Greengrass

~2~

During dinner, Daphne tapped Hermione on the shoulder. "Let's go somewhere private to talk." Hermione nodded and the other girl escorted her from the Great Hall and to the second-floor girl's lavatory. It was still considered Moaning Myrtle's domain so not many people visited. 

Once inside Daphne closed the door and leaned against it while Hermione fumbled with the letter in her hands. "I know you're confused, I am too, and I'm sorry that this is so sudden."

Daphne looked at her then at the piece of parchment in her hands. "Can I see that?"

Hermione handed it to her and watched her face as she read. She memorized the letter front to back when she received it, so she knew from the widening of her blue eyes where she was in her reading. A moment later, she brought her eyes back to Hermione's.

"When did you get this?"

She swallowed before answering. "Three days ago."

"You trust Kingsley Shacklebolt?"

Hermione nodded her head. "He's an honest man. He would not lie about anything of this magnitude. I scanned it for any jinxes or hexes but the only spell on it was the charm reversal that was mentioned."

Daphne nodded slowly and reread the letter. Hermione couldn't decipher the look on her face. She looked up again and nodded again, more firmly this time. "Okay. I've heard a lot of rumors about you, but none of them ever mentioned that you were a liar. It might be stupid to blindly trust the Ministry again so soon, but I don't believe they would be anything but truthful in this situation." She stood up and handed the letter back. "You realize this means we're family now, right?"

Hermione allowed herself to give a small smile. "Apparently so."

Daphne flashed her a dazzling smile, instantly lighting up her face. "Well, the more the merrier!" 

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After their talk, they returned to dinner, and from there Daphne and Hermione were ushered back to the Slytherin common room with their housemates. Hermione had made it in one piece, although she did feel people bumping past her unapologetically.

Daphne mentioned there being a party to welcome the new House members in the common room and encouraged her to go. The invitation filled her with a bit of hope. It was hard plunging into the unknown, and it was even harder to do it by yourself. Hermione hoped that with the help of Daphne Greengrass, she wouldn't have to.

As soon as she stepped into the common room, she was bombarded with questions.

"What are you doing here?"

"Why are you here?"

"Why did you switch houses?"

"What game are you trying to play here?"

"Who do you think you are?"

Daphne stepped in front of her and put up her hands. "Stop!" The questions ceased and Hermione briefly wondered what kind of power Daphne had that she was able to silence an entire room of teenagers.

The crowd parted, making room for Draco Malfoy to saunter up to the pair. He walked with a sort of casual elegance that Hermione wished she possessed. Seeing his face again filled her with anxiety and she felt her heart quicken its pace. "Daphne, what is she doing here?" To Hermione's surprise, his voice wasn't dripping with the hostility she was used to, just curiosity.

"She isn't who you all think she is." She stepped away and ushered for Hermione to explain.

She took a deep breath. "My name is Hermione Greengrass. I received a letter from the Ministry days ago confirming my identity. McGonagall said it would be okay for me to be re-sorted. I want to learn more about my family."