Anything that happens once does not necessarily happen again, everything that happens twice is likely to happen a third time as well.

-Arab proverb


Chapter Twenty-Five

The Many-Headed Snake

Time and space passed by in a flash.

Still scenes and faces, active people and places were all around him. They were slowing down, speeding up, faster, faster, and then paused. Harry felt as if he were suspended outside the still image as it flickered all around him.

The Hogwarts castle appeared in his vision, but it wasn't a singular place. Multiple structures swirled in and out of his eyesight, overlapping each other. The castle was bathed in moonlight and large amounts of activity were taking place. Harry strained to listen and thought he could make out faint shouting. If he had to guess, the Battle of Hogwarts was taking place.

All of a sudden, the multiple, overlapping images were gone. Harry collapsed violently. As soon as he gathered his footing, he glanced around the familiar walls of the castle. He was in the hallway near a secret passage. He frowned, trying to hear properly, because there was a lot of noise, and it was coming in and out of distortion.

"They've broken in already!"

Harry turned quickly to face the proclamation. A group of Hogwarts students were facing away from him. He recognized the back of Lee and Hannah's heads, also the red locks of two Weasleys. As Harry observed more, he had to surmise that this particular group of people were the fighters sent to protect the secret passage, except no one had broken in yet.

That's when he noticed through the crowd where they were looking. Through the heads and shoulders, Harry saw the familiar black cloak of Cronus. He was standing there, grinning manically, with his wand pointed directly into Fleur's temple and one arm around her neck. Bill was the closest, standing maybe ten feet from them.

"Let her go!" Bill shouted.

"Manners, William, manners," Cronus croaked, cackling. He moved the wand slowly from her temple to her neck, biting his lip in anticipation. "Or I'll be forced to hurt the Missus."

"Beell, don't worry about me," Fleur said, flinching as Cronus pressed the wand further into her neck.

"What do you want?" Bill questioned.

"I need to know where your darling little sister is," Cronus said, smiling. "I have something to settle."

Harry gritted his teeth and raised his wand, trying to aim. He couldn't mark the target, but he didn't need to. Bill charged, but at that moment, Cronus raised his wand and struck Bill down with a hellish green light.

Pandemonium followed. The castle began to flicker, although Harry was sure no one else was aware of the odd sight. The entrance to the secret passage way exploded. Dust and smoke clouded the hallway. Harry tried in vain to keep Cronus in his view, but all he saw through the crowd was a blond-haired woman sprawled out on the groud, lying beside her husband.

"Cronus!" Harry screamed.

The Death Eaters were rushing out of the passageway. Their masks and hoods were terrifying in the distorted vision. Harry backed up against the wall as members of the DA rushed by him. He scanned the crowd again, searching for his future counterpart.

A spell nearly took his head off. He looked up and saw a chunk that had been taken out of the wall. He returned his sight towards the insanity and saw Fred Weasley standing there with a wand pointed directly at him, a smirk on his face.

"Surrender?" the twin asked.

"What?" Harry questioned.

"Didn't think so," Fred replied. "Reducto!"

Harry quickly dodged the spell and rolled out of the way as several more spells were cast in his direction. He put up a shield as soon as he could and stood up to face Fred.

"I don't want to fight you!" Harry shouted.

"You picked the wrong side then, didn't you?" Fred said.

Harry heard a cackle. With the protection of the shield, which wouldn't hold up forever, Harry glanced to his left. Cronus was standing there, watching the scene, and started to raise his wand in Fred's direction. Fred wasn't paying attention to him.

"Avada-"

"NO!"

Harry broke the shield and shouted his own spell, trying to miraculously deflect the killing curse yet again. This time, it seemed as if the spells were magnetized towards each other. The red and the green curved in mid-air and met each other. The reaction was stronger than before.

Everyone was pushed away in a loud explosion. Harry quickly got to his feet and watched the rip in existence growing. He looked around and saw Fred, who seemed to be fine as he moaned on the floor. Everyone else was simply staring at the anomaly.

