Hi all, here's the twist I promised.
Thanks to all reviewers, I never expected to get reviews for only 200 words.
The following is about Harry and Draco.
For Disclaimers: I already warned you in the first chapter, if you are someone who only reads second chapters: this is SLASH.
Now: enjoy
karin
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Day 1
A red snake rushed through the yellow fields, white puffs of smoke coming out of her mouth every now and then. Summer was over and the trees prepared for autumn. The sun was not at her highest position anymore, but still burning. Flashes of light mirrored from the snake, like fast lightnings.
Inside the snake a black haired Gryffindor also prepared himself for the coming season. With one hand over his eyes to prevent the blinding sparkles to catch his glasses, he was sunken deep in his thoughts. Besides him sat a red haired boy, talking to a brunette. His hands described wild gestures.
Harry smiled when a fist of Rons' hit him slightly on the shoulder.
"Oh sorry, Harry." Ron grinned apologizingly.
"It's ok. But what are you talking about? Seems you had a quite interesting summer."
"You bet your life! I've been to Rumania and Bill took me to see the dragon babys they breed. You should've been there. Oh sorry, I didn't mean to…" Ron went out of words when Harrys face changed in sorrow.
"Don't be sorry, Ron. Dumbledore would have never let me. He insisted I stay at the Dursleys. I wasn't even allowed to leave the house. Uncle Vernon didn't know whether to laugh or yell at me. In the end he did both." Harry grinned wearily. Hermione gave him a kind smile.
"At least you're here. Back to Hogwarts." She waited for his smile in reply and was satisfied when he lightened up a bit.
"Yeah, back home." He said simply.
Hermione frowned at that remark. Harry considered Hogwarts as his proper home. They were in their fith year now. In two years he would be homeless again… She shook her head, no they would find a way to stay together. But future was rushing towards them, or rather the other way round. The train stopped in Hogsmeade station and Hermione was reminded again how merciless time was.
The three students headed to the carriages and soon they entered the castle.
When they made their way to the Great Hall among the other students, Harry heard a loud cough behind him. He turned around only to see a black figure run into a deserted corridor. The person laughed out and diappeared in the shadows. The corridor was lit dimly, but he could have sworn the person had been blonde.
Ron and Hermione called after him and he turned to go into the Great Hall. They sat down at the Gryffindor table and greeted all their friends there. Ron told everyone about his holidays with dragons and soon Harry forgot about the strange incident before.
After the Sorting Hat procedere and Dumbledores speech the golden plates were filled with tons of food. Harry ate more than he ever had before, Dudleys diet was still an issue at the Dudleys'. Hermione glanced to him, half concerned, half amused.
When everyone was fed up (even Harry) Dumbledore stood up to announce the forbidden actions this year. He shot a small grin at Harry and turned to the Slytherin table to do the same with Draco Malfoy. It is hard to tell who was more surprised by this - Harry or Draco. Dumbledore cleared his throat and began.
"The forbidden forest has its name for good reasons and charming in the corridors is prohibited as usual. Please inform the new first years of the other current forbidden erm, magical toys."
The hall echoed with laughter. Dumbledore grinned himfelf and waited for silence to continue.
"There is just one new thing: no one, I repeat NO ONE will go near the room next to my office. If I catch any of you nearby it, you will regret it." he smiled saying this, but the harsh words told everyone how serious he was.
"And that refers to especially you two." He pointed towards Harry and then Draco. Harry was stunned. What did that mean? He could see that Draco was confused too. They shared a look, but turned away when they recognized who the other was.
Dumbledore raised his voice.
"There is another thing that is very important. For the next three weeks, beginning tomorrow morning none of you is allowed to leave the castle. All Quiddich games and trips to Hogsmeade in this time have been cancelled." He stopped due to the rising noise in the Hall.
"Quiddich! Hogsmeade!" yelled Harry.
"Hogsmeade! Quiddich!" screamed Ron.
"Care of magical creatures!" Ron and Harry gave Hermione odd looks and she added: "Ok, Hogsmeade and Quiddich."
Everybody was screaming and yelling and the moods darkened until Dumbledore spoke again.
"Students, students! Let me explain this to you." Still mumbling the hall got quiet.
"The Ministry of Magic has forcasted some strange actions around the castle for the next three weeks. They identified the actions as time abnormalities. You may have noticed the upcoming mist around the forest, by now it has reached the lake and tomorrow it will be at the doorsteps of the castle. Fortunately it will not get inside, so you are safe. But outside, in the fog, you are in danger. To be more precisely: you are in danger to get lost there."
Hermione jumped up and waved her hand. Ron and Harry were to stunned to react to her.
"Professor Dumbledore?"
"Yes Ms Granger?" He smiled at her, willing to answer any question.
"What do you mean `get lost there'? The area outside is not that big."
"I did not mean you get lost in space, but in time." Dumbledores answer echoed through the Hall, the silence was nearly seizable..
Hermione opened her mouth and closed it again. Then she opened it again, but no words came out. She was speechless.
Dumbledore gave her a sign to sit down again. She did so, still opening and closing her mouth.
