Chapter Two:
It wasn't long after the term began when a notice went up on the board in the Gryffindor common room. Flying lessons. Gryffindors would be practicing with the Slytherins with Madame Hooch.
While most of the first years were thrilled, Hermione was not. Flying? Was that safe? Her nights in the library were now spent reading everything she could about flying. She had asked Madame Pince, the librarian, where she could find some information on the subject and had been directed to an entire section of books. Admittedly, most books had more to do with the types of brooms, and their proper maintenance. There weren't many geared toward technique. But, Hermione found a few and pulled them off the shelves and into her arms.
Draco was already sitting at the table when she arrived and looked up at her. He looked at the books in her hand and spotted the cover of "Flying: A Guide On How Not To Fall" and laughed.
"You can't read a book about flying, Granger. You just do it."
"It can't hurt to learn the basics. I don't fancy going out there and looking a fool." She said quite curtly before taking her seat.
"Suit yourself." He said, shaking his head, returning to his own reading.
Before she felt ready Hermione, along with the other Gryffindors and Slytherins, stood outside waiting for Madame Hooch to begin the lesson. Every student was lined up facing each other and placed next to their own broom. Madame Hooch instructed that all they had to do was place their hand over their broom and command it to their hand by saying UP.
Placing her hand above her broom she commanded "up!" The broom didn't move. "Up!" she demanded again and still it didn't move. Frustrated, she began looking around felt a bit better seeing that most of the other students were having trouble as well. In fact, it seemed only Harry and Draco were holding their brooms in their hands. Hermione turned just in time to hear Ron yell "Up!" only to have his broom smack him in the nose. It was hard not to laugh at him.
It took a while, but eventually everyone had their brooms in their hands. "Alright, now that you have your brooms, I want everyone to mount it. Hold it in a tight grasp. Lift off from the ground for a moment, then touch back down." She instructed as she paced the middle aisle between the students.
Everyone swung a leg over their brooms and before anyone could do anything else Neville was rising in to the air. He looked scared, and Hermione was scared for him. It was obvious that he didn't have control of his broom. And instead of touching back down, the broom took off. Jerking around in the air. Bouncing off the castle walls. Neville yelling in fright before falling to the ground. Madame Hooch, and most of the class, rushed to his side.
"Longbottom, let me have a look at you. Ah, that arm might be broken. Let's get you to the hospital wing." She lifted him carefully off the ground and began to escort him into the castle. She stopped near the doors before turning around; "None of you is to move while I take this boy to the hospital wing. You leave those brooms where they are, or you'll be out of Hogwarts before you can say Quidditch."
It wasn't until she left that Harry had noticed Draco picking up Neville's Remembrall. The boys started arguing and Draco took off with the object in hand, daring Harry to follow.
Hermione stepped forward. He was breaking school rules. He was going to get hurt. There are rules for a reason. "Harry, you heard what Madame Hooch said, besides you don't even know how to fly." He ignored her and took off after Draco. A bit wobbly at first, but it was apparent he was a natural born flyer. No one could hear the two, but it wasn't long before Draco threw the Remembrall and Harry tore off after it. Surprisingly he caught it.
The achievement was short-lived, because as Harry was landing Professor McGonagall was charging her way out of the castle towards them. "Harry Potter!" There were shouts of protest and a few Slytherins snickering. She quieted them all and said, "follow me."
The rest of the class remained quiet. Hermione looked over at Draco. He was standing with two boys at his side looking at him with worship and admiration. They were snickering together when Draco caught her eye. He looked ashamed for a moment before turning back to his comrades.
Later that evening Hermione was back in the library. This time, however, she found herself sitting at the table alone. It wasn't long before Draco came in and walked right up to the table, no book in his hand.
"Can I talk to you?"
"Sure."
"I'm a Malfoy."
"Strangely enough, I'd figured that out when Professor McGonagall did role call on the first day." Hermione said, without looking up from her book.
"Well then, I guess you've also gathered that I am a pureblood."
She looked up from her book then, into his icy grey eyes. They were filled with a longing for her to understand. "I'm aware, yes."
"My family, they . . . well you see . . ." He started to explain, but just didn't seem able to find the right words. "they just have these expectations." He finally spat out. "I wish I could explain better, but for now, can you just accept that I am expected to behave a certain way?"
Hermione knew about expectations. Both her parents were well educated dentists. She also knew too well the pressure to live up to those expectations. While she might not agree with them completely, she did understand. "I'll understand . . . for now."
He gave a half smile and sat down across from her. He lifted one of the books from the stack in front of her, pulled it in front of him and began reading.
