"Are we sure this is the place?" asks the Auror in training, "It looks... not like I imagined it would look."

They are making their way through a long, brightly illuminated corridor, looking for a group of New Death Eaters that has been causing some trouble lately, and the one who spoke, one of the two rookie Aurors of the group, throws yet another glance over his shoulder, visibly relaxing. The other rookie, a pretty witch with long blonde hair, still looks like a complete nervous wreck, but even though her arm is visibly shaking, her wand is trained straight ahead and her grip is firm.

"Don't relax just because these guys don't meet up in some lurid dungeon. It takes only a second of distraction for everything to go to hell. Remember, constant vigilance!" barks the man at the front.

At the back of the group, Theodore has to make the effort not to laugh out loud. Few things are as amusing as Head Auror Harry Potter channeling his own inner Moody, mostly because it never fails to absolutely terrorize the rookies.


As they approach the end of the corridor, low unintelligible chanting fills the air, and a feeling of dread falls on Harry. Apprehending New Death Eaters is usually easy enough, which is why these raids are good to train new Aurors, but there's something ominous going on this time, and he can feel it under his skin.

When they finally reach a door, Harry silently signals for the other three to wait before taking a deep breath and throwing it open with a spell. It only takes a moment for everything to go to hell. The room is full of people wearing black robes and white masks, standing in a circle around something Harry can't see, while the floor and walls are covered in runes painted in what looks and smells like fresh blood. Before he can process what's going on, someone grabs his arm and throws him into the centre of the room, and as the chanting increases in volume and the runes glow eerily, his body suddenly feels numb and he finds himself unable to move.


He doesn't know how long his paralysis lasts until an annoying prickling sensation slowly creeps over his body, and then something pricks him more decisively on the hip. He flinches.

"Stay still, dear!" a voice chides him.

Harry Potter blinks, then blinks again because what he's seeing doesn't make sense, and then blinks a third time for good measure.

"Are you feeling alright?"

He turns his head to the side, and sees what seems to be an eleven-year-old Draco Malfoy, standing on a stool while a woman takes his measurements for his Hogwarts uniform.

"Sorry, I got distracted a moment. What were you saying?"

"I asked what House you think you'll be Sorted into."

Harry emits what he hopes is a suitably non-committal noise, distracted by the sudden impulse to pinch Draco's cheeks (all that baby fat!), but then quickly adds, "My parents were both in Gryffindor."

Draco assumes a thoughtful expression and gives a small nod. "That's not bad, I guess. I'm sure I'll be in Slytherin, my whole family was there."

Harry almost says something stupid like, Do you remember how last Christmas party all the kids kept bugging Teddy about Hogwarts? Scorpius wants to be a Hufflepuff now, but he refrains, even though nothing makes sense at the moment, anyway. Instead he looks down at Madam Malkin and asks, "Our clothes are supposed to have name tags on them, can you sew those on as well?"

"Of course, dear, what's your name?"

"Harry Potter."

At that, the witch visibly startles, accidentally jamming the needle in the same exact spot as before, but on the opposite hip. Harry almost curses out loud. In his surprise, Draco slips from the stool.


After paying for the clothes and saying his goodbyes, Harry steps out of the shop into Diagon Alley and takes in the bright afternoon sky and the hustle and bustle of families doing their school shopping. He has absolutely no idea what's going on. Is it a hallucination? A dream? Everything feels real enough, though. So much for an easy mission that he was sure would be over quickly enough to go out for drinks with Theo afterwards. He sighs and accepts the ice cream Hagrid is handing him.


He spends one week at the Dursleys', planning, flipping through his school books, spoiling Hedwig rotten, and trying to act like an eleven-year-old around others. The experience is... interesting. Seeing his relatives again is weird, but at the moment Dudley is scared of him to a hilarious degree, while Petunia and Vernon are doing their best to pretend he doesn't exist.

On the eighth day he wakes up early, silently slips out of the house and heads to the park. Once there it doesn't take long to find what he's looking for. Hidden in the tall grass away from where the kids usually play, there's a snake curled up on itself and dozing off in the feeble early morning sunlight.

Harry cautiously crouches down and speaks clearly, "Good morning."

The snake flicks out its tongue, and after a moment replies, "Good morning to you."

Harry groans.


On his way back, he revises every possible plan in his head. Being able to speak Parseltongue means he's a horcrux again, and that only complicates things. And if nobody has come looking for him yet, the chances of being miraculously saved and brought back to his own time are now nearly non-existent.


