Disclaimer: These characters are the creation of J. K. Rowling. The dream
that takes place IS a scene from the Harry Potter book, The Order of the
Phoenix...just so you all know.
* * * * *
The remainder of the day was pretty eventless. The golden trio walked back to the castle from Herbology with the Hufflepuffs and as they did so, the wind ripped through their robes and nipped at their noses.
The big oak doors welcomed them inside as they always did and the warmth generated in the Great Hall was twice as inviting. Hermione's cheeks were a rosy red as the three walked into the Great Hall.
The moment Hermione entered the Hall, a shiver was sent up her spine and she slowly became aware of the feeling that she was being watched. She looked around her but saw no one looking at her.
She distorted her face a little in curiosity and discomfort for a moment but continued with what she was doing. They ate and returned to their rooms.
Darkness began to drape the night sky and it enveloped the castle as Harry walked beside Ron and glanced through the window. They were walking toward the common room and when they got there Ron took a seat in one of the lazy chairs that was placed in front of the fire. Harry continued walking.
"Harry? Where are you going?"
"I'm off to bed. I didn't sleep very well last night and I'm tired."
"Won't you stick around for just a bit?"
"No Ron. Practice starts in two days and I need to be well rested. At this rate, I won' be able to stand tomorrow unless I get some sleep, so if you don't mind, I'm going to bed now."
"Alright."
Ron sighed and sat in the chair for another few minutes before he too retired to his bed.
~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *
The events unfolded quickly as Harry was surrounded by ten Death Eaters, all wanting the same thing, the prophecy, clutched in his left hand close to his chest. His legs barely supported his weight as he held his wand out in his right hand.
"Potter, your race is run. Hand me the prophecy" drawled Lucius.
"I will only if you let the others go."
"You are not in a position to bargain, Potter. It's ten to one" said Lucius.
That realization hit him very shortly and then faded away very quickly as Neville scrambled down the steps.
Harry watched with a horror stricken face as the next set of events unfolded. Neville was lying on the ground writhing in pain and the door burst open once again as five of the people who he was most relieved to see came in: Sirius, Tonks, Moody, Kingsley, and Lupin.
Relief swept over him momentarily and was then dragged back to reality. Duels were taking place all over the room and spells were flying everywhere. At some point Neville had been hit with Tarantallegra spell and his legs twitched wildly beyond his control.
Sirius directed them to get out of there and gather the others. When they attempted to do so, another round of relief came over Harry as Dumbledore appeared in the doorway. The situation was under control for the time being. Dumbledore took care of most of the others while only two were left battling it out, Sirius and Bellatrix.
He watched as his godfather ducked the first spell but to no avail, was hit by the second. He fell gracefully downward, through the ancient doorway and behind the veil. It swayed from the movement and then resumed its previous position. He screamed Sirius' name as he heard a laugh of triumph from Bellatrix. He desperately tried to retrieve his godfather, but the only comfort he found was the arm of Lupin around his waist pulling him away.
~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *
Harry jumped up on his bed and sat bolt upright. A cold sweat had formulated on his skin and it was clammy to the touch. Harry pinched himself just to make sure he was awake and looked around the room. His eyes darted blindly in the darkness and the only thing he could see was the faint glow of the moon coming from the window.
He rubbed his eyes and sighed at another restless night. He was trying to figure out how he would stay awake tomorrow.
Harry pushed the curtains that surrounded his four-poster to the side and emerged through them. He slid his glasses on that had been placed on the table beside his bed and slid off his bed onto the floor. He walked silently over to the window and looked out over the grounds of Hogwarts, not that there was much to see because it was hidden beneath the drape of darkness. Harry watched his breath intently as it hit the cold window and formed a cloud upon the glass. He traced his finger through it slowly and then watched it fade into its original transparency.
Harry let out a longer sigh this time and turned back to his bed. He lit the candle on the table beside the bed as he sat down and watched the beautiful flames dance in the surrounding darkness. Shadows made themselves present on the walls of the dorm. Harry then looked to his other roommates, Seamus, Dean, and Ron, who were all still fast asleep. He wasn't worried about waking them though because he hadn't last night.
Harry scanned his items, looking for something to occupy himself with, seeing as he wouldn't be sleeping and all he could think of was looking through one of his textbooks. The first he picked up was his Potions book but then realized what he was doing and threw it to the ground. Ron grunted at the thud and rolled over. Harry picked up his Muggle studies book. Memories of what had happened earlier that day and yesterday came flooding back into his mind.
