The Wedding - COMPLETE

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Updated 5-31-07


Well, how incredibly stupid of me. Am I a master of thinking inside the box or what? Here's the whole MTV version of the song, "Nobody Wants to Be Lonely" featuring Ricky Martin and Christina Aguilera on YouTube (knocks self on the noggin). So I hope now most of you can hear the entire song, and if you want to watch the singers, it's a little hokey, but Ricky's cute. I hope this is better, sirsevchick. 8-)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BcoDBmF4boQ

I'll add this URL back into the previous chapter so any new readers can see and hear it. It really is an intensely evocative song for Lucius.

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Kudos to my lovely reviewers!! We are coming up on 40,000 hits and 700 reviews - can you believe that?? We are an unbeatable team. Go Lucius/Hermione section. We'll knock that ol' Snape/Hermione section on its collective ear. (Of course, I'm putting up hits when I read other authors over there too, but we won't mention that...)

Hey, Gaps! Good to 'see' you!

LeahLove A chapter about the birth...now, how could I leave that out?

And - because this is our community and those in it care - 999 I can certainly appreciate your reticence when someone puts up a review that hurts. But I don't understand why you chose that one bad reviewer over us. We've been faithful readers, we love your writing, we've told you so in very complimentary terms. Do you really believe that boor over us? Why do we get punished for the inconsiderate actions of one obvious nincompoop? I know that one bad comment seems to negate all the good things anyone says - it's unfortunately human nature. But please reconsider and give us back our story. If someone surfaces with an uncalled for review, that's what the "Remove Review" button is for. Flush that t*rd (pardon my language) and stick with the readers who love your work. We DESERVE to read your story. Feel the love, girl. Read willow's plea on my reviews. (5-30-07)

Lastly, a general plea - if anyone reads any of my other stories, PLEASE leave a review there. I do check back over my other stories (every hour on the hour.)


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Chapter Thirty-Seven

Christmas Eve

In the following two weeks, Hermione scattered her new Christmas decorations all over their usual living spaces, including their bedroom, their most used hallways, Lucius’ study, and the main drawing room where she organized the giant Christmas tree she had dragged Lucius to the forest to select. He hadn’t seen the need to personally go to the wilderness to pick out a tree, but when she said they would be doing it every year with their children, he blinked in pleased surprise that she had plans for them as a family, a real family – in their future.

He only grumbled a little after that piece of news, and made sure Hermione didn’t overdo anything, getting the disgusting sap of the pine tree all over himself instead due to his lack of experience with cutting one. He had a clump of sap stuck to his hair, gluing some strands to his forehead where he’d wiped his hand. Hermione had pooh-poohed his wish to just use his wand to cut the tree and had handed him the handsaw. Next year it was the wand or no tree.



Hermione wrapped her presents for her husband in secrecy, not wanting him to get any hint about what she was giving him. She slid them under the tree (charming them against prying wands) one afternoon when Lucius was in his study working on the Ministry finances. No other presents were under the boughs yet, and Hermione had no idea what kind of Christmas the Malfoys had celebrated before, so she asked the old head elf to come to a small drawing room near her old bedroom where she occasionally wrote owl messages and had done the estate accounts until she’d thankfully returned the responsibility to her husband. “Achilles, can you tell me how the Malfoys celebrated Christmas when Lucius was a child and how Lucius celebrated when he was head of the family?"

“Master is always asking elves put up old Malfoy ornaments from attics, Mistress. Christmas tree ordered every year from Diagon Alley business, Dragonflight Decorators, Ltd. Always decorated with Slytherin colors most, but only bits of red. Gryffindor not preference for family. Now big change, yes, Mistress?” Achilles looked up proudly at his Mistress. She wanted the elves to call her by her name, but at that they had balked and Hermione had to be satisfied with their preferred ‘Mistress’.


“Shall I have those ornaments added to the tree and the rest of the house, Achilles?” Hermione wanted Lucius to feel the home was still as much his as hers.

The old elf leaned closer and whispered, “Young Master never happy at Christmas, Mistress. Achilles thinks to not do that. Only bad memories.” He shook his head sadly. Then he brightened again, “Achilles thinks new lookings of tree much better.”

Hermione thanked Achilles and he apparated back to the elven quarters, as she had given them all time off for the holiday season starting at eight PM every day for the Christmas week. She had yet to break the news to Lucius and wasn’t eager to do so until absolutely necessary. She was already taking flak from her decorations in her husband’s study where he pointed out that her idea to hang ornaments from each cubbyhole in his office area interfered with his ability to get to his parchments. She knew he was grousing just for form’s sake, because he could easily flick each ornament aside into stasis if he wished to use a particular space.

Lucius and Hermione invited Ginny and Severus over for Christmas Eve dinner, which Hermione had set for six PM, hoping to have all of the meal finished before the elves ended work at eight. The two couples began with before dinner drinks, Hermione having lemonade as they sat in Lucius’ study before a roaring fire.

“For Christmas next year, you’ll be a family of three. You must be so excited, both of you!” Ginny smiled happily at her friend and at Lucius who wasn’t sure what he was supposed to say to that redundant observation. Her comment seemed rather inane to him, but he knew he shouldn’t say so, both for his wife’s sake and because Severus would likely zap him.

