A/N: AP exams are officially over! Hooray! Although, this is the last chapter I have prepared at least a little bit, so the next update will take a little while. But now that I have more time, I am hoping it to be out soon! However, if anyone has any suggestions, I'd be happy to take a look at them as I prepare the next chapters!

This chapter is a little confusing, because I switch between characters a little bit, but I think it's okay.

P.S. Don't worry the Draco/Hermione stuff is on its way...

Chapter nine: Trouble with the Slytherins

Light peered through a crack in the bed hangings on Hermione's bed. Her eyes fluttered open and she rolled over. The clock by her bed told her it was still early, and that classes wouldn't begin for some time. Groaning, she sat up. The other girls in her dormitory were still fast asleep from the looks of things.

Deciding to get a head start, and maybe get a little preemptive reading in, Hermione touched her feet to the cold stone floor. She grabbed her toiletries bag and headed for a refreshing shower.

After showering, Hermione stood in front of the mirror to brush her teeth. She stood examining her new self, and her new appearance. Her now almost-black hair was drying straight, and her blue eyes glared at her from under long black eyelashes.

Should I hate myself for liking the way I look now? She thought. Is it wrong that I feel more confident this way?

No, she decided. This was a new year for her, and the start of pretty much a new life. She was going to enjoy it. And with Malfoy being civil towards her, and having allies within Slytherin, things might not be so bad after all. She finished brushing her teeth, and walked out of the bathroom smiling.

She got changed into her new school robes, combed her hair, and pocketed her wand. She grabbed one of her new spellbooks and headed down to the common room.

Hermione sat reading for what seemed like hours before people started filtering out of the staircases yawning. Harry and Ron were some of the last ones out, and they headed down to the Great Hall together.

At breakfast, people kept throwing curious looks at Hermione, but it seemed she did not notice. She was completely absorbed in her book and her meal. Harry and Ron noticed though, and glanced at each other with worried expressions. A few minutes later, Ginny joined them, and threw a furious glance at a group of Ravenclaws who were throwing furtive glances at Hermione and talking in hushed tones.

"What's up Hermione?" Ginny asked with a smile. Hermione didn't respond. "Good book Hermione!"

Hermione finally looked up from her book and smirked at Ginny, who was sitting next to Ron on the other side of the table. Ron fell off the bench backwards.

"Ron! Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, but... Blimey, Hermione, you reminded me of Malfoy for a minute there," he replied squeakily.

"Don't be ridiculous Ronald. It's Zabi- Blaise... who I'm related to. Malfoy's got nothing to do with it," she said.

"You're a little more than related to him Hermione," Harry spoke up. "You're his twin sister after all. Now that I think of it, I've seen him in the library on more than one occasion. It's surprising that we didn't realize your relation sooner."

Ron just continued to star open mouthed at her. Ginny was recovering from a fit of giggles from the combined effects of Harry's comment and her brother's fall.

"Close your mouth please Mr. Weasley. Gryffindors do not chew with their mouths open." It was McGonagall, who had come around to distribute their schedules.

Ron's ears turned pink, but he nodded.

"No!" Ron cried. "Double potions with the Slytherins, first!" There was a collective groan from the rest of the sixth years who were taking Advanced Potions around him.

"Well, it is almost time to go anyways. We should try not to get any points deducted before class even starts," Hermione pointed out. Harry and Ron reluctantly agreed, and they headed towards the dungeons.

Ten minutes later, the trio was sitting in potions class, brewing their first potion of the year. Snape hadn't even looked up from his work as they walked into the classroom. He simply pointed to the chalkboard, and directions started to write themselves across it.

Now, however, he seemed finished with whatever he had been doing, and was walking around the classroom, inspecting work.

"Very nice Mr. Malfoy," he stated as he passed. Hermione hid her face behind her hair and bent low over her potion so he would not recognize her.

"Weasley, you might as well just throw this out. It looks nothing like it should," he waited for Ron to retort so that he could deduct points, but Ron simply cleared his potion and started over. Hermione was looking at him curiously, and she did not even see Snape sneak up behind her. He was clearly scrutinizing the concoction, looking for mistakes. When he didn't find one, he just made to move on.

Phew... Hermione thought. But just then he turned around. He looked at Hermione for a minute, and suddenly a smirk appeared on his face. Oh no. I spoke too soon.

"Hmm... This potion is good. I have only seen this kind of meticulous, know-it-all work in one other student," he sneered. "Going for a new look Miss Granger?"

The Slytherins sniggered at the front of the dungeon. She didn't say anything, but continued to stir her potion. He just wants you to say something so he can take points away from Gryffindor. Don't give him the satisfaction.

Apparently Snape lost interest quickly, because he turned around and sauntered up the aisle to his desk soon after, his black robe billowing behind him.

Hermione bottled her potion and quickly gathered her supplies when the bell rang. She walked swiftly out into the corridor before anyone could say anything to her.

"Hermione!" She turned around and saw Harry and Ron rushing up to her. "Don't let him get to you. This will all die down soon."

"Will it Harry? I just got over everything this summer, and it had finally died down. And then I come here and it's like doing it all over again! I just need to be alone for a little. I have to go to Arithmancy. I'll see you at dinner." With that she slung her bag higher onto her shoulder and walked off towards her next class.

"That will be all for today! You all did an excellent job on your first day back, so no homework!" Everyone sighed in relief at Professor Vector's last words. Hermione gathered her books and headed into the hall to meet Harry and Ron for lunch.

