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*General POV*

"Anything you would like to divulge mudblood?" Asked Aro.

Hermione set her jaw and remained silent. Aro's eyes widened as he took in her defiance.

"Stubborn little bitch aren't you? I will break you eventually." Dolohov growled.

"Stand up, mudblood." Aro commanded. Hermione rolled to her side and fought against the pain to push herself up to her knees. She then stood up slowly, staring defiantly at Aro despite the darkness closing in on her vision. Finally, her body gave out and the darkness overwhelmed her as she collapsed to the floor unconscious. Dolohov smiled in sick satisfaction as he gazed down at the girl. He scanned the room and his eyes landed on one of the newest death eaters, Andrew.

"Andrew, escort our guests to the dungeons. They will be staying with us until the little bitch tells us what we want to know." Instructed Dolohov. He then turned to Paul and waved his wand, releasing Paul from the body bind curse. He then waved his wand again and Paul's broken leg snapped painfully back into place. He cried out in pain and then looked down at his leg in shock.

"Pick up your precious mudblood and carry her to the dungeons. We wouldn't want her filth touching Andrew, now would we?" Dolohov laughed cruelly and his followers joined him. Paul stood up on shaky legs and made his way over to Hermione. His body shook with sobs as he knelt down next to her body gently picking her up and cradling her in his arms.

"Hermione, I'm so sorry. I'm sorry I couldn't stop them." He cried into her hair so only she could hear him.

"Get them out of my sight Andrew." Aro hissed.

Andrew felt his feet unstick from the floor and he pulled his wand from his pocket. He stepped forward and pointed his wand at Paul, who glared daggers at him in return. Andrew tilted his head towards a door at the right side of the room. Paul turned carrying Hermione from the room with Andrew following close behind, his wand directed at Paul's back.

As soon as the door closed behind them Andrew told Paul to stop. Paul stopped and turned to face the death eater.

"Why? You want to have a go at torturing her too? Over my dead body. I'm not letting you anywhere near her." Paul growled, fire sparking in his eyes as he held Hermione's limp form closer to his chest. Andrew was slightly taken aback at Paul's accusation and shook his head violently.

"No! I was just as disgusted by what happened in there as you were. I just... never mind." Andrew began walking again. They made their way through the manor and finally made it into the dungeons. Andrew led them to a large cell with a cot in one corner of the room. Paul walked inside and placed Hermione on the cot and placed his jacket around her body carefully. He pressed a kiss to her forehead and again whispered "I'm so sorry," into her hair.

Andrew watched the exchange quietly from the entrance to the cell. Paul turned and seemed surprised when he saw that Andrew was still there. Andrew's eyes never left Hermione's form on the cot as he spoke, "I'll try to find her some blankets, and I'll also bring some dreamless sleep potion and dittany for her injuries." Paul's eyebrows shot up as he processed Andrew's words.

"Why? Why would you help her?" He asked. Andrew finally tore his eyes away from Hermione and looked Paul in the eye.

"She is stronger than all the of the death eaters up there, but no one should have to go through what she went through tonight. What I just witnessed turned my stomach; I'm not cut out for this shit. My parents have lost their humanity in this madness, but I hope to retain at least some of mine. I never wanted to be a death eater, but I had to, to protect my daughter. Hermione reminds me of her." With that Andrew turned from Paul and closed the door behind him.

Paul was stunned to say the least, he never thought that death eaters had a decent bone in their body, but it now looked like he may be their only ally in this hell hole. He whipped around when he heard Hermione groan quietly. He made his way quickly to her side and knelt next to the cot as she opened her eyes.

"Paul? Where are we?" She asked as she groaned in pain.

"We're in the dungeons of the Volturi and death eaters headquarters. Hermione, I'm so sorry I couldn't protect you. I'm so sorry....I tried..." He sobbed.

"Shh, Paul. It's not your fault. I know you tried to protect me, you did everything you could and you did help me." She told him as tears leaked out of her own chocolate brown eyes, the silver flecks in her eyes seemed a lot less bright. Paul locked eyes with Hermione with confusion written all over his face.

"I did?" He asked.

"Yes, Paul, knowing that you were there with me... it helped me block out what was happening." She replied before breaking down completely. Paul took her hand in his and tried his best to comfort her as she sobbed. He felt anger at the evil men who did this to her and he said, "I'll kill them, every last one of those bastards." He growled. Hermione stopped crying and placed her hand on his cheek, wiping the tears away. Paul took her hand in his and squeezed it gently. Taking the comfort she offered and offering comfort in return. They sat like that for several minutes until footsteps could be heard on the stone floor. When they turned to the door Andrew appeared on the other side with a bundle in his arms. When he moved to open the door Paul felt Hermione tense up at the sight of the death eater.

"It's alright Hermione, he's helping us." Paul whispered to her as he stood. Hermione looked at Andrew shocked. Andrew opened the door and handed the bundle to Paul.

"I was able to find a few spare blankets to keep you warm. The dittany and dreamless sleep potions are in there as well. I also managed to grab some bread and cheese from the kitchen, I'll be back tomorrow morning for the empty vials." He said to Paul before turning to Hermione. "I'm sorry, you shouldn't have had to go through that." Andrew said with sincerity before turning around and exiting the cell.

Hermione stared in shock at the closed door for several moments before blinking and turning to Paul. He held out the blankets and potions to her and she reached to grab them, only to cry out in pain. He was at her side in a second, wiping the tears of pain from her cheeks.

"I can barely move, Paul, you're going to have to help me." She said quietly, not meeting his eyes. Paul nodded slowly and placed the blankets and vials on the cot beside her. He took her hands and helped her sit up slowly, keeping his eyes on her face. He grabbed the vial of dittany from the cot and uncorked it quickly. He carefully began applying it to her gashes, bruises and mainly to her arm that had been carved into.

Hermione immediately felt relief and gave Paul a small reassuring smile. When he was finished he looked at her with tears in his eyes. Hermione shook her head slightly, "Thank you Paul. I feel much better." He sniffled and nodded his head before he helped her put his jacket on properly. He then helped her to lie back down on the cot. Once she was settled he wrapped her in the blankets and handed her the dreamless sleep potion, which she gulped down quickly. He then sat down next to the cot. He took her hand in his and held it gently as he listened to her breathing even out as she fell asleep.

Once he was sure she was asleep he let the emotions that had been building up in him free. Great heaving sobs wracked his body as he recalled the blood on Hermione's body and the bruises that marred her skin. Hermione was the best person he knew; she always looked for the best in people, and had an enormous heart that loved even house elves. He loved her. He loved her more than she knew and it pained him to see her like this. She was his imprint and he needed to protect her. He had to be strong for her, not let her know how much her pain affected him. So he cried while she slept, so that when she awoke he could be strong for her. He needed to stay strong... for her.