Author's Note: First I would like to apologize for not updating sooner but school is driving me nuts. Second, I'm happy where the story is heading and that my chapters are getting longer. Thanks to all of you who have reviewed and make my day better.

Chapter 3

9:40 P.M. The Ministry of Magic

Kingsley Shacklebolt, the current Minister of Magic, sat on his desk going over the Death Eaters sightings that had been reported to the Magical Law Enforcement Department.

He felt like pulling at his hair, the little he had anyway. He was tired of having to announce all the failed plans to capture the last of the rough Death Eaters. It had been almost a year since the final battle where Harry Potter had defeated Voldemort with a reflecting killing curse. The Order of the Phoenix had been there as well, fighting against the Death Eaters and moving the injured fighters to a safe compound. Unfortunately, the Order had been unable to capture the surviving Death Eaters. At that time Severus Snape had been arrested while being treated for snake poisoning as were the Malfoys, Zabinis, and Parkinson had also been arrested. And while Severus Snape had been set free after Potter had presented his memories the rest remained in Azkaban awaiting trial.

As he began to take notes on the reports his eyes were drawn to the Phoenix tattoo on his right forearm representing his loyalty to the Order of the Phoenix. The tattoo had an uncanny resemblance when it came to the Dark Mark and many people had been against using it as a brand. But of course the brainy Ms. Granger had fixed the problem incorporating thing from the dark mark like knowing where people were, able to community with other sharing the Phoenix, and the most innovating aspect that had saved many members lives- a vibration that was sent to all the members brain warning that someone was in mortal peril followed by the appearance of the members name on the body of the Phoenix where the location was given. It had been that last aspect that had lead the members of the Order to accept the tattoo, after all who didn't want to have a safety net if they fell.

Just as returned to overseeing the reports his private floo activated and a smiling Sirius Black walked in.

" So Kingsley almost done. Remus and I were wondering if you would like to go out and find some bird to have fun with?" the jubilant Sirius asked.

Kingsley took a deep breath as if calming himself to stop the urge to throw his overly annoying friend from his office window, " Sirius for the last time, no I do not wish to go catch a 'bird' with you, and I'm sure that since Remus is happily married to your cousin and happily with his son, and emphasize on the cousin, he has no wish to go anywhere with you at night," and smirked before continuing, " specially with that tigress he has for a wife."

Sirius was about to respond when both males felt a vibration from their forearms to their brain and two pairs of eyes widen when in the body of the phoenix appeared a familiar name,

Hermione Granger,

The Granger Home.

9: 35 P.M.

The five masked figures walk swiftly toward the muggle home, surrounding it and placing anti-apparation wards. The leader of the group smirked thinking of the swift death that awaited the annoying mudblood girl.

Two Avada's left two of the figures wands following a spell that shattered the houses windows. The lights inside the house flickered and eventually went off and everything in the muggle neighborhood remained quiet. The lights in the houses remained off, the last people left on the street from the long day of work drove on to their happy homes, nothing seemed to be happening in the calm middle class neighborhood. To an outsider the street remained quiet and everything was as normal as it should have been.

Yet as the naïve neighbors continued on with their happy lives the robed figures continue their journey toward the house. With wands out the five Death Eaters split up two moving toward the back to stop any unwanted exits while the remaining three went toward the frontal part of the side. One to the destroyed window and the other toward the door. With a quick Alohomora, the robed figure who was obviously the leader entered the house and followed the same path that the grangers had followed not even an hour before. The Death Eater walked toward the living room and was met with another Death Eater who was crouching down looking at the broken glass and droops of blood that was spread throughout the spacious room, yet one important factor was missing.

The Mudblood!, the robed figure asked throughout the Dark Mark that connected them. The Death Eater looked up and his silver mask shone in the darkness as he answered, Not here, but I'm sure she hasn't left the premises.

Keep looking!, the leader responded as the remaining three Death Eaters found themselves in the living room.

They once again split up two going toward the upper level, one headed toward the basement, while the remaining two looked around the first level. The leader stayed in the living room as the other Death Eaters moved to explore the house. The robed figured looked down toward the blood drops and saw a small, almost invisible trail, that led toward the back of the house.

The figure moved slowly noting how there was more then one trail and excess of cat hair everywhere. The trail continued onto a bedroom at the back of the house and went around the bed stopping where a wall was began.

