A.N.: We're only three chapters away from the end of part two. Isn't that cool? I'm so proud we made it this far! This is the longest story I ever wrote and it was never planned to get that long. But I do enjoy telling the story from various POV's which is what adds lots of details but also lets this thing grooooow. Thanks for all your comments and also the speculations about what's going to happen. They help me think and usually they make me smile. I'm always looking forward to them.

Chapter 59: Runaway girl

Hermione ran for her life, the impact of her steps resonating through her whole body as she tried to keep pace with the man that had helped her pass the wards Voldemort had erected around his home. After not even five minutes Hermione wished she hadn't neglected physical exercising for years and years just to have more time for studying. Her lungs burned with every breath she took while her legs felt wobblier with every step she made. But she could not allow herself to slow down, not when Voldemort or his followers could be right behind them. For now, the forest around them stayed quiet though, but that didn't help to calm her nerves and only made her more paranoid instead. The man could be anywhere, without them hearing or seeing him, right? Would he suddenly appear in front of them, cutting off their way? After ten minutes of running, she could feel herself slowing down, her feet getting heavier by the minute. Eric tried dragging her along with the effect of her suddenly stumbling and crashing to the ground. One of her knees connected with a small rock, making her yelp in pain. But the sound was muffled through the charms she had cast on herself.

She needed to get up, start running again. They were only ten minutes into fleeing from that damned place and she was already proving herself to be a hindrance to the man that had so kindly taken her along with him. With a groan she stumbled to her feet, hectically searching for her ally. For a short moment, she feared he had abandoned her because she already slowed him down, but then she found his solid chest with her shaking fingers. He was still there, thank Merlin!

A moment later she could feel his steadying hands on her shoulders. Then she could feel him step closer until he was directly in front of her so that he entered the field of the silencing charm she had cast around her. She could not see him, but she could feel his breath tickling her cheek as he spoke. "That's far enough to the right side, I hope. We'll move away from the wards now, not in a straight line, that's too predictable," he murmured calmly, not sounding out of breath like she was. "You'll take my hand again and I'll lead us as good as I can. No more running, just walking."

Hermione nodded before she remembered that he would not be able to see. "Alright," she whispered instead, wheezing for air. "I'm so sorry I'm slowing you down."

She wished she would be able to see his face because now she only had his voice to judge his mood. It sounded calm when he replied. "This is not about being fast or slow. We need to be careful before everything else. Werewolves are no mindless beast if there's not a full moon which is not the case. Still, they might be able to feel our steps on the ground, if we keep running. Therefore I think walking slow and careful is safer for us, even if that means staying longer in that damned forest."

His words made sense. "That's alright," she said, slowly regaining some of her breath. "I'll do as you say. I trust you." Hermione realized it was the truth. She barely knew that stranger and had trusted him with her life nonetheless.

He didn't say anything to that and again she wished, she could have seen his face. Had she made him uncomfortable with her words? Or did they leave him untouched?

"Come along then," he said and his left hand wandered from her shoulder, along her arm to her hand, which he gripped tightly. "We need to get further into the forest before we can allow ourselves to rest."

She had no chance to answer, as he quickly left the bubble of her silencing charm and started moving again. This time he only moved slowly, like he had suggested earlier and Hermione was glad, as her knee still throbbed in pain and she limped awkwardly at his side. It didn't take him long to notice it.

"You're hurt," he said, entering her personal space again, a strange undertone in his voice. "You should have told me. Sit down."

"I'm sorry," Hermione said regretfully. "I didn't want to be a bother," she admitted, sitting down on the cold floor. She could feel him down next to her before she felt him take her hand once more.

"Show me where," he ordered calmly and without hesitation, she led his hand to her throbbing knee. She realized that she must have cut herself, as her trousers were already starting to get soaked with her blood. She heard him curse.

"We need to clean this off, immediately. Otherwise, the werewolves will be here in a matter of minutes," he mumbled, annoyance clearly detectable from his voice.

Merlin, she really was an idiot. Hermione could feel his magic wash over her, cleaning away every bit of blood from her skin and clothes, before it healed her knee, only leaving a soft tingling where before there had only been pain. Without the help of this stranger, she would have already fucked this up, twice. If he managed to get them out, she owed him big time. Would she ever be able to pay him back?

"Alright, get up. We finally need to move, or this little expedition is over very fast," he said coolly. Hermione scrambled to her feet, her hand hastily searching for his. As soon as she found it, she could feel herself start calming down. Somehow this little bit of touch already made her feel safer.

Without another word, he started walking deeper into the forest and Hermione followed him without hesitation.

Sssssss

George was just about to turn over the page of his book when he saw Hermione's spot appear on the map. Merlin, Snape had been right for her to appear there soon. It hadn't even been a day until he contacted them!

"She's out," he yelled through the twin bond, before gripping the sickle that was connected to the one, which they had given Snape. A mumbled charm and the professor would know what had happened and hopefully join them any second. In the end, the black-haired man appeared even faster in the underground-room then his own twin, who arrived about 20 seconds later.

