things which he would never have done in the past. Above all, he was polite and friendly to her. There was no trace of the bigoted arrogance that was a part of him when he younger, though he still carried the confidence of one born with money and intelligence.
She had to admit, she found herself liking this Draco Malfoy.
At the end of the lecture, she met Malfoy at the exit of the theatre.
He smiled at her. “Lunch?” he asked.
She nodded her head in acceptance to his lunch invite and perhaps also to a budding friendship.
Consideration
“Consideration,” Professor Everton (there was no other word for it) chirped, “need not be adequate, but must be sufficient. The courts will not enforce a promise unless something of value is given in return for the promise. This maxim has resulted in very trivial acts being held to constitute consideration. The classic illustration of this point is the case of Chappell & Co v Nestle. Nestle offered for sale gramophone records in return for one shilling six dimes and three wrappers from their chocolate bars. The House of Lords held that even though the wrappers were of trivial economic value, they were nonetheless part of the consideration.”
Having read Treitel on Contract in preparation for this lecture, Hermione knew the facts of the case and its resultant judgement. Draco, who had also read the same chapter and was sitting next to her jogged her arm and whispered, “Want to see the match between Leicester and Man City with me next weekend?”
She wrinkled her nose. “You know I don’t fancy football much,” she replied. She vaguely recalled Dean Thomas being a big fan of West Ham and going on about how that Harry Redknapp was going to win them the Carling Cup. Or was that the Coca-Cola Cup? That summed up her meagre knowledge of football.
“But I haven’t been to one before. C’mon, Granger,” he whined.
“What about asking Greg,” she countered, not really feeling enthused about watching a match where twenty men just ran after a ball. Greg was Draco’s housemate and as far as she could remember, from the several times she had met him, a big footie fan.
“I can’t ask him or any of the other blokes. They’ll think I’m strange, not having seen a match before. And you know I’ll ask questions. Besides, he’s a Liverpool fan. He won’t want to watch this match.” He jogged her arm again. “C’mon. In consideration of you agreeing to go, I’ll buy you dinner.”
“And pay for the tickets.”
He looked mildly offended, “Of course.” Then he grinned at her, no doubt pleased at having gotten his way.
“In the spirit of today’s lecture, some chocolate would be good too.” She smirked at him.
Consensus Ad Idem
“I can’t believe you’ve talked me into another match and an away one at that,” Hermione complained half-heartedly, waiting for Professor Everton to start the lecture. She sneaked a glance at her companion who was again sitting next to her.
Draco had again extracted her promise to join him for another football match. He had become quite the Leicester City fan ever since that first match against Man City. Hermione secretly thought she had never seen a worse match; it had ended in a goalless draw. Dinner afterwards had been at a pub nearby, where they had discussed the match and finally, why she decided to study at Leicester and not remain in the Wizarding World. After a little hesitation, she had shared her feelings that she wanted to leave it all behind, even if just for a few short years. She had felt tired and frankly, irritated by the reaction of Harry and the rest of the Weasleys to her failed short relationship with Ron Weasley. Without the War and the common goal of helping Harry defeat Voldemort, they had finally run out of having things in common. She had realised they wanted different things in life, and she had been the one to break it off. Ron had understood that, but the split had resulted in a strained dynamic between her and the Weasleys and even Harry. She had felt that she needed to get back to the things she loved: books, research, using her analytical skills, all in an attempt to regain some semblance of normalcy in her life. He had nodded, telling her he understood what she meant perfectly. And the thing was, Hermione believed he did.
“What’s wrong with an away match?” Draco asked, shifting in his seat to lean closer to her. “Leicester will be playing Tottenham Hotspurs.” He paused; Hermione waited for it. “What on earth is a Hotspur?’
Hermione giggled, “The club’s named after one of the characters in Shakespeare’s plays, Henry IV, I believe.” She glanced at the lectern; Professor Everton still hadn’t turned up. Turning back to Draco, she said “An away match with the Spurs means we’ll have to travel all the way to London to watch them play. And unless you can find a fireplace connected to the Floo somewhere, it’ll mean taking a train there and back again on Saturday. You’ll have to wake up early to catch an early train.” She knew Draco hated having to wake up early on what he termed his well-deserved rest days.
He shrugged, seemingly unconcerned with this. “So we’ll take the early train.”
“You’re sure?” she glanced at him, “You’ll be cooped up with me in a train for at least three hours, and you know I’ve been dying to talk further about that last lecture Holyoak gave on nuisance, and …”
“Yes, yes,” he interrupted, giving her a sly smile, “it’s a big nuisance, but so are you and I’ve managed to survive putting up with you, so let’s just go.”
He grinned cheekily at her when she rolled her eyes at him in response. It still amazed her sometimes that they could now exchange insults without drawing out their wands and hexing each other, but there it was, a strange but not unwelcome equilibrium in their relationship. They found they shared many things in common: a love for reading, the urge to sometimes debate the most inconsequential things just to test the twists and turns they each would mentally take to win an argument, and funnily enough, a new-found loyalty for Leicester City Football Club, though Hermione's appreciation, for lack of a better word, of the club was more of a bemused spectator than Draco's unwavering conviction that the club would win the league title. They had now a firm friendship between them.
“Fine, but I’m bringing some textbooks for reference for the journey.”
“I would expect nothing less,” he said sombrely, but with a twinkle in his eye.
Before Hermione could respond to that, Professor Everton bustled in, apologising for her lateness.
“Let’s get on with today’s lecture. We all know the elements that make up a contract. However, we must bear in mind that the intentions of the parties forming the contract are important. There must be a common understanding in the formation of the contract. The parties must reach a consensus ad idem, a meeting of the minds.” Pausing long enough for her students to check on the spelling of the Latin phrase, Professor Everton continued, “Let’s take a look at Household Fire and Carriage Accident Insurance Co Ltd v Grant for an illustration of this.”
Hermione looked at Draco and gave him a smile; for two people where it was previously unthinkable to even be friends, a meeting of the minds was what they had finally achieved.
finis