Harry Potter and a Marauder Revival
Chapter 12: The Interloper
The following morning, Harry made his way into the Great Hall and saw Hermione already sitting at the Gryffindor table, a book propped up against her goblet.
"Morning, Hermione," Harry said, taking a seat across from her at the table.
She looked up from her book and gave him a small smile saying, "Good morning, Harry."
Harry piled food onto his plate and began eating while James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter entered the hall, taking seats noticeably farther away from Harry and Hermione.
"So I take it they're not too happy with us," Harry muttered, casting a quick glance over at James.
Hermione looked over to them and scoffed, "Like it matters. James was acting like a noble prat to Lily last night; he's too arrogant for her own good."
Harry nodded absent-mindedly and asked, "I've been meaning to ask you about Myrtle. Yesterday, when we went into the bathroom, Myrtle seemed to have already known us. But that's impossible, isn't it? I mean, we met her in our second year, right?"
Hermione gave him another small smile and replied, "The reasons of time don't apply to the ghosts, apparently, unless of course one is traveling back to that respective ghosts' time."
"I don't understand."
"Well, ghosts are obviously non-living beings; they're just spirits that have not gone on into the next world…the world after life. Going back in time, as we have done, does not alter the foundation from which the ghost became a ghost, meaning time is not a factor that directly affects the lives that are already non-living.
"Of course, if we were to, for example, go back in time to when Myrtle was still alive and had not actually been murdered, she wouldn't be a ghost since she had not actually been killed yet."
Harry slowly nodded, asking, "And how do you know of this?"
Hermione gave him a fierce look and said, "Harry, all of this information is available in the library."
"Right," he mumbled, taking a drink of his pumpkin juice.
As the pair exited the Great Hall, they heard a voice call out from behind them, "Miss Granger and Mr. Harry!"
They turned in unison to see Professor Dumbledore come up to them and say, "I have some matters to discuss with the two of you; if you will please follow me up to my office."
With that, Professor Dumbledore climbed the staircase of the entrance hall with Harry and Hermione following in his wake.
Harry had assumed this was about any new information Professor Dumbledore might have found out about sending them back to their own time. Strangely enough, Harry was unsure as to whether or not he wanted to go back to his own time; attending Hogwarts with his parents and Sirius was something he believed was impossible yet he loved it at the same time.
The trio stood in front of a gargoyle to which Dumbledore said, "Acid pops." The gargoyle jumped aside to reveal a winding staircase. They ascended the stairs to the top where Dumbledore briskly opened the door and beckoned both Harry and Hermione inside.
As the headmaster strode behind his desk, he flicked his wand and two comfortable-looking armchairs appeared beside the two students.
"Please have a seat," Dumbledore directed and the two Gryffindors did as they were told.
"As you might have assumed, I have called you to my office this morning about your rather unique situation in which you two came to be here, two decades into the past."
Harry's heart started to hammer against his chest quite rapidly, as he noticed Hermione's hands were clasped together so tightly that her knuckles were turning white.
"I regret to inform you that all of my theories have led to greater theories than before. Each conclusion I reach seemed to be less anticipatory which in turn leads to more questions with greater depth. However, I have come to terms with a very sobering folly: to go back to your time, something of value must be given up."
Silence penetrated the office afterwards. Professor Dumbledore had the tips of his fingers together, resting under his chin as his bright blue eyes peered over at the two dumbfounded students over his half-moon spectacles.
"Sir, do you know what must be given up," Hermione asked, her voice faltering slightly.
"I'm afraid, Miss Granger, that I do not. But I believe we can assume that payment will not be light. Time traveling is a very risky deed, whether it was planned or unplanned. In your case, the two of you were thrust backwards in time against your will however, the laws of nature are not discriminatory; it is something that cannot be reasoned with, bargained for, or cheated against. In essence, the laws of nature is everywhere of nowhere."
Harry looked over at Hermione and noticed she looked pale. "Does that mean we cannot go back anytime soon?" Harry had thought his voice carried on a slight tone of happiness; Professor Dumbledore obviously did too as he looked over at Harry as if seeming to x-ray him.
