First off, I don't own Harry Potter.

I've been thinking about writing a Harry Potter fanfic for a while now, so I thought I might as well give it a go. I really fell in love with the Hermione/Sirius and Hermione/Draco pairing so I think I'll include both of those in this story. I've decided to keep Lupin and Tonks alive since they were two of my fave characters. The beginning is set the end of summer, going into the fall after the seventh book. For now I'm going to rate this T, but it'll probably end up being turned to a M. Mainly for the later chapters.

Please Read & Review, tell me what you think! :)

Black Sheep Come Home

'Hello again,
friend of a friend,
I knew you when,
our common goal
was waiting for the world to end.'
-Metric

If It hadn't been for Draco Malfoy she would have never thought out it. It was his evil doing that had sprung the idea to mind. Okay so all the credit couldn't just go to him, a little went to Fred and George as well. News of the vanishing cabinet had only started to circulate after the twins had pushed Graham Montague into it just before they'd made their epic escape from the castle. Bidding the frog-like professor adieu, and flying off to start their joke shop.

Hermione had thrown a bunch of ideas around in her head of how she was going to get Sirius back. He couldn't come back as a ghost-because, well he wasn't exactly dead. After some intense reading courtesy of both the Black's private library at the one at Hogwarts she had come to the conclusion he was stuck in some sort of Limbo. Balancing between the world of the living and the world of the dead. How long he was going to stay in the position, she hadn't a clue.

She knew that Harry had never really moved on from the loss of his Godfather. After all, he had been the only family he had left. Sure he had Ginny now and they were happy together, but Hermione couldn't help but notice the pang of pain she saw in Harry's eyes every time he walked the halls of Grimmauld place. Often she would find him gazing up at the black's family tree, focusing on the spot where Mrs. Black had burned off the portrait of her son.

Now that the war was over and everyone was beginning to settle back down, the order of the phoenix wasn't of much use anymore. Harry and Ron had both found jobs at Auror's at the ministry. A profession both of them seemed to excel in since they'd basically been catching dark wizards since they were eleven. Ginny was soaring around with Hollyhead Harpies, she was the best seeker the team had ever come across. Unlike her mother there was no way she was going to settle down and start a family anytime soon.

This left Hermione sitting alone in Grimmauld place, wondering if there was any use of finding her own place when no one lived there. Occasionally people from the order would come by to visit. Lupin and Tonks brought little Teddy over who would crawl around the kitchen, getting in kretchers way and always seemed to find some dark artifact. At the very end of the war, Ron had often stayed over at the house, keeping her company and pushing for a relationship that just wasn't going to happen. During her school years she had felt so passionately for him, she would suffocate at the thought of him being with another girl. When he and lavender had dated it almost broke her in two. However the more time that Ron and her spent alone the more she realized they were better off as friends. There was no mystery or excitement to their relationship. So after two months they called it quits, vowing to stay close friends.

It was one day when Hermione had finally gone to Sirius's room to clean the place up that the vanishing cabinet came to mind. Throughout the few months that she'd been staying there she'd cleaned the house top to bottom. Only avoiding Sirius's and Regulus's room because she felt that if she cleared it out it would mean he was gone. And that was a concept she couldn't grasp.

Everytime Hermione had opened a book in the Black's Library or tried to think of a new way to pull him from the veil a little voice echoed in her head. The voice simply stated, "You really are the smartest witch of your age."

Hermione twisted the door knob and watched as the dust fell beneath her fingers. She pushed the door open and was met with a stiff, stuffy smell. The room had been closed off for too long and from the looks of the grubby floor and the dusty furniture it was beginning to become a lost cause. Every step she took made the dirt jump around her feet. The room was decorated in red and gold and many smiling faces grinned at her from photos on his walls. There was papers strewn across the floor from where someone had been rummaging, not to mention many items seemed to be tipped over or out of place. Hermione remembered searching the entire room with Ron and Harry only a year earlier.

Sighing loudly to herself, she slumped onto the end of Sirius's bed. It was squishy and before she could stop herself she rolled fully onto it, her feet leaving the floor. Crawling forward she let her face slump into one of the pillows and her body go limp around her. Even through he hadn't slept there in over two years, it still smelt like him. His rough, woody aroma. Hermione looked up at the wall above his bed. Many happy faces looked down at her, the one closest was a photograph of the marauders. Lupin looked so young and carefree, barely any scars on his face or crows feet under his eyes. James could have been Harry's twin, he was ruffing up Peter's hair and had that twinkle in his eye that told you he was up to no good. Sirius looked so different compared to his adult form. In the photograph his hair was shorter and scruffy, falling around his face a little too perfectly. A smirk played on his lips and every so often he broke into a laugh, his youthful face lighting up. Hermione, like everyone else who had seen Sirius as a teenager had to agree he was devilishly handsome. Before he had disappeared behind the veil he was aged, deep lines had formed on his face and tattoos littered his skin. However when he laughed it seemed like his age disappeared and the young care-free Sirius shone through.

