A/N: You'd think I'd write more seeing how my exams are over. Many apologies for the lateness, school's over for me. Sorta. People studying under the British Curriculum will get it – My O Levels are over! So, I've been slightly busy partying. Forgive me, if you can find the heart.

poisoned blood: Thanks so much for being a dedicated reader, I love getting reviews from you. You're always so supportive. Thanks. xD

Wise Old Rabbit: Soon, but not quite yet. I'm trying to make this In-Character, so it'll take a while. Sometime in fourth year, though. So, it's slowly on its way! :D

Love to Britney101, LookingforNirvana, flamelm, sparky 753, 4SnowWolf and foreverthename – for reviews, favourites and alerts.

Ever since the incident at the Shrieking Shack, Harry felt distant. Hermione realized it must've been very hard for him to experience all that, she herself felt traumatized, so she could only begin to imagine how he felt. Yet, she hoped he would at least talk to her, or Ron. Harry had a knack for doing this, distancing himself from them once the ordeal was over. Then suddenly, unable to bear it, he would crack. He would scream, yell and become utterly frustrated. She wished it didn't have to come to that point. She wished he would just forthright tell them what he was going through. They were his friends, she and Ron. It was their duty to help him through his difficult moments, but it was near impossible when he hid from them. It scared them, to be honest, but they didn't have to courage to say anything to him. They remained silently supportive.

Hermione herself wasn't sure what to make of the situation. She read the Daily Prophet religiously, and had a considerable amount of trust in it. It seemed to think Sirius Black was the perpetrator of the all the murders which took place after Harry's parents died. Books, which she never ever imagined could ever be wrong, often used Sirius Black as a personification or example of something unspeakably evil, or traitorous. He was always portrayed as V – You-Know-Who's henchman. Even Dumbledore didn't trust him until recently. It made her incredibly suspicious, and she worried about Harry – but who was she to question teachers. Then there was Ron's rat, Scabbers, the reason they fought so often this year. He was really an animagus. Peter Pettigrew, that awful rat of a man. How someone could live like that for thirteen years, such a coward. Living as a rat, knowing his friend was rotting in prison because of him, knowing that he betrayed his friends to the most evil man known to the world, and knowing it was his fault Harry's parents were dead – and feeling no remorse. She couldn't imagine a life like that. A life where living proof of his guilt and sins walked in front of him, and he just stayed mum, hiding in the shadows. Finally, begging for forgiveness, thirteen years late to all those who he had wronged only so that he could save his own hide. It was revolting.

It was a warm afternoon, and Hermione was quietly packing her trunk. She was just about to shrink the cauldrons to fit her already full trunk when she noticed a book in one of them. She picked it up and skimmed over the blurb. It was written by a best-selling witch – it was book from the wizard world.

Up until this year, Hermione never had a chance to shop in the magical world for things that suited her tastes. Time in Diagon Alley was usually spent hurriedly waiting for shipments of schoolbooks to arrive, running to Madam Malkin's or catching up with Ron and Harry. She hardly ever got to buy anything that she particularly wanted. The only exception was Crookshanks, and she only got him because they went in to get Scabbers – she grimaced and corrected herself, Peter Pettigrew – checked. She had never spent those two or three hours curled up in Flourish and Blotts acquainting herself with magical authors, as she so longed to do. Her time at the library was usually with textbooks or reading the Daily Prophet. She had hoped that trips to Hogsmeade would change the situation, but with Dementors swooping around and all that Sirius Black fiasco, she hardly had time to visit the sole bookshop there. The fact that the author whose work she was most familiar with was Gilderoy Lockhart was proof of how little she knew about this sector of the magical society. Obviously, this book wasn't hers.

Hermione flipped it over in her hands a few times and reluctantly set the book on her bed. They would be heading home tomorrow, so she needed to put up quick fliers reading 'Book Found' if she was to return it to its rightful owner. Before she could, of course, she needed to finish packing first.

"Hermione?"

Hermione woke up with a start and looked around.

"Calm down, Mione. It's only us, Harry and Ron. You fell asleep in the library, that's where you are right now."

