Through a Long and Sleepless Night – Chapter 4
He was less lucky the second time around.
He foolishly, stupidly though that he could just pop back down that same ladder and he would fall right into the darkness.
As he climbed down, he skipped over that pesky last rung and let go, leaping to the ground not a meter below him.
Much to his dismay, he did not slip back into that obsidian abyss, but simply planted both of his feet on the cobbled alleyway, squatting lower than necessary in his effort to foresee the fall.
His eyes were scrunched upon landing, unclenching and then slowly opening as he saw the light resonating from the busy street behind his eyelids.
He could've laughed at how stupid he looked — a seventeen year old boy in dress slacks, a tee shirt and a blazer (all black, nonetheless), crouching in some dingy alley in the middle of Ireland. The more he thought about it, the more surprised he was that some Muggle police officer didn't mistake his position for public indecency.
He stood slowly, raking a hand through his hair in frustration. How fucking stupid can I be?
He should've known it wouldn't have been that easy.
He started pacing the already worn pavement, alternating between huffing and running a hand through his fine blond hair.
Fed up with waiting around, he grabbed a hold of the bottom latter rung.
As he grabbed it, he felt that familiar sensation: slipping, skidding, falling through nothing. His eyes and hair pierced through that endless night, allowing the scenery to settle around him like a ship guided by a lighthouse - never quite colliding, but always aware that it's there.
Finally. A break in the blanket. A pinprick of light high above him, slowly expanding until it illuminated the entire sky.
When he landed, it was on his back this time. It didn't hurt, even though he could feel his head bounce against the soft grass on impact. He opened his eyes only to shield them from the bright blue sky and high noon sun.
"Took you bloody long enough."
She was going out on a limb; she knew that.
She was foolish, stupid even, to think that he would get her initial note in the first place.
But she sent her owl out anyway, using the generic location he told her about in her dream. When she didn't receive a reply, she wasn't sure how she felt. Crest-fallen? No. That sounded a little too poetic to describe her feelings regarding the situation. And she wasn't completely disappointed by the whole thing, either.
Maybe she was just confused, Hermione suggested.
She nodded and thought about her friend's words, realizing that she was probably right. The whole thing was so strange and new. She couldn't think of any other way to describe it. It was something unheard of to pretty much anyone.
Hermione was true to her word and began researching with the limited means they had available, all the while never saying a word to anyone around her. She was discreet in her research, though, so there was no need to give a stuttered explanation as to why she had suddenly become so fascinated in the connection between dreams and some sort of teleportation.
Yet when the young redhead went to bed that night, she couldn't stop thinking about last night's dream. She kept tossing and turning that first hour, wondering if she would see him again, or if she would even have that same dream. Maybe now that she found him, the dream would change and she wouldn't be relegated to reliving his nightmare over and over.
She turned over to face her window, looking out across the grassy plain surrounding her house and then up at pink-stained night sky.
She smiled as she saw his constellation - circumpolar in her hemisphere, if she remembered her Astronomy correctly.
'D' for dragon. 'D' for Dublin. 'D' for Draco, she thought, sinking lower and lower into that pinkish darkness, eyelids heavy, until, finally, she was able to sleep.
He allowed himself a small smile before he moved his hand, knowing full well who had spoken.
The inky black lake of last night was a clear, shimmering blue. If he looked hard enough, he could see the ripple of a large tentacle brushing the lake's surface. The sky above was radiant and cloudless, allowing sunlight to seep into every pore and crevice of the earth below.
He turned, spotting her under a large oak tree in its prime. Like last night, she was in her pajamas — a pair of flannel boxers and a tank top — but was currently playing with the blades of grass at her feet. He wondered if she was cold in her sleepwear, but then realized that although the weather looked beautiful, he couldn't feel the warmth of the sun on his skin. Even that light breeze from last night; sure, he felt the action of the wind on his skin, but could not recall being hot or cold at its touch.
"I got your note."
