MARY-SUE AND GARY-STU DO HOGWARTS
CHAPTER FOUR: THERE'S MORE? WELL, SPANK ME DIRTY AND CALL ME GRANDMA!

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She was going to go insane. This wasn't right - it had never been this bad before. Every way that she turned, the students of Hogwarts were acting strange, their eyes glazed over and a forlorn smile plastered across their lips. It was not as though things had never dipped to this low of a level; she had dealt with far worse, in the past. She had encountered Voldemort and Snape's bastard (not to mention impossible) child, for Christ's sake!

There was something different about this one. Though Hermione had been through nastier situations, the beings that caused them had been twice as powerful as this 'Raven' seemed to be. So, how was she causing so much discord within the castle? Something didn't add up.

She was alone. In times past, there had always been at least student with enough sense left in them to help her figure out exactly what was going on, and how to banish the foul demon from the school. The thing that bothered her the most, however, was that she was definitely not safe. She had begun to feel it, seeping under her skin. She was eventually going to be affected by this Fiend, and that scared her to death. If she fell, then there would be no one to take her stead in this losing battle; no one to figure out how the Fiend had gotten here, why she was here, and what it was exactly that she was trying to accomplish. She needed to hurry before this could happen. With no defense, Hogwarts was completely vulnerable to the evil that had sprung upon it.

All she had on her side was Blaise Zabini, and she had to be careful about how much time she spent with him. For whatever reason, Raven had bent his thoughts on her, instead of her own, perfect self. That in itself was usually only enough to irritate Hermione to her very core (something along this line had happened before, and, more often than not, it seemed to be that other Slytherin that she despised so much). But, the fact that she was beginning to feel as though she would soon be unexplainably returning these feelings for Blaise was enough to actually scare her. And she had never been scared before in the face of this Evil.

"What a nice girl," Ron's overjoyed voice floated through Hermione's mind, ceasing her previous thoughts. "I can't believe she agreed to go on a date with me into Hogsmeade on Monday night!"

"Well, I got her to agree to go with me on Thursday," Harry boasted, as though Thursday was actually a superior day to Monday somehow.

Ron's face turned the same color as his hair. "That's only because you're the Chosen One-"

"Did you manage to see her dark mark?" Hermione nonchalantly asked, making her presence known to her sadly oblivious friends.

Ron and Harry stared at her as though she was crazy, and then exchanged a confused glance. "Dark mark? What are you talking about Hermione?"

"You know, the one she was showing off in Potions class earlier today?" Hermione reminded them as her stomach flipped unpleasantly in annoyance.

Harry slowly shook his head. "She wasn't showing off a dark mark-"

"Yes, she was!" Hermione shrieked. She couldn't take it anymore. "How could you possibly forget? She could make it disappear-"

"Well, that's convenient," Ron coolly cut her off.

"Yes, it is!" Hermione wrung her hands, urging him to understand her thoughts. "When and if anyone checks for it, she'll be able to hide it-"

"You mean like if we checked for it?" Harry took a cautious step towards her. "Look, are you feeling all right, Hermes?"

"I feel fine! It's you that-" she stammered as her mind realized just what he had called her. "Since when do you call me that?"

He shrugged. "I've always called you that."

Hermione stared at him, her newfound rage boiling directly beneath the surface of her skin. She tried to make rid of it, though, for she suspected that it was, once again, Raven's seemingly unavoidable influence.

"Ok, I'm going to let that slide," she carefully spoke through grated teeth. "But, Harry - and, Ron, you too - you're going to owe me an apology when this is all over."

Ron furrowed his brows in confusion. "What are you harping on about, Hermione?"

She pondered her reply, but then merely shook her head as she decided that she did not desire to further this conversation. "Never mind. Just ... leave me alone, all right?"

"Hey, cheer up," Ron gave her a hefty pat on the back. "You'll feel better next week. Raven's brother is coming to Hogwarts, just as soon as his paper's get transferred in from Durmstrang."

Harry and Ron walked away, leaving her to stare after them in shock. Her brother was coming to Hogwarts? Her brother?

A new pit developed in the lower regions of her torso as she considered this latest development. Hogwarts had never dealt with more than one at a time. This could only be catastrophic, if allowed to happen.

She only had a week before Hogwarts as she knew it was over. With the power of two Fiends pulsating within these walls, it was only a matter of time before she finally caved and Hogwarts' last chance was lost.

Her thoughts went immediately to the only boy that seemed willing (and capable) to help her with the task set out before her. She had sought solitude in the Gryffindor common room, since he had taken to following her everywhere she went, and she was in desperate need of a rest from his newfound infatuation.

Her break was over, though. It was time to get back to work.