XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX
Chapter 34 -
Hermione did not stop running until she felt a stitch in her side, and she could no longer breathe. She did not even know where she was, for she was so far away from the Burrow. She sat down on the ground, hugged her knees to her body, and began to cry.
They were right. They were all right. She could not marry a man she had not even dated. That was not like her. She was just reacting to the fact that Ron had just gotten married. This was too fast, and too soon.
Nevertheless, why did it feel so right?
She knew what was in her heart. She knew she loved Draco. Why could no one else see that? Why did it matter what they thought?
Ginny even had the gall to say they were 'prancing around' for the past two days. Is that what they all thought? Everyone was just humouring her. No one was really being supportive. That hurt. That cut Hermione to the quick. That hurt more than Ron leaving her did.
So what if she had not been dating Draco for years? She dated Ron for years and look where that got her. All that mattered was what she wanted. Hermione was never a selfish person. She always acted for the benefit of others. For once, in her life, she wanted to do what she wanted to do. She wanted to marry Draco Malfoy. End of story.
She stood up and began to walk again. Perhaps she should just go home. If only she had her wand, she could just disapparate away. That was what she wanted to do. Just go away and never come back here. This place used to be the most important place to her, outside of her own home and Hogwarts. She had some of the best times of her life at the Burrow, and that included the last 24 hours. She would go back and face them all. They deserved that much.
Draco had only been gone for twenty minutes. He could work fast when he wanted to. He had a friend who worked in the registry office of the Ministry. They quickly worked to obtain the license. He knew another person who was licensed to perform marriages. He contacted that man and he said he would meet him at the Burrow by one o'clock. He owled her parents, merely saying that he was a friend of Hermione's, and he would send someone to collect them by one pm, to bring them to the Burrow, for their daughter was getting married. He could not do anything about the rings, or the dress. Surely, none of that really mattered. He walked back in the house, expecting a celebration, and instead, he saw every single inhabitant of the house sitting around the kitchen table, heads hanging low, frowns gracing their features, hands clasped in front of them. He took a quick survey and said, "Where's Hermione?"
Harry stood up and said, "We don't know. She ran away. Malfoy, you cannot be seriously contemplating marriage!"
"What the hell did you all say to her?" he demanded.
Ginny stood up, "We are her friends, Malfoy! We just wanted to bring her to her senses. She has been on this little, 'love high' for the past 24 hours, but we wanted her to face reality. None of this is real!"
Draco glared at Harry and asked, "What have you done?"
"We told her the truth! She has to face the truth, Malfoy," Harry explained. "This isn't real love! You don't fall in love with someone in one day! This will only bring her more heartache and pain in the long run."
"How dare you," Draco spat. "How dare you all! You claim to love her, and wish nothing but the best for her, but when the best comes along, you throw her to the wolves. I don't give a shite what any of you think or say! I love her and I want to make her happy! I want to marry her. I thought we could do it here, among her friends, her family, but I guess not. It is happening, whether you all want it to or not. Either you can be supportive, or you can lose her. Your choice."
He ran out the back door, and looked around. He yelled, "HERMIONE!" He started running. He had no idea where she was, or how to find her, he only knew that find her he must.
Hermione was on her way back to the Burrow; at least, she thought she was. She was actually slightly lost, as she had run off willy-nilly in all directions. She heard Draco yelling her name. She ran toward the sound of his voice.
She was in a dense wooded area, and she stopped by a tree to catch her breath. Draco started to walk in the woods, and he saw her. "Hermione?" he asked. He ran up to her. He saw her tear soaked cheeks. He dare not touch her. Instead, he said, "Before you say or do anything, know this one truth. I love you."
She began to cry again, and threw herself in his arms. "They are all right, you know."
He pushed her slightly away from him, to look at her. "No, they aren't. They are not right. We are right. What we feel is right. Do you want to marry me?"
"Yes," she said, for she did, and she was not up to lying.
"Do you want to marry me because you love me, or because you want to be married?" he asked again.
"I want to marry you because I love you," she said softly. She put her cheek next to his chest. He stroked her back. Her skin felt so warm and soft under his touch.
"I want to marry you because I love you as well." He kissed the top of her head. "The marriage license, the officiate, as well as your parents are on the way. Do we do this here, or somewhere else?"
