Crash And Burn
Disclaimer: Same as usual, don't own the characters, blah blah blah.
Author's Note: In case I haven't said anything, and I know I forgot to, Harry's in his seventh year, Ginny in her sixth. She was doing her Muggle Studies last minute.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ginny slowly turned over. She was having another one of those nightmares again, although she suspected that this one would be in the Daily Prophet again tomorrow.
She saw herself flying above a small village. It looked to be more of a farming community, with fields all around it and a few trees dotting the landscape. She turned her dragon in for a closer look and found many of the homes to be lovely. There were gardens around many of them and each one looked perfect. Then she heard the screaming.
Down the street she saw a crowd of Death Eaters advancing on the village. Some people were running and screaming, trying to get away from them. Homes lay in shambles or ablaze in their path, bodies strewn about them. She flew up a bit to stay mainly out of sight and just watched as the Death Eaters entered homes, the Dark Mark flying high in the sky above them all, the fires spreading, the smoke rising until all you could smell was fire. She flew down, trying to help. She saw a little boy in the midst of all this, standing there crying. She went to him and comforted him. She told him everything would be alright.
She rolled over again and heard her name being called. "Ginny, Ginny, wake up. Come on wake up." She sat bolt upright where she was and found herself face to face with Harry. She burst into tears again, remembering what she had seen in her vision. He reached his arms around her and let her cry on his shoulder. She was balling her eyes out, all the while repeated the same words, like a chant. "All those people, the village, the fire, the smoke. And that poor child. His whole life is gone."
It took her a while for her to stop crying and when she finally did she pulled back from Harry to look at him. "How long have you been here? And what time is it? Where am I," she continued, looking around her. The sky was still dark outside and she could see the remnants of a fire glowing in the fireplace. Harry had sat down on the couch and was looking at her.
"Calm down Gin. Everything's fine. You're at Hogwarts. You fell asleep a while ago on the floor so I put you here on the couch. I didn't think I'd be able to get into your room to put you in bed." Harry blushed a bit at this. "I went back to my own bed but my scar started hurting again so I just came downstairs. When I was on the landing I heard you talking. When I got here you were tossing and turning. What happened?"
When you feel all alone
And a loyal friend is hard to find
You're caught in a one way street
With the monsters in your head
When hopes and dreams are far away and
You feel like you can't face they day
She let the tears fall again as she thought back to what she had seen. She told him exactly what her dream had been though. She watched as his face masked the horror and anguish she felt as these scenes played out in her mind. When she was finally done, he leaned back on the couch and just looked at her with all the sympathy he could find. "I had no idea Ginny. I didn't know. I'm so sorry. If you like, I have a bit of Dreamless Sleep Potion in my trunk. I could give you enough so that you could sleep tonight."
She shook her head. "It's no use. I've tried it before. Whatever happened in my head can't be blocked out by potions or anything. Everything I've tried doesn't work at all." She lay back down on the couch, too tired to care that she was leaning on Harry as a pillow. "Can you please stay here with me? At least until I fall asleep," she asked, looking to the glowing embers in the fire.
"No problem Ginny," he said, absent-mindedly stroking her hair. "Thank you" were the last words he heard before she fell asleep again. He sighed, looking back down at her. It appeared as though he'd only hit the tip of the iceberg with her and what she was dealing with, but in helping her he was working his way through what he was dealing with. He smiled down at her before leaning his head back to watch the stars in the sky twinkle. Soon it would be daylight, and as tomorrow brought schedules for everyone he didn't particularly want to miss breakfast. He sat there and let her sleep, too afraid to move, afraid that she'd have another dream and he wouldn't be there to help.
As the sun came up he heard people start to stir in their rooms. He heard water running in sinks and tubs as people bathed and alarm clocks ringing in both the dorms. He looked down again. He felt horrible for doing so, but he knew he had to wake her up before anyone found them like that, especially Ron. He gently shook her shoulders and felt her move a moment later.
She turned
over and opened her eyes to find herself looking at Harry. The events of a few hours ago came flooding
back to her and she suddenly sat up, a horrified look on her face. "Oh no! I kept you here all this time? I'm so sorry Harry! Can you forgive me?"
Harry chuckled a bit at her
concern. "I didn't mind Ginny. I couldn't sleep anyway. Everyone else is up. You want to go to breakfast," he asked her,
stretching and twisting before standing up.
"I don't know about you, but I'm starved!" She laughed as she got up. "Sure."
