In this chapter you meet Jasmine and a little hint of a storyline for later (nota romance thing) a friendship that seems unlikely. Read on to discover what the heck I'm on about...

Title: Trouble Minds and Desperate Times

Main Characters: Hermione, Harry, Ron, Draco (in later chapters), Jasmine, and a few others

Summary: There's a new girl at school, but is she friend or foe? And this time has Harry fallen a little to far in? Dumbledore is still with them and Ron & Hermione are hiding a secret.

Spoilers: Everything.

Other: Set in the 7th year. Dumbledore is still alive and Harry is forcing himself further and further into the ground. Will the new girl pull him out? Or will she step on his head! The first few chapters are quite short, but then they get longer.

Disclaimer: If you recognise it, it's because it isn't mine. I only own Jasmine and Salvius, and maybe one or two other characters.

Chapter 3

The New Girl

After the feast the Gryffindors raced up to the common room. 'Fruit pastel,' Ron said to the Fat Lady and she swung open.

Sitting by the fire, reading 101 Useful Charms, was the coal eyed brunette from the train. Harry's heart missed a beat. 'Funny, they only mentioned one new girl,' Harry whispered to Ron but he ignored him.

The girl looked up from her book, slightly startled at the people, mainly boys, trying to push through the hole. Hermione shoved past a very startled Neville. 'Jasmine, hi,' Hermione exclaimed.

Harry jaw dropped. This was Jasmine. She looked nothing like that photo. Hermione rolled her eyes at the gawping boys, who were now standing in the doorway, and started to introduce Jasmine. 'This is Dean, and Neville, and Harry,'

Harry smiled, what must have been a very superficial smile because his insides were doing cartwheels, 'hello,' he said in a very unnatural, high pitched voice.

But instead of laughing at him or looking away in embarrassment; she looked at him. But not at his scar, like most people did when they first met him, no, right into his eyes. But, then quickly she looked away to the long line of people that Hermione was introducing her to. 'And this is Ron,' Hermione continued.

Ron smiled at her and said, in a very normal voice, to Harry's annoyance, 'Hi, I love your work, especially that photo that was in the Daily Prophet.'

Harry frowned. When has Ron ever been articulate around girls? Particularly girls as beautiful as Jasmine. 'You make me sound like an artist! Eugh and that blonde hair dye they made me put on!' Jasmine said laughing.

Ron laughed to. They all sat in the common room, questioning their newcomer. They sat for hours until the only people left were Jasmine, Ron, Hermione and Harry. The fire had long burnt out when Harry finally said. 'I'm going to bed.'

'Yeah, me too,' Hermione said, standing up.

'Me three,' Jasmine added.

'Hmmm… I guess so,' said Ron standing up.

They all wondered up to their dormitories. Harry and Ron got changed wearily, making slight small talk. Ron fell asleep quickly. Harry could tell from his snoring. Harry couldn't sleep. He could not get Jasmine out of his head. When he finally drifted off he dreamt about her. But not the way he was expecting to dream about her.

First, he saw a man he recognised as Voldermort but there saw someone else. "Salvius, you are loyal to me so I have returned to you what should have been yours. Funny how the person you wanted the most turned out to be perfect bait for the boy," Voldermort hissed.

Suddenly, Harry's view changed and opposite the two people was a girl hanging in mid- air. She seemed to be unconscious. Her brunette hair covering half of her heavily bruised face. Harry recognised the girl almost instantly. Jasmine.

Salvius took out his wand and shouted "coquit erante,"

Jasmine dropped to the floor with a thud. She lifted her head. Salvius's sunken eyes bore into her. "Crucio,"

She gasped, as if unable to scream. "NO!" Harry shouted.

He woke, his scare searing, the image of Jasmine fresh in his mind. "Harry, are you ok?" Ron asked.

Harry sat up and snatched his glasses from the table. The blurry figures came into focus. Dean, Seamus, Ron and Neville were all sitting up looking at him. "Yeah, I'm, er, fine. Bad dream, that's all," he replied.

They al made their way down to breakfast to find Hermione sitting on her own reading The Daily Prophet and shaking her head. "Where's Jasmine?" Dean asked.

"Didn't you hear? Last night she woke up screaming and clutching her wrist. She said something about it being a bad dream and that she didn't feel up to breakfast."

"That's weird… Harry, are you alright?" Ron said, peering at Harry.

Harry had gone paper white. His head was spinning. He tried to smile but felt himself shiver hot and cold. "Yeah, of…of course."

It's a coincidence. A simple coincidence. It had to be. Harry thought again and again, trying to convince himself. Then his mind wondered slightly. What had Hermione said about Jasmine clutching her wrist? He just managed to gulp down orange juice when Jasmine walked in. Her hair was tied back away from her face, and she looked pale, as if she'd just been sick.

Suddenly, Malfoy and his gang strutted up to her. Harry starred at what was happening, he couldn't hear what was being said but it appeared that Malfoy was trying to flirt with Jasmine! Both Harry and Ron were watching intently. Jasmine tried to walk away from him but Malfoy grabbed her arm. "Get off," Jasmine told him sternly, but he pulled her back.

Harry immediately stood up and charged over, "Let go of her!"

"Oh look, it's the hero!" Malfoy smirked, tightening his grip on Jasmine.

Something raged inside Harry and all of a sudden his clenched fist hit Malfoy so hard in the jaw that he staggered backwards. "You'll pay for that!" Malfoy spat.

He grabbed his wand and pointed it at Harry, "mercious cantici"

"Don't you d-"Jasmine shouted as Malfoy turned to her.

The spell hit her right in the torso. She was flung, spinning, into the Ravenclaw table. A loud scream was followed by the sound of china and cutlery being scattered across the room. Jasmine lay in the middle of the chaos, motionless. Harry, Ron and Hermione rushed over. "I'm going to get Madame Pomfrey!" Harry said over the racket and rushed out the hall.

When he returned, closely followed by Madame Pomfrey she bellowed, "EVERYONE OUT!"Harry, Ron and Hermione were left to explain what happened.