A/N: I am so sorry for the wait! This chapter is shorter than the others but I wanted to get it out ASAP. Enjoy!
Hermione grumbled the next morning at Jared downstairs whooping and hollering. "Kill him... Skin his furry arse for a new rug... wolf stew..." Sam chuckled at his mate and fiance, at the thought of last night, a large grin split his face, but he secretly agreed with her. She angrily stepped into a pair of boy cut underwear and slid on her favorite shirt before stomping down stairs.
"Jared Cameron, you'd better have a damn good reason for interupting us like this!" Hermione stalked into the kitchen, ready to curse him until she took in the beautiful native girl standing at Jared's side. "Shit." Jared burst into laughter at her curse word. "Dammit Jared, you couldv'e told me you brought company!" Sam laughed at her as he walked in and handed her a pair of yoga pants that she hastily put on.
"I apologize. My name is Hermione, it' nice to meet you." The girl tucked in Jared's side blushed bright red and shook Hermione's hand.
"Kim Meraz, it's nice to meet you too." The girl tried looking anywhere but at the blushing Hermione and the two shirtless wolf men standing around. Although, it didn't look like Jared was going to let her go anytime soon. With a scrunched up face, Hermione looked between Jared and Kim and the looks he was shooting her before it dawned on her.
"Oh!" Jared grinned at her and barely nodded his head. "Well then, I'll make breakfast, the rest of the guys should be showing up soon, Kim, why don't you help? We can get to know each other because something tells me we're going to be seeing a lot of each other in the future."
The two women made their way into the kitchen and began getting out things to make a large, hearty breakfast. "Wow, this is a lot of food, how many people are gonna be here?" Kim looked nervous and Hermione just smiled at her before replying.
"Well, there's Sam, Jared, Paul, Embry, Jacob, you, and me." Kim looked at all the food laid out before them. They were making over sized cranberry and orange muffins, scrambled eggs, bacon, french toast, and sausage.
"Who's going to eat all this?" Kim's eyes were huge as she looked between Hermione and the food.
"Trust me, we'll be lucky if there are crumbs left, my boys can eat." Hermione laughed as she put the muffin mix in the oven.
"You're boys?" Kim seemed a little unsure of herself.
"Well, it's hard to explain. Since I moved to the Rez from my uncles house, Sam, Jared, and Paul have been helping me with fixing up the house. My friends back home call me a mother hen because I'm constantly taking care of everyone I know. I kind of adopt people. Sam and I, well, we fell in love and with him came his friends and I just take care of them, make sure they have enough food, that they sleep. That kind of stuff, they're just my boys."
Kim smiled shyly at her and paused thinking about how she was going to word her next statement without offending her host. "I've, uh, well see, there's this rumor going around town about Sam and how he runs a gang. He disappeared for a few weeks and when he came back, he was different, shut off. He even broke off his engagement to Leah Clearwater and they'd been together all through high school and then some. He's always seen around town with Jared and Paul and now Embry Call and Jacob Black. Plus when he came back, he was huge. I mean it looked like he had taken steroids or something!"
Hermione patter her arm. "I can't get into too much detail right now, that's for Jared to talk to you about, but it's not a gang. Sam went through a rough time and now he's helping the other boys sort out their stuff too. Sam is the best man I know. They are all good men, they help with the Council and around the rez." Shooting her a smile, Hermione flipped the bacon before she spoke again. "I know it seems silly, you just met me, but trust me, you have nothing to worry about with Jared by your side. Now, tell me all about how you met."
A blush stained Kim's cheeks and she looked around to make sure the girls were in the kitchen alone. "I've sort of been in love with Jared since our freshman year. I always wanted him to notice me and it seemed like he never did. He was always off with Paul, getting him out of trouble. Then, months ago, I started seeing him always with Sam and Paul and he always looked angry until about three months ago. Today, I literally ran into him while I was shopping and he had this big goofy grin on his face and I had never seen him so happy. He kind of told me he was taking me to breakfast and didn't give me a chance to answer before dragging me here."
A knowing smile lit Hermione's face just as three more shirtless men tumbled into her kitchen via the sliding glass door. "You boys break anything and you'll be banned from my kitchen for a month." She glared at them.
"Hermione! You wouldn't be so cruel as to do that would you?" Embry gave her his best puppy dog look and kissed her on the cheek.
