M Rated Chapter: Contains violence

Chapter 30: Reality Check

"I'm so glad we were able to arrange this, Severus. Joe really needs to make more friends. He's been struggling to adjust in Primary School. Sorry did you want sugar in your coffee?"

He turned back to the woman who was currently making drinks in the kitchen as the children played in the lounge. They had only been there for over an hour but Severus patience was beginning to tire. Hermione had been complaining the last two days that she did not want to go and ended up having to bribed by Severus to come to the muggle woman's house. After their family dinner on Tuesday evening, Hermione had been much moodier and more agitated, even going to great lengths to sleep as much as possible under furniture and in crevices of rooms where she would be less likely to be found. Not that Severus could blame the girl from going out of her way to avoid muggle boy, heck Severus couldn't blame her. The boy had been nothing but torture to their ears as he wailed on with tantrums and yelling and considering Hermione's senses were extremely heightened, he couldn't blame her for wanting to leave.

Janet had already left the room three times to calm the boy after he had lost to the girl at another board game.

"Mommy?" Severus rolled his eyes as the boy came running into the room right as she placed his coffee down in front of him.

"Yes Honey?" She replied patiently but lifted her eyes when the girl came running into the room after him looking pale and clammy as she clutched her teddy to her body.

"Hermy cheated"

"N-nwo, No. I-I did..n't I-I-" She clutched her chest and visibly shaking at the thought of being wrongly punished. Severus placed his hand on the girl's shoulder trying to calm her down so she didn't end up in a panic attack.

"Joe, you need to play nice with your new friend"

"But she stole as well. I saw her putting the cookies in her pockets and..."

Ah, the girl's weakness.

Severus glared at the girl knowing that was at true. Hermione had a habit of trying to steal food since they had gotten her a year ago. He remembered grabbing her as she had fallen into a park bin once and tried to eat a sandwich after someone had thrown it away. He gave her a scolding after that, making her promise not to do it again but she couldn't help herself. Months of torture, neglect and homelessness had taught her some survival skills and some habits were harder to break then others.

As the woman began scolding the boy for accusing his new play-mate, Severus held out his hand out under the table giving her the give-me-what-you-took-now-we-will-be-having-a-discussion-about-this-later look. Hermione could only surrender what she had taken in her coat pocket and put into his large hand. She stared up into his eyes giving him the please-don't-tell-my-momma-and-papa look.

"Only if you behave the rest of the evening" He said flatly. She gulped but nodded and turned away to the man before looking back over to the boy.

"She doesn't want to be my friend!" The boy stamped his foot angrily.

'No one does' Severus glared at the boy.

"That's not t-true. I-I want to pwa- p-play. But a different game," Hermione told the boy well mainly the mom who smiled down at the girl.

"That's sounds like a great idea, Hermione. I think I have Monopoly somewhere which you two can play. Let me get it out for you" Hermione gulped sweat pouring down her forehead as she shook. Severus could see she wasn't coping. She really didn't want to be near that boy.

"Hermione" He placed his hand on her shoulder. She yelped jumping at the thought of being punished. "One more hour and we'll leave, alright?" She nodded vigorously before looking back into the living area to see her setting up the board game before turning back to her god-father. "I-I didn't cheat"

His lip quirked, "I know", he leaned forward. "He's just a sore loser" He thumbed her cheek making her calm down a little. "Remember your breathing techniques. In...2...3...4...5...out...2...3...4...5...better?" She closed her eyes trying to breathe slowly and deeply as his baritone voice continued to guide her.

"Everything okay?" Janet came back in the room again seeing the two chatting to one another. He nodded before brushing the girl's cheek again and making sure she was okay before she joined back in. She watched as the girl walked off before turning back to the man. "She's very mature for her age"

Severus shrugged, "Indeed, although" He simply replied not wanting the woman to feel as though her parenting skills were being judged. Janet arched her eyebrow before sitting down with him wanting to compare her child and see if he was at least somewhat normal. Severus sighed, "She still sleeps with her parents and has attained a major dislike for storms"

Janet giggled, "Joe's the same. I finally got him to start sleeping on his own a few months ago but he's still gets night terrors. Still wets the bed from time to time"

Severus turned back round to the children in the next room. He could see Hermione's eyes on him almost pleading to go home as she sat with the boy on the white carpeted floor. He gave her a small reassuring smirk but it didn't help to relieve the situation. Twenty more minutes then, he sighed thinking about the woman next to him. He really did enjoy her company.

