Disclaimer: I don't own the Harry Potter characters, only the plot!
Beneath the murky waters of a dark lake lay a world almost completly unknown to the land dwellers. Merepeople glidded silently beneath the glassy surface. These meremaids were not like the beautiful creatures in stories. They were dark, vile creatures. Being violent and cranky, they usually stayed deap beneath the lake's surface, avoiding confrontation with other creatures. Only one creature broke the stillness of the lake's surface. A young mermaid swam to the edge of the lake, a tear falling softly from her eye. She glanced longingly at the nearby forest. A smile spread across her dreary face as she noticed a male centaur galloping towards her from the trees.
Stopping at the water's edge, he reached forward and the mermaid took his hand. He smiled, yet his face too seemed saddened. Longingly, the two stared into each other's eyes.
"I miss you," the centaur said softly.
The mermaid's pale blue eyes shimmered as another smile spread across her face. "I miss you too," she replied.
"I've come up with a plan," the centaur began. "A plan that could possibly bring us back together again!"
"A plan?" She asked.
"If a witch could do this to you, then surely another witch or wizard can undo it!"
"True." The mermaid replied, dipping below the surface to moisten her drying skin. "But, do you expect to walk right up to the castle and not be noticed? And if you do make it in, what wizard will you ask? What makes you think they would help us?"
The centaur glanced up at the large castle. It was full of witches and wizards. He knew he had to try. If he didn't, he would never truly be happy again. Suddenly, the large front doors of the castle opened, and a young witch stepped out into the morning sunlight.
"This is my chance!" The centaur said, galloping towards the witch.
The girl was walking towards a hut when she noticed the centaur galloping towards her. She was a little bit startled at first, but then realized the pleasant smile on his face. It was odd to see a centaur soo close to Hogwarts catle. Most creatures never wandered out of the forbidden forest. She clutched her wand tightly in her hand, just in case.
"Hello," the witch said uneasily as the centaur approached.
"Hello," he replied kindly. "I am Aden."
The witch smiled sweetly. The centaur seemed quite mannerable. "I am Hermione Granger. It is a pleasure to meet you."
Hermione stared in wonder. She had never been so close to a centaur. She had wanted to meet one ever since her friend Harry had told her about his encounter with them in his first year at Hogwarts. Aden didn't appear to be too many years older than she was. The trunk of his bare, human body was tan and muscular. The part of his body that was half horse, was a deep redish brown color, with a black mane that matched his hair. Hermione twisted her brown hair between her fingers as the centaur began to speak.
"What year are you?" He asked.
"I am a third year," she replied, smiling.
"So then," he began, "I'm sure you know how to do some difficult magic?"
Hermione stared at him blankly. "Well, yes. I guess I know some." She wondered why he was asking about her skills in magic. Concluding that he needed some sort of help, she asked, "May I inquire as to why you ask? Do you need some help?"
"Well, yes actually." Aden replied. He thought for a moment, wondering where to begin. "I guess I should start at the beginning before I ask you. A few months ago, I was wandering through the forest with my friend Isis. Well, I guess we were a lot more than just friends. We were in love."
"Well, did something happen to her?" Hermione questioned.
"Yes," Aden began. "That's why I need you. You see, that day in the forest we wandered into a forbidden place We didn't believe in the legends surrounding that area, so we went just to proove that there was nothing to fear. But, we were wrong."
"What legends?" What was there?"
"A dark witch. I know there are hundreds of witched and wizards at Hogwarts, but the stories about this witch in the forest didn't seem realistic. She was said to need no wand for magic because the force of evil within her was soo strong! The area where she was said to live was called Hell's Hollow. Supposedly it was guarded by magic and evil creatures."
"If this witch really exists, why haven't we been told about her at Hogwarts?" Hermione questioned. She was somewhat skeptical about the story.
"Probably because no one at Hogwarts believes she is anything more than a story. I doubt even Proffessor Dumbledore knows about her." The centaur glanced back at the lake, it's surface glistening in the sunlight.
"Oh my!" Hermione exclaimed in excitement. "There's a mermaid!" The mermaid was still watching from the lake's edge. Hermione could hardly believe she had seen two magical creatures in the same morning.
"Hermione," Aden began, "that mermaid is Isis."
Hermione whipped around. "What!? You mean Isis isn't a centauress?"
"She was, that is, until the witch discovered us near her home." He explained. "The legends about her are all true. When she found us, she went into a rage and cursed us. She transformed Isis into a mermaid, cursed to live in the waters of the lake, and I on the land."
"How horrible!" Hermione exclaimed.
"That's where you come in. We need you to change her back."
Hermione was speechless. She had never tried a spell like this. The year before she had successfully made a polyjuice potion, but had never dealt with a permanent tranformation. Although Hermione was uncertain if she would be able to help, she couldn't bear to say no.
"Well," she began. "I cannot promise anything, but I assure you that I will do the best I can."
Hermione sat silently in the library that evening. This was not an uncommon event. She searched through thick spell books for hours on end without stoping to eat or use the restroom. Every book mentioning permanent physical transformations seemed to indicate that they could never be reversed. Hermione had learned over her past few years at Hogwarts that some magic had loop holes. Sometimes magic could be twisted and molded. And sometimes spells could be reversed. Refusing to give up hope, Hermione continued to work into the late hours of the night.
