This is a super long post to make up my absence since foreverness. Sorry x100! Finals are so so close and I'm so scared, I haven't even finished half revising for everything!!!!

Post 61

I stumbled into bright light. I shielded my eyes against the bright sunlight that was streaming through the windows. Wait a minute... sunlight?

"It's daytime!" I exclaimed, running to look out the window.

"I don't think we were in there the whole night, do you?" asked Sirius quizzically.

"It hardly seemed like an hour..."

"Strange..."

We headed down the deserted corridor towards the Charms corridor.

"Hey guys," called James running from the other end of the corridor. "Where did you go? You weren't in bed when I got up. You didn't..." He trailed away with a suggestive look on his face.

I looked awkwardly at Sirius then back at James.

"Well did you?!" He demanded, his lip twitching.

"Sorry to burst your bubble, James..." said Sirius.

"But we didn't," I added.

"Oh... then where were you all night then?" He asked.

"We got lost and ended up in this room," explained Sirius, turning around to show James the door.

But it wasn't there anymore.

"What room?"

"It was just here!" I said.

"Must have shifted..." muttered Sirius quietly. "Anyway, it was totally bizarre."

Sirius then proceeded to tell James everything... well, almost everything. Not entirely everything. Thank goodness.

I realized what that place did... it was to make us understand each other better. I remembered asking Sirius why he ran away, but he seemed reluctant to tell. And me too about my secret. Was it better now that he knew?

Weeks swept by in a flurry of homework, tests, and extreme revising as the final exams crept dangerously closer and closer. Everything was so dull. Sirius and I hardly got to see each other anymore. Our midnight visits to Hogsmeade lessened. And life was just hectic. But it was that particular evening in May...

I was just returning alone from dinner like my nights before. I was just trying to memorise all the Charm incantations that I had listed down on a piece of parchment for next week's test, walking down the dungeons when it suddenly happened.

I could hardly scream in alarm as a person, burst out of the door I was passing by, with such force only a spell could inflict. He banged into me, clear off his feet and we were both thrown onto the ground in a heap.

I groaned, blinking away the stars, clutching my aching shoulder. My books were scattered all around us, and parchments were fluttering to the ground. We were in a tangled heap. I didn't know where my leg was or what was over my arm.

The boy struggled to free himself and jumped onto his feet at once, his wand ready, his expression alert. I turned onto my back, rubbing my side, to have a better look at him.

"Watch it..." I snapped slightly irritated. "James! What were you doing?"

But when the boy turned around, I realized it wasn't James. Not exactly...

"Where is he?" The boy demanded, his alert eyes darting around the dungeon.

"Where is who?" I pushed myself up into a sitting position. He didn't seem to have remembered he had knocked an innocent passer-by down! "Who are you?!"

"Voldemort!" He rushed towards the room he had fallen out off, searching frantically.

"You-Know-Who?" I asked in alarm. "Why would he be here?" This boy was mental...

The boy rushed back out of the empty room, his wand still raised. "He was just here! I was dueling him!"

"You?" I asked in slight amusement. "Dueling He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named?"

"YES!" He growled ferociously.

"Alright... chill," I said, getting to my feet. "Well, You-Know-Who is not in Hogwarts... He can't possibly be here... who are you?"

"What?" He asked, his voice lowering, ignoring my question.

"He's not here..." Standing, I got a better look at him. He was around my age. A Gryffindor, looking at his tie (messily done). And looked uncannily like James... "If he was, we'd be running for our lives now..."

"No, you're not supposed to be here! All students were moved from Hogwarts not long ago..."

"No, we're all still happily studying here," I replied in confusion.

"But... how can that be?" He asked, his eyebrows knitted as he scratched the back of his head. "Hermione! Ron!" He called into the dungeon, his voice reverberating against the dungeon walls.

I noticed there were bright red glistening grazes across his cheek and a droplet of blood was trickling slowly from forehead... Speaking of forehead, he had a rather unique scar. It was shaped very much like a bolt of lightning. A spot of red peeked from under one of his nostrils. He looked as if he had been beaten up pretty badly.

"What's that on your head?" I asked in curiosity.

"You... you don't know who I am?"

"No, should I?" I asked, looking away awkwardly as I picked up all my books. (He didn't even help.) "But why don't you tell me?"

He ignored me and began pacing. Again he checked the room and all the other rooms along that corridor.

"You're bleeding... do you need to go to the hospital wing?" I asked, stuffing everything into my bag and standing up.

"No... no thanks," he said using his finger to wipe the blood from his nose. "I'll be fine."

"You know... you look a lot like James," I told him.

He spun around and looked at me with searching eyes. His eyebrows knitted again. So hard I bet he'd have worry lines by the time he's twenty! He grabbed my shoulder suddenly.