The days passed and before they knew it Halloween was approaching. Hermione was determined to make friends with some of the other Gryffindors. While she still went to the library when she could, and still sat across from Draco, she never had a real conversation with him since the day of their flying lessons. There was a day he asked to look at a book in front of her. She said yes and that was their entire exchange of words.
All her studying paid off and she was able to perform spells that her classmates were struggling with. What better way to make friends than to help them learn the spells. She was sitting in charms performing a simple levitation spell when she noticed Ron having a lot of trouble. It was a simple fix, he was just saying it wrong.
"It's leviOsa, not liviosA" She explained. This didn't go over well. The boy looked incredulous. Like he didn't believe her. This was proven when he told her to do the spell. So, she did. And that didn't go over well either. The red-head sulked, but Hermione was proud.
She had done it. She had mustered up some courage and talked to someone. Maybe helped them a little. Things were looking up for her. Professor Flitwick dismissed his first-year charms class, and everyone packed up their belongings and headed out the door. When they were leaving class she began walking faster, trying to catch up to Ron, who was with the other boys from Gryffindor. She was just behind him when she heard . . .
"She's a nightmare, honestly."
She only paused a moment. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. A nightmare? Her? But she helped him. She quickened her pace, making sure to nudge him as she went by, so he knew she had heard him.
She had heard, but she didn't understand. What did she do so wrong? Why did it seem like everyone else became friends so easily, just not with her? She couldn't stop the tears forming in her eyes and beginning to fall down her cheeks. She kept walking. Not really knowing where she was going, but she knew she wanted to be alone.
Without knowing how she got there, Hermione found herself in the girl's bathroom. She looked in the mirror at her red, swollen eyes, and wiped the tears from her face. She replayed the charms lesson in her head, desperate to understand why this boy would call her a nightmare. There was no logic behind it. People weren't books. They weren't problems to be solved. They were complicated.
Hermione didn't know how long she was in the bathroom, but there were a few times that other girls would come in and look at her. Parvati Patil and Lavender Brown were girls from her year. They at least asked what was wrong, and if she was ok. She told them she was fine because she really didn't want to talk about it. When they left she stayed in the bathroom.
She passed the time by practicing some spells she read about in her books. In between practicing she would think about home. She would think about her parents, and how very much she missed them. It hit her hard just how, even surrounded by people, she was alone.
It was some time later, well into the evening, she knew she was missing the feast. Why was she letting one ignorant boy get to her? She walked to the sink to splash some water on her face. She was just wiping the water away when she heard a loud thump. It was probably just Peeves the Poltergeist. He was always causing chaos around the castle.
But then there was another thump. And another. And another. It was almost rhythmic, like someone was walking. Not someone . . . something. She was frozen to the spot. She should run. Where could she hide? She was like a sitting duck out in the open, but she couldn't get her feet to agree with her mind. They just wouldn't move. Then the door burst open. Hermione couldn't believe what came over the threshold. She blinked a few times before trusting her eyes were seeing clearly. A troll. A troll in the castle. It looked lost. Confused. And if she had to guess, maybe even a little afraid.
She might have felt sorry for the being. Might have, if not for the fact that when the troll saw her he took a few steps toward her and swung his giant club as if he wanted to crush her. She ducked, and the club swung just above her head, barely missing her and crushing the sink beside her. Her hands were covering her head, but when she let them down to make a run for it, she noticed there were other people in the room.
Oh, thank goodness! She was just getting to her feet, so she could run when she heard one of them speak.
"Hey! Pea Brain!" Oh no. She knew that voice. It was Ron Weasley. Please let the other person with him be a teacher. She thought to herself. But Hermione knew better. She knew that Ron and Harry were always together, so the other person had to be him. She couldn't believe her luck. Of all the places in the castle this troll could have wandered into, it was this bathroom. And, of all the people who could have come to her rescue, it was these two.
She had very little confidence that the three of them would be making it out of this bathroom alive. Part of her time spent in the library was reading about magical creatures she had always been told only existed in fairy tales. Trolls, she discovered, while big in stature, had a very small amount of intelligence. What they lacked in knowledge, however, they made up for in brute strength. Big, strong, and stupid. Not the best match-up for three minimally trained wizards.
To her surprise the two boys were doing a rather decent job of distracting him. That was until somehow Harry ended up on his shoulders, wandless, and Ron was on the ground looking clueless and frightened. He spotted the troll's club, and Hermione could almost see the plan forming on his face. She mouthed the words swish and flick as a reminder of how to do the spell properly. This really wasn't the time for mistakes.
