Hello my lovely readers and reviewers,
I just wanted to let everyone know that I really appreciate those of you who review, and it really makes me smile, getting to read everything you all say! So if you enjoy the chapter, please feel free to let me know!
Secondly, and probably most importantly, I wanted to give a HUGE shout out to the best Beta in the entire world, the lovely "DZAuthor AKA DZMom". She is truly the best thing that's happened to me in, well, Ever! I just wanted to thank her big time for taking my story and I under her wing and turning it from Good to Great! Please, feel free to check her out, because she's truly a wonderful gal from what I can tell!
Lots of love,
Fallen
Hermione bustled out of her office, shouting a quick, "See you tomorrow!" to the people still lingering in their offices.
A chorus of "Goodbye Hermione" and the rare "Good day, Ms. Granger" followed her as she moved swiftly towards the lift at the end of the hallway. Granted, she wasn't exactly a speed racer, at least not while she was wearing four-inch stilettos. Let's just be honest. At best she could achieve a fast-paced walk, but heels like those simply weren't designed for anything more than that.
With a frustrated huff, she glanced at her watch. She was supposed to leave the office an hour early; to her dismay she discovered she was already twenty minutes behind schedule. She should have known it was absolutely useless to try to finish the last two pages of the report she'd spend the entire day writing. It was absolutely infuriating how much time she had spent trying not to think about Lucius and his disgustingly delicious smirk.
She sped up a little more, to make it to the lift before the doors closed and she would be forced to wait ten minutes for the next one to show up. She was only four feet from the elevator when she collided with what felt like a brick wall and found herself sitting on the floor, surrounded by scattered papers.
"Oh, I'm terribly sorry. This sort of thing always happens to me. Are you alright?" came a rather timid voice from above her.
Hermione glanced up, her eyes taking in the leggy brunette in a cute, romantic pink blouse with a black, high-waisted pencil skirt, and deep green eyes filled with concern. For some reason the girl looked rather familiar, but Hermione couldn't quite place her. It was rather odd.
"Are you alright, ?" the girl finally decided on, a blush slowly settling on her cheeks. Her fingers fumbled with the bottom of her shirt, her skirted away from any direct contact with Hermione's, and with a barely noticeable drop her shoulders shrunk inwards.
"Oh, yes. I'm sorry, you just look so familiar…" Hermione let the words trail, taking another glance at the girl in front of her, and it hit her like a punch to her gut. "Pansy Parkinson?" she inquired, trying to keep any judgment out of her voice. This was the girl who would be marrying her best friend, and as she'd learned with Lucius, people weren't always what they seemed.
The girl's blush only deepened, nodding her head carefully as her shoulders drooped even more, and her eyes cemented themselves to the floor. Clearly, she was waiting for some kind of verbal assault, no doubt already delivered to her by Ron. A week ago Hermione had no doubt she would have done just that. Fortunately for both of them, a lot can change in a week. If she was going to be stuck with the girl for the rest of their lives. She saw absolutely no point in ruining their relationship from the get-go. Better to put that particular ball in her court.
Unsure of how to start a conversation with the girl, she went for the most obvious question. "How are things with you and Harry going?"
"I'm so sorry. It was all a misunder-" She cut off mid-sentence, having only just realized what exactly Hermione had asked, and somehow Pansy managed to turn even redder. "Oh, um, things have been alright. He's a lot nicer than I expected him to be…especially after…well, everything…" she finished, awkwardly.
Hermione, from her vantage point on the floor, picked up the small smile spreading on Pansy's face when she talked about Harry. Maybe things weren't as bad as her friends and her had all assumed they would be."Yeah, Harry's like that. I don't think there's a person out there he couldn't find it in his heart to forgive."
Pansy smiled, though a bit nervously in return, offering Hermione a hand up. "Why are you being so nice to me? If you don't mind me asking, because Weasley didn't have a problem laying into me…"
Hermione took her hand, and allowed the girl to pull her up. "Well, truthfully, a week ago I probably would have made Ron look like a walk in the park, but I've realized since then that who people were in the past isn't always a good representation of who they are now. So, I figured I should at least give you a chance, because it wouldn't be very fair of me to give some people a chance but not others, if that makes sense." She said with a questioning tone, purposely cutting herself off before she started rambling.
"Well, can I just say that I'm glad we ran into each other today?" Pansy replied, a playful lilt to her voice.
Hermione laughed, surprising not only Pansy but herself as well. "I think you're entitled to that." She replied, glancing once more at her watch, "As much as I would actually love to talk, I'm already running late." Something Lucius is sure to plague me about for the next century or two.
Pansy nodded, offering a hand, this time to shake. "Of course, I completely understand. Hopefully, we'll be able to talk again sometime before we are all officially wed to our beaus."
