"Where the hell am I?" Harry wondered aloud. He shook his head,
hoping that wherever he was would get lighter faster. The only thing he
succeeded in doing was knocking his glasses off. He sighed.
Finally, it got light enough so that he could tell what type of place he was in. It looked like a forest, but it wasn't the same as the Forbidden Forest. He could hear birds singing, wind in the trees, and what sounded like the ocean. He walked toward the area where the light seemed to be coming from and stumbled out onto a beach. He blinked a few times, then gasped.
"Whoa," he said. The beach was beautiful. Pale sand, turquoise sea, and not a rock in sight. He turned around and saw a cliff behind the forest. "Awesome."
Suddenly, he remembered how he had gotten there. He crashed through the trees, looking for the myriod. He was beginning to panic when he saw it – a flash of silver. "There it is!" he said triumphantly. "I guess I should mark it somehow. But how?" he mused. He snapped his fingers and pulled out his wand. "Lienna deha!" he said. Instantly, a red line appeared from the end of his wand. One end of the line connected to the ground below the myriod.
Harry started walking toward the edge of the forest. With each step he took, the line dropped to the ground as if it was painted. He reached the edge of the forest and stopped the line. He walked down the beach, wondering what the heck he was doing so far away from Hogwarts. Because, though it had been about noon when Hermione had finally managed to get him to go down to the forest, he could tell that it was earlier here. The sun appeared to have been up for a few hours, but it didn't seem any later than about 7:30.
He was brought back to the real world abruptly when a wave crashed loudly. He jumped slightly, then started walking down the beach again, wondering what he was supposed to be looking for. After about twenty minutes, he saw what appeared to be a brilliant blue mound. When he got closer to it, he realized that it actually was a blue building that was built to look like a mound. Or something a lot like a mound.
His attention was diverted from the building by the sound of a girl's laughter. He looked over to the ocean and saw a redheaded girl floating in the ocean, staring at the sky and laughing. She started singing, and though he was too far away to distinguish the words, her voice sounded familiar. He decided to ask her where he was.
"Excuse me!" he shouted, walking toward the waves. "Excuse me!"
The girl stopped singing, and started to swim to the shore.
"Excuse me," Harry said, shielding his eyes from the sun, which was reflecting on the water. "Do you think you could tell me where I am?"
The girl reached the shore and stepped onto the sand. She started to wring the water out of her hair. Harry noticed that her blue two-piece swimsuit showed off a perfect figure.
"You're in Ocenian," she said. Her forehead wrinkled. "Do I…know you?" she asked.
"I don't know, but I think I've seen you somewhere before," Harry replied. "Where is Ocenian?"
"It's the city of ocean fairies," the girl explained. "Would you like a tour?"
"Sure," Harry said. He didn't mind spending time with this pretty girl. "What's your name?"
"Callen," the girl replied.
Harry nearly tripped. "Wait, what?"
"Callen," she repeated. "Why, what's wrong?"
"I'm Harry, Harry Potter," he said, hoping she would recognize his name. She did.
"This may sound strange to you, but, did you have a dream about me?" Callen asked.
"Did you have a dream about me?" he asked her.
"Actually, I did," she admitted. "We were in a forest together, and there was a thing in a black cloak chasing me, and you"
"Pulled you into a tree," he finished for her, grinning. "I knew I recognized you!"
"I wonder why we were dreaming about each other," she mused.
"I don't know, but I think I'm beginning to understand something," Harry said, staring off into space.
"What's that?" Callen asked, cocking her head slightly. Her long hair started blowing around her face in the slight breeze that had just come up.
"I think that you're supposed to come with me back to Hogwarts," he explained.
"That…school thing you told me about in my – our dream?" she asked, correcting herself.
"Yes," Harry said, grabbing her arm. "Come on, it's about twenty minutes this way!"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Callen yelled, pulling her arm away. "I'm not going anywhere in a swimsuit. Heck no!"
"Well, can you change?" he asked impatiently.
"Yeah, I have to go up to the palace though," she said, turning. She started running.
"Palace?" Harry asked, his eyes widening. "Are you royalty or something?"
