Chapter Text
"Exactly! You wouldn't understand, you might even attack yourself! Don't you see? Professor McGonagall told me what awful things have happened when wizards have meddled with time.... Loads of them ended up killing their past or future selves by mistake!"
Well, too bloody late. They say wizards are not supposed to mess with time. The few allowed to are thoroughly explained the consequences of any and all actions and worse case scenarios. Unfortunately, two individuals did not receive such instruction before being dragged into the chain and swept away by the sands of time; Harry and Willow. One did not suffer the consequences, the other did.
During the commotion where Hermione hurriedly told the duo to get under the chain, Willow caught a glimpse of her future self entering the room. At the time, her mind did not fully process what had happened. After all, she was immediately send three hours prior in time. Only after was she, alongside Harry, briefly explained by Hermione why they should not cross paths with their past selves. Confusion. Madness.
Willow, of course, decided to rationalize that she had indeed not made eye contact with her future self, however briefly. That due to knowing that such things as Polyjuice existed (something she became intimately familiar with the Christmas break before last), that no such madness would overcome her. However, as she became too invested making sure Buckbeak and Sirius were both saved, she forgot to be more careful when they finally returned, and indeed made eye contact with her past self. That was all it took- eye contact, technically twice in under three hours. While her past self suffered no issues until the loop ended, her present self collapsed on arrival.
Not to worry, no self murder towards another version of themselves occurred. However, time is a fickle thing... And it's travelling restrictions have left with little knowledge on possible consequences. Let's take a look at them, shall we?
"Gah! NO!" Bright light from the window blinds her. Something is restraining her hands. I need to get out. I need to get out. I need to RUN. And here comes the dramatics of the pawn.
"Willa!" She feels hands grab her, and a punch goes straight through the blankets. "Ow-mph! Stahp! It'zzz mih!"
Finally managing to pull the blanket down, she sits up and looks around to find Harry clutching his nose, which is bleeding. Blinking, Willow looks around and recognizes her surroundings. Sort of. "I thought you said limbo was a white version of King Cross? Why are we in the Hospital Wing?"
"Wah-?"
"Oh," She sees her wand at the bedside table and points at his nose.
"Noh-"
"Episkey."
Crunch. "Oh- Fuck, Willa!" He carefully touches his nose before reconsidering calmly. "Hey, that actually fells better. Where did you learn that spell?"
"What do you- Luna, of course!"
"Right... Who?"
"Quiet you two! You'll wake Ron! Honestly!"
She blinks at him, before it finally dawns on her. Harry is younger. At her left... Ron is sleeping, with his leg bandaged up, with Hermione at his side, reading some book. The two of them are also younger. What the fu- "What happened?" Her voice was softer now, trying to comprehend whatever in plot madness was happening.
"You collapsed," Harry began in a whisper, trying not to wake Ron nor disrupt Hermione's reading. "-after we got back from, you know, getting Sirius out. I asked Professor Dumbledore if it was the... time-travel thing- the Time-Turner, but he said it was just the adrenaline. Are... Are you okay?"
Shit. What. In. The. Holiest. Of. Fucks. "The thing with Professor Lupin... Pettigrew... Sirius... And Snape at the Shrieking Shack... It happened yesterday... Last night?"
"Yes. Pettigrew... He escaped. Sirius is on the run now. But, he's, umm, safe, I think."
Looking down at her hands, she notices- no Umbridge scar. Rubbing at the top of her chest, she also feels smooth skin. Dolovoh's curse- wait, was it a dream? "You're alive?"
He furrows his eyebrows at her. "Umm, yeah. Of course. Willa, are you- do you need me to go and get Pomphrey?"
"No, I'm fine." This is not limbo. Harry is not dead. Vold- You-Know-Who isn't back. It was just a dream... Right? Let's not be too loud about it, lest I end up in Azkaban, or worse- St Mungo's. "So today is... What is the date? June-?"
"Seventh."
Just a dream them. A weird, several years worth of dreams- Shit, I need to read on time-travel paradox stuff. Wait, madness. That was it. If I just pretend it was a dream and don't ponder over it, I'll be fine. Right? I just need ot make sure it is that seventh of June. How do I ask without-? Oh, I know! "Did we finish all of our third year exams?"
With a snort, his worried eyes turned amused. "Seriously? That's your concern? Yes, yes. All exams are done, you nerd. But Snape was pissed when they found out Sirius wasn't there anymore. He was supposed to get an Order of Merlin for getting him, or something, but with Sirius out, that was out of the question. So... He outed Professor Lupin as a werewolf. The Minister was not pleased- bigoted arse."
Willow nodded at him, numbly. Wait, so, not a dream? I saw the future- Glancing at Hermione, who seems incredibly unconcerned about temporal paradoxes caused by dragging her 'friends' through time without asking, Willow grimaces. "Well, at... at least that's how the curse got him... Right? I mean, we had one dead and the other permanently obliviated. Best he just resigned."
"Oh, he hasn't resigned. I don't think. He was, you know, werewolf-y all last night. I haven't gone to see him yet."
