Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters you recognise in this story. They belong to J.K Rowling.

Summary: When Mars, Jupiter and Neptune form a straight line somewhere in space, a tragic old love curse will fulfil its deadly prophecy in Hogwarts… Contains Hermione's strange dream…

A/N: Ah… the awaited chapter of Hermione's dream… The rhyme that ended the last chapter sucked, didn't it? (I actually changed the rhyme; the original one was even worse… It was something about spewing and reviewing… People thought I'd gone mad, so I changed it.)

Oh well, I must admit that I'm not an expert in poetry… But enjoy this chapter anyway!

Chapter 2: Confused

She was in some kind of forest. The dark, gloomy trees were all around her, its uneven branches hanging like claws against the soft light of the moon. The ground was carpeted with dry, rotten leaves, sickly brown in colour. She tried to move, but her legs were glued onto the spot.

Hermione's wide brown eyes looked around curiously. She was deserted, isolated. Why was she here?

A small rustle in the murky green bushes made her turn. It was a man, running slowly, taking deep breaths after he stopped dead on his tracks. His face was unnoticeable, but the dim light of the moon helped his features to stand out.

He was a man with dark brown hair; his nose was sharp and pointed; his jaw line strong and tough. He had dazzling hazel eyes that shimmered faintly under the shadowy trees. He was seeking refuge in this forest, and closed his eyes as the stillness of the woods dawned on him.

Footsteps were soon heard coming from behind a mass of vegetation and a tall, slim woman walked towards the man. She touched the man on his shoulder, startling him. Her light brown eyes flickered when she saw the man turned on her, gasping surprisedly.

She was not particularly beautiful, but there was something about her that caught Hermione's attention. Her hair was brown, sleek and shiny under the moon's beam. She looked calm and graceful, and she had the look in her eyes that made Hermione's heart jumped.

"At last; I've found you," she breathed silently. The man looked at her unemotionally, shaking his head.

"You shouldn't be here…" he murmured.

The woman edged closer to him, turning his face to look at hers. "But I want to be with you," she assured.

The man pulled away gently. "It is not me that you are destined to be with," he explained, taking her small hands in his.

Her sparkling brown eyes looked up at his hazel ones. "I love you, I am sure of that," she said, gulping quietly.

The man looked up at the moon. He watched the sky that spreads out endlessly over them. "You do not love me, I can feel it. I am not for you. There is another, one that loves you so…"

The woman's gaze looked up at the sky also. She sighed heavily. "You are wrong, for he does not love me…" She trailed off, biting her lips.

"Ah, look!" The man pointed. "Have you noticed? Look at those three bright glinting stars, all in a line. They are beautiful," he said, smiling.

"Yes, I have noticed them," the woman replied, staring at the shining stars amazedly. "They do not look much like stars; they are far too bright."

The man slowly nodded. "You are right. I wonder what they are."

The woman suddenly tightened her grip on his hands. "You are avoiding the topic," she muttered.

The man smiled again. "I am not avoiding it. I told you the truth; there is another that loves you more than you love me."

The woman shook her head harshly. "No! You are lying. He could not love me, and I—I don't love him; I hate him," she spluttered.

"Listen to you heart," the man whispered comfortingly. "Deep inside, you love him, and he loves you."

The woman fell silent. "But—it can't be… He's not—right for me…" she said after a few hesitations.

The man lifted up her chin. "It is reality. It was meant to be."

The woman had tears brimming on the edge of her eyes. "But I want you! Not him," she said, throwing herself into the man's arms.

The man strokes her soft hair gently. "You have got to stop this. If you do not tell him about your feelings, he will turn away. I am not meant to be with you…"

"Yes you are! You saved me; you saved me from that terrible place. We were meant to be together," the woman replied stubbornly, her watery eyes looking up at the man.

The man shook his head lightly. "No, I did not save you. He did. He practically sacrificed himself for you, and luckily he survived. He is a changed man, and you should be grateful for that."

The woman quietened, thinking deeply. Her tears flowed down as she began to run away. "Don't go! Where are you going?" the man yelled out, following after her.

The woman turned around, her silky hair flying about her as she did so. "You're lying! You've been lying to me all along!" she shouted between tears. "You don't love me, so you tell me that HE loves me, when he does not! How can you do this to me? I loved you so much, and you threw my feelings away as though they are pieces of rags!"

The man gaped at her. "But it is true! Stop listening to your head and search your heart. You will know that I am not for you; he is. You are just too stubborn to listen to me," he yelled out desperately.

The woman ran away, her tears steaming down her face, leaving tiny patches of wet water on the dry leaves.

Hermione was confused. What was going on? Her mind was whirling into dark swirls of stars as the scene slowly faded away… leaving her vision with no other colour except black.   

***

"Hermione, Hermione!" she heard someone's loud, deep voice called out to her. She opened her tired eyes, which had seen so much, yet knew very little. The class was crowding all around her, some looking anxious, some sniggering with laughter.

The first face she saw was one with a pair of clear, emerald eyes, sparkling with worry. She forced herself to get up, her body felt sore all over and she felt extremely sick.

"Are you alright? Hermione--" Harry stammered, helping her up.

Hermione swayed, her knees were wobbly and she couldn't support herself. Harry tightened his grip on her, giving her some needed support. The class backed away, offering her some room and air to breathe.

"Yes, yes…" she sighed wearily. "I'm fine--"

"You couldn't have been fine, you were shaking, as though you had a nightmare or something," Harry spluttered.

Hermione shook her head, not wanting to tell anyone about her dream. "No, it was just--It was nothing… I'm perfectly alright now," she assured.

"Sit back on your seats now, sit down please!" Snape yelled above all the noise as the class returned back towards their desks.

Hermione's head was still spinning. It was just some dream… Not important… I don't even know what it was all about; it was nothing.

Snape looked at her with pierce, sharp eyes. "Miss Granger, are you alright?" he asked. The deep lines on his face were crinkled with signs of anxiousness and concern. "Would you like to go to the Hospital Wing?"

Hermione shook her head again. Somehow she couldn't find the energy to speak.

Snape eyed her curiously; clearly he was very much distressed by her behaviour. But he did not press her any further. "If you say so then," he said. "Please take a seat."

Hermione nodded and walked. With every step, she felt her heart sank lower and her mind more troubled by what she saw. She sat down next to Harry, who gave her a look and wrote silently on a piece of parchment, 'You'll explain this to me later.'

***

A/N: I know that was a short chapter but hopefully future chaps will be longer… Yippee! I feel another rhyme coming on…

Next chapter:

Draco and Harry

Will discover something scary

But first review and make a comment

And then you're free to read the next segment!

:)

Wow… I'm really getting the hang of this rhyming thing; maybe I'll get an 'A' on my poetry assignment after all! :D

 Or maybe NOT…

**************

My reviewers for Chapter 1:

Pinkpossom: Thanks!

Wheres-ure-head-at: Hehe, thanks for the review. I know that rhyme didn't make sense… *looks embarrassed*

Sugar Blossom: I hoped you enjoyed the story! Did you like Hermione's dream?

Sweet Water: Wow, thanks so much!

Crystalline Lily: The rhyme didn't make sense; all right, all right. I won't write stupid rhymes again. Besides… I changed it already; hopefully it's better! Yeah, I agree with you too… I used to think most authors are crazy, but… they're not!

Draco's Love: Glad you liked it!

Erythros: Thank you! And I'll be checking your story out soon!

s-d-g: Wow, thank you so much. I liked the first part too! I feel flattered… Hehe, thanks!

The Infallible Teller: Thanks so much dude! Oh yeah, Draco and Hermione are the BEST! THANK YOU!

And all those other people who reviews my work: THANKS, THANKS, THANKS! Alright… I think you get the point :D