Disclaimer- I own nothing you recognize here!
"Ron Weasley this is all your fault!" Hermione screeched in Ron's ear for what seemed to be the hundredth time. Passerbies were starting to stare at them because of Hermione's random outburst. Ron just kicked at the snow trying to ignore Hermione and the sick feeling that was beginning to swell in his own stomach.
"How many times are you going to say that?!" Ron asked visibly annoyed.
Hermione stopped pacing around and gave Ron the iciest glare she could muster.
"Until it gets through your thick skull!" she hollered in response, throwing the busted 'watch' at the side of his head.
"This isn't even my fault, its Malfoy's!" Ron yelled meekly in his defense.
"Oh, I'm so sorry! I must have had my head turned when Malfoy put a blasted pistol to your head and forced you to wind the watch!" Hermione screamed with her voice oozing with sarcasm.
Harry watched his two friends bickering while he fanned poor Neville, who was in tears.
"Will you guys give it a rest?" Harry asked rubbing his temples. Too much was whirring through his head and it was beginning to give him a headache. Or maybe it was Ron and Hermione, he couldn't tell.
"What are we gonna do?" Neville spoke for the first time since they were thrown out of The Three Broomsticks. His chubby face was pale and soaked with tears. "I can't even handle sixth year spells, and it's the year 2019 already? We'll have to get jobs! How will we get back home? I'll probably never see my Gran or my parents ever again!" Neville wailed shakily.
Hermione stopped bickering with Ron, much to his disappointment, and sat next to Harry in the snow and rested her hand on Neville's shoulder.
"It'll be okay Neville...we'll get home soon. We'll find someway..." Hermione trailed off.
"Yeah, Mione's right. We'll be back in no time!" Harry said trying to be cheerful.
"But how?" Neville wondered helplessly.
"That's easy," Ron started, "We'll go to Hogwarts and ask for Dumbledore's help!"
"You forget Ron, Dumbledore's not headmaster anymore, Lupin is!" Neville said.
"I'm sure he'll help us too." Harry said trying to keep his optimistic thoughts.
"Harry's right." Hermione stated.
"Of course he is..." Ron muttered to himself.
"All we have to do now is find a way back to Hogwarts..." Harry said rubbing his few whiskers on the bottom of his chin.
"We can walk." Neville said getting to his feet.
"Or...we can walk." Ron repeated.
"Looks like were walking." Harry said, getting his bearings.
"Not necessarily..." Hermione said pointing to a carriage parked in front of Scope's and Perry's Lil' Wizard Daycare. It was a Hogwarts carriage probably big enough for six.
"That's bound to be going to Hogwarts..." Neville said grinning.
The four companions sprinted quickly over to the carriage and saw that it was currently unoccupied at the moment.
"When did this get here?" Ron questioned pointing at the daycare center.
"Guess it's new." Hermione shrugged.
"Let's hurry and get in..." Harry said.
"Wait! Someone's coming!" Neville hissed pointing at the Daycare.
Its door opened and out came a boy that looked to be about seven or eight. He had long straight tan locks that covered his pink ears and dark chocolate brown eyes that darted around as if he was looking for something. Another person soon emerged from the daycare, a woman carrying a little girl who looked no older than four years old. The woman was wearing deep blue robes that swayed in the wind as she walked briskly to the carriage. She pushed a curly brown lock of hair out of her eyes, which matched the boy's, and continued talking to the girl in her arms. The little girl also had curly hair but her hair was as dark as charcoal and she also had hazel eyes which were lighter than both the woman's and the boy's. The little girl's light blue Puddlemere United T-shirt seemed to be soaked in tears. She hiccupped all the way to the carriage.
"What do we do?" Ron questioned.
"Hide!" Neville, Harry and Hermione said in unison as they scrambled to the opposite side of the carriage out of sight.
They could still hear the people's voices from the other side.
"Mom, I can't find my monster book! I thought I left it out here!" exclaimed the little boy obviously worried.
"Benny, I gave it to your father to hold for you when we get to the Quidditch game." the woman replied to the boy.