Cronus stood up, his back facing the growing hole. He coughed violently. Harry didn't even think, he simply charged straight at the man, somehow knowing that he and Cronus had to enter the rip in order for it to close. Harry slammed into Cronus and tackled him into the rip in time.

The trip this time was instantaneous. Harry landed on top of Cronus. He quickly rolled off and felt the cool feeling of grass on his hands. He looked around. It was nighttime and the battle sounded as if it were no longer happening. They were outside the castle now, somewhere on the grounds.

Cronus too stood up. He hobbled left and then right. His whole body seemed to be reacting negatively to the time and space traveling. He buckled over and sat with his head in his hands against a stump, moaning.

Harry didn't feel all that great either. He wondered how long it would be for him? How many more trips through time would it take to start affecting him more on a mental level? Had it already started?

"Hey, guys, get inside, we're fighting!"

Harry glanced up. A young man had exited a castle door and noticed them. He sounded distraught and Harry guessed that the battle had not begun yet. The man looked rather young from the light of the wand, maybe had just turned seventeen, his long brown hair covering his shoulders in a bluish light.

Harry suddenly recognized him. Could it be the same person from the prison cells in the first timeline that he had changed? "Evan?" Harry called out. "Evan Tebron?"

The man pushed some hair out of his eyes and exited the door. "Yes, Sir, that's me," he said. "I'm letting everyone know that we're gathering in the Great Hall to discuss our plans of defense. You-Know-Who is on his way."

"Right," Harry said. "Evan, you watch yourself tonight. It's going to be dangerous."

"I know," Evan replied. "I know what could happen."

"Anything!"

Harry was pushed out of the way. Cronus charged past him and fired off a spell Harry couldn't identify. It knocked Evan off his feet and the student simply laid there unconscious.

Harry watched the darkness literally tremble. The castle began to flicker. He stood up, watching multiple Hogwarts overlap each other. He looked at Cronus, who was mesmerized by the same thing.

Harry approached the man. Just as he neared him, Cronus turned around. Harry swung and connected a right fist in the man's chin.

Cronus stumbled backwards, but not into recognizable Hogwarts property. He now stood on a dimly lit street. Harry watched a confused look on the man's face and then he looked around curiously.

Harry quickly followed. The air around him vibrated and then the view of the castle ended. As existence wavered, Harry found himself at Godric's Hollow, right outside his childhood home.

"Home sweet home, yes, Harry Potter?" Cronus croaked, shooting off several spells towards Harry.

Harry ducked and dodged. As Harry took cover behind a tree, he bumped into a solid mass. In the shadows, he was staring directly into his own face.

"What's going on?" the hidden-Harry questioned, a look of wild desperation on his face.

Harry was frantic. "Listen to me," he said, wiping his brow. "You have to stop. You see that man out there…"

"Cronus!"

"That's right…"

Time Traveler pushed Harry out of the way and cast a spell. Harry turned around just in time to see Cronus deflect it, but stumbled, showing even more weakness than before. Harry charged at him, throwing wild spells but Cronus was able to anticipate the moves. He had no time to warn the Time Traveler a second time.

Harry reached Cronus. This time Cronus connected with a punch of his own.

The scene flickered.

Harry and Cronus remained where they were, on the street at Godric's Hollow, but the smooth surface of the road melted away. Cronus stumbled, but kept his footing on the newly formed dirt street. Harry stole a glance around before turning his attention back to Cronus.

The Time Traveler was gone. The houses looked the same, but they looked newer. The trees that towered over them previously had shrunken considerably, others had disappeared altogether. Harry guessed they had traveled now into the past. How far? he wondered.

There was no more time to think about it. Cronus had lunged at him, screaming and wheezing, and clamped his teeth into Harry's arm. Harry let out a wail of pain and dropped his wand. Cronus pushed his younger self backwards into the dusty road and stepped closer to him. He wiped the blood away from his mouth and kicked the wand away into the bushes.

"Harry Potter, Harry Potter," Cronus mused.

