Daphne and Pansy stood in the girls bathroom fixing their hair. "Ugh," Pansy groaned, glancing at the toilets where a sound of a crying girl was coming from. "Who is crying in the bathroom? That is so pathetic."
"Why do we not go and find out?" Daphne suggested, walking to the stall. "Hello?"
"Go away." Hermione sniffed.
"See, they do not want to be bothered, let us go. I want a seat beside Draco." Pansy said, crossing her arms.
"You go," Daphne said. "I want to make sure she is okay."
"Whatever, you should have been a Hufflepuff I swear." Pansy waved her hand as she started for the door.
"Go ahead Greengrass," Hermione said. "You don't have to care, I'm Granger and I know how you Slytherins feel about Gryffindors."
"Do you want us to get your friends? You share a dorm with Patel and Brown right?" Daphne offered.
"They won't care," Hermione muttered. "No one will." Daphne and Pansy looked at each other.
"Wait, are you saying that none of those Gryffindorks are your friends?" Pansy asked. Hermione did not respond. "Oh bloody hell." Pansy groaned. "Do you Gryffindorks not understand loyalty?"
"Why do you care?" Hermione asked. "Go to your little group of friends and leave me alone." Daphne and Pansy looked at each other.
"Fine, but this is not over," Daphne said. "No one should be crying because their house rejects them." With that they left and Herrmione returned to crying.
For the following week Daphne and Pansy watched, as Hermione was one of the first to meals, left as the rest of her house arrived, without speaking to any of them. "Why are you staring so intently at the Gryffindorks?" Theo asked one morning as the owl post arrived.
"What if we told you a girl does not have any friends in her house?" Daphne asked.
"How is that possible?" Draco asked. "The houses are supposed to be like a second family right?"
"I think the more important question is why do you care?" Blaise asked. "With the way you two are looking it looks like it is one of the Gryffindorks so why care."
"Blame Daph," Pansy said. "She let her Hufflepuff side get the better of her."
"Shut up Pans, you are just as annoyed as I am." Daphne said. "She was crying alone in the bathroom," Daphne explained. "And when I offered to get a dork for her she said she had no friends, at all, out of the whole house." The three other Slytheirns looked at her in disgust, then glanced at the Gryffindor table.
"Of course its the mudblood." Blaise said, shaking his head. "I thought the Gryffindorks were all for mixing it with muggleborns."
"I do not think her blood has anything to do with it." Pansy said. "Thomas is a muggleborn too, he is just not as…swotty."
"That is true." Theo chuckled. "Every time Snape or Sprout has a question Granger's arm is in the air." The group watched as Hermione left the Gryffindor table, tears in her eyes. Daphne and Pansy looked at each other before getting up and leaving the Great Hall.
They found Hermione in the library, crying quietly to herself. "Granger?" Daphne asked as she walked over to the Gryffindor.
"What do you want, Greengrass?" Hermione asked.
"We just wanted to check on you, it looked like you got some bad news." Daphne said.
"I asked my parents if I could return home." Hermione said.
"Why on earth would you want to do that?" Pansy asked. "Christmas holidays are only a few weeks away."
"I think she meant permanently Pans." Daphne said.
"What? Because your housemates are twats? Dang Granger, I thought you were smart." Daphne shot Pansy a look who just shrugged.
"You two wouldn't get it. You are obviously friends, and you have friends in your house. My roommates do not even ask if I'm having a good day. I barely get a good morning from any of them."
"Well, what did your parents say?" Daphne asked.
"They said to give it till Christmas Holidays, but they think I should stay, become the best witch that I can." Pansy snorted, Daphne and Hermione looked at her.
"Who knew I would agree with muggles." Pansy shook her head, followed by a bell ringing. "Oh, time for class. Hey Granger, are you going to be here after classes?"
"Erm.. probably, I'm usually alone in the common room so I come here so it doesn't feel as lonely."
"Well, you will not be alone today." With that Pansy left the library, Daphne said goodbye and followed her.
"What is your plan?" Daphne asked.