Well, isn't this interesting, though the Death Eaters. Memory brought back the pureblood education of secret passages and hidden panels in many older English homes built for protection a long time ago during the Persecutions and the muggle World Wars. A small pale hand appeared from under the black robe and began knocking on the wall until a hallow sound was heard. The figure smirked as a spell made the wall begin a slow descend and it's already crazy mind began to laugh manically, Oh mudblood you won't escape me again. There is no traitor house elf to save you, and your little body will be broken and sent to Potter, for he shall not forget that My Lord's Followers are still strong. And that we won't stop until all his loved ones are death, or mutilated, whatever I feel like doing to them.

Heavy-lidded eyes widen as the wall moved completely and was meet with utter

darkness.

A quick Lumos was spoken and the light illuminated a pair of big brown eyes, as Bellatrix Lestrange let a killing curse fly.

9:40 P.M.

Hermione threw herself to the ground pulling her mother with her and telling her dad to duck as the twin jets of lights entered through the shattered window. The lights in the house flickered and shock until they went completely off followed by an eerie silence.

She looked over to her sides to meet the wide eyes of her mother then softly called her dad who quickly answered back. She started to crawl toward her dad while pulling her mother with her when she felt a sharp stab of pain in her knees and felt blood running down her face, I must have hit my head harder then I realized.

She ignored the pain moving quickly toward the far corner of the room as far away as possible from the window.

The Granger huddled together against the far wall of their homes living room. Hermione was desperately trying to find her wand while trying to find a safe way for her family. Her fingers trembled as the pain in her head increased and her vision became blurry. The rustle of robes moving against the ground led her heart to speed up erratically, her wand was no where to be found and they were sitting ducks. Whoever was attacking was not going to stop and have pity on her because she couldn't find her wand. Her mom's voice stopped her negative thoughts when she whispered, " Honey, why don't we use the fake walls to hide ourselves?"

Hermione found herself thinking of the fake walls and long servant hallways that had been built into her home during World War II and how she had played hide and seek with her father hiding in those walls while the muggle children had been outside ignoring her and leading her to seek the solitude of her homes hidden secrets.

She nodded to her parents and they began to move pulling a lamp that began to lower the door. Her parents filed in as she followed quickly, she lifted Crookshanks from where he had been twitching since the attack and lifted him toward herself. It was then she noticed something…….a blood trail leading toward the wall. She covered it with anything she could reach and quickly pull the lever on the inside of the passage as a door was opened.

She huddled toward her parents embracing them as her body shook with anger at her home being desecrated and of pain from her wound that continued to bleed. Her parents held her tight, her mom and dad holding hands as they waited for anything to happen.

She felt her arm begin to vibrate as the Phoenix tattoo she had began to send of a warning of incoming danger. She wondered if any members of the Order had felt the vibration and were coming to their rescue. She seriously hoped they arrived soon because if things continued as they were going they were going to find three tortured bodies.

Her head began to pound and her heart climbed to her throat as she felt the wall behind her begin to lower. She stepped back shielding her parents with her petite body when a though suddenly occurred to her.

Where was Crookshanks?

The wall lowered completely and a deep ominous silence filled the house, it was as if no one took a breath in the house. It remained quiet until Hermione saw the light of a wand came out and a deep crazed voice spilled out the Killing Curse and as the green light lit the room Hermione found herself looking into the face of her first cousin once removed, Bellatrix Lestrange. And her world went dark.

Sirius and Kingsley arrived at the outskirts of Hermione's home at 9: 45 where they were quickly followed by Nymphadora and Remus Lupin, Charlie, George, and Ginny Weasley, and Severus Snape.

They all nodded at each other as they took their stances splitting up into groups like they had done many times before during the war. Charlie, George, and Ginny rounded the taking the ally and moving to the rear of the house . Tonks and Remus moved slowed toward the side crouching and staying low to the ground while placing a protecting shield around them. While Kingsley, Sirius, and Severus moved toward the front of the home walking cautiously each heading toward the exit points, the two side windows and the entrance door.

Kingsley walked through the door as Sirius and Severus neared the shattered windows taking a look inside and edging toward the doors. The three men entered the house in synchrony moving in a steady pace without making any noise. They entered through the long hallway with quick steps moving like a shadow provided by the moonlight.

Severus walked behind Kingsley all senses on alert just waiting for the attack. It was odd going back to being in alert. Over the past months after the Dark Lord had been conquered he had began to relax, to enjoy the life he would have had if he had never joined the Dark side but it was always in the back of his mind that not everyone had been caught and in the deepest corners of his mind he knew that it wasn't over that what was coming was just the beginning of a long painful road and that this time around he might not survive.

