Harry Potter and the Last Prophecy
Previous Version Titled 'Waltzing of Hearts'
Version for 6th Year, following Order of the Phoenix
Author: Webmaster Pikachu (pikacenter@hotmail.com)
Notes:
This fanfiction, like all 6th year fanfictions, contains spoilers from the 5th book. Be sure to read Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix before reading this fiction if you wish to prevent spoiling the book. It isn't that expensive. :)
Thanks to apostrophe for providing his beta services!
Chapter 4: It Starts
Like all other breakfasts that happened to be held at the beginning of the school year, class schedules arrived on a peck of owls. Groans went up around the Gryffindor table; 6th years who had decided to continue with Potions had the class the following morning. Potions with 6th year Slytherin and the ever spiteful Professor Snape. The groans were shortly followed by grimaces and sighs.
A second letter arrived for Harry, however it was addressed to Ron, Hermione, and Ginny as well. It said that everyone's required books would be in their rooms by nightfall. The letter was signed 'Love, Molly'. The post script read 'No funny business. Do your studies. Hermione, make sure everyone studies'. Harry regrettably passed the letter around so everyone could see.
By the time breakfast had finished it was apparent that many more students then expected had thought about joining Dumbledore's Army. It was perhaps the only thing talked about at the Gryffindor table. Harry decided that all of the old members that still were at Hogwarts had been encouraging the other students to join up.
Naturally the Slytherins wanted nothing to do with anything that involved teamwork, especially with the other houses. Draco and his sidekicks Crabbe and Goyle could be seen whispering to each other, no doubt coming up with some sort of plan to interrupt the meeting. Amid the chaos of the Slytherin table Oshiko ate silently. She spoke to no one, however Harry doubted anyone would speak back to her. Again he felt sorry for the girl, wondering why someone like her had ever been placed in Slytherin.
Harry and Hermione made their way to the Dumbledore's Army classroom shortly thereafter. Hermione was inclined to rename it headquarters, but Harry thought it was to militaristic. It was bad enough they would soon be sorting members into even numbered groups.
It was nearing 9:45, and Harry already noticed people lining up at the door. Many of them were old members, and Ron and Ginny were saying hello to all the new students that intended to join. Harry went to open the door, and once it had swung full back on its hinges did he realize that they were going to have some difficulty.
Harry welcomed everyone in. Most of them were 3rd, 4th, and 5th year students from every house save for Slytherin. Harry managed to peek around outside of the door and noticed that a few Slytherins were pounding against some magical wall. He realized it was Hermione's charm, and he waved to Draco and hoodlums upon seeing them, but said nothing.
It was a full fifteen minutes before everyone was inside and settled. It seemed that the doorway was made for one and a half people at a time, yet the room was made for an infinite number of people. Harry began to feel the now familiar pulse, and he walked towards Hermione, discreetly slipping his hand into hers for the next couple minutes behind the rather large teacher's desk. However, it seemed that many people were keenly aware they were holding hands. They didn't say anything, but instead just smiled like they knew what was going on as if it was some hidden romance thing. The chatter quieted down and Harry and Hermione stepped out from behind the desk to start.
"Hello everyone. Before we begin I want to make sure your all aware of what your getting yourself into. I'm assuming that everyone saw the announcement. Those that have questions regarding it need to speak now." Harry instructed over the silent students, all eyes on him. No one spoke nor raised their hand. Any smirk that had once been on their faces had disappeared as if wiped away with a napkin. Hermione had just come back from closing the door.
"Well then, that settles that. Does anyone question Harry's authority over this organization?" Hermione asked. Again no one spoke nor raised their hand. "Good."
"The announcement you read was signed as DA. We are Dumbledore's Army, created last year to aid students that wanted to actually learn to defend themselves against the Dark Arts. This year we will continue to teach, however it will be much more organized then last year. For those that don't already know or realize: Voldemort is back." Harry spoke, and if it was possible, the entire room went into an even deader silence. A silence so frozen that everyone could hear the beating hearts of the people around them.
"I am going to put it to you bluntly. I have found out that keeping secrets is no way to trust someone. We are here to help train you train each other to defend yourselves should Voldemort decide to directly attack the school. Furthering that, we are here to protect the school. It is our home. We are here to protect the students that can't learn to protect themselves. They are our friends. Everyone, you have learned the truth of Dumbledore's Army. We are going to begin by signing you in as members. Anyone that has doubts must leave now. After this, there is no turning back. Once you swear your dedication to the school and the people here, you cannot take it back." Harry warned his rapt audience. A few people stood up, but they looked like 1st year students. They went up to Harry and Hermione.
