Chapter 3

Hermione waited in the headmaster's office. He had asked her to come before the term let out so that she could return the time-turner. She stood up and walked over to a glass cabinet with some weird type of glass that seemed to reflect back but only certain things. It must be magical since no other mirrors did that.

She glanced around even knowing she was alone. At least aside from the portraits which were staring at her with mild interest while others slept in their chairs. Or faked it.

She stepped away before she gave into her curiosity and opened it. Once she did a cynical voice filled the office. "So damn noble. Bloody Gryffindors."

She glanced up and almost glared at the man who had spoken. It was Phineas Black. An ancestor of Sirius Black, also one of the schools most disliked Headmaster in History.

Looking away from him and moving towards the chair she had just left he spoke up again. "A dirty witch as well."

Now she knew he was trying to get a rise out of her. Finally giving in she glared at him and he barked out a nasty laugh. Other portraits woke up at the sound and a particular portrait of a headmistress scowled at Black. "Leave her alone. She has done nothing to you. If you're bored head back to your other portrait and leave the rest of us to rest, fool."

Giving the portrait a slight smile, Hermione gave Black an amused stare. He looked down his nose at her with a hint of sneer still on his lips.

The portrait that had spoken turned to look at her. "But he is right. Your noble, I can see that. I'm Phyllida Spore, may I ask who you are?"

Hermione moved closer to the Portrait, "I'm Hermione Granger, a third year." Phyllida Spore gave her a look of recognition mixed with a bit of anger.

"Oh, you're the child the current Headmaster was speaking of."

Hermione frowned, "I'm sorry?"

The lady gave her a searching look, "We heard about you. The Headmaster spoke of you one summer ago about taking more classes than one should. We had known you were going to be a student in her third year but we hadn't taken into account the fact that it would age you physically as well. But the changes won't stop there ." Her cryptic remark just made Hermione even more curious.

Seeing her confusion and questioning look the lady smiled, "We are bound to serve the current Headmaster. But there are certain ways around that. I am sure Professor McGonagall spoke to you personally about the permission to use the time-turner?"

When Hermione nodded, she continued. "Well it was a lie."

"I'm sorry? What do you mean it was a lie?"

"The Headmaster didn't get permission from the Ministry. He alone gave the order for you to use the time-turner. But not just for your classes but to save the boy." The lady said as she glanced at the other portraits who had woken up the moment she had started speaking about Dumbledore.

"Harry? What about Harry?" She didn't like the way it was sounding.

"I mean to say that it was meant to use to save Sirius Black and Harry Potter. Dumbledore has great plans for Harry Potter and he doesn't want anything to happen to him. That is where you came in." said the lady as she moved from one portrait to another. She passed behind the other portraits as she made her way to the empty one near ground level.

"Me? I really don't like the way you're making it sound, Headmistress Spore."

Lady Spore came to a stop behind Black as she stared at her, "The boy will play a much bigger role in the days that come. But he won't be able to do it alone. He's going to need all the help he can get. That, unfortunately, will fall upon you. The brightest witch of her age."

Hermione glanced at the entrance to the office, wondering how long the Headmaster was going to take. She wanted to speak more with the lady and didn't want him to come in just yet.

Another softer voice spoke up. "He won't be coming yet. He is held up by Cornelius Fudge." She nodded at the man who had said that. He was also staring at her but with pity instead of curiosity like the others. He almost reminded her of what muggles called Santa.

The lady spoke up once again, "Worry not, child, he is the least of your problems. The first problem being that you're not ready. Not for what is to come. We know that Tom Riddle will come back and soon. Rumors have already begun, and most of the purebloods are in the center of it. The boy doesn't stand a chance by himself. Others plan to use him and they are raising him like an animal ready for slaughter."

Her crude words sent chills down Hermione's back.

Even she had known that HE would come back and she knew Harry wasn't ready. Probably would never stand a chance. The fact that Lady Spore had said most of the purebloods were behind this rumors brought several faces to mind. Some more recent than others.

"So the Headmaster wants to use you since the boy seems to listen to you. At least more than anybody else. The time-turner was only the beginning. In the wall right behind you, the one you had been staring at holds some answers. But only if you really want to learn, to become, and to be will you be able to get to where you need to be."

Another previous Headmistress spoke, voice like a child, "She is just a mere child, Phyllida. Let her be, please."

Lady Phyllida gave her a harsh glare, "She won't have a choice soon enough. The old goat won't let her or any of them remain children much longer. It's better for her to prepare."

Phineas Black laughed harshly, "What is in it for you, Spore? You aren't helping from the goodness of your heart."

Lady Spore left his portrait and came to the empty one in front of Hermione. "I don't gain anything from doing this. But we can all agree that we do not support the Headmaster. He plays mind games and he already has another who is bound to him. He plays with that man like one would with a disposable chess piece."

Lady Spore gave everybody else a pointed look, "I am tired of his games and I'm not even alive. The way his planning things will only kill others. His mind is clouded with past regrets and an obsession that will swallow him whole when the time comes."

