Ok, here it is! My first ever chapter! If you happen to come across this story, and you quite like it, please review or recommend it or whatever. I am completely new to this but I'm so excited to get stuck right in. Well, I don't really have much else to say. Here goes. Enjoy :)

1. First Encounters

Hermione Granger stepped onto platform 9¾ without the usual feeling of excitement bubbling in her stomach. Instead, she felt a certain anticipation as she stopped and waited for the oncoming train that would all too soon come into view, ready to whisk her away to a world where she was no longer considered an outsider. At Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, she could openly be herself. She no longer had to hide away her differences, pretend like she was 'normal'. Somewhere in the world, she was accepted; because at Hogwarts, you could be what it was not possible to be in the normal world- the 'muggle' world- and no one would judge you for it. Supposedly.

That's what Hermione had believed throughout her first year at the school, and her first year as a witch. Coming from a muggle background, she'd found it hard to fit in there when she knew inwardly that she wasn't like the other children, or even her own parents- the good old faithful dentists. She was special, and at Hogwarts, she found she could finally express herself in every aspect; minus a few hindrances in the form of stuck up pure-bloods who thought muggle-borns had no right to be of magical ethnicity.

However, this year- her sixth at Hogwarts- she was finally starting to consider the fact that the school may no longer be the safe haven for all magic folk she had once upon a time believed it to be. No longer was it secure, certainly not after the multiple infiltrations by Death Eaters such as Barty Crouch Jr. or Peter Pettigrew. Danger was finding its way inside the building in many different forms, slipping through the cracks, barely whispers in the shadows. The wizarding world was becoming a darker place, and as she grew older, Hermione found she could see through the veil of false security more vividly than ever. This year was certainly going to be a lot different.

The sound of the train wheels emitting an ear-splitting screech as they skidded to a halt on the tracks was what jolted Hermione to her senses. Despite staring mystified at the Hogwarts Express for at least a minute, she had failed to compute the fact that the train had rolled pleasantly up to the station and was now patiently waiting for students to board it. Shaking her head, Hermione pulled her woollen jacket straighter, smoothed down her acid wash jeans and reached to grab her rather ginormous suitcase which stood beside her just a couple of inches below her height of 5'5''. Her wand was already neatly tucked away in the waistband of her jeans, but unfortunately she hadn't been able to take her cat, Crookshanks, to the station after insisting she travelled alone this year. Despite wishing her parents were by her side to wave her off like they usually did, Hermione was glad they weren't present as that meant she didn't have them to worry about on top of everything else.

Sighing, she began to haul the suitcase towards the open doors of the waiting train in short bursts by dragging the mammoth trunk across the platform an inch at a time. It was tiring work: the broken buckles lining the side of it kept slapping cruelly against her arm, and the case itself kept tilting at odd angles due to fact the bottom left corner was slightly more worn, making it unbalanced. It had been easy bringing the case to platform 9¾ and through Central Station with the help of a suitcase trolley. But the trolley had had to be left at the entrance for safety purposes, or else the entire platform would have been littered with them as all the other Hogwarts students struggled profusely with their own suitcases.

Hermione grunted with the effort as she continued to pull her bag along. If only you were allowed to use magic outside of school grounds- then she could have levitated the case all the way into a train compartment. But no, rules were rules, no matter how much she ridiculed them. This particular rule did irritate her quite a lot, as surely someone unlikely to cause trouble, such as a prefect, could use magic as soon as they were out of a muggle's sight? Maybe that was an idea she could present to the heads of house at the next house meeting, since she was, in fact, a prefect. She had been appointed the position at the beginning of her fifth year, and would continue to be so right up until the end of school.

