Disclaimer: Not mine. Everything belongs to JKR.
The Bitten- Chapter Four
Bang! The noise of a door slamming startled Hermione from her sleep. She yawned for a moment before realizing there was voices too. And those voices were discussing her.
"Severus this really is unnecessary. I can care for the girl myself. I've done it before." Professor Lupin, Hermione thought. Hr must be talking to Professor Snape.
"Listen wolf. She's a child. She wants to learn things. Your opportunities have been rather limited. I can tell her first hand and teach her the entire curriculum if needed."
"And what will you do if they want to use her? Harry and Ron don't know. It is not like she has a lot of options."
"Exactly my point Lupin. We will leave for my house in an hour. Get the girl ready." Hermione heard the door open and close again.
She thought about what she had heard out side her room. No one wanted full time care of a werewolf, know-it-all who was a teen-aged girl to boot. Maybe she could go to a different school... The sound of the door opening stirred her from her musings.
"I'm sorry to disturb you Hermione, but we've got to leave soon." Lupin entered. He carried a shrunken truck in his hand. "Was there anything you needed out of here?" He offered her the tiny object.
"Where are we going?" Hermione asked. She wanted to know what was going to happen to her, not what she was going to wear.
"Professor Snape, you and myself will be staying in Severus's house. It's a decent place. He has appropriate facilities in the basement."
Hermione starred at Lupin. What facilities was he talking about?
Lupin continued nervously. "The first few times you use wolfsbane potion it is still safer to take precautions. The had the bars made out of goblin steel, unbreakable by magical means." Lupin babbled on to her.
Realization dawned on Hermione. They were going to lock her up during the full moon. Not something to look forward towards. "I'm not a monster!" She snapped at the Professor.
Lupin cleared his throat. "Actually Hermione, you might want to rethink that last comment. We are classified as monsters during the full moon."
Hermione fell back onto her pillow. "This is really happening. It's not just a bad dream." She climbed out of the bed. "Are my clothes in there?" Hermione pointed to her trunk.
"Ah, yes. Change quickly please. Professor Snape wants us to arrive at his home as soon as possible." Lupin walked out of the room and closed the door tightly behind him. Hermione changed into robes and joined him in the hallway.
"It took you long enough." Professor Snape walked up behind them. "Are you finished brushing your wolf pelt Remus?" He glared at the man. "Go."
Hermione followed the two Professors into the hospital wing office. The fire was burning brightly in the hearth. Snape stepped forward and grabbed the box filled with floo powder. "I will go first. Lupin bring the girl with you. It's a long way and I don't want her getting lost."
He stepped into the green flames and disappeared from sight. Lupin turned to Hermione. "Ready?" She nodded. "Okay then. Grab my arm tightly and we'll be off."
The green floo flames roared to life. The two stepped in and Lupin cried "Spinner's End!" They went spinning through chimneys and fireplaces flashed by them, before they were roughly spat out onto a green carpet. They scrambled to their feet, trying to scrub the soot off their robes.
"You're a wizard wolf." Snape startled both of them. "Banish the soot." He flicked his wand and their robes were clean. "Miss Granger you may use your wand during lesson with in the house." He told her offering the wood.
"Solly" Snape said sharply snapping his fingers. There was a crack and a house elf appeared neatly dressed in a tablecloth.
"Master is calling Solly. How may Solly assist Master?" The house elf asked respectfully. Hermione wished she had a S.P.E.W. badge.
"So them to their rooms. Then make a decent supper. Meat Solly, lots of it." He turned to the two wolves. "Follow Solly. I'll be in the lab." And he strode off purposely toward a door.
Hermione and Lupin proceeded up the stairs. They came to a halt on the landing and Solly turned to face them. She wasn't filled with the enthusiasm that Hermione usually connected with elves. "Your room is being on the left Sir and yours is being on the right ma'am. The bathroom is in the middle." The house elf indicated the respective doors.
Lupin nodded and opened the door to his room. Hermione knelt down to thank the elf but a glare from Lupin stopped her. She entered her room tiredly. That chicken hadn't been enough. She was starving.
It was a decently sized room with a desk, bed and bookshelf. Her trunk sat in front of a wardrobe. The colouring scheme Hermione found most interesting. It wasn't done in Slytherin colours like she'd expected. Instead dark blue and purple decorated the walls and adorned the bedclothes.
Hermione had just finished unpacking her trunk when someone knocked on her door. She picked up her wand and opened it slowly.
"Miss Granger." Professor Snape stood in the doorway . "Your first lesson will be a 8 o'clock tomorrow morning. Do not be late." He stepped into the hall and held a goblet full of steaming potion out to her. "You should take this immediately."
Hermione accepted the goblet and starred into its depths. She finally tore her gaze away from it. She looked to the doorway to thank her Professor, but he was already gone. She closed the door to her room and took the potion over to her desk.
She looked at the fine gray steam rising from the top and recognized the wolf control potion. She stood up and walked to the bathroom door. Hermione locked both doors and angrily tossed the goblet against the wall. It smashed, spilling the potion everywhere as it bounced off the tile floor.
"NO!" She screamed. "I don't want this! I want to be normal!" Hermione fell against the wall sobbing. She let her tears for all the recent events fall. It was too much. Her parents dead, Voldemort coming back, Cedric's death and Harry seeing it all happen...
She cried for what seemed like hours. No one bothered her, which was exactly what she wanted. Eventually a persistent knock broke through the noise of her tears.
"GO AWAY!" Hermione yelled without pausing in her cries.
"Hermione I can't do that. Please unlock this door." Lupin's calm voice penetrated the walls easily.
"NO! Just leave me alone!" Hermione curled into a tight ball and began crying with renewed fervor.
