Back to the Future

For the magical world, the spring of 1978 was uneasy, to say the least. Aided by resolute and dangerous allies, the Dark Wizard Lord Voldemort was gaining increasing strength; his iron fist was closing around the magical community. In this time of difficulty and confusion, many innocent lives had been lost, and wizards and witches the world over was heading into a time of darkness and mistrust.

But there was a beacon of light amongst the shadowy disorganisation. Whilst the Ministry of Magic worked hard to keep things tied together, Albus Dumbledore made it his mission to continue the imperative workings of Britain's primary institute of magical education: Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Dumbledore had been in charge of the school for years, having made his name in 1945 by defeating the Dark Wizard Grindelwald. In his mind, it was of vital importance to make sure future vigilantes against the Dark Forces could be trained properly. The school was widely renowned as the safest place to be in the wizarding world, and in one particular year, after a violent attack by Voldemort on a village near London, the number of new staff applicants to Hogwarts had risen to forty-five, a five-hundred per cent increase.

But Dumbledore remained hopeful. Two students he particularly saw as valuable assets in future were students by the names of James Potter and Sirius Black. James was from a fairly old wizarding family, and high potential ran in his family. Sirius, however, was half Muggle and half wizard, though a werewolf had killed his parents many years ago. The best thing about this arrangement was that Sirius and James were best friends; and as close to each other as best friends could be.

The Sunday morning on which our story starts was unusually sunny, a rare occurrence for Scotland in early spring. Around the Forbidden Forest, a band of golden light was creeping ever so slowly up the dewy grass banks, peeping through the gaps in the curtains of Hagrid the gamekeeper's hut. Overhead, a large contingent of owls was emerging from over the tops of the trees. Each of these owls had at least one envelope tied to its leg.

The birds swooped as one, and entered a hole in the side of the building, careful not to drop their loads. They entered the Great Hall of Hogwarts, circling lower and lower to the chattering students below.

Down at the Gryffindor house table, Lily Evans yawned.

'Not get much sleep last night?' her friend Remus Lupin asked, an amused glint in his eye. Lily smirked.

'James and I were discussing Quidditch techniques,' she answered suavely, whilst said James, her boyfriend, raised his head, smiling.

'Now, now, don't corrupt the poor child,' he said to Lily, as Remus aimed a well-timed punch at James' stomach. Fortunately, a large book placed itself conveniently between the offending fist and its target a second before impact. Remus howled.

'Now why would you be hitting my best friend here?' asked a voice from behind them. Sirius Black sat down in his chair, shooting an appraising look at his copy of Hogwarts: A History. Remus cursed at him, causing several first years to start whispering conspiratorially.

'That was rather uncalled for,' Remus said, massaging his fist. 'I was only pretending to hit him.'

'Yeah, and my aunt's a hippogriff's uncle,' James muttered. 'What are we getting up to today, Sirius?'

The conversation progressed, and eventually Peter Pettigrew, another good friend of Sirius, Remus and James', arrived for breakfast. The four boys were a tightly knit bunch, having faced danger and adventure many times during their school lives. Long ago, in their First Year, they had got tangled up in a mysterious scheme that had resulted in the eventual death of a school Professor. In their second, an incredible secret about Remus had been uncovered. Though he had hidden it well in their first year, for fear of rejection, the other three had found out that Remus was a werewolf, and had been suffering because of it since the age of four. Of course, Peter, Sirius and James had not rejected him. On the contrary, they showed Remus how much his friendship truly meant to them; all three of them became Animagi, wizards who could become animals at will. By their fifth year, James had had the ability to become a stag, Sirius a dog and Peter a rat.

In their sixth year, after months of exploring the Hogwarts grounds as animals, the four had written an incredible map of Hogwarts under their nickname The Marauders. They even created individual aliases related to their Animagus forms - Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs.

That afternoon, under the cover of James' Invisibility Cloak, the four Marauders headed for Hogsmeade, the nearby wizarding village. The only thing that slightly held them up was getting Frank Longbottom, a fellow Gryffindor, to the hospital wing -- a Bludger had caught him head on whilst he had been practicing Quidditch out in the grounds alone. Dumbledore would have most likely have been irritated with him, being out alone, because in light of the recent attacks by Voldemort, students were not supposed to leave the school unaccompanied, seventh years or otherwise. Frank's injury had, however, dispelled any ideas of punishment. This had allowed the four friends to slip away quietly, without Dumbledore's notice. Bearing this in mind, James had a feeling Dumbledore knew where he was most of the time anyway.

