New Dream Adventures of Raven Knight

Note: My plans for today are much the same as on the previous days, and my new light / sound machine is working out great. So with Hogwarts plans in mind, I fell asleep and slipped into a WILD…

I am in bed, but it is not my waking life bed, it is my bed at Hogwarts, in the Slytherin dorms. This time it doesn't seem so odd to me, since I am lucid, so I get up and I am acting like everything is completely normal. The other girls in my dorm room are dragging themselves around the room, it seems they are no more morning people than I am, though Andie looks pretty much awake and happy. In fact, she greets me with a bit too cheerful an attitude, and gets a grunt in return, she says maybe we'll all feel better after some breakfast. So we dress, then we head down in the common room where everyone is hanging out and talking until it is time to go to the great hall to eat. Andie is smiling at me in a strange way, I give her a questioning look back. She had been over near the window, but now she comes back over to me and sits down next to me on the couch, she still has an odd smile on her face. I ask her what's going on in her head, and she says she has seen I have found a boyfriend. My first thought is MoSh, so I tell her he already has a girlfriend, in fact, they're… going to be married. I almost say they're married, but I don't know how old people normally get married there, so I didn't say that. She says not MoSh, silly, and points over at Draco, who is looking at me at the time, but he looks away quickly. I tell her that's Draco Malfoy, she says 'duh' to my statement, and then says any fool can see he likes me… She said she had heard in Potions how I had told him that name calling is immature… and the fact that he not only didn't get mad about that, but he was actually doing as I had asked, must mean he really likes me. She said I'd be crazy to let that one get away, he's kinda cute… and he's a Malfoy, so I know what that means. My first thought is to say that means he is an asshole, but I don't say that, and before I can say anything, we are heading down to breakfast.

It is breakfast time, and I want to see if I can find out where I can find Lucius, because I still need to check Lucius' mind for any information on the spell that was used on Asuka. To do this, I take a seat next to Draco, who gives me a strange look. I see Crabb and Goyle are on his other side, Crabb starts saying, "Draco has a girlfriend, Draco has a girlfriend…" over and over until Draco asks if there isn't a tray full of muffins Crabb should be raiding right now. Draco is pointing at a tray full of assorted muffins a bit farther down the table, Crabb goes over and starts eating them, Goyle says, "Save some for me!" and goes over there as well. I look back to Draco and I see he is actually looking a bit red, though that doesn't last long before he is talking about the tournament again, which he seems obsessed about lately. I am listening to what he is saying in a half-assed manner, and checking his mind for where I can find Lucius Malfoy. It looks like Lucius is most likely at Malfoy Manor, which is a huge mansion in Wiltshire, England. When he is not out on business or doing something else, he is there with his wife, and his son when school is not in session. It seems like an awfully big place for three people, the type of place that the people living there need maps to find their way even after living there for years. Well, I decide I had better go to scan Lucius' mind to see about the spell on Asuka, and from what Draco is thinking, Lucius is home most evenings unless he and Narcissa are going out together. So it would be best to wait until evening.

Classes the rest of the day are uneventful, Snape seems to be giving MoSh and Asuka the evil eye for some strange reason, or maybe it's just because they're from Gryffindor. We pass Snape in the halls a couple times, and he is giving them the evil eye there, too. The only person getting more of the evil eye than MoSh and Asuka is Harry Potter. After dinner, I tell Draco I have to go out for a while, but I will be back later, he wants to know where I am going, but I am not sure what to answer… I am not sure why I mentioned that to Draco in the first place… I tell him I don't have time to explain now, but I will tell him when I get back, I figure that way I have some time to think about it. He says ok, he'll cover for me if I'm not back by dorm check… cool. I thank him, then I head out of the great hall and into a hidden corner of the women's bathroom, the one where Moaning Myrtle hangs out, and I teleport before I even see any sign of Myrtle.

I am now standing outside Malfoy Manor, right in plain sight, and I know I am not supposed to be there, so what is Lucius going to think if he finds me there? Better safe than sorry, so I transform into a swallow and fly up towards the mansion as the light is fading from the western sky. The place is huge, and I have no idea where to start looking for Lucius, so I scan the place for any sign of people inside, I figure there aren't going to be hoards of people there, so Lucius should be easy to find. Sure enough, Lucius and another person, no doubt Narcissa, are in the dining room, most likely having a dinner of their own. I fly in through an open window, staying near the ceiling where I won't be noticed, and the two Malfoys don't look up to see me. They seem to be thoroughly absorbed in a conversation they are having between the two of them. I am thinking maybe a bird wasn't the best choice of disguises, as having a swallow flying around Malfoy Manor might be almost as weird as having a student from Hogwarts showing up randomly there… well, maybe nowhere near as weird, but still far from normal. Now I am perched on a book case behind Lucius, sitting at the end of a large dining table, Narcissa is sitting on the side of the table right beside him, they are whispering. I try to listen in on what they are saying, but Lucius suddenly holds up one hand to silence Narcissa, now they are both silent. Narcissa wants to know what the problem is, Lucius says they are not alone. Oh, shit… this could be a problem…

Narcissa looks up and spots me… I should have transformed to something smaller when I had been thinking of it, damn it… but she doesn't look upset, she looks very pleased. She points me out to Lucius, then says there is a swallow in the house, Lucius asks why that would be in here, Narcissa says I must have gotten in on accident… but swallows are symbols of good luck. She gets up and comes closer to the bookcase, moving slowly as if trying to avoid scaring me, and she holds out her finger towards me, calling me to come down so she can show me the way out, talking in a very soothing voice. I don't sense a threat, so I fly down and actually land on her finger, which very pleasantly surprises her. She says to Lucius, in a hushed voice, that this must foretell some very good luck, indeed, since the bird has actually approached her. Lucius is looking at me strangely, I chirp, he tells Narcissa to put me outside before I shit all over everything. I scan his mind telepathically, and I get what I need, he isn't guarding his thoughts since the only person around is Narcissa. He is the one who cast the memory charm on Asuka, he did it on direct orders from Voldemort, unfortunately Voldemort hadn't bothered explaining himself very well. So Lucius knows Voldemort wanted Asuka's memory wiped, but he does not know why, since the one Voldemort is usually after is Harry potter. As if Narcissa is afraid I might fly off to somewhere else in the house, Narcissa places her other hand gently over me to keep me from flying, then carries me to the window I snuck in through where she tosses me up into the air so I can fly away safely.

I am heading back to Hogwarts, flying as a swallow now, even though I am not entirely sure where Hogwarts is relative to Wiltshire… I am not in a hurry to get back, Draco will still have questions, and I don't have answers. It turns out I never have to deal with that, at least not now, because I wake up.