A/N: Thank you so much to arabellagrace, gjasmine59, sanctimoniavincetsemp3r, cleotheo and strezman for their reviews on chapter 6! Draco and Hermione finally enter the picture and from here on out they will remain actively involved ;)
RxExR! :)
Pictures on a Wall
Chapter 7 - Dinner with the Malfoys
"It's weird that we're heading back already." Harry said as he watched the countryside streak past the windows of the Hogwarts Express once more.
"Yeah, I never thought that three months could pass by so quickly." Ginny agreed as she smiled gently at Harry as he concentrated on the scenery outside. She didn't know how much longer she would be able to pretend that she was over him, it was beginning to slowly kill her from the inside out. She dated Micheal Corner again for a short couple of weeks when they came back and he briefly hooked up with a girl a year below her, but apart from that they had remained single.
"It feels good to be going back though." Ron stated as he turned from viewing the countryside to face them.
"Yeah." Harry agreed and Ginny smiled.
It had taken Ron two months to properly get out of 'mourning' for Hermione, he had taken the heartbreak a lot harder than they had expected him to. It appeared that his love for Hermione really had been that deep, despite her obviously not feeling the same. During that time, he and Pansy had grown inexplicably closer, they had bonded over their shared heartbreak, feeling that only the other could really understand the extent of their feelings. It had led to some interesting consequences.
One month ago...
"Guys..." They all looked up to see a nervous looking Ron. "We have to tell you something."
Harry looked at Ron in confusion and Blaise raised an eyebrow at Ginny who shrugged in response. Luna merely smiled dreamily and looked as if she had been expecting this for quite some time now.
"What's the matter Ron?" Harry asked, wondering what could possibly be making his best friend this nervous. He had only recently started to properly contribute in discussions once more and Harry still felt a bit unsure whether Ron would 'relapse' or not.
"Um... well..." He coughed and scratched the back of his head nervously.
"He and I are going out." Pansy stated calmly as she came out from behind him. Silence met them as Blaise nearly fell from his chair, Harry's eyes nearly popped out and Ginny made something akin to a choking noise.
"Congratulations." Luna smiled at them warmly. "I'm glad that you finally got together, the Nargles were getting quite insistent in buzzing around you." This typical comment from her made Ron chuckle slightly and Pansy smile shyly. It was then that Harry noticed that Pansy was nervously holding Ron's hand, the two of them were obviously unsure of their reactions.
"Well... this is certainly a surprise." Blaise said and then split into a wide grin. "But I'm happy for you two."
"Same here." Harry smiled warmly. They all turned to look at Ginny.
"I can't say that I'm not shocked." Ginny said as she held up her hands in a mock surrender. "But if it's what makes you two happy then I guess that it's good." She sent them a tentative smile. She had always imagined Hermione and her brother ending up together so seeing him with anyone else was still not that easy. Add the fact that she and Pansy hadn't really gotten along for the majority of the last six years and one could see why she would have some difficulties with accepting it.
Ron's and Pansy's faces both split into grins. They couldn't believe how lucky they were to have such understanding friends.
Back in the present...
It really had caused an uproar, Ron's and Pansy's relationship. It had rocked the foundations of the very school in a sense. Never had there been a relationship between two students of Gryffindor and Slytherin... well, during their time in school at least. Most people were still in the dark about Hermione and Draco, and they were all pretty sure that if the news became public in school that it would cause something akin to the apocalypse.
Blaise's and Luna's relationship had already been a shocker and several people had reacted badly to them, considering who they were. Blaise, one of the most desired people in Slytherin, right after his currently absent best friend actually and Luna, one of the most eccentric people the school had possibly ever seen. They really made quite a pair.
But that was nothing on how people reacted to Ron's and Pansy's relationship, how they were still reacting to it. There had been curses and swearing, people had been more rude than anyone would have thought and it was mainly the younger years that were the cause for this reaction, instead of the older years who had participated more actively in the war. It seemed as if the younger years still had that old rivalry, that strong sense of house seperation.
