Harry gave Ron and Hermione both a solid nod and hugged Teddy a little closer to his chest. The wind was whipping around them, causing the long grass at their feet to become a tangled mess. A shiver ran down his spine and he had a hard time determining whether it was due to the wind or a quiver of magic coursing through him.

A dark look crossed over Harry's features. He was retreating into that dark place where he'd brew on his speculations until he'd festered all kinds of negative ideas. As soon as they got back to Grimmauld Place, they'd just have to split up again, and he wasn't entirely enthusiastic about that idea…but it needed to happen. In the past he'd been too closed off…this time, if things were headed in the direction he suspected, he would need to make a conscious effort to be more forthcoming.

Harry adjusted Teddy in his arms and the movement seemed to stir something within Hermione. Stepping forward, she slid her hands under Teddy's small arms, pulling him away from Harry's chest and into her own. She adjusted herself as his heavy head lay on her shoulder. The weight of his sleep brought him down more heavily than if he had been awake. She looked between Harry and Ron and tried her very best to silently preface what she was about to say. She cleared her throat and looked on at them as she spoke.

"We need to get moving," she started. "Every second we continue to stand here is a second that may be ticking away for Andromeda." She paused, not wanting to say the next sentence aloud. She looked down to the boy in her arms and subconsciously squeezed him to her a little tighter. As she lifted her hand to cover his ear, pressing his head into her chest a little tighter, she thought briefly of the lives his parents had sacrificed so he might lead one more fully and freely. "That is, if something terrible hasn't already happened to her," she said, this time locking eyes with Harry.

"First thing's first," he said evenly. "We get to Grimmauld and we form a plan."

"Right," Ron added. He reached out and took Teddy's bag from Hermione, hoisting it over his shoulder along with his own things. "Shall we?"

Ron and Harry nodded in agreement. "On the count of three," Harry said. "I've been using the alley down the street – the one with the ratty pram, you know it?" Ron and Hermione both nodded. "Good then."

All at once, the three took off into the field, counting their paces to three before turning on the spot and Apparating to the alley down the street from Grimmauld Place. Hermione cracked over first and as soon as she felt the ground beneath her feet, she peered down to make sure Teddy was still fast asleep. A moment later, Harry appeared next to her, Ron following close on his heels.

The air was smoggy and heavy around them and there was a light smattering of rain that promised to become a downpour. Harry held a hand up to his lips signaling for them to keep quiet and inched his way out to the edge of the buildings where the alley met the main road. He looked both ways before gesturing that the coast was clear.

By the time they'd made their way inside the dark foyer of number twelve Grimmauld Place, they were all soaked to the bone and Teddy had begun to whimper.

"Shh," Hermione cooed into his hair. "I'm here, and we're going to go get some warm clothes on," she offered. "How does that sound?" He quieted some, but was still more distressed than anything else. She pulled her wand out of her back pocket and made a simply swirl in the air above them before bringing the tip down to touch gently on his shoulder. She followed suit, bringing it down over her own head, then Harry's, then Ron's, and before long, they were all dry – even if their bones still felt chilled. "Better?" she asked.

"Much better," Ron said. "Your drying charms have an extra…charm to them."

"It's in the wrist," she offered, reaching out and into the bag that was hanging at his shoulder. She pulled out a set of clothes and held them up to the men on either side of her. "Now, if you'll excuse us, we're going to go upstairs, we're going to get cleaned up, and when we come back downstairs, we'd better have a damn near perfect plan of action."

Teddy, who had quieted significantly since the drying spell, let out a faint gasp. He reached a hand up and placed it on Hermione's chin, then twisted her head so that she was looking down on him. "No bad words," he said, his brow furrowed.

Harry let out a burst of laughter. "You tell her, mate," he said.

"Harry, honestly, this is no time for joking."

"Hermione, don't you think you're overreacting just a bit?" Ron asked.

"No, Ronald!" she said, louder than she'd intended. Her eyes grew and she glanced at Teddy. Lowering her voice, she continued to speak, holding a hand to his ear as he tried to fight her off. "I do not think I'm overreacting. This could be very serious, and until we determine it's not, I think it's in everyone's best interest that we treat it as if it's life or death…" she paused and her voice grew quieter still, "because it very well may be."

