The Saviors Second Chance

by ACI100

For all of his life Harry has fought for his freedom and for vengeance, he has been an eternal beacon shining through the oncoming darkness. It was not enough however, the darkness has overwhelmed the world and Voldemort has seemingly won. There were two things Voldemort was not ready for though, Harry's sheer determination and will to win, and the brilliance of Albus Dumbledore.

1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and I sadly never will. The franchise is owned by J.K Rowling, every last bit of it. And seeing as I am not blonde, not rich and not famous that rules me out.

Recommendations

Stepping Back by TheBlack'sResurgence

Travel Secrets by E4mj

Only two recommendations for this one but I wanted to keep the intro as brief as possible and honestly, I haven't read a lot of fics like this one (even though I know there are a lot of them out there) so I can't really recommend similar fics.

Authors Note 1

Ok, so they're not all out yet, but when they are all flowing you guys are probably going to tell me I'm writing way too many fics at once and working myself too hard. My response to that is that I work better when I'm busy and the only ones that will be updated on an at least weekly basis no questions asked are:

Harry Potter and The Power He Knows Not Book 1 The Reluctant Champion

Harry Potter and The Serpent Chronicles Book 1 The Prince of Slytherin (which is nearly finished)

And

Harry Potter and The Prince of Grey Book 1 Birth of A Snake (which isn't even out yet and won't be posted until Prince of Slytherin is finished)

All other stories will be updated but I will not promise a schedule for any of them.

Also, I tend to get a lot of ideas and they will not leave me alone until I put them on paper, so here we go again.

Authors Note 2

As always reviews are very appreciated, I want to know what you guys think of this first chapter.

Authors Note 3

Should Harry be in Gryffindor with the Marauders? Or Slytherin with Narcissa, Snape, and the rest? Leave it in a review or PM and I will tally up the vote. It won't be the only thing that determines it, but I will definitely take it into consideration.

Authors Note 4

Thank you to James Marx for his work on this story.

Authors Note 5

Sorry for the AN's but it always happens on the first chapter of my stories.

"Speach"

'Internal Dialogue'

Parseltongue

Chapter 1 A Second Chance.

July 5th 2002

It was pain, a pain unlike any other. Harry had been burned, struck, choked, cursed and even tortured, but Harry Potter knew from an abundance of experience there was no pain like this. No pain like that of which he was experiencing in the present, as he stood atop the hill looking down at the simple, yet elegant gravestone of yet another fallen friend.

After so many years of constant heartbreak Harry thought it would eventually become easier, he was wrong. It never got any easier seeing a loved one die, and unfortunately for Harry Potter, he had seen it more times than he would like to admit.

Harry Potter had not lived an easy life, that was apparent to anyone. However, few truly appreciated how difficult his life had been. From his childhood, to his school days, to the war, to now, standing over the grave of his friend, and after all that, Harry knew it would all be in vain.

Harry's life had been a living hell since he was born. A prophecy had been made about himself and Riddle before he had ever been born. One that had cost him a family, the thing he had always wanted and treasured above all else. His parents had been slaughtered by the Dark Lord before Harry had ever truly met them. But not Harry, Voldemort's curse had backfired on him due to the sacrificial protection of his mother, and the Dark Lord had been vanquished, at least for the time being.

The wizarding world was at peace at least for now, but not Harry Potter. Harry was sent to live with his muggle relatives and condemned to ten years of hell.

He had been five years old when he had first learned his name was Harry and not freak as he had thought. He had been beaten and neglected, made to live as a slave until the Hogwarts letter had come along with his half giant friend, Hagrid. The very man who stood beside Harry now, his sobs audible even through Harry's deep thoughts as they looked down on the grave of the man who had been Harry's first true friend.

Hagrid had showed him the world of magic for the very first time, and as an eleven year old boy Harry, had arrived at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry as the hero of the magical world and the Boy-Who-Lived.

Harry had been a stand out in Defense, charms and transfiguration in particular, even though he thrived in almost all of his classes. His potions grades were not what he would have liked, though he suspected the greasy haired git who taught the subject had as much to do with that as Harry and his own ability, if not more so.