Harry flipped through the thin pages and stopped every once in a while to glance at a picture illustrated on the page. He carefully split two pages apart that were stuck together and found quite an intriguing picture on one of them. He observed it carefully and then began reading the caption and the text beneath it. He spent the rest of the night buried in that book.
* * * * *
The next morning, the sun pierced through Ron's eyelids and its warmth welcomed him into the new day. He sat up and yawned. He saw Harry dressing and he too got up. Harry turned around and Ron looked surprised as he saw his face.
"What the hell happened to you? You look like shit."
"Thanks Ron. Nice confidence booster right there" he said sarcastically.
"No really though. You look horrible."
"I didn't sleep. That's what happened."
"Why bloody not?"
"I had a really bad dream and I couldn't sleep. It's the same thing that happened the night before."
"Want to talk about it?"
"Not particularly. Not right now anyway."
"Well, are you alright?"
"Does it look like I'm bloody alright?"
"Sorry, I-"
"No, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have snapped like that. I'm just tired is all. And apparently irritable too."
"Breakfast?"
"No thanks. You go ahead. I'm not really hungry."
"Come on. You have to eat something."
Harry looked at him and Ron made a stupid face.
"Alright, I'll come and eat something."
"Good."
Ron finished getting dressed and the two walked to breakfast and found Hermione there. She was drinking out of her goblet when Harry ran up behind her and poked her just below the last rib on both of her sides.
Hermione squealed and whipped her head quickly around to see who it was. She smiled up at Harry when she saw his green orbs looking down at her. He took a seat next to her.
"You ok Harry?"
"Yeah, why?"
"You look horrible."
"That makes two."
"What?"
"Ron said the same thing."
"Well, what happened?"
"I didn't sleep well last night. I've been having this really bad dream and it's been keeping me up."
Hermione smiled understandingly at him and decided not to push the topic. She knew Harry would tell them when he was ready to.
"I don't know how I'm awake right now" Harry said and chuckled.
Hermione smiled at him again and observed his profile. The first noticeable thing was that bags under his eyes.
"Harry, come with me."
He looked at her quizzically.
"Let's fix you up."
Harry nodded and followed Hermione out of the Great Hall. Hermione had that feeling again, as if she was being watched. They left Ron talking to some fellow Gryffindors, but he didn't mind. He had to admit, Harry needed the help.
Hermione led him up to Myrtle's bathroom and he followed her in.
"Really Harry, you should get some sleep, you're not going to be able to play tomorrow."
"I know."
"Do you want to talk about it?"
"Not really. Maybe if you would sleep with me, I wouldn't have these bad dreams."
Hermione looked at him as it hit him how wrong that came out. She looked taken aback.
"No, I-I didn't mean it like th- I meant-"
Hermione put a finger to his lips and shushed him.
"Forget about it."
Harry nodded. He could feel the blood rush into his face. Hermione muttered an incantation under her breath to make him look lively. The bags under his eyes disappeared and then she spoke.
"All better."
Harry smiled at her and thanked her. The two walked to their first class and that's where they met back up with Ron.
"That's better Harry" he said when he saw them.
Harry remained silent and took a seat at and empty table. Hermione sat down next to Ron as class begun. Class seemed to pass quickly enough seeing as it just felt like class had begun when Professor Binns had dismissed them.
Their next class was Defense Against the Dark Arts and because they had yet to find a new teacher for that class, as they always had to replace the position every year, the students had a work period, accompanied by the Slytherins. Hermione knew this situation would turn out disastrous.
To her surprise, Malfoy kept his "friends" in check and nothing dramatic happened, aside from the fact that she could feel his eyes fixed on her more than once. It bothered her too. She figured there was nothing she could do about it at the moment however.
Hermione walked quickly up to her common room and found a note on her door as she went to her room to grab a few of her books. She took it down carefully and opened it.
It was from Malfoy.
It read:
Granger,
Meet me in the Astronomy Tower tonight at ten o'clock.
Malfoy
Hermione read the note again to make sure she had read it right and to make sure it was from who she thought it was from. She shook her head disbelief and entered her room. She dropped her books on her bed, picked the ones she needed and took a seat on her bed for only a minute. She contemplated what she should do. Her face displayed a distraught expression.
"What should I do?" she thought to herself.
