A/N- Wow! I finally updated! Not much to say except I am l-a-z-y and had a horrible case of procrastination.  Thanks to everyone who has reviewed! Your nagging keeps me writingJ. I'm going to try and put as much of the fifth book in here as I can. I apologize in advance for my still horrid typing and grammar skills.

Disclaimer- Unfortunately, after 6 months of negotiations, I was unable to convince J.K Rowling to sell me the Harry Potter industry for 35 pence, so they still don't belong to me.

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   "Where the bloody 'ell is he?" Ron asked/yelled as he paced in front of Platform 9 ¾ . He checked his watch. 10:55am.

   "Ron, perhaps we had better get on the train," Hermione placed her hand on his shoulder, desperately trying to goad him into walking towards the awaiting compartments. Her other hand kept flexing anxiously. She knew that Ron would stand there all day if she didn't do something, and she didn't particularly like the idea of having to confront Professor Snape when they missed the Express. "If we wait any longer there won't be any seats left except with the Slytherins."

   Ron pursed his lips together and subconsciously rubbed his prefect badge. He still didn't look like he was going to go. "He's still got five minutes, Hermione…"

   "And I'm sure he'll be here, but I don't think it will do us any good if we don't have a compartment saved," Hermione quipped as Ron finally let himself be dragged away. As the two of them entered the Hogwarts Express, he gave one last look, once again noticing Harry's complete absence.

   "There, last one!" Hermione grinned to herself towing Ron into the last empty compartment. The two of them sat down, Ron next to the window and Hermione beside him near the door.

   Ron turned to Hermione, "I mean first he can't even visit the Burrow, only sends me two owls, I can't get anything to him without going through Dumbledore first, he's disappeared, and I never got to tell him I made Gryffindor Prefect! What the 'ell is going on? You don't suppose…You-Know-Who is involved do you?"

    "Of course not. Harry's probably just been under more wards and protection since Voldemort," Ron cringed as Hermione spoke the taboo word," has become a corporeal entity again. Dumbledore would tell us if anything had happened." Silently she asked herself if he really would.

   "Well…" Ron didn't have anytime to finish being interrupted by a tapping on the compartment door. A dark haired head stuck itself.

   "You wouldn't happen to have anymore room would you?"

   "Sure, Neville." Neville stepped through the door and was about to shut the door when they heard a girlish voice shriek at them to hold it.

   "Jeez, Ginny, no need to make everyone on the train deaf. I swear they could tie you to the top and use you as the whistle instead."

   "Sorry," the red headed girl sat herself next to Neville. "I was talking to Sylvia, she's in Ravenclaw, and we were talking in the hallway, and there wasn't anymore room in their compartment by the time we were finished…"

  "It ok to take a breath, Gin."

   "Sorry. Hey, where's Harry?"

   "That's what I'd like to know."

   Interrupting on Ron's sulking, the door swung open once more revealing a sneering Draco.  "Well, if it isn't the Gryffin-dorks."

   'Good one' Hermione thought as she rolled her eyes and turned her attention to a book she had put in her knapsack.

   "Where's the King of the Doofuses? Is he afraid that dear daddy Dumbledore won't be able to shelter him anymore? Perhaps he realized that it's best not to mess with Slytherins and went crying home to his…well, nobodies! Or maybe Potty was too afraid of getting what he deserves by his constantly side-stepping the rules," Draco laughed along with a chuckling Crabbe and Goyle. Draco pulled on his lapel to revel a prefect badge, which he proceeded to polish.

   "How the hell did you get that?!" Ron, Ginny, and Neville all looked at Hermione who sat wide-eyed. She immediately bit her tongue. 'Well, that was stupid,' she thought, but she really couldn't conceive how Dumbledore could let innocent first-years, not to mention second and third years, receive the disciplinary wrath of Malfoy. 'There's got to be an explanation.'

   Malfoy grit his teeth, "Perhaps he finally realized that someone needed to keep the mudbloods in check." Before anyone had a chance to jump, maul, or verbally abuse Malfoy, a large fist found its way to his perfect nose. A trail of blood slid over Draco's lips as he turned to face his aggressor.