He stepped closer, but looked as if he couldn't find his balance. Harry guessed that his body and mind could no longer take the sudden jumps through time. Harry himself was feeling sick to his stomach. He could only imagine how his counterpart was feeling.

"I tried to do this the easy way," Cronus said, looking as if he were drunk waving his wand in Harry's direction. "I tried to reason with you, didn't I? I explained it to you, yes, I explained it." He cleared his throat, attempting to speak again. "You can't fight destiny, Harry Potter. Just accept your place like I have. Accept it, accept it."

Harry shook his head. "I won't," Harry cried.

"Your damn principles!" Cronus shouted. "You would die for them?"

"I have before, I'll do it again," Harry replied. He nudged himself backwards, keeping Cronus in his sight. "You seem to forget that you had the same principles once. Do you remember?"

"Bah!" Cronus screamed, quivering. His left eye looked as if it was struggling to move as his vision darted all around, assessing the situation. "That was a long time ago, wasn't it?" He stepped closer, pressing his foot into the sandy path. "It doesn't matter, Harry Potter. After you're gone, I'll just start this all over again…"

There was a glint in Cronus's eyes, a crazed look as he raised the wand and attempted to steady it. The moment had come again for him to kill.

"Stupefy!"

Voices rang out from behind Cronus. The man's head jolted forwards in a sickening snap and he tumbled to the earth. Harry breathed a sigh of relief and attempted to locate his rescuers. Two men were standing a few meters back, wands both pointing towards the place where Cronus had been standing.

"You there," the first man called. "Are you hurt?"

Harry was hurt, in several places, but it was nothing serious. He hoisted himself to his feet and shook his head. "I'm fine," he answered. "Thanks." He took a chance to look at them. Each of them wore the colors of the Auror department, but they look rather old-fashioned.

"Evans, check on that man," the leader of the group said.

"Right, Cadmus," Evans said. He went forward to check on Cronus.

"You're lucky that we were here," Cadmus said. "What seems to be the dispute?"

Harry wandered off the bush that his wand was hidden in. "Well," Harry began. He reached into the bush, scratching his hand in the process. "He attacked me. I was defending myself."

"Is that so?" Cadmus questioned.

"Yeah," Harry replied. He finally found his wand and pulled it from the plant. He brushed off the grime and stuck his wand back into his pocket.

"Cadmus," one of the men said. He stood up from checking on the body and pushed his red hair out of his eyes. "You're not going to believe this. You know who this is?"

Cadmus turned his attention away from Harry and looked towards Evans, who had rolled Cronus onto his back and was staring at the man's face. He looked up at Cadmus and grinned. "It's that crazy inventor from down the street."

"No kidding?" Cadmus replied. He strolled over to the fallen gentleman and sat on his haunches. He pulled back the straggly black hair and investigated the face. "It sure does look like old Cronus." He looked back at Harry. "You said he attacked you?"

"Yeah," Harry answered.

"Maybe he wasn't too keen on you wearing the same outfit," Evans said, chuckling.

Cadmus stood back up to his feet and scratched his head. "You like to think you're funny, Evans," he muttered. He shook his head. "No, the old man is most likely still sore over last month."

Evans considered the theory. "I'd be angry too if the government banned me from working on my life's work," he replied. "You're high up with the Ministry. Did they really send people to confiscate his journals?"

Cadmus shrugged. "If it happened, I wasn't involved."

Evans rolled his eyes. "You'd say that either way, wouldn't you?"

Cadmus nodded. "Let's revive him," he said, "and get him back home." He searched the neighborhood, checking out each house. "Which one is it?"

Harry pointed several houses away. "The one with the tree in the front yard," he replied.

Cadmus smiled. "You'll be leading the way then," he said. Cadmus stretched out his wand and chanted the reviving charm.

Cronus blinked wearily. He sat up and looked around, noticing the two magical law enforcement officers. "What do you want?"

"Mr. Cronus, we're going to take you back home," Cadmus said.

"You don't know where I live," Cronus bellowed, his eyes darting around in every which way. "I don't even know where I am, do I?" He looked at Harry. "You! Tell them where we came from, the year."

