Harry Potter 1. Chapter 1

**No Strings Attached**

Chapter 1

**Hello :) I hope you like this fic. I'm not a brilliant writer but I try my best. I don't own anything except Dalia. It all belongs to the amazing J.K Rowling, without her none of this would be possible. **

Dalia hayfield is a pureblood witch. She was sorted into Slytherin house and she left Hogwarts one year ago. She is the only member of her family that wasn't sorted into Gryffindor for over four  
>generations. When her parents found out that Dalia was sorted into Slytherin they were a little shocked but treated Dalia all the same. Dalia knew that they were a little disappointed when she wasn't sorted into Gryffindor. Her parents were members of the order and fully supported Harry Potter. Dalia wasn't so keen on him which separated her from them a little.<p>

As the years pasted when she was at Hogwarts she distanced herself more and more from her parents. Dalia always kept things to herself and never told anyone about her feelings. Dalia didn't trust anyone not even her parents. At Christmas and Easter holidays Dalia always stayed at school. She liked it when it was quiet and she could have time alone with her thoughts. Her parents sent letters weekly which Dalia would ignore and never reply.

When she was in her seventh year her parents asked her if she wanted to join the order. Dalia declined and after she finished school she lost contact with her parents all together.

Dalia was never on a side in the up coming war. She didn't care about blood purity but she also didn't care about Harry potter the 'goodie two shoes' celebrity that gets loads of sympathy all because his parents died. But as most of her friends had parents that were death eaters she tended to support the Dark Lord more.

After she left Hogwarts she found a small apartment on top of a bookshop in Knockturn ally. It was basic and there was a pub next door so there was a lot of noise pollution from the regulars. There was one medium sized window looking out on the ally. The apartment didn't get much light and the walls were painted black.

There was a small bathroom which was just about usable. The shower, toilet and sink were a murky yellow colour and there was a light bulb hanging in the centre. The kitchen only had the basic equipment in it and most of it was covered in soot and dirt. There was a single bed opposite the kitchen and there was a two person black leather sofa near the front door. It was incredibly worn and there was a rip down one side. It wasn't anything special but it was home.

Up until recently Dalia worked as a waitress at the pub next to her apartment. She hated it but it paid her rent and other bills with a bit left on the side for food and of course alcohol. When she worked there she would always get hit on by 'pathetic drunk and lonely basterds' as Dalia liked to call them.

One night was a particularly bad shift. It was extremely crowed and she could hardly breathe with all the tobacco being smoked and alcohol being consumed. "Oi sexy lady give us another round would you!" a regular called. Dalia rolled her eyes and quickly served them their beer. As she was walking back to the bar he slapped her bum. Dalia whipped around and pointed her wand at the man. Usually she would just ignore it but tonight was different. "Do that again and I will rip your balls off." Dalia snarled. She shot daggers at the man with her emerald green eyes before turning back to the bar.

Things only got worse when some idiot spilt a whole pint of beer down her blouse. She swore at him before walking into the disgusting bathroom to clean herself up. It was even grottier than her own. She could hardly see herself in the mirror. After she wiped most of it off she opened the door. Before she could even step outside two large hands grabbed her arms and threw her against the hard wall. Her head hit the wood and she was immediately dizzy.

The man ripped her blouse open, breaking all of the buttons and his hands roughly searched her chest. Before Dalia could regain any sense of what was happening his lips came crashing down onto hers. His breath stank of cigarettes and beer. Dalia snapped back into reality when he did this. She kicked him between the legs. He immediately let go and howled in pain. "Oh you basterd, stupefy!" Dalia yelled.

The man flew backwards and hit the opposite wall of the pub hard. He slipped onto the floor, unconscious. A trickle of blood ran down his head. As soon as she said the spell she regretted it. "DALIA!" Dalia closed her eyes and turned around. Her boss was furious. "Your fired!" every pair of eyes in the pub were on her. Dalia just got her bag from the bar and stormed out of the pub, making sure to slam the door shut as she left. She knew that there was no way she could talk herself out of being fired so she just bought a large bottle of firewiskey and finished the whole bottle before slipping into a fitful sleep.

It had been almost a month since she had been fired and she was still looking for a job. She was in desperate need of money to pay her rent and her landlord was threatening to evict her. Dalia would get up late in the morning, make a cup of coffee and search through the job section in the Daily Profit. After circling three or more jobs she would get changed into her best blouse and skirt and spend the day going to different places in the hope that someone would accept her. After a long day of searching she would get home and finish a bottle of strong alcohol to help her get to sleep.

Today was no different to any other day. She had just gone to four job interviews and they all said the same thing 'we will get back to you.' which basically means no. It was late and the only source of light was from dimly lit pubs and shops. It was cold as it was late November and she was only wearing a thin blouse and short skirt. She crossed her arms around her chest and hugged herself tight to try to keep herself warm.

She turned to go into a deserted ally. It was silent apart from her high heels clicking on the cobble pavement. Her medium black hair fell in front of her face. She tucked it behind her ears. Not looking where she was going she walked into something hard. Dalia gasped and stumbled backwards, nearly falling over as her heel got caught in a gap between one of the cobbles. When Dalia regained her balance she looked up at the person that had stopped her walking.

Some of his features were hidden in the dim light but she could tell that he had a strong bone structure. He had wild long brown hair with a single red streak in it loosely tied back by a black ribbon. A few stray pieces fell from the ribbon and hung by his face. He was wearing a long black leather coat that somehow resembled her sofa and a military style waistcoat. He wore tight plaid pants and brown combat boots. He had a fingerless glove on one hand and a ring with a stag head on it on the other.

"Hello beautiful." he smirked. He had a strong cockney accent but it suited him. If Dalia wasn't already pissed off she was now. "Goodbye." Dalia started to move past the mysterious man. He grabbed her wrist and Dalia whipped around and felt for her wand in her back pocket but it was missing. "Get off me!" she yanked her wrist out of his hand. He was holding her wand between his fingers. "Come on love, give us a chance." he pouted.

Dalia rolled her eyes, "Us? There are more of you?" Dalia slowly made a 360 degree turn and saw at least half a dozen men circling her. She turned back to the man that had her wand. She poked at his upper arm. There was a red piece of cloth tied around it. "Your snatchers aren't you?" he nodded. Dalia sighed. "I'm pureblood you idiot. Just give me back my wand now and stop wasting my time." Dalia snatched her wand from the man and stormed off.

"Are you just going to let her go boss? What if she's lying?" a man asked. "I'll take care of this one lads." He replied. There were several loud cracks and they disapparated. Dalia was walking at a speedy pace down the ally. She wanted to get home as soon as possible without any more annoying interruptions. _"Who do these stupid basterds think they are!"_ she thought. Her thoughts were quickly interrupted when a pair of rough hands pushed her against the damp stone wall.

Before she could even think about getting away he pinned her against the wall. His body pressed against her own and he held both of her hands above her head with her own. "I don't think we were quite finished." he breathed onto her face. He had a strange aroma. It was a cross between tobacco, smoke from a fire, pine and firewiskey. "Get off me!" Dalia tried to peel herself from the man holding her. "I will let you go after I've asked you a few questions. First, what's your blood status?"

Dalia sighed. "I've already told you I'm pureblood! Now just leave me alone and spend your time harassing other women but not me!" she spat. A smirk plastered itself across his face, "What do they call you my lovely?" He got a lock of her hair and twisted it in his fingers. "Dalia Hayfield." She had given up. The faster she answered the questions the faster she could get away from the man.

"Well Miss. Hayfield am I right in saying that you are the daughter of Peter and Anne Hayfield?" His face was inches away from hers. Dalia closed her eyes for a moment and nodded her head. "They are members of the order aren't they?" He smirked. "Yes but I haven't seen them in almost two years. I'm not with them and I never will be. I was sorted into Slytherin house. You won't get any information about them from me you probably know more about them then I do."

The man loosened his grip on her wrists. He could tell that she wasn't lying. He was always good at reading people's expressions and seeing if they were lying or not. It was one of his many talents. "Has it finally got into your head now?" Dalia glared at him. The man let go of her and stepped away. "The names Scabior. Happy to meet you, ever so sorry to waste your time." He bowed sarcastically. Dalia rolled her eyes and picked up her wand which she dropped when he pushed her against the wall.

"To apologize for my mistake may I buy you a drink?" Dalia knew that this was just another of his cheesy pick up lines but she could really do with a drink, her supply was empty and she had no money. She wasn't going to pass up his offer. "All right one drink."

The nearest pub was only a minute's walk away. Scabior held the door open and gestured her to go in. "Ladies first." Dalia walked inside. The pub was quite similar to the one she worked in before. She sat down in a booth in the corner. "Any requests?" He asked. "Something strong." Dalia replied. She wanted to forget all about work for a while. Scabior nodded and walked over to the bar to order the drinks. Dalia just stared at him. She smiled, _"He could be a nice guy if he wasn't so dam cocky."_ Dalia thought.

Scabior walked over with two large bottles of firewiskey. "Thank you." She smiled. Scabior sat opposite her. The lighting was better in the pub and she could see his features more. They studied each others faces. Scabior had lightning blue eyes. They were some what beautiful but scary at the same time. His face was covered in dirt and he had dark circles under his eyes. Some people would think he was homeless the way he was dressed. But Dalia liked it. He was differed and alluring.

She had emerald green eyes that pieced his soul. They were shadowed under thick mascara and layers of black eyeliner. Her straight, black hair fell down to just below her shoulders. She had pale skin which contrasted perfectly with her rosy red lips. "What is a pretty little minx doing out here at this time of night by yourself?" Scabior asked. Dalia took a swig of her drink. She smiled as the burning liquid ran down her throat making her feel warm.

"Well if you must know I was looking for a job." Scabior cocked his head to the side. "How come?" Scabior asked. "I worked as a waitress for a pub next to my apartment until some scruffy basterd thought it was okay to pin himself against me and suck my face off. I stunned him and he got pretty hurt so I was fired." Dalia took another large swig of firewiskey.

"I thought I had seen you before." Dalia gave a quick half-hearted smile. There was a long pause before Scabior said "You still looking for one?" Dalia looked at him. "Yeah why?" She asked. "I have one. It's pays well." Dalia was interested now. "What is it?" She edged forwards eager to find out. "You can be a snatcher." He said plainly. Dalia laughed but quickly stopped when she saw the look on his face. "You're serious." Dalia said. Scabior nodded.

"W-well I'm not really sure if it's the right job for me." Dalia drained that last of her drink. "Really? You sound like you need the money and you look like you could run fast and your quite feisty." he winked and Dalia rolled her eyes. "You're perfect!" She stared at him. She desperately needed the money. "If I were to say yes could I just stay for as long as I want? What I mean to say is can I just leave when I've got enough money?" Scabior took one last swig of his drink and said, "You don't need to sign a contract love." he smirked.

"No strings attached?" Dalia asked. "No strings attached." Scabior replied. Dalia smiled. "Listen, you don't need to decide tonight. I will be outside here tomorrow at noon. Meet me here if you want the job." Dalia stood up from the booth and Scabior followed. "Will do." Scabior took her hand and gently kissed it. "It's been a pleasure meeting you." He winked. Dalia smiled and disapparated.

She landed outside her apartment door. She opened it and stepped inside a large smile still present on her face. She couldn't be bothered to get changed into her pyjamas. Her head was still full of thoughts. She stumbled over to her bed and wriggled out of her skirt and blouse leaving her in her underwear. She fell onto her bed and for the first time in weeks she slept perfectly.

**Well there you go. This is a long chapter (for me) so I don't think the next chapters will be this long. I will probably be updating every weekend. I start school this week so I will have lots of work to do plus I have another fic called "The Struggle" which I am currently working on. I hope you liked it. Please review and tell me what you think. Constructive criticism is always welcome. I would love to hear from you guys. Thank you for reading. :)**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

**Here's chapter 2 I hope you like it. SelenesLegacy thank you so much for your review :) I don't own anything except Dalia, enjoy.**

Dalia slowly opened her eyes. She winced when the light from the window shone into her eyes. She stretched and sat up. She looked at her watch that was on her bedside table. It read 11:55. "SHIT!" Dalia jumped out of bed and ran over to her wardrobe. She rummaged around and picked out a pair of black skinny jeans and an over sized grey woolly cardigan. She hopped on one foot as she tried to pull her jeans up. She pulled her cardigan over her head whilst running into the bathroom. This resulted in her slamming right into the closed door. Dalia grunted and yanked her cardigan over her head.

She quickly brushed her teeth and splashed her face with cold water. Her makeup from last night was smudged all down her face. She rubbed it off and reapplied it. She ran across the room to find her green converse while trying and failing to put mascara on at the same time. She pocked  
>herself in the eye at least twice. After finding her shoes and successfully made her face at least presentable she pulled her hair back into a loose bun. It shared some resemblance to Scabior's.<p>

Dalia picked up her wand and keys and threw them in a bag that she pulled over her shoulder. She slammed the door behind her and ran down the stairs. She almost knocked over her landlord that started to shout at her. "I will get the money soon I've got a job!" Dalia shouted as she ran through the bookcases knocking over a few books. "Sorry!" she said when she was out of the front door.

Dalia looked at her watch, 12:10. "SHIT I hope he is still there." Dalia focused in the pub they were at last night and disapparated. She opened her eyes and saw the pub. Leaning against the front of it was Scabior. His leg was supporting his body and he was picking his nails with a knife.

Dalia smiled and walked over to him. Just as she was about to say something Scabior spoke. "You're late." He said never taking his eyes off his nails. "Sorry I just got up fifteen minutes ago." Scabior smirked and kicked off the building so he was now facing her. "So you have decided to join my crew." he put the knife back in his pocket. "Well its good pay so how could I refuse?"

"We need to go to the ministry to make you officially a snatcher then you need to gather some stuff together alright?" Scabior held out his hand and Dalia took it. They apparated to a muggle street in London. They walked up to some old toilets. Scabior went into the gents and Dalia went into the ladies.

She joined the queue of five other ministry workers. They were all dressed in work robes and Dalia was in her scruffs. Some how she felt out of place. She got a few strange looks of some women who she just glared at. She stepped into the cubical and locked the door. She stared at the murky toilet. _"Do I really want to be a snatcher? I haven't really given it any thought."_ Dalia's thoughts we interrupted when someone banged on the door. She quickly stepped in the toilet and pulled on the chain. She felt herself be turned inside out and squeezed through a tube, not much different to apparating. Green flames erupted around her and she stepped out of the fireplace and into the ministry.

She had been here a couple of times before but not when the new minister of magic took over. There was a large stone pillar in the centre with a large gold M and 'Magic is Might' was written underneath. She walked over to it and on the bottom there were stone people getting crushed with a metal plate underneath saying 'muggles in their rightful place.' she felt someone behind her and Scabior whispered in her ear, "Hurry up love she doesn't like to be kept waiting." Scabior walked over to the lift and stepped inside with Dalia following.

The lift was empty except from Scabior and Dalia. _"Who is she?" _Dalia thought. Her palms were starting to get sweaty and she was getting more and more nervous by the second. Suddenly the lift jolted to a stop and a voice sounded in the lift saying, "Level 1, Minister of Magic and support staff." The doors opened and she stepped out. They walked down a long and narrow corridor. The floor was laced with a purple carpet with pink on the outside and the walls were covered in grey and black tiles.

They walked past over a hundred single desks with employees printing magazines titled, 'Mudbloods & the dangers they pose.' Dalia thought that this was all a load of bollocks. She didn't think that mudbloods were dangerous or that purebloods were better than anyone else but she supposed that she better just go with the flow.

They stopped outside a big black door with a gold plate that said, 'Dolores Umbrigde, Senior Undersecretary to the Minister.' There was some eye ball underneath it that some how reminded her of her sixth year defence against the dart arts teacher, Mad-Eye Moody. Under that there was another gold plate that said, 'Head of the Muggle-Born and Bounty Hunter Registration Commission.' Dalia swallowed hard. _"Oh god please anyone but this old hag, she made my seventh year a nightmare!" _Dalia rubbed the back of her hand where there was still a faded scar that said 'I must not tell lies.' Scabior knocked on the door and they heard her say, "Come in." her voice sent shivers down her spine.

Scabior opened the door and she stepped inside. The office was big and if you had to sum it up in one word that word would be pink, Dalia's least favourite colour. There were loads of decorative plates hung around the room with cats on them and there were four large pillars with gold patterns on them in the four corners of the room. The back wall was mostly windows looking out on the main entrance to the ministry. There was one large wooden desk in the middle of the room with two pink armchairs facing it.

Umbrigde was sat at her desk twirling a teaspoon in her cup of tea. "Sit." She squeaked. Dalia moved forwards and perched on the edge of the seat. Scabior stood behind her. Her desk was neatly organized with a tea set on the right hand side and a quill and ink pot on the other. In the middle there was an A4 piece of paper with her name and a picture of her on it.

"Miss. Hayfield, you wish to join Mr. Scabior's bounty hunters." Dalia fiddled with a loose strand on her jumper. "Yes." She whispered. "It has come to my attention that your parents are members of the Order, is this correct?" Dalia nodded her head. "How do I know your not a spy working for them?" Dalia looked at her. _"The dumb hag can't possibly believe that!" _

"I'm not." Dalia replied. "Yes but how do I know that you are not lying. You and I both know that we must not tell lies." She squeaked. Rage boiled up in Dalia's core. If she wasn't the one giving her the job she would have cursed her by now. "How can I prove it to you." Dalia said trying her best not to growl at her.

Umbrigde smiled showing off her tea stained teeth. She opened her top drawer and pulled out a small vial. "Veritaserum, would you mind?" Dalia took he vial from her and drank the tasteless liquid. "Good girl."

"Now, are you Dalia Hayfield?"

"Yes."

"Have you had any contact with your parents in the last year?"

"No."

"Are you working for the Order?"

"No."

"Have you at any one time considered joining the Order?"

"No."

"Why do you want to join the bounty hunters?"

"Money."

"Well Miss. Hayfield you are now officially a snatcher." Dalia stood up and said, "Thank you." She quickly left the office and Scabior followed. They walked down the polished corridor. "Thank god that's over I hate that miserable old hag." Dalia spat. "Everyone does." Scabior smiled.

"Do you think I am attractive?" Scabior asked suddenly.

"Yes, wait I-"Dalia answer before even thinking about it. The effects of the veritaserum still hadn't worn off. "Hey!" Dalia punched with arm. Scabior smirked, "So you think I am attractive." Dalia walked into the lift. "Do I think you are a cocky twat? Yes." Scabior's smirk grew even more.

Dalia rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. The lift jolted again and she stumbled forwards and out of the door. They walked into a fireplace and Scabior took her hand. They apparated to outside her apartment door. Dalia unlocked the door and stepped inside. "Just sit down and don't touch anything." Scabior grinned and collapsed onto the sofa. He watched her as she walked around her apartment.

"What are you looking at?" Scabior didn't answer he just kept staring. Dalia ignored him and went into the bathroom. She stuffed her bag with makeup and other toiletries. She almost emptied her wardrobe and threw it all into a small leather bag that she wore over her shoulder. "How the hell did you fit everything in that little bag?" Scabior said amazed.

"Undetectable extension charm." Dalia did one last check around her apartment in case she had forgotten anything and grabbed her wand. She blew out all the candles and lanterns and opened the door. Scabior slumped out of the room and Dalia followed. She locked the door silently saying goodbye to her apartment.

She took Scabior's hand and they apparated. Dalia opened her eyes. She was deep inside a large forest. There were half a dozen tents circling a fire pit. "You are welcome to join me in my tent." Scabior pointed over to the larger one behind them. "Thank you for your kind offer but I have my own. Sorry to disappoint you." Scabior shrugged.

"Just set yours up there." He pointed to a space next to his. Dalia pulled out her tent and after a few clever spells it was set up. She walked inside and looked around. Her parents had forced her to go to the quidditch world cup and she took the tent when she left. It wasn't massive but it was just fine for Dalia. There was a single bed in the corner and a table with two chairs in the middle. There was a closed off bit in the corner that contained a toilet and a sink but regrettably not a shower.

Dalia unpacked all of her things and walked outside. Seven men including Scabior were sat around the fire. They all stared at her when she came into view. Dalia felt extremely uncomfortable when she sat on a log next to Scabior. "Everyone this is Dalia. She is our new recruit. Now just because she is a girl doesn't mean that you're better than her. She's probably better than most of you here. Now no funny business, if you even look at her in a funny way I'm sure she will hex your balls off isn't that right Dalia." She nodded.

"Dalia this is Grayback, Tom, Jason, Jonny, Nick and Jack." She smiled at them all, "Hey." When her eyes eventually met that last person, Jack her eyes widened. He was the man that she threw across the pub the night she got fired. By the look in his eyes he didn't remember, which was probably because of the amount of alcohol he had consumed plus the bump on his head.

"_This is going to be interesting."_

**Well there you go. I hope you liked it. Please review and tell me what you think :)**


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

**Here's chapter 3. Thank you sooo much SelenesLegacy and ****HollyRinedoller ****for your reviews! I hope you like it. I don't own anything except Dalia, enjoy.**

After they had finished eating everyone remained sat around the fire drinking beer and exchanging stories about women and 'a load of stupid shit' according to Dalia. She just sat next to Scabior pretending to listen to Jason talking about this woman he met in a bar.

Dalia was in her own thoughts. She stared at the fire in her own world. She liked to be alone and have time alone with her thoughts. She would have to get used to the lack of privacy and the constant laughing from the men.

Dalia could feel a migraine coming on and she rubbed her temples to try and sooth it. Suddenly everyone erupted in laughter and the noise rattled her brain. She stood up and walked to the end of the clearing. She stood behind a tree and pulled out a cigarette and lit it with her wand. She took a long drag, closed her eyes and leaned against the rough bark. When she opened them again she saw a pair of bright blue eyes staring back at her.

She slowly blew the smoke out of her mouth. "I couldn't help but notice that you left." Scabior said. "Yeah well I was tired of listening to your shitty stories about pulling girls." Dalia took another long drag. "Do you mind if I join you?" Dalia blew the smoke to the side. "Yes, but if you insist." Scabior smirked and pulled out a cigarette.

Dalia eyed the sliver ring on his left hand. "So how's life as a snatcher so far?" Scabior said. He fiddled with the lit cigarette occasionally putting it to his mouth. "Well I haven't done any snatching yet so I wouldn't know." Dalia dropped her cigarette on the floor and stood on it to put it out. "Yeah I know but- come on I'm just trying to make a bit of conversation." Scabior took one last drag and put it out with his boot.

"Well I'm in the middle of a cold and dark forest with a bunch of dim men that I have only known for a day." Dalia leaned against the tree and let the rough bark lightly scratch her back. "That's a little bit harsh don't you think? We aren't that dim, well im not. Some of them must have been dropped on their heads when they were babies; others were clearly thrown at a wall." Scabior smiled. Dalia rolled her eyes.

"Hey listen I have something for you." Scabior rummaged through his pockets and pulled out a red piece of cloth. He held it as if it was a golden medal. "kneel." Scabior had that sarcastic smirk on his face again. "You can't be serious." Dalia said plainly. "I am deadly serious." Scabior tried his best to keep a smile from his lips. "Your just trying to make me look like a twat." Dalia reluctantly knelt down.

"Miss Dalia Hayfield I present you with this piece of cloth. A symbol of the snatchers." Scabior handed the cloth to Dalia. "You may stand." Dalia rolled her eyes, "You prick." Dalia tied the fabric around her left arm.

"There's one more thing. This might feel a little uncomfortable." Scabior pulled out his wand and pointed it at her stomach. Before Dalia could question him a sharp pain erupted in her stomach. "Aghh what the fuck was that?" Dalia clutched her stomach. "I did warm you. You know who's name is a taboo. If anyone says it you will feel a pull in your stomach. If you apparate within a minute you will be taken to the spot where it was said. It's quite effective. We have caught a few members of the Order and other fugitives that way."

Scabior looked towards the direction of the other men. He walked over to them and Dalia followed. "Oi you lot, long day tomorrow as usual. Get to bed now." There were a few grunts of disapproval but in a couple of minutes everyone except Dalia and Scabior where back in their tents.

