A/N: Hello! Ok, so, this is my first fanfiction ever. Maybe I shouldn't have told you that. 'Cause now you're gonna be all "Oh, no, this girl can't write blah blah blah..." As a first-time fanfiction author, I'm asking you to take a risk with me. Read it, and if it sucks, tell me (nicely). If it doesn't suck, keep reading.

Disclaimer: This is a Dramione fic. If you don't like Dramione, read it anyway, but don't be hatin'. Also, I do not own Harry Potter in any way shape or form. Unless someone buys me Dan Radcliffe for my birthday. Please?

Chapter 1

The jostling of the train, which normally denoted the excitement of another year at Hogwarts, only served to set Hermione on edge. She already changed into her school robes out of habit and was enjoying the few, precious seconds she had alone in the compartment while the boys chased down the lunch cart.

Hermione pressed her forehead against the cool, glass window. Nothing seemed to make sense these days. It was only a couple of months ago that the three of them had sworn that they would not come back to Hogwarts to pursue Voldemort's Horcruxes; yet, here the three of them were. It had taken weeks of convincing on Hermione's part. Harry was dead set against returning to the castle until she brought up the fact that they had no other leads except that the remaining Horcruxes were probably attached to the four founders in some way. Once Ron sided with her, Harry reluctantly consented to making the journey back to Hogwarts.

"No stressing over lessons anymore," he had said. "None of it matters. I don't want you telling me and Ron that we have to finish our papers when there's Horcruxes out there to find."

"Of course," she replied, relieved that he had agreed to go back. "No distractions."

The rattling of the compartment door broke through Hermione's reverie. The boys had returned, arms full of tasty treats that spilled onto the seat next to Hermione.

"Really," she began, disapprovingly, "is all this necessary?"

"Well," said Ron thickly, mouth already full, "times are tough. You never know which meal will be your last."

Harry raised a box of Bertie Bott's towards him and grunted, "Cheers."

She rolled her eyes and took to staring out the window again. "Boys," she muttered.

The ride continued without incident until they screeched to a halt in Hogsmeade. It wasn't an uncommon occurrence; sometimes the train paused at the village to load on more cargo to take up to the school. What was uncommon was the voice booming down the train.

"Ministry checkpoint! Have wands at the ready to be examined on request!"

"What do they need to examine our wands for?" Harry asked, sitting upright.

"To see if we've been performing any illegal spells, I expect," Hermione said. "Some students may have been put under the Imperius Curse, or some of the of-age ones could be acting under orders from You-Know-Who himself."

Ron stood up to poke his head out of the compartment. "Well, that's the stupidest th-"

His voice faltered as a tall, dark figure appeared in the doorway. "Wands, please," the figure croaked with mock manners, his long features twisting into a sneer.

"Dolohov," Hermione whispered before she could stop herself. How could she forget? He nearly killed her during the battle at the Ministry in their fifth year. His taunts fused with her screams still echoed in her nightmares. Surely this couldn't be real.

"Ah, I thought I smelt a Mudblood in this compartment."

"Fuck off, Dolohov," Ron spat.

"Manners, Weasley," Dolohov hissed. "Obviously something we'll have to teach you. CRUCIO!"

Even though it was a minor hit, Dolohov wasn't really angry, Ron dropped to the floor in pain.

"Consider this your first lesson. Welcome back to Hogwarts," Dolohov cackled as he slammed the compartment door shut and moved on.

"What the bloody hell just happened?" Ron groaned into the floor. Harry stepped over him and peeked out of the compartment only to jump back two seconds later.

"There's a pack of them moving up and down the train checking the compartments! Death Eaters!" he said, astonished.

"You don't think," Hermione started, "that Hogwarts… it can't be…. infiltrated? Wouldn't we have heard something from the Order?"

"Maybe they don't know yet," Harry said as Ron picked himself from off the floor and the train staggered forward, continuing its journey.

"Well, it sure as hell is gonna make Horcrux hunting that harder," Ron said.

"If Hogwarts has been infiltrated," Hermione said, "we can't cause any trouble. We've got to stay out of trouble and find them that much faster."

"Why are you looking at me when you say that?" Harry asked defensively.

"Oh, come on, Harry. Don't tell me you wouldn't pick a fight with a Death Eater if the opportunity arose."

"I'll behave," he said bitingly.

Hermione relaxed back into her seat. This could not be happening. Death Eaters at Hogwarts could very well mean that the Ministry had fallen as well. She knew that the war would come in full force soon; she just never expected it to happen so soon and at Hogwarts. Her home. No. No, this could not happen.

She was still in denial as they departed the train. Her thoughts absorbed so much of her that she almost didn't hear the call of, "Firs' years! Firs' years this way!"

Hagrid!

