A/n: Hello! This is story number 5, only one more to go! Wow... please review! ( Oh, btw, I know this is in like three of my chappies, but I am still looking for a beta reader. So... I hope you enjoy!!!

The sky was a whirling grey, cascading down to fields blanketed with shadow and smoke. Tension, fear, loyalty, deceit was already thickening among the deep fog. Dark figures had begun to emerge from among the burnt trees surrounding the destroyed clearing. Stepping through the black, broken limbs and the still smoldering ash, they tried as best they could to remain unseen.

All were covered with ash and dirt as they conversed quietly, hunching over. If one were to look at this ruined stretch of land from far away, you would not see the 20-or-so individuals huddling among what once was a majestic forest.

"The time has come to fight. I feel them growing nearer..." "They are still a few days ahead of us... There is time to rest. We've been running for the last week... We should not rush war. " "I suppose." The tallest one, with jet-black hair, spoke as if he was superior to the others.

Some of the travelers that had performed the disillusionment charm upon themselves were leaning against what was left of the trees, and crumpled to the ground at the thought of rest. Sleep embraced them, pulling them deeper into the spirit of the woods. Every being or creature that had passed through or would pass through this dark, gloomy strip of land was flitting through their dreams. During a terrible war between unknown races, a girl sat up abruptly, sweating profusely. She had been through so much pain in the last two years... An 18 year old... lying in the ashes... unmoving, but wide-awake all the same...

A sound. Creeping through the black ash. Towards her...

"Now or never... It's now or never... it's now or never..." It rasped, wrapping its words around her sensitive ears. The black shifted, became taller, wider, bigger and it crooned louder, willing her to scream or alert the others of its presence. "Now or never... Now or never...It's now or never..."

She did not, would never, give in to its warnings, instead she began to cry softly, curling up with her arms wrapped around her bony knees. It smiled gruesomely, knowing it was close to what it desired. Licking its lips in greed, its face broke into a wider grin.

"Now or never..." With that, the girl felt its presence dissipate... and she was left awake and alone once more.

A small girl was balanced upon a small, three-legged table, as another one, with flaming red hair, cheered her on. The girl had almost attained her target, a large, silvery mirror hung high up on the otherwise blank wall, and the other's cheers increased in volume and excitement. She reached up and grasped the very corner of the golden frame, causing it to swing back and forth on the hook dangerously. "I almost have it!" She cried resolutely, and stood on the very tips of her toes, grabbing at the corner. Leaning into it, she finally clutched the long mirror in her tiny, trembling hands. "I've got it!" She exclaimed triumphantly, lifting it joyfully off of the hook. Just as she was about to step down, the stool gave way. Her feet slipped as the table crashed to the ground, another one of its legs broken in half. A glass counter that had been adjacent to the stand shattered as the girl's head made contact with its fragile surface. Before the red-head could do so much as open her mouth, the mirror they had been trying to reach all morning smashed down on top of her unconscious friend. It broke into fragments upon hitting the girl's limp body; some of the shards forced into her skin. A terrified, shocked scream escaped the other's frail lips as she stared into the vacant eyes of her friend. Every breath the unconscious girl took brought up more blood, which sputtered and bubbled out of her open mouth. Tears of fright had sprung up in her own eyes, threatening to spill over as her brother and mother rushed into the room. "Ginny dear, what's wrong?!" Her mother cried, before she had a chance to lay eyes on the gruesome scene.

Suddenly, she felt someone roughly wrap their arms around her and begin to carry her somewhere. She tried to open her eyes, but her head was being held against her captor's grimy shirt. Panic bolted throughout her brain circuits, and she wondered if this was the End. She did not resist, as the End was inevitable, but soon the journey ended, and she was softly set down.

"Shhh... It's all right..." a voice crooned gently into her ear, whilst the hand that was not clamped around her waist stroked her hair soothingly. She kept her eyes shut tight, as she thought that maybe she could hold off the terror for just a few more minutes. The man rocked her back and forth, willing her to calm down.

Comprehension dawned, and a ray of blinding light shone through the misty darkness that had enveloped her mind. Her breathing slowed considerably, and the man quickly let go of her. Eyes snapping open, she gazed around the space that she now occupied.

She was sitting in the man's lap, comfortably positioned between his legs. Ashes and skeletons of leaves crunched beneath her bare feet as she stood up slowly, wondering what had happened. She realized that she had been carried deep into the forest, and a terrifying thought hit her: what if they had been found? In that case... they would have wanted her and another to remain alive... just so their entire cause wouldn't become extinct.

"What happened?" she whispered, fear entering her voice.

"You had a nightmare, and you kept screaming something. We couldn't make out the word, but we were worried you'd wake something up... Either that, or alert Voldemort of our presence." He said, sighing heavily. She didn't like the way he said "something"; it sent shivers up her spine. He turned to face her, and rested a weathered, rough hand upon her severely thin shoulder blade. "Don't worry... we're alright for now..." He breathed, squeezing her shoulder in assurance.

She couldn't tell exactly who he was; only that he was one of the Americans. From the sound of his voice, though, she thought it might be Matthew. Gradually, the dream she had been having began to come back to her in bits and pieces.

She had drifted to sleep a few hours after the black creature had left her, and again memories of someone who had passed through the stretch of land inhabited her dreams. This one however, was not of a certain event that had happened in the forest, it was a memory. The worst memory that person had ever acquired. A memory of her best friend dying, right in front of her eyes, and it was all her fault.

Soon, after she had recollected every tiny detail from the dream, she realized whose memory it was, and collapsed into the other wizard's arms. She wrapped her own arms around his neck and sobbed openly, wondering why she was still alive, when Ginny was dead.

"What's wrong? Hermione?" He asked, startled. This caused her to cry even harder, and her grip around his neck tightened considerably. He started to rub her back in hopes of comforting her. "Shhh... It's ok..."

"Why is it me? Why wasn't it Lavender, or Padma, or Ginny?" She managed to choke out in between sobs. "Ginny..."

"You were the only one brave enough... cunning enough... to escape," He said softly, after a particularly large sob from Hermione.

"No! I was a coward!" She paused to wipe away the tears that were streaming down her pale face. "Ginny died for me! Lavender, Padma, they both died in war!" She was crying harder than ever, holding on to Matthew for dear life. "It's all my fault Ginny's dead!"

A/n: So, Did you like it???? You've got to review, or else I won't get any better. Plus, I like them. They make me feel warm and fuzzy inside.