"You know... James?"

I jumped backwards, pushing his hand away, staring at him. "Yes..."

"James..." he paused, gulping, his voice very hoarse. "Potter?"

I nodded slowly.

"How?"

"What do you mean how?"

"How did you know him... Was he in school with you?" he shook that question away. "Which can't be because you're still in school... right now!"

"But... I am in school with him..." I said unsurely.

He stared at me with unbelieving emerald eyes. "No... that's not possible!"

"What's not possible?" I asked confused.

"Everything!"

"Everything like what?"

"You, me, here, Voldemort! What part of everything don't you realize?!" He screamed almost manically.

"I don't know!" I replied roughly. Should I know why You-Know-Who was here when everything's been going on normally as it always had been? "Why don't you tell me why you're suddenly here raving about dueling You-Know-Who?"

He burst again into angry mutters. Talking mostly to himself. Pacing around briskly. "How?! How did it happen?! One minute I was there... Our wands!? Could that be the reason? Those potions... What could they have done?! And Voldemort's not here... but then that must mean..."

"What's wrong?" I asked, approaching him slowly. He looked tense enough to explode.

"Nothing's wrong!" He cried, shaking his head, sounding slightly insane. He paced faster.

"Well, it looks like a lot is wrong..." I said carefully. "What's your name?"

He turned to look at me. He gave me a long look as though contemplating what to do next. "Harry."

"I'm Reine McKinnon..." I said. "Harry what?"

He shook his head. "Just Harry..."

"Um... okay..." I replied. "What year are you in?"

"Seventh."

"Seventh?" I asked, utterly baffled. "I haven't seen you around the whole year in any classes...And... why were you going on about You-Know-Who?"

"Well..." he paused. "You were right... You-Know-Who is not here. At least not now."

"What?"

"I'm from the future, I think I must've been brought here somehow..." He rubbed his head roughly, making his hair even messier than it had been. He growled in anger. "I shouldn't have told you that!"

I stared at him with eyebrows knitted. What was he going on about? Was he maybe slightly off his rocker?

"That must be it," he replied slightly irritated. "And Voldemort was here... I was here. Right here in the dungeons. And I'm not crazy!" He added as a warning.

"Of course you're not..." I said quickly. "You're from... the future?"

He nodded. "I have to find a way back. I don't know how I got here... All I remembered was our wands... connected... again, but in a different way."

"Right..." I replied. "What are you going to do now?"

"You know James right? And Sirius too? What about Remus?" He said, suddenly excited, his face lightening up slightly to be replaced by a slight grin. "And Lily?"

"Who are they to you in the future?" I asked inquiringly.

"I don't think I should tell you that..." He said with a small smirk.

"You do know this is awfully weird..." I said.

"Yes, I know."

"Do you just expect me to take you to James, Sirius and Remus now?"

"Yes, why not?"

"First of all, you look like you've just went through a thick forest of thorns. Secondly, how are you going to explain how you're suddenly here?" I asked. "And not to mention you look awfully lot like James... too much it's almost..." I trailed off and cast him a searching look. I knew something was in there and I had a faint hint what. "...strange."

He looked at me with brilliant emerald green eyes that too seemed familiar but was the only thing that separated him from James. His eyes were pleading, they were crying in pain within not only physically but emotionally.

"You say You-Know-Who is in Hogwarts where... or rather when you're from?" I asked quietly.

This boy had something to do with him... I knew it.

He nodded sadly.

"Do you really want to go back?"

"I have to..."

"Why?" I probed.

"It's what I have to do... not what I want to..." he said softly. "It's what I'm fated to do..."

"But you know... Everything changes fate..." I said with a shrug.

I looked at him for a while. Again I could see the pain and suffering in his eyes. He's been through a lot, too much in fact for someone his age and I realized there was a certain tone of deject in his voice like as if he knew what was lying ahead for him.

"C'mon, they're in the Great Hall..." I said quietly.

We walked back up to the Entrance Hall. They should still be in the Great Hall. Dinner has not yet finished and they're usually the last to leave. He followed me in silence, his eyes taking in everything we passed by.

"Don't tell them when I'm from..." he said as we neared the Hall.

We were just walking towards the Great Hall when the Marauders came walking out. Peter had a bunch of cupcakes in his arm, stuffing each happily into his mouth.

"Sirius!" He breathed excitedly as we walked closer.

"Hi guys," I greeted with a wave. "Meet Harry..."

Sirius gaped at him. "Man James... is that your evil twin or something?"

"Of course not! I'm an..." sniped James, and he raised his eyes to look at Harry. "...only child." Harry was taking in everyone's face... his bright green eyes watered... with happiness? Sadness? I don't know.

Everyone was staring at each other.

"Hi..." said Harry hoarsely extending his trembling hand towards James.

