Pariah

Everyday I fight a war against the mirror

I can't take the person staring back at me 'cause I'm a hazard to myself

Don't let me get me

I'm my own worst enemy

It's bad when you annoy yourself, so irritating

Don't wanna be my friend no more, I wanna be somebody else

I wanna be somebody else, yeah

(Don't Let Me Get Me—Pink)

Ron looked between Hermione and Draco. Hermione felt as if her heart stopped and that time had slowed down just to torture her for this moment.

"What the hell is going on here?" Ron asked. He didn't yell. He spoke in a deadly calm voice.

"Ron…" Her voice was shaky and she began to tremble. Tears began to form in her eyes.

Draco stepped in front of her in a protective gesture. "She doesn't have to explain anything to you."

Ron shook his head in disgust then turned and left the tower. Hermione moved to go after him but Draco stopped her.

"Hermione," he pleaded with her to stay but she yanked her arm free and ran out of the room. Draco swore softly under his breath and followed after her. Ron raced through the corridors with Hermione on his heels. Draco had been left behind, lost at a turn of a corner.

Ron stormed into the common room and Luna and Ginny stood up. "Oh good, did you find…"

Their voices trailed off when they saw the look of absolute rage on his face.

"Ron?" Neville asked with concern.

Hermione had just clambered in through the door and Ron didn't hesitate.

"WHAT THE FUCK, HERMIONE!"

Everyone in the room jumped.

"Ron…I…"

"DON'T EVEN TRY TO DENY IT HERMIONE! I SAW YOU! I SAW YOU WITH…WITH…HIM!"

"I wasn't going to deny it," she shook her head.

"Ron what is this about?" Ginny cut in.

"HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO HARRY!"

"This has nothing to do with Harry!" Hermione shot back.

"IT HAS EVERYTHING TO DO WITH HARRY! YOU WERE KISSING MALFOY!"

Luna, Ginny and Neville's jaws dropped open and they all stared at Hermione. Ron realized what he had done turned away from his friends and ran a frustrated hand through his hair. Hermione turned to her friends.

"Could you…leave us for a moment?"

Ginny shook her head in disbelief at her. "Hermione…how…"

"Please?" Hermione repeated.

"We'll go upstairs," Neville said. His tone was harsh and cruel to her and the three of them followed Neville to the boys' dorm.

Ron's hands were resting on the back of a chair, his face was red with anger and fury. "I'm asking Harry to take you out of the Order."

"What! You can't do that!"

"I can when I think your loyalties should be questioned."

"I AM LOYAL TO HARRY!" Hermione shouted.

"BULLSHIT!" Ron threw the chair he was grasping across the room. "Your loyalty to Harry ended the moment you started feeling any sort of compassion for the Ferret. That's your downfall Hermione, it will be your downfall. You care too damn much about things that shouldn't be cared for! Your stupid SPEW, your dumb fling with Viktor during the tournament, this stupid idea that Malfoy, of all people, can be saved!"

"Shut up, Ron! SHUT UP!" Hermione shouted, wiping the hot tears from her cheeks.

He jabbed a finger at her. "You have until tonight to tell him or I WILL! Either way, if I see you trying to ferret your way back into his good graces, mark my words Hermione, I will put a stop to it. Harry needs at least one true friend."

The portrait door opened and Harry walked in.

"Ron? Hermione?" he asked, seeing the looks on their faces. Hermione turned away and hastily wiped the tears from her face.

Ron grabbed his cloak. "I'm outta here," he said and brushed past Harry.

Harry looked back at Hermione. "What happened?"

Hermione took one look at the concern on Harry's face and something cracked inside of her, letting the tears fall down and her shoulders shake with her sobs.

Alarmed Harry rushed to her side. "Hermione?"
She backed away from him, keeping him at arms length. "Stay…away…from me…Harry," she said in between hiccups.

He stopped where he was. "Hermione, what's going on?"

She looked at him. Her best friend. The man she truly did love. "I'm…sorry," she hiccupped. "I'm so…so sorry."

"What did you do?" he asked in a whisper.

"Harry! Hermione!" Tonks yelled as she ran into the common room. Harry looked up at her.

"What is it?" he asked, slightly startled by her intrusion.

"It's happening," she announced. "Let's go. I've got a portkey."

They moved out into the corridor where Ron was holding a muggle soda can. He didn't even glance in Hermione's direction when he held it out. With an uncomfortable tugging sensation the felt themselves leave Hogwarts…

…and land in a street somewhere in London. Harry could hear screaming and there was the smell of smoke in the air. The Dark Mark hovered in the sky above them.

"Stay in pairs of two!" Kingsley announced when they had dropped in with the other members of the Order. "You're with me Potter!" Harry looked at Hermione then looked at Ron. "Watch her for me, okay?" he asked his friend before running off with Kingsley. Ron glared at Hermione, who ignored his steely gaze and drew her wand, stepping forward to join in whatever battle there may be.

Ron didn't follow her. He went after Harry.

