All for You
By Rage
Chapter Four
****
Dumbledore sat down on his armchair, rubbing his chin. "Hmm……" he thought out loud, as he stared at his pet phoenix, Fawkes.
"Albus, what kind of creature attacked Miss Granger and Mr. Malfoy?" McGonagall asked him, her voice quivering.
Dumbledore continued gazing at Fawkes. Finally, he replied. "I do not know, Minerva.."
He stood up and walked to where his pet was perched, and patted him on the head.
"Do……… do you think it's another.. Basilisk?" McGonagall whispered softly, her eyes full of anxiety.
Dumbledore shook his head in reply. "No, Minerva," he answered. "Basilisks are extremely rare. And it has been four years since one has set foot in this castle."
McGonagall sighed hopelessly and sat down on one of the chairs. "Everyone," she said, "is in danger once again!"
She looked at Dumbledore, expecting him to wear a frown. However, he was smiling slightly.
"What in the world?" McGonagall exclaimed. "Why on earth are you smiling, Albus? This is a crisis!"
He chuckled silently and gazed at her. "Yes, I know."
"Then—"
"Yes, Minerva, it IS a crisis," he answered, stroking Fawkes. He paused, and looked outside. "But not as worse as before."
"What do you mean?"
"This time, it is only after two students," Dumbledore said, now looking at McGonagall.
She gasped. "Who—" she started, but then stopped after realizing whom he meant. "You don't mean—"
Dumbledore nodded. "Yes. Haven't you noticed that, so far, it has only attacked two students?"
McGonagall was still dumbfounded and stood gaping at him.
"All the staff members know that this creature has been present here in Hogwarts since the start of the summer vacation." Dumbledore said. "And it is already near the end of the first term. It hasn't attacked anyone yet except these two particular students."
McGonagall woke up from her trance. "But how do you know that its only target are those two?" she asked. "It's only one fourth of the schoolyear! We're not entirely su—"
"Trust me, Minerva." Dumbledore said sternly, looking outside once again.
He paused and looked back at McGonagall.
"I am quite sure."
****
"Wonder why we're having our Astronomy class during the afternoon!" Ron said, looking at his schedule.
"No idea," Harry replied, glancing at Hermione who shrugged her shoulders.
They turned a corner and entered one of the classrooms. They sat beside each other in the second row and put their books out on the table. Ron and Harry launched a conversation about Quidditch while Hermione opened 'Astronomy for Beginners, Grade Six' and started reading it. Completely immersed in the book, she didn't notice that someone took the seat beside her.
"Aren't you breaking your neck if you read like that?" a voice said.
"No, no, but thanks anyway.." Hermione smiled, closing her book and raising her head at the speaker. However, her smile broke as she found herself staring at familiar blue-gray eyes.
"Malfoy!" she exclaimed.
"Hullo there, Mudblood!" Draco sneered, greeting Hermione with a smirk.
Hermione glanced at Harry and Ron, expecting them to be glaring at Malfoy. To her relief, they were still talking about the latest broomstick. She then turned back to him.
"What are YOU doing here?!" she hissed.
Malfoy grinned at her. "Astronomy's one of my classes, didn't you know?"
"Since when?"
"Since third year."
"Yeah right."
"You don't believe me?"
Hermione crossed her arms."No."
"Fine then. Suit yourself."
Hermione shrugged and opened her book once again. She resumed in reading it and completely ignored her surroundings, particularly the annoying Slytherin beside her, who continued teasing and insulting her.
~
A few minutes passed when finally, their teacher arrived. "Good morning, everyone!"
She said, smiling brightly at all of them. "Now take your seats and we'll start."
Hermione took out her quill, ink and parchment and prepared to take down notes. Harry and the others did the same and when all was ready, they listened to their professor talk about the famous constellations, celestial bodies, mysteries, etc.
Finally, the bell had rung. Everyone stuffed their books in their bags and prepared to stand up. However, the professor raised her hand and signaled them to sit down again.
"Now, before all of you leave, I will just explain to you our project," she said, looking at all of them. "First of all, this is individual. You will all pick either a constellation or a star of your liking and every night, depending on when your star appears, you will come up to the Astronomy Tower and do observance on your picked star or constellation. You will write all your observations on a piece of parchment and you will submit it three weeks from now. Is that understood?"
