To Get Through [a Draco Malfoy reader insert]

Before the Storm

Your Friday quickly passed and Hermione remained true to her words by staying close by to ease your nerves. Even so, you felt as though there were moments where Draco nearly approached you regardless seeing how Hermione overheard his accidental confession, which prompted you to spend the majority of your Saturday in the Gryffindor common room.

Harry and Ron were still confused about your sudden change in behavior, but you covered it up by saying you were simply under the weather. You could tell Harry still didn't completely believe you, but he knew you well enough to know that you'd tell him when you were ready. The boys let you have your way for the weekend, but Hermione was quite the opposite.

She begrudgingly accepted all your rejections to visit the library or take a trip to Hogsmede Saturday, but Hermione couldn't bear to see you spend your entire Sunday in the common room as well.

Hermione spotted you sitting on the ground in the main area near the fireplace, scribbling together some words on a piece of parchment that was sure to be the beginnings of your Transfiguration essay. She came up to you and said, "Alright, let's go."

You hadn't even realized that Hermione had come down the stairs, so you were surprised when you heard her voice so closely above you. Unsure, you asked her, "Go where?"

"I'm going to the library," Hermione replied, then added, "and you're coming with me."

You instantly shook your head and told her, "I'm just fine here, thank you."

"Y/N, you've practically locked yourself in this common room for nearly 48 hours because of one minor situation," Hermione said, taking a seat on the couch near you.

"Minor situation?" you repeated before adding your own viewpoint, "Hermione, this is the same guy nobody could stand for the last seven years of our lives. We've had a good month or two and suddenly he's in love with me?"

"Oh quit being dramatic, no one said anything about being in love," Hermione dismissed with a laugh, "Just because he finds your perfume attractive doesn't necessarily mean he harbors real feelings for you."

"Aren't you the same woman who was convinced he fancied me a couple of days ago? I know you're only saying that to calm my nerves."

"Okay, even if he does fancy you, so what? Why does that terrify you?" Hermione asked.

"I just don't want things to get weird or awkward," you admitted, "He's actually a pretty decent friend and I know he hasn't got much here for him, so I'd really hate for everything to get messed up."

"And you thought avoiding him was the best way to prevent that?" Hermione rhetorically posed, causing you to look away from her out of embarrassment. Your eyes drifted to the fireplace as you heard your friend sigh and say, "I can't believe I'm actually saying this, but maybe you should give Malfoy a chance."

Your gaze snapped right back to her as soon as the words left her mouth, "I'm sorry, are you advocating for Draco Malfoy right now?"

"Look, you'd have to be insanely daft not to see the effect you have on him," Hermione lowered her volume as she spoke, "And the person you bring out of him is far better than any other version of him we've seen. This other side of him has frequently put a smile on your face too."

A hint of a smile tugged on your lips at Hermione's observation. You softly asked, "But what if I do give him a chance, and everything still gets messed up?"

Even if Draco's mindsets and behaviors had changed, you knew his family's didn't. The only reason his father wasn't locked away in Azkaban is because he shared the names of other Death Eaters to the ministry. You were fairly certain that the Malfoys typically only acted in their best interest and that you, a Gryffindor half-blood, wouldn't be considered Draco's best interest in the eyes of his parents.