Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any other related indicia, they belong to JKRowling. The best author of all time. And from now on, this disclaimer stands for every chpter in this story ok?! ;)

AN: OMG!!! Reviews! I feel so special! squees Thanks to jessclifton, Blackjewl6666, kitimat-born, Kelly Mewes (love you girl ), aliasfreek and Titou for reviewing, it was much appreciated huggles you all but I have to say, that sadly I may not be able to update all the time. I will try and update once each week, but if I don't get to, please understand that I am in my final year of high school, and I really want to get to university. But thank-you so much! I hope that you can be patient with me as I attempt to bring out each chapter. And the chapters are going to start getting longer too. But again, thank-you so much for your lovely reviews now on with Chapter 2!

Love Millie

p.s. just so you know, I have got boldness and italics in here! but ff.net doesn't seem to like it! cries

Chapter 2 - Missing Pieces

'Hermione? What are you giggling about?' came her mothers questioning voice.

'Nothing mum!' she called before rounding on the person who had giggled. 'Ginny!' Hermione shrieked in a hoarse whisper. 'Where in the name of hell did you come from?' she demanded.

Ginny, who had been hiding in the shadows, smirked. 'Well I could start from the very beginning, but I don't think that you really want any of the gories.' Hermione tapped her foot impatiently as she glared at Ginny. 'Besides, the important part is that I am actually here.' Ginny finished, her smirk broadening even more.

'Ginny!' Hermione exclaimed. 'You really are wearing down my nerves!'

'I know, that is probably the best part about it. But anyway, that's irrelevant. Now is it just me, or are your parents tight-arses? I mean come on, they seem a bit protective and all.'

'My parents are indeed very protective,' Hermione begun sounding strangely sad, 'they have their reasons though. Besides, no matter how annoyingly protective of me they are, I still love them. They are after all my parents.' She reasoned simply.

'Yep. Sure.' Came Ginny's sarcastic reply.

'Shut-up Ginny.' Hermione said quietly.

'Look, I didn't come here to argue, to which I might add that when you see Harry; run.' Hermione blushed slightly upon hearing the name of her ebony haired friend, before looking at Ginny curiously.

'Why?'

'Because you sent Hedwig with a letter to him, except that we were flying on our way here at the time. Harry and Hedwig kind of had a head on.' Hermione giggled. Typical, she thought, he can avoid bludgers and all sorts of other things, but he can't avoid a flying owl carrying a letter from me. 'He didn't find it all too funny though.' Ginny added looking at her in a mock serious way.

'I'm sure he'll get over it!' Hermione replied defiantly with a nasty smirk etched deep into her features. 'Would you like some food?'

'Love some, mum's preparing us a huge lunch back at the Order headquarters though, wouldn't want to upset her by being late now would you?'

Hermione nodded when she suddenly realised something. 'Wait! Did you say that Harry was here too?' panic now clearly written in her chocolate eyes.

Ginny smirked, 'Yeah, he, Ron, Tonks, Bill, Fleur, Fred, George and Professor Lupin are all waiting outside. Well, actually they're not sure they're in the right place, and what, with all these Weasley's here,' she winked, 'they want to explore around at all the little muggle things and poor Harry is trying to explain it all to them.'

'Oh dear.' Hermione sighed. 'I guess I'll go and get my stuff then and say good bye to my mum and dad.' She went to leave the room when she thought of something else however. 'How did you get in here? Why did you even come in here if you weren't sure that this was where I lived?'

'The window was open, I heard your voice.'

'Ok then, but that still doesn't answer how you got in here.' Hermione looked at her sternly.

'Yes it does. You see, Hermione dear, the window was open, I climbed through it.'

Hermione grinned at her. 'You know that you're a little rebel right?'

'Sure thing!' Ginny smirked, and with that, Hermione left the kitchen and walked up to her bedroom, passing her parents who were looking at her rather suspiciously.

Once Hermione had grabbed all of her belongings and made sure that her room had some resemblance of order, she headed back downstairs and stopped in the living area and stood in front of her parents to get their attention. It worked as they looked up at her, still looking rather concerned.

'Hermione dear, why do you have your trunk?' her mother queried.

'Remember that I told you that Ginny wrote me and said that they'd be here to pick me up within the next few days?'

Her mother nodded. 'I presume they are here then?' Hermione nodded in response. She noticed the worried expression on her mothers face and the fact that her father had clenched his fists ever so tightly.

'You mean the boys are here too?' her father asked her through gritted teeth.

'Daddy, look, I promise, they have never hurt me and they never will. They are in fact my body guards from all the people in the world who do want to hurt me.' She attempted to reassure her father. Seeing the little vein that was popping out of his forehead and the fact that his knuckles were white from lack of blood circulation, she began to tell him that she could take care of herself anyway but she was rudely interrupted by a knock upon the door.

'I'll get it.' Her father said jumping to his feet and making a beeline for the door. Hermione protested saying that they were simply eager to leave for their destination and asking her to hurry up. 'I'd like to meet them.' Her father replied, an icy tone in his voice, whilst Mrs. Granger merely stood there and bit her nails anxiously.

The colour drained immediately from Hermione's face as her father reached the door before she did, however, it came flowing back far too quickly for her liking as she saw the two young men that were on the other side of the door.

Ron was standing there with the normal goofy look he had on his face. He had filled out quite a lot, looking a lot older and much more mature, to which Hermione quickly squashed out the hope that that might actually mean he is now mature. Because that would be extremely unlikely.

She was glad that she laid eyes upon Ron first however, otherwise she may have completely forgotten of his existence once she laid eyes upon Harry.

