Chapter Twenty-Nine
Sweet Baby and James

Harry and Ginny looked at Voldemort's blank expression changing to a mischievous grin in less than four seconds. He cackled loudly, and Snape's sallow skin regained the little color it had before Harry told his story. Voldemort's laughter was so uncontrollable, it seemed as if he'd been put under the Tickling Curse, though Ginny was sure no one had shouted 'Rictusempra'.

"You-you honestly thought that you could bring my morale down with your little love story? I never have and never will love anyone. I have only faith and respect in people, but never more than that. If that is your plan to defeat me, then I must say go right ahead! Because the only person who would fall for that touching story is a Muggle…and maybe Dumbledore of course," Voldemort babbled on as he struggled to hold back his laughter. Snape looked nervously giddy as he chortled next to Voldemort's chair.

Suddenly Voldemort stopped and a serious and deadly expression took over his face. Voldemort beckoned to Snape, and Snape nodded his head fervently. With a flick of his wand, Snape pulled Ginny over to where he and Voldemort were standing. Harry's face turned white as he watched Ginny being forced on the ground, and Snape sitting on her chest, drawing his knife closer to her face.

"Any last words, little girl? Or Potter, I suppose. It's so sad that you won't get to see me defeat your boyfriend, though Weasley. And you won't get to see that evil always prevails over good in the end. And this is the end for you, of course. Good-bye…" Voldemort echoed throughout the attic and something inside Harry was boiling and about to explode…

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! Just kill me now…leave her! She has nothing to do with you! Just-just kill me, and you'll have won, and it will all be over…"

Harry couldn't believe what he was doing. It couldn't all be over yet; but he couldn't let Ginny be audaciously murdered.

Harry took a deep breath as he cantered over to Voldemort and Snape. Snape looked utterly bemused, while Voldemort looked extremely amused.

"How bold! How daring! Just like your father. Well, before I kill anyone, I'm going to tell a little story…
"It was exactly seventeen years ago today, and your parents were preparing for their little son's first birthday. They absolutely adored you, you know. Only the best for ickle Harry! And your godfather was here, and their friend the werewolf, and Dumbledore too, all preparing for your little party they were to have the next day. When all of a sudden, someone knocked on the door. An old friend of theirs, someone they had always trusted since their schooldays. That person was Peter Pettigrew. He looked so scared, and so tired, as if he'd just been running from someone. We practiced so hard for that, as it was extremely important. He told them all that a group of Death Eaters had been chasing him in hopes of finding Harry and bringing him to me. He was so convincing that they became panicked and turned to Dumbledore for help. As you know, measures were taken to ensure that I would not find them. But of course, I knew where they were, because I knew who they were. Your mother was of course Gryffindor's heir, and she would proudly be living in his home. And as you know, he became their Secret-Keeper in the end, blah blah you've heard this all before. Anyway Harry, Pettigrew has been in hiding ever since your fourth year. He's biding his time, preparing for this day exactly, when he will return any moment now, knocking on the door and bringing you horrible news that your death will come sooner than you'd expected a few weeks before now. Ah, I think I hear him now…"

From outside the attic door, someone stood, breathing heavily and knocking on the door. Harry felt as if he was becoming a quadriplegic because he could move neither his arms, nor his legs to try and stop Wormtail's return and his and Ginny's demises.

"Ah, Master, I have returned in full service to you, the Dark Lord and eternal victor of the Final Duel," Pettigrew declared as he waltzed over to the high-backed velvet chair and bowed down to kiss the hem of Voldemort's robes.

A deranged expression formed on Wormtail's face as he looked from Harry to Ginny, who was now collecting herself up from the floor, then a wicked smile penetrated his lips that scared Harry and Ginny half to death.

"Well, well, well! Has Miss Weasley here joined in on the fun? I heard of your father's and brother's deaths, and I must say I am so surprised to learn that they hadn't died sooner!"

Ginny felt tears forming behind her eyes: tears of anger and rage and hatred for this defector of all mankind.

"I HATE YOU!" Ginny let out this blood-curdling scream, but was soon restrained by Harry as she wept and sobbed heavily. Harry tried his best to think of some way to stop all of this madness…

Harry looked over at Ginny's wrist and saw that it was nearly 4 o'clock in the evening. How could he have let all that time pass? He needed to do something soon, because the future of the world was all up to him.

"Let the fun begin!" Voldemort declared, and curses went flying back and forth. Harry and Ginny were outnumbered, even though Voldemort didn't move from his chair. He directed the other two, and Ginny and Harry desperately needed help.

All of their spells were useless for Snape and Wormtail (or Voldemort) knew the counters to every curse they could think of. Yet they battled on, exerting themselves with all of the strength they could muster. When suddenly, Harry hit a barrel of something that burst open, sending pink liquid all over the room.

"YOU FOOL! I told you to secure that earlier! It can't be opened now!" Voldemort bellowed as he cursed Snape, "Well don't just stand there! Try to stop it from leaking all over!"

