A/N: Well, it's a few hours later than I'd hoped, but here's the next chapter in our saga, and a bit more explaining happening. I should probably point out (incase I haven't already) that this story deviates from JKR's original material somewhere in the middle of HBP. I've mucked with the plot and timelines a bit, but it should all be explained throughout the course of the story...enjoy!

*** 9 – Shocked ***

Everyone was silent after Harry's proclamation. Liz felt her mouth drop open even wider than before, and she stared at Harry in shock. She barely registered the sharp elbow to the ribs that Ginny gave him.

"OUR best friend," Harry clarified. "You've known Ron and I since our first year at Hogwarts. We got off to a rocky start, but we were inseparable until they took you. You were taken from the hospital five years ago."

"Why?"

"You always were considered the brightest witch of your age," Ron answered, with a note of pride in his voice. "It was almost expected that these people would come after you, but it shocked all of us when the Ministry actually took you."

Liz was shaking. This was too much to process. An hour ago, she had been wandering the halls of this strange home with Draco, completely oblivious to everything going on around her, and now she had a whole past that she knew nothing about. "How could this have happened? How long was I gone before anyone noticed?"

"Five minutes." Her eyes flew to Draco, who was looking at her so sadly. "I left the room for five minutes, and when I came back you were gone." He looked down at the floor, and kept talking, but it was almost as if he was now talking to himself. "We'd never been apart for more than that for two years, and the one time I turn my back, you were snatched from me."

Liz placed her hand on his back in a comforting gesture, and shot several confused glances at the other people in the room. She had no idea why Draco was reacting like this, but she knew that everyone else in the room did.

Ginny took pity on her, and gave her the answers she sought. "You and Draco got together during our last year at Hogwarts. During the years before that, you were complete opposites, and you tormented each other whenever a chance arose. But during your sixth year at school, he came to the Order with information on Voldemort, his father and the other remaining Death Eaters. No one knew this until the summer before your seventh year, but after we all found out, everyone realized how much he had truly changed. A few months after that, you two began dating, and…"

When Ginny trailed off, Liz looked to Harry to finish what she started. He sighed deeply, and continued. "And less than a year later you were married."

Liz couldn't help the gasp that flew from her lips. She was married? If it was possible, she now felt even worse than she had. How could she not remember being married?

She looked over at Draco with tears in her eyes. "I'm sorry," she whispered. He brought his eyes up to meet hers, and she saw that his held the same emotion. "I'm sorry I can't remember." He grabbed her and pulled her into a fierce hug. She felt a few tears slip onto his shoulder, and barely registered everyone else in the room moving a little closer to their respective partners. Draco held her tightly, and gently whispered to her. "It's not your fault."

After a few moments, Liz regained her composure, and pulled back from Draco. He tucked a stray curl behind her ear, and gave her a soft smile. She returned it, and then asked a question that she had been wondering since they met for the second time. "How did you find me?"

"Tonks, actually. She was the Auror assigned to your case." Draco turned and shot the woman on the floor the most beautiful smile Liz had ever seen.

"It wasn't easy," she admitted, adjusting her position on the floor so she could better lean onto Remus. "The Ministry really did not want you to be found. I couldn't even use any of my Ministry connections until Kingsley took over, so it was almost a year before we could really start the search. In that time though, we managed to figure out that you weren't anywhere in Britain, Ireland or Scotland. If it weren't for the cryptic records the previous Minister left, I might not have found you at all. I had an entire team of Translators working on the records, and it took them a good year to come up with the country you were in. After that, I took a large part of the Order with me, and we started looking on the Entry-net to find out anything we could about you. We only had your description and age to go on for over a year."

"Entry-net? You mean the internet?"

Tonks nodded. "Harry showed me how to use the compu-thingy, and we just kept searching. When the Translators finally got us a specific name, it was easier, and once we had a more precise location, it was just a matter of finding out which Liz Cooper in the city was you."

"How did you know though? There must be people who look like me all over the country."

"True, but I knew exactly who you were the minute I saw you. I came into the store you worked at one day. You were the twenty-eighth Liz Cooper I had checked in that city alone. But as soon as I saw you, I knew you were our Hermione. And when I caught a glimpse of your rings –"

"My rings?" Liz interrupted, grabbing at her right ring finger. "They were my mother's. What about them?"

"They're the rings Draco gave you when you got married. I'd recognize that set anywhere."

Liz stared down at the white gold bands on her finger. Her mother had given them to her when she turned 18. Liz's parents had divorced when she was 6, but her mother had always wanted her to have the rings. They were too beautiful to be kept in a box, she had said.

"Once I saw them, I knew it was you. I sent word to Harry, Ron and Draco, and they were there within a week. I thought they were all going to jump you the first time they realized that this was the real deal. It took almost a month before they felt they were ready to approach you without freaking you out."

