TW: Dubious Consent that's not really Dubious Consent. Both parties are fully into one another, they're just also idiots.
Luck Be a Lady
Draco Malfoy's moral compass has always been a bit skewy. He attributes most of that to his… questionable upbringing. 'Questionable', of course, in this case meaning absolutely vile. So, no, he isn't perfect and he knows it.
This, however, he is absolutely, positively, painfully aware that this is not the sort of thing that the good guys would do. It's not the sort of thing that she would do– but he's desperate.
See, Draco Malfoy is in love. Not only is he in love, but he's in love with one of very few witches in wizarding London who absolutely will not look twice at him. In fairness, their relationship is no longer one of mutual disdain– not since Draco's old school girlfriend, Pansy Parkinson, surprised everyone and started seeing Neville Longbottom last Spring– but it still is nowhere near what Draco would like it to be.
Draco has spent the last six months both brewing and trying not to completely embarrass himself in front of Hermione Granger because if there's anyone that could possibly resist the effects of Liquid Luck, it would be her.
Draco sighs, eyeing the vial of– expertly brewed– Felix Felicis warily. He knows not to do this. He's better than this– and she would hate him if she ever found out. He just hopes that he can convince her to like him enough that she'll overlook his scheming when she does find out.
Draco hangs his head between his shoulders as he leans his hands on his brewing table. After a moment, he groans aloud and uncorks the vial, downing the contents without a blink.
Draco's day is going spectacularly. His morning tea was steeped to perfection and the croissant which he bought from the corner bakery near his flat was light and fluffy, exactly as he likes them.
After breakfast, Draco received an owl from Potter, of all people, inviting him for drinks this evening. It's not the first time that Draco has been invited for drinks with an eclectic group of former Gryffindors, Slytherins and Ravenclaws, but it is the first time that he has been personally invited by someone other than Pansy or Theo.
Draco decides that even though he knows that the invitation was the result of his Luck, he is still going to take advantage of it. He's still a Slytherin at heart, after all. By his calculations, he should be under the effects of the potion for approximately twelve hours from the time of consumption, which was a little over an hour ago. He'll still be lucky when he gets to the pub this evening and that's when he'll make his move on Granger.
Draco has also decided that he's just going to go for it. He's just going to ask the witch on a date. He would usually never have the courage to do so without the help of the potion, but when in Rome– or when under the influence of a controlled substance, Draco supposes.
Draco's plan very nearly gets tossed out the proverbial window when, as he is walking down Diagon and attempting to figure out the exact wording he will use when he speaks to Granger, he hears a jarringly loud whistle– the sort of whistle which one might make in order to draw the attention of someone in particular.
Draco is sure that he's never been the subject of a whistle like that before in his life, so, rather than turning his head to search for the source, he continues walking. Evidently, that is the wrong decision, according to what he hears next.
"Oi! Malfoy! I know that you heard me!"
Draco whips his head around, identifying the voice of his former girlfriend immediately. Now that he knows who to look for, he expects to find her quickly. He decidedly doesn't expect to have to look up to find her.
In perhaps the strangest twist of the day, Draco finds the witch he's looking for– alongside two others whom he recognizes in an instant– on the roof of the building across the street. Lined up along the half-wall surrounding the roof of what Draco thinks is a robes shop is the aforementioned Pansy Parkinson. Beside her is her– Hermione Granger. She's hissing something at Pansy with her hand holding onto Pansy's forearm in what appears to be an iron grip. On Granger's other side is the expected third of this troublemaking trio, Ginny Weasley-Potter, with what Draco thinks to be a pair of Muggle binoculars in her hands.
Pansy, with a too-wide grin, waves for Draco to meet them up atop the roof.
"There's a fire escape around back! Come up here!"
Draco is positive that he doesn't want anything to do with whatever these three witches are up to, but given who the witch in the middle is, there's no way that Draco is going to not join them.
"Are you three drunk? It's not even midday," Draco chuckles, shaking his head and pointedly avoiding eye-contact with Granger.
Pansy wrenches her arm from Granger's fist and walks up to Draco, smiling an alarmingly bright smile. He recognizes this smile as her 'scheming smile' and it almost makes him laugh. Even in the five years since the War, some things never change.
