Chapter Twenty-Five: Shopping and All The Other Little Things

Bonjour to all of you, my Upper Wizarding friends! Gossip Girl here.

Time passes by ever so quickly – I was told the other day by a special friend that we all should live like we're dying, but learn as though we are to live forever. Profound, is it not? I know I shall definitely keep this in mind!

Yet another Valentine's Day has come and gone… just a curious thought: was anyone at the receiving end of any kind of romantic gesture? I know we all want to know! Chocolates, flowers, walks under the moonlight and picnics on a sunny day – oh, how wonderful and romantic it is for those who are in love!

Here's a fluffy quote I found the other day that I wanted to share with all of you:

Love is a promise;

Love is a souvenir

Once given never forgotten,

Never let it disappear.

Isn't it sweet? :) And it's so true!

Without any further ado – I should really break out of this 'love spell' I'm under – Shopping and All The Other Little Things.

She blearily opened her eyes the next morning, finding herself in unfamiliar surroundings. To her left, was a polished rosewood chest of drawers, of a minimalist design; to her right was a quirky looking hanger that held a fancy hat with a single blue feather and a silky scarf to match; straight ahead was a small fridge, entertainment bar and a flat screen TV that still had the large green '3D and High Definition' sticky label firmly stuck to its side speakers. This looked more like a muggle bachelor pad in the movies than a bedroom.

Where am I?

She tried to recollect the events of the night before, wondering as to where on earth she was. Had she she out drunk? Heavily stupefied? Slipped a drug or dreamless sleep potion by someone? Just how could she have been unable to retain all that had happened last night? The last thing she remembered doing… was walking down those gold railings in that outfit… with Narcis- her mother…

And then everything came flying back at her - she gasped.

Narcissa had left her alone for a little while to take care of the dinner arrangements. She stepped out of her suite, feeling anxious and lost for the umpteenth time in the past few days, anticipating the events that were about to unravel before her.

Many questions and worried thoughts swirled in her mind. Was this like a 'judgment' dinner? If I do badly, will I be kicked out of the manor? If so, where would I go? It's not like I have a proper home anymore anyway… Would Draco be responsive to my presence in his family? What if he doesn't like me? He already doesn't anyway… so why bother worrying about that anyway? What will Lucius and Narcissa be like? Did they expect me to have to refer to them as 'Mother' and 'Father' or 'Mum' and 'Dad' already?

I just can't. Not yet, anyway.

It's much too hard.

And the most unsettling thought - what if they are just trying to trick me, what if they're trying to spy on Harry and have kidnapped me for ransom? For Voldemort? What if -

She couldn't continue that trail of thought without feeling guilty. Indeed, she was well aware of the fact that this was possible, that this could be all part of a grand scheme plotted by Voldemort and his minions to sabotage Harry. But she knew that she couldn't do anything about this unless she actually went through with the dinner and observed. Simply observing the family dynamic later at dinner would suffice at this moment in time to make a fair judgment on the circumstances that she had been thrust into.

And if she was really the missing Malfoy daughter, they wouldn't hurt her, right?

Hopefully not, anyway.

She proceeded to walk – albeit at an extremely slow pace – and mustered her thoughts and her confidence together, in the most coherent form that she could. After all, this was all very overwhelming to take in. She hadn't noticed that she had reached the top of the staircase until she felt the familiar feel of metal, indicative of the railing she was meant to hold on to on the way downstairs. Breathing in and out, she decided that it was better to conquer her fears and troubles that plagued her mind since she had realised that she had to face the Malfoys together, as a family unit, sooner or later.

Sighing inaudibly, she walked down steadily and gracefully, as if she was a lady of leisure, taking all the time in the world. She wasn't, and she knew that she definitely did not have the time, but she wanted to feel like one. Then suddenly she felt another body collide with her –

"Oh mother, please do watch where you are going. You never know where those trick steps might be."

