5 little words to change a fate

by Kazza

Description: 5 words change the events in "Order of the Phoenix" and the wizarding world's future.

Author's Note: This little ficlet was inspired when I caught a few minutes of OOTP on TV tonight.

Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine; it belongs to smarter, prettier and richer people than me. This is intended as a bit of silliness and for fannish fun.

"Padfoot! He's in the place where it's hidden!" Harry blurted.

Delores Umbridge turned to Severus Snape, who had paused in the doorway in reaction to Potter's outburst.

Delores glared at the Potions Master's black clad back; the acidic man who only moments ago had failed to give her the Veritaserum she needed. 'Well,' she thought, 'he will answer me now!'

"What is he talking about, Snape?" Umbridge demanded.

Snape turned. "I have no idea," he said in a dismissive tone then, staring at Hermione Granger, added. "Potter's brain is siriusly disordered."

"Yes, he is a strange child." Umbridge's said in her most pompous tones.

As the Potions Master turned again on his heel and stalked from the room like a surly Hungarian Horntail hunting a dragon handling Weasley, future events began to change.

Harry and Hermione led Umbridge into the Forbidden Forest, met Grawp and the Centaurs. But then, when Harry began to panic about Sirius, Hermione grabbed him by the arm and said, "Didn't you hear Professor Snape?"

"Yes, he called me a nutter!" Harry yelled.

"No he didn't, Harry." Hermione sighed, her friend really was quite thick at times. "He said Sirius and Order. He Got The Message!"

"Oh. OK," Harry nodded.

"So, let's head back to the castle and check in with Snape." Hermione grabbed Harry's arm, said goodbye to Grawp and dragged Harry back to Hogwarts.

The meeting with Snape hadn't started well, as the Potions Master's first words were, "Exactly why, Mr Potter, did you not use the communications mirror Black gave you?"

Luckily Hermione's quick interventions had saved the situation.

Soon Harry was having a deliciously cholestrol laden dinner in the Great Hall; while at the Ministry of Magic a group of rather annoyed Death Eaters were having a squabble in the Department of Mysteries about whose fault it was that Potter wasn't there. Until the Aurors were notified of the Death Eaters by Kingsley, who had been contacted by Snape.

Voldemort, expecting Harry to be at the Ministry of Magic, made a dramatic appearance at the Ministry in the middle of the arrest and within two feet of an auror, blowing his 'I'm not alive' cover.

The future kept changing subtly.

Sirius Black was safely hidden away, in Grimmauld Place, a glass of wine in one hand and the latest 'Saucy Quidditch Witches' in the other hand.

Neither Remus Lupin nor Nymphadora Tonks needed comfort at the loss of a friend, so they would remain oblivious of their attraction to each other for some time, until eventually Sirius locked them in a room together and ordered them to talk.

And when Draco went home from school he told his Mother everything about the day Lucius was arrested. It took Voldemort approximately 3.4167 seconds to work out that Snape was a spy.

With a resounding *clunk* from the future, more things changed. An unforgivable vow never happened, a boy who had more trust in a teacher worked out who the Halfblood Prince was, most of the Death Eaters' children left Hogwarts and moved to Durmstrang, and an elderly Headmaster was convinced by a dog animagus to tell Harry the truth about what faced him and the Hallows.

At Dumbledore's insistence, Harry duelled the dangerously ill Headmaster and easily won the elder wand

So it was that Harry, Sirius, Severus, Ron, Hermione and Remus went Horcrux hunting. And when Harry eventually faced Voldemort it was on Harry's terms with his horcrux hunters by his side.

And all because of 5 little words.