Aftermath

by burmafrd

the final battle and what came after. AU. All hail JK Rowling. This is nothing but some fun.

Hermione felt like she was swimming underwater; everything was dim and she felt like she was immersed in molasses. Slowly she raised her head; cold. She felt very cold; she shivered. Blinking, she looked around. She recognized the grounds of Hogwarts; winter; that was why she was cold. Then she remembered and tried to get up; groaning, she felt so tired and exhausted. Finally she was on her feet; looking around her she spotted the bodies of DeathEaters she had killed. She had no regrets at using the Killing Curse; they more than deserved it and it was not like the Ministry was around to object. She had used some stupefy curses as well, then cut their throats with her knife after. She had wanted to be certain they were dead and no longer a threat.

She and Harry and Ron had been fighting together when Voldemort had shown up; then she and Ron had desperately worked to shield Harry while he fought the Dark Lord. Ron had gotten Rodolpho Lestrange; and Hermione had gotten her revenge on Bellatrix Lestrange for her torture; she had stupefied the fiend then looked her in the eye while she cut her throat. Then there had been what felt like a magical explosion and that was all she remembered. She looked for Harry and Ron; spotting something red she moved towards it to find Ron on the ground; unmoving. Trembling, she knelt down and felt for a pulse; he was warm but there was none. Hoping she was in time Hermione began CPR; chest compressions then mouth to mouth; she was too magically exhausted to try anything else. After what seemed like an eternity Ron coughed and started to breathe, though still unconscious. Hermione sat back and shivered; she was so tired. Then forcing herself to get up she looked for Harry; saw him a little distance away near what looked like a black blob; she knew that must be the remains of Voldemort. Stumbling over to him she was relieved to feel a pulse; not strong but steady. She then looked around; there was not another moving person in sight. Clumps of bodies , but no one moving. Knowing that both Ron and Harry needed help, she forced herself to draw her wand and lift them; she was so tired it was all she could do. Slowly, step by step she moved them and herself towards the castle.

Minerva McGonagall shook her head and forced herself to look around; the battle had been ongoing until that magical explosion happened and threw all of them to the ground. Here in the great Hall they had just managed to hold their own; the last DeathEater had gone down just before the explosion. She moved towards the unmoving shape of Severus Snape; he had been injured by Nagrini and brought into the Hall just before the fighting had started. She was so relieved when she found he was still breathing; but he needed help; she lifted him and moved him towards the Infirmary, hoping Pompey was still there. Around her the students that had been fighting with her got up and started to look around.

Ginny Weasley had such a headache, but that did not matter. She got to her feet and started to look for Harry, Ron and Hermione; she knew that the battle was over but she needed to know what had happened to her friends. Molly Weasley stepped to the side of her Daughter, Arthur with her; they had managed to make it in time for the battle and had fought alongside their children. Fred and George, Charlie as well, they had all been together; all except Ron. Now they had to find them. The Weasley family together walked out of the great Hall onto the grounds looking for their friends and family; actually for all intents and purposes Harry and Hermione were family as well. They got their answer right away. For staggering towards them was Hermione, magically transporting Ron and Harry towards the Hall.

Barely on her feet, barely able to walk; Hermione Granger was a sight. Dirty, ragged, exhausted; but what a sight! The Weasley's rushed forward; the Boys and Arthur taking care of the injured, while Molly and Ginny rushed to Hermione, who upon sighting them sighed and sank to the ground, finally done. Ginny grabbed her friend in a hug, while Molly used her wand and picked up Hermione and started following her husband and sons as they moved the two boys into the Hall.

Madame Pompey was very busy; the casualties of the battle kept coming in and she was tired; her assistant had already collapsed. She looked up as Minerva moved Severus Snape into the infirmary; he was in bad shape. She went to work.

Lucius Malfoy sat on the ground next to his son; after regaining consciousness he had immediately checked on his son; they had been fighting side by side against Nagrini; it had gone down and then everything went black. Immensely relieved to find him alive but unconscious, he was gathering his strength to get him into the castle. He had seen somewhat in the distance someone transporting two towards the Hall; squinting he had just barely been able to make out that it was the little witch, Hermione Granger. She had been staggering but moving steadily towards the castle; he was willing to bet that she was moving her two friends. He looked around; very few people were moving. Mostly just bodies or the unconscious. Groaning he got up and started to move his son.

Madame Pompey had just finished stabilizing Snape when she saw the Weasleys coming in transporting the Golden Trio. Gathering her strength she moved towards them. Both Harry and Ron were out; Hermione was barely awake. She weakly motioned towards Pompey; she moved closer to the young girl, who was dirty, ragged and exhausted.

Hermione was so tired; but she had to speak to Madame Pompey. "Ron wasn't breathing when I found him; I had to do CPR on him." Madame Pompey blinked. "I was too magically exhausted to try anything else."

Madame Pompey examined Ron and found him very weak; luckily it seemed there had been no damage done by his period of non breathing. He just needed support and rest. Then she checked Harry and found the same. Then she checked Hermione, who had fallen asleep. The girl was exhausted but that was all. She then told the hovering Weasley's that they would all be fine with rest.

Molly hugged her daughter who had broken down with tears of relief. Arthur shook his head. "Its incredible that all three of them made it; I was so sure we would lose at least one of them." Molly sighed. "We have been so lucky; so many other families have lost people during this war." Ginny sniffed, wiping away her tears. "Its finally over. Seemed like this war lasted forever; Voldemort and the Deatheaters have been around as long as I can remember."

Hermione groaned and shifted; Ginny quickly moved over to her friend and grabbed her hand. "Its ok Hermione, its all over and we are all fine. Harry and Ron are fine; they just need rest." Hermione slowly opened her eyes; blinking at the light, she looked at Ginny. "Ron?" Molly answered. "Pompey has checked him and Harry and all they need is rest; they will be fine. And now you, young lady, rest. Its done; the war is over; you no longer have to worry and look after them." Hermione gave a tiny smile and was about to say something when there was a commotion at the door of the infirmary.

Lucius Malfoy was transporting his unconscious son into the infirmary. Fred and George were confronting him. "No deatheaters allowed, Malfoy. Go somewhere else."

Lucius was about to say something when a clear, soft, trembling but determined voice interrupted him. "Fred, George, let them in. They were fighting on our side."

Everyone there turned in surprise to see the small witch being supported by Ginny, sitting up and looking calmly their way.

Molly shrilled "Hermione, how can you say that! They have both been Deatheaters for years!"

"They were, but Lucius has been giving us information for months; the last three Horacrux's were found because of that information. And I saw them fighting Nagrini during the battle. That was all that matters." Exhausted, Hermione slumped back and Ginny carefully let her down, and pulled the blanket back up under her chin.

Lucius Malfoy then turned to the Weasley twins. "Satisfied? Now that our references have been impeccably vouched for, get out of my way so that my son can be examined." Lucius refused to confront the feeling of gratitude he had for the little witch; she was still a mudblood. And he was a pureblood. Even if he had to admit he had grown to admire the fiery little witch; she had been his contact giving the information. He smirked; remembering when she had found out who he was. Stunned and with her mouth open; Lucius had been unable to resist baiting her. "Catching Flies, Miss Granger?" She had closed her mouth with an audible snap; then glared at him and retorted. "You can understand my justifiable astonishment at seeing Voldemorts right hand man here." Lucius had lost his smirk and grimly replied. "When he killed my wife he became my enemy; but I must admit my doubts had started long before. " Narcissa Malfoy had been killed for refusing orders from Voldemort; Hermione had been stunned when she heard; she would never have believed she had that much courage. Of course her death had been immediate.

Reluctantly the two Weasley's had backed off and Lucius had moved his son to an empty bed, where Madame Pomprey quickly examined him and told his father that Draco was just exhausted; he would recover.

Some hours later Hermione opened her eyes and groaned; her bruises were making themselves felt. Dashing around, rolling on the ground to avoid spells, she had picked up a fair share. She sat up and looked around. The infirmary was mostly deserted; only herself, Ron, Harry and Draco were there; all the other beds were empty. She looked over to see Lucius Malfoy dozing by the bedside of his son; he was the only other person there. Asleep, all the arrogance and everything else was gone; now all she saw was a exhausted and worried father keeping watch over his son. Her own emotions about Lucius were conflicted; his history had not been a friendly one to her or her friends; the Battle in the Ministry only the most noted example. But his help had been invaluable; and with Draco and Himself taking care of Nagrini, that had probably made the difference in the last fight. If they had had to worry about Nagrini as well as the Lestranges and Voldemort, the battle could have gone the other way. And his information about the Horacrux's had been just as necessary. Hermione had to go to the bathroom and managed to get out of bed, trying to quiet her groans. However Lucius was only dozing and came to full awareness even with her slight sounds.