"If a solution cannot be found quickly, then yes, the two of you will be here until your problem can be fixed."
"Do you think there's a possibility Harry and I could be stuck here forever," Hermione whispered, her face showing a range of emotions from shock to fear.
Dumbledore paused, seeming to regard Hermione's question carefully before he responded. "I believe, Miss Granger and Mr. Harry that a solution will be found to your current predicament. I realize that my answer is nothing to go by but the two of you must understand this: beliefs are our strongest sense of human nature, for not believing means one will not be able to see."
As Harry and Hermione exited the headmaster's office, both of their minds were racing about how Professor Dumbledore was still unable to unearth how the two of them arrived in the past while also providing no knowledge of how to get back to their present time.
"So what do you think, Hermione," Harry asked cautiously, "you've haven't said much."
"Well what is there to say? The only thing Professor Dumbledore told us was that there must be some sort of 'payment' that must be given to go back to our time. If you ask me, that doesn't sound good at all."
"There could be a possibility he could be wrong about that. He told us that he hasn't figured out a way we could go back yet he also informs us about this 'payment.'"
"I think, Harry, that Professor Dumbledore is not telling us something. I don't know what, but I just get this feeling that he's keeping something from us."
"You think he would keep secrets about something as critical as this? That could be considered manipulation," Harry said, stunned by Hermione's confession.
"Not manipulation; I don't believe Professor Dumbledore would do anything of the sort. He is just a human being, after all. Part of me thinks that he's trying to protect us by not providing all of the details he has discovered thus far."
"What does having to be a human being relate to protecting us," Harry asked.
"I mean that I believe there is something of a greater magnitude that he knows that would certainly send us back to our own time. However, he feels like the answer would be too much of a burden on us in which case, the human tendency to care for those in order to protect us from the actual truth is now showing."
"The 'actual truth?' Hermione, do you mean that he has already found a way for us to go back?"
Hermione turned to face Harry and said, "Yes, and I think he's known from quite some time. But now, he's trying to find an alternate way so we can get sent back in time without any repercussions."
Harry looked off beyond Hermione's shoulder and wondered about what she had said: did Professor Dumbledore already have a solution for which he and Hermione could go back to their present time?
He was shaken out of his thoughts when Hermione suddenly grabbed his hand. "Come on, Harry, let's go work on the Wolfsbane Potion." With that, the pair headed down to the second-floor corridor and into the girls' lavatory.
Half an hour later, after Hermione had added brown roots into the potion and gave it thirty counter-clockwise stirs while Harry had tried to fend off Myrtle's flirtatious advances, the two Gryffindors exited the bathroom and headed up to the library to get some homework done.
Hermione led Harry past rows and rows of towering bookshelves and over to a small table situated on one side of a bookshelf and in front of a vast window. A dull grey had once again settled over the grounds of the castle, blocking the rays of the sun from interfering with the chilly atmosphere.
As Harry and Hermione pulled out rolls of parchment, quills, and ink from their bags, they heard hushed voices issuing from the other side of the bookshelf.
Trying his best to ignore them, Harry shook his head and started writing his essay for Professor Slughorn. However, Harry soon noticed the voices sounded familiar.
He looked up at Hermione who also seemed to notice the tones. Harry chanced a glance over his shoulder and as discretely as he could, he pushed a lone book off to the side and saw his father with Sirius, Remus, and Peter.
"What can I say to her? Every time I approach her, she glares at me then stalks off in the opposite direction! I just can't take it anymore," James said.
"Well look at it this way, Prongs, after last night, you can't get any worse with her," Sirius had said, trying to stifle his laughter.
As James glared at him, Remus cut in, "I think what bothers her most is she thinks you're too arrogant. Also, you don't exactly act like yourself when you're around her either."
"How am I supposed to act like myself, Moony? I get all nervous and lose my train of thought!"
Harry and Hermione heard a squeaky voice pipe in, "Well, you could try acting more nicely towards her." James looked over at Peter while Sirius rolled his eyes.
"What are you on about Wormtail? How nice can I act around her when she can't even stand the sight of me?"
"Why are you so into her? There are plenty of other girls here at Hogwarts for you to date and obsess over," Sirius added.
