A/N: Hello everyone! I know it's been a long time since I've updated. University does not give me a lot of free time. Excuses aside, I hope you enjoy the latest chapter and expect another update very soon!
Disclaimer: I do not own the Harry Potter series. Those rights belong to J.K. Rowling
Albus cracked his eyes open, and he saw white. So here we are… yet again. His eyes adjusted to the candlelight. He must've been knocked out for a couple of hours. With his vision being clear after a few seconds, Albus looked at his surroundings. In the bed next to him was his hook-nosed classmate. "Hey, Snape," Al whispered. Snape muttered something along the lines of 'piss off,' perhaps even more derogatory, so Albus looked away from his bed and instead, up at the boring ceiling. He then had the sudden realization that he couldn't feel his left arm. He sat up in alarm and screamed for Madam Pomfrey. The Matron hurriedly came over to his bed. "Mr. Reeves! It's currently ten o'clock at night. What on earth are you screaming for?"
"Why can't feel my arm?!" Albus didn't look up at her, still staring in shock at his arm.
Madam Pomfrey sighed. "The nasty explosion you and Mr. Snape experienced knocked you both unconscious and paralyzed. I only knew that because both you and him were stiff as boards when Professor Slughorn levitated both of you to the Hospital Wing. I expect your left arm needs more time to regain feeling since it might've been the point of impact. Next time you have any worries in the evening, please do take into consideration that you are not the sole occupant of this ward. Goodnight Mr. Reeves. If you are hungry, call out to Pokey. She will bring you something from the kitchens." The Matron turned around to walk to her office as Al sat there dumbfounded. House-elves? These were truly barbaric times…
While talking to Madam Pomfrey, Albus hadn't realized that his potions partner had woken up, rather unhappily, due to his scream. But, Snape didn't make a single sound until after the matron left. "Reeves, must you be a constant annoyance? And, for Merlin's sake, call out to the house-elf. I'm starving."
Albus looked at Snape with a dead smile. "Aren't you always so cheerful?" Al said with dripping sarcasm, which didn't go amiss with Snape as he sneered at Albus. The night at the hospital remains uneventful after that, and the two drift off to sleep. But, Albus had a sneaking suspicion that today would not be just an occasional event.
"So, how was the night with Snape?" Regulus asked with a smirk as he sat down next to Albus, who had his head in the Arithmancy textbook. Albus looked up from the book and glared at his 'friend,' he assumed. "Nothing eventful happened, if that's what you're fishing for," Albus said pointedly.
"Oh, I wasn't asking for myself. His merry-band of tutored students were missing their Wednesday dark arts lesson, and they're asking for your head in a jar." Albus gave a questioning glance at Regulus, which Regulus saw. "Yes, Severus Snape, a half-blood gives pure-bloods lessons in magic."
"That's not why I'm confused. Dark Arts? Isn't that illegal?"
"Illegal? The only three spells that you'll truly be caught for are the Unforgivables. I'm sure your mudblood self at least knows those." Albus rolled his eyes. Of course, he knew those spells. His father made sure to drill him and his siblings about them at an early age. However, the fact that students in his house felt that the Dark Arts were not punishable was, to him, a bit naive.
The food was cleared from the table, and Albus left the dining hall to attend his Arithmancy class. He was walking alone in the hall as there was still a lot of time to kill in between breakfast and the first class. His head was still in the textbook, trying to soak up all the information from the first term's chapters, but he stopped abruptly in his tracks after seeing a ghost in front of him. Normally, any student who walked the halls of Hogwarts paid no mind to the ghosts (except for Peeves and the Bloody Baron, of course), but Albus didn't recognize this ghost at all. He didn't have any information on of ghosts vanishing after a long time, but if that was the case, the original ghosts wouldn't be roaming the halls in 21st century. Moreover, this ghost's appearance differed greatly from the usual ghosts. This one had a particular reddish hue around its figure and was not as transparent as the others.