Hermione's face fell as she thought that out of the four boys in the photograph, only one was left. She couldn't even contemplate what it would be like to lose Harry, Ron and Ginny but for Lupin that was a reality-his best friends had become nothing more than memories. Hermione slid his fingers under the pillow and rested her head for a moment, having never felt so sorry for the werewolf before. Sure she felt awful that he was stuck in that condition for the rest of his life, but without his friends to help him through it-it must be that little bit worse.

Her fingertips grazed something and she pulled it out from beneath the pillow. In her hands was a tattered old photograph, the edges were slightly torn and it had a sun kissed tint to it. In the photo was a young Sirius Black bouncing a small baby with wild brown hair on his knee. Hermione felt her heart lurched, this was clearly Sirius's most prized possession; a photo of him and the only family he cared for, his Godson. She always thought it was cruel how little time they had to spend together. Looking at the laughing faces just made her want to get him back that much more. She couldn't stand to think the situation over anymore, she needed to find a solution. Taking one more look at the photograph she folded it and put it in her pocket. She would use it as a constant reminder not to give up.

Hermione's wavy hair fell messily around her shoulders and she looked into the mirror hanging across from her on the wall. Over the last two years she had changed a lot, her cheek bones were more defined. Her brown hair was less of a curly disaster and more like delicate beach waves. Shaking her head she resisted being vain and began to clean instead, she pulled out her wand and began a series of house cleaning spells she'd seen use.

In no time as all she cleaned up a large portion of the floor. At one side of the room was a wardrobe which she had yet to open, when she did she discovered a ton of old robes and various clothing that was clearly from the 80s. She couldn't help but laugh at some of things Sirius must of worn. There were a whole bundle of jeans and right at the bottom of the stack was a tight pair of leather pants. She unfolded them and held them out, unable to believe he'd actually worn such a thing. Hermione found a bunch of rubbish at the bottom of the wardrobe-She reasoned that he must have gone to clean out his room and had gotten lazy, thinking it would just disappear if he shoved in his his closet. It was at that exact moment that Hermione remembered her sixth year at Hogwarts, how through the help of Draco, the death eaters were able to disappear through one cabinet and appear in another. People seemed to connect cabinets and wardrobes to disappearing acts. Biting her lip, Hermione closed the doors to the cabinet and sat back on the edge of Sirius's bed.

The vanishing cabinet, like the Vail gave the user access to a kind of Limbo. Apparently when Montague had been pushed into it he was floating around for a while-unable to identify exactly where he was. Perhaps that was how Sirius was feeling, behind the veil he was just drifting around, desperately trying to find a way out. Hermione chowed down on her bottom lip, considering the new idea that was thrust to the front lobe of her brain. If she could get her hands on the vanishing cabinets, perhaps she could use one Limbo to get to the other. After the battle that had gone on at the school the year before, she was certain that the entire room of requirement and it's belongings had turned to ashes. There was slim to no chance that the Vanishing Cabinet was still intact and usable. And if there was one person who knew of it's exact location in the room, and knew if it was still in one piece. It was that no good ferret; Draco Malfoy.

Sure he had repented for his ways, pleading that the only reason he'd worked from the dark lord was to save his father, and his own neck of course. But there was just something about him that Hermione found iffy. The rest of the wizarding world had been quick to forgive him. After all it had been Snape who killed Dumbledore in the end-not Draco. Hermione still knew that behind his charming face and whish-washy words was a cunning little ferret just waiting to get out. And that little ferret was going to be working along side her once the summer was through. Hermione had been offered a position at Hogwarts, seeing as many of the professors had either died in the battle or had retired their were many spots that needed to be filled. Hermione had taken the spot of transfiguration teacher as Professor Mcgonagall was now Headmistress Mcgonagall and was too busy to teach classes. Much to Hermione's dislike Draco had been offered the position of potions master, eager to fill his idol's shoes. So that was that. she would just have to hold in her pride and go talk to the little ferret.

Hermione felt rather awkward being in Hogwarts with no students bustling around. Her foot steps sounded far too loud and any noise she made reverberated off the walls. It hadn't been hard to track down the blond bimbo. Actually all she needed was to send one quick owl to the headmistress. School wasn't to start for another week, but it seemed that Draco had decided to move in early. Relishing in the thought of hiding in the castle, and away from any dark lord followers. Sure there weren't that many left, but Draco was a wimp and therefore wasn't taken his chances. Besides he knew how hard it was to get into Hogwarts, and because of that he felt snug as a bug.

Hermione walked swiftly through the castle, admiring the few ghosts who floated by and wondering how she would feel teaching instead of being a student for once. She hadn't seen Draco for quite some time, and the last time they had met wasn't exactly a joyful occasion. Whenever someone brought up his name she was always brought back to her third year when she'd caught him and his goons hiding near Hagrid's hut. That's why she despised him-because he thoroughly enjoyed other peoples pain. So she had gone up and after screaming, "foul, loathsome, evil little cockroach." and given him a left hook into the nose. Even now she chuckled to herself, thinking of the look of pure terror on the boys face. Well, frankly he deserved it.

