Chapter 7: Wedding Day

"I look like a snow grouse," Hermione murmured, as she studied herself in the full-length mirror at her parents' home. Her mum had insisted she spend the night here and get dressed by her and Ginny in the morning. After a bit of resistance, Hermione had finally caved. She found she couldn't deny her mum anything these days, which was why she had ended with a white crinoline dress instead of the much cheaper, simple white gown she would have automatically settled for. But her mother had pointed out that a girl would only be getting married once in her life and that had been the end of the discussion. Even as Hermione and Ginny exchanged looks.

"Nonsense, you look beautiful!" Ginny chided her, rolling her eyes. "Percy won't be able to take his eyes off you, which is just the way it's supposed to be." The redhead grinned at her. "Taking this thing off tonight might be quite a challenge though. It has like a hundred tiny buttons on the back. Luckily Percy is very good with a wand."

Hermione coughed, the blood rushing into her cheeks. "Ginny!" she chided, casting a nervous glance at her mother. The woman simply chuckled, approaching Hermione with a hairbrush and a million hairpins.

"This wouldn't be your wedding day if there wasn't at least one inappropriate joke," she said, smiling at her. "Though you might want to prepare for many more. It seems to be a major source of entertainment for some wedding guests."

Hermione winced as she thought of the twins. Her wedding night was the part of her wedding day she didn't even want to think about, though it was becoming harder and harder as the day progressed. It didn't help that the underwear her mum and Ginny had insisted she buy was made of white silk, and that only covered the bits it absolutely had to. And even then it seemed to take the definition of 'covered' as a challenge. Sweet mother of Merlin!

Quickly Hermione pushed the thought of what would have to be done tonight into a faraway corner of her mind. She couldn't think of this right now, or she'd throw up the two bites of food and the glass of champagne that the two women had forced her to consume. First, Hermione had been grateful for the alcohol, as it seemed to help with the nervousness a bit, but suddenly she started to think that it might not have been such a good idea. She grimaced. There was nothing for it now. Two deep breaths and the happy smile was back on her face, making her look like a woman being nervous in happy anticipation of marrying the man she loved. That it was anything but would remain hers and Percy's secret. Hopefully.

sssss

The wedding was held in one of the rooms the Ministry had set up for the occasion. There were many of them these days to deal with the flood of people that were following the law and getting married. Percy had convinced Hermione to book one of the bigger, better-furnished rooms. They had a group of around a hundred guests, after all, and Percy wanted the day to be a happy memory for him and Hermione, no matter how the marriage had come about. It wasn't a love match, he knew, but arranged marriages were common in many parts of the world still, not only in wizarding Britain. Many of those people found happiness nonetheless and he was confident that he and Hermione would as well, with a little time.

Percy was already finding himself getting attached to his fiancée; he'd caught himself eagerly anticipating the many times they'd met to plan their wedding during the last weeks. Mostly they'd spent the evenings in his flat, drinking wine or tea as they studied and discussed the information they had gathered or planned their next steps. It was quiet, and straight forward, just like he liked. However, there would be the occasional moment where Hermione would let some sort of witty comment slip or Percy would react in a way that made her giggle. Her laughter was a beautiful sound.

There had been no more misunderstandings and slowly Hermione had started to relax in his presence, or so he thought.

Now, as he waited for Hermione at the Ministry, he desperately hoped he had not been wrong about the woman's feelings. Would she indeed marry him? Or would she change her mind when they stood in front of the Ministry official?

"There she is!" Bill, who'd agreed to be his best man, spotted Hermione first. When Percy turned his head towards the entrance, he found that his mind had suddenly gone blank, his heart missing a beat. Hermione was beautiful, the voluminous white dress making her look like she wasn't even from this world but some kind of ethereal creature or a princess right out of a fairy tale.

"Close your mouth, Perce. You look like a fish." Fred appeared to his left, clapping his shoulder with an amused grin. "I'm sure you already know what a lucky bastard you are."

Oh, he knew. Nodding, Percy snapped his mouth shut, before walking towards his bride on wobbly feet. He prayed he didn't look like an idiot, because he certainly felt like one. But no one close to him was laughing, or even looking at him, as all eyes seemed to be on Hermione and Ginny, who was walking proudly at her side. They had every reason to. Percy had never seen Hermione as beautiful and apparently neither had anyone else. Fred was right, he was a lucky bastard indeed.

"Hermione, you look beautiful."

Percy offered the woman his arm and she accepted it, her smile as nervous as his own.

"Thank you, Percy. You look very handsome as well," she murmured, her voice trembling ever so slightly as he slowly led her towards the waiting Ministry official. He only vaguely registered the press taking pictures of them, but that wasn't a surprise. Today, one of the four biggest heroes from the last wizarding war was getting married and the public was eagerly awaiting every detail they could get their hands on. His and Hermione's every step would be watched outside the wards that were set up around the ceremony room and later around the restaurant. But even there a hundred pairs of eyes would be watching them, waiting for one of them to make a mistake. Still, Percy was determined to enjoy the day of his wedding as much as he could, and he'd do his best to ensure that Hermione could do the same.