He watched the young witch slowly and painfully get out of bed; he had an impulse to offer help then squashed it; he was certain it would be rejected. 'Just as I would in her place' he thought. Now where did THAT come from? Putting himself in the place of a mudblood?

Hermione came back in and saw Lucius calmly regarding her. She paused, chewed her lip, then moved his way.

'This could be interesting'.

At that moment several Auror's walked into the infirmary, accompanied by Madame Pomprey.

Hermione heard their approach and turned towards them. Lucius tensed, realizing they were coming for him.

Madame Pomprey was not happy; she hated anyone disturbing her patients and frankly wondered where these Aurors had the Gaul to even show up here; not like they had been there for the battle.

"Lucius Malfoy, you are under arrest…"

"Take your wands and stick them up your ass. And get out of here. You cowards have no business being here. Where were you during the battle? Hiding under your desks at the Ministry? Now get out."

Everyone was stunned at the venom coming from the slight young witch.

"Hermione, I like this no better then you do. But they have their job to do."

"What job? Hiding while teens and children fight their battles? They have no authority to do anything. Besides which Lucius Malfoy helped the Order of the Phoenix find the last Horacrux's and he and his son killed Nagrini, which might have made the difference in the final battle. So for the last time get your cowardly asses out of here."

Stunned, the Aurors looked at each other and quietly left.

The commotion had woken the others, Ron and Harry sitting up and blinking; Draco groaning and opening his eyes. "That sounds like Granger again. Will I never get any peace?"

Hermione smiled, tired but triumphant. "Draco you get to suffer some more so get used to it."

Harry rubbed his eyes. "Mione, what was that about? Did you just run some Aurors out of here?"

Ron nodded, tired as well. "She sure did. They went out with their tails between their legs. Had something to do with Malfoy."

Hermione sighed and sat down on her bed, exhausted once again. "Those cowards thought they could show up after everything was over and be important again. Not while I am around; as far as I am concerned the Ministry should dry up and blow away."

Lucius, after checking on his son, got up and walked towards Hermione.

"I am in your debt, Miss Granger. They certainly wanted to take me back to Azkaban. That is a place I have no wish to return to."

"I will not forget your past, Mr Malfoy. But you did help us at a critical time. It made a difference; maybe it was THE difference. Whether what you have done recently is enough to make up for all that you had done previously is another matter; but that is not up for us to decide. Frankly that is between you and your conscience; providing you have one."

"I have one Miss Granger. Admittedly it probably needs further development."

Harry snorted. "Now that is the understatement of the last century!"

The Weasley's and Minerva McGonagall then appeared. Molly bustling in to check on her son and his friends, as far as she was concerned Harry was another son and Hermione another daughter.

Minerva looked at Hermione. "Miss Granger, what was that shouting all about?"

Hermione smiled tiredly and lay back on her bed. "Some Ministry Aurors showed up and tried to look important. They wanted to arrest Lucius and I told them to stick their wands up their asses and take said asses and leave."

Minerva blinked. "Miss Granger, you need to control your temper or it will get you in trouble."

Hermione smiled. "Just could not resist, Maam. Those cowards hid under their desks until it was all over and then tried to claim some authority? I was NOT going to let them get away with that."

Molly was looking hard at Hermione. "Hermione, are you sure that Lucius was worth defending?"

"Molly, you know I have a very strong sense of justice. While I despise Lucius for his prejudice, bigotry and trying to kill me, I must be fair and admit his help was invaluable before the battle, and during it. Sometimes the truth tastes bad but you have to swallow it."

Lucius bowed to Hermione. "Quite probably the nicest thing you have ever said about me, Miss Granger."

Ron rolled his eyes. "Don't hold your breath for anything better, Malfoy."

Madame Pomprey had had enough. "All right enough is enough. These young people need their rest and I want everyone out so that they can get it."

The next day they were all released from the Infirmary. The damage done to the castle was not extensive but it was enough to cancel classes. It would be several months before all the repairs were done; so it had been decided to close the term and start up again in the fall. Hermione was conflicted about going to the Burrow, which was still under repair, back to 12 Gimmauld Place, or to her parents (in the end she had not had to obliviate them – they had decided on their own to visit Australia until the war was over) but she really did not want to travel that far. The Burrow was too crowded; and Grimmauld place frankly had too many not so good memories right now. But she figured that it would probably be the best destination.

Lucius was in the great hall with the others eating breakfast when Hermione arrived. She got out a little ahead of the others and decided to let him know that his son would be out soon.

Lucius looked up when he noticed Hermione coming towards him. She looked rather nice with the snug fitting muggle jeans and T-shirt; her curls a great improvement over her former bush like hairdo. The little witch had grown into a comely young woman. He pondered the fact that he was noticing that; and that he no longer thought of her as only a mudblood. At that moment from the main entrance Kingsley Shackelbolt appeared; he had just been appointed by the Wizanmagot as the new Minister Of Magic.

Hermione paused as she almost collided with Kingsley. "Almost ran into you, sir. Congratulations on your appointment; its about time they put in someone who knows what they are doing."

Kingsley smiled at the teen. He had always liked her and admired her; her conduct during the war had been exemplary. He had been pleased that the first thing he had done as Minister was approve the Orders of Merlin for her, Harry and Ron.

"It is good to see you well, Hermione. I hear you ran some aurors out of here yesterday; cannot find it in myself to complain about what you said because it was very accurate. All too many did hide instead of fight. I had just gotten my appointment when I heard of the battle. I went to the ministry to round up what help I could find and it was not much. Then some Deatheaters appeared there; I guess that was a diversion on Voldemort's part. Only a few but you would think there were thousands with the way some people acted. I did not see a single Auror at all."

Hermione shook her head. "That sadly does not surprise me. When I think of who really fought in this war it seems clear that most of the English Wizarding population sat it out. That is a fact that should not be forgotten."

Kingsley noticed Lucius watching them and sighed. "Hermione, when you get a chance in the next week or so please stop by and give a formal statement about Lucius Malfoy. I need that cleared up; his previous actions need to be offset. "

"I will do it as soon as I can. Who is the chief Auror now?"

"I am doubling as that at the moment. There frankly is no one I would trust right now; I would have asked Mad Eye Moody to come out of retirement for a while if he had lived. There is no one else. IT will take a while."

Hermione smiled a little mistily thinking about the crusty old auror. She missed him. "Well at least things should be a little quieter now. Mainly just picking up the pieces and dealing with the remaining Deatheaters."

"Luckily you and the others managed to take care of most of them. By the way do not worry about any repercussions as regarding how any of them died. Whether by the Killing Curse or cut throats."

Hermione blushed at that. Then she had a thought. "Sir, you might want to consider Minerva for chief Auror; since Professor Snape will recover he can take over as Headmaster. She can do the job and you would not have to worry about it."

He thought about that. "I had not considered her for that role but you are right. Well, I was here to talk to her anyway. Thank you Hermione, that might be a big help."

Hermione went over to sit at the main table across from Lucius. She nodded at him as he stood.

"I never said this before but I do like your manners, Mr Malfoy. When you are not being prejudiced, anyway."

Lucius smirked at her. "That is a large part of my upbringing, Miss Granger. A gentleman always stands when a lady approaches."

Hermione smiled at him. Strange she felt so relaxed around him. Probably a result of the battle and the war; after all that some things just did not affect her anymore.

Hermione was surprised how easy it was to talk to him. They chatted amiably through breakfast. She told him that Madame Pomprey would release his son and the others in the next hour or so.

"I will be taking Draco back to the Manor to let him rest up. Where will you be going, Miss Granger? The Burrow or Grimmauld Place? Or will you visit your parents?"

"Luckily my parents decided on their own to go to Australia until the war was over; I really did not want to obliviate them but I would have to protect them. I have no doubt Voldemort would have gone after them if they had stayed. The Burrow needs work and would be too crowded; Grimmauld place has some bad memories but that is most likely where I will go."

Lucius thought for a moment. With their switch, and with Narcissa's death, most likely the Malfoy reputation was somewhat restored; however it never hurt to add some extra insurance. He also had a personal motive for what he was about to ask; decent conversation was something he had not had much of for far too long; and he had a hunch it was the same with her.

"Miss Granger, Draco and I owe a debt to you; you gave us a chance to prove ourselves; no one else did. In repayment I ask that you consider staying at Malfoy Manor as long as you want. Until the next term if you wish. There you can have as much solitude and privacy as you want. But I will admit I would look forward to our conversations; stimulating conversations has not been something I have had much of for some time."

