* ~ The Eighth Year Universe Series ~ *

PART THREE

The Eighth Year

Chapter 8: The Concept of Reality

Harry, Draco and Hermione were allowed out of the hospital wing on Saturday morning, just in time for breakfast. Harry was incredibly relieved because he was holding Quidditch try-outs as of 10 am that day, and there was no way he was missing such a big, important day.

As they ate breakfast, Harry filled Ron and Hermione in on his strange vision, and Ron said that he was just glad that it hadn't hit him. Harry glared at the Gryffindor girl whose mirror had triggered the whole thing, but if Annie noticed, she didn't seem to care. Harry and Ron were dressed in their Quidditch gear, and Hermione had wrapped up in warm clothes to watch from the stands.

When they finished breakfast, they all headed out to the pitch together, and Hermione sat down in one of the stands, propping open her book on her lap. She had barely gotten any reading done when the bench shifted from someone sitting down next to her.

Hermione narrowed her eyes at the blonde girl who had joined her, "Are you spying?"

"Yes," Daphne Greengrass replied honestly, "Draco sent me to scope out Potter's Quidditch team."

"Well, at least your honest about it," Hermione said irritably.

"You don't like me very much, do you, Granger?" Daphne asked conversationally.

"I don't know you very well," Hermione said honestly, "And you did just admit to spying on my best friend."

"Spying on your best friend for one of my best friends, yes," Daphne said in amusement, "But it's better that I'm here than Draco or another of his cronies. I'll only pass on the odd piece of information. Somebody else would probably spill all."

"So why won't you?" Hermione asked suspiciously, "Surely, you want Slytherin to win the Quidditch Cup too?"

"Yes, I do," Daphne agreed, "But I want us to win fairly, not because we used blackmail and spied on the opposition. What are you reading?"

Hermione frowned, "Oh, just a Muggle book," she said as she hid the front cover of the leather-bound book.

Daphne had already seen what it was though, "Interesting," she said, "Pride and Prejudice." It's about a man and a woman who love each other but can't be together, isn't it?"

Hermione glanced at the blonde girl in surprise, "Not exactly. Mr Darcy and Elizabeth Bennett are the two main characters. Everyone views Darcy as this romantic figure, but in reality, he is proud and condescending. Elizabeth sees how cold and horrible he is, so she dislikes him at first."

"But they fall in love, right?" Daphne said with a raised eyebrow, "They always do in Muggle literature. It's awfully romantic in tone."

"Not all of the time," Hermione argued, "And I certainly wouldn't call this one romantic. After treating Elizabeth horribly, Darcy tells her out of the blue that he's in love with her and begs her to marry him. He cares so much about status, and even though he claims to love her, he insults her for her inferior position and her family's lack of status and money, but he still seems to think she'll say yes. She's stubborn though, and she rejects him."

"You don't seem that keen on this Darcy guy," Daphne pointed out.

Hermione shrugged, "He does redeem himself, he explains the actions that made Elizabeth dislike him, and she has to admit that she misjudged him and that she was wrong. He's nicer after that, and Elizabeth finally admits that she's attracted to him. A lot of people think that Elizabeth is beneath Darcy, but in the end, they have their happily-ever-after."

Daphne was smirking slightly by the time Hermione had finished speaking.

"What?" Hermione asked self-consciously.

"Oh, just thinking," Daphne said, her smirk fixed on her face, "About that book of yours. Mr Darcy is proud, arrogant, condescending and cares too much about status."

"And?" Hermione asked as she looked down at her book.

"And I think we both know somebody exactly like that," Daphne said matter of factly, "A certain blonde-haired arsehole...goes by the name of Draco Malfoy."

Hermione frowned, "There are some similarities, I suppose."

"I'd say there were more than some," Daphne said slyly, "Elizabeth, you said her name was? She was headstrong, beneath Darcy in status and constantly quarrelled with him...now that sounds very familiar."

A blush rose in Hermione's cheeks, "I don't know what you are insinuating-"

"Oh, come on, Granger, don't play games," Daphne chuckled, "You're twice as intelligent as I am. You know exactly what I am insinuating. That book is faded, the pages are ragged. It's clearly old, and you have obviously read it several times. It reminds you of Draco, the entire situation reminds you of how you are a Muggle-born, and he's a pureblood. Although none of that matters very much anymore."

Hermione was frowning but remained silent as Daphne spoke.

"Both of you were dating each other in your parallel visions the other day. So do you know what I think?"

Hermione shook her head.

Daphne smirked, "I think, rather like Elizabeth Bennett, you are going to have to admit to yourself that you are attracted to Draco Malfoy."

Hermione's grip on her book tightened, "Is it that obvious?"

"Not to everyone," Daphne said with a slight smile, "But to those of us who pay attention, yes."

"Do you think Harry and Ron know?" Hermione asked as she chewed her lip anxiously.

"Merlin, no," Daphne laughed as she looked out at the two boys who were now flying around the pitch, "Weasley is totally clueless. Potter is a little more perceptive, but not when it comes to romance, it seems."

"Do you think he knows?" Hermione asked as she turned back to Daphne.

The blonde girl turned to Hermione, and her eyes sparkled mischievously, "If Draco knew, you would know about it by now, trust me," she said as she got to her feet, "Let him work out how he feels about you first. Although that could take a lifetime without any nudging."

Hermione nodded weakly, and Daphne smirked at her again as she raised a finger to her lips, "I was never here."

"Have you picked your team then?"

"I'm thinking it over. I'll tell them tomorrow," Harry said offhandedly as he, Ron and Hermione walked back to the school together for lunch.

"But I'm on it, right?" Ron asked.

Harry smirked, "Maybe, you'll have to wait till tomorrow like everybody else."

"I'm your best mate!" Ron retorted.

Harry grinned, "Just kiddin', yeah, of course. You're the keeper."