Scabior sat down with a fresh bottle of firewiskey and Dalia sat next to him. "Now there are a few things that you should know about the lads. Firstly Grayback, he's a werewolf." Scabior passed her the bottle and she took a few mouthfuls and gave it back to him. "Yeah I saw him on a few wanted posters last year."

"Seriously don't fuck around with Grayback. He's only just bearable at the best of times. When its full moon time don't even look him in the eye. Just last month Grayback almost ripped our Sammy to shreds. We sent him to St. Mungo's but he died before he got there."

"Well thanks for letting me know. I wouldn't want to get eaten on my first day of work." Dalia said awkwardly. Scabior drained the rest of the bottle and threw it into a large pile on the floor. "As for the rest of them well their all just scruffy basterds. Don't let any of them hit on you with the exception of Grayback when it's his 'time of the month'."

"Don't worry I won't. Have I got permission to punch them if they do?" Scabior laughed. "Of course. So tell me a bit about yourself." Dalia picked the black nail vanish off of her fingernails. "I would rather not." She said not taking her eyes off of her nails. "Oh come on what else could we do?" he winked. Dalia punched him in the arm. "Hey what was that for!" he rubbed his arm. "You were hitting on me." Dalia hid a smile.

"I was not." Scabior argued. A smirk was slowly appearing on his face. "Yes you were don't deny it. Anyways I better get off to bed too. Like you said we have an early start tomorrow." Dalia stood up at the same time as Scabior. He took her hand and bowed dramatically in the same way he did last night. "I bid you good night." He lightly kissed her hand.

Dalia rolled her eyes and tried her best to hide a blush that appeared on her cheeks. "Good night Scabior." She walked into her tent leaving Scabior on his own. He was a little disappointed that she didn't stay for longer. He shrugged and sat back down facing her tent. He pulled out a cigarette and stared at her shadow. He could see a well defined shadow as her tent was lit by lanterns and everything else was surrounded in darkness.

Dalia kicked off her converse and pulled out her pyjamas. She pulled off her jeans and cardigan leaving her in her underwear. She let her hair down and shook it to loosen it up. She unhooked her bra and quickly pulled her black tank top over her head. She slipped out of her panties and replaced them with navy blue skimpy shorts.

She pulled a soft, dark purple blanket out of her expandable bag and wrapped it around herself. She fluffed her pillow and stepped into her bed. It was cold in her tent as she was used to a nice warm apartment with a pleasantly warm fireplace. Just another thing she would have to get used to.

With a flick of her wand all of the lanterns and candles went out leaving her in darkness. It took a while before she fell into a restless sleep. Her last thought was, _"Everything is going to change now."_

Scabior just sat there for a while in complete darkness still staring at her tent. Images of her shadow getting changed still looming in his mind. He felt his already skin tight plaid pants become a little tighter.

After about half an hour Scabior finally decided to make his way back to his tent. He stripped to his underwear and slipped into his own bed. It felt a lot colder than usual. He felt like something was missing. Thoughts of Dalia were still in his mind as he fell into an uncomfortable sleep. She invaded his dreams for the second night in a row.

**Well there you go. It's a little shorter than the others. They will probably stay this sort of length. I hope you liked it. Please review and tell me what you think. Thank you for reading :)**


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

**Thank you SelenesLegacy, MsMuffins, ****HollyRinedoller and Dragon MoonX for your reviews it really means a lot. Here's chapter 4 I hope you like it. I don't own anything except Dalia, enjoy.**

"Dalia wake up, it's time to get up love." Dalia slowly opened her eyes. Her hair was covering her face so she couldn't see much through the black mess. She sat up and moved her hair from her face. Scabior backed away and smirked at her."What are you doing in here? Did I give you permission to come into my tent and invade my personally space? No." She rubbed her eyes and black smudged all over her hands. _"Shit I forgot to take my makeup of again." _

"I'm the boss Dalia that means I can do what I want. You're not a morning person are you?" He smirked. If he wasn't so far away she would have slapped him. "Can you just leave me alone to get changed." Dalia sighed. "Can't I watch?" Scabior pouted. "Leave." Dalia said in a raised voice. Scabior complied and walked out of the tent. He was right Dalia wasn't a morning person and nobody annoyed her when she has just woken up not even her boss.

Dalia pushed the warm blanket to the side and her body was met with an unpleasant rush of cold air. She cursed as the pads of her toes hit the freezing cold wooden floor. Dalia stepped quickly across the tent to the chest of drawers that contained her clothes.

Dalia pulled out the first two things she laid her hands on and a matching navy blue bra and panties. She slipped out of her pyjamas and threw them onto her bed. She quickly put on her underwear and socks. She pulled her black skinny jeans over her legs and put on an over-sized black and white plaid shirt.

Dalia walked over to her bathroom and stared into the mirror her makeup was all over her face. She cupped her hands under the cold running water and splashed her face with it. She wiped her face on a towel to get the remaining makeup off her face. She brushed her teeth and reapplied her makeup.

After a few annoyed grunts and hard pulls of her hair brush her hair was unknotted and tucked behind her ears. She put on her converse and walked outside.

The air was even colder outside, if that was even possible. Dalia crossed her arms around her chest to try to keep her hands warm. There were three men sat around the fire including Scabior. It was apparently the only source of heat so Dalia didn't waste anytime sitting on one of the logs that surrounded the fire.

Jason was frying eggs and bacon on a pan that was suspended above the flames. The smell filled her nostrils and she felt her stomach rumble for the third time since she had been awake. "Tea?" Dalia looked to her left and saw Nick with a cup in his hand. "Yeah thanks." He poured the steaming water into the cup. He passed in to her and the cup sent warmth through her fingers.

Dalia took a sip of the tea. It was weak and had no sugar or milk in it but it was the best she was going to get. She smiled as the hot liquid instantly warmed her body. Jason started to plate up the food, "Can you tell everyone that breakfast is ready Dalia?" Dalia nodded and walked towards the first of several tents. She lifted the flap of the nearest tent. Tom was shuffling a pack of cards and Jack was sat opposite him. "Breakfast is ready boys." Dalia announced. They both didn't waste any time in dropping the cards and hurrying out of the tent.

Dalia looked around and saw that Jonny and Greyback were already walking over to the food. _"They must have smelt it." _Dalia shrugged and got her plate of food which consisted of one rubbery egg, two rashes of slightly burned bacon and a piece of bread. Dalia was starving and ate everything without complaint.

After everyone had finished Scabior stood up. "Today is going to be a good day I want good money today no excuses. We have our new recruit to replace Sammy so I expect better results. Be ready to leave in five minuets." There were a few mutters and everyone pilled there plates up before they retired to their tents to get their wands and whatever else they might need.

With a flick of her wand the plates and cups were clean and packed in a wooden box. Dalia went back into her tent and picked up her wand. She ran her fingers through her hair and walked back outside. Everyone was already gathered together so Dalia quickly made her way over to everyone.

"Come on lets go." Scabior led the way and everyone else trailed behind. They were walking for about ten minutes before Scabior said, "Dalia come here for a second." Scabior turned and motioned for her to join him.

Dalia obliged and sped up so she was walking next to him. "Now there are three basic rules." Dalia rolled her eyes, _"Oh here we go."_ She thought. "Number one, I am the boss you listen to me and do whatever I say."

"Yes boss." Dalia murmured. "You can call me Scabior. Number two, do not fuck up. If you do the whole group suffers and let's just say that you won't be the most popular person in the group. Number three, don't show any emotion when on the job. There just people that we need to hand in for money. Don't get attached to them I don't want to deal with any of that soppy shit. Okay?" Scabior questioned.

"Don't worry. The only reason I am here is for money, nothing else." Dalia started to pick the nail varnish off of her nails again.

They must have been walking for at least an hour and nothing had happened. Dalia was getting frustrated, _"I suppose patience is something you need to have as a snatcher. Patience is a virtue- like hell."_ Dalia was the most impatient person you would probably ever meet. She hated waiting around. She had to do it for nearly a month when looking for a job. She would sit in the waiting room on the scratchy seats surrounded by bare walls with a large clock ticking away that constantly remained you of how much time you were wasting. Yes Dalia was not a patient woman.

But it seemed that patience paid off when Scabior put his arm out in front of Dalia to stop her. He put his finger on his lips. Everyone stopped and looked in front of them. About a hundred yards ahead of them there was a small tent and two people talking to each other. "Watch and learn." Scabior smirked and signalled his men to surround the two victims.

Dalia stood in the background and watched the events unfold.

In a spilt second everyone that was hidden behind the trees was visible and the two victims were held with their hands behind their backs. One held by Jonny and the other by Greyback. They were a man and a woman aged around mid-thirties. Tom took the wands from the couple and Jack and Nick went into the tent and presumably search for money and other valuables.

"What are your names?" Scabior demanded. Jason opened a black book and waited for their response. They stayed silent. "Come on speak up I don't have all day." Grayback dug his nails into the woman's arm and she cried out in pain.

"Please don't hurt her." The man pleaded. He pathetically tried to get out of Jonny's firm grip. "Tell me your names now or she'll be much worse off in a minute or two." Scabior threatened. His lightning blue eyes turned dark. If Dalia was on the receiving end of Scabior she would be terrified of him. He was so intimidating and menacing.

"Rob and Ellie Dowson." Despair covered his face. "Blood status?" Scabior ordered. The man closed his eyes. He lessened his pathetic attempts at trying to escape. "Muggle-born." He whispered. Scabior's smirk grew larger.

"They're on the list boss." Jason showed Scabior the black book. Jack and Nick came out of the tent with a bag full of coins and jewelry. "To the ministry boys." Triumphant smiles covered everyone's faces. Six cracks sounded leaving Scabior and Dalia alone. "See how it's done?" Dalia nodded. "Would you care to join me?" Scabior held out his hand. Dalia rolled her eyes and disapparated on her own. Scabior shrugged and did the same.

Dalia's feet hit the tiled floor. She looked around and saw the group standing in a corner. She began to walk over. Hundreds of busy workers were rushing past her occasionally bumping into her. "Hey watch it!" She called as she stumbled towards the rest of the group.

"This is where we drop them off." Scabior pointed at a desk in front of them surrounded by at least ten guards. Scabior walked up to the desk and said, "Rob and Ellie Dowson, mudbloods." The man was dressed in a posh suit, probably tailor made. Scabior handed him the wands and Greyback and Jonny pushed the helpless couple into the guards who quickly escorted them out of site, to await trail and most likely be sent to Azkaban.

Dalia felt a sting somewhere deep inside her and a slight felling of guilt. She quickly pushed it to the back of her mind as she felt an uncomfortable pull in her stomach. "The taboo, come on lets go." Scabior took Dalia's hand and disapparated without a second thought.

**Well there you go. I hope you liked it. Please review and tell me what you think. Thank you for reading. :)**


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

**Here's chapter 5 I hope you like it. Thank you so much for your reviews, SelenesLegacy, Dragon MoonX and HollyRinedoller. I love you guys :) I don't own anything except Dalia, enjoy.**

Dalia's feet hit the floor hard. A wave of sickness crossed her stomach but it quickly subsided when she took in her surroundings. They were stood in the familiar narrow street which was once filled with busy shoppers and workers.

Everyone spun their heads around trying to find the source of the taboo. Something caught Dalia's eye. Two figures were on the opposite side of the street. As soon as Dalia laid her eyes on them they started to walk away in a fast pace. "Hey Scabior!" Dalia set off after them and the rest followed.

Dalia's feet slipped slightly as she raced down the wet cobbles of Diagon Alley. From behind they looked like an old woman and her granddaughter. They were no match for her quick legs and Dalia quickly cut them off. Terror filled their faces as they started to back away into Greyback. They whipped around and Greyback bared his pointed yellow teeth and growled. The little girl squealed and they stood petrified surrounded by the snatchers.

Dalia wasn't scared of many things but Grayback was one of them. He scared the shit out of her. She jumped slightly but kept her cool as she stood next to Scabior. She wouldn't let anyone, particularly Scabior and Greyback know that she was scared of him. She would only get mocked and have the piss taken out of her.

Jonny took the old woman's hands and held them behind her back. "Grandma!" the girl screamed. She had long and curly ginger hair with blue eyes she looked no older than twelve. She ran to help her grandmother but before she got to her, Tom snaked his arms around the girl's stomach and lifted her into the air. She screamed and desperately tried to get away from him. She kicked and punched at Tom but he didn't even flinch.

He let her down and held onto her by twisting a hand into her hair and pulling it tight. Scabior turned his attention back to the old woman. "What are your names?" Scabior demanded. Dalia walked up to the girl searched her for her wand. She avoided eye contact with her and focused on finding the wand. She searched in her pockets of her grey coat. She felt her fingers brush past polished wood and she pulled it out.

The old woman's was on the floor, she must have dropped it when running. Dalia bent down and picked it up. Her head shot up when she heard a hard slap. The woman's head was at an angle. "Stop please! You're hurting her!" the girl shouted. She struggled against Tom trying just about anything to get to her grandmother. She stomped her foot on Tom's and he grunted in pain. As a result he loosened his grip on the girl's hair and she managed to escape from him.

Dalia took this as her opportunity to prove herself. She stepped in before any of the others could. Just as the girl was about to attack Scabior, Dalia stunned her. She fell to the floor inches away from Scabior's black boots.

He turned around and smirked. "Good work Dalia." Dalia tensed when Greyback picked the unconscious girl up and put her over his shoulder. Scabior roughly held the woman's chin between his fingers. "I don't like my time being wasted old woman! Now I will give you one last chance, tell me your names!" Scabior shouted and spat into the woman's face.

The woman was a mess. Her grey and thinning hair had come out of its tight bun and fell in front of her pale face. Her face was stained with tears and her left cheek was still red from the slap she had received earlier. "L-Lillian and S-Sophie Sage." She croaked.

"Blood status?"

"Sophie is half-blood and I-I'm muggleborn." She whispered. "Check it." Scabior said not taking his eyes off the trembling woman. Jason opened the black book and searched the pages and on it was 'Sophie Sage, half-blood' and 'Lillian Sage mudblood'. "They are on here boss." Jason announced. Scabior smirked and stood next to Dalia.

"Where are her parents?" Scabior asked, looking at the girl. "They died when she was a baby." The woman whispered. Dalia gave Scabior the wands of the victims. A few droplets of rain began to fall. Dalia looked up at the sky, it had clouded over and it had become a lot darker. "Well let's get going shall we?"

Dalia heard seven loud cracks before she disapparated herself. Dalia opened her eyes and saw the now quite familiar Ministry of Magic. Dalia carefully moved herself around rushing workers and she soon caught up with the gang. Dalia tucked the hair that had fallen on her face behind her ears as they approached the desk.

It was the same man in the same suit at the same desk surrounded by the same guards. Scabior handed in their wands and checked their names with the man while Jonny pushed the frail woman into the guards who they quickly escorted away. Greyback handed the half wake girl over to the guards and they did the same.

The man behind the desk handed Scabior a large bag filled with what looked like galleons. Scabior thanked the man and rejoined the rest of the group. "Look at this boys." Scabior held up the bag. "It seems that they had some sort of connection with the Order. I think we should celebrate." There were a few murmurs of agreement but they were hardly heard under the clashing on heels and boots on the tiled floor and busy people in conversation with others.

"We will go back to camp, sort out today's earnings and then go to the usual pub alright?" his question was answered by six cracks of lightning. Dalia looked over at Scabior and he winked before disapparating. Dalia rolled her eyes before she too disapparated.

Scabior was already handing out the money to the other men. Dalia walked over to get her fair share of the day's profits. "Good work today Dalia. You have defiantly proved yourself." Scabior handed her a fairly large sum of money for one days work. "Thanks." Dalia said before she retired to her tent.

Dalia opened her purse and poured a third of the money into it and put the rest in a jar that she placed under her bed. _"Maybe this isn't going to be as bad as I thought after all."_ Dalia thought as she opened a packet of cigarettes, pulled one out and placed it between her lips. She put the packet back into her jeans pocket and went outside. Everyone was sat around the fire in conversation about the day's events. Dalia took a seat in her usual place next to Scabior. She lit her cigarette with the end of her wand and took a long drag. The smoke instantly relaxed her and she closed her eyes as a puff of grey smoke left her mouth.

"Can we share?" Scabior asked. Dalia opened her eyes and looked at Scabior. His lightening blue eyes showed a reflection of the fire. They were the most alluring and beautiful eyes Dalia had ever seen. She quickly snapped out of her daydream and took the cigarette out of her mouth. She flicked it and some of the ash fell onto the leafy floor. "Sure." Dalia handed it to him and he took it appreciatively.

The next few hours were filled with cigarettes, food and conversation mostly with Scabior but sometimes she would join in with the others. Dalia thought that most of them were quite dim and stupid. She always kept one eye on Greyback. She had heard stories about him and they weren't exactly pleasant. He set Dalia's teeth on edge but she would never admit it.

Although Scabior looked like a scruffy and dim snatcher there was something about him that made him different. He wasn't the brightest crayon in the box but he was by far not the dullest. He was quite an attractive man and his messy hair and dirtied face only added to his attractive appearance. His sense of clothing was different than others but she liked it. It reminded her of a muggle band called Adam and the Ants. She enjoyed listening to the music but she hardly got too as her friends looked down upon anything or anyone that had the slightest thing to do with muggles.

The air had become considerably colder in the last ten minutes. The sun was setting on the horizon and the darkness was quickly approaching. "Time to go boys." Scabior stood up and dropped his finished cigarette into the fire. Everyone had followed and a few people had already disapparated. "Where are we going?" Dalia asked.

Scabior ignored her question and took her hand. He disapparated with Dalia and they landed on the same cobble pavement they were on before. It was dark and the only source of light came from a couple of dimly lit shops and pubs. Dalia let go of Scabior's hand and followed him into a pub.

The pub was the same one that Dalia and Scabior had gone to the first night that they had met. It was a little busier with a few older men sat in the corners on their own probably drinking away their sorrows and a small group of girls sat on the bar stools. They looked no older than herself and they were wearing extremely short and skimpy dresses that only just covered their arses. Their tops showed almost all of their bras. _"Filthy slags."_ Dalia thought as Tom and Jack walked up to them immediately and started to chat them up.

Dalia ordered the cheapest drink in the bar and sat as far way from the 'slags' as possible. She placed herself in the same booth she was in last time and opened the bottle.

After an hour Dalia was still sat in the same booth with the same drink in her hands. Greyback had lashed out, nearly making Dalia shit her pants and got himself kicked out. Jack was absent, Dalia saw him and one of the girls go into a privet room a few minutes ago. Tom was in the far corner snogging the face of another girl and Jonny was feeling up another girl in a booth next to them. Jason and Nick were harassing a barmaid. Dalia could only feel sorry for her. The memories of her previous job flooded back into her mind.

Dalia cringed and sank further into the bench she was sat on.

Scabior stumbled into the booth opposite her. He was clearly drunk, his eyes were glazed over and his breath stank of various drinks. You all righ' love?" Scabior slurred his words. Dalia rolled her eyes and sighed. "Why are you not 'aving any fun? You've 'ardly drunk anythin'." Dalia finished her drink and placed it back onto the wooden table.

"I don't want to waste any of my hard earned money on drink. I want to get out of this job as soon as possible." Dalia replied. "OI! Get us another round 'ere!" Scabior shouted. He made Dalia jump. "Don't you think you have had enough to drink Scabior?" it was a rhetorical question but obviously Scabior didn't understand. "You can never 'ave enough to drink love." He lazily pointed at her.

The barmaid placed two bottles of firewhisky on the table and took the empty ones. Dalia wasn't going to deny a free drink so she took it and thanked Scabior. She opened the bottle on the edge of the table and let the liquid pleasantly burn down her throat.

By the time she had finished her first gulp Scabior had already finished half of his bottle. A familiar song came on in the bar. 'Stand and Deliver –Adam and the Ants' He stumbled as he stood up. "What the hell are you doing?" Dalia asked amused. He bowed dramatically and held out his hand. "Could I have this dance?" Dalia sighed. "Oh come on I'll give you a kiss."

Dalia had to admit that he was damn cute when he was pissed. "Fine." Dalia said half exasperated half amused. Scabior pulled her to her feet and dragged her to the centre of the pub. He started to move ridiculously and swing Dalia around. She laughed as he spun her around and dipped her. His dancing was absolutely dreadful but it was absolutely amazing at the same time. They spun around and stumbled all over the place catching the attention of the others. They started to clap and join in.

When the song came to an end Scabior pulled Dalia into his chest and held her there for a few precious moments. His fast breathing could be heard as her ear was pressed against his chest and his heart beat was speedy but gradually slowing down. Dalia soon pulled away though as a loud commotion was sounded behind them.

Tom had clearly had a lot to drink and fell over a chair. "Come on I think it's time to go." Scabior agreed and soon they were back in the cold and dark forest. Dalia led Scabior into his tent. It wad quite bigger than her own and could defiantly keep more than one person in it.

Dalia sat Scabior down on his bed and made sure that he was alright. "Go to bed otherwise you will be as grumpy as hell tomorrow." Dalia pointed at his chest. Scabior groaned as he fell into his bed. Dalia was about to leave the tent when he said, "You are god damn beautiful Dalia." Dalia smiled. She knew that it was probably the alcohol talking but it still made her smile.

Dalia went into her own tent and kicked her shoes off. She slipped out of her clothes and into her pyjamas. She pulled her purple blanket over her and fell into a deep slumber.

**Well there you go. I hope you liked it. Please review and tell me what you think. Thank you for reading. :)**


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

**Here's chapter 6 I hope you like it. Thank you so much for your reviews they really make my day :) I don't own anything except Dalia, enjoy.**

The next few of days went by painfully slowly. They had caught a fair number of runaways and undesirables.

Dalia didn't like her job but she did what she had to do to get enough money to pay off her rent. Every time she had received money for sending someone in she would put it into her jar that she kept under her bed. Dalia had to think positively and as she gradually filled the large jar every sickle would bring her closer to leaving the forest and returning to her apartment.

The children's screams as they watched their parents or siblings get tortured echoed in her mind as she was sleeping. Often she would wake up in the middle of the night with a layer of cold sweat coating her forehead. Tonight was an excellent example of this.

Dalia's eyes burst open. Her hair was covering her face and she tucked it behind her ears as she sat up. She wiped her forehead and squinted to look at the clock. _"3:45 great"_ Dalia yawned and got out of bed. She quickly covered her shoulders with a woolly cardigan and picked up her packet of cigarettes and her wand.

She sat on one of the logs that surrounded the almost burnt out fire. She pulled out a cigarette and lit it with her wand. She inhaled deeply and watched as she gradually blew out the grey smoke.

No one in her family smoked. It was a habit that she picked up from working in the pub. All the bar maids smoked and they would offer her one when they were on their breaks. Dalia accepted and has enjoyed it ever since. There were obvious disadvantages to smoking but Dalia ignored them. She liked to focus on the advantages, for example it instantly calmed her nerves and made her less jumpy. This was almost a necessity when you are living in close proximity with a savage werewolf.

"Mind if I join you?" Dalia looked up and saw Scabior walking from his tent. He gestured to her cigarette. Dalia handed Scabior her cigarette and he sat down. "Cheers" Scabior took a drag of her cigarette and gave it back to her. "Look, I know that you're having trouble sleeping." Dalia took a final drag of the cigarette before she threw it into the fire pit.

"I don't know what you are talking about." Dalia didn't break eye-contact with the burning embers. "I heard you crying out in your sleep." Dalia played with the loose strands of her cardigan. "Are you sure that it wasn't anyone else?" Scabior rolled his eyes. "I don't think anyone else in this camp has high pitched screams like you." Dalia looked at Scabior.

"Are you sure? I mean Tom looks like the type of guy who would scream like a girl." Dalia half smiled. "I'm sure that he would appreciate that if I told him." Dalia punched him on the arm and he smirked back. It only lasted for a second though as a much more serious look crossed his face. "It's nothing to be ashamed of. Listen I know it's hard for the first few weeks on the job but you get used to it eventually. If it gets worse you could always sleep in my bed." Scabior winked. Dalia rolled her eyes. "Or you could just pop into my tent, I have a large supply of sleeping draught."