"Hagrid!" Harry called as the trio sprinted towards him. "Hagrid, what's going on? Why're the-"

"Can' talk now, Harry," Hagrid whispered, eyeing the Death Eaters stepping onto the platform. He hastily herded the small group of frightened first years towards the lake.

"Not good," Harry said. "We better get to the carriages."

Most of the students had hastily crowded into the carriages to escape the Death Eaters, so the trio rode by themselves. They rode in silence, too astonished to say anything.

When they arrived at the castle, they joined the crowd of students pushing to get inside. All of them were whispering anxiously to each other. Frightened looks flickered on every face. At long last, every Ravenclaw, Slytherin, Hufflepuff, and Gryffindor piled into his or her seats and Professor McGonagall stood before a hushed room.

"Now that we're all sorted there are a couple of announcements I have to make." The Great Hall held its breath. "There are many staff changes this year as the Ministry has seen fit to provide Hogwarts with a more 'regulated education'." McGonagall said tersely. "Our new professor of Muggle Studies," she gestured down the table, "Professor Travers. Our new professors of Defense Against the Dark Arts, Professor Carrow and Professor Carrow. Our new headmaster, Professor Snape, is on an errand tonight and is unable to dine with us."

Harry opened his mouth to yell out in disbelief, but Hermione stepped on his foot.

"As you have noticed, we still have many new faces," McGonagall continued, "They will make up the new guard for your own… protection."

Hermione's head buzzed. This was too much information to process at once. Hogwarts and the Ministry. The man who murdered Dumbledore was now headmaster. She shuddered at the thought of him having complete power over the students. They were only children. Children that would be subjected to Merlin knew what by this sorry excuse for a guard. They already looked as if they were sizing children up and down; the way predators assess their prey. She tore her gaze away from the Death Eaters. A torture squad. That's all they would be. If the Ministry had really been taken, they could get away with murder. Literally.

Hermione's breath caught when she realized that the face she was absently staring at was staring back at her. His gray eyes had been trained on her brown ones for an immeasurable amount of time. Whether it was out of absence of mind or intentional Hermione could not assess before he broke the strange tether between them to look down at his plate. His face, Hermione thought, it looked as worried as I feel. Shouldn't he be celebrating right about now?

The hair on the back of Hermione's neck stood straight up throughout the rest of the feast. The Great Hall was uncommonly quiet for the duration of the meal. Every face routinely glanced up at the Death Eaters. Many of the first years looked as if they were going to burst into tears at any moment.

At long last, the feast ended. McGonagall dismissed them, and the sound of benches scraping the stone floor filled the air as the students rose to leave. Hermione gathered the first years and beckoned for them to follow her. She was in the doorway of the Great Hall when she saw Ron and Harry a couple of yards ahead of her. Ron recoiled as he bumped into another boy.

"Watch where you're going, git," she heard Ron mutter through gritted teeth.

"What did you say to me, Weasley?" the boy fired back.

"Nothing, Your Highness," Ron said after Harry shot him a warning look. With that, Ron stomped to the stairs.

Before he turned to make his descent into the dungeons, Hermione caught a final glimpse at the boy's face. Those stone gray eyes staring right back at her. He huffed in disgust and turned away, leaving Hermione with the image of Draco Malfoy's pain-etched face burning into the back of her brain.

Sunlight streamed into the castle through the windows, a stunning contrast to the mood throughout Hogwarts. Students had stayed out of the hallways as much as possible for the first week. Despite this, scores of them were being sent to detention with the Carrows every night. Hermione's worst fears about the torture were confirmed. Detentions consisted of any number of horrifically painful curses until the subject screamed for mercy.

Hermione had taken to seeking refuge in the library every day. She delved into books that held any mention of the four founders, desperate to find something that would help them on their Horcrux hunt. On this particular day, a biography of Ravenclaw was her object of interest. As she read more and more, the book made less and less sense. She would finish a page and move on to the next, but the new page was a non-sequiter to the last. This happened several times before she ran her finger along the crease of the book where the pages meet the spine. Rough, jagged paper met her touch. Ripped out pages. She allowed for a tiny laugh on the inside. The old, pre-risen Voldemort Hermione would have gasped in horror that someone would defile a book in such a manner. Now Hermione felt horror for an altogether different reason. The Death Eaters were on to them.

Hermione slammed the book shut. Were they watching her right now? She certainly felt like there were eyes on her. She craned her neck to peek through the shelves.

"'Mione! Psst! 'Mione, come on! There's trouble going on in the Great Hall!"

Hermione followed Neville without questioning, but for a second, she could've sworn she saw a pair of stone gray eyes staring back at her through the shelves.

A/N: Aaaaand there's chapter one! I'm so incredibly happy that you made it all the way through, but do me one more favor and please R&R. Will update soon!