Chapter Three:

Hermione is beyond embarrassed. When she wrote this letter she never in her wildest dreams envisioned them actually being read by someone who wasn't her! What if Malfoy was just the beginning? What if… what if the other letters…oh this was bad...

Viktor Krum, Theodore Nott, Neville Longbottom.

Ron.

Bad, very, very bad.

She quickly stands up and realizes that she can't delay a second longer, she needs to go to her flat and find the rest of the letters.

Grabbing her cloak she rushes from her office, relief floods her when there's no pale blonde in sight, and makes her way to the floo.

As soon as she is standing in her new flat she rushes to her bedroom and swings open her closet door. There on the topmost shelf is the teal hat box. She hesitantly grabs it, fearing what she is about to find inside.

Emptiness.

Emptiness inside the box and emptiness inside her.

Hermione immediately sends an owl off to her direct supervisor, letting them know she came down with something dreadful and will be spending the rest of the day at home. Not feeling a smidge bad about it considering her current situation.

Who knew about these letters? Absolutely no one. She never told a single sole about her love letters, that's what made them so special. Well, she has concluded one thing, that it had to of been a witch or wizard. No muggle could have sent them with an owl, but that didn't really narrow down her choices, did it? It had to be someone who had been near the hat box recently, which only left those who were close to her. But surely none of her friends would want to self destruct her life like this?

Hermione lets out a big groan and decides to read a good long book, in hopes of getting her mind off of things. Maybe this person didn't send all the letters... maybe it was just Malfoy's. Ugh, over analyzing this situation wasn't going to fix anything.

The next morning she has decided against going in to work again, she is just too jittery to face anyone in case they know of the letters. This is so unlike her to skive off work, but honestly, she never takes days off like the rest of her coworkers..so she justifies it.

As she is making some tea in her kitchen she hears a pecking sound of an owl at the window. Her breathing starts to increase, dreading the worst.

As she takes the letter from the owl she notices that it has her name scrawled on the outside but it doesn't look familiar. She tears it open to find the letter she had written to Viktor Krum back in fourth year, but there is also a note attached:

Hermione Granger,

During this peak quidditch season Viktor Krum is not taking any fan mail owls.

If you would still like him to receive your letter, send it again in 3 months time.

Thank you,

The Bulgarian National Quidditch Team Representatives

They thought she was a fan? Oh please. Instead of honing in on that little detail she focuses more on the relief coursing through her body that the letter to Viktor hasn't actually been read by him, just some harpy who works for him. Like she said - comforting.

But the letter is here, back in her possession! She only hesitates a moment and then quickly opens it and delves right in.

Dear Viktor,

It's the last day of school and possibly the last time I will see you because we live so far apart.

Remember the day you asked me to the Yule ball?

I was so nervous when I saw you walking over towards me in the library, but then you smiled at me and my stomach erupted in butterflies.

I was really nervous about the ball, but you made me feel loads better.

I think I might've chickened out if it hadn't been for you, Viktor.

So, I just wanted to say, thank you.

Also, you're a really amazing wizard.

I wish that night at the ball had ended in more than a small kiss,

but let's be honest, the leering eyes of Karkaroff was enough to kill any mood.

Take care, Viktor. Have a really good summer and a really good life.

Love, Hermione Granger

Hermione clutches the love letter to her chest. This was the first love letter she ever wrote. "Well, I'm glad this came back to me." She whispers.

Though it wouldn't have been so bad if Viktor Krum got to know that he at least won one thing that year – not the tri-wizard cup – but the heart of 15-year-old Hermione Jean Granger.

Hermione finally built up the courage to go back to work the next day, after receiving the letter back from Viktor Krum she had mostly accepted that the rest of the letters were sent out. It terrified her, but she wasn't going to let it take over her life! She wrote those letters years ago, it's not as if she still felt those same feelings for everyone. And if she was confronted by anyone else that's exactly what she would tell them.

She had reached her office that morning without any unusualness happening and didn't have anyone barge into her office come lunch time - so she was really starting to feel like she was in the clear and that maybe her paranoia was getting the better of her. By the time the end of the day came she started gathering her things up to go home.

