Chapter 2: The Bargain

Despite Ron and Hermione's careful support, Harry slid into destructive obsession about his mother posing as Snape all those years. Harry himself could see that, and yet he couldn't stop.

His closest friends nodded and hmm'd as Harry worked through a long list of questions and speculations:

"They must have done some sort of body swap. Otherwise, how would my mother have a working Dark Mark? And why did I think I saw her with the Resurrection Stone and in the graveyard?"

"Snape acted like he hated James, Sirius, and Remus. Did my mom actually hate them, or was that an act? How much of Snape's entire personality was an act?"

"Lily must have done all sorts of things as double spy for Voldemort and Dumbledore. Underneath her cover as Severus Snape, what sort of person was Lily Potter? What did she think about what she was doing?"

"What did she think about me, her son? Did she ever regret—?"

Harry could see how Hermione attempted to distract Harry from darker thoughts, but the volume of questions still created a treacherous tide. Some days, Harry drowned.

Harry had spent entire days in his bed at Grimmauld Place. He contemplated a long leave of absence from the aurors, if they didn't fire him first.

Ron was on thin ice after telling Andromeda Tonks about Harry's struggles. She started stopping by the house most days with Harry's godson Teddy. Two-year-old Teddy was a handful, even in short visits. Andromeda didn't know what Harry was upset about (which spared Ron from retaliation), but she shared her burdens with Harry. Andromeda was trying to raise her grandchild alone in a magical society that was still rebuilding.

Harry wouldn't say that Teddy and Andromeda were his reason for existing at this point, but he knew that his presence made their lives better. That's something, he conceded.

He knew Ron and Hermione would miss him if he left the UK or made other drastic choices, but at least they had each other. They would also protect Harry's feelings, encouraging him to do what he wanted rather than be what they need after their tumultuous years.

Demonstrating their well-wishes, Hermione brought up a topic Harry had long forgotten about over supper one Friday night.

"Since we went to the graves, I was thinking about 'The Tale of the Three Brothers' again."

"You mean the Deathly Hallows?" Ron asked.

"Right." Hermione continued, "Well, it was never clear to me why Dumbledore led us to them."

Harry scratched his head. "Wasn't he just trying to explain the power of the Elder Wand? The wand buried with him?"

Ron looked thoughtful. "Dumbledore was probably planning on being the wand's last master. He planned his own death. He failed because he was disarmed by Malfoy, but that couldn't have been intentional."

Hermione said,"And yet, he left the tales of Beatle the Bard to me, presumably before he knew that."

Ron had a theory. "Do you think Dumbledore knew that the wand wanted to find a new master? So somehow his plan could fail?"

"On some level, yes." Hermione agreed. "I think he suspected that someone else could gain the wand's allegiance, possibly Voldemort…"

Harry interjected, "But why not just tell us, 'By the way, Voldemort might have an unbeatable wand.'?"

Hermione jumped in. "I think Dumbledore expected Harry to get the wand, as improbable as it seemed. And that's what happened."

"Why would the wand want to make its way to me, though?" Harry was confused.

"Because you're a descendent of the Peverells? Because you were chosen by prophecy?" Ron pointed out.

Hermione agreed and added, "We don't know what Dumbledore's experiences with the cloak, stone, or wand were. It's possible any or all of the items indicated a preference for you over him."

Ron snorted, "Like, the cloak did a little dance when Harry came near."

Hermione corrected with a smile, "It could have given a tug. A subtle, dignified tug."

Harry reflected that he liked this kind of mystery more than the mystery of his mother and Snape that had been plaguing his thoughts lately.

"I did use the stone," Harry pointed out. "It helped me confront Voldemort without a wand."

"Again, I don't think the story of the hallows was actually important to what happened."

Harry supposed that was true. The objects' histories or connections didn't affect how he thought about them. It was rather unsatisfying, really.

Harry said, "So, your point is that Dumbledore made sure I knew about the mythical connection between the three objects, when it never properly mattered. Dumbledore's ghost, or whatever I saw in the train station after dying, never credited the hallows with my survival." Harry frowned. "Could Dumbledore have been lying about why I lived? Perhaps he knew that the real Snape was the one who died to protect me."

