Ch. 46

Hermione's POV

It took me a few moments upon waking up to remember exactly where we were; Draco and I had spent the night at his parents' manor and we had gone to bed in his old room. I smiled as I remembered laughing when I stepped into his room, unsurprised at how dramatic it was.

The walls were a dark grey in color with black and Slytherin green accents, and his floor was a black marble with white accents, and that tile continued on into the bathroom. His furniture was all black as well, which I didn't mind since I preferred dark-colored furniture, but I couldn't help teasing him over the green accents.

I especially teased him about the black and green silk sheets on his bed, which he only laughed at before tossing a pillow at me.

Looking over at him, I saw that he was still fast asleep and I decided to go ahead and take a shower. Slipping out from under the covers, I quietly padded over to the bathroom and shut the door behind me. The bathroom reminded me of the Prefect's bathroom back at Hogwarts, just darker in color. The black marble continued on into the bathroom and into the shower that was large enough to fit six people comfortably. I was a little put off by the glass door but knew that no one but Draco would be walking in.

A few minutes later I was standing under the warm water, sighing as I started to wake up more. The shower door opening suddenly made me jump but I relaxed as soon as I saw it was only Draco.

"Didn't mean to scare you," He said with a smirk.

"You couldn't scare a bug," I retorted playfully.

He gave me a dramatic offended look, complete with putting his hand over his chest. "That hurt deep; I may need to reconsider this marriage."

"Oh really?" I laughed. "Well, I was considering asking you to join me for a shower but since you're reconsidering the marriage..."

He immediately pulled his sweatpants off and stepped into the shower next to me, his smirk turning into a grin. "Pass up on a shower with you? If I ever do that, take me to St. Mungo's."

I laughed again as he gave me a quick kiss before moving fully under the water. "I could just sic Ginny on you."

His eyes widened in fear as he said, "Oh please no, I've been subjected to her hexes before. Would really rather not have to be again."

Rolling my eyes, I stepped up to give him a kiss. He smiled as he pulled me against him, just holding me as he said, "Thank you again for this."

I smiled in return. "Of course. It was wonderful seeing you that happy."

"You realize I'm going to have to do something to repay you," He said.

"Draco, you don't need to do anything!" I laughed. "I suggested staying here because truthfully, I wanted to. Your parents are going to be my in-laws, and if they're willing to make the effort to accept me then I wanted to return the favor. I'd be heartless if I just up and left after all of that."

"Maybe not heartless, but certainly rude," He shrugged. "Either way, I can't begin to tell you how grateful I am."

We smiled at each other for a few moments before he leaned down to kiss me again. "Come on; breakfast should be ready soon."

We made our way down the stairs after finishing getting ready, and I was still picking at my clothes.

"Love, you look fine," Draco insisted reassuringly. "Trust me, they won't mind that you're wearing jeans."

"I should've packed a dress or something," I groaned quietly. "I feel so...average."

"Hermione." He paused at the base of the stairs and took both of my hands, giving them a squeeze as he looked into my eyes. "You are anything but average. When this is over, I'll have Pansy make you some nice clothes that you can wear specifically for visits, okay?"

"Are you sure they won't mind?" I asked, looking up towards the kitchen.

"I'm positive," He smiled. "They are going to just be happy that we are here. And it may give Mother an excuse to take you shopping."

"What?"

He grinned and pulled me towards the dining room before I could argue any further. Narcissa and Lucius were already in the dining room speaking quietly to one another, but they both looked up as we entered.

"Good morning!" Narcissa greeted excitedly. "I was almost worried last night was a dream!"

Draco was grinning as he crossed the room to embrace her. "Don't worry; we're still here."

I joined them but stayed a few feet back, not wanting to interrupt their happy moment. But then Narcissa gently pulled me in for a hug and said, "I've already got some tea waiting for us, and I was hoping we could spend some more time together today."

"Oh, absolutely!" I said, somewhat surprised.

She pulled away and gave me a large smile before looking me up and down. "Goodness, dear; what is it that you're wearing?"

I grimaced and glanced at Draco, who was laughing quietly. "Mother, she's wearing jeans."

Narcissa was quiet for a few moments before she smiled. "They look interesting. I'm guessing they are muggle fashion?"

I nodded and said, "They're fairly popular for everyday wear."

"Well, it looks like we will need to go shopping soon!" Narcissa said with a warm smile.

"Mother, she doesn't need any new clothes," Draco said.

"Not for her," Narcissa retorted, turning around. "For me. I think it's time my wardrobe needs an update, anyway."

Lucius gave his wife a surprised and somewhat sad look. "But I like all of your dresses..."

"I didn't say I was going to get rid of them, dear," Narcissa chuckled. "Just adding some variety!"

"We could always take her to Pansy," I suggested, looking at Draco.

He tilted his head back and forth. "That wouldn't be a bad idea."

"That would be lovely, actually," Narcissa said. "I haven't seen Pansy in a while!"

"Well, before we do any of that," Lucius interrupted. "Let's eat some breakfast, shall we?"

We all settled around the table as the conversation settled more on the New Year's Eve gala that was coming up.

"Dear, do you have a dress yet?" Narcissa asked me.

"Not yet," I admitted. "I just found out about it rather recently..."

Narcissa waved me off. "That's perfectly fine. We can make a girl's day of it!"

I smiled and asked, "How formal is the gala?"

"Well, it is a gala, dear," Narcissa said. "The dresses range anywhere from beautiful evening dresses to opulent ball gowns."

"I'm very excited for this," I said, smiling over at Draco.

He returned the smile and said, "I'll give you my card, purchase whichever gown you'd like."