Ron belted out "Wingardium LeviOsa!" and the club levitated in the air above the troll just for a moment before falling back down onto his head. Knocking him out cold. Harry got off his back and pulled his wand out of the troll's nose. How it ended up in there, Hermione didn't want to know. Ron was looking pleased with himself. And just as Hermione was about to congratulate him on performing the spell correctly, and essentially saving all their lives, a group of teachers burst through the doorway.
Professor McGonagall was in the lead. Her eyes sweeping the room to take in the scene. "Explain yourselves both of you." She demanded while looking at the boys. The troll was scary, but Professor McGonagall could be down-right terrifying. Behind her a shaking Professor Quirrell eyed the unconscious troll and looked like he was about to pass out, while Professor Snape looked at the boys with suspicion.
The boys both began talking at once, but not really saying anything. The air was filled with "well, you see . . ." and "what happened was . . ." no real explanation following.
It was Hermione who spoke up. "It was my fault Professor."
Professor McGonagall looked at her in disbelief. "You, Miss Granger?"
"Yes, Professor. I had read about trolls and thought I could handle them." She glanced over to a stunned looking Harry and Ron. "If Harry and Ron hadn't come and found me, I'd probably be dead."
While this confession may not have been entirely truthful, and it had rewarded her with the loss of some house points. Hermione figured it was the least she could do as a thank you for their help.
They were dismissed; told to go straight to their dormitories, and nowhere else. For the walk back, Hermione stayed quiet. Ron had to recite a play-by-play as if Harry and Hermione hadn't witnessed the whole thing in person.
"Did you see how I lifted that club right out of his hand? And then it fell right on its own head. Wait till I tell Fred and George. They'll never believe it."
They were standing right outside the portrait of the Fat Lady. Harry gave the password; Caput Draconis. When the portrait swung forward revealing the entrance to Gryffindor tower, Harry and Ron scrambled inside leaving Hermione in the rear. She was about to step inside when she heard a voice call to her.
"Granger."
She turned her head to the left, and then to the right. She heard the voice, but she couldn't see a face. Stepping out of the shadows was Draco Malfoy. She walked towards him, leaving the portrait to close.
"You shouldn't be here."
"Professor Quirrell came in the Great Hall yelling about a troll in the dungeons. You weren't at the feast. I had to be sure you were okay."
"I am now. I was in the bathroom when the troll came in. I thought I was a goner when Harry and Ron came in. They knocked him out just before the teachers arrived." She explained. And then it hit her.
"Have you . . . how long have you been waiting here?"
"Professor Dumbledore told us to return to our dormitories. Instead of going to Slytherin I came here. I watched the others go inside. I stopped one of the Patil girls, I can't remember her first name, and asked if she had seen you. She told me you were in the bathroom crying."
"Oh." She looked away sheepishly. She didn't want to have to explain to him why she was crying. Thankfully she didn't have to.
"Well, you're alright then?"
"Yeah, I'm alright."
"I'll see you in the library tomorrow?"
"Not if I see you first." She said with a smile brightening her face.
Draco turned around and headed down the staircase toward, what she could only assume was, the way to the Slytherin common room. She stood for a moment watching him retreat before stepping back in front of the Fat Lady.
"Password?"
"Caput Draconis."
The portrait swung forward once again, and this time Hermione went inside. The common room was filled with students all listening to Ron retell the tale of his defeat of the troll. Hermione listened for a minute before deciding to head up to the girl's dormitory.
She was at the bottom of the staircase when Harry stopped her.
"Hey." He said as he did a small, awkward wave.
"Hey." She said back.
"I just. . . umm . . . look about before, what Ron said. About you being a nightmare and all." He stuttered, and Hermione looked away. "Look, I just want to say he was being a real prat. And you know, if it wasn't for you he wouldn't have been able to do that spell to knock out the troll."
"If it wasn't for me you wouldn't have had to save me in that bathroom." Hermione said.
"If it wasn't for us YOU wouldn't have needed saving in that bathroom." There was a slight pause before he said "I'm real sorry Hermione. Friends?" He said as he stuck out his hand for her to shake it. He held it out a moment while she thought over what he said.
"Friends." She said as she took his hand in hers shaking it once.
"Just one more thing. Why did you lie for us?"
She thought a moment. Why had she lied? "I guess that is just what friends do." She said with a slight smirk on her face.
"I guess it is." He said smiling back. "See you tomorrow." He said with a chuckle as he walked back toward the group of students still listening to Ron.
"Yeah, see you." She called after him.
She turned and headed up the stairs to her four-poster bed. After changing into her night gown, she pulled out some paper, a quill and a book to lean on and began to write.