Snape was frantically running around, trying to contain the fluid within a small circumference around the mysterious barrel. Wormtail on the other hand was busy polishing his wand, when Voldemort unleashed harmful energy on him.

"Crucio!"

Wormtail was writhing around on the floor as Harry and Ginny stood motionless, watching. Thankful for this short break from battling, Harry and Ginny were each busy devising their own plans to defeat this terrible trio. Harry's voice quavered as he whispered softly into Ginny's ear, "Go sneak along that wall and swirl your fingers in that liquid-y stuff in a counterclockwise motion three times. Now!"

Bewildered, Ginny obeyed and pressed her back flatly against the wall enthroned in shadows. Snape was busy performing the near-impossible task of making the pink liquid flow back into the porcelain barrel, and Voldemort was too preoccupied with his torturing of Wormtail to notice her swiftly sliding along the wall. She was moving too quickly through the darkness to notice that there was a pillar intersecting the wall about ten feet ahead, and as she continued her sneaking, she crashed head-on into it. Now dazed and unable to see clearly, Ginny stumbled to the ground, feeling her way towards the pink liquid.

After cutting her hand on a piece of the porcelain barrel, she knew that she was close to the liquid. She crawled along the floor until she knelt in a warm liquid. In fear of blacking out at any moment, she swirled her middle and forefingers in the watery pink concoction, just as Harry had instructed her to. But that the last thing she remembered before passing out…

Harry, in the meantime was busy distracting Snape by casting an irreversible direction spell on the liquid so that it would only flow one way, no matter what Snape did to it. But by the time Ginny had swirled the liquid and passed out, Snape had contained the rest of the fluid somehow and Harry had to run over to Ginny so that when they landed they would be together.

The same sensation that came when traveling by portkey came as Harry lifted Ginny up; it seemed as if a hook were inserted just behind his navel and he becoming from the spinning feeling.

When Harry had finally come to, he realized that this particular mixture of Time Liquid had taken them back to the night of his parents' death. Why? He had no idea, but for now he had to concentrate on finding out exactly how his parents had died. But where was Ginny? He had been holding her when they changed dimensions of time, but now she was nowhere to be seen. Suddenly, without warning, Harry began to walk towards the front door of Godric's Hollow.

"Why, it's mighty chilly outside!" he involuntarily exclaimed as he performed the Thermal Blanket Charm on himself to warm up. Harry had no idea what he was doing; why was he talking to himself in such a strange manner and why was he now walking in the direction opposite to that of which he actually wanted to go?

"I do hope Lily is alright. Remus said she sounded mighty upset this afternoon when I came back," Harry said unwillingly, this time mentioning his dead mother.

"James Potter! Where on earth have you been? I was so worried, and Harry's been fussy all afternoon. In the fireplace Remus said that you'd gone out?" Ginny emerged from the house, fuming and wearing expressions that reminded Harry of Mrs. Weasley's when she was angry with her children or…

Harry definitely could think for himself in this strange displacement of time, just not act for himself. And Ginny was now acting as Lily, his dead mother, so she too must be able to control her thoughts.

'There must have been some Reenactment Potion mixed with the Time Liquid. But why? Well Voldemort is undoubtedly here, and he killed my parents, and Ginny and I are acting as my parents…this is how he's going to kill me! I have to try and fight this…But Ginny, or Lily, mentioned me, or the baby. Who is portraying young Harry Potter, if the real Harry Potter is me?' Harry thought to himself as he stood there watching Ginny or Lily? place her slender hands on her hips, apparently waiting for some explanation from Harry James.

"Well Dear, I'm so sorry. I was working on a special Halloween treat for you and Harry. Can you forgive me?" Harry made an innocent-looking face, that turned into a charming grin and Ginny giggled as she took him by the arm and led him into the house.

"James, you look so tired. Here, sit down and eat. I made pork chops and sweet potatoes, your favorite!" Ginny exclaimed as she gestured for Harry to sit down at the small wooden table located in the far corner of the quaint kitchen.

"Well, I guess I couldn't impose, Dear!" and Harry sat down on a rickety wooden chair and began to eat the cooling meal.

"So when will Harry and I be able to see this special Halloween treat?" Ginny asked as she began to sweep the kitchen floor with just a wave of her wand.

"Right now. You just go get Harry and bring him in here, while I get ready."

Ginny nodded and smiled as she ascended the wooden staircase to go and retrieve the baby, whoever it was. Harry made sure Ginny was out of sight before leaning out of the kitchen window and sending yellow sparks into the air with his wand.

Someone emerged from the bushes: Wormtail. Harry began waving him over to the house, but even after Wormtail approached the window as the sun was quickly setting; someone was still rustling in the bushes.

'What am I doing? He's the one who gave them away! How could he possibly help with this Halloween surprise, whatever it is? And Voldemort was in the bushes all along, and my father never noticed…I have to break out of this!'

But as Harry was whispering to Wormtail, Ginny was softly humming a lullaby as she approached Harry's bedroom. Ginny now realized what was going on also, and she was afraid to see who would be acting as Baby Harry, sitting innocently on the cot. Ginny swung the door open only to find, no one.