Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.
A/N: Thanks for all the reviews, favorites, and follows. I can't believe that this story is almost to 300 reviews! Never in a million years did I think it would get many. So THANK YOU! Once again, another huge thanks to my beta, Modges, who has the fastest turnaround time ever.
Now, cue a Draco freak out in 3...2...1...
"Mother! Mother, where you are you?!"
Narcissa's head shot up from the book she was reading at the racket her son was making. She watched as he came flying into the library, the door banging wildly behind him. He was holding what appeared to be a stack of papers and he looked quite upset.
"Draco, is there a reason you are insisting on making so much noise?"
"Why are you so calm? Haven't you read the paper today?"
"No, I have not. What has happened that has put you into such a state?"
Instead of answering, he shoved the stack of papers he had been carrying into her arms.
She shot him a withering look for his rudeness and picked up the first paper. It was the morning edition of the Daily Prophet. Reading Rita Skeeter's article, Narcissa didn't see anything of importance that would cause Draco to become so worked up. Narcissa put it down, looked at Draco, and arched a perfectly groomed eyebrow.
Still silent, he motioned for her to continue on.
As soon as Narcissa picked up the evening edition of the Prophet, she saw immediately what the problem was. There, right on the front page, she found multiple pictures of Hermione and Harry enjoying some time together in Diagon Alley. Going on to read the article that accompanied the pictures, Narcissa snorted at the blatant speculation and innuendo it contained. Struggling to hide her smirk, Narcissa eyed her still visibly upset son.
"These pictures are quite lovely, don't you think? Your sister looks beautiful and Harry is rather handsome."
Draco looked at her like she had lost her mind.
"Quite lovely...beautiful...handsome?! Has the whole world gone completely insane? Did you read the article? It says they expect an engagement announcement soon. Engagement! Between my sister and Potter! And just look at those pictures, they certainly seem to back that up. When did this happen?"
"I don't see what the problem is, Draco. Harry is a wonderful man and your sister would be hard pressed to do better."
"I...what..how?" Draco sputtered. With an angry glare, he practically ran from the room.
Narcissa heard him activate the Floo and yell out "Grimmauld Place!". Seconds after Draco's abrupt departure, she burst out laughing.
"That was quite evil of you, my dear. You know she is going to hex him."
"He deserves it. He can't keep acting like an immature child every time his sister is linked with a man. She's going to meet someone and get married eventually. And so what if it is with Mr. Potter? He needs to get over it. Besides, if he took a minute to look at these pictures without his intolerance towards Mr. Potter clouding his vision, he would see them for what they were, two people playing it up and having a bit of fun."
Lucius motioned her over, indicating he wanted to see the pictures in question.
Narcissa got up and crossed the room to where he was sitting at his desk, looking over paperwork. She handed him the papers. He opened up the first one and with a roll of his eyes, set it aside. Taking the second paper, he was curious to see these pictures. He looked at them closely and let out a bark of laughter. Any Slytherin worth their salt would be able to see what was going on.
"I see what you mean. I'm surprised Draco didn't pick up on it. Our daughter seems to have quite the Slytherin side, doesn't she?"
"She told me the Sorting Hat seriously considered putting her there. Harry too, in fact."
"They would have done well. Since you are here, I'd like to talk to you about an interesting missive I've recently received."
"Oh?"
"Alessandro Zabini has made it no secret that he wishes Blaise to court Hermione. Apparently the boy has been rejecting every witch Alessandro could conjure up for him. He has sent a rather blunt letter along with a petition for her hand. It is very generous. Overly generous, if I were to be honest."
"Is that so? What about this petition is so unusual that he feels the need to be so blunt in his wording and generous in his offering?"
"He wants to include Theodore Nott in the contract as well. Apparently the two boys have been lovers for a while now and neither are willing to give the other up. Once Alessandro learned of the history between Theodore and Hermione, this is the solution he came up with. He's been unexpectedly forthcoming with his intentions. It's quite surprising."
"Which is why he did it, I'm sure. He'd want to knock you off balance. What are you going to do?"
"I'm going to approve it."
"What? Lucius, you can't do that! Surely you know enough about your daughter that it will put an irrevocable tear in your relationship if you force her to marry!"
"Calm yourself, Narcissa. I'm going to approve it with the stipulation that they have to convince Hermione to agree. I'm not going to force her to do anything. The fact remains that the three of them together would be a force to be reckoned with, but I refuse to jeopardize what little relationship I have with my daughter over this."
