Harry Potter - Hurt and Comfort

Chapter Five - Scars and Nightmares

The sky began to darken, as hours passed swiftly. The large, round moon was rising, as the burning sun was setting. The Gryffindor common room was unusually quiet, with people either studying or sleeping. As midnight came closer, students went to bed and by 1am, everyone was in their beds sleeping. Harry was the last to arrive in the dormitory, and when he did, he had to be as quiet as he could. Finally, the raven-haired teenager fell asleep to the sounds of snoring.

" My Master, My Lord, we are ready..."

" Wormtail, my most faithful servant, gather our troops, it's time..."

Voldemort stared at his servant with glee and watched as he left to round his army. Seconds later, Nagini the long, green snake, slithered her way up to the Dark Lord. Lord Voldemort cackled " Don't worry my Nagini, you'll get your meal very soon". The snake hissed softly and returned to the darkness. Voldemort sneered to himself " Harry Potter is mine. I will kill him at last, and rule the world!".

Harry screamed, and bolted awake, sitting up on his bed. He was sweating and panting quickly. Voldemort was planning war, and he was the next victim. Several footsteps emerged from the dark and someone placed Harry's glasses over his eyes. Harry could see Ron, Dean and Seamus all gathered around him. They didn't need to ask what happened, they just carried him out of bed, because Harry was shaking, and took him directly to Dumbledore's office. Once the door opened, they all went inside and sat on the chairs made of wood. Dumbledore kindly asked " What happened Harry?" his blue eyes twinkling. Harry gazed into his eyes and tried to recall what had actually happened. Before he knew it, he could hear the words exiting his mouth. " I could see Wormtail and...and Lord Voldemort, they were talking about being ready for something. They are - planning war, sir". Dumbledore, and the others gasped in shock. Dumbledore nodded and asked " Are you alright Harry?". Before he could answer, Dean added " No sir, he's shaking and he is pale. I don't think he's alright". Ron cut in " He might need a dreamless sleep potion, sir". Dumbledore agreed " Yes. Seamus could you please fetch one and the rest of you help Harry to his bed". Everyone briefly nodded and left.

15 minutes later

Harry felt nauseous but layed in his bed. Seamus undone the cork of the potion and gently pushed his head up as Harry drank it. Dean, Seamus and Ron bade him goodnight and with seconds, a wave of darkness washed over Harry. 

The next morning, Harry felt slightly more refreshed. He followed the others to breakfast that morning, forgetting about last night. Harry placed some bacon and eggs on his plate with some milk and for once, ate all his food. Hermione was impressed and gave Harry a small smile, then looking at Ron, she scowled heavily. Once they have finished breakfast, they made their way to Potions. Harry, Ron and Hermione sat on the table near the back with Neville. The minute Snape entered the room, the air was filled with empty silence, from behind, Draco, Pansy, Crabbe and Goyle were sniggering about something. But it wasn't Harry, it was Professor Snape. Harry smirked and shook his head, looking up at the board. Snape had written a message on their

Dear Fifth-Year Students,

Although most of you are a bunch of raving lunatics and idiots, I inform you of when your O.W.L.S will be taking place. You will have an exam on the Friday 13, October. Along with this, I will be showing you each person in this class their current grade level, and others too.

Neville Longbottom - D
Ronald Weasley - C
Hermione Granger - A
Harry Potter - C
Parvati Patil - B
Seamus Finnigan - B
Dean Thomas - B
Draco Malfoy - A
Pansy Parkinson - A
Vincent Crabbe - A
Gregory Goyle - A
Lavender Brown - C

Now, for the final announcement, by the end of the year you will receive a letter, which will state wherever you have made it to N.E.W.T.S Potions. If you have, your envelope will be normal. But if you fail, your letter will give you a shock, a simple shock that might wake you up.

Today's Work : Read through the fifth, sixth and seventh chapter of ' Potions and Remedies'. When your finished, begin writing your essay on any chosen potion. It must be at least 3 parchments long. And no Weasley not 1. Ron blushed in embarrassment here. And Granger, I don't need 50 parchments about it. Hermione flushed and looked down. If you don't finish your essay today, it is your duty to finish tonight. Bring it back tomorrow and I'll mark it. Otherwise, I will personally find you and kill you.

Harry read the last sentence twice and snorted. He opened his textbook and began reading the chapters about Potions for different things and what they did, their effects and even what they look like. At the end of class, Harry ran straight out of the classroom and joined his friends to their next subject, which was Charms. The classroom already had a lighter atmosphere and there were only Gryffindors. Professor Flitwick let them sit down before standing on top of about 30 books and announcing " Good Morning Class, today we will be testing out the freezing and burning charm. The freezing charm will freeze your opponent and the burn charm will raise their temperature so high, they'd be close to dying". Upon the looks on everyone's faces, Flitwick added " But this spell is only the basic version, and won't kill you. The spell is ' Freeza Nimba, and then ' Boila Nimba Now go find a partner and get started".

Harry and Ron stood in the far corner of the room and practiced the spell. It only took seconds before you were back to normal. " Freeza Nimba " Harry shouted, pointing his wand at Ron. At the same time, Ron did the same thing and shouted " Boila Nimba ". Ron became like ice for a minute and couldn't move, while Harry burned up for a couple of seconds and then returned to normal. This took place for an hour, and at 12pm, the whole school headed for the Great Hall for their lunch. It had been a long day already, and before Harry knew it, it was night, and the moon was like a shining torch, illuminating the world with it's soft, pale light. With the dreamless sleep potion, Harry had one of the most calmest sleeps he has ever had. Perhaps things were going to be alright after all...