A/n: It's been awhile fanficition…. It's been awhile.

Prologue

The music greeted her and she took a deep breath. This, she knew, was going to be one of those memorable moments that she would eventually tell her grandchildren about. The wind was cool as it ran softly over her bare skin. The crickets seemed to hush as the music grew louder. The croaking of the bullfrogs was intermittent as she smiled at the procession before her.

The first to go was Luna. She stared dreamily at the gossamer canopy billowing in the wind. She smiled faintly before joining a grinning Neville Longbottom who looked taller in his tailored fitted black dress robes.

After Luna, Ginny followed. Her long red hair shone in the moonlight against her midnight blue dress. After giving her a playful wink she met with Harry, her own fiancé, and began her own descent down the makeshift aisle.

She always knew it would be like this, ever since he had kissed her in the Chamber of Secrets. She was never one to dream about her own wedding, but she couldn't have planned a more beautiful one. The sky was dotted with a thousand stars, the sweet summer air was filled with the scent of freshly cut grass and apples, and the people who mattered most were there to support them on the next step of their journey.

She had worked hard to marry together her muggle roots with his magical ones. The groomsmen wore traditional dress robes, while the bridesmaids wore traditional bridesmaids' gowns. Her own father got into the spirit in looked oddly out of place in wizard dress robes, but kept muttering for most of the day that this was the most comfortable he had ever been at a wedding. Exotic wizarding plants were mixed in with her old favorites of large yellow sunflowers and various colors of crysanthemums.

The change in key with the simultaneous groan of chairs as her guests stood told her that it was her turn to walk down the aisle. She sighed softly as her father took her arm in his. Her heartbeat quickened as she began the long walk to the one person she knew would be hers for a lifetime.

Draco Malfoy cursed silently to the heavens. He still was trying to figure out how he ended up at a wedding, at the Weasleys of all places! The last time he had seen this bunch of riff raff was when the Dark Lord fell. Now here he was in the most peculiar of company.

"Is it over yet?" He whispered sarcastically to the girl next to him. Her dark hair was tucked ever so delicately behind her small ears. She smiled as if she heard him, but her gaze was elsewhere. She was looking towards the front where the official stood in royal purple dress robes next to Weasley. He hoped she wasn't getting any ideas.

He and Pansy had been seeing one another regularly after his parents licked their wounds when the Dark Lord fell. It was she who got him through the terrible times that followed. The loss of their reliable and trustworthy reputation after being associated with the Dark Lord was a large blow to the family company and their dealings overseas. At the end of it all it was only her and Blaise Zabini who stood by his side and since he couldn't sleep with Blaise, Pansy seemed like the most logical option.

After seven and a half years he was happy with Pansy, she had seen every side of him and accepted him and that's all that anyone could ever really want.

That thought brought him back to this circus called a wedding. His thoughts weren't biased because this was Weasley's wedding, no no, he thought all weddings were circuses. After seeing the relationship that his father and mother shared, he knew that the entire institution of marriage was a huge undeniable, unmistakable farce. Which begged the question once again, Why was he here?

He looked to his companion and knew that he was only a plus one at this event. It was Pansy who was invited by Weasley. Being colleagues in the Magical Gaming Department Weasley extended the invitation to her and a guest, so naturally he would be her plus one.

A hush came over the spectators as Luna Lovegood floated down the aisle with Neville Longbottom at her side. He gazed at her in awe as if he was the luckiest man alive. Then came Ginny Weasley who smiled playfully at the guests as her husband escorted her. Even he had to admit that she looked nice in muggle garb. The dark blue of her dress brought out the color of her eyes.

Pansy grabbed his hand and gazed at him as the crowd rose to greet the bride. The gaze she held was only for a second, but there was something different in her eyes. He couldn't describe it, he didn't know if it was longing or desire, but he brushed it off. She grabbed his hand in hers and squeezed tightly.

A collective breath intake came over the crowd as Hermione Granger made her first appearance. His eyes caught her movements and he couldn't look away. It was almost as if she stopped time and there was nothing he could do about it. The dress that hugged her frame left very little to the imagination. Her back was completely exposed which allowed her supple skin to glow in the moonlight. The curvature of her spine from her neck to her lower back made him catch his own breath, causing his jaw to clench. Her shoulders were bare exposing her very graceful yet delicate neck, which was wrapped in a single string of pearls. These pearls dotted her ears as well. As she walked past her gaze caught his for just a moment and her exuberant eyes glowed with a happiness that he had never felt before.

