Never Again

She had waited years to see him again. The war had ended four years ago and it had left the Wizarding world in shambles. Now though, it had been put back together, stronger than ever before. Everyone was happy again, except for one woman. Hermione Granger had been waiting four years for her lover to return.

Every night his eyes still haunted her dreams. She would lie in bed night after night tossing and turning for hours before she was finally too exhausted to keep thinking. On her bad days she sometimes had nightmares instead of dreams about him. Dreams like what if he had been killed in the war? What if he had found someone else? Hermione was at her breaking point.

Hermione knew that she wasn't the only one in pain because he wasn't the only one missing as result of the war. Mr. Ollivander was still missing and so was Neville Longbottom. The war had torn families apart at the very seams at which they existed. The Order recruited people from all over the world, a lot of who came up dead when they were put against the Death Eaters.

It reminded Hermione of the Second World War she had heard of in her Muggle Studies class. Although there was no wizards in that war, it had caused so much death and destruction. In the Wizarding World, their war had called for many changes in the way things ran. Arthur Weasley was now the Minister of Magic. It was very close to being Lucius Malfoy, but his own son turned on him. That was the turning point of the war.

Draco Malfoy. Her Lover. The very man who plagued her dreams. His perfect hair, face, body, eyes, his perfect everything. He had caused Hermione so much pain by just disappearing the way he did that night. Hermione and Draco only been seeing each other for a few months before the war started. They were completely and total opposites, and yet everything he had she needed and vice versa. She was his savior, in every shape and form.

He had learned so much from her. She made him do a complete one eighty in a matter of months. Mostly though, she had taught him to love and she was there for him when he needed her most. He was there when she needed him too. Harry was training for the war to start and barely had time to live life anymore. Ron, well Ron had finally started to notice girls back in their sixth year. After Lavender Brown he had started to skip around from girl to girl. By seventh year he had kind of become the new Draco Malfoy, he had been with at least half the girls in the sixth and seventh years at Hogwarts. Hermione could remember once walking in on him and Hannah Abbot in an abandoned classroom. A memory she had tried to erase from her mind.

Draco was still the one to be with though. His dreamy eyes and his toned Quidditch made body was on all the girls minds. Hermione could swear that when girls walked by him they drooled. Hermione never did though. Draco found that as being a challenge. That's how they came to be together. Draco some how found out where and when Hermione was during her evenings, in the library in her private room that Madam Pince gave her. He had sweet-talked her into giving him a key because he "needed it to study." Yeah, study all right.

He had watched her for a while before trying to get to her. He watched in class and noticed how excited she got when she knew the answer to the question in class. He watched how she glowed when she was around her friends and began to realize how much he wished that she was smiling because of him. He needed her. Oh man he needed her.

She walked into her library room one rainy night and after she closed the door he pinned her up against the wall and kissed her. Her eyes stayed opened for a good while as the adjusted to the darkness. When she saw the white blond hair her immediately response was the push him away. For some reason her arms didn't work.

She felt this feeling running through her veins that she had never felt before. Nerves, yes that's what it was. She had been kissed before, but never EVER like this. My God what was this kid doing. Did he know whom he was kissing? Oh what the hell.

Hermione finally closed her eyes and relaxed into Draco's arms. She ran her hands through his hair. It was so soft like silk. She could fell him pulling her closer to his body and she wondered how much closer they could get.But whatever this was that she was feeling she never wanted to lose it. As soon as felt the feeling come, it was gone.

Draco pulled back from her and looked her in the eyes. Again with those magnificent eyes. They weren't blue, but sort of silver with a hint of blue. He smiled at her and left the room without so much as a goodbye.She had never seen him smile before, she thought that he should more often. He had beautiful teeth. He was a good kisser, no good was an understatment he was wonderful. She miled to herself andheld her fingers to her lips.

Four and a half years later she put her fingers up to her lips and could still remember every moment of that kiss.

From that night on Hermione started to fall in love with Draco. In her classes, everything he did still made her fill rage for making fun of the Gryffindor's, but her heart flutter when he started to speak his cruel words. She would watch him at lunch and see how his emotions shown through his eyes when he would receive a letter from home. Draco taught her the meaning of the phrase; "The eyes are the windows to the heart."

