Author's note: I do not own Harry Potter.

Letting Go

You know what makes letting go of a crush so hard?

He was beautiful. Blonde locks gelled back with remaining rebellious locks falling onto patrician cheekbones. Grey eyes as tumultuous as the rainy day clouds they resembled. His skin was a porcelain flawlessness that made even the most beautiful girls envy. A lithe, yet muscled, physique of a roman god completed the package.

Hermione had long labeled her attraction to this reincarnate of Jupiter as an obsession. It was an unwarranted, unjustified obsession in its most primal form. Hermione had absolutely no idea when the feelings for the enemy of her best friends had made such a drastic alteration in their course.

However, her Jupiter had absolutely no interest in the mousy bookworm of Hogwarts. That assessment became obvious year and year, snub followed by humiliating snub.

Hermione focused her vision back on the Slytherin. She brushed her bushy mass of brown hair from her eyes while scribbling the notes from the board as quickly as possible. The teacher had already paired them off in-groups. She had unfortunately ended up with Blaise.

Blaise scowled at her from across the table as she lowered herself in front of him. "Let's just get this over with, neither one of us wanting to be here." He barked out the statement, a snarl curling across his handsome features.

Hermione glared at the boy, slamming her papers onto the wooden desk. "Well, at least the feeling is mutual."

"I see you got the frisky one, eh Blaise?" She could have listened to that voice for the rest of the day. She fought the color that tempted to rise to her cheeks. She slowly turned her head to the table next to her, where Draco sat with his partner Pansy.

The young blond pug had developed nicely into a woman of seventeen with shapely curves and beautiful facial features. She was smiling lewdly past the tip of her quill, which played across her full lips. Hermione's insides cringed at the thought of her wondering around the darkened common room with her crush.

"More than you'll ever have, Malfoy." Hermione snapped, knowing the statement was false. Draco didn't need an intelligent wife to help pay the bills or diligent worker to clean all the household messes. She knew his vault at Gringotts more than ensured his comfortable future.

Pansy's mouth fell open, taking the insult personally. "I'll have you know-"

However, Draco cut her off before she could have her moment of glory. "Oh, and how would you know Granger?"

Hermione bit her tongue. She knew that she would never be what he would want… she knew and finally accepted. She had to move on from her childhood or risk her greatest aspect- her heart. She sighed, admitting defeat. Hermione turned away from Draco to begin the project assigned.

Draco, however, didn't turn around. He narrowed his eyes at her fluffy mass of brown hair and the smooth expanse of her neck revealed by her bun. How had he missed her beauty, glorious in all its simplicity?

How had he let his prejudice cloud his eyes so much?

He had been blinded by his father's hate. Draco realized then that he had probably lost all chance at happiness. No one else would amaze him the way Granger, a mudblood, had done for so long and he missed his chance.

That the moment you let go, they'll catch on.

Author's Note: Please, if you liked this story, go check out my chapter fic: Forgive Me Father. I have plenty of ideas churning for later in the story line but it doesn't seem to be getting any attention. I'll admit that the first two were kind of lame but I'm in the process of writing an interesting third and thinking about redoing the first two. COOKIES and many thanks to all who review.