[Author's Note]
Wow! So I had no idea when I posted the first chapter it would get so much positive feedback in a single day. It was very humbling and I thank you immensely for all the follows, faves and best of all REVIEWS! I have several chapters of this fic finished and was going to wait until next week to share this one but your enthusiasm was really motivating. So here you go! If you like it, be sure to let me know.

St. Mungos Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries
Present Day

After giving two nurses concussions and another a black eye, it wasn't long before Hermione was transferred to a more secure ward. While no one outright told Harry as much, he quickly determined that this part of the hospital was strictly reserved for their more violent patients. Something about this development hurt his heart as he felt it was a step back in unlocking his friend's recovery.

In the days that followed Ginny had returned each day, usually accompanied with Neville and sometimes Luna but to Harry's disappointment Ron continued to be absent. He knew his other friend needed time to comprehend Hermione's new state but a part of Harry was frustrated that Ron was leaving him to handle this burden alone.

There were others still who wanted to visit as word quickly spread of Hermione but those closest to the witch, namely Harry, Ginny and Lupin decided it would be best to keep her current state a secret. So they simply told the world at large she was in desperate need of rest and recovery. Thankfully when you are known as The Boy Who Lived, the general public tends to heed your request.

Harry didn't feel this all was so much as a lie but an omission of certain details. The Wizarding World didn't need to know just yet of what had become of Hermione Granger.

"Hey 'mione, it's me." Harry greeted as he entered her hospital room. Unlike the room she had initially been in this one had been warded strongly with spells to keep the furniture in place. The walls, while at first appeared to be of normal texture, were actually enchanted to deflect any damage.

She was crouched in the corner of the small room, sitting in such a fashion that it made her look even less human. Bright amber eyes looked back at him behind a veil of hair. Hermione did nothing but growl in reply.

Harry took slight comfort that although Hermione recoiled whenever he got too close she had yet to attack him as she had with others. It gave him some hope that perhaps beneath her feral nature there was still a part of Hermione Granger in there.

"I brought by some of your favorite books. Do, um, you remember this one?" Harry asked as he awkwardly held up a weathered copy of Pride and Prejudice. Hermione had always been a fan of Jane Austen; even in the months they spent in hiding, running from Voldemort, Hermione had kept a small copy of Pride and Prejudice in her bag. She would read it when she couldn't sleep, sometimes aloud for Harry and Ron's benefit so they too could be lulled by the story.

Hermione tilted her head ever so slightly to the side. She didn't move from her corner even as Harry set the book on the bed.

"Ginny said you might want some lighter reading so I brought this too," Harry said as he set down a modest leatherbound book. It was a collection of fairy tales, each page enchanted with shimmering illustrations that came to life in almost dream-like pace. It was subtle but peaceful.

Hermione sniffed the air, peering at the books in curiosity like an animal being enticed with a morsel of food.

"Oh good you are here too," Lupin said to Harry as he entered the room. Hermione gave a start, pressing herself against the wall and baring her teeth at the arriving party.

Lupin raised his hands up slightly to show he carried no wand or medication for the witch. Hermione continued to glare at him in suspicion. The man made no effort to move towards her, standing in the doorway with a neutral expression. "I am just here to talk, Hermione."

To Harry the older wizard addressed while not taking his eyes off Hermione as he elaborated."She's probably not too excited for visitors. The last folks she saw were charged with escorting her to this new room."

Harry's flicker of sadness did not go unnoticed by Lupin. "At least for now it's for the better that she's up here."

He couldn't help but see that Lupin had not initially stepped any further into the room and instinctively neither had Harry dare move. But now Lupin moved deliberately and confidently into the space extending his hand out to Hermione as one might do with greeting an unfamiliar dog.

Hermione sniffed, eyes narrowing before she relaxed slightly, reluctantly accepting Lupin's proximity. There was a flash of recognition in her amber eyes as the wolf within her stirred, sensing something familiar in the older man.

"That's right," Lupin said gently, as if in complete understanding. It wasn't the wizard she identified rather but the creature he harbored deep within him. "I am just like you."

Hermione inched forward, breathing in more deeply as if to take in Lupin's scent. And then suddenly she went from the balls of her barefeet to standing. In a blur of movement she was toe-to-toe with Harry. She was only a hair's breadth away from him now, Harry's heart raced as he didn't know how to handle the moment and the uncomfortable proximity with the witch who had no grasp on boundaries. And yet he was also afraid to move and ruin whatever bizarre moment was transpiring before them. Hermione did the same to the dark-haired wizard as she had with Lupin, leaning forward until her lips nearly touched his shoulder as she inhaled.

