Potions Assortment

Chapter 5: Fates Potion

Hermione was in the girls' bathroom on the second floor during lunchtime the following day, casting a potion in one of the cubicles.

"What are you doing?" Moaning Myrtle asked suspiciously as she floated through the cubicle wall.

"Myrtle!" Hermione gasped, nearly knocking potion over. "Couldn't you be less scary next time? You nearly gave me a heart attack!"

"Well first off, I'm a ghost and ghosts are supposed to be scary. And secondly, I'd never let you die in here and share my bathroom! Harry, maybe, but most definitely not you! What are you doing anyway?"

"Brewing a potion," Hermione answered, reading over the book in her lap to check that she had done everything correctly.

Fates Potion

This potion is a base potion for several different potions to do with past and future lives. Past lives, future loves, right occupations, etc. By adding different ingredients at the end, you will end up with a different potion. It is a relatively easy potion to brew.

½ cup olive oil

0.5g saffron

2 feathers from a Pegasus' wings

4 hairs from a unicorn's tail

30g pomegranate flesh, no skin

5 pomegranate pips, crushed

1 cup grape wine

1 cup pure honey

Combine olive oil and saffron until the oil becomes golden yellow. Add feathers and hairs and heat gently until dissolved.

Mix in pomegranate flesh and pips until well combined and simmering gently. Then take off the heat.

Mix grape wine and honey together and slowly pour into the rest of the potion, mixing continuously.

This potion will store in a pewter container for two days.

Past Loves

2 tsp strawberry wine

1 handful red and pink rose petals

And wine and petals into the base potion and simmer gently for ten minutes or until rose petals have dissolved. Serve warm.

It is more than likely that you have met your soul mate in a past life. Drinking this potion transports you back in time to your favourite memory of your soul mate. But in your memory, the people in there will look as they do in the present day so you can recognise them.

Hermione filled a pewter vial with the potion and put a warming charm on it.

That night, Hermione laid in her bed, turning the vial over in her hands, and beginning to have second thoughts about drinking it. The other girls in the dorm finally fell asleep and Hermione was still lying awake in the silence. Finally gathering up her courage, Hermione opened the vial and drank the contents. Unconsciousness quickly took over her.

Hermione awoke to find herself lying on a rug in front of a fireplace.

"Wow...I'm in the 18^th century," she thought to herself.

"Would you stop fussing, Heidi. You're not going to be ready in time if you keep moving around like this," a stern nearby voice was saying.

"I can't help it, Mother," a younger voice replied. "I'm just nervous I guess."

Hermione stood up and turned around and nearly had a heart attack when she saw who was talking. Hermione saw herself standing on a small stool in front of a mirror and was trying to turn around to see what her back looked like. Professor McGonagall was trying to button up the back of the emerald silk gown, but was having trouble because Heidi kept moving around. Finally, the professor got fed up with Heidi twitching and used her wand to do up the buttons instead.

"Do you think this colour is too dark for my first ball, Mother? Wouldn't I look too different from all of the other girls?"

"Darling, you want to stand out. All of the other girls would be wearing all these ridiculously silly and revealing pastel gowns and probably acting like a gaggle of airheads too when any male walks by. I want you to behave like a proper mature person, not like one of those silly girls."

Professor McGonagall was wearing a modest black satin dress herself.

"She must be a widow then," Hermione thought as no male had appeared as yet.

"Lady Marina, Mistress Heidi," a house-elf had just appeared in the doorway. "The coach is ready and waiting for you."

"Thank you Gilli. That will be all," Marina said and Gilli the house-elf went off to do other work.

Hermione was watching all of this in wonder. Her mother in a past life was Professor McGonagall! And they lived in what looked to be a rather expensive manor. And they were dressed up to go to a ball or something as well.

"This should be fun," thought Hermione.

Hermione followed Lady Marina and Mistress Heidi through extensive corridors and down stairways until they were finally out in the open where a coach with four white horses stood waiting.

Hermione got into the coach just before a house-elf shut to carriage door.

"Now remember, Heidi," Lady Marina was saying. "When you are introduced to someone, you must curtsey to them and be courteous."

