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Chapter five: Trolls, dogs and new friends

Hermione Granger didn't know how to approach Draco Malfoy; this boy, well he was foreign to her and he was nothing like her Drake, the sweet caring boy she had met years before in the ice cream parlor. She had spent most of her first days at Hogwarts studying him, while trying to calculate the best way to find out the information she needed. But after the first week, she deemed it impossible; and had fled to the library in defeat.

"So!" Hermione shrieked as someone slammed their books onto the table as they sat down across from her. Hermione had never been so mortified, libraries were meant to be quiet. Hermione's head shot up at the sound, ready to scold the Neanderthal who had disturbed her reading. "I figured it out," Hermione's honey brown eyes grew wide as they landed on none other than Draco Malfoy.

Draco Malfoy had also been on a mission; a mission quite similar to Hermione's. Now, don't get me wrong, he hadn't gone to such lengths that he was going to waste his valuable time stalking her, it's more along the lines of: he'd bribed someone else to do it for him. With the information that he had obtained from his source, Gregory Goyle, he'd become pretty certain that Hermione Granger was his Hermia.

"Oh," Hermione asked, looking up at him through her eyelashes, she didn't quite know what to think. What had he figured out? "And what might that be?" She asked nervously.

"Where I know you from," His features softened as he folded his arms on the table, he'd begun playing with the edge of a discarded book. "I can't believe I didn't see this before," He looked regretful, and Hermione knew how he felt. It was the same feeling she felt. "I'm sorry I didn't recognize you, Hermia," he whispered looking down at his hands.

Hermione sighed, she knew they'd eventually face this dilemma, but she hadn't thought it'd be so soon. "It isn't your fault, Drake." Hermione told him, hoping that her smile had come across as reassuring. "I didn't recognize you either; we have both changed so much." She smiled at him once more. "Not only that, but it's been a long time." She glanced around the library, making sure no one else was listening in.

"That's no excuse," He said looking up, a scowl on his face. "I shouldn't have forgotten my best friend, I treated you poorly." They sat in silence for a few moments.

"So how have you been?" Hermione asked, wanting nothing more than to change the subject. As happy as she was to have him back, she wanted nothing more than to talk about anything other than the negative.

"I've been well I guess. Dad's stopped throwing me out of the house." He told her proudly, his arrogance slowly slipping back into play.

"Oh, Drake, That's wonderful!" She exclaimed, her smile widening.

"So do your parents still want you to be a dent list now that they know you're a witch?" Hermione let out a small roar of laughter. Draco had never been able to pronounce the word dentist, not even when they were children.

"Dentist, Draco, not dent list." She said giggling, Draco's face turned bright red. To be honest she was surprised that he had remembered such detail from their childhood. She had only ever mentioned it once when she'd explained that her parents were dentists and had wanted her to follow in their footsteps.

"DRACO! WHERE ARE YOU?" Both children groaned at the sound of his name, neither of them wanted the either to leave; they'd only just come back to each other. Hermione sniggered; she could hear the voice being scolded by Madam Pince. Madam Pince was the schools crotchety old librarian. Draco looked up at her sympathetically.

"Can't we just stick her in a kennel?" Hermione laughed, she knew that Pansy was his friend. Draco smiled as he sighed ruefully and shook his head.

"No, sadly we can't." He rose to his feet knowing that Pansy would come charging through at any minute. "I'll see you later." Hermione smiled at him as he walked away. At least she had her best friend back.

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The professors of Hogwarts were ruthless, despite the fact that term had only just began two weeks previously, they had already begun to pile on the home work. Hermione was an intelligent individual, so she really didn't have a whole lot of trouble; but she still took diligent notes and listened very carefully to every word said. She wanted nothing more than to prove that she was just as good as everyone else in that class room.

Other than that, nothing eventful had happened. She wondered on a daily basis if she would ever make new friends; friends that she could sit with at lunch or hang out with in the common room. But most of them thought of her as the muggle born or a know it all. They wanted nothing to do with her.

Hermione had been sitting on a bench reading in the transfiguration courtyard when Ron and Harry had first passed her. When Harry had mad the Quidditch teen, she had thought she had been helping by telling him his father had also been a seeker. She had assumed that he would want to know, and maybe he did… she didn't know, but Ron Weasley had other things to say.

