Chapter Five
Hermione's daze lifted about an hour later, when the guests had left the Wedding Hall and gone into the ballroom where the reception was to be held. She was hugged and congratulated by countless strangers, and tried to respond happily.
But she couldn't be genuinely happy. Hermione had just married a man she had never really met, and knew nothing about. All she had been told about him was that his family was incredibly successful; he was loaded with money; he was accomplished in academics, dueling, quidditch, and his career. Other than that, he was just a name and a handsome face.
Now, standing in the large hall where tables and a dance floor had been set up, Hermione felt the feeling come back into her legs. What hit her was an overwhelming sense of reality. She was married to the man whose arm she was clutching, had been magically bonded to him, and would never be able to make her own decisions.
The only thing she had absorbed while she had been saying her wedding vows- she had felt as if someone else were saying the words through her- was that the vows were the older version. Now that she was magically connected to Draco, and they had both accepted the vows, she had to do everything he said and couldn't leave him of her own free will.
The fact that she was ready to run when she had only been married to him for under an hour made her think of how dismal her future would be under Draco Malfoy. He had barely said ten words to her, but she could already feel his commands. The way he steered her out of the hall and into the reception showed absolute control and power. Hermione knew that he was already aware of his authoritative presence around her, and she had a feeling he was finding enjoyment in being able to control her.
Hermione had just sank into a plush dinner chair when Evelyn came over. Hermione's mother was wearing an ecstatic expression, so Hermione pasted on a small smile and pretended to be anything but depressed. Evelyn gave her a quick hug and congratulations, and Hermione asked her to sit down in the chair next to hers. Evelyn gave her daughter an amused look before asking, "Shouldn't you be leading the dancing? The bride and groom traditionally have the first dance."
Hermione watched her reflection go pale in one of the shined plates. She felt fingertips graze the back of her neck, and turned her head to see Draco standing above her. His eyes were icy gray, but appeared to be burning at the same time. He helped her to her feet and whispered in her ear. "May I have this dance?"
The way he said it made two different feelings crash inside of her. Her romantic side was tempted to melt into his arms at the way his voice seemed to curl around her ear, sounding to smooth and sensual. Another side of her recognized his question not as a request but as an order, one that she had to obey. Before she could answer he led her into the center of the dance floor. His fingers were holding her hand gently, and she became very aware of the gold ring on her finger.
During the ceremony her engagement ring had been taken off and her wedding band had been put onto her finger. The wedding ring was a thin band of gold, with five exquisitely cut diamonds set into the gold. The simplicity of the design was beautiful, and Hermione loved it instantly, even though she hated what it represented.
His right hand held hers softly, pulling her against his broad chest, while his other hand slipped down to rest at the small of her back. The music started and they slowly moved from side to side, their bodies pressed against each other so comfortably that for a moment Hermione forgot why she hated him.
She felt that if she looked in Draco's eyes, she would collapse completely, so she settled her cheek against his shoulder and closed her eyes, blocking out the hundreds of unknown faces watching them. Their feet carried them around the dance floor, and when the song started to end, Hermione tried to pull away. However, she found his hand still resting on her back, keeping her where she was. She tried to wriggle away, but couldn't escape his arms, which felt so strong around her that she had doubts about whether she really wanted to get away.
When Hermione had finally become still again, the song ended. Draco made no move to step away, and for a second Hermione got the sense that he wanted her to look him in the eyes. Hermione's head turned almost without her thinking, and his face was just a few inches away from hers. Although her eyes had at first come into contact with his silvery ones, she dropped her gaze to his lips, which were parted slightly.
Because the magical ceremony hadn't involved any physical contact, they had yet to kiss. Hermione had been dreading the inevitable kiss, because she knew that she would like it, and she didn't want to accept the fact that she was physically attracted to him.
As if she knew what he was thinking, Hermione knew that Draco wanted to kiss her, but felt the need to maintain his coolly executed control. He instead dropped his hand from her back and offered her his arm, which he used to steer her off the dance floor. The Malfoys and the Coltones, who all wanted to talk to Hermione and Draco, greeted them at the edge of the dance floor.