Ron grinned and hi-fived his best friend. Hermione shook her head at them, but she was smiling too.

"Why were you talking to Daphne Greengrass earlier?" Harry asked in what he clearly thought was a casual tone of voice.

"Oh, I was just telling her about your massive crush on her," Hermione said matter of factly, and Ron roared with laughter at the look on Harry's face.

"What?"

"I'm kidding; she was spying on you for Malfoy," Hermione said in amusement, "Apparently, he wanted to see how good your team were looking."

"Well, it's good to know he's that concerned," Harry said with a grin, "If he's sending people to spy on us, he clearly thinks we're good competition."

"And we will be," Ron said with a vigorous nod, "Once you've picked the team!"

Later that day, Daphne was making her way up to the common room. She passed a damaged portrait that Professor Flitwick was repairing, and she idly wondered how many more had been damaged in the final battle. The next thing she knew, she was being grabbed and dragged into a secret passageway.

She raised an eyebrow at Harry as the tapestry swung behind them, "Hi, Potter."

"What's this I hear about you spying on my Quidditch team, Greengrass?" Harry asked calmly.

Daphne rolled her eyes, "Granger told you? Wow, she really is quite the lap dog."

Harry snorted, "Oh, and you're not? You were out there doing Malfoy's bidding."

Daphne laughed, "Potter, you do not know me that well if you think that I do anything for Draco Malfoy. I may have loved him once upon a time, but he is an idiot."

"So why were you spying on me then?" Harry asked, narrowing his eyes at her.

"Maybe I just wanted to see you in your Quidditch gear," Daphne teased.

Harry opened his mouth then shut it, like a goldfish.

Daphne smirked in response.

"I'm not stupid, you know?" Harry said; he leant against the wall and surveyed her, "I know when people are lying. You were there to gather intel, but not because Malfoy told you to. You did that to blackmail Malfoy into putting you on the team."

Daphne grinned, "Well, would you look at that? You are more than just a pretty face."

Harry scoffed, "Coming from you?"

Daphne raised an eyebrow at him.

Harry's cheeks flushed, "I mean you're…look at you; you're like a Veela or something."

Daphne grinned, "Aw Potter, that's the nicest thing a Gryffindor has ever said to me."

Before Harry could compose a reply or dig himself out of the hole he had dug for himself, she kissed him. Harry was so alarmed by this turn of events that it took him a minute to snap out of his daze. He had thought about kissing her before, and it was just as good as he expected.

Harry tentatively kissed her back. He didn't have a lot of self-confidence, especially around girls, and he was sure that it showed. Still, Daphne took a step closer to him in the small space and rested her hands on the back of his neck.

Harry shivered at her touch, and Daphne deepened the kiss by slipping her tongue into his mouth. He brought his hands to her hair and entwined them in it. He could have kissed her all day long if it wasn't for the interruption.

The tapestry swung back, and they jumped apart as quickly as if they had been struck by lightning.

"Really?" Neville grinned, "That didn't take long. I mean, I know you had a crush on her in sixth year, Harry-"

"Neville!" Harry groaned.

Daphne smirked, "See you later, Potter," she said as she disappeared up the secret passageway.

"Sorry for interrupting," Neville said a little sheepishly.

"I'm kind of glad you did," Harry admitted sheepishly, "The last time a girl shoved me up against a wall and kissed me like that, I ended up sleeping with her."

"Yeah…that sounds familiar," Neville admitted.

"Oh Godric, it was Ginny for both of us, wasn't it?" Harry asked.

Neville made a face, "Yeah. That's a bit weird, isn't it?"

"Yeah, just a bit," Harry agreed.

"Do you fancy a bit of duelling practice?" Neville asked, "You seem kinda tense."

"Yeah," Harry said sheepishly, "Good idea, Nev."

"So, who are you picking for the team?"

"Why don't you ask Greengrass since you sent her to spy earlier?" Harry retorted as Draco walked up to him in the common room.

"I did ask her to go and spy on you, but she won't tell me anything," Draco said irritably, "Apparently, she has a moral compass all of a sudden. I've no idea why."

Harry smirked, "Godric forbid one of your saintly Slytherins develops a moral compass, Malfoy."

Draco narrowed his eyes at him, "Do you know why this moral compass has appeared out of thin air?"

Harry grinned, "Maybe."

"What did you do?" Draco asked irritably.

"It's more what she did," Harry said in amusement, "Not that I was complaining."

Draco rolled his eyes, "She's a loose cannon, don't start thinking she's in love with you."

"Don't worry, I wasn't," Harry said casually, "But you are right to be worried about my team. We are going to be amazing this year, and that we are going to beat you."

Draco rolled his eyes, "Oh, I doubt it. I heard rumours that Weasel King and Fatbottom were on your team."

Harry narrowed his eyes at the blond, "They are, and we're still going to kick your arse."

He had worked out his dream team. He was the star seeker, of course. Ron was the keeper, and he figured that he'd have lost his pre-Quidditch nerves after all that he had done in the war. His key chaser was Ginny; no surprises there, really. His other two chasers were Dennis Creevey and Natalie McDonald. As for beaters, surprisingly, Neville and Seamus had excelled in that field.

"Potter, are you daydreaming about Quidditch?"

Harry was aware that he had rather rudely zoned out during his conversation with Malfoy. When he snapped back to reality, the Slytherin was looking at him in amusement.

"Uh, yes," Harry said sheepishly.

Draco sniggered, "I thought so. You had a look on your face that indicated that you were either thinking of Quidditch or women."

Harry's face flushed, and he felt rather hot all of a sudden, "Whatever, Malfoy. My team is going to trample all over your team this year."

"Right, what potion are we supposed to be making today?"

