Disclaimer: Anything related to Harry Potter is not might, nor will it ever be. It all belongs to the amazing J.K. Rowling


Hermione's POV

A few months later.

Over the last few months, Hermione had found herself constantly torn between her Slytherin and Gryffindor friends. She tried spending time with all of the together, but it never ended well and they were arguing incessantly. Hermione found herself in the middle of each argument they had, she was always the one they turned to, she was the arbiter. Draco didn't get along with Harry and Ron, at all. They sometimes tried to behave, for Hermione's sake.

She had tried over and over again to bring them together but it always seemed to end with someone getting hexed or punched, they just never saw eye to eye, they were too different. Once, when the bickering got out of hand, Blaise had ended up with a black eye, from Ron's eager fist. Although, in the end, Blaise had gotten his revenge on the redheaded Gryffindor. Ron had gotten hexed that day, bat-bogey hexed! Their classmates had made fun of Ron for a week, much to Blaise's pleasure. The boys fought about everything, but more often than not, it was because of Quidditch, it always came back to that stupid game. Hermione still didn't understand it, even after Draco had tried explaining it to her multiple times. She just couldn't understand it. She couldn't and wouldn't. It was beyond her how her friends could bicker over and over again about that sport. She hated Quidditch as much as flying.

Theo was feeling the same way, he didn't grasp the fact that Quidditch was "Merlin's gift to wizards" - as Ron put it-, he just found it to be unnecessarily violent and quite frankly, useless. He and Hermione shared numerous opinions, that's what had made their friendship work as well as it has. Even thought they weren't really compatible, personality wise, and wouldn't naturally want to spend time together, somehow they still did.

Hermione often went to Theo for help on any schoolwork, -because they were the only ones in their year that actually paid attention to their marks-, or to get away from all the Quidditch talk. Theodore was a rather quiet fellow, some of their classmates steered clear of him for that particular reason, though Hermione found it was what made him, him. He was always present, watching, listening, but never joined in on the conversation. He was a silent witness, who only spoke when spoken to, which wasn't often, since people feared him. Hermione heard people talking. They referred to Theo as creepy and stalkerish. He knew what people were saying about him, but he couldn't care less, he had his friends and the rest could sod off.

As for Blaise, he was just always around, ready to crack a joke or just end an ear when one of his mates needed it. He was there for anyone who needed him, especially Hermione, who found that her Italian friend gave the best advice out of all her friends. Blaise was objective and resourceful. He found Hermione to be refreshingly different. He liked her, as a friend of course. He and Theo had made a pact not to like her too much. They knew Draco would most likely hex them six ways to Sunday if they did. Blaise knew Draco had a hard time seeing her with Potter and the Weasel every time he went to talk to her. It's like they were doing it on purpose, to keep him away from her, which only made him angrier. Their strategy never worked though, Hermione and Draco somehow found a way to see each other. They both liked the library, so that had become their usual meeting spot.

Draco had a temper, Hermione found that out fairly quickly, what with Harry and Ronald constantly nagging at him. He also got very protective over her. Once, in Defense Against the Dark Arts, professor Quirrell made a snarky comment about how Muggle-borns were inferior and Draco jumped up from his seat and called the teacher a stuttering idiot, which was completely true. Hermione had gotten used to that side of her blond friend, she had actually grown to mildly enjoy it, though she would never admit that to anyone.

OOOO

Flashback: A few months ago

That day, Hermione had her first spat with Ron. He claimed that she was worse than his mother, because she kept telling him to focus more on school and less on food and other pointless distractions. The curly haired girl worried about her red headed friend, she had tried to help him, but he lacks motivation. Ron was as lazy as one could get. He always copied Harry or Hermione's assignments and papers, which was beginning to irritate the latter.

Hermione had already finished next week's assignment on the Wiggenweld Potion and Ron hadn't even gone to the library to read up on it. She had asked him several times if he wanted to come with her, but he consistently found pathetic excuses not to. Being fed up with all that nonsense, Hermione merely mentioned that he might want to start doing his homework soon and stop with that dim-witted reasoning to do nothing.

It took Hermione about a week of long hours at the library, reading books upon books about the potion to finally complete the paper. She was the brightest in their year. If she had done it in a week, who knew how long it would take Ronald!

She and Ron had been bickering about the subject for nearly twenty minutes. The entire common room was now listening to the exchange, that had quickly gotten blown out of proportion. Insults were being thrown around and Hermione couldn't take it anymore. Feeling tears prickle her big brown eyes, she scurried out of the common room and as she heard the portrait click shut behind her, she ran as far away as she could.