At the end of his first year, Riddle had made his bid for power when he had tried to steal the Philosopher's Stone. Harry had stopped him through sheer luck and Dumbledore had realized the mistakes he had made.

From that day forward Albus Dumbledore had taken him completely and truly under his wing, teaching him magic that no twelve year old would dream of.

Under Dumbledore's tutelage Harry overcame his next two years of magical education. Thwarting Lucius Malfoy's attempt at opening the Chamber of Secrets by killing Slytherin's monster and destroying the Horcrux that had been the true weapon. And then, the following year, discovering the truth about his godfather and helping him to escape the clutches of the ministry itself.

During those two years Harry went on to break records in Defense Against the Dark Arts and Charms. He came very close in transfiguration, but even without the records, he was hailed as a prodigy.

Things all began to go down hill in his fourth year though.

Tom Riddle was a genius if nothing else, Harry would not take that away from the bastard. He was a deranged psychopathic mass murdering git who Harry wanted to see broken and bloody at his feet, but he was brilliant.

That intellect had paid off in Harry's fourth year when he had been forced into the Tri-Wizard Tournament in what was a successful ploy to resurrect Riddle and give him a new body.

The threat was serious, but it should have never escalated to what it had. Unfortunately for the two leaders of the Light, Cornelius Fudge has lead the ministry down a road of ignorance and dismissal, a road that had lead them to the hellacious excuse for a society that they now lived in.

Dolores Umbridge had been sent to Hogwarts and the ministry slowly began to take over the school while Fudge did everything in his power to destroy both Harry and Dumbledore's reputation. It had worked to a degree, Dumbledore had been driven out of Hogwarts, though only because he had taken the fall for the boy who he considered to be a grandson. Dumbledore had asked Harry to teach students to defend themselves if they so wanted. He had agreed and long story short it had gone well for a few months before blowing up in their faces.

That's when the war had truly begun.

Harry had gone to the ministry after Sirius, but he had been tricked. He had tried to go alone, though some of his housemates and another girl by the name of Luna Lovegood had followed him. None of them had died, but there had been some close calls. Dolohov had almost killed Hermione with a curse of his own creation, Ron had nearly met his end at the hands… or tentacles of a brain, and Harry had seen his godfather die right in front of his eyes.

Harry had tried to kill Bellatrix Lestrange, he really had, but the woman was good. Harry would have done it, she was beaten when Riddle showed up.

That had been the first time the two had truly crossed wands and it had been a spectacle to witness.

Harry had wielded elemental magic as well as other obscure magic to great effect against Riddle and his never ending arsenal of weapons. In the end though, Harry had been outmatched. He did not have the experience nor the skill to take on the Dark Lord yet and while he had held his own, to an experienced set of eyes it was obvious he was not yet ready.

Dumbledore had intervened and Riddle had fled, only to try to possess Harry. In doing so however, he did more damage to himself than the boy, destroying the unintentional horcrux that had been placed inside Harry.

That night Dumbledore had told Harry about the horcruxes for the first time. He had known of the prophecy but the prospect of horcruxes had frightened him.

The hunt began the very next year.

Harry had destroyed the ring over the summer break, while Dumbledore had finished the locket. The cup was going to prove a problem as well as the snake, and they had no idea where the diadem could be hidden.

Dumbledore had thought it may be in the cave where Riddle had terrorized children as an orphan. He had originally thought the locket was there, but they had instead found it at number 12 Grimmauld Place.

They left one night in June to investigate and it was the worst mistake they had ever made.

That night Harry had been taught for the first time what It truly felt like to lose.

They had not found the diadem, but the original resting place of the locket as Dumbledore had originally suspected. However, that was not the loss. When they returned to Hogwarts it was to a grim scene.

Voldemort himself had lead a raid on the castle and taken it by storm. Most of the professors had been slaughtered. Only Slughorn, Sinestra, Vector, Pomfrey and Snape remained alive. Hagrid had survived, but only because he had fled when he had realized what was going on, intent on informing Harry and Dumbledore what had happened.

