A/N: Edited April 13, 2016
Day 276 Continued
She sat staring at the bold-faced letters of the invitation, the names scratched across decorative parchment in elegant scrawl. She had discarded this particular piece of paper ever since Ron visited ten days ago. Beforehand it was a thought in the back of her mind, something she only vaguely thought about for the briefest moments of time.
"Are you going to go?" he asked, stepping from the bathroom. Draco left her alone in his bed a short time ago, having dropped the forgotten invitation in her lap before his shower. "It might be awkward."
"Ron convinced Lavender to invite me to the wedding because I'm one of his best friends," she muttered, her voice foreign sounding even to her own ears. "She didn't want me to go, but in the end they sent it anyway - even if it was sent very late. How could I have possibly forgotten about their wedding? Ron was here mentioning it not so long ago."
"He was also busy having conflicting emotions," Draco grumbled, his shirt half buttoned. He didn't miss the way her eyes danced across him dreamily, nor how they flinted to his tattoo should be for the briefest of moments, for it was once again hidden beneath a glamour spell.
"Everyone is going to be there," Hermione sighed. "Reporters, my friends - everyone I've been avoiding since getting out of Azkaban. I don't know if I can handle all those people."
"You won't be the center of attention at someone else's wedding Hermione, and even if you were Brown would surely throw you out for stealing her limelight. Go as a guest, if you think you can stomach seeing Weasley."
"I'm not repulsed by my friend Draco," she said, setting the letter aside. "I'm disappointed in how he handled a sensitive topic, when he knows he doesn't love me anymore. But if he's going through with his wedding then I can only hope that he told Lavender the truth. It'll be bad if she discovers this later down the road. She does have a temper."
"So I've heard."
Standing from the bed she straightened her pajamas, casting a look towards his closet. "I'm going."
"Seriously? You forgot about the date completely. I only reminded you because I knew you'd kill me if I didn't. Why would you want to go to this bloody wedding? I mean, the theme is purple."
"Cliché as it is Draco, I would like to be there on my friend's wedding day. I don't want to stay long, and certainly we'll disappear shortly after the ceremony to avoid speaking to literally everyone, but I want to be there to support him. At least he's happy enough in his relationship to wed. The Lavender I knew in sixth year would never make it as his wife, but the hard, defensive Lavender I met back in my hospital room will be good for him. I think they'll work together well."
"Perhaps you're right. But, correct me if I am wrong Hermione, but I keep hearing something about we."
"Yes, we - as in, you and me. We're going to the wedding."
"Why am I going?" he snapped, eyes widening in horror. "Weasley will die if he sees me there - actually, maybe I want to go after all."
Hermione rolled her eyes at him, crossing her arms over her chest. "I do have a guest invitation, and I would like you to be mine. Come on Draco, you took me to that fancy dinner last night!"
"That's completely different; you actually liked that!"
"Then pretend to like this," she giggled, smiling. "The wedding is at four, which gives us plenty of time to prepare. I can even help you organize, and we can talk about Malfoy Corporations before we have to really start getting ready."
He shook his head, looking at the woman across from him. "You really go a billion miles an hour when you're feeling well, don't you?"
He smirked, watching as she downed her fourth glass of champagne without batting an eye. Hermione was clearly uncomfortable with all the attention aimed her way now that cocktail hour had ensued, and he was more than a bit amused by her discomfort.
"Didn't people used to gawk at you before you disappeared?"
"Not this much," she grumbled unhappily, grabbing his hand as they stepped back into the shadows, away from the crowd. "Besides, for once you're getting stares too."
"I'm a Slytherin, ex-Death Eater at Weasley's wedding. Of course people are staring at me. I hardly blend in."
"You never blend in," she sighed, glancing at the people around them. "Look, we've talked to plenty enough people and we've managed to avoid reporters. Lavender and Ron even said hello to us, and they smiled. I've accomplished what I needed to. Let's get out of here. I don't want to keep avoiding all of her curious friends."
He nodded, setting aside his own beverage. "Of course. I figured you wouldn't want to stay long. And by all means, I don't want to be here any longer than I have to be. Some dolt asked if I still had the Dark Mark earlier. I nearly hexed him."
