A/N: Hello my lovelies, here we are with another update of our lovely Say You Won't Let Go. I am also here to inform you that this is the last full chapter. The next chapter I post will be the epilogue. I want to thank you all for following along with me for this journey.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

XoXo,

Elle.

Chapter 25

March had flown by and it was the morning of their vow renewal. Before their rushed wedding, Hermione hadn't had the time to get nervous. Now there was a whole swarm of Billywigs fluttering around in her stomach and she couldn't focus on anything. Ginny had forced a Calming Draught down Hermione's throat because she had begun to panic. Hermione had known, in the back of her mind, that her anxiety was absurd. She and Draco were already married, bound by law and magic. Consummated by love. This wedding ceremony was just Draco's way of spoiling Hermione, giving her the wedding she'd always dreamed of having. The wedding she'd gladly forfeited when Tabitha and Tobias had come into the picture. But of course, she wouldn't be Hermione if she didn't overthink things and have a panic attack.

"Hermione, it's time, dear." Narcissa said, sticking her head through the door. Hermione gave her mother-in-law a nod and small smile before turning her head to look over at Harry, her nerves flaring once again, even in spite of the draught. "I'm going to go and take my seat, Hermione. But the elves know when to start everything. It will all be perfect. I love you, sweetheart." Hermione turned her head back to Narcissa just as she left the room.

Harry walked over and placed his hands on her bare shoulders. "Everything is going to be perfect. Just as Narcissa said. Besides, you said it yourself, this is just for show."

He was right of course, Hermione had said that the whole thing was just for show. But it was so much more than that. "Right, just for show. Harry, don't let me go. Please don't let me go." Tears began pooling in her eyes as she pleaded with Harry, wishing in that moment that her father was here. Hermione couldn't help it. Her heart seized in her chest and her lungs began to tighten, restricting her ability to draw air into them. Dizziness swirled in her head. Her fingers began to struggle for purchase on Harry's Muggle suit jacket.

Hermione would have to thank Harry later for tightening his grip on her upper arms and shaking her hard, staring into her eyes. "Hermione, stop it! You are freaking out for no damned reason. You are married to the wizard already, you have a family together. This. Is. Just. A. Show. A play. One of your romance novels. Whatever you want to believe it to be. I don't know how it will be for you, because our roles were reversed and I'm a bloke, but the moment I saw Gin, all my nerves melted away. So we need to get your arse to the end of that aisle and set your sights on Draco. Let's go."

"Draco. Right." Hermione nodded, taking a deep breath. She carefully wiped under her eyes and made sure Harry hadn't messed up her hair when he'd rattled her brains around. Ginny would kill them both if he had. Harry opened the door of the room Narcissa had put her in to get ready and she stepped out. Her best friend stepped in next to her and offered his arm, which Hermione took gratefully and together they walked toward the doors at the end of the hallway.

"For the record, I'd never let you go. We may both be married and have our own families, but I'll always have the time and a need for my best friend. You were there for me from the beginning and I'll be here for you until the very end. Now, let's get you down that aisle." Harry leaned over and kissed her on the cheek.

Hermione sucked in a deep breath and began blowing it out slowly, stopping halfway through. "Hang on...did you just say 'We may both be married and have our own families'?"

Harry looked as if he was trying to play it off, but his blush gave it away. "Bloody hell. Don't tell Gin I let it slip. She'll have my bollocks. She was going to tell you at the reception. We just found out this morning. But seriously, come on. We're late. Draco will come looking for you."

Hermione laughed quietly and started walking with Harry, feeling relaxed and light-hearted at the news that Harry was finally getting a family of his own.

XxX

"Draco? What are you doing in here?" His mother called, opening the door to his father's study wider. It was the one room in the manor they hadn't touched. It had been too painful in the beginning and as time wore on, they'd just forgotten about it. But with the appearance and arrival of Evangeline and the kids, Lucius had been on Draco's mind a lot, recently.

"I'm just thinking, Mother. Reminiscing. We should really clean out this room. Purge him from our lives. Completely." Draco said, opening a drawer in the desk he was sitting behind. "I know he'll never truly be gone. He's a part of all of us, in one way or another. But having his things still here, it's like a stain or a shadow. Reflecting on the reason we're here today, having this wedding ceremony now, it reminded me of how badly I handled things. I shouldn't have bombarded you the way I did." Draco sighed heavily, running his fingers through his hair.

