Chapter Two: WHERE IS IT?

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

I'd like to give a shoutout to my wonderful beta Something Unreal. Thanks for putting up with me through all of my horrid grammatical issues.

"I'm afraid I don't understand" Ginny said with a lopsided smile as she stared at the anxious healer across from her. The dim lighting in the small office left features and moods blurred, but the tension was very present at the moment. Ginny felt lightheaded, confused, perchance on the edge of uncontrolled laugher.

The healer sighed and rearranged her grim face before repeating it. "We cannot find Oliver Wood's deceased body" she said as kindly as her cold professional demeanour would allow.

Ginny shook her head and laughed a slight laugh. Harry sat beside her there with a gaping mouth, drowning in a sea of confusion "What do you mean?" he asked shaking his head.

The healer began to look annoyed and even more anxious; thinking she perhaps had a couple of lunatics in her office. "Wood's body is gone." she said very slowly, with striking pronunciation.

"Don't talk to me like I am an idiot, I realize his body is gone. What I don't understand is how! We brought it here, to your hospital, your morgue; did he just get up and walk away?" Harry asked furiously, leaning towards the short haired healer from across the desk. The air crackled.

"Perhaps the body has just been misplaced" the healer suggested lamely.

Ginny laughed frantically now, her eyes flying about the room in bewilderment. "You misplaced a body? I can't believe that. Where is the body? Are you telling me-" she sobered greatly at that moment and placed her hands threateningly on the oak desk, leaning as close as she could to the healer "- that someone took the body?"

"I wouldn't t-think anybody would t-take the body" the healer stuttered, clearly intimidated by Ginny's proximity.

"THEN WHERE IS HE!" Ginny screamed loudly, apparently her rational spoke violence would solve matters quicker.

Harry pulled her down into her seat swiftly, wanting to avoid a fight.

The healer looked from one to the other, sensing that she had gotten herself into more than she could handle alone. "Listen you two, I don't know everything. All I know is that the body was placed there two days ago, and when we opened the chamber this morning, it was gone" she said simply raising her hands in a non threatening gesture "There have been other odd things occurring at St. Mungo's with missing bodies, this would not be the first".

"They took it" Harry said inaudibly, looking to Ginny.

Ginny nodded sharply, anger still coursing through her, the desire to tear the healer apart ever apparent on her face. "Thank you for notifying us" Ginny said coolly as she stood from her chair, "Please feel free to reach us if there is any news concerning the situation"

She and Harry left the office.

"It's gone. Oh Merlin, it's gone" Ginny whispered tearfully as she walked circled in her kitchen. Harry watched her from the counter with a tugging frown on his face.

"What now?" he asked, truly at a loss for what to do.

"What now? I have no idea" Ginny said gripping her hair. Harry hated to see her so worried, Ginny was the reincarnation of Molly, and in some matters this did not appeal to him.

"They took it, the death eaters took it. We know that much" Harry said with a sigh. "But why did they take it? What does Oliver Wood's body mean to them?" Harry asked himself.

Ginny spun around and walked out of the kitchen, unable to handle the situation. Harry watched her go wretchedly. What was he suppose to say to Hermione? How was he supposed to convince her that Oliver was dead if he couldn't prove it? At least he didn't have to worry about the funeral.

Hermione was walking around her apartment and frowning. Something wasn't right. It was a vague and cool sensation that left her body in goose bumps and her mind aching for…something. That nagging feeling had not released her yet, she was forgetting something. Was it an appointment, was she supposed to have dinner with someone, an Order meeting? None of these things seemed to be it.

It was the giant absence of all things Oliver that must have been causing the emptiness and unease in her. She couldn't smell his favorite cologne anywhere, his closets were empty but for a few articles of clothing, none of his sports magazines littered the coffee table, his socks were not thrown by the door…

She sighed and walked out of the living room and onto her terrace. Hermione truly felt unwell, it was a feeling of nausea, the vomiting that would never come. She was worrying herself sick. Why hadn't Oliver sent her a real reply yet? Hermione was desperate to know how he was doing, if he was settled, what he would do first. Without reply, it was difficult to feel easy.