Right, so, I definitely saw the future. Was it all accurate, or just a possibility? What happens if I act on what I saw? I mean, True Seers exist. They, you know, See stuff and act on it without causing temporal paradoxes, surely? "He will resign though. You and I know it. Parents are going to complain about a werewolf being on the premises, near their kids. Bigoted arseholes."
Harry pouted. "But- but, he's the best teacher we've hard at DADA! And he didn't do anything wrong!"
"Ssshh!"
"She's awfully unconcerned over someone who's passed out after making eye contact with her past self- because of her." Ah, shit. I said that out loud. "How's Ron doing, by the way?" Nice save- although I couldn't care less- not with the non-dream, vision thing I had.
He shrugged at her, somewhat sheepishly. "He's okay, nothing Skele-Gro and sleep can't fix. And, um, no, she, she cares. I think she's just trying not to feel guilty and stuff. You know how it is. Better this than her lecturing- which will come later, I'm sure."
"Right," Not according to what I saw in the future. You dying of poison after the war, with Ginny's illegal marriage contract allowing her to take all your gold as your 'fiancée'. With Ron and Hermione enriching themselves too, and all your compulsions never going answered. And neither mine. I've got to fix that. Gringotts's, this summer. Maybe I can help Sirius too, before the Veil. "Anyways, I'm not against Professor Lupin. But you know Snape's loud mouth is going to lead to that."
"Shit."
"Language Mister Potter. Miss Duncan, how are you doing dear? You fainted after yesterday's excitement. I couldn't find any concussions, so, it's probably just the adrenaline, or low blood sugar. Are you in any pain? Dizziness?"
"No ma'am." Does temporal confusion count?! "Can I go? I feel fine."
"Just a quick diagnostic charm to check." One charm later, which Willow dreaded to come with anything concerning, Madam Pomphrey nodded. "Alright, yes, you can go. But you take things slow, drink plenty of fluids, and go straight to the Great Hall for some breakfast. Honestly, getting into these shenanigans with dark wizards and werewolves so shortly after exams- no wonder one of you passed out!"
Right, yes. That. Nothing else is going on, Madam Pomphrey. Truly. Genuinely. Willow was standing up and practically getting ready to sprint out of the Hospital Wing at her dismissal. "Yes, sure, of course! Harry...?"
"Yeah, let's go. I want to check on Lupin. Hermione, you'll stay with Ron?"
"Shh! Yes! Go! Stop being disruptive!" How have I never noticed Hermione is essentially a mini-Madam Pince, plus the betrayal?
"Yeah, okay!" Harry replied with his hands up in surrender, while Ron groaned from Hermione's screams. Not wanting to face her wrath further, he grabbed Willow's hand and began pulling her out of the room. In a whisper-shout, he turned to Willow. "Let's go, Willa!" She nodded rigorously, too wanting to be as far away from the dreadful-duo. As they finally made it out of the Hospital Wing, Harry released her hand and began guiding her through the halls. "Breakfast first, for you. We don't want you passing out again. Are you sure you're okay?"
"As okay as I can be. Are you okay?"
"Yeah, yeah. Why wouldn't I be? I didn't pass out." Technically he had, prior to time-travelling, due to the dementors, but he didn't count that near-Kiss as anything of concern.
Willow, on the other hand, had decided to push her visions aside and focus on Harry. His instant desire to move in with Sirius despite not knowing him well... At this point in time, Willow was not supposed to know too well about Harry's home abuse, and what she did know she had not acted on. In another universe where she had been fully under compulsions to ignore the warning signs, she'd simply pat him on the back. In this universe however, the eye-contact with her past self had sent her visions that also partially broke those compulsions. Pulling him into a hug, she couldn't help but feel grief for him. I've got to do something. I've got to stop him from going back. Last time he saw them he blew up his aunt Marge. They'll want to hurt him- and Dumblefuck will not do anything about it, because he wants Harry to be a lamb ready for slaughter. "We'll figure it out. About Sirius. About the Dursleys. I'll help you." Wait... the blood protection. Is Vol- You-Know-Who is meant to rise again... What if he were to find out before hand that Harry is his Horcrux? Surely that might make him go about things differently? Not attack Harry? Maybe make some kind of magical truce between then to negate the probably fake prophecy... I've got to figure this out.
"Oh, thanks... But, I think there's nothing we can do. Fudge wouldn't listen." He mumbled into the hug as he melted into it. He's starved for touch. Non-violent touch anyways. I'll take care of him.
"Then we go to someone else. I'll look into it, alright? Just- leave it to me."
He nodded, not truly believing, but not having the energy to fight about it. "Sure, thanks... Lets get some food in you know, alright?" Harry pulled away with a shy smile before nodding towards the Great Hall just further up.
"And you too. You need some meat in your bones." I'll get you to Gringotts' this summer. Maybe if you can take healing potions sooner, and the compulsions off, I can save you. Wait- the visions stuff. Am I wrecking time-? Luna. I've got to talk to Luna.