Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. If you recognize any characters they are not mine. The ones you do not recognize came from my head, however I am still not making any money off them. If you are under 18 you should not be reading. Beta'd by the wonderful BernerMom.

Warnings: Language.

"Text when someone is speaking."

'Text when someone is thinking'

moyata malŭk vŭlk = My small wolf

Previously

As Hermione's eyes shot open Remus leaned forward and pulled her into a hug. "You're going to be alright Hermione. We'll get you to the healer as soon as possible."

Hermione continued to cough up water and a bit of blood while she struggled to breath. Looking up she saw Ludmil staring down at her with a bloodied knife in one hand and something that she had never seen on his face, a relieved look.

Taking one hand off Remus' back she reached down and held Ludmil's hand.

He looked down confused at her small hand over his for a moment before looked back up at her and giving her a small smile, "Vou vill be okay bottle Ninna. I saw vat vou did to Maccus. I am very proud of vou."

Hermione smiled and then grimaced as Remus picked her up bridal style, "She needs the healer. We will figure everything else out later."

Chapter 26

The Cave - One Week Later

Hermione felt as if her body had been dragged through hell as she came to. She blinked her eyes and was grateful the sun wasn't streaming through her window like it normally did. Suddenly, Hermione's eyes shot open as she took in the cave that she was in, there were no windows here and the walls were bare.

The horrors of the night of her abduction came flooding back to her. Maccus had betrayed them. He tried to sell her off, and then considered mating with her before attempting to kill her.

Hermione tried to sit up, but the pain in her upper body shot through her like a bullet. Gasping in pain, she also realized there was an arm draped over her waist, along with other weights as well. She was almost too scared to look over her shoulder, just in case Maccus had changed his mind during the night and mated with her while she was unconscious.

Hearing a loud sore near the foot of her bed, she peeked down, and saw Harry asleep, curled up with his head resting against the side her stomach, and she finally relaxed a bit. Looking around some more, she saw Sirius was on the other side of her legs, with his head up against the back of her knees.

Finally, she looked over her shoulder and saw Remus curled up behind her with his arm wrapped around her waist. Behind Remus, she was barely able to catch a glimpse of Ludmil sleeping in a chair by the door.

As she laid her head back down against the pillow, she realized that she was with family. They had come for her. She was safe.

Hermione may have not had a large family before, but she did now. They had come for her and brought her home.

She swallowed as she closed her eyes, the little light that was in the room was beginning to cause her head to ache.

Hearing a movement behind her, Hermione stilled. She tried to gently lift her head once more only to hear a soft gravelly voice call out to her, "Hold on vittle Ninna, I vill come to vou."

She watched as Ludmil came into sight and knelt next to the bed in front of her, "How are vou feeling?"

Hermione couldn't help the small smile that came across her face, "Safe, although my head is hurting and I am very sore." She grimaced as she tried raising her arm to adjust it. "You all came for me?"

She watched Ludmil take a breath and then nod his head, "Vou scared a lot of people that night, vittle Ninna. Vou looked as if you had gone vrom dis vorld by the time ve arrived."

Hermione watched the normally stoic man had to stop for a moment before changing the subject slightly, "I have already talked to Harry, vut vou are not too go valking vithout vour father, Sirius, or myself again. Viktor is alright too, if he is here. No one dat vou do not know though."

Hermione just nodded her head slowly so the pain in her head wouldn't get worse and then rested her head into the pillow more. "Why is everyone in bed with me? Not that I am complaining, but it seems odd."

Ludmil huffed as if he was expecting her question as he looked at her, "Ninna, vou are a wolf now. Ven a member of our family is hurt ve vill huddle vith dem so dey have our scent and varmth to keep dem calm. It helps vith the healing too."

Hermione looked down at Harry and Sirius and then looked at her waist to see her father's arm. She looked back up to Ludmil, "Why aren't you curled up next to me as well then?"