Smiling to herself, Hermione finally managed to get her bag onto the train by jumping on first then pulling her suitcase in behind her with enough momentum to almost send her tumbling backwards against the doors of a nearby compartment. Glancing up, she could see many other students suffering the same problems, some with even more bags and cages for their pets, although they did have friends, parents, and siblings old enough to use magic to help them. It was the first time Hermione had really taken in her surroundings, and in surprise she noticed how crowded and flustered the platform had become in a matter of minutes. She had arrived early in order to get an empty compartment, but it looked as though many other students all had the same idea. Now, the entire place was heaving as more and more students appeared through the walls in a steady stream.

The fusillade of shouts and screams and whistles blowing grew even louder as Hermione began her search for an empty compartment. Luckily, she found one merely a few steps down the corridor from where she boarded the train. Hurriedly, she shoved her suitcase inside and slammed the glass door closed, blocking out all the unwelcome noise behind her. Perfect. That was all she needed. Some peace and quiet.

'Hermione!' Someone yelled her name in a somewhat lively tone, and then proceeded to rap harshly against the glass of the compartment door. Peace and quiet- in my dreams, Hermione thought to herself as she rolled her eyes before turning slowly to face her friends Ron Weasley and Harry Potter, who stood out in the corridor, huge smiles of excitement plastered on their faces. It was Harry who, at that moment, slid the door back open, letting the tidal wave of chaos wash back over her.

'Hey,' Hermione greeted as her friends shuffled in and quickly stored their suitcases away in the overhead compartments, including Hermione's.

'Whoa, Hermione,' Harry puffed as he lifted her case up and slotted it away. 'What do you have in there?'

'Oh, quite a lot as I only brought one case,' Hermione explained, settling herself by the window. She looked up at Harry, who came to sit opposite her, and quirked an eyebrow. 'The books will weigh quite a bit too.'

'Bloody hell,' Ron exclaimed, plonking himself down beside Harry. He scratched his bright orange hair as he stared at Hermione in amazement. 'How did you manage to fit everything in that thing? I've got my mum to bring more cases at half term full of all my winter stuff, and even then I would've packed more if I'd had the room.'

'I do have the room,' Hermione continued. 'I used an undetectable extension charm, so, everything fits in one case,' she paused and smiled at Ron and Harry's blank expressions. 'What?' she cried innocently. 'It's practical.'

'You,' Ron started, 'are amazing.' He threw his arms up in a rather dramatic display of disbelief. 'Why didn't I think of something like that? You're so clever- it's annoying. Wait-, ' he stopped suddenly, looking as startled as a rabbit caught in headlights. 'Are you allowed to do something like that?'

Hermione rolled her eyes for the second time. 'Does it matter, Ron? It's undetectable!'

'Since when did you become all rebellious?' Ron questioned, leaning forward to slap her knee in a playful gesture. 'Does it matter? I though you lived by the rules.'

'Of course I'm allowed,' Hermione shot back, although, thinking about it, she wasn't quite sure. 'I'm a prefect, remember.'

Ron's face darkened at that, which made Hermione frown. What had she said? 'Yeah, I'm aware,' he said bluntly. 'I'm one too, remember that? But what I don't remember is being told the rules don't apply to me...'

'Ron, what is it with you? Why are you mad at me all of a sudden?' Hermione demanded, folding her arms. She was tempted to roll her eyes again, but she was pretty sure that would just anger Ron more now that he was- unusually- in a bad mood.

'I'm not,' Ron scowled, mimicking Hermione's movements by crossing his arms over his chest as well.

'Well, your tone of voice say's differently,' Hermione scowled back. 'Honestly, Ron, I've no idea why you're like this. What have I done now?'

'Nothing! Like I said, I'm fine, I'm not in a mood' Ron repeated. 'I was just thinking of something, that's all.'

'Oh?' Hermione said, one eyebrow raised. She leaned forward onto her knees, staring at Ron with her big, soft brown eyes. 'And, what were you thinking of?' When Ron didn't reply, she took a deep breath, and tried again. You had to be patient with Ron. 'Clearly, something is bothering you. Harry and I, we're your friends, so you can tell us.'

'What?' Harry said suddenly, looking up from the coin he'd been spinning repeatedly on the table by the window, oblivious to his friends bickering. 'What's up?'

