Chapter 10
Ball and Mia's Birthday
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters only the storyline and any of the story that I borrowed I will give them credit in that chapter at the end or the disclaimers in the following chapters. Enjoy and be as honest as possible in reviews without being downright mean
~*~*~*~Draco's POV~*~*~*~
"The looks on their faces are absolutely priceless" Draco told Hermione under his breath.
"Yeah, we should really have done this sooner" she said back.
The hall had gone totally silent, as Dumbledore had announced their arrival and their dates. It appeared that they had expected 5 different couples to walk in, not 3. (A/N: Remember Padma and Justin are dating). There was a big gasp, however, when it was announced that Hermione and Draco were a pair.
While yes, everyone knew that they had become good friends; they had never thought that Draco Malfoy would take a 'mudblood' to the dance.
Draco found this greatly amusing. He glanced around the crowd and saw Pansy looking ready to kill, ye6t faint at the same time. She had been bugging him incessantly since the ball had been announced, expecting him to ask her. When he refused time after time, she thought that it meant that he was going alone or maybe another Slytherin or he would just surprise her and ask her last minute. This, apparently, she had never expected. He was able to contain his laughter but with great difficulty.
He saw Blaise glance at him with a questioning look. All Draco was able to do was nod his head in Pansy's general direction and when Blaise saw her he seemed to have a harder time containing his own laughter. He took Ginny by the hand and went over and tapped Justin on the shoulder, to let him know what was so funny.
The 6 of them all looked like they would collapse with laughter. Dumbledore cleared his throat, and the hall went silent, even if the 'role models' looked ready to explode with laughter. "Welcome all! I just want to wish you all a good a good evening and without further ado, let the Heads and Prefects come to the center, so that we can start the ball"
Draco took Hermione the hand and led her to the center, the others behind him. With a flick of his wand Dumbledore started the music. Draco put a hand on Hermione's waist and the other held hers. (A/N: The following will switch Points of View, But it will go back to Draco's POV when the song is over)
~*~*~ There you go Flashing fever from your eyes Hey baby Come over here and shut them tight I'm not denying We're flying above it all Hold my hand Don't let me fall You've such amazing grace I've never felt this way ~*~*~
Draco looked Hermione in the face and saw, for the first time, nothing but pure joy. She looked genuinely happy to be there and he wished that this moment would never end so that he could always see her like this.
He pushed slightly on her waist, indicating that he wanted her to turn.
~*~*~ Ohhh, show me heaven Cover me Leave me breathless Ohh show me heaven please ~*~*~
Hermione looked Draco in the eyes and thought she saw something different in them. She saw love and caring, beyond friendship. She smiled at him, and the only thing going through her mind was 'I love him'.
~*~*~ Here I go I'm shaking just like the breeze Hey baby I need your hand to steady me I'm not denying I'm frightened as much as you Though I'm barely touching you I've shivers down my spine and it feels divine ~*~*~
Draco pulled her in from another spin and he noticed that she still wore the smile that she had been wearing a couple minutes before. The smile lit up her entire face and she couldn't have looked better if she tried.
He looked her in the eyes and suddenly realized that what he had said to Justin and Blaise at the broom shop yesterday had been nothing but the truth. He was in love with Hermione Granger.
~*~*~ Ohh show me heaven Cover me Leave me breathless Ohh show me heaven please
Do you know what its like to dream a dream Baby, hold me tight and let this be ~*~*~
Hermione saw a look of realization flash across Draco's face only to be replaced quickly with a warm smile at her. She knew then that there was something more to this then she had ever anticipated.
Yes, she loved him, and she could tell that there was something that he felt towards her but she was terrified to ever let him close. She had been hurt to much over the last while to know if she could ever trust anyone with her heart like that again, but she decided to just be happy for the moment, and relish in Draco's happiness.
~*~*~ Ohh show me heaven Cover me Leave me breathless Ohh show me heaven please ~*~*~
The song ended and Draco led Hermione off the dance floor. The 6 of them found a table and sat down to eat. They talked and ate for about 40minutes before Draco asked Hermione to dance again.
They dance until around midnight, when Ginny gave Draco the signal that they were leaving.
"Mia, come on lets get out of here" Draco whispered it her ear.