Hermione was barely listening, her thoughts still stuck to the fact that she had said that the Headmaster already had somebody under his thumb. Who?

"Open it, child. The box at the very back with two lion carvings is the one you are looking for."

Hermione hesitated but opened it in the end. Inside lay many boxes and trunks that seemed to have been shrunk. Near the back was the box the witch had told her to get. It was black with brown designs. It had two large lions engraved on the top of the box.

Once she grabbed it, the box gave a soft thrum as she held it against her chest. All the portraits were alert as she looked up at the lady. "Now with a flick of your wand say Gemino Maximus Notolas." Hermione recognized the first two words of the spell but not the other.

She did as Lady Spore said and watched in mute wonder as another box started to form alongside the original one. Once it was done she put the original one back inside the cabinet and waited for the lady to speak.

"Shrink it and take it with you. It should last you as long as you want it to or until you drop the spell yourself. That includes anything in the box as well. Do not bother looking up the last part of the spell. You will not find it in any of the books here. It can only open with a Phoenix feather."

Hermione glanced at the stand was Fawkes usually was at. She walked over to it and picked several red feathers and tucked them into her pocket.

"Reach back in there and grab two books that are bound with two silver ribbons."

She did as she was told and cast the same spell on the books before putting them back. She stared down at the objects that she was technically stealing from Dumbledore. But she had done so many things that it really didn't top anything else she had done before. Or so she thought.

"Shrink them and leave the time-turner on his desk. We will let him know you left it here so that you could go and pack."

Hermione shrunk the items and put them in her coat pocket. She felt like she had a large mark on her back, betraying her to anybody that looked at her. She walked towards the large desk that belonged to the Headmaster and set the time-turner on it. Since she had been told that the Ministry had not actually given her permission to use it she had felt slightly mad and betrayed. Doing what she had just done quilled the emotion of betrayal. But the fact that he had ultra motives didn't sit well with her.

She didn't want to become another chess piece in his game or anybody else's.

Turning back she headed to the door but before she left the room she turned back to Lady Spore, "Thank you. I know you are right about everything you just said. You have no reason to lie. I'll use these things wisely."

Lady Spore didn't smile but she did nod her head, "You will need all the help you can get. Unfortunately, we can't help you more. This is the most we can do, child. Brace yourself for what is to come. Once HE is back things will become even harder and deadlier."

Hermione nodded and left the office with those last words ringing in her ear. She missed the look of regret on Lady Spore's face.

She walked down the corridor and towards the Gryffindor Tower. She wasn't watching where she was going and waved at people that called her name without looking at them. She felt like she had just made a decision that could backfire in ways beyond of which needed explaining.

Once she was in the dorm room, she found it empty of the other girls. She mindlessly packed with her wand as she slipped her hand into her pocket. Taking out the box and books she waved her wand over them, unshrinking them before she pushed them deep into her trunk. After she finished packing she headed down to the common room, feeling like it would be the last time she ever felt like one of their own. Just a girl saying goodbye to her peers with no worries other than what plagued any other teenager.

…

Once she arrived home she left her parents downstairs claiming she was tired and wanted to read before heading to bed. Her parents bid her good night but her father had given her a second glance before getting distracted when the phone ranged. She walked into her room and set her trunk down on the bed and put her wand on her nightstand. She looked around her bedroom which hadn't changed in the year she had been gone. Other than linen change it was still the same.

It felt different to her though.

Hermione had never felt different to others but she had seen the glances her parents had gotten from other parents. They wouldn't say anything to them since they were highly respected in the community and other circles. Being dentist was only a perk to them. She had heard them speaking of another child but they always shushed when she would walk by them or saw her coming into the room.

Her mother couldn't have any more children. Hermione's birth had done that to her. Regardless of the fact that her parents told her it wasn't her fault, she still heard mother crying about it. Adopting was the only way they could get another child. But she didn't think they would.

Finding out about the wizarding world had only made the distance between them bigger since her parents knew that she would never attend Uni. or make anything in the muggle world. Hermione had known as well but never once said anything to them. She didn't need to.

She loved her parents but they would never understand that the magic within her was literally a part of her. Part of her future. She could try to suppress it but it would only eat her alive and destroy her as a person. Leaving a shell behind.

Earlier her mother had commented on the fact that she had seemed older. Like she had aged while she had been away. It had made her realize that sooner or later others would notice as well. She had already been a year older than the others so adding another year made her two years older. The boys hadn't noticed since they never looked at her as a girl but as one of them. A boy practically.

Her chest area had become bigger, her body showing signs of maturing. Something her mother had noticed right away. Hermione hadn't said anything, just laughed at her mother saying that she had been a year away from home. She was bound to change. Her father hadn't looked convinced but hadn't commented on it.

Her mother had seemed to forget about the fact that she had gotten permission to use the time-turner. Hermione wasn't about to remind her.