Soon Hermione found herself in the Dungeons and strolling towards where Snape's chambers had once been. Since he was now gone, she also assumed that Draco would be taking the place as head of Slytherin house. Not looking forward to the meeting she sighed and slowed down until she was a foot from his chamber door. Taking in a deep breath she wrapped her knuckles against the door. For a moment everything remained silent. A few seconds passed then heavy foot steps echoed from inside and the door swung open. Standing in a slacked pair of pajama bottoms and not much else was the prince of Slytherin himself. His hair was a frisky mess, and a cocky smirk was plastered on his face. His body relaxed and he seemed quite pleased that she'd caught him at a awkward time.

"Mcgonagall said you'd been a Professor this term, didn't know they let your kind teach," Draco said smoothly, enjoying the hot flush that sprung to Hermione's cheeks. She hated how cool he always came off, like his words were liquid gold and every syllable was a gift from God. She had to admit that he had grown into a some-what handsome man, but his personality completely ruined his good looks.

"My kind? I didn't know they let your kind teach," Hermione spat, pointing to the dark mark that was still tattooed onto his forearm. He sneered and put the arm up behind his head.
"I doubt people really want their children taught about how to assassinate the headmaster," she rolled her hazel eyes and waited for a reply from Mr. smooth.

"If you recall, Snape killed Dumbledore not me. Now Granger what do you want? You've interrupted my beauty sleep," Draco yawned casually and stroked his hand down his stomach. His fingers drifting softly over his abs. It was hard for her not to look, but Hermione used all her will power to keep her eyes on his.

"Don't worry I won't be long, If anyone is in desperate need of beauty sleep it's you," Hermione snickered and pushed past him. She suddenly felt like she was back in her early years of school, bantering with the boy who bullied her every day.

"Oi, who said you could come in?" Draco spun around and saw Hermione admiring the complete mess that was Draco's Chamber.

"You've been here how long? and it's already a pig sty," Hermione shook her head and looked at the pillows, parchment and books that lay stewed across the floor. She was suddenly reminded of the utter mess she'd left Sirius's room in.

"Just like that mop which you seem to call hair," Draco retorted, "Now Granger, I rather have you in here as little as possible. See, the longer you're in here the more you're going to stink up the place. That just makes more work for me." he watched her as she kicked his belongings aside with the tip of her foot, a look of utter disgust on her face. Draco hadn't really taken more than a two second look at Hermione for some time. Her hair seemed to be more tamed that usual, her body had shaped perfectly into a hour glass figure and by the looks of it she wasn't a half bad looking woman. Of course except for the fact she was a mud-blood.

"Don't worry I think you've done a fine job of stinking up the place by yourself," Hermione swished her hand in front of her nose to add effect. Draco didn't reply but sneered at her with that egotistic look he always seemed to wear.

"Look Draco-"

"You can call me Professor Malfoy-"

"Only if you call me Professor Granger," there was a moment of silence when they both knew that they weren't going to agree with the other. Hermione crossed her arms and stared down her opponent.

"So why are you here? Or do you just enjoy pestering me?" Draco slouched against the door frame, a little confused why she was at school a week early.

"Actually I need your help," her words came out stiffly, it felt weird asking a traitor for help. To be honest it felt weird asking anyone for help, usually she could tackle a task on her own.

"Ou la la, little Miss. Perfect is asking me for help. I never thought I'd see that day," Draco's face lit up and he looked down at his perfectly manicured nails, "Who am I kidding, I knew you'd be after me one day or other...for something." Hermione's face turned beat red, and her eyes pulled into slits.

"Look Malfoy, I just need you to show me where the Vanishing Cabinet is," she would cut straight to the point, and stop lingering around with the half naked boy. Even though she felt nothing but hatred for him, she had to admit, he was defiantly given the gift of a fine bod.

Draco's face dropped at the mention of the object he had used to bring the death eaters into the castle. It wasn't exactly something he was proud off, and now that he was trying to redeem himself-he'd rather forget the whole ordeal. He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck, looking down at the floor.

"Why do you need that piece of rubbish?" he snapped, continuing to keep his eyes firmly planted on the floor. Hermione shifted uncomfortably between feet, kind of shocked by how awkward the situation had become.

"Does it matter? I just need to know where it is," Hermione answered.

"Granger, you and I both know that whole room was set on fire by Crabbe last year, so I really doubt that the cabinet will be anything more than a pile of ashes," it was true, Hermione had considered that perhaps the cabinet had been utterly destroyed. There were some things that couldn't be fixed by magic.

