Chapter 14 – Deception Revealed

Hermione bowed her head and tried to conjure up the perfect words to Sirius' question. But the truth was, there was no perfect answer. She would hurt him no matter what. Her mind flashed back to the conversation she had with James. He had told her not to hurt Sirius, and what did she do? Exactly what she said she wouldn't.

"Look," she began, hating how harsh her voice sounded, "it just wasn't meant to be between us. After what happened during the last full moon we weren't friends. Severus was there for me, even after I told him about you-know-what.

"And you and I are much too different Sirius, Severus and I can talk about everything, but you and I talk about hardly anything and it seems as if we're having the same conversation over and over again."

Sirius stared at her for what seemed to be a long time before replying, "What about opposites attracting then? So what if we are a bit different, I really like you and I thought that you felt the same way..."

"I'm sorry Sirius, but it never would have worked out between us. It just was not meant to be."

"Just be careful then," Sirius said genially and in a big-brother sort of way, "Snape is bound to screw up and hurt you. And I won't be below saying I told you so when that time occurs."

Hermione stood up and clasped hands with Sirius. They weren't feuding anymore and Hermione felt that Sirius would bounce back soon enough. He did have scads of blonde bimbos at his beck and call after all.

Sirius picked up the book that Hermione had sat down. "Is this Mooney's?" He questioned. Hermione nodded. "It's not bad," Sirius informed Hermione, "I didn't quite like the ending though."

Severus donned the long black robe that he had been granted the week before. Slowly, he was rising in rank, past the men that have been in service for years. With his news, he would surely be elevated in ranks, maybe even granted a mask.

If only Lily could see him now. She would surely be impressed at how he had become someone to be respected and feared.

Severus entered the room that the Dark Lord used as his 'office'. This is where he conducted business.

Severus quickly noticed that the Dark Lord had gathered his inner circle for this meeting, for which Severus was glad. At first, Severus thought that the Dark Lord hadn't taken his message seriously, but could now see that he had.

Severus bowed before his Lord, his forehead touching the floor in respect. He did not move until his Lord ordered him to. He could tell that he was pleased with Severus.

"My Lord," Severus bowed once again before talking and as he spoke he kept his eyes trained respectfully lowered, "I bring you news of great importance.

"I have discovered a prophecy that is disturbingly coming true. I believe that it involves you and students in Hogwarts." Severus remained quiet as the Dark Lord contemplated this news.

Severus heard a rustling and saw the Dark Lord rise. His Lord glided around the table and stood before Severus.

"Let me see your eyes," He murmured silkily.

Severus knew that the Dark Lord would penetrate his mind so he dropped his defenses and met the eyes of Lord Voldemort.

Severus was aware of Voldemort sifting through his memories, of the moment where Hermione informed him of what she was, to reading the prophecy, and of the kiss that he and Hermione shared in the library. The Dark Lord tested his memories, trying to prove the validity of them.

When he was satisfied with the memories he withdrew from Severus' mind.

"I am impressed," Voldemort murmured. "You have brought me information of vital importance." Voldemort was now walking back to his seat, as he sat down he gestured for one of his members to step forward.

"McNair, contact Thaddeus and request a new mask. When you have done that prepare one of the extra rooms, it seems as if we have a new member in our circle."

Severus bowed his head. He was surprised; he had expected a mask, not a room! And certainly not to have been induced into Voldemort's inner circle, at least not so quickly.

"The rest of you, leave us. I wish to speak to Severus alone."

The Death Eaters of the Dark Lord's inner circle complied with his request and left the room. Severus could sense the surprise of the group; they had not expected someone so young and inexperienced to be inducted.

"Severus, I'd like you to keep an eye on this… Hermione girl. I see you've already begun a relationship with this girl. Very wise decision."

Severus bowed his head in thanks of the praise. He felt an overwhelming feeling of guilt in his stomach but he repressed it. Voldemort gestured for him to leave and Severus complied with the command, after bowing deeply once again.

Voldemort watched the young man leave. He contemplated his next move before summoning a group of men. He swiftly gave them their orders and watched them scurry around the compound, preparing for their night.

When Hermione woke up in the morning she didn't feel quite right. She got dressed and went downstairs and ran right into Professor McGonagall.

"Come with me Miss. Granger."

Hermione followed McGonagall to the Headmaster's office. She was ushered up the steps and she sat in a chair in front of the Headmaster's desk.

"Miss. Granger," Dumbledore greeted. Hermione nodded her own greeting, she was feeling increasingly nauseous.

