A/N: I'm writing this before I publish Chapter Three, so I don't even know if you guys reviewed the last chapter, but I hope you did! Continue to send me your feedback! Also, if you guys have any wedding details that you want specifically for a Dramione wedding, feel free to drop them in the review and I will include them in the wedding chapter, which will be in a couple of chapters from now.

Disclaimer: I write things that are not Harry Potter, and thus this is not my stuff.

Chapter Four: Maintaining Virtue

"Do you, Harry James Potter, take Ginevra Muriel Weasley to be your lawfully wedded wife, to honor and love as long as you both shall live?"

"I do," Harry said, squeezing Ginevra's hands gently.

Draco, seated beside Hermione, squeezed her hand, mirroring the movement of Harry and Ginevra only a few feet away. She turned to him, tears shining in her eyes, and Draco felt himself smile against his will. She turned back to her friends, and Draco let his eyes roam on her profile, greedily drinking in her appearance. Her corset was laced so tight that her breasts were spilling over the bodice, and Draco often found that he could barely take his eyes off her chest.

Gentlemen were not supposed to have this problem. He forced himself to look back up to her face. She had tears freely falling down her porcelain cheeks now, smearing the light pink rouge on her cheeks. Her hair, normally long and wild, was piled up in a clip, exposing her neck, the strong muscles tensed every time she turned her head.

He exhaled in a huff, and she turned to him expectantly. He made long eye contact, and her eyes fluttered sweetly. He almost groaned. She was so innocent, so pristine, and he couldn't stop himself from thinking of the very real probability of defiling that perfection. He turned away from her before he could do anything stupid, but he could feel her eyes on him.

It looked like Ginevra's manipulation had worked. She felt more than beautiful in the heavy, soft dress that Draco had bought for her, and felt her face flush every time Draco turned his eyes to her. His gaze was heating her up from the inside, and she was afraid that if she spent too much time in his presence, she would faint.

He was so handsome, his perfectly tailored black dress robes with a purple trim matching her dress perfectly, his white blonde hair slicked back with the sides shaved short. His lips were narrow, like his nose, and pursed into an expression that looked like discomfort. His eyes, grey as slate, blinked once, twice, three times in a row, fluttering the long white eyelashes there.

He looked like he was carved from white marble, a portrait of an angel that fell from heaven.

"Stop looking at me," he whispered out of the corner of his mouth. Hermione almost jumped and turned away from him. He hastened to reassure her, "I can't handle you looking at me when you look that beautiful," he said quietly. "I don't want to be improper and do something that you're uncomfortable with."

Hermione felt the heat rise in her again and had to force herself not to fan her face. She squeezed his hand tightly, lacing her fingers between his. He felt his face heat up in response. He shifted uncomfortably in his chair.

Suddenly, Ginevra Weasley was Ginevra Potter, and Harry was kissing his bride, and the ceremony was over, leaving Draco and Hermione in an uncomfortable silence going into the dance that immediately succeeded the ceremony. Hermione, unsure of what to do, stood quickly and excused herself, practically running from Draco.

She was a proper woman, Draco thought, and would be highly uncomforted by his statement. They dueled together, but she didn't like him like that. She had been engaged to Ronald Weasley, for Merlin's sake, it was obvious that Draco was not her type. He struggled to contain his disappointment. He was doomed to be married to a woman he was hopelessly attracted to that was not attracted to him.

Hermione, meanwhile, was searching desperately for Ginevra. Finally, she found her, hugging members of her distant family.

"Ginny," she whispered harshly. Ginevra turned to her, her face positively glowing, and gave her a knowing smile. "I need your help."

"Just kiss him," Ginevra said simply. "That's my help."

Hermione paused. "But…"

Ginevra sighed and grabbed Hermione's arm. "I saw the way he looked at you. I see the way you look at him. Once you initiate anything, you will dictate where it stops. You don't have to be entirely improper," she said, her eyebrows wiggling, "but it is immensely fun."

"Ginevra Weasley!" Hermione burst out, her face flushing.

"It's Ginevra Potter now, and that's part of the reason why," she said significantly. "You two are going to be married forever, you might as well start having fun now."

Hermione felt panic seize her chest. "But what if I'm not ready?"

Ginevra's superior smile faded into a sincere one. "Kiss him, Hermione, and you decide if you want to do anything else. But you want to kiss him, and you'll feel better when you do."

Hermione closed her eyes and exhaled, trying to gather courage.

"Besides, you're a Gryffindor," Ginevra said, squeezing her hand. "Be brave."

Hermione laughed mirthlessly as Ginevra moved on to her brothers, who took turns giving her congratulatory hugs. Hermione gave them a half-hearted wave, excluding Ronald, before she turned to find her fiancé.

