Narcissa Malfoy knew how to make an entrance, Hermione had to give her that. She was dressed entirely in black, in a long flowing dress that floated around her. Her blonde hair flowed freely down her shoulders. She also had impeccable timing.
"I heard the door slam and thought I'd come down and make sure you were alright," Narcissa said, gliding into the room. "Good evening, Ms. Granger."
"Good evening, Mrs. Malfoy," Hermione said as eloquently as she could from the floor.
"Please, call me Narcissa," she said with an inviting smile.
Hermione smiled back weakly. Draco stood there, stunned, as his mother came further into the room.
"For Merlin's sake, Draco, help the girl up," Narcissa said, as she gracefully sat on the edge of the desk. "Didn't I teach you any manners?"
Draco looked down at Hermione and unceremoniously hauled her to her feet.
"Sorry," he muttered to Hermione. "For whatever is about to happen."
"Now, now, Draco, don't mumble," Narcissa scolded.
"I apologized to her," Draco said, loudly. "For dropping her on the floor."
"Good," Narcissa replied. "Now, why were you slamming my library doors? Is something wrong with your father?"
"No," Draco relented, realizing he hadn't told his mother his father was due home soon. "He's going to be home within the hour."
"I know that," Narcissa told him. "That lovely doctor, Mrs. Longbottom, came by to let me know that she and her husband would be bringing him by momentarily. I thought perhaps you'd like to help get your father settled."
"Of course, mother," Draco replied. "I'll just see Ms. Granger out."
"Nonsense," Narcissa said, "If you're going to manhandle her in the library and toss her onto the floor, the least we can do is have her stay for dinner."
"She can't," Draco said, looking frantically at Hermione. "She has...she has…"
"I have to work, Mrs. Malfoy," Hermione cut in, sparing Draco from lying to his mother. "But thank you so much for the offer."
A loud knock at the front door ended any further conversation.
"Well, that'll be Lucius," Narcissa said. "Ms. Granger, you don't mind helping us get him settled, do you?"
"Mother," Draco snapped, but quieted when Narcissa held up her hand.
"Of course not," Hermione replied, hating her parents in that moment for instilling in her such good manners. "I'm happy to."
"Wonderful," Narcissa said, clasping her hands together.
She stood in the doorway expectantly and, realizing she wasn't going to leave them alone, Draco rolled his eyes and walked out of the room. Hermione followed him, with Narcissa behind her. Draco entered the foyer to find his father inside with Neville and Hannah on either side of him.
"Lucius!" Narcissa exclaimed, wrapping her arms around him. "I've been so worried!"
"Enough of that," Lucius scolded. "I'm just a bit tired is all. Otherwise I'm completely fine."
Narcissa released her husband and looked at Neville. "Can you help Draco get him upstairs, Mr. Longbottom?"
"Of course," Neville managed, clearly trying to reconcile the Malfoy family he knew with the one in front of him. "Lead the way, Malfoy."
Together, the three men slowly went up the stairs. As they ascended, Narcissa turned to Hannah.
"Mrs. Longbottom, how are the others?"
"Please, call me Hannah," she answered. "And they're all fine. All will probably be tired for a bit longer, but they're all perfectly healthy."
"I can't thank you enough for taking care of my Lucius," Narcissa replied. "Have you taken the others home yet?"
"We have, actually," Hannah told her. "Your husband insisted on being the last person brought home."
"Forever the martyr," Narcissa said, rolling her eyes and causing Hannah to laugh. "My dear, you and your husband must stay for dinner. It's the least we can do."
Hannah looked surprised at the offer and looked toward Hermione. Please say no, Hermione thought, please say no.
"Ms. Granger is going to join us as well," Narcissa said with a smile.
"I-," Hermione began.
"Well in that case, we'd love to stay," Hannah told her. "Thank you so much for the offer."
Hermione closed her mouth. She knew when she'd been beat and Narcissa Malfoy had just managed to box her very neatly into a corner.
"Wonderful," Narcissa said. "I'm going to pop into the kitchen and get started making dinner. Is steak okay? It's all we have in the house right now."
"Steak is fine," Hannah replied smoothly. "Can we help?"
"Oh no, no dear," Narcissa told her. "Why don't the two of you go and have a drink in the sitting room? I can only imagine the day you two have had."
"Please let us know if you need any help," Hannah said, with a smile.
Narcissa floated out of the room and Hannah dragged a speechless Hermione by the arm down the hall and into the sitting room. She sat down on a sofa and pulled Hermione down next to her.
"What. Was. That!?" Hannah whispered, her eyes bright with amusement. "I feel like I just aided and abetted the smoothest maneuvering the world has ever seen."
"I wasn't going to stay," Hermione whispered back. "I was going to leave, I was going to work, I was going to go anywhere that wasn't here."
"She's just being nice, Hermione," Hannah replied in the same low voice. "Unless she has a reason not to?"
"No, no, no," Hermione said, quickly. "No reason at all."
"You're lying," Hannah claimed, with a Cheshire cat grin. "Does this have to do with the sex vibes between you and Draco Malfoy?"
"Merlin, keep your voice down!" Hermione exclaimed as she fidgeted in her seat. "What are you talking about?"
