My story for the 50 Art Of Words Challenge. I used jolt, circle, and eyes in this chapter.

Setting: Going into their 7th year. Mostly HBP compliant- but Draco never tried to kill Dumbledore, and Harry/Hermione/Ron are all staying at Hogwarts…it will all be explained later.

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Also, this is my first FF attempt sooo I'll try at work out the rough patches as I go!

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Hermione Granger sat staring out her kitchen window watching the summer rain drip down the clear glass. It had been raining all day, and as far as she was convinced she'd sit in that chair until it stopped. Her dad was away on business in some distant country, and her mother had taken to busying herself with errands around the town as if to fill the void of her father being gone. It hadn't bothered her, she thought, tracing an imaginary circle on the marble table top. Soon she would be back at school where there wouldn't be any more rainy, lazy days sitting inside waiting for to flitter of wings carrying her a message that perhaps someone was thinking about her. A flash of lightning illuminated the gray sky, and jolted her back into consciousness. Looking around the kitchen, perhaps to see if anyone had entered in her state of unawareness, Hermione picked herself up and shuffled to the front door. She heard a thump, and realized that the muggle mail had come. Hermione opened the door to see Mr. Godlow-their regular postman- smiling from under his rain poncho.

"Hello there, Hermione. Had a good summer, yeah?"

Hermione cracked a smile and leant down to pick up the pile of mail. "Yes, Mr. Godlow. And yourself?"

"Oh the usual," he said, pointing to the damp pile of post in her arms. "Maybe you've got a letter in there from University? Didn't get a chance to look, but I've been delivering a bunch of those today."

Hermione's smile faltered for a second, then she quickly regained composure as she reached for the door handle. "Maybe so, maybe so." Mr. Godlow gave a noncommittal wave as Hermione opened the door. "Ha, letter from university" she commented to no one, tossing the pile onto the counter and heading upstairs to repack her trunk for the third time that day.

It wasn't that she didn't like being a witch at all. On the contrary, she loved it more than she had ever loved anything in her life. But a little part of her couldn't help but wonder if she'd never received a letter on her 11th birthday, that maybe she would be waiting for the postman eagerly by the door, hoping to hear what every 17 year old muggle would want to hear- acceptance to the schools to which they had applied. Hermione glanced at the frames on her dresser and saw the unmoving, smiling faces of her and her best friends on a field trip to the zoo in London. Little Hermione's bushy hair was pulled up into a ponytail, exactly like the two other girls in the picture, arms around each others' shoulders and laughing at something Hermione couldn't recall. Yet those same girls who had been her friends all her life had faded away as she was absent for nine months out of the year, forming new circles with new girls as they grew up, and were probably together somewhere down her street watching a film at someone's house, gossiping about boys, or planning summer holidays to France. Hermione shook her head to get rid of the thoughts, and picked up a letter from her bedside table-reading it for the hundredth time.

"Hermione-

I know it's only been a week since we left Hogwarts, but I thought I'd write and see how you were. Can't wait to get out of here and go to the Burrow with the Weasleys. Gets boring here listening to Dudley go on about this boxing matches at school, and Uncle Vernon nagging him about university. Don't think he's smart enough to get in anyway. Couldn't explain this to Ron- knew you'd understand though. Hope everything is going well, see you in a few months. Oh yeah, congratulations on Head Girl by the way. We all knew you'd get it.

Love,

Harry

She threw the letter back down and plopped onto her bed. Closing her eyes, she thought about all of the great memories from last year, staying up late with Ron and Harry in the common room- laughing about something funny that had happened at dinner, drinking Butterbeers in Hogsmeade with Harry, Ron, and Ginny, finding something she had overlooked in Hogwarts, A History the first ten times she'd read it. She also thought about the serious moments of last year- learning about the Horcruxes from Harry, fearing their safety if Lord Voldemort returned, the death of Dumbledore… But somehow her mind wandered back to her life as a muggle as she dozed off into a light slumber.

8 year old Hermione ran along the cobble paths in the zoo with her friends Miranda and Eisley, eager to get to the Reptilian House where they heard from another boy in their class that there was a dragon.

"I bet it doesn't exist," panted Eisley, dragging her backpack on the ground as she tried to keep up with her friends.

"Of COURSE it does!" squealed Miranda, grabbing Eisley's hand so she would keep up.

"Darren wouldn't lie. But he did tell me at lunch that he was getting a penguin for a pet and it just can't live in his house…" Hermione rationalized, stopping at the door to the Reptilian House to think.

Miranda laughed. "Quit thinking about it, let's go see." The three girls pushed open the door and let light into the dark, damp room. Half frightened, half intrigued, the girls tip-toed inside, determined to find the dragon. Eisley pointed to a far corner and gasped, "There it is!" Hermione looked up to see a large, green scaled beast that appeared to be asleep. Suddenly it turned its head, and the other girls screamed and bolted for the door. Hermione shut her eyes tight, frozen in her spot until she heard a sickeningly familiar voice. "You would be having a dream about your pathetic life as a Muggle, Granger. You should have stayed where you belonged, in a zoo with all of your other freak friends." The dragon had the face of none other than Draco Malfoy, who- even as a dragon- had a smirk that was trademark only to him.

Hermione shot up from her sleep, panting from the nightmare she'd had. She glanced back at the picture on her dresser- an d for a moment wished life were as simple as it was back then.