Hermione was picking at her breakfast when Draco arrived in her chambers. She had slept pretty badly and was anxious to leave Slytherin far behind her and begin her new life with Draco in Gryffindor. Perching on the table beside her, Draco encouraged Hermione to eat a bit more as he reassured her the day would run smoothly.
"Did you tell anyone you were leaving?" Hermione asked as she stood up and gathered her cloak. Her bags had already been taken down to the carriage and the chambers looked identical to when she had first moved in.
"No." Draco shook his head. "I couldn't really tell anyone without telling them you were leaving and it's not my place to tell anyone that. Besides I don't know how the King is going to explain my departure."
"He's going to say that when I decided to leave, you decided to come with me." Hermione told her lover what she and the King had decided the previous evening. "Since he's not very happy with you at the minute, he can explain his disapproval by claiming he isn't happy that you're more loyal to me than to him if we use this excuse."
"I can't say I blame him for being angry with me." Draco sighed.
"I'm sorry for causing all this mess." Hermione moved closer to Draco and placed a comforting hand on his forearm.
"We caused this together." Draco replied, pulling Hermione into a hug. "And as much as I wish things were easier I don't regret our relationship at all."
"Neither do I." Hermione smiled and leant up to kiss Draco.
The kiss was short and sweet as the couple reluctantly parted and made their way out of the chambers for the last time. As they headed to the courtyard Hermione remained silent, she could see how hard it was for Draco to be leaving his home and she didn't want to interrupt his thoughts. By the time they reached the courtyard however, Draco looked like his normal self and it wasn't obvious he was leaving Slytherin for the last time.
The Gryffindor carriage and all five knights were already waiting for Hermione, as were the King, his knights and Ginny. As he stepped forward to speak to Hermione, King Severus blatantly ignored Draco, causing all the knights to look at each other in surprise. Seemingly oblivious to the King's snub, Draco moved down the remainder of the stairs and took his horse off a nearby stable boy and mounted it.
"It looks like this is goodbye." King Severus said, clearly aware that everyone was listening to their conversation.
"It is." Hermione nodded. "Goodbye, Severus."
"Goodbye, Hermione."
The King pressed a quick kiss to Hermione's cheek before letting her say goodbye to Ginny. After a tearful farewell with her maid, Hermione clambered into the carriage and the party began their departure from Slytherin. As they pulled out of the courtyard Hermione looked back, smiling slightly at the sight of the King and Ginny heading into the castle together. Maybe her marriage hadn't been a total waste of time after all, not only had it led her to Draco but King Severus and Ginny also seemed to have found each other.
The journey back to Gryffindor passed smoothly and fairly quickly, with just the one stop needed. During the stop Hermione heard Sir Harry and Sir Ron talking and discovered that Sir Harry was disappointed that Ginny wasn't returning with them. She also discovered that both Gryffindor knights assumed Draco was performing one last duty as Hermione's protector and once they returned to Gryffindor he would be leaving and Sir Ron would resume his previous duties. Hermione debated putting the duo right but she refrained when she remembered what King Albus had told her about making sure no-one found out about her relationship with Draco.
When they arrived back in Gryffindor, King Albus and Queen Minerva were waiting to greet Hermione. Stepping out of the carriage, Hermione embraced both parents and expressed her joy at being home. Queen Minerva was clearly thrilled to have her daughter back and even King Albus seemed to have accepted things.
"Colin, take Sir Draco's horse and get it settled in the stables." King Albus called, summoning the stable boy who was standing waiting for instructions.
Hermione watched as the boy she knew as Colin Creevey, approached Draco and took his horse to the stables. The five Gryffindor knights watched the scene in confusion and Hermione could only imagine the gossip they would indulge in once they were alone. It was obvious from the King's instructions that the knight from Slytherin wasn't going anywhere too soon and the Gryffindor knights had clearly picked up on it.
"Sir Draco, I've arranged for you to reside in the same room you used last time." The King said, addressing Draco personally. "Although right now, I think we all need to have a discussion about the future."
"Of course, Sire." Draco nodded respectfully at the old King.
"You three head on indoors, I'll be along shortly." King Albus said to Hermione, Queen Minerva and Sir Draco before turning to his knights.
Hermione took one last look at the puzzled faces of the Gryffindor knights before she turned and entered the castle with her mother and her lover.
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Hermione stood on the turrets of the castle, looking out over the moonlit kingdom she had grown up in. Hermione had come up onto the roof as she sought a bit of fresh air to digest everything that had happened recently and to reflect on how things would progress from here. Hermione and Draco's talk with the King had produced a few ground rules the couple had to follow and Hermione wasn't sure she liked them.
The first thing King Albus had insisted on was that their relationship wasn't to be made public knowledge immediately. Instead he announced he would prefer it if for the time being Draco carried on his role of her protector and bodyguard and the couple made it look as though their romance was just blossoming. Hermione hadn't been happy about the arrangement but because of everything her father was doing and had done for her, she agreed with a few conditions of her own.
Hermione's main condition was that she wanted their romance to be a quick one which resulted in them marrying within a few months. King Albus readily agreed to the idea as that fit perfectly in with what he had planned for Hermione's baby. King Albus explained to Hermione and Draco that when Hermione gave birth he would arrange it so that the midwife present would say the baby was premature, meaning it was conceived after Hermione returned to Gryffindor. They all knew that wouldn't completely stop the rumours that would undoubtedly circulate after Hermione had given birth but they hoped it would alleviate some of them.