It had turned out there was little the pair could do. Dumbledore was in a weakened condition and the ancient and powerful wards were against them. Harry figured he could break the wards, but knew that if he did he would be in no state to take on Riddle.

That same night the ministry had fallen, and it had seemed Tom Riddle had achieved what he had wanted, though Harry and Dumbledore knew different. They knew he would never rest until the pair of them were out of his way forever.

This was only reinforced by the fact that they were both sure Riddle had forced the contents of the prophecy out of Trelawney, and indeed he had.

Many of the students had managed to escape with the help of the Order, who had been onsite as quickly as possible. Harry had lost Ginny that night, a loss that had hit him very hard.

He couldn't say he had loved her, it would be too extreme, but he would be lying to himself if he did not concede there was something there. After all, they had been going out at the time. This only strengthened his resolve.

He trained harder than ever, Dumbledore at his side, and he trained his friends, he trained them to fight, he trained them to win.

Ron improved at a rapid pace, the loss of his sister had ironically been the motivation he had always needed, and he became a feared warrior on the battlefield, he, much like his best friend Harry, was unafraid to resort to the darkest and most vial of spells if necessary, and that quickly gained him a reputation of fear among the ranks of Voldemort.

They trained tirelessly while Voldemort laid low, clearly content to let Malfoy run the ministry while he looked into other matters, likely how to defeat Harry and Dumbledore.

The break had come in late spring when Harry had figured it out. The diadem was at Hogwarts, even though he didn't know where, it was there.

So, after much rallying of troops, The Battle of Hogwarts took place in late May of 1998.

The main objective was for Harry to find the horcrux and get it out so that it could be destroyed. Under Harry and Dumbledore's insistence however, the group had agreed that they would free the students of the tyranny they had fallen under, and get as many of them out of the castle as possible.

No one knew where Riddle was, but Harry and Dumbledore thought it unlikely it would take him long to be onsite.

They entered through a secret passage and the mayhem began.

Harry's first destination was the Ravenclaw common room which yielded nothing. He then ran into the Carrow's, two maniacal twins who had served as teachers and quite literally tortured the students. Harry dispatched both of them, in his book they deserved far worse than the killing curse and quick decapitation that had ended their days.

Snape had indeed been Dumbledore's man so he was safe, his deputed headmaster though, not so much.

Rodolphus Lestrange had been responsible for the death of Ginny Weasley. Harry had seen to him personally and his end had not been as quick, nor as merciful as that of the Carrows. It had wasted a great deal of time, but Harry did not care, he had wanted to make the man feel something, some sort of semblance of the pain Harry had felt at the loss of his friend.

After the death of Lestrange and the capture of the other members of staff, minus Snape, the real plan began.

Harry went off alone to look for the horcrux while Hermione lead the evacuation of the students, and Ron and Dumbledore lead the fight against the reinforcements in the form of death eaters, aurors, and magical creatures alike.

It had been a bloody battle. Remus and Tonks had been lost at the hands of Antonin Dolohov, Molly as well as Fred had died at the hands of Bellatrix Lestrange.

It had taken Harry a long time to find the horcrux, and by the time he had, Riddle had already arrived.

If Harry had ever been called merciless it was nothing compared to the Dark Lord. He cut down anyone in his path without hesitation or remorse. Elphias Doge, Hestia Jones, and even Snape had died at his hands, though from what Harry heard later, the potions master had not gone quietly, actually managing to open a gash on the face of Voldemort with his original curse, sectumsempra.

It took the combined forces of Harry, Dumbledore, Moody, Ron, Hermione, as well as others to finally drive off Voldemort and his followers.

The school was set up as the new headquarters of the Order of The Phoenix, if for no other reason than Harry knew it would piss Riddle off to no end.

At this point there had been another lull, with no major battles nor losses taking place. It had actually been a fairly good time for the Order.

They had slayed several giants and forced them out of the conflict, the werewolf forces on the side of Voldemort had been cut in half. The lull only lasted a year though, that's when they made their bid for the next horcrux, June of 1999, they made a crack at Gringotts.

