Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the intellectual property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of J.K .Rowling. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.

This chapter was beta'ed by fmfg and Kathleen from Project Team Beta. My most sincere thanks to them.

Prologue

1:30 AM, October 14th

There are footsteps echoing in the dark moonlit castle. The castle had an eerie feeling to it. It was quite a magnificent castle, a fairytale castle perhaps, a lake housing merpeople on one side, and on the other, a dark forest with tall looming trees which hid the creatures of night lurking there, waiting for a prey. With a stadium, the sky a clear midnight blue, the castle was a sight to behold in all its glory with its towers and turrets. This castle was the Hogwarts Castle, housing students of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Today was different. It marked a change in the course of history. It was a night of the full moon. Even though no one is seen, a lamp moves through the rows and rows of the great library. A meow of a cat was heard, and the lamp fell to the ground and it shattered on impact. Suddenly, a young girl of thirteen was seen appearing from nowhere. She turned her head towards the direction from where the feline's cry was heard and she met the sparkling yellow eyes of Mrs. Norris, the pet of the caretaker of Hogwarts, Mr. Filch.

She was holding a material which was shiny and looked as if it were made of water. She knew she was in trouble and her hand went inside her cloak to retrieve an hourglass. She turned a knob on the hourglass and she seemed to disappear.

3:30 PM, October 13th

The girl appeared at the place she had disappeared from in the first place. She quickly donned on the invisibility cloak and went out of library towards the door leading to ground outside. She stuffed the cloak in her bag after she got out of the castle. It was chilly out there though the sun was shining brightly. She prodded along the gravel pathway towards the Hagrid's hut who was the gamekeeper of Hogwarts. But, as she reached there she turned right towards the Forbidden Forest. She saw a boulder ahead with some dried leaves and dirt on it. She took out her eleven inches dragon heartstring wand and spoke, "Scourgify" which cleaned the boulder enough to sit on.

She shouldered her bag and climbed onto the boulder. The sunlight was pouring through the gaps between the canopies of trees. With her wild untameable curly hair forming a halo around her head reflecting red, gold and bronze strands, she appeared like a goddess holding an aura of tranquillity and sereneness around her.

She heard the sound of a twig snapping, somewhere on her left. She opened her caramel eyes, got off the boulder and, taking out her wand, she eyed her surroundings warily. She walked forward toward the direction of the sound and as she turned around a corner, she gasped! She was looking straight in the eyes of a unicorn! It was unheard of, for a unicorn to approach a human!

She reached up to the height of unicorn's nose. Its eyes were a sea-greenish blue. Its mane was sparkling golden in the sunrays. She bowed, remembering reading of it in the library.

The unicorn mimicked her gesture. She stood erect appraising and studying the unicorn in front of her. She approached the unicorn slowly, so as not to frighten it. She extended her hand towards it and after a moment, the unicorn nudged her hand playfully with its muzzle. The unicorn then turned and started to walk slowly towards the forest.

She stood still, not knowing what to do, as she was still in awe that the unicorn had let her touch it. Unicorns are very proud creatures and only those with the purest of hearts were able to touch it.

The unicorn turned around as if to question her whether she was coming or not. She understood then that the unicorn wanted her to follow it. She followed the unicorn with her wand clutched tightly in her arm as her surroundings got darker. Halfway through, she had it lighted with the Lumos charm. The unicorn led her deeper into the forests into a dimly-lit cave. There was a lake in the middle of the cave- the source of the dim unnatural light. The unicorn dipped its horn in the water and Hermione cautiously stepped forward to peer into it, intrigued by it and she gasped, taking a step back.

Author's note: Please review! This is my first story so I'd like to learn how you think of the story. Constructive criticism is welcomed...