Challenge Seven.

Given Pairing: Draco Malfoy/Hermione Granger

Pairings Broken: Draco Malfoy/Astoria Greengrass & Hermione Granger/Ron Weasley

House: Ravenclaw

notes: THIS IS THE FINAL CHALLENGE. A huge thank you to everyone that has been supportive during the last couple of months with this competition. I've found it incredibly fun, and am extremely glad that I entered. Also, a round of applause to the judges! They have been absolutely amazing, so thank you! *cue the applause*

& Thanks to Morghen for beta'ing for me :)

No Regrets

Draco Malfoy/Hermione Granger || Romance

Affair

There was nothing that Hermione regretted in her life. From lying to McGonagall in first year to compulsively kissing Ron during the Final Battle, there was nothing. Perhaps she needn't have wasted so many tears during the horcrux hunt, but no, there was nothing to regret or be ashamed of about that.

Draco Malfoy was an annoyance. He played a large, though not particularly spectacular, part in her life. He was simply the sort of person that Hermione could have lived happily without. Yet, not a moment she spent with him she regretted. Even the night when he had oh-so cleverly coaxed her into his dirty mind she wouldn't change.

It had been a few weeks after the battle. Wounds were still fresh, as were the tears. The Golden Trio was broken. Ron and Harry spent their time mourning. Hermione was too, of course, though it was worry for her parents that plagued her mind rather than the bloodshed. Everyone was in dire need of comfort. Hermione was no different.

Looking back, she supposes that she was wrong. In a way, she and Ron were together. She'd always been such a strong girl, too. It was weak of her to give into Draco's advances. Still, as she remembers the almost tender way his fingertips brushed her cheek, Hermione closes her eyes. And she doesn't regret a thing.

There hadn't been any strings attached. She was upset. He… well, he was willing. Neither was looking for anything more than comfort and a way to pass the time that seemed to be crawling by.

Perhaps, she shouldn't have become reliant on him. There were times – times when she was weak, which she still went to him. It pained her, true. Seeing Ron, her beloved husband, and her children's faces when she returned from a late night gave her a heavy heart. However, the feeling… The few minutes of pure bliss that Draco gave her seemed worth it. It still does.

Sometimes Hermione wonders about Astoria. She's a haughty woman. But surely, high and mighty Astoria isn't the faithful one? Even as a girl Astoria was never the faithful one. Times have changed though. Maybe Astoria, cold-hearted Astoria, has changed. And Draco, the one who switched sides midst the war, hasn't changed at all.

Perhaps, though she has no regrets, Hermione has changed too. Because since when did she need comfort from two men? Since when did she lie to her best friends – to her family?

And when, exactly, did she stop caring?