Hermione asserted, "I don't think so. I don't see why a sacrifice like that would be limited to family. Though there is the question of Snape's life debt to Harry's father… ."

Ron brought her back."So, you think that the Hallows might be part of some new adventure that Dumbledore cooked up."

Harry tumbled through a variety of emotions quickly. He felt dragged down by several weights. He was already exhausted by the recent unfruitful attempts to find information about his mother and the late Severus Snape. His body ached most days from the figurative and literal scars of the last war. Harry was reluctant to accept a new burden.

And yet, perhaps an adventure could distract (or dare he hope, fix) some of his problems?

Hermione said, "I've done a bit of research into the supposed powers of the Hallows. Some speculation indicates that the collection of items might be useful for time travel."

"But the power is over death, not time. That makes no sense," Ron argued.

"Perhaps not, but they are powerful magical artifacts. One of the major constraints of time-travel is power. Or perhaps it's not time-travel, but dimension-travel. Although I have trouble believing in multiverses given the arithmancy." Hermione said, but neither Ron nor Harry were listening.

Harry and Ron's thoughts were locked in as soon as Hermione said "time travel".

Ron said, "We could save Fred."

Harry replied, "I could talk to my mother."

Hermione placed her hand on the table for emphasis. "We'll need to do more research, particularly if you want us to go back with you."

Ron returned to the earlier line of conversation. "Do you think Dumbledore wanted us to use the Hallows, time travel back, to fix how the war ended up?"

"It's a possibility. Or Dumbledore may have just wanted to warn Harry about the objects' desirability. Or perhaps he was compelled to share the information by the objects themselves. I made the same leap as you did just now, but it's hard to be sure."

Harry tipped his head to the side. "Honestly, I don't know that I really want to spend more time trying to figure out Dumbledore's thought process. He did send us on the camping trip from hell. It worked out, but he could have saved us a lot of time with a one-page letter."

Harry resented Dumbledore for his secrets and manipulations, but Ron and Hermione actually despised him. Ron declared, "If we somehow manage to travel back in time, I want to stay away from Dumbledore."

The other two members of the trio agreed easily.

Harry sat cross-legged on his double bed in 12 Grimmauld Place. He was alone in a peaceful way. Deep in thought, he ran his fingers over the invisibility cloak he inherited from his father.

Hermione had told Harry and Ron that if the Deathly Hallows could be used for time travel or anything else, that they would be going into it somewhat blind. There probably wasn't going to be a helpful written guide in modern English.

Harry imagined that after several months' work, they'd construct some sort of ritual with their blood and a dozen black candles. There'd be pain, then nothing. They'd feel the presence of an unknowable, silent mystical being. Then, they'd wake in their separate, past locations. They'd look at a newspaper to confirm that they ended up when they were supposed to be. They'd remember the present that they lost, but nostalgia and a clear purpose would drive them to their happily ever after.

With the images of the Elder Wand, the Resurrection Stone, and the Cloak of Invisibility in his mind, he said aloud, "What can I do with the Hallows?"

"Not much, I'm afraid." The voice came from everywhere all at once.

Harry dove off the side of the bed.

"Please sit, or whatever. Get comfortable." Another voice offered.

"Who…?" Harry started to ask.

"DEATH."

"The end."

"The beginning." Three different voices answered.

Harry tentatively spoke again. "Are you just here to talk? Or is it… my time?"

"Not your time, no."

"Your time is later."

"To be clear, you asked us a question." The last voice was rather snippy, in Harry's opinion.

"Ah." Harry moved back to his position on the bed. He found the voices creepy but he supposed that he could listen. He couldn't exactly kick whatever this was out of his house.

"The three objects were in fact a gift to the brothers from us. The 'master of death' moniker is complete tripe, though. Additionally, the objects have no inherent connection to each other or any particular family, magically speaking."

Harry suddenly remembered, "Wait, didn't I destroy the wand? I also dropped the stone." How embarrassing, that he forgot these facts in light of his current hopes.

