A/N: I want to apologize for the very long wait on this chapter. My muse took a side road as well as the long way home. Please read and review.
When Did You Know
"Ronald Bilius Weasley! Put down your wand!" Ginny ordered. She had already directed her wand at her brother. "Stop being an ass. Draco has done nothing wrong. This is about 'Mione's parents." She barked.
Ron sheepishly put his wand down and mumbled, "Sorry Ginny." His sister eyed him and motioned towards Draco. Ron drew in a deep breath and said, "Sorry Malfoy. I was just worried about 'Mione." He only glanced at the Slytherin quickly before looking back at his sister.
He was just realizing that he had jumped to the wrong conclusion again when Hermione came out from behind his sister. He immediately took in her appearance and realized that she had been crying, her eyes puffy and red. She even seemed smaller than usual, like the weight of the world was on her shoulders. What was worse was the look she was giving him; not one of warmth but one of wariness. He felt ashamed of all that he put her through in the last few weeks, especially after witnessing the confrontation at the pub earlier.
Luna and Harry had followed Hermione out to the living room and had witnessed Ginny scolding her brother as well as his apologies. Luna walked out to stand in front of her boyfriend. "I see the Whackspurts have lessened around you." She smiled at him and then turned to Hermione. "He'll listen to reason now, Hermione. Finally we can finish our wedding plans." Luna happily exclaimed and hugged Ron.
Ron gave a lop-sided smile to his love and then turned to Hermione. "I really didn't come here to cause problems. You know me, I panicked when I got Luna's Patronus telling me that something was wrong and you were at Ferr… er, Malfoy's penthouse. I just assumed the worst." Ron stepped closer to the brunette. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I have been a complete git, 'Mione." He finished.
Draco watched as Weasley apologized to his girlfriend. He watched as she relaxed her stance a bit and nodded at the wizard. Part of him wanted to protest but the larger part, the man that loved her completely said nothing and realized that being with her meant accepting her friends, even if it included the weasel. At least he was apologizing to her.
Hermione was glad that Ron had apparently seen reason and wasn't going to continue his "anti-Draco" campaign. She was relieved that she didn't have to deal with the stress of choosing between her love life and her friends, especially now. She took a deep breath as she remembered once again why they were all here.
Draco stepped over to his girlfriend and grabbed her hand and led her to the couch while he gestured to the others to sit down. Once seated, he kissed Hermione on the forehead. "Are you okay to tell him what has happened, love?" He inquired. Hermione nodded in response and he squeezed her hand. He hoped that she was comforted by the small gesture.
Ron listened as Hermione explained what she had learned from the Australian Ministry. He once again felt guilt as he realized that he had allowed his old prejudices to come before his friendship. All those times that Hermione had stood beside him, defending him and protecting him and he had repaid her kindness with anger and selfishness. When she finished her tale, Ron looked down for a moment, not wanting to meet her eyes. Finally, with trepidation, he spoke, "I wish I could say something to make this better, 'Mione." He finally looked straight at her, noticing that her eyes were shiny from unshed tears. He smiled a bit at her, opened his arms and sighed when she moved toward him and allowed the hug. This was his best friend and he was grateful that she was gracious enough to allow him the chance to be that again, even after his foolhardy behavior. He gave her a squeeze and then sat back as she retreated into Malfoy's arms again.
"Finally!" Ginny declared. The rest of the group laughed appreciatively and relaxed a bit now that the tension seemed to leave the room. "My brother has finally come to his senses." She continued with a big smile on her face.
Draco offered everyone refreshments and all but Luna accepted tumblers of fire whiskey having a glass of pumpkin juice instead. As the three couples relaxed and began talking, Ron remembered what had happened at The Leaky Cauldron and decided to let Malfoy know what he saw earlier. "Oi, Malfoy! I was impressed with your Slytherin reunion at the pub earlier today." Draco looked up sharply at Weasley in surprise. "Well, yeah." Ron continued, "That Theo Nott is a slime ball but you took care of him. You didn't even need Zabini's assistance." All eyes turned to Ron now, waiting to hear more. "To be honest, I really thought that you were going to laugh and tell him it was a joke; just another prank to humiliate Hermione." Draco shook his head slightly and was about to speak when Ron waved his hand at him and said, "I thought the best part was when you had your wand right up against Nott's fucking throat." At this, Ron laughed in approval.