"The mist ist a door to time itself, but it is every other door at the same time. If you would step into it, you'd step out of a random door." He saw the unbelieving faces of hundred students turned towards him. "Actually, you would get lost in time and no one knows when you will come out. And I do not speak of coming back. Once you had contact with the mist, it will take you to any other period of time, future or past. You would have to stay there for ever. If you have further questions, please collect them and hand them to your head pupil. Your house masters will give them to me and tomorrow night we will have a discussion. Tonight it is too late, I hope you all sleep well."
Dumbledore sat down and the head students lead them out of the Hall. No mouth stood still now, even Hermione was complaining to Ron and Harry. Neither of them could believe what they just heard.
"Do you believe it - a time-mist!"
The common room of Gryffindor tower was crowded with students, all arguing about Dumbledores announcement. The first years sat together in a corner, scared looks on their faces. The head boy - a seventh year - tried to calm them down and finally sand them to bed.
Hermione and Ron couldn't stop dicussing.
"Didn't your father tell you anything?"
Ron shook his head. "He didn't mention a word. I don't think they knew it before tonight, we wouldn't be here if they had known earlier."
Hermione agreed. "What do you think, Harry?"
But Harry was not listening. He wondered why Dumbledore had looked at him and Draco in particular. What room had he been talking about?
Hermione sighed. "We should go to bed. Lets write down some questions tomorrow. I'm too tired now." She stumbled to the girls dormity.
Ron stood up as well, but Harry remained in front of the fire. Ron shruged and headed towards their dormity. He didn't want to disturb Harry.
Harry let his thoughts wander. It was such a strange situation but why had Dumbledore been so happy? Well, not actually happy, but he had grinned to him and Draco. Draco - what did connect him with the Slytherin boy. Apart the fact that they were sworn enemies and hatet each other with grat passion. Harry let Draco appear in front of his eyes. He really could not see why a person with that good looks could be so evil. Voldemort was disgusting in every way, but Draco was worth a second glance. His grey eyes never smiled when Draco did, but when he was angry they went a blank silver. It was scary somehow. Harry shook his head to get rid of such thoughts, but all he could think of was smooth, milky skin and blonde hair. Suddenly he remembered the figure he had seen before the Hall. He wondered if that had been Draco, but Draco had entered the Great Hall before Harry.
Harry straightened himself and was puzled to see that he was alone in the common room. The only sound to be heard was the crackle and bursting of wood in the fire-place. He was about to stand up and leave when a soft noise made him stop. It had sounded like a sneeze. He whirled around, prepared to see another student, but all he could see was - nothing. There was nobody there except him. He frowned and with a small wink of his wand he let the fire disappear and ran up the staires to his dorm.
He lay awake for about half an hour listening to the wind that howled outside. The windows were closed by charm, so nobody could hold even a hand out in the mist. Harry wondered what would happen if his hand would get lost in time. He giggled a little and felt a lot better. He had just closed his eyes to sleep when he heard the rustle of his tight closed curtains. He held his breath and opened his eyes just enough to see the curtains pulled apart.
Harrys heart beat to his chin and he felt the urge to scream, but his mouth was dry as a desert. He stopped breathing. Then he saw a head between the curtains and all he could make out was a tuft of blonde hair dangeling above his face. Then the person lifted his head up and Harry found himself staing into a pair of grey eyes. Harry let out a sharp breath and the face was gone. Harry jumped out of his bed and lokked around the dormity. All he could see were five beds. He rushed down the stairs, but the common room lay deserted as Harry had left it. There was no sign that somebody had just been here.
He woke the fat lady and climbed out of the hole. The corridor was empty and black. There was a faint sound on Harrys right. Goosebumps made their way on Harrys arms. The sound of feet grew louder and suddenly Harry could make out a soft voice.
"Harry?" the person whispered.
Harry froze. Who was that? He did not move, feet nailed to the floor, breathless again.
The person came around the corner and Harry jumped back.
"Professor Dumbledore!" he cried out, his voice higher than he wanted it to be.
Dumbledore shot him an odd look, as if he wanted to make sure Harry was really him. Then he asked a very strange question.
"Harry, are you YOU?"
Harry was confused.
"What do you mean, am I ME? It's me Harry Potter. Have you come to see me?"
Dumbledore stared at him for a second then sighed and smiled.
"Oh, it is you. I'm sorry Harry. What are you doing out here, late at night?"
For half a second Harry wanted to say "I could have asked you the same" but then he remembered who the man before him was.
"I heard strange noises. It must have been the wind. I'll go back to bed, then."
Dumbledore nodded. "Good night Harry."
"Good night Professor."
Harry turned around and a very tiered fat lady let him climb back into the common room. He sat down on his bed for a while and bend his head down. Just when he decided to fall back into his bed he saw two footprints on the floor in front of his bed. The tips of the footprints were pointed towards him. So someone - Draco - had been here! Now he let himself fall back and he drifted off to sleep.
He did not hear the soft sound two feet made past his bed. Harry was too deep in his slumber so he also did not hear the quiet words spoken into the silence.
"I'm sorry."
That night was the first not crowded with nightmares. Harry only dreamt of grey eyes disappearing into dense mist.
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