"Why? I'm having fun" Hermione whined.
"Because, there's a surprise waiting for you back at the common room" Draco told her with a mischievous grin.
"Draco Malfoy! Tell me what right this instant!" she demanded.
"NO, now come on or you'll never know and I'll just leave you here for the rest of your life, wondering what it could have been" he said while starting to move away.
"Alright! Fine! I'll come!" she said giving in and walking to accept the hand he extended for her.
"Please tell me!" Hermione whined.
"I said No! You'll just have to wait until we get there!" he said smirking evilly.
It went on like this until they reached the common room.
"Evening Anca, Steven" Draco greeted, "is it safe yet?"
"Good evening you two. Yes it is" Steven answered.
"Have fun, you two" Anca told them.
"We will, Serpents Lioness" Draco said with a smile.
"Draco, does everyone but me know what's going on?" Hermione asked, slightly annoyed.
"Yea, but that could do with the fact that this is a surprise for YOU!" he informed her.
They stepped through the portrait hole and Draco looked at Hermione's face when she saw what they had planned. Ginny, Blaise, Padma and Justin all stood in front of a big banner with 'Happy 18th Birthday Mia' across it. Hermione looked like she was about to faint.
"Oh my god you guys! I cant believe you did this!" she said awestruck.
When she recovered a bit she looked at what they were wearing. They weren't in formal anymore. "Hey, if you get to change so do I!" she informed them, already walking towards the staircase.
"I'm going to change to, we'll be right back" Draco told them, going up the staircase to his room.
He emerged a couple minutes later with forest green cotton pyjama pants and his serpent hoodie, that had a black shirt underneath. Just as he was heading down the stairs he saw Hermione energe from her room in black silk PJ pants as well as her serpent hoodie her hair and eyes back to normal and her make-up gone.
They made it to the bottom of each of their staircases and headed ove to the group.
~*~*~*~Hermione's POV~*~*~*~
'I cant believe that they did this for me'
She couldn't have been more surprised or happy, two things that she was not used to feeling. She was hit with a sudden realization, she didn't Harry and Ron friends anymore and they hadn't been close for awhile. The people in front of her were her friends now and she couldn't ask for anyone better.
She loved the fact that after 2 months they had become close enough to be family and in their eyes they were family. This thought gave her a warm feeling and she she noticed that the wall she had built, crumbled when she was around them.
She put a huge smile on her face and felt even happier when Blaise and Justin walked up and gave her a hug. Each of her friends walked up and gave her a hug wishing her a happy birthday and telling her that they loved her.
They started chatting about meaningless things until like 1am. Then each of her friends got up and grabbed the gifts that they had brought with them.
From Ginny she got a shirt the had 'I may look like a good girl, but you don't know me so don't judge, because under this I'm nothing but Pure Evil' and another pair of black silk pyjama pants with little snakes all over them. "Thanks Gin, I love them" she said hugging her friend, a smile across her face still.
From Padma she got the complete set of books by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes; a muggle author (A/N: While no reading isn't Hermione favorite thing anymore she still enjoys it and these books are like based around things like vampires, witches, etc.I highly recommend them), as well as some cocunut scented shampoo and conditioner. "How'd you know that I like cocanut?" she asked giving Padma a hug.
"Sources" Padma answered vaguely, smirking.
"Ok, we've all been hanging out with Draco and Blaise to much" Hermione said while taking the gift Justin handed her.
Justin got her a small sculpture of a snake made of emerald glass and a green frame with the words 'best friends' across the bottom. In the frame was a picture that they had had one of the Creevey brothers take right after Gryffindor and Slytherin had played the first Quidditch game of the year, Slytherin winning for the first time. The group would have usually cheered for Gryffindor but in light of recent events and the fact that two of their best friends had been on the team, they choose to cheer for Slytherin. She smiled at the memory and leaned forward, giving Justin a hug and thanking him for the gift.
Next, she opened the gift that Blaise had just handed her. In it she found a white hoodie with, you'll never guess, a green snake on it. "I noticed how much you liked the other on and I thought you needed a new one" he told her shrugging. Also in it there was a new pair of black jeans with a snake patch on the back pocket and a black shirt with 'I'm Nothing But Evil' written on it. "I Love it Blaise thanks" she said, hugging him as well.