The rest of the afternoon was spent in the Hog's Head, the village pub, discussing plans for that evening -- it was the night of a full moon, and already Remus' hair had started to lengthen. Peter wanted to explore their usual places -- around the sides of the lake, keeping well away from the paths in case any foolhardy students happened to be wandering around alone. Remus was inclined to agree with him, not wanting a repeat of two months ago, where had it not been for Sirius the Ravenclaw fifth years would be one less in number.

But Sirius and James were dead set on their idea for the night; to explore parts of the Forbidden Forest they had never visited before. As long as they travelled together, no other creatures would bother them. Remus and Peter reluctantly agreed in the end, and James could understand their doubt; Peter was only a rat, by far the smallest creature, so he was always a little apprehensive about entering the Forest lest he be eaten by a wild Hippogriff. Remus' worry was quite the opposite -- he feared he might lose the others and cause chaos.

But Sirius won the decision in the end, promising both Remus and Peter (as he kept a human brain whilst transformed) that he would not let them out of his sight. He even offered to let Peter ride on his back. The stage was set for a fairly normal evening -- nothing out of the usual as far as their adventures were concerned. Little did James know this would be turn out to be an excursion that would change his life.

***

'Right,' said Professor Snape sharply. 'Now that Weasley has finally stopped talking, we can begin. Today we are testing the properties of a new potion.' The Seventh Year class groaned. Snape ignored them. 'Its name is Erised Potion. The effect that it has is to change any person into another person -- the person you would most desire to see. For example, you could change your partner into your dead great-grandfather when he was fourteen, if that happened to be your desire. Now, you will need --'

As Snape reeled off a list of ingredients, seventeen-year-old Harry Potter rested his arms on his desk. Thursday afternoon Potions lessons with Snape were becoming nothing short of monotonous, though Snape was a lot more bearable these days than in previous years. Harry, a tall, handsome wizard with green eyes and messy black hair, was in his final school year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Since Lord Voldemort, known only in the wizarding world as 'You-Know-Who', had risen, nearly three years ago, Harry's life had taken an unpleasant turn for the worse. Voldemort was a dark wizard, once named Tom Riddle, one of the best and brightest at Hogwarts. He had come face to face with Voldemort many times throughout his school life, and since the Dark Lord's rebirth had managed to kill his twisted second, Lucius Malfoy. Lucius' son Draco Malfoy -- Harry's least favourite person at Hogwarts -- still didn't know that it was Harry that had killed his father. Each week, disappearances were becoming more and more frequent, though Dumbledore was still keeping Voldemort away from Hogwarts, an almost impenetrable building.

Harry's life had never been totally pleasant, though it was true it had taken a dramatic turn for the better when he came to Hogwarts. Voldemort had been the cause of Harry's miserable childhood. When Harry had been just fifteen months old, the Dark Lord had murdered his parents, James and Lily Potter. Harry had survived the curse, and all that had remained to show it had ever happened was a curious lightning-bolt scar on his forehead. Brought up by his magic-detesting aunt and uncle, Harry had been miserable until the age of eleven, constantly in the shadow of his cousin Dudley. But on his eleventh birthday, Rubeus Hagrid, a friendly, bearded half-giant who lived in the grounds of Hogwarts, had rescued him. Hagrid had explained to Harry all about magic, and Voldemort, and that Harry was not only a wizard, but also the most famous in the wizarding world. Since then, Harry had lived nearly the whole year round at Hogwarts for seven years with his best friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, returning only to the Dursleys at the beginning of the summer holidays.

In Harry's third year, he had finally learned the truth about how his parents had died. His godfather, Sirius Black, had been wrongfully arrested for the crime. The true culprit had been Peter Pettigrew, another of James Potter's close friends. He had framed Sirius and hidden from the magical world, disguised in his Animagus form as Ron's pet rat Scabbers. Sirius had escaped Azkaban, however, and the whole truth had come to light eventually, with the help of another of the Potters' friends, Remus Lupin. Unfortunately, Peter had escaped, and it was he who had aided Lord Voldemort back to his old self. A reign of terror had started again, and Sirius had had to remain a fugitive.

