CHAPTER THREE: NOT SO SWEET DREAMS
XXXXXXXXXX
As Hermione prepared herself for bed, she looked uneasily about her dormitory. The dark shadows swallowed up the room, and left Hermione with few places she could change. After all, most people were asleep at midnight.
Plagued with horrific nightmares each night, Hermione had finally given up sleeping. When people started heading up to their beds, Hermione, Ron, and Harry would remain in the common room. Finally when it got too late for excuses, the boys would head upstairs, but Hermione's bookworm reputation left her with many logical explanations to give her best friends towards her refusal to go to bed.
She'd stay up a good two hours after that, doing extra homework or extra credit. Every now and then she'd work on Harry's Quidditch papers, or read a good book, but more often than not, she was reading ahead. Sometimes she'd fall asleep on the couch but she'd be up before any student came down to the common room.
Tonight she hadn't counted on Professor McGonagall entering the common room.
"Miss Granger?" she had asked, utterly surprised to see the girl with her head down on the desk
Startled, Hermione jumped up a bit, putting a hand to her heart "Oh I'm sorry Professor"
"What are you doing up at this hour Miss Granger?" The Transfiguration teacher had asked
Hermione blushed, "I-I was studying"
Minerva tried very hard to fight back the smile that her lips wanted to curve into but it was late and she was too tired to try. "I see. Well I think it'd be better for you if you headed up to bed. After all, you are already two weeks ahead of the class my dear. If you don't be careful, you won't have any material to read for the remainder of the year, you very well could graduate in December!"
Hermione looked about ready to protest but she finally nodded her head.
"Well now that that's all settled; I'll just put this up on the bulletin board and head off to bed myself."
And so, here she was, staring at her bed, debating whether or not she should even climb into it. A small voice in the back of her head told her to, she was absolutely exhausted and wanted nothing more than to fall into a dreamless sleep. But another voice told her not to go near it, because she knew she would fall asleep, and once she did, there was no telling what could happen.
No she told herself I can't go to bed. I'll sit up and read, that way at least I'll be comfortable.
Grabbing her book, and climbing across her bed, Hermione got herself situated and whispered, "Lumos" The light was definitely brighter than Hermione would have liked, but it would have to do.
And so Lorrie Confunkalus, a member of a resistance group against He-who-must-not-be-named was tortured at the hands of several Death Eaters, by the Cruitacus curse. Her death resulted in outrage by the Wizarding World for she was a member of the ministry and though not married, was a member of a large family. Her long time boyfriend, Nicholas Rowanistky declared revenge and foolishly leaded several of her friends and brothers in a rampage, one that resulted in the deaths of all he led, and only a single Death Eater….
"Hermione!" A sudden voice cried out
"What?" She asked softly, not wanting to wake her roommates.
"Turn off that light. I can't sleep!" Parvati snapped
Hermione sighed, "Alright. Nox!" And the room was developed in total darkness.
There was nothing left her for to do but sleep. And at the thought Hermione squirmed underneath her covers. She would just have to stay awake.
'Review spells in your head' she told herself 'you know enough to keep you up for five more hours. C'mon just concentrate…'
'Accio…'She began. But against all efforts the witch put up, she eventually succumbed to slumber.
XXXXXXXXXX
Pressing her feet as fast as she could against the ground, she raced to the oak door and pulled with all her might, to open it. As she did, fire shot up from inside the room, making Hermione sweat and fall backwards onto the ground. Screams from inside filled her ear.
"Hold on!" She screamed, "I'm coming!"
She looked frantically for a way to get in that didn't involve running through fire. She saw no such entrance. More screams of death were drifting up into the smoke filled air.
Guilt flowed through her veins; she couldn't do anything! Those people inside the entrance hall were trapped and burning, and there was no way to reach them. She scooted away from the room, not looking back, tears flowing heavily down her cheeks. Her classmates were dying and she was leaving them, how on earth had she been sorted into Gryffindor?!
She just sat there sobbing, as frantic people ran past her, screaming as though the world were ending. And as Hermione looked down onto the scene that was occurring on the Hogwarts Grounds, she admitted that it probably was.
Parts of the castle were on fire, Death Eaters and students battled bravely, one or the other always dying, and blood stained the once perfect lawn. Her friends and fellow students, her professors, and more recently, members of the ministry and Order were dying, and her beloved home was burning to the ground.
