To Dream of Things to Come (Open)

Riley had arrived to the common-room after arriving for his first day at Hogwarts. He hadn't gotten his letter until much later for who knows what. He couldn't believe he was a wizard. He had never shown signs of it that he had known but then again maybe that was why he was still alive.

He had noticed when he arrived that it was the castle of his dreams or more likely nightmares with how they ended.

He didn't see anyone when he arrived so he decided to sit on one of the comfy seats that dotted the common-room. He sat in the seat and it wasn't long before he was asleep. Unfortunately it wasn't too long before he was having his nightmare that had been plaguing him the last few years.

Riley running along the lake during the evening before sunset. He is being chased by someone he doesn't know.

He is bloodied and bruised from running and falling so much. He is frantic to find a place to hide but at the lake there aren't many options.

He falls yet once again and this time he twists his ankle and can't walk. He turns around on the ground to see the person standing above him. He begs for his life. "Please don't do this," he pleads, "I don't understand whats going on, what did I do? Why are you doing this? TELL ME SOMETHING," he pleads and breaks down crying.

"You don't need to understand," the other person says calmly, "what is done is done."

As the person raises his wand and points it Riley raises his hands in a defensive gesture. The student says "Avada Kedavra" and it strikes Riley dead.

It is at this point that Riley awakes started from the end of his nightmare screaming "AHHHHHHHH" He sits there for a few moments trying to collect his thoughts.

Oh my God, he thought, it's that damn nightmare again. Will it ever end? Is this invite to Hogwarts really a death warrant?


He curls into a ball sitting on the seat just sitting there afraid to even try to sleep again.

"Merlin's pants!"
Alicia growled as she scrambled into the common room. She'd heard someone screaming bloody murder all the way out in the corridors, and she'd made a point of hurrying back inside, lest the screaming provoke Peeves, and so that she could find out what on earth was going on.
What she hadn't been expecting was a hitting her head on the way in, or finding Riley curled up on one of the chairs.
"Was it you that screamed?" she asked, approaching his chair and then pausing. He did not look like a happy camper, and if he decided, for whatever reason, to throw a punch, she wanted to be out of his way.

J. J. stumbled groggily into the common room. A loud noise had awoken her. It almost sounded like a scream... but why would anyone be scream.
This thought had driven her into the common room to see what was going on. Screams meant danger, and J. J. certianly did not want to sleep through that.
There were two people in the room when she got there. A girl who looked vaguely familiar and a boy sitting on one of the chairs.
Neither looked perticularily happy - though the girl just looked a little irked at loosing sleep... the boy...
"What's going?" she asked, fear seeping into her confusion, "Is everything alright?"

Riley sat there curled up into a ball when the first girl walked in. He was about to say something when the second girl walked in.

"Nothing," he mumbled barely audible so he wasn't even sure if the girls heard heard him but he was still too terrified to say much else.

J. J. watched as the boy curled himself into a ball. She took a hesitant step forward. She didn't believe him when he said nothing was wrong.
He was obviously very distressed, though trying to hide it.

"Well if you are sure," she said slowly, sinking into a seat near him, "If you want to talk about it..."

She trailed off. When she was upset, it always helped when she talked it through with someone... usually Zach. Though she understood that there was a difference between talking with your brother, and talking to two random girls, who just happened to hear you scream and stumbled into the room to find out what is going on.

She looked around the room a moment and then added, "I'm J. J."

If he didn't want to talk, maybe it would help to distract him.

He watched as the gril sat down and introduced herself. He didn't even hear what she said, his mind was only thinking about his nightmare.

The only thing that he could get out was "I am going to die."

"I am going to die"

Alicia's eyebrows almost dissapeared into her hair. "You are?" she asked, frowning a little and biting her lip.
She'd heard of people predicting their own deaths, but a, she paused to glance at Riley, trying to get an idea of how old he was before pegging him at second or third year. But second or third year Hogwarts students predicting their own deaths? That was a little much.
"Is anyone in your family a Seer?" she asked, dropping into the chair beside his and drumming her fingers on the arm. "It might not be you, you could be predicting something that's going to happen to someone else,"

"The Castle," he whispered, "it's been in my dreams long before I came here. I have had this dream for years. I..I..the nightmare..it haunts me all the time. I die in it, no one else," he said terrified.

