Thanks for all the reviews guys...I also want to thank kentuckygirl4039 for pointing out a few things...this should explain a bit about the whole Lucius Voldie thing...I also want to answer a few of your questions...

First: There really isn't a leader...they're kinda just scrambling about trying to think about who could lead...but they don't know what to do about it yet...yes the burrow is the Headquarters but i can't really tell you who the secret keeper is...yet

Second: This chapter will explain all of your other questions...and yes I agree with you Pansy is a bitter bitch...Marie is a strange character that I didn't really base on Hermione but now that you point it out she is kinda like her...but we'll see what happens with her soon enough...

Now...on with the reading...review...I'll answer questions...unless of course they give something away...

Disclaimer: you should know by now...but for those who have just tuned in...I'm not J.K. Rowling...

The Search is On

Constant scratching or quill on parchment was all that was heard in the large room. No one dared speak, or breathe for they were all in the presence of the most powerful man in the entire world. The room was dark; almost everything shrouded in shadow except the Dark Lord. His lone candle flickered on the table just beside his left hand.

"Macnair." The man said in a hiss.

"Yes my Lord." Said the pudgy man who jumped to his feet at the sound of his name being uttered.

"You will take charge of the first group. Your objective is to find the girl. She's obviously somewhere in the order. Find her and when you have bring her location to me."

"Yes my Lord." Macnair said bowing deeply. He turned and was followed by half a dozen people out of the office.

"Lestrange."

Bellatrix Lestrange stood and moved gracefully over to stand before Voldemort's desk. She bowed low then rose her gaunt Azkaban affected face staring straight at her master's.

"You Bellatrix are to be in charge of the capture of the girl. You will lead the second group in this task. Formulate a plan, one that will work and you will not be seen or captured. When you've done that you will bring it to me."

"Yes my Lord." And Bellatrix bowed again leaving with another half dozen people.

"Malfoy."

This time both Draco and Lucius rose and approached the desk paying their respects to their master by bowing. When they rose Draco looked Voldemort right in the eye. Voldemort's red eyes were glowing like dying embers of a fire and pierced Draco's like knives.

"I want to know everything about this girl. Where she lives over the summer, her parent's names even her grandparents. I want O.W.L.S. scores, test scores from every year of Hogwarts. I want to know her friends, and all her enemies, I want to know everything and anything on this girl that could possibly be learned. I don't care how you do it, just find out everything. I only want you two and a select group of people working on this."

"Yes my Lord." Both father and son said in unison.

"I'm counting on this information. It will be relayed to the other groups making their jobs a bit easier. Bring me everything you find in two days time."

"Absolutely my Lord." Lucius said turning.

Draco followed his father without a word, leaving the office. His mind was working overtime now for he had just received the second biggest mission of his life, learning about his bride to be.

Draco followed his father to another room on the first floor of the mansion that Voldemort was using as his base of operations. The place was a safe house. It was almost as safe as Gringotts with all the incantations and spells placed on it. It was unplottable and owls couldn't find it. To muggles it was a swamp like area and signs were posted all about telling them it was to dangerous to go near. There was no road that led to the mansion from the out side world so you had to Apparate there from the nearest home, the Goyles. It wasn't hooked up to the Floo network so no unexpected guests could arrive.

The room that Draco had entered was a sitting room. It contained expensive rugs that covered the dark hardwood floor and paintings of people that Draco had never seen. The house hadn't belonged to the Dark Lord so obviously they were family members of the wizards who had owned it. They snoozed in their frames at the moment some stirring at the sound of their entrance.

The chairs and sofas that sat all about the room were older in style. They were antiques Draco could tell, and originals at that. They were in perfect condition however which would make them worth a fortune. Sterling silver candles holders and various knickknacks sat on cherry wood tables shinning brilliantly in the sun that came in through the windows. Books sat in no particular order on shelves against one entire wall and Draco was pulled over there to read the titles.

"Get back here boy." His father said at seeing his son moving toward the books.

"Yes father." And Draco walked back to where his father was standing in the center of the room.

"Sit down and don't move." Lucius commanded and Draco followed his directions without question. "The others should be coming soon."

Draco knew that the Dark Lord was in the midst of selecting the small group of people that would help him and his father research Hermione Granger. They would soon be coming to the room where they would begin to delegate tasks. Draco knew that they would mostly be his father's close friends and most likely their sons, which didn't bother him in the least.

Draco watched the back of the whitewashed door to see who the first lucky duo was to join them. When the knob turned and Draco saw the face of his best friend he smiled, having known that the Zabini's would be the first.

"Hey man." Blaise said heading over to where Draco sat on the couch.

"I knew you'd be picked." Draco said smiling.

"So did I. This should be cake. The Mudbloods like an academic goddess at Hogwarts. Ever teachers dream student."

"What's going to be hard is all that stuff about her family. But I've already come up with a few ideas for that."

The door opened again and the Goyle and Crabbes entered. It was hilarious to see the four because they all sort of resembled one another. Both Crabbe and Goyle senior were tall and round men, their heads looking like coconuts sitting atop a boulder. Their sons who were also tall but a little less round followed them and more bulky from the muscle that had accumulated over the years.

"Well if it isn't the muscles." Blaise said and both Crabbe and Goyle smirked.

"What a group." Draco said.

They all sat down around the circle of chairs and couches. The sons all stared at Lucius who was obviously going to be the leader.

"Hermione Granger is our objective. We must learn all about her past. Her family, her studies, even her relationships. We must infiltrate into her life. Now I'm going to separate this into parts. One team will cover each part and report back to me. Understand?" There were nods all around.

