Little Secrets

Chapter 1

Arriving at Hogwarts after bidding Harry and Ron good luck on their Horcrux hunting felt strange to Hermione.  She'd insisted on returning under the excuse someone needed to help the DA and keep an eye on things at Hogwarts, but she'd also wanted to keep an eye on Draco.  With Snape stepping in as Headmaster and the Dark Lord obviously back, Draco was sure to have been roped in to the Death Eaters plot and she wanted to be around to help him if he needed it.  She knew Snape was with the Order, but he was also with Voldemort and Draco would only know he was on Voldemort's side.  She doubted he'd turn to the Headmaster if he had any doubts about his family's side of the war.

Of course, another one of the reasons she'd returned to Hogwarts was because she'd been offered the position of Head Girl.  She'd dreamed about receiving the badge since first year and to finally get it felt like a dream.  Well, considering all the circumstances, it was really more of the good part to a horrible nightmare, but at least one thing good had happened during her summer.

Given the circumstances, she hadn't heard from Draco since the end of the year and despite knowing he wore her amulet constantly, she still worried.  Harry had told her he'd tried to kill Dumbledore before backing out and allowing Snape to do so.  Despite wanting to think Draco better than that, she knew what side his family was aligned with and doubted it was really as far fetched of an idea.

When she'd gotten to the part of her Hogwarts letter explaining Draco would be Head Boy, she'd nearly cried with delight.  Since the Heads had their own dormitory, she'd be able to keep an eye on him while also keeping up with their nightly study routine from the safety of her dorm.  She'd heard about the new teachers coming to Hogwarts and the thought of roaming the school with Death Eaters like the Carrows around was not warm and fuzzy.

Unlike past years, Hermione wasn't smiling as she left the Hogwarts Express and got onto a carriage to go to the castle.  Hagrid's voice wasn't calling for first years and Ginny didn't have to tell her it was Alecto Carrow yelling over their heads for her to know.  Rather than dally and see where Draco was, she quickly boarded a carriage with Ginny, Luna, and Neville and watched the Thestral pull them to the castle.

Discovering the carriages were pulled by actual creatures had been a huge shock, but nothing she hadn't recovered from by reading up on it.  She'd felt bad about giving Harry a bad time the year before and apologised several times for it, but now she just wanted it to not be normal.

"Do you really think the Carrows will be allowed to teach?"  Ginny asked halfway to the castle.  The carriage ride had been silent up until then, but Hermione could see how nervous all three of her friends were.

She shared a look with Neville before saying,  "Yes, so we just have to make sure we keep out of the way so they don't give us detention."

Ginny shivered at the thought of detention with the Carrows and the rest of the ride to the castle was silent.

When they finally arrived at the castle, they hurried through the cold hall and into the Great Hall.  Ginny, Luna, and Neville went to find their seats at the tables, but Hermione made her way to the front of the room to ask Snape what duties were expected of her that night.  As she passed Amycus Carrow sitting to Snape's right, she could feel his eyes on her.  He whispered something to Snape before she reached him and a sly grin broke out on the Headmaster's face.

"Headmaster Snape,"  she greeted, stopping in front of him.  Snape looked at her with a bored expression so she asked,  "Is there anything I should be aware of tonight or will my duties as Head Girl begin in the morning?"

"You can shine my shoes, Mudblood,"  Amycus hissed to her left.  Hermione ignored him, refusing to let his words affect her.  She was sure to hear the comments every day for the rest of the year and if she wanted to have any sanity, she'd need to learn to ignore such comments.

"Your duties will begin in the morning, Miss Granger,"  Snape drawled.  She waited for him to explain when and what they were, but he didn't.  He just stared at her, waiting for her to leave.

With an awkward shuffle away, Hermione left the front of the Great Hall and joined Ginny and Neville at the Gryffindor table.  She was suddenly very glad she'd told the Weasleys and listened as Charlie and Bill told her what to expect on the first day.  They couldn't speak for the Head Girl during their time, but as far as they knew, she hadn't been expected to start work until the following morning.  Having them so willing to explain things was now something she couldn't be more grateful for given Snape's lack of willingness and the hatred she'd felt just standing there.  Even now, she could feel Amycus Carrow's eyes on her as she sat and tried to listen to whatever Neville was saying.

When the front doors were thrown open, Hermione jumped in her seat.  Alecto Carrow led a short line of first years to the front of the Great Hall and stopped them in front of the table.  Madam Pomfrey, who was now seated at the very end of the table, moved to grab the Sorting Hat and place it on the stool in front of the room.  As she returned to her seat, Alecto called out the first name.  With a shock, Hermione realised the Hat wasn't going to sing its usual song.

It was a tense few seconds before a cry of "Ravenclaw!" sounded across the room.  A weak attempt at applause came from the Ravenclaw table and a few boos came from the Slytherins.  Hermione sent a sharp look at the Slytherin table but stopped short when she realised Draco was snickering with Blaise at the first year's embarrassment.  She hardly had time to think about it before "Gryffindor!" was shouted across the room and the boos from Slytherin drowned out the welcoming cheer the older Gryffindors gave.

The rest of the sorting went on the same.  The Slytherin table either booed when a different house was called or flooded the room with cheering when their own was called.  None of the teachers said anything and when the sorting was over, the room was much tenser than before.

As Snape stood to make the usual Headmaster speech, the Hall grew even quieter and Hermione forgot how to breathe.

"Welcome back to a new year,"  he drawled, his eyes scanning the entire room slowly.  When his eyes landed on Hermione, they stayed there as he said,  "Some of your classmates have chosen not to return, but it's for the best."  Hermione sucked in a breath when his gaze finally swept over her and he continued on.  "This year has brought many changes like the Carrow siblings who will be teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts and Potions.  As usual, I expect you to willingly and happily obey their commands as favouritism this year will not be tolerated."

Hermione knew that last part was said mostly for her and didn't apply at all to the Slytherins.  With the Carrows as teachers and Snape as Headmaster (no matter how much he played double agent), the Slytherins would surely rule the school and Hermione was already dreading the year.

Snape quickly finished his speech, but Hermione had tuned the rest of it out.  She was already trying to figure out how this year would go and she wasn't liking any of the outcomes.  Even when the food appeared in front of her looking as delicious as ever, Hermione was too busy thinking and worrying about the younger students to eat more than a few bites of the potatoes.

"Hermione, you have to eat more than that,"  Ginny said, ripping a bread roll in half.  Hermione watched her butter it then took the half Ginny offered her with a small smile.  The roll was good, but her mind was elsewhere and she wanted nothing more than to leave with it.  The jolly laughter from the Slytherin table nearby was not helping though.

"I'm worried, Gin,"  she murmured before taking another bite.  Ginny didn't comment, but they shared a look and she nodded.

"The DA is prepared,"  Ginny assured her, twisting behind her to look at Luna and the other DA members in Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff.  "We'll teach the younger ones and watch out for each other."

Hermione was still worried, but knowing that Ginny was prepared to fight for the younger ones and even rally the DA despite Harry's absence helped a little.

A shrill laugh from the Slytherin table and a glance at the Carrows reminded her it was unlikely to be enough, but at least the DA wasn't completely helpless and the older students were able and willing to help the younger students.  However, just to be sure Ginny wasn't the only one, Hermione slipped away to Gryffindor tower that night instead of retreating to the Head's dormitory and almost started crying at the sheer amount of students who offered to help protect, train, and teach the younger students and promised to reach out to the other houses as well.