The Battle of Hogwarts had begun – the Second Wizarding War was here. Everything was falling into place. It was time.
Luna and Hermione stood back to back in the centre of the Entrance Hall, blasting curses and hexes at the Death Eaters that had got into the school. A blast of green light ricocheted off of the Ravenclaw hourglass, causing a pile of sapphires to trickle to the floor – reflecting the fire of the battle.
More and more Death Eaters piled in, and more of the Hogwarts fighters chased in after them. Hermione was surprised to see Nigel, a third-year who looked a lot like Ron, was taking on a Death Eater about twice the height of him. Hermione sent a Knockback Jinx at the Death Eater and then proceeded to send a Blasting Curse at the wall behind him, causing it to explode and smack into him, full force. Nigel nodded his thanks, grinning at her. She smiled back.
The battle went on for several more minutes, until it seemed as if they were outnumbered. The Hall had been separated by a line of fire, with the Death Eaters at the door side and the Order, the Aurors and the Hogwarts pupils standing on the staircase side. Just as the fire began to dim, and the Death Eaters advanced forwards, there was a sudden explosion.
Everyone wheeled round to see a large, blue box smash in through the doors of the Entrance Hall, covering the Death Eaters in splinters and dust. The box spun wildly, smacking off of the walls and smashing into the Slytherin hourglass, before knocking a Death Eater off of his feet and crashing to a standstill at the top of the stairs.
Slowly, the doors opened from inside the box, and the strangest looking man Hermione had ever seen stepped out of it. He was wearing a red bow-tie and a tweed jacket, like a geography teacher – and he had brown, floppy hair that seemed to move wildly at his every movement. The man looked down at them all and frowned.
"Sorry I'm late, everyone!" he yelled. "I would have been here sooner, but you know how difficult it is navigating when everyone's shooting spells at you! Aim your wand at me if it makes you feel any more comfortable."
The twelve Death Eaters all pointed their wands at him, unsure as to what to do. The man looked amused.
"Go for it!" he shouted, smiling, as if at a joke that only he knew.
Twelve blasts of green light flew towards him. And then bounced off of him and flew back at their casters. Twelve Death Eaters fell to the floor, dead.
"That's impossible!" Hermione cried.
"Not impossible," the man replied, pointing at her. "Just a bit unlikely! Now, if you all want to live, here's the plan: One, don't ask stupid questions. Two, don't wander off. Three, trust me."
"Okay," Luna called back, walking up the stairs towards him.
"Wait, Luna, what are you doing?" Hermione cried.
"It's okay, Hermione," Luna replied, matter of factly. "We can trust him. He's a doctor."
"A doctor?" Hermione asked, directing it at the man at the top of the stairs. He still looked amused.
"Not a doctor, no. What's your name?"
"Hermione. Hermione Granger."
"Well, Hermione Granger, here's how it goes. I'm not just an ordinary wizard – in fact, I'm not a wizard at all. But I can do things that you people couldn't even begin to imagine. And tonight, I've only shown you one. You lot trust me and I can guarantee you two things. One, it will change your lives. Two, it will save your lives. And why's that, Hermione? Because like I say, I'm not just a doctor. I'm much much more than that. I'm a 907 year-old time-travelling man from a lost planet called Gallifrey. I'm here to save your lives, and once again, I'm not just a doctor – I'm the Doctor!"
He reached out a hand for her to take.
"Trust me?"
"Yes," Hermione breathed, grabbing his hand and chasing after him into the blue box...