[Hermione] has a near-pathological fear of failure...She isn’t that smart merely because she’s gifted, but because she relentlessly overworks herself.
Seven Things the Movies Forgot About Hermione
See, this is why I need a bitter academic rivalry thread with Theo and Hermione. Because they are both absolutely neurotic overachievers when it comes to academics.
I was a neurotic overachiever all through middle school and high school, and lemme tell you something -- it burns you out. The level of anxiety and perfectionism is really destructive.
I have been Hermione - best in class, constantly doing extra work, being that asshole who occasionally corrects the teacher. And you know what? It's lonely. Your peers don't see you as friend material. And you know that it's because of how you over-do being a good student, but you can't stop doing it without all that anxiety crashing down on you.
And I've been Theo, too - constantly doing extra work, being that asshole who occasionally corrects the teacher, accustomed to being the smartest kid in the class, when suddenly you get tossed in a room with some kid who's a fucking prodigy, and no matter how hard you work, you can't beat them. So you have no outlet for that anxiety and you drive yourself to exhaustion trying and failing to catch up to that person because it doesn't matter how well you're doing, you're not the best. And in your mind, the only options are best and failure.
Hermione's blood-status is the least of Theo's reasons for despising her.
