SUMMARY

After spending half his life trying to rid the world of Voldemort, Harry Potter finally succeeds. However, the price has been high. Too high. Unfortunately, when Harry risks his life to go back and 'do things right', something goes wrong.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I would like to thank…

S'TarKan – It was his story that gave me the idea for this story's starting point. Also, if you want to know what kind of Harry Potter my main character is (they've had similar experiences, losses etc), or just want to read a good Harry Potter fanfic, then read 'Harry Potter & the Nightmares of Futures Past'.

The creators of QUANTUM LEAP and SLIDERS – Anyone who's seen either of these shows might recognise elements of both shows central ideas in this story. The situation my Harry gets himself into was indeed partially inspired by the central features of both of these shows.

This website – For providing a forum where people like me can write stuff that people will actually get to see.

J.K. Rowling – They are her characters after all.

CHAPTER FOUR – A Bit of Encouragement.

Harry was breathing heavily as he leaned against what felt like a tree. As he waited for his vision to return, he wondered where he had been taken this time.

Since he'd inexplicably saved his own wedding from death by Piandisk Potion, he had been dumped in two other alternate worlds before being swept away to this one. In the first alternate reality, he had appeared just outside Diagon Alley, where he had witnessed his younger self being given a guided tour of the Alley by Hagrid.

He had then been engulfed by the blue aura a few minutes after helping his younger self get away from some 'Boy-Who-Lived' fans and appeared in Little Whinging, where he saw his other self being hit in the back of the head with a cricket bat by Dudley. Harry had winced when he saw this – he had spent a month in the hospital with a concussion because of Dudley, though it had 'officially' been an accident that had caused the concussion, thanks to Uncle Vernon. Not this time, Harry had thought as he conjured up a piece of parchment and a quill and wrote an anonymous letter to his former neighbour, Miss Figg, telling her of what he had witnessed and hoping that she would pass it on the Dumbledore. It might not do this Harry any good, Harry had thought at the time, But then again, it just might make a difference.

Of course, by now, Harry was starting to wonder why this was happening to him. Why was he being swept through time and reality by some unseen force? It seemed that he only seemed to 'move on' to the next reality when he had actually done something to help someone. So now what? Harry wondered as his vision began to return to him for the fourth time.

He suddenly realised he wasn't alone. Looking up, he saw a young boy with dark hair, glasses and a familiar scar staring at him wide-eyed.

Oh bugger! thought Harry, as his other self stood there frozen on the spot. His eleven-year-old self from the second reality hadn't seen Harry's scar and so hadn't realised he had just been saved from having to endure countless handshakes by another version of himself. This one, on the other hand, had seen Harry's scar and was probably trying to figure out who, or indeed, what he was.

"I guess you're probably about to ask who I am, right?" Harry said to his other self.

The other boy, who Harry guessed was probably about twelve or thirteen, nodded slightly.

Harry thought for a second, considering how to answer that question in a way that made sense. "Okay," said Harry after a few seconds. "Let's see if I can explain this without confusing either of us. Um... right. How about this? I'm you, but from a different reality." Bloody hell, that sounded stupid, thought Harry. I'm really gonna have to work on an explanation, especially if I have to do this more than once.

There was an awkward pause before the younger Harry finally spoke. "Wh… you're… me?" he stammered.

Harry looked at his other self sympathetically, trying not to think about what he must be thinking at this point. "Sort of," he replied. He decided to try another explanation. "Think of me as a Harry Potter that led a different life. Does that make any sense?"

"You… you mean you're a… an alternate version of me?" the younger Harry stuttered.

"More of less," Harry nodded and looked around at the trees around him. "Anyway, where are we?" he asked, deliberately changing the subject. "This isn't the Forbidden Forest, is it?"

The other Harry laughed when he said this. "The Forbidden Forest? Of course not! That's at Hogwarts. Don't you even know where you are?"

"A few minutes ago, I was in Little Whinging, Surrey and about two hours before that, I was in Diagon Alley, so no, I don't know where I am right now," Harry replied irritably.

