Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine (thanks for rubbing it in).

Prologue

Hermione Granger was zigzagging across the grounds through the battle, trying to get back to the castle. She ducked and dodged spells that strayed her way, occasionally sending her own toward the opponent of a struggling ally.

Despite her current mad dash toward the castle doors, Hermione had been fighting with renewed vigor ever since Harry had been revealed to be alive, as were every one of their allies in sight. But she couldn't help but hold onto a feeling of dread as the battle drew on. Voldemort himself was fighting amongst the fray, as was Harry, and they had both disappeared into the castle not long ago. Hermione was doing her utmost to follow them, despite obstacles.

When she finally managed to reach the great, broken, oak doors and pick her way through the debris, she caught a glance of Harry and the Dark Lord dueling themselves right through the Entrance Hall toward the Great Hall, their stray spells and curses flying everywhere and hitting things and people indiscriminately. They were soon obstructed from her view as Voldemort backed Harry through the doors.

Desperately trying to catch up, she dove through and around the separate duels taking place about the Hall, and had just made it to where she could see the two leaders again when she was suddenly caught by an unexpected curse.

The Cruciatus had he on her knees in seconds, and as she writhed and screamed on the ground, a familiar cackle drifted to her ears.

Bellatrix.

The moment the curse ended Bellatrix kicked her in the ribs, and began cooing at Hermione in that shrill, giggling, insane tone she had. "Look what we have here… The little mudblood come back for more. I never did finish with it did I?" Bellatrix paused and then cackled as she sent another crucio Hermione's way

Hermione's seemingly incessant screams were attracting attention. Faintly hearing someone call her name in the background of her own screams, it occurred to Hermione that she was distracting Harry. The moment she was released – so Bellatrix could continue to taunt her no doubt – Hermione cast a nonverbal silencing spell upon herself. She had been amazed to find she hadn't dropped her wand, and Bellatrix hadn't bothered to disarm her.

Perhaps an attempt at her attacker would have put it to better use, but all she could think was that her screams were distracting Harry from his mission. She couldn't have that. The next moment she got was a bit longer, however.

The insane witch had not meant to stop, but had been hit by a curse sent her way. The pain stopped a bit longer this time, and her vision had cleared by the time she was able to look up. Someone was dueling Bellatrix. After a moment to clear her head, Hermione recognized it as Ron. Hope coursed through her as she was able to take the time to get her bearings and remove the silencing spell she had cast. She staggered to her feet, coughing up blood as she tried to throw her own curses at the abomination that presumed to call itself a human.

They may not have been doing particularly well, but they were holding their own.

That is, until Bellatrix threw the knife.

Suddenly everything went to hell. Ron screamed her name, while Hermione, shell shocked, staggered and fell backwards, knife buried hilt deep between her breasts. She cracked her head on the marble floor and suddenly everything was black.

When she resurfaced, Luna was standing over her, desperately trying to hold off Bellatrix with Ron. They were not doing well. Hermione groaned and almost screamed as she tried to move, and was only able to roll onto her side. Her hand found her wand on the ground beside her, but her brain was far too fuzzy for her to use it.

In fact at that moment she turned her head and heaved up a mixture of blood and vomit. Ron glanced over at her. But that was the moment's distraction Bellatrix needed

Ron tried to dive away at the last minute, but the curse caught his foot. And so he landed not 3 feet away from Hermione, far too still and limp to be alive.

One last scream ripped its way out of Hermione's throat, and her hands, unable to reach him, clutched at her own wounds, her hair, her neck, anything to hold onto. She heard as if from far away Harry's scream of horror, having seen his best friend fall, and Voldemort's answering cackle, so like that of his insane follower. Hermione turned her head just in time to see Harry go down as well, her hands quite suddenly finding the chain that had hung around her neck for five years now.

Her time-turner. She pulled it out, and for half a second she thought… Could she…? No. No, she could do nothing with it. It was far too late.

But just as she started to break, a bolt of light shot past Luna, a misdirected curse. And out of all the odds, it directly hit the time turner in Hermione's hand.