Harry would be lying to say he did not fear Voldemort, but sometimes his hatred left no room for terror. He had torn apart so many lives close to Harry ... had very nearly killed Harry himself ... he would pay for it all someday ... for torturing all those people ...

Harry sighed, breaking his long train of thought, and glanced around the classroom. Malfoy was swearing at him and laughing. Bastard, Harry thought, raising his eyebrows. Seamus Finnigan and Dean Thomas, two fellow Gryffindors, were inadvertently flirting with Lavender Brown and Parvati Patil, girls who shared Hermione's dormitory. Ron and Hermione themselves, next to him, were speaking in an undertone, and Neville had fallen asleep on his desk.

'Harry,' Ron whispered. 'Who are you going to change your partner into?' Harry did not reply; instead he thought about this. He knew perfectly well whom he'd like his partner to change into, but he didn't think he'd be able to take it. It would be too hard ... still, it would be worth seeing the look on Snape's face to make Harry's father appear in the classroom. Snape seemed to have anticipated this, however.

'Choose partners, all of you! Potter!' His lip curled. 'You can work with Longbottom.' You git, Harry thought, now I won't get the chance. Ron and Hermione had partnered up, and were still silently discussing something.

'So,' Harry asked Neville when he came over. 'Know who you want me to be, Neville?'

'My dad,' said Neville simply, smiling in a longing sort of way. Harry instantly felt sorry for him, as he always did when Neville's parents were mentioned. He was the only one who knew what had happened to them -- Dumbledore had told him towards the end of his Fourth Year. Harry had not revealed to Neville that he knew this until the previous year, when they had had a long discussion about it. Frank Longbottom and his wife had been tortured to the point of insanity by a group of Death Eaters, shortly after Voldemort's original fall from power. They were both patients in St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries and did not recognise Neville when he visited them.

'What about you, Harry?' Neville asked.

'I don't really know,' Harry said offhandedly. Ron and Hermione looked at him. He felt a little uncomfortable, but they soon looked away.

***

'Fucking hurry up!' Sirius shouted to James, as the two of them flew down the steps leading to the Entrance Hall, a very pale Remus between them. His hair was already lengthening visibly, and his eyes were slowly changing colour. James did not reply as Peter came hurtling down behind them.

The grounds of Hogwarts were completely still, there was not a breath of wind in the sky. The stillness of the dark trees of the Forbidden Forest gave them a particularly ominous look. A small sliver of light from Hagrid's cabin illuminated a large tree in the distance, also perfectly still. The Whomping Willow.

Since he had started at Hogwarts, Remus had used the tunnel underneath the Whomping Willow for his transformations. Tonight was no exception. Sirius was visibly sweating by the time they reached the tree, and the area was partially bathed in moonlight. She was coming.

Peter kept his head, however. He transformed into his Animagus form and darted forward, skilfully avoiding the now lashing branches of the Whomping Willow. He nibbled on the trunk of the tree and it froze completely.

'Come on,' said James grimly, supporting Remus as he bent down and went into the passage. Sirius followed the two of them, still looking strained.

'We're fine now, Sirius,' James reassured him, as Peter the rat scurried on in front. 'We just need to wait about half an hour now for Hagrid to go to bed.' Sirius nodded, wiping his brow.

'Close call, though,' he said. 'Damn close ...'

They continued along the winding path, occasionally ducking so as not to hit their heads off the low ceiling. Remus was starting to shiver violently, jerking from side to side.

'It's coming,' he croaked, just as Peter started squeaking. James consulted the Marauder's Map in his pocket and realised they were almost at the Shrieking Shack, the place where Remus used to spend his transformations.

They made it inside with Remus snarling loudly. The hair on his face was gradually lengthening. James and Sirius turned to each other. Sirius pulled out the small vial Peter had been carrying earlier.

'Take your eye drops,' Sirius said quickly, unstopping the bottle and pouring two or three drops into his eyes. Within seconds they bright green. James followed suit. The reason for this was that Animagi, unlike true animals, were able to retain the colours they saw as humans; to do this, they had to take Iris Solution, which turned their eyes green as a side effect. James turned to Sirius again.

