Hermione stared at her best friend unblinking, trying to find words.
"Ginny! What are you doing here?" she sputtered
Ginny walked further into the room and sat down on the edge of the bed, cooing at her baby who had started to fuss. "You wouldn't answer my letters," she replied simply, without looking up from her baby.
Hermione slid next to her and peered down at baby James Sirius Potter. A smile slid onto her face and she reached out to caress his hair.
Ginny frowned at her. "I shouldn't let you touch him."
"And why is that?" Hermione asked, offended at Ginny's words.
"What kind of godmother doesn't come and visit her godson, even if she is mad at his parents." Ginny scowled at her and pulled James out of the carrier so she could feed him. "Do you have a sheet or something? I forgot my nursing cover."
Hermione got up and brought her a silk sheet from the linen closet. "Is that what you think? That I'm mad at you and Harry? Why should I be mad at you?"
"That's what we've been wondering." She covered herself and started to nurse her son, wincing as he latched on.
They were quiet for a few minutes as Ginny waited for an explanation and James drifted off to sleep in his mother's arms. Hermione sighed and slipped the giant engagement ring onto her ring finger, holding her left hand out to show Ginny.
Ginny gasped and squealed silently, not wanting to wake James. "What?! When? How?! Hermione!" She whisper-yelled. "Hold on a second." She placed the sleeping baby in the center of the bed and placed pillows around him before dragging Hermione by the arm into the hallway.
"Explain yourself! You're engaged!?" She asked, examining the ring more closely.
Hermione smiled sheepishly. "Yes?"
Ginny grinned at her. "Ha! I won the bet!"
"What bet?" Hermione asked, frowning at her friend.
"Pansy said that you and Draco would find a way out of the conditions of Lucius' will and I said that you would both use it as an excuse to speed up your relationship without having to consciously do it yourselves."
"How do you know about Lucius' will?" Hermione asked with suspicion.
Ginny's face turned bright red. "Uhhhh...lucky guess?"
Hermione felt her blood boil in anger as realization washed over her. "Draco."
"What's that?"
"Draco told you. I bet he didn't even have to go to work today! He only said that so you could corner me!"
"Hermione calm down! He's worried about you. Harry and I are too by the way. Even Ron, as dense as he is, senses that something's off."
The brunette witch looked down at her feet as her anger subsided, being replaced by sadness.
"What's really wrong Hermione? Do you not want to marry Malfoy?"
Her head snapped up and she shook her head. "No! I really do. I mean at first I was hesitant, obviously, given the circumstances, but he makes me so happy and I can't imagine living my life without him."
"So what's the problem?"
Hermione hesitated. "This damn ring is too big!" she exclaimed, throwing her hands up in exasperation.
Ginny stared at her. "Are you kidding me Hermione? THAT's why you've been avoiding us? Because your bloody engagement ring is too big? Most girls would be thrilled to have a ring like that! It's beautiful!"
Hermione groaned and lowered herself to the floor, leaning against the wall and closing her eyes.
She opened her eyes a few moments later to see Ginny perched on a chair that she had conjured on the opposite side of the hallway. She scowled at her friend and shook her head.
"Well I can't sit down there with you seeing as I just had a baby," Ginny said nonchalantly, investigating her cuticles as she waited, again, for Hermione's explanation.
"It's not just the size of the engagement ring Ginny. It's the weight of it as well." She rolled her eyes as Ginny stared at her blankly. "It's everything that goes along with marrying into the Malfoy family. There are all these expectations of me that I'm not sure I can, or want to, meet."
"Like what?"
"Ginny you're pureblood, you know what! I met with Narcissa one time about the wedding and she was going on and on about how we'd have to groom me to be proper and how it would be a society event that everyone would be invited to and that it would re establish the Malfoy's in the eyes of the wizarding world, even if I am muggleborn. Then she went on and on about the 'heirs' that we'll have. Not her grandchildren! 'Heirs'! It's just too much."
"You know that Draco doesn't care about all of that stuff 'Mione."
"I know, but you should have seen the look on Narcissa's face; She looked so excited. I can't take that away from her," Hermione replied, staring at the ground.
"Hermione, you have to do what's best for you and Draco. Have you talked to him about this?"
She shook her head.
"So he doesn't know why you've been acting so strange about all of this?"
She shook her head again.
"'Mione! He probably thinks you don't love him! You have to talk to him. That's a huge part of being in a relationship; Being able to be open with your partner."
"I know," Hermione replied quietly, burying her face in her hands.