   "Potter!" Harry stood to the left of the door wearing a pair of ragged jeans, a black shirt, and a pair of sunglasses. He stood taller that he had last term by a good 5 or 6 inches, not that Ron , Hermione, or Malfoy hadn't sprouted as well. He was, however, taller than Malfoy by about 2 inches. He looked more muscular, but not too much so. His hair seemed brushed instead of in its normal, crazy pattern.

   Draco wiped his nose on his sleeve. "You just wait, Potter, I'll…"

   "You'll what?" Harry grabbed the corners of Malfoy's robe and hoisted him into the air. As he held him, green eyes met an electric blue sea of hate, and he let go. Malfoy fell to his knees but quickly picked himself up, and ran in-between Crabbe and Goyle who just stood there slack-jawed.

   'Let's go,' he told the two as he pushed the stray hairs that had come loose back, "You'll pay for this, Potter."

   "Sure, Malfoy, you git," Harry slid into the compartment and closed the sliding door, only to be met with four pairs of confounded stares. "What?"

   Ginny's mouth kept opening and closing as a pink blush encompassed her freckles.

   "Harry, that is one of the most awesome things I have ever seen! You really showed Malfoy. It was even better than the time Professor Moody turned him into a ferret," Ron rambled as he sprung up, patting Harry on the shoulder. "What happened to your glasses, mate?"

   "I, er, finally used one of those sight correction spells."

   "How did you get around the "no magic outside school' rule?" Ginny asked.

   "Well, I…"

   "Gin, it's perfectly obvious that Old Harry here was granted special permission during the break. Did they let you because of You-Know-Who?"

   "Yeah, that's it." Hermione raised her right eyebrow. It wasn't like Harry to be so… secretive. She decided that she would keep this observation to herself until she could look into to it more deeply. It was obvious something big had happened during the summer, and she was going to get to the bottom of it. But for now, she let herself enjoy the company of her friends.

   Harry sat down next to Ron, beside the window.

   "So?"

   "So what?"

 "Are you going to tell us what happened and why we couldn't owl you?" Ron asked, rubbing his prefect badge again.

   "Well, I., hey is that a prefect badge?"

   "What? Oh," Ron blushed, "well, yes. I wanted to tell you, but I couldn't get any owls to you…"

   "Wow, Ron, that's…great." Harry knew that given his situation, he shouldn't be a prefect, but somehow he felt betrayed by not having been asked. He turned the silver ring on his right index finger back and forth.

   "Hermione got one too," Ginny piped in.

   "Hmm, but so did Malfoy," Hermione mumbled.

  "What!" Harry exclaimed, his eyebrows skyrocketing toward his hairline. He whipped his sunglasses off. "Has Dumbledore gone completely daft?" He looked quickly at Ron, "Umm, not that he could be that off his rocker with you guys being prefects. Do you think it was bribery?"

   "Yeah!" Ron's eyes lit up. "That has to be it. Malfoy's dad must have given Hogwarts a ton of galleons, and Dumbledore felt he had to give Malfoy something to make-up for it. Or maybe it's blackmail! Maybe that's why he needed us to be prefects, to investigate what Malfoy's up to!"

   Neville noticed Hermione lightly shake her head and felt some of his own fears dissipate. Despite her outburst, Neville knew she would probably figure out why Malfoy had received the position. He made a note to try and remember to ask her later. He wished he still had his Gran's remember-all. Instead, he settled on taking Trevor out and stroking his slick back. Malfoy always made him nervous.

   Hermione noticed the dark circles under Harry's eyes. She pursed her lips together; it looked like he hadn't slept in weeks. Cedric. Of course, how could he be expected to sleep with that on his mind? She relaxed. This summer must have been horrible for him.

   "Have any of you heard about the new DADA professor?" she asked.

   "With our luck it's probably another Voldemort spy."

   "Well, I heard that it's some woman from the Ministry," Neville added.

   "I heard something about that too!" Ginny smiled. "Dad wouldn't tell us anything about it, though."

   "Well, Gin, it just so happens, I caught Dad talking to Dumbledore in the fireplace. I think he said her name was Umbridge…"

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A/N- You didn't think I let you see Harry's new look right away did you? Mwah-ha-ha.