Help, I need somebody, Help, not just anybody, Help, you know I need someone, help.-Beatles
"Ah, my little mudblood has finally realized I've come to play, has she?"
The voice was dark and evil, cold and calculated. I'd never heard it before but it instantly chilled me to the bone and made me tense up even more. I clutched the bucket to my chest and scanned the tree line frantically, I couldn't make anything out, where was the voice coming from and what did it want?
I took a step back and put the well between myself and the woods. If it came down to it I was ready to throw my bucket at whatever was in the woods and run like the wind for the house, screaming the whole way. A shadow appeared at the edge of the forest, and a cloaked man walked forward. He was the same pale man who had been watching me at the feast. Why was he here and what did he want?
Wait, he had called me mudblood, was he a wizard? How had he known my ancestry? Unless… Could he be the one who had sent us here? He stepped closer towards me, his pale eyes narrowed and his thin lips curved up in a leer.
"Little mangy grangy, come to play?" Mangy Grangy, that's what the kids had called me before I went to Hogwarts, how had he known that? I'd never told anyone about that nickname, not even Harry.
Fear threatened to grip me as he drew nearer and I saw that he had a wand. I took another step back and raised the bucket, getting ready to throw it with all of my might. I didn't know who he was, I was certain that he was the person who had sent us back in time, but at the moment I just didn't care. I was fully focused on getting out of that clearing and back to my wand.
"Maybe when I'm done playing with you I'll go visit little Potty, I'll lock him in a cupboard he'll never escape from." That made me stop in my slow retreat. He'd just threatened Harry, I had to get to him first, I had to warn him, had to save him.
"First though I shall enjoy you, all of you." He sneered, and then he flicked his wand. I heard a whoosh but I was already turning around so I didn't see what his spell had done. I ran for the houses, praying that I wasn't too late, that I'd get to Harry and my wand. I had scarcely run a meter when flames sprang up in front of me. I screamed and stepped back, barely avoiding the searing heat of the fire that burned in front of me. A hand clasped my arm and jerked me back before I was spun around and thrown to the ground.
I landed on the cold winter ground with a painful thud and lost all the air in my lungs. The wizard loomed above me, his face cold and calculating. "Silencio." He muttered, and I felt the cold press of the spell around my throat. I steeled my nerves and gripped the bucket more tightly in my hands. He leaned down, outstretching his wand with a wicked grin. I swung the bucket in a wide arc, from the right to the left, hitting him firmly in the face. A sickening crunch sounded as the bucket made contact with his skin and I believe it broke a few bones. I pressed my palms flat against the ground and pushed up, standing quickly before bringing the bucket back around and hitting the stunned wizard on the other side of the fence. The bucket had completely disintegrated now, and it was no longer any good as a weapon. I dropped the splintered pieces of wood and ran for the tree line with all my might, praying to every deity I knew that I'd make it to their safe cover.
He was behind me moments later, and his footsteps echoed through the clearing along eerily. I was running with everything in me, but he was gaining ground. I was running in a dress that was at least twenty pounds, and they constricted my legs, I wasn't going to win this race. I reached the edge of the woods and was about to dive into them when I felt the cold hand on my shoulder in a steel grip again. He jerked me back and threw me to the ground more forcibly this time.
I screamed a voiceless scream as he loomed over me, holding me down before straddling my waist with a sneer. I hit at his face, clawing at the skin there in a vain attempt to get him to stop. Panic was gripping me as he went for the fabric that covered my shoulders. His face was already swollen, and my nails were drawing blood on what must have been extremely sensitive skin.
"Petrificus totalus." He whispered, leaning down towards me as he said the spell. My hands snapped to my side and I found my body frozen beneath him as he laughed. His left hand moved back the ripped fabric of my sleeves while his right hand tugged my skirt up. A scream filled me but I couldn't release it, my lungs were frozen and my mouth wouldn't open, I couldn't even cry as I lay there beneath him. He clawed at my now bare shoulder, leaving deep scratches on the skin there. His hand moved to the other sleeve while his other hand still wrestled with my voluminous skirt.
As he ripped the seams on my sleeve panic threatened to completely claim me. I'd never been so scared, not even when Bellatrix had tortured me. Lying on this cold dirt while this unknown wizard prepared to rape me was the worst torture imaginable and it was making me unable to breathe or think past the blinding panic that had taken me. He pulled back from where he was ripping my sleeve with a snarl. He leered up at me, his thin mouth turned in a horrible smile before he raised his hand and hit me hard on the side of my head. My vision swam and stars exploded before my eyes. He gave a nasty growl and then stood up, using both hands to rip the fabric of my skirt.
"HERMIONE!" Three voices screamed from the other side of the flames. Their voices broke through the dark forest and filled me with breath taking hope. The panic that had claimed me all but melted away, and was replaced with a burning rage towards this wizard. However, I still couldn't feel or move anything, I was still frozen.
The wizard looked up from where he had been ripping the seam of my skirt and let out a snarl before standing up and running deeper into the woods. I lay frozen, unable to call for help, unable to move or cry or hit him like I really wanted. I was just frozen, and surrounded by flames from his earlier spell.
