Hermione Granger, Another Life - Year One

September 19th

"Why do you two pester me about being friends with her? I don't have to be friends with everyone, you know." Fred sighed as Charlie tried to talk to him on their way to the great hall. "She's a bookworm and I'm a prankster. She couldn't even see the funny side when we tried to prank Filch."

"Well, she sort-of landed in the hospital because of us."

"It's not like it was serious."

"Fred!" Charlie yelled. "She's been through a lot. Just... watch what you say around her!" Charlie frowned and walked away.

"Been through a lot? She not even eleven! What in the world could she have been through?"

"I don't know, Freddie... Wait, 11?" George frowned, he looked to the girls in front of him. Hermione walked between Angelina and Katie as they walked inside the great hall. George walked a bit faster and sat down next to Katie, leaving a flabbergasted Fred behind.

"Katie..." George whispered as he filled up his plate, Fred sitting across from him next to Hermione, who was looking the other way, talking to Angelina and Alicia.

Katie turned her attention away from the girls and looked at George. "Yes, George?"

"Hey, congrats you know it's me." George chuckled.

"I know, because I can see Fred sitting there uncomfortable." Katie pointed at his twin. George looked over and saw that Fred's gaze was fixed on his food, sitting as far away as possible from Hermione, almost sitting on the lap of another first year, Magnus Drake. "This is getting ridiculous."

"Yeah, I know but we can't force them, can we?" He turned back to look at her. "So, what I wanted to ask... Isn't Hermione's birthday in a few days?"

"Yes, the day after tomorrow actually."

"Are you planning something?"

"No, she doesn't want to celebrate her birthday." Katie sighed, glancing over to Hermione.

"What? Why not?"

"I don't know, she won't tell me." She turned fully to George; brows knit. "Do you really care? I mean..." She said nervously. "Hermione says your just being nice to her because your mothers asked."

"I'm going to be honest. Yes, my mum and Mrs. Granger asked us to keep an eye on her, but I do care about her, I do really see her as a friend."

Katie sighed as she looked at her plate. "Alright... It's just, I don't think she had many friends back home. She won't talk about it, but I see her face when someone calls her a bookworm or up tight or something like that. She just... freezes and her eyes get fogged over."

George looked surprised at Katie, before glancing over at Hermione and then at his twin. "And Fred..."

"Yeah, but not only Fred. Even the other students in class aren't really nice to her when she knows more than them and you know how Slytherins can be against a muggleborn."

"Yeah..." George said unfocused as he tried to process everything Katie just said.

"George?" Fred's voice pulled him out of his thoughts. "Are you ready to go?" George looked up and saw Fred standing at the table.

"Yeah, yeah. Uhm, can we make a stop at the owlery?"

"Sure." Fred answered, frowning. George stood up and they walked out the nearly empty great hall. "Why do you want to stop by the owlery?"

"Oh, I want to send an owl to the Grangers."

"The Grangers? Why?" Fred asked as they stepped outside the castle. George started telling everything Katie said during dinner. Fred listened intently as they walked over the grounds. "But it's not like I said those things on purpose to hurt her."