Chapter 23: The Final Homestretch.

The six months passed so quickly, it felt like the Christmas holidays were just yesterday. The six months have finally arrived, and this means NEWTs are here. Walking around the castle, through the Great Hall, the Main Staircase, the Common Rooms, you can feel the stress and tension among the 7th year students. Just looking around, all I can see are students doing last minute cramming just to remember everything that they have to. I on the other hand, being the know-it-all, started my revision months ago, yet I am still stressing. I can't fail…I just cant.

Our first exam for potions was tomorrow. I sat in a corner of my common room, just re-reading my notes when I noticed a shadow cross over my notes. I looked up and saw Harry and Ron standing there looking panicked.

"What's wrong?" I asked them.

"We are going to fail. We can't do this!" Harry cried out with nerves. I shook my head in disbelief. These boys will they ever learn.

"Boys, you can do this. I mean come on, you defeated the Dark Lord, you can surely pass some exams." I pointed out to them in a strange calm voice.

"Some exams? Some exams! Hermione you are telling us they are just some exams! These exams can change the rest of our lives for better or for worse. I for one would like it to be for the better!" Ron stated. I sighed in defeat and signalled for them to sit down and they both complied. In pure Hermione fashion I handed them my notes for them to look at to see if it would help them. Harry read over them quickly and looked up at me.

"I know all this already," he said blankly. I smirked a smirk which would have put Draco to shame.

"Then you'll pass. And become an amazing auror." I answered watching them both. I watched as noticeably the worried frowns on their faces disappeared and they started to relax.

"We can actually pass this," Ron muttered.

DMHGDMHGDMHGDMHG

Two weeks have passed, and exams are finally over. A wave of calmness swept across the school as the seventh years were finally able to relax. All that could be heard throughout the school walls was friends joking and laughing as the enjoyed the last couple of weeks of school before the summer. It's hard to believe that this is the final year for me. No more Hogwarts. No more moving staircase. I'm going to miss it, all the good memories mixed with the bad. It was a Monday morning and we didn't have anymore classes. We were free to do as we pleased. Harry, Ron and I decided to have a stroll around Hogwarts and remember everything that has happened over the years. We started our tour by heading to the girls toilets where our friendship began after fighting off a troll. It was as if it all happened yesterday. Me crying on the floor by the sink, Harry climbing onto the trolls back, and Ron successfully casting Wingadeom Leviosa. The next stop was the third floor corridor. As we were walking over to it we bumped into Draco and Zabini. Draco smiled at me and gave me a hug and smiling at the boys.

"Potter, Weasley, Hermione you guys know Blaise. He's one of the only decent Slytherin's," Draco introduced. I smiled at him, and Ron and Harry nodded. Blaise shyly waved in return.

"What are you guys up to anyway?" Draco asked us.

"We are just remembering all the good memories here and going back to where they were." Harry answered, "Care to join?" he offered nicely. The two Slytherin's nodded with a slight smile, obviously happy to be included without being hinted at or forced by me. Draco held his hand out to me and I took it and we continued our walk to the third floor corridor. A few minutes later we arrived at the door that used to hold Fluffy the three headed dog.

"Why are we here then?" Blaise asked from where he was stood on the other side of Draco.

"This is where we worked out where the Philospher's Stone was being held," I answered still looking at the door.

"It was behind a door? How hard is that?" Blaise scoffed.

"There was a bit more to that," I began.

"Behind this door was a three-headed-dog called Fluffy, who belonged to Hagrid. It was vicious dog tried to bite our head off. And yet the only thing that was able to calm him down was music," Harry began.

"The reason Fluffy was there was to cover the trap door. The three of us jumped down the trap door and landed into a pit of Devil's snare. Hermione being the genius that she is, told us that we had to remain calm in order to free ourselves. Harry managed to listen to what she told us, but I was the only one that panicked. Hermione bless her new to being a witch knew that sunlight also affects devil's snare and she tried to find something in order to make a fire because she forgot she was a witch. Eventually she said a spell which fired of this blinding light and I was free." Ron continued.

"We then headed into the next room, which looked like a little birds. On the other side of the room was a locked door, and that is when we realised that the weren't birds but they were flying keys. And one of the keys fitted the lock to the door. Harry being one of the best fliers Hogwarts has seen took on this challenge. As soon as he touched the broom that was in this room, we realised the keys had been charmed to attack the flier, obviously believing that this person was the enemy. Harry flied his best and eventually caught the key, threw it to me and we opened the door and allowed Harry to fly threw." I added the next part.

"The next room we entered was a giant chess board. We were blacks and there were three pieces missing the rook, bishop and a knight. We all took the positions. And before you ask, it was like real wizard's chess. Each giant piece took a beating, and they all fell apart around us. Malfoy you know that Ron is a chess prodigy after the amount of times he has beaten you. Well in this game, Ron told me that I had to checkmate the king. I wasn't great at chess, but the fact the checkmate was down to me made me realise something was wrong. In order for us to win and move onto the next room, Ron had to sacrifice himself. I remember Ron's piece moving, he was a knight and the king then took him. I remember Ron screaming as he fell to the ground and was unconscious." Harry continued softly.

