Disclaimer: I do not own anything other than the story line . All rights belong to J.K. Rowling

Author's Note: Warning: Graphic violence warning. No lesbian scenes in this chapter. I know that I promised I would consider more, and I simply didn't feel it fit in this chapter.

Chapter Eight: Moonlight Confessions

Hermione didn't know just how things had come to this point, but there seemed to be something very much wrong with the situation she found herself in. She was wandering through a very dark, very unfamiliar house. It seemed to be around the same size as her own, if a tiny bit smaller, but the proportions were all off, and the layout didn't make sense to her.

Judging by the feel of the handle she had just found, she was in the kitchen next to the refrigerator. She could just make out a small counter that separated the kitchen from the dining room beyond. She ran her fingers across its smooth surface and she wondered how she had ended up here.

She stopped before continuing on as a rather large shape puzzled her. It was rectangular and quite large, though thin. As she studied it in the dark she realized that it was a large screen television. Who on Earth would put such a contraption in the kitchen. It was angled so that it could be easily viewed either from the kitchen proper or where a table should be in the dining room. Only the laziest of people would even consider such a thing.

There was something seriously wrong about this, but Hermione just couldn't seem to put her finger on what it was. It almost seemed that her thought process was befuddled. She was having a hard time concentrating, and it was becoming increasingly difficult to shake a feeling of impending dread that was building in her chest.

She carefully shifted her way around the counter and into the dining room proper. There was an oval table there, with five chairs around it. One of the chairs seemed to be of a different design than the others, as if it had been added in only with extreme reluctance. She didn't know how she knew this, it was just the sensation that she got when she peered at it in the gloom of the night.

The dark seemed so suppressive, she didn't know how it was possible. It had a feeling of extreme wrongness to it. She wished that she wasn't alone. She usually had Harry or Ron with her when she had to do something like this. She smiled briefly at the thought of her Harry. Her brow furrowed when she realized that Harry was nowhere to be found this time. What could have happened to her?

There was a gazebo like opening behind the table that looked as if it led into a back garden. Hermione could just make out a building in the garden; it appeared to perhaps be a greenhouse. She wasn't sure because of the all-pervading darkness.

While the outside was somewhat interesting, Hermione decided that it was somehow more prudent to take in where she was. She made her way through a door into a narrow hall. It looked like it would lead her into a living room with an attached staircase. The wall on the left made up part of the staircase. She noted with some surprise just how perfectly kept-up and sterile it all seemed.

As she was passing through the hall the fingers on her left hand brushed up against something. Looking down it was a the slide to a lock on a small door. She stopped and stood stock still. The door was angled on the right side to fit the angle of the stairs which ran above it. Her eyes widened as she realized just what this was: a cupboard under the stairs.

Just as quickly her eyes narrowed. She was about to slide the lock open and peer in when she heard a muffled scream, a muffled, feminine scream. Realizing that this couldn't be good she reached for her wand. Unfortunately she couldn't seem to find it. How could she end up here without her wand?

Another scream came, this one less muffled, and definitely a feminine, soprano scream of extreme desperation that was harshly cut off halfway through. All thoughts of her wand left her and she dashed around the corner and started up the stairs. Sadly, the fact that she couldn't see three feet in front of her had escaped her in her mad dash and she crashed face first into the stairs as she missed a step. As she fell she threw her hands out in front of her in an effort to stop herself and pain shot through her right wrist as she felt something snap.

With a low moan she managed to regain her footing and made it up the flight of stairs. There was light coming from a door which was slightly ajar down the hall. She ran towards the door, but her feet felt like they were tangled in molasses. It seemed to take forever for her to reach the door.

With a small amount of caution (she didn't have her wand after all), she looked into the room. What she saw took her breath away. Two very fat men were in the room, as well as a tall, thin blond-haired woman with a very long neck surrounding someone that remained frustratingly just out of Hermione's field of vision. The older of the two men was encouraging the younger to continue whatever it was that he was doing.

"Hit her again, Dudders," the fat man hissed.

