A/N: Update coming soon. Thanks for all the views- Mayajane

Chapter Ten- A Couple Good Girls

I shouldn't be here alone. I should have begged Draco to come with me. He didn't know my next name, so if anything happened to me tonight, no one would find me until it was too late. This man I was after, Thomas Waterby, was the leader of a gang in my old neighborhood. He was ruthless and had even cut me with a knife while raping me. My father had spoken up and said that wasn't in the rules. I think the blood had freaked him out. I was so numb back then I had barely felt the cut. I still needed stitches though.

I walked down the street, the sun was up now, and it wasn't my usual time. Most of the time I waited for night to fall but my need was high, to say the least.

I stalked down the street further until I came to a house, unlike the others. It was run down, maybe even a whore house. No one was taking care of it. A little girl ran out the front door, maybe five. She saw me and ran back inside, and I ran as fast as I could and gripped her before she could make a noise. I stunned her and laid her gently on the porch, conjuring a pillow to put under her head. She probably was being raped like I was. I should take her somewhere, but she was the objective here. She was just collateral. I hoped when I was finished here I will have come up with something to do with her. She saw my face, saw my wand.

I opened the screen door and pushed the cracked main door open. The smell of pot hit me in the face, and I thought maybe that might make it easier. I spotted beer cans and vodka bottles on the table in the living room. Then I heard little screams. It made my blood boil. Those were not good screams. They sounded much like my own had when I was little. Before I knew better.

I followed the noises as quickly as I could without making any sounds. I found the door wide open and a girl maybe eight on the bed with my rapist on top of her. I didn't hesitate. I grabbed my knife and came up around him and slit his throat from ear to ear. Blood spurted all over the girl, unfortunately. I hadn't thought about that. I pulled him off her and vanished the blood as quickly as it had landed.

She screamed just once and then scrambled into my arms saying thank you in Spanish. I didn't know Spanish to explain anything to her and then she said in English, "He was a bad man."

"Yes, he hurt me too a long time ago," I told her, and she pulled away.

"The other girl…did he hurt her too?"

"Yes." She said tearfully, "My sister. Where is she?"

"I had to put her asleep so she wouldn't make noise. She is just sleeping. Come on; let's get you some clothes."

She went to her dresser with a slight grimace, and I felt tremendous anger.

"I can make the pain go away sweetheart."

"You can? The pain never goes away." She whispered.

"I am magical, but that's our secret. You cant tell anyone. Come here; I can help."

She laid down on the bed, and I didn't heal her because the authorities would need to examine her and she needed the bruises and the tearing to be documented. I just numbed her. She breathed a sigh of relief.

"You are still hurt, just no longer in pain. Doctors will help you so pretend you still hurt okay?" She nodded, and I helped her into clothes. I saw so much of myself in her only no one had ever come to help me. I had to help myself.

The little girl walked in having woken up, and she ran to her sister. I hoped they weren't split up.

"We have a secret." The older girl said.

"What's that?"

"We are magic too. So are the other girls here."

I was stunned. Could my father have clued this man in on magic? My father forced me to tell him everything about the magical world. He would have been able to tell the man about Muggle-borns. But these girls might now be Muggle-borns.

"Where are your parents?"

"Dead. He killed our parents and took us." She told me. The younger girl started to cry, and her sister hugged her.

"Do you girls want to come with me?" I asked finally.

"Where?"

"To my house to live. I can protect you, I promise. No one will ever hurt you again."

"We can both come?"

"Yes."

We packed up all their stuff, and I put it in my bag. The girls were awed by the extension charm on it.

I didn't know what I was thinking by bringing them to my home, but I didn't want them separated, and I didn't trust the cops in this area. I cleansed the bedroom of all our DNA and theirs. I left the blood and the body. It wouldn't take a genius to figure out what happened here.

"Are there more girls?"

"They are all gone. He kills them when they get too old." The older girl said.

"What's your name honey?"

"Guadalupe. This is Maria."

"Okay, we need to go now. Take my hands and no matter what do not let go. Hold on as tight as you can. We are going to appear in another place."

"Will it hurt?"

"No, I promise it doesn't."

We apparated to my house, and Snape was there as was Draco, Blaise, Ginny, and Marybeth. Everyone fell silent when they saw the girls in my hands.

"This is Guadalupe, and this is Maria. I found them in the house of my next name. He was hurting them. They say they are magical. I had to bring them, the cops in that area are a joke."

"Hermione…" Draco said softly. I ignored him and turned to the girls.

"Are you hungry?"

They both nodded immediately, so I brought them into the kitchen where the pickle jar still laid.

I cleaned it up and sat them at the counter. I needed to get them examined by a doctor.

"Snape," I called, and he came in.

"Can that doctor help them?"

"Yes. She specializes in this kind of thing. They were-

"Yes." I cut him off, and he retreated a distance. I noticed then how wary the girls looked.

"He won't hurt you. I promise. What would you like to eat, Maria?"

"She doesn't talk much. I don't know why. She did before." Guadalupe said softly.

"What does she like?"

"Pizza."

I ordered a pizza and called the Head Healer. I didn't want to scare them by taking them into a magical hospital. She arrived just fifteen minutes later with a larger bag floating. The girls didn't look surprised to see it floating making me think they really did have magical parents. I had thought it was possible they had just said they were magical because they thought it would save them.

"Hi girls, how are you?' She said. The girls didn't say anything.