"Okay, first of all, I do not obsess over her and second of all –''
"Oh do us all a favor and give us a break! You do too obsess over her," Sirius interrupted.
"I do not!"
"You do too!"
"I do not!"
"Yes you –''
"Enough," Remus said, stepping in between his two friends with one hand outstretched towards James and other towards Sirius. "How about we say, you fancy her, James, plain and simple? But Sirius is right, maybe Lily isn't the one for you, mate. And there are other girls that go to Hogwarts."
"Yeah, like who," James spat out.
"What about Hermione," Peter piped in. Harry's head darted over to Hermione where she seemed to be frozen in place.
"What about Hermione," James asked, as Harry saw him cross his arms over his chest.
"Well, she's a girl; why not give it a go with her," Sirius suggested.
James actually seemed to contemplate it for a moment until he replied, "I can't. She's with Harry."
Harry immediately felt his face burn at his father's answer as he tried to avoid Hermione's eyes at all costs.
"Really? I don't ever recall you asking her about her dating life let alone spend any time with her by yourself," Sirius shot back.
"Well if you must know, Padfoot, I have spent some time with her. Hermione is different too; on one hand, she's exactly like Evans with the two of them being incredibly smart for their own good. Then, you have their different personalities: Evans seems more laid-back in a way when she's with her friends while Hermione seems –''
Before James could finish his sentence, Harry had hastily moved the book back in its place, effectively blocking out the rest of their conversation.
Hermione eyed Harry questioningly as she whispered, "What did you do that for, Harry?"
"You wanted to know what James thinks of you?"
"It wouldn't have mattered to me one way or the other. I've gone through much worse at the hands of Malfoy before and after a while, I realized that it's not worth fussing over what something thinks of you. What truly matters is acceptance by your friends and family for who you truly are."
Hermione dipped her quill in ink bottle and began scratching away at her parchment while Harry looked on. He gave her a small smile as he thought about his and Hermione's relationship over the past two years.
When the Goblet of Fire spit out Harry's name as the fourth champion in the Triwizard Tournament, most of the school, except for Hermione, didn't believe he had somehow cheated and entered in his own name into the Goblet of Fire. She stood by his side and even helped him practice all sorts of spells; she accepted his answer without question when he told her he did not enter in his name into the goblet.
Last year, while both Harry and Professor Dumbledore were targeted like a pair of wild caged animals by the Ministry of Magic, Hermione had once again accepted Harry's witness of the rebirth of Lord Voldemort. Musing over the thoughts of losing his godfather at the end of the previous year, Harry had also felt bad over lashing out at both Ron and Hermione at various times over the course of the year, unable to control his anger he felt towards the entire wizarding community for being labeled a liar trying to seek attention.
No matter what James had said of Hermione, Harry knew Hermione was extremely loyal to her friends and to Harry.
"Hey Hermione, do you want to go take a walk by the lake," Harry asked suddenly.
Shock made its way across Hermione's face as she answered, "But Harry, we just got here! And why do you want to walk by the lake for?"
"I don't know; it just seems like the right thing to do at the moment," he responded, giving her a small smile.
She looked down at her essay, grimaced slightly, and said, "Oh all right. Let's just drop off our things back in our dormitory."
Harry nodded, now smiling widely, as they packed up their bags and exited the library. After dropping off their bags in their rooms, the two walked out of the oak front doors of the castle and over to the Black Lake.
"So, if I may ask, why did you feel like walking around the lake was the right thing to do," Hermione questioned.
Harry shrugged his shoulders as he looked over at the smooth surface of the water. "Sometimes, I feel like fresh air can clear your head."
Hermione nodded in answer as she replied, "Yeah, you definitely always have a lot to think about. With Voldemort and all," she added, seeing the puzzled expression on his face.
"You're right. I don't even know what to think about that." Peering over at her, Harry decided he should break the news to her about the prophecy. "Hermione, can I tell you something; I mean something that is strictly confidential?"
"Harry, you can tell my anything," she said. The pair stopped and faced one another: his bright green eyes bore into her soft brown ones.
"At the end of last year, after the fight at the ministry, Professor Dumbledore told me something about me and Voldemort."
