Xamphia~ Hey thanks for the great reviews! Yeah, I made up Mettlecase
Mirkmonster. It was fun trying to think of a weird name!
Draco hovered in the doorway of another compartment, watching them. Potter looked at Granger's arm, and so did that Looney Lovehart girl. He couldn't hear what they were saying, but then he heard Weasel.
".not going to tell anyone about this," he said.
No, damn it, Draco thought. Tell a teacher.
He turned back into his compartment. He was alone, thank God, those two huge bafoons weren't with him. He slammed the door shut and locked it.
"Stupid fucking Mudblood!" he exclaimed. "What the hell is she thinking cutting herself!?"
"Hermione, what are you thinking?" asked Ron. "That's a cruel thing to do to yourself."
Hermione shook her head. "No, Ron. I deserve it."
"What the hell do you mean you deserve it?" asked Harry.
Hermione shook her head again. She knew they would never understand. "Please go away now."
"No," said Ginny. "We're not leaving you to kill yourself."
"I'm not trying to kill myself!" Hermione yelled. She jumped up out of her seat. She thanked God for the Silencing Charm she'd put on the compartment.
"You could've fooled me," said Harry.
Then, the train stopped. Damn, they had forgotten all about their robes. Hermione's four so-called "friends" rushed out of the compartment, leaving Hermione again alone. She threw her robes on, grabbed her trunk, and rushed out of her compartment, where the others were filing out.
Hermione sat alone at the far back end of the Gryffindor table. Harry, Ron, and Ginny kept looking back at her, as if to see if she hadn't dropped dead on the floor yet. She paid no attention to the Sorting. She barely ate during dinner. She just wanted it to end, and wanted to be in the solitude of her slumber.
She followed the prefects up to the Gryffindor Common Room. Hermione had owled Professor Dumbledore and declined another year as a prefect. Dumbledore didn't ask any questions, just acknowledged her request and gave the job to someone else. Not that he needed to ask questions. He probably knew the whole story by now.
Hermione went straight up to her dorm without speaking to anyone. She started to unpack all her things. No one came up to the dorm for a while. Most people were downstairs, finding out what happened to each of them over break. When she had put her pajamas on, and was about to go into the bathroom to wash up, Harry and Ron burst in.
"Hermione, damn it, you're going to listen to us," said Ron in a stone-hard voice.
"I could be naked, you know," said Hermione, looking at their feet instead of their faces. "I just barely finished changing."
Harry and Ron rushed up to her, grabbed her by the arms, and sat her on the bed. They sat on either side of her. Hermione didn't look at either of them, just stared at her own bare feet.
"Hermes," said Ron in a softer voice than before, "we want to help you. You can't do this to yourself. Tell us what we can do to help you."
Hermione spoke in a whisper, still not daring to look at them. "Can you take me to my mum again?" Tears started to fall silently to the floor, around her feet.
"Is that what this is about, Hermione?" asked Harry. "Going to your mum?"
"Something like that."
"We can't give you your mum, Hermione," said Ron. "But we can listen to you. Tell us what you're thinking, Hermes. We can help you sort things out."
Hermione wiped her tears, only to clear a path for more to fall. She finally had the courage to look them each in the face.
"You guys are the best friends I could ever ask for," she choked out.
Both Ron and Harry hugged her tightly. They let go and looked over her.
"You don't look like you've slept in weeks," said Harry.
"No, I've slept quite well. Better than usual," said Hermione. "The best part of my day is when I don't have to deal with the real world."
"The real world may cause the problems, Hermione," said Ron, "but it's also the only thing that can fix them."
Hermione smiled. "Who'd you steal that one from, Ron?"
"I'm hurt!" said Ron, smacking his right hand to his chest, where his heart was. "Really, I made it up myself."
"Good one. Props to you for that one."
Four weeks later, everything had improved for Hermione. She could talk to her friends freer, and hadn't cut herself in three weeks. She was getting color back into her skin, and the bags under her eyes disappeared. Everything was going great. She was back to the same old Hermione.
On a Saturday, she was dressed in baggy jeans and a tee shirt of her favorite Muggle band, Incubus. She had started to be more tomboyish over the summer, before what happened to her mother. She was laughing along with Harry and Ron when Pansy Parkinson came by. The three looked up at her, who was accompanied by Millicent Bulstrode, Crabbe, and Goyle. She made a disgusting look.
"What the hell are you wearing?" she asked Hermione.
"Jeans and a tee shirt," Hermione replied cooly. "Is that a problem?"
Pansy rolled her eyes. "Your mother hasn't been dead so long as for you to forget how to dress like a girl."
Hermione's mouth popped open in surprise. Harry and Ron were on their feet, screaming at Pansy while Pansy, Crabbe, Goyle, and Millicent screamed retorts back. All Hermione remembered after that second was running away to her dorm, grabbing some stuff she'd need to sleep in, and then finding herself in the Astronomy Tower, alone.