"Hermione?" Two familiar voices said. Hermione raised up from the book on which she had fallen asleep. She saw her two best friends, Harry and Ron, staring at her in surprise.
"Hermione, you've missed your first lesson!" Ron exclaimed.
Glancing around quickly, Hermione realized that it was morning. She gasped loudly. "Oh no! I can't believe I fell asleep!" She exclaimed, jumping up from her seat in the library, and hurrying out into an empty corridor. Harry and Ron followed.
"What were you doing in the library all night?" Harry asked, walking quickly to keep up with Hermione.
"I'll tell you later," she replied quickly. She began running down the corridor, and just as she turned the corner she yelled, "Thanks for waking me up! I've got to find out what I missed!"
Hermione's footsteps echoed through the empty corridors as she raced towards an empty girls' bathroom. A ghost named Moaning Myrtle sobbed loudly from within. Hermione quickly greeted her, then locked herself in a stall.
"You're going to use that time turner again, eh?" Moaning Myrtle asked sadly, hovering above the stall.
"Well, yes." Hermione replied. "I missed my first lesson. If I don't turn back time a few hours, I'll have too much work to do."
Moaning Myrtle moaned loudly and floated away. She was always gloomy, and Hermione had learned to deal with it. Hermione reached around her neck and looked at the small hour glass on a golden chain. Harry and Ron didn't know about this. Proffessor McGonagal had given it to her to keep up with her busy schedule. It was a secret.
"I need to go back about two hours," She whispered to herself. Hermione turned the small hour glass over twice.
A strange feeling overtook Hermione, and she suddenly found herself in the library. She quickly closed her books, and headed towards the Griffindor tower to get ready. Placing the time turner back under her shirt, Hermione let out a sigh of relief that she didn't have to miss her first lesson.
"Good morning Hermione," Harry said, hurrying up to her as she walked through yet another hallway. "Why weren't you at breakfast?"
"Goodmorning Harry," Hermione said cheerfully. "I was in the library researching all night."
"Again!?" Ron chimmed in, walking up behind Hermione. "I swear, sometimes it seems like you can be in two places at once. I don't know how you can manage soo many classes."
"It's not for a class Ron," Hermione stated flatly. She was tired of hearing about how much of a brain she was. No one really understood her. Not even her two best friends. Learning was just something that she loved. The time turner was a secret to Harry and Ron, and she was never tempted to tell them about it. If they knew she was taking more classes than physically possible, she would get quite an earful.
Ron looked at her blankly. "What were you researching then?"
"I'll tell you two later," Hermione said, beginning to quicken her pace. "I have to get to class, but meet me in the library before lunch. Something very interesting happened yesterday when I went to get help on my Care of Magical Creatures homework from Hagrid." With that, Hermione rushed on.
The library was practically empty before lunch. The three friends huddled closely at an empty table, listening intently to Hermione's story.
"That's a bunch of rubbish!" Ron exclaimed. "There's no witch living in the forest! We would have heard about her before now if she did exist."
"Believe what you want, Ron!" Hermione snapped.
"Sorry Hermione," Harry began, "But you have to admit that your story does sound like a bit of a stretch."
Hermione sighed. It was irritating that her two best friends didn't completely believe her. "I know it sounds unbelievable, but I believe Aden. Why don't we ask Proffessor Lupin about the witch? I'm sure he'd know if she does exist."
"It's worth a try," Harry replied.
The three walked to Proffessor Lupin's classroom, and found him looking through some books in the corner.
"Good afternoon Proffessor," Hermione said cheerfully. She was quite fond of her Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. Compared to the teachers preceding him, he was great.
"Well, Hello Hermione." Lupin replied, with a smile on his face. "Hello Harry. Hello Ron." Lupin went back to looking at his books.
"Proffessor, we have a question for you..." Hermione began.
Lupin looked up from his books with a curious expression on his face.
"Well," she continued, "I heard a story, but I'm not sure if it's true or not. A story about an evil witch living in the forbidden forest."
Lupin's expression changed from curious to surprised. "What about her?"
"You mean she is real?" Ron questioned
"I'm afraid we probably shouldn't be talking about this." Lupin said uncomfortably. "I'm not supposed to discuss this."
"Why not?" Hermione asked in a confused tone.
Lupin stepped closer to the three, and looked around to make sure no one was around. "She's called the Dark Witch. We aren't supposed to talk about her because Dumbledore doesn't want any of the students to know about her. She never leaves the forest, so Hogwarts is safe. But, if any curious students knew about her," Lupin glanced at the three of them deliberately, "then they may go looking for her."
Hermione broke eye contact with Lupin suddenly. The three of them had got in a lot of trouble their first two years for wandering where they weren't supposed to go. He was obviously refering to them.
"I don't know where you three heard about her, but I suggest that you forget about it." With that, Lupin went back to his books. Hermione, Ron, and Harry left the room.
"Now do you believe me?" Hermione snapped.
Ron gave her an irritated glance and rolled his eyes.
"Yes," Harry answered. "That's strange that she's such a secret. I don't know about you, but now I'm curious about her."
