Disclaimer: Really?

(A/N: Guess who's back from the dead? That's right, me! *dodges rotten tomatoes*

Really sorry for the wait, but I had some family issues going on, and my exams were brutal. I hope this finale makes up for it! Do read and review!

Some of you were curious about Draco's love. It's Hermione! Re-read his words; it's subtle but hopefully logically conclusive.

Also, I have a plot bunny for a Dramione fic based during their last year at Hogwarts and their lives post-Hogwarts. I'll be posting the first chapter sometime by the end of January and would LOVE for you guys to check it out! It's out! It's titled "Her Insufferable Partner". Please, please do check it out by January-end! And drop your reviews for this last chapter, as well as my new fics! Check them out on my profile. :)

All of my peace, love and cheers to you all!)

Commitment

Hermione stood at the portrait of the Fat Lady, surveying the Gryffindor Common Room one last time. She breathed deeply, trying to engrain every last memory into her soul, a pang of nostalgia threatening to hit her. She whipped around and saw her friends all waiting for her in their scarlet graduation robes. Nodding, they all quietly went down to the Great Hall, soaking in all the memories and mishaps over the years.

When they reached the Hall, it was swarming with parents and students, the latter robed in scarlet, emerald, topaz or sapphire, representing their houses. They systematically went up to receive their graduation certificates from a teary eyed Dumbledore and bowed down to thunderous applause each time. The ceremony flew by in a whizz, and Hermione jostled a bit before finding herself enveloped in a crushing hug by a lady with hair just like hers.

"Mum! Dad!" she cried, hugging them both. "Oh, our little Hermy...graduated already!" blubbered her mother. They were soon engulfed by a hoard of redheads, each Weasley congratulating Hermione and making small talk with her parents. She smiled a bit and then frowned, trying to find Harry. She twisted and turned but could not see him anywhere. Scooting through the crowd, she walked through the quiet corridors to find him in the Astronomy Tower, gazing quietly at the sky. She stopped as he spoke softly, "I did it, Mum. Dad, see I graduated. I lived. Thank you both..."

She suppressed a sniffle but in vain as he turned surprisedly and exclaimed, "Hermione! What are you doing here?"

She laced her fingers through his and replied, "Come down, Harry. There are people waiting for you. There is a family of Weasleys led by a determined Molly who is intent upon smothering you with some pie..."

He broke into a smile and nodded against her head, as she turned. He stopped for a second and looked back up.

She spoke gently, "You did them proud, Harry. Every single day, you did them proud."

He nodded, misty eyed and looked at his girlfriend, thankful for the silent support and solidarity only she could give. He offered her his arm and together, they walked down toward the Great Hall, complete in each other's company.

~0~

Hermione groaned in frustration as she waded through the pile of clothes on the floor. She was going absolutely nuts trying to decide the perfect dress for her date with Harry. This was, under no incomprehensible circumstances, her first date with him, oh no. That had been in Hogsmeade in Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, she still remembered with a smile as they had tried to walk toward The Three Broomsticks and Fred and George had dragged the two to show them new tricks. But this wasn't her first date, thank you very much. This was her first date with Harry in over three months. She had been whisked away to France on a conference where the best wizarding medical minds met each year. Hermione had been appointed as the Britain Representative due to her stellar career growth as a Doctor in the scinitillating span of five years. Harry was the most successful Auror the Ministry had ever seen and both of them were well placed in their jobs.

However, it wasn't their jobs that were weighing on Hermione's mind. She would be seeing him after three whole months! Even if she sounded mushy, she couldn't care less. Growling, she picked up the phone and dialled her best friend's number.

"Lo?" muttered a sleepy voice.

"Ginny! I need your help! I have to go on a date with Harry after three months and I don't know what to wear!" she wailed.

Immediately, the redhead snapped alert. "Hold on a second.." she said and put Lavender om conference.

"Hello?" called Lavender.

"Hermione-Harry-date-three months-no dress" muttered Ginny, walking to the bathroom so as to not wake up her boyfriend Mitchell.

