Hermione was ten years old when her first bout of accidental magic appeared. She watched a movie about a little girl who could make things levitate when she was eight. It was illogical of course, young Hermione knew, but she simply couldn't shake the urge to try. She'd be more than a know-it-all. She'd be magical.
Hermione never tried, she didn't want to be disappointed in herself.
Even though she resisted the urge to try to make her school books float into the air for two years, one night she was overwhelmed by a large crowd in a carnival her parents dragged her to. That day, she didn't make her books fly, Hermione sent a man, who was shouting particularly louder than the rest, soaring straight into a tiny rubber duck pond.
Hermione shook her head and smiled to herself while the memory dissipated. She stretched her legs across the floor of her empty carriage inside the Hogwarts train. No one was sitting with her this year, similar to her first year. She figured it was alright, the only other person who'd sit with her the past few years was Daphne Greengrass. The other Slytherins tolerated her at times, but never truly accepted her. Before boarding the train, Daphne grabbed Hermione's hand and excitedly explained that Theo invited her to sit with him.
"I'd been setting this up for years, Hermione! Carefully dancing around him finally paid off." Daphne was squeezing Hermione's hand now, every word her smile grew. Hermione could recall the many nights they spent in her bed while Daphne would brush her long blonde hair and told Hermione all about Theo.
"That's wonderful Daph," Hermione nodded. "I hope you have fun."
Hermione wasn't surprised, Daphne had been sending her letters all summer about the fun she's had with Theo and Blaise. Though, she wouldn't exactly call it fun. Every word Daphne spoke around him was calculated, carefully setting up the chess pieces and letting the game begin. The game, apparently, began this year. Hermione was grateful it started fifth year, she figured it would give her much more time to study for her O.W.L's. She loved Daphne, even though Hermione came from a completely different world. In their first year, Daphne stayed up all night looking at hair spells when Hermione told her that she didn't know how to make her hair less frizzy. The very next morning Daphne gave her a paper scrawled with spells that might work. The first few made Hermione's hair knotted and gross, but some of them worked well enough that her hair was finally manageable.
Hermione was suddenly shocked out of her reminiscence when she heard a loud bang to her right.
"Malfoy, what do you want?" Hermione snapped her book shut and shot the snowy-haired boy a menacing glare. She had years of experience that would make any sensible person cower beneath her gaze. However, she learned from the best, someone who had perfected it the day he was born.
"Granger," Draco stepped inside the stuffy cabin and lowered his eyebrows. "Daphne kicked me out of the cabin. The only other open one is filled with Weasley's and Potter. Somehow, I decided that you were less vile than them." He finally sat down, satisfied with the eye roll Hermione offered.
"I'm shocked, truly," She muttered and opened back up her book. If she wasn't able to focus before, now she felt like there were ants crawling down her back. The uneasy feeling that was always present around Malfoy didn't seem to vanish after a summer away. The words beneath her gaze swam and danced in a pool of white water.
Hermione carefully closed her book once more and directed her attention to the foggy glass beside her. The view zipped past, displaying splotches of greens and browns. She frowned. The world was moving too quickly, it made her feel queasy. Then, she raised her hand to the window and began to draw. It made her feel a bit better, drawing small creatures like her father used to when her shower made the mirrors fog. She recreated a frog with wings her father was fond of drawing during those evening showers. It didn't know that the world behind it was a swimming ball of colors and chaos. It was simply a frog with wings.
"That's unsightly, Granger," Malfoy broke the thick silence. He was laying with his legs stretched across the bench glaring at her frog. "You're awfully shit at drawing, you know."
"Oh, bugger off Malfoy, it's not like you could do any better." Hermione sighed while looking at her drawing closer and frowned. He was correct, it's shit. The legs were too human-like and the face was awfully terrible. It almost resembled a shriveled-up booger. It didn't matter anyway, she decided to blame it on the water droplets sliding down the glass, slicing through her drawing.
Malfoy rolled his eyes this time and slid farther down the bench. "I could if I tried. It's not exactly difficult to excel over a mudblood."
Hermione felt the familiar sting in her heart as the word that was buried inside her chest was tugged. It didn't hurt much this time, there was no cruel intent behind it. Sometimes, it felt as though knives were being sent through her body when Malfoy and his cronies shot insults at her. Many times, they were calculated and dipped in poison.
"I've been top of our grade for four years, Malfoy. Next time think before you pollute the air around you." Hermione wiped the frog away as she spoke.
Malfoy grumbled quietly but otherwise stayed silent. Hermione glanced over to him with her eyebrows raised. They would typically go back and forth for a few minutes before one of them stormed off, or the occasional screaming match would occur. Never did Malfoy back down so easily. Looking closer she could tell he was exhausted. His hair wasn't neatly combed to the side, instead, it looked wild, almost similar to Potter's hair. A slight dark ring rested underneath both of his closed eyes and his lips had small dents. Hermione's lips often looked that way, she had an awful habit of biting them while thinking. This must be why he let Daphne take his spot in the cabin. A question formed at her lips but she pushed it back down. He's a prick, he deserves whatever keeps him up at night, Hermione decided.
The rest of the train ride was silent. Hermione suspected Malfoy had fallen asleep since he occasionally twitched. It wasn't unusual that there was silence between the two. Often it was like this, in the common room or when they were unfortunately seated together for class. Silence filling the air thick and heavy, clouding Hermione's brain. She turned back to the newly fogged window and drew more, the fond memories clearing her brain a bit.
