Disclaimer: Right… I really don't own Harry or Luna or Draco or Hermione yadda, yadda, yadda. They all belong to JKR an not me, blah, blah, blah. I do own a few things, anyway.

Author's Note: Ever see General Hospital? No? Oh well. Basically it's a soap opera (yes a soap opera. What?). Some storylines are based on the storylines from General Hospital.

Spoilers up to and including The Order of the Phoenix

Rating: PG-14 for language, violence, kidnapping, and sexual themes.

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"I know. You are not what I thought you were." Hermione said as she looked up at him.

"I'm just a flawed man who loves you. Hermione, in my defense I thought I could make you happy, I still do. And that's why I'm letting you go." He said slowly, regretting the words as they came out.

"What? Why?" Hermione said slowly.

"I can't do this anymore. I can't know I'm the one that's bringing you all this pain." Draco said as he stared down at the floor.

"You're the one who started all this Draco! You never do anything unless it has something in it for you! That's just the way you are Draco. That's always been the way you are." Hermione said maliciously as she stood up.

Draco looked back at her. "You don't know anything about me, Mrs. Weasley."

"Why do you say it like that?" Hermione asked him.

"Because that's all you've become. You're another version of Weasley's mother. All you do anymore is complain and whine. And yes, I did fall in love with you. I fell in love with you through glimpses of what you use to be. Of what you can be if you would just let yourself."

"You know why I complain and whine? It's because I am a mother and a wife. I worry every second of every day about my children and my husband. That's what it means to be a mother, Malfoy." Hermione said as she shook her head. "You obviously don't really love me."

"That's not true," Draco said as he took a step towards her. "I love you." Hermione let out a slight scoffing noise and turned away. "Hey," Draco said as he put both hands on either side of Hermione's face. "I love you, and it is for you. Through the glimpses of what you use to be and for what you are now. I love the way you worry for you children. I love the way that you command my men around. I love the way you complain about Pansy's clothes.

"And your right, Hermione. I'm not doing this because I suddenly grew a conscious. The morality that you have doesn't exist for people like me, or Pansy or Gregory. I'm only doing this because I love you. But I no longer have a use for you to be here. If I don't let you go now, I'll never have a chance to be with you later." He said with a shrug.

"You'll never have a chance to be with me, Draco." Hermione said as she pulled away from him.

"I believe I already did, didn't I?" He said, a smirk gracing his face. "You remember, right? On the couch of my office and of course the floor? I remember the way you-"

"Stop," Hermione said as she held up a hand.

Draco sighed and laced his fingers through Hermione's hand. "I'm doing this for you Hermione. You will love me back."

"No," Hermione said shaking her head.

"Yes, you will. You have to stop pretending, Hermione. You can't keep pretending to love Weasley. We both know you don't. Hell Hermione! All of Port Ryan is very aware that the beloved union of one Weasley and Granger is very over."

"That's not true." Hermione said as she wrenched her hand away from him. She closed her eyes as she remembered Luna's words to her before her kidnapping.

"It is," he said as he reached into the inside pocket of his jacket. He pulled out her wand and handed it to her. "If you're going to leave, do it now."

"Thank you," she said softly as she walked past him to the door. She turned the doorknob before turning to find Draco watching her. "Goodbye, Draco."

"It's not goodbye, Hermione. I do not give up that easily." Draco said with a half smile before sitting on her bed.

Hermione shook her head and walked out the door, closing it soundlessly behind her.

Luna smiled up at Harry as the two of them sat across from Pansy and Ron. Harry couldn't help but occasionally glare at Pansy as she laughed along with Ron.

To Harry, it seemed as though Pansy was just making the wedge that was already between this family, no matter how extended it was, apart.

She was a home wrecker to Harry. She flirted and taunted his best friend with what could be called sexual advances until he forgot about his troubled marriage. She seemed to be wearing the low cut dress that revealed and pushed up her cleavage to taunt Ron, getting a look of satisfaction in her eyes as Ron's strayed down to her chest.

She was exactly like Lavender in his opinion, which did not give her many points in Harry's scorebook. If anything, it deducted many.

Ron glanced down at his watch and looked at Pansy. "We should be going. We have to pick up the boys from my Mum's in the morning." He explained to Harry and Luna as he stood up and helped Pansy to her feet.

"Bye!" Pansy said with mock enthusiasm as she began walking away.

Ron shrugged and followed after the blonde.

Harry kept a fake smile plastered on his face until they were both out the door. "Merlin!" He said as he laughed a little. "I thought they'd never leave! If I had to put up with Pansy for one more minute!"

"I actually thought she acted quite well for some one in her position." Luna said with a shrug.

"In her position?"

"Well, Harry, she is out of her element. The lot of us, we were all on the side of Dumbledore. Her whole family was supporters of Voldemort. You cannot expect her to feel comfortable. It's like a Rovenhimer intermingling with a Basherin." Luna said with a shrug.

Harry nodded. He knew better than to argue with Luna when she talked about her most likely fictional animals. "Let's go for a walk." Harry said standing up. He pulled her to her feet and the two walked out of the party.