Hermione sighed as she watched her god-father turn away from her. She felt as though she had been here for an eternity already. She wiped the brown of her forehead before closing her eyes again and trying to breathe. She couldn't describe the way she was feeling at the moment, cold, clammy, tired, ill. She could feel her heart racing like a bullet. It had been hard not to hide under the couch when the boy began to cry and scream up the top of his lungs. She had been reduced to balling up in the corner of the room and covering her ears until his mum could calm him down. In the months she had spent in captivity, only her uncle had been loud and screaming. No one else, though there was no one else really. Other than the people she had met on the street but they had been just as bad.

"Hey, it's your turn" She opened her bleary eyes and winced as the light invaded them.

Was it always this bright?

"What are you waiting for, roll the dice" He chucked them rather harshly towards her. She yelped from the shock and hastily grabbed the two die before rolling them.

A one and a two. She moved the metal dog several paces forward before picking up a card.

Pass go, Collect $200

"Go to jail card" She sighed, placing her piece in jail and placing the card face down on her side so he couldn't see it. Severus had promised to teach some more potions making techniques if she was on her best behaviour. No magic, no transforming into Bear or any of her other animals, no complaining, no... well...being bad. Hermione had put up an initial argument about it telling him she didn't feel well but he wasn't having any of it and had threatened to take away potions making from her for a fortnight if she didn't behave. She had ended up defeated in that aspect. She knew how much he cared for the woman. She just wished she hadn't had to of been dragged along to play 'play-mate' for the boy.

How much longer?

The boy laughed at her, "That's the third time in a row. You're bad at this" He chuckled as he moved his piece and landed on one of her properties. He growled in anger which scared her more. She unconsciously gripped her teddy bear more.

"Here" He passed her some monopoly money.

$1

"That's not the proper rules. It's $28" She couldn't help but hiss back at him. His mouth dropped for a second before glaring at her. "No, it doesn't. I'm going to tell mum that you're cheating again and this time she'll spank you"

Hermione's breathing laboured as she held tighter onto her teddy bear. Tears were prickling the sides of her eyes. She hadn't done anything wrong; she didn't deserve to be punished. She couldn't go through that not again and what would her god-father do if he believed Joe. He would hate her; he wouldn't take her potions making again.

Hermione flushed away, taking the $1 not wanting to be punished over the incident.

He smirked as she took his money and settled back into the game. Three turns through, she was finally out of jail and on her last few dollars.

Thank god she thought as the boy as she watched the boy take $500 instead of $200 out of the bank.

She rolled the dice, moved her piece before picking up another card.

Winner!

Damnit!

"Go to jail" She muttered rolling her eyes as she placed her piece in jail for the fifth time in a row. She didn't realise the boy had begun to get suspicious and immediately took the card out of her hand. He gritted his teeth.

"You have one second prize in a beauty contest. Take $100. There's no way you would win that, you're ugly. You look like a beaver"

Hermione flushed in anger, her grip tightening on her bear as he grabbed the other cards, she had taken from the community chest. She didn't stop him looking through it though, already outraged by the fact that he had called her an animal.

"Hey, you never got a jail card. You cheated. Again! MOM!"

Hermione flushed red with anger, "I wouldn't have had to of cheated if you weren't such a sore-loser" She bit back spitefully, her stubborn ways getting the best of her. She knew she was likely going to get in trouble with Severus for not getting along with the other boy but he was being difficult. It didn't matter what she did she still ended up in trouble.

The boy's face went red in anger and before she knew what was happening!

CRACK!

Lights flashed before her eyes as the back of head slammed against the wall.

She shivered in pain, grabbing the back of her head and curling into a protective ball.

The sounds of footsteps rushed into the room. She could hear her god-father growling in anger no longer able to contain himself. "You little bastard, what did you do?" He grabbed the boy by the shirt about to grab his wand and put it at the boy's throat if the woman hadn't knocked him out the way.

"Severus Stop. He's just a child. Joe, what did you do?" Janet knelt down and grabbed the boy's arms. "She was being bad, she cheated. I had to punish her for being bad" the boy defended as the dark-haired man gritted his teeth before pulling himself up and walking over to his god-daughter whose eyes were scrunched closed as if her mind was playing with her. He pulled her into a tight hug.

"You shouldn't be hitting anyone. It's unacceptable. We've spoken about this!" Janet muttered to him.

"Daddy did it to you. Why can't I do it to her?"

Severus pulled the girl's chin up to see if she was hurt. She felt very cold and clammy. He could tell she was visibly shaken. "Are you okay?"

She winced her left eye closed and shook her head, tears cascading down her face, "H-He hit me!" She held the back of her head to show him where she had smacked it. He ran his fingers through her hair trying to check whether there was any blood.

