Recap from last chapter: Professor Evans reveals some truth about Grindelwald, leaving Newt asking himself how the man knows so much.

Chapter 3 The Possibility of Time Travel

"You're bright. You'll get it."

7 simple little words and yet, Newt can't get them out of his mind. They reverberated in his brain all through lunch and dinner and by the time he was getting ready for bed, he still hasn't figured out what Professor Evans had meant.

Figure out what?

"Alright Scamander," he says to himself, sitting cross-legged on his bed, his curtains spelled shut around him. He had even put up a privacy charm for good measure although the chances of someone listening in or spying on him were practically nonexistent. "Concentrate. Lay out the facts and try to find a common link between them."

Fact A: Professor Evans has a secret he expects Newt to discover.

Fact B: Professor Evans knows a lot of stuff that a simple school teacher like him wasn't supposed to know.

Fact C: Professor Evans traveled a lot before Hogwarts.

Fact D: Professor Evans is an extremely strong wizard with unparalleled wandless ability.

Newt looks down at the list he had just made and frowns in concentration.

From what he can see, fact C can potentially explain fact B. Professor Evans had said his travels let him see first hand what Grindelwald was doing in Europe. Could it be that during his explorations, he had found some kind of information repository? That seems like the most logical solution to the riddle and yet Newt isn't satisfied with it. For some reason, that explanation seems so…mundane and Professor Evans is anything but mundane.

So if it isn't something he discovered during his trips, then it is something that he already knows? How was that possible?

Unless…

Newt's eyes widen a little at the possibility.

There were only two conceivable ways, as far as Newt knows, that can allow a person to gain knowledge of things he or she wasn't supposed to have in the first place.

1. Seer. Wizards and Witches with the Sight were rare but not impossibly rare. Powerful Seers can predict the future and see a world no one else can see and gain priceless knowledge through their visions.

And Number 2…

No.

Newt shakes his head, hesitating. Could it be possible? It seems so far fetched. And yet…it would explain everything.

Newt takes a deep breath and writes down number 2.

Number two is…time travel.

Theoretically possible but pragmatically improbable.

In the past, Ministry researchers have tinkled with time manipulation charms - the most famous of which is the Hour Reversal Charm in 1907 - but has yet managed to come up with a solution that will allow a person to go back in time for more then a few hours. To have the kind of effect Newt was seeing here, Harry would have had to travel back years, if not decades. That kind of power is almost unthinkable. Professor Evans may be gifted magically but this was beyond simple magic; this is almost rewriting the laws of the universe.

Maybe I should ask Leta what she thinks about this? Not telling the whole story of course, but just asking her about the possibilities of time travel.

That does seem like a good idea.

With his mind made up, Newt extinguishes his light and burrows himself under his warm covers, ready for sleep.

The next morning, Newt wakes up refreshed and determined, ready to find Leta for a little chat but is distracted on his way to the Great Hall by the fact that students - some from his own house and others from different houses - were staring at him for no reason.

What in Merlin's name is going on here?

Extremely uncomfortable in the limelight, Newt quickens his steps, tightens his uniform robe around himself in an unconscious act of self-comfort, and hopes that this staring isn't due to him having something stuck on his face.

Luckily for Newt's mental state, no one actually approaches him. Instead, they just stared, conversing quietly with each other while making it abundantly clear that he was the topic of conversation.

"Dear Merlin," says one of Newt's regular potion partners - Carol if he remembers correctly - as she walks up to where he was waiting for the doors of the Great Hall to open for breakfast. "What did you do to them?"

"I don't know," Newt mumbles awkwardly, his gaze downcast, trying to make himself as small as possible, "I really don't know."

"From what I heard, it's because Newt has somehow attracted the attention of Professor Evans," says a familiar voice behind Newt, making the poor boy startle. It was Leta of course, dressed prim and proper with her hair done up in an elegant bun and her face made up like a European princess.

"What?" Newt repeats in confusion and Leta looks at him in exasperation.

"Did he or did he not ask for your name yesterday?"

Newt gapes at her. Was that really the reason?

"He did but he's a teacher. He's supposed to ask for student's names!"

Leta shakes her head in disappointment at his answer.

"No Newt," she says, condescending, "Professor Evans does not ask for a student's name out of the blue. If you speak to him first or ask him a question, he will ask you your name, but otherwise, he won't bother. Surely you have noticed that."

Newt flushes and does not say he really hadn't noticed that.

"They just don't understand why someone as unremarkable as you could attract Professor Evans' attention," Leta explains. "But don't worry, they'll get bored eventually. They always do."

"That's not really reassuring," Newt mumbles.

"Nothing you can do," Leta yawns in that way snobby girls did to show that they were no longer interested in pursuing the current topic of conversation, "Unless you have some way to go back in time and change history, you are stuck being stared at for the time being."

At the mention of time travel, Newt's mind went back to his conversation with Evans and the hypothesis he had laid out yesterday night before sleep. In the chaos that was his walk to the Great Hall, he had nearly forgotten his plan to talk to Leta. Now was the best time to do it.

