Chapter Nine

When Hermione finally reached the dining room after a few wrong turns, she was greeted by the sight of her parents and brother sitting around a beautifully set table. Upon her entrance, Mrs. Zabini shot up from her seat and rushed toward her, pulling her into a crushing hug. "Happy birthday, darling," she said, holding her at arm's length so as to get a better look at her, "Oh Pietro, look at her."

Mr. Zabini joined his wife and daughter. "You look so much like your mother," he said, kissing her on the cheek, "How are you feeling? I understand the transformation was a bit of a shock for you?"

Hermione smiled a bit. "A bit more than a shock, I'd say," she said, slightly embarrassed.

Mrs. Zabini brushed Hermione's hair back from her forehead. "That's our fault," she said, "We should have warned you that the spell we used might cause you some discomfort or stress. Are you feeling any nausea? Dizziness?"

"Um, a little nauseous," she replied.

Her mother felt her cheeks. "Well, you're not feverish, so that's good. I've got a potion that will help with the nausea," she said, ushering Hermione over to the table.

Hermione sat down. "Oh, please, I don't want to be any trouble. I'm sure I'll be sorted after I've eaten something."

"It's no trouble at all."

"What kind of spell did you use?" Hermione questioned as she began eating.

"A Blood Transmogrification spell," Mr. Zabini answered.

Hermione's eyes widened slightly. "I've never heard of a spell like that."

Mr. Zabini cleared his throat and took a drink of his pumpkin juice. "It is not something that is widely known, or used."

"Sounds tricky," Blaise stated, passing Hermione some bacon.

"Quite," Mr. Zabini agreed, "Had I been the one casting that spell, I fear it would have been disastrous. It seems you inherited your mother's affinity for wand work, as well as her looks."

Hermione took a bite of toast and swallowed before saying, "It looks as though I've got your skin tone and hair color," gently twirling her fingers around the end of her plait.

"Come, come… Blaise, Hermione, eat up," Mrs. Zabini said, "We've got a lot to do today."

Hermione looked at her curiously, "We do?"

"Indeed. We need to get your school things, and I think a new wardrobe is in order for you," her mother replied.

"But I've got plenty of clothes," Hermione stated kindly, "I really don't think there's a need for a whole new wardrobe."

Blaise chuckled. "I expect all your clothes will be too short for you now," he said, "You look about three to four inches taller than you were under the Blood Transmogrification."

"I didn't think of that," Hermione exclaimed softly.

"And you're the top of our year?" Blaise teased.

Mr. Zabini gave Blaise a reprimanding look. "Blaise, you should not teased your sister so. This is all new to her."

"Sorry."

Hermione gave her brother a small smile. "It's okay, really," she said. She then turned to her mother, "I… I guess I will need some new clothes; if that's all right… I mean, I'm sure I could transfigure my old clothes…"

Mrs. Zabini smiled warmly. "Nonsense, we'll go shopping after breakfast."

"Would it be all right if I responded to some letters I received this morning first?"

"Of course, but I'll ask you not to dawdle as we've got much to do before the party this evening."

"Speaking of the party, I'd like to thank you for inviting my friends," Hermione said, "It means a lot to me."

"Well you didn't think we'd be so cruel as to not allow your friends to come for a visit, did you? It is your birthday after all."

"Well you can't blame her, can you, Mum?" Blaise asked, "I mean, not after all Dad did to her and her friends over the years."

Mr. Zabini shot his son a harsh look. "We'll not discuss that at the table," he said sternly.

Blaise shrank back into his chair slightly. "I didn't mean…"

"Blaise darling, that's enough," Mrs. Zabini said softly, "Now, let's finish eating."

Hermione looked around at her family as breakfast was finished in silence. She watched her brother for a moment, noticing the slightly hurt look on his face. When he looked up at her, she smiled warmly at him, receiving a smile in return. It made her slightly sick to think that he felt he had to put on a crude front when in the presence of their school mates just because of their father's status as a Death Eater. He's such a sweet guy. He shouldn't have to pretend to be something he's not!

Twenty minutes later, Hermione was sitting at her desk with several pieces of parchment in front of her, busily writing responses. In order to lighten Callidora's load, she decided to write a single letter to Ron, Harry, Ginny, and Mrs. Weasley. She quickly finished writing all of her responses, leaving Draco's unanswered for the time being.