Satisfied with whatever inspection she had just conducted, Hermione moved backward toward the bed with a measurably more relaxed disposition. She settled down on the bed, affectionately touching the worn covers of the books Harry had brought her. Her eyes opened wide in surprise as she flipped open the collection of fairytales, it's glistening pages greeting her with dancing faeries and a whimsical selection of stories.

"Interesting," Lupin remarked almost to himself. He turned to leave and beckoned Harry to follow.

Once down the hallway and out of earshot, Harry asked. "What was that all about?"
"I think she is more wolf than human," Lupin concluded as they matched pace with one another. He was puzzled by his own words and Harry could see the gears turning in the older man's head. "I have seen similar cases but nothing quite like her state. Most of the time it was young children who's families had left them out to the wild and they were forced to adapt."

"Can anything be done? Will she ever be Hermione again?" These were the only questions Harry truly cared about and felt frustrated by Lupin's objective tone. She wasn't a participant in one of Lupin's studies.

"She's still Hermione," Lupin chided the younger man gently. "She may not be the same person you once knew but a part of her is still there. She recognized you Harry, and on her most basic instinct she knows you are her friend. That is something worth celebrating."

I want the old Hermione back, was what Harry wanted to say but the words felt selfish and he thought better to say them aloud. Sensing his former student's frustrations Lupin stopped walking to face Harry fully.

"Go home and get some rest," he ordered politely. "You have been here nearly every waking moment and I imagine it is taking a toll. I will keep an eye on her and let you know if there any changes."

"Thank you Lupin," Harry said. He conceded that he was exhausted, he had hardly slept more than a few hours in last week. The wizard was afraid. He was afraid that if he turned away from Hermione even for a moment she would be gone, disappearing just as quickly as she had once before from his life.

Reluctantly Harry left the hospital, apparating to his family heritage home. Godric Hollow was a quaint cottage, nothing like the suburban nightmare he had been raised in by his aunt and uncle.

When he entered the home he could smell the distinct aroma of dinner cooking. On cue Ginny peeked her head around the corner and smiled in welcome: "Hey Harry! Just finishing up supper."

"Smells amazing," he said with a smile and a kiss on his fiance's cheek. Immediately the cloud of worry that had dogged him since the hospital was abated by her presence. Ginny was the rock in Harry's occasionally turbulous life. They had been together since the war ended and each day with Ginny was a glimpse into a life he had thought out of his reach in his younger days: peaceful and full of joy.

"How did it go with Hermione today?" Ginny asked expectantly. Harry shook his head, sitting down at their small kitchen table.

"She's not any better. Lupin thinks she's more wolf than human...whatever that means," he said bitterly and a darkness crossed his face.

Ginny kissed his forehead and gave his hand a tight reassuring squeeze. "Hey now, the doctors said it was going to take time. We have to be patient."

"You're right," Harry replied but Ginny could not tell if he actually believed her or simply wished to be done with the conversation.

"How's Ron holding up?" Harry asked.

Ginny sighed and turned back to the stove. "Confused. Scared. You know him, he doesn't handle this sort of stuff well…"

"He needs to visit her," Harry pressed.
"You should tell him that yourself tomorrow."

"What's tomorrow?" Harry asked with a furrowed brow. Ginny rolled her eyes.
"Luna and Neville's engagement party?" Ginny offered, watching as the light of realization finally donned on Harry. Between visiting Hermione and his caseload at work Harry had nearly forgotten.

"I swear what would you do without me," she laughed as she set a plate in front of Harry.
"I would be absolutely helpless," he replied affectionately, catching Ginny's wrist and gently pulling her to him for another stolen kiss. In their banter the weight lifted and for a time Harry was able to leave behind his worries even as the darkness loomed on the horizon. For now he was just where he needed to be.

Back at the hospital, Hermione paced. Although she could not see the moon, she felt it's magnetic pull and could sense every slow phase it made towards its final form. It was an itch underneath her skin, neither painful nor pleasant but a sensation she was distinctly aware of all the same.

There was approximately 16 days until the moon reached its pinnacle and the wolf within her grew more agitated with each passing day in captivity. It knew she was not meant to be confined. Trapped. It clawed within her conscious mind to be released.

