Disclaimer: I own nothing, just the plot. The song in this chap is "I'm OK" by Christina Agulara (sp?)

A big ass thank you to ALL of my reviewers. I know a lot of people write out thanks for each person and all, Sorry. I should do that, but I don't. I may at some point in time.But thank you to everyone. I love writing and I know I would still do it even if no one read my shit, but even saints need sinners. I appreciate it a lot.

Chapter Eleven

Once upon a time there was a girl

In her early years she had to learn

How to grow up living in a war that she called home

Never know just where to turn for shelter from the storm

Hurt me to see the pain across my mother's face

Every time my father's fist would put her in her place

Hearing all the yelling I would cry up in my room

Hoping it would be over soon…

His fist connected with her already battered face. She could only guess the number of bruises she would have to hide tomorrow.

"You filthy whore!" he screamed, hitting her across the cheek again. The pain was overwhelming and caused Hermione to become dizzy and sporadically black out for seconds at a time. She prayed that he would just get his anger spell over with, and leave her alone.

Bruises fade father, but the pain remains the same

And I still remember how you kept me so afraid

Strength is my mother for all the love she gave

Every morning that I wake I look back to yesterday

And I'm OK

Hermione's body crumbled to the floor with his previous blow. "You're just like your mother. You dirty little bitch. No one could ever love you!" He kicked her hard in her abdomen. Hermione grasped painfully, lacking the oxygen she needed to survive. She could feel a rib, maybe two or more, crack from the strike of his boot.

God please let it be over…

I'm going to die, he's gone to far this time. I won't survive this…

I often wonder why I carry all this guilt

When it's you that helped me put up all these walls I've built

Shadows stir at night through a crack in the door

The echo of a broken child screaming "please no more"

Daddy, don't you understand the damage you have done

To you it's just a memory, but for me it still lives on

A tear fell down her face as she struggled on the ground. She looked like a bird with its wings ripped off, trying to gain balance and take flight again. She sucked in tiny bits of air. Her side was on fire.

"I should have sent you away a long-time-AGO!" With each word shouted he kicked her again. Where was her mother? Why didn't she stop this? She was at work, of course, oblivious that such vile acts actually occurred under this roof.

Bruises fade father, but the pain remains the same

And I still remember how you kept me so, so afraid

Strength is my mother for all the love she gave

Every morning that I wake I look back to yesterday

Hermione screamed in agony with each repeated kick. She couldn't take it anymore, it was too much. Her step-father picked her up by the collar of her shirt. He spit in her face and slammed her against the wall. The force knocked Hermione's head rather hard. He4r body slumped against the wall. She could feel anymore.

Was she dead? It would be a blessing.

It's not so easy to forget

All the lines you left along her neck

When I was thrown against cold stairs

And every day I'm afraid to come home

In fear of what I might see there

"No more… Please no more…" she whimpered, never even knowing that she was talking. Her body was in a state of shock, it was surprising words could even be formed. Tears dribbled down her face from eyes that were blank and lifeless.

"You disgust me!" He said, slapping her face one last time before letting go of her and allowing her body to trail down to the ground. He left her room without a single glance back

Bruises fade father but the pain remains the same

And I still remember how you kept me so afraid

Strength is my mother for all the love she gave

Every morning that I wake I look back to yesterday

And I'm OK

I'm OK

Truth be told, she wasn't ok. She never would be… ever. He head rolled down to her shoulders. She tried to raise it back up, but the pain was excruciating. After a great deal of labor, she managed to curl herself into a small ball of unworthy flesh and bones. Laying rigid and cold on the ground, Hermione cried herself to oblivion, singing a soft lullaby she had learned a long time ago.


Hermione's body thrashed violently in the couch. Harry practically got his head torn off trying to wake her up. He pinned her arms to her side so she couldn't claw him with her nails.

"Hermione!" he screamed. "Hermione! Please wake up!" Suddenly her eyes snapped open. She flew up from her sleeping position, screaming at the top of her lungs.

"STOP! STOP! PLEASE NO MORE, PLEASE!"

Harry continued to shake her. "Hermione! Wake up! You're okay. No one's going to hurt you. Look at me!" Tears choked his voice as he tried to talk sense into her. He had never seen Hermione freak out like this before. It scared him to see her screaming and fighting like this.

Finally, Hermione realized where she was. Looking around, she saw the warm confines of the Gryffindor common room, not the cold bleached walls of her room where he used to beat her to near death. She had fallen asleep on the couch, the book she was reading sprawled on the ground.

The pain still seeped inside of her. She could still feel it. The voices kept ringing in her ears. Hermione did the only thing she could bring herself to do, she broke down.

Harry engulfed her in his arms. She wept uncontrollably, the remains of the dream still playing in her head, right before her eyes. Her body trembled and the sobs grew. Soon she wouldn't be able to breathe. Harry stroked her hair out of her face. He rocked them back and forth, whispering soft words in her ear to calm her down. His heart ripped itself out as she grabbed onto him for dear life.