"Yeah, you know you love us!" Jacob kissed her other cheek.
"Besides, it's not like you don't have a shit load of money and could just buy new shit." Paul crossed his arms at her and shot her a cocky grin.
"Just because I have the money doesn't mean I want to keep replacing my furniture." Rubbing his arm and glaring at her, Paul tried to take the wooden spoon Hermione swatted him with. "Hush you big baby, you know that didn't hurt." Hermione ushered Kim to sit down and swatted the hands that tried to reach for the food. "You know the rules, ladies first. This is Kim by the way, Jared brought her over." The meaningful look she shot the three had them grinning as they took her hint. " And you know how I feel about that language Lahote, you also need to save some for your brothers, Sam and Jared should be in here any moment."
As if on cue, the two walked in sporting matching grins. Jared sauntered over to here and kissed her on the cheek. "You know I love you Mione, I didn't mean to interrupt anything." He wriggled his brow suggestively and danced out of the way of Hermione's spoon. The boys waited until Hermione and Kim got their food before eagerly digging in.
After a laughter filled breakfast, Kim helped Hermione do the dishes and clean up the kitchen. "You weren't kidding! Jeez, I don't think I've ever seen someone put away so much food! I don't see how you're not broke from feeding these guys, they're like ravenous wolves!"
They guys burst into laughter in the living room and Hermione giggled. "Honey, you have no idea." Kim gave her an odd look and they quickly finished their work and settled into the living room.
"Kim? You want to take a walk with me?" Kim nodded and the two said their goodbyes and headed out to the beach.
"Wow, two imprints already. I thought it was supposed to be super rare or something like that." Sam nodded at Jacob. When his face lit up, Sam had a defeated look on his face.
"Jacob, you still can't be around Bella, your temper is too volatile and you could end up hurting her."
"I would never hurt her!" His body was blurring before their eyes and Hermione decided to take over.
"Jacob, settle down, you wouldn't do it on purpose, we know that, but look, you're about to phase right here in my living room over a simple statement."
Empathy radiated off Hermione as she watched Jacob hang his head in shame. "But if she could just know-"
The deep timber of an Alpha order rang through the house. "Jacob you are not to tell Bella about this. She cannot know about the pack, I don't care if she kept the leeches secret or not, you know the rules and you will follow them." The weight of the order caused Jacob to let out a low growl and sit on the couch to run his hands through his hair in agitation.
Hermione turned on the TV and they wordlessly watched daytime programs until Jared and Kim wandered back into the house. Kim's eyes were slightly red and puffy and she wouldn't look at Jared. "Alright, you lot need to leave, Kim and I need a spot of girlie time." She gave Sam a quick peck on the cheek and shooed all the boys out. Jared shot Kim one last look of longing and followed everyone else out into the woods.
With open arms, Hermione enveloped Kim in a comforting hug as the girl cried. Hermione let her get all her emotions out as they sat on the couch. She rubbed soothing circles on Kim's back and smoothed down her inky black hair. After about an hour, Kim had her head in Hermione's lap as her sobs and cries were reduced to quiet sniffling.
"Hermione?" Hermione hummed a noise in her throat as acknowledgment. "Without the imprinting, do you think Sam would've ever been with you?"
"I've had a few months to think about Kim, and I have had my doubts that this is just all some magical force making him love me and vice versa, but I know for a fact that love cannot be manufactured. I'm not sure how much Jared told you, but with the pack, we're all one big family, we have no secrets. With the link when they phase, its almost impossible to keep secrets and we have such a bond that we don't want to keep secrets."
"He only told me about the wolves and imprinting."
"Well, they're not the only supernatural thing around. I'm a witch. I went to school for seven years in Scotland learning to hone and control my magic." A soft laugh escaped Hermione at the skeptical look on Kim's face. Always one to prove herself, Hermione extracted her wand for its disillusioned holster on her arm and with a flick, she turned one of the magazines on the table into a floppy eared rabbit and turned it back to its original state.
"Wow! That's so great!" Kim happily sat up and stared at Hermione with wide eyes. "What else can you do?"
"That's for another time. But there are love potions, lust potions, and all kinds of spells that try to imitate love, but it's impossible. They can create a strong attraction or infatuation, but not true love. The way I would explain imprinting would be fate's way of giving them a giant push in the right direction. You guys are two halves of a whole. Things may seem fast, hell Sam and I have only been together for a few months but he proposed last night."
