Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Chapter 17
To say that Ginny was panicking, would be the understatement of the year. She was literally tearing out her newly made hair.
"I can't do it, Hermione! I'm too young! I don't love him enough ... oh no." She sat down on her old bed at The Burrow, her long ivory wedding gown rustling softly against the bed covers.
"Don't be ridiculous, Ginny. You love him with all your heart and you have done since ... forever. You're both meant to be together. And as for being too young," Hermione scoffed. "You're twenty three – it's a perfect age."
Ginny only pouted, her blue eyes boring into Hermione's brown ones.
"Trust me." Hermione took her hand and pulled her gently to her feet. "It'll be brilliant – this is the best day of your life."
At that, Ginny gave a hesitant smile. "Okay. Is my hair okay? Is my dress crumpled? Is any of th-"
Hermione shushed her with a stern glance, and they left her bedroom heading towards the garden where the marriage was to take place.
After recovering from the slight hangover she had received from Ginny's hen night, Hermione had gone to The Burrow the day before the wedding to help with the preparations. To her surprise, even Draco turned up to help a little with setting up the marquee and making sure all gnomes had been thrown out of the area. During all this, Hermione had a moment of nostalgia when she remembered she, Harry and Ron preparing for Bill and Fleur's wedding.
Ginny distracted her from her thoughts when she started breathing extremely heavily when they arrived at the beginning of the aisle. People were hurriedly taking their places on the rows of quaint, white benches underneath the grand marquee. Arthur gasped when he saw his daughter finally made up and he took her arm, fighting back tears. Hermione, Pansy and Luna took their places behind the father and daughter and they beamed at one other just as the slow music began.
The one hundred and ten guests stood and smiled as the bride glided down the aisle. At the end, Harry had the biggest grin on his face Hermione had ever seen. She caught Draco's eye and he winked at her, looking handsome in his black dress robes. Blushing, Hermione quickly averted her gaze from him and glanced at Pansy, who was staring doe-eyed at Ron. She rolled her eyes and looked forwards again. They arrived at the end where, Hermione noticed with surprise, was the same wizard who had married Bill and Fleur.
During the ceremony, Hermione felt Draco's eyes on her the whole time and she forced herself to stare at Ginny and Harry.
Ginny's earlier qualms about getting married seemed to have disappeared completely as she was literally stumbling over her vows in order to get them out so quickly. Harry, Hermione noted with amusement, was taking his time at a leisurely pace with a glitter in his eyes which was clearly frustrating Ginny. Hermione glanced briefly at the guests and saw Molly sobbing into Arthur's jacket as her only daughter was finally getting married. Fleur was sniffling next to Angelina who had a fierce smile on her face, trying not cry. There was a loud blowing from the back of the guests and Hermione chuckled to herself as Hagrid mumbled a hasty apology when a couple of heads turned towards his direction.
Before Hermione knew it, the tufty-haired wizard was waving his wand over the new couple as gold sparks flew from his wand, which turned into two doves that flew off into the blue sky. A tear slipped down her cheek and Hermione turned to Pansy and Luna beaming.
"They're finally married. I can't believe it."
The guests got up from the benches and rushed towards the new married couple who were swarmed with words of 'congratulations' and 'finally!'
Ron moved through the crowd of teary guests and found Pansy where he kissed her passionately. Hermione turned to Luna to make hasty conversation when she felt a familiar arm wrap around her waist and a husky voice murmur in her ear.
"Do I have the honour of giving you the first dance later on?"
Hermione turned in his embrace so Draco was looking down his nose at her. "Maybe," she smiled.
"Might I add that you look gorgeous as ever?"
Hermione blushed and looked down. She was wearing a silk, lavender dress which came just above the knee. Her hair was done simply and it was left down with a simple white flower pinned in the side.
Whilst they were talking, Hermione noticed that the white benches had moved to the edge of the marquee and a dance floor had been created in the middle. One large, whitewashed rectangular table sat at the back with two other long tables on either side running down the sides of the marquee.
"Oh, that looks beautiful." Pansy murmured, grinning. "And where's that photographer? Aren't we having the photos now?"
Right on cue, there was a pop and a tall, smiley man with a huge camera strolled over to Arthur and shook his hand.
