Hello all! This is the last chapter for By My Bedside and I want to thank everyone who had read and reviewed, no matter what you had to say! A special shout out to hvnsllbbgrl, Tajinprincess, and vampgirliegirl for commenting throughout, thank you for your support.

Im trying to figure out my next fic... it's Dramione with Hansy as a side pair, but I'm still working on it.

Enjoy!

Spring had officially began, and Hermione couldn't be happier. She had spent the previous few days with the Weasley Clan at the Burrow, catching up and re-aquatinting herself with those she loved. Most of the Weasley's never her bone crushing hugs, welcoming her back. Molly had fussed over her, and never her four hand knitted sweaters that she had apparently saved for when she returned.

Upon getting back to Grimmauld Pace with Ginny and Harry, Ron and Astoria electing to stay at the Burrow, two owls were waiting for her. The first was a large ministry owl, and the other a smaller Malfoy owl.

She opened the ministry letter first, it was the notification that her divorce was finalized. Hermione set the letter down with a smile growing on her face.

She was free and it felt good.

No more pretending to be happy. No more pretending to be nice to those who say her as below them. No more pretending to not miss her life. She could just be.

And it felt fucking great.

She looked at the letter from the Malfoy owl a moment later. She tucked it away and decided to look at it later.

She left the library and joined Harry in the kitchen, she poured herself a cup of tea and sat and listened to him recollecting his favorite cases as Auror.

As days turned into weeks, the news outlets slowly began to catch wind of the Malfoy divorce they milked it for all it was worth. Grimmauld Place was bombarded with owls, some supportive, and some, not so much. She picked up her belongings from Malfoy Manor, Draco no where in sight.

She couldn't say she was surprised.

The last thing she picked up was her scrapbook which had looked more worn than she remembered. She carefully it away and headed out, leaving Malfoy Manor for the second time, walking out with purpose.

Hours later, she put the Malfoy letter in the pages, it simply read;

Thank you for everything, and I'm sorry for everything.

Maybe in another life, we'll see each other again.

In Draco's neat writing. She would find herself tracing the words some nights when she thought about the what ifs. She thought about writing him, but that's as far as she got.

It took months for the media circus to fie down. Lucius and Narcissa had commented often on how event though the marriage was dissolved, they were still in contact with Hermione, which want a lie. She would meet with her former in-laws often, they would sit and talk at a Tea House in Diagon Alley.

Hermione never saw Draco though.

She would ask Narcissa and Lucius about him, but they would always move around the question, changing the subject immediately.

After a few months, Hermione simply stopped asking, assuming he had moved on, and honestly, she was beginning to, too.

It was Headmistress Mcgonagall had offered her her first job since she left the position of Lady Malfoy. Apparently Hogwarts was in need of a Transfiguration Professor since the last three didn't meet the Head Mistresses standard.

Its safe to say that Hermione agreed after little thought. And so she spent most of her time at Hogwarts, visiting Harry, Ginny, and their baby son James when she could. She also saw Ron and Astoria just as often, and it seemed that they were taking married life well. The other Weasley's would write to her often, asking when if she would be at the Weasley's Sunday Brunch… She rarely missed it.

She and Astoria, to everyone's surprise and Ron's delight, had become as thick as thieves. They told each other everything and were more like sisters than friends by the time the one year anniversary of Hermione's divorce came around.

Two years had passed since she had seen Draco next at Hogsmeade when she was supervising a trip. She followed him into the new bookstore that branched off of Brogin and Blotts the year previous, attesting to stay hidden. She watched him for a while, like how he used to watch her, only to find his light blue eyes watching her back. He looked almost the same, two years haven't changed him much, but dark circles made it look like he was bruised and his cheeks were hollow, making his face more angular than she was used to.

He walked towards her elegantly, like a predator stalking prey and she stood there, frozen in her spot.

"You look well… Granger," he whispered horsely to her.

"You look well too, Draco." Hermione whispered back, her heart pounding in her chest, "How have you been since...?"

Draco gave a one shoulder shrug, turning to the bookshelf to this right, aimlessly searching through the books. "I've been okay." He replied running his fingers and down the spine of one volume Hogwarts: A History, refusing to meet Hermione's eyes. "How are you?"

"Im okay," she said putting her hand on Draco's to stop his hand, her eye spied a golden band rested on his left ring finger, it was so ordinary and simple but pain twisted in her chest. He married Parkinson so soon? "Draco, why are you here?" she asked, her voice tight, pulling away from him as if he burned her.

He hesitated, before he swallowed and squared his shoulders. "I wanted to see how you are… It's been a long time…"

"It has," Hermione said, her defenses up, "but that doesn't answer my question." He didn't reply. Hermione huffed and crossed her arms, "How's Pansy?"

