The living room was absolutely silent. Ginny stared at her parents who stared back in shock, before looking back at Hermione.
Hermione nodded towards her patio door and quietly said, "There's some couches and a table out there, and I've also put a warming charm so it won't be cold. Why don't you three go talk?"
Ginny's mouth dropped slightly but Arthur stood up with a nod. "I think that's a wonderful idea."
He looked back at his wife and held out a hand to her, which she took with absolutely no expression on her face, but Ginny saw her mother glance back towards the kitchen where Blaise was standing quietly in the doorway. Ginny looked back at him worriedly and he only nodded, giving her a small, reassuring smile.
She didn't return it, instead looking back to her parents as Arthur opened the patio door and gestured for Molly to walk out first, and then for Ginny to go. Once the door shut behind the three of them, everyone seemed to have relaxed and the conversation slowly started up again.
Blaise looked over to Hermione, noticing that she was casting some sort of spell on the patio door after it had shut. "What are you doing?"
"Silencing charm," She answered simply. "Thought they would need some privacy."
He raised an eyebrow suspiciously then and asked, "You planned this all on purpose, didn't you?"
Hermione simply shrugged with a small smile before asking loudly, "Anyone need a refill?"
Ginny rather liked Hermione's patio; she hadn't been outside very often as up until recently Hermione didn't have much in the way of patio furniture but the cream-colored couches and wooden coffee table went beautifully together.
Her parents sat on one couch and she sat on the opposite, awkwardly avoiding their eyes as she took a long drink from her glass. Her mother seemed just as uncomfortable as she took a sip from her own glass and looked out to the lawn.
Arthur, however, looked between the two of them and frowned. "Are you two really going to ignore each other after having not seen each other in nearly half a year?"
Molly looked back at him in shock but Ginny said in a frustrated tone, "Last time I checked, I wasn't welcomed back in the house according to her. And she's clearly wanted to talk this entire time based on the numerous letters I've received from her."
The bitterness in her voice was very clear, and Arthur sighed as he looked at his daughter. "Ginny, please."
"No, I did nothing wrong!" Ginny exclaimed angrily.
"I know you didn't, dear," He said calmly. "But you have to realize how jarring it was for us to see that you were already with another wizard not even a week after your divorce, and from the paper no less!"
"You wouldn't have understood if I had told you in person, and it wasn't like I was never going to tell you," Ginny said. "I was going to give it some time, let the divorce blow over, and then tell you about Blaise."
"Why do you think we wouldn't have understood?" He asked sadly.
"You saw mum's reaction," Ginny said, gesturing towards her mother who sat there silently. "She called him a pureblood elitist."
"Because at the time, I was under the impression that he was," Molly said finally in a defensive tone.
"Yeah well you did a good job of checking whether or not it was true," Ginny retorted. "You pulled this exact same thing with Bill and Fleur; am I going to have to be gravely injured too for you to see just how good of a person Blaise is?"
Her mother's mouth dropped slightly but she immediately shut it and looked away. Arthur sighed again and ran a hand over his head as he looked down at the ground and then up to his daughter. "Why don't you tell us how you and Blaise met?"
This caught Ginny off guard and she blinked, taking a sip of her mimosa again. She thought she felt a small wave of calm wash over her and she looked down at the drink in confusion before taking a deep breath and leaning back into the couch.
She gave them a quick version of how she and Blaise grew close at Hogwarts, noticing that they were both listening intently to what she was saying. When she had finished, she waited nervously for one of them to say something, and her nerves only grew the longer she waited.
"So, if you were in love with Blaise," Her father started slowly. "Why did you stay with Harry?"
"Because I didn't know if Blaise was going to come back or not," She answered truthfully. "And I did still love Harry; I guess I just wasn't in love with him like I was with Blaise."
He nodded at this and then looked to his wife; she seemed conflicted with herself, masking it by taking a drink and letting out a sigh.
"So I guess you and Harry were never going to work out?" She asked quietly then, looking up at her daughter.
"No, mum," Ginny said, shaking her head. "We've decided mutually that we're both better as friends."