"Hello, it's Cuthbert here. Are you ready for the photos?" He began to organise everyone into groups, taking hundreds of snapshots of the bride and groom, and then adding in the parents, the bridesmaids and best men before having lots of group pictures.
Hermione felt her jaw beginning to ache from all the smiling she was doing and was thankful when it was over. For now. She saw Harry and Ginny edge over towards the head table and she followed sitting two places from Ginny. Molly settled in next to her and tears filled her blue eyes again.
"You okay, Molly?" Hermione asked gently.
"Oh yes, of course, dear." She shook her head, flustered. "I just can't believe my little girl is married."
"I know, though I always knew they would. Ginny's always liked Harry and it just took him a little longer to realise." Hermione laughed and jumped when several bottles of champagne appeared on the table. "How ... where did that come from?"
"We've got elves doing all the food and things," Molly mumbled.
"Elves!" Hermione shrieked loudly.
"Oh, don't start about that," Ron peered down the table past Arthur, Harry, Ginny and Molly to glare at Hermione. "Don't worry, we're paying them."
Hermione poked her tongue out at Ron before grinning embarrassed. "Sorry."
Molly only gave her a kind smile, before she remembered something with a gasp. "Arthur, Arthur, speeches!"
Arthur almost choked on his champagne before stumbling to his feet and charming his throat to amplify his voice. "Guests, I would just like to thank you all for coming to this wonderful day." He looked down at his son-in-law and daughter with a huge smile. "It's strange to walk your daughter down the aisle and give her away but I'm just thankful that it's Harry who I'm giving her to. He's such an amazing fellow, really, you know, saving the world and all that."
At this, the guests laughed and Harry blushed a little, shaking his head as he chuckled.
"But as well as being able to save the wizarding world, I know that he will be an extremely capable husband to my only daughter, and I know that he will treat her and care for her well. Unfortunately, I'm not so sure about Ginny doing the same for Harry."
Ginny pouted at her father.
"I'm joking, dear. Yes, Ginny will care for Harry as he will for her - that I am certain. And so I wish the new couple a very long and extremely happy marriage. You both deserve it." Arthur raised his glass and sat down, still smiling.
Hermione clapped and raised her glass as Ron stood up, preparing to give his speech. She spotted Draco sitting next to Ron, pale-faced and hurriedly scanning a crumpled bit of parchment held tightly in his hand. She hoped he managed to deliver his speech well. It must be so hard for him to do this, she thought, frowning slightly.
"... Had a lot of laughs with Harry ..."
Hermione missed what Ron said next but it must have been something vaguely funny as Harry was blushing like the sunset and the guests were laughing. Draco was too involved in staring at the parchment to realise when Ron finally sat back down. He had to give Draco a nudge for him to nervously stand up and smile. A hush came down on all the guests and he coughed before beginning.
"Well, it came as a real shock to me about five months ago when Harry actually asked me to be his second best man at his wedding. As you know, I had never really got on with Harry, let alone Hermione, Ron and his family. But I guess the war had changed a lot of things and that included me and my own family. So when Hermione and I began seeing each other," At that, there were a few wolf-whistles from the guests and he laughed nervously. "I began to see more of Harry, Ginny and Ron too. To say it was odd is far from the truth. It was completely unreal. But I don't regret any of it, not one part. I've become friends with Harry and he's probably one of the very few friends I've had, which I can actually call a friend. As for Ginny, well, she's a very lovely lady and she and Harry are well-suited for each other." He reached for his glass and raised it. "To Harry and Ginny; may your life together be full of joy and happiness for the both of you."
He sat back down and breathed a huge sigh of relief. Boy was that nerve-wracking.
Hermione clapped loudly and cheered as did Harry who actually got up to hug Draco. It was the first bit of intimate, physical contact that she had ever seen the two men share.
Arthur then stood up once again to instruct the guests on how to order their food. "Just choose something from the menu and say it into the plate. It will then appear."
Hermione remembered something similar happening at the Yule Ball and she ordered her first course of mozzarella and tomatoes. She would have very much liked to have gone over to Draco and congratulate him on standing up in front of a whole load of people, who had hated his family for years, but he and Ron were chatting.
