AN: I'm going to jump here. I mean, seriously jump. Covering every year would take too long, so I'm going to jump to the summer before they're suppose to start seventh year. I understand if you're angry, but I'm loosing creativity with this story, sad to say, and I'd like to finish it up as soon as possible. Please understand. Thank you.

Hermione opened her eyes and laid in bed. There was hardly any light coming in the window of the room she shared with Ginny. For what might have been the 29th time that summer, she thought about her family. Yes, they were still her family, the Malfoys. Though she had grown farther and farther away from them, even when she spent the summers home, they were still her family and she loved them.

She felt that they were disappointed in her, but, hey, she was disappointed in them, too. After 6 years of her being in Hogwarts, working alongside Draco, they'd just been using her to get close to Harry. She had even gone along with it because that was what she had been raised to do. Use people to get higher on the ladder. But Harry and her had become friends. Best friends. Even Ron had become her friend, though it had to take a mountain troll in the girl's bathroom to convince him that she wasn't out to harm him.

Draco hadn't been too happy about that. He'd railed and ranted during the Christmas Holidays, and she'd let him. Afterwards, he'd calmed down and said nothing else about the matter. But Hermione had seen the hate in his eyes when he looked at the three of them together. The other Slytherins had believed it all to be an elaborate plan of the Malfoys. For 6 years, they believed this. Until the battle at Hogwarts that left the school without a Headmaster. She had sided with the Gryffindors and defended the school. She'd lost Pansy, Blaise, the Carrow sisters, and all of her Slytherin friends in that one move. They had the duty to cut her out...and they had.

But what she had to deal with after that, was nothing like Draco had to deal with. Everyone believed him to have struck down the might Dumbledore...but it was Snape. Snape, the stupid spy the Order had put into the Death Eaters. Snape...the one who had saved her brother.

Hermione turned onto her back and looked up at the ceiling. No, not brother. Draco had never been her brother. She could have fooled herself when she was younger, but she was a young adult, now. She knew what she felt for the blond haired Malfoy. When had she realized that what she felt for him had never been sisterly love?

That's right. In third year. When he'd been stupid enough to ignore Hagrid's advice and had charged at Buckbeak, the hippogriff, during their Magical Creatures class. He'd been trying to show off for Pansy and the stupid git had gotten himself injured. Hermione almost had a heart attack as she watched Hagrid take Draco away, but had made herself go on with the day.

Her hand closed over the black pendant around her neck. It glowed warm everyday and never cooled. She swore that her skin would one day stay red right over her heart where the pendant laid. It was the thing she had left of her old life as a Slytherin. She'd never take it off.

Hermione closed her eyes, her thoughts running wild and she let them. Mother had been disappointed, but she'd known. She'd seen that the night of the Hogwarts battle. Father was sure to be furious with her, though. She'd gone against every teaching he'd instilled in her from a young age. She'd turned her back on the Slytherins and the purity of blood. Hermione had tried to be the perfect Slytherin. Honest, she'd tried her damnedest! But the sorting hat had been wrong to put her there, when, every year, she became more and more Gryffindor. But how could she have been a Slytherin and not be a hypocrite? Why was she put into Slytherin?

That question had plagued her for a while, now. In fifth year, Hermione joined Dumbledore's Army and had gone against her house and that nature. She'd stood beside Luna and Ron, casting spells at dummies and training for the time when they would face the Dark Lord. She'd known she would fight him when the time came...she just still felt awful for betraying her house. But she'd sucked it up and joined the fight.

But Draco...Damn. Why did her thoughts return to him? Because he's going to hate you. He has to. It's in his blood, a voice in her head said. Hermione rubbed her eye with the heel of her hand. It was right. They'd grown up together and, no matter how bad a day they'd had, or the worst year ever, they had still had each other...But not now. Now, they were enemies...but she loved him.

Hermione caught her breath and almost sobbed.

"Hermione?" Ginny asked sleepily, looking over at her room mate. "You okay?"

Hermione rubbed her eyes clean and turned her back to her friend. "I'm fine, Gin," she lied. "Just a little...thinking about things. Go back to sleep. We still have five more hours until the wedding." She heard the red head curl up under her blankets and silently let her tears fall.

"Oh, Draco," she muttered through her soft sobs. She clutched the pendant harder and fell asleep.

Okay, guys. Let me have it. I can take it. But, honestly, what did you think? I will allow flames, as long as there is one good thing about this chapter. I blame Bob, the imaginary gerbil, for my lack of creativity. Just saying. Thanks for reading, though.