AU!
Written for Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry
House: Thunderbird
Class/Task Number: Divination. Astrology: a small event leaving a big impact or a big event leaving a small impact.
Bonus Prompts:
(setting) Hall of Prophecy
(object) Prophecy Record
Word Count: 2306/4500
A Prophecy For Two, Please
On a simple trip to the Department of Mysteries, Harry and Hermione find a Prophecy Record with their names on it. They're given the chance to go back in time and save the Potters from their untimely deaths.
"And this here is the Hall of Prophecy… The Ministry likes to keep this place under wraps, of course. This Hall has all the prophecies that Seers have foretold. Each Prophecy Record — that's what those orbs are called — has the name of the seer, the person or people the prophecy is about, and the date on which it was foretold. Please don't try to touch anything — it will not bode well for you," the guide explained as he led them through the dimly-lit hall.
The room has as high as a church and had nothing but towering shelves covered in small, dusty glass orbs. The orbs glimmered dully in the light issuing from more candle brackets set at intervals along the shelves. The room was very cold, and the group of students shivered.
Hogwarts had given them, for the first time, an opportunity to visit the Department of Mysteries to figure out if they wanted to join the esteemed department after they graduated. Their guide had led them through the different rooms, pointing out the Love Room, Time Room, Death Chamber, and now they had reached the Hall of Prophecy.
The students were under strict magical confidentiality contracts to keep the secrets of the mysterious department under wraps. Harry was one of the students who had opted to visit the Department of Mysteries. He wanted to see if he was interested in working in the department.
As they wandered through the aisles, looking at the dull orbs, Harry caught sight of a name on a Prophecy Record placed on a shelf right across from him. He looked around to see if anyone was around. Only his best friend, Hermione Granger, was a few feet away inspecting the records silently.
"Hey, Mione?" Harry called out in a low voice.
Hermione glanced up at him surprised. "Yeah, Harry? What's up?"
Harry squinted at the parchment hanging from the Prophecy record and asked, "Does this say what I think it says?"
Hermione walked over to him and stood on her tiptoes to read the label. 'S.P.T. to A.P.W.B.D. Potters and Granger.'
"Is that… about us?" Harry asked her hopefully.
Hermione frowned and said, "It's an eighteen-year-old prophecy… I wonder what it's about. Why would it be about us?"
Harry glanced around the aisle to make sure no one was around. He grabbed her hand and grinned mischievously. Hermione paled when she saw the grin and she cried, "Harry, no!"
But Harry had already decided to pick up the prophecy while he held Hermione's hand. The orb felt warm in their hands like it had been lying in the sun for hours, as though the glow of light within was warming it. Expecting, even hoping, that something dramatic was going to happen, Harry pulled the orb down and stared at it.
Hermione groaned and said, "We're not supposed to touch things, Harry! We could get in so much trouble."
To Hermione's disbelief, Harry frowned and shook the orb like a child with a broken toy. "Harry, stop shaking it!"
Harry grumbled, "Why's nothing happening?" He scowled and stretched his arm up to put the orb back, but suddenly, the orb slipped through his fingers and came crashing down onto the ground.
The grey vapour inside the orb swivelled around them, masking their surroundings. Hermione and Harry gasped for breath as the mist enveloped them from all sides. Harry kept his fingers entwined with hers as he started to wave his arm around to find a way out of the thick mist.
"Harry, can you see anything?" Hermione called out as she stumbled after him, coughing and wheezing.
"No, can you?" Harry asked, annoyed by her question.
Hermione smacked his arm and snapped, "This is all your fault! If you hadn't touched that Record, we'd —"
Harry suddenly interrupted her, "I see something… Wait, we're not in the Ministry anymore!"
Hermione gasped and rubbed her eyes with her hand. Harry was right; they weren't in the Hall of Prophecy anymore. Instead, they stood on the edge of Hogwarts' Astronomy Tower. The sky was darkening and Harry could see students flying through the air on their brooms.
"What are we doing here?" Harry asked Hermione as she was the one who usually had all the answers.
"I don't know, Harry! You're the one who touched that —"
"Oh, good, you two are finally here," a gentle voice called out from the doorway. Harry and Hermione whirled around and gasped loudly.
