It's the night before the wedding and Hermione and Draco didn't want to go their separate ways. Molly insisted that Hermione stay at the Burrow with all of the girls, while all the guys went to Grimmauld with Harry. Finally Molly won; she was quite stubborn after all.
Draco went to Grimmauld with Harry, Blaise, Ron, and George, Arthur, and Hermione's father Mike, while Hermione stayed at the burrow with Molly, her mother Jane, Lavender, the Patil twins, and her cousin Amanda.
The conversations that night were so varied. They went from serious to funny, from angry to happy, from sad to excited. Hermione couldn't help but be excited when each of the girls said they brought her gifts.
Molly was the first to go. She handed Hermione a small black box. Hermione noticed it looked like a necklace or bracelet box. When she opened it she seen a silver bracelet with small roses engraved into the length of it. She gasped at the beauty of it. The bracelet looked very antique.
"Hermione, that bracelet is what every woman in my family has worn on her wedding day. You may not be marrying one of my sons, but you are like a daughter to me. I would be honored if you would wear that as your something borrowed tomorrow."
"Oh, Molly, I don't know what to say!" Hermione grabbed Molly into a big hug and they shared a few tears until Hermione heard what Lavender said.
"That's a first. Our little know-it-all didn't know something!" Everyone cracked up.
"Me next Hermione!" Amanda walked over and handed Hermione a small Jewelry box. Hermione opened it and seen a pair of beautiful antique silver diamond earrings.
"Those are for your something old!"
"Oh, Amanda, they are beautiful! Thank you!" Hermione hugged her cousin. Her mom was the next to hand her a gift. It was a small flat box. Hermione had no idea what it could be. She slid the top off and seen a beautiful blue handkerchief with the letters 'GW' embroidered on a corner with white lilies around it.
"You need something blue. This handkerchief belonged to your grandmother, who gave it to me. I am now giving it to you. I embroidered it myself. It of course is Ginny's initials and the lilies are for Lily Evans of course and the blue luckily matches Draco's eyes perfectly." Hermione was crying rubbing her fingers over Ginny's initials. She always knew her mom loved her, but never did she realize how much until that moment.
"Thank you, Mommy." Hermione held her mom for a few minutes before Lavender handed her a gift bag.
"That is your something new from me." Hermione reached into the bag and pulled out beautiful silver hair clips that would go perfect with the hairstyle Lavender had helped her pick out.
"Lavender, these must have cost a fortune. They are beautiful. You shouldn't have."
"Of course I should have. I found them after we picked out your hairstyle and knew they would go perfect. It would have been a sin not to buy them. And besides, tomorrow you are marrying the one guy that every girl in the school had a crush on at least once, so you have to look perfect!" Parvati and Padma both smiled widely nodding.
Parvati and Padma then handed Hermione their gift bag. Hermione reached in and pulled out a beautiful white negligee. It was sheer and left very little to the imagination. Hermione blushed furiously.
"That is for the wedding night!" Parvati announced.
"A bit lacking in material isn't it girls?" Hermione asked, still flushed with embarrassment.
"That's the idea!" Padma squealed. Everyone burst into giggles. Hermione thought about how much fun Ginny would have had with them tonight, and how surprised she would be that Hermione was hanging out with these girls she had so readily despised in school.
They spent another hour talking and laughing before heading to bed. After all, the bride needed her beauty sleep.
Over at Grimmauld, the guys hadn't given gifts or anything, but information and tips for Draco for the upcoming marriage.
"When Hermione is crying, she needs you to stand tall and hold her tightly in your arms. When she is upset, just let her cry, don't talk, don't force her to talk. She will only come to resent you for it," George told Draco. George had taken it upon himself in many instances to comfort Hermione when his brother or someone else made her cry. He knew very well how she needed to be treated when upset.
"Thank you, I just hope that is a piece of information I won't need often," Draco replied to George. Everyone nodded in understanding.
"Hermione, as anyone who has ever spoken to her knows, loves to read. But what most people don't know is she loves to read muggle comic books. Superman, Spiderman, X-Men. She is a sucker for all of them, and if you ever have a draught in conversation, tell her you heard about it somewhere and was wondering what it is. She can talk for hours on end, and the whole time there will be a sparkle in her eye." Harry of course had known all about who these people were having grown up in the muggle world, but let Hermione teach him about it anyway and always loved the excitement she felt in sharing it with him. He hoped this would be helpful to Draco.
"Thanks, I will definitely keep that in mind." Draco smiled; thinking about Hermione's sparkling eyes and trying to figure out exactly what a spider-man would look like.
