CHAPTER TWENTY SIX- New Year
True to their word they kept out of one another's way and only shared interactions after the sun had gone down. Draco, usually drunk, would stumble into her bedroom and quickly do what was asked of him.
After an unhappy Christmas and New Years Eve the newlyweds, tanned by the Mediterranean sun, took their portkey back to Malfoy Manor. Narcissa was the first to greet them and held onto Draco tightly.
"I could not bear being without you over the holidays," she said clinging to her only child. Malfoy tried to gently separate himself from his mother when Lucius came into the room.
"I trust your holiday was… Enjoyable?" Lucius asked his son. "It was a dream come true. Mother, see to it that my in-laws are moved someplace more suiting," Draco said taking off for his room.
Hermione was relieved and happy that he had kept his end of the bargain and went to her own room to finish her homework before going back to Hogwarts tomorrow.
The morning came for them to return to school and downstairs Hermione had no idea why there were so many new bags and trunks. "What is all of this?" Hermione asked Narcissa.
"The gifts Draco has gotten your for Christmas. Or rather, the items I picked out. You have a whole new wardrobe," Narissa said, pleased with herself. "I liked my old wardrobe just fine!" Hermione said.
"What a shame, all of your old clothes have been thrown out. You are now a part of this family and we hold a certain standard," said Narcissa. Hermione and Narcissa were spiting nails when the Malfoy men came down.
"That is enough! Act like ladies!" Lucius yelled ending their quarrel. While they were saying their goodbyes Lucius gave Hermione a little pat on the shoulder and whispered, "If you ever disrespect my wife again, your parents will be the ones paying for it. Enjoy your last few months at Hogwarts, won't you?"
After cries from Narcissa about parting with her son once more, Draco and Hermione left for Hogwarts. A small crowd eagerly awaited them in the front of the castle.
"What in the hell are they doing?" Malfoy said huffily. "No one has been married at Hogwarts in hundreds of years. Our misery is their entertainment," Hermione replied bitterly.
Snape was the one to shoo the crowd of curious students away and looked at Hermione for the first time since her wedding night. The girl was tan and a faint trace of a swollen lip still lingered on her face.
"I trust your honeymoon was fruitful?" Severus asked, lips curled. Neither answered him as they turned to walk to their dormitories. "You two did not think you'd be staying in Slytherin Dungeon, did you?" He said to stop them.
"Where the hell else would we stay?" Malfoy asked. "A private room by the Slytherin Dungeon was constructed while you two were away. Your own private quarters," he told them.
Without trying to cause a scene they followed Snape to a door around the corner from the Slytherin Dungeons. Opening the door they found it was decorated similarly to their old dormitories but had one large bed, two wardrobes, two desks and a bathroom for them to share.
"One bed? This is a joke, right?" Hermione asked. Malfoy was not pleased either with his new accommodations and threw his school bag down on a desk. "I like it not, Snape," Draco said.
"You two should know by now nobody cares what it is you like. Enjoy," Severus said shutting the door behind them. "This is my side of the room. Step anywhere near it and I will curse you," Malfoy said.
"Not if I curse you first! Keep away from my things!" Hermione challenged. After bickering for a few more minuets Hermione grabbed her bag and ran to the library.
She had barely made it to the library when three familiar heads bobbed towards her. "Hermione! Hermione! Oh you look so tan!" called Mallory. "Shut up! She is Mrs. Malfoy now!" Ursula said giggling.
The girls fired questions about the wedding, her dress and their honeymoon before Hermione put her hand up in Ursula's face.
"Ladies! Please! I am going to the library to study, I suggest you do the same. Your O.W.L.S. are next year and there is no time to be wasted," she said chastising them before she took off.
With all of her unhappy business recently, Hermione had put studying for her N.E.W.T.S. on the back burner. She stayed in the library until it was after dinnertime and was certain no one would see her going into her new bedroom.
Draco was inside finishing up a paper when she walked in. The room now contained all of her and Draco's belongings that were left over in their old dormitories as well as their belongings from the Christmas holiday.
"Are all of my old clothes gone?" Hermione asked examining her wardrobe. She had hoped a few of her old clothes she left in her dormitory would have been left behind. "Of course they were. Malfoys don't dress like street rats," he said without looking up from his paper.
Angry and slamming drawers, Hermione got ready for bed. She hopped into her designated side while Malfoy was still doing homework. "Shut out that light," she told him.
"No, I haven't finished studying. Tough luck," Draco said dismissing her. With her wand she shut out the light on his desk and he angrily turned it back on. "Do you mind, Granger?" Draco hissed.
"I do mind! Especially since it isn't Granger anymore. It's Malfoy, you halfwit!" Hermione hissed back. Malfoy shot a small curse out of his wand but Hermione was quick enough to block it.
"One day you will not be so lucky," Malfoy said. He itched for his promised divorce but for now he would have to play house and do as Voldemort commanded. "This is going to be a very long semester," Hermione muttered under her breath.
All she would have to do is wait out the rest of the semester, take her N.E.W.T.S. and after that they will leave Hogwarts. Her parents will be freed and she will have a job that takes up a majority of her time, far away from Draco.