"I'm fine. I don't need any of your help." Dalia snapped. Scabior looked awkwardly at the ground. "But thanks for offering." Dalia added. Even she had to admit that she was being too harsh he was only trying to help after all.

"Well I better be getting back to sleep. I'm guessing that we have a long day ahead of us." Dalia stood up and started to make her way back to her tent. "Sleep tight love." Scabior said with a fresh cigarette in his mouth.

Dalia didn't waste anytime getting back into her bed. She pulled her dark purple blanket over her and eventually fell into a dream-filled slumber.

* * *

><p>They had been walking through the forest for over an hour. They hadn't snatched anyone in the whole day of searching. Scabior was getting frustrated and spilt the group into two to try to cover more land. Scabior, Greyback, Jonny and herself in one group leaving Jason, Tom, Jack and Nick in the other.<p>

Dalia had to hand it to him, Scabior was a determined person. He told them that they wouldn't stop until they had snatched someone. If Dalia was in Scabior's position she would have given up about half an hour ago. Her feet and back were aching from walking around all day. They were walking in almost complete darkness and the winter months were quickly approaching. The cold air nipped at her skin and she tried to wrap herself in her woolly jumper as much as possible.

Dalia was bored out of her mind and she was in desperate need for a cigarette but she left her packet at the camp. She tried to get her mind off of them by thinking of other things. The addictive element to the cigarettes was obviously a disadvantage.

Scabior was walking in front of everyone. Dalia guessed that it was a sign of his leadership. She followed close behind. Greyback often walked near Dalia. She didn't know if it was just a coincidence or if it was one of his many wolf like instincts to stay the closest to the nearest female. He would always hold and carry the female victim when they were snatching. Either way Dalia tried to keep as much distance away from him as possible. Jonny was at the back end of the group. He walked slowly and stared at his feet when he did, occasionally tripping over an overgrown root or a tree stump.

Dalia's mind wandered to Harry Potter. Undesirable number one had a bounty of 10,000 galleons on his head. Dalia imagined what she would do with the money. She could leave the woods straight away and buy her own house.

There was no news on the whereabouts of Potter for a couple of months until yesterday. Greyback, Tom, Jonny and Nick went to the ministry to drop off a couple of runaway Hogwarts students. Apparently the golden trio were spotted in the main entrance hall of the ministry. They were disguised using polyjuice potion but the affects had worn off before they had managed to leave the ministry.

Greyback said that he had caught a glimpse of Potter but they were surrounded by Azkaban guards within seconds. Yaxley ran after them but they somehow escaped though the last fireplace. The security on the ministry had more than doubled overnight.

Dalia's thoughts were interrupted when she walked into the back of Scabior. Scabior held his hand up to signal everyone to stop. Dalia looked around but couldn't see anyone. Boots could be heard crushing the dead leaves on the forest floor. Followed by panting and whispers. Scabior hid behind a tree and everyone did the same.

Just as they were about to walk past them Scabior stepped out from behind the tree. The couple stopped dead in their tracks. "Where do you think you're going?" Greyback and Jonny came from behind and surrounded the victims.

Greyback snaked his huge arms around the girl and Jonny held the man. They both looked red in the face and they were out of breath. They had obviously been running from someone perhaps the other group. The girl in Greyback's grasp looked no older than Dalia. She looked petrified and she was shaking. Dalia couldn't blame her she would have pissed her pants if she was in her position.

The man struggled against Jonny. Scabior punched him in the stomach instantly winding him and he groaned. "Now we can do this the easy way or the hard way. Do you know who this it?" Scabior pointed at Greyback. "He is Fenir Greyback." The mans face went pale. "Recognize him from the wanted posters? I'm sure he wouldn't mind keeping your little girlfriend to himself would you?" Greyback smirked. "Of course not Scabior." He growled.

Dalia got out the black book she couldn't look at the girl. "What are your names?" Scabior demanded. "Alice Sparrow and Jeffery Hanson, purebloods." The man replied. Dalia skimmed through the pages of the book. "There not in here."

"I don't like liars." Scabior smirked. "I'm not lying! W-we were sorted into Slytherin." the man protested. Scabior walked up to girl. Her eyes widened as his face came inches away from hers. "Is your boyfriend lying?" The girl shook her hand. "N-no" She whispered. "Where is the Slytherin common room?"

Scabior smirked as the girls eyes widened even more. "You don't know do you." The girl just stared at him. A few tears spilled from her eyes and trailed down her cheeks. "I told you I don't like liars. Liars need punishing. Crucio!" the man fell to the floor and writhed in pain. He screamed and twitched on the floor. "P-please stop it." The girl chocked.

Scabior eventually lifted the curse and the man was sprawled on the floor barely conscious. Scabior bent down and said, "Tell me your names or your girlfriends neck will be split open." Greyback bared his yellow and sharp teeth. He lightly grazed the side of the girl's neck and a trail of blood formed. The girl yelped.

"Nigel Barns a-and Alison Thomas. P-please don't hurt her." The man spluttered. "There on here Scabior, muggle borns." Scabior's smirk grew and he kicked the man in the head. He fell unconscious and the girl fainted.

"Come on the lads lets go." Scabior told the other group to meet back at the camp once they had caught someone so they could turn them in together. Getting into the ministry took twice as long now as the new security measures were put into place.

Greyback picked up the girl bridle style and Jonny struggled to lift the man. "Were you serious about that offer Scabior?" Greyback questioned. "You're not having her Greyback. We have only snatched these today. We need as much money as we can get. Just wait another week or so and you can have as many as you can get your claws on." Greyback smirked.

They walked in silence for another ten minutes. It must have been almost midnight as Dalia could only make out the basic features of everyone. The silence was broken by Scabior saying, "What's that?" Scabior stopped and turned around. Dalia rolled her eyes, _"Are we ever going to get back?"_ she turned and watched Scabior retrace his steps.

"What's that smell?" He breathed in deeply. _"What the hell is he doing? There's no one there! Idiot."_ Dalia thought. Scabior just stood there breathing in and staring into nothingness. There was a loud thump behind Dalia. She turned around and saw the man on the floor and Jonny panting. Scabior's focus was distracted. "What you doing?"

"It's heavy." Jonny complained. Dalia and Scabior both rolled their eyes. "Oh sorry, do you want me to carry it?" Scabior said sarcastically making his way back to them. "Yeah, thank you." Jonny replied, clearly not picking up on Scabior's obvious sarcasm. "Don't be ridiculous. Pick it up." Jonny sighed and struggled to pick up the dead weight. "Twat" Scabior muttered as he walked past him. He chuckled at Jonny's pathetic attempts to pick the man up.

They eventually made it back to camp. By this time Dalia was struggling to keep her eyes open. The other group managed to snatch two men. "We'll take them in tomorrow morning. Tom and Jack tie them up against that tree and make sure that they don't escape."

"Hey Scabior, don't you think that they are going to get cold? Sitting outside all night. I am feeling extra nice today and I wouldn't mind sharing my tent with the girl we snatched. I could keep her warm." Greyback smirked. Scabior rolled his eyes.

"Fine but don't be too loud I don't want you to keep me up. And make sure that she's in one piece tomorrow." Scabior sighed. Greyback grinned and took the girl into his tent. A shiver ran down Dalia's spine as she imagined what he would do to her. She had a quick cigarette to calm her nerves.

Finally Dalia got into her bed. She blew out the last candle and closed her eyes. No more than ten seconds later a bloodcurdling scream came from the direction of Greyback's tent. Dalia's eyes burst open. She pulled her pillow over her head and tried to block out the screams but whatever she did she could still hear them. Another sleepless night awaited Dalia.

**Well there you go. I hope you liked it. Please review and tell me what you think. Thank you for reading :)**


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

**Here's chapter 7 I hope you like it. Thank you so much to my lovely reviewers I love you guys :3 I don't own anything except Dalia, enjoy.**

Dalia woke to the pleasant feeling of someone lightly stroking her hair. Light breathing tickled her neck. She didn't open her eyes as she wanted the perfect moment to last. She felt an arm hang over her waist and a warm body pressed against hers.

_"Wait."_ Dalia thought. _"Who is that?"_ Dalia's eyes burst open. The harsh sunlight that pierced through the slightly open flaps of the tent didn't seem to bother her as she was distracted. Dalia looked around. She wasn't in her bed and she wasn't in her tent. She turned to face the person she had slept next to, it was Scabior.

"What the fuck am I doing in here?" Dalia asked franticly. "Good morning to you too love." Scabior said obviously amused at the situation. Dalia shot daggers at him. "Answer the question." she snapped. Dalia sat up and pulled the covers over her barely covered body. She was only wearing skimpy shorts and a tiny vest top.

"You came into my tent late last night. Your eyes were dazed and you had a blank expression your face. You were obviously sleepwalking. You asked if you could sleep in my bed. I didn't refuse." Scabior smirked. Dalia hit Scabior with a pillow."I don't sleepwalk and why would I come voluntarily into your tent and get into your bed?" Dalia questioned.

"Well it's quite clear that you do. I can think of many reasons why you would come into my bed I'm irresistible." A smirk covered his face from ear to ear. "Plus you already admitted that you find me attractive. Why wouldn't you come into my tent?" Dalia looked although she was about to curse his balls off. "Shut the fuck up Scabior." Dalia stood up and started to make her way out of his tent.

"You slept like a baby." Dalia turned around and saw Scabior stood half naked before her. She couldn't help but notice his perfectly toned chest. She cursed herself for looking but she had to admit that he was pretty handsome. _"Stop it Dalia get a hold of yourself."_

"Whatever." Dalia walked out of his tent. She saw most of the other men surrounding the fire. Tom was watching the victims from yesterdays work and Greyback was nowhere to be seen. Probably still in his tent. The thought of the young woman that they had captured yesterday played in the back of her mind. She tried to forget about it but it was proving difficult.

They all looked at her as she emerged from Scabior's tent. Some of them had questioning looks on their faces while others had grins and smirks plastered across their fat gobs. Dalia glared at them before she quickly went into her own tent to get changed.

Hundreds of questions were running through her mind as she was getting changed. _"Why was I in his bed? Have I ever sleepwalked before? Where is Greyback? Where is the girl? Why does Scabior have such a flawless chest?"_ Dalia mentally slapped herself across the face. _"You're not some stupid school girl with a crush. He's just Scabior. He's a cocky, over confidant twat and nothing else."_

Dalia used a wide range of spells to tame her hair and she tied it with a black ribbon. Dalia couldn't put it off much longer. She needed to wash herself some how. She regrettably didn't have a shower so she would have to find some other way because the spells don't last forever. Dalia pulled her over-sized grey sweater over her shoulders and tied her piece of red cloth on her left arm.

She quickly checked herself in the mirror before she joined the rest of the snatchers outside. Scabior had joined the men but Greyback was still nowhere to been seen. Tom was still watching over the victims whilst chewing on a rough piece of meat. This reminded Dalia of how hungry she was. She hadn't eaten in a while and her stomach growled at her as if to say 'feed me!'

Dalia sat down next to Scabior and took a cup of weak tea from Jonny. "Thanks." Dalia muttered. Jack and Nick still had grins on their faces and Dalia knew exactly what was going through their minds. She decided to ignore it instead of acting out. She didn't want to give them the satisfaction.

Scabior picked up on the grins from the men and mocked Dalia. "Were you warm last night Dalia?" He put his arm around her and she nearly spilt her tea. Dalia rolled her eyes and glared at the sniggers from the men. Dalia lifted his heavy arm off of her and sighed into her cup of tea. "Someone's in a bad mood." Dalia's head shot up and she saw Greyback coming out of his tent.

"She's just pissed off at you because you didn't satisfy her last night. Isn't that right Dalia?" Greyback mocked her even more. "Well I'll tell you something. She defiantly satisfied me last night." Greyback pointed at the girl being held tightly by him. Dalia hadn't even noticed her until now. Her clothes were ripped in some places and her hair was tangled and dirty. She had a bust lip and scratches covered her frail body. She was almost unnoticeable.

"Why don't we let you sit with your boyfriend? I'm sure he will want to hear all about it." Greyback growled. He roughly dragged her to the tree that had her 'boyfriend' tied to and she pushed her to the ground. She hardly had any energy left and she could only just sit up and rest her head on the man's shoulder. The man's face was etched with anger; if looks could kill everyone would be dead. The girl's quiet sobs could be heard from where Dalia was sitting.

Jonny passed her a plate of bacon and eggs. She had lost her appetite and she only played with it whereas everyone else scoffed it down like they hadn't been fed in years. Greyback greedily ate the rest of Dalia's uneaten food. She finished her tea and lit a cigarette.

It instantly calmed her as she took a long drag. She slowly let the grey smoke seep out of her mouth. "We'll leave in five minutes." Scabior announced. "Dalia have you got their wands?" He asked. Dalia threw the head of the cigarette into the fire. "Yeah I'll just go and get them." Dalia stood up and lazily walked into her tent.

She picked up the four wands along with her own. A few grunts and muffled screams could be heard from outside. Dalia quickly joined the rest of the group to see what all the fuss was about. Greyback had picked up the girl and was tormenting her. He pulled her hair to the side revealing several bite marks and scratches scarred onto her neck. Greyback trailed his sharp claws over the scars.

"Get your filthy hands off of her you fucking mutt!" the man desperately tried to protect the girl. Jonny and Nick held him back whilst Jack punched him in the stomach. He keeled over and spluttered on the ground. "Pathetic." Scabior muttered.

Jason and Tom held the other two men. They were silent and didn't struggle. "You would think that he would have learned his lesson after what we've done to him and his girlfriend like these two." Scabior pointed and the silent men. "Obviously not." Scabior shrugged and pulled out his wand. "Come on lads lets go." He disapparated on the spot and Dalia followed.

She opened her eyes to the ministry. There had been a few changes since she had last been there. Potter had escaped a few days back so they had put extra security measures into effect. Each individual had to be searched before they could enter the main hall.

Dalia joined Scabior and the others in one of the many ridiculously long queues. _"Oh fucking great, this is going to be a long day."_

* * *

><p>That night Dalia tossed and turned for hours unable to sleep. It had been a very long day of endless trekking through the forest and standing in long queues to hand people in. Every time she was searched she was repeatedly asked about her parents. <em>"How many times is it going to take for them to get into their tiny heads? I don't know where my parents are! Do you think that I would be working as a snatcher if I supported Harry fucking Potter? If someone asks me one more time about my parents I swear I will kill someone." <em>The same sentences ran through her head all day.

Dalia fluffed her pillow and pulled her blanket over her. No matter what she did she couldn't get to sleep. Her mind wandered back to last night. Like Scabior said she did sleep like a baby. As much as she hated to admit it she wanted to sleep in his tent again. She wanted to feel his hot breath tickle her neck. She wanted to feel his warmth radiate from his body to hers. She wanted to feel secure in his arms. She wanted to rest against his perfectly toned chest. _"Snap out of it Dalia! You are not going back in there. There is no way."_

Every second that ticked by felt like an hour. It was driving her insane. She paced in her tent wondering what to do. _"I can't sleep in his bed I just can't. It is a sign of weakness and I am not weak. I am not going to be a child that goes crying to mummy and daddy because I can't get to sleep."_ Dalia argued with herself for ages trying to convince herself not to go back into his tent.

"_Maybe I could just sleep in the floor, yeah that's a good idea. Oh don't be stupid Dalia. I cannot face being humiliated in front of everyone again."_

After what seemed like hours Dalia finally summed up the courage to go into Scabior's tent. She crept outside making sure that no one saw her. She slowly opened the flap of the tent and stepped inside. Surprisingly Scabior was still awake and shuffling through some papers on his desk. Dalia cleared her throat to make herself noticed.

Scabior looked up. "Dalia what are you doing in here?" Dalia hugged her chest and stepped forwards. "You look dreadful, no offense." Scabior stood up and walked towards her. "None taken." Dalia said sarcastically. "I-I can't sleep. I was wondering if you still had any of your sleeping draught that you mentioned the other day." Dalia yawned into the sleeve of her cardigan.

"Err yeah sure. Or would you prefer to sleep in my bed." He winked. "No thanks your cockiness would drive me insane." Dalia replied. Scabior shrugged and opened a drawer. He rummaged through the numerous bottles of potions before he came across the one he was looking for. It was a small vial which contained a colourless liquid. Dalia took it and Scabior turned away to shut the drawer.

Dalia unscrewed the bottle and drank the whole of it. "I must warn you that it's very strong. Make sure to only drink it when you're sat on your bed because-" Scabior turned around and using his lightening quick senses he caught Dalia before she hit the floor.

Scabior rolled his eyes. He picked her up bridal style and carried her into her tent. He lowered her onto her bed and pulled the covers over her. He tucked her hair behind her ears and gently rubbed her forehead.

"Goodnight beautiful."

**Well there you go. I hope you liked it. As always reviews are greatly appreciated. I would love to hear your opinions and constructive criticism is always welcome. Thank you for reading. :)**


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8  
><strong>  
><strong>Here's chapter 8 I hope you like it. Sorry I haven't updated in a while I've been away and I haven't had chance to write :( I hope this chapter makes up for it :) Thank you for your reviews they really mean a lot. I love you guys. I don't own anything except Dalia, enjoy.<strong>

Dalia woke up late the next day after having a long and dreamless sleep all thanks to Scabior's sleeping draught. She lazily got out of bed and got changed. She looked in the mirror and reapplied her makeup. She was in desperate need of a shower. When she was in Scabior's tent she noticed that he had a shower. Dalia made a mental note to ask him to use it later.

She had an almost cold cup of tea and only managed to have a bit of bread and bacon as the taboo called halfway through breakfast. Everyone scrambled to their feet and apparated within a minute. They caught two mudbloods fairly quickly but spent almost half an hour waiting in long lines to hand them in.

* * *

><p>The sun was setting on the horizon signalling the end of a long and hard days work. Scabior was still determined to find at least one more victim before the day ended. Dalia's feet were killing her and she had a migraine. Every twig that snapped under someone's boot felt like loud band of a drum.<p>

The trees were bare and the brown leaves littered the floor. The trees were sparsely distributed and there were several overgrown roots and tree stumps that were perfect for tripping over. Dalia had done just that a few times but managed not to fall on her face like Jason had done a few minutes ago.

They were on the edge of a clearing surrounded by marsh and bog. Scabior suddenly stopped walking. His eyes were fixed on something. _"Oh Christ this isn't another one of his 'episodes' were he just stands staring into space for five minutes is it. I'm tired!"_ Dalia moaned in her head.

Scabior walked towards a tree never breaking eye contact with it. Dalia and all the others just stared at him. Scabior unravelled a piece of tattered fabric from the tree. Closer inspection revealed it to be a pink scarf. It was discoloured from it's time spent wrapped around the tree. Scabior brought the fabric to his nose and inhaled. After a nod of approval he tied it around his neck.

By this time he noticed that everyone was staring at him. "What are you looking at get going!" he shouted. Everyone continued to walk without a second thought apart from Greyback. "What the fuck is tied around your neck?" he sniggered. "What does it fucking look like." Scabior shot back at him. "It looks like a girls scarf. The gay look suits you." Greyback barked. Dalia smirked, even she had to admit that it was funny.

After another hour of walking they had eventually caught someone. Scabior sent Greyback, Tom and Jack to hand them in and everyone else apparated back to camp. They ate a meal that consisted of bread and meat. _"What is it with men and not eating vegetables?"_ Dalia thought to herself as she ate the food.

Greyback, Tom and Jack arrived with a large bag of money. Apparently they were worth more than they appeared. After they had finished eating they celebrated a hard day's work by drinking alcohol. Dalia played with her only bottle of fire whisky as the rest of the men downed several bottles. Dalia didn't pay attention to the roars of laughter and howls of approval from them as she was more concentrated on her own thoughts. She noticed that Scabior didn't drink as much either and only had a couple of empty bottles at his feet.

He lit a cigarette and took a long drag. Dalia realised that she hadn't had one in a while so she did the same. Her migraine had passed after taking a few drags and she started to relax. "Hey Scabior," Dalia began. Scabior flicked some ash into the fire and turned to face her. "yes." he replied.

"The last time I was in your tent I realised that you had a shower. I was wondering because I don't have one, if I could use it?" Dalia took another drag of her cigarette and tucked a piece of greasy hair behind her ear. _"Oh please say yes please say yes!"_ Dalia begged in her mind. "What will you give me in return?" Scabior asked throwing his last cigarette from his packet into the fire.

"I will give you a packet of fags." Dalia pulled out her packet from her pocket. Scabior rubbed his chin and said "All right" Dalia handed him the cigarettes. "Don't come in." Dalia said standing up. "I can't make any promises." Scabior smirked. "I mean it." Dalia shot him a warning look before she made her way into her tent to collect a clean change of clothes and soap.

She slowly made her way into his tent. He was still sat by the fire observing everyone's drunken actions. Dalia stepped inside it was surprisingly warm compared to hers. A strong, musky aroma of smoke, nicotine, pine and a faint trace of fire whisky filled her nostrils as she walked in further. It was a strange combination but strangely she liked it.

Dalia walked into the cornered off section of his tent. There was a small sink and mirror, a toilet and a shower. Dalia checked the tent one last time before she stripped down and stepped into the shower. Dalia turned the stiff handle. It squeaked as it turned. A weak trail of ice cold water poured onto Dalia's head. She cursed and jumped out of the way.

After a few minutes the water warmed up and Dalia rinsed her hair. The hot water that spilled over her body felt like all the dirty blood that she collected over her time as being a snatcher drained away into the plug. Dalia washed her hair and body. She felt ten times better being clean instead of grotty and greasy. She removed all of the dirt that got embedded into her nails and scrubbed every part of her body possible.

After another ten minutes Dalia eventually stepped out of the shower. The steam filled the small bathroom and it was hard to see. She took a towel from the side and wrapped herself in it. She shook her head and her black locks of hair sprayed water everywhere. She walked up to the sink; the mirror had steamed up so she wiped it with a cloth.

Dalia nearly jumped out of her skin when she saw the figure in the background. "Oh shit! Scabior what the fuck are you doing in here!" Dalia whipped around spraying water everywhere and wrapped her towel around herself as much as possible. "Is that any way to talk to someone who has lent you their shower?" Scabior's eyes trailed down Dalia's body. "Well I know that you don't use it enough!" Dalia spat making Scabior's eyes go back to hers.

"That's a bit harsh don't you think?" Scabior took hold of Dalia's clothes that were placed in a pile beside him. "What are you doing? Give me those now." Dalia glared at him. "Or what?" Scabior teased. "I will rip your balls off and shove them down your throat." Dalia growled. "I'd like to see you try." Scabior smirked.

Dalia made an attempt to grab her clothes but Scabior was quicker. "Ah ah ah not until you apologise for being rude." His smirk was growing by the second. "Never." Dalia gritted her teeth. Scabior slowly placed his right foot behind him and then did the same with his left. He slowly backed out of the bathroom and Dalia followed. The tent felt a lot colder now she was wet and the only thing covering her was a towel. Scabior stopped at the entrance of his tent.

"I'm sure that Greyback and the rest of the boys would find you running around in a towel quite entertaining don't you think?" Scabior took another step so his foot was now outside. Dalia's eyes grew wide. "You wouldn't dare." Scabior's mouth opened as if to say something but he was interrupted by a loud commotion behind him. He turned around and without a single word he dropped her clothes and walked outside.

Dalia picked up her clothes and got changed as fast as possible before she followed him outside. Greyback was being held back by Tom, Jack and Jonny. He had a look of death pouring out of his yellow eyes. He desperately tried to rip himself from the three holding him back. Jason struggled to his feet. He was clutching his right side of his face. Dalia kept her distance from everyone she just watched from the entrance of Scabior's tent. She defiantly didn't want to get involved with an enraged Greyback.

"What the fuck went on here?" Scabior shouted. Rage filled his eyes as he paced between them. Greyback managed to get out of the grasp of the three men and lunged at Jason. Dalia whipped her wand out and stunned him. He fell hard to the floor centimetres away from Jason's shaking form. Scabior looked at Dalia, he hadn't even noticed that she had come outside.

