A/N:- I feel so awful right now. I am so sorry for the late update. School is literally so awful! I am still trying to find a good routine and it is taking a while. I literally have two tests on Tuesday, so, wish me luck! Hope you guys enjoy this chapter! <3
***
It was the Easter holidays when Hermione and Draco decided to spend a week with Narcissa's and another week at Hogwarts; for reasons the both of them voiced internally.
They both decided to spend the first week at Malfoy Manor since everyone was leaving by the Express. All of their friends knew that they were going to spend the two weeks together, but nobody asked any questions. Hermione suspected that neither Draco or her will need to tell them anything. It was obvious.
They were both dating.
She doesn't really know why it took that long for the both of them to start dating. They have wasted too much time, and Hermione wasn't glad about that. That's why she wanted to make most of the time they had together.
She didn't really know how she used to spend a minute without him. She would suffocate if she has to spend her time away from him.
They come as a package deal now.
***
"They will be here soon, you should get ready. Draco, you can go upstairs now. I will have a quick word with Hermione and then she is all yours." Narcissa said, a purposeful half smirk on her face.
Draco lifted an eyebrow, but conceded. He leaned down and kissed Hermione's cheek before whispering into her ear. "I will miss you."
Hermione shook her head and smiled as she watched him head up the stairs.
Narcissa rolled her eyes playfully; clearly having heard Draco. "Well, let's give him what he is expecting. I am going to murder you with cold blood in the backyard."
Hermione laughed softly before asking. "What did you want to talk to me about?"
Narcissa shook her head. "Oh, nothing serious. I just wanted to know if you and Draco are happy."
Hermione smiled fondly and gave an eager nod; She has never been happier. "Yes, we really are."
Narcissa smiled and gave a quick nod. "Well, okay then. That was all, well, almost all. I wanted to tell you that I have a dress for you in your bedroom, if you don't like it, you don't have to wear it."
Hermione smiled and touched Narcissa's hand as she thanked her before heading up to her own bedroom; clearly understanding what Narcissa had meant. Draco and Hermione have been spending every night in his bedroom. The both of them couldn't sleep without each other now. They were each other's lifelines. She never thought about the prospect of having her own bedroom anymore; he was always there. She needed him there, she always needed him.
Once in her bedroom, Hermione took a quick glance before finding the dress on the bed. Her eyes widened.
A small, black dress was on the bed. It had a sweatheart neckline, which looked simple enough to look modest. The long sleeves were chiffon, which made the dress look divine yet simple.
Hermione walked to the bed and took the dress before standing in front of a mirror and holding it against her body. The dress was pretty short. It didn't even reach the middle of her thighs. She didn't mind though, she thought the dress looked beautiful, and that was all that mattered.
With Draco telling her how beautiful she looked everyday, Hermione's self esteem and confidence were improving so much that Hermione actually felt comfortable in her own skin, which wasn't something that easily happened.
A knock interrupted her thoughts, and Hermione quickly muttered a "come in" before the door opened. Draco appeared and Hermione smiled immediately, just like every time she sees him. He always brings a smile to her face, and Hermione didn't mind that; she loved it, actually. The fact that there was someone who could just create a smile on her face just for existing was really sentimental and nostalgic to her.
"Hey, love." Draco said, walking into the room and standing right behind her. He brought his hands around her and rested his chin on her shoulder before giving it a kiss and whispering. "You look exquisite."
"I haven't even gotten into my dress yet."
He smiled softly. "You always look exquisite."
Hermione blushed slightly and turned around so that she could face him. She wrapped both arms around his neck and brought his face down so that she could touch his soft lips with her lips. The touch was light, so light that it felt like a feather. So light that it felt like a whisper floating in the cold, winter night. Her eyes fluttered and her chest expanded as she inhaled softly at the scent of him.
Apples, parchment, and the same rich cologne.
She exhaled as their lips separated, but the both of them stayed in each other's arms for a while; her arms around his neck and his hands holding her waist gently.
Draco took a deep breath as he tried to find his own voice. When he did, he spoke quietly, his voice almost nonexistent. "Mother sent me up here to tell you that they will be here soon."
Hermione widened her eyes slightly before nodding; she wasn't nervous, but the knowledge of who was coming to spend some time with her, Draco, and Narcissa didn't really do her any good. She was starting to get a bit shaky, and Draco apparently noticed. He took her hands in his and brought them to his mouth; kissing each of her knuckles, before smiling at her.
