Nightmares With Consequences

-Your POV-

The night that followed had been rough for Y/N. Nightmares were ripping her awake over and over again. In most of those dreams she heard the voice from the bathroom. It was the voice of a man who begged her for help.

At times he would grab her throat, strangling her. He was screaming and pleading. 

"Open the gate!"

That was the only sentence she could remember in the morning.

"Open the gate!"

What gate? 

When Y/N got up she felt extremely anxious. Her whole body was shaking and she needed to breathe a bit before she managed to get ready.

Over breakfast, she almost fell asleep but every sound, no matter how quiet it was, made her jerk awake again. Helena seemed worried and asked if everything was alright. "I'm just tired." Her friend believed it.

Y/N didn't know how she would survive the day, she could barely look straight ahead but in order to raise as little suspicion as possible, she forced herself to Ancient Runs, the only class she didn't share with Draco. But she needed to talk to him so urgently.

Only on the edge of her consciousness did she notice how Hermione sat down next to her. The class hadn't started yet and the girl took out her books and papers as she was eyeing Y/N.

"It seems like you didn't sleep well. Harry told us that you started with the potion. Were you up all night?"

"No, I was…uh…" She tried to find the words. Great, now even her vocabulary was inaccessible. 

"I hear voices." Only once the sentence had left her mouth, Y/N noticed how crazy that must sound.

"What voices?" The Gryffindor sat down.

"A man. I heard him in the bathroom and then in my dreams. He told me to open a gate and was almost choking me. In my dreams, I mean."

Now Hermione looked worried. "What did the voice sound like?"

"Very…hoarse. Like he hadn't talked in years. He sounded so desperate. It felt like a life or death situation."

Y/N let her head fall onto the table. "What do I do? Am I going crazy?"

"Well, there are several possible explanations. I'd put a mental illness at the end of that list."

"Then what else?"

The blonde thought for a bit. "Either it was just a dream-"

"But then why did I hear his voice when I was awake?"

"Hallucination?"

It was possible, Draco had named it as a side effect. But she couldn't tell Hermione that or else she'd have to tell her about the pocket watches as well.

"I doubt it."

"Then maybe you had a vision. Or…somebody was actually talking to you. Are you familiar with Legilimency?"

She shook her head.

"It means that somebody can enter your mind. You can protect your thoughts through Occlumency."

"Can you teach me?"

Hermione leaned back. "No, I have never learned it myself."

"Great." Y/N turned back to her book. "Let's hope it's a hallucination after all."

"I'm sorry," Hermione said. "But Y/N?"

"Hm?"

"Can I ask you something personal?"

She sighed. "I just recited my dreams to you. How more personal can you get?"

Her friend didn't laugh at the joke. 

"Are you and Draco…you know…? I saw you two yesterday, in the hallway."

Y/N felt herself blushing. But suddenly, she also felt really dizzy. She supported her head with her hand.

"I don't know," she mumbled. "I might need to learn Legilimency and read this mind. That seems more likely than waiting for him to tell me how he feels." 

Her voice had gotten quieter with every word.

Hermione furrowed her eyebrows. "You really don't look good. Are you sure you're alright?"

Y/N was about to say something, when she suddenly felt a hot breath in her neck.

"Open the gate," the man whispered.

She screamed and turned around way too quickly. Her chair started staggering dangerously and she fell over.

Hermione grabbed her arm just a second too late.

*****

"Kill me," Y/N mumbled to herself once she realized that she was conscious again. 

Her head was pounding so badly, it felt like it had been rammed with a spear. At least the nausea seemed to have faded.

"I'm sorry but I have to turn down that request."

Y/N slowly opened her eyes, letting the light in. The first thing she saw was the high ceiling but once she turned her head to the left, she looked into Draco's face.

"Where am I?" she whispered. She noticed that she was lying inside a bed.

"The hospital wing."

"What?" Y/N tried to sit up.

"Oh, no, no, no! You stay right where you are!" A woman hurried over to them. "Lie down!"

Y/N did as she was told and took a deep breath. 

The woman - who Y/N assumed to be the nurse - looked at Draco. "When did you arrive? I didn't see you coming in."

"Just a few minutes ago. What happened?"

The woman put a small vial onto the little table next to the bed and opened it.

"Your friend hit her head and passed out. Luckily there are no repercussions but she seems very exhausted. I'll have her stay overnight so she can get back to classes tomorrow."

Y/N felt relieved. Nobody had noticed the poison inside her blood. Their secret was safe.

"Drink this." She had filled the liquid from the vial onto a big spoon and forced it into Y/N's mouth. It was very bitter so she swallowed it quickly. "It's going to help you sleep a bit."

"Thank you."

The woman left them alone and Draco immediately grabbed Y/N's hand. He was cold.

"Now tell me what actually happened."

She felt the fingers in hers and took a second to just look at the boy before she started talking.

"Yesterday, in the bathroom, I heard the voice of a man. But there was no one there. I then dreamed of him, the whole night. It was horrible. He begged for help, wanted me to open a gate. He sounded so scared. And then earlier before class I heard his voice again and fell off my chair. And I know what you're going to say now."

"What?"

"You'll tell me that I was just hallucinating from the tea. But Draco, it felt so real. I think…that man might actually exist and somehow communicates with me. And I need to help him."

If Draco hadn't looked worried before, he definitely did now. He leaned closer.

"This is my fault, I shouldn't have left you alone. This was a stupid idea."

"It's not your fault. But do you believe me?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. You sound a bit crazy to be honest."

"Thanks."

"No, I want to believe you. We should keep an eye on it and see if it happens again, okay?"

Y/N sighed. She couldn't blame Draco for having doubts.

"Alright. Anyway, you need to sneak in some of the tea for me."

His eyes widened. "Are you crazy? That's the last thing you need right now."

"But we need to continue the potion. If I drink the tea, I can tell you what to do." She was more or less slurring the words. Whatever was in that vial seemed to work.

Draco really didn't look convinced by that plan. "You've gone insane."

"Please…" She yawned.

"Let me think about it. You should sleep now."

"Draco…please."

"I'll come back later, okay?" 

He let go of her hand. Y/N wanted to protest but her eyes were already falling shut. She heard his long steps on the polished stone floor and listened as he walked away.