"We…" they began. Harry looked at them thoughtfully. They were all Gryffindor students, and the only 1st years in the room.
"It's ok, you don't have to stay. However, you must sign this and agree never to speak about Dumbledore's Army to anyone. We are a secret organization still, even if we are official." Harry explained, handing them a quill and parchment. Hermione of course had enchanted the parchment like she had done to the previous member roster last year. Once they had signed it, they began to make for the door.
"If you wish to return, you are welcome to. Talk to me or Harry. Ron and Ginny can also help you too, they're our closest friends." Hermione said. Ron and Ginny waved their hands from the front of the students. The 1st year students nodded, but said nothing, leaving through the door.
"Ron, Luna, Neville, and Ginny: Escort them to the Gryffindor common room. Slytherin members are just outside the door, and no doubt they would try and do something awful to those young students to find out what we're up to." Harry instructed. The four veteran members nodded their heads and left the room quickly to catch up to the 1st years.
"No one else? Good. We are going to sort you into six groups. I can't quite tell how many of you there actually are, but I think it will work out to be manageable. Please line up in rows, and Hermione will go around counting you off while I collect your signature on our new member roster and handing out these," Harry held up one of the charmed fake galleons, to the sudden delight of the students. "When they grow warm in your pockets it means that we have planned another meeting, or a meeting time has changed. The actual time and date are hidden in the numbers on the front. Don't try and buy anything with them, they are charmed galleons, but the galleon itself isn't real."
Disappointment could be seen a few faces, but overall the students looked like they had just become part of a great mystery and adventure. They moved quietly into rows, and when Harry could see to the back wall by looking down the narrow path in between the rows, the number of students in the room became apparent. Well over a hundred. Hermione could be seen counting off students with an equally shocked expression.
Nearly twenty minutes later Harry was at the back of the last row of students when he noticed Oshiko. She was the only Slytherin that had entered the room, and Harry was quite surprised, to say the least.
"Mr. Harry Potter, it is a pleasure to meet you," Oshiko greeted.
"Nice to meet you Oshiko Kage, but you don't have to call me anything fancy, just Harry, okay? Here, please sign your name." Harry said, handing her the parchment and quill, where she signed her name using Japanese characters. Harry took back the parchment and handed her a galleon.
"Okay, Harry." Oshiko replied, slightly embarrassed.*
Harry finished obtaining the signatures and passing out the galleons and he made his way back to front of the room.
"We've modified the galleons from last year. Now, if you loose them or they fall into the wrong hands, the galleon will vanish. You can get a new one if you need to." Harry explained. "Now, will you please assemble into your respective groups, there are numbers on the walls corresponding with the number you were assigned. Walk towards the wall until we have a nice big room, its enchanted to grow and shrink according to what we need."
Hermione had attached little signs to the walls a few weeks earlier. Each one had a number with a magical creature's name below it. They were:
1: Ashwinder
2: Clabbert
3: Kappa
4: Murtlap
5: Nymph
6: Snidget
There was quite a bit of shuffling and stomping, but soon enough there were six groups. Hermione looked happy. Everyone had accepted Harry as their leader and were listening and following instructions intently. Harry seemed to have brought the point across to everyone that this wasn't going to be a party. A grim atmosphere had seemed to descend on the students after Harry mentioned "Voldemort", but it wasn't unhealthy, at least not right now.
"Ok, will the returning members please stick up their hands?" Harry asked, loudly so that everyone could hear. Just about two dozen hands shot up, a few in each group. "The members with their hands up are the group leaders. If I am unavailable, or Hermione is unavailable, you talk to them. They were with Dumbledore's Army last year. A couple of them fought against Death Eaters as well."
Harry could feel another mind numbing attack on its way, and he called Hermione over. There was no other way out at the moment, and Harry knew he was going to be forced to explain in a moment. Hermione grasped his hand and held it tightly, to the shock of many of the students, namely those that had not suspected anything was going on between Harry and Hermione. In all reality it was, and before any of them could get so far as to speak "girlfriend", Harry began to explain.
"I knew I would have to eventually, and now seems to be a good time. First, me and Hermione… We are not boyfriend girlfriend, however we are close friends. We trust each other with our lives. We have no choice. I was about to be attacked by Voldemort." The entire student body had dumbfounded expressions on their faces. Several mouths were hanging open, several hands had been clasped to others. Harry only gave them a few moments to take it in, however. He started talking before the students had regained their composure.