After what felt like ages, a long horn pierced the air and the train began to slow. The castle filled Hermione's vision and the world slowed. A bubble formed in her stomach, she was happy to be back.
--
"Hermione!" Daphne's voice carried across the Great Hall. She grabbed Hermione's shoulders from behind and gave her a hug. "Oh I've missed you," her voice muffled under Hermione's thick curls.
Hermione laughed quietly and guided her friend to sit next to her. "I've missed you too, Daph. Even though we saw each other before the train ride."
"The train ride, right," Daphne's eyes glowed as she recalled the many hours of sitting next to her candidate for marriage. "It was wonderful, and it went exactly as planned." She muttered the last bit just for Hermione to hear.
"Well good, I'd be worried for his safety otherwise," Hermione twisted her fingers anxiously, hoping Daphne wouldn't ask about how her train ride went. Luckily she was distracted by Theo sitting across from the two girls.
Daphne laughed elegantly as if her voice was made of jingling little bells. Her hair was pin straight down her back, and her makeup was lightly natural. Applied methodically so a boy would never notice and only assume she glowed naturally.
The first years filed inside being led by Professor McGonagall carrying an almost decaying hat. The sorting went smoothly, there were no Potters being sorted and no muggle-borns sorted into Slytherin like her first year. No one knew at first, Hermione tried to keep her mouth shut about it to at least make one friend before they all hated her. Of course, Malfoy knew immediately once she said her name.
"That's not any wizard family name I know. You're not actually a mudblood are you?" She remembered his sneer. He's grown into it now.
That was the day the word pierced her chest. Tugged on every day, but left inside. Rotting. She knew it was now, she felt it. The poison filled her blood only to let her wound decay like the hat on top of the first year's heads in front of her. She refused to let the hate filled inside her peers infect her brain. She sacrificed her body every day to hold new wounds, protecting her mind. One day, she knew, the wounds would become scars.
Hermione brought her attention back to the teacher's table. Once the first years were all sorted, Dumbledore stood while a hush fell over the Hall. The ramble he offered each year was cut short by a frog-like lady wearing bright enough pink to give everyone sitting before her a headache. Hermione felt a small piece of paper nudge her hand.
'She looks awfully like your shitty drawing.' Was scrawled across the small dove folded paper. Malfoys handwriting was close to perfect. Hermione assumed he had taken many classes in order to represent his family. For the first time, he made Hermione smile. Shame killed her smile instantly and instead she shot a glare where he was seated. She supposed he was right anyway, she mulled over while crumpling the paper and shoving it inside her bag.
The frog woman, who introduced herself as Professor Umbridge, proved that her fashion taste was not the only headache-inducing thing about her. Her shrill voice filled the air as she explained that she was sent from the Ministry.
"She said she wants to be our friend? She needs to make friends with a fashion magazine first," Daphne whispered to Hermione.
Hermione nodded in shock. "Every year the Dark Arts professors get worse."
Daphne hummed in agreement. The frog woman continued her speech and only after all the students were nearly asleep, did she return the floor back to Dumbledore.
"Yes, well, give her a round of applause! Make her feel welcome." The students gave half-hearted claps. He then continued his speech with no further interruptions and let the students eat once he concluded.
The meal tasted lovely as usual, table filled with hearty foods being grabbed left and right. The Gryffindor table was much rowdier than the rest, though they never seemed to notice. Slytherin was a close second compared to the quieter Hufflepuff and Ravenclaws.
Hermione waited until most of the students trickled out of the Great Hall until she could leave. She learned from previous years that leaving with the others was quite the mistake. First years often wandered off, resulting in prefects yelling after them. When she stood alongside Daphne, she felt the long day weigh her body down. It felt as if she was swimming through the air while she walked down to the dungeon Slytherin's called home.
"We should nic some Firewhisky tonight when the elves go to bed," Daphne held Hermione's arm in her own while she drifted down the hallway.
"Didn't they catch you last time? Surely they're on the lookout for a fugitive like you." She grinned at Daphne, but it slowly faded when she noticed Daphne's eyes held mischief.
"Yes, they are, but…" she trailed off. "They don't think little miss perfect would sneak into their kitchen for whiskey, do they?"
Hermione groaned. "I am not doing this Daphne."
"Oh you'll change your mind anyway." They reached the dungeon door, which wasn't guarded by their infamous ghost tonight.
"I'm awfully tired, Daph. I'll do it tomorrow." Hermione stretched her arms into the warm air as they stepped inside. A fire was roaring with a few first years excitedly talking sitting in front.
"Perfect!" Daphne grinned. She knew that's what she wanted anyway. Hermione was just as cunning and methodical as Daphne. She just used her talent against her schoolwork rather than her peers. Besides Malfoy, of course. Hermione always felt herself tapping into her Slytherin ways the second Malfoy says a word.
"Bugger off you lot," Malfoy waved his hand, indicating the dismissal of the first years crowding the fire.
Hermione rolled her eyes, taking this as a sign to head straight to bed. Daphne followed and dropped their cloaks onto their beds.
"I'm exhausted, Daph." Hermione fell onto her bed after changing into a vest and shorts.
"Me too, but I bet some firewhiskey would perk us up." She smiled and tucked herself into her own bed.
Hermione nodded and turned over, sleep tugging at her eyelids and she quickly drifted to sleep.