#aswg

and she was golden- chapter 23

“Must I always be the brave one?” she teases. Draco can hear the smile in her voice and his heart thumps in his chest, loud enough that he wonders if perhaps she could hear it. How long has his heart been beating for her?

“Be gentle with my feelings,” he murmurs, gazing into her eyes. He reaches up, lightly tugging an errant curl. “I’ve been dreaming about this for a long time.”

“Being in my bedroom?” An arch of her eyebrow, that same mischievous gleam in her bright eyes. Her face is flushed, a lovely blush staining her skin. A flicker of something akin to pride bursts in his chest. He did that. 

Hermione. Hermione. Hermione.

“Being yours." Inevitability.

Initially I was going to state all the inspiration and do an official thank you during the last update but I realise it may need to be done now so here I am. I will continue to give credit where it’s due.

This fic was inspired by many other fics by authors far better than me. I’m not here trying to plagiarise things, just putting my own spin on little plot concepts I enjoyed. I’ve been a part of this community for so long and enjoyed al these fics as well. Yes, I know that some of the story sounds like something you’ve read before and it’s probably because I’ve simply internalized it as canon. I’m not spitting out the same exact story and trying to call it mine and I certainly don’t appreciate the accusations.

If @colubrina, @heyjude19-writing and especially @lovesbitca8 have any issues at all, they are free to contact me and the story will be taken down with no hesitation. I am sorry if anyone felt like I was trying to put a claim on something that was not mine because that has never been my intention.

and she was golden- chapter 21

“Draco, can you hear me?” His eyes feel glued shut, a soft voice wafting through the haze of his memories.

“Draco.” There it was again, louder this time.

Hermione. He wants to reach out to her, ask her to make this stop.

“Stay with me, Draco. Can you hear me? I need you to stay with me.”

‘I will,’ he wants to say. ‘I’ll stay forever.’

But the words don’t come.

They never have.

and she was golden- new update

There is a room filled with shelves that touch the sky. These shelves used to be filled with boxes under lock and key.

and she was golden- chapter 17

“Who?” Draco demands, but he has a creeping suspicion that he already has the answer. No. A hundred memories and a thousand conversations, recontextualized and reformed before his very eyes.

“You know who,” Blaise offers him a defeated look, “Don’t make me say it.”

“No.” He shakes his head fiercely. Laughter, inside jokes and lingering looks that are so fucking obvious. What was that thing they said about hindsight? “No. No. No.”

There is no way. “You’re lying. Tell me you’re fucking lying.” How can I have missed this?

“Believe me,” a humourless laugh, “I really wish I could.” Blaise drops his head back, eyes squeezing shut, “but I can’t, Draco. I can’t stop thinking about the way she flips her hair and replaying all our irrelevant conversations. I can’t stop thinking about that little spin she does when she’s wearing an adorable outfit or the way she rolls her eyes whenever I say something stupid. Merlin, I’m so damn exhausted because I can’t stop dreaming about her fucking smile. Not even when she was yours.”

and she was golden- chapter 16

He swallows slowly and cups her face with his free hand. Her eyes are wide and her skin is cool under his touch and Draco lets his eyes flit down to her pink lips. He leans down, and even now with her heels the top of her head barely reaches his chin. She’s always been larger than life itself. His hand drags down the slope of her neck and down her bare shoulder. She shivers lightly, never breaking his gaze. Is this really happening?

Draco rests his forehead against hers waiting for her to protest, to change her mind.

She doesn’t pull away.

He wonders if she can feel the way his hand trembles, holding her delicately as if she is as fragile as this moment. Granger seems to search his face for something, but he doesn’t know if she finds it because he squeezes their intertwined hands once, then twice.

And then his lips are pressed against hers.

and she was golden- chapter 18

Taking care to avoid the other Aurors, not wanting to disrupt their work, Draco makes his way toward the back of the shop. A particular display catches his attention, obviously meant for Hogwarts students returning after their holiday. It’s still up though the students have long since boarded their trains; a large silhouette of the Hogwarts skyline, standing proud and tall.

A pang of yearning twists in his stomach as he walks over to it. Quills in all shapes and sizes and stacks of candies and chocolates. A pile of trick wands and false bottom cauldrons, invisible ink alongside its colour changing twin. A line of neatly stacked journals in four distinct colours, an unmistakable declaration of student loyalty. His hand reaches out instinctively for the emerald green cover, the shimmering silver house crest gleaming as he picks it up. What if it hadn’t been Slytherin? The thought is so unexpected that the journal nearly slips from his grasp. It’s who he is, after all. The Sorting Hat didn’t hesitate all those years ago. It was expected, after all. All Malfoy heirs were Slytherins for as long as anyone could remember⸺it’s just how things are.

Malfoy. Bad faith.

But what if? It’s an intoxicating thought.

There they are, those hypotheticals, again.

[AO3] [FFN]

ladies and gentlemen,

guys, gals and non-binary pals,

and she was golden- chapter 14

Her eyes widen. “Did you now?” Ginny gives Granger a pointed look. “I hadn’t imagined that you cared so much.” Draco gets the distinct feeling he is missing something. “Look at that, Hermione. Isn’t that funny? ”

“Hilarious,” she responds, flatly, but as she says it, she relaxes back into him and her hand resumes drawing its abstractions.

Ginny rolls her eyes. “You didn’t answer, Malfoy. Tell me, what changed?”

Their crafted lies and practiced words dance on the tip of his tongue, but Granger turns, tilting her head up to look at him. All of Draco’s words get stuck in his throat. She’s close enough for him to count the freckles dusted across the bridge of her nose.

The faint line he’s drawn between fiction and reality blur in his head. What comes out instead, is the plain truth. “I grew up.”