Part Four
Hermione was blinded by flashes. Reporters and journalists, from all over the nation and the extraterrestrial visitors homes, were gathered at the entrance to welcome the guests.
People were shouting her name, trying to get her attention. It wasn't odd, she was a part of the Golden Trio, she was used to this kind of attention. But today she had no time to be nice and talk to them, she had other things to worry about.
Draco took his hand out of Hermione's' and placed it on her back.
"Try not to look at the sides. But don't worry, I'll hold on." He whispered into her ear.
Draco moved his hand so he was holding her waist, and began to walk down the red carpet, to the entrance.
"Miss Granger, smile for the camera please." A voice came from the crowd.
Draco and Hermione stopped walking.
"Just be a second." Hermione told Draco.
Draco nodded and let go of her. He watched Hermione as she posed for pictures and gave everyone her beautiful smile.
"Now, one with your date please."
Draco didn't move. He knew that Hermione felt uncomfortable with her, and that was alright. He had bullied her throughout their school years. Draco wanted to be on his best behavior today, for her.
Hermione looked over at Draco, and she was smiling.
"Well?" She asked.
Draco gave her a small smile and walked back to her. She linked her arm with his.
"Smile."
"I have to go meet the Minister of Magic, right away." Hermione whispered to Draco as they entered the ballroom.
"I'll meet you inside and save us a table." He replied.
They separated ways and Hermione walked through the thick crowd trying to spot the Minister.
She was stopped by Arthur and Molly Weasley who wanted pictures with her. After 5 very long minutes with them, Hermione managed to slip away without them noticing. She was walking towards the stage when someone grabbed her arm.
"Miss Granger."
It was Nadia.
Hermione sighed. Finally, someone who would know where the Minister could be.
"Miss Granger, follow me." Nadia said softly.
Hermione walked after Nadia quickly, who led her towards the back of the stage. Before Hermione could ask her why they were there, Nadia grabbed her hand and apparated.
They landed in front of an enormous oak door. Hermione recognized it from her previous trip to the Minister's home. It was Minister Kingsley's home office. The Kingsley family had invited the Weasleys' and her to their home for dinner many times.
Nadia tapped on the door.
"Miss Granger is here." Nadia said.
A burly man opened the door. The man had to be over six feet tall, as his head was barely brushing the door frame .He was wearing black dress robes and had a large red pin on his chest. The pin was worn by the few elite Aurors.
He took out his wand and waved it over Nadia and Hermione.
"Clear, please present your wands, you may collect them before leaving."
Hermione and Nadia gave him their wands and stepped in the room. There were ten other Auror's inside the room. Kingsley was sitting behind his desk talking to Harry Potter.
"Minister." Hermione said as she walked to him.
He stood up and shook her hand over his desk. Harry nodded at her, and motioned for her to sit down beside him.
"Why aren't we at the Gala?" She whispered to Harry.
"Miss Granger. We are going to have to end the Gala early, I'm afraid." Kingsley informed her.
Hermione stared at the Minister, surprised. Everyone at the Ministry had spent so long on the events for their visitors.
"Hermione." Harry said. "We believe there may be a threat to our visitors and the Minister." He explained.
"I don't understand."
Harry explained everything to her. The area on which the Ministry Castle was located on was protected by a spell at all times. However, for the Gala, an even larger area including the Castle was to be protected with a stronger, even more complicated spell. The duration of the spell was four hours. The next spell could not be conjured until the first spell was completely over. This left a small time frame in which the Castle and it's surroundings were vulnerable. When the event was being planned out, the Auror's had gone over every detail, once Hermione had supplied them with the paperwork. The previous spell would not be strong enough but the Auror's had decided to cover the area and keep watch until the second spell was in place.
"We just got news that some wizards in the highlands had been talking to one of the Head of Travel Affair's people. The secretary had stopped for a potential camping location for international students. At a local bar he heard some wizards talking about the Gala and they didn't have nice things to say." Harry continued.
"Let's just say they don't appreciate this union of wizarding worlds." Kingsley added.
"Right. So Mr. Benao feels that there may be a threat present for everyone. The Auror's feel that instead of letting the Gala go on. It would be best to move the location, prevent any intruders, so we can prevent a mass scare." Harry said.
Hermione shook her head. This was unbelievable. She had heard that there were a group of wizards up north, who wanted the government to be abolished. They wanted a monarchy instead. The wizards had growing support, and the ministry had been keeping watch on them. It didn't make sense to Hermione. After the war, programs that the government funded had grown significantly. Education programs, work programs, magic programs, you name it. The government wanted to strengthen the people of the wizarding world so they could be prepared for anything. These wizards, for some reason she couldn't grasp, wanted to abolish the government and bring back the monarchy. They blamed all the past events with Lord Voldemort on the government. They believed that they could have taken many more steps to prevent him from rising up. This was true, but the government had completely changed since then.
