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Blinking rapidly, Harry looked up at what should have been the ceiling of the white, square room. Instead, he could see nothing but darkness, with a slight musty smell of an abandoned house. He also noticed an another eerie difference in the situation--there was no longer any noise, or any sign that another person was in the room.

Not taking time to deeply analyze this fortunate, but mysterious stroke of luck, Harry sat up, immediately regretting doing so. His head searing with a sudden, intense pain, he closed his eyes, letting a wave of nausea pass over him. "Errg…" he mumbled, trying to regain some bearings, "Bloody hell…nnn…"

Shaking his head, Harry slowly got to his feet, feeling around for anything in the darkness. Kicking something with a clang away, Harry felt along the cold walls, closing his hand over the doorknob. Pulling it open with a jerk, Harry blinked as a dim light met his eyes. He was now in the circular door room, though it was not the same as the last time he'd seen it.

The floor of the room was coated with a thin layer of dirt, looking as though it hadn't been used for years. Shutting the door behind him, Harry immediately turned to stop his mistake. However, as the door slammed shut, the circular room did not begin rotating, as it had on previous occasions. Shocked, Harry grabbed for one of the many doors. "Ron? Hermione?" he yelled loudly, frantically searching for any sign of life, "NEVILLE? GINNY? LUNA?" Opening it, he was greeted once again by the sight of the Prophecy Room, except it too had drastically changed in the few minutes he was gone.

The shelves, which had once been glowing with glittering lights, now looked like the site of a war zone. The crystal balls, once lined neatly amongst the many shelves, now lay shattered and broken on the floor. Dirt also covered every inch imaginable in this room, and many of the shelves were overturned. Backing up, Harry turned back to the circular room, now thoroughly frightened.

What's going on? he thought to himself, heart beating wildly. None of this made any sense. One moment, he had been trying to protect his friends, about to be attacked by Death Eaters, and the next, he was alone in a Ministry of Magic that looked as though it had been abandoned for several years.

Vainly trying to focus his thoughts, Harry let himself slip to the floor. Leaning back on one of the doors, he inhaled deeply, in an attempt to slow his runaway pulse.

"Think," Harry whispered to himself, "What happened in there?" Searching through the scrambled bits of his memory, he replayed the scene in his mind. Malfoy tackled me…I fell backwards, and the prophecy broke. I grabbed the hourglass on my way down, then there was this big flash of light.

Of course! Harry berated himself mentally. How could he be so stupid as to forget the hourglass? Getting quickly to his feet, he ran back through the door to the square room. Feeling around the floor, he felt his hands enclose the smooth handle of the hourglass once more.

Bringing it with him to the dim light of the circular room, Harry began examining the hourglass closely. It was quite large, at least a foot long, and half a foot wide. Emblazoned on it's gold finish, the upper face read, "Ago Agere Egi Actum". The knobs and dials at the base of the hourglass, which were once so active, were now silent.

Not thinking it was entirely wise to start pressing buttons just yet, Harry instead pushed himself stood to his feet. He needed to get out of here and find someone who could explain what was happening. After examining each of the doors carefully, he opened the one opposite of the Prophecy Room. He once again faced the hallway to the elevator lift.

Harry's heart gave a jolt, at the sight of something so familiar. Running down the dimly lit hall, he practically jumped into the lift. Panting slightly, he leaned against the back wall of the lift. Suddenly, his hopes were squashed, as he realized the lift might not work. Everything seemed to be running on reserve power, though, so he at least ought to try.

Jabbing his finger against the button for the Atrium, Harry waited for the lift to moved. He began to frown, as nothing happened right away, but smiled broadly as the lift groaned to life, squeaking as its rusted golden grilles shut.

As the lift ascended to the Atrium, Harry was able to catch a glimpse of each floor. Though a female voice no longer announced the levels, he still kept track, looking urgently as the lift stopped at Level Two. Desperately searching for Mr. Weasley, any sign of life in fact, Harry was quickly disappointed as there was not even a mouse occupying former Department of Magical Law.

The lift moved again, and Harry found himself looking at the ceiling. Where it had once been crowded with flying memos, cobwebs now sat. Oddly longing for the memos, Harry pushed the thought to the back of his mind, preferring not to think much just now. He had a nagging suspicion of what exactly had happened, and his stomach hurt just thinking about it. He hoped against hope he was wrong.

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