Chapter 4: A Secret Meeting
The next few weeks proved to be almost more than Michelle could stand. Harry would say hello whenever they met. He tried to engage her in conversation in the common room. He would smile at her during meals if he was sitting within gazing range. She tried to stay cool and detached, but she could not deny she was attracted to him. It was getting hard to ignore him and not be cruel. Michelle had slipped up a couple of times. She had laughed during a few of their chats when he was being funny. She'd also made the mistake of staring at him when she thought he wasn't looking,only to have him catch her the next second. Michelle began taking the long way to some of her classes to avoid running into him. Harry had spoken to Hermione about Michelle's behavior. Hermione was willing to write it off to still being nervous in a new school with new classmates. Somehow, Harry had a hard time picturing Michelle as being scared. She seemed to glow with an inner confidence. He never saw her walking with her head down, and she always looked people in the eye when she was speaking to them. She was private though; he'd give Hermione that much. Neville was one of the few people Harry had noticed Michelle talking to with confidence.
One afternoon, while walking out to the greenhouses for Herbology, Harry decided to pump Neville for information. He caught up to Neville, and after talking for a few minutes about how Neville himself was doing, Harry asked about Michelle.
"Neville, does Michelle seem awfully quiet to you?"
"I don't know...no more than anyone else I suppose." Neville gave Harry an odd look. "Why do you ask?"
"She just seems to talk to you and a few of the 7th year girls and that's it...not that she shouldn't talk to you or anything." Harry added quickly. "I mean, Hermione's tried talking to her. I've tried..."
Neville let out a low chuckle, "Yeah, she's mentioned you a couple of times."
Harry felt a jolt of excitement, "What did she say?"
"Well, she didn't say anything specific, but I think you make her nervous."
Harry's face fell, "Nervous? How?"
"Cheer up Harry. I think it's a good kind of nervous." Neville looked over and noticed Harry relax a little. "Plus, I think she misses home. Just yesterday, I told her she looked like she hadn't slept and she told me she'd been having nightmares. I don't know, but maybe this place scares her. Can't say I blame her...sometimes this place is a bit of a fright."
"Nightmares, did she say what kind? Were they about the school?"
"She didn't say." Neville leaned in to whisper, "Daphne told me she hears Michelle get up in the middle of the night. She leaves the room and doesn't come back for half an hour or so. Maybe she's a sleepwalker."
Harry thought for a moment, "Maybe...I just hope she doesn't hurt herself."
They had reached the greenhouse and Harry thanked Neville for the info and asked him to not mention their conversation to Michelle. Harry decided he would try an experiment that night.
Once everyone was asleep, Harry snuck down to the common room. His invisibility cloak over him, he sat on one of the couches waiting for something to happen. Unfortunately, the afternoon Quidditch match (which Gryffindor had won over Hufflepuff) left him exhausted. He fell asleep on the couch not long after he sat down.
He awoke to the sound of someone cursing. He adjusted his glasses and saw Michelle hopping on one foot, her hand rubbing the toes of the other. She winced a little as she stepped on her injured foot, but continued on her path to the portrait hole. Harry got up and quietly followed her as she sneaked out into the hallway. He stayed with her as she moved from floor to floor. It wasn't until she reached the tower that he realized where they were going.
Michelle paused under the trapdoor that would open the steps leading to Prof. Trelawny's classroom. She reached out and turned a sconce hanging on the wall till it was upside down. She backed away from the wall. Harry had to stiffle a gasp of surprise when the wall seemed to split in two and a door appeared. Michelle knocked and waited. It took a few more tries before the door opened.
Prof. Trelawny pulled her bathrobe tightly around her as she peered out. She tilted her head slightly as she looked out from her thick lensed glasses. "Miss Larson? What is it? Is everything alright?"
Harry almost laughed. As a professor of Divination, Trelawny should already know why Michelle was coming to see her. At least, that's what he thought.
"I needed to talk to you."
"You look a fright my dear. Come inside." She moved away to let Michelle come into her room.
Harry raced for the door, but didn't get there in time. Listening through the door would be his only option. He pressed his ear up against the wood and could just make out bits and pieces. Trelawny talked about a journal. Michelle said something about a potion and Snape. Trelawny seemed to be telling Michelle to go see the professor first thing in the morning. Then Michelle said something about a mark and Harry became very confused. He could hear them coming closer to the door so he moved to the side. Michelle said goodnight as she stepped back into the hallway.
Walking back to the Gryffindor house, Michelle was lost in her thoughts. Harry studied her closely. She seemed to be worried and very tired. He wondered if she went to visit Trelawny every night. Michelle reached the painting and had to wake the Fat Lady to get inside. Harry continued behind her as she went up to her room.
Just as she went to open her door, Michelle felt a chill go up her spine. She turned suddenly and looked around.
"Is anyone out here?" she whispered.
Harry had almost tripped over his feet when she had spun around. He'd backed up quickly and came close to going over the railing. His heart was pounding in his chest. There was no way she could see him, was there? Michelle paused for a second, listening. Frowning, she opened the door and went into her room quietly. Harry didn't move for several seconds. He wanted to make sure she didn't come back out to check the stairwell. Satisfied she was in bed, he returned to his own room. Harry lay in bed a long time thinking about what he'd seen and heard, but he couldn't make sense of it at all.
