All a Dream
Chapter 18
Harry tried to block out the voices of his dorm mates and sleep, but it was hopeless. Drew and Stew were sitting at a bedside table, planning something. Eric Sanderson was listening to wizard radio, and Dave Olson was practising an incantation that was supposed to make the pattern on the drapes move. Haggis was...being his noisy self. No-one paid much attention, though. Finally giving up, Harry cast Muffliato on the others around him, checked to see that nobody was watching, and dove underneath Stew's bed where he knew the Invisibility Cloak was kept. Harry then crept slowly back to his four-poster bed and drew the curtains from the outside. The door opened silently, and after looking back to see that not one of his dorm mates had noticed his escape, Harry slipped down the stairs, past the portrait of Sir Gawain guarding the Gryffindor common room entrance, and into the torch-lit halls of Hogwarts.
Now that Harry was out, he had to decide what to do. Not much of the school layout was different, so there was very little to explore. Besides, he'd heard that the castle was almost empty during free weekends and holidays, so then it would be less likely that he'd be found out past curfew. Instead, he decided to visit the owlery and write to his father. Or maybe Sirius. Maybe both.
It took him a while to scrounge up some parchment, but he found a small supply cupboard holding spare parchment and quills and ink. Harry took the necessary amount of each and continued on his way, trying to make his footsteps silent.
.:. :.: .:.
The Owlery Tower was on the southern side of the school and therefore took the longest time for Harry to get to from Gryffindor Tower. So when Harry saw the time from the light on his watch, he realized he'd been walking for almost half an hour. He also quickly realized that he wasn't alone in the owlery. Someone was crying very quietly in the corner with the most owls. Upon closer inspection, Harry recognized Erin, his sister. Removing the cloak, Harry stowed it behind the door and sat beside the 10-year-old. She acknowledged his presence with a quick glance, but swiftly curled up into a ball. A large tawny owl hopped on her shoulder.
Nothing was said for several minutes. Erin neither welcomed Harry nor pushed him away.
When the tears had finished, Harry said, "So..."
Erin choked a bit, but held back tears. Suddenly, she was hugging her eldest brother tightly. "I'm sorry."
"What do you have to be sorry for?" Harry looked down at Erin's dark red hair that was so much her mother's.
"I hate this. I never get to see the rest of you guys, my family, and I'm kind of like an outcast in my house; like, everyone's friendly enough but I can't find where I fit, and no-one knows me, and I can't talk to anyone because they all belong and I don't." She sniffed a bit. "And so far, the only ones here I really understand are the owls. And they're the only ones that even seem to understand me." With a few unsteady breaths, Erin seemed to have finished. Harry just tried to comfort her, stroking her hair a bit. She began again. "I'm eleven tomorrow. Nobody knows. Except you, Harry." She wiped her eyes on her sleeves. "Thanks for listening."
Harry understood this. "Anytime, Erin," he replied.
A/N: So, yeah. I'm back from holidays. They were good. Yeah.
Reviews are welcome.
And the polls for Thomas Marvolo Riddle are closed. I'll post the choice he makes in a few days, I have to write a whole bunch of stuff for it.
