Author's Note: So this story has been swimming in my head for quite a while now. Since Fantastic Beast came out, I was fascinated by the concept of an Obscurial, and wanted to take a stab on it. This story is AU, the Hermione here is definitely NOT the same as the one in the books. She is also imperfect. This story is dark, and parts of it are disturbing. While I will not go into detail here, because you'll have to read to find out her background, this story is rated a hard M for: Language, Torture, Graphic Violence, Graphic Child Abuse, Graphic Sexual Abuse, and other disturbing elements. So if any of those things offend you, do not read. I really hope that you like this story.

Also, this story is not finished, so my updates will not be as frequent as my other story. On the plus side, I wrote The Haunting of Edward Mason years ago, so my writing is much, much better.

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.

"Well Miss Granger, I believe everything has been settled, your test scores are quite astounding regarding your knowledge of theoretical magic. Unfortunately, due to your lack of practical skills, I believe placing you in sixth year would be more appropriate, it would give you the chance to work on your wand skills and catch up." Dippet voiced cheerily. Hermione, herself, knew that he could place her back to first year and it wouldn't make a damn bit of difference regarding her wand skills. She practically was a squib, having trouble managing the easiest of spells. But whatever made him happy was of no consequence to her.

"Of course Headmaster," she replied monotone.

"Excellent," he exclaimed clapping his hands together. "Now to the last order of business, where to put you," He continued as he got up and reached for the Sorting Hat.

She remembered Snape once told her that the hat takes your choice into consideration. Honestly she hoped her grumpy Godfather was right.

'My my, I see we have once again met My Dear," the hat chuckled in her head.

'You remember me, but that was after this time," she replied confused.

'My magic is not limited by time, Miss Granger, former Slytherin. You were such an interesting child to sort. So full of determination to be the best, a thirst for knowledge, to prove your worth. I see that time has changed you." He finished softly.

"Don't waste your time feeling pity on me, my only goal is to graduate and get on with my life," she hissed back. "Hufflepuff would pretty much guarantee me to fly under the radar, to not be noticed. So could you please get on with it," she finished coldly.

The hat sighed. 'As you wish.'

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

Hermione removed the hat and handed it back to the Headmaster.

"Excellent, I'm sure you'll make a fine addition to their house." He spoke warmly before reaching behind his desk. "Here is a set of robes, coursework material and class schedule. Give me just a moment and I'll call your house prefect to retrieve you and show you to your dormitories." He said before speaking to a painting, which nodded and ran off.

A few minutes later, a girl with mousy brown hair showed up.

"Hello, Claire Abbott, Hufflepuff Prefect. If you would just follow me." She said with a smile.

Granger noted how the girl seemed friendly, almost too friendly. Gee, paranoid much. She really did need to work on her social skills. This was Hufflepuff, not a pit full of snakes.

"So, I do hope you're prepared being our newest celebrity for a bit," Abbott stated with a chuckle. "You see, Hogwarts hasn't had a transfer student in ages," she finished with a smile.

Granger nearly snorted. Well hopefully it won't last long.

"Yes, I've heard as much," she replied calmly.

"So, where are you from if you don't mind me asking," the girl asked.

So the lies begin. Best get on with it.

"I'm originally from France, but my parents were killed in an accident so I was raised by my Aunt and Uncle. They decided to tutor me, apparently they deemed me unfit for school," she replied.

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that," Abbott replied sadly. "So what led you to Hogwarts?"

"My Aunt and Uncle were killed by Grindelwald's supporters during a raid. Their connections to Albus Dumbledore is what got me a spot here. I am now a ward of the school." She finished monotone.

"My goodness, that's horrible!" The girl exclaimed before falling into silence.

Hermione welcomed the silence. She did not want to converse with the prefect longer than what was deemed necessary. Apparently it wasn't hard either, considering the girl had no idea what to say after that. So they continued to Hufflepuff dormitories in silence.

"Password" the portrait droned out.

"Flobberworms" the girl recited with a smile.

Hermione could already feel her breakfast start to turn up. Maybe Hufflepuff was a bad idea. The portrait swung open and Hermione followed the girl inside. The common room was decorated in yellow and was sickly warmly. She much prefer the coldness of the dungeons.

"This is our common room, girls dormitories are on the left and boys to the right. Your bed is to the farthest window. If you need anything at all, please do not hesitate to ask me." She said as they walked to the dorms and Hermione sat her stuff on her bed. "And Hermione," the girl inquired shyly. "I know that you didn't arrive here on best of circumstances, but I really do think you'll be happy here. Hogwarts is amazing, and everyone in our house is super friendly." She finished with a small smile.

Hermione just turned in silence and changed into her dressing gown before settling into bed. Staring up at the ceiling, she couldn't help but feel a surge of loneliness, if she had known that damn room would have sent her here, she wouldn't have gone near it. Stupid Hogwarts. Sighing slightly, she turned on her side. It didn't matter now, Dumbledore had made it explicitly clear that there was no way anyone could send her back. She was stuck. Stuck in a timeline that she didn't belong in, and completely and utterly alone with her magic tied. Something began to shift in her, but she quickly stomped it back.

