I would have gotten this out this morning, however, yesterday I got some horrible news about someone I knew. But you reviewers put up with my bitching, & you did review. For the record, I was going to put this chapter up no matter how many reviews it got.

I've been re-reading this ever since I actually finished it. I don't like some parts, & I really didn't want this ending at all at first, but I'm happy with it now. Thank you, everyone, for reviewing. But I'd really like a shout out to especially SwishAndFlick31, because she's been reviewing since the very very very start & she's a doll, even though I didn't update for about a month or two. Love you, honey!

But here it is. Chapter twenty, because if it ended on an odd number I'd really have to bang my head on another wall again. No joke.

I've been saying this from the start, but whatever, I'm a persistant bitch. Read & review, if you can put up with this final addition.

Chapter Twenty

Had anyone been peering from their window very late at night, they might have caught a glimpse at a blur of a shadow that happened to be Hermione Granger. She'd been walking far too long to remember how long ago she had even started. Her pace quickened whenever she believed to hear a sound; she had no time for distractions. Snow had begun falling hard within the past hour or so. The ground was covered with at least two inches of snow, but despite incredibly wet and soggy jeans, Hermione pushed on into the cold, pulling her jacket tighter and tighter around her small frame.

She came upon the familiar building when her heart was racing many months ago to bring up the courage to walk up there. Back then Hermione had the courage, the will to go up there. But now she simply stood in an empty street staring up at the lit up apartment where she could see two figures, clearly holding wine glasses. Had it been a clear night Hermione would be able to decipher who the figures were, but it wasn't and her heart knew it had to be Harry. She dug her hands deeper into the pockets as she let her head fall back to look at the grey sky.

Life continued to throw its surprises at her, wanting to know her reactions, testing her intelligence and her heart, had she any left. She'd been so strong all these months. She never let herself feel remorse about Harry, not for longer than a second. Her heart slowed its pace as she closed her eyes; breathing slowly in and out the coldness of winter, nothing was colder than what came next.

"Hermione?"

She jerked her body ramrod straight as the voice conquered the silence of the empty street. Her heart rose when it recognized the voice. Hermione turned to face him, keeping her stony manner intact. She didn't let her mouth form any words, for she knew that she couldn't trust herself in this situation.

"Is that you?" his anxious voice came from just a few feet away. The crunching of snow signaled he was coming closer, and without thinking Hermione took a step back. "It's me, Harry."

"I know it's you," Hermione snapped in a voice that would never belong to her.

Harry's ragged breath was the only thing hanging in the atmosphere for a minute before he spoke. Simply having her in his presence smashed his healed wounds. "I didn't think I'd see you again."

"I was hoping that'd be true," she lied in a truthful tone.

His heart was cracking even more by the second with each hurtful thing she said. "How've you been?"

"None of your business," she replied in yet another foreign nasty tone.

"Well, I'd think it should since I'm your best friend –"

"You were my best friend," Hermione said matter-of-factly. "Considering I haven't seen or spoken to you or Ron in a number of months, it's hard to say we're even friends."

"Then why are you even here? Another visit?" Harry retorted loudly as he was horribly hurt once more.

He could not break her if he had all the power and might in the world to hurt her. Hermione had built up a bulwark around herself that nothing could crack or destroy. Her once expressive chocolate brown eyes held nothing except the darkened image of Harry in front of her and a few dim streetlights. "And how've you been getting along? Crying every night? Sleeping with countless girls to get rid of the thought of me?"

It hit him that she'd been in a bit of contact with someone. "You talked to Ron?"

"He sent me a letter a month or so ago," Hermione planted a wretched grin on her face. "I ran into Ginny tonight as well. She told me very funny things."

"Like what?" His voice was cracking as he couldn't stand her new cold behavior.

She let a small laugh escape her mouth. "Well, Ginny mentioned you might still be in love with me."

There was silence between them, only the howling and whistling of the wind in the air. Finally, Harry spoke up. "I'm not going to say I never loved you. I'm not going to tell you that I don't love you anymore. I'll always love you, Hermione, and I can't help that."

