"I'm not ready to let you go, Granger", he whispered quietly, searching her face for any signs of forgiveness.

She blinked back tears as her expression softened. Yet the images of the crashing down of the angry words, the incriminating lingerie – the mistake, was too much. Just too damn much.

"Goodbye, Malfoy. It was good, who am I kidding, it was beautiful when it lasted. You are my first but no longer my last," she choked bitterly.

She blindly pressed her lips to his forehead, gently conveying her sadness, her pain, her regret. As his breath hitched, she slid off the golden band from her left hand into his palm.

Tears began to steam down his face as his body shook. "No, please, please, it was a mistake.."

"Promise me one thing, Malfoy. Promise you'll learn to forgive yourself and treat your next love better than you treated me. Don't take her for granted."

"Of course, for you, Hermione. Anything for you." His eyes closed painfully as he took in the situation – a broken marriage, a bitter woman, and most of all, two broken people.

"You were my best friend, my lover, my confidant. I'll see you again someday when I'm ready, when we're ready. Take care of yourself, Malfoy."

Breathing in heavily, she disapperated with a pop.


Disclaimer: All recognizable characters are not my own.

Author's Note:

My other work is also a WIP, as I have not been able to allot enough time to continue. However, I will not abandon that piece.

Generally, I've had a fascination with this pairing - the volatile emotions, the battling of wits, the passion. I apologize now as I am a novice writer and may struggle to do any semblance of justice to the potential of this pair. I'll avoid cliches as much as possible, but more than just the plot, I hope to dive into a lot of character development. The beauty of flawed characters is the ability to grow, especially from relationships. Both will be wary of love and tread carefully - a part of each other still remains with the other. I will avoid referring to much to the past as it will remain canon. The characterizations of these characters may stray from the originals, but will be my own.