"It's kind of scary how that Hermione girl knows more about us than we do." Ron exclaimed, throwing his hands up into the air. The way he had said it, with so much venom and hate, made her want to cry, she had thought that she had been making herself look better, she thought she'd been being a good friend… But now, she didn't know what to think. "Honestly, that's why no one likes her!"

"Ron, Hermione seems really nice." Harry rebutted, but Ron wasn't going to hear any of that.

Hermione stood up from her bench, feeling sick to her stomach. Tears had begun to spill down her pale cheeks as she stormed past the two boys, purposely bumped into Ron, conveying her message.

"I think she heard you." Harry told Ron, who instantly turned bright red.

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Hermione made her way into the school, ignoring the stares and looks she was receiving from the other students; but she didn't care. All she cared about was finding a bathroom, and soon she did.

She had locked herself into one of the tiny stalls of a first floor bathroom, and having taken Ron's words to heart, she bawled her eyes out. It's not like she hadn't known that no one liked her, and so it shouldn't have been a surprise; but she's at least hoped things would be different for her here. Every girl wants to be accepted among her peers and Hermione never seemed to achieve that.

So Hermione sat alone, in her stall totally unaware of what was happening in the Great Hall.

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In the Great Hall the school's annual Halloween feast had begun. Students were laughing, eating pumpkin pasties, joking, and carrying on as if nothing in the world was wrong. And oh how they were wrong. The food had only just appeared when it happened, like rocks shattering glass.

"TROLL, IN THE DUNGEONS!" Professor Quarrel shouted as he burst through the grand oak doors. "Thought, you ought to know." He whispered, his eyes rolled into the back of his eyes and he passed out onto the floor.

The teachers all looked at each other and started ushering students to their dorms."

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Hermione's eyes grew wide in terror as she stood frozen with her back flush against the stall. When she had heard something grunt from behind her, she'd just assumed Millicent, a round toad like Slytherin, had stumbled upon her… she hadn't expected a troll.

Hermione had never seen a mountain troll before, and she more than wished she never had. Being 15 times her height and 20 times her weight, this tall sickly green creature was as horrifying as room full of vipers. Hermione screamed.

Hermione shrunk closer to the stall as the beast proudly swung his club at her, just barely missing the top her head. The creature looked at her with a dumb found expression and once again it grunted. She didn't know what to do; she obviously couldn't fight back, she had no experience, and running definitely wasn't an option. Hermione screamed again as the Troll's club came crashing down once more, this time Hermione darted in the direction of the sinks; she dodged under the sink for protection.

"Hermione look out!" A familiar voice cried out as Hermione threw her arms over her head; the club was hurtling towards her once more. As the club crashed through the porcelain, it grazed against the back of her head; leaving behind what would be a nasty bump in the morning.

Once she was out from under the sink, Hermione quickly scrambled to her feet, and practically flew into the nearest stall, where she hurriedly ducked down. She covered her head, not once looking to see who was behind her. The troll swung its club again; smashing all of the stalls in the process, she screamed.

As she crawled out from under the rubble, she could see Ron and Harry standing behind the troll, throwing large chunks of wood at the back of its head.

"Hey pea brain!" Ron screamed, finally catching the troll's attention. Hermione took this opportunity to get farther away from the troll. Before she knew it the troll Had Harry suspended in the air by his ankles, Hermione screamed in horror.

"Do something!" Harry shouted back at Ron, who stood dumb founded at the door. They were just as scared as Hermione was.

"Do what?" Ron asked obliviously, what was on to do when their best friend is captured by a troll? Ron Weasley wasn't even the sharpest knife in the drawer. Harry swung his body forward and latched onto his own ankles as troll swung its club.

"Anything!" Harry screamed as he let go.

"Swish and flick." Hermione screamed, suddenly thinking of a way Ron could save their lives. Ron watched in terror as the troll began to swing his club, but he instantly did as Hermione said.

Ron was able to cast the spell flawlessly and the club flew out of the troll's hand. Harry, who had gained an open window for attack, shoved his wand up the creature's nose. The Troll let go of him immediately and he fell to the ground, Harry scrambled backwards.

