The next morning Taylor came into my room and woke me up.
"C'mon," she said as she tugged on my hand. "We have to start packing! We're going back to school!" I groaned and rolled out of bed.
"Okay, I'm up," I mumbled. I stumbled to my dresser, grabbed my jeans and T-shirt, and then stumbled into the hallway. I bumped into Draco outside the bathroom.
"Sorry," I said stifling a yawn. "I'm kind'a out of it." Draco smiled and kissed my cheek.
"Good morning," he replied. "Do you want tea or juice with your breakfast? I'll tell your mum or whoever's making breakfast this morning." He was talking about my grandparents, great-aunt, aunt, uncle, and baby cousin. They were staying at our house while their houses were being fumigated. They were being invaded by Pincher Bugs!
"Coke," I replied. Draco laughed.
"I don't think your mum will let you drink that." I smiled up at him.
"No, but my Aunt Patricia will," I replied.
"Which one is she?" he asked.
"My great-aunt, the older one," I answered. "Anyway, I was kidding about the Coke. I want green tea please." Draco nodded and I went into the bathroom to change into my clothes. After I had changed I went into the kitchen where everyone was sitting down to eat.
"Look who has decided to join the world of the living," Aunt Patricia teased from the stove where she was cooking pancakes and sausage.
"Morning," I yawned as I sat down between Harry and Draco.
"Ready for school?" Grams asked. "This is your last year, isn't it?" I nodded and looked down at the food that mom had placed in front of me. This was the last year that I was going to be safe from Voldemort for most of the year. Although, if my dream was right, it wouldn't do much good.
"Are you all right?" dad asked. "You're not eating." I looked up and saw that the adults were all looking at me.
"I'm fine," I said. "I'm just tired. I had a rough night, that's all." I picked up my fork and began to eat.
"I bet you were too excited to sleep," Uncle Brian said. "Right?"
"Uh..." I said.
"She had a nightmare," Taylor chimed.
"About what?" mom asked.
"I forget," I muttered. "Anyway, it wasn't that bad." Taylor looked at me from across the table. She looked puzzled.
"Schy-san..."she began.
"Really," I said looked directly into her eyes. "It was nothing." She nodded, seeming to understand that this was not a topic we were going to discuss with our family. We finished eating and then Taylor, Jordyn, and I went to get packed and pull on our robes. Harry and Draco already had their robes on and their trunks packed and ready to go. When the three of us were done we brought our trunks down to the fireplace.
"I wish you were coming too, Cory," I said as I hugged him goodbye. Cory chuckled.
"I wish I could too," he said. "I had fun at Hogwarts. I'm gonna miss it." I hugged the rest of my family and kissed Liam, my Aunt Mary and Uncle Brian's baby, on the head, and then used my Floo Powder to go to Hogwarts.
I reached Dumbledore's office and stepped out of the fireplace.
"Welcome back!" Dumbledore said smiling warmly at me.
"Hello Professor," I replied smiling back. Draco and Harry came to stand on either side of me.
"Do you think you should tell him about your dream?" Draco whispered. I shook my head.
"No," I whispered back. "If I have another one then I will but I don't want to worry him if it was nothing more than a dream."
"But..." Draco began.
"No," I snapped. "It'll be fine." Draco sighed.
"You're so stubborn," he said.
"So you've noticed," I replied.
"Yeah," he said with a laugh. Dumbledore looked over at the pile of trunks that had arrived before us.
"Leave your things here," he said. "I'll have them taken to your dorms during dinner." We nodded and then walked to the Great Hall. Some of our fellow students were already there. They had just arrived as well, the others were out in the Entrance Hall talking to friends. Draco walked over to the Gryffindor table with us and sat next to me, slipping his arm around my waist.
"How come you didn't tell Dumbledore about your nightmare?" Taylor asked.
"What nightmare?" Hermione asked as she and Ron came over to us and sat down. Ron had spent the summer in Romania with his family, visiting his brother, Charlie. Hermione had spent the summer with her parents in Italy. Hermione sat between Harry and Taylor and Ron sat between Jordyn and Harry.
"Yeah how come you didn't tell me about it?" Jordyn demanded. I sighed.
"Because you didn't wake up like Taylor did. I didn't even tell her what it's about," I replied. "Anyway it's not that big of a deal. I don't think it's worth bothering Dumbledore."
"You looked pretty scared," Taylor said. "I think you should tell."
"Well I'm not going to," I snapped. "End of discussion." Hermione and Ron looked at me quizzically. They obviously felt like they were missing something.
"I'll tell you later," I said. "How were your trips?"
"Good," Ron said with a shrug. "Dragons. Nothing but dragons all bloody summer." Hermione smiled.
"It was fantastic!" she replied. "I really feel like my knowledge has expanded." We all laughed. Hermione always felt that way even after summer vacation. Draco touched my cheek.
"Remember what you said?" he asked. "About telling Dumbledore?" I looked up at him and nodded.
"If you have the dream again, do you promise that you will tell Dumbledore?" I slanted my eyes away from him and frowned. I nodded and looked up at him again.
"I promise," I said. Draco nodded and leaned down to kiss me.
