Title: Filter Effect
Summary: In order to change the outsides of something you don't like, you have to change the insides, Hermione realized with a start.
Rating: M
Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.
Author's Notes: Yes. I did drop off the face of the earth. I know it's been months since I updated. I know I know I know. But I finally got my ass in gear with this story, even if I am going through an emotional hiatus right now. Blame my ex boyfriend. And life, and school, and parents, and writers block. But I'm back, baby! Ready to wow you with this filth spewing forth from my fingertips.
Hesper426: My oh so wonderful fantabulous devoted reader! I absolutely love long reviews. Especially YOUR reviews…Ebbe04: I hope this chapter is long enough for you! Ze BLEH (also the anonymous reviewer) I try to update sooner…BUT IT DOESN'T WORK! Love your name, though. And my lovely Feilyn: I'm glad that there wasn't anything particularly…awful…in the last chapter.
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Part One:
Oh, how Hermione loved toast. Even more, how she loved eating toast uninterrupted. But it was not to be, because after Hermione had made two more slices and finished the juice carton, the doorbell rang. Thankful that there was no father to speak of (her parents had divorced in her second year) and that her mother continuously spent summer days off at dentist conventions and the like, she hurried to the door with a mouthful of bread and swung it open. As expected, there stood Jade.
"Mia, can I use your phone? Mine is being ridiculous and not working correctly." She swept in without any more preamble and started for the kitchen.
"Well. Hello to you too," Hermione yelled to her retreating back around a mouthful of food and slammed the door. All she received was a wave over Jade's left shoulder, of course. Hermione followed, munching on her food, to find Jade already jabbering on the phone about something at twelve and no, she wasn't drunk yet, Jesus. Hermione raised an eyebrow at that one and glanced at the clock. Nine fifteen. Christ, she was up at this ungodly hour? What was wrong with her?
Jade soon hung up the phone and fixed Hermione with a beady stare, reminding her vaguely of Professor McGonnagal.
"What?" Hermione blinked several times, finishing the toast that she was chewing on and brushing her hands off.
"You are meeting a few of my friends today. I consider them best friends, besides you." Jade rummaged in the refrigerator, pulling out a bottle of chocolate milk and opening it. Taking a long swallow, she looked at Hermione, who had folded her arms and had an expression of Why-Is-This-Important on her face.
"Yeahso?" Hermione replied, examining her nails with a feigned indifferent manner.
Jade exhaled loudly, tossing the chocolate milk up in the air once she recapped it. "And I want you to be nice."
"Why wouldn't I be nice, though?" Hermione was genuinely curious. Jade caught the beverage and set in on the table.
"Because I don't know how much you have truly changed and I don't know how you'll react to them."
A feeling of foreshadowing washed over Hermione and chills broke out over her arms. This happened when something she completely didn't expect was about to happen- and usually it meant she wouldn't like it.
"Well, we'll find out when the time comes, I guess. Want something to eat?" Hermione ran fingers through her hair, ignoring the unsettling feeling that was starting to dissipate and instead fought off a yawn. And failed.
Jade declined the offer, and the two girls left the kitchen to relax up in Hermione's room until it was time to leave, or at least, until Jade said that it was time to leave.
Hermione settled on the floor as Jade flung herself face first into Hermione's unmade bed. Picking through a stack of CD's, she finally settled on Undertow by Tool and slid it into her stereo, turning up the volume and leaning back against the bed.
In the recent weeks, Jade had introduced Hermione to a whole array of different music; punk, rock, metal, alternative, hardcore. Hermione loved them all. Every single band had something to say, something they wanted to change about the world, and Hermione couldn't help but respect someone who exposed their soul to millions of people they didn't know and probably would never meet through lyrics.
She would never have the guts to do that. At least, the old her wouldn't. This new her- maybe someday.
Slipping into an old daydream of the reactions she would receive of this new, badass devil-may-care attitude when she returned to Hogwarts, Hermione was snapped out of her reverie with a pillow to the face.
"Thanks Jade. Thanks."
"No problem," her friend sneered, pulling herself up from the bed. Hermione climbed to her feet from the floor, throwing the magazine she had been absently flipping through to the side. Picking her way to an empty space at the center of her room, she watched Jade examine her ebony hair in the mirror, pull it into a ponytail, frown and then remove the elastic and twine it into two braids.
"Are we leaving?" Hermione stretched her back, yawning again and cursing the day she had woken up so early.
"Chyeah. Since we're walking, anyways."
"Hey. I like walking." Hermione shot back, pushing Jade out of her room and swinging the door shut. Jade snickered and slid down the stairway banister, whooping loudly and landing in an ungainly crouch at the bottom. Hermione stampeded down the stairs after her, pushing her razor cell phone into her pocket once more.
"I never said there was anything wrong with walking. It just takes WAY to freaking long."
"Yeah, whatever, you lazy piece of shit."
Hermione locked the door behind them and the two girls, looking oddly out of place in front of well-kept suburban homes, stepped down to the sidewalk towards the public park roughly twenty minutes away.
"HEY. I am not a lazy piece of shit." Hermione snickered at the wounded expression on Jade's face.
"So says the person who complains about walking for twenty minutes down a street."
The banter continued back and forth as Hermione and Jade walked, their steps in sync and fingers interlaced.
And no, they were not "together". They were best friends- and comfortable enough with the fact that they could hold each other's hands and give people the wrong impression.
It was hilarious, actually, the expressions on some people's faces.
The sounds of shouting, laughing children soon became recognizable, and Hermione and Jade began to pick up their pace.
Actually, Jade began to pick up the pace, Hermione clinging to her back and giggling insanely.
"Hermione, why do I always give you piggy-back rides?"