She found herself being enveloped in a quick embrace by Narcissa Malfoy, who told her she looked lovely and that the ceremony had been beautiful (almost as if Mrs. Malfoy hadn't helped to both get Hermione ready and to plan the ceremony). Then, Mrs. Malfoy introduced Hermione to Lucius Malfoy. Draco had inherited both the white-blond hair and gray eyes from his father, but Hermione noted that Lucius's eyes were much colder than Draco's. He kissed her hand, which made Hermione feel uncomfortable as his icy eyes bored into her, as if he were trying to read her thoughts. Relief swept over her when Lucius said he had to excuse himself and walked briskly away.
Hermione spent the rest of the evening alternately being forced to dance with Draco and drinking champagne in futile attempts to get herself drunk. (Draco stopped her, giving her a look that clearly said, 'You'll want to be awake for the rest of the evening.')
When Draco and Hermione left the still going party to apparate to where they would spend their honeymoon, it was well past midnight and Hermione was starting to feel worn out. Through conversations she had heard, Hermione had discovered that Draco and her would be living at the Malfoys' summer home in Italy until they had bought an estate for themselves. It came as a large shock to find out that no one had previously bothered to let her in on this little detail.
Draco effortlessly pulled her body against his as they left Malfoy Manor. When both her head and her body had stopped whirling through nothingness, Hermione found herself facing a large white mansion. Since it was dark outside, Hermione couldn't tell what the area looked like, but she could hear waves crashing in the distance.
Draco unlocked the large front door and led Hermione into a richly furnished hall. He took her hand and helped her climb the stairs. With every step they took, Hermione's stomach dropped a notch further.
[A/N: Sorry about how I tend to drag out the chapters, but I just couldn't resist a cliffhanger.. So make sure to come back for chapter six and read about the first night they're married. Ooh La La. So review and tell me what you think! Tah Tah, CC.]
Hermione's daze lifted about an hour later, when the guests had left the Wedding Hall and gone into the ballroom where the reception was to be held. She was hugged and congratulated by countless strangers, and tried to respond happily.
But she couldn't be genuinely happy. Hermione had just married a man she had never really met, and knew nothing about. All she had been told about him was that his family was incredibly successful; he was loaded with money; he was accomplished in academics, dueling, quidditch, and his career. Other than that, he was just a name and a handsome face.
Now, standing in the large hall where tables and a dance floor had been set up, Hermione felt the feeling come back into her legs. What hit her was an overwhelming sense of reality. She was married to the man whose arm she was clutching, had been magically bonded to him, and would never be able to make her own decisions.
The only thing she had absorbed while she had been saying her wedding vows- she had felt as if someone else were saying the words through her- was that the vows were the older version. Now that she was magically connected to Draco, and they had both accepted the vows, she had to do everything he said and couldn't leave him of her own free will.
The fact that she was ready to run when she had only been married to him for under an hour made her think of how dismal her future would be under Draco Malfoy. He had barely said ten words to her, but she could already feel his commands. The way he steered her out of the hall and into the reception showed absolute control and power. Hermione knew that he was already aware of his authoritative presence around her, and she had a feeling he was finding enjoyment in being able to control her.
Hermione had just sank into a plush dinner chair when Evelyn came over. Hermione's mother was wearing an ecstatic expression, so Hermione pasted on a small smile and pretended to be anything but depressed. Evelyn gave her a quick hug and congratulations, and Hermione asked her to sit down in the chair next to hers. Evelyn gave her daughter an amused look before asking, "Shouldn't you be leading the dancing? The bride and groom traditionally have the first dance."
Hermione watched her reflection go pale in one of the shined plates. She felt fingertips graze the back of her neck, and turned her head to see Draco standing above her. His eyes were icy gray, but appeared to be burning at the same time. He helped her to her feet and whispered in her ear. "May I have this dance?"