And then she saw him. As she crawled over to where he was, she wanted nothing more than for him to hug her and protect her, and tell her that everything would be all right, she didn't hear that someone was behind her.
"Hermione!" The cry rang into the air and she whipped her head around. Ron was running towards her. Forgetting about crawling over to Harry she sat there, not believing that he was actually alive. He had been in the Entrance Hall.
"Hermione!" He said, falling next to her on the ground, and quickly pushing her into the nearby bushes. Diving into the thicket himself, he straightened himself out, breathing heavily.
"Ron?"
"Yea I'm here. Don't worry."
"Ron, y-you were in the entrance hall"
He stopped what he was doing and looked her in the eyes. "No I wasn't" he replied solemnly. "But I saw what happened to it."
"No Ron, I saw you…"
"Hermione, you probably mistook me for someone else."
"How many people have your hair Ron?!" She snapped at him
"Eight" He replied cheekily, desperately trying to get her to smile. Instead, she paled and began to cry.
"Oh no Ron…."
"What is it?" He asked concerned, putting a hand to her cheek.
"You said it yourself! Eight people! Oh my God!"
""Mione calm down. Everything is going to be okay"
"No it's not Ron! It wasn't you I saw go into the entrance hall…it was one of your brothers!" She sobbed hysterically. Realization suddenly was on Ron's face and he paled so much Hermione wondered if all the blood had been drained from him.
"Hermione" He croaked "Do your remember what he looked like?"
She shook her head no. "I just saw the hair"
Ron took a deep breath. "I'm sure he got out"
"Don't be so thick! I heard those people! They were burning to death!"
Suddenly Ron grabbed her shoulders and shook her. "NO! DON'T SAY THAT!" He shouted.
Hermione just looked at him with fearful eyes. "I'm sorry," he said gently. "But he got out" He emphasized sternly. "He did"
Hermione opened her mouth to respond but before she could say anything, the loudest scream she had ever heard pierced the night sky. Both immediately turned their heads to where they had seen Harry and Voldemort fighting earlier. From where they were, they couldn't see anything. But the moment they heard a deep cackle that spread about all of Hogwarts, they both knew who had won.
"No…" Hermione whispered
"Harry?"
"No…it's too much! I can't take it! I have to see!" She cried, jumping up and over the bushes.
"NO!" Ron screamed, jumping up and running after Hermione. "HERMIONE COME BACK!"
She wouldn't listen. She had to see for herself. There he was. There Harry lay, her best friend. Falling onto the ground beside his body she didn't move. His forehead was still dripping with sweat, his black hair stuck to his forehead, hiding that scar she knew he'd always hated. His emerald eyes were open, staring blankly back at Hermione. She began to cry so hard, that she couldn't breathe. "Harry!!" she moaned, throwing herself over his body.
"Well well well…what do we have here?" A voice that Hermione instantly recognized as Voldemort's said "The Mudblood crying over her fallen hero? Or maybe it was her true love?" He laughed, "Well he's not worth your tears, he's dead"
"HERMIONE!" Ron shouted, coming to a stop when he saw Voldemort.
"Ah here he is. Potter's sidekick. I don't believe we've ever met. Let me introduce myself."
"I know who you are you bastard" Ron said through gritted teeth, completely ignoring Voldemort and instead, tugging on Hermione's arm. "Let's go 'Mione"
"Leaving so soon?"
"Actually yes" Ron replied "Hermione LET'S GO!"
" No Ron. Harry's dead"
Tone softening, Ron looked at her "I know. But now's not the time to mourn when we could get killed in an instant. That'll come later. Right now we have to save our skins"
"Easier said than done Mr. Weasley" Voldemort said enjoying each moment of this encounter
"YOU NEED TO SHUT THE HELL UP!" Ron screamed at Voldemort. Realizing what he'd done, Ron flung Hermione over his shoulder and started running like he'd never run before.
"Oooh nobody talks to Voldemort like that" the snakelike man said to himself.
XXXXXXXX
"Ron put me down!"
"Fine!" He said, placing her gently on the ground, then grabbing her head and running.
"Ron when I said put me down, I meant let's stop!" she said in between gasps of breath
"We can't do that 'Mione! We can't stop running till we're out of Hogwarts. I pissed Voldemort off, that's the one thing no one should ever do!"
To this Hermione said nothing. But eventually said, "Where are we going?"