Hermione looked at him in surprise. Talk about coming out of the Blue! She thought about it. It might be very uncomfortable; and it might not. She certainly would get more privacy then at the Burrow; and the atmosphere would probably be more cheerful at the Manor then at Grimmauld Place; Remus and the others were rather depressed still, and would be for a while due to their losses during the war.

She looked at him suspiciously. "The Lucius Malfoy I know has a hidden agenda. What is it?"

Lucius smirked. "If I told you it would no longer be hidden."

Hermione crossed her arms, raised her eyebrow and just stared at him.

Lucius raised his own eyebrow. "Do you actually think you can outstare me?"

Hermione made her face go blank and just sat there.

Lucius eyed her. She was unmoving. Sighing he nodded. "Very well. This will help repair the Malfoy reputation if it is known that one of the primary hero's of the war was given shelter there."

"Ha! Thought it was something like that. Very well I accept, and thank you."

Hermione found that being at Malfoy Manor was actually quite relaxing. She only saw Lucius and Draco at meal times – since she usually did not eat lunch that meant only twice a day. She virtually lived in the huge library-it rivaled Hogwarts and amazingly had quite a varied selection. She had asked Lucius about that and he told her that since he had been in charge that a lot of volumes from the muggle world had been included. They had been hidden when Voldemort was there and had been returned as soon as he was gone. To a self proclaimed book worm this was as close to heaven as she hoped to get.

Draco spoke to his father one day a week after Hermione had arrived, at lunch time which she normally did not appear.

"Father, am I imagining things or are you starting to look at her with more than disinterest?"

Impassively Lucius glanced at his son and said nothing.

Draco looked at his father harder.

" I do not believe it. After all this time you are looking at a mudblood THAT way?"

"Do not use that term again Draco. It will get you in trouble if you do not learn to stop reliving the old times. Things have changed and those that do not change with the times will be run over and destroyed."

"You are up to something. I can tell."

"Very well if you must know I have been taking a careful inventory of the way the wizarding world is changing, and our place in it. Our history and wealth ensures that we will always matter; but at this time and for the foreseeable future we will not be supreme as we once were. Brutally speaking we were on the losing side and while switching late in the match kept us out of Azkaban, our position is still reduced because we were on the losing side. Remember this, Draco. The winning side of every war writes the history that most will remember; that is the way of the world. If the Malfoy family wants to once again lead the wizarding world we must adapt and change."

Draco mulled this over. "How does she figure in this?"

Lucius sighed. " I would have thought that it was obvious. She has come out of the war as one of the hero's; one of the Golden Trio. Even before the final battle they were known as such. I have no doubt as the years go by it will be realized by most that she was the brains behind the Order of Phoenix; not Dumbledore or Potter. Her role will grow over the years as I have no doubt she will have a brilliant career in whatever she does. And more than that people will trust her as someone who is not easily fooled. So anyone she chooses to be with will have instant approval and trust."

Draco slowly nodded. "Now I see. Her being part of the family will bring the Malfoy name back up to where it was by association. And that will give us the edge over any other family."

"Now you get it. It does not hurt that she is a comely witch and unlike virtually her entire generation she can hold a conversation on many subjects. You will find that a woman that you can talk with is infinitely preferable to one that is only beautiful but limited of intellect."

Draco looked at him sharply. " I sense you are talking about Mother."

Lucius sighed and looked away. "Your mother was a loyal wife and a good mother to you; but her intellect was limited and she had no conversation beyond clothes, jewelry and society. I cared for her but did not love her; one of the reasons was that frankly much of the time she bored me. That was NOT her fault; neither of us chose the other; it was an arranged marriage as most of my generations purebloods were. The only time in her entire life when she stood up for herself was when she refused Voldemort; and she picked the worst possible time; I think she really did not believe that he would kill her for refusing his order. Despite what she had seen. Her belief in her invincibility as a pureblood and a Malfoy was fatal to her. Sadly once again proving that her intellect was limited. That ALL should have been obvious for a long time. Hermione would never have made that mistake; I have no doubt she would have sacrificed her life if she felt it was necessary but she would never have done what Narcissa did. "

Draco thought about all this and realized that his father was correct. He would always love her as his mother, but he had to admit her limitations. Granger certainly was a lot smarter, if bossy and nowhere near as attractive. Perhaps in these new times his father had the right idea.

"So how are you going to court her? Traditionally? Its not like she would care or even realize it."

"Do not underestimate her; once she realizes my intent I have no doubt she would be immediately researching Pureblood courting rituals. I think I will start out that way and once I am sure she knows will change, keeping her off balance. Her curiosity will keep her interested if for no other reason."

"Do you care about her at all or is she only a means to an end?"

"I care. I want her and she will be mine."

Draco blinked at that bald declaration. "Well this should be interesting."

Slowly backing away from the door Hermione crept back up the stairs to her room.

She sat on her bed with her mind whirling. Part of her was angry; but she could not deny that part of her was very attracted to Lucius. He was a handsome man and even she had heard of the term "Luscious Lucius", denoting his reputation with women. His cold determination to use her to further his family chilled her; just as his brutal statement that he wanted her and would have her heated her up. He had said he cared; that really was the only reason she had not already left Malfoy Manor. Well, while she was trying to make up her mind how she felt about him she needed to start researching Pureblood courting rituals- and she could not do it here since Lucius might find out. That left Hogwarts which was closed right now or… Of course! Molly was of the old pureblood line as well. SHE would know. And Hermione was due to have dinner with the Weasley's the next evening to celebrate Harry officially being betrothed to Ginny. Now it was just a matter of figuring out how to ask her without arousing suspicion.

As it turned out, it was easier then Hermione thought it would be. After the truly tremendous dinner that she and Fleur had helped Molly cook, everyone was just setting around stuffed. Ron had tweaked Harry on his proposal (Ginny, shall we do it?) and in the laughter afterwards Hermione had seen her opportunity.

"So how does the Purebloods go about courting and such? Or is it all arranged and nothing like that happens? I bet it is very organized and tedious with lots of rules and such."

Molly had laughed out loud. "Despite what you might have heard, Hermione, there are really not that many arranged marriages any more; even in my generation most were not. But you are right that there are some strict rules."

Using her normal "question face" as ron always called it, Hermione asked for some details on how pureblood courting started. What did the wizard do first and so on?

Molly was quite happy to prattle on. "Flowers and gifts first; then the wizard MUST, and I mean MUST, ensure that he dances with his intended the FIRST dance at any celebration or event that has dancing. He must never show any interest in any other woman; he must ask permission of her parents; he must ask permission of his own; and above all he must NEVER in any way show offense or in any way show that she is not the most important person in his world. There are others but that is the main part."

Hermione nodded sagely. This should be interesting.

That next week came the formal Ministry event to celebrate the end of the war. Harry, Ron and Hermione would be given the Order of Merlin at that event. She had already gone with Ginny and Molly to a dress maker to have their dresses done; now she knew that Lucius would have to make sure the first dance was with her; without it being obvious. Hermione was feeling like there was an opportunity to have some fun. She badly needed to talk to someone about all of this and had decided that Ginny was really the only person. She knew that Harry and Ginny would be going to 12 Grimmauld Place the next day to look it over for redecoration. Harry had come into the Potter family money now and was actually quite wealthy; so Ginny would not have to worry about spending too much.

Hermione had thought things over and going over Molly's words saw that Lucius was not clearly bound by some of it; his parents were dead. It would be interesting since her parents were due in the next week back in England. He would have to ask her where they were staying if he wanted to speak to them; she then recalled that he intended to part with tradition as soon as he saw she was aware of his intentions. Well no one said it would be easy and she was determined to make sure he jumped through plenty of hoops.

Hermione apparated into 12 Grimmauld Place just after noon; she had not told Lucius she was going out; she had just gone. She found Harry and Ginny looking over the main dining room and deciding which pictures had to go. She then remembered something she had promised Harry and was glad to be able to do. It would also give her an excuse to be there.

"Harry! I came to help you get rid of Mrs Black's picture! Hi Ginny!" Hermione deliberately acted excited and cheerful to throw off any suspicions she had ulterior motives.

"Mione! I am glad you found out how to do it. She was ranting again when we got here."

Ginny chimed in. "That would be fantastic if you could get rid of her. Talk about a mood killer coming in the door!"

"No time like the present. Lets get rid of the old bag."

Ginny giggled as they trooped down to the main entranceway into the house.

Hermione ignored the old womans ranting as she raised her hands and began to chant a wandless spell; the picture began to shrink and the womans ravings got fainter and fainter until they and the picture disappeared.