The two walked side by side in the warm July weather. They hardly said a word to each other, choosing instead to watch the scenery pass by.

Luna smiled up at Harry dreamily as she sat down on a nearby bench. "It's perfect weather tonight. Not too hot, not too cold."

Harry stood in front of her and let out a sigh. "Now or never," he muttered under his breath. "Luna I have something to tell you." He said as he twisted his hands together.

"Anything, Harry." She said gazing at him through her watery, blue eyes.

Harry gave her a wavering smile and stared at the ground. He wanted nothing more than for Sirius, his godfather Sirius, to be there and tell him what to do and what to say. Apparently Sirius had been quite the man with the ladies.

Something Harry sorely did not know anything about.

Although currently, he'd settle for Seamus. "Luna, do you remember that time where you and I went to Germany to track down Biem?"

"Of course I do Harry. It was a very successful mission." Luna said with a smile.

"Well, remember before we found him and we were staying a cheap motel, right? And we were sitting in our pajamas and you were telling me not to get discouraged because we couldn't find him. You told me that Germany was a large country and that I would find him.

"Luna, it was at that point that you were, you are the only person who could ever reassure me of anything. You have always been there. You're the only person I can count on.

"Ever since we moved here, Ron, Hermione and I have grown apart. It's like a wedge drove between us. It's been like this since Ron started with Lavender and Hermione with her job. You're there for me and have been ever since we met.

"Luna, the point I'm trying to make is… the point is- is the fact that I-I-Ihaveacrushonyou, willyougooutwithme?" Harry asked slurring his words together.

Luna looked at Harry for a moment. Her usual watery eyes looked even more watery. "You-you have a crush on me?" She asked him in the most serious tone he had ever heard her use.

Harry shifted slightly and sat down next to her. Turning to face her, he took her hands in his. "Luna, I've had a crush on you for two years. Don't you ever wonder why I haven't had a date? Why I flirted with you? Why I question the guys you go out with?"

"You're a secret agent. I thought it was in the job description." Luna said with a shrug. "As for the flirting thing, I just thought you were drunk."

Harry sighed. "I was never a good flirt." He admitted. The two were silent for a minute, both lost in their own worlds. "Would you like to go on a date with me Luna?" He asked as he let go of one of her hands and attempted to flatten his messy hair.

"I'd love to go on a date with you Harry," Luna said as she pulled his hand down and messed his hair up again. "Although that was two years ago. You could have told me." She said before standing up and continuing to walk.

Harry sat completely still, with his mouth open. "I could have ended my torment earlier?"

Luna gave him a shrug and took his hand before dragging him off. "Come on, this is a prime time to find Gallyhooks!"

Pansy laughed loudly as she listened to Ron retell a story about him and two of his brothers in their old childhood home. She smiled as she watched him tell it with much vigor, using wild hand gestures and using different voices.

"Do you ever miss your old home?" She asked him as she took a sip of her Butterbeer. The two had ditched the Gala and went to The Café.

Ron shrugged as he stirred his Butterbeer with the straw. "There are some things that I miss about it. I miss the homey feeling that it had. My parent's new house isn't as intimate. I grew up there so…" he trailed off, expecting her to jump in.

Pansy sighed. "I wouldn't know." She said before wincing. She didn't really want to get into this right now. You're supposed to seduce him! Not whine about your crappy childhood!

Ron furrowed his eyebrows. "What do you mean by that?" He asked.

Pansy shook her head. "It's not a big deal." She said before raising her eyes to meet his. He was looking at her with his blue eyes that held confusion and curiosity. "My childhood house wasn't much of a home, that's all."

"Why not?" Ron asked her.

"I spent most of my childhood avoiding my parents. I went over to Blaise's every day with Draco and we stayed in this huge tree house while Blaise's mum made cookies." She said with a shrug. "It's not a big deal."

Ron tilted his head to one side and watched her. She sipped her drink through lowered eyelids. She looked sad as she drew designs on the table absentmindedly. Her blonde hair began to fall out of its bun and was falling into her eyes.

Ron placed a hand on hers, causing the patterns to stop. "Your whole childhood couldn't be that bad."

Pansy lifted her eyes to meet his. "You're right," she admitted. "I had my brother." She looked back at the grain in the wooden table. "It wasn't as bad as when I was a teenager."

"What happened then?" Ron asked, feeling like he opened an unwanted can of worms.

"You and your gang of do-gooders killed my entire family." Pansy said as she took her hand out from under his. She placed both hands in her lap and closed her eyes. "You took my brother from me." Her voice cracking as she bit back tears.

If there was one thing Pansy hated more than do-gooders it was crying. She was always told crying was a sign of weakness and the last thing she could ever be was weak. Not in the business she was in.

"I'm sorry, Pansy." Ron said as he moved around the table and bent down to hug the blonde. She buried her head into his shoulder and continued to fight tears. "I didn't know. It never occurs to you at the time…"

"That those people have people that love them," Pansy finished for him as she wrapped her arms around his back. She attempted to reach her nose to wipe it. "It's fine Ron," she said in his ear. "It's in the past."

