Hey there everyone! I promised I would write again soon, and I did ! I'm now out of writer's block and have so much more to write, and your support keeps me going ! I hope you enjoy this chapter :D
Chapter 21
Laughing echoed in the grand dining room of the Hampshire Manor. All sorts of food were laid on the dining table and all plates were full, they were all chatting and laughing together while enjoying the delicious feast.
"We've missed you both so much, the Manor is empty without you two" trailed on Narcissa as she drank a bit of wine.
"Well it is great to be here with all of you, I guess we needed that escape didn't we Orion?" Draco asked as he drank the remaining of his soup.
"Absolutely !" he managed to say while munching on a chicken leg.
Sirius grinned at the sight of his family gathered together before he spoke : "Why didn't you ask Neville to come along?"
"He didn't want to leave Ron alone, besides Dumbledore said it would be best if only the two of us came here." Orion replied casually
"It's a shame Hermione didn't come with you, I really miss her." Hestia said only to be followed by Walburga: "Oh yes! Young miss granger is a very bright witch, and I really enjoy conversing with her."
At the mention of Hermione's name, Draco couldn't help but smile, he was amused at how she gripped his hand during the first task, and how she hugged him and then blushed at what she did, she was spontaneous, and he liked that about her.
"And Miss Bones has turned out to be a beautiful young lady, you're very lucky Orion!" Sirius smirked at his embarrassed son, who just blushed a bit and carried on eating.
"So, the Yule Ball is less than a month away, do you have any dates yet?" Narcissa asked both boys.
"I guess we all know that Orion is going with Susan, that's pretty obvious" Hestia remarked, a sly smile on her beautiful face. Everyone laughed at her statement and nodded their heads, Orion only blushed harder.
"And what about you Draco?" Narcissa asked again.
"Oh you'll never guess !" Orion spoke, smirking at them
"I hope it's a respectable pure-blooded lass!" Walburga said, raising her chin up
"I thought you didn't have a problem with that anymore, for you just said how much you admired Miss Granger." Sirius asked his mother skeptically
"Miss Granger is different than other muggle-borns, and I wouldn't mind if she was Draco's date." Walburga stated calmly
Draco only smiled at them, and shook his head while laughing.
"It 's Hermione isn't it? You're escorting her to the ball" Narcissa said, smiling at her son.
Draco nodded while Orion, surprised, asked his aunt "How did you find out?"
"I'm his mother, I know everything" and they all laughed again.
Later on, Sirius excused himself to his study, saying he needed to go ever some papers for a new business he was working on, while he was actually awaiting an owl.
He was pacing back on forth, staring at the window every minute.
He was about to give up and go to sleep when an eagle owl flew in, carrying a letter with him.
Sirius unwrapped the message and read, his eyes widening
'Your Grace, the Duke of Hampshire,
As per your grace's request, our entire team has been searching day and night for the so-called Lucius Malfoy. I regret to inform your grace that the only thing we managed to find out is that he was last spotted in Albania. Our research continues and we hope to come out with satisfactory results.
Thank you again, your grace, for your donations,
Sincerely,
PAO'
Draco and Orion were back in the Gryffindor common room, playing wizarding chess with Neville and Ron.
"So mates, you got dates for the Yule ball ?" Ron asked while thinking about his next move against Orion.
"Oh yeah, I'm going with Susan." Orion answered casually
"Obviously, what about you Dray?" Ron asked again
"I'm taking Hermione" he answered, still focusing on chess
Neville and Ron looked at him and smirked "Who knew Draco Malfoy had a thing for 'Mione" Neville said, and they all laughed
"We're going as friends, now piss off all of you" Draco said, his lips trying to prevent a smile.
"Alright, alright, no need to get so jumpy!" Ron replied, and they all burst out laughing again
"Oh Yeah, who are you going with Ron?" Draco looked at him, smirking
"I'm taking Luna."
They all looked stunned, Orion immediately looked at Neville, who just shrugged.
"What's wrong?" Ron asked, confused
"Nothing" Neville answered
"No Ron! Didn't you know that Neville had a thing for Luna?" Orion stated, trying to keep his temper from flaring
Ron's face turned white, he looked at Neville and said: "I swear Neville, I didn't know! Gosh I'm so sorry man, I'll go tell her that I can't go-"
"No you idiot! Don't you realize how rude that would be?!" Draco answered, his hands in the air!
"I-I'm sorry Neville"
"It's alright man, you didn't know, besides I asked someone else when I found out she has a date." Neville stated calmly.
"That's good, who is the lucky girl?" Ron perked up a bit
"It's uhmm, it's Ginny actually." Neville said hesitantly
Ron's face turned red as he shouted "WHAT?!"
Orion and Draco were ecstatic, they were holding unto their stomach.
"You got burned Ron!" Draco laughed so hard and nudged Orion who cracked up "Burned Bad!"
Neville was trying not to laugh, but eventually joined Draco and Orion
"Well I think I deserve that one don't I?" asked Ron, smiling despite his attempts not to
"Yeah I guess you deserve it for being so thick" Neville said, smiling at his best friend.
Hermione, Ginny, Susan and Luna were walking down the corridor, chatting about the Yule Ball.
"So, did any of you get a dress yet?" Susan asked "My aunt just send me some money so I can go shopping on our next trip to Hogsmead."
"My mom sent me one, I like it very much, want me to show it to you girls?" Ginny asked
"Yeah come on let's go" Hermione answered as they headed towards the Fat Lady
"Password?" The Fat lady sneered at Luna and Susan
"Oh don't worry lady !" Hermione cast a 'Muffliato' and murmured the password to the Fat Lady.
The girls entered through the portal door, while Luna kept admiring the common room
"It's so nice and cozy in here" she said dreamily
"Indeed it is!" Hermione answered as Ginny headed upstairs to get her dress
As soon as she got down, they all smiled and Susan said : "It's so pretty Ginny! And green is definitely you color!"
"Yeah, it goes good with your hair!" Luna stated
"Thank you girls!"
"So Hermione, Luna, did you get your dresses?"
"No not yet, I'm also going to Hogsmead" Hermione stated
"Yeah me too!" Luna added
"Hey, we can go together, hogsmead trip is next week, and I still need to buy shoes!" Ginny remarked
"Excellent idea!" Susan smiled.
Well that's it for this chapter ! Hope you liked it ! But please review ! Your reviews and support keep me going ! Thank you for reading !
XOXO
Cleo26