It had been almost a full minute from the moment the two had stumbled to Dobby's side, Harry looking glassy-eyed at the elf while she desperately tried to keep her composure. She couldn't say that she was as close to Dobby as Harry, but during this past month and a half he had saved their lives at least three times, and she had started to think of him as a friend.

"No…" Harry kept saying, and Hermione tightened her hold around his waist, letting go as she saw him flinch.

"Harry… we need to go." She said with a heavy heart, the voices in the distance now close enough for their words to be intelligible. Harry looked at her with betrayal clearly written across his face.

"A-and leave him here?" He asked shakily, his shattered expression breaking her heart. But she knew they needed to leave before they could get discovered, so she nodded slightly.

"There's nothing we can do, Harry. Dobby died to help us escape." She said looking into his teary green eyes, "Let's not make his sacrifice meaningless." She felt horrible for leaving the brave elf in the middle of some car park, but Harry's survival was more important. Harry didn't move however, continuing to stare at Dobby's body, and that prompted her to act.

She grabbed his shoulder and pulled him to his feet, starting to nudge him away. He tried to fight against her, but he was evidently completely out of energy, leaning against her heavily as they stumbled on. They just about managed to make it behind the van next to the damaged car, when the sound of footsteps behind them stopped.

"What the fuck?! My car!" She winced at the shocked shout, half-dragging Harry further away, the cloak not helping matters as it was getting tangled into his dragging feet.

"Hermione…" He said with clenched teeth, "We can't leave him…"

"I'm sorry Harry. I'm so sorry, but we need to keep going." She used her sleeve to wipe off the tears flowing down her cheeks, continuing to drag Harry away from the angry muggles. They managed to make it about 10 or so cars down the line when Harry's knees gave up entirely, and she barely managed to slow his descent as he fell, before leaning him up against the bonnet of the car next to them.

"Where do you hurt?" She asked him whilst surveying him critically, chewing her bottom lip with such force she felt blood.

"Everywhere." He said in a whisper, his hands held against his ribs on the right side. His actions and reactions along with the pain he seemed to be in, made her rather certain he had broken several of his ribs. She just hoped that was the worst of it, and that none of them punctured anything vital inside. And then there was that potion he'd drunk… To say she was dreadfully worried would be an understatement.

"Come on Harry, we need to keep going." She urged him on, knowing they could not stay the night outside, the temperature already dropping close to freezing and the sun was still out. If they were still out once the sun set, they would freeze. Despite Harry's pained groans she crouched and placed his arm around her shoulders, helping him stand and resuming their slow walk towards the end of the car park.

She could tell Harry was suffering terribly, and they had to stop twice more for him to rest, but did eventually make it to the edge of the car park and the main road. Hermione took a look at the unfamiliar buildings around them, the two seemingly finding themselves in a medium sized city. With Harry close to passing out from pain and exhaustion, she leaned him up against the fence before covering him with the cloak.

"I'll be right back, Harry. Hold on just a second." She whispered to him, waiting for him to acknowledge her with a minuscule nod before slipping from underneath the cloak. She looked down at herself, and she was surprised to see she didn't even look all that dirty considering all that had happened in the past hour or so. The jacket she had Dobby bring her was blackened in some places from the heat, and her left pant leg was torn, but other than that she looked almost presentable.

There was a bus station not 100 feet away, and she quickly walked to it, ignoring the two older women standing there as she went to the station map on the wall. The map depicted the city of Gloucester, and immediately her mind went into overdrive. It took her less than 30 seconds to formulate a plan, and she didn't waste even a second in executing it, knowing she needed to get Harry out of the cold as soon as possible.

"Excuse me, could I please borrow your phone?" She asked the woman closest to her, who shook her head immediately, an apologetic look on her face.

"Sorry my dear, I don't have one." Thankfully the other woman, overhearing her question approached with the cell phone in hand.