"Voldemort found a weakness in me over the summer. Hermione was smart enough to discover a way to eliminate the weakness, but it requires we be in direct contact to negate the attack. Today the attacks are sparse, usually they come every five or ten minutes. Thanks, Hermione." Hermione smiled and let go, however she was still slightly flustered that Harry was forced to explain their ordeal. She wished, for perhaps the millionth time, that Voldemort would leave them alone.
"Faith and trust," Harry began in a strong, startling voice, "Are what save me every day I live with this. Faith and trust is what you must have in the people around you. Your group is your new family. They are the closest people to you. Trust them with everything you have. Their future is in your hands. This gathering; the other people in this room: They are your extended family. Do not hesitate to help them."
"Your group will act as one. Leave no one behind. You are strong as a whole, and you weaken when you begin to fall apart. Hermione and I are the example. Without her, without protection, I can suffer a pain far greater then the Cruciatus Curse. When you actually begin to feel like your dying a thousand horrible deaths every minute. I have felt it. I don't want to feel it anymore. I don't want you to suffer the like. Stick together. Swear it."
One more silence filled the room. It lasted several tense minutes before Hermione went to grab six pieces of parchment, which she begun to hand out to a leader from each group. Ron and the other escorts returned and took a place in separate groups on Ginny's suggestion. She had helped with planning as well.
"Hermione is passing out an outline of what we have planned for today." Harry explained, picking up his own outline from the desk a few feet behind him. "Let's see… Oh yes. It was decided that it would be a good idea to start of by building some team spirit. Last year we only had a relatively small group of people to work with, and so team spirit came naturally. I want you to develop a group motto, and get to know each other's names. After we have that done, we'll decide on a flag design for Dumbledore's Army. The flag will be draped at the front of the classroom here. We also want each group to come up with a smaller, pennant like flag for themselves. The flag will be more insignia like, and it may not contain DA or Dumbledore's Army. It will be magically embroidered on all your cloaks circled by a gray ring. You'll be able to spot a fellow DA member just by looking at a cloak, and recognize what creature group they represent. While the rest of the school will think something fishy is going on, they won't realize more then they already know. They will only know us as the DA. They will recognize a DA member. They will know no more, however. That is the way we want it. That's all I have to say, Hermione?" Harry finished, looking towards Hermione.
"Yes, I have something. If you have any friends you might want to think about recruiting them. This organization is for the school and all the students interested in being a part of it. Anyways… When your ready to help with the DA flag, please send your leader up to us so we know your ready. Well then, I guess you can begin. Also, we forgot to mention it. Harry and I will be joining the Kappa group, as it has the least number of veteran members." Hermione added, and she came back to drag Harry over to their new group.
The silence in the room disappeared completely over the next few minutes. Talk concerning Dumbledore's Army and what they were doing was everywhere. The students were meeting each other and asking names, but spoke in voices that carried an ominous undertone. They had just gotten themselves into something big. Something that had to do with protecting the school, and each other. Harry doubted most still fully understood it, but was glad they were taking it seriously. The 1st year Gryffindors that had left had been the only 1st year students to actually be interested. Being true Gryffindors, they weren't shied away by the recommended minimum requirements.
The Kappa group was rather diverse. It had nearly an even number of members from the Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, and Hufflepuff houses. Oshiko happened to be a part of the group as well, and a few of the older members were beginning to get to know her. Harry went to ask her a few questions himself.
"So, Oshiko, I am curious why you're here at Hogwarts. Any specific reason?" Harry started.
"I came here to learn from s'a Potions Master Snape. S'at is my biggest reason for coming. I also must… accomplish some os'er s'ings too." Oshiko explained as best she could. The Kappa thought she could speak English very well, considering her origin.
"Oshiko, you seem like a nice person. Why were you placed in Slytherin? Sorry I have to say this, but… Slytherins are generally nasty to everyone else." Hermione asked.
"Well… To tell you s'a tru'se I am very much like s'em. S'ah Japanese wizards are trained to be very… deft and cunning. We are taught to be… resourceful, and not to rely on wands." Oshiko answered, pushing aside her cloak to reveal a small sheathed dagger. The Kappa all took a step back at the sight of the weapon, save for the veteran members. "My parents told me to wear it since danger is around at all times. I was trained to use it by my bros'er. I hope no danger is around, s'oh. I don't want to use it, I am not afraid to die. I'm sorry, but I can not say more."
Harry nodded in understanding, smiling at Oshiko. Hermione smiled as well, but her eyes told a different story and Harry knew something was troubling her and decided to ask her about it later. Bedtime chatter seemed to put him right to sleep, as if it drained precisely the right amount out of energy so that he slept and woke up fine.