"We didn't even have time to make sure Ron was alright because we had to stop the person, who we thought was Snape from getting the stone. When we entered the next room there was a fire blocking our root and a fire blocking our exit route. But in the middle was a small table with a line of potions and a piece of parchment with a riddle on it. The riddle was signalling which potion will take us forward in our mission and which would take us back. I was the brains of our group so it was down to me to work it out. In the end I found out that there ws only enough potion for one person to go forward, so Harry continued and I went back to find Ron and send an owl to Dumbledore to help us." I added.

"So I went forward and it wasn't Snape who I came face to face with, but Professor Quirril. He didn't have a stutter anymore and he was looking into the Mirror Erised. He told me to look in the mirror and I saw myself holding the stone, and before I knew it, it was in my pocket. Then I heard another voice in the room and before I knew it Quirril has taken off his headscarf and there he was Voldermort attached to the back of Quirril's head. It shocked me but I never gave them the stone. Instead when they tried to attack me, they started to disintegrate as soon as they came into contact with my flesh. All because my mother died to protect me, I was untouchable." Harry finished.

"All of that happened in your first year?" Blaise asked in shock. The three of us looked at the Slytherin's and saw them looking at us in shock. We laughed; people have always underestimated us.

"If you are shocked about our first year, wait until you hear the rest of our escapades." Harry smirked.

"Hey, I'm the one that smirks around here!" draco cried out.

"Times change. Next stop Moaning Mrytle's bathroom." Ron called out.

DMHGDMHGDMHGDMHG

Before we knew it, it was dinner time. We had finished reminiscing and showing the Slytherin's what our school years have been like. Draco and Blaise have been suitably shocked by the adventures.

"I can honestly say that I am looking at you Gryffindor's in a whole new different light." Blaise stated as we walked to the Great Hall.

"I'm hoping it's good." I laughed.

"Draco, Blaise! What are you doing?" A voice screeched behind us. It could only mean one person. Parkinson.

"What does it look like Parkinson?" Draco drawled turning to face her.

"Looks like you are hanging around with Gryffindor's." she cried out.

"And she finally gets it. What do you want a medal?" Draco sneered, his true Slytherin prince out in full force.

"Careful Draco or people will talk." She pointed out.

"People talk anyway. And my high status means people know not to talk about me. I mean I am the Malfoy heir. You on the other hand Parkinson are a joke. You are the laughing stock of the Slytherin's. A young adult who became the lapdog of the person who she was obsessed with father, in order to be noticed. I don't know how you thought serving my father was the way to go. You are clinging, annoying and need a new person to obsess with, because you are not worth licking my shoes." He finished turning on his heel and heading into the Great Hall. Parkinson looked like she either wanted to yell, scream or cry. Or maybe a mixture of all three. I watched as Blaise turned around and went to follow Draco into the Great Hall.

"You aren't leaving me are you Blaise? You'll be my friend won't you?" she begged.

"Don't beg Pansy it is not becoming. And me and you could never be friends. You are obsessive and narrow-minded and I don't want to be associated with that. Being friends with you, will bring me down and I want to do good in the world. I want to be an auror and you will ruin me. I want to live me life the way I want to live it. You need to grow up. You still see the world with a divide between muggle-born's and purebloods when the world isn't like that. I'm a half-blood and I'm proud of it. And I don't want to be dragged into the pureblood politics of wanting to cleanse the world because that is what you and a few minority of people believe in. I'll promise you this Pansy, if you change and manage to see the world how the majority of people now see it, I will give you the time of day. Until then, I think Daphne is feeling a bit lonely, why don't you hang around with her?" Blaise finished and headed into the Great Hall. I watched, as Parkinson slowly turned red and growled out in frustration.

"You'll regret this Granger!" Parkinson screamed.

"You know what Pug, I don't think I will," I smiled as I headed into the Great Hall. This year had so many ups and downs, but as I took in my surroundings with my two best friends by my side. Seeing the smiling faces of my peers sitting at their tables. Luna had ventured over to our table and was talking with Neville and Ginny. Neville was gazing at Luna, Ginny was laughing and Luna was looking as dreamy as ever. I looked over to the snakes and saw Draco and Blaise laughing and chatting to their peers there was no malice or competition to be the best involved. Watching this scene unfold before my eyes, I can honestly say I have never been happier.

I'm sorry that this has taken over a year to update, but I had been so busy with uni, exams, work, holidays and this has literally been the only time I have sat down.

This is the end of Love of my Life my Soul mate, but I already have the first Chapter of a sequel written and posted so take a look, the sequel is called To Face the Fear. As I have now got more time to write, I shall try and update at least once every two weeks.

Hope you all have enjoyed my take on Dramione story.

But to my readers I have a question, I know what I want to happen in the sequel, but it you have ideas of what you would like to happen, let me know by either PM or review and I shall see what I can do to incorporate it in.

Thank you to everyone that reviewed, favorited, followed me and the story, it means a lot. Without all of you, I never would have been able to finally finish this.

The end.