Dumbledore feared Tom would use the distraction to strike back at the castle so he himself stayed as guard, while Harry, Ron and Hermione attempted to steal and destroy Hufflepuff's Cup.

It did not go as smoothly as they had planned. Their disguises had failed them spectacularilly and they had been found out. They had had to take down a dragon in order to get to the Cup but they had finally done it. They had been ambushed though, ambushed badly.

Voldemort, Bellatrix, Lucius, and others had been waiting for them. The fight was hard, long, and bloody, with all of the casualties being on Riddle's side, that was until it had happened.

Harry had been duelling Riddle when it had happened. Ron had been banished straight at him, sending the pair head over heels, and that's when they were transported back to Hogwarts.

Hermione had turned Harry's glasses into a Portkey the night before just incase, she had banished Ron into him before activating it, determined to save her two friends while she had stayed and sacrificed herself to save them.

They hadn't killed her though, at least not yet.

It was five long moths later in December of the year 1999 when they had received anything.

A raven had landed at the table in the Great Hall one morning. Hogwarts had continued to be their base of operations, they ran the Order out of the castle, and even used the Room of Requirement to train new recruits, a task that took up much of Harry's time.

That morning though the raven had landed in front of Harry, deposited a note and left.

Potter.

The mudblood is alive, but will not be for long. I grant you one chance, do not hide behind lesser men and women, come to Malfoy Manor and face me yourself, let us determine which of us will die at the hand of the other.

See you soon,

TMR.

Harry had not shown the note to anyone, he had simply taken it silently and waited. It was two days later that Harry had slipped out in the dead of night and appeared at the manor. He had never had a chance.

He had been ambushed by not only Riddle but about twenty others and he was out before he knew it.

Apparently, killing him wasn't enough. Riddle had told him that he would beg him, and only when Harry begged would he end the torture.

The first bit of torture was watching as the bastard tortured the sickly, skeletal looking form of Hermione to death. The whole while she only screamed his name.

For the next year and a half Harry was near starved and tortured every day. He would be tortured to near death and then he would be healed by… of all people, Narcissa.

The woman never spoke to him, she simply entered, healed him, cleaned him up, and left. That was all, his tortures carried on, but it was always either Bellatrix or Riddle himself.

Harry would never beg, he would never give Riddle the satisfaction of beating him, he just wouldn't. So there he was, content to spend the rest of his life as Tom Riddle's personal punching bag, and Bellatrix Lestrange's favourite plaything as they took over the world.

One day though, a miracle struck.

Narcissa had come in as always and healed him, but this time she turned as she made to leave.

"Tonight, midnight, be ready." Was all she had said before tossing Harry a wand. It was not his, Voldemort had broken his wand in front of him the first night, but it was something it was a hope.

That night the distraction was laid and Harry had managed to slip out, though not before he took his revenge. Riddle was apparently out, so it was without the help of her master that Bellatrix suffered dearly for everything she had done; for the death of Molly, Fred, and Sirius, and for the torture she had put him through.

Harry had offered to take Narcissa with him, but she had declined saying that no one would ever know.

She had been right, Narcissa never did feel the repercussions of that night, though Harry was, if nothing else, forever grateful.

The day he had returned had been one of celebration and hope. The Order had never stopped fighting though Harry could tell they had become disheartened. Ron in particular had apparently gone into a deep, seemingly irreversible depression. However with the return of his brother in all but blood, the fire under Ron had seemingly been lit yet again.

At this point, it was already late in 2001, and that's when the next plan went off.

Harry had wrote Riddle a note, promising a final battle where it had all begun, in Godric's Hollow.

Riddle had accepted and as Harry had expected, an ambush had been set for him, but this time he had returned the favour. The battle raged on for days before it ended. It had only ended when Harry had been blasted off of his feet by Riddle after a day straight of one on one duelling.

He had raised his wand at Harry and had sent a sickly jet of green light rocketing towards him, but it never reached him. Moody had thrown himself between Harry and Voldemort taking the blast full in the face, and sacrificing his own life. For a moment Harry and Voldemort had just stared at the ex auror's corpse in shock.