Hermione smiled, giving the girl a firm but friendly handshake. "I hope so too." Much to my surprise, she thought,=, releasing the girls hand and giving one last smile before she moved into the lift, which had arrived right as they'd finished talking.
She gave the girl one last wave as the lift's doors closed, and then she was transported to the main atrium in the ministry. While she rode, she couldn't help thinking about how long it had been since she'd seen hide or tail of her two best friends, let alone any of her girl friends, excluding Ginny. Meeting Pansy had given her the idea of getting all the girls together to go dress shopping. It would give them time to bond. It would also have the dual purpose of finding wedding dresses, bridesmaid dresses and any other wedding accessories they would need to purchase. When I get home, I'll send an owl to Ginny, Luna, Pansy, Angelina, and Hannah.
She let the idea shift to the back of her mind, stepping out of the lift and moving across the room with all the speed she could muster. She didn't want anyone to try to stop her, which was bound to happen if she didn't make it to the floo before people had time to notice and recognize her. Even after six months, people still stopped her just to get to talk to one of the Golden trio, one of the main instruments in the end of the war, and of course, the brightest witch of her age. Which was flattering, but it was a huge problem when she actually needed to be some place or wanted a second to herself. Since someone was always interested in getting a piece of her for one reason or another, it was like her privacy had flown out the window. None the less, much to her relief she made it across the atrium and into the hallway containing the various entrances and exits to the ministry.
With a relieved sigh she walked into one of the open floos, grabbed a handful of floo powder and threw it down, shouting her apartment's location. She erupted a few moments later into her living room, and without pausing to cough –though she would have liked to- she rushed into her kitchen. She found a regal black owl sitting on her window sill, not that she was too surprised, but she still couldn't help the small shriek she let out. It was a fairly normal reaction if you asked her.
"Well, I guess Lucius noticed the fact that I'm almost an hour late," She commented to herself, reaching up to take the parchment from the owl's leg. Thankfully, it didn't bite her. Instead, it just regarded her with its beady eyes. "I see. You're just going to stare me to death until I reply. Aren't you just a bloody charmer," she mumbled to herself, before opening the roll of parchment to reveal Lucius' elegant scrawl.
Hermione,
I wish to inquire about the status of our dinner tonight. I understand if you are unavailable. Please let me know your plans the moment you can reply, because I would be loathe to miss the opportunity to see you again, my dear.
-Lucius M.
Hermione couldn't help the smile that blossomed on her lips. He was just so…Lucius. She quickly went into the living room to grab a piece of parchment to pen him a quick note, letting him know she would be ready in half an hour. Thankfully, when she'd placed the reservations two days ago, she had requested a table for 7:30 instead of 6:30. She must have known this would happen.
After she gave her reply to the owl, she raced into her room and into the bathroom to get ready for their…she wasn't quite sure what to call it. It wasn't exactly a date, but it could be classified as one. Whatever, let's just call it "Dinner." As one of the benefits of being in the Golden trio, she could pretty much get a table at any restaurant in town. Tonight she was taking advantage of that fact. She was taking Lucius to one of the newest restaurants in town. The "Golden Stag" was a high-class eatery in Wizarding London that served pretty much everything you might find in Muggle London. This was kind of an appetizer before she introduced him to real Muggle London, and it couldn't hurt that the executive chef was George's Squib cousins daughter, twelve times removed, or something like that. Apparently, that was a big deal. She had mentioned the name of the Weasley's Wizard Wheezes proprietor -he was the one who recommended the place to her- before her own and was promised "the best table in the house" before she even inquired about seating availability.
Almost half an hour later, she stood in front of her bathroom mirror, giving herself the once over, and she had to admit she looked good. Her hair was pulled back in a messy chiffon, loose bouncy curls escaping to frame her face. While her eyes were rimmed with black kohl, gold eye shadow glittered dangerously in the light, highlighting the gold flecks in her eyes. Her cheeks were emphasized by a light brushing of blush, but she wore no foundation, instead letting her naturally even skin tone shine through. Her lips were crimson red, and her pearly whites glistened in the bright light of the bathroom.
Her eyes trailed downwards to take in her outfit. She wore was a floor-length dress made with crimson red, flowy material, the slit reaching up to her mid-thigh, serving to highlight her long legs. Unlike the bottom of the gown, the bodice fit her like a glove, hugging her upper body until it reached the bottom of her ribs, where it flowed out elegantly. The bust –perhaps her favorite part- was made of a gold, glittery material that stood out like a blazing symbol of her Gryffindor status and only served to bring out the bright red of the material even more. To finish the outfit she wore gold chandelier earrings –a Loan from Ginny- and a beautiful gold bangle given to her by her parents when she was accepted to Hogwarts. Last but not least were the beautiful pair of strappy, gold heels she wore on her feet to display how slender and delicate they were. Plus it gave her an excuse to wear them after she'd splurged and bought them a few months ago, but that was only an added bonus, of course.