"I love you," he whispered.
"I love you too," I whispered back. Then, the other students began coming in and Draco had to go sit with his housemates. After the Sorting we went to our Common Rooms.
"Girls, go to your dorm," I said when we reached the Common Room. "You should be getting to bed." They groaned and walked upstairs. I led Harry, Ron, and Hermione to a table in a corner where we were less likely to be overheard.
"So about this dream," Ron said. "What's got you so freaked out?"
"I dreamt that Voldemort..." Ron shuddered and Harry, Hermione, and I rolled our eyes. "That Voldemort killed me." Ron's mouth fell open and Hermione's eyes widened.
"That was definitely a nightmare!" Ron said. I nodded.
"And Cory, Draco, and Harry tried to save me but they couldn't and the three of them and Taylor...had to...watch me die," I said. My eyes filled with tears and I ran up to the seventh year dorm.
I flung myself onto my bed and yanked the red velvet hangings shut. I needed to calm down and go to sleep. That would make me feel better. I took off my clothes and pulled my pajamas on. Then I lied down and fell asleep.
Icy cold chains pinned my wrists and ankles to a smooth stone wall. My head was resting against my chest. I moaned and opened my eyes. My vision was still a little blurry but it cleared up in a minute. I lifted my head when I heard a door open. My eyes widened in fear as Lucius Malfoy and Voldemort walked up to me.
"Well Lucius, is this the child who led your son away from his rightful path?" Voldemort asked knowing very well that I was. Lucius nodded.
"Yes it is, Master." I shook my head as my mouth moved uselessly, not forming any words and making no sounds. Why hadn't the others arrived yet?
"It seems I will never get her to join us," Voldemort said. "You do know that you are rightfully mine, don't you Marcin? The moment that Ronan and Raelin perished you and you brother became mine. However, Cory is now a adult and I can no longer claim him. You however, though you are seventeen and legally of age in our world, you are still in school and by the Death Eater Laws, any child given to me can be claimed until they are eighteen. So you are mine and you can not escape it." I closed my eyes to stop the tears that had welled up from falling. I would not cry in front of him!
"Make you're choice now, girl," Lucius ordered. "What will it be? Joining us or death?" I shook my head and let it fall onto my chest again. Voldemort walked up to me and used his right pointer finger to tilt my head up to look into his blood red eyes.
"If you want to live, you will join us," he said.
"No," I said somehow managing to sound brave. "I won't."
"Then you will die," Lucius sneered. Then Cory, Draco, Harry, and Taylor burst into the room. Draco's eyes widened in shock when he saw his father.
"Father?" he gasped. "How...how could you?" Then he seemed to forget about that and his eyes got a determined angry look in them.
"Voldemort, don't touch her!" Harry yelled. Voldemort stepped away from me and turned to them.
"You're too late, I'm afraid," he said with a cold slightly amused smirk. "She has chosen death." Their eyes all widened at the same time.
"No, Schy-san!" Taylor cried. Harry grabbed her as she tried to run to me.
"I'm sorry," I said quietly. "I just couldn't join him. I'm protecting you Taylor. I'll choose that over life any day." Cory, Draco, and Harry drew their wands as Taylor fell against the wall in shock. Then she shook her head slightly and went to stand next to Draco.
"Leave Schy-san alone!" she said angrily. "Don't touch her you baka!" Voldemort looked down at her. She gasped and grabbed onto Draco's arm but continued to glare at Voldemort.
"I mean it, leave her alone," Cory said. Voldemort laughed shrilly.
"You think you can stop me, boy?" he asked.
"Sectumsempra!" all three boys shouted. Their spells hit Voldemort in the chest and he screamed for a moment and fell to the floor. Then he stood up again, his eyes blazing with anger. He was breathing hard and there was blood staining his robe.
"Fools!" he hissed. "Now you will watch the girl die! You could have saved her but now you shall never see her alive again!" He laughed psychotically and turned to me. I looked over at the others.
"I love you," I said. "All of you. Cory, tell the others that I love them. And tell mum that I said thank you for being my mum. Tell dad that I said thank you too." Cory shook his head.
"You can tell them yourself," he said. Voldemort rolled his eyes.
"Lucius, please take care of them." Lucius nodded and pointed his wand at the boys and used the Imperious Curse on them and ordered them to fall to their knees. They tried to fight it but the spell overpowered them and they fell to their knees. He smirked. They couldn't get out of it and when they did I would be dead.
"Very good," Voldemort said turning to me and pointing his wand at my chest. "Say goodbye to your life, Marcin! Avada Kedavra!" A jet of green light shot from his wand and hit my chest. I screamed and then my head hit my chest and I went limp. I was dead.
"NO!" the boys screamed. "SCHYLER!" Tears were streaming down their cheeks.
"Schy-san..." Taylor whispered weakly as tears welled in her eyes. "Come back..."
My eyes flew open and I gasped in fright. Sweat drenched my face and my shirt.
Not again! my mind cried. I can't let this happen! I curled up into a ball and pulled the covers around me a little more.
"Stay away," I whispered. "Leave me alone." I closed my eyes and slept.