Draco smirked and replied, "It's called an "Alternis Mundi" potion. When you drink it, you are shown how your life would be different if you had made one decision differently. Slughorn told us not to try and sneak any out because it can drive a person insane, seeing what would be different but knowing they can't change it."

That made Harry a little contemplative, and truthfully if he could make one decision differently, he didn't know what it would be. He had messed up more than once in his short lifetime, and he didn't know what he classed as his biggest mistake or misjudgement. He supposed it would have to be what happened in fifth year; he wouldn't have believed Voldemort and gone to the ministry, and Sirius wouldn't have died.

What would have been different if his Godfather had lived? Would he have perished in the final battle anyway? Or would he still be here today? Would Harry be living with him in Grimmauld place? These were all silly questions as he knew there was no way to bring Sirius back. As he so often did in Potions, Harry had been daydreaming and hadn't noticed Draco brewing both his potion and Harry's. The loud crash of Ron dropping all of his potion implements on the floor made him jerk suddenly, and the unfinished potion spilt all over Draco and himself. The last thing Harry heard was Slughorn yelling anxiously, and then a large white flash blinded him.

When the light appeared to have dimmed, Harry opened his eyes and looked at Draco, who was now standing on his left, the Slytherin looked utterly bewildered, and Harry didn't entirely blame him as he looked around at his surroundings. They were still in Hogwarts, in the very classroom they had been in before, but it was empty and wrecked. Cauldrons were lying upturned with old potions going off on the floor because they had been spilt and not cleared up.

"What the hell just happened?" Harry asked cautiously as he stood glued to the spot in the middle of the room.

Draco had a slight frown on his face, "I have a hunch, but I hope it's wrong."

"Why?" Harry asked cautiously as he stepped out of the classroom into the deserted corridor.

Draco followed and said to his Gryffindor friend, "The potion wasn't finished, so I'm wondering if this could be some alternate world we're stuck in."

Harry gulped; he was thinking about Sirius and his 'what if' as the potion had spilt.

Draco noticed the look on his face, and he narrowed his eyes at the boy who lived, "Potter," he said slowly, "What did you do?"

Harry bit his lip, "I was thinking about my 'what if' when the potion spilt," he admitted to the Slytherin, who groaned and began to walk along the dungeon corridor.

"May I be so bold as to ask what your 'what if' was?" Draco asked.

"I was wondering how things would be different if my Godfather hadn't died in fifth year," Harry said, and for some reason, he was slightly embarrassed to admit that.

"Well, I'd say there is a high chance that this is some distorted reality that your imagination has thought up about your Godfather, so this could be...interesting," Draco said, looking slightly amused, a little exasperated and frankly, worried.

Harry trailed along behind Draco as they made their way along the corridor, he wasn't sure what to expect in this version of Hogwarts, but he had a strange feeling about this place. The two of them were silent as they made their way along the corridor, and then suddenly, a muffled noise stopped them in their tracks as they got to the last corridor in the maze of dungeon corridors that led to the entrance hall.

"What was that?" Harry whispered as he looked at Draco with wide eyes.

This only caused the Slytherin to raise his eyebrows, "You defeated Voldemort, and you wet your pants at the sound of one little noise, seriously?"

Harry glared at Draco, "I'm not scared!" He said indignantly, and Draco just sniggered as another muffled noise came from their left.

"It's coming from that cupboard," Harry whispered as he pointed to the broom closet at the end of the corridor.

"Well, open it then," Draco said, raising an eyebrow at Harry, "To prove that you aren't scared, of course."

Harry shot the Slytherin another glare and edged closer to the closet just in time to hear a muffled scream. Worrying that someone was being hurt in there, he blasted the door open with his wand. However, nothing was incriminating; it was just two students who were half-clothed and who screeched in surprise before darting off into the depths of the dungeons.

"Nothing too scary then," Draco said with a raised eyebrow at Harry.

"Come on, let's just go check out the Great Hall," Harry said with a frown, "I've got a weird feeling about this version of Hogwarts."

"I've no idea how your Godfather not dying could affect an entire school," Draco pointed out dryly, but he followed Harry upstairs into the entrance hall anyway. It looked relatively normal; there didn't seem to be anything massively out of place anyway.

They were cautious as they walked into the Great Hall, which also looked the same, apart from a few pretty significant differences, mainly the staff of the Head Table.

In the Headmasters seat, at the front of the hall, sat none other than his Godfather, Sirius Black. He knew this must be in his imagination and not an accurate depiction of an alternate universe because in what world would anyone allow Sirius Black to prune the minds of young people? He wasn't in traditional robes; he was instead wearing what appeared to be leather robes. He had replaced the chair that Dumbledore had sat in with his own. It looked suspiciously like a throne, and as Sirius lounged on it casually, he looked incredibly like a king.

Harry was torn between rolling his eyes in disbelief and bursting out with laughter.

"Is that your Godfather?" Draco asked in disbelief.

"Uh...yes," Harry replied sheepishly.

"Fantastic," Draco muttered dryly.

Harry glanced at the rest of the staff. McGonagall, Sinistra, Hagrid and Trelawney were all there. But so was Remus Lupin, and Harry's stomach churned with guilt when he saw him sitting next to Sirius.

"Potter," Draco said quietly, "This has got to all be a figment of your imagination, right?"

"Right," Harry said, "Because the potion wasn't finished, and the only place where Sirius Black could ever be Headmaster of Hogwarts is in my imagination."

"Interesting," Draco smirked, "Because if this is your imagination, then it clearly shows certain inclinations of yours."

Harry frowned, "Uh, what are you talking about, Malfoy?"

"I'm talking about the fact that everyone here is wearing normal school uniforms apart from Daphne," Draco said slyly as he pointed towards the blonde Slytherin girl.

