Harry stayed in the room of requirement until dinnertime, at which point the trio went to the great hall and sat at the Gryffindor table helping themselves to piles of bangers and mash. It was with great surprise they saw Dumbledore coming down to talk to them, usually he would owl them with an appointment time or get another member of staff to forward his message to the appropriate students.
"Once you three have been fed I would like you to pack your trunks and bring them to my office." Harry nodded, wondering what was going on, maybe they were being moved out for their own safety. They did have a talent for finding trouble after all. Ron and Hermione looked equally surprised
"Maybe we are going on a trip" Ron spoke with a mouthful of mash, getting him disgusted looks from Hermione.
"Of course, what I am wondering about is where to? I guess it must be confidential because otherwise McGonagol would have told us to meet him."
Harry just shrugged "Doubt it, if it was a secret why would he tell us here, it's packed"
"Can't you remember what Sirius said last year, it would be harder to overhear us in The Great Hall", for a moment Harry could see Hermione as that same snotty brat him and Ron met on the Hogwort's Express on the first day of secondary school.
"It doesn't matter anyway, sounds like we'll find out soon enough." This time Ron had learnt his lesson and spoke with an empty mouth, obviously Hermione's chastisements where starting to get through to him. The boys had chocolate frogs for afters where as Hermione's upbringing with 2 dentists was still engrained in her and she chose the fruit.
Up in their dorms Harry started packing everything in his trunk "Do you recon he means pack everything or just what we need?" He asked.
"I'm taking everything, I don't know what we are doing so better to be safe than sorry. We can get Hermione to shrink them for us once we've finished." It took the boys over half an hour to find their belongings among the rubbish which littered the boys dorms by the end of the year, although Harry was tidier than Ron after years of the Dursley's he still struggled to find all his stuff.
Eventually Hermione came bounding in "Really, are you finished yet?" She asked with an impatient tone.
"Yeah, I'm all done," said Harry, slamming the lid shut and bolting the last few clasps on his trunk. Hermione instantly shrunk his trunk to the size of a 50 pence piece. He put if in the pocket of his robes and went over to help Ron, with three of them looking for his stuff his trunk was in a similar state to Harry's within 5 minutes. Hermione had already shrunk hers so as soon as Ron had finished the trio walked to the Headmaster's office.
"Liquorice wands" Ron said, getting a reprimanding look from Hermione, "I didn't do anything, I took James to Dumbledore after the vision, that's how I know it". They progressed to the top of the stone spiral staircase and knocked on the big wooden doors.
"Hello, I was expecting you. You may well be wondering where you are going with such short notice. Given recent developments" he look directly at Harry, "I have decided that you three should go back to 1977. As much as I hate to admit it James will have no chance against Voldemort and these switches complicate matters greatly. It will be much easier for all concerned if both Harry and James stay in the same time, it will prevent confusion." Ron looked doubtful at this, but decided not to argue with Dumbledore.
Hermione however raised her concerns, "Sir, how does sending 3 people back help anything, surely it just means the timelines will suffer further damage."
"Miss Granger, I think you will agree Voldemort is going to cause sufficient damage. I have thought this through and having one of the pair dying in the wrong time would be disastrous, we may lose both. This gives us as way of protecting everyone. Harry will always be there to protect his father and vice versa." The group nodded, not entirely convinced.
"How do we get back?" Hermione asked.
Dumbledore smiled, removing a broken tea cup from a pocket in his robes "This is a portkey of sorts, I've been tinkering to make it change time as well as location. It will send all those touching any time and place they want to. I cannot come with you, but I am sure my counterpart in the past will be willing to help when you need to come back."
"I say the room of requirement in 1977" Harry and Ron nodded, in agreement it would probably be empty and they could hope it would be cushioned in case they fell. The trio grasped the broken cup; within a few seconds they felt a familiar pull behind their navels as they fell to the ground.
Lily and James where sitting in their respective positions when a loud crack was heard and three teenagers suddenly appeared in the room clutching what appeared to be a broken china cup. On reflex the pair reached for their wands and pointed them at the intruders, no one should be able to do whatever they just did into Hogworts. James lowered his wand as soon as the red headed boy looked up at him
"James?" He said before clambering too his feet, brushing himself off at the same time. "Ron! Hi! This is Lily" he said while pushing his red headed companion from 1976 to the foreground before helping Hermione get to her feet. Finally the third of the teens stood up, a boy who would have passed as James, but with startling green eyes, a boy James recognised from the photo album.