"Yes I know, but could you at least just show me where it is, in case there's a slim chance it survived?" Hermione tried to soften her voice, to put off that offensive tone she always held with Draco. For a few moments they stared each other down, dusky grey eyes against brown. Finally Draco sighed and took a step forward, passing Hermione.

"If it'll get you to leave me the hell alone-then I'd be happy to," Draco snapped, he reached over and pulled a white t-shirt off his couch. Quickly he pushed it over his head and down over his abs.

"Thank you," Hermione simply stated, the words feeling more unnatural than asking for help in the first place. He led her out of the messy Chamber, shutting and locking the door behind him. For a while they walked in silence, only their footsteps and breathing making any sound.

"So Granger not thinking of letting someone sneak into the castle are you?" Draco looked back at the timid girl, he cocked an eyebrow in her direction.

"Of course not, I'm not that idiotic," Hermione retorted, taking a stab at him where she knew it hurt. Draco decided to ignore her attempt at an insult and continue his questioning.

"What plans do you have for this piece of junk? You must know the other end is in Borgin and Burkes," this time he didn't look but continued talking.

"Which is why I'm going to go buy it, if this one is still in one piece. And if you must know I'm trying to save someone's life," whenever Hermione thought about saving life's Harry's face always seemed to drift to the front of her mind. That boy was always putting his life on the line for someone else.

"Ou look who's trying to be a hero-who can you possibly save with a cabinet?" Draco laughed, laying it on real thick. Hermione contemplated telling him who it was, she knew that Sirius and Draco were related but she had no clue how they felt about each other. Would Draco not show her where the cabinet was if it was to bring back Sirius?

"Well if you must know, I'm planning to bring Sirius back," Hermione said in a hushed voice. Draco stopped in his tracks and swerved to face her.

"Sirius? Sirius Black?" he couldn't believe his ears.

"Is there any other?"

"No, there's no way. My aunt said she Avada kedavraed him back at the ministry. She was pretty proud of it too," Draco shook his head, "Danced around my house singing, 'I killed Sirius Black' for at least an hour. My dad finally had to tell her to put a cork in it." It made Hermione uneasy the way he talked about Bellatrix like she was a nice friendly Aunt, like she hadn't put her through hell last year. There were numerous scars on her chest, left there as a daily reminder of the trials she went through. Hermione shuddered a little, trying to get the woman out of her head. Draco seemed to noticed that he'd made his companion uneasy-the color had dropped from her cheeks.

"Hmm well, Sirius actually fell through a veil in the department of mysteries. Harry was convinced he wasn't dead and was just waiting on the other side of the veil," Draco begin walking again and Hermione quickened her pace to catch up, "I think he's right."

"So what does a vanishing cabinet have to do with this...veil? Or is my peanut sized brain not getting the obvious answer here," Draco said in a snarly tone, twisting down yet another corridor on the first floor. Finally they had come to the wall the room of requirements hid behind.

"If you must know, I was planning on pushing one cabinet through the veil, then using the other to go into that cabinet and find Sirius," Hermione stated, proud of her plan.

"Limbo to limbo," Draco said in a hushed voice, looking up at the placed he'd entered over a hundred times. A place he didn't really want to return too. For a moment he considered turning back but then Granger would think him a coward. Instead he just sneered at the stone bricks.
"Take my hand Granger," Draco's voice dripped with disgust. He could barely believe he'd just asked her to touch him. He would have to go back to his Chamber and wash his body in bleach.

"What?" Hermione couldn't believe what he'd just said.

"Do you want to see this bloody cabinet or not?" he held out his hand, thrusting it forcefully in her direction. Looking at it like it was a disease infested rat she held her breath and grabbed his hand. She had expected his touch to be icy cold like his personality. Instead his hand was warm, his palm was rough and he clearly had calluses and scars all over it. No doubt injury's from the battle not so long ago. Hermione couldn't help but feel inappropriate holding hands with a former death eater.
Draco dragged her with him and began to walk back and forth in front of the wall, focusing on the place he had stashed the cabinet. After a few swift paces a door began to form in the wall, it pushed bricks aside and grew from the floor up. As soon as it was fully formed Draco dropped Hermione's hand and the two started towards the handle.

It was exactly how she had remembered it, crowded from floor to ceiling. Bits and bobs of everything sort of object littered the place. It was a graveyard for the forgotten and the lost, some things were there that were never suppose to be found. However instead of being met by colorful artifacts, the lost items were a charcoal grey, piles of ash now took up a majority of the space. It seemed that almost everything had been damaged by the fire some how or other. Clearly some of the objects were cursed with dark magic and remained perfectly intact. Hermione knew that amongst the piles of ash was probably the half blood prince's potion book that Harry had hid in his sixth year. For a moment the two stood at the door, looking out amongst the tangled maze of belongings before them.