"Oh please," Hannah replied. "There's so much sexual tension between the two of you the air practically sizzles when you're near one another."
"You, you are crazy," Hermione said, firmly. "Overexposure to potions. Crazy."
"You are in denial," Hannah countered. "So? What happened? Did Narcissa pick up on the sex vibes?"
Hermione opened her mouth to lie but Hannah gave her a look. With a sigh, she replied, "she caught us kissing in the library."
"Yes!" Hannah cried, fist-pumping. "Neville owes me 20 galleons."
"You bet on that?" Hermione said in horror.
"I always bet when I know I'll win," Hannah replied with a grin. "So? First kiss? How was it?"
"It wasn't the first," Hermione muttered, shooting Hannah a death glare when she squealed with delight.
"Hermione Granger, you slut!" Hannah exclaimed. "Tell me everything."
So she did, from start to finish and by the end of her story, Hannah was nearly jumping out of her seat with excitement.
"So what are you going to do?" Hannah asked her.
"Nothing," Hermione said, firmly. "Not a thing. Pretend it never happened. Never see him again."
"Wrong answer," Hannah replied. "Try again."
"It's Draco Malfoy!" Hermione exclaimed, flopping back against the couch. "Remember? The boy who tortured me through school? The former death eater who let other Death Eaters into the school? A complete and total prat?"
"Sure," Hannah told her. "But he doesn't."
At Hannah's words, she sank even further into the couch. "That's the thing," Hermione said quietly. "He doesn't remember. But soon he's going to. He's going to remember everything and then he'll hate me. I can't put myself through that, I just can't."
"Hey," Hannah said, gently. "I was just talking about sleeping with him. Do you actually like him?"
"I'm afraid I could," Hermione answered, honestly. "He's incredibly intelligent, he's capable of being incredibly kind, and he challenges me."
"Not to mention he's incredibly sexy," Hannah pointed out with a giggle.
"I'm just saying it's not worth the risk," Hermione told her.
"And I'm saying, it is," Hannah countered. "You haven't been with anyone since you and Ron broke up and that was years ago. There are worse people you could fall for than Draco Malfoy."
Before Hermione could answer, Draco and Neville entered the room.
"How's Lucius?" Hannah asked, rising from the couch.
Draco stared at Hermione and Hermione stared at the floor.
"He's settled in," Neville replied, when Draco didn't, raising an eyebrow at his wife.
"Will you be going now?" Draco asked, stiffly.
"Oh no," Hannah said, with a wide grin. "Your mother asked us to stay for dinner."
"She, she, she what?" Draco sputtered.
"And we're staying?" Neville asked, looking at Hannah now as if she was crazy.
"She offered to make us dinner to thank us for helping everyone today," Hannah told them. "She said it was the least she could do."
"If you'll excuse me," Draco said, and fled from the room.
"This is going to be fun," Hannah said, clapping her hands.
"Why do I feel like I'm missing something?" Neville asked, glancing between Hannah's look of complete and total glee and Hermione's look of exasperation.
"You are," Hannah said with a wink. "I'll tell you when we get home."
"Okay?" Neville replied, curiously.
Draco suddenly reappeared in the doorway. "My mother says to tell you dinner will be ready in 20 minutes," he said. "And to ask if you'd like a tour of the house."
"Oh we're fine here," Hannah said. "But Hermione had mentioned earlier she wanted to see more of the house."
Hermione's eyes widened in horror.
"Really, I'm fine here," Hermione said. "No tour needed."
"Nonsense," Narcissa Malfoy said from behind Draco, frightening all of them. "Draco, take Ms. Granger on a tour of the house. She should see something other than the library floor."
Draco turned bright red at his mother's words and Hermione wished for a quick death. When it didn't come and Narcissa Malfoy didn't waiver, Hermione rose from the couch and walked over to Draco.
"You could start in the gardens," Narcissa suggested. "It's a lovely night."
"Right," Draco said, turning away from Hermione without looking at her. "This way."
Hermione trailed behind him, following him as he led her through the backyard. They came across a bench and Draco sat down on it and put his head in his hands. Hermione stood awkwardly nearby until he snapped at her to sit down. She sat down on the edge of the bench, as far from him as possible, and looked up at the sky. You could see the stars here, she realized. It was breathtaking.
"That's Draco, there," he said, pointing up at the sky. "My namesake."
"It's nice," she replied, quietly.
"Listen-" they both started to say at the same time, then stopped just as abruptly.
They sat in silence for a couple more minutes before Draco spoke again.
"I'm sorry about my mother," he said. "She's...strong-willed."
"She's...formidable," Hermione replied. "If I wasn't terrified of her, I think I'd like her a great deal."
"It's very possible to do both," Draco said with a laugh. "Trust me."
They lapsed into silence again until, this time, Hermione spoke.
"So during dinner, we should tell your mother what we know," Hermione said. "About Theo."
"After," Draco replied, absentmindedly. "That's not proper dinner conversation."
"After," Hermione repeated. "Right. Of course."
"Mother is big on propriety," Draco told her, with a small smile.
