Strolling along Diagon Alley, Harry Potter, consulted the list his wife had given him as he ran a few errands for her. Looking up from the list, he smiled at the sight of his brother-in-law, George, standing outside of his shop. Just as he was about to raise his hand and call out a greeting, he realised that George wasn't alone and stopped in his tracks. Standing beside George, the pair merrily laughing and joking together, was Draco Malfoy. Draco was a far cry from the bigoted bully Harry had known in school, but they had a less than cordial relationship these days.
The problems stemmed from the fact that Draco was dating Hermione Granger, a witch whom Harry had once considered family. In fact, he still did consider her the sister he'd never had, he just hadn't spoken to her in almost two years. Not since she'd started dating Draco.
Hermione's relationship with Draco had gone down like a lead balloon with their other best friend, Ron Weasley. Ron had instantly declared that Hermione would end up with a broken heart, which to be fair was something Harry had worried about. However, Ron was a lot more vocal in his criticism of her romance, and after several months of tension Hermione issued her friends with an ultimatum - either they accepted Draco as her boyfriend, or they ended their friendship. Refusing to back down, Ron had chosen the latter option and had cut Hermione out of his life. Harry had tried not to take sides, despite his own misgiving about Draco's intentions towards his friend. However, Ginny had also sided with Ron and Harry had found himself sucked into the stance they had taken, meaning he hadn't spoken to Hermione for far longer than he would have liked.
As if thinking of Hermione summoned her up, Harry watched as she emerged from George's shop with George's beautiful wife, Angelina. Not quite having the courage to cross the street and speak to Hermione, Harry simply settled for watching her from afar. He watched as she moved to stand next to Draco and the blond wizard casually wrapped his arm around her waist, all while still chatting to George. After a few minutes the two couples said their goodbyes and Harry watched as Hermione walked off in the opposite direction with Draco, his arm still wrapped firmly around her.
Wishing things were different, Harry finished his errands for Ginny and headed home. At home he found Ginny luxuriating in a hot bubble bath. He was half tempted to join her, so they could then have a lazy evening just the two of them, but then she reminded him they were going out to dinner with Ron and his new fiancée, Lavender Brown. It had been Ginny's idea to take Ron and Lavender out to dinner to celebrate their engagement. Although given she'd chosen a five-star restaurant, which they'd only managed to get a table at due to the fact they were both famous quidditch players, Harry suspected the dinner was more to show off how successful they were than to celebrate Ron and Lavender's big news. Knowing Ginny she would take great pleasure in showing off to her older brother by treating him to a meal in a restaurant she knew he could never usually afford to eat in.
Putting aside his discomfort at Ginny's grandstanding, Harry got ready for dinner and focused on the real reason they were going out that evening. It was good news that Ron and Lavender were getting married, and he was determined the evening would be about them, not his wife and her desire to show off.
The restaurant Ginny had picked was an Italian place in a small wizarding village in Wiltshire. The restaurant itself had only been open a few years but had already gained a strong reputation in Wizarding Britain. Booking was required to eat at the restaurant, and unless you could pull a few strings with celebrity status, which Ginny had done, you had to book months in advance to secure a table.
Before heading to the restaurant, Harry and Ginny joined Ron and Lavender at The Leaky Cauldron for a few drinks. The pub had recently been taken over by their former school mate, Hannah Abbott, and it was rapidly becoming the best wizarding pub in the country.
"We could have just had a meal here," Ron muttered to Harry.
"I suggested it, but Ginny wanted something fancier," Harry replied with a shrug.
"I guess Lavender will enjoy it," Ron conceded with a sigh, glancing over to where his fiancée and sister were sitting gossiping and laughing together. "But those fancy places always make me feel so inferior."
"I can't say I'm keen on them either," Harry admitted. For all his fame and fortune, Harry much preferred a low-key existence. Sadly for him he'd married a witch who revelled in her status, both as the wife of Harry Potter, and as a quidditch star.