"That leaves one person, Mr.Malfoy, may I have my gift?" she asked in an arrogant tone.
"You know, I totally forgot it was your birthday, so I didn't get you anything" he said smirking.
"I'm so sure, hand it over or I will hurt you and you know I could" she said in a threatening voice.
"Okay, okay. Although theres no way on earth you could hurt me, you know I would never forget your birthday" he told her, handing over his gift.
Hermione opened the neatly wrapped box to reveal 6 chains and rings sitting on a small velvet cushion. Each chain had a ring attached as well as a pendent. On four the pendant contains a lion and serpent, while the other two contained a raven and a badger. The chains and rings were silver and engraved on the rings were the words 'Friends for Life' and on the inside was each house animal and their her friends names.
"Draco." she started but found herself totally speechless. She just leaned over and pulled him into a huge embrace and didn't let go for a good 3 minutes. "I love them."
"I know that it is YOUR birthday but I thought that this was the perfect gift and I knew that we considered each other family, so I guess it just seemed appropiate" Draco said, looking extremely pleased that his gift had gone over so nicely.
"It is perfect. In fact all your gifts were perfect and I don't think I could ask for better friends" she said, looking at the smiling faces of her friends.
"Mia, you know that we love you and that you love us. There's nothing to replaces the bond we created and nothing WILL EVER replace it" Justin said going forward to pull her into another hug, "Happy Birthday Mia".
Blaise came forward next, "Justin's right, we're family and there's no getting rid of us ever, you hear?. Happy Birthday Mia, may it bring you love and joy and happiness!"
Each of the girls stepped forward at the same time, pulling their friend into a huge hug. "Mia, you know that I've always thought of you as the sister I never had and I'm closer to you and the rest of these guys then the rest of my family and you are my family, I love you Mia, Happy Birthday" Ginny said right before pulling away.
"I'll love you as more then a friend and more as a sister forever and always Mia, have a Happy Birthday and I promise that each of us will be there at all times throughout your life to help you" Padma said with tears in her eyes.
Draco was again the last one, "Mia, your one of my best friends, as well as I consider you a part of my family, like I do the rest, but Mia I want us to be more, I want us to last for eternity and I want us to be together for life but in order for that to happen I have to take the first step and ask and have you except. I have to ask if you would go out with me Mia?"
Hermione could do nothing but nod, that look of pure joy still on her face as it had been all night. Draco pulled her into a huge hug and whispered to her "Happy Birthday Mia, may all your dreams and wishes come true, I love you". Then he pulled back and placed a small kiss on her lips. Nothing major, just a small soft caress but it meant the world and more to her, and she knew that she would never forget it.
Finally Draco stepped back and the others all looked ecstatic. Theres were things like 'its about time' and 'what took you two so long' floating around the room as they all started to congratulate them.
"Thanks you guys but I need to do something. I believe that there are some chains and rings that I have to give out, is there not?" Hermione said with a huge smile on her face.
"Draco, would you do the honors and put mine on for me?" she asked him.
"Sure" he answered reaching into the box for a lion/serpent one. He undid the clasp and reached around her and grabbed the other end, doing the clasp up again at the back.
"Now, since it's my gift I get to put them on you guys, is that ok?" she questioned. Everyone nodded and started to come forward one by one. First Ginny, the Padma, Justin, Draco and then Blaise. They had each decided to wear the ring on the chain so that there was little chance of losing it.
"You must all promise to never remove these, deal?" Hermione asked.
"Agreed, never to be removed, not even in death" the chorused.
"What I would like to know is how you got 6 Draco, because when Justin and I were with you, you only bought two. One for you and one for Mia" Blaise said to his friend.
"Well it wouldn't be much of a surprise if you knew I got them, now would it?" Draco told him in a smart voice, "I told the owner to owl them to me"
"True." he trailed off when an owl came through a window and towards Hermione. "Now who would owl you at this time of night, Mia? Its 2 in the morning"
Hermione went absolutely white when the owl came through the window. The only person that had ever owled her this late at night was her 'father' and they were never good.
"Mia, its not from who you think its from," Justin assured, remembering that her father tended to send them late.
