The Beginning of Love
The next morning Hermione awoke earlier than she had planned on. Ophelia, her owl was tapping relentlessly at the window, with a seemingly urgent message clasped to her leg. "I'm going to kill that bloody bird one of these days…" Hermione muttered as she reluctantly got out of bed and opened the window. "Give it here already," Hermione snapped impatiently as the owl slowly lifted her leg to give up the letter.
It was a letter from Hogwarts that had been sent to her mother's house by some freak accident. A note from her mother was attached to the letter, going into mushy details about how Lady Riddle missed her only daughter, and how she was quite disappointed that she and Hermione's father hadn't been invited over for dinner yet. Hermione rolled her eyes at how insecure and fickle her mother could be over the simplest little things. Hermione let out a small sigh and turned to the door, when Ophelia let out a small hoot. "I suppose this means Mother and Father would like an immediate reply, inviting them to dinner then? Oh all right, if I must!"
Hermione quickly grabbed a piece of parchment and scribbled out an invitation for dinner in three days which meant next Monday the Malfoy's would be entertaining the complete Riddle family. She tied the response to Ophelia's leg and let her out the window. Before she could even recover from the gust of wind that blew in the room, there was a knock at the door, Hermione flung the door open to reveal Draco standing there, staring at her yet again. "Can I help you?" Hermione asked haughtily crossing her arms over her chest to block Draco's view of her breasts.
"Well good morning to you as well…My mother requests your presence because she wants to discuss setting an engagement party date with you and I…this could be painfully long, just to let you know. She would like you to be ready in an hour. We're going shopping for this discussion," Draco explained drably.
"Then think of it this was, at least you won't be alone with her so try to…cheer up a little, I know it might be hard for you to do…"
"Oh, and you're always Miss Sunshine and Fun?" Draco teased, taking his chance with snaking his arm around her waist and pulling her within centimeters of him.
"Only with you, seeing as you seem to know me oh so well," she responded with a sneer on her face.
"We are getting even more feisty by the day, but I must tell you, this is getting more and more interesting every time we meet," Draco raised an eyebrow at her. "I have something special planned for you after the engagement party, but only if you wear this," he compromised, or rather tried too, as he handed her the box, and left her to contemplate the closeness of their proximity with out actually having any physical sexual tension putting up a barrier between them.
She closed the door behind her and gazed at the box momentarily before ripping it open to reveal a large three karat diamond cut in a circular pattern, surrounded by smaller diamonds, the entire band was completely encrusted with the smaller diamonds and Hermione was completely awe struck by the beauty of the ring. She could believe her eyes. "He's most definitely out done himself this time," she whispered as she placed the ring back in the box and the box on her bed side table.
Hermione then walked into the bathroom, locked both of the doors, then stripped down and lingered for twenty of so minutes with out doing anything but just standing there, letting the hot water pound her back and her head. After she finally stopped thinking about what she presumed was going to turn out to be her future engagement ring; she quickly did her usual shower stuff and exited the bathroom.
She walked into her closet and a few moments later emerged in a white denim mini skirt that had lace around the bottom and a navy blue racer back tank top, with white platform strappy sandals. She clipped her mane of black curls in a half pony tail and placed large platinum hoop earrings in her ears, and then walked over to her bedside table, opened the black velvet box and placed the engagement ring on her left ring finger.
There was another knock at her door, and she wasn't surprised to find Draco standing there in his earth washed jeans, and forest green polo with his black addidas shoes, doing nothing but looking as perfect as possible, but he knew he didn't look nearly as perfect as Hermione did.
"Well, hello, hello, hello, there Love, you look fabulous, are you ready to make out first public appearance as a couple?" Draco asked with a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.
"Give me two minutes, I need eyeliner and mascara," Hermione giggle nervously, and Draco noticed a steady crimson color creep up her neck and up to her cheeks. She started to walk back to the bathroom when he caught her by the wrist.
"You look perfect; you don't need anything else…oh, so you decided that you like it then?" Draco asked as he examined the ring on Hermione's left hand.
"It's beautifully perfect…I…I…I don't know what to say…besides I love it, and…this could be the beginning of something…beautiful…"She admitted, her face flushing to a deep scarlet.
"Come on, my mother's waiting, and she's about as patient as you are when it comes to opening presents and finding out about surprises," Draco said leading her out of her room.
"How would you know? The only time you've ever given me a gift was forty minutes ago, and at the same time was the first time you've ever mention presenting me with a surprise," Hermione insisted as they descended the stair case together, hand in hand.
"I saw the twinkle of interest sparkle in your eyes." He admitted bringing her hand to his lips and kissing it softly.
She smiled shyly and casually looked down at the ground, "Don't be ashamed to tell me I was right, or admit that we have something…" he began to whisper.
"Ah, there you two are, come now, lots to discuss, and plenty to prepare for. No time to loose, let's go," Narcissa interrupted before Draco had the chance to see if there possibly could be something special brewing between them, that could in fact be love.
"Before I forget Narcissa, I've received a letter from my Mother and Father insisting that I invite them over for dinner. I told them we'd expect them at eight on Monday night, I hope that's alright," Hermione wondered, or at least pretended to wonder, because she knew it had better not be a problem, or there would be issues to discuss with her father.
"Perfectly fine dear, your brother will be attending as well I assume?" Narcissa remarked as she began to apply lipstick at the entrance hallway mirror.
