"I cannot believe you didn't press for a more severe sentence, Hermione. Two years? That's all he gets? He almost killed your fiancé for crying out loud!" Ginny was astonished at the leniency her best friend was giving the sneaky Slytherin. With a huff, she crossed her arms waiting for an explanation.
"Gin, he's unwell. He has a mental illness. It was proven. Plus, he was extremely remorseful and apologized profusely. He'll be in Azkaban for two years, court ordered psychiatric visits and no wand for 5 years during the probation once he is released." Hermione looked over to where Draco stood speaking with Harry. He hadn't been able to sleep since Blaise was arrested. His best mate had tried to kill him and steal his fiancé. As she watched him, she felt Ginny grab her hand.
"Hey, he'll be okay, Mi. Is he still not sleeping?" Hermione nodded her head. "Maybe he should see a Mind Healer. Harry still sees one. Been seeing one since the war ended. I could get him to maybe talk to Malfoy about it."
Hermione saw Draco walking back towards her with Harry. "I'll talk to Draco about it. Thanks, Gin." She hugged the red haired beauty before meeting her fiancé part way. "Let's get out of here, yeah?" Draco kissed her cheek then took her offered hand. They walked out of the Ministry and apparated back to their home. She left him seated at their kitchen island as she made them tea.
Draco watched her. This witch, she amazed him. Her strength and resilience during everything was just awe inspiring. He truly loved her. "Hermione?" She turned to face him and smiled. "Come here." She walked over to him and stood between his knees. Draco hugged her tightly and rested his head on her chest. "Thank you for your love and support. I really appreciate everything you have done for me. I love you so damn much, Hermione."
Hermione combed her finger's through his hair then tilted his head up so she could kiss him. "I'd do anything for you, Draco. You're my everything." His heart pounded in his chest. She made him feel safe and secure and loved. He started to kiss her but was thwarted by the tea kettle screeching. "Let me get this tea and we can cuddle on the sofa and put on a film." Draco got up and removed his shoes before grabbing the throw they used anytime they cuddled up together.
Hermione came in with their tea and a plate of biscuits floating behind. "Shall we watch The Quiet Man again or did you want to see something else?" So far, Hermione had shown him films from the 50's and 60's with the 1952 film 'The Quiet Man' being his favorite thus far.
"I guess we can do one from the 70's tonight. Harry said that there was a space movie with a kind of magic in it that he likes." Hermione smiled then put the movie in.
"Be ready to get your mind blown, baby!" She squeaked with excitement as she cuddled up with the man she absolutely adored. He chuckled as he pulled her closer. "So, before I press play," She looked like she was about to burst, "The magic Harry spoke of is called The Force and it is basically a mystical energy that Jedi yield. Like magic, it has a light side and a dark side. Ready?" Draco nodded then she pressed play on the remote.
"Well, that concludes our session for today, Mr. Malfoy. I will see you in two weeks then? I hope you have a beautiful wedding and a wonderful honeymoon." Draco shook the Mind Healer's hand. He'd been seeing him three days a week for two weeks and felt better than he had since he was a kid before the war.
"Thank you, Healer Vance. I'm so ready to make Hermione my wife. Thanks for everything." Draco genuinely liked the older gentleman. He was a bit taken aback when Harry and Hermione approached him about seeing a Mind Healer, but once Harry explained how it has helped him since the end of the war, Draco decided to give it a try. It was one of the best things he'd ever done for himself.
As he entered the house, he could hear Hermione singing and smiled. Merlin, he loved it when she sang. Not that she was a great singer, she wasn't horrible, but just so endearing and sweet. "And when the stars are shining brightly in the velvet sky,
I'll make a wish, send it to heaven then make you want to cry. The tears of joy for all the pleasure and the certainty. That we're surrounded by the comfort and protection of the highest powers, in lonely hours, the tears devour you! I wanna stand with you on a mountain! I wanna bathe with you in the sea! I wanna lay like this forever until the sky falls down on me!"
