No one knows how and no one knows why, all anyone does know is that Harry Potter, age fifteen, has disappeared. It was rumored that he had died. There were rumors that he had run away, but someone did know. Someone knew just where Harry was. Or rather, someone knew just when Harry was.

Albus Dumbledore looked into the pensieve as he remembered the student he had cared too much for. Harry Potter had been like a grandson to him. Albus couldn't bear to see Harry tear his own life apart worrying about Voldemort, so Albus gave Harry a Christmas present the boy would never forget. Albus had been studying the arts used to create time-turners to see if he could create a device to take someone, a boy without parents, back more than a decade. The old wizard worked tirelessly after seeing what he had made the boy become. The scrawny limbs, the distrust, the self-reliance, were all because he had been determined to keep the boy safe. To send him to the place where the boy would be hated.

After four years of experimenting and calculating, Dumbledore created a necklace that would transport the wearer back in years versus hours. Following his typical actions, the wizard did not tell the Ministry of his accomplishment. It would hardly be allowed. But now, he could give a boy a chance to meet his parents. When the wearer takes the necklace off, he will be returned home. If Harry spent three days back in time, then Harry would be missing from the current time for three days.

And so, yesterday, Harry Potter disappeared. He rotated the small dragon tooth nineteen times, carefully counting. Albus had not expected Harry to go so far back, after all, the further back one went, the more likely it was for problems to develop, grave problems that could mean the destruction of them all. But it was done. Harry Potter went on a 'vacation' to prepare himself for the years to come.

---

Harry opened his eyes and looked around him. He bit back a groan of despair. Dumbledore's invention had not worked. He was still at Hogwarts.

At least he was alive, his optimistic side reasoned.

Harry stood up slowly, he was very stiff, and started walking along the familiar hallways. He ducked into a classroom when heard voices from around a corner. He didn't know why he hid; all he knew was that he should.

"Come on Lils! Come to Hogsmead with me!" a boy's voice said. Harry's heart leaped.

"Would you stop following me, Potter?" a girl's voice returned coolly.

Harry jumped out of the classroom and looked at the two students, left speechless.

"Can I help you?" the redheaded girl asked politely.

Harry swallowed the lump that had formed in his throat and blinked back the tears. "Mum," he whispered to himself.

"I'm sorry, did you say something?" she asked, leaning her head in. Harry watched, entranced, as her red hair flowed over her shoulder and hung in the air, catching the sunlight that was drifting in through the windows.

Harry said nothing but ran up to the girl and hugged her tightly.

"Hey!" James cried indignantly. "Hands off Lily!" he demanded. Harry swallowed again and looked at his father.

Harry spent just enough time to take in how similar they really looked before he hugged his father as well. James awkwardly patted Harry on the back. "Erm, do you speak English?" James asked, uncertainly.

"James!" Lily scolded.

"I do," Harry said softly. James stepped away from Harry uncertainly.

Harry smiled sadly at the pair of them. He tried to hold the tears back, but they came anyway. He was meeting his parents. They wouldn't have him for another four years, but they were his parents all the same. Here they were, standing side-by-side, living and breathing. Harry stared at them, hungrily drinking in the site of seeing them in person. James shifted uncomfortably. Lily embraced him again. It wasn't the motherly hug of Mrs. Weasely, but it was comforting nonetheless. She stepped back slightly and brushed a tear off his face.

"What's the matter?" she asked kindly.

"Evans!" James called from behind her.

"Go away Potter! Tell the headmaster we have a visitor," she snapped over her shoulder. She turned back to Harry and smiled warmly at him. "Are you hungry?" she offered. Harry said nothing and just stared at her. She was so beautiful. "I'm Lily," she tried. "What's your name?" Again, Harry said nothing. Lily gazed at him, puzzled at his silence. "Do you want to talk?" she asked, drawing him into a classroom. She gracefully sat on a desk and motioned for Harry to do the same. Harry sat on the desk next to her and continued to look at her. She was alive. Maybe he could save her, he thought happily. "Do you want to talk?" she repeated.

Harry nodded his head. He opened his mouth to tell this girl exactly what was coming, how she had to stay alive so that he could love her and know her for the rest of his life, but when his mouth opened, tears started to fall down his face.

Lily said nothing, but leaned over and gave him another hug, reassuring him.

