Hermione was only a little ashamed to admit she let out a squeal of fear when the bright light started talking. The light, which she now recognized as an ethereal ghost-like human, was waiting patiently for her to take the proffered hand. Gulping, Hermione stood up without the assistance of the ethereal being, and stepped backward several steps needing to further her proximity to the strange presence. The spectral being only gave a little shake of her head and a small smirk.

"My Dear Hermione, you are never going to find the book ignoring me like that," the personage said lightly.

Hermione weighed her options. On one hand, the being seemed to have information as to where the book was, and could help her; on the other hand, she could be trying to fool her to kill her. That wasn't an unusual behavior for magical creatures. Making the decision to approach the figure, Hermione did a quick scan of her surroundings to look for possible escape routes if anything bad happened.

Unlike the more cramped walk space of the corridors she used to get here, this place wide and open. Behind her there was a massive lake spanning much the open space. Much like before, there were plants glowing dimly, shedding the entire area in a faint blush of colors. The lake seemed to have something that glowed within it too, because it gave off a vague light. Crystals had formed in some places as well. Again Hermione wanted to marvel at the beauty of the place, but her attention was needed somewhere else.

Slowly, Hermione approached the apparition. It smiled at her.

"You have no reason to be so afraid, dear child… I only wish to impart knowledge upon you." The personage's voice with a bit echoey and distant, as if she were far away.

Now that Hermione had calmed down considerably, she heard a familiar tonality in her voice. It sounded almost the same as…

"The Lady, you are the Lady, aren't you?" Hermione gasped.

She smiled and nodded.

Now that Hermione had said it, she could see the physical similarities in the two faces…

"Hermione we do not have much time, the anchor I used to tie me to this world is weakening and fading." She gave a sad smile, "But it is imperative that you listen to what I am about to tell you. It has the potential to save many lives that were needlessly lost."

Hermione nodded her head solemnly.

The Lady nodded her head back at Hermione, and began her tale, "Centuries ago, when I was a young girl of fifteen, I was studying under the greatest diviner of my time. I had known I was a Seer from a young age, and I wanted to refine my abilities, to hopefully help others. Luckily my Madame saw a great talent in me, and under her tutelage, I learned to gain greater control of my abilities."

"One night, after an arduous day of training, I went for a walk in the Forest, hoping to clear my mind before I went to sleep. I had Seen a great many things that day, and I needed a reprieve from it all. While I was wandering, I stumbled upon a cavern. As I walked down the tunnels, I could feel it vibrating with an ancient and powerful magic. I walked for so long, I lost track of time, but eventually, I stumbled into this grotto. It was the source of the magic, and it was calling to me."

"Before I knew what I was doing, I had dived into the waters of that lake. The magic there helped me stay on the surface of the water. It was very peaceful, floating there with magic supporting me. I fell into a vision more powerful than anything I had ever experienced before. In the vision I saw a war. There was so much bloodshed; both sides fighting endlessly. There was no resolution. In the thick of this battle I saw you."

"You were beautiful. You fought with the ferocity of a lioness, and when it was all over, you rose from the burning ashes like a phoenix. I was inspired by you, and your tenacity. However, I also saw the sadness that would cloud the entire wizarding world for years to come. It wouldn't dispel for years, and years. And even when it had, a small patch would always reside over you. It would be your destruction."

"When I awoke from the vision, I was greeted by the ancient powers that resided in this cavern. Each of them bestowed a gift upon me, a gift that would help me prevent the future I foresaw."

Hermione could feel a stirring in the room. Magic was always somewhat sentient, however this room felt like something entirely more alive. It felt as though the magic was awakening from a long slumber.

"I knew deep in my heart, that you would be the one to usher in a new age of prosperity and the one who would dispel the dark cloud that hung over the people. That is why I created the Books, the Stone, and the Plaque. It was to give you a glimpse into my life, and to be a catalyst for change. I imbued those books with my own magical essence, and set Aria as their guardian."

Hermione found it difficult to get breath down her throat. A massive lump had formed, and was making her teary.

"Hermione, like me, you have been chosen by the ancient magics. And it is for that reason that I ask you to complete the journey I have set out for you. It will be long and formidable. You will face many difficulties and challenges ahead of you, but you cannot give up! The lives of many now lie in your hands, rise to the challenge!"