Now was not the time or place for that. She would have to be careful here.

...

The first thing she noticed when opening her eyes was the face of a pretty redhead with very blue eyes staring right at her, correct that, right above her.

The girl then squealed.

"Finally you're awake!" She exclaimed loudly. "Girls, she's awake!" She practically yelled.

Suddenly Hermione found herself surrounded by her girly housemates.

"I'm Cassandra Prewitt," the pretty redhead stated. "Hannah said that you were a transfer student!" She continued excitedly.

Hermione had to suppress a growl. Fucking imbeciles.

Her left hand began to twitch, that familiar tingling sensation that the potion she drank a day prior was beginning to wean off. That certainly won't do. They would probably scream and shield their eyes at the true sight of me. Throwing back the covers she stumbled out of bed. She decided it was better to properly introduce herself. After all, considering the house she was in, it would be strange to be her normal cold self.

"Yes, Hermione Granger" she stated before fumbling in her trunk. "Is there a private bathroom that I could use?" She asked. She needed to drink her potion and it always was a painful experience, one she did not care to explain to her housemates.

"Oh, there's no reason to be shy around us!" Prewitt exclaimed.

"Well, it's just that I'm not quite comfortable with all this yet, being home-schooled and all," she responded as shyly as she could muster, keeping her eyes downcast.

Please for the love of god and all that's holy work.

"You can use my private bathroom," Abbott stated warmly.

Thank god.

"Thank you," she replied quietly before gathering her clothes and hidden potion.

After following Abbott to her private bath, she promptly shut the door and began to strip. Eyeing her left arm, she noticed a faint pink line began to appear running from her elbow to the inside of her hand. Quickly she reached for the potion and downed it. Immediately her skin felt as if it was on fire, her stomach churned and she nearly dropped the vial. Grasping the sink, she took long deep breaths in an attempt to calm her body down. Soon the pain washed over and faint pink line disappeared. She looked up in the mirror and assessed her image. Back in her timeline she was considered beautiful, despite the scars marring her skin, but here, they wouldn't understand that kind of beauty and it only meant attention and that was something she absolutely did not want. Magic had turned its back on her, so she felt inclined to do the same. Brushing her slightly frizzy hair and covering her dark brown eyes with a pair of old, worn glasses, she decided that she looked mousy enough. Though maybe, mousy wasn't the correct term either, considering she was a full 5'8, but she was uninteresting to look upon that was for certain. Quickly she got dressed and headed back to her dorms to retrieve her books and class schedule.

"Oh Hermione, surely you don't intend on going about the day with your hair like that?" Prewitt asked before scanning her eyes down her robes. "And your robes don't properly fit either, you look like you're wearing a sack," she said sadly.

"Oh leave the girl alone Cassandra," Abbott snarked.

"I for one think you look fine," a girl behind Hermione stated lowly.

Turning around she found a small girl with brown eyes, and light brown hair. The girl was stunning, in an effortless sort of way.

"Thank you," Hermione replied quietly.

"I'm Venecia Parks," she said with a small smile. "I'm heading down for a bite if you want to join me," she finished.

Hermione assessed the girl quickly. Considering how the other girls rolled their eyes and snickered slightly, she felt it was safe to assume the girl was unpopular. Perfect. She will do just fine. After all, it wouldn't hurt to have one friendly acquaintance.

"Sure," she replied as warmly as she could muster before grabbing her things and following her new friend towards the Great Hall.

"You'll be the talk of the school for a few days, but after a while it will all die down," Venecia said as they walked down the corridors, Hermione ignoring the whispers of the other students.

"I hope so, I really just want to get through all this unscathed," she replied with a chuckle.

"Don't worry, it might be difficult at first, Slytherins tend to bully us, but fortunately, they spend more time declaring war on Gryffindor more than anything else." She concluded as they reached the Great Hall.

Sitting down she observed there weren't that many students out.

"Since all the teachers are here, I'll go ahead and familiarize you with them. The one to the far right, that's Professor Pletchly, she teaches the female charms and etiquette class. Not that you seem the type, but don't dare let her catch you in anything improper with any of the boys, she's extremely strict."

"Don't worry, I don't have much luck with boys anyways," Hermione replied with a laugh. Sadly it was true, and suddenly a flash of dark red hair and green eyes flitted across her mind, but she snuffed it out rather quickly. No use it dredging that up anytime soon, or anytime at all for that matter.

"Well, the one beside her is Professor Cartwright, he handles herbology, and Slughorn with Potions, and obviously Dumbledore with Transfiguration, he's the best teacher here honestly. And lastly, that's Professor Steward. He's our DADA professor and new."

Hermione regarded the man, his black hair, fair skin, head thrown back in a laugh. He seemed positively beaming, and quite young.

"Rumor has it that one of our recent graduates tried to get the position, but Dumbledore wouldn't hear of it. Shame really, Riddle would have been an exceptional teacher," Parks prattled on.

Hermione nearly choked on her coffee. Riddle! Why the fuck had she never considered him?

"I'm sorry, Riddle?" She inquired.

