I Was Younger Then

A Serious Bout of Deja Vu

Penny blinked, early morning light was streaming in through the windows of the Hospital Wing. She felt so warm, her aches from the previous day almost non-existent. Yawning, she realized there was an arm draped over her. Turning her head, she found her shaggy-haired brother laying beside her, out cold, his glasses askew. Her heart swelled as she moved his hair out of his eyes. He was crammed into the bed beside her, holding her as though he feared she would disappear again.

Penny did not know when he arrived, all she could remember was making it to the Hospital Wing and a furious Snape forcing her to take a potion of dreamless sleep, which Penny tried to resist because naturally, she wanted to see her brother before she went to sleep. Snape told her the dose was only small and she'd only sleep for a few hours before waking. With Madam Pomfrey demanding she take it as well, Penny could hardly defy them, so she accepted the potion from a smug-looking Snape, who'd blatantly lied, because she'd clearly slept through the entire night.

The castle was still, the wind-rattled windows the only thing to be heard, other than the rhythmic breathing of her brother. Penny could not help but breathe in deeply, releasing all her tension on the exhale. She was home, Harry was safe, and perhaps life would return to normal.

Harry's eyes opened and he looked at Penny, wide-eyed, as though unsure if he were seeing her or was trapped in his dream-state still.

"Penny," he said, tentatively.

"Why do we always find each other in the Hospital Wing like this?" she said.

Harry grinned widely, but the worry in his eyes did not budge.

"Penny, you idiot. What happened, Lupin wouldn't tell me anything."

"A lot, but at least I'm home now," she sighed.

"But how, and what happened to you? I saw the bruises before Madam Pomfrey healed them," Harry said in an accusatory tone, tracing his fingers along her neck.

"You won't believe it, but Lucius Malfoy got me out."

"Why would he do that," said Harry, eyes narrowed suspiciously.

"Draco demanded he help me, told him we were dating," Penny said, shaking her head, still unable to believe it herself.

Harry stared at Penny, his brows crinkled from the struggle of his inner turmoil. Penny couldn't blame him, even after sitting with Draco and maintaining the somewhat friendship they had, she found it hard to believe. Though she speculated the potions master had a hand in prompting Draco's involvement, which she shared with Harry, who found this new information even harder to palette than the first bit.

"Are you sure it was Malfoy, how do you even know? And what were they doing to you at the Ministry?"

With a deep breath, Penny began to explain to Harry the events in the Department of Mysteries. Agitated, Harry sat up and watched her, cross-legged, interjecting his fury every now and again.

"What's the MACUSA?" Harry questioned.

"The Magical Congress of the United States of America, don't you ever pay attention in class? Professor Binns has mentioned them a few dozen times," Penny scolded, sitting up as well.

"Why would they want you?" he said, looking perturbed.

"By the sounds of it they wanted to brainwash me into doing their bidding." Penny replied, darkly.

"Is wand-less magic really that powerful?" said Harry.

"If what Grindelwald was able to accomplish is any indicator, then I suppose. But Dumbledore defeated him with a wand, so it's not necessarily a given. But I think, and this is just a hunch, based off of what Dumbledore said in passing, it's that expression can't be traced," Penny mused out loud.