'We'd better get undressed, he'll be gone any second ...' Perhaps the only disadvantage of being an Animagus was that upon return to human form, you were very likely to find yourself stark naked and without spare clothes. Therefore, James and Sirius had "borrowed" a cupboard from the school and used it to keep their clothes in the Shrieking Shack to collect later. They had also brought spare clothes for Remus and Peter, who were always forced to transform before getting a chance to undress. Strictly speaking, it was not even a cupboard from school. It was actually a small teapot that James had swiped from the Divination classroom and transfigured into a cupboard. They stored away their clothes carefully and stood, practically naked (they still had underwear on), whilst waiting for Remus to transform.

It was never an instant thing. Finally, with one terrific scream, Remus started to change completely. His arms, legs and face were now covered with hair as his body began to readjust. Firstly his legs sprang out to the side and started to grow; now his arms were stretching -- Remus' screams were enough to wake the dead -- before finally his head began to shake from side to side ... his teeth were lengthening, glinting in the dim light. His ears shot up; also covered in hair ... James heard Peter give an excited squeak and knew it was time. He nodded to Sirius.

He tried to ignore the howling coming from Remus, and concentrated very hard on the thought of a bronze stag ... he felt a shivering sensation come over him ... unlike the werewolf transformation, Animagus changes were very quick and, after three or four turns, painless. James had barely closed his eyes when he realised he no longer had hands but four feet, and his head felt very heavy.

The party of animals faced one another, only one of them with an actual animal brain. The werewolf looked dimly to those around him ... firstly the great stag, rearing its head majestically ... the large black dog, looking around excitedly and, now on his shoulders, the tiny little rat, which was still squeaking. The wolf felt its urge for food subsiding ... it felt the tug of a new adventure ...

Within ten minutes, the party departed from the Whomping Willow, growling softly and pawing each other. They were free again.

***

Professor Snape checked his watch, flinching as Gregory Goyle's cauldron exploded somewhere behind him.

'You should all have finished by now!' he called over the chatter. 'Put your potions into the goblets provided and hand them to your partners! Longbottom,' he said silkily, eyes glittering, 'the illustrious Mr. Potter can try your potion first.' Harry winced, but Snape was watching him. There was nothing to be done. Bracing himself, he reached out, took the goblet from Neville, and swallowed the whole lot in one gulp. It felt similar to taking Polyjuice Potion, as he had in his Second Year, but this time the pain was more distinct. His vision was blurring and the dungeon was starting to spin. Surely Ron doesn't have three heads, Harry thought vaguely before, with one last fleeting look at Neville, he fell over backwards and hit the stone floor, hard.

***

It seemed like the Forest was their oyster ... the four animals could go wherever they wanted without hassle from other creatures. The moon was now in full view, illuminating the dark forest as it hung overhead. The stag ran on in the lead, enjoying the cool night air. Though James had his human thoughts, they didn't block out his animal instincts completely. Sirius followed in dog form, walking side by side with Remus. When transformed these two were often the closest, both being similar animals. The rat brought up the rear, scurrying along and occasionally disappearing from sight for a few seconds and reappearing with berries in its mouth.

They trotted along happily, just enjoying being in their Animagus forms. Sirius had often said, "It's better than any drugs, being in dog form in the Verboten Forest," to Remus, who, of course, could never remember his animal thoughts when he was back as a human. It was always a huge rush of adrenaline turning from a human into an animal, one of the reasons Peter had always been proud of his Animagi idea in the first place.

They turned at the next clearing, and entered an unknown part of the Forest, admiring the surroundings in the moonlight. Though it was now completely dark, the moon was so bright that it illuminated any sections of the forest without tall trees obliterating the beams.

When suddenly, the Stag tripped.

The other animals stopped sharply, and tried to see what the matter was with their friend. As Sirius peered closer, he saw the problem. A thick piece of vine had become very tightly wound around James' leg -- too thick for Peter to cut, too thin for Sirius. He was stuck until a human came along. Sirius thought about it objectively and eventually came to an answer. By this time James had already begun to think the same thing, and though his leg did not particularly hurt, it was stuck fast.

James nodded.

Sirius swung around again, in dog form, and motioned for the wolf and rat to follow him. Peter seemed to have cottoned on by now ... Remus, in wolf form, merely followed Sirius' scent ... he barely seemed to notice they were leaving James behind ...

They had gone within a few minutes. James waited, however. He was afraid ... being in the Forest with the others was on thing, being trapped and alone was another. He had to transform, unhook himself, and get to the castle, pronto. But Remus had to be far enough away ...