Not knowing what to do, Albus waved at the phantom, trying to cut through the awkwardness. The ghost cocked its- her head as if trying to determine what Albus was doing. She then floats towards Albus, an inch away from his body and says, "You need to fix what you have done. I shouldn't be here. I shouldn't- where am I? This is not the place of my death… I'm dead?" The ghost started shaking her head violently, and Albus stared at her, not knowing what to do. Before he could say anything, she disappeared from the hall. Albus scanned the corridor for her but couldn't find her. The students started filing in, so Albus went back to walking towards his class.
His studying was for naught as his mind kept traveling to the altercation with the alien ghost. What did she mean that she shouldn't belong here? What did Albus do? Regulus kept glancing at him, wondering when he would stop staring blankly at the empty piece of parchment. "Oi, I'm not letting you borrow my notes if you don't even bother to pay attention in the class," Regulus threatened. Still no budge from Albus. Regulus was concerned, which wasn't a very usual occurrence. "Go to the hospital wing if you're not feeling well. Dear Merlin, you look like some of the residents in the Janus Thickey Ward at St. Mungo's. Go."
Al agreed halfheartedly and excused himself from the classroom. He desperately hoped that he wouldn't see the phantom again. He walked up to the ward and knocked on Madam Pomfrey's office door. She stepped out and immediately became concerned with Albus's pallor. "Mr. Reeves, what is the matter? Feeling feverish? Were you hit with a spell, a potion spilled on you? …"
Al furrowed his brows, staring at castle floor. "Madam Pomfrey, I need… to talk to Professor Dumbledore. He's the only one who can help me." He then looked up at the Matron. "Please, it's urgent."
Poppy scanned the student up and down for any visible ailment and then, nodded. "The password is Every Flavour Beans. Are you absolutely certain I cannot do anything for you?" The student shook his head and walked out of the hall. Poppy stared at the time-traveler as he left and mentally noted to check the library for any side effects associated with time travel over a long period of time.
After he left the office, Al dashed towards the gargoyle and made his way to the Headmaster's office. He knocked on the large door and quietly entered the office. The headmaster sat at his desk, looking over some records from the latest governors' meeting. "Ah, Mr. Reeves, what might I be of assistance for you today?"
"Professor- ." Albus tried collecting his thoughts. "I believe I saw a ghost that does not belong in this castle. There were no other witnesses, before you ask."
Dumbledore looked at the student for a moment. "Yes, that does seem a bit out of the usual, even for Hogwarts. Is there anything else about this ghost that concerned you?" Al nodded and spoke about the words the phantom woman told him. The headmaster folded his hands on his desk. "What I can hypothesize is that somehow, this ghost is linked with your time traveling."
Al looked at the headmaster inquisitively. "But, I don't understand how my time-traveling would create a ghost? The link seems a bit far-fetched." He gave a nervous chuckle.
Unfortunately, that seems to be the only plausible reason. Somehow, your time-traveling is already altering the fabric of our dimension. You have not disrupted anything in your timeline or anyone else's, have you?"
"Not knowingly, sir. The only thing would be them knowing an additional Slytherin student." Al tried to recall if any of his actions could have been impactful. No serious injury was inflicted on Snape during the potions accident, so other than that, nothing eventful happened during the few days he was here. He looked up at his namesake with a concerned expression. "If I stay in this time period for any longer, will more of this happen? I mean, what if I unknowingly killed that woman? I don't want that to happen to anyone else!"
You said that this ghost looked different than our Hogwarts ghosts, correct? If that's the case, she isn't a product of any natural death. From what I have seen and read, ghosts only appear in one form. Not even poltergeists look very much different from ghosts. Therefore, this phantom could possibly not even be a phantom. Nevertheless, if you see this woman again, Mr. Potter, I implore you to seek me out. You may not be my student in the future, but you are now. And, I will not let any harm come upon you." Professor Dumbledore gave a warm smile to Albus, who still felt uneasy about the ordeal. But, certainly, the visit to the headmaster helped his mental state. He left the office and made his way to the dungeons. On his way down, he saw many of his housemates in an empty classroom, huddled together as if plotting a scheme, and in the middle sat Snape.