Hermione went to respond when a piece of paper appeared in the grass next to her. She bent down to pick it up. She recognized Harry's scribbled writing and the note made her heart sink.
"Who is it from?" Draco asked, curiously.
"Harry," Hermione replied. "I'd asked him to see if he could find Theo on the grounds."
"How would he be able to do that?" Draco wanted to know.
"He has a special map of sorts," Hermione lied, feeling her heart clench at the words.
She couldn't tell him the truth, she knew. That they were watched nearly everywhere they went. But whereas before it just felt invasive, now it just felt wrong.
"What does the note say?" Draco questioned.
She handed it over to him to read.
No Theo
"No Theo?" Draco said, re-reading the note out loud. "What the hell does that mean?"
"That means he's somewhere that the map doesn't reach," Hermione told him.. "Or that he's somehow managed to leave the town entirely. Or…"
"Or?" Draco asked. "Or what?"
"Or he's dead," Hermione said, looking at Draco's face. "The first one being the most likely of the three in my opinion."
"Too bad," Draco replied. "I'd have settled for dead."
"Malfoy," Hermione said, softly. "He's your friend."
This time he placed his hand on her arm. "It's like Theo said," Draco replied, staring into her eyes. "Things change."
"Draco? Hermione?" Hannah called from the house, shattering the fragile moment. "Dinner is ready."
"Coming," Draco shouted back.
He rose from the bench and held out his hand to Hermione. She hesitated but took it and he helped her to her feet. He released her hand and they walked side-by-side back into the house.
Dinner turned out to be completely uneventful. Narcissa and Hannah chatted the entire time about gardens, medicine, and children while Neville, Hermione, and Draco looked on in silence. Once the meal was over, everyone helped Narcissa clear the table and clean up the kitchen.
"Thank you so much, Narcissa," Hannah said, beaming at her. "We had such a wonderful time."
"I'm so glad you could come," Narcissa replied. "It gets a bit boring here hosting the same people over and over. I do hope you'll come again."
"We'll certainly try," Hannah told her.
The two women embraced and, once they were done, Narcissa walked over and embraced Neville as well.
"You've got a wonderful wife," Narcissa said, releasing him from the hug.
"I think so," Neville replied, giving her a genuine smile. "Thank you for dinner."
"You have what you need?" Hermione asked, hoping they knew she meant the portkey.
"We do," Hannah replied. "Make sure that you do too."
With a wink, she took Neville's hand and the two of them walked out of the Malfoy home.
"Ms. Granger, would you like a tour of the rest of the house now?" Narcissa asked, pleasantly.
"Actually mother, we need to talk to you," Draco told her. "In your official capacity as Chairman of the Board."
Narcissa's demeanor quickly changed from friendly to serious. "Of course, dear," she said. "Come up to my office."
Draco and Hermione followed Narcissa up the stairs and into her office. Hermione and Draco sat in the two chairs facing the desk while Narcissa moved around to the other side and sat in a plush desk chair. She snapped her fingers and the papers in front of her desk immediately organized themselves into neat stacks.
"If you don't mind, I just need to record this," Narcissa said, gesturing to the quill now poised above a piece of parchment.
"Of course," Draco replied.
"Now," Narcissa said. "Tell me."
So they did. Taking turns, Hermione and Draco revealed everything they'd learned that day, from their own doubts about Blaise's guilt to the disappearance of Theo. When they were done, Narcissa cancelled the spell on the quill and it dropped onto the parchment.
"You two have been busy," she commented.
"It was important," Draco replied with a shrug. "Blaise is my best friend. Granger can't stop herself from helping people."
"Regardless," Narcissa said. "I'll take this to the rest of the board tomorrow. It's far too late now."
For the first time, Hermione heard the clock chime. It was 11pm she realized. Far later that she meant to stay.
"I should be going," Hermione said, rising from her chair.
"I'll be taking this to the board first thing in the morning," Narcissa told her. "They may have some questions for you and Draco. It might be easier if you were already here."
"I couldn't possibly impose on you like that," Hermione replied, hastily. "Really, I can just go and come back early in the morning. I don't have anything to wear."
"Nonsense, it wouldn't be an imposition," Narcissa replied. "I insist. We have a fully furnished extra bedroom. I'll have Pansy bring over some clothes for you. She's a bit taller than you but it should work."
"Mrs. Malfoy, really," Hermione tried to protest but it was in vain. Narcissa Malfoy just steamrolled right over her.
"Draco will show you to the room," she said, rising from the desk and moving out of the room. "Goodnight."
"Your mother is…," Hermione started to say and let out a breath of frustration.
"Formidable, I believe is the word you used earlier," Draco replied, fighting a grin.
Hermione rubbed her temples and sighed in response. "I suppose you should show me to the room now."
"I suppose I should," Draco replied, rising from the chair.
Hermione rose as well and followed him out of the room. She was spending the night in the Malfoy home, she thought with a shake of her head. What was the worst that could happen?
A/N: So I'm a HUGE believer that if Narcissa had been given a chance to develop more as a character in the original story, this is how she would have been. Any woman who lies to Voldemort to protect their child is obviously a badass so that's how I portrayed her.