Harry's cheeks began to transition very quickly towards scarlet as he realised that Draco was right. Practically everyone was dressed normally, apart from Daphne, who was clad in a shorter skirt than the rest and a tighter white blouse, although, in fairness, that wasn't too different to her current school uniform. She pushed the boundaries of skirt length and blouse buttons but was usually caught by McGonagall and forced to lengthen her skirts or do up another blouse button.

Harry cleared his throat, "But hang on a minute...the potion hit you as well, so whatever you were thinking about at the time must have passed on to this weird...hallucination."

"Well, I certainly wasn't thinking about Daphne dressed like that," Draco said with a raised eyebrow.

Harry narrowed his eyes at the blonde boy, "What were you thinking about Malfoy?"

Draco blushed and opened his mouth to reply. However, before he could, a very familiar face popped up next to them. Hermione Granger looked exactly as she did in real life, but it was what she did that let them know things were different here.

"Hey, Draco!" Hermione said brightly, "Where have you been? I've been looking for you all morning."

"Oh, sorry, I was...busy," Draco said, utterly bemused.

Hermione smiled and promptly leant up to kiss Draco. Harry's jaw dropped, and Draco, although surprised, kissed the girl back. When she broke the kiss, she said, "Anyway, I've got to run. This project isn't finished, so I'm meeting Nev in the library. Are we still on for Hogsmeade tomorrow?"

"Uh, yes, of course," Draco said. He sounded very distracted.

"Great. See you later!" Hermione said with a radiant smile before turning and leaving the hall.

"What was that?" Harry asked in disbelief.

"You tell me," Draco muttered, "This is your imagination."

"I think it must be a bit of yours too, judging from that. What did you kiss her back for?" Harry asked.

"We've clearly replaced ourselves in this alternate world or hallucination, whatever it is," Draco remarked, "We can't act suspicious. We've got to play along with it."

"Yeah, right," Harry scoffed, "You have feelings for my best friend, don't you?"

Draco shook his head in disbelief, "Feelings, for Granger? I don't think so, Potter."

"Well, I'm hardly going to dream up you dating my best friend, am I?" Harry asked irritably, "You were clearly thinking about Hermione when that potion hit you!"

"I was not," Draco objected, "And that's not important anyway. We need to find a way to get back to our reality."

"I thought we established that this was my imagination," Harry pointed out.

"I don't know what it is," Draco admitted, "But we must both be unconscious right now in the hospital wing. This is happening in both of our heads, but we're experiencing the same situation."

"Have you ever heard of anything like that?" Harry frowned.

"It's similar to a nightmare curse," Draco frowned, "But we wouldn't be experiencing the same thing and interacting like this. A nightmare curse locks you in your own head and convinces you that what you are seeing is real."

"But we know this isn't real," Harry said.

"Which is how I know this is different," Draco admitted, "It's just…with the potion being unfinished, I have no idea how far we have leapt into another reality. I think it's because we got hit by the potion at the same time that we're experiencing the same thing. Hang on, were we touching?"

"Uh, yes," Harry replied, "I was trying to push you out of the way."

Draco rolled his eyes, "Trust it to be your noble heroics that got me stuck here with you."

"How is it my fault?" Harry asked defensively.

"Because since we were touching, it must have bonded us temporarily. This is effectively just one big shared dream," Draco said with a frown upon his face, "So we can't get back. We just have to wait until we wake up."

"So we're stuck here," Harry realised.

"Until we wake up," Draco reiterated, "Which could be hours."

Harry opened his mouth to ask Draco what on earth they were supposed to do at that time. But before he could say anything, Sirius had walked over to him and clapped him on the shoulder.

"Harry, good to see you!" Sirius said brightly, "You've been so busy this year with your N.E.W.T's and your new girlfriend, you hardly ever come by my office for chats anymore. I've had to put up with Remus's company, and all he ever does is read books. You'd know all about that, eh Draco!"

Draco smiled weakly, "Uh, yes," he said with a nod.

Harry was frowning slightly. Sirius had mentioned that he had a girlfriend.

"How is she anyway, Harry?" Sirius asked conversationally, "That Daphne of yours?"

The blush in Harry's cheeks began to rise again, and Draco snorted in amusement as Harry said, "Oh, she's fine, great actually."

"Fantastic," Sirius chirped, "Do you fancy coming up for coffee? We could use a good old catch up."

Harry glanced at Draco. He couldn't say no, but Draco didn't want to be abandoned in this odd dream world.

Harry turned back to his Godfather, and although he knew that this wasn't real, he wanted that last chat with Sirius.

"Sure," Harry said.

Sirius's face brightened, "Perfect, I'll see you up there."

He walked away, and Draco glared at Harry, "You can't just leave me alone here, Potter! I mean, what am I supposed to do?"

"I don't know," Harry said under his breath, "It's just a dream, Malfoy, you can do whatever you want. It's not like there are consequences; you'll forget it when you wake up."

Draco's eyes sparkled mischievously, "In that case, I should probably take advantage of this-"

"Don't you dare go anywhere near Hermione," Harry warned.

"It's a dream, Potter," Draco said, echoing his own words, "It's not like you're going to remember it long enough to curse me."

Harry cursed after the blond man as he left the hall; wisely, he did so as fast as he could. By the time Harry got to the entrance hall to make his way up to the Headmasters office, Draco was out of sight. He shook his head irritably and made his way up to Sirius's office; the gargoyle was guarding the entrance, however, and Harry, being from an alternate universe, didn't know the password.

"It's moonshine," Sirius's voice said from behind him. Harry jumped as the gargoyle moved aside.

His Godfather walked past him, and Harry looked at him in surprise.

"I knew you weren't my Harry," Sirius said as he stepped onto the staircase, "I noticed something off about you the moment you spoke to me. But come on up anyway."

