Teachers came along the corridor, rounding up all the students, and taking then to the prefects' carriages. Harry, Ron and Hermione were the last there. The teachers were counting everyone up, and soon found 12 girls missing.
Everyone started to panic as Professor Snape and Professor McGonagall prepared to go out to search for the girls. Cutting through the crowds Hermione approached them.
"Professors, I think I should come with you. There could be things out there you can't deal with." She said
"Like what Miss Granger?" Snape asked snidely
"Well, for example there are vampires. Only a few ancient spells work on them, the rest rebound on the caster." Hermione pointed out.
"Good point Hermione." Professor McGonagall said. "But you have to be careful."
Hermione grinned and pulled two stakes and a cross out of her bag. One stake went up her sleeve, the cross went around her neck, and the other stake got clenched in her hand. She tucked her wand in a pocket.
Thus armed the small party left the train, and started to hunt. Before long they stumbled across a vampire. Catching him unawares Hermione drove a stake through his back and into his heart.
"Aren't you glad you brought me along?" she whispered, moving silently ahead into some woods.
McGonagall and Snape swapped a look, and then followed.
Hermione crept into a clearing, and then froze. Her slayer-sense was tingling. A voice rang from the distance.
"Pretty maids, pretty maid, why are you twelve?" Hermione recognised the voice. It had haunted her dreams all summer. She screamed.
A horde of the un-dead rose from the undergrowth. Hermione braced herself to fight. A sharp pain stabbed at the back of her head. She slumped down and everything went black.
Professors Snape and McGonagall heard Hermione scream and ran forwards, however by the time they reached the clearing Hermione and all the vampires had gone. They searched fruitlessly for an hour, before deciding to return to the train to see if Hermione was there. She wasn't. Deciding that they could do no more they ordered the train driver to carry on to Hogwarts.
Hermione woke to find herself tied to a stake, as if she was to be burned. As soon as that thought crossed her mind she quelled it. The person who had tied her obviously didn't know that she was a slayer, as they had tied her with normal rope. She could feel the reassuring weights of her wand in her pocket, and her stake up her sleeve.
Trussed up next to her were twelve girls from Hogwarts, ranging from first years to seventh. They all wore identical looks of terror and hopelessness. In a circle around them stood a crowd of vampires. Surveying the row was a pale skinned woman with long brown hair and dreamy eyes. When she spoke her voice sent a shiver down Hermione's spine. This was the person from her dreams.
"You are my pretty maids, all in a little row, row, row, and the queen of hearts is getting hungry." The woman addressed her captives in a singsong voice, swaying slightly.
"Bring me the first one." She ordered her minions. One of them moved to untie Hermione. She spat in his eye.
"Be good now puppy, mummy will be nice." The woman said.
The man, no, vampire carried on untying Hermione. The moment she was free Hermione pulled her stake out, and slew him. The vampires stood shocked. Using their confusion Hermione ripped the other girls free. The vampires charged at Hermione.
Hermione pushed the girls behind her, to a gap in the trees that the vampires had left unguarded.
"Go!" she whispered loudly, then turned towards the vampires. She grinned.
"Is it me, or did the wind change direction one very unfortunate day?" she quipped. The vampires snarled.
"It's just me then." Hermione said lightly, and lashed out at the nearest vampire. They attacked together, probably realising that she was a slayer. Hermione stabbed everywhere, pushing her stake into every bit of flesh she could find.
Hermione screamed as a searing pain cut across her cheek, and down her neck. All of a sudden the heap of disorganised vampires stepped back, leaving he in the steady grasp of their three strongest. She struggled futilely. The female vampire stepped forward, and licked the blood off Hermione's face. She shuddered involuntarily and froze. The vampire plunged its teeth deep into Hermione's neck. She screamed, then crumpled to the floor.
"Well done." Came a voice from the shadows. "You have exceeded all expectations Ms Dru.
"Gone, what do you mean gone? She can't have just disappeared!" Ron cried.
"I'm very sorry Ron, but there was no sign of her anywhere." Professor McGonagall said in an attempt to calm the distraught teen. We will go back there at first light to search again. You are welcome to join us then."
This reassurance calmed Ron a little, and he sank back onto the chair in Professor McGonagall's office.
"It's just not like her." Harry said. "She never runs off half-cocked. Something must've caught her by surprise."
"I quite agree Harry." Said Professor Dumbledore from the shadows. Harry started at his voice. "I also think that, Harry, Ron, it's time for you to go to bed."
Harry and Ron grumbled at this, but agreed and traipsed up to bed in silence. Each envisaging what dreadful things could be happening to their best friend right now.
Harry and Ron both lay for hours before they managed to drift off to sleep. When he did Harry had an awful dream.
Harry's scar burned reed hot. He was whipped in a tornado of pain to a clearing in a gloomy forest. Everything was black and white, and looked like it was underwater. A group of girls in Hogwarts robes were tied to posts. Among them was Hermione. She was untied, and pulled down by a vampire. Staking him she ripped the others free and sent them away to safety, charging the older ones to look after the little first years. She whirled and fought the vampires. Harry lost sight of her among the mêlée. She emerged with a huge gash across her cheek and down her neck. Three huge vampires were holding her. A female vampire stepped forwards and did something to Hermione's face. Hermione shivered. The vampire plunged her teeth into Hermione; Hermione crumpled to the floor and lay there. Panicked Harry's dream-self knelt over her. She wasn't breathing. Harry flew back to his body and awoke with a start, his scar throbbing.
"Harry, Harry, you were having one of your dreams again. It's morning." Ron was shouting over him.
Harry swore and leapt to his feet, not bothering to dress he charged out the door, and ran all the way to Professor Dumbledore's office, receiving some fairly funny looks from bewildered students along the way. He breathlessly yelled the password to the gargoyle and charged up the stairs at full speed.
"Professor, professor!" Harry yelled, "I had another one of those dreams, it was about Hermione!" at this point a bewildered Ron charged in, breathing heavily, having had forgotten the password.
"Whatever is the matter Mr Potter?" Professor McGonagall asked.
Harry recounted his dream of the night before. Ron started to swear very colourfully.
"What are we waiting for? If we are quick Hermione and the other girls may still be alive!" Professor McGonagall cried. Without another word Professor Dumbledore enchanted a quill to become a portkey and they all grabbed onto it. In a matter of seconds Harry felt himself be lifted off the ground and Dumbledore's office swam and spun into a forest clearing.
Sure enough, in it were thirteen posts, with their ropes snapped. The ground was churned up, and there was a reddish-brown stain covering it. No one needed to say it, because everyone was thinking it. Blood. Hermione's blood.
Something moved in the bushes. Everyone span on their heels and trained their wands on the bushes. From it crawled eleven petrified, filthy girls. Among them was Lavender Brown, who burst into tears.
"Th-th-they took H-Hermione, a-and Ang-Angelina!" she sobbed.