In all honesty, she wasn't exactly sure of what to say to him. His letter had been so kind, so heartfelt, and so utterly untrue to character that she wanted to respond properly. So, with no other letters to respond to, she tied them to Callidora's outstretched leg and gave her instructions of where to take them. As soon as Callidora left the room, Hermione stood and went to find some shoes that were a bit more comfortable to wear for her long day of shopping.

"Hermione?"

"Yes?"

"Sorry, your door was open and…"

Hermione came out of her closet and sat down on her bed to put her sneakers on. "No need to apologize, Blaise," she said, "What's up?"

He pulled out her desk chair and sat down. "Something's been bothering me since your transformation this morning," he told her.

She looked at his face and furrowed her brow. "You're wondering why a spell was cast on me to change my appearance," she guessed.

Blaise gave her a strange look as he said, "How did you know what I was thinking?"

Hermione shrugged and gave him a thoughtful look. "I… I'm not sure," she said with wonder in her voice.

"Weird," Blaise stated with a shake of his head, "So, why was a spell cast on you if you were taken to the Muggles because of an illness?"

She finished putting on her sneakers and got more comfortable on the bed. "I wish I knew," she lied.

He narrowed his azure eyes at her. He didn't know how, or why, but he knew she was lying. "You're keeping something from me," he noted.

Something about the way he was staring at her made her feel as though he was reading her mind. She took a deep breath and sighed heavily. "Blaise, please don't press me on this," she pleaded, "As much as I would love to tell you everything I know about why I was taken to live with my parents, for your own safety, I can't."

The slight tremor of fear in her voice gave him cause to believe her. He also sensed that whatever the reason, it was dangerous. "Okay," he relented, "I'll accept that, for now."

Hermione stood and gave him a hug. A slight tingle went through her spine as he hugged her back. "Whoa, did you feel that?" Blaise asked, pulling back.

She nodded. "That was very strange."

"Blaise! Hermione!" Mrs. Zabini called.

The twins jumped at their mother's call and grinned at each other. Blaise took Hermione's hand as he said, "Come on! We'd better hurry or else Mum will send a search party for us!"

Hermione giggled and allowed him to pull her along behind him. She could still feel the tingling in her spine, but she ignored her curiosity about it for the time being. She did, however, make a mental note to look into it later.

Diagon Alley was as busy as ever. Hermione stayed close to Blaise as they made their way through the busy streets. She had never been one that liked to be stared at, so she was rather uncomfortable with the curious stares that followed her wherever she went. It wasn't until they stepped into Flourish and Blott's that Hermione broke away from her brother and mother.

As they were roaming through the many aisles, picking up the books she and Blaise would need for school, Hermione noticed a young man with extremely untidy black hair and round glasses. She smiled brightly and rushed over to him. "Harry!" she exclaimed.

Harry turned to face her and looked at her in confusion. "Hermione?"

"Well who else would it be?" she asked, giving him a strange look.

Harry's green eyes widened. "Blimey! You look… different," he stammered, taking in her long black hair and green eyes.

"I…? Oh! A bit of a change isn't it?" she asked, realizing why he had looked at her so strangely.

"I'll say," Harry agreed, smiling, "Are you here with your family then?"

Hermione nodded. "My mother and brother," she replied, "It's weird saying 'brother' after being an only child all my life."

"I can imagine. Happy birthday, by the way."

"Thank you," Hermione said, "and thanks very much for the book, it's lovely."

Harry grinned. "Thought you might like it," he said, "So how's life as a Zabini?"

"It's not so bad, I guess," she told him, "They're actually a pretty decent lot. So are you here alone?"

"Are you kidding? Mrs. Weasley wouldn't hear of that."

Hermione giggled. "Of course not," she said, looking around.

"Yeah, Ginny's in here somewhere."

Just then, a beautiful girl with flaming red hair bounced up to them. "Harry, have you got all your books yet, we're supposed to meet Mum in a few minutes," she said, eyeing Hermione carefully, "And who's this?"

Hermione and Harry giggled. "It's Hermione, Ginny," Harry said.

Ginny's eyes widened. "My God, I didn't recognize you!" she exclaimed, pulling Hermione into a hug.

"I think that's going to happen a lot for a while," Hermione said with a giggle, "Harry didn't recognize me either."

"Can you blame us?" Harry retorted playfully, "You look…"

"Absolutely gorgeous," Ginny cut in.

"Hermione, Mum's paying," Blaise said, coming up behind her, "We've still got a lot to do."

Harry's eyes narrowed slightly, "Zabini."

