Summary: Hermione Granger's life is boring and pointless. For eleven years she's hated her life. No one understands her, her parents are never home, and, worst of all, she has no friends. This is until, however, she gets her Hogwarts letter, telling her she is a witch. What happens when a clever eleven year old girl learns to study magic? Can she make friends, even though she's never had any? Maybe, just maybe, she can make a difference.

A Hermione Granger story, based on her 1st year at Hogwarts. This story is in Hermione's POV.

Rated PG Read and Review please! This is my first fan fic, and I would appreciate any ideas or constructive criticism.

Disclaimer: This story is very similar to JK's but everything that Hermione thinks is my work. Any dialog at Hogwarts is JK's, unless its between Hermione and a professor or Hermione and one of the Gryffindor girls. I did this so the basic story would be the same, but instead of Harry being the main character, Hermione is. The only characters I own are Owen Hennings and Mrs Hennings.

Chapter 1

A Lonely Shadow

"Hermione, dear, its time to get up. The bus will be here in twenty minutes. Get up, get dressed, and come downstairs for breakfast, you don't want to be late."

Eleven year old Hermione Granger groaned. She hated school. For some odd reason, she couldn't seem to fit in. Her peers considered her 'weird' and a 'teacher's pet'. It didn't help that she was at the top of her class, either. She was known as a 'know-it-all' for always answering questions in class eagerly and correctly. She didn't have a single friend, and even ate lunch alone. 'Why am I so different?' she would ask herself. Every day she asked this question, and she could never answer it. Strange things always seemed to happen when she was around. Once, she had been arguing with a teacher when the papers on the teacher's desk mysteriously flew off the desk, like a tornado had just gone by, and scattered everywhere. No one had touched them, and everyone, for some reason, blamed Hermione.

She sighed, and got out of her bed. She threw on jeans and a baby blue tee-shirt, and went into her bathroom and brushed her teeth. She grabbed her brush and quickly dragged it through her untamable hair. When she finished, she turned off the light and headed downstairs for breakfast.

"Good morning, Hermione! Did you sleep well?" Her dad usually greeted her like this in the morning. It was really the only time she ever got to talk to him, since he worked all day and didn't usually come back until after dinnertime, when she did her homework.

"Yes thanks. How's work going?" Hermione poured herself a glass of orange juice, and grabbed some toast, not really caring about the world of dentistry. As her father was enthusiastically talking, she put raspberry jam, her favorite, on her toast and began eating, as her father's voice went on and on...and on. (A/N ok this guy is waaay too obsessed with his job. He's starting to annoy me. Does anyone else see this? lol) When he finally stopped talking, Hermione got an idea. "Dad, since I only have a half day today, can I please stay home? Everyone at school hates me. They make fun of me and call me names. Can I please stay home?"

Her father sighed. "Honey, I know it's hard, but give it time. They will come to see who you really are soon enough. It's your last day of fifth grade! Your going to be in middle school next year! Go have fun, and try to end the year with a bang!" (A/N is this guy deaf? SHE HATES SCHOOL YOU IDIOT LET HER BUNK! Sorry got carried away lol )

Hermione (a/n and the author!) rolled her eyes. She had hoped she would make him feel guilty by telling him how much she hated school, even though it happened to be the truth. "Fine I'll go since you are UNFAIRLY making me but if I come back a bloody mess I'm blaming you." Hermione stormed out of the room, ignoring her dad's call to her. She grabbed her backpack and threw in her books. Why couldn't she be like normal people with normal, caring parents? Why did she stick out like a sore thumb everywhere she went? Why did she get the feeling she didn't belong here? Why didn't she have any friends? She let out an exasperated sigh, grabbing her sneakers and pulling them on. This day was really going to suck.

She was tying her sneakers when she heard the impatient sounds of the bus driver, Mrs. Hennings, who had hated Hermione ever since Hermione had told her she had run a stop sign. Hermione grabbed her backpack, and ran out the door, not bothering to say goodbye to her parents. She climbed onto the bus, ignoring the glares from Mrs. Hennings and the students. She sat a few rows from the front, so she wouldn't have to talk to anyone. The bus ride was slow and boring, as usual. Hermione gazed out of the window, and began daydreaming. Se was woken from her trance when the bus stopped abruptly, causing her body to lurch forward slightly. She threw her bag over her shoulder, and quickly got off the bus, dreading the rest of the day.