Lucius was taken aback when Narcissa suddenly launched herself into his arms. She wrapped her arms around his waist and gave him a quick kiss.
"Besides, it is going to be highly entertaining to watch those two try to get our daughter to agree."
Smirking up at her husband, Narcissa silently agreed.
Over in the library at Grimmauld Place, Hermione was indulging in the same activity as her mother was before she was interrupted. So lost in her book, she didn't notice the fire in the Floo turn green or her brother stumbling out of it. She also didn't hear him calling her name or him stomping up to her. In fact, it wasn't until he ripped the book from her hands that she realized he was standing right in front of her. She looked up to find a pissed off Draco glaring at her.
"I hope you didn't lose my place in that book."
Draco raised an eyebrow at her calmness and looked to note the page number before he tossed the book aside.
"You were on page 394. Now, I need to talk to you."
"Yes, I gathered as much by your unannounced arrival and the fact that you just stole my book. Tell me, Draco, am I about to regret giving you access to my home?"
Draco cringed at the look on his sister's face. She was already irritated.
"I saw the paper, Hermione, and I refuse to allow it. No sister of mine is going to marry a Potter!"
"Is that so? Well, I happen to think Harry would make a lovely husband for me. In fact, I'm going to go propose to him right now. If you'll excuse me."
Hermione brushed by Draco, heading toward the door, struggling to keep a straight face. She was stopped by a hand on her arm as Draco turned her around to face him. In an instant, she had her wand out, intent on hexing him, but seeing the look on his face had her earlier contained laughter bubbling out. Once she started, she found she couldn't stop. Draco looked quite put out at her hysterical laughter.
"This isn't funny, Hermione."
"Oh but it is, Draco. It's funny that you think you can barge into my home and start ordering me around. Quite frankly, your attitude towards Harry is really starting to get on my nerves. I realize that the two of you might never be friends, but you have to stop. Are you going to do this with any guy I decide to see or is it just Harry you object to?"
Draco slumped down into the nearest couch with a sigh and ran an agitated hand through his hair.
"I'm sorry. I overreacted. Just the mention of you with Potter throws me into a rage. You're my sister and I just got you back. He's had you for years and I didn't want to lose you again."
"The only way you are going to lose me is if you continue to act like a overly possessive git. I don't belong to you, Draco Malfoy. I belong to myself."
"I know, I know. I'm sorry. Although, tell me, have you given the idea of becoming a nun any thought?"
Hermione laughed as she swatted him on the arm. She sat down next to him and drew him into a hug. Mumbling into his chest, "You are lucky I didn't hex you. And don't ever throw one of my books again. I won't be so understanding next time."
Draco chuckled. Trust her to be more upset that he threw a book than anything else. They sat there for a while longer, chatting about their day.
Hermione was surprised at just how easily she was able to forgive Draco for his behavior. It was almost as if it was impossible for her to stay mad at him. It briefly crossed her mind that it could be the twin bond. Draco was telling her about Narcissa's reaction to the article and they both laughed as they realized she was just baiting him.
As Draco was getting up to return to the Manor, an owl arrived, pecking at the library window. Since he was already up, he walked over to let the owl inside. He raised an eyebrow, clearly recognizing who the owl belonged to. He took the letter, and after digging a Knut from his pocket to pay, went back over to Hermione. Silently handing her the letter, he sat back down. Hermione looked at him with curiosity, knowing he had planned on going home. He just gestured for her to open the letter.
To say that she was shocked to be receiving a letter from Theo would not be entirely accurate. She had an idea he would try to contact her, but she was not expecting it so soon. The contents of the letter weren't overly surprising either. It was full of apologies and excuses. It ended with a request to meet with her. She looked at Draco, who was looking at her expectantly.
"He wants to meet with me."
"And?"
"And...I think I'm going to. What can it hurt?"
"I'm going with you."
"Oh, I don't think so, Draco. I can handle this on my own."
"If you're sure..."
"I am. Don't you have somewhere to be?"
"Okay, okay, I know when I'm not wanted. If you change your mind, just send me an owl."
Hermione nodded as she pushed Draco toward the Floo. Once he was gone, she re-read the letter again. She would be lying to herself if she said she didn't want to see Theo. She had missed him greatly. As she sat down to reply, she thought back on some of their good times.
They were in the Room of Requirement again. It was really the only safe place they had, a place where they didn't have to worry about being caught. They were lying in front of the fire when Theo suddenly jumped to his feet and extended a hand to her. Smiling, she took it and let him lift her off the floor. All of a sudden, music filled the room.