"Here." She thanked her profusely, typing in the number of the cab company she'd seen written on the wall of the bus station. She thanked the woman after arranging for a cab, before quickly walking back to Harry. She pulled the cloak off of him, struggling to get him back to his feet as his muscles seemed to give up entirely.

"Come on Harry, hang on just a bit longer." She told him receiving only an indecipherable mumble in return. She positioned the two of them on the sidewalk, begging for the cab to show up quickly. They waited for a few minutes, and just as she was starting to struggle to support Harry's weight, a cab came into view. She waved her free hand frantically, and the cab driver thankfully stopped right beside where they were standing.

"Thank Merlin. Come on Harry." She whispered to him, helping him towards the car.

"What's happened to him?" The cab driver, an older Indian-looking man with greying hair asked upon spotting them, and she hoped he wouldn't recognize them, seeing as they were wanted in the muggle world too.

"He's had a bit too much to drink. Can you help me?" She asked, breathing a massive sigh of relief as the cab driver nodded right away, seemingly completely unaware of the fact that he was helping two of the most wanted people in the country. After they had managed to get Harry into the back of the cab, Hermione took the seat next to him while the driver closed the door before climbing into the front.

"Where to?" He asked looking back at them, and Hermione answered without preamble, her mind long made, "Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire." The cab driver lifted an eyebrow at that but didn't comment further, pulling away from the curb and onto the road. Harry leaned up against her as soon as they got underway, his head coming to rest against her shoulder and his hands grabbing hold of hers, squeezing tightly.

He was clearly in a lot of pain, but the lack of signs signifying the onset of shock gave Hermione hope that he at the very least wasn't bleeding internally and that the potion he'd drunk wasn't poisonous either. The drive to Chipping Norton would take about an hour, Hermione knew, remembering making this exact trip once before with her parents when she was little.

The cab driver was taking continuous long looks back at them, but she could see no suspicion in his eyes, only intrigue. She supposed it made sense, a one-hour drive had to be longer than what he was used to, and Harry was making pained little whimpers every so often, his hold on her hand bruising. It was only after they had entered the motorway that he spoke, his breath hot on her ear.

"Hermione…" He whispered almost desperately, and she turned her head to the side to look down at him, their faces almost touching. But there was nothing sensual or exciting about the proximity, only concern at the pain in his green eyes. And she soon discovered the pain wasn't just physical either.

"Dobby… He…" Harry couldn't complete his thought, but Hermione understood what he wanted to say regardless, moving her head closer and pressing her forehead against his.

"I'm sorry, Harry. So sorry." She said holding back tears, but her words prompted him to pull away slightly so he could look at her.

"S'not your fault." He mumbled so quietly she had to read his lips more than hear the words, his eyes growing teary at the sides. But just like every time in the past, he didn't let the tears fall, somehow managing to keep his composure despite the physical and mental pain he had to be feeling. It was at times like this that she really wanted to go and hex that wretched family of his, knowing this fear of expressing himself and his emotions was certainly their doing.

"It's okay Harry, everything will be okay." Finding no other words to comfort him, she stuck to the tried and tested method, but Harry didn't seem convinced, his expression faltering.

"How?" He asked pinching his eyes closed, "We have no working wand anymore, no hideout, almost no money, and I'm injured. I can't even walk…" His tone was turning more desperate by the second, not that he was overexaggerating things. They were well and truly on their last leg, but Hermione had one last ace left in her admittedly burned sleeve.

"We're going to be staying with my parents." She said biting her bottom lip, the decision to find refuge at her house not one she had taken lightly. She knew it would put her parents in danger, but they truly didn't have any other options left. Had she been in this position alone, she would have rather frozen under some bridge than placed her parents in danger, but she wasn't alone. And Harry was worth the risk.

"W-what?" He sounded beyond shocked at that revelation, his mouth opening and closing several times before he seemingly found the words to use, "We can't. They'll be in danger." His response was almost too predictable by now, but that was her Harry, prepared to sacrifice his life at a moment's notice if it saved some other. Hermione didn't go through all this to let him die now though.