"Yes, Mother," Heidi replied. "I shall be the angel that everybody thinks I am."

The sun was just setting as the coach approached a grand castle. There were richly dressed people making their way into the castle for the ball and as Lady Marina had predicted, all of the other young girls were wearing 'ridiculously silly and revealing pastel gowns' and 'acting like a gaggle of airheads too'. Hermione followed the two into the castle and her breath was taken away. Chandeliers hung from the high ceilings flickering with pastel coloured flames, ghosts floated by with goblets of wine that Lady Marina didn't allow Heidi to drink. Hundreds of people were either dancing in the centre of the hall or chatting on the sides - the ladies about what other girls were wearing or which bachelors looked particularly handsome that night and the gentlemen were talking about new magical discoveries.

Both Hermione and Heidi looked around them in wide-eyed wonder. Hermione had only gone to the Yule Ball at Hogwarts but that was a tea party compared to this! Heidi had only been to the occasional dinner party. This was her first time at a ball.

"Heidi! We're so glad you've come!" two girls that looked strangely like Parvati and Lavender both squealed.

"Patricia! Loretta! Of course I came! This is my first ball!" Heidi said.

"Well, Loretta and I have been here for what seemed like hours already!" Patricia said melodramatically.

"Even though it's only been less than two," Loretta swatted Patricia with her lavender lace fan.

"But we've already seen all of the eligible bachelors here," Patricia in turn swatted Loretta with her pastel pink lace fan. "Dimitri looks rather handsome tonight."

"And so does Heath, Reginald and Spencer," Loretta said too, smiling angelically.

"So Spencer still hasn't asked your parents for your hand in marriage yet?" Heidi asked.

"No," Loretta said mournfully. "He's too shy to ask them. I suppose I'll just have to visit his parents one day and ask for his hand in marriage instead!"

Patricia and Loretta were invited to dance by two gentlemen they've never met before and left Heidi all by herself.

Heidi went outside for some fresh air and by now the sun had fully set and it was night. The hedges of the gardens were glittering with thousands of little fairies living in them for the night. Hermione followed Heidi outside, finding it rather easy to walk through the crowds of people as she found that she could walk through solid objects. She only realized this after she had accidentally walked through a column.

Heidi sat on a stone bench in garden maze, enjoying the peace and quiet and the cool night breeze. Hermione sat on the bench opposite Heidi, wondering why this was her favourite memory.

"It is a beautiful night tonight," a male voice said.

Heidi and Hermione both sat up in surprise at the sudden interruption. A young male was standing not too far away from them.

"And it is more beautiful now that I've found you," he continued.

"What on earth is Malfoy doing in my memory?" Hermione wondered in shock. "And what kind of pick-up line is that? It is so lame!"

But Heidi was blushing furiously and thanking the stars that there were no fairies here to light her face.

"Yes, it is a beautiful night, Dimitri," Heidi said softly.

"So what is a beautiful rose such as yourself doing alone out in the gardens while there is a party going on inside?"

"Oh, no reason. I just wanted to get some fresh air."

"Would you mind my company then?"

"Not at all," Heidi said quietly as Dimitri sat down on the bench beside her.

"Well, Malfoy is rather good looking," Hermione thought. "And he's behaving himself."

"You know, Heidi, I've been meaning to ask you," Dimitri was saying. "I was wondering if I could escort you to the Yule Ball at the Ravenclaw Manor. That is, if you don't already have an escort."

"No," Heidi replied rather quickly. "I don't have an escort to the Yule Ball yet. I would love to go with you."

People from inside the castle had spilled out onto the balconies and the sounds from inside escaped into the gardens. The orchestra inside had started to play a romantic ballad.

"May I have this dance?" Dimitri asked, standing up and offering Heidi his hand.

Heidi smiled and put her hand in his.

Hermione watched as the two danced under the moonlight. As she watched, the scenery turned black and Hermione found herself awake in her own bed.

"So that was my favourite memory," she thought to herself. "When Dimitri asked me to the Yule Ball."

Hermione was nearly asleep when a final thought struck her.