Voldemort more in fury, and Harry in shock and anguish. Harry had recovered first, he had lashed out at Riddle and had blasted him backwards straight through a wall. Nagini had lunged at Harry, desperate to protect her master. This had been the snake's final mistake as Harry had quickly ended her life with a severing hex to the throat, and therefore, destroyed the last of Riddle's horcruxes, forcing him, and what was left of his army to flee.

It had been several months until they had met again, though it was far different this time. Voldemort had gone after the muggle parliament. He had lost faith in himself to beat Harry, so he would conquer the muggles and simply use their superior weapons to do the job.

This had been by far the bloodiest of all their battles on both sides. Voldemort had won, they had been forced to retreat. Voldemort now had control of the U.K's muggle military, and though much of the world would oppose him, many others around the world chose to side with him. He was offering them magical assistance and they were hard pressed to turn that down.

That's how they ended up here, Harry and Hagrid silently standing over the grave of Ron Weasley, he had been killed near the end of the battle. He had simply lost himself and rushed Voldemort seeing that his friend had been wounded, Harry had tried to stop him but it had been too late.

Ron had been going down a path of recklessness for a while now, ever since the death of Hermione if Harry was being honest, this was simply the culmination of it all.

"E didn't deserve it." Hagrid sobbed from beside Harry. "E was always such a good man, Ron, one of the best I ever knew."

"He was." Harry responded, it hurt too much, it was too painful for him to even speak on. The war had cost him everything, he had spent his entire life fighting for what? He had lost all of his friends and family, and now, with the might of muggle technology on his side, there was little doubt in Harry's mind it was only a matter of time until Voldemort finished this war off once and for all.

"We should go Arry." Spoke up Hagrid, finally pulling himself together after nearly an hour of just standing over the grave. The two had been at the funeral. Harry had been under his cloak, he had not wanted to take away from Ron and his moment by drawing any attention. Hagrid had simply stated he was unable to face it in that kind of setting, a sentiment that Harry also silently agreed with.

"You go." Harry told the half giant. "I need more time."

Hagrid just nodded and clapped him on the back.

"Alright Arry, yer sure yer ok though?" He asked.

"I'm ok." Harry lied easily, his voice flat and emotionless.

Hagrid just nodded and left.

Harry was standing there alone, lost in reflection for only about ten minutes when a soft voice spoke from behind him.

"My most humble condolences Harry, I know you were closer than brothers."

Harry slowly turned, knowing who he was going to see, and there he was.

Tall, thin and eccentric in his appearance, Albus Dumbledore stood before his prodigy.

The last five years had not been kind on the old man, despite his status as still being one of the three most powerful wizards alive along with Harry and Voldemort, his power was slowly declining, and he looked older than ever.

Despite this, Harry only respected and idolized him more. He had been through so much yet he was still so strong. Not only the war, but the demons of his own life with Ariana and Grindelwald, which Dumbledore had told Harry of years earlier.

"Thank you." Was all Harry could say, though he did manage to sound genuine.

"I have had to say that far too much this past number of years." Intoned the ancient sorcerer.

"Yes, you have."

"There is always still hope, Harry."

"Even you can't believe that, Dumbledore." Harry's voice was not cold, but a bit of incredulity had slipped into his tone.

"One can always find hope even in the darkest of times, all you must do is look towards the light."

"I don't see any light at the end of this tunnel." Harry said bluntly. "He's got the muggle military now, Professor. What are we supposed to do?"

Dumbledore sighed looking as old as ever, and then to Harry's shock he chuckled.

"You think this whole damn thing is a joke…"

"I apologize for my unkind show of emotion, Harry." said Dumbledore, holding up his hand to placate the boy. "I just find it amusing that after all this time, after all we have been through, you would lose faith in me."

"I haven't." Harry answered immediately and with finality.

"You have." Dumbledore replied with a sad smile. "And you are right to of course. We are indeed, as you say, fighting a losing battle, and I am afraid I am not what I once was. I fear I would be no match for Tom at the present time."

"If anyone could do it, you could." Harry answered with a conviction he really wasn't feeling.

Dumbledore chuckled again before placing a hand on the young man's shoulder.

