Disclaimer: I don't own any of the orginial Harry Potter character because I am not that creative...but I wish i was...I only own the plot and my characters.

The Unsuspecting Victim of the Darkness in the Valley

The next few days passed by without much activity and everyone was arriving at Platform 9 3/4 to meet the train. Hermione had respected Draco's request and didn't mention anything to Harr or the rest of the group about their conversation but she wasn't why. All she could think about was his eyes. They had seemed so sincere and he hadn't insulted her once. He had even used her and Harry's first names. She wasn't completely convinced but maybe Malfoy had really had a life altering experience. Never would she have believed that Draco would want to change, it was just that look in his eyes, no one could fake that, could they?

Hermione was lost in her thoughts when she heard a voice call to her from the doorway..

"Can I come in?"

Hermione looked up and for the first time she actually smiled at Draco Malfoy. "Sure," she said,"Are you ready to talk to Harry yet?"

"No," he replied,"I only wanted to remind you of the Prefects meeting in the last car, ok?"

He turned and started to walk away and Hermione was about to stop him when she saw Crabbe, Goyle, Pansy and another girl she didn't recognize but instantly felt a pan of jealousy for. She would just have to try to catch him later.

As she was sitting down, Harry and Ron walked in with a stranger of their own. She was an awe-strikingly beautiful girl with chestnut brown hair that was layered to frame her face so that you were drawn to her eyes. Each time Hermione looked at her they seemed to change color like a crystal prism in the sunlight. Despite her own changes, she was feeling a little inferior because Harry and Ron both were falling all over her. It was a couple of minutes before they even said "hello" to her but she immediately understood why.

"England would win every Quidditch Cup if they had Harry for a seeker." Ron said.

"Only if you're the keeper, Ron." joked Harry.

"And I'm the beater then," replied the new girl.

With that Harry turned around and noticed Hermione sitting there and said,"Oh, sorry Hermione. Let me introduce you to Cheyan Duval. She going to be going to Hogwarts for the first time this year although she'll be a fifth year. We met in Diagon Alley a few days ago after you had left."

"Please call me Chey." she said and extended her hand to Hermione.

Hermione took it and replied,"Pleased to meet you. Have you met Ron's sister, Ginny, yet? She's in your same year and on the Quidditch team for Gryffindor."

"Yeah, she'll be here as soon as she's finished talking to some guy in the hall

Then the three went back to their quidditch debate and Hermione returned to her thoughts of Draco and what this all could mean. Harry seemed really taken with Cheyan and the more they talked the more they seemed to have in common. Hermione stated to feel good for Harry and was hoping she find someone of her own soon. As she began to daydream again, her thoughts went more and more to Draco when it suddenly hit her that she was missing the Prefects meeting. She jumped up and excused herself and ran to the back of the train as fast as she could.
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When she got to the last car she opened the door and to her suprise Draco was the only one in the car. Hermione walked in and looked at Draco almost afraid to ask if she'd missed the meeting. He didn't even acknowledge her presence so she began to think that he was back to his old self.

"I'm sorry but did I miss the meeting?" she asked.

"No, there's not going to be a meeting. I just wanted to talk to you alone but you sure took your sweet time." hissed Malfoy.

"OK, what do you want? It seems that you're back to your old self." fumed Hermione thinking she should have known better than to believe that he could ever change.

"I'm sorry it's not you, it's just that I can't act any different around my house friends and Anna or my father will find out." Draco replied apologectically(sp?).

"Who's Anna?" inquired Hermione,"I've never seen her before."

"she was my father's idea. She is a transfer from Ireland. Her father and my father are Deatheaters and our marriage has been arranged for years."he replied.

"Well she's very, very attractive. I would think a trophy would please you."

"Beauty isn't everything." he retorted with a hurt look.

Anna Giovanni is not just attractive, she is gorgeous. A perfect mix of grace and beauty stemming from the harmonious union of Irish and Italian heritages. With her olive complextion, shoulder length auburn hair, emerald eyes and killer body, she could melt an iceberg in Greenland from Brazil. Pansy Parkinson was not pleased but had been expressly warned to be gracious or answer to the Dark Lord. Anna had one expressed purpose given to her by her father-do whatever makes Draco happy-and upon seeing him she was more than happy to comply. Purity of the bloodline was all that mattered and at least he was eye candy. She was a bit concerned though, Draco had been gone for an awful long time to his meeting with the mudblood and his friends weren't exactly good company..like talking to a wall to be more precise. She decided to go find him and see what was going on or she might end up having to marry someone like Crabbe or Goyle.

"Malfoy, what is going on with you? You haven't insulted me and you seem distant or maybe depressed." Hermione pressed on,"and why do you want my help? Why not just ask Dumbledore or go to the ministry?"

"The Dark Lord has spies everywhere. If I have any chance of pulling this off, it has to be with all of your help but I don't know how to make you believe me." he scoffed.

"I will trust you Malfoy if you give me a chance but you have to tell me what is going on." pleaded Hermione.

"Alright, but not right now. Meet me at the lake at 8:00pm tomorrow and we'll see what happens..and please call me Draco, Hermione. Also, thank you for trying even though I have been a real git to you and your friends." he turned and left before she could say anything else.
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Hermione sat there for the longest time hoping that she made the right decision. She wasn't going to mention this to anyone just in case this is all a trick but her gut was telling her that it wasn't. And maybe, Hermione was the only one who could help him through his pain and bring him to the right side. And could it be possible that maybe there was something she could gain from him too?
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As Draco was leaving the compartment, Anna almost knocked him over in her haste to find him.

"What's wrong my love? Did that filth upset you or try anything with you?" she asked.

"Granger? No, I just have a headache. She can be annoying but harmless just the same. Let's go back to our compartment so I can relax." and with that he put his arm around her and lured her away.