"Take him inside and make sure that he doesn't remember this little incident by tomorrow." Scabior spat. Jack put a levitation spell on Greyback and walked into his tent. "You're a load of drunken idiots! Go to bed now if you know what's good for you." They obeyed immediately. When everyone was out of sight Scabior grabbed Jason by the collar and pushed him against a tree. Dalia watched in the distance. Her dark clothes and hair disguised her in the darkness so she could not be seen by either Scabior nor Jason.

"What the fuck is wrong with you, you fucking twat!" Jason's eyes were dazed as he was clearly still drunk. There was a large cut going from his eyebrow down to his cheek and a purple bruise was forming. "I w-was just." he slurred.

"I know what you were fucking doing you know not to test Greyback especially when he is drunk. Remember what happened to Sammy? Ripped to shreds! You're bloody lucky you only got that." Scabior pointed to his cut. "You deserve it you stupid twat. You're not going to get any sympathy from me or anyone else. Now get the fuck out of my site!" he spat.

He released his hand from his collar. Jason stumbled forwards and staggered into his tent. Scabior kicked the tree before he lit a cigarette and lent against it. Dalia wrapped her arms around herself. She could see her breath in front of her and her hair was dripping water down herself.

She didn't even attempt at talking to Scabior. She had never seen him that pissed of before. It made her nervous and she was glad that she wasn't Jason. She quietly made her way back into her tent and got undressed into her night clothes. She regrettably climbed into her cold bed and extinguished all of the lanterns and candles with a flick of her wand. Dalia pulled the blanket over her and closed her eyes.

Her migraine had come back and the feeling of being clean had disappeared. There was no way she was going into Scabior's tent tonight. She would just have to grit her teeth and bare the unpleasant night that was to come.  
><strong><br>Well there you go I hope you liked it. Please review and tell me what you think. Thank you for reading :)**


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

**Here's chapter 9. Thank you so much for your lovely reviews I love you guys. I don't own anything except Dalia, enjoy.**

Dalia tossed and turned all night. She hardy slept and when she did her mind was full of vivid nightmares that left her uneasy and shaken up by morning. Dalia was sprawled on her bed. She had her eyes closed and she forced herself to relax. Her head spun with various thoughts that prevented her from drifting off into a slumber.

Dalia could take it anymore. She had tried to get to sleep for hours with no avail. She grunted in frustration and threw the covers from her body. Dalia got out of her bed and walked to a chest of drawers. She pulled open the top drawer and pulled out a bottle of strong alcohol and a shot glass. She watched as the colourless liquid fell into the glass. Dalia brought it up to eye level before she downed it in one. The alcohol had a quick effect and she could feel her reactions slowing down. Dalia stumbled to her bed and collapsed onto it. Within a few minutes she had fallen into a dream-filled slumber.

_Dalia's wrists and ankles were bound by sharp and rusty chains that dug into her flesh. They were tied to a large wooden chair that was in the centre of the room. She was surrounded by ministry officials dressed in black and red robes. Every pair of eyes were on her. They showed no mercy as they stared right into her soul. _

_Dalia was shaking from the cold. All of her happy memories and thoughts were escaping her mind and it was filled with sadness and pain. Dalia looked up and at the top of the high ceiling, dementor's gilded around like hawks watching their prey. _

_Dalia turned her attention back to people sitting opposite her. Kingsley was sat at the highest point; he had been made the minister of magic after the fall of Voldemort. Her parents were sat on the front row along with other members of the order. Hatred filled their eyes and Dalia couldn't bring herself to look at them. They all had blank expressions on their faces and didn't even blink. _

_Azkaban prison guards were situated at every door in case she was to try any sort of escape attempt. The only noise that could be heard was a distant scream from another room. It was full of pain and fear. _

_Dalia was alone. No one was stood at the defence section of the room. The Great War resulted in many deaths including the rest of the snatchers in the gang. Scabior had survived but shortly after given the dementor's kiss. _

_So many thoughts were going through her mind. _"Why did I accept this stupid job? For money that's it but all of that has gone now, everything. I have nothing left. Not my apartment not my freedom not even my parents." _A single tear ran down her cheek as she looked at her parents. They shared a fair amount of scars from the battle. Her mother had a slash that ran from her right eye down to the corner of her lip. Her father was permanently blind in his left eye and it was clouded over with black. They hated her. How could they still love her after what she had done? She had tortured and killed innocent people she deserved everything she got. _

"_Dalia Elysia Hayfield, you have been brought to this hearing because you have been accused of being under the occupation of a bounty hunter that worked for Voldemort. Is this true?" Dalia stared at the tiled floor. "Yes." She said in a whisper. __Kingsley held up a piece of red fabric, her piece of red fabric. Dalia stared at it she remembered how Scabior had given it to her._

_"Is this or is this not your property?" Dalia looked down at her fingernails. "It is." she murmured. "You know that this is the symbol of the snatcher profession I take it." Dalia nodded not taking her eyes off her nails.__ "Am I correct in saying that you were part of a group controlled by a Mr. Scabior?" Dalia again whispered, "Yes." Confirming what Kingsley already knew._

"_Do you confess to torturing and killing innocent muggles and people with magical abilities just because of their blood status?" Kingsley's cold eyes sent shivers down her spine. "I did it for money! I don't care about blood status. All I care about is making sure that I have a roof over my head." Dalia protested._

"_So you carried out Voldemort's wishes for your own selfish gain? You killed innocent people just to get money?" There were a few murmurs in the stands. "That is the same if not worse than being a supporter of blood purity."_

_Dalia fell silent. Kingsley was right and she knew it. "Murdering an innocent person is a crime punishable by death. You understand this?" Kingsley announced. Dalia began to panic. She looked at her parents for sympathy but there was nothing. _

"_All in favour of execution." A woman sat beside Kingsley said in a raised voice. Every ministry official in the room raised their hands. Dalia looked at her parents. They too had their hands raised. Tears escaped her watery eyes and fell down her pale cheeks. "__You are here by sentenced to death by the dementor's kiss." _

_Everyone in the room disappeared in a puff of grey smoke and she was left in the large courtroom. The shield that protected Dalia from the dementors was broken and they started to glide down towards her. Dalia screamed and pulled on the rusty chains with all of her might. The chains dug into her skin and blood started to seep out of her wrists and ankles._

_Dalia shook the chair she was sat on and desperately tried to escape. Tears now flowed down her face her mascara and eyeliner smudged and blackened her face. The dementor's circled her and stared right into her soul. She could see her panicked breath as the temperature plummeted._

_One single dementor approached her. Its mouth was wide open. Dalia felt an agonising pain in her chest and she felt like she was going to be sucked into the clocked figure. A loud scream rang in her ears._

"Dalia, Dalia wake up!"

Dalia's eyes burst open. A pair of blue/grey eyes were staring back at her. She was panting heavily, "Scabior w-what are you doing in here?" Dalia sat up and rested her head on her hands. Her skin was covered in a cold layer of sweat.

"You were screaming and you were keeping me up." Scabior smirked. Dalia didn't even register his joke. Instead she got out of her bed and walked over to her bag. She rummaged through the pockets, desperately trying to find a packet of cigarettes. Scabior's expression changed "Dalia are you alright?" Scabior asked.

"Y-yeah I'm fine. You don't have to look after me I'm not a child." Dalia snapped, she was frustrated because she couldn't find it. "You don't look it. You're shaking like crazy look at your arms." Dalia looked down at her hands. They were shaking uncontrollably. Dalia wiped her stinging eyes and turned around.

Scabior was leaning against her chest of drawers and holding out a cigarette. "Looks like you could use one." Scabior rested it between his lips and lit it before he gave it to her. Dalia took a long drag and sat on the corner of her bed.

It relaxed her a little but she was still jumpy and on edge. Scabior took a chair and placed it in front of Dalia. He turned it around and sat on it with his arms resting on the back side of it. After a few minutes of silence Dalia finally spoke up.

"You know what I'm not okay. Ever since I agreed to come and work for you I haven't been able to sleep. I go to bed every night and just lay there. And when I do manage to get to sleep I have horrible dreams that I couldn't even explain if I tried. I-I thought that I could handle it b-but I just can't, its driving me insane and I have no idea what to do." Dalia cupped her face in her hands. She could feel tears well up in her eyes. _"No stop it Dalia you are not going to cry like a baby in front of him."_

"Dalia if this is troubling you so much why don't you sleep with me?" Dalia's head shot up. "Not like that, you know what I mean. Come on you have to admit that you slept like a baby when you did last time. Look I'm not pushing you into it I'm just offering." Scabior stared into her eyes. They were so tired and full of desperation.

Dalia thought it over in her head. _"Why is he being so nice? He hasn't smirked or been in the slightest bit cocky. Whatever I can't stand it anymore I cannot go though another restless night."_ Dalia stubbed her cigarette out in an ash tray next to her bed. "I'll give it a try." Scabior smiled and stood up. "But if you try anything I'm out of here, I mean it." Dalia shot a warning look at Scabior. "Of course I won't." a small smirk appeared on his lips._ "I've spoken too soon."_ Dalia sighed and stood up.

Scabior walked outside and Dalia followed. She cursed under her breath as a wall of cold wind hit her body. When she entered his tent she was welcomed by the familiar smell of tobacco, firewiskey, campfires and pine.

Scabior's bed wasn't a single bed but it wasn't as big as a double either. It was cosy and Dalia needed someone to keep her safe and warm. "You can go to sleep now if you want I just need to do some things." Scabior walked over to his table and ruffled through scraps of paper. Dalia slipped into his bed. The sheets were surprisingly warm and the mattress was soft. Dalia placed her head on the pillow and closed her eyes.

Dalia was in between being awake and asleep when she felt the mattress sag. Dalia kept her eyes closed and pretended to be asleep. An arm snaked around her waist and she was pulled into a bare chest. Dalia smiled as she felt his warm breath tickle her neck. _"I could get used to this." _That was the last thought of Dalia's before she slipped into a peaceful slumber.

Scabior breathed in her sweet sent. Her hair tickled his nose as he inhaled. Each time Dalia inhaled and her chest rised Scabior's finger tips would brush against her soft and warm skin.

"_I could get used to this."_

**Well there you go, I hope you liked it. Please review and tell me what you think :) Your reviews are always appreciated, as well as constructive criticism. **

**Nix-anymore- Thank you for the tip about starting sentences with "She" I have tried my best to decrease that, can you tell?**

**Thank you for reading :)**


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

**Here's chapter 10 I hope you like it. Thank you for your reviews I love you guys. I don't own anything except Dalia, enjoy.**

Dalia's eyes fluttered open. She smiled as she remembered the better half of last night. Dalia turned her head, expecting Scabior to be next to her. Instead there was nothing but sheets. _"Where is he?"_ Dalia yawned and stretched. Her question was answered when Scabior said, "Good morning sleepy head. How was your sleep?" Dalia turned her head. Scabior was sat at his desk with his legs hanging over the corner.

"Fine, good actually." Dalia rubbed her eyes. The harsh sunlight from the winter sky shone though the light-coloured fabric of the tent. "Listen you might want to get back into your tent quickly before anyone comes outside. If they see you come out of my tent it sort of, suggests things. You don't want them to think that we're fuck buddies, you'll never hear the end of it. Plus Greyback might get a bit jealous and you do not want to provoke him near full moon time, trust me." Scabior said whilst picking his nails with a knife.

"Yeah thanks." Dalia stood up and walked towards the tent entrance. She peeled back the fabric and peeked outside to make sure that no one was around. The coast was clear and Dalia sprinted over to her tent. Thankfully it was the closest to Scabior's.

Dalia chucked some clothes on and pulled on her converse. She walked into her bathroom and splashed her face with water. After drying her face with a towel and putting her hair into a fish-tale plat Dalia stared into the mirror. For the first time in her time being in the forest a smile covered her lips. As Dalia applied her mascara and eyeliner she realised that the dark circles surrounding her eyes had become lighter and decreased in size.

After Dalia had finished she grabbed her wand and walked outside with a small smile on her face. Dalia sat down at her usual place next to Scabior. "Why are you so happy?" Scabior obviously noticed the smile on her lips. Dalia looked down at her nails she could feel her cheeks reddening. "No reason."

Dalia noticed that the bruise on Jason's face had got worse overnight. The cut had been badly healed by some sort of spell and it was surrounded by black and purple. Greyback seemed to be oblivious as to what had happened to him. Jack had probably cast a memory charm on him. Dalia thought that it was probably best not to bring it up.

Although her mind was at rest, memories of her dream early last night still played at in the back of her head. She did her best to ignore it but ever so often her parent's heartless faces appeared from nowhere.

They managed to eat breakfast without being interrupted by the taboo. The morning mostly consisted of trekking around the forest searching for people.

In mid-afternoon they approached a small village. There were several small shops and houses that surrounded a large square. It was filled with gardens and flowers. A few stone paths led up to the centre of the square. There was a fountain that had frozen over from the harsh winter climate.

As they walked though the town they got some strange looks from people walking past. They were mostly aimed at Greyback and Scabior. Scabior's taste in clothing and Greyback's beastly appearance certainly got some attention.

There was a small pub at the end of the street and Scabior let everyone take a break and get something to eat and drink. The pub was pretty full. About fifteen men were surrounding a small TV staring at it intently. Occasionally you would hear barks of joy and laughter or sometimes you would hear annoyed grunts of disappointment and disapproval.

Dalia just got some water whereas Scabior and everyone else enjoyed a bottle of firewhisky. Dalia was sat at a table alone that was until Scabior sat opposite her making her snap out a daydream.

"Why are you being so nice?" Dalia questioned. "I mean you helped me last night and-" Dalia was interrupted. "It doesn't happen often, believe me. And besides I certainly don't mind having a beautiful young woman keeping me company." Scabior's signature smirk appeared on his face. Dalia rolled her eyes and took another mouth full of her water.

No one spoke for the next ten minutes. They were silenced by their own thoughts. The men watching the TV had dispersed. Most of them had left but a few had stayed behind to have a drink with their friends discussing the results of the football match.

The silence was broken when Scabior ordered everyone to finish their drinks so they could get moving. Just as Dalia was getting up to leave something caught her eye. She turned to face it and saw a ginger haired boy stood at the opposite end of the pub. He had come down the stairs after presumably spending the night there.

There was something familiar about him but she couldn't remember what. Scabior noticed that Dalia's eyes were fixed on something. He followed her gaze and his eyes landed on the same person. The boy noticed that they were staring at him. His eyes flickered down to the red cloth tied around Dalia left arm. They grew wide in realisation and shock.

He looked around in the hope to find another exit other than the front door that was blocked by Jack and Greyback. Dalia knew he was on the wanted list. She could tell by his body language. Dalia brushed her fingers lightly over her wand and edged closer to him. The boy was becoming increasingly nervous.

He pulled out a black/navy blue rock that had a slight shine to it in the light. Before Dalia could even think what it was the whole room was filled with a dense black smoke. Her lungs stung as she breathed in the smoke. "What the hell was that?" Scabior said as the smoke thinned. Dalia was coughing just as much as everyone else in the pub was. She pointed at the door with her free hand, the other was covering her mouth and wiping her watery eyes. The ginger boy had vanished.

Scabior raced to the door and pushed Jack through it resulting in him almost face-planting the concrete pavement. Dalia came out close behind still coughing slightly. "He's there!" Greyback roared as he began to run after him. Everyone quickly followed as they raced towards the boy. _"Oh I hate it when they run! Why do they do it anyway? They know that they're going to get caught. It's just a waste of time!"_ Dalia thought as she chased after the boy.

The sky had clouded over the sun and it looked like it was going to rain. A couple of people dodged out of the way as they whipped past them. They were getting closer now. It was only a matter of time until the boy would slip up and be caught.

They had turned into a narrow street filled with derelict buildings. Some windows were smashed and doors were kicked in. It was the complete opposite to the street which the pub was on. It reminded Dalia of the dramatic contrast between Diagon alley and Knockturn alley. Although recently Diagon alley was becoming more and more deserted and bleak as the days past.

Scabior shot a spell at the boy resulting in him tripping over his own feet and landing flat on his face. He groaned and staggered to his feet. This gave them a chance to surround him. He slowly turned around taking in everyone's tired expressions. "He looks familiar." Nick announced.

Dalia nodded her head. "Yeah he does. I remember him form Hogwarts. I think he is friends with Potter, the ginger one. Ron Weasley is his name." A large smile formed on everyone's faces. "Hey we've caught one of Potters friends!" Jack shouted.

Dalia turned to him and said, "No shit Sherlock." Everyone was too happy to realize that the boy still had his wand in his right hand. As Jonny and Jason went in to restrain him he suddenly whipped out his wand. Jason's wand flew out of his hand and into Weasley's. Jonny was hit by a stunning spell and fell unconscious to the floor.

He was so quick Dalia had to blink twice to realize what was happening. Weasley turned to face Dalia and shot another spell. Dalia produced a shield charm with less than a second to spare. However the sudden movement knocked her off balance and she fell on the floor. _"Shit! He's not as dumb as he looks!"_

Scabior shot numerous spells at the boy. Apart from Dalia he was far more skilled with the wand than all of his men put together. Dalia joined in but the boy was good. He managed to deflect two spells at once giving him the opportunity to disapparate.

A loud crack sounded and he was gone. Scabior was enraged. He shouted numerous swear words and spells at a building. The windows smashed and hundreds of pieces of glass litter the floor. Dalia held her arms over her head to try to protect herself. Suddenly the building burst into flames and Dalia stepped back to get away from the flames. Jonny had regained consciousness and staggered backwards in confusion.

Scabior turned around. Murder was present in his eyes. "WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT!" he screamed. Dalia jumped backwards. His voice echoed throughout the narrow street. A few droplets of rain fell onto the floor. Dalia looked up at the sky. It was now completely covered in clouds. "How can a little kid escape from eight men?" Scabior walked up and down scanning everyone from head to toe.

"_Who is he calling a man?"_ Dalia avoided his gaze as he glared at her. The rain was coming down hard now and Dalia was soaked to the skin in a matter of seconds. Sirens could be heard in the distance. Dalia turned to the source of the sound and saw a large truck with flashing lights coming towards them. The fire was spreading to the neighbouring buildings.

"Now we will not stop until we snatch enough people worth a week's work do you understand me?" Scabior instructed. Dalia sighed, _"I'm going to be dead by the time today is over." _The flashing truck was coming closer so Scabior told everyone where to apparate to before he vanished.

There were a few grunts of disappointment before six loud cracks sounded. Dalia was last to disapparate. She tucked her fallen hair behind her ears and glanced over to the people coming out of the vehicles before she felt the familiar pull on her stomach.

**Well there you go I hope you liked it. Please review and tell me what you think. Thank you for reading :)**


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

**Here's chapter 11 I hope you like it. Thank you for your lovely reviews I love you guys x3 I don't own anything except Dalia, enjoy.**

Dalia had experienced good days and bad days in the past week but today as she would put it, was the worst fucking day of her snatching career. Scabior made them work nonstop well into the night. They managed to capture a few runaways and a couple of supporters of Harry potter but they added up to no way near as many galleons as the third most undesirable would have done.

If they had managed to capture Weasley, Dalia could have been out of this job in a heartbeat and she would have got enough money to set her up for a good couple of years. But no they fucked up so now Scabior is beyond pissed off with everybody and everyone else is at their wits end.

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><p>The sun had set hours ago and it was now so dark that you couldn't see your hand in front of your face. Scabior wouldn't let them use the lumos spell on their wands as they would be easily spotted and people could get away much more easily. This resulted in tripping over overgrown roots or stubbing your toes on fallen trees every five seconds.<p>

Eventually Scabior told everyone that they were finished for the day. Dalia almost jumped for joy at his words. Dalia's eyes lit up when she saw eight tents surrounded by a small burnt out fire. No one said a word as they retired to their tents.

Dalia struggled to keep her eyes open as she staggered into her tent. She sat on the edge of her bed and carefully peeled her shoes off her sore feet. Dalia cursed as she removed her socks. Her feet were scarlet red and full of blisters. Dalia hobbled over to her chest of drawers and opened the first drawer. After rummaging around for a few seconds she found what she was looking for. A small pot of a white cream labelled anti-blisters.

Dalia sat on a chair and unscrewed the lid. Her feet stung like hell as she gently rubbed it in. Dalia bit her tongue to try to ease the pain of her throbbing feet but that only resulted in both her feet and her tongue stinging. After what seemed like ages Dalia was able to walk properly. Her blisters had cleared up and her feet were left slightly red.

_"How can today start off to be great and end up like a big pile of shit."_ Dalia thought to herself as she pulled a cigarette out of its packet. Dalia carefully put her damp converse back on and walked outside. Everyone was in there tents presumably sleeping. Dalia couldn't blame them she was shattered too. Although she didn't know if she was welcome in Scabior's bed anymore.

Dalia lit her cigarette and took a long drag. Her mussels instantly relaxed and her eyelids drooped even more. Dalia had shut her eyes and rested her head on one hand whilst the other held her cigarette. She opened her eyes when she felt the log she was sat on move slightly. Scabior was sat next to her lighting a cigarette with his wand. He ran his hand through his knotted hair and then rubbed the back of his neck in frustration. Dalia dared not talk to him. She had never seen him so angry and pissed off. She's not surprised after all they let go one of the biggest bounties ever.

"Tomorrow we need to move." Scabior announced suddenly making Dalia jump. "We always move camp every couple of weeks to keep any Order members off our tails." He explained. Dalia nodded her head in agreement. "That means that we will have to get up extra early to pack everything away and find a suitable campsite. Then we will continue snatching as always."

Dalia couldn't suppress a sigh. She would only get four hours sleep at the most. Plus Scabior's mood hadn't seemed to improve. "Well I best go and get some sleep then." Dalia stubbed her cigarette out with her shoe and started to make her way back to her tent. "Where you going? My tent is that way." Scabior pointed to the right.

"Yeah but I thought that you might have wanted to be alone tonight." Dalia replied. "If I wanted you not to sleep in my bed I would have told you." Scabior said placing another cigarette between his lips. A small smile crept across Dalia's lips. Although Scabior was still pissed off and acting like a dick at least she would be able to have a good sleep even if it would only consist of a few hours at the most.

Once Dalia had changed into her night clothes and walked into Scabior's tent she noticed that Scabior was nowhere to be seen. Dalia shrugged it off and slipped into his bed. She curled up into a ball and breathed in Scabior's natural aroma. For some strange reason beyond Dalia's understanding she found his smell attractive and oddly addictive.

After what seemed like an eternity Scabior immerged from outside. To Dalia's disappointment he walked straight past her and to his desk. He sat down and stared at the mountain of papers stacked up in a messy pile. He sorted through pictures of wanted fugitives and maps of England. He would study maps intently for minutes before he would circle a section of it.

She had her eyes half open and every time he looked in her direction she would shut them so he didn't realise that she was staring at him. Scabior had a healthy supply of fire whisky at one side which he would drink from ever so often.

Dalia wondered when he would ever come to bed. Her body was involuntary shutting down. A wave of tiredness hit her and she struggled to keep her eyes open. In a matter of seconds she fell into a deep sleep without Scabior's arms snaked around her waist.

**Well there you go. I'm sorry that it's not very long, I've got a really important exam coming up and that has been my main priority. The next one will be longer I promise. Please review and tell me what you think. Thank you for reading :)**


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

**Here's chapter 12 I hope you like it. Thank you for your reviews I love you guys. To be honest I wasn't really happy with the last chapter. There was just something about it that didn't flow, plus it was short. But I hope that this chapter makes up for it :) I don't own anything, except Dalia, enjoy.**

Dalia had woken to the distant rumble of thunder. The tent was darkened by the grey outside and the tapping of rain on the tents canvas signified that it was going to be a wet day. Scabior's warm body was pressed against her small frame and his steady breathing sent shivers down her spine.

Scabior had made it impossible for Dalia to move without disturbing him. He was so close to her that she could feel his heart beating in his chest. She wanted to saviour this precious moment. This was the first time in a few days she had woken to find Scabior's arm still snaked around her waist. Usually he would already be up and dressed ready for a day's work.

Butterflies boiled up in her stomach as Scabior's fingers brushed against the soft skin of her lower stomach. Dalia ran her feet along the soft sheets but flinched as they were still sore, the anti-blisters cream could only do so much.

