Disclaimer: I do not own any of this. J.K. Rowling and Annette Curtis Klause get all the credit.
She was running, running with all the power built up inside of her. The wind whipped her hair around her face. The waxing moon peeking through the trees. Her heart was pounding. This was pure bliss. Nothing could bring her down. Except the puffing that she heard behind her.
"Ron, hurry up. We're going to be late," Hermione called behind her.
"How can… you run… so fast?" Ronald panted.
Hermione just laughed and stopped to wait for him. They had decided to take the back roads to the field were the fireworks were going to be lit. The parade had gone on for hours and the streets were still filled with families.
He had finally made his way to her side.
"You need to exercise more," she huffed.
"Yeah, right,"
Hermione rolled her eyes and started to run again. Ronald groaned but followed behind her. "I never knew you went to boot camp."
She laughed, "Running is my life. A way to let everything go. No more loneliness, misery, regret. It keeps me sane."
"Sorry to break it to you sweetheart, but you are insane. Nothing could bring your right mind back."
I must be insane if I am with you. Her eyes swiveled to him and narrowed. She picked up her pace and didn't even bother to stop when he hollered after her. How could I be so stupid? He can never understand what I feel when I run. He is nothing, but why am I drawn to him? How does he always drag me back in?
Lost in her thoughts, she didn't realize that she made it to the fence around the field. Hermione decided to wait for him; she sat on the ground and went back to her thoughts.
I need someone who understands all of me, not someone that only knows half of my life. Harry knows everything. He risked his life in the fire, just like my father. He can help me understand. He can help me forget about it. What if he doesn't want to talk to me? I haven't seen him since my birthday. Why was I so rude to him? Right, Mum, she threw herself at him. How can everyone have a thing for him? Mum, Alice…me? I just wanted to prove to him that he is not god's gift to earth. But now he probably hates me! Man, girl, you are one insane werewolf. No, I am not insane.
"Mione, you okay?" Ronald asked timidly as he came up beside her.
"Fine," she said curtly.
"I'm sorry. It was meant as a joke. I didn't think that it would offend you that much," Ron said rambling.
"Whatever, lets just go. We are going to miss it."
Their friends were by the edge of the forest. Some of them called greetings to them. One of the guys handed Ron a coke. He took a large gulp, grimaced, and gave it to Hermione. "It's yours. I have to drive home later." Hermione took a sip to find out that it was laced with rum. She drank more and gripped the bottle tightly.
Cedric Diggory showed up a couple of minute's later and started pounding on Ronald's back. Many of the gigglers fawned over him. Everyone wanted to touch him.
Then Loony and Seamus arrived, bringing there own drinks with them. They soon got into an argument over whose beverages were better.
"I'm going to take a leak," Ron whispered to her.
Fireflies were everywhere. A sign that night had arrived and the fireworks would soon start. Everyone must have realized that all at once, for the crowd grew silent.
Ronald had been gone a long time.
In the sudden quiet, a chorus of howls echoed like a distant song in the trees beyond the toilets.
Loony smirked, "Someone's having fun."
The fine hair on Hermione's back prickled. Ron was out there alone. Her blood turned cold. "I think I need to pee."
She could smell the toilets before she even came close. She pinched her nose in distaste as she made her way around the Port-o-let, looking for signs of Ron or the Five.
She heard faint movement in the woods. Hermione slunk silently into the trees, her eyes wide. He better be safe. Her nails lengthened and her teeth grew.
The woods were deep with shadows. There was a rustling off to her right. Someone was pushing between the bushes. He hummed cheerfully. She almost breathed a sigh of relief, but the she recognized the voice.
"Draco."
He froze in the shadows. Something almost as big as him flung over his shoulders.
Hermione placed the song he had been humming. It was Oingo Boingo. The words went walking with a dead man over my shoulder.
"What do you have there?" she demanded.
"Nothing. It's mine," he growled. He slid the kill from his shoulders and it crashed to the ground.
It's a body! Not Ronald. She would kill Draco if it was.
"I'll share if you're nice."
"Show me."
"You want to see if it is your meat-boy, Mione?"
The asshole was toying with her. She took another quick step forward but he blocked her, laughing.
"Does Mione want her plaything?" he taunted.
She moved to the left and knocked him down. She stepped over Draco and saw the brown eyes of a furred face. A large dog with his throat cut lay on the ground.
Draco got to his feet, laughing, "Had you going, didn't I"
His laughter was echoed from the trees, and the rest of the Five came into the clearing. Had they all been out there laughing at her?
"Smell yummy, Mione?" Draco mocked. "Think you might like a taste since it isn't your boyfriend?"
She spat a curse at him and began walking away. He grabbed her hand and snarled, "You think you're different from us, but you're not. We know who we are, Hermione. And we know what we want. We don't run away from it. You are sick, Hermione, if you think that you can play human."
I know who I am. How dare he say I don't? I love being a loup-garou. I adore the sweet change. When I hunt I hunt wild prey. I don't kill pets for the fun of it.
A whistle came shooting into the sky and a fountain of fire dripped red. I'm missing it.
She raced back to her friends and found Ronald waiting.
"Where were you?" Ron asked as he hugged her
"I could ask you the same thing." She didn't hug him back. She could be angry with him, at least for a moment. The bright lights made her ooh and aah with pleasure.
But danger lurked for the crowd out in the woods. The Five had killed a human before. Did they still have the taste?
The night was full of smoke and lights. When she saw the sparks falling she remembered another nigh more than a year before. The fire was my fault, too. I should have told my father that Dean and the Five were running wild.
She buried her face in the human's shoulder and tried to suffocate her pain. He was full of rushing blood and smiles and dreams-things her father would never have again.
I am so sorry for the wait. I had this all typed up and then my computer froze and the only way to fix it was to turn it off! I didn't get to save it! I was pissed.
As many of you probably know, I am concerned about the plagiarism thing. I do not want to get kicked off because of this story.
I know some of you that have read the book have pointed out that this story is way to close to it. There was also this short news clip about J.K. suing someone for a book he had written. That got me even more concerned.
I don't know if I have anything to worry about but just in case I am going to be taking a couple of weeks off so that I can come up with some more ideas that will work with this story. Hopefully, I will get half of the story typed!
I really am sorry, but I don't know what else to do.
I will talk to you all soon.
Angel 737
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