Despite her nerves, Hermione smiled slightly at the humor in his statement as they made their way towards the exit. She had seen Harry and Ginny in passing, but said little to them before or after the wedding. They were busy being the maid of honor and best man, and she didn't want to bother them during pictures. It was easiest to escape while everything was going smoothly. She could owl them tomorrow about the wonderful event. After all, Ron and Lavender looked too happy at the moment. She wouldn't interrupt the wedding to bother him, no sir. She could do that in a letter, and he best not lie if he knew what was good for him.
They were nearly out of the wedding, her patience with perturbing questions running thin when they were halted by someone carrying a camera. She cringed, knowing instantly who was behind the lens.
Dennis Creevey. He started photography after Colin died - or at least that was what Ginny told her initially. He was barely mentioned since her return, brushed over in conversation and nothing more. She wasn't excited about seeing him now.
"Hermione," he said, striking a smile as he took a quick photo of them together. In the lens she caught Draco's reflection, annoyed and brooding.
"Dennis," she said kindly, smiling. It wasn't part of the plan to be stopped halfway to her destination, and if she remembered anything about Dennis at all he was such a chatterbox.
"Great to see you," he said, finally pulling back to properly shake her hand. He looked well, glancing between the duo. "I was taking some photos of Ron and Lavender for Witch Weekly-"
"You work for that abomination of a magazine?" she asked, positively horrified. That print was nothing but gossip, and if he reported anything like Skeeter did she doubted a thing was true.
"I do indeed, got a job just after the war. I've been working there for months. Say, could I get a spread on you for the magazine? My editor would love that!"
She cringed, pushing the camera down when he raised it again. "No Dennis, thank you. I'm not interested in talking to the press about my time in Azkaban. There's really nothing to report, so if you excuse me-"
"So are the rumors fake then?" he pressed, stepping in her way when she tried to move. Surprised she stopped, glancing back at Draco who was suddenly getting off the wall in a hurry.
"What rumors?" she asked, having never been properly told what exactly people speculated upon her return. She crossed her arms tightly over her chest, glaring at him. "I never heard of any rumors."
Dennis' eyes shifted to Draco briefly, who placed a hand gently on her shoulders as the reporter spoke again. "No one enlightened you? Blimy! I thought at least Harry and Ron-"
"What rumors Dennis?" she pressed, ignoring Draco's tightening grip on her shoulder. She shook him off, looking just as determined as before.
He looked uncomfortable briefly, fidgeting with his camera. "Well, everyone knows security at Azkaban has taken a pitfall, and you were there a long time alone…"
"Get to the point Dennis," she snapped, ignoring Draco's protesting hand. "What are people saying about me?"
Shrugging, he realized she really had no idea. "Some people said you lost your mind, especially since you returned and then had a stint and ran away from the reporters. Others thought Malfoy manipulated you," he continued, glancing again at the furious blond behind her, "but there were other dark rumors too, less pleasant rumors."
"Like?"
"Well, like I said security has gotten shitty. People can't get out of the prison, but cells aren't as secure as they maybe once were. And when you came back reports were made about your condition, people made estimations about your cell and well people's minds wandered…"
"Wandered to what Dennis?" she asked, flexing her fingers. She was starting to get tense. His explanations were beginning to sound a lot like the fears Draco shared concerning her wellbeing after Azkaban.
"Well if you were alone and wandless… and someone got into your cell-"
"I get the picture," she interjected quickly, holding up a hand. "It's great to know that's what everyone thinks when they look at me."
"Well not everyone-"
"Enough people," she snapped, stepping past him. "Thank you for enlightening me Dennis!"
She stormed down the path, irritated beyond words as she left the wedding. Her concerns about seeing her friends and asking Ron if he told his wife the ugly truth dashed away as her mind clouded, Dennis' words filling up her head.
"Hermione," Draco called, following her rushed footsteps. He caught up easily, grasping her hand only to have her whirl around on him.
"Is this why no one let me see the papers!?" she seethed, glaring at him. "When was someone going to come out and tell me that Britain thinks something awful happened to me in there?"