"We are not drunk. We're spying. All of our exes are together at the quidditch shop across the street," Pansy explains as if that would somehow make sense to him. "Well, since you're here, I guess it's not all of our exes, but you don't really count."
Draco furrows his brows, unsure if he should be offended by that statement or not.
"It's not all of our exes, anyway. It's just Dean, Ron and Neville," Weasley explains, crossing her arms, binoculars dangling from one hand. "And we're really only here for Neville anyway. Pans regrets breaking up with him."
Draco eyes the dark-haired witch in front of him with narrowed eyes. When had she broken up with Longbottom? It's no wonder that she regrets it, though. It almost pains Draco to admit it, but the pair of them make a strangely good couple. They balance one another out. Furthermore, Longbottom was one of the first of the mixed group who wasn't a former Slytherin to willingly approach Draco and strike up a conversation with him and that moment had felt significant to him. After that evening, it had seemed like once Draco had received Longbottom's stamp of approval, then the other former Gryffindors had followed suit.
Draco still doesn't feel quite like a fully-integrated member of their friend group, but he also knows that he's never not been invited out for drinks when the aforementioned group gets together since then. It's a start. It's something– and Draco will take just about anything which brings him closer to Granger.
"Oi, why don't I count?" Draco asks, already knowing that regardless of whether he were to ask about Pansy's breakup or not, that she'll only tell him on her own terms. And if she does, indeed, regret her breakup, then perhaps changing the subject will take her mind off of it for a moment. Their own prior difficult relationship aside, Pansy is still one of Draco's closest friends and he doesn't want her to be upset.
Pansy laughs lightly and shakes her head.
"Draco, darling, we were teenagers," Pansy says, as if that's an answer. By that logic, Dean Thomas wouldn't count as an ex in this context either, yet he was mentioned earlier. "Also, I'm told that for it to be a real relationship, the involved parties need to actually talk about things– not just fool around in broom cupboards."
Draco bites the inside of his cheek to hide his laugh. That seems like a more reasonable explanation– and not woefully inaccurate either. His attention throughout Hogwarts was often caught by the Trio (or, decidedly less fun things) and very little was leftover for Pansy, leaving the majority of their interactions to be driven by his baser instincts, rather than a desire to actually know her. He's never been proud of that fact, but after the War and a lengthy discussion with the dark-haired witch, they both decided that there were no hard feelings and that they'll always be better off as friends. Draco is grateful for that, for her.
"And if you did count," Pansy says, lowering her voice then, presumably in an effort to keep her next statement for Draco's ears only. "Then it would break Girl Code for my best friend to date you and she really wants to do that."
Draco's eyebrows raise into his hairline, his eyes quickly darting above Pansy's head to where Granger is leaning against the half-wall, conversing with the She-Weasel in hushed tones. In the past few years, it's been no secret that Pansy Parkinson and Hermione Granger have become close friends– some might even say best friends, along with the aforementioned She-Weasel.
Pansy leans into Draco, eyeing him conspiratorially before she continues.
"I shouldn't be telling you this," Pansy huffs, crossing her arms over her chest. "And I don't even know why I am, but it just feels like the right time. I see the way that you look at her and I've heard what she thinks about you. I'm tired of waiting around for the two of you to get it together, so I'm stepping in."
Draco doesn't know how exactly to respond to this revelation, but he's certainly not going to interrupt his friend. Pansy clearly doesn't know that this admission is the result of Draco's Luck, but he's also certainly not going to look a gift horse in the mouth.
"So, here's what we're going to do," Pansy states, evidently already having a plan in mind which she expects Draco to go along with. "We're all getting drinks tonight. You're coming, I presume?"
Draco nods, leaving out the detail of being personally invited by the bloody Boy-Who-Lived. If there's one thing that he knows about Pansy, it's that she's perceptive– dangerously so. She would absolutely want to investigate the change in routine and potentially spoil all of Draco's hard work.
"Good. Then here's the plan: we're going to plan for you to sit either next to or across from Granger tonight at the pub. If you're next to her, she'll smell your cologne which she loves. The word 'salivating' has been used in conversation concerning it. I think you smell like bubblegum, but apparently she likes it."