"Mr. Cronus," Evans said, gripping the man's arm. "You're in the year 1776-"

"Wasn't asking you, was I?" Cronus bellowed, turning back to Harry. Harry simply swallowed apprehensively and shrugged. Cronus was enraged. "We were fighting, weren't we? And we were sent here, to the past. Tell them!"

Cadmus gripped his other arm. "The only fight happening right now is in the New World," he said. "And I can assure you that you haven't been there."

"Don't patronize me," Cronus said, his words starting to slur. "Don't tell me where I've been. I've traveled the great roads of time, haven't I? I've lived in other timelines, yes, yes."

Cadmus and Evans exchanged doubtful looks. Harry picked up Cronus's wand and started to lead the way towards the house in which the real William Cronus was residing. He hoped the inventor was not home. He could only imagine the shocked face of the men when they see they've made a mistake. Cronus continued to ramble on about his time travels as they neared the house.

"You think maybe one stunner would have sufficed?" Cadmus whispered to Evans.

Evans chuckled. "We might have overdid it."

Harry approached the door and knocked. After a minute, no one answered. Harry knocked again. Cadmus pushed Harry out of the way and slammed the door hard, which opened the large wooden barrier into the house. Harry led the way in. Cadmus and Evans guided the rambling Cronus inside.

Harry nervously looked around for any signs of the inventor. The house was quiet and there definitely seemed to be void of human occupancy at the moment. He noticed a table with a book on it and frowned, realizing that it was the journal of the real Cronus that he had seen on the tour. He opened it up and read the familiar handwriting.

Cadmus and Evans approached him without Cronus.

"He wants to talk to you," Cadmus said, "but don't worry. He can't even stand on his own power. If you want us to stay, we'll stay."

Harry shook his head. "I can handle it," he replied, showing that he had the man's wand anyhow.

Cadmus thanked Harry for his help and then left.

"Harry Potter, a word, in here," Cronus called.

Harry strolled towards the voice, passing familiar objects and pictures he had seen in the guided tour in the future. Finally he entered the sitting room of the house. Cronus was seated on a chair, grinning like a mad man.

"My wand, Harry Potter," Cronus said, stretching out his hand. It was trembling far more violently than ever before. Harry looked at his face. One eye seemed to be lazier than the other. The man was falling apart. These trips through time that they had just gone through had taken a big toll on Cronus.

"You know I can't do that," Harry said. He leaned against the table that was in the room.

"You can!" Cronus muttered. "We have a fight to finish, don't we? Yes, yes, we do. That's how it's supposed to happen."

"Look at you," Harry said, motioning towards the man. "You're already done. I'm not fighting you anymore."

"I killed her," Cronus said, wheezing. "Now kill me, Harry Potter."

"I'm not a killer," Harry said, his teeth clenching.

"She recognized me," Cronus said, attempting to cackle, but losing his breath. "She said your name when I crept up on her…"

"Shut up."

"…right in the bed you made love to her in," Cronus continued.

"SHUT UP!"

"How does it feel, Harry Potter, to know that she recognized who her killer was?"

Harry was about to lunge towards the man, but he felt himself being magically held back. He trembled angrily as he was unable to advance. "Let me go!" Harry bellowed. He was tired of being strong. He needed to release his anger. He needed to raise his wand.

Cronus looked from Harry to a point behind him. His crazed eyes suddenly widened, and a manically grin broke out upon his quivering face. He cackled uncontrollably. "William Emmett Cronus," he croaked.

Harry watched a figure enter in his peripheral vision. The man stood there and looked as if he were shaking his head. "Unbelievable," William muttered. From the angle Harry was watching, William did resemble Cronus in a remarkable way. He understood how Cadmus and Evans could make that mistake.

William entered Harry's vision. Harry gasped.

William smiled, his emerald eyes shimmering behind a pair of spectacles, his long, straggly raven-colored hair brushing the sides of his face.

"Harry Potter, I presume," William said. "It's been a long time since I saw that face in the mirror."