"I have my yellow sundress with the orange flowers." suggested Hermione, meeting simultaneous groans.

"It's been three months, Hermione. Flaunt what he missed that while! Don't be a nun!" smirked Ginny.

"How about my black dress? That's simple and classy!" she replied.

Lavender snorted, "Why don't you dress up in your Hogwarts robes rather? He has seen that enough number of times already!"

"Well, then..I don't know what to do!" she groaned.

She could hear the other two speaking furiously in a language only they could understand and tried to decipher it, but held the phone at arm's length when they squealed in unison.

"Hermione, you were away for three months, so you haven't opened all your mail yet, have you?" asked Ginny excitedly.

"Well. Seeing as I arrived only last night, no." she replied.

Lavender instructed her to open a particular parcel with a bright gold ribbon. Following her command and digging through her pile of receipts, magazines and papers, she emerged with the said parcel.

"What is this?" asked Hermione as she opened it.

"Oh, we decided to give you a belated birthday present as you were busy in France from August to October...open it! It's a dress!" explained Lavender.

The other two heard a small gasp from Hermione as she tried on the dress. It was a salmon coloured dress that was sleeveless and fit her like the proverbial glove. There was a thin black belt with it fitting snugly around her narrow waist and skirted the top of her knees.

"Oh, it's absolutely precious! Thank you girls so so much!" she shrieked.

They quickly instructed her to wear the appropriate accessories and she did as instructed, Apparating to the place Harry and she had decided through their owls.

Harry stood there waiting for her and even after six years of being his girlfriend, she still couldn't stop the shiver of excitement that passed through her. He gaped at her for a while and grabbed her in a hug, kissing her softly. They made their way to the table and ordered their food.

They talked throughout the meal, about Lavender and Ron's upcoming wedding next week and Hermione couldn't help but wonder when she herself would get married. It wasn't that things were cooling off with Harry...it was just that he hadn't shown any signs of taking their relationship to the more committed stage. Brushing the pessimistic thoughts aside, she focused on the moment and looked surprisedly at the sudden plate of chocolate chip fondue in front of her.

"Harry, but I didn't order this!" she exclaimed.

"I know, I came here last week and they were serving it then and I absolutely loved it. I knew you wouldn't have known, so I ordered one for you...go ahead, cut it!" he explained and smiled.

Grinning, she took the knife and cut through it, but couldn't go far as there was a piece of paper folded perfectly beneath the layer of biscuit at the bottom. Intrigued, she licked the knife and kept it aside, pulling it out gently, brushing off the crumbs.

She opened it and read to herself, "I hope you like this more than you like the dessert."

Puzzled, she looked up to ask Harry what it was about, but her eyes bulged as she saw that he had vacated his chair and was kneeling down on the ground, looking amusedly at her.

"I have known you ever since we were eleven and have been in love with you even before I knew what love was. I was deigned the Chosen One at my birth, but that was beyond my control and against my wish. I have been the luckiest person to have been dating you all these six fleeting years and I cannot wait to spend the rest of my life with you. Hermione Jean Granger, will you do me, Harry Potter, the honour of making me the True Chosen One? Will you marry me?" Harry spoke, looking into her eye without faltering even once.

Hermione sat dazed for some time, processing the information numbly. Harry grew worried as his knee started to wobble and she didn't even blink all the while.

"Hermione?" he asked her, fear lacing into his voice.

"Yes! Oh, you silly boy, yes!" she gasped, her eyes shining happily as he stood up grinning and slipped the ring onto her finger.

He frowned for a minute and said, "You've got some chocolate on your lip."

Brushing her hand away, he leant and kissed her sweetly and remarked,"Ah, lovely."

They walked out of the restaurant hand in hand, the ring basking in the glow of their happiness.

~0~

"Ginny! I don't know where my veil is!" cried Hermione, rooted to her spot helplessly. Her wedding was less than half an hour away and she was growing antsier by the minute.