Despite neither of them being overly fussed on the fancy dinner Ginny had arranged, neither Harry nor Ron complained to their partners. At the end of the day they knew the meal would make both Ginny and Lavender happy, and as long as the witches they loved were happy, they would gladly dine wherever they wanted.
After a few drinks it was almost time for their reservation, so Harry and Ginny apparated Ron and Lavender to the village in Wiltshire where the restaurant was located. The foursome arrived on the street in front of the restaurant and entered via the front door. The restaurant did have floo access, but as with tables you had to book to use the floo so there were no crossed wires, and two parties weren't trying to arrive at the same time.
After confirming their booking the waiter who had greeted them, led them up to their table. Ginny explained that she'd booked a table on the upstairs terrace as it offered stunning views of the surrounding countryside. She also explained that the terrace was temperature controlled so it could even be used in the winter. Not that it would be an issue that evening as it was early June and a beautiful evening. As they were settled at their table on the terrace they noted that there were less tables than usual outside as nearby a large table, which seated twelve, had been set up.
"I hope whatever is going on over there won't get too boisterous," Ginny sniffed after the waiter had taken their drinks orders and left them with their menus.
"I'm sure it won't get out of hand," Harry remarked with a shrug as he assured Ron and Lavender to order whatever they wanted as the meal was a treat from him and Ginny.
The foursome were only just starting to peruse their menus when a different waiter appeared, escorting a couple onto the terrace. The couple the waiter was escorting were almost as high profile as Harry and Ginny, and they were most certainly instantly recognisable. Striding along behind the waiter was the imposing figure of Lucius Malfoy, and his strikingly beautiful wife, Narcissa.
"Just our luck to be stuck dining near the Malfoys," Ron hissed under his breath as the couple passed by their table.
The Malfoys were led to the large table and were no sooner seated than they were joined by a younger couple. Harry and company also recognised the second couple as they'd gone to school with both Pansy Parkinson and her husband, Theo Nott.
"Looks like the Slytherins are having some sort of party," Lavender remarked. "I wonder who else will be arriving."
Part of Lavender's question was answered a few minutes later as while their drinks were being delivered, Blaise Zabini and his girlfriend, Daphne Greengrass arrived to join the party of Slytherins. However, it quickly became apparent that Slytherins weren't the only ones out to celebrate that evening as Ginny spotted their friends, Neville Longbottom and Luna Lovegood heading their way.
"Neville, Luna," she cried, waving at the couple. "What are you doing here?"
"We're here to have dinner," Neville replied as he and Luna briefly stopped to greet their friends.
"Do you want to join us?" Ginny offered. "I'm sure we can be moved to a large table. We're celebrating Ron and Lavender's engagement."
"Congratulations," Luna said with a warm smile. "But we can't stay, we're dining with friends."
Everyone expected Neville and Luna to head to a different table on the terrace, but to the surprise of Harry, Ron, Ginny and Lavender they headed to the large table where the Slytherins were seated. As Harry watched Neville and Lune greet everyone it suddenly occurred to him who else would be arriving at dinner. After all, there was only one reason why Neville and Lune would be eating with Slytherins. Turning to Ron, he spotted his best friend had reached the same conclusion.
"Hermione," Ron whispered.
"Where?" Lavender asked, twisting in her chair to try and spot her former schoolmate.
"She's not here yet, but clearly she's coming," Ron replied.
"Actually, she is here," Harry said, his gaze drawn to the attractive couple who had just stepped out onto the terrace.
As always Malfoy was dressed in his signature black, and Hermione was wearing a stunning emerald green dress that hugged her curves. At the sight of them, she faltered slightly, but Malfoy placed his hand on her back and kept her moving. As she passed the table, she offered her old friends a small smile, and Harry was disappointed to note he was the only one who smiled back.