"Aren't you worried about what people will think?" Letting out an unladylike snort Hermione gave her a sardonic smile.
"I've given up caring what people thought a long time ago. Only the people I love and consider my family are the one whose opinion I worry about, and if they really loved me, they would support my decisions and if it was the wrong one, I might get an 'I told you so', but they would help me back to my feet and brush off my bum before barreling on."
"I'm just so confused."
"And that's okay. No one is asking you to just jump into his arms, he will be what ever you need him to. Sam and I were friends for a long time before we got together. What ever feels right, don't let anything hold you back, life's too short for that. Trust me, I've been through a war." Surprise stole over Kim's face. "I promise I'll tell you soon, like I said, we'll be seeing a lot of each other. You can choose to reject the imprint, but you will always have the pack's protection whether you want it or not. You go at a pace comfortable for you."
Hermione got up to let what she had said so far sink in and made a pot of tea. The tray levitated behind her as she sat back on the couch and settled in for the rest of their talk. "Here, this will help." She poured Kim a cup and let Kim doctor it up how she felt. The two drank their tea in silence until Hermione saw some of the tension in Kim's shoulders lessen. "Kim, I used to rely solely on logic. I wouldn't do something unless I made a pros and cons list, slept on it for a week, and consulted every book I could get my hands on. Through the years, I've had to rely more on my instincts than logic and my instincts have never been wrong. What are yours telling you?"
The darker skinned girl gazed silently out the window and into the wooded area. "To grab a hold of Jared and never let go."
"Then do it. Sometimes it's good to be selfish, especially on matters of the heart. Taking a chance with Sam was one of the best things I've ever done." Kim smiled at Hermione and the two girls shared a hug.
"Thank you, I don't know what I would've done with out you."
"Its no problem, we're sisters now. I need some estrogen in this testosterone pool, we ladies have to stick together, the Fates have thrown us to the wolves." They giggled at Hermione's pun. "You're always welcome here, day or night, even if no one's home, this is kind of pack central and I don't lock the doors anyway. Make yourself at home, I want you to be comfortable here in this crazy mess. If you ever need anything, don't hesitate to ask, food, shelter, money, anything, I'm here for you." Kim smiled at Hermione and they got up to start lunch for the boys.
The wolves didn't descend on the house until the early afternoon and the girls rolled their eyes as they filed into the kitchen and eyed the food set around the table. Jared's gaze immediately landed on Kim and she gave him a shy smile which he returned with a face splitting grin. Hermione received a kiss on the cheek from Paul, Jared, Jacob, and Embry and Sam smothered her face with kisses.
After the man wolves were settled around the table, they waited for the girls to get their plates before shoveling piles of food onto their plates. When they were done, Kim and Hermione once again cleaned up as Sam held a pack meeting about patrols and training. Hermione rolled her eyes at Embry and Jared as they placed continuous bets on everything and Sam shot her a look before he too, rolled his eyes. She was about to say something when a loud crack of apparition sounded somewhere outside.
"Bugger!" Hermione pushed past Kim and picked her discarded wand up off the counter before she tore outside the wards she erected around the house alerting her to a hostile guest. She was greeted with the sight of Antonin Dolohov stalking towards her house with a maniacal grin on his face. Hermione heard the boys and Kim behind her as she jumped off the porch and she erected a protective dome around herself and Dolohov so her boys and Kim wouldn't get hurt.
Hermione regarded Dolohov warily and her war instincts kicked in and she rolled out of the way as he shot a curse at her and she began firing some of her own. "There's my girl. You know I've missed you. You can try to run all you want, but I'll always find you Granger." Dolohov smiled nastily at her as he parried her attacks and flung out his own. Her instincts cataloged that the five wolves had phased and were trying to ram the shield she put up but were having no luck. She could scarcely see them give up and phase back and they were all yelling at her, but her mind was focused on the battle and the Death Eater in front of her to hear what they were saying.
Things took a turn for the worst when she hesitated a bit too long before dodging a curse and she was hit with a slicing hex across her shoulder. Hermione grunted in pain and rolled out of the way as Dolohov moved towards physical violence and tried to bring his foot down on her wrist. Her right leg came out and connected with the back of his knees causing him to fall. He tried to lunge at her from his position on the ground and quickly rolled into a backwards tumble and used her momentum in her hands to spring off the ground and land on her feet.
