𝐒𝐇𝐀𝐃𝐎𝐖𝐒 𝐎𝐅 𝐃𝐄𝐕𝐎𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍

𝟐.𝟏𝟔 - 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐨𝐰

"Oh you poor thing," you tutted, clamoring to quickly unlatch the window. "Who sent you out in a storm like this?"

The owl perched itself onto your arm and it was only then that you realized that it was Hedwig, Harry's white and black speckled snowy owl. You furrowed your eyebrows and carefully took the brown envelope from between her talons. "Come on, Hedwig," you said, doing your best not to jostle her as you walked back over to the fireplace.

 She seemed to snuggle deeper into the rug as you set her down. It was nearly a two hour flight from Hogwarts to Wiltshire, even longer in the storm. She must have been exhausted. After watching Hedwig settle down for a moment, you looked down at the envelope in your hands. The only address it had on it was your first and last name. Without waiting a second longer, you ripped it open and pulled out the folded piece of parchment inside.

As you read, a sigh of relief left your lips when you realized that it wasn't in fact Harry's handwriting but instead, Hermione's.

'Dear (Y/N),

I hope you are doing well and that reuniting with your family wasn't too disastrous. I know this isn't exactly what you will be wanting to hear right now, especially from me, but what happened in the Room of Requirement on Saturday needs to be addressed.

Harry filled Ronald and I in on what exactly happened but refuses to pick up a quill and write to you himself despite my attempts to coerce him to. I know this isn't exactly my place, but you need to understand that Harry is going through a lot right now and it was most likely his confusion over Cedric's death that led him to...you know.

You are not under any obligation to forgive him, but please keep this in mind.

Have a good Christmas,

Hermione Granger

PS, please send Hedwig back as soon as possible. I wasn't supposed to let her out but I was afraid Errol wouldn't be able to make the flight.'

With a heavy sigh, you re-folded the letter and tossed it down onto the table. It sort of hurt that Harry was unwilling to write to you. At the same time, you were thankful to have a friend like Hermione who cared enough to reach out to you.

After letting Hedwig rest for a few more minutes in front of the fire, you begrudgingly sent her back out into the storm as per request. If you had it your way, you would have waited until the morning when the wind died down. 

 Once the fire dimmed into embers, you maneuvered into bed and curled up underneath the heavy blankets. It only took a number of minutes for you to finally succumb into a dark and restless sleep. 

 The nightmare you stumbled into was nothing like you'd ever experienced before. In the dream, you were in the drawing-room of Malfoy Manor, surrounded on all sides by masked figures who you recognized immediately as Death Eaters.

Despite your attempts to break away, you felt arms tighten around you and hold you in place. Your vision was warped but you could barely see as the right sleeve of your top was lifted and the warm tip of a wand was pressed against your skin. Somehow you knew that they were trying to give you a Dark Mark. They were going to make you a Death Eater against your will.

"No," you cried out, though it left your mouth as a distant whisper. "Let me go!"

The room began to swirl around you and the hands encasing your shoulders lifted. When you looked around again, you realized that you were now standing in the Slytherin common room. There was no one else around and the only light came from the window that saw into the Black Lake. Green waves of light filtered through the glass and onto your skin. You waved your hands around in the air, studying the light as it moved. For a moment, relief filled you.