"May I have this dance, my lady?"
Giggling, she nodded and he swept her around the room in a perfect waltz. He was a wonderful dancer and Hermione had never been happier than she was at that moment. The music changed and Theo made Hermione laugh by dancing silly. As the music ended, he drew her to him and kissed her.
Hermione sighed. That was one of her favorite memories between them. It was also the first time Theo told her that he loved her. She had never been so happy as she had been that night. She quickly wrote out a reply, consenting to see him. As she sent it off, she couldn't help but wonder if she was making a mistake. She knew now why he did what he did, but that didn't make it hurt any less. She decided to go back to reading her book, pondering her decision the whole time. She didn't have long to contemplate, however, when she received a reply from Theo not thirty minutes later. He wanted to see her tomorrow and gave her his Floo address. She wrote out yet another reply, agreeing. She could do this, she would do this. Then maybe she could start working on moving on.
There was no doubting that Theo was nervous, Blaise thought, as he watched him with a critical eye. It wouldn't, however, be apparent to anyone else as Slytherins were famous for their unreadable expressions, but Blaise knew Theo well. He may have been wearing a blank face, but he was positively freaking out on the inside. He wanted to say something, anything, to reassure him, but found himself at a loss for words. If he was being honest with himself, he was nervous as well. He loved Theo with everything he had. He was relying on this triad because he wasn't sure what he would do if Theo was lost to him. Luckily, the couple of encounters he's had with Hermione had gone well, he found he actually really liked her. Only time would tell if this idea was going to work. He leaned back in his chair and waited.
Theo was extremely nervous. He was surprised that he didn't have sweat rolling down his face. This meeting with Hermione was very important. If it didn't go well, if they couldn't resolve things, that didn't bode well for him. He snuck a glance over at Blaise. He was somewhat surprised to see that Blaise was nervous as well. It made sense, he supposed. Their future together was really dependent on a witch who had a very fiery temper. This was either going to be great or a complete disaster. Obviously, he was really hoping for greatness. He jumped to his feet as their Floo turned green. His hands wrung together as Hermione stepped through. Merlin, she was beautiful. It hurt just to look at her, knowing how he broke her heart.
"Hermione."
She looked at him with a slight smile on her face. Her gaze passed by him, landing on Blaise, who had also stood at her arrival. She looked slightly surprised to see him there.
"Theo. Blaise, it's lovely to see you again."
"It's always a pleasure to be in the company of such a beautiful witch."
Blaise took her hand and lifted it to his lips. A blush began to spread across her face. He led her to the couch and gestured for her to have a seat. She did, turning her gaze back to Theo. Theo took a deep breath, needing to prepare himself for this conversation.
"Hermione, I need to start by apologizing to you. I need you to know that I never meant any of the things I said to you that day. That day was the worst day of my life and I would give anything to be able to take it back. I hope you'll let me explain why I did what I did."
"There's no need, Theo. I already know."
Theo inwardly cringed. Her voice sounded so cold.
"You..you do?"
"Uncle Sev showed me the memory of what happened after Harry and I left."
Well. He definitely wasn't expecting that.
"Okay. I do hope that you can find it within yourself to forgive me someday."
"Of course. I've thought about little else since I viewed that memory. I understand your reasoning, but I can still wish you had told me or at least been less harsh. However, seeing as you are one of Draco's best friends, I'm sure we will be seeing each other on a semi-regular basis. Given that, I think it's in everyone's best interest if I forgive you."
Gods, she was so cold. Having her look at him with such disinterest was killing him. He missed the days when those eyes were filled with nothing but love when she looked at him. He was starting to get even more nervous that he might never see that again.
"I've missed you," he whispered. Her eyes softened somewhat when he said that.
"I've missed you too. Even when I told myself I shouldn't."
"Hermione, I need to know. I need to know if there is any possibility of you still having feelings for me. Is there any way you would think of giving me another chance?"
"I...but...what? What about Blaise? Aren't you with him?"
"How did you know that?"
"Please, Theo. It was quite obvious by your behavior when Blaise and I were talking at the party. I'm not blind or completely oblivious, you know."
"Right, of course not. Okay, I'm just going to make this easy on all of us and put it out there. Hermione, I'm still in love with you. I never stopped loving you. However, I'm also in love with Blaise. We would like your permission to begin formally courting you."
A/N2: Oh my. I wonder how Hermione is going to take that. Please review, they make me so happy. :)