With one last smile at her reflection, she walked out of her bathroom and headed towards her living room. Lucius would be arriving any minute to pick her up. Just as she strode into the living room, she heard a knock on the door. Speak of the devil, she thought with a small smirk.
"Coming," she called, moving to open the door to let him in. When the door swung open, she felt her mouth drop, and the witty comment she'd prepared specially for this occasion fell from her lips. Whoever thought Lucius Malfoy was above wearing muggle suits was wrong, and Merlin be damned if she wasn't thanking god for that. There was simply no way to deny the sex appeal he oozed with that confident smirk and those icy blue eyes.
"Hermione, my dear, might I come in? Or are you content to ogle me for the rest of the evening?" Lucius drawled, that infuriating smirk of his seemingly glued to his cheeks.
With a blush Hermione managed to step back so he could come in. "I wasn't ogling you. I just…happened to remember something very important, that's all," she huffed. Though her excuse sounded pathetic even to her own ears, it was the best she could come up with at the time.
"Whatever you say, Dear," he replied, clearly unable to let that smirk drop. "I must say, you look absolutely ravishing. Though I'm disinclined to admit it, the lion's colors do suit you."
Hermione couldn't help but smile. To get Mr. Malfoy himself to admit she looked good in red was enough to put her in a ridiculously good mood. "Thank you, kind sir, and I might I say you represent your house quite well yourself," she replied gracefully, making a sweeping gesture to the silver dress shirt laying under his black suit and the green tie that hung against his chest, practically begging to be pulled.
Lucius just smirked as if he already knew this. Who was she kidding? He knew it, and he had no qualms letting it show. "Now, shall we go?"
"We shall," Hermione replied easily, slipping her arm through his, tightening her grip as the gut-wretching feeling of being sucked through a straw ran through her. The next time she blinked, they were standing in front of the Golden Stag, and then she was blinded by the bright lights of cameras going off. How on earth could they have known she was going to be here?
"Ms. Granger, Mr. Malfoy, over here." "One quick question, Ms. Granger." "How does it feel to be married off to the most notorious Death Eater still outside of Azkaban, Ms. Granger?" "Ms. Granger!" "Ms. Granger." "Mr. Malfoy!"
The voices continued on, and the crowd around them seemed to grow ten-fold, all of them pushing and shoving, attempting to get a word out of one of them. It was starting to become too much for Hermione to handle. She hated feeling like she was closed in. It brought back too many memories. She could feel her pulse quicken and only just staved off the urge to reach for her wand. She needed space, and she needed it now!
"Lucius," she whispered, managing to get his attention, her hand sliding into his and gripping it as tightly as possible in an attempt to convey her please. To her surprise he took in her appearance, and next thing she knew she was in his arms. He made quick work of getting through the crowd. Sometime during the commotion her hands found their way around his neck, and she burrowed her face into his shoulder. The faint smell of old parchment and luxury cologne helped her calm down. It was easier to ignore the pulsing crowd around them when she had something to concentrate on.
"Ms. Granger, any comment on being given to He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named most loyal subject?" "Mr. Malfoy, over here!" "Ms. Granger!"
The shouts hounded them mercilessly as they fought their way towards the restaurant. Finally, after what felt like hours, the noise around them faded, replaced by gentle orchestra music, and the lingering scent of home-style cooking.
"Hermione, I'm going to put your down, alright?" Lucius asked, his voice gentle in a way she never thought it could be, his breath tickling her ear.
"Yes," she replied, allowing him to set her back on her feet carefully, "thank you. Sometimes it's hard for me to handle huge crowds…" She trailed off, unable to remove her gaze from the floor.
A soft hand pushing a piece of hair out of her face startled her into looking up. "Hermione, I would hardly call those people any less than a pack of wild animals. Your reaction was well within the bounds of reason. Now, shall we forget them and have a fine dinner?" He was smiling, but it didn't quite reach his eye. Hermione noticed the way his hands were balled into tight fists, and his posture was rigid.
Hermione smiled softly, slipping her hand back into his instinctively. "I'd like that," she replied, trying to beat down the disgustingly happy smile that threatened to take over when his fingers relaxed intertwining with hers. For some reason, which she couldn't quite explain, it felt right, not awkward like the others boys she'd held hands with his hand fit perfectly against hers.
Hello again my dears,
I just wanted to let you all know that I have uploading pictures of both Hermione's and Lucius's outfits for the date onto my profile. If anyone is interested in checking them out.
Thanks again for reading
Love,
Fallen
P.S. One last mention for my favorite Beta, just wanted you to know how much I appreciate everything you're doing for me!