Harry and Ginny were properly impressed and grateful; Ginny gave her a hug and then Harry grabbed her in a bearhug and swung her around.

"God Mione that was great! I have wanted to get rid of her for years and now she is gone. Where did you send her?"

"Nowhere Harry- I just shrunk her to nothing. It was a shrinking spell I modified that does not end. She is gone for good."

Ginny was exuberant. "Already this place is much more cheerful. Now Hermione we need to talk about the dining room. I want to make some big changes and I want your advice."

Harry told them that he would be checking the other rooms for a while and left them in the dining room.

After looking it over and discussing some changes, Hermione made a point to listen carefully to make sure that Harry was not nearby. Ginny noticed this and looked inquiringly at her.

"I want to talk to you about something big and I wanted to make sure that Harry cannot hear."

Immediately intrigued, Ginny grabbed a chair and sat down. "I have a feeling this is pretty big so here I am sitting down."

Hermione sighed and sat down next to her. Taking a deep breath she looked at her friend and decided quick and blunt was the best way to go.

"I overheard Lucius telling Draco that he was going to start courting me."

Ginny's eyes grew huge and her mouth dropped open; her jaw fell off and rolled along the floor.

"You're SERIOUS?"

"Serious as a heart attack; which I almost got when I overheard them talking."

Ginny blinked several times and took a deep breath then let it out.

"Wow this is big. And about as unexpected as you can get. THAT is why you were asking about Pureblood courting rituals!"

Hermione nodded. "He intends to start out that way figuring I have no idea about Pureblood rituals and would not recognize what is going on right away; he then intends to part with tradition. I cannot believe he is not smart enough to realize that flowers and gifts would be pretty big hints on their own."

Ginny was thinking furiously. "The ministry event next week will be the first formal event that you will both be at; he MUST ensure that he has the first dance with you. I am betting in the next few days, or just before the event, you will get the flowers and such. He can probably figure a way not to be obvious about the first dance; and its not like there are a lot of such events coming up. So its not out of the question he could have kept you from figuring it out for a while. How do you feel about him, Hermione?"

"I am not sure. Part of the reason he wants me is to help out with repairing the Malfoy family reputation with his alliance with one of the hero's of the war. If that was all I had heard I would have marched right in and slapped his face and then left the Manor for good. But right after that he made it clear that not only does he WANT me, but he admitted to Draco that he cared for me. BUT I am not going to make it easy for him."

Ginny looked at her shrewdly. "Hermione I think you have already made up your mind; you just do not want to admit it to yourself; let alone anyone else."

Hermione blinked at that; then sat back in her chair and thought about it. Had she indeed already decided? She had thought not; but now she was not sure. She was reasonably certain that she did not love him right now; but she admitted that she was very attracted to him; and not only for his insanely good looks and powerful charm. She loved talking to him; debating and sometimes arguing with him was as enjoyable as she could have hoped. She knew she was starting to seriously lean in the direction of accepting. She looked at Ginny.

"You might be right. But no matter what I am going to make him sweat. He is not going to have an easy time of it or me; he needs to know that I will never just roll over for him."

Ginny giggled. "Unless its in bed!"

"Ginnerva Weasley!"

The day before the Ministry celebration Hermione found flowers – lots of flowers- adorning her room one evening after she got back from the Ministry and formally making her statement about the War and her activities in it. That had taken hours and she was tired when she got back. She knew what it meant but still loved them and made sure Lucius knew about it at dinner.

"Thank you for the flowers Lucius." Lets see what he does.

"You are quite welcome Hermione." Step one.

"How did you know Lilacs were my favorites?"

"I made it a point to ask Harry. He was a little surprised at the question but knew the answer."

Hmmm. Wonder when he asked? Need to talk to Harry. So far in the 5 days since she found out she could detect no real change in Lucius's behavior. He made no moves to get closer to her; so that made her wonder if he was waiting until right up to the event. These flowers the day before seemed to indicate he had started.

The day of the Ministry celebration had started out as normal. They would be leaving at 6 pm to make it there for the start at 7. Hermione had come down from her room in her dress at 5. She had been careful to observe Lucius's reaction without appearing to do so. She had seen the flare in his eyes when he first saw her- her dress was a little skimpy up top and clingy down below; being a strapless top and tight below the waist. She had to admit seeing the heat in his eyes had gone straight to her core. He had been properly polite and complimented her on her dress. THEN he had stepped close to her and presented a long thin case.

"Lucius?"

"A small token of my regard."

Hermione had taken the case and opened it to find a pearl necklace. Not large or ostentatious but clearly expensive.

"Lucius I cannot accept this-it's way too expensive."

"Hermione you know quite well how rich I am; this would be a normal gift if compared to someone not extremely wealthy. Look at it that way."

Hermione had to admit he had a point. But clearly his campaign had started. "Thank you Lucius."

Then deciding that she should try and keep HIM off balance a little she stepped close to him and kissed his cheek. Then moved away to a mirror. He followed and took the necklace from her and placed it around her neck. She could not prevent the slight shiver that ran through her as his fingers brushed her neck. She saw the heat return to his eyes in the mirror; once again it went right into her as well.

Inwardly Lucius smiled in triumph. He had felt the little witches trembling when his fingers brushed oh so lightly on her neck. Her eyes had also given away the reaction; she was indeed attracted to him physically as he had expected. He found that he wanted her badly; he had no doubt he would be her first and he fully intended to be the only man that would ever have her. The dress clung to her slender form but emphasized her firm figure; lovely breasts; and her derriere was tight and very shapely. For a relatively short women she had superb legs. Her use for restoring the Malfoy reputation would be convenient, but he admitted to himself that that was a very secondary concern; he wanted her and he would have her; she would belong to him.

His desire for her had begun long before the battle; he at first had refused to acknowledge it. But by the time of that final battle he had accepted that he desired the little muggleborn very much. He had started planning his campaign that very night. Her defense of him to those aurors had stirred him highly; he had gotten very hard. And the fact that at the time she was still ragged and dirty amused him; even in those conditions he found he wanted her very much. Convincing her to stay at the Manor had been his first step; things had gone quite well since then. He was gratified to find that his hunch that she would be very entertaining had borne fruit; she was the only person her age he had ever found that could carry on a decent conversation on multiple subjects. That attracted him even more. She would make a very fine mate in many ways.

He knew that courting her would be very different then what he had done before; though to be honest (something he tried to avoid except as regards himself) he had not had to court Narcissa; their marriage had been arranged and it had only been a custom he followed. As regards to the many women he had bedded over the years, courtship had not come into those affairs at all. He had not needed to; Lucius Malfoy literally could snap his fingers and have a dozen attractive witches panting at his beck and call. Hermione Granger however would require a totally different tactic; she had no real care for jewels, expensive dresses, the normal baubles that did fine for other women. He had no doubt that rare books though would work quite well. He had also thought that donations to her favorite charities (concerning displaced house elfs and orphans of the war) would also pay dividends; but those would have to wait until she acknowledged that he was courting her. He wondered how long that would take; he had no doubt that she knew very little if anything about Pureblood courting rituals; it was something that she would never have had any interest in.

Hermione knew she would have to be on her guard or Lucius would pick up her lust very quickly. The heated looks she had drawn had warmed her core to near boiling; she knew she was damp already. These reactions shocked and concerned her; she had never had them before. But then no one as flat out seductive as Lucius Malfoy had ever shown such an interest. She had to admit to herself that that in itself was tremendously attractive; to have someone known as such an excellent judge of the sexy female form want Hermione Granger like this stirred her more then she wanted to acknowledge. She had never really thought about her physical attractiveness; she knew she was decent looking but no beauty; she had also never thought of herself as being sexy. Finding herself the object of a very attractive mans lust meant more to her then she had ever thought; for all her modern and independent ways knowing Lucius Malfoy wanted her badly had become very important to her.

The Ministry Ball was held at the ministry; Hermione had never realized that it had a ballroom. It was quite large and there was no lack of room for all that were there. She was sited just down from the minister and next to Harry; Ron on her other side. Lucius was down the table some but not far. Ginny and the Weasley's on the other side not far from Lucius. They had apparated to the entry way of the Ministry and then had gone in to the ballroom where they had all been seated as soon as they arrived. That gave Hermione some time to talk to Ron and Harry; she had not had much of a chance since the battle.

Both Harry and Ron had been startled by her appearance. Harry had said she looked great; Ron had just stared. She then popped him upside the head and he had stammered and apologized.

Ron started out. "So how is it living in the Manor with Lucius and the Ferret? "

"Actually I have seen very little of Draco except at meal time and not always then. So far there has been no problem; he has been on his best behavior. Lucius has been polite and charming. I have actually enjoyed my time there."