"Yeah, I'm the princess," she called over her shoulder.
"Great, a princess," he muttered, breaking into a run.
~*~*~*~*~*~
"You live here?" he asked, amazed, when they reached the palace.
"Yeah, so?" she said indifferently.
"This is even bigger than Hogwarts!" he said, gazing upward at the glass dome.
"Really? What's Hogwarts like?" she asked, motioning for him to follow her up a staircase.
"It's the most wonderful place in the world!" Harry declared.
"Cool," Callen said. She disappeared through a door, which, like everything else, was a shade of blue. Harry, unsure if he could walk in or if she would be changing, waited outside the door uncertainly.
When Callen reappeared, she was wearing a blue shirt and skirt.
"Is there any reason why everything here is blue?" Harry wanted to know.
She shrugged. "Something to do with how we stay hidden. At least my hair isn't blue."
"Yeah, that would be strange," he agreed. "Why isn't anyone around?"
"Because they're all asleep," she explained. "Let's go."
"Don't you have to leave a note or something?" Harry asked.
"No. My parents don't even realize they have a daughter," she said bitterly. "I can do whatever I want and they don't even notice."
"Oh. I'm sorry," he said, realizing it was a touchy subject. "You ready?"
"Yeah. Let's get out of here."
~*~*~*~*~*~
"So, where exactly is this…Hogwarts?" Callen asked as they walked down the beach.
"It's in Scotland. I think you'll really like it there," he told her.
"Does it have the ocean nearby, or a lake or something? So I can swim?" she asked hopefully.
"It has a lake, but I don't think you're going to want to swim in it," Harry said doubtfully.
"Why not?" she asked, her forehead wrinkling.
"Because it's freezing cold. Believe me, I've been in it," he said, with the air of one explaining something that was completely obvious.
"And you think that the ocean isn't freezing sometimes? I don't care how cold it is. I swim every day, and I don't plan on stopping now just because the lake is cold," she said haughtily.
"Fine, fine, freeze," Harry muttered. He wasn't sure if he liked this girl. She seemed a little touchy about everything. "Look, there it is," he exclaimed, pointing.
"What? Where?" Callen said, looking around. "I don't see anything."
"It's that red line over there," he said, pointing to it again.
"Why is that there?"
"So that I knew where it was when I came back," Harry replied.
"Oh," she said. "What is it?"
"It, is a myriod. Don't ask me exactly what that is, I don't know. You can ask Hermione when we get back to the castle."
"Who's Hermione?" Callen asked, pronouncing the name with difficulty.
"Hermione Granger. She's only the smartest student at Hogwarts," Harry bragged, proud that Hermione was his friend.
"Oh. Does she act like a know-it-all?" she asked.
"Not all the time. Sometimes, she does. But not very often," he added hastily, seeing doubt appear in Callen's eyes.
"I don't know if I want to do this, after all," she said uncertainly. "I mean, going all the way to Scotland from the Bahamas? It doesn't seem very appealing."
"You have to! Remember our dream? You have to help us fight Voldemort!" Harry said desperately. "You have to!"
"Or else what? You'll die?" she asked sarcastically. She turned around. "I'm going home."
"Yeah, I might die!" he shouted after her. "He wants to kill me, and he probably will!"
"Well, that sucks to be you, doesn't it," she called back.
"Come on, if you needed help, I'd help you," he tried.
She turned again. "Do you mean that?"
Harry gave her a look like she was crazy. "Yeah, I guess so."
"All right. I'll help you," she said, walking back. "But if I need help, you have to help me. Okay?"
"Gotcha. Let's go."
~*~*~*~*~*~
"Hello, what is that?" Callen asked, pointing to the myriod.
"It's a myriod. Apparently they appear when someone needs help, and they connect two places, the one that needs help and the one where the person or thing that can help is," he explained. "Sorry if that doesn't make any sense."
"It doesn't, but that's all right," Callen reassured him. "So, what do we do now?"
"Go through it."