Harry was so caught up in watching Malfoy and Hermione greet the others, especially when Hermione embraced Lucius and he gave her a warm kiss on the cheek, that he failed to notice Ron and Ginny reacting to the newest arrivals. He only became aware of something happening when he heard his wife demanding to know why someone was at the restaurant. Tearing his attention away from Hermione, he found George and Angelina had been stopped by their siblings.
"Funnily enough, we're here to have dinner," George informed his sister in a sarcastic tone of voice.
"By yourselves?" Ginny asked, her gaze briefly flickering over to where Hermione and Malfoy were still busy greeting people.
"No, with our friends," George answered. "We're celebrating a birthday. Now if you don't mind, we need to get over to our friends."
"We don't want to miss all the fun," Angelina added, giving Ginny and the others a cheery wave as she and George made their departures. As expected they made their way over to the large table and were greeted warmly by everyone else.
"Traitors," Ron muttered with a shake of his head.
It had never sat right with him that George hadn't also ended his friendship with Hermione when he and Harry had done so. In Ron's eyes, George should have supported his siblings, where in George's opinion Hermione was his friend and he was happy to respect the choices she made about her life. Harry just wished he'd taken the same stance as his brother-in-law. But he'd been weak and had allowed Ron and Ginny to influence his actions.
"Let's forget about what's happening over there," Ginny announced. "We are here for Ron and Lavender. Let's not let anyone ruin that."
Harry suspected that forgetting about the nearby table was going to prove rather hard to do as twelve people were bound to make a fair bit of noise. Especially as they seemed to be celebrating. George had mentioned a birthday, but Harry wasn't sure whose birthday it was. It wasn't Hermione's birthday, or George's, or Angelina's, or even Neville or Luna's, which meant it was a Slytherin birthday. Although which Slytherin was celebrating remained to be seen.
Hermione really couldn't believe her luck when she and Draco turned up at the restaurant, where they were due to celebrate Draco's birthday with friends and family, only to find her old friends were seated virtually next to them. Running into Harry and Ron was inevitable as wizarding Britain wasn't exactly the biggest of places, and they did still share common friends. However, Hermione could have done without them sitting next to her when she was supposed to be celebrating.
Every run in with her old friends tended to leave her feeling down and regretful that things had ended they way they had. Hermione hadn't been at all surprised when her friends had been wary of her romance with Draco, and in fact she'd even understood their cautiousness. She herself had exactly been too sure when she'd agreed to go out with him. But once she was sure of Draco, and confident they could have something special, she'd expected her friends to accept her choice. When they'd refused to do so, she'd issued the ultimatum in the hopes of bringing them to their senses and making them see how much they were upsetting her. She hadn't expected them to turn their backs on her the way they had.
Out of everyone, it had been Harry who had surprised her the most. But it had quickly became clear that he'd simply been going along with Ron and Ginny's stance. Several times when Hermione had ran into him she thought he was going to break and try and re-establish their friendship. Even George had confided that he believed that Harry regretted their estrangement. But so far, Harry hadn't made efforts to apologise and reconnect, and not wanting to be rejected, Hermione hadn't made the first move either.
"Are you okay?" Draco whispered to her once they'd greeted everyone and were settled into their seats.
"I'm fine," Hermione assured him.
"I can see if father could have a word with the owner and have them moved," Draco suggested as one of Lucius's old friends owned and ran the restaurant they were dining in.
"There is no need to be so petty," Hermione insisted. "Nothing is going to spoil this evening. Tonight is all about you."
"You made that clear before we left home," Draco chuckled, a smirk breaking out as he thought about the attention he'd received from Hermione, while she'd been on her knees in front of him. "Although when we get home, it's going to be all about you."
"But it's your birthday," Hermione pointed out.
"Having you completely naked and at my mercy is definitely my idea of a perfect birthday celebration," Draco returned in a low voice.
"I'm sure it can be arranged," Hermione returned, moving her head so that her lips brushed against Draco's.
"Hey, break it up down there," Blaise called good naturedly from further down the table. "It's not time for dessert yet."