Harry blinked. "Really? They must be up to something."

"Harry, why would they be up to something? What could they gain?"

Ron snorted. "I think that they want you to acknowledge them as friends- that would help repair the Malfoy reputation. And I think that planning and plotting comes as naturally to Lucius as breathing does."

Hermione was a little startled that Ron was so accurate. Maybe he was getting more perceptive. She wondered if she should let out a little. Then decided why not.

"Well Lucius just before we left gave me this necklace. And he did send flowers yesterday."

Ron narrowed his eyes. "He is definitely up to something; that necklace is NOT cheap."

"Ron, he made the point that what he spent for him was the same as if someone had given me a box of chocolates if they were not rich, and he was right."

Harry shook his head. "I have to agree with Ron- he is up to something. And if Draco is behaving himself its because Lucius told him to."

Hermione pondered things and decided to stir the pot. Why not?

"Its almost as if he is courting me. Flowers, Jewelry, compliments on my appearance."

Harry's eyes grew huge. So did Ron- then they narrowed.

"Pureblood courting! Lucius is going by the way custom says you have to do it! If he makes sure he has the first dance with you tonight then its what he is doing."

Hermione made a point of looking startled. "Molly was talking about that last week, when I asked about it because of how Fleur got proposed to. She did say that flowers and gifts started it off."

Harry was shaking his head. "This is really out there. Lucius Malfoy courting a muggle using Pureblood courting rules. He has got to have some kind of plan where you come in handy."

Hermione was just a little miffed. "So he could not have decided that he just wants me and that is the way he is going about it?" she said as she glared at Harry.

Harry blushed. "Mione, its not that. He has been a pureblood fanatic all his life; now suddenly he decides to court a Muggle? That does not make sense."

Ron chimed in. "You cannot trust a Malfoy; they only do what is in their best interests; Lucius came to our side because Voldemort killed his wife and even he had to admit the bastard was crazy. Now he maybe courting you, so to me it's clear he has a plan."

Hermione had to agree. Ron was really surprising tonight; she had not thought he had it in him. "You might be right. Well let's see what happens at the first dance."

But first they had to suffer through speeches and the award of the Order of Merlin. Luckily Kingsley was not a fan of that sort of thing and made sure that they did not have to speak. After they each got their award, there was a few minutes while photographers were allowed to take pictures of them one at a time then all three together.

Lucius observed all this and congratulated himself on his choice of a future wife. Hermione looked lovely this night; that dress truly flattered her. Her natural dignity and grace were apparent; and of course being awarded the Wizarding World's highest honor would certainly help him in the future. Now he had to make sure he had the first dance; he was not going to allow custom to be ignored.

Hermione had just gotten back to her seat when the music started up; she looked towards where Lucius was and saw that he had already gotten up and was headed her way. Even though she was expecting it she was aware of another flare of heat going through her; Lucius looked distinctly predatory as he headed her way.

"Hermione, will you do me the honor of having the first dance?"

His low question sent shivers up her spine. She found herself unable to speak and could only nod as she got up and took his hand. She did notice Ron and Harry sharing a significant look as they moved towards the dance floor.

It should not have surprised her that Lucius was a very good dancer. Hermione had to concentrate on her steps; it was very hard being held quite close to him. She managed to look around her a little and saw that Harry was dancing with Ginny; and that Ron was sitting it out. The floor gradually grew more crowded and Lucius used that opportunity to pull her closer.

Molly and Arthur were dancing when Molly spotted Lucius and Hermione.

"Arthur! Look at that" and she gestured.

"Interesting. And it is the first dance, too."

"You don't think he…?"

"Well this would make things much more interesting if so."

"Arthur! She is just a child!"

"Molly, Hermione has had to grow up quickly. Maybe by the calendar she still is; but in every other way she is an adult."

"Not in that way! Hermione has never really even had a date! What does she know about it! And we are talking Lucius Malfoy here. He has GOT to be up to something."

"Well we will keep an eye on her."

"We certainly will. We need to know if any presents or such came her way from him before now. If he is indeed holding to Pureblood courting rules."

"Hermione is looking quite lovely tonight. Maybe he is just acknowledging that. "

"She does look well. I knew that dress would look good on her. Still this is Lucius Malfoy we are talking about; he always has a plan. Impulses are not something he listens to."

Hermione did not want the dance to end. In Lucius's arms she felt a rightness she had never known before. Everything just- fit.

Lucius found he was having a very hard time keeping Hermione from noticing his arousal. The little witch was extremely attractive and her innocence terribly appealing. He had never felt the like before with any woman. He had never before found innocence all that attractive; he had preferred witches who knew what they were about. Of course Narcissa had been a virgin; but that was then and this was now.

More than a few eyes were following Lucius and Hermione. One set belonged to the Minister of Magic. He too was suspicious of Lucius Malfoy; he after all had known him his whole life. He had to be up to something. Hermione was looking quite lovely; maybe he was just responding to a very attractive young witch who was NOT trying to lure him. But Kingsley felt he needed to make sure. He decided to make sure he had a dance with Hermione that night.

Hermione groaned as she walked into her room at the Manor. Her feet were killing her; she had danced the night away, literally, and her feet were NOT used to that. Still as she sat down and rubbed her abused feet, she smiled in memory. She had danced with Harry and Ron and Arthur and Kingsley. And they had ALL asked her if she knew what Lucius was up to. She had given the same answer to all of them; she did not know.

But she knew now for certain that she was indeed interested; she wanted him. The question was what did she do about it? Did she wait for his next move or make one on her own. She now realized that he intended marriage and not an affair. On the one hand she was flattered; on the other an affair might be safer in the long run. Hermione wanted to be married only once in her life; she wanted what her parents had. Marriage to Lucius Malfoy would be a very BIG DEAL. His station in life, in the wizarding world meant that his wife would be very visible and involved in many things JUST BECAUSE she was his life. Hermione was not sure how she felt about that. She disliked publicity; her recent hero status and such had been a pain; luckily not much of one since she did not have to go out much and she was very protected here at the Manor. If she had still been living with the Weasley's and going out every day it would be an entirely different situation. Kingsley had let her know that the Daily Prophet was literally panting for her story; they badly wanted an interview. Since it was not known until the last few days were she was staying they had been unable to contact her; Malfoy Manor was warded very carefully. Owls that came from unwanted sources were discouraged from coming there. The Daily Prophet was number one on THAT list. He had advised her just to do one and get it over with; they would not give up. Hermione had agreed that she needed to get it done; she decided to contact Rita skeeter directly since she knew that would be the one assigned. She and Rita had managed to bury the hatchet, surprisingly not in each other, when Hermione had helped her out in getting registered as a animagus and Rita had returned the favor with information on the Lestranges that had come in very handy.

Rita Skeeter read the owl from Hermione Granger and thought. She had been at the ball the night before and like many others had noted that the first dance saw Hermione Granger asked by Lucius Malfoy. Now that she knew Granger had been staying at the Manor things were looking a lot more suspicious. The pearl necklace she had been wearing was way beyond the means of Hermione or her parents; only Lucius Malfoy had that kind of money. It certainly appeared that Lucius Malfoy was courting Hermione Granger. That concept was so extreme that it was almost funny; Rita had a hunch that Lucius was in for a big surprise if he thought that the little muggle would be impressed by baubles and the like; he would be much better off giving her a musty old book. Hermione had written that since she understood that an interview was inevitable that they might as well get it done; she would be waiting for Rita to owl her back with her proposal. Now how to arrange it? She wanted it to be at Malfoy Manor but she had her doubts that Lucius Malfoy wanted the press anywhere near; then she had a thought. She would ask Hermione to ask Lucius; if he said yes that would speak volumes on what he was willing to do to woo the young witch.

Hermione read the owl from Rita and thought about it. She knew that Lucius did not want them anywhere near the Manor; but in a lot of ways that would be the best. She smiled to herself; time to see how much he was willing to go through for her.

"Lucius?"

Lucius looked up from his business papers as Hermione peeked in the door of his study. This was the first time she had ever approached him in this way so he knew this had to be important. She slowly moved into the room, looking around then sitting down in one of the chairs near his desk. She was casually dressed in her standard muggle jeans and T Shirt. She looked very young but very attractive; the clothes did nothing to hide her ripe young figure.

Bearding the Lion in his den sounded easier in her head then it did in actuality. Hermione took a deep breath (Lucius appreciated that in her thin T Shirt).

"I have Owled Rita Skeeter about doing an interview for the Daily Prophet. Kingsley mentioned that I might as well get it over with; she wants to do it here. What do you think?"