"Let's get this over with, shall we?" Draco snapped, his feet already knew the path to take, a path he'd taken so many times it was engraved in his memory forever. Skipping and jumping oven the filth they made their way past clumps of furniture and artifacts. They walked in dead silence until at last Draco came to a abrupt halt causing Hermione to miscalculate her footing and almost trip over. In front of them was a tall, chestnut brown cabinet. metal decor laced the exterior and a hefty handle hung from one of it's side. It was charred from the flames but still seemed like it was in pretty good condition.

"Well this is it," Draco pointed to the cabinet and twisted to face Hermione, mainly so he wouldn't half to look at the haunting thing. It still gave him the heebie jeebie's after all this time, "I'm sure with your brilliant brain you'll be able to find your way out," he spat sarcastically, turned on his heels and left.

Hermione watched him leave then stepped closer to the piece of dark magic, a soot covered blanket covered half of it and draped over the top. With a hard tug it fell to the ground-a large part of it disintegrated into dust. Hermione coughed, beating her chest and turning her face away from the flying soot. She stepped forward and ran her hand down the side of the cabinet. It was smooth and polished and seemed so innocent, yet she knew if she stepped inside it she would be transported to an entirely different location. She grasped hold of the metal hoop on the side of the cabinet and yanked it open. Inside it was empty, just a square box big enough to fit around four people. Hermione could see how family's would use this contraption when voldemort had first come into power. It was an easy get away and could probably fit right into a house's decor. This was it, she had what she needed, her plan was sure to work.

Even after fighting a three-headed dog, Dementors, Death eaters and various other creature's she still felt petrified walking down knock-turn alley. She wasn't used to walking around such creepy places by herself. Usually she'd ask Harry or Ron to come with her however, Harry and Ginny were still busy in their honeymoon stage and Ron would get the wrong idea. The last thing she wanted was Ron thinking she was still interested in him.

She walked as silently and quickly as possible, trying to draw no attention to herself. Mad wizards muttered things under their breathes as she passed. A few witches that were huddled in a corner couldn't have looked more guilty. Finally she looked ahead and saw the swinging wooden sign that stated, 'Borgin and Burkes.' The whole exterior was covered in a thick layer of grit and was less welcoming than a venomous snake. She'd only been in the place once before, after seeing Draco enter their at the beginning of her sixth year she had gone in to find out what exactly he was trying to buy. Instead she was met by the short temper of the owner, Borgin and was chucked out in a heartbeat.

Hermione shuddered, pulled her cardigan around herself tightly and approached the door. As she opened it a small bell tinkered and it seemed that many of the dark artifacts came to life. She felt like she was back in the room of requirements, trying to find her way through a maze of mess. It took her a moment or two but before long she was standing before the sister cabinet. Gazing up at it with hope that she would soon be able to give Harry the greatest gift of all. She was going to be the one to bring Sirius back. A broad smile was fastened to her face and for a second she forgot where she was.

"Can I help you?" Drawled a voice behind her who sounded angered by her company. Hermione flinched and turned around to face the old man. Borgin's face was long and thin, his eyes were sunken back into his head and his cheeks had sagged down to his chin. He might be have been the most unfortunate looking man that Hermione had ever come across. Just from his attire she could see he was stuck in the early 1900s.

"Actually I was wondering if this was for sale?" Hermione asked innocently, pointing at the cabinet which was in surprisingly better condition than it's twin. Borgin stared between the Cabinet and the girl, trying to size up the situation.

"Have I met you before?" he sneered, taking a step towards her and getting in her personal space. Hermione realized that there last meeting wasn't exactly a great one so she tried to remain calm.

"Not that I know off, I don't like to spend a lot of time in knock-turn alley," Hermione smiled politely.

"I see, I see," the old man nodded, "Well then why do you want this? It doesn't exactly seem up your alley, if you know what I mean."

"And why's that?" she retorted.

"Well the last person to come in here looking for this was a young man. Couldn't have been much older than yourself. What he used it for well let's just say...you're better leaving this piece of junk alone," Borgin shook his head in disgust, "But if you really want it take it, I'd rather have it outta my hands."

"I think I'll take it," Hermione didn't think twice before pulling out a sack of coins she had in her pocket. The money all belonged to the Black's but Hermione reasoned Sirius wouldn't care if it was being used to bring him back. Besides she didn't exactly have money coming out the kazoo. Borgin looked at the sack, and if even for just a flickering second it seemed a smile appeared on his lips.

"Very well, but it's at your own risk," Borgin walked to the cash register with Hermione in tow, "and this is just one of the set. You know they come as a set right?" he didn't wait for an answer by popped open the register.

"Of course," Hermione opened the small purse.

"And you know where the sister one is located?"

"Mmm-hmm," she simply nodded and fished out some galleons. Now her only problem was getting the cabinet out of Borgin and Burkes and into the department of Mysteries.

