Chapter Seven
At the Burrow
Later, they were all inside the house, spread out among the collection of armchairs and sofas of different colours and fabrics near the fireplace.
Draco smirked as Hermione sat down at his side, offering him a cup of hot chocolate. He took it and leaned towards her, leaving a quick kiss on her lips.
"Ugh! We don't want to see that, Malfoy," Ron complained, grunting.
"Don't look, then," Draco replied, leaning back against the sofa and raising his eyebrows.
Ginny, Molly and Luna giggled.
"That reminds me of something... Did you read 'The Daily Prophet' on Friday, Hermione?" Ginny asked, standing up.
Hermione shook her head. She and Draco hadn't been subscribed to the paper since the news that they were together had been on the front page, with a giant picture of the moment Draco kissed her in the Hogwarts Quidditch pitch after the match against Gryffindor, and Ginny knew it.
Her red-haired friend disappeared for a moment, returning a few seconds later with a newspaper in her hand.
"Look at page fourteen," Ginny mumbled, returning to sit next to Harry.
Hermione flipped through the pages and Draco pressed against her so he could see it too.
There was a photograph that took up more than half the page. It was the fireplace of the Leaky Cauldron, the two of them appearing in the flames. Draco came out first and waited to the side, holding out a hand to Hermione. She held it, smiling and looking into his eyes. They continued to stare at each other for what seemed like too long, until Draco began to walk away without letting go of her hand.
And that went on and on and on, endlessly.
Hermione's cheeks reddened and she clutched the newspaper too tightly, crumpling it.
"I thought they'd stopped following us," Draco muttered, frowning as he glanced at the photograph.
Hermione read the title of the article and sighed.
'The romance between the former Death Eater and the Golden Girl continues'
"Rita Skeeter can't get enough, Malfoy," Harry added quietly.
He and Ginny were also in the paper every time they went on a date somewhere public.
"All the pictures they've taken of the two of you are beautiful. You always seem to love each other so much," Luna commented with dreamy eyes.
Hermione closed the paper and put a hand to her face in embarrassment. Ron folded his arms, feeling uncomfortable, and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley looked at Hermione and Draco with a knowing smile on their lips.
Draco snorted and went back to his chocolate, trying to ignore them all and not think about that obnoxious blonde woman. Hermione and Ginny exchanged a glance and the red-haired girl nodded.
"Before you all leave, we have presents from the shop," George said, entering the room with a cardboard box.
"It's a new flavour. Let me know if you like it," he whispered as he handed Hermione a purple quill.
He gave Draco a stone that cancelled out all the noises in the room, explaining that he had to touch it with his wand to activate it.
Harry received a small model of the future Nimbus 2010, due to be released in March, with sparkling eyes.
"It's been a long time since we've been to the shop. We'll go on Monday," Arthur commented, clutching a pair of glasses that made you see the world like a Muggle, unable to distinguish magic.
"We'll be there, Dad," Ron said, smiling.
Soon after, Hermione and Draco left the house with Luna, Harry and Ginny. They walked together to where the forest began and, after checking that there were no Muggles nearby, Ginny held Harry's hand and the two of them apparated. When Ginny was in England, she spent a lot of time at the old Black house with Harry.
"See you soon," Luna murmured.
She too left with a crack and Draco slipped an arm around Hermione's shoulders. A second later, they were in her living room.
"It wasn't as horrible as I thought it would be," Draco admitted, walking over to the white couch to greet Crookshanks.
Hermione went upstairs to her room, closing the door behind her. She changed her clothes and opened one of the windows, resting her arms on the sill and looking out at the horizon.
It wasn't long before she saw a white owl, much like Hedwig. It was Harry's new pet.
Hermione stepped back and the bird perched on the window, stretching out one of its legs. She unrolled the piece of paper and gave it a treat, stroking the feathers on its neck.
"Thank you, Night."
The owl pecked her fingers affectionately and flew away. Hermione closed the window and glanced at what she was holding in her hands. It was the photo she had seen hours before at the Weasley's house, cut out and with a small note stuck to it in Ginny's handwriting.
Here you go
If you need more, let me know
Ginny
"Homenum revelio," Hermione whispered, pointing her wand at the wall.
A small illuminated map appeared before her, showing her house and all the rooms. There was a spot of light on the ground floor, indicating that Draco was still in the living room.
Hermione opened one of the cupboard drawers and pulled out a wooden box. Inside was a photo album, she laid it on the bed and opened it. The first thing she saw was her favourite photo, the one someone took of them during the Quidditch match and later sold to the Prophet, getting the whole magical world to find out that Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger were in a relationship.