She hadn't fallen over, but she had stumbled over slightly, missing two steps and landing perfectly on her two feet that had been slipped into the most beautiful heels one could imagine. She frowned. Firstly, she couldn't think of a time when she had been so poised whilst losing her balance. And second of all, she couldn't quite remember having a child at all… after all, one couldn't be so certain about these things. So then why was this person with the rather masculine voice referring to her as his mother?

It was all rather odd.

Well, other bizarre things had been happening to her recently too that didn't compare to this.

Deciding to keep quiet and play the stereotypical muggle ditzy blonde (ironically enough, she now was one too!), she glanced around curiously and immediately knew who the voice belonged to. She decided to turn the tables around, and as though she hadn't heard anything - "I'm sorry. It was my fault."

She could have sworn that his eyes widened marginally at the sight of her face as he did a double-take, from her to the bottom of the stairs, as though having realised something. The expression on his face read that he was knee-deep in something of a gross nature (fecal matter, perhaps?) that he couldn't identify at that particular moment.

Silence ensued as the boy and girl stood awkwardly at the middle of the staircase, not knowing what to say or do. She took note that his gobsmacked face had been rapidly schooled into a mask, one of blankness and slight indifference. She didn't know that silence could be quite this loud and decided to tinker at it – after all, her relationship with the Malfoys would take time to build. If she wanted a proper family and if none of the Malfoys were willing to do anything, she knew it would have to be her who did something. She knew that someone had to try their hand at conversation; and seeing as Malfoy wasn't about to say anything any time soon, she knew it had to be her who instigated it. Even if this 'family' problem of her being a Malfoy was merely a sham, she tried to see it from an optimistic point of view – if this was real, this was a happily ever after in that she was finally reunited with them. If this wasn't real, she knew she had a variety of options: she could be a double agent for Harry – then at least she was helping his cause.

And it was then she knew she had to start everything all over again. Despite remembering everything he had done to her; everything he had done for her, she knew she had to be no less than civil to someone she was to call her brother – her twin, from now on.

"So um… I'm Hermione. Mia for short."

So much for eloquent conversation.

Earlier, Narcissa had told her what she had intended to call her daughter, and so Hermione had decided to adopt it. After all, there was no harm in attempting to at least feel comfortable in this stilted atmosphere.

Both of them were on their guard, and both knew why the other was acting in this way. He blinked, twice, seemingly at a loss, and seemingly trying to be two steps ahead of her and calculating his move carefully. But just what was so hard about responding to her introduction?

Time passed by as though eternity had lapped two circles at a race course. Just as she was about to turn around, return to a world of tranquility and stroll down the stairs alone –

"Draco." He said simply, smiling cautiously. She smiled back, also unsure of what to do.

Seeming to be one step ahead of the brightest witch in their year – the girl who was standing in front of him – he held out an arm to her,

"Shall we?"

Going with the flow of the situation, Hermione gently looped her arm around his, and walked down with him. All was fine until –

"DRACO!"

He seemed to snap out of his reverie with eyes as wide as saucers, almost afraid of the echoing voice. "It's mother. We really don't want to be late."

She nodded, almost in a trance at listening to his voice and followed his lead. She was shocked, as she didn't think that he would respond as much as he had. Many twists and turns later along numerous corridors, they found themselves in the dining room, a dark area brightly lit by a single chandelier and several candles dotted at the table. Quite a few plates had been laid down, with the indication of them being freshly made: the steam wafting temptingly from each plate. She had half-expected the table to be long and vast, like the house tables at Hogwarts. Somehow she pictured the Malfoys to dine together at a distance and at the ends of the table, barely speaking to each other and eating in silence.

She couldn't have been any further off the point, for this evidently was not the case. Her preconceived ideas were at a polar opposite to the way the Malfoys really conducted their meals.