Laughing, Hermione and Draco turned their attention back to the rest of the table. Forgetting that Harry and Ron were just a short distance away, Hermione threw herself into enjoying Draco's birthday meal. The meal passed in a blur of fun and laughter, and while they were waiting for dessert, Lucius suggested that they gave Draco his birthday presents.
As presents were passed to Draco, Hermione was aware of her old friends watching curiously, but she instead chose to focus on the gifts her boyfriend had received. No-one had gone overboard with the gifts, as not only was it a regular birthday and not a big milestone, but Draco himself preferred to keep his birthdays low-key. He'd admitted to Hermione that he'd predictably been spoilt as a child on his birthday, but as he grew older he became self-conscious accepting expensive gifts from his friends when he was rich enough to afford anything he wanted. So when it came to birthdays, Draco always asked his friends not to go overboard and not to spend a fortune on him.
"Thank you all so much," he said as he finished opening the last gift, which was tickets to an upcoming England versus Bulgaria quidditch match from his parents. "There is just one more thing I want for my birthday."
"You never mentioned wanting anything," Narcissa said with a slight frown. "If you'd mentioned this earlier, we could have sorted it for you."
"Don't worry mother, this is not something you could give me," Draco assured Narcissa. "The only person who can give me what I want is Hermione."
"Me?" Hermione questioned, wondering if the watch and potions book she'd gifted her boyfriend wasn't enough. Although she did have some risqué underwear for when they got home.
"Don't look so panicked," Draco said with a chuckle. "It's not something you could have given me before now."
"But it's something I can give you now?" Hermione questioned, still unsure of what Draco could want from her.
"I hope so," Draco replied with a serious nod as he reached into his jacket pocket and produced a small velvet box. "I've been thinking about this for some time now, and I know the only thing I truly want for my birthday, in fact the only thing I truly want in my life, is for you to become my wife. Will you marry me, Hermione?"
As he asked the question Hermione had seen coming from the moment he pulled the box from his jacket pocket, Draco flipped open the lid of the box revealing a stunning diamond ring, surrounded by smaller emeralds. Hermione gazed at the ring for a couple of minutes, before returning her focus back to Draco, who was watching her with anticipation swimming in his expressive grey eyes.
"Yes, of course I'll marry you," she answered with a smile, not even having to think about her answer. It came to her without hesitation, and she knew that there was nothing she wanted more than to marry Draco and spend the rest of her life with him.
As Draco slipped the ring onto her finger and they shared a deep kiss, Hermione was vaguely aware of Lucius summoning the waiter and ordering champagne. Finally breaking away from her new fiancé, Hermione found herself swept up in congratulations. She deliberately kept her gaze away from where her old friends were sitting, and as such she missed the hissed conversation Harry had with the others before he rose to his feet. She didn't even realise he was approaching until everyone around the table fell silent and Luna gave her a subtle nudge.
"Hermione," Harry said warily as he hovered beside the large table. "Congratulations."
"Thank you," Hermione replied, hating that things between her and Harry were so awkward when they had once been so natural.
"Oh sod it," Harry cried as he rushed forward and flung his arms around Hermione. "I'm so happy for you, Hermione. And I am so sorry that I've let things get this far. I should have backed down ages ago and told you that I fully support you. All I care about is that you're happy, and seeing you today, I can see you are truly happy."
"I am," Hermione confirmed. "I just wish you'd seen it sooner."
"So do I," Harry replied with a sigh. "More than anything, I wish I hadn't been so stupid. I should have just done what I've always known was right and trust you and your judgment. I just hope it's not too late and we can still be friends. But even if you can't let me back in your life, which quite honestly I wouldn't blame you after the way I've let you down, I want you to know that I am genuinely happy for you. I hope you have a brilliant life, Hermione."
"It would be better with you in it," Hermione admitted. "I won't lie, Harry. Your abandonment hurt me, as did your refusal to back down and admit you'd made a mistake. But I don't believe it's ever too late for friendship."