Hermione Granger was beautiful…

He almost retched at the thought, but there was no denying it. He looked to Pansy to see if she had caught him looking at Hermione, but she didn't. Her eyes were following the movements of the bride as she made her way down the aisle.

She could barely calm herself down from the butterflies whose wings fluttered violently against the lining of her stomach. As she walked down the aisle she noticed some familiar faces and was surprised to see a few others. Pansy worked closely with Ron at the ministry, so that was no surprise, but her plus one was none other than Draco Malfoy. She knew that it was no secret that they were together, however her stomach did flip-flops when his gaze caught her own. His silvery grey eyes were brought out by the moonlight. His build filled out nicely in his formal dress robes as his hair almost reached his shoulders. His jaw clenched noticeably at the site of her however, she was not going to let this ruin one of the best days of her life.

Hermione couldn't believe that this was finally happening after months and months of planning. She reached the end of the aisle where her father gave a few words of advice to Ron before handing over Hermione's hand into his own. She grinned at her husband to be and he smiled back slightly. They both turned to the official who then began the ceremony.

Her heart was beating terribly fast as she tried to remember her own vows she had written weeks earlier. There was so much that she wanted to say to Ron, so much that she wanted him to know. She loved him dearly and she knew that he was the one for her.

"Now, the couple has written their own vows to express the love that they have for one another. The groom will go first." The wizened old official said softly.

Draco Malfoy looked on, but noticed that Pansy was on the edge of her seat. Her hand still clutched on to his, but was squeezing his slightly. He let go feeling the warmth of her fingers leave his own as he draped an arm over the back of her chair.

"Hermione, because of you, I laugh, I smile, I dare to dream again." He started, "I look forward with great joy to spending the rest… the rest of my life…"

He hesitated….

Draco could sense there was something terribly wrong. Ron had begun to sweat profusely. His gaze broke from Hermione's, which caused her face to fall ever so slightly.

"Mate are you ok?" Potter asked, "Do you need something to drink?"

"No, I'm fine," he responded. His gaze then found Hermione's once again which made her smile completely fall. "Hermione, I am so sorry, but I can't do this… there is someone else."

Malfoy looked on in utter disbelief. He could only stare at Hermione whose face was completely expressionless. He knew deep down that she was hurting.

"I'm so sorry," he said again before turning and walking down the aisle away from Hermione.

Hermione could not believe what she was hearing. This couldn't be happening, but there he was leaving her at the alter. She felt her bouquet drop silently on the ground as he continued to walk up the aisle.

"Ronald!" Mrs. Weasley yelled, "What is the meaning of this? What is going on?"

The murmurings of the guests buzzed loudly as everyone saw the destruction of their relationship right before her eyes.

But Ronald Weasley ignored the voice of his mother and stopped short. Hermione saw as he reached out his hand to someone seated. The hand was slender, delicate, and pale as porcelain. He helped her to her feet and she couldn't believe her eyes.

As they ran up the aisle together Hermione could do nothing. Gazes of shame and pity met her as her fiancé ran off with the one person she never expected. She wasn't the only one in disbelief, Draco Malfoy stood up himself, his own face expressionless, which she knew was a mask for all the pain and turmoil of emotions. For once Hermione knew that she and Malfoy now shared something that no one ever would. The pain of watching both Ron and Pansy run up the aisle together until they were both out of sight.

His gaze was the only one that understood her own. His gaze kept her grounded yet proud. She was to shed no tears in public. All she could do was make her way up the aisle before her emotions could get the best of her. She was surprised to make it to the Burrow and once the backdoor to the kitchen slammed she tore up the stairs to the room she used to share with Ginny. Once the door was closed clutched her stomach with both arms finally letting the tears fall.

A/n: And so begins another fanfiction. As I write this A/N I have no idea what this fic is going to be about. I am not even sure what to call it yet, but I do believe that this is a good start to something wonderful…

As Always…Cherbi161