He held up his hands, slightly afraid to get any closer to her in such an angry state. "It didn't seem… relevant. You had to heal and deal with people who you actually cared about, not worry about what everyone in the fucking country thinks of you."
"It would have been nice to at least know. I thought those were just your fears Draco from the personal experience you had there. I didn't realize it was just the headline to stir up everyone's emotions in some bogus paper."
"Hermione-"
"You should have told me." She snapped, hands on her hips. "I have a right to know. Or at the very least someone could have shown me the articles! Instead everyone kept me in the dark. Now I know why the reporters are so antsy to get a statement, people want to know if I was raped!"
He stopped her then, firm hands pressed gently to her upper arms. "Enough. You were healing, and only recently have you stated acting like your former self. No one told you because you didn't need the extra baggage. And for the record, your friends made a statement on your behalf about the rumors shortly after your return. They verified you weren't assaulted. People like Dennis whatever are just trying to get some sort of story out of you over something that didn't even happen. There hasn't been gossip about that for months Hermione."
She relaxed slightly in his arms, his hands still firm on her. "It just bothers me that no one told me. Maybe people aren't just staring at me because I came back from the dead, but also because of foul rumors like that."
Shrugging, he pulled her closer to his body, practically hugging the short girl. "People can think whatever they want. You're very strong, and you're doing just fine without the negativity those stories exude. The topic has been bypassed by now; it's a thing of the past. Don't let his words bother you now."
Hermione smiled then, relaxing against his hard body. "I suppose your right. I mean, I must seriously be out of my mind right now! I didn't let some bullshit article affect me when I was in fourth year, so why the hell should a couple of lies bother me now?"
"It's a much more sensitive topic," he muttered into her hair, fingers lightly tracing over her back. She sighed, content there for a moment, just letting him hold her close in his safe, loving embrace.
Loving Hermione, really?
He pulled away, giving her his trademark smirk. "I think someone took a few shots of us."
"Really?" she asked, glancing about as a blush tainted her cheeks. "Who?"
"It doesn't matter," he whispered, resting his forehead against hers. "Someone was bound to when we decided to attend together. Looks like you're going to be the star of a bit more gossip."
"I think I can handle some makeshift stories about a blossoming relationship between us," she giggled, her fingers lacing through his. "There are far worse things people could write about me."
He understood the depth of her words, and his expression softened just a hair. Testing his boundaries he leaned forward, kissing her opening in public - on the cheek. A blush stained her cheeks nonetheless.
"Let's go back home," he whispered, looping an arm through hers. She leaned in close to his body, happily taking in the warmth he provided against the brink air. He held her close, closer than he typically did. She would be a total liar if she said she didn't enjoy it.
"I didn't tell you because it hurts."
She paused mid sip, having nearly gotten to drink the steaming cup of tea in front of her. After their long day together all she wanted was a sense of normality, and that included their nightly tea - even if it was several hours too early.
"Beg pardon?"
Draco set his drink aside, sitting on the same sofa with her, their bodies touching lightly. He looked troubled as he spoke, as though it took effort to explain his simple sentence.
"The columns the newspaper printed about you? They were vulgar, before and after your return. Some turned you evil, yet others marveled you for the person you had always been. It was clear that no one actually knew the details of your situation, even after Potter and Weasley made a big show of defending you against the press upon your return."
She scooted closer, completely at awe that he was even sharing such details with her. Typically Draco was completely shut out and she had to pry to get him to answer her curious questions. To have him offer information up front was practically unheard of.
"Why didn't you just tell me?" she questioned. "Perhaps not at first if the articles were troubling, but at some point before this. I could have told you all the lies within the words."
He chuckled without humor, downing the drink in front of him quickly before continuing. "Those were my fears Hermione. I was afraid that the rumors about Azkaban, the traumatizing damage done - it could have all been true. The more we spent time together however, the more I learned about your time there and I knew there was no truth in the matter. Nothing happened to you that was any different from when I was there."
"So you had no need to present the papers to me?" she pressed, lips thinning into a line. "You learned that none of the rumors were true because we've been talking, and so you thought I didn't need to see what people gossiped about me."