"Oh. Sorry," mumbled the younger Harry. "Um… well, this is Gryffindor Forest. My house is over there, on the other side of the village," he said, pointing behind him.

"Village?" said Harry. He walked past his other self, stopping when the 'village' came into view. "Godric's Hollow!" he gasped.

His other self nodded, confused by Harry's reaction. "Um, yeah… That's my house over there," he said, pointing to a large house just outside the village.

"Impossible," whispered Harry. He looked at his other self's forehead. He has a scar too, but if that's his house, then that can only mean…

"What's wrong?"

Harry pointed at his other self's scar with both his index and middle finger. "That scar – how did you get it?"

The question confused the other Harry greatly, but he answered it anyway. "Well… when I was a baby, a Dark Wizard called Voldemort attacked me and my parents. He tried to kill me, but for some reason, his killing spell bounced off me and destroyed him – at least, physically. He didn't die, though most people think he did."

"And your parents?" asked Harry. "What happened to them?"

"I… I dunno," stammered the younger Harry. "I guess he stunned them or something… Why?"

"They didn't die?" mumbled Harry.

"What?" exclaimed Harry's other self. "No! Of course they didn't…" He stopped suddenly. "Oh Merlin!" he murmured. "Your parents. They…"

Harry nodded. "They both died that night," he said quietly.

There was a long silence. Harry's mind was in turmoil. His parents are alive! he thought glanced at the scar on his other self's forehead. How is that possible? How can he have got that scar if neither of his parents died for him. At this point, an unwelcome conclusion entered Harry's mind. They didn't have to die to save me! My parents could have lived! If Riddle had just stunned them, I wouldn't have had to endure growing up with the Dursleys…

The younger Harry, not knowing what to say, tried to change the subject. "Um… look, I sorta told everyone I wouldn't be long," he said. "You should come. I mean, if you're… hungry or anything…"

He trailed off, unsure whether Harry had heard him or not. Harry stood there for a few seconds before realising that he was feeling a little peckish – he hadn't eaten anything since just before arriving at the ruins of Privet Drive, which from his perspective was just over six hours ago. "Sounds good," he said. "I could do with a bit of food – only if it's okay though…"

"It's okay," interrupted the other Harry, realising for the first time how others must feel whenever he said that. "Besides, I'm sure there'll be plenty of cake left over."

"Cake?" said Harry, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah," replied the other Harry. "It's kinda my birthday today."

"Really?" said Harry. "Weird."

"What is?" enquired the younger Harry.

"It was my birthday when this whole 'alternate reality' thing started for me," answered Harry.

"Oh," said the other Harry. "Some birthday present."

Harry smiled. Well, at least he's got a sense of humour. "So how old are you?"

"Thirteen. You?"

"Thirty," replied Harry. "And before you say anything, I used to be a lot taller and… older looking."

"Oh," was other self's response. "Anyway, we should go – everyone'll be wondering where I've gone. C'mon, I'll give you a ride."

For the first time, Harry noticed the broom in his other self's hand and smiled. "Never thought I'd see that old thing again," he said quietly.

"Huh?"

Harry shook his head. "Don't worry about it. Just thinking about a little incident involving my old Nimbus, a swarm of Dementors and the Whomping Willow,"

"Do I even want to know?" his other self asked sarcastically. "Never mind. C'mon, let's go."

Harry shook his head. "I've got a better idea." He put his hand on his other self's shoulder. "That's your house over there, right?" he asked, pointing at the large house near the village. His other self nodded. "Alright, then. Hold on," said Harry before Apparating them both away.

XxXxXxXxX

"Where in Merlin's name is that boy?" said James Potter in an exasperated voice.

"Relax, Prongsie," said Sirius. "He's probably just flying around somewhere."

"He said he was just going for one flight," said James.

"Well… maybe he meant one very long flight," suggested Sirius, trying to lighten the mood, though he was just as worried as his friend – Harry had been gone for well over an hour.

"Harry's in trouble, isn't he?" smirked Claire as the twins entered the room.