Once back at the house he gets his school trunk ready, then sits down and attempts to write a letter to Dumbledore. But explaining the situation clearly and in a believable manner seems to be impossible, and after throwing away the third attempt he gives up. He writes a note for the Dursleys instead, so that whenever Petunia comes looking for him they'll know he left for school, and there won't be any risk of her trying to contact the Headmaster thinking he's been kidnapped. His last dinner at number four, Privet Drive is the usual quiet affair, and then Harry waits in his room until night falls and the streets are empty. Peeking out of the window, he makes sure Mrs. Figg's house has no lights on, then silently drags his stuff out to the street before raising his wand.


The hot chocolate offered on the Knight Bus is surprisingly good, and Harry wonders why he never tried it before. What's more surprising is that he manages to drink the whole thing without spilling a single drop, and he wonders if he can get away with pocketing the mug so that he can check out its anti-spill charm later. Raising four kids would have been significantly easier with something this efficient.

But he's Harry Potter, law abiding citizen and (future) Head Auror, so he returns the mug before stepping out in front of the Leaky Cauldron, making sure the hood of his many-sizes-too-big hand-me-down hoodie covers the scar on his forehead. Satisfied, he enters the inn and secures a room for the remaining weeks of August using a fake name.


The following weeks are spent poring over various books that detail theories regarding time travel, but the fact that he hasn't been able to take a good look at the ritual the New Death Eaters were performing makes any kind of more specific research impossible. Harry is disconsolate at the lack of progress, but he still holds hope that he might find something useful in the Hogwarts library, and he tries not to think too hard about the possibility that nobody has even started thinking about creating that specific ritual yet.

September is only a few days away, and Harry is utterly sick of being cooped up in his rented room. He's sure that if he forces himself to read one more sentence his brain will implode, so he decides to wander Diagon Alley and do some window shopping, maybe buy some Christmas presents well in advance. Wearing some wizarding robes he bought at a second-hand shop, he easily blends in with the small crowd that frequents the Alley daily. He spots a few familiar faces doing some last minute shopping, all looking young and happy. Everything still feels surreal, and Harry dreads the inevitable moment when the reality of his situation will suddenly crash down on him.


Harry is already on the other side of the barrier when he realizes his mistake: he missed his first meeting with the Weasleys. He's tempted to go back and wait around for them, but that would definitely attract attention he doesn't want at the moment, so he hopes such a small difference won't have drastic consequences, and keeps making his way towards the Express.

It's relatively early and the platform is still half empty, mostly occupied by eager first years with their families, and after loading his trunk on the train, Harry takes his time peering out the window of his compartment. He makes a game of trying to remember names and where they'll be in about twenty years, but by the third smiling face that joins his imaginary list under the Dead column his mood has soured. Sitting down, he closes his eyes and tries to enjoy the warm sunlight on his face instead. As he dozes off Harry makes a promise to himself; if he's really being given a second chance, he's going to make the most out of it and save as many people as possible.


The Hogwarts Express is ready to start moving when somebody steps inside Harry's compartment. He opens his eyes and smiles broadly. "Want to sit here?"

"Yes," squeaks out Neville Longbottom, and then almost falls on his ass when Harry makes good use of his Auror reflexes to grab Trevor as he escapes the boy's pocket with an impressive leap.

"Better close the door before your toad escapes."

"Yes! Thank you!" There's a small smile on his face now. "This is Trevor," he says, before putting his pet back where it was, "and I'm Neville Longbottom."

"Nice to meet you, I'm Harry Potter." He smiles genially and extends his hand only to grab again at Trevor, who's already mid-leap into another escape attempt.

"Trevor!"

Harry gently deposits the toad on the seat next to Neville, glad for the distraction. "Maybe he just wants to explore."

Looking unconvinced, the other boy eyes his pet. "I'm not sure toads are supposed to do that..."

"Think of how much exploring he'll be able to do at Hogwarts! I hear the castle is huge."

Neville looks utterly horrified at the prospect of having to chase his toad through the whole school, and they settle into a more or less comfortable silence.


Some time and almost a whole bag of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans later, the door opens and Draco Malfoy steps inside the compartment. Before he can say anything, Trevor the Explorer makes yet another break for it.

In the span of just a few seconds, Neville hides his face in his hands muttering something that sounds like "Not again," Harry shouts "Grab that toad!" and Draco's expression turns into one of complete bewilderment. In the corridor two hands secure Trevor before he reaches the floor again, and Theodore Nott steps inside, closing the door behind himself.

Harry is sure his heart stops for a moment, and it takes him a moment to let out a "Thank you, um..."

"Theodore Nott." He lets the toad leap back on the ground and extends his hand.

Harry shakes it with a smile. "Harry Potter."

Theo peers at him curiously, and Harry moves his fringe to show his scar before self-consciously trying to fix his hair and uniform a little. He wants to make a good (second) first impression.

"Cool," is Theo's succinct judgment. Then he turns to Draco. "I was looking for you, come with me a moment?"

"Alright. See you at Hogwarts, Harry."

