3

Hermione:

Can a snake without a burrow

survive?

There weren't too many students in the Transfiguration room. It was still ten minutes before the start of class. Hermione was sitting in one of the first seats. She was reading a fairly thin novel with a subtle smile gracing her face. She'd read the chapter they would work on in that class three times, so she had the luxury of entertaining herself with a fiction book in that free time. Little by little the room was populated. Hermione was able to ignore them, until her friends came and sat down next to her.

" Ugh. I thought we'd be late," Harry said, looking at the professor's still empty seat.

"I insist, they should make more bathrooms for this school. I can't go to class with a full bladder, but we waste too much time going to the bathroom," Ron complained. "And then the teachers call us out for being late! Am I supposed to choose between my grades or the bathroom? Isn't this illegal? "

Harry settled his quill and book on the desk as he commented,

"Remember when we ate too many chocolate frogs in second year? It was torture getting to the bathroom…"

Hermione wrinkled her nose.

"Brother, the stairs... the damn moving stairs... I was sweating while I waited for them to stay still," Ron groaned, remembering the pain.

"After we left the baths no one dared to enter," Harry completed the anecdote, and after the last word he let out a slightly embarrassed laugh, which Ron joined in, but laughing harder.

"Can't you two have a less disgusting conversation?" Hermione asked, straightening her posture as she marked the page of her book with her bookmark.

"Women complain about everything. Going to the bathroom is natural!" Ron defended himself.

"First, I don't care if they talk about bathrooms, but about... your more unpleasant body odors. Second, women do not complain about everything, that's a horrible and sexist comment on your part. And third...!" Hermione closed her book and turned to face Ron, showing seriousness. "You are lucky to be a man and not have to experience the long lines that can form in the women's restrooms."

"I never understood why that happens," Harry said.

"It's just that they wash their hands," Ron explained.

Embarrassed, Harry adjusted his glasses and muttered, "But... I wash my hands." Ron was about to say something, but Hermione cut him off,

"Ron, for God's sake, wash your hands."

"I do! But you guys take a long time."

Hermione's eyes narrowed suspiciously.

"Wetting them with water is not washing."

"I don't…I…" Ron stammered. "Bah! Anyway..."

"Disgusting," said Hermione. "After this class you will go to the bathroom."

"But…"

"And you'll wash your hands."

"I'll do it next time!"

"I don't care. We're going whether you like it or not. And you too Harry."

Ron snorted, leaning listlessly back in the seat.

"Me?" Harry looked at her with wide eyes. "But I…"

If he was going to say something else, the sound of the door closing silenced him. McGonagall, the Transfiguration teacher, entered the classroom. Not only Harry, but all the students fell silent immediately. No one would dare to be disrespectful to one of the strictest professors at Hogwarts.

"Good morning everyone," she greeted. "Open your books to page fourteen. Finnigan, put those treats in your robe, please. Everyone already knows that eating in the classroom is prohibited."

As the students grabbed their books, there was the sound of the door opening. Most looked back, curious to see who was late. The teacher broke the silence.

"Good morning, how kind of you to grace us with your…" began McGonagall accusingly. But when she turned around she fell silent. Her usually expressionless face was now adorned with genuine surprise. She finished speaking, but this time in a softer tone: "Miss Parkinson. Come in."

Hermione then also turned around to see the named. She always ignored latecomers, but she couldn't deny that Parkinson caught her eye, she wasn't just another latecomer. That week the Slytherin had been the subject of lots of rumors among students. One of her favorites, creative as it was, said that the Parkinsons tried to rob Gringotts Bank, but got caught and lost all their money paying a bribe to stay out of Azkaban.

Even if she found some of the rumors amusing, she didn't understand why they continued to circulate, since The Daily Prophet had given information about the Parkinson family. That newspaper was like a social piranha, ruthlessly destroying anyone's reputation. Hermione didn't find out until a few days after school started about a headline that had run over the summer, which read:

The Parkinsons, the family that once had a great fortune.