"Me too," Hermione replied, "This is exactly why Dumbledore didn't want anyone to find out about her. But, it's not like we're going to go look for her or anything."
"You said you were researching all night, right? Well, were you researching the spell itself, or were you researching the witch?" Harry asked. Ron stood silently, not wanting to admit that Hermione had been right.
"I was researching the spell. Maybe we should try to find out more about the Dark Witch instead."
A violent storm came over Hogwarts that evening. Rain thudded against the windows of the library, and lightning illumenated the dim, candle-lit table where the three friends sat. The Dark Witch hadn't come up in any of the books that they had searched through so far. Harry and Ron were both half asleep, and weren't being much help to Hermione. It was past midnight when Hermione was about to call it a night. She began to gather up the books she had been searching through, when Ron suddenly perked up and held up a thick book.
"I found her!" Ron exclaimed, "I found her!"
Hermione rushed over to him, and scanned the page quickly. "Ron, you're a genious!"
"What does it say about her?" Harry asked, perking up also.
"It says her real name is Blodwen." Hermione began. "It says that not much is known about her. She lives in Hell's Hollow, and is not well known. Most of those who do know of her believe her to be a legend. It warns that all that may wander into her home are very likely not to make it out alive."
"Well, Aden and Isis made it out alive," Harry interjected.
"Yeah, but they have a lifetime of pain to deal with. Some would probably rather be dead if they were in that situation." Ron replied.
"That's all it says," Hermione said devistatedly. "There are no other references either."
"What! That's all?" Harry exclaimed.
"We looked for all this time, and all we found was a lousy paragraph about her!" Ron yelled angrilly.
"How am I supposed to know what to do?" Hermione groaned, putting her head down on the table.
The three sat silently for a few moments. Harry stood up suddenly with an unsure smile on his face. "I... I have an idea."
"Harry, I think this is the stupidest idea you have ever had! I can't believe I let you talk me into this!" Hermione stated as she followed her two friends through dark, empty corridors.
"Keep it down Hermione," Harry Whispered, "If we get caught sneaking out again we will get into soo much trouble."
"But Harry..." Hermione whispered, "Even if we make it out onto the grounds without being caught, I have no idea how to find him."
"Hermione, books and Proffessors aren't helping us learn anythign about the witch. We have to find Aden! He's the only one who knows about the witch, that can tell us more about her." Harry replied.
"What do you say Hermione?" Ron asked.
Hermione thought silently for a few moments. "I guess you're right. We just have to be careful."
They made their way through the castle without being spotted. Once outside, the three ran across the wet grass to find shelter underneath some trees. It was still storming, but not nearly as bad as it had been earlier.
"How do we find him now?" Hermione asked, trying to squeeze the rain water out of her robes.
"Well," Harry began, "Why don't we try the lake."
Hermione agreed, and they ran out into the rain, and towards the lake. Hermione really hoped that Aden would be by the lake with Isis. And sure enough, he was. The centaur was standing beside the lake, talking to Isis. His fur coat was dripping wet, and the three could smell wet horse as they approached. When Aden noticed Hermione coming, he smiled and waved.
Harry and Ron stared at the two creatures. They both were just as impressed by them as Hermione had been the day before.
"Hello Aden!" Hermione said sweetly.
"Hello Hermione," he replied cheerfully. "Who are these two?"
"This is Harry and Ron," she replied. "We've come to ask you to tell us more about the Dark Witch."
"For example, how you found Hell's Hollow in the first place," Harry added.
"Oh," Aden said. He pulled a wrinkled piece of parchment out of a sack he was carrying, and handed it to Hermione.
She looked at the paper, then back up at Aden. "It's a spell."
"Yes. If you recite that spell, you'll be able to find it." Aden explained.
Hermione tucked the piece of parchment into her robe pocket. She glanced at Isis. The mermaid looked unhappy, yet there was a glimmer of hope in her eyes. A streak of lightning reached across the night sky, followed by loud rolling thunder.
"When exactly did this happen?" Hermione questioned.
"Exactly three months from today." Aden answered, as he shook the rain out of his coat. "We set out to find Hell's Hollow as soon as the sun came up."
"How did you hear about her?" Ron asked. "She's a big secret at Hogwarts."
"Living in the forest, you hear lots of things that Hogwarts students wouldn't know. A passing creature may spill the latest news he's heard about something, and you tell someone the story, and soon enough the word spreads. I have heard about the Dark Witch for years, but never truly believed in her. So, being curious and rebelious teenagers, Isis and I decided to go searching for her. We thought it would just be a fun little adventure together. We never actually expected to find anything."
"How old are you?" Hermione asked curiously.
"Eighteen. So is Isis." he replied. "Just curious, have you found anything useful yet? Do you think you can help us?"
Hermione was silent for a moment. She didn't want to tell him that their researching had almost gotten them nowhere so far. "I think it's still a little early to tell," she began, "But don't worry, we're trying."
"This means a lot to us. Thank you." Aden said cheerfully. Hermione noticed a glimmer of hope in his eyes too, making her want to help even more.
"I guess sometimes you can't change the past, but I have faith in you." Aden said smiling. Hermione returned a large, toothy smile.
