Disclaimer: See Ch.1
"Why, hello Hermione dear!" Mrs. Weasley exclaimed as she left her doorway to greet Hermione. "We weren't expecting you this early! The boys and Ginny are upstairs still, having a bit of a lie-in. Do come in! Would you care for a spot of breakfast?"
Instead of replying, Hermione ran into Mrs. Weasley's arms, inhaling her familiar scent. She had always regarded Mrs. Weasley as a second mother, one who knew all about the Wizarding world. She had never told any of the Weasley children this, but Hermione kept in close contact with their mother regarding their activities at Hogwarts. The two women had formed a close friendship over the years.
Hermione allowed herself to be ushered into the kitchen and steered to the table. Holding identical mugs of tea in their hands, Hermione and Mrs. Weasley talked amicably and caught up. Hermione had a sudden brainwave. I should ask Mrs. Weasley about my dreams! She'd know what to do! As she opened her mouth to speak, however, she caught a whiff of something, a scent she couldn't quite name, yet one she vividly remembered. It smelled like the third scent in her Amortentia potion, fire. Shaking her head, Hermione asked about the dreams.
"No my dear, I don't know what to do. Dreamless Sleep potion can be helpful, but it carries a high risk of dependency if used too often. And in this situation, the benefits are far less than the costs," said Mrs. Weasley, a pensive look on her face.
"Oh," said a slightly downcast Hermione. The somber mood disappeared almost instantly, when footsteps could be heard pounding down the stairs. She barely had time to register the two young men at the base of the stairs before they ran at her and squashed her in a big hug, with an identical cry of "Hermione!"
Smothered by their embrace, she managed to gasp out, "Almost the late Hermione, the way you two ran at me!" They released her, chastised, but smiled when they saw amusement gleaming in her eyes. She held out her arms to Harry first, saying, "Now, lets have a look at you." She hugged him, and inhaled the scent of freshly mown grass that always seemed to linger around him. The only reason that his scent was in her Amortentia potion was because Harry had been her first real, true friend.
Letting go of Harry, she surveyed her other friend, Ron. She blushed as she embraced him, too embarrassed to notice Ron's ears burning scarlet also. She inhaled his scent too, and realized that he smelled vaguely of fire! Could he have been the third scent in her Amortentia potion?
After releasing Ron, she heard sudden footsteps at the base of the stairs. Noticing the Weasleys' clock, she saw that Fred and George's "hands" were moving from "Home" to "Apparating" to "Home" again. She shook her head, remembering the summer in Grimmauld Place when the twins had been so anxious to showcase their magical abilities.
Ron whipped around to face his older brothers. Advancing towards them, he threatened, "If you ever, ever light me on fire again, I swear that I will hex you into tomorrow!"
Fred and George simply looked at each other and laughed. Puzzled by the interaction, Hermione asked what had happened, which only made the twins laugh harder. Ron shot them a death glare before turning to Hermione and saying through gritted teeth, "They thought it would be funny to set my shirt on fire with one of their new inventions."
Hermione tried desperately to suppress a smile, and failed. "Oh, how truly awful of them!" she exclaimed. Then a thought occurred to her—the smell of fire had only been from his burnt shirt, so Ron couldn't have been the third scent in the potion.
She suddenly felt like someone was staring at her from behind. She looked around, but no one was behind her. She shrugged it off and prepared to spend the day with her two best friends.
The golden trio had a fun time that day. They caught up on what they had each done over the first part of break. Later, Hermione watched as Harry, Ron, Fred, George, and Ginny played Quidditch from after lunch till sundown. She didn't feel excluded though; her mom had just owled her a new potions theory book and she sat under a tree, engrossed in it. Every once in a while she caught the scent in the air, and she often felt like someone was staring at her, but she thought it was just her senses tingling from being around magic after not using it all summer.
The boys and Ginny finally had to come in when it became too dark to see the enchanted golf ball they were using as a Golden Snitch. Mrs. Weasley had prepared a large, delicious meal, and Hermione went to bed stuffed.
Even though she was exhausted, Hermione was afraid to sleep. What if she had another dream? Would she freak out now because she was staying with the Weasleys? What if one of them was killed tonight? But try as she might to resist, waves of sleep soon washed over her.
Hermione found herself once again in that secluded corridor. She knew what was waiting for her in the Entrance Hall, but she couldn't seem to stop her dream self from heading that way. She tensed, waiting to see the damage, but before she reached the Hall, she heard a voice. It was singing a glorious song, and it was coming from the Hall.
She opened her eyes and saw that the Hall was slowly being restored in time with the music of the man's voice. The blood and bodies disappeared and the ceiling repaired itself, leaving a smooth marble floor behind. Hermione sat and reveled in this amazing magical song, this power of the music of the night.
Hermione awoke at almost 9:00 the next morning, feeling more rested than she had felt since the dreams started.
A/N: Please review!