Sssss

Please don't let me pass out or throw up on Percy's shoes.

Thank god there's no press allowed inside the ceremony room. It was bad enough they took pictures outside. This wedding will be all over The Prophet, just like Ron's and Harry's.

Percy actually doesn't look bad in this suit. He's really quite handsome, especially when he smiles.

Merlin, my feet are killing me already and it's only past noon.

Is Molly crying? Already?

Hermione's mind was unhelpfully bombarding her with thought after thought, making it impossible for her to hear more than a few words of what the Ministry official said. Not that it mattered. She'd been to so many weddings already: Harry and Ginny's, Ron and Hannah's, George and Angelina's, Fred and Katie's, Neville and Luna's… It felt like she was almost the last of her friends getting married and therefore the Ministry official couldn't say anything she hadn't heard before. She knew the blasted law wouldn't be mentioned once, the fact that she wasn't getting married out of her own free will completely ignored. It wasn't fair.

Then, suddenly the room fell quiet, Percy stepping in front of her, taking her hand into his. She knew what was to come, of course, and braced herself for her soon-to-be-husband's words.

"Hermione," he said, the blue eyes behind his glasses focussing on her with dazzling intensity. "I've come to admire you for a long while now. You're not only beautiful and intelligent, you're also loyal and brave, as many people here can attest to. I couldn't be prouder to take you as my wife and I swear that I'll take good care of you, support you whenever the weight on your shoulders is too heavy to carry it alone. I promise to be on your side whatever happens. I'll be faithful to you and provide for you and the children we might one day have. With this ring, I take you as my wife, Hermione, and I'll do my best to prove myself worthy of you, every day, for the rest of our lives."

The end of Percy's vow was followed by a loud sob coming from the direction of their guests. Now Molly's definitely crying, Hermione thought to herself as Percy slid the wedding ring onto her finger.

Then it was her turn to make her vow and even though she'd practised it several times, rephrasing it at least three times in the process, Hermione suddenly wasn't sure if she'd remember a single word. But she could feel the anticipation build around her and so she took a deep breath.

"Percy," she started, her voice sounding somewhat hoarse. "I clearly remember the first day we met, we were just kids and even then I was impressed by your dedicated and driven nature. Since that day years have passed and my feelings towards you have changed. Here we are, getting married, ready to share our lives with each other." Hermione smiled at Percy, painfully aware that all eyes in the room were now on them. "I'll try to be a good wife for you, to support you when you want my support and leave you alone, when you feel like my nagging is getting too much." This brought her several chuckles, especially from the direction of her friends. "I don't know what life will throw at us, but I'm sure whatever it is we'll face it together. I'll always have your back, Percy, not only against dark wizards but also against a seemingly impossible deadline at work, or anyone who feels like having a laugh at your expense." More chuckles followed, together with protesting noises from Fred and George, whom she gave a stern look. "With this ring, I promise you fidelity. I promise to respect you as my husband and to love the kids we'll have together. I take you as my husband, Percy Weasley, through better or worse."

Carefully, Hermione slid the simple golden wedding band onto Percy's finger, while around them anticipating murmurs broke out. She knew what was to come now and so did everyone else.

"Those are the promises you have given each other," the ministry official proclaimed, raising his wand and pointing at their linked hands. "May you stay true to them and each other for the rest of your lives." Silently, the man cast a spell, golden strands coming out of his wand's tip and winding themselves around their hands. They lit up for a long moment, blinding Hermione with their brightness, before they disappeared, leaving her hand warm and tingling with magic. "Hereby I declare you husband and wife! You may now kiss the other."

She didn't want to, and for a moment she contemplated not doing it, as the man had given them permission to do so instead of voicing an obligation. Hermione inwardly rolled her eyes about the outdatedness of this custom. These days one did not need to be married to have permission to exchange kisses or even share someone's bed. Everyone knew this and yet here they were, a hundred eyes waiting for them to share the celebratory wedding kiss.

Her thoughts came to a sudden halt when Percy's hand cupped her cheek, his face suddenly only inches away from hers. When had he stepped so close and why was he smiling like that?

Hermione didn't have time to find the answer to any of those questions, as Percy leaned down a heartbeat later, his lips touching hers in a gentle kiss. Steadying her with his other hand on her waist, he moved his lips against hers, kissing her without haste and with a confidence Hermione had not expected from the quiet redhead. Slowly she kissed him back, her trembling hands linking themselves behind his neck.

And then it was over, Percy breaking the kiss after a few more heartbeats, his thumb stroking her cheek before he let go of her face. What followed was a round of cheers and wolf whistles, Hermione smiling first at Percy then at her guests who stared at them with happy smiles. It was done, they were husband and wife, at least until for the next 365 days when Hermione could finally get the divorce and be done with this outrageous marriage law.

Or at least that's what Hermione told herself. Maybe it was the magic, the societal stigma, or maybe the way everyone seemed too pleased with their match. But something uncomfortable inside of Hermione's gut squirmed at the thought of it.