Tree branches sliced at her cheeks and tripped up the progress of her feet as she ran through what felt like the unending density of the forest. She had no idea where she was, only that the safe house had been infiltrated and whoever was giving her chase was closing the distance between them too rapidly.

With the light of the full moon as her guide, she darted between trees and dodged spells that struck with startling accuracy near her head. She was unsure of how long the chase had gone on. All she knew was her breathtaking exhaustion from running for too long of fumes of adrenaline.

Had there been others running with her she would have continued the chase a little longer so they could come together with a solid plan, but there was no one else. She was alone in an unfamiliar area with an army of faceless enemies behind her.

She stopped running, her mind slowly turning over a plan.

In an instant it felt as though the entire forest fell silent. He stopped his progress and listened as the others came to a stop alongside him.

"We'll split up and take her."

"Remember not to kill her. He said we could have a bit of fun but he wants her alive."

They divided and went in separate directions and for the first time he realized that his hands were trembling. He held his wand in front of him as he took off to continue the hunt but there were several times when he was sure he would drop it and give into the breakdown that he knew had been coming for some time.

No. Not my son! He's just a boy…leave him! He saw the flash of green, remembered the potency of his mother's rage and terror as she was struck down by the man he had sworn to call Master. No one had gone to her. He remembered that as a cold ball of anger and disgust settled in his stomach. His father had looked away, just another hooded coward, while he swore his world was collapsing around him.

Now, his breath caught in his chest and he tucked his wand away, leaning against a tree for support. He tipped his head back and gulped in deep breaths even as his heart swelled with misery.

He didn't have time to get his breathing under control or determine if was in the grips of a breakdown because he was suddenly thrown completely off balance; standing one second and colliding with the ground in the next instant.

He was so stunned, for a moment he had no idea how to fight back. His breath was completely gone from the impact of his body meeting the ground and he was left gasping as someone slammed him back and sat on his chest.

"Accio wand!"

It was when he felt the tip of his wand dig into his neck that his instincts kicked in and managed to struggle and throw the weight off his chest. He scrambled forward and caught hold of their foot, keeping them in place only until they managed to use the other foot to aim a kick that landed solidly against his shoulder and sent him stumbling.

"Bloody hell."

His attacker thought they had gained the upper hand and stood but he was quick to kick their legs out from under them. He felt at least a small amount of pleasure when he heard a sharp intake of breath and pained cursing but his triumph was short lived as he heard the distinct sound of his wand snapping in half; a casualty in the chaos of fighting without light.

In what was a last ditch effort not to get himself killed, he threw himself on top of his assailant. Arms and legs grappled for dominance and after feeling the sting of teeth clamping down on his wrist, he growled and threw all of his weight on top of the person even as they clawed and kicked and nearly threw him over several times.

"Stop…will you stop bloody fighting me!"

"As soon as you let go of me, I'll have no reason to."

Draco Malfoy felt a dizzying nausea overtake him as the familiar, authoritative tone registered in his mind.

Not possible. This isn't happening…

"Granger…"

Hermione stilled beneath Malfoy for only a moment before she renewed her struggles and broke free of his grasp.

"Listen to me-"

"I'll kill you before I let you take me to them," Hermione bit out as he did his best to establish his hold on her.

Images clicked into place in her mind. She saw the cell where she had spent countless days hoping for death rather than the endless torment. She saw that same fate, or worse, as Malfoy used his weight to hold her against one of the trees, keeping her still for at least a moment so he could speak.

"They've fanned out through the forest to find you. Right now I'm the only one who's covering this direction. If you continue east you can get out. Granger, are you listening to me?"

"How many of them are there?" She asked slowly, not entirely believing him but having nothing else to go on.

"There are only seven. No more could be spared."

"It's a trap, isn't it?" Hermione hardly felt the tears that spilled over from her eyes and onto her bleeding cheeks. She was exhausted and hurt in so many ways that defied physical pain that her tears were the last thing she was paying any mind. "You don't have the courage to turn me in yourself, so you'll let one of them do it. Is that it?"

"You don't have to believe me and I see why you wouldn't, but what else do you have to go on?"

A sliver of moonlight peeked through the branches and Hermione saw that Malfoy was bleeding from his nose and one of his eyes was already beginning to bruise. He was looking at her with such solemn urgency that she felt intense unease over her inability to decide whether or not he was setting a trap for her to run headlong into.

She heard voices in the distance and new time had run out. She shrugged out of Malfoy's grip and backed away from him, going east.

"Malfoy…"

He heard more voices and couldn't seem to distinguish where they were coming from. He felt lightheaded as an odd calm settled over him and Granger continued to back away like a skittish deer. "Granger, run."

Exactly three weeks after encountering Draco Malfoy in an isolated forest on the outskirts of a Muggle village in Glendale, England, Hermione Granger collapsed on the front steps of Ingraham Cottage, only to be found several hours later and dragged inside by a lone redheaded witch.

Thank you, as always, for taking the time to read. If you could spare some time to drop a review I will love you forever and you will most likely see quicker updates. ;)