"You're insane if you think I'm going to believe that" Harry scoffed. And yet some part of him did believe it. It made more sense than he wanted to admit. The more he studied the man's face, the more he could see his best friend in him. And Longbottom too, he was exactly what he imagined an older, buffer, scar faced Neville would look like.

"Harry listen to me" The future Ron said. "When we first the met, I came into the train compartment asking if I could sit with you saying 'everywhere else is full'. We sat together and you showed me your scar and told me what you remembered about it. Mum had made me a corned beef sandwich and you offered me the candy you bought off the trolley witch's cart."

Harry's jaw dropped open. It was Ron. It had to be. He really was in the future!

"Okay…I believe you now" He said slowly.

"You'll come with us then?" Ron asked. He nodded, too in shock to speak.

"Good. You can't apparate on your own yet so you'll need to take my hand. We'll explain more when we get back to our headquarters."

When Harry opened his eyes again after the rush of wind he felt while apparating he was in a dark cave.

"Lumos" Came the sound of multiple voices, lighting up the cave and revealing a series of tunnels.

"This way" Neville pointed to the middle one. Harry followed the group of witches and wizards through tunnel after tunnel, winding this way and that finally coming out the mouth of another cave and into a wooded glen with large tents pitched everywhere and a blazing fire pit in the center.

"They're back!" Came the sound of many voices as people emerged from their tents. Witches and wizards reunited with much hugging and pats on the back.

The last to emerge was a man who at first Harry could've sworn was his father James, but when he got a closer look he recognized a pair of bright green eyes and a lighting bolt scar. Harry gasped in surprise, staring in disbelief, suddenly feeling light headed.

Neville caught him before he hit the ground and everything went black.

When Harry awoke he didn't know where he was and barely remember who he was. He was laying in a hard uncomfortable bed inside of a white tent. Slowly he reached for his glasses which were resting on the table beside him. When he put them on he realized he wasn't alone.

"It wasn't a dream" He said aloud, as the memory of the last few hours came back to him.

"No it wasn't" Came the voice of his future self.

"This is too weird!" Harry exclaimed staring back at himself. He hadn't changed much, not like Neville and Ron had. He still had his messy black hair and piercing green eyes, still had the scar Voldemort had given him as a baby.

"Trust me, it's just as weird from my end" Future Harry responded, mirroring his expression.

"So I really did end up in the future" He said. His future self nodded. "But how?"

"Take a guess" Future Harry replied.

"I don't know" Harry answered back.

"Yes you do, really think about it. You're what fifteen years old right now I take it?"

"My birthday was two weeks ago" Harry confirmed.

"What's been different for you that summer?"

"The freak storms" He realized. "So they are magical."

"Not just magical, they are literal tears in time. We've been tracking them about a month now. Nobody knows why or how they started up. All we know is the past and the future are converging at certain points. We've had knights on horseback from the age of King Arthur, cavemen and dinosaurs, even world war 2 soldiers, and now you."

"Me" Harry repeated deep in thought.

"I'm getting concerned, the timelines are becoming too close together, that much is obvious. No one has ever met their past self before. It's not a good sign" Future Harry explained.

"Why? What'll happen?"

"That's just it. We don't know. But time travel is a dangerous thing. If you die what'll happen to me, to all of us? It could create a paradox."

"A paradox" Harry echoed.

"Hermione explained it to me, to us back in third year, remember?"

Harry wracked his brain and Hermione's words came back to him. If a person travels to the past and kills their own grandfather before the conception of their father or mother, it would prevents the time traveller's existence, creating a paradox.

"I remember now."

"We have to find a way to send you back before anything bad happens, as it is you've already learned some things about the future, your future. I'm not sure how that'll affect the timeline."

"I don't really understand any of what I've seen so far" Harry admitted though he was burning with curiosity to ask.

"That may be for the best" Future Harry replied. "Though knowing myself, I know you won't accept that."

"Everything I've seen, Privet Drive burned to ground, the town abandoned, Death Eaters flying around in dragons, it's a nightmare! But maybe, maybe it's a good thing. If you tell me what happened then maybe I can prevent it ever happening!" He was desperate to convince his future self. If this was what his future looked like, he wanted more than anything to change it.

"I don't know" His future self hedged. "As much I'd love to be able to change the past, to save her" his voice dropped to barely a whisper during the last part of his sentence before raising back to normal. "I don't want to be reckless about this, it's too dangerous and I've gotten people I love killed before with my recklessness."

"Who?" Harry pushed looking at his future self with pleading eyes. His mind flashed to Cedric, dead on the ground, his father Amos Diggory wailing. He'd barely known Cedric and losing him hurt more than he thought it would. Now here he was in a future where he was being told he'd lose many more people he cared about. He'd never felt so helpless.

"Please" Harry begged.

Future Harry looked back at his younger self with such pain in his eyes and seemed close to breaking.

"Harry" Came Ron's voice as he entered through the tent flap in back of them.

