Visited Upon the Son

Disclaimer: I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I’m

just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them

back the way I found them when I’m done!

AN: Here’s the next chappie!! Thanks to all who reviewed. As always, please R&R.

My muse loves the attention.

Visited Upon the Son

© SparkyCSI

9. The First Date

A week after Hermione was confined to the hospital wing she was allowed to continue teaching

her classes. Madame Pomfrey warned her about doing too much and told her that she would

confine her to the hospital wing again if she overworked. Hermione took the advice with a

pinch of salt.

She was careful when she taught not to move around too much and with many thanks to the

house elves, ate in her room. As the time drew closer to her and Draco’s first date, the

more nervous she got.

To try to ease some of her nervousness, she sent owls to Ginny everyday. Most of them were

about mundane topics, but some encroached on serious subjects like their upcoming weddings

and Hermione’s fear. She had just finished her dinner on the Friday before the date when an

owl arrived. Smiling, she opened it.

“Hermione,

I know that you are so nervous right now. You don’t know what to wear, what you’re going to

say, so I’m going to give you some advice.

First, what to wear. Girl, you are gorgeous! Show it off. Don’t wear your witch’s robes.

Try a pair of jeans, a sweater (preferable the green one that I got you for Christmas last

year) and your black boots.

Second, what to say. Just be yourself! I know that there is attraction between you two, so

just let it simmer naturally. Get to know each other. Likes, dislikes, etcetera. Don’t

talk about the war. If you go there, then you’ll have to tell him. Just keep everything

light!

Finally, take a deep breath and relax. Have fun!

Ginny.

PS. I expect an Owl on Sunday telling me what happened!”

Hermione laughed as she finished the letter, realizing that Ginny truly was her best friend.

With one letter, she had managed to alleviate some of the nervousness that Hermione was

feeling.

Hermione set the letter aside and sat back in her chair and thought over Ginny’s advice.

She decided that the younger woman was right and began to plan her outfit.

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On the same night, Draco was having similar nervous feelings. After he finished dinner in

the Great Hall, he slowly patrolled the corridors, looking for students out after curfew.

He chose to use this time to think over the letter he had received from Ginny this

morning.

She had told him that if he hurt Hermione, she would hex away his family jewels. He

believed her after being at the receiving end of a Bat Bogey hex from her. He thought back

over the previous five years at how much he had changed. You’re not the same annoying

stuck up git that you were five years ago. You’ve learned humility. You know that she is

the one woman out there that can challenge you. She’s smart, funny and bloody beautiful,

too.

He smiled at the last thought. Yes, Hermione Granger has grown up, he thought. Just

the thought of how she had changed was having a physical reaction on him. He looked down at

his traitorous body and groaned, knowing that he would need to get himself under control by

the next day.

He smiled, knowing that he was getting his heart’s desire. Slowly, he walked back to his

quarters to get some sleep.

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The next morning, both of them awoke with butterflies in their stomachs. Draco was able put

them at the back of his mind since he was supervising the students going to

Hogsmeade.

Hermione wasn’t so lucky. She lounged around in her room, reading all of her books to try

to put her nervousness in the back of her mind. For lack of a better way to ease her mind,

she finally sought out Professor McGonagall.

The professor looked up in surprise as Hermione walked into her office. “Mia? Is

everything okay?”

Hermione took a breath. “No. I’m so nervous. I have my first date with Draco today, and I

don’t know what to do. It feels like I am betraying Ron.” She looked at McGonagall then,

her confusion evident in her eyes.

McGonagall sat back, not sure how to comfort the woman. Finally, she lifted her eyes to

her. “How are you betraying Ron? I know that you were in love with him, but he’s been gone

five years, Mia. He would want you to move on with your life.”

Hermione responded, “But with Malfoy?”

McGonagall smiled. “Granted, he would not be your first choice, but I think that he is a

good choice. He will challenge you intellectually and there is some attraction there.” She

held up her hand when Hermione went to negate that fact. “Look at how you two fight. It’s

repressed emotions. Trust me on this.”

