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Secret Arrangement

Summary:

Draco Malfoy is unprepared for a secret from his past resurfacing. Will he be able to limit the damage or will it ruin his marriage? Everything happens so fast and even Draco doesn't believe his Wife will ever forgive him.

Notes:

Originally published on my profile @emilynicole96 on Wattpad

Chapter Text

Hermione was in a sitting room at Malfoy Manor with Narcissa and Lucius having tea when a house elf, Mippy appeared.

"Hello Mippy." Narcissa greeted warmly. Mippy beamed at her before turning towards Hermione.

"Mistress Hermione, Ms. Daphne is here to see you."

"Daphne is here? Go ahead and bring her through." Hermione said, sending a questioning look towards her In-laws. Mippy nodded before quickly apparating away. Mippy walked back in a few minutes later followed by a nervous looking Daphne. Hermione thanked Mippy quickly before turning her attention towards her friend.

"Daph? Is everything okay?" She asked, standing to give her a hug before gesturing towards the empty chair at the table.

"Yes. Im sorry to interrupt Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy." She said politely.

"It's no problem at all Daphne. You know you're always welcome at the Manor." Narcissa responded kindly, Lucius just nodding his agreement. Daphne gave them a relieved smile before turning her attention back towards Hermione.

"I went to the Penthouse but nobody was home so I figured you and Draco might be over here."

"What do you mean nobody was home? Draco and Blaise are supposed to be packing up and moving things over to the new house today."

Lucius snorted. "I'd be surprised if you two ever move with those idiots in charge."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "That's what i've been saying but Draco insists that I can't help. We could have already been moved in if he wasn't such an overprotective git."

"Moving does take time darling." Narcissa added, trying to play devil's advocate.

"Don't you stick up for him Cissa! Those two manage to buy, build, and open a hotel in 5 months and yet they have been moving us for 3 months and barely anything is done. I swear on Merlin's beard, if I have this baby and we aren't completely moved into the new house, I'm going to kill them." Hermione finished her rant with a huff, leaning back in her chair.

Lucius gave her a warm smirk, loving what the pregnancy hormones are doing to his normally feisty daughter-in-law. Daphne chuckled from her seat.

"Im sorry Daph, was there something you needed to tell me or are you just here for a social visit?" Hermione asked, bringing her attention back to her friend.

Daphne gave her a nervous look. "There is something I have to tell you actually."

"Would you like some privacy?" Narcissa asked, indicating that her and Lucius could leave them to talk.

"No, you two can stay, it isn't anything private." Daphne said to them before taking a deep breath. Hermione exchanged a worried look with Narcissa. "See, well. Astoria showed up today at my flat."

Hermione raised a questioning brow. "Your little sister Astoria?" Daphne just nodded at the question. "I thought she moved out of country with your parents after the war?"

"Yes, she did. They moved to France to get away from all the bad publicity. Astoria was in 5th year at the time and once they moved she had to retake the year, so she just finished with school."

"Okay.." Hermione said, unsure of why her friend was telling her this.

"Well, she turned up at my flat this morning and me and Pansy were talking about the Garden Party for Lucius' birthday tomorrow and Astoria kind of invited herself to come." Daphne rushed out with a small grimace.

Lucius and Narcissa exchanged a small look. "Your sister is welcome to come, if thats what you're worried about." Narcissa said gently.

"No, I mean that is a relief but I figured you wouldn't mind. The thing is, Astoria seems to have no idea that Hermione and Draco are married." At this, all three of them turned to look at Hermione.

"I'm confused. Why does it matter if she knows about my marriage? I've never even met Astoria." Hermione asked, very confused at why all three of them were looking at her expectantly for a reaction.

"Well, because of the arrangement of course." Daphne said, giving her a questioning look.

"What arrangement?" Hermione's confusion turning into irritation. Daphne's eyes widened in surprise and Lucius and Narcissa exchanged a worried look. Hermione took in all their expressions but it seemed they were all at a loss of words.

"Lucius, what arrangement?" She asked her father-in-law when it was clear he knew exactly what Daphne was talking about.

"When Draco was in 5th year, I started looking for a respectable witch for him to marry. Purebloods marry young and its common for the parents to arrange a marriage before their children are out of school. My first choice was Pansy, but Draco said they had already dated and it would never work between them. My next choice was Daphne, so I approached her father and he informed me that he had already arranged for her to marry Theo Nott." Lucius paused and shared an apprehensive look with his wife.

Hermione gave her friend a questioning look. "Neither Theo or I were aware of it until that year when Lucius approached my father." She explained.

"But Theo is married to Pansy now?"

"Yeah, thank Merlin. We agreed when we heard of the arrangement that we wouldn't just dismiss it. We had always been friends and most pureblood marriages don't even have that connection. We even tried dating for a bit in 6th year but we quickly realized that there were no romantic feelings between us. When we went back to repeat 7th year, Theo started to fall in love with Pansy and since my parents had already left the country and basically disowned me, we felt no need to hold up their arrangement."

"Good for you guys." Hermione said, giving her friend a proud smile before turning back to Lucius. "I'm guessing that's not the arrangement we were talking about?" She asked.