Draco stilled, "She's fine… She got married to a muggle last spring. They're expecting a daughter in a two months."

"Oh," Hermione said, "I thought you two were going to get married."

Draco looked at her incredulously, "What the blood hell gave you that idea?" He said louder than he should have. The people around them began to turn and look for where the noise came from, whispering when realizing who was talking.

Hermione grabbed his hand and pulled him into the storage room, her eyes taking a moment to adjust. "Do you have to be so loud?" She whisper-shouted at him, shutting the door.

"When you have stupid ideas like that? Yes!" He said, throwing his arms up into the air, his knuckles grazing the wooden ceiling.

"Then who did you marry?" She asked, her curiosity getting the best of her.

"No one!" He said, crossing his arms, "Why do you think that I'm married?"

Hermione huffed and pulled his left arm away from his chest, holding his hand up to his face.

"Oh," He said.

"Yeah. 'Oh'," She mocked, "And considering what you two were doing when we were married, I would think you would jump at the opportunity."

Draco puffed out his chest, "I never slept with her… I know I still had an emotional… affair… but it wasn't anything more."

Hermione's heart pounded in her chest, he looked sincere about it. But that doesn't mean the past didn't sting, that it still didn't hurt.

"Then tell me," Draco sneered, changing the topic to hide his discomfort, "how's my mate, Theo?"

Hermione gave a smile, "he's fine," she whispered, "he was a good friend when I needed one..."

"Friend?" He scoffed, "Right."

"Yes, Draco, friend." Hermione said kindly, "Nothing more. It never was."

"But I saw you," Draco said petulantly.

"Half the story." Hermione said, her jaw set, "We never had sex, he didn't let it go that far… Im glad he didn't."

The two fell into an awkward silence, neither willing to speak first.

Draco bit his lip, and took deep and even breaths. Ironically, he was the one out of the pair to break the silence, "it's ours... from six years ago." He said twisting his wedding ring, he drew his eyes away from Hermione's, electing to stare at the wooden wall beside her instead.

"Oh," Hermione said. Draco's eyes met Hermione's and his lips curled into a smile before falling, "why?"

Draco averted his eyes again, his cheeks reddened. "I didn't like how we ended... I didn't like a lot of things in the last three of our marriage..."

"Oh." Hermione said.

"Wanted to ask you if you wanted to start over... maybe as friends?" He continued on.

"Oh—" she said for the third time.

Draco huffed, crossing his arms and looking down at her with narrowed eyes. "Is that all you can say? 'Oh'?"

Hermione blinked up at him and attempted to gather her thoughts. Her mouth was dry and her palms sweaty, "I'm just..." Hermione trailed off, blinking up at Draco, trying to put words to her feelings, "Shocked and confused seem to fit."

"Well then?" He asked, his arrogance firmly in place, "do you want to get coffee or tea? Maybe today."

"I don't think so, Draco." Hermione said. His mask fell, replaced by hurt, "I'm much to busy today," Hermione continued on not even stopping to understand the change in his eyes. "Then next Hogsmeade trip is in a month... maybe then?"

Hermione saw Draco's eyes light up, a large grin spread across his face. "Next month it is then."

"We still have a lot to talk about anyway," Hermione said, "I think its best to start from there."

Draco nodded and moved to the storage room door. Hermione's cheeks were pink and a stupid grin still stretched across Draco's face. When he opened the door, he and Hermione were greeted by several people glancing at the pair in interest.

They awkwardly parted, saying quiet goodbyes. Draco slipped something into her hand, before he stepped away, still smiling.

One of Hermione's seventh year students gave an obvious thumbs up and fake cheered. Another waggled their eyebrows and Hermione roller her eyes, the children around her laughing at her obvious annoyance. Draco chuckled and waved one more time before walking out the shop, the little bell signaling his departure.

"Go away," Mcgonagall, who came out of no where, said to her students. Mcgonagall glided over to Hermione and peered down at her. "What was that?" She asked.

"I have a friend date next month." Hermione replied, nose in the air, her cheeks still slightly pink. She eventually looked down at her hand. It was Draco's wedding ring, glinting familiarly up at her.

"A friend date." The Headmistress repeated, unfamiliar with the term, looking down at the same ring.

"Yes."

Mcgonagall hummed before walking way, "You know you'll have to tell me, and write Astoria, about this… friend… date." She said, a smile curling the ends of her lips. A quiet, "I have to write Narcissa," reached Hermione's ears but before she could comment, the Head Mistress was gone.

Hermione stared down at the ring, it was heavy in her hand, from a life so foreign to her now. She slid it on her thumb, her other fingers to small, before straightening out her cloths and walking out, already thinking about the month to come.

End.