Luckily there wasn't. He pulled her in for a hug and whispering into her ear, "if he tried to hit you again. You tell me and I'll hex the little bastard" He told her. She hesitated but nodded. "S-Sev, I saw uncle. Uncle punched me and I-" She muttered not making sense. He pulled out of the hug and arched his eyebrow in concern. Was she getting flashbacks? He knew it was likely and considering she had just been struck.

"It was just a flashback, Hermione. It's not real"

He turned to the woman who was currently eyeing him. "I think we should wrap this play-date up. Can I please talk to you? Privately" He nodded standing only to feel the girl grab his hand not wanting to be alone with the boy again.

"I'll be right back"

She shook her head not buying it one bit. He sighed and kneeled back down before stroking her face and consoling her. The woman seemed to take notice and turned back to her son. "Joe you need to stand in the doorway so I can keep my eye on you" She pushed him forward away from the girl. "Don't move from there" She told him before grabbing Severus' arm and pulling him back into the kitchen despite the girl reaching for him again.

"What?" He spat a bit too rudely. She closed her eyes in breathed in. "You grabbed my son, rather roughly I might add, and threatened him"

He placed his hands in his pocket trying not to overreact at the accusation. "Your son just attacked my d-... my god-daughter" He replied calmly.

She took in a deep breath and closed her eyes.

"My son and I have been through a lot Severus. Joe's father was...not a nice man to say the least" She held her arm and looked down remembering how horrible he had been to her, "that's all Joe has had as a father figure. He doesn't know how to act around other people, let alone the of the opposite sex. He's normalised it. I'm trying to break him out of the habit"

Severus opened his mouth about to retort but she placed her hand up, "I know you are protective of your god-daughter. You haven't stopped checking on her all night. I know you care deeply. I will speak to Joe about his behaviour and he'll get an appropriate punishment but," She glared at Severus. "He does not need to be hit"

"I wasn't going to hit the boy"

She arched her eyebrow and crossed her arms. "I saw you reaching in your coat for something. I'm not stupid. What have you got in there?"

"Nothing" He sneered.

"Severus" She reached forward and removed his wand before he had the chance to react. "Is, Is this a stick. Why do you carry around a stick? Where you going to hit my son with this?"

"What? No! It's just-" He tried reaching for his wand again but was cut off by the sound of blood curling screaming rang out from the other room immediately capturing both adult's attention. They pelted for the door running into the tv room to find the small boy screaming in the middle clutching his face to his bloodied body.

"Oh God!" Janet ran to his side swiping him off the floor and cradling him into her. "H-his face" She stared at the three large scratch marks on his forearms and face. From the looks of it he had tried to protect himself.

Blood drained from Severus' face as he stared at the bloodied boy and looked around. All he could see was blood on floor where the boy had been laying, droplets leading under the couch and a teddy bear just barely poking out from under the settee with its arm ripped off and its stomach cut open exposing the white fluff.

Severus hands were shaking. He felt a wave of emotion overcome him. Anger, tiredness...guilt.

"Oh God! Joe! C-can you hold him. I have a first aid kit in the kitchen" She placed the crying and snot dripping child in his arms before running into the next room. Disgusted as the child wiped its snotty nose on his shirt he turned to the couch and ordered the girl out immediately. "I'm going to count to three. One…. two" He saw a tiger's paw reach out from under the settee before the rests of its body was dragged into the light. He could see the animal visibly shaking as it glanced frantically around the room blood still present in its paws and splatters covering its face and body.

"Severus, I've got it can you- What the hell is that?" the first aid kit slipped from her hands as she stared at the wild beast that had attacked her son. The small animal shaking animal big, golden eyes stared at her legs looking through her rather than looking at her.

Severus watched as its eyes glanced from the woman to himself holding the child and a small whimper escaped its throat. He didn't particularly understand until he realised what she had been looking at. A family. She had been looking at a family afraid of her and him protecting the woman's son.

Oh no!

He immediately pushed the child into the woman's arms before coming over to the tiger as its body shook. "Come on, I'll take you home" Severus muttered trying to be as calm as possible despite his anger being raised at the boy who continued to cry. The tiger ignored him and watching the woman despite her god-father's coaxing.

"W-what is that thing?"

Severus turned to the woman who looked as though all the blood had drained from her body.

He ignored her, his lip curling in anger as the boy continued to shout.