"You know I really appreciate this Luna," Hermione grinned, pretty chuffed with the way things were turning out. They stood in the atrium of the Ministry of Magic, gazing up at new statues above the fountain. It seemed weird to be back in the place, like at any moment Dumbledore and Voldemort were going to pop out and start dueling. The fact that everything was so calm was unnatural. Around them Witches and Wizards were appearing in fire places, using the floo network to get to work. A few carts sold the Daily Prophet and everyone seemed to be in a hurry. The constant flow of people was like a tide, pulling them closer to the elevators.

"Oh, it's really no problem at all," the airy girl replied, Luna had remained the same throughout the war. Her long blond hair was swept to the side in a pony tail and a dazed look was painted on her face.
"It's like I'm helping out an old friend," Luna said gleefully, looking at Hermione like she was a scrumptious piece of cake.

"I think we're friends...aren't we friends Luna?" Hermione was a bit confused, Ginny always had a better grasp of the girl than she did.

"Well if you say so," she smirked. Luna began to head towards the Elevators and Hermione followed. Luna floated rather than walked, her feet barely touched the ground when she moved. From her ears hung the radish earrings she'd worn throughout her time at hogwarts.

"When did you get a job here Luna?" Ron had told her Luna worked at the Ministry, she just had a hard time imagining such a airy creative person working in an office.

"Oh right after the war. I've really been obsessed with the place since we broke in here. I find the department of mysteries...lovely," Hermione knew that the girl meant fascinating or interesting but she didn't bother to correct her. They came to a free elevator and stepped in, memos flew in behind them and buzzed around their heads like knats.

"These remind me of wrackspurts," Luna tilted her head up to look at them.

"What spurts?" Hermione didn't know why she bothered asking, she knew it was probably some wacky creature than Xenophilius had come up with to put in the Quibbler. The elevator door slid shut and they started to propel downwards.

"Wrackspurts, they float in your ear and make your brain go fuzzy," Luna informed with a cheery smile. Hermione nodded, wondering if perhaps there were permanent wrackspurts floating around in Luna's ears.

Working as an Unspeakable in the department of mysteries seemed like a perfect job for Luna. She was all about weird creatures and odd occurrences. The elevator continued to drop, stopping every so often to let memos fly out or other ones fly in. Hermione felt like she was back with the DA about to brand her wand and start shooting stunning spells at Death eaters. Lately, It seemed that she was returning to many places from her past. Her eyes focused on the directory above the door which showed they'd finally reached the ninth floor.

"I'm surprised their letting you take me in here," Hermione said, trying to fill the awkward silence that had formed. The elevator doors sprung open and revealed a long plain corridor.

"Sometimes I'm surprised they let me in here," Luna stated, "But then again you've been in here before, so what's there to hide."
Hermione knew she had a point, it would be ridiculous for the Ministry to pretend she hadn't ogled everything in the department of mysteries. Luna stepped out of the elevator and proceeded down the corridor.

"So why do you want into the department of mysteries?" Luna questioned, keeping her eyes on the black door directly ahead of her.

"I'm kind of on a rescue mission," Hermione grinned, it was hard not to when she thought of her ingenious plan. They came to the black door and Luna reached out to the handle, twisting it then opening the door.

"Rescue? Wasn't that the mission we were on last time?" Luna walked through the doorway, holding the door open for Hermione.

"Actually I'm here to save the same person."

"Sirius Black," Luna didn't seem to be the least bit surprised, "Yes I've thought about it too. I bet Harry misses his Godfather-you know Stubby Boardman was a very talented musician, it was a real shame that turnip was thrown at him. " She waited until Hermione was inside then shut the door behind them. Hermione had almost forgotten the article in the Quibbler about Sirius Black's 'real identity' as the lead singer of the Hobgoblins.

"He wasn't St-" Hermione looked down, only to notice Luna's feet, "Luna why aren't you wearing any shoes?"

"Oh well you see I got so used to my shoes disappearing I thought it'd just not wear them at all," Luna wiggled her striped toe socks, "Gives them room to breath."
Hermione laughed and looked up at the girl, there was something about Luna that was refreshing. She wished she could be like Luna and not care what other's thought. However she knew that with her uptight personality there was no way she could relax enough to manage that.

"I heard voices behind the veil," Luna began, drifting back into the previous conversation.

"Pardon?" Hermione had fazed out for a moment.

"When we were here before I heard voices behind the veil, I think that they are just lurking behind it," Luna looked around at the twelve doors that surrounded them. The floor was made of glass and looked as though they were standing on a giant puddle. Hermione secretly hoped that Luna was right, and that just at the other side of the veil was Sirius Black waiting to return to reality.

"I think it should be right through here," Luna pointed towards a door to her left, sounding pretty convinced.

"How can you know which door opens to the room with the veil?" Hermione couldn't understand how Luna could just pick when all twelve doors looked identical.

"Oh just a guesstimation," Luna hummed and walked up to the door, she pulled it open and her hunch had been correct; they were standing at the threshold of the death chamber, "You get a knack for it after working here for a while." her gray eyes twinkled magically as she began to descend the steps to the veil.