His leg had started to throb. There was nothing else for it ... the rustling of the others' footsteps had died away by now. James stopped thinking about his leg and concentrated very hard on being himself again ... himself ... himself ...

He blinked. His leg was no longer hurting ... in fact; it had slipped out of the vine. His head felt light again, not having antlers on the top. He was himself again. He went to stand, and as he did so realised there was still something caught around his leg ... he bent down closer to have a look. Unfortunately, he had neither his wand nor any clothes, and he was starting to shiver.

He needed to get out.

He broke into a run, ignoring the fact that something was still attached to his leg. He could see the top of the Astronomy Tower off in the distance ... at least he was heading in the right direction. He continued to run, ignoring any rustling or any other small noises around him. He was freezing cold now; he desperately needed something to cover himself up with ... stay warm ...

Finally he emerged out of the Forest and into the grounds. He was cold and shaking, and clambered desperately up towards Hagrid's cabin. Thankfully, Hagrid had left his outside light on, so James was able to see what he was doing. He found one of Hagrid's tea towels and wrapped it around himself, trying to stay warm. He looked around, and then started when he looked on the windowsill. His wand was lying there, and there was a small note attached.

It occurred to James that Sirius was probably sick with worry by now ... evidently he and Peter had returned to the Shrieking Shack to collect James' wand ... Remus would still be down there ... all the same, James felt braver on the whole with his wand back in his hand, and silently thanked Sirius for being good at Divination.

It was then that he felt the tugging around his leg again, and realised that the branch was still attached. It was glinting in the light from Hagrid's -- hold on, James thought -- branches don't glint. He sat down quietly, thankful he was no longer naked, and peered closely at his foot. There was something around it, but it certainly was not a branch. It was an hourglass attached to a very fine chain.

He pressed the button on the right once ... it switched to 12/03/1979. Cool, James thought. He tapped it a few more times, stopping at 12/03/1987. What is this, he wondered, a portable calendar? Hey, he thought, Lily might like this ... it is quite pretty, after all ... looks like it could be gold ... hrrm, better make sure I don't lose it. Still tapping the button absentmindedly, James slipped the thing over his neck. Just before the chain touched his neck, the dial flipped to 12/03/1998. The chain made contact with James' neck, and there was a huge jolt before the world turned upside down ...

***

'Harry?' said a familiar voice from above him. Harry opened his eyes, blinking in the unsteady light from a torch on the wall ... he knew that voice ... Sirius Black. But Sirius couldn't be here, could he? He was still on the run from the Ministry. Although, in his last letter, he had explained that he was staying undercover with Remus in Hogsmeade, Harry knew he was not foolish enough to walk straight into Hogwarts. He opened his eyes and started violently.

He was in the hospital wing, in a bed surrounded by curtains, and Sirius Black was standing in front of him. He was seventeen years old. Harry blinked. This had to be a dream -- of course it was. It couldn't be Sirius.

'Sirius?' he asked. Sirius laughed.

'Don't be a prat, Harry,' he said, and Harry knew who it was at once. 'It's me, Ron. This is who Hermione wanted to see with her Erised potion.' Harry almost laughed out loud with relief, not voicing his amazement. He never thought why Hermione might want to see Sirius.

'Blimey, I thought I'd gone back in time or something. Hey, why are you looking at me like that? And where's Hermione?'

'So that's what Neville's dad looked like when he was younger,' Ron replied thoughtfully, looking at Harry.

'What?' said Harry blankly. 'The potion worked?'

'Yeah, but it was a really powerful dose. That's why you were knocked out. You'll be walking around as Neville's dad for a while.' Harry stood up, and looked into one of the mirrors in the room. Staring back at him was a handsome seventeen-year-old, with wispy, light brown hair, sharp blue eyes and, at that moment, a very confused look. He looked somewhat similar to Cedric Diggory. Cedric Diggory ... yeah ... he was nice ... Harry chided himself for thinking about Cedric. It was always painful, even though they hadn't been best friends. He looked back to Ron. In his Sirius form, he had a very I-didn't-drop-those-Dungbombs! sort of look. He still had the same glittering brown eyes, but the difference in those eyes was striking. They were younger, innocent. Happy. There was no hint of the dead, shadowy look that often came into Sirius' eyes whenever Azkaban, Peter Pettigrew or Harry's parents were mentioned,

'It could be worse, I guess,' Harry said after a few minutes, noticing that Ron was looking at him curiously. 'Where's Hermione?' he asked. 'Who did you turn her into? Snape?' He was starting to think nothing would surprise him. Ron bit his lip, and pulled back the curtain.

