Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor do I make any money from it.

Here is the next chapter of the story it is one of my favourites to do with certain characters, let me know what you think.

Hermione was out of her seat and hugging him before he had finished saying yes. He jumped at the contact, due to the memories flooding his brain, but slowly he opened his eyes. 'Tell her, she has been there for you through everything. Tell her.' Is all that he could think and he was brought back to the tent by the sound of her voice. "Harry I am here if you ever need to talk to anyone about your past. Nothing will prevent me being here for you." She let go of him and was about to turn around and walk away when he grabbed her arm and looked at her pleadingly.

"You promise you will not think any different of me?" She nodded determination set inside her, she took a seat next to him and waited.

"My muggle relatives are not fond of magic to say the least. My Aunt hated my Mother for being a 'freak' as she put it because she was gifted and my Uncle, well my Uncle believed he could beat the magic out of me. They used to punish me if I did anything funny or wrong, this revolved around being grounded to my cupboard for weeks on end to going without food or water." He sighed "Occasionally my Uncle would deem it fit that they were not good enough punishments and take it upon himself to beat the lesson into me. I am not going into detail of the punishments but the scars were caused by belt buckles and other objects. The thing is it is behind me, in the past, and I know talking to you is because I trust you not because I want sympathy. You are by my side camping with me in this forest when everyone else has abandoned me, you are the only person who ever stood beside me." He smiled at her.

"We are in the Forest of Dean Harry. Not everyone has abandoned you Remus, Tonks, Kingsley, the twins and others are still fighting with you." She glanced at the picture frame which was empty "Sirius, Lily and James are with you in here." She pressed her finger to his chest "Do not give up hope."

Over 400 miles away Severus Snape was being told everything Phineas had heard from the pair in the tent. "Albus did you know about Potters treatment?" He was staring at the portrait of a very shocked Dumbledore, the previous Headmaster shook his head and sighed.

"Severus, I was not aware of his abuse, I knew his relatives disliked him and when I sent his first Hogwarts letter I assumed there had been a mistake because his second one was not addressed 'The cupboard under the stairs' it was addressed 'the smallest bedroom' I never knew he had been mistreated but the signs were there." He placed his head in his hand and Severus just glared at him and turned his back on the wizard, pinching the bridge of his nose he took a calming breath.

"At least there is one good outcome from these events we now know Harry Potter is hiding at this precise time in the Forest of Dean." And with that he strode out of his office with his cloak bellowing behind him.

Harry POV

"'Mione, I am going to go and take watch for another couple of hours, get some rest as you will be taking the early morning shift." He gave her a hug and walked out of the tent taking a seat on the makeshift chair beside the fire they had produced with an incendio charm as well as other status spells to prevent it burning out and also odours which would alert werewolf's or snatchers. An hour had passed before something caught his eye there in front of him was a silvery doe which, on further inspection, was craning its neck to get Harry to follow it. He stood up and without thinking followed the creature. He walked for what seemed like half an hour when the doe came to stop above a frozen pond, Harry leaned forward to stroke it but the doe vanished into the middle of the pond.

He scraped back the snow to see if it was still visible, however what he did not expect to see was the sword of Gryffindor laying at the base of the pond. He quickly stripped off and casted a diffindo on the ice which fractured into multiple pieces. Trying to brace his body for the chill that was about to come Harry dived into the lake, the cold hit him like a train and practically knocked all the air out of his lungs. He swam to the bottom of the pond and just as his hand grasped the sword the locket started to strangle him. The chain was crushing his wind pipe while the locket was trying to get as far away from the sword as possible, as if it knew that the sword would kill it. The world started to fade out of view, not much different to how it had done in the Chamber of Secrets, and Harry knew this was the end. 'I am going to drown in this pond without killing him.' Through his darkening vision he saw someone walk onto the ice and cast a spell, the area was lit up with a bright blinding orange light and then Harry felt himself being dragged out of the freezing cold water. Coughing and spluttering he crawled over to his clothes and placed his glasses on. There in front of him stood a scowling Professor Snape.

'I must be concussed there is no way on this planet that Snape just pulled me out of the lake.' "Potter put your clothes on before you die of hyperthermia. You complete idiot diving into that lake without considering for a moment to cast an accio, Gryffindor indeed!" He felt a warm sensation travel over his body and then the distinctive sound of a crack which was caused due to Snape apperating. Harry threw his clothes on and ran the full distance back to the tent 'this cannot have happened, I need to tell Hermione.' "HERMIONE." He yelled sprinting through the tent doors, she came sprinting out of her room looking groggy and Harry ran straight into her knocking them both over onto the floor. "Oh god I'm sorry 'Mione." He said getting off of her and pulling her off the ground.

"Harry what on earth has got you so...so ... well wound up?" She was staring at him, through sleepy eyes, like he had gone insane.

"Look inside my memoires you won't believe me if I tell you...LOOK" She jumped at his raised voice and cast the Legitimus spell. She saw the whole scene from Harry's view and when she finished seeing his memory she sat on the sofa lost for words. "Snape...Snape saved my life didn't he? 'Mione tell me I am not going crazy."

