Title: Shapes
Main Characters: Katie
Pairings: Katie/Oliver
Quote: "I feel not unlike a small boy, waking from a bad dream to find reality not much of an improvement." -John Byrne

Shapes

She knew it was a nightmare. Her vision was too fluid, the events playing out in front of her too spontaneous and disconnected. But that made the terror worse. The fact that she knew she was dreaming, but couldn't wake up.

As far as Katie Bell could tell, she had been stuck in this nightmare for months.

It was always the same. First, Harry Potter ran past her, blood streaming from his lightening-bolt scar. His eyes were nothing but bloody sockets, and as soon as she noted this, he fell to her feet, dead. Maggots and flies invested his open wounds, and his neck stuck out at an odd angle, clearly broken.

A deep, raspy laugh sounded from all around her, and Katie knew Voldemort had won. A chill spread through her body as she realized that she was a muggleborn, and would not live much longer.

Leanne flashed by, taken down by a dementor before Katie could scream a warning. The body it left behind was skeletal and empty, no longer the friend Katie loved so dearly.

Fred and George came next. They were blurry, like she had just woken up, and moved slowly. George went down first, his body crumbling away like dust. Fred made it closer to her, then bent in on himself, his body distorting into unnatural shapes until he was nothing but a blurry mass on the ground.

The Angelina appeared out of nowhere, nothing but a few tones of color in semi-distinct shapes. She looked like a new-age muggle cartoon or something, geometric shapes and blocky movement. She exploded in a burst of green light, deep red blood splattering across Katie's face. The girl let out a cry, finding it hard to remind herself that she was dreaming.

Did you hear that? She shouted!

That was new. It sounded like Fred's voice, but he was dead for the time being.

Alicia came next, right on schedule, screaming shrilly. The sound always sent shivers down her spine, but this time it seemed to send her body into convulsions. The petite girl was nothing but a blur of blonde and pink, but Katie knew her best friend well enough to know that it was her. Alicia was grabbed by two black shapes, deatheaters, Katie assumed, and pulled right down the middle, blood splattering everywhere.

She moving! Merlin, she's moving! Get a healer!

That was odd. But Katie was too distracted by the fear in her stomach to concentrate on the new additions to her nightmares. It was time. The worst part of the cycle was about to begin.

She never quite understood why she didn't fear Fred or Alicia's death the most. They were her best friends after all. But she loved Oliver too, so she didn't question why his death was the worst. She just accepted, and feared, it.

Oliver was the only one who wasn't blurry or dreamlike at all. He was real to Katie, like he was standing in front of her. His smile was the same serious, but caring grin that she knew by heart, his eyes still that perfect shade of mossy-green. His brown hair was windswept, like he had just gotten off his broom, and his robes were the deep blue color of Puddlemere United.

He walked towards her, hands outstretched.

Kates.

That was also new. She had never heard his voice before. Her throat constricted, and she felt like she was going to cry. Hearing his voice as he died would not make the nightmare any easier.

Kates, can you hear me?

Hs mouth wasn't moving, but she could hear him perfectly. He just smiled at her, then faded away.

"Oliver!" She cried, reaching out to grab him.

I'm here, Kates.

But he was gone. The darkness that surrounded her lightened, and she felt heavy and tired. Suddenly, her vision was grey-peach sort of color, and a million voices surrounded her.

She groaned, the noise hurting her ear. She felt her eyelid moving, but couldn't see anything except bright light. Strange shadows moved around her, and she thought the deatheaters were attacking.

"She's improving, it's true. Her vitals are much better than they were. Now we just have to wait for her to wake up."

"Thank you healer, you don't know how much it means for us to hear those words."

The voice that spoke was strong and smooth – Angelina. Her friends were alive!

"What do you think she's been dreaming about?" Another voice – Fred's – asked.

"I think I heard our dear Captain's name thrown around. Must've been a very nice dream." George, she assumed. That prat.

"I hope she wakes up soon," Alicia said. Her voice was soft and trembling. Katie wanted to wake up so badly, to tell her it was alright, but even though her eyes were open, she was still dreaming. She was sure of it.

"Me too." A new voice said. Oliver. He's alive.

"Well, now that a certain girl has started shouting your name in her sleep, I can understand why," Fred joked. She heard a "whack!" and smiled, knowing Angelina had put him in his place.

"It just seems empty though. To be here with you lot and not have her next to me." Oliver spoke again, voice thick with emotion. Damn, I've missed that prick.

Katie blinked, and wondered if she really was still dreaming. These shapes above her were just as undefined and terrifying as the ones from her nightmare.

"Aw, Oliver," Alicia cooed, and the scrape of chairs and clatter of feet told Katie that the small girl had jumped up to give Oliver a hug.

"You really care for her, don't you, Wood?" Angelina asked, voice soft and knowing.

"I do," Oliver said, and the room fell silent. No teasing from the twins, no squealing from the girls. Just silence. "I really do."

Katie tried to tell the stupid prat that she cared about him, too, and had missed him while he was off being a Quidditch player, but all that came out was a groan. She blinked a couple of times, the shapes above her gaining more definite shape.

"Katie!"

"Kat!"

"She's awake!"

"Get a healer!"

"Katie!"

She felt a rough hand take hers, and she blinked a couple more times as the noise around her grew louder. Her vision spun, the settled down, quickly clearing until she was looking right into the eyes of Oliver Wood.

"Hey there, Kates. Welcome back."

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