"Severus keep away from it. It's a monster"

"She's my god-daughter. Hermione, come on Little One. Look at me"

"What? Severus, it's, It's not human"

"She is most certainly-"

"Whatever it is it needs to be taken away"

"That's ridiculous. She's scared...She traumatised. She didn't mean it. Hermione, please look at me. You need to focus on your breathing you're having flashbacks you need to look at me"

"It attacked my son. He's been mauled by a beast. I'm, I'm calling the police. They'll know what to do"

Severus grip tightened to bruising the big cat's shoulder's as the woman pelted for the phone but not before he removed his wand and stunned the woman.

The son screamed trying to shake her mother awake where she had collapsed in between the two rooms.

What a mess! Severus thought as he grabbed the woman and hauled her up into a seated position, leaning against the kitchen island.

"Don't hurt my mommy" the boy pelted at him kicking and screaming. Severus growled in anger as the boy bit his leg. Severus shoved him back and onto the ground before an orange ball of fur pounced into the air and began snarling at the boy in a feral rage. The young boy screamed as the tiger came closer swiping at his shins as he crawled to the corner on the room.

Severus waved his wand at the boy stunning him before grabbing the cat by the scuff of its neck and pulling it back and holding onto it as he waved his wand at the boy trying to heal his wounds as much as possible. It wasn't possible though; the boy wounds were too deep and were going to scar. He had already lost too much blood.

Bloody Merlin!

"Obliviate" he muttered at the woman and boy before turning back to the feral cat hissing and spitting in anger as he continued to hold it by the back of its neck.

"Look at me" He said staring into her panicked, unfocussed eyes.

"Change back, NOW!" He growled at her grabbing her face and forcing her to look into his. He forced legimency on her seeing flashbacks of her uncle beating a man senseless as she watched in horror, blood splattering her body she was stock still frozen in her spot.

"It's not real" He whispered into her ear.

Her uncle turned facing her in anger after he had lost his long-time friend who had attempted to bribe her with candy "IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT" He whipped her with his belt. She bit down on her bottom lip as she huddled in a ball on the floor boards of the kitchen.

"Breathe, you need to look at me. You need to calm down"

"Y-you freak. You mutant. You devil" He screeched at her grabbing her by the back of the neck and throwing her to the ground as he struck her. Unable to hold back, she screamed in pain earning her another swot before her hands were tied together by the belt.

"Hermione, look at me"

"No wonder your parents abandoned you!" He removed a knife out of the draw and lit the stove. "You're NOTHING but a FREAK" He grabbed the back of her shirt ripping it off and booting her down to the floor.

"Hermione!"

She struggled to get lose from his grip. "STOP STRUGGLING YOUR BRAT!"

"Hermione it's not real"

"YOU DESERVE THIS" Her eyes widened as he brought a sharp blade down on her body. Pain, there was so much pain. She screamed in absolute agony as he cut the flesh of her back.

"Come back to me"

She could hear Bruce barking and growling in retaliation but it did nothing to seize the pain. Lights flashed before her eyes for what felt like an eternity.

She felt a pinch of her elbow.

Her elbow?

Her elbow!

She brought her hand up to the crease and pinched herself.

It stopped; the pain stopped. Her vision was blurry. She didn't realise she had been crying and...and in front of her.

Her uncle?

No!

"God-daddy?"

An exhausted smile of relief crossed his features. She felt herself being pulled in for a hug. She held the pinch on her elbow as her body continued to involuntarily shake.

What happened?

She couldn't remember.

What-

She looks around seeing the destruction of the small apartment.

Oh no!

She stiffened, wincing her eyes closed and she cried. She finally broke down crying into his shoulder.

"I'm sorry, I, he, he kept saying...that...he hated me...and-and-"

"Enough! It's...It's alright" His features changed from irritation to one of exhaustion. "D-Did you take your medication before we left?"

"I-It tasted icky and-"

"You didn't take it. What did you do with it?"

"I-"

"HERMIONE!"

Tears were streaming down her face, "the fwower pot"

Oh no!

"I didn't like it. Momma wasn't looking and I-"

Severus stood up, running his fingers through his hair. It made sense now. She wasn't calmly and shaking because she was scared. She was sick. She didn't take her medication and now she's sick. He grabbed her tightly by the collar not caring if he was ripping her shirt and dragged her into the living room. She reached for her teddy on the ground along with its arm as Severus cleaned the place with a wave of wand.

Hermione sniffed as she stared down at her teddy in pain.

"Come on. You require your medication"

"He bwoke-"

"NOW Hermione!" He grabbed her roughly and apparated.

He didn't give Hermione a chance to recover, instead dragging her by the collar towards their home. Hermione's head was spinning hating that he had not given her a minute.