Hermione closed her mouth, understanding what her mentor was saying. “Okay. He is handsome

and I do find his mind stimulating, but what about my flashbacks?”

McGonagall took a breath. “I do believe that he may be the one person that can help you

overcome your fears.” She smiled at the younger girl. “Look. You two are going to

Hogsmeade, right?” At Hermione’s nod, she continued. “Why don’t you go get dressed? The

children will be coming back soon.”

Hermione sighed. “You’re right. As much as I hate to admit it, you’re right. Ginny

basically told me what I have to wear, and to get the look that she is going for will take

time. I’m not able to move as fast as I would like right now.”

McGonagall smiled and nodded to the girl as she left her office. Then, with a sigh of

resignation she turned to Dumbledore’s portrait. “You had better hope that this turns out

okay, Albus. If not, I will chuck your portrait into the lake with the squid.”

The portrait laughed. “I would expect nothing less from you, Minerva. I do believe that

this will work itself out. My first choice for Ms. Granger would have been Mr. Weasley, but

with his unfortunate demise, Mr. Malfoy is a good choice.”

McGonagall just shook her head and bent back over the papers she had been reading.

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Hermione took one last look at herself in the mirror. Ginny had been right. Wearing Muggle

clothes made her feel good about herself. She had styled her hair into soft waves, pulling

the back half of it back in a dragon clip. Per Ginny’s orders, she was wearing a pair of

low-rise jeans, with a dark emerald green cowl necked sweater. She chose to wear a dragon

necklace to compliment her hair clip. She was also wearing her favourite pair of black

stiletto boots.

As she put the finishing touched on her make-up, she took a deep calming breath. Finally,

once she was done, she walked out of her bathroom. She tried to calm herself by sitting by

the fire, drinking tea.

Finally, after about fifteen minutes of waiting, there was a soft knock at her door.

Gathering her courage, she opened the door. She smiled as she saw that Draco had chosen to

wear Muggle clothes as well.

“Wow, Hermione,” he breathed. “You look gorgeous.”

Hermione blushed and smiled. She looked at the black jeans and sweater he was wearing.

“You don’t look to bad yourself.”

Draco smiled and offered her his arm. “Are you ready to go?”

Hermione nodded and grabbed her winter cloak from by the door. She grasped his arm lightly

and they began the walk to Hogsmeade.

Neither said anything on the brief walk into the village. Silently, Draco led Hermione into

a small restaurant, The Stag, which had begun its business after the fall of

Voldemort. It was a quiet restaurant, small and intimate.

Hermione, who had not been able to bring herself to visit the restaurant in fear of being

reminded of Harry, was surprised by the décor. Small tables and plants complimented the red

and gold walls. It was lit by soft candlelight and had a restful atmosphere.

Draco noticed Hermione’s look of astonishment. “What, did you expect it to be filled with

memorabilia from the war?”

Hermione smiled sheepishly. “Actually, yeah. The stag that it refers to is Harry’s

Patronus. I’ve never been here before.”

Draco smiled right back at her. “I’ll admit, I was surprised at the décor, but it doesn’t

shove the ‘Boy That Lived’ mantra down your throat. I think it’s very tasteful.” He paused

when the maitre d approached.

“Can I help you, sir?”

“I have a reservation. Under the name Malfoy.”

The man nodded in deference. “Of course, sir. Follow me, sir.”

The couple followed the man to a small, secluded table. It was set apart from the others,

surrounded by flowering plants. Draco graciously held out the chair for Hermione to sit in,

before taking a seat himself.

“So…” Draco started.

“Yes?” Hermione asked.

“How did you get your name? Hermione is very unusual.”

Hermione laughed. “My parents had a great love for William Shakespeare.”

“Who?”

Hermione raised her eyebrows in surprise. “You don’t know who Shakespeare is?” At Draco’s

negative nod, she continued, “He was a playwright in the seventeenth century. Very famous.