Harry had just extracted his wand from the troll's nose when the professors arrived. All five of them nearly fainted when they the sight the awaited them in the girls lavatory, none of them knew what to think. The scene was wrong in so many ways. Three first years, with little training, were standing around a fully grown, unconscious, mountain troll. Second was the fact that two of these students were boys.

"Explain yourselves." McGonagall demanded as her hand clutched at the spot above her heart.

"Well…" Ron attempted to start, but Hermione interrupted.

"I went looking for it professor, I read about them and thought I could handle it, but I was wrong." Hermione said looking down at her feet. She didn't know why she was taking the fall for them, besides that they had just saved her life they'd never taken the fall for her. But Hermione knew that if it hadn't been for them, she wouldn't have lived to tell the tale.

"I am very disappointed in you Miss. Granger." No one seemed to doubt her statement. "I would have expected you too have had more sense than that, fifty points from Gryffindor." She turned to face the boys, "as for you two, you have no idea how lucky you are to have your lives. I award you both fifty points." McGonagall told them, her eyes gleaming. "Now, leave." They didn't have to be told twice.

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After the incident with the troll, word began to circulate regarding the trio's, as they were now being called, valiant battle in the girl's lavatory. It not only bought them glory, but it also bought Miss. Granger her acceptance among her peers. Hermione now had two new friends.

As the year continued to crawl by, things increasingly began to grow more exciting. Things that were bad began to happen. The first of the series occurred during the first Quidditch game of the season. All of that morning, Harry had been apprehensive about the game, having bought into the twins tales of missing seekers and broken skulls. So when the game started and his broom began to malfunction, he quite surely panicked. With Hermione's quick thinking, Harry avoided a terrible accident; while at the same time catching the snitch in his mouth.

Soon after that, they stumbled upon fluffy, a three headed dog with a very large temper. Fluffy had been hidden away deep within the old Defense against the dark arts classroom on the third floor, an area they clearly weren't allowed in.

Soon top security vaults were being breeched, Dragons were being hatched and Hagrid was keeping secrets from them.

In the case of the dragon, they had all been thoroughly surprised. Hagrid had always wanted a dragon, even as a little boy, and so he was utterly enthralled when he had won a dragon's egg; but as fate would have it, his excitement soon ended. Draco Malfoy had soon found out, and snitched; successfully landing all four of them in detention.

"Drake it won't be that bad." Hermione had told them as the crept down to the forbidden forest with Hagrid and the others. "Hagrid wouldn't have us do anything that will get us killed." Her voice was reassuring, but it didn't calm Draco in the least bit.

"That's easy for you to say, you didn't get his dragon sent off." Draco hissed at her as he tightened his grip on the lantern he held close to his body.

"Now, we're gonna hav' ter split up, we be able to cover more area that way." He told them as he came to a halt at an old spindly old tree, the path they'd been traveling on now forked out into opposite directions.

"What?" Draco inquired fearfully, voice cracking. Even a fool could tell you why he had not been sorted into Gryffindor; he was lacking in the bravery department.

"Oh, don' be a chicken, Malfoy. It's only jus' a little fores'.'" Hagrid chuckled as he watched the poor boy squirm.

"Full of monsters!" Draco screamed, looking up at him incredulously. For all of his life Draco had never had anything less than the best. He had the best tutors, the best wardrobe, the best food, and the best linens on his bed, and asking him to wander into a dark forests, full of monsters, was like asking him to commit treason.

"Oooh, is the big bad Slytherin afraid of the dark forest?" Ron coed, the grins on his and Harry's faces were priceless; Hermione couldn't not giggle.

"No" Draco scoffed nervously, he wasn't about to be called a coward. "Well I get to go with Granger then." He added quickly, looking over at her with pleading eyes.

"Whatever, I personally would have preferred goin' with Harry. 'E is the Boy who lived after all." Hagrid chuckled once more, his eyes shone with light.

"No offense and all, but I think that power only counts if you scar head over there." Out of the corner of her eyes Hermione could see Harry clenching his fists into tiny balls.

"Whatever; Malfoy, Hermione you two go tha' way" Hagrid said pointing to his left. "Harry you and Ron will go with me." Hagrid told them as he turned to the right.