'Oh, for god's sake, it's nothing. I just hate it when Hermione's all like "I'm a prefect and I can do whatever I want bla-bla-bla". It's so Slytherin.' Ron blurted, slumping back in his seat and shrugging at Harry who was looking at him slightly baffled.

'It is not,' Hermione glared. 'I am nothing like a Slytherin, Ron, how dare you say that about me!' She wondered what had brought all this on. Ron was always in an unpredictable mood, but it was usually due to his family- Percy, for example- or the Quidditch scores, or the teacher's he hated. It was rare he would start directing his aggression towards her. But clearly, she had ticked him off, because now he was comparing her to a Slytherin, of all people!

'I can say whatever the hell I want!' Ron cried, jumping angrily from his seat. Hermione rose with him, also fuming and wearing the same, heated expression.

'Oh, stop being so childish,' Hermione snapped in retort, her eyes- usually warm and gentle- flashing dangerously. 'I've just about had enough of you already, and the train hasn't even set off yet.' Ron opened his mouth the reply, probably by firing another insult, but Hermione cut him off. 'No, Ronald, I no longer care to hear what you have to say. Get changed,' she snapped, turning curtly to snatch up her school robes, which were already folded neatly besides where she had been sitting just moments before (she had removed them from the front pocket of her suitcase before storing it earlier). 'We have a meeting in the prefect's compartment at the head of the train,' she continued, stalking to the door. As she slid it open, she looked back over her shoulder. 'Or, did you forget your duties? I really hope you'll be there, because I live by the rules, and I'd hate for you to exploit them,' she finished, turning away once more with a flick of her fluffy brown hair.

She stepped out without another word, making sure to slam the door firmly behind her. Taking a deep breath, she was just about head off down the corridor, when she paused, and quickly slid the door open again to where Ron and Harry stood speechless, their mouths gaping open. Looking directly past Ron, Hermione gave Harry the biggest, warmest smile she could conjure. 'Bye, Harry,' she said, still smiling sweetly.

Harry blinked once. 'Bye...?' he started, but once again Hermione slammed the compartment door, letting it bang loudly once more. This time, she turned on her heel and sped off, without looking back. 'Hmmm,' Harry muttered to himself after a few long, tense seconds of silence. He scratched his scar nervously. 'Can't say I've missed this...'

'Ron is such an asshole,' Hermione hissed to herself, enraged, as she tried to desperately tug on her tights in the cramped toilet she had decided to change in, since she didn't feel like being all communal back in the compartment, and she hadn't spotted Ginny or any of her other friends in the other compartments on her way to the head of the train. 'I didn't even do anything wrong,' she continued to herself, still tugging desperately on the tights, which seemed intent on getting stuck over her knees.

'Oh, damn these stupid tights,' Hermione cursed, pulling on them so hard she toppled back against the sink. 'Ouch,' she hissed. 'Ok, ok, calm down, Hermione,' she told herself sternly, sitting down with a flop on the toilet seat. She forced herself to sit a few seconds before attempting to pull the tights the rest of the way over her thighs slowly and carefully. After that, she quickly slipped on her compulsory black pleated skirt and buckled shoes, then stood and smoothed down her clothes, spinning to face the small mirror that hung just above the sink, which was smothered in fingerprints and a smear of lipstick in the top right corner. Lipstick, Hermione thought to herself as she fixed her tie- gold and red stripes, the colours of Gryffindor. She smiled pitifully at her reflection, who smiled pitifully back. Who is there to impress at school enough to need lipstick?

Sighing, for what felt the hundredth time that day, Hermione made some final adjustments to her uniform before stepping back out into the corridor...smack into Ron, who ran straight into her with a cry of surprise.

'Hermione,' he gasped. 'I'm sorry,' he said, stumbling backwards in a daze.

'Don't worry, I didn't see you either,' she replied in a monotone voice, pursing her lips before removing a strand of hair that had blown into her face during the collision.