"Alright, Dad," the younger, slightly smaller whale laughed. His fist lashed out and there was a dull smack as he connected with whoever was there. There was a low groan and a sob from the girl who was concealed behind 'Dudders'.

"P… please don't hit me again," a soft soprano voice cried out, cracking halfway through the plea. Hermione's heart leapt into her throat. She knew that voice! It was the voice she had come to cherish and love; the voice that she craved to hear whisper in her ear. It was her Harry in there!

She rushed in and wiggled past the older couple. There was Harry, the left side of her face already starting to swell almost beyond recognition. Her upper lip was split wide open, and her left eye was already shut. There were nasty blackened bruises in the shape of fingerprints all around her neck. She coughed and had to spit out the blood that was pooling in her mouth. As she did so Hermione saw that she was missing a couple of teeth. Well, one was completely missing, the other was simply broken off.

At Hermione's horrified gasp Harry turned and saw her. She had four scrapes down her right temple and cheek, as if someone had run their fingernails down her face. There was a large raw wound just above her right ear where it appeared that a bunch of her hair had been yanked out by the roots.

"No! Hermione run!" Harry pleaded. "Please get out of here!" She said no more as Dudley's immense knee drove into her stomach and she crumpled around it.

Hermione tried to dive to Harry's side, but Vernon Dursley's ham-like hand grabbed her arm and he swung her into the wall. Her breath exploded out of her and she felt something spear through her lung. Her hand, which had swung out in front of her in a vain attempt to stop herself, had crashed into the wall and her already injured wrist gave out completely. She tried to cry out in pain as at least one of her humerus bones shattered, and some of her carpals powdered.

"Oh no, you're not going anywhere, freak!" Vernon bellowed. "You're going to watch this! You're going to see what being a freak gets you!" He picked Hermione up by the scruff of the neck. She tried to struggle, but she didn't have the strength to put up much of a fight.

"Show that freak what happens when she invades our home, Dudders," Petunia spat out.

"Sure thing, Mummy," Dudley replied. He backhanded Harry again and the girl collapsed on the small bed. Dudley reached down and ripped her pajama bottoms off of her. Harry tried to move enough to scramble away, but her broken body wouldn't cooperate. Dudley tore her small panties off of her and threw her legs open.

Hermione tried to escape Vernon's grasp but he just shook her and slammed her head into the wall. Her eyes crossed and she went limp in his grasp.

Harry managed to turn her head to look at Hermione while Dudley dropped his own pajamas to the floor. With nothing in her eyes but concern for Hermione Harry opened her mouth. "I'm sorry," she managed to gasp out before she screamed in pain.

Dudley had thrust hard into her, tearing her soft tissues open. Blood spurted from her mangled flesh as he kept tearing into her. She cried out and tried to push him away, but she hadn't nearly the strength required for the task. She beat helplessly on his chest, but he just kept going, until with a roar like a bull he stiffened and expelled himself into her.

He pulled out of her and wiped the blood and semen from his member onto Harry's stomach. With a laugh he punched her in her left tit, causing her to crumple up even more. She rolled to the side and was sick over the edge of the bed.

Hermione twitched in Vernon's hand, her attention caught by the door opening even more. There standing in the door were Luna and Tonks. Hermione finally felt a small glimmer of hope. Maybe it wasn't too late for Harry. She was sure that if she didn't get help soon, she would bleed to death from her wounds.

"Help," she choked out.

"You see what you get when you betray our trust?" Tonks asked the girl who was curled up on the bed. She looked at Luna and nodded. The younger blond girl reached into her pocket and pulled out a wicked looking knife. She handed it to Dudley.

"Finish it," she said as the two of them exited the room. Hermione let out a pitiful scream as Dudley approached the bed with a look of pure insanity on his pudgy features.

*0*0*

Hermione and Harry both sat bolt upright in bed, screaming. They each instinctively found the other, wrapping themselves in each other. They sobbed on each other's shoulders, neither willing to give up the contact that they were sharing. Every few seconds one or the other would scream in terror.