"You be quiet," said James irritably.

"What're you gonna do to him?" asked Caroline. "Ground him? Take his broom off him? Make him…"

"I said be quiet!" yelled James. "I do not need you two in here…"

He stopped when he heard the characteristic 'crack' of an Apparation. "What the…?" he exclaimed as he and Sirius got up and went to investigate the source of the Apparation.

Outside, Harry was struggling to keep himself from falling over.

"Are you okay?" asked Harry's other self, concerned when the other him stumbled forward.

Harry turned to his other self. "Why didn't you warn me there were Anti-Apparition Wards in place?" he growled angrily.

"I…" stammered the younger Harry. "I forgot."

"You forgot?" breathed Harry incredulously.

"Well… yeah," stammered the younger Harry, "But… how did you…?"

"Apparate through an Anti-Apparition Ward?" said Harry. "There are two ways to get through. The first is to time it so you're going through when there's a gap in the field, but you can only do that if you know the ward is there. The second method is to simply use sheer power to force your way through – it is very hard, very dangerous and TAKES A LOT OF ENERGY!" His voice rose suddenly and he glared at his other self, who looked down at his feet before mumbling an apology. Harry sighed and tried to relax. "Don't worry about it, kid," he relented. "Just make sure you warn someone next time."

"Speaking of warning…" said the younger Harry suddenly. "I'd better go inside and warn everyone about you before you..." he stopped, staring at the front door in horror.

Harry, wondering why his other self had stopped, looked at the front door and saw what his other self was looking at. Standing at the front door, wands drawn, were the figures of Sirius Black and James Potter, who were staring at him with equally horrified looks.

Why is no one ever pleased to see me? wondered Harry irritably. The first version of my godfather I saw tried to hex me, and now this! He stopped and looked at his other self.

"Um… maybe you'd better do the introductions," said Harry uncertainly.

The younger Harry looked at Harry with a look that said 'why me?' before opening his mouth to speak. However, before he could explain anything, his father interrupted him.

"Harry?" his father said, trying to sound calm but failing miserably. "Who is this?"

"Um…" his son stammered. "He's, uh… well… he's kinda… well… me."

His father looked at him as if he were speaking Goblin. The boy tried again.

"Well… y'see, he's me, but… different…" he began.

"Oh for crying out loud…" muttered Harry impatiently, "Just say 'alternate version of me', I mean, even I didn't do this badly trying to explain it to you."

"Hey!" said the younger Harry defensively, "I'm doing my best. Besides, you'd probably do just as badly trying to explain this to your dad."

"Yeah well, if I'd ever had a dad, then neither of us would be in this situation now, would we?" retorted Harry.

"Then don't tell me how to…"

"QUIET!!!" yelled James Potter. "Harry, tell me what is going on and who that boy is, now."

Quickly, the younger Harry stumbled through an explanation of who Harry was, based on what he had been told by Harry. Though they both looked sceptical, both James and Sirius lowered their wands. "I suppose you'd better come inside," James relented.

XxXxXxXxX

"Harry!" exclaimed Lily Potter when they entered the kitchen. "Where have you been? We've been waiting for you for…" She froze when she saw the figure in the leather jacket. "James?" she said uncertainly. "Who is this?"

James looked at the older Harry, then at his son. "Harry. Perhaps you should explain."

"Wh… But…" stammered young Harry, horrified at the prospect of having to explain everything again. Fortunately, Harry decided to spare him the trouble.

"I'll do it," he muttered to a relieved other self. "Basically, I'm him," he said, pointing to his younger self, "But from a different reality, where things were different." He looked around the kitchen at the alternate version of his mother and the siblings that had never existed as they stood in a house he had once visited the ruins of. "Very different," he sighed.