"Well, it's getting late. I guess we had better be getting back inside before anyone notices that we are missing." Hermione said, motioning for Harry and Ron to follow her. "I'll see you later Aden."
"All right. Good luck you three! I hope no one catches you." Aden replied, waving goodbye to them.
The three ran back across the grounds, and didn't stop until they were inside the doors of the castle. Their soaked shoes made sloshing sounds on the hard floors of the echoing halls. Torches were lit down the corridors. The lightning, mixed with the flames' glow, cast an eerie effect over the hallways.
"Should we take off our shoes?" Ron asked. "They're too loud."
"I don't know?" Hermione replied.
Suddenly a cold voice spoke from behind them. "I see you three are up to no good again."
"Malfoy!" Ron sneered.
Draco Malfoy stood with his back against a wall, with his arms crossed. He stared coldly at them. "I would hate for any teachers to catch you sneaking out again."
"Grow up Malfoy!" Hermione snapped.
"Excuse me students!" Proffessor Mcgonagal yelled authoritatively as she turned a corner. She walked towards them. "What are all of you doing out of your dormitories at this hour? Potter! Weasley! Granger! Why are you three soo wet?"
Hermione tried to think of a good excuse, but it was obvious where they had been. Proffessor Mcgonagal peered at her dissaprovingly. "Miss. Granger, please come with me. Mr. Malfoy, return to your dormitory immediately! And you two," Mcgonagal said firmly, staring at Harry and Ron, "I'll deal with you two later. Come along Miss Granger."
Hermione glanced back at Harry and Ron, then followed Proffesor Mcgonagal down another cooridor. Draco glared at Harry and Ron. A smile of satisfaction spread across his face. "Looks like you're little Mudblood friend is about to get it, huh?"
"Get away Malfoy!" Harry yelled. "You've got us into enough trouble already."
"Well Potter, I believe you and Weasley need to be getting back to your dormitories too."
Harry and Ron both gave Draco an angry glance, then hesitantly started towards the Gryfindor tower. Ron was tempted to give Draco the bird. Draco had always been their enemy, ever since their first night at Hogwarts. But they kept walking. They didn't need another problem on their hands just then.
Hermione rushed down to breakfast the next morning to tell Harry and Ron what had happened the night before in McGonagal's office. She found them sitting on the end of the Gryffindor table, and quickly sat down across from them.
"Hermione! What happend last night?" Harry asked as soon as she sat down.
"Proffessor McGonagal just wanted to talk to me about where we had been, and what we were doing. It's okay though. I covered up for us. I told her that we were taking Hagrid some soup because he had a cold."
"Does he really?" Ron asked.
"Yes! That's why she bought the story. And when she asked Hagrid, he covered for us too. So everything is okay. But, I think I've figured out a way to help Aden! I was up all night thinking about it!" Hermione explained. She was talking quickly, and was obviously very excited about what she had discovered.
"You found a spell?" Harry exclaimed.
"Well, kinda. But that's not it exactly. There's... There's something I haven't told you about," Hermione said, reaching for her time turner, and pulling it out where Harry and Ron could see it.
Harry and Ron stared at her with puzzled looks on their faces.
"You see this hour glass?" Hermione asked.
Harry and Ron nodded their heads.
"Well," she began, "this isn't just a necklace. It's a... a time turner."
The two stared at her with mixed reactions. Harry's face bore a look of confusion, but Ron was staring at her in surprise.
"Where... Where did you get that!?" Ron exclaimed.
"Keep it down," Hermione ordered, glancing around to make sure no one else was listening. "Proffessor McGonagal gave it to me at the beginning of the year to help me keep up with my classes. I can only use it to go back a few hours though. Well, at least that's what I thought until last night."
Hermione leaned closer to Harry and Ron. "I was thinking about what Aden said last night, about not being able to change the past, and I got an idea. It sounds crazy, but it just might work!"
"What is it?!" Ron asked eagerly.
"Last night, Proffessor McGonagal had to leave her office for a few minutes. I searched through a few books in there, and I found one about time turners." Harry and Ron were staring at her intently, hanging onto her every word. "I found a spell that can magnify the time turner's power. Meaning that we could use it to go back in time more than just a few hours. Meaning we can use it to go back even months into the past!"
"Hermione! You're a genious!" Harry exclaimed.
"If there's no spell to reverse it, then we can just go back and stop it from ever happening at all." Hermione explained. "But, there's a few side- effects from going back in time soo far. The book said that even if we do manage to do whatever it is that we are going back in time for, we most likely wont be able to remember anything that happens."
"Like what?" Ron asked.
"I don't know," Hermione replied. "We may not even be able to remember ever meeting Aden and Isis."
They sat silently for a few moments. Then Harry spoke up. "Well, if we can help them, then it doesn't really matter if we remember what we did or not."
"You're right Harry," Hermione agreed. "I say we do it tonight. If we go back exactly three months and one day, we may be able to stop Isis and Aden from even going to look for Blodwen."
"Let's do it," Ron replied.
"Yeah," Harry agreed. "I'm in!"
"Okay," Hermione began. "I want the two of you to meet me in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom at midnight tonight. We have to make sure we are prepared to protect ourselves. We never know what we may come across out there in the Forbidden Forest."
Storms continued throughout the entire day. Hermione could hardly concentrate on anything besides the time turner and what they were going to attempt doing. She was nervous, and before she knew it, midnight was approaching.
Gathering together her wand and a few spells that she thought might be useful, Hermione took a deep breath and tried to relax. She nervously played with her hair as she watched the clock. When it turned midnight, Hermione stuffed her things into a sack, and snuck out of the girl's dormitory.
The halls were silent as Hermione approached the abandoned bathroom. She was surprised that she could not hear Moaning Myrtle's usual wailing from within. She found Ron and Harry waiting for her inside. They both looked a little nervous also.
"Where's Myrtle?" Hermione asked them.
"I don't know. We were wondering the same thing," Harry replied.
"I was in the prefects' bathroom," Moaning Myrtle said, snickering, as she floated into the bathroom. "I like to watch. They don't know I'm there."
The three giggled. It was weird hearing Moaning Myrtle somewhat happy. Hermione began to laugh even harder as she imagined Moaning Myrtle watching the prefects bathe.
"Anyway, carry on with whatever mischief you are up to now," Myrtle said, dissapearing into a stall. "You aren't transforming yourselves into cats again, are you?"
Hermione stopped laughing. But this comment sent Ron and Harry into fits of laughter as they thought about Hermione's mishap with the polyjuice potion the year before.
"Okay, guys. Calm down! That's enough," Hermione said blushing. "Someone will hear us if we aren't quiet."
They finally stopped laughing, and realized how serious what they were about to do was.
"Okay, are you two ready?" Hermione questioned, taking the time turner into her hand. "Are you sure you both want to come. You don't have to."
"Three wizards are better that one." Harry replied.
"Yeah, you need us in case something goes wrong. We're in," Ron said smiling.
"Alright then," Hermione said confidently. "I guess it's time then. Come closer, I think we should all be holding onto the time turner."
Reaching into her pocket, Hermione pulled out the spell she had found in McGonagal's office. She pointed her wand at the small hour glass. The spell was long and difficult to read, but as soon as she had read the last word, they were engulfed in a mess of swirling color. Hermione felt light headed, and suddenly everything went dark.
"Wake up. Hermione, wake up!"
Hermione could barely hear Ron's voice. She opened her eyes slowly, and her senses slowly came back to her. She was laying down in a patch of damp grass.
"Ron? Did it work?" She asked, sitting up slowly.
"I think so." Ron said, helping her to her feet.
She glanced around and realized that they were out on the grounds of the castle. The sky was dark, but she could tell it was early in the morning because the grass was wet with freshly fallen dew.
"Harry is still out too," Ron said, pointing at Harry lying in the grass.
"I guess jumping so far back into the past must have caused us to black out," Hermione said.
She tucked the time turner back under her shirt, and walked over to Harry. She shook him a few times, and he slowly woke up. "Harry, it worked. It's the morning it all happened. Aden and Isis will be heading out for Hell's Hollow as soon as the sun comes up."
Harry stood up and rubbed his head. "Wow! That was an odd feeling."
"Yeah," Ron replied. "Uh... Hermione, just curious. But, how are we going to get back to present day?"
"This is only a temporary spell," She explained, "We can only stay this far into the past for soo long. I'm guessing that after a few hours we will be sucked back into present day. So we have to get going now. We have no time to waste!"
With that, the three started towards the forbidden forest. The full moon hanging in the early morning sky cast an eerie glow on the tall, black trees of the forest. A howl sounded in the forest, causing Hermione to grab onto Ron's arm suddenly.
"Don't worry Hermione. I'm sure it's nothing," Ron said nicely, trying to comfort her. Hermione slowly let go of his arm, and tried to act cool and collected because it had embarassed her a little.
As they approached the forest's edge, Hermione reached into her pocket and pulled out another spell. It was the one Aden had given her. "'Recite this spell and you will find Hell's hollow.' That's what he said."
Ron and Harry stepped behind her. They all pointed their wands at the paper, and recited the spell together. Suddenly there was a bright flash that lit up the trees for a split second, followed by a violent spark. The three fell onto the ground to try to shield themselves from whatever the spell was creating. When the flashing and sparking stopped, Hermione cautiously stood up to find a small fire ball, about the size of a baseball, floating in the air before her.
"Cool!" Ron exclaimed, standing up behind her. Harry did the same.
The fire ball suddenly began to squeek loudly. It bounced around in the air as if it were about to burst. It seemed to be beconing them to follow it.
"Incredible," Hermione uttered under her breath. "It wants us to follow it."
"Come on then," Harry instructed, beginning to follow the fireball as it danced off into the trees.
Hermione and Ron followed. They treked through the forest for what seemed like hours. The sun slowly began to rise as they followed the ball of fire deeper into the maze of thickening brush. None of them had ever been this deep into the forest before. Despite the rising sun, the forest remained dark and shadowy because the heavy canopies of the trees only allowed small streams of sunlight to break through.
"How deep into the forest could The Dark Witch be? This is taking forever!" Ron complained. "Anyways, how are we going to find Aden and Isis when we finally do get to Hell's Hollow. It seems to me that if we end up finding the place, we're gonna be screwed anyways."
"Ron," Hermione snapped. "I'm following my gut here. I'm not sure what is going to happen to us, or how everything is going to work out, but you agreed to come along!"
"Sorry Hermione," Ron replied softly, "I guess... I'm just a little nervous."
Hermione smiled at Ron. "Okay, I'm sorry too."
"Don't worry Ron," Harry interjected, "We're gonna be fine. Hermione's never steered us wrong before."
Hermione glanced at Harry and smiled. She felt really happy that the two of them seemed to be appreciating her a little more than usual. Feeling a bit more positive, Hermione got her attention back onto the fire ball and continued their walk deeper and deeper into the dark forest.
They hadn't walked much farther, when suddenly something ran out in front of them, grunting loudly.
Hermione screamed, and grabbed Ron harder than the first time. "What was that!?"
"I ... I don't know," Ron replied, looking around frantically.
"There's another one!" Harry yelled, pointing out into the trees.
A small creature came barreling through the trees. It looked like a short, scrawny man, with large eyes, and a wide, fanged smile. Ron gasped as the creature ran towards him, and jumped right into him. The impact threw Ron to the ground.
"Get off of him!" Harry yelled, grabbing at the small creature. Ron rolled around on the ground, trying to fight of the little monster.
Hermione pulled out her wand, and held it out towards the creature. It glanced up, and it's large, blue eyes widened in fear.
"Noo!" It screamed in a scruffy, terrified voice. It suddenly let go of Ron, and ran out of sight.
"Ron! Are you okay?" Hermione asked frantically. She and Harry helped Ron to his feet.
"Yeah, I think I'm alright," he replied, brushing dirt off of his clothes.
"What was that thing?" Harry asked. "It looked kinda like Dobby."
"I know what that was." Hermione announced, looking around cautiously. "Those were wood elves. That's why it looked like Dobby. House elves are very similar to Wood elves. The only difference is that wood elves are extreemly mean, vile creatures, and they have sharp fangs. But just like house elves, they're usually goverened by a master."
"Their master being Blodwen, I'm guessing?" Harry replied.
"Yeah," Hermione said. "Aden did say that Hell's Hollow was guarded by evil creatures and magic."
"How did you know what those were?" Ron asked as he scratched his messy red hair.
"Hagrid told me about them once," she explained. "When Harry first told us about Dobby, I asked Hagrid about house elves. He gave me a book about elves in general, and wood elves were one of the species mentioned. Oh, and did you notice how it ran away when it saw my wand pointed at it? That's because they are scared of spells."
"Well, who wouldn't be scared if an angry witch was pointing her wand at them," Ron spat sarcastically. "I swear Hermione, you're like a walking textbook."
Hermione glared at Ron angrilly. "Uh... I mean that...like...uh, in a good way!" He exclaimed, trying not to make Hermione mad. After all, she had just rescued him.
She glared at him again, then continued following the fire ball. Harry glanced at Ron, shaking his head and giggling. A few more wood elves scampered through the trees in front of them, but they all scattered away when the three held out their wands.
"A lot of good those little elves are doing her. They're bloody cowards!" Ron spat.
"I doubt most of the creatures in the forest carry wands around with them," Harry replied.
Suddenly, something about the size of a dragonfly flew into the side of Harry's face, knocking his glasses onto the ground. Hermione grabbed them and handed them to Harry.
"What was that!?" Harry exclaimed.
"I didn't really see it," Ron replied.
"Hello there," a female voice said from behind them. The three whipped around to see a gorgeous woman grinning at them. She twisted her beautiful, dark red hair in her fingers as she stared at Harry and Ron.
"Who.. Who are you?" Hermione asked, staring at the woman uneasily.
"I'm Aaren," she replied.
"What are you doing here?" Harry asked steping towards her. He felt strangely attracted to her. She seemed to be having the same effect on Ron, because he too stepped forward.
Aaren wore a flowing dress, that revealed her midrift. As she walked closer, she almost seemed to glide across the forest floor. Hermione stared at her sceptically. Something didn't feel right.
"Harry! Ron! Stay away from her," Hermione ordered. "She's some kind of evil enchantress or something."
Aaren's gaze shifted suddenly to Hermione. Her intense green eyes flashed red, and her perfect white smile suddenly became a tangle of sharp fangs. She screeched loudly, and gargoyle-like wings suddenly sprouted out of her back. Ron and Harry broke out of her trance, and ran back to Hermione.
"I see you haven't yet met my sisters!" Aaren hissed in an evil voice. She raised her hands towards the sky, and suddenly hundreds of drangonflies flew down from the tree tops. As they came closer, Hermione realized that they were not dragonflies at all, but that they were all some sort of fairy.
The fairies landed on the forest floor all around them, hissing loudly. They all instantly shape shifted into winged, devilish women, baring claws and razor sharp teeth.
"Hermione! What are these?!" Ron screamed in fear.
"I'm not sure!" She replied. "They've got to be some type of pixies!"
The three friends huddled together, back to back, holding their wands out in front of themselves. The women surrounded them, staring at them with ferocious looks of hunger in their eyes.
"What do we do!?" Ron whimpered. "They're coming closer!"
"I don't know," Hermione screamed.
Without warning, Aaren flew forward and snatched Ron by the shoulders. She rose rapidly into the sky, carrying Ron away with her powerful wings. Before Hermione and Harry could even raise their wands, she dissapeared from sight.
"She took Ron!" Harry yelled, pointing his wand at the women. But unlike the wood elves, the beasts were not fazed by the wands.
Just as another beast lunged at Hermione, and arrow shot into its side. The creature fell heavilly onto the ground.
"Where did that come from?!" Hermione exclaimed, glancing around frantically.
To their surprise, Aden and Isis both came rushing towards them. Aden was weilding a bow, and shooting arrows at the winged women.
"Get onto my back!" Isis ordered, coming to a sudden halt next to Harry. He reached over her back, and pulled himself up. Hermione climbed up onto Aden's back, and watched the monsters hissing and screeching as they galloped away.
"Are you alright!?" Aden asked Hermione as he bounded through the trees.
"Yes!" Hermione replied. "But one of them took our friend!"
"I know! I saw her flying through the treetops. I think she's taking him to the witch! But don't worry, we'll find him!"
Hermione glanced behind them and saw Isis and Harry following closely. As they quickly weaved in and out of trees, the winged women followed.
"What are those things?" Hermione asked, gripping him tightly around the waist.
"They're called Velkans," he replied, "Blood-thirsty women who disguise themselves as pixies. They're devilish creatures! Sometimes they're called the harpies of the forest!"
As they continued racing through the forest, Hermione spotted a clearing. In the center of the clearing sat a large, run down house. It reminded her of the shrieking shack, and she knew it must be Blodwen's house.
"There they are!" Aden yelled as they burst into the clearing. He pointed towards the sky. Hermione and Harry glanced up to see Aaren, flying circles around the house, screeching. Ron wriggled around in her arms, screaming for help.
"She's calling the witch!" Isis cried, stopping beside Aden.
"What do we do about them!" Harry yelled. Pointing at the flock of Velkans racing towards them through the trees.
"I know!" Hermione exclaimed. She pointed her wand towards them and cried "Imobulous!"
The Velkans all froze in mid air. Hermione turned towards Aaren and again yelled "Imobulous!"
Aaren froze in the air, and her screeching stopped.
"Ron! Jump!" Hermione cried. He was stuck in her frozen grip. Wriggling harder, he was able to break loose, and he began to fall quickly towards the ground.
"I've got you!" Aden yelled. He galloped beneath Ron, who landed right onto his back behind Hermione.
"Let's go! Let's go!" Hermione ordered. "We have to get out of here right now!"
Aden and Isis both began to run as fast as they could. They left the clearing, and bolted back into the trees. Hermione glanced back at the house, just in time to see the front door fly open.
"She's coming!" Hermione yelled.
"Faster!" Ron whimpered.
A sudden evil cry echoed through the forest, as a strong gust of wind began to swirl around the fleeing centaurs. The gust lifted decaying leaves off of the forest floor, sending them flying into the air. The Dark Witch was conjuring up a storm, refusing to let them get away.
"I can't see!" Aden yelled, trying to see through the swirling leaves. The centaurs jolted to a sudden halt, their vision blurred by the flying debre.
"Where's the witch?" Hermione yelled, looking around cautiously.
"I ... I dunno?" Ron replied.
"How dare you come to my home!" Boomed a raspy voice from above them. The sun seemed to dim as the voice echoed through the forest. Thunder rolled, and lightning flashed violently in the sky. Torrents of cold, heavy rain began to pour from the darkening sky.
They all looked upwards into the treetops, staring in horror at the Dark Witch hovering above them. She wore a ragged black robe that whipped in the wind. Her face was aged and wrinkled. Blank, white eyes stared down upon the wizards and centaurs.
Hermione gasped at the sight of the hideous woman. She frantically tried to come up with an idea of how to stop Blodwen, but she was too frightened to think clearly.
"Hermione!" Harry yelled, "We have to do something!"
"I know!" Hermione replied, "I'm trying to think!"
But all Hermione could think of was how she had failed to keep Aden and Isis away from the witch. Now she had not only endangered her own life, but she had drug her two best friends into it with her. She reached into her pocket, and quickly thumbed through the spells she had brought. She squinted through the rain, struggling to read them.
"You cannot tresspass here without retribution!" The Dark Witch cried from above. She flew lower, and looked closely at Aden and Isis. A crooked grin spread across her grotesque face as she pointed at the two of them. "I can see the way you two feel about each other. I believe you punishment shall be just."
Aden and Isis looked at each other in fear. Harry, Ron, and Hermione glanced at each other fearfully. They knew exactly the punishment the witch had in mind. Hermione frantically continued thumbing through the rain-soaked spells.
"Hermione, there's the fire ball!" Harry exclaimed, pointing at the glowing light floating toward them through the rain.
Hermione glanced up at it. "What use do we have for it now?" She replied. Then, suddenly an idea sprang into Hermione's mind.
"Do you have an idea?" Ron begged.
"I think so!" She said, pulling out a tattered spell. It was a summoning charm.
"What are you going to do with that?" Harry asked, reading the paper.