He heard a soft sigh leave his mother's lips, "Draco, we shouldn't talk of such things now, not on a day like today. But I can tell it's eating away at you. I always knew, in the back of my mind, that Lucius was unfaithful. Even so, finding out that all of my suspicions and fears through the years were indeed true was a kick to the stomach. While I understand that your sole focus was on the wellbeing of those precious children, it was a shock to be blindsided like that. I would have much rather had you explain it to me here, before bringing me to the Ministry. But things happened the way they did and we can't change them now."

Draco had been rummaging through the drawer as his mother had been talking. He pulled free an old wizarding photograph and held it up, a frown marring his features. "Mum, look at this."

Narcissa walked over to her son and leaned over Draco's shoulder to look down at the square photograph. It was black and white and moving, as wizarding photos did. There was a young woman, with what could be any color hair, aside from blonde or black, holding a small bundle of blankets. A small newborn head just peeking out of the top, cradled in the crook of her arm. The woman's head was craned upward, looking at the stern but regal wizard seated next to her with a loving smile on her face. Lucius was looking down at the baby with a proud smile on his face, as the loop of the picture played on, he lifted a hand and brought his fingers forward to caress the infant's cheek.

Draco threw the photograph onto the desk in disgust and looked up at his mother. She had tears in her eyes and Draco wanted to kill his father all over again. Even dead, he was still hurting her. "I hate him. He kept that tucked away, where he could look at it whenever he wanted. But do you see a picture like that from when I was born? No. Did he ever love us?"

"Draco, your father was a very complicated and calculating man. You and I both know that. When you were born, that was one of the proudest days of his life. Because he finally had someone to carry on the Malfoy line. As callous as that sounds. That was important to him. It was his family's legacy. And he did love you, in his own way," Narcissa said, reaching out to stroke his hair, straightening the mess he had made.

"But what about you? Did he ever love you?" Draco's eyes fell to the photograph again, which had landed face down. The date had been written on the back, in fading ink. March 23, 1976. Another frown creased Draco's brow as he looked at the year. "He couldn't have. This was only a few years after you were married."

Narcissa sighed once more, her fingers picking at an invisible piece of lint. "Our marriage was not a marriage of love. Our marriage was one of convenience, arranged by our parents for monetary gain, and to merge the powers of our bloodline. I loved him and he may have held an affection for me, in the beginning, but it did not take long for that spark to fade. But our marriage, imperfect though it may have been, gave me one thing I will never regret. You. Now, no more talk of these dreary and dark things. This is a day for happy thoughts. When you return, we'll clean this room and purify it. But let's go and give our Hermione the wedding of her dreams."

Draco stood and wrapped his mother in his arms. Her slender hands slid up his back and patted the space between his shoulder blades. He kissed the top of her head, careful to barely touch her hair and took a deep, cleansing breath. His mother was right, after all. They had had each other to lean on for so many years. Now they had three more. Their life hadn't been easy, but they had finally caught their break and had their turn around. Things were going in the right direction. Hermione and those kids had brought a light into their life. Draco and Narcissa would be forever in their debt.

The mother and son left the office behind and made their way to the altar. Draco took his place, Blaise standing behind him. The moment the double doors of the dining room opened, he looked up, and his heart seized in his chest, his breath halted in his lungs. Hermione was simply the most stunning creature he'd ever seen on this earth.

XxX

The doors opened and Hermione's eyes took in the beautiful spring scene before them. There were colorful flowers everywhere, all along the aisle, petals spread along the walkway. But as her gaze followed the path the lilac carpet carved, her eyes met a pair of shiny dragonhide loafers and followed them up the slender legs. A wide smile spread across her lips, making her cheeks begin to hurt as her eyes connected with Draco's.

She tore her eyes away for a few moments to look at her children. Tobias was standing next to Draco, dressed just like his uncle and looking just like a miniature version of him. She and Harry were nearing closer and she heard Tobias turn his head up and speak to Draco, "She looks beautiful, Papa." That made Hermione's eyes water. Recently, they had come to an agreement that Tobias would call Draco Papa, the French endearment for father. It made Tobias feel more comfortable and less like he was replacing his dad.