With one final cry of the Lady, the room was enveloped in a glow so powerful Hermione was blinded even with her eyes shut. She could feel the enture grotto take in a massive breath and wake up. She felt distant from her body, which was now moving toward the lake. She felt it dive into the water and was consumed by the magic. She lay that way for an unknown amount of time; stuck in a peaceful inbetween state. Eventually, she began regaining her senses, and the same magic that had pulled her into the water, was placing her back on the ground gently.

When she opened her eyes, there were three personages standing before her, all unfamiliar. The lady was gone.

"Hermione," came a quiet whisper.

She looked back at the three beings standing in front of her. The one leftmost from her was a man, the one rightmost was a woman, and the one in the middle was indiscernible, a mix between the beings on either side of it.

Then she heard it again, "Hermione."

Slowly she stepped toward the three figures. The woman was smiling gently at her, the man scowling, and again, the middle had an indistinguishable expression; a mix of a smile and a scowl.

"Hermione… We are the Powers that Be." The voice was only a whisper, but it shook Hermione to her soul. The woman stepped forward and took her right hand. Somehow, Hermione knew it was her that was the one speaking. She was very beautiful, very ethereal and wearing a flowing dress that seemed to be fluttering in a nonexistent breeze A crown of flowers top her head.

"We are the powers that have existed longer than time itself." This time the man walked toward her and took her left hand. He was just as beautiful as the woman holding her other hand, but in a much more regal way. He was wearing fine robes and and had a heavily jeweled crown atop his head.

"We keep balance in all." The final personage whispered. It walked behind her and put its hand on her shoulders. It was wearing something, though Hermione couldn't tell what. Everything about this apparition was a perfect mixture of both the man and the woman.

"We have come to grant you gifts." The woman said. "I grant you the gift of an empathetic hand, to guide you in helping those around you."

Hermione felt herself grow warm, hot even. It was almost unpleasant.

"I grant you the gift of a firm foot, to help you stand strong and conquer your enemies." The man stated.

Hermione grew cold, almost freezing.

"And I, I grant you the gift of discerning eyes, to know who to help, and who to conquer." The final being said.

Hermione returned to a normal temperature, and all three of the apparitions whispered together, "We, the Powers that Be, grant you these gifts to guide you in your journey."

Another blindingly bright light filled the cavern and the apparitions disappeared. The magic in the chamber went back to slumbering, and Hermione felt breathless. In the same place the beings had stood, there lay an indigo book, and a white stone. She bent down to pick them up and saw her clothing had changed. Before she had on a plain jumper, jeans, and shoes. Now she wore a flowing white dress, and a jeweled crown, with no shoes. A perfect mixture of simple and extravagant.

Hermione felt different too. Not in a bad way, but her magic seemed changed. More powerful. More raw. More pure. It was the gifts, she realized. They had changed her magic, and made into a more powerful version of itself. Why her clothing had changed though, she couldn't guess. Possibly a physical manifestation of the gifts?

She didn't dwell on it though. She had to figure out what this journey was. Both the Lady and the Powers that Be mentioned a journey, and she hadn't a clue what it could be. The book would probably shed some light on it though, so her new goal was to get back to her rooms so she could read it.

She walked down the corridor again, making her way back to the library. She didn't notice that the magical pressure didn't bother her anymore, nor did she realize the blood that had splattered the corridor was gone. All she was focused on was getting back to her chamber.

She made it back after an hour or so of walking leisurely. She pushed on the entrance, and was pleasantly surprised to have it pop right open, readmitting her to the library. Aria and Fleur weren't waiting at the entrance anymore, but she didn't really blame them. She had a feeling she was in there for awhile. She wandered back to her room, thoughtlessly, passing the still glowing map on her way.

When she arrived at her rooms though, the door wouldn't open. No amounts of alohomora were going to fix it either. Sighing, she went back to the map, and touched the new glowing area. Obviously the library wanted her to see this before it would admit her to her rooms again.

A trail of magic appeared, guiding her to the stairway. It went up four flights and down a hallway before stopping at a door. Hermione followed all the way down to the door and opened it up. It was the Lady's room. But, that wasn't all. Her stuff from her old room had been transferred here. And the beaded bag she had been wearing in the grotto was laying innocently on the bed. A quick peek in the wardrobe, and she saw her clothing from the grotto was in there. On the desk all of the books she had received up until then were waiting.

Hermione set the new book on the desk next to the others, and sighed. She did not have time to move all of her stuff back to her rooms. She picked up her beaded bag and shoved everything in the wardrobe in there, and walked out of the room and into the corridor. Well, she tried to walk into the corridor, but for some reason she couldn't leave the room.

She wanted to scream. She knew it was the library barring her access to the hallways, but she couldn't fathom why. She dropped onto the bed and decided that for an unknown reason, the library wanted her here, in this room. She was too tired to try and fight it, so she just grabbed the indigo book and decided to start reading. If she was going to be stuck here, at least she would get something done. She welcomed the darkness, knowing that it would be her last time.

{The Powers that Be}

She was back in the grotto she had been in earlier, and it was in every way, the same she remembered it being. She could hear in the distance some labored breathing, and took off for the nearest hiding spot: behind a set of vines covering the cavern walls. Sure it wasn't the best hiding place, but, at the moment it was the best she could do.

The Lady and Aria stumbled into the room shortly after Hermione got situated in her hiding place. Hermione noticed the Lady said something to the Faerie, who then flew off further down the cavern, and out another corridor opposite of that in which they came through.

The lady slumped down on a wall and relaxed as best she could. She seemed to still be bleeding a bit on her side. She lifted her lolled head and started right at Hermione.

"You can come out now. Aria will be gone for another hour at least," The Lady said raspily.

Hermione emerged from her hiding place feeling a bit sheepish. She'd never been called out by the Lady before in a dream. "Err- Hullo, I'm Hermione…"

"Yes, I am well aware of who you are. I need your help. Come here," she grunted, and lifted her hand from her side. It was bloody.

Hermione moved over to her side to provided assistance in whatever way she could.

"In my cloak pocket there is a potion. Take it out, and pour it on my wound."

Hermione reached into the woman's clock and pulled out an elixir of phoenix and faerie tears. She carefully removed the fabric surrounding the wound and assessed it to be a deep puncture wound. It was oozing a bit, and Hermione deduced it was from some sort of poison infecting her system. She uncorked the vile and poured a bit of the golden liquid on the wound. It began to close itself up, the skin knitting back together. All that remained as evidence of the wound was the blood soaking her clothing, hands, and the stone ground.

"Thank you. Even with my seeing abilities, I cannot See my own future." The Lady said, sounding much heartier.

Hermione only nodded, sensing the Lady wasn't quite finished. Now that Hermione was closer to her, she could see the resemblance between her and Fleur. Both were ethereally beautiful, and Hermione couldn't help but wonder if maybe the Lady had some Veela in her.

"Hermione, I trust that you already know the reason you were called here, so I am going to explain your journey, your mission."

"Ever since I had a vision of you five years ago, and I received my gifts, I have been trying my absolute best to create a plan to ensure you would be able to receive the messages I left for you. After researching for nearly three years, I created the Books, the Stone and the Plaque.

"Each of them play a different role in your understanding of my messages. First was the books. All seven of them are imbued with my memories, which allowed you to see exactly what I wanted you to see. They also have heavy time enchantments on them. So every time you had a vision, it was actually you travelling in time to here, so I would be able to interact with you. It was dangerous, but necessary."

"Next was the stone, which is what allowed me to transfer my magic into the books. You will find particular use of it on your journey. I cannot go into deep details, but, I created it with the intentions of it being used for more than just the transfer of my memories into the books. Be sure to remember that when you are stuck."

"Finally, there is the Plaque. It will be the catalyst for the start of your journey. All three of the elements of this plan work together to create a very powerful spell. A time Spell."

Hermione gasped. She was of course in the past now, however she knew that she would return as soon as the Lady used the stone to finish her entry in the final journal. It was very much temporary. The way that she was phrasing this… It wasn't going to be temporary.

The Lady looked gravely at Hermione. "I know this a large responsibility, but you need to take it. You have to. There is no other way to bring balance back to your time. For the sake of the entire world, you must do it!"

"I-I don't know what to say…"

"Yes. I sensed that this might have been the case, so I am very sorry for what is about to happen. Obviously, there is no way I can convince you to go to the past, but you can convince yourself…" The Lady put her hands on either side of Hermione's temples and sent a wave of magic through them and into her mind.