Silence had settled itself in the air around the two students. The waters of the Black Lake were as still as glass while the valleys that surrounded the grounds of the castle were hidden with a light fog.
Harry sighed heavily and said, "A prophecy was made concerning Voldemort and me. In short, one of us has to be the one to kill the other for 'neither can live while the other survives.'"
Harry continued to gaze down at Hermione as she whispered, "So it's true then? In the end, one of you has to die?"
He nodded his head in response as Hermione's eyes grew red with unshed tears, threatening to come at any moment.
"Harry…I-I don't know what to say," Hermione offered, looking up at Harry. "I have no idea what you must be thinking and feeling."
"I guess, in some strange sort of way, I shouldn't be surprised. I mean, there always is an end to every encounter and this just happens to be mine."
In the next moment, Hermione threw her arms around Harry's shoulders and pulled him close to her. Smiling slightly, not out of mirth but out of comfort, Harry wrapped his arms around Hermione.
The two stood by the waters of the lake, in a tight embrace as Hermione wanted to make Harry feel protected, like it was worth the long and perilous fight both knew had to come.
Harry in turn wanted to comfort Hermione. Knowing how defensive she was of him, this was one time where he felt as he now had to be strong for her.
As they slowly broke apart, Harry was surprised to see Hermione had not shed any tears but instead, she had a fierce look of determination in her eyes.
"I'll be there with you, Harry, every step of the way and I know Ron will too. We're in this together," she said.
"Hermione, this is not going to be easy for you, for Ron, or for me. I don't even know where to begin. But this has to be done and I have to be the one to do finish him."
"I know, Harry. I believe in you."
Quite suddenly, the dull clouds that had hung in the sky started to break apart. The mist that had surrounded the hills around Hogwarts vanished as warm rays peeked out from behind the parting mass.
As the sun began to slowly reveal itself, Hermione said in a clear voice, "I always admired you Harry for your nobility and perseverance. It gives me my own strength to press on and move forward."
Harry gave a small, quite laugh as he replied, "We, we are definitely going to need it in preparation for what is coming."
Then, the final clouds broke apart, revealing the sun in all of its wondrous splendor and pageantry. The two students turned to look at the massive ball of flame, as it glistened off of the waters of the Black Lake.
Harry put his arm around Hermione and pulled her close to his side. Although Hermione didn't know, Harry was relieved to have finally told one of his two best friends about the prophecy and its contents as it felt like a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders.
What was more, Hermione had declared she would be by his side, also trusting that Ron would say the same. Smiling again, Harry was comforted his two best friends would be there with him, every step of the way.
Hermione leaned into Harry, placing her left hand over his heart. The tranquility of peace had settled between them as no words needed to be said in their moment of comfort.
For the rest of their day, Harry and Hermione wondered how to tell Remus about the Wolfsbane Potion without risking the breaking of a friendship between him and James.
The following day, the Gryffindors entered their History of Magic classroom with the Hufflepuffs. Their teacher, Professor Binns, who happened to be the only teacher who was a ghost at Hogwarts, floated in through the one of the walls of the classroom and began a lecture on goblin rebellions.
Within five minutes of the beginning of Professor Binns' spiel on the subject matter, Harry found his mind wandering, looking at other students in the classroom. Not to his surprise, both Hermione and Lily were scribbling away furiously on their parchment.
Harry saw both Peter and Remus have far-away looks in both of their eyes with their heads resting on their hands. James and Sirius had charmed their quills into mini-broomsticks and participated as spectators as they raced their brooms along the desk.
From breakfast this morning, it was clear James was still on edge with his spat with both Lily and Hermione from Saturday night after Gryffindor's victory in the first Quidditch game of the season.
However, both Harry and Hermione had noticed James kept shooting furtive glances over at Lily leading them both to assume that while Lily was completely put-off by James, he would not go down without a fight.
Hearing a soft snore to his right, Harry glanced over and saw Peter's head resting against his chest, his shoulders slumped over, with his eyes shut tight. Remus seemed not to have noticed as he too had his eyes closed.
"Oh come on! My broom won by a mile," Sirius whispered over to James.
