Title: Cunningly Right
Rating: T
Pairings: Dramione and Hansy
Characters: Hermione Grange, Draco Malfoy, Pansy Parkinson, Harry Potter and Sorting Hat
Genre: drama and romance
Summary: On the precipice of Graduation Hermione Granger thinks back over her years at Hogwarts and the fateful night that started it all.

Hermione Granger found herself sitting down at the Slytherin table in the Great Hall wedged in between her best friend, and the obnoxious man she loved more than anything. Draco was demanding, possessive and used every tactic at his disposal to accomplish his goals, and in this case that included making room for himself at the already full table next to his witch.

Hermione found herself hard pressed to care at this moment, she was floating on cloud nine as the muggles she was raised by would say, today she finished her last exam, she was a fully qualified witch with a top notch education to back it up.

A bright future on her horizon, her stellar grades and many connections she formed while at school and within her house made it all but guaranteed that no door would remain closed to her despite her blood status.

Something that even twenty years ago would have made such a future much more difficult.

Thinking back to that fateful night seven years ago always left Hermione with a smile on her face. She was an outsider in this world, or at least that's what she had expected, small and hesitant she waited for her name to be called by the Deputy Headmistress.

Upon hearing it she stepped forward so timidly, momentarily concerned that all of her reading and preparations for this moment would be for naught if she stepped forward and the hat didn't place her anywhere.

The heavy hat was placed upon her head and she heard the voice inside her head listing off her traits and characteristics while she was helpless to await an answer as to where she truly belonged.

It recognized even early on that she was intelligent and loyal, but that above all she was ambitious and cunning and that there would be no obstacles that would stop her from achieving her goals; she would be the best and brightest witch Hogwarts had seen in many years, she was sure of it.

She breathed a sigh of relief hearing the hat shout out Slytherin, well that was until she had a momentary panic due to the reputation her new house had in regards to the importance of blood status.

She walked in a bit of a daze to her table hoping that for the first time in her life she would be accepted and make real friends, not just people using her for her brain.

She didn't have long to panic as her table was soon joined by other first years and potential new friends, Daphne was first and asked to sit beside her and this left Hermione with a feeling of excitement she hadn't known before, Greg followed and then she saw him, the boy who would be her everything.

Platinum locks and an ever present smirk that clearly was in place to hide his own nerves, Draco Malfoy stood tall, well as tall as his short eleven year old stature would allow. His grey eyes locked with hers and she knew that her life was about to get a whole lot more interesting.

The hat had barely touched his head when it was calling out Slytherin and he proudly walked over and without asking, something she would come to find endearing, slid the others out of his way and took the spot beside her. "Hello, I'm Draco Malfoy, stick with me and you'll do well here. I didn't catch your name?"

"Oh how terribly rude, I'm Hermione Granger, I'm not usually this ridiculous, but I am a bit nervous, this is all new to me. I wasn't raised knowing what to expect, or that magic even existed. It's a bit exciting really."

Draco looked momentarily shocked but quickly schooled his features and smiled a lovely smile, he took her hand in his and kissed her knuckles, "Well then Hermione Granger, welcome to Hogwarts."

That was all it took Hermione was a changed witch, she wasn't sure to what capacity, but she knew that Draco would play an important role in her life and future. Seven years later had only cemented that belief in her mind, Draco was her future and they were an unstoppable force when they set their collective minds to a task.

They spent seven years vying for top spot in their class, often pushing each other harder than even the professors. Looking around the table she thought of how much her life had changed, she was no longer the timid little muggle-born witch, she was the confident Princess of Slytherin and was never happier that the Sorting Hat had placed her in the house of the cunning, ambitious and absolutely resourceful snakes.

They were her true friends and she had never faced prejudice in her own house, there were others in different houses that were less welcoming, but luckily she didn't let the opinions of Wrong Weasley dictate her own value, not that all brash Gryffindors were like that, in fact Pansy made room on the bench for her own boyfriend Harry to join them as he often did.

One time she was sitting talking with Harry when he asked her what it was like being raised by muggles and being in her house, she looked at him with confusion and wondered why he would ask such a random question.

His response was startling, he revealed that the hat had attempted to place him in Slytherin, but he let all of the negative things he had been told affect him and he begged to be placed elsewhere.

"You know what Hermione, I'm pretty sure I was sorted wrong because of it." She found it telling that the 'Boy Who Lived' the ultimate Gryffindor had just admitted to her that he would've been happier as a snake.

Let others talk, she was a proud snake and couldn't even imagine the hat putting her somewhere else.

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