Draco stays silent, his brain trying to process all of the information which Pansy is throwing at him at the minute. He almost doesn't believe her.
Draco has seen Hermione Granger on a weekly basis for over a year and she has never given him any inclination that she's interested in him. He supposes that it's possible that she's simply good at hiding her feelings, and it does track that she would tell her friends about any supposed 'feelings' before she would tell him– that seems like the way that witches work, at least in Draco's limited experience with them. They talk to their friends.
"If you sit across from her at the pub, she'll have to look at you. Even I'll admit that you're not terrible on the eyes. Less pointy than you used to be, nice eyes, disarming smile. Oh! She likes your arms. Wear a fitted shirt."
Draco absolutely does not cross his arms over his chest so that his Oxford pulls tight against his biceps, directly in Granger's line of sight at that. Definitely not.
"And have a firewhiskey tonight."
That, Pansy doesn't elaborate on. Draco tips his head in her direction, raising an eyebrow.
"Why, Pansy, are you suggesting that I be anything other than a perfect gentleman and kiss her without even buying her dinner first?" Draco chuckles, watching out of the corner of his eye as Granger seems to huff and cross her own arms over her chest, seemingly frustrated by whatever it is that the female Weasley is saying to her.
Pansy smirks.
"Of course not," she says, though her tone says otherwise. "Perhaps it will just give you a bit more courage. The fact that she likes the taste of firewhiskey, despite always ordering red wine on nights out, is neither here nor there."
Draco taps his elbow against Pansy's upper arm in gratitude.
"Thanks, Pans."
Pansy winks at him covertly before turning her attention back to her friends.
"Hey, Granger!" Draco calls, fully aware of the effect of the potion in this moment. Ordinarily, he would never speak directly to her like this for fear of embarrassing himself. "See you tonight?"
Granger's eyebrows furrow and her eyes dart to Pansy for a moment. The two witches seem to have some sort of silent conversation before she responds a minute later.
Granger's head tips to the side, as if she's examining Draco like a complex Arithmancy equation. She's so clearly trying to figure out why Draco has just addressed her like he has. It's not like they never talk, but it's rarely one-on-one, despite Draco itching for it to be so. The corner of her lips tips up– it's so quick that if Draco wasn't looking directly at her, he would've missed it, but it was there.
"See you tonight."
Draco arrives at the Leaky at approximately 7:20 in the evening– slightly late, but not enough for it to be considered rude. He sees her immediately. How could he not?
Her hair is swept up into a messy bun atop her head, unlike how it was half-up earlier in the day and it elongates her neck beautifully. She's wearing a simple Muggle hooded sweatshirt in a soft blue color that nearly makes Draco's heart stop with how similarly it compares to her dress from the Yule Ball. Yes, he'd noticed her all the way back then too– everyone had, they'd have been mad not to.
She looks comfortable and relaxed with one hand on the stem of her wine glass and the other wrapping and unwrapping a single curl which has escaped her bun around her index finger. She's conversing casually with Draco's less-preferred Weasley and if he didn't know better, Draco would be concerned about that derailing his plans for this evening, Liquid Luck be damned, but even he knows that there's nothing going on between them anymore.
Granger and Weasley had been in a relationship after the end of the War, as expected of them, for about a year, but the way that they both tell it is that neither of them was under any illusions that it would last forever. They're still close friends, but as far as being romantically involved, they both knew that they wanted different things out of life and split up amicably four years ago.
Since then, Weasley has gone on to date and propose to Padma Patil and if Draco is remembering correctly, they're getting married in the Summer. Granger dated Oliver Wood for a couple of months after her breakup with Weasley, but as far as Draco knows, she's been single for quite a while now, focusing on her career at the Ministry.
Granger is sitting to the left of Potter and across from Weasley with a free seat beside her to her left– the only free space at their entire table. To Potter's right is his wife, Ginny and beside her is Pansy, who looks distinctly uncomfortable by the tall, beast of a man– Longbottom– sitting across from her. He's not even looking at her as he converses with Luna Lovegood beside him to his right, but Pansy doesn't look happy, regardless.
