Hermione's Letter

Chapter 6

The next morning Samantha was the first to awaken. She climbed out of her bed, and moved to open the curtains - and realised there weren't any. It then occurred to her that she was still on the makeshift transport vessel.

Still in her Hogwarts robes from the previous night's sorting ceremony, she moved away from the bed, and collected the key from its hook. Unlocking the door, she stepped out into the corridor.

She glanced at her silver wristwatch; it showed five thirty. Not many people would be up at this hour. The corridor outside of her room was empty, and Samantha could hear nothing that sounded even remotely like a footstep or a yawn.

She closed the door and locked it, taking the old, rusty key with her, and headed for the front of the carriage. Stepping quietly so as to avoid waking anyone else, she had almost reached her destination when she heard a sound from her left.

The door of a room she was passing opened slowly and a young second-year with fiery red hair poked her head out. Sam recognized the face of Ginny Weasley and smiled at her. She hadn't yet met Ginny, but had of course heard of her encounter with Tom Riddle the previous year.

Ginny returned the gesture and stepped out into the corridor too, also in her school outfit. She locked her door and pocketed the somewhat better kept key.

Her bright smile had filled Samantha with feelings of warmth, and she was confident enough to speak.

"I was just going to the front. You know, to see where we are. Would you like to join me?" She waited in anticipation for the response.

Ginny nodded. "Let's go. I'd like to know where we are too. You're Sam, right?" She offered her a hand.

"Yeah," Sam answered, taking Ginny's hand and shaking it as she did so.

After the handshake they traversed the remaining corridors toward the front of the wooden-floored carriage. It was almost like the lower decks of an old Muggle sailing ship in its construction.

The wooden nature of the ship continued until the pair reached the front of the ship, which consisted not of brown wood, but of a colourless material.

Both girls expressed a little shock to see this; there were no support frames holding the glass-like substance in place. But it was what lay beyond that was of more shock to the young Gryffindors.

The sky and the clouds loomed still outside the window. The dragon-like creature carrying them was also visible, its long brown and green neck projecting itself far ahead of the carriage, with its enormous ovular head and three-pointed ears adorning the end.

"We're still in the air? I'd have sworn we'd have landed by now," Ginny exclaimed.

"How far are we going?" wondered Sam out loud.

"A long way, so everyone will be safe."

The stern voice of Professor McGonagall, wearing her usual apparel, interrupted their conversation. She had been sleeping in the end cabin, and was in command of the Gryffindor transport.

"We'll be travelling for another day and night yet. Fortunately these transports are fully prepared for long journeys. At the very back of the transport and on the lower level, there is a canteen where you can get something to eat. I suggest you go there; the canteen is open at all times until we reach the safehaven."

Both girls nodded to acknowledge and proceeded apace away from the front of the ship.

***

Hermione was next to awaken. She pressed her hand to her head, realising a powerful headache had manifested itself there. She sighed and dug through her trunk for an analgesic, at last finding a bottle of green syrup, labelled Mandragora Migraine Masher. She removed the cap, and filled it with the substance, which had the consistency of thick custard.

She swallowed it, and replaced the cap. Seconds later a wave of green light emitted from her head, dragging behind it what resembled a red cloud. A second green blast followed it, and the two energy fields crushed the red one until it disappeared. They too dissolved away. Hermione felt better - the headache was literally gone.

She pulled out her wand and waved it in the air, simply revelling in the little sparkles of radiant light emitting from it. She had found that swinging her wand in this manner made many wonderful and soothing images in the air; even if they dissolved away in seconds.

She noticed the empty bed next to hers, and decided to see where Samantha had gone. Glancing over at where the key had been, she noticed its absence.

A locked door posed no threat to Hermione. She picked up her wand and twice created a circle in the air with it before casting "Alohamora!" The locking mechanism in the door disengaged quietly, allowing Hermione to turn the handle and pull open the old timber door.

Stepping out gently into the corridor, she turned her head back for a moment to glance over at Harry, lying still in the corner of the room; dozens of what-if scenarios started pouring into her head much like water pouring into a cup.

She turned away again and walked out of the door, closing it gently behind her.

***

Seven o' clock: many people remained in the comfort of their beds, sleeping off the disturbance and the celebration. Ron was fast asleep; Harry, who had just awoken, doubted he would awaken any time soon. His injury would require time to heal.

Harry remembered the previous night; the spells they performed in the wrecked remains of Ravenclaw Tower; Ron's hard landing on the stone floor; the surge of feeling he had when Hermione passed over him. If there had been any doubt in his mind before, it was most definitely gone now; it was Hermione he wanted. Sure, he found other girls attractive - Cho Chang, Alicia Spinnet, Ron's sister Ginny; but no one had quite the same effect on him as Hermione.

The thought of her fine, brown, wavy hair; her deep brown eyes and her perfectly-formed body... it was just a wonderful image. He was hard pressed to drag himself away from it. But right now, a terrible burden rested on Hermione's shoulders; and he had to put those feelings to one side.

