From Malfoy to Draco

Trouble at the Library

Hermione was in the library, looking at the all the books that had to do with previous students and heritage. After Harry had told her about what he saw with Dumbledore, she wanted to make sure she didn't miss anything out on the Gaunt family. It was getting late but luckily for her, Madame Pince had left her the key to the library to use out of hours on a Friday and the weekend. Hermione was obviously trusted enough to stay without supervision. When she was scribbling notes down, she sighed. She had been looking for three hours and needed a break. Getting up to stretch her legs, she looked out of the window. She could see the lake, it looked like a black hole. If there wasn't a moon out tonight causing there to be a reflection on the surface then you wouldn't even see it. Just as she was starting to relax a little, the wind had picked up quite rapidly. Over in the distance, she could just make out the tips of the Whomping Willow. The branches slightly moving, the tree was trying hard not to move. Hermione started to feel the sadness in her well up like a balloon.

That had been the first place where she had seen Sirius. Knowing Remus Lupin, or Professor at the time, was a werewolf and thinking he was there to kill Harry, Sirius Black had shown up. She remembered how scared she was, fiercely trying to protect her best friend but her knees were shaking so badly she thought she'd collapse. Little did she know that that was the man who promised Harry a home, who rode off with Buckbeak, who had small talks with her when no one else was around. Her face started to droop, the corner of her mouth dipping down. She stared at the ring on her left hand, playing with it, trying very hard not to start crying.

CRASH!

Hermione whipped around to the sound of the noise. She had left her wand on the table about twenty feet away. She could hear someone move towards her, seeing a faint glimpse of black through the shelves of books. Hermione's heart started to beat a little faster, her mind was racing at the calculations of how long it would take her to get to her wand. Just as she was about to run for it Pansy Parkinson appeared in front, her wand pointed towards Hermione. Hermione's wand was exactly halfway between the both of them, in a matter of seconds, they both sprinted for it. 

"Ah-ah-ah Mudblood. You're too slow for me," Pansy said tauntingly, waving Hermione's wand just out of reach. Pansy then raised her own wand and stuck it in Hermione's neck. "Now give me one good reason why I shouldn't hex you here!"

"What do you want, Pansy?" snarled Hermione. Her heart was beating even faster than before but she was going to let her know that. 

"I want to know what you and Draco were talking about after I left. He never came back to the dorm afterwards, I stayed up all night. At first, I thought you both finished what Draco and I started but then I realised Draco would never willingly touch a Mudblood like yourself. So, that obviously means you forced him too!" Pansy accused. "HE'S MINE! YOU WILL NEVER GO NEAR HIM AGAIN!" she was shouting now.

"What, in Merlin's beard, are you talking about?" Hermione was disgusted by what Pansy was accusing her of and felt like she was going to throw up.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about!" Pansy shrieked. Whilst Pansy was shrieking more obscenities at her, she looked down and realised that the way Pansy was standing was extremely convenient for her. Within a second of this thought, she acted, kicking Pansy in the back of her knee, Pansy had fallen to the ground. Hermione grabbed her wand and started sprinting to the exit. But Pansy had gotten up quicker than she anticipated.

"STUPEFY!" shouted Pansy. The spell had hit Hermione's back and pelted her into the wall, she then crashed onto the floor. She was in an incredible amount of pain, the spell had winded her and she was struggling to breathe.

"Expelliarmus!" she heard a voice say. At first, she thought Pansy had disarmed her but she could still feel her wand poking her leg. She then realised someone had disarmed Pansy but couldn't tell who it was. There was a lot of shouting but she couldn't make out any of the words, she was very disorientated. Then, after was felt like hours, the mystery person scooped her into their arms and carried her to the Gryffindor Tower.

★ ★ ★

"So, you still don't know who had saved you from Pansy in the library?" Ginny asked, still trying to figure out what had happened and why Hermione wasn't taken to the hospital wing immediately.

"Nope. I have no clue. Who found me again at the portal?" Hermione asked, knowing full well who it was.

"Ron did. He said he heard a knock at the portal, woke the Fat Lady up, but the person was gone in seconds. He found you lying on the floor, you kept mumbling Pansy. Then he carried you straight to the hospital wing," Ginny recalled. Hermione had heard this three or four times but she loved hearing it. It had been a few days but she still went a bit pink. Ron had thought it was Cormac McLaggen that had saved her, although he never said it in a grateful tone, more of a repulsive tone.

"Oh, yeah, right. Anyway Gin, how do you think try-outs will go?" Hermione asked quickly trying to change the topic before she went too red. Ginny had noticed this and smirked at her, but never pressed the subject.

"Yeah, I think it'll be OK. We have a mix of people trying out this year but I'm sure Harry will pick who he thinks will fit the team best," Ginny answered. Hermione agreed and they walked down to the Quidditch field. She could make out Hagrid's Hut in the distance, guilt fell upon her like a sack of stones. She didn't know if anyone had picked Care for Magical Creatures as a subject for their N.E.W.T.S, she wanted to explain to him that it wasn't his teaching and she didn't hate the subject. She thought he was so brave and compassionate for his love of creatures but unfortunately, not everyone shared it.

Hermione sat in the stands watching the Quidditch try-outs, she had her Ancient Runes textbook with her so when it wasn't Ginny or Ron she could go over what she had learned. Katie Bell, Demelza Robins and Ginny were chosen as chasers, and Jimmy Peakes and Ritchie Coote were chosen as beaters. Now it was time for the battle of the keepers. Everyone who had been rejected and a group of Gryffindors that came down after breakfast were watching in the stands. It came down to the last two: Cormac and Ron. Cormac had saved four out of five of the shots that had been taken, to Hermione's dismay but for the fifth time, he mysteriously jolted off in the wrong direction and Ginny scored. It was Ron's turn, she could see how nervous he was and opened her mouth to say a few words of encouragement to him when she was interrupted.

"Good luck!" cried a voice to the right of her. There, sitting down two rows and slightly right, was Lavender. Hermione scowled at her, even though it was to the back of her head. When will she leave him alone! She thought.