Hermione pushed the thought aside for the time being and headed to Arithmancy. The boys were at Divination and she would see them later in the day. Arithmancy proved to be the slowest class of the day and the minutes passed by as slowly as ever. Thoughts about the note passed through Hermione's mind and her attention drifted.
"Why would he possibly want to meet me?" she muttered to herself quietly.
The class finally ended and the rest of day passed just as slowly, while Hermione's thoughts still lingered on Malfoy's note.
Hermione finished her duties shortly after and after thoroughly thinking about the situation, she decided to go meet him.
She walked cautiously up the staircase and kept herself alert to her surroundings. When she reached the top, she opened the door and stood in the entrance. The tower was dark inside the door and the light from the staircase behind her served as a luminous background. Her shadow could be seen on the floor.
"Malfoy?"
He stood silent, his hands in his pockets and his eyes fixed on something out of the window.
Hermione walked forward and approached him from behind. Malfoy heard her doing so and spoke.
"Close the door."
Hermione remained motionless for a moment and he repeated himself.
"Close the door."
Hermione hesitantly walked over to the door and shut it, then walked toward Malfoy who remained planted in that spot.
"What did you want?"
He didn't speak again.
Hermione began to get frustrated with the fact that he would not tell her what he wanted and simply get this over with. She stepped closer to him and grabbed his arm where his bicep was.
Malfoy whipped around, grabbed her arms and pinned her against the wall. Hermione screamed once but before she could attempt it again, Malfoy muffled her sound with his hand over her mouth.
A protruding brick in the wall was digging into her back but she was too distracted by what was happening to notice. Malfoy pressed himself up against her so she was pinned between him and the wall.
"I didn't think you would show" he whispered in her ear. She shuddered. She tried to speak but her words were interrupted by his lips. He kissed her roughly and walked away. He disappeared through the door with his hands in his pockets, leaving her to analyze what just had happened on her own. He returned to the common room and went to his own room.
Hermione stood in the Tower still, staring into the darkness and not moving for a few minutes. Dazed, she made her way back to the common room with no trouble from Filch and locked herself in her room.
* * * * *
A/N: I know this story jumps around a lot between characters but it will end up as what I said it would...I have some plans in mind for the plot and it'll all piece together in the end. I promise. Also.I know I've referred to Draco as well, Draco, but I'm going to call him Malfoy from now on.just to clarify. I'm just too lazy to change it..haha.
* * * * *
The remainder of the day was pretty eventless. The golden trio walked back to the castle from Herbology with the Hufflepuffs and as they did so, the wind ripped through their robes and nipped at their noses.
The big oak doors welcomed them inside as they always did and the warmth generated in the Great Hall was twice as inviting. Hermione's cheeks were a rosy red as the three walked into the Great Hall.
The moment Hermione entered the Hall, a shiver was sent up her spine and she slowly became aware of the feeling that she was being watched. She looked around her but saw no one looking at her.
She distorted her face a little in curiosity and discomfort for a moment but continued with what she was doing. They ate and returned to their rooms.
Darkness began to drape the night sky and it enveloped the castle as Harry walked beside Ron and glanced through the window. They were walking toward the common room and when they got there Ron took a seat in one of the lazy chairs that was placed in front of the fire. Harry continued walking.
"Harry? Where are you going?"
"I'm off to bed. I didn't sleep very well last night and I'm tired."
"Won't you stick around for just a bit?"
"No Ron. Practice starts in two days and I need to be well rested. At this rate, I won' be able to stand tomorrow unless I get some sleep, so if you don't mind, I'm going to bed now."
"Alright."
Ron sighed and sat in the chair for another few minutes before he too retired to his bed.
~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *
The events unfolded quickly as Harry was surrounded by ten Death Eaters, all wanting the same thing, the prophecy, clutched in his left hand close to his chest. His legs barely supported his weight as he held his wand out in his right hand.
"Potter, your race is run. Hand me the prophecy" drawled Lucius.
"I will only if you let the others go."
"You are not in a position to bargain, Potter. It's ten to one" said Lucius.
That realization hit him very shortly and then faded away very quickly as Neville scrambled down the steps.
Harry watched with a horror stricken face as the next set of events unfolded. Neville was lying on the ground writhing in pain and the door burst open once again as five of the people who he was most relieved to see came in: Sirius, Tonks, Moody, Kingsley, and Lupin.
Relief swept over him momentarily and was then dragged back to reality. Duels were taking place all over the room and spells were flying everywhere. At some point Neville had been hit with Tarantallegra spell and his legs twitched wildly beyond his control.
