A/N: Cause my Beta, Stephanie Suprano (as she will henceforth be called) is da bomb k?
Chapter four: Sensations.
She could feel everything. The sweat on her forehead. The dryness in her mouth. The hair brushing against her ear. The warmth of the sunlight on her hand. The weight of her clothes against her skin. The itchy bed sheet underneath her fingers. The air brushing against her freckled face.
She could see everything. The dust particles dancing in the sunlight. The pattern of webs hanging on to her bookshelf. The brush strokes of paint on the wall. The uneven surface of her skin. Colours she had never known existed.
She could hear everything. The buzz of a fly across the room. The whistle of the wind breezing through her window. The yells of the students on their way to the Great Hall. The footsteps of the Head Boy, Terry Boot, in his room. The sound of his voice mumbling the cleaning charm. The sounds of birds singing somewhere in the grounds.
She could smell everything. The faint scent of her of the flowery soap she used. The chocolaty scent of the cocoa lotion of her bedside table. The scent of coffee from an empty cup on her study table.
Everything.
It was too much for her. Her head began to throb at the onslaught of these new sensations. The books she had been reading had warned her that her senses would get sharper to aid her in looking for her mate. But she had underestimated just how much keener they would get.
Her fingers lifted to massage her forehead. She let out a shudder of a breath and slowly stood up. She walked sluggishly towards her door as her limbs felt tired.
Her small hands pushed open the doors of the Great Hall and she almost threw up.
The sounds, the smells, the colours… They grated against her brain and she felt a sudden rush of nausea. She winced at every step she took towards the Gryffindor table.
Harry and Ron looked at the witch walking towards them. Her skin was pale and her usually all-over-the-place hair looked rather limp today. Her eyes were strangely wide and she was visibly flinching at every step. She did not look good.
She sat down slowly, her back slumped. Her two friends exchanged a glance.
"Hermione…? Is everything okay?" Harry asked softly. She made a face.
"I can hear everything in this room. It's… Alarming. There's too much noise." She spoke.
"What do you mean?" Ron asked. Hermione sighed.
"Half Veelas' senses get sharper to help them find their mate." She spoke briefly.
"Can't you do something to, I don't know, dull them?" Ron asked sincerely bewildered at all these new things he was learning about Half Veelas, about Hermione. She let out another sigh at his question, as if it was physically hurting her to answer, which was a first for the bookworm.
"Yes, there is one thing. I could find my mate. Then the senses will focus on him more than anyone else." Hermione answered. "No more talking now."
Weirdly enough Ron and Harry both frowned at this. They had so many questions! They were both taken aback by how Hermione-like they sounded. Ron merely shook his head and returned to his breakfast while Harry tried to fight the overwhelming need to shield Hermione from the world.
Hermione closed her eyes and tried to dull the several conversations she could hear. She was suddenly privy to several gossips she had no interest in, several secrets she didn't care to keep and too many bits of information she wasn't concerned with. Parvati and Lavender, the gossip queens of Hogwarts, would give their front teeth to listen to what she was listening to right now.
Suddenly, she heard one very distinct voice in the horde of voices echoing through the Great Hall.
She opened her eyes to see a pair of grey eyes on her from the Slytherin table. Even from her seat she could see the flecks of blue in his eyes, blending with the stormy grey. Surrounding his eyes were unfairly long lashes, which brushed against his cheek when he blinked. His soft platinum hair hung over his forehead, moving gently when he moved. She could see how smooth his skin was, pale and handsome, littered with almost invisible freckles. His jaw was impossibly sharp, laying emphasis on his lips which were an unbearably gorgeous pink. His bottom lip was slightly big, perfect to nibble on she noted.
Strange warmth spread through her body. Her back straightened, and she heard the joints popping. She felt awake and alert. Better than she had in a while. The disturbing sounds and bright colours faded into the background as her eyes rested on the boy.
Then the words Draco Malfoy had spoken really registered her, and the barely disguised hate he had said them with.
"The Mudblood looks exceptionally shite today." He had spat in disgust.
All she felt was a searing, haunting pain crack through her body before everything went black.
A/N: And so it begins. Huhuhuhuhu. Sorry for the small chapter, but it was necessary. The next one will come up as soon as my Beta is done working her magic. Keep reviewing!
Ciao for now, Alexia.