They all sat down at the table, after the twins and William were sent out of the room at Harry's request ("This probably isn't something they should hear."), and listened to Harry's explanation as to how he came to be in their reality, trying not to stare at his parents. They're alive! How can they be alive? How can this other me be alive as well? How can there be a Boy-Who-Lived who hasn't lost his parents? Why did they have to live here? Why couldn't they've survived in my reality? It's just not fair…

Trying not to dwell on those thoughts, Harry instead continued to explain his situation, though he also tried to leave out as many details as possible. After all, thought Harry, It isn't polite to tell your hosts that, as far as you're concerned, they're eiher dead, or the kid's case, never existed. He wasn't going to lie to them though – if they asked about their alternate selves, he'd tell them the truth. I mean, what harm could it do? Harry reasoned.

This was precisely what Harry did when Sirius had asked about Harry's version of himself, Harry had had to tell him about the twelve years his godfather had spent in Azkaban after being framed by Peter Pettigrew for the deaths of a streetful of Muggles.

"But… but, if he was trying to frame me of being the traitor, why didn't James and Lily tell them that Peter was the secret-keeper?" Sirius asked.

Harry said nothing, which, combined with the expression on his own godson's face, was enough for him to figure out what had happened to 'James and Lily'. The alternate versions of Harry's parents quickly came to the same conclusion.

"Oh, Harry," said Lily, trying not to cry. "I'm so sorry."

Harry shook his head. "Don't worry about it. It never happened in this reality. I'm just one of the unlucky ones that lost everything."

"Everything?" choked Lily.

Nice going, said a mocking voice in the back of Harry's mind. Executed with all the subtlety of a steam train. Harry ignored the voice as Lily hugged him, tears welling in her eyes. Looking around, he saw James, Sirius and Lupin all looking pale. His other self on the other hand, was trying to avoid eye contact. He's probably never realised how lucky he is, thought Harry.

Eventually, everyone calmed down and Lily offered him something to eat, which Harry accepted gratefully. When James suggested that they leave Harry be, the others agreed and he led Sirius, Lupin and the other Harry out of the kitchen, leaving Harry alone in the kitchen with Lily.

"I'm sorry if I upset you," said Harry, after he'd eaten, hoping his apology wouldn't go down the wrong way.

"No, no, don't worry," sighed Lily. "I'm the one who should be sorry. I shouldn't have cried like that. I'm sorry."

"Don't be," said Harry. Harry decided to change the subject by offering to help her do the washing up. His suggestion seemed to surprise Lily.

"But you're a guest," spluttered Lily. "You don't need to do anything."

Harry smirked. "That's what Mrs Weasley used to say."

"You know Molly?" Lily asked.

"I stayed at the Burrow a few summers while I was at Hogwarts," Harry explained.

"During the summer?" said Lily. "Who did you stay with the rest of the time?" she asked, though she wasn't sure she wanted to know the answer.

"The Dursleys," said Harry without thinking. He immediately regretted it when he saw Lily turn pale.

"You… Petunia looked after you?" she asked in a disbelieving voice.

"Not really," Harry shrugged. "They supplied a roof over my head and the bare minimum of food. That's about it really." He could tell that Lily was about to say something, so he quickly added, "Don't worry – unfortunately, I've gone through a lot worse than living with those three."

Luckily, Lily decided not to pursue the subject and turned back to what she was doing when Claire, Caroline and William came in, closely followed by Harry's other self.

"Is it true…?" asked Claire.

"That you're really…" added Caroline.

"Another version…"

"Of our esteemed older brother?"

"Girls!" exclaimed Lily.

"No, no, it's okay," said Harry. He turned to address the twins. "The answer is no."

The girls looked at Harry, confused. "What d'you mean?" asked Claire.

"What I mean," elaborated Harry. "Is that I'm not an alternate version of your brother."

"You mean, you're not Harry Potter?" said Caroline, jumping to the obvious, if incorrect, conclusion.

"No, I don't," said Harry. "My name IS Harry Potter."

"Then what DO you mean?" asked Caroline.

Harry turned to his other self, who was desperately trying to keep a straight face. "Are they always this dense?" he asked his other self. His other self nodded, an amused grin covering his face.

"Hey!" said Claire.

"We…" said Caroline.