"You tried, like others before you. But we would have created a new one eventually. Possibly when someone bested you, to keep the story going. The stone would also be found again."

Another voice added, "The Hallows keep things interesting for us. A diversion from the monotony of collecting souls." Harry was curious what Death's job actually was, but his attention shifted to what was said next.

"Alas. Since you summoned us, we might as well use the opportunity to strike a bargain."

"A trade."

"In exchange for any one of the Hallows, we would grant you a single trip back in Time. Yes, we heard what you discussed with your friends."

"We like to anticipate what the holders of our objects do next."

"It adds to the entertainment value."

Harry questioned, "How would time travel work?"

"You would replace your younger self, and you could make whatever changes you wanted. There would be no going back, and no danger of ripping space-time."

Harry voiced a concern, "It sounds too good to be true."

"Well, you would permanently be surrendering the item. It would be gone from where it was the moment you traveled back. You can select the exact moment, though it needs to be during your own lifetime."

Eyes closed in thought, Harry considered this bargain. "What's in it for you?"

"Time has been after us for as long as they've existed. They think that we should get rid of the Hallows. Time argues they're overpowered and therefore boring. Instead they want power to shift around more organically, or some such rot."

"We usually stop listening before they really get into it."

"That's it?" Harry's voice shows his surprise.

"Well, if you or anyone else uses them to power the wrong kinds of rituals, the universe would never be the same." Harry gulped.

A different voice of Death added, "Even destroying one of the Hallows would get Time off our case."

"Time and Fate together make effective threats." Harry thought Death might have shuddered, if non-corporeal entities could do such a thing.

Harry thought about Ron and Hermione. "Could all three Hallows be exchanged for three time travelers?"

Harry wasn't surprised when Hermione was skeptical about Harry's conversation with Death. After twenty minutes of debate, Harry told her that she could try talking to Death herself.

Instead, Time appeared. With the same multi-voice effect but a gentler demeanor, Time confirmed the truthfulness of Harry's conversation with Death. Time themself would give the trio a ride backward in exchange for the three powerful items.

Hermione was initially shocked by the sudden appearance of an eldritch entity, but quickly switched to the trio's de facto barrister. "Can you assure us that we will retain our memories and personalities when we go back? Will you refrain from making other alterations to the timeline, other than our presence? Will we have all of the same magical and practical abilities? Do we have any recourse if we've determined that the bargain has not been completed in good faith?"

Time addressed each question. "Yes, yes, yes, and yes. Call for us if you have concerns after the bargain is complete."

Ron asked, "We don't get any bonus powers, right? For being your favored."

To Harry's ears, Time sounded thoughtful and a little amused. "I suppose you could retain some lesser power of the items surrendered. The ability to hear the thoughts of the recent dead. The ability to be easily forgotten. Advance warning of magic near you a bit ahead of time."

Hermione spoke up. "Are you saying that the true power of the Elder Wand is premonition, rather than power?"

"Yes, all of the Hallows are essentially time-magic. The cloak shows what an area looks like at a different time. The stone connects its user to a spirit moments after it free of its body, in the past."

Harry was upset by the last revelation and stopped listening. He had thought that he talked to his parents on the other side using the stone. But apparently that was just previous-them. Where were they now?

He interrupted Hermione talking on a tangent a few minutes later to ask, "Does that mean that there's no afterlife?"

"Souls summoned with the stone have their own beliefs about where they are, but they have no true knowledge of it."

"That doesn't exactly answer my question."

Time admitted, "It does not."

Ever since he talked to his parents using the Resurrection Stone in the forest that day, Harry held out hope that he would see them again. He thought that the stone proved that the afterlife was real. Either Time wouldn't say either way, or Time was sparing him the definitive knowledge that there was no great beyond.

Harry didn't push Time to answer again, but a desperation built. The pain of all of those lost to him, possibly forever. Unless he went back. And the three of them would only get one shot. Harry was ready to take it.

A/N: I tried to minimize Dumbledore in this story while still doing something interesting with him. As a result of those goals, the other characters are critical of him. However, he's not evil or especially manipulative in this story.

Thanks for reading!