"Potter," Blaise replied coolly.

Hermione looked between the two and rolled her emerald eyes. "Now really you two," she said, elbowing them both lightly.

Blaise looked at her. "What? He started it!" he said.

Sensing that Harry was about to light a fire to Blaise with his eyes, Hermione put her hand on her brother's chest and pushed him a bit. "Blaise, why don't you give us just a minute and I'll come find you."

Blaise nodded. "All right, but don't be long, Mum's on a mission."

"All right, I'll be right there."

Suddenly, Ginny grabbed her hand and held it up. "You're not wearing a ring," she stated.

Hermione tucked a loose strand of her hair behind her ear and bit her lip. "Um… Well, that's because I gave it back to Draco."

"Why? Are you not going through with the marriage?"

"No, it's nothing like that," Hermione began, "We've just decided to take some time to get to know each other before we decide anything."

"I don't understand why you're even considering it," Harry said, "If I were you, I'd be fighting tooth and nail to get out of it."

"To be honest, I'm not sure I understand, either, but it's the decision Draco and I made. I know it's a lot to process, believe me, I'm still trying myself."

Harry arched his brow. "But Hermione, this is Malfoy we're talking about. How can you trust him?"

Ginny elbowed him in the ribs. "Harry, stop pestering her!" she chided.

Hermione shook her head and held up her hand. "No, Ginny, it's all right," she said, "Harry's just being a concerned friend."

She took a deep breath. "I know that none of this makes sense, and I know that Draco Malfoy isn't exactly trustworthy, but he and I came to an agreement. Harry, please, even if you don't agree with my choices, I'm asking that you respect them, the way any good friend would."

Harry hung his head. "You're right, Hermione, and I'm trying, really I am," he said, "It's just so hard to grasp all of this."

"Try being the one it's actually happening to," Hermione chided him softly, "Ron seems to have taken the news fairly well."

Ginny giggled. "He's in a right state actually. Been stomping around the house ever since you told us the news," she said, "I think I heard him making a howler too. Even Luna couldn't calm him down."

Hermione groaned. If Ron really had written a howler, she was certain she knew who he had written it to. Speaking of Ron, Hermione could now see his freckled face making its way toward them. Curiosity seemed to be written all over his face as he got closer to them. "Ginny, Harry, I've been looking all over for you," he said, "Mum's waiting."

Hermione smiled at the tall redhead. "Hi Ron," she said.

Ron's eyes widened. "Bloody hell... Hermione is that you?"

Hermione nodded.

"So, you really are a Zabini then?"

"You make it sound like a disease," she said quietly.

Ron shrugged, trying his best not to look at her, "Isn't it?"

Ginny and Harry's jaws dropped. They had known that Ron wasn't happy about Hermione's new family or the possibility that she'd be marrying Malfoy, but they had never expected him to be so openly cruel to their friend.

Hermione's expression hardened as she took her wand from her pocket. "Now you listen here, Ronald Weasley!" she said, taking a step toward him and gripping her wand tight, "Just because you don't like my family, or my potential fiancé, doesn't give you the right to suddenly change your opinion about me! I didn't ask for this to happen and even though my looks and last name have changed, it doesn't mean I'm not the same person you've known since first year!"

She discreetly pointed her wand at him. "And, in case you've forgotten, my wand work is still top notch, and I'm of age."

Ron's face went pink. "Hermione, I…"

Hermione turned to Ginny and Harry, completely ignoring Ron. "If you'll excuse me, I've got to get going," she said, "See you tonight?"

Ginny smiled. "We wouldn't miss it for the world," she said.

Hermione returned her smile and nodded. "See you later then," she said. She then turned and joined her mother at the cash register.

Ginny turned to her older brother and punched him in the arm. "Hey, what'd you go and do that for?" Ron asked, rubbing his arm where she had punched him.

"Honestly Ron! Did you ever stop to think how Hermione's handling all this?" she questioned, "She goes nearly seventeen years believing she's someone she's not and on the same day she finds out who she really is, she finds out she's betrothed to boot. Really, you can be a complete tosh pot sometimes!"

If possible, Ron's face went even more pink. He honestly hadn't thought of that at all. He watched as one of his best friends made her way out the door of the shop with her new family and grew angry at himself. How could I have been such an arse, he thought? He then made a mental note to apologize to her that night.

"Oi, Draco!"

Draco turned around to see a very hefty, yet muscular, Crabbe making his way toward him. "So it's true then?" Crabbe asked when he reached him.