"What we don't understand is, what should we tell our muggle guests?" Kingsley asked the duo.
Harry shrugged. Hermione who was still thinking about the wizards ran her fingers through her hair. They all sat down in silence, waiting for the other to make a suggestion. Harry was about to speak when they heard a loud knock on the door.
"Wand, please." The burly Auror asked.
"Ah, welcome Mr. Weasley." Kingsley conjured up a chair beside Hermione.
Ron awkwardly walked over to the chair and slumped down on the seat. Hermione made it clear that she did not want to talk to him by leaning as far away from him as she could.
"I do have a plan." Hermione said softly.
Kingsley looked up at her. "Well, go on."
"Earthquake," Hermione began. "We announce that their is going to be a large earthquake that our scholars predicted. We ask everyone to leave for their homes through the floo network and keep everything on the down low. We will also inform them that we will be busy trying to prevent the earthquake, to protect the city."
Hermione stopped talking. It was back to eerie quietness.
"I can work with that." Harry spoke, finally.
"Right." Ronald added.
Hermione looked up at Kingsley, for his approval.
"We could use obliviate and make them believe that the event already happened and place a false memory." Harry suggested.
Hermione shook her head. "Way too many spells. Even if we collaborated. Also the fake memories we would have to create; not only would it be time consuming, it would take way too much energy. Energy which we could be focusing on something else." She explained.
Kingsley nodded.
"Okay. I go out with Kingsley to explain to all our muggle guests about the unfortunate event we predict. Ronald and the other leaders can help direct them to the second hall. We can conjure up fireplaces to fill the room and assign an Auror to each. We explain the secrecy before directing them home." Harry said, as he stood up.
"Yes. Right when the guests have been escorted to the second hall, I will ask Nadia to reach the Dining Halls at the Ministry and join the rooms. She will make sure the food is ready. I will explain to everyone shortly that the disturbance will be explained the following day. Then we will ask everyone to join us at the Ministry for dinner." Hermione finished.
"Good luck to you all." Kingsley said.
"Where is my best friend?" Ginny demanded, grabbing a surprised Draco.
Draco had been waiting for his date. He had found a table, and was waiting patiently, checking his watch every couple minutes. Forty seven minutes, he counted, before he was interrupted.
"I would like to know myself." He said, before telling her about his uneventful wait.
"Well my husband is missing. And so are my brother and best friend." She said, tapping her foot.
Draco sighed.
"I would love to have all the answers in the world, Ginny Weasley." He thought.
Ginny gave him a menacing look, as if she knew what he was thinking. She then sat beside him.
"Ginny." Harry walked over to them quickly.
Ginny jumped up from her seat.
"Mr. Potter. Where in the world where you?" Ginny asked him.
Harry whispered into her ear, quickly summarizing the events at Kingsley's home.
"Sweetie, go bring Teddy at meet me at my office at the Ministry. You'll be safest there." Harry ordered her. "Also if you could please tidy up my office, I'd be very grateful." He added with a sweet smile.
Ginny rolled her eyes, gave him a kiss, and went on her way. Just as Draco was going to take his turn to question Harry, Ron appeared from the crowd.
"Aurors in their positions, awaiting further orders. Minister is waiting for you." He whispered into Harry's ear.
Harry nodded, and pointed towards the stage.
"As soon as I signal you, I need everyone to escort the guests as fast as possible." Harry whispered back.
Ron nodded and disappeared back into the crowd.
"Harry." Draco said loudly. He didn't want Harry to get interrupted again.
Harry told Draco to go behind the stage, and left quickly. Draco didn't want to leave his seat, he knew it would be claimed right away, but he wanted to ask Hermione what was going on. Sure enough, Hermione was behind the stage talking quietly to Nadia. Nadia rubbed her shoulder.
"Don't worry, Miss." She said. "I'll get right on it, and I'll make sure everyone loves it."
Nadia stepped back and apparated.
"Hermione." Draco said, softly, putting his hand on her back.
Hermione turned around to face him. Draco noticed that she looked worried.
"Hermione, what's wrong?" He asked.
"We planned this beautiful night, and it got spoiled." Hermione mumbled.
Draco knew that Hermione and her staff had been planning for months. Everything had been planned to perfection, every single detail.
"What's going on?" Draco asked her.
"I'll tell you the whole story later, just hold on okay?"