Hermione was so lost in her thoughts about the King's conditions that she didn't realise she wasn't alone until a pair of strong arms encircled her waist and pulled her against a firm body. Hermione smiled softly as Draco nuzzled against her neck while she settled into his embrace.
"How are you liking Gryffindor?" Hermione asked.
"I'm sure I'll like it just fine." Draco replied. "Especially once we can be together properly."
"It will only be a few months." Hermione reassured her lover. "But until then we'll just have to continue on as we've been doing."
"I guess we will." Draco responded, brushing his lips against Hermione's neck. "So how does it feel to be a princess again?"
Hermione chuckled and turned round in Draco's arms, so she was facing the blond. "It feels just like it should. How do you feel sleeping with a princess? After all you're used to bedding a Queen."
"There's only one way to find out." Draco grinned, leaning down and giving Hermione a breath-taking kiss. "I'll have to take the princess to bed and see how she compares to the Queen."
"What are you waiting for then?" Hermione asked cheekily. "Take me to bed."
"Yes, My Lady." Draco gave Hermione another passion filled kiss before they headed towards the stairs.
After leaving the roof the couple snuck back to Hermione's chambers where they locked the door before pouncing on each other. Clothes flew off in every direction as they hurriedly undressed each other as they made their way to bed. Toppling naked onto the bed, Hermione found herself pinned under Draco.
"I love you." Draco said, smiling down at Hermione.
Hermione smiled back as she leant up and pressed her lips against Draco's. "I love you, too."
As Draco's lips descended back on hers and his hands started to wander, Hermione felt the familiar fading of a scene. Disappointed that she wouldn't experience another frisky encounter with the knight, Hermione wondered if this was the end of the story and if she would end up back at Hogwarts.
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Hermione's thoughts about the potential end of the story faded as her new surroundings came into focus. Hermione was clearly still in the story as she found herself lying exhausted on a bed with several people fussing about the room. Propping herself up she spotted Queen Minerva and a woman she recognised as Madam Hooch, fussing over something at the bottom of the bed.
For the first time since the beginning of the story, Hermione found herself confused and having to search her memories for what she had missed. Searching her memories, Hermione realised it was nearly eight months since her and Draco had returned to Gryffindor. In that time the couple had gotten married and she had just given birth to their child, which the midwife had said was a boy minutes earlier.
As if on cue Hermione was handed a small bundle wrapped in a blue blanket. Hermione looked down at the infant in her arms and felt an overwhelming wave of love for the tiny prince. As Hermione looked down at her son, she was vaguely aware that Queen Minerva was opening the door and ushering two people into the room. Looking up Hermione smiled widely when Draco slowly advanced towards the bed and King Albus watched from a distance.
"Come and meet your son." Hermione said to Draco as he perched on the bed next to her.
"He's beautiful." Draco declared, gently stroking the smattering of pale hairs on the prince's head. "And so are you." He added, dropping a kiss to Hermione's forehead.
As Draco settled onto the bed properly, wrapping an arm securely around Hermione's waist, King Albus and Queen Minerva moved closer to the bed. King Albus openly stared at his grandson with tears glistening in his eyes while the Queen was also shedding the odd tear.
"I'll go and let the kingdom know we have a new prince." King Albus announced, giving Hermione a quick kiss on the cheek.
Hermione watched as the emotional King went off to deliver the news about the new baby. Even though they were still planning on saying the baby was premature, Hermione didn't think the truth would bother people. Since her return the people of Gryffindor had been thrilled to have her back and almost all of them had welcomed Draco with open arms. Their relationship had also been welcomed by the kingdom and very few rumours about the pair of them had surfaced.
The only person who had ever shown their displeasure of their relationship was Sir Ron. He had initially sulked for weeks when he found Draco was staying on and he wouldn't be getting his old job back as Hermione's protector. He then sulked even more when it became apparent that a romantic relationship was developing between Hermione and Sir Draco. Ever since her marriage Hermione had barely seen Ron and when she did encounter him, he treated her as the princess and nothing more, all signs of their previous friendship were gone.
"Have you thought of a name yet?" Queen Minerva asked, bringing Hermione's attention back to the present.
Hermione shook her head as she looked down at the sleeping prince in her arms. "Not yet."
"There's no rush. It's better to take your time and choose the right name." The Queen said. "Anyway, I'll be going and leave you three alone."
The Queen gave both Hermione and Draco a kiss on the cheek and she gently kissed her grandson's head before leaving the family alone to bond. Hermione snuggled closer to Draco as the couple looked adoringly at their son. Their path to happiness may not have being easy and at times it got slightly messy but Hermione was convinced that they belonged together and she was thrilled she had gotten her happy ending with the man she loved.
As the scene started to fade yet again, Hermione was pretty certain she was leaving the story. The lead character had gotten her happily ever after with the handsome knight and as far as she could see there was nothing more left to tell. Now after living such a romantic story with Draco in the lead she had to head back to reality and learn to live with the gorgeous blond without jumping on him the first chance she got.
A/N - This brings an end to the medieval portion of the story. I know King Severus's reaction wasn't as severe as it probably should have been. I debated his reaction for several days, but in the end I decided that since Hermione was reading a racy romance I would give the main character a happy ending, meaning the king had to let her go without too much of a fuss. Now the story heads back to Hogwarts, where Hermione has to face everyone after the story has ended.