(A/N: This is my first fic, so if you wanna flame go ahead, but go easy on me! Please review, trust me, it will get better, this is just the beginning. I'll update as soon as I can. Enjoy!)

A Shift in Time's Clockworks

"Harry... Harry? Do you want your timetable?" asked Hermione.

Harry blinked and brought his eyes back into focus. The setting of the Great Hall jumped towards him, as did his the faces of his two best friends, Ron and Hermione. Both of them were sporting worried faces as they gazed intently at him.

"What? Oh- yeah, thanks," mumbled Harry. He let his mind wander once again, and returned to the slightly fluttering, almost-innocent black veil he had seen so many times this summer already. Where Sirius had d- when Sirius had g-

"Come on, we better to our classes," said Hermione, always eager for the new school year to begin.

"Yeh," muttered Ron. "Ah, of course... Snape first."

Both he and Harry had been accepted into Snape's NEWT Potions class, much to their amazement. Harry had an inkling that Dumbledore might have had something to do with it. Harry had not spoken to his Headmaster since Dumbledore had informed of the past that now directly affected his future, even during his one and a half month stay at the Burrow. He had been glad the Weasleys were not staying at Grimmauld Place when he arrived... he didn't think he could bear being inside Sirius' house when its owner would not be there.

Hermione, or course, taking as many classes as she could, due to the fact that she had not yet decided what she would do when she became of age. So she joined Harry and Ron as they set off towards the dungeons, for the toughest Potions class they had ever encountered.

Snape set them brewing the Polyjuice Potion, which, he told them, they would continue to brew and mature for the next month. Harry, Ron and Hermione smirked at each other when Snape told them his plans- and perhaps that was why he started firing revision questions at them. Hermione flourished with her results but Harry and Ron received detentions for their abysmal answers.

"Stupid git," complained Ron. "You don't see him giving the Slytherins detention, do you?"

Snape's Potions class was predominantly made up of Slytherins, with half as many Ravenclaws, five Gryffindor (including Ron, Harry and Hermione) and only one Hufflepuff, who spent the lesson sitting in the corner, speaking only when called upon.

Harry's week didn't improve much. During his detention, in which he was made to clean up the dungeon storeroom with Ron, they overheard Snape telling McGonagall about the two 'failures' in his sixth year NEWT class.

"They are insolent and immature at the best of times," complained Snape in a low voice, trying to remain unheard but obviously not succeeding.

"I'll have a talk to Potter and Weasley, and try to knock some sense into them," promised McGonagall.

They two then went on to discuss how the school year was going so far. Ron looked disgusted and rather annoyed, as he whispered, "I was hoping they'd mention the Order."

Harry, too, was curious as to what Voldemort was up to these days... no one had heard much since the battle in the Department of Mysteries, where Sirius had died...

It was these facts that Harry dwelled on throughout the week, causing his grades to slip, his teachers to give him extra homework and for his snappish manner that he had retained at the start of last year to return.

Their weekend became a small mountain of homework, due to turn into a volcano and explode at any moment. To make this task more enjoyable, Ron and Hermione convinced Harry to join them outside under the beech tree by the lake and enjoy the early September weather.

Harry sat, watching the lake, a comfortable breeze playing across his face as the afternoon's sun shined upon him and his friends. He followed the line of sun around the lake, watched it glinting off the icy water and onto a small, compact, gold thing...

Harry casually got up, though quietly, so as to not disturb his two working friends. He worked his way slowly toward the golden object, lifting his feet high off the ground in a deliberate attempt to miss the tree roots. When he reached the root where the gold object lay, snagged on one of the wooden knots.

"Harry, what are you doing?" Hermione's voice seemed far away. As Harry reached out his hand to pick it up, he waved Hermione down with the other hand.

"Harry, seriously mate, don't touch it," said Ron trying to disguise the feeble anxiousness in his voice.

And as Harry's fingers closed around it, everything changed...

(A/N: Hope you enjoyed it! I promise things will get more interesting soon!)