Lucius sighed and shook his head. "No, it's not. When Daphne's father informed me that she was already promised, he offered an alternative. Astoria was a little young but we eventually agreed that once she finished school, her and Draco could have a fast engagement and be married within a few months time."

"So are you telling me that my husband is legally bound to another witch?"

"No! Of course not! We would never had allowed for that." Narcissa exclaimed.

"Narcissa's right. Arranged marriages are never a legal contract, but in pureblood society they are often viewed as such. Most families will do anything to keep their name and bloodline pure, so when an arrangement is made, it is expected of the children to uphold it if they want access to their inheritance." Lucius explained. Hermione narrowed her eyes at him and he quickly continued before she could start yelling at him. "However, when you all went back to re-do your last year, things changed. Draco came home at Christmas break and said he fell in love and wanted out of the arrangement. The war was over and me and Cissa realized that we didn't care about any of the prejudices that almost tore our family apart anymore. We just wanted Draco to be happy, so we agreed to end it."

"So Draco knew that he was expected to marry Astoria?"

"Yes. We never would have made the arrangement in the first place unless he agreed to it, which is why we didn't pick Pansy." Lucius could feel a stab of pain in his heart as he saw his daughter-in-law's face fall at his admission.

"So he wanted to marry her?" Hermione asked Daphne, trying and failing to hide the pain in her voice. Daphne gave her friend a soft look and grabbed her hand.

"It was different for us back then. Draco didn't even know Astoria that well when this was arranged because she was too young to be apart of our group. Astoria had a massive crush on him and we all knew it. She was raised to be the perfect pureblood princess whose entire world would revolve around her husband and I think Draco just liked the fact the she would put him above everything else. I don't think he ever loved her." Daphne tried to explain gently.

"So she's everything i'm not." Hermione said sadly, tears starting to well up in her eyes.

"Hermione--" Daphne started before she was cut off.

"Why didn't anyone tell me? Why did it take her coming back for me to find out about this?" Hermione asked the table.

"We thought you knew, sweetheart." Narcissa said softly. "Draco assured us he told you but he said it was a sensitive subject and asked us not to bring it up."

Daphne nodded. "He told all of us the same thing. Im so sorry Hermione."

"Don't be. You have nothing to be sorry for." Hermione said, standing up from the table. Lucius stood up as well and she shook her head, wiping away a tear that managed to break free. "Im fine, it's just the pregnancy hormones." She sniffed. "Thanks for tea but I think I need to go. Im sorry, i'll see you all tomorrow at the party." She said, rushing out of the room before anyone could object.

Lucius sat back down and the table was quiet for a minute.

"I don't mean to be rude, but your son is a prat." Daphne said, breaking the silence.

Lucius snorted in agreement.

"What do we do?" Narcissa asked quietly. "Should we tell Draco that she's going to be there?"

"No." Lucius snapped. "We don't tell him anything. He decided to hide this from her so now he gets to deal with the consequences."

Daphne and Narcissa both nodded in agreement.

Chapter 2: Consequences

Chapter Text

Draco stood in the garden at Malfoy Manor, scowling down at his appearance. The garden was starting to fill with guest for Lucius' Birthday party. Draco was dressed in black slacks and a grey shirt with a few top buttons undone. He was still scowling at his appearance when his best friend, Blaise Zabini walked up to him.

Blaise handed him a glass of firewhiskey. "Whats up with you?"

Draco shook his head. "I don't know. Hermione went to the office early this morning so I woke up extremely late. I had to rush to get ready and now I feel as if i've forgotten something but I haven't a clue what it is."

"Is that why I haven't seen her here?" Blaise asked, looking around for any sign of his best friends wife.

"Yeah, she left a note saying she would meet me at the party." Draco said with a frown.

"Maybe she's what you're missing. You two are usually inseparable." Blaise offered with a shrug.

"Maybe. I did barely see her yesterday and by the time I got home she was already asleep, then she was gone when I woke up. I feel like it's been ages since i've talked to her." Draco said with a sigh. Blaise gave him a knowing smirk and Draco just rolled his eyes, looking around the party in search of his wife.

His eyes flitted over the guest until they caught on two girls making their way towards them. Daphne was dressed in a light blue sundress but what caught Draco's attention was the blonde girl walking next to her. She was in a skin tight Slytherin green dress that ended right above her knees. It seemed like something one would wear to a cocktail party, not a casual garden party. The blonde had a huge smile on her face and her eyes were focused on Draco.

"Shit! What the hell is Astoria Greengrass doing here?" He whispered to Blaise. Blaise gave him a weird look.

"I don't know. Daph did say she just finished school in France so maybe she's home for a visit. Why does it matter anyways?" Blaise asked with a shrug. He looked to see Draco flinch and glance away, eyes sweeping the party. "Draco, what are you hiding?"

"I uh- might have forgot to tell Hermione about the arrangement with Astoria." He mumbled, not making eye contact.

"What?! You mean the arranged marriage you agreed to and then promised us you told her about when you started dating? That arrangement?" Blaise asked, anger evident in his voice.