Harry took strength from the friendly embrace and opened his mouth. "You're alive," he said simply.

The happy light in her emerald eyes disappeared. Her face took on a drawn look to it. "What do you mean?" she asked warily.

Harry noticed the change in his mother and swallowed again. She would thank him later, he reasoned. If he could talk to her now, she would be alive later. I came back nineteen years so that I could see them before the worries of Voldemort. I came to this year so that I could see them while they were still happy and innocent. I can't take that away from them, Harry thought morosely. Harry tried to close his eyes and collect himself, but as soon as he did, he found himself slipping onto the floor. He was forced to hear the screams again, to see the blinding green light. He relived the nightmare of that fateful Halloween night of so many years ago. He screamed in pain as his scar seared. Lily was suddenly next to him, pushing his hair away from his eyes. She recoiled slightly at the sight of the scar, but continued to stroke his forehead and murmur calmingly. Harry pulled himself out of the nightmare. He opened his eyes.

Harry couldn't help but smile when he saw his mother there. For the first time in fifteen years, he had woken up from a nightmare with a mother's comforting presence, something so many took for granted.

Lily looked at him concernedly.

"You'll make a great mother one day," Harry commented sadly.

Lily smiled at that. She scooted closer to him, so that they could lean against the desks and talk. Harry yawned widely, taking him and Lily by surprise. Without thinking, Harry leaned against the girl next to him. She jerked in surprise, but settled down and wrapped her arms around him.

She couldn't say what it was, but she was drawn to this boy like she had never been before. There was something about the boy in her arms that she felt linked to. She couldn't put a name to the emotion, but she knew it had to be something close to love. It was the same kind of love she thought her parents knew for her and her sister. She shook her head at her dizzying thoughts. How could she feel a mother's love for a boy that looked to be no younger than a year below her, let along a complete stranger to her.

James walked in the door. "Dumbledore said to let him room with me for now, until he meets the kid," he said. Lily looked up and put a finger to her lips. She noticed the hurt look on James' face, but he would have to get used to it. Eventually, he'd get over his stupid crush on her, and she'd be able to move on with her love life. "You've only met this kid!" he cried in a whisper.

"I know, but he's special. He needs me," Lily said equally quiet. She looked between the boy in her arms and James standing in the doorway. "He looks just like you," she commented.

"Except for the eyes, he had your eyes," James said, smiling.

---

Harry opened his eyes and yawned contentedly. No nightmares, he noticed happily. He pulled back the hangings on his four-poster bed.

"You're going to be sleeping and going to classes with me and my friends until you get sorted," a boy said, noticing Harry.

Harry smiled sadly at his father. "I should like that," he whispered.

Harry watched as his father flopped onto his bed and began reading a magazine. Soon, another head poked out of a bed. It was Sirius. Harry's stomach dropped to the floor as he looked at the boyish face of the man he had come to love. There were no dark circles under his eyes, his hair was neat, and he looked healthy.

Forgetting himself, Harry leapt out of bed and ran to Sirius. Harry embraced Sirius tightly, reveling in the feeling of holding his godfather again. "Prongs!" Sirius said in surprise. "Get your look-alike off of me!" he implored.

Harry sheepishly pulled away, his face turning red. These people had no idea who he was.

When Remus returned to the room from some task or another, Harry restrained himself. However, he did note that Remus looked a little pale. Harry looked to a Quidditch calendar hanging on the wall. The full moon was tonight.

Peter was a different story. When Peter rolled out of bed, Harry's face contorted to a look of rage. No one seemed to notice except for Peter. The blonde boy looked at Harry with fear and suspicion. Harry wondered if Peter was already a spy for Voldemort.

"Come on, we'll be late for breakfast," Remus said to his friends. Sirius, James, and Peter followed Remus out the door. Wanting to watch his family as much as he could, Harry hung back a few steps and watched as the four friends sleepily walked to breakfast.

---

Harry spent a week happily watching his parents, his godfather, his friend, and his traitor go about their daily lives. Since Lily had obviously not fallen for James yet, he alternated between silently following James and his friends and following Lily.