It had been a tough couple of days filled with hours of trekking through dense forest and waiting in long queues to hand people in but Dalia had to admit that Scabior's mood had gradually improved. He was still as grump as hell but he had more or less returned to his usual cocky self.

After a few minutes the urge to use the bathroom was too much and Dalia had to release herself from Scabior's grasp. He grunted as he felt her slip away from him. When Dalia re-entered the middle of the tent she was surprised to see Scabior not on his bed. Instead he was staring out of the tents entrance.

Dalia joined him, he had a blank expression on his face and his eyes were focused on the outside. Dalia followed his gaze and her mouth dropped as she saw the storm that was present. The sky was darkened by dense cloud and the ground was saturated in water. Rain was pounding on the floor creating large puddles. The wind whistled as it glided through the trees. It hit the tents exterior hard and the canvas freely flapped around.

"_Oh sweet Jesus please say we aren't going out in this!"_ Dalia pleaded with herself. Scabior rubbed the back of his neck and walked over to his desk. He opened a copy of the Daily Prophet and scanned over the weather section. "Dalia go and get changed, I will discuss today's plan with everyone in about ten minutes. Come here instead of meeting outside its shitting it down and I do not want to get wet." Scabior instructed.

Dalia nodded and reluctantly stepped out of Scabior's tent. She covered her head with her arms and ran into her tent being careful not to slip in any puddles. After quickly stripping off her wet night clothes and putting on a new set Dalia walked into the bathroom.

Her hair had turned wavy and messy. After minutes of trying to put a brush though it she managed to make it look presentable. She left it down so it could hang to her shoulders. After applying her usual makeup and tying up the laces on her worn out converse she poked her head outside.

The rain was showing no signs of stopping and there were no openings in the clouds. _"I swear to God if he makes us work today I will kill him."_ Dalia thought to herself as she sprinted into his tent. Everyone else was already there waiting for her to arrive. Dalia was squashed in the back. Although Scabior's tent was the biggest it was a squeeze to fit seven fully grown men and one woman into it.

"Right as you can see it is not the best weather to be snatching in today. So here is the deal today you can have a day off." Scabior began. Dalia let out a sigh of relief. "You can do whatever you want I really couldn't care less. I just want you back here by dawn tomorrow morning. No excuses you got that?" There were a few nods of approval and yeses here and there.

"Good now get out of my tent." Scabior ordered. Everyone filed out and several loud cracks could be heard outside. Just as Dalia was about to leave something caught her eye. She turned to it and picked up the piece of paper. It was a file with her father's name on it. "Hey Scabior what is this?" Scabior looked up from his desk.

"Oh there it is, I've been looking for that." He answered. Dalia handed it to him and looked at all the other files. "Why do you have these?" she asked. "Everyone is given the files of the most wanted people. Most of them are Order members but a few are runaways and the like. Why do you ask?"

Dalia took a seat and scanned the pictures. "No reason. I was just curious." Her eyes were directed to a picture of Mad-eye. There was a large red cross painted across the picture. To Dalia's relief her parents had not got the same red cross.

Dalia always wondered where her parents were. She was never that close with them and she wasn't interested in the same things that they were. If they saw her now they probably would recognise her. Dalia bearded no resemblance to her mother or her father. If you were to look at them as a family you would begin to wonder if she was adopted.

Dalia's thoughts were interrupted when Scabior spoke. "Fancy a cup of tea?" he said standing up. "Yeah thanks that would be great." Dalia kept one eye on Scabior as he prepared the kettle. She took hold of her parents' files with great care as to not make it obvious. She scanned over the files.

_Peter Hayfield_

_Blood status: Pureblood, although extremely pro-muggle. Known member of the Order of the Phoenix. _

_Family: Wife: Anne Hayfield (pureblood), current occupation member of the Order of the Phoenix. One daughter Dalia hayfield, current occupation bounty hunter._

_Security status__: __TRACKED. All movements are being monitored. Strong likelihood Undesirable No. 1 will contact._

Dalia didn't have time to look at her mother's file as Scabior was coming back. She quickly shoved them on the bottom of the pile. "Thanks." Dalia wrapped her fingers around the warm cup.

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><p>They sat there for hours, making casual conversation, sitting in comfortable silence listening to the howling storm outside and drinking cup after cup of tea. Dalia had just finished her third cup of tea when Scabior held out a cigarette. "Would you care to join me?" he asked handing her the cigarette. "Sure." Scabior lit both ends with his wand. "Thanks." Dalia said whilst taking a long drag.<p>

Scabior finally gave up the day's work. He lent back on the chair and rested his legs on the desk. Dalia hugged her legs to her chest and rested her head on her knees. After another few minutes of silence Dalia stubbed out her cigarette and stared at Scabior intently. Scabior did the same, "What are you looking at love?" he asked.

"Nothing it's just you're starting to look more and more like a girl every day. The long hair, the eye liner and that pink scarf." A large smirk covered Dalia's face. Scabior stared at her and sat up straight. "Take that back." He growled. A hint of amusement was present in his voice. "No I don't think I will." Dalia replied.

"Right that's it. You've been asking for it." Before Dalia could even contemplate what Scabior was about to do he suddenly stood up and within seconds he had lifted her off the chair and hung her over his left shoulder.

"Hey what are you doing? Put me down!" Dalia half shouted half giggled. Dalia struggled even more when she realized where Scabior was headed. Scabior was stood centimetres away from the tent entrance. "Don't you fucking dare!" Dalia shouted as she threw pathetic punches at his back.

Dalia could almost hear the smirk on his face as he chuckled. "Prepare to get wet." Scabior stepped outside into the pouring rain. Within seconds both of them were soaked to the skin. Scabior continued to walk towards the extinguished fire in the centre of the campsite.

Dalia managed to slip from Scabior's grasp. _"Fuck it, I'm already wet might as well have some fun." _A small smirk appeared on Dalia's lips. "I bet you can't snatch me." Scabior chuckled, "I beg to differ." He grinned.

Dalia bolted in the opposite direction. Scabior was quick to follow as he raced behind her. Dalia whipped past trees and jumped over fallen branches. The rain hit her face and her sopping wet hair danced in the wind. Dalia could feel the adrenaline in her veins increase as she heard footsteps behind her.

Suddenly the footsteps stopped and a loud crack sounded. Dalia looked behind her and he was gone. Before she could do anything else she could feel her feet slipping in a puddle. Dalia braced herself for the fall but it never came. Instead a pair of hands caught her and lifted her back up to a standing position.

Dalia's emerald green eyes met Scabior lightning blue ones. It was as if time had stopped. Nothing mattered in the world. Not the freezing cold temperature or the pouring rain, nothing. "Got you." He said no quieter than a whisper.

Scabior's head moved towards Dalia's. His lips grazed hers as if he was asking for permission. Dalia responded by lightly kissing his lips. A bolt of lightning was sent rocketing though her body and touched every nerve. Scabior returned the favour and they kissed passionately. Dalia's hands snacked behind his warm neck and Scabior fingers intertwined her black, wet locks of hair.

Dalia's eyes were closed and they both breathed heavily through their noses as they had not quite recovered from the strenuous sprint they had just performed. Scabior's tongue grazed her bottom lip Dalia opened her mouth allowing him entrance. Their tongues battled from dominance both of them never quite managing to succeed.

Dalia found that Scabior tasted just how he smelt, tobacco, firewhiskey, pine and ash. It was a strange mixture but it was very pleasant. On the other hand Scabior thought that Dalia tasted of sweetness and light violet. They were both disappointed as the kiss came to an end. Scabior pulled away from Dalia. He opened his eyes to see Dalia still had hers closed.

She slowly opened them and green met blue once again. Dalia was completely speechless. The kiss was so spontaneous and sudden she had to blink twice to make sure that it really happened. "Wow." She said in a whisper, more to herself than to anyone else. "Yeah...Wow." Scabior had the same expression on his face.

It was only now they realized that the rain had stopped and a ray of sunshine penetrated the dark cloud.

"_I can't believe that just happened."_

**Well there you go they've finally kissed. I know a few of you have been waiting patiently for this moment to come. :) I hope you liked reading it as much as I liked writing it. I have found a song that I feel goes with Dalia and Scabior's relationship in this chapter especially. It's called 'The Meadow' by Alexandre Desplat. It is a soundtrack from Twilight. Now I know what you are all thinking, "How can she like such a horrible thing?" Trust me I hate twilight just as much as the next person if not more. It's just I heard this song somewhere and I found it quite beautiful x3 **

**Please review and tell me what you think. Thank you for reading. :)**


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

**There's chapter 13 thank you so much for your lovely reviews. I seem to get the impression that you liked the kiss x3 I don't own anything (expect Dalia), enjoy. **

They stood there for a few moments in silence. Both of them were lost for words and couldn't quite seem to comprehend what had just happened. It was now Dalia had realized that they were both soaked to the skin and shivering.

"M-maybe we should be getting back." Dalia said through chattering teeth. "Yeah you're right." Scabior agreed. They walked next to each other in awkward silence as they climbed the hill they had just run down. Scabior noticed Dalia's shaking figure and chattering teeth. He took her fingers in his hands.

"Shit you're cold." Scabior said shocked at how ice cold her hands were. "Yeah I've not quite adapted to being in a freezing and damp forest yet." Dalia answered. Scabior stopped suddenly and Dalia turned around puzzled. "Here take this. You need it a hell of a lot more than I do." He took off his leather jacket revealing a couple of scruffy shirts and a waistcoat.

"N-no I'm fine really." Dalia protested. Scabior threw the jacket at her and didn't give her any choice in the matter as he started to walk away again. As soon as she put the jacket on she felt a rush of warmth radiate into her body. The worn jacket was surprisingly soft inside. She was hit with Scabior's natural aroma and it made her smile. "I look like a child in my parents clothes." Dalia smiled as she hugged herself.

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><p>When they arrived back at the camp they found it to be deserted. "Where is everyone?" Dalia asked as she walked past the fire pit surrounded by empty logs. "The usual, getting hammered and picking up girls." Scabior answered. Dalia shrugged and followed Scabior in to his tent. She slipped out of Scabior's oversized jacket and hung it over a chair to dry. "Thanks for this." She smiled.<p>

"You know I could really do with a drink or two." Scabior said whilst rubbing his chin. "You up for it?" he asked, pulling out a cigarette from its packet. "Yeah sure I'll just need to get out of these wet clothes first."

Scabior nodded and lit his cigarette. Dalia took this as her dismissal and she quickly entered her own tent. After changing into a fresh pair of jeans and a thick woolly cardigan Dalia walked into the bathroom. Her hair had more or less dried but it bared some resemblance to Scabior's so she pulled it up into a loose bun.

Her makeup had smudged from the rain so she splashed her face and dried it with a towel. As she stared into the mirror she felt a strange feeling bubble up inside of her stomach. She smiled to herself as she remembered what had happened only minutes ago.

Dalia held a finger to the corner of her bottom lip and traced it along the soft surface. The faint taste of smoke and firewhiskey still lingered in her mouth. After a few minutes Dalia had managed to reapply her makeup and make herself look presentable.

Dalia poured several coins into her purse and picked up her wand and a packet of cigarettes before she made her way out of her tent to join Scabior. He had just stubbed out his cigarette when she emerged from her tent.

"So where are we going then." Dalia asked casually. "The Leaky Cauldron. I know that none of my men will be there, they got kicked out a month ago for causing a stupid fight. I don't want to go to any place they will be, I can't be arsed dealing with them drunk. They get on my nerves." Scabior explained.

He held out his arm for Dalia to take and apparated to the murky, deserted street where the Leaky Cauldron was situated. Scabior held the wooden door open and let Dalia through into the surprisingly quite pub.

Dalia found a booth in the corner next to a fireplace and sat down whilst Scabior ordered some drinks. As she stared into the crackling flames she remembered the first time she had entered this pub. She was eleven and it was her first time visiting Diagon Alley to buy school supplies.

It was eight years on and she can still remember her amazement when she walked through the brick wall that revealed the most famous alley in the wizarding world. She remembered carrying the long list of necessities in her coat pocket as she didn't trust her parents to hold it in case they lost it.

She remembered walking down the bustling cobbled street. Passing shops and cafes full of happy shoppers. She remembered when she first got her wand in Ollivanders, made from ebony, the core dragon heart string, 10 ½ inches. Her cat was completely black and was called Annie. She loved her cat with all of her heart but she had to leave it at her parent's house after she moved out as her landlord wouldn't allow pets.

Dalia's thoughts were interrupted when Scabior had sat down opposite her. He held two bottles of a well known substance, firewhiskey. Dalia sipped the whiskey and revelled in the slight burn that followed after she swallowed the fiery liquid. "How do you know that this is my favourite drink?" Dalia questioned after she took another mouthful.

Scabior shrugged, "Intuition." He answered plainly. Dalia smiled and watched Scabior take another swig. "What are you looking at?" he asked, eyebrow raised. "Nothing, it's just I've known you for almost a month now but it still don't know anything about you. I mean who are you?" Dalia asked more to herself than to Scabior.

"I'm Scabior darling." He smirked to himself. Dalia rolled her eyes at his useless answer. "Yes I know that. I mean, I just-" Dalia was interrupted. "You want me to bore you with my pathetic and useless life history?"

"Yes." Dalia answered a small smile was present on her lips. "Fine if you insist." Scabior trailed his finger around the bottle top. "I never knew my father. He left as soon as he found out my mother was pregnant with me. We lived in a small flat in a muggle council estate. My mother did anything to make sure that she had enough money to provide for me. She even selled herself on the streets to pay for my school robes and necessities." Scabior said almost effortlessly as if he had said this time after time. Dalia's mouth was open slightly. "T-that's horrible." She stuttered.

"It gets worse. In my third year my mother got sick and I was absent from school for half a year. She died in hospital after battling the illness for six months. Everything went wrong after that. I hung out in the wrong crowds at school. I got into some pretty bad shit and got expelled in my first term in my seventh year. I was completely alone and had no money. I roamed the streets at went to great lengths to get a stomach full of food and a roof over my head. I got imprisoned in Azkaban for using an unforgivable curse on a stranger. He was drunk and made a snide remark about my mother. I lost it and I paid the price."

Scabior loosened the scarf that hung around his neck to reveal six letters and symbols permanently scarred into his skin. On first glance Scabior didn't seem in any way phased by the dark nature of his past but Dalia could tell that it troubled him deeply. His usual bright blue eyes had clouded over and they emitted sadness and fear. A side of Scabior that Dalia had never seen but made him human.

"When the Dark Lord returned to power death eaters broke into Azkaban and offered jobs as snatchers in exchange for freedom. I couldn't be happier to get out of that hellish place. I pulled together a group of half decent men; some were old school 'friends' and others were complete strangers that in time gained their allegiance. And that's pretty much it. Are you bored now?" Scabior finished.

Dalia shakily nodded her head. "Yeah I think I need another drink. Something strong, you want something?" Dalia said standing up. "I'll have whatever your having." He said with a smile. Dalia walked over to the bar. Her mind wasn't focused on the bartender it was distracted by the true horrors Scabior had been through in his life.

"Miss, miss?" the bartender asked, snapping his fingers in Dalia's dazed face. Y-yes?" she turned to him. "Are you going to order something or are you just going to stand their looking pretty all night?" he winked. Dalia rolled her eyes at the man. "If that is your pathetic excuse for a pick-up line it hasn't worked." Dalia smiled at his shocked expression.

"I'll have two Salazar shots and two alcoholic butterbeers." Dalia handed the man her money. And he handed her the drinks. Dalia smirked at the look of annoyance that was clearly present on his face. Dalia walked steadily back to the table in order not to spill the drinks.

"What's this?" Scabior asked as Dalia sat down. "It's a Salazar shot. It's supposed to be really strong. They have one named after each founder of Hogwarts. No surprise this one is green and the strongest." Dalia held up the murky green shot glass.

"Cheers." Scabior and Dalia clinked their glasses together before downing it in one. Dalia's mouth was full of a burst of flavor. She couldn't quite describe the flavor but she knew one thing, it was bloody strong.

* * *

><p>Several drinks later Dalia found herself unable to walk in a straight line. Scabior had just saved her from landing face first on the wooden floor. "Come on darling I think you've had enough." He said with a hint of amusement present in his voice.<p>

"I'm fine! R-really!" Dalia slurred as she stumbled over a chair. "You won't be when you wake up tomorrow morning. Come on lets go." Scabior took Dalia by the waist and half carried her out of the pub. "Awww Scabior you're so cute! Come here g-give me a kiss." Dalia pouted her lips. "Dalia this is clearly the alcohol talking." Scabior began.

"N-no I promise!" she protested. "Come on lets go back to your tent and your _bed_." She winked before bursting out laughing. "Love you are clearly too intoxicated for your own good. I would hate to take advantage of you in your delicate state." Scabior told her.

Dalia put on her best puppy-dog eyes but Scabior was having none of it. "No." He answered plainly. Dalia whined and crossed her arms. Scabior rolled his eyes. "Apparating can be a little more uncomfortable when you're drunk off your arse so be warned." Scabior said whilst taking Daila's hand.

Dalia felt an extremely unpleasant pull on her stomach and she was sucked through a rubber tube. When Dalia's feet hit the leafy floor she doubled over and vomited. Scabior sighed and held back the loose hair that had fallen out of her bun. When Dalia had finished she clutched her head and stomach. "I don't feel so good." She moaned.

"Come on let's go to bed and sleep it off." Scabior wrapped her arm around his shoulder and helped her into his tent. Dalia collapsed onto the bed. "Stay there whilst I go and get something that will help." Dalia nodded and shut her eyes.

After a few seconds Scabior came back with a familiar potion labelled 'sleeping draught'. Dalia didn't hesitate to down the bottle. In a matter of seconds she was out cold on his bed. Scabior smiled to himself as he took off her shoes and pulled the covers over her body. He lightly kissed her forehead before he joined her in his bed.

It had been a very eventful day for them both. They had explored different aspects of each other. Kissed passionately in the rain and spent a whole night drinking and talking with each other. Yes, both of them had seen different sides of each other today.

**Well there you go I hope you liked it. Please review and tell me what you think I love you guys. Your reviews are what keep me going! Thank you for reading :)**


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

**Here's chapter 14 I hope you like it. Thank you for your reviews. I'm sorry that I haven't updated in a while I've been really busy with school work :( I don't own anything except Dalia, enjoy. **

"Dalia it's time to get up." A voice sounded waking Dalia from her deep slumber. "Come on love it's time to get up." Scabior lightly stroked her cheek. Dalia's cloudy eyes opened at his touch. Dalia groaned as she sat up. Her head spun and she had to close her eyes to focus properly. "What happened last night?" Dalia asked whilst rubbing her tired eyes.

"You are quite amusing when you're hammered." A large smirk covered his face. "Oh Christ what the fuck did I do." Scabior poured some boiling water into two cups. "Let's just say you had too many Salazar shots and took a fancy to every man that happened to walk past, including me. I recall you strongly suggested to me that we should shag." Dalia's eyes widened in shock.

"Don't worry I would never take advantage of you when you are in such a delicate state." He smirked whilst handing her a cup of tea. Dalia rolled her eyes and thanked him for the drink. "Drink that and then I would go for a shower if I was you. You look like shit, no offense." Dalia glared at him for his last comment. "None taken." She said sarcastically.

* * *

><p>Dalia felt ten times better after having a shower. Her head still pounded and she was still shattered but she felt cleaner and refreshed. When Dalia stepped out of Scabior's warm tent she was hit by a wall of freezing air. Dalia crossed her arms over her chest to try to keep some warmth in and quickly walked into her tent.<p>

Dalia could never quite get her tent as warm and welcoming as Scabior's but it was okay because she seemed to spend more time in his tent than her own. Dalia quickly got changed into a fresh pair of green jeans, a black tank top and a grey woolly jumper. She pulled her wet hair into a loose pony tail and applied her daily makeup. Once ready Dalia pulled on a new pair of green converse. She found them when she was searching a house a few days ago.

When she walked back outside she was hit by the same wall of air. A cloud of grey mist pooled out of her mouth as she breathed out. The winter weather had arrived.

Dalia sat down on the log next to Scabior and rested her head on her hands. She looked at the rest of the men, some were in a worse state than her. Dalia could only imagine what they got up to on yesterday's day off.

* * *

><p>Nick had managed to steal some eggs from a farm close by so they had a fairly substantial breakfast that consisted of fried eggs, bread and strong tea. Dalia had just managed to drink the last drop of her tea when the taboo called. Several loud grunts sounded followed by the scrambling of plates, cups and boots. Scabior disapparated first and Dalia followed.<p>

Once Dalia had regained her balance she took in her surroundings. They were standing on a street in a typical muggle suburb. Dalia could hear the sound of children laughing and playing from a nearby park. The source of the taboo had come from a two-story detached house that stood in front of them.

Scabior walked up the front steps to the main door and gently knocked on the door. Dalia was stood closely behind Scabior with Greyback behind her. After a few seconds of silence the wooden door opened. A little girl stared up at strange man towering over her. She stood there wide-eyed before she took a few steps backwards in fear.

"Hello little girl is your mummy or daddy home?" Scabior asked. A trace of intimidation was present in his voice as he stepped forwards. The girl whimpered and ran out of sight. Scabior and the rest of the group took this as their cue to storm the house.

Greyback, Nick, Jack and Jason scattered on the ground floor whilst Scabior waited at the door for the victims to come forward. "Dalia check upstairs." Scabior ordered. Dalia ran upstairs, the loud clumping of boots behind her told her that one of the others was following her as well.

Jonny roughly shoved Dalia out of the way as she neared the top of the staircase. "Hey watch where you're going you clumsy moron!" Dalia spat. She quietly opened the door nearest her and stepped inside. A woman's scream from downstairs made Dalia jump. Dalia shook it off and pulled her wand out of its holster. After quickly searching the room she turned to the door to leave when something caught her eye.

In the far corner of the room hidden under a blanket was the girl that answered the door. The girl gasped when she realized that Dalia had found her. She pointed her wand at the girl, "Get up and do as I say. If you do everything will be a whole lot easier." The girl didn't move a mussel. "NOW!" Dalia shouted and hit a curse at a chair next to the girl causing it explode. The girl screamed and shakily walked towards Dalia.

Dalia noticed that her palms were sweating and her hands were shaking. She had never shot a curse near a child on purpose like that before. Dalia took the girl's upper arm in her hand and walked her out of the room. The grip wasn't too tight to hurt her but it wasn't too loose for her to get away easily.

There was a loud commotion in the front room. Dalia quickly entered with the girl by her side. A man and a woman, presumably the girl's parents were being held to the ground by Greyback, Nick and Jason. Greyback was holding the woman as per usual and Nick and Jason were struggling to keep the man under control.

"I said tell me your names!" Scabior shouted. He fist connected with the man's jaw and the girl screamed. Dalia tensed at the girls scream and held on to her tighter. The man collapsed to the floor, a trail of blood oozed out of his bottom lip. The child and her mother were now both crying. Greyback's mouth came dangerously close to the woman's neck.

Scabior turned around and faced the trembling girl. He bent down to her level and looked into her watery eyes. "If you scream like that again little girl, my wolf friend will bite right through your mother's neck. Do you understand?" He glared at her. The girls nodded and chocked on the lump that formed in the back of her throat.

Scabior always confused Dalia. He was a completely different person when they were alone. He was a total gentleman to her. He would open doors for her, he let her sleep in his bed and he even kissed her! Dalia still felt the butterflies bubble in her stomach every time he put his arm around her waist when they were sleeping. After they had kissed Scabior had seen a new side to Scabior and she liked it. But when they were with the rest of the men and when they were working he treated her like one of the guys. She didn't mind but she preferred it when they were alone.

Dalia snapped out of her daydream when she heard Scabior's boot connect with the man's ribs. The man grunted and rolled onto his back. "I will give you one more chance to tell me your names." Scabior said pointing his wand at him.

A few seconds of silence past. Scabior rolled his eyes and pointed his wand at the woman. "I don't like having my fucking time wasted. Cruico!" Scabior shouted. The woman let out a piercing scream and fell to the floor. She twitched and shook uncontrollably as the curse intensified. The girl Dalia was holding suddenly struggled in Dalia's grasp.