Draco hovered in the doorway of another compartment, watching them. Potter looked at Granger's arm, and so did that Looney Lovehart girl. He couldn't hear what they were saying, but then he heard Weasel.
".not going to tell anyone about this," he said.
No, damn it, Draco thought. Tell a teacher.
He turned back into his compartment. He was alone, thank God, those two huge bafoons weren't with him. He slammed the door shut and locked it.
"Stupid fucking Mudblood!" he exclaimed. "What the hell is she thinking cutting herself!?"
"Hermione, what are you thinking?" asked Ron. "That's a cruel thing to do to yourself."
Hermione shook her head. "No, Ron. I deserve it."
"What the hell do you mean you deserve it?" asked Harry.
Hermione shook her head again. She knew they would never understand. "Please go away now."
"No," said Ginny. "We're not leaving you to kill yourself."
"I'm not trying to kill myself!" Hermione yelled. She jumped up out of her seat. She thanked God for the Silencing Charm she'd put on the compartment.
"You could've fooled me," said Harry.
Then, the train stopped. Damn, they had forgotten all about their robes. Hermione's four so-called "friends" rushed out of the compartment, leaving Hermione again alone. She threw her robes on, grabbed her trunk, and rushed out of her compartment, where the others were filing out.
Hermione sat alone at the far back end of the Gryffindor table. Harry, Ron, and Ginny kept looking back at her, as if to see if she hadn't dropped dead on the floor yet. She paid no attention to the Sorting. She barely ate during dinner. She just wanted it to end, and wanted to be in the solitude of her slumber.
She followed the prefects up to the Gryffindor Common Room. Hermione had owled Professor Dumbledore and declined another year as a prefect. Dumbledore didn't ask any questions, just acknowledged her request and gave the job to someone else. Not that he needed to ask questions. He probably knew the whole story by now.
Hermione went straight up to her dorm without speaking to anyone. She started to unpack all her things. No one came up to the dorm for a while. Most people were downstairs, finding out what happened to each of them over break. When she had put her pajamas on, and was about to go into the bathroom to wash up, Harry and Ron burst in.
"Hermione, damn it, you're going to listen to us," said Ron in a stone-hard voice.
"I could be naked, you know," said Hermione, looking at their feet instead of their faces. "I just barely finished changing."
Harry and Ron rushed up to her, grabbed her by the arms, and sat her on the bed. They sat on either side of her. Hermione didn't look at either of them, just stared at her own bare feet.
"Hermes," said Ron in a softer voice than before, "we want to help you. You can't do this to yourself. Tell us what we can do to help you."
Hermione spoke in a whisper, still not daring to look at them. "Can you take me to my mum again?" Tears started to fall silently to the floor, around her feet.
"Is that what this is about, Hermione?" asked Harry. "Going to your mum?"
"Something like that."
"We can't give you your mum, Hermione," said Ron. "But we can listen to you. Tell us what you're thinking, Hermes. We can help you sort things out."
Hermione wiped her tears, only to clear a path for more to fall. She finally had the courage to look them each in the face.
"You guys are the best friends I could ever ask for," she choked out.
Both Ron and Harry hugged her tightly. They let go and looked over her.
"You don't look like you've slept in weeks," said Harry.
"No, I've slept quite well. Better than usual," said Hermione. "The best part of my day is when I don't have to deal with the real world."
"The real world may cause the problems, Hermione," said Ron, "but it's also the only thing that can fix them."
Hermione smiled. "Who'd you steal that one from, Ron?"
"I'm hurt!" said Ron, smacking his right hand to his chest, where his heart was. "Really, I made it up myself."
"Good one. Props to you for that one."
Four weeks later, everything had improved for Hermione. She could talk to her friends freer, and hadn't cut herself in three weeks. She was getting color back into her skin, and the bags under her eyes disappeared. Everything was going great. She was back to the same old Hermione.
On a Saturday, she was dressed in baggy jeans and a tee shirt of her favorite Muggle band, Incubus. She had started to be more tomboyish over the summer, before what happened to her mother. She was laughing along with Harry and Ron when Pansy Parkinson came by. The three looked up at her, who was accompanied by Millicent Bulstrode, Crabbe, and Goyle. She made a disgusting look.
"What the hell are you wearing?" she asked Hermione.
"Jeans and a tee shirt," Hermione replied cooly. "Is that a problem?"
Pansy rolled her eyes. "Your mother hasn't been dead so long as for you to forget how to dress like a girl."
Hermione's mouth popped open in surprise. Harry and Ron were on their feet, screaming at Pansy while Pansy, Crabbe, Goyle, and Millicent screamed retorts back. All Hermione remembered after that second was running away to her dorm, grabbing some stuff she'd need to sleep in, and then finding herself in the Astronomy Tower, alone.