Ron's face paled and Teddy shot Hermione a dirty look when she finally released his head, but Harry didn't say anything or make any move. His hands were at his waist, and there was a distant look in his eye that everyone knew meant he was thinking.

"She's right," he said after some time. "We need to assume the worst. I'd love to believe it was a coincidence, all of this, but in my experience, there is no such thing as a coincidence." He ran a hand through his hair. "Hermione, do you want me to take him?"

"No," she said quietly. "We're good here."

"Alright, go ahead and get him into some warmer clothes. Ron and I will be in the kitchen going over what we should do. Join us when you're done?"

"We'll be right down," she said before sharing a heavy look with both men.

Harry and Ron both stood at the base of the stairs as Hermione ascended, chatting with Teddy the whole way, as if there were nothing going on, nothing to worry about. Harry noted the way she refrained from mentioning Andromeda or going home. By the time she turned out of his view, his mind was already racing with a plan.

He turned to Ron and took his shoulder. "We need to be quick, no matter what we do. There isn't going to be a lot of time if we want to get in and see what's going on before the Ministry sends someone." He led his red-headed friend down the hall and into the kitchen and they both took a seat on either side of the kitchen table.

"Don't get me wrong, Harry," Ron started. "I'm definitely confused by why she wasn't home when she was supposed to be, but why are you and Hermione so sure that there's something ominous about it? I mean, maybe she ran to the market, or went to have tea with a friend. Maybe she was still sleeping, or in the shower."

Harry sat for a moment considering Ron's suggestions. They were all very real possibilities, but something still wasn't sitting right with Harry.

"Why would she leave the house when she knew we were going to be bringing Teddy by in the morning – when Hermione had checked in with her the night before because I had fallen unconscious? Doesn't it seem odd that she'd decide to have tea or do some last minute shopping with something like that going on and her only grandson away?"

"Don't worry, mate, I'm sure she was right concerned about you," Ron said with a wink.

"Ron, now's not the time for jokes."

"I know," Ron conceded. "I'm just saying…try not to get all worked up about it until we know there's something to get worked up over. Did Hermione actually go inside the house, or did she just call in?"

"I think she just popped her head in," Harry said. "Look, I know I'm being a bit extreme. It's just…next to you all, she and Teddy are the closest I've got to family, and if she's not well, or if she's disappeared…I just don't know."

"I hear you. I still think we should ask around, take a look, that sort of thing…before we get too worried."

The room was quiet for a moment, both Ron and Harry trying to think of other reasonable explanations – Ron trying to wrap his mind around why Harry was jumping to conclusions, and Harry trying to talk himself off the ledge. There was a creak in the floorboards and both of them shot their heads up to look at Hermione who had just entered through the doorway.

"Have you ever felt something so strongly, either in your heart or in your gut, that you just know you're right?" She was leaning against the door frame, her arms tucked tightly at her chest. She was biting her lip and looking off into the distance, past both men and past the walls of the kitchen in number twelve Grimmauld Place. She was with them in body, but her mind was far off. Neither Harry nor Ron said a word. "Teddy's sitting in the other room watching a film; he should be occupied for the time being, but eventually, he's going to ask about his Nana and I want to have an answer for him. Ron, I know you don't understand, but this is very unlike Andromeda. She is always up before the sun and she never leaves when she knows that Teddy is due home. Not without letting one of us know."

Ron sat quietly, her words falling on him in two different ways. One, perhaps they were onto something. Two, they seemed to spend a lot of time together…the three of them or the four of them, however you looked at it. Enough time for there to be an "us" in the picture.

"Hermione's right," Harry offered, standing and leaning against the back of his chair. He folded his hands and looked between his two best friends. "I'd feel better if we popped over and checked things out either way. I've got this sickening feeling that my passing out last night and suddenly being unable to reach her this morning are linked. I hope to Merlin they're not, but…"

"In our experience there are no coincidences," Ron said, also standing. His voice was low and un-amused. "I get it." He stuffed his hands in his pockets. "So what's the plan?"