After trying to keep her under control Dalia decided to put her out of her misery. She put her index and middle finger on her collar bone and pinched hard. The girl instantly dropped unconscious into Dalia's arms. _"No one deserves to see their parents being tortured like that in front of them." _Dalia thought to herself.

Eventually Scabior lifted the curse and the screaming ceased. It was replaced with heavy panting and quiet sobs. "David, Jacqueline and Grace Pearson." The man whispered. A large smirk appeared on Scabior's face. "Now was that so hard? Check it." Tom opened the black book and searched the pages.

Meanwhile Greyback picked the woman off the floor like a ragdoll. The energy had been stripped from her and she was now barely conscious. "P-Please don't hurt them." The man whispered pathetically. This only made Scabior's smirk bigger.

"They're on the list boss. Mudbloods the both of them." Tom said whilst pocketing the book. "To the ministry!" Scabior said before apparating. Dalia held the unconscious girl securely in her arms before doing the same.

* * *

><p>Dalia stared into the flames of the fire. She had to force her eyes to stay open, she was shattered. After handing in the family of three to the ministry they had spent the whole day searching for fugitives. They were in luck as the taboo called again and they came across a pair of Hogwarts runaways. The long day's work had paid off as Dalia had a purse full of galleons that she needed to add to her jar.<p>

Scabior sat down next to her making her jump. He was holding a bottle of firewhiskey and two cigarettes. "Could I join you?" It was more of a statement than a question as he had already lit his cigarette before Dalia could reply.

Scabior handed her another cigarette that he had just lit. "Cheers." Scabior smiled and opened the lid of the firewhiskey with his teeth and spat the lid into the fire. "Where is everyone?" Dalia asked after taking a long drag.

"Everyone's pretty much gone to bed but Greyback has gone into the woods, it's his time of the month." Scabior smirked to himself. He didn't seem one bit worried as he was probably used to Greyback by now but Dalia on the other hand nearly shit herself. She hid her fear though as she didn't want Scabior to take the piss.

After Dalia had finished her cigarette she threw it into the fire and wrapped her arms around herself. She was freezing and her fingers were going numb. "Are you cold love?" Scabior asked.

"Just a bit." Dalia nodded. Scabior stretched his arms around Dalia's shoulders and pulled her towards him. She rested her head on his collar bone and breathed in his musky scent. She smiled to herself when she felt his fingers gently stroke her waist. "Here have some of this it'll warm you up." Scabior handed Dalia the bottle of firewhiskey and she thanked him.

Dalia put the ice cold top to her lips and tipped the fiery substance into her mouth. Dalia felt a rush of warmth radiate through her body as it trailed down her throat. She let out a satisfied sigh before handing it back to him.

Scabior finished the remains of the bottle and tossed it to the side. He turned his attention to Dalia. His surprisingly soft fingers found their way to her hair. He tucked the hair behind her ears and gently grazed his finger across her cheek and down to her lips. Dalia's breath caught in her throat when he gently turned her head to face his.

Dalia searched his face for any sign of emotion but his face was expressionless. He was lost in Dalia's emerald green orbs. Dalia shakily picked a loose strand of his hair and moved it from his face before her lips connected with his.

An explosion went off in Dalia's stomach and the waves touched every nerve in her body. She cupped his face in her hands and gently stroked his tickly stubble. Once again their tongues battled for dominance in a heated and passionate kiss.

They eventually separated due to lack of oxygen but they stared at each other for what seemed like an eternity. Dalia let out a large yawn and rested her head on Scabior's chest. He played with her hair and held her in a comfortable embrace to keep her warm. She fell asleep to the rhythmic pattern of his chest slowly rising up and down.

**Well there you go I hope you liked it. Once again I'm really sorry about the late update. Please review and tell me what you think. Thank you for reading :)**


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

**Here's chapter 15 I hope you like it. Thank you for your reviews they always brighten my day and make me want to write more :) I don't own anything except Dalia, enjoy.**

Dalia was walking down the same narrow cobbled alleyway that she was exactly one month ago today. This was where she had first met Scabior and she had accepted the job of being a snatcher. She had a purse full of galleons and her wand tucked under her sleeve just as a precaution. She didn't want to run into any unfriendly characters in this rough part of town.

It had only been a month since she had packed up to go and live in the forest but to Dalia it felt like an eternity. It took time but Dalia gradually adapted to living in the woods constantly on the move. She didn't like being a snatcher but she got use to watching people being tortured and sent to prison.

The men had accepted her as one of the guys. They would talk to her and share their drinks with her and Dalia would generally get along with them. However Greyback was in a completely different category to the rest of the lads. He usually kept to himself and was fairly quiet but on occasion he would throw a strop and leave, returning a few hours later with a woman. Yet his new plaything would only last a couple of hours at best. Dalia didn't want to imagine what he gets up to in his tent.

She had seen him pick fights with a couple of men from time to time and they would usually be resolved by Scabior breaking them up. Dalia kept her distance from him most of the time as he set her teeth on edge whenever he would come close to her.

As for Scabior, he was the same cocky prick that he was before. But there was something in him that had changed since Dalia had first met him. After spending a couple of days with him Dalia realized that he was unlike the rest of the men. He was rather intelligent, that was what probably made him the leader. He could read maps and analyse every point perfectly. He had incredible hearing and eyesight. Most of the time it was him that spotted people.

He was also the most handsome out of the group. Everyone tended to have a somewhat dull look about them but Scabior was every different. He seemed to suit any type of clothing. His long brown hair with the single red streak would look ridiculous on anyone else but he pulled it off. He was very unique and that's what Dalia liked about him. In Dalia's opinion his lightning blue eyes were his best feature. Dalia had always had an act for reading people's feelings through their reactions to things and the shade of their eye colour. For example when Scabior was talking about his past Dalia could see a flicker of sadness in his eyes when he talked about his mother, although it was clouded behind his false impression of un-interest.

Dalia couldn't deny the connection between herself and Scabior. Every time she even thought about both times that they had kissed she felt butterflies in her stomach. However the kissing was kept causal and they never talked about it. Whenever Dalia thought about bringing it up in conversation she got too embarrassed. She had no idea if Scabior had any feelings for her and she didn't want to look like an idiot for bringing it up.

Dalia was snapped out of her daydream when she saw the familiar block of apartments. Dalia approached the thin wooden door that opened into the stairwell to her apartment. She walked through the ground floor corridor and stopped at the last door. It was eerily quiet and the only source of light was from a single light bulb that flickered and moved slightly.

Dalia knocked on the door and waited anxiously for a reply. Eventually someone came to the door. A quiet short and stubby man with grey thinning hair opened the door. He glared up at Dalia before he motioned her to come in. "Where have you been this past month Dalia? Your rent is two months overdue! You're lucky I didn't throw your belongings out the window and put it up for rent again." He spat.

Dalia rolled her eyes. She hated her landlord but he was the only man in town with apartments that Dalia could afford. The man sat back down in his armchair. His apartment stank of cigarettes, sweat and cheap alcohol. Dalia wanted to make this visit as quick as possible so she could get out.

"I've got your money." Dalia pulled out her purse full of her two months pay and poured the coins onto the table. The man eyed the money suspiciously before he lazily got out of his armchair and started to count it.

"Tell me Dalia, where did a girl like you without a job and broke, manage to gather all this money in such a short space of time?" He asked. "I've got a new job. Its hard work but it pays off as you can see." Dalia said irritably. She crossed her arms over her chest and tapped her foot. _"How fucking long is this going to take?" _Daliawas eager to leave and get back to the camp. Scabior had only given her the morning off and she didn't have time to waste.

"What sort of job?" He asked pushing half the coins to one side. "That's none of your business." Dalia said quickly. The man stopped counting the money and looked into her eyes. "Oh come on Dalia you can tell me. I won't judge you. Are you one of the whores down the pub? I heard that they've got a new one." He smirked.

Dalia's mouth dropped. "I'm a fucking snatcher you bastard! Do I look like a fucking prostitute?" Dalia pointed to the piece of red cloth that was wrapped around her arm. "Is that anyway to talk to your landlord? I thought you would have known better Dalia." He smirked to himself.

Dalia's fingers were wrapped around the end of her wand that was tucked up her sleeve. It took everything in her power not to kick the man's ass. If he was anyone else his balls would be shoved down his throat. But he was her landlord, the only person keeping her from being homeless. She had to control herself no matter how much she wanted to strangle him.

Dalia took a deep breath and closed her eyes momentarily. She had always had an issue with controlling her anger. It started when she was younger, she would bottle all of her frustrations up until she exploded on any unfortunate soul that pulled her strings in one way or another.

"So you're a snatcher eh? That's a bit of a dire job isn't it? Don't you have to camp out in the forest all the time? I would have thought that it was more of a man's job. Having to chase after people and manage to keep them under control." He said after counting the last coin.

"I think you'll find that I am perfectly capable of carrying out the practical elements of the job thank you very much." Dalia said whilst crossing her arms. "Have you finished then?" Dalia asked.

"Yeah it's all here. You can go now if you wish but you are more than welcome to stay here and give an old man a bit of company." He winked. Dalia rolled her eyes and made for the door. "No thanks."

The man collapsed back into his chair. "Your loss." Dalia heard him chuckle to himself after she closed his door. Dalia leaned against the wall opposite and took a few deep breaths, partly to get the stench of his apartment out of her system but partly to relax herself.

Dalia walked back to the stairwell and climbed the stairs to the top floor. She stopped at the last door which overlapped onto the top of a bookshop. Her apartment hadn't changed since she had last been in it. The only difference was a thin layer of dust covered some of the surfaces.

Dalia went straight to the wardrobe at the back of the room. She shoved the remainder of her clothes into her bag with the extension charm. Dalia cleaned her clothes daily with simple washing charms but they could only do so much. There were still grass and mud stains on her jeans and her shoes were virtually ruined. Dalia made a mental note to herself to invest in a pair of boots with proper grips in them that could last at least half a year.

After collecting all her supplies to last for the month she checked the time. It was only 11o'clock so Dalia decided to re-paint her nails. Dalia used to have long and healthy nails that never chipped but since she became a snatcher they had become virtually inexistent. Dalia picked out two of her favourite colours, black and plum purple. Dalia didn't even have to remove the previous colour as it had already eroded away from Dalia's habit of picking it off.

After finishing the last nail she noticed a pile of papers scattered around the floor near the window. She carefully picked them up making sure not to smudge her nails. The vast majority of the letters were from the Ministry of Magic informing her of the new changes and a couple were notices about unpaid bills. Dalia picked up the last one and she immediately knew who it was from because of the curly handwriting on the front.

Dalia lazily opened the letter. It read:

_Dalia,_

_Your father and I are becoming increasingly worried about you. We have no idea where you are and what you are doing. Times have changed and it is becoming more and more dangerous by the second. _

_We have had to go into hiding after snatchers broke into our house. We only just managed to escape but we lost everything. You have to be careful Dalia. These snatchers are the lowest of the low. They are horrible people that will take you into the ministry even if you just look at them in a strange way. I never want you to go near any of them. No matter how nice they may be to you. It's for your own good. I hope you understand._

_I hope to see you soon even though that may not be possible. Your father loves you with all his heart as do I._

_Stay safe,_

_Love mum xxx_

Dalia had to re-read the letter again for it to sink in. _"How dare they tell me what to do! I can do whatever I want. I'm not a child anymore! When are they going to get that in their fucking heads? Scabior isn't a horrible person. He's different." _Dalia ripped the letter in half and screwed the pieces up into a ball. She threw it to the other side of the room and banged her head on the desk.

"_Why can't they see that I'm not their little girl anymore?"_ Dalia closed her eyes to keep her eyes from watering. Dalia's head pounded. She had too many things racing through her mind. _"Who were those snatchers? Where are they hiding? Were they hurt? Why should I care I haven't talked to them in years." _

Dalia looked at her clock on her bed side table. It was noon and she needed to get back to the camp to meet the rest of the group. Dalia stood up suddenly and grabbed her bag from the floor. She stormed out of her apartment and slammed the door shut.

After stepping out of the building she apparated on the spot. Dalia opened her eyes to see everyone stood around the fire waiting for her to return. Dalia started to walk towards her tent. Anyone who had a brain would see that she was beyond pissed off and that it wouldn't be a good idea to tease her. However some people in the camp clearly did not have a single brain cell in their body.

"What's wrong with you?" Jonny asked in a mocking tone. Dalia scowled at him before she continued walking. She could hear some of the men chuckle. "Ooooh must be her time of the month." Jonny added. This earned barks of laughter from the others except for Scabior who was still in his tent.

Dalia stopped in her tracks and turned around slowly. She raised her wand and shouted, "Stupefy!" Jonny went flying backwards and hit a tree. "Anyone else got a smart ass comment that they would like to share?" Dalia spat. Dalia took their shocked expressions as a no and she stormed into her tent.

Dalia threw her bag to the floor and collapsed onto her bed. She held her hands to her face stayed in complete silence. After only a minute an uncomfortable pull on her bellybutton told her that the taboo had called. Dalia grunted loudly and pulled slightly on her hair in frustration.

Snatching was the last thing she wanted to do right now.

**Well there you go I hope you liked it. I'm not entirely happy with the last part. I have re-written it several times but I could never seem to get it right. I hope its okay. I'm sorry that there isn't any Dalia and Scabior dialogue going on in this chapter but I felt that Dalia needed to be a bit more independent at times. Don't worry though as there will be plenty of Scabior and Dalia action in the next one. Please review and tell me what you think. Thank you for reading :)**

**I wish you a magical Christmas :)**


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

**I AM SO SORRY THAT I HAVEN'T UPDATED IN SO LONG! I have been so busy with exams and other things I just haven't had the time to write! Plus my muse has been running really low at the moment :( Thank you for your lovely reviews I love you guys. I don't own anything (except Dalia), enjoy.**

Dalia's mood gradually improved throughout the course of the day. Everyone stayed away from her and didn't tease her as they were afraid that they might get their arses cursed to oblivion.

Dalia's purse was almost full when the day drew to a close. They had managed to catch a couple of runaways with a high bounty on their heads. A small smile crossed her lips as she poured the coins into her glass jar.

* * *

><p>It was late and most of the men had retired to their tents and a couple had gone to Diagon alley. Dalia liked it when it was quiet, she needed the silence to analyse her thoughts.<p>

After pulling on her night shorts and tank top Dalia quickly slipped out of her tent and into Scabior's. She was hit with a rush of pleasant warmth and her mussels instantly relaxed. Scabior was sat at his desk flicking through files and papers like he usually did at this time of day. Dalia sat on the wooden chair opposite Scabior and pulled her legs up to her chest and rested her head on her knees.

"What are you doing?" Dalia smiled. Scabior stopped sorting through the scraps of paper and looked at Dalia. "What does it look like love?" he said playfully. Dalia shrugged and pulled her hair from its loose bun letting the wavy mess fall past her shoulders. "Do you want a cup of tea?" Dalia asked. Scabior nodded and Dalia took out her wand and pointed it towards the brass kettle. The kettle jolted and the water inside began to boil.

Scabior's desk was littered with papers, quills and ink pots. There were very few areas where you could actually see the wood of the desk. A file fell from the table and papers flew everywhere. "I'll get it." Dalia got out of her comfortable position and shrank to the floor. She picked up the scattered pieces of paper and shoved them into a pile.

"Who is this?" Dalia asked, rummaging through the pile to try to find a picture. "Oh just some blood traitor, no one special." There was a slight pause as Dalia flicked through the pages. "Although he is an animagus. They're pretty rare, have you ever known someone that is an animagus?" Scabior asked, taking the papers from Dalia and sorting them properly.

"Just one." Dalia replied as she stood up. Scabior had a puzzled look on his face as she watched her. "What are you doing?" His full attention was on Dalia. "Just watch." Scabior's facial expression turned from confusion to amazement when he saw Dalia's emerald green irises change shape into cat eyes. Following this, she began to shrink and her black hair started to grow longer and cover the rest of her body.

In no longer than ten seconds Dalia had changed from a human to a completely black cat. Dalia spun around on the spot and then leaped onto the chair she was sitting on. Scabior brought his hand to Dalia's head and stroked the soft fur between her ears. Dalia followed Scabior's hand until she was resting on his lap. Scabior trailed his fingers down Dalia's spine and she purred in response.

"How come you being an animagius isn't one your file?" Scabior asked. Dalia suddenly leaped from Scabior's lap and by the time she reached the floor she had changed back into her human form. She took her position back on the chair and crossed her legs.

"I'm unregistered. I didn't want my parents finding out." Dalia replied. "I've lost count how many times I've sneaked out of the house without my parents suspecting a thing." Scabior smirked at Dalia's ingenuity.

The kettle had boiled some time ago so Dalia walked over and started to pour the hot water into two cups. "How did you learn how to do it?" Scabior asked, completely amazed and impressed with Dalia's new ability.

"At Hogwarts in my final year. Umbridge had strict rules and curfews so I spent a lot of time in my dorm. Most of my roommates became members of this stupid group called the inquisitorial squad or something, so I was usually on my own." Dalia had finished brewing the tea and handed Scabior one of the cups before she sat back down.

"I became interested in it when I heard that Sirius Black was an animagus. So I got a book out of the library and started to study it. It took me a while but I managed to get the hang of it eventually. It wasn't easy and I've read somewhere that if you get it wrong it can have disastrous results." Dalia explained.

"Why did you choose to turn into a cat?" Scabior asked after taking a sip of tea. "You can't choose what animal your animagus is. It is determined by your personality and inner traits. Therefore your animagus form is a reflection of your inner nature." Dalia smiled at Scabior's doe-eyed expression.

"Look at you using fancy words." Scabior teased. "Oh shut up." Dalia rolled her eyes. They sat in silence for a while, each lost in their own thoughts. Dalia's concentration was fixed on an empty bottle of firewhiskey. She subconsciously traced her finger around the rim of the cup repeatedly.

Dalia was brought out of her daydream when Scabior moved from the desk and put his empty cup on the table next to the kettle. "You never fail to make a great brew you know." Scabior said taking a packet of cigarettes out of his pocket. It was now that Dalia realised her aching need for a cigarette. "I'm going outside for a fag, you want one?" Scabior asked. "Yeah sure." Dalia smiled taking the last gulp of tea. Scabior pulled his jacket on whilst Dalia wrapped a blanket around her.

It was bitterly cold outside so Dalia rushed over to the only source of heat, the campfire that had died down to embers. Scabior sat next to her and held two cigarettes in his mouth. He lit them with his wand and handed one to Dalia.

Dalia crossed her legs and held the blanket tight to her shivering body. "I can't believe it's already been a month since I came here. It's gone by so quickly." She said, more to herself than Scabior. "Well it's like they say love, time files when you're having fun." Scabior displayed his signature smirk.

"Who says I'm having fun?" Dalia said after a cloud of smoke pooled out of her mouth. Scabior looked quite hurt at her statement. "N-no I didn't mean it like that. It's just," Dalia paused. "Never mind." She shook her head and took another drag.

"Come on Dalia you can tell me." Scabior reassured her. Dalia sighed as she flicked some of the ash on the end of her cigarette into the embers of the fire. "I know this is going to sound pathetic and stupid but, it's not been easy. There have been days were I've wanted to curl up in a ball and just forget the world. In the first week I didn't know how to react to seeing people's lives be destroyed. I sort of blocked it all out. But it came back to haunt me in my dreams." Dalia swallowed the large lump forming in the back of her throat.

"_What the fuck am I saying? Why am I pouring out my feelings like a little girl! Get a hold of yourself Dalia!" _She thought to herself.

"I've gotten used to it though, to a certain extent. I hardly have those dreams anymore and even though most of the gang are complete dicks I can just about live with them." The edges of Dalia's lips curved into a smile. "I hope you're not talking about me." Scabior replied.

"Of course not!" Dalia's voice was dripping in sarcasm. "I'm going to get you back for that. Mark my words." Scabior smirked. Dalia threw the end of the cigarette in the fire and pulled her hair to one side, letting it fall over her left shoulder. "What are you going to do?" Dalia asked playfully.

"That's for me to know and you to find out." Scabior teased. Dalia rolled her eyes and ran her fingers through the ends of her hair in an attempted to untangle the knots in it. Before she could stop it a large yawn escaped her mouth.

"I'm absolutely shattered." Dalia rubbed her eyes. "I should probably get to bed, early start in the morning." Scabior nodded in agreement. "It always is." He replied whilst throwing the cigarette butt onto the floor and stamping it out with his boot.

Dalia stretched and cracked her back. A satisfied sigh came out of her mouth as she stood up. Scabior followed her into the tent. She had already thrown the blanket over the chair and slipped into bed by the time he had opened the canvas flap.

Dalia watched as Scabior stripped down to his underwear. "Do you ever change clothes?" Scabior's eyes widened at her question. "On rare occasion." He answered whilst getting into the other side of the bed. "You're a typical man you are." Scabior sniggered at her comment.

Dalia jumped when she felt Scabior's ice cold hand move right across the warm skin of her stomach. "Jesus your hands are freezing!" Dalia shivered as she felt the cold radiate to the rest of her body. "Well I'm glad I've got you to warm them up. Besides I told you I'd get you back." Dalia didn't even have to look at him to tell that he was smirking. She could almost hear it in his voice. "You're a fucking twat you know." Dalia joked.

"So I've been told." Scabior chuckled. Dalia closed her eyes and smiled as his hands began to warm up against her skin. She stayed in silence waiting for sleep to take over.

**Well there you go I hope you liked it. To be honest I found it really hard to write this chapter. It took absolutely ages to write and I'm not entirely happy with it. I do apologise that it isn't my best work. Feel free to leave a review. I always like to know your opinion. Thank you for reading :)**


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

**Here's chapter 17 I hope you like it. Thank you so much for your kind reviews they mean so much! My muse for this story and writing in general has hit rock bottom recently and I'm finding it really difficult to write so I'm sorry if this chapter isn't my best work and it's a little shorter than usual, but reviews always lift my sprits so thank you. I don't own anything except Dalia, enjoy.**

Dalia was awoken by a sudden movement of the mattress she was sleeping on. She shifted and turned around to see Scabior sitting on the side of the bed running his fingers through his hair and yawning. Dalia's vision was blurred and her eyes stung. She rubbed her watery eyes and yawed. It must have been early as the sun had not yet risen and illuminated the tent.

Dalia watched sleepily as Scabior got dressed. "Come on Dalia, time to get up." Scabior said whilst pulling on his leather coat. "But I'm tried!" Dalia moaned. "Do we have to work today?" Scabior rolled his eyes.

"Of course we have to work today unless you want to work on Christmas, it's coming up you know." He laughed at Dalia's horrified expression. "We could never work on Christmas!" Dalia protested.

"Fine you better get your lazy arse out of bed then." Scabior replied. "But I don't want to." Dalia whined and pulled the duvet over her so she was completely covered in the soft fabric.

Dalia listened to the approaching footsteps and grabbed hold of the covers tight in anticipation of what Scabior was going to do. There was silence for a few seconds before in less than a second Scabior had snatched the covers in one hand and ripped them from her.

Dalia yelped as her body was exposed to a rush of cold air. "Jesus Scabior!" She panted. Scabior smirked as Dalia leapt of the bed and ran to get her blanket. "I'll be outside." An amused look covered his face.

When Scabior left Dalia walked into the bathroom. She almost screamed at the monster that was starring at her in the mirror. Her face was pale and her eyeliner was smudged across her face, adding to the dark circles around her eyes. And her hair was a tangled mess that resembled a black scruffy dog.

The only solution to this was the shower. After fifteen minutes steam filled the small bathroom and it was nearly impossible to see. Dalia had managed to feel around for a towel to dry herself and then put on her pyjamas. _"If only I remembered to bring my clothes into his tent."_ Dalia cursed herself.

Dalia was significantly warmed up when she had eventually dried herself. Her face was clear of old makeup and her hair had been tamed to a certain degree. She made the decision to leave it down so it could dry quicker before she prepared herself to step outside into the harsh British weather.

