A Touch of Fate.
Exactly one month after their twenty first birthdays, which of course fell on the same day, Scorpius Malfoy and Lily Potter were preparing to get married. The ceremony and accompanying celebrations were being hosted at a brand new luxury hotel, situated on its own private island just off the south coast of England. The hotel belonged to Scorpius's godfather, Blaise Zabini, and the wedding was acting as the official launch for the hotel. The previous evening select friends and family of the couple had stayed at the hotel, and rooms were available for anyone who wished to stay over after the wedding.
One element of Lily's family who had not stayed at the hotel the previous evening, and would be unlikely to be staying over the night of the wedding, were her Uncle Ron's family. Ron along with his wife Lavender, and their two teenage children, would of course be attending the wedding, but wouldn't likely be taking part in any further events. They hadn't participated in the events leading up to the wedding, so they weren't likely to take part in anything after the wedding.
Although that was very much to Lavender's disappointment, as she would have loved to have stayed at the luxury hotel, even for one evening. However, over the years she'd grown used to missing out on the finer aspects of life, all because of her stubborn husband and his refusal to back down and apologise to Hermione and Draco, for what had been in all honesty a pretty stupid misunderstanding.
When Harry and Ginny had first told Ron the real story of what had happened with Hermione, he'd admitted to Lavender that he felt like a right fool and couldn't believe how stupid he'd been. However, since at the time Harry and Ginny hadn't been sure if they would even see Hermione and Draco again, apologises had seemed pretty futile, and Lavender hadn't really blamed her husband for just wanting to forget about the ridiculous conclusions he'd jumped to, and the fool he'd made of himself.
However, when Harry and Ginny started to see the Malfoys over the course of Ginny's pregnancy and Lavender could see a strong friendship was building up, she urged Ron to apologise. Lavender wasn't stupid and she'd known friendship with the Malfoys would have given them opportunities to experience a slice of life that would always be out of their reach. However, Ron had refused to apologise and the longer he refused to acknowledge his mistake, the larger apology that was called for, and eventually even Lavender had to admit the time for apologises had passed, and offering one at that late stage would have made no difference. So while Harry and Ginny spent time with the Malfoys, living the high life, Lavender and Ron were left behind, and Lavender had to live vicariously through the stories Ginny told her.
The lead up to the wedding was a perfect example of Lavender and Ron being left behind. Both Scorpius and Lily had organised lavish pre-wedding parties, which took place abroad, and neither Ron, Lavender nor their children had been involved. Nor had they been involved in any of the wedding planning, and while some of Lily's other cousins had parts to play in the wedding, Ron and Lavender's two children would be at the wedding as guests only.
"This could have all been so different," Lavender hissed to Ron as they took their seats on the bride's side of the alter, which was located in a ballroom offering stunning views of the grounds.
"What could have?" Ron asked grouchily. He wasn't exactly thrilled to be attending a Malfoy wedding, and quite honestly he still couldn't believe Harry and Ginny were okay with their daughter marrying into that family.
"This," Lavender hissed, gesturing to the luxury surrounding them. "Rosie could have been a bridesmaid, and Hugo an usher. If only you'd swallowed your pride and apologised."
"I wasn't going to apologise to a Malfoy," Ron snorted. "Besides, even if I had done that, it doesn't mean anything would have been any different. Hermione and her new family have hardly bent over backwards to include us, have they? They're always doing something with Harry and Ginny, and even some of my other brothers, but we're never invited."
"Can you blame her after the scene you caused?" Lavender retorted. "Hermione and Draco have always been perfectly polite to us, and the reason we're never included is because you never made an effort. This is all on you Ron, and you know it."
Seething at his wife's words, Ron turned his head away from her before their argument continued and they created a scene. Although if he was being honest, he wasn't mad at what Lavender had said, he was mad because she was right. He knew the current situation was all his fault, and that he'd missed his chance to fix it. All it would have taken was one apology twenty one years ago, and things could have been so different. But he'd been too stubborn to admit he'd been wrong, and then as time passed, the opportunity had been lost to him. Quite honestly, he could apologise that day, and he knew the damage was already done. It wasn't going to change anything between his family and Hermione's, so why drag up the past?