"It's going to be okay."
Hermione gave a simply nod.
"You should start getting ready, I am going to change and I will be back." Draco said, seemingly not eager to leave her
Hermione nodded and smiled. "Sure, I will see you later."
Draco kissed her cheek once more before exiting, and Hermione entered the bathroom at once.
***
After she took a shower, Hermione wrapped herself in a towel. She took a quick glance at the mirror; checking how her hair looks, and exited once she was done.
She closed the door behind her and turned to face her bed —which she put her dress on earlier— and gasped quietly when she saw Draco's figure on the bed. She lifted an eyebrow as she crossed her arms.
"Knocking is a thing, do you want me to teach you how to do it?" She asked, her tone harboring on the playful side.
Draco smirked as he looked at her, his eyes fixed on her face. "I was too impatient to see you." He stated, his tone flirtatious and matching her playful one.
She narrowed her eyes, still in her mischievous and playful mood. "I am in a literal towel. I am sure you could have been patient enough until I got dressed."
"Do you know how many times I have seen you in a towel? It's nothing I haven't seen before." He shrugged, his tone making it sound nonchalant. Almost as if seeing her in a towel was a normal thing for them.
It was low key normal if she was being honest.
She narrowed her eyes and pointed her finger at the door. "Out."
He gasped dramatically. "This is my house!"
"I am not kicking you out of your house, Draco. I am kicking you out of my room which you insisted just yesterday for it to be redecorated to my liking."
He narrowed his eyes at that before huffing dramatically and standing up. He straightened his black suit jacket and Hermione took the opportunity to shamelessly stare at his torso.
"Maybe I should teach you how to stare discreetly before I go." He commented, lifting an eyebrow as a ghost of a smirk washed over his face.
Hermione rolled her eyes and crossed her arms as she spoke. "There is no way as to staring discreetly."
"You certain about that?"
Hermione nodded confidently.
His smirk slowly turned to a small smile and he shrugged as he spoke softly. "You have never caught me."
She blinked, and suddenly, her face felt too hot. She couldn't do anything as a blush overtook her features. Draco's smile widened and he walked the few steps between them. He leaned down and gave her a chaste kiss before turning around and exiting the room.
She stared at the door, unblinking, before a smile appeared on her face. Those random kisses always ignited a fire in her heart; they always brought her mind and her senses to life and lit them up to the moment that she could feel his lips trailing her body.
She took a deep breath before starting to get ready.
***
Theo and Pansy arrived together while Blaise arrived with his mother. Daphne came with her parents, and unfortunately, Astoria came as well.
Hermione stood next to Draco as Narcissa welcomed Blaise's mother and Daphne's parents. Blaise managed to send Hermione a wink as he waited for the greetings to end. Daphne looked quite solemn next to her parents and her sister, and Hermione credited that to the fact that her parents were as cold as ice. Luckily, Narcissa could be cold if she wanted to. She could be cold enough to send shivers down the spine of anyone. Hermione would feel intimidated if she didn't think that Narcissa liked her.
Draco's hand grasped Hermione's hand behind their back, and he gave it a reassuring squeeze. He was almost tempted to kiss her right there and then, but this wasn't the right time to do so.
Blaise's mother —Emerys— walked towards Hermione and Draco with graceful steps. She looked the both of them up and down before a flattering smile graced her features. She extended a hand towards Hermione as she spoke. "You really do look lovely, a pleasure to meet you, Ms. Granger."
Hermione widened her eyes slightly at the pleasant greeting that she received and quickly shook Emerys' hand as she smiled and spoke. "It's my pleasure, Mrs. Zabini. And please, just call me Hermione."
Emerys nodded and said. "Well, Hermione, I would like for you to call me Emerys. Mrs. Zabini makes me sound old, and I am anything but that."
Hermione chuckled softly and nodded. She watched as Emerys turned and faced Draco with a pleasant grin.
"Ah, there's my favorite person." She said, her grin widening when Draco matched her grin.
He took her hand and kissed it before speaking. "You look beautiful, Emerys. Just like always."
Emerys turned and faced Narcissa. "You need to teach me your ways, I would love for my son to compliment me like Draco does." She looked pointedly at Blaise.
Blaise smirked. "You always look beautiful, mother. That goes without saying."
Emerys narrowed her eyes playfully before laughing softly. She walked to the side when Daphne's parents approached Draco and Hermione.
Daphne's mother —Adorabella— smiled coldly while her father —Florian— simply started at Hermione with a look akin to indifference.