"If the Gryffindorks are gonna treat her like crap, she is going to need some friends who will not put up with it." Daphne just laughed in response.
That afternoon Hermione sat at a table, her charms book open in front of her when five books plopped down around her. She looked up in shock as Daphne, Pansy, Draco, Theo, and Blaise all sat down at the table. "Erm…should I be worried?"
"Look," Draco said. "Do not let it get to your head, these two can be scary so we are studying with you." Hermione looked at Daphne and Pansy.
"You said you would be alone anyways, at least now you have a study group." Pansy said.
"Are you really studying with a muggle born?" Ron asked in shock as he and Harry approached the group. "Especially a Gryffindor muggle born?"
"Well," Theo said. "As your house is ignoring her, she needs someone to show her that not all wizards and witches are arseholes."
"Come on Granger," Harry said. "Come study with us, these snakes are no good."
"Who do you think you are talking to?" Daphne asked. "You have barely said two words to her since the beginning of the year."
"Weasley's the reason I was crying." Hermione whispered to Pansy who stood up.
"You were the reason she was crying? I thought one of my housemates did it, but no. It was one of her housemates." Draco, Theo, and Blaise stood up and glared at the two Gryffindor boys.
"You made one of your housemates cry?" Theo asked.
"Do you Gryffindorks not understand loyalty?" Blaise asked. Hermione, Daphne,and Pansy chuckled.
"Oh like you care," Ron said. "She's a muggle born. We all know you Slytherins hate muggleborns."
"I could not care less about her blood status." Daphne said. "I care when housemates, who are supposed to be like a second family, treat someone like shit. Even Longbottom, who I know Draco makes fun of any chance he gets, has friends."
"He sometimes talks to me." Hermione offered. "Not as often as he talks with Weasley and Potter, but I do get a good morning from him."
"Well, now you have better friends." Theo said. "Get out of here Weasley, Potter, before you make us angry."
"Whatever." Ron scoffed. With that he and Harry left the library.
"Thank you for sticking up for me." Hermione said.
"Of course," Daphne said. "You are our friend now, though Drake's family might have a problem with it." Draco shrugged.
"I will tell them you are in Ravenclaw, that might soften the blow." Hermione looked at him in confusion. "My family hates muggleborns, Theo's too. They also hate all Gryffindors, I had a cousin blasted off the family tree for being a Gryffindoor and an aunt for marrying a muggleborn."
"Something tells me I don't want to meet your family." Hermione muttered, earning laughs from the group.
The rest of the term, before Christmas, Hermione and the Slytherins started a pattern. They would meet at the lake after lunch and talk about how their day is going. After classes they would all be in the library and work on their homework, Draco and Hermione editing the essays. The day before Christmas holidays Pansy and Daphne were in the girls bathroom. "Do you think I should invite her and her parents over?" Daphne asked Pansy.
"Totally up to you, just warn your parents first. I know they do not share the Malfoy's views but they are part of the Sacred 28 and might have a problem with it."
"You're really friends with that dork?" Lavender asked as she and Paravti walked up to the Slytheirn girls.
"Hermione is not that bad once you get to know her." Daphne responded.
"Well, you should go find her." Parvati said. "She and Ron got into a fight."
"Yeah, he doesn't understand why she spends her time with you, which I don't either, but whatever."
"Where is she?" Pansy asked. The two Gryffindors just shrugged.
"Thank you for telling us, but you two are snots." Daphne said as she and Pansy left the restroom.
As they searched the castle they ran into Draco, Theo, and Blaise who all joined in the search. They separated and look in groups; Theo and Blaise in the library and upper floors, Daphne and Pansy on the grounds, and Draco on the bottom floors. Draco eventually found her in an empty classroom, on the floor crying in a ball. "Hey Granger," Draco said approaching her. "You know you have Pans and Daph in a panic." Hermione just glanced at him. "What is wrong? Usually when the Gryffindorks are being rude you go hide in the library. That's where Theo and Blaise are looking."
"I knew you'd find me there." Hermione mumbled.
"You did not want to be found?" Draco asked. Hermione shook her head.
