Sent Diligo:

Disclaimer: I don't own HP.

A/N: Sorry if my dates are wrong in this chapter, I never was good with dates! Lol.

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And a load of thanks to Mistress of the Red Kiwi, mysteriouscharm, Isy Black, trapped-in-a-dream, reader, ruth and hannah, Aquafairy, hannah, and A Story of the Year for reviewing!

(don't worry, everything will be okay… in the end. XD)

ruth and hannah: no offense taken. Maybe the coughing thing was a bit odd, but it's kind of a joke (and besides, coughing would give them an 'excuse'). And yeah, my fanfics probably won't seem very professional because I write them for fun and I don't feel the urge to stress over perfection… but maybe I should try that sometime. lol

hannah: thanks for the catch!

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From Chapter Ten:

Hermione laughed again as she began wandering around aimlessly. "I'll miss this place," she said as she let the setting of Pentalis sink into her. However, with her back turned, she didn't see Harry's emerald green eyes flash red.

Or was it only a trick of the sunlight?

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Chapter Eleven: My Broken Ever After

"Is it all planned out then?" Hermione asked, gazing at the busy marketplace. Harry blinked.

"Sorry, come again?"

"Is it all planned out then?" Hermione repeated, turning around. Harry nodded. "Great! Then where to?"

"Follow me." Hermione obliged as Harry cut through the deep forest behind the Pentalis gardens. Hermione didn't know much of these forests as she didn't bother to explore them. However, she had read several books in the library about what happened to the people that went in there.

There was one person – Porgae Show, Hermione remembered. He entered the woods in 1914, and then was cast out later in 1917, his arm bleeding and a leg broken, limping back to Pentalis in an unfamiliar uniform. He wasn't quite himself afterwards, claiming to have battled across the entire world while he was only in the woods the entire time.

And then there was Edna Crockfields. She had entered the woods only about two years before Show did – in the year of 1912. She came back, wet, shuddering, and ice cold. She never did tell anyone what happened, but from then on, she was afraid of water and riding ships, always murmuring something about 'sinking majesties.'

Hermione recalled a great number of people that entered that either never returned or returned with "mental problems." Something inside her clicked. The forest was a portal! Realization dawned on her. So that means… Harry was taken her to a portal to bring her back to Hogwarts! But why didn't he bring Draco?

Someone else is taking care of him. The words echoed in Hermione's mind. "Err… are you sure Dr – I mean, Malfoy's going to be okay?"

Harry looked at Hermione, startled. "Since when did you care?"

Hermione sighed. "You sound like Ron, now, Harry. You really do. And besides, I… I guess I just don't like having to leave people behind, you know, like, my personality…?" Hermione tried.

Harry shook his head. "Hermione, I've already told you. He's being taken care of."

"How so?" Hermione said, completely uncomfortable with the situation. Harry sighed.

"Hermione, I'm going to teach you a new word. Trust. Sometimes you just gotta do as your friends suggest in some situations." Hermione bit her lip. Finally, despite what her conscience said, she followed Harry into the woods. They walked in an awkward silence until Hermione finally decided to break it.

"So, Harry, err… how's Ron?" Hermione said attentively.

Harry didn't respond immediately, climbing over a fallen tree. "Well," he said, jumping down, "he's okay. We both miss the homework help an awful lot, though – " Hermione frowned " – but of course, we miss you, the person, more," he finished hastily. Hermione arched her eyebrows. "Honest!" She shook her head and smiled, taking her turn in climbing over the trunk.

"How's school? The lessons, and everything?"

"Pretty normal, a bit harder now that you're gone," Harry said, grinning.

Hermione sighed and rolled her eyes. Some things would never change.

"Well, what's been going on since I was gone?" Hermione asked. Harry shrugged.

"Basically, just some normal stuff. We've been trying to find a way to get you back. Fred and George helped, too." Harry paused for a moment. "So how are you?"

Hermione thought about it. "Well, it's been pretty good. Believe it or not, Malfoy was actually… civil." There were other thoughts, such as the wedding and Val's condition, that ran through her head, but she kept silent.

Harry nodded, but suddenly stopped and pointed to a clearing. "You go on ahead and wait for me there. I'll go back and check on Malfoy."

Hermione nodded and cautiously walked over to the clearing. She waited for a couple of moments and heard a sound behind her. Her hand plunged inside her pockets for her wand but realized that she left it on her dresser top. Cursing silently, she spun around…

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Ron sighed as he and Harry walked down the corridors to the dungeons. "Snape's worse than ever," Ron said, shaking his head mournfully.

Harry nodded. "'Specially now that 'Mione's not here to help us out."

"Yeah, 'Mione," Ron said. "Better stop calling her 'Mione' or else we'll get used to it. She'll kill us when she gets back."

"If she gets back," Harry corrected.

Ron stared. "'Course she'll come back! What's gotten into you, Harry?" Harry shrugged. It was just something he felt he had to say. He remembered, only several days ago, when he felt his scar prickle. But the Ministry knew about Voldemort now, surely they were taking care of that! Nevertheless, for the first time this year, his scar stung as if sparking a warning.

"It's just a feeling," Harry murmured, distracted. Ron nodded and let the subject go. What was happening to him? He knew that Hermione would come back soon, so why'd he suggest that she'd never come back? Harry thought. Maybe if –

"POTTER!" Snape yelled. "Pay attention! Ten points from Gryffendor!"

Harry glared after him. "I always hoped he'd mess up and accidentally say 'to' instead of 'from,'" Harry said.

Ron nodded. "I know, mate," he said, cutting up his boomslag skin, "but he's had too much practice to let it slip."

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Draco was just leaving his room when he spotted his wand lying on his desk. Should he take it? They might catch me, he thought, but then again, he could always cast a Memory Charm or two. He grabbed his wand and shoved it into his pocket, wishing for robes, when he realized the Shimforth Castle was oddly silent.

Wondering what was about, he climbed down the staircase, fingering his wand. Cautiously, he slipped his hand on the golden door handle, its cold metal sending shivers up his spine. Inhaling deeply, he pulled…

The creak of the door was all the creature needed to attack. Draco looked around but saw nothing, then heard a slithering noise coming from the floor. He looked down and was just about to defend himself when the creature attacked, its fangs piercing his side, like it did to Arthur Weasley.

When Draco was down, the snake morphed back into its original form in a body that the whole of the wizarding world never wished to see again. His red slit eyes gazed over Draco, and with a crack, he vanished.

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Flash. "Ow!" Harry said, his hand automatically going to his scar. Ron and Neville looked nervously at him.

"Are you okay?" Ron asked.

"I – I'm fine!" he gasped, removing his hand, which felt oddly wet. He looked down and saw blood. Seamus and Dean looked up from their cauldrons while Neville and Ron exchanged nervous glances.

"Harry – what happened?"

Harry shrugged. "I don't know," he said, reaching for his scar, which was still bleeding. It stung. His scar never hurt so much it bled before. And he had an image come into his mind for a split second, but he didn't even get to see what it was. It went away too fast. What was going on?

"Potter! Ten points from Gryffendor for disrupting my class! Now get back to your cauldron! That's twenty points you lost for Gryffendor today, and class is not even over yet!" Snape snapped as he walked by.

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(A/N:) I'm sorry this isn't much (ya think!), it's about four pages shorter than what I normally write, but I'm going to a three-day camp and then I have to type the entire story up, so I just wanted to give you something before I go. I know what's going to happen next, but then there's the precise wording and events I'm sort of worried about, I just have the general idea. So it might be about a week before I update, I'm just going to give a heads-up. Hope you enjoyed this small bit, and once again I'm really really sorry for not being able to update!