"Part of me hoped you wouldn't care," he admitted truthfully, studying his floor with keen interest. "I hoped this would just be a surprise later in life, one that wouldn't anger and affect you. Since you're still trying to revert back into society I didn't press matters regarding the papers because they didn't seem important. After all, people have seen you handling yourself well in public. Most of the rumors are dashed now."
"I still have a right to see," she muttered, sipping her tea in the silence. "I mean, it is still about me."
Draco was silent for a long time, studying the coffee table now. Never did he think that an adventure out to a wedding would result in such an argument. Truth be told he never really did want to share the gruesome truth with her, but she was right - she had a right to know what was printed about her, even if he only sought to save her feelings.
"I can dig the articles up," he grumbled, startling her with the flip in conversation. "I can probably find the blasted things somewhere. Will you be satisfied if you read them?"
She frowned, not entirely sure why he was suddenly so bitter about her seeing them. Setting aside her forgotten drink she scooted closer, gently resting her hands atop his.
"Yes, I would be satisfied. You might have done it to protect me, but I still would like to know. I'm in a better state of mind than I used to be. I can handle it now."
Sighing, he rubbed the bridge between his nose. "Very well. I'll look for them tomorrow."
Hermione nodded, finally leaning back in her seat. He remained quiet for a long time after that, before excusing himself to his room. She stayed behind, staring at the two cold beverages in front of her.
It was a confusing night to say the least, and she didn't accomplish exactly what she set out to do. Tuesday held the same worries in her mind, and she was beginning to wonder exactly how a visit to Malfoy Corporations would go.
Day 278
Ron.
She had owled him yesterday morning, and still had no response. Clearly she was bothering the hell out of his honey moon but she desperately needed to know if he was being truthful with his brand new wife. It was hard to imagine him being so shady and cruel to someone he obviously loved, but he did slip and kiss her. She just wanted to ensure Lavender would be treated well.
How backwards was that from just two years before? Sixth year she would have done anything to make Lavender unhappy, and to keep her away from Ron.
"Ready?" she sighed, popping her head into Draco's room. He had been brooding since the wedding, his affections less kind and more robotic. Hermione desperately missed him holding her close at night, even if nightmares were scarce amongst her dreams these days. He kept his hands to himself recently, and often started the night facing away from her. She no longer felt extremely welcome in his room.
The nightly tea stopped. They hadn't sat down and taken the time to sip and talk in two days. Hermione missed that more than anything else between them. She missed their friendly, honest conversations.
He was hiding something, she was sure of it.
"As I'll ever be," he groaned. "Now Hermione, when we get there please stay close won't you? I know we've practiced some spells together, but you're still very out of practice with magic. Most everyone I have been able to think of who might be a problem was fired long before we started talking about the business. Still, I don't know if I missed a sinister person or two who might snap at the sight of you. Stay close until we get to my office."
"Why don't we just floo to your office?" she questioned, tilting her head.
"Well, I haven't exactly been to the office since I bought this place. From the Manor we could floo directly into the right room, but the floo network doesn't connect the office to this fireplace. We'll have to take the elevator on arrival."
She nodded, following his lead to the offices. Less than excited that he was being so overbearing about a simple trip out, she took a moment to gather herself before following in Draco's wake.
Stop being so tense. He's just worked up - something you haven't seen in a while. He'll get over his brooding mood soon, and then maybe he'll bloody smile again. I miss that stupid smile.
Her emotions were all over the place, conflicted with how to handle Draco. He really wasn't being that out of sorts, but just enough for her to notice. After all, it's not like his added affection was a requirement to this arrangement.
It's just my favorite bloody part.
Sighing she grabbed some powder, following Draco's lead to Malfoy Corporations. The longer she lingered behind the more she would worry him. He might start thinking something terrible happened to her, or she got bloody lost on the way.
Stop over thinking things Hermione. You're going to worry yourself to death at this rate, and it's only been two days!
Draco's business was nothing short of extravagant, just as Hermione suspected it would be. The bloody building was eight floors, spanning out over the length of an entire block, plus all the magic inside made it even bigger. She had already convinced herself that dark activity took place here during the war, especially with all of the rooms available.