The supper passed quickly for Hermione and soon a band was assembled at the opposite end of the marquee from the table. They began to play and Ginny and Harry both stood up and held hands as they glided onto the dance floor. The guests cheered and Molly broke down into more sobs before being embarrassedly led on to join Harry and Ginny by Arthur. More guests began to dance and Draco caught Hermione's eye from down the table. He nodded towards the dance floor and she smiled shyly, biting her lip. He took her hand gently and then placed it on the small of her back, the other hand cradling the base of her neck. She wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her head against his chest. They swayed to the slow music coming from the band and there was a flash as the photographer snapped a photo of them dancing.
"Oh no, I'm going to look hideous!" Hermione groaned. "I bet I still have some of that chocolate truffle around my lips."
"Ah, you do," Draco grinned mischievously before bending down to kiss her softly. "All gone."
Hermione giggled and stretched up on her toes to kiss him back.
"Cor, you're still short even with heels on." Draco looked down at her silver shoes.
She pouted and looked down also. "They're not that high and I'm not short. You're just tall." She grinned and transfigured her shoes into slippers. "Ah, much more comfortable."
"You're wearing slippers?" He asked incredulously.
"Yes, I'm wearing slippers. Well done, fifty points to Slytherin." Hermione rolled her eyes.
"Ha, ha," He said shaking his head. "You are the strangest woman I have ever met, but I love you for it."
Hermione didn't say anything but hug him tighter as they danced. He rested his head on top of hers and the next song melted into the next and that melted into the next...
"Hmm, I have to sit down – my legs are killing me." Hermione pulled away reluctantly from Draco's arms and went to sit back at her place on the head table. He sat down next to her and took her hand again. She shivered and looked around. She hadn't realised when they were dancing but little lights around the top of the marquee and been lit and it created a pleasant orange glow in the night sky. She shivered as a light breeze tickled her bare back and Draco fetched his cloak from his chair and placed it around Hermione's shoulders.
"Thank you," She murmured. "Where do you think Harry and Ginny have gone?"
"They've gone?" Draco raked the dance floor with his eyes but couldn't spot the newlyweds. "Oh yeah, I remember hearing the photographer saying earlier that he was going to get some sunset shots of just them two."
"Ah, that'll be nice. By the way, Draco, your speech couldn't have been better." She gazed at him seriously and he half-smiled.
"Thanks," he mumbled and took her hand again.
"It must have been hard, right? But you did it, and you did it well. I know Harry appreciated it because he wouldn't have hugged you. Oh, Draco!" Hermione's eyes filled with tears.
"What, what's wrong?" He asked worriedly, searching her face for anything wrong.
"Nothing!" She exclaimed happily and threw her arms around his neck. "I'm just so proud of you."
He chuckled into her hair and inhaled her musky scent, holding her closer. "Why, thank you, Hermione."
She snuffled and pulled back to stare at him. "You know what? I think..." She paused and stared at him some more with a strange expression on her face.
"You think what?" He asked softly.
"I think I love you." A gentle smile slowly made its way onto her face.
Draco gazed at the woman sitting on his lap who just confessed that she loved him. In the low light, he saw specks of gold in her chocolate eyes. There was a slight blush on her cheeks and her pink lips were slightly parted. His eyes flicked back to hers and there was a hint of hurt in there. He realised he had been taking too long to respond. She took his hesitation as him rejecting her!
Before she could struggle out of his arms, Draco replied with a long and soft kiss on those wonderful lips of hers. She was unsure of what was happening at first, but she responded enthusiastically after realising what Draco meant. He pulled away from her lips but kept planting feathery kisses along her jaw line and up to her ear, where he whispered, "I think I love you, too."
She grabbed his face and forced him to look at her so she could kiss him senseless. There was a light cough and they broke apart, grinning like two teenagers caught in the empty classroom.
"I'd get a room guys. Remember, you are in a marquee." Ron rolled his eyes and nodded towards the Burrow.
Hermione giggled. "We're fine Ron. Don't worry; we weren't about to do a session of passionate love making on the table."
Ron blanched. "I think not!"
Draco stared at Hermione in shock. "Did you just say that?"
"No, the old witch next door did. Yes, of course I said it Draco." She poked him in the shoulder.
