Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters you may recognize from the wonderful world of Harry Potter, they all belong to the revered JK Rowling, I just like to play with them a little.
CHAPTER EIGHT
ARE YOU READY?
The morning of the wedding, breakfast at Malfoy Manor was a somber affair. Still stunned that this was actually going to happen, and there was nothing his father could do to gain him a reprieve, Draco sat picking at his breakfast. He felt less like eating than he had ever before, and the fact that his stomach was threatening to revolt at any given moment just added to his misery.
"Draco darling, has your wound healed satisfactorily?"
"Pardon, Mother?"
"The embroidery needle, Draco. I trust the wound has healed?"
Flushing crimson, Draco uttered, "Umm… yeah, I think so."
"Well, no matter. I instructed Ginevra to advise me if she thinks you are not performing competently."
"What? You… you told Gin?" he spluttered indignantly.
"Of course, dear. As your… partner, she is best placed to assess the situation."
"Oh gods, this is a cruel nightmare…" Draco muttered to his plate.
"Well, I must see to the arrangements," Narcissa announced as she rose and left the room in a swirl of expensive robes.
"Draco?"
Sighing heavily, Draco wondered just what method of humiliation his father had in store for him. "Yes, Father?"
"This is a supply of contraceptive potion. Ensure you put it to good use. You do recall my warning from last night?"
Draco took the bottle of potion Lucius offered, replying despondently, "Yes, Father."
He had been summoned to his father's study the evening before, and the lecture he had received was still fresh in his memory.
"Father, you wish to speak with me?"
"Come in, Draco."
Hovering in front of Lucius' desk, Draco was decidedly uncomfortable.
"Take a seat." Lucius leaned back in his chair, almost raising the front legs off of the floor.
"Thank you, Father."
"Well… traditionally this would be the time where I would be expected to instruct you on how to treat your wife on your wedding night, but as you have already taken care of the wench's virginity, I see no point in covering that particular subject." Leaning forward in an almost predatory way, Lucius continued, "I will, however, remind you to use precautions at all times, if you make your mother a grandmother before she is ready, even I will not be able to protect you from her wrath."
"Yes, sir."
"And do remember to cast a silencing charm over your rooms," Lucius said with a weary-sounding tone in his voice. "It will not do to have your mother hearing… activities coming from your bedchamber either. It will be bad enough that she knows what you are doing, without hearing it."
"Yes, sir."
"I want to make it perfectly clear to you right now, that there will be no complaining from you concerning tomorrow's events. I will not tolerate having the family name shamed anymore than it already has been these past few days. There is nothing I can do to change what is going to happen, Weasley seems intent on nabbing his promiscuous daughter a wealthy husband before she totally destroys her reputation, and you were foolish enough to be caught with her in a compromising position."
"Yes, sir."
"Good, as long as you understand. Your mother has put a great deal of effort into tomorrow's event, not to mention a vault full of Galleons and she will be upset, to say the least, if things do not go according to plan."
"Yes, sir."
"I advise you to get a good night's sleep, tomorrow will be a long day."
"Yes, sir."
"Goodnight, Draco."
"Goodnight, Father."
When Draco left the dining room, he found himself dodging house elves and people he did not recognize who were scurrying in every direction, obviously preparing for the afternoon event. He returned to his chambers, not only to stay out of the way, but he also didn't feel like being around strangers at this time. In fact, the only person he truly wanted to see was Ginny. They had not yet been allowed to speak, and he was desperate to find out how she felt about all of this wedding business.
He spent two hours prowling his rooms restlessly. Unable to concentrate on anything for any amount of time, Draco decided to leave the sanctuary of his private chambers. He'd not eaten a great deal at breakfast and now his stomach was fast becoming demanding. While he could have, and normally would have, summoned a house elf to do his bidding, he thought the better of it today. A change of scenery might just be the distraction he needed.
Reaching the bottom of the grand staircase, Draco casually headed in the direction of the kitchen. Many people were still rushing around in preparation for the afternoon and he heard the frequent Apparation pops of the house elves, as they tore about the house completing their multitudinous tasks.
As he strolled past a normally disused parlor, Draco curiosity was aroused a little when he heard voices drifting into the corridor. He entered the room, but came to an abrupt halt when he realized to whom the voices belonged. His attempt to back out of the parlor without detection was foiled when he bumped into a small occasional table, knocking a priceless vase to the floor with a resounding crash.
"Malfoy," Ron Weasley growled maliciously.
Draco lifted his gaze to confront all the wizards in Ginny's family, Harry Potter included. He stared in disbelief, as each and every one of their faces began to mimic their hair. Draco felt as though he were trapped in a bad dream - the type where danger is imminent, but your feet are rooted to the spot. As they began to advance on him, Draco knew that if he didn't get out of their way in the next minute or so, he may not see lunch, let alone his impending nuptials.
"Draco, what are you doing down here?" His father's voice echoed around the group, providing him with an instant stay of execution.
"I … I was…"
"Well?" Lucius prodded impatiently.