'Well,' he said. 'No offence or anything, but --' He was interrupted as a medium sized but beautiful girl entered the hospital wing. She had dark red hair, and bright green eyes -- the very same eyes as Harry's. She was smiling nervously, unsure about what to think of herself. Harry's eyes were as round as saucers.

'You wanted to see my mum.' It wasn't a question. Ron's ears turned red.

'I, er --' he stuttered. Hermione shook her head.

'He's sorry, Harry,' she said softly. Harry said nothing. He just gaped, open mouthed, at the girl standing in front of him. He'd always heard people talk about how pretty his mother was, but he'd never expected her to look like this.

'I just ...' he said slowly. 'I need to be alone,' he said. 'Come back later.' His heart was in his throat. Sirius and Lily looked sadly at him, before Sirius muttered something to Lily and they both left the infirmary. Why did they have to die, Harry wondered absentmindedly, what did they ever do ... they weren't evil ... they didn't do anything. But they did, he reminded himself, they broke a common law. They were good. They fought for what they believed in and died defending me ... he started as he felt a tear roll down his cheek ... he felt very alone, for the first time since starting Hogwarts. He rolled over and rested his head on the pillow.

James landed on the ground with a thud.

'Fuck,' he said, because he had landed in a large pile of brambles. What had happened he didn't know, but he was now covered in scratches and cuts, so he got up. The light was still on in Hagrid's cabin, but the air had become much cooler ... and still James was dressed in just a towel. He could do with going to the hospital wing to get some spare robes before he caught pneumonia.

Someone whistled in the darkness, and James could vaguely sense movement up ahead. Help, James thought triumphantly, perhaps it's Sirius. Then he heard a loud voice, which was unmistakeably Hagrid's.

'Who's there?' he called, in a loud voice. 'Come out here!' James was so relieved that he didn't even think it strange that Hagrid was awake all of a sudden. He moved forward.

'It's me,' he said hoarsely, and heard Hagrid start.

'What are yeh doing out at this time, yeh nutter?' he said, as James approached him. 'Yeh look a right mess an' all.' Hagrid's eyes lingered on James' bruised and torn skin, hardly any of which was left to the imagination. James made to apologise, but Hagrid stopped him.

'Blimey, what happened to yeh? You should get to the hospital wing; get Madam Pomfrey to sort you out. Are you all right?' James said that he was, and Hagrid nodded.

'All right ... well, I'm not angry at yeh, being out here ... never could be, really ... but yeh know ... these days ... You-Know-Who and all ...' His voice tailed away into the darkness.

'Yeah - thanks Hagrid,' James said, doing what he usually did and slapping the groundskeeper on the back. Hagrid smiled in a wistful sort of way.

'Tha's something yer father used to do all th' time,' he said, looking up at the sky sadly. 'He'd be proud of yeh, yeh know. Well of course yeh do, but still ...' James remained silent. He recalled very little about his father, who had died when James had been only six years old. Still, it was always nice to hear other people talking about him. 'Well, good night,' Hagrid said. 'Oh, and try and keep yerself a bit more covered up inside, or the girls'll start stalkin' yeh.' James grinned. He bade Hagrid good night and the groundskeeper traipsed off in the direction of his cabin. James walked dolefully up the stone steps, his bare feet now aching. He stepped into the Entrance Hall and felt a lovely wave of warmth wash over him. After being out in the Forest for so long, it was an incredible feeling. He made towards the marble staircase but heard footsteps, and, taking Hagrid's excellent advice, stepped into the shadows.

'... stupid Potter ... hope he stays injured for a month.' James, his head buzzing from the change in temperature, felt sure this was Snape talking, though his voice sounded even more drawling than usual. He ducked down as he saw three shadows pass across the Hall and heard the sound of footsteps dying away. He breathed a sigh of relief, not really wanting Snape to catch him without clothes. On the other hand -- how had he known James was injured in the first place?

He climbed the stairs, turned left and then groaned. The castle had changed again. From time to time, the entire geography of Hogwarts would alter in a split second. Fortunately, it only did this once or year or so, but James was quite stuck. Where there should have been the secret passage to the hospital wing there was now a large portrait of a man called Trevor the Terrified, a very worried-looking wizard who was flinching at the sight of a toothpick. James cursed, but pulled out his wand at the same time.