The people walked the small street before her-their- townhouse. The boutiques on the other side of the lane had drawn down their curtains and shut their doors to keep out the wild heat. Children walked with small quick steps following their parents and licking their hands clean of melting ice-cream. Lovers walked hand in hand, heads down, but slowly. Hermione would have loved to be outside with somebody. But everyone she knew was busy, Harry and Ginny had sometime or other to do this morning, Ron seemed as though he was avoiding her, in fact all of the Weasley's seemed this way, even Neville had something important to do. That made today a downright rotten day, even her bloody Prophet had not arrived that morning.

A glint of shining white caught her eye on the street below. Draco Malfoy was walking home from school, as he did every day, walking past her house with his leather book bag slouching on his shoulder, his top three buttons left undone and his tie loosely draped over his shoulders. He glanced up and around, and as his eyes revolved, they locked with hers. He smiled and waved, Hermione waved back, smiling slightly. She motioned for him to come over to her.

Malfoy appeared slightly surprised, but not terribly so. They had been on decent terms for the past few years, and were colleagues who not only tolerated each other, but respected as well. Hermione saw Malfoy walk past her house almost every day, but besides that they rarely ever ran into each other. He looked left and right and walked across the street to her gate. Hermione left her terrace and headed downstairs to open the door for him. Hermione unlocked her front door and opened it for him. Malfoy smiled shyly and remained on her doorstep, looking past her into the house.

"What can I do for you?" he asked lightly.

"Join me for some iced tea" Hermione said stepping back from the door to allow him inside.

"Nice place you have here" Draco said as he placed down his book bag by the table in her entrance hall.

"Thank you" Granger replied.

They walked up her white stairs to the level she actually lived on and entered the living room. It was large and spacious, painted in crisp white and mint greens. Her windows were large and open allowing the sun, and the heavy heat entrance. "Sit" she said motioning to her white couch. Draco looked at it and frowned, everything was so neat and clean, it was frightening. He sat down slowly and looked at her awkwardly, unsure if he should smile or not.

"I'll make us some tea" Granger smiled as she turned on her heel and walked to her kitchen. Draco's eyes followed her keenly. She was wearing a blue summer dress, bare feet, and hair high on her head. There was an absent minded aura around her, but this did not surprise him. Draco barely trusted himself around Granger, he was afraid his tongue would let loose and he would say something terribly stupid.

Her fiancé was dead, and she didn't know. How was he supposed to act? Avoiding bringing up Wood would probably be a good start. Draco looked at his hands lying on his lap and suddenly felt sick. He had witnessed it all. In a moment Wood was dead on the ground along with all of his fellow travelers. Granger was in his arms out cold.

It had been nothing more than a coincidence that he had been getting on that same flight for a business trip to America for Malfoy Enterprises. It wasn't even a trip he had planned to take, his father had had requested that Draco fill in for him. Of course, his father would have wanted him in the crossfire. Draco was well aware his father was simply looking for an easy way to put his son in a coma for the next ten years. Get him out of the way and saddle up to Voldemort without an obstacle.

And so Draco had been there, walking directly past Wood and Granger when all of the windows exploded…

He sighed and looked back up; Granger was coming out of the kitchen with a tray in her hands. Two tall glasses, a pitcher of tea, and what appeared to be a plate of homemade cookies crammed onto the surface. He didn't feel right being here. In fact it felt quite perverse, seeing that he knew everything, and she didn't.

Granger smiled brightly at him, her lightly tanned skin catching the light and her strands of hair falling down over her neck. She looked happy, pleased, he hated it. She was ignorant, and it was wrong of him to be in her company.

"Here you are" she smiled sitting down across from him and placing a glass in front of him and then filling it to the brim with iced tea. "Have a cookie, I made them earlier myself" she insisted pushing the plate towards him. Draco avoided her eyes and took a cookie, shoving it into his mouth to keep from speaking.

"So, how are things?" she asked casually.

"Well…good. You know, still taking auror classes, still trying to avoid getting sucked into the family business" he said with a straight face.