I heard Fred shout something, and then the flames disappeared, leaving nothing but the cold air surrounding me. A heart beat later I felt my limbs unfreeze as Harry slid next to me. Fred and George raced past us, heading into the woods after the wizard. Harry pulled me to his chest, asking me something but I couldn't make the words out. I was crying and shaking to hard. I clung onto him desperately, holding him in the tightest embrace I could; trembling as he gently rubbed my back. My body was on fire and everything hurt.
"What happened?" He kept asking, I just wept, unable to form words. I felt something soft touch my back and then I was warm as Harry finished wrapping his cloak around my own bare shoulders. My gown was ripped, but it was fixable. I don't know why my mind was focusing on that fact, I was having trouble focusing on anything for long.
"What has gone on here?" A deep voice asked, I was still shaking against Harry and couldn't speak.
"It got away." Fred's voice said, coming from right behind me. He sounded winded as he spoke. I heard George confirm his statement and then I felt both their arms wrap around me.
"What got away?" The voice questioned, I believed it was Thomas but I couldn't see who was speaking because my head was still buried in Harry's chest. I took a deep breath and forced myself to pull it together. I had to answer that, I couldn't let the others tell the truth, it might hurt our story.
"Demon," I cried, pulling back slightly so I could look at who was talking, it was Thomas. Half the other villagers had joined him. I let all the fear that had so completely filled me earlier resurface and show on my face.
"Why did you not cry out for help, child?" Thomas asked, stepping nearer to us. Harry, Fred, and George had made a protective circle around me. I was still trembling and unable to stop myself from shaking, but I forced myself to speak.
"I tried but the creature froze me. I could not move or speak, it was horrible, Sir. It had fangs for teeth and claws instead of fingers. It's hair was long and black and it had horns!" I let more tears fall down my face and I clutched onto Harry, burying my head in his chest again. I felt Fred tighten his grip on me and heard him mutter some curse at the wizard that had attacked me.
"Michael," Thomas called. "Set up a search party, we must find this foul beast! Call the knights; it is their duty to protect the kings people, is it not?" I heard Michael answer in the affirmative and then I felt Harry slowly lift me up, his strong arms holding me close to his chest.
"I am taking Jane inside, she needs rest and healing. I fear tonight has been draining on her." Harry said, managing to use the accent and keeping his voice level despite the tension I could feel in his arms. Thomas nodded his acceptance and the three of them led me towards the house. We made it quickly, and silently, I was still trembling but the three of them helped hold me up. George opened the door and Harry and Fred led me through before they locked the door. Fred summoned the chest to the center of the room before he transfigured it into a couch. Harry sat me down on it gently and then sat next to me while Fred and George knelt in front of me. I wrapped Harry's cloak around my body tighter as George pointed his wand at the fireplace and started a fire.
"What really happened? Can you talk about it?" Harry asked quietly, rubbing my arm softly. I let out a hiss of pain and tried to bite it back before it escaped my lips, I didn't want him to know how badly I was hurt until I knew how badly I was hurt.
"You're hurt?" Fred questioned, looking up at me with his blue eyes.
"I'm alright," I said, lying through my teeth. My body seemed to grow even more painful, as though it were trying to tell me that it was most definitely not alright. My eyes had filled with tears and I did nothing to stop them as I bit my lip. I took in a deep breath and noticed I had stopped shaking now, and I was extremely grateful for that small fact. "I went to fetch the water when this man came out of the woods. He knew I was a muggle born and even called me a nickname I had before I came to Hogwarts. He knew about you as well, Harry. He said he was going to lock you up in a cupboard you'd never escape from."
"He knew who we were?" Harry asked, sounding shocked. His eyes were still narrowed and he still looked furious. It made me feel loved and safe to see him so angry on my account, to see them all so mad on my account.
"Yes, I think he's the one who sent us here." I said, relaying my true fears and thoughts.
"Makes sense, it was definitely a guys laugh I heard." George mumbled frowning. Harry continued rubbing my arm, oblivious to the fact that it actually hurt a little bit. Fred was holding my hand and his grip tightened on my own. I looked down at him and was surprised to see him looking at me. I got caught in his eyes again and had to repress the urge to keep staring at them. My rapidly beating heart slowed down a little and I took a deep breath, calming down a slight bit.
A/N: So, our captor of sorts is revealed. (Well, we know what he looks like anyway.) Anybody have any questions? I'm going to try and get the actual plot of this story moving a little, so hold onto your wands people, this ride is about to get wild!
Also, the poll results are in. The Deathly Hallows, is in the first place as the favorite Harry Potter book, The Order of the Phoenix, and The Goblet of Fire are tied for second place. The Prisoner of Azkban came in third, and The Sorcerer's stone came in fourth. Chamber of Secrets and The Half Blood Prince are in last place. (That's really funny, those are my least favorite books.) A new poll is up, go check it out and vote for your favorite! (I think it's rather a tough question myself. :D)