Harry was surprised, but he stepped onto the staircase anyway and followed Sirius up to the office. When they reached it, Harry pushed the door shut behind him and surveyed the office. It looked different from the way it had looked in Dumbledore's day. There were posters of Quidditch teams and bands hanging on the walls. In addition to a desk, there was a large, comfortable-looking sofa.

Sirius sank into it and patted the spot next to him. Harry took the seat a little cautiously.

"How did you know it wasn't me?" Harry asked curiously.

"I could just tell something was up," Sirius said honestly, "So who are you?"

"I am Harry," Harry said with a frown, "But just not quite the Harry you think I am. I mean, I don't know if this is a dream or a hallucination...but I accidentally spilt some 'what if' potion and I was thinking about you when I did. When I came to, I was here, and you were Headmaster of Hogwarts."

"So you're Harry from an alternate universe," Sirius grinned, "Wicked, what am I like over there then?"

"Dead," Harry frowned.

Sirius's face fell, "Really? Well, that sucks. What about Remus, was he devastated by my death?"

"Yeah," Harry said honestly, "But he got married and had a baby afterwards and…he's dead too now."

"What?" Sirius scoffed incredulously, "He moved on? How could he possibly move on after my horrific, bloody, tragic death? He waited 12 years when I was in Azkaban."

"Yeah, but when you were in Azkaban, there was a chance you would get out," Harry pointed out, "And that he'd see you again. Once you were dead, that was it; you weren't going to rise from the dead."

Sirius rolled his eyes, "That's not the point. Who did he marry anyway? Anyone I know?"

Harry glanced sheepishly at the man, "Uh yeah. He married a woman named Nymphadora Tonks."

"What?" Sirius barked, "My baby cousin, Nymphadora Tonks? That Nymphadora Tonks?"

"Uh, how many other Nymphadora Tonks do you know?" Harry asked in amusement, "Are you and Remus together here?"

"Yes," Sirius said somewhat huffily, "And Nymphadora Tonks is happily married to Charlie Weasley."

"Charlie's not gay?" Harry asked in surprise.

"Here he's not," Sirius said in amusement, "Is he in your universe?"

"I dunno," Harry admitted, "I always thought he was. Mind you, I always thought something was going on between you and Remus in my universe, but I never officially found out and then you both died, so I doubt I ever will."

"Ah, you could easily enough," Sirius said in amusement, "What were you thinking about when the what if potion spilt?"

"Well, it's complicated," Harry said as he glanced down, "In my universe, it was basically my fault that you died. Voldemort tricked me into thinking he had you captive, so I went to save you, but it was a trap to lure me in. You came to save me, and you were killed."

"Who killed me?" Sirius asked curiously.

"Bellatrix Lestrange," Harry replied honestly.

"Ugh," Sirius scoffed, "Always hated that bitch."

Harry smiled weakly, "So my 'what if' was basically what if I hadn't been so stupid and gotten you lured into that trap."

"And then you ended up here where I'm alive," Sirius realised, "Well, in that case, anything that I know that happened before my death is the same in this universe. And I happen to know that hidden in the back of your Mum and Dads vault at Gringotts is a safe, and "310780" is the passcode."

"My birthday," Harry frowned.

Sirius nodded, "There's a pensieve inside that vault. It will tell you practically anything that you want to know."

Harry's frown deepened, "But if this is happening inside my head, how can you know that?"

"Because this isn't happening inside your head," Sirius said simply, "This is a genuine alternate reality. You must have had that potion finished or close to completion when it spilt. You'll remember everything when you wake up; this isn't a dream."

"If it isn't a dream, how do I get back to my reality?" Harry frowned, "And am I still in my own reality?"

"Yes," Sirius replied, "In your reality, you will be unconscious. In your mind, you are here, but here is a real place. You need to leave this reality to get back to your own reality, though."

"Can't I just stay here?" Harry asked quietly.

Sirius smiled slightly at the boy, "I'm afraid not, Harry," he said as a door at the back of the office opened, and Remus walked in. He paused when he saw Sirius and Harry talking.

Sirius smiled, "Ah, Remus. I'll fill you in. This is a Harry Potter from an alternate universe. He used a 'what if' potion, I'm dead in his reality, you see. I was just explaining why he couldn't stay here. Do you want to take over?"

Remus smiled kindly at Harry, "Well, there are a lot of reasons. One of which is that we have our own Harry, and while you are here, he is not. You can't just step in and take his life; it isn't fair to him or to us, the people who love him."

Harry nodded glumly.

"And if you stay here, you will die," Remus added sadly, "You are here in your mind, but your body is not. Potions and spells can only keep you alive for a few months, then your body will perish in your own reality, and you will disappear entirely from this one."

"Right," Harry said with a sigh, "So how do I get back to my reality?"

"It's simple, really," Sirius replied, "All you have to do is make the potion again. Be careful to make it correctly and take a sip each."

Remus nodded, "You must think of your 'what if'. Simply think "what if I woke up back in my own reality?"

"Right," Harry said with a nod, "Alright, well, I have to go and find the guy I accidentally brought here with me. But I'm glad you two are happy somewhere, even if it is in an alternate world."

Sirius smiled at the boy and hugged him, "I'm sorry that you lost so much in your own world, Harry. But it's the place you belong."

"I know," Harry said.

"But first of all," Sirius said, "When you get back to your own world, go and get that pensieve. Now, is there anything else I didn't tell you or that you want to ask me?"

Harry nodded, "There is one thing...why did you and Remus never tell me that you were together? I mean, how long was this going on for?"

Remus chuckled, "Since I found out he had escaped from Azkaban, Harry."

"We didn't want to confuse you," Sirius said with a smile, "And it was very difficult for us. Remus and I were together when we were in Hogwarts and while you were a baby. It was all very hush-hush, nobody knew apart from your parents. We thought we could go back to normal after Azkaban, but it wasn't that easy, and we didn't want to mix you up in our mess, Harry."