She handed him his cloak, blushing a bit as she did so. ~He must have covered me up last night. That was so sweet of him, but he must've been
cold.~ The pair
headed out the portrait hole, stopping to grab their books before they left.
They got down to breakfast long before most anyone else did. The house elves were still setting up the tables and busying themselves with the cleaning. Harry smiled as he noticed Dobby putting jugs of pumpkin juice on the table. Taking Ginny's hand, he led her over to the Gryffindor table and right to Dobby. "Hello Dobby. I haven't seen you for a while. How've you been," he asked, startling the elf and almost making him spill his jug of juice.
"Oh it is you Harry Potter sir. Dobby is almost done fixing breakfast sir. You want Dobby to get you anything," Dobby asked, tugging on one ear.
Harry smiled. "No thanks Dobby. I'd actually like you to meet someone. Ginny, this is Dobby. Dobby, Ginny." Ginny took Dobby's hand and shook it. "Pleasure to meet you Dobby. I'm Ginny." She looked at his socks: one was white and had little snitches on it with brooms chasing them around. The other was a green argyle patterned sock. "I love your socks."
If you could tell if an elf was blushing, Dobby would've been bright red. "Thank you Miss Ginny mam. Harry Potter's friend want anything?"
"Actually, if you have any coffee I'd love to have some." She yawned. "I'm a bit tired and coffee always helps wake me up."
"Yes Miss Ginny mam. Dobby will get you this." Dobby scurried off as Ginny and Harry sat down next to each other. Harry turned to her and laughed. "You drink coffee?"
"Yep. I'm the only one in my family who does. If I'm lucky I can get it when we're out somewhere or if I sneak off to the village when nobody's watching me. I love coffee." She smiled at the thought. "The caffeine really helps wake me up after not sleeping much." Her smile faded at that thought. She sighed and looked down at her plate. "You know, I'm almost dreading the paper this morning. I can just picture the headlines now." She pushed her plate out of her way and folded her arms in front of her, laying her head in them.
Harry watched her back and saw that it shuddered a bit as she breathed in. He guessed that she was about to cry and lay a comforting hand on her back, rubbing it much as he'd expect someone to do if someone else was comforting her. "Gin, please, don't cry over it. You can't do any more about it right now. Come here," he said, lifting her head up and pulling her to him. He hugged her, letting her tear on his shoulder as she tried to stop herself from crying.
Ginny leaned on Harry's shoulder, the effort of trying to stop herself from crying wearing her out more than she already was. "But that's just it. I can't do anything and that's what bothers me. When I see these things and I know they're going to happen, I want to help, but then I realize that I don't know where these people are and I can't and I'm back to the beginning again." She sighed as she straightened up. She saw Dobby coming back with the coffee and two cups. She smiled as he set it in front of her. She reached down and gave him a hug. "Thanks Dobby. Hey, you think you can bring coffee every morning here to this table right where I'm sitting? I'd really appreciate it."
Dobby bowed low to her. "Yes Miss Ginny. You are very kind to Dobby. You are good person, like Harry Potter sir. I bring you your coffee everyday!" With that the elf hurried off, probably to prepare to clean the dishes that would be coming soon. Ginny poured herself and Harry a cup and handed him one. "Here. It tastes better with milk and a bit of sugar, but right now I couldn't care either way." With that she sipped some of the coffee, savoring the taste of it in her mouth as she closed her eyes. "That definitely hits the spot. This is truly a gift from the gods."
Harry turned to her and started chuckling a bit. She looked at him, realizing he was trying to hold something back. "What," she asked. "What is so funny?"
"Well," he said, trying to hold back a laugh, "I really don't know why, but Draco as the amazing bouncing ferret just popped into my mind." He let out a laugh and Ginny joined him, the tears of laughter now pouring where sadness had been. An owl flew in just then, a school owl to be exact. It landed on the table right in front of her. It fluffed its wings importantly and held out its foot with the letter tied to it. Untying the letter, she petted the owl's head and kissed its beak, thanking it for delivering the letter. It flew off as she opened the envelope and read the letter before her.
Dear Ms. Weasley,
As you may have noticed over the summer, you did not receive your OWL scores. This was due to the fact that you scored perfectly on them and they needed to be checked over by a few people. You see, every year each OWL test has one question on it that only a few people in the world may know. Though it doesn't affect your score it is put there to test your knowledge and scan for abilities. You got each one of those questions right. Due to your marvelous performance we are moving you up to seventh year. I don't expect you will have much problem with this given your record. A new set of books will be waiting for you in your room after you receive your schedule. Good luck to you Miss Weasley, and congratulations!