J. J. listened to the boy in stunned silence. Seeing the future, and one so dreadful...

She had never imagined it. She couldn't understand it but...

Well, how could she not try to help someone who looks so distressed. Even if she didn't understand it at all.

"Are you sure it isn't just a dream?" she asked softly. She didn't want to offend him but... wasn't it possible he was over reacting a bit. She bit her lip, a thought coming to you, "How do you know? Couldn't you possible change it by knowing it... maybe there was a reason you get this, vision. Maybe you can change it."

She looked at the older boy for a long moment. Was it worse to know that your death was coming? J. J. had no idea... but he certianly didn't look like it, whoever this boy was.

"I just know it's me," he hissed, "and as for trying to change it I don't think it's possible. It's like the nightmare haunts me and taunts me. Trying to make me go crazy. I can't sleep sometimes because I am too afraid."

"I just want to go one week with a good sleep," he said his eyes furrowing, "but sleep is always just out of reach, let alone me thinking about my nightmare over and over."

Alicia frowned. The poor kid was miserable, and she couldn't do anything to help him. "D'you want to go to the hospital wing?" she asked, grimacing as she realized how helpless she felt. "I'm sure the nurse has a sleeping potion up there. I've heard you don't dream when you take it," she sighed, rubbing her cheeks in a futile attempt to make her brain work faster.

"Sorry," J. J. said softly. She hadn't meant to offend anyone, she was just checking.

He was being a little short with her, and everyone, but he was too worked up really to do anything otherwise. J. J. wasn't going to take offence from any of it.

She nodded her head at the other girls suggestion. It was as good as anyone she could come up with. In fact she had been thinking it, only she hadn't known if such a thing actually existed; she had merely been thinking it was a possiblity.

"The Hospital Wing could help I'm sure," she added trying to be helpful, but possible just being an annoying 'Firstie', "It will make the dream go away for at least a night - or you know every night if you continue to take the potion."

She paused for a moment. She knew he didn't thinkg so but the idea was so firmly in her head that she just couldn't let it go.

"And maybe with a good nights sleep..." she paused a moment, "Well, I wouldn't say the dream would be better - it seems like something awful, but maybe... Maybe you might be able to see it a little more clearly, think about it. I don't believe that if it really is a vision, a power of sorts, that you are getting it just to taunt you. There must be something its trying to tell you... more useful than just 'You're going to die' I mean."

J. J. bit her lip. Maybe she was pushing that too far. She hoped she wasn't offending, it was just... she really didn't think it could be something just plain bad; there had to be... something.

But maybe she just didn't understand. Maybe she shoud just keep her mouth shut.

She just wanted to help.

Riley sighed, he was here whining so much and now he was upsetting the girls with his talk of death. After they had talked to him he felt a lot better and was even happy at the thought of a potion.

"You mean there is a potion that lets me sleep without dreaming," he said more alert, "if there was that would be so great."

"I am sorry where have I been," he said sitting up, "I have not even introduced myself yet. The name is Riley Hunter, I just started my 3rd year here. Really my first but I am a quick learner."

J. J. smiled, " Sure... well actual, I'm very new at all this, but I don't see why not, and I'm trusting you on this," she smiled kindly at the other girl. She still prickled at J. J.'s memory but she couldn't quite place where she had seen her before.

"It's not a problem," J. J. waved off his apology, "If I had..." she shook her head, she didn't know how she would be behaving if she was dreaming of her death, "It's nice to meet you Riley. I'm J. J. if you didn't hear before," she reintroduced herself since Riley had seemed to be in enough a state before to have missed it. "First year... here and anywhere."

"I think there is," Alicia said, getting to her feet and returning J.J's smile. "We can go check it out if you want," she suggested, extending her hand to him. "I'm Alicia Wood. Second year," she added, pushing her hair out of her eyes with her free hand.

"Alright if it can keep me from having this dream or whatever it is then I am all for it," he said happily.

"Nice to meet you both," he said as he got up, off to the Nurse to see if they can whip something up"