"Harry?" he asked uncertainly. Harry looked straight at his father, trying to appreciate every single detail about his appearance.
"James?" he said eventually.
Hermione took control of the situation at the point. "Your both right".
James started speaking first "See, I didn't lose your place on the team"
Harry laughed. "And a good job too, otherwise I would have your guts for garters"
Lily stepped forward to Hermione "Typical blokes. Your future son drops in the room with 2 friends who are not even born yet and the first thing they talk about it quidditch. I'm Lily by the way"
"Yeah, we know who you are", said Hermione. Ron joined Hermione, putting his arm around her waist "I'm Ron and this is Hermione"
Lily shook their hands, "I know, he spoke about you a lot. You're Harry's best mates aren't you?" The pair nodded. Harry came over "They are not just my best mates, they are like family." Harry had finally appreciated there is more to family than blood.
"Well, do you think we had better introduce ourselves to the head?" Hermione said in a business like tone.
"I suppose, do you 2 want to come for a walk?" Ron looked at Harry's parents who responded by walking out of the room of requirement behind the cruelly named dream team.
James and Harry dropped back from the group a little bit, both desperate to meet the other after all they had been through, but it also meant that Lily could meet Ron and Hermione. The whole group would then know each other. Harry looked down at the floor as he walked down the corridor, unable to think of what to say.
James ended up making the first comment, "They're right you know, you do look just like me but with Lily's eyes."
Harry found this thought amusing; "You're calling her Lily now? Maybe there's hope for me being born after all." James playfully swiped at his son. "Leave it off" he said, shrugging away in a dramatic fashion, his tone of voice making it clear he was just jesting, "I've escaped Voldemort six times. I'm sure I can manage you". Harry pulled his tongue out and ducked another swipe on reflex. The pair burst into hysterical laughter.
Up ahead Lily was talking with Ron and Hermione, after Lily spoke about how she had never read about the room of requirement, even in 'Hogwort's: A history' Ron had randomly started giggling.
"What's up with you?" asked Lily, Ron just laughed harder.
"You look so much like my sister it's scary and now you are acting like Hermione. I was convinced she was the only person ever to memorise that book". Hermione gave him an evil glare,
"I just have a good memory, and maybe you should read sometime, you might learn something. I must admit though, Lily does look amazingly like Ginny". Ron laughed even louder, and was now attracting the attention of a group of first years coming the opposite way down the corridor.
"If her and Harry finally get round to going out it would be like history repeating itself" This warranted a sharp dig in the ribs from Hermione
"What was that for, it damn hurt!" but looking at the glare on Hermione's face he knew immediately exactly what had made her react like that, luckily so did Lily. "I know about Harry being my son, he doesn't know that I do but James accidentally said too much before and I pieced the pieces together. Anyway, he does have my eyes".
The group where finally at the door of Dumbledore's office. It was Lily who knocked, decided maybe as the only person who wasn't a time traveller it may be for the best she conducted affairs. She pushed one of the heavy doors open and the assorted teenagers filed into the office.
"Professor, these three are Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger and you already know Harry. They have been sent from 1996" Dumbledore just nodded, sank into his chair and gestured for the others to sit down.
"Now, Harry, I take it this has something to do with your vision?" Harry nodded.
"I don't know how much to tell you, in 1996 you seemed to feel that Voldemort was causing enough damage to the time lines as it was so us three coming back would have little difference on the future."
Dumbledore looked straight at Harry. "I must request you tell me everything". Harry didn't want to recite the story again, so instead he looked over to his dad. "Have you still got that letter I wrote?" James pulled it from a pocket in his robes and passed it to Dumbledore, who read it, occasionally chuckling and at other times looking grave.
"What happened in the past 3 years? I know it will probably be hard, but we need all the information" James looked at Harry but they didn't make eye contact, he know, or at least he thought he knew. More importantly he understood what Harry was feeling, that deep sense of loss and anger.