"We decided that because this is your first transformation that we had prior knowledge of that we should place you somewhere for that transformation. Unfortunately we do not find it wise to place you and Remus in the same location. This left us with a problem of where to put you. We finally came up with the Gamekeeper's hut. We are not particularly fond of this arrangement so we are going to try to find a better place to put you next month," Dumbledore informed her.

Hermione kept wondering who the 'we' he was talking about was. Dumbledore looked at her expectantly if waiting for her opinion. Which Hermione thought was odd because Dumbledore didn't seem like the kind of guy who cared about your opinion.

"Sounds good," Hermione lied. Really, she didn't want to be locked up for her transformation. She really wanted to run and jump. She knew that she wouldn't like being locked up. But, she knew that saying that would mean nothing.

Hermione thought that Dumbledore had been exaggerating things when he said that the gamekeeper lived in a hut, but, he was not. Hut was actually a very apt description. Hermione stood in front of it with McGonagall beside her. Hermione glanced over at McGonagall who was studiously ignoring Hermione's looks, and for a good reason.

Hermione was outraged. They were locking her in there? Fully transformed she would probably not have any room to move. Maybe that was the plan…

Hermione sighed as McGonagall opened the door and ushered her in. Hermione sat down on an oversized chair and stared at the one roomed hut. There was a giant bed in one corner covered in a patchwork quilt and a fire in the fireplace in the other corner. The table was in the middle of the room and it was oversized, like the rest of the 'house'.

She wondered who would live in such a place. Hermione would never have been able to stand living in such enclosed quarters. Hermione got off of the uncomfortable wooden chair and lay down in the bed. It wasn't very uncomfortable but it wasn't anything at all like the beds in the dormitories.

Hermione closed her eyes; she would spend all day in this cabin. McGonagall will bring her lunch and dinner and would let her out in the morning.

Hermione was approaching the cabin carrying a large red-head who was periodically throwing up slugs. A boy with glasses and black hair was supporting the red-head as well. They knocked on the door to the cabin and a large man answered.

Hermione jolted awake, surprised that she had fallen asleep. She got off of the bed and opened the door that was being knocked on. McGonagall was there, but she wasn't alone. Remus was with her. Hermione opened the door further and Remus, holding the food, came in.

"Only a half-hour," McGonagall half warned half reminded Remus. He nodded and closed the door.

"So why aren't you locked up somewhere?" Hermione asked Remus. She was rather mad that he didn't have to sit in a hut like her. He gets a whole freaking house.

"At first, I was forced into the house the whole day of the full moon. I was observed and it was decided that 'I wasn't harmful to the other students' until lunch time, which is when I started getting cranky and snappy."

"Is that what they're going to do to me?" Hermione asked Remus.

"I can only assume," Remus replied, "but you know what it means to assume."

"No, I don't."

"Spell it out, Hermione."

Just then McGonagall stuck her head into the one-room hut and told Remus that it was time to leave. And then, Hermione was alone again, waiting out the rest of the day on her own.

She spent most of the time thinking of what she'd rather be doing. The thing she most wanted right now was to see Severus, her boyfriend. She remembered all of the time that they spent in the library. That's where she wanted to be right now, in her favorite place in the world with her favorite person.

It seemed like the day went on and on. She knew, logically, that time does not actually speed up when you are happy, nor does it slow down when you are miserable and bored.

But, at times like this, it did seem like it. Hermione took to pacing around the room. She found that as she thought of Dumbledore and his banishment of her she walked quite a bit faster. It was because, of course, that she was angry at the wizard who was purported to have so much knowledge and yet was so daft and arrogant. He thought that he was so wise so his decisions were always correct.

It infuriated Hermione. What made her so angry was the fact that everyone seemed mesmerized by the man, they could not think to criticize him or not follow an order he issued. Sure, Dumbledore was nice enough to Hermione when she first arrived but she began to feel that that was a ruse, a farce.

Maybe Hermione was just being sore about being locked up like an animal. That probably was it. She saw no other reason to dislike Dumbledore other than the way he locked her up in this small hut. And, in retrospect, that was only because he was trying to protect the other students. Is the safety of the other students less important than her feelings?

Hermione paced the rest of the day away. The only exception was a brief break to eat her dinner.

By the time that the sun was beginning to disappear she felt tired. She sat on the bed and stared out of the curtained window that was near the front door.

Despite her apprehensiveness of her next transformation she was looking forward to it. She could not help but to remember how it felt to stretch out and run freely. It felt as if she could stretch out completely in her other form. It was like the itch in her back was finally relived after what seemed like ages.

