Chapter 1 - Walls
Dark.
Everything is dark.
It's strange; the sensation that comes over me. I am utterly terrified, but at the same time, I feel safe, calm, as though no one can hurt me.
But darkness.
It's all I can see.
And I should be afraid. I am afraid. But I'm not. And I don't understand it.
Silence.
Shouldn't I hear something? The sound of my breath, the beating of my heart, my footsteps against the ground . . . wait. Am I moving? I can't really tell. Am I breathing? I can't tell that either. Am I even really here? Where is 'here'?
I look down and see only blackness. I try to move my arm and I think it moves . . . I think. I try to take a step forward and I move . . . at least I think I do. I'm really not sure of anything at the moment.
I see something in the distance. A figure. Is it a person? Why can see them if I can't even see myself?
Whoever it is, I can see their outline, even darker than the blackness surrounding us.
I should be afraid; terrified. But I'm not. Even less so than before.
But who is this mysterious person and where the hell am I?
I take another step. And another. Maybe this person knows something. Maybe, whoever this is will help me figure out what is happening here, or where 'here' even is.
And they raise a hand, holding it out to me. They want me to come. I don't know how I know, but I do.
I take one more step and a slight rush of air brushes past my face. The world begins to lighten, the darkness fading, just a bit. I take another step towards them and I can start to see this person who is here with me.
Male. Blonde hair.
Wait.
I know him.
How do I know him?
Oh yes. School.
What's his name?
I think.
Why can't I remember?
I take one more step and now I am right in front of him. His features clear but the darkness around us remains a solid grey colour.
Draco. Draco Malfoy.
Memories rush back. He's a bully. A mean, evil, cockroach. What is he doing here? Why am I not afraid? He must only be there to make feel helpless, small, inferior, like always.
I take a step back, away from him. No. He won't have the answers. There must be someone else. Someone else hiding in the grey. I look and see nothing.
"Granger," he says. His words seem to echo, as though he is speaking across some vast emptiness. He sounds much farther away than he appears. "We need to talk."
Granger. That's my name. Not my first. He calls me Granger, but my name. . . my name . . . my name is Hermione. Hermione Granger. Yes. I remember now. I have a mum and a dad, and I'm a witch. I remember.
"Why are you here?" I ask, finding my voice. It sounds strange to my ears, as though it isn't really mine.
He doesn't respond.
"Where are we?" I ask again.
He remains silent.
"Malfoy, answer me!" I demand.
"You don't remember," he says softly. This time, the voice is close.
"Remember what?" I'm confused.
"Well, shit." He runs a hand through his hair.
I don't know what to think.
"Where. Am. I." I ask pointedly.
Malfoy sighs. "You wouldn't believe me."
So, he knows something. Why won't he tell me?
"Why are you here?" I repeat.
"Because I want to be," he tells her smugly.
"Of course. You want to be here. Alone. With me. Because that makes perfect sense," I say, dripping sarcasm.
None of this makes sense.
Malfoy doesn't respond, just plunks down to the ground, casually leaning against, what I assume must be a wall.
"Fine then. I'll figure it out for myself," I retort.
I'm in a room. A grey room. It's quite small. No windows. No doors.
"How did we even get in here?" I question, more to myself than to him.
Malfoy gestures for me to sit beside him.
"Not a chance." I remain standing.
"Suit yourself. Only wanted to chat."
"I've got to find a way out of here," I mutter under my breath. There's no way I am simply going to sit in this small room chatting with Draco Malfoy. No way.
I go to the wall opposite to where he is sitting, running my hands along its surface, traveling to the corner.
"What are you hoping to find?" he asks. "There's nothing there."
I roll my eyes. Why him? Why is it always him? And why does he have to be so smug about it?
"Granger, stop," he tells me.
"No," I reply, moving to the next wall. There must be something.
Wait.
I turn to face him.
"Why aren't you worried about any of this?" I ask. "Why aren't you obnoxiously complaining about having to be stuck in here with me?"
He just chuckles and crosses his arms over his chest.
"Because I already know what's going on," he says. "This is going to be quite interesting."
Author's Note:
Hello there! Thanks for checking out the first chapter of my new story!
This one is a bit different than my other ones, again. A different style of writing, shorter chapters, and sort of a large mystery component.
That's where I hope you guys will enter in. I want to know if my mystery is in fact mysterious lol. It was at first to myself before I developed the plot of the story, but I want know what others think reading it without knowing the ending yet.
Can you guess what's happening?
Leave your comments and I'll reply as soon as I can! Would love to hear what you guys are thinking.
Thanks again, and I hope you are having a great start to you're new year!
~ TheQuietAwakening