She soon found herself seated in between Narcissa and Draco and opposite Lucius at a fairly large square table that was sizable and intimate enough for a small family to hold intimate conversations between themselves. Hermione felt slightly awkward at filling up the fourth and last spot at the table, but then she remembered that she was now a member of the family. The plates that had been laid down vanished, but the plates with appetisers magically shifted towards each person, and comprised of a light lobster and salmon salad and a small bowl of soup that had a distinctive French name. The main course was a roast meal consisting of the best and juiciest lamb chops with a choice of cranberry sauce or mint jelly, broccoli, parsnips, sprouts and carrots, mushrooms, potatoes galore cooked in different styles – roast potatoes, au gratin, French fries… anything you could think of.

And dessert? Narcissa told her family that they could wish for what they liked, just like at Hogwarts, and the dish of their choice would appear right in their eyes. Hermione's eyes expanded, clearly not expecting this and wished for her favourite –

An extremely chocolatey cake. Chocolate cream, chocolate bits and swirls, chocolate sauce…

The same dish also materialised in front of Draco.

They both laughed awkwardly, which seemed to sound more similar to a "heh heh" sound. Their eyes met each other, and the two siblings immediately looked away – anywhere but at each other.

Throughout the meal, Lucius and Narcissa made light conversation with both each other and their children, as Draco and Hermione kept their eyes on their food and ate in silence unless spoken to by their parents. For the latter, she was desperately rummaging her mind for conversation starters, but to no avail. Thinking better of saying something random, she kept silent, after all, it was Emily Granger who taught her that when she had nothing good to say, it was a much better bet to remain quiet. Hermione knew it was probably just her who was feeling out of place at the table, for she felt that the dining setting was just a tad too uncomfortable.

"So. I trust the meal is to your liking? I hope this… setting, is not too discomforting for you – as you may have probably noticed, Mother just doesn't stop jabbering away… it's actually a very normal thing." Draco rolled his eyes at the latter part of his conversation starter and seemed to be testing out the waters – of the awkward and in-limbo relationship between him and Hermione – and watching out for her reaction.

Her eyes seemed to indicate of the relief that she felt, that he began the conversation and she hadn't. Somehow it would have been quite odd if she had been the one to do so. "Oh yes, of course. It's lovely." Her mouth quirked upwards, and she laughed slightly at the roll of his eyes.

To her, that seemed to be quite the diplomatic answer, not offending anyone and complimenting the meal at the same time.

"The elves really did outdo themselves tonight." He commented pleasantly, his eyes a little out of focus as he began to lose himself in his thoughts.

And then silence loomed upon them once more.

She blinked, as the length of the memory faded slightly, still lingering in her mind, overwhelming her. She lay sprawled once more on the plush bed, thinking of all that had happened in the past few days. From the thought that she was a muggleborn, from a family of no particular name, leading a simple life and being only focused on achieving outstanding results at Hogwarts – she was now a pureblood, a member of a prominent family, about to lead a life of many complexities. She was not only supposed to be focused on school, but her social life also, as seen in the publications of the media. The tangled web she thought was complicated as a result of being at Hogwarts had just become all the more bigger; and intricately woven with each other.

It was the end of dinner. Narcissa exclaimed that she was "absolutely exhausted" and wished to retire to her rooms. Lucius stood up and held an arm to his wife, who disregarded it, and made her way to the door. He bid his children a good night by kissing each of their foreheads, and escorted the woman who had been born into the family of Black, upstairs.

This left Draco and Hermione together, in a relatively comfortable but cautious quietude. The elves had begun to appear just as the plates disappeared away for cleaning. They wiped the table in the muggle way and each waved a spell on the table to ensure that it was spotless and shining.

"Well." Draco said awkwardly, as he stood up and pushed his chair into the table. He made his way to Hermione, and held an arm out again.

She felt a sense of déjà-vu, but disregarded it, knowing that it had already happened once, and would probably occur more often in the coming days.

"Shall we?"

"Of course." She smiled and gracefully got up from her chair.

To an outsider, it would seem that they were a couple, arms interlinked with each other, but as we all know, they weren't, as this is such an incestuous thought to behold! They strolled up the stairs, enjoying the silence of the night.

