Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters; they are all the property of Scholastic and JK Rowling.

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The Muse of Fates: An Altered Past

Chapter Three

"Come on, Hermione, you can't stay locked up in your room reading forever. You have to come with is to Hogsmead, this is the first Hogsmead weekend they've had in ages. They have some new broom accessories in Quality Quidditch Supplies, and we can go to Zonko's and get some of Fred and George's new stuff! C'mon!"

Ron Weasley attempted to drag his friend out of her desk chair, as an amused Harry looked on.

"Hermione, I'm sure the Goddess of Books and Homework that you worship won't take it amiss if you come and have a butterbeer with your friends. And you can even read in the bookstore afterwards, if you're not interested in the racing brooms. Come with us, it's just for a few hours, and we can have some fun together."

Harry's method of persuasion seemed to work much better than Ron's.

"Alright you two, I'll come. Really, Ron, you didn't need to pull my arm half out of the socket to go with you to Hogsmead. I just needed a little time to finish reading this page."

"Good, then let's go!"

In Hogsmead, Hermione glanced around as the trio walked to Madame Rosmerta's. They had not been allowed to come here during the 3 weeks after Dumbledore's death. Hogwarts, ever sheltered from outside events, had been feeling less and less secure in the past weeks. Death Eater attacks had become common and more daring, and no one in the wizarding community felt safe any longer. The signs of changes in Hogsmead were slight, yet noticeable. There were less people on the streets, and those who ventured out did not socialize. Hogsmead always had an Auror on patrol. Today, a young Auror, probably just out of training, traversed the town, checking for warning signs of an attack. In the bar, Harry, Hermione, Ron, and some other Hogwarts' students were practically the only patrons. They saw the changes in the community, but it remained an unspoken issue; instead, the friends talked and laughed about schoolwork, professors, Ron's chaotic family, anything but the current events at hand.

When they exited Madame Rosmerta's, Harry and Ron headed towards the Quidditch shop while Hermione, with a wave, veered down the main street in search of Hogsmead's antique bookshop. Finally reaching the crooked little store wedged between an apothecary and the Hogsmead branch of Madam Malkin's, Hermione sighed with pleasure as she entered the door and breathed in the unique scent of aged paper and binding.

"Why hello, Hermione. You haven't been around for a while. Understandable, seeing how events stand as they are, now. I was truly saddened to hear the new about Albus. He was a great friend of mine, and always a great help in finding some of the rarer tomes."

Samwell Shintrack, owner of Shintrack's Antique Book Shoppe, greeted Hermione warmly. Although Hermione had never made a purchase in his store (most items he sold, after all, was always a bit too much for her budget), she visited often and the two found each other good company in the discussion of the contents of the ancient tomes.

"Hello, Sam - it's so nice to see you again. Have you received anything interesting in the past few weeks?"

"Why, as a matter of fact I have. A certain Mr. Humpledine passed away not two weeks ago. He was a great friend and patron of mine, and he actually left me some very interesting scrolls containing the treatises of medieval witches and wizards in his will. Would you like to take a look? They're in the back room. Follow me."

Sam led a curious Hermione to a desk in his workroom, which was stacked with a collection of approximately ten to twenty yellowed rolls of parchment. He beamed at her as he saw the familiar spark light in her eye at the sight.

"You will know, of course that many of the magical medieval philosophers had some interesting ideas about good and evil, and they theorized, as it was a time where religion was a pervading force in life, about possible powerful forces in nature that could alter destiny. I'm not all too familiar on the topic, but I'm sure the scrolls will be much more informative. You have all afternoon to have a look."

Sam chuckled as Hermione touched the scrolls in reverence. He knew that he did not need to mention that she should be careful with the valuable artifacts. As Hermione picked up a scroll, carefully unrolled it, and became engrossed, she glanced up at the kindly old wizard beside her.

"Thank you very much Sam. I'm sure these will be fascinating."

Sam beamed, "Enjoy yourself." as he slipped back into the main store.

For an indeterminable amount of time, Hermione leisurely perused the scrolls, until, as she unrolled one of the last, the first sentences immediately caught the Head Girl's quick eye:

"Although it is stated among wizards that we determine our own destiny, there perhaps is evidence to the contrary. Why, if we do indeed choose our own future, do their exist numerous genuine Oracles who divine future events, and why is it possible to use a time-turner and perhaps alter a strand of time? I theorize that there are greater powers that exist in the magical, spiritual sphere that I shall refer to as 'the Fates.' And, these Fates exist to control the balance between Light and Dark, so that even though there shall always be voices of dissent, Dark forces will never be able to wholly overrun the universe."