Thirty minutes passed, in which time all six groups had come up with a motto. Seeing that all the groups had begun to form serious bonds, Harry decided to skip the Dumbledore's Army flag for the time being and go straight into group insignias. Harry returned to the Kappa group after the announcement to find several of the older members repeating the new motto, which reflected the Kappa: a dominating scaly monkey with webbed fingers that lives in the water.
"Kappa is the water itself," they chanted. Other Kappa began to join in, and soon enough the entire twenty member group was raising a ruckus. The other five groups had started their own motto going, and the room was filled with the ever echoing noise of the nearly one hundred and twenty students when Lupin, Mad-Eye Moody, and Tonks entered the room. Harry shot sparks into the air with his wand and the room came to a near instant quiet as the students noticed and turned to the new faces. Harry, followed closely behind by Hermione, headed for them. Ron and Ginny parted from their respective groups and went up as well to say hello.
"Are you having a party? Harry! Why wasn't I invited?" Tonks said in her usual silly way. This morning she had opted for bright green hair and golden eyes. Hermione thought she looked like a parrot.
"It appears you have a rather large obligation here, now don't you Harry? Dumbledore told us to help you out." Remus added.
"Well, we aren't going to be starting any magic today, but we will next session." Harry explained, smiling at his older friends. "If you want, we could have you help out then, although you can stay her as long as you want for now."
"Sounds like a good idea Harry. A break from running around madly is in order." Moody replied. "Well, go on, get back to what you were doing. We'll say hi to everyone. You have a lot on your hands Harry. Everyone is proud of you for choosing to do this."
"Thanks Mad-Eye. I guess we'll go back to our insignia designs. Come and say hi to the Kappa group," Harry said as he and Hermione headed back to their group. Ron and Ginny dragged off Lupin and Tonks, respectively. Moody roamed over to the Murtlap group.
As their visitors toured around, the Kappa came upon the idea for an insignia. It consisted of a five-pointed star created with only lines, and each line was twisted to join with its neighbor.
"The five lines represent the five fingers found on the hand of a Kappa. They interconnect to form a circle, representing the Kappa's home, the water. Matches our motto perfectly," explained Mirra Torshah, a brown-haired Ravenclaw in her 5th year. The rest of the Kappa accepted it right away, it was the best one they had come up with. Lupin was looking over their shoulders by this time.
"Ah, looks like a winner. Kappa, isn't it? Such an interesting beast… Supposedly can not only withstand near freezing cold, but close to boiling temperatures as well. Anyways…" Lupin began. He noticed the Slytherin among them. "Ah, a Slytherin? How… nice. Getting along are we?"
"Remus, this is Oshiko, a foreign exchange student. Where she comes from everyone would be classified as Slytherin. She's a nice girl." Harry explained. Lupin smiled back at Harry.
"Of course, pleasure to meet you Oshiko." Lupin began.
"Nice to meet you Mr. Remus." Oshiko greeted in return, to the grins of the Kappa members.
"No no, Remus is fine. Nothing special about me." Lupin replied, "Over here we aren't incredibly formal, and any friend of Harry's can call me by my first name any day."
"Okay, Remus." Oshiko replied simply.
After all five of the other groups had come to Harry with their parchments detailing their respective group's insignia, Harry gave them to Hermione. She had practiced the spell to add symbols to clothing, which she found in the April edition of Cloaks and Broomsticks. Luckily the designs were all fairly simple, and Hermione enchanted a quill as she carefully copied the symbols into a form that could be applied to clothing.
"Harry, we have a bit of time left. We can put this on today, just send everyone to get their cloaks real fast. I can mass produce the spell, it was intended to be applied to many things at once." Hermione explained distractedly, and Harry nodded. He directed the students to go get their cloaks as Hermione finished copying the Ashwinder symbol. It was a red circle entwined about a smaller red circle. Ron happened to be in that group, and Hermione thought it would go nicely with his hair.
When all the students had left, Remus, Moody, and Tonks said their goodbyes, saying they would be back later. Harry went into the secret bedroom and picked up his and Hermione's cloaks, bringing them out before any of the students had returned. Taking them over to Hermione, he felt the familiar jump in his blood.
"There it is again. Not as bad as yesterday though, you know? I think Voldemort is too busy with other things to attack me every five minutes right now." Harry said with a troubled smile. Hermione gave him a hug, but didn't let go. When she didn't speak for awhile, Harry knew something was bothering her.
"Hermione, what is it?" Harry asked softly.
"Oshiko… She said her parents told her to take it." Hermione began.
"For protection, Hermione. Hogwarts itself may become dangerous." Harry explained, setting the cloaks down while remaining in Hermione's grasp.
