Worse Hair Yet for Hermione Granger:Part Three.
"Not if you don't try to send me back."Hermione replied instantly.
Draco reguarded Hermione, trying to decide if she was serious. But he quickly made up his mind. "Allright."he said,"Let's get going."
It wasn't difficult for them to leave Hogwarts, School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. If anyone had seen them, they would have fond more oddity in the unusual pairing of the acedemic gryfendor and the icy slytherinn than in the fact that they were skipping class. They said less then two words the whole way to the doors. They grunted as they pushed them open, and trotted down the stairs,matching eachothers strides perfectly.
A chill wind beat against their robes, and whipped Hermione's hair about her face. Shivering, she hugged her arms to her chest.
Draco waited wordlessly, and they continued on their way.
They quickly ate up the distance to the forest. They paused at the outskirts, and both threw a longing glance at the saftey that was Hogwarts.
"this is it."Draco said. "last chance to go back to those notes you excell at." He gave Hermione a questioning glance.
Hermione shook her head with an air of finallity. "I'm coming."
"what if I drag you into something you'll regret?"
Hermione laughed.
"Then I'll turn you into a toad."
Draco smiled a wry smile, and the two of them stepped across the threshold, into the forest. They walked a ways in silence, too obsorbed in the tedious task of snapping twigs and stomping foilage, of forgeing a path into the forbidden, to spare a thought for the other. Soon, however, much sooner then either had expected, they reached a clearing. Draco whiped the persperation from his pale brow as her Hermione bent to streighten her robes,then straightened to pull a burr or three from her hair. Exhaling, Draco said:"So."the single word hung like a question in the air between them:what now? Hermione opened her mouth as if to answer, but at that moment, something happened that scattered all linear thoughts from Hermione's frizzy head and Draco's pretty one. "Why are you making that noise?"Draco asked, panicked. He knew evan as he said it that howling, mournfull wail like a gian'ts infant bawling was not issueing from Hermione's bearly parted lips.
"I'm not!!!!" she exclaimed, thinking of something to say at last. They both stood silent for a moment and listened.
"Sounds like someone opened a howler."Draco said, uneasy and not able to fully mask it.
"Not an english howler!!!" Hermione was right. The wordless moan was inhuman and reached octives that human or howler alike could never hope to hit.
"I think we should go back!" Hermione sounded frantic.
"Be my guest. I'm staying.".
"Draco...."Hermione trailed off helplessly.
"you can tell me not to leave now, belatedly. Because i'm telling you to go back to class!"Draco snapped irritably, forgeing on.
Hermione caught his sleave."DRACO!"
Now Draco caught what he'd missed before:the quavering urgency that was more than fear of loud noises. He piveted on one foot.
For a moment all he could see was the freightened glint in Hermione's liquid brown eyes. Then he screamed.
He was stareing into the goulish, leering eyes as red as rubys, as large and almound shaped as footballs. A jagged jaw opened. Huge, craterous nostrils flared. A row of parchment yellow teeth glinted in the dark. A forked, serpentine tung slithered across scaled lips.
"Dispersetate!"Hermione yelled, and a blinding flash of white light shot from the tip of her readied wand.
Draco collapsed against her, cluching her sleave as she held his. His face flooded with relief.
Hermione studied him, his head against her shoulder, his pale gold hair looking paler and golder then ever against her robe that was black as a void. "Relax." she said gently. "It was only an illusion.
Draco quickly recovered his composer, springing away from Hermione and double-tasking as he flicked her hand from his wrist and whiped a residual magical dust from his robes in one fluid movement.
"Right. I know that. It just startled me."
Hermione smiled sadly and shook her head.
She didn't bother to argue. Instead, she just said:"I'm going back."she looked contempluative."probably to a rageing hellfire. Which I'll hopefully know a spell to disipitate. If that...thing...really didn't bother you, and if you are incredibly stupid, you can stay and let the forest swallow you. If not..."she left the sentance hang in the air. Draco glared. But his blue eyes were tinted with fear as he stumbled after her.
