-Chapter One-

Hermione was crouching out of fear, not even realizing that she had been momentarily saved. When she finally realized that she hadn't been attacked yet, she slowly turned around, only to come to face with a pair of steel blue eyes.

"Are you ok?" he coughed out, his voice rasped and somewhat husky. Remus Lupin looked into the face of his favorite student, suddenly understanding that she wasn't a student anymore to him, but a friend. She nodded dumbly, not trusting her voice. The pain from her hip was still quite unbearable and she winced from the thought, not noticing it had been out loud.

Remus looked down at the torn flesh, anger swelling in him. "I have to get you out of here…" he said absentmindedly.

"No, I have to stay and hel…"

"NO!" he yelled, not meaning to have spooked her. "I'm sorry.., I mean we have to get you somewhere save, away from here…away from Greyback" he'd already started scooping her in his arms to leave, but she was trying to push him away.

"Profe-"

"Its Remus" he cut her off for the second time. She looked uncomfortable for a moment and then added;

"Remus…I don't need to be saved, I can help the others…I'm…I'm fine" Remus shook his head in disagreement, scooped her up and started running. Hermione tried to free herself again but soon abandoned as she looked over Remus's shoulder. Ron had stopped in his track, not bothering to come to her aid, noticing that it was Remus and further away was Harry, who had run to her rescue but was once again deeply involved in a fight with Voldemort. If she hadn't been looking back, she might have missed Greyback running towards them, eyes flashing.

"REMUS, WATCHOUT!" Hermione's piercing scream cut through the night, sending a horrible chill down Remus spine. Everything happened so quickly. Greyback dove onto Remus's back, sending Hermione hurtling towards the ground, tumbling, pain from her hip surging again from the dirt and twigs on the ground.

"HERMIONE!" Remus spat out, yelping as Greyback's fang dug into his back. Hermione spun around, tears on the brim of her eyes. Remus reached for his right pocket and threw an old boot to Hermione. "It's a…a port-key… tak-take it and GO!" he was coughing and fighting back his nemesis.

Hermione crawled, on all fours towards the portkey, not bothering with the aching pain from her hip. "Remus…" she cried, holding unto the boot.

"It won't be long!...Go away!" he warned her, not wanting her to be here close to Greyback, but it seemed that the werewolf had sensed what was happening and made a sudden jump for Hermione.

A rip erupted; Greyback had his fangs deep into the rusty leather of the old boot as the portkey was activated. A burst of bright violet lightning jolted out from the portkey causing Greyback to leap back yelping painfully and Hermione to be transported to wherever Remus had wanted her to be.

With a last minute look, she noticed that Remus had stretched out his hand for her, crying silently in both pain and…well that she wondered. He seemed to be sad about her being taken away from him and for that she felt touched and loved. It was too late for her to take his hand, for she couldn't she it anymore, or anything else from the previous battle.

And that's when absolute darkness seeped in, leaving her in a state of unconsciousness.

She could hear people talking in the back but couldn't make out what they were talking about. For some reason, her eyes would not open. She attempted moving when sudden wrenching pain came from her right hip. She winced loudly, her eyes opening from the pain.

She regretted opening her eyes the moment blinding white light met her, causing her eyes to sting for a few seconds. She closed her eyes quickly and opened them again slowly, giving her eyes time adjust to the light. She recognized the room she was in but there was a slight difference. The nurse was different.

"Oh, oh she's waking up!" the unfamiliar nurse said happily. An old man stood at the foot of her bed. He looked like her deceased Headmaster, younger with its brown beard feathered with gray streaks but besides that he was quite identical to him. But it was entirely impossible, for he was dead.

"Are you alright dear?" she asked, resting the back of her hand on Hermione's forehead. Hermione looked up towards the nurse.

"I feel fine"

"Thank heaven! We thought we would loose you…" she proclaimed, her hand covering her heart dramatically. Hermione was confused, she wondered why "they had almost lost her" and to what.

"I'm sure you're probably wondering why you're here" the old man said, speaking for the first time.

"Yes" Hermione answered, still amazed of how similar he looked compared to Albus. He moved from the end of her bed to an unoccupied chair beside her.