Hermione pulled out a small note paper and a pen from her bag, and quickly scribbled a note. She put her pen away and closed her fist, when she opened it again a moment later, the note was gone.
"That's for Percy. Hopefully he can do some damage control." She explained.
Just as she stopped talking, Minister Kingsley walked off the back of the stage with Harry.
"It's time for you to leave, Minister Kingsley. Booth and Nguyen will be with you at all times." Harry explained.
Kingsley thanked him, shook his hand and left with two very tall men in dark robes. Harry nodded at Hermione and left at the other side of the stage.
"My turn." Hermione said.
She started walking. Ron and Harry were at the end escorting the last couple people out. After they exited, Hermione walked onto the stage with Draco. There were about a hundred people waiting for Hermione to speak, to explain what was going on. After a couple seconds of silence from Hermione, Draco slightly nudged her.
"I'm sorry for the inconvenience ladies and gentlemen." Hermione began.
Hermione quickly explained to everyone that for reasons she could not explain to the public yet, the event was being moved to the Ministry of Magic. She also explained that although the threat level was low, the Ministry chose to prevent any incidents by taking precaution.
She thanked everyone for their cooperation and quickly exited the stage.
"Hey. Where are you going?" Draco asked, rushing after her.
Hermione stopped momentarily.
"I'm very embarrassed." She told Draco. "I'm heading to the Ministry right away before anyone stops me."
Before Draco could stop her she rushed away. She didn't get very far when she was stopped by a handsome young man.
"Minister Nova." Hermione said.
Nova gave her a smile. It was anyone else, Hermione would have excused herself and ran off. However, Minister Nova was one of the very important guests. He was also one of the wisest, and amongst the few wizards in the entire galaxy who knew the history of the wizarding world. Hermione had the upmost respect for him.
"Are you alright?" He asked her.
"Yes, thank you Minister."
Nova smiled again then walked away.
"Odd." Hermione thought.
Someone else grabbed her hand. Hermione looked back and saw Draco, and then pop.
It didn't take long for everyone to move to the Ministry. Everyone already had had too much wine, so no one really seemed to mind. Nadia had dinner tables arranged for everyone and when everyone had found their seat the courses began to appear. Draco was back on table saving duty, while Hermione ran around apologizing to the Ministers. Ginny and Teddy sat down across from Draco. They were busy searching the crowd for Harry. Draco drank two large glasses of firewhiskey before Hermione finally had the time to sit down and grab a bite to eat.
Harry arrived a bit later. He had been asked by Kingsley to explain everything, personally, to the Ministers. Harry and Ginny spent most of their time feeding Teddy, who was being fussy. Despite the previous events, everyone was having a great time.
After dinner, everyone lingered for hours, taking pictures. It was past two in the morning, and it was just a handful of people left.
Hermione and Nadia were doing clean up spells. Draco was sitting on stage, alone. Harry, Ginny, Ron, and Padma were sitting together at their table, finishing off a rather large bottle of firewhiskey.
Although there was no music, Luna was dancing with Neville in the middle of the room. George was sitting with Angelina in a corner, far away from the rest of them. They were talking about Quidditch while he was rubbing her leg.
"Oi, you took the last bit." Ron yelled at Harry, waving an empty bottle in the air.
Ginny burst into laughter. Hermione shook her head, watching her clearly drunk friends acting like children.
Ron leaned forward to kiss Padma on the cheek, but gave her a sloppy kiss on her nose.
Harry giggled. Then Ginny laughed at Harry's giggle.
"We should." She said to Harry.
"Yes." Harry said back.
"Huh?" Padma asked, wondering what they could possibly be talking about.
"We're all going to our place!" Ginny exclaimed. "We have a huge supply of butterbeer."
Everyone, including Hermione agreed.
They arrived at Harry's home shortly, and everyone settled in their living room.
Draco arrived after everyone else. He glanced around the room, and saw Hermione sitting by herself, busy with a magazine. He hesitated for a moment, before sitting beside her.
"Would you pass me a bottle?"
Draco looked over at Hermione. She pointed at the table full of butterbeer and firewhiskey in front of them.
Draco leaned forward, and picked up a bottle of firewhiskey for them both. Hermione quickly popped it open, sunk back into the sofa and chugged down the cold drink. One, two, four bottles later Hermione giggled.
"Mhmm. I want ice cream." She said in a demanding voice
Hermione, who was struggling to sit up, leaned over and rested her head on Draco's shoulder.
Draco froze. He was sure that Hermione wasn't in the right mind, and he didn't know what to do.
"Oh, I feel sick."
