Summary:  Hermione didn't tell anyone she was bringing him.  Well, she had told Ginny and Harry, and then the rest of the Weasleys found out, but no one else was expecting her to bring Draco Malfoy to Ginny and Harry's wedding.  No one else being—mainly—the newspapers.

Despite it not being her wedding, Hermione was nervous the night before.  She fidgeted and picked at her fingers until Draco had to grab her hands, telling her he wouldn't go if it was stressing her out so much.  There wasn't much thinking involved before she utterly refused to let him get away with ditching the wedding and he almost laughed at her immediate response.  A second later, though, his jaw was tense and it was Hermione's turn to tell him to relax.  It went on all evening and by the time they fell asleep, they were both tense and exhausted.

Hermione woke up to Ginny pulling her from her sleep, rambling about all that needed to happen while Hermione fought desperately to stay tucked away in Draco's arms.  With sleep still in his eyes and a frown on his face, Draco kissed her forehead and kicked her off the bed to leave with Ginny.  She decided not to speak to him again until after the wedding.

"I don't even know why you're as worried as you are,"  Ginny said, pushing Hermione into a chair in front of a mirror.  Hermione blinked as Ginny began her make-up at eight o'clock in the morning.  "You're not the one getting married.  You're supposed to be calming me down, not the other way around."

"But Rita—"

"Yeah, yeah,"  Ginny grumbled, "With any luck, the witch will remember it's my wedding she's reporting on; not yours and Malfoys."

She continued to talk Hermione's ear off while she finished her make-up before shoving Hermione out of the chair so she could do her own.  The rest of the bridesmaids would come around noon, but Ginny and Hermione would need to oversee the caterers' arrival and make sure the boys were behaving while the other girls did their make-up.  Ginny had made sure Hermione knew it was not optional for her make-up to wait; it needed to be done first thing in the morning.

As soon as Ginny had finished her make-up, they apparated to Hogwarts where Molly Weasley was making sure all the decorations were properly placed.  It hadn't taken much convincing for McGonagall to allow Ginny and Harry to use Hogwarts for the day.  It was summer so the students were gone, but seeing as the castle had played a significant part in their relationship, no one had been surprised.  Besides, it was easier to fit all the guests and reporters than the Burrow's backyard would be.

"Mum, is Luna—"

"In the Great Hall,"  Mrs. Weasley smiled.  Ginny nodded and she and Hermione separated to make sure everything was taken care of efficiently.

By the time Hermione was retreating to Gryffindor Tower to get dressed and have her hair done, she was jittery with nerves.  Harry had promised Draco could remain with him until the beginning of the ceremony so he wouldn't feel awkward, but Hermione was worried about the duration of the ceremony.  The reporters would spot him as soon as he stepped out of the castle and while she knew he was skilled at avoiding questions and hiding in crowds, she also knew he'd be uncomfortable.

"Ginny, I'm going to go check on the boys,"  Hermione said.

Ginny glanced at her through the mirror and gave her a thumbs up.  Fleur still snapped at her for moving and Ginny made sure to sit as still as a statue.

Hermione gathered her dress in one hand so as to navigate the stairs easier and hurried from the Tower.  The boys were getting ready in Ravenclaw Tower as Harry had lost a game of Exploding Snap against Ginny, but Hermione didn't mind the walk.  If anything, it allowed her to try and calm down so she wasn't attacked the minute she stepped in the door.

Of course, as soon as she appeared in the Ravenclaw common room, Harry was hugging her tightly and asking about Ginny.  Hermione answered each of his questions with a smile as her eyes drifted back to where Draco stood.  He was standing in front of a window, but he had turned to look at her when she'd arrived.  She ignored the way Ron continued to glance at him warily and when she was finished reassuring Harry everything was perfect, she joined Draco at the window.

"The Daily Prophet is down there,"  Draco said casually.  Hermione would have smiled at the nonchalant way he said it if his hand wasn't gripping hers tightly.  "I imagine Rita Skeeter will have quite the take on my presence."

"Draco, you don't have to do this,"  she said softly, bringing their hands up to her chest and running her fingers over his knuckles.