Sirius directed them to get out of there and gather the others. When they attempted to do so, another round of relief came over Harry as Dumbledore appeared in the doorway. The situation was under control for the time being. Dumbledore took care of most of the others while only two were left battling it out, Sirius and Bellatrix.
He watched as his godfather ducked the first spell but to no avail, was hit by the second. He fell gracefully downward, through the ancient doorway and behind the veil. It swayed from the movement and then resumed its previous position. He screamed Sirius' name as he heard a laugh of triumph from Bellatrix. He desperately tried to retrieve his godfather, but the only comfort he found was the arm of Lupin around his waist pulling him away.
~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *
Harry jumped up on his bed and sat bolt upright. A cold sweat had formulated on his skin and it was clammy to the touch. Harry pinched himself just to make sure he was awake and looked around the room. His eyes darted blindly in the darkness and the only thing he could see was the faint glow of the moon coming from the window.
He rubbed his eyes and sighed at another restless night. He was trying to figure out how he would stay awake tomorrow.
Harry pushed the curtains that surrounded his four-poster to the side and emerged through them. He slid his glasses on that had been placed on the table beside his bed and slid off his bed onto the floor. He walked silently over to the window and looked out over the grounds of Hogwarts, not that there was much to see because it was hidden beneath the drape of darkness. Harry watched his breath intently as it hit the cold window and formed a cloud upon the glass. He traced his finger through it slowly and then watched it fade into its original transparency.
Harry let out a longer sigh this time and turned back to his bed. He lit the candle on the table beside the bed as he sat down and watched the beautiful flames dance in the surrounding darkness. Shadows made themselves present on the walls of the dorm. Harry then looked to his other roommates, Seamus, Dean, and Ron, who were all still fast asleep. He wasn't worried about waking them though because he hadn't last night.
Harry scanned his items, looking for something to occupy himself with, seeing as he wouldn't be sleeping and all he could think of was looking through one of his textbooks. The first he picked up was his Potions book but then realized what he was doing and threw it to the ground. Ron grunted at the thud and rolled over. Harry picked up his Muggle studies book. Memories of what had happened earlier that day and yesterday came flooding back into his mind.
Harry flipped through the thin pages and stopped every once in a while to glance at a picture illustrated on the page. He carefully split two pages apart that were stuck together and found quite an intriguing picture on one of them. He observed it carefully and then began reading the caption and the text beneath it. He spent the rest of the night buried in that book.
* * * * *
The next morning, the sun pierced through Ron's eyelids and its warmth welcomed him into the new day. He sat up and yawned. He saw Harry dressing and he too got up. Harry turned around and Ron looked surprised as he saw his face.
"What the hell happened to you? You look like shit."
"Thanks Ron. Nice confidence booster right there" he said sarcastically.
"No really though. You look horrible."
"I didn't sleep. That's what happened."
"Why bloody not?"
"I had a really bad dream and I couldn't sleep. It's the same thing that happened the night before."
"Want to talk about it?"
"Not particularly. Not right now anyway."
"Well, are you alright?"
"Does it look like I'm bloody alright?"
"Sorry, I-"
"No, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have snapped like that. I'm just tired is all. And apparently irritable too."
"Breakfast?"
"No thanks. You go ahead. I'm not really hungry."
"Come on. You have to eat something."
Harry looked at him and Ron made a stupid face.
"Alright, I'll come and eat something."
"Good."
Ron finished getting dressed and the two walked to breakfast and found Hermione there. She was drinking out of her goblet when Harry ran up behind her and poked her just below the last rib on both of her sides.
Hermione squealed and whipped her head quickly around to see who it was. She smiled up at Harry when she saw his green orbs looking down at her. He took a seat next to her.
"You ok Harry?"
"Yeah, why?"
"You look horrible."
"That makes two."
"What?"
"Ron said the same thing."
"Well, what happened?"
"I didn't sleep well last night. I've been having this really bad dream and it's been keeping me up."
Hermione smiled understandingly at him and decided not to push the topic. She knew Harry would tell them when he was ready to.
"I don't know how I'm awake right now" Harry said and chuckled.
Hermione smiled at him again and observed his profile. The first noticeable thing was that bags under his eyes.
"Harry, come with me."
He looked at her quizzically.
"Let's fix you up."
Harry nodded and followed Hermione out of the Great Hall. Hermione had that feeling again, as if she was being watched. They left Ron talking to some fellow Gryffindors, but he didn't mind. He had to admit, Harry needed the help.
