A/N: thanks to everyone who has read and reviewed so far. Hearing good things inspired me to go ahead and write chapter two the same day. I don't know how long I will be able to keep this speed-writing up, but I hope to be able to put out chapters at an acceptable pace. So here's chapter two, hope you enjoy!
Hermione opened her eyes and the first thing she noticed was that she wasn't at St. Mungo's anymore. Sunlight blinded her vision and she blinked a few times before things began to come into focus. She was back at Hogwarts near the Black Lake, but something didn't seem quite right. The grass beneath her was a little too green, the lake was a little too clear, and everything around her seemed a little too perfect. She looked up at the castle and found it completely intact, no sign that there had been a war there the night before. In fact, there seemed to be no sign of anything. There were no students wandering about at all, the castle seemed totally deserted.
She started walking along the edge of the Black Lake with no destination in mind, she followed wherever her footsteps took her. She was nearing Hagrid's hut when she finally looked up. At first she didn't see anything, but as she looked around, she saw a flash of movement coming from the Forbidden Forest. A few moments later, a tall red-headed person emerged.
"F-Fred?" Hermione said, barely more than a whisper. She couldn't believe it. He was okay.
"Hermione?" she heard him call. She started walking towards him. Tears started to sting her eyes. She started walking faster and before she knew it, she was in Fred's arms, sobbing uncontrollably.
"There, there. It's okay Hermione. Everything's fine." she heard him say as he ran his hand over her hair.
"You-you're okay. We all th-thought you were de-dead." she choked out.
"Hermione, look. Does this look like the face of a dead man to you?" He said, stepping back so she could see his face. Hermione smiled and shook her head no.
"Well then that proves it, doesn't it? Now come on, dry those tears and we will figure out where we are." he said.
Hermione wiped her eyes and nose on her sleeve. "I thought this was Hogwarts?" she stated, slightly confused.
"It sure looks like Hogwarts, yes, but something seems, off about it, you know? Everything here just seems kind of surreal. I have walked all through the castle, and you know what I found? Nothing and no one. The place is empty. It's creepy." he said, shuddering slightly.
Hermione thought for a moment. "Maybe this is all just a dream? I mean, the last thing I remember was going to St. Mungo's, sitting down in a chair and closing my eyes. This could all be imaginary."
"And the last thing I remember was fighting off Death Eaters with George and Percy. If this is a dream, is it yours or mine? Wait, why were you at St. Mungo's? Is everyone okay?" he asked, suddenly sounding nervous.
Hermione was silent, unsure on whether she should tell Fred he was really in a coma. But then again, this wasn't really Fred. Or was it? Could this really his dream instead of hers? Fred stared at her while she mulled things over, then suddenly she jerked her head up, having an epiphany.
"Fred, you're in a coma." she said. "You are who we are visiting in St. Mungo's. A curse hit you during the battle and we thought you were dead. Madame Pomfrey found a slight heartbeat and you were rushed to St. Mungo's. We were waiting to hear if you could be woken up when I fell asleep. Now if this was your dream, how could I know that?"
Fred stared at her. He was in a coma? He thought. They weren't sure if he was ever going to wake up? He slumped down and sat on a nearby tree stump. He held his face in his hands, trying to absorb what Hermione just told him. He had been hit with a curse during the war, but instead of dying, he ended up here. He focused on the last thing Hermione had said. There was no way he could have known that his body was currently in St. Mungo's, but he still had all of his memories as well.
"Hermione, could it be that we are both dreaming of this same place at the same time?" He asked, rising to his feet again. "I mean, like you said, how could I know that I was in a coma and in the hospital? I can't know that. But what if I tell you something that you have no way of knowing to prove this is my dream as well? That I am really here and not just a figment of your imagination."
"I guess it's possible, I mean stranger things have happened in the wizarding world." She said slowly. "But how will I know what you're telling me is true and not something I made up?"
"That's easy." He said, smiling at his own brilliance. "Just ask George when you wake up."
"Alright then, what is something about you that I couldn't possibly know?"
Fred thought for a moment. He knew what he wanted to tell her, but he didn't want to freak her out and keep her from coming back. Then again, if she had come here when she fell asleep, she may not have control on whether she stays away or not. And Hogwarts was a big place, dream or not, and they could easily avoid each other if things got awkward.
He took a deep breath and decided to go for it. "Back when we were both at Hogwarts, during the Triwizard Tournament, I was planning on asking you to the Yule Ball. I kept chickening out though, and by the time I had finally plucked up the courage, Krum asked you and I was too late. Then when the ball ended and I saw you crying because of my git brother, I wanted to run up an comfort you, but I didn't want to make things worse. Sometimes I like to think about what would have happened if I had been the one to ask you to the ball, but I guess we'll never know. So how's that Granger? Did you know that about me? Have I convinced you this isn't all in your head?"
Now it was Hermione's turn to be stunned. "Oh." was all she could say. She stared at Fred for a few more seconds before giving him a small smile. "That certainly wasn't what I was expecting. I-I will have to ask George when I wake up to see if this really happened."
Fred looked down at his feet. Well, she didn't laugh in your face. He thought. That ought to account for something.
"Hey now, don't look so dejected." he heard her say, "I'm glad that you told me. And to be honest, there were a couple of times in school I had a bit of a crush on you as well."
Fred looked at her, a wide smile appearing on his face. "Well now I know this is a dream." he laughed. "And are you sure it was me you had a little crush on? Are you sure it wasn't my dashing brother George?" he said, and waggled his eyebrows at her.
"No, I'm sure that it was you." she said, "For one thing, George is just a hair taller than you, and then there's the fact that his hair curls around the ears just a little bit more than yours does, you have just a few more freckles on your face, and then there's the dead giveaway: unlike George, you have a permanent half-smirk on your face."
Fred was impressed. His own mother couldn't tell them apart half the time, and then here is this girl, one he had a crush on but had barely spoken to for the past four years, telling him not just one, but four differences between him and his supposedly completely identical twin brother. This girl is amazing.
"Well my dear, now that we've gotten that squared away, what should we do until you wake up? Explore the empty castle, walk around the grounds, go skinny dipping- OW!" he yelled when she punched him in the arm. "Sorry, sorry, it was only a joke. Course I'm pretty sure I know where you want to go anyway. The library?"
"The library." she confirmed.
The two walked through the halls of the castle, their footsteps echoing against the walls. When they reached the library, Hermione darted off and started grabbing seemingly random books off the shelves. Fred smiled and and shook his head slightly. He always thought she was adorable when she was enthusiastic about something. He turned his head and went to find them a comfortable seat.
Hermione found him ten minutes later with a stack of books that almost reached up to her eyes. Fred looked at the stack of books and started reading the titles. "Dreams: Hallucinations or Signs From the Future?", "The Magical Properties of the Subconscious Mind", "The True Purpose of Dreams" He scanned the rest of the titles, realizing what Hermione was wanting to find out. Why were they both dreaming of the same thing and what did that mean?
He watched her delve into the first book and watched her read with a bemused expression. It was a rather small book, so she was holding it with one hand while her other rested on the table, just a few inches from his own. Swallowing slightly, he slowly reached his hand out and placed it on hers. She jerked a little, but did not pull away. He looked up at her and she was still focused on her book, though she had a smile on her face.
They stayed like that for a long time, her reading and him watching her read. Neither of them spoke. Fred wasn't sure how long had passed, but eventually Hermione's eyes began to droop. She laid her head on the table and fell asleep. Fred stood up and gently picked her up. He carried her through the library in search of a more comfortable place for her to sleep.