Hermione then turned her eyes over to Ginny, where she held Tabitha on her hip. Hermione's smile widened once more when Tabitha waved wildly at her and began calling for her. "Mummy!"

"Hi Princess." There was a rumble of laughter from the crowd at the exchange.

Hermione and Harry finally arrived at the altar and Harry handed her off to Draco, giving Hermione a kiss on the cheek. "Remember, just for show. Love you, Mi."

The ceremony was both a blur and clear as glass. Hermione could remember every detail of it clearly, but couldn't believe it was already over. She was sitting at the head table under an open canopy, next to Draco. The kids were running around on the dance floor, playing with Teddy, whose violet hair was shining in the fairy lights.

"We should get them together to play more often," Draco said, leaning over to whisper into her ear. Hermione grinned and gave a nod of her head.

She leaned into her husband and took a sip of her wine to wash down the piece of cake she'd been chewing. "We should. Tobias is only a year older than Teddy. It'll be good for Teddy to have a friend when he gets to school. Speaking of kids, Ginny and Harry are having a baby, though I'm supposed to wait for her to tell me. Harry let it slip when I was having a freak out."

"When you were having a what?" Draco asked, raising a brow.

Hermione marveled for a moment at how perfectly manicured Draco was, all without intervention. She then waved away his question, "I was just having a small panic attack about the ceremony is all. Just wedding day jitters. I promise, everything was fine. Harry calmed me down, like he always has been able to. Anyway, I can talk to Andromeda about bringing Teddy around. I'm sure mum would like that. Give her a chance to get to know her sister again." Hermione waved away the previous track their conversation had taken with her change of subject.

She was glad when Draco took the direction, though she could tell the subject was far from over. "Yeah, she would like that. Especially while we're gone on our honeymoon."

"I'm nervous about leaving," Hermione began to chew on the corner of her lip, her eyes locking on the kids.

"Mum can handle it, love. But I understand. We've only had them for four months. My nerves are on edge as well, I don't want something to go wrong while we're gone. I know we're only going to be an Apparition point away, but it's still terrifying to think about what could happen in a split second." Draco leaned in to give her a kiss and smiled. "But we can't think like that. Mum has plenty of experience with children. I was a handful and they are nothing like I was. Come on, time for our dance."

Hermione didn't want to dance. She was full, and her feet hurt from the shoes. The cushioning charm had worn off and her nerves were mounting as it came closer to time for them to leave. Leaving the children was a big stressor for Hermione. She and Draco were only going to London for the week, but it still seemed so far away. But she allowed Draco to pull her to the dance floor as the song they had chosen came on.

Draco leaned down for a kiss, his lips brushing against hers as they formed the words to the song. Hermione couldn't help but smile against the velvet softness of his lips. Her arms draped around his neck as Draco pulled her in close. "Everything will be fine, right?"

She felt Draco's hand come to rest just above her arse and smiled, leaning her head on his chest for a moment before meeting his eyes. "Everything will be just fine." Hermione needed that reassurance. She truly did. But she also needed the feel of Draco's arms around her.

XxX

The rest of the evening passed by all too quickly. The guests had left, only the Potters and Andromeda remaining behind to help clean up. Hermione had talked to Andromeda earlier about setting up some playdates for Teddy and Tobias, and Andromeda had agreed. She was also going to stay the night with her sister.

Harry and Ginny were making their way over to the couple, smiles on their faces. "Alright, Malfoy. It's time for me to return the favor." Harry held out a keychain, a single brass key hanging from the ring. "Hermione has been there once before and hopefully remembers all the charms and wards she put up. The place is yours for the week."

Hermione watched as Draco took the key from her best friend and the two exchanged a glance. It was hard to believe they'd come so far. But when Draco had thrown Harry his wand at the final battle, it had saved Harry's life - something everyone in Harry's life was eternally grateful for. "Thank you, Harry." Hermione moved from Draco's side to give Harry a hug and then moved on to hug Ginny, talking excitedly about the pregnancy. She was giving Harry and Draco a moment to talk, knowing that even after several years, they were still awkward around each other.