Hermione made an exaggerated smooching sound.
"Because you looouuuurrrrrvvvvee me. Oh yes."
Rolling her eyes and making no comment, Jade half skipped, half jogged over the grassy area of the large park, Hermione hanging on for dear life and giggling inanely again.
"Honestly, woman. What is that sound? It's horrid, that's what it is. You know that every time you do it, God kills a kitten? So don't do it."
Hermione made a harrumph-ing noise, but cut off her giggling and instead glanced about them. They were heading towards the are that had the lunch tables and stage, a well-known hangout place for teens of the… "darker" variety.
Hermione's stomach fluttered and her heart jumped into her throat. If Jade noticed her sudden silence, she made no comment, and continued their steady approach towards a group of four teens about their age, all dressed…somewhat similarly to Jade and Hermione, but with their own personal twist.
Was she ready to be labeled as a part of that scene?
Was she ready to be accepted?
Once you went in, you were in.
But more importantly, would they accept her?
Hermione swallowed, sliding off of Jade's back as they neared the four youths, three male and one female.
Two of the boys had their backs to Hermione, but she could see that one had blonde hair, the shade baby-pale light and greased into messy spikes that stuck up quite a ways. She guessed that if his hair were down, it would reach his shoulders. All she could tell was that he was wearing tight low-slung black jeans and a triple-rowed bright yellow pyramid belt. His shirt was black and simple, and since he was sitting, she had no idea how tall he was, but she could see that he was wearing green plaid boxers.
A small smirk stretched across her face as she and Jade ambled closer, now within ear-shot of the four's conversation. It sounded like they were bantering back and forth, much like she and Jade did whenever they opened their mouths.
The knot of anxiety increased in Hermione's stomach as she glanced over at the other seated boy to distract herself. He had black hair; so dark it shone almost blue. It wasn't nearly as long as the other boys; this one had his hair shorn off short in the back and spiked, and she could tell that the front was longer, but had no idea how long or what it looked like. He wore faded blue jeans, about as tight as the other male, but with no belt and a tighter black shirt than the blonde.
"Hey, douchebags," Jade called, skipping forward as Hermione trailed behind, momentarily distracted from her appraisal of the two boys' backs.
"Jade, you loser. Get your ass over here."
This was from the single girl in the group, and Hermione slid her eyes over in the direction of the voice. Something was vaguely familiar about that face, and Hermione assumed that she must have seen her before, and frowned in thought of where. Long hair the color of meranti hung down her back, streaked brilliant shades of purple, blue and green. Bangs curved around her face, resting across her angled cheekbones and hanging over wide eyes outlined thickly in black. Eyes the color of cognac, which appraised her for a moment before returning to Jade.
Jade bounded over to the girl, who wrestled Jade into a hug as they giggled and called each other names. The remaining boy watched them with a highly amused expression, not noticing Hermione standing a little behind the boys seated at the table and watching the two girls.
This boy had sandy brown hair that hung medium-long in slight curls over his face, neck and ears. Leaning against another table with his arms crossed over his chest and legs crossed at the ankles, Hermione quickly took in his appearance before he noticed her. He was, interestingly enough, wearing tight red plaid pants with a silver studded belt, and two black suspenders hung from belt loops behind his knees. A faded black shirt stretched over his broad shoulders emblazoned with a long faded band name that Hermione could not completely make out due to the obstruction of his arms.
Ripping her eyes from his face, Hermione glanced back at Jade and the other girl to see they were both looking at her. The girl that Hermione didn't know was smirking, while somehow managing to look calculating at the same time. Trying to figure out how those two expressions mixed together, Hermione looked over at Jade to see her motioning for her to come over.
Now or never.
Walking over towards Jade, Hermione stood beside her friend and turned to face the two boys that she had only seen the back of. The first in her line of sight was the dark haired youth, and she saw that his hair in the front was long and curved into his face. A silver lip ring glinted on the right side of his bottom lip, and he was chewing on it absently as his piercingly sapphire eyes assessed her.
Glancing down at his shoes, she saw he wore bright purple converse and smirked slightly, clicking the plastic dice on each end of the slender barbell through her tongue against the backs of her front teeth. Her eyes moved on to the boy next to him, and her eyes widened.
Feeling like someone had slapped her several times across the face, Hermione blinked several times. She knew those cheekbones, knew those icy silver-gray eyes. And all that platinum blonde hair- that should have been a dead giveaway. But she was unfamiliar with the silver stud through his left eyebrow, or the snakebites through his bottom lip.
He was grinning at her- obviously he didn't recognize her. But then again, she had changed a lot.
Who would have guessed that Draco Malfoy would be here, not even a half-hour from her house?
Her attention snapped to Jade as the ebony haired girl began the introductions.
"Everyone, this is my best friend, Mia. Mia, this is Drake," she nodded to the blonde, "Blaise," she motioned to the dark haired boy at his side, "and Aiden," she pointed to the remaining boy who was standing, who nodded to her, crystal green eyes sweeping over her before returning to her face.
"And this, is Pansy."
Hermione's stomach dropped.
She knew that she recognized that face.
She just didn't know that Pansy Parkinson was the one behind it.
God, fucking dammit, Hermione mentally recited, looking over at Pansy, who now was just smirking.
"Heylo, Hermione," the Slytherin drawled, her smirk widening into a shit-eating grin.
The two boys in front of her choked on air.
"Ah, fuck." Hermione rubbed her temples.
Jade looked between Pansy, Hermione, Draco and Blaise in confusion.
A/N
And what do you know. More secrets come out. Yeah okay I know I took forever to update. So sue me, I finally did. Shit. Now review or I'll take another like five months or whatever it was.
Love you,
Cianyde.