WHOA!! That was fast!! I can't believe I did this so quickly, but I did! WOW! I'm really in one of those zones. Okay, before I start, I'd like to thank ALL you reviewers! You guys ROCK!!!! This chapter is just for you. Don't forget to review!! Remember 5 or more reviews, that's the deal. Now, happy reading!
DRACO'S POV :
I awoke this morning feeling refreshed and slightly happy. I hopped (Not literary) out of bed and hummed a tune I heard during the holidays. I knew this was very out of character, but I was in a good mood (You know the feeling you get while you're in a good mood).
"Malfoy! Shut up!!" Granger's voice shouted from outside my room.
Sheesh... Somebody woke up on the wrong side of the bed today! Just to get Granger pissed, I decided I'd sing a little louder. And I did. Infact, I sang at the top of my voice – very badly.
"AARGH!! You bloody FERRET!! SHUT UP!!" shouted Granger. I pictured the look on her face, and grinned wickedly.
"I'M SOOO PERFECT!! I'M SOOO PERFECT!!! ALL THE CHICKS DIG ME!! CAN'T YOU SEE?!?! YOU'RE PASSING UP AN OPPURTUNITY!!! DON'T YOU WANNA BE WITH MEEEE????!!!!" I shouted this as loud as I could, with no tune in particular. To be honest, it wasn't even a real song. I just knew it'd piss Granger out and shouted it badly to her. I am a little devil aren't I? Yes I am.
"MALFOY!!" Granger screamed, banging hardly on my room door.
I smirked. I just LOVE getting on her nerves. "Yes, oh precious little Mudblood of mine?" I replied in an innocent voice. This kind of thing could cause her to explode. Literary.
"Would you just shut the up, asshole?! SOME of us are trying to sleep you know!!!"
I checked my watch. "Sleep?" I repeated. "Whatever for? It's 7:32 AM and class starts at eight. You don't want to miss class, do you Granger?" I knew that although Granger has encountered a huge change, the little goody- two-shoes, can't be late for class thing is still buried deep inside her. It's what she is. If that changes, you'd have a completely different person at your hands.
I heard Granger groan and put on a triumphant smirk. "Fine, Malfoy," she growled. "— Just – shut up, okay?"
"Sorry," I replied. "But I don't take orders from mudbloods."
Granger glowered a bit, and left – I knew this for the fact that her loud stomping faded away.
"— d'you know what Longbottom did last night – when we were walking to the common room? He pissed in his pants! Just after I frightened him with a spell, you know. HE ACTUALLY DID! I could swear it!"
The Not-So-Great Hall erupted with laughter, some people even pointed at Longbottom and others tried hard not to laugh. As for me? I was the loudest of them all. I even cheered the crowd on and stood up on my seat.
Blaise Zambini (The boy who was telling the joke) had told us Slytherins this story a hundred times, but we wanted to humiliate Longbottom in front of the whole student population. Just for fun.
"– It was – So damn stupid!! Even a Hufflepuff first year didn't do THAT!! Can you believe what a sissy Longbottom is?!" said Blaise, loudly enough for the whole hall to hear. "And remember that-,"
"Shut up, Zambini!"
Blaise immediately silenced and turned to see who it was who dared shut him up. Zambini was like second in command of the Slytherin house (I was the first) and nobody would ever speak up to him. He was like, God's right hand man (I'm God – not really – by the way).
"Mudblood!" spat Blaise, turning his focus on her. He gave her a sharp glare which could scare the pants off Longbottom any day. Of course, I've faced worse. I've faced Granger.
Granger walked slowly up to Blaise. She let her eyes bore right through him; as though sipping out his courage. With grace I never imagined one to possess, Granger stood up in front of him – only centimeters away from touching his chest (Her head reached his shoulder).
"G-get away, Mudblood!" spoke Blaise, and as I expected, his courage was slowly seeping away from him – like a basin filled with water; the water flowing out from the tiny hole in the bottom of the basin.
"Why don't you make me?" taunted Granger, her voice barely above a whisper. "Prince of Slytherins, number two in command... I've already dealt with your little king..."