Ludmil leaned down and put his large hand on Hermione's head while giving her a small smile at her acknowledgement that he was family. "I vas in da room Ninna. I never left vonce the healer got vou stable. My mate has been here too, vut she is helping vith da young vones too. Plus, da bed is barely big enough for vou four."

Hermione bit her lip not sure if she should ask about what happened, "Did he get away?"

Ludmil rocked backwards as he went to Beta mode sitting in a chair, "Vho? Maccus? No, he is in a cell along vith two others dat ve caught. He vill be dealt vith Ninna, do not vorry."

Hermione nodded, "Do you know why he betrayed us to Draven? Did you catch Draven?"

Ludmil stilled as he looked at her. "How do vou know dat name Ninna? Vas he dere as vell?"

Hermione frowned as she tried to keep up with his questions. Normally people had a rough time keeping up with her, but with her head in pain, it was hard for her to focus. "He was there, he was who Maccus took me too. He was shorter than Maccus and the others there, but only a few inches taller than me I think. He was the one upset that Maccus brought me instead of Harry."

Reaching down she ran a hand through Harry's black hair as he curled into her more, "He wanted Harry. He told Maccus that He wasn't going to be happy about the mix up."

Looking back to Ludmil, "Maccus tried to get them to take me, but Draven told him no and gave him three options of what he could do with me."

Ludmil's jaw was clenched as he took in her words, none of the men had talked yet so up until now he hadn't known what happened. "Vat vere da options, Ninna?"

Hermione squirmed a bit as she dropped her gaze from his, unable to look at him as she answered, "To let me go, m...mate me, or get rid of me. Draven didn't want to take me so that his men would stay focused on their purpose and not me. I guess they don't have a lot of females…."

Ludmil growled low so that he didn't wake the others. "Mate? Did he touch vou?"

Hermione shook her head and regretted it immediately as she closed her eyes in pain and shame, "He said he didn't have...time. Then he insulted Viktor… I tried to fight back I think I got him good with my nails…. but he took me into the river. I tried to fight him. I really did. I got my head up out of the water once, but he put me back under though."

Hermione finally looked up at Ludmil with watery eyes, "In stories people always forgot what happened to them, but I remember it all. The icy water, the way my lungs burned as if they were on fire, his hands on me, after a while I felt like a dead weight as the cold faded away. I couldn't move. I wish I could forget that."

Ludmil stared at Hermione for a moment. "Vou don't vish dat. Our experiences are vat make us strong. Next time vou are in a situation vou vill remember getting through dis vone. It vill give vou hope."

Hermione sniffled as her head really began to throb, putting her hands up over her temple for a moment before whispering, "Please don't tell Viktor. I don't want him worried, or have to leave school again, when I am safe now."

Ludmil growled as he leaned forward putting his hand over hers on her head, "Vou have been asleep vor a week, Ninna. Viktor has already been told as he is vour mate, and told dat he vill stay dere. He is preparing vor da second task which is in slightly less dan a veek."

Ludmil put a finger under Hermione's chin, in a commanding voice, "Look at me Ninna."

Hermione lifted her eyes to meet his once more, but unwilling to speak again. Ludmil tilted his head, "I am very proud vou fought back Ninna. It is my fault dat Maccus vas vour guard. I chose him because he vas one of my strongest fighters. His sheer mass prevented the most skilled fighters from overpowering him." He sighed, "Da fact dat vou managed to get vour nails into his face da vay vou did, or get vour head from out of da vater, even vor a moment, tells me how hard vou fought. Vou honestly had no chance against him Ninna."

Hermione felt Remus' arm squeeze around her waist, letting her know he was awake, "You did great Hermione. The reason we found you so fast was because we heard you fighting back in the water."

Ludmil stood and sat of the edge of the bed and watched Hermione's eyes start to close. Seeing her small hand pat the space next to her Ludmil sighed as he laid down on the bed wrapping his arm around her as well so that she was fully surrounded, "Sleep Ninna, vou need it."