Alone but not afraid. Hermione went in the direction the Remus and Tonks went. Her eye on the Dark Mark above her. Someone ran past her, a muggle, with his hands wrapped around a small television. There were sirens blaring and she jumped out of the road to let the police speed by. More people began running toward her, their faces black with ash and soot, coughing and swearing. There was a dull roaring and she could feel heat.

Fire.

Something was on fire.

Her vision became obscured by the thickening smoke and she coughed for a breath. She held her wand in front of her and did a little incantation to clear some air around her so she could breath.

Then she was tackled to the ground and she cried out in pain when her wrist of her wand arm made a sickening crunch when it hit the pavement. She was pinned and couldn't move very well but she struggled anyway. The man who pinned her grabbed her broken wrist and she screamed, instinctively dropping her wand. He flipped her over and with terror, Hermione saw Dolohov above her. The man who nearly killed her in the Department of Mysteries.

"Go ahead and struggle," he said to her, licking his lips. He moved off of her and grabbed her by her hair and dragged her into a nearby building, kicking and screaming.

Harry and Kingsley just rounded a corner in time to see someone throw something large and heavy into a storefront before reaching in and helping himself to the wares now available. There were smoke and flames pouring out of the windows of the building. People were running in the streets, looting the stores that were nearby, also on fire. The muggle fire brigades were doing their best to contain the fires and keep them from spreading to even more buildings. Police sirens shrieked in protest of the looters.

"Have they all gone mad?" Harry asked.

Ministry officials showed up, one of the captains walked up to Kingsley. "Round up as many muggles as you can. We'll need to do some memory modifications here. Our fire brigade just arrived to help put these fires out."

"Why aren't the Death Eaters attacking? This would be a prime time to take out as many muggles as they can in this confusion," Kingsley said aloud.

Kingsley was right. As they wandered in the streets on guard, not a single hex or curse was sent their way. It was as if the Death Eaters set the fires then left.

"Something doesn't feel right about this," Harry said, shaking his head.

"I'm with you on that one, Harry."

There was someone approaching and Harry turned to see Ron trotting up to them.

"Where's Hermione?" Harry asked.

Ron dismissed the question. "Do you have any idea what's going on here?"

"Aside from the Dark Mark, there's nothing left of any Death Eaters," Kingsley replied.

Remus and Tonks showed up as well as Moody and Aberforth.

"Nothing," they had said.

"Have you seen Hermione?" Harry asked them.

"I thought she was with Ron," Tonks replied.

Ron shrugged. "I went with Harry."

Harry whirled on him. "I told you to stay with Hermione."

"She's a big girl. She can take care of herself," Ron said nonchalantly.

Harry shook his head. "What the hell has gotten into you?"

"You heard everyone, there aren't any Death Eaters. She's probably somewhere in this crowd."

"Everyone split up again," Remus said and they parted ways to find her.

Hermione elbowed Dolohov in the stomach and he bent over in pain. She quickly moved past him to get through the doorway and ran down the hall. She didn't get too far before the Death Eater grabbed her and shoved her up against the wall.

"No!" she protested as he pressed his body against hers. He wrapped a hand around her throat, pinning her head to the wall as he whispered in her ear.

"How long have I waited for this?" he said, kissing the side of her face, kissing her ear.

Hermione reached up and dug her nails into his cheek and scratching him deeply. He cried out in pain and let go of her. She scrambled down the hall and heard him hex her a moment before she turned a corner. A searing pain lashed at her shoulder and she slumped against the wall for only a moment.

She had grabbed her shoulder with her other hand and when she took it away, she could see blood. She sprinted down the hall and into a room, closing and locking the door behind her.

She had run into an office and as she heard Dolohov blast away the door, she grabbed a computer keyboard and swung it at him, hitting him directly in the face. He cried out in pain. She happened to look out the window and saw Lupin and Tonks across the street.

"LUPIN!" she screamed.

"Shh!" Dolohov grabbed her and put a hand over her mouth. "Someone might hear you."

He picked up a struggling Hermione who was kicking and thrashing. She opened her mouth a little wider and bit down hard on his hand. He yanked it away, yelling in pain. Hermione grabbed a paperweight on the desk and through it through the window.

"TONKS!"

Nymphadora stopped Remus. "Did you hear that?" she asked.

Remus paused then…"Get down!" he shouted, bringing her to the floor as a hex flew at them.

"REMUS!"

"Hermione!" he breathed and the two of them sprinted across the street.

"No! Let me go!"

Dolohov was having some difficulty holding on to Hermione and trying to fling a curse at the pair headed their way.

"Shut up you little mudblood!" he hissed in her ear.

She reached back and elbowed him in the face and went for his wand, repeatedly hitting his hand against the desk. He heard people approaching and turned his wand to the doorway. Hermione knocked it away as his hex landed harmlessly on the doorframe above. Dolohov grabbed Hermione and used her as a shield when the two of them entered the room.

"Let her go, Dolohov," Remus ordered him, wand drawn.

Dolohov kissed the side of her head. "Until later, my sweet."

