**Disclaimer** I do not claim to own anything that's not mine (J.K. Rowling wrote these amazing things before I could even dream of them). I do claim my main character, Dee.
I awoke as someone shook me hard.
"Dee, Wake up!" It was Ron. I was cold and grumpy and felt weird awakening from my strange dream. I was curled up in a ball on my knees. Something wet and cold was beneath me and had soaked through my pant legs. Ron shook me again. I shoved him away with a hand.
"I'm awake, Ron!" I shouted.
"Bloody hell… I thought I wasn't going to catch up to you. Where were you going?" He asked, sounding out of breath. I looked up at him in confusion, as I did I noticed the scenery around us was different. A silent moment went by as my mind tried to process everything. "You okay Dee?" Ron asked sounding worried. "Um, your mouth is gaping open…" He added. I closed my mouth with a snap and glared at him. "You don't look so good, even your glare isn't as intense. Maybe we should try and head somewhere good for you to rest." He offered kindly, his voice unsteady with uncertainty. I sighed and stood up. My pants were wet from snow apparently. The world was a white winter wonderland. I shivered and hugged myself. "Christmas is in a few days. We could go home just for a day or two…" He suggested. I shook my head in the negative immediately. I wasn't ready to face Mrs. Weasley. I was far enough along now that I wouldn't be able to hide my pregnancy easily. Even if I could, I doubted I could trust Ron to keep his mouth shut. Plus, George would most certainly be there and I wasn't ready to tell him either… I sighed again as Ron stared at me, waiting for my orders.
"I'm not going home." I finally said. Ron looked disappointed, but then suddenly a stubborn, angry look burst into life on his face.
"No! You don't have to go home, but I am. We aren't any closer to finding Harry or Hermione. At least there I can feel safe and warm!" He practically shouted at me and turned with a huff. He walked a few yards away and disapparated, leaving me all alone. I gaped at the spot where he had disappeared at. I couldn't believe he just up and left me like that… I frowned and rubbed my hands up and down my arms. It was cold and the sun didn't seem to be warming me up at all. I looked around for my coat but realized it must have been left where I had been lying before I was sleep-walking. I couldn't have walked that far… I looked around for the foot prints we would have left and headed off in search of my coat, eager to be warm again.
B~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~B
The pub smelled of stale beer and cigars. I found myself a dark corner with an empty table and set myself down with a thump. I was cold, wet and tired from walking but I had made it to a small town. The waitress gave me a tired but friendly smile as she walked by with her hands full of empty beer mugs. Her dingy, faded pink dress had several rips at the hem and her apron was more stains than white but her long raven hair and sparkling blue eyes was sure to be the thing keeping this rag tag pub full of men. I had been subjected to pinches on my bum and a few slaps as I had made my way through the place to find a seat. I didn't want to imagine the horrible things she probably has had to deal with.
I pulled my coat off and spread it across the empty seat next to me hoping it would maybe dry out some. Leaning back against the wooden seat, I closed my eyes for a moment as I waited for the waitress to return and take my order.
"Eh hm." A quiet, but sweet voice disturbed my slumbering. I opened my eyes to see the pretty waitress standing next to my table. "Sorry, I have to take your order now or my boss is going to kick you out for not ordering anything. I let you sleep for a bit but he's insisting if you don't order that he's going to throw you out." She said in the sweetest voice. I smiled. She reminded me of a girl at Hogwarts that was a few years younger than Harry.
"It's alright, thank you for letting me sleep. I'll have a glass of water and whatever soup you have on the pot." I replied. She nodded and smiled and was off in a flash. I glared at the few men who were watching us and who had slapped her on her behind as she'd rushed by. One sneered at me; the other gave me an evil grin and winked. A small shiver went down my spine and I turned my gaze away from them and closed my eyes again but kept my ears on alert just in case.
The smell of beef stew penetrated my light slumber and I opened my eyes to see the young waitress bringing a bowl to my table. Most of the crowd had died out and left or fallen asleep in drunkenness at their tables. I tried to block out the smell of stale beer and sweat that was trying to make me lose my appetite. She plopped the bowl down in front of me along with a glass of water.
"Enjoy!" She said simply with a smile and was off again, picking up empty tankards. I gobbled down the stew. It was delicious compared to what I had been eating over the last few weeks. The heat of the stew warmed me up from the inside out and by the time I'd reached the bottom of the bowl I was as cozy as a cat in a patch of sunlight.
When the waitress came back, she looked me up and down thoroughly.
"I'm bettin' ya need a place to stay too. Go on down a few blocks and knock on the door of the blue house with the white shutters, ask for Maud. Tell her Maggie sent ya." She said as I handed her the coin for my meal and a generous tip.
"Thank you Maggie." I replied.
"I'm not Maggie. I'm Thora. Maggie's in the kitchen. She says you're different from us and that Maud would be the best person to help ya out. Be wary of Maud. She's known in town as The Witch." She explained and cautioned. I held back my laughter at the last part but I smiled.