Or maybe disgust, she didn't really know, neither did she care.
"Hermione Granger, a pleasure to meet you." Adorabella said, her hands interlaced together in front of her.
Hermione gave a nod and smiled pleasantly; just because they didn't know how to greet someone respectfully doesn't mean that she doesn't know as well. "It's my pleasure."
"Oh please, you're a war heroine. And a Muggleborn one at that. It isn't anyone's pleasure but ours." Florian spoke, his tone too sweet to be sincere.
Hermione considered his words and her smile widened as she nodded. "You're right. I am a Muggleborn heroine. I was just being modest."
Narcissa smirked as she watched the exchange while all of Hermione's friends stifled laughs. Astoria narrowed her eyes slightly, but she didn't get the chance to say anything; Emerys spoke, her tone harboring on a teasing one. She was clearly grateful for Hermione's response.
"Well, we should leave the kids—"
"We are anything but kids, mother—"
Emerys ignored her son and continued talking. "And go to the tea room, is that where we are sitting, Narcissa?"
Narcissa shook her head. "Actually, I have done some remodeling, and I would love to show you one of my favorite rooms."
"Exquisite! Let's go then." And with that, all of the parents left, leaving Hermione, Draco, Blaise, Theo, Pansy, and Daphne in the company of Astoria, who looked anything but happy.
Blaise cleared his throat and grinned as he spoke. "Well, this should be fun."
***
All of them sat in one of the many sitting rooms of the Manor. Hermione and Draco were sitting on a couch together while pansy lounged on a lounge. Blaise was sitting on a chair while Theo and Daphne sat on a couch. Astoria was sitting on a couch alone, her arms crossed and her eyes cold.
"Have I told you how beautiful you look in that dress, Granger?" Pansy asked, lifting an eyebrow.
"You did, but keep the compliments coming." Hermione shrugged, smirking as she did so.
Pansy smirked as well. "Someone is rubbing off on you." She directed her gaze at Draco.
"She is just being honest, Pans. No need to lie about something you're proud of." Draco said, smirking at Hermione as he said so. Hermione matched his smirk.
"Do not kiss. You will make me want to kiss someone and I am single for tonight. Ginevra should have come." Blaise said, pouting slightly.
Hermione smirked at him. "Miss your girlfriend?"
He nodded. "It has been almost a week since I have seen her. Of course I am going to miss her."
Hermione smiled and faced Theo, Pansy, and Daphne as she asked. "What about you guys?"
Pansy smirked. "Harry visited me yesterday, I am all good."
Theo smiled. "Luna and I have been sending letters to each other everyday, so I would say that I am all good too."
Hermione looked at Daphne and Daphne smiled as she answered her question. "Adrian and I have been taking turns visiting each other."
Hermione smiled and nodded.
"What do you think is happening with them?" Blaise asked, referring to the parents.
Draco shrugged. "Either arguing or handing backhanded compliments. You know how they are."
"My parents were awful to you, Hermione. I am so sorry." Daphne apologizes. Her eyebrows furrowed in sadness.
Hermione smiled and shook her head. "Don't worry about it. I have dealt with worse."
They all heard someone muttering from the side.
"It's not like they were wrong."
They all turned and faced Astoria who was looking at Hermione with narrowed eyes.
"Tori!" Daphne exclaimed.
"What?! They didn't lie! It was the truth. She is a Muggleborn and she is a war heroine." She rolled her eyes at the end of the sentence.
"It's not what they said, it is the way that they said it." Theo remarked, narrowing his eyes at Astoria.
Hermione shook her head at Theo and gave him an appreciative nod before looking at Astoria and speaking pleasantly. "You're right, Astoria. They didn't lie. I did help Harry and Ron save the Wizarding World, and I wouldn't shy away from stating that."
Astoria narrowed her eyes before rolling them. "No need to act above us."
Hermione blinked innocently. "Act above you? Who said I was doing that? I was just stating that you and your parents were right, or weren't you? I mean, that's what you said a few seconds ago."
Astoria huffed as she stood up. "You're doing this on purpose! You're making me look bad on purpose! And that's not even mentioning the fact that you stole Draco from me!"
The rest all stood up as well. Draco stepped forward and lifted an eyebrow. "I didn't know I was an item to steal. Mind elaborating, Astoria?"
Astoria threw her hands into the air dramatically as she spoke. "We were supposed to get married! You and I had an arrangement! And you broke it off for a— a mudblood!"