Which was why they were all so happy to be going back home for a week during the Easter Break, it meant that they could all briefly escape the intense scrutiny that was present in the school, not only due to their relationships but also due to their position after the war.
What was more appealing and interesting though than heading back home to the Burrow though (Blaise and Luna had also been invited at the request of Harry, Ron and Ginny while Pansy was coming as well due to her position as Ron's girlfriend despite nobody at the Burrow knowing about that yet) was the fact that they had all received a letter two weeks prior from Hermione and Draco respectively.
It had been somewhat of a surprise but a pleasant one none the less. In them they had both asked their friends if they would like to come and join them for a dinner in two days, and they had all replied and agreed to go. It would be the first time seeing the two of them since the war had ended so they weren't really sure what to expect. The videos had offered only that much of an insight after all.
Never the less, they couldn't help but look forward to seeing them again.
~.~.~.~.~
Two days later found them all standing in front of a beautiful house in the more wealthy London suburbs as they debated on who should ring the bell to announce their arrival. So far it remained undecided and they had all been standing here for a grand total of ten minutes.
The last two days had been hectic. After arriving on Platform Nine and Three Quarters, Molly had whisked them all off to the Burrow where a literal feast had been waiting for them. At that late lunch/early dinner the rest of the Weasleys present (which was all apart from Charlie and Bill and his family) had been introduced to Blaise and Pansy as they already knew Luna from before. There were surprised exclamations when Blaise was announced as Luna's boyfriend, one of which being Fred who muttered something along the lines of 'how come even she can find a good looking partner?' as he had remained single, while the announcement of Pansy being Ron's girlfriend shocked them all into silence.
Molly had been the first to move after that declaration by hugging Pansy and telling her to 'make herself at home'. She had already noticed the obvious change in Ron's demeanour and she had rightly guessed that Pansy had been a cause of it. And anybody who made her children happy was as good as welcome to the family in her books.
The fact that Ron had another girlfriend who looked as if it was serious this time caused Fred to throw up his hands in the air in annoyance and state that life was unfair as everyone else seemed to be getting a partner whereas he remained alone. After all, even Percy had a girlfriend by the name of Audrey whom he had met at the Ministry a good two months ago and had been dating for six weeks, a record in his books.
George had muttered something about inter-house unity being taken way to seriously by their generation which earned him a smack upside the head by his mother and a jab in the side by his wife. Arthur had merely chuckled and seemed content with the fact that his children appeared to be doing rather well with the sudden change with the whole time skip thing.
Bill and Fleur along with Victoire, Dominique and Louis had come the next day and they had spent the whole day playing with their nieces and nephew while Bill and Fleur talked with them and enjoyed the fact that they could relax a bit as they were keeping their children busy. Charlie had popped by later in the afternoon as his work had finished for the day and the dinner that evening had been loud and busy. Neither Pansy nor Blaise were used to such a rowdy environment, considering that they both came from elite pureblood families and were slightly overwhelmed by the warm welcome they received. Luna on the other hand, despite being an only child and having a relatively calm childhood took it all in stride, merely smiling dreamily and telling the children all about the mysterious creatures that he could see, Blaise chipping in every now and then.
Which lead them to today. The day had been relatively calm, peaceful almost and the boys had enjoyed playing some quidditch in the morning while Ginny and Pansy had bonded over their mutual love for clothes and fashion. Luna hadn't really been interested in fashion all that much but she had also joined in, offering her unique opinions here and there, being a good friend to the both of them.
Then after lunch the panicking had begun. At least, the girls had begun panicking, namely Pansy, although Ginny was quite nervous too. For Pansy, it would be the first time she would see her ex-boyfriend whom she had loved for a very long time and she wanted to make a good impression, thus resulting in her trying on outfit after outfit as she also wished to look good for Ron.
Ginny on the other hand wanted to impress Harry more than anything else so she was wavering between something more provocative or something more comfortable. The dinner gave them a chance to dress up and the two girls wanted to use it to their full advantage.
