Blood Moon
Chapter 3: Escape
A/N:
Again thanks to all those who reviewed, I'll try and update quicker.
Thanks to Justine to being a fab beta reader.
They were dancing, Harry dressed in dark green dress robes, Hermione in pale pink robes. Harry tightened his
arms around Hermione as they swayed in time to the music.
"Sorry I'm not a very good dancer,
Hermione." Hermione looked up at him, smiling.
"It's okay, you haven't trod on my foot
in the last five minutes, so I think we're quite safe," she said grinning. The music stopped and people
clapped.
"Want to go outside?" Harry asked Hermione. She nodded and he took a hold of her hand,
leading her outside onto the balcony that overlooked the lake.
Hermione snuggled into Harry's embrace;
he bent his head, kissed her hairline, but she suddenly stiffened in his arms.
"Hermione, what is
it?" Harry asked, and that when he noticed the full moon.
"Have you taken your potion?"
Hermione shook her head.
"It's too late." Her voice was muffled. Then, Harry felt a sharp
pain. He looked down to see that Hermione's hands had turned into claws and he felt them rip into his
chest.
Ahhh! Harry jolted awake to feel someone's hand on his arm. He pulled away.
"Don't
touch me!" he said, still half lost in his nightmare.
"Sorry!" came Hermione's soft
voice. Harry finally woke fully to find Hermione looking quite hurt. "Sorry, just a bad dream that's
all," he said, reaching out to take a hold of her hand, but at that moment the curtains parted and Celia walked
through looking slightly angry.
"Who yelled?!" she asked.
"That was me, sorry.
I had a weird dream," Harry said sheepishly. Celia rolled her eyes.
"Is that all? Good thing
everyone on the ward was already awake, otherwise I might have to chuck you out."
"Sorry, it
won't happen again," Harry said. Celia nodded and turned to Hermione.
"Seeing as I'm
here, I might as well change your dressings," she said, giving her wand a swish. Seconds later a box of bandages a
purple looking goblet of potion hovered over her shoulder.
Harry stood up from his chair.
"I'll just wait outside the curtains," he told Hermione.
Once Harry was outside, he stretched, working the kinks in his lower back from sleeping on the chair. He
turned his head when he heard Hermione hiss in pain.
"Some of the wounds aren't healing, I'll
need to give you some potion."
"Will the scars fade?" he heard Hermione ask in a soft
voice.
"Not completely," Celia said, and he heard Hermione sniff back tears. Harry lifted his
hand and parted the curtains to see Hermione facing away from him. The curtains rustled, causing Celia to turn
around.
"Hey!" she said, lifting a robe to cover Hermione's back, but not before Harry saw
the long crude claw marks that marred Hermione's skin.
"I'm sorry," he stuttered before
closing the curtains. As the curtains closed, Harry put a hand to his mouth. The sight of Hermione's scars was
burnt into his mind. He absentmindedly reached up and traced his own lightening bolt shaped scar.
Five minutes later the curtains parted and Celia stepped out.
"You can go back in
now." Harry returned to find Hermione sitting up in bed.
"Did you see the scars?" she asked
as he sat back down. Harry nodded slowly and Hermione give a small sniffle.
"They don't look that
bad," Harry said reaching out and tucking a stray strand of Hermione's hair behind her ear. "Hey, at
least your scars don't give sudden twinges without warning," Harry said with a grin, not wanting to see
Hermione cry. Hermione broke into a smile, the first one Harry had seen since they had arrived at St.
Mungo's.
"There's the Hermione I know," Harry said winking at her; he moved his hand to
cup her cheek. Hermione closed her eyes, leaning her face into his palm.
"I'm glad you're
here, Harry," she said softly.
Suddenly the curtains moved and Tonks stomped in, her arms full of books, a backpack slung over one shoulder
and a wicker basket hooked over her left wrist. She grinned at the sight in front of her.
"Not
interrupting anything am I?" she said as the two teenagers jumped apart.
"No!" Hermione
said, a blush creeping up her cheeks.
"A little help here, Harry, before my arm decides to drop
off," Tonks said as the books threatened to tumble to the ground. He jumped to his feet and relieved her of the
books.
"This is your stuff, Hermione," Tonks said putting the backpack down. "As is
this," she said setting down the wicker basket on the bed. Hermione opened the basket and Crookshanks lept out and
made a beeline for his owner.
"Crookshanks!" Hermione said smiling as the ginger cat padded up
to her and rubbed his face against her cheek. Harry sat down on the edge of the bed, allowing Tonks to have the
seat.
"You want the good news or the bad news first?" Tonks said pulling a copy of the Daily Prophet from
inside her robes.
"The good news?" Hermione asked.
"I've talked to your
healer and she said that you're doing well."
"When can I leave?"
Tonks
made a face, "That's part of the bad news; Celia wants to stay here until after your first
change."
Hermione nodded slowly and held Crookshanks close to her.
"I also talked
to Dumbledore and he said that was fine; he will send you your schoolwork every day."
"What's the other bad news?" Hermione asked.
"This!" Tonks said throwing the
Prophet on the bed. Harry looked down at the newspaper:
10 Azkaban Prisoners Escape!
"WHAT?" Harry yelled as he snatched up the paper.
"How?"
Hermione asked, seeing the moving picture of Lucius Malfoy.
"They think it was someone working from
the inside; the breakout was last night."
"It was all of them who were at the Department of
Mysteries that night," Harry said scanning the article. "They think Lucius has the breakout planned for
months, the Bastard!" Harry yelled, throwing the newspaper down in disgust.
"Harry!" Tonks
scolded.
"I bet Draco is as pleased as punch," Hermione said icily. At that moment they heard heavy
footfalls and the curtains were pulled back, Hagrid lunging into the area where Tonks, Hermione and Harry
were.
"Dumbledore sent me, 'arry, they've found out who attacked ye, Hermione," he said.
"But she won't talk to anyone but 'arry.
"She?" Hermione asked puzzled. "It
was a female werewolf that attacked me, but female werewolves are rare… very rare."
"We
didn't know she was one," Hargid said.
"Who is it?" Tonks asked.
"Bellatrix Lestrange."