Hermione stopped in her tracks and stared at her own shadowy reflection. Who was this person they kept calling Hermione? And why did the name feel natural?

Mine, the dull voice in her head proclaimed. This name Hermione Granger belonged to her.

But what of all these strange people? Everything felt foreign and bizarre but also familiar all at once. It drove her into a frenzy to be overwhelmed by these thoughts, these smells and the loud chaotic sounds that engulfed her senses every waking moment.

The human Hermione fought for control against the animalistic self that had for so long reigned undisturbed. But even her thoughts were broken fragments. Not full sentences but flashing images, darting across her mind and impossible to vocalize. Like pieces of a shattered mirror, she felt fragmented.

She could not find the words to describe her pain and fear. Hermione struck the mirror in frustration but it did not waiver. The room, fully warded against damage from its occupant, remained undisturbed.

In her anguish she collapsed to the floor, howling.

She was alone.

Białowieża Forest
Five Years Prior

"Where did you take us?" Greyback rumbled. His voice was angry but weak. Regaining consciousness, Hermione's eyes bolted open as she scanned the area for her wand. It was nowhere to be seen and she felt the terror rise in her chest at the realization she was completely unarmed.

However to her utter surprise, the werewolf did not attack. He merely waved her off dismissively while tending to his own injuries,"Truce, girl. We can kill each other later."

She could hardly move herself let alone get away from the menacing werewolf if he so chose to change his mind but a quick survey of their wounds made it clear that neither one of them were in a position to fight.

However, that did not mean the witch was willing to put her guard down just yet.

"I-I don't know," she finally answered. Which was the truth. In an instant of fight-or-flight accidental magic had taken over transporting not just herself but Greyback to...where ever they were. Hermione fought to stand but her body buckled under the agony of her injuries. The ground beneath her was damp and cold. It was hard to make out the details of her surroundings but she could discern that they were somehow underground. Perhaps a cave, she mused to herself.

"Well aren't we in a sad state," he said.

"You're not helping," she spat.

"Neither are you," he countered.

After a long pause Greyback nodded to a tunnel in front of them. She could barely make out the movement as it was hard to see much of anything in the pitch black darkness that surrounded them. "There. I can smell fresh air coming in from that passage. Can you walk?"

Hermione didn't have a chance to say anything before the werewolf added, "Because I am not carrying your sorry arse."

With an angry huff she heaved herself to her feet and bit back a yell of pain as she tried to keep the pressure off her left leg. Hermione gauged it was likely broken but there was little she could do about it now both without her wand or any medical supplies. She was at the mercy of the werewolf limping in front of her and frankly that gave Hermione no comfort whatsoever.

In the darkness of the passageway and the silence between her and her foe, Hermione tried to recollect the events that had brought her to this moment. She remembered falling and the smell of smoke but each time she tried to dig deeper into her memories of the night her mind hit an insurmountable wall.

Ron. Harry. The faces of her friends came forward in her thoughts and there was an overwhelming sense of urgency that filled her all at once. She remembered hiding with them, running away from Death Eaters and then Hogwarts. But she could recall nothing else. No details, just hazey images that meant very little to her without proper context.

They must have walked for nearly an hour before Hermione finally saw a break in the darkness. Up ahead there was the distinct signs of daylight and it gave the witch a renewed sense of hope that she would survive. The witch let out a sigh of relief, however the emotion was only fleeting as she knew that getting out the maze like tunnels only meant one of her problems had been resolved.

She was still wandless, seriously injured and in the company of the most violent werewolf in history. One step at a time, Hermione said silently.

To her dismay as they reached the entrance of the tunnel the landscape outside was nothing even remotely recognizable. From the looks of the trees and the vegetation around them she wasn't even sure they were in the UK anymore.

Apparently Greyback reached the same conclusion, cursing loudly to himself. What should have been a welcoming sign in their predicament only compounded the confusion. Where exactly were they?

While the frustration was mutual but there was no time for Hermione to dwell on their predicament. Suddenly the extent of the witch's injuries caught up to her.

"You don't look too well, witch," Greyback commented but Hermione could offer no snippety remark in reply as a wave of dizziness washed over her.

Oh hell. Hermione took several steps backwards to catch herself against the cave's exterior but it did nothing to stop the sensation of her world turning upside down.

Against her will Hermione surrendered to the oblivion.