"Through it? Okay," she said. "Let's go." She grabbed his hand and stepped toward the myriod, which started shimmering again. "One, two, three!" She jumped through it, pulling Harry with her.
Finally, it got light enough so that he could tell what type of place he was in. It looked like a forest, but it wasn't the same as the Forbidden Forest. He could hear birds singing, wind in the trees, and what sounded like the ocean. He walked toward the area where the light seemed to be coming from and stumbled out onto a beach. He blinked a few times, then gasped.
"Whoa," he said. The beach was beautiful. Pale sand, turquoise sea, and not a rock in sight. He turned around and saw a cliff behind the forest. "Awesome."
Suddenly, he remembered how he had gotten there. He crashed through the trees, looking for the myriod. He was beginning to panic when he saw it – a flash of silver. "There it is!" he said triumphantly. "I guess I should mark it somehow. But how?" he mused. He snapped his fingers and pulled out his wand. "Lienna deha!" he said. Instantly, a red line appeared from the end of his wand. One end of the line connected to the ground below the myriod.
Harry started walking toward the edge of the forest. With each step he took, the line dropped to the ground as if it was painted. He reached the edge of the forest and stopped the line. He walked down the beach, wondering what the heck he was doing so far away from Hogwarts. Because, though it had been about noon when Hermione had finally managed to get him to go down to the forest, he could tell that it was earlier here. The sun appeared to have been up for a few hours, but it didn't seem any later than about 7:30.
He was brought back to the real world abruptly when a wave crashed loudly. He jumped slightly, then started walking down the beach again, wondering what he was supposed to be looking for. After about twenty minutes, he saw what appeared to be a brilliant blue mound. When he got closer to it, he realized that it actually was a blue building that was built to look like a mound. Or something a lot like a mound.
His attention was diverted from the building by the sound of a girl's laughter. He looked over to the ocean and saw a redheaded girl floating in the ocean, staring at the sky and laughing. She started singing, and though he was too far away to distinguish the words, her voice sounded familiar. He decided to ask her where he was.
"Excuse me!" he shouted, walking toward the waves. "Excuse me!"
The girl stopped singing, and started to swim to the shore.
"Excuse me," Harry said, shielding his eyes from the sun, which was reflecting on the water. "Do you think you could tell me where I am?"
The girl reached the shore and stepped onto the sand. She started to wring the water out of her hair. Harry noticed that her blue two-piece swimsuit showed off a perfect figure.
"You're in Ocenian," she said. Her forehead wrinkled. "Do I…know you?" she asked.
"I don't know, but I think I've seen you somewhere before," Harry replied. "Where is Ocenian?"
"It's the city of ocean fairies," the girl explained. "Would you like a tour?"
"Sure," Harry said. He didn't mind spending time with this pretty girl. "What's your name?"
"Callen," the girl replied.
Harry nearly tripped. "Wait, what?"
"Callen," she repeated. "Why, what's wrong?"
"I'm Harry, Harry Potter," he said, hoping she would recognize his name. She did.
"This may sound strange to you, but, did you have a dream about me?" Callen asked.
"Did you have a dream about me?" he asked her.
"Actually, I did," she admitted. "We were in a forest together, and there was a thing in a black cloak chasing me, and you"
"Pulled you into a tree," he finished for her, grinning. "I knew I recognized you!"
"I wonder why we were dreaming about each other," she mused.
"I don't know, but I think I'm beginning to understand something," Harry said, staring off into space.
"What's that?" Callen asked, cocking her head slightly. Her long hair started blowing around her face in the slight breeze that had just come up.
"I think that you're supposed to come with me back to Hogwarts," he explained.
"That…school thing you told me about in my – our dream?" she asked, correcting herself.
"Yes," Harry said, grabbing her arm. "Come on, it's about twenty minutes this way!"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Callen yelled, pulling her arm away. "I'm not going anywhere in a swimsuit. Heck no!"
"Well, can you change?" he asked impatiently.
"Yeah, I have to go up to the palace though," she said, turning. She started running.
"Palace?" Harry asked, his eyes widening. "Are you royalty or something?"
"Yeah, I'm the princess," she called over her shoulder.