It would be difficult. Very difficult.

But he would try.

He would try.

***

Hermione had strolled around the transport, and eventually had caught up with Ginny and Samantha in the dining hall. She had observed that the first year and second year were getting along really well; they really seemed to bounce off of one another. Hermione was glad for the both of them; that Ginny had made a new friend, and that Samantha wouldn't be condemned to exile from the other students.

The third year student really didn't know why Samantha had not been accepted by the other Gryffindors. Perhaps it was her shyness, or her impressive demonstration of her magical talents in the Great Hall at the Sorting Ceremony; but discrimination of that nature was much more frequently associated with the Slytherins, not the brave and bold Gryffindors.

Still, Samantha now had one friend, Hermione thought; there's only one direction from there - up.

Her mind suddenly flashing back to the Slytherins, she realised that they had yet to prove whether or not the letter was from Draco Malfoy. However, she remembered, even Lucius Malfoy was unlikely to have the kind of destructive power that had recently been observed at Hogwarts. She decided to abandon the test, although for a reason that escaped her, she couldn't eliminate those doubts about Draco from her mind.

It can't have been him, she kept telling herself.

***

Hermione had selected a large mug of coffee, sans milk, a bowl of Wizard-O's, a cereal which seemed to appeal to her; chocolate was indeed one of her favourite things, and for a second course, four slices of toast, layered with butter and marmalade. It was her typical breakfast, if truth be told, except the coffee. Normally she took orange juice, avoiding caffeine-based beverages. She had once heard about someone who consumed endless cups of coffee; it caused the person to take reckless chances and to ignore her friends, even in the greatest of danger, and Hermione had most certainly decided that was not going to happen to her.

Ginny had simply taken an entire rack of toast and a jug of orange juice, and marched over to a table to eat. She was really hungry, even in the aftermath of the welcoming feast the previous night. She, too, was a fan of orange juice, and consumed a sometimes worrying amount of it. When asked why she liked orange juice so much, she simply said, "I need to keep my hair from losing its colour."

Samantha had taken, like Hermione, a bowl of Wizard-Os, but with a honey flavouring, rather than the chocolate preferred by the older girl. Her choice of beverage was quite different, however, to both her friends; she had ordered a hot chocolate. A wizard's, or in this case a witch's, hot chocolate, was far superior to a Muggle's; the chocolate was adaptive.
You only had to tap the cup with your wand, and say the type of chocolate you wanted, and the flavouring would alter itself to your liking. Samantha's preference was a very rich Russian type.

Hermione, Samantha and Ginny decided, after finishing their breakfasts that they would return to Hermione and Samantha's room and would see if Harry and Ron were awake yet.

The group had almost completed the trek back to the room shared by Hermione, Harry, Ron and Sam when they heard footsteps, and saw Professor McGonagall marching towards them, double-time. Hermione nodded to the Transfiguration teacher and head of Gryffindor house, and politely said good morning. Professor McGonagall replied in the same fashion, and then inquired as to the health of Ron.

How did she know? thought Hermione. More to the point, does she know how he got the injury?

"He's recovering in bed. There wasn't time to get him to Madam Pomfrey last night. Is she on our transport?"

"I'm afraid not. Madam Pomfrey is aboard the Hufflepuff transport. We'll get him over there, though. I want that head of his looked at; make sure he wasn't too badly injured. I've arranged for the two transports to fly closely enough to each other so that we can simply take him across via the doors. It will be done after everyone has had breakfast."

Sam and Ginny just looked at McGonagall, deciding to let Hermione handle the situation. Although Sam knew what had really happened, Ginny didn't yet know how Ron had been injured. Hermione had promised to tell her when they were out of sight and hearing of everyone else, just in case someone was eavesdropping.

Professor McGonagall moved to depart, but she aborted her movements when Hermione addressed her again.

"Professor, how much longer will the trip take, do you think?"

McGonagall turned her head to Hermione.

"About one more day. Provided everything proceeds according to plan."

She turned her head back and headed off, transfiguring herself into a cat as she moved off, in order that she might attain more velocity.

The three girls exchanged glances, and then continued on their journey back to quarters.

On entering the room they discovered Harry awake. Hermione was first to enter; Harry looked up to see who was coming in, and his glance locked with Hermione's; they stared into each other's eyes.

So much feeling communicated in one moment.

Hermione suddenly realised the two girls were still behind her, and moved to sit down on her bed. Ginny and Sam entered the room and closed the door; Sam replaced the key on its hook.

The two younger girls sat on Sam's bed; Hermione sat on her own.

Harry welcomed them. "Hey Herm, Sam, Ginny. Been for breakfast yet?"

"Yeah," replied Hermione. "You on the other hand, haven't. And you need to keep your strength up. Join me?"

"Sure," said Harry, perhaps a little too enthusiastically. He climbed off of the bed and walked out of the door, followed by Hermione.

Sam and Ginny exchanged another glance, and a cheeky smile.