Draco flinched again. " Yeah, that one. What am I supposed to do?"

"Well first, you need to set it straight with Astoria, since given the way she's making eyes at you i'm guessing she has no idea that the arrangement is off. Then you need to tell you wife, hopefully before someone else does, and pray to Salazar that she forgives you." Blaise spat, angry to be complicit in a secret he had no idea he was keeping from Hermione. "You better fix this Draco." He warned with a final glare before turning his attention towards the two women who just walked up.

"Astoria, I didn't know you were back." Blaise greeted her with a tight smile that she failed to notice. "How long are you staying?"

Astoria smiled at him before turning her direction towards Draco. "Im back for good. Did you miss me Draco?" She asked with a flirty smile.

"Oh, um yeah-"

"Oh I missed you to!" She said, flinging herself at him. Draco stumbled back with the force of it, his arm coming up to her back in order to keep them from falling over. Blaise looked away with a scowl and Daphne glared at him. Draco quickly removed her from his arms but she kept close, one hand latched onto his arm as she talked away about how excited she was to be back.

Draco couldn't get a word in when finally Blaise coughed pointedly, causing Astoria to pause her ramblings.

"Sorry to interrupt this happy reunion, but your parents are heading this way Draco." Draco sighed with relief, thinking Astoria would finally give him some space in the presence of his parents. He soon found out he was wrong though when she instead wrapped her arm through his and pressed up to his side.

"Draco, Daphne, Blaise." Lucius greeted with a nod. Narcissa gave her son a quick kiss on the cheek before joining her husbands side again as his attention shifted to Astoria. "Ms. Greengrass, it's nice to see you again." He greeted in a clipped, polite tone that didn't go unnoticed by anyone, including Astoria.

Daphne and Blaise exchanged an amused look while Astoria seemed to cringe before plastering on a big fake smile.

"Mr. Malfoy, Happy Birthday." She said before turning her attention towards Narcissa. "Thank you for having me, you have a beautiful home Mrs. Malfoy."

Narcissa just hummed in response before letting her eyes sweep over her dress and then giving her a cold look. "That's quite the dress you're wearing." She said in a tone that made it clear it wasn't a compliment. Blaise choked on his drink and quickly coughed to try to cover-up his obvious laugh.

"Oh. Um, thank you." Astoria replied quietly, her hand tightening on Draco's arm. Draco was just about to pry her off him when Hermione walked up to the group.

"Oh Hermione, you look lovely!" Narcissa said, her cold tone immediately softening. Hermione was wearing a soft pink sundress the cinched above her baby bump, showing it off. Her hair was down in its natural curls, much more tamed than they were in school. She blushed slightly at the compliment and gave her a warm smile.

"Thank you, Cissa. The garden looks wonderful, you really out did yourself for this old man." Hermione teased causing Blaise to snort and Lucius rolled his eyes.

"Happy birthday Lucius." She said reaching up on her toes to kiss him on the cheek. He gave her a warm smile in return.

"Thank you sweetheart. You'll have to save a dance for me later, that is if you're not too tired." He said with a pointed look at her bump.

"I'm never too tired to dance with you, Lucius." She said with a smile before turning towards Daphne. "Daph, you look gorgeous. Harry is a lucky guy."

Daphne beamed at her. "Hermione, this is my little sister Astoria." She said motioning towards her still pressed up against Draco's side. Hermione turned towards the pair and Draco could see the hurt flash in her eyes before she covered it with a polite smile.

"Pleasure to meet you, Astoria. Daphne mentioned that you just finished school in France. Are you back in England for work?"

"Oh Merlin no! I came back to get married." She said, shooting a grin up at Draco. Draco cringed and tried again to create some space between them.

"You don't plan to work after you get married?"

"Of course not." She said with a huff. "Pureblood husbands want their wives to be in the home, as expected." She explained.

"So i've heard." Hermione mumbled shooting another hurt look at Draco.

"Not all of us. I love the fact that Luna works and is passionate about her job. I think it's hot." Blaise added quickly. Hermione gave him a small grateful smile.

"Where is Luna? I haven't seen her yet."

"She's in Ireland right now. She got a lead on a potential Nargle community. You know how it goes." Blaise said with a shrug. "She should be back in a few days."

"What about you, Hermione? Where is your husband?" Astoria asked with a slightly smug smirk.

"My husband seems to be occupied with a previous engagement at the moment." Hermione answered with a tight smile. Blaise and Lucius both choked on their drinks and Draco's mouth hung open in shock. He figured he would have some groveling to do with how Astoria was pressed up against him but now it was clear that his wife knew about it all. Hermione continued to ignore him and instead turned to Blaise. "Blaise, want to dance?"

"I would love to." He said with a grin, wrapping his arm around her and leading her towards the dance floor. Draco had to hold in a growl at the sight of his best friend's arms around his wife, trying to comfort her. Narcissa and Lucius both shot him a glare and excused themselves to mingle with the other guests.