"But we freaked her out anyway," Ron said sadly.

"And sent her straight to the one place that we didn't want her to be," Harry added.

"But it worked out alright," Tonks said, trying to bring them all back up. "She found Blaise, who let us know what was going on so we could get her out."

"I got her shot!" Blaise shouted in anger.

"And you saved her life!" Remus countered.

"He's right Blaise. If it wasn't for you and Tonks, we might never have gotten her back." Draco's admission stunned everyone into silence. Liz felt her head swimming with the newfound knowledge, and didn't know what to do with it all.

"Are you alright my dear?" Albus was asking her. She looked at him, trying to look normal, but knowing that she failed miserably.

"It's just a lot to take in. A week ago I was a normal girl whose only fears were snakes, clowns and failure. Now, I've been taken prisoner, shot, and found out that I'm really a witch," Liz admitted, chuckling at the absurdity of the situation.

"This must be overwhelming for you dear," was the calm response of Molly Weasley. She gave Liz the warmest smile, and continued. "We're not going to push you into anything, and we don't want to scare you off."

"We'll be here for your questions, and just as support in general." This came from the boy on the sofa next to the blonde girl...Neville? "We just want to help bring you back, Hermione."

"For right now, would you all mind calling me Liz? I'm just used to it." She dropped her head at the end of her sentence.

Draco reached over and lifted her chin up so he could look in her eyes. "We'll do anything you want to make you feel comfortable here. All we want to do is help. If there's ever anything you need, just tell us."

Liz smiled gratefully at the sincerity of his words. They melted her heart, and she could understand why she – Hermione, that is – fell for him. He was incredibly kind and charming, and she'd only known him a few days.

"Is there anything that you would like to ask us?" Albus asked of her.

"There are a lot of things I want to ask, but very few I can actually put into words right now," Liz replied honestly, bringing a laugh to the tense group. She sobered her smile, and looked at him seriously, and posed her first question. "If the Ministry was so worried about me being taken by these scientists, then why did they place me in a home that was only a block away from their facility?"

"We believe that the Ministry was unaware of the location of the facility at the time of your placement," said Kingsley Shacklebolt. "Once we found you, and realized your proximity to the facility, we got Blaise in there straight away to avoid any disasters should you be caught."

The room went silent for a moment, and Liz felt compelled to ask the question that was burning her brain. "What do they do to the people they catch?"

But before he could answer her, a tiny pop was heard in the room. All eyes went to the door to find the source. Liz gasped openly at the sight of the tiny being with large ears and bright eyes. It was dressed in a small tea cosy, holding a rolling pin, and had tears streaming down its face.

"Dobby?" asked George Weasley from his perch on the ground. "What is it?"

The creature, Dobby, looked around the room, his tearful eyes not focusing on anyone. "Dobby is so sorry masters! Dobby only turned around for a moment to put the sandwiches on the table!" he cried, hitting himself in the head with the rolling pin.

"Dobby stop!" Luna shouted, reaching for the rolling pin. "You'll hurt yourself."

"Dobby deserves it, after what has happened!" The little creature cried.

"Dobby?" Draco's voice was eerily calm as he spoke. "What's happened?"

"Dobby only turned around for a moment to put the sandwiches on the table! When Dobby turned back, Little Miss was not in her chair!"

Liz looked confused, but Draco shot straight up out of his seat. "What?" he demanded. "Where is she?"

"Dobby does not know sir! Dobby searched her usual hiding places, but Little Miss is not in any of them!"

Anyone who had been sitting was now on their feet, looking frantic. "What's going on?" Liz asked, turning to Molly.

"We have to find her!" Draco shouted to them all.

"We will Draco, she can't be far," Ginny told him softly.

"She's still in the house," Arthur commented matter-of-factly.

"How do you know?" Draco roared, his eyes full of fear.

"The security charms would have gone off if she had left the house unattended and without permission." This from Professor McGonagall.

"Dobby, you didn't give her permission to leave, did you?" Albus asked kindly.

"Never, sir!" Dobby shook his head violently, almost falling over. "Dobby knows how important it is that Little Miss be with someone at all times!"

"Then she's around here somewhere," Remus said.

"But there must be a hundred rooms in this godforsaken house!" Draco argued.

"Then we'd best start looking. If we split up, we'll find her quicker," Ron suggested.

Everyone started to move, and Liz wanted to help, but she still had no idea what was going on. She grabbed Draco's arm as he started to pass her, and forced him to look in her eyes. "Draco, what's happened?"

"She's gone missing," he replied sadly, turning his face to the doorway.

"Who has?" she pressed.

He turned to look at her, and she finally saw the tears in his eyes. "My daughter," he whispered, as her heart plummeted and her breath vanished.