It was quiet for a few more minutes before James started to cry. Ginny got up to attend to her son and beckoned Hermione to follow.
They chatted for awhile longer before Ginny had to leave. She made Hermione promise to meet her and Pansy on Saturday and told Hermione where to meet them. As Hermione was walking back to Draco's room after Ginny and James floo'd home, she glanced in the library and saw Draco sitting at the desk, reading intensely.
"I thought you had to go into work," Hermione said, leaning on the doorframe.
Draco looked up sharply and smirked at her. "I may have told a small fib."
She snorted and walked in, taking a seat in her favorite cushy chair. "So you lie to me now?" She raised an eyebrow at him.
"Blame Weaslette! She threatened me!"
"Her name is Ginny, Draco. And I figured that this was her doing." She drew her knees to her chest and rested her chin on them.
Draco got up and walked over to her, taking the seat next to her. "Did her visit make you feel any better?" He asked hopefully.
"A little I guess. More so from seeing baby James," she replied with a smile.
"I can't believe I had Harry Potter's bloody offspring in my home," he said with mock disgust.
"Oh shut it Draco! I saw how you looked at James when we visited Ginny in the hospital; You love him."
He snorted but didn't deny it.
"We need to talk," Hermione said getting up to join Draco in his chair.
He pulled her into his lap wrapping his arms tightly around her. "What's on your mind Hermy?"
"You know I love you right?"
"Of course I know you love me," he replied quietly.
"Really?" she turned to get a better look at him
He scoffed. "Of course, Granger, who wouldn't love me?" He said, with a mischievous grin that didn't quite reach his eyes.
Hermione slapped his arm lightly. "I'm being serious Draco."
He sighed deeply, shifting her on his lap. "I know. And I was being serious before. I know that you love me but sometimes I feel like you're unhappy. All I want is for you to be happy."
Hermione felt extremely guilty when she saw the sad look on his face. He was usually so stoic and impassive; Always impossible to read. But here he sat, his insecurities showing clearly because she had closed herself off due to things beyond his control.
She took his face in her hands and kissed him gently. "I am beyond happy when I'm with you Draco. When it's just you and me I feel like I'm floating on air."
"Then what's wrong?" he asked so quietly she almost didn't hear him.
She sighed and leaned deeper into his arms, burying her face in his chest. "I just don't know that I can live up to the expectations that come with being a Malfoy. Moreover, I don't know that I even want to try."
He drew back and stared at her, brushing a curl out of her face lovingly. "What do you mean 'expectations' Herms?"
She stared back, confused. "You know...the...'expectations'." She actually made the motion of air quotations as if that would clarify her statement.
"Your mother said..." she trailed off, trying to think of how to phrase things so Draco wouldn't be angry with his mother. Their relationship had been kind of rocky since she revealed that she had another family.
As predicted, his eyes clouded over with anger. "My mother said what?" he asked coldly.
"Nothing to be worried about Draco; She was just excited about planning our wedding."
"So you lie to me now?" He asked with a smirk, echoing her earlier words.
"I'm not lying!" She insisted, moving out of his lap and over to the bookshelf. "She was very excited about planning a huge wedding and grooming me to fit into proper society."
Draco followed her, wrapping his arms around her as she perused his collection of books. "You know you don't have to do any of that; I love you just the way you are. I don't care about restoring our name in society, which his how I imagine my mother phrased it. I just want you, Hermione. Sweet, brilliant, beautiful, perfect, you," he said kissing her behind her ear.
Hermione sighed contently, relaxing into his embrace. He groaned and buried his face into her hair, taking in her delicious scent. "Hermione, don't make sounds like that. This whole 'waiting till we get married' is already hard enough without you enticing me like that."
She turned around in his arms and smiled up at him. "It's only five more months Draco."
"Five more months? You're finally picking a date?" He grinned down her and peppered kisses all over her face, eventually moving down to her neck, making her giggle with glee.
She blushed, relishing in the unexpected rush of affection from her tall, blonde fiance. "Yes. Well I have an idea that might appease us as well as your mother."
He ceased his ministrations and peered at her skeptically. "And what's that?"
"We should have a private ceremony, just the two of us, maybe our close friends as well," she said pensively. "Anyway, we should have a small ceremony and then your mother can plan the huge societal affair she wants some time after that."
"Hermione Granger. You really are the brightest witch of our age, maybe the brightest witch ever."
She laughed and hit his arm playfully before heading downstairs to get lunch, Draco hot on her heels.
A/N Sorry this one took so long! Exams are picking up and this week was stressful. :'( I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and have a great weekend!
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