With all of the things that could go bump in the night, Hermione and Draco definitely met them all. They didn't really talk a whole lot as they looked for anything out of the ordinary; especially seeing as they hadn't been told what to look for. And for quite some time they doubted they'd even find anything at all… It wasn't until they did find something that they really began to take their goose hunt seriously.

"Drake!" Hermione shrieked as she grabbed a hold of his sleeve in terror. Her eyes locked on a silver pool. "W-w-what's that." She stammered as she pointed a shaking finger at the offending object. Neither one of them knew what to say as they drew nearer to the small pool, but the closer they got, the more it scared them.

"I- I Don't know." Draco told her as he bent down to get a better look at it, he looked at it with a puzzled expression. "I've seen this before, in my dad's potion's cupboard…" He stood up quickly, not daring to touch the substance. "Hermia, we need…" He never finished his sentence, because by the Hermione had let out a shriek.

When Draco turned to join Hermione, he immediately saw it. Just past the line of trees, hunkered over a bleeding, dead unicorn, was a tall cloaked figure. Draco grabbed onto Hermione's wrist and pulled her close to him as the listed to the loud noises the figure was emitting. Hermione knew that this action was unnatural, but Draco knew it meant total damnation. So between the two of them, they knew that they were in danger.

When the figure looked up, its red eyed gaze immediately fell upon them. Hermione and Draco, not knowing what else to do, let out the most blood curdling screams that anyone could ever manage. Their screams were loud enough to wake the entire castle. When the figure stood, the pair of them ran as it glided towards them from behind.

"'Ermione, Malfoy," Hagrid's gruff voice called out to them as they were on their last legs, "there you are." The two students nearly fell to the ground in relief, tears streaming down their pale faces. Whatever it was that had been after them had disappeared, cleverly leaving them with only a story to tell.

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Harry was more than convinced than ever that Professor Snape was planning their demise. With Dumbledore being gone, Harry knew it was time.

Eventually the trio found themselves once more in Fluffy's dusty chamber, much to Hermione's displeasure. She could have gone the rest of her life without ever having to set foot in that room again. When they reached the chamber they were met by a surprise, a snoring surprise. Someone had put fluffy to sleep.

There are only a few things in our world that will put a creature such as fluffy to sleep, and one of those things was music. Fluffy had been lulled to sleep by the melodies voice of an old stringed harp, and the children took advantage of this.

"I'll go first, if it is all clear, you can follow." Harry whispered back at them as he slid the dog's vast paw away from the trap door, opening it quickly and without sound. The three of them crouched down around the opening, not knowing the music no longer played.

"Okay, be careful…" Hermione froze, "Did it get quiet in here, it's almost as if…" her voice was drowned out, Ron had begun to whimper, as something slick ran down his shoulder. At the realization that the dog had woken up, all three children jumped, not caring what the consequences were.

When they landed, they landed with a thud. The strange spongy stuff they had landed on had confused them at first. Especially when it had no end, but as the substance began to straggle and restrict them panic sunk in.

"It's Devil's snare!" Hermione exclaimed as she tried to pry the plants 'arms' away from her body with no avail. It was useless…

"Oh great we are going to die!" Ron shrieked dramatically, "I'm too young to die. My parents love me!" Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Oh Ronald, are you sure about that?" Hermione laughed, she was trying her best to relax.

Ron tensed, glaring at her angrily.

"Ron just relax, it will let us go." Hermione said, falling through the base of the plant.

"Oh no! We lost Hermione!" Ron shouted, as he continued to thrash around like a mad man. "We are doomed! Who's going finish out Potions essays?"

"Ron, I am fine, just relax!" Hermione rolled her eyes. Ron continued to scream as Harry came crashing down beside her. Hermione began to rack her brains for some kind of answer. She knew that Ron would never relax, and that at some point the plant would strangle him to death. So she had to think fast.

"Devil's snare, Devil's snare, its deadly fun, but will sulk in the sun!" Hermione exclaimed. She didn't know why she hadn't thought of this sooner. "Oh, Harry! If only I could light a fire."

"Are you not a witch?" Harry screamed, a blush crawling onto Hermione's face.

"Oh right," she pointed her want up at the plant. "Incindio!" She shouted, watching the plat retract its arms from around Ron as it burned, soon it had released Ron, who was covered in red scorch marks.