In general, the beginning of summer is usually a relief for any wizard or witch, due to the warm weather and the upcoming summer holidays. But this was not the case for the Parkinson family, one of the wealthiest families in the wizarding world thanks to its Bradley publishing house, the publishing house of choice in any English-speaking country.

The family business was doing well throughout the year, with no records of losses. And still, it went bankrupt. When the amount of debts in the name of the family that existed came to light, the magical world was shocked. For this reason, there are many rumors and speculations about what happened (On page 3 you will find interviews with several people close to the Parkinsons, including Lucius Malfoy).

Sadly, the family's bad luck doesn't end there. A week after the official closure of Bradley, Narcisso Parkinson, former owner of the publishing house and head of the Parkinson family, died in a fire in his office. There are also rumors and speculations about this tragedy: several employees who were fired shortly before Bradley's bankruptcy are suspected (Next week, in the Daily Prophet we will have more exclusive information about the accident).

Little is known about the rest of the family. After the events Aurora Parkinson, Narcisso's widow, got a job as a proofreader in a spell testing lab at St Mungo's Hospital. As for the only daughter of Narcisso and Aurora, Pansy Parkinson, it seems that she will continue her magical studies at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry as normal.

As society advances, the families that once controlled everything are losing power. This time it was the Parkinson's who lost their fortune, going from having everything to being the unfortunate Parkinsons.

That news left Hermione with a bad taste in her mouth. It generated more questions than answers. What could have happened so that all the Slytherins started to marginalize Parkinson from the beginning of the school year? Given the news, they should comfort her. Or ignore her for now being someone without money. What explanation was there for her being harassed?

"Don't make too much noise while you settle in," McGonagall said, snapping Hermione back to reality. "Page fourteen."

The teacher walked over to the blackboard and wrote, "Variables: Size Theory." No one dared to be outraged that McGonagall hadn't taken points from Slytherin for Parkinson's late arrival or refused her entry to the classroom. Although they were shocked when the teacher repeated the page they would be working on, she wasn't that easy on her students. But of course the compassion she had for her was understandable, the girl seemed to have crossed the Forbidden Forest to reach the classroom. Her bare knees, since she was only wearing a black skirt and short stockings, were smeared with mud. His hands, which you could tell she had cleaned with a handkerchief during the journey as well as her knees, still had traces of dirt. Her black hair was always straight and well-groomed, but today it was messy, with even some spiky hairs. Her robe also had traces of dirt. What the hell had Parkinson done on the way to the classroom?

Parkinson sat down hurriedly and opened her book. She took a moment to try to fix her hair more. She seemed to pretend that there was nothing unusual about her or the environment. She acted indifferent, as if she didn't notice all the students who were looking at her like they were owls, with their eyes wide open and their heads turning in unconcealed ways.

"I never thought I'd say this, but Parkinson's already making me feel sorry for him," Harry whispered.

"I think it's funny," Ron countered.

"This time I'll agree with Harry."

"Really, Hermione?" Ron asked indignantly. "She bothered you more than us."

"Obviously that didn't happen by accident. They are harassing her. I don't understand why the teachers don't intervene."

"I heard there's really no proof, so they can't stop the thugs," Harry said. "When they asked other Slytherins, they said that everyone in the Common Room treated her the same as always. There are no physical injuries as evidence. And Snape is Snape... He's just another bully here."

"Muggle or wizarding school, bullies always win... that's our country's educational system," Hermione lamented.

Ron didn't speak, but he was listening to what they were saying, so he seemed to be thinking.

"Students. Silence," McGonagall ordered. "All the topics that we will study will be important to pass the Transfiguration OWL. If I were you, I would take full advantage of your classes."

The students, who had begun to speak quietly due to the interruption of the class, possibly to comment on the situation or to laugh at Parkinson, fell silent. No one wanted to test the limits of McGonagall's kindness.

The class continued without major mishaps. Not counting, of course, Longbottom's already typical mistakes in the matter.

. . .