"I know. That's the point. The seriousness of it all, the dagger, and Hogwarts… Hogwarts may be the safest place for these students, but… It's not as safe as it used to be. Oshiko knows something is going to happen. I feel like she's on some sort of mission." Hermione confided. Harry looked thoughtfully at her for a moment.
"I think your right, Hermione. Don't worry though, we'll keep these students safe, if and when Voldemort tries to get into Hogwarts," Harry replied.
"And what about us? Harry, what about us?" Hermione blurted out, her head falling onto Harry's shoulder. "We, and especially you, especially you… have been in more danger then anyone else. So many times you could have died… And now if Voldemort decides to attack, all these students are bound to be trapped in Hogwarts. I'm fearful for the lives of the students, but for the both of us as well… I feel like our luck has been used up. How much more before we lose?"
Harry could hear the distinct sound of footsteps outside of the classroom door. He nudged Hermione's head, and she looked up at him. Those hazel eyes were near tears now, and Harry didn't want to see Hermione embarrassed in front of the students of Dumbledore's Army.
"Hermione, can you cheer up, just for a few minutes? We're almost done, and after we're done, we can talk. Okay?" Harry asked, wiping away the beginnings of a tear from her left eye and backing away.
"Okay, Harry." Hermione said resolutely.
When all the students had come back into the room, Harry had them hold out their cloaks. Hermione painted a faint smile on her face, and Harry felt bad that he didn't just end the meeting earlier. To late now, he supposed.
"Insignio," Hermione called out, and she took her wand to one of the parchments that had the enchanted ink upon it. Drawing the image of the ink off the page, Hermione took her wand and applied it to the Clabbert member's cloaks by poking her wand just below the House crests. As Hermione finished with the other groups, Harry called them all to order.
"Everyone looks mighty fine with those insignias. Anyways, this meeting is over. We'll get to the flag for the whole of Dumbledore's Army next time. The time and date of the meeting will be decided shortly, we just need to look at the schedules for all the houses. Remember, we are a secret organization, no one knows what we do here. However, we can't hide our members like we could last year. There's just to many of us. So, DA is as much as you can give away. That is all, go ahead now, lunch is almost ready I'm guessing." Harry said, and the students began to leave the room talking excitedly with their new comrades.
Harry went up to Ron and Ginny to tell them that Hermione wasn't doing to well and that they would catch up later.
"Why can't we know what's going on? We don't mind staying here, Harry." Ron pouted. Ginny didn't object. She was scared of what Harry and Hermione knew, by now. If it was be enough to frighten Hermione, she didn't want to know. Besides, Harry was better at taking care of Hermione now.
"Ron, later. Hermione just needs some time to herself. Questions aren't going to make matters easier. You can understand that, right?" Harry asked. Ron looked at him.
"Sure, I can. Come on Ginny, we can talk to Hermione later when she's feeling up to it. Maybe we'll see you two at lunch, right?" Ron said, obligingly. Harry nodded.
Hermione had just finished casting the insignia on the cloaks that Harry had brought out. She picked them up silently and headed through the secret door, Harry following a dozen feet behind. When Harry had caught up to her she had tossed the cloaks onto the lid of her trunk and collapsed on the bed, seemingly exhausted.
Harry didn't know what he could possibly say. Hermione was in a troubled mood, similar to that of many of his own. Harry knew what Hermione was feeling now: The dawning realization of it all. The vision of Death itself around every corner. The intense feeling of insecurity. And, in Hermione's case, the option to escape it was not available. She had to stay with Harry. All the intelligence and wisdom in the universe couldn't save her from her own heart, and now… she wouldn't leave Harry's side for the world itself.
Hermione felt the familiar presence of Harry once more as he rolled his back upon her chest, and she embraced him like she always did.
"I was meant to protect you from the evils of Voldemort, but, it also goes the other way around. These feelings… I don't know what they are… I do know that… The weight of Voldemort on my mind is lessened when your around Harry. Its so troubling… I can barely think at times. My mind is just clouded over with implications and bad thoughts. I want it to all go away," Hermione said quietly, flustered. Harry understood what she was trying to say.
"Life is made bearable when we are together. Even against a world, we can be happy. That is what you mean." Harry whispered in return, staring vacantly at the far wall. Hermione's heart gave a sudden leap. Harry knew what she had tried to say, and she was grateful beyond thinking capacity. Coming from his own lips, the song of understanding brought forth many emotions within Hermione, and she closed her tearful eyes, burrowing into Harry's shoulder.
A curious feeling rose in Hermione's conscious, but she knew it would hurt people, that they would feel betrayed, and she locked it away, telling herself all she needed was Harry in her arms right now. Someone to hold as if they were her favorite teddy bear. One with a missing eye and a ruffled face. One that showed signs of years of love and friendship. One that would never disappear and always be there to weep on.