"I appreciate your support, Harry, though we both know it is true. I am growing weak in my old age, and after the battle at the parliament, I am afraid my days may be numbered."

"What do you mean?" Harry said sharply, his heart rate increasing rapidly at his mentor's choice of words.

Dumbledore smiled sadly before pulling down the hem of his robes and revealing a completely blackened shoulder, the skin completely dead.

"No." Harry whispered, touching the spot with a shaking finger. "No, please, this has to be a joke, sir. You can't… you just can't…."

"I am afraid I do not have such a morbid sense of humour, my boy." Tried Dumbledore weakly.

"No!" Exclaimed Harry, throwing himself forward and pulling the old man into a hug, holding onto his father figure for dear life.

"You can't sir. Please, there has to be a way, you can't leave me."

"I have tried, my boy. Believe me, I have tried." Tears filled the blue eyes that Harry had come to love and cherish, though he knew it was not for himself, but for the emotion that his young companion was showing. "I have tried my best, Harry, but it is for the best, I am weakening, I would only be a hinderence at this rate, my work here is done."

"No!" Harry Screamed to the night. "You can't sir. You can't leave me."

"I never said I was leaving you exactly." Dumbledore's voice had gone soft very suddenly as he extracted himself from Harry, placing his hands on his shoulders and looking him in the eye.

"But you said you were going to… going to…" Harry could not say die, he just couldn't do it.

"Die." The old man finished kindly. "Yes, it is my time to pass on, but I am not leaving you."

"Yes you are!" Harry yelled in frustration. "Being here in spirit isn't the same, sir, no matter how…"

"Please calm down and let me finish." Dumbledore spoke more gravely and more seriously then Harry had ever heard him speak and Harry immediately fell silent obediently.

"Do you trust me, Harry?"

"Yes."

"Think about it, do you trust me with everything, with your life, with the world?"

"Yes." He responded without any hesitation.

"What is it you seek more than anything in the world?"

"Peace, a family of my own, and the end of Riddle." Harry answered in barely more than a whisper.

"And what would you be willing to do in order to achieve those ends?"

"Anything."

"Are you certain of that?"

"Yes."

"You would be willing to risk your own life to do so?"

"Yes."

"You would be willing to leave everything behind?"

"Yes."

"You would be willing to leave everything you have ever known and go to a land of mystery if it would help?"

"Yes."

"Even if there was never a chance to come back, and you were leaving EVERYTHING behind?"

Harry hesitated, and then realized that with the death of this man he had nothing left in this world anyways.

"Yes."

Dumbledore sighed and smiled softly at him.

"You do not truly believe I have sat idle in my office these last number of years, do you?"

Harry just stared, not understanding and then Dumbledore drew out some sort of device, Harry thought it was a device anyways until Dumbledore unshrunk it. And Harry was looking at something that looked like a lone, stationary elevator, except with complex runes carved into every inch of metal, runes the likes of which Harry had never known.

"As you have said my boy, there is… how did you put it? No light at the end of the tunnel. We are fighting a losing battle, but beyond that, we have nothing to left to fight for. Those who we loved are gone, the muggles are against us and we do not have the numbers anymore to even hope to survive. The war is over, we have lost, and even if we could win, I would not want us to… not this way at least."

"What are you saying?"

"I have seen this coming for years, Harry. I did not know it would get this bad, but I knew what would happen, I knew the population would get so low that we as witches and wizards would no longer be able to sustain ourselves. So, in short, I devised a Plan B."

"It took much of my time, and I must confess, drained me of a great deal of my magical energy, but I believe it is all worth it in the end. That is, if you are willing?"

"It's a device to manipulate time isn't it?" Asked Harry.

"Yes, it would send you back, quite far back, far enough back that you would truly have a chance to win, and not the short lot that you have been granted in this war, a fair chance, and I think it would grant you that which you have always wanted beyond all else."

When Harry looked confused Dumbledore merely sighed, closed his eyes and spoke softly, obviously this was hard for the man.

"I have this device programmed to send you back to July of 1975 Harry. Do you know what that would mean?"

"My family." He said in barely above a whisper.