She nodded her head as she drifted back off to sleep surrounded by the people she trusted to keep her safe.

Remus looked at Ludmil across his sleeping Cub as he whispered, "Did you say the second task was next week? It wasn't supposed to happen until early February I thought?"

Ludmil nodded, "Hogvarts has been receiving numerous requests vrom parents requesting dere children sent home or back to deir ovn schools. The missing children and da kidnapped teacher and Death Eater has everyvne on edge."

Ludmil adjusted his arm beneath his head before continuing, "Novne can leave until da Trivizard Tournament is over dough. Second task vas moved to next week, the third task vill be a week avter dat. It should have never been brought back honestly. Vut, my boy vill be back here avter it is done. He needs to be here vith his mate."

Remus just laid his head further down, his eyes on the back of his daughter's head. "I don't think bringing the Triwizard Tournament back was Albus' doing. You are right though, Viktor should be here for her. The healer said she might be out of it for a while."

Three Days Later

Hermione was lying on her pelt in the den still. Remus had tried to take her out two days ago and the sun had reduced her to tears at the pain it caused her head.

The healers all confirmed that she had a pretty severe concussion and would be hypersensitive to light and sound for two to three weeks. So, she was stuck in the cave for now.

Harry had been the one to stay with her, since the adults needed to return to their duties, once she had awoken.

Harry had been reading to her when she was awake, but more often than not she would fall asleep ten minutes after waking. It was like her body couldn't stay awake.

Looking at her cousin an idea came to her, "Harry? Will you help me write a letter to Viktor? I can't read still, and writing causes my head to ache."

Harry nodded his head as he got up and walked over to the small desk pulling out some parchment and a quill. "I'll just start off by apologizing for my handwriting."

Hermione just smiled at Harry's joke as he sat down at the desk.

An hour, and three drafts later, Harry folded the final letter, after Hermione was satisfied with it. Harry leaned over Hermione as he handed her the letter, rubbing his cheek to her forehead. "I'll go get some wax to seal the letter. I'll be right back."

Hermione nodded her head as she watched Harry leaving the room. Looking at the letter in her hand before sliding slowly from her bed. Her bare feet padded slowly across the room, taking a break every so often to steady herself, as the room around her seemed to spin.

Hermione gripped the back of the chair before sitting down gently, so as to not jerk her head around too much.

Hermione laid the letter down and opened it slowly. Harry's messy writing was a bit of a blur to her but she trusted Harry to write what she had told him too. She grabbed the quill and brought it to the parchment.

She looked at the page for a moment before writing,

'I hope that you do not mind Harry writing most of this letter, as I am still having some issues with my head. I just wanted to wish you luck in the second task, the morning after next. I hear you have figured out that it will have to do with the lake. Please be careful, and I will see you when you return. Yours, Hermione'

Hermione folded the letter once more just as Harry returned with a small box, "Hermione I could have gotten that for you!"

Hermione nodded her head slowly, "I needed to write him something myself, it was a small bit. Can you help me back to bed though? My head is ringing now."

Harry laid the box down on the desk before wrapping one arm behind her back and the other under her legs as he lifted her bridal style and walked her back to bed.

Hermione sighed feeling the cushion of her pillow cradle her head, "Why is my head still so messed up, Harry?"

Harry shrugged his shoulders as he walked back to the desk and opened the box. "The healer said that concussions happen when your brain hits your skull. He also said it can take weeks to heal."

Harry put the wax in the fire before he let the melting wax drip over the edge of the letter and then stamped it with the Krum family seal, that had been given to Hermione for when she wrote to Viktor.

Harry looked over to Hermione and smiled seeing that she had already fallen asleep. He just shrugged and waved the letter in the air to dry the seal before he pulled a blanket over his friend's body.

Looking at her for a moment, he then spoke softly, "I guess I will just give this to Alpha to send out. Good night, Hermione."

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