"Ah Tom Riddle," Parks said with a dreamy look on her face. "He graduated about two years ago, he was a Slytherin Prefect, really amazing. Treated all the houses with respect," -that Hermione almost snorted. "He really was an excellent student, but he and Dumbledore never really got along. He still comes time from time to assist Slughorn in potions, so you'll see him around." Parks finished as she took a bite out of her pastry.

This was not good. She couldn't afford Riddle to go digging through her head. She'd need to be adequate at best in potions. If she was too good, she'd raise attention, and too inept, also attention. There was a fine line she would be treading, not to mention Riddle had a knack for seeing through bullshit.

Poking around her plate a bit she began to wonder about Steward. Probably would be dead by the end of the year. Riddle wasn't one to play nice. Looking up she peaked at him from behind her glasses. He caught her stare and smiled quickly before turning back towards Slughorn. Dismissal. She was beginning to think she was going to be ok.

...

Her classes, for the most part were pretty much the same as in her own timeline, with the exception of charms and etiquette. That woman was a piece of work.

"Now I understand your current situation Miss Granger, but that is no excuse to show up to my class, or any other class for that matter, as if a lightning bolt struck your head. You need to take more pride in your appearance, groom yourself better, you're practically an adult, and since no one will be handling marriage contracts on your behalf, you'll have to work that much harder to acquire a husband," the snot nosed bitch said frostily. "From now on I expect you pay attention in class, and work hard, hopefully things will start to pan out for you."

Honestly, who did the bitch think she was? She had no need for a husband. Obviously, she couldn't dare say that considering it would be such scandal. So she simply bowed her head and mumbled 'Yes Professor' before ducking out of class.

"Don't be bothered by Professor Pletchley too much, she's hard on all the females," Parks had said when they left class.

Her last class of the day was DADA, and honestly she was glad her day was nearly over. The Slytherins really did bully her house, and her somewhat. One of the boys though, quiet, Alphard Black, wasn't too bad. He seemed nice enough, even introduced himself, blush tinged cheeks and all. It was almost pathetic considering he was a Slytherin, but he reminded her of Draco, the kinder side of him and she felt a warm tingle of familiarity.

Suddenly the office door opened and Professor Steward walked down the steps gracefully. He commanded attention of the room, almost like her Godfather, just not quite as intimidating. The girls began to giggle quietly before he quieted everyone down.

"We will continue on our course of Dark Creatures, please turn to Chapter 8 on Lycanthropy." His voice was warm, inviting but also with a hint of dominance. Hermione could see why her fellow female housemates were so infatuated with him.

"Now could someone share with the class the distinguishing marks of a werewolf?"

Immediately hands went up in the air.

Hermione absentmindedly drew on her parchment paper while he taught. She was more than familiar with the text. After about an hour of teaching he assigned them 3 rolls of parchment on how lycanthropy effects society and whether regulations are fit.

"Miss Granger, could you please stay behind a moment, I won't take up too much of your time," His voice was smooth. She couldn't help but feel irritated. She had nearly made it all day without being singled out, not included Pletchly of course.

Slowly she packed her bag and walked up front.

"Please follow me to my office," he said without even looking at her before turning and walking up the stone steps.

His office was hardly decorated, as if he never used it. Taking a seat across him she began to fidget with her hands, pretending to be nervous.

"Miss Granger, your scores for this class on theoretical knowledge was quite extensive, it was saddening to see that you lacked the proper wand skill to go along with it." He began warmly.

She needed to nip this in the bud right now, before he got any bright ideas.

"I appreciate your compliment and concern Professor, but I am truly ok with knowing my lack of wand skill. That's why I decided to educate myself on theory as much as possible. So really, you shouldn't worry yourself," she replied kindly.

She noticed a frown appeared on his face, his eyes saddened.

"Miss Granger, no student of mine is considered a waste of time. I really want to help you. So from now on, Dumbledore has agreed that you need personal training. You will report to me three days a week from 7-9pm for wand skill training."

Goddamn it. And damn that old man for meddling into affairs that aren't his.

"Really Professor, this really is unces-

"Unnecessary?" He quipped, his tone changing to one of complete dominance. "You are my student and therefore my responsibility." His tone was final, as if daring her to disagree.

She regarded the young professor for a moment. He really was quite handsome, his features were soft, nothing standing out except for exceptional blue eyes. His tone though, the way he held himself was what really caught her attention. While nice enough, was no fuss. Ultimately though, continuing to argue would be nothing but more trouble for her.

"Of course Professor," she replied apologetically. "Forgive me, I'm not used to people going out of their way to help me," she finished softly, hoping her tone would do some damage control.

He simply smiled at her.

"That's quite alright Miss Granger, it is my duty to ensure you receive the absolute best of education to succeed. Please meet me here tomorrow at 7." He responded lightly.

Agreeing quietly she gathered her things and shut the door.

"On and Miss Granger," he spoke softly. "Do see that you're on time, I don't accept tardiness." He finished a tone of darkness in his voice.

She'd be lying if she said she didn't feel a slight shiver at his voice.

Damn.

And there's the first chapter! Please let me know what you think!