"I say you and I go check things out at the house," Harry said to Ron. "Hermione, you can stay here and keep an eye on Teddy. Send word to Kingsley if we're not back in the hour."

"No, wait," Hermione said, stepping into the kitchen. "Why am I staying here? I don't think it's right for you to be out after last night, especially not if there's a chance of foul play."

"Hermione," Harry said, cutting her off.

She tilted her head and a glint in her eye caught the light. "Don't you 'Hermione' me, Mister Throws Himself In Harms Way At Any Chance He Gets. Just because I'm a woman does not mean –"

"Hermione," Harry insisted. He stepped forward and put his hands on either side of her, resting just below her shoulders. "This has nothing to do with you being a woman. Teddy will feel comfortable with you. If I stay, I know he'll start questioning about Andromeda and when it's time to go home. Spending this much time with you is an extra treat for him. Plus, I need you researching what happened last night." He took a moment to look at Ron, but didn't let go of her arms. "We all know you're the best at researching," he continued. "Please. Just do this for me?"

She eyed him silently, not buying his reasoning, but also acknowledging, at least to herself, that he was right on some accounts. She was definitely the better researcher…and it did make her feel special to know that Teddy would be more relaxed with her. It was nothing new, something they joked about often.

"Alright," she said evenly. "But I want you to check in with me before you go anywhere else, understand?"

"Merlin's beard, Hermione," Ron said. He pushed himself off the chair he'd been leaning on. "You sound like his mum; relax."

"How am I supposed to relax with the both of you waltzing off toward trouble?"

"We're not waltzing off toward trouble," Harry said.

"Yes you are," Hermione chided in a condescending sort of way. "You're always waltzing off toward trouble."

It didn't take them long to get everything together. Harry grabbed his invisibility cloak and Ron filled Hermione in on a few other details. The last thing they wanted to do was raise suspicion should the Ministry show up while they were there, for one reason or another.

By the time Harry and Ron were out the door, they'd only been at Grimmauld for a total of twenty minutes. Not even a half hour, and certainly not enough time for anyone else to notice that Mrs. Tonks was...unreachable.

The two young men walked in a hurry over to the alley way, neither of them making eye contact with the other, both of them staring dead ahead, their feet splashing through the grey puddles that pooled at their feet. It was a dreary day…as many had been in recent weeks. It seemed that for all of Europe, there was not a clear sky in sight. Something Harry noted as particularly ominous. He didn't quite feel that it meant anything, but he had to admit, in his time on earth, however brief it may still be, dark foreboding skies generally meant something.

He would do his best to refrain from worrying until they turned a shade of green.

With two cracks, they were both standing outside the door to Andromeda's small home. The cool air that they'd felt before when they were at the Burrow continued to whip around their feet, carrying the soft hint of the coming rain down on them. Harry could tell by looking through the windows that it was totally dark inside. There weren't any lights inside, and by the look of it, he doubted they would find any movement either.

"Well, we might as well go on in and get this over with," Ron mumbled, eyeing the way Harry was watching the door.

"Right," Harry said. "I'll go first, wands out, follow closely behind. I'm not really sure what we're going to find."

Ron gave him a sharp nod and fell in step behind him. As they made their way up the path from the road toward the house, Harry readied himself for whatever lay on the other side of the door. Being an Auror certainly prepared him for times like this, when danger might be lurking on the other side of a wooden frame, waiting for the perfect moment to jump out and strike. However, he had yet to find something that could prepare a person for the nerve-wracking sensation that came along with approaching a personal scenario.

For this reason, the Ministry had strict rules regarding Aurors working on a case where they had a personal connection. That was largely why Harry was determined to get in and memorize every aspect of the scene before anything was reported to the Ministry, and before he was potentially suspended from gaining access to any of the files surrounding it.

Yes, he had special access and a few very good connections with higher-ups, but he didn't want to risk that this would be the time those connections didn't get him anywhere.

They were now standing just on the other side of the door. Harry reached forward with his wand, placing the tip of the wood to the door and mumbled a few spells, checking for wards and any suspicious magical activity.

"There's a residue that I'm having trouble reading," he whispered to Ron.