It was the saddest week of his life, yet it was the happiest. He had a hard time swallowing the thought that the happy teenagers Lily and James would be dead in five years; Sirius would be dead in nineteen; Remus would have a hard time making it through life; and Peter, seemingly a good chap now, would later be the reason he couldn't be a normal boy. And worst of all, he could do nothing to stop the future. He wanted to tell his parents to make Sirius their Secret Keeper, not Peter. He wanted to tell Sirius to not seek revenge with Peter or mock Belatrix in front of a whispering veil. He wanted to tell Remus that his transformations would get better. But he couldn't.

Pushing it all from his mind, Harry was as happy as he had ever been. He was with his parents and their friends. Everyone was alive. No one had the darkened look that came with dealing with Voldemort. Not one of them had a concern higher than grades and what was for lunch.

At the end of the week, Harry decided it was time to go. He was exhausted from watching his dead loved ones go through a regular day of school, not knowing of the horrible future ahead of them.

When he told them good-bye, they smiled, convinced they had met a new friend. They told him to keep in touch and write often. When they said that, Harry couldn't stop the tears. They raced down his cheeks. He tried to tell them not to worry and to stay away from the war, no matter what, but he was speechless. He hugged all of them tightly one last time, except Peter. Even if the boy hadn't done anything wrong yet, Harry couldn't forgive the boy for what he would do.

He stepped away from them and looked at the group of them standing on the front steps of Hogwarts. He engrained the picture in his mind, determined to never forget it or the past week. "I love you," he said to them. "All of you, and I'll miss you more than you can ever imagine. I love you," Harry choked out. He ignored the confused looks on the boys' faces and turned around. His stomach churned as he turned his back on the people he loved, not even telling them of what would come, let alone how to side-step all of it.

---

James was sitting in front of the fireplace, reading a letter. That strange kid had sent it. James didn't know how he could tell, but he knew.

James,

Don't let Lily get away. Whatever you do, protect her and don't let her do anything dangerous. I know you'll take good care of her.

I love you and I'm so glad I finally got to see you in person. They were right, you weren't as bad as you seemed; you just act out around Lily. Thank you for letting me see that.

Someone you'll know before long

---

Sirius looked at the piece of parchment. He wasn't sure whether he should burn it, or keep it. It sounded odd, but he couldn't help but feel that every word written was true.

Sirius,

Please, whatever you do, don't do anything rashly. Keep your nose clean and stay out of trouble! Even when one of your friends does something unforgivable, stay out of it. It isn't worth it to go after him yourself. And never distrust one of your friends unless you have reason to. Don't act on suspicion alone. And if someone you care for does something stupid and gets himself into danger, don't follow him. Stay safe and give the boy what he needs more than help in a battle, give him a home and someone to love.

Someone I know you'll come to know and love

---

Remus read the letter doubtfully. It sounded too good to be true; he didn't dare get his hopes up.

Remus,

Tonight will seem bad, and tomorrow may seem twice as bad, but keep your hopes up. Some people love you enough to go to great lengths to make nights like tonight more bearable. You don't have many more times when you have to face the ordeal alone. And when a new potion comes out for your condition, don't worry. It is good, but not too good to be true; it will be very true. Don't worry about what you'll do after Hogwarts either. Go to Dumbledore. You won't be over-dependent. You'd make a wonderful professor. Especially at Defense Against the Dark Arts.

Someone that will learn great things from you

---

Lily read the letter with a small smile on her face. It was from the boy, of that she was certain. If only she had caught his name, and he didn't bother to sign it.

Lily,

Thank you so much for being there when I had my nightmare. Waking up to you was a treat I'll never forget.

You're a strong woman; you don't need to prove it. No matter what you want to do out of Hogwarts, please don't feel the need to fight. You are amazing at potions. Heal people using your talents; don't kill them.

I love you more than you know. I think of you almost all the time. Seeing you alive was the best thing in my life. Thank you for what you did. You may never know why I'm thanking you, but if the time comes, you'll know. And hopefully, you'll remember me and know that I'm forever in your debt for more than just a few comforting words.

Someone that would give anything to see you again

---

July 31, 1980

"Oh, Lily, he's beautiful," a man with raven hair said adoringly.

"He looks just like you," the woman responded with a loving chuckle.

" Except for the eyes, he has your eyes," the man said.

The couple looked at each other with surprise. They quickly overcame the moment and smiled knowingly down at their baby boy: Harry James Potter.