"What do you mean what year is it?" James was getting impatient. Where the hell where the other Marauders when they were needed. The red head still looked distinctly unamused and didn't seem to share the girl's panic.
"Ron, it's Harry's dad. Look, the eyes are different and if he pushed his hair back there'd be no scar. That bloody potion has done something." At this Ron walked towards James and looked, eventually pushing back his fringe.
"Hermione, what are we going to do? Remember that Dumbledore is away. That greasy haired git!" He stepped back away from James, obvious anger etched across his face
Hermione took control of the situation, she obviously was the brains of the operation. "We'll have to leave it until he gets back, until then you are going to have to pretend to be Harry. Sorry. I'm Hermione and he's Ron and we are going to get you through this until he comes back."
Harry felt relief flood him; he'd finally got them to believe his story. "So, you believe me?" he asked, just wanting that final confirmation.
"Yes, but what do we do now. Dumbledore's away." Remus started pacing while Sirius kept looking between Harry's eyes and scar. Peter had edged away, obviously aware of the new boy ignoring him. Harry wasn't ready to confront him yet.
"Can't we just pretend everything's normal until he gets back?" Harry asked hopefully, he didn't want to go into details but he knew he could trust Dumbledore in any time.
"Yes, I think we should do that. No one will be able to tell the difference between you 2 anyway. I take it your related to our dear James?" Remus asked, almost in a tone suggesting that this happened all the time.
"Aye, he was my dad." Harry kicked himself, he used past tense...he'd have to stop that or they would suspect something was wrong. Luckily this time it appeared everything had passed over their heads. Well, they did have enough to digest for the moment.
"How is Prongs your Dad...are you saying your a time traveller too?" Sirius almost laughed, but the way today was going he could honestly say nothing would surprise him anymore. He was seriously thinking of going to the bookies and putting a bet on Elvis Presley crashing a flying saucer into the Loch Ness Monster.
"Er, yeah. It's 1996 for me. My potions master hates me so made me drink my potion at the end of class even though it was wrong. I thought it did nothing but about 10 minutes later I ended up here. I wonder what's happened to my Dad. Do you reckon he could be in 1996? Do you reckon this is permanent?" Harry started the ball rolling in his head, so many questions and no answers, well at least not until Dumbledore came back.
"It'll be OK, Sirius put a reassuring hand on Harry's shoulder. He was taking on the god fatherly role even though he didn't know it, a smile crept along the young traveller's face.
"So, let me get this right. I have a son called Harry who is here at Hogworts in 1996 and you are his best friends?" Ron and Hermione were sitting on the bed opposite.
"Yeah, there's some other stuff which we are going to have to tell you. But don't ask questions about it, OK? Just accept what we tell you because trust me, you cannot change the future no matter how much you want to." Hermione reminded James of a professor, so serious about everything. Bet she's like Lily Evans he thought to himself.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah." James was getting inpatient at this
"OK, Harry's famous because he survived aveda kedevra from one of the most powerful dark-wizards of all time when he was a baby. He has a scar on his forehead which we are either going to have to mock up on your head or push your fringe down to cover where it would be. He's also quiet which I've heard is the opposite of you. Just keep your head down because you are going to get attention, but you've got to act like Harry and he hates it" Hermione said
"He survived aveda kenevra? How?" James looked excited; his son was a powerful wizard.
"We can't tell you, give up asking because you are not going to get an answer. Now please be quieter" Hermione looked at James pleadingly, she obviously thought he could not pull this off.
"OK. I can do that." Hermione and Ron exchanged nervous glances to each other. "Really I can!"
Harry and the Marauders talked for ages, mainly Sirius asking questions about the future which Harry consistently refused to answer. "Am I going to be famous", "What's my girlfriend called?" "Whose your mum?" The time passed quickly but in the put of his stomach Harry wanted to go back to his time, where he knew that one slip wouldn't affect everything he had ever known. It didn't take too long, after tea a familiar nausea came over Harry as he was sitting by the fire in the tower. Sirius looked concerned but Harry just told him "I guess this jaunt is over with, bye everybody" and with that Harry blacked out.
The trio skipped tea and instead went and sat by the lake. James wanted to know more about his son, so Ron and Hermione were trying to delicately piece together pieces of information that wouldn't harm anyone. James was gutted when he found out Harry wasn't a chaser but said being youngest player on a Hogworts quidditch team made up for it. The three talked about adventures and whom they liked and disliked in their respective times. Suddenly James passed out. Ron and Hermione looked at each other scared of what to do. If they took James to the hospital wing they would realise something was up, then they would be in a mess. Also James might hear something he shouldn't know bout past excursions. James opened his eyes with a snap and sat bolt upright,
"You all right there?" Hermione asked, but with that she realised Harry's eyes were green and not the hazel of James,
"Harry! You're back!" she shouted as she wrapped her arms around him in a hug which could have possibly broken some ribs.
"Yeah, so I take it my dad was here then?" Harry asked, grateful to back in his own time for once.
"Yeah, we were so worried. So where did you go?"
Harry let off a knowing smirk "We swapped timelines"
James was awoken by Sirius shaking him "Harry? James? Anyone?"
"Get off Padfoot, yeah I'm back." James pulled himself upright in his chair, during his time passed out he appeared to have fallen somewhat.
"You'll never guess what happened" Sirius was animated, he couldn't help but tell everything,
"Let's see, did my son from 1996 come here complete with a cool scar on his forehead?" asked James. Sirius looked deeply disappointed,
"You got us, you twit, I'll get you back for this one" Shit, he hadn't meant to have done that.
"No, it wasn't a prank, I just found myself in 1996 with 2 people called Hermione and Ron who are supposedly best mates with my son". The conversation continued, it was quite some adventure, although Sirius appeared deeply disappointed that the future wasn't too different from their times.
"Best thing of all though? Harry is a kickass quidditch player who survived the killing curse." James smiled from ear to ear in only a way fathers can do when proud of their sons.
Cheers for the reviews everybody, I know this chapter is bitty; the rest of it isn't as bad just lots of clearing up bits to be done in this one.