"Yeah, I know," He pulled a face. "It was a rhetorical question, dear. Anyway, Weasley, where's Pansy?"
"Here!" The raven-haired witch replied, taking Ron's arm as she arrived next to him.
"Where were you?" He asked grumpily.
"Dancing!" She beamed. "Come on, it's all lively now. Let's have a rave!" She added crazily and dragged Ron back onto the dance floor.
"Oh dear." Draco sighed tiredly. "As much as I hate to admit it, I feel sorry for Weasley right now. Pansy is not good when she's like this."
Hermione laughed. "It's Ron. He'll survive. Is she drunk or something? I've never seen her like this before."
"No, she's a bit tipsy but I think she's just ... hyper." He grimaced and fiddled with an empty champagne glass.
"Hyper, eh?" Hermione glanced over at the couple where Pansy was dancing madly, and Ron was looking like he'd been dipped into tomato sauce he was so red. "That's so cute. I wish the photographer was here to take a photo."
Draco snorted. "I wouldn't call that cute. More like, mortifyingly embarrassing. Heaven save me if you ever dance like that near me."
Hermione looked affronted. "Well, how do you know I don't dance like that normally?"
"I don't." He wiggled his eyebrows. "Let's find out shall we. Oh, still got your slippers on?" He added, sounding concerned.
Hermione rolled her eyes as they went onto the dance floor. "Leave my slippers alone. They're perfectly acceptable."
He just sniggered as they began to dance – Hermione making sure not to flail her arms about like Pansy. As they were dancing, Hermione caught sight of a group of big-busted and slim witches joining the dance floor. She scowled when she saw one blond witch – who was very pretty, annoyingly – staring at Draco with a malicious, yet flirtatious glint in her eye.
More people joined the dance floor and soon everyone was packed fairly close together. Draco grinned at Hermione as they ended up chest-to-chest. Suddenly, a wizard pushed past Hermione and she stumbled backwards. Someone caught her but the group of witches had moved in front so she was separated from Draco. She smiled her thanks to someone she vaguely recognised as one of Ginny's cousins she saw at Bill's wedding. She stood on her tiptoes to try and see Draco and she spotted his platinum head craning away from something; the blond haired witch was gazing imploring up at him, giving him a suggestive wink. Something hot flared in the pit of her stomach and she scowled angrily. She watched as the blond grinded up against the front of Draco and he tried to edge away slightly. Her fingers trailed up his chest and she stroked them back down his arms, all the while smiling seductively. Draco tried to move backwards again and push away the woman's hands but she wouldn't budge. Hermione's eyes nearly bulged out of her head when she saw the woman attempt to try and kiss him. Couldn't she take no for an answer? Obviously not. Hermione stormed through a couple of witches, barging them out of the way so she could get to Draco. When he saw her incensed expression, he opened his mouth to explain but she turned to the blond witch where she slapped her across the face so hard it was heard over the music. Heads turned in their direction and Hermione just grabbed Draco's hand and dragged him out of the crowd and into the cool, night air.
"Hermione, I can explain-" He began once they were out of earshot from the other guests.
"You don't need to explain anything, Draco." She was shaking with anger. The bitch! Draco was hers. She almost laughed manically at the thought. "I saw what happened."
"Then you'll see that I didn't do anything!" He hissed.
Hermione turned towards him, calming down slightly. "Yeah, I know. That's why I slapped that witch into next year, Draco. I saw what happened and she just couldn't see that you didn't want anything to do with her."
Draco's rising anger disappeared. "Oh." He said dumbly.
"When I saw her trying to kiss you, I snapped and I had to do something." She laughed, shaking her head. "My hand hurts."
"I bet it does. That was one mighty slap you gave there." Draco sounded impressed and he kissed her on the forehead. "I'm proud of you."
"Why, thank you, Draco." She repeated his response from earlier with a giggle. The blond witch's face popped into her mind again and she scowled. "I wonder who invited her and her little minions. Never seen them before."
"Hermione!" They both turned to see Ginny jogging over to them, looking worried. "Are you alright? I've just heard what happened!" She stared at the both of them, her cheeks flushed from running.