The little girl sniffled.
"Mommy, you're not -hic- listening to me!" she whined.
"I am, Lizzy, I am." her mother soothed her upset daughter while getting into the carriage.
"Hey guys get on the foot rail." Harry whispered motioning for his friends to stand on the foot rail so they could hitch a free ride. The curtains were drawn on the carriage windows so the people inside wouldn't be able to see them. Harry worked his way around to the front as there was not enough room on the rail for four. He grimaced and seated himself on the threatening threstal.
"I don't get why you're crying. You're the one who bit that kid not the other way around, stupid crybaby." the boy said to his sister.
"Benjamin, what have I told you about calling your sister names?"
"...don't do it to her face?"
"That was your brother who said that."
"Well sor-ry! But she is a crybaby! All she does is whine and you and Dad get her everything..."
"They do -hic- not!" the girl said with her tears stating up yet again.
"Do too!"
"Do not!
"Do too!"
"Do not!"
"Do not!" the boy repeated.
"Do too!" the little girl countered. When she realized what she said she began wailing.
"I told ya mom."
"Benjamin Leonard Potter, you stop teasing your sister this instant or I'll make you stay in your room when everyone else is watching the Quidditch game!" the boy's mother threatened sternly.
The whole carriage was silent as everybody outside stared at Harry.
"Potter?" Neville mouthed to Harry who leaned on the Threstal apparently dumbstruck.
Harry just shrugged.
"I always get blamed for everything..." Benjamin moped to himself.
After that the ride to Hogwarts was pretty silent. When they reached the grounds they decided this was a choice time to get off, this way avoiding confrontation from the woman and her children. Neville, Ron, and Hermione let go of the carriage and tumbled to the ground easily. Harry on the other hand had quite a difficult time removing himself from the threstal's back but he eventually got off and rolled next to Ron's feet.
"So where do we go from here?" Neville questioned pulling some grass out of his hair.
"To Lupin's office." Hermione said matter of factly.
"Do you really think he would be there? Didn't you here that woman? Everyone's at that Quidditch game." Ron said dusting himself off.
"Well fine, we'll go to the Quidditch pitch." Hermione said walking towards the crowded stadium.
She paused and stared back at Harry who was looking at the woman and the two children get out of the carriage at a distance. She went over to him and gave him a hand.
"Are you coming?" Hermione questioned offering a smile.
Harry looked up in a daze and seized her hand.
"Why, of course." he said as they walked off.
"Okay guys, everyone remember the drills at practice?" Sebastian said hastily buffing his Thunderbolt 150 broomstick.
Everyone in the Gryffindor locker rooms stared at him giving his broom a fourth coat. Sebastian was always nervous before a Quidditch game but his condition seemed to worsen now that he was captain.
"No, after drilling at practice 1000 times I don't think it's sunken into our thick heads." Riley said sarcastically with a sly grin.
Archie stopped lacing up his boots and let out a heavy sigh.
"I thought I was the only one!" Archie said extremely relieved.
At this Sebastian squealed like a little girl and started pacing around the locker room.
"What're we gonna do? I can't let you ruin this for me Longbottom; this is my moment, my miracle! What would Lana do if she found out I let you screw up the Gryffindor winning streak?" Sebastian said speedily in one long breath.
"Lana's in France now, I doubt she gives a fiddler's fart about what we do now..." Shane Weiss, the second beater, muttered with a grin.
"Fiddler's fart? Where'd you hear that one?" Alexia asked flashing her good friend and fellow fifth year a grin identical to his own. Shane glanced over his shoulder while blushing madly and shrugged. Everyone on the team seemed to notice that Alexia had that effect on him, everyone except her that is.
"Snap out of it, Seb!" Riley said grabbing Sebastian by both of his cheeks. "You're gonna do fine, we're gonna do fine, and we'll win." Riley said smashing Sebastian's cheeks together so his lips puckered out.
"..." Sebastian remained silent.
"Got it?" Riley asked not releasing his cheeks.