"Incredible!" Hermione thought, "it's such an obscure theory, but there are certain things in this thesis that have a ring of truth." Reading further down, the author began to write about people in history who had perhaps used by these Fates to maintain the balance:

"These individuals, usually appearing in times of greatest Darkness, are usually inherently powerful magic wielders, yet they apparently show no exceptionally 'special' traits until a certain point in time, when their Fate has finally matured. When that happens, they seem to overcome Darkness with a reciprocal Light inside of themselves. This Light seems to have outstanding potency. Individuals possessing this Light, born usually every two or three generations, use this Light in numerous unique ways to overcome Darkness. Thus, the Fates rest the well being of the worlds upon this individual, who has only been known to fail three times in the last thousand years of history."

At this point, Hermione realized that she was having a hard time seeing the faded words on the parchment. Glancing out the small window, she realized that it was late afternoon already, and that she had to catch the carriages back to the castle.

Walking back into the main room, Hermione saw Sam sitting behind the counter.

"Those treatises were wonderful, Sam. Thank you for showing them to me."

Sam smiled, "I thought you would like them."

"I loved them!"

Hermione realized she was still clutching the scroll she had been reading.

"Oh, I almost walked out with this one. Here, take it." She said, handing it back to Sam.

"No, Hermione, you keep it. It's a gift."

"I can't possibly take it! It must be worth two hundred galleons!"

"Well, the scrolls were a gift to me from an old friend, so I choose to give this one to you, as my friend. Think of it as an early graduation gift."

"Thank you, Sam. You're brilliant!" Hermione exclaimed, instinctively giving the wizened wizard a kiss on the cheek before placing the scroll in her robes and dashing out of the Shintrack's just in time to see the first carriages lining up. The Head Girl was abruptly halted by the sight in front of Rosmerta's. A group of no less than five Death Eaters had apparated outside the pub's door. Then, under Hermione's horrified gaze, an apparently unaware Professor McGonagall and Madam Pomfrey emerged from the door, right in the face of the Death Eaters. Hermione stood frozen to the spot as she saw the Death Eaters raise their wands just as Professor McGonagall glanced up, too late to draw her wand.

"No!" Hermione gasped, helpless, and too far away to do anything. Still, the sight galvanized her legs into action as she sprinted down the pathway, seeing a frightened and upset crowd gather around the fringes. Suddenly, as Hermione was still thirty feet away, a swift black shadow dashed from the corner of the building to halt in front of the Professors, to face the Death Eaters, shouting curses calmly while leveling his wand at the would- be attackers and stunning one. The Head Girl stopped twenty feet away as she recognized the black shadow as Professor Snape. The Death Eaters seemed to have noticed the same fact.

"Snape! What the blazes do you think you're doing? The Master shall hear of this treachery, you can have no doubt. And you know the Dark Lord hates traitors above all else. Now, why don't you step aside so that we may get down to business, and perhaps you will not be punished too severely."

Snape responded aloofly, with characteristic elegance and fluidity. "Well now, Avery, it doesn't seem as if you're in a position to give orders and I really don't have time to chat. Stupefy!"

Avery was stunned just as Hogsmeade's young Auror sprinted to the scene from across town. Looking at the newly-arrived Auror along with the venomous crowd arriving behind Hermione, the lead Death Eater barked out orders.

"Grab the two fallen and apparate out, now!" The Death Eaters disapparated, leaving their targeted victims unharmed.

"Miss Granger!" Hermione started at the sound of Professor Snape's familiar bark. She had been unaware that he had noticed her presence. "Round up all students and have them in the carriages in ten minutes' time. Hurry!"

After seeing the last students into the carriages, Hermione climbed into the last one with Ron, Harry, and Snape. During the ride back to Hogwarts, the trio sat silently staring at each other in shock as their Professor ignored them.
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A/N: Sorry it took such an incredibly long time to post this chapter - unfortunately, real life decided to barge in with a vengeance, and I haven't had time to write. Chapter 4 is already in the works, and hopefully it will be up soon, although no guarantees. As always, reviews are highly encouraged, as this story needs feedback to become any better. Thanks for reading!