"Shhh…" he cooed. "You're ok, it was just a nightmare. You're ok. I'm here Hermione. I would never let anything hurt you, I swear." He closed his eyes and continued his rocking. Footsteps could be heard from upstairs. Half of the Gryffindor house came rushing down the stairs, having been woken up by Hermione's screams. When Ron caught a glimpse of Hermione's frizzy locks and Harry's jet black hair, he practically jumped down the stairs, shoving people out of his way.

"Holy fuck Harry!" he said in shock and worry. "What happened? Hermione?" He ran by their side, shooing other people away to give them space. Harry said nothing. He kept rocking Hermione in his arms and whispering in her ear. She gasped for breath every now and then and choked on her tears.

People in the crowd whispered nervously to one another.

"What happened?"

"Why is she crying?"

"Is she hurt?"

"Maybe she should go to the infirmary…:

Harry heard the last statement and snapped.

"She's not going anywhere! Go back to bed!" he shouted at everyone. Startled, the students filed themselves back upstairs, grumbling along the way. Ron stayed by Harry's side, sitting on the ground in front of the couch. He didn't know what to do.

Gently he reached up and stroked Hermione's back. Harry submerged his face back in her soft hair and rocked again. Her breathing started to return back to normal, well, as normal as she could get. Her body slowly began to relax in his embrace. Soon she ended the sobs.

Hermione didn't want to move. She was drained. So she sat there, curled up in Harry's warm arms. She felt safe.

"Please make it stop…" she whispered.

"Make what stop?" Harry asked.

"Everything!" she strangled to say.

"Hermione, what happened:" Ron asked, still clueless to the situation.

"Him…" she sobbed. Ron and Harry looked at each other with the same thought in their mind. Draco.

"I swear I'll kill him! I'll bloody kill the git!" Ron hissed.

"But you can't…" Hermione whispered. Harry was puzzled. "Why not?" he asked. Where they thinking about the right person?

"Because…" Hermione hesitated. "He's my step-father…" she spit out. Harry stopped rocking. Ron was awestruck. What had she just said. Hermione cringed. How was she going to explain this? Gently, she pushed herself away from Harry, but didn't retreat from his lap. Both the boys stared at her as she rubbed her eyes.

She sniffled. "It's my step-father," she begun silently.

"I don't understand," Harry replied. A headache began to fill her head. Hermione squeezed her eyes shut. "Bloody hell," she stated to herself. Sniffing again, she tried to think of what to say.

"My step-father…" she couldn't go on. She just couldn't. Harry put his hand on her back. "Hermione," he said, scared of what she was going to say. "What did your step-father do to you?"

The words made him want to vomit. Hermione, slowly but surely, explained. She told them of how Willis had made it a nightly ritual to beat her until she couldn't move. They looked at her in disbelief as she recalled the many nights of insults, kicks, and beatings he would give. Seeing their reactions made Hermione want to crawl into a hole and die. She didn't want to see Harry like this, not with sad eyes filled with pity. Ron looked like he was going to explode and avada kedavra someone. Hermione cringed when they questioned her.

"Why did you never tell us this?" Ron asked is astonishment. Hermione could have started crying again. She lowered her head. How could she explain it to them? How could she tell them the truth? It wasn't right.

"I don't know," she bit out, scarcely audible.

"You should talk to Dumbledore about this," Harry suggested. Hermione visibly tensed. She grabbed Harry's arm and pleaded with him with her eyes. "Please don't tell him, please!" she exclaimed. "Nobody can know about this. Please! You have to swear that you won't tell anyone!"

No one said a word. They couldn't bring themselves to promise to keep this kind of secret. "Hermione," Ron stated, completely perplexed. "You can't just let him get away with this. Someone has to be informed! What'll you do when you go back home, just let him continue? No!" Hermione's head spun.

"Please…" she begged. "I've never asked anything from you too. Please just do this for me. I won't be going home after school this year, I'll be on my own. I swear I won't let him touch me again. Just don't tell!" Hermione started going off, she was on the verge of breaking down again.

Harry sensed this and silenced her. "Ok," he said soothingly. We won't tell, but Hermione you have to promise us something…" She nodded in reply. "You absolutely can't keep something like this from us ever again. These things shouldn't be dealt with on your own! Please don't keep anymore secrets from us ever again." She nodded again.

Harry hugged her again. "Let's get you to your room."

Hermione got up from the couch. Harry and Ron accompanied her out of the common room and to her Head Girl's quarters. As soon as her door closed, Ron just about jumped all over Harry.

"Are you fucking daft! What do you mean not tell! Dumbledore needs to know about this, somebody NEEDS to know about this!"

"Calm down Ron!" Harry hissed. "Didn't you see her reaction? She4 liked to have lost it. We have to do this for her, we can't tell anyone. If we do, Merlin knows what Hermione will do to herself…"

Ron's face started to relax. His red skin faded back to its normal complexion. He agreed, not wanting to. But he had to. Harry was right. Feeling defeated, he walked back to the Gryffindor common room with his shoulder slouched.