"They will be great friends one day. The longer they're around each other, the easier it will be." Ginny said quietly in Hermione's ear.

Hermione nodded with a smile. "Oh, I know. It's nice to see them finally get along, though, isn't it. How's Ron? I was thinking of asking him to lunch when we get back."

Ginny gave Hermione another smile, "He's doing well. Daphne has really turned him around, he actually closes his mouth when he chews now. I bet he'd like that, he's been asking about you. He misses you, the friendship you had."

"I miss it too, Gin. I'm more than ready to have that friendship back, now. It's past-" Hermione was interrupted by the sound of small feet running in their direction.

"Mummy! Mummy!" Tabitha was running toward Hermione, her hair flying. Her eyes were wide with fear.

Hermione bent down and scooped the little girl up, "Hello Princess. What's wrong?"

"Toby said you go bye bye. You and Daddy." Tabitha said, hiding her face in Hermione's neck.

"Oh, my princess. My poor princess. We are going bye bye, but only for a few days. You're going to stay with Gram and Auntie Dromeda. Even Teddy is going to stay and play. It's going to be lots of fun. Daddy and I will be back before you know it." Hermione's heart was breaking. She knew that something like this might happen and she should have been better prepared for it. Truly, she'd been hoping that Tabitha would have been asleep by now.

She and Draco had been explaining it to the kids over the last few weeks. But it was asking a lot for a two year old to comprehend. "You come back?"

Hermione kissed her head and nodded, "Absolutely, princess. Your Daddy and I could never leave you and your brother. You two mean the world to us."

Draco had joined them by this time, kissing Tabitha's head as well. "That's right, Princess. And when we come back, you'll have lots of surprises. Now, let's go and find your brother so that we can say goodbye to him."

The family moved through the empty ballroom, following the sounds of childish laughter. No doubt Teddy and Tobias had started wandering the many halls. When they finally found them, Draco sent Teddy back to his grandmother and Hermione found them a sitting room.

"It's time for you to go?" Tobias asked when he settled in between Hermione and Draco.

"Yeah, bud, it is time for us to go. But we'll be back before you know it. Have you had fun with Teddy tonight?" Draco asked him, smiling over at Hermione.

Tobias gave an enthusiastic nod, "Yes. Teddy is lots of fun. Grams said he's my cousin, is that true?"

Draco chuckled and gave a nod, "Yes, it is true, in a sense. But we don't have to get into that. Aunt Dromeda is staying the night tonight and if he wants, Teddy can sleep with you in your room. Is there anything you two might want from London?"

The kids began to list off some things that they wanted, and Hermione committed them to memory with a chuckle. "Not asking for much, are we? We'll see what we can do. I'll miss you both so very much." Hermione squeezed Tabitha's body on her lap tightly, kissing her curls as Draco said goodbye to Tobias, before passing her over to Draco.

Tobias climbed his way into Hermione's lap and slid his arms around her neck, fingers twirling into her hair. "I'll miss you a lot."

"I'll miss you too, my Prince. But we'll be back before you know it and you'll have so much fun with Teddy." Hermione smoothed his hair down. "How about we go find Teddy? See what he's up to. I bet he's bored all by himself with Grams and Aunt Dromeda."

The small family stood from the couch, Tabitha clinging to Draco, her head laid on his shoulder as they walked through the manor, in search of Narcissa, Andromeda and Teddy.

When they found them, Draco and Hermione said their goodbyes to the women and went to their room to change clothes and gather their things. "You sure being gone from them the whole week is a good idea?" Hermione asked, her eyes still damp with tears.

"Hermione, they will be fine. We'll owl them every night. Even fire call if you want. It'll all turn out right. Finish up here, I'm going to fire call Elle and make sure the last safe house was made unplottable, like it was scheduled to be." Draco leaned down to kiss Hermione and smiled. "I promise, it's going to be perfect. I'll be right back."

Hermione walked into the closet, moving to her side and pulled out a drawer. There, laying on top, was the lingerie set that she and Ginny had picked out for tonight. She quickly stripped and slid into it, before changing into a pair of muggle jeans and jumper. When Draco returned, she was ready and they apparated away to begin their honeymoon in London.