"Mia, its someone in the school, it's a school owl" Draco reassured.
"Still, I want someone else to open it" Hermione said, some of the color returning to her face.
Blaise, took it after finally cluing in and opened. "Guys, it's to all of us, well most of it anyway. It's from Dumbledore, saying that there's something important that he has to discuss with Mia but thinks that we should all be present as she'll need some support, but it doesn't say what for. He wants us all there at 10tomoorow morning, so after breakfast. Oh, and he wishes you a Happy Birthday Mia" Blaise said summing up the letter instead of reading the whole thing.
"What could it be over though? Theres nothing wrong, is there Mia?" Draco questioned turning to his new girlfriend.
"Not that I know of" she answered back. "But frankly I don't want to talk about it, but there's no way I want to spend the night alone. I'll be up all nigt trying to figure it out"
"Why don't we just summon up some beds and we can all stay here tonight" Ginny suggested, "I'm to tired to walk back anyway, we've been up since 7 this morning"
The others agreed and with one lick of her wand the room was clean and all her gifts were neatly piled in the corner, out of harms way. With a second flick three double beds appeared, "I assume your okay sleeping two to a bed tonight" she stated rather than asked, and with a final flick everyone was in their normal pyjamas.
The girls all in pants and T-shirts and the boys in boxers. Apparently what Draco had on originally wasn't what he slept in. They each hugged goodnight and climbed into a bed.
Padma and Justin in one, Ginny and Blaise in another and Hermione and Draco in the final. They all said good night and Draco leaned forward and gave Hermione a small kiss before putting an arm around her waste and holding her close, as if, if her let her go she would never come back.
The meeting became completely forgotten as Hermione drifted off to sleep. In one hand she grasped the ring and in the other, Draco's had, and she was perfectly content to never move again.
They all fell into a dreamless, yet happy sleep, knowing that when they woke up, the one they loved would be beside them and that their family would surround them. They had become closer than anything that night and not one thought anything could ever tear them apart. That they would stand strong and that they would all support Mia tomorrow, no matter what news she got. They had promised to give her comfort, and she was going to get just that.
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters only the storyline and any of the story that I borrowed I will give them credit in that chapter at the end or the disclaimers in the following chapters. Enjoy and be as honest as possible in reviews without being downright mean
~*~*~*~Draco's POV~*~*~*~
"The looks on their faces are absolutely priceless" Draco told Hermione under his breath.
"Yeah, we should really have done this sooner" she said back.
The hall had gone totally silent, as Dumbledore had announced their arrival and their dates. It appeared that they had expected 5 different couples to walk in, not 3. (A/N: Remember Padma and Justin are dating). There was a big gasp, however, when it was announced that Hermione and Draco were a pair.
While yes, everyone knew that they had become good friends; they had never thought that Draco Malfoy would take a 'mudblood' to the dance.
Draco found this greatly amusing. He glanced around the crowd and saw Pansy looking ready to kill, ye6t faint at the same time. She had been bugging him incessantly since the ball had been announced, expecting him to ask her. When he refused time after time, she thought that it meant that he was going alone or maybe another Slytherin or he would just surprise her and ask her last minute. This, apparently, she had never expected. He was able to contain his laughter but with great difficulty.
He saw Blaise glance at him with a questioning look. All Draco was able to do was nod his head in Pansy's general direction and when Blaise saw her he seemed to have a harder time containing his own laughter. He took Ginny by the hand and went over and tapped Justin on the shoulder, to let him know what was so funny.
The 6 of them all looked like they would collapse with laughter. Dumbledore cleared his throat, and the hall went silent, even if the 'role models' looked ready to explode with laughter. "Welcome all! I just want to wish you all a good a good evening and without further ado, let the Heads and Prefects come to the center, so that we can start the ball"
Draco took Hermione the hand and led her to the center, the others behind him. With a flick of his wand Dumbledore started the music. Draco put a hand on Hermione's waist and the other held hers. (A/N: The following will switch Points of View, But it will go back to Draco's POV when the song is over)
~*~*~ There you go Flashing fever from your eyes Hey baby Come over here and shut them tight I'm not denying We're flying above it all Hold my hand Don't let me fall You've such amazing grace I've never felt this way ~*~*~
Draco looked Hermione in the face and saw, for the first time, nothing but pure joy. She looked genuinely happy to be there and he wished that this moment would never end so that he could always see her like this.
