A/N - I own nothing. Remember this is a AU fiction and I know that some characters that are alive should not be (my brother and I got into a fight over my usage of characters in this.) This is not Post DH compatible in anyway. Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy on some level.
Chapter 4
"It is by no means self – evident that human beings are most real when most violently excited; violent physical passions do not in themselves differentiate men from each other, but rather tend to reduce them to the same state…" – Thomas Elliot
Violence is the use of physical force against persons that potentially causes fear, injury or death. Damage, in some contexts, is also considered a form of violence. The definition of violence is often widened to include threats of physical force and substantially abusive language and harassing actions.
Societies regulate the use of violence through mores, socio – culture customs, public discussions, and ethical consideration. Most societies recognize a right to violent defense of self and others. Most societies define violence against persons or the property of others as crime.
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The next couple of days that passed flew by in a blur with her minutes, spinning slowly into hours, and hours sinking into days. Now she was lying on the thin mattress with a thick throw wrapped tightly around her slim figure. Snaking a hand from underneath the warmth of the blanket she slowly scratched a fingernail against the grain of the dark colored wood making a light line appear next to the other three.
Four days, it had been four days since awakening here in this very room. Rolling over she peered out of the mess of curly hair that the cooling night air only seemed to make even more unruly. Really it was a frivolous thought she let herself indulge in. So picking at a strand Hermione's gaze drifted the to the bare window were she saw the outline of the new moon peaking back at her, barely visible.
The new moon that meant that she still had fourteen days until the full moon and her undoubtedly untimely exodus from this life. Of course, she thought to herself, it could be worse, she could have been dealt fates fatal card before the final battle. And that was something that got her mind to churning for the first time since arriving.
Who exactly won that terrible battle? Were Harry and Ron all right? Not to mention her other comrades. Everything here seemed to pass in a whole different course of time itself. No signs of the war were present she supposed other then herself. None of the people seemed to be skittish or worried about someone coming from them, which would undoubtedly happen if the light side had won.
Did that mean that Voldemort had won? She wondered. Well if that were the case then she certainly did not have an ice cubes chance in hell of surviving, but over all that was not what worried her. Pushing herself from the bed Hermione wrapped her comforter around her shoulders tightly and headed towards the door, forgoing her shoes.
The light wooden door opened with only the slightest of creaks and she made her way out of it not bothering to close it behind her. Hermione had yet to find out who's house this was but there were no other sounds besides the fall of her own footsteps to speak of, so she was confidant no one else was around at this hour. She had done some exploring of the small, well equipped housing she resided in, temporarily to be sure, but found that it had two bedrooms, a small bath, and entry way with a tiny living area, and a place to eat and prepare food, that she was sure was a kitchen of sorts.
She hissed at the biting cold when she stepped out the front door and into the chilly night, but she let her legs carry her around the now sleeping town. She passed the empty laundry, where she had seen the women during the day, walking further still she passed the blacksmith's workshop, the smell of heated iron still lingering in the air, Hermione could hear the soft clucking of the chickens and the occasional shuffling of various breeds of non magical animals born in captivity to eat. Finally she paused on the edge of the dense forest that marked the border of the small town, if one could call it that.
Hermione didn't think for one moment that she could possibly be on her own as soon as she set foot outside the small cottage she had been taking lodge in, and so it didn't surprise her when she heard the whisper of leaves rubbing against each other. She feigned a sort of flaccid interest in her surrounding and continued to watch the constant shift of shadows among the foliage. Breathing in deeply she didn't flinch when a particularly nipping breezed pushed against her back causing her hair to obscure her vision.
She was about to remove the curtain of hair from her face when she felt cold fingers wrap themselves around her wrist sharply. Her capture and herself stood that way for only a split second before she was spun around and she felt the splinters of an old tree digging into her back through the cover she wore around her shoulders.
Hermione's injured shoulder flared sharply and caused her to loose her breath, her mouth parting in a silent gasp of shock. The grimace of pain was evident as it flashed across her pale face and she heard a deep chuckle of amusement that drifted to ears, sending a cold gripping chill down her spine.