"I'm sure that Sirius's death in your universe made me close up," Remus added, "And that is probably why I never told you."

"I understand that," Harry said honestly.

"Now Harry," Sirius said, "You should go."

Remus nodded, "The longer you stay here, the more chance there is of the potion becoming permanent, meaning you would be stuck here until your body perished."

Harry had already gotten to his feet, "I'll go..." his eyes lingered on Sirius for a moment longer, "Goodbye, Sirius."

Sirius smiled as he realised what Harry was doing. He was saying the final goodbye that he never had a chance to say.

The older man stepped forward and hugged him, "Goodbye, Harry," he murmured.

When Harry reached the door, he turned back and looked at them for a final time. Remus was now standing very close to Sirius, and the darker haired man had his arm wrapped around his shoulder. It was selfish of him to want to stay here, but he had to console himself, knowing that Sirius and Remus were content here. It was almost enough.

"Hey," Draco said as he sat down next to Hermione in the library. She was alone, even though she had said she would be meeting Neville.

"Hi," Hermione replied. She glanced around, "You're not my Draco, are you?"

Draco frowned, "I...uh-"

"No, I know you aren't," Hermione said in an undertone, "But I ran a diagnostics charm on you, and you are Draco. You just aren't anywhere near sarcastic and suave enough to be the Draco that I know."

"I'm from an alternate world, sort of," Draco frowned, "Or at least I thought I was. I thought this was just a dream, but if it was a dream, you wouldn't have noticed that I wasn't your Draco..."

Hermione was frowning too, "How did you get here?"

"It was a 'what if' potion," Draco said, his cheeks slightly pink as he glanced down, "In my reality, you and I aren't together...and I thought what if we were? Then the potion spilt, but it wasn't finished."

"How close to completion was it?" Hermione asked in a whisper.

"Well, it was in the final stages of brewing," Draco replied.

Hermione chewed her lip slightly, and Draco smiled, "I always thought it was cute when you did that."

Hermione chuckled, "Yeah? My Draco says the same thing."

"Does he also think that you're cute when you're angry?" Draco asked with a smile.

"Yes," Hermione laughed, "And I hate that he does because when I'm angry, I want him to think that I'm intimidating, not cute."

Draco chuckled and glanced down at the table.

"Listen, I'm going to grab a couple of books. I think I might be able to help but promise you'll stay here?" Hermione said.

Draco nodded, "Sure."

Hermione smiled at him and got up to source out some books. While she was searching the shelves, Draco frowned to himself. He liked the prospect of this universe; he liked the way things could have been. Could still be, his brain nudged.

He had feelings for Hermione Granger. He had done for ages; she confused him; his feelings for her had confused him. He had admired her determination and her intelligence at first, but the fact she always had to be right had also downright annoyed him. As they got older, he found her more and more beautiful, and she had taken his breath away when he saw her at the Yule Ball. She had grown into a beautiful, intelligent, logical woman over the years, and Draco found himself being pulled towards her more than ever now. It was getting harder to push the feelings down now that they were sharing a common room, and it also helped that the one person whose reaction he would seriously have feared, his father, was in prison.

"Hey," Hermione whispered as she returned and opened up some old books. It blew dust everywhere, but Hermione didn't seem to notice. Draco just watched her with a smile as she thumbed through the books and eventually stopped on an entry about the 'what if' potion, which was also known as "Alternis Mundi."

"Okay," Hermione said calmly, "It says in here that on rare occasions, the potion can partially transport someone to an alternate universe in its unfinished state. However, it may not work effectively."

Draco nodded slowly, "So when it works properly, it transports the drinker to an alternate world. How do they leave that world?"

"Most of them don't," Hermione said as she glanced up at Draco, "They are driven mad by the life they could have there, so they stay..."

"We could stay," Draco said, hope crept into his voice slightly.

"No," Hermione said softly, "You can't. The potion was incomplete. In your reality, you are unconscious, and this is all happening inside your head."

"Which means that if I tried to stay here, my body would only function for a few months, and I would die," Draco realised.

"Exactly," Hermione said as she caught his eye, "But morally, you couldn't stay here anyway. If you stayed, you would take the place of my Draco, and I have two years' worth of memories with him. I understand that in your reality, you have feelings for me, but I'm not your Hermione Granger."

"And I'm not your Draco Malfoy," Draco said quietly.

Hermione nodded and put her hand on top of his, "I'm sorry, but you need to go back to your world. That's where you belong."

"I know," Draco said as he looked down at their hands, "What happened here? How did you and your Draco fall in love?"

Hermione smiled and glanced down, "Well, in our fifth year, Harry had a vision from Voldemort about his Godfather being held captive. It all turned out to be fake, but the ruse helped us get the Aurors to find out that Voldemort was back. A few people died, including Professor Dumbledore."

"He died at the end of our fifth year here?" Draco asked in surprise.

"Yes," Hermione replied, "And Sirius became Headmaster in his place. You told me before we left for summer that you had feelings for me, and we kissed. We got together properly when we got back for sixth year."

"And did anything...odd happen that year?" Draco asked curiously.

"Not really," Hermione replied, "You were disowned when your father found out about us, and you knew you wouldn't be able to go home after sixth year. We told Ron and Harry, they accepted it after a few arguments. Harry duelled you as well, but you both came out of that as badly as each other."

Draco frowned as Hermione continued, "At the end of the year, Sirius called Harry up to his office and told him all about Voldemort's Horcruxes. Snape was working for Dumbledore, and Dumbledore had given him all of the memories he would need so that he could tell Harry what he had to do. So we left."

"I went with you?" Draco asked.

Hermione nodded again, "Yes, and we found the Horcruxes then returned to Hogwarts, and there was a battle. Harry killed Voldemort, and your mother was killed trying to protect you. We decided to return to school for an eighth year, and your father was sentenced to life in Azkaban."

