Disclaimer: Once again, I state that I do not own Harry Potter or anything in the books or movies! There!
Author's Note: Yippee!!! It's snowing! Finally it's starting to look like it'll be a white Christmas! :D I'm really just writing this fanfic for fun, but I wouldn't mind some reviews! ahem.. nudge nudge lol! This chappie should be longer…hopefully! :D
Chapter 2: Into the Clearing
Harry and Hermione raced through the forest. Twigs and branches snapped and snagged the cloak. Hermione tripped over a large branch and fell to the ground, gasping for air.
"Come on, Hermione! We have to stop Voldemort!" Harry cried.
"Harry, I can't go any faster. Besides, with all this noise we're making, You-Know-Who or one of his Death Eaters will probably find us out here," Hermione said, still on the ground.
"We'll just have to risk it, then," Harry replied. He reached down and pulled Hermione up on her feet. She collapsed again and uttered a cry of pain.
"My- my ankle! I think it's broken!" In the dim light his wand offered, he could tell that bruises were forming and it had already begun to swell.
"Nox," Harry whispered. The light from his wand died. "Mobilicorpus," he muttered, aiming his wand at Hermione's ankle. A splint formed, and Hermione's breath became less ragged.
"Thanks Harry, but.."
Harry cut off Hermione. He threw his cloak over her and said quickly, "You should be able to walk on the leg now. Go back to Hogwarts. I'll keep going."
"No! I-"
"If it still hurts too much, just wait here for awhile. Ron or Ginny will be back," Harry promised.
'Just Ron or Ginny? What's Harry planning to do?' Before Hermione could say anything, he was gone. "Harry?" she called softly. There was no response. An ominous silence closed in around her.
Harry shrieked. His entire body was lengthening. His bones and muscles stretched and cracked, rearranging themselves within his body. Hair was bursting forth all over his torso and his face was elongating into a snout. He tried to shout in pain, but all that came out was a long howl.
Harry's breath was coming out hard. He was moving more slowly now, keeping Hermione's warning in mind. He didn't dare use his wand to light his way, so he had to feel his way around the forest. He had tripped several times, and his body was full of cuts, but he kept on pushing himself. By now, exhaustion had set in. He stumbled over a log and lay there, face first in the dirt. Lights danced before his eyes, but he was just too tired to get up. He blinked a couple of times and reminded himself that Ron and Ginny were out there, suffering the wrath of Voldemort- his best friend and his girlfriend, being tormented. Harry shook his head and stood up.
"Faster, faster, " he mumbled. He noticed that one of the lights he had seen in his head was still glowing. It was very far away, but there was a light- a destination for him. He continued in that direction.
Harry howled in pain. The potion he drank earlier only slightly muted the effects of his transformation. The werewolf part of him was taking control. Only savage thoughts were in his mind. He chewed the shackles that held him hostage, but they wouldn't come off. He focussed his attention to the rags he was lying on. He grabbed the top layer and tore that apart with his sharp claws and jagged teeth. He turned to the next layer and ripped that apart as well. Then he reached for the next…and the next…and the next…
He finally reached the source of the light. A small fire was lit in the clearing, illuminating those around it. Wormtail and several other Death Eaters sat around it. In the midst of the circle they formed was Lord Voldemort. Other Death Eaters were patrolling the area around the clearing. Since Harry no longer had his cloak, he took care not to let them see him. He darted from tree to tree, staying the shadows. Out of breath, he lay beneath a shrub. From this new vantage point, he could see Ginny and Ron tied to a tree. Every so often, a Death Eater would fire a hex or curse at them- most often the unforgivable Cruciatus curse. They would all laugh raucously at the pain or abnormality caused. If either of the two prisoners would fall unconscious into merciful darkness, they would revive them.
Harry watched this scene for a long time, debating what to do. He finally watched a drunken Death Eater walk over to the tree Ginny was tied to. He undid her bindings and carried her to the circle of Death Eaters. She was too exhausted to do more than kick or spit weakly at them. She managed to land a kick on someone's shin, and with a shout of outrage, he reached out and shoved her face first into the ground. Ron struggled violently against his bonds, but they wouldn't come undone. The Death Eater straddled her back and kept on forcing her face into the dirt. He then ripped off the back of her shirt…
Harry, realizing what that Death Eater was going to do next, couldn't contain himself and jumped up from his hiding place.
"STOP! STOP RIGHT NOW!" he shouted, infuriated.
"Ah…Mr. Potter. How nice of you to join us," Voldemort said in a scathing tone. He signaled behind him to the Death Eater who was on top of Ginny. He grudgingly got off her and tied her back to the tree. Ginny looked up.
"Harry!" she screamed. Her fear and anger was written on every part of her face. "Get away from here!"
"It's a trap, Harry! Run!" Ron yelled. Before Harry could move a muscle, both Ginny and Ron evaporated into thin air.
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Author's Note: Well that was a bit longer, no? :D well review ppl! Btw, the COS was an ok movie…the ending could have been better I guess, but it was a lot funnier than the first one! "Why does it have to be spiders? Why can't it be butterflies!" lol! O poor poor ron! They make him such a wuss, n he doesn't get that hug from Hermione! Well….there's the future books newyz! :p lol! I go now! Byeeee!! And REVIEW!