"What on earth were you watching, Padfoot? My broom was the clear winner," James responded.
The two of their voices became more pronounced as they argued about whose broom won their mock race while both Hermione and Lily kept shooting furious glances over at them while continuing the take notes at the same time.
Harry thought to himself that it would not have mattered how loudly the two were talking; he felt that the students could have led their own rebellion in class and Professor Binns would have still carried on with his lecture.
As the bell clanged loudly about, signaling the end of class, Harry gathered up his belongings and stuffed them into his bag, thankful he was free from Professor Binns' lecture.
He caught up with Hermione who seethed, "You would think that one would make an effort to listen in class instead of racing silly little brooms across the desk."
Harry looked ahead to where James and Sirius were still arguing about who won their miniature broomstick race as he said, "Hermione, can you honestly blame them? I mean, listening to Professor Binns is like watching the grass grow."
"Maybe, but at least they could make somewhat of an effort!"
Harry decided it was best not to argue with Hermione at the present moment, seeing how worked up she seemed.
Harry, then, thought about a problem he and Hermione would surely encounter: if James wasn't on speaking terms with Hermione at the moment, how were they to regale the Woflsbane Potion to Remus? After all, the full moon was fast approaching and there was no advancement in terms of telling Remus about the potion.
As Harry became muddled in his own thoughts, the day passed by quickly. Their professors seemed to give them extra homework every night as Harry was now behind on his work he had to do.
As the days seem to bleed together, another week passed as the air over Hogwarts became noticeably more frigid.
One night, while Harry and Hermione were working on their homework, James approached their table with Remus in tow.
The duo stopped what they were doing and looked up at James, knowing what was about to be discussed.
"Harry, Hermione," James said, nodding his head in both of their directions. "I think we need to talk."
"Sure," Harry replied suddenly, gesturing towards the empty seats at their table. James and Remus both took a seat, James looking slightly nervous while Remus looked extremely confused.
"So…," James started, seeming to be unsure as to how he should approach the impending topic, "how've you guys been doing?"
James looked particularly at Hermione who seemed to be completely ignoring him; after all, this was the first time he had spoken to Hermione ever since Gryffindor's first Quidditch match.
"Remus, I'm not sure what James has told you but there is something we would all like to discuss with you," Hermione said, to which Remus looked taken-aback.
"Well, what is it," he asked, looking at Hermione skeptically.
Hermione looked over to Harry who gave her a reassuring smile in return. She nodded, sighed loudly, and said, "We know you're a werewolf."
Confusion shifted to fear almost immediately as Remus processed what Hermione had just said.
"But…how could you two possible know," Remus asked, his gaze shifting over to James. "You told them, didn't you?"
James looked horrified at his friend's reaction and started to say, "It's not what you think, Remus," but was interrupted by Hermione.
"He didn't tell us, Remus; Harry and I figured it out on our own."
"How did the two of you figure this out own your own," he said, his eyes still swimming in trepidation.
"We saw you sneak out across the grounds of Hogwarts last full moon," Harry interjected, "and the two of us made our own assumptions."
"So by you seeing me sneak across the grounds of the school, you automatically assume I'm a werewolf," he said, whispering the word 'werewolf.'
"We're extremely perceptive," Hermione added, looking solemn. "The point however, is that Harry and I found out a potion that could ease the transformation process."
Remus actually scoffed as he said, "The two of you invented a potion for werewolf transformation?"
"No, we didn't invent one; we just know of one," Hermione responded. "It's called the Wolfsbane Potion. When concocted properly, it makes the person, who turns into a werewolf keep their sane state of mind, meaning you wouldn't have any werewolf-like tendencies."
Remus looked at Hermione as if she's lost her mind. "There's no such potion that exists," he said.
"Yes, there is. It was invented just two years ago but it's been tested and it works," Hermione said.
"Show me."
Harry thought Hermione didn't have any proof of the potion but to his surprise, she took out a book titled "Progressive Ailments and Remedies for Wizard-Kind from the mid-Twentieth Century and Beyond" and handed it over to Remus.
He took it in his hands as Hermione said, "It's on page one-hundred and forty seven." Remus flipped the book open to that page and began reading.
