Elizabeth

Draco Malfoy

"Darling! The party is tonight! I'm SO excited!"

I pretended I was sleeping. Elizabeth was so irritating! I was starting to think of ways to run my company without her.

Maybe a young, innovative intern? Nah… that wouldn't work. I needed Elizabeth. She was a smart, pureblooded witch with a degree in business. I was smart, too… but she was borderline genius!

"Draco-Cakeo!" Okay… maybe not genius, but she could apply her skills when she wanted to. "I'm wearing the most beautiful dress you'll EVER lay eyes on!" She rambled on about hand bead work and floral print. I wasn't listening.

I was fiddling with my engagement ring. I glanced at the clock as Elizabeth was describing her shoes. It was only an hour to the party, and I guess you could say that I was nervous. After all, many important people were going to be there.

Most of all, though, I was nervous about seeing Granger. I mean, what would she look like? Stella smirked at me after the trip and told me that her nanny was going to be pretty. I didn't really care… but I'll admit I was curious.

"Daddy!" Luna ran into the room. "The party is in an hour and you aren't dressed." She scolded.

"You're right!" I smiled. "Now go get yourself and your big sister ready and I'll do the same."

"Okay." She smiled. "Hermione is going to look great, Daddy."

As my daughter left the room, I began to comb my hair and prepare my suit. I needed to look professional and important. Executives of the bank would be there… and they were becoming hesitant when I asked to withdrawal more gold for a business venture. They almost used the override and refused to give me the money in the Malfoy account. Some crap my father set up while he was still alive. He wanted to ensure the Malfoys would be rich forever… and he gave the bank the power to deny withdrawals if the amount wasn't within a certain monthly limit. Basically, I'd need to do a lot of sucking up and give a speech and a presentation. The bank executives were coming to check up on my and my business.

And then there was Elizabeth. I never introduced her to my mother, officially. She heard a lot about my "darling," but that was it. I was nervous about my mother's approval… it meant a lot to me. And the people invited were expecting a grand banquet with plenty to eat and drink. They'd want to meet Elizabeth and give us their blessings.

I could tell this night was going to give me an ulcer if I didn't stop stressing.

----

I was drinking my butterbeer and introducing Elizabeth to some of my workmates. Of course, I employed them, since I owned the whole Malfoy Inc., but they were friends nonetheless.

Then I saw Stella and Luna. They were grinning from ear to ear and wore the most adorable gowns. I introduced them to some people, and then Luna said, "Daddy, don't you want to see Hermione? She looks pretty."

"Well, of course I want to see her. Where is she?"

"I'll go get her." Stella said.

A few minutes later, Stella walked down from the stairs. Behind her, was Hermione Granger… only it looked nothing like the Granger I knew.

She was wearing a flattering red gown. That was strange. Granger always used to hide her figure in school, so I never really knew what she looked like. She always wore boring colours, too. Nothing that made her stand out, like red did. She had gold accessories, all which actually matched the outfit. That hideous ensemble Granger wore when I met at the Three Broomsticks did not match. Even the off-white skirt and black sweater she wore one day didn't go good together.

But the biggest change of all was her hair. I guess making fun of it was not an option to me anymore. Her curls were tamed …something I've never seen. I don't even think she'd seen it that way before.

And Granger was wearing make-up. I've never seen her wear make-up before. But it was perfectly applied in the right places to make her naturally beauty stand out.

Wait. Did I just say Granger has natural beauty? Merlin, I definitely think I'm losing it. "Waiter!" I called. "Get me another drink."