"Ever since I have known her, Hermione has been loyal. Don't ever accuse her of lying, or cheating. She never would and when she tells you she loves you, know that she means it. She is very open about her heart. If she needs to be left alone, she will tell you, and if she needs someone with her, she will tell you that as well. But never force her to open up, like George said. She will get upset. But trust her is the best advice I can give," Ron said, remembering the times she got pissed at him for not leaving her alone when she told him she needed some time by herself.
"I do trust her, with my whole being, but thank you Ron, I will remember that for if I ever have doubts or worries."
"I don't know Hermione as well as these guys, but I know you better than anyone. When you are with her, be yourself. Don't try to impress her, don't try to be the best, and above all forget the past and live for now. She doesn't need impressing, she loves you anyway. You should never try to be the best, because in your eyes, she should always be the best. And the past is just that, it's the past. You have a wonderful life, family and friends to look forward to in the future," Blaise leant over and hugged Draco quickly.
"Thanks, man. I appreciate that."
"Hermione has been around our house on and off for several years. She is like a daughter to me, and the only advice I can give you is to love her. Love her fiercely and wholeheartedly. She has many surrogate big brothers and a father and me to protect her. You wouldn't want to anger us," Arthur said seriously. "Be there for her when she needs you to be and be as loyal and open with her, as she is with you."
"Thank you, Mr. Weasley."
"Call me Arthur, son."
"Thank you, Arthur." Draco smiled at Arthur calling him son. He was like the dad Draco always wished he'd had.
Then Mike spoke up. Everyone was looking forward to hearing what he had to tell Draco about Hermione. She was a daddy's girl and told him everything.
"Draco, my daughter is very special, but you already know that. What you don't know is there is a reason she was so quick to forgive you and be with you. She has special abilities; she is an empath of sorts. She can sense someone's feelings, and she can sense whether they are telling the truth. She used to talk about you a lot. She would tell us how she knew the real you that you tried to hide from everyone. She wanted to talk to you about it so many times, but was afraid to. She didn't want you to get in trouble with your father because you didn't believe what you were saying. All through Hogwarts she fancied you and your ability to be strong despite the pressure put on you. She talked about you a lot, and the fact that you finally came forward and told her of your feelings made her love you that much more. Don't try to lie to her, because she will know. Just be honest with her, and she will love you endlessly, like she always has."
"Mike, thank you so much for telling me. I love your daughter; I can only hope to be as wonderful a father and husband as you are to Hermione and your wife."
Just then, Arthur Weasley pulled out a bottle of firewhiskey and enough cups for them all.
"Just thought we should have one drink to ring in the final night of Draco's freedom," he said with a smile. He poured each man a small amount and they all drank it down quickly, enjoying the burn they felt as it slid down their throats.
"Now, I think it's time we all get to bed. We have a long day ahead of us," Arthur said, before flooing back to the burrow.
The next morning, Hermione woke with butterflies in her stomach. She showered and threw on some sweats and a button up shirt to get ready in. She went downstairs to have a bite to eat to find Molly down there with Arthur talking about the night before.
"Hermione, breakfast will be ready in about 10 minutes if you could go wake all the girls and get them down here for it."
"Of course, Molly, I'll go get them."
Hermione ran upstairs and woke each female in the house and got them downstairs. They ate very little, all with butterflies in their stomachs from the excitement the day was bringing. Arthur had been outside all morning helping get all of the decorations set up. Hermione had gotten a tent for the reception which had a dance floor situated underneath it, buffet tables, the cake and punch bowls, and several tables and chairs with a huge stereo.
The actual wedding ceremony would take place next to the tent with a beautiful gazebo that Hermione and Draco would be standing in with each person of the wedding party on the stairs leading to where the aisle met with the gazebo. The chairs were a basic white with pink ribbons draping between them. There were several types of pink flowers everywhere thanks to Mrs. Weasley, who insisted the scent would be beautiful.
Hermione and all of the present females started getting ready. The wedding would be in three hours and with six females to get ready, it was going to be hard to manage. Luckily they all had showers already. Now it was makeup, hair and dresses.
Everyone was completely done except for Hermione. Lavender was about to add the finishing touches to Hermione's hair, the silver hair combs that Lavender bought her. Her hair was pulled to the back of her head. It was full of beautiful loose curls, absolutely no frizz. The hair clips were placed in around the nape of her neck to hold the hair back and a bit poofed up on the top. She had a few tendrils hanging on the side of her face, framing the beautiful makeup that was on Hermione. It was very natural, peaches and tans. Her lips only had a clear gloss over them to make them appear shiny and wet. The last thing would be to get her dress on. No one had seen it other than Lavender.