"Yeah, we're fine. Though you should have seen the slap Hermione gave that girl." Draco grinned at his girlfriend.
"Ginny, who were they?" Hermione ignored Draco and frowned at her best friend.
"I have a feeling that my mum invited some people to set Charlie up with, because we set up wards that only people with an invitation could enter." Ginny groaned. "Why does my mum have to be so interfering?"
"Guys- I mean girls don't worry about it. It's over and done with so let's just enjoy the rest of your wedding day." Draco said calmly taking Hermione and Ginny's hands and leading them back to the marquee.
Hermione laughed. "Okay, Draco, you're the boss. Hey, Ginny. Do you know if the photographer managed to get a snap of Ron and Pansy dancing?"
"No? I don't think so. Why?" Ginny asked, amused.
"Oh, just the way they were doing it. It was incredibly cute-"
"-disturbing." Draco coughed loudly, smiling behind his hand. "What?" He asked innocently when Hermione glared at him.
His expression made Hermione burst into laughter and she hugged him. "Oh, I do love you."
"I love you too." He murmured, smiling.
Ginny gasped and squealed and then ran off to find Pansy. "Oh dear, the whole world will know now." Hermione rolled her eyes at her friend's behaviour.
"Ah well, you know how they say. Better out than in." Draco pulled a face as he thought over what he just said. "Somehow ..."
Hermione laughed which turned into a yawn. "Jeez, what time is it?"
"Half ten." Draco glanced quickly at his watch.
"Really? I'm shattered." Hermione blinked and sat down. Draco joined her and she leant against his shoulder, yawning again. "I'll just close my eyes for a bit."
--
A light tapping awoke Hermione and she rolled over into a pillow. The tapping continued and she forced herself to get out of her bed and to open her bedroom door where Draco stood holding a tray with breakfast laid out on it. Hermione looked with confusion up to Draco's amused face, and then back at her bed.
"What happened? What time is it? When did the wedding finish?" Hermione sat back on her bed as Draco came in and kept the tray levitating with his wand.
"Basically, you fell as sleep at about half ten-ish, and then I left you for about two hours and the wedding was still in full swing. I explained to Ginny and she wanted to keep you at The Burrow to sleep for less hassle, but I brought you back here anyway. And now," He checked his watch. "It is half past nine."
"Oh," She said dumbly. "Oh, poor Ginny! I feel so bad for falling asleep! I was her bridesmaid! I was supposed to stay with until the end! And I didn't even see her throw the bouquet..." She added morosely.
"I know who caught it." Draco murmured.
"Who?" Hermione asked excitedly. "Was it Pansy?"
He shook his head. "It was you."
Hermione stared at him for a moment before bursting into peals of laughter. "Draco, I was asleep. How could I have caught the bouquet?"
Not impressed by her reaction, Draco went on to explain very seriously. "Well, Ginny did a really crap throw and it completely missed all the desperate witches, and went to the side where it landed on your stomach."
Hermione stopped laughing when she saw Draco's impassive face. "You're not joking?"
"No."
"Wow, that takes some skill, I have to say." Hermione nodded her head in approval and giggled. "Okay, I'm serious, sorry."
"And another thing ... you missed Ron propose to Pansy at the end of the wedding." He slipped in nonchalantly.
Hermione, who had picked up a glass of orange juice and was just taking a sip, spat it all out over the floor. "What?"
"Ron proposed-" Draco began again.
"Yes, yes, I know. He didn't tell me! I can't believe that. Oh. My. Gosh. Ron is getting married before me. This cannot be happening!" Hermione wailed and plonked herself down on the bed.
"I haven't told you what Pansy said, yet." Draco pointed out, still being serious.
"Oh no." Hermione turned to him in horror. "She didn't say no, did she? Oh please say she didn't say no! It would break his heart!"
"She said yes, don't worry." He said quickly, not wanting to get Hermione in a state. "But she said that they can only get married after three years. She wants to be absolutely certain because she's deadly serious about Weasel, and she doesn't want anything to go too quickly."
Hermione breathed a sigh of relief. "Aw, I'm happy for them."
"So, that means you have three years if you want to get married before Ron." Draco smirked and stood up from the bed. "Anyway, I have to get to work at the office so ... do you want to come to my place for dinner?"