He was waiting for her, holding a glass of sparkling champagne, one for her and one for him. His was already almost empty. He looked like his nerves were frayed to the breaking point.

"Are you alright, Hermione?" He asked, his eyes concerned.

She gave him a small smile and a nod. "Would you care to dance, Draco?" She asked.

He gave her an affronted look. "Excuse me, Miss Granger, I'm supposed to ask you to dance. Now, would you like to dance?" He asked, holding out his hand. Hermione laughed and took it.

The dance was one reserved for the bride and the groom, so no partners changed hands. Hermione caught Ginevra's eye over Harry's shoulder. Ginevra gave her a firm "do it" face, and Hermione looked back up into Draco's attentive grey eyes and felt her bravery waver and falter. She looked back for Ginevra and shook her head frantically.

Draco, who noticed their movements, moved his head slightly into Hermione's eye line to catch her attention. "Is everything okay?" He asked.

Hermione, caught off guard, nodded without thinking. He pursed his lips, not quite believing her. When he caught her eyes wandering again, he pulled her closer to his chest by the waist and whispered in her ear. "You're beginning to make me nervous, Hermione."

Her knees weakened momentarily, and she tightened her hold on his shoulder. He took that as a good sign and pressed his advantage. "You're going to make me think that you don't want to be around me," he said, lowering his voice so it was nothing more than a quiet rumble in her ear that echoed to her chest.

He felt her exhale and snuck a peek at her face. Her eyes were closed, her lower lip caught in her teeth. "You do want to be around me, right?" He asked. She whimpered in response, and Draco felt success in his hands.

"Of course," she said after a second.

Draco slowly stopped their leisurely dancing. "Hermione," he whispered. "Look at me."

She pulled away to better see his face.

"What's wrong?" He asked, knowing very well what was wrong. Or rather, what wasn't wrong.

Instead of answering, Hermione snaked her arms around his neck and pulled him to her. Her lips were hesitant and he was sure they were trembling, but he didn't care. He cupped her face gently and tilted her chin up for better access and kissed her deeply and softly all at once. Aware of their surroundings, he quickly pulled away. She fluttered her brown eyes open, and Draco had to look over her shoulder so he wouldn't get distracted by her heaving chest.

"I'm sorry," she said quietly.

"For what?" He asked.

"I was trying to be brave," she answered.

He almost laughed out loud. "That was very brave, Hermione, but you know what would be even more brave?"

She stared up at him with her big doe eyes. "What?"

He grabbed her hand and tugged her off the dance floor. He glanced back for a second, feeling eyes on him, and locked eyes with the new Mrs. Potter. She winked, and he mouthed "Thank you."

He led her to the gardens, where they could be surrounded by the flowers that he realized Hermione loved so much. He led her to a particularly lush place, full of pale roses and dark green ivy, and finally turned to her.

"Now that we're alone…" he trailed off. She looked, if possible, even more terrified than she did on the dance floor, and Draco found himself feeling guilty. "I'm not trying to make you do anything you're uncomfortable with, Hermione," he assured her. "I just wanted to be able to kiss you without being gauche in front of the whole Weasley family. I figured you didn't want Ron to see that."

She smiled. "You're right."

He tilted his head to smile at her. "I didn't know you felt that way about me."

She lowered her eyes.

"Are you ashamed that you feel those things for me?" Draco asked, almost afraid of the answer.

"You were my enemy," she answered, as if that explained everything.

Draco smirked. "Yes, and now I'm your fiancé. Things change."

Hermione nodded. "I suppose you're right. But it's a new feeling for me."

Draco raised his eyebrows. "Affection for me? Or…something else?"

She didn't respond. Draco decided to press his advantage. He stepped closer to her, pressing her gently into the wall of the garden. She complied, her eyes locked on his the whole time.

"What exactly do you feel for me, Hermione?" He asked. "Affection?"

She didn't answer. He placed a hand softly on her waist and trailed the hand slowly up her bodice. "Attraction?" He asked tentatively. He trailed his hand even higher on her ribcage, eliciting a sharp inhale from her. He stopped his hand. "Infatuation?" His hand resumed his movements, reaching, without an answer, to the top of her breasts. He slowly traced the delicate skin there. She did not answer the question, but a small breath tumbled out of her mouth, a soft encouragement.

He ceased his questions and studied her face in the dim light, her eyes closed, mouth parted, hands fisted in his jacket. This was his future wife. He felt himself harden and closed his eyes against his arousal, trying to squash it. He would not pressure her to give up her virtue before their wedding night. But he could definitely kiss her before that, right?

He managed to sneak closer to her while her eyes were closed and pressed his warm mouth to hers. She jumped slightly in surprise, but responded immediately with a vigor that made him, if possible, even more aroused than he was a moment before. He groaned into her and slipped his warm tongue into her mouth, exploring the sweet taste of her. She was sighing sweetly against everything he did, and he had to quickly pull himself away from her deliciousness before he got carried away.