She walked into school, holding her head low, so she wouldn't attract attention. Unfortunately for her, a boy named Owen Hennings spotted her. He was the meanest boy in the fifth grade, and picked on Hermione daily. Owen Hennings was the son of Mrs. Hennings, the bus driver. His father had died in a police accident, or at least that's what he told everyone. Unknown, to Hermione, however, Owen's father was not a policeman at all. He was an Auror, and had been killed trying to capture some death eaters. His father's death had been hard on him, as he was only seven years old at the time it happened. Hermione remembered it well.

Flashback

"Would Owen Hennings please come to the principal's office immediately?" The secrectary spoke with a mix of urgency and pity, but everyone could tell she was trying to sound unconcerned.

A scared looking little boy got up, with a look of fear and curiosity on his face. There were a chorus of 'oooh's' and 'Owen's in troubleeeeee' as sing-song voices filled the classroom. The teacher told everyone to hush up.

Hermione Granger looked at him curiously. It hadn't sounded like he was in trouble judging from the announcement. The secretary hadn't sounded angry, as she usually did when ever he was in trouble. Owen got into trouble a lot. He enjoyed playing tricks on people, and was constantly getting sent to the principal's office for it. Hermione had a feeling something was wrong, but she didn't know what.

20 minutes later

Owen came back into the classroom, not looking anyone in the eye. Those who could see his face asked him if he was crying. He didn't say a word to anyone. He simply handed the teacher a note, grabbed his bag, and walked out of the classroom.

1 week later

During the next week of school, Hermione noticed that Owen still hadn't returned. One day, the teacher told the class to stop talking and pay attention, because she was going to tell them what happened and why Owen was out.

"I regret to inform you that young Mr. Hennings' father was killed a week ago. He was on police business, and was killed on the job. Please do not question Mr. Hennings until he is more ready to handle it. Do not bring up the subject of his father's death, unless he does. He needs time to grieve, so let him be."

The class sat in silence, shocked at the news. This was the last thing anyone would have expected. Hermione felt very sorry for Owen. What would she have done if it was her own father? She wondered when Owen would be back, and if he would ever be the same again.

End of flashback

Owen had never been the same again. His tricks were no longer just for a laugh. Now he enjoyed causing people pain, whether it be physical or emotional. He didn't seem to care about what happened to him anymore.

Owen walked up to Hermione. "So ugly what's up?"

"Go away Owen"

"Awww is the little ugly duckling afraid of nasty Owen?" he said in a mock baby voice.

"For your information the ugly duckling turns into a swan at the end of the story, so you were basically giving me a compliment." Hermione knew she had stumped him.

What Owen did next she never would have suspected. He punched her. Hard. Right in her face. A teacher walking down the hall saw this, and went up to them.

"Mr. Hennings, explain yourself."

"Sh- She tricked me! I was just teasing her and she m- made me sound stupid "

"That does not give you the right to hit her. Go to the principal's office Owen. Miss Granger, go to the nurse and don't antagonize Owen again. I don't plan on helping you next time." The teacher wheeled around and swiftly walked away, with her nose in the air.

A tear slid down Hermione's cheek. She gathered her things, and ran to the nurse's office, hoping no one else would see her. She reached the door, and opened it slowly.

"Miss Granger what is it? The nurse looked at her with cold blue-grey eyes, making Hermione shiver. She felt like she had just plunged deep into icy water. (a/n Reminds me of a music teacher I had in 8th grade. :shivers:)

"I...ummm...well..." Hermione stuttered. She had always been uncomfortable around the nurse, since the nurse really disliked her, even more than Hermione's teachers.

"Well girl, spit it out or I wont treat you!" The nurse said angrily, causing Hermione to cower even more under her gaze.

Not daring to look the nurse in the eye, Hermione told her the story. When she looked up, the nurse was looking at her more angrily than usual.

"The teacher was right to tell you off. You know very well what that boy has been through. You should be ashamed of yourself." The nurse glared at her. "Here is an ice pack. Put it on your eye and wait a moment while I write you a note."

