Hey Friends,

Here is the start of my newest story. It is a response to an ABC challenge so there will be as many chapters as there are letters in the english Alphabet. I am still in need of a Beta, if you are up to the job let me know! I always love comments, so please leave a little note when you are done reading! I have finished just over half of the chapters so far. Therefore I will post several now, but then updates wont be for a while. Sorry that it wont be coming out all at once!

Enjoy reading!

Time Travel is a fickle mistress that ought not to be trifled with. This was common knowledge among Department of Mystery employees. Unfortunately decades of working with time travelers tended to breed a certain sense of hubris. This, on the whole, caused no end of problems.

At the end of Harry Potter's third year at Hogwarts a man by the name of Ronan Weatherbee traveled back in time on a fairly routine trip. You see Ronan Weatherbee was a brilliant, affable Wizard with a mind for problem solving like the wizarding world rarely ever saw. Unfortunately he was also rather absent minded and tended to forget where he placed things. Such as his wand.

The day before the Hogwarts term ended, Ronan Weatherbee pulled out his antiquated time turner and went back several hours to retrace his steps and find his wand.

On his way Ronan Weatherbee bumped into a menacing looking wizards with eyes filled with avarice and a malicious sort of smile. It was a rather forceful bump which sent the menacing wizard sprawling. The wizard broke his arm in three places and had to spend a week in hospital and was advised not to travel. In the end the malicious wizard and their company spent several weeks longer in Britain then they would have otherwise.

This gave Harry James Potter the chance to stumble upon the most magical Carnaval in the world.

Harry stared in awe at the sea of tents that lay before him. Stings of lights and floating lanterns lit up the colourfully painted canvas tents. People Harry had never seen before, tourist maybe, weaved in and out of the tents. Children laughed and screech. Somewhere someone played a guitar to an upbeat tune that pulled Harry in.

The night before the field had been empty. That morning, Harry had walked past the field and noted that the summer sun had dried out the grass and left only a sea of brown grass and weeds.

But by nightfall, an entire Carnaval had appeared.

Harry wondered past the first few tents. They were painted in bright neon colours. Cheering and laughing could be heard beyond the flapping canvas entrance. Harry wondered further into the carvel though.

He passed a tent painted in soft green and blue pastels, another that was blindingly white and sealed shut. One tent was painted red, orange and yellow. Heat radiated out of the tent and warmed Harry's chilled bones.

Further still Harry found a tent that was the size of an apartment building and nearly as high. Dancing along the tent walls were images of acrobats flying through the air. Out of the corner of his eye, Harry could have sworn he saw a couple of the painted acrobates make faces at him.

Curious, Harry entered the tent. He found himself in at the base of a massive semi circle of bleachers that looked down out on a collection of polls, wires and swings that seems to touch the sky.

The stands were packed. Parents and children alike cheered and whistled in excitement. If anyone thought it was strange to see a teenager wondering about at night by themselves, they made no mention of it.

Harry found a place to settle himself and watch as the show started, or possible continued. There didn't seem to be a clear start or end.

Men and women in skin tight clothes and brightly coloured collars flew through the air.

A man in a bight blue outfit walked backwards on the tightrope. He paused halfway across to jump several times, going higher and higher each time. Until he was high enough to grab hold of the swinging bar far above the rope.

With practiced ease the man set the swing in motion. Harry watched in wonder as the acrobats caught each other mid air, only to throw one another around the sky like one might tow a quaffle.

The acrobats had lean bodies with long hair tied up in various styles. They all had curiously pointed ears. Harry wondered why that was, but his wonder over took his curiosity and he thought very little of the ears.

After a good long time, Harry wondered out of the show. It had been hours but the acrobates where still effortless fling one another about. Many audience members started transfixed by the show.

Harry however wanted to see more of the Carvel. It had showed up so suddenly, Harry wasn't sure it would stay long. It might just leave as suddenly as it came.

Harry wondered out of the massive tent and back towards those he had passed ages ago.

He came to the soft blue and green pastel tent. When he entered, he found himself in a little observatory that look out into a massive fish tank. There were tropical fish, and whales, manatees and dolphins that swam by. Harry wondered what sort of tank he was looking into when something swam from the murky abuse below. It was a young man dress in tacky hawaiian swim short and a shark tooth necklace.

The boy seemed as surprised as Harry.

"How'd you get in there?" Harry asked the fish tank.

The boy didn't even appear to be holding his breath. He swam in place for a moment before looking up to the left. Harry followed his gaze. A ragged looking walking path lead to a sear rockcliff that overlooked the tank.

Harry clamoured up the the rocks to meet the man in the fish tank.

Just as Harry reached the cliff, the man climbed effortlessly up the rocks. He didn't have webbed feet or fines. In fact he looked perfectly normal. If he were wearing Gryffindor swim short he could have fit right in at the Hogwarts lake in the Spring.

Potter, still panting from scrambling up the rocks, had to motion to wait a moment.

When he caught his breath, he wheezed, "I'm Harry Potter, Who are you?"

"I'm Finnbar, or just Finn is fine"

"Finnbar?" Harry asked having never meet someone named Finnbar before. It didn't seemed like a popular name.

Finn grinned, He grabbed a piece of his dripping blood hair, "It means blond Hair. My parents weren't feeling terribly creative I'm afraid. I'm a Selkie from up north."

Laughing, Harry reach out a hand, "I live just a couple of blocks away. What brought you to work at the Carnival? You do work here right?"

Harry looked at the Finn dripping wet on the rocks like he was perfectly at home. It was possible he snuck in for a swim but it seemed unlikely.

Finn's face clouded over. His muscles tensed and a thundress look crossed over him. "I don't work here." Finn pointed the the skin coloured collar that Harry hadn't noticed he was wearing. It was the same design as the acrobats had on. Looking at it closer, Harry could see that it was covered in runes and locked into place.

A growing dread filled Harry.

"Do you … You want to be here, right?"

Animosity seemed to fill the Selkie, "Of course not. Who'd want to be a slave?!"

Harry could feel his hero complex kicking in. So much for a relaxing summer.

"Those collars keep you here then?"

Finn nodded slowly, "That and the Ringmaster has my pelt. If someone steals a selkie pelt, they have complete control over them. If he wanted, the Ringmaster could order me to stop breathing and I'd have to comply. Even if you get this stupid collar off, I'll still be stuck here."

"I'll find a way to free you," Potter promised. Someone had to advocate for the trapped creatures of the Carnaval. Already his mind was working to devise a plan. There had to be a way to get the pelt away from the Ringmaster.

Had he know how long it would take or the sacrifices he would have to make, Harry might not have agreed so readily.