Seventh Time's the Charm

Chapter 5 - How to Train Your Dragon

Harry stood in a dark, drafty cellar, faint light from a singular lamp casting shadows against the walls.

Where am I- he started, looking around. And then it clicked.

He was standing in the cellar of Malfoy Manor.

Suddenly finding his mouth dry, Harry made for the wrought-iron cellar door. He reached for the handle, only for the door is dissolve into black mist.

A heart-rending, raw scream echoed from upstairs. Harry had heard that same scream before; in this very house.

Hermione, he thought. His hands shook as his breathing quickened.

Harry darted up the stairs, taking them two at a time as Hermione's shrieks turned to sobbing whimpers of pain.

Reaching the landing, he rounded the corner, sprinting down the long hall leading to the drawing room.

The screams had ceased, and an eerie silence had descended upon the manor.

Still sprinting, Harry slammed into the drawing room doors, which splintered and cracked as they were flung open.

A few paces in front of Harry was Hermione, who lay motionless, her mess of curls obscuring her face. The carpet around her body was stained crimson, and a figure robed in black stood over her, holding a bloody dagger.

Harry tried to move closer - to reach Hermione - but he was frozen in place. The figure, who had been looking down on the dead girl before them, slowly raised its head.

He stared at Bellatrix Lestrange, who looked back at him without expression. Harry blinked, only to find that he was now looking at the snakelike visage of the resurrected Voldemort of the previous timeline.

Voldemort's eyes bored into Harry's, as the room faded into darkness.

Harry shot up in bed, panting and dripping with sweat. He reached under his pillow, his hand finding the familiar wood of his wand.

"Lumos," he whispered.

Crimson curtains lined his bed, and the incessant snoring of one Ronald Weasley filled the room.

Harry collapsed back into his pillow in relief.

"Just a nightmare," he said to himself, taking several deep breaths.

Hermione's safe. She's alive and safe, he thought.

As his heartbeat slowly returned to normal, Harry put on his glasses and brushed open the curtains that hung around his bed. The dim orange light of dawn filtered through the window into the room.

With a sigh, he let the curtain fall. With any luck, he would be able to manage a few more hours of fitful sleep before the task. Putting his wand and glasses back, he settled into the pillow and closed his eyes.

____

"Are you sure you slept well last night, Harry?" Hermione asked.

Harry sat across from her, clad in his black and red champion's robes. He pushed his lunch around his plate with a fork. "I- It's fine Hermione, I'm just a little nervous about the dragon, that's all."

Hermione moved her empty plate out of the way as she shut her notebook. "I understand that, but your eyes are red and you fell asleep at breakfast this morning. Tell me what's wrong," she said comfortingly.

"It was a dream, a nightmare really," he said, looking her in the eyes. "About you, in Malfoy Manor. Only it was so much worse."

Hermione let out a small gasp, her eyes tearing up. She felt her heart skip a few beats, and clutched her hands together in an effort to stop them from shaking.