The Tower

“It’s really her!” 

“I can’t believe it.”

“What must she have done over the summer?” 

“Killed someone probably!”  

“What has she done to the sheets?” 

“What has she done to her hair?” 

“I think the better question is what she hasn’t done to it.” 

Hermione peaked one eye open.  

The whispers turned to squeals.  Pansy and Millicent were hovering over her, having unceremoniously ripped open the curtains around her four poster.  They were looking down at her like she was a kitten they had just received for Christmas.  

“Good morning?”  She said cautiously.  

Pansy took that as an invitation to sit down at the foot of her bed and pull her legs up.  Even her pajamas were fancy; a white matching silk set with a delicate blueberry print.  

“Okay spill it.”  Pansy said, raising her brow at her. 

Hermione only looked at her in confusion.  “What?”

Millicent sat down on the other side of Pansy.  She had long blonde hair that fell in a perfect shiny sheet, and piercing light blue eyes, with a smattering of freckles over her nose.  Hermione had never even spoken to her before.   

Pansy jerked her head at Millicent.  “This is Millie. She can be shy at first, don’t scare her off.  Now spill.” 

“Spill what?” Hermione asked again, pushing herself up to the headboard and crossing her arms over her thin tank top.  

“How you got yourself transferred into Slytherin, duh.” Pansy rolled her eyes, but there was no venom in her voice, only a determined curiosity. 

Hermione blinked, no lie coming to her.  She hadn’t prepared for this, she had expected Dumbledore’s instructions to be much more thorough.  Did she need to lie?  She landed on a half truth. 

“I asked to be re-sorted.” she hoped she sounded confident. 

“Why?” Pansy’s reply came quick as a whip. 

“Dumbledore told me to.”  She was saying too much, but it was easier than lying. 

The shrewd look that Pansy gave her almost made her shiver.  Her dark eyes travelled over Hermione’s plain gray tank top and up to her (probably atrocious) morning hair. 

Then a grin slowly spread across her face.  “Well I find this all very exciting. Don’t you Millie?” 

Millie just nodded.  Hermione was still unsure if she was being mocked.  

“I love a project.” Pansy said, and with that she hopped up off Hermione’s bed and dove into her trunk.  Millie followed curiously, as Pansy threw Hermione’s clothes all over the floor. 

“Oh god, it’s worse than I thought.” she gave Hermione a sad head shake.  “Did every girl in Gryffindor hate you or something?” she asked.   

Lavender and Parvati’s faces briefly flashed across her vision.  “We weren’t exactly best friends…”  she started.

Pansy’s octave was rising, “They’re bloody terrible friends! Letting you walk around like this, not even trying to help. We need to go to Hogsmeade immediately.  We need to be there yesterday.  No roommate of mine is going to be dressing like this.”  

She turned back to Hermione with a sympathetic look in her eye.  What was going on? 

“Millie! Get your hair products.”  Pansy said, grinning wickedly, and she pulled Hermione out of bed by both arms.  

______

By the time they had finished with her it was nearly 10:30, and she surprisingly still had hair.  

Apparently Pansy was being sincere about liking a project, and the more challenging the better.  Millie was also an expert with hair, mumbling something about her mom being a professional hairstylist, and Hermione wondered if she meant muggle or magical.  

Whatever she did, it was a miracle, Pansy said, and Hermione almost agreed with her.  

Her usually unmanageable curls were now almost six inches longer, magically extended possibly? And had been tamed into a beautiful cascade down her back.  Millie had even added some subtle highlights that danced in the sunlight refracting through their underwater window.  

Pansy had transfigured one of Hermione’s cardigans to be tighter fitting and thinner, and shortened her school skirt to an indecent length, before adding a small heel to her sensible flats.  “That will have to do for now.” she concluded.  

Finally satisfied with their work they sandwiched her between them and marched her out into the common room. 

Hermione felt a strange sense of relief wash over her at the sight of Theo next to one of the bookshelves.  Breaking from the girl’s grip she rushed over to him.  

“Theo!”  She said, surprised by the genuine happiness in her voice.  

“Grang-” he turned to her and Hermione felt a slight blush on her cheeks as he looked her up and down.  “Granger! I see being a Slytherin is suiting you quite nicely.” He winked.  

“You can just call me Hermione.” She said, suddenly losing a bit of her bravery and she turned to look at the book Theo had just pulled off the shelf. Ancient Runes. She couldn’t help the laugh that bubbled out of her.  

Theo clutched the book against his chest feigning offence.  “Laughing at me again, Granger?” 

“Hermione.” she corrected. 

He grinned and shifted against the bookcase, blocking her view of the rest of the common room.  The moment felt strangely intimate.  “I prefer nicknames,” he said, his grin growing even wider.  “What do you think, little lion?”  

Hermione just laughed at him again.  He was undeterred.  “No? How about Professor Granger? Lioness? Kitten?”  He was leaning closer and Hermione felt heat creeping up the back of her neck.  She giggled and pushed him, but not with any real force.  