"Well they seem awfully close for people married to other people." Astoria said in a snide tone, her eyes on the couple dancing. Draco also couldn't tear his eyes away from them. Blaise was dancing slowly with her as they seemed to be quietly talking. Draco watched Blaise wipe a tear off her face and Draco could feel his heart breaking.

"They're close because she's married to his best friend who also happens to be acting like a gigantic git right now." Daphne snapped, shooting Draco a scary glare before stomping away.

"Touchy." Astoria mused, setting her head against Draco's shoulder which seemed to snap him out of the state of shock he has been in since Astoria arrived. He pushed Astoria off him and ignored the pout that immediately appeared on her face.

"Look, Astoria, we need to talk."

"Of course we do Draco! We have so much to plan!"

"No, thats not what I mean--"

"We need to first get officially engaged and then we can start planning the wedding and all the parties before. Oh we have so much to do! Im sure we will be moving into the manor right after the wedding--"

"Wedding? What wedding?" Pansy asked as she walked up to them, Theo at her side.

Astoria immediately reattached herself to Draco's side at the sight of her. Even back in school Astoria was always jealous of Pansy because she dated Draco before. Pansy gave her a smirk at the obvious display of ownership.

"Mine and Draco's wedding, obviously." Astoria answered smugly. Pansy narrowed her eyes at both of them.

"I wasn't aware you two were getting married. What are you even doing here Astoria? Aren't you suppose to be hiding away in France?"

"I wasn't hiding." Astoria snapped. "And of course we are getting married."

"I wouldn't be too sure. If I were Draco I wouldn't go near you with a two-foot pole. Who knows how many guys you slept with out there. We all know how much you got around in Hogwarts trying to make Draco jealous. Too bad he never did care about you though, huh Astoria?"

"Pans--" Draco started

"What Draco?" She snapped. "Don't tell me you're sticking up for her. Its bad enough you've let her hang all over you this entire party. Do you not care at all about the damage you're causing or how much you're hurting your wife right now?"

"Of course I care!"

"Well you could have fooled me." Pansy said with a snort. Astoria finally stepped away from his side.

"What does she mean wife? You aren't wearing a ring, I checked." She asked motioning towards his left hand. Draco looked down at his hand in confusion and was shocked to see it was bare.

"Un-fucking-believable." Pansy muttered. Draco ignored her and instead was staring at his finger that he hadn't worn bare in almost two years, since he married Hermione. Now he understood why it felt like he was missing something earlier. He must of been in such a rush to not be late that he forgot to put his ring back on when he got out of the shower. He looked up to find Hermione standing with Blaise just outside their group, eyes glued to his hand.

She finally looked up at him and he sucked in a breath at all the pain he could see in her eyes. He took a step towards her and she quickly turned and started to walk away.

"Hermione wait!" He called, taking a few long steps until he can grab her arm to stop her. She ripped her arm out of his grasp and whirled around to face him.

"Don't touch me!" She hissed, tears running down her face.

"Hermione, please. Just let me explain-"

"No! Don't talk to me. I wont have you ruining your father's birthday just because you're a selfish, lying, prat!" She spat at him. "I mean it Draco, leave me the hell alone." She wiped the tears of her face before turning and calmly walking back towards the inside of the manner, Pansy and Daphne close behind her.

Draco just stood in shock at the image of his wife walking away. "Fuck!" He yelled and then Blaise and Theo were instantly by his side.

"Come on, lets go for a walk by the lake." Theo suggested.

"Yeah, let's go Draco. You know she's just going to be more pissed if you cause a scene." Blaise added.

Draco wanted to run after her and beg her to let him explain. To apologize over and over agin until she forgave him but he knew his friends were right. He let them guide him away from the party and down towards the waters edge. Draco sat on the bench and buried his head in his hands. They were all silent for what felt like hours but was more likely about 10 minutes.

"How did I let this get so fucked up?" He asked, his voice almost a whisper.

"I don't know, mate. It must be a talent." Blaise joked, trying to lighten the mood.

"Why didn't you just tell her about Astoria before?" Theo asked

"I was going to, I really was. But things were finally going so well for us and I was scared that if I told her I had practically been engaged the whole time we were together, she would leave me. She didn't grow up in our world and I didn't think she would understand. Plus, Astoria was already gone, so I figured I could not saying anything and she would never have to know."

Blaise scoffed. "You're an idiot."

"Was I though? I mean look at how bad she took it and we are already married. If we were back in Hogwarts, just dating, there would be nothing holding her back from leaving me."

"Give me a break, Draco. Hermione isn't pissed because you were arranged to be married back when we were in school. Are you really that blind?" Blaise asked. Draco gave him a confused look, about to ask what he meant. Theo stepped in before he could.

"Daphne filled me and Pansy in when we got here. She said she went to warn you both about Astoria yesterday but when she went to the penthouse it was empty so she tried the Manor, where she found Hermione having tea with your parents. When it became clear that she had no idea why Astoria being back effected her, Lucius explained how he arranged your marriage. Daph said she was really understanding throughout the whole explanation, even praised Daph and me for not going through with our arrangement when we no longer felt it was right for us." Theo explained. "She said Hermione only started to get upset when it became clear that you knew about it the whole time and had agreed to wanting to marry Astoria."