"I wish things had happened like that where I'm from...although my mother is alive in my world," Draco said.

Hermione kept her hand on his, "What happened in your reality?"

"Well, at the end of our fifth year, you, Potter, Weasley and the rest of your gang went to the ministry to save Potter's Godfather. In the battle that followed, Sirius Black died, and Voldemort escaped. Still, it alerted the world to the fact that he was back," Draco began, "During the summer, I was forced to become a Death Eater, and Voldemort told me that I had to kill Dumbledore or that he would kill my parents and me."

Hermione stared at him in shock, "Did you do it?"

"I tried," Draco said quietly, "My attempts were feeble...A cursed necklace and poisoned mead, but I found a vanishing cabinet connected to Borgin and Burkes, so I tried to fix it so that I could bring Death Eaters to the school. It was all part of Voldemort's plan."

Hermione was watching him silently with a frown upon her face.

"Snape made the unbreakable vow with my mother that he would protect me...so when it got to the point where I had to kill Dumbledore, and I couldn't do it, Snape did it for me," Draco continued quietly, "That was at the end of sixth year. We had to flee the school, then Voldemort took over and gained control of the ministry, so the school toppled over too, and Snape was made Headmaster. Muggle-borns weren't allowed to return, and you went on the run with Potter and Weasley..."

"What happened after that?" Hermione asked gently.

"Snatchers captured you," Draco frowned, "And you were brought to one of Voldemort's bases of operation...Malfoy Manor."

"And you were there," Hermione said, her gaze fixed on his.

Draco nodded, "Bellatrix Lestrange tortured you...she carved the word "Mudblood" into your arm, and I tried to run forward to help you, but my Father grabbed me and used a sticking charm on my feet. I couldn't help you, but you all escaped, and I didn't see you again until the final battle. I threw Potter his wand when he jumped up after everyone thought he had died in the forest. Then I ran away with my parents."

"What happened to them after that?" Hermione asked.

"My father was sentenced to life in Azkaban. We donated Malfoy Manor after everything that happened there, and we moved in with my Aunt Andromeda and her grandson, Teddy," Draco finished.

Hermione was still frowning as she watched him.

"Just say what you're thinking," Draco said quietly, "I'm not a good person like your Draco is."

"You are a good person," Hermione countered, "Just like my Draco is. I think it just took longer for you to realise that in your own reality."

Draco scoffed, "I still haven't realised it, and in my reality, you and I will never be together. Who wants to be with the person who stood by and watched while they had "Mudblood" carved into their arm?"

"What did you do afterwards?" Hermione asked curiously.

Draco frowned, "What do you mean?"

"I mean, after your Hermione escaped from your Manor, what did you do?" Hermione asked calmly.

Draco glanced around the empty library and then unbuttoned the cuff of his left arm. He pulled his sleeve up and showed her the fading dark mark on his arm, surrounded by scars. Her breath caught in her throat.

"Sorry," Draco said sheepishly, "I forgot your Draco never had one."

Hermione nodded, "You tried to cut it off?"

Draco nodded, "It didn't work," he said bitterly.

Hermione looked up at his face as he pulled the sleeve down, "Tell her that."

"How would that help anything?" Draco sighed, "I don't want her to like me because of my tragic past."

"No," Hermione agreed, "But that isn't why she would like you. She would understand that you hate what you did and that you regret it all. You can't undo the past, Draco, but that doesn't mean you can't rewrite the future."

Draco smiled slightly, "That sounds like the kind of thing my Hermione would say."

Hermione smiled back, "Tell her how you feel. You'll never know what could have been if you never say anything."

Draco nodded, and before he could say any more, the library door opened, and Harry walked in. He walked over to their table quickly and said, "Draco, a word."

"It's fine, Potter," Draco said, "She knows that we're from an alternate world. And we really are in an alternate world this isn't-"

"- a dream, I know," Harry said quickly, "Sirius and Remus told me as much. We have to brew the potion again and take it while thinking about our own universe to get back, and we have to do it soon because the longer we stay here, the more chance there is that we're stuck here-"

"-and if we get stuck here, our bodies will die in our world," Draco finished with a nod. He got to his feet and glanced back at Hermione.

She smiled softly at him, "Good luck," she said gently.

Draco gave her one final nod before Harry grabbed his arm and dragged him down towards the dungeons and into the potions classroom. The potion wasn't complicated to make, so they worked together and were very careful and precise about it as they perfected it. However, it did take 15 minutes to settle, which meant that they had to leave it simmering for that amount of time before they could decant it into a phial and drink it.

"Will we remember this?" Draco asked after they had stood in silence for at least 10 minutes.

Harry nodded, "Yes."

"All of it?" Draco asked.

"Uh-huh," Harry replied as he glanced away from the stopwatch, "So yeah, Malfoy, you and I are having a serious chat about Hermione when we get back to our own world."

"I guess I had that coming," Draco admitted, "But if you get to lecture me on Granger, then I'm talking to you about Daphne."

Harry frowned slightly, "What do you mean?"

"She's my ex Potter, not to mention one of my best friends," Draco drawled.

"Your ex?" Harry asked in surprise, "Weren't you always with Pansy?"

Draco sighed, "Pansy and I only got together during the war. Daphne and I dated before that, in school."

"Did you fuck it up?"

"I became a Death Eater, and she was less than impressed with that, so yes, I fucked it up," Draco remarked dryly.

"Yeah, not the best career choice," Harry joked.

Draco rolled his eyes, "In all seriousness, things were strained between us for a while when I started seeing Pansy. But our friendship is stronger for it; I spent the entire summer at Daphne's house after Pansy died."

"So she's your Hermione," Harry realised.

Draco frowned, "You dated Hermione?"

"Uh…no," Harry said as he suddenly became very interested in a thread on his jumper, "We were there for each other during the war."