"Are…"

"Not…"
"Dense!" they finished together.

"Okay, okay, I believe you," said Harry laughing as he remembered Fred & George.

"Millions wouldn't," muttered the younger Harry, earning him a laugh from his 10-year-old brother, a disapproving glare from his mother and a double glare from his sisters.

They turned back to Harry. "So who are you then, if you aren't our brother?" asked Claire.

"Simple. I'm an only child," said Harry bluntly. "You never existed in my reality."

The twins stood there speechless. Harry's younger self looked away.

"Don't worry about it," said Harry, trying to reassure the twins. "My reality's very different from this one. Things happened there that didn't happen here and, well, things turned out differently."

There was a slight pause, which was interrupted by his younger self. "You fancy a game of Quidditch?" he asked. "Dad and Sirius're already outside with their brooms. You can borrow Dad's old Nimbus 1750 if you want."

Harry nodded. "Sounds good." He walked past the girls and left the kitchen with his younger self. "Although, I should tell you, I haven't actually played Quidditch in nearly fifteen years…" he added as they left the house.

XxXxXxXxX

"So," said James, "I don't suppose you've ever played Quidditch, have you?"

Harry smirked at the former Chaser. "Youngest Seeker in over a century for the Gryffindor house team."

"You too?" grinned the younger Harry.

"Yup," said Harry. "Even had a move named after me – apparently, someone did it in the final of the last Quidditch World Cup. They called it the…"

"Potter Flip," finished the younger Harry.

Harry nodded. "As you're moving forward, you pull up the front of your broom and do a backward flip…"

"Then you plunge straight down," finished the younger Harry. "Very useful if you're chasing the Snitch or avoiding a Bludger."

"Or a burly Slytherin," Harry grinned, remembering the time that either Crabbe or Goyle had tried to ram into him, only for Harry to Potter Flip out of the way and watch as the Slytherin Beater ploughed straight into Malfoy.

"Poor old Flint," laughed the younger Harry, remembering a similar incident involving Slytherin's team captain.

"Well, I hate to break it to you," said Sirius. "But we're not using Snitches – Quaffles only."

"Oh," was all that Harry's other self said.

"We're gonna get slaughtered," muttered Harry as they mounted their brooms.

Sure enough, when they went back into the house, James and Sirius had soundly beaten the two Harrys – neither Harry was any good as either a Keeper or a Chaser. The others went to put the brooms away while Harry went into the living room. There he saw the other Harry's youngest brother, reading a book.

"Hey there kiddo," Harry greeted warmly. "You missed a great game, even if it was a bit one sided." He sat down on one of the armchairs. The boy looked up and listened, but Harry could instantly tell he wasn't interested. "So what's your name?" he decided to ask.

"William," the boy answered.

"William," repeated Harry. "Well, nice to meet you William Potter."

"Um… yeah," said William uncertainly. "Nice to meet you too."

Harry looked at the book William was reading. He quickly recognised it as being The Standard Book of Spells: Grade 2. "Bit advanced, don't ya think?"

William shrugged. "Claire and Caroline have been looking through Harry's old Grade 1 book, so I thought I'd have a look through this one."

"Does Harry know you're borrowing his schoolbooks?" Harry asked.

"I asked permission!" said William indignantly, offended at Harry's implication.

Realising what William was thinking, Harry quickly apologised. "Sorry. I just thought, well, y'know…"

"Don't worry about it," said William dismissively. "The only reason I have to ask his permission is so he knows I've got his books and not the twins – he doesn't trust them with his stuff."

"I can see why," mused Harry. "Jinxed schoolbooks are a real bugger, especially if they go off in class." He watched William smirk before realising he'd just swore in front of a ten-year-old. "Oh, sorry," he said, mainly for the benefit of any parental figures who may have overheard. "So why're you so interested in second year spellbooks? You're not a bookworm, are you?"

If William were a Weasley, he probably would have gone as red as his hair. However, instead, he lowered his head and mumbled something. This reaction concerned Harry. He must get this a lot from his family, he thought, imagining William's father or Sirius making the odd 'just like Moony' or 'looks like he got Lily's brains' jokes.