Hermione had on her undergarments and was sliding the dress up over her hips when her mom came in to inspect the dress. Hermione finished sliding it on and spun around for her mother to get the full effect. It was ivory, with thick off the shoulder straps. The bodice was covered in beadwork that led down to the floor. The train flowed behind Hermione, the satin material sparkling and shining nearly as much as her eyes. Her earrings and bracelet were in place along with the hair combs Lavender had gotten her. The handkerchief was tucked securely into the strap of her bra. She had never looked so happy in all of her life.
Her mom ran over and enveloped Hermione in her arms, not believing she was giving away her little girl today. Hermione had tears welling in her eyes, and was thankful Lavender cast the spell to keep her makeup in place.
"Mom, you're crushing the baby!" Hermione laughed into her mom's hair that flowed down her back.
"I'm sorry honey, I just can't believe it. You are getting married!" The two woman separated as Hermione's father walked into the room.
"Daddy, how do I look?" Hermione spun around as she had for her mother.
"Baby girl, you look more beautiful than an angel. You are positively glowing!" Hermione ran to her dad's open arms and hugged him tightly. "Now let's get that baby of yours a daddy!"
"Oh, Dad!" Hermione playfully smacked him as Lavender came in to help Hermione with any finishing touches.
"Mum, you should go get your seat, and Daddy, I will meet you outside in a moment. I need a minute with Lavender."
"Alright, Dear." Her parents said in unison as they walked out the door.
Lavender walked over to Hermione and hugged her tightly. Hermione was sniffling, wishing it were Ginny she was hugging. She was happy though, because she knew Ginny approved, and Hermione realized how many great friends she really had. Hermione pulled out of the hug and looked Lavender in the eyes and took the blonde's hands in hers.
"Lavender, I don't know what I would have done without you to help me through everything. Without Ginny, I thought I would be lost. How can I ever repay you?"
"You don't have to do anything Hermione. We have been through so much, and I couldn't ask for a better friend to go through it with. You are an amazing person. Draco is lucky to have you!" Hermione was nearly in tears again.
"There is something I would like to ask of you, Lavender. Draco and I have discussed this already, and we would like you and Ron to be the godparents of Frederick Albus."
"Oh Hermione, that would be wonderful! I would love to, and I am sure Ron won't have a problem with that! Who are you picking to be the godparents of Ginerva?"
"I think I am going to ask Harry and Parvati. I just hope they accept."
"I don't think we will have a problem. Hermione, can I say something?" Lavender looked at Hermione thoughtfully.
"Of course!"
"I think you are by far the luckiest girl in the world." Lavender looked at her with an admiration Hermione never thought she would see from the blonde.
"Why is that?" Hermione was curious to see what she would say. She had always envied Lavender and her looks and self confidence. Why did she think she was so lucky?
"You are marrying Draco Malfoy for one! Don't get me wrong, I love Ron and always have, but Draco, man is he sexy!" Both girl giggled at the Lavender fanning her face with her hand. "Also he is absolutely in love with you. We all knew it in school, he tried so hard to hide it, but it was clear. We'd catch him watching you in the great hall, and if he was alone he wouldn't bug you like he would if his friends were around. There were a few times you would drop something and then you would magically find it on your desk or in your bag." Lavender couldn't believe the shocked look on Hermione's face.
"That was Draco? I thought it was Ron or Harry."
"No honey. He loves you and has for years. That's why nearly everyone took it as well as they did. We knew it would happen if given the chance. That's another reason Ron left. He hoped that things would sort themselves out in whatever manner fate intended. And of course they did. His disappearance gave Draco the opportunity to tell you how he felt."
"Wow," was all Hermione could manage to say at this information being given to her. It made her love Draco so much more, knowing he didn't deliberately try to break her and Ron up to be with her. He waited for her. Tear were again welling up in the bride-to-be's eyes.
"Not only do you have Draco, but you are going to be having two beautiful babies, you have a family that adores you, and friends that are pretty much family because you are so close. You have an amazing life ahead of you. A life where you can do anything you want to do. Just don't take it for granted."
"Thank you for reminding me of all of the great things I have. I lost a wonderful friend, a sister, but I have gained you. Thank you, Lavender, from the bottom of my heart, thank you! And I promise I will never take it for granted, and if I do, I give you permission to slap me!" The girls once again hugged.
"I think it's time Hermione." Lavender handed Hermione her bouquet of pink and white lilies and walked with her out the door.