"You told me to hit him" Tears were streaming down her face as she tried to pull away from him. He gritted his teeth. "I meant to stand up for yourself, not tear his bloody face off your silly girl. You could have killed him"

She sobbed earning another roll of his eyes. She clutched her ripped teddy further into her body as he grabbed her by the back of the collar again and dragged her back to the house.

"N-no.." she muttered scared out of her mind trying to pry herself out of Severus' grip. "Hold still. I need to take you back to your parents"

"I can't, I can't"

"you can't what?"

"Pweeze, pweeze don't tell momma and papa. I... didn't mean t-too. I was angry and he hurt teddy. H-He tried to hurt teddy like uncle did and I saw uncle and then-" She showed her the torn teddy bear. "It's an object Hermione. You could have killed a boy tonight over a toy. Your parents need to be informed... You need to take your medication"

"They'll get rid of me!"

"Stop being so over-dramatic" He pulled her forward. Her whole body was shaking and cold. She hunched forward no longer able to take in everything that had happened. She vomiting on his shoes. Severus snarled in disgust, waving his wand to clean up the mess before grabbing her arm again and dragging her into their home.

"Minerva, Albus" Severus called holding the girl tighter as she tried to struggle out of his grasp. "Enough, girl!" he pulled her into the living room to find the two sitting either side of each other playing chess. He gritted his teeth in disgust before dragging her into the room. Albus was the first to notice them, his eyes softened at the shaking girl, crying silently as she fought with him. She was brought into the front of them. She felt like she was staring down the barrel of the gun as she stared at the two of them, hyperventilating.

God, they were going to throw her in an orphanage. Or would they bother?

Images came forward of her uncle beating her for lying, for not doing as she was told, for turning into an animal. She sobbed harder.

"Hermione dear, what happened?" Albus cooed to the girl who was frozen in shock at the two of them.

"She didn't take her medication. She's ill" She was pale as all hell and terrified to shreds as her god-father walked into the kitchen trying to find her meds.

If they knew what she did, would they get rid of her. She knew she wasn't normal. The woman who Severus was dating even said so. Hermione sniffed, wiping her nose on her jacket.

And she lied to them. She didn't feel well before her medication. She didn't want to take it then. She was already feeling ill. She thought she was going to be sick if she took it. But how was she going to tell them that. She was barely coherent at the moment. She could barely piece her thoughts together. Everything was spinning. The world was crashing down on her. It felt like ice was running down her back.

"Albus she's covered in blood. Severus why is she covered in blood?" She heard her mother hastily call.

"That's the boy's blood. She bloody mauled the boy half to death" Severus examined the bottles in his hand checking to make sure they were the right ones his arms. He left out the part in which the boy's face and body were likely going to be permanently scarred.

Hermione felt her arm brushed, she shuddered moving away from the warm touch.

"Ooch come here" Minerva extended her arms towards the girl but she flinched thinking she was going to be hit and backed away fearfully, her eyes unfocussed. Something was definitely wrong with her and they could see it. Perhaps not Severus at this time, considering he had had to abandon the woman who he had been dating the past three months had finally made the decision that she hated magic, not to mention his god-daughter.

"Hermione?" Minerva called to her.

"Severus, some calming drought perhaps. Just to settle her nerves" Albus inspected the girl as Minerva took a step forward. Severus could only nod and agree before walking out of the room to fetch yet another potion they should have checked that she should have drunken. "Hermione, come here" Minerva cooed to the bending down and touching her shoulder to try and grab her attention but it only made the girl jump ten feet back and crash into one of the wooden book shelves.

CRASH!

Glass and books splattered the ground as the girl tumbled to the ground toppling the girl.

"HERMIONE!"

The girl picked herself up onto her hands before looking down and noticing the glass from the fallen vase had fallen with her. Her memories flooded her vision to the time when she had dropped a glass of water in front of her uncle. Everything was so mixed up. She couldn't differentiate what was real and what was not. Everything was spinning. It was too much. All she could hear was shouting and screaming.

"Albus there's blood. Oh Merlin! Her head's bleeding. Severus floo Poppy. Oh Merlin, it's okay kitten. Try and stay awake for maither"

"Hermione just breathe girl. In and out. Nice and slow. That's it" Albus called to her but it was beginning to sound more and more distant.

She tried to call out to them but couldn't seem to produce a sound.

She tried to reach up to the light trying to find her way out of this mess but she couldn't move her body. Everything was stiff and rigid instead she grabbed hold of the nearest thing to her trying to ground herself and hold on for dear life.

"Albus, I think she's having a seizure. SEVERUS HURrry..."

Everything went black.

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