Hello people! Welcome to my humble.. not abode, but story. This is my first fanfic, so please don't judge too harshly T^T. Just a few little notes. I have a certain style of writing, so imma give you a quick rundown. When something is in italics (like this), that's Hermione's thoughts. If I decide to write a chapter in someone else's POV, the italics would be their thoughts. Underlining stuff is just to emphasize things. Also, if there's some sort of letter or note or some sort of writing, you may see this. This just means that whoever wrote the letter/note crossed it out. I hope this is simple enough. Anyways, hope you enjoy! (P.S, This wasn't alpha'd or beta'd as I don't have anyone to go through my work. Sorry if there are spelling or grammar errors!)

"I'm going to head to the bathroom before we arrive. God knows how long the feast is going to last."

"Alright 'Mione. I'll see what cards I can get from these chocolate frogs while you go," responded Harry.

She opened the compartment door, sparing a glance at Ronald, who sat in the corner of the small room quiet as he'd done for most of the ride. She walked down the corridor, thinking about how Ron had ignored her since they broke up after the war. They weren't really in a relationship to begin with, but Ron was still mad and made it a habit to avoid her. Harry, always the peacekeeper between the two-thirds of the Golden Trio, had insisted that they sit together on the way to their make-up year at Hogwarts. She opened the door between two carriages and stepped into the official back of the train. Suddenly, she felt a shiver run up her spine as she felt multiple pairs of eyes staring at her intensely. She looked to her left and felt her blood run cold. Inside sat students wearing green and silver ties and the telltale Slytherin smirk. They all stared at Hermione with interested looks. Gathering up the small amount of courage she had, she opened the door, arched one eyebrow, and leaned on the doorframe.

"Need something, ladies and gents?" Hermione questioned confidently.

These 'Ladies and Gents' she was referring too consisted of Daphne Greengrass, Marcus Flint, Theodore Nott, Blaise Zabini, Pansy Parkinson, and lastly, but most definitely not least, Draco fucking Malfoy. She groaned inwardly but kept the pleasant smile on her face.

"Sorry Granger, it's just you've changed a little," Blaise explained with a smug smile. She sighed. To be fair, she had changed. After the war, she had filled out. Her slender and curvy figure complimented by her honey-golden hair, which had changed from a bird's nest to soft curls that framed her face.

"I'll take that as a compliment. Anything else you need?" She queried.

Pansy was fuming with rage because Blaise was flirting with the Mudblood. Draco was also looking more alive then he had since the war, and she wanted to be the one to make him come back. Practically exploding with jealousy, she snatched her wand from her pocket. With a quick snap of her wrist, Hermione's necklace flew into her outstretched hand. Hermione grasped at her neck, where the chain lay only a few moments ago, shocked by the sudden loss of weight around her neck. Pansy dangled the necklace in front of her face with a smirk.

"Where'd you get the necklace? Nevermind, a Mudblood doesn't deserve something so pretty anyways," Pansy sneered.

"I'm not a Mudblood, you pug-faced skank," Hermione growled.

Blaise snickered, and realizing his mistake, he quickly turned it into a cough. Pansy glared at him before turning back to the necklace. It was a round purple sapphire surrounded by 3 silver snakes. The snakes' eyes seemed like they glowed as they shined darkly, and if you listened carefully, you could almost hear them whispering. Entranced, Pansy took the two sides of the clasp and started to drape the chain around her neck.

"No! You'll-," Hermione exclaimed.

Pansy closed the clasp, and as if cued, the room turned icy cold. Pansy started to spasm, and her eyes rolled to the back of her head. When her eyes returned, they were completely black, as if the whites had disappeared. Black strands of smoke started trailing across the floor towards Pansy, and they weaved together to form a dome around her. Daphne noticed the windows begin to frost and started to panic.

"Hermione, the windows.." Daphne motioned to the windows, which were now half frozen over.

"It's alright, I got this," she replied in a cool voice. "All you have to do is get the necklace off." She walked up to Pansy and stepped through the dome like it wasn't there.

"Ooh! Fun!" Blaise crowed. He put his hand out to touch the dome.

"Wait! Zabini sto-!" Hermione shouted.

As soon as Blaise's hand touched the dome, he flew backward and crashed through the compartment door, hitting the wall behind and slumping unconscious. Hermione sighed before glancing at Blaise to make sure he wasn't dead.

Fan-fucking-tastic. Might as well get this over with.

She stepped up to Pansy and took a deep breath. She closed her eyes and when she opened them again, one eye was glowing a deep emerald green while the other was a bright amethyst. Her hair began to rise up around her, static crackling in the air. Hermione's hand reached out and curled her fingers around the pendant. With an eerie gracefulness, she plucked her necklace from Pansy's neck. Pansy fell to the ground, out cold. Still glowing, Hermione returned the gem to its rightful place, resting between her collar bones. She closed her eyes and let out a deep breath. As the Gryffindor was breathing, the heavy magic in the air seemed to dissipate. When she opened her eyes again, everything had returned to normal, besides the destroyed compartment door and the two bodies on the floor. An uncomfortable silence draped the room before Theo cleared his throat.

"Shall I check on Blaise? Daphne, could you make sure Pan-," Theo faltered. "Ms. Parkinson is alright?"

No one missed the cold way he addressed Pansy. It was like she had been banished from some sort of alliance all the snakes had formed. If she was banished for taking the necklace and hurting Blaise, it meant the arrogant snakes had some standards. She'd have to think about this later. Daphne stood up to check on Pansy and Theo crouched beside Blaise to properly make sure he hadn't kicked the bucket. Hermione stood there, taking in what just happened. She started to walk towards Blaise, but a wave of nausea hit her like a ton of bricks. Her steps faltered as the world blurred, and darkness clouded her sight. Just before the darkness took over, she felt a warm pair of strong arms wrap around her, then she succumbed to the inky blackness.