She shut her eyes and opened them in rapid succession to help focus. "What time is it?"

"It's time for lunch. When you didn't turn up, we checked the Common Room and then came here. Found you asleep. Since you skipped breakfast to pack, we decided to wake you. You haven't eaten a bite all day. Come on." Even in her sleepy state, she felt a blush creep up her face. Ron worried about her. "C'mon, let's go. I'm in the mood for some chocolate gateau."

She looked over the table, and stopped mid-stride. "Oh! The book!" She picked it up and showed it to Harry and Ron. "Is this either of yours? I found it in one of my Potions cauldrons. I thought I might have accidently brought it in from the library, but it isn't the school's. The name's smudged, and I don't know any effective spells to find whose it is."

Ron just shook his head before he even looked at the book. "That's a hardback. The only hardback we have at all at home is one of that prat, Lockhart's."

"Nope," said Harry as he examined it, "I don't have any books by magical authors. And, I don't think I own any hardbacks either."

Hermione took it back, and mused silently. "Hmm," she said at last, "Then I'll just have to put up posters as I thought earlier. Hold up for a few seconds, guys."

She bent over and scribbled something down on a piece of paper. She muttered something under her breath as she furiously flicked her wand, and finally put a photocopying spell and picked up a pile of papers. "There. Come on, now. Let's go get that dessert and then put these posters up."

She heard Ron whisper, "Bloody mental, that one…" to Harry, but also picked up the undertone of awe in his voice. She bit back a smile.

"Harry. We learnt the sticking spell early on in second year! You have to remember that! Or just use spello-tape." She glanced at his glasses in distaste, "Heavens knows you're skilled at it."

Harry pushed his glasses up a bit further and grinned at Hermione. "Spello-tape it is, then! So much easier, too. Just a bit of levitation."

"And remember. It's Levi-O-sa…"

"… Not Levio-Sa" Ron chimed in. "We remember. Impossible to forget, isn't it?"

"Ron! You're supposed to have finished sticking all the fliers all through the left of the hall till the library!"

"Relax, Mione. I've done it, these are extra, and so I brought 'em here. Thought I'd lend my friend, Harry, a hand."

Hermione looked uncertain and told the boys to keep working here while she goes and checks. Ron put up an act of being thoroughly affronted, but he told her to go and not worry about them. Well, he did put them up, Hermione noted gingerly, but the whole thing was so sloppily done. That's what happens, she thought, when you do something in hurry. She magicked the posters off and re-glued them – this time more neat and in a straight line. She especially put many around the library door, in case someone comes into the library in search for it. Then she took her own pile out from her bag and headed to the Dungeons. She rationalized that since it was in her cauldron, there's a chance it fell out of someone's bag during Potions. She intended to hand a pile to Professor Snape, and find out if by any chance the book was his.

She grew more and more afraid as she drew nearer to the classroom, because her mind replayed Snape's anger when he heard Sirius Black had escaped. Standing by the door, Hermione fought the (probably sane) desire to walk back, when she heard Snape's nasal voice. "What is it, Granger?"

She walked in with as much Gryffindor courage as she could muster and took a few deep breaths before she began. "Professor, I found this book," she took it out of her bag, "in one of my Potions cauldrons. Could it possibly be yours?"

Snape snatched the books from her hands and inspected it closely. She saw him tap the book with his wand, but he said no incantation. Finally, he handed it to her haughtily and said, "No, this book does not belong to me Ms. Granger. I suggest you show it to those absent-minded imbeciles you call your friends."

"I –uh." Hermione stuttered a bit before regaining her composure. "It isn't theirs, sir."

"Then, get out of my office. I have more important things to be doing than to tend to your stupid concerns." He caught her hands move involuntarily towards the fliers and he picked one up. He read out the poster with utmost contempt and glared at her. "You think I'm a house-elf, Granger? Do you think it's my duty to do as you bid?"

"N- No, sir."

"Then why on earth would you consider the possibility that I may want to help you distribute your little papers?"

"I wasn't… I didn't say you were, sir."

"Leave. Now!"

