This is it, my last kiss with Draco Malfoy. She pressed her body up against him and concentrated on how she felt. Her heart was aching but right now, she was seeing fireworks. They were made for each other. His lips were meant to kiss hers. His hand was meant to hold hers. They were corresponding puzzle pieces. How can he not feel this? She felt his tears on her face and realized that she was wrong.

He definitely felt it.

It had been three months since Hermione had climbed down the long winding Astronomy tower staircase. Three months since she numbly found her way back to the Gryffindor tower. Three months since she had crawled into her bed, willing death to claim her. It had been three months, and it still hurt.

Hermione walked into the Great Hall and quickly found her way over to her friends. She sat down next to Ron, who immediately planted a kiss on her cheek. She smiled at him briefly before she put some food on her plate and dug in. When Hermione looked up and saw Harry's shocked expression, she was confused. She followed his eyes and instantly choked on her sandwich. Ron looked at Hermione with jealousy as he grabbed her arm and whispered, "Don't go."

Draco Malfoy was back. After disappearing in the middle of the night, three months ago, after no word from him in three months, his pompous figure was sitting smack dab in the middle of the Slytherin table. He was surrounded by his fellow Slytherins, telling them stories about where he had been, and what he had done. He threw his head back and laughed.

Hermione admired his beauty. He was so blindingly handsome, it hurt to look at him. Draco was blatantly ignoring her and this caused the pain she was already feeling to increase by tenfold. After he stopped laughing, he turned his face towards her and caught her eye.

The look was fleeting. He turned back to his friends as if she was nothing to him. As if what they had shared was nothing. The anger Hermione felt almost completely erased the heartbreak as she shook off Ron's hand and stood up. Ron, Harry, and Ginny looked at her nervously.

"Hermione, sit down. Don't make a scene."

"Harry Potter, shut up." With that she walked the length of the table before turning towards his table. When she reached his group of friends, her bravery faltered before she saw that Pansy had her hand intimately placed on his thigh. Fury erupted from her very core as she put her hands on her hips and demanded loudly, "Excuse me oh mighty ferret king. I need to speak with you."

The look on his face was priceless. He looked angry, shocked, and another emotion that Hermione didn't notice, hurt.

"Anything you want to say to me, Granger, can be said in front of my friends here."

"Okay, fine. You are disgusting Malfoy. You come to the library in the middle of the night and cry to me during your time of need." Draco's face flushed from embarrassment but she continued. "Then you force me to fall in love with you. You tell your father about me, who threatens to hurt my family and then you beg me to stay with you. We make love together and then a few weeks later you break up with me and I hold you as YOU cry. As you tell me there is no other way. I comfort you. Then you have the nerve to show up here. And act as though you are a goddamn king? Fuck you."

The words spilled out hastily but full of anger. She knew she had humiliated him. Draco opened his mouth to speak but she pulled her hand back and slapped him so hard that the sound reverberated throughout the entire hall. Then she ran out of the hall and slipped into the first empty classroom she could find.

She collapsed onto a chair and let the tears flow. Her head filled with angry and hurt thoughts about Draco. Why didn't he tell me he was coming back? Is he done being evil? Is he going to continue school now? Why is my heart going crazy for him still? I hate him! I hate him! I hate him! I hate him! The rest of her thoughts turned into a blur as she gave in to the body shaking sobs that had come to the surface.

When Hermione calmed down, she stared at the desk in front of her for a long time before she heard the scrape of the opening door. She instantly turned around and grabbed her wand when she saw who stood in the doorway.

"Hermione," he started softly.

She looked at him with venom. "Get away from me Draco."

He strode into the room and closed the door behind him. "Let me speak Herm."

"No." She tried to get past him but he grabbed her arm. Using her wand, she reached up and jabbed him in the eye.

"OW!"

Hermione tried to stifle the giggle that was about to erupt.

"I cannot believe you just bloody poked me in the eye with your wand!" He said angrily as he rubbed his eye with his fist.

"Believe it ferret boy. It happened. Now let go of me."

He shoved her arm away and moved to block the door.

"Hermione. Baby, please listen."

She stopped trying to get past him and looked at him in shock. "Baby?"

He ignored her expression and started talking. "Hermione. It was a mistake. You were a mistake."

She slapped him across the face. "You came to me." She went to slap him again but he grabbed her hand.

"Please let me finish." He paused waiting for her interruption. There was none so he continued. "You were a mistake. I was never supposed to fall in love with anyone, let alone you. That is what the mistake was. But I did. It happened. And I don't regret even a second of our relationship."

"But it's over Malfoy. Did you come back for me? Because if you did well--" He put his finger to her lips.

"I'm not done Hermione. When I left a few months ago, I reported to him. But I found it difficult to do his bidding. The love we shared changed me. When it came to killing and torturing, I couldn't do it."

Hermione's eyes softened.

He looked down, ashamed of his failure. But when he looked up there was a new gleam in his eyes.

"So he sent me back to school. I am still his, Herm. I am still under his reign. But I'm back. I want to be with you while I can."

He tenderly touched her face. He leaned in to kiss her but she backed away. "Now it's your turn to listen." He nodded solemnly.

"When you left for that side. To be against good, you broke my heart. You left me alone when I thought that you had loved me. When I clearly remember you saying you would love me until that last rose died. You left. And not because you had to. Because you chose to. You chose to become a monster." Tears started streaming down her face but she kept her voice steady. "So okay. I understand that you're back now. But know this Draco Malfoy. I will keep fighting for what is right, for all that is good. I will fight until the day I die. And when it comes down to the end and we partake in battle, when we come face to face, I will fight. I will fight to your death."

Hermione's breathing was uneven as she staggered back and fell into a chair. Her body shook with rage as she wiped away the tears.

Draco looked at her with uneasy eyes. His heart broke as he listened to her break down what had happened. He knew they were enemies but he had thought that had ultimately changed. He had no will to fight her. He hadn't the strength. He rather die. But hearing how she would readily fight him to his death, scared him. He loved her with the whole of his being but she had fallen out of love with him?

"Hermione?" he whispered quietly as he walked over and knelt in front of her. She looked up at him with a resigned expression. He moved his body closer to her and rested his elbows on her knees. Draco cupped her face in his hands and tentatively kissed her forehead. Then her cheek, then he placed one small kiss on her lips. He kissed her again, lingering a little longer, trying to get her to react. The next kiss was deep, and he felt electricity fill his body, his mind on fire. She grabbed the back of his head and pulled his face closer. Their lips moved together in passion. All the anger and sadness either of them felt dissipated. This was how it was supposed to be.

They kissed for a long time before Hermione pulled away, licking at her swollen lips.

"Draco, don't ever kiss me again."

Draco looked at her, extremely confused. "But you kissed me back."

"I know. I'll always love you Draco."

"Then what's the problem?"

"Well,-" she hesitated.

"Tell me Herm. Tell me what's going on."

She looked at him before running to the door of the classroom. On her way out, she whispered just loud enough for him to hear.

"I'm with Ron now."