Fate stepped in this time in the form of their Headmaster Albus Dumbledore. Apparently Draco had been failing muggle studies and Dumbledore saw that Hermione was the only one who could help him. She wished that she could thank him now. Night after night they would meet in same abandoned classroom and she would help him. Hermione would never deny that he was a pain in the ass to work with but when they just talked, she just fell deeper into the hole that is Draco Malfoy.

She picked up the little things about him, like how he hated things out of order but strangely enough loved the smell of fresh air. He also find things out about her, like how much her friends affected her and that no matter how much he pissed her off one simple kiss seemed to make her dreams come true.

A few weeks went by like this and Draco began to anticipate their meetings and getting to see Hermione again. Yeah, he was getting soft. Draco and Hermione had become an item, of course only they could know.

And then the war started.

She had never stopped the think that Draco was the enemy. She had seen his arms before; there was nothing but flawless skin on his forearm. The Death Eaters had started attacking places left and right. They recruited the students to help fight. They needed all the support they could get. She never once saw Draco out fighting. He was there when they attacked the ministry though. Lucius Malfoy was taking office as the Minister of Magic the next day and the Order had to stop him.

Someone had got to him first though. Hermione saw him kill his father. After that they stood side by side to take on the Death Eaters. The Dark Lord was gone in a matter of days and Draco had left. She now stood staring out her window into the rain four years later.

She had never gotten a letter from him and had never since so much as a glimpse of him. During the day she was strong and intelligent Hermione. She worked at Saint Mungos now on the Board of Directors, she was a very important person these days. But by night though, she was a shadow of her former self. Her mind wanted to move on but her heart wouldn't let her. It didn't want to let go.

One night though, she walked into her house and threw her things onto the chair and closed the door. In a split second she was pinned against the wall being kissed. Her eyes were glued opened trying to see who this imbecile was. Then she noticed the white blond hair and realized whose lips she was kissing. Oh god he was back. HE WAS BACK!

Hermione pushed him away this time and his eyes opened wide, "How dare you disappear for four years and withoutso much as totell me goodbye! I have spent my nights dreaming of you Draco. You have made me become someone I never wanted to be. I never wanted to be WEAK Draco."

He came towards her again and put his hand on her cheek. Then she slapped him.

"WHY!"

"Perhaps I deserved that."He was holding his cheek.

Hermione melted at the sound of his voice, "Perhaps Draco?"

"I needed to leave Hermione. I needed to find out how I was. I knew that you couldn't begin to feel how I felt about you until I knew who I was. I didn't want to leave you Hermione. I needed to escape though."

"Why couldn't you escape with me then!" Hermione collapsed to the ground.

"I wanted to figure it out on my own."

"I loved you Draco."

"I needed to be away from our world, I needed... What did you say?"

"I loved you Draco and I still do. I loved you every single second of every minute of every day for the past four years. How could just leave me here with nothing but an image of you left in mind."

"I'm sorry Hermione, I thought I was doing the right thing. I promise that I will never leave you again."

"Do you think it's that easy Malfoy? Just to walk through that door after four years and become part of my life again?"

"From it seems I never left your life."

"You are a cold hearted bastard Draco Malfoy."

"I'm sorry Hermione, I'm so sorry."

"I don't understand you Draco!"

Hermione pulled her legs up to her chest and held them there. She looked up and him and spoke softly, "How can I hate you and love you both at the same time Draco?"

Draco walked up to her and took her hands. He pulled her up from the ground and then held her around waist. He held her chin and gently kissed her mouth.

"Isn't that how we've always been Hermione, me and you, we walked that thin line between love and hate everyday we were together and I don't ever want that to change. I've wanted to strangle you because your such a smart ass. I know that you have wanted to kill at times becauseI'm an arrogant son of a bitch. But HermioneI want to be with you now, I want to be with you forever."

"But Draco you can't just come back and be part of my lif..."

He kissed her again. He knew that was her weakness and he would never let her forget that. Her mind went blank when she felt his lips on hers. They were so soft. She finally broke apart from him and looked into his eyes.

"You won't leave again right?"

"Never again."

A/n: Oh man I hope it's good. I wrote this for a contest on the Third Floor Corridor. Come join. Tell them SilverStar sent you. (smiles) The link is on my profile..or it should be.

missez malfoy