It wasn't long until he had escorted her to her rooms. With slight discomfort, he cleared his throat –

"Good night, Mia."

"Good night Draco."

She put her hand on the doorknob and entered the room. She didn't look back at the boy who was now her brother.

"Mia dear?" The posh accent of Narcissa Malfoy sounded from outside. "Are you awake yet?"

Hermione sighed quietly, wondering what on earth made it so that her life would change so drastically. It was here when she began to appreciate the simplicities of her old life, despite nothing having occurred yet in her new one.

And – just how could she tell all of this to her friends? This was just one of the issues that had risen as a priority in her mind, just one of the many 'to-dos' on her list.

"Oh yes, I am." Hermione called quite clearly, after quite a long moment of pensiveness. She feared that Narcissa had already left.

Luckily she hadn't and burst through the door.

"Darling! You look very much refreshed!" The woman smiled, evidently elated about something.

Hermione glanced at her a little cautiously, wondering what she was in for that day. "Indeed." She smiled back.

Perhaps this wasn't going to be too bad at all.

"How about a spot of shopping today." Narcissa blurted out – albeit quite smoothly – and beaming brightly. It came out as a statement, but the mother-of-two disregarded this.

Hermione blinked, obviously not having expected this. She had expected something more… of importance, something bigger and more serious. Wanting to please Narcissa, she nodded in agreement.

"Right then." Narcissa trailed off. "Oh, this is so exciting! You will definitely need a new wardrobe. You absolutely cannot just have what you have now – of course, they are fashionable, but it's just not enough. Some nice trousers, as well as casual ones… and skirts! Oh, I know just the place! Blouses too! Oh, you will definitely need some pretty blouses. It's a definite must-have! And dresses – you know, for the garden parties and balls and small gatherings… some posh hats and sun hats… I believe the Hat Emporium has some really interesting looking ones… "

She continued to list what Hermione needed, almost in a monologue as Hermione nodded along, completely bemused. Narcissa was still murmuring to herself about what other additional items Hermione supposedly needed, as the latter decided to get dressed and have some breakfast.

The morning went by fairly quickly.

Hermione had never been to the Hat Emporium previously and was absolutely amazed at the range of hats that were available.

Narcissa had been just like a little girl who was bouncing off the walls of a candy store – shopping, was definitely one of her prominent fortes. The shop assistants were clearly very obliging to their loyal client, who evidently owned quite a few of the hats that had been available at the store in the recent fashion seasons. Hermione was looking extremely bemused as she stood in front of a full-length talking mirror, who commented on the different hats that were handed to her. The pile of hats grew from only the two that had been stacked on top of each other, to about thirty. They ranged from feathery hats – Narcissa particularly liked the green feathered chapeau, then there was what the older Malfoy deemed to be the 'normal hat' – Hermione's favourite one being the curved black one with stripes lined with silver, to the French hats – the navy was rather pretty… then there was the 'ultra feminine hat' – a deep maroon colour but it had a rather odd shape – with straight lines here and swirls there, but Hermione understood where the idea of it being unique came from.

A "mere" twenty-three hats, as Narcissa put it, out of thirty were bought.

Not very many, eh?

Then they entered Snazzy Shoes, and only goodness knows how many pairs of shoes were strewn all over the shop floor! There were just too many to count! The store distinctly reminded Hermione of Ollivander's, with the shoes of all the colours in the rainbow flying everywhere, as though they were totally out of control. Which probably wasn't the case. The store assistant – and the boss herself, were very kind and complimentary towards the elder Malfoy and the daughter. They were evidently well aware of their status as a prominent family in wizarding society despite that incident in the Department of Mysteries that nobody knew about, yet knew vaguely about it. Everything regarding that incident was rather murky in terms of 'public knowledge'.

