This chapter is boring (which is why it's short), but I need to include it in order to get to the fun stuff.

Chapter 3
Planning

Still in Thanatos's office, in Eternity

The discussion began with Harry and Hermione telling Thanatos and Ada all the hard truths about their lives that they had learnt the hard way, that they had not known when they were younger.

Then Thanatos went through Harry's folder, and Ada went through Hermione's folder, and they told the magical teenagers all the hard truths that the soulmates still did not know—such as when and how Harry and Hermione each had first been mind-whammied with Molly Weasley potions. Thanatos also told Harry much information that the goblins were supposed to have told him, that Harry never got the chance to hear because of Dumbledore's control of Harry's comings and goings.

Alas, Antonia the angel refused to explain to Harry or to Hermione why the prophecy was worded the way it was, or what the prophecy meant. Harry still had no clue what was "the power the Dark Lord knows not."

Now with the background information given, the five made plans.


The five decided on sending older Harry and Hermione back in time to 23rd July 1991, the day before young Harry received his (first) Hogwarts letter.

For the disguises, the five decided that Harry and Hermione would become Americans, with accents to match.

Harry would become a new person, John Potter, who would be young Harry's second cousin. Hermione would become a new person, Paulina Moffitt—with a great-grandfather in common with young Hermione—Stephen Moffitt a.k.a Stefanus Malfoy—but with Paulina having new grandparents.

John and Paulina would have school records at Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, in the USA state of Massachusetts. After Harry's and Hermione's transformations into John and Paulina, Ilvermorny's records would show that John and Paulina each completed six years of school, then took a "gap year" rather than attend his or her seventh year.

Some Ilvermorny professors would have vague memories of John and Paulina, but only as "quiet students."

(Harry asked Hermione, "When have you ever been a quiet student?" Then he answered his own question: "At midnight, when you're asleep." Hermione smacked his arm.)

Despite the saying that "You can't take it with you," Harry's and Hermione's clothes had come to Eternity with them—including their wand holsters and the Ollivander wands in those holsters. When Harry and Hermione would be transformed into John and Paulina, the names registered to their wands would likewise be changed to "John George Potter" and "Paulina Priscilla Moffitt"; their Ollivander wands would become Walton wands.

Once the couple was "visiting" in Britain, "John Potter" would loudly declare his intention to start Harry in his American school; but the teen boy could be "persuaded" to let young Harry begin his first year of magical school at Hogwarts, and Harry's adoptive parents would "transfer" to Hogwarts for their seventh year (but not take NEWTs at end of seventh year).

Harry's and Hermione's transformation to John and Paulina would be done at a time of their choosing, by each of the teens speaking a certain sentence aloud. For Hermione, the words were I become Paulina Priscilla Moffitt; for Harry, the words were The name is Potter, John Potter. The transformations would be total and irreversible—

Harry asked Thanatos and Antonia, "By 'The transfigurations will be total,' this means what, exactly? Our looks and accents will change, and...?"

Antonia answered, "Your looks will change, you'll speak American words and phrases with American accents, and your magical signatures will change."

Harry asked, "Will this change me? Will I still be a wizard 'with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord'? Because if I won't be any longer, and little-boy Harry still has to face Voldy alone, then we can forget all this right now!"

Antonia said, "Your magical signature will change, but you soul shall remain as it is now. The prophecy is tied to your soul. After you go to 1991, either young Harry or you can vanquish the Dark Lord. Also, when either you or young Harry touches Voldemort, your skin has Lily's Blessing."

With this point clarified, the discussion resumed. Because the teens' body-changes, once they were made, would be total and irreversible, Harry and Hermione were strongly urged not to change their bodies till after they had met with the Granger family, Director Ragnok at Gringotts, and the house-elves at Potter Manor.

(Harry said, "There are house-elves at Potter Manor? Dumbledore told me the place was destroyed.")

Antonia taught older Hermione the Healer spell that she could cast on young Harry, to remove his core-bindings. Hermione was strongly urged to remove only one core-binding per day, and to have a vial of Pepper-Up Potion at hand afterwards.

Then Hermione was taught the spell to diagnose core-bindings, on the theory that Dumbledore probably would do a sneak-rebinding of young Harry or young Hermione, or perhaps might even bind the cores of the time-travelled teens themselves.

Ada looked at the teens. "I don't know how Magical Britain works, but in my day, a British court would not let a seventeen-year-old American man adopt his second cousin if the man were a bachelor. The court would figure that the bachelor would bring loose women to his house and the child would be traumatised. I think the only way you can lawfully take young Harry away from the Dursleys is if you two are married. What do you think of this?"

"Wha-what about Ron?" Harry stammered. "Hermione, I don't want to force you into—"

"Harry," Hermione said. "I now feel no love, no lust and no loyalty to Ronald Bilius Weasley. All I feel towards him is deep antipathy. But you I've loved—loved, Harry—since we rode on Buckbeak together. I just figured that—that you never saw me as a possible girlfriend."

Harry stared at his shoes. "I don't know what love is, Hermione, I don't. All I know is that when you were petrified in second year, and when Dolohov cursed you in fifth year, I felt awful. For me it would be no chore at all to marry you. Is this good enough?"

Hermione lunged at Harry, hugged him fiercely, and was about to kiss him.

"Stop!" said Thanatos. "Mr Potter, Miss Granger, save the kissing for 1991, after you've transformed."

"Why, sir?" disappointed Hermione asked.

Antonia the angel answered, "Since you two are both magical and you're soulmates, the first time you kiss in 1991, you'll be magically married."

