A/N: I'm back! Did you miss me? Probably not. You don't miss me; you're just interested in the story. sigh oh well. Btw: the last two chapters were shorter (I warned you guys earlier) I was going to try and post the next chapter with it (but its long!) so It's been taking longer to get up than I originally thoughtL. The next two or three chapters are also pretty lengthy. A lot needed to happen and such. But anywho:

Stella: as I said before, here's a long chappy for ya! And I think that's why I liked I'm not that girl…I'm addicted to soap opera's…courtesy of my mother.

Writingjustforfun: aaww, I feel loved. You couldn't flame me. There's a reason why I find flamers amusing and this is why: The usually read the whole story, and then tell you what a load of crap it is. Now, if it is a load of crap, you think they'd put that in a review for the first chapter or two. But no, they go through and read the whole story and then say what a load of crap it is. It just amuses me to no end. I hope this lifts your spirits, I know how crappy finals are! J

OH! One star () signifies a flashback. I'm going to italics the text in between too so you can tell the difference better.

Chapter 22- Malfoy and Rats

June 26

Hermione creped slowly out of Ginny's room. She knew Ron and Ginny would be asleep for a couple more hours, leaving her just needing to worry about Mr. Weasly being gone for work and whatever Mrs. Weasly was up to. She walked slowly down the old staircase, hoping no one could detect her moving around the home. She slowly walked throughout the house, checking to see if anyone was there. In the kitchen, she saw a note on the table.

Kids,

Had to run to get a few things from the store. Be back in a couple of hours. Be good.

Mom.

Hermione grinned to herself as she read it. Perfect, she thought. She crossed the room quietly over to the over-used fireplace. She glanced over her shoulder and grabbed a handful of floo powder and stepped into the fireplace. Her heart was pounding in her chest and she was afraid Ron and Ginny might be able to hear it upstairs. She took a deep breath to calm her fraying nerves. She held up her hand and watched as the access powder trailed from between her fingers and onto the ground. She dropped it all quickly while saying "Malfoy Manor" and was gone with nothing more than a poof of smoke.

She reappeared in another fireplace, coughing slightly from the smoke of the transportation. She brushed off her clothes and stepped out of the fireplace, looking around in awe.

She was in what seemed to be a study. There were book cases that covered the walls, and all were full of different books. She would have been in heaven if it was not the home of her 'enemy'. There was one red velvet arm chair facing the fireplace and no other furnishings. She wanted to go to the shelves and read every book there, but she reminded herself she was not welcome here and put herself back to business. She crossed the room over to the large oak door and opened it.

The hallway was empty and she carefully made her way around, having no clue where she would find Malfoy at. She poked her head into various rooms, quickly so she would not be seen easily. She moved slowly and stayed to the shadows, hoping she would not be detected. She heard voices behind her and she dashed quickly around a corner and pressed herself against a wall.

Please don't come down here, please don't come down here. She chanted, feeling her heart race again as if she had run a marathon. She strained to here the conversation, but it had come to a halt. She held her breath, as if that simple act of breathing would give her away. She heard a door open and then close. She stayed put for a moment, making sure she was safe and cautiously peaked around the corner.

She saw it was clear and sighed slightly in relief. Just as she was about to continue the search, a voice said "What the hell are you doing here?"

Hermione jumped and nearly screamed in surprise. She spun around and found herself face-to-face with Draco Malfoy and his infamous smirk.

"Ron told me about what you said." Hermione said, keeping her voice low.

"Get out of here, Granger." Malfoy sneered.

"No. I want to know if it's true." Hermione demanded. Malfoy glared at her and grabbed her arm, roughly, and pulled her down the hall and stepped into a seemingly random room. He closed the door behind them.

"Let me go!" Hermione demanded.

"Do you want my father to see you here? Stupid Mudblood." He muttered. Hermione glared at him. Malfoy dropped her arm, remembering the broken nose he received from her over two years ago.

"Is it true?" She asked. Malfoy was silent.

"Ron doesn't believe you. He thinks you're trying to set us up. Normally, I would agree with him, but I think if there's a chance that Harry's alive, then I want to find him. With or without your help."

