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Disclaimer: Use your imagination.

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"Welcome back, welcome back!" Professor Dumbledore said buoyantly. "It is late, and I shall not keep you long. Mr. Filch would like me to remind all of you that wandering the grounds after curfew is forbidden." His eyes flashed toward Harry. "And this year, the curfew is ten o'clock. Everybody is expected to be in their common rooms by that time. There will be Hogesmeade trips every weekend this year for third years and up. That is all. Now off to bed! Lessons tomorrow!"

"Sixth-year prefects, over here!" yelled a tall Ravenclaw girl. Hermione shuffled her way to the front of the line, and in the process bumped into someone rather hard.

"WATCH IT, YOU -- "

"Malfoy," Hermione muttered dispassionately.

Draco hadn't grown much, and his hair was the same as it had always been: white-blond and slicked back. The combination of his widow's peak, his high-collared black cloak, and his deathly pale skin made him resemble a vampire. His face was contorted into its infamous scowl.

"Mudblood," he said, as a form of greeting.

Hermione tilted her head and narrowed her eyes. "You're looking especially ferrety today."

"And you're looking perfectly revolting," he said quietly.

Hermione pursed her lips. She was not going to start something in the middle of a crowd of Prefects.

"What's the matter, Granger?" he taunted. "You afraid 'cause your bodyguards aren't around?"

Hermione rolled her eyes and turned away. Malfoy smirked triumphantly as they marched out of the Great Hall.

The Prefect's lounge was adorned in the same fashion as the library. In fact, it looked like a miniature of the library. Bookshelves lined all but one wall, which was covered by old paintings and sketches of old Headmasters and professors. Hermione noticed a small painting of a younger Dumbledore, who was humming 'O Little Town of Bethlehem'.

"This is where meetings will be held," said the seventh-year Ravenclaw. "The password is Canem Video. Remember it. If you have any more questions ask me… You may go."

As everyone was exiting, Hermione lost her hold on her bag. Books and papers lay scattered across the stone floor like the leaves of autumn. 'Why did I bring this with me?' she asked herself as she scrambled to pick everything up. After she had crammed all of her things in her bag, she stood up and broke into a run, feeling uncomfortable all alone in the dark corridor.

As she neared the exit to the dungeon area, she heard footsteps echo through the stone corridor.

'If it's Snape, I'll get detention for sure,' she thought. The closest door was the Prefect Boys Bathroom. She knew the password and prayed to God that nobody was in there. When she hurried in, it was empty. She struggled to quiet her panting as the footsteps grew louder.

The person stopped right outside the prefects' bathroom. Hermione jumped into a stall as the door opened and somebody came in. The torches sprung to life, and Hermione stood on the toilet to keep out of view.

"I should have killed him," a voice hissed. She heard the person pacing rapidly back and forth in front of the sinks. "I had the bloody chance!" Now Hermione was interested. She peeked through the crack in the door. She saw a shape -- a shadow. No… A figure. The outline of a tall, lean young man.

"I will not serve anyone," said the young man, glaring at his own image in the mirror. "I AM NOT MY FATHER." His last words echoed in the large, cave-like room. Something caught Hermione's eye -- something that glittered.

'What is that?' she thought. But then the boy brought it to its own skin and dragged it down, hissing through his teeth. Something dripped into the sink.

Blood.

Terror raced through Hermione's mind –– this boy was trying to kill himself. She jumped out from her hiding spot.

"Stop!" she yelled. When she saw his face, she froze.

The boy smirked at her in the mirror. "Great." He turned around. Gray eyes glittered in the torchlight.

"Malfoy?"

"You know this is a boys' bathroom?" Draco said, clasping his hands behind his back. Hermione sensed worry in his glare. "I should take points away… Or shall I just tell Professor Snape –"

"Shut up!" said Hermione. She grabbed Draco by his arm and drew back his sleeve. Blood drizzled down her hand, and she recoiled in fear and disgust. There were scars all down his arm, many of them new. Blood from the open gash soaked his sleeve. "Malfoy, are you trying to kill yourself?" She retrieved her wand, and was about to mutter a healing spell when Malfoy pushed her away. She seized his arm again.

"Leave me alone, Mudblood," Draco yelled in reply, a note of fear in his voice. He twisted out of her grip and stumbled backward. He quickly wiped the fresh blood on his robes.

"Malfoy," Hermione said, her voice eerily quiet. "You need to tell someone -- "

"It was an accident," Draco said, turning pink in the face. "Leave me alone."

"Malfoy, if there's a problem - "

"NO!" he said, his eyes burning. Hermione's voice left her completely. She couldn't tell if he was going to cry or just explode. "I'M NOT TELLING ANYONE!" His nostrils flared. "I'll kill you if you tell."

Hermione bit her lip and looked at the floor. After a moment, she opened her mouth to speak. Draco fumed. "LEAVE ME ALONE!"

Hermione hesitantly turned away, her eyebrows furrowed in worry and shame as she left Draco standing alone.

Hermione stared at the floor as she walked.

'I can't believe he would do this to himself,' Hermione thought. 'Not even Malfoy deserves death. Not like this, anyway.'

She was so oblivious to everything around her that she ran into Neville, causing him to drop all his books and spill the contents of his bag. "Oh, sorry," she muttered offhandedly.

She walked into Potions Class, her eyes glazed. "How fortunate are we that you could grace us with your presence, Miss Granger," said Professor Snape. Hermione dropped into her seat beside Harry, behind Draco and Pansy.

Hermione shook herself mentally and looked up at Professor Snape. "Yeah, fortunate," she said quickly. People around her sniggered. Professor Snape took five points from Gryffindor for her tardiness and started his lecture. Hermione rested her elbows on the table and stared at the back of Draco's head for the whole of the lesson.

"Miss Granger!"

Hermione, who had just walked out of the dungeons (Harry had only lost ten points for Gryffindor today in Potions - Neville: minus fifteen), looked around. She spotted Professor McGonagall, who was walking briskly toward her.

"Yes, Professor?"

"Er," Professor McGonagall muttered, "we had better step inside my office."

They made their way to the first floor. Hermione sat down in the chair before Professor McGonagall's desk. She noticed that it was the same as when she had come in to get her Time Turner in her third year, except for a strange gold contraption sitting on the corner of her desk. It was engraved with the words: To Minerva, From Albus; May you never get lost in the Muggle world again.

Professor McGonagall sat down behind the desk and clasped her hands together gravely.

"As you know," she began, "you are my top student – the top student in your year." Hermione went a bit red and nodded. "Well, there is a boy here who is in the top three in most of his classes – all except for Transfiguration and Charms, both of which he is failing - "

"And you would like me to tutor him," Hermione said, smiling. Professor McGonagall nodded. Hermione was already excited – she loved teaching people. "Who?"

"Mr. Malfoy," Professor McGonagall said wearily. Hermione opened her mouth to decline, but Professor McGonagall seemed to have foreseen this. Quickly, she added, "In return for tutoring, you shall receive your own dormitory and common room, and you may choose four or five friends to share that common room with you… Potter, perhaps? Weasley?" Hermione raised an eyebrow. "…And Gryffindor shall receive five points per meeting."

Hermione smiled. "Ten points and you've got a deal."

For a moment, Professor McGonagall's lips became a very thin line. She sighed. "Deal."

A/N: Obviously, I'm editing and reposting this fanfiction. As always, REVIEW or I'll have Crabbe sit on you. Happy New Year!