"My mother's not quite sure yet," Hermione sighed, "There's a chance he won't be attending, he might be away visiting her,"
"Oh yes, the girl, not to worry Hermione dear, Vulcan will always be your brother first." Narcissa assured her as the three of them exited Malfoy Manor.
"Wait, what girl? Vulcan hasn't ever mentioned any girl, and neither have you, what is going on?" Draco asked turning to his delectably beautiful future wife.
"It's not final yet, but her father is trying to convince mine that she and Vulcan were destined to be together, and how I hate her," Hermione nearly spat these words out as she said them.
"Well, we shall have to make sure that she doesn't make it on to our guest list then," Draco chuckled as he kissed her forehead and opened the door to the limo for her.
The next few days went by with little or no hostile confrontations between Draco and Hermione, in fact they were getting along very well, they had developed a very close relationship with each other. She told him everything and he told her every thing, they started spending every waking moment together.
Soon after dinner with both sets of parents, Hermione moved herself into Draco's room, and for the first time in her life, she felt the spark of life that had never been there before. "Are you sure you're ok with this?" Draco asked as she lay comfortably against him as they read the Iliad together.
"Absolutely, right now there isn't very much that could make me any happier than being here with you," she sighed with complete content.
"Our big announcement is going to be made tomorrow, are you nervous?" He wondered running his fingers through her soft, silky, black locks.
"Why should I be? No one that I'm typically associated with is going to be there, and if they were, I would most definitely give them a piece of my mind, if they lived through making it through the door." She laughed, "Are you finished interrogating me? I'd like to turn the page now,"
"Yes, after you answer this one last question, how many times have you read this book again?" he asked with a slight chuckle and a kiss on her cheek.
"Probably not as many times as you have, this is only the second or maybe third time I've taken the time to read it," she smiled looking up at him and kissing his lips.
"I think that we are both way too distracted to finish reading this right now, so why don't we just head off to bed a bit earlier than usual. We do have a rather long day planned ahead of us for tomorrow," Draco said as he shut the book and the two of them climbed underneath the silk sheets.
"Do you think that what we have right now is…is…the beginning or…love…?" Hermione asked; not quite sure if that was the right way she wanted the words to come out.
"Well, I am convinced that there is at the very least the beginning of a very close, very long, very healthy relationship between us. I also think that I'm already in love with you, and I hope that you love me too…" he answered as he wrapped his arms around her waist and placed his chin on her should, cuddling up as close to her as was physically possible.
"I think that I'm already in love with you too…" she whispered as they fell asleep together.
The next morning Draco awoke to Hermione stroking his hair out of his eyes, with a soft smile on her face, "Good morning," she whispered as if he was still asleep and she didn't want to wake him.
"Good morning to you too, I didn't take you for a real morning person," Draco remarked rolling over to look at the clock, "Six forty five, damn I wanted to sleep in."
"I'm not usually a morning person, unless I have a good reason to be, and you happen to be my good reason," she giggled.
"Well, that is rather gratifying to hear, you give me a good reason to be or try to be a morning person as well, but I am convinced that my reason out weighs yours, and makes me a more tolerable morning person in the end," Draco chuckled kissing her as he rolled out of bed.
The two of them took their time getting ready for their day, and as Hermione began to apply her make-up Draco noticed that she was spinning her engagement ring around her finger, and her breathing had become shallow. "Everything is going to be just fine, you don't have anything to be nervous about," he assured her as he gently rubbed her shoulders.
The party was about as exciting as could be expected, the only other person that was Draco and Hermione's age besides Vulcan was none other than Draco's main partner in crime, Blaise Zabini. He was the only one Draco and Vulcan had decided was trustworthy enough to release the information too.
When Blaise first saw her, he thought he was dreaming when Vulcan pointed her out, he thought he was gazing upon a foreign beauty, in a jungle green satin formal, that was a V necked halter top with a silver lining trimming the edges of her dress. Once again her hair was piled high on her head with the same diamond circlet and the same earrings, but she was lacking the necklace, and she now wore the elaborate diamond engagement ring.
She was radiantly beautiful, and when she arrived at the foot of the stair case to greet her brother on Draco's arm, Blaise was in complete and utter disarray. This was just beyond belief to him, she looked exactly like the Gryffindor Book Work Princess herself…but it couldn't be…could it…?
"Zabini, I'd like you to meet my baby sister, Hermione Granger, I do believe that this is your first time meeting her formally?" Vulcan announced as he hugged his sister tightly and then released her.
"Granger," Blaise said taking Hermione's hand and planting a kiss upon the back of it.
"Zabini, what a pleasant surprise to find you here," Hermione smiled mischievously at him. "Don't look so shocked, you didn't honestly think that I was really that perfect did you?"
"She's good, I have to admit," Blaise chuckled nervously, knowing that the last time he and Hermione had met was in an alley in Hogs Meade and he had tried to get into her pants. "Excuse me, I think I have to be leaving now,"
"What, no the party's just getting started…" Draco started to protest, but Hermione stopped him.
"Let him go if he likes, he's under no obligation to be bored out of his mind for my sake, although, it is rather fitting retribution,"
"Don't go there Granger," Blaise warned as he turned right back around.
"I think that you should treat her with a bit more respect Zabini, and then remove yourself from my house," Draco snarled not liking the way this was heading. He knew something was up, and he was going to find out what it was if it killed him.
The rest of the night went by flawlessly, and by the time the last house guest left, it was beginning to get light outside. "I don't know about you, but I am beat," Hermione sighed as the two of them finally laid down in their bed.
"Tell me about it, wake me up on September first," Draco agreed as they drifted to sleep.