For a moment, he saw her perk up at his words before settling back into her previous blasé expression.
"Yes, well, I gathered that much," she said with that same wry smile that laced her words from the night before. The longer he looked at it, the more he decided how much he liked that expression on her.
"Any idea when we are?"
"Well, we're obviously on Hogwarts' grounds. As to the when, I'm not quite sure. Maybe I'm just dreaming about some random nice day."
To his right they heard a giggle. Across the lawn from them, a couple sprinted down from the castle steps.
"Oh," she said, drawing it out, as she noticed the redheaded girl and the raven-haired boy holding hands as they ran towards the lake. Her eyes bulged in understanding before her ears pinked with embarrassment.
"What do you mean 'oh'?"
She quickly scrambled to her feet, taking the blond by the hand and yanking him away from the tree. She pulled him along until they reached the garden at the back of the castle.
"What was that all about?" he panted, gasping for air.
She fidgeted, picking at the hem of her shirt. "It's nothing, really."
"This is one of your dreams, isn't it?" he asked her, approaching her with that predatory smirk that weakened her constitution ever so slightly.
"And if it is?" Her eyes followed him as he made a slow circle around her. What he thought came off as seductive, felt more like an intimidation to her.
He stopped right in front of her, his nose centimeters away from her own. "Looks like someone's having a naughty dream tonight."
She huffed, blowing the air up to move her bangs out of her eyes. She swatted his face away with her left hand.
"Oh, like you've never had a wet dream before."
She smirked in triumph as she watched him backpedal away, his cheeks turning the most unflattering shade of a splotchy red.
He coughed. "Yes, well, be that as it may, we have more important things to discuss."
She nodded, plopping down on the grass, waiting for him to follow suit.
"I'm having someone research this whole thing."
"Who?"
"Hermione."
"Granger?" He leaned back with a look of disgust.
She reached across and punched his right arm.
"Holy fuck, Weasley! Was that necessary?"
"Look. Hermione's the smartest witch in your year and, whether you like it or not, she could probably find out more about this whole portal business than the pair of us combined. So quit your whinging and accept the fact that she's willing to help."
"Does she know where I am?"
"I had to tell her that you were involved because I apparently screamed your name in the middle of night —"
"Oh, really? I never knew you felt so strongly about me, Weasley."
The young girl rolled her eyes. "For fuck's sake..." She trailed off, pinching the bridge of her nose. "No, I don't bloody think of you in that way. I had woken up shortly after you jumped back into the portal and since you were the first person I had ever been able to talk to in my dream, of course I'm going to be thinking about you when I wake up."
His eyes widened in alarm. "The portal."
They raced back to the lake and he let out a sigh of relief when he saw that familiar black swirl still hovering near the tree he found her under.
He felt a tap on his shoulder and remembered that she was still there.
"May I continue?" She raised an eyebrow.
He sat down at the base of the tree, leaned against it and closed his eyes. He waved her on with a hand.
She sat down in front of him, placing her hands behind her and allowed her weight to fall back.
"I was just going to say that I never told Hermione where you are and she hasn't found anything yet, but it's only been a day, so I wouldn't worry too much."
She turned around to look at the portal.
I wonder...
She rose from her seated position and walked toward it; careful, measured steps as she dared to get closer and closer. Slowly, she raised an arm, creeping closer still to the fluttering, shimmering darkness just out of her reach.
She could feel her fingertips graze the cool silk of the portal.
"Weasley, don't!"
She was yanked away by the blond. He spun her around so she was facing him.
"We have no idea what that thing is. Who's to say that once you step through, it closes and I can't go back?"
She shook her head. A mumbled apology.
He glanced behind her, noticing the silk starting to fade. As he stepped forward, he was held back by her.
"How much longer will you be in Dublin?"
"I'll owl you."
And with that, he was gone.
A/N - Thank you for reading!
This should be the last of the shorter chapters from this story. Chapter 5's the longest one yet and I think any other additional chapters will be longer as I flesh things out more.