"Yes" Both Harry's replied in unison.

"Blimey! That's just too weird" Ron exclaimed.

"Sorry" They said in unison.

"Er listen, we need to talk about something. If you could step out for a minute" He explained with a meaningful look at future Harry.

Future Harry nodded. "I'll be right back" he said to his younger self and stepped out of the tent with Ron.

Harry waited half a minute before creeping up to the tent flap to try to hear their conversation.

"Neville's brewed up a new potion with the dragon's tongue and this time he's confident it will work on Hermione. But he wanted you to be there when he tests it."

"Of course, I'll be there in a few minutes, ten minutes tops" His future self's voice cracked with emotion. "I hope he's right. Just this once, just this one time I need things to work out. Can't the universe just give me this one thing" He begged. Harry had never heard such desperation before and it pierced his very heart at the sound. He also was filled with a sense of dread. What had happened to Hermione?

"I know mate. We're all hoping this is it. Neville's been working on a cure since sixth year, if anyone can do it, it'll be him."

Future Harry gasped and then swore loudly. "I'm such an idiot."

Suddenly the tent flap flew open as future Harry pulled it aside.

"You just heard all of that didn't you?" He said to his younger self but didn't even wait for a response. "Of course you did. And now you won't rest until I tell you what it's about, all right. Come with me, but prepare yourself. No scratch that, nothing can possibly prepare you for this. I'm sorry but what I'm about to show you is going to cut you deeply, more than you can ever imagine. I am so so sorry."

Harry tentatively followed his future self and future Ron, his mind buzzing with worst possible scenarios. They walked pasted six tents before entering the seventh. Inside was filled with rows of hospital beds and two witch's-obviously healers-tending to the patients inside.

Harry was led down to the very far end to find Neville and one of the healers conversing in frantic whispers. Neville turned at the sound of their approach.

"You're here! Perfect we can get started-" Neville gaped when he caught sight of Harry. He turned to future Harry. "Are you sure you want him to be here?" He asked softly.

"He overheard Ron telling me and though he doesn't understand, I know myself. We have to tell him."

"All right" Neville replied giving Harry a sad look, his face filled with pain. Harry tried to mentally prepare himself for whatever was coming but his future self was right, nothing could prepare him for this.

They stepped aside and Harry saw her. A woman with a mass of bushy brown hair sat on a cot facing away from.

"Hermione" Harry breathed softly. She made no response, didn't even move or make any indication that she'd heard him.

"Hermione!" Harry called out when she didn't reply.

"She can't hear you" Future Harry said as if every word hurt more than anything in the world.

"Why not?" Harry asked walking around the cot so he could face her only to gasp. It was like looking at a ghost. Hermione's usually warm brown eyes were hollow and vacant, she stared listlessly forward, almost as if she were blind. Still she made no response.

"It's my fault" Future Harry said, voice thick with emotion.

"It is not!" Neville exclaimed fervently. "You can't blame yourself, you can't! You know she would never have stayed behind. Nothing in the world could have stopped her from helping you, you know that."

"What happened, what's wrong with her?!" Harry demanded, feeling sick to his stomach.

"She was tortured into insanity" Neville explained, voice raw and broken sounding.

"Who-"

"A Death Eater by the name of Bellatrix Lestrange, one of Voldemort's most devoted followers" Future Harry's voice cracked and he fought back a violent sob within him. "We were searching for something, something that could stop Voldemort and we got captured. They took us to Malfoy Manor and singled out Hermione to be interrogated. I begged to be taken in her place but they wouldn't listen."

"She was very brave" Neville said softly. "She never gave in, even though it cost her."

Harry stared at Hermione in disbelief, no more than a shadow of her former self. This couldn't be real. This to be some sick and twisted nightmare that he had to find a way to wake up from. He looked into her eyes desperate for any flicker of life but there was none. His eyes fell to something on her arm, it was a scar. Carved into her skin were the words mudblood.

Harry fell to his knees and dry heaved. He started smacking his arm repeatedly. "Wake up!" He screamed to himself. "Wake up!"

"He's going to hurt himself! Get a healer, get a sedative!" Someone shouted.

Harry continued to thrash violently on the ground until he felt someone inject something into him and then the world went numb.

"I'm going to stop it, whatever it takes, I'm not letting this happen. Paradoxes be damned!" The sedative had worn off and they were back in the tent Harry had woken up in after fainting earlier.

"I knew you would say that" His future self said simply and without any emotion.

"Good then you'll also know to tell me everything about the future so that when I go back I can make sure none of this happens. Don't leave a single thing out" He said giving his future self a determined glare.

"You're glaring at yourself you know that?" His future self asked a hint of mirth in his eyes.

Harry agreed but couldn't even manage a grin.

"Okay I'll tell you everything. I don't know what it'll due to the timeline or my existence but you're right. I'm willing to take any chance I have to save her. But I'm afraid the past or should I say your future, is far from a pretty tale. Maybe now it can finally have a happy ending."