"Please unlock the door Hermione." There was a pleading sound to Lupin's voice now.
Hermione put her hands over her ears and hoped that he would just go away. A few seconds later a loud blast hit her improved sense of hearing. Footsteps approached her.
"Miss Granger, get up." Professor Snape's voice cut into her from above.
Hermione rolled over to face him. "Please professor no..." Her voice trailed off.
"Miss Gran- Hermione it's time to get up." He offered a hand to her. "Come on." He grasped her forearm.
"I don't to." Hermione wined, not realizing she sounded like a two year old.
Snape pulled her to her feet. "Come on Hermione. We can't leave you laying here on the floor with all the shards from the goblet you broke." He gently led her out of the washroom pausing to address Lupin. "Clean up in here please. Repair the goblet if you can manage it."
Snape carefully led Hermione down the hall. Her crying had slowed to a slow trickle and the hysterics she had entered earlier were gone. Now if only they could help her except what she was. At least it was still a few weeks to the full moon. He stopped outside the door to his special room. He opened the door and knew that Solly would be getting everything ready now that the alarms had gone off.
"Here Hermione. Sit down." He guided the girl to the hospital style bed in the center of the room. "Everything will be fine."
After making sure she was secure he headed over to the potion shelves. Calming draught, another dose of wolf control potion. Was there anything else? His eyes scored the shelves. Seeing nothing else of use he headed back to the bed. Solly had already sent up tea, warm water and cleaning clothes. A large amount of handkerchiefs were also piled in the corner. If the circumstances were different Snape would have laughed. The elf always knew what was needed.
"Hermione" Snape gently called the girl's name before sitting down on her bed. "I need you to take some potions for me now." He handed her the calming draught.
Hermione accepted the potion from her teacher. After she drank it her whole body felt rather limp. She was no longer sad and angry. A pleasant warmth was filling her chest. "Thanks." She told him half heartedly.
"The next one Miss Ganger." Snape gave her the wolf potion.
Hermione drank it down without hesitating. "Yuck." She said trying to wipe the tears off her face. Her crying had ended.
Snape looked at her. He was considering helping her but Lupin walked in at that point. Snape looked up. "Clean her up will you. I've got to get some supplies." He strode out of the room to his personal lab.
Lupin took the seat next to Hermione. "Do you want to wipe your face?" He asked her soaking one of the clothes in water. Hermione nodded and took the cloth from him.
While she was busy fixing herself up Lupin finished preparing the tea. "Tea Hermione?" He offered her a cup.
"Thank you Professor Lupin." She looked at her lap. "I apologize for my earlier behavior. I don't think I was entirely myself."
He smiled at her. "Don't worry it happens to all wolves after they are bitten. I'm not angry with you."
What's going to happen to me now?" Hermione asked worriedly.
Lupin looked around the room as if it could give him an easy answer. "As soon as possible we have to report to the Ministry."
Hermione nodded knowingly. "To get registered like some kind of dog. I gathered that."
"Then Severus and myself will be teaching you for the rest of the summer. Potions and defense, charms. Whatever we can. Dumbledore was very sorry you could no longer attend Hogwarts. He offered to teach you transfiguration." Lupin was worried. Hermione was the brightest witch of her age. And know she was no longer allowed to go to school.
"And in September? I doubt I'm allowed to live at Hogwarts even if I'm not attending classes." Her world was falling to pieces around her.
"Severus and I are going to enroll you in a school of other people with furry problems. Or you could join the order if you wanted to." Lupin hoped she wouldn't ask him about finding work.
Hermione pondered. "They can't detect my underage magic now can they? I mean, I'm a magical creature."
Understanding dawned on Lupin. "Exactly. The order could use another werewolf."
Hermione smirked. "The supposed girlfriend of the boy-who-lived a spy? All the death eaters will accept that I'm sure."
Lupin shook his head. "Sort of. We could give you a new name and appearance..." He trailed off deep in thought. "I know"
"Imagine that. He can think." A dry voice broke in from the door. Snape walked into the room with a tray. "I need to get started on wolfsbane potion. Lupin explain."
With a sign Lupin turned to Hermione. "Because the transformation is different on very person it must be personalized. This means your blood is in it. Professor Snape needs some of your blood."
"Very good wolf, you're learning." Snape set the tray down next to the bed. "You only forgot that I need to run a blood test to see if anything got into her blood stream when the goblet broke." He pulled rubber gloves on over his hands. "Roll up your shirt sleeve Miss Granger."
Hermione rolled up the shirt and bared her elbow. She watched as the vials filled with deep, red liquid. Her blood. There was four vials and Snape was filling the fifth. She looked up at him. "How much do you need Sir?" Hermione didn't know how much it was safe for him to take.
Snape concentrated on switching vials for a moment. "Eleven." He muttered.
Hermione gaped open mouthed. "Is that even safe?"
Snape glared at her. "Of course it is. Now quiet." He returned to filling the vials.
Hermione felt her head start to float. She couldn't see much around her anymore. Just when she thought she was going to fall over the needle pulled out of her arm. Something hard and cold was pressed against her lips.
"Drink" A voice ordered. She drank. And then almost spit everything back out. "No , no Hermione. Drink it all down." She opened her mouth again. The dense bitter liquid filled her mouth. She chocked as it made its way down her throat, but someone helped her through it.
"Sleep now." A different voice and different hands helped her relax onto the bed. Hermione fell into a deep, healing slumber.
The next afternoon when Hermione slowly opened her eye she shook her head quickly and opened them again. It hadn't disappeared. Must be real she thought.
"Hermione!" Ron Weasley bounded out of the hallway. "You're awake!"
Hermione starred at him thunderstruck. "No!" She cried. She didn't want her friends to see her like this. She rolled to the other side and pulled the blankets over her head.