As she stood there in her bra and panties, singing and packing, she suddenly felt as if she was being watched. Hermione turned then giggled when she saw Draco standing in the door way smirking at her. "Well, hello my love. And what song was that you were singing? I liked it." He walked closer and she met him part way.
"It's called 'Truly Madly Deeply' by Savage Garden. I was packing up my suitcase and thinking of you when the song just popped into my head." Draco cradled Hermione's face in his hands then crashed his lips into hers. He grabbed ahold of her ass and lifted her as she wrapped her legs around him.
"Tomorrow," he walked to their bed with her wrapped around him, "You'll be mine forever." Hermione pulled him on top of her as he lay her down.
"I'm already yours." And she showed him.
Draco stood under the arbor in the Malfoy Botanical Gardens with his best man, Theo, by his side. "You nervous?" Theo asked discreetly.
"Surprisingly? Not one bit. I have dreamed about this moment since I was probably eleven or twelve years old. I'm marrying Hermione Granger. This is actually happening, Theo. Just wish he could have been here, you know?"
"Yeah, but you've got me as a consolation prize, yeah?" He said with a chuckle.
"Listen, you're not a prize mate." Theo elbowed him in the side. "Oi! If you hurt me, Granger will hex your balls off." He caught his mother's eye and could tell she was already tearing up. Her baby boy, her only child, getting married. Of course she was emotional, but he knew she was also happy for him.
For years, Narcissa would listen to him talk about Hermione Granger, the Muggleborn witch that threw everything he had been told about Muggleborns right out the window. She'd listened to him cry when he was forced to take the Dark Mark. "She'll never want me now." She saw the anguish in his eyes as her horrid sister tortured her in the Drawing Room of their ancestral home. Afterwards, Narcissa held him as he sobbed. "I'm such a coward! I should have helped her! I should have killed Aunt Bella. I hate her! Hermione will never look at me ever again!" Narcissa had hushed him and soothed him until he found sleep from a Dreamless Sleep potion she slipped into his tea.
But today was different. His future was bright. He found love with a little push from Decree #957. Narcissa turned to her right and saw her oldest sister, Andromeda Tonks, and smiled. They had a bond greater than before she was struck from the family tapestry. Drommy was her best friend, her confidant. She took her sister's hand and squeezed. "My baby is all grown up, Drommy." The older woman smiled brightly and then they both turned when the music began.
Harry knocked on the door to the bridal suite. Ginny opened the door and ushered him in. "She's waiting in the other room, Harry. Oh, honey! She looks beautiful." Ginny nudged her husband towards the door, and he knocked.
"Hermione? Can I come in?" He listened to the door for a second and heard a soft 'Come in' before opening the door. He audibly gasped at the sight of his best friend since the age of eleven. She looked regal and glamorous in a princess gown with a deep v-neck bodice covered in crystals with layers upon layers of soft tulle. The emerald cut ruby necklace with matching earrings gave her a pop of color paired with cherry red lips. Her hair was in soft waves with the front pulled back with a diamond clip that screamed "MONEY!'
"Jesus, Hermione. Malfoy is going to faint when he sees you. You're simply stunning. There is no other words for it." Hermione smiled softly and thanked him.
"Harry Potter, you are my best friend, my brother really, and I am so happy to have you standing by my side as my Man of Honor. Is my dad ready?" Hermione couldn't believe it when she found out the Narcissa flew her parents in for wedding so that her father could walk her down the aisle.
"Yup. He's got a scotch in his hand at the moment. 'For the nerves,' he said. You ready to get married?" Harry smiled at her then offered his arm to which she held onto for dear life. She was getting married today. Her! And to Draco Malfoy! If her teenage-self could see her now. She smiled and chuckled to herself then took her father's arm.
"Pumpkin, you look, wow! That young man better deserve you." Hermione smiled at her father sweetly.
"He is the love of my life, daddy. You don't need to worry. Draco loves me. He's loved me for years, actually. I'm just so incandescently happy. Thank you for being here. Love you." She kissed her father's cheek and saw the tears threatening to spill from his eyes.
"Let's get you married."
A/N: Thank you for reading. The end...Just kidding! Okay, so wedding and honeymoon next chapter, kids!