Mirror Worlds

Disclaimer: Is my name J.K Rowling? No. So I don't own any of the characters then do I?

Dammit.

Chapter 4

MIRROR WORLD

This chapter is ALL one flashback. Here- have a tissue.

Hermione's return to consciousness was accompanied by screaming agony. Her body felt as if it was on fire and it was almost impossible to see or hear. She was shaking all over and she tried to cry out but it seemed as though her throat was filled with acid. A high pitched laugh filled the air as she whimpered with pain.

"Oh do shut up, Miss Granger," someone said from the darkness, "You're not dying."

Hermione raised her head to look around. She was in a room bathed in shadow, but, judging by the orange glow from the doorway, she was still in Hogwarts. A dark figure stepped forward and into the faint light and it was then that she realised who it was.

"Voldemort," she spat a glob of blood at his feet and looked into his scarlet eyes with pure hate.

"What bad manners you have!" he smiled, trying to cover his annoyance.

"All the better to piss you off with, grandma," Hermione replied smirking.

"Such a sharp tongue, maybe I should cut it out," Voldemort said smoothly, "But I don't think you'll be so defiant when you see who your play-mate is," He turned and pointed with his wand at the wall to her right. A crumpled body wearing a Gryffindor cloak lay a few feet away, resting awkwardly against the cold stone. It was Harry.

"Wake up, Mister Potter." Voldemort aimed his wand directly at Harry making Hermione cringe inwardly.

"Enervate."

Harry twitched and his eyes snapped open. He blinked a few times then gasped and groaned as he struggled into a proper sitting position.

"Did you have a nice sleep, Harry?" Voldemort asked mockingly.

"Fuck you," Harry spat.

"Now there's no need to be so bad tempered. You have a visitor."

Harry looked up slowly, moving carefully as it was incredibly painful. "Hermione?" he moaned.

Harry's eyes were bloodshot, beginning to bruise and his nose was bleeding. There was a deep gash on his cheek and he had a angry red cut on his lip. Voldemort had been torturing him for a while before Hermione had been dragged into the chamber. Her heart wrenched to see him in so much pain. She began to try and crawl towards him, struggling to move her aching limbs, but before she had gone two feet, Hermione found Voldemort's wand pointed at her.

"Miss Granger," he began, as if disappointed that she would try to help Harry, "You are not here to assist Harry in an escape attempt. You are here to watch." He then said something inaudible and almost immediately, a solid and completely transparent wall materialised before her.

"Harry? Harry!" she yelled, hammering at the shield. Voldemort strode over to where Harry sat and wrapped his fingers tightly around Harry's neck. The teenager put up little fight as he was lifted off of the floor. From seemingly nowhere, a silver bladed dagger appeared in Voldemort's right hand, glistening in the faint light as he held it up to show Harry.

"Do you see this dagger, Harry?" he asked casually, "It truly is a beautiful blade. The edge is coated in a remarkable poison that I created and has some rather interesting effects, but you'll find that out for yourself shortly." The boy struggled and squirmed in his vice-like grip, but he was weakening more and more by the second. "What a disappointing end for Hogwarts' champion. You put up a brave fight for one so young," he smirked, "but even Dumbledore died at my hand, and so too will you."

 As Voldemort lowered the dagger, Hermione began pounding her fists against the barrier once more. She desperately wanted to look away as the knife was thrust into Harry's flesh, but found she couldn't. "HARRY! Let me out!" she screamed, "Let me out, you bastard! Let me out, LET ME OUT!" Hermione slid to her knees, clawing at the shield and sobbing with anguish. "Harry…"

Voldemort released his grip from Harry's throat letting him drop to the floor. He waited.

*  *  *

Harry lay curled up on the cold stone floor in a daze. He knew he was dying, but it wasn't as bad as he'd ever imagined. Ever since he had found out about the murder of his parents, he had always been afraid that one day, he wouldn't win, that one day, Voldemort would finish his work. And now I had happened- he had lost the most important game of all. But if this was death, it wasn't so bad. He couldn't even feel any pain.

At least until his blood was replaced with liquid fire.

*  *  *

Harry's screams began suddenly, all weakness forgotten as he writhed in agony on the floor. He tried to crawl away from Voldemort, in a vain attempt to escape but the pain of the poison flowing through his veins was so complete that it was all he could do to move his fingers. Voldemort watched all this with avid interest as Harry sobbed.

"Stop it, please," Hermione begged, with tears streaming down her cheeks and her hands pressed up against the transparent wall, "Don't hurt him anymore." Her eyes were fixed on Harry as she watched him cry out and gasp for breath.

The light in the room was blocked out momentarily as someone entered the chamber.

"My lord?"

Reluctantly, Voldemort drew his attention away from Harry and looked up at the waiting death eater. "What is it now, Bellatrix?" he snapped, "I'm busy."

"I'm sorry, my lord, but the fires are spreading quickly. We have to leave."

"Very well," Voldemort sighed. He turned back to Harry and crouched down. "It's a shame really. You would have down well in Slytherin," he said before getting up and turning to leave, "Goodbye for now, Mister Potter."

Once he had gone, the barrier trapping Hermione dissolved and she fell forward awkwardly, already trying to scramble across the floor. When she reached Harry, she took his hand in hers and tried to rouse him from his semi-conscious state. His skin was white and like ice to the touch.

"Harry?" she said tentatively, "Harry, wake up."

His blank gaze shifted to look at her, but it was if he wasn't actually seeing her. "Hermione?" he said faintly, "I was looking for you. But you weren't there."

"I'm here now, it's ok."

Harry smiled slightly, "I know, and I'm glad."

Hermione didn't even bother to try and stop the fresh tears in her eyes.

"Hermione?"

"Yes?" she whispered.

"I can't see anymore. I can't see you." He sounded like a frightened child.

"I'm here, Harry, I'm here," she sobbed.

But this time he didn't respond. "Harry?" she said, knowing it was pointless. She knew deep inside her soul that it was over, but that didn't make the pain any less. "Harry, oh god, come back!" she screamed.

Hermione had thought she had no more tears left to cry.

She was wrong.

AN-

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! Ok, I know that was short, but making this chapter any longer would have totally wrecked it. *cries* that was so bloody hard to write, especially when my eyes kept blurring! Mustn't cry,  mustn't cry…

Anyhoo, Chapter 5- will be the morning after for the MIRROR  WORLD's Draco and Hermione with an entrance from the ugliest ginger cat in the world- Crookshanks!, and a return to Hogwarts for Malfoy and the golden trio!