"There's nothing wrong with being a bookworm y'know," he said, trying to reassure William. "Does your Harry know a girl named Hermione Granger?" he asked.

William nodded.

"Well, in my reality, she got a lot of flak for being smarter than everyone else. Everyone used to say she should've been in Ravenclaw, she was that smart, and if she's as smart in this reality as she was in mine, she'll do well. She'll probably be Head Girl, get a dozen N.E.W.Ts and get a great job at the Ministry or St Mungo's or something. Meanwhile, the same people that used to taunt her'll probably end up nowhere," said Harry.

William sat there, trying to figure out how he was supposed to react. This didn't surprise Harry. He'd seen Hermione feel ashamed of being intelligent and he was sure William would probably be made to feel the same way.

"You may find this hard to believe," continued Harry. "But being smart is a good thing. If you're an intellectual prodigy, you should be glad. Be humble, but never be ashamed of who you are, no matter what the Marauders, or anyone else might say."

Harry got up and walked over to William. "You want me to teach you something?"

William looked at Harry, wondering what he meant. "Teach me something? You mean magic?" he asked incredulously. "But I don't have a wand and even if I did, I wouldn't be allowed…"

"The Ministry only keeps a track of wand magic. Wandless magic is a different story, mainly because it's so rare among adults and with children, it's mostly accidental magic," explained Harry.

"But…" stammered William. "Wandless magic is…"

"Too hard? A waste of time? Not worthwhile?" interrupted Harry. "Don't believe a word of it. If I had another chance, I'd have learnt wandless magic from day one at Hogwarts. Besides, it's not as hard as people seem to think. It's really all about concentration."

William nodded. "Alright," he said eagerly. "Show me something."

Harry grinned and obliged by reaching out towards a book that was sitting on a table on the opposite end of the room. Suddenly, the book flew from it's position on the table, straight into Harry's waiting hand. "That was the wandless Summoning Charm. It's just the same the wand-using one except you don't have a wand and you don't have to say 'Accio'. It's the same with the wandless equivalent of 'Wingardium Leviosa'. It's exactly the same, except you don't actually say the words." He demonstrated by levitating the book just above his hand. "You know how to do those charms, right?"

"Well, I've read about how to do them." answered William. "I've never tried them though."

Harry took a few steps away and put the book on the armrest of the armchair he had been sitting on. "I want you to try levitating this."

"What?" exclaimed William. "But…"

"Don't worry," Harry assured the boy. "It's not that hard if you already know how to do the Levitation Charm. Just concentrate and picture the book already floating, just like you do normally. Then…"

He stopped when he saw the book starting to move. "That's it," encouraged Harry. "Just concentrate."

He looked at William – the boy's eyes were closed, his face tensed up in concentration.

"No, no," said Harry forcefully. "Just relax. Closing your eyes doesn't help, especially since you can't see the thing you're trying to levitate."

William allowed the book to drop and took a deep breath.

"Try reaching out towards the book. A hand is just as good at focusing magic as a wand," Harry added.

William looked at the book and nodded. Reaching out, he took a deep breath and stared at the book. A few seconds later, the book started to float, unsteadily at first but it stayed in the air, quickly levelling off.

"Good," Harry praised. "Now, let's see if you can Summon it. Just do the same thing as you've just done. Picture the book already in your hand and concentrate..."

As he said this, the book immediately flew across the room, straight into William's hand, though he was so surprised he'd managed to do it, he immediately dropped the book.

Harry grinned as William picked the book off the floor. "See," he said triumphantly. "That wasn't so hard, was it?"

William nodded and returned the grin. However, his grin quickly disappeared when his older brother entered the room.

"Hey, uh… Harry," he said, addressing Harry though still uncertain what to call him. "Mum wants to talk to you. She's probably going to offer you a bed for the night or something."