'Accio Marauder's Map,' he whispered, pointing his wand into the air. He waited, and after a few seconds a slight humming noise preceded the arrival of the parchment, which looked more woebegone than ever. It was frayed around the edges and looked dusty and worn. This was not a problem, however, as James was able to apply a renewing spell, something he had added in case the map was ever ripped. Straightening up again, he held the map out in front of him and started off down the corridor.

*

Madam Pomfrey entered the hospital wing. She had been away that day to attend a meeting of the International Department of Health and Mediwizardry. She had no idea who had come into the ward that day, as she had left one of the Seventh years in charge. However, a quick glance at the treatment book told her all she needed to know. Joey Foster of Slytherin had been in with a twisted ankle ... Blaise Zabini had been transformed into a hedgehog, somehow ... and the only other name had been put in a very untidy scrawl, and looked to Madam Pomfrey like 'Longbottom'. There was no indication of what was wrong with him. Glancing around, she saw that only one bed was in use ... the curtains were drawn around it. She breathed a slight sigh of relief. At least two of the students had been healed already.

She approached the bed and pulled back the curtains. She very nearly screamed. Blinking furiously, she saw that Frank Longbottom, a young Frank Longbottom, was lying on the bed. He had died nearly fifteen years ago! She had gone very pale by the time Frank actually woke up, looking disorientated.

'Madam Pomfrey?' he said unsurely. 'It's me -- Harry Potter -- I'm under the effects of Erised potion ...' Madam Pomfrey stopped staring at him and breathed a sigh of relief, clutching her chest.

'Goodness, Potter, you scared me. How are you feeling?' She put her hand out to take his pulse, and he yawned.

'Better, thanks.' She looked at him, a tiny smile about her lips.

'Well,' she said curtly. 'I suggest you return to Gryffindor Tower, and rest in there. I have some important work to do, and would prefer not to be disturbed.' Harry nodded.

'Yeah, I'll go back -- thanks. If anyone comes looking for me tell them where I am.'

Madam Pomfrey nodded and Harry left the hospital wing, accidentally knocking his head on the door on the way out.

*

Ten minutes later, James was still unsure of where he was going. Someone has tampered with this map, he thought to himself, probably because the alternative would be that there was a mistake, and James was not the sort of person to admit to a fault. He came to yet another set of stairs, but the map was evidently malfunctioning. It said, as well as being where he stood, that he was also in the hospital wing, and his name was 'Harry Potter'. Very mysterious. He did notice that Sirius was in the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom, though, so perhaps it wasn't completely useless. Then he heard someone coming, and quickly put the map behind his back. He had managed up until now to avoid meeting anyone, but this time, he thought, as he tightened the towel around his waist, it was going to be unavoidable.

But he could not have wished for anyone else to come around the corner at that point.

Lily Evans entered the corridor, and stopped dead when she saw James. Her mouth was hanging open.

'Hey,' he said, a little unsure as to why she was staring at him so avidly. It wasn't like she hadn't seen it all before...

Lily tried to say something, but wasn't able. Instead she let out what sounded like a cross between a cough and a gasp. She noticed him looking at her strangely, and shut her mouth.

'What happened?' she said, her green eyes still round. James approached her, holding his arm.

'Went into the Forest,' he said, smiling at her. 'Got a bit lost.' Lily blinked.

'Forest?' she said. 'But you were in the hospital wing ...' James cursed himself inwardly. Whenever they went with Remus into the Forest, they told Lily that the three of them were in the hospital wing. Lily knew Remus was a werewolf, but had no idea her friends were Animagi.

'Help me get to the hospital wing?' he said weakly, and as he did so his towel slipped, exposing a large gash down the side of his leg. Lily looked horrified and entranced at the same time.

'Yes,' she said, carefully avoiding looking at James' legs. 'Let's go.' She placed an arm under his and started to help him down the corridor. Her knees were shaking as they headed off towards the infirmary.

*

Madam Pomfrey sighed. MagiCloning was all very well and good in theory, but what would its advantages be to future generations? She chuckled to herself. Perhaps I'm working too hard. She decided she needed a drink, but she had always been a sensible person, and so poured herself a glass of water. As she sipped it down, she decided she needed a real holiday the coming summer. Not Bognor Regis, the place where she and her husband usually went to fish, but somewhere exotic, somewhere hot. Also, the very idea of Ernest, her husband, in his lilac swimming gear, made her want to pack her bags and go straight away. But being a matron wasn't that bad, she reminded herself.

