Undone
by Healer Pomfrey
All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story.
I am not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes.
COMPLETELY AU! Partly OOC.
It is my story, and I intend to write it the way I want it. If you don't like it, don't read it.
Reviews are very welcome, as they inspire my muse. Thank you very much for the kind feedback on the previous chapter!
Godric chuckled upon their question. "That very chamber is our spy room," he said, causing the three wizards to stare at the founder in surprise. "When you're in the spy room, you can hear everything that's being spoken in the headmaster's office."
"Wow. That's amazing," Harry was the first to react.
Snape smirked. "This could indeed turn out very handy," he admitted. "The only problem is that we don't know in advance when the Minister of Magic is going to visit."
"That's not really a problem," Godric replied, grinning. "You just have to ask Hogwarts, Harry. She'll alert you if the minister or whoever you're interested in will visit the headmaster's office."
"And no one but my betrothed and me will be able to hear it if she speaks to me, is that right?" Harry enquired, just to be sure about it.
"That's correct," Godric informed him.
HP
It should not take long before Hogwarts alerted Harry that the Minister of Magic had arrived in Dumbledore's office. Fortunately, it was just after the last afternoon class, and Harry and Tom hurried to the founders' quarters to listen into the headmaster's conversation.
"Dumbledore," the minister roared. "I can't believe that you refuse my undersecretary a teaching position for a year, and then you hire an Auror to teach the new subject of Politics. What are you playing at, old man?"
The headmaster offered the minister a lemon drop, which was declined in an impolite way, before he spoke, slowly. "You were asking me for the Defence Against the Dark Arts position. However, the post is not vacant. Mr. Regulus Black has decided to teach Defence Against the Dark Arts in turn with his brother, Sirius Black, who is currently teaching History of Magic. According to my colleagues and students, both Black brothers are wonderful teachers, actually the best that we had for both subjects in many years, and I do not wish to jeopardize this. My colleagues fully agree to this solution of getting the cursed Defence Against the Dark Arts position in grip. If you don't understand this, then I am sorry, but as the headmaster of this school, I must do what is best for our students."
"Dumbledore is really good today," Harry whispered to Tom, not sure if anything that was said in the spy room could be heard in the headmaster's office. 'Probably not,' he thought. 'The founders were not exactly stupid.'
"You could at least have told me about the new position and offered for me to find a suitable person to teach it," the minister growled.
"Ah Cornelius, I'm sorry, but I know Ms. Tonks quite well, and I'm sure that she is predestined for the position, as she has a livid interest in politics, which she surely has inherited from her mother," Dumbledore replied, calmly. "Apart from that, she is a ministry employee, so that my colleagues and I assumed that you would be pleased to hear that she has been appointed for the position."
"This is not the last word we've spoken about the matter," the minister barked, before they could hear the fireplace spring into life as he flooed away.
'Well done, Dumbledore,' Harry thought, as he followed Tom out of the spy room.
"Thanks for allowing us to use the spy room today," he said to Godric, once they were back in the living room that was the centre of the founders' quarters. "By the way, will any sound from the spy room be heard in the headmaster's office?"
"Of course not," Rowena was the first to respond. "This is a one-way spy chamber."
"Have you found the potions which my successor asked about the other day?" Salazar spoke up, quirking an eyebrow in a very Snape-ish manner.
"Not yet," Harry replied, inwardly sighing. "This is the last week of classes before the holidays, but we'll have much time during the summer and will intensely search for them."
"Well good luck, and come back if you have any questions," the Potions Master offered, seeming much less grumpy than he had been during their first visits.
"We'll do," the boys promised, before they had to hurry to the Great Hall to be on time for dinner.
HP
During the summer holidays, Harry and Tom spent a few hours each day skimming Salazar's books for the recipes that Snape was looking for. On their way, they found several interesting potions like a night sight potion, which gave the drinker the ability to see in the dark for a couple of hours, an invisibility potion that had the same effect as Harry's invisibility cloak, and a speed potion, which allowed travelling in a very fast speed.
"These recipes are amazing," the Potions Master acknowledged and busied Gwendolyn, Alex and Luna in the potions lab as assistants, while Harry and Tom continued their search.
"Oh, here's the wolvescure potion," Harry blurted out one day, "one the same page as a time reversal potion."