Hermione was still surprised by her friend Ginny Weasley's recent closeness to Luna Lovegood. The second day since they arrived at Hogwarts they suddenly started doing things together. Not that the Ravenclaw girl was bad, but Hermione didn't see a friendship with someone like her as feasible. Why then did Ginny get along so well with the girl? Naturally, she could not stay in ignorance and asked her friend for an explanation.

"It's simple. I am an extrovert and I like to adopt introverts. First I adopted you, then Luna after a while," Ginny said to Hermione, which didn't please her.

After she insisted quite a bit, the redhead explained everything to her, in great detail. Something that Hermione appreciated about Ginny, is that she fought for just causes. The youngest of the Weasleys is not the kind of person who ignores problems just because they are none of her business. She stands up to them, and if she needs to get her hands dirty, she does. More than once she got into physical fights to defend her opinion or innocents... And it turned out that it was that quality of her personality that started that curious friendship.

Luna and Ginny were a year below Hermione, so they crossed paths quite often between classes from previous years. Earlier this year some of the Ravenclaws were making fun of Luna behind her back and Ginny overheard them. It wasn't the first time she had seen that kind of attack towards the blonde, but just that day, it bothered her more than usual. She became infuriated and, calling them idiots, she hit each one of them on the nose and went to talk to Luna. That started it all.

According to Ginny, Luna was fun to spend time with as the topics of conversation never ended and could get pretty wacky. Also because Luna was a good listener. It seems that she was one of the few people at Hogwarts who had enough patience not to be put off by Ginny's talkative nature.

The entire wizarding world would agree that the pair was a strange union. Ginny is popular among the students of different houses, while the blonde is an odd case that the students of all the houses prefer to avoid; but they are certainly as compatible as root beer and butter, a combination that is not expected to work, but does splendidly.

The two Gryffindor girls headed to the Quidditch pitch. Harry and Ron were there, waiting for Ginny to practice. That's why Hermione was carrying her potions book, to get her homework done from the stands.

Along the way, they also talked about their recent common interest: Pansy Parkinson. Each one contributed their respective new information to the other. The whole situation was most curious. For Ginny it was one of the most interesting pieces of gossip since she had entered Hogwarts. In her personal ranking of rumors, it was fighting for the top spot with the time Harry spoke Parseltongue and everyone at Hogwarts freaked out trying to figure out what Harry Potter's relationship to Salazar Slytherin would be during her first year. For Hermione, it was a mystery that she was eager to solve. She was taking it quite personally since that encounter with Parkinson on the train. Especially since she immediately noticed the clear information gaps to explain what was happening. Not having all the information unsettled her, something strange was happening there.

"Parkinson's being less horrible than normal. Parkinson apologizing," Hermione whispered to herself, not believing what her friend told her about the night before.

"Luna thinks we should all try to be nice to her."

"Trying to be nice to Parkinson?"

"Are you going to repeat everything I say?" Ginny asked.

"It's because you say mad thing after mad thing. You already sound like Loon…" Hermione stopped mid-word. Ginny shot her a hard warning look. "Sorry."

"You can't keep calling her Loony, or assuming she's crazy because she thinks differently."

"I know. It really wasn't my intention," she repeated. Although she was ashamed to admit to herself the number of times in that week that she thought of Luna in a bad way. She still had not gotten used to Luna being close to one of her friends.

"So smart for some things… so stupid for others," she teased her, showing that she didn't have to worry about her mistake.

Hermione tried to look angry, but laughed at her friend's teasing comment.

"Like I was saying, Luna thinks I should become more friendly with Parkinson, just like I did with her."

"But they are two very different situations. Luna wouldn't hurt even a little Bowtruckle, even by accident. It was good that you defended her, she is a good person. Parkinson on the other hand... "

"Ginny!" Harry yelled, interrupting the conversation.

Both girls looked ahead. Several meters from them stood Harry, who was waving his hand in greeting and gesturing for them to hurry up. Ginny seemed to forget that she was chatting with Hermione, because she bolted towards the Quidditch pitch; her excitement about going there was not entirely about the sport. Hermione knew it even if they didn't say it explicitly.

