Chapter 3- The Beginning
I fumed silently as I walked into my room that I shared with a few fellow Gryffindor girls. It just wasn't fair. It had been two weeks since the soul drawing and everything had calmed down significantly. Harry out his own relationship and had been accepted, not only by his friends, but by the entire wizarding world as well. I hated how they walked hand in hand in the hall ways and kissed when they had to know people could see. Not to mention all the sex they had to be having. It wasn't fair at all!
What about me! I get swarmed with hate mail. Mail hexed to burn my fingers, mail with potions that made me grow a huge boil on my thigh. I wasn't sure I would outlive the embarrassment from that one. Madam Pomfrey told me to stop opening the mail and have the headmaster block all stray owls, but I felt too proud to do that. I stopped opening the mail at least, though.
One letter was three five feet long and kept repeating the same paragraph over and over. It was the rudest and most hurtful thing I'd ever received.
'You, Hermione Granger are the biggest slag in the entire wizarding world. Severus Snape deserves the most and best in this world for his honorable work for the fight against the dark lord. How dare you claim to be his soul mate!'
I stopped reading the letters after that completely, even ones from my parents.
Then there was Ron. He was a little too homophobic for anyone's liking, just because he was plainly Ron and was used to being a normal teenage boy. I was sure he was get better though, once he realized that Harry had always been a gay man and was still his best mate. Me, though, I was pissed at Harry and Malfoy too. Why did they get to be this happy when I was stuck soul-bound to a great prick?
"Always so polite Miss Granger."
I, of course, squealed like a school girl and swirled around so fast that I lost my footing and tripped. I landed gracefully on the bed next to me.
"Professor Snape! How did you even get into the girls dorm?"
He smirked," It's not that impossible, Miss Granger. I wanted to know exactly to nature of the mail you've been receiving."
I frowned, not really liking how that sounded. "What does that matter?"
He lost his smirk and narrowed his eyes. "Answer the question, Miss Granger."
I stood up and turned from his hateful gaze. "I've been getting hate mail, but you knew that."
He nodded sharply and turned to leave, but hesitated. "I've been receiving the much the same, but do keep in mind that none of it has any truth."
He swept out of my room and I sank back onto my bed, shakily. Why did everything that came out of his mouth affect me so much? I knew for a fact that Harry was currently with Draco, which meant I would be a third wheel if I went looking for them. Ron was still to sullen and angry to be good company, plus I didn't want to fight with anyone right now.
I walked into my bathroom, intent on showering for at least an hour, but stopped when I saw the floor was wet. Not only was it wet, but tinged with a pinkish color. My throat constricted and I walked further into the bathroom. All six stalls were open except for one. My feet squeaked in the water with every step. My hands shook as I pushed the stall door open…
It was too shocking to scream like I wanted. What came out was a breathless sigh of shock. Blood was splattered all over the walls, floor and probably the whole bathroom, now that I looked around. I didn't see anyone though. So where had the blood come from?
A thud echoed in the tiled bathroom. I spun, my heart racing, and that scream finally escaped my lips.
"CROOKSHANKS!"
It was probably the loudest I'd ever screamed in my life.
"Crookshanks?" I said hoarsely. I crawled over to him, unable to remember when I'd fallen on my knees.
I reached out a shaky hand to touch his orange furry body. He was ice cold. I strangled sob left my mouth and a heard hurried footsteps rushing into the bathroom. The floor was soaked with blood and water, which now coated my school robes. Lavender Brown and Professor McGonagall rushed into the bathroom, panting, one more than the other, and balked at what they saw. Lavender let out a scream, not to different from mine, and Professor just looked extremely tired and in pain. I kept staring at Crookshanks, sure he was just learning how to play dead. I tried to teach him over the past summer, maybe he finally got on. Well this had gone on long enough.
"Crookshanks? Wake up boy, the games over! Crookshanks! Wake up!" I shouted and turned him over the look into his eyes.
The worst mistake I could have ever made. My precious Crookshanks didn't have much of a face left.
That's when both, Lavender and I, screamed like there was no tomorrow. I loved that cat, with a passion, he was my best friend in a way, but I knew that this wasn't the end of the world. If he'd died a natural death I would have just cried for a few weeks and been done with it. But someone brutally murdered my cat. Why does anyone kill cats? What joy would anyone get out of hearing my baby boy screaming in pain….
My thoughts broke off and I just let the blackness take over. It was easier that way.
Being friends with Harry Potter hadn't made me an expert on waking up in the hospital wing, but it wasn't that strange when I really did wake up there. I was a reckless teenager who had the random bout of commonsense when I felt like it.
I opened my eyes and took in the brightly lit room with analytical eyes. There wasn't anyone beside myself in the infirmary, which I could tell. Madam Pomfrey probably wasn't far, but for now I was alone.
Alone was bad. I didn't like alone. Alone time gave me too much time to think about things I'd rather forget. It was embarrassing, what happened. I loved Crookshanks, but my breakdown was beyond predictable for a girl and I felt shamed and heartbroken at the same time. Crookshanks had been my first and only pet I'd ever had. He was pretty amazing for a cat.
I needed to grow up a bit. This soul drawing thing and Crookshanks needed to be put on the back burner and left to simmer. I should focus on school and graduating. Snape and grieving could wait. Hell, I could even go forever without either, I'm sure.
Madam Pomfrey came into the room, looking distracted and more exhausted than I'd ever seen her. She froze when she saw me and I could tell she was waiting for me to fall apart again. I flushed with anger.
"I'm fine. I want to leave now." She shook her head and raised her wand over my body.
"Miss Granger, you had a tragic thing happen to you. I know you're very responsible and headstrong, but someone did this. Someone who wanted to hurt you. You need to stay here and be watched for a day or two. I won't have any arguments about it either."
I raised my head defiantly, "Would you force me to stay if I tried to leave?"
She raised one eyebrow in shock. I was up and had my wand in my hand before she could respond. I ran from the room, hell bent on going to my own room and writing to my parents.
I stopped cold instantly.
It was the first time I'd made the mistake to myself. My parents were dead. No one knew of course, that I'd made sure of, but I'd never fooled myself that way.
I had seriously planned on writing a letter telling them of Crookshanks end and that I would just fine in a few weeks. My mom had grown up in our house and so had her mom. So I didn't have to pay too many bills on it. I owned everything they had left, along with quite a bit of life insurance on both of them.
Now wasn't the time to worry about it. I should just go sleep this off. What else could I do right now anyway?
But I'd been sleeping for so long. Why sleep more? Harry and Ron aren't there for me like they used to be. So who do I go to when I have no one else?
Ten minutes later, I had my hand raised, ready to knock on my soul mate's door.
A/N: So sorry about this extremely late update. I missed a lot of school and had to make up a bunch of tests. Its spring break now, though and I will have chapter four up by next Sunday at the latest. It been pretty hectic and I'm sure we all know how hard a time Japan is having right now. Wish them the best!