End of POV

"No Harry you're not that was defiantly Professor Snape. I think we need to have a word with the portrait in my bag again." She rushed over to her beaded bag and pulled out the portrait of Phineas who was stood there expectantly. "Ahh finally you have not casted a blindfold over my eyes. You look like you have seen a ghost Potter what has go into you?"

"Pass a message on to the Headmaster, tell him I saw him and I want to know why he couldn't save Dumbledore but he could save me! Don't return until you have an answer or I will set your canvas on fire."

"Tetchy tetchy Mr Potter manners like that will not get you far in life. I will pass your message on and I shall not visit you again until you learn some manners." With that he left his portrait and Hermione just looked glumly at it. Harry rested his head in his hands and sighed 'Now I don't know what to think anymore.'

"It's rather sad but it was nice just to hear another person's voice. Harry I think we should destroy that Horcrux before we forget about it or it turns on us again, it almost killed you once and I am sure it will try again when we go to destroy it." She grasped hold of his hand and pulled him up from his seat. Slowly they both walked towards the door way and out into the night where they walked for ten minutes in silence. After casting numerous charms to make sure no one was within a five mile radius Harry stood out of the safety of the enchantments and placed the locket on the floor. "I am going to open it in parseltongue and when I do you need to stand back because whatever is in there will put up a fight. I will try to kill it but if I fail you must stab it ok 'Mione?"

"No Harry I will go first as you are needed to destroy You Know Who. Open the locket now." He looked at her and then whispered Heshire hasseath the locket opened and the two were thrown backwards off their feet by the explosion of his soul being released, a black cloud erupted from the locket.

"Kill it Hermione!" She jumped up with the sword and made to move towards the locket.

"I have seen your dreams Hermione Granger and your nightmares." Her parents were lying in front of her dead and beside them were Harry and Ron. "The bookworm that spent her life in the shadows being tormented. A Girl who was always second best to the one she loves. A female that was poisoned by her friend. A child who was ignored by her parents." Slowly in front of her the people on the floor stood up her parents ignored her and casted dirty looks "We would have been better off without you wormy, happier without you!" "Hermione all the things I wanted to do to you my beloved wife come here and please me." Ron was edging closer to her and she backed away bracing the sword.

"Hermione it's lying, stab it KILL IT!" Harry was yelling and a section of the cloud broke off and threw him backwards into a tree knocking him out cold. All the brunette could see was the Horcrux version of Harry who moved forward with a ring on his finger and Ginny beside his side

"You disgust me you filthy mudblood, who would ever want to chose you compare to me." She cackled. In front her eyes Harry and Ginny were embracing and slowly were undressing each other.

"See Hermione he never wanted you, you will always be mine! Now come here like a good Muggle and bow down to me." Tears were falling down her cheeks and she ran forward with the sword and swung it through the figure that was Ron, there was a crack and the smoke dissipated. She had done it, she had destroyed the Horcrux. She collapsed on the floor shaking with fear and rage with tears flowing out of her chocolate eyes, looking around desperately for an escape from the images and saw Harry sprawled out over the floor. Panicking she ran to him and felt for a pulse, once she found it she levitated him and took him back to the tent. After murmuring numerous spells she placed him in his bed and sat outside, the images stronger than ever in her mind.

Hermione POV

Two days passed since Harry was knocked out, two days passed since the locket spoke of my deepest fears. I curled up in front of the tent with a blanket around me and tears still betrayed me by falling from my eyes, 'of course he wanted her how could he ever want to be with a Muggle born book worm like me?' These thoughts had been swirling around my head constantly since that night and I thought a number of times about running away but I couldn't leave my best friend alone in this dangerous quest. So I sat here trying to distract myself from the thoughts in my mind but no matter how hard I tried her voice saying Mudblood keep ringing through my ears. Placing my book down I rested my head on my knees and a small sob escaped my lips, that's when a pair of strong arms pulled me into his body from behind me.

"Mione, everything will be ok. I am here nothing will hurt you." He whispered into my ear. I smiled at his voice and soft touch.

"Harry you're awake, how are you feeling?" I said thought my tears. He squeezed me tighter and then stood in front of me with an analysing look.

"Better once you have got some rest." And with that he picked me up and carried me indoors to my room. When he went to place me on my bed I clung on to him, some unknown emotion was preventing me from letting him go, from making me alone with my thoughts. I started to panic thinking he would pull away but he didn't, he lay down beside me and took me in his arms.

"Shh everything will be ok." It was the last thing I heard before I fell into a restless sleep.

End of POV

She was fidgeting in her sleep again so he ran a hand over her shoulders to let her know he was still there. With a sigh Harry slowly got up and made a hot drink while checking the security detectors. 'I wish I knew what the locket has done to Hermione, she is upset about something and I have no idea what it is and how to comfort her.' He walked back to her room and placed the two mugs of hot chocolate on the side, she looked so peaceful in her sleep but the small crease on her brow suggested it was not as peaceful as he first imagined. Climbing back on the bed beside her he ran a hand through her hair "Mione, what am I going to do with you." He whispered before picking up his book on advanced potions to carry on making mental notes about various potions he wanted to make before they found the next Horcrux.

Well that's that for the moment, I shall update with the next chapter in the next seven days (hopefully). Thank you to all my wonderful readers and followers I hope you are enjoying this as much as I enjoyed writing it. This is my first ever fanfiction so let me know your thoughts.