Dalia rubbed her eyes as she opened the tent's entrance. It was a bitterly cold winter's day with a thin layer of snow covering the ground. The trees had small icicles hanging off the branches and the water in the nearby lake had frozen over. "Fuck its cold." Dalia said when she stepped outside.

Scabior was sat near the fire studying his black book. "Isn't it just." He replied. Dalia sighed, a pool of mist flowed out of her mouth as she breathed out. She quickly made her way to her tent. "Oi Dalia." Scabior said after he took his last drag of his cigarette. "Yeah?" she asked quickly, desperate to make it back inside so she wouldn't freeze. "Make sure you wrap up warm today don't want you to get sick." Scabior dropped the cigarette stub on the ground and crushed it with his boot. Dalia smiled at his concern for her health.

At that moment Greyback appeared from the forest. His clothes were ripped and blood stained and he smelt more rancid that usual. "Hey look at Scabior being all soft to little miss Dalia, giving her all sorts of attention. Why don't you care about us like that Scab? Oh that's right she's your little fuck buddy, she is _so_ special." Greyback mocked.

Dalia's smile disappeared and it took everything in her power to not curse his arse. She remembered that last night was the final in the cycle of the full moon and she did not want to be ripped to shreds because she knew that she would be if she challenged Greyback.

Scabior on the other hand was fuming. If looks could kill Greyback would be stone dead on the floor. He stood up and aimed his wand at Greyback. Dalia shot him a warning stare. _"Oh shit Scabior don't do this you're going to get yourself killed you fucking idiot!" _Dalia stepped forwards but stopped when Greyback spoke.

"Ooh you're very defensive over your little whore aren't you?" Greyback smiled, bearing his bloodstained yellow canines. Jonny and Jason must have heard the confrontation and appeared out of their tent to watch. "She must be good in bed otherwise you would have thrown her out weeks ago." A storm was raging insides Scabior's eyes. They had turned a dark navy blue colour. Dalia had never seen him this mad, it made her uneasy.

Nick, Tom and Jack had now also appeared to see what all the fuss was about. All eyes were on the pair. "It's not fair that you get to have a girl all to yourself. You are so selfish Scabior, you need to learn to share what you've got its only good manners." Greyback teased.

"Dalia is not a plaything, she is part of the group just like you and everyone else. She does not belong to me or anyone. If you say another word against her I swear to god I'll rip your balls off and shove them down your throat!" Scabior shot a hex from his wand which Greyback easily dodged. "You fucking dog!" Scabior spat. Dalia had to intervene before someone got hurt. She ran in between the two of them and pulled Scabior aside.

"Are you insane? You know more than I do what Greyback can do when it's the full moon. Stop being stupid, it's pathetic he just wants to get a rise out of you. It's not worth it." Dalia assured him. Scabior was shaking with rage. Dalia held his hand in hers to try to calm him. "Besides it's not true anyway. Just because we share a bed doesn't mean we're sleeping together."

Scabior relaxed a little but Dalia could tell by his eyes that he was still furious. "Fine but I want him out of my sight for the rest of the day." Scabior stared at Greyback. "You heard me, piss off!" Greyback smirked to himself before he disapparated.

Everyone's eyes were still on Scabior. He stared at their vacant expressions. "What are you all looking at? Get your lazy arses ready we've got a full day's work to do!" Scabior spat. Within a matter of seconds Dalia and Scabior were once again left alone.

Scabior kicked a log in frustration and ran his fingers through his hair. "What the fuck are we supposed to do today? We'll be lucky if we catch a couple of runaways. We need Greyback for his senses. He can see, hear and smell better than everyone here put together." Scabior spat, trying to vent some of his frustration. He lit a cigarette and took a long drag.

Dalia waited for a few seconds before she spoke. "Hey, Scabior having an animagius as a cat does have some benefits you know." Scabior looked up at Dalia in surprise. He had forgotten that she was still there. "Like what?" He asked whilst offering up a seat next to him.

"Well for starters cats can see up to six times better than humans in the dark and their hearing is significantly more sensitive than humans. They are much smaller and inconspicuous than humans so I could easily sneak up on some unsuspecting mudbloods." Dalia smiled at Scabior's impressed facial expression. "I know I am amazing." Dalia joked. Scabior wrapped an arm around Dalia's waist and pulled her close to him.

"You're my secret weapon." He whispered into her ear.

**Well there you go I hope you liked it. I know that this isn't a brilliant chapter and I apologize for making my updates few and far between. I hope you can forgive me and with a bit of luck the next chapter will be longer. Please review and tell me what you think. Thank you for reading :)**


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

**Oh my god, you don't even know how sorry I am for not updating in so long! It must have been at least a couple of months! I had my final exams in the past month so I've not had any free time. But hopefully I'll be able to make my updates more frequent but I can't promise anything. Thank you so much for your reviews and I hope I haven't lost you because of my lack of updates! I hope you enjoy this chapter. **

The day had gotten off to a slow start. No one was in a particularly good mood, especially Scabior after the incident earlier in the morning. They hadn't come across any signs of human life and Dalia was bored out of her mind. The winter's air was harsh against her pale skin and her fingers were going numb. God, she hated walking. It was do dull. Her feet ached and she felt blisters begin to form on her frozen toes. They had been trekking through the forest for three hours and everyone was getting frustrated.

The group had taken a break whilst a couple of them relieved themselves behind the bushes. Dalia crouched down against a tree and rested her feet. Her head pounded due to a lack of nicotine and sleep. She searched her pockets for a pack of cigarettes but she must have let them back at the camp, great.

Just as they were about to leave again something caught Dalia's eye. By the bottom of the tree a used cigarette was still burning. Dalia picked it up and examined it. "Hey, have any of you had a fag just now?" Dalia questioned. When no one nodded a small smile appeared on her lips. "Scabior, I just found this here. It's still burning. There must be people close." she held up the end to him and Scabior smirked and signalled the group to split up.

"Hey Dalia, maybe this would be a good time to test your new found ability, yeah?" He asked, pulling her to the side of a moment. Dalia nodded and seconds later she had turned into a black cat. She felt her sense of hearing and smell increase dramatically and she crept off in the direction of the scent, the group following close behind.

After a few minutes Dalia came across a basic tent with a small fire burning at the entrance. She glanced at Scabior and he signalled her to go further whilst the group stayed in the background. She slowly crawled her way to the back of the tent, using the dark and cloudy day to her advantage as she blended in well to her surroundings.

She could hear voices coming from the tent, a young girl, an older boy and another woman. She had almost made it to the entrance when the young girl skipped out of the tent and stopped right in front of her. _"Shit shit shit!"_ She thought, staying completely still in the hope that she wouldn't notice her. But she had.

Dalia hissed when the small girl, no older than seven, picked her up and started to cuddle her. "Peter look! I found a kitty!" She squeaked when the older boy stepped out. He was obviously Hogwarts age, probably in his fifth year. Dalia tried to wriggle out of her tight grip and growled furiously in the direction of Scabior. "Put that down. Don't you know it's bad luck to see a black cat?" He snapped, grabbing Dalia roughly from the girl's grip. Dalia screeched and scratched the boy, making him drop her. As soon as she hit the floor she turned back into her human form and aimed her wand at his chest. "Big mistake." She snarled.

Scabior saw this as his cue and made their presence known. "Don't say a word or I'll make your life a living hell." He warned. Dalia grabbed the girl and clasped a hand over her mouth to prevent her from screaming. With her free hand she stabbed her wand painfully into her tiny neck.

The older body ran towards her sister but before he could move more than a few steps he was tackled by Jason and Nick. "Don't you fucking dare touch her!" He shouted, earning him a hard punch to the jaw by Jack. "What did I say about talking, boy?" Scabior spat, walking over to Dalia.

"There is another woman inside. I heard her." As if on cue an older woman peeked out from behind the beige canvas. Her eyes widened in terror and she swallowed hard when her gaze fixed on the red band tied around Scabior's arm. She was quickly disarmed and restrained.

The boy was still fighting desperately to protect his family. For some reason they almost always thought they had a chance to get away from them. It was pathetic really..

Scabior swaggered up to the trembling woman with his usual smirk covering his face. "Got a man? Or are you all by yourself?" He asked, after Tom had searched the tent for any other people. She shook her head and tears welled up in her eyes. "N-no, he got arrested at t-the ministry." She wailed, her voice shaking. Scabior tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear and wiped a tear from her pale cheek.

"What are you names, love?" He whispered in her ear. "And don't even think about lying. If you do I'll be sure to make you watch your little girl die." The woman tried to turn away from him but Scabior grabbed her cheeks in one hand to force her to look at him.

"Faye, Peter and Celia Gavan." She whispered, closing her eyes. Tom found the names in the book quickly and it came up with all three of them as blood traitors. Scabior quickly signalled the group to disaparate.

Dalia's feet hit the marble floor with a painful force. She gasped and almost let go of the girl in her hands. She managed to grab her hair and yank her back into her grasp before she could run off. The ministry was as busy as always. Dalia joined the rest of the group in the long queue. She cast a silencing charm over the young girl to stop her screams that were ear piercingly high pitched.

Some of the men were giving her strange looks. "What are you staring at?" She snapped, glaring at them. "You're a... cat." Jonny spoke up. Dalia looked at Scabior with a puzzled expression. "You didn't tell them?" She asked. When Scabior shook his head she sighed. "I'm an animagus." Their confused faces didn't change and she rolled her eyes. "An animagus is a person that can change into an animal when they want. Mine's a cat. Scabior thought it would be a good idea to use my skill when snatching. You're all catching flies. Shut your gobs. It's not that amazing."

Scabior hung an arm over her shoulders and smirked. "See, Dalia is ten times more skilled than you are put together." Dalia shrugged his arm off and hid her smile. "I'm not that special, Scabior." She muttered.

After another few minutes they eventually got to the front desk. Scabior handed over the wands and they handed over the traitors. The rest of the day was pretty successful. With the help of Dalia's skills they managed to catch a group of Hogwarts runaways and a few muggleborns. When they got back at around eight o'clock the sun had already set and the stars were illuminating the night's sky.

Dalia's stomach growled angrily and she clutched it to try to stop the noise. She was so hungry. They hadn't had a substantial meal in days. Her purse that was full of galleons felt ten times heavier in her pocket. Just one proper dinner was all she wanted. "Hey Scabior, I was wondering if you wanted to go out for dinner?" She suggested. "Not like a date or anything. I'm starving and I don't want to eat any more scraps of meat and stale bread."

Scabior considered her proposal for a moment before nodding. "Sure. I could eat a whole cow I'm that hungry. Where do you want to go?" He asked, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning against a tree.

Dalia smiled slightly and picked at her nail varnish. "Well, I know this pub that does the best roast dinner. Does that sound okay?" She could feel her mouth begin to water at the thought of it. Scabior barked some warnings and instructions at the rest of the group before he took Dalia's hand in his. Dalia squeezed it gently before apparating on the spot.

They landed outside a small pub on a country lane. She remembered the place from when she was younger. Her parents used to take her there on special occasions. The pub was quiet and there were only a few people sat at the tables eating. The rest were sat at the bar making casual conversation over an alcoholic beverage.

Dalia picked a booth in the back near a window. Scabior ordered the drinks and brought over the menus. After a couple of minutes a waitress came over with their drinks and took their orders. Dalia relaxed into the comfortable leather seat and played with the ends of her hair.

To anyone else in the pub it looked like they were on a date. But they weren't, were they? No, they were just getting something to eat. Nothing else. Dalia shifted in her seat slightly and avoided contact with Scabior's eyes.

"Everything alright, love?" He asked, taking a gulp of his pint of beer. "Wha- yeah, I'm fine. Just hungry." She shrugged, staring out of the window. Scabior eyed her suspiciously but decided not to press on the matter.

Dalia's thoughts went back to the time they first kissed. She remembered how good he tasted and how his warmth spread into her body that shielded her from the cold rain. She felt butterflies fill her stomach and her heart rate increase. _"Snap out of it, Dalia!" _She thought to herself.

Their food came a little while later. Dalia licked her lips when the large plate filled with a beef roast dinner was placed in front of her. She quickly started to devour the meal and she finished everything in a little less than ten minutes. She let out a satisfied sigh and leaned back into the booth. "Christ, I'm full."

Scabior smirked as he too finished his meal. "God, you weren't lying. That was so good." He smiled, finishing his drink. Dalia's fingers traced the rim of the glass she was holding as she looked at him. They stayed in silence for a few minutes as their food went down. After Dalia had finished her drink they paid the waitress and made their way out of the pub.

Scabior pulled out a cigarette and Dalia did the same. The nicotine had calmed her nerves significantly and she managed to sum up enough courage to ask him something that had been plaguing her mind all night. "Scabior, you know the other day... When we kissed." She tried to sound as casual as possible but her uneasiness was clearly present in her voice.

Scabior nodded and took another deep drag. "Well, I don't really know how to put this.. Did you, umm.. Did you feel anything?" She asked, keeping her eyes fixed on the pavement. She swallowed hard.

Scabior grinned and dropped his half finished cigarette. He took her chin gently in his fingers and tilted her head up so her eyes met his. After a moment he ghosted his lips over hers before planting a delicate kiss on them. "Does that answer your question?" He whispered. Dalia nodded and without warning Scabior took her hand and apparated back to the camp.

As soon as their feet touched the floor Scabior pressed Dalia's back into the nearest tree and crashed his lips onto hers. Dalia yelped at the sudden movement straight after the apparation but returned the kiss. She closed her eyes and wrapped her fingers around the back of his neck, pulling him closer.

Dalia ran her tongue over his bottom lip causing him to open his mouth. Her tongue invaded his mouth and explored every inch of it. Their tongues battled in the fight for dominance. Scabior's hand pushed up the bottom of her cotton shirt and his cool fingers traced patterns on her soft flesh. This action made Dalia shudder and she moaned slightly into his mouth.

After another minute or so their mouths parted to catch their breath. Scabior's lips moved to her jaw and he made a trail of light kisses down her neck. He sucked and kissed the sensitive spot on the side of her neck, making Dalia's breath hitch in her throat.

Dalia's hands moved to his shoulders and she gently pushed off his heavy leather coat. Her fingers danced across his clothed chest. She smiled when she felt how toned and muscular his body was under the fabric.

Scabior's fingers moved to the buttons on her shirt. He slowly undid them and let the garment fall to the forest floor. His hands and lips roamed the pale skin and Dalia sighed in response. They were both too lost in the moment to realise the figure that came up behind them.

"I knew I was right. I've caught the fuck buddies in the act." Greyback sniggered.

**Well, there you go. I apologize again for my severe lack of updates but please perceiver with me and I'll love you forever :3 I hoped you liked this chapter. Reviews are always greatly appreciated. Thank you for reading. **


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

**Thank you for your reviews. I hope you like this chapter. I've changed the rating to M just to be safe. After a load of stories have been removed I just want to make sure that the content is appropriate to the rating. I don't own anything except Dalia, enjoy.**

"_I knew I was right. I've caught the fuck buddies in the act." Greyback sniggered. _

They both froze and Scabior growled slightly against her skin, sending unpleasant shivers down Dalia's spine. He stepped away so Dalia could move and glared at Greyback who was smirking, showing off his rotting teeth. After giving Dalia a mocking wink he swaggered off into his tent, his triumphant smirk never leaving his face. Dalia quickly picked up her fallen shirt and wrapped it around herself, not saying a word.

"Dalia, come on. Just forget about him. Let's continue where we left off, yeah?" He sighed when he saw her turn away and grabbed her arm gently. She pulled away from him and began to do up her buttons. "Maybe I should sleep in my own tent tonight.." She muttered, keeping her eyes lowered. Dalia made her way to her tent and silently cursed herself. She knew it was a mistake and she should have never done it. Now she had a reputation amongst the group, Scabior's toy.

Scabior quickly caught up with her and stopped her in her tracks. "Sweetheart please, Greyback is a prick. Don't listen to him." Dalia huffed and rolled her eyes, crossing her arms over her chest.

"He's right. I don't want to be known as your toy. I want everyone to just accept that I'm a snatcher just like everyone else and that's not going to happen if I'm sleeping in your tent every night. We both know that it's strictly to help me sleep but they don't and I doubt they'd believe me if I told them. It's because I'm a woman and they think that I'll fuck anyone if given the chance." Dalia paused and chewed on her bottom lip.

"Look, what just happened there was a mistake. It can't happen again. I'm a snatcher and you're the boss. That's all we are." She muttered the last bit. Even her words made her heart sink. Before Scabior could reply she disappeared into her tent and magically sealed it off so he couldn't follow.

Dalia sat on the edge of her bed and ran her fingers through her tangled hair before letting out a huge sigh. Her mind raced with different thoughts and conflicting emotions which were giving her a headache. The night could have turned out so perfect if they weren't interrupted... At least she found out that she wasn't the only one who felt something. Scabior did too. Which was good, wasn't it? If they both liked each other it would make sense to explore their relationship. But not when they were surrounded by a bunch of lonely and scruffy men that included a werewolf. Even if they didn't have that issue there were plenty of other problems. They were in the middle of a war. Soon it will reach a climax and only one side will win. If they lost they'd be either killed in the battle or hunted down and given the dementor's kiss.

Dalia groaned and collapsed onto her bed. She rested her head on the pillows and pulled the itchy blanket around herself. The bed was cold and hard unlike the soft and welcome one next-door. The pillows were lumpy and the blanket was rough. As she lay on her side she expected a pair of hands to pull her in close and cradle her but no, the bed was empty. Dalia knew that she'd have to get used to it. There was no way she could step in his tent again. She needed to grow up and become more independent. She made a mental note to stock up on a supply of sleeping draught. But for now she'd have to grit her teeth and try to get through the night.

Surprisingly she had managed to get a few hours sleep even though she woke up occasionally. The nightmares became less realistic and she managed to calm herself enough to get back to sleep. Maybe she was adapting to the life of a snatcher... It was about time. She'd been living in the woods for well over a month.

It had just gone 6am when Dalia's eyes fluttered open. She looked around her tent before deciding to get up rather than try to get another hour of sleep. She climbed out of bed and picked up a packet of cigarettes before she stepped out into the freezing cold. At least no one was outside. They usually got up at seven so she could have an hour to herself.

As Dalia placed a lit cigarette into her mouth her eyes wandered over to Scabior's tent. She took a deep drag and looked away, wanting to forget about last night. Dalia distracted herself by trying to untangle her messy hair. She was so focused on a large knot that she didn't notice the large figure walk up to her.

"I see he's thrown you out then." The figure announced himself. Dalia's head snapped up and her cigarette end fell from her mouth to the floor. "Jesus Christ..." She muttered under her breath, holding her hand to her racing heart. He had startled her and it took an idiot to not notice. "Fuck off, Greyback." She spat, rubbing the back of her neck nervously.

"I knew he would." Greyback continued as if she hadn't said anything. "He always gets tired of his fucks." He was getting dangerously close now. Dalia tried to keep her cool and quickly stood up, making her way to the tree line. But before she could even take a step forwards the werewolf grabbed her wrist and spun her around, pinning her petite body against his large frame.

Dalia yelped and wriggled against him but his arms had already snacked around her waist and held her in a steel grip. "And I _always_ get his left overs." He growled into her ear, his hot breath sending shivers down her spine and his rotting breath made her gag.

"Ugh, you're disgusting. Get off me!" She replied, sending an elbow into his ribs earning her a grunt of pain from the larger man. "Ooh, a feisty one you are. No wonder he kept you so long. You like it rough, eh?" Greyback twisted his fingers in her hair, his claws scratching her scalp making a small whimper escape Dalia's lips. He yanked her hair to the side which made her head snap violently to the right, exposing her long and pale neck.

"We've never had sex! I'm not a prostitute! Leave me the fuck alone!" She squeaked, feeling her heart hammer in her chest. Greyback's razor sharp teeth grazed her flesh and his slimy tongue trailed a line from the base of her throat to her jaw, making her tremble.

No matter how hard she tried to fight her feeble attempts were nothing compared to his monstrous build. "So what were you doing? Cuddling? Don't make me laugh!" He mocked, biting down hard on her neck, leaving and angry red mark. Dalia cried out in pain but her cry was muffled when a hand clamped over her mouth. "We don't want any interruptions now, do we? Be a good girl and keep that pretty little mouth of yours shut."

Dalia squeezed her eyes closed and bit back the wails that threatened to escape her mouth. This was her worst nightmare. She _had _to be dreaming. This couldn't be really happening.. But his dirty hands that roamed her body felt too real.

Suddenly his movements stopped and she felt herself being dragged behind the trees. He slammed her back into a tree and held her there just like Scabior did last night however the circumstances couldn't be more different. Dalia could hear voices and she managed to catch a glimpse of a few men staggering out of their tents to start the day.

Greyback grabbed her cheeks in one hand and forced her to look at him. "If you tell anyone what just happened between us you're dead. Understand?" He whispered, his yellow eyes glowing with fire. Dalia nodded and winced slightly when his nails dug into her face. "We'll continue this later." He grinned menacing before leaning back and straightening himself out, walking over to the rest of the men and starting up casual conversation as if nothing had happened.

Dalia remained leaning against the tree as she tried to process what just happened. She let out a breath she didn't know she was holding and brought her shaking fingers up to her neck, running them along the sore patch where he had bitten her. She knew that it wouldn't go for days and she'd somehow have to keep it hidden.

After a few minutes she managed to steady her breathing and compose herself as much as possible. She placed her hair over her neck to cover the evidence before walking back to the fire pit which everyone was situated around. Dalia noticed Scabior staring at her and swallowed hard. She kept her eyes fixed on the floor and quickly scurried past the group. "Hey Dalia, don't you want breakfast?" Nick called.

Dalia didn't even turn around, too scared to see Greyback and too embarrassed and ashamed to see Scabior. "I'm not hungry." She mumbled before almost running into her tent. It was true. Greyback had scared all of the hunger out of her. She never wanted to step out of her tent again but she knew that she had to. She had a whole day of snatching to look forward to with the two men in the world she least wanted to see. Great.

**Well, there you go. I hoped you liked it and I'd love to hear your comments and opinions so please leave a review. Thank you for reading.**


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

**Here's the next chapter! Again, I'm sorry for the delay but it always seems to take me ages to write. Anyway, I hope you enjoy it!**

Dalia had spent the majority of her time trekking through the forest picking the nail varnish off her barely existent nails. She had stayed at the very back of the group, trying her best to avoid Scabior and Greyback. As hard as she tried to stay clear of them Scabior kept trying to pull her to the side to talk but she really didn't want to. She knew what it would be about but she didn't see the point of it. They had talked last night. Dalia had made it perfectly clear that their relationship had to end. Greyback, on the other hand had promised to continue from where they'd left off. That thought had kept her on edge all day. It didn't help that he kept winking and licking his lips at her every time he got the chance.

With the help of Greyback's enhanced senses and Dalia's animagus they had managed to catch a healthy amount of runaways and blood traitors meaning that everyone had a pocket full of coins and everyone was in a relatively good mood. That was apart from Dalia and Scabior. Scabior had obviously not told the rest of the group what had happened so he kept his emotions to himself, trying to hide how he really felt so he wouldn't come off as weak to the rest of the group. He didn't fool everyone though. Dalia could tell that he was pissed off. She couldn't tell who at though. Greyback because he was the one that interrupted them? Or her because she'd dumped him straight off without giving him any chance? Probably both.

It was fast approaching darkness by the time they got back to camp. Most of the group had decided to spend their money in Knockturn alley, presumably on drink and women. Dalia just wanted to find a quite pub somewhere to nurse a drink for the rest of the night. She needed to get out of the camp. The forest was suffocating her.

After Dalia had put most of her money away and given her aching legs a short break she decided to go out. She grabbed her money, wand and a pack of cigarettes before she slowly opened the flap of her tent, looking around carefully to see if anyone was outside. She did _not_ want to run into Scabior or Greyback. She double checked before she was sure that no one was about. Dalia slipped from her tent and walked quickly to the edge of the tree line to disaparate. Just as she was about to leave a voice came from behind a tree, followed by a puff of smoke.

"Where are you going?" Scabior asked casually as he appeared from behind the tree and stubbed out the cigarette end with his boot. Dalia closed her eyes and sighed. How did she not see him?