Michelle crawled back into her bed trying to not wake anyone. She just wanted to break down and cry. This dream had been awful. They had been getting clearer and more intense over the last six months. Michelle was doing her best to write down everything she saw in order to interpret it later in the morning. But tonight, she had to talk to someone immediately. At first, Michelle had been surprised Trelawny would be her contact since Michelle had been put in Gryffindor house and was under the care of McGonagall. Still, Trelawny was the Divination professor so she would probably best be able to understand what Michelle was going through on a daily basis.
Tonight's dream had Michelle seeing a figure holding a knife. She'd seen the knife before and had been trying to discover what kind of weapon it was. Everything was significant in these sorts of visions. The figure holding it in the dream was pointing it at another person. She had yet to see the face of either, but she'd begun to get the feeling that one of the people was Harry. This new feeling worried her. Ever since she'd started having visions in her sleep, she'd been dreaming of Voldermort. It was the reason she had come to Hogwarts in the first place. Dreaming of Harry either meant her focus was shifting, or Voldermort was wielding this knife at Harry. She desperately needed to find out the meaning behind the knife and whether or not it actually existed. Research would have to wait till tomorrow though, so she tried to relax and go back to sleep.
When Harry joined Ron and Hermione for breakfast the next morning, he debated telling them what he had seen. It was too big a secret to keep. He needed some advice from his friends.
Ron spoke first after hearing the whole story, "She met with Trelawny? Why would they be talking?"
"I have no idea. There's no way they were talking about class that late at night."
Hermione spoke up, "Did you hear anything more about the 'mark'? She may have been talking about you."
"Just what I need, someone talking about me with Trelawny."
"We should try following her tonight...you know, see if they meet again." Ron's eyes lit up at the prospect of doing some spying.
"Has Neville mentioned anything about the professor and Michelle talking?" Hermione wasn't sold on the spying plan.
"Not to me he hasn't. I doubt she'd tell him about it. They are meeting in secret after all."
"I want to know what potion she needs from Snape." Hermione frowned at the possibilities.
Harry nodded, "Must be pretty complex if she needs a professor to make it." Harry lowered his voice as Michelle entered the hall and sat a few seats away from them. "I think we need to keep an eye on her until we find out why she's meeting with Trelawny." His eyes fixed on her and didn't move.
"That'll be no problem for you Harry..." Hermione said sarcastically.
The next few weeks proved to be almost more than Michelle could stand. Harry would say hello whenever they met. He tried to engage her in conversation in the common room. He would smile at her during meals if he was sitting within gazing range. She tried to stay cool and detached, but she could not deny she was attracted to him. It was getting hard to ignore him and not be cruel. Michelle had slipped up a couple of times. She had laughed during a few of their chats when he was being funny. She'd also made the mistake of staring at him when she thought he wasn't looking,only to have him catch her the next second. Michelle began taking the long way to some of her classes to avoid running into him. Harry had spoken to Hermione about Michelle's behavior. Hermione was willing to write it off to still being nervous in a new school with new classmates. Somehow, Harry had a hard time picturing Michelle as being scared. She seemed to glow with an inner confidence. He never saw her walking with her head down, and she always looked people in the eye when she was speaking to them. She was private though; he'd give Hermione that much. Neville was one of the few people Harry had noticed Michelle talking to with confidence.
One afternoon, while walking out to the greenhouses for Herbology, Harry decided to pump Neville for information. He caught up to Neville, and after talking for a few minutes about how Neville himself was doing, Harry asked about Michelle.
"Neville, does Michelle seem awfully quiet to you?"
"I don't know...no more than anyone else I suppose." Neville gave Harry an odd look. "Why do you ask?"
"She just seems to talk to you and a few of the 7th year girls and that's it...not that she shouldn't talk to you or anything." Harry added quickly. "I mean, Hermione's tried talking to her. I've tried..."
Neville let out a low chuckle, "Yeah, she's mentioned you a couple of times."
Harry felt a jolt of excitement, "What did she say?"
"Well, she didn't say anything specific, but I think you make her nervous."
Harry's face fell, "Nervous? How?"
"Cheer up Harry. I think it's a good kind of nervous." Neville looked over and noticed Harry relax a little. "Plus, I think she misses home. Just yesterday, I told her she looked like she hadn't slept and she told me she'd been having nightmares. I don't know, but maybe this place scares her. Can't say I blame her...sometimes this place is a bit of a fright."
"Nightmares, did she say what kind? Were they about the school?"
"She didn't say." Neville leaned in to whisper, "Daphne told me she hears Michelle get up in the middle of the night. She leaves the room and doesn't come back for half an hour or so. Maybe she's a sleepwalker."
Harry thought for a moment, "Maybe...I just hope she doesn't hurt herself."
They had reached the greenhouse and Harry thanked Neville for the info and asked him to not mention their conversation to Michelle. Harry decided he would try an experiment that night.