"But I never actually loved Astoria! I barely even knew her." Draco protested.

"Daphne told her that. She tried to explain that it was different back then and that she thought you only agreed to it because Astoria was this perfect pureblood princess. She said you probably just wanted someone that would put you above everything else and basically worship the ground you walked on, which we all knew Astoria would do." Theo explained.

"But then why is she so mad? She has never been this mad at me before." Draco asked.

"How would you feel if the roles were reversed?" Blaise asked. When Draco gave him a question look he continued his point. "Think about it Draco. If Hermione had a marriage arranged for her before you got together but then decided to back out of it. She never told you she was basically engaged, but her whole family and all of your friends knew. Then, after you're married, this guy shows up at a party for your family and is all over her, in front of you and all your friends. Not only does she make no effort to push him off her, but as this guy is explaining how a husband should be for someone like Hermione, hitting all of the insecurities that you've managed to bury, she makes no effort to deny that that's what she would prefer. And this whole time, while she's with her would be husband, ignoring you exist, she also doesn't have her wedding ring on. Would you be pissed?"

"Id probably kill the guy." He spat, feeling his anger rise just thinking of being in that situation. Blaise gave him a pointed look. "Oh God, I've really fucked up this time. What if she doesn't forgive me?"

"She'll forgive you. It might take some time, and i'm sure her being pregnant and more emotional than normal isn't helping at all, but she will forgive you." Theo said resolutely.

"How can you be so sure?" Draco asked quietly, not confident at all that she would take him back.

"Because she loves you, Draco. She might hate you right now--"

"Rightfully so, I might add." Blaise chimed in with a smirk.

"But, she loves you too much to let this be the end. You can fix this." Theo finished.

"Just stay the hell away from Astoria." Blaise warned causing Draco to roll his eyes.

"That wont be an issue. I never wanted to be around her today to begin with. The girls like a leech, I couldn't get her off me." Draco mumbled causing Blaise and Theo to laugh. Draco gave Theo a look. "Pansy sure was on a roll today."

Theo grinned. "Wasn't she great? You know how protective she is over her family. Plus, she has never liked Astoria since she tried to sleep with me in 6th year."

"Astoria tried to sleep with you in 6th year? Why is this the first i'm hearing about it?" Blaise asked.

"I never mentioned it because I turned her down." Theo shrugged. "Besides, she just wanted me to make Draco jealous since he couldn't pull his attention away from Hermione."

"Not true, I wasn't with Hermione until we went back to retake 7th year." Draco protested.

"Yeah but you'd been obsessed with her since 3rd year after she punched you." Blaise teased. Draco blushed and mumbled 'whatever' under his breath. The boys laughed and then they all fell silent.

"She's my whole world guys. I can't do this without her."

Blaise patted him on the back. "We know. You'll fix this Draco. You don't have another option."

Chapter 3: Apologies

Chapter Text

Draco, Blaise, and Theo made their way back to the party. Draco watched Hermione from across the room. She was sitting with Pansy at a table on the other side of the garden and he could tell that she was purposely not looking at him. Pansy had no such problem as she kept shooting him glares every few minutes.

"Should I be worried that Pansy won't forgive me either?" Draco asked Theo, only semi joking.

Theo looked over at his wife, noticing the glares. "She's just scared. Hermione's her best friend. She's afraid you might screw it up so bad that she leaves and then Pans will lose her too."

"Hermione is her best friend? I thought that was Daphne?" Blaise questioned.

"She is, but her friendship is different with Hermione. Im sure I don't have to tell you two that Pansy is a hard person to like." Blaise and Draco both snorted in agreement.

"I don't think I even started to genuinely like Pans until 6th year and I dated her in 4th." Draco mused and Blaise chuckled.

"Exactly. We all grew up with her and it still took us most of our childhood to see everything that she is. Pansy isn't dumb, she knew how we all felt about her growing up. When it became obvious that you were in love with Hermione and she was going to be part of all our lives, Pansy was resigned to the fact that Hermione was going to hate her. I mean, if Slytherins had such a hard time with it, how could the Gryffindor Princess that she bullied all through school ever like her?"

"Hermione's not like that, she's too forgiving. She's got a bleeding heart, that one." Draco said with a small smile, thinking about his wife.

"I know. Hermione forgave her and then she loved her, and it didn't take years for it to happen. She's the best friend Pansy has ever had."

They were quiet for a few moments, thinking over everything that Theo said. "You know she would never leave you guys, right? Even if I did screw things up so bad that she leaves me, she would never leave you. You guys are her family."

"We know, Draco. She would never leave you either. Wether she knows it or not, that girl is stuck with us." Blaise said, offering his friend a smile.

"I hope you're right." Draco said with a sigh. The three of them watched the party wind down until it was only them, the girls, and Draco's parents left. Astoria seemed to have left in the time that the boys were talking by the lake. Lucius left Narcissa's side and walked up to them.