Hermione led him up to Myrtle's bathroom and he followed her in.
"Really Harry, you should get some sleep, you're not going to be able to play tomorrow."
"I know."
"Do you want to talk about it?"
"Not really. Maybe if you would sleep with me, I wouldn't have these bad dreams."
Hermione looked at him as it hit him how wrong that came out. She looked taken aback.
"No, I-I didn't mean it like th- I meant-"
Hermione put a finger to his lips and shushed him.
"Forget about it."
Harry nodded. He could feel the blood rush into his face. Hermione muttered an incantation under her breath to make him look lively. The bags under his eyes disappeared and then she spoke.
"All better."
Harry smiled at her and thanked her. The two walked to their first class and that's where they met back up with Ron.
"That's better Harry" he said when he saw them.
Harry remained silent and took a seat at and empty table. Hermione sat down next to Ron as class begun. Class seemed to pass quickly enough seeing as it just felt like class had begun when Professor Binns had dismissed them.
Their next class was Defense Against the Dark Arts and because they had yet to find a new teacher for that class, as they always had to replace the position every year, the students had a work period, accompanied by the Slytherins. Hermione knew this situation would turn out disastrous.
To her surprise, Malfoy kept his "friends" in check and nothing dramatic happened, aside from the fact that she could feel his eyes fixed on her more than once. It bothered her too. She figured there was nothing she could do about it at the moment however.
Hermione walked quickly up to her common room and found a note on her door as she went to her room to grab a few of her books. She took it down carefully and opened it.
It was from Malfoy.
It read:
Granger,
Meet me in the Astronomy Tower tonight at ten o'clock.
Malfoy
Hermione read the note again to make sure she had read it right and to make sure it was from who she thought it was from. She shook her head disbelief and entered her room. She dropped her books on her bed, picked the ones she needed and took a seat on her bed for only a minute. She contemplated what she should do. Her face displayed a distraught expression.
"What should I do?" she thought to herself.
Hermione pushed the thought aside for the time being and headed to Arithmancy. The boys were at Divination and she would see them later in the day. Arithmancy proved to be the slowest class of the day and the minutes passed by as slowly as ever. Thoughts about the note passed through Hermione's mind and her attention drifted.
"Why would he possibly want to meet me?" she muttered to herself quietly.
The class finally ended and the rest of day passed just as slowly, while Hermione's thoughts still lingered on Malfoy's note.
Hermione finished her duties shortly after and after thoroughly thinking about the situation, she decided to go meet him.
She walked cautiously up the staircase and kept herself alert to her surroundings. When she reached the top, she opened the door and stood in the entrance. The tower was dark inside the door and the light from the staircase behind her served as a luminous background. Her shadow could be seen on the floor.
"Malfoy?"
He stood silent, his hands in his pockets and his eyes fixed on something out of the window.
Hermione walked forward and approached him from behind. Malfoy heard her doing so and spoke.
"Close the door."
Hermione remained motionless for a moment and he repeated himself.
"Close the door."
Hermione hesitantly walked over to the door and shut it, then walked toward Malfoy who remained planted in that spot.
"What did you want?"
He didn't speak again.
Hermione began to get frustrated with the fact that he would not tell her what he wanted and simply get this over with. She stepped closer to him and grabbed his arm where his bicep was.
Malfoy whipped around, grabbed her arms and pinned her against the wall. Hermione screamed once but before she could attempt it again, Malfoy muffled her sound with his hand over her mouth.
A protruding brick in the wall was digging into her back but she was too distracted by what was happening to notice. Malfoy pressed himself up against her so she was pinned between him and the wall.
"I didn't think you would show" he whispered in her ear. She shuddered. She tried to speak but her words were interrupted by his lips. He kissed her roughly and walked away. He disappeared through the door with his hands in his pockets, leaving her to analyze what just had happened on her own. He returned to the common room and went to his own room.
Hermione stood in the Tower still, staring into the darkness and not moving for a few minutes. Dazed, she made her way back to the common room with no trouble from Filch and locked herself in her room.
* * * * *
A/N: I know this story jumps around a lot between characters but it will end up as what I said it would...I have some plans in mind for the plot and it'll all piece together in the end. I promise. Also.I know I've referred to Draco as well, Draco, but I'm going to call him Malfoy from now on.just to clarify. I'm just too lazy to change it..haha.