Hermione's heart climbed up into her throat, if this worked then she could bring a life back. It would be her saving someone this time, not Harry, Ron or Ginny. It would be her. Suddenly she felt selfish, she didn't want the glory did she? No, she wanted Sirius back. When he had been around they had there small disagreements but that was only because he was so reckless. It was his recklessness in the end that had caused him to fall through the veil. If she got him back, she was tempted to just lock him in Grimmauld place so he couldn't go gallivanting off again. Hermione knew that Harry blamed himself for what had happened to Sirius, and by bringing him back she hope she could finally free him from that guilt.

Hermione breathed in proudly and walked down the rest of the steps. The room was dimly lit, most of the light fell upon the veil in the middle of the room. Due to it's shape and layout it resembled a court room. Hermione could easily imagine people sitting around to watch a dark wizard get thrown through the archway into. Bellatrix's voice echoed in her head the closer she got to the middle of the room, her joyful laughter as she cursed her cousin into oblivion then her sing-song voice screaming, 'I killed Sirius Black' over and over again like a broken record. Luna stepped up to the archway.

"listen, can't you hear them?" Luna turned a ear towards the veil. Hermione thought it was another one of Luna's mad ravings until the silence was broken by soft whispers. Dozens of different voices called out from beyond the archway. Hermione strained to hear, trying to see if she could depict Sirius's husky voice. Instead they were just a mess of murmurs, it was impossible to pick out a clear sentence amongst the bunch.

"Now I hear them," Hermione nodded, wondering what had changed since the last time she'd been there. Or had she just been too busy and stressed to notice them before?

"So how are you planning on getting Stubby back?"she asked quizzical, transfixed on the archway. Hermione didn't see the point in explaining how Sirius wasn't Stubby so she just plain ignored it.

"Like this," Hermione pulled her small beaded handbag in front of her. She'd used it last year while traveling with Ron and Harry, it had been very handy since it had an extension charm and could hold many objects at once without getting any bigger. Hermione stuck her hand in the bag and rummaged around till her fingers grazed a smooth rectangular object. Taking hold of it she yanked it out the bag.

"Your going to use a cabinet for mice?" Luna quipped looking down at Hermione's out stretched hand. The little cabinet balanced on her palm and looked like a piece of furniture from a doll house.

Hermione knelt down, placed the cabinet on the ground and took out her wand. Pointing it at the tiny object she yelled, "Engorgio!"

At once the Vanishing Cabinet began to grew, it shot up like a bean sprout and was taller than the two girls in no time at all. Luna watched in amazement and took a step back to get out of the way. After a few seconds it was back to original size and Hermione crossed her arms proudly.

For a moment she considered pushing the cabinet through the veil but then feared she'd get dragged in with it. Reaching her hand back in, she found a coil of rope and began to pull it from the purse. Luna watched as the rope fell to the ground and began to coil back up. Hermione snapped her purse shut, grabbed one end of the rope and walked around the vanishing cabinet. When she was back where she had started she tried the rope together, so that the whole cabinet looked like it had been lassoed.

"What is it?" Luna questioned, gazing dreamily at the cabinet in front of her.

"It's a vanishing cabinet," Hermione said, "they come as a set, I'm going to put this one behind the veil then go through the other one to get to it. Hopefully I'll be able to find Sirius on the other side." The truth was that she feared that when she got behind the veil, she wasn't going to be able to come back. Perhaps she too was going to be stuck in limbo forever.

"Sometimes I wonder why the sorting hat didn't put you in Ravenclaw," Luna smiled. Hermione often wondered why the sorting hat didn't put Luna in Gryfindor. After all, Luna was the bravest girl she knew.
"...but then again...it takes courage to go into limbo when you don't know if you'll come back out," Luna's eyes drifted up over the cabinet and to the archway behind it.

"Thanks Luna," Hermione said in a somewhat sarcastic tone. Butterflies in her stomach began to beat their wings. Honestly, she didn't even know if the cabinet would go through the archway and into limbo. Perhaps it was only living beings that could pass through the veil.

Hermione had read every book she could find on the veil, and there was only one that had given her hope that her plan would work. It told of a wizard who had been standing in front of the veil, waiting to push a prisoner back through the archway as punishment for his actions. He pulled out his pocket watch to count down the seconds until the death sentence. Just as he fiddled with the casing it slipped from his fingers and rolled behind the archway. Without thinking he knelt down at reached for the watch. Unfortunately for him the second he put his arm through the archway he was sucked in. Disappearing from existence forever.

Hermione looked around the archway until she spotted a sturdy looking rock. Taking the free end of the rope she wrapped it around the rock and tied it tightly. Hopefully when the vanishing cabinet went through the archway it wouldn't be sucked in with a gravitational sized pulled.

"Oh, what happens next?" Luna asked excitedly, looking between the cabinet and Hermione.

"This," Hermione pointed her wand at the cabinet, "Locomotor."