He pushed slightly on her waist, indicating that he wanted her to turn.
~*~*~ Ohhh, show me heaven Cover me Leave me breathless Ohh show me heaven please ~*~*~
Hermione looked Draco in the eyes and thought she saw something different in them. She saw love and caring, beyond friendship. She smiled at him, and the only thing going through her mind was 'I love him'.
~*~*~ Here I go I'm shaking just like the breeze Hey baby I need your hand to steady me I'm not denying I'm frightened as much as you Though I'm barely touching you I've shivers down my spine and it feels divine ~*~*~
Draco pulled her in from another spin and he noticed that she still wore the smile that she had been wearing a couple minutes before. The smile lit up her entire face and she couldn't have looked better if she tried.
He looked her in the eyes and suddenly realized that what he had said to Justin and Blaise at the broom shop yesterday had been nothing but the truth. He was in love with Hermione Granger.
~*~*~ Ohh show me heaven Cover me Leave me breathless Ohh show me heaven please
Do you know what its like to dream a dream Baby, hold me tight and let this be ~*~*~
Hermione saw a look of realization flash across Draco's face only to be replaced quickly with a warm smile at her. She knew then that there was something more to this then she had ever anticipated.
Yes, she loved him, and she could tell that there was something that he felt towards her but she was terrified to ever let him close. She had been hurt to much over the last while to know if she could ever trust anyone with her heart like that again, but she decided to just be happy for the moment, and relish in Draco's happiness.
~*~*~ Ohh show me heaven Cover me Leave me breathless Ohh show me heaven please ~*~*~
The song ended and Draco led Hermione off the dance floor. The 6 of them found a table and sat down to eat. They talked and ate for about 40minutes before Draco asked Hermione to dance again.
They dance until around midnight, when Ginny gave Draco the signal that they were leaving.
"Mia, come on lets get out of here" Draco whispered it her ear.
"Why? I'm having fun" Hermione whined.
"Because, there's a surprise waiting for you back at the common room" Draco told her with a mischievous grin.
"Draco Malfoy! Tell me what right this instant!" she demanded.
"NO, now come on or you'll never know and I'll just leave you here for the rest of your life, wondering what it could have been" he said while starting to move away.
"Alright! Fine! I'll come!" she said giving in and walking to accept the hand he extended for her.
"Please tell me!" Hermione whined.
"I said No! You'll just have to wait until we get there!" he said smirking evilly.
It went on like this until they reached the common room.
"Evening Anca, Steven" Draco greeted, "is it safe yet?"
"Good evening you two. Yes it is" Steven answered.
"Have fun, you two" Anca told them.
"We will, Serpents Lioness" Draco said with a smile.
"Draco, does everyone but me know what's going on?" Hermione asked, slightly annoyed.
"Yea, but that could do with the fact that this is a surprise for YOU!" he informed her.
They stepped through the portrait hole and Draco looked at Hermione's face when she saw what they had planned. Ginny, Blaise, Padma and Justin all stood in front of a big banner with 'Happy 18th Birthday Mia' across it. Hermione looked like she was about to faint.
"Oh my god you guys! I cant believe you did this!" she said awestruck.
When she recovered a bit she looked at what they were wearing. They weren't in formal anymore. "Hey, if you get to change so do I!" she informed them, already walking towards the staircase.
"I'm going to change to, we'll be right back" Draco told them, going up the staircase to his room.
He emerged a couple minutes later with forest green cotton pyjama pants and his serpent hoodie, that had a black shirt underneath. Just as he was heading down the stairs he saw Hermione energe from her room in black silk PJ pants as well as her serpent hoodie her hair and eyes back to normal and her make-up gone.
They made it to the bottom of each of their staircases and headed ove to the group.
~*~*~*~Hermione's POV~*~*~*~
'I cant believe that they did this for me'
She couldn't have been more surprised or happy, two things that she was not used to feeling. She was hit with a sudden realization, she didn't Harry and Ron friends anymore and they hadn't been close for awhile. The people in front of her were her friends now and she couldn't ask for anyone better.