Hermione nodded and smiled. "Okay, that'll be lovely. What time? Seven-ish?"
"Yeah, that'll be great. See you then, love." He kissed her on the cheek and left with a wave.
Three years to get married, eh? That's my goal. Hermione chuckled to herself as she finished off the breakfast Draco had kindly made for her and then went to have a bath in that wonderful new bathroom of hers. She was only having the shop open for half a day today, as she knew that she would be hung-over or tired from the wedding the night before. Good ol' Hermione; always planning. She busied herself in cleaning and tidying the flat until half-past twelve when she would be opening the shop. The clock chimed when it reached noon and Hermione quickly made herself a bite to eat before Apparating to the bookshop.
She arrived and she spotted a discarded Daily Prophet left on the windowsill of the shop. Thinking the headline would most probably be something about Harry and Ginny's wedding, Hermione ignored it and unlocked the front door just as Olivia arrived next to her with a pop.
"So, Hermione, declaring your love for Draco is it?" Olivia asked suggestively as she placed her bag down on the countertop.
Hermione laughed. "I guess Pansy told you, right?"
"Pansy?" Olivia looked confused. "No, it's in the Daily Prophet and Witch Weekly."
Hermione ceased laughing immediately and paled. Jogging back outside, she found the newspaper and came back in, scowling.
"Okay, what is so fascinating about mine and Draco's relationship?" She slammed the newspaper down on the counter and glared at the column on the front page. Fortunately, the picture and most of the page was about Harry and Ginny's wedding. But of course, they just couldn't resist printing something about her and Draco.
"I hate being famous." She groaned and rested her head on the counter.
Olivia patted her lightly on the head. "Cheer up, Hermione. Don't worry – what's going to happen? Nothing. It's just a pathetic article and you know it."
Hermione smiled and sat up again. "You're right; I really need to get my act together. It's nothing huge. Anyway, I'm going to Draco's tonight for dinner."
Olivia gasped and smiled. "Have fun, Hermione, he better be a good cook."
"He's probably got house elves or something, knowing him." She rolled her eyes. "But Olivia! How's it going with Blaise?"
"He wants us to go to Italy together on a little holiday in July!" Olivia exclaimed happily. "I can't believe it! Can I please take some time off work?"
Hermione got up and hugged her friend. "Of course you can, Liv, whereabouts are you going in Italy?"
"Tuscany, I think. He said he has a house there all secluded and everything. I'm so excited." She beamed and clapped her hands.
"Well, you have an absolutely beautiful time. No doubt you deserve it after all the work you've done for me in this shop." Hermione said kindly, hugging her once again.
"I heard about Pansy and Ron last night, but when are you and Draco tying the knot?"
Hermione blushed and smiled. "I don't know. I haven't really thought about it, to be honest." She admitted. "Thinking about it, I would quite like to get married to him, but I have no idea when."
"Yes!" Olivia punched the air. "As soon as you two were both an item, I knew you should get married."
"Yeah, his mum's all for it too." Hermione said drily.
"Well then, why you waiting?" Olivia asked incredulously.
Hermione rolled her eyes and stood up from the stool to attend to a customer. "Because neither of us is ready."
Olivia snorted as she went into the back room to begin making them both coffees. "Whatever!"
The half day passed quickly and just as they were shutting up, the last person Hermione expected to see turned up at the shop.
"You go home, Olivia, don't worry. I'll see you tomorrow." Hermione kissed her friend goodbye and smiled at Narcissa as she stopped outside the front door, waiting for Hermione.
"Good afternoon, Hermione." Draco's mother smiled in greeting.
"Hello, Narcissa, to what do I owe this pleasure?" She didn't expect to see her here at all. Whenever Narcissa had contacted her it was either through Draco or via owl.
"I understand that you have an engagement later with Draco, so I'll make my visit short. Would you mind coming with me for a drink?" She asked gesturing towards the expensive restaurant that Hermione had gone in for Ginny's hen night.
"Of course." Hermione was puzzled at first but then it hit her. It must be about the article in the newspaper. "Narcissa, if this is about the Daily Prophet, then I can explain."
"Hermione, I don't care about the rubbish that comes out of that rag these days." Narcissa scoffed and murmured to the waiter for a secluded table.