"I think we are going to get going. Happy Birthday Mr. Malfoy." Blaise said. Him and Theo said their goodbyes before walking over to the girls and saying goodbye to Hermione and Narcissa. The four Slytherins left the garden, leaving only the Malfoy family behind.

"You ready for this?" Lucius asked, his eyes watching the girls.

"No. I know Blaise and Theo say that she is going to forgive me, but i'm not so sure. I've never seen her look at me like that before, Father."

"Marriage is hard son. Right now you and Hermione are going through a hard patch, but you will get through it."

"Im scared." Draco said, his voice small.

"I know you are. Let's get this over with, shall we." Lucius said, putting his hand on Draco's shoulder and leading him towards the girls. Narcissa stood from her seat when they approached and gave her son a quick kiss on the cheek, whispering 'good luck'. Lucius kissed the top of Hermione's head and the grabbed Narcissa's hand and started to walk inside, leaving Draco and Hermione alone in the Garden.

Hermione was still sitting, staring at her hands. Draco took a deep breath and sat down next to her.

"Hey."

"Hey." Hermione mumbled, still looking at her hands in her lap.

"Hermione, im so sorry. I don't even know where to start."

"Why didn't you just tell me? Is it because a part of you still wanted to marry her?"

"What?! Of course not! How could you think that?"

"Well what the hell am I suppose to think Draco?! You neglect to tell me about how you were practically engaged to this gorgeous blonde who wants nothing more than to worship the ground you walk on and be the perfect pureblood wife and i'm not supposed to have doubts that maybe you still want that life?" Hermione was up and pacing at this point, still unable to look him in the eyes.

"I don't want that life Hermione, all I want is you!"

"Well what the hell changed?! You were perfectly happy to marry her and have that exact life up until we retook 7th year."

"You! You changed me. I fell in love with you and everything changed."

"And i'm just supposed to believe that? That you started dating me and all of what you wanted in a wife changed?"

"Yes! You're supposed to believe me!"

"Well I don't believe you Draco!" Hermione stopped pacing and finally looked at him. Her eyes started feeling up with tears. "Do you have any idea how much it hurt to see you with her today? She was all over you and you just let her. Right in front of me. Like I didn't even matter." Her voice broke at the end and the tears started running down her face.

"Hermione--" Draco said, standing up and reaching for her.

"Dont." She stepped away from him before he could touch her, her arms wrapping around herself. Draco slowly lowered his arm, the distance between them feeling like miles.

"You didn't even tell her that you were already married, Pansy had to do it for you. Why Draco? Were you trying to keep your options open?"

"No! I don't want any options--"

"Then why didn't you just tell her?!"

"I was going to but she wouldn't let me get a word in and then everyone was there and I didn't want to embarrass her or hurt her feelings in front of everyone."

Hermione snorted. "Well that's just great. Good to know that you cared so much about her but had no problem with me being embarrassed or hurt."

"That's not true--"

"Isn't it? Every second that you let her press herself against you and not say anything was you choosing her over me. In front of all our friends and family you kept choosing her!"

Hermione was close to sobbing at this point and Draco had tears streaming down his face.

"Im so sorry. Please-" He choked out on a sob. "Please, just tell me how to fix this."

"I don't know if you can." She whispered, unable to look at him.

"No, don't say that. We can work through this. Please Hermione, I love you."

"I love you too, but right now I can't look at you without seeing her and it hurts too much." Hermione took another step away from him. "You should go home, Draco."

"No, not without you."

"I need some space--" Hermione choked on a sob and took another step back. "Please Draco, just go home." He took a step towards her and she matched the step back. "Mippy!" She called and immediately the house elf appeared. "Mippy, will you please go to the penthouse and pack me a bag of clothes for a few days."

"Mistress Hermione will be staying at the Manor?" Mippy asked excitedly. Hermione nodded and managed to give Mippy a small smile. "Mippy is very excited. Mippy loves when Mistress Hermione stays at the Manor. Mippy will pack a bag and put it in Master Draco's room right away."

"Thank you Mippy." Hermione said quietly. Mippy smiled at her before apparating away to the penthouse.

"Hermione--" Draco started, his voice a plea.

"I think I need to go lay down, it's been a really long day." Her voice had gone monotone and she subconsciously rubbed a soothing circle over her baby bump. "Please don't forget to look after Crookshanks. There's left over Chinese food in the fridge but you have to eat it tonight or it will be bad. There should be enough to make pasta in the cupboards but you'll probably need to send Mippy to the store. I'll make a list." Hermione said in the same tone, giving him a nod and turning to walk inside. Draco quickly reached out and grabbed her hand, touching her for the first time all day.

Hermione looked down at their joined hands and she could feel the tears start to well in her eyes again. She looked up at him and could see the desperation on his tear soaked face. She wanted nothing more than to step into his arms and let him comfort her but instead she took a step back and dropped his hand.

"I just need some space." She said to him in a quiet voice.

"I love you, you know that right?"

"Yeah baby, I know." She mumbled before turning and walking inside, leaving Draco alone in the garden.

