d o v e

t h r e e

"What was that about?" Ginny asked. She had been left alone to wait for her friend when suddenly Harry left.

"He's mad, I swear," Alex huffed. "Where's Harry?"

"He left to speak to someone and hasn't come back. I suppose we'll see him at the feast."

The feast began, and there was still no sign of Harry. It wasn't until dessert that he finally arrived.

"Where have you been?" Hermione asked. Alexandra wouldn't have even noticed Harry's return if Hermione hadn't been loud. She was too distracted looking at Draco. He had been zoning off for a while now, barely touching his food. He looked genuinely upset compared to the usual annoyance or anger he usually radiated.

The two made eye contact, and Draco's stare lingered long enough for Hermione to take notice. Recently, Hermione has been paying a rather specific attention to Alexandra's fascination with Malfoy. Once Harry started going on about Malfoy becoming a Death Eater, Hermione became increasingly concerned for her friend. She knows Alex is fully capable of taking care of herself; it was proven when she sacrificed her life to visit Tom. However, pretending to love that monster almost killed her, and Hermione didn't want to risk it happening again.

"You've got to tell me what's going on. It's obvious something is bothering you, and I have a feeling it has to do with Malfoy," Hermione begged, wanting her friend to talk to her. For weeks now, she's been hiding out in her room, reading until her eyes became red from the exhaustion or tears. She was refusing to eat, and she was beginning to look rather ill. The last time Alexandra looked like this, it was upon her return from the past. "You're scaring me, Alex."

Quickly, Alexandra locked the door and put a silencing charm on the room so nobody could enter or listen.

"The prophecy I saw in the Department of Mysteries. It mentioned someone called the Peristera," Alexandra began to explain.

"The Dove. The descendant of the goddess Aphrodite. The Peristera has the power of manipulating love with no repercussions. She has the power to control one of the most powerful things known to witch or wizard," Hermione repeated, having researched the topic earlier in the summer after hearing Ton mention it. "That's you, isn't it?"

"I suppose. My name was below it on the prophecy," Alex continued. "I think this power connected Tom and I in a way I can't control. I've been feeling his presence when he's not around, and he's putting these visions in my head-"

"What kind of visions?"

"I can't say."

"Alex-"

"Hermione, I'm serious. I can't say. If I could, you know I would tell you." The frightened look in Alexandra's eyes discouraged Hermione from questioning her friend any further, at least until things calmed down for her.

"I'm just worried about you, that's all," Hermione frowned. "I'll leave you be. I have patrol duties tonight, anyway. There's no harm in being early."

"Right, Miss Prefect," Alexandra smirked. She knew Hermione would become a prefect, and she expected her to become Head Girl as well, but she never expected Ron to be her opposite. It wasn't that she doubted him, she just knew he wasn't the biggest rule follower around after knowing him all these years.

"You might like to know that the prefect bathroom is unattended after dark, and it's perfect for baths," Hermione suggested, lifting the charms and leaving Alexandra to think. Alexandra scoffed, thinking out loud.

"Well, if Hermione is encouraging me to break rules, I reckon I have to."