Chapter Two

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Chapter Image by the incredible Visenya at The Dark Arts

Chapter Song: Somewhere Over The Rainbow by Israel Kamakawiwo'Ole/Judy Garland

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Chapter Two

Harry's eyes flew open. His heart was racing as he scanned the near total darkness, shaking off the deep sleep he'd jerked himself out of so suddenly. His hands gripped at the bed covers, his feet tangled lower in the bed against the material damp from his sweat.  

As he breathed in and out, he began to calm, the familiarity of the scene slowly coming back to him. It was so dark because the curtains around his four poster bed were drawn, and, after he'd retrieved his glasses, a glance at his alarm clock told him it was too early for sunrise just yet.  

It was a dream, he told himself, only a dream. Though what that dream might have been he had no idea. The details had already trickled away from him, and all he had left was an unpleasant sort of tension tugging at his guts. He exhaled definitively, trying to slow his heart rate as he rubbed his forehead and blinked perspiration from his prickly eyes.  

He was no stranger to troublesome dreams, the life he'd had, the things he'd seen. Sometimes they were ugly memories resurfacing, sometimes anxieties of future scenarios manifesting themselves in his subconscious. But as he squirmed free of his bed sheets, he found he couldn't recall a single detail of last night's events.  

He yawned and stretched, deciding it probably didn't matter if he remembered the dream or not. He was wide awake now, and although his alarm wasn't due to go off for another half an hour he chose to click the button and get up now instead. 

The stone floor was so cold in the Gryffindor boys' dormitory, but after over four years Harry was used to it, especially as they were getting into winter now. He still had to stifle a hiss as he swung his bare feet out and tapped them gingerly onto the floor.  

Grabbing his wash kit, he poked his head out to see that the other boys' curtains were still drawn with no movement behind, so he dashed from his bed to their shared bathroom, and hopped from foot to foot as he brushed his teeth quietly. 

As he scrubbed, he tried again to remember the dream that had woken him so harshly. He'd already tried telling himself it didn't matter, but his brain was scratching away at the problem like an itch. He rinsed his mouth with water then splashed some on his face, studying his reflection as he patted his skin dry. His lightning bolt scar looked just the same as ever, but he touched it all the same, concentrating to see if it hurt any more than usual. He felt nothing though, going some way to convince him the nightmare hadn't been anything to do with Voldemort, but the uneasiness still sloshed in his stomach.  

He was halfway tempted to go back into the bedroom and wake up Ron to ask his advice, but he knew it would only put him in a bad mood, and Harry was better off waiting an hour or so until his best friend had surfaced properly. So instead he snuck back into the dorm, pulled on the first jeans and jumper his hands found in the dim light, yanked them on with a pair socks that probably didn't match, followed by his well worn trainers. Wrapping a scarf around his neck for good measure, he pocketed his wand and crept across to the door, slipping out into the corridor without waking any of the other four boys.  

He thought maybe Hermione might be up in the common room, cramming in some extra homework. Since they'd started their Fifth Year she'd been obsessing over their O.W.L.s, despite Harry and Ron's repeated reminders that they were not until next summer. But if she was up early as well, she was not in the Gryffindor common room. In fact, Harry could see quite clearly as he arrived down the stairs that no one was, and the fire was only flickering low, the embers still dying down from the night before. 

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