Hermione was very disappointed with the lack of response to her fliers. She couldn't understand how someone was not going absolutely berserk over the fact that they had misplaced a book. Heavens knows how long that book's been with her. She sunk down into her chair in the Gryffindor Common Room and began to read it. She wasn't going to, initially, because she was afraid she might have to part with it before she was done – a nightmare in its own rights. However, with the disinterest surrounding this book, she decided she might as well begin to read. The first chapter was a little dull, but the promise of an exciting story to come was more than sufficient to encourage her to labour on. Hermione was never too interested in crime novels, but reading this she got a better look at Aurors. She was always intrigued by magical professions, having little knowledge on them. She hardly knew the different sectors Aurors could be divided into, it was very like their Muggle counterparts. Time and again, Hermione was forced to check her books for meanings of magical terms and advanced spells. This thrilled her: the prospect of learning something so deliciously foreign to her. In the first seven chapters alone, Hermione learnt of twenty-one different technical Auror terms; eighteen difficult spells of which three were Hexes, four were jinxes and the remaining eleven were defensive spells. She decided she would lend Harry the book as well as her list containing meanings of the technical magical terms. It was likely to help him in the future with any trouble he might fall into, especially with You-Know-Who. If Trelawney's predictions were correct – although Hermione greatly doubted the fact – there was a possibility that Harry may be in great need of defensive spells.

"I heard you found a book."

"Ginny! You scared me for a second. Yeah, I did."

"Mind if I have a look?"

"No, go right on ahead."

"Hermione, I think you should show this to the Professors. What if no one's claiming the book because they want you to keep it?"

A dark shadow passed over Ginny's face and Hermione realized what she was thinking of: Riddle's Diary. She took Ginny's hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. "I took it to Snape, purveyor of Darks Arts, he is. If something were wrong with it, he'd detect it straightaway. He seemed to deem the book meaningless."

Ginny looked unsure, but accepted the answer. "I suppose you're right, Hermione. It's just – I worry. I don't want anyone to face the fate I did."

Hermione smiled warmly in her direction and said, "I know, Gin. Don't worry, I got it. There's nothing special about this book except its unbelievable plotline – oh! The twists this story has taken! It's a pure thrill."

"Yeah? Dad has that book. Written by some friend of his at the Ministry. I'll tell Dad to let him know the brightest witch in Harry Potter's year thought the book was 'a pure thrill'."

Hermione laughed. "Speaking of Harry Potter, how's that little crush of yours?"

Ginny's face flushed a red akin to her hair. "Haven't spoken to him much this year. Barely seen him at all. I'm less of a prick around him though; I can actually carry out all bodily functions – which is an improvement."

Despite all her plans of finishing the book, returning it to its owner and visiting Professor McGonagall regarding her time-turner, Hermione spent the rest of the evening chatting with Ginny. It was the first time, possibly, since her advent to Hogwarts, full three years back that she actually had a long girl-to-girl conversation. Lavender and Parvati really weren't the sort of people she got along with. She needed someone who was able to keep up with her intellect and wit. In her first year, Ginny appeared to be very shy, quiet and did not have much to say. However, having spent the past three hours with her, Hermione realized just how brazen, bold and witty she really was. She seemed to a chip of Fred and George, expect much more sensible. She was, in essence, the perfect friend for Hermione.

Draco Malfoy had put off packing his trunk until the last possible moment because he was still recuperating from his failed attack on Granger. In fact, he was so focused on his revenge that he didn't notice his favourite book was missing. He skipped the Grand Feast because he didn't want to see Granger's face and moreover he didn't want to watch the room paint over in scarlet and gold again as they celebrated yet another Gryffindor win. When he left in the morning after breakfast, he vaguely noticed the posters his current nemesis put up but paid no attention. He thought his book was safely stowed away in his trunk. He couldn't be bothered to unpack all over again and check. So, as he walked out of King's Cross station later that day, he was completely oblivious to the fact that his favourite book was in Granger's possession.

A/N: So, it's becoming more un-canon, there's a new link between Draco and Hermione and it's the advent of Fourth Year. Who's excited?

Speaking of excited. Who's excited for Pottermore? Who has early acceptance? [I do! :D]