Still not perhaps the worlds most attractive male, but Harry Potter had gone through some drastic ... developments ... this past summer. He was now somewhat taller, in fact, he was almost as tall as Ron and he had also filled out quite a lot. She groaned, making all three men turn and look at her curiously.

'What is it Hermione?' her father asked, his voice uptight. Hermione blushed even more, as she hadn't meant to groan aloud. It was only supposed to be inward. How to get out of this one? She begged herself, how to get out of it... she groaned once more, however, this time it was inward.

'N-nothing dad. It's just that we really need to get going, so if you please, good-bye.' She said whilst reaching in to give her father a hug. Upon pulling away, she looked him sternly in the eye. 'Look daddy, they're not serial killers. I'll be fine.'

Her mother came rushing over to hug her, to which Hermione obliged. 'Good- bye mum, I'll see you two when I next do then I suppose.' Hermione concluded as she pulled away from her mothers grasp. 'Bye!' She called over her shoulder as she shut the door once she was outside.

It's a good thing we live in the remote bush, Hermione thought as she saw the rest of the gang standing around with their broomsticks in hand. Another sudden thought hit Hermione out of nowhere as she took her surroundings in.

She whirled around to face Harry and Ron and was about to ask her question when she saw the look on Ron's face. 'What is it Ron?' she demanded.

'DADDY?' he burst as tears of laughter trickled down his face. See? Hermione told herself. It was right of me to think that it wasn't possible for Ron to have actually matured. She threw an irritable glare at him before turning to Harry.

'If we're flying back to headquarters ... how do you suppose I'm going to get there?'

A smirk played at Harry's lips before he answered her slowly. 'You're flying with me.' He stated simply. The look on Hermione's face sent Ron into even more hysterics as she stuttered. 'I know,' Harry said dully, 'you don't like flying.'

'Don't like flying is an understatement Harry!' Hermione shrieked.

'Well I'm sorry Hermione, but it's the only way we can get us all there safely.' Professor Lupin stated calmly from behind her.

'I don't call flying very safe.' She mumbled in return as he took her trunk to secure to the bottom of his broom.

'C'mon.' Harry said as he grabbed her wrist and pulled over to where his broomstick lay. 'Just as forewarning though, I've never flown with anyone else on the broom before. So please don't have any panic attacks.'

'I'll try.' She squeaked.

'Good. Thank-you.' He smiled at her before mounting his broom and allowing for Hermione to climb onto his broomstick behind him. She wrapped her arms cautiously around his waist, which didn't escape his notice. 'Uh. Hermione? You may want to hold on somewhat tighter, don't want you falling off now do we?'

Hermione blushed before she wrapped her arms around him any tighter. The second she had finished tightening her grip however, she had a panic attack due to the fact that Harry had kicked off.

'Hermione,' he growled playfully, 'you promised.' He added with mock hurt.

'I-I'm sorry.' She breathed in response as she buried her head into his back.

'It's ok. Except that it's not.' He cleared his throat before continuing. 'I met up with Hedwig earlier today.'

'Oh yeah. Ginny told me. I'm sorry.' Hermione muttered into his back, to terrified to pull away from the safeguard that was Harry's back.

'It's ok,' he laughed, 'I got to hear from you and that was what mattered. The fact that I was only 15 minutes away from your house at the time is truly irrelevant.'

Another 15 minutes had passed by in silence until Hermione, for the millionth time that day, realised something.

'Wait a minute! We're out flying in broad daylight!' she shrieked in Harry's ear.

'That's alright Hermione, I didn't need that ear.' Came Harry's sarcastic remark. 'However, we're up so high, muggles won't notice us, and even if they do. We'll just look like small birds flying overhead.'

'Oh. Sorry.'

The rest of the flight went well. That is to say, Hermione quite enjoyed sitting there with her arms wrapped around Harry like that, where she could feel his oh-so-fine-as-hell abs and she could press her body up against his simply because he'd narrow it down to her being scared and needing the support. Well, at least that's what she told herself. One could live in hope.

Upon arriving at 12 Grimmauld Place once more, Hermione noticed the sudden sadness in Harry. She wanted to make it all go away, but she knew she couldn't. There would always be a hole in his heart, the missing piece that Sirius had taken with him as he fell to his untimely demise.

She pulled him into a brief hug before pulling away and looking into his normally sparkling bright green eyes. However, at the moment they weren't sparkling.

'You ok Harry?' She asked him tentatively.

He gave a short nod in response then followed the rest of the group as they made their way towards the entrance to the old building.

Once they were inside and had crept past the portrait of the horrid Mrs. Black, Sirius' mother, they started down towards the kitchen where they could smell that Mrs. Weasley had been working hard to put together an absolute feast.

Mrs. Weasley quickly made her way over to where Harry and Hermione were standing and pulled them into a big embrace, telling them that it was so good to see them again, before she dragged them over to the large table and pushed them into seats next to each other. Ron and Ginny sat down on the opposite side of them while everyone else scattered. Hermione couldn't help but notice however, that there was someone down the other end of the table hiding in a big black cloak and in the shadows. Though she thought this to be rather odd, Hermione brushed it off, especially when Professor Lupin went over there and took the persons hand in his. She thought that that was sweet.

'Seen her then ey Hermione?' Ginny smirked.

'Hmmm? What do you mean?' Hermione questioned.

'The lady down there in the cloak.' She explained, as Ron's expression grew dark. 'You remember I wrote to you that we had a surprise that you wouldn't like?' she raised her eyebrows in question while Hermione vaguely nodded. 'That's-'

But she never got to finish her sentence, as they all turned to see none other than Draco Malfoy walk through the doorway.

AN: What did you think? Please review, even if it's just a "you're crap" it would still be helpful, though I would prefer something more constructive. I wanna know what you guys think!

Thanks!

Love Millie