A/N: Welcome to my new story! This is going to be a multichapter story, following the events in HBP. If you read, please don't forget to leave a review.

Prologue – The Guardians of Time

Arnos' footsteps echoed around the vast hall as he made his way down the stairs. Sunlight streamed through the high windows, casting dark shadows onto his wizened face, and he lifted his hand to shield his eyes from the glare.

As he looked across the vast room, with its rows upon rows of shelves, and the several hundred hourglasses that lined the walls, he sighed. He'd known for some time that this moment would come, that his people would have to intervene in the lives of the mortals. But now that the moment was here…well, he didn't know if he would be able to persuade the others that help was necessary.

He could see them all waiting for him at the front of the hall, seated around the white stone table, talking about something or other. They were not going to take his decision well.

"My friends," he called, and the faint murmuring stopped, several heads turning to look at him.

"You are late, Arnos," a silver haired man stood as Arnos took his place at the head of the table, "we have been waiting for you for many hours."

"Calm yourself, Arian. I was looking into the Pools of Time, and surely you know how easy it is to forget oneself when looking into their depths?"

The silver haired man sat down, a faint frown upon his face. "Well, Arnos? Why have you called us here? We have no meeting scheduled for many months."

"I know," Arnos sighed, "but there are things we need to discuss, things that cannot wait until the next meeting."

"What 'things' are these that you speak of?" boomed a younger looking man with red hair, "are these 'things' so important that you call me away from my well deserved rest?"

Arnos stared into the red haired man's eyes, "Yes, Bonarn, they are. For many months I have been looking into the Pools of Time, and I do not like what I see. I see death and destruction, and I fear that if we do not intervene, their world will be ruined."

"What concerns are these of ours?" asked Arian, "What passes in the mortal land bears no consequence on our lives."

"Bears no consequences on our lives? Surely you of all people Arian, have seen the cracks appearing? What were small fissures a month ago have become great caverns! And it is his fault! The one they call 'The Dark Lord'! He interfered with the timelines, he created the rifts, and if we do not intervene soon…" he trailed off, his eyes clouding over, before lowering his voice and glancing around at his peers, "I foresee grave danger for us."

"So what do you propose we do? We cannot fight their fights for them, we cannot act as their puppet masters…I see no way of helping them." Arian crossed his arms across his chest defiantly.

"We know his plans. We know the reason he moved through the timelines last month…we can help them Arian."

"Well I shall take no part in it! Whatever foolish plan you come up with is doomed to fail, I'm sure." Arian stood up suddenly, the wood of his chair scraping against the cold stone floor. "If anybody needs me, I'll be in the library." He turned, his white robes billowing behind him as he strode down the hall towards the marble staircase.

Arnos sighed. "Foolish man." He looked around the table at the others, "Well? Any of you care to join him?" Nobody moved. "Good. Now, there is a boy. I have been watching him on and off for several years; this boy seems to be the one he wants to kill above all others. And I learned last year that this boy has been fated to defeat 'The Dark Lord'. I intend to aid the boy in any way possible, I think I shall visit him soon, inform him of what he needs to do."

"I agree, we need to help them, Arnos, but do you not think that revealing our secrets to a mortal is dangerous?" The red haired man, Bonarn, spoke suddenly, "Think of the consequences if something were to go wrong! Who knows what this boy will do if we allow him to learn our secrets, to tread the paths of those who have lived and died before him?"

"I shall be there to give him all the guidance he needs. And he has faithful friends; they will be of great worth to him on this quest." Arnos looked around the table once more, his eyes resting on each of the men in turn. The youngest, Ranin, met his gaze with trust in his eyes, and Arnos knew he would have his support. Only Bonarn, and of course, Arian, seemed to show any opposition.

"I can not guarantee the success of this plan, my friends, but I see it as the only option available to us," he looked around the table once more, his eyes resting on Bonarn as he spoke, "tomorrow I must venture into the mortal lands and find this boy. He is our only hope."

&&&

A/N: Thankyou for reading! Bear in mind that this is only the prologue, and therefore is quite short. Subsequent chapters will be a lot longer. Look out for Chapter One, it shouldn't be too long before I update.