Hi, everyone, I'd just like to say that it is really exciting to finally write a HP fanfic! I have only written (or rather, started writing) a Maximum Ride fanfic, and that is published elsewhere. This is a little one-shot that I did in the middle of the night. When I finished, I was sad, so I made a different ending, just to please myself. This chapter will be the very first chapter, the next is the first ending, the third is the other ending. Just wanted to put that in so no one gets confused! Please R&R, as this is my first time putting something up here!

Erised

(Beginning)

I slipped quickly into the room, shedding the cloak onto the floor. I would have to remember to put it back in Harry's trunk when I got back. The last time I had taken it, I had forgotten, and he rampaged for an hour before I "found" it sitting around. I had been sneaking, twice a week, to this deserted old room, to the mirror. Harry and Ron had told me everything about it, of course, back in our first year, when all I would have seen were O's on exams. But this year, my last year, I had found the mirror, and I simply could not resist its appeal.

In a bout of horrible insomnia, undoubtedly brought on by our swiftly approaching NEWTs, I had managed to sneak into the boys' dorms. I quietly crept past Ron and Neville, who were both snoring their heads off. I quickly unlatched Harry's trunk. Digging through layers of socks and an assortment of candies, I found the cloak folded neatly at the very bottom.

I wandered the halls aimlessly for God knows how long, until I heard a loud clanking. I hurried through a few corridors, twisting and turning to put space between the noise and myself. By the time I realized I was lost, I was reprimanding myself for being so silly. It had been a coat of armor, shifting in its sleep. If they did sleep, that is…

Even after all my years of Hogwarts, I had never learned the ways of the castle as well as the boys had. I was utterly confused, with no idea of even the general area I was in.

Seeing a door that looked uncannily like a secret passage to the Great Hall, I turned the knob and stepped in.

I knew immediately that this was not the correct place. It was dark and smelled strongly of dust. I was turning to leave when I saw a glint of light. There was a small window in the far wall, and a tiny patch of revealed moon was reflecting off of….something.

A mirror stood in the middle of the room. I stepped toward it, standing at a queer angle in order to read the inscription. After the two seconds it took to realize it was written backwards, I read the words aloud.

"I show not your face, but your heart's desire."

So this was the Mirror of Erised. The mirror that had shown Ronald as Head Boy (which he was) and Quidditch captain (which he was not). The mirror that had shown Harry not only his parents, but given him the Sorcerer's Stone.

I both did and did not want to know what the mirror would show me. I thought of all the things that I truly desired: good NEWTs, a teaching job, maybe better hair. Other things that I would not dare even acknowledge myself. But could any of these be my deepest, most desperate desire?

I side-stepped so that I was head on with the mirror, but quickly averted my eyes. I wasn't quite ready yet. I waited, taking shallow, rapid breaths. My lungs were not working properly for some reason. I finally could not bear it any longer.

My breathing ceased completely when I glanced at my reflection. I stood, at once appalled and fascinated by what I saw. My body screamed for oxygen as I stared intently at myself. There he was, beside me. Whispering in my ear. Playing with my hair. When I felt as if I was about to collapse, I drew a deep breath, as I watched him brush his lips across mine. Is this really what I desire?

That had been two long months ago. I hadn't dared tell anyone, for embarrassment. But I did sneak out, twice every week, to simply remind myself, and to sit before my living dream. I had mulled it over many times, distracting myself from the drones of Professor Binns. I often received strange looks from Harry and Ron, as I sat completely mesmerized by my own imagination. I had found that it was indeed what I truly desired. Now that I knew, I ached for him constantly.

It was a burden of great shame, almost too much to bear. I couldn't speak to anyone about it, not even Ginny, for fear of far worse things than mocking. No, my secret was taboo, something that had to go unspoken for my own, as well as his, sake. But the night was mine, and I reveled in my trips to the mirror.

I drew myself out of my introspection. I shouldn't be wasting my precious time here. I watched as the other me run her fingers through his hair, laying her head on his shoulder. Oh, how I longed to be her, to not care about anyone else for once. To not worry of consequences.

But that was certainly not me. Just this, these secret trips, was pushing my limits. I had always been a bit of a goody two-shoes, and I always would be.

I flinched at a noise. Could it be Dumbledore? He had caught Harry with the mirror, and, if Harry had told it right, had known what the mirror showed him.

I hung my head as I ran back through my last thoughts. Dumbledore. I still forgot sometimes, slipping in front of Ron or Harry, setting off an awkward moment of silence, thinking of his absence. It had been a whole summer, and I still expected him to be in his office, or at the Staff Table, smiling down knowingly.

The noise came again. A mix between a pant and a gasp echoed through the room. Someone was most definitely in this room with me. Not good.

Slowly, I spun in a circle. I saw no one, but that didn't prove that they weren't here. There were ways of eluding human sight. I should know, after the close calls I encountered during my midnight trips. I did the first thing that came to my mind.

"Peeves?" I asked timidly, and a true gasp came as the reply, as Draco Malfoy stepped from behind the mirror.

"Her --….Granger, what are you doing here?" It was beyond me how a whisper could be so cold and harsh. I shuddered a bit, shivering as he stepped closer to me.

"I suppose…." I swallowed hard. It was difficult to speak, a lump forming in my throat as I attempted. "I….suppose I'm doing the same thing you're doing." Oh, really witty on my part.

He cocked one blond eyebrow at this remark. "Really? What are you looking at? NEWT scores? You and Weasley getting hot and heavy?" He smirked at his own joke, obnoxious as ever, folding his arms across his chest.

"No. You have no idea what I want! What are you looking at? A world where everyone is you? Or perhaps a female version of yourself for special purposes?"

He faked a look of hurt and pursed his lips. "Honestly, Hermy, I'd expect more from you! You really can't think of anything worse about me than vanity. Come on now, try again!"

"Well, I could have said it was you and Zabini, alone in…..wait! Did you call me…..Hermy?"

"Hell no! I called you…..Mudblood! What the hell is wrong with your ears, Granger?" The look on his face was smug and self-righteous, but I had heard the falter in his voice, that confirmed that there was absolutely nothing wrong with my hearing.

He seemed to know this too, and we sat in an awkward, rather stupid silence for what seemed like forever. Finally, I cleared my throat to speak.

"I guess I'll be going then," I said, turning to retrieve the cloak from the floor. I was halfway to the door when he spoke.

So that's the beginning bit, before the two different endings! It may not be worth a crap as I finished writing it at 5:06 in the morning on Christmas day (it was a Christmas present to myself), but I still really love it. The endings will be up in like two seconds! R&R!