Hermione waited as the sky got darker and darker. She waited for the moon. It was finally time to change. She stood and brushed back the curtain, so she could see her moon better. She stared at the fullness of the moon in the sky. And then, she was lost to the beast within.

--

My body shudders one last time as I finish my transformation. I am aware of my surroundings and of what I am and once was. It is an odd sort of experience, to be ensconced in such a foreign body and yet feel absolutely at home. I stretch myself at length and wonder how my first experience was so different.

I remember the experience of my first transformation well enough, enough to know that I wasn't as sound in my mind as last time. Maybe the first transformation was part of the transition. Like it had to happen in that way to make me so aware now? Who really knows though?

I stretched myself out fully, well, as fully as I could in this tiny one-room hut. It was not nearly as good as what it would feel like to be outside.

The desire to be outside, in the fresh air, was overwhelming. I could almost feel the ground beneath my paws. I yearned to see the moon and to run underneath it on the earth.

I contemplated the door and its structural integrity. I was not very apt to violent outbreaks but I longed to have the moon on my back so I would make it possible. Despite the repercussions, I would do what I wanted. I backed up the best I could and lunged at the door.

I hit it with my massive paws and I felt the wood of the door splinter. I backed up once more and lunged at it again. The wood of the door broke, and I was free.

I walked through the door but some invisible barrier stopped me. I backed up and leaped through the door frame. I was thrown backwards and landed in a heap on top of the table. I heard the wood crack, but the table stayed intact.

I growled in frustration and broke through a window, but I failed to break outside. I let out a loud and piercing cry. It seems that I will have no fun tonight. I lay down in front of the open front door among the splinters and chunks of wood and I whine. It was a pitiful sound and I am not proud that it came from me, but, I was in mourning, mourning of the time that I could be running free but am instead spending imprisoned. It is not a time of pride.

--

Sirius raced alongside Mooney, and it really was Mooney, there was no part of Remus left inside of that werewolf, and howled at the moon along with him. He had not seen Hermione yet, but he figured it was only a matter of time. Sirius dodged a tree and saw Mooney change directions in the corner of his eye.

He spun around swiftly and raced after the retreating back of his werewolf friend.

Mooney seemed more restless tonight than normal. Like he was waiting for something big to happen, Sirius could only imagine that the big thing Mooney was waiting for was his encounter with Hermione.

Sirius was also looking forward to this meeting. He was anxious to see how they reacted to each other. Would the two mortal enemies immediately jump at each other and try to tear each other's throats out, or, will they frolic through the Forbidden Forest together, best friends till the end?

Sirius was leaning towards the former, if he was being honest with himself. He hoped that they wouldn't try to kill each other, they were his friends after all, but he found it hard to believe that two enemies would immediately forsake their species just because they bonded.

You may think that Sirius was being a cynic, but he was merely being realistic.

Sirius had just caught up to Mooney when he saw a red flash in the distance. It looked like it was close to where James was. Sirius had a hard decision to make then; does he leave one friend in search of the other when both are possibly in life threatening situations?

Sirius made one of his famous snap decisions. He turned and raced towards the red light. He entered a clearing and his heart stopped for a moment. A stag was on its back surrounded by tall hooded figures, many of which held wands pointed towards the stag.

Sirius raced towards one of the hooded figures, aiming for his throat. He saw a flash and then felt his body stiffen. He was stunned, quite literally. He fell to the ground and hoped he wouldn't be killed.

Sirius looked around the clearing at the group of disorganized and confused men. They seemed to be discussing something in whispers and Sirius heard most of their words.

"Okay, group two will fan through this sector of the forest and look for the Therianthrope. Remember, you must be cautious because the werewolf is loose as well."

"What do we do if we find it?" asked a faceless shroud of a man.

"Which it?" inquired another.

"Either one I suppose."

"Capture the Therianthrope, the Dark Lord wishes to interrogate it; he wishes to see if there are any others. You may kill the werewolf."

Sirius was filled with rage. He wanted to break free from his bondage and attack and kill the men who wish to hurt his friends. Sirius was so overcome with rage that he almost missed the movement to his left. A large form seemed to appear out of nowhere. Sirius recognized the blob.

Peter!!

Sirius saw Peter raise his wand. He pointed towards Sirius and performed the counter-curse. He leapt to his feet and quickly took out the closest man. He bit into his legs with such violence that it didn't take very long until he felt blood trickling around his teeth.

Just then, Mooney jumped into the clearing and began growling so frighteningly that Sirius saw some men actually run away. Sirius didn't have time to laugh in their faces however because he was too busy crippling other men. He saw Peter stunning men from his hiding spot in the trees. Sirius took a few blows throughout the miniature battle.

