(A/N: It's taken me a little while to update, due to end of term chaos. You all know the score, real life can be a bitch at times. Please read and review so I can see what you think. I'm glad a couple of you at least reviewed the first chapter. As for THAT link left on the review board - if you don't like my story TOO BAD. Write something for yourselves. Problem solved!)

Chapter Two: When She Was Good

It was coming to the end of October. Raven had been at Hogwarts for a couple of months now, and she was starting to settle in. She didn't have a niche, exactly. It's not like she was as popular as, say, Pansy, at least not in the same way. People didn't know what to make of her. She was at once, stand-offish, clever and witty. She had no friends in Hufflepuff, they were too afraid of her. Ravenclaw girls were jealous of her looks and intelligence. Even some of the Slytherin's were warty of her, though Draco had not given up his pursuit for quite some time.

Raven mostly hung out with the Gryffindor's, when she didn't want to be alone. Harry and Ron found her good company, fun (when she got over her shyness) and somewhat clumsy, despite her obvious talents.

Hermione was more reserved. She thought Raven was too clever for her own good. In fact, Hermione was seriously in danger of becoming shrewish. She was arguing with Ron more than ever and if Harry ever tried to intervene, she snapped at him too. The only other person who agreed with Hermione was Ginny. Ron's little sister didn't like Raven one little bit. (A/N: However, this might have had more to do with Harry's obvious warmth towards the new girl than anything else!)

The weekly double Potions class had become Hermione's most dreaded ordeal. Every week things got worse. Last Friday there had been yetanother scene, involving Raven, in the dungeons.Snape had them making a potion designed to cause an object to become magnetic.

"This is so pointless," Ron whispered to Harry. "When are we ever going to need to know this stuff in the real world?"

"It's worse than algebra," Raven agreed, nodding her dark shaggy head.

"What's algebra?" Ron asked curiously.

"Math. You have to substitute letters for numbers and work out equations…" she trailed off at the blank expression on Ron's face. "Never mind, it's a pointless Muggle class. Not important in reality."

"Ah," Ron nodded wisely.

Hermione scowled. She didn't like this easy banter the boys had developed with the new girl.

Draco had been watching them from across the classroom. He grinned slyly at Hermione's obvious discomfort.

The class was noisier than was usual for a lessen with Snape. Magnetic objects kept flying about the room and attaching themselves to inappropriate places. Draco took advantage of the chaos and pretended to go to the store cupboard for more lace-fly wings. Gryffindor baiting was, after all, his favourite pastime, and here was a golden opportunity.

"Calm down there, Mudblood," he advised. "Just because Potty and the Weasel have found themselves a real witch for a sidekick, doesn't mean they love you any less."

Hermione pounded the pestle into her mortar as if it were Malfoy's face she was grinding.

Harry and Ron hadn't heard what was being said, as they were laughing uproariously at Raven's potion. It had gone spectacularly wrong. She had inadvertently made it in a metal cauldron. The thing had collapsed in on itself and all the metal instruments on Ravens desk were stuck fast to it.

"It's not funny, you two," she protested, half-laughing. "I can't get them… whoops!"

Her necklace had come within range of the magnetic field and she had now been added to the debris. Her neck was bent over the desk in what looked like a very uncomfortable position.

Draco whistled softly.

"She's good-looking isn't she, especially from this angle. Looks like Ronnikins thinks so too."

The mortar broke beneath Hermione's pounding.

"Shut up, Malfoy. You don't know what you're talking about."

Draco merely raised an eyebrow and flashed her a knowing smirk.

"Oh contraire, Granger. If you only knew what I did…"

Still smiling in that infuriating way, he left without a backwards glance.

The tension building between The Trio came to a head when they had a spectacular fighton Halloween night. It was a Saturday.