Again, there was a wide variety of shoes to choose from, with sandals, trainers, flip-flops, ballet flats, high heels in boots and peep-toes, boots, and even witch-like shoes to suit certain robes that had been flying off the shelves in the spring season that had just passed. Hermione enjoyed herself more here, for she adored shoes – any one pair with a pretty design would do for her. The Ravenclaw girls had always gone to Hermione for 'shoe advice', for her taste in shoes had always been impeccable. Perhaps it came from the excellent genes of Narcissa Malfoy! Hermione felt that shoes always completed an imperfect outfit.

They spent slightly more time here, with shoes in colours varying from a purple pizzazz (odd name, but cool!), to sunshine yellow, to calm turquoise, fiery red and delicate peach.

"You know, Mia…" Narcissa began as she sifted through the pile of shoes that the assistants had so kindly brought out.

"Hmm?" Hermione hummed in response, rummaging through another mountain of shoes available for their perusal.

"Darling, this has been on my mind for so long. You have to know what I've wanted to say to you for so long. I've…" Something was stopping her from saying exactly what she wanted to say. "Missed you so, so much."

Hermione blinked, confused. What had brought this along? Everything had been going perfectly fine. Had it been something she said?

Hopefully it hadn't been because of that.

"You don't know how much. You probably just think that your father and I abandoned you as a little baby because we favoured Draco or for whatever reason, but we didn't. You have to know that." Narcissa implored.

It was then when Hermione realised where her mother was going with the conversation. She knew she had to say something in comfort to the woman that was her mother, but did not know what. And she knew she had to keep into account of the fact that she was treading on thin ice – whatever she said would make or break the relationship between her mother and herself.

"Oh, mum." Hermione smiled slightly and sadly. "I understand what you mean. All of this - it was for my protection – I know that I can't resent that you had my best interests at heart."

"But why are you so… aloof to us? It's as though you don't want to be here with us at all." Narcissa pressed, genuinely worried about her daughter.

It was here when Hermione believed that the Malfoys were not after her to stay in the Dark Lord's good graces. It was the kind of instinctive feeling that one had almost instantly after something occurs. What I mean by this is, this conversation.

She knew she could trust them.

"Oh, but I do want to be with you, and- Daddy and Draco. It's just that… it's all been so overwhelming for me. I mean, think about this from my perspective."

She paused to take a breath.

"I spent sixteen years, thinking I was a part of a pure muggle family. At the age of eleven, when I got accepted at Hogwarts, I had to fight my way through the complications of pureblooded supremacy, that I was just as good as all of those who had known about magic before me and had so many more advantages compared to me.

Although I wasn't taunted as much as the muggleborn students in Gryffindor, I sympathised with them immensely. So I knew I had to work extremely hard.

Then everything is so abrupt. In my sixteenth year, after all my trials and tribulations, the successes and excellent achievements at Hogwarts, I suddenly find out that I'm actually descended from a pureblood family.

I don't know… I think perhaps as a result of this, maybe people will come to the realisation that just maybe, my skill is not from my own hard work, but is a part of my heritage?"

At this, Narcissa wrinkled a nose and shook her head to disagree, but put a hand on her daughter's shoulder as she continued with what she had say, in order to unburden her heart after the abrupt change in her life.

"I'm just trying to take this all in as calmly as possible. Forgive me for being aloof… I wasn't trying to come out like that, but if I did, I'm sorry."

A small tear fell from her cheek.

Narcissa's eyes softened as she put down what she had been holding to hug her daughter. "Oh darling, you needn't feel like that. I suppose with my not knowing you all that well, I feel like I'm such a bad mother for being so insecure, for giving you away to Alan and Emily – but they did a great job in raising you."

They remained locked in a hug for quite a few more moments, until Hermione whispered that they were still in a store, in public. Although they weren't being watched (for they were in their own private shoe room – the Malfoys are literally rolling in Galleons!), both of them were well aware of the time, and how after this conversation, as they both understood each other now, they would need some time to mull over what had been said and move forward.

