Chapter 3
The next day, Hermione had received an owl from Malfoy, which entailed all the information needed to meet him again at his summer home. She left the letter on the small table that stands in the corner of her room. It lays there, open face up, taunting her in a way. While they had a nice time at dinner, she was still uneasy about the whole thing. Why the sudden interest? Why did Malfoy invite to come to his summer home? What was the ulterior motive?
All Hermione could do was stare at the letter while she sat on the bed, picking at her nails and biting her lip in concentration. Malfoy had mentioned that there would be other well known wizards, but who? It was tempting. Hermione had met a great deal of “great” wizards in her time in the Ministry. Who would be at this party? If Malfoy’s mother will be there, that would make her that much more nervous. Hermione hadn’t seen much of Narcissa since the end of war. As the Wizengamot was figuring out what to do with the Malfoy family, she saw them in passing and during the actual trial. When the trial was over, and Narcissa was pardoned, she came up to her to thank her and Harry for their testimonies. The following days after the decision of Malfoy's trial, Narcissa was around, but then she and Draco had subsequently disappeared. Hermione didn’t know much about their sentences or what was required of them, and she didn’t really care to notice, too eager to move on and start her work with the Ministry. She hadn’t really thought much about Draco and his family. Every once in a while Malfoy would appear in the Daily Prophet, but then nothing. What would his mother think of her now? What would she say to the women?
Hermione continued to pace in her hotel and contemplated when she received a call from the hotel lobby explaining that she had a package. With confusion, she walked down to the lobby to collect the square package. Once in her room, she casted a few spells on the package to detect if there was any malintent or curses on the box. The result came back clear. So nothing wrong with the package. She tentatively picked up the package and inspected the wrapping and looked for a note. There was a small card on the underside of the box.
It was an off-white letter with a golden embossed crest with the letter M. Biting her lip, Hermione opened the letter.
If you decide to join me at my home, please do me the honor of wearing this. The fact that you had nothing to wear will not be a valid excuse to not attend. Hopefully the dress fits. You are not forced to come of course, but I will be glad to have you. Whether you decide to come or not, I will still make sure to get you your chocolate croissant.
Hope to see you soon,
Draco Malfoy
Hermione sighed and put the letter next to the box. Chewing on her nail in thought, she continued to examine the box. She smiled at his statement about the croissant. Malfoy bought her a dress? She ripped the golden wrapping paper and opened the box. She gasped at the dress inside. It was a stunning maroon red. She lifted the dress from the box and its smooth material felt like a liquid cloud in her hands. The material alone must have cost a fortune based on the feeling. The deep red was accented by golden glinting stars that traveled from the waistline down to the end of the dresses long skirt. It had spaghetti straps that had little frills. Hermione held it up to her body and stood in front of the mirror. Its deep color made the darkness of her hair stand out and the slight tan of her skin glow. This dress was too much. Much more than the periwinkle dress she had for the yule ball or any dress she wore to any Ministry gala. Hermione has had nice dresses before, but she never went to the extravagance of this. What kind of party was this?
She slipped the dress on and it amazingly fit perfectly. How Malfoy figured that one out she’ll never know. Upon further inspection of the dress, she noticed the bodice was more corset like with a small golden tint. She cinched it tight and was surprised by how much her breasts came up. Typically the dresses she wears are more modest than this. She did love the dress though. She looked good in it. She spun around and watched the expansive skirt flow as she spun round and round. A small giggle escaped her lips.
She looked in the box to see if there was any information on where the dress came from, but all she found were thin red stilettos. Attached was another note.
Hopefully these are the right size. I have already placed a cushioning charm to make them more comfortable.
-Malfoy
She took the heels out of the box, eyes gawking at the height. There was no way she was going to be able to wear these. She slipped them on under her dress. While she appreciated the cushioning charm Malfoy put on them, when she tried to walk, she nearly toppled over.
“Yeah, no way,” she scoffed.
She gripped her wand and casted a permanent transfiguring charm to make them a bit shorter. She took in her appearance once again. A satisfied smile on her face. She looked, well, beautiful.
She didn’t want to seem rude. After all, Malfoy went through all this trouble to get her a dress and shoes. What could it hurt? She could always come up with an excuse to leave if it was too horrible.
Before she lost her nerve, she quickly wrote a response back to Malfoy saying she would attend. Hopefully she won't regret this.
**********
Another day had passed and Hermione was still waffling with her decision. She had already responded, so she couldn’t change it now. Hermione had spent the day going into town to buy some jewelry and hairpins to match her dress to complete the final look. Her necklace was a simple gold chain, her earrings were dangling shooting stars, and she bought a golden thin bracelet that matched the earrings. She was also able to find some golden star hair pins that she used to push back some of her hair. Her hair was still as curly as ever, but at least now she knew how to tame it better with some beauty charms Ginny had shown her. Her hair was mostly down save for a few strands pinned back. Her makeup was simple, but she used a dark red lipstick that matched her dress. She hadn’t been dressed up in awhile and it actually felt nice. It felt normal.