The way he said it made two different feelings crash inside of her. Her romantic side was tempted to melt into his arms at the way his voice seemed to curl around her ear, sounding to smooth and sensual. Another side of her recognized his question not as a request but as an order, one that she had to obey. Before she could answer he led her into the center of the dance floor. His fingers were holding her hand gently, and she became very aware of the gold ring on her finger.
During the ceremony her engagement ring had been taken off and her wedding band had been put onto her finger. The wedding ring was a thin band of gold, with five exquisitely cut diamonds set into the gold. The simplicity of the design was beautiful, and Hermione loved it instantly, even though she hated what it represented.
His right hand held hers softly, pulling her against his broad chest, while his other hand slipped down to rest at the small of her back. The music started and they slowly moved from side to side, their bodies pressed against each other so comfortably that for a moment Hermione forgot why she hated him.
She felt that if she looked in Draco's eyes, she would collapse completely, so she settled her cheek against his shoulder and closed her eyes, blocking out the hundreds of unknown faces watching them. Their feet carried them around the dance floor, and when the song started to end, Hermione tried to pull away. However, she found his hand still resting on her back, keeping her where she was. She tried to wriggle away, but couldn't escape his arms, which felt so strong around her that she had doubts about whether she really wanted to get away.
When Hermione had finally become still again, the song ended. Draco made no move to step away, and for a second Hermione got the sense that he wanted her to look him in the eyes. Hermione's head turned almost without her thinking, and his face was just a few inches away from hers. Although her eyes had at first come into contact with his silvery ones, she dropped her gaze to his lips, which were parted slightly.
Because the magical ceremony hadn't involved any physical contact, they had yet to kiss. Hermione had been dreading the inevitable kiss, because she knew that she would like it, and she didn't want to accept the fact that she was physically attracted to him.
As if she knew what he was thinking, Hermione knew that Draco wanted to kiss her, but felt the need to maintain his coolly executed control. He instead dropped his hand from her back and offered her his arm, which he used to steer her off the dance floor. The Malfoys and the Coltones, who all wanted to talk to Hermione and Draco, greeted them at the edge of the dance floor.
She found herself being enveloped in a quick embrace by Narcissa Malfoy, who told her she looked lovely and that the ceremony had been beautiful (almost as if Mrs. Malfoy hadn't helped to both get Hermione ready and to plan the ceremony). Then, Mrs. Malfoy introduced Hermione to Lucius Malfoy. Draco had inherited both the white-blond hair and gray eyes from his father, but Hermione noted that Lucius's eyes were much colder than Draco's. He kissed her hand, which made Hermione feel uncomfortable as his icy eyes bored into her, as if he were trying to read her thoughts. Relief swept over her when Lucius said he had to excuse himself and walked briskly away.
Hermione spent the rest of the evening alternately being forced to dance with Draco and drinking champagne in futile attempts to get herself drunk. (Draco stopped her, giving her a look that clearly said, 'You'll want to be awake for the rest of the evening.')
When Draco and Hermione left the still going party to apparate to where they would spend their honeymoon, it was well past midnight and Hermione was starting to feel worn out. Through conversations she had heard, Hermione had discovered that Draco and her would be living at the Malfoys' summer home in Italy until they had bought an estate for themselves. It came as a large shock to find out that no one had previously bothered to let her in on this little detail.
Draco effortlessly pulled her body against his as they left Malfoy Manor. When both her head and her body had stopped whirling through nothingness, Hermione found herself facing a large white mansion. Since it was dark outside, Hermione couldn't tell what the area looked like, but she could hear waves crashing in the distance.
Draco unlocked the large front door and led Hermione into a richly furnished hall. He took her hand and helped her climb the stairs. With every step they took, Hermione's stomach dropped a notch further.
[A/N: Sorry about how I tend to drag out the chapters, but I just couldn't resist a cliffhanger.. So make sure to come back for chapter six and read about the first night they're married. Ooh La La. So review and tell me what you think! Tah Tah, CC.]