It started, as usual, with Hermione blowing her fuse over homework. Harry and Ron hadn't finished the Potions essay that was due the following Monday. (A/N: In the boy's defensce, it was ridiculously hard – Discuss, with specific examples, the dangers involved with the administration of wrong-fully brewed Veriterserum, and how to identify these mistakes, based on the symptoms presented)

"It's ok, 'Mi. We're meeting Raven in the library tomorrow night, she said she'd help us. There, you see? You don't need to worry about it, we won't bother you. We know you don't like us copying." Ron was happy to tell her this, it might save Hermione from nagging them to death.

"I don't let you copy," Hermione said tersely, "because how will you ever learn anything? Trying to copy from Raven is no better than trying to copy from me!"

"We're not going to copy from her! She's just going to run through a few things with us, so we don't annoy you. You always sigh and tell us off."

"That's because you never manage your time properly. If you just stuck to the timetable I gave you, things like this would never happen -"

"Hermione, not everyone can work the way you do." Harry interjected. "Look, this way, we're all happy. You get some peace and we finish our essays in time."

"You don't need to…to consort with that…hussy!"

Hermiones face was set in a deep frown and red with anger. The three of them were in the Gryffindor common room, which had rapidly cleared of people once the confrontation had started. No one wanted to be in the way when Hermione got upset these days. It almost involved taking your life in your hands!

"Hermione!" Ron growled.

"That wasn't fair," Harry shook his head. "There's no need to call her names. She's really nice, if you'd just give her a chance."

"Well I won't. I don't like her. I think she's bad for you. If you stay friends with her, then, you're no friend of mine any longer."

Hermione stuck out her chin and glared at them, mutely demanding them to choose.

"Hermione, don't be ridiculous -"

"I mean it Ron."

Harry clenched his teeth together. He was hurt that Hermione was so unwilling to give Raven a chance. In the two months he had spent getting to know her, he couldn't imagine what life at Hogwarts had been like before she arrived. It seemed so long ago, so removed, as if it had been an alternate universe or he had been a different person then. It felt new and exciting, this connection they had. Merlin knew, he had little enough to look forward to at the moment.

"I can't, Hermione." Harry finally spoke. His voice was quiet and full of regret. "I can't not see her anymore. If you're going to force this, you won't like where we'll end up."

Hermione remained silent, her eyes full of tears and rage.

"Fine."

Hermione whipped out her wand, as Harry turned around.

"Imperio!"

His movements became sluggish, as if an invisible hand were slowing him down, pulling him back.

"Stop it, Hermione. You can't make stay with magic. It's your fault it has come to this."

He picked up his books and walked stiffly over to the door, without looking back.

Ron gave Hermione one last imploring look. Her stony expression didn't change.

"I can't believe you've done this." Ron tried to smile, but all he could manage was a half-sad, half-dis-believing grimace. He too, turned and left, this time unhindered.

The immediate aftermath of the fight was, for ever after, a complete blank to Hermione. She sat in a big squishy armchair in front of the fire for a while, in total shock. The Griffyndor common room filled up around her. People had realised the fight was over and come back downstairs. The Halloween feast was getting into full swing in the Great Hall and no one wanted to miss it. All around her, the chatter and clatter grew louder. Girls dashed up and down to their rooms, fixing those last minute, but crucial details, like make-up and hair.

"Come on, Ginny, hurry up!" One fifth year girl called laughingly. "Who are you dressing up for this time?"

Ginny opted for the nonchalant tactic. "Who says it there has to be someone?"

The girl just looked at her with a don't-give-me-that look on her face.

Ginny sighed. "Ok, maybe there might be someone. And he won't look at me twice unless I look gorgeous, so push off. I just need one last touch up."

"You need a hell of a lot more than that, sweetie. We're off. You'll be here all night if perfection is what you're aiming for."

Ginny poked out her tongue at their retreating backs.

Hermione paid them no attention. The last thing she felt like doing was joining her housemates and pretending to be happy, when she was so far from it. She also didn't think she could stomach being in the same room as Raven without hexing the witch into the next millennium. So she stayed where she was, staring into the flames as intently as Lavender and Parvati did in Divination class.

