𝗨𝗡𝗘𝗫𝗣𝗘𝗖𝗧𝗘𝗗 ━ Golden Trio Era

━chapter 7

Chapter 7
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HARRY WOKE UP VIOLENTLY, HAND SEARCHING FOR HIS SCAR. It was burning hot at touch, but he tried to apply pressure to the area to soothe the sting.

His first instinct was to check where he was. To check if Voldemort was anywhere near him. The coherent part of his mind assured him that that was impossible. The cottage was surrounded by several layers of wards, it was impossible for anyone to get in without permission.

And either way, no one knew about this place.

Breathing still erratic, images of his dream flashed through his mind. A woman laid still on the ground, blood oozing out of her sliced throat. A witch's hat covered her face, the colour red smearing it with strands of brown hair that stuck to it.

The anxiety in his throat twisted into another knot.

Harry checked his own neck for any injuries, finding none. He wiped off the sweat instead.

Closing his eyes, he took one last deep breath to calm his nerves. Harry clenched his teeth, more so out of habit than anything else, but it helped with his shaking.

For a moment, Harry's thoughts wandered to Sirius. A weird sensation of want overcame him, which the Gryffindor pushed away as fast as it came.

There was no need to wake up Sirius. What would Harry even say?

I had a bad dream.

Embarrassing. Harry wasn't going to do that. He could handle it himself. There was absolutely no reason to bother Sirius.

The cottage was quiet. The two other occupants of the house were obviously still asleep. Though, Harry was wide awake now. It would be impossible to go back to sleep.

He lay awake, staring up at the ceiling in his room. If he closed his eyes now, Harry knew the image of a dead woman would stare right back at him.

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The fireplace at the Grangers was an electric one, so using it  to travel was not an option. Adhara and Hermione had to resort to the next big thing to arrive at the Burrow.

Both girls waited in front of the fireplace at the Leaky Cauldron. Mr. Weasley was supposed to pick them up.

Hermione's parents were there too, waiting with them. Adhara, who set down her trunk on the ground, sitting on top, watched the adults. They drank and talked. Adhara wondered why they even bothered to come with Hermione and her.

Instead of lying it down, Hermione kept her trunk upright. Using her feet, she balanced herself on top it. She didn't even look at her parents direction, making a better use of her attention by reading some book.

"They don't need to stay here, you know?"

"Hmm?"

"Your parents. They can leave. We'll be fine."

"Yeah, but they want to."

A predictable response. Hermione has repeated those same words countless times this past month. Adhara should've expected it.

She rolled her eyes.

"And besides, they want to see us off. They won't be coming to the station on the first."

And that, Adhara almost forgot. A week-long sleepover at the Weasleys, until the first day of school. Adhara didn't think she could dread it any more.

"Why are we staying there anyway?"