Hermione turned to Draco and grabbed him for a hug and said, "Thank you for defending me. I couldn't have chosen a better man to be my boyfriend!" She had tears in her eyes, but not from grief like earlier.
Draco scooped her up into his lap and squeezed her back and whispered, "I will always defend you because I love you." His cheeks suddenly reddened when he realized what he had said to her in front of her friends.
"I think that we've more than one wedding to plan!" Luna tittered. "Just one baby, though." She added. Everyone turned to look at her in surprise although Ron's mouth was the one wide open. "I hope it's a girl because I think that we should name her Fortuna or Felicia." Luna continued, seemingly unaware of the shock her announcement has caused.
A squeal from Ginny was heard as she leapt up from the chair she had been sharing with Harry and enveloped Luna into a hug. Hermione extracted herself from Draco's arms and lap to give the blonde witch a hug and congratulations. Draco and Harry both looked at Ron who was still looking completely stunned. "Cheers mate!" Harry congratulated Ron with a big smile. The red haired wizard looked at his best friend and broke into a goofy grin. Draco nodded at him and offered his hand out to shake. Ron was surprised but realized this was a way to call a truce and make amends. They shook hands briefly and then began to gossip about Quidditch while the witches continued to talk about babies.
That night, Draco and Hermione held one another in bed and talked about everything that had occurred earlier. While Hermione was still upset with the news about her parents, she was wholly satisfied with everything else. She chuckled and said, "Quite the surprise announcement from Luna." She hugged her boyfriend a bit tighter. "I'm not sure about the additional wedding plans, though. Did she mean Harry and Ginny? Everyone already knows they are going to end up married." She stated.
Draco was quiet for a moment before rolling over so that Hermione was underneath him. He smiled and bent down to give her a quick kiss. "Hermione, when did you know?" He asked.
The brunette looked up into his storm colored eyes and replied, "The night I went home with you. I have never been so impulsive about anything, especially sex. I felt that it was more than a one off but I wasn't sure so I didn't say anything." His smile grew wider at her response. "Why? When did you know?"
"I think I fell in love with you with the first kiss." He shifted a bit so he was able to kiss her neck while he continued to answer her. "I knew I wanted you for more than a quick fling. After that first night, I realized how disappointed I was in the morning because you weren't still next to me." He licked and sucked on her neck where it met her shoulder which caused Hermione to moan. "Love, I can't live without you. I know it's soon, but please stay with me forever." He lifted his head up to look at her. "Hermione, I love you and I would be beyond happy if you would become my wife." He declared.
Tears of pure joy were evident in her eyes as she nodded and exclaimed, "Yes, I will marry you! I love you, Draco." With that, they sealed the marriage proposal with a passionate kiss and a night of sensual love making.
Six Weeks Later
Draco and Hermione were dancing together as the sun slowly made its way down towards the distant hills. Many of the wedding guests had already left and only a few remained, still dancing and celebrating the nuptials of Ron and Luna.
Draco bent down and pressed his lips on Hermione's forehead. "I love you, Hermione." He murmured against her skin. He tightened his hold on her and continued to sway with her on the dance floor. He was truly happy with his life. He had everything a wizard could ask for with the beautiful woman in his arms. He smiled and said, "Let's go home." They stopped dancing and he led her over to the bride and groom to offer a final congratulation and to say good bye.
The next morning while having coffee, Draco brought up the idea of having their wedding in Italy. Hermione's eyes lit up at that suggestion and she quickly agreed. Together, they decided to have an intimate ceremony with just close friends in attendance at the Malfoy Estate in Tuscany on Christmas Eve.
Hermione gave her handsome fiancé an impish grin as she stood up and grabbed his hand, tugging for him to follow her to their bedroom. "I think we should celebrate our picking a date and place for our upcoming wedding." She said while waggling her eyebrows.
Draco laughed and quickly picked her up and tossed her onto the bed. "I like the way you think, love." He smirked as he leaned over her and started pulling off her pajamas. "No wonder you've been called the brightest witch of our age." He stated.
Hermione moaned as Draco's hands and mouth began to work their magic on her body. Before she was completely without breath from his administrations, she whispered, "I love you, Draco. I will love you forever and always." There were no more words as none were needed.
xxXXxx
End Notes: This is the last chapter but I will be posting an epilogue so it's not complete quite yet.
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