"Why not? I heard you got into a fight with Weasel, what did he say?"
"Don't worry about it, just go away." Draco sighed as he sat on the floor beside her, giving a brief look of disgust at the dust on the floor.
"Granger, I have two very strong willed girls looking for you, and will not stop till either they find you or I tell them where you are and what happened. Now I know you had a fight with Weasel and I honestly do not understand why you are letting that idiot upset you."
"He said you five weren't really my friends and that you are just using me to make your family look good. And that after the Christmas holidays you will go back to ignoring me. Just like everyone else. And that it would be easier for me and everyone if I just returned to the muggle world." Draco glanced at the door where Theo and Blaise stood.
"That is just bull, and you know it." Draco said, motioning for them to find Daphne and Pansy. "Would I be here if I was not really your friend? I could be playing chess with Theo or Blaise. Or making fun of your housemates. Instead I am here with you trying to make you feel better. Would someone use you to help their image do that?" Hermione chuckled as she wiped her eyes. "Come here." He held out his arm, Hermione gave him a small smile as she cried in his chest. "I will beat him to a pulp next time I see him." Draco muttered as Hermione's cries died out, only to be replaced with even breaths.
"Hermione?" Daphne asked as she ran into the classroom only to chuckle upon seeing Hermione and Draco.
"I did not expect her to fall asleep." Draco said, trying to adjust without waking the sleeping Gryffindor.
"That is what happens when someone cries, what happened?" Daphne asked.
"Weasley is causing problems. He told her that we did not actually care about her and were just using her to improve our family's image and that we would start ignoring her once we had no use for her."
"I am beating him to a pulp." Daphne said.
"Get in line, where are the others?" Draco asked.
"Writing home, I know we are going home tomorrow, but we wanted to get a head start on asking our parents if she can come visit."
"Go write yours, I can not move until she wakes back up but I will write to my mother once I get back to the dorm, who knows, maybe father can use his influence to get Dumbledore to do something."
"Do you think she has told Dumbledore yet?" Daphne asked.
"I doubt it." Draco shook his head. "You know Gryffindors, stubborn and not willing to admit defeat. I am sure all this is a sort of test."
"You are probably right, I will talk to you later." With that Daphne walked out of the room.
"Hey Hermione," Daphne called as the group of students made their way to the train station. "I am going to see if you and your parents can come over over the holidays, will you be okay with that?"
"Of course, but what will your parents say? I am muggle born." Hermione asked.
"They should not have a problem with it, '' I wrote to them last night, so hopefully they'll have an answer by the time we reach the station. Oh, how about you come sit with us."
"I wasn't sure of where else I could sit so sure." Hermione said as they boarded the train, and looked for the compartment Daphne's friends were in. Once they got to the compartment they found that everyone got there first. Pansy was sitting between Theo and Blaise and Draco sat in the middle of the opposite seat. "Do you want the window seat?" Daphne asked.
"I don't care." Hermione said with a shrug.
"Good choice," Pansy said. "Daph prefers the window seat." Daphne stuck her tongue out at Pansy as she sat down. Hermione sat down herself and pulled out the book she brought with her. "That is not a school book."
"I don't only read school books." Hermione responded, not looking up from her book.
"Pride and Prejudice." Draco read. "What is that?"
"A muggle book, its set during regency era, it's basically an enemy to lovers story." Hermione replied, again without looking up. The group just shook their heads and started talking about their plans for the holiday.
The following beginning of term Hermione and Daphne met the rest of their group at the station. "Did you have a good break?" Hermione asked Draco as he, and his parents, approached the Greengrasses. "I did," He responded. "And you?"
"I did too, I spent the last few days with Daphne." Hermione eyed Mister and Misses Malfoy hesitantly.
"Mother, Father," Draco said. "This is my friend Hermione Granger, the muggle born I was telling you about. Hermione, these are my parents."
"Nice to meet you sir." Hermione said, offering her hand to the man, not missing Draco and Daphne whispering amongst themselves.
"Nice to meet you too." Lucius said, eyeing the girl.
"Misses Malfoy." Hermione greeted the woman.