"Rubbish, Harry. We'll sneak in under the cloak. Nobody will even know we're there." She revealed some more of her plan, but she could see Harry wasn't convinced.

"But… They must hate me."

"How exactly did you get to that conclusion?"

"The news… they must think I've kidnapped you…" She understood his point, disagreeing vehemently.

"I'm sure the Order explained the situation to them." She saw him getting ready to argue, so she pre-empted him, "And if they do believe it, the news I mean, then I'll explain to them the reality of the situation. My parents are smart people Harry, and they know me. They'll believe me." Hopefully, was what she added in her mind, unable to shut down that lingering doubt that her parents might actually not believe her. She did abandon them after all… No. No. She needed to stay optimistic.

The remainder of their ride to Chipping Norton passed by in almost complete silence, broken only by Harry's occasional grunt of pain. She could tell he was beyond exhausted, and to be fair she was as well, but rest would have to wait until they were safely behind the walls of her parents' house. She gave the cab driver instructions to drop them off in the street next to where her house was, and it didn't take long before the cab was parked at the address she'd given.

She paid for the ride with the last of her muggle money, the ride costing more than what she'd expected and she barely had enough to cover the bill, left with only a single 5-pound note. The cab driver helped her unload a 'drunk' Harry from the car, before wishing them a goodnight and pulling away.

The evening had by now well and truly changed into the night, the evenly spaced street lights providing the only source of light in the area. Hermione didn't waste time, pulling Harry into a dark spot between two of the lights as soon as the cab disappeared behind the corner, making a quick sweep of her surroundings before draping the cloak over them. Harry winced heavily as she grabbed his shoulder and pulled him back to his feet, starting to lead him towards her house.

Without an injured Harry beside her, she would have made the trip to her house in less than two minutes, but now her house came into view only after a gruelling 15-minute crawl. By the time they'd reached her driveway, she was beyond tired, every single muscle in her body aching as she virtually had to half-carry Harry the last few remaining steps.

Her house looked the same as when she'd last seen it two months ago, both her father's and her mother's cars parked in the driveway. She knew there was almost certainly some wizard observing the house, which made her beyond thankful that the snow no longer covered the ground, allowing them to make their way to the front yard with no chance of their footsteps being seen.

She dragged Harry past the front door and around the house, hoping the wizards – or muggles for that matter – had nobody watching the back door of the house. When they at last reached the door, she tried the handle and the door swung open. Despite the tension of the moment, she couldn't not roll her eyes at her father yet again forgetting to lock the back door. Her mum was going to yell at him again.

Not wanting to stay outside even a moment longer than necessary, she quickly pulled Harry inside before closing the door and locking it. She could hear noises coming from somewhere down the hallway, deducing her parents were as usual watching the 8 o'clock news. She pondered on what to do for a few seconds, before making a decision.

First, she helped Harry sit on the chair next to the shoe drawer, leaving the cloak over him as she slipped out. She hushed him as he started protesting, but by now he was virtually incoherent with the pain and fatigue. After managing to calm Harry down, she tip-toed her way towards the living room, her heart stuttering in her chest as she came round the corner, spotting both of her parents on the couch.

They were facing the tele while Hermione was directly to their right, tears starting to escape her eyelids. There were several points during the last few months when she thought she'd never see them again. Even from this sideways angle she could see they looked awful, dark circles under their eyes and tension in their posture. Stepping through the doorway, she took a deep breath.

"Mum? Dad?" She asked timidly, her mother jumping up in fright while her father immediately entered a combat stance, only to freeze upon spotting her. The silence seemed to stretch on for an eternity, both of her parents looking at her with wide eyes. It was her mother who broke the spell, releasing a muffled sob before rushing forward and engulfing her in a hug.