Rather than stay and try to stutter humiliatingly through the rest of the explanation, Draco turned tail and left the room hastily. Deciding against the original trip to the kitchen, he walked in the direction of his chambers. When he mounted the staircase, he realized his mother's hair stylist was in front of him. Draco hung back silently, and watched him turn in the opposite direction to that of his parent's chambers. While he didn't fancy getting too close to the wizard - he had always struck him as odd and he did not appreciate the way he was always touching him - Draco was curious as to where he was headed. Then it occurred to him, if the Weasley men were here at the Manor, then Ginny had to be here as well, and perhaps the hair stylist was on his way to her instead of his mother. He allowed the wizard to gain a comfortable lead, before starting to discretely follow him.
"Draco?"
"Mother…"
"Where, may I ask, are you going?"
"I was just…"
"Draco, it's bad luck to see the bride before the wedding."
"Mother…"
"The two of you are going to find it hard enough beginning a marriage like this, without you putting extra pressure on yourselves by invoking bad luck."
"Really, Mother, I don't believe in…"
"Whether or not you believe, Draco, is beside the point. The fact is, you will call upon bad luck if you see her before this afternoon. I am warning you, stay away!"
"Fine! I'm going back to my chambers!"
"Ensure you remain there," Narcissa stated firmly. "I will have your lunch sent up."
Draco wandered slowly back to his chambers to pass his remaining hours as a single man on his own. As promised, his mother sent his lunch up about an hour later, but he found himself, yet again, unable to eat a great deal. His stomach threatened to revolt violently each time he tried, so in the end he gave up in frustration and shoved his plate away from him in a pique.
Not long after he had given up the idea of eating anything at all, there was a rap at his door.
"Come in."
"Draco, it's time to get dressed."
"Yes, Father," he replied. He forced himself not to cringe as his stomach churned wildly.
He picked himself up from the chair he had slung himself over, and made his way to his bathroom for a shower. When he returned to his bedchamber, Lucius had left, presumably to get dressed himself. With almost painful slowness, Draco pulled on his black and silver dress robes. He sat on the edge of his bed to pull his black, dragon hide boots on, before returning to the bathroom to attend to his hair.
"Draco?"
"In here, Father."
"Are you ready?"
"Would you like the truth?" Draco replied caustically.
"Very well, I shall rephrase the question. Are you dressed?"
"Yes."
"Good, it's time to go downstairs."
"Already?"
"Yes, come along. We don't want your mother having another temper tantrum, because of your tardiness."
"Yeah… I suppose."
"You'll need these," Lucius said, offering two small boxes to his son.
"What are they?"
"The rings, Draco."
"Oh… of course."
Lucius walked with Draco down to the grand ballroom. He paused before the great doors, and took a deep breath in the hope that it would calm him, but it seemed nothing could help him now. Lucius flicked his wand and the doors opened slowly. With his head held high, Draco walked beside his father, down the aisle between the chairs that had been laid out to accommodate the guests. There were many guests in the ballroom, all seated and awaiting the arrival of the bride. Draco marveled briefly at how his mother had arranged everything so swiftly. Looking around the room, it appeared as though the wedding had been in planning for months, not merely a day. When his gaze drifted over a group of people with shocking red hair, he brought his eyes back to focus on the end of the room where Professor Dumbledore and his godfather, Severus Snape, awaited his arrival.
"Draco, how are you this afternoon?" Professor Dumbledore peered at him over his half-moon glasses.
"Fine thank you, Professor."
"Wonderful! Lemon Drop?" Dumbledore held out the sweet to Draco with an encouraging look on his aged features.
Draco stared incredulously at the old Professor's hand. "No thank you."
"Well, if you're sure," Dumbledore said lightly as he pocketed the sweet.
Severus Snape stepped forward, placing a hand on his godson's shoulder. "Draco."
"Uncle Sev." Draco's eyes flicked nervously up to meet the almost-black orbs of his godfather.
"You're all right… I presume?"
Swallowing heavily, Draco responded quietly, "Yes, sir, I'm fine."
"Good. I will see you after the ceremony."
"Okay."
"Draco, I must collect your mother. We will see you when… it's all over," Lucius drawled.
"Yes, Father," he responded, staring despondently at his father's departing back.
"Come now, Draco, it's not the end of the world!" Dumbledore told him brightly.
"Sir?"
"You are about to embark on a whole new adventure. Marriage is a wonderful institution, as you will find out in short order, I'm sure."
"If you say so, sir."
"At some point before you board the Hogwarts Express, we will need to discuss arrangements for the pair of you for during the school year."
"Sir?"
"Well you will be legally married and as such there are certain… privileges that go with such a commitment."
"I don't follow you, Professor."
"You will be unable to share accommodations at school, being that you are from different houses, but I'm sure we will be able to arrange conjugal visits."
The old Professor's words played though his mind, I'm sure will be able to arrange conjugal visits, the smirk that was forming on his face fell when he caught sight of the Headmaster's expression. He didn't trust the way the old man's eyes were twinkling at him. Bloody hell, the old bugger is going to know every time we shag.
Draco's lewd train of thought was interrupted by a commotion as the enormous ballroom doors opened. His stomach clenched uncomfortably as he realized that the disturbance indicated to the approach of the bride.
This was it.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
AUTHORS NOTES
I'd like to thank my livejournal friends for their encouragement to finish this fic and their hilarious suggestions that enabled me to do so.
Special thanks to vequihellin and rainpuddle13 for their fantastic beta skills *hugs*
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