She loved the fact that after 2 months they had become close enough to be family and in their eyes they were family. This thought gave her a warm feeling and she she noticed that the wall she had built, crumbled when she was around them.
She put a huge smile on her face and felt even happier when Blaise and Justin walked up and gave her a hug. Each of her friends walked up and gave her a hug wishing her a happy birthday and telling her that they loved her.
They started chatting about meaningless things until like 1am. Then each of her friends got up and grabbed the gifts that they had brought with them.
From Ginny she got a shirt the had 'I may look like a good girl, but you don't know me so don't judge, because under this I'm nothing but Pure Evil' and another pair of black silk pyjama pants with little snakes all over them. "Thanks Gin, I love them" she said hugging her friend, a smile across her face still.
From Padma she got the complete set of books by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes; a muggle author (A/N: While no reading isn't Hermione favorite thing anymore she still enjoys it and these books are like based around things like vampires, witches, etc.I highly recommend them), as well as some cocunut scented shampoo and conditioner. "How'd you know that I like cocanut?" she asked giving Padma a hug.
"Sources" Padma answered vaguely, smirking.
"Ok, we've all been hanging out with Draco and Blaise to much" Hermione said while taking the gift Justin handed her.
Justin got her a small sculpture of a snake made of emerald glass and a green frame with the words 'best friends' across the bottom. In the frame was a picture that they had had one of the Creevey brothers take right after Gryffindor and Slytherin had played the first Quidditch game of the year, Slytherin winning for the first time. The group would have usually cheered for Gryffindor but in light of recent events and the fact that two of their best friends had been on the team, they choose to cheer for Slytherin. She smiled at the memory and leaned forward, giving Justin a hug and thanking him for the gift.
Next, she opened the gift that Blaise had just handed her. In it she found a white hoodie with, you'll never guess, a green snake on it. "I noticed how much you liked the other on and I thought you needed a new one" he told her shrugging. Also in it there was a new pair of black jeans with a snake patch on the back pocket and a black shirt with 'I'm Nothing But Evil' written on it. "I Love it Blaise thanks" she said, hugging him as well.
"That leaves one person, Mr.Malfoy, may I have my gift?" she asked in an arrogant tone.
"You know, I totally forgot it was your birthday, so I didn't get you anything" he said smirking.
"I'm so sure, hand it over or I will hurt you and you know I could" she said in a threatening voice.
"Okay, okay. Although theres no way on earth you could hurt me, you know I would never forget your birthday" he told her, handing over his gift.
Hermione opened the neatly wrapped box to reveal 6 chains and rings sitting on a small velvet cushion. Each chain had a ring attached as well as a pendent. On four the pendant contains a lion and serpent, while the other two contained a raven and a badger. The chains and rings were silver and engraved on the rings were the words 'Friends for Life' and on the inside was each house animal and their her friends names.
"Draco." she started but found herself totally speechless. She just leaned over and pulled him into a huge embrace and didn't let go for a good 3 minutes. "I love them."
"I know that it is YOUR birthday but I thought that this was the perfect gift and I knew that we considered each other family, so I guess it just seemed appropiate" Draco said, looking extremely pleased that his gift had gone over so nicely.
"It is perfect. In fact all your gifts were perfect and I don't think I could ask for better friends" she said, looking at the smiling faces of her friends.
"Mia, you know that we love you and that you love us. There's nothing to replaces the bond we created and nothing WILL EVER replace it" Justin said going forward to pull her into another hug, "Happy Birthday Mia".
Blaise came forward next, "Justin's right, we're family and there's no getting rid of us ever, you hear?. Happy Birthday Mia, may it bring you love and joy and happiness!"
Each of the girls stepped forward at the same time, pulling their friend into a huge hug. "Mia, you know that I've always thought of you as the sister I never had and I'm closer to you and the rest of these guys then the rest of my family and you are my family, I love you Mia, Happy Birthday" Ginny said right before pulling away.
"I'll love you as more then a friend and more as a sister forever and always Mia, have a Happy Birthday and I promise that each of us will be there at all times throughout your life to help you" Padma said with tears in her eyes.