The fire popped and crackled, sending a small hiss of sparks out into the room. Hermione jumped at the sound. One spark had landed on her hand and it burned her. At least it roused her from her stupor. Rubbing away the pain, she stood up and turned towards the dormitory's. There would be no one left in there by now.

A cold draft whistled down the stairwell, raising goose bumps on her skin. She passed the fifth year girl's doorway on her way up. From the room beyond came the sound of a heavy thump. Hermione froze. She had been sure everyone would be gone.

A dim voice reached her ears. It was shrill and panicky.

"Go away! I mean it. Leave now or -"

Another thump cut off whatever the girl had been saying. Hermione quickly reached for the handle. The door creaked slightly as she opened it. Half a dozen torches flared into life on the surrounding walls, illuminating the bedchamber. Everything appeared to be as it should be.

Then she heard the harsh sound of dry, terrified sobs. They were coming from Ginny's bed. Hermione knew which bed belonged to Ginny, as the two of them were pretty much sisters and they spent a lot of time hanging out together. She crossed the room in a couple of strides and pulled back the curtain of Ginny's bed.

Ginny let out a piercing shriek.

"Hermione! You scared me." She put a shaking hand to her heaving chest and tried to relax the tension in her seized up muscles.

"What's wrong? Who were you talking to just now?"

Ginny's eyes filled with tears once again.

"You won't believe me. I don't believe it myself…"

"Of course I will!" Hermione exclaimed. She sat down on the bed next to Ginny and put an arm around the other girl's shoulders. "You can tell me anything, you know I'll help you if I can."

"It started when the new girl… Raven, arrived." Ginny hesitated.

"Go on."

"Well, at first I thought I was imagining things. She didn't seem to have a cage or anything for it, so I though the rat couldn't possibly be hers. But I kept seeing it, this mangy white art…"

"Here? In Gryffindor Tower?"

"No! Never here. Until today. I… I… Oh Merlin, I can't tell you…"

"Ginny!" Hermione turned sharply and clutched the red heads shoulders. "What exactly are you truing to say?"

"It… it… Oh, Hermione! It's missing a toe. I wasn't sure before, but it was here tonight. In my dormitory. By my bed!" Ginny's voice rose hysterically. "I saw it clearly."

"Wormtail? Here?" Hermione was incredulous. "How would he have gotten into the castle undetected?"

"I don't know. He did before. I think you scared him away. For now."

Hermione looked at her in horror. Voldemort's servant had found his way into the castle once again. She should have guessed Raven had something to do with it. The girl was a Slytherin after all. Hermione cursed herself for not trusting her intuition.

"Ginny, will you be alright? I've got to go and find Harry, before it's too late."

Ginny gave her a watery smile and nodded.

"Yes, go. I'll be fine now. I'll follow you down as soon as I've splashed some cold water on my face."

Hermione squeezed Ginny's hands and ran out of the room, all her thoughts concentrated on this shocking turn of events.

Ginny stared at the door with narrowed eyes. As soon as Hermione had left, her tears had quickly dried up and the corners of her mouth had slowly twisted up into a wicked grin. It was done.

Hermione hardly needed any encouragement in fuelling her jealousy. For all her book learning, she wasn't very smart when it came to sorting out her own emotions. Now the seed of doubt that had been growing in her mind, this unexpected rivalry with the new girl, would make everything so much easier. Ginny hadn't even needed to prove any of her story to the usually-meticulous Hermione.

Ginny flung herself from the bed and stalked out of the room. She had to go and see Draco. The time had come for things to get moving and she'd be damned if she was going to let this opportunity pass them by.

TBC...

(A/N: I didn't get as far as I thought I would in this chapter. Lucius hasn't even made an appearnace yet! To those of you who have been waiting for him, sit tight, he's on his way in Chapter 3. As always, R+R-ing is much appreciated. I should be quicker updating this time around too.)