Knowing that it was too late to change anything, Ron put the past out of his head and sat back to watch his niece get married. Although first he watched the other guest arrive, including former Slytherins on the grooms side and an array of Weasleys on the bride's. All of his brothers were present, along with their families, bar the children who were part of the wedding party, and of course his parents were there, beaming proudly at the thought of their granddaughter getting married. Ron even spotted Hermione's parents, arriving separately with their new partners, and in Hermione's father's case, his son.
And of course it was impossible for Ron to miss the arrival of Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy, who settled themselves in the front row of the opposite side of seats. Shortly after Lucius and Narcissa arrived, Ginny swept into the room, dressed in a stunning pale blue outfit, complete with elaborate headpiece. Although his sister was not alone as Hermione and her husband were with her. As usual Draco was dressed in his typical black, although his waistcoat and tie were a soothing shade of lilac, which Ron was guessing was the colour of the wedding as he'd noticed Blaise Zabini and Lucius in matching lilac ties. As for Hermione she was wearing a fitted pale pink dress, while her pink and diamond headpiece was much less dramatic than Ginny's, but still rather spectacular.
With the parents of the bride and groom, bar Harry, seated, a hush fell over the congregation as Scorpius Malfoy, looking incredibly handsome in his dark grey three piece suit, with the same lilac accompaniments his father and grandfather was wearing. At his side was his best man, Lily's younger brother, James. James was a year younger than Scorpius and Lily, and while Scorpius and Lily had always been the best of friends, he'd established a solid friendship with the blond wizard over the years. And the friendship had bloomed even further since Scorpius and Lily had fallen for each and moved from friends to lovers.
With Scorpius and James in their places, soft music began to play and the first of the bridesmaids began the walk down the aisle, all of them dressed in lilac gowns which matched the colour of the ties and waistcoats being worn by the men. Several of Lily's cousins were acting as bridesmaids, and the final bridesmaid down the aisle was Scorpius's beautiful nineteen year old sister, Lyra, who in Ron's opinion looked so very like her mother.
"Isn't she stunning?" Lavender gasped beside him as Lily and Harry suddenly appeared at the top of the aisle.
Lily was wearing a large stunning white dress, with what looked to be millions of dazzling diamonds sewn onto her lavish skirt. The thin veil she was wearing couldn't hide her wide smile as she gazed down the aisle towards her future husband. And as for Harry, he was beaming with pride as he slowly began to walk his only daughter down the aisle.
"Beautiful," Ron admitted, smiling at the sight of his lovely niece walking down the aisle on Harry's arm. Even the fact Lily was marrying a Malfoy didn't mar the moment for Ron, and he was ever so happy for his niece.
The wedding itself passed without a hitch, and the romantic ceremony reduced several people to tears, Lavender included. Even Ron got a bit choked up, and even the fact the groom was a Malfoy didn't ruin the happy event. In fact, nothing ruined the day and despite himself, Ron found himself thoroughly enjoying his niece's big day.
At the wedding meal, speeches were made by several people, including both Harry and Draco. Both Harry and Draco spoke of fate bringing their two families together, and Ron was left to wonder if fate had played a part in how things had turned out, or if it was actions that truly counted. After all, Harry and Ginny had chosen to speak with Hermione and Draco that fateful weekend they'd been reunited. Maybe if Ron had done the same, or if he'd chosen to apologise afterwards, he and his family would be a part of the friendship the two couples had forged over the years. Maybe it wasn't fate that had brought the two families together, maybe it was their choice to accept each other, and move on from the past. A choice Ron had failed to make, and now fate had placed him on the outside of Harry and Hermione's relationship, looking in on a friendship he was no longer a part of.