She was just entering the lifts when the idea popped into her head to go see Harry, if anyone could cheer her up during this, it would be him. With that in mind, she gets off at level 2, the Auror division.

She catches Harry at a good time, he tells her, he has about twenty minutes to catch up before he has a meeting.

They chat about nothing of great importance, Hermione thinks about bringing up the letters, but decides against it. The less people who knew about them, the better. Harry tells her he is having a small get together with old Hogwarts friends Friday night and that she should consider coming and she tells him she'll think about it.

She is walking out of Harry's door saying a quick goodbye, when she quite nearly walks right into Malfoy.

"Oh. Hello!" Hermione says, while trying desperately to ignore the flush that she knows has appeared on her cheeks.

Why does he always look so good? Since being in the Department of Magical Cooperation, she may have noticed Malfoy has integrated muggle suits into his wardrobe. Very well-tailored muggle suits that bring out his grey blue eyes...get it together Hermione! She snaps at herself. In the next moment though she's even more distracted by something behind Malfoy, it's then that she sees Ron Weasley walking down the hallway straight towards them, and sure enough, he's holding a very familiar looking letter in his hands.

A flurry of things happen in the next few seconds, events that Hermione will later look back on in a state of awe.

Her mind is scrambling, trying to come up with the best way to let Ron down, because she is NOT about to let him think too much into that letter. But when she sees his overly optimistic face she knows, she knows it's going to be a million times harder this time.

Before she even realizes what she is doing, she looks up, remembering Malfoy is standing there, looking like he is in the middle of saying something to her - she ignores that - and instead takes a step forward, throws her hand behind his neck and stands on her tiptoes, crashing her lips against his.

She is kissing Draco Malfoy.

She can tell he is a little startled by this abrupt intrusion, but it doesn't take long for him to kiss her right back. And it's then that the flashback starts.

When Hermione had decided to go back to Hogwarts to complete her education after the war had ended, she did so with trepidation. Harry and Ron had decided not to go back, so her main concern was loneliness. There were only a handful of 8th years – as they were called – who had returned, and one of those being Draco Malfoy. She had bumped into him first on the train, not having really been in his vicinity since being tortured at Malfoy Manor by his lovely Aunt Bellatrix, she didn't know what to expect. But it seems she needn't worry because Malfoy simply gave her a glance and continued walking. No snarky comments, no menacing glare, not even a slight shove. It was perplexing. But she reasoned, the war had changed a lot of people, surely it had affected him as well. The next time she was near him was in their Advanced Arithmancy class, they had been assigned to each other as partners, resulting in them having to share a desk. It could have been a nightmare, any other time in their Hogwarts education and it would have surely ended in them receiving a failing grade. But as she had noticed before, he was different. He would converse with her in a mature way, and his witty remarks and genuine smile started to appear more and more as they worked alongside each other. There were only a few months left until they would be leaving Hogwarts forever, Hermione was sitting at her designated table in the library, waiting for her Arithmancy partner. As soon as Malfoy sat down next to her she could tell he wasn't in a great mood. To ease the tension, she joked with him about his hair not being perfectly coifed, as per usual. She had earned a small chuckle from his lips and it made her feel a special sort of way. Next thing she knows, he had leaned his head down until his lips were softly pressing against hers. Draco Malfoy was kissing her. It wasn't a hot and heavy type kiss, it was much more gentle, sincere, the kind of kiss you save for the right moment. As quickly as it had started, it ended. He jerked back and looked quite flustered. He grabbed his stuff and bolted from the library.

Hermione hopes Ron is looking, he has to be looking, otherwise this is all for nothing. Hermione's heart is beating so fast. Surely this isn't happening. She breaks the kiss and opens her eyes and sees Malfoy staring back at her with a peculiar expression on his face.

Hermione clears her throat and says, "thank you", vaguely hears Malfoy say you're welcome, and then continues her walk down the hallway, past a startled and confused Ron, and doesn't look back.