'No, not about that,' Ron rushed, his cheeks glowing with a red tinge. 'About earlier, it was out of order. Actually, it was just plain rude of me, and Harry and I talked and I realised- '

Hermione held up a hand for silence. 'Save it,' she snapped. 'Just...save it.'

'Hermione...' Ron started again, stepping forward, but she stepped back a pace just as he did.

'Come on,' she said plainly, beginning to walk off. 'We're both late now.'

'Oh...' Ron groaned. 'I am such an idiot,' he whined, smacking his hand against his forehead before trailing after his friend, who strutted on ahead. As he began to walk, the train decided it was a good time to set off. So, with another screech of its wheels the sharp shriek of a bell, it pulled forward abruptly, causing Ron to fall against Hermione's back yet again. 'Bloody hell...sorry,' he cried again, quickly pulling back to regain his balance. The train was now rolling forwards out of the station at a much smoother pace, although Hermione hadn't turned when he fell on her, she just continued walking, blatantly ignoring him.

She kept walking all the way to the prefect's compartment, where she finally stopped to slide open the door and march inside, Ron slipping in after her, head bowed.

'Sorry we're late,' Hermione called out in a clear voice, announcing their presence to the rest of the students gathered in the spacious area. Her eyes trailed over the interior of the compartment, which was much the same it was last time she had been in it, however it still managed to make her smile. The first time she'd had a prefect meeting, she had arrived so accustomed to years of the scratchy tartan seats, broken doors and flip up tables that seeing a compartment four times the size with lush, leather seating, a large mahogany table crowded with tea and cakes and lights with light intensity settings was almost unreal.

Everyone was already there when she and Ron entered: Ernie Macmillan and Hannah Abbott from Hufflepuff were together by the window, Anthony Goldstein and Padma Patil sat opposite sporting their shiny Ravenclaw badges, and Pansy Parkinson hung on the edge of her seat as far from Ernie as she could possibly sit, alone. Correction, Hermione thought, everyone is here but Draco. This didn't surprise her, considering the Slytherins didn't seem to take their prefect duties all too seriously, instead deciding to exploit their power by never showing up to meetings and bullying the younger students into doing as they said. Hermione was even mildly impressed to see that Pansy had shown up at all, even though it was mandatory. In her opinion, Slytherins shouldn't even be given the positions, but Snape was grossly fond of his little serpentine slaves who found joy in deducting as many points from the other houses as possible and making people cry.

As usual, Professor McGonagall was stood by the compartment door as Hermione and Ron stepped through, a stack of parchment in her hands. 'Gryffindor,' McGonagall stated, addressing Hermione and Ron collectively by their house name as they arrived. 'You're later than usual, but no matter, the meeting has just started. Come in, come in,' she beckoned, passing them each a piece of parchment which contained a long list of all the events that would take place of the course of the coming term.

Hermione took her place next to Padma, and Ron followed cautiously, scooting silently in beside her as she exchanged greetings with the Ravenclaw prefects and smiled across to the Hufflepuffs. She began to scan through the list she was given as everyone got settled, and McGonagall slid the compartment door closed.

'Tea, Ronald?' McGonagall offered, waving a hand towards the cup set in front of him that was full to the brim of the steaming hot drink.

'Um, thank you, Professor,' Ron said with a weak smile, reaching for the cup and taking a huge gulp. His eyes bulged as he set it down again. 'Ow,' he whispered to himself, licking his lips profusely, 'hot.'

'Careful,' McGonagall said with a wry smile in his direction, 'it's quite hot. Anyway,' she continued, turning to face the rest of the prefects, 'down to business. Could you all please take a look at the schedule for the first week of term- '

Suddenly, there was a bang as the compartment door was thrown open so violently it caused McGonagall to jump and Ron to spill his tea over his robes. Hermione's head snapped up from the parchment she was scanning to see Draco Malfoy storm into the room, head bowed and hands shoved in his pockets. Without even a quick glance up he took a couple of massive strides to slide into the seat besides Pansy, who looked genuinely shocked to see him. His legs seemed to eat up the floor as he walked over, Hermione noted, and she wondered when he had got so tall.