Harry laughed. "Brilliant! I won't need to hire a tuxedo."

"Prat," Hermione said, and slapped his arm.

Then Hermione said, "We should find a way to go to the States after we transform, and kiss there. This way, our marriage will be recorded in the USA. This would make the story told by 'John Potter' in Britain more believable."


Harry said to Thanatos, "Sir, what if I fail again? Gerhardus threatened that if I failed to kill Voldemort this time, I'll be sent to hell."

The shaved-head man with the brown-leather armour smiled at Harry. "When you go back, your scar will have no horcrux in it, your magical core will be unbound, Miss Granger's core will be unbound, you both will have your memories; and I've decided to make you both immune to all mind-magics. Short of you walking up to Tom Riddle or to Lucius Malfoy and snapping your own wand, it will be almost impossible for you to lose. Don't worry about being sent to hell."

Hermione said, "Sir, whilst I'm glad Professor Dumbledore and Professor Snape can't read our minds, if we 'transfer' to Hogwarts, which requires a Sorting at the start, the Sorting Hat needs to read our minds."

Thanatos nodded. "I'll make a note."

The only thing left was the paperwork. Thanatos spoke two contracts, which Antonia the angel wrote up. Harry and Hermione each signed his/her contract, which thankfully had no surprises or Gotchas after the five-Being planning session.

Hermione's contract said that she was banned from telling almost everyone in the past, two facts: that she was from the future, and that she had died and had met her Grim Reaper. However, she was permitted to tell these two secrets to the Daniel Granger family, to young Harry Potter, to Director Ragnok at Gringotts, and to the Potter house-elves. Hermione presumed that Harry's contract said the same thing.

As Harry laid down his pen, he asked Thanatos, "Just out of curiosity, what happened to Dumbledore after he died? What was his Judgement?"

Thanatos smiled a cruel smile. "Considering that Mr Dumbledore tried to herd the prophecy, he caused the prophecy to be fulfilled in a disastrous way, he plotted your death before you were born and he gave you no help or training to fulfill the prophecy—let's just say that these days, Mr Dumbledore is nostalgic for cold Scottish winters."

With both contracts signed, Harry and Hermione stood up, and each of them shook Thanatos's hand. Then Ada led Harry and Hermione over to the filing cabinets (where the angels worked). Hermione hugged Ada, to the much older woman's surprise. Then Hermione hugged Harry.

Harry asked Thanatos, "Before Hermione and I leave, do you have any advice for us?"

Thanatos replied, "First of all, get yourself to the goblin bank and be officially told all the things that Dumbledore doesn't want you to know. That is, meet with the Potter account manager after you convince Director Ragnok to get rid of Bronzedagger; that dishonourable goblin is helping Dumbledore steal from you!"

Then Thanatos said, "Mr Potter, it would be wise of you to take the Elder Wand away from Dumbledore as soon as you can. You will find that, since you are a direct descendant of Ignotus Peverell, the Elder Wand will work well for you. When you summon Dumbledore's Elder Wand, be sure to immediately also summon James Potter's Invisibility Cloak."

Harry sighed. "I could do that, summon the Cloak, but it won't do me any good if I'm opposing Dumbledore. Somehow he always could see me when I was invisible to everyone else."

Thanatos laughed scornfully. "Because that son-of-a-tanner cheated. The Cloak itself cannot be detected and it cannot be Summoned—but the Cloak is silver-coloured, is it not? Dumbledore sewed a silver-coloured cotton thread into the Cloak, then put a tracking charm on that thread."

Hermione said, "So if Harry wants to be invisible even to Dumbledore, Harry needs to find and to remove the cotton thread in the Cloak."

"Indeed," said Thanatos. Looking at Harry again, Thanatos said, "The goblins can remove Riddle's dark magic from the Gaunt ring, without magically harming the Resurrection Stone that is in the Gaunt ring; there is no reason to destroy the Resurrection Stone. Now, should you wind up owning the Cloak, the Wand and the Stone, all three, you will not become any sort of demigod Master of Death."

"He won't?" Hermione asked.

Thanatos looked at Harry and said, "You will, however, discover that each of the three Deathly Hallows works better than before."

Harry shrugged. "I can live with that."

By then, Antonia was standing in front of Hermione, and an oriental-man angel was standing in front of Harry.


Antonia the angel did not say anything, or make any gestures, likewise with the oriental-man angel—

—but suddenly Harry and Hermione were standing in front of the front steps of a large house. Harry saw that one part of the horizon was bright with a low sun; either the sun had just risen, or the sun was about to set.

Harry gasped then, with what he suddenly felt, and Hermione gasped at the same time.

Hermione said, "I feel magically stronger."

Harry nodded. "I feel much stronger magically; I feel ridiculously stronger. I feel like I could Wingardium Leviosa a double-decker bus."

Hermione grinned. "With us both so powerful, this just might work, Harry!"

Hermione drew her wand, and cast Tempus where Harry's body blocked the neighbours—but not the people in the house—from seeing the floating magical numerals.

"It's Tuesday, 23rd July 1991, just as we planned. The time is 6:35 in the early morning," Hermione told Harry, as she stowed her wand back in its wand holster.

Then Hermione confidently climbed the steps and moved forwards, with the index finger of her right hand about to press the doorbell.

She looked over her shoulder at Harry. "Are you ready to meet my eleven-year-old self again? And that girl's parents?"

Harry thought, Gryffindors charge ahead. Aloud, he said, "You mean my about-to-be in-laws? Sure, bring it."