With a wary look, James took his hand and shook it slowly. Harry had this odd look upon his face. And they looked so remarkably similar... you'd think one was a mirror reflection. They had the same untidy jet-black hair, Harry had green eyes, whereas James' were hazel brown. Their faces were almost the same shape... the lips... the chin. How can two different people look so alike?

Unless...

No... no it couldn't possibly be... could this boy, Harry... be his son? How else then did they look so alike? Except for the eyes. Yes, he must've gotten them from his mother. Which is a good sign since they aren't mine... which means... Father didn't manage to force me into marrying James! Joy!

"How are you?" asked James casually.

"Well... okay, I guess," replied Harry awkwardly.

"Were you beaten up by Slytherins?" James asked, frowning slightly.

"No... no... I..." he paused. "Fell... down the... stairs."

"And scratched your face on barnacles growing on the floor, I see..." added James unbelievingly.

"Where are you from? Why haven't we seen you around?" Demanded Sirius suspiciously.

"I'm an exchange student..." he said quickly.

"Huh? Professor McGonagall hasn't informed me of any exchange students..." said James.

"Um...maybe she will soon..." muttered Harry unsurely. And feeling the need to change topics, he said, "It's great meeting you..."

James grinned egoistically. "Oh? Do they know me at your other school? But of course...Yes, well... I know I'm famous and everything... Heh... but it was great meeting you too! Even if you look strikingly like myself." He flashed another grin. But his eyes had caught something behind Harry's back.

He let go of Harry's hand in a second and dashed away.

"Lily dear!" He called. "Let me walk you safely to the common room!" He grinned and offered his arm which Lily took, with a look of pleasant surprise.

"Lily?" repeated Harry with a glazed sort of look. He looked as if he dearly wanted to follow them but decided not to.

"Harry," called Sirius. "So... play any Quidditch at all?"

"I'm... I mean I played Seeker for my team back then," replied Harry with a smile. "...there, I mean."

"You know you should get that cut cleaned..." said Remus bossily.

"No, it's fine..." said Harry.

"Great! If you're good enough, James would probably let you join and kick the old seeker out!" said Sirius cheerfully. "He's rubbish!"

Harry laughed weakly at that and looked away.

"So, how come you've suddenly transferred?" Asked Sirius.

"We... my family, that is," he stammered uncomfortably. "...moved."

Harry was looking at Sirius in the sort of way you'd look at something that you missed a lot. His eyes took in everything from Sirius' hair to the way his tie hanging loosely off his neck. And then suddenly, as though a wave of emotion suddenly overtook him, Harry had Sirius in a tight one-armed hug.

"Woah," cried Sirius in surprise, as he tapped Harry's back awkwardly. Sirius and I exchanged uncertain looks as Harry continued hugging him.

Finally he pulled away, his eyes brimming with tears and a sad smile across his lips. Sirius returned a weak smile as his eyes shifted from me, to Remus, to Peter, to Harry.

"Don't you have to see Professor Dumbledore, Harry?" I asked pointedly, trying to break the uncomfortable silence. He should probably visit Professor Dumbledore at least, seeing as he just popped out from the future claiming to have battled the Dark Lord.

"Yes, yes, I do..." he replied.

He hurried off on his own towards the moving staircases. All of us stared at his retreating back until he had disappeared from sight.

"Unusual lad..." muttered Remus.

"There's something you're not telling us..." said Sirius darkly to me.

I shook my head. "Nothing."

"Come on, you expect us to believe this boy just transferred looking like he was beaten by the Whomping Willow?" asked Sirius.

"Yeah!" Agreed Peter incredulously.

"Well, yes, that's what he told me!" I replied. "He said he tripped."

"Did he trip and tumbled down the whole length of the North tower or what," said Sirius with a laugh.

"And what's with that hug?" asked Peter.

I tried to shrug off all the questions they threw at me and finally escaped back to the common room. That evening, I borrowed one of the school's owls and sent a note off to Harry. I had to know, there were so many speculations whirling in my head and needed to be answered. Especially why he looked so much like James.

I had asked if we could meet at the top of the North tower after dinner, when we're still allowed out. Harry wasn't at the Great Hall that night, and I didn't receive a reply from him, but decided at last to go up to the North tower on my own first and waited to see if he'd come.

The North tower was deadly silent at night, as it always was. I climbed up the spiral staircase that led up the Divination classroom and also the balcony which was a level higher.

Well, it wasn't a balcony. There was hardly any walking space. But I sat, leaning against the sloping blue cone-shaped roof of the tower just beyond the low wall that bordered all around the roof.

I don't know how long I waited but finally, I heard the gentle clicking of the door and Harry stepped gingerly out, the wind immediately catching his dark hair, making them messier than ever.