From Far Away

Harry looked at the arithmacy homework that Hermione rapidly went through and frowned. What did it all mean? The numbers and the letters . . . and how they merged together sometimes . . . and what were the sudden connections to them all?

"How can you stand to do this?" Ron asked from Hermione's other shoulder.

"Easy, I take the class," Hermione replied, finishing the first page and looking over the numbers, "See how all of these answers has the common multiple of 5xe? When I divide each one by 5xe, I end up with a smaller number and letter where I take the denominator of each number (which is 1 because they aren't fractions) and add them all up over one, I can cross cancel the master problem and map them on this chart and it will end up being a perfect circle - the circumference having been the original master problem," she finished proudly, as if teaching Ron and Harry a wonderful new trick.

Harry and Ron just stared.

Hermione sighed and packed her things. They were in the library during their weekend (heaven forbid) and Ron and Harry were urging her to go out to the Quidditch field or to play exploding snap in the common room or anything else to give her a breath of real air.

Hermione pointed out that real air couldn't be found in the common room playing exploding snap.

"C'mon Mione, you're going to suffocate in here if you don't get out and do something," Harry said.

"And you two are going to fail if you don't take homework seriously," Hermione replied, "You guys go ahead, I've just got a couple more classes to take care of - then we can go to Hogsmeade if you'd like,"

"Okay," Ron gave in, "We'll be waiting in the common room,"

Hermione smiled when they left and quickly left to Moaning Myrtles bathroom. The cauldron was waiting for her when she got there.

"I thought I made it clear that you're not supposed to be here," Myrtle floated in from the next stall.

"I thought I made it clear that you're dead," "Hermione" answered.

*

Harry sat in the common room and pondered the subject of his next note to Sirius. (A/n Sirius is still with Buckbeak in the mountains)

Dear Fluffy,

That was what he had so far. Let's see, what had happened lately?

Nothing much has happened lately. Just wanted to check in.

Maybe he should ask how Sirius was doing.

How are you doing?

Harry frowned. What else was there to write? Oh yeah . . .

Oh yeah, my head feels like it's going to split into a thousand tiny pieces with every second of the day that passes by. I'm safe inside the walls of Hogwarts but I feel like evil is breathing over my neck-

"Hello," Hermione cheered suddenly from over his neck, "Ready for Hogsmeade?"

*

Emily and Malfoy were standing in the common room opposite to each other having another argument. Emily just wanted to be alone. Malfoy just didn't want to be in trouble. They watched one another sharply. Even Ruby glared at Malfoy evilly.

"Malfoy, who are you to tell me I can't go to my dorm room?" Emily spat.

"Dumbledore-"

"Said to 'show me around, help me meet new friends',"

"Then let me show you around and help you meet new friends,"

"Malfoy, I just want to go in my dorm and sleep,"

"It's almost noon,"

"I'm tired," Emily lied.

"Just, let me show you around - we can go to Hogsmeade,"

"I don't want to-"

"They have a bookstore, and a joke shop, and a Honeyduke's chocolate shop," Malfoy said temptingly. Emily paused to consider. She probably had the biggest sweet tooth that ever was to be, and it was her biggest flaw.

She had hesitated a reply too long; Malfoy now knew her weakness and he smiled wickedly.

"Oh, all right," Emily sighed angrily and stomped out of the common room to get her cloak.

Being the weekend, most of the older Hogwarts students were roaming the grounds. Emily didn't like the crowds, but she sulked along to Honeydukes.

There were so many sweets that lay on the holy shelves of that wondrous store. Malfoy looked at Emily funny when she smiled and went to the shelf of the richest chocolate bars ever known to the world. Malfoy hadn't seen her smile yet - it seemed so . . . wrong, somehow. The dark rings beneath her eyes strongly contradicted her childish mirth. Her eyes got glassy and young and her mouth became the epitome of youth. Yet when Malfoy offered her a sugar quill with a sarcastic face, those eyes suddenly looked embarrassed and the mouth turned back into their neutral line.

Malfoy turned around and ran into someone. It was Potter. Harry Potter. Malfoy scowled and spoke a harsh warning.

"Oh stuff it, Malfoy," Weasley piped from a few feet away.

"If it isn't the Potty and his trusty pet Weasel?" Malfoy started, "Here to save the day from the Dark Lord?" Malfoy mocked. He saw Emily flinch behind him.

"Dark Lord? Oh no, Malfoy we're protecting the world from someone far worse: your dad. He's the on the top of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Name's list, is he not?" Ron sallied.

Malfoy turned an angry shade of scarlet.

"You might want to watch the hand-me-down clothes on your back, Weasley - if you can afford to, that is," Malfoy watched Harry hold Ron back as Hermione put a less-than-careless hand on his shoulder.

"Ron, give it up," she said.

"Let's see, Weasley, how much do you pay those two to hang around you? Probably more than your father's making - that's probably why you're so poor: you're wasting all of you daddy's pretty money on getting yourself a life," Malfoy smiled, "Well, I hate to break it to you, but daddy will never make enough money to get you a life,"

Emily kept her back to them, but felt the heat generated by their anger. Many of the other people in the shop felt the same heat; they slowly migrated to the other side of the shop.

"Ah," came a new voice from the doorway. Fred and George were leaning against the doorframe, "So if it isn't daddy's favorite little death eater?" George commented airily towards Malfoy, who's pointed face contorted with annoyance.

"George," Fred commented, "I'm not sure you should vex him - go ahead and hex him!" he said in a singsong voice.

Malfoy lifted his wand, "Go ahead, but don't expect to take me quietly,"

"Take you? And where, may I ask would we want to take this slimy little ferret?" Fred intervened. The customers had stopped trying to back away and stood to see the showdown with callous, unabashed interest.

Fred yelled out a curse just as Malfoy had ducked - sensing this.

Suddenly, the shelf behind him shook violently. The curse had hit Emily instead and she'd run into the shelf as a result of the force. The customers (sans Fred and George, who stood in shock) rushed to get out of the shop. A crash from the back was suddenly heard as the storekeeper dropped a crate; he'd been in the basement.

Emily felt as if she were falling right before her knees buckled from an invisible crash. However, she was rather disconcerted to find that she no longer had knees when she looked down at herself, finding that all she had were four furry legs. She didn't have much more time to observe her new state before the shelf of candies toppled over.

Right on top of her.

Fred and George both made a hasty movement to lift the shelf as soon as it'd fallen. Malfoy had backed up to the other side of the shop, watching in stunned silence, hoping that it wouldn't be he who got punished.

The shopkeeper, the trio, and the twins had put the shelf in it's rightful position within a few gut-wrenching seconds and found a small, furry animal, pleasantly staring up through a pile of fizzing whizbeez.