"Great, a princess," he muttered, breaking into a run.
~*~*~*~*~*~
"You live here?" he asked, amazed, when they reached the palace.
"Yeah, so?" she said indifferently.
"This is even bigger than Hogwarts!" he said, gazing upward at the glass dome.
"Really? What's Hogwarts like?" she asked, motioning for him to follow her up a staircase.
"It's the most wonderful place in the world!" Harry declared.
"Cool," Callen said. She disappeared through a door, which, like everything else, was a shade of blue. Harry, unsure if he could walk in or if she would be changing, waited outside the door uncertainly.
When Callen reappeared, she was wearing a blue shirt and skirt.
"Is there any reason why everything here is blue?" Harry wanted to know.
She shrugged. "Something to do with how we stay hidden. At least my hair isn't blue."
"Yeah, that would be strange," he agreed. "Why isn't anyone around?"
"Because they're all asleep," she explained. "Let's go."
"Don't you have to leave a note or something?" Harry asked.
"No. My parents don't even realize they have a daughter," she said bitterly. "I can do whatever I want and they don't even notice."
"Oh. I'm sorry," he said, realizing it was a touchy subject. "You ready?"
"Yeah. Let's get out of here."
~*~*~*~*~*~
"So, where exactly is this…Hogwarts?" Callen asked as they walked down the beach.
"It's in Scotland. I think you'll really like it there," he told her.
"Does it have the ocean nearby, or a lake or something? So I can swim?" she asked hopefully.
"It has a lake, but I don't think you're going to want to swim in it," Harry said doubtfully.
"Why not?" she asked, her forehead wrinkling.
"Because it's freezing cold. Believe me, I've been in it," he said, with the air of one explaining something that was completely obvious.
"And you think that the ocean isn't freezing sometimes? I don't care how cold it is. I swim every day, and I don't plan on stopping now just because the lake is cold," she said haughtily.
"Fine, fine, freeze," Harry muttered. He wasn't sure if he liked this girl. She seemed a little touchy about everything. "Look, there it is," he exclaimed, pointing.
"What? Where?" Callen said, looking around. "I don't see anything."
"It's that red line over there," he said, pointing to it again.
"Why is that there?"
"So that I knew where it was when I came back," Harry replied.
"Oh," she said. "What is it?"
"It, is a myriod. Don't ask me exactly what that is, I don't know. You can ask Hermione when we get back to the castle."
"Who's Hermione?" Callen asked, pronouncing the name with difficulty.
"Hermione Granger. She's only the smartest student at Hogwarts," Harry bragged, proud that Hermione was his friend.
"Oh. Does she act like a know-it-all?" she asked.
"Not all the time. Sometimes, she does. But not very often," he added hastily, seeing doubt appear in Callen's eyes.
"I don't know if I want to do this, after all," she said uncertainly. "I mean, going all the way to Scotland from the Bahamas? It doesn't seem very appealing."
"You have to! Remember our dream? You have to help us fight Voldemort!" Harry said desperately. "You have to!"
"Or else what? You'll die?" she asked sarcastically. She turned around. "I'm going home."
"Yeah, I might die!" he shouted after her. "He wants to kill me, and he probably will!"
"Well, that sucks to be you, doesn't it," she called back.
"Come on, if you needed help, I'd help you," he tried.
She turned again. "Do you mean that?"
Harry gave her a look like she was crazy. "Yeah, I guess so."
"All right. I'll help you," she said, walking back. "But if I need help, you have to help me. Okay?"
"Gotcha. Let's go."
~*~*~*~*~*~
"Hello, what is that?" Callen asked, pointing to the myriod.
"It's a myriod. Apparently they appear when someone needs help, and they connect two places, the one that needs help and the one where the person or thing that can help is," he explained. "Sorry if that doesn't make any sense."
"It doesn't, but that's all right," Callen reassured him. "So, what do we do now?"
"Go through it."
"Through it? Okay," she said. "Let's go." She grabbed his hand and stepped toward the myriod, which started shimmering again. "One, two, three!" She jumped through it, pulling Harry with her.