The vanishing cabinet rose of the ground, guided by Hermione's wand it floated through the archway. Just as she had hoped, it disappeared from sight. Luna walked around the other side of the archway to check, then returned swiftly.

"It's gone! It worked," she announced.

Hermione waited patiently for the elevator door to slide open then walked out into the atrium. No matter what time of day the ministry always seemed to be packed with people. She wrestled her way through the crowd, trying to get by the fountain. Suddenly she past a large crop of ginger hair and someone called out to her.

"'ermione?" It was Ron, he reached through the crowd and plucked her up like a blueberry. Within seconds she was standing in front of her best friend, trying to catch her breath.

"It's insane in here, how do you get in and out of this place everyday?" Hermione held a hand to her chest.

"Well I'm kind of like a bulldozer really," Ron indicated to his broad shoulders and large chest, "Anyway, what are you doin' here? Not interviewing for a job are you?"

Hermione knew she couldn't tell Ron the real reason she was at the Ministry. She had decided to keep Ron and Harry oblivious to the whole mission, it was safer that way. The last thing she wanted was to get their hopes up.

"I, Uh I was just visiting Luna," said Hermione. Ron's face dropped a little, Hermione knew that it was because she had never came to visit him, even when they were a 'couple'. He rubbed the back of his neck and peered down at her.

"You were visiting loony?" Ron still couldn't get over Luna's nickname, yet he said it in a kinder tone.

"Yup, I hadn't see her a while so I thought It'd just..." Hermione trailed off at the end of her sentence. They had a awkward moment when neither of them said a word.

"Seems like kind of a weird pairing-You and Loony I mean," Ron stated, "Because well...she's kind of really open and spacey and you're-"

"Uptight?" Hermione finished, Ron turned beat red, clearly not meaning for her to take his comment in a bad way, "Ron it's okay I know I'm kind of uptight, but that's why Luna and I work well as friends. You know what they say-Opposites attract."

This just made Ron turn redder, "Is that what they say?" Hermione knew that the conversation was about to head south. Pulling her purse close to her and fixing her jacket she took a step towards the fireplaces.

"Sorry Ron I've really got to go, things to do you know," Hermione put the best smile she could on her face. Trying to show that she wasn't just blowing him off, which of course was what she was doing.

"Yeah Yeah-I should probably go do Auror stuff...Yeah," Ron blurted out awkwardly.

"It was nice seeing you," Hermione called to him, then turned on her heels and started pushing back through the crowd, working her way towards a fireplace.

"Hey 'ermione?" Ron called over people's bobbing heads.

"Yes?" she looked back.

"Uh...Do you think we could have dinner sometime soon?" Ron spluttered out, "...just you and me?" Ron had become used to having dinner with a whole group of people at Grimmaud Place-it was never just the two of them alone. Hermione bit her lip, she didn't know how to shut him down without it being harsh.

"Maybe, I go back to Hogwarts in a week so I'm kind of busy," Hermione said Cooley, hoping she hadn't hurt his feelings.

"Oh...yeah...right," Ron looked crestfallen.

She was walking down the large corridor on the first floor again. A tight grey sweater and a pair of jeans hugged her body. Her hair was thrown up in a messy bun and a smile was licked across her face. Out of her back pocket stuck her wand, on no other occasion would she shove it there-but today she felt a little rebellious. A little like she wouldn't give a damn if her right butt cheek was blown off. With a spring in her step she rounded the corner to the passageway where the room of requirements was found. Without a second to stop and think she began walking back and forth in front of the wall, focusing of the vanishing cabinet. Her heart was beating fast, she was about to get Harry his Godfather back-she was about to make one of her best friends very happy. She just knew it had to work. How could it not?

There it was, a door forming slowly in the wall, pushing bricks aside with ease. In seconds it was fully formed and a door handle popped out from the wooden paneling. She stepped forward, took hold of the handle and twisted. The door sprung open and the room of requirements was exactly how she left it. Still a utter mess, still broken down by fire and still crumbling to pieces at every second. Step by Step she maneuvered her way around the pile of ashes and tried to remember the path that Draco had taken her on just a few days before. It was kind of sad how many priceless artifacts had been destroyed, how many magical creations were ruined forever. Hermione really had to count her blessings that the vanish cabinet hadn't suffered the way the rest of the place had.

Finally she passed a large statue and just in sight was the cabinet. She rushed forward, unable to contain the excitement that was coursing through her. Her stride turned more into a run until at last she reached her destination. The vanish cabinet was exactly as it was before, slightly charred but still in one piece. Breathing in deeply, Hermione reached out and grabbed the metal hoop, yanking the door open. There wasn't any dust or cobwebs inside, just a perfectly clean square box, ready for use by whomever needed it. Hermione took one last look around the room, stepped up into the cabinet and closed the door behind her.

"Harmonia Nectere Passus."

Hope you enjoyed it so far. Keep posted for the next chapter :) Please Review and tell me what you think.