None of them knew Dumbledore's password, so the first place they checked was the staff room. Fortunately, Dumbledore was there, along with whom Remus recognized with a start as an older version of Professor Flitwick. But why older? he couldn't help but wonder.

Flitwick left, and the four boys entered the rooms, not without some nerves. Dumbledore, however, seemed immersed own his own thoughts and didn't look up until Peter announced their presence by whimpering. He started at bit looking at them, as though this were the last thing he expected. "What are the four of you doing here?" he asked finally, and he sounded mildly puzzled, which did not bode well.

James, Remus, ans Sirius glanced at one another, none of them with any idea what to say or how to tell him. Peter apparently had no concerns. "James . . . James has a double!" he squeaked, and promptly attempted to conceal his pudgy form behind Sirius again.

"Honestly, it's only Dumbledore," Sirius growled, moving again.

Remus commandeered the situation while Sirius ranted about Peter's apparent inability to look after himself. "Well, he's right, professor. James . . . there did to appear to be two of them in the Great Hall when we went down there."

Dumbledore paused thoughtfully. "What were the four of you doing, before you suddenly appeared someplace you were not?" he asked, startling Remus and apparently James (Sirius hadn't finished lecturing Peter, and so neither were paying much attention).

"Um. . . ." Not wanting to get in more trouble, Remus thought about the answer. "We were in your office waiting for you to come and tell us off for . . . what had you two done this time?" he added to James and Sirius.

"We . . . er . . . let the bludgers out," James admitted, only a little shamefaced. "While the first years were having flying lessons."

"That was today, and I've already managed to repress it that much?" Remus asked mildly. "I still claim nothing to do with it," he added to Dumbledore.

Sirius grinned slightly, the maniac grin that always worried Remus slightly. "Not quite your ally, is it?"

Dumbledore shook his head. "Alright," he commented, halting the conversation completely before it got the chance to become an argument. "Now, Remus, can you tell me what you four were doing before you . . . apparently weren't there anymore?"

"The usual stuff: James and Sirius were trying to come up with a decent excuse, I was pertending I wasn't there, and Peter . . . Peter was playing with some of the objects in your office. Did that cause . . . what I think it caused?" he added cautiously.

"That depends. What did you think it caused?"

"I'm not entirely sure," Remus admitted, drumming his fingers along the spine of the book in his hand. "But did it cause whatever happened to us?"

"Probably," Dumbledore admitted, sounding slightly amused and slightly concerned with the situation. "I'm not quite sure; there are too many things in my office for me not to have to look."

"Yes, but what happened?" Sirius demanded irritably, finally done with Peter.

The other four people in the room all shot him mixed looks of about ten different emotions, irritation of which, surprisingly, wasn't one of them. Remus's and James's both had some relief in them, Peter's was mostly shock, and Dumbledore's was highly amused.

"As far as I can tell," the headmaster replied, "you have succeeded in sending yourselves forward in time by twenty some years."

"Oh," all four of them said simultaneously.

The next reactions were predictable. Peter leapt behind Sirius for the third time in a fifteen minute period. After shooting the headmaster a look of skepticism, Sirius rolled his eyes and turned to begin another rant. James's eyebrows soared above his glasses— apparently he was as skeptical as Sirius. Remus, on the other hand, stared thoughtfully into space for a moment. "The kid that looks so much like James . . . would that make him his son?" he asked finally.

Dumbledore shrugged, and this time it didn't look like he was going to answer. "How badly are you going to hound me about this, Remus?" he asked finally.

"Only until you give us an answer, sir."

Dumbledore shook his head, glaring lightly over at all four of them over his half-moon glasses. "Then I suppose I would have to admit a yes, then, wouldn't I?"

With that announcement, and instructions to meet him there after supper, he ushered the four boys out of the staff room.

James paused halfway down the corridor. Sirius and Remus stopped a few feet off to wait for him, and Peter, panting along behind, was allowed to catch up. "I have a son?" he asked finally, when Sirius made an impatient move to continue on without him.

"Well," Remus replied, "to be absolutely right, you will have a son . . . he hasn't been born yet to us . . . at least he's assurance we'll get back . . . ."

James shrugged. "I just sorta wondered who with."

"Let's see," Sirius said in mock puzzlement. "Who could James possibly want to marry— someone he makes a complete fool of himself in front of?

"Sirius. . . ." James appeared to catch Remus concealing his grin with a hand. He glared and ran fingers through hair that was already a mess. "Oh, fine," James said at last, and muttered a name.

"Sorry mate, I didn't catch that," Sirius announced, who wasn't even trying to hide his own grin.

"Evans."

"It only took him . . . what? . . . five minutes longer than it took us?" Sirius observed, still grinning in the way he had to know made the other three want to smack him. This time, however, Remus chuckled and Peter just seemed confused.

"Shut up," James advised. "And let's go eat."