Author's Note: This chapter will be flying through Christmas, because we all know we want Mione and Draco back together again. And preferably snogging again. So here we go. All dreams and memories will be in italics. Just to let you know.
Disclaimer: Gimme a break! Read another chapter.
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Hermione felt the holidays fly by. Soon it was Christmas Day. She opened presents and smiles for pictures and laughed with relatives. She missed Mags. Normally they snuck off and hid from scary relatives on these occasions. Soon it was the night before she was to leave for the Burrow. She had been lucky all break so far. Not one nightmare. Then it hit her like a freight train.
There was battle everywhere. They were at Hogwarts. Everyone she loved was in danger. She and Mags were all that was left again. They were helpless. They had given up. They were not prepared and now they would die and Hogwarts would fall. And it was all her fault…all her fault…all her fault. She scream filled the air as she and Mags were killed…
Hermione woke up screaming. Her eyes wild in fear. This could happen. This might be what Mags was talking about that night. They had no choice. They had to come back, or Hogwarts was just waiting to fall.
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Mags and Oliver were talking ion the Great Hall when Minerva came running in to find her.
"Mags dear you have an urgent owl from Ms. Granger." She handed her a note and waited. Hermione never sent anything urgent.
Mags opened it and her hands started to shake.
It is coming. We must prepare.
"She saw it too…" she whispered and got up and ran to Dumbledore.
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The next morning Hermione resolved that she would put it out of her mind till she returned to Hogwarts and could talk to Mags in person. Perhaps over tea. Her bags were ready and she prepared to floo to the Burrow. One more hug and she yelled, "The Burrow!" and was gone in green flame."
She felt the familiar sensation of free falling. Then there she was in the Burrow. During breakfast and Molly was so thrilled to see her. That is when she saw everyone in there Weasley sweaters, even Draco. She winked at him and let Mrs. Weasley fuss. She knew from experience that it would only end when she was satisfied and not a moment before. Stubborn woman she was!
"Have a nice Christmas everyone?" Mione asked as she sat down to a large breakfast. She sat next to Draco and he ran a hand up and down her thigh under the table. She kissed his cheek and grinned at the faces Ron and Harry made.
"Mione! IT is too early to snog! Especially a former enemy at the breakfast table!" Ron complained.
"How about some stimulating conversation then Ron?" Ginny asked with a grin and a wink at Harry.
Ron blushed bright red and went back to eating. TH e teenagers all laughed at him, and the adults just looked confused.
"Private joke Mum." Ron muttered at his mother's questioning look. Molly shrugged and went back to fussing over her husband.
Soon they were finished and they decided to finish opening presents. Hermione had to search her bags for them but soon everyone had a lovely wrapped gift from her on their lap.
"Draco, you go first." She urged and he grinned at her. He opened it carefully and gasped.
"Mione how did you know…?" and he pulled out two gifts. One was a portrait of a silver Dragon guarding a maiden with wild brown curls. Every now and then the maiden would lovingly stroke the dragon and the dragon would purr. The second was something more, well girly. It was a silver frame with a picture of all of them laughing in front of the train. Ginny was standing in Harry's arms, Ron was giving Lavender bunny ears as she grinned and rolled her eyes, and Mione was on Draco's back piggyback ride style. They all were so happy. Under it was inscribed 'Remember the good times always'.
"Now you!" he urged and she tore his wrapping paper off. And she looked ready to laugh and cry.
First she pulled out his Slytherin Snakes hooded sweatshirt. In it was wrapped a Lioness that paced and purred and roared every now and then. Then the other part was a picture of the Golden Trio that instead of them waving, they grew. From first year to now. And when it reached now, Ginny, Draco and Lavender were added.
"Draco, thank you! And does this mean I get to keep your sweatshirt?" she said wiping away happy tears as she slipped it on.
"When have I ever gotten to wear it this year? Seemed simpler to let you keep it." He grinned cuddling her close.
The room laughed at that. Hermione was notorious for stealing hooded sweatshirts. She knew this and blushed. Draco was confused at the laughter.
"I think I am missing something." Draco said as Hermione settled in next to him.
"Yeah Mione is infamous for stealing hooded sweatshirts. Hey does this mean I can get min back?" asked Harry with a grin in her direction.
"Nope. It is all mine! Buy Ginny a new one!" Mione said with an emphatic nod of her head.
Draco grinned, "She just out and out stole it. Then she wore it to get me once when I was in the Slytherin Common room…. I thought she was going to start a riot!"
