Post-Story Author's Note

This is my obligatory post-story author's note. I always do one. Okay, so this is only the second story I've finished, but I will always do one.

You no doubt are all ready to tar and feather me, or at least boycott my stories. Believe me, I did not mean to end The Secrets of My Heart the way I did. This was the original way it went (it's rather long):

**

Hermione walked towards her former common room, cursing inwardly about having no Invisibility Cloak when she needed one. It wouldn't pay to run into anyone, although seeing as how she was Lady Voldemort, no one should question where she was going or why. Except, of course, her father. His sleeping habits were unpredictable, as were the paths he took from room to room.

She sighed. There probably wouldn't be any problems. She didn't know why she was so worried.

"Hermione."

Her head jerked around and she stopped dead in her tracks, raising her wand.

"It's me," the voice said, and Draco Malfoy materialized in front of her.

She gasped. "Don't do that," she said, furious.

He smirked. "Sorry."

Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Hermione, I'm not going to let you go with him. In fact, unless you do something for me, I'm going to go straight to your father."

"I can just Obliviate you."

"Yes," Draco stepped forward, "you can. But I already wrote the whole thing out in a letter. And don't think you can knock me out either, or petrify me. Goyle's coming by my room in," he checked his watch, "five minutes. He'll find the letter, and give it to your father. You don't have time."

Hermione glared at him, hatred welling up in her heart.

"Well?" he asked, raising a brow.

"Fine," she spit out angrily. "What do I have to do?"

"Marry me," he said simply.

"Marry you?"

"Yes. Your father already wants it, and it's rather obvious mine does. We both know that they'll be pressuring us to marry, but your father has given you the option to say no. I want you to say yes."

She glared at him, while at the same time feeling her defense fall. There was nothing she could do, it seemed. It was going to happen, wasn't it? She'd already agreed, after all. "I hate you," she whispered.

It might have been an illusion, but she thought she saw despair in his eyes.

***

Hermione stood before her father, forcing herself to smile, her hand linked with Draco's. She couldn't believe it had been only two months since Harry had escaped. Her father had been furious, but she knew that he was secretly relieved that she hadn't gone with him. And then she'd said she would marry Draco. He'd been…well, over the moon was probably the best way to describe it.

And now she was going to marry him. Draco Lucius Malfoy. She would be bonded to him in the eyes of the Gods and the law.

And she didn't even love him.

Oh, she'd been softening towards him, of course… Especially before that little stunt he pulled, forcing her to marry him. And, she admitted, she'd softened towards him again afterwards. It had been two months after all. Their relationship was pretty much back where it had started—indifference. At least on her part. She really didn't know what his feelings were towards her. He kept them too guarded for her to ever be completely sure.

She knew that she didn't want to do this. But she knew that she had to. It really was too late to back out. Her father thought that she was all for it, and she couldn't suddenly back out of it. Strangely enough, she loved him. Oh, she supposed it wasn't that strange to love your father, but it was when your father was better known—to the rest of the world at least—as Lord Voldemort.

"Hermione?" her father asked.

Jerking out of her thoughts she said, "Yes?"

"Repeat after me…

"I, Hermione Rhianna Thomasine Riddle, give to you this ring."

"I, Hermione Rhianna Thomasine Riddle, give to you this ring," she repeated quietly, slipping the ring Parvati handed to her onto Draco's left hand.

"Thus binding myself to you, and you to me, for all eternity."

"Thus binding myself to you, and you to me, for all eternity," she whispered, tears coming to her eyes.

"Draco, repeat after me…"

As Draco repeated the lines he caught her eye, giving her a small smile. Somehow she was able to smile back, and something small and fragile warmed in her chest. When he slipped the ring onto her finger, she shivered at the intense look in his eyes, almost regretting that she had said, in no uncertain terms, that they would not be sleeping together on their wedding night. He'd agreed, albeit a bit unwillingly. But he had said that it wouldn't be forever. They would sleep together.

And right now, she was actually looking forward to it, as Draco kept holding her gaze, and her father turned them towards the gathered crowd.

"I present to you… Draco Lucius and Hermione Rhianna Thomasine Malfoy. In the eyes of the gods and goddesses, two have become one, one has become two; Hermione Rhianna Thomasine and Draco Lucius are now married in the eyes of the law and the gods.

"And so may it always be."

**

And that would have been it. But I couldn't do that. I really couldn't. No doubt you all would have been happy that Draco and Hermione were together—but I wouldn't be. Don't get me wrong, I wrote this story with the intent that they would end up together. But stuff got in the way. Reality clicked. Seriously—would you want to marry someone who conned you into it? I don't care if you come to love them. I don't care if you care about them now. If you care about them, and they do that to you, manipulate you like that, then they don't deserve your love.

I did not want Draco to be that kind of person. He would not become a man I myself would not marry. Have you ever heard this saying?

If you love something, let it go. If it comes back to you, it's yours. If it doesn't, it never was.

That is what Draco is doing. He is letting Hermione go. If she comes back, then they can live happily ever after. If she doesn't…

And I'm not making any promises past the sequel. There will be a sequel, don't worry about that. And I'll work on confusing you even more. You will find out who Hermione's husband is in the sequel, but it won't necessarily be right away, like I had planned at the beginning. Maybe it's Draco, maybe it's Harry. You don't know. I do. *giggles* That's why I like being the author.

Anyways, if you want to be notified when the sequel comes out be sure to tell me and leave an e-mail address or sign in. If you're already receiving e-mails, then don't worry because you will receive notification of the sequel.

- hasapi

P.S. I will post the original plot, created by Lavinnee on my main web-site in about a week. My mother is going to revoke my computer privileges any minute now.