After she had climbed the stairs and rounded multiple corners, she found herself in a rather large unused broom cupboard. Fighting back the tears that were threatening to spill, she choked out a cry and let go.

She was sitting on the cold stairs, thinking about what Ron had told her.

She knew she was bossy and a little condescending sometimes, but why did Ron, of all people, have to point it out constantly? Was she that awful for trying to help her friend? She realized then that she was doubting herself, she's never done that before. 'Come on Hermione, snap out of it! It's just Ron after all, he'll get through it. No need to question yourself. You're Hermione Granger, brightest witch of your age. Don't forget that.' She thought to herself.

Ron was supposed to be her best friend, yet he was the one who made her want to hide in an dusty closet and cry. Harry wasn't like that, he was always understanding and caring, as where Draco, Theo and Blaise. Why did Ron hate her so much, was it because she was a Muggle? What was it about her heritage that made people use it against her? When had being who she was, become a bad thing? Was being Muggleborn a bad thing?

The thoughts made her sob louder. So loud, that a certain blonde boy who was wandering the hallway had heard the weeping form afar. He got closer to the door, Hermione saw his shadow from under the door and froze, silent, waiting for whoever it was to keep walking and leave her be.

She sat there quietly, listening to her own heartbeats and waiting to be alone again. Unfortunately, the door swung open and in walked Draco. Not now, she just wanted to be alone, for once. She didn't want company, not right now!

Noticing he hadn't seen her sitting on the stairs, -probably because the room was completely dark-, she turned her back to him, not wanting him to see her like this. She kept crying quietly as Draco heard the noise and next to her on the steps. He move closer to her, offering her a shoulder to cry on, as he gently stroked her arm in a comforting manner. In that moment, Hermione was extremely grateful for Draco. He was always there for her, whatever she needed. He also knew exactly what to say to make her feel better. Hermione relished the fact that she and Draco had become so close. The notion frightened her a little. If he knew her well enough to know what to say to assuage her sadness, he also knew her well enough to inflict it. She felt strongly about Draco, she trusted him. He would never hurt her, not deliberately.

They sat in silence for thirty minutes before Hermione looked up to meet his stormy gaze. She saw the look of pure rage and concern. She assumed he would probably have a quick chat with Ronald, for doing this to her. Actually, the more she thought about it, there would most likely be very little chatting, seeing as how Draco would possibly hex the redhead into oblivion.

After a while, she grabbed his hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze, before getting to her feet and patting down her robes. She looked away from Draco, who was still eyeing her worriedly as he too, stood. He stepped closer to her, and gave her a small smile. Draco was taller than her, by a few inches. Blaise and Theo were as well. 'Probably all Slytherins are taller' she thought. It was pure nonsense.

"You know he's just a stupid git Hermione, don't let him do this to you." He whispered, while softly tucking a wild strand behind her ear.

Smiling shyly, she said "I am aware of that. I just can't seem to figure out why he does it." Looking into the void, thoughtful.

"Because he's a bloody oaf, that's why!" Huffed Draco, mildly irked.

"You should really stop with the insults, Draco, he is still my friend." Replied Hermione, annoyed.

"Well he deserves them, for treating you like a house elf, you're not his servant for Merlin's sake! He can do his homework alone, he should not shame you for wanting to help him when he is doing nothing, except stuffing his freckled face with bloody biscuits and whining about his poor grades!" Shot the blonde, equally as bothered.

Hermione didn't reply. There was nothing left to say, he was right. Ron was a lazy git! But he was still her best friend, and she would help him anyway. That was who she was. Draco would never understand that part of her, but it didn't matter. He was still there for her, always will be.

Tired of quarreling, she gave up, sighing loudly.

"I don't want to fight with you too, please. Can we just go for a walk?" She said, risking a pleading glance at him, waiting for some comeback on Ronald's stupidity.

To her utter surprise, he got up, moved next to her and offered her his arm. After she latched onto it, he smirked. That smirk Hermione loved so much was back. Quickly realizing she was staring, she flushed crimson. Draco knew Hermione liked his smirk, and for that, it was only reserved to her. It was their secret. He also knew Hermione flushed crimson as soon as she realized that she had been staring at his smirking face, thinking how much she liked it. It was their secret, always will be...


A/N: Hurray! I cannot wait for the bullying to start! That sounds a bit harsh, but still, its true.

Next chapter starts with a flashback to the summer after their first year is over, Draco tells his father about his friend, Hermione, the Muggleborn. Let us all see how bad Lucius can get, and how broken Draco will be.

Don't forget to share your ideas with me, I always love to read what you guys come up with.

Thank you, till next time :)