"Good Lord! Draco Malfoy is my soul mate!"

* * *

"Why don't you drink this before you go to sleep?" Snape suggested, holding a pewter vial out to Draco.

"What is it?" Draco asked, taking the vial. It was warm.

"It's a Fates Potion. This one's the Past Loves potion. It takes you back to your favourite memory of you and your soul mate in any one of your previous lives," Snape explained. "It should clear up your confusion for you."

"Thank you professor," Draco said and went to leave the room.

"Sweet dreams, Draco," Snape called out just as Draco got to the door.

Draco gave Snape an uneasy smile and left.

Draco laid in his bed, turning the vial over in his hands. He unscrewed the vial and poured the potion in his mouth.

"Tastes like strawberries," he thought before drifting into unconsciousness.

Draco woke up to find himself lying on a dark blue couch in what appeared to be a bedroom and judging by the décor, it was the 18^th century.

"Dimitri! Are you ready yet?" a voice called from the doorway.

Draco sat up to see...

"Weasley?!" he thought. "What on earth is he doing here?"

"Of course I'm not ready! I can't get this confounded cravat to lie properly!" a familiar voice was saying. "And where in Merlin's name is my best man? Isn't he supposed to be helping me or something?"

Draco turned in his seat to see himself standing in front of a gilded mirror, fiddling with a gold silk scarf.

"What the hell?" Draco thought out loud. "What's going on here? I'm getting married? To who? And what's Weasley doing here? Why did he call me Dimitri?"

"Heath's in the hall making some last minute arrangements. His son accidentally transfigured a bunch of flowers into a flockof doves and they've all flown away. So Heath's looking for something to transfigure into a bunch of flowers."

"Why doesn't he just to a replicating charm, Reginald?" Dimitri said in a rather irritated tone. "Don't tell me he didn't think about that."

"Of course I did!" another familiar sounding voice said indignantly. "And my son isn't allowed to have his wand back again until we get home."

"Honestly, Heath, don't you think that's a bit harsh?" Dimitri teased. "But it's good you're here. I can't get this godforsaken cravat to work properly. And I've misplaced my cufflinks somewhere."

"Why did you want to wear a cravat on your wedding day when you've never worn one before?" Heath asked, retying Dimitri's cravat.

"Because it looks good," Dimitri explained. "And I didn't want to wear a bow-tie."

"What about a tie then?" Reginald asked, finding a small velvet box behind a cushion on an armchair. "Found your cufflinks by the way."

"Ties are boring," Dimitri simply said, putting on his cufflinks. "How much time do I have left?"

"None," Heath said, giving the cravat a final tug. "You're needed in the hall now. The wedding is starting any minute now."

Draco followed the three men through many corridors and stairs until they reached the hall which was packed with guests all dressed in green or pink. Draco sat down on the side steps leading to the alter thinking that it would give the best view.

An organist began to play and everyone stood. Draco stood too so he could see what was happening. Bridesmaids dressed in pale green and the maid of honour in rose pink were standing to one side of the alter and the veiled bride was standing next to Dimitri.

Draco was too busy trying to see who was under the veil to hear what the minister was saying.

"Do you take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife? To have and to hold, to love and cherish, for better for worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, til death do us part?" the minister asked Dimitri.

"I do," Dimitri said confidently.

"Do you take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband? To have and to hold, to love and cherish, for better for worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, til death do us part?" the minister asked the bride.

"I do," the bride replied.

Draco was still trying to see who was under the veil. He had tried to lift the veil but his hands just kept going through the material instead.

Dimitri and the bride exchanged rings and Draco's heart was pounding a mile a minute as Dimitri lifted the bride's veil.

"Granger?!?!?!"

Draco watched in disbelief as his past self gave past Hermione a chaste kiss on the lips.

'Granger is my soul mate???' Draco thought rather loudly in his head as everything around him swirled to black.

Draco awoke once again in his bed with the black velvet curtains around his bed shutting himself off from the rest of the world. Or at least shutting out the sound of the other boys snoring in the dorm.

'That is the last time I accept booze from Snape,' Draco thought as he felt both sleep and hangover creeping up on him.