He felt guilty sometimes. Specially when he's invited by Molly to the parties the Weasley's enjoy throwing and he sees the emptiness in George's eyes and wonders how he, who has done things that should have landed him in Azkaban survived when Fred Weasley died at such a young age. He has to remind himself that life isn't fair when he feels like he's choking on the sadness of the Weasley family and he knows that George wonders how he survived when his brother couldn't and it hurts. He has his Order of Merlin at his home and when he first received it he remembers feeling proud that someone had acknowledged his sacrifice for what it was but he remembers the emptiness in those blue Weasley eyes and that price remains stored in a box unable to be displayed with pride because if he lets himself thing of what he deserves he knows that it would end with him dying the day of the battle.

He has this feeling he can't understand. Oh he knows what it is, its fear. He's lived in fear since he joined the Dark Lord and can understand how it comes about, how it invades ones mind and drives people to do stupid things. No what he can't figure out is why he's worried for the Granger chit. Although that hardly seems fair since the young lady did help save his life and she was more bearable now that she wasn't as obnoxious about school work and telling everyone what to do as not to hurt Potter's feelings. But he felt extremely confused as why a deep sense of fear settled in his gut as the deep silence of the house reached his mind.

He could tell Kingsley felt the same sense of dread and fear as they walked into the Grangers living room to see two trails of blood and the shattered glass.

He felt Black tense behind him as the same thought entered their minds- where was Hermione and her parents?

They began to look around Kingsley heading toward the window. Severus following the trail of blood. And Sirius moving toward the small recliner as he saw a small familiar book.

Kingsley edge himself toward the broken window saying a simple spell to determine how it had been broken. He looked at the data that the spell provided and felt his insides freeze- dark magic.

He turned as he heard Sirius gasp.

"What is it?" he asked.

Sirius continued to sit on his heels as he turned through the small book. He passed his hand over the edges remembering the last time he had seen it, the same time ha had seen his brother for the last time. His mind flew thousands of miles per hours trying to decipher what Hermione Granger was doing with his brother's journal. He stood up taking the book with him and turning toward Kingsley.

Kingsley looked at his friend and at the book wondering what was going on. Before he could even ask Sirius said.

"It belonged to my brother!"

Kingsley hadn't even opened his mouth when Sirius asked the same question he was about to ask,

" What is my brother's journal doing in Hermione Granger's house?"

He let out a frustrated sigh and exclaimed,

" Where on earth is that chit and her parents so they can answer my damn questions?"

Severus Snape looked back at Sirius and Kingsley as the secret wall began its descend. The first thing he noticed was the smell. It was the smell of Dark Magic, blood, and death. He turned around slowly hoping against hope that what he found would not be the body of Hermione Granger and her parents, but like most of his life his hope failed him.

No, he hadn't found the body of Hermione Granger but from what was left of the two bodies in the secret passage he could guess it was the Grangers.

His voice became deadly quiet as he answered Sirius,

" I'm afraid the Grangers will not be able to answer your questions Black."

Sirius turned around angrily ready to start a fight when he caught sight of the two bodies. Kingsley and he walked slowly to where Severus was standing stopping a step behind him not believing his eyes.

A feminine scream was heard as Ginny Weasley came into the living room and looked at the dead bodies of her best friends parents. She felt her eyes water and had to turn her face as bile rose in her throat, she ran out of the room throwing up outside the house before she slid down to the floor and broke down to cry.

Bill saw his little sister crying and walked toward the living room fearing what he would find there. Charlie stayed behind trying to consol Ginny and asking her what was wrong but nothing could calm the young girl down.

Bill walked into the living room and meet the faces of the rest of the group. Remus and Tonks were off in one of the corners hugging each other while the other four men continued to gaze at the dead bodies and when he followed their eyes direction he understood why his little sister cried. In a small hidden passage laid the tortured bodies of one Jane and John Granger.

Mrs. Granger was covered in blood with both her arms broken and her neck twisted in an awkward angle that left a bone out of her skin. Her face was swollen and her clothing was ripped to shreds. Her husband had faired little better. He had been completely mutilated, all his fingers had been cut out, one of his eyes was missing, and one of his legs was completely separate from his body and still the blood continued to flow. The bodies were covered with bite marks and the only thing Bill said was,

" Greyback!"

It wasn't a question and nobody answered but he knew he was correct because Remus turned around shaking with fury and nodded.

Tonks walked around her husband and headed toward one of the rooms in the back and was quickly followed by George who was clearly affected by the gruesome sight. She came back with a blood soaked Crookshanks and said,

" I'll take him until Hermione comes back."

And they all nodded although they were all thinking the same thing.

If she comes back.

Author's Note: I also want to thank those who added alerts to my story. Thanks for your support. Please review and let me know if I misspelled anything or made a mistake with the spelling of the characters name. Hope you like it. Much love. Mimi