Albus Dumbledore stood in the doorway, twirling his long beard. He calmly walked in and conjured chairs for the three of them. "Mr Potter and… Miss Granger, I presume?"
The two dumbly nodded as they watched a slightly-younger version of Dumbledore settle down in his chair. Silent as the night, the two friends plopped down on their chairs. Dumbledore said, "Let me introduce myself. I am —"
"Professor Dumbledore, we know who you are… Could you please explain to us why we are here?" Hermione blurted out impatiently.
Dumbledore nodded and said, "Very well, I'll get straight to the point. Tonight, I have received word form an informant that Lord Voldemort will attack your parents, Harry."
Harry's breath hitched and he croaked out, "It's Halloween?"
Dumbledore nodded and said, "Yes, it is. Sybill Trelawney predicted that a couple will arrive on Halloween to right the wrongs committed by the Traitor. I didn't understand what she meant until I received word that one of your father's friends had joined the Death Eaters."
Harry growled, "You mean Peter Pettigrew?"
Dumbledore's eyes widened. "You know of him?"
"Yes, he's the one who betrayed my parents and Sirius," Harry hissed through gritted teeth. Hermione placed her hand on his to clam him down. He immediately entwined his fingers with hers and squeezed; Hermione's touch could always calm him down.
"I… was not aware of that. I'm sorry, Harry, but now you two have the chance to right the wrongs," Dumbledore said gently, leaning forward to look at them.
"What do you mean? What do you want us to do?" Hermione asked quickly.
"I want you two to take James and Lily with you to your future," Dumbledore advised.
"But — time doesn't work that way," Hermione stammered, already thinking of what could go wrong in this dangerous situation.
"Miss Granger, Time works in mysterious ways… Maybe James and Lily aren't meant to die tonight. Maybe they are already alive in your time but you're not aware of it. There are a lot of 'maybe's' in this situation. Time has brought you here and Time will help you out."
Hermione thought for a few moments and said, "Professor, may we have the Invisibility Cloak?
Dumbledore didn't bother to ask them how they knew about the Cloak but Accioed it from his office. Hermione took the cloak, thanked him and asked, "Could you remove the Fidelius Charm in ten minutes, Professor?"
Dumbledore carefully nodded and said, "Yes, but you must be very careful."
"We will — Hermione's got a plan," Harry said, not knowing what the plan was, but he knew that Hermione was never wrong.
Hermione and Harry Flooed over to the Leaky Cauldron before they Apparated to Godric's Hollow. They pulled the Invisibility Cloak over them and waited for the Fidelius Charm to drop. Exactly ten minutes later, the wards dropped and they snuck into the house.
Harry's breath hitched in his throat when he saw James Potter right in front of them. They could have been twins, except James' jawline was a bit sharper than Harry's. He whispered, "Wow, this is…"
"Unbelievable, I know…" Hermione whispered as she gazed at James with shock.
"Lily, something's wrong!" James cried when he felt the wards lower. "Take Harry and run! If it's Vol—"
"Don't panic, it's not Voldemort." Harry yanked the Invisibility Cloak off of them. "My name's Harry Potter and I'm from the future." He turned to look at Hermione and grinned. "That felt so cool!"
Hermione groaned and slapped his head. "Behave, Harry!" She turned to James and said, "I'm terribly sorry, Mr Potter. It's true — we're from the future. I'm Hermione Granger."
James tried to subtly look for his wand, but Hermione had seen that same look on Harry's face hundreds of times. She sighed and said, "Mr Potter, Dumbledore knows we're here. He removed the Fidelius Charm so we could get here. I know this sounds improbable, but it's true."
Harry nodded and said, "Yes, uh, Dad? You could send a Patronus to Dumbledore to confirm it, but we don't have much time. You —"
"James, who is it?" Lily asked, peeking over the stairs and gasping when she caught sight of Harry. "What on earth —"
Harry whispered, "Merlin, she's…"
Hermione cleared her throat and said, "Uh, Mrs Potter, this is Harry, your son… Could you come down here and handle your husband?"
