Chapter Two

Disclaimer- I own nothing but the plot. Thank JK Rowling for the rest. And the song belongs to Something Corporate.

So yes, Harry and Ron had now seen Hermione's past, all in scars down her arm. They were pretty much shocked that she would do something like this, but they knew if they acted weird about it, she would too... So they just offered their support.

"Hermione, I had no idea.. If you want, you can tell us about it, but we're not forcing you..." Harry said, kissing her on the cheek and rubbing her back.

Hermione was very near tears; she had never told anyone about it. She slowly walked up the changing staircases to their familiar dormitory, wishing that she could evaporate into the walls at that very moment.

"Please, don't act awkward about it... We would never get mad at you or anything..." Ron said hesitantly.

Of course, Hermione knew that, but she expected disappointment. She was always looking for the worst in everything; she felt that if you expected the worst, you couldn't be let down.

Before she noticed it, they were at the door to their dorms. Hermione said the password and went inside, sitting down in a cozy looking couch by the fire.

"You guys can join me, if you wish," she said.

Harry and Ron took place on either side of her, very closely, and Harry wrapped his arm around her waist. They just couldn't understand why she would do something like this... So, slowly, Harry got her to tell them exactly what happened, and why, and asked what they could do to make it better.

After telling them everything, she cited, "I'm rather sleepy, you guys.. I think we should go to bed, don't you?"

After looking at the time, Harry saw it was close to midnight.

"Of course, that's a good idea."

So the three of them parted ways up their staircases, groping the walls for balance. Hermione hoped to have good dreams, but knew she probably wouldn't.

As she woke the next morning, she felt a sense of reassurance, like no one could bring her down today. She assumed that finally telling someone about her problems just lifted an enormous amount of weight off of her shoulders.

So today she would start classes again, and she was excited about it. As always, Gryffindors were with the Slytherins, and her first class was Astronomy. Astronomy was by far one of her favorite subjects; she found a sense of peace in studying stars and such.

First she went and showered, then to get dressed, then down to the Gryffindor common room to meet Harry and Ron. When they arrived from their staircase, they traipsed off to breakfast together, Hermione in her black robes and with quite a bit of eyeliner on.

As she was walking down the hallway, Professor Dumbledore stopped her and asked to speak with her briefly. He told he that she'd be moved to the head's room tonight, and that she needn't worry because there would be a house elf move her things. She thanked him and continued to breakfast.

As she finished eating and moved along to the astronomy tower, she felt someone tap her on the shoulder. When she looked to see who it was, all she saw was the smirk of a Malfoy, tempting yet terrible.

"What could you possibly want with a mudblood?" she asked.

"I was just wondering if you'll be in the head's dorms tonight?"

"Yeah, I will," she said, turning on her heel and continuing forth to her class.

"Why was he being bearable?" she thought to herself. "Usually, he'd never talk to me, except to taunt me about my heritage and parents and such.."

But, thoughts aside, she needed to get herself together for her first class of the year. As she walked in, everyone gasped at her appearance... Sure, she'd changed a lot, but did they really need to make their opinion noticeable? ...She didn't think so.

"Hermione! What did you do! I was wondering where you were at the feast last night, I didn't see you anywhere, or so I thought... So this is you?" Lavender said aloud... And I do mean, LOUD.

But she was already used to this kind of thing, imagine having lived in the Muggle world like this; the teasing was much worse.

So she continued "learning," which was no longer a favorite thing for her to do... In reality, she transformed a romance novel she had bought in Barnes & Nobles over the summer to look like an Astronomy book, and she was paying no attention whatsoever.

Turns out that she missed an important homework assignment that was due the next day, but Lavender told her that anyway, back in the common room. Lunch came, more classes, and before she knew it, it was time for dinner. So she found Harry and Ron once again and made her way to dinner.

After dinner, Hermione made her way up to the head's dorms to look over her homework and such; as she walked through the door, she saw Draco sprawled on the couch with a book in his hands.

"The Devil reads?" she said, jokingly, as she was in a good mood since he was being nice earlier.

After jumping off the couch, startled, he replied, "Yes, the Devil reads. And I read too."

Hermione procrastinated on her homework until well after midnight; around this time, she decided to do it, along with some music. So she walked downstairs, cd player in hand, spell in mind to make it work, and with her cd case.

She decided on Something Corporate's best cd, in her opinion, Leaving Through The Window.

"So I fall, I don't wanna feel this small... You know I just can't handle this, can't handle this at all... And I'll just fall, let my heartbeat drop, I falter as the music stops, and you watch me as I stall... And wonder when I fall..." shesang along.

"Is that Something Corporate?" a voice asked from nowhere.

"Yeah it is. Do you like them or something?" Hermione asked; it was Draco.

"Sort of... It was a way of venting for me, listening to that stuff..."

"Why are you talking to me? Why are you being so nice to me, all of a sudden?" she asked.

"I'm not as bad as everyone thinks, Hermione... I was always under the influence of my father, who was a very cruel man."

"Was? What is that supposed to mean?"

"He died this summer, that's why I can be so nice now... You see, he had me under the Cruciatus curse for the last 6 years of my life, because he was a deatheater and wanted to convince me to follow his ways. But over the summer, Voldemort was finally defeated, and everyone that closely followed him was destroyed, including my father... My life was spared because I never truly believed my father about his greatness."

"So you mean to tell me that you've never had a problem with any of us? I mean, I had heard that Voldemort was defeated, by Harry, but Harry hasn't said anything... But anyway, I just figured, after all those years, you'd hate Harry even more now that he defeated Voldemort..."

"Nope, not at all... Ask my mother, I'm a very good and well brought up young man. The manners I have were taught to me by her... Every ounce of good that is in my soul was taught by her. She made me normal, if not a tad spoiled."

"And all this time you were normal? That's amazing... But it really hurt my feelings when you would call me a mudblood.." Hermione said.

"I'm sorry for that, Hermione... I actually always admired you... You were always so much smarter than me... It was something I always strived for with my father, but I never received his admiration, no matter what I did for him... But my mom always showed me a good time, when he was away on 'business...'" Draco said back.

Hermione was amazed that this was happening...Who would have thought that Draco could be nice?

"Well, I think it's getting pretty late... Have you finished your homework? I don't mean to keep you from it, but you can copy mine if you didn't finish." Draco said.

"I'm almost done, but copying sounds like a much better option right now; I'm about to fall asleep right here."

So she copied it, and they parted ways to their different bedrooms, Hermione laden with thoughts of Draco and Draco vice-versa.

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