Voices of protest sounded in the room, and in a second, Pansy had her wand under Astoria's chin, anger seeping from her. Draco's eyes were narrowed and his hands were clenched tightly, almost to the point that they turned white. Daphne had a hand over her mouth, stifling her gasp. Theo and Blaise stood next to each other, their hands clenched and their eyes narrowed at Astoria. Hermione was surprised more of her friends' reactions than of Astoria's words. It isn't like it is the first time someone called her that.
"Keep your tongue locked into place or I will cut it out for you, Astoria." Pansy threatened, pressing her wand to Astoria's throat now. Astoria's eyes twitched and Hermione could see a hint of fear in her eyes.
"You don't scare me, Pansy." Astoria said, but it was clear that it was a lie. Sweat was beginning to form on her forehead.
Theo was the first one to calm down, he walked towards Pansy and lowered her hand. "She is not worth your time, Pans."
Pansy narrowed her eyes and nodded. "You're right, she is not worth my time." She stepped back once she said that, giving Draco a full view of Astoria.
He narrowed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to calm his nerves. Hermione took his hand in hers and gave it a squeeze as she gave him a small smile. Draco's breath steadied and he squeezed Hermione's hand in return; grateful for how she kept him calm. She always knew what to do. She always knew where to touch him and how to steady his breath and how to ignite flutters in his heart.
He narrowed his eyes at Astoria and spoke coldly. "Leave."
She gasped and shook her head as she spoke. "Draco, what are you saying?!"
"I said leave. Are you deaf?"
Astoria fumed, her chest expanded quickly and she took deep breaths as she tried to calm the anger that was taking all over her body. She swallowed before rolling her eyes and walking out of the sitting room.
They all stared after her, their expressions different from each other. They stayed silent for a minute or so before Blaise finally broke the tense silence. He conjured a firewhiskey and grinned wildly. "I think this is the best time for this." He said, referring to the firewhiskey in his hand.
Pansy sighed and her and Theo looked at Hermione, their faces apologetic. Hermione gave them a smile and shook her head; what happened wasn't their fault.
Blaise leaned in and kissed Hermione's forehead before whispering. "She is just jealous, which I wouldn't blame her for. You are ethereal, Granger."
Hermione smiled at Blaise as he winked and gestured for the rest to follow him.
Theo and Pansy did, and the three of them started to head towards Draco's room. Daphne approached Hermione and spoke quietly. "I am so sorry, Hermione. I— I didn't know she was going to be that awful! I am so—"
Hermione cut her off. "Daph, it wasn't your fault. Don't worry. I have encountered Astoria a couple of times; this wasn't a surprise."
"That doesn't make it right. She shouldn't have said that, I—"
"Daph."
Daphne stopped and furrowed her eyebrows as she waited for Hermione to speak.
"It wasn't your fault, none of what happened was your fault. Stop apologizing to me."
Daphne smiled and nodded before hugging Hermione. She then followed after the rest.
Hermione turned and faced Draco as she spoke softly. "Are you okay?"
He huffed. "I should be asking you that. Are you okay?"
Hermione smiled and nodded before wrapping her arms around Draco's neck and bringing their lips together. The kiss was soft and light, just a breath. It was there and not there at the same time, and Draco wanted more, he needed more.
He kissed her again before speaking. "I am sorry." He kissed her again. "I am sorry." And again. "I am so sorry."
Hermione's hands threaded into his hair and she locked their eyes together as she spoke. "Do not apologize, Draco. I will break up with you if I heard that word come out of your mouth again."
He smirked at that. "Such Slytherin tactics. Threatening me, aren't you? Well, lucky for you, it's working."
"It better be."
His smirk widened and he leaned down to kiss her again, this time more slowly and more passionately. He tried to transfer to her his thoughts and the amount of the love that he has for her in that kiss. He wanted that kiss to be proof enough that he loves her, he wanted that kiss to be the bedazzling and dreamy curtain that was a creation because of his thoughts. He wanted to tell her that he loved her right there and then, but he wanted the timing to be right. He didn't want to just say it impulsively; he wanted those three words to leave his mouth when everything was good and she was in his arms and the stars were watching them from above.
"Well, we should go now before they finish the firewhiskey on their own." Draco remarked, pulling away reluctantly.
Hermione smiled and nodded. "Let's go."
And with that, the two of them headed towards Draco's room, both of their hands intertwined together.
***
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Nine more chapters + the epilogue left!
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