Draco was again the last one, "Mia, your one of my best friends, as well as I consider you a part of my family, like I do the rest, but Mia I want us to be more, I want us to last for eternity and I want us to be together for life but in order for that to happen I have to take the first step and ask and have you except. I have to ask if you would go out with me Mia?"
Hermione could do nothing but nod, that look of pure joy still on her face as it had been all night. Draco pulled her into a huge hug and whispered to her "Happy Birthday Mia, may all your dreams and wishes come true, I love you". Then he pulled back and placed a small kiss on her lips. Nothing major, just a small soft caress but it meant the world and more to her, and she knew that she would never forget it.
Finally Draco stepped back and the others all looked ecstatic. Theres were things like 'its about time' and 'what took you two so long' floating around the room as they all started to congratulate them.
"Thanks you guys but I need to do something. I believe that there are some chains and rings that I have to give out, is there not?" Hermione said with a huge smile on her face.
"Draco, would you do the honors and put mine on for me?" she asked him.
"Sure" he answered reaching into the box for a lion/serpent one. He undid the clasp and reached around her and grabbed the other end, doing the clasp up again at the back.
"Now, since it's my gift I get to put them on you guys, is that ok?" she questioned. Everyone nodded and started to come forward one by one. First Ginny, the Padma, Justin, Draco and then Blaise. They had each decided to wear the ring on the chain so that there was little chance of losing it.
"You must all promise to never remove these, deal?" Hermione asked.
"Agreed, never to be removed, not even in death" the chorused.
"What I would like to know is how you got 6 Draco, because when Justin and I were with you, you only bought two. One for you and one for Mia" Blaise said to his friend.
"Well it wouldn't be much of a surprise if you knew I got them, now would it?" Draco told him in a smart voice, "I told the owner to owl them to me"
"True." he trailed off when an owl came through a window and towards Hermione. "Now who would owl you at this time of night, Mia? Its 2 in the morning"
Hermione went absolutely white when the owl came through the window. The only person that had ever owled her this late at night was her 'father' and they were never good.
"Mia, its not from who you think its from," Justin assured, remembering that her father tended to send them late.
"Mia, its someone in the school, it's a school owl" Draco reassured.
"Still, I want someone else to open it" Hermione said, some of the color returning to her face.
Blaise, took it after finally cluing in and opened. "Guys, it's to all of us, well most of it anyway. It's from Dumbledore, saying that there's something important that he has to discuss with Mia but thinks that we should all be present as she'll need some support, but it doesn't say what for. He wants us all there at 10tomoorow morning, so after breakfast. Oh, and he wishes you a Happy Birthday Mia" Blaise said summing up the letter instead of reading the whole thing.
"What could it be over though? Theres nothing wrong, is there Mia?" Draco questioned turning to his new girlfriend.
"Not that I know of" she answered back. "But frankly I don't want to talk about it, but there's no way I want to spend the night alone. I'll be up all nigt trying to figure it out"
"Why don't we just summon up some beds and we can all stay here tonight" Ginny suggested, "I'm to tired to walk back anyway, we've been up since 7 this morning"
The others agreed and with one lick of her wand the room was clean and all her gifts were neatly piled in the corner, out of harms way. With a second flick three double beds appeared, "I assume your okay sleeping two to a bed tonight" she stated rather than asked, and with a final flick everyone was in their normal pyjamas.
The girls all in pants and T-shirts and the boys in boxers. Apparently what Draco had on originally wasn't what he slept in. They each hugged goodnight and climbed into a bed.
Padma and Justin in one, Ginny and Blaise in another and Hermione and Draco in the final. They all said good night and Draco leaned forward and gave Hermione a small kiss before putting an arm around her waste and holding her close, as if, if her let her go she would never come back.
The meeting became completely forgotten as Hermione drifted off to sleep. In one hand she grasped the ring and in the other, Draco's had, and she was perfectly content to never move again.
They all fell into a dreamless, yet happy sleep, knowing that when they woke up, the one they loved would be beside them and that their family would surround them. They had become closer than anything that night and not one thought anything could ever tear them apart. That they would stand strong and that they would all support Mia tomorrow, no matter what news she got. They had promised to give her comfort, and she was going to get just that.