Lucius took his mind off of her quite well filled T shirt and managed to think about the subject at hand.

"You know I do not want anything to do with those leeches and the vermin they have around them. But I have to agree that you might as well get it done. And having it here does offer possibilities of control you would not have elsewhere. So set it up."

Hermione blinked; that was quick. She cocked her head and eyed Lucius suspiciously.

Lucius managed to control himself; he really wanted to take the little witch and throw her on his desk and have her right then and there. Her suspicious look, instead of being annoying, was very attractive; it was very Slytherin. He had a hunch the Sorting Hat might very well have made a mistake with her.

"Hermione it has to be done so lets get it out of the way."

Hermione was still suspicious but she nodded and got up. "I will let you know as soon as I know."

Lucius watched the tightly packaged little witch walk out, admiring the graceful sway of her hips and the delightful rear end that accompanied them. He was going to have to have her soon or he would combust.

The interview was held two days later. Rita Skeeter and a cameraman appeared promptly at 9AM at the entrance. Hermione was waiting for them. She had decided to dress in wizarding robes; casual ones but neat and tidy. They went right to the sun room which was where Hermione had decided to have it.

The interview went surprisingly well; Rita knew how to do them quite well. She got Hermione to describe her part in the last battle, details of which had been lacking. Rita was quick to realize that Hermione had perhaps the best view of the whole time and was quite descriptive. This alone would have the Daily Prophet selling out; and a nice bonus for Rita. The battle and the aftermath were enthralling to Rita as anyone else; Hermione's decription of finding Ron and then giving CPR (she had to describe that) was riveting. Rita then asked her what her other sources had told her; how Hermione had run the aurors out of Hogwarts. Hermione had blushed but had been firm about what she had said and how she took none of it back. She regretted not a word. This enabled Rita to ask about what the Malfoy's had done to escape Azkaban. Hermione had been brief but vivid.

Hermione leaned back and sighed. This was very draining; she wanted to make sure she did not make any mistakes or let out more then she wanted.

Rita decided it was time to address the elephant in the room.

"So is Lucius Malfoy courting you?"

Hermione blinked. Then cocked her head. "He has not made any formal declarations." She had rehearsed that knowing that Rita would ask.

Rita raised her eyebrows. "Do you think he has been courting you?"

Lucius had quietly moved into the room without being noticed. He could let this go or interfere; then he decided for once in his life to take a chance and improvise.

"That is up to her whether I will be."

Hermione's head snapped up and Rita spun; the cameraman almost dropped his camera.

Hermione only had eyes for Lucius. Deep inside her the question was answered. She took a deep breath and spoke her heart.

"Yes."

Lucius only had eyes for her.

"To courting?"

Hermione decided to take the bull by the Horns. If this was reckless then so be it.

"To the question that will be asked after all the courting."

Rita's mouth dropped open.

Lucius took a deep breath. The ball was in his court now. But he would not let the little witch have the upper hand.

"I am sorry but I do not have on my person the ring. I really did not expect to need it yet."

Rita managed to gather her scattered wits from various counties.

"The Malfoy Engagement ring?"

Lucius with great dignity nodded. "If you ladies will excuse me I will get it right now."

He left the room and the three dazed people in it.

Hermione was almost hyperventilating; the decision she had avoided making was at hand. Did she know the answer?

Rita was inwardly gloating; this would make her year- perhaps the decade. She might get the WHOLE front page of the Prophet for this!

The cameraman had recovered and was using his magical camera avidly on Hermione.

Rita spun back to Hermione. She noted that the young witch was breathing harder but was not otherwise showing outward signs of what had to be shock and astonishment. She was a little pale but not noticeably so.

"If you did not know he was courting you how could you have your answer ready?"

"I did not say I did not know; only that he had not made a formal declaration. But I had come to suspect it after last night. A few had noticed the necklace he had given me; and that he asked for the first dance. I was told that that was standard courtship conduct for the Purebloods."

"Still you were quick to answer."

"I guess I was."

"Indeed it is. That is why I asked. Still you had your answer ready."

"No I did not. It just came out."

Rita blinked. " Impulse?"

Hermione paused for a minute. Then decided that honesty was the best policy-at this moment.

"No. Instinct and emotion; not impulse. Reaction. I have always believed that your first reaction, your first response, is the most honest one you can have."

Lucius walked back into the room.

Hermione began to stand but he waved her back down. He gracefully kneeled in front of her and presented the ring in his hand, palm up.

"Hermione Granger, will you do me the great honor of becoming my wife?"

Rita Skeeter, hard bitten and cynical reporter, whimpered.

Hermione could not breathe; she looked into his eyes and saw desire and caring; and desperation; he was taking a huge risk and putting himself in a position to be humiliated; and with no way to avoid it.

She knew there could be only one answer. So she took a leap into the dark, into the unknown.

"Of course I will, Lucius Malfoy."

Rita had left in a dash, telling Hermione that she had to make sure this made the next issue. They had left Lucius and Hermione still in their positions, Lucius kneeling and Hermione just having put on the engagement ring. Lucius then drew Her up to her feet and proceeded to kiss the daylights out of her.

Dazed, aroused, barely able to stand Hermione held on for dear life to Lucius. She managed to raise her head up and met the fierily aroused stare of her fiancé. She whispered" Bedroom."

Lucius groaned. He wanted the little witch so badly he did not know if he could make it that far, but managed to apparat them there.

He did not have his wand but using wandless magic he had the bed turned down and their clothes off before the dazed Hermione realized what he had done. Then he picked her up and oh so gently laid her down on the bed, and looked his fill. Her whiskey colored eyes dark and smoky, breathing heavily, mouth slightly open with her little pink tongue wetting her dry lips, her lovely breasts heaving and the pink nipples hardening in the cool air of the bedroom. The scent of her arousal almost drove him off the edge.

Hermione looked up at him and almost passed out from the heat she saw in his gaze; his eyes were literally blazing. Then his mouth came down and all coherent thoughts fled.

He devoured the little witches tasty mouth, plundering her moist cavern. Her moans and mewls were music to his ears.

He then moved down to give equal treatment to her breasts and lovely little pink nipples. Sucking and laving and pulling them with his fingers.

Hermione had lost all possibility of any thinking at all; passion she never knew she had flowed out of her right into Lucius. She writhed and clawed at his back, as he owned her thoroughly. Then it became even more when he moved lower.

Lucius just had to have the source of that incredible scent that was filling his nose; glistening and dripping literally he dove into her womanhood.

Hermione came right off the bed, lifting Lucius right up with her as she wailed her arousal.

Lucius had never had such a passionate woman, her moans and wails drove him to further plunder and ravish her. His lips found that tiny little bundle of nerves and sucked on it.

Hermione could not take any more; she screamed his name then lost consciousness as her orgasm overwhelmed her.

Lucius raised his head and looked on his woman with satisfaction; he had made her cum so hard she blacked out. He needed a moment to control himself; he wanted nothing more than to bury himself deep inside her, but he wanted her to know it.

Hermione felt like she was swimming up to the surface of a deep pool. She slowly opened her eyes and saw Lucius smirking at her. Awareness slowly came and she realized she had blacked out when her orgasm hit. Lucius was looking very pleased with himself; but then he had reason. Hermione never knew anything could be like that.

Seeing her return Lucius bent down and gently kissed her; "That was beautiful, precious. I will enjoy this for many years making you cum. Now I am really going to make you mine."

Lucius rose up, picked her legs up and placed them on his shoulders, opening her wide to him. Then looking her right in the eye began to fill her. She was so wet, hot and above all tight that it was all he could do not to plunge into her, claiming her violently. Somehow he managed to control himself and slowly moved into her.

Hermione felt she was being split in two as his massive tool filled her up. There was pain, but the remnants of her orgasm kept it down; then she felt him hit her barrier.

"Precious this will hurt but I promise you only for a while."

Lucius bent down and took a sweet nipple in his mouth and sucked hard on it. Just as he broke through.

Hermione mewled. Yes there was some pain but it was being overwhelmed by everything else.

Lucius groaned as he filled her fully; astounded that such a small woman could take all of him. But she did! He paused and waited.

Hermione was so full but there was something missing and she arched up into him.

Lucius had been waiting for that and pulled all the way out then in one motion plunged all the way in.

Hermione wailed.

Lucius lost what little control he had and began to ravish her; pounding into her with abandon.

Once again all rational thought disappeared and Hermione came apart as a second huge orgasm hit her.

Lucius could not last any longer; her inner walls clamped down on him and milked him dry; he groaned as he emptied himself into her wet, tight, hot sheathe.

Hermione moaned and slowly opened her eyes. She ached but it was such a good ache; the heavy weight of Lucius on top of her felt so right. He was still deep inside her, still filling her up.

Lucius knew he ought to roll off of her, but he found he could not move; he did not want to slip out of her. Her moan finally made him grasp her tight and roll over to have her on top, but still inside her.

Hermione managed to raise her head and look down at her man. He gazed back at her, astonishment clear.

"You are incredible, precious. I have never had a woman so passionate and responsive."

Hermione blushed. But it was good to hear, anyway.

"I never thought anything could feel like this. Lucius, I will never be able to walk away from this. You own me now."

He smiled in male satisfaction at having so thoroughly pleased his woman.

They spent the next several hours very pleasantly engaged. Finally Hermione cried mercy and told Lucius that they needed to tell people before the Daily Prophet came out the next morning. He groaned but reluctantly agreed.

"Our entire Honeymoon will be spent in bed, that I promise you. And every night until the wedding I will have you."

Hermione had shivered in anticipation at his words. Far be it from her to object.

He transfigured a robe for her and put on his. Then led her by hand down to the dining room.

Draco looked up and stared, stunned as they walked into the dining room. Both very mussed and wearing only robes; she looked absolutely tumbled and was blushing rosily.

He groaned. "I did not need the mental images I am getting right now. Is that the Malfoy engagement ring I see on Granger?"

Lucius frowned at him. "Yes it is and her name is Hermione. You will use if from this moment on. And you will keep a civil tongue in your head towards your stepmother to be or I will pluck it out."

Hermione's eyes opened wide at that. So did Draco's; he looked hard at his father and realized that he was deadly earnest.

"This happened rather fast."

Hermione had been wondering whether to admit her prior knowledge and that decided it.

"Come on Draco you knew about his plans last week. So it just happened sooner then he thought."

Lucius went very still. Draco also went very still.

Hermione realized she was enjoying this. She carefully poured herself a cup of tea then looked at her fiancé who was looking very closely at her indeed.

"In case you are wondering I overheard your conversation last Wednesday. So I was not as shocked as you might have thought. Though this all happened a lot faster than I thought it would."

Very carefully Lucius poured himself a cup of tea. Draco stayed still.

"Just how much did you overhear."

"I am guessing pretty much the whole thing. You saying that part of the reason was the repair of the Malfoy reputation."

Lucius knew it behooved him to tread carefully. "Hermione I will admit that that was a SMALL part of the reason I decided to court you."

She smiled at him. Draco thought he saw blood dripping from her fangs.

"I have to admit I liked the part where you said you intended to have me."

Lucius drank his tea quietly.

Draco decided to wade in. "Well that part certainly has come true."

Hermione blushed. "Yes it has."

Draco cocked his head. "I sense no complaints about that."

Hermione smiled; this smile had a certain sense about it that made Lucius grow hard.

"Your father is a god in bed."

Draco groaned and covered his eyes. "Too much information."

Draco dropped his hands and looked at his father. "So when will the wedding be?"

Lucius threw his bride to be a gaze that heated her to her core again. "Soon."

Hermione almost moaned and returned a gaze every bit as heated. "Next month."

Draco groaned again. "I am going to take all my meals in my room or eat out until then."

After that the conversation turned to more mundane things. Then Hermione went back to her room to dress and apparat over to the Burrow. If she was lucky they would all be there. Lucius decided to apparat to St Mungo's to both check on Severus and ask him to be best man.

Lucius found Severus up and near discharge. He told Lucius that his news almost gave him a setback.

"Little miss know it all. One of the bossiest little witches I have ever had the misfortune to meet. That one?"

"Yes. And I have just found out that she is an absolute marvel in bed."

Severus glared at his friend. "I did NOT need to hear that."

Hermione apparated and walked into the Burrow and found that her luck was indeed in. All the Weasley's plus Harry were there.

"Hermione! So good to see you." Molly gushed and hugged her. Then stepped back and took a good look. Then gasped.

"Hermione Jane Granger! What have you been up to!"

Hermione blushed. "How could you tell?"

Molly snickered. "A mother always knows."

Hermione smiled then hugged her again.

"Congratulate me." Then held up her hand.

Molly's eyes got huge. "The Malfoy engagement ring!"

Ginny rushed over and hugged Hermione. "My God! That was fast!"

Molly looked at her daughter. "You knew this was happening?"

Ginny nodded. "She told me last week that she thought something was up."

Molly looked hard at Hermione. "Are you sure about this, Hermione?"

Hermione smiled. It was as if the lights had been turned on. It literally lit up the room.

"More sure by the moment."

Harry moved up and hugged her. "I cannot say that I do not have concerns, but I can see how happy you are and that is all that really matters."

One by one the rest of them congratulated her. All had some reservations but all agreed that as happy as she looked they were happy for her. Hermione then decided to owl Kingsbury and let him know. Then she told them how it happened.

Ginny was entranced. "That is so romantic. Bended knee and everything."

Hermione giggled. "Rita actually whimpered. I heard her."

Molly gasped. "No way!"

Meanwhile at the Daily Prophet a hurried conference with the editor had indeed resulted in Rita having the entire front page of the next mornings edition reserved for her. Now she just had to figure out how to organize it. She decided to start Hermione's war story at the top of the page and have that half devoted to it. With a little condensing it would all fit. Maybe using two thirds. Then a picture of Lucius on bended knee would take up most of the rest of the page behind the simple statement "Lucius Malfoy proposes to Hermione Granger." Then the next two pages would be devoted to finishing the story and pictures of the two of them. Her editor wanted the marriage proposal on the top half; but Rita wanted to make sure the whole thing was noticed right away and argued that most would only go to the pictures and the wedding story. They wanted the readers to read, right?

Hermione made it back to the manor just in time for dinner. Molly and Ginny had grabbed her and gone into the kitchen to start making plans. Hermione wanted to contact her parents, but they were actually on their way to England and would not land until the next day. Her mother had promised to let her know by calling the Ministry (there were phones there for contact with the muggle world) who would then owl her that they were home(they had kept the house; just paid a couple to keep an eye on it and once a month dust it). So she decided to just wait for them to get back and would go there for a quick visit.

Dinner that night was a rather festive occasion. Draco had recovered enough to send several barbs his fathers way; Hermione had pretty much sat there and glowed in so much happiness that Draco finally had enough of and left. Lucius had wasted no time and as soon as they were finished eating had apparated them to his bedroom to take up where they had left off that morning.

Jane Granger felt tired as they opened the windows and aired out the house. It was a very long plane ride from Australia. They were glad to be back home in England. One thing more to do; she looked for the number to call the ministry so that they would get a message back to Hermione. Hermione had arranged for the Australian Magic ministry to let them know when the war was over. Her message had arrived only two weeks earlier. It had taken them that long to wind things up so that they could return.

"Ministry Information. How may I help you?" a young womans voice answered. "This is Jane Granger. I need to get a message to my daughter, Hermione Granger. She said this was the number to call."

"Mrs Granger I am so happy to hear from you! We will owl Hermione immediately. Congratulations on her engagement. You must be so proud! Lucius Malfoy is such a catch! "

Jane Granger put down the phone slowly. James saw his wife's reaction and moved to her. "Something wrong, Dear? Is Hermione OK?"

Jane Granger blinked. She looked at her husband. "The nice young girl there congratulated us on Hermione's engagement to Lucius Malfoy."

James Granger shook his head. "If Memory serves wasn't he on the other side of the war?"

"That is what I remember. We will have to wait to hear from her. I have some questions for our daughter."

Hermione got the owl late that evening and decided to head out first thing in the morning. The Daily Prophet would be out and not being around might be a good thing.

Hermione hugged her mother then her father. "Its so good to see you. Now that the war is finally over maybe things can settle down."

Jane Granger carefully looked at her daughter. She could see some big changes had happened; it was in the way she moved and acted; and she seemed to be glowing. Well time to find out.

"Hermione, the operator when I called mentioned that you were engaged to Lucius Malfoy. Now correct me If I am wrong, but wasn't he one of those Deatheaters."

Hermione sighed. Well at least she did not have to break it to them. "He was mother. He switched sides months before the final battle. Part of the reason was that Voldemort murdered his wife. The other part was that he finally realized all the pureblood BS was exactly that. I have been staying at Malfoy Manor since the battle and got to know him quite well. Still it did happen real fast."

Jane Granger had an idea what part of 'knowing him well' was; but her daughter was grown up now, able to make her own decisions. Still she wanted to know more.