"I didn't tell Ron out of the 'goodness' of my 'heart'. I want Potter gone."

"So, it's true then." Hermione clarified.

"Yes," Malfoy said, rolling his eyes.

"Take me to him." Hermione demanded.

"Are you crazy? Wait, never mind, you are crazy! Insane even! You willingly come here, knowing my father would kill you in a second if he spotted you. Heck, I would be killed for not telling him you were here! And they say you're the smartest witch in Hogwarts." Malfoy said, rolling his eyes and continued "The place will be crawling with death eaters. For a Mudblood or non-death eater, it would be suicide!"

"You expect me to sleep on the knowledge that-"

"You're the one who came here. I did not ask you to. Go Home Granger." Malfoy pointed out, clearly finished with this discussion.

"Fine. I'll find him with out your help." Hermione said, determinedly and went to leave the room.

"That's what you think." She heard him mutter and she huffed slightly to herself and left the room and back to the fireplace whence she came.

Harry walked through the house to meet Destany. He had no clue what she had planned for that day. She only said to meet her and here he is, pondering for the hundredth time why he keeps on hanging out with her; besides the fact that she's crazy, sometimes funny, and does not care if he remembers anything about his life or not, which is a good thing. Harry rounded another corner and ran into a man.

"Sorry" Harry said, quickly. He looked up into the man's face and it instantly reminded him of a rat.

"Harry! How are you?" The man asked.

"Fine. Thanks." Harry said, knowing the man sounded oddly familiar. Not again. Harry groaned, mentally.

"I can't believe I ran into Harry Po-er, you here." The man stammered.

"What did you say?" Harry asked. It was the second…or was it third, time someone had almost said his last name; and by gone-it, he wanted to know what it was. He is not stupid enough to think his name is just plain Harry. Though, it is possible, but very unlikely.

"Err, nothing" The man stammered. Harry gave him a look that clearly read he did not believe a word he just said.

"Who are you?" Harry asked, not bothering to be polite about it.

"It's me Harry! Peter!" The man said, excitedly.

"Give me the rat Harry." A man said. He had dark hair and tall. He was intimidating, but Harry found himself not afraid.

"What did Scabbers do to you?" A boy with red-hair squeaked.

"He's not Scabbers. I can't believe we did not notice it before." The other man said. He looked exactly like the man he ran into the other day in the village, only a couple of years younger.

"Who is he if he isn't Scabbers?" Harry asked, looking down at the brown rat in his hands.

"Not Scabbers! Harry, who else would he be?!" The boy demanded.

"He's Peter. Peter Pettigrew. Harry, he's the man who betrayed your parents."

Harry's eyes widened and he took a step away from the man. His heart was pounding very quickly. He was sure he went deathly pale and felt a cold sweat of fear and panic come over his face.

"Come on Harry, it's me." The man encouraged.

That's what I'm afraid of. He thought.

"I-I'm..sorry..I h-h-ave to…have to go…I'm late on meeting a f-friend." Harry stammered and tried to walk past the man. Peter kept up with him.

"Why are you running harry? We were good friends once." Peter said, a strange look on Harry's face, and it scared him. It almost reminded him of a cat, trying to catch a mouse.

"What?! How could Scabbers do that?!" The boy demanded again.

"He's not really a rat. He's an illegal animagus. Harry, just like your father, just like me." The dark haired man explained.

"Prove it." Harry said, wanting to believe the man he'd known all his life. At the same time, he did not want to; he knew his friend would miss his pet.

"What!? Harry!"

"Shut up Ron!" A girl's voice said. Harry turned and saw Her, looking annoyed at the boy. The red-head huffed and stayed quiet. The dark-haired man came forward with his wand out.

"It's not going to hurt him, is it?" The boy asked, sounding genuinely concerned.

"No, it will not harm him…unfortunately." The man said. He received a glare form the other man.

"Padfoot!"

"What can I say, Moony. Revenge is sweet." Padfoot said. He turned his attention back to the rat Harry was holding. He hovered the wand above the rat's head and muttered an incantation Harry did not catch. The rat squirmed out of his hands and ran across the room. It was then bathed in a white light and Harry watched as it transformed from a rat to the cowardly man hiding within.