"Yes, and beyond that, a more than fair chance. Voldemort was a problem, but he did not openly wage war until late 1976, and even then, he had nowhere near the support he had this time around."

"You want me to go back and stop him." Harry said simply.

"You would see your family, you could even become friends with them."

"But what of an alibi?"

Dumbledore simply drew a potion and handed it do Harry.

"Deaging potion." He explained, "except it would be permanent, a creation of Severus's own, I am afraid you would return to your rather malnourished fifteen year old's body, but I think it would all play out." It was clear to Harry that Dumbledore was trying not to cry, this was obviously tearing him apart.

"You want me to do it?" He asked, his voice horse.

"I have only ever wanted for you to be happy, Harry." He choked out, tears now rolling down the old man's cheeks. "I failed you, I condemned you to years of misery. I told myself I would fix it all, I told myself I would train you to win, that way you could live the life you always wanted, but I failed."

"You didn't…"

"I did" Dumbledore cut in softly. "But I dare say with this option, you give my plan a second chance to succeed."

A sudden realization struck Harry.

"You would be alive and healthy."

"I would." He said.

"What would I tell your past self?"

"Everything." Dumbledore pleaded. "Use a pensive if I do not believe you, Harry. My final wish is to have another life with you, and you can give that to me, in a manner of speaking. Please, Harry, I have only ever wanted you to be happy, and I think this way, you could be."

Harry was crying too now as he pulled the old man into a tight embrace once more.

"You're sure about this?"

"Of course." Dumbledore said chokilly. "My magical power has taken a dive, however I am certain my mind has not."

Harry just sighed and stepped back taking the potion and drinking from it deeply.

He shrunk down a lot. Harry, with the help of a lot of nutritional potions that he knew certainly were not around in the 70's had overcome his malnutrition and grown to about 5 ft 11 inches in height, and was well built.

Now though, he was about 5 ft 4 or 5, and was built rather scrawny.

"You really think this will work?" Asked a much younger Harry, cringing at the slight difference in his voice.

"I do." Was the simple reply from his mentor.

"What will happen to you, to this time?"

"I dare say the timeline will simply change things to line up with what you are doing."

"So I could heal you?"

"Potentially. Though it would not truly be me, Harry. You are truly leaving everything and everyone you have ever known behind."

Harry gulped and threw himself at the man, sobbing uncontrollably now as it finally set in. Thank god he was now a small fifteen year old, or he was fairly sure he would have bulldozed the old man.

"Do not be so down, I dare say we will see each other very soon in a manner of speaking."

Harry swallowed and looked up into those piercing blue eyes for the final time, at least, as far as this version of Albus Dumbledore was concerned.

"Thank you for everything, sir. And I… I love you like a grandfather. You know that, don't you?"

Dumbledore simply smiled a watery smile before pulling the now teenage boy into one last hug.

"As do I love you like a grandson." Was the simple response.

Harry stepped backwards and with a final deep breath was about to step into the time portal when Dumbledore called out to him one final time.

"Harry." Harry turned to see him, tears coming from both sets of eyes as they're locked gazes one last time. "Please, if you grant me one wish, enjoy your time with those who were taken from you far too early. Live Harry, enjoying being a child once again, it is something you never had the first time, and if nothing else, I am satisfied knowing that I am giving you a second chance at that. Please do not squander it."

"I won't, I promise."

The last thing he saw of the world he knew was the old man smile before he turned on the spot and disapperated as the doors to the mock elevator closed and Harry felt the magic begin to kick in.

Authors Endnote.

Wow, a heavy chapter this turned out to be. I hope I don't have to write a chapter this heavy again for a while. I hope the somewhat sad start did not let anyone down, and I hope my version of events was satisfactory.

Please review this chapter to let me know how I did, and above all else, which house should Harry be in Gryffindor or Slytherin? Let me know in a review.

This idea kind of came to me after reading A Step Back by TheBlack'sResurgance and I had to try it. The characters of Charlus, Dorea, and Arcturus will be based around his work, but every other character is based completely from my own imagination.

Thank you once more to my beta James Marx and for his work on this story.