"Right now we're going to find Dumbledore. If he's still alive"
"How can you talk like that? You just found out that Harry and at least one of your brothers are dead and you haven't cried yet!" She shouted, tears threatening to spill down her face again.
"I've still got you don't I? If Harry's not here to take care of you, then bloody hell I'm going to do it! And since both of our lives are currently in extreme danger my first priority is to keep us both alive! Once we stop running, then I can grieve." He said, pushing open one of the doors to the castle.
"Ron we shouldn't be in here. Parts of the building are on fire, it won't be long before it collapses."
"Exactly. Voldemort wouldn't dare come in here if there was a chance of him dying would he?"
"When did you become so smart and cool-headed in emergencies?" Hermione asked with a slight smile
He shrugged and finally slowed down to a walk, panting heavily. "Here we go" he said, looking at Dumbledore's office on the opposite end of the long corridor "I'll go first in case there are any Death Eaters in there. Stay here."
Hermione nodded, heart beating fast for Ron. As he walked slowly, she noted the pounding that was coming from the floor above. It was excruciatingly hot and little bits were falling from the ceiling. When a chunk as large as her hand fell to her feet she suddenly put the pieces together and screamed, "RON THE CEILING IS COLLAPSING!"
"Huh?" He said turning around to look at her. When another piece fell from the sky his heart started pounding. "HERMIONE GET OUT OF THE CORRIDOR!" He screamed as loud as he could, kicking Dumbledore's door open, eyes taking in the fact that Dumbledore lay in his chair, eyes open, completely dead, blood still dripping from his mouth.
Understanding the fact that Dumbledore couldn't help him any more than Harry could, he began to run back towards Hermione when suddenly…
His scream was the one Hermione would remember forever in her mind. She'd taken shelter underneath a table that was underneath a mirror in the neighboring corridor, waiting until Ron would come for her. But when she felt the crash, and heard the scream, she knew he'd never come.
She ran back to where she had previously stood and stared at the ruble underneath her feet. She looked up and the night sky with its red moon looked down upon her. Assuming where Ron would have been when it collapsed, she began to dig. Using every bit of strength she had left, she pulled rock after rock up from the ground, tears washing away the dust. She would refuse to give up until she found him. She had to see his body. Had to search for a pulse herself in order to believe it.
And then, she felt the sole of a shoe. Working faster and harder than she had ever in her life, Hermione quickly uncovered Ron's body. His face and clothes were covered with a white kind of powder that made him look like a ghost; his flaming bright hair sticking out more than usual. His eyes were closed but for the first time in her life, Hermione wished he wasn't. She wanted to look into his eyes one last time, even if his held no emotion.
Hands shaking, she gently pried his eyelids up, and screamed. Where there once had been ice blue eyes, there now were red.
A laugh from behind her made her jump. The eyes were blue again but Hermione couldn't bear to look after what had just happened. Turning around fearfully she stared into the face of Lord Voldemort.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Hermione opened her eyes to find her covers thrown completely off her bed, and her body enveloped in a cold sweat. Her heart pounded insanely and her hands shook. Not quite understanding that everything had been a dream, she jumped out of bed and threw the door open, running down the stairs, into the common room, and up the stairs leading to boy's dormitories, the only thing on her mind, seeing Harry and Ron.
Reaching their room, she didn't hesitate at the door like she usually did, but instead flung the door open so hard that it banged into the wall.
"What the bloody hell??!" An overly tired Seamus Finnegan cried out.
Hermione ignored him and made her way over to Harry's bed, ripping the curtains down from the rod they were on
"Hermione?" Dean Thomas squinted through the darkness, then turning to Seamus "What is she doing?"
"I've got no idea" Seamus replied
Seeing a body in the bed, Hermione leaned closer to make sure it was Harry. Turning him on his side so that his face was in the moonlight she pushed his messy hair out of his face and found his scar.
"Umm Hermione?" Harry's voice asked her confused
"Harry?" Hermione asked, her voice shaking
"Yea it's me. What are you doing here?"
"Oh Harry!" She cried, throwing her arms around him. Uncertain what to do, he rubbed her back, looking to Dean and Seamus for an explanation. They only stared curiously at the scene before them. "I just couldn't—you don't understand---it was so terrible---I--" She gasped, making Dean jump "Harry! Where's Ron?"
Harry looked at Hermione utterly perplexed. "H-He's over there Hermione but—" Harry never got to finish his sentence when Hermione dashed across to the bed two down from Harry's.
