"Get out of the way, Nott!" Dudley snarled. "I don't have the time for this!"

"Shut up!" Nott snapped. "You don't get to speak. After everything you've done to me—attacking me, beating me up, hexing me, putting my dad in jail …"

"That was Lock …"

"I said SHUT UP! It's because of you! If it weren't you, Lucius Malfoy wouldn't have been arrested. My dad wouldn't have had to free him. He wouldn't be in Azkaban!"

"It's not my fault your dad was scum!"

Theo fired off a curse—Dudley quickly cast protego to deflect it, but he wasn't the target. The bludgeoning hex slammed into Hermione, shattering the potion glass she was carrying in and knocking her to the floor.

"Stupefy!" Dudley fired the hex from the floor.

Nott was faced. He cast protego, deflecting the spell. "Expelliarmus!"

Dudley's wand flew from his grip, landing on the floor near Nott.

"Listen, Nott … we'll settle this, one on one—like I did with Malfoy," Dudley said. "Just get out of the way."

"No!" Nott replied. "I've been practicing all year for this with Flint and Montague. I'm not letting you get away!"

Dudley pushed himself to his feet and charged at Nott. Wandless, his only choice was to pound the skinny Slytherin into a pulp.

"Crucio!" Nott yelled, wildly—his eyes were wide and deranged looking.

Dudley felt pain. Every inch of his body felt like it was having nails driven into it. The pain went through his entire body—his legs, his skin, his eyes, his tongue, his stomach—he felt fire. He was screaming. He could hear Hermione screaming. Nott was yelling. Dudley just wanted the torment to end.

Just as he felt himself falling unconscious, he heard Hermione yell "Stupefy!" and everything went black.

Dudley opened his eyes. He had the worst headache he had ever felt in his life. His body felt tingly.

"He's awake!" he heard Hermione cry out.

"Good to see you back with us, Dudley," Dumbledore said.

Not for the first time that night, Dudley found himself staring into the kindly blue eyes of Hogwart's headmaster. Or was is it still that same night?

"How long was I out?" Dudley muttered.

"Almost two hours," Dumbledore said. "Are you alright, Dudley?"

"Headache," Dudley said. "And I feel weird."

Dumbledore nodded. "That is to be expected. But, no fear—you are in good hands with Madame Pomfrey."

"Wait! Professor! Lupin … Professor Lupin, you need to …" Dudley shouted, suddenly remembering.

Suddenly, Dumbledore looked sad. His head was lowered.

"I'm sorry, Dudley, Professor Lupin is dead."

"We can still fix it," Dudley said, forcing himself to sit upright. "The Time Turner, we can …"

Dumbledore, however, was shaking his head. "I'm sorry Dudley, it is far too dangerous."

"We did it before!"

"Before, the risks were minimal. If you go back again, it is likely you will encounter your past selves. If that happens, the consequences can be devastating."

Dudley thought hard. He had watched a old sci-fi movies and shows that featured time travel and though he didn't fully understand the idea, he knew paradoxes were a thing that happened.

"Take some of this," Dumbledore said, placing a plastic beaker in his hand.

Dudley drank the liquid. It was warm and tasted like honey.

"Professor Dumbledore, is he …"

"He will be fine, Hermione," Albus Dumbledore said.

Dudley looked at Hermione for the first time since waking up. His friend looked like she had been crying.

"What happened? Nott, he attacked me."

"Theodore used the crucio curse," Dumbledore said. "It is one of the three unforgivable curses—extremely dark magic. The use of it is a life's sentence in Aazkaban!"

"Nott used that?" Hermione said, sounding scandalized. "But why? Why do something so … so stupid … so … evil?"

"We will discuss Nott and his actions at the end—Dudley, are you well enough to tell me everything that happened tonight?"

Dudley nodded. The potion had gotten rid of his headache and he felt ok now, if a little shaken.

"Yes, but how about Snape …"

"Professor Snape is at Saint Mungo's," Dumbledore said. "He was in no condition to tell me anything. We have Black in custody, but the Dementors …"

He trailed off and Dudley nodded, understanding. Black had been kissed. He couldn't tell anybody anything anymore.

Dudley sipped the remnants of the potion and between them both, he and Hermione told Dumbledore what had happened. How they had gone down to see Hagrid—Dudley to get his book, Hermione to ask a question about the exam and met Luna who accompanied them. Then, how on the way back, they had been attacked by a huge Black dog. How Dudley had sent Dobby to get help while they went after Luna."

Dumbledore listened, without speaking. He looked sad when they got to the part about Lupin.

Hermione told most of the story when they went back in time as Dudley still didn't fully understand it. Dumbledore continued to listen intently as she explained their plan to get the potion to Lupin.

"Clever," he said quietly—his first interruption. "That would, of course, has stopped Professor Lupin from entering the school grounds and prevented any chance of him becoming savage while in his werewolf form."

"Yes, professor," Hermione said. She continued with the story about how Nott had attacked them both. "Then, I managed to stun him to stop him from attacking Dudley," Hermione said. "A few seconds—maybe 20 seconds later, Professor Flitwick arrived and took Dudley to the hospital wing."

Dumbledore, having listened to the entire story, gave a nod of his head. "Now, I'm sure you all have questions. I will do my best to answer. It is the least you deserve."