While tucked safely in his compartment with his playful little vixen at his side, Draco's thoughts wandered back to the kind, smart and amazing fearless girl he had just left. He found himself enjoying the prospect of a late night interlude in the moonlight with someone completely unobtainable...or was she? His thoughts ventured back to his dream several weeks ago..was it the dream that made him seek her out for help or just opportunity?? He sighed and thought to himself that that was a question for another day...
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The remainder of the ride to Hogwarts was calm. However, two students were deep in thought about each other and what they'd thought of each other for the last five years. In times of chaos and fear, can a friend be found in the most unlikely of places? If that is possible, what about something more?

As the sorting ceremony began, everyone was watching with baited breath over the three new transfers this year. One from the United States, one from Ireland and one from England that was self taught. As the first years came and went, more and more anticipation built for the remaining three young women at the front of the room. Dumbledore introduced each of the three girls and they were sorted. Anna to Slytherin, Cheyan to Ravenclaw and lastly Katherine Tonks (cousin to Nymphadora) to Gryffindor. Everyone was applauding for them except Harry as he wanted Cheyan in Gryffindor. Katie sat at the end of the table and began to field the flood of questions...she likes football, ice skating and baseball..she's in her sixth year (she practiced her skills at home because her parents didn't want her going so far away from home at such a young age)..no she has no brothers or sisters and no boyfriend (much to the delight of several of the boys). One after another she answered the questions but they just kept coming until Hermione finally stepped in and rescued her from the pack of vultures and invited her to sit with them. Secretly, she was thinking "who could blame them". Katie was after all very pretty and a complete mystery to everyone. It seemed to Hermione that no matter how much she changed, there was always going to be 20 girls even more beautiful than her. What was the use she thought completely unaware of the icy blue eyes watching her from the next table.

Next, Dumbledore stood up and announced that there was going to be some changes in the living arrangements for this year. The two Prefects from each house would share private rooms with the prefects of another house to help create unity and better division of the duties. Slytherin would be paired with Gryffindor and Ravenclaw with Hufflepuff. There would be extra patrols to help the Head boy and girl out. Punishments would be more severe for those caught breaking the rules. Also, there would be extra DADA classes available to those who would like to take advantage of them. Two formal balls would be held this year, one at Christmas and one at Valentine's Day. The planning, decorating and themes to be chosen by each of the Prefect dorms. Christmas to be handled by Slytherin and Gryffindor and Valentine's Day by Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff. The result of these announcement meant that Ron and Hermione would be rooming with Draco and Pansy. Finally, the students were dismissed and filed out of the Dining Hall to their respective Houses.

Afer getting the first years settled in, Hermione, Ron, Draco and Pansy met with Prof. Snape and Prof. McGonagall to see their chambers. Even before they could see their rooms, Pansy was begging Prof. Snape to let her stay with her house because her parents wouldn't approve of her staying with anyone else. Snape finally agreed and told her to leave and that her things would be brought to her shortly. Pansy waiting for a minute expecting Draco to follow suit and when he didn't she just stormed off in a huff.

"Now that that is resolved, you three will need to come up with a password and command the portrait to comply," explained Prof McGonagall.

After a breif discussion, they decided on "chocolate frogs" and were allowed to enter the chamber. It was a vast improvement to the regular house dormitories. They had a shared common room, bathroom (you are allowed to enter the bathroom only when none of the other prefects doors are open) and jacuzzi. They would also have access to a private swimming pool a massage parlor with the other prefects. They would each have their own room with its own password chosen by the occupant. The common room had a large fireplace, four huge plush couches and two long tables with a selected library books for their own use. They were all in heaven at the amount of space that was available to them. After a few minutes, they decided to see their rooms and head off to bed. Hermione was so tired that she just fell on her bed and went to sleep. As she was lying there, the events of the day began to swirl in her mind and she considered the prospect of bringing Sirius back to life.
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A vision began to come into focus...a man in a dark hooded cloak with large yellow eyes dripping with evil was standing over someone speaking in a voice that made the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end...a small, shifty man holding a knife that filled her with disgust...an explosion of green light that filled her with despair...she was feeling so much she thought she would go crazy. A scream began in the pit of her stomach and she tried to hold it back but it was too strong. Higher and higher it rose until she had to let it out. "NOOOOOOOO......."

Hermione leapt up out of bed and grabbed for her wand just as Ron and Draco began banging on her door.

"Open the door Hermione, are you ok?" yelled Ron.

"Does she do this often?" Malfoy asked.

"Shut up Malfoy, Hermione open the door now!!!!!!"said Ron while pounding on the door.

It took Hermione a minute to regain her composure, her heart was thumping so hard she thought it was going to burst out of her chest. Finally, she walked over to the door and opened it to see her best friend and worst enemy staring at her with anxious faces. Hermione looked shaken but unharmed and before she could say anything, Ron grabbed her and asked what happened.

"I'm not sure, it was dream with this hooded man who had horrible yellow eyes and an unnerving presence surrounded by green flashes of light and he was about to harm someone with a knife held by a smaller man. I could just feel death all around me and closing me in." Hermione replied.

"All this over a dream Granger, man this is going to be a long year!" steamed Draco and walked away back to his room. He didn't say anything then but he knew exactly who she was dreaming about but he needed to think before he could talk to her about it.

"I'm alright Ron, You can let me go now," stated Hermione."I just want to go back to my room and try to sleep again."

"Are you sure? I can stay with you or go and get Ginny?"

"No, I'll be ok. Sorry for waking you up." she said and then turned to go back to bed.

As Hermione laid in bed and try to calm down enough to go back to sleep, she had a funny feeling that someone somewhere had met a horrible fate at the hands of Voldemort...