"Is 'what' true?" Draco questioned.

"You're marrying the Mud-Blood, Granger?"

"Well she isn't really a Mud-Blood if she's Blaise's twin sister, is she?" Draco said pointedly.

Confusion showed in Crabbe's fat face as he thought about what Draco had just said. "So, you're marrying her then?"

Draco sighed. "I'm thinking about it."

"Why?"

He shifted his packages. "It's none of your business. All you need to know is that my father, and Hermione's, made an agreement before we were born that she and I would be married."

"I feel sorry for you mate."

"It's not the end of the world, Crabbe."

"Wait, what about Astoria?" Crabbe questioned.

Draco smirked. "I was supposed to end things with her, but I haven't."

Crabbe laughed. "Didn't want to give up the shagging, huh?"

"That's about the long and short of it," Draco agreed.

Crabbe pointed to the parcel under his arm. "What's that?"

"Dress robes for Blaise and Hermione's party tonight."

"Oh, your Mum forcing you to buy new robes again, eh?"

"As usual," he replied, "Well, I should be going. I've got some things left to buy before I head home. You know how my parents are if I'm late for anything."

Crabbe nodded. "Right, well I'll see you later then."

"You're coming tonight, then?"

"Yeah. Wouldn't be right to miss Blaise's Coming of Age."

"Right then, see you later," and with that, Draco turned and headed down the street in search for the perfect gift for his closest friend.

As he wandered down the busy streets of Hogsmeade looking in the shop windows, he was distracted by the sight of a very familiar blonde walking a short distance ahead of him. He quickened his pace and easily caught up to her. "Fancy seeing you here," he said.

The blonde spun and nearly slammed into him. "Oh!" she said with mild shock. She then smiled brightly and hugged him. "Draco, I wasn't expecting you!"

Draco returned her hug and tilted her head up for a kiss. "You know me, I like surprising you, Astoria."

She giggled as she let him kiss her. "Seems to me you're just as surprised as I am."

"You caught me."

Astoria looked over the packages he was carrying. "Shopping for school?"

"The Zabini twins' birthday party, actually," he answered.

She nodded and looked thoughtful. "Ah yes, Blaise and the prodigal daughter. Rumor has it she's been living under the care of a Muggle couple due to some rare illness."

Draco nodded. "That's what they say." He grew very serious for a moment before saying, "Speaking of Hermione…"

"Yes?"

He took her hand and led her over to an empty bench. They sat down and Draco cleared his throat. "Listen, I've been trying to figure out a way to talk to you about this…"

Astoria squeezed his hand. "Draco, just spit it out."

"My parents, and Hermione's, arranged for Hermione and I to be married."

She furrowed her brow and cocked her head to the side. "How long have you known about this engagement?"

"Not long, but it's something my parents have had planned for me since before I was born."

"I see," she said, looking miffed, "And where does that leave us?"

"Right now, it leaves us exactly where we are," Draco told her, "Hermione and I have made an agreement that we'll get to know each other. Our engagement isn't set in stone."

"But it's possible."

"Yes."

Astoria stood, looking down at him. "I don't like this, Draco, but I'll play along for now. I've been invited to Blaise's party," she told him, "but under the circumstances, I'm not sure if I'll go."

Draco took her hand. "Please don't be angry with me," he pleaded, "Come to the party tonight, please."

"Well," she took a step closer to him and gave him a sexy smirk, "you know I've never been able to resist when you beg."

She leaned down and kissed his lips briefly. "I've got to go, Mother's waiting for me. I'll see you tonight."

"Bye."

Draco watched as she walked away. Blast my father for arranging a marriage with the Zabinis! He took a deep breath and shook himself from his thoughts. There was a lot he needed to do and he knew that he'd never get everything done if he didn't focus on his tasks. As he passed a small shop with several ancient trinkets in the window, his eyes caught sight of something that made his mood perk up. That would be perfect for Blaise, he thought as he entered the shop.

A few moments later, he walked out of the shop with the small trinket packaged up and cradled in his arm. Now to find something else for Hermione. Can't go to her party without a gift.

Author's Note- Hi all! I hope you've been enjoying the story so far! I'd love to hear your thoughts! How are you liking Hermione's sisterly relationship with Blaise? What do you think that tingling they felt was all about? Thanks so much for reading! Let me know how you're liking, or not liking, the story by leaving a comment in the box below! Until next time!