It was dark, the old desk lamp flickering ominously as the girl hunched over her keyboard, letting the ideas flow from her mind to her fingers. There was a sense of panic in the room as she wrote, the air thick with electric fear. A bead of sweat rolled down her face, lingering on her cheek like a teardrop.

Suddenly, the light went out, leaving the writer in darkness, her only light the ominous glowing from the computer's screen. She froze, heart racing. It couldn't be…not now…please, not now…

She felt herself get thrown backwards, slamming into the wall. As she raised her head, groaning in pain, she saw it. The cruel, vicious monster she had been running from for so many months.

And then she was drowning. Down, down, down into a deep pool of papers, slicing her skin and burying her deep. Pencils stabbed the girl as she tried to surface, and books fell from great heights, maiming her, sending her father into the abyss…

And…that is why I have not updated in, what, two months? I am sorry, school is hell, blah blah blah, I've been working on other stories, blah blah blah, and my cousin STILL has not returned my copy of HPSS. So…yeah. Please, please forgive me, and please, please ENJOY!

Oh, also I made a cover for this story. Link on profile!

Hermione and Harry sat in an empty compartment, the air thick with anxiety. Hermione had her nose buried in her new favorite book Hogwarts, A History, but her eyes never moved from their spot, and she never turned the page. Harry stroked the wings of his new pet, a snowy owl named Hedwig that Hagrid had bought him for his birthday. Neither said a word.

It had been a stroke of luck that they had even found the train in the first place. If Hermione hadn't stayed up the night before reading her school books, they would never have guessed to run through the barrier between Platforms Nine and Ten.

As the countryside rolled past, Harry grew a bit bored. "Hermione? What are you reading about now?" He had stretched across the seat where he sat, head resting against the window. The young girl looked up, excited.

"Oh, Harry, this place sounds so wonderful! We get to take classes like Potions and Charms and History of Magic! We'll get to learn so much! And the houses! Well, there's four of them, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, Gryffindor, and Slytherin. I think Ravenclaw would be the best, but Gryffindor would be great as well. I mean, Dumbledore himself was a Gryffindor…"

As Hermione trailed off, Harry thought back to his outing in Diagon Alley. While most of it had been fun and exciting, the conversation the two siblings had with Hagrid still disconcerted him.

As they sat in the pub eating quietly, Harry asked Hagrid what happened to his parents. It wasn't the giant man who answered, though. It was Hermione.

"They were killed by an evil wizard named Voldemor-"

"DON' SAY 'IS NAME!" Hagrid hissed, looking around the room in a panic. Hermione shut her mouth, eyes wide.

"Why not?" Harry asked.

Hagrid looked a bit confused. "Er, well, yer just don' say 'is name, alrigh'? Just…don'."

Harry and Hermione shared a look, then the girl continued. "You're famous Harry, because, when Voldemort tried to kill you, the spell rebounded and killed him."

"Well, I don' think it really killed 'im," Hagrid said, taking a swig from his mug. "I think 'e's still out there, 'alf-alive…"

Harry was awoken by his thoughts as a red-haired boy came in, followed by a chubby, mousey-haired boy. "Oi. Any of you seen a toad? Neville's lost his." The ginger kid jabbed his thumb at the boy behind him, who looked close to tears.

"Oh, no. I'm so sorry…" Hermione said, biting her lip. Then she stared at the boy in front of her, cocking her head. "You've got dirt on your nose, you know that?"

The boy scowled, rubbing at the spot Hermione pointed to. They left quickly, but not after the loud one introduced himself as Ron Weasley. As soon as the door closed behind them, Hermione quirked her eyebrow at Harry. "Why are you so quiet?"

He shrugged, but she just glared at him. "What's wrong, Harry?"

"Nothing." But he said it too quickly, and Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Nothing? Right. Seriously, what's wrong?"

Harry sighed. "It's just, well… I can't stop thinking about Voldemort. And my parents."

Hermione walked over to Harry's side of the compartment, sitting beside him. "Oh, Harry. I'm sorry."

He smiled sadly. "And now I'm famous for something I had no control over. I didn't ask Voldemort to kill my parents. I didn't ask him to try to kill me. I just…I wish I had my parents back…"

Hermione pulled her knees to her chest, eyes on the ground. "I know, Harry. So do I." She fingered the small locket that hung from her neck, tears forming in her eyes.

He looked at her, then slung his arm around her shoulder. "But I guess there is one good thing about this."

Hermione looked appalled. "Good thing? What?"

"I have you as a sister."

Okay. Super short. I know. And stupid. I'm tired. I just wanted to get them on their way to Hogwarts. Lots o' drama ahead. Ron comes more into play next chapter. So does Draco. Ahaha…

Review Please!!!