Once her shoes were on, she grabbed her small clutch and stowed away her wand and few other small items after casting an extendable enchantment charm. She was meant to meet a house elf on the corner just behind her hotel with whom she would apparate to the Malfoy’s home. She wanted to question this, but it is hard to argue with a letter and knew she didn’t have much time to work out another alternative.
She made her way down the alley behind her hotel, where she met a small house elf named Mippy. Hermione hesitantly took her hand and then felt the familiar tug of apparition. They appeared suddenly in what seemed to be a garden that had a cobblestone walkway leading towards the house. She stumbled slightly from the heels but quickly recovered. She smoothed out her dress and took a deep breath. She noticed several other people arriving by apparition and by carriage.
“You meet Master Draco inside?” Mippy nodded with a smile while pointing at the doorway. Hermione barely registered the comment, being too engrossed with looking at the house and then remembered to respond.
“Oh, yes. I have it from here. Thank you Mippy,” she smiled. Mippy nodded and then apparated away with a swoosh.
Hermione continued to observe the house from where she stood on the cobblestone. The house seemed enveloped by a carefully curated yet a seemingly natural garden. The house itself was grand yet inviting, unlike Malfoy Manor. Its weathered stone walls were littered with climbing vines. It has a steep sloping roof with dormer windows. Attached to the windows are pale green shutter frames that contain flower boxes. There seemed to be multiple chimneys. As Hermione walked closer to the entrance, she noticed the wooden double door with wrought iron details. With another deep breath, she entered the expansive house.
Upon entering, she walked down a few steps that led to the open foyer that was turned into a dance floor that had many couples twirling around. Much like the Hogwarts night sky, the ceiling was charmed with flowing flowers and a blew summer sky. It seemed as though she had stepped straight into Persephone’s garden. It was an oasis of life. Warm light came streaming from above. Lush plants were hanging down the walls, which permeated the room with floral and fresh scents. Plants seemed to be blooming from all around the room, particularly white narcissus and pink peonies.
There were many waiters walking around with champagne and other drinks. Hermione quickly snatched one and swiftly downed it. It burned her throat. She went to stand by one of the food tables. She busied herself with looking at the abundant choices of food. Grabbing a small plate, she grabbed a few sweet tarts and some fruit and snacked. She continued observing the room. She looked around at the many people who were in attendance, much of whom she did not know. There were a few Quidditch players she only knew because of Harry. A famous potioneer named Weatherby stood animatedly talking to a crowd of people. There were a few Ministry workers she recognized from passing, but didn’t actually know their names. She walked about the room and slowly swayed to the jazzy music that was playing throughout the room. She had yet to see anyone that looked like a Malfoy.
She stopped and looked at an art piece on the wall that looked to be a Monet. But why would the Malfoy’s have a Monet? He was a muggle after all.
“I knew that dress would look stunning on you.”
With a gasp, Hermione turned around to see Malfoy standing behind her with a glass of champagne in his hand.
She smiled at him, “Thank you. Thank you for lending it to me.”
He waved his hand, “Lend? You’re welcome to keep it. Not like I am ever going to wear it,” he chuckled.
She laughs in response. She fidgeted with the side of her skirt awkwardly. She turned back to the painting.
“This is quite beautiful,” she gestured to the painting hanging on the wall, not sure what else to say.
He nodded, “Mother acquired it recently. She thought it went well with the theme of the party.”
She nodded, “It does. Your home is very nice. And the party looks great. Thank you for inviting me.”
“Thank you,” he takes a sip of champagne. They stand there looking at the painting together.
“Draco darling, introduce me to your friend.” They both whip around and see Narcissa Malfoy. She is wearing a deep green dress. It was tight fitting and elegant. She looked sophisticated.
“Oh, Miss Granger. A pleasure to see you again.” She folded her hands together.
“It’s lovely to see you again as well Mrs. Malfoy. Thank you for inviting me into your home and to your party. It is beautiful.” Hermione tried to stay calm. Her stomach was doing flips.
“Of course. If you will excuse me, I have some things to attend to. Enjoy.” She nodded to them both and then walked away. Hermione let out a breath. She turned to Malfoy and finally took in his appearance. He looked nice. The perfect embodiment of what the Malfoy heir should look like. His suit was a similar green to his mothers dress, pressed finely. The dark color was a stark contrast to his pale skin. His blue eyes glowed brightly. A clearing of his throat brought her attention. She looked back up to his face, which was currently unreadable.
Not sure what else to say, the words slipped out of her mouth, “Would you like to dance?”