XXXXXX
Ron, who could sleep through anything, almost had a heart attack when his bed curtains were yanked open and a figure stood towering above his bed. Focusing his eyes he tried to see the identity of the person, fearing it to be a Death Eater, when it suddenly jumped on him.
To say he was surprised would have been an understatement. He looked around the dormitory at Dean, Seamus, and now Neville, who were sitting up in their beds staring at him, and at Harry who had his eyebrows furrowed in thought. Since all their eyes were staring at the thing on his bed, he decided it would be a good thing if he took a look too. No one was screaming or looking scared so he assumed it wasn't a killer of any kind.
The first thing he saw was a bunch of curls. Brown, only slightly frizzy curls that immediately gave away the identity of the person.
"'Mione?" He asked to no one in particular
When Hermione lifted her head to look at him, he noticed the tear marks that were on her face, and he began to panic. Hermione never cried. She came close to it many times, but the only times he'd ever see her cry, they were either in mortal danger or they had just survived something miraculous. Something was terribly wrong.
"What's wrong?" He asked gently but with an urgent sternness in his voice
She shook her head and clung to him, a few more tears escaping her chocolate eyes.
"Do you know what's wrong?" he asked Harry
Harry shook his head, "She nearly petrified me though, tearing down my curtains like that."
Ron nodded his understanding and turned his attention to the girl in his arms. He studied her intently, unsure exactly how to handle this situation, but intrigued with her state of terror. After all, he'd never seen her like this.
For several minutes no one said anything and Dean, Seamus, and Neville must have given up trying to find out anything because they soon were quickly snoring. Harry sat on his bed, watching Hermione too, and trying desperately to cover up his yawns, it was the middle of the night after all.
"Hermione, it's getting really late. Do you think you would be able to go back to your dormitory? Or do you want to tell us about it, I don't think the other blokes would care since they saw you come in anyways" Harry said gently.
Hermione didn't say anything but shake her head no.
The boys both sighed. "Why don't you go back to bed mate? I've got a feeling it'll be a while and if one of us needs our rest its you."
"I want to find out what's wrong with her Ron"
"I know Harry, so do I. But somehow I have a feeling we won't know for a long time. She might not even tell us tomorrow."
Harry nodded his head. "I know that. But I can't leave her."
Ron sighed but smiled slightly "Alright. I bet that's what she'd want anyways"
Hermione nodded her agreement and moved against him, getting comfortable. "Don't go to sleep on me," she whispered so quietly he barely heard her.
"I won't," He whispered back, holding her a little tighter, "I won't"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
(To be Continued…)
(A/N: Thanks so much for the wonderful response to last chapter!! I've decided to put all of my responses and Author Notes at the end of each chapter instead of before, because this way you all can read the story first and keep that allusion before breaking back into reality, if that makes any sense. My only announcement this chapter is that I'm back from vacation, so to expect more steadied updates; though I am aiming for longer chapters even if it means longer time in-between updates. That's about it, Thanks again, and review!!)
AmyChris: Thanks for the nice comments! I'm sorry about the update but hopefully this chapter made up for it! Can't wait to hear more from you, Thanks again for reviewing!
Smiles28: I was so ecstatic to see that you had reviewed! It meant a lot to me that someone from my other stories would read this one! And as always, your feedback was wonderful! You let me know what you're story is up and I'll be the first one to review!!!
Courtney Anne: You are only the second person from my Dr/Hr stories to review and make that switch with me! SO thank you thank you thank you!! It was great to hear from you, as always!
belanna30: I wasn't originally planning to add that chapter with the hospital wing scene in but I think it made things a bit easier to ease into, cause now you all hopefully get the sense of how I'm portraying these wonderful characters JKR has given us! Thanks so much for reviewing!
KHdreamer: Your review made me laugh! Glad you're enjoying the story, and I'll admit the first chapter was pretty weird and mysterious, but hopefully it was to everyone's liking! Thanks for reviewing!
Bhekie: Thanks for the feedback and the nice reviews! Glad you're enjoying the story!
Loki10125: Hopefully that last update wasn't too terribly long, and again I apologize for this one, I was in the mountains and completely cut off from everything to do with technology. Thanks for reviewing!
ronluver88: Your review really meant a lot to me, because I'll admit, I'm a bit insecure about writing R/Hr having come from a couple that is COMPLETELY different. So thanks for that, and thanks for reviewing!!