“Theo stop being a prick.”  The calm voice came from a couch next to them and Hermione felt her blood run cold as she looked down to see Malfoy’s blonde head buried in a book.  Despite herself, she leaned slightly to try to read the cover.  Without looking up he adjusted it so she had no chance of seeing.  

“What a ridiculous accusation, Draco, I am simply endeavoring to make our newest addition feel welcome, unlike yourself.”  

Draco’s icy blue eyes turned up sharply to catch Hermione looking at him.  He smirked. 

“My apologies. You’re welcome to sit, kitten.”  Draco said, not taking his eyes from hers as he patted the entirely too small place next to him on the couch.   

Hermione turned her back on him hoping he didn’t notice the blush spreading up to her ears, and informed Theo she was heading to breakfast.  He said he would be happy to come with and Malfoy took the opportunity to remind Theo that they had just returned from breakfast ten minutes before.  

With the intensity of the glares going between Malfoy and Theo, Hermione decided not to get involved and said she would be happy to see him at lunch instead. Theo beamed like he just won the Quidditch world cup. 

_____ 

By the time she reached the Great Hall, it was mostly empty, left with only the stragglers and late risers who had decided that Friday night still deserved to be celebrated even if it was only the first day of term. 

Dean Thomas was definitely nursing a hangover as he held his head up over an untouched plate of eggs.  Ginny sat next to him, patting the back of his neck.  

Hermione chose the spot across from them and started dishing herself some pastries and an omelet.  She slowly became aware of whispers to her left.  

“What is she doing here?” 

“Is she even allowed to sit here anymore?” 

The subsequent giggles revealed the voices to be Lavendar and Parvati.  She ignored them.  

Ginny gave her a piercing look, which Hermione returned, throwing in a raised brow and a glance at Dean who seemed oblivious to the world currently.  

“Fair enough!” Ginny said happily and quickly began quizzing Hermione on which Slytherin rumors were true.

“Two bathrooms for three girls?!!!!  That’s ridiculous!”  Ginny was spraying eggs across the table as Hermione laughed.  

Then the redhead’s tone lowered, “So are the rumors about Malfoy true too then?” She raised a conspiratable brow. 

Hermione's thoughts flew immediately to the image of the dark mark on Malfoys forearm and how she spent all year trying to convince Harry it was a ridiculous suspicion.  The dark mark laying limp on the cold stones of the astronomy tower.  She shivered.  

“No.”  She said, rather too forcefully.  “No, none of the rumors about him are true.” 

Much to Hermione’s surprise, Ginny gasped.  “And you found that out on your first night, did you?!  Wow, Hermione, I always thought you had a bit of a crush on him, I mean who wouldn’t, but that’s fast!”  

Dean had attempted to look up at Ginny’s comment but groaned at the lights, and she shoved his head back down with a “Come on now, Malfoy’s fit and so are you, no need to be jealous.”

“Malfoy, fit?!!”  It came out much shriller than Hermione meant it to. 

Ginny leveled her with a scathing look.  “Oh come on, do you really never pull your head out of those books?  You haven’t heard the rumors?” 

She hadn’t, and she didn’t want to, but her voice spoke against her will.  “What rumors?” 

The grin that spread across her freckled face was positively wicked.  She began. 

He has a dragon tattooed on his back, he’s being recruited by the Bulgarian quidditch team after graduation, he’s slept with 53 different girls since fourth year, one was on the Astronomy tower, two say they did it in detention, he has a massive -

“Alright! I’ve heard enough!”   Hermione threw her hands over her ears.  She wondered if she could get away with a small obliviate without causing any serious damage to her brain.  

Instead she opted to copy Dean and bury her head in her hands.  The bench shifted as someone sat down next to her.  “Hey Gin!” 

“Hey Pansy!  Oh thanks a million for recommending that shop, I think Dean should be thanking you too actually,” she shoved him playfully as he grinned sheepishly and put his head fully down on the table.  

Hermione’s mouth was hanging open.  Ginny and Pansy were… friends?  Then Luna and Millie took the spot on the other side of Dean and Hermione's eyebrows rose even further towards her hairline.  They were all friends?!  She was incredulous. 

But as breakfast went on she realized maybe Harry and Ron were the exception, not the rule.  Their hatred of Slytherin (and actually every house other than Griffindor) was so all consuming that they barely tolerated Luna.  But not everyone was that way.  

Parvati and Lavender frequently hung out with the Ravenclaw girls. Ravenclaws dated Hufflepuffs, and now that she thought about it, she couldn’t recall why she didn’t ever attempt to make friends outside of her house.  Maybe it was Harry and Ron’s influence, it could be contagious.  More Ron than Harry, but still.  

She hadn’t seen either of them since the sorting ceremony last night, and she was dying to talk to them.  Luna had just asked her for the third time if she wanted to attend their girls night tomorrow night, when she snapped back to reality. 

“That would be lovely, Luna, thank you.” she said, then turned to Ginny.  “Do you know where Harry and Ron are?” 

Ginny’s face fell.  “Um, you should be able to find Harry at dinner, Ron, er, Ron might be harder to find.”  When Hermione opened her mouth to press Ginny just grimaced.  “Just talk to Harry about it okay, I want no part in that.”