"Today is not a day for holding grudges, Potter," Draco said. "Join us for a drink. All of you," he added, turning to address his fiancée's other old friends.
"I don't think so," Ron hissed, jumping to his feet. "I'm not going to play nice when you've just charged in and stolen our thunder."
"We've done what?" Hermione questioned in bewilderment.
"Ron and Lavender have just gotten engaged," George supplied in a loud whisper.
"And we were supposed to be celebrating tonight," Ron spat.
"And how do we stop you doing that?" Draco asked, genuinely confused. "We can toast both engagements together."
"I have no intention of sharing a toast with you," Ron sneered. "Harry may have gone soft, but I'm not so stupid."
"Come on Ron, be reasonable," Harry pleaded. "We were worried about Malfoy hurting Hermione, but it's clear he loves her."
"He'll hurt her eventually, and unlike you, I won't be around to witness it," Ron retorted. "This changes nothing. Come on Lav, we're going."
Ron tugged Lavender to her feet and the pair stalked off, leaving their half-eaten desserts on the table. At the same time Ginny burst to her feet, accusing Harry of ruining the evening.
"This was supposed to be about Ron and Lavender, not her," she stormed. "You can sort the bill. I'm going after my brother and his fiancé to check they're okay."
"I'm sorry Harry," Hermione said with a sympathetic wince as Ginny also stormed from the restaurant.
"Don't be, none of this is your fault," Harry assured his friend.
"That honour would fall to my sister and brother," George piped up. "They both need a good kick up the backside."
"They both need to be forgotten about," Angelina said with a snort. "We've got an engagement to celebrate."
"Quite right," Lucius agreed, giving Angelina an approving nod of his head. "Let's toast the happy couple. Do you need a glass, Potter?"
"I do," Harry confirmed as he gave Hermione a large grin. "I'm not going anywhere."
"What about Ron and Ginny?" Hermione asked as Lucius arranged for an extra glass and ensured everyone had a drink. "It doesn't sound like they're going to come around any time soon."
"What are they going to do, disown me?" Harry snorted. "Sure, they're mad now, but they'll calm down. And even if they don't come around, this time I won't let it affect my decisions. I can be friends with you, and it has nothing to do with either Ginny or Ron. They may be my family, but they can't dictate who I love and who I want as part of my life. I'm just sorry we've lost so much time, Hermione."
"Let's not dwell in the past," Hermione urged. "Let today be a new start for us."
"I'll certainly drink to that," Harry chuckled. "And of course to your happy news," he added when Draco opened his mouth to argue.
"And as we're toasting, we might as well remember my birthday," Draco added cheekily.
"Anything else anyone wants to add?" Lucius questioned with a dramatic roll of his eyes.
Eventually toasts to Draco's birthday, Draco and Hermione's engagement, and even Hermione and Harry's reunion were made. After asking for the bill from the aborted meal with his wife, Ron and Lavender, Harry joined Hermione's group for dessert. He then decided it was time for him to go home and face the music, although before he left he promised Hermione that he would never abandon her again and he would always be there for her in the future.
"Do you think he means it?" Draco asked his fiancée after Harry had departed.
"Yeah, I think he does," Hermione replied with a smile. She genuinely believed she had gotten her best friend back, and on top of her engagement to Draco, it was turning out to be a perfect evening.
As Hermione predicted, Harry meant every word he said, and despite Ron and Ginny trying to change his mind, he stuck to his guns and refused to buckle to peer pressure again. Eventually Ron and Ginny accepted Harry's stance, although they were both adamant that nothing had changed for them. They were done with Hermione, and that was that. As for Harry, he once again had a female best friend, who was more like a sister. He even came to an accord with Draco, and by the time he watched him and Hermione get married, he considered the blond wizard a friend. Of course he regretted the missing time when he'd been foolish enough to let Hermione go. But luckily Hermione was the forgiving sort and have given him a second chance. A second chance he would cherish until his dying day.
The End.