Hermione slipped on her clothes, outer robe and sneakers, and palmed her wand. She exited the dormitory, glancing around to see whether anyone else had been awoken. She noticed a few younger and older Gryffindors sitting around as usual, but they seemed to be unaware of her movements.
She glanced out the window and cast a Tempus charm. It was seven in the morning.
The girl moved quietly down the hallway, alert and on the lookout. There did not seem to be anything wrong, but she knew that in war-time it was always good to be aware.
Because after the Department of Mysteries, she knew that they were at war.
After fifteen minutes or so of wandering the corridors and finding nothing amiss she turned towards the empty classroom that she had found in her fourth year. It was locked and warded subtly-a Notice-Me-Not and a Repelling charm on the door. She had learned over the past five years that the Gryffindor tactic of many high-level wards that screamed, "I'm hiding something!", was not very effective.
She opened the doors and was moved by the peacefulness of her own private space. She had not even told Harry and Ron of this.
The room was adequately sized and cozy, with a large window facing the Black Lake. On the floor sat a rug that she had transfigured and the walls were filled with books that she was currently reading and some of her research papers.
She sat down on the floor and slipped into her meditative trance. She had achieved her Animagus transformation at the end of 5th year with some help from Professor Snape, but the continued the meditations because of the feeling of peacefulness they elicited in her.
She allowed herself to let go and shifted into her Animagus form of an occamy.
Her shape was part of the reason she had not yet told the boys.
This year particularly, both boys seemed equally determined to prove that Draco Malfoy was a Death Eater. Their rivalry with Slytherin was more potent than ever because of this, and it didn't help that Professor Snape had taken over DADA. Personally, she found him to be an amazing instructor-if mean, surly, and cutting with his remarks-but her opinion would not make her popular in her house or with her few friends. Gryffindor hatred of Professor Snape was sky-high, but then again it always was.
As an Occamy she possessed a serpentine body, two wings, and an extremely sharp beak filled with razor-sharp teeth and highly venomous poison. Because of her age she was not at her full size yet, but rather measured around seven meters in length.
A serpent. Her relationship with the boys would be even more strained if she revealed this-if it even survived her revelation that she had become an Animagus without them.
She also knew that revealing her secret would lead to Ron whining about it-loudly and in front of everyone- and that would be detrimental to the whole 'keeping it secret' thing, wouldn't it?
The only person who knew about her form outside of Professor Snape was Professor Dumbledore, even though she had not informed him. Then again, the man did seem to always know everything.
At the end of fourth year, when Professor Snape's status as a spy had been revealed, Hermione could finally fully understand why Professor Snape couldn't support her in class. That was not mentioning that he wasn't really the supportive type anyway. So, after realizing that she could mightily improve in the subject she wore her professor down until he had finally agreed to teach her some things privately. The lessons had continued through her fifth year but had slowed considerably during this one. There seemed to be too many things to do-and Hermione was sympathetic to not having enough time to teach know-it-all Gryffindors. Over that time they had developed an excellent working relationship which she felt she could call a friendship – insulting Umbridge had been a particularly pleasant bonding activity. Of course, whenever she referred to him as her friend he sneered and glared at her, but she couldn't shake the feeling that he was somewhat glad-which meant that she didn't stop bringing it up. She was getting better at reading his moods, too.
He had been mildly impressed by her form, judging by the half-smile he had sent her when she had shown him one day in detention.
Oh right, for most of their lessons they used detention as an excuse.
She had been touched that he had made such a big effort for her and had not yelled on the night of one of her biggest accomplishments, even when she'd had the audacity to hug him briefly.
Of course, she'd run out of the room immediately thereafter, her Gryffindor courage leaving her.
She moved slightly as the serpentine form slid from her body, revealing her humanity once more.
All in all, she decided to keep her form unknown, for at least some time. If people didn't know, it could be an advantage of hers that they were unprepared for.
She rose and left the room, feeling quite refreshed and in a good state of mind after the meditations. Her body was relaxed and her mind clear.
She made her way down to the Great Hall for breakfast and relished in the quiet and peace before most of the student body had made it down. Severus was already there and she sent him an acknowledging nod with a tiny smile. He raised an eyebrow in response and she had to control her giggles. He rolled his eyes at her and she gave him one last smile before turning to her breakfast.
As with many Animagi, her form's shape bled through into her everyday life. While she had never been a fan of meat, she had developed quite a taste for it nowadays and usually ate it with every meal. She also felt better balanced and more confident in the air, though part of that was having the assurance that in an emergency she could fly. Lastly, her vision, smell, and hearing had become sharper, and her eyes glittered lightly with different colors.
She greeted the boys as they came down and did not bother to pretend to be interested when they started talking of the upcoming Quidditch season.
Instead, she was wondering why she had ever had a crush on Ron. Looking at it now, she could tell that he was completely wrong for her. A year ago she had found his habits cute, if slightly annoying, but now she almost couldn't stand to look at him while he was eating. It was disgusting. She also wondered if they would have been friends if it had not been for Harry. Indeed, they did not share many common interests, and Hermione soon realized that while Ron was a good friend that was all that he would ever be to her.
That lead her to wondering what that sensation was when she looked at Severus, now –
Her thoughts were interrupted when she realized that it was time to go to their first Potions class of the year.