"Ok. Thanks Thora and tell Maggie I said thank you too." I grabbed my coat and hurried out of the pub but not too fast, as not to notice the few men who thought they'd sneak out after me…
B~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~B
Two men and two silent stunning jinxes later… I made my way down the road to the blue house with the white shutters. I knocked hard on the door and stood to the side, invisible, just in case. The door swung open and I felt a curse fly by me but it came silently. The old witch peaked out the door way with her wand held high.
"Who's there?" She demanded in a crackly voice.
"Hi, I'm Dee. Maggie sent me." I replied without revealing myself yet. She looked around wildly for me.
"Where ya be girl?" She shouted.
"As soon as I feel safe from your curses, I'll reveal myself." I replied. She sighed and lowered her wand. "Alright, show ya self. I promise no curses." I pulled my wand out and had it at ready. I turned visible, startling the old woman.
"No jinxes or hexes either…" I added to her promise for her. I wasn't one who didn't pay attention to clever wording. She rolled her eyes at me before eyeing me up and down.
"Ya look familiar." She said, wrinkling her nose at me. "Come on in girl. Ya in no condition to be wandering about alone, especially in times like these." She added and led me inside.
The floors were beautifully polished wood, a nice warm tone and I sensed magic and heat coming from them that told me they were probably enchanted to be warm to the touch. I looked to the old woman's feet, seeing they were bare, I smiled. The old woman was short and of a frail build. Her blue dress hung loosely about her body and her long white hair was a messy nest. I wouldn't be surprised if I saw creatures crawling about in it. I followed her into a small living room that held some plush but old furniture. The colors of the fabric were faded and there were small tears in places that told of the wear it had received over the years.
"Have a seat, have a seat." She motioned toward the blue couch. I sat myself down and she scurried off out of the room. I tried to relax but it was hard. I felt nervous for some reason. I kept my wand in hand. The old woman wasn't gone long. She came back carrying a tray that held a couple of wooden mugs and a bottle of something as well as a plate of pastries. She set it down on the table in the middle of the room and sat herself down on the love seat across from me, leaving the table and refreshments between us. I tried to hide my wand so she wouldn't be offended that I still had it out but she noticed it. "No, no young lady. Keep that out. You may need it. I have sensed you coming now for over a week but I also sensed something evil following you." I wasn't sure what to worry about first; that she could sense me coming or that something evil was following me. I was not surprised about the evil following me but I was surprised that she had sensed me coming.
"How did you sense me coming?" I questioned quietly as she handed me a mug full of pumpkin juice. She laughed loudly before she suddenly stopped and frowned at me.
"Girl, I'm a witch, same as you but I have a talent for premonition. Don't ask me how it works, that'd be a waste of our time for me to explain." She answered tartly. "Now, I'm the one who's gonna ask questions." She commanded. "Why are you out here all alone traveling?" Her deep brown eyes pierced as she stared at me, waiting for my answer.
"I wasn't alone until yesterday." I replied. She narrowed my eyes at me.
"Where did your traveling companion go?" She asked.
"I do not know." I lied partially. I didn't know for sure where he went. He said he wanted to go home but that doesn't guarantee me that that is where he went. I didn't like this old woman asking me questions that should have no relevance to her. "So, what is this evil that is following me?" I asked before she could question me anymore. Her eyes flashed at me and she took a long drink from her mug.
"Very well, it is getting late in the afternoon. I need to go run some errands. Let me show you to your room." She avoided answering my question and stood up and started to walk off without me. I quickly followed after her.
The stairs creaked eerily under my feet as we ascended. The walls of the stairwell were filled with framed photos, all magical. A young couple beamed at me as I walked by and a small baby wailed from another photo. The air was thick with dust and a musky smell. I coughed a few times but didn't complain. The woman wasn't very polite but I was determined to stay polite none the less. She finally stopped and opened the door to a small room. Inside there was a single bed, a rocking chair, a night table and a dresser. Everything had a thin layer of dust on it but that could be easily cleaned up.
"The bathroom is just down the hall. I'll be gone for a few hours and when I come back I will fix us some supper. Feel free to explore, if you wish, but be careful of what you may be stumbling upon." She warned and was gone. The woman sure knew how to deter people from snooping about her home… I didn't like the idea of stumbling upon anything bad but maybe I should explore anyways…maybe…after a nap.
*** Thank you for the reviews and welcome all you new readers! I'm glad to be adding more readers. Thank you all for taking the time to read my story. Please review and tell me what you think of this chapter. I struggled a little with it's direction. Any ideas are welcome for future chapters. I know where the story as a whole is going toward the end. Just struggling with the details of how Dee will actually make it there. Also I need to write a chapter still for my companion story. Any of you have read it? -Tyger. I know some have complained that it's too choppy from event to event but that's because it pairs with this story and is not a story quite it's own. I'm thinking maybe of doing Annie's view of what Hogwarts is like during this year while it's controlled by death eaters. What do you think?