Once everyone was asleep, Harry snuck down to the common room. His invisibility cloak over him, he sat on one of the couches waiting for something to happen. Unfortunately, the afternoon Quidditch match (which Gryffindor had won over Hufflepuff) left him exhausted. He fell asleep on the couch not long after he sat down.
He awoke to the sound of someone cursing. He adjusted his glasses and saw Michelle hopping on one foot, her hand rubbing the toes of the other. She winced a little as she stepped on her injured foot, but continued on her path to the portrait hole. Harry got up and quietly followed her as she sneaked out into the hallway. He stayed with her as she moved from floor to floor. It wasn't until she reached the tower that he realized where they were going.
Michelle paused under the trapdoor that would open the steps leading to Prof. Trelawny's classroom. She reached out and turned a sconce hanging on the wall till it was upside down. She backed away from the wall. Harry had to stiffle a gasp of surprise when the wall seemed to split in two and a door appeared. Michelle knocked and waited. It took a few more tries before the door opened.
Prof. Trelawny pulled her bathrobe tightly around her as she peered out. She tilted her head slightly as she looked out from her thick lensed glasses. "Miss Larson? What is it? Is everything alright?"
Harry almost laughed. As a professor of Divination, Trelawny should already know why Michelle was coming to see her. At least, that's what he thought.
"I needed to talk to you."
"You look a fright my dear. Come inside." She moved away to let Michelle come into her room.
Harry raced for the door, but didn't get there in time. Listening through the door would be his only option. He pressed his ear up against the wood and could just make out bits and pieces. Trelawny talked about a journal. Michelle said something about a potion and Snape. Trelawny seemed to be telling Michelle to go see the professor first thing in the morning. Then Michelle said something about a mark and Harry became very confused. He could hear them coming closer to the door so he moved to the side. Michelle said goodnight as she stepped back into the hallway.
Walking back to the Gryffindor house, Michelle was lost in her thoughts. Harry studied her closely. She seemed to be worried and very tired. He wondered if she went to visit Trelawny every night. Michelle reached the painting and had to wake the Fat Lady to get inside. Harry continued behind her as she went up to her room.
Just as she went to open her door, Michelle felt a chill go up her spine. She turned suddenly and looked around.
"Is anyone out here?" she whispered.
Harry had almost tripped over his feet when she had spun around. He'd backed up quickly and came close to going over the railing. His heart was pounding in his chest. There was no way she could see him, was there? Michelle paused for a second, listening. Frowning, she opened the door and went into her room quietly. Harry didn't move for several seconds. He wanted to make sure she didn't come back out to check the stairwell. Satisfied she was in bed, he returned to his own room. Harry lay in bed a long time thinking about what he'd seen and heard, but he couldn't make sense of it at all.
Michelle crawled back into her bed trying to not wake anyone. She just wanted to break down and cry. This dream had been awful. They had been getting clearer and more intense over the last six months. Michelle was doing her best to write down everything she saw in order to interpret it later in the morning. But tonight, she had to talk to someone immediately. At first, Michelle had been surprised Trelawny would be her contact since Michelle had been put in Gryffindor house and was under the care of McGonagall. Still, Trelawny was the Divination professor so she would probably best be able to understand what Michelle was going through on a daily basis.
Tonight's dream had Michelle seeing a figure holding a knife. She'd seen the knife before and had been trying to discover what kind of weapon it was. Everything was significant in these sorts of visions. The figure holding it in the dream was pointing it at another person. She had yet to see the face of either, but she'd begun to get the feeling that one of the people was Harry. This new feeling worried her. Ever since she'd started having visions in her sleep, she'd been dreaming of Voldermort. It was the reason she had come to Hogwarts in the first place. Dreaming of Harry either meant her focus was shifting, or Voldermort was wielding this knife at Harry. She desperately needed to find out the meaning behind the knife and whether or not it actually existed. Research would have to wait till tomorrow though, so she tried to relax and go back to sleep.
When Harry joined Ron and Hermione for breakfast the next morning, he debated telling them what he had seen. It was too big a secret to keep. He needed some advice from his friends.
Ron spoke first after hearing the whole story, "She met with Trelawny? Why would they be talking?"
"I have no idea. There's no way they were talking about class that late at night."
Hermione spoke up, "Did you hear anything more about the 'mark'? She may have been talking about you."
"Just what I need, someone talking about me with Trelawny."
"We should try following her tonight...you know, see if they meet again." Ron's eyes lit up at the prospect of doing some spying.
"Has Neville mentioned anything about the professor and Michelle talking?" Hermione wasn't sold on the spying plan.
"Not to me he hasn't. I doubt she'd tell him about it. They are meeting in secret after all."
"I want to know what potion she needs from Snape." Hermione frowned at the possibilities.
Harry nodded, "Must be pretty complex if she needs a professor to make it." Harry lowered his voice as Michelle entered the hall and sat a few seats away from them. "I think we need to keep an eye on her until we find out why she's meeting with Trelawny." His eyes fixed on her and didn't move.
"That'll be no problem for you Harry..." Hermione said sarcastically.
