Shifted: Book Two

Chapter Three - Another Nightmare

"Hazel? Oh goodness, Hazel are you alright?", a voice pleaded with desperation.

"Hazel, can you hear me? Whatever this is, this is just a dream. It's time to wake up", another voice called out.

Hazel's eyes shot open and her body rocketed up, sitting up on the couch. Her fair skin grew paler than ever before as she began to sweat; her hands and legs trembling tremendously and her breathing intensified. The faces that surrounded her were unclear, but she was brought a slight sense of safety and familiarity. One hand was placed on her chest, they felt her heart race. She looked up and saw Molly stood right beside her, checking her quickening pulse and gently running her other hand through the strands of her bed-hair. Then, the other faces gradually became clearer. She was accompanied by Hermione, Ginny, Ron, Remus and, of course, Sirius. Their faces grew in curiosity and concern but, fortunately, Hazel began to slowly calm down.

"You're alright now, Hazel, you're awake", Sirius spoke softly.

Hazel rubbed her eyes and sat up, now able to focus on her surroundings. Her hands and legs were still shaking, only not as violent as they were a minute ago. She still felt hot, but Hermione swiftly brought her a cold glass of water.

"It's another nightmare, isn't it?", Hermione asked, handing her the glass carefully.

Hazel took a small sip from the glass and placed it on the table just in front of her, just barely able to reach for it.

"What did I do?", Hazel's voice spoke tiredly.

Hermione and Ginny shared concerned glances as they answered Hazel's question.

"You just started to scream, you grabbed the edge of the couch and yelled at the top of your lungs", Ginny admitted.

Hazel tried to reach for the glass again but stumbled and almost fell off the couch but Remus helped her sit up again, handing the water to her softly.

"Here, have this too. Don't worry, it's just chocolate, it'll make you feel better", Remus insisted, giving Hazel a small square of milk chocolate.

"You said 'another nightmare'... this has happened before?", he asked, looking up at Molly and her worried face.

"At least once a week, but it's never been this severe!", Molly admitted, still stroking Hazel's head.

Hazel took a couple more sips of her glass and ate the square of milky brown Remus had given her before handing it back to Remus, who placed the almost-empty glass on the table.

Sirius sat beside Hazel on the couch and wrapped another blanket round her jittery body.

"What was this nightmare about?", he asked.

"Hazel never remembers her nightmares-", Hermione began to admit before Hazel cut her off unexpectedly.

"No, this time I do", Hazel began, her lips quivering.

She tightly embraced the blanket round her.

"I don't know why but, for some reason, I remember everything", she admitted.

She took a small but mighty breath and shut her eyes.

"I was in a house, a very familiar house, and it was freezing and dimly lit", Hazel began to explain, painting the images in her mind again.

The house was almost abandoned, but it was still furnished. But it wasn't just any house. It was her house in her old reality, the house her parents brought her up in. Every detail was illustrated in her nightmare; every painting, every frame, every crack in the wall.

"I was stuck in this wooden seat and, at first, I couldn't see a thing, all I could sense was this unpleasant breathing down my neck", she continued.

"The breathing stopped and my vision was given back to me, though I'd have rather not seen what I saw", she continued.

Hazel, still stuck to the chair, was in the middle of her living room and stood in front of her were her parents; their hands clasping one another and smiles painted on their ghostly faces.

"I saw them, my mum and dad, they looked so happy", Hazel added, smiling to herself a little.

"And then you all entered the room...", Hazel continued.

"All of you, Harry too", she said, her little smile turning to despair.

"You were all so happy, too happy, and then-", Hazel paused.

Hazel couldn't bare to replay the image in her foggy mind, but she needed to explain what she saw.

"Your bodies, they all went up in blinding, crimson flames! I couldn't reach out for any of you, it was as though I was paralysed. Your screams they- they broke me, I screamed and yelled to save you but I couldn't!", she said, her voice cracking at the description of the horrifying moment she witnessed.

"We're all here now, and safe too!", Remus insisted, placing his hand on top of Hazel's, still trembling, hand, and patted it gently.

"But then he appeared- from within the flames", Hazel added, looking at the faces in the room before finally glancing over to Ron as his eyes grew in confusion.

"Who?", Ron asked with uncertainty.

Sirius and Remus shared concerned glances as Hazel spoke the dreaded word.

"Voldemort", she finished.

The room fell to complete silence, everyone's expressions grew with confusion and worry, yet curiosity overwhelmed them.

"He struck his wand at me, exactly how he did when we met at the cemetery, and I felt everything; every electric bolt ran through my veins, every drop of poison intoxicated my blood", Hazel continued.

"Only this time, when he realised he couldn't kill me, his face grew with anger and frustration and violence, his infuriating presence burnt the house down to the grounds, and himself with it", Hazel finally finished, exhaling greatly and taking the last couple of sips from the glass.

"What if, when Voldemort first struck me, he's gotten himself inside my mind, what if this nightmare was a warning, what if this is going to happen to you all, what if-", Hazel blurted out, her heart began to race again as her voice quickened with her heartbeat.

"That's enough, no more talking about nightmares, you'll scare the girl to death!", Molly declared, helping Hazel rise from the couch with the blanket still swaddled around her.

"Everything is alright! Now, who's hungry for some toast?", Molly asked, lightening the mood and guiding Hazel and the others downstairs to the kitchen.

Before leaving the room, Sirius and Remus looked at each other; they didn't know what Hazel's nightmare meant, but they both knew that it wasn't good - they knew darkness was coming, and they needed to think of a way to stop it, and quickly!