"Ghod eht." Sebastian sputtered.
"Good." Riley said placing a friendly peck on his slightly sweaty forehead. Riley had always been a touchy feely friend ever since Sebastian and Archie met her in first year. Over the years they got used to the random overfriendly hugs and such she gave them.
Alexia decided to interrupt the moment when she saw Archie sending Sebastian evil looks from across the room.
"Err... guys? I think we better jet. Five minutes until game time." Alexia said checking the clock on the wall.
"Now Lexi, be sure to do your wrist stretches. I wouldn't know what to do if my prize seeker suddenly fell off her broom with a wrist cramp..." Sebastian said walking next to her while massaging her thin wrist.
"Oh no, here we go with the overprotective big brother mode..." Juny Creevy, the third year keeper. Juny's real name was Colin Creevy Jr. but everyone called him that for short. Juny was considered to be the 'baby' of the team because he happened to be the youngest and whiniest teammate.
"Shut it, brat." Archie said automatically as he did every time Juny said something.
"Why are you always on my case, Longbottom?" Juny asked scrunching up his face in annoyance as he stabbed the dirt with his broom handle.
"Now boys, do we really have to have this conversation for the millionth time this year?" Riley questioned, lagging behind so she could stand between the two. Riley always seemed to be the voice of reason and peacemaker of the group.
The whole team halted their march as they stood in front of the scarlet and gold curtain that blocked their view from the Quidditch Pitch, which was already roaring with cheers and clapping. Over all the scattered noise the team heard Sean Finnegan, the sixth year commentator making a few wisecracks about the team as they zoomed around the air space on their new Cyclone broomsticks, courtesy of Mr. Weasley who had a daughter on the team. Upon hearing the whooshing of the Slytherin team Sebastian's hand automatically reached up to the handle of his older version, the Thunderbolt 150 which he started stroking self consciously. Archie noticed this notion and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.
"Hey Cap, don't worry about them and their fancy shcmancy brooms, you got yourself a classic there!" Samantha Foster, the team's short fourth year chaser reassured Sebastian, slugging him lightly in the arm.
"I've been asking my dad for a Cyclone for ages! I can't believe this, now they're gonna beat me on my dream broom!" Sebastian retorted.
Juny snorted momentarily before being slugged in the left arm by Archie. He took that as a warning and glared at his feet. Alexia just laughed.
"You expect dad to get rid of a 'perfectly good' broom when he's been flying around on that ancient Firebolt for ages?" Alexia said giggling slightly.
"It was worth a shot, wasn't it?" Sebastian questioned irritably mounting himself on his broomstick as the curtains opened. Brilliant sunlight flooded the damp hallway and the cheering from the stadium multiplied as the Gryffindor team zoomed out on their fairly good brooms.
"Well, here goes nothing." Sebastian murmured before following the suit.
Ron, Harry, Hermione and Neville trudged in a single file line to the stadium in silence. Harry's brows furrowed over his now forest green eyes as he thought about the people they had previously come in contact with.
'She said Benjamin Potter. Can they be related to me?' Harry's thought echoed into his head.
'Oh yeah, like you happen to be the only Potter at Hogwarts...' Another voice echoed.
'I suppose you're right...' the first voice commented lightly.
'Of course I'm right, stooge. Ha...like you would ever have kids...'
'Hey, what's that s'pose to mean?'
'Hmm? Oh, nothing, nothing, it's just that...I suspect Voldemort would've finished you off quite some time ago...'
'HEY!'
'It's true! I mean, come on, seriously, did you really expect you to defeat the dark lord?'
'Well...yes actually.'
'There's a simple explanation for that: You're delusional.'
'Hey!...Shut up...'
'Oh great come back...keep wheelin' those at Voldemort and he'll be history in no time...'
'Don't make me come over there!'
'Oh what do you plan to do-?'
"Will you guys please shut up? I'm getting a headache!" Harry exclaimed out loud as they reached the gates to the Quidditch Pitch. All his friends turned around in surprise at his sudden outburst.