Everybody turned to me, a shocked expression on each of their face. I made out Weasley's expression – wide eyed and jaw hanging down. Even Potter was a little surprised.
Granger's focus was still on Zambini. "So show me what you could do. Make me see what a Slytherin is all about..."
Blaise looked hesitant. I could sense what he was thinking—what if there were Professors around? He could get thrown out of Hogwarts (Not that it was bad or anything, but his parents would get awfully pissed).
"Don't worry, Zambini...," said Granger, as though she knew what he was thinking. "They won't be around to see..."
Granger lightly shut her eyes and the colour suddenly drained from her skin. I myself felt odd and suddenly weakening. My muscles felt limp and wobbly. I felt unsteady and nauseous, cold and hot at the same time. From the inside I felt burned, from the outside I felt extremely cold. The tips of my fingers and toes were frosty with ice – as though I had suffered some insufferable death but life still flared up inside me.
The air was frosty, even my breath came out as a cloud of white smoke. The ground felt damp and as unsteady as ice. The wind was so cold; it felt sharp against my skin. The only colour around me was midnight blue, but unlike the sky at night, there wasn't any pale moon or scattered stars. The only light came from my eyes; a piercing blue light that was bright enough to lighten the way.
Where was I?
Even as I thought of that in my mind, I got a reply. A hollow, yet feminine reply that I knew wasn't the normal voice in my head. "Oblivion," said the voice; sharp and frosty like a dagger covered in ice. "A part of my mind and soul... you aren't supposed to be here."
"Who are you?" I quivered, trying to follow the direction of where the voice was coming from. "Granger?!" I gasped once I found the source of the reply.
Granger turned towards me. She also had light glowing from her eyes. But the light wasn't blue – it was red. Blood red. The same colour I loved. The same colour of my birthmark – a mysterious half moon painted in blood red.
"What are you doing here?" she repeated. She looked as pale as I did. It looked kind of frightening.
"I don't know...," I muttered truthfully. "Where am I?"
"I've told you already!" said Granger, crossing her pale arms together. She looked like a banshee (Gorgeous banshee, but banshee nonetheless). "You're in Oblivion. It's a place I've discovered during the holidays... all I've got to do is concentrate – put my whole mind to this place – and I'm here. It's part of my soul."
I didn't understand, but I nodded nonetheless. I was afraid. Granger... wasn't normal... Who – WHAT was she? Then, I suddenly noticed something – something pale and motionless behind Granger. It looked like a body; a HUMAN'S body!
"Granger, did you...? Isn't that Zambini??" I chocked. This was too much, even for me. Did Granger just kill someone?
"Yes... and no...," said Granger, her lips twisting into a devious smirk. "That is Zambini, Malfoy... but he isn't dead. Only petrified; fully petrified, that is..."
"Fully petrified?"
"Yes, Malfoy. Fully petrified. It's a simple process once you've gotten the hang of it," said Granger, looking smug and in control. "Fully petrified is different from the stuff the basilisk does. If the predator is fully petrified, the predator won't hear, feel, sense, or see a thing. Being half petrified, you can hear, feel, sense and see – but can't do anything."
Granger's superior expression faded a bit. I caught a glimpse of sadness in her glowing red eyes. I now remember about the little encounter she's had with the basilisk in the second year. Although her mouth was tightly shut, I could hear her sad voice echoing through my mind. "Back then Harry and Ron actually cared for me...," said her voice, full of wet tears I could almost feel. "Harry sat by my side then... he held my hand for hours... I wish... I wish I were back there... in that time... happy..."
I felt her pain and tears welled in my eyes. It was weird... why was I sad? Why was I suddenly getting flashbacks of her happy days with the Wonder Duo? Then, I suddenly got a mental image of Hermi – er..., Granger standing outside the Griffindore common room — staring at Potter and Cho Chang with a look of horror on her face. I felt anger flare up inside me; burning my soul... strengthening my heart. This newly found anger gave me a feel of power.
Then... it stopped. The mental images I'd been having disappeared. Granger was trying to resist, I knew that. I also knew that I'll never forget that surge of power... that rush of anger... flow of sadness... I knew her secret now, she won't erase that from my mind. I'll resist.