Chapter 4: Reunion

Chapter Text

Hermione stayed in bed for 3 days straight following the Garden party, only getting up to use the bathroom. She was back in bed on the 4th day, staring at the wall when there was a knock at the door. She mumbled for who ever was there to come in and Narcissa walked in.

"Hello sweetheart, how are you feeling today?" She asked, sitting on the edge of the bed. Narcissa brought her hand up and started to soothingly brush it through Hermione's hair.

"I feel terrible." She mumbled, a lone tear escaping down her face.

"Oh honey, i'm sorry. Pansy and Daphne are here. Do you want to join us for tea? Or I could send them up here to see you?"

"I don't want to see anyone." She mumbled, bury her head further into Draco's pillow.

Narcissa gave her a knowing smirk. "Not anyone?" She mused. Hermione looked at her and sighed.

"I don't think i'm ready to forgive him yet, Cissa."

"I know but just because you see him doesn't mean you have to forgive him. Besides, we've been holding him off the last few days but I don't think we'll be able to manage for that much longer. Sooner or later you are going to have to face him."

Hermione sighed. "I know. Im honestly surprised he managed to last this long."

Narcissa chuckled. "Why don't you get up and take a shower. It'll make you feel better and give the elves a chance to switch the sheets. Mippy has been going crazy at the thought of you being on dirty sheets."

"I guess I could do that, but i'm getting right back in bed after." She mumbled, reaching her hands up for Narcissa to help haul her up.

"How is my grandson doing in there?" Narcissa asked, placing her hand on her bump.

"He's been moving around like crazy the last few days. Honestly it's been hard to get any rest."

"Is he usually so active?" Narcissa asked as she led her into the en-suite bathroom and turned on the shower.

"Yes, but normally Draco is around to calm him. All he has to do is touch my stomach or talk and the baby settles down." Hermione explained, her face falling. Narcissa gently cupped her face, tilting her head up to look in her eyes.

"You two will get through this Hermione. I know you will." She said softly, wiping away her tears. Hermione nodded and took a deep breath. "Good girl, now get in the shower. I'll tell Mippy she can come in."

Hermione did as she was told and took a long shower, letting the hot water massage her skin. After about 30 minutes she finally got out. She walked back into the bedroom to see the sheets had already been changed. She walked over to the wardrobe and pulled on a pair of panties and one of Draco's old Slytherin jumpers. She slid back under the covers on her side of the bed nearest the door. It took about an hour of trying to get comfortable with her active baby doing rolls in her stomach before she was able to fall asleep.

Hermione opened her eyes to the sound of her bedroom door closing. She had turned in her sleep and was facing the window. With the limited light coming through she estimated that she'd been sleeping for a few hours. She rolled over to see who was at the door and she came face to face with Draco.

Draco was leaning against the door, just watching her. She saw his eyes widen when he realized she was awake.

"Hey." She croaked, voice still heavy with sleep.

"Hey. Mother said you were sleeping. I just wanted to check on you. I'll leave now." He said in a quiet voice, turning to open the door.

"Draco, wait. Come here." She mumbled, eyelids still half-closed with sleep. "Give me your hand." She asked, stretching her own hand out. He quickly walked to stand beside the bed and placed his hand in hers. She pulled the jumper she was wearing up and placed his palm on her bare baby bump.

Draco looked down and marveled at his half-asleep wife. She kept her hand place over his on her bump. After about 10 seconds he felt his son start to settle and Hermione let out a deep sigh, her eyes fluttering closed.

"Thank Merlin. He's been driving me crazy the last few days and you're the only one he settles for."

"Is that right Scorpius? Driving your mummy crazy practicing all those quidditch moves?" Draco asked, glad to be talking to his unborn son for the first time in almost a week.

"We never agreed on 'Scorpius'."

"So you keep telling me."

Hermione's lip twitched up and she slowly opened her eyes to see her husband smirking down at her. Both their faces turned back into serious expressions while they just looked at eachother for a few moments. Draco was anticipating that she was going to ask him to leave soon but she surprised him by doing the opposite.

"Do you want to stay?" She asked him quietly.

"Yes" He breathed out instantly. "More than anything."

She gave him a small smile and let go of his hand. He moved to the other side of the bed, stripping down to his boxers like normal before slipping under the covers. He settled towards the middle of the bed and laid on his side to face her without touching her. He figured it would be best to give her some space, letting her take the lead. He was just glad that she didn't kick him out of the room right away, he never expected she would allow him to lie in bed with her.

She kept on surprising him by immediately closing the distance between them and settling into his arms. Her head came to rest in the crook of his neck, her arm wrapping around his back to pull him close while her bare bump pressed against his toned stomach. Their legs immediately intertwined and Draco quickly wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into him.

Hermione sighed into his neck and he focused on taking in deep breaths of her vanilla scent. He spent about 5 days without his wife and they were pure torture and he was hoping he wouldn't have to spend one more day without her ever again.

"I missed you so much." Hermione sighed into his neck. "We both did." She pulled his hand back around to rest on her bump. Her hand came back to wrap around his neck, fingers combing through his hair.