Instead he bit his tongue and merely gave Ginny one of his social charming smiles, then looked at Hermione for her reaction and she answered, “We’re thrilled, of course, to be given what we both wanted so quickly. It will be fun having a new baby, but I think it will actually be more fun when the baby’s big enough to understand the idea of Christmas and giving to others.”

Lucius was impressed by the ease with which Hermione dealt with the remark, adding more of what he thought of as useless, social feminine chitchat. His new wife spoke that language very well. Hermione had never used it on him, thank the Gods, but he’d been subjected to that type of inessential discourse at most at-home dinners he’d spent with Narcissa, and with innumerable other women.

He was afraid it would be a long evening, but Hermione soon led Ginny out of the study to show her some baby clothes she’d recently purchased. Lucius was then paradoxically a little miffed that he hadn’t rated a showing of the infant clothes, but he was relieved at being able to relax with Snape over firewhiskeys.

“You’re so transparent, Lucius,” Snape sipped at his drink, “How you managed to be the darling of the witch world, I can’t see. You can barely stand to listen to female chatter.”

“Oh, I listened when I had to, and usually got what I wanted in exchange,” Lucius smiled, “which didn’t include talking at all. Luckily, Hermione has more conversation than most women, even if not all of it is to my liking. She can be something of a termagant at times. I’m glad she turned out to be anything but ‘Saint Hermione’. More like a little imp, but I’m not complaining.” Lucius’ smile turned secretive.

“Ginny keeps me on my toes, too.” Snape observed fondly.

“Yes, I heard about that. Hooks in your bedroom ceiling, wasn’t it? Have you got her to string you up on them yet, or is she the only victim so far?” Lucius laughed as Snape nearly snorted his mouthful of firewhiskey through his nose.

“My Gods, these women.” Snape said in irritation. “Is nothing sacred between those two?” He saw Lucius grinning and he gradually lightened up with a reluctant quirk of his lips.

“Actually,” Lucius let Snape off the hook, ending his own baiting of the newlywed, “far from trading confidences I believe seeing the hooks was accidental. I only know I nearly got into trouble for not having any at the end of our bed. Hermione felt very ill-used and has promised to install some so she can hang me up for her pleasure. So you owe me for dragging my marriage into bondage play.” Lucius didn’t add any enlightenment about his previous adventures with the headboard handcuffs or curtain tiebacks.

“Dragging? You don’t really think I believe that for a minute, do you?” Snape scoffed at Lucius in cool repudiation, a cynical smile materializing and erasing his earlier chagrin, “I remember your selection of paddles and whips and your other even more exotic paraphernalia from numerous times upstairs at the restaurant. And speaking of that, why the hell did you take Hermione there? She took my wife. I’m not interested in any talkative employees relating my bachelor escapades to Ginny.”

“If I thought for a moment any of them would supply our innocent wives with any particulars of our pasts, I would personally burn the place to the ground - with those employees in it.”

Snape saw that Lucius was telling the simple truth and he shivered a little, remembering that Lucius had been a Death Eater and notorious for some acts Snape would prefer never to have heard about. He hoped those days were over for good, and that Hermione was adept at keeping her grim, formidable husband directed toward more innocuous pursuits in the future. There was an air of something about Lucius, something different, softer maybe, or more open, even if his normal self-protective barrier was still in place. Whatever it was, Snape was relieved that Hermione had married him, just as he’d told Ginny.

The women returned and they all went in to dinner in the formal dining room. Lucius grew more expansive as the meal progressed, pontificating on his regimen for Hermione as she listened in sardonic amusement to all the annoying details he’d visited on her now being represented as prenatal nuggets of wisdom.

Ginny caught Hermione’s eye and winked at her in shared enjoyment. They both understood the value of the loving care he was lavishing on his wife even if they saw the irritating overtones. It was apparent to all, though, that Lucius had certainly done his homework, and Snape clearly saw his own downfall if he failed to duplicate Lucius’ overprotectiveness when his own time came. Having a friend whose softest, most endearing traits were scheming and coercion sometimes made for an uncomfortable existence for himself. Snape sighed internally and tried to look as though he were taking intensive mental notes.

With dinner finished, the couples migrated into the main drawing room to view the tree and settle down to conversation and an exchange of presents. Except for his study, Lucius hadn’t said much about the new decorations replacing the old ones, merely validating them by saying they were a new tradition he wanted to keep for the future to represent his new marriage.

Hermione and Lucius gave the Snapes a case of the wine Ginny had loved at the restaurant and both Malfoys were amused to see Severus and Ginny give each other suggestive smiles. The Snapes, in turn gave Lucius and Hermione several potions that were designed for skin protection for a newborn, moisturizers for Hermione, and sunblock for the entire family. Severus had slipped Lucius some more of the numbing, lubricating ointment while the women were looking at infant clothes. The evening wound to a close with promises among the friends to get together again soon and the Snapes whisked themselves home. Both Lucius and Hermione were happy to tuck into bed together after the Snapes had gone, and just fall asleep, both being worn out.

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Well, no lemons fell off the tree in this chapter, but our struggling couple needs to have some social life and we get to see Severus and Ginny again briefly.

DOWN! Look DOWN! Review button looks lonely, doesn't it? Cheer it (and me) up and type a sentence or two. Domo arigato. Thank you very much. (No, I'm not Japanese - it just sounded elegant.)