The shoes – quite a few of them – were hastily handed over to the assistants and the 'ping' sound of the cashier indicated that a purchase had been made. As they left the store, Hermione began to calculate how many shoes had been bought.

There had been at least fifty.

Oh Merlin.

And Narcissa couldn't help but squeal about how Hermione would look good in all of them. Which of course, Hermione was well aware of.

Next came the several clothing stores with excellent items available, superb service and were simply fashion wonderlands. One could just come to visit one store for an entire day and not feel bored at all.

Madam Malkin's Robes For All Occasions, Chic Costumes, An Air for Flair, Twillfitt and Tatting's…

Hermione had never been so in awe of the wizarding world until now, apart from the fabulous time she had a few summers ago with her parents at Le Belle Boulevard. The array of garments to choose from… there was simply too much!

Just a few summers ago, things were not all that different to the shopping spree with Narcissa, except they had actually bumped into Mrs. Malfoy...

Mrs. Granger rushed to her daughter, shooing away the young but condescending store assistant. "Darling, you look absolutely stunning! Red does suit you best. Haven't I told you that countless number of times?"

Her daughter could only smile slightly - this was beginning to feel quite embarrassing.

"Draco, darling, what do you think of this?" Narcissa strode into the room, with one of the shop assistants trailing after her.

Hermione did not remember too much about what happened immediately after the woman's arrival into the room, but only what she felt: she felt compelled towards this woman, to gaze at this beautiful lady, so angelic-like with her delicate blue eyes and long blonde hair.

The young girl had completely tuned out her surroundings –

"Ah yes. Hermione!" Mrs. Granger called.

The young Hogwarts students perked up at the sound of Hermione's name.

"You must be Hermione! It's a delight to finally meet you!"

"Hello Mrs. Malfoy. It is a pleasure to meet you." Hermione greeted, smiling demurely.

There was a slight pause.

"Well don't you look beautiful in those robes, my dear! Red does indeed suit you." Narcissa launched into her small talk with the young Ravenclaw.

"Well, you know my son. You both go to Hogwarts and you're in the same year!" Narcissa beckoned Draco towards where the adults and Hermione were standing.

"Hullo Granger."

Hermione glanced up from her stare that was drilling a large hole into the ground.

"Hello Malfoy."

The conversation between Emily, Alan and Narcissa continued, as Hermione and Draco stared everywhere else but at each other.

That had been her previous 'experience' in a clothing store – its dressing room, no less, with her real mother.

She banished her thoughts from her mind and decided to lose herself in the moment – what better than to just enjoy some bonding time with her birth mother?

Afterwards, they went to explore the headbands, hair clips and hair scrunchies; socks, gloves, jackets, jumpers and cardigans, and muggle clothing.

Just who knew that shopping was this fun?

Later that day…

"Hey Mia." Draco said, in a slightly discomforted voice. It was rather odd for him to have a sibling – a sister to be precise – after sixteen long years.

And just why did this feel so awkward?

It would take some time to get used to. He turned around and began to pour himself some water.

Hermione had drifted into a 'sleep mode' since returning from the shopping trip, and slowly glanced up, feeling like she had too much to drink, but she hadn't.

"Hi Dra-" She couldn't finish her sentence as the world around her had completely turned into darkness. It could have been fatigue, perhaps. Stress? Being overwhelmed by what being a Malfoy meant in the wizarding world?

As this happened, she could feel her head falling backwards, expecting the hard marble surface to collide with her head… to no avail. She lost all sense of feeling as her senses switched off.

Wondering why she still hadn't finished her sentence, he whirled around, expecting to see a girl his age standing up, looking slightly confused and lost…

But didn't.

Instead, he could only see someone falling backwards. His instincts screamed at him to run and catch her before she hit the ground –

He put his glass to the side and ran towards her, arms flailing about and held out in a jumble. He managed to slide across the marble floor as though he was on ice, but on his knees, just about reaching out to her head. Her whole body followed suit in the direction of her head and collapsed in his arms. He gasped, relieved, but worried at the same time.

