Chapter Text
There were a handful of things that bothered Draco today, one of them was the wobbly chair he was sitting in while a man was casting light spells around him in order to get the right lighting for the interview. The second thing was having to hold a private interview — the thought of it made his stomach flip. Draco wasn’t yet completely at ease around journalists but he managed to hide his anxiety a little better now. However, today was more peculiar: he had to do this interview with Granger when they had a fight the night before.
Draco couldn’t understand how she stayed so delusional. As soon as the hearing was announced, Draco knew he was doomed: no amount of lawyers, or private interviews would redeem his image now. Years of good deeds were flushed down the drain because he got into a fight with Weasley — and Draco hated it.
His chair creaked as it wobbled, and Draco brushed his hair back, trying to contain his irritation.
Why the hell is she even late?
Granger was never late, so what could possibly hold her from getting on with this damned interview? Draco listed in his head the things that could have happened to Granger for her to be so late.
- Her alarm didn’t go off — Draco scratched that idea, because there is no way that Granger and her 3 morning alarms would fail.
- She was taken away in her sleep by her hoard of ‘Golden Girl fans’ — Dark, but much more plausible.
- Her clean up spell failed and she got stuck in her bed — funny, but she never misses her spells
- She fell in another dimension where the world doesn’t revolve around her — quite plausible
Draco chuckled under his breath at the thought, his chair wobbled again and he decided to switch seats with the one reserved for Granger. The journalist kept glancing at the mural clock on his right, clearly wondering where the hell Granger was as well, and he turned around towards Draco.
“Where’s Miss Granger ? She should’ve been here 20minutes ago”
“How the hell should I know?” Draco dryly replied. He noticed the man before him flinching in surprise at his answer, and Draco had to remind himself to keep his irritability in check. As far as the public knows Draco and Granger are all lovey-dovey, and lovey-dovey people probably address each other dearly and also sleep together…and know of each others’ whereabouts.
That last thought made his stomach turn, but Draco tried to focus on the conversation, trying to pick one of his listed reasons of why Granger was late. But the second he was ready to answer, he heard heels tapping on the wooden floor rapidly. He turned his head and what he saw left him almost breathless (whether he’d like to admit it or not).
Granger entered the room rapidly, shooting desperate apologies to the journalist, her brown curls falling flawlessly on her shoulders. She was wearing a silk dark red shirt and wide black pants matching her pointy muggle heels that Draco recognized to be very expensive. She looked…like a Malfoy. Was this intended ? Has she thought this through for the interview ? Draco didn’t imagine she would be this calculating and he didn’t know how to feel about this.
Granger sat on the wobbly chair next to Draco and shot him a quick smile. “Hi, darling”. Draco’s stomach made a sick flip again. She was really trying to keep up appearances but Draco was able to catch the hesitation in her voice when she addressed him. Great, now there was a sickening tension between them — add that to the list of things that irritate Draco Malfoy.
“Okay we’re ready to roll” The journalist called out, flicking his wand on the muggle device by his side. Draco recognized the device, this is what they shoot films with. Wizards just recently started using them and enhancing their quality with technical spells.
“So, Miss Granger, Mr Malfoy, I’m very pleased to have you as this is the first private interview for this new hot couple. First question, how are you feeling? It seems the two of you have been really private, it must be stressful to finally be on tape, right ?”.
The man glanced at Draco as he asked the question, and Draco didn’t like it one bit. On top of that, Draco’s mouth couldn’t form any words but thankfully, Granger took the lead. She spoke in the same tone that she would when greeting rich investors at the Galas; Draco recognized it to be the same tone she used to answer her professors’ questions when they were in Hogwarts.
“I’ll admit to being sort of nervous” she chuckled gracefully, and continued, “It’s really something to be in the spotlight again and I don’t think either of us thought things would escalate so quickly after we got caught and went front page on the tabloids.”
Draco nodded along with her answer, trying to look as calm as possible when Granger shot him a reassuring smile. As much as it bruised his ego to admit it, the woman seemed much more professional than him at this moment. Her answer seemed to satisfy the interviewer, who didn’t bother asking Draco’s opinion and moved on to his next question.
“Speaking of things escalating quickly— how did you both deal with the backlash and the comments that can be found in the Wizarding World?”
Draco felt tense again as the interviewer faced him again, as if he was waiting for a big scoop from him. The blonde was racking his brain to find the politically correct answer to the question, but Granger saved him from his torment again, and answered first.
“We’ve both dealt with the press and gossip from a very young age, so it wasn’t surprising— we just hoped to have more time to prepare” Granger smiled at Draco and carefully placed her hand on his, tapping a familiar beat on his skin that Draco recognized to mean ‘relax, but pull yourself together’.
“Yes, and I know I’ve faced far worse in terms of bad press along the years but I must admit it still hurts— I mean we’re still humans you know”
Good. Humanize your image Draco that’s good.
“But the critics and backlash is a lot easier to deal with when we’re facing it together” Draco smiled as he answered, running his thumb on Granger’s hand; perhaps because it sold the couple’s act— perhaps because it reassured himself.
Seeing the interviewer’s satisfied look gave Draco the confidence that he successfully sold the deal and nailed his first question. Yay.
“Yes your relationship must have come as a shock for a lot of people, do you mind telling us how it all began? Who made the first move?” The journalist moved on with a cheeky smile.
Shite. We didn’t think this through, should we make something up or build upon what’s real?
“I did” the couple answered at the same time, and for a split second Draco stammered. Granger took the lead again in answering. “We both kind of made a move— I asked him to be my boyfriend actually”, she said, glancing over at Draco for him to confirm.
“Yes— It can be seen as untraditional but I wasn’t sure of her feelings towards me, so…I did not have the courage to ask. Thankfully, Miss Granger is a former Gryffindor” Draco added on to the lie smoothly.
Good, good answer.
“How cute.” The journalist smiled, shuffling more cards in his hands and Draco sensed this meant a real dive into harder questions. “It is wonderful how this relationship is going against traditional rules, speaking of— how do you deal with the social pressures that come with blood prejudice? We all know that some ideas…are hard to get rid of”.
Draco felt his mouth go dry. The interview took a sharp turn quicker than he’d expected, and he wasn’t sure if he was ready to answer. What’s worse is that the question seemed awfully targeted at him, but Draco didn’t know how to answer. Merlin knows Granger would have come up with a better answer, but Draco had to answer this— he understood at this moment that his answer could greatly impact Granger’s reputation amongst purebloods.
“I think that some traditions are better left in the past. A new era is upon us— an era in which we can be better than ever and in which love knows no bounds. When I was younger, I believed what I was told was the truth set in stone, and it turns out I was so wrong.” Draco turned his head towards the woman at his side, and gave her the loveliest eyes possible. “I know my truth. People can say what they want— the world pales in comparison to her.”
Draco watched as the said woman let out a deep breath, barely noticeable, but Draco noticed still. She looked away first as the interviewer exclaimed in awe, and Draco felt a cold shiver run through his entire body. He answered well. Very well. The interviewer was convinced, but Granger seemed displeased somehow? She barely looked at him for the rest of the interview. Draco would catch her looking for appearences for a split second and then she would turn away again. Draco wondered if he went too far, or not far enough? Did he say something wrong? Draco couldn’t read Hermione Granger and it was killing him.