Hermione's eyebrows rose politely. "Oh, well, I'll keep my fingers crossed for you" she said with a slight laugh. Malfoy looked very uncomfortable sitting across from her. He was avoiding her gaze with vigour and replying very curtly. Hermione liked to imagine she knew Malfoy very well, and as far as she knew this was very out of character for him. Malfoy was not the type to avoid a gaze or mumble. Something must have been on his mind.

"Alright, well, lets get onto the topic that interests me" Hermione said with a bright smile. Malfoy looked up in surprise, his pink lips in a slight 'o'. "Are there any girls in your life?" Hermione asked leaning forward.

Malfoy coughed loudly and grabbed his ice tea, he took and sip and looked out her terrace window "Nice view" he said in a strained voice.

Hermione laughed loudly, "Oh come on, don't avoid the question. Skirting around answers doesn't suit you Malfoy" she said calculatingly. He chuckled nervously, but appeared to calm.

"Honestly, I haven't really had any news in that department of my life. Not such a great multitasker, haven't had the time" he said stringing his words monotonously. Hermione frowned; it may have just been her, but she felt as though he really was avoiding something.

She looked at him carefully as he gazed out her window. A flicker of an image flashed behind her eyes. Hermione frowned even deeper. Another image flickered, too fast for her to grasp. She 

sat up straight and cleared her throat, attempting to clear her head at the same moment. She was becoming distracted again.

"Are you alright?" Malfoy asked peering at her from behind his pale lashes.

"Yeah…fine" Hermione whispered.

"Sure?"

"No"

This seemed to surprise him for he sat straight in an instant, as though readying himself to flee should the need arise. "No?" he questioned oddly, his voice doing peculiar things.

"No" Hermione repeated softly "I've been having this odd feeling" she began honestly, and then paused. Did she need to burden him with her silly worries? He had asked…but he had not asked for a deep personal discussion.

"You can tell me" he said as though hurt by her sudden pause.

"Well it's nothing" Hermione said quickly, trying to make light of the topic "I've just been really absent minded since Oliver left. And something feels off. I feel as though I'm forgetting something really important. I'm afraid I'll miss a meeting or a dinner being like this" she chuckled dryly taking a sip of her tea.

"I'm sure it's nothing" Malfoy replied evenly. His voice had returned to its usual cool tone and he appeared to have relaxed slightly, still…Hermione had not been expecting such a quick and straightforward reply. "Everyone has that feeling once in a while, and I'm sure it's not a big deal. It will pass in a few days and you'll resume normally. So don't fret too much" he said blowing it off.

Draco Malfoy felt as though he was about to break. His beautiful chiseled frame was wrought with cracks already, and the look Granger was giving him was leaving him teetering on an edge of uncertainty.

"Yeah, I guess so" she agreed.

He sighed a breath of relief, saved from the fall. He wanted nothing more than to escape from her company now. There were just too many things wrong with this situation. Why had he not turned down her offer of tea? It would have been so simply to politely decline. But he had wanted to see how she was, to see her state. It was very hard to believe she couldn't remember something that had occurred but two days ago.

The whole situation was surreal and terrifying. He had taken the Prophet that had been in her mailbox that morning; Potter had missed that small detail. And it was a good thing he had done so for on the front page there was a giant picture of Wood and his colleagues. An article about what had occurred at the airport. The ministry had just released the information to the press. 

Draco thought it would have been better kept silent still. Granger was bound to find out soon and what then?

He had not given it much thought, mostly because he could not comprehend the 'what then'. Draco was sure that Potter was thinking about it nonstop. He looked at Granger; she had gone off into a reverie again. Her chin in her palm, her eyes fixed on a picture on the mantle. It was a picture of her and Wood. Draco watched her brows crease, as though she was trying to remember a particularly difficult formula, and then release just as quickly.

She turned to him with a bright smile, "I'm sorry. Did you say something? I'm afraid I just lost myself right there"

"No, it's quite alright. Must be the heat" Draco said quickly "Thank you very much for the tea and the cookies, but I'm afraid I must make my leave" he said standing.

"Oh" Granger said standing with him, "So soon?" she asked.

"Yes, I have schoolwork" he lied quickly. He knew Granger would not argue with the need to finish schoolwork.