Molly sighed before nodding, taking another drink of her mimosa. Silence fell over the patio again and Ginny shifted uncomfortably on the couch, looking back and forth between her parents.
"So, are you going to give Blaise a chance?" She asked worriedly.
Arthur looked at his wife silently, who was chewing on the inside of her cheek as she thought. He sighed and then looked back at Ginny and said, "I've already decided that I'm perfectly willing to speak with him. Hermione seemed intent also on making sure we knew, or at least I knew, that Blaise was a good person, and she actually asked that as well."
Ginny blinked in surprise before glancing back into the living room to look at Hermione, who was speaking with George and Harry. She looked back at her father and asked, "When did you and Hermione talk about Blaise?"
"Oh, she came to visit my office last Wednesday," He said cheerfully. "We talked for a little bit and your relationship happened to be one of the topics. She was upset that there had been no contact between us and you for the past five months."
As he said this, he looked to his wife; Molly was looking down at the floor again, holding her glass with both hands. She seemed like she was holding back on saying something, and Ginny sighed before running a hand through her hair.
"Mum, just say it," She said exasperatedly. "You've obviously got something you want to say."
"I just..." Molly faltered before taking a deep breath, tilting her head down slightly and continuing: "I just don't know, Ginny. I want to trust your decisions but I just can't see how someone who thought the way he did is good for you. And frankly, I feel the same way about Hermione and Draco; after the way they've treated you in school? How can you be so accepting of them?"
"Because they've changed, and if you won't believe me then go talk to Harry about it," Ginny said with an angry edge to her voice.
"That isn't necessary," Arthur interrupted, holding a hand out to calm both of them down. "Ginny, we're just worried about you and want to make sure that you're making the right decisions."
"Regardless of whether or not I am, they are my decisions," She said firmly. "I'm an adult now, and I realize that you may not agree with my decisions but that doesn't mean you need to punish me when you think I'm making the wrong one. Especially when you haven't even tried to hear me out. And you've never even met Blaise! How could you be so biased against someone you've never even met?"
Her mother gave her a hurtful look before sighing and shaking her head. "I just wanted what was best for you, dear, and I thought that was Harry."
"I'm well aware of that," Ginny said, trying to calm herself down by taking a deep breath. "I just want you two to give Blaise a fair chance; he deserves that. He's always been supportive of me regardless of whether or not he was a part of my life, and he's everything I could have asked for in a man."
Molly frowned again but Arthur shifted forward on the couch, looking at Ginny. "Why don't we have you and Blaise over for dinner Monday? Or even tonight, if you would like?"
"Tonight?" Molly looked at Arthur in surprise.
"Yes, I think tonight would be good," He nodded firmly. "This way we can get to know Blaise better in a more quiet environment, and it won't be as awkward as it would be having everyone watch the four of us here. It was very clear that everyone seemed to know something was going on when we came out here."
He looked back at Ginny who thought it over for a few moments before nodding. "I think that would be nice."
"Wonderful!" He then looked at his wife. "Molly?"
She nodded as well, though uncertainty was clear on her face. Ginny sighed, grimacing slightly and glancing towards the living room. Draco and Blaise were both talking with the other four, smiles on all of their faces. Blaise looked up for a moment and tilted his head questioningly, and she tilted her head back and forth ever so slightly. He answered by raising an eyebrow but looked away as someone said something to him.
"Well!" Her father stood up then, catching her attention as he helped his wife up. "Why don't you go join everyone else, dear? I'm sure it's been a while since you've seen your friends."
"Are you not coming in?" Ginny asked, finding a lingering feeling of sadness at this.
"We are, but I think we'll be leaving shortly so that we can ready everything up for dinner," He said before smiling at her. "Besides, you'll be seeing us again tonight."
She hesitated before nodding, standing up as well and the three of them awkwardly stood there for a few moments. Then he held out his arms for a hug and Ginny gladly rushed forward, hugging him tightly. She felt another arm wrap around her back and she glanced up to see that her mother had joined the hug, and she smiled then as relief and happiness hit her.
