Author's Note: Hello! I am alive! I've been back from Paris (which was lovely) and I managed more school. I figured I would use my creative juices to throw out another Grimmauld tale, just in time for Halloween! Forgive my absences, for I work and go to school full time. And, for all intents and purposes, it's the holiday season and I'll be running around like mad and always exhausted thanks to the life of retail work. So bear with me. I hope to give another for late November and another for Christmastime. Fingers crossed!

Cookies to whoever figures out this fairy tale inspiration! PM me your guesses! I'll post the answer in my profile to all, eventually. Some of the past Grimmauld stories are up there already. If this is your first of my series to read, enjoy! Please also read the others! They're awesome! If you're not new to my game, yay! You still love me!

Disclaimer: I own nothing but some husky plot bunnies.

Reviews are lovely and keep me in the realization that people read these! Thank you! PS- This is only the first half! Look for a second half (chapter)!

Hermione was sick of her life. She was sick of having to do chores from sun up to sun down, sick of catering to her stepmother hand over foot, and was absolutely sick of worrying whether she and her brother Harry would survive to see another birthday. Since the passing of both her mother and Harry's, their life had been made harder by the stern and unyielding witch who snared their father when they were four and six. Now, at seventeen and the eve of nineteen, they were also without their father for the last five years (thanks to mysterious causes) and their lives were miserable at best.

Harry was sent out to the fields from sunrise until the moon rose prominently in the sky every day, harvesting their modest fields of wheat. He was not allowed to use the magic their father had been proud he exhibited and Stepmother Bella bound his magic every year on his birthday. On Sundays, she sent him to town to barter for what he couldn't grow and what Hermione couldn't make raw. Hermione, on the other hand, relied on her magic to the point of exhaustion, thanks to the list of tasks expected every day. By the time supper was finished and the kitchen cleaned for the night, she could barely stand and relied on Harry to drag her to their small room. Between dusting every nook, cranny and crevice, scrubbing the walls and floors, and cooking wide arrays of food to satisfy Stepmother Bella's varied appetite, Hermione's day was full enough. However, she was expected to create clothing for herself and Harry, mend the old, tend to the herb and vegetable garden in the back, and keeping away pests of various natures inside and out.

One night, after Harry's soft snores could be heard, Hermione slipped from her pallet and padded to the back garden to retrieve some water. Before she reached the pump, however, she could hear the shrill voice of her stepmother from the side of the house. Not wanting to get caught, she paused her movements, and tried to melt in the berry bushes, hoping to blend with the shadows.

"It's all I can do at this point to keep their magic at bay. I don't know how much longer I can keep them bound. It is impossible to bind the girl, she's just too powerful, and the boy could break the bind if he sneezed!"

Stepmother Bella sounded panicked, and Hermione could see she was looking into the soft glow of a two-way mirror. The mirror their father had gifted his children with before he died. They had, of course, promptly vanished before his body had even been buried. By the looks of it, their stepmother had given one of them to a stranger and was currently complaining about her charges.

"Can I kill them now? I've been here nearly a decade and if I have to live in a hovel much longer, I'll raze this blasted forest and everything in it!"

A soft, low voice answered her, yet Hermione couldn't hear his exact words. But the excited tone in Bella's was unmistakable. It seemed like her wish was granted. Shaky, Hermione slunk into their cottage and slipped quietly into her pallet. She attempted to even her breathing and calm her body, lest Bella check in on them like she usually did most nights. She would need to talk to Harry as soon as possible, to warn him and hopefully come up with a plan. To run away, to change her mind, something. Even if it meant hurting their stepmother dearest. Anything to survive.

/*\

As if sensing Hermione's twitching energy, Stepmother Bella gave Hermione hell, trailing after the young girl after the house was clean, making messes with dirt and trash as she went. The glee in her tone as she clucked and berated Hermione was unmistakable, her eyes shining happily. As such, Hermione was barely able to hide her yawns and keep her body from slumping into the dishwater and was saved from drowning by a worried Harry. They were quickly able to escape to their room thanks to Bella's imbibing in a strong Firewhiskey and passed out body in the once cozy common room.