Luna on the other hand had already chosen what to wear, settling on a comfortable yellow summer dress with a nice red jacket. It really was rather unique to her and Blaise had called her 'absolutely stunning' when he had seen her, causing even her to blush a bit while she smiled brilliantly at her boyfriend.
Ron was in a similar dilemna to Pansy, wanting to impress both Hermione as well as look good for Pansy, knowing that with Draco Malfoy as a previous boyfriend she would be used to a lot more than what he normally offered on a day to day basis. And Harry also wanted to impress Ginny thus leading him to also become more and more nervous the more Ron fretted.
Blaise merely smiled and shook his head. He doubted that either Hermione or his best friend had actually meant for them to dress up as they had invited them to their home after all. But no one would really listen to him or Luna when they tried to point that out so they decided to remain silent and watch the flurry of activity in amusement.
Which lead them to the situation in front of the Malfoy home right now. Ginny had, in the end, decided on something that flattered her figure but was still comfortable while Pansy had decided on something similar to Ginny's too, namely more comfortable than flashy.
"Okay, I'm just going to ring it. This is getting ridiculous." Blaise stated and pushed the doorbell, not even giving the others any time to protest and ask for more time so that they could adjust to the situation a bit more.
"Coming." Came a somewhat dislocated voice from inside the house. A few seconds later the door was thrown open, giving them a great view of Draco Malfoy with a baby on his hips, looking somewhat dishevelled with his shirt hanging out on one side and the blue paint on his face.
"Ah, it's you guys." He smiled, "Come in." He gestured into the hallway. "You can put your shoes over there," He pointed to one wall, "And the living room's through there. You can make yourselves at home." He pointed down the hallway to another room. "You're going to have to excuse me for a minute though, Ella needs to get changed and the other kids aren't ready yet. Hermione will be down in a second." And with that he nearly ran off as he heard another crash from upstairs.
"Are they here?" Came a female voice from upstairs. Harry recognised it as Hermione's.
"Yeah, they're here. I have to go change Ella though and tell Cassie and Scorp to stop playing with the face paint. Also the food's in the oven so we have to keep an eye on it." He shouted back before going upstairs himself.
They all stood in the hallway completely gobsmacked. They couldn't really quite process what had just happened. Draco Malfoy with a baby on his hips and face paint on his face. They had expected many things but not this. Definitely not this.
They were still standing in the hallway when they heard someone coming down the stairs and Hermione appeared before them, looking older than they remembered and a lot like she had on the videos. Her eyes bore a happy sparkle and her hair was pulled back into a bun with a few loose strands flying here and there.
"Harry, Ginny, Luna, Ron!" She grinned as she rushed forward. Ginny noted that she had an almost maternal tone now to her voice. "And Blaise and Pansy." She smiled warmly at them all. "Oh gods, I've missed you all so much!" And with that she hugged each of them tightly, even Blaise and Pansy to their everlasting surprise.
Once they had all been hugged she stepped back to look at them more closely. "You all still look exactly the same although a lot healthier. I hope that you've been eating properly." She looked at them all very carefully. Ginny decided then and there that it was obvious that she was now a mother, there was no way she would act like this otherwise. It kind of reminded her of her own mother.
"We have been 'Mione." Harry was the first to respond, cracking a humongous grin. "And believe me it's great to see you again too."
Hermione's returning smile was blinding. "Well come on in then, I'm sure Draco's already told you to make yourself at home, right?"
"Yeah, he did." Blaise responded.
"Well come on then." She smiled once more before leading the way to the living room.
"Mummy, mummy, mummy, Scorpius stole my doll!" Came a shout as two figures ran into the room, one of them chasing the other. One was a girl and the other a boy.
"Did not. I was just looking at her." The small boy retorted.
"Scorpius, give your sister back her doll." Hermione said patiently.
"But I was just looking at her!" Scorpius responded rather heatedly.
"Scorpius..." She sent her son a look that he clearly knew, in fact, it was one that Harry and Ron knew as well, her 'no nonsense' look.
"Okay, okay..." Scorpius muttered and shot the girl a look.
