Chapter 6

Harry awoke bright and early the next morning, still somewhat tired but unable to sleep anymore for nerves. He got out of bed and made his way out into the courtyard, where Draco was sprawled out on the cool flagstones, clearly having just woken up as well.

After exchanging morning greetings, Draco gave Harry an unreadable look. "Tell me, why would you want to return to the future? It doesn't sound very pleasant, from what you've told me so far."

Harry hesitated, unsure of how to answer. "Er... I don't really know how to explain it – I just have this feeling I have to go back. There's something important I have to do, I just don't know what." He frowned, puzzled.

"Perhaps it has something to do with that dark lord you mentioned, what was his name?" Draco suggested.

"Voldemort," Harry supplied.

"Yes, him. Tell me everything you can about your history with him," Draco requested.

So Harry did, starting with that Halloween night when he was a baby. He talked for a good half-hour, Draco prompting him with questions and comments. The old dragon was horrified on hearing about how Harry had been left alone on the Dursley's doorstep, and Harry was quick to assure him that there were no large, wild predators roaming the countryside in the future. Harry made no mention of the possibility of there being wolves and such in the zoo, as he was unsure of the likelihood of Draco being familiar with the concept of zoological gardens.

Somewhere during an explanation of his third year, Bowen joined the conversation. "Hermione mentioned something about Einon looking like your teacher. Who is he?" the knight wanted to know.

"He's the teacher I've just been talking about: it's so strange to have someone wearing his face be so... evil. Professor Lupin is one of the nicest, kindest people I've ever met," Harry explained.

Perhaps an hour later Harry paused mid-explanation of the Third Task and glanced around. While he could not see anything, there was a strange, faint whistling, clanking sound coming from somewhere outside the castle gates. He hesitated for a moment, shifting his weight from foot to foot, before saying "Excuse me," to Draco and climbing a nearby staircase to reach the top of the wall by the gate, which was manned by two somewhat drowsy villagers: an old woman and a young man. There was nothing visible on the ground, but after a moment Harry shifted his gaze upwards and noticed a dark, boxy shape in midair perhaps a hundred yards away.

The younger lookout joined him on after a moment, having noticed his careful scrutiny of something outside the castle walls. "What's that?" the man asked.

"...That's someone we've been expecting," Harry told him, seeing the Hogwarts crest emblazoned on the leather covering the flying, horseless carriage which appeared to be coming in for a landing. A carriage which, although much less impressive and advanced than the ones Harry was used to, was still faintly reminiscent of the carriages that older Hogwarts students would take from Hogsmeade station at the start of every school term in the future. "Open the gate!" he called, "That's an ally!"

With that, Harry made his way back to ground level just in time to see the carriage pull in through the gate and into the courtyard. He pulled out his wand and quickly cast, "Sonorus." Doing his best 'public announcement' imitation, he continued, "Hermione, Ron, please come to the courtyard. Quietus." He then trotted over to the carriage and waited as a tall, dark-haired lady in black robes stepped out. "Lady Ravenclaw, I presume? I'm Harry Potter," he addressed her, bowing. Upon seeing his friends striding out into the courtyard, shortly followed by Bowen appearing from the other side of the courtyard, Harry introduced them as well. "These are my friends Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley, and this is Sir Bowen."

"Greetings, I am Rowena Raven's Claw," she responded.

Translation mistake? Harry wondered. While Hermione stepped forward to discuss something with Lady Ravenclaw, Harry glanced around the courtyard and noticed that Draco was nowhere to be seen. "Where's Draco?" he asked Ron in an undertone.

"He was using that camouflage trick of his when we came out, so Hermione Disillusioned him," Ron told him. "I reckon he didn't want the professor seeing him."

And who can blame him? Harry thought. She'd probably just think he's a dumb, dangerous animal! And with that he spoke loud enough for everyone to hear, "Why don't we go someplace a bit more comfortable? We could use the dining hall, for instance."

As soon as everyone was indoors, with Harry bringing up the rear, Harry heard Draco take off and then land somewhere nearby. Good, he thought, Less chance of anybody bumping into him while he's Disillusioned.

"I believe I have found you a way home," Ravenclaw told them, spreading a few sheets of parchment out on the dining table they sat around. "The ritual is rather complex, but requires no unusual or rare materials. I believe I can perform it at midday tomorrow."

"That's wonderful news, Professor!" Hermione gushed. A sudden, mostly unrelated thought occurred to her. "Oh, Professor," she told Ravenclaw, "There's been a bit of a new development since we wrote to you. Bowen has magic: he can see Dementors. Would you happen to know anyone who might be willing to tutor him?"

"I might know a few people," Ravenclaw told her. "I shall have to send out a few letters of inquiry."

Harry pulled out some writing implements of his own. "That reminds me, would you mind writing your name for me, please, Professor? I'd like to have something to show the Headmaster back home."