As Hermione moistened his shoulder with her fragile tears of worry, Harry could only imagine what it might be like in the coming year. If the waves from a hurricane off shore are bad enough to destroy lives, what unthought-of damage would the hurricane itself bring if it were to manifest on land?
Harry lay silent until Hermione turned her head away from his shoulder and sat up, in which he followed suit. Hermione wiped away the last tear, and looked at Harry.
"I'm sorry for…" Hermione began, but Harry had taken Hermione's hand at that point. Whatever she had planned to say was history.
"Don't be. Let's go eat lunch. They'll be cleaning it up soon enough and we'll be hungry still." Harry said. He helped Hermione off of the bed, and began to lead her to the door.
"Harry, wait. Your cloak is horribly damp. Looks like an owl made a mess on you." Hermione noted. She seemed better. Her voice had reverted to its usual, and a silly grin had crossed her face. She picked up one of Harry's cloaks where she had left them. Harry began to fumble with the clasp, and after undoing it he pulled off the cloak, which Hermione tossed into the dirty laundry basket where it would be teleported out of the room and into the washing room by house elf magic.
"Here," Hermione said as she clasped the clean cloak around Harry.
"You don't always have to put my cloak on, Hermione. I'm not a child you know." Harry complained jokingly.
"I don't mind… Now stop fussing and let's go eat some lunch." Hermione replied, and Harry knew by then that she wanted to push on as normal as possible. Even with a heavy conscious to bare on her shoulders, she wanted to try and enjoy the time. She hesitantly stretched her hand out and caught hold of Harry's, at which she immediately began to drag Harry off to lunch.
Ron and Ginny were gone, as were nearly all the other students. Harry glanced around. Draco was with his cronies at the Slytherin table, shouting insults to a young Gryffindor who looked like she had not eaten in a week. A few young Ravenclaws were at their table, and they had moved to the far end, away from the Slytherins. They were trying to enjoy their meal, but finding that they could not, resorted to eating as much as they could before they decided that they could stand Draco no more. His voice filled the room; a snarling tone and vulgarity that only a Slytherin could love. Or, at least a Slytherin as the school knew them. Oshiko would never do that.
Harry and Hermione made for the young Gryffindor. She saw them coming and a smile crept on her face as they sat down on her right side. The Ravenclaws had noticed them as well, and Harry recognized them as 2nd years when he took a good look. Furthermore, he noticed they were Dumbledore's Army patrons. Their insignia showed that they were Ashwinders. Harry motioned for them to come over, and they hesitantly stood and walked over.
Draco was scowling. Harry had once again taken away his fun. Just like he had his father.
"Stay away from Potter if you know what's good for you. The entire school has sided with that arrogant child, the idiot Dumbledore included." Lucius Malfoy had said before he was taken to Azkaban. The protection that Harry was receiving last year must have been enough to heed a warning, but Draco wasn't the good child that heeded warnings from his parents. Harry was his own arch-nemesis.
"Their just children, Potter. I wouldn't hurt them. We were just playing games." Draco sneered.
"You shouldn't be picking fights, Malfoy. You know what happened last year, don't you? That little incident on the train ride…" Harry started, but Draco had a temper now as the memory resurfaced.
"Those bloody gits. They had nothing to do with you." Draco interjected.
"But they do. Get that, they still do. In fact, many students of this school have something to do with me. Where ever you may be, you can be certain that someone is watching you. No more sneaking around, Malfoy. We know you like to pick on the little ones in the halls." Harry explained, coolly enough to irritate Draco.
The temperature in the organic matter between Draco's ears was rising quite nicely. Then it hit him like a bucket of ice: Those people on the train last year were DA members. What DA meant, Draco did not know. His mind reeled as he remembered all the students going into the classroom while he tried to pass through an invisible barrier, wanting to crash their little 'party'. Draco's eyes grew big.
"Oh, one more thing. I don't like to threaten people, but for you I'll make an exception. You speak one word to this Gryffindor again and I'll send you to Madam Pomfrey's sickroom myself." Harry added, and he turned his head away from Draco, helping himself to a meager portion of the remaining cold turkey.
Draco made several unsuccessful attempts to come up with a retort, but failing miserably, he stormed out of the Great Hall.
"Thanks Harry, my name is Sarah Maerceci." The young Gryffindor said gratefully.
"Anytime. If you ever have any more problems, come to me and we'll help you out. You see the gray circle and symbol on our cloaks?" Harry asked, pointing to his own Kappa symbol. Sarah nodded her head. "You can go to any person that has one and tell them to give me a message."
