A/N: Hello my friends, liking the ideas you're getting especially mysticalfairy-05, you've given me some great stuff - we'll see about doing a Sirius ;)
Hope everyone is well and what have you, umm I seem to be babbling pointlessly already. Oh well.
Just had to rewrite half of this – cookiefudgedoughmintchip PinkAphid will know that writing in Shakespearean language leaves you scarred (I wrote a lot of this in a very old fashioned way, but don't worry, most of it's gone!)

Tangled Web

The weeks that followed passed quickly and soon it was the last few days of January. Harry, Ron and Hermione, previously so keen to help their families had been hindered by copious amounts of homework, even by Hermione's standards. And secretly she couldn't help feeling that someone was trying to inhibit their actions by overloading them with homework. They made little progress in discovering more information, except that Malfoy definitely seemed cockier and had an air of knowing something they didn't. Also Hermione noted that Dumbledore had not asked any of them to see him, surprising seeing as they were quite involved in these problems. She put her worries to one side however and persevered with her work.

She hadn't spoken to Severus since their brief words weeks ago and she was finding it hard to carry on. Every corner she turned and he brushed past her, every door she opened and he was behind it, every face she looked at and she saw his. But she just blinked and carried on. Harry and Ron had noticed her heavy heart and though they too were finding it hard, they went out of their way to help her. Giving her encouraging smiles, holding doors open for her and not running ahead of her, but to stay by her side.

Hermione had been so immersed in her own thought that she had hardly noticed her friends' help; it was only when Ron got fed up of her silence that she really appreciated them.

"Hermione? Look at me when I'm speaking to you, you're being a selfish cow you know? My parents have disappeared – I haven't even spoken to them, look at me Hermione! And Harry, how do think Harry is supposed to deal with this? And he is going out of his way to help you; he's doing everything you can to cheer you up. The least you could do is be grateful," salty tears trickled down his face, "you're not the only one who feels pain." He turned on his heel and walked off.

She looked up, distraught, "Wait Ron! Wait, please, I'm sorry, it's just been –"

"I've heard enough of your excuses."

She sighed deeply and crossed her arms, hiding herself away. She heard footsteps along the corridor and saw the hem of a black cloak swing around the corner. Harry came past, his face tinged red. He saw Hermione and nearly tripped over.

"Hermione! What are you doing here?"

"I was going to ask you the same thing, are you OK?"

"I'm fine," his face flushed more as he became conscious of her stare,

"Really?"

"Of course I am, come on."

Harry started to walk towards the common room but Hermione grabbed him by the arm and held him tight. "I'm sorry for being such a cow, thank you for being so nice, but it's my turn now."

"Umm, Hermione, do you think you could let go please, I'm finding it slightly hard to breathe."

"How adorable Potter's finally realised where he belongs; back with the rest of the Mudbloods. But really Granger; your dear Professor should not have been so foolish to pick such an unfaithful piece of scum to set his heart on. Yes I hear he's besotted with you, even talks about you in his dreams, we've had a good laugh about that."

Hermione let go of Harry and he would have fallen to the floor if there hadn't been a wall behind him; conveniently cold and hard to hit his head on. He got up clutching his head whilst colours span before his eyes.

"Do you mean he's alive? You know where he is?" Hermione leapt at Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle as ever his formidable bodyguards stepped forward. She pointed her finger at him, "Tell me!"

"Get away from me you animal, call yourself a witch? I wouldn't call you a human. Missing lover boy already are you? How would I know if he's alive? It's not as if I'm connected to the Dark Lord or anything is it?" Crabbe and Goyle grinned rather toothless grins.

Harry snarled, "You know perfectly well what she means Malfoy, and what's going on, I watch your mouth."

"Planning on another of your whirlwind adventures Potter? You wish. Somehow I think this might be beyond your limit, Dolohov's a pretty dangerous man."

"Dolohov?"

"Sorry?" said Malfoy, "did I say something?" He smirked and quickly walked away.

"Harry, do you have a feeling he wanted us to know?" Hermione asked,

"Yes, I know he would have been more careful if he didn't. Maybe his Dad wants us barking up the wrong tree; give us a false trail."

"Perhaps, or maybe they want to lead you somewhere, like with the Department of –" she stopped mid-word,

"Of Mysteries, yes I know. Last time I did something like this someone died. Could I risk it again?"

"But Harry, it's you I worry about the most, you never care for yourself."

"I hate myself Hermione; too many people have died because of me, I don't want to be the cause of all these deaths, I'd rather just get it over with and fight him myself." Harry clenched his fists,

"Are we going to ask Dumbledore for help?"

"Why should we? He couldn't keep them safe." Harry's face darkened,

"But just as a backup?"

"This was your idea, are you still up for it? Or would you rather stay and watch them all die?"

"That's not what I want!" she sighed,

"Then what do you propose?"

"I'm still in. Are we going for Dolohov then?" she asked,

"That's my first choice," said Harry defiantly. "We have to find him."

A/N: Sorry that was v.short, but I had to finish there really and I think this chapter's ok. We are missing the romance though! This is getting very complicated! Oh well, so something is defiantly going on now. But what? I'll have to think about that one lol. So anyone able to just push that little button is very welcome.