Everyone nodded, as they scribbled it down on small pieces of paper and stuffed it in their bags. They stood up, bid their goodbyes to their teacher and exited the classroom.
Once the trio was out, they proceeded down to the Great Hall.
"What star are you picking?" Hermione asked the two boys.
"Anything that appears just once in a while." Ron replied, grinning. "I don't want to stay up EVERY night of the week just to observe a STAR!"
Hermione scowled and then turned to Harry. "What about you, Harry?"
"Hmm.. I'll just choose the same star Ron chooses!" he answered, grinning as well. "That way I can have someone to talk to at the Tower!"
Hermione drooped her head and muttered, 'Boys!' She started walking fast, leaving her two best friends behind to talk about Quidditch once again.
****
Draco dragged his feet up the stairs to the Astronomy Tower, as he carried with him his Astronomy book, quill, ink, parchment and some other things to keep him entertained during the night.
It was already ten in the evening; most of the torches lighting the halls of Hogwarts were put off and everyone was either in their Common Rooms or in their cosy beds, already in Dreamland. Draco, however, was going to do his Astronomy project that night, for he had chosen the constellation 'Heros', which appeared every night when the sky was clear.
"Stupid project……" Draco said, when he had reached the door leading to the Tower. He opened it and entered the circular room, and dropped his stuff on the floor. He stretched his arms and yawned, opening his mouth widely.
"Don't you have any manners?" someone said behind him.
Draco spun around instantly, with his eyes full of surprise and anger. "What the—"
It was Hermione, wearing a sarcastic grin on her face. She was sitting down on the floor, several parchments scattered on the ground, and her feather quill in her hand. "Hello there," she said to him.
"What are you doing here?" Draco spat, glaring at her.
"I'm doing my Astronomy project, of course," she replied in an as-a-matter-of-fact tone. "How about you?"
"Doing the same thing as you, obviously," he answered. Draco stared at her fiercely and then walked over to the other side, where his things were. He sat down and laid his book and parchment on the floor. He opened his inkbottle, dipped his quill in it and then looked up at the sky.
Hermione watched him with much interest for a while, then returned to her work.
~
There was nothing but silence in the room. Hermione looked up at the sky then scribbled something down on her paper. Draco did the same.
Minutes passed and the two students didn't look at each other; only either at the sky or at their paper.
Finally, when it was about 11:50 pm, Hermione broke the silence.
"So."
Draco glanced at her. "What?"
"So what did you choose?"
"Why do you ask?"
"Just making conversation."
Draco gazed at her weirdly then replied, "Constellation Heros."
"Oh."
"What about you?"
"Constellation of Cynthia."
"Oh."
"………"
"………"
Silence came once again. However, a second later, Hermione collected her things and stood up. She made her way to the door and opened it.
"Good night." She said to Draco, not looking at him.
She waited for a reply, but it did not come. 'Of course, who am I kidding?' She sighed sadly and went out of the room.
But when she was about to close the door, she heard him speak.
"See you tomorrow night, Granger."
****
The following nights were much better than the first one. Draco and Hermione had short and minimal conversations about lessons, teachers, etc. Draco had warmed up a bit to Hermione; he talked more than before, and he threw fewer insults at her.
One night, they had talked about legends and myths.
"What do you do during summer?" Hermione asked Draco, who was staring up at the sky.
"You know, just stay at home," he replied, not looking at her.
"Don't you go out of the country or something?" she said. "I know you're rich and a—"
"My parents are too busy to do that." He interrupted, looking down, his expression sad.
"Oh." Hermione said sympathetically. "I'm sorry.."
He grinned slightly. "It's fine.."
They remained quiet for a while. Finally, Draco turned to her and said, "Do you want to hear a story?"
Hermione looked surprised at first, but then she smiled. "Sure, why not?"
He smiled back (which made Hermione's cheeks burn up), and then leaned back on the wall.
"Thousands of years ago, the world was created by the gods and goddesses. They made it beautiful for the humans whom they created as well, and cared for it gently. However, the gods were divided into two groups; the good and the evil. They often had battles and wars, which destroyed the world.