"Miss Granger. I hear you are having trouble with your housemates."
"It's nothing I can't handle, especially now that I have my Slytherin friends. Speaking of," Hermione turned to Draco and Daphne. "We should get on the train before," She started before being interrupted.
"Seriously?" Ron said, with Harry and their respective parents.
"What's going on Ron?" A girl with red hair asked.
"That's Hermione Gin, I told you about her." Ron responded.
"Really Weasley?" Draco asked. "Complaining to your sister that a muggle is doing better in school and a higher class friend than you?"
"I thought the Weasleys were fans of all things muggle." Narcissa said to Lucius who chuckled.
"That might be so, but evidently they have a problem with a muggle born outsmarting them." Draco responded for his father. "Ron here has been nothing but mean to our dear Granger." :
"Don't call me your 'dear Granger' Malfoy." Hermione said. "And come on, I don't want to start fights before we even get on the train." With that she said her goodbyes to the Malfoys and pulled Draco and Daphne behind her.
The rest of the year passed quietly, much to Hermione's joy. Over Easter her family planned their yearly visit to France and once she returned to school Hermione started studying like crazy. "You are going to go crazy." Pansy told her one day when Hermione had spent two hours straight staring at the same book.
"I doubt that, can one go crazy to make sure they have good grades?" Hermione asked.
"Take a break," Daphne offered. "The boys are going to the lake, let us go join them." Hermione looked at her friends and sighed.
"Fine, but only for a little while." Daphne smiled as she pulled Hermione out of the castle. The six friends laid on the grass enjoying the rare warm sunny day.
"What are your plans for summer?" Daphne asked the group.
"My parents and I are going to France." Hermione stated. "We go for two weeks every summer."
"We do too." Draco responded. "As do the Zabinis and Notts."
"Our parents always try to spend time together." Blaise explained. "They were friends in high school."
"Did your parents also go to Hogwarts?" Hermione asked, the five Slytherins all laughed.
"Oh, I keep forgetting you are a muggle born. Yes, we all come from long lines of Slytherins." Theo said.
"Ah." Was all Hermione said, clearly embarrassed.
"My father wanted me to go to Durmstrung." Draco said. "But mum did not want me that far away."
"Durmstrung?" Hermione asked.
"Another wizarding school." Daphne explained before looking at Draco. "Are you excited for your birthday Drake?"
"Your birthday?" Hermione asked, sitting up and looking at the blond.
"Yeah, it is June fifth, the last day of exams." Draco stated before responding to Daphne. "My parents got permission from Dumbledore to take me for dinner since it is my birthday."
"That's nice…" Hermione muttered. "When is everyone else's birthday?"
"Mine is March 28." Theo said.
"I was born on April 6." Pansy said with a shrug.
"Mine was December 13th." Blaise answered.
"And mine is October 22." Daphne said.
"And you never told me when you had birthdays?" Hermione exclaimed. The five Slytherins looked at her in confusion.
"We are still getting to know each other," Daphne said. "And quite frankly you never asked." Hermione just laid back down.
"Now I feel like I need to buy you gifts." The Slytherins just laughed.
On the last day of school Daphne and Hermione stood on the platform. "You promise to come over at the end of the summer." Daphne checked with Hermione.
"As long as it's okay with my parents, expecting me half way through August."
"Good, now have a great summer, and I cannot wait to hear about France."
"What is this about France?" Misses Greengrass asked as she joined the two girls.
"Hermione and her family go every summer."
"Ah, well I hope you have a good time, and we look forward to seeing you later in the summer."
"Thank you Misses Greengrass, bye Daphne." With that Hermione ran off to the muggle side of the station.
"Has Pansy given you a response on coming over?" Miss Greengrass asked as they made their way through the station.
"She can not come," Daphne said with a shake of her head. "Her parents are not that happy that she befriended a muggle born Gryffindor."
"I am not surprised." Mister Greengrass sighed. "Keep an eye out for her Daphne, I have a feeling the parents of your friends are not going to be as keen on that Granger girl as we are."
"Of course father." Daphne said with a nod.