February 20th

By the next morning, Hermione made up her mind. Or, at least she sort of made up her mind. Knowing that she was pushing her safety to remain longer inside the Muggles' home and she had to leave soon, she decided that she would begin walking towards Devon. Perhaps when she got closer to the area, she might finally have made a decision what to do next. At the very least, she knew she needed to keep moving. When she got lazy, she was in danger.

If her calculations were correct, she was a little over one hundred kilometers away from the address Draco Malfoy wanted her to visit. If she was reckless and took a Muggle train or bus, she would be there very quickly. She opted to keep to her feet. Not only was walking free, but she still had some thinking to do. Fresh air usually helped.

When it was close to the middle of the day and her feet were almost completely frozen, she entered a small, sleepy village. Though she wasn't keen on spending more of the money Augustus so thoughtfully gave her, she needed to be somewhere warm for a little while. At least until her feet thawed out. She kept walking until she saw a small cafe near the center of the little town. The smell of fresh coffee was enough to make her mouth water.

Only steps inside the crowded cafe, a hand reached out to grab her arm in a tight squeeze. If there was one act she absolutely would not abide, it was unwelcome touching. Not caring that she was surrounded by Muggles and any use of magic could bring her husband round, Hermione reached into her pocket to feel the assurance of her only weapon. She was considering whether or not to actually use it when she looked up to meet the smiling blue eyes belonging to her old friend Thorfinn Rowle.

"Why, Princess, what an unexpected surprise."

She tried to rip her arm out of his grasp to no avail. The wizard was just too bloody strong. Too strong and entirely loyal to Antonin. Not for the hundredth time in her life, she bemoaned her shit luck. How was it even possible that she would run straight into one of the men who wouldn't hesitate to drag her back to her husband in the middle of a Muggle cafe?

"I'm not going to tell anyone you're here if that's what you're worried about."

As much as she might have wanted to believe him, she struggled. They were friends, certainly, but their friendship hadn't been nearly as long as his friendship with her husband. Antonin trusted the wizard with not only his life, but also with the lives of his wife and son. That was no small thing. Hermione decided that she had nothing to lose. If he was telling the truth, great. If he wasn't, she'd been aware that a day like that had been coming since she stabbed her husband in the eye with a fork. Resigned to her fate, she sat down in the chair next to the burly blond.

Thorfinn didn't waste a moment getting the attention of the elderly woman behind the counter. While she crossed the small space, the Muggle stared at Hermione with narrowed, unfriendly eyes. Only when Thorfinn lied and introduced her as his sister did the woman's expression change. She smiled widely and promised the man who was clearly a repeat customer that she would be glad to bring his younger sister that day's special.

"Why does the Muggle know you? Why are you even here?"

He raised his eyebrows in surprise at the question.

"This is the town where Hannah was born. She and the girls are visiting her dad."

It didn't matter that their courtship began fifteen years earlier, Hermione still couldn't believe at times that Hufflepuff Hannah Abbott actually married the wizard. And not only that they ended up together, but that they were still quite happy. Love, clearly, did not always make sense. Thorfinn's presence in the cafe, however, did made sense. Though he would absolutely never be so bold as to say it out loud, it was a well-known fact that Hannah's father loathed Death Eaters. He had ever since his Muggle wife was murdered by them when his daughter was a sixth year. In public, Mr. Abbott suffered his son-in-law. In private, however, he wanted nothing to do with him.

"Are you all right, Hermione?"

She knew that the conversation would eventually circle back to how she was doing now that she was on the run. They hadn't seen each other since the night she was so desperate for warmth that she'd foolishly built a fire with magic. Thorfinn had almost captured her that night. Certainly not her proudest moment. She didn't know how to answer his seemingly innocuous question nor did she want to. Instead, she focused on the fork she held in her hand and the plate that had just been placed in front of her on the table.

"Antonin wants you home."

A scoff came out of her mouth before she could stop it. He'd made it perfectly clear that he still longed to possess her. She wasn't his wife. She was his property.

"He's not doing well without you there, Princess."

She felt her eyes roll. What a ridiculous notion! As if Antonin was the sort of wizard to worry or long for her return.

"He didn't do well when we were together. Not sure how it's any different now."

Thorfinn stared at her for several moments with a bemused expression before he spoke again. Another promise that he wouldn't tell Antonin he'd seen her fell from his lips. She wasn't sure why he felt it necessary to repeat himself. When he asked her again to reconsider going back home, she couldn't stop the laugh that bubbled up inside her chest.

"Not sure it's even possible for me to go home, Thorfinn. Antonin's likely to kill me if I even try."

His handsome features dimmed as a sadness seemed to overtake his countenance.

"You've always misunderstood Antonin's feelings for you."

With no further explanation just what he meant, Thorfinn rose to his feet. He stepped across the small cafe to speak to the Muggle behind the counter again. Hermione watched him stand there for several minutes between bites of her hot lunch. When the Muggle handed him a large paper sack, he smiled and paid the woman for their food.

Hermione was just about to finish her meal when he returned to the table. Carefully looking around the room to make certain there weren't any witnesses, Thorfinn pointed his wand at the paper sack and muttered a charm. He dropped it in front of her with no explanation. Curious, she peeked inside to see more than a few containers of take away. The spell was evidently a warming charm. Not only was he not going to turn her into Antonin, he was actually feeding her for the next few days at least. She could've cried at his generosity if she even remembered how.

"I'm still holding out hope that you'll return home on your own, so I won't tell Antonin about this. But Princess, if our paths cross again, my loyalty has always been to Antonin first."

She nodded her head, proving that she understood what he was saying. Thorfinn leaned down from his great height to kiss her on the top of the head. As he did so, she felt the clothes she was wearing warm up. He might not have agreed with her decisions, but he was making certain in his own way that she wouldn't freeze in her travels. Even though the spell would eventually wear off, she was grateful again for his kindness.

The wizard smiled at her one final time as he exited the cafe.