Hermione ignored his question, and looked at Blodwen hovering a few feet in front of them. She already appeared to be beginning her curse. Hermione focused on the fireball, and held her wand out towards it. Concentrating hard, she muttered the summoning spell. The fireball danced freely in the air for a moment, then slowly began to float towards Hermione. She waited patiently, awaiting just the right moment.
As soon as the fireball was right between her and Blodwen, Hermione snatched the bow off of Aden's shoulder. She pulled the arrow back as hard as she could, then shot it through the fireball, sending a fiery arrow straight into the witch's chest.
Blodwen screamed in agony. She stopped muttering her curse, and fell backwards onto the forest floor cunvulsing. Flames engulfed her mangled body.
"No!" The witch cried. She stood up slowly, as her eyes fixed on Hermione's. The rain pourded down upon her burning flesh, but did not quench the fire. "You... You will pay for this!"
"Wanna bet!" Hermione screamed, shooting another arrow into the witch's forehead. Blodwen fell backwards, landing lifelessly onto the ground.
The storm slowly subsided, and a ray of sunlight beamed down through the tree tops. Blodwen's lifeless body lay on the ground before them.
"Let's get out of here." Isis said, brushing her long blonde hair away from her eyes.
The centaurs carried the three out of Hell's Hollow. When they were a safe distance away, they climbed down from the centaurs' backs.
"Thank you so much!" Hermione said to them smiling.
"No, thank you." Aden replied. "If we hadn't stumbled along the three of you, who knows what would have happened to us."
Hermione glanced at Harry and Ron. She smiled, knowing what would have happened had they not been there.
Isis smiled kindly at the three of them. "It looks like we are all thankful to each other."
"Well, I guess we should probably be getting back to school before anyone notices we are gone," Harry said. He glanced at Hermione with a glare in his eye meaning that they probably didn't have much time left. Aden and Isis thanked them once again, not knowing how much the three kids really had helped them.
Hermione, Harry, and Ron headed back through the forest towards Hogwarts. They glanced back, and waved one final time at Aden and Isis.
"Wow Hermione! That was harder than I thought it was going to be," Ron said, wiping sweat off of his forehead.
"I know," she said smiling. "But we helped them. That's all that matters."
"Isn't it funny that they'll never know what we really went through to save them?" Harry began. "And we wont even remember it once we go back... into..." Harry suddenly stopped. He was staring wide-eyed at Ron and Hermione.
"What is it Harry?" Ron asked with a confused look on his face.
"You, you're dissapearing." He replied, pointing at their legs. Hermione and Ron looked down to see that their legs were slowly dissapearing.
"It's happening to you too Harry!" Hermione exclaimed, pointing down at his legs. "We're being sucked back into the present day!"
Within seconds, all three of them felt extreemley lightheaded. And before they knew it, everything went black.
"Miss Granger," a muffled voice said.
Hermione opened her eyes slowly. She saw the school nurse standing above her, and realized she was in the clinic. Raising up in bed, Hermione stared at the empty beds surrounding her.
"What happened?" Hermione asked sleepilly.
The nurse stared at her strangely, "You mean you don't remember either? I do say, this is very strange indeed."
Hermione tried to concentrate, but the last few days were all a blurr to her.
"Hagrid found you and your friends laying unconcious on the grounds this morning. We have no idea what happeend to you three. And strangely neither does Potter of Weasly," the nurse explained sitting down beside her. "What's the last thing you remember?"
Hermione racked her brain, trying to gather even a shred of information from the last few days. "Well... The last thing I remember was... I was planning on going to get some help from Hagrid the other morning. But everything after that, and up until now is a big blur."
The nurse stared at her dumbfounded. "Odd. Very odd indeed. Well, I guess you're about as good as new. You can head down to breakfast if you wish. Potter and Weasley both have already woken up, and headed down to the Great Hall."
"Thank you," Hermione said, getting up quickly, and rushing out into the hallways.
She raced to the Great Hall, and plopped down next to Harry and Ron who were deep into a conversation. When they saw her, they stopped immediately, and stared at her with vacant expressions.
"Do you know what's going on?" Harry asked her.
"No, I can't remember a thing!" She replied. "It's such an odd feeling."
"Neither can we," Ron replied.
Harry and Ron shrugged their shoulders, then began eating the delicious breakfast that was sitting on the table before them. Hermione sat silently in thought. She reached beneath the collar of her robes, pulling out a small hour glass hanging on a chain around her neck.
Ron looked up at her, and noticed the necklace she was playing with. He reached out to touch it, and Hermione slapped his hand. She gave Ron a dirty look as she tucked it back beneath her robes.
"Sorry," Ron replied in a sarcastic tone. He went back to eating his breakfast.
Hermione looked at Ron, who stuck his tounge out at her playfully. Harry looked at him and giggled. She quit messing with the hour glass, because she didn't want to draw any more attention to it. It really wasn't a necklace at all. It was a time turner that Proffessor McGonagal had given to her to help keep up with her classes. It was a secret to Harry and Ron, but Hermione was never tempted to tell them about it.
A/N: This is my first Harry Potter fan fiction on here, please read and review and let me know what you think about this! Thank you!