The howl rose to a defeaning creshendo.
"Not if you don't try to send me back."Hermione replied instantly.
Draco reguarded Hermione, trying to decide if she was serious. But he quickly made up his mind. "Allright."he said,"Let's get going."
It wasn't difficult for them to leave Hogwarts, School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. If anyone had seen them, they would have fond more oddity in the unusual pairing of the acedemic gryfendor and the icy slytherinn than in the fact that they were skipping class. They said less then two words the whole way to the doors. They grunted as they pushed them open, and trotted down the stairs,matching eachothers strides perfectly.
A chill wind beat against their robes, and whipped Hermione's hair about her face. Shivering, she hugged her arms to her chest.
Draco waited wordlessly, and they continued on their way.
They quickly ate up the distance to the forest. They paused at the outskirts, and both threw a longing glance at the saftey that was Hogwarts.
"this is it."Draco said. "last chance to go back to those notes you excell at." He gave Hermione a questioning glance.
Hermione shook her head with an air of finallity. "I'm coming."
"what if I drag you into something you'll regret?"
Hermione laughed.
"Then I'll turn you into a toad."
Draco smiled a wry smile, and the two of them stepped across the threshold, into the forest. They walked a ways in silence, too obsorbed in the tedious task of snapping twigs and stomping foilage, of forgeing a path into the forbidden, to spare a thought for the other. Soon, however, much sooner then either had expected, they reached a clearing. Draco whiped the persperation from his pale brow as her Hermione bent to streighten her robes,then straightened to pull a burr or three from her hair. Exhaling, Draco said:"So."the single word hung like a question in the air between them:what now? Hermione opened her mouth as if to answer, but at that moment, something happened that scattered all linear thoughts from Hermione's frizzy head and Draco's pretty one. "Why are you making that noise?"Draco asked, panicked. He knew evan as he said it that howling, mournfull wail like a gian'ts infant bawling was not issueing from Hermione's bearly parted lips.
"I'm not!!!!" she exclaimed, thinking of something to say at last. They both stood silent for a moment and listened.
"Sounds like someone opened a howler."Draco said, uneasy and not able to fully mask it.
"Not an english howler!!!" Hermione was right. The wordless moan was inhuman and reached octives that human or howler alike could never hope to hit.
"I think we should go back!" Hermione sounded frantic.
"Be my guest. I'm staying.".
"Draco...."Hermione trailed off helplessly.
"you can tell me not to leave now, belatedly. Because i'm telling you to go back to class!"Draco snapped irritably, forgeing on.
Hermione caught his sleave."DRACO!"
Now Draco caught what he'd missed before:the quavering urgency that was more than fear of loud noises. He piveted on one foot.
For a moment all he could see was the freightened glint in Hermione's liquid brown eyes. Then he screamed.
He was stareing into the goulish, leering eyes as red as rubys, as large and almound shaped as footballs. A jagged jaw opened. Huge, craterous nostrils flared. A row of parchment yellow teeth glinted in the dark. A forked, serpentine tung slithered across scaled lips.
"Dispersetate!"Hermione yelled, and a blinding flash of white light shot from the tip of her readied wand.
Draco collapsed against her, cluching her sleave as she held his. His face flooded with relief.
Hermione studied him, his head against her shoulder, his pale gold hair looking paler and golder then ever against her robe that was black as a void. "Relax." she said gently. "It was only an illusion.
Draco quickly recovered his composer, springing away from Hermione and double-tasking as he flicked her hand from his wrist and whiped a residual magical dust from his robes in one fluid movement.
"Right. I know that. It just startled me."
Hermione smiled sadly and shook her head.
She didn't bother to argue. Instead, she just said:"I'm going back."she looked contempluative."probably to a rageing hellfire. Which I'll hopefully know a spell to disipitate. If that...thing...really didn't bother you, and if you are incredibly stupid, you can stay and let the forest swallow you. If not..."she left the sentance hang in the air. Draco glared. But his blue eyes were tinted with fear as he stumbled after her.
The howl rose to a defeaning creshendo.