"Maybe we should do this somewhere else," she said humbly. If the Weasleys and Harry did not support this, there was no reason to include them. She understood their reservations; she harbored them also, but she also knew what she wanted deep down in her heart. The man before her was her future. He was what she wanted. She knew that she wanted to marry him the moment she walked out of the chapel yesterday afternoon, and saw him waiting for her. She felt that way all day long yesterday, long before he first kissed her, long before he first proclaimed his love, long before they first shared their passion. The truth was this was real to her, and in the end, that was all that really mattered.
He took her fingertips, and kissed them lightly. "Let us at least go tell them goodbye," he said. He took her arm, hooked it over his, and walked with her back toward the house.
When they reached the back garden, the tent from Ron and Pansy's wedding, the one that was up during the reception yesterday, was back in place. Chairs were set up, with a makeshift aisle between them. Hermione saw her mum and dad standing there, actually smiling, as well as all the Weasleys. She could not contain her joy, or her tears. She began to cry.
Harry ran up to her and said, "I am so sorry, Hermione. I just love you so much that I wanted you to do the right thing, but you know what, this is the right thing. He will make you happy. I want you to be happy." He kissed her cheek.
She turned to Draco and said, "No turning back, Malfoy. If you're sure, we will do this thing, as crazy as it sounds. Tell me, are you sure?"
"I'm sure. This way, stupid Oliver Wood will not be able to ask you out again, either. See, I've covered all my bases." He smiled back.
"Give us a moment, everyone," she said. She took Draco's hand, and led him away from the crowd. She squeezed his hand and asked, "What about your parents?"
"We will tell them when the time is right. They would ruin everything. I don't want anything to ruin us," he said truthfully. "Besides, they would probably want to come in here and run the whole show." He tried to smile, to reassure her.
"Okay, Malfoy, but if this ends up not working, and we end up hating each other, I'm going to kick your arse," she said, pointing her finger at him. He took the finger that was presently in front of his face, and put it in his mouth, biting down hard.
"Ouch, you prat!" she winced.
"Lesson number one, it's rude to point," he said, leading her back to the crowd.
She stopped them, by refusing to walk any further. Hermione said, "Lesson number two, it's rude to bite your intended."
He leaned toward her and whispered, "Too bad, I intend to bite my intended a lot tonight."
She gave him a smothering look and said, "I might bite back."
"I hope so," he responded. He drew his finger down her face, across her mouth, and she did indeed give it a little nip.
"Let's get the ten lessons to a long and healthy marriage out in the open, Hermione," Draco said, his finger safely removed from her mouth. "I am always right, Lesson three."
"Oh really?" she almost laughed. "I'm not sure I agree with that one. Lesson four, don't spout off lessons unless you're one-hundred percent sure they're well grounded in fact."
Okay, he thought. He leaned toward her and said, "I just thought of Lesson five. Lesson five is, Hermione is always right, which mitigates lesson three, but there you go. I think if I subscribe to this one little lesson, my life will be less complicated."
"How true," she said. She cocked her head to the side and then leaned in and kissed his lips tenderly. "I have Lesson six. Do you want to know what it is?"
"Maybe," he said, bringing his arms around her waist.
"Lesson six is that Draco is the sweetest, funniest, person I have ever met, and I will always trust and love him, for all the days of my life." Hermione put her cheek next to his. She ended by whispering in his ear, "And I love him, no matter what the masses think."
"Lesson seven," he said with his face next to hers, "don't let the bastards bring you down."
Hermione said, "That's one I've always agreed with. Lesson eight is that blowing on a sundress will never get it dry."
He gave her a funny look and said, "Well, Lesson nine is trust me when I say a child has poopy pants."
"How eloquent, and how true," she said. "So, I guess I get to come up with the last lesson, right, Draco?"
"If you must. I can't wait to hear what you have to say," he said. "Although, keep in mind, I reserve the right to veto any lessons I don't agree with."
"Of course, therefore, my last lesson is, Hermione is always right," she said.
"Wait! That was lesson five!" he said. "You wasted a whole lesson."
"I thought it needed repeated," she said. Hermione was biting her bottom lip, and he came up and bit in gently, taking it between his teeth. He then kissed her long and sound.
"Biting, remember?" he reminded her. He brought her arms around his waist, and put his mouth on hers, where he played with her lips gently before finally kissing her. He turned them both back and round, and when they had almost reached the others, he added, "Oh, I forgot something. Wait right there!" He ran back into the house. What was he going to do now?
XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX