Dedicated to everyone who reviewed and of course, Slayer, who keeps me on track!
Bring on the fic!
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Hermione sat alone in the common room for much of that night, trying to figure out what was going on. Harry knew something, and he was keeping it from her and Ron. That wasn't fair to them. Hermione sighed, and for the umpteenth time that night, she began from the beginning.
Professor Smith and Professor O'Donerty both didn't eat at the feast. They barely ate after that. They drank quite a bit. They were both pale. Yet they were constantly in the sunlight. It didn't add up.
Professor Summers was just over five feet tall. She looked like a cheerleader. She could wield any weapon and fight like it was her life. She could lift a troll hammer. Yet all of Hermione's discreetly performed spells revealed the same thing: she was human. Again, it didn't add up.
The rest of them were always around. They were Muggles brought into Hogwarts. They always seemed to know something everyone else didn't. They were in the prophecy, but Hermione was asleep when they revealed how.
After a few more moments, Hermione let out a frustrated breath. It was useless. Whatever Harry knew, she wasn't going to find out by herself. She turned to go up to her dorm when something caught her eye. It was a book, a plain black, bound one. Hermione recognized it as one Harry constantly carried around, writing in it from time to time. He had bought it after his very first dream, after talking to Professor Summers.
Hermione fought a quick internal battle. One part of her argued that it was Harry's property, and she therefore had no right to read it. The other part of her brain argued that if Harry wasn't about to tell her, she had the right to find out by herself. 'He is my friend,' she thought to herself. 'I look through his books all the time....' Still not quite convinced, Hermione nonetheless moved closer to the book. She picked it up gingerly, as if it might crumble into dust if she moved it too quickly. She gently opened the cover, immediately recognizing Harry's unique scrawl on the first page. She gazed in horror as she read.
Professor O'Donerty was a vampire with a soul - Angelus the Scourge of Europe. Professor Smith was a vampire with a soul - William the Bloody; Spike. Anya Jenkins was a vengeance demon - she had turned her boyfriend into a troll. Willow Rosenberg was a wicca - with enough power to destroy the world. Alexander Harris saved the world - fought against evil time and time again. 'Oz' was a werewolf. Rupert Giles was a member of the Watchers Council. The things they had done utterly astounded Hermione. But one thing sat at the forefront of her mind. It brought her entire belief system crashing down around her. Professor Buffy Anne Summers was the Slayer.
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Harry awoke suddenly from his dream, trying desperately to get enough air. He had seen the world not as a ghost or shadow, but as a person. He had seen it from Buffy's eyes. The night she heard the prophecy. The night she fought the Master. The night she died.
Harry had felt himself fall into the pool. Only whereas Buffy had graciously lost consciousness, Harry had felt every moment of it. He tried desperately to pull out of the water, to breathe, to live, but it was as if some invisible force had stopped him from moving at all. He began to panic. He didn't want to die. This wasn't how it was supposed to be. He needed to fight. Blackness engulfed him, and for a time, Harry had thought it was the end. Surely, there was nothing he could do. Just as he began to give in, he saw a brief flash of the cavern and Xander's face above him, and Angel not far off, before he was sucked away and into the waking world.
After he was sure that he was, indeed, alive, and that he didn't drown, Harry calmed down. His breathing slowed, and he layed his head back on the pillow in relief. After a moment, he reached over to his bureau to get his dream diary, and found nothing. It wasn't there. Harry sat straight up. He had left it in the common room.
Harry jumped out of his bed and moved quickly to the common room. He stopped when he reached the foot of the stairs. There was a light on. Someone was still awake. Harry peeked out of the shadows and was greeted with the worst possible sight he could imagine. Hermione was sitting by the fire, reading intently. She was reading a black, bound diary. Harry's diary.
Harry rushed over to her and snatched the book away from her.
"Harry!" she cried in surprise, as a thief, caught in the act.
"You had no right to read this," Harry said, containing his anger.
"You had no right to keep it from us!" Hermione said, trying to be calm.
"I had every right!"
"We're your friends Harry! We've followed you to death and back!"
"I didn't have a choice!" Harry shot back.
"You always have a choice, Harry!" Hermione argued, her voice rising. "You should have told us!"
"You think I didn't want to?!" Harry cried, immediately silencing her. "You think I didn't want to share it? You think it was so simple to know everything she's been through and not tell anyone? You think it was simple to keep it from the best friends I've ever had?" Harry calmed down, his voice returning to a quiet one. "You think it wasn't killing me?"
Hermione immediately thought of Harry as she had seen him for the past three weeks. He had been paler. He had been quieter. His perpetual smile had made sparse appearances. He didn't eat. He wasn't sleeping well. He had even missed a quidditch practice. And she, his best friend, had failed to notice it. She had refused to notice it. Even when they had all heard a prophecy outlining the fall of Voldemort, she had failed to notice his closeness to the professors. His understanding of them. Hermione was suddenly compelled to hug him. To hold him and tell him she was sorry. That it would all be ok. Hermione was never one to refuse herself.
Harry was a bit taken aback as he was suddenly hugged by the very person who was condemning him only moments before. He hesitantly returned the hug, wondering what he had missed.
"I'm so sorry Harry," she said, and Harry could tell by her voice that she was almost crying. "I'm so, so sorry."
Harry pulled back, looking at her. "Hey, calm down. Why are you the one who's sorry? And why are you crying? What's wrong?"
Hermione sniffled a bit. "I'm sorry I was harsh with you. I'm sorry I didn't notice that you were keeping something - that you were quiet and not yourself." Hermione let out a small sob. "And I'm sorry you don't need us anymore," she managed to get out before her full crying came out.
Harry was shocked. He stood there for a second, watching Hermione cry, utterly bewildered. After a moment, he pulled her back into his arms and stroked her hair gently. "Hermione, shh, calm down," he whispered soothingly. "Why would you even think that I didn't need you anymore?"
"Because," Hermione answered, and her voice was muffled, as she was speaking with her face buried in his shoulder, "because you have them. The Slayer and souled vampires and wiccans and demons and werewolves," Hermione sobbed again. "They're stronger, and better, and they know what they're doing and-"
"Hermione," Harry cut in. "You think because I have them that I don't need you?" Hermione nodded silently, and sobbed a bit more into his shoulder. Harry pulled back finally and held her firmly by the shoulders, forcing her to look into his eyes. "Hermione, you and Ron are my best friends. You said it yourself - you'd follow me to Hell and back. I can't trust them like I trust you. I work with them because I have to. I work with you because I want to."
Hermione finally smiled, a weak, sad smile, but a smile nonetheless. Her tears subsided and she held onto Harry for a little bit longer. She finally pulled back and looked at him, her eyes red from crying.
"I'm sorry I yelled at you," she said quietly, still smiling. "Goodnight Harry."
She began to walk off towards the girls dormitories, but before she moved even three steps, Harry caught her arm. In a move of pure instinct, he pulled her back to him and kissed her.
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Buffy sat wide awake in bed, her eyes darting all around. She was breathing heavily, sweating in cold fear. She sat there for a while, catching her breath as she assured herself only she and Angel were in the room. After a moment, she was aware of him waking up beside her.
"Buffy?" he mumbled. "Buffy, what's wrong?" He sat up beside her and rubbed his eyes. "What happened?" he asked urgently upon seeing her fearful look, hearing her ragged breaths.
"It was a dream," Buffy answered, her eyes unfocussed. Her voice was faraway, as if in a trace. She sounded more like she was trying to convince herself than her husband. "It was just a dream," she repeated.
Angel was fully awake now, holding her. "What happened in the dream?" he asked, his tone much akin to a parent soothing a child who had just suffered a nightmare. But one thing was certain with Buffy; her dreams were never just nightmares.
"It was Harry," Buffy answered, and her tone hadn't changed in the least. "He was there, in a graveyard. With people. Dark, black, evil people. They killed his friend. And they, they took his blood - his life. They took it, and there was a spell, and, and," Buffy trailed off, looking suddenly afraid. "And there was evil." Buffy finally snapped out of her trance and looked at Angel, a deep sorrow in her eyes. "He shouldn't have had to face that."
Angel looked at her lovingly. "Neither should you. You've faced sorrow too, Buffy," he reminded her.
Buffy nodded, looking distracted again. "I guess," she agreed halfheartedly. "But still... I know he knows about us. He's probably been having these dreams as long as I have been..."
"Does he get prophetic dreams?" Angel questioned curiously.
Buffy nodded. "He's gotta, I mean, first the First, then our fight with Acathla. There's no other way he could have seen that."
Angel nodded thoughtfully. "Do you think we should talk to him?"
Buffy shook her head. "No, he's probably sleeping. He hasn't been getting much of that, what with school, and the apocalypse. We should let him rest..." Buffy trailed off. A moment, and then, "We should talk to him."
Angel smiled a bit as Buffy jumped out of bed. "What happened to letting him rest?"
Buffy quickly threw on some clothes. "Screw rest! This is the end of the world we're discussing here. I know stuff about him, and he knows stuff about me. There's a reason and we've gotta discuss it."
Angel got out of bed slowly. "Alright, you win. We'll talk to him."
"Great! You can go get him!"
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Hermione looked up as the portrait door swung open silently, and a dark figure entered the room. She held her breath, and shook Harry slightly, hoping he would wake up. The two had fallen asleep on the couch for a bit. Harry was a heavy sleeper, it appeared. Hermione held her breath as the figure came closer. Finally, she saw who it was clearly and breathed a sigh of relief.
"Professor O'Donerty," she said, alerting him to her presence.
His head whipped around and he faced her. "Hermione," he said, surprised. "I didn't think anyone would be up. Do you know where Harry-"
Hermione held a finger to her lips and beckoned him closer, revealing to him Harry's sleeping form. His breathing was slow, and he looked so very peaceful in that state. It was obvious he was not having dreams about Buffy's past. Angel smiled a bit.
"I hate to do this," he said, "but... HARRY!"
Harry jerked awake with a small cry of alarm. He managed to fall off the couch in his quick awakening. He blinked a bit, trying to rid his eyes of sleep.
"Professor O'Donerty?" he asked groggily. "What are you doing here?"
Angel laughed a bit and helped Harry off the floor. "Buffy wants to talk to you," he explained simply.
Hermione looked concerned. "Why?" she questioned. "Is something wrong?"
Angel shook his head. "We don't know yet. I really can't talk about it-"
"She knows," Harry cut in.
Angel looked at him. "She what?"
"She knows," Harry repeated. "I've been having dreams, and I wrote them down. Hermione found the book and... well, she knows."
Angel nodded. "I see. Does Ron know?"
Hermione shook her head. "He hasn't a clue," she assured them. She blushed a bit. "Neither would I if I hadn't have heard you talking earlier."
Angel nodded again, taking in this information. "Well, that doesn't change the fact that Buffy needs to see you. I need to go speak to Giles. You two can meet her in our office."
Angel moved toward the door, but Hermione stopped him. "It's after curfew!" she stated matter-of-factly. "We'll get in trouble."
Angel mumbled something and turned back. "Do you have any parchment?" Hermione rushed over to the desk and grabbed a piece of parchment, bringing them to Angel. He shook his head. "Are you ever unprepared?"
Harry answered the question instead. "It's never happened in this millennium," he said, earning himself a glare from Hermione.
Angel laughed, and scribbled out a quick note on the parchment. He looked it over and signed it, handing it to Hermione. "If anyone gives you any trouble, give them this," he said.
Hermione and Harry nodded as they watched him leave.
^*^
A few minutes later, Harry and Hermione were walking along the corridors towards Buffy's office. They saw Willow and Oz on their way, patrolling the corridors. They seemed to know more about what was going on then Harry and Hermione did.
As they neared the door to Buffy and Angel's office, a small voice came out of the shadows. "Hem, hem."
Harry and Hermione froze, knowing full well who had caught them. Harry silently cursed himself for not bringing the Invisibility cloak. He silently thanked God, however, for the note from Professor O'Donerty. Harry and Hermione turned towards the voice, putting on their most innocent faces as Dolores Umbridge stepped out of the shadows.
"And what are two young Gryffindors doing out of bed after curfew?" she asked, looking positively gleeful.
Harry stepped forward. "We have permission from Professor O'Donerty," he answered, handing over the note.
Ms. Umbridge looked it over, scrutinizing every letter. Not looking completely satisfied, she turned behind her, looking into the shadows. "What do you think?" she asked, holding out the note.
Hermione drew in a breath as none other than Draco Malfoy stepped out of the shadows. "Malfoy!" she gasped. "What are you doing?"
Malfoy smirked triumphantly. "Turns out I got a little something that Ms. Umbridge here thinks is just great. She says I'd be perfect for keeping some of the more," he looked at Harry and sneered, "unruly students in line."
Harry glared at his long-time rival. "So then I suppose you'll be keeping yourself in line now?"
Malfoy glared back. "Careful, Potter," he spat. "Soon as Ms. Umbridge says the word, and I can take points away from you faster than you can-"
"Boys, boys," Umbridge interrupted. "This isn't the time. Now, Draco, tell me, what do you think of this?" she questioned, handing him the note.