Sincerely,
Albus Dumbledore
Headmaster of Hogwarts
P.S. You will also be attending Animagi classes once a week with Mr. Potter. These will be taught by Professor McGonagall.
Ginny just stared at the parchment before her then looked at Harry. He'd been reading over her shoulder and his face registered the same amount of shock. They sat there staring at each other for a few moments before Ginny stood up suddenly and jumped up in the air, letting out a squeal of happiness. Harry joined in and soon the two were hugging and laughing, the parchment still in Ginny's hands.
Ron and Hermione happened to walk in just as Ginny and Harry began their dance of joy. Luckily for them Ron and Hemione were the first ones there from Gryffindor and only a few members of the other houses were present. They walked up to find the two had finally stopped dancing around and were now sitting back down, engaged in a conversation and completely oblivious to the fact that the two were approaching. Ron and Hermione sat down and stared at them.
"Ahem," Ron said, feigning a cough. "Mind telling me what you two are all jumpy over?" Ron gave a glare to Harry, who just shrugged it off and dove into the coffee.
"Well, Ron, if you must know, I'll be going to class with you today," answered Ginny.
"Why would you go to class with us today? You're not in our year."
Ginny looked at Harry and the two broke into a wide grin as Ginny handed Ron and Hermione her letter from Dumbledore. They both watched as they read the letter. Ron's face went from red from the anger he felt at whatever was happening with Ginny and Harry to shocked at what he read. Hermione just stared at the paper, her face a mixture of confusion and surprise. "Even I didn't get perfects on the OWLs. How did you manage that," she asked Ginny. Then she groaned. "And you get to do Animagi classes too? You're so lucky!" She jumped up and squealed and Ginny and Hermione continued on where Harry and her had left off, jumping up and down and dancing around. Ron and Harry just looked on, cracking up at this display. Every one else was filtering into the hall and stared at them. Hermione and Ginny blushed and sat back down in their respective seats. Ginny dove into the coffee again, her fatigue returning. She suddenly sat up. "So Miss Head Girl, when are we supposed to get our schedules?" She laughed a bit as Hermione turned red and reached into her bag.
"Sorry about that. Here you go." She put the schedules out on the table and they each magically went to their respective person. The four of them groaned. "Oh great," said Ginny. "My first day at this whole skipping a year thing and I get double Potions followed by a rousing bit of Divination." Ginny smiled a bit. She was trying to bite back a laugh. Ron, Harry, and Hermione didn't hold it back though. Soon the four were again in laughter.
After breakfast was over everyone headed back to their dorms for a quick grab of the books and off to class. Ginny glanced up at the head table and noticed Dumbledore and McGonagall looking at her, both beaming proudly. Unfortunately, she also noticed Snape glaring at her. ~Great. I'm gonna suffer in Potions more than ever. Oh well. At least his precious Slytherins couldn't do it!~ She smiled happily to herself and practically skipped her way to the dorm rooms. Once there, she grabbed her things and waited for everyone else. Soon they were all running for the Potions classroom. They knew Snape would be itching for a chance to get the four of them in trouble. And they were right.
The four ran into the classroom just as class was about to start. "Weasleys, Granger, Potter! You are all late for my class. Twenty points from Gryffindor for each of you! Now sit down!" The four grumbled and cursed Snape under their breath. It was natural for Ron and Hermione to pair up. After all, they were dating, which left Harry and Ginny to pair up with each other. They both smiled at each other a bit and turned towards the head of the class. Snape was beginning his tirade.
"Now class today we will be brewing Dreamless Sleep Potions. I don't expect anyone in this class to get them right. Now let's see…..who can tell me the formula for a Dreamless Sleep Potion?" Snape glanced around the room, but everyone knew who he'd pick on. And they were right. "Ah yes. Miss Weasley, a new addition to the seventh year. Tell me what you would need to make a Dreamless Sleep Potion and how, precisely, it is done?"
Ginny inwardly chuckled. ~Let's see what he thinks. I've made this stuff a dozen times.~ "You will need a bezoar stone, crushed to a fine powder, 2 parts unicorn horn, also crushed to powder, 5 parts beetle eyes, 4 petals from a moon's flower, and 5 parts dragon's blood. The cauldron, which, by the way, should be a golden one as it will stand up the best to the volatile ingredient and tends to make a better potion in the long run, should be cool at first. Add in the dragon's blood and powdered bezoar stone and unicorn horn. The next part is what's tricky. You must stir the cauldron as you heat it rapidly. Fire seeds will make just the right speed and temperature you will need. Next, when the potion comes to a boil, add in the beetle's eyes. Let this simmer, stirring every 12 hours for one week. The potion should be a nice shade of blue by now. Every 12 hours for a week you must stir this. At the end of the week you add in your 4 petals of moon's flower and there you have it. Dreamless Sleep Potion."