He was kicked quite a few times and once his fur was caught on fire. He howled in outrage and disengaged the man swiftly. His adrenaline was pumping and all he could see was the black of the night and the red of blood; his, the men's, Mooney's, and James'.

When the commotion died down Sirius transformed out of his dog guise and examined the fallen. He was surprised to see the faces of his classmates. Most of them were Slytherins but two were Ravenclaws.

Sirius, James and Peter converged in the middle of the clearing. Sirius was overcome by emotion. All though they had all survived their classmates had betrayed them, so this was not a moment of joy. Sirius had also almost died. He was so overrun with emotion that the only thing he could do was clasp Peter in a hug and hold onto him tightly.

Peter, the most cowardly one of them had saved them all.

After they had all recovered from their ordeal they levitated the unconscious bodies of their classmates to the edge of the forest. Then, James went back into the forest to keep an eye on Mooney, who they could hear thrashing around in the forest.

Sirius and Peter both worked together to get the bodies into a more concealed location, then, Peter went into the castle to find help, preferably McGonagall and Dumbledore, while Sirius guarded the bodies. Sirius felt disturbed by referring to his classmates as 'the bodies' because it felt as if they were dead. And they might as well be. They were planning on killing one of his best mates and capturing another.

Not to mention the fact that they were obviously serving Voldemort.

Sirius saw the approaching figures before it registered what it was. Then his brain processed the information, Sirius felt out of sorts because of the night he had, and jumped up and waved over the help that had come.

McGonagall, Madame Pomfrey, Dumbledore, and a few House Elves all levitated a body and transported them to the Hospital wing. Sirius followed, numb. He briefly noticed that the sun had begun to come up.

When they got to the Hospital Wing he was forced into a bed and he gratefully and ungracefully fell into the bed and slept.

--

Hermione awoke curled on the quilted bed. She had fallen asleep in the moment after she transformed back into her human self. She had been up all night listening to the noises of the forest. She heard a commotion in the forest and could only assume that it was Remus and the rest of the Marauders.

Hermione decided to curl up on the bed to wait for McGonagall's return so she could be sprung from her prison. It was hours after the sun had risen and she still had not come. Hermione did not know what had jolted her awake but she found that she could not get back to sleep.

She was far too anxious to be free.

Finally, Hermione saw a figure in the distance. She sat up and walked towards the empty doorframe. She gingerly stepped over the broken shards of glass and wood that littered the floor.

It was not McGonagall, it was Peter. Hermione stepped though the doorway and was happily surprised that the wards that had kept her in last night had dissolved. She wandered why she had not tried earlier; she figured that she had been so used to captivity that the idea of freedom was not the first thing on her mind.

Hermione approached Peter and noticed that he seemed very pale.

"What's wrong with you Peter? You look as if you've seen a ghost!"

"We were attacked last night," Peter informed her. Hermione was shocked at his admission.

"Where are Sirius and Remus and James?" She asked him.

"Hospital Wing."

Hermione did not think further, she ran as fast as she could towards the hospital wing. Her feet ached from the places where she had stepped on glass but she ran through the pain. Her heart was in greater pain. Someone had attacked her family.

Hermione arrived in the hospital Wing gasping for breath and clutching her side. She saw Sirius in a bed and rushed towards him. He didn't seem to worse for wear, he was snoring loudly but his face was mottled with the yellow of healing bruises.

Hermione searched the room for James and Remus but they were concealed from view. Hermione was frantic and her searching noises attracted the attention of Madame Pomfrey who upon seeing her pushed her into a bed and got to work healing her bleeding feet.

She gave Hermione a potion that knocked her out.

Waking up in the hospital Wing was swiftly becoming Hermione's least favorite thing in the world. It seemed to be the only thing that she had been doing lately. She tossed off her blankets and found Sirius in a matter of seconds. He was in the same bed in the same condition.

Hermione guiltily shook him awake; she did not wish to disturb his healing. She felt guilty but her need to know what had happened was too strong. Sirius startled awake, he had a wild look in his eyes that made Hermione want to cry.

"What happened?" Hermione asked brokenly.

Sirius whispered the tale of what happened last night to her. He seemed so removed from the story that it frightened her.

"Who could have done this? Who could have told them about us?" Hermione questioned rhetorically.

Unfortunately, one person thought he knew the answer to that question. With steely eyes Sirius sat up in bed. He got out of bed and began racing threw the halls, looking for the bastard that had ratted out his friends. When Sirius found him, he would kill him. Once and for all and he would enjoy every second of it.