"Err...we didn't say anything Harry." Hermione said slowly as if Harry we're about to attack.
"Oh, not you guys! These guys in my hea- never mind..." Harry muttered realizing his friends may think the tabloids were right in questioning his sanity. Telling them that two guys in his head we're arguing over him may have done just that he figured.
"...Right then. Should we go up to the Gryffindor seats?" Neville questioned sensing Harry's gratefulness that he had changed the subject.
"Of course!" Ron said taking the lead again. He seemed to get joy out of not being led around by Harry like some kind of sidekick for once.
"NO!" Hermione cried out making all of them jump from surprise.
"What now?" Ron questioned obviously annoyed.
"What if someone recognizes us? It could mess up the whole...the whole-" Hermione struggled to remember what McGonagall had told her in her third year when she had received the time turner that ended up saving Sirius Black's life.
"-Space/Time Continuum?" Harry suggested while getting a better look at the people cheering their heads off in the stands.
"That's it! How did you know that, Harry?" Hermione questioned, clearly astounded that that Harry would attain such knowledge of time travel.
"I umm...heard it on this movie Dudley was watching. You ever seen it? It has like this old scientist guy with wild white hair and this kid...Marky? Martin...?" Harry thought hard to remember.
"Marty?" Hermione suggested.
"Yeah, that's him." Harry confirmed snapping his fingers.
"Oh...Back to the Future. Of course..."
"Urgh...stupid muggle films..." Ron muttered under his breath slightly jealous that he had not had something to contribute to the conversation and quite peeved that Hermione had found a way to damper his plan of getting close-up seats at the game. "Like anyone would stop us and say 'Hmm...You four look exactly like four kids who went here twenty three years ago!'" Ron said sarcastically.
"Well Ron it just may be a little more complicated than that!" Hermione spat out.
"Why is everything so complicated with you?" Ron questioned stepping closer to Hermione, his quick temper surfacing.
"She's a girl, it's her job." Harry remarked with a grin.
Hermione's head snapped in his direction.
"Why do you always have to take his side?" she asked glaring at Harry.
Harry looked shocked and shook his head profusely. "I wasn't-."
"Because he knows I'm right!" Ron shouted, coming to the aid of his friend.
"Like the time in first year when you said Snape stole the Sorcerer's stone?" Hermione questioned agitated.
"Oh, that one time!"
"Or the second year when you said Malfoy opened the chamber of secrets?"
"Hey, you-."
"Or the time-."
"Hey, here they come!" Neville exclaimed gleefully dragging his bickering comrades away from each other and towards the Quidditch Pitch where the announcer was announcing the Slytherin team.
Hermione and Ron joined Harry and Neville's side and watched wordlessly as a group of burly and dangerous looking Slytherins zoomed out on their brooms followed by two petite girls with identical determined looks on their faces.
Yes and here comes the Slytherin team...'bout time they got their sorry asses out here-." The blonde curly haired commentator mumbled into the microphone before being smacked on the head by the same Curly haired woman with the two kids that had gotten in the carriage earlier.
"Professor they've been delaying the game!" he defended his comment. "Anyway...here we got Matthew Caddington and Claudius Shepard as beaters, Eric Goyle, Captain Aphrodisia Malfoy, and Derrick Bulstrode as Chasers- ooh, quite the team that trio is..." the commentator added as a sarcastic after note as the Professor left the commentator box to join the other Professors.
Neville looked to his friends stunned.
"Did he say Goyle and Malfoy?!" he questioned over the scattered cheers and boos that the team was receiving.
"Looks like it..." Hermione said positioning too the dainty girl with platinum blonde hair who was flying with her pointed nose so high in the air Harry wondered how she was directing the broom without crashing blindly into something.
"Xavier Malfoy as seeker, Sheesh, did we really need two Malfoys on a team I mean one in the school is enough..." the commentator continued as a younger looking boy who shared the same features as his older sister came out sneering maliciously at the commentator who just jeered back. "I mean come on, we all know if Potter hadn't had his sister on the Gryffindor team there would be no way Malfoy ,the boy one that is, could've ever seen the Quidditch Pitch-no Professor, I can see you marking off my extra curricular points all the way over here, I was just kidding!"