McGonagall didn't utter a word as Draco took his seat, she only handed him the parchment she'd given to everyone else in silence, her lips drawn in a thin line. He snatched it from her grasp with long, spidery fingers, eventually looking up to read it with a grimace. He could have been beautiful if his grey eyes weren't so flat and dull, and his lips weren't stuck in a permanent scowl. Although, since fifth year, he had changed his hair from greasily scraped back to messily pushed forward, plus it appeared to be cleaner and somehow, not as stark white as it once was. This was a relief, because Hermione didn't think she could stand staring another minute at Draco's unearthly pallid skin tone and snow-white hair combination. His complexion literally made her feel unwell. Was he actually permanently ill or was it just the pallor of being a sickly little ferret? Not that she cared.

McGonagall cleared her throat. 'As I was saying...' she began, before launching into her usual prefect speech on the term's activities and guiding the first years. Normally, Hermione would be intently listening at this point, perched on the edge of her seat absorbing every little bit of information McGonagall spoke. Last year she had been so proud of her prefect role, and had taken it very seriously. For some reason, however, this year she felt different.

It was still a nice feeling to be elected, yes, and of course she still wanted to help people and keep the school organised but...this time round she felt less inclined to dedicate her entire school life to her work and her duties. Shouldn't she be making the most of her friends and privileges this year? After all, it could be the last full school year she spent at Hogwarts, what with all that was going on in the wizarding world. That's a terrifying thought, Hermione deliberated, chewing absently on a strand of her hair as she gazed past McGonagall, ignorant to her words. In a year, or even less than a year, the world as she knew it could have completely changed- and everything and everyone she loved could become part of the chaos. Yes, she confirmed to herself. This year, I'm going to let loose and be less of the 'insufferable little know-it-all' I know I am.

'Alright, that's everything I needed to discuss with you,' McGonagall said, concluding her speech. 'Thank you for the suggestions Ravenclaw, I'll consider your opinions,' she carried on, nodding at the two students behind Hermione, but not before she gave her a quick, questioning look. 'If anyone has any questions you can just come up and ask me. You're all welcome to stay and help yourself to the selection of food we have here, and I'll be back in a moment.' And with that McGonagall was out the compartment with a sweep of her emerald green cloak.

As soon as she was out of sight Hermione didn't hesitate to leap up and head for the door. She really didn't feel like staying, although she would have usually stayed and sat with the Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws to catch up and discuss their prefect roles. Out of the corner of her eye she could also see Ron- who she had just climbed over to escape- reaching for a plate of jam tarts positioned at the centre of the table. Clearly, he was going to hang back, either because he knew Hermione wouldn't want him around or because of his love of food. Either way, it didn't matter to Hermione. She just wanted some alone time.

Once she got to the door, she tried tugging it open, but found it was somehow jammed. 'What in the world,' she muttered, spinning right into someone as she turned to ask for help. Startled, she tripped to the side, an apologetic look on her face as she turned to face the person who was stood behind her. Her expression immediately darkened when she realised she was facing Draco.

'Having problems, Granger?' he smirked, stepping forwards for his attempt at jerking the jammed door ajar.

'Oh, shut up, Malfoy,' Hermione spat back, watching as his arm muscles flexed and strained as he pulled against the handle, which must have really been wedged in position. After a few attempts, he was successful in prizing the door wide enough for someone to slip through.

He turned back to Hermione, pushing a loose strand of blonde hair out of his eyes, and gesturing to the gap with a sweep of his arm. 'After you,' he said mockingly.

Hermione pulled a face and stalked from the room as quickly as she could, not bothering to fire another insult at Draco again. She really couldn't be bothered to acknowledge the fact he had just bettered her at door opening. Peace and quiet: that was the ultimate goal.

Next chapter coming soon!