"D-did... you...?" squeaked Granger; eyes wide in horror. But she didn't need to continue. I understood perfectly. She was afraid I knew, and I did.
"Yes," I muttered.
I could feel Granger's heart stop a beat. "W-will you... tell anyone...?" she whispered. I could feel her horror.
"I have a good mind of telling Dumbledore, you know," I told her. "But... I won't. Not now, that is."
I felt Granger heave a sigh of relief. But I won't let her go that easily. It wasn't the Malfoy way. "But you've got to tell me, Granger! Tell me, truthfully, how did you discover this power? Where did you get it?" I pulled her closer to me and held her tightly by the shoulders. I was dead serious.
"I... don't know...," muttered Granger. Her eyes cast downwards. It took guts for her to admit this. Being the school's brightest witch and admitting you didn't know something was very difficult.
"How did you discover it then?"
Granger bit her bottom lip and stayed silent.
"I'm dead serious here, Granger! Tell me or I'll tell on you!" I said, squeezing her shoulders harshly.
"I... it was during the holidays...," said Granger. I knew this wasn't going to be a short story, so I settled myself on the freezing cold ground. I pulled her down beside me. "I was... er... angry and hurt-,"
"Hurt? How did you get hurt? Did somebody hurt you?" I interrupted, truly concerned.
Granger rolled her eyes. "No," said Granger. "I... uh, fell down the stairs and got angry and er... closed my eyes tightly – getting a mental picture of Oblivion. The place I created for safety..."
"Safety?" I interrupted again. "Why? Are you bullied? Abused?"
Granger paled. "No!" she shouted, a little too quickly. "I'm just... er... clumsy, you know? I am a MUDBLOOD after all."
I winced and felt a little guilty. But that feeling didn't last long – I was Malfoy after all. "Continue." I urged.
"Well... I kept thinking of that – Oblivion," said Granger. "I closed my eyes after every... uh... accident and after a while, that thought became reality. That's it."
I raised my eyebrow. "Not even Voldemort could do that," I said, staring down at her. Then I remembered Zambini. "How did you bring him down here?"
With that question, Granger's lips twisted into a wicked smirk. "Oh, I just pictured having a little duel with him in Oblivion. Nobody could see us, so we won't get suspended."
"How come he's petrified then?"
Granger shrugged. "Everybody who comes to Oblivion becomes petrified. People in Life won't remember they're gone. I'm the only one that can enter... Well, other than you that is."
"How did I get here then?"
"I don't know... you weren't supposed to be here..."
"What about our eyes?" I asked, pointing at my glowing midnight blue eyes. "How come we're the only ones that have these?"
Granger shrugged again. "I don't really know anything about all these strange happenings, Malfoy," she said. I could tell she wasn't lying. "I just do it because I can. I didn't bother to question why... or how... It just is."
I pondered this for a moment. "Granger, lets make a deal," I said, and seeing her questioning look, I continued, "I won't let out your little secret, if you promise to help me..."
Granger raised an eyebrow. "Promise to help you what?"
I grinned. "Promise me you'd help me figure out this little mystery. Why you can enter Oblivion... why I can enter Oblivion... Everything... Do we have a deal?"
Granger hesitated, but in the end, she took my hand and shook it. "It's a deal, Malfoy."
"Great. Now get us out of here."
HERMIONE'S POV:
I opened my eyes and in a flash, Oblivion evaporated. Frost still hung from my finger tips and toes, but I shook it off and put an empty expression on my face.
"Here!" I muttered, throwing Zambini's limp form in front of a shivering Malfoy. "Everything will turn back to normal in a few seconds... be prepared to act natural."
Malfoy gave a crisp nod and shook the frost off his chin.
The ground below our feet shook a bit before everything turned back to normal. All this never happened. I was still pissed with Zambini – I didn't make a deal with the ferret from hell.
"So? Why won't they see, Mudblood?" said Zambini. "We have to end this. I'll show you what a TRUE Slytherin (He glared at Malfoy) is all about!"
I shrugged. I don't care if he beat the crap out of Malfoy – in fact I want him to beat the crap out of Malfoy. "Fine then. Meet me in the Astronomy Tower tonight, Zambini," I whispered so only he could here. "We'll end it then."