Harry unconsciously picked up his pace, wanting to get as far away as fast as possible from that man. Get away from me. He thought, and quickly called to his mind the layout of the place so he could get away from him.

"Where ya going Harry?" Peter asked. Harry stopped abruptly.

"Look. I'm late. Just leave me alone." He said and kept walking, not paying attention if the man known as Peter, or Scabbers, was following. When he rounded the corner, his pace quickened to a jog, to a run. He soon realized that Peter was not following him, and he slowed, a little.

Harry opened the main door to outside and was greeted by Destany's smiling face. When she saw him, her face fell.

"What's wrong?"

"I think I need to find a way to get out of here." He said.

"Why?" She asked, wondering what was the cause this time. Harry glanced back at the doors he just came from.

"Come on, not here." He said and they walked into the woods, all thoughts of earlier plans gone.

Hermione reentered the Burrow and rushed upstairs to Ginny's room. She grabbed a change of clothes and walked hurriedly into the bathroom. She changed her clothes and brushed all the evidence of flooing out of her hair. She quickly smelled it to see if it smelled like ash; knowing it's thickness somehow absorbed smells. Thankfully, it did not smell of fire. She exited the bathroom as Ginny was leaving her room, looking groggy still.

"Hey, Morning." Hermione greeted.

"How long have you been up?" Ginny asked, seeing Hermione dressed and ready for the day.

"Oh, not even 10-15 minutes." Hermione lied. More like 2 or 3 hours. She thought. The first hour or so laying around getting up the nerve to leave the house. The second hour debating if she should go or not and the remaining time spent at Malfoy manor.

"Oh. Have you eaten yet?" Ginny asked. Before Hermione could answer, Ron stepped out of his own room.

"Did someone just mention food?" He asked, brightly.

"Come one, let's go and get breakfast." Hermione said and she and Ginny walked down the stairs, leaving Ron standing in the hallway, looking confused.

Ginny read the note from Mrs. Weasly and began gathering items to make a quick breakfast for the three of them. Hermione stood by the table and slowly grinned to herself.

He's alive, he's alive, and I knew it! She thought, happily.

"Hermione?"

"Hu?"

"Are you…OK?" Ginny asked her.

"Yes. I'm fine." Hermione said, and the first time she really meant it. Ginny gave her a strange look and went back to cooking. I'll be fine, now all I need to do is find Harry. She thought, determinedly.

Easier said than done. Her conscious taunted her.

"So, you remembered this guy? Peter?"

"Yes. I can't believe I would actually join a cause with a man who-"

"Maybe you don't get along with your parents." Destany suggested.

"What?"
"Think about it. A lot of kids don't get along with their families. It's not that uncommon. Maybe you joined this so called cause out of an act of rebellion. Maybe, even, you believed in it."

"You're sounding just like everyone else." Harry muttered.

"You and me, we don't know the reasons Harry. We don't pretend we do know. It's very possible you are right and everyone is out to get you. But, maybe I'm right, and they are not. And just maybe, we're both psycho loonies in the nut house coming up with this elaborate story line. We just don't know. The possibilities are endless. But, you have to ask yourself, is it worth the risk?" Destany said, and Harry considered her words. "Why not wait until we know something solid. Something more about your past. If you don't trust this Peter guy, then try to avoid him."

"I think you're right. The more and more I think about it, the more uneasy I feel about everything." Harry confided and cursed his memory again. Why can't I remember more? Like who are those other men, who was the kid with the red hair, and who is that girl?

"Well then, we need to keep you from thinking about it." Destany said. Harry groaned.

"Don't tell me you're planning another pillow fight." Harry whined. He ended up with bruises from it, how that happened, he had no clue. Destany grinned mischievously.

"Come one!" She said, getting up from the ground. Harry watched her suspiciously.

"Are you going to mop around all day, or are you going to try and have an ounce of fun?" Destany asked. Harry sighed in defeat and stood up from the soft grass. Destany grinned a Cheshire cat grin and led him further into the woods.

"Where are we going?" Harry asked.

"You'll see." She said, and kept walking. Harry followed her. Oh boy. He thought, his mind trailing back and playing his encounter with Peter Pettigrew over again.