The Garden of Erised

She was running, running as fast as she could down the empty corridors. She couldn't stop; her heart was pounding hard in her chest. Tears were freely falling down her eyes unchecked. Blindly she was turning down random hallways, having lost all sense of direction long ago. She was too upset to notice any of this though.

She deafly heard the sound of someone's voice, decidedly male behind her, but she took no heed to it. She had to get away from everything. She could hear the pounding feet of whoever was following her getting closer and closer. She took one more turn and came to a single door in front of her. The person was now directly behind her, but this didn't stop her. She flung open the door, as the person behind her grabbed her shoulder. A blazing light filled the hallway, and then all went silent.

Three hours earlier...

Harry was stealthily sneaking through the Hogwarts grounds silently following Hermione and Draco. They had run off after dinner together, and Harry decided to follow after them to see if all the rumors were true. They had stopped underneath a tree in a secluded area, and were laughing together. This made Harry's rage got through the roof. How come she never laughed like that when she was with him?

Harry was ready to run there, when what he saw next stopped him dead in his tracks. They were kissing, actually more like passionately kissing each other! This was all that Harry could take.

"Hermione! What the bloody Hell are you doing?" Harry practically shouted.

Hermione and Draco immediately broke apart, both extremely startled but Hermione managed to get out, "Harry, what are you doing here."

"More like what are you doing here!" he said still fuming.

She can choose to be wherever she wants to, and be with whomever she wants Potter," Draco said with a smirk.

"Shut up Malfoy or I'll wipe that smirk off your face!" Harry said ready to charge.

"Harry, Draco, stop it right now! Harry please you must understand, I love Draco, but you are my best friend, and that will never change." Hermione said hoping Harry would understand, however this seemed to anger him all the more. Maybe announcing her love of Draco wasn't the smartest thing to do right now. Harry had turned and stormed away. Hermione tried to go after him but Draco grabbed her arm.

"Draco I have to go talk to Harry," Hermione pleaded.

Hermione you knew this was going to happen all along, now this is the choice you are going to have to make. It's either me or Harry," and with that he got up and left leaving Hermione completely and utterly alone to fathom at her new situation.

She had no idea what she was going to do. She loved Draco dearly, but was she willing to risk her friendship with Harry and Ron over it? She had learned who Draco really was over the past couple of weeks, and he wasn't who Harry and Ron thought he was. He was a boy who was scared and alone. He needed someone there to help him get through the mess he was in. She wanted to be the one to help him, but could she if Harry and Ron kept interfering? Slowly tears started to fall down her cheeks and she cried thinking over this awful decision she had to make.

This is how she remained for an indefinite amount of time, until she decided sitting outside and crying about it wasn't going to change anything. So she got up and headed back to the common room. The whole way she was lost in thought going up and down staircases she had never seen, through corridors and floors of the castle she never needed to enter. She arrived at the painting.

"It's awfully late dear, past curfew," said the portrait, but Hermione didn't reply.

All the portrait got was a lost and desolate look from the melancholy student. Hermione had the appearance of a puppy who had just been kicked or a baby who had their candy stolen.

To make matters even worse she walked into the common room to see everyone sitting around Harry and Ron.

"Can you believe her, how could she do this to us?"

"She's a traitor!"

"Poor Harry, he must be so upset," were just some of comments she heard, and then someone happened to notice she was standing there.

"Hey look here she is now," said Seamus.

"Hermione, I...." but Harry didn't get one word out before Hermione left in tears.

Back to the present...

"Where am I," Hermione said as she stood and looked at her surroundings.

"Really, I would like to know the answer to that question as well Ms. Granger."

Hermione turned around and to her astonishment the last person she would have expected to see was standing there. His nose was as crooked, his hair was as greasy, and he was glaring menacingly at her behind his usual sneer. She stared blankly into the face of Professor Snape trying to grasp all that was happening to her.

"At loss for words for once, Ms. Granger? I thought you were a "know-it-all"? It seems I have been proven wrong."

Hermione gawked back at him looking like a fish out of water. Right now she was so utterly confused she couldn't speak a single word.