"You see, a student of ours found you unconscious on the second floor close to the girls bathroom. To be more precise, Margeret Kingsley, the Ravenclaw Prefect found you. She came screaming in my office, quite disturbed. When I arrived with Miss Pomfrey, our school nurse, you were quite in a predicament. Your injury was what confused us the most, but mostly the fact that we had no notion of who you were. We still don't know. Which brings me to this question? Do you have any recollection, whatsoever, of where you came from and how you came to be so…abnormally injured?" he stared deeply, not flinching one second. From the corner of her eyes, she could make out the nurse, which now she knew as a much younger Mme Pomfrey, gazing down at her just as deeply as the old man.

"I…" she started, her voice rusty from the lack of liquid. The old man put a hand on her small, scratched, bruised one, nodding her on to continue. She swallowed and nodded herself. "I remember some of it. I was attacked by something, bitten and when I thought it was over for me, I was saved. Remus pulled me away from-"

"Remus Lupin?" he cut her suddenly, frowning in confusion.

"Yes…well, Professor Lupin really but not anymore…" she continued absently.

"Professor?" Mme Pomfrey asked incredulously.

"Let her continue Poppy" he said softly. Hermione looked at the nurse, frowning before looking back at her covered hand.

"Anyway…Remus pulled me away but he was attacked from the back by what had been attacking me before. I was thrown off and the next thing I knew, he was throwing a portkey at me, yelling at me to go away… but it was too late, whatever was attacking Remus jump towards me and ripped the portkey just as it was activated. And then I don't know, I don't remember…I guess I fainted or something…" she finished on a note of doubt.

"Where were you at the time?"

"Next to the forbidden forest" she answered knowingly.

"I think I have an idea about what has happened but first I need to informed you of your injury…" he started, a look of sadness glazing his light blue eyes. Hermione's head jerked up quickly, concern written all over her face.

"What about it?"

"I think we should let Poppy explain it to you" The nurse sat down on her bed, her left hand resting sympathetically on her legs.

"With a few procedures, I was able to know what kind of creature caused this injury…" she drifted uncomfortably as though she didn't want to continue. The man looked at her. "Albus…" she added shaking her head pleadingly. Hermione's expression changed from concern to pure shock. "So it was Albus…but how? Unless…" her thoughts were interrupted as Albus spoke up.

"What Poppy is unable to say is that you were bitten by a werewolf, which means that you are a Lycanthrope"

"What?" Hermione whispered, her voice trembling from the news.

"I'm sorry…um…I'm afraid to say that I don't know your name" he said suddenly, that all too familiar twinkle in his eyes gleaming in amusement. Hermione couldn't believe that this was Dumbledore, The Albus Dumbledore.

"Hermione Granger, Sir…"

"Yes, well, I'm truly sorry Miss Granger" he implied, getting up from his seat. Just as he turned to leave, Hermione asked:

"Professor, would you mind telling me what you think happened?"

Dumbledore turned around and smiled ever so slightly.

"After you're all better" He said with a wink. He turned towards the nurse who had gotten up from the bed, just a few moments after he had. "Poppy" he nodded just before departing.

"Now Miss Granger, you need to rest" Madame Pomfrey commanded. Hermione smiled a little on the inside, knowing that this was the Pomfrey she knew. She watched the nurse walk away towards another bed, not feeling tired, juts relaxed. She pulled open the curtain, revealing a sandy haired boy.

"Mister Lupin" the nurse whispered, shaking his shoulder gently, not wanting to hurt him. Hermione, on her part was totally dumbfounded.

And for this moment, Hermione came to a shocking assumption about what might have happened. Even if it seemed quite imposible…

A.N/ Hope you like it….don't worry, I know it's a lot to read and there isn't much happening but I promise that in the proceeding chapters there will be!

Luv, Van

By the way, I'd like to give special thanks to:

--Twitchy-tennisplayer

--Shadowdragonwings

--Remusgrl01

--MoonofTime

--Xenija

--Angelic Bladez- Broken and Twisted

--Death's kiss

--Viktor Krum's lazyllama101

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