"Gods Hermione, I missed you. Im so sorry. I never wanted to hurt you but I just let everything get out of control so fast and I didn't know what to do." He pulled her in tighter, grateful to have her in his arms at all.

"I know baby, I know" Hermione continued to run her fingers through his hair while her rubbed circles on her bump. His other hand was trailing softly up and down her back. Draco was feeling himself being lulled into sleep until he felt Hermione untangle her leg from between his and instead rest it over his hip.

His mind and dick were immediately alert at the motion but he remained still, unsure if Hermione was even awake. He got his answer quickly when Hermione started lightly kissing and nibbling at his neck.

"Mmm, Love?"

"Yes?" She replied innocently, still kissing up his neck and jaw. Draco let our a small moan when she reached the spot right behind his ear and paid extra attention to it.

"You sure?" He asked, praying to god she said yes since he was already painfully hard.

"Yes, i'm sure." She said quickly, pulling his head down to connect with his in a heated kiss. Draco quickly lifted her thigh and pulled it high over his hip. His other hand went down to grab her ass and pull her directly against his dick causing them both to moan at the contact.

He set up a rhythm before removing his hand from her thigh and bringing it up to her breast, squeezing and tweaking the nipple. Draco tore his mouth from hers when they both needed to break apart for air and he immediately started to work on kissing and biting her neck. Hermione moaned and clutched at his hair, pulling his mouth back towards hers and she continued to rock against his hips.

After a few minutes of the heated make out, Hermione couldn't take it anymore and she went to remove his boxers as quickly as she could. Draco got the idea and after kicking off his boxers he tore her panties off her. She laughed as she pushed him onto his back and straddled him. She tore off her jumper so she was completely naked on top of him before lining him up at her entrance and sinking down.

"Fuckkk" "Oh God" They both groaned at the same time. Hermione started to ride him and his hands went to attend to both of her breasts. They were both panting and moaning in no time.

"Does this mean i'm forgiven?" He asked, his voice coming out husky and breathless. He twisted one of her nipples hard and she let out a small scream, her pussy walls clenching around his dick.

"Holy fuck-- no. Im still mad at you." She answered in between moans, picking up her rhythm as she feels her orgasm approaching.

"Any way I could persuade you?" He asked with a wicked grin, flexing his hips up to meet hers. Hermione moaned at the added roughness she was craving. She tipped her head, arching her back as she surrendered to the rhythm they made.

"Im sure you could think of something." Hermione said. Draco grinned and flipped them. He back on his knees, lifting one of Hermione's legs over his shoulder and his fingers went to play with clit as he kept up his relentless rhythm. Hermione was screaming his name as she climaxed within a minute of the changed position.

"One." He called out, not letting up his motions at all. Hermione was spiraling through her second climax within minutes of the first. "Two."

"Oh, Gods Draco." she said as she came down from her second orgasm. Draco pulled out of her and turned them both on their sides, facing each other. Before she had time to register that he hadn't come yet, he was pulling her leg over his hip and reentering her. "Oh! You're going to kill me." She moaned as he thrust into her, nice and slow.

"Just one more, Baby." Draco groaned, struggling to keep his rhythm good and slow, determined to make proper love to his wife.

"Draco" She panted. "You feel so good."

"Fuck, Hermione. You're so beautiful." She lifted her head and pulled him into a sweet, passionate kiss. They laid in that embrace, softly kissing as Draco kept up his torturously slow pace. Soon they had to stop kissing as their climax' were reaching the tipping point. They made eye contact, their love for each other shining through. Draco leaned in and gave her a soft kiss right as her orgasm hit, followed immediately by Draco's own orgasm.

They laid in each others embrace for several minutes, still just staring into each others eyes and they caught their breath.

"I love you." Draco murmured, voice thick with emotion. Hermione blinked and found that there where tears building in her own eyes. She reached up and caressed his cheek.

"I love you."

"I never meant to hurt you and you will never understand how sorry I am that I did. You're my entire world, Hermione. I'm lost without you."

"You're my entire world too, Draco. Well, you and Scorpius." Hermione said as they both put a hand on her bump and Draco's face broke out in a triumphant grin. "By the morning after the party I wanted you with me, but I knew I wasn't ready to forgive you yet, so I waited. I didn't even realize I was ready until I turned over and saw you there and it was like I could finally breath again. These last few days without you have been torture and I never want to go through that again."

"Me either, Love. Let's just never be apart again."

Hermione laughed. "I don't think we need to go that far. We do both have jobs after all."

Draco rolled his eyes. "Fine, I guess we can be apart while we are at work but other than that I would like us to be together, preferably naked." Hermione threw her head back in a loud laugh and Draco just grinned down at her, watching the joy on her face.

"You're incorrigible, Mr. Malfoy."

"Only when i'm with you, Mrs.Malfoy." He said with a wink and a devilish smirk.

"I know we still have to talk about all of this, but tonight I just want to lay with my husband and be happy. We can talk about the hard stuff tomorrow, deal?"

"Deal. However, I do think I still have some persuading to do." He agreed with a wicked grin before leaning down and connecting their lips in a passionate kiss.