It was thus that they were discovered as an enraged and terrified Robert Granger smashed the door to Hermione's room clear off its hinges. He stumbled momentarily as his momentum carried him into the room and he attempted to find the intruders he was so sure were in there. Instead he found two screaming teenagers clutching each other as if their lives depended upon each other.

"What happened?" he asked, panting with the exertion from his dead run and crash.

"I thought you were dead," Hermione said as she cradled Harry's face in her palms. "I thought he'd killed you! I saw him rape you!" She pulled Harry back into her, sobbing uncontrollably.

"Who raped her?" Robert bellowed. He didn't know what had happened, but he was determined to find out.

"It must have been a dream, Mr. Granger," Harry managed to get out around her girlfriend's hair. They could hear footfalls approaching now. First Jane Granger, then Luna skidded into the room. There was a crash as Tonks missed the turn into the room and collided with the remains of the doorway. Both Luna and Tonks had their wands drawn and ready.

"Just a dream," Robert muttered as he found a chair to sit in. His legs didn't feel very steady at that moment. He looked over as his wife and the two other new arrivals all joined in a group hug on the bed. It looked like it was going to be a long night. "Why don't we all do downstairs to the living room and I'll make us some drinking chocolate?"

*0*0*

Sirius Black adjusted himself in his pajama bottoms as he read the note that had come to him, delivered by the beautiful snowy owl that he remembered had once belonged to his godson. It was outrageously early in the morning; Sirius estimated at least two more hours before sunrise.

Hedwig's screeching had woken him from a very nice dream which included him standing in Sun-God robes with a thousand naked women screaming and throwing little pickles at him. He had checked with Remus and it seemed that he was the only one that ever had that dream. He briefly wondered why that was before he got back to the letter.

"Moony!" he bellowed. "Get your furry arse down here!"

In a couple of moments Remus Lupin came sprinting into the kitchen in his boxers, his wand drawn and ready. Seeing Sirius standing there with a letter and Harry's (yes, Harry's) owl waiting impatiently behind him he lowered the wand.

"Padfoot, what the fuck is going on?"

He waved the letter at his friend. "We've been invited to visit the Grangers tonight after dark. It seems that Hermione and her girlfriend want to discuss something with us."

"Really?" Moony asked rhetorically. He took the letter and examined it himself. He dropped it on the table and turned to go.

"Where are you going?" Sirius asked.

"Back to bed, you old dog. It looks like we could be up for a while tonight, and I for one want to be well rested. I suggest you do the same – after you send Hedwig off with a reply that is." He exited the room before Sirius could come up with a response.

*0*0*

Hermione sat in the lawn chair and watched her girlfriend work with Tonks, her face blending into different profiles. She had been working every day with the older metamorph for the last three weeks. She had come a long ways from when she had first started, though she had only been able to change her appearance within the limits of her new gender. None of her efforts to change back to male had been met with any success.

Wondering where Luna had gotten herself to, she looked around the garden. There were quite a few private places that the Grangers had created for themselves when they had first moved in. She finally spotted the younger girl in one of the farthest points. She was squatted down on her haunches and seemed to be having a discussion with an old tree stump.

Hermione scratched her head as she tried to understand what the young witch could be doing. She didn't think that she'd ever really come to fully understand Luna, but it didn't really matter if she did. She had come to realize that it was enough to have her as one of her best friends.

*0*0*

Jane Granger stuck her head around the corner of Hermione's door. "They're here girls. Robert's taking them out into the back garden. He's been grilling all evening and I think he's showing off for them," she said with a smile.

"We'll be right there, Mum," Hermione replied. She looked at Harry. "Ready – Jamie?" she asked.

"Yeah," her best friend answered. "Let's get this over with." She ran her fingers through her short hair. "A big relief is what it's gonna be," she whispered. She stood and grabbed Hermione's hand and led her out of the room.

A couple of minutes later they were sitting at a small table the Granger parents had set up in the garden. All were gathered around it, enjoying the meal that Robert had prepared for them.

"So the note that Hedwig delivered said that you wanted to make a fresh start and explain some things, Hermione?" Sirius started.

"Rather interesting how it was Harry's owl that delivered that," Remus pitched in.