"And Cassie, please get that face paint off of your face sweetheart, I'm sure that it would make your dad's life a lot easier." Hermione added as well and the small girl sighed, clearly not happy with the decision to take off the array of colours present on her face.
"Okay mummy." The two children ran back upstairs but not before throwing a curious look at the many people that they didn't know in their living room.
"Sorry about that." Hermione smiled sheepishly at them. "They've been playing with the face paint all day and they're kind of unwilling to stop."
"They're quite stubborn, aren't they?" Luna asked with a gentle smile on her face.
"Yeah, and it's completely Draco's fault. Stubborn Malfoy genes." But she was grinning as she said that.
"Your genes are just as stubborn love." Draco had come back into the room, the baby on his arm now sporting a different set of clothes while the face paint on his face was also gone. He leaned in and gave her a small kiss on the lips. The gesture seemed habitual, as if they did it almost naturally, sending a small shock through all of them. Seeing the two former enemies-turned-spouses so close to one another right in front of them was certainly different to seeing them on a screen or hearing about their relationship.
"I'm going to go check on the dinner, but I'll be back in a minute." The first part was directed at Hermione while the second part was meant for them.
"So..." Ginny said after a minute of silence, feeling slightly uncomfortable, "Four children, huh?"
"Yeah," Hermione returned the awkward smile, "Believe me, if someone had told me this ten years ago I would have sent them to St. Mungo's without a second thought but now," She shrugged as she smiled down at her youngest daughter, "I can't imagine anything else."
"Dinner's ready in five minutes." Draco's voice echoed through the house and Harry started slightly. Seeing Malfoy behave in such a manner was really, really, really strange.
"Come on, let's go to the dining room." Hermione stated and they all followed her, still slightly unsure of how to act. Ron and Pansy definitely had it worst as they were feeling awkward enough to wish that they could merely drop through the floor and vanish.
Footsteps were heard as three children came running down the stairs. Once they arrived, Hermione introduced all of her children to them and they all had to admit that they were adorable. Well, in the way that small children were.
Draco arrived soon after with the dinner that Hermione said he had cooked, upon which Blaise burst out laughing at the thought of his pureblood best friend standing in front of a stove and cooking by hand. The loud chuckles finally broke the ice and the tension appeared to literally seep from the room.
Dinner was a lively affair, the children keeping them all on their toes. Scorpius' and Cassie's spats were amusing to watch as it was obvious that they cared for one another, Jasper, for all of his two years of age, suprised them immensely with his advanced speaking abilities (they secretly agreed that he would be taking the position of smartest wizard of the age after his mother) and Ella commanded her mother's or father's attention while eating. She was a messy eater and it was hilarious to watch Draco and Hermione battling with the spoon, the food and Ella's mouth.
It was only after the children had been put to bed an hour later (and another change of clothes for Draco and Hermione) that they actually sat down and talked.
"So how have you guys been?" Hermione asked as Draco filled the glasses in front of them with some wine. They were all of age but the act was still an unusual one for them.
"We've been mostly good." Luna began. "Coping with losing ten years hasn't been all that easy." She looked a bit sad at that.
"Condolences for your father by the way." Draco said and Hermione repeated that as well.
"Thank you." Luna smiled genuinly now as them knowing about her father's death showed how much they had kept in touch with the world and looking out for news about them.
"Luna and I are going out now." Blaise stated rather smugly, throwing an arm around Luna's shoulder. She merely rolled her eyes in response to his gesture.
"I told you so." Draco told Hermione and she chuckled at their surprised expressions.
"How did you know?" Blaise asked.
"You've been throwing her 'covert'" Draco air quoted, "looks all evening. I would have been more surprised if you hadn't been going out."
Blaise spluttered slightly and Luna grinned.
"And as we were the first to get married out of everyone, they've been coming to us for their relationship dramas and problems." Hermione heaved a weary sigh and Draco looked slightly exasperated. Harry snorted.