Then he wondered aimlessly as to what to do after admiring his uneasily accomplished feat. Sitting on the ground, he realised that this situation hadn't really happened to him before – it was more about girls swooning about him and at his feet, admiring his luck in inheriting such good looks from his parents combined. He hadn't had such an experience before. A girl – his sister, to be precise – falling… at his feet… but not because of his looks.

"DRACO!" A shrilly voice exclaimed, as the sound reverberated in the room – Draco winced. "What on earth are you doing?"

"Oh man, what have you done?" A horrified voice belonging to Theo Nott gasped. "The poor girl! I really sympathise with her!"

Blaise chuckled, having not noticed as to who the girl in Draco's arms was. "I gather we all know now why Draco couldn't come out yesterday: he was busy doing some pretty exciting things last night."

Theo laughed awkwardly, just as Pansy looked as though she felt out of place in a room full of teenage boys.

Draco looked immensely uncomfortable, wondering how this situation had come to be like this. "Hey guys, what a surprise! And don't be such pansies. Um. No pun intended, Pans." He looked at Pansy carefully.

Then he continued, as if nothing had happened when Pansy looked as though nothing would faze her apart from if a giant troll of some sort would barge into the room. "And since when did you come back?"

Draco stopped, peering at her from his position on the ground. "Anyway. Yeah. Um…"

So much for Malfoy eloquence.

"Who is she anyway?" Pansy asked rather curiously, her crush on the blonde haired boy having seemingly dissipated over the summer.

"Um… well…" Draco began, just as Blaise started to look closer at the pretty blonde haired girl in Draco's arms.

"Eugh!" Blaise could only say, as he came to the realisation as to who this girl was, just as Theo gasped.

"Ewww!" A collective exclamation emitted from both of their lips.

Pansy frowned – the girl in Draco's arms was pretty… so just what was the problem? It's not like Draco would have not gone with her to you-knowcamp...

"We all knew you both were quite effeminate, but we didn't know the extent of it!" Draco said in mock surprise, glancing at them pointedly and well aware of the conclusion they both came to.

"Forgive us for the… rather crude thoughts that were expressed just now." Theo said, nodding vigourously. "I really didn't mean it!"

"And the insinuations about the inappropriate things, and for thinking in all the wrong places. I promise to haul my head out of the gutter." Blaise added, his eyes wide. "Perhaps I should begin with washing my mouth with detergent?"

Pansy simply had a look of confusion on her features. Okay. So hypothetically speaking, if Draco had not been 'with' her last night, what was the reason for it?

Unless… no, it couldn't be!

The story that she had been constantly told about when she was younger, of a happily ever after with the Chosen One defeating evil, with the twins… but it all fitted… and…

Draco could only nod when he saw the expressions flash by on Pansy's face.

"So it's true…" She whispered. "Does she go to Hogwarts?"

Blaise snorted as Theo deftly hid a smirk.

"So she does." Pansy declared, pretending to not hear the snort or see the smirk. "Must be someone you three dislike immensely."

It was déjà vu with the sounds and expressions.

Draco rolled his eyes – "Guys, must you be so pathetic?"

Blaise snorted. "Like you aren't pathetic either."

"Yeah, if I'm pathetic, then what are you?" Theo's eyebrows were so far up that it had completely disappeared into his floppy hair.

"I'm awesome because I'm me." Draco said simply, smirking at his comeback.

The other three Slytherins rolled their eyes at the self-flattering statement.

"It doesn't do you any good, you know." Pansy smirked knowingly, still occupied with peering at the girl in Draco's arms, whose eyes were beginning to flutter open.

Everything was swamped in darkness. She was starting to be able to hear her surroundings and identify those who were present in the room. However, she didn't recognise the voices.

"Must be someone you three dislike immensely."

She knew the voice from somewhere, but couldn't place her finger on who it was. She could tell that the voice belonged to a girl, but she didn't know who…

A snort.