To Luna's right is her boyfriend, one Theodore Nott and to his right is Weasley. Blaise and Daphne are in Italy this week, so it's no surprise that they're absent from this group and Padma is a Healer at Mungo's and the safe assumption is that she's working this evening. She might show up later, as she does on occasion.
Draco takes a deep breath and approaches the table– Granger, specifically, due to the only open chair being beside her. Fortunately for Draco, as he does this, he notices that Granger's wine glass is nearly empty, which gives him an opening.
"Evening, all," Draco greets briefly before turning his attention to the curly-haired witch in front of him. "Is this seat taken?"
Granger looks up at Draco and his heart catches in his chest at the way that her big, brown eyes lock with his.
"N-no, it's– be my guest," Hermione stammers, averting her eyes and staring down at her glass.
Without the context of Pansy telling him that she knows that Hermione is interested in him, he would take her behavior right now to mean that she is uncomfortable around him, likely due to their fraught history. This time, however, he wonders if he's imagining the slight flush to her cheeks.
In the end, Draco tells himself that the flush is from the wine, but inwardly preens just a bit for potentially being the actual reason behind it.
"Thanks, Granger," Draco smiles down at the witch, though he decidedly doesn't take his seat just yet. "Your glass is empty. Shall I get you another? I'm going to the bar if you care to join me."
Hermione blinks for a moment, biting into her bottom lip briefly before responding non-verbally. She nods her head and stands from the table, tipping her head in indication for Draco to lead the way– as if he has any intention of letting her out of his sight.
Draco eyes the crowd in front of him and firmly decides that he doesn't want to lose her in the throngs of people and therefore offers her his arm. To his surprise, Granger takes it immediately, wrapping her hand around his forearm.
Draco's arm tingles where Granger's fingers press against his shirt and it physically pains him to ignore it for the moment, but he does in favor of guiding her in the direction of the bar and away from the prying eyes of their mutual friends. He finds an open spot at the bar for the pair to squeeze into as he flags down the bartender, who nods in indication that he sees them, but holds up a finger to let them know that he would be a minute.
"So, am I allowed to ask how the three of you ended up on that roof this morning?" Draco asks, quirking a half-smile down at the beautiful witch beside him. He had intended to ask her how her day had been, but it appears that his Luck has other plans.
Granger breathes a quiet, but distinct laugh, shaking her head as if in disbelief.
"Pansy broke up with Neville last week. She claims that it was because she's– and I quote– 'an independent witch who doesn't need a man'," she explains, rolling her eyes at her friend's antics. "It's really because she's afraid of how strongly she feels for him. She's completely mad about him and refuses to admit it to herself."
Draco doesn't have much trouble believing that, given everything that he knows about Pansy Parkinson. She, by design, is fiercely independent and that personality trait doesn't lend itself well to relying on– or being relied on– by another.
"Personally, I think that she's just never been in love and doesn't realize that that feeling of being completely out of control is normal," Granger huffs before her eyebrows raise nearly into her hairline. "I'm– I'm sorry– I didn't mean…"
It takes Draco a moment to understand what it is that she's apologizing for, but when he does, he feels the overwhelming need to dispense with her concern immediately. He shakes his head on a soft laugh and he can visibly see Granger's shoulders tense.
"No apology necessary. According to Pansy, I don't even count as an ex," he shrugs, leaning against the bartop and tucking his hands into his pockets. "And we certainly were never in love with one another. I'm not sure that that's even possible at fourteen, but even if it is, that's not what we had."
Granger seems to consider that response for a moment before she speaks again.
"Do you think of her as your ex?" she wonders and everything in Draco is screaming at him to say 'no'. He can't imagine a positive scenario coming from him telling the woman that he is interested in that he does, in fact, count her best friend as his ex, but it is the honest answer.
Draco's tongue seems to work faster than he can reasonably stem, though his words come out confidently in spite of that.
"I do. I wasn't in love with her and truth be told, I really just liked the attention that she gave me, but I did actually care for her. We've been friends since we were kids and we are absolutely better off as such, but I can't– or won't– just erase her from my past."