Zambini gave me a sneer, showed his middle finger at Malfoy and walked back towards his seat.
"What the hell, Granger?" said Malfoy once Zambini left. "You're going to get into trouble! Zambini can beat the crap out of you!"
I shrugged. "Yeah right, I'm not the least bit intimidated." I said carelessly.
Malfoy gave me a concerned stare. "Granger, this isn't Griffindore. We aren't all friendly with each other even if we're in the same house, you know! You're getting up to a wrong start! You're already getting enemies on your first day!"
I shrugged again. "I can handle it, you know," I said. "Now, if you don't mind, I've got a breakfast to finish."
Damn, I'm late! I fixed my hair, dusted my robes, and ran towards the dungeons like my life depended on it. Damn, damn, damn, damn!!
"Rowe! Come on! We're going to be late!" I said without turning back. I gasped for breath as my feet ran on instinct. "Snape – is – gonna – kill – me!!"
"Wait up, 'Mione!" shouted Rowe, trying to catch up with me. "Besides, you're Slytherin now, remember?"
But I didn't hear that. My feet were too busy running and I tried desperately to breath in oxygen (These are the types of problems you get when you're running too hard). "Come ON, Rowe!" I shouted.
"Professor!" I gasped once I reached Potions class. "I... was... sorry!" My usual empty, careless expression was replaced with my goody two shoes for a while.
Snape stopped writing on the blackboard. "Very well, Miss Granger," he said, carelessly. "I understand your prefect duties."
I raised an eyebrow. He never understood before. Then again, I AM Slytherin now.
"Arcentosh, Granger, take your seats and take the ingredients for the Vision Potion (A/N: It sound stupid, I know. But I don't know what to name it!) from the ingredient cabinet, please."
I nodded and walked towards the ingredient cabinet to pull out the ingredients needed. Beatle wings... Frog eyes... Snake skin... Black Lily pads... Gernipolls... and other weird items...
Rowe and I followed the steps for the Vision Potion perfectly. After half an hour of slicing and brewing, Snape finally stood up and announced, "Once you're done with you're potions, you are required to drink it all down," he said. "If done correctly, you'll each get a vision of you're future. Be warned, these visions, whether good or bad, cannot be changed." Snape smirked in Harry's direction. "What comes, comes. Any questions?"
Nada.
"Good. You may drink now."
I stared down at my cup of bubbling purple potion, shrugged, and swallowed it all down.
The first thing that came in mind was – yuck! Then, I felt my knees weaken, my eyes swollen and my skin pale. I closed my eyes and suddenly, a blurred vision came to me.
Vision
It was a crisp cold night, fairly dark and stars sparkled bright in the sky. A breeze came from the north, whipping my hair.
"This is it...," somebody mumbled beside me. I nodded, not knowing why. "Wand ready?" that person asked. I nodded again, wand gripped tightly in my right hand. "How's your arm?" I asked.
"It's been better...," said the person. "Remember, Hermione. Focus." I nodded. "Eight more seconds...,"
Seven... I gripped my wand tighter until my fists turned white.
Six... Looking around, I saw Dumbledore, McGonnagle, Snape and a few others. Their wands were out – ready for attack.
Five... Perspire dripped down my forehead even through the chilly night. I could feel their presence. They were near.
Four... I gulped. Three more seconds...
Three... I could feel them. I gasped for air but my lungs were tied tightly.
Two... I needed oxygen...
One... I can't breath...
"HERMIONE, LOOK OUT!" said the voice before. It sounded urgent.
A bright green flash.
I screamed. "DRACO!!!"
End Vision
My eyes snapped open, aware and afraid. The vision was so clear... it was so close... I turned around to look at Malfoy. "Help...," I mouthed to him.
Malfoy nodded, a determined look on his face...
Okay, how was that? A lot of action/adventure coming up, eh? Of course there would be romance and jealousy as well! Don't forget to review! Who knows, if you're a good little boy/girl, I'll give you a cookie and the next chapter. I hope you liked this chapter. Who knows, I might continue after 7 or more reviews, so it's best to be on the safe side. More reviews = faster outcome. Cheers!! And don't forget to REVIEW!!!