"Hermione, what's wrong? Are you sick?" Harry whispered, gently laying her on her makeshift bed. He gently put his hand on her forehead, checking for a temperature.

Hermione shook his hand off and propped herself up. "No. Listen, I found something out last night. I woke up and heard Bella talking with someone with our mirrors."

"Our mirrors?"

"Yes, the ones she said she accidentally traded, remember?"

Harry nodded.

"She wants to kill us. I think she got permission from whoever she was talking to and she's going to do it soon."

Harry's green eyes widened in shock. "You heard this?"

Hermione frowned and nodded. "Yes. And that she's too weak to truly bind your magic. If you tried, you could break it and use yours as well. Harry, we need to do something!"

She grabbed for his hands, squeezing tight. Despite being almost two years older than him, she relied on his opinions very much. He was very good at follow through and getting the job done. She was the plotter, he was the executioner. "Let's run."

Harry gazed at their hands, knuckles white from desperation. Silently, he nodded.

Thus, they planned their escape for the wee hours before morning, just enough time for Hermione and Harry to rest and restore enough energy.

/*\

Hours before Bella would be up to scream for the pair to start their work, the two made their way across the back garden and into the woods. Their feet were never faster and their shadows never shorter. It wasn't until the sun was fully peaked above the horizon that they stopped under a willow tree to catch their breaths and get their bearings. Hermione took a twig from the forest floor held it out in her outstretched palm.

"Point me," she whispered.

"Where are you even asking it to go, Hermione?" Harry slid down to the ground, letting out a sigh as he watched her.

Hermione shrugged. "Magic isn't always linear and rational. I figured asking for somewhere safe would maybe work."

They both watched the twig twirl, until it finally slowed down and stopped, pointing towards the sun, still rising hours above East. They decided to trust the magic and head eastward after having a small meal made of raspberries and apples that Hermione'd had the forethought to grab on their way from the garden.

"We should get going now. We don't know when she'll wake up, Hermione."

Nodding, they helped each other to stand and walked against the sunlight.

/*\

The house was filled with the noise of crashing glass and furniture, projectiles flying everywhere and the wails of an enraged woman. Every room in the house had been turned inside out, looking ransacked, and Bella stood in the kitchen screaming as her magic sparked around her dangerously.

"I will show those little maggots! How dare they impose upon my good heart and run away! The filth!"

She pulled out her wand and stormed outside, the crackles of energy still surrounding her. Standing in the middle of the garden, she sent out a curse, smiling gleefully as the acid green web of magic sunk into the ground of the land itself. Not a set of heartbeats passed before the wildlife in the forest began crying out in dismay and fleeing for better ground. The birds took off in flocks hundreds in number, the rodents scurried in droves, and the larger game stampeded for pure land. Bella had poisoned all of the springs in the entire forest with her dark magic.

She wasn't picky, she'd take their bodies kicking and screaming or like broken rag dolls. But she would have these two miscreants either way, just so long as she could let her frustrations out on them.

/*\

"I'm parched, 'Mione. We've got to rest. I think there's a spring nearby." Harry mopped his brow with his sleeve and squinted into the trees in front of them. Hermione hummed in agreement, trying to ignore the ache in her throat. However, the closer they got to the spring, the heavier the sense of dread Hermione felt in her gut. She looked around as Harry bent down to scoop some of the water and started.

"WAIT!"

Startled, Harry looked up at his sister. "What?"

"Harry, where are the animals?"

Harry frowned. "They probably ran off when they sensed us."

"Whoever drinks from me will become a tiger…"

Hermione looked around after hearing the whisper, but only found Harry looking at her with worry. Swallowing her own thirst, she whispered, "Can we please not drink from this spring? Can we wait for the next? Something isn't right…"

The magic in this part of the forest felt heavy and dark, making Hermione nervous. She wanted to bolt and run for higher ground. After searching for his answer in her face, Harry agreed and stood.

