Dawn Rivera

Hermione and I's Secret

"Shocking business...shocking...miracle none of them died...never heard the like, by thunder, it was lucky you were there, Snape..."

"Thank you Minister."

"Order of Merlin, Second Class, I'd say. First Class, if I can wangle it!"

"Thank you very much indeed, Minister."

"Nasty cut you've got there...Black's work, I suppose?"

"As a matter of fact, it was Potter, Weasley, Granger and the Riveras, Minister..."

"No!"

"Black had bewitched them, I saw it immediately. A Confundus Charm, to judge by their behaviour. They seemed to think there was a possibility he was innocent. They weren't responsible for their actions. On their other hand, their interference might have permitted Black to escape...they obviously thought they were going to catch Black single-handed. They've got away with a great deal before now...I'm afraid it's given the a rather high opinion of themselves...and of course Potter has always been allowed an extraordinary amount of licence by the Headmaster - Mr Rivera, too, since he's come to the school -"

"Ah, well, Snape...Harry Potter, you know...we've all got a bit of a blind spot where he's concerned. And Dathaniel Rivera has powers he has yet to discover - I'll never forget the time there were reported strange happenings in their area, and when me and a squad of other wizards went to investigate, he nearly blew me off my feet if I so much as took a step towards his mother. I've always wondered if Miss Rivera would have done the same if she hadn't been sleeping."

"And yet - is it good for them to be given so much special treatment? Personally I try to treat them like any other students. And any other students would be suspended - at the very least - for leading their friends into such danger. Consider, Minister: against all school rules - after all the precautions put in place for their protection - out of bounds, at night, consorting with a werewolf and a murderer - and I have reason to believe they have been visiting Hogsmeade illegally, too -"

"Well, well...we shall see, Snape, we shall see...the boys have undoubtedly been foolish..."

I lie still listening with my eyes shut. I feel very groggy. The words I am hearing seem to be travelling very slowly from my ears to my brain, so that it is difficult to understand. My limbs feel like lead; my eyelids too heavy to lift...I want to lie here, in this comfortable bed forever...I can picture a boy, a handsome boy who looks like he's just had the world lifted off his shoulders...

"What amazes me most is the behaviour of the Dementors...you've really no idea what made them retreat, Snape?"

"No, Minister. By the time I had come round they were heading back to their positions at the entrances..."

"Extraordinary. And yet, Black, and Harry, and the girls -"

"All unconscious by the time I reached them. I bound and gagged Black, naturally, conjured stretchers and brought them all straight back to the castle."

There is a pause. My brain seems to be moving a little faster, and as it does, a gnawing sensation grows in the pit of my stomach...the boy's image begins to fade, no matter how hard I try to hold on to it. I can remember his name. It's Gregory. Gregory Goyle. I don't want to wake up. Please...no...

I open my eyes. Gregory's image is already starting to fade.

Everything is slightly blurred, but it quickly comes into focus. I glance at my surroundings. Harry and Danny are still sleeping, but Hermione's eyes are open, too. We are lying in a very dark hospital wing. At the very end of the ward, I can make out Madam Pomfrey with her back to me, bending over a bed. I squint. Ron's red hair is visible beneath Madam Pomfrey's arm. I stifle a sigh. Gregory's not here. I didn't really expect him to be. That memory of him wasn't real, he was pretending to feel that way. It just felt so right at the time...I can't picture him anymore. Only his name remains echoing in my brain.