Hermione was crying too, and soon the pair were joined in their embrace by her father, the usually stoic man now crying as well. She wanted nothing else than to stay in their safe and loving arms for a few hours, but her thoughts soon went back to Harry and she immediately pulled out of their embrace, lifting her chin defiantly and steeling her nerves.

"Hermione, my girl, where have you been?!" She was pre-empted by her mother's half-crying half half-serious outburst, her father wiping at his eyes with his sleeve.

"That's not-" She tried redirecting the focus on her badly injured best friend, but her father jumped into the conversation before she could do so.

"The-the wizards said you ran away!" He said looking confused, before his eyes narrowed, "And then the police told us you'd been kidnapped! What the hell is happening?" She had both her arms held placatingly in front of her by now, knowing her father's tendency to lose sight of reason when allowed to spiral out of control. She needed to regain control immediately.

"Calm down, the both of you." She said sternly, and her tone seemed to make both of them pause momentarily. Hermione didn't waste her opportunity.

"The wizards were right. I chose to run away." She continued quickly at their baffled look, explaining the gist of why she'd done what she had, their disbelief when she'd finished evident.

"Hermione, forgive me for saying this, but this seems tough to belie-"

"Can all this wait, please? Can't you just trust me for now? Please?" She begged, "Harry needs help." She could see that was the wrong thing to say right away, her father cranking his neck and looking behind her as if he expected Harry to be hiding there.

"He's here?!" He exclaimed angrily, and Hermione rushed to calm him down.

"Daddy please!" She grabbed his hand, "He's hurt. I-I need your help. I need you to trust me. There's nobody else I can turn to now…" She knew she was starting to cry again, and she let the tears come, knowing her father couldn't stand to see her cry.

"But… This prick is the-" Her father never finished, interrupted by a strong punch to his shoulder.

"Richard." There was steel in her mother's voice, "Enough. We've waited for two months to see her again, prayed that she was okay…" Her mother then turned to her, running her thumbs down her cheeks and wiping off her tears, saying; "We trust you. What do you want us to do?" Hermione did her best to not break down entirely, knowing Harry needed help immediately.

"Follow me." She said curtly, leading her parents to the back door, before finding the edge of the invisibility cloak and pulling it off of Harry. She heard her mother make a soft gasp of what was presumably surprise, and her father swearing but her attention was on Harry. He seemed to be unconscious in the chair, his head rolled back and his breathing quick and shallow. Hermione was at his side in an instant, shaking his shoulder but Harry didn't so much as twitch.

"Richard, get him to the bedroom." Her mother said urgently, and for once her father didn't argue, grabbing Harry by his shoulders and under his knees and taking him straight to the guest bedroom, placing him gently on the bed. Her parents may have been specialized to fix teeth, but before becoming a dentist her father had served in the royal army as a combat medic, and if anybody knew how to help Harry, then he did.

Hermione sat on the bed next to Harry's head, taking his hand in hers and watching in fear as her parents took his pulse and blood pressure readings.

"What happened to him?" Her father asked her whilst opening his trauma kit, while her mother was checking his pupils. Not knowing how to explain it, Hermione decided to omit the potion part.

"Fell from about 10 feet onto a car, with me on top of him. He had bad pain in his ribs and hips, but was conscious until about 5 minutes ago." Hermione quickly recapped his injuries, her father nodding distractedly as he used the scissors to cut off Harry's hoodie and shirt. Hermione couldn't help but gasp in sympathy as his chest was revealed, a deep purple bruise forming on his right side and disappearing around his back.

"This one's clearly broken… And this one…" Her father said as he carefully pressed down on the side of Harry's ribs, a frown on his face.

"Is-Is he going to be okay?" Hermione asked fearfully, tightening her hold on Harry's hand at her father's frown.

"Well…" Her father said slowly, "If he's only broken his ribs, then yes, but he could have internal injuries. He needs to go to the hospital, ASAP."