"Snape …' Hermione began.

"Professor Snape," Dumbledore corrected.

"Professor Snape, how is he? Will he be a …"

"He is at Saint Mungo's. His wounds are treatable. The affliction isn't. Professor Snape is infected with lycanthropy. It is a challenging condition for anybody, but I have every confidence he will return to teaching."

"He saved us," Dudley muttered. "If he hadn't been there, Lupin … Professor Lupin would have … and the Dementors too. He cast a spell to keep them away."

"Professor Snape acted with the bravery I always knew he had," Dumbledore said.

"And Black?" asked Dudley.

"He received the Dementor's kiss," Dumbledore said, softly. "A fate I would wish on no man or woman. The Ministry has a holding facility for victims of Dementors. I expect Black may be moved there, or Fudge may insist he returns to Azkaban—even in his current state."

"Why did he come to Hogwarts?" Hermione asked. "Was he working for Malfoy ... Lucius Malfoy, I mean?"

"We will never know," Dumbledore said. "Black's actions defy all logic. We have a partially finished jigsaw and now Black is unable to reveal the missing pieces. I have theories, but none make sense, and the two men who may be able to shed light on the mystery are now unable to do so. If killing Dudley was Black's only motive, he had plenty of chances. I suspect there was something else at play—but what it was, I do not wish to speculate."

"Was Hermione's theory right?" Dudley asked. "Would it have worked if Nott hadn't attacked us?"

"Hermione was entirely correct," Dumbledore said. "Professor Snape has been supplying Wolfsbane Potion all year—Hermione was quite right. Tonight, he was delayed having to deal with an incident involving Cormac McClaggan and Marcus Flint. Dobby intercepted Professor Snape on his way to deliver the potion to Professor Lupin—Dobby himself confirmed this—and Professor Snape went immediately to you aid."

"So, if Nott hadn't attacked us?"

"Then you may have succeeded," Dumbledore said. " But I cannot say for sure. Time travel is very complex. I hope you'll forgive the arrogance, but I am far cleverer than most and even I can not fully comprehend the ins and outs of it. You may well have succeeded, or you have failed. It was a gamble to save the life of a very good man and spare another good man from a terrible fate. Whether it would have worked, or whether events would have found a way to unfold as they happened anyway—I cannot say."

"I hate him," Dudley muttered.

"Hate is what led to this," Dumbledore said, sharply. "Nothing good ever comes from hate Dudley. Theodore's actions were motivated entirely by hatred of yourself. Won't mince my words, but your appalling treatment of him while at Hogwarts and the arrest of his father caused him to hate you. He admitted to plotting to attack you for a long time and took his opportunity tonight."

Dudley pursed his lips thoughtfully. "So, if I hadn't beaten Nott up, then this wouldn't have happened?"

"Possibly not," Dumbledore said. "Who can tell?"

"So, it's my fault Professor Lupin is dead?"

"No!" Dumbledore said, sharply. "Absolutely not. Every choice we have matters, Dudley. There are a number of bad decisions which led to the events of tonight. Change a single one of them, and events would unfold differently. You are no more or less to blame for tonight than many others, not least Nott himself, who made the choice to assault you and Hermione. Do you know the muggle theory of the butterfly effect?"

Dudley shook his head. Hermione however nodded. "A butterfly flaps its wings in China and cause a hurricane in the Caribbean."

Dudley gaped at her. The intelligence of Hermione knew no bounds it seemed. But what did butterflies have to do with anything.

Dumbledore smiled. "Quite right, most wizards don't put much stock in muggle philosophy. But I find there are some very interesting theories. Essentially, Dudley, it boils down to choices have consequences. Anything you do, no matter how small, can have effects on a much large scale. We saw that tonight. Numerus events and actions and choices all led to Theodore attacking you. That led to you not arriving in time to reach Professor Lupin."

Dudley nodded. He felt he understood what Dumbledore was getting at. "So, things I do now, could have effects that I might not know about until later?"

"Correct," said Dumbledore. "This chain of effects goes far back. Think—for example, if Sirius and his childhood friends hadn't become enemies of Professor Snape at Hogwarts. If Black didn't betray the Potters, it is possible the events of tonight might not have occurred. Or, if they had still occurred, things may have ended up differently—Professor Snape may have showed mercy to Black, for example."

"He hated him," Hermione said. "He said Black was responsible for Lily Potter's death."

"They were good friends at Hogwarts," Dumbledore said. "I don't think Professor Snape ever stopped caring for Lily. But that brings me to the point I made earlier, nothing good ever comes from hate, Dudley."

"What about Voldemort though, don't you hate him?" Dudley asked.

"I hate his ideas, and I hate what he has done," Dumbledore said. "But I don't hate him. I pity him."

Hermione, across from him, was nodding. It seemed she understood.

"What will happen to Nott?" Dudley asked.

"I do not know," Dumbledore said. "He will be expelled from Hogwarts, of course. But the rest is in the Ministry's hands. It is unprecedented. Usually, the use of an unforgiveable curse means a life sentence in Azkaban. But a 13 year old boy using it in anger—it is the first time it has happened. I do not know what Fudge's decision will be."