Draco took it and looked it over briefly. "Forgery," he said simply, handing back to Umbridge.
Harry stepped forward. "It is not and you know it!" he got out, before the door behind him opened.
"What's going on out here?" Buffy questioned, looking around. "Oh, Harry, good you're here," she trailed off as she caught sight of Umbridge, Malfoy, and Hermione. "And you brought friends....?"
Harry shook his head. "No, well, sort of. Me and Hermione were on our way here when Ms. Umbridge and Malfoy stopped us. Thought we were breaking the rules."
Buffy nodded. "Well, you're not," she turned to Umbridge, "they're not. So, you can just run along now. I need to talk to Harry - and Hermione, apparently."
Umbridge scowled. "At midnight?" she questioned sternly.
Buffy shrugged. "It's important," she said, sounding bored, ushering the two Gryffindors into her room. Umbridge and Malfoy didn't move.
"Of course, you'd break the rules for the famous Harry Potter," Malfoy muttered.
Buffy turned back to them. "What did you say?" she demanded.
Malfoy took a step behind Umbridge, as if she would protect him from Buffy's wrath. Instead, she chose to add fuel to the fire.
"Well, it seems that the famous Harry Potter gets nothing but preferential treatment," she spat out.
Buffy glared. "He didn't ask for this," she ground out evenly.
"Yes, well, he got it didn't he?" Umbridge shot back. "Famous Harry Potter, loved by all, the bravest child you ever saw-"
"AND LOOK WHAT GOOD IT'S DONE HIM!" Buffy exploded. Harry and Hermione stepped further into her office, looking almost frightened. Malfoy stayed behind Umbridge, who's eyes were wide as she stepped back a bit. Buffy continued, her fire fuelled.
"HE'S FAMOUS FOR SOMETHING HE DOESN'T EVEN REMEMBER!" she shouted. "Famous for saving your ass from the worst wizard there ever was and this is how you treat him?! You think he woke up one morning and said 'I think I'll save the world today'. Is that what you think?! He didn't choose this! It chose him. He didn't get a choice and all you can think to say is how he gets treated differently?! People have died right in front of him! His friends are in danger just for being his friends! Maybe you don't get it! He's stared death in the face and all you can think to say is 'Famous Harry Potter'?! It's a wonder people fight for this world if you're what it has to offer! Get out of my sight!"
Umbridge looked completely affronted. "I'll have you fired by the morning," she hissed, turning around. Draco followed after her, turning to look back at Harry.
"Good thing you've got a professor to fight your battles Potter," he spat.
Harry looked back at Buffy and smiled. "She wasn't fighting my battle, Malfoy. She was fighting her own."
Malfoy narrowed his eyes. "What's that supposed to mean?"
Hermione smirked, shutting the door. "It's a secret."
^*^
Later in the day, Harry once again found himself facing a thoroughly pissed-off Buffy Summers. Umbridge had taken it upon herself to 'rate' Buffy's teaching methods. It was obvious she was not pleased with the arrangement. Harry, Hermione, and Ron smiled a bit as they entered the class. Buffy caught sight of them and waved them over.
"You three!" she called out. "I need to see you after class!" They nodded as the rest of the students filed in.
Draco, of course, looked immensely pleased about the fact that Buffy was stuck with Umbridge for the duration of the class. His broad smirk and triumphant glare were enough to set Harry's blood boiling. Fortunately for him, this class was all about hitting each other. Harry smiled an almost maniacal smile as the thought ran through his mind. Unfortunately, today's class was not about hitting.
Angel seemed a lot more at ease than Buffy as the class began. He invited Umbridge to join in, but the old bat opted to watch and take notes, often scowling at Buffy.
The class was focussing now on Tai Chi. They had learned to punch, kick, roll - all the important things to a fight. Now they were working on discipline. Angel and Buffy demonstrated the moves at the front of the room, the rest of the class trying to keep up. Harry noted with some satisfaction that Malfoy (and Crabbe and Goyle) seemed to be having a fair bit of trouble with the flowing movements.
The class was almost silent as they proceeded through the calming routine. It was that silence that made it seem so much louder as the wall burst in, and 50 death eaters came rushing into the classroom.
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hahahahaha!! Left y'all with a cliffhanger! *insert evil look here* drop a review if you want the next chapter quick...er