"How many different Potters are there at this place?" Neville asked somewhat jokingly.
"Forget Potters, how many Malfoys?" Ron questioned cringing at the name.
"And last but not least-well actually-never mind, Francis Weasley the keeper, we all know how she got her position on the team..." he muttered motioning with his arms at his side and thrusting his hips suggestively. "Yes, brooms- Ha! I bet you thought you had me there huh Professor?-Thanks to Mr. Weasley, Francis's dad, the Slytherin team now get to sport something else besides the side effects of steroids on the field-another joke Professor calm down..."
"Weasley?! A Slytherin?! What kind of sick twisted world is this?!" Ron exclaimed clutching his flaming hair frantically jumping up as if something had bit him.
"Now do you see why we couldn't sit in the stands" Hermione mumbled with a small grin.
Ron scowled in her direction.
"No I don't! But I see exactly why we are going to the stands!" Ron said yanking her and Neville by the wrists and guided them up the stairs leading to the Gryffindor tower followed by Harry.
Suddenly there was an ocean of wild applause and whooping as the Gryffindor team poured onto the field.
"Some things never change..." Harry mumbled with a slight grin.
"Here they come, the Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrryffindors!" the commentator roared enthusiastically. "Now here's a real team that'll show those Slytherins how it's done-Professor I can read lips and I am not being bias!-Here we have Colin "Juny" Creevy, team keeper, taking the lead, followed by Samantha Foster, one of our peppy chasers-whoo! Somebody get that kid a valium!" Sean joked as Samantha flew into barrels and did various flying stunts on her broom as Gryffindor cheered on. "No, I'm not promoting the use of drugs Professor; don't look so surprised I told you I can read lips! Anyway, following Samantha in the lineup is Riley Andrews, another on of our chasers, and may I say one of the hottest- whoa, Archmiester calm down, it was a joke! Well...not really, ladies and gentlemen Archie Longbottom, one of our dynamic beaters! Shane's on his tail there folks, our second beater, and here comes 'Sexy Lexi' Potter-Oh, Professor P, not you too! I was just jokin'! That woman's had a bad influence on you!-as I was saying our champion seeker, all rounded up by Sebastiaaaaaaaaaaaaannn Potter folks, chaser and our new captain after Lana Boot hightailed off to Beaubatons..."
"Daddy, I can't see nothin'!" the eager four year old squealed reaching for her father to lift her on his lap.
"You can't see anything, Lizzy. Don't make your mom have to chew your head off just because you use double negatives..." a thirty-nine year old Harry Potter replied smirking as he complied to his youngest daughter's wishes by hoisting her up on his lap. She squealed with giddiness as she tangled her tiny fingers through her father's unruly, slightly graying hair. Benjamin, her older brother that was seated to the right side of his father sighed and rolled his eyes before burying his nose in his thick book yet again.
"I would not chew her head off! Honestly Harry, the things you tell her..." Harry's wife Hermione Granger, now Potter, muttered crossing her arms.
"You know I'm just joking..." Harry retorted making playful chewing motions at his daughter as she hid herself in his scarlet robes.
"You sound worst than that Sean Finnegan over there..." Hermione said slipping her husband a sly grin while nodding to the commentator's box where Sean was complaining about the Slytherin team's showy appearance.
"Phoenix are bein' naughty momma." Lizzy chirped in her high pitched voice.
"Phoenix is being naughty dummy." Ben snapped.
"Honestly, commentators these days...he may even give Lee Jordan a run for his money." Harry said darting his eyes to the bottom of the pitch to where all the players were flocking.
"What would a Quidditch Game be without a commentary?" Headmaster Remus Lupin questioned chuckling slightly as Lizzy slid over from her father's lap to his.
"People playing with their balls." Benjamin answered lifting his head from his book for the second time, grinning at his little pun.
"Ben!" Hermione chided as Lupin and Harry gave a hearty laugh.
