"You bastard, you complete bastard!" She shouted suddenly not caring about this man at all. At first he had been the man she loved, the man who loved her, she thought she knew him, but it turned out that in fact she didn't know him at all. "So our marriage has been a total lie?"

"I knew you loved me, knew from the beginning. You were young and I was flattered that you would be attracted to me," he said leaning back in his chair looking her up and down. "I wasn't attracted to you, in fact the whole of the Wizarding world made me feel rather sick, but I needed a wife. I needed a wife that would go to parties, who was intelligent enough to make conversation with my bosses so I would get the promotion I needed."

"And Candice? Do you feel anything for her? Our is she just one in a long line of mistresses?" Hermione asked, feeling anger rise within her. She'd never hated anyone this much, even Voldemort. He'd been someone who was a danger to everyone but she had nothing personal against him. With Greg it was personal.

"I love her, she's just my type, no intelligence, doesn't ask questions." He laughed. "I even managed to hide from her the fact that I was married." His laughter increased.

"I always wondered why you'd never make love to me," Hermione said, not believing how stupid she had been.

"Yes, I knew I could get away with it, you loved me so you would put up with it, and you're such a moral person that an affair would be out of the question." Greg had a smug expression on his face as if he had won. Hermione really wanted to tell him about her affair with Severus, but she realised that it would work to her advantage if she stayed quiet about that.

"I don't know what you're looking so smug about," she said with a sneer. "I am going to sue you for divorce, on the grounds of adultery and mental cruelty."

"Mental cruelty?" He exclaimed standing up. "What are you talking about you mad bitch?"

"I'm talking about the way you stopped me seeing my friends, the way you used emotional blackmail to get what you wanted! You made me feel depressed and I have several people willing to verify that." This time she was the smug one, as she watched his face drop she felt triumphant.

"You bitch, you wouldn't do that!"

"Just watch me!" She said firmly. "Goodbye Greg, when you get home I'll have moved my stuff out, from then on we'll only talk through our solicitors."

She walked off and pulled the door open sharply, Greg's secretary nearly fell through the doorway, as she had been listening at the door. Hermione glared at her and the woman walked away, fast, thinking that Hermione was not the best person to piss off at that moment. Hermione had a sudden thought and turned around to Greg.

"By the way, I want to give you a parting gift." She pulled her wand out of the pocket in her jacket and pointed it at Greg, so quickly he had no time to move. Aiming the wand low, at his crotch area she aimed a hex and a streak of electric blue shot out the end. Greg was hurled backwards and he hit the wall. He slid to the floor clutching at his sore crotch making pathetic whimpering noises. "You won't be using that for a while."

She walked out of the office feeling so much better. Greg's secretary was giving her a round of applause and shouting things like "you go girl!"

Once Hermione got down stairs she ran to Harry and collapsed in his arms in a fit of sobs.

"So all this time he'd been having an affair?" Sirius asked Harry while they were sitting in Harry's sitting room.

"Yes, can you believe it?" Harry replied.

"Poor, Hermione," Remus added. "I knew Greg was a shit but I didn't know he was like that."

"None of us did. Are they getting divorced?" Sirius asked.

"Of course they are, Hermione doesn't feel anything for him anymore. He's a completely different person to her now."

"Poor, Hermione," Remus repeated.

"Can you stop with the poor Hermione business?" Hermione said standing in the doorway. The three men turned around all looking guilty about having talked about her behind her back.

"You feeling better love?" Harry asked as she plonked herself down next to him on the floor.

"Yeah, I feel better knowing that it wasn't my fault that our marriage failed," She said.

"It's definitely his fault, he's an idiot," Remus said patting her on the shoulder. Hermione reached up and covered his hand with hers.

"Thank you Remus, thanks all of you, you've been great," she said smiling at her three friends. Funny all her friends were male, she'd never noticed that.

"I know what you need to cheer you up," Sirius said standing up as if he was about to announce something. "It's my birthday soon, and I'm having a party, you're all invited." Everybody groaned. "What?" Sirius asked.

"I'm still getting over the last one," Harry said rubbing his head to emphasise his point.

"I'm not really in the mood for a party," Hermione added.

"Boring the lot of you, well it'll be just you and me Moony." Sirius huffed and sat back down in his chair.

"It'll be quiet, but there'll be more alcohol for us," Remus said.

A few weeks later Hermione was sitting in a room talking to her lawyer. Her and Greg had had a Wizard wedding and a Muggle one, but as they got married in the Wizarding world first that was the one that mattered. Hermione found it easier to find a lawyer in this world than Greg had, but soon both were represented and the trial had begun.

Greg hadn't stood a chance, what with all the evidence against him and Hermione having none other than Albus Dumbledore himself as a witness to Greg's mental cruelty.

"Now then Miss Granger," the tall thin lawyer said as he flipped through a folder. He was a greying man in his late fifties with thin pointy features. "It seems that your name was on the lease of the house so that is given to you in the settlement."