"Translate both," Tom instructed him. "Time reversal sounds interesting."
When they headed to the Great Hall for dinner the same afternoon, Harry handed Snape the two recipes.
The professor's eyes widened upon realising what he was holding in his hands. "You found it. Congratulations, Mr. Potter," he said in a slightly strange voice that made Harry look at the Slytherin with curiosity. However, his face was blank without any hint of emotion.
"Harry found what?" Rosie enquired, giving her husband a curious look.
"The wolvescure potion," Snape replied, monotonously.
"What?" Sirius perked up. "Is that what it seems? A cure for lycanthropy?"
"According to Professor Slytherin it is, yes," Snape replied with a small smile playing on his lips. "Don't get your hopes up though, Remus."
"I'll try not to get my hopes up to much," Remus replied, smiling. "Thank so very much for your efforts, Severus, Harry and Tom. I really appreciate it."
"I hope it'll work," Harry said in a soft voice.
"It will," Tom added. "Professor Slytherin said so, and there's no doubt that he was the best Potions Master of all times."
"It's just too bad that he never published his recipes," Snape mused aloud. "It could have saved many lives over the years."
"Professor, maybe you could publish a book just with his best ones," Harry suggested, "for future generations."
"If I do such a thing, it'll be under Salazar's name with your names listed as the translators," the professor replied in a firm voice. "Now it says that the wolvescure potion must be taken between five days and one day prior to the full moon, and the full moon will be in three days' time, therefore, I'm going to brew it immediately instead of the Wolfsbane, which I'd otherwise brew tonight. Who's going to assist?" he queried, adding, "This seems to take a few hours."
'Luna, would you mind?' Harry thought to her, feeling relieved upon receiving her positive response. Everyone was willing to help, but in the end, the professor chose Harry and his own children, knowing that the three of them definitely were the most adept in the potions lab among the five friends who were permanent residents at the castle.
HP
It was three o'clock in the morning, when the four brewers stared at a dark green potion that was simmering in a rarely used silver cauldron.
"Well, we have no way to test it except for making Professor Lupin drink it, and the fresher it is the better," Snape said, coolly, and called his house-elf. "Cicero, please wake up Professor Lupin and bring him here right away."
An instant later, the elf reappeared with the sleepy Care of Magical Creatures professor in tow, who drank the steaming liquid out of a large goblet without blinking.
"Thank you very much," he finally said, placing down the empty goblet. "I will still spend the night in the Shrieking Shack just to be sure," he then added, glancing at his colleague, who nodded his agreement.
HP
It was very late during the night of the full moon that Harry was lying awake in his bed, hoping that the wolvescure potion worked. 'It would be so great for Remus,' he thought, absentmindedly trying to change his left hand into a chameguise paw like he had made it a habit trying at any other time.
All of a sudden, he felt a strange sensation, and in the moon light that was coming through the large, charmed window in his own room in Sirius' and Remus' quarters, he was able to see that he had succeeded. A paw, which was recognisable as that of a chameguise, was replacing his left hand.
'I did it,' he thought, feeling extremely happy and even more awake now.
'Harry, what's wrong?' Luna suddenly thought to him, sounding very sleepy.
'I manage to transform my left hand,' Harry thought back in absolute delight.
'That's amazing, but be careful to not use too much magic,' Luna reminded him, only to add, 'and sleep. It's two o'clock in the morning.'
HP
Much too soon for Harry's liking, his peaceful slumber was interrupted, when an extremely enthusiastic Remus entered his room and pulled him into a bear's hug.
"Harry, I can't thank you enough for what you did for me," the always calm Marauder blurted out, tears leaking from his eyes. "It worked. I did not transform," he added.
"Your father would be very proud of you," Sirius threw in, entering the room after his best friend.
"Have you told them?" Harry asked, now fully awake.
"Of course we did," Sirius said, chuckling, "and we'll tell everyone else at breakfast. Which is going to begin in ten minutes by the way. It's time to get up."
"Okay," Harry replied, wondering if he should show the Marauders his success. "I need to show you something," he finally decided and focussed on sending his magic into his left arm to change his left hand into the chameguise paw.
"What's that?" Remus asked, staring at the paw in clear surprise.