"Okay, I'll remember that." Sarah replied with the same grateful voice. The Ravenclaws smiled over at Harry and Hermione before picking up their conversation where they had left it when Draco had entered the room with his hoodlums.
Harry and Hermione picked at the remaining meat on the last turkey. They had really gotten there to late to find anything tasty. Sarah offered her remaining leg, but Harry refused politely, saying she needed it more then him. Harry's stomach rumbled.
"Hungry still, Mr. Potter sir? Dobby can bring you some more lunch, if you please." The silly looking house-elf said from behind Hermione. The three younger students peered over at Dobby, who had just appeared seconds earlier.
"Oh, Dobby, you always come at exactly the right times! Me and Hermione were a little late for lunch… Hmm… are any of you still hungry?" Harry asked the Ashwinders and Gryffindor.
"We're fine." Came the general reply, and Harry told Dobby that only him and Hermione still needed to eat. Dobby disappeared for a few minutes, and when he reappeared two large sandwiches and two large goblets of pumpkin juice appeared on the table. A napkin had been placed in the middle of it all, tied upon itself.
"There's warm cookies in the napkins. Dobby must get back to work." Dobby said. Harry and Hermione thanked him and he disappeared once again.
"Dobby is so nice, and I'm sure they are treating him well," Hermione said as they began to eat. The sandwich was exactly what they needed, but it was so large that they couldn't finish it. They ended up taking the cookies with them back to their room.
Dinner came only four hours later, and Harry and Hermione found themselves to full to eat even half of what they normally did. Ron took the opportunity at dinner to ask Hermione what was bothering her, but only heard "Nothing. Forget about it." Ron didn't really like that answer and promised himself that he would ask Hermione about it later, when Harry wasn't around. Ginny just smirked, believing that something was happening between Harry and Hermione at last.
Night fell upon the grounds of Hogwarts, and Harry was walking next to Hermione feeling a little worn out. They entered the Dumbledore's Army's classroom, not noticing that Oshiko was watching them from the far end of the hall, from the shadows and wearing clothing blacker then the shadow itself.
Harry and Hermione, once they had changed into their flannel nightclothes and brushed their teeth, found themselves huddling together in the chilly night air of the room. Sleep came upon their minds, and they closed their tired eyes.
***
Harry was walking down the corridor with Hermione at his side like usual. Students could be heard in the background, but Harry didn't know who they were.
"Harry, I'm going to run into the lavatories, okay?" Hermione said. She let go of Harry's hand and disappeared through a doorway. A torch flickered out a couple dozen feet down the intersecting hallway, and Harry lit it again with his wand. Light was restored, only to be overcome with the harsh, shrill scream of a student down the hall, and around the corner. Harry bolted towards the noise.
Another scream erupted from behind Harry. From the girls' lavatories. Harry froze in his tracks, horrified. Wheeling around he dashed back down to where he had come from, throwing himself on the door to girls' room. When it wouldn't budge, he took out his wand, tears streaming down his face now, falling to the cold stone floor he stood trembling on.
"Diffindo!" he called out through his tears as they fell into his mouth, choking him. The door splintered into a million wooden fragments and Harry ran inside through the falling shards. His heart stopped, and the wand held in his hand fell to the floor, clanking on the stone. Hermione lay sprawled through an open stall door, still. Her eyes were open in shock, and her mouth held the horrible contorted shape reminiscent of a scream…
***
Harry woke with a start, sitting up out of Hermione's grasp, sweating profusely with tears running down his cheeks, shaking uncontrollably. He struggled to breath as sobs choked his throat, constricting it like a snake had coiled itself around the soft flesh. Hermione awoke only seconds later.
"Harry, calm down. It was just a nightmare." Hermione said soothingly, pulling Harry back into her arms with a quick but gentle tug, praying that Voldemort hadn't sensed his sudden weakness.
A lifelessness overtook Harry as silver tears continued to fall upon the pillow. His mouth had become dry, and his arms were limp. He felt utterly uncompelled to move even his lips. Hermione didn't speak either, knowing full well that Harry needed to calm down first.
Harry's damp hair brushed against Hermione's throat with a cyclic rhythm as Harry breathed heavily into the nightclothes below her higher shoulder. His eyes were open with shock and disbelief, but the dream had only been half his worries. The lightning scar on his forehead was burning. It was still burning. It had been burning during the nightmare. It wasn't a nightmare anymore. It was the future. It wasn't Voldemort that had caused the scar to hurt, it was another magic. An older, deeper magic. A magic so infinitely powerful it could rightly be called the magic of foreboding truth.
