Finger Sandwiches with a Spot of Trauma
Granger stepped through the Floo at eleven fifteen, in a summery dress with a lace wrap hanging off her elbows. She was busy brushing herself off while Draco was trying to calm his racing heart, he really needed to get a grip. She looked up at him expectantly before she spoke.
"Is this alright, Pansy insisted this would work for today, she is going to bring something else for tomorrow and she is already planning every outfit I will wear from now through our entire first year of marriage," Granger said with a laugh that was meant to be breezy, but he saw it for the attempt it was.
"How is Pansy, I wasn't able to get back for their wedding. Honestly, when I got the invite, I imagined they did it for the wrong reasons, but seeing Greg last night reminded me that other people are allowed to change their strips too. I also heard Zabini ended up with the Weaslette, I was shocked about that one. I did not receive and invite to that particular wedding," Draco said.
"It was a very nice ceremony. I was surprised about them at first at too, but Ginny is really happy, and I like Blaise well enough. He loves Ginny and that is what really matters isn't it," she said a hint of bitterness creeping in, because she was being robbed of the chance at that you great prat, "Pansy is well she is looking forward to seeing you again. She also had an idea about our wedding I wanted to share with you."
"This should be good, what did Pansy have in mind?" Draco asked.
"She thought to request for our ceremony to be held at the Peace and Unity Garden planted during our eighth year at Hogwarts, you know just to really show our willingness to participate in the efforts," she said with a saccharine smile.
Draco paused for a moment to consider what it would be like to step back on the grounds. He hadn't been allowed to return that year for school he completed his N.E.W.T.s via correspondence. He knew it was a good plan he just wasn't sure about being back at the site of so much death that had been in no small part his doing. He felt her hand wrap around his hand.
"Malfoy is that going to be too difficult for you after everything?" she was looking up at him with such an earnest expression. She was on the way to face her biggest nightmare, his home, and yet her she was trying to comfort him.
Granger as long as you are next to me, I can do anything. Is what he thought.
"If you can face your nightmare fuel I can too," is what he actually said with a tight-lipped smile.
She squeezed his hand and nodded once. Then took his elbow to step through the Floo together.
Stepping out of the Floo felt like a jump off a cliff. If she hadn't been holding Malfoy's arm, she was certain she would have stumbled. As it was her grip only tightened. She let a little laugh escape at the thought she was clutching the arm of the man who once turned away while she lay screaming on the floor. Then everything went dark for a moment. She came too in a chair in that same room. Pressure soothing and steady was being massaged into her wrists. Then she heard the chirping voice of a house elf and a woman talking in low tones, but she couldn't understand them. Her eyelids fluttered.
"Granger, Hermione are you going to be alright?" Draco's concerned voices was directly in front of her. She opened her eyes to see him crouching down he was rubbing small circles into the soft flesh of her inner wrists. The pressure had grounded her, had brought her back. His grey eyes were beautiful, she had never looked at them so closely before, there were flecks of blue if you looked closely, like a pale winter morning. She said nothing still just held his gaze and he didn't flinch away. The noise from behind Draco finally pulled her gaze away. She heard a heavy exhale from him but was looking past him now to Narcissa and a small elf, very pointedly not looking at the spectacle she was.
"I am so sorry," Hermione started but the pressure on her wrist increased drawing her gaze back to Malfoy.
"You do not apologize, you told me this was going to be hard; this is why we are here today. I told you we did not have to come, and my mother will not be offended if you cannot stay," Malfoy said.
Hermione glanced to Narcissa then.
"Ms. Granger, that you are even here speaks to your courage. My son speaks truly, if it is easier, we can all go back to Draco's flat in London," Narcissa said with a gracious smile.
"No, I want to do this, I want to be able to move past this fear, it is just a place, and I don't want to fear a place any longer. Besides it is my future husband's ancestral home I can't very well avoid it for all time," she said lightly.
"Well let's start with tea then, shall we?" Narcissa says brightly.
Malfoy unfolds himself to his full height and offers Hermione his hand. Ever the gentleman. He tucked her hand into his elbow and led her through a large reception foyer past what appeared to be a ballroom, to a set of French doors, through a sitting room, and finally to a terrace where tea service was waiting for them.
Draco pulled out her chair and she sat. The garden and fresh air were reviving her. She closed her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath through her nose exhaling after a moment through her lips before opening her eyes.
"This garden is breath taking Mrs. Malfoy, so many varieties of roses I have never seen before I would love a tour at some point," Hermione said with a warm smile.
"Please call me Narcissa dear you are going to be blood in such a short time," Narcissa said kindly, "we have such a short time to properly do anything. Draco mentioned you both plan to use this betrothal and marriage as a way to call out the Ministry and its poor attempts at unification. To that I say bully for you both. However, I urge caution, you may be able to do no wrong Ms. Granger but you must realize that is not the case for Draco. I will not see my son in Azkaban," her tone was some how kind and terrifying in the same moment. Greg was right about her. Hermione had a lot to learn from this woman.