Lady Ravenclaw obliged him, signing her name with a flourish. "Thank you, Professor," Harry said, looking at her signature in barely-hidden awe.

Half an hour later found the Gryffindor trio outside the castle walls looking for Draco. "There," Ron said, pointing to an apparent pile of rocks near the wall, west of the main gate. Draco lifted his head as they approached, but stayed mostly camouflaged.

"Lady Ravenclaw says she can send us home tomorrow," Harry told him without further ado. "Maybe we can come up with a way for you to see us off, without Ravenclaw seeing you?"

For the next couple of hours, Draco and the Gryffindors huddled together and bounced various ideas and half-formed plans back and forth. When they finally broke for lunch, Hermione had a thoughtful look on her face and kept muttering something under her breath.

The next morning, while the boys kept Ravenclaw's attention away from the windows, Hermione slipped out the gate to the previous day's location. She swiftly cast the Disillusionment charm once again, and followed it up with her strongest feather-weight charm. Once that was done, Draco gave her an approving smile and flew up above the castle before landing on the roof of the keep, where he could perch in relative comfort, and watch as the ritual was performed.

Ravenclaw turned to Bowen immediately after finishing the ritual, as Harry felt himself being pulled away. "And you can tell that dragon he needn't hide from me."

Bowen, Ron, Hermione and Harry all gaped at her in wide-eyed, open-mouthed shock.

"I knew one of his kind once, long ago," Ravenclaw told them with a slight smile, "We were friends."

That was the last Harry knew of that time and place.

The next thing he did know, they were standing in the middle of a quiet, fairly modern street somewhere. Harry took a discreet look around and saw that there was a sign hanging by the entrance to a nearby driveway, which was advertising the Eastfield Lodge Bed & Breakfast.

"I think we'd better owl Dumbledore and ask for help getting back to Hogwarts... Let's go in there," Harry suggested, pointing at the sign. "They can tell us exactly where we are so we know what to tell Dumbledore about our location. I wonder what the date is?" He turned to Hedwig. "You'd better wait for us in that tree, Hedwig," he told her.

Hedwig hooted and flew over to a fairly low branch.

Harry led the way into the hotel. Five minutes and a somewhat awkward conversation later, they knew they were in a place called Leyburn, in Yorkshire, and that it was September 19th. They had been gone for almost three weeks.

"Could I please borrow a pen and some paper?" Harry asked the helpful, female receptionist. "And could my friend use your phone?" he added, indicating Hermione.

While Hermione called her parents to reassure them that she was still in the realm of the living, and that she was fine, no need to worry about her, Harry penned a quick note to Dumbledore and slipped out to give it to Hedwig. On his way out, Harry glanced at the clock on the wall: one in the afternoon.

Three hours later, as the helpful receptionist was replaced by a grave-looking middle-aged man, the front door opened and what seemed to be Einon's face appeared on the other side. Harry's first instinct was to draw his wand and hex him into oblivion, but managed to ignore it by concentrating on the fact that Einon was dead, and that this was Remus.

"Come on, you three," Remus told them. Harry, Ron and Hermione followed him outside. As soon as the door closed behind them, Harry had his wand out and directed at Remus. "How do you close the map?" he almost demanded.

"Mischief managed," Remus – and it was indeed Remus – answered. Harry put his wand away and grabbed him in a swift hug.

"You have no idea how good it is to see you, Moony," Harry told him. "You really won't believe what happened to us!"

"Tell me all about it when we get to Hogwarts," Remus answered. "Speaking of which," he added, pulling out an old, striped sock, "Touch the portkey, and we'll be on our way." Harry grimaced in distaste but did as Remus had requested, followed almost immediately by Ron and Hermione.

Moments later they were in Dumbledore's office, who greeted them with, "Ah, our lost lambs return! Have a seat, " he added, indicating the long, padded bench in front of his desk. "And perhaps you could tell us where you have been?

"Well, Professor, it's like this," Harry began, telling the bulk of the tale with occasional input from Hermione and Ron. It took the better part of an hour, with quite an explosive reaction from Remus when Harry described Einon and his evil.

Finally, as his story wound down to a close, Harry pulled out the signed piece of parchment and took another look at it before handing it over to Dumbledore. Where, before, the name had appeared as Rowena Raven's Claw, now it was something like 'Hrōdwynn Cráweclawu', which was presumably the way her name would be written in Old English.

"Could I possibly keep a copy of that, please, Professor?" Harry asked. "I'd like to have something to remember this adventure by, and it's not every day you get a founder's autograph..."

Ron and Hermione promptly chimed in their own, identical requests.

Dumbledore smiled and cast some sort of copying spell on the parchment, tucked the original away in his desk and handed the Gryffindor students their requested copies.

If you're familiar with Old English grammar and find yourself wincing too badly, please do let me know the correct way of writing Ravenclaw's original name...

Just the epilogue to go, now, and that's already about halfway done.