Opening her trunk and getting all her stuff put away before taking out the box and the bundle of books. She retrieved the Phoenix feathers from her jean pocket. She didn't know what she would find in there but Lady Spore had told her she would need it. Her words still rang true in her heart. Putting the feathers on her bed covers she headed to her closet to change into some slacks and an old shirt of her father's before getting on the bed and pushing her trunk to the bottom of the bed. The lady hadn't specifically said what way to open the box but she grabbed one of the feathers.

Hermione picked up the box and set it on her lap. She wondered if the box had any wards and almost hit her forehead at her stupidity. It was Albus Dumbledore's box and from the way the way the lady had spoken of it; she should have thought of the possibility of wards.

Regardless, she pressed the feather onto the box and it gave her hand a zap of magic before the latch on it opened. She supposed since it wasn't the original one it would void the wards. Or at least that's what she told lifted the lid and frowned. It didn't look like anything special. Especially for all the secrecy to it. It contained a rolled up parchment with three other books. One which gave a faint green glow.

She carefully took them out and shivered when her hands touched the book with the glow. It felt dark. Setting it aside with the other books. Right underneath was a smaller book. Underneath it laid two small velvet pouches. One held what felt like dirt or sand while the other felt lighter and when she raised it up, it gave small metallic sound. She grabbed the smaller book and realized it wasn't a book, more like a journal and it held elegant handwriting.

Phase A for Time

Insert the Gypsum Sand into the hourglass. Rotate twice to the left before flipping it once and setting the gold plate around it.

Phase B for Time

Engrave, "I mark the hours, everyone, Nor have I yet outrun the Sun. My use and value, unto you, are gauged by what you have to do" on the sides of the two rings with a wand.

Phase C for Time

Insert the…

It continued describing in detail on how to build a time-turner. Which when one thought about it, it became mind-boggling that he would keep this and a written journal on how to? He probably never once thought that anybody would find it since they seem more like personal notes than something he would publish.

Hermione set it back in the box along with the book. She couldn't do magic outside of Hogwarts so it would have to wait. She glanced at the rolled up parchment with a frown. If she knew anything so far was that this box contained things that should never be brought to light. Yet, here she was doing exactly that. Regardless, she couldn't back out. She needed to learn more, see more in order to break away from whatever plan Dumbledore had in place. She wouldn't let Harry die. If what Lady Spore had said was true, then darker times were ahead of them. But none of them were prepared.

Pulling of the melted wax that sealed it off; she carefully unrolled it and bit her lip. It was just a couple of sentences that almost seemed like a poem. But once she read the first line it felt like somebody had closed off her lungs and her heart gave a painful throb.

"The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches... born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies... and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not... and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives... the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies..."

No no no. She closed her eyes and hugged the parchment to herself. No. It didn't mean anything. It could just be…

No, please, no.

Her heart started to thump harder. Harry. Her Harry. Was supposed to fight this Dark Lord. The one to end him was a practically a child that had never been trained or anything. Oh, Harry. He didn't deserve this. Nobody did. She crushed the parchment in her fist.

She had scoffed at Divination but only because she had been raised as a Muggle. That type of stuff had never been taken seriously and all of a sudden this prophecy would come true.

She had dropped Divination after a couple of classes. She had thought that Trelawney had been bonkers and had just been a fraud. Most of everybody in the castle thought the same. Aside from a few students like Lavender and Parvati.

Why would Dumbledore do this? Why keep it at all to himself? If somebody else had gotten their hands on this… She didn't know if HE knew the truth. She was in the dark and she didn't like it one bit.

Hermione got up and pushed everything aside. She didn't have an owl since she had Crookshanks, who had disappeared the instant they had gotten out of the car, so she hadn't thought of getting an owl. She needed to get one.

She needed to set a plan of some sort. She needed to talk with somebody who wasn't opposed to breaking rules but could also keep a secret. Harry couldn't know. At least not yet. Ron wasn't known to keep secrets. She wasn't close to anybody else. Neville didn't really count. He was too timid. Ginny was too young. Hermione got up and put everything safely back inside the box but didn't close the lid and set it on her desk by the window.

There was somebody that came to mind. Not because he was from a house known to produce dark wizards. No, it was because they had kept the secret of her time-turner a secret. They could have kept it and used it. But they had brought it to her. She knew that all three of them were going to repeat another year. She had heard Harry say so as they boarded the train.

They could keep a secret. They had never once called her a mudblood. They had nodded at her when they had bumped into her after the night at the Shrieking Shack. Snape had given her detention for two weeks since he couldn't really do anything else since Dumbledore had asked him not to bring attention to her.

As for the Slytherins, they had heard and gotten the gist of what had happened that night. They had told Snape to lay off her but not Ron or Harry. Which she had been thankful for.

It was a long shot and it could backfire. But she needed some help. Reading could only get you so far. Pulling out a fresh sheet of parchment paper and a quill she set to write.

Adrian Pucey

It is Hermione…

…..

Sorry for the late update. Mother's day was today and it was also my brothers birthday so I was bit busy but never the less here is the next chapter.

Feedback is welcomed

Thank your for reading! :D

Vanee