Author's Note: Please read the second version of chapter 5 if you haven't already.

Chapter VI

Beautiful Strangers

"Thanks, I'm Hermione Granger." She told her with a smile in return.

"So how has your day gone so far? It's not easy being the new girl around here."

"I'm adjusting to it. It's a big change from back home."

"Yeah it must be a lot different than England. Especially because Forks is such a small town and everyone seems to know just about everyone's business."

They both quieted as the teacher started the class's assignment for the day. They were analyzing Flannery O'Connor's 'A Good Man Is Hard To Find'. Several mind numbing hours later she found herself being escorted to the cafeteria by a very peppy girl from her History class that had introduced herself as Jessica. Jessica seemed nice enough, but there was something about her that seemed off. It was like she was trying too hard to be nice to her.

They approached another gray building which looked just like all of the other ones. Behind those double doors there was a thrum of energy that could be felt from where she was. A boy she had met earlier named Mike opened the door for them to enter. She walked through the threshold taking a quick survey of the room. A look of jealousy overcame Jessica's face when she saw how Mike was treating Hermione even though she wasn't the least bit interested in him.

The tables were all pretty much filled except for a few. Everyone was involved their own conversations, and for once they were no longer staring at her. They made their way through the lunch line and picked out their food. Hermione picked up a salad and a apple juice. Jessica steered her over to a table towards the center of the lunchroom. They took their seats next to several others that she had seen in her classes. She took a sip of the refreshing sweet liquid and studied her surroundings. Everyone was carefree and enjoying their break from the confining spaces of the classrooms.

She noticed the girl she had sat next to in English was sitting with a few others, but these others felt different to her. They all seemed more serious and tense, which was a big change from all the others around them. The boy sitting next to Bella was gorgeous. He had messy bronze hair and topaz eyes. There was also a small yet extraordinarily graceful looking girl with short spiky black hair. Next to her there was another boy, but he had honey blonde hair. They were all amazingly good looking, and they all had the same colored eyes. She thought this was really strange, but her thoughts cut off when she felt the probing feeling of someone trying to get into her mind.

During their training Hermione, Ron, and Harry had all become skilled legimens and occlumens. She felt the probing g continue, so she gathered what force she could after not having practiced magic in a long time and forced the person from her. She took another look at the others in the room but no one seemed to be paying her any mind except for the boy sitting next to Bella. He had a startled look upon his face as he gazed at her.

I turned to Jessica and asked her, "Who's that boy sitting next to Bella?"

"Oh, that's Edward Cullen." She said rolling her eyes. "He never talked to anyone around here except for his brothers and sisters. Dr. Cullen and his wife adopted them all, but they all are like dating each other, which is really weird. At least that was until Bella Swan showed up. Those other two are Alice Cullen and Jasper Hale. They're both together." Hermione noted the note of malice with a hint of jealousy as she spoke of Bella.

Lunch ended shortly after that. The rest of Hermione's classes were uneventful. Hermione gave a sigh of relief as she made her way over to her car. She was a few feet from her car when she felt like she was being watched. She looked around when she saw the three siblings standing along with Bella next to a Volvo across the parking lot. They all looked at her like if they were trying to figure her out or something. She shrugged her shoulders and continued on her way. At least today happened to be Friday, so she wouldn't have to deal with whatever was going on with them until next week.

Hermione drove home thinking about what she would do over the weekend. There were a few guys that had suggested she go check out Port Angeles. They were excited about the races that were set up by some locals from around the area. Apparently they were very popular, because she overheard many of the people excitedly talking in the halls about a match between the two current top riders. Maybe she would make an appearance she thought as she continued on her way home.

Author's Note: A Good Man Is Hard to Find by Flannery O'Connor is one of my favorite short stories. Jacob will be coming up soon. He's not the main character so there will be less chapters of him, but I do need chapters of his life if this story is going to go the way I planned. Thank you everyone for reading, reviewing, and subscribing.