He was going to lose her. The thought flooded his mind like veritaserum and he was powerless to resist it. It raced through his brain like a wildfire. He seemingly forgot to breathe, his breath held in his throat. His eyes turned into marbles as they glazed over. It was as if he had forgotten to physically live, and when Hermione could no longer feel his chest rising like it should have she knew he had gone into catatonic fit.
Hermione brought Harry's head up with her hand in a gentle, yet forceful manner. She stared into Harry's eyes, trying to crack through their misty shells, but to no avail. Desperate for some good sign, she leaned in and kissed Harry on his soft lips to bring him back to his senses…
Harry breathed in through his nose, and then his mouth, as Hermione broke contact after several tense moments. Tears were still upon his cheeks, still falling. His hands moved involuntarily, pulling Hermione closer. Hermione placed her own arms around Harry once more and together they remained motionless, not speaking, staring into the eyes of one another for many long minutes.
"Your scar was burning when you woke up, wasn't it Harry?" Hermione asked in a whisper.
"Yes," Harry replied.
"It involved us, didn't it?" Hermione continued. Harry choked out another 'Yes' and Hermione grew uneasy.
"What happened?" Hermione asked once more. Harry didn't speak for a few moments, but pushed aside his fear and finally spoke.
"We were walking down a hallway, and you said you needed to use the lavatories. When you entered a torch went out, and I relit it. I heard a scream down the hallway, and went for it. Then, …" Harry began, but came to an abrupt stop.
"Go on, Harry. It can't hurt us now." Hermione prodded quietly.
"…you screamed. I blew apart the door to the girls' room and found you…" Harry choked, the words coming rapidly as if they would do less harm that way, but Hermione knew what was coming. She leaned her head next to Harry's and their cheeks brushed before resting on one another.
"Life is made bearable when we are together. Even against a world, we can be happy." Hermione whispered, retelling the words that Harry had won her heart with. "Harry, even if it is meant to happen, even if it is supposed to happen, we will fight against it. We will not let it happen, you hear me?"
"Even if we have to fight time itself?" Harry cried softly.
"Yes. I refuse to leave your side." Hermione swore, her own anguished tears mixing with Harry's. "We know what it has in store for us now. When the time comes, when the circumstances are right, we will not let it happen."
"It is time, Hermione. How do you fight time?" Harry choked.
"With human will power, and love." Hermione explained. "Fate is for prophecies, not dreams."
A sensation, not unlike that of longing, reached every nerve in his body. The mention of that word… love. That was what those feelings were. That was what had enveloped his mind so completely. The emotions overtook him. Fear was draining from his mind which each beat of Hermione's heart, thumping against his chest like it was his own.
Hermione had mentioned the word… love. She had pulled him so close… So close beyond the recognition of one body from another. He had done the same, his arms wrapped tightly around the lower of her back, bringing her close… It was at that moment, in that pivotal moment… the realization that love became a mutual feeling, and both of them knew they were loved by the other.
It was also, at that pivotal moment, that they realized what it meant to honor friendship. The implications for admitting the word love in free voice were to great at the moment… Ron and even Viktor Krum weren't to be made casualties.
"When the time is right, Harry." Hermione said softly.
"You're right. It is not supposed to hurt people." Harry replied in a similarly soft voice. Even with the horrible dream at the back of his mind, Harry managed to smile. The simple understanding they had just shared was enough to last a lifetime of doubt.
The cold air of the room could not reach them for the remainder of the night as sleep once again fell upon them.
When morning finally came, neither Harry nor Hermione wanted to get up and go to Potions. They lay still until Hermione could delay the inevitable no longer. She rolled out of bed and proceeded to take a shower. Harry was waiting for her to come out at the side of the bed when she appeared not more then seven minutes later, dry and dressed.
"You prove that girls can take short showers, and every morning at that, Hermione." Harry commented as he went in for his turn.
"You prove that your still a child, and every morning at that, Harry." Hermione retorted playfully. Harry chuckled through the curtain.
Emerging from the bathroom with a cloak in one hand, and a dirty pair of nightclothes in the other, Harry was suddenly overtaken by Hermione. Her arms were around his neck in an instant.
"What happened last night was a dream, wasn't it Hermione?" Harry asked.
"A dream worth worlds with a sour twist on fate." Hermione replied. Harry's head dropped as he remembered the nightmare.
"Do you think we'll be able to…?" Harry asked, trailing off.
"Of course. Don't doubt what we are capable of and give me that cloak."
* In Japan you usually don't refer to someone by their first name unless they are you're a close friend. Harry of course doesn't know this ^_^