Draco was curious what part he would play in this. He knew a lot of information on Granger already, as did Crabbe Goyle and Blaise. The others would all be working with their fathers. But since Draco's own father didn't have a part but be the leader he wasn't sure if he would have a part to play at all.

"Goyle you and your son will find out all about her school life. Get every test score you can find. Learn about her schedule and everything. It will be important to know just what spells she's mastered. We need to know her vulnerabilities."

The Goyles both nodded and took the papers that Lucius handed them. They looked to be places to begin the search. They would probably have to do a lot of breaking into Hogwarts to locate files on Granger, which though both the Goyles were large was easy for them. It always baffled Draco how Goyle could sneak up behind anyone at his size.

"Crabbe you and your son will find out everything you can about her family. Go all the way through her family tree. Search as far back as you can. We must know everything about this girl's family past. Also you will go interrogate her parents. Try to get as much information from them as possible."

That had been Draco's idea. He had been thinking about how to get information from her family. He'd had the idea to talk to them disguised as reporters doing a story for the Daily Prophet or something like that. So it surprised him when his father said it.

'I guess we think alike.' Draco said.

"Zabini you and your son are to find out who it is that she knows. What people does she come in contact everyday with? Who she's friends with besides Potter and Weasley. Learn about her relationships. Also learn about her enemies. Talk to some Slytherins and find out if any of them know anything about her."

"What about me father?" Draco asked after a short pause.

"You Draco will over see your friends. You'll be involved with all the groups. Help them work with them. I will be doing the same with their fathers. We will know this girl inside and out before the time is up."

Draco nodded. He knew that his father was going to hold him responsible for anything going wrong. That was why he put him in the leadership position. Draco hated how his father liked to drag him down whenever he did something wrong. It wasn't father like at all.

Draco stood and started out of the room with his friends at the request of his father. They shut the door behind them and started down the hall. Draco was quit staring at the floor thinking about the things that they all needed to do.

"So does anyone have any ideas about this?" Blaise asked after a few minutes of unbearable silence.

"I don't like this." Draco said.

"Why?"

"I don't want to dig into this Mudbloods life. I don't care enough anyway. I just want to get it all over with. What difference does it make whether we know what she got on a test in Charms back in fourth year?"

"I don't see it either but we have to. Your father will kill us all if we don't. I don't know about you but death sounds pretty bad right now." Blaise said smirking.

"Why would the Dark Lord want to know all about her though?" Draco asked.

"Dunno." Goyle stated.

"He's got his reasons." Blaise said. "I for one don't intend to ask him."

Later that very same day Draco was sitting in his house going over the three papers that his father had handed out to each family. They were resource papers giving the men names of places and people to talk to, to get any information on Granger. He was studying the lists trying to figure out which place he'd like to go.

One of the names on the list of people to talk to about Granger's relationships was Viktor Krum, the Bulgarian Quidditch star. Draco was surprised to see that name but then fourth year ran through his mind.

'That's right. Granger had that little fling with him. I wonder how that ended?'

"Going over the lists?" Lucius asked casually as he entered the room where Draco sat.

"Yeah. I was thinking about maybe taking a trip to see Viktor Krum."

"That can be arranged. You and Blaise could go together claiming to be friends of the girls. Have you spoken to Blaise about it?"

"Not yet but I can bring it up. If you make the arrangements we'll do it." Lucius gave his son a smile. "Father I was just wondering something."

"What?"

"Why is the Dark Lord so interested in the Mudblood?"

"He wants to study her. There are a lot of things that he doesn't know about her. I myself don't even know much about her. Only what you have spoken about her. Potter's really been the object of importance before now. She was just a nameless face beside him."

"You mean you didn't know anything about her? How is that possible? She's basically the brains behind all that Potter's ever done."

"She may have been the brains but Potter was the strength." Lucius said staring at his son. "She was unimportant. The Dark Lord only wanted to focus on Potter and Dumbledore. He already did away with one of the two. But getting rid of Potter will be a whole different task all together."

"But why so much investigation on Granger."

"The Dark Lord doesn't know how much power she possesses. She could be a threat to him by marrying you. She could be a threat to everything. She already is by being involved with the Order of the Phoenix. We have to be sure that we can keep her under control. We need to know just how much she's learned and whom she could contact. It's essential to know everything about her family so if need be we can use them as incentive to remain." Lucius paused. "I am sure that we can control her. Once we have her she will be lost to the Order. She will be ours."

Draco pondered this. She would be lost to the order. He knew that once she went missing the order would search like mad to find her. She was one of their most brilliant minds and would be needed. But she wouldn't be able to be found. She would be lost to those that she loved those that she cared about. She would be with him. The thought made his blood boil.

'I don't want to marry this Mudblood!' Draco thought enraged. 'I don't want to soil my reputation. I don't want to have a son with only half-good blood. I don't want to touch her. She's a filthy disgusting creature that doesn't deserve even a second glance let alone the Malfoy name.'

Lucius could tell by the look in his son's eye that he was angry. He knew what about as well. Lucius detested the idea of having a Mudblood for a daughter in law, but he had no choice. He had to follow orders and if that meant finding this girl to marry his son, then so be it. He wouldn't argue against it for Lucius knew that it might just be the last thing that he did.

"Keep working Draco. Time's growing short."

Lucius then left the room. As his father's robes whipped out of sight Draco glared down at the paper. More specifically he glared at Hermione's name.

'Couldn't it have been anyone else. Why did it have to be you?'

That was something that Draco would wonder for a long time.

Ok...so I hope that helps to clear things up a little while getting somemore things across...things should be getting better soon...I know you're all eager to see what happens when Hermione finds out...I am too actually...lol

Starry