Glancing over the papers in front of her she glared at Draco across the desk. He was doing his best not to watch her, and he was failing miserably.
"You've been avoiding this as long as possible," she said matter-of-factly, looking at papers from months ago. "Have you even attempted to come in and sort things out? Your secretary practically fell off his chair when we walked in."
"I haven't wasted my time trying to fix the problems here," he said with a shrug. "I hate this place, and when I could spend time at my home with you instead of idling away here I preferred it that way."
She blushed. Draco hadn't said anything so complimentary in days, his mood being too sour to say much at all. Apparently he noted the shift in atmosphere too, and dropped his eyes to the wood of the desk. Hermione cleared her throat awkwardly.
"Well… why don't you hook up the floo now for when we come back? I can take whatever seems necessary and we can go back to the flat. It'll be better anyway, and then you can help me sort through everything. I don't know all the employees, but you can go through the lists and remove anyone of dark nature."
He nodded thoughtfully, disappearing to the far side of the room to fix the floo. She moved to his side of the desk, ignoring the atmosphere around her as she gathered up what she needed. Shuffling through the papers she was a note drop, and reached for it only for her hand to pause over the paper.
Destroy magazine covers. Call Daily Prophet and Witch Weekly about vulgar comments and ridiculous assumptions. Make sure Potter's campaign to right her name is backed.
She glanced towards the blond, still working to connect the fireplaces, her fingers dancing over the slip of paper. Even before she was out of Azkaban, he was protecting her.
Hermione smiled. Draco cared for her, even if he didn't always show it. Scooting the note back so he could find it himself again later she collected the rest of the things she wanted to take, realizing he had been watching over her all along.
Draco really was sentimental towards her, and he'd probably die if she told someone that.
"Please don't roll away."
He frowned, glancing over at her as he prepared to sleep. She had set aside the paperwork not so long ago, and they were preparing to sleep. But her warm hand on his arm stopped his actions, causing him to arch an eyebrow at her.
"I'm getting comfortable."
A gentle pull to his arm convinced him to roll back to his back again, watching her keenly as she moved closer, snuggling hesitantly against his hard body.
"Stay this way," she sighed, closing her eyes as he gathered the blankets. "I like sleeping with you, not away from you."
Draco inhaled sharply, the scent of her body wash attaching his nose as he pulled her closer. No matter what he seemed to do, Hermione was always ready to pull him back towards her again, and remind him that someone out there really cared for him.
They sat together for a long time in silence, her rhythmic breathing soothing his mind, and the articles lay forgotten in the background of his thoughts. He gently kissed the top of her head, hearing her shift slightly at the action.
He kissed the side of her head, and she shifted again so she could sleepily look up at him. Their eyes met briefly, and he recalled how sweet those brown orbs always looked.
She leaned up, gently brushing her lips against his. Draco met the action, a hand moving to gently hold her head in place so they could kiss properly. Hermione inhaled quickly, her arm around his middle tightening as the kiss deepened.
The pair sat together, kissing feverishly as the night grew darker, and midnight passed as he peppered kisses along her jaw, lips, neck, anywhere to let her know how much he had desperately fallen in love with her.
The sheets became crumpled around their bodies as they kissed, and he slowly eased the process until she lulled to sleep against the softness of his kisses on her neck. For a long time after she passed out Draco lay there playing with her hair, simply watching her.
He felt exuberant. If he could kiss her all the time it would be perfect, and he would never have another problem in the world. Even when he was stressed or irritated she always found a way to relax him and make him feel different. This was an emotion Draco was not so familiar with.
Draco felt happiness. Hermione made him feel good about life, better about himself than anyone ever had.
Draco Malfoy was happy. Honest to Merlin, against the grain, happy.
A/n: I wanted to have this story finished by Christmas. Clearly that isn't going to happen. But perhaps as a New Year's gift? Send some thoughts through dearies! I would love to know what you think of the newest installment.
The next chapter maybe the last, I haven't decided yet. If not, then there will only be ten chapters total, but we'll see where the words take me. Thanks to everyone for being patient and sticking with this story! You guys are some amazing reviewers :)