"It's not funny Potter." Draco was obviously still not at the stage to call them by their first names which was perfectly fine with them. They weren't friends but from what they had seen of his behaviour this evening, the Gryffindors believed that maybe they could be. "You try listening to Greg and Seamus blather on and on about troubles with their girlfriends and wives for hours on end while drinking alcohol and then we can talk again."
Blaise looked highly amused. It was obvious that despite pretending not to like the 'blathering' all that much that Draco cared more than enough for the people doing the blathering. Hermione laughed. Blaise and Luna then went on to tell them how they had gotten together. It was funny to watch Blaise get flustered as Luna poked fun at him for taking as long as he had to ask her out and then to see Luna's blush when Blaise said that if she had liked him for so long then she should have just asked him out which just started a whole discussion on how to be a gentleman.
It was an hour later that they got onto Ron and Pansy. Hermione had already expressed her surprise by raising her eyebrows when she had found out that Harry and Ginny weren't together while Draco merely quirked a silver-blonde eyebrow in Harry's direction. Harry scowled back slightly in response. He did not need a married man commenting on him not being together with an ex-girlfriend.
"So you two are going out?" Hermione asked, looking a bit surprised.
"Yeah." Ron nodded, blushing slightly.
"That's brilliant!" Hermione grinned.
"What?" Pansy looked confused.
"Well, Draco and me were discussing who we thought would fit with whom and we came to the conclusion that the two of you would fit together quite well if given the chance. We just didn't think that it would have already happened." Hermione explained and Draco nodded.
"Why do you think that we fit together well?" Ron asked, looking at Draco, then at Hermione and then back at Draco again.
"Well, for one Lavender and you never really fit together well Ron, she's simply too clingy." Hermione began and Ron flushed slightly, remembering that three months ago he had been together with Lavender.
"And you need someone who's down to earth and can appreciate the simpler things in life, Pans." Draco stated. "We've always been surrounded by wealth and glitz and glamour and all that and we easily forget the things that make life what it really is. But most Slytherins tend to be like that so you and another Slytherin would be too like minded. Weasley, you're exactly like that, you appreciate the simpler things in life and know all of the things that we don't really know such as a loving family and the importance of things that aren't material." Draco continued.
"Yeah and then two Slytherins together normally try to outwit each other and are constantly suspicious of one another because they know how alike their natures are." Hermione picked up where her husband had finished off. "If you want a really harmonious and lasting relationship you need a bit of contrast, someone who isn't always as conniving and scheming as you, someone who lets you relax and merely be yourself." She smiled at her husband who returned it.
"So... you don't mind the two of us together?" Pansy asked hesitantly, showing her true side in front of all of these people that she knew she could trust.
Hermione and Draco shot one another incredulous looks, well, Hermione shot one at her husband who looked surprised in turn.
"Of course not." Came Hermione's answer. "We're happy that the two of you are together."
And that was when it seemed as if huge weights had been lifted off of Pansy's and Ron's shoulders and the two of them sat up straighter and for the rest of the three hours that they stayed there that night, they participated more actively in all discussions and seemed generally more relaxed. It appeared as if the mere acceptance on Hermione's and Draco's parts had allowed them to finally let go of that last piece of their past relationships that they had been clinging on to and allowed them to finally concentrate wholly on their own relationship instead.
The talks that followed were tales of Hogwarts lessons and teachers, as Hermione and Draco were keen to hear about all of them that had remained in the castle, which then moved on to them talking about their company and the many things that happened there. Pictures were also shown of their children and various events in their lives and time literally flew by.
The group of six teens that left the house shortly after midnight that night left with promises to stay in touch and to meet up soon, maybe in Hogsmeade some time during the school times and definitely for their graduation as Hermione and Draco didn't want to miss it for the world.
Ginny smiled properly for the first time since the war had ended as she looked up at the stars out of her window that night. Things were looking up again and she felt it in her heart that good things were hopefully going to happen. Hope blossomed in her heart. She was still friends with Hermione, Luna and she were becoming closer and Pansy wasn't as bad as she had thought. And if the whole situation with Harry had waited this long, then it could wait a little while longer as they sorted out their lives again, even if it hurt.