Encounters of the Future Sort
Wait Until Sirius Hears About This!
by IHaveASiriusObsession
Disclaimer: Harry Potter = JKR
Author's Notes:
I have decided to continue! The feedback was absolutely overwhelming, and I owe my motivation to each and every one of you lovely readers! Thank you! Please enjoy. :]
"All right," Hermione said. One of her hands was suspended in mid-air and the other was positioned on her forehead; she was slightly pale as if she was about to faint. There were several pieces of flyaway hairs around her face that had escaped her plait. "What you are saying is—is that you were involved in a cauldron explosion in the room of requirement, and—and when you left the room, you were somehow twenty years into the future?" Her eyes flickered back and forth between the three Marauders, every word that left her mouth causing her eyes to grow wider and wider.
Remus nodded calmly. "Yes."
"Who are you again?" Sirius asked, a handsome eyebrow cocked. He was leaning against a bed post, hands in pockets, looking quite full of himself. Harry gazed dumbstruck at him. No one else could pull off that kind of natural elegance: this had to be Sirius. He had absolutely no doubts.
"H-hermione Granger," Hermione stuttered, swallowing, quite as if she could barely recall her own name.
A grin tugged at the corners of Sirius's mouth. A rather suggestive grin. "And we aren't somehow RELATED, are we, love?"
Pink flushed Hermione's cheeks, creeping up her neck. "Oh, this is not happening..." she mumbled, staring at her hands, which were positioned in her lap.
"Sirius." Remus said sternly, piecing him with a glare so fierce that everyone in the room besides Peter and Sirius did not believe Remus Lupin could achieve. "Excuse him; he's an idiot, you see." Remus told Hermione, who lifted her head up and gave him a weak smile.
Ron suddenly began to laugh. Everyone stared at him. "Wait until Sirius hears about this—!"
"Ron!" Hermione exclaimed, eyes once again widening. "They can't know—"
"So you know me!" Sirius became eager, his grin widening. "I bet I play for the Bulgarians—or better yet—" he swept his hair cockily, "—I'm a world famous auror, aren't I?"
"Sirius, shut up." Remus rubbed his eyes, tiredly.
Ron was looking incredulous. To Sirius he said, "Mate, you wouldn't believe us if we told you." At which Sirius beamed; an expression that made both Harry and Hermione quite uneasy. Hermione met Harry's eyes and bit her lip.
"Right," Harry spoke for the first time in a while. "Right...so we should get you lot to Dumbledore. Where's my da—J-james?" He swallowed.
"We dunno," Peter piped up, rather unhelpfully. He stood by the door, his eyes frequently flickering back and forth between Sirius and Remus.
"Do you have the Map?" Remus asked, eagerness breaking through his serious expression at the thought of the creation.
Harry nodded. He walked over to his bedside table and drew it out of the drawer. Sirius moved closer.
"You've got the cloak, as well?" Sirius asked, spotting it in the drawer under where the map had been.
"Perhaps that will prove useful," Remus shared his thoughts, watching Harry unfold the map with uncontained curiosity. "Going about the castle unseen, that is."
Hermione nodded in agreement. "Yes, Prof—" she hurriedly clamped both hands over her mouth, a little squeaking sound escaping her throat, eyes extremely wide.
"Professor?" Sirius had both of his eyebrows raised above his hairline. His eyes moved from Hermione to Remus. "Merlin, Moons!"
Hermione was looking frantic. "It just slipped out! You just sound so mature, and—"
"He's with Umbridge." Harry said flatly, eyes meeting Hermione's. "We have to get him out of there."
"Who is Umbridge?" Remus asked.
"She's a right old—" Ron began.
Hermione cut him off. "It doesn't matter! He—he needs to—if she finds you—" her eyes rested on Sirius for a long moment before looking at Harry.
"I'll go find him," Harry said firmly, getting to his feet. "I'll meet you all back here—"
"Harry," Hermione said gently. "That doesn't make sense. You both look—"
"—incredibly similar." Sirius grinned at Hermione.
Hermione threw him a weak, unsure smile. "Yes...and, I really think just Ron and I should go..." Her eyes moved to Sirius and Peter: the former was dubbed clinically raving by society, and the latter was supposedly assumed to be dead.
Harry clutched the map firmly in his hands. His jaw was set. "I'm going, Hermione."
"Harry..." Hermione's eyes were brimming slightly.
Ron stepped forward. "She's right, mate."
"You don't understand!" Harry protested. "This could be my only chance—"
"We know, Harry." Hermione placed her hand on his arm in warning.
Harry did not think they did know, but sense was beginning to crash down upon him. Over half the school already thought he was off his rocker, and it wouldn't do for people to think he had some sort of twin. But yet, this was his chance. His only chance to meet his father.
"We'll find him and bring him back here," Hermione continued gently. "C-can you think of some way to contact anyone?"
Harry racked his brain. The fireplaces were under surveillance, apparation was impossible...THE MIRROR. He nodded at Hermione and handed her the map. She smiled encouragingly at him and she and Ron left the dorm; Ron with one last incredulous look back at the three Marauders.
Remus had been watching the exchange between Harry and Hermione closely with a knitted brow. Sirius was busting himself by glancing through the leather-bound photo album he had stumbled upon earlier. Peter was standing by the doorway, looking as awkward as was humanly possible.
Harry stood still for a moment, then went to his trunk, pulling out a small mirror after a minute of groping through it.
"Where did you get that?" Sirius asked, noticing the mirror. He knew it was quite a stupid question, but as he was Sirius Black, any question was intelligent if coming from him.
Harry sat on Ron's bed, across from Sirius. "Er—from you." He peered inside the mirror and said quite clearly: "Sirius Black."
Sirius grinned widely. "Me?"
"Yes," Harry said, running a hand through his hair. "Well no, but yes—"
"Harry?" the Sirius in the mirror asked urgently. "What happened? Is something wrong?"
"Holy shit—" Sirius (the younger) peered through the mirror, "It IS me!"
The Sirius in the mirror froze, eyes widening at his younger self.
"Yeah..." Harry rubbed his neck. "Can I speak with Remus?"
White faced, Sirius complied. Harry knew if this situation had been any different, he would have protested and demanded to know more before retrieving his old friend.
Remus (the younger) sat beside Sirius on the bed and pulled his face away from the mirror. "Are you trying to give yourself heart failure!"
"Don't tell me you aren't curious Remus," Sirius grinned at the exciting prospect of meeting his older self. "I wonder if I'm married..."
"Harry?" the Remus in the mirror asked quickly. "What is it?"
"I can't exactly explain," Harry said, struggling to do so.
Remus nodded quite business-like. "Yes...all right." Apparently he had judged the situation by the look on Sirius's (the older) face. "Where can we meet?"
"There's a cave a bit a ways from Hogsmeade," Harry told him, the place immediately coming to mind. "Sirius knows where it is—you can apparate there."
Remus (the older) nodded urgently. "When shall I see you there?"
How much time would it take Ron and Hermione to find his father?
"In about an hour," Harry decided.
"We'll keep the mirror with us," Remus said, and was gone.
It was quiet for a moment before Sirius, grinning quite widely, said, "This is bloody brilliant."