Draco raised an eyebrow, "And the Weasel was okay with that?"

"Well, he wasn't there, so," Harry shrugged, "We didn't really care about his opinion much."

"So," Draco said slowly, "You've slept with Hermione."

"And you dated Daphne," Harry said.

They both nodded.

"We really are more similar than I thought," Harry muttered.

PING.

Harry was grateful for the timer going off. He and Draco were silent as they decanted the potion into phials.

"Alright," Harry said with a deep breath, "We take one sip and think "what if I was back in my own universe?" Okay?"

"Yes, I understand Potter," Draco said sharply.

Harry nodded and held the phial to his lips, "Click your heels and think of home," he joked.

When Harry opened his eyes, the world was incredibly bright. The world spun into focus briefly, and Harry was aware that he felt incredibly sick. The next thing he knew, he was emptying the contents of his stomach into a bedpan, and the world was swimming.

"Hey, just lie back," A soft, familiar voice said.

"Mione?"

"Yeah, it's me," Hermione said gently, "Just close your eyes, alright? The nausea should go away after a couple of minutes."

Harry took her advice and lay back with his eyes shut tight. He felt cold, clammy and shaky, but the nausea did start to ebb away until it got to the point where he could open his eyes. This time the world didn't spin, and Hermione's worried face swam into view.

"I should have known coming back to school was a bad idea for you," Hermione said weakly, "Are you determined to try and kill yourself?"

"It was an accident," Harry said weakly, "Can I have some water?"

"Yes," Hermione smiled; she grabbed an ice cube from the container next to his bed and held it against his lips to moisten them, "You've been out for a good few hours. Madam Pomfrey did a spell that monitored your brainwaves. She said it looked like you were going about your everyday lives, but you wouldn't wake up."

Harry sighed, "Yeah, it was kind of like that."

The ice cube had gotten small enough that Harry could swallow it now. Hermione let go and wiped her hands on a napkin.

"How's Malfoy?" Harry asked as he looked around. A screen was drawn around his bed, so he had no idea what was going on around him.

The sound of retching came from somewhere to his left, and Hermione glanced at Harry, "I think he's just woken up."

"The last time you did that, you tried to kiss me."

Draco groaned against the pillow, "I feel like I'm dying."

"You'll be fine in a minute, drama queen," Daphne remarked.

Draco turned onto his side and whimpered.

"I'll never understand you," Daphne said in amusement, "You can take a cruciatus curse to the chest, but you cry like a baby when you're sick."

"I don't like throwing up," Draco murmured.

"Sweetie, nobody likes throwing up."

"Don't call me sweetie, you condescending cow."

Daphne smirked at him, "And suddenly you are back in the room. That potion really did a number on you; your brainwaves were weird too."

"How so?"

"It was like you were going about your everyday life," Daphne remarked; she sat down on the edge of his bed.

"It felt like that," Draco sighed, "It was an alternate world. Things were weird there."

Daphne raised an eyebrow, "How so?"

"I don't know," Draco replied evasively, "It was like a dream. I can feel it fading already."

Daphne shot him an unconvinced look but didn't say anything further on the subject.

On the other side of the screen, Harry chuckled weakly, "The 'what if' potion wasn't brewed properly, so it took us to an alternate world. But it didn't work properly. It didn't transport us there completely, only our minds."

"What happened?" Hermione asked curiously.

Harry chose to lie because he knew it would be difficult to explain and because he wanted his final moment with Sirius to be a memory for only himself. He also suspected that Draco didn't want Hermione to know about whatever had happened between them in the library.

"Well, I don't remember," Harry said, "It was like a dream, so it all faded away pretty quickly."

"Ah, that makes sense," Hermione said softly as she sat down next to his bed.

"How long have you been here for?" Harry asked.

"Since you were knocked out," Hermione yawned, "So probably about 3 hours."

"Where's Ron?" Harry asked curiously.

"He was here," Hermione replied, "But he had a dinner date in the kitchen."

"A date?" Harry asked in disbelief, "With who?"

"I have no idea," Hermione chuckled, "He wouldn't tell me."

"You should go to bed," Harry frowned, "You seem exhausted."

"It's only 8 pm," Hermione pointed out, "I just didn't sleep well last night."

"Well, you shouldn't have stayed here and watched over me; I'd have been fine," Harry said, but he was grateful that she had, "Go to bed, Mione."

"Alright," Hermione yawned as she got to her feet, "Pomfrey said you'd probably throw up when you woke up but that you'll be okay by tomorrow. You'll probably need a pepper up potion to get yourself back to full health, though."

"So she's letting me out tomorrow?" Harry asked, hopefully.

Hermione nodded, "You and Malfoy, yeah," she said as she pulled the curtains back. The curtains around Draco's bed had also been drawn back, and he mostly looked back to normal, if a little pale. Daphne was still sitting on the edge of his bed.

"Hey, Granger," Draco said politely when he saw her.

Hermione frowned slightly, "Hey, Malfoy. How are you feeling?"

Draco shrugged, "I've felt better, but I've also felt worse."

Daphne jumped to her feet and smirked, "He's a drama queen. Shall I accompany you back to the common room, Granger?"

Hermione looked bemused, "Uh…okay."

"See you tomorrow, Draco," Daphne said; she kissed his cheek. Then she turned to Harry and smiled far too sweetly, "Bye Potter."

"Bye," Harry said weakly.

Hermione hid an amused smile as she left the hospital wing with Daphne.

"How are you doing?" Draco asked Harry.

"I'm okay," Harry answered, "Although I'm requesting a change in Potions partner."

"It was your fault, Potter!"

"Don't kill each other!" Hermione and Daphne echoed from the door of the hospital wing.

Harry and Draco just glared at each other in response.

* ~ TBC ~ *