"Oi, Mudblood!"

Hermione didn't even bat an eyelash as the Slytherin's jeers echoed across the hall as she descended the stairs.

"Come to join us instead of those losers you call friends?" One yelled, roaring with laughter.

Hermione kept her head high, pretending not to notice as she walked through the crowd heading for lunch in the great hall. Suddenly, she was thrown to the ground as someone's foot swept out to trip her. She crashed unceremoniously to the marble floor, causing her teeth to bite deep into her lip.

"Oops" A Slytherin with spiked brown hair sneered sarcastically, glancing down at where his foot had caught its victim. Hermione glared up at the slimy sixth year, wiping the blood from her chin.

"Git" She spat.

"Come on baby, don't be like that" The Slytherin purred. The crowd around them had thinned, leaving only the group of jeering slytherins and this crony.

"Knock it off" Hermione replied, pulling herself to her feet and starting to walk off. The Slytherin grabbed her arm in a tight grip.

"We want to have some fun, we know you're easy from hanging around those Gryffindor brats"

Hermione struggled, trying to get away. The boy holding her turned her around so he could grasp her other other slytherin brutes closed in, all grinning.

"Why?" She gasped, tears burning the corners of her eyes.

"We want to mess with you and your whole "golden trio" idea. We run this school, not Potter and his little friends" One tall, dark haired boy sneered.

"You wish" Hermione said in a low voice. With that, she elbowed backwards, catching her captor in the stomach and effectively getting him to drop his hold. Hermione grabbed her book bag from the floor and tried to sprint out of the hall, but the other Slytherins grabbed her before she got to the stairs.

The Slytherin she elbowed and another caught her arms, one of them ripping her book bag over her head and tossed it away. The black-haired came up and dug his elbow into her spine, causing Hermione to cry out in pain. And the Slytherin that elbowed her clamped his hand over her mouth.

"Make another sound, and i'll do something you'll regret making me do"With that, he punched her in the stomach.

Hermione whimpered, a tear spilling over the Slytherin's stifling hand.

"Too bad you don't have anyone to save you now, Mudblood" The ebony-haired Slytherin

Suddenly, a fist slammed into the side of Slytherin's face, causing him to pitch sideways. Hermione was dropped on the floor, where she didn't move.

The sound of fists connecting with bodies and then the Slytherin's running feet could be heard. Hermione's head was reeling.

""Mione?"

"Hermione?

Hermione felt herself being pulled up to a sitting position. Her eyes fluttered open, meeting the intense blue of Ron's. Behind him was Harry, his eyes also fixed on her.

"R-Ron? Harry?" She sobbed. Ron pulled her into a tight hug, andHarry came around to pat her on the back.

"I'm sorry we didn't get here in time, Mione" Ron mumbled, his face pressed into her hair.

"It was bloody impossible to get information out of Lavender and Parvati, they refused to tell us where you went off to" Harry continued for Ron, causing Hermione to give a watery chuckle at this.

"At least you came before they did something really bad" Hermione replied as Ron pulled her up to her feet, his arm still held securely around her waist. Harry went and retrieved her book bag, carrying it in one had and throwing the other arm around Hermione's shoulders.

"Anything for our mate, you know that" Ron said, giving Hermione a squeeze. Harry nodded in agreement. Hermione wiped her nose and cracked a smile.

"Thanks guys, you're the best. Like the brothers I never had" Ron threw his head back and laughed.

"Want one of mine? You can have your pick..." Hermione and Harry laughed, beginning to walk out of the hall and down a corridor, still linked together, Hermione in the middle.

"You know, we should beat up those pesky Slytherins more often" Harry joked as they headed off to a new adventure.

Still the golden trio of Hogwarts.