Hermione's thoughts were suddenly consumed with her friends, all the great times they shared together, all the fun they had. It made Hermione happy to see, but they were slowly being replaced with the pictures of their unmoving corpses, each of them dead and rotting away. Hermione cried. And cried. And cried. It was too much to handle. All of the memories she had repressed, everything she had taken out off her mind; it was all laid out in front of her, and it was a smack in the face. She understood now. The lady was giving her a chance to save them. To save their happiness.

With her decision made, Hermione was able to easily leave her thoughts of hesitation behind. She knew she had to do it. It would cause so much good. Her resolute attitude was enough for the Lady to continue speaking.

"The plan is this. You are going to gather everything you need for your voyage within the next two weeks. This includes getting your plan down. It won't be easy to establish yourself in the past, but the stars are on your side."

"You will be returning to the date of December twenty-fourth, nineteen-seventy."

Hermione did some quick mental math. It meant that she would be in the time of the Marauders. It excited her a bit, knowing that she would get to see Harry's parents, and get to know a less burdened Sirius and Remus.

"When you get there, you must take some precautions. You will not want to stand out. Any attention you garner will be taken to the man who calls himself Lord Voldemort. I cannot stress enough that you should go about destroying him covertly. The last time there was a full on clash, you saw and experienced what happened. The goal is to not repeat that."

"Luckily for us, there is a wizarding family that lives quite close to the library in the time you are traveling to. I am confident that they will help you blend in to the time. They are close friends of the Delacours, my descendants. In fact, they will be close confidants of your Fleur's Mémé, and they will have already heard my tale. They will help you, you just need something to prove that you are truly from the future, and are an ally to them. I will leave that part up to you, but I would suggest talking to Fleur, she should have something to help you."

"While you are there, try to persuade the Lemercier's- the family I was speaking of earlier- to do a blood adaption. If you are caught under fire about your identity at all, it will protect you from questions and testing. The French Ministry at that time will not have documented any blood adoptions, as the magic is ancient and it is different for every house that uses it to integrate someone into the family."

"May I also recommend taking a deaging potion? Children are seen as quite innocent, so you would be able to go about destroying him without seeming like a suspect. Besides that, you have had a hard life in your time. Seize this opportunity to try and have a more joyful childhood. Your happiness is just as important as the friends you hope to save, remember that."

"The only massive problem you should encounter is trying to get to the United Kingdom, where everything is taking place. You will be much safer in France, and you will be in a place that will allow me to help you. When you leave the country, there is only so much I will be able to do, being dead and all. While you are here in France, I can protect you."

"Make sure you have a deep understanding of French before you leave. I know that you already speak it, but, you will need to sound native to France when you arrive in the past. Again, Fleur should be able to help you with that."

"We do not have much time left. Before you return, I must tell you how to slingshot yourself into the past…" But the Lady never got to finish. All too quickly Aria was back, floating massive logs of firewood in tow. The lady ushered Hermione back to her original hiding spot and put heavy concealment enchantments upon it.

As she hid Hermione the lady hissed urgently, "Should you need any assistance, find Aria and chant this: haec animum nodis ligat invoco anchor revelare illud. Good Luck!"

Hermione watched as the two friends made a fire in the damp grotto. Then the Lady pulled out the indigo diary to start the process of sending Hermione back to her original time. With the final tap of the Lady's wand to the stone, Hermione fell into inky darkness for the last time.

{The Powers that Be}

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or the Harry Potter Universe, they belong to the Lovely JK Rowling.

Thank you, to everyone who has supported me on this wild journey of writing and uploading. It had really helped me improve myself with deadlines, and tenacity for getting things done. I really hope you enjoyed the latest chapter, it was long, and took awhile to write it the way I wanted it written. I am so glad to say Hermione will be back in time within the next 2 chapters. Yes, she will be staying in France still, but never fear, I have already go plans for her to meet the marauders and other key players in the story early on, so you will get your dosage of marauder goodness soon! Thank you once again for reading this far. I know it has been a bit boring getting everything set in stone, but many of the themes introduced in these first few chapters will run throughout the entire story, so it was important to include them.

Sincerely,

Miss of the Manor