Lily rushed downstairs and stopped in front of Harry. "You… Oh, Merlin! You're from the future, aren't you? I would recognize your eyes anywhere! Jame, look!"
James stammered, "Lils, this is impossible! This can't be our Harry! Sure, he's got your eyes, but he's …"
"I'm almost eighteen, yes, but I told you we're from the future. And we're here to take you with us. Dumbledore's orders," Harry explained. He wanted to start crying at the sight of both his parents alive in front of him, but he knew he could do that later. Any minutes now, Voldemort could arrive and attempt to kill them all.
"Tell me something only Harry would know," Lily demanded, her wand pointed at Hermione.
Harry scowled and yanked Hermione behind him. "Don't point your wand at her! And for your answer, there's nothing only I would know about you because you two are going to die tonight."
"Ah-ha! See, Lily? They're here to kill us!" James exclaimed.
"Why would we talk to you before we kill you?" Hermione asked pointedly.
"My girl's got a point — that's why she's the brightest witch of our age," Harry said proudly, wrapping his arm around Hermione's shoulders.
Lily frowned and asked, "How do you know we're going to die?"
"We just told you! We're from the future!" Harry cried. "Look, I can prove it! Expecto Patronum!"
A silver-white stag erupted from the tip of Harry's wand and Harry instructed it, "Go to Dumbledore and ask him to send a message to James and Lily Potter about us."
As they stood waiting for Dumbledore's message, Hermione looked around the room and said, "Lovely home you've got here, Mrs Potter."
"Thank you… I'm sorry I didn't catch your name," Lily said.
"Oh, sorry, I'm Hermione Granger."
"She's my best friend," Harry added.
James said, "So, how do we die? I can't believe I'm asking you this, but Ihave to know…"
"Do you want the truth or not?" Hermione asked before Harry could answer them.
"Truth, of course," James said quickly.
"Pettigrew betrays you to Voldemort, and Voldemort kills you both before he tries to kill Harry and fails," Hermione said bluntly.
James and Lily both looked shocked at the news. Harry whispered, "Mione, maybe you shouldn't have said it like that…"
Before the Potters could say something, Dumbledore's Patronus arrived. The silver phoenix opened its beak and Dumbledore's voice rang out, "Time has brought them here, James. I suggest you do as they say. It's the only way to survive the war. Do not worry about your child, he'll be safe."
Lily's eyes filled with tears when she realized Harry really was her son. She stepped forward and whispered, "Can I hug you?"
Harry swallowed the lump in his throat and croaked out, "Sure… Mum."
Lily beamed at him and reached up to wrap her arms around Harry's shoulders. Harry dropped his head onto his mother's shoulder and sniffled, trying to keep his composure. James stepped forward and wrapped his arms around his little family.
To give them their privacy, Hermione snuck away from them and walked upstairs. She found baby Harry quietly playing with his toys in his crib. She smiled and walked over to him. "Hey, little guy!"
Harry looked up at her and gave her a small toothy smile, reaching his arms out for her. Hermione grinned and picked him up, kissing his forehead and sighing softly. "You'll be okay, baby," she whispered, hoisting him on her waist and turning to look around his room.
She knew a few time theories and knew that if Time had brought them here, they would have to be very careful in their mission. If people in her time believed the Potters were dead, then they would have to make it look like they were dead. And that meant…
"Merlin, this is terrifying," Hermione muttered under her breath as she carried Harry down the stairs. She found James, Lily and future-Harry bonding in the living room. She looked down at the toddler in her arms and said, "Don't you feel creeped out, Harry?"
Harry giggled and cooed at her, his green eyes shining with happiness. Hermione kissed his cheek and turned to the adults. "Uh, sorry to break this reunion up, but we don't have much time. We need to make sure people think you're dead."
James grinned and said, "That sounds so cool! Faking our deaths!"
Lily smacked his arm and growled, "Behave, James!" She turned to Hermione and asked, "What's our plan?"
As they planned their next move, Harry felt his heart swell with happiness. Somehow, the Prophecy Record had given his parents a new chance at life. He knew that no matter what happened, he would always be grateful for the chance to have met his parents. Who knew a simple trip to the Hall of Prophecy could have such a huge impact on his life?
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