"Can't I show you in the penseive sir, I really don't want to have to talk you through it again" Harry pleaded with his headmaster.
"What is a penseive, I don't think I'm familiar with that pieces of equipment but if you told me what it does I would be willing to use it or an alternative providing I know of one" Dumbledore started drumming his finger tips together.
"It a kind of bowl you store memories in, you have one in 1996 which has runes around it" Harry's heart was sinking, the blank look on Dumbledore's face suggested he was going to have to recount events the muggle way. After a prolonged silence, in which it appeared Dumbledore was thinking about possible alternatives he began to speak. "I'm sorry Mr Potter but I know not of anything which works in such a way. Please will you tell me everything that happened in the past three years"?
Harry took a deep breath and started speaking as fast as he could manage, as if getting it out quicker would make it hurt less. "Fourth year I kept getting scar pains and visions, some journalist picked up on it and said I was mad. it emerged our DADA professor was a disguised death eater, who entered me for the triwizard tournament. Cedric and me won and grabbed the cup at the same time; it was a port key that took us to Voldemort who killed Cedric. He then took my blood, Wormtail's hand and some bone from his dad to make a potion that gave him a body. We ended up duelling but our wands are brothers, they are the only 2 wands with feathers from Fawkes. Priori incanteam happened" Harry left it at that happening Dumbledore understood, from the look on his face he didn't but Harry continued through regardless.
"Fifth year still had the media making out I was mad, the Ministry didn't admit Voldemort was back and The Order was restarted. The Ministry tried to take over Hogworts and nearly succeeded. At the end of the year Voldemort sent me a fake vision and tricked me into trying to get the prophecy. The Order found out but loads got hurt and my godfather died as a result. Sixth year the second war had started, death, destruction but nothing involving me personally yet." Harry finished, and looked up at the headmaster. He seemed sufficiently convinced.
"That's why I've sent you here. You are possibly the three people in the world best equipped to fight Voldemort".
Harry hated to admit it but he was right, the trio had deified Voldemort more times than even his parents. In first year he gave Harry the chance to fight Voldemort and this was probably the future Dumbledore doing the same thing. Maybe he even felt guilty for keeping Harry in the dark last year, or maybe he knew something Harry didn't.
"I can fight him, but I don't know how to kill him. I have always had lucky escapes. You've saved me a couple of times, even though last time I was so angry with you it took a while to realise it."
Dumbledore nodded, "But still you have got away from Voldemort 5 times, no one has ever managed that."
Harry stood up and looked straight at the professor "But I am 16 years old, I haven't even got my NEWTS and my OWLS weren't all fantastic. I tired to do crucio last year and I couldn't even manage that, how am I meant to kill him? The prophecy says I have a power the dark lord doesn't know I have, but whatever it is it's keeping itself well hidden." Harry was getting angry again, he threw himself back into his chair. Dumbledore just smiled at Harry,
"You will manage, you will succeed", Harry wished he had his confidence. "In the meantime I guess you will need accommodation, an education and some equipment."
Hermione stood up, "We are in Gryffindor, but if we can't stay in the dorms we could stay in the room of requirement. We have all our stuff with us, we packed and shrunk our trunks but I don't know how we'll attend lessons. It will look like we have come out of nowhere."
"Miss Granger; that will be no problem. You may stay in Gryffindor tower, as for attending lessons I will leave it up to you to make up a story to tell others, it may be the truth or it maybe fantasy, I will not tell the teachers anything for the time being except there are some new pupils in their classes, but I believe the switching difficulties between the 2 Mr Potter's should not be revealed unless necessary." The group turned and left the office, treading the route to Gryffindor tower that was now engrained in their minds, trying to catch up on each other's lives.
And that marks the end of the recap chapters, it's been long and dull but they are over with. Hallelujah!
Now I am off doing some Medicine Revision and hopefully passing these resits I got coming up.
Oh, and I like the chapter title for this, but it's a word usually replaced in my household with "dirty filthy red scum". It is positivly swearing in my eyes. Please do not mistake this for any sympothies for the football team they call Manure.
I'll probably post somemore tomorrow, but in the meantime I leave you with the following words: -
"Nowt in life is fair, but nor are black puddings"
Kimmiijay Kotchanski
