Wedding At the Manor

The days had passed quickly since Harry and Ginny's wedding, and Hermione woke up with a smile on her face the morning of her wedding. The smile faded soon after, though. Her parents would miss it, and she wouldn't ever be able to tell them about it. That hurt more than anything she had ever gone through.

"Hermione?" Ginny walked into her room at the Manor with a giant bag and some smaller bags floating behind her.

"What is all of this," Hermione asked, sitting up more. She was trying to hide how upset she was from Ginny, but she knew it was only a matter of time before she was going to have to tell her best friend what was plaguing her mind. 

"Well, this is your dress," Ginny said, holding up the big bag smiling, "And this is everything else I need to make you even more beautiful than you are," Ginny said, sending the bags onto a table.

"You must be the best matron of honor ever," Hermione smiled. 

"Well, thank you, but I am not just going to let your frown escape my mind just because you are complimenting me," Ginny sat down next to Hermione and waited. 

"I am never going to get to share any of this with them," Hermione said after some time. Ginny, of course, knew who she was talking about, and it hurt Ginny to know that Hermione was hurting.

"I don't think they would want you to be sad, though, Hermione. I am sure your mother thought about all of this far more often than you did. She would want you to be happy and take all of it in so that one day you could tell your children about your wedding."

"Right, children, your father and I are married because the ministry forced us into it. What a romantic story," Hermione had started crying and laid back in bed. 

"Hermione Jean Granger, you get up this instant," Ginny meant business, but Hermione really didn't know if she cared at this point. She liked Draco and perhaps was even falling in love with him, but she was too young to be getting married and having children, and she was scared. "I know you are happy about this deep down. I know you love him, even if you don't fully know that yourself yet. He is the best person for you, and you know it. So stop being a baby about all of this and deal with it. You are going to get married today even if I have to drag you down the aisle. You are going to have children whether you are ready or not. This isn't you, and you know it. Now stop being like my brother and get out of this bed now."

Ginny was right; of course, she was incredibly unreasonable. She knew it. She just missed her mother. She just wanted to tell her mother that she loved her once more and get one more bear hug from her father. Then it clicked, she was going to be a mother, and she would be able to pass all of that love onto her children. Love was the most important thing in her childhood, and she was be damned if her children were not loved, just because they arrived before she was prepared for them. 

"Alright, Gin, you are right as always," Hermione got up and went into the bathroom. Ginny smiled when she heard the shower start to run. While Hermione showered, Ginny laid all of her tools out on the table. Hermione would surely throw a fit about all of the makeup that she brought, but she was going to try. 

"Now, are you ready to be pampered?" Ginny practically dragged Hermione into the chair that was set up.

"Gin, we didn't do half of this stuff on your wedding day," 

"Well, that is because mother and I did it together the night before, and don't worry, I know you are going to tell me not to go overboard so that I will constrain myself to the best of my ability." 

Ginny continued to pamper Hermione for hours, painting her nails and doing her hair and makeup. Ginny thought Hermione deserved it, more than anyone she was getting her world turned upside down. And maybe this little gesture would start her wedding day with a smile so that Hermione would learn to love it one day.

Draco slept in early, as he always did after New Years'. Blaise had taken him out the night before, but unlike years passed, Draco didn't try and flirt with other girls and be reckless. He thought about Hermione the entire time and how one day she was most likely going to be the Minister of Magic. It made him feel proud, and it was a strange feeling for him to be proud of someone other than himself. 

Draco was starting to wake up when Blaise walked into his room and started talking about how big his mother had made Draco's wedding. 

"Do you even think Potter is going to come here, anyway?" Was all Draco caught of Blaise's rant?

"What?" Through Draco off, he hadn't thought about how Potter felt about this place, only that if Hermione were comfortable, then everything would be alright.

"After what you told me about that day, do you think he is going to be able to come here?"

"I mean, Hermione did." Draco was still racking his brain. If Potter didn't show up, would Hermione even be able to make it down the aisle? He was supposed to be walking her after all. He and Arthur, they were going to surprise her. 

"Well, I guess we will see." Blaise shrugged his shoulders and went back out into the hall and retrieved two bags from what appeared to be nowhere.

"Blaise, you have to make sure he is here soon. He is supposed to surprise Hermione and walk her down the aisle. He has to be here."

"Oh. Alright mate, I'll go see."

Blaise left the bags floating in front of Draco and walked down to where Ginny was getting Hermione ready. He knocked on the door and waited for one of the girls to answer. Ginny opened the door slightly and nodded in approval when it wasn't Draco allowing Blaise to come in.

"Hi Blaise, how are you?" Hermione had grown fond of Blaise's company and was glad that they were becoming friends.

"Well, thanks, I was hoping to ask Ginny something, actually."

"Alright," Ginny walked over by Blaise and waited to hear what he was going to say.

"Harry is coming, right?" Blaise looked concerned, which confused Ginny, but then she remembered all Draco went through, so her father and husband to surprise her best friend.

"If he doesn't, I'll hex him into the next century. Have you heard otherwise?"

"No, I was just checking; Draco just was nervous he might not want to come to the Manor."

"Well, I don't think however uncomfortable this place maybe for him, that he would let down his best friend." 

"Wonderful, that's all." Blaise left and walked back to Draco. He assumed that he wouldn't have moved, he worried far too much now that he was with Hermione, and he thought this would be one of those times.