Hello again…I am sorry about the delay. I had no idea how I wanted the story to go, but after much reflection I think that I have a rough idea on how this will turn out.

Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings.

Chapter 7

In less than a day I am going to be me again. The thought filled me with dread, everyone will know I lied to them. Guilt and worry tore through my mind.

Desperately I thought of pulling off a strong glimmer charm, but I would need to recast it every few hours unless it was very strong, and I would need my strength.

The problem with polyjuice is that it takes a month to brew, and I need it now. The potion brewing in my bag would take at least another two weeks.

I was faced with the terrible truth, I would be Hermione Granger again.

It was too dark inside the mine so I made a ball of green light that would follow me around. The relatively simple spell was similar to the lumos spell, but it is used when you need to keep your hands free.

The mine was ugly and smelled disgusting. Why Gimili wanted to come here, I will never know.

I was so angry at myself, and the others began to take notice of my terrifying mood. If my rigid body and clenched jaw were not a big enough clue, the cloud of magic surrounding my body gave it away. Pippin, however; seemed completely unaware of the others casually shifting away from me and walked cheerily beside me.

"Can I have a ball O' light like yours?" he asked.

His question pushed me over the edge; a rogue stinging hex left my fingers and hit him in the side. He yelped and ran off to hide behind his cousin.

I would need to reveal myself before it wears off, but now is not the time… I will tell them when we break.

With this new resolution in mind I continued on walking quietly thinking over my options.

When I return to my old body I will be weak and won't be able to fight in close quarters, especially if the creatures that caused so much havoc are still occupying the mine. I will have to find a

way to make myself stronger.

My mind drifted back to a text I came across in the Black library. I recall one mentioning runes that if carved into the skin give the wearer special abilities. They are dangerous and dark but they

will suffice.

I decided that when we rest I will pull the book from my bag and carve the runes into my skin. After the runes I can tell them of my true identity, that way there will be minimal arguments over

my ability to keep up with the group.

My eyes drifted over to the hobbits and I immediately felt horrible for hexing Pippin. The poor thing only wanted a light. Sighing heavily I created an orange light and sent it over to hover by

him. His smile was enough to release me from my guilt.

The mine was not pleasant and seemed to become more filthy and putrid the further we hiked. The hobbits were growing wearier with each passing minute and to be honest so was I. We

needed to rest.

Seeming to know our limits Gandalf told us that he didn't know which path to take, so we could rest here.

The fellowship sat in a semi-circle and rested their feet. I walked a few feet from the group and looked through my bag for the dark runes book.

I pulled it out along with an ornate knife that had diamonds and sapphires embedded in the grip.

Flashback:

Harry, Ron, and I were hiding in Grimmuald Place after the attack on the wedding at the burrow.

I was walking through the Black family library looking for books on runes for some light reading when I stumbled upon a rectangular black box behind the books on the shelf. I pulled it out and

tried to open it, but it would not open.

I walked over to the large desk and looked through the drawers in search of something to pry it open with. In the bottom drawer I found the knife, it was beautiful. It seemed to call to me. I

picked it up and it emitted a small blue light for a few moments. I took the knife and pried open the box. Inside was a text on dark runes.

The text was very old and interesting but I doubted that I would ever use it. Never the less, I put it into my bag just in case I would need it later.

I stared at the knife and wondered why it glowed when I touched it; I wanted it. Something was telling me that the knife was important and that it was meant for me to have.

So I kept it.

End of Flashback:

I opened the dark rune book and looked up the chapter on runes for the body. It was extremely painful, but it took little magic to do and it would help me to keep my strength when I changed

back.

The runes are only classified as dark because they are dangerous to the person wearing them. They will never come off and the wearer will suffer the effects of the rune for the rest of their

life. I was running out of options. I need an advantage while fighting or I will be of little use.

I knew then that there was no turning back, it must be done.

I looked at the rune for agility; it was beautiful. The rune consisted of a circle and what looked like water swirling inside. It was the simplest to draw so I would be least likely to mess up.

I took the knife in my right hand and put it to my skin on the inside of my left forearm. I took a deep breath and began to make the rune.

The others immediately turned towards me and gasped. Blood ran down my arm and onto the dirt floor mixing with the earth to make mud. How ironic.

Legolas started to stand to stop me but Gandalf held him back.

I continued to carve into my skin blocking out the pain; I had felt worse.

When the rune was finished I recited the spell under my breath to seal it and give it power. It let out a low glow and faded away revealing my forearm to be completely unblemished save for the

now silvery rune.

The rune seemed to move much like the dark marks that Voldemort was so fond of. The rune shimmered in the light and gave the appearance of flowing water.

I looked up at the shocked faces of the group and gave them a smirk and wink to let them know that I was okay.

Not wanting to answer their questions I looked into the book for another rune that could be useful. I can see why the runes are dark, some take away emotions of the wearer so that they can

become more efficient in battle other create constant pain in the wearer of the rune for torture purposes.

I skip to a rune that will give me physical strength when I call upon it. The rune is unique in that I can turn it on and off. The only problem with it is that it drains my magic for each moment it is

on. I contemplate the positives and negatives and decide that if the time comes that I need it, I would rather have it.

I reach for the bloody knife with my left hand; I have never been more grateful to be ambidextrous. Slowly I bring the knife to my right forearm and begin to carve the intricate design.

This design is not enclosed in a circle. It has two eye looking shapes linked together like a chain. Once again I read off the enchantment for the rune and it took on a glow similar to the agility

rune.

Deciding that they would have to do, I put the book away in my bag. However, I had a feeling that I would need the strange knife so I put it in my belt and stood up to rejoin the group.

They all stared at me dumbfounded as to what magic I had used. I did not feel like explaining.

We sat in silence for a while and Gandalf pondered which path would lead to safety.

The silence was deafening and I finally built up the courage to share my secret.

"I have someth-"

"Ah! It's that way!" Gandalf spoke cutting me off and pointing to the right.

"He's remembered!" Merry said obviously relieved.

"No, but the air doesn't smell so foul down there. If in doubt, Meriadoc, always follow your nose!" Gandalf laughed.

I let out a frustrated sigh and we continued on our trek through the mines. I took the position in the front next to Gandalf.

Suddenly the mine seemed to get taller or I shorter. There was nothing that I could do, they could all see me shrinking back to my original size.

It was happening, the moment I dreaded has come.

I am changing back into Hermione Granger.

Well I hope that you liked it! I want to give a special thanks to all those who reviewed and gave me some wonderful ideas.

They really helped me figure out how I want this to turn out.

You are amazing!

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