"Do you think time travel is possible?" he asks, trying to keep an even tone. Having been born in a pureblood magical family, Leta probably has more insight about this then him.

Leta throws him a look, but doesn't reply.

Carol, who for some reason hasn't left yet, answers for her.

"That is not possible," she shakes her head, "Time travel on this level would require a gigantic power source and a magical focus that can withstand the surge of magic."

"Like the Elder Wand?" Where had that come from? Perhaps he was still influenced by what he had learned yesterday.

Leta lets out a snort.

"Elder Wand?" she repeats incredulously, "From the Tale of the Three Brothers? Newt, that is a story; a children's story. Don't tell me you actually believe in it?"

"But if the Elder Wand did exist," Carol replies more kindly, "And I'm saying a big IF. And if the user is strong enough; time travel is technically possible."

"But pragmatically improbable," Newt adds and Carol nods.

"For Merlin's sake," Leta sounded annoyed as she turns on her heels to leave.

"You're not staying?" Newt asks, a little taken aback by her actions.

"With you children?" she sneers, "Just staying here is lowering my intelligence."

"Wow," Carol says once Leta is out of earshot, "Nice girl."

"She has her days," Newt defends half-halfheartedly.

After his morning classes, Newt finds himself wondering aimlessly around school, wasting time until he had to go to his Herbology class. As he crosses the Courtyard, he accidentally runs in to Professor Evans, the latter talking animatedly to two starry eyed first year girls.

"Newt," Professor Evans greets him happily when Newt gets in to his line of sight, "Wonderful. Just the person I want to find."

The two girls sends Newt a look more suited for a child murderer or a puppy kicker and Newt actually falters in his steps.

Who knew little girls could be so scary when you took away their idol?

"Sure," Newt replies heistantly and watches Professor Evans say goodbye to the girls and come join him.

"What did you want to talk to me about?" he asks, once Harry is close enough that Newt could actually brush against him accidentally. He doesn't do so because that would be weird.

"I wanted to ask you about your progress," Harry says, beaming at him, "Any ideas on how I got to know what I know?"

"Uhhh..." Newt begins before decidning to throw caution to the wind. What's the worst that can happen? "Time Travel."

He fully expects Harry to burst out in to peels of laughter at the ridiculously of the idea. Shockingly however, Harry doesn't laugh. He actually nods his head in approval.

Newt chokes on his breath.

"Wait," he says, "Really? Time Travel?"

"Well," Harry admits, "It's a lot more complicated then that but you got the gist of it."

As they were talking, Harry had guided them to a more secluded area of the courtyard and erected a privacy shield around them. Although Newt had not seen him do it, he could feel the effect as clear as day.

"How many years?" Newt asks, unable to believe he was actually asking a time travel just how far had he travelled.

"What do you think?"

Newt bites his lips in thought.

"Since you know so much about Grindelwald, you must have came from a time his reign was already over because I doubt you would be able to find out all that if the madman was still in power. So if Grindelwald is as powerful as you seem to imply he is, then it can't be just a few years in the future. It must be more."

He stops for a second.

"10 years?"

Harry shakes his head.

"Higher," he says and Newt nods in understanding.

"50," Harry shakes his head again.

"100!?" Newt nearly chokes out and Harry chuckles.

"Almost. I come from 2021."

"Oh...wow."

Harry grins at him, taking pleasure in his astonishment.

"So that means you are not Harold Evans," Newt guesses. A name change would probably be the basic for any time traveler.

"Harry Potter," Harry says and Newt did a double take.

"Potter? As in Henry Potter?" he asks, thinking of the head of one of the most powerful Pure-blood families in Britain.

"My Great-great grandfather," Harry explains.

"And...and..." Newt's mind came back to another point of contention in yesterday's conversation, "When you said I would become famous, you really meant it."

"Yep," Harry replies cheerily, "Newt Scamander, author of Fantastic Beasts and Where to find them; the man who singlehandedly revolutionized the Ministry's legislature on magical creatures and brought a new era of enlightenment and tolerance."

"Oh wow," Newt says weakly, unable to believe what was actually in store for him, "Wow."

"Wow indeed," Harry agrees, bumping Newt's shoulder with his own in a friendly manner, "But you can do better, I know you can so that's why I am here to help you."

"But you can't have come back for me," Newt isn't nearly as arrogant enough to actually believe that.

Harry shakes his head.

"No, I came back because there were things in the future that I wanted to change and when I miraculously got the power to do so, I decided to take the plunge."

"Aren't you afraid to mess up the timeline?" Newt insists, thinking of the butterfly effect.

Harry smiles grimly at him.

"If you have seen the future I'm from, you wouldn't have hesitated either."

The conviction in his voice was so overwhelming that Newt remains speechless for a moment.

Hah, he thinks to himself, Who knew that the possibility of time travel was actually 100%...

TBC