"Guys, must you be so pathetic?"

This voice was vaguely more familiar, but again, she couldn't tell who it was. Oh, how frustrating this was!

A snort again. "Like you aren't pathetic too."

"Yeah, if I'm pathetic, then what are you?"

It was only a moment later when she heard the smirk in the answer. "I'm awesome because I'm me."

"It doesn't do you any good, you know."

Her eyes began to flutter open, as she involuntarily hummed aloud almost in audibly. She sat up quickly and received some loud protests and arms being thrust forward to lay her down on Draco's lap or to help her stand up. She couldn't tell whose arm was whose, but felt immensely irritated.

"Excuse me. But I most certainly do not need to be babied. I'm old enough." She said politely but in a snarky tone, still trying to shake off the dizziness she felt. She regretted it as soon as it came out of her lips, but disregarded it, pretending nothing had happened.

"Typical." A masculine voice muttered, fairly audibly. "What?"

She assumed that he had been given a snarky look by someone.

"Um… Mia… you just fainted." Draco started, just as Pansy's eyes were wide –

"GRANGER!"

Hermione blinked and the world around her was coherent again.

"Parkinson." She said cordially, not entirely sure why the girl was there in the kitchen.

She began to attempt to stand up, only to stumble slightly – four pairs of arms extended forward almost instantly, as though they were anticipating her fall to the ground once more.

But this didn't happen.

Then silence ensued.

"So… what is it like being a carbon copy of Malfoy?" Pansy asked, with a hint of curiosity in her tone.

"Pansy!" Theo's eyes gaped with shock as he responded sharply. "How absolutely insensitive of you!"

The girl in Slytherin could only look at him flippantly; as Hermione smiled, shaking her head. Draco laughed as Blaise began to chortle.

"Luc-Daa-d-" She stopped, as Draco glanced at her worriedly – she still wasn't really able to call her real parents by 'Mum' or 'Mother', or 'Daddy' or 'Father'. "says that I look very much like Mum. And Draco mistook me for her the other day! I wasn't sure whether to take it as a compliment or an offensive comment!"

The three Slytherins – excluding Draco – laughed heartily. Her twin could only grumble in response.

"Well, I-I" He stuttered, evidently speechless.

"I'd take it as an insult." Blaise joked, winking at Hermione. Theo nodded.

Perhaps they weren't the typical purebloods that the stereotypes presented them as. Maybe she could really survive in this world without much hassle.

Hermione grinned. This new adjustment in her life would be easier than she thought it would be.

Dear Hermione,

It's so wonderful to hear from you, and that you are enjoying your time with the Malfoys. They are a nice lot, immensely private with their personal lives. Perhaps you should keep an open mind that they are not evil people, but are just simply misinterpreted and misunderstood by many people.

Alan was at the clinic today, and found a black tooth in Denny's mouth! Remember him? He was the guy who you always seemed to fancy but didn't really… he enquires about you sometimes, you know. I think he would definitely remember to floss his teeth if you were here!

Dear, remember to practice your piano and flute, and when stressed, take a walk in their beautiful garden! It's really worth losing yourself in it and spending many hours there.

We send all our love to you and the family.

Love,

Emily.

P.S. Would you like us to send you anything you might fancy from the sweetie shops? I know it's not entirely what Em would advocate you doing (think of the cavities! I can bet she would say!), but I was thinking about sending a package comprising of a few bars of Cadbury chocolate bars: your favourite milk chocolate and the fruit and nut bar. Perhaps some Haribo gummy bears, some Flake and Galaxy chocolate bars too?

But in order for me to send you this package, you must promise to remember to floss daily. And don't tell Emily! You must also remember that you are always welcome to come back, whether it is to sleep over or just to visit!

Lots of love,

Alan

Xoxo,

Gossip Girl

P.S. Since you are currently reading this message, I think it's time for you to REVIEW the hard work that has gone into writing this chapter, as well as the rest of the story! What was your favourite part of this episode?