Before they leave, Theo gives him one more curious look, and Harry has to resist the temptation to use an excuse to make the two boys stay. It's only once the door clicks shut again that he realizes Neville looks a little pale.

"You okay?"

"Um, yes. So you know Malfoy?"

He nods. "We met in Diagon Alley, but that's the only time. I'm hoping to make friends once school starts."

"Oh. I wonder if I can make any friends..." says Neville, looking down and sounding defeated.

"Well, do you want to be friends with me? Because I want to be friends with you."

The smile Neville gives him once he looks up and realizes he's serious is amazing. Harry is sure a smile like that could power a small country. They spend the remaining time on the train talking about quidditch and eating the last of the Every Flavour Beans.


Hogwarts is, if possible, even more beautiful and imposing than Harry remembers it being, and he doesn't have to fake his wonder and excitement as the boats approach the castle. Once the students are ushered inside he only half-listens to Professor McGonagall's speech about the Houses, instead trying to inconspicuously look around at the other kids, but he can't help a smile at Hermione's determined expression and Ron's rubbing his nose after the professor gives him a pointed look.


Without the anxiety he was feeling the first time around, Harry can enjoy his Sorting ceremony properly, and even huffs out a good natured laugh when Neville almost runs off with the Hat. He doesn't miss all the whispering and curious looks, though, and he lets out a small resigned sigh once his name is called and the Sorting Hat is placed on his head.

"Difficult, very difficult..."

"Um... Gryffindor, please?" asks Harry tentatively, hoping it's going to work a second time.

"Gryffindor? Yes, there's plenty of courage here, but there's also so much ambition... no, no, better be..."

"No, don't you dare!" he screams in his head, fearing what the next word out of the Hat's mouth is going to be.

"SLYTHERIN!"

An absolute silence falls over the Great Hall for a few seconds, before Neville, of all people, starts clapping, quickly followed by Hagrid, and then finally by most of the Slytherin table.

From the looks some of the upper years are giving him it's clear they have already re-branded him from Boy-Who-Lived to Future-Dark-Lord, and Harry tries not to cringe visibly as he sits down next to Draco. The blond looks incredibly pleased, though, and gives him a genuine smile that makes him think of adult Draco, and he can't help returning it before focusing his attention on the last students that need Sorting. A cold feeling settles in the pit of his stomach when Ron ends up in a different House than his own, and he wonders how difficult it will be to become friends with him again.


Even sitting at a different table, eating the delicious food of Hogwarts feels like visiting his childhood home after being away for a long time, and Harry keeps piling more food on his plate. Sometime during the third round of potatoes, he hears an amused "Hungry?" from his left. Harry turns to the side to give Blaise a grin. "Starving."

That seems to be the cue for everybody to start talking to him, and by the time the food disappears he's been introduced to more Slytherin students than he ever knew in his previous student career. He's a little disappointed that Theo doesn't say a word to him, though, just looking his way a few times from across the table.


With his stomach full and Draco close at this side, Harry makes his way to the dungeons along with the other first year Slytherins. He remembers the way to this common room, but not how it looks, so once inside he peers around with interest and almost misses the prefect explaining the way to the boys' dormitory.

The room seems bigger than the one in Gryffindor tower, so even with six beds it doesn't feel cramped at all. There are three beds per side, facing each other, and looking at the trunks that have already been brought in, Harry is glad to find that he'll be sleeping the farthest from the door, with Theo on his side and Draco across from him. There are a few half-hearted attempts at conversation, but the day's excitement has exhausted the first years and soon the only sound in the room is the heavy breathing of sleeping boys.


In his dream, Harry is standing on a huge chessboard. The night sky above him is starless, and when his eyes adjust to the darkness he sees that every piece on his side of the board is lying down. Then the moon appears from behind a cloud, and the pale light reveals that the figures on the ground are his friends and family, their eyes open but devoid of life.

"Do you really think you can do better this time?"

His head snaps up, and he sees that the other side of the chessboard is occupied by hooded figures, except for the king. Theo is standing there, his Theo, adult and wearing his Auror robes, an unreadable expression on his face. Harry tries to say something and run towards him, but no words come out and with the one step he takes he accidentally kicks a still hand belonging to Ginny, who appears to be the queen of his side. That's when he realizes he's the king, and can only move one step at time. He looks up, and Theo is smiling, pulling up his sleeve to reveal a Dark Mark.

Harry wakes with a start, and barely makes it to the bathroom before he throws up.


A/N: many thanks to Wandering Me for the beta work on this chapter and to StopTalkingAtMe for the additional help, any remaining errors are all mine. The title has no purposeful link to flower language, it's simply a nod to Arashi's song. This has been posted from mobile, apologies for any possible formatting issue I haven't noticed.