By then Snape already studied the map, his brows knitted together in confusion.

"She somehow broke through the wards," he stated while slowly shaking his head. "That should have been impossible. She never ceases to amaze me."

Somehow this praise sounded strange coming from Snape, George found. Never before they had heard him praise anyone, that wasn't a Slytherin.

"What are we waiting for?" Fred asked, staring at them impatiently. "Let's go and get her. That bastard could be right behind her."

Snape nodded darkly. "We will not be able to apparate into that forest. The whole thing is protected by anti-apparation wards. If that wasn't bad enough the Dark Lord has it guarded by a pack of werewolves."

Fred cursed. "Hermione's walking through a forest packed with werewolves? Godrics buttocks, is she mad?" We need to find her and fast. "What about brooms? They could help us stay away from the ground and the werewolves and still enable us to quickly search for her," he suggested, agitation evident in his voice.

"Not a bad idea, Freddie," George agreed, looking towards the Professor questioningly. The man nodded in agreeance.

"That might be best. Unfortunately, the tracking charm isn't very accurate, as long as I cannot directly apparate to her. But I'll be able to feel when we're close."

"What about that map? Can't we just take it along?" Fred asked, staring at Snape with a raised brow.

The man sighed. "No, unfortunately not. It's a very complex spell and to make it work I had to use the ley line that is running below the mine. That's the reason why I chose that location in the first place. Or did you believe I have an affinity for dark and moist places?"

The twins nodded grinningly. "But you can still feel her location? Well, I guess that's better than nothing," George said, grabbing one of the brooms they had already stored in the room.

Snape nodded, before he took out his wand, casting a glamour on himself. Suddenly he looked like he was a Weasley cousin. And wasn't that funny? "In case we encounter the Dark Lord I cannot be recognized," he explained. "If he finds us, try to fly straight up, outside of the reach of the wards and apparate away. No duelling him, as long as we haven't found Hermione. The odds we get ourselves killed are fairly high."

"Got it," Fred and George chorussed before looking at their ally expectantly. "After you," Fred said and the man nodded towards them with a crooked smile.

"Of course," he said, his eyes glinting, before pointing out a destination on the map. "Try to keep up." And a moment later he was gone.

They reappeared at the edge of a dark forest of broadleaf trees. They were standing so close, that the ground would not be seen, if they decided to use the brooms to fly over the forest, George realized in dismay.

"So much for that plan," he mumbled, staring gloomily at those damned trees.

Snape mumbled something next to him, sounding pissed as well. "We'll have to walk then. If we go straight ahead, we should meet her sooner or later. Last time I looked at the map she was headed into this direction."

The twins nodded.

"Should we disillusion ourselves and muffle our steps? Could help against the werewolves, but Hermione will be unable to see us," Fred asked his two companions.

"We don't have a full moon, therefore the werewolves should just be regular wizards. But we shouldn't get our hopes up. They are still working for the Dark Lord, guarding his house. Therefore I would prefer not to encounter them."

George nodded darkly. "Then we'll hide. Do we know a spell to hide our scent? Could be helpful as well."

At that Snape's lips twitched. "Fortunately for you, I came well prepared."

He handed each of them a phial filled with a forest-green potion. "Drink this. It will make spells to hide us unnecessary. We better save our magical energy for the dangers lurking within that damned forest."

Fred and George drowned the potion with a thankful nod. It was good they had Snape on their side. Now at least one of them knew what he was doing.

Ssssssss

Hermione wasn't sure for how long they had been walking, but it must have been at least three hours. Now she felt like she could barely keep her eyes open any longer, her lids dropping more and more often as she followed Eric through the dark forest.

They hadn't walked fast, changing their direction twice already. But now their steps had slowed down even more. How much longer until they could take a break to at least rest their legs for a little while. She had barely finished the thought, when Eric suddenly stopped and pulled her close, to break through her silencing charm again. She didn't really mind his presence, as being close to him was necessary for them to communicate, nonetheless, he was almost a complete stranger to her.

"We'll rest for a few hours," he mumbled into her ear. "Be keeping those spells upright you've almost exhausted your magical energy and I'd rather avoid you passing out."

"I'm sorry," she whispered in embarrassment. Of course, it had been the spells which had tired her out. She'd never held them upright for such a long time.

"Don't be. You being sorry doesn't change the situation. It doesn't make me feel better, it only makes you feel worse," he said. "I'll ward this area here, securing it against anyone trying to find us. Werewolves included. As soon as I'm finished, you can drop your protection spells."

"Thank you," she replied full of gratitude.

A moment later she could feel him step away before she saw wards come alive around them. It was a beautiful sight, as layer after layer of light flared on the ground and in the air until they were surrounded by a round dome that spanned an area of several metres. Then, suddenly, the lights disappeared, before a moment later Eric dropped his protections and appeared several feet to her right. Hermione immediately followed his example. It was like a huge burden had been lifted from her shoulders, immediately making her feel better. Still, there was no denying that she was dead tired on her feet.