"Now, one day, when all was peaceful for a while, Heros, the god of hunters, came down and descended on earth. He had decided to take a nice, quiet stroll, so that his mind would be at ease.
"While he was walking through a forest, he heard a melodious voice singing a song that made him stop and just listen to it until it was finished. When the singing had stopped, Heros had an urge to find the owner of the voice. He searched everywhere in the forest, but sadly he had not found her. However, when he was about to leave, he saw a glimpse of a young woman in the river.
"His curiosity got the better of him. He crept close to the river, and hid behind some bushes. When he was perfectly unseen, he observed the woman. When Heros saw her face, he had instantly fallen for her. He had a desire to know her name, but something told him to wait for the right time."
Draco paused and looked at Hermione. He grinned when he saw her eager and attentive expression. Then he continued.
"Heros watched the woman for several days. He came back every single day just to see her, and every night, he would dream of her. Finally, one day, he gathered up all his courage and went out of his hiding place. The woman saw him, and smiled. She introduced herself as Cynthia, and she as well, fell in love with him at first sight.
"Heros and Cynthia agreed to see each other every day, and because of this, their love grew stronger. However, one day, when Heros came down from heaven to see his lover, she was not there.
"He waited there for hours until the god of darkness called him. He nodded, but stayed several minutes more, hoping that Cynthia would appear. But sadly she did not come. Heros ascended to Heaven in despair, and with his heart broken.
"When the sun had set, all the gods and goddesses came to a deserted area for a battle against each other. Heros looked at his foes and grinned in delight, with his eyes full of excitement and determination. But, his confident attitude broke, for he saw an unexpected person on the other side of the field with the enemy—Cynthia. He—"
"Hold on!" Hermione interrupted. "You mean, they-they were enemies?"
"Isn't it obvious?" Draco snapped. "Now stop disturbing me! Anyway, the two gods stared at each other. Though everyone around them was preparing to fight, they did not take their eyes off each other. Finally, when the horn was blown (which signaled the start of the battle), they looked away from each other and concentrated on defeating the other side.
"When Heros brought down all his enemies, he grinned triumphantly and looked up. And there was Cynthia, standing a meter away from him, crying. He started walking towards her, but hesitated and stopped. He asked why she didn't tell him that she was an enemy, but Cynthia threw the question back to him.
"Minutes passed. The battle continued around them, but the two lovers did not move. Finally, Heros ran to her and embraced her tightly. He told Cynthia that he didn't care if she was the foe, all he cared about was that he loved her so much. Though surprised, Cynthia returned his love wholeheartedly.
"But sadly, their sweet moment ended. Someone had shot Cynthia in the back with an arrow. She had lost consciousness and dropped in Heros' arms. Heros, on the other hand, laid her down on the ground, breathing heavily with his eyes wide. He shook her severely, but she did not wake up. She was already dead."
Draco stopped when Hermione gasped. He smirked and continued.
"Heros looked up at the god who killed Cynthia, with tears in his eyes. It was the archer god, Arwen, smiling evilly. He took one more arrow from behind and got ready. He called Heros a traitor,and finally let go……… and the arrow went straight to Heros' heart."
"S-so they both died?!" Hermione said, looking shocked.
"Yes, yes!" Draco replied in an exasperated tone. "Anyway, the two lovers died in the battle, unfortunately. But fortunately, they were finally together. See, there's the proof!"
He pointed up at the two constellations. Hermione followed his finger and gazed up at the sky.
Draco heard her sigh and then he leaned back on the wall again. They kept quiet for a while, looking up at the twinkling stars. Finally, Hermione turned to him. "You make a really good storyteller, Malfoy," she said, grinning. "Really.."
Draco grinned back and replied, "Yeah, I know. I was just showing off."
****
"He has become acquainted with the girl, Master," a hooded figure said softly.
"Really now?" someone answered, an amused smile on his face. "Hmm, then we must punish him, Servir.."
"How, Master?"
"Any way you want to, Servir," he said, turning away. "Just as long as he learns his lesson.."
****
AN: Hope you like this chapter! Please review! Thanks for your support!