The redhead reached forward and matched Harry's wand, placing his own beside it. "Revelio," Ron whispered.

As soon as the words were out of his mouth, he could feel the residue Harry was talking about.

"It's…dark," Ron said. "Isn't it?"

"I think so," Harry offered. "But there's no real way to be sure. All I can tell is that it's unfamiliar… yet somehow, I feel like I've seen it before."

Ron's eyes narrowed, his brow coming together in the middle so that the hairs on either side almost ticked one another. "It doesn't feel like anything you felt last night does it?"

Just then there was a crash from the other side of the door – something that required no wand or magic to detect. Harry held his free hand up to his mouth and made to shush Ron into silence. He licked his lips and brought his hand down, then mouthed, "on three," before nodding his head with each count and easing the door open.

As soon as the hinges gave way, a flurry of feathers swept down in front of them. Harry was about stupefy the thing before he realized what it was. Quickly checking his surroundings, he discovered that, aside from the trapped owl, there was nothing else in sight. At least, not out in the open.

"What's the bloody bird doing in here," Ron questioned, a certain tone of offense lacing his words. He walked past Harry who had stopped to take in the front room and made his way through the rest of the house, wand first.

"Ron, be careful as you go around corners," Harry said.

"I'm not a bloody child, Harry, I know how to search a house."

Harry proceeded to take in the surroundings. There was a cup of tea on the table between the sofa and a large ottoman and a list that looked like it was only half-complete. He reached down and picked up the piece of paper, letting the quill rest off to the side.

Today:

Go through Teddy's clothes and prepare for the season

Take Teddy into town for a few new books

Dishes

Laundry

See if Harry can fix the plumbing

Giver Hermione the recipe for

The list stopped before Andromeda was able to write which recipe she was to give Hermione. Harry stared at the intricate writing and tried to think of what might have happened. As Ron had suggested, there were a whole array of things that could have happened to make her leave. Harry didn't want to leap to conclusions, but it was growing hardier and harder to believe that there wasn't anything suspicious about what was going on.

"Ron?" he called, stuffing the paper into his back pocket and moving on through to the next room.

"In here," Ron said from the kitchen.

Harry passed through to find him standing, staring out the window. "What is it?" he asked.

"I've been through the whole house," Ron said, his voice reserved and a little confused. "There's not a single trace of her, nor of where she might have gone," he said. He turned and leaned against the counter, a quizzical look on his face. "I just don't understand what's going on."

"I don't either," Harry said. "I found a half-empty cup of tea and a list of tasks for the day sitting in on the table, but nothing indicates that she might have gone out. From what I can tell, she had intended to wait for Teddy's return and talk to Hermione and I about a few…meaningless house tasks."

They sat there, both of them leaned against the kitchen counter trying desperately to make a story for what had gone on in the Tonks' home, but the truth of the matter was: nothing seemed to make sense. She was gone, and it didn't seem like she had left on her own accord. One minute she'd been home making a morning list, the next, she had vanished. It was as simple, or perhaps as complicated, as that.

Harry did one final sweep of the home with his wand, trying every spell, charm, or trick he could think of to force it to reveal its secrets, however, he was met with an eerie and hollow silence each time.

"Hermione will be wondering what's happened to us," Ron said. "We should be getting back."

"I suppose you're right, " Harry said, stuffing his wand in his pocket. "I'm just going to grab a few other things for Teddy, seeing as he'll be staying a little longer than we expected."

"While you're doing that, I'm going to floo Hermione," Ron said. "I'll meet you in the living room."

With that, they parted ways momentarily, and Harry made his way to the back of the house where Teddy's room was. When he entered, it dawned on him that, if they were unsuccessful in finding Andromeda, Teddy may never again sleep behind the walls of this room, or this house. He walked over to the dresser and pulled out one of the drawers, taking a few pairs of underwear, a few shirts and pants. When he closed the drawer, a picture frame fell over, face down.

Harry reached out and propped it up again, then noticed the figures that were within the image. Tonks was seated at the foot of a staircase and Lupin had both his arms wrapped around her shoulders. They were laughing.