"No! No, he can't." Hermione immediately responded with gusto, knowing what would happen if they did that. She could see her parents exchange a look of concern before her mother spoke up in that gentle tone of hers.

"We can't do much for him Hermione, not without proper tools. Going to the hos-"

"I said no! He-He's survived much worse, he'll make it through this too, I know it." Oh, how Hermione wished she had her wand, then the entire problem could have been solved with a single swish. But under no circumstances was she going to be giving Harry up, that wasn't happening. And she had faith that his magic would once again help him heal from the worst of the injuries.

"Okay, Hermione. We trust you, and if that's what you want then that's what we'll do." Her mother said gently, rubbing her shoulder lovingly.

"I think I have an I.V catheter stashed somewhere, and I should have some paracetamol for the pain too. I'll get that set up." Her dad said with a nod to himself, before disappearing out of the room. Her mother didn't leave her side, embracing her from the side and Hermione wrapped her free hand around her in return, keeping her other hand in Harry's.

"I'm so sorry mum. I-I didn't want to do this to you." She at last allowed herself to have that breakdown, her mother pulling her closer and starting to rub at her back.

"Shh, it's okay. It's okay. Everything is going to be okay." She had been saying this same sentence to Harry for the past month, and having somebody else say it to her made it feel like the burden she was holding had lessened at least somewhat.

"I… Us being here is dangerous. I don't want to put you two at risk." She mumbled as her father returned with the I.V catheter, knowing she needed to explain the situation to them. Her mother didn't let her go as she'd feared, her grip around her shoulders only tightening, while she could see her father's expression pinch.

"Have you done anything illegal?" Her father asked her whilst inserting the needle into Harry's arm.

"N-no, of course not! I told you; these bastards want Harry d-dead. And I won't… can't let that happen. H-he means too much to me." She was prepared for all sorts of responses, but her father merely gave her a resolute nod.

"Okay. Do you think anybody knows you're here?"

"I… don't think so, no. We walked here under the invisibility cloak." She responded after a bit of a think. Well, the cab driver could rat them out if he figured out who they were, but Hermione was almost certain the man had no clue. This meant that their location should at least for the moment be a complete mystery to the Ministry of Magic, the Order and the Death Eaters, as well as the muggles.

After setting up the I.V. drip, her father had brought a chair from the kitchen and sat himself at the foot of the bed, while her mother continued to stroke her hair. This had to be the lightest Hermione had felt for ages, the thought that there was somebody, an adult, that had her back soothing her soul like nothing else could. Now if only Harry would wake up.

"What, uhm, what are your plans after he wakes up?" Her father asked after a good hour of silence, and she turned from her mother's embrace to face him.

"I-We need to stay here for a bit. Lay low. If that's fine with you, of course, taking into account how much dang-"

"Hermione." Her rambling was stopped by her father's stern voice, "We are certainly not going to kick you out. And…" His eyes went to Harry's unconscious form, his hand still held tightly in her own, "And I suppose I can't throw him out either, not if what you said is true."

"Thank you." Her father gave her a half nod, before yawning and standing up, rubbing at his eyes.

"Well, I'm going to go and get some sleep. Helen?" He asked her mother, who gave her a kiss on her forehead before following him to the door.

"Shout if you need us." He said before pausing slightly, "And… I'm very glad to see you home. Night." Her mother rolled her eyes at that, wishing her a goodnight before leaving as well, and Hermione was left alone with Harry. There was no way she was going to be getting any sleep with him in this condition, so she scooted up the bed and sat with her back against the headboard, Harry's hand entwined with her own on her thigh.

She had no idea how much time passed, could have been an hour or four, when Harry gave off a pain-filled moan. She was immediately up and alert, her heart kickstarting into action as she saw him blink his eyes open, his free hand going to his ribs.

"Harry?" She asked half in concern and half in pure elation that he was awake, moving until she was hovering over him.