"Yes, well, she's just kind of stayed here with me since everything happened," Hermione admitted. "It seemed somehow appropriate that she would be the one to deliver the letter."

"Yes, about…" Sirius started

"Why are you lying to us about your name, Jamie?" Luna asked abruptly.

Jamie coughed as she swallowed awkwardly. "What was that?" she sputtered.

"Your name isn't really Jamie Harriet Evans, is it?" Luna asked. "I think it's something very similar, but that isn't the truth of the matter, is it?"

Sirius, Remus and Tonks all turned to face Jamie, questions apparent in their eyes. "What's this?" Tonks asked.

Jamie sighed. "I haven't a clue how you came up with that, Luna, but I suppose it really doesn't matter. What does matter is that this is exactly why we wanted all of you here tonight." She reached across the table and squeezed Hermione's hand. The brunette witch swallowed hard.

Sirius had just raised his eyebrow and was waiting for the young witch to elaborate. The others seemed just as curious as to where this was going to lead.

"First off, I want to apologize, this wasn't my idea. It just happened, and Dumbledore came up with this stupid scheme and made us go along with it. My name is not Jamie Harriet Evans, just as you have stated, Luna. I am however, the issue of both James and Lily Potter. I guess that you could say that I'm their daughter." She smirked at that for a moment. "At least, I'm their daughter now."

"What the Hell does that mean?" Tonks asked.

Sirius was staring at Jamie's forehead. "May I?" he asked as he pulled out a handkerchief. Jamie let out a breath that she didn't realize she was holding. She nodded her acceptance of his action.

He came around and gently pulled her bangs out of the way. He very carefully wiped her forehead with his handkerchief, removing the makeup that had been applied. Her scar stood out in ugly relief against her skin.

"Merlin's hairy balls!" Remus exclaimed in shock. Jane looked scandalized but Robert appeared to be fighting to stay off the ground. His shoulders were shaking and he was clutching his stomach and his eyes were squeezed shut.

"Hello Sirius," Harry said in her soft soprano. She stood up and stepped into Sirius' embrace as the older wizard choked back a sob of pure emotion. His godson was alive! And, in a great cosmic prank he was now his goddaughter. Oh! This was a prank of epic proportions! A very bizarre prank, but one worthy of a marauder's offspring!

After about a minute, Harry had released Sirius and had rushed to Moony's side and was hugging him for all she was worth. The overjoyed werewolf returned her hug with gusto.

It was broken up by someone clearing their throat. Harry let go of Remus and looked over at Tonks. The young witch was tapping her foot and looked rather miffed at Harry. "Sisters," she spat out. "You called us sisters, and you're not even really a girl," she hissed.

Tears welled in Harry's eyes. "You're right," she whispered. "I don't deserve you or Luna. I lied about things, and I betrayed your trust. I'm sorry…" She turned and started to walk away. "I really did need your help – I'm stuck like this you see…"

She was stopped by a hand on her shoulder. As she spun around a hand slapped her hard across her cheek. She reached up to rub the spot when Tonks crushed her in a hug. "Don't you ever lie to us again, Harry," she scolded her. They were joined by Luna in the hug. "Sister or brother or whatever, so long as you're telling us the truth, we can get through anything…

Author's Note: Before anyone asks, please remember that Harry and Hermione have linked magical cores. Now, I'm not going to make them telepathic with each other, I have used that before and I happen to think that it's really been over-used lately. What I can see happening, is that in times of extreme emotions, their subconsciouses could very easily allow them to share a dream or experience. That makes much more sense to me.

Yes, Sirius was channeling Val Kilmer from Real Genius. If you haven't seen it, please do, it is so worth the rental price.

For growth to happen, a character has to realize something is wrong and take steps to fix it, thus the need for this chapter. Harry needed this to heal more fully.

Thanks one and all for all of your great reviews. I somehow screwed up my settings for this fic and wasn't receiving e-mails when I got reviews. Throw in a bout with tonsilitis and I haven't gotten around to answering them like I should. Please forgive me, I've fixed my settings and I'll try to do better from this point forward.

Sharptooth