That was the second best selling Prophet in history, only behind the one they published on the day Harry defeated Voldemort.
Hermione sighed as she watched Draco kiss her, and when they pulled apart, they were both blushing heavily. His lips were moving, saying something she remembered very well, and after kissing the back of her hand, he flew away on his broom.
She taped the photograph Ginny had just sent to the back of the album and put it back in its place, leaving the room and going downstairs in search of Draco.
She knew that he almost didn't have any photos of himself, so she had been preparing that album for months. It was going to be one of his Christmas presents.
As he did every morning, Draco started cursing under his breath as soon as Hermione's alarm clock went off.
She turned it off and spun her body, resting her head in the crook of his neck. She kissed him just below his ear and heard him sigh.
"Good morning, grumpy."
Draco slipped an arm around her waist and brushed her hair aside with one hand, biting her shoulder gently.
"Someday I'm going to smash that Muggle clock," he whispered, his eyes still closed.
"You always say that," Hermione replied, letting out a giggle.
Draco growled and squeezed her tighter in his arms until Hermione moaned in pain. Then he pulled away, chuckling softly, and sat down on the bed.
Hermione watched him as he blinked several times and ran his hands through his platinum blond hair, which was completely tousled.
He felt her gaze on him and he glanced sideways at her, giving her a mischievous grin. Her head was resting on the pillow and she was biting her bottom lip, staring up at Draco.
"Do you like what you see?" he asked in a teasing voice.
"Of course," she replied, rolling her eyes.
"Me too," Draco murmured, leaning down and brushing her lips.
They kissed for a moment, but as soon as Draco tried to deepen the kiss, she pulled away.
"My breath must be horrible," Hermione said, covering her mouth with one hand.
"You know I don't care."
Hermione shook her head and Draco rolled his eyes, sitting back up.
"Where's that thing you wanted me to read today?"
"The article I'm going to send to the Quidditch magazine? I left it on my desk. I don't know if it's okay... I want your opinion before I send it," she answered, getting up.
Draco nodded and left the bedroom, locking himself in the bathroom down the corridor. Hermione smiled and crossed to her parents' old room. She took a shower, and when she came out, she went to the study. Draco was sitting at Hermione's cedar desk. He had a cup of tea in one hand and some papers in his lap, and he was very focused on reading.
Hermione sat down in her chair and grinned as she saw that he had left another cup of tea for her on the table. She picked it up and sighed at the smell of vanilla. That was one of her favourites.
He continued reading and she didn't interrupt him, enjoying her hot drink in silence. A few minutes later, Draco put the pages down on the table and stared at her, raising an eyebrow.
"What? is it that bad?" Hermione asked nervously.
Draco twisted his lips, clicking his tongue.
"It's not so bad... but you can tell that it was written by someone who doesn't have a clue about Quidditch."
Her eyes widened in panic.
"I have to send it in today, and it's going to be published tomorrow."
Draco snorted and stood up, waving his wand in the direction of his own desk. His chair flew next to Hermione's and he sat down, picking up one of the quills she had in the second drawer.
"I'm going to correct it, and I want your full attention. You need to learn how Quidditch works at once if you're in charge of organising three World Cup matches."
Hermione nodded and Draco began crossing out sentences, flipping through the pages and writing notes in the margins.
"For Merlin's sake, Hermione... players can't touch another player's broom or any part of their body. That's a foul and can even get them disqualified," Draco muttered, crossing out an entire paragraph.
"But you did it! In third year, I remember you held the tail of Harry's broom so he couldn't catch the snitch."
Draco glanced at her, one corner of his lips twisted upwards.
"Just because I did it doesn't mean it's legal."
"You were a cheat," Hermione snarled in a whisper.
"And I still am, it's more fun that way. But you can't write that in something the whole country will read," Draco replied in an amused voice.
Hermione chuckled and his grin widened. He continued crossing out paragraphs and making notes for quite a while, with a very grumpy Hermione at his side.
She was going to have to rewrite the whole article all over again.
Hermione appeared in the green flames of the Leaky Cauldron's fireplace.
She shook off the robe she was wearing over one of the witch's dresses she had bought during her last year at Hogwarts and walked out into Diagon Alley, looking for the small tea shop where Narcissa Malfoy would be waiting for her.
Hermione wrung her hands nervously the whole way. It was the first time she was going to be alone with Draco's mother, and it scared her a little.