She loved being called Miss Granger again, the past few weeks she had been called Mrs Layton but she had grown to hate that name, just like she hated Greg.

"That's great but I'll be able to pay off the mortgage on my new house," Hermione said even though the lawyer wasn't interested. She had planned to but a house in Hogsmead not far from Harry.

"The contents of the house will have to be sorted between you and your ex-husband," her lawyer said in his silky drawl.

"My ex," she said putting emphasis on the ex, loving the sound, "husband can have the contents of the house, none of it was mine."

"Well then it seems that everything is in order, Miss Granger. This was a very simple case, it was a good job there were no children, those cases can get very messy." A grin appeared in the man's face, as if he actually enjoyed the thought of a messy court case. Hermione had always thought he was a lot like Filch.

"Thank you for everything Mr Smithe, for everything." Hermione held out her hand and the thin man took it and gave her an oily smile.

"My pleasure Miss Granger, I glad you are happy with the outcome of the case," he said and he showed her to the door.

Hermione left the lawyers firm and stepped out into Diagon Ally. She walked down the street, stopping to buy a beautiful purple dress that she saw in a shop window, feeling that she may go to Sirius' birthday party after all.

She was leaving the shop happier than she had ever been not looking where she was going, in a world of her own until she was abruptly ripped from it as she walked smack band into something, or someone. She dropped the bag she was carrying and the dress fell part of the way out. She looked up and found herself looking at Severus Snape.

"We must stop meeting like this, Mrs Layton," he said with a sneer she hadn't seen in a long time. He handed her the bag and then went to walk away.

"Sorry, and it's Miss Granger again." Severus turned around. "Greg and I got a divorce."

"I'm very sorry to hear that," he said not sounding the slightest bit interested let alone sorry.

"I'm not, I found out that after all that he was cheating on me, isn't it ironic." She laughed at the thought, but found that the truth still hurt, Greg had found her very unattractive. No woman liked to be told that. Severus turned around and looked at her, the sneer had not dropped from his face.

"I don't see what concern it is of mine, now if you'll excuse me," he turned around again and purposefully strode off. She was hurt by his dismissive behaviour, wanting the other Severus back the one that seemed to be more open and less like the heartless, cold man she once had for a teacher.

"Is that all you have to say to me?" She asked her voice sounded broken, like she'd been injured.

"What do you want from me? You made it quite clear that you didn't want me, and what was I supposed to do? Wait around while you found out what an utter shit your lame excuse for a husband was?" His voice sounded bitter and angry and she got flashbacks of the night in the Shrieking Shack in her third year. She had thought that man was gone, but he wasn't he was standing right next to her, talking to her as if she was still the annoying Gryffindor girl.

"I don't expect anything from you anymore, but I didn't expect you to have this attitude," she said getting angry with him, her voice taking on a harsher tone that she rarely used.

"What attitude, just because I'm not getting all excited and throwing myself at you because you no longer have a husband?" He spat out walking fast; trying to sake her off but she kept the pace well for someone of her stature.

"Well no but…" she started but was cut of by a sharp retort from Severus.

"Good, because I'm not about to. You made your choice, you chose your husband, so I took the hint, I'm over that now." This time she did slow down and he strode on ahead.

'"I didn't expect you to still feel like that, but I thought after everything we could at least be friends!" She called after his retreating form.

He stopped and turned on his heels in one graceful movement. He looked at her and walked towards her, his imposing height and grace was intimidating and daunting. Hermione had the urge to back away but she fought it, staying where she was, standing her ground.

"My friend?" He asked quietly, his voice low and menacing. "You fully expect me to just forget about everything and continue to be your friend?" She went to reply but he didn't give her the chance. "Just when I thought that I could endure no more pain, someone turns around and stamps on the heart I didn't even know I possessed and then they have the nerve to say lets just be friends." His voice was becoming more uneven now, and the pitch kept rising. Hermione realised that she was seeing the real him, the uncontrolled, emotional, vulnerable person that live under the mask of hate. "Well forgive me but I think I will decline your generous offer, if you really thought I was going to spend my whole life loving you then you were sorely mistaken." He turned and Hermione the same tearing sensation in her chest and stomach as if someone was taking out her insides.

"How stupid of me!" She called after him. "To think that I meant something to you, you of all people!"

"You know nothing about me Miss Granger!" He bit back defensively.

"I know that no one else has ever made me feel like you do!" She felt tears form again but it hurt, she had cried so much recently that her eyes were sore and tired and didn't want to cry anymore. "You made me feel like a person, a woman, not just something to be showed off a parties like a performing monkey! When Greg walked away from our marriage only my pride was hurt, but when you walk away from me my whole body hurts!"

"Good!" He retorted in a savage whisper. "Now you know just how I felt. I'm glad that I've finally got my own back." With that he walked away, properly this time. Too hurt by the vicious things he'd said she just watched him walk away the tears flowing despite her protesting eyes.