"You should try to sleep," Eric said, while he casually transfigured a tent out of a leaf from the ground. It wasn't a big one, but it was more than Hermione would have managed right now. How did he still find the energy to do that? She didn't find the courage asking him though, out of fear to insult him.

"Will you sleep as well?" she asked while trying to sound like she didn't care either way.

He looked at her with grey, unfathomable eyes. "That depends. If you feel safer with me guarding the tent, I will stay awake until you had a few hours of rest. You'd have to sit guard afterwards, as I need to sleep as well."

Hermione thought for a short moment. "Those wards are safe, are they not?" she asked, studying with an inquiring gaze.

"Of course they are," he said like that was a given. "Being a skilled ward-breaker also requires extensive knowledge of warding. No one will find us behind this wards, not even Voldemort."

She nodded embarrassedly. "Of course," she said, before stepping closer to the tent. "Then I guess we should both lie down."

Eric nodded, without saying anything in return. Then he moved toward the

tent and stepped inside. Hermione wanted to follow him, but she halted after a step and turned around again. "I'll be right there. Could you close your eyes for a moment? I really need to pee." Even though it was a natural thing, she felt awkward talking about her bodily needs like that. Her cheeks immediately showed her embarrassment. Her companion didn't comment on it though, just disappeared in the tent, before closing the entrance behind him. Merlin, he probably regarded her as an annoying teenager by now. She really had to get a grip on herself. Who knew how much longer it would take them to finally get out of that damned forest?

When Hermione finally entered the tent, Eric was already lying on his back, his feet pointing towards the entrance. He was staring at the roof of the tent and it looked like he was deep in thought. For a moment she stared at him, insecurity resonating within her. That tent really wasn't big. She'd have to keep still at night, otherwise, she might unconsciously elbow him in her sleep. And she'd rather save herself the embarrassment.

She would just try to not move around in her sleep, she told herself and carefully laid down on her side, facing the silent man next to her. "Thank you for everything," she whispered and sent him a shy smile. He responded with a tired grunt.

"You were right yesterday. I wouldn't even have made it for fifteen minutes, even when I had managed to somehow break through the wards. Thank you for talking some sense into me."

You would have killed yourself by trying to break through those wards. Are you aware of that?" Eric asked his voice solemn.

She nodded. "I knew it was a possibility," she admitted with a sigh. "But that would still have been better than linking myself to him, only to get used for the rest of my life. By being dead I would have at least been free again."

He smiled an inscrutable smile. "Try to sleep Hermione," he said, his voice sounding softer than she had expected. "Tomorrow will be a long day and you'll need all your energy to make it through."

Hermione nodded, before closing her eyes with a sigh. He was right. She needed to rest. Otherwise, she would be a burden for him. And that was the last thing she wanted.

Sssssss

Searching for Hermione in that damned forest at night was like looking for a needle in a haystack. Only that the haystack was full of dangers and would kill them if they made a mistake. Still, Severus was determined to find his only friend, no matter how long it took. Luckily the link to her and his marking spell at least gave him an idea in which direction to walk, even though it felt like the signal was still somehow dampened. Who knew what other spells lied on this forest?

They walked for hours, the brooms shrunken and stored within their robes and for a while, Severus had the feeling that they were getting closer to Hermione. But then, suddenly, he could no longer feel her. He halted his steps in confusion. The twins, which were still visible for him, immediately stopped in their tracks.

"What's wrong?" George asked, looking around uncertainly. "Did you hear something?"

Severus shook his head, his face full of concentration. "No, it's Hermione. I can no longer find her signal. It's like she's behind some sorts of strong wards again."

The boys looked at him with furrowed brows. "Those must be strong wards then. Do you think Hermione could have erected something like that? She's clever, mind you, but she's never been into warding."

Severus rubbed his chin. "It's very unlikely. But this only leaves two other explanations: either she has been caught or there's somebody with her. I don't like either possibility."

"Me neither," Fred Weasley replied, looking around with a dark expression. "What now? Should we keep walking anyway?"

The potions master shook his head. "We'd only risk walking in the wrong direction. I suggest we stay here and rest until her signal reappears."

"If it reappears," George said, sitting down on a big rock with a tired sigh. "I mean, it's not unlikely he's caught her, right?"

Severus scowled. "No, it's not. But right now we don't know for sure and I'm not giving up that easily."

Fred nodded, a hopeful smile playing around his lips. "Hermione's a tough one, so don't underestimate her. I'm sure she's alright." The boy sat down on the ground, before leaning his back against a tree.

Severus looked at him with a crooked grin. "That girl was in her second year when she brewed Polyjuice for the first time," he said, remembering the sight of Hermione's younger self, spouting cat fur. It was one of his most cherished memories of her, even though he'd never tell her that. "I'd never make the mistake underestimating her. Not after everything I have seen her do."

The boy's heads perked up in interest. "What did you see her do?" George Weasley asked, his eyes sparkling with curiosity.

Severus snorted: "As if I'd ever tell you."