"Stop encouraging him! Oh, Benny, you sound more like Phoenix every day..." Hermione muttered referring to her eleven year old son who could be seen bobbing around the commentator box with Sean Finnegan adding in his own two cents to the commentary as his twin Fiona giggled madly from the next stand.
"Oh, he's just poking fun..." Remus reassured her patting her leg softly.
"Daddy, it's Snake!" Lizzy jumped up on Remus's leg pointing at the center of the stadium where Professor Severus Snape stood with the case containing the Quidditch equipment.
"Snape, Darling, the bad man's name is Snape." Harry corrected excepting a chunk of chocolate that Remus had offered him.
"It's Professor Snape." Hermione corrected both of them.
"There goes that speech problem again..." Benjamin said to himself.
"Alright then, I want a nice clean game here! No more monkey shines like the last one, you here? Anyone who disobeys will have me to answer to." Snape said eyeing the Gryffindors bitterly. "Teams shake hands!" he demanded.
Both teams hesitated for a while but eventually met in the middle of the field to shake hands with the opposing team much to both team's dismay. Samantha, Juny, and Archie shook hands extremely briefly with Francis Weasley, Eric Goyle and Claudius Sheppard all yanking their hands away after one moment as if afraid to catch something. Riley, Shane and Alexia each shook hands with Matthew Caddington, Derrick Bulstrode, and Xavier Malfoy. Their handshakes looked more like they were each trying to squeeze the life out of their opponents. Alexia shuddered as Xavier yanked her hand to pull her closer to him and hissed into her ear with his soft icy voice,
"Get ready to loose more than you're worth...Potter." he said in a low tone so close that his tongue was nearly touching her ear. Alexia pushed him away as if she had been electrocuted.
"And what's that supposed to mean, Malfoy?" she questioned glaring at him coldly.
He grinned back at her slyly as he ran a hand over his long flaxen hair. "Wouldn't you like to know." he started to get on his broom but noticed Shane glaring at him as well.
"What the hell are you staring at, Mudblood?" he hissed in his Malfoy-like manner making Shane's eyes dart around nervously. From a short distance away Sebastian extended his hand nervously into the surprisingly warm grasp of Aphrodisia Malfoy who bored into his emerald eyes in an eerily disturbing yet soothing way.
"You better tell your sister to watch it, Potter. Xavier could be dangerous if he wants." she said barely moving her lips and not breaking the handshake.
"What? Oh that. She can handle him..." Sebastian said blushing violently under the pressure of the flip flops his stomach was performing. He didn't know why he always behaved like this when Malfoy came around. He just knew it bothered the hell out of him that he couldn't return the icy scowl, spit out a few insults at her and her group of Slytherin friends, and then be on his way to his way like all the other Gryffindors did.
"You'd think that, wouldn't you?" she stated more than questioned, not breaking the handshake.
"You don't sound too surprised."
"Oh please." she sighed coming in closer to his face so that their noses were almost touching. "The Gryffindor bravery doesn't come as much of a shock to me anymore...the stupidity either..." When she let go of the grip Sebastian was sure his face was on fire. He watched her mount her broom across from him and ran a jittery hand through his tasseled brown hair.
"Aphrodisia, good luck." he breathed as she stared him down once again.
"I return the word, Potter. You're the one who'll need it." she added with her trademark smirk.
Snape waited until Sebastian bashfully waddled back to his broom to release the quaffle, bludgers and the golden snitch and then the game got into full gear.
Harry, Ron, Neville and Hermione's eyes darted in all directions following the Quidditch game. They had made there way up to the front past all of the roaring Gryffindor fans behind them. Harry thought he had spotted the snitch for a split second buzzing around the Professor's seats. He looked eagerly to spot it again in that area but his eyes caught a much more interesting sight. His emerald eyes locked with an identical pair belonging to a Professor who seemed to be staring right back at him.
AN- There's the first chapter. I was hoping to get a whole bunch more done before I get sidetracked by *dun dun dunnn...* school... Anyway, review and tell me what you think. Please!