"Let's keep going then. Hopefully we'll run into another soon or perhaps a village." He dusted his knees off, then his hands before taking one of Hermione's smaller hands in his. He kept his trust in Hermione and trusted she knew something he didn't.

It wasn't until about two hours later that they came across another spring, the sun past the noon hour and the heat strong despite the early fall month. Their thirst was stronger than ever and even Hermione rushed to the spring with Harry when they came across it. Just as before, as Harry bent to quench his thirst, a voice whispered in Hermione's ear.

"Whoever drinks from me will become a wolf."

Fearful of losing her brother, Hermione pushed Harry away from the water with a yelp. "Harry, please don't!"

Exhaustion and dehydration playing on his features, Harry glared at his sister. "What on earth is wrong now?"

"There's something wrong with this spring too, I can feel it."

Harry stared hard at her, his eyes never wavering. When Hermione met his gaze and didn't flinch, he sighed in defeat. "Fine. But I swear, Hermione. The next spring, I've got to have a drink." He stood up and continued through the woods, leaving Hermione to scramble up on her own and run after him.

Sunset came and brought them to a third spring and the elation in Harry was palatable. Before Hermione could chase after him to take her share of water, a voice whispered,

"Whoever drinks from me will become a deer."

However, before Hermione could warn Harry properly, he ignored her exclamation and drank deep. The sprites of the spring, the last creatures left in the woods, flitted up past the siblings in fear, and escaped into the canopy of the treetops. Gasping, Hermione's wide eyes took in where Harry was hunched over in pain, his body changing into a grotesque morphling.

Three, four, five ragged breaths later, instead of looking at her beloved brother Harry, she was looking at a bewildered teenaged buck draped in ripped clothing. He still had his green eyes.

"H-harry?"

The buck let out a yelp, surprising himself and causing his body to jump in surprise. He nearly fell into the spring, but Hermione scrambled forward and grabbed him by the antlers and pulled him forward and back onto his four hooves.

Snorting in relief, the buck, Harry, fell to his belly and let out a sigh. His eyes looked at Hermione in confusion and watched as she calmed herself down. He watched her pace back and forth several times, biting her lip and muttering to herself in typical Hermione fashion.

"Harry, you're a deer."

Harry gave her a look, which caused Hermione to wince.

"Yes, sorry. Obviously." Shaking her head, she thought for a moment before pulling out a thin gold chain from the depths of her dress. She pulled it from around her neck and threw it around the neck of her brother-now-deer. Harry snorted several times in disagreement over her actions, but Hermione shook her head.

"You're a deer. I need to be able to tell you apart from the real bucks out there in case we ever get separated. I know it was my mother's, but that just means you have to take good care of it, okay?"

They sat together by the spring, pondering methods of communication for some time until night fell. Hermione fell asleep, propped on the back of her brother. Harry watched over her for a few hours before falling asleep himself. In the morning, when they both woke up, they found makeshift bowls filled with rainwater waiting for them. Harry pushed one to Hermione, telling her it smelled safe and kept watch as she drank her fill of the offerings.

"The sprites were kind to give us the untainted water from the top of the forest, Harry." Hermione smiled, some of the color coming back to her cheeks after going without the whole day before. After finishing off the water, Harry motioned for her to climb on his back.

"I guess we live here now, Harry. It might be best to leave the forest for the valley, perhaps? We need to find someplace without tainted water…"

Snorting in agreement, Harry began walking with Hermione on his back. He wasn't able to tell her, but the forest sprites had left a trail for him to follow towards safety and a haven for the two victims of dark magic.

Author's Note: Thanks for reading! Send your guesses my way, as well as suggestions and the reviews! Look for the second half (chapter) soon! Maybe like, tomorrow or in just a few hours even!