By the time Hermione got back to the classroom, Owen had told the entire class his version of the story, making Hermione seem like the villain.

When Hermione entered the classroom, what she saw shocked her. She knew her classmates hated her, but the if looks could kill, she would have dropped dead the second her eyes met theirs. She dropped her gaze, and stared down at the familiar white tiles. Without uttering a sound, she handed her teacher the note, and walked quickly to her seat in the front of the room, right next to the window. She was glad she sat here, so she wouldn't have to see the other kids' faces, or glares in her case.

The teacher began to talk, but Hermione wasn't really paying attention. She stared at her desk, as the teacher droned on about where next year would lead them. The past few days, teachers had been telling the class what to expect next year, and Hermione was getting sick of it. She hated the idea of going to another school. She knew that there would just be more people to hate her. She continued to stare at her desk, until the familiar sound of the lunch bell began its depressing toll. She slowly got up, and reached into her bag for her lunch. She had always hated lunch, because she had to sit alone. She didn't even really see the point of having lunch, since they were going home right after. The teachers had said that the whole point was so they could have a last chat with their friends at the lunch table. For Hermione, it was a final reminder of how much she hated her life.

The lunch hour dragged on, and finally the last bell of the day rang. Hermione quickly got up, walked to her classroom, and grabbed her backpack, not bothering to say a word to her teacher. She practically ran out the door, almost knocking some first graders to the ground. She was one of the few taking the bus today, because, as usual, her parents were at a meeting and were unable to pick her up. She got on the bus, not even glancing at Mrs. Hennings, since she knew she would be met with the usual glare. She sat in her usual seat, and stared out of the window, daydreaming. When the bus finally reached her stop, she quickly stepped off the bus, and tripped, luckily catching herself before she fell.

Hermione walked to her house, and unlocked the door. As usual, her house was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. She went upstairs to her room, and picked up the book she had been working on, called The Return of the King. It was part of a trilogy called The Lord of the Rings, by J.R.R. Tolkien. She had read the first two, and loved them. She enjoyed going into a place that took her away from the pain of the real world, and into a magical tale. She sat on her bed and read for a few hours, not knowing or caring how much time was going by. She had just finished the book, when she heard her parents come in.

She didn't bother getting up, since she knew her parents would just talk about the boring world of dentistry and act like she wasn't there. She was a bit surprised to hear someone coming up the stairs, but thought nothing of it. Surprisingly, her dad opened the door with a smile on his face.

"Hermione I have great news! I got a promotion! Aren't you happy?"

Hermione looked at him with her bruised face and black eye, which he didn't seem to have noticed. "Yea dad, that's great. Congratulations." She spoke with a unenthusiastic voice, which her father didn't catch.

"So how was you day at school?"

"If you can't tell by my appearance that my day was horrible, then you aren't much of a father. You wouldn't even notice if I ran away and never came back!" She ran out of her room, crying, and went downstairs to the kitchen. Her mother was there starting dinner. Hermione didn't like her mother either, but at least her mother knew she existed most of the time.

"Hermione what happened to your face? Did you fall down the stairs or something?"

Hermione usually said that she fell down the stairs when she came home physically injured, but she knew she couldn't keep saying that. "A boy in my class hit me because I mad a clever remark to an insult he threw at me." Hermione knew that when she mentioned the boy's name was Owen Hennings, her mother would be angry with her. Her mother had always felt sorry for him, and whenever Hermione told her he was mean to her, she always assumed Hermione was at fault.

"Who hit you? I'm sure we can talk to the principal and work it out."

Hermione dreaded what she was about to say, but she knew that lying was pointless, since her mother would find out the truth. "Well...ummmmmmm." She had the sudden urge to just run away, but she wouldn't have any place to go.

"Well?" Her mother looked at her impatiently.

"I was...talking to O-Owen H-Hennings, and he insulted me so I... I made a witty remark and he- he hit me."

"Hermione Granger I am very disappointed in you. That boy has been through a great deal. You are grounded, young lady. Go to your room. I do not want to look upon your despicable face a moment longer." Her mother glared at her and pointed at the stairs, motioning for Hermione to get out of her sight.