Hermione got to them a little later because she didn't run. Her three friends had already forgotten about her and were flying on their brooms.

"Hello, Hermione," Luna Lovegood greeted her.

Hermione hand shot to her chest, she had been taken by surprise. It seemed that Luna had also decided to go see Ginny practice. Hermione responded to her greeting,

"Did you come to see Ginny?"

"I like to support the Gryffindor Quidditch team. Ravenclaw players aren't that passionate. Watching you guys play is more fun. Watching them practice is too."

Hermione nodded. She was not someone who commented much on sports. Both girls sat on the bleachers. Silence reigned between them, so she opened her potions book. The minutes passed and she kept reading the first paragraph over and over again. It was useless, she couldn't focus on the problems in her homework if she had others in mind ...

"Why are you being nice to Parkinson?"

Luna, who was watching her friends practice, lazily shifted her gaze to her. She seemed to be trying to understand her words. After her long meditation, in which Hermione was absorbed by how powerful those dreamy eyes were, she answered her with another question.

"Why shouldn't I be?"

Hermione was irritated by that answer, especially having waited so long for it. Speaking quickly, she said:

"I could give a very long list of things Parkinson did to hurt Ginny, Harry, Ron… Me. And loads of other Hogwarts students! She mocks the physical appearance of people, the misfortunes of others, even the magical lineage."

"You do that too."

"Sorry? Her eyes widened in surprise."

"It is true that you tease to a lesser extent… But you called me Loony on the train, right? You corrected yourself, but you did it." At the sight of Hermione's horrified face, she clarified," I never got too far from you when I went to look for the Wrackspurts."

"I didn't mean…"

But Luna didn't let her continue.

"You have said hurtful things to me, without knowing me. Everyone at Hogwarts did. You may have helped spread rumors about me too. I am not the first person who you have looked down on, many people have drawn your attention in a negative way and at the least you have thought something cruel about them. For me, Pansy is not much different from most of my peers. Or anyone else. It's easy to antagonize people you don't know. Don't you believe it?"

Hermione was speechless. She didn't even dare to look Luna in the eye. Faced with her silence, the blonde continued with her monologue.

"Everyone criticizes what they don't understand and what they don't know. Rejecting what is different is easier than trying to understand it. Parkinson may be a bad person. But it's also possible that she isn't, that she just had bad surroundings, that she just didn't stop to think. Given the circumstances...why not give it a try? She helped me find my clothes. Ginny told you, didn't she?"

She didn't know how to answer and everything seemed to indicate that Luna didn't need to hear an answer. They didn't speak after that, but Hermione thought hard, and not about her classes and homework.

. . .

Ron and Hermione had to patrol the castle corridors that night, it was another of their responsibilities as prefects. The first time they had done this, they had both patrolled the corridors together, so that while working they could have a pleasant chat. But that night at dinner they had argued. Ron, after downing several heaping spoonfuls of pumpkin soup, decided that she was too picky and complaining about everything. So when they met outside the common room to start their patrol, Hermione told him that she was going to spare him her complaints tonight and left without waiting for him. She knew she had overreacted to Ron's comment. Especially since it was Ron who said it. He was always pretty rough, but he didn't want to intentionally upset her, it was just a tactless comment. But after her talk with Luna that afternoon, she felt unsettled and was in no condition to put up with it.

She was beginning to think that the Sorting Hat chose Luna's house well, Ravenclaw appreciates wisdom. Students under the color blue were very good at memorizing and understanding texts. Hermione was the same. That is why the hat in its first year took time to decide which house to place it in, as it would have been a great contribution to the Ravenclaw house. Luna had a way of handling information to admire, a different one, rare to see. Ginny was right, that she thought differently didn't make her any dumber or less sane. Being open to possibilities, she was probably smarter than most.