Draco knows that he has probably just blown whatever chance he might've had with this witch, but his explanation was the truth. He might not be physically or romantically interested in Pansy anymore, but she's still important to him. It would be a huge disservice to her if he even tried to exclude her.
"That's sort of how I feel about Ron," Granger hums, reaching up and fiddling with the dainty gold necklace resting on her decolletage. "Bar the 'gave me attention' bit, I suppose. He really only ever paid any mind to me if he needed something, but even still. I wouldn't change anything because it got me where I am now."
Granger's big brown eyes are boring into his and Draco gets the sudden feeling that she is waiting for something.
"And where are you now?" Draco asks, his voice inadvertently dropping a bit lower.
Granger bites her bottom lip and Draco's immediate instinct is to replace her teeth with his own, though he fortunately quells that desire– barely. She releases her lip and laughs a breathy, quiet laugh, stretching out her fingertips and brushing them across Draco's right forearm.
"Waiting to see if you're ever actually going to ask me out."
Draco's eyes widen and his eyebrows raise into his hairline. There is no possible way that Granger has just said what Draco thinks that she did. Of course, the likelihood of her confession being incited by the Luck is high, but Felix Felicis doesn't create feelings that aren't there– it just makes one more likely to act on them and for their endeavors during the active period to be successful.
"Listen, Draco, I know that we have a history, but in case it has escaped your notice, that table we left is full of all sorts– Slytherins, Gryffindors, Ravenclaws, people who fought on opposite sides of a war and who each have different interests and opinions today. Yet, we all gather together weekly and actively put the past behind us."
Draco opens his mouth to speak, but Granger silences him both with a Look– capital intended– and a hand around his right wrist.
"Now, I have it on good authority that my feelings for you are not one-sided, so why haven't you said anything?"
Draco stammers for a moment, baffled by Granger's assertiveness– at least with regard to this particular topic. After all, she's always been quite bossy and Salazar help him, Draco loves that about her.
"I thought– I expected that you would decline," Draco replies honestly, though he does take a half-step toward her, now realizing that such an advance might be welcomed.
Hermione huffs a displeased breath, though doesn't step back.
"Just because you think you know what my answer might be, that doesn't mean that you shouldn't ask me."
Draco smiles a small, private smile down at her, twisting his wrist around in order to take her hand fully into his.
"So, will you?" he asks, a little dumbly as he is fully distracted by the warmth of her hand and by the way his much larger one completely dwarfs hers.
Granger raises an eyebrow, refusing to let him off easily.
"Will I what?"
Draco lifts his free hand and brushes that rogue curl which has escaped her bun back from her face and behind her ear, purposely delaying the now-inevitable.
"Will you have dinner with me? I'm a bit mad about you, Granger, and I would very much like to take you out on a date."
Granger smiles a supremely pleased-looking smile and nods.
"I truly thought that you would never ask– but yes. I'd love to."
Hi, friends! Happy Tuesday! (:
Y'all. I went back to working full-time last week after my major surgery last fall and let me tell you, this working full-time thing is not for the weak, lol. I am exhausted. So, that said, if uploads are a little wonky for a while, please have some grace and patience with me.
So, here we are with Luck Be a Lady, which was inspired by the prompt, "A good-luck charm, a pair of binoculars and an ex-boyfriend." Once again, I was not terribly creative, lol. My entire inspiration for this fic was "Ginny Weasley holding binoculars", so, do with that what you will, lol.
This fic does have an epilogue, which will be posted next week. I have no idea what is coming after that. I have been writing, just not Dramione or Fremione and I'm not sure if the fics that I've been writing will ever see the light of day, lol. I definitely want to get back on my Dramione/Fremione bs, but time is just limited these days.
Anyway. Thank you all, as always, for spending a bit of your time here with me this week. I am still so eternally grateful for your continued support, especially as pertains to my lapses in posting.
ALSO. Before I forget, at the end of next week, I am going on vacation. So, after the epilogue for Luck Be a Lady goes live next week, there will be no scheduled posts until I get back towards the end of March. I'm hoping to use some of that vacation time to write, so pray for me y'all. :P
There, that's it, I think, lol.
Thanks again.
Please review. They make me happy.
See you next week!