For the first time in years, Harry thought of how their roles had reversed, in a way. At first, he would think of this every time he saw Teddy – in fact, it was hard to think of anything else. His head was constantly filled with, "Is this was Lupin thought each time he'd look at me?" or "I understand now why people's first inclination was to comment on how closely I resemble my parents." Each time he looed at Teddy's hair or at the structure of his face, he couldn't help but think of his parents and the things they'd sacrificed when they gave their lives for the greater good of the wizarding world.

He couldn't imagine the struggle Andromeda must go through every time she looked at him.

Harry stashed the photo and a few other things in a knapsack he found forgotten on the ground. When it was full of the essentials, he threw it over his shoulder and made his way back out to the living room where Ron was waiting.

"All set?" he asked.

Harry nodded. He was as set as he could be at the moment.

"So what does this mean?" Ron went on. "She isn't here, but we haven't a clue where she is. Do we need to get the Ministry involved or do you think we should give it a day?"

"I think I'd like to talk to Kinglsey," Harry said. "She'll have a chance to come home while we're reaching out to him, if she's just out, I mean. I really hope that's all it is…" Once more, Harry knew he was being a little on the dramatic side, but he couldn't squelch the annoying, nagging feeling he had at the back of his head, tying a tight string to his heart and his gut. There was a connection, he just wasn't sure yet what it was.

Just as he was about to suggest they leave, he felt a prickling sensation brew along his forehead. It was like a headache, but stronger. More similar to what he felt at the house on Tottery Circle and what he'd felt the night before when he was about to pass out.

He raised his hand to his forehead, and as soon as his fingers touched his skin there, the pain subsided.

"Let's get going," he said to Ron, who had failed to notice anything was going on. He needed to speak with Hermione, see what she had come up with, if anything, and find a way to tell Teddy that he'd be staying at Grimmauld a bit longer than they had originally planned.

He just hoped that the stay wouldn't become permanent; for Teddy's sake. As much as he'd love the company, he wouldn't wish the loss of family on anyone.

AN: Hi there. As I know you've noticed, I have had a hard time updating this story. I want to state first and foremost that it is not from a lack of interest or from a lack of desire. It is, however, from a lack of inspiration and a lack of motivation. I started this story so long ago that the original plan has fizzled out in my mind. It's not that I don't know what I'm doing anymore or that I'm bored with it...it's just so plot heavy that it's kind of mentally exhausting to write. And it's not even that imaginative! Lol It's just...when you write, you talk yourself into a lot of corners, and when writing isn't your full time job, and you don't get to do it every day, you inevitably have to do a lot of re-reading.

Writing this is so much more serious to me than writing any of my PLL stuff (which I know you are seeing if you get alerts, so please don't hold that against me - at least you know I am still alive and writing). One-shots are simple and pure fluff. Multi-chapters can be like that too, but not when you actually give them meat. Here, I have tried to provide a bit of meat to the story. As excited as I am about that, I do regret it a little bit because it means that I cannot update for you as quickly as I might be able to otherwise.

The simple fact is that I have other things going on in life and writing one chapter for this story might take me hours and hours. It's a whole different world; yes, one that I know well, but it's also one I am not as immersed in as the real world. I have to mentally take myself there, and sometimes at the end of the day, I don't have the energy for it. You all know that I am a writer, and I'm sure you've assumed that I have my own writing that I work on. In an evening, I might only get one hour to write. On a good weekend, maybe three. I have to be choosy with what I do. I need your support and kind, encouraging words. I don't need nagging reviews that make me feel awful for not updating - you think I don't realize that I haven't updated? Believe me, I do. With every other story comes a little bit of guilt, because I know you are all on the other side of a screen somewhere waiting.

Writing is work. It is time. It is time that I am not with my family and time that I am not paid for. This is for pleasure, and I will not write when I don't find it pleasurable. That is for your benefit as much as it is mine.

Please trust when I say I want to finish this. If you can't afford to hang around and wait for it, and hope with me that it actually happens, I won't blame you; that's fine. Just...don't make me feel like trash for putting my life first. Don't make anyone feel that way.

Finally: THANK YOU for even taking the time to read any of this. I really do love hearing from you, and it really does encourage me to choose this document when I open Word rather than others.

xoxo btf