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Mags slipped Wood a small package after dinner on Christmas. He quickly unwrapped it. It was a photo of him teaching a first year how to balance. Every now and then he and the student would wave.
"Thank you. I never thought I could get into teaching, but I am really liking what I do here." Oliver said as they started down a corridor. Mags grinned at him.
"Teaching gets into your blood quicker than anything. And since you are so passionate about it I think you need to share that passion. And teaching can be safer than professional Quidditch." She added hopefully.
"I am staying for the rest of the year." He whispered loudly in her ear.
"And why is that Mr. Wood?" Mags teased, stopping by a torch.
He backed her into the wall and leaned over her, her breath quickened and looked up at him with large sparkling green eyes. He leaned closer and kissed her. Sweetly and fully on the lips. His hands found their way to her cheek and the small of her back. She sighed and leaned into his kiss slightly.
Pulling back slightly, "Because I can't imagine leaving here yet. Leaving with out getting to know you better anyway." And then he kissed her again, deepening it a little this time.
"Happy Christmas." They said at the same time before continuing on their nightly walk holding hands and talking softly.
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They were all lounging in the Weasley's family room when Hermione sat straight up and grinned at Draco, " I have the next task idea…." She darted over and whispered it in his ear.
Draco grinned back and darted off to write it to Cho and Justin. Everyone else glared at them for a moment for being left out of the loop and then shrugged and went back to whatever it was they had been doing.
Hermione settled in and went back to reading a new book by the fire. Her eyes grew droopy and soon she was dozing by the fire. That was a mistake. The nightmare came again…and in more detail…
She was alone in the dungeons of Hogwarts. She could hear Mags shouting orders in the background. She could hear ragged breathing and so she stopped, but this was deeper and jagged. He was near. The Death Eater she had been tracking was very close by. Hermione proceeded with caution and then she found him, raised her wand and said clearly, "Abitio Azkaban." And with that he was gone to the prison. Then she heard Mags scream in pain and she ran back up the stairs to see her cousin writing in agony. She repeated the words to that wizard and he was gone. Mags got up weakly and grinned. And then climbed painfully onto her broom and went back up to help the flying warriors.
Mione ran back into the thick of the ground battle. She dodged hexes and curses, not to mention some pretty nasty looking swords until she got to the front lines. She went right back to fighting any way she could. With her wand or her sword. It was hard to believe this battlefield was the Great Hall at Hogwarts… Then she heard the woosh that signaled a blade moving through the air and before she could block it had struck her. She could hear Mags scream her name as she fell…
She woke up screaming again, this time with all of her friends looking at her worriedly. She shrugged them all off and ran out the door and summoned her broom and flew off into the air. Away from the nightmare and the pain…
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It her teachers' quarters back at Hogwarts Mags had a similar dream. Once again she woke screaming and drenched in sweat. Her fist curled into tight balls, and tears running down her cheeks. She went and looked out her window and thought back to Hermione's letter from earlier. She was right. They had ignored this for too damn long. But this time they would do things their way.
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Draco ran after her but sensed she needed space, so he did not follow her into the night sky. Harry and Ron looked at each other and grew even more worried, "Have these been happening often?" Harry asked Draco coming up from behind him.
"Not until recently. And then the other night after the frosting fight? Mags had a dream that we heard her screaming in the front entrance. When we got there all she could say was 'It is coming here.'"
Ginny shuddered just thinking what could have made Mione scream like that, nothing scared her. Nothing.
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Hermione flew for a while and then smiled as she stopped over a lake somewhere. All these years having to hide her flying. Not really wanting to for all the memories it brought back. She had loved it once. The freedom, the feeling of being in utter control. Now it was her one way of out running her fate, if even for a only a moment. She looked at the moon and let it soothe her spirit and mind. She and Mags were back on active duty it seemed and moments like this would be rare. She then turned around and headed back.
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Dumbledore looked up as Mags entered his office. She was shaking and looked like she had not had too much sleep lately.
"Albus, we have a problem. My dreams are getting more and more vivid and now Mione is having them too."
"Then we must begin to prepare for the worst. Have you thought about what I ask of you the last time?" He responded with quiet strength as he helped sit down and handed her some hot chocolate.
She looked him in the eyes, and grinned wearily, "I have. And we will do it. But we will do it our way."
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AN: Not too much fluff I know but I do need to develop the plot to. Once they hit Hogwarts there will be more fluff! I swear! R&R!! Thank you!!!