"Please call me Hermione, and I assure you I have no desire to see Draco in Azkaban. We will do nothing but talk about our own experiences, the Ministry in its infinite blindness has not appealed to the humanity of the wizarding world in all of their efforts to unify and that is what we plan to do. Who better to speak to both sides of this war that to people who could not be more different. The Ministry thinks to make us an example but what they will get is a reckoning," Hermione said with utter sincerity and the look of a cat who got the cream.
Beside her Malfoy made some kind of noise in the back of his throat. She glanced at him just as he was adjusting his robes. What was wrong with him. She returned her attention to Narcissa.
"You are truly a fearsome creature Hermione, you will do credit to the Malfoy name," Narcissa said with a warm smile.
After tea a brief tour of the house was had, they had skipped the library, but Malfoy promised they could return later before they returned to London. Lunch was served and it was delicious. The grounds were toured after lunch Narcissa made suggestions about places photos should be taken and a few suggestions of where Malfoy could present the ring to her. Hermione's stomach had dropped when she considered that tomorrow she would be betrothed to Draco Malfoy.
The hour was drawing later, and Hermione had told everyone to be at her flat in the next two hours. Malfoy returned her to the library as promised. She wandered for the better part of twenty minutes. She didn't dare pick up a book or they would never leave.
"Granger, we can return here whenever you want, I wanted to show you one more place before we head back."
Draco Apparated them to the lake with the swans. It was his favorite place on the property, he offered his arm, she took it, and it sent a thrill through him that she didn't question his behavior. She probably thought it was just manners that were breed into him. It might have been but in truth any excuse to be close to her was his ultimate goal. As he led her to the end of a small dock that jutted out into the water, he took a breath and questioned everything he was doing. He had made a rash decision this morning and he wasn't going to back out now. They stopped at the end of the dock, and he turned to face her. She looked up at him curiously.
"Promise to hear me out?" he asked wetting his suddenly dry lips with his tongue.
She narrowed her eyes. He took her hands, and she looked down at them before looking back up at him.
"As much as this is not our choice, I will never do this again with any other woman. I don't actually want this moment to be in front of a camera," he took a breath and let her see him, "this is the place we are standing was my only refuge in the hell that was my life during the war. It was my peace. When I am on this dock nothing can touch me. I can't in this moment regal you with all the happy memories we have shared that led us to this moment, but I can say I will do everything in my power to ensure our lives are happy from now on. We have both had enough death and suffering and sacrifice for a hundred lifetimes," he pulled the ring he had chosen for her out of his robes. It was simple a band with small diamonds set into it; delicate and understated.
Her breath caught and he met her amber gaze. She extended her left hand then. He slid the ring on and smiled a small sad smile with his gaze turned down. Her hand came to his cheek then, and he looked up again, and suppressed the desire to lean into her hand.
"Draco, you did promise a grand proposal though this is not what I imagined," she noticed when he flinched, "it was better, thank you."
His entire body was boneless. She drew his gaze back to her before speaking.
"I am never going to have this again either and I am so tired of my life being a performance for the world. This private proposal and your honest words mean more than you know to me. I do think we have a chance to be happy at least and that is something," she finished with a small smile, a blush high on her cheeks.
Draco straightened then a bit and she stepped back letting his hand go. He didn't want to let her step back, but he knew it was the only choice right now.
"I will still propose tomorrow with a different ring just so you are aware, something that will photograph well and sell our story. I think the rose garden will be the best place, in front of the English Roses, really go for the on the nose bit. Does that sound appropriate to you?" Draco asked.
"I think the papers will eat it up and that is exactly what we need," she said twirling the band on her left hand.
Draco conjured a delicate length of chain and held his hand out, she looked at him curiously then realized what he was doing. She looked at her left hand again for a moment before pulling the ring of and handing it to Draco. He slipped the ring on the chain. She turned so he could put the chain on. Draco stepped closer raising his arms over her head, so she was circled in his arms. He let his fingers lightly skim the skin where her neck met her shoulders, she reached up and mover her hair out of his way. Her scent overwhelmed him for a moment, and he had the desire to lean in and kiss her exposed throat but remembered himself centimeters from making contact with her skin. He closed the chain with a charm. He could see the goose flesh on her neck from his whispered charm ghosting over her skin. Stepping back, he straightened his robes and she seemed to shake herself a bit. She turned around and tucked the ring and its chain into her dress and drew her wand casting a Notice Me Not charm. The knowledge she would wear that ring close to her heart hidden from the world was far to exciting for Draco in that moment.
He offered his arm to Apparate them back to the Manor so they could Floo back in time to receive their friends. The brief moment of peace and respite was over.