They were led to a small part of the restaurant near the back, away from prying eyes. Exactly what Narcissa had asked for, of course.
"So ..." Hermione began as they sat down. What did she want to talk about?
"Okay, it's partly to do with the article but mostly to do with Lucius." Narcissa admitted, closing her eyes as if she were in pain.
"Ah." She said shortly.
"Excuse me, ladies, but what would you like to drink?" A waiter appeared, ready to take their orders with an expectant look.
"I'll have an Espresso, please." Narcissa said quickly.
"Same, thank you." Hermione smiled at the waiter as he left. She turned back to Narcissa to wait for her to continue.
"Yes, ah, indeed." She sighed deeply and Hermione took a chance to look at her. Narcissa's usual immaculate face had a couple of lines as if she hadn't been sleeping well. If she looked closely, Hermione could see she had little bags under her sapphire blue eyes – hell, she looked exhausted. "He wasn't happy about it at all. Fortunately, he can't do much about it except set things up which aren't true."
Hermione frowned. "Like what?"
"For example – we invite you round for dinner and Lucius pays a witch to leave looking like she's just slept with Draco." Narcissa said sadly.
"Yeah, but I'd know Draco wouldn't do that, so it would be fine." Hermione dismissed the thought quickly, not wanting to think about it. "And Lucius wouldn't do that Draco. He wouldn't."
They were interrupted once again by the waiter bringing them their drinks. Murmuring their thanks, they continued with the conversation.
Narcissa nodded. "He would. But this visit is just to tell you to be prepared for anything that looks suspicious about Draco. Anything which makes it seem that he's cheated on you is most likely down to Lucius."
Hermione raised both her eyebrows and took a sip of her hot drink. What sort of father would go so out of his way to ruin his son's relationship with a woman? Lucius, obviously. "Thank you ... for telling me."
Narcissa half-smiled. "Its okay, my dear. Just watch out."
Hermione nodded and the conversation fell into an awkward silence. Curiosity getting the better of her, "Narcissa, are you alright? You look very tired."
The woman nodded quickly. "I'm fine, thank you. All this business with Lucius is just getting me worried about you and Draco."
Hermione sighed with relief. She was worried that it was going to be something worse. "As long as there's nothing else?"
"Of course not," Narcissa smiled reassuringly and changed the subject slightly. "I'm so glad that you and Draco are together like this. When shall I start sending out invitations?"
"Invitations?" Hermione shrieked. "Narcissa, I know you would like us to get married, but Draco and I aren't ready!"
"Yet," Narcissa added with a smirk.
Hermione couldn't help but blush. "Not even that!" She tried to say firmly, but her voice betrayed her; they both knew that she would like to get married to Draco.
Narcissa laughed and finished off her coffee. She stood up abruptly and grabbed her bag. "I must dash, sorry! Enjoy your evening with Draco, tonight, Hermione."
Hermione hastily stood also as Narcissa placed down a couple of coins and headed towards the entrance of the restaurant. "Thank you." She called out again to Narcissa just as she disappeared into the crowd.
"That was interesting," Hermione muttered grumpily as she left the building. Why couldn't Lucius just leave them be? She checked her watch just as she Apparated home and noted to herself that she had an hour before she had to be at Draco's. She dumped her bag on the sofa and ran into her bedroom to find something to wear.
Half an hour later, Hermione still had gotten nowhere. She thought about her charcoal pencil skirt, but then decided it would be too formal. A dress? No, too over the top for just a dinner.
"Ahh!" Hermione wailed, grabbing at her hair. She glanced at her clock and saw she had twenty minutes. "Crap!"
She threw on her black leggings and slipped on her silk, grey tunic top. Shoving her head inside her wardrobe, Hermione searched blindly for her flat brown boots. Finally finding them underneath a crumpled shirt she had thrown in earlier, she hastily put them on and jogged into her bathroom where she put on a bit of makeup, sprayed on some perfume and tried to make her hair look acceptable.
"That'll do," she muttered and, making sure she had her wand, flooed to Draco's flat with two minutes to spare.
How's that? I hope everyone had a brilliant Christmas and I wish you all a happy New Year! Thank you (: