Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor anything related to him.
A/N: This is written for selenehekate's "Accidental Marriage" competition.
.:. Chapter One .:.
.:. The Accidental Marriage .:.
Today was the day Draco Malfoy had been dreading for years. Today was the day he could no longer procrastinate, and he was finally marrying Pansy Parkinson. His father had told him of the arrangement long before either child had entered Hogwarts, and as much as he tried to convince himself that this was how things were supposed to be and would they work out perfect, he still had yet to come to terms with the fact that this was his last day on earth as a single man, unless she dropped dead. Not that he wished that upon her, she was a decent person in his opinion, he just wasn't interested in marrying her.
First of all, Pansy just wasn't his type. Perhaps it was because that was what he had grown up seeing, but Draco had a thing for blondes, and Pansy's dark hair was a bit a of a turnoff. As if that weren't enough, her voice had the slight tendency to grate on his nerves. There was merely something about the tone that nagged him. Plus, she was just so clingy. Anytime they were in the same room, she seemed to have taken it as an invitation to hang on him. Maybe it was just a not-so-subtle hint to other women that he was unavailable, but he just wanted someone that was comfortable doing her own thing. Add that all up with the fact that there was nearly nothing they had in common, Draco really couldn't see himself truly enjoying his marriage to her.
Maybe he was nitpicking, but given that he was in Slytherin, wasn't it normal for Draco to have high ambitions of marrying his dream girl, rather than the girl he was assigned to? Sure, he could make things work with Pansy, but he didn't want to just make things work. He wanted a real relationship with a person that truly appealed to him. Who would have thought that the evil Death Eater wanna-be was truly a romantic at heart?
Pulled from his contemplations by the entry of a white gowned figure, Draco glanced around to confirm with his surroundings that this was really happening, before returning his gaze to his bride. Behind her, they locked the door and activated the silencing charms typically used in ministry weddings, so that people couldn't interrupt the ceremonies. The idea itself merely rubbed it in his face that the Malfoy name had sunk so low they didn't even bother trying to hold a proper ceremony at the Manor as had been done every generation previous, but rather gone with the basic necessities and forgone the pomp. It was another thing he didn't see that marrying Pansy Parkinson would help; after her public condemnation of Potter in the final battle, her name had sunk even lower than theirs, so he was wallowing in the mud no matter what he did.
Although, Draco had to admit that the dress was quite flattering to her in a way he hadn't noticed before. It wasn't as traditional as he would have expected from her, but it seemed to work. He wished he could see her face to know what her emotions were, but the layers of the veil obscured her features. Something had to have happened, given that she was walking herself down the aisle, rather than being accompanied by her father.
Once she made it down the aisle to the front of the room, they both turned and faced the Ministry official, although Pansy seemed to be a little distracted, glancing around the room slightly. Draco was a tad bit worried about why she wasn't acting like her usual clingy self, but decided maybe she was going to try to act like the proper Pureblood for once and didn't comment. For all his procrastination, he just wanted to get the ceremony done and over with.
The official nodded his head toward the two participants before turning to Draco. "Do you swear, on your magic, that you take this woman as your wife, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to remain together for all the days of your life?"
Draco nodded his head once sharply. "I do."
The official turned to Pansy. "And do you swear, on your magic, that you take this man as your husband, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to remain together for all the days of your life?"
The soft "I do" sounded too lyrical and out of place for the situation but before Draco could think to comment on it, the official was instructing them to grasp hands, which both did. Looking down at the hand he was holding, Draco came to the conclusion that it was too delicate and yet too rough at the same time.
The official had continued on, however, unaware of Draco's thoughts. "By the power vested in me by the Ministry of Magic, and through the laws of magic, I now declare you husband and wife." He tapped their joined hands with his wand and a fiery string flowed out and wrapped around their wrists, joining them firmly and permanently together. His job done, the official turned and walked out a door at the back of the room.
The fiery magic pulsed for three seconds and then absorbed into their skin, leaving them married. With a growing sense of dread in his stomach, Draco reached up and lifted the layers of the veil, his stomach clenching tightly when he saw blonde hair.
The blonde reached up and pulled off the strange glasses she was wearing, revealing wide blue eyes that got their first glimpse of the surroundings clearly, and the man that she just married. Luna just tilted her head slightly to the side. "Oh, my."