She dared not to open her honey colored eyes and see just who had her in this most painful of positions. Her shoulder throbbed glaringly with each frantic beat of her heart. His breath was blistering as it fanned along the expansion of the sensitive skin of her neck. Fingers had found their way to her cheek dug into her excruciatingly, but she would not flinch, and the hand that encircled her thin wrist seemed only to be there for lack of anything better to do. Apparently he didn't think her much of a match in that moment, and he would be right to assume it. Hermione's legs felt as though they would give way at any moment as he continued to speak against her throat.
"Can you see…?" He said, and in that instant she knew this faceless person to be Fenrir Greyback. As she took a breath she couldn't help but notice the musky, earthy smell that radiated dominancy and maleness.
"Can I see what?" Hermione asked back blandly only betrayed by a touch of impatience. This however did not raise his ire, but made him chuckle deeply, the sound making his firm chest vibrate slightly.
"Can't you see…what this means," the fingers that had loosely encircled her thin wrist moved up at that moment and dug into the still healing wound along her shoulder. This time Hermione could not stop hiss of pain, or the cold sweat that broke out on her forehead along the hairline.
"Surely you give me more credit, Greyback," Hermione panted out through gritted teeth. "I am neither stupid, or hopeful about my situation. I know the chances of my comrades coming for me are slim to none."
She was proud of herself for regaining her composure, and speaking as his fingers still molested the reopening wound.
"I bet you would like to know who won the fight of dark versus light, wouldn't you, woman?"
Hermione sighed, more of relief that he had removed those long fingernails from the raw and now bleeding gap in her skin, then anything else.
"Would it make my position any better?" She asked dully, knowing the answer before he even opened his mouth.
"You are wrong about one thing, I don't think you ignorant, on just about anything, so I'm sure you know that answer, but I will tell you this. I'm sure that your little friends are going to try something foolish, as in rescuing you."
"Ah, so I'll deduce that your master was killed after all…pity," she said with a small frown. At this he laughed again, this one a bit louder and sounding more like a bark.
"You would be correct, your precious light side won, and your beloved pets are safe, I'm afraid."
"Well, it is little consequence to me, since I'll die at your hands either way."
Hermione couldn't help but to jerk slightly when he nipped smartly at her exposed and vulnerable neck. The sounds of his teeth clicking together resonated into the night air before quieting quickly.
"The clan is becoming restless with you among them, and I am not sure how much longer before the full moon I can contain them, especially the men." Greyback practically hissed to her in her ear.
It was in that moment she felt the first inkling traces of fear creep along her spine. She was not afraid dieing by any means, but then again there were things that these half – breeds could do that were far worse then death itself. And in knowing that, her imagination starting wrecking havoc on her over working mind. Again, she was not afraid of impending death, she could handle pain, what she did not know is if she could handle that unknowing drawn out fate that awaited her.
Hermione shuddered to think what could be waiting for her. She had assumed or rather she had held onto the small ribbon of hope that she would be taken out quickly. Dead before she had time to hit the ground, that sort of thing. Fenrir obviously loved her state of apprehension, because with just one simple statement, he made her question her unwavering resolve. But it was not the only thing it made her think. Perhaps he was more cunning then she gave him credit for, and perhaps he was merely playing a nice game of cat and mouse with her nerves.
With that in mind now she steeled her nerves, and stiffened against his frame.
"Well, if it comes to that, then I suppose I have no choice in the matter, now do I?" Hermione snapped out.
"Indeed you don't, woman."
With one last deep chuckle he stepped away and disappeared into the background as quickly as he had appeared in it. She saw or heard no traces of him as she pushed herself from the tree and placed a slightly trembling hand to her shoulder tenderly.
" 'From the torrent, or the fountain, from the red cliff of the mountain, from the sun that round me rolled in its autumn tint of gold, from the lightning in the sky as it passed me flying by, from the thunder and the storm, when the rest of heaven was blue…of a demon in my view…'"
Taking a deep breath she made her way back to the small cottage, with now the promise of a warm bed waited for her, but not the comforts of sleep.
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A/N - Thank you for reading, I'm terribly sorry this is so short, but I wanted to throw in some of Hermione's nerves being broken down just for a change of pace for her character. Again thanks for reading and the...er...small amount of reviews I appriciate them nontheless.