She could tell that people were staring at her, but was determined not to let it bother her. She didn't want anyone, especially the Slytherins, to see her cry. She pretended to be absorbed in a book as she walked quicker.

"Hey Zabini!" Someone called in a singsong voice from behind her. It sounded like a Slytherin, it definitely was not someone familiar. Hermione ignored him.

Trying not to let it bother her, she continued to absorb herself in her book when smack! She ran straight into someone. Her books toppled to the floor and scattered, her wand rolled off somewhere behind her. "Going somewhere Zabini?"

Hermione looked up into the face of a rather burly looking seventh year Slytherin. Very soon his friends arrived from behind Hermione. She could see that a few of the group were from her year as well.

"We've been meaning to talk to you since you arrived, but you have always been surrounded by your lovely Gryffindor friends. You may be a Zabini now, but we know what you really are."

A few of them picked up Hermione's books and threw them back and forth. She could even see Pansy Parkinson snickering with her usual gaggle of Slytherin girls in the background. Without being able to stop them, tears began to form in her eyes. She had been the blunt of Slytherin ridicule before, but never had they taken the time to corner her and verbally abuse her.

"Oh look, the Wanna-be-Pureblood is crying..."

Blaise left Professor Vector's classroom shaking his head. That was the second teacher to question him about his "new family". He knew it was just the first day back, but honestly, the gall to ask questions about his home and personal life was amazing.

He turned a corner and his stomach groaned. He quickened his pace to make it to lunch. Farther down the corridor, a group of people were gathered. As he got closer, he could see that they were all Slytherins. Wondering what on earth they were doing out here when lunch had just began, he approached the crowd. The first person he saw was Draco, leaning against the wall near the outside of the circle and smirking, twirling his wand in his hand.

"Drake, what the hell is going on here?" Draco continued to smirk at whatever was going on, Blaise thought he could hear sobbing. Suddenly realizing that Blaise had arrived and spoken to him, Draco gave a little jump, and looked frantically between his best friend and the Slytherins for a second.

"Draco wha-? No... You've got to be kidding me..." Blaise pushed roughly through the group of people and arrived in the middle with a terrible look on his face. He looked over and saw Hermione crying as those around her tossed her wand around and ripped apart her books.

"What are you people doing!" Everyone stopped and it got very quiet.

"We're just having some fun Blaise! You said you didn't even like her anyway," one of the seventh years spoke up.

"You are all acting like first years! Cornering someone and taunting them! This is my sister! It doesn't matter if I don't like her, you will not touch her ever again! Got it!"

"Okay, okay, jeez..."

"Come on Hermione..." Blaise went over to Hermione and grabbed her arm. "Draco, get her stuff."

Draco looked as though he were about to protest, but when he saw the murderous look in his friend's eyes, he waved his wand to gather Hermione's stuff, and followed Blaise and Hermione back in the other direction.

Hermione didn't know how they knew where it was, but it seemed as though they were taking her to Gryffindor Tower. Too upset to care, she let Blaise lead her away.

Once outside her common room, Hermione whispered the password so that Blaise could not hear. The Fat Lady threw contemptuous looks at the two Slytherins alongside her. Blaise helped her through the portrait hole. Outside, Draco was debating whether or not it would be safe to enter. All the Gryffindors were probably down in the Great Hall, and he was itching to see inside, this might be his only chance...

Right as the painting was about to close, he lunged and opened it back up. Hurrying inside, he looked around. If he was purely honest with himself, he would have said he preferred this room much more than his own. The fire burned bright, and there was a cozy demeanor that the Slytherin common room, down in the dungeons, could have never pulled off. Seeing Blaise guiding Hermione to an armchair, Draco settled himself against the wall right near the portrait hole.

"Come on Hermione," Blaise said. "Just relax and you'll be f-"

"Be what Blaise? Be fine? This is the first time you've spoken more than a few harsh words to me! Don't presume to tell me when I will or will not be fine!"

"I wasn't, I didn't think that-"

"That's the whole point isn't it? You didn't think! You suddenly care for me now, when all the time I've been at Zabini Manor you've done nothing but ignore me! You even told your friends that you didn't give a damn about me!"

Draco's ears perked up. She had heard their conversations? And she even had the guts to curse and shout at Blaise. Blaise, whom he had never seen more docile, was now staring at his sister as she yelled at him.

"And now, when your friends attack me in the hall, you decide you've finally got to act! Even though your best friend stood by the whole time and did nothing!" The two of them both sent looks in Draco's direction, and he shifted uneasily. The resemblance between the two was unnerving. "The two of you make me sick! You know, I actually thought this year would be better, now that I had a brother to look after me, and I thought I wouldn't have as many enemies in Slytherin, but things have just gotten worse! And people who you two are friends with murdered my own parents! Do you even realize that! I've lost two parents this summer! I might seem fine, but I'm not!... I-I'm not!"

With that, Hermione broke down into tears. The deaths of her parents, and the way her new life had started out finally began to catch up with her. She collapsed onto the couch behind her. Blaise, who had clearly never comforted anyone before, looked torn between hauling it back out of the door, and staying to help her. He finally decided on the latter, and sat down on the couch beside his sister, pulling her into an awkward half-hug. She clutched at his robes, crying.

Draco, meanwhile, was pretending he was a part of the wall. It was weird enough that he was even in here. Realizing he was still holding Hermione's bag, he walked over and lay it on an armchair. With a feeling of renewed dread, he heard footsteps, and the portrait hole opened...