"This is a healer, girls. She is coming to make you all better. You don't have to pretend to be hurt okay?"

"I numbed Guadalupe because she was in so much pain, but I wanted you to document her injuries just in case someone comes looking for them or me. They told me their parents were killed by my target."

The healer took that all in and asked the girl if she could take a look at their boo-boos.

"Will it hurt?" Guadalupe asked, touching her sister's hair.

"No, it won't. I promise." She said, and the girls were led to my bedroom where I held their hands while the healer checked their injuries. She by the scaring and such that they had been there for months, maybe a year.

That made me sick. Maria would have been just four. Guadalupe revealed to me that she was actually ten.

"But you are so small."

"He didn't give up much food. Maria is six. Her birthday was yesterday. She didn't even get a present." Guadalupe said and started to cry. I got them some of their clothes and the healer took me aside.

"You aren't ready to take this on. I know of a nice family that would take them together and take good care of them."

"They stay here until I meet them," I said firmly.

"Very well. I will send them later today. How's that?"

"We have to go?" Maria spoke up.

"I know it's scary, sweetheart, but I will make sure they are nice to you, and if they aren't, I will come to get you. But you don't have to go right now. We're just going to meet them."

Maria and Guadalupe got settled in and ate pizza. I wondered when the last time they ate was. Probably days the way they were so lethargic.

The Abbotts were the family that came. I wondered what they knew about Taven, and it was clear they didn't know he was here. They were very eager to meet the girls. Maria took a liking to Mrs. Abbot right away. I think she was looking for a new mom. Guadalupe was wary of Mr. Abbott, but eventually, she warmed up to them both. I hated to see them go but I knew the Head Healer was right about me not being able to take this on. I was just 15, and I had a little girl of my own. She told me I had done everything I could by saving them. I hugged them both goodbye and looked at both of their new parents in the eyes.

"I will know if any harm comes to them."

Mr. Abbott gulped, but looked me in the eyes and told me, "I will die before any harm comes to them. I am sorry we did not help Ginny. It is my biggest regret. Thank you for saving them. We will love them like our own. Since Hannah died, we haven't been the same. We have love to give. You can see them whenever you like."

"I will. Goodbye girls. I will check on you soon, I Promise."

Guadalupe hugged me, and Maria waved. They looked hopeful. I was kinda devastated to see them go but I knew I was equipped to take care of them with all the responsibilities I had. I needed to bond with my own daughter. It still felt like it couldn't be true I had one. I was just a kid myself. In some ways at least.

It was the next morning, and despite Snape's plan to the two aurors together they had revealed nothing. Veritaserum was useless if you didn't even know the questions to ask. I didn't know how they found out about my list. Unless they had known about me and not the men. If they had known about the abuse, I endured and done nothing I would just kill them myself. Snape's approval or not.

Snape came in through the front door with a bang, and he had tears on his face. It had to be his daughter.

"We need to go. Everything else needs to be put on hold. Will you assist me please, Hermione?"

I didn't hesitate to say yes. This man was the reason my daughter was alive. Ginny left Marybeth with the sitter and Blaise, Draco and I packed a light bag. We didn't know what we would need exactly but hopefully conjuring worked where we were going.

Snape took my hand and Draco's, while Ginny and Blaise held onto us. I wished I could see Natalie or Harry before I went, but it seemed time was of the essence.

We appeared in an empty field, but I knew we weren't there yet. It couldn't be. It looked too normal, nothing like what I imagined.

"I can't apparate us there, we each need to use a new method of travel to get there. I just heard from my spy that he plans to execute her in 24 hours. Please concentrate. You need to envision yourself separate from your body. I will cast a spell around us to guide your magic to the other plane. Just try and float away from yourself. Girls, I know you can do this. Draco and Blaise I am not so sure you will be able to, but I need to you to try. Ready? You go home the same way. The spell isn't a word, it just a raw burst of power. Just cast out with everything you can if we get separated. I will forever be in your debt if we are successful."

He cast the spell, and I closed my eyes. His instructions were things I had done so many times. I floated away from my body so many times over the years. I was sure Ginny had done the same. I thought for sure Draco and Blaise wouldn't be able to go, but when I opened my eyes, the first thing I saw was Draco. Then Ginny and then Snape. No Blaise even after we waited ten minutes. Finally, after another ten minutes, we have to get a move on.

The landscape I was looking at was absolutely gorgeous. The trees were tall, spirally, and green with long branches like a weeping willow. There were tons of them surrounded us. I heard a bunch of pounding and then recognized the sound of hoofbeats. It sounded much too big to be horses. The ground was covered in brown moss that I felt beneath my feet as squishy.

Snape hissed to stay together, and he took off in a run. I raced after him with the Ginny and Draco right behind me. We ran for so long I got a stitch in my side and then finally Snape slowed. The hoofbeats were getting closer, but I could not see anything.

"They are invisible unless you've never killed." He murmured to me. Well fuck.

"Can you see them?"

"No, I just know. No questions."

"But what are they. Are they chasing us?"

"As I cannot see them I don't know! My spy warned me that they are centaurs with a taste for young girls. Draco, I need you to watch the girls as best you can while I cast this spell. Girls I would try to conjure a few things for practice."

I watched Snape grab a branch off the ground and then another. I pulled out my wand and pointed at the ground.

Something erupted, and then blackness took over.