My strange, disturbing Harry Potter dream put in story form

by Marie Lynn in the little place that exists over the rainbow

(Note: I dreamt this last night. The memories are still sharp, clear, and vivid in my mind...)

In a swirl of blinding light, I found myself standing on the sleek marble floor, at the base of the magnificent Grand Staircase in Hogwarts.
How exciting! I thought to myself. Now I get to meet everyone from the Harry Potter books!
I sauntered up the days, cheerfully examining the portraits around me. It was then that I realized something was utterly wrong. The students were walking in a single-file line, their faces taut with misery, and their noses pointed skyward. Instead of the usual inky-black cloak and pointed hats, they were wearing stiff, plain white business suits with pale blue ties.
"Hey!" I shouted at them. "What's wrong? Why are you dressed like that?"
A feeble student replied without taking her eyes off the person in front of her, "Hogwarts...has changed...for the worse...no more magic...terrible."
I gaped at her. She didn't say anything more.
I looked around at the doors. There were no signs or banners of the houses - Hogwarts must have gotten rid of the houses, too. Flummoxed, I wondered who was behind this.
The line of miserable students was leading to the very top stair, where Filch, the caretaker, was waiting with a ghastly grin on his face. Students were disappearing into the door behind him. Their expressions scared me to death; it was as if they were walking to their doom.
"Stop!" I cried. "What happened to Hogwarts?? Somebody, stop and tell me!"
The students' eyes flickered towards me, but they didn't reply or even turn their heads. I stood in front of the door, next to Filch (who seemed to be enjoying himself immensely; he was cackling and whooping and fingering a shiny badge on his chest). Then I noticed that the witches and wizards were depositing their wand into a large plastic box sitting on the ground beside Filch. What was going on??
It wasn't long before I had been shoved to the ground and trampled by their feet. I knew they musn't stop or something terrible would happen to them, they were like Filch's puppets, or whoever was behind this horrible mess.
I struggled to my feet and forcefully made my way through the sea of stampeding students, down the stairs, and found Professor Snape ordering students to get in line.
I froze. His lips were not curled into a cruel sneer as they usually were - they were smileless and his piercing black eyes were somber. For seconds to pass, we stared at each other. Then he whipped his greasy head around to yell at a young wizard who had stumbled out of line. Before he turned, I saw a trace of sadness on his face.
It startled me. Snape had once loved the misery of the students that weren't in his own house. Now it was all backwards and confusing.
I found Professor McGonagall haughtily marching across the Great Hall. I hurried to catch up with her.
"Professor!" I half-screamed.
She turned briskly and barked at me, "Get in line, and why are you not in uniform?"
"Professor - I'm not a witch, I'm a regular person, a - a Muggle, please tell me, what happened to Hogwarts?"
Her lips quivered and her eyes softened. Her whole body trembled slightly. "I am not allowed to say."
"Please, tell me! What happened to Slytherin, and Ravenclaw, and Hufflepuff, and don't forget Gryffindor! Gryffindor was your house, wasn't it? What happened to it? Why is it gone now?" As I ran out of breath and drew in to rant some more, she cut me off.
"Those houses are no more. The Hogwarts that was my home several years ago - now is my prison. It all changed. It's horrible. The students can't leave, can't write, can't hardly do anything. The houses has been demolished. Now Filch is deputy headmaster, and the headmaster is...well, I am not allowed to say." She turned, and hurried away, leaving me with tears of pity streaming down my face. Then, I wrenched awake, with the feeling of sadness settling in my heart.