Disclaimer: I don't own all the characters, places and.. things that are connected to Harry Potter. J.K. Rowling does! And boy, am I glad she DOES! I, yes me, own the plot. Which is not worth talking about.
A/N: Thanks to Susamina (Hope I spelt that right mate..) for being the beta reader for this chapter. Should I keep her on for the whole fic?! Your votes in the review! HEH!
Scratch That
Ch. 1
It was raining outside, but she didn't care. Even the darkness that was engulfing her as she ran didn't bother her. It wasn't because she was Hermione Granger - Brave Gryffindor, it was because she just simply didn't care.
She wiped the tears (or was it rain?) from her face as she frantically looked from her left to her right. Her mousy brown hair was plastered to her face and her robes were drenched too. Making her mind up, she ran to the right. Across the muddy field, down the small slant in the ground, and there she was. Looking up she saw walls of the Quidditch Pitch. A flash of lightening illuminated the three hoops on the left side of the pitch. Getting her wand out of the soaked pocket of her robe, she muttered a quick Alohomora as she pointed her wand at the gate.
With a final look in to the darkness behind her, Hermione quickly ran through the gates and below the raised stands to the right. At least under here she was safe from the gale force winds and the rain. She only hoped that the lightening wouldn't strike the stand she was hiding under. Bringing her knees up under her chin, Hermione let out a cruel, harsh laugh. With her luck, the lightening would strike the strand, it would go up in flames and she would be dead before anyone realised she was missing.
Well anyone apart from him. Oh, he'd know alright. The way she screamed in his face again, threw a big library book at him and ran out crying, he'd have to be pretty dense not to know.
But that was one thing Draco Malfoy was not. Dense.
Looking back now, she could see it was a completely idiotic mistake. I mean, who in their right mind would think they'd be able to trust and be friends with Draco Malfoy?! He's the worst thing in Slytherin since Snape.. No.. Scratch that. Since Riddle!! Hermione needed someone, rather than herself, to blame. Shuddering as the wind made the stand shake, Hermione started to think back over the last few weeks and how they came to be friends. Professor Binns! Yes! It was all his fault!
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A few weeks back...
Hermione took out her parchment, Ink, and quill as she sat at the front desk. Professor Binns had just floated into the classroom through the blackboard as usual, so Ron and Harry grudgingly put away their Wizard Cards and looked at their teacher. They were obviously expecting yet another boring lesson.
"Students, pay attention please?" Droned Professor Binns trying to get everyone's eyes on him. "Miss Pettal, if you don't mind?" Parvati Patil stopped gossiping with Lavender and muttered something about getting names right as she looked at their only ghost professor. Hermione rolled her eyes. One day Parvati and Lavender would wish they paid attention in class, she thought to herself.
Professor Binns floated through his desk to the front of his class.
"We shall be starting a class project which will be lasting over the next few weeks. It will be testing you on your knowledge of history and how well you are at revising and finding your own information without a faculty member. You all will be in the real world soon. No professors to help you out there!" He told them, with barely any excitement in his voice. Hermione's eyes widened in anticipation, though the rest of the class let out low groans of misery.
"I shall of course be putting you in pairs when you work on your projects, and all of you shall receive after curfew passes which will allow you to have access to the Library, the books, and all that you can use in this and certain other classrooms." He moved a semi transparent arm lifelessly around the room, indicating the books that sat on shelves which lined the room. "The pass is valid for two hours after normal curfew."
"I hope I can trust you all enough not to abuse my trust by misusing the passes." He slowly moved his eyes to the Slytherin part of the room.
Ron took that paused moment to think. "Can we choose our own partners sir?" He blurted out. Binns snapped off the look he was giving Crabbe and settled on Ron.
"I think not, Ressley. I shall choose whom you shall sit with." Binns continued. Binns walked through his desk and peered down at a list. Hermione hoped she wasn't placed with a Slytherin.
"Finnigan - Longbottom.
Crabbe - Parkinson..." Hermione had a glimmer of hope. It looked like Binns
was placing the students with people of their own Houses.
"Weasley - Bullstrode." She gave Ron a sympathetic look, and crossed her fingers on her lap.
"Zabini - Potter.
Goyle - Brown.
Granger - Malfoy..." The list went on, though as soon as she heard she was
placed with Malfoy, she heard no more.
Hermione could hear the complaints to Crabbe and Goyle from Malfoy.
"I get placed with the Mudblood?" She heard him say, "It's disgusting! Clearly I need my partner swapped. Malfoys do not converse with the likes of THEM."
Hermione's face went red. Malfoy didn't even have the manners to whisper. Trying her hardest not to let Malfoy's words get to her, she deeply breathed and concentrated on the blackboard in front of her.
"Pardon my interruption sir," Malfoy said, with a slight sneer on his face. Binns stopped and looked at Malfoy. "Would it be permitted for me to swap partners?" He shot a cruel look at Hermione.
Binns blinked at him. "No. Now move your seats next to your partner's."
The scraping of chairs filled the room as people grudgingly went to sit with their partners. Hermione looked over to Malfoy, who looked like he had no intention of moving over to her. Picking up her belongings she walked over to his table. Malfoy lazily looked up at her.
"Well? Sit. Don't expect me to be a gentleman and pull your seat out for you, as you are no lady. You are just a filthy, horrid, soiled, grotty mudblood." He spat at her, in a low voice. Lowering her eyes, she dropped her things on the table and sat down as far away from him as she could. She knew that the next few weeks would be hell.
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Hermione was ripped from her thoughts as thunder rattled through the Quidditch Pitch. Hugging herself tighter she sighed. Her stomach felt heavy with misery, her eyes stung from crying, and her heart breaking from sorrow. It had took her a lot to actually get a sentence from Malfoy without him insulting her back, then eventually there was the odd smile, compliment on the work, even a laugh! Hermione was such a fool. To believe him. To think that he honestly was capable of being nice and at a push, kind! But she knew now, he was a complete and utter prat. For being the top student in Hogwarts, she was pretty darn foolish to put trust in a Malfoy.
If Hermione was in the right frame of mind, she would have used her wand to dry herself, make herself warmer. She took out her wand again and looked at it. In anger she threw it down before her. A few small red sparks flew out and disappeared as it hit the ground.
After all the trouble being a witch had caused her over the last six years at Hogwarts, she wished she'd never heard of this world, wished she hadn't got the letter of acceptance to Hogwarts, never met Malfoy. She just wanted not to see him, ever again. That was it. The last straw. She had had it up to to here with his insults, offers of friendship, more insults, apologies, friendship again, something confusing that felt better than friendship, then to be insulted more ferociously than ever before. The friendship had been so good too. Shame, really.
Fresh tears began to fall down her face, and onto her hands which were tucked under her chin on her knees. Life was so unfair, so wrong, and it felt like it was out to get her. Oh, she hoped that book she flung at him hurt him bad. Real bad. He deserved it. He was probably back in the Slytherin Common room telling everyone what a complete and utter waste of life she is.
A noise behind her startled her. 'No... He couldn't have.. Wouldn't have followed me? No, that would show some emotion other than hate.' She though to herself, as she grabbed her wand up off the floor. She crouched down low and slowly made her way over to where the noise came from. Ducking past a low over head beam, she turned the corner and pointed her wand towards where the noise came from.
... T.B.C ...