They walked inside soon after and Hermione tried to hide her worry as they reentered the living room.
"Well my dear, this has been wonderful!" Arthur said to Hermione as he pulled her in for a hug. "You'll have to have another one of these very soon!"
"Are you leaving?" Hermione asked, looking between him and Molly.
"Yes, but we will be back to visit very soon, and don't forget to come by the office sometime!" He said with a smile before pulling away so she could hug Molly.
As the older witch pulled her in for a tight hug, she heard Molly say quietly, "Thank you, dear."
Hermione smiled and tightly hugged her back before pulling away and walking the two of them out. Blaise, meanwhile, went to Ginny and asked in a concerned voice, "Is everything alright?"
"I think so," Ginny answered. "They want us over for dinner tonight."
"Tonight?" Blaise's eyes went wide and she couldn't help but giggle slightly.
"I think we'll be fine," She said reassuringly, putting a hand on his arm and reaching up to give him a kiss.
Hermione fell back onto the couch with a sigh after Blaise and Ginny both left. It was just after four in the afternoon, and the other couple had been the last two guests remaining for since at least two.
"Tired?"
She looked up to see Draco leaning over the couch and smiling at her. She smiled back and said, "Very. I didn't think that would take so much out of me."
"You were a wonderful host," He said, giving the top of her head a kiss. "My mother might insist on having you host a Malfoy event."
She stared up at him with wide eyes. "What?"
He chuckled as he walked around the couch and sat down next to her. "Yes; the Malfoy family holds at least one gala or ball a year, sometimes two. And mother always insists on hosting but I think you could rival her."
"There's no way I could host one of those," Hermione said, shaking her head. "I can't imagine just how extravagant those would be."
"Maybe you'll find out soon."
She raised an eyebrow at him and he grinned. "As far as I know, my parents haven't hosted an event yet this year which means it could happen on either Christmas or New Year's Eve."
"Wonderful," She muttered, closing her eyes and leaning her head on his shoulder. "I can't imagine how much one of those would wear me out, considering what hosting a small brunch did to me."
"Well there was the added layer of family tension that you were trying to fix," He said lightly. "Which it appears you did."
"I didn't fix it, I just forced them to acknowledge each other for the first time in months and they did the rest."
He smiled again and reached for her hand, intertwining their fingers together. They sat like that for a few moments before he asked, "Why did you do this, out of curiosity?"
She shrugged. "I felt they were being unfair towards Blaise and Ginny's relationship, and I was tired of it."
"But why all of a sudden?"
She didn't answer immediately, debating whether or not to tell Draco what Blaise had come to her office about. But then again, he and Blaise were best mates; she wouldn't be surprised if he already knew.
"I realized that Ginny and her parents not talking was putting some things off in her relationship with Blaise," She answered slowly, choosing her words carefully.
He looked down at her then with a confused expression. "What do you mean?"
"I think you'll be finding out soon," Hermione said, smiling up at him. "I can't be the one to tell you."
His brow furrowed but then his eyes went wide. "Don't tell me he's planning on-"
"I didn't tell you that," She grinned. "You figured it out so I can't be at fault here."
"How did you find out?!" He asked. "I didn't even know about this!"
"That's shocking, actually," She laughed. "He came to my office last week and showed me."
"He has it already?" Draco asked in shock.
"Yes, and it's absolutely gorgeous!" Hermione sighed and closed her eyes again. "I can't wait for him to do it; she's going to be so happy."
Draco didn't answer, instead looking forward towards the back wall, absentmindedly stroking the back of her hand with his thumb. He was immensely happy for Blaise and had a feeling that his friend was going to propose soon; he just wasn't sure when it was going to happen and certainly didn't think this whole business between Ginny and her parents was stopping him.
Then his thoughts began to wander, and he leaned his head against hers, smiling to himself as he thought about something as well.
A/N: Thank you all so much for your patience; I know this update went longer than I originally planned but this chapter just did not want to be written. I missed all of you! :) love you all and hope you enjoy!