She thought of her Muggle parents too, especially when they watched the news on television. Sometimes they made comments based on misinformation. Her own mother went so far as to say that a woman who valued herself was one who dressed modestly and that if she did not do so, she could not expect respect. Hermione almost freaked out that day trying to make it clear to her mother that she couldn't judge a woman by whether she had cleavage or not. Looking outside of her loved ones, there were a lot of people in the world who considered black people to be more likely to be criminals. On the other hand, Pansy often called her "Mudblood" for being a witch who was the daughter of two Muggle parents. All very similar comments even if the topics were different. None of them were good, but they all started from misinformation and from being taught that hatred is normal. Bad ideas were not always linked to a bad person. And if they were, she should hate her own parents. But of course, her parents didn't harass her for years...

Hermione shook her head. She was confused. Coming out of her trance, she realized that she had already come a long way without paying attention to whether she encountered any rule breakers. She berated herself for it and decided that the important thing now was to do her job well.

Half an hour later she reached the courtyard. A place that looked like another room in the castle, but without a roof, with statues that are used to decorate gardens, some plants and a fountain right in the middle. But something caught Hermione's attention: there was a figure sitting on the edge of the fountain that night. She headed towards them quickly, but her pace slowed as soon as she heard a sob. She moved closer to the offender and immediately recognized her: Pansy Parkinson. Hermione froze. Should she get closer? Say something? She heard another sob.

"Are you okay?" She asked softly, unable to help herself. Hearing her cry forced her to react like this. She knew it could have been Draco Malfoy himself crying and she would have said the same thing in such an instinctual way. Her crying had shaken something inside her.

Parkinson was startled, she thought she was alone. Without turning around, she wiped her face with the sleeve of her clothes and then got up. When she took the first step to leave, Hermione grabbed her arm, preventing her from doing so. They both froze for a few seconds. The Slytherin was the first to move, turning her head a little so she could see her. Hermione didn't seem to remember who was in front of her. She always associated a sly smile with Parkinson. But at that moment, seeing her dark circles and her reddened eyes, she did not feel like she was facing that Parkinson, but another, one that she did not know.

"I won't break the rules again," she apologized. She misunderstood Hermione's actions.

"Are you okay?" She asked again.

Now she looked more confused than sad. She answered with a terse "yes". But Hermione was still clinging to her sleeve just as much, so Parkinson turned her body to face her. The two were in a silent battle in which neither wanted to give in, until Pansy's eyes fell to the ground.

"I'm fine," she insisted. After a pause she spoke again, but her voice cracked, "Damn it. Go away."

Hermione felt a lump in her throat as she saw the green eyes in front of her go glassy. She released the arm she was holding so urgently. She had no idea what to say or how to act. Parkinson brought her hands to her face to cover her tears as she moved one foot back, preparing for an abrupt retreat. Hermione's reflexes were faster. Without thinking much, she hugged her. Hermione could tell how tense Parkinson was under her arms. She also felt her spasms as she tried to control her erratic breathing. She responded to that by hugging her more firmly, she wanted to convey confidence to her. It worked. Little by little she relaxed. Parkinson was taller than Hermione, so she lowered her head, resting her forehead on her shoulder. Seeking refuge in the last person she would have thought to.

"Why?" She asked, her voice still broken.

Hermione took a long time to react.

"Why what?"

"This."

"I don't know."

Going against her instincts, she didn't think of an answer. Nor did she want to. In those moments she didn't care. She wasn't thinking about who she had in her arms. Nor did she look for a reason for her reaction. She only found green eyes by accident in the dark, which in the white moonlight seemed at times to be silver. If you looked at them long enough the calm they always wore would fall off. They yelled at her in a turbulent way to help them.

That night she found a wounded snake by accident, and she refused to leave it alone.

Notes:

Hello! Thank you for reading. Please show your support for the story by commenting or voting. 3

I want to tell you that, if you like how I write, give the other fanfics on my profile a chance. There are two fandoms: Blackpink and Harry Potter. I have pansmione, cissamione and jenlisa stories.