Chapter 11

Things got progressively worse the next week. Everyone in the school seemed to have found out. People were whispering and leering at her where ever she went. She could understand the way Harry felt when everyone doubted his character and sanity. And it was awful when people hushed their conversation and watched her as she walked past.

Harry and Ron weren't talking to her and Ginny was a bit stand-offish. George seemed to be fascinated by her new status as a piranha, as her motives for the relationship were now reported as seeking to improve her social status with a healthy dose of gold digging. At least someone found it interesting, she thought, although it did worry her a bit that George seemed more interested by the whole process rather than any injustice being done to her.

The common room was uncomfortable and unwelcoming. Anywhere else was pretty much the same. Hermione ended up spending much of her free time in the library where no one seemed to bother her.

It all just sucked. The girls would whisper when she walked into the bathroom, down the hall, into the great hall, or anywhere else. The boys would give her knowing looks like they knew exactly what she got up to when the lights went out.

She started feeling anxious when a group of people were walking near her. But worst of all what that her friends were not standing by her. That really hurt. She could not think of anyone who she would ignore her friends for seeing. Ok, so maybe Lavender drove her around the bend and she didn't exactly respect Ron for choosing such an insipid girlfriend. But honestly, her lack of respect for Ron was more related to him than to the dull and stupid girl he chose to be with.

She was completely disinterested in class and the teachers were even calling on her to answer questions as she had now seemingly lost the ability to put her hand up. She'd never imagined a time when she'd hate being in school, but she had reached that point. Logically she knew it would pass. Eventually people would grow tired of the gossip and the constant attention would stop.

What really got her heckles up was that Draco was making jokes at her expense in potions class. She couldn't hear the joke, but the topic and the nature was pretty clear even across the room. She stared at him and he stared back, challenging her to do something about it. Anything she did would just be fodder for the gossip mills, so she went back to ignoring him, trying to focus on the stupid potion, which no one in their right mind would ever make anyway. When had they started learning such pointless and banal things?

Harry was still ignoring her as he worked on the next desk. She was so bitterly disappointed that he didn't stand by her. Ginny would eventually come around, but she wasn't sure Harry would. Why wouldn't they show her the loyalty she'd sworn to them. Ron was the first to jettison his loyalty, Draco, which wasn't really surprising to anyone with a semblance of sanity, but now Harry, the one she'd sworn to support till the bitter end. He was now gone over some stupid summer romance.

Except sweet, steadfast Neville who hadn't even bat an eyelid over the whole thing. George was still talking to her, but there was something disturbing about his detachment from everything.

She still helped Hagrid with his various chores, even though it was getting really cold now. Christmas was coming up fast and her parents were intent on spending it in Germany this year.

Late one day when she was walking back from Hagrid's hut through the covered bridge, a group of Slytherins were coming the other way. The idea of being confronted with a group of Slytherins was horrible at the worst of times, but at the moment it was absolutely unbearable. The blond head bobbing in the small crowd made her feel even more uncomfortable. Her best hope for this situation was that he would be inclined to ignore her, but the look on his face when he saw her told her that was not the case today.

"Granger." He said sweetly.

She only did a slight tick of her head as a response.

"What are you doing?" He said quietly with the familiar sneer on his face. "Out trawling the servants for company?"

"Fuck you Malfoy." She said.

"See I thought we'd already been there and done that." He said and picked up one of her hair locks off her shoulder."

"Don't touch me, Malfoy." She warned.

"Oh, but you used to call me Draco." He said with a false sweetness. "In fact you would scream it, didn't you, because you loved it when I touched you."

There were leers and giggles from the group behind him. Hermione could only marvel at how cowardly of him to have this conversation in a crowd.

"What's the matter, Malfoy. Too chicken shit to confront me without having your pathetic excuse for friends behind you?" She spat through her gritted teeth.

He feigned a look of hurt and said, "At least I have friends. But I am more than prepared to have this conversation alone, anytime you want Granger. Just name the place and I'll be there."

It sounded more like a proposition than a threat, and the further laugher from the group confirmed that he had scored a definite point in this match. Hermione could feel waves of anger and disgust washing over her.

"You're vile." Was all she could manage before turning and walking away. If she took him up on his offer to have it out in private, it sounded like she was asking for a bit of his attention, and if she refused, it sounded like she was scared.

"And that used to turn you on." She heard him calling after her.

Mother effin bastard, she screamed inside her head when she got around the corner. He had absolutely no honour at all. Or even class for that matter. Tact was way too much to hope for.

She didn't know how to fight in this way. The only real verbal sparring she'd had in her life had been with Malfoy, but it had never been on this level with so much ammunition on his side. This was on a much bigger scale than she'd ever experienced before and he had taken hostage all the experience they had shared in this war and was now using it against her. How did he end up with all the ammunition?

She'd look like an idiot if she'd denied it ever happened. He had too much on her for her to pull off denying being with him, especially since she had admitted it to her friends, and their rejection of her was full proof to everyone that is was true. She was now the official slut of Hogwarts. One little mistake seemed to wipe out everything else and far surpass the much more promiscuous behaviour of hoards of other girls. She had been the one stupid enough to make her mistake with Draco Malfoy and that was all her fault. And that fucking Cuban music.

Hermione pondered the situation for a few days, while the leering, snide remarks and over-loud whispers got worse from the slytherins, then the rest of the school. Her friends were was distant as ever and Hermione spent all of her meals with Neville, and sometimes George, although Ron was trying to give him flack for it.

Ginny would sometimes give her looks that weren't entirely hostile, but she wouldn't seem to cross the line of publicly supporting her.

One afternoon, Hermione was confronted with another extremely uncomfortable when Pansy entered into the second floor girls bathroom that Hermione had started to use exclusively. Hermione kept her eyes fixed on the mirror as she was tying her hair into a ponytail.

"Oh, the mudblood slut." Pansy said with an exaggerated sigh, "Trying to tart yourself up. A hopeless cause, I'm afraid."

Hermione tried to grit her teeth and ignore the comment.

"Well, I hope you learned your lesson." Pansy said. "There are just certain places people like you shouldn't go."

Hermione continued to ignore her, while Pansy seemed to be waiting for a response.

"You should stay away from purebloods. You'd think that was obvious."

"Don't worry Pansy, I have learnt my lesson." Hermione said in a cool steady voice. "It really, and I mean really, wasn't worth the hassle. You people should get out more, because if that is all you have to offer, then you really are missing out. To spend your life with such bumbling incompetence would...well, just be a shame."

Hermione finished straightening her pony tail and turned to leave. The surprise on Pansy's was obvious. Well, if she was going to be known for her experience, true or not, Hermione thought, then that experience is going to count for something. Pansy's surprise gave away to mischievous glee. Hermione would bet her life that Pansy would make sure everyone knew of her judgement of Draco's performance.

That should shut him up, Hermione thought to herself with a smile as she walked out of the bathroom.

The smile continued all the next day, when Draco was back to staring daggers at her. The leering also seemed to have stopped although the whispers continued in earnest. Game, set and match.