"It's about bloody time!" Ron shouted rubbing his neck "Merlin, are you a witch or not!"

"Oh lovely, I just saved him and he talks to me so pleasantly." Hermione bit back harshly; the least she deserved was a thank you. "Shall we?" She asked, waving her arm in the direction of a hall. They walked for quite some time, not knowing what obstacles they would face.

The first one that they came across involved a flock of keys, and a single broom. The object of the test was to obtain a large brass key, a key that was then used to pass on to the next task. T

The second challenge was simply put, a game of chess; only bigger and deadlier. Upon entering the room, Ron's chess skill instantly kicked into gear; and he knew exactly what to do. He sent both Harry and Hermione to take the place of two missing chess pieces, while he himself became a night.

"This isn't like real wizard's chess is it?" Hermione asked hesitantly, she remembered how barbaric it was. She remembered how the pieces murdered each other.

"Um, we'll find out." He said before commanding a pawn to move forward. This move was suicide; it placed the pawn directly in front of the opposing queen, leaving it utterly vulnerable. Their answer arrived the moment his pawn came to a stop, the queen didn't spare the poor think, and she destroyed it. "That solves that." Ron swallowed loudly.

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After an hour, it was down to only a few pieces, Ron, Harry, Hermione, and a few pawns. Hermione had never seen Ron look so serious about anything; he seemed so collected and patient; two words that at any other time would sound ridiculous. He watched the board carefully, and he really didn't have any options.

Hermione, knowing next to nothing about chess, had absolutely no idea what was going on. She had never even understood the basic idea of muggle chess, and she would obviously never understand the Wizarding brand. Ron however, seemed to exactly what he was doing. That's all that really mattered.

"RON!" Harry yelled as they watched the boy command his own piece forward, landing directly in front of the ruthless red queen; her ceramic sword gleaming in the light. Hermione knew enough about chess to know that this too was suicide. They watched in horror as she lifted her staff, swinging it violently at Ron's red head. The 'knight' shattered.

"Ron!" Hermione shouted in horror as she watched him fly across the room. She wanted to help him.

"Hermione don't move! The game isn't over." Harry shouted, staying frozen in his own square. He carried on in Ron's spot, commanding Hermione to move forward and check the king. Once the game had ended, both first years darted for Ron, praying merlin that he was alive

"Hermione," Harry spoke the moment he was able to get a pulse out of Ron, "I have to keep going, get Ron out of here, get him to the infirmary and send an owl to Dumbledore." Harry looked back down at Ron, he knew he was doing the right thing. "Whatever you do, don't worry about me; just get yourself and Ron out." Then he was gone.

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Hermione struggled to lift Ron up off of the ground; he was nearly too heavy for her to carry. After a few minutes of struggling, she managed to get him off the ground with a levitating charm. Once she had gotten him back into the room with the charmed key, she had used the broom to fly him out of the hole and back into Fluffy's den. From there she had dragged him.

"HELP!" Hermione screamed at the top of her lungs, laying him down against the marble staircase. "HELP ME! SOMEONE HELP!" She knew that from her location, her shouts would be heard from all over the school, her voice would echo through the hall until they reached unsuspecting ears. "HELP!" She cried falling down onto the ground beside him.

"Miss Granger, what is the matter with you." An irate voice shouted out to her as a boy sprinted up the stairs; he froze upon seeing Ron, "RON!" He shouted upon seeing his brother unconscious on the ground. Percy Weasley had never been so scared in his life. Hermione nearly fell over in relief, they had been found by a Weasley, they were safe. Hermione passed out from exhaustion.

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Surprisingly, none of them were expelled for their perilous escapades. The professors hadn't even docked any points from their houses. Dumbledore had been so happy to be rid of the stone, that Gryffindor had been awarded nearly a hundred points; much to Slytherin's dismay.

Hermione had never expected her first year at Hogwarts to be so eventful, but in the end she'd achieved more than she thought possible. She had friends, she had drake, and most of all she had a new sense of self.

"We aren't really going home are we?" Harry said looking back at the castle as the train pulled out of the station.

"No, we really aren't." Hermione smiled, sitting down beside her friend. She couldn't wait to come back.

OoOo A/N oOoO

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~Taylor.