"It's not a dog's paw," Sirius commented, pensively.
Harry chuckled. "It's the one of a chameguise," he then informed his godfathers, official and unofficial, who gave a simultaneous yelp of surprise.
"Please don't tell anyone," Harry added, as he scrambled out of bed to ready himself for a very sleepy day.
HP
From that time onwards, Harry often had to remind himself to change his practice to the other hand. He had made it a habit to whenever his left hand was idle to try the transformation. Although he knew perfectly that he could do just the same with his right hand, he still caught himself unconsciously using the left for his efforts every now and then.
'I have to concentrate more on it,' he realised, inwardly groaning, as he spiked a paw instead of his left hand at breakfast one morning.
"Harry?" Rosie was the first to notice his mishap.
"Oh sorry," Harry replied and hurriedly transformed his hand back.
"Harry, you're not going to tell me that you're practising the Animagus transformation in spite of suffering from the Influenza Magica, are you?" Rosie enquired in a stern voice, which she usually solely used for students in detention.
"Err, I'm sorry," Harry stammered, adding in a small voice, "I'm fine." In fact, he could always feel a little pain caused by the magic that was afforded for his so far unfruitful attempts to transform his hand. The Dursleys had seen to it that he was used to constantly being in pain.
"You can deem yourself lucky that I'm not able to take house points during the holidays," Rosie replied, obviously angered. "I wasn't aware that you're so reckless."
Harry feverishly suppressed the tears that began to well in his eyes upon having disappointed his favourite teacher. "I'm sorry," he repeated in a small voice, resolved to be more careful to not practise the transformation anymore in the presence of professors.
HP
A few days after their success with the wolvescure potion, Tom discovered the three potions for insanity of which Salazar had told them. He and Harry translated the recipes and handed them to Snape. The Potions Master could soon rule out two of the potions and together with his three brewing assistants brewed the third.
"Don't get your hopes up," he warned the children, before he stepped into the fireplace to floo to St. Mungo's together with his wife, hoping to be able to convince the head healer to administer the potion to the Longbottoms.
However, by the time the two professors returned to Hogwarts, they told everyone that the Longbottoms had successfully been cured and that they had accompanied them home to Neville and his grandmother.
"Neville must be so happy now," Luna commented, wearing her dreamy expression of contentedness.
"Me too," Harry added. "We already cured three people during these holidays."
"Yes, now it's time to brew a fun potion," Alex spoke up. "Did you say something about a time travelling potion?"
Harry and Tom exchanged a glance. "It says time reversal potion, and I think it can take someone back and forth in time but only up to one hour," Harry replied, glancing at the Potions Master for advice.
"At least that's what it said in the recipe," Snape commented, thoughtfully. "Maybe we could use it as basis for further research though."
However, before the professor and his brewing assistants as he playfully called Harry and his own children were able to commence any kind of research based on the time reversal potion, the Minister of Magic contacted the Potions Master and asked him to brew as many batches of the wolvescure potion as possible in order to make magical Britain a werewolf-free area.
During the following weeks, Harry, Gwendolyn and Alex spent the mornings taking turns preparing ingredients for the wolvescure potion, so that the Potions Master could concentrate on actually brewing the potion. At the same time, Luna helped Mr. Lovegood with his research and newest editions of the Quibbler and the Hogwarts Gazette, and Tom checked Salazar's books for further interesting recipes.
During the afternoons, the five children further explored unused parts of the castle, made plans for the weeks when their friends were going to visit and occasionally visited Hogsmeade together with Sirius and Remus, Regulus or Rosie.
HP
Just like during the previous summer, Hermione, Justin, Birgit and the Weasley twins arrived on Harry's birthday and stayed over the remaining weeks of the holidays until a few days before the beginning of the new school year. Like before, the friends used the Wallace house to stay together during the four weeks.
One day, when the ten friends were just exploring the ingredients in Salazar's potions lab, which seemed to be charmed to remain fresh, Hogwarts alerted Harry to the fact that Minister Fudge was visiting the headmaster in his office.
"Oh, shall we go and listen to what Fudge has to discuss with Dumbledore?" Harry quickly asked his friends, who were all for it and hurried to the founders' quarters, where they squeezed themselves into the spy room sitting on and around the single sofa on the floor.