Harry nodded and followed his other self through to the kitchen. He stopped and turned around. "You coming?" he asked William. Surprised at the thought of anyone wanting him to come with them, William nodded and followed Harry through to the kitchen.

"Harry," said Lily. "Do you have anywhere to stay? While you're… in this reality." she asked, pausing slightly at how absurd that question sounded.

Harry shook his head. "I don't think it matters. I doubt I'll be here much longer."

"What?" said Lily, confused. "Why not?"

Ignoring her, he turned to face William. He held out his hand, palm facing the ceiling, and suddenly, a ball of glowing light appeared just above his palm. "It's the wandless Illumination Charm. Just like the wand-using one."

He clenched his fist, extinguishing the light.

"I want you to try it."

William looked at Harry, his eyes wide with apprehension. "Here?" he whispered, glancing at both his brother and mother. Harry nodded. William closed his eyes, sighed and held out his hand, just like Harry had. His mother and brother watched in silence as a ball of light began to slowly form in William's hand.

"William!" gasped Lily. "You… you can do… James! Get in here now! You won't believe this!" she yelled as she left the kitchen in search of her husband.

William flinched when she did this. "Hey!" said Harry when he saw this. "Remember what I said: Don't be ashamed."

"It's not that," said William. "I just wanted to keep it a secret for the next time the twins tried to play a joke on me."

His brother laughed. "I don't think you'll have to worry about that, Will. If anything, they'll treat you better, just in case you decide to use you new powers against them." he said, ruffling his little brother's hair.

William grinned as his parents, sisters and family friends came hurrying into the kitchen. The twins were the first to speak.

"Well, little brother…" began Caroline.

"We knew you were a book-a-holic…" continued Claire.

"And preferred reading to Quidditch…"

"But who would've guessed…"

"You would turn out to be…"

"A magical prodigy?" Claire finished.

William shook his head. "It was Harry who showed me," he said modestly.

Harry shook his head in response. "You have a natural talent for wandless magic, kid," said Harry. "I just gave you some encouragement."

"Show us!" said Caroline eagerly.

"Yeah, Will," added Claire. "Go on."

"Girls!" snapped Lily.

"Go on William," said James, just as eager as the girls. "Show us what you can do."

"James!" Lily snapped again.

Trying not to laugh, William held out his palm and demonstrated the wandless Illumination Charm again. This time the light came a lot quicker – he was improving already.

"Ladies and Gentlemen," proclaimed Harry, taking a few steps back. "I present to you, William Potter, the Wandless Wonder!"

Harry watched as William's father, godfather, brother and sisters congratulated and praised him. Lily smiled at her youngest son, but turned her attention to Harry.

"Thank you," she said.

"I don't need thanking," said Harry, shaking his head. "I just gave him a bit of encouragement."

"Then thank you for encouraging him," smiled Lily. "He keeps so many things to himself, we'd probably have never realised…"

"I wouldn't worry about that," Harry said, looking at William. "I doubt he'll be keeping to himself so much anymore."

They both watched as James ruffled William's hair and the twins tried to get William do the Illumination Charm again. Suddenly, Lily remembered something. "What did you mean when you said you probably won't be here much longer?" she asked.

Harry looked at William and smiled before addressing Lily. "I get taken from reality to reality by some weird blue aura…" he began to explain.

His other self, hearing this, approached them. "You're leaving, aren't you?" he interrupted. "That blue light I saw – it's gonna take you away, isn't it?"

Harry nodded. "It seems to take me to the next reality after I do something to help someone," he continued. He took a few steps away from them and picked up an Apple from a Fruit Bowl. Harry tossed the apple into the air with his left hand and caught in his right hand. William, who had just heard what Harry had said, watched Harry as he did this.

"And I think," Harry added, "I've just figured out what I was meant to do here." He looked at William. Everyone instantly realised what Harry meant.

He took a bite out of the apple in his hand as the blue aura surrounded him. The others watched awestruck, as the light shone and danced around him. For a few seconds, Harry became the light, before it imploded with a blinding flash, leaving nothing but an empty space where Harry had been standing.