My name comes from a play called A Winter’s Tale. My parents were impressed by her

monologue and decided to name me after her.”

“Oh. That’s unusual.”

“And the name Draco isn’t?”

Draco laughed. “I’ll give you that. Malfoy names are taken from ancient civilizations. My

father’s name was Roman. Mine is Greek. It means dragon serpent or it’s a constellation.”

Hermione smiled. “I know that. Draco is a constellation in the northern latitudes. It is

said in Roman mythology that he guarded the golden apples on the tree in a garden tended by

Hesperides. They were the daughters of Atlas, who carried the world on his shoulders. Once

Hercules killed the dragon, Hera placed him in the heavens.”

Draco raised his eyes in surprise, feeling flattered that she knew the origin of his name.

“How did you find that out?”

Hermione blushed. “I researched it one summer.”

“Why?”

Hermione’s blush deepened. “After you were cleared, I was intrigued. So I read a book.

That’s what I’m good at.” Her tone changed to a self depreciating one with her last

sentence.

Draco sensed the change in her and looked her in the eyes. “Hermione, you are a very smart

witch. While you are somewhat of a bookworm, it is not the only thing you are good at.”

Hermione looked at Draco, gratitude in her eyes. “Thanks.” She decided to try to move the

topic. “What was it like growing up knowing that you were a wizard?”

At that point, the waiter showed up. Both of them chose a shepherd’s pie for their main

course.

Draco drew a breath. “I don’t know about other wizards, but growing up a Malfoy was hard.

Father expected me to be perfect and he kept cramming all that pureblood crap down my

throat. I truly believed that Muggle born witches and wizards were inferior.”

“If you prick us, do we not bleed?” Hermione quoted softly. At Draco’s confused

look, she continued. “It’s another Shakespearean quote. ‘If you prick us, do we not

bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh? If you poison us, do we not die? And if you

wrong us, shall we not revenge?’ Those words are timeless and describe many points in

both Muggle and Wizarding history.”

Draco nodded. “Exactly. It wasn’t until I met you that my prejudices got blown away. You

were supposed to be inferior to me. Not as smart, not as good as me, but you outstrip me in

everything.”

Hermione smiled softly. “Except for Quidditch. I’m terrified of flying.”

“Really. You don’t strike me as someone who has fears. You faced Voldemort like it was

nothing.”

Hermione flinched a little at the memories that the name brought back. “That was just a

childish sense of invincibility. The triumph of good over evil. That was before I knew

what a high price our arrogance would bring. But, I don’t want to talk about that right

now.”

Draco accepted her statement with a nod. “What about you? What was it like growing up in

the Muggle world?”

Hermione grinned at memories that his questions invoked. “It was nice. The unusual part

was the strange things that always happened around me. I felt like a freak. It was so nice

to find out that I wasn’t going crazy.”

Draco laughed as the waiter set down there food. The rest of the meal was spent in quiet

discussion of their differing backgrounds.

After dinner, Hermione and Draco walked back to Hogwarts. Draco walked her to her quarters

and both paused.

Draco smiled softly, a light coming into his grey eyes. “I had fun tonight.”

Hermione nodded. “Me, too.”

“So,” Draco said, looking like he was in silent debate. Finally, he picked up their

entwined hands and kissed Hermione’s softly. “I’ll see you tomorrow. Pleasant dreams.”

Hermione stared at him in wonder. “G’night,” she said, lost in thought. Feeling like she

was floating on cloud nine, she walked into her quarters to get ready for bed.

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The information on the constellation, Draco, is credited to the website

www.starryskies.com

Paigeey07 – Here’s more!! Sorry, work has been really crazy. I haven’t even had a chance

to write on this in the last 2 weeks! I’m glad I am so far ahead.

LadyBlueEyes – Thanks! I’m enjoying writing it (when I get a chance to actually leave my

job), and I hope to have a final chapter count around 30.