The Dragons of Raveana

Explaining Dreams

It was the first day of class for the students at Hogwarts. In the Great Hall, House tables were packed with chattering students, all clutching their schedules and exclaiming over their classes. Excitement was not evident on the faces of all however. The older students shook their heads at the good cheer and sighed over the start of another year of tomes and tests.

Harry was slumped over Gryffindor table, his eyes shadowed as he stared glumly into his bowl of cereal. The red and black robes he wore were scrunched and wrinkled, appearing as if he'd slept in them. He straightened when Hermione and Ron sat down across from him, both staring at him with wide eyes.

"You're up early." Hermione murmured with an arched eyebrow, glancing down at his bowl and nodding in approval at the healthy contents.

"Are you sick, mate?" Ron asked, leaning forward and pressing his damp palm against Harry's forehead. He managed to trail his long sleeve through the butter, the slick cloth slapping the raven-haired wizard in the face.

Pushing the redhead's hand away from his face, Harry grabbed a napkin and mopped the butter off his nose. Shoving his bowl aside, he leaned forward and beckoned his friends closer. Tossing a quick look around, he found only Malfoy's blue eyes glaring at him and flipped the blond off before turning back to look at the pair. "I had a dream last night. A strange one. I woke up holding that damn journal to my chest like it was some sort of teddy bear." He whispered loudly, continuing when he saw the interest on Hermione's face. "A witch was riding a horse towards this castle and then an arrow slammed into the horses chest and they fell."

"An arrow?" Hermione muttered in confusion, pulling the pitcher of juice closer and pouring some into a cup. "Why an arrow? Why wouldn't they use magic?" She asked, shaking her head to show she didn't understand.

"There was a white wolf on it and when she saw it, she whispered Malfoy then passed out." Harry explained, his confusion as great as Hermione's. The witch had been an easy target atop the tall horse, any spell could have struck her without much effort.

Ron snorted at the word Malfoy, shaking his head as he stirred the remaining milk in his bowl while contemplating the selection of cereals spread across the table. "The Malfoy's haven't used a white wolf in centuries." He ground out, snatching a box of cereal that contained marshmallows and dumping some into his bowl.

"Perhaps they didn't want to kill her." Hermione mumbled thoughtfully, glancing at Harry and seeing him nod in agreement. "It was a warning." She whispered, eyes wide in understanding.

Harry nodded again and fiddled with his spoon. "I don't think we should open that journal." He whispered, ignoring Hermione's whimper of denial.

"The Malfoy's have been killing people for ages, Harry." Ron stated loudly, glancing over the raven-haired wizards shoulder and internally smiling as Draco Malfoy made a rude hand gesture at him. Glancing at Hermione to make sure she wasn't watching him, he answered Malfoy's unspoken challenge, his fingers flicking in a gesture that would have gotten his mouth washed out with soap. "Don't let that put you off learning more about your family."

"He's right, Harry. This journal could tell you so much, please open it." Hermione said quietly, a hopeful look on her face. "Just because you had a strange dream doesn't mean the journal is responsible. Dreams are just our minds trying to make sense of stuff we learned over the day; just rubbish."

Shaking his head, Harry rose and climbed over the bench. "I have to get my books for first class." He muttered, giving the silent pair a wave before heading towards the exit. Feeling the slick butter on his sleeve, he rolled his eyes and decided he should probably change his robe while he was collecting his books.