Everyone was staring at her, opened mouthed, even Snape. He had not expected anyone to know how to make this potion. It wasn't in their books, nor did anyone really know how to brew it except those who had been taught by a Potions Master. Harry was just in awe, Ron was slack jawed, and Hermione was looking confused. Snape finally spoke. "Very good Miss Weasley. Five points to Gryffindor, and see me after class." Ron actually fell out of his seat on that one. Snape giving Gryffindor points? Harry just bit his lip to suppress the laugh he felt building. "Alright everyone. Ingredients and directions are now on the board. Copy them down and begin!" Everyone set to work. The poor girl stuck with Neville looked terrified. It was no secret that the boy was terrible at Potions. He melted cauldrons on a daily basis. Pretty soon everyone was getting ready to start the fire under the cauldron. Snape went back into the store room for a moment which gave Hermione, Ron, Harry, and Ginny plenty of time to talk.
"Ginny, how the hell did you know how to make that potion? That's not in our book, and besides, you just got them today," exclaimed Ron.
"Yeah. How did you know Ginny," asked Hermione.
"Well, to tell you the truth, I found the potion once in a book and have been brewing it ever since. That's why I bought this gold cauldron for myself. I practice Potions over the summer in my room so that the next year I won't get into trouble with Snape. Knowing a few rare potions tends to help one keep oneself out of trouble with Snape."
Harry chuckled. "Well, it seems that I have the perfect partner for this year. I'm not so good at Potions," he added, smiling at Ginny. He hadn't known that she'd been practicing Potions over the summer, although he suspected that excuse was one to placate Ron and Hermione. She was probably brewing them in different ways just to see if she could stop the dreams at night. He thought back to what happened the night before and allowed himself a little half smile. ~You know, maybe there's more to Ginny than people give her credit for. I certainly think there is, but with Ron around, nothing will come of it.~ He sighed inwardly and bent down to get his beetle's eyes out of his bag when he felt a sharp pain in his scar, almost as bad as the night before. Ginny heard his sharp intake of breath and looked down to see him sitting on the floor, his back against the bench.
Let me be the one you call
If you jump I'll break your fall
Lift you up and fly away with you into the night
If you need to fall apart
I can mend a broken heart
If you need to crash then crash and burn
You're not alone
She immediately conjured her cold cloth and handed it to him. "Here," she whispered. "Take this and put it on your scar. It'll help with the pain. As soon as the potion's finished I'll take you to see Dumbledore." She turned back to the cauldron. Seeing that it was a nice blue color, she added the beetle's eyes and stirred. She heard someone behind her and turned to see Professor Snape standing there. She motioned for him to bend down and whispered in his ear that her potion was ready and she needed to take Harry to Dumbledore. He nodded his approval and went off. He turned back around for a moment and handed her a piece of parchment then went back to work. She put the letter in her pocket and turned back to Harry. Ron and Hermione had noticed him by now and were looking like they would jump out of their shells any moment. "Don't worry. I'm going to take him to Dumbledore now. You two finish your potions and if we don't make it there, Ron, take notes for us in Divination and keep us posted." Harry grabbed his bag, keeping the cloth on his head, and the two of them headed out the door straight to Dumbledore's office.
Dumbledore happened to be on his way out of his office as they arrived. Noticing Harry and the cloth, he motioned for them to go into his office. As soon as the three of them were seated, Ginny asked immediately. "What's going on with Voldemort? What village? And where's the boy?"
Dumbledore looked a bit shocked at this. She couldn't have known. He had just found out. "Well Miss Weasley, it appears that you have the Sight. Yes. Voldemort attacked a small farming village. By the time the Aurors got there all that was left were burning homes and bodies strewn in the street. The only survivor was a small boy in the middle of the road, crying. He kept repeating something odd though. He said that while he was waiting a lady on a dragon came and gave him a hug, told him everything would be alright and that help was on the way." Ginny paled at this and Harry turned to stare at her. Now there was reason to talk. "Professor Dumbledore, I have a lot of explaining to do."