He shoved her to them and she felt a few hairs depart from her head before the Death Eater disappeared.

Tonks was the one who had caught her. "Are you okay, Hermione?"

"Did she say who did this to her?" Harry whispered angrily to Kingsley. He was standing a distance away from Hermione who was being examined by Madame Pomfrey, a curtain was drawn around her bed to give her some privacy.

"Dolohov," he answered.

"Dolohov!" Harry whispered his shriek. "Where the hell was Brian? Sitting on his ass?"

Kingsley gave him a reprimanding look. "He's been on surveillance at the Grangers."

Harry pursed his lips together. He wanted to lash out at someone. "And you?" he said to Ron.

He shrugged. "I was with you."

"And I told you to stay with her," Harry shot back.

"She's a big girl. She can take care of herself."

Harry looked in Hermione's direction. "Evidently," he said sarcastically.

Ron looked directly at him. "Yeah, Harry. Evidently."

Harry stared at Ron, wondering what had gotten into his friend. The sound of the curtain being pulled back brought his attention back to Hermione.

"I'll see you later," Ron said and left the hospital wing.

"Is everything okay?" Kingsley asked Harry.

He shook his head. "I have no idea what's going on."

Kingsley left him alone and Harry approached Madame Pomfrey and Hermione. She had some cuts and bruises on her, a large gash on her right shoulder and her right wrist was wrapped an in a sling. She was currently gagging down some Skele-Gro.

"She should be ready to leave tomorrow morning," Madame Pomfrey said. "But she'll rest here overnight."

The mediwitch hustled away to her other wards leaving the two of them alone.

"You want to tell me why you separated from Ron?" he asked.

Hermione played with some stray strands on her sling. "We aren't getting along right now."

"I can see that. Do you want to tell me why?" Hermione chewed her bottom lip. "Does this have something to do with what I walked in on earlier?"

"Earlier today," she swallowed her fear, "Ron…walked in on…" She just couldn't get the words out.

"Walked in on what, Hermione?" he asked.

The doors to the hospital wing opened and Harry was surprised at who was standing there.

"Um…," Draco said quietly as he stood there, awkward.

Hermione let out a soft groan and closed her eyes, wishing Draco away. Harry looked from Draco to Hermione and back. The glasses and vials on the table next to her began to rattle and there was a low rumble.

"Harry…wait," Hermione called out to him as he backed away from her.

"Hermione…," he shook his head, "…piss off." He walked away from her and out of the hospital wing. He stopped once by the doors next to Draco. He was sooo angry he didn't know what to say first. He just scoffed and shook his head in disbelief before walking out of the door.

Draco slowly approached Hermione, taking in her injuries.

She wiped the tears away from her face and slumped down in the bed. "Go away, Draco," she sniffed.

"Who did this to you?" he asked, reaching out and touching her arm in the sling. Hermione rolled away from him, not answering him.

"Hermione…"

"Please," she sniffled. Reluctantly, Draco left her side.

Harry didn't get any sleep at all that night. He made Ron tell him about Hermione and Draco and what exactly he had walked in on. Neville was up as well and offered his own editorial about how he felt about Hermione. The Ferret and Hermione kissing. What the hell was she thinking? He wanted to scream at her, shake some sense into her but that would involve talking to her and he did NOT want to do that. And as he lay awake at night, he let his imagination take over as he played various scenarios in his head, each one worse than the one before.

But the good thing about Harry Potter was that he had friends. And he sat with them at their usual spot at the Gryffindor table. No one else had known what had transpired between Hermione and Draco so it was surreal for Harry to think that while his own little world was crashing down upon him, everyone else was going about business as usual.

"Good morning everyone," Luna said, sitting down with them and handing Harry a copy of the Quibbler.

Another Death Eater Attack!

The headline was in bold letters above a large picture of him, Ron and Kingsley surveying the damage.

"Daily Prophet didn't even cover this," Luna said.

"Really?" Ron said. "I bet the Beetle is spitting fire."

"Probably," Harry sighed, folding up the paper and passing it to Neville.

"Hello Harry," came the chorus of voices from Lavender and Parvati. The article and his picture fueled their hero fantasies of him even more.

"Heads up Harry," Neville muttered quietly and Harry looked up to see Hermione walking into the Hall. Her sling was gone but she still had her wrist wrapped and she still had a few cuts on her face. She sat down at her usual place at the table but the moment she settled herself, Ron picked up his cup and plate and moved further down the table. Harry followed suit with Luna, followed shortly by Neville and Ginny.

The buzz of conversation gradually lowered in volume as everyone in the school witnessed what had just happened. Hermione's face was hot with embarrassment. She hastily grabbed an orange and some toast then quickly got up to leave the Hall and have her breakfast someplace else. Conversation went back to its normal level although with much more enthusiasm.

Harry would've felt bad for Hermione if he didn't notice the Ferret watching her as she left. Fucker. Lavender and Parvati were desperate for gossip so they, too, moved to join Harry's group but where unsuccessful at extracting anything from anyone and were instead privy to a quidditch debate between Ron and his sister.