"This is important to you,"  he said.  He gently squeezed her hand and leaned down to brush his lips over her fingers.  "I want to be here.  If not for you, then for Harry.  He has become rather tolerable with the number of times he's slept on our couch."

Hermione snorted and pulled one of her hands away to cover her mouth.  Draco's lips twitched into a smile.  Behind them, Harry was getting called away and the groomsmen were following as Mrs. Weasley directed them all.

"Hermione, dear!"

"I have to go,"  Hermione said, looking up at him as her heart started to pound.  "I'll see you down there?"

Draco nodded and kissed her temple softly as Mrs. Weasley called for them both this time.  He let her go so she could rush off then slowly pulled away from the window to find a seat outside.

* * * * *

The wedding was beautiful, no one could deny that.  Even with the many officials Hermione didn't know and the nosy reporters who flashed their cameras in front of her face as she walked down the aisle.  It was hard to focus on Ginny and Harry when she knew Draco was sitting uncomfortably in the audience and the reporters kept taking photos, but Hermione still thought the entire ceremony was wonderful.

As soon as Harry and Ginny had been announced and walked into the castle triumphantly, Hermione was counting down the seconds until she would be behind closed doors as well.  She smiled as she walked, but even Luna was hustling along beside her to escape the prying reporters.  The short break in the Gryffindor common room was much appreciated even with Mr. and Mrs. Weasley weeping and Lavender squealing delightedly.

Noticing Ginny and Harry were busy with the Weasleys and the rest of the bridal party, Hermione didn't stick around long.  She could wait until they were less overwhelmed to congratulate them when they would actually remember it.  With the number of guests and the number of times they would hear someone say congrats, Hermione doubted they would even notice if she didn't say anything.  Besides, she had made sure to slip a heartfelt card into Ginny's suitcase and told Ron to put one in Harry's the night before, so she knew they would eventually receive congratulations from her.

"Hermione!"  Lavender called, drawing attention to her as she tried to slip out of the Tower.  "Are you going to the Great Hall?"

"Not yet,"  Hermione answered.  She smiled at Ginny as they made eye contact then glanced back at Lavender.  "I'll be down in a few minutes though."

Without another word, she slipped through the door and hurried through the castle down to the Slytherin common room.  The people swarming into the castle would have hindered her greatly if she hadn't reacquainted herself with Hogwart's secret passageways recently.  Even without the Marauder's Map in hand, she was able to navigate the tunnels with ease and couldn't help the small smile that crept onto her face at the memories she, Ron, and Harry had made sneaking through the castle years ago.

Of course, she hadn't often used the tunnel that dropped her right in front of the Slytherin dorm, but she'd known about it well enough that just a quick refresher the previous night was enough.  She slid out from behind a portrait and into the Slytherin dorm without being spotted which was good because she'd hardly shut the door behind her before Draco was pulling her into his arms and kissing her.

"You look nice,"  he murmured against her lips, pulling her as close to him as he could.  Hermione smiled as he kissed her fervently, only pulling away when she knew indulging him more would turn into a much more time-consuming activity.

"We have dinner still,"  she told him when he frowned and tried to pull her back.  She ducked her head and his lips pressed against the side of her head.  "Later,"  she promised.

"I'll hold you to it,"  he smirked.  Hermione rolled her eyes and rubbed her lipstick off his lips with her thumb.  "You do look really nice, though,"  he told her.  He tugged playfully on her chiffon dress and spread one of her head smoothly over her arse.  "You may have to wear it more often."

"Oh?"  Hermione teased, leaning against his chest.  Draco nodded and tried to pull her lips back to his, but she tucked her head into the crook of his neck to avoid it.   "Dinner, Draco,"  she reminded him.

He sighed and brought his hand up to the nape up her neck.  He pressed several soft kisses to the side of her head and held her tightly.  After a few minutes, Hermione pulled back and smiled up at him.  Draco kissed her lips shortly then moved to take her hand in his.

"If this ends horribly, I'll still love you,"  Draco told her.  Hermione blushed and wrapped her free hand around his arm, tugging herself closer to his side.  "No matter what Rita prints."

"I'll still love you too,"  she replied.  She squeezed his hand and they walked together into the Great Hall to face the crowd and dreading what Rita Skeeter would print in the morning.  Hermione was not pleased, to say the least.