Wendy wasn't lying when she said the walk would be tedious. The woods were thick with fallen trees, bushes with sharp thorns, and vines that seem to snag you and hold on for dear life. The ground wasn't much better either. It was slippery, muddy and covered with fallen branches and rocks.
"Good grief, How did Blake even find this place?" Hermione asked.
Wendy floated back towards Hermione, "Blake spent a lot of time out here. He wasn't well liked as a child because of his temper and the way he carried himself – he was just plain mean. Dave and I tried to set him straight, we really did but nothing we tried worked. He would come out here and spend hours upon hours, only coming home once he was ready to eat and go to bed."
"How did he meet Matilda?" Harry asked.
Wendy sighed, "She actually showed him pity... liked him when everyone else didn't. They became quick friends in school and shortly after formed a relationship. They seemed happy and Blake even leveled out a bit."
Wendy grew quiet and looked to Hermione, "Matilda tried to break it off with him after he hit her. He refused to let her go. When she turned up missing, I questioned Blake and told him I knew he had done something to her. He never responded, telling me to mind my own business and I believe that is what led him to stunning us and burning down the house."
Hermione stayed silent. She couldn't help but wonder if Blake would come after her again... she didn't even know where he was. What if he was watching her? What if he knew about her growing relationship with Harry? Would he try to hurt him? A million questions ran through her mind a mile a minute.
Harry noticed her silence and walked up, wrapping his arm around her but not saying anything. This was hardly the time and place.
"You should consider yourself lucky Hermione," Wendy said. "You managed to get away from him and have someone to watch out for you. Matilda had no one but Blake as her relationship with him made her an outcast as well."
She didn't feel lucky, she could have gone the rest of her life never being hit or degraded by the man she love and married.
"She doesn't talk anymore either... flinches away from everything... including me and I'm a harmless ghost."
Hermione remained silent. She knew she was being rude but her thoughts were going in twenty different directions. One minute they were on Harry, the next they were on Matilda, and lastly herself. Would she have become another Matilda had she not gotten away?
They continued through the woods and after four straight hours of walking without a break. They reached a cave that seemed to be sunk into the ground half way.
"She's towards the back," Wendy stated, "and chained by the foot. I suggest Hermione go in first."
Harry was about to refuse when Wendy held up her hand to stop him, "The cave is safe and Hermione will be fine. Matilda has not had a stitch of clothing for a few years now. I think seeing a man immediately would make her harder to deal with."
"I'll be fine Harry, really," Hermione stated as she took a deep breath and started towards the mouth of the cave.
She dropped down to her butt and slid inside, immediately pulling her wand. She noticed a small light towards the back of the cave and started walking towards it. The cave itself was good sized but had a very humid feel to it. She could smell the stench of human waste, mold and a dank, earthly smell; the combination was horrid.
She continued to walk, doing her best to hold down the contents of her stomach. It wasn't fit to house a roach more less an actual human being. As she got closer to the light, she could see the outline of a small figure, curled into the fetal position, pressed against the wall as if trying to blend.
"Matilda," she called weakly, wanted to alert the girl to her presence.
Matilda pressed against the wall harder, whimpering as she did so.
Hermione suddenly understood why Wendy said she had been lucky. She was nothing like this. She stood silently, taking in the girl's appearance. She was thin as a rail, her spine and ribs could be seen as if she didn't have skin at all. Her hair was matted with dirt and filth, her skin was almost black with mud and she had small sores all over her body, probably from having to lay in her own waste.
"My name is Hermione. I came to help you... get you out of here."
Matilda didn't respond so Hermione made herself a clean spot and sat down.
"We are a lot alike you know," Hermione stated in a soft voice. " I married Blake and nearly lost my life a few times."
Matilda shifted but nothing of significance.
"Blake hurt me, much like he hurt you; but I got away from him. I am starting to rebuild my life with the help of a dear friend and I would like to offer the same courtesy to you... to be a friend." She paused to take a deep breath, "I know you don't know me. You know nothing about me but I need you to trust me. I need you to let me help you like I let my friend help me."
Matilda slowly pulled herself into a sitting position, pulling her knees to her chest and looking towards Hermione.
"He told me about you," she said in a whisper.
Hermione could see the girl's face clearly, she had two long scars on each cheek, her eyes were sunken in, her lips were chapped and her cheeks looked hollow.
"He always told me about you. How you wouldn't leave him like I tried to. He doted on how much you looked like me... told me he broke you just like he broke me."
Hermione could feel the tears in her eyes as the girl spoke with her raspy voice.
"I want to die," Matilda finally rasped out. "He took my spirit, my soul and I'm too tired to fight," she paused, "I begged him to kill me, end my suffering and he refused, saying I made him suffer when I tried to leave him. There's nothing left of me, there's nothing left for me."
"Don't say that," Hermione whispered. "We were both victims of the same man. Both toys in his twisted plot in life... but you can't give up, not after you kept yourself alive for this long. Just let me help you."
Matilda's dark brown eyes bored right into Hermione's, considering what she should do.
"I'm not fully back to how I was before Blake, but I am working on it and I am willing to help you get through this. We all need someone whether we want to admit it or not."
Matilda remained quiet for a few minutes before she slowly stood, shaking as she did so from the weakness in her body from lack of care, naked as the day she was born and not caring one bit. Her pride had been taken long ago.
"I'll go, but you have to promise me that you will help me. I don't have anyone and I can't do this alone."
"I promise." Hermione said as she stood as well, "But first thing is first. I need you to trust me and let my friend and I carry you out of here. You are in no condition to walk through the woods and you need to go to the hospital so you can be helped physically."
"W-who's the friend?" Matilda asked.
"My friend's name is Harry. He is the one that has been helping me. He is the one that saved me the night I left Blake. I showed up at his flat almost dead that night and he did his best to heal me. You can trust him not to hurt you."
Matilda looked weary but what choice did she have if she was to get out of here, so she nodded a yes.
Hermione let out a breath of relief, "Good, now I'm going to get these chains off of you and transfigure something for you to put on."
Matilda smiled for a brief second, it had been along time since she had worn clothing. Hermione pointed her wand at the rusted chains and blasted them apart, leaving the cuff part around her ankle. She didn't want to risk hurting the girl anymore then she already was.
She then cast a quick spell to cleanse Matilda a bit before transfiguring one of her own socks into a white dress, long enough to cover what was left of Matilda's body. She was practically wasted away to nothing.
Hermione allowed Matilda to brace herself against her and started walking towards the mouth of the cave.