Narcissa had been nice to her since she first visited Malfoy Manor (the time she was trapped there and tortured by Bellatrix didn't count, she and Draco had decided to forget everything that happened that day) and, as the months had gone by, the woman had started to be more affectionate. Hermione had a theory that Narcissa was also slowly changing her mind, like Draco, and that she wanted a closer relationship with her son's girlfriend.
At first, Lucius seemed to be biting his tongue to keep from telling Hermione what he really thought, but over the past few months she had noticed a change in him, though she still felt uncomfortable being around Draco's father, and she wasn't sure if she would ever stop feeling that way.
Hermione gasped when she saw Narcissa sitting at one of the tables on the terrace. That woman was always impeccably dressed. Her blue eyes stood out more with her deep red lips and her platinum blonde hair shone in the evening light.
Narcissa stood up when she saw her arrive and greeted her with a kiss on the cheek, motioning for her to sit across from her. Hermione did so and the waiter soon came over. Draco's mother ordered a full English tea service before Hermione could say anything and the man left.
"Have you tried the orange-scented Earl Grey tea they serve here? It's my favourite," Narcissa commented, smiling.
Hermione shook her head, looking around. She had never been to that place before.
"I'm sure you'll like it," Narcissa added.
Hermione looked into her eyes and realised that Narcissa was noticing her nervousness.
"I'm sorry. I'm a little nervous, Mrs... Narcissa. I don't quite know how to act with you," she confessed quietly, looking away.
Narcissa's red lips curved into a smile.
"Relax and act like yourself, I want us to get along and be friends. Is that all right with you, Hermione?"
She nodded, smiling back and squaring her shoulders. She breathed in slowly and relaxed, causing Narcissa to laugh softly.
"You don't have to be tense around me, I'm not going to judge you. I know I didn't react very well at first, it was quite a shock when we found out about you and Draco... but I don't feel that way anymore. You're a great girl and I like you for him. You make him happy and that's what matters."
"He makes me happy, too. I really appreciate that you weren't angry when he decided to move in with me."
The waiter set a large pot of tea on the table and a tray full of pastries and biscuits of different flavours. Narcissa chuckled as she poured a spoonful of honey into her cup.
"Well, Lucius did get angry... but I managed to talk some sense into him. Draco was an adult and had the right to make his own decisions, and I thought it was good that he didn't want to leave you alone," she said, filling her cup of tea.
Hermione decided to do the same and try drinking it with honey instead of sugar. After pouring, she took a sip and glanced up at Narcissa, raising her eyebrows.
"I told you you'd like it," the woman said, giving her a small smile.
She smiled back at her and chose a chocolate biscuit.
"There's something I haven't told Draco yet, and I wanted your help."
Hermione set the teacup down on the table and swallowed, fearing it was something bad. Narcissa looked around before continuing.
"A few months ago, I got in contact with... with my sister."
"Andromeda?" Hermione asked, very surprised.
Narcissa nodded.
"Now that I know you better, I don't think it was right to cast her aside when she married a Muggle-born."
"So... Have you spoken to her?"
"I've even visited her. Her grandson is a darling," Narcissa commented, smiling.
"Yes, Teddy is very special," Hermione replied.
She, Harry and Ron had visited Tonks and Lupin's son every month since they finished Hogwarts. Hermione had talked about it with Draco, but he always got tense and changed the subject.
"His mother was your friend, wasn't she?"
"And his father," Hermione added, nodding.
"I don't think Draco's going to react well, so I'd rather you be there when I tell him."
"Okay."
Hermione averted her gaze for a moment and sighed. She hated to think that Teddy was going to have to grow up without his parents, just like Harry, though he was still too young to understand it.
"What kind of book is it that you want to look for?" she asked curiously.
Narcissa sighed, holding her cup in both hands.
"You see, this whole Muggle world is new to us, we're just getting to know it thanks to you... and I'd like you to recommend some Muggle literature."
Hermione blinked several times in confusion. Never in a million years would she have imagined herself going shopping for Muggle books in London with Narcissa.
"I... okay, fine," she agreed, taking a large sip of tea.
"Do you know of any bookshops in the Muggle part of London?" Narcissa asked in an innocent voice.
Hermione coughed, trying not to choke on her tea. It sounded like a joke, but Narcissa's eyes were sincere.
"Yes, I know several. I used to go when I was little, before I knew I was a witch... and I've kept going since," she said, clearing her throat.
Narcissa nodded, looking away.
"I've heard of Shakespeare and Dickens."
Hermione laughed softly.
"I know all their books, I can tell you my favourites."