"Out." She shrugged as she fiddled with her braid of hair that came down the side of her neck to cover up the unsightly mark Greyback had left.

"Yeah, I know that much. But out where?" he asked, stepping closer. Annoyance filled Dalia when he didn't leave her alone._ "Why was he so goddamn nosey?"_ she thought.

"Why do you need to know?" she asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Because I'm your boss and I need to know where you are in case you get into any shit." He replied. Clearly he wasn't going to leave her alone until he got an answer and this pissed Dalia off big time.

"Since when have you ever given a shit what the rest of them get up to?" she asked, rolling her eyes. "If you must know, I've got some things to do. I'm just going to the alley. Are you happy now?" she growled, irritation was clearly present in her voice.

Scabior sighed and played with the ends of the pink scarf that was tied around his neck. "Fine, but I want you back here no later than midnight." He demanded. Dalia resisted the urge to roll her eyes again and turned around to disaparate.

Her feet hit the stone floor of the cobbled street and she was knocked off balance slightly, making her stumble forwards. After she regained her steadiness she looked around to get her bearings. She was on the far side of the street where most of the pubs were. Dalia slowly walked down the street, checking through the darkened windows to see how busy each pub was.

In a few minutes she found a small pub on a corner. The building looked neglected but she could see a young woman pouring a drink at the bar through the small window on the door. Dalia opened the door carefully and slipped inside. She gave the barmaid a small smile and ordered a bottle of her favourite drink.

On her way to a seat Dalia noticed a copy of the day's Daily Prophet. She picked it up and glanced over the front page before she collapsed into a squeaky chair. The pages were full of the usual propaganda and news on the chosen one but in the centre there was a whole segment on 'Blood traitors and the evil inside'. Dalia rolled her eyes as she skimmed past the print.

She came to the list of names of newly convicted 'criminals'. She recognised a few from her school years and many were who she had caught herself. Most were sent to Azkaban and a few were executed.

Dalia folded the paper up roughly and dropped it down on a nearby table before she opened the bottle and took a large swig of the fiery liquid.

"It's rubbish that, isn't it." The bar maid said as she picked up the paper and ran a cloth over the table. Dalia eyed her curiously and shrugged. "I mean, muggleborns can't really have dirty blood. It's all a load of nonsense. I hope this war is over soon. It's affecting my family's business. This pub used to be thriving before death eaters and snatchers came in and scared everyone off. It's ridiculous really. Who do they think they are?" The young woman sighed and ran her fingers through her long and slightly messy dark blond hair.

Dalia placed her bottle down and looked up at the woman. "I'd be careful what you're saying if I was you. Anyone could be listening." she muttered, stretching her arms to show off the red tie on her arm, the symbol of the snatcher.

The woman had obviously seen it and understood as she backed away quickly and shook her head. "S-sorry, I didn't mean to. I mean, I didn't mean w-what I said. Please, d-don't tell anyone." she squeaked.

Dalia wasn't going to. She doubted she'd be on the list and she couldn't be bothered to go through all the hassle at the ministry. She was a nice girl anyway, just naive and stupid. "Don't worry, I won't. I'm just teaching you a lesson. Watch your tongue because anyone could be working for the ministry and you don't want to end up in Azkaban."

Dalia tried to give a reassuring smile but the girl was still clearly terrified. She sighed and took another gulp of her drink. The barmaid quickly retreated back into the safety of the bar and Dalia went back to her own business.

* * *

><p>The air was cold and the sky had clouded over making the only source of light from a few windows and occasional street lamps. Dalia knew she probably should have got back earlier but she really didn't want to face the camp. There was no telling if Greyback was going to be waiting when she got back. But after the bar maid had began to close up the tiny pub she knew it was time to be heading back.<p>

Dalia decided to take a short walk down Diagon alley. Most of the shops were still derelict and vandalised. She paused for a moment to look through the cracked window of Olivander's wand shop and smiled slightly when she remembered getting her wand.

_The little girl held her arms close to her body and ducked her head, making her long black hair fall in front of her face as she stepped inside the dark and fairly intimidating shop. There was an old man hunched over the desk, scribbling down notes onto various pieces of parchment. Dalia chewed on her lower lip nervously as she slowly approached the desk, her parents were gently pushing her forwards. _

_After clearing her throat to make her presence known the elderly man looked down at her curiously, studying her face. "I've, um, come to buy a wand." she whispered, avoiding contact with his eyes. The man smiled and gave a nod to both of her parents. _

_"Well, I don't know what else you would need from a wand shop, Miss Hayfield." he teased, pilling the scattered papers to the side of the desk. "How do you know my name?" she asked suspiciously. _

_The man laughed and turned to the boxes that were piled high to the ceiling. "I remember every wand I give to every witch and wizard. Your parents are not an exception." he smiled down at her as he plucked a rectangular box from the pile. "Try this one."_

_Dalia held the piece of wood in her hand. It felt heavy and unbalanced. When she gave it a flick one of the oil lamps smashed and she dropped the wand. "S-sorry." she muttered as she gave it back and took a step back, glancing at her parents. _

_"Not to worry. I've seen a lot worse, believe me." he smiled. The next wand felt perfect in her hands. The smooth engravings and bumps felt like magic against her fingers. This was the one. "Ah, very nice. Eleven and three quarter inches, holly, unicorn hair, slightly springy. I think that will suit you perfectly, Miss Hayfield."_

Dalia's smile faded when she glanced over at the broken shelves and smashed cabinets. Mr. Olivander was a nice man and it was a shame what happened to him.

She was so naive and dependant on her parents back then. Never in a million years did she think she'd ever end up as a bounty hunter in the middle of a war. But that's what she was. Dalia was starting to regret accepting the job. She didn't really think about the consequences of the job and now she was stuck there. She would have probably found another job somewhere eventually although she doubted that she'd enjoy it anymore than she enjoyed this one. At least she would be safe from a gruesome werewolf that was after her.

Dalia rubbed the sore mark on her neck as she continued to walk down the deserted alley. Well, she thought it was deserted. Suddenly a figure pounced out in front of her from one of the side streets and aimed their wand at her. Before she could even think about defending herself the stunning spell had hit her in her chest and the last thing she was aware of was a pair of hands catching her before she blacked out.

**Oooh what's going to happen? You're going to have to wait to find out. :) I've got the next couple of chapters planned out but I'll just have to find the time to write them. But bear with me! I hope you liked this chapter and as always I'd love to hear your opinions. Thank you for reading!  
><strong>


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

**Here's the next chapter! I hope you like it! Thank you so much for your reviews and sorry for leaving you on a cliff hanger for a few weeks but I hope you enjoy it!**

After what felt like an eternity Dalia slowly came back to the present. It took a while for her to fully wake up as the stunning spell had not quite worn off. She opened her eyes only to realise that she was blindfolded.

Dalia swallowed hard and tried to stay as still as possible, wanting to find out as much as possible about the situation without anyone noticing she was awake. With her vision impaired her other senses became more sensitive. She could hear hushed voices and pacing feet a distance away. Dalia's hands were tied behind her back and she was sat on an uncomfortable wooden chair. She moved her hands slightly to test the strength of the bonds, they were painfully tight.

Dalia's mind was racing to try to figure out who had done this and why. A terrifying thought entered her mind. What if it was Greyback? But then why would he go to this much effort to take her when he could do it easily in the camp? If it wasn't him, who was it?

Her thoughts were interrupted when a door slammed, making her gasp. The voices had stopped a while ago and now someone was coming towards her. Dalia's heart was hammering in her chest and she bit her lower lip hard.

A hand ripped the blindfold from her eyes and tossed it to the side. Dalia's eyes burned in the harsh light and it took several seconds for them to adjust. In that time the stranger had rested his hands on either armrest of her chair and leaned down so his face was centimetres from hers.

Dalia quickly tried to recognise him from somewhere but she couldn't. The man had scruffy sandy coloured hair that was overgrown and messy. He had piercing green eyes that stared right through her and it looked like he hadn't shaved for a while as his stubble had become shabby.

All Dalia could do what stare up at the man. She was too afraid to speak although she'd never admit it. Thankfully the man did the speaking for her.

"You're probably wondering why you're here, aren't you?" he asked, although the question was rhetorical. "You are here because you're a disgusting little brat." he spat, some of his saliva spraying onto her face. Dalia glared up at him and gritted her teeth. "Now, we can either do this the easy way or the hard way. You answer all my questions and tell me everything about your pathetic group of bounty hunters or I force it out of you." His voice was low and dangerous and it sent shivers down her spine.

"I..I don't know what you're talking about. Bounty hunters? What bounty hunters?" she muttered, lowering her gaze. This obviously made the man angry and Dalia immediately regretted trying to lie her way out of this mess. He stepped back and backhanded her across the cheek. Dalia resisted the urge to cry out and bit back the whimpers that threatened to escape her trembling lips.

"Don't lie to me, girl. I'm not a fucking idiot." he snarled, grabbing her chin and forcing her to look up at him. "I've been following you tonight, ever since you apparated into the street. You scared that barmaid by admitting you're a snatcher and you even have the red tie around your arm. Now, let's try this again. I don't want to hurt your pretty little face anymore." he growled, stroking the angry red mark on her cheek.

Dalia squirmed away from his touch and took a deep breath to try to remain calm, although that was proving extremely difficult.

The man frowned and stood back, leaning onto a table that was opposite her. "Allow me to introduce myself. I am Sebastian Blackwell and I work for the Order. My job is to 'snatch' scum like you and interrogate you into spilling information." He smiled threateningly.

Dalia sighed and closed her eyes. This was bad. There was no way she was getting out of this. A part of her wanted to tell him about the group so that Greyback would get what he deserved but then Scabior would get caught too. No matter how much she tried to deny it, she still has feelings for the head snatcher. She cursed herself for getting attached because now she was in a predicament.

The man called Blackwell picked up a file and skimmed through the front page. "It says here you were employed under Mr. Scabior about two months back. Correct?" he asked, keeping his eyes fixed on the page. Dalia nodded and mumbled a yes. She could answer some questions just as long as they didn't link directly to Scabior getting caught, like their current whereabouts.

The next question made her heart sink. It was as if he was reading her thoughts. "Where is your camp currently positioned?" he asked, this time looking up to assess her reaction.

Dalia shook her head. "I can't tell you that. I'm not stupid. You're going to kill me anyway so I might as well keep my group safe." she said with as much confidence as she could muster. By group she obviously meant Scabior but he didn't need to know that, it would just be another thing he'd use against her.

Blackwell clicked his tongue in annoyance and threw the papers back down onto the metal table. "You're right. I am going to kill you. But I can make it as painful as I like." he growled, stepping towards her again. The man slowly walked around the back of the chair and leant down so his lips were almost touching her ear. He grabbed her braid of hair and yanked it, forcing her head upwards. At the same time he pulled out his wand and pressed it painfully into her throat.

Dalia suddenly realised how all the people she helped to snatch felt and it made her stomach turn. His breath in her ear reminded her of the savage werewolf and made her flinch.

"I'm going to ask you again, where is your camp?" he whispered, the tip of his lips grazing the shell of her ear. Dalia swallowed the lump in her throat and stared up at the ceiling.

"I'm not going to tell you." she muttered, silently bracing herself for whatever he was about to do. Blackwell moved his wand down to her tied hands and whispered a spell that Dalia couldn't quite catch. Suddenly the ropes that bound her wrists burned white hot, sending searing pain through her arms.

Dalia couldn't help but cry out and wriggle desperately against the blazing ties. Tears welled up in her eyes but she refused to cry in front of him, she wouldn't give him the satisfaction. She squeezed her eyes shut and tried everything in her power not to scream.

Eventually he lifted the spell but her flesh still burned although for some reason unknown to her, her wrists looked perfectly normal as if nothing had happened. Blackwell smirked at her attempts to block out the pain. "You see what happens when you don't answer my questions? You get hurt. I know you don't want to suffer any more pain so why don't you just make this easier for yourself and do as I ask."

His offer was tempting but Dalia kept reminding herself of Scabior. He may be a heartless and selfish bastard to everyone else but Dalia had seen a glimpse of humanity underneath his hard exterior. Besides, he was just like every other snatcher. He needed the money to survive, just like her. She couldn't let him get caught and probably tortured just because she wanted a quick and painless death.

Dalia remained silent and managed to gather the courage to glare at the man that was now towering over her.

"You are a stubborn little bitch, you know." he snarled, tapping his wand in his fingers. "Most people would have cracked by now but you are annoyingly strong. I'm sure I can knock that out of you with a few rounds of the _cruciatus_curse though."

Dalia blinked and shuddered a little. She had seen the curse in action on many people before. Their terrified faces that were full of agony plagued her dreams when she didn't have Scabior to sleep next to. She knew that it would be unbearable and she started to question whether she should give them up or not.

Before she could even consider speaking up the word had already escaped Blackwell's lips. Dalia's body was hit with a sudden burst of agony. It felt like a thousand white hot knives were piercing every inch of her skin whilst her insides felt like they were on fire. She writhed in the chair and screamed at the top of her voice, not caring that the man could hear her.

In a matter of seconds the curse had vanished leaving Dalia panting in the chair. A few tears had leaked from her eyes and trailed down her cheeks but she didn't care. Her head had drooped downwards as exhaustion took over.

"How does it feel? Now that you're getting a taste of your own medicine?" Blackwell questioned. He was now behind her again. He must have moved when she was under the curse. "But this doesn't compare to what is happening to the innocent people you handed over to the ministry for a few coins." he spat, lifting his wand again.

"I..I never t-tortured anyone." Dalia managed to get out between short gasps. "I just h-helped take t-them." she added, knowing that it would make no difference to her situation but she didn't want to be punished for something she never did.

Blackwell paused for a moment and took a few steps forwards so he was facing her again. "Oh. So you just hung in the background and waited whilst they were getting tortured? You are disgusting. How could you do that? How could you watch a family being torn apart right in front of your eyes and do _nothing_."

Dalia clenched her jaw and closed her eyes. He was right. It was true. She was an awful person and now she was getting what was always coming to her.

"And look, it doesn't even bother you! If I was you I wouldn't be able to sleep at night!" he shouted, spitting at her feet.

"I can't sleep at night!" she snapped back. But as soon as the last word left her mouth she was hit with the _cruciatus_curse again. Dalia screamed in frustration and agony when the burning pain filled her body again.

This time Dalia thought the curse would never end. It had gone past the first short curse by what felt like hours but was merely seconds. She couldn't take it anymore. The pain was too much. "Please stop! Just do it! Kill me already!" she screeched, tears streaming down her ghostly pale cheeks.

Dalia was too focused on the immense pain that she didn't notice the man walk in. It was only when the curse was lifted she saw his shoes from her head that hung low in defeat.

"I think she's had quite enough for now, Sebastian. We'll continue tomorrow and then she might talk." The man said calmly, trying to reason with Blackwell.

Dalia's heart almost stopped. She recognised that voice. Dalia's head snapped up, ignoring the pain that the sudden movement caused when her watery eyes connected with the man's.

"Dad..."

**Well there you go! I hope you liked it. What do you think about Sebastian? And Dalia's dad?! :O I'd love to hear what you think in a review :) School starts very soon so updates will probably still be slow and I'm really sorry about that! Thank you for reading :)**


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter 22

**Wow, it's been a while since I've updated this... I'm sorry for leaving it on such a cliff hanger like that for so long! **

Dalia's whole body had frozen and her mouth was dropped open in shock. No, this was not happening. This couldn't be real. How could he let her be tortured like this?! But the look in the man's eyes made it clear that he didn't know that the snatcher they had caught was his own daughter.

The man ignored Blackwell's protests as he approached her to get a better look at her. "Dalia, what are you doing here? Why are they calling you a bounty hunter?" he asked.

Dalia swallowed hard and lowered her head, not wanting to see the disappointment on his face. "It's because she _is_ a bloody bounty hunter, Peter!" Blackwell growled, holding her file up to his face which showed her current employment status.

"Dad, I can explain!" Dalia said, finally finding her voice. "Please, just give me a chance to explain myself." she pleaded, hating the disappointed look in Peter's eyes.

Without a word Peter shoved Blackwell away and started to untie Dalia's wrists from behind the chair. The movement of the rope burned her sensitive flesh and she shifted uncomfortably but tried her best to hide the pain. Her father had noticed this but he said nothing. She didn't expect him to, she deserved it after all.

After the ropes had fallen to the floor he carefully brought her hands to the front and rubbed his thumbs over the back of her hands gently but he still refused to look her in the eye. "I'm sorry. I really am." she muttered even though she knew it wouldn't make a difference.

"What are you doing? Why are you letting her go?" Blackwell objected. "She's a snatcher, she deserves this!"

Peter clenched his jaw and turned to the man. "Because she's my daughter, Sebastian. I cannot let her be tortured without even giving her the chance to explain herself." he snapped back. Dalia could tell that he was trying his best to remain calm although inside he was fuming.

Blackwell scoffed and rolled his eyes. "So just because she's related to you she can be let free? She's condemned innocent people to Azkaban. She's killed people!"

"I never killed anyone!" Dalia shouted, not wanting to be labelled as a murder as well. "I swear I haven't!" She stood up and walked forwards, stumbling slightly as she went, the effects of the cruciatus curse still hadn't fully worn off.

"Calm down, Sebastian. Just leave it to me, alright? Go get yourself another drink." Peter spat, holding open the door. Blackwell scowled at her as he stormed out of the room, knowing that it was best not to argue with the man that gave him his job.

As soon as the heavy door had shut again Dalia let out a sigh of relief and leaned against the metal table. She closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths to try to clear her mind.

Peter stayed at the door and studied his daughter for a few moments. He broke the silence after a couple of minutes. "I don't understand, Dalia. Your mother and I tried our best to raise you properly, why would you do this?" he asked quietly.

It took Dalia a while to even think of an answer for herself. She licked her lips and swallowed the lump that had formed in the back of her throat. "I got fired from my job as a barmaid. I had been looking for a job for a good few weeks with no success. I was getting desperate. I had no money and my landlord was threatening to evict me any day."

Dalia turned around and looked down at the file that had been thrown on the table. She skimmed through the page and rested her hands on the edges of the table. "One day after hours of looking for work I was walking home and this man appeared. He offered me a job with good pay. I was stupid enough to take it without any real thought. And now I've got into a hell of a mess and I can't get out." She glanced over to her father and bit back the tears that were forming in the corners of her eyes. "I'm sorry."

Peter felt betrayed; his own daughter had been fighting against their cause for months without him knowing. But he couldn't bear seeing his daughter look so helpless and vulnerable. After a couple more moments of thought he walked over and tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear. "It's okay, Dalia. We'll sort this out." he half smiled before he wrapped his arms around her small form.

* * *

><p>The next couple of hours were a blur to Dalia. Her father had to go through many people to get her listened to. She had spent the last hour sitting in a room by herself, trying to listen for any information through the walls. It was extremely late, probably past midnight. She remembered Scabior telling her to be back before midnight but that was the least of her worries at the moment. After many heated discussions they had finally come to a conclusion and had called Dalia into a room which was being used as a head office.<p>

The room was dark and neglected with several cobwebs hanging off various pieces of furniture. In the centre of the room there was a rather large table filled with a row of order members. Some of them Dalia recognised from when she was younger.

Dalia was directed to a seat facing the row of people. She chewed on her lower lip nervously as she perched on the edge of the chair. She glanced at her father for any hints as to what they were about to say but his face was completely blank which made Dalia's blood run cold.

"Miss Hayfield, you do understand that what you've done is exactly what we are trying to prevent, don't you?" A man told her in a deadly serious tone. Dalia recognised the man from her fifth year at Hogwarts, he was her defence against the dark arts professor, she liked him. He had barely changed since the last time she saw him although there were a few more lines on his face and his eyes seemed darker. She vaguely remembered Snape telling her house that he was a werewolf and that made her even more nervous, she didn't have much luck when it came to them...

Dalia answered his question by nodding slightly. She made sure to avoid eye contact with everyone in the room. They all just gave her disapproving looks, it was degrading.

"Your father is a good man and he sees good in you, Miss Hayfield. After a long deliberation we've decided to forgive your crimes however there are a few conditions." He continued.

Dalia smiled so much that her dry lips cracked. She wanted to run up and hug her father as tightly as possible but it didn't seem appropriate at the moment considering how much trouble she was still in. "Thank you." She muttered, unable to form any other words at the moment.

"It's not me you should be thanking, but you can thank your father later. Now there are a few issues we have to discuss. Firstly, you can never go back to your career as a bounty hunter. As far as you should be concerned that part of your life is dead."

His words made Dalia's heart sink. She knew they were coming, obviously she wouldn't be allowed back and she didn't particularly want to go back however there was one man she didn't want to give up on too easily. But she couldn't just tell them to pardon Scabior as well, it would never happen.

"Secondly, you will have to divulge all of the information you have on your snatcher group and any future plans that you have made."

Dalia's palms were getting sweaty. She couldn't just give them up, what would happen to Scabior? She doubted they would be as forgiving to him as they were to her. She had to do something. "I can't." she whispered. This made everyone in the room tense and all eyes were on her. "Umm, I mean if you destroy one group of snatchers another will take its place in a matter of days. But if you had someone on the inside you'd have an invaluable source of information."

Dalia had to tread carefully now, she was getting herself in deep. There were a few murmurs and whispers amongst the row of people. Dalia looked to her father but still his face remained blank.

After another painfully slow hour of discussions and debates they had put a plan into place. Dalia was to spy on the camp and gather as much information about the death eaters and the ministry as possible. Every two days she would have to come back to the safe house and report all the useful information.

* * *

><p>Dalia's head ached as she climbed up the stairs to a bedroom she was to spend the night in. She had little time to talk to her father after she was let out of the office but she learned that her mother was at a safe house with the Weasleys.<p>

When she entered the room she let out a long sigh. She was exhausted and her mind was racing with all the problems she was facing. She would have to spy on her camp which meant betraying Scabior. If anyone found out about it she'd be killed for sure. How was she supposed to keep that secret? How could she explain her late night trips? And on top of all this she had Greyback on her tail...

Dalia needed a bath. As the hot water was pouring into the bath Dalia had some time to look in the mirror. She was taken aback by what she saw, surprised that her father had even recognised her.

Her clothes hung loosely on her tiny frame, her hip and collar bones could be seen through her pale and dull skin. Her black hair had become frizzy and knotty; she would have to put several charms through it to get all the knots out. Her eyeliner had smudged down her face and made her eyes even darker and her lips were dry and chapped.

Dalia rubbed her eyes and yawned before she stopped the water from flowing and dipped her toes into the steaming water to check the temperature. She quickly slipped out of her worn clothes and slid into the tub.

The world was shut out when Dalia ducked her head under the bath water. The only thing that could be heard was the slow drumming of her heart beat that echoed through the water. She stayed there for as long and she possibly could, not wanting to surface to face the problems that she had coming to her. Eventually her lungs began to burn so she was forced to return into the present, panting slightly from holding her breath for so long.

The soap felt soft and warm as she traced it across her skinny figure. She scrubbed every inch of her body, including under her nails. She was surprised at how much dirt could fit under there. After making sure that she was squeaky clean, Dalia reluctantly got out of the now slightly grey water.

She wasn't allowed her wand back until she left the order's house. They obviously didn't trust her enough to be alone with it. She couldn't blame them. This meant that Dalia had to get into bed with dripping wet hair but she didn't complain. The room was tiny and only had a single bed and a small wardrobe in it but she was grateful for that. The way Blackwell had treated her she was surprised that they didn't keep her locked away.

The bed was warm and inviting and if she didn't have so much on her mind she would have probably fallen asleep within seconds given how exhausted she was. But Dalia lay awake for what felt like hours. Her body still ached from earlier and she was having a bad migraine, making it impossible to sleep.

She doubted she'd be able to pull it off. She wasn't the best at lying and she knew that Scabior would be able to see right through her. She was in deep trouble and there wasn't a way out. Dalia tossed and turned uncomfortably all night.

**Well there you go. I hope this chapter was okay? Please let me know in a review. Thank you for baring with my appalling breaks from updating. **


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