Chapter One: The Autumn Vigil

I can't believe I'm at it again.

The corridors are dark and unforgiving this late on an autumn night. My footsteps echo too loudly and my breath becomes a misty vapor before my very eyes. The few torches left alight throw shadows across the damp stone walls, shadows which flicker and shift, quickening my heartbeat and my pace with fear.

I cannot fathom why I am so driven to this place.

Why is it that I walk this path night after night? I gain no comfort from my destination, nor do I gain any freedom from the thoughts haunting my mind.

I finally turn the corner into a short hallway, at the end of which is The Door.

Fifteen minutes I wait in the cold, my eyes never leaving the handle.

The Door is unremarkable, made of a lightly stained wood, its surface seems blank and dull, it seems forgotten, a layer of dust settled comfortably against its surface. The handle itself though, is the true mystery. Its surface closely resembles that of a quality mirror, yet there is no specific reflection. Sometimes I think I see the handle begin to turn, but I blink and the image is gone. Occasionally a flash of colour makes its way across the surface and I am startled out of my nightly vigil enough to return to my dormitory. Oddly enough the handle is not coated in the layer of dust that inhabits this particular hallway.

My fingertips are numb and my arms are shaking, it is time for me to leave. I take a deep breath and turn away, a whisper leaving my lips, its echo drowned out by the sound of my footsteps as I walk away.

"Goodnight"

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Another day I am required to face begins, and I am roused from my bed by the shrill call of an owl, then the Tap Tap Tap of its beak on the window pane. My body protests loudly as I rise and open the window, but I ignore the creaks and the aches.

Brushing past my arm the owl rushes inside and perches on my foot board, its left leg extended a slip of parchment wrapped neatly around its lower leg.

Mr Potter,

I require your presence in my office, second period.

Professor Flitwick has been informed of your expected absence.

Regards,

Headmaster Albus Dumbledore

I am left to wonder what the old coot could possibly want from me, barely a month into the school year. I quickly shower and dress for the day, leaving long before my roommates begin to stir.

My feet lead me out to one of my favorite places, a smallish tree along the banks of the lake, its branches hung low enough so that no one would notice a small boy leaning against its base. It is here, as I watch the sun crawl above the treeline, that I let myself think, let myself dwell on what exactly my life has become.

Howdy Everyone,

I'm looking for a Beta for this chapter, you can qualify ONLY if you love Snarry, and obviously can do a spell check. :D

I also welcome input and ideas to further the story as it is not yet fully planned out in my mind.

Ciao,

JezibellaFleury