Lavender rubbed her back soothingly, muttering words of calm into her ears. Just then, Ginny barged into the room and brandished the veil at Hermione, declaring, "Look here, Granger. Your veil is safe. Everybody is here on time. The groom is ready. You look radiant. You have no reason to be nervous, okay?" She glared at the hapless brunette, her hand on the hips. Lavender and Ginny were her bridesmaids and dressed in a peach gown each, Lavender's slightly loose to accommodate her four-month big belly.

Hermione nodded and took the veil and put it on, surveying herself one last time in the mirror. She looked absolutely radiant, indeed. Her dress was sleeveless and had a modest, yet a neckline low enough to make space for the pendant that Harry had given her back in their sixth year to settle proudly just above the dip in her chest. The dress had a small train and was pure, pristine white with a shimmer to it that added an ethereal glow to it. Her hair flowed down her back in gentle curls and were pinned with an ancestral clip given to her by her mother, who bustled in and squealed, "You look perfect, dear! Are you ready?" Hermione nodded and stepped out into the aisle, where her father stood to accompany her, his eyes suspiciously red rimmed. Barely stopping her own tears, she walked down the aisle, her heart pounding nervously as people rose one by one. Harry turned and suddenly all of her inhibitions gathered their skirts and pole-vaulted out of the window. She reached him and stood in front of him and gazed into his swirling green eyes.

When she was asked to speak her vows, she began, "You have been my best friend and every single day that Voldemort was alive, I used to be afraid for you. I would have easily fought him to the end for you, Harry, had it come down to that. You are the only one who was the beacon of hope and optimism in my life all this while. And I cannot imagine my life without you in it. You have seen me at my sobbing, blubbering worst and at my regal best. I promise to cherish you, nurture our relationship and love you till death do us part."

Harry smiled at her and began, "What can I say that I haven't spoken already? You are the solitary pillar in my life, apart from Quidditch of course," eliciting laughter from people and a raised eyebrow from Hermione. "This is just how I wanted it to be, and I cannot even begin to explain how much you mean to me, Hermione. I love you with all that I am and I promise to do so till Death do us part. Actually, even after that, maybe I'll just float around, you know, keep you company." By now, Hermione was sobbing whole heartedly, a quivering grin on her face.

The proceedings seemed exceedingly slow and finally the priest said, "I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss-" Harry pulled her to him and kissed her deeply, not waiting for the man to complete his sentence. "-the bride." completed the priest, a wry smile on his face.

~0~

And thus concluded the story of Hermione Granger and Harry Potter, best friends and soul mates. Oh no, nothing shattering or horrible happened! It's just that after this point, they are now Hermione J. Potter and Harry J. Potter and they have a whole new story to tell. I heard this saga from Hermione herself over some cups of coffee and Harry filled in over some friendly duels.

Last I saw them, they were thinking of expanding their house near Diagon Alley to accommodate the new room for the baby due in two months. Their other children, Remus Rubeus Potter, aged 13 and Lily Minerva Potter, aged 11, had very interesting stories to tell from their year at Hogwarts to me over my game of Quidditch with their father.

Remus inherited his father's eyes and his mother's springy brown hair, though his stubbornness and fire to fight with his sister seemed to be equally handed over by the two. He spouted facts like his mother and had a fondness for food like his godfather, Ron Weasley, who was also father of his not-so-subtle crush Yvonne Weasley-Brown, aged 13 and Albus Weasley-Brown, aged 10.

Lily had her mother's eyes and her father's shiny black hair and was a prodigy on the broom like her father, with a penchant for mischief like her godmother, Ginevra Weasley. She seemed to be quite smitten with Fred Paul Longbottom, aged 12, only son of the charming Luna Lovegood and knowledgeable Neville Longbottom.

Before I could ask further about their present lives, Ginny Weasley had bounded into the room and shrieked in my ear, whirling me around as she beamed her hand in the air, an exquisite ruby resting on her finger. I gave my heartiest congratulations to her and bid my adieu.

If time permits me and I do not have any commitments, I will take Hermione up on her offer of a cup of coffee to know more about her present life.

Here is to wishing them a very happy life.

(A/N: Come on people, please review!)