Chapter 5: No Where To Hide

Hermione raced on blindly, her only thought to get far away and quickly. Every action that she could think of, every defensive move required the use of a wand. She ducked behind a large tree and listened closely. She couldn't hear anything, but that made her all the more nervous. She tried to calm herself down and think how her pursuer would be thinking. He can't see me, so the only spell he can use to find me is Homenum Revelio. And that spell doesn't work in water! She had her answer. The man had mentioned that the ocean was close by, all she had to do was get to it without him seeing her. She could hide in the water, and when his spell wouldn't locate her, he would think she had gone into the forest. Hermione looked up, trying to see the break in the trees that would let her know which direction the water was. At that moment, she heard a twig break, and sensed that he was close by. Heart pounding with fear, she left the tree and ran in the direction of the water.

Yes, now there were definitely footsteps behind her. Coming fast. Hermione turned her head to look, knowing that if she was in his sights she would not have a chance.

She tripped, and suddenly was falling downward, downward. The gully had come out of nowhere, and she was rapidly falling. Her leg hit a rock or a downed tree limb, and she heard a crack before the naseating wave of pain struck her. Moments later, everything changed and she realized she was underwater. She knew that the gully must have lead to a river or stream of sorts, but there was no time to process that thought. Hermione fought her way to the surface, the water's icy chill stealing her breath. The river was moving, and she felt herself being pulled along with it. Terrified, she tried to grab on to something, anything, as her shoulder slammed hard into a rock. A tree branch was leaning low over the water, and her grasping fingers managed to catch hold. Using all of her strength, she pulled herself slowly, painfully out of the water. Gasping for air and sobbing, she collapsed on the riverbank. Her shoulder was throbbing painfully, and her leg was bent at a strange angle. She tried to move it and let out an involuntary scream of pain.

Oh Merlin, if he found her now...Hermione couldn't bear to think of what he would do. She had to get out of here, get help. The cold air was getting to her, making her shiver uncontrollably. She had never been so miserable in her entire life.

OoooOO

Scabior raced through the woods, searching left and right. He couldn't understand how she had just disappeared. He cast the locator spell repeatedly, but it revealed nothing. Just him, alone in the quiet and cold forest.

He had not spent all that time with the gang of snatchers without picking up a few tricks. He knew that if waited until nightfall, she was bound to come out of hiding, and then he would find her. He could not help but feel a pang of worry—it was cold and she had not been dressed properly. He wondered idly if he should call out to her, but dismissed that thought almost immediately. That would only accomplish revealing his whereabouts. He knew that it was best to just be patient, but that had never been one of his better skills.

OoooOO

The shivering had long since stopped, and Hermione's leg was not bothering her so much anymore. In fact, she felt almost comfortable. Drowsy even. Deep in her mind, she thought something was screaming at her, telling her to move, just get up and move. With a sense of detachment, she decided that she would try to move off of the riverbank, but first she would rest. Just for a few minutes.

Her eyes closed, and she sighed as she slipped into the warmth.

OoooOO

Scabior felt a growing sense of frustration and something close to panic. Where was she? It was not quite dark, the evening had settled into those twilight moments in between the velvet blackness and light. He considered his options—he could go back to the cabin and set up his protective enchantments, but then she would not be able to find her way back. He had done some terrible things, but leaving a woman in the woods on a cold winter night would not be one of them. His mind made up, he cast the locator spell once more. This time, the revealing shadow seemed to settle far below him, near the river. She couldn't have gone down there! He thought, but made his way down the steep embankment. He could feel the spell gathering strength, and knew he was headed in the right direction. What he saw on the opposite side of the river made him gasp. Hermione was laying on the bank, motionless. Instantly, he Disapparted across the river to her.

"Hermione!" He shook her shoulder, but there was no response. He touched her face, and found it to be cold under his fingertips. Feeling a familiar fear rising within him, he searched the side of her neck for a pulse. It was there, but very weak. Without a further thought, he scooped her up in his arms and concentrated hard on the cabin. Within seconds, they had arrived just outside of the protective wards. He stepped over the discarded fish he had caught earlier, waved the wand, and moved inside. After replacing the protection, he brought Hermione into the cabin and placed her on the couch. Her clothes were soaked through and her leg didn't look right. Scabior felt a sense of anger at himself as he realized he could not attempt to heal her leg—all of his training had focused on the art of causing injuries, not healing them.

He lit a roaring fire in the grate with a flick of his wand. He had to get her warm. Slowly, with a gentleness that was unfamiliar to him, he began removing her wet clothing. She murmured slightly, but otherwise remained unresponsive. When she was completely free of her clothes, he summoned the quilt from the bed and wrapped it around her. Then he lay down beside her, being careful not to disturb her leg, and held her close against his chest.

OoooOO

The warmth she had found on the riverbank had long since abandoned her. Hermione felt alone, dark, cold, and frightened. Oh Harry, I'm so sorry. She thought with sadness, knowing instinctively that she was leaving, floating away and Harry, her closest friend, would be devastated. Ron, there was still so much more I had to say to you, I wanted to see you realize that we are so much happier being friends. Then she knew it was time to surrender, time to let go.

Suddenly, the warmth was back. It was there, and it was comforting. Hermione clung to it, feeling as though she were underwater again and the warmth was her air. Fighting her way into it, she became aware of her body again. Her leg hurt terribly and her shoulder was sore, but there was something else. Something to nestle against, a warmth she had never known before. She knew instinctively that he was with her and he was the warmth that had led her out of the darkness. She tried to be closer, but the movement jarred her leg and she moaned in pain. She felt the man shift as he put his hands gently on her face.

"Hermione." He whispered. "I'm so sorry Hermione. Please wake up, please look at me." She opened her eyes, and felt a rush of fear at how close he was. But there was a more pressing problem.

"My leg." She murmured. "I think its broken. Please..."

"I can't, love." He said in a ragged voice. "I'm no good at healing spells, I'm afraid I'll hurt you even more." Hermione clutched his chest as a wave of pain threatened to overtake her.

"I can fix it. Please...it hurts so bad. Give me my wand."

A/N Thank you for all of the wonderful reviews! So sorry to end with a "cliff hanger" but its almost midnight and my mind is getting foggy! I promise to update tomorrow. :) :) Hope you enjoyed this chapter!