"Hermione." He said after his eyes focused on her, giving her hand a gentle squeeze, "I feel like I've been run over by a lorry." He said wincing as he tried sitting up, and she had to press him down lest the moron hurt himself further.

"What are you doing?" She asked sharply, "Stay put. You've broken several ribs." She explained the source of his pain, and she could see him incline his head as if saying 'Yeah, makes sense'.

"W-where are we?" His worried-sounding question told her that his memory wasn't entirely there yet, and she hurried to reassure him.

"We're at my parents' house."

"What?!" He exclaimed before immediately gripping his side in pain, and she rolled her eyes at the predictability of his response. He really was so easy to read.

"Really, Harry, it's not that big of a deal. Nobody knows we're here, and my parents are okay with us staying here." She could see his jaw working as he prepared to argue, but Hermione wasn't in the mood to hear his whole 'self-sacrifice' shtick for the one-millionth time.

"But-"

"No." She answered sternly, cutting him off before he could start, "There is nobody else we can turn to for help, and my parents know the situation. They know what they're getting themselves into, and they're willing to help us. Let's face it Harry, we're mightily screwed. We've got no working wand left, no place to go, and you're injured." She could still see he wasn't overly thrilled with the situation at hand, but her words seemed to have made enough of an impression for him not to argue.

"Hermione…" He said after a short pause, sadness clear in his tone, and she squeezed his hand in support. "Dobby… He… I can't believe it." His eyes widened then, a frantic glint entering his eyes as he tried to sit up again, wincing in pain as he did so, "What happened to Hedwig, Hermione? I-Is she okay?"

"Relax, Harry. Harry, rel- Harry!" She at last managed to snap him out of his frenzy, pushing him back onto the bed with one hand while still holding his own with the other.

"I'm sure she's okay. I would be more afraid for Dolohov than her really, the way it was going." Hermione said with a comforting smile, having no doubts that his familiar had escaped that scene. She just hoped Hedwig took at least one of that bastard's eyes, if not both.

"Are you sure?" Harry asked timidly, all his energy seemingly expended in his attempt to sit up.

"I'm sure. She's a smart bird, she'll probably lay low for a bit before showing up." She was glad Harry seemed to agree with her, a melancholy smile stretching across his face. The two remained in that position for what had to be more than 30 minutes, but with the excitement of Harry waking up long gone, she was starting to lose the battle to the tiredness threatening to overtake her.

"We should probably get some sleep. I'm knackered." She said mid-yawn, rubbing at her barely open eyes with the back of her hands.

"Yeah." Harry agreed softly, looking just as tired as she felt despite the fact that he'd spent the last few hours unconscious.

"Can you move over a bit?" Harry's eyes widened comically at her question, and she couldn't help but laugh as he started spluttering.

"W-what? But your parents-"

"My parents will not mind. And even if they did, I wouldn't care." She said in a voice that she hoped conveyed her thoughts on the matter, before speaking in a softer, more tender tone, cupping his cheeks as she did, "I nearly lost you today, Harry. Again. I'm not leaving you, not after that." She dared him to argue, but be it due to the exhaustion or the fact that he knew she wouldn't change her mind, he smartly kept quiet.

She left him only to brush her teeth, which felt incredible after almost two months of using only cleaning charms, and to change into her pyjamas, before rejoining him in the guest room. She wasted no time in slipping underneath the covers, scotting over the bed until she was pressed up against him, but hesitated in putting her head on his chest for fear of hurting him.

"Are you in pain?" She asked quietly, relaxing somewhat as he shook his head.

"Not really. Whatever this is," He said showing her the I.V drip her father had set up, "Is working fantastically." Hermione knew that Harry's perception of pain was different than most people's, so 'not really' probably meant he wasn't in excruciating pain, and he could handle the rest. Not wanting to hurt him, she decided to place her head on the pillow next to his, pressing her forehead against his cheek.

"Goodnight, Harry."

"Night."