"-Or worse, expelled!" It was with that Hermione Granger spun on a heel and left the two boys staring after her. She just barely heard the comment from Weasley and the noise Potter made from the back of his throat, in confirmation. Who asked them? It doesn't matter what they think. They can go and meddle into whatever they please, as long as they leave her out of it and when they get expelled, she'll throw in an I-told-you-so.
Entering her dormitory and sitting on her bed, opposite of a snoring Lavender Brown, she kicked off her shoes and yanked off her cloak in a swift tug. Her mind was spinning a million miles a moment, and her eyes were tearing up and she wasn't quite certain as to the reason. Taking a deep, shuddering breath, she shoved the three-headed dog and the trapdoor to the back of her mind and focused on the reason she felt like crying.
Why couldn't they leave it alone? Why was she dragged into this? She didn't need a fiasco like this distracting her from her schoolwork. She needed to impress her parents, she needed to show them what she could do. She needed to show someone that she could be whatever she wanted to be. She wasn't completely certain who she was showing other than her parents, but maybe she was showing herself. Maybe she needed to confirm with herself that she could do this, that she could go to a wizarding school and not horrible at all of the subjects. She could have muggles for parents and be the top student in her charms classes. And while she's at it, the top student in the rest of the classes too.
Blinking back tears, she laid back on her bed and pulled the blankets over her head. Staring at the darkness enveloping her, she tried not to be as homesick and lost as she felt. She told herself that the words people said to her were nothing- that she would be bright. Sniffling and roughly wiping away a tear, she smiled sadly to herself. She had been saying to herself the whole time at Hogwarts- when she's seventeen and graduating, she just want's to be able to look back and say, 'I made it.' And maybe she would. The names and the teasing will make her stronger. She won't sink down to that level, won't even parry the insults. She'll shake it off and suck it up and focus on her work and maybe, just maybe if it's the right time and with the right people, she could make a few friends or fall in love a few times along the way. Hermione Granger, she told herself, you will make it. A bright witch, that's what she'll be. The brightest witch in her classes - and while she's at it, the brightest witch of her age.