"I'm sorry," he breathed, pressing his forehead against hers. "I'm sorry, but we should stop."

She opened her eyes, somehow even brighter in the darkness, and he felt her magic press against him, a specific change in the atmosphere that made her, if possible, even sexier than she was before. "But I don't want to stop," she whispered.

Her magic was heightening her senses. "Your magic," he said, unable to think straight while he was looking into her depthless eyes while he still remembered what her soft skin felt like in his hands.

"My magic what?" She asked again, her voice dipping low. She reached out a hand and slid her hand under his jacket, the warmth of her skin getting closer to his own. He felt his resolve weaken once more and growled, pushing himself closer to her so she could feel exactly what she was doing to him. She gasped in response, but didn't push him away.

"I'm gonna…Manor," he gasped out, groping for his wand. She nodded, pressing her lips to the junction of his throat, and he was suddenly worried about Splinching them.

But they made it, appearing silently in his chambers at the Manor, and she was pulling him to the large four-poster bed. He shook his head, trying to shake clear the clouds that her magic was putting there, dark lustful thoughts.

"Stop, stop for a second," he said. "You don't want to do this, Hermione."

She was leaning back on his pillows, her breasts presented to him so beautifully he almost damned himself and jumped on top of her. "Why not?"

"Do you really want to do this before you get married?" He asked. "Give up your virtue?"

She didn't answer, and the more he looked at her, the less he cared about her answer or his reservations. But he resolved not to have sex with her. Instead, he lowered himself to her body reverently, kissing her neck and the tops of her breasts gently before pushing up her skirts. She gasped when his hands touched her bare legs, and bucked her hips when his hands strayed anywhere close to her thighs. He chuckled at her beautiful responsiveness.

Everything he did was the right thing. Her soft moans and sighs were igniting a fire in his veins that he couldn't put out. He clutched at her like he was afraid he might fly away. He kissed her calf as if it was the most precious thing he had ever found. She shivered.

"What are you doing?" She asked, suddenly self-conscious. Draco pulled himself up to her and gently pushed her back into the pillows.

"Shh, just lie back," he soothed. "I will not take your virtue, but that doesn't mean I can't give you pleasure that you deserve."

She looked terrified, her bravery diminishing. He kissed her fiercely and passionately. "Do you trust me?" He asked delicately. She nodded. "Then just lie back."

She settled back into the pillows as he lowered himself back to her exposed legs. He peppered kisses up her calf, lingering on the inside of her knees. He suckled the untouched skin of her thighs, feeling the desperation of his arousal in his pants at her response, and slowly teased his way to her soft center. His tongue darted out to lick the perfect skin there, and she moaned his name. He felt himself tremble at the sound, and licked her a little faster in appreciation.

Her hands tangled themselves in her hair, and he reverently licked and sucked her sensitive bud, eliciting more beautiful sounds from her breathless mouth. He could feel her muscles tighten next to him, and slowly massaged her thighs, soothing her.

"Just let go, Hermione," he whispered against the soft skin of her thigh. "Let go."

He licked her slowly again, gradually increasing speed and pressure until her sounds all but stopped while she held her breath.

"Breathe, sweetheart, breathe," he said. The time it took him to speak caused her to moan unhappily at the lack of contact, and he gave a throaty chuckle before continuing. She shuddered a sigh and he felt her muscles tighten and he moaned against her in anticipation. He gently traced her with his finger and teased her opening softly, causing her to shatter against his mouth. Her body shivered and he released her legs to caress her breasts while she came for the first time.

By the time she was coherent again, he was beside her, tracing small designs into her arm. She turned to him, her face already flushed, and he held up a hand before she could speak.

"I don't want to hear apologies," he said. "I know, even in your magic-clouded mind, that you don't want to lose your virtue. So I saved it for you." He pressed a kiss to her mouth. "But that felt good, right?" He asked, suddenly self-conscious.

She let out an almost hysterical laugh, covering her face with her hands, and when she moved them away, there were tears in her eyes.

"What have you done?" She asked, giggles still falling from her mouth. Draco, suddenly frightened, sat up straight in the bed, but she pulled him closer to her. "No no, I mean, I'm crying and I don't know why."

"It's the endorphins, I suppose," Draco answered weakly. "Holy Merlin, I was scared."

Hermione turned on her side and cuddled into his torso. "Thank you for respecting me, even when I didn't know it," she said softly. Draco didn't answer, but kissed her forehead and stroked her hair until she drifted off to sleep. He would let her sleep for a while before he took her home, he thought reasonably as he drifted off to sleep alongside her.