James, who had stayed completely silent during the entire conversation, was looking over at Hermione with a nervous look on his face.
Harry leaned over closer to Hermione and whispered, "Where did you get that book from?"
She smirked over at him and whispered back, "I found it in the library two days ago, actually."
Harry shook his head with a small grin on his face as Remus looked up from the book and asked, "And you think you can actually brew this? This looks incredibly complicated."
"Actually, we've already started brewing it," Hermione said.
Remus' eyebrows shot upward as he replied, "So you would assume I would say 'yes' just because it can help with the transformation process?"
Hermione's cheeks flared pink as Harry said, "We didn't assume you would accept our help…we just hoped you would. We're not here to hurt you, Remus, we want to help."
Remus looked to be considering their help when James added, "It looks fine, mate, the potion and all. I think you should give it a go. If you think there is no change post-transformation, then you never have to take it again."
"Why…why would you do this for me," Remus asked, looking at Harry and Hermione.
Harry shared a quick glance with Hermione before he said, "What are friends for?"
"Well, I don't know how to ever thank you," he replied, looking down at his lap.
"You don't need to thank us," Hermione said.
Remus nodded once and said, "W-well I guess I'll let the two of you get back to your homework then." With that, he stood up, handed the book back to Hermione and left the library.
"Do you think that went well," Hermione asked once he was out of sight, turning to face Harry with a look of worry on her face. "He didn't seem too convinced."
Before Harry could respond, James said, "He looked convinced to me. What you have to understand is that he really doesn't like talking about his transformation; he's rather ashamed of it, like he's an outcast in society. We've tried to tell him differently but it's something that really bothers him."
"What made you bring Remus over here tonight," Harry asked, realizing he, Hermione, and James had not discussed any plans to meet Remus in the library at night.
He shrugged and said, "I just had a gut feeling tonight was the night to talk to him. By the way, how's the potion coming along?"
"Fine," Hermione responded shortly, returning to her essay.
James gave a great sigh while looking over at Hermione. "I suppose it would be too much to ask you to accept my apology while I ask for your help again?"
Hermione turned towards James and responded, "You don't owe me an apology."
"Then why are you acting so angry with me?"
"Because it's the way you treated Lily! You must know that she too has feelings; your actions make her angry all the time."
"That's what I need help with! I need to know how to act around her," James responded, his eyes flashing. "I'm going to tell the two of you something that I've only admitted to myself just this year: I fancy her."
"Well, apart from sounding rude, you have a funny way of showing it, James," Hermione said.
"I know I do! I just can't…I can't express my feelings well enough," he said back, his face turning red. "This isn't easy for me to talk about," he mumbled.
Hermione looked over to Harry who felt uncomfortable seeing his father trying to woo his mother to get to like him.
"Well, for starters, you would have to change your attitude," Hermione stated.
"Meaning what?"
"Meaning that every time you are around Lily, you act extremely arrogant and conceited; it's obvious she doesn't like that at all. Second, you should try talking to her and find out what her interests are. It works to know what she likes so the two of you can actually start some sort of dialogue which will lead into a conversation."
James pouted out his bottom lip as his eyes looked far-away, as if considering the advice Hermione was giving him.
"Hmmm, that seems good…what else have you got?"
She scoffed and replied, "The rest you can think for yourself. My main goal right now is to brew the potion correctly for Remus."
"Well, it was worth a try," James said playfully, standing up. "Anyway, thanks for the advice." With a small wave of his hand, James departed, leaving Harry and Hermione alone.
"Do you really think James will listen to what you told him," Harry asked.
"He will if he truly wants to start to get Lily to notice him in a better light," she replied lightly.
Harry shook his head in mock exasperation as Hermione gave him another smile; unbeknownst to them, they were unaware that an intruder was eavesdropping throughout their entire conversation.
Well, that's another chapter down for "Harry Potter and a Marauder Revival!" I know this chapter is quite long but the content here is important for the progression of later episodes. Anyway, I hoped you all enjoyed it! Chapter 13 is a work-in-progress and will be posted THURSDAY NIGHT! Please let me know what you all thought about Chapter 12 with a short-reivew!