For the most of the battle, they had been using non verbal spells, but Hermione felt her strength seeping away as her shoulder bled. "Bombarda!" The spot where Dolohov had just been erupted and earth and rocks flew every which way.
The bystanders watched in awe as their Alpha female and the mysterious man fired dangerous bright lights at each other and battled. The man suddenly vanished and a black smoke took his place and charged the girl. When they clashed they watched as she disappeared and a white smoke appeared. The two smokes twisted and turned violently in the air, bouncing off the protections for a few minutes before Hermione suddenly dropped to the ground with the side of her head bleeding and the man landing next to her. He pointed his wand at her and whispered something. They watched in morbid fascination as her whole body tensed and her back bowed off the ground.
Hermione tried to hold it in, but it was no use, a blood curling scream erupted from her lips as the crucio tore through her body. Blinding red hot pain tore her muscles apart and shattered her bones as she was held under the curse. With a maniacal laugh, Dolohov lifted the curse and kicked her roughly in the stomach. He straddled her and wrapped his hands around her neck. "I'm going to enjoy watching the life leave your eyes Mudblood, then killing every single one of your precious new friends over there."
Hermione felt a jolt of adrenaline at the mention of her new family and with surprising strength, bucked Dolohov off her. With the after shocks still raging through her body, Hermione shakily pushed herself onto all fours and spit out a mouth full of blood. Dolohov was busy laughing at Hermione to notice her steel herself and launch her body at him. She knocked his wand from his hand and heard a satisfying crunch as her fist connected with his nose.
Dolohov was in a slight daze as he hit his head hard on the unforgiving ground and Hermione searched wildly for her wand. She spotted it and dove for it. "Incarcerous!" Thick ropes shot out of her wand and bound the cursing Death Eater. "Silencio." Hermione bent over and placed her hands on her knees and gulped in heady bouts of air in her protesting lungs.
The dull roar of her boys yelling and Kim's wracking sobs brought her back to the fact that she had an audience and she shakily stood up straight to face them. Sam was being restrained by Paul, Embry, Jared, and Jacob and Kim was cowering in the doorway with wide eyes. A cool breeze swept by them and brought Hermione's attention to her steadily bleeding shoulder.
"Bloody hell." She sank to her knees and waved her wand in a complicated pattern and the protections dropped and she was swarmed by the pack. "Expecto Patronum!" Her silvery wolf burst from her wand and trotted over to her. "Tell Harry to get over here as fast as he can with Severus, Lucius, and Kingsley." With a silent howl, the wolf was gone.
"Fuck Hermione! What the hell was that?!" She looked into Sam's terrified, angry eyes and cupped his cheek with her good hand.
"Make sure he doesn't get away." Hermione fought the darkness trying take over when she heard the 'pops' of help and heard a frantic Harry calling her name.
"God dammit Hermione!" Sam's wolf was steadily rising to the forefront as he watched his mate bleed and although he knew Harry, the wolf saw everyone except the pack as a threat. Low warning growls rumbled in his chest and he bared his teeth at the raven haired boy.
"Sam, it's okay, they're going to help me." Black spots dotted her vision and she felt the cool glass of a phial against her lips and she automatically swallowed while the deep baritone voice of Severus chanted spell after spell healing her shoulder and other various injuries she sustained. Her teeth grit as her shoulder stitched itself back together and the dark magic was pulled from her veins. She greedily leeched off the warmth Sam was providing as she sat propped up in between his legs.
After several more potions she finally felt some of her strength return but her body still randomly convulsed from the after shocks of the Cruciatus curse. Warm hands gently scooped her up and she fought against the nausea of the motion as she was moved into the house.
"I think I have a concussion." Hermione grumbled before she promptly leaned over and vomited. Someone waved their wand and the mess disappeared from Hermione and Sam as he gently set her down in their bed.
"Alright, everyone out!" Madam Pomfrey bustled in and shooed everyone out, except Sam who wouldn't leave Hermione's side.
"I swear, Miss Granger, between you and Mister Potter, I don't know who spends more time under my care!" The matronly witch bustled around while tending to Hermione's wounds. Hermione had a slight concussion, two fractured ribs, a broken knuckle, and a bruised neck along with other small bruises and scrapes.