"But of course" she said quickly, "I'll walk you out" she said picking up the tray and quickly walking to the kitchen. Draco walked to the stairs and waited for her.

They walked down the steps in silence. Draco grabbed his bag and stood by the door, Granger opened it for him. "Thanks again" he said.

"No problem" she smiled "Do stop by on your own. I'm home by this time, and I really have nothing to do" she laughed sadly.

"Of course" he said stepping out her door back into the thick air "See you Granger" he said with a small wave as he walked down her steps and out the gate.

Hermione watched him go with pursed lips. It was as though he could hardly wait to be out of her company. And if he enjoyed it so little why had he bothered to accept her invitation at all? Maybe she was just being paranoid and reading into things too much. It was likely that Malfoy was just weird on his own account and that it had nothing to do with her. She shut the door and locked it.

Harry groaned and laid his head on the table. Ron was motionless. There was a depressing silence squeezing the people in Harry's house like a python. It was overwhelming. "While Hermione is a problem, there is a larger problem here" Mr. Weasley said slowly looking about the table. There were nods and a few mumbles. "We need to figure out what the death eaters are doing! Clearly they are attempting to sabotage our efforts for cooperation, they don't want this war to get outside of England, and they want the situation controlled; But, what about the bodies? What does that have to do with anything? What does it even mean? Many people saw those poor wizards die, so what does it mean to them to steal the bodies?" he asked.

"Could be for their army of the undead?" Ron suggested.

"Nah, Voldemort would just use a graveyard, he'd never be able to collect so many bodies in this manner" said Bill.

"Yeah, but maybe these bodies are his special members, his generals or something" Ron said looking around the table in desperation, dying to have someone latch to his idea.

"It is possible. He could use them against people. I mean, how many of your could stand killing someone you know? Dead or not?" Harry asked.

People nodded and murmured again.

"Possibilities, all of them, but still…I don't really believe it" Mr. Weasley said with a frown "There's something else that we're not seeing, I'm sure of it."

Hermione found herself alone on her couch that evening. She was sure she hadn't moved in hours, but it felt as though no time had passed at all. Her brain was humming wildly, working without her knowledge or control. Her windows were still open and a cool breeze blew through her living room.

Silence engulfed her. She felt as though she was on the edge of something important. There was something lingering right before her…if she didn't move, it might come closer…

The feeling disappeared. Hermione groaned loudly and stood from the couch. She was beginning to get frustrated with herself. If the feeling was fleeting, why would it not pass already? It was so draining and tiring to feel as though you were thinking all of the time. Hermione had woken this morning dead tired. It had felt as though she had barely slept an hour, even though she had managed a good ten. It was a miracle she had managed to survive a day of school in her state.

Maybe she was becoming ill. Hermione decided that going to bed earlier may have been a good idea; if indeed she was becoming ill then her body needed as much rest as possible in order to recuperate. Hermione didn't want to risk any illness now.

She walked to her windows and shut them tightly. Looking out into the night sky she saw no dark shape flying towards her with a letter. There was no news from Oliver tonight. She frowned and turned to walk to her room. It was not only the worry that caused the frown on her face, but it was disheartening to receive no reply. Even though Hermione knew Oliver was busy…even though, she was selfish, she wanted a piece of him all the time.

Hermione's doorbell rang, she jumped in her skin. Who would be calling on her so late at night? Harry, Ron or Ginny would have just apparated into her house, who would be ringing her bell? A muggle perhaps?

Hermione carefully walked downstairs, wand in hand. She crept up to the door and checked her peep hole, there was no one there. Her walk was empty, her gate closed; perhaps muggle children were simply playing a prank? Hermione turned from the door with a tired sigh. A shuffle and clatter sounded behind her. Her letter box had opened and shut, a single piece of parchment falling through and sliding across her parquet floor. Hermione cautiously picked up the folded parchment and stepped back to her door.

She unlocked it and opened it wide. Again there was no one anywhere nearby. But there was a faint, lingering smell that resembled cologne; she realized it was the letter. Hermione opened it there at her door, already knowing what she would find inside.

"The existence of forgetting has never been proved: we only know that some things do not come to our mind when we want them to"

Friedrich Nietzsche