The Marriage Decree

Chapter 36: He got around

Draco meets Hermione at the door to the archives after receiving a note from her to do so. He offers her a reassuring smile as he approaches but she doesn't seem to be paying attention, lost in her own thoughts. He opens the door, guiding her through and making sure it closes properly behind them. On their silent walk through the corridor towards the main door, Hermione starts dawdling behind so he gently takes her hand and guides her along, leaving her to her thoughts.

The ministry official at the desk outside the door stops them as they exit, telling them that she's been ordered to check them. Draco rolls his eyes as they wait for her to cast the necessary spells on them. Once she's deemed them checked, she waves her arm towards the lift.

"Enjoy the rest of your day." She forcefully smiles which he returns.

They only have to wait a minute for the lift. A quick glance at Hermione tells him that she's not in the right mental state to disapparate right now so he presses the button for the foyer and the muggle exit.

He spends the whole lift ride wondering what it is that she found out in the Rowle's filing cabinet. By her reaction, he would assume that she got the answer she didn't want and she does descend from them but she had half been expecting that. Or at least Draco had. He doesn't believe in coincidences and there's too much evidence supporting his theory on her heritage.

The lift pings as they make it to the foyer. With their hands still entwined, he pulls her out of the lift and towards the exit. The sun's shining brightly in the sky when they step out into muggle London making Hermione cover her eyes. She glances up at him for a second before throwing herself at him in a tight hug. Unprepared, Draco stumbles backwards slightly but managed to steady his footing and return the hug just as tightly, rubbing her back comfortingly. He kissed the top of her head as she sighed deeply into his shoulder.

"Hermione-" He mumbles into her hair but she shakes her head, interrupting him.

"Not here." She mutters. "Let's go home." She adds, leaning away, taking his hand again.

This time, she guides him away from the Ministry and down a nearby alleyway where she tugs him behind a large bin and apparates them back to the estate.

It's the first time they've ever been walking around the estate in the early afternoon so they were both surprised to find the street rather crowded. It usually takes around ten minutes to walk from the gates to their house but today it took them nearly half an hour, having to stop for a quick chat with a few people they hadn't seen since the ceremony. He can tell that Hermione's starting to get restless so he tries to end the conversations quickly, stating that they were busy and needed to get going.

He unlocks the front door, letting Hermione enter first, allowing him to close the door behind him. When he turns around, he finds her slumped on the third step of the stairs. He stares at her for a moment before removing his cloak and joining her.

"I'm assuming the worst." He tells her, taking her hand in his own.

"Shush." She presses her fingers to his lips. "I can't do this here. Not in our home." She leans towards him, resting her forehead on his shoulder.

Draco brings his other hand up to the back of her head, running his fingers through her hair.

"Let's go out for lunch then." He suggests. "We could try the Pentagon. I've heard it's nice."

Hermione's still for a moment before she nods against his shoulder, stands up and heads towards the door, pulling him by their entwined hands. With a wave of his fleeting hand, he locks the door behind them. He should have probably used the key since literally anyone on the estate can unlock a magically locked door but he doubts anyone would risk it.