He could see her falter, but her lips did not form new words to cut him with.

"I've missed you so much," he struggled to get out. "I don't care if you put up this fake cold personality, because I know it's not you. I'll admit I've slept with a lot of women, Hermione, and you're right. I wanted to get you out of my head because you hurt me so much. But now –" he paused as he ran a hand through his thick, ebony hair, "I'm used to being hurt, Hermione. I'm really used to losing people that I care about. I haven't got a family, you know that. The Weasley's are the closet thing I've got – and you. I thought I had you."

Her breath was caught in her throat as he paused once more. She had promised herself she wouldn't break, she wouldn't break, but here she was already defeated.

"Do you think, Harry, you're the only one to be let down by the ones you really loved?" Hermione retorted calmly though she could feel the tears seeping up into her eyes. "I never told you what Viktor did. I never actually told you."

"He hit you," Harry answered. "I know –"

"No!" she shrieked as the tears began to cloud her eyes losing everything she worked for. "You don't know, Harry. You assumed he only hit me, but – but it's more complicated."

He waited for her to continue as he listened to her ragged breathing and choking tears.

"Everything had been perfect, you know?' her voice was so high and pitiful she hated herself, but Hermione had to tell him. "And I don't know what I did to make him – to make him not love me anymore. He hit me, he – he violated me. I thought it was once, I thought he had a bad day because you know what? I really loved him; I didn't believe or thought I loved him. I loved him. But he did it again. And then he did it again, and again. He was the biggest mistake of my life to tell him I loved him and to let him continue to hurt me."

"Hermione," Harry said softly, listening to her strangled sobs. "You should –"

"I should have left earlier; I should have told you; I should have done something!" Hermione screamed as she pulled the ends of her long hair. "I know what I should have done, and obviously I didn't!"

Harry suddenly grabbed her hand. "You did do something. You did the right thing, you always do."

"Then why am I here?" she said nastily through clenched teeth and rapid tears as she gave an attempt to pull her arm away.

"Because you love me," Harry said slowly. Hermione stared back as Harry still held her hand. "I've always loved you, Hermione. I've never been much of a man to admit it to you until now."

"Do you know how much I want to disappoint you right now and tell you that I don't love you back?" she spoke softly. "I let a man love me, Harry, and you know what he did to me. Here I am, almost a year later and I'm still not completely healed."

Harry gripped her hand in anticipation to hear what she would say next. The snow fell more quickly and heavier than it had just seconds ago.

"I won't hurt you –" he broke the silence when she refused to.

"You can't promise me that, Harry," Hermione cut in softly. Harry built himself up for what he thought was coming next. "But you're going to be the chance I'm going to take. If you hurt me, Harry, then so be it. I don't want to be afraid of loving anymore. I don't want to be afraid of a man to stop loving me – if they ever really do."

It was then when they both realized how close their faces were. Harry stared at her striking face surrounded by her long, curly russet hair. As he leaned forward, he felt her hand on his cheek. She pulled him in tight to a kiss he knew he would never forget. In what he felt was a short amount of time, Hermione pulled away from him, staring deeply to read all his inmost thoughts from his emerald eyes.

"I'm cold," she whispered in his ear as the snow covered the tops of their heads more heavily.

Harry pulled her ever closer into his lean frame. "I can help."

Had no one been peering from their windows, they would have missed the sight of a love struck young couple wound in each other arms and heated kiss. But someone was, his red head bobbing with his arm around Jewel, now his girlfriend once more strangely enough, and both raising their glasses of champagne to a toast that included more growing up, leaving a hell and being best friends till the end of time. Of course, Ronald Weasley could not forget the most important toast of all.

To falling in love and holding on tight.

The End

A/N: As for my new stories, I'm not really going to have it to be anything like this. Also because of TDH, I'm probably going to be mostly write Maurder Era stuff & it will definately be out soon enough.

No, sorry loves, there won't be an epilouge. I'd rather have you all imagine the perfect ending then crush people's dreams which I probably am with this ending.

So, on to new stories right? Right, talk to you all soon!