Hermione quickly got up and rushed out the back door, with her hand over her mouth. Draco quickly followed her. He stopped in the kitchen, and grabbed a small bottle of water that was sitting on the counter.
Harry had a large backyard. The home was located in a small community of wizards and witches, so hiding magic wasn't something they had to worry about. Harry enjoyed doing home projects, and he always had help from Mr. Weasley. They had made a large porch swing the previous month, which is what Hermione was sitting on. Draco sat beside her before handing over the bottle to her.
"I don't think this is the best place to sit."
"It's helping, actually."
Draco stopped the swing. He was much larger, so she couldn't do anything about it.
"Drink the water." He told her.
Hermione opened the cap and took a small sip.
"No more."
She gave the bottle to Draco, and put her head in her hands.
"Go wash your face, you'll feel better."
Hermione looked over at him, and they stared into each other's eyes. After a few seconds, Hermione looked away. Her stomach was turning and she wanted to hurl.
"Do you hear that." Draco asked, getting up from the swing.
"That's the lobster, wanting to come up." Hermione said.
Draco turned around and put a finger up to his lips. He leaned over the railing on the deck and listened closely. For a second he heard nothing. Hermione groaned, and Draco gave her a look to tell her to stay quiet. Draco heard a soft rustling sound and quickly turned around, with his wand in position.
"What are you doing to do? Fry the owl?"
Draco put his wand back. It was a cute little pygmy owl, resting on top of the porch swing. It had a large orange letter in its' extended her arm out, and it dropped the letter onto her hand.
Hermione,
Mother has asked me to tell you that you must, and she means must, come to Bill's tomorrow for dinner. It is also your duty to inform my sister and brother, that everyone has been invited. I also need to talk to you about your education plans, so it's very important that you attend. And mother would like your italian chocolate cake recipe, she says it is very important, which I don't think it is.
See you soon,
Percy Weasley
Hermione groaned. All she wanted to do for the next week was sleep. This entire event was a mess, and Hermione didn't want to work. She wanted to hibernate so people would forget about everything and then she would be able to face anyone. However, since she was in charge of their extraterrestrial guests, it was important for her to attend every meeting concerning them. Hermione put the letter on the swing and stood up.
"Ugh, I need to get home."
Hermione groaned. She instantly regretted getting up. Her head felt heavy. Draco picked up the letter and read it, quickly.
"Hermione."
"Yeah?"
"Why don't you stay at my place for the remainder of the night?" He asked her. "It's close by and you can come here and leave with everyone else."
Hermione shook her head slightly, but had to sit down. She took a deep breathe and considered the offer. She did not want to apparate, or even walk anywhere. Ron and Padma had already planned on sleeping over at Harry's, so they took over the guest room. Ginny needed Padma to watch Teddy overnight, while she sobered up. Ginny had already told Neville and Luna they could sleep on the sofas.
"Thank you."
"Okay, let me get your car, I'll be back in five minutes okay." Draco said.
He conjured up a small snack for the owl, which immediately flew off. Then Draco ran off into the dark.
Hermione slowly slid down on the seat, and lifted her legs so she was laying down on the swing. There was a cool breeze now, and it was helping her feel better. As she closed to eyes, she wondered if her friends had gone to sleep. Hermione listened closely. She heard someone in the kitchen, and the tap turning on.
"They're probably going to sleep soon." She thought.
When Draco came back, he found a very groggy Hermione about to fall off the swing.
"Did you fall asleep?" Draco asked.
Hermione who could barely open her eyes, found that she didn't have the energy to speak.
Draco picked Hermione up, in one swift motion. Hermione opened her mouth ready to protest, but she didn't want to walk so she let him carry her to his car. Draco's arms felt warm against her skin. Draco whispered a spell, and the passenger door opened up slowly.
"Watch your head." Draco said softly to her, as he lowered her onto the seat.
Hermione noted that his breathe smelled like peppermint, and suddenly had the urge to grab his face and kiss him.
Then she took a deep breath, and reminded herself that this was Draco she was thinking about.
The drive to his home was short. Draco mentioned something about moving out of the Malfoy Manor, and taking up a muggle sport. Hermione tried her best to not come off as rude, and listen to him but she was too tired.
"Hermione."
Draco shook her softly. Hermione gave a sleepy moan. Draco shook her again.
"What?" Hermione said irritably, opening her eyes.
"We're here. I'm going to take you to the bedroom now." He informed her.
Hermione let him pick her up and rested her head on his chest. Draco walked carefully over to his room, opening all the doors with a spell. He carefully laid her down on his bed, making sure he didn't pull her hair as he slid his hands out from underneath her.
"Goodnight, Hermione Granger." He whispered.