Hermione was worn out by the time she got back to the Manor. Her parents had been firm about meeting Lucius. Well, she had warned him that would happen and he had agreed to meet with them.

Even thought it was just noon, already quite a few owls had left messages and a couple of howlers were there too. She decided to take care of them first; they turned out to be from people angry she was marrying a Deatheater. Most of the messages were congratulatory; a few were not. All that she got from friends at Hogwarts were positive; she felt happy about that. She noticed one from Madame Malkins, a top of the line dress shop. It offered a discount towards making her wedding dress. Hermione thought about that. Molly and Ginny had mentioned them as good ones to go to. She decided that she would; she would also invite her mother.

Two days later the four women were ensconced in the decidedly upper crust shop. Lucius had made it quite clear he would be paying for the dress and that she was to have whatever she wanted. Both Molly and Ginny had been somewhat startled by that, but Molly had said that Lucius wanted to make a splash so maybe it was not so surprising. Hermione had picked up her mother then apparated them to the burrow for breakfast. She was glad to see Molly take to her right away.

Jane Granger found herself liking Molly Weasley. She reminded Jane of her own mother. Ginny Weasley was a very charming young woman as well. She was glad that Hermione had had them to look after her during the war. She and James had felt so guilty that they could do so little for Hermione once they found out about the war. Yet there was little they could have done. It seemed so wrong that a young girl not even of legal age was in the front lines of a war no one in the outside world knew about. Hermione had indeed had to grow up much too quickly; her little girl had been gone for years. Molly had a chance to talk with Jane alone for a while and had given some examples of what Hermione had been through. That and the article in that paper about Hermione during the final battle chilled Jane to the bone. Her little girl had barely survived; no telling how many times she had come close to dying. And she knew Hermione would never tell her. She got a good look at Lucius Malfoy in those pictures and she had to admit he was a hunk! The picture of him on bended knee was precious-Molly told her that half the witches in the wizarding world were absolutely green with jealousy. Jane had point blank asked her about him.

"Molly, tell me about Lucius Malfoy."

Molly took a deep breath. Honesty warred with how she had felt about Lucius for years. But she controlled herself. Jane deserved the unvarnished truth.

"Absolutely stinking rich. His family traces their history back almost a 1000 years. Purebloods and fanatically proud of it. His father was one of the worst. But I have to be honest and say that Lucius was never that bad; and he really had no choice about becoming a Deatheater; his father left him with none. Hermione has already told you about his wife; I was amazed that Narcissa had the courage to do it; but not surprised that she was not smart enough to figure out what would happen. I admit that he has seemed to change; and that Hermione might be a big part of the reason why. I do think that Lucius would prize Hermione's intelligence; he is extremely smart himself so having a relatively dumb wife for so long could very well be a big part of the reason why he is pursuing Hermione.

Jane Granger thought about that. It made sense; but she wanted to meet him anyway.

Madame Malkin was surprised that a muggle was in her shop; but then Hermione Granger was muggleborn so why should she be surprised? She knew that if Hermione Granger made a big splash at her wedding – and she had no doubt that Lucius Malfoy would see to it that it was big and expensive-then it would be a great benefit to her business. Business was better now since the war was over but this would definitely help. Molly and Ginny Weasley were there as well; and since Ginny was engaged to Harry Potter it behooved Madame Malkin to make nice; she might have the chance to make the dress for next years Wedding of the Year.

Hermione was not really sure what kind of dress she wanted. Part of her wanted a Princess Di dress with a long train; part of her did not want to be bothered. However Molly fell in love with the idea as soon as she saw the pictures; and so did Jane, who secretly had always thought of her daughter as a princess anyway. Ginny loved it too, so Hermione found herself outvoted; and to be fair she did not really fight it that hard. She did make the point she did not want the train to be as long and they all agreed – 10 feet was long enough.

Madame Malkin knew this would be a triumph. Hermione was actually a very attractive young woman with very good posture and quite graceful. This type of dress would look very well on her and attract a lot of business.

The dress would be tight fitting with a long veil; just like Princess Diana's. Lucius had already made it clear that the wedding would be held at Malfoy Manor so they would not have to worry about transporting her and her dress. The bridesmaid dress was relatively easy since Ginny had already been thinking about it and had some ideas that Madame Malkin was quickly able to adapt. The ladies then went straight from the dress shop to Malfoy Manor to suss out the location and particulars.

Lucius was startled by a number of female voices and came out of his study to investigate.

Jane Granger had to admit he was attractive and very charming. She had to laugh at Ginny's comment that Lucius was sex on a stick. Molly had also let her know that he had the nickname of Luscious Lucius. She could see why.

Knowing that it was the smart thing to do, Lucius made sure that he charmed Hermione's mother. He became aware that they intended to make this wedding quite large and he was fine with that, once again making the point that cost was no consideration.

It was decided that Hermione would come down the grand staircase to the ballroom; and the ceremony would take place there. It would be a grand entrance and luckily there would be no worry about the train catching anywhere. Magic would take care of that. Also the material would be lighter then the classic Princess Di dress anyway. Molly had been drafted into the matron of honor position but she said she already had the dress so that would not be a problem. Lucius had let them know that Severus was indeed recovered enough to be his best man and that Draco would also be part of it.

Hermione did not realize there were so many details that had to be taken care of for a wedding. Luckily Molly knew most of them and Jane knew a fair amount as well. Lucius had no problem with any bills, so no expense was spared. A part of the London Orchestra was contacted (Lucius said that they would not have to obliviate them since they would be bussed in). Kingsley had made it quite clear would officiate so that was taken care of. All that was left really was arrange the refreshment which would be done by the House Elfs and send out the invitations. Hermione made sure all the members of her class at Hogwarts were invited, and Lucius made sure that the top Purebloods were invited (they had to come or Lucius would consider it an insult). Lucius had decided a classic Tuxedo would compliment Hermione's dress quite well. So that was settled.

The Hen party Ginny had arranged had been a truly hilarious affair complete with male strippers that had made Hermione blush like a tomato. This despite the fact she was nowhere near as innocent as she had been less than a month ago. Lucius had been true to his word that he would have her every night up to the wedding. Only the night of the wedding was out due to the hen party.

One thing Hermione had made sure to discuss with Lucius was children. She wanted several and needed to make sure he had no problems with it. He did not as it turned out which was a good thing since Hermione had a hunch she was already pregnant. It was more of a feeling than anything else and she made sure she did not drink anything the night of the hen party. Ginny had asked her why she was not drinking and when told why dragged Hermione off to the bathroom of the little pub in Hogsmead they were having the party in. There she performed the spell and Hermione was indeed pregnant. The two squealed and hugged each other.

Both Jane and Molly had been firm that bad luck would happen if Hermione saw Lucius on the day of the wedding so she had to hold her news; she really wanted to tell Lucius.

Lucius stood with Severus and Draco at the end of the ballroom where the ceremony would be held.

Severus had been his snarky self which Lucius was happy to see. The new Headmaster of Hogwarts told Lucius that Hermione still had to finish her seventh year and would get no breaks from him. Lucius had snorted and replied when had he given any breaks to anyone ever?

Hermione stood at the top of the stars with her father waiting for the music to start. She was startled to realize that she was not nervous at all. She knew for sure that she loved Lucius and while he had not said so she thought he did; he was just very cautious about saying it. She was not worried- they had all the time in the world.

James had been speechless when Hermione had come out of her room, the train trailing behind her. He called her his princess and actually teared up. Hermione told him to stop it or she would be balling as well.

The entire audience of over 300 turned when the Wedding March began. They saw Hermione slowly and with great dignity slowly come down the steps, her train flowing smoothly behind her. There were audible gasps.

Lucius harked back to his first wedding. Narcissa had been a beautiful bride and it had been a big wedding as well but that was all the parallels there were. This time he loved the bride; and the whole ceremony was going to be much warmer and more real. Then he turned and saw his bride coming down the steps and was awed; Hermione was beautiful, though he could not see her face due to the veil. Slowly she walked to him and her father placed her hand in his. Then he lifted the veil and Lucius was overcome by her loveliness and the love that shown so clearly in her eyes.

Hermione never remembered much of the ceremony- what she remembered was the blazing fire in Lucius's eyes- she knew without a doubt he loved her then.

Rita Skeeter had been placed in charge of the photographs and stories to come out of the wedding of the year and had outdone herself. It was done as unobtrusively as possible. She had to admit the dress was a huge hit and made a great picture. The entire wedding party was extremely attractive.

The imp of mischief that Hermione usually hid so well came out as they were taking the official pictures. That was when she told Lucius that she was pregnant. Many people were remarking later the astonished look on Lucius Malfoy's face in those pictures.