At that moment, there was a loud knock on the door.

Cursing herself for speaking too soon, Madam Pomfrey opened the door to greet an almost naked, injured Harry Potter standing next to his mother. Madam Pomfrey couldn't help it. She laughed. The job certainly had its surprises.

'He got lost,' Lily was saying, some minutes later. James had borrowed some pyjamas from Madam Pomfrey got into one of the beds. Of course, he didn't realise that Lily was actually Hermione Granger, something Hermione had explained to Madam Pomfrey without him hearing.

Madam Pomfrey was now walking over to James, tutting.

'I told you to go back to Gryffindor Tower, Potter,' she said. James nodded apologetically. It was true -- she had told them to go straight back to the common room after leaving Remus in the Shrieking Shack. As James apologised, he couldn't help but notice that the matron seemed older than usual. She went back into her office, muttering, and left James alone with (he thought) Lily. She smiled at him unsurely.

'How are you feeling?' she said, quietly. James smiled as well.

'Come here,' he said, motioning for her to come closer. She did, and kneeled down at the side of his bed. James put his hands around her neck and drew her closer, kissing her very softly on the lips.

'Thank you,' he said, not registering the look of shock on Lily's face. He smiled and, completely exhausted, lay back on the pillow and fell asleep.

*

Harry coughed as he walked down the silent corridors. He was quite cold, actually; it would be nice to get in front of the roaring fire in Gryffindor Tower. He approached the portrait of the Fat Lady quietly, whispering the password ('Draco Dormiens Nunquam Titillandus!') to her and sliding through the portrait hole.

It was very quiet in the common room. The only noise was the crackling of the fire and a low murmur from the people inside. Harry spotted Ginny Weasley and Donna de l'Entrecôte, a member of the Gryffindor Quidditch team, sitting at a table in the corner. He grinned.

'Hey Harry,' said Ginny, as he sat down. Harry looked puzzled.

'How did you know I was Harry?' he said, reaffirming that he still looked like Frank Longbottom by looking into one of the mirrors on the wall. Ginny chuckled.

'It's around the whole school -- Neville was sent home with neural shock after he saw you change into his dad. It really affected him; I've no idea why.' Harry had a vague idea himself but felt it wasn't fair to share it without Neville's permission.

'Bloody hell,' he said. 'Poor Neville. Have you seen Ron around?' Donna nodded.

''E went to look for you in the 'ospital wing,' she said, not quite concealing her French accent. Harry nodded.

'Thanks Donna. I'll see you later.' The two girls wished him good night, and Harry left the common room, only stopping to summon a sweater first.

*

James opened his eyes. He felt very dizzy. Madam Pomfrey had given him a potion of some sort before he had fallen asleep, and his leg was throbbing painfully. He chanced a look at it, and then wished he hadn't. It seemed he had not anticipated the extent of the damage earlier, but he could clearly see part of the bone sticking out, evidently from when he had fallen over in his Animagus form. However, he knew bones didn't take long to heal, and by the looks of it, this would click back into place any second. It would be very painful indeed, but it would only be quick.

James looked around the infirmary. He hadn't noticed it before, but it did look a lot more modern than the last time he'd been in here ... and that had only been the day before, after all. Putting this down to a lack of observation, James put his head back on the pillow. However, he was interrupted by a familiar voice.

'All right? How are you feeling?' Sirius had wandered into the hospital wing, looking relieved to see James there.

'Not bad,' James said, gritting his teeth. He could feel the relocation beginning. Sirius winced.

'Bugger,' he said, looking at James' leg. 'That's one fucker of a gash. How did it happen?' James gave him a confused look.

'The Forest,' he said. 'Don't you remember?' Sirius gave him a look that suggested he thought James was delirious. He shook his head.

'No matter, Pomfrey should sort it out. I'm glad I found you, actually. Been looking all over Hogwarts.' James nodded apologetically.

'Sorry, I needed to summon the map to get here, I was that disorientated.' Ron shrugged.

'Fair enough. Have you seen Hermione around?

And James was just about to answer when Frank Longbottom walked into the hospital wing.