Ron pulled back a knelt down in front of her. Putting both his hands on either side of her and looked skeptical. "Alright," he said as he raised an eyebrow.

"It really is fine, Ron. In truth, I learned to cope with it a long time ago. Did I ever tell you about the time when Blaise, Draco and I snuck into Hogsmeade?"

Vega stood at the punch table and attempted to seem interested as some adults tried to talk to her. She frankly didn't even know why she was acting interested. Usually in this situation, a one she had so often been in what with her Aunt Narcissa's dinner parties, she wouldn't have tried. Although she really didn't like Narcissa and that may have had something to do with it.

Zander watched Vega laugh from across the room. For one reason or another, he didn't trust her. He loved his best friend who he has known all his life, but if there was one thing Sirius didn't get, it was girls. Ever.

The thing about Sirius was that he was the type of guy that girls loved.

Like a brother, anyway.

In all their sixteen years together, Sirius had never had a girlfriend. Not that he was antisocial by any reason. The Slytherins didn't date him because he was a klutz, the Hufflepuffs didn't date him because he loud, the Ravenclaws didn't date him because he wasn't all that smart and the Gryffindors thought of him like a brother.

So that left him… where?

With the new girl, Zander thought to himself. Although, he wouldn't need to be with the new girl if you weren't such an ass, Alexander Weasley. You know he's been in love with Sage since they were old enough to feel emotions.

Zander looked guiltily over to his two best friends who were laughing loudly in the corner, causing Severus Snape to rub his temples and glare at the two.

"Well, well. Is a Weasley actually feeling guilt?" Vega said in his ear from behind him.

Zander spun around and rolled his eyes. "I have nothing to feel guilty for." He snapped and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Fine, don't snap at me!" Vega said as she waved a hand. "Do you even know who I am?" She asked him slowly.

"No, because no one does. Your new," Zander said with a shrug as he went back to looking at his friends.

"So, jealous then?" Vega asked him as she looked over his shoulder. Vega knew she was going against Sirius's plan of attack, so to speak. Truth be told, however that the young Lupin boy was not the best plan maker. In fact his plans could be called lame.

"I have nothing to be jealous of," Zander smirked. "I am the one Sage came with. I am the one she likes."

"And I wonder why that is." Vega said as she put a hand to her chin in thought.

"And what in Merlin's name is that suppose to mean?" Zander asked incredulously as he spun on his heel to face her.

"It means that you don't really seem like the nicest person." Vega said as she crossed her arms over her chest. "You ever think she's with you because daddy doesn't like you?" Vega taunted as a cruel smirk played on her features.

"Does your daddy approve of our young Sirius?" Zander said as mimicked Vega's stance.

"Well I really don't know," Vega said as her hands dropped. "My daddy's dead." She said before walking towards Sage and Sirius.

"Alexander you really are an ass!" He scolded himself once more before following the brunette.

Hermione couldn't help but squeal when she reached her house. She slammed the door behind her and ran to the middle of the room. "Ron? Boys?" She yelled but received only silence. "Pansy?" She said more quietly.

She shrugged and ran over to the couch. She took a flying leap and snuggled into her couch. It wasn't as comfortable as Draco's however.

No, bad Hermione, she though to herself, bad thoughts.

The last thing Hermione wanted to think about on her first few moments home after three weeks was her infidelity and the way Draco's body molded into hers.

BAD!

Hermione's head swiveled to the door as the knob was being turned.

Pansy looked at Ron through heavy lidded eyes. A slight smirk graced her face as he looked at her over his shoulder.

"What are you looking at?" He asked with a goofy grin.

"You," she said truthfully. "I really want you to know that I had a really good time tonight. Even when I was… you know," Pansy said shift6ing from foot to foot.

"No worries, Pansy!" Ron said with a shrug. "It was probably the best time I've had since- well, a long time."

Pansy gave him a seductive smile and leaned towards him. Ron shifted awkwardly for a moment before mimicking her actions. The two met with a crash of their lips and Ron began to open the front door.

"Ron!" The shrieking voice of his wife sounded in his ears. "What in the hell do you think your doing?"

Muhaha! Cliffhanger! Sorry, had to be done.

Now, I do have a question to ask. Who would you like to see Vega with? Sirius or Zander. She has chem with both! One is her cousin (kind of) and one is an ass.

slyswn28: I'm glad you love it! Pansy and Greg are two of my favourites, frankly. They rock to a major degree. As for Ron, he isn't really modeled after anyone. Obviously, his situation is similar to Sonny's but in no way is he like Sonny. Ron's original.

FredandGeorgeWeasleyareMYKings: Draco can act like an adult when he wants to. He is a bit of a sap. He tries to hide it, but that doesn't always work. Only Hermione, Vega and Pansy get to see it though.

ladyspirit: Welcome!

Stargirl1066lkl: I enjoy subplots and twists. Makes life fun!

Flavagurl: No problem!

TaKeFlIgHtDrAcOLuVr: They are fun, aren't they?

I must now go on a weekend trip to see my mother's friends (WHY!).

REVIEW PLEASE!

Catherine