Written for The Quidditch League Fanfiction Competition

Team: Caerphilly Catapults

Position: Seeker

Prompt: Dynamic Timeline

MC4A - Paranormal Phantasm

Fill #22

Representations: Theodore Nott; Harry Potter; Time Travel

Bonus Challenges: Casper's House; Second Verse (Tomorrow's Shade)

Word count: 2,999

The world was safe from the tyranny of Lord Voldemort at long last. Wizarding Britain hailed Harry Potter as their saviour, pushing him towards the Minister for Magic position as they knew they could trust him. They paid no attention to the circles under the man's eyes that were still present even a year after the second war was over.

They paid no attention to how tense the man went when someone pulled him into a thankful hug or even simply brushed past him. Harry Potter and Ginny Weasley were the golden couple and there could be nothing wrong with them. Never mind that despite familial pressure, the two had yet to become engaged and were reportedly seen out with other people in romantic settings.

Theo saw all these things. He was accustomed to sitting back and watching; he had spent many a day in Hogwarts and the Slytherin House doing just that. He sat unnoticed and saw where trouble might occur. Sometimes he would warn Professor Snape, and other times he would merely watch the cauldron boil over with an amused smirk on his face. The question he faced now was whether to do something about his observation of the Man-Who-Vanquished or to sit back and watch.

The answer shoved itself into his face the next week.

The Daily Prophet owl fell back onto the table and into Theo's breakfast, but the man didn't care as he was too busy reading the front page of the Prophet. Written in bold letters was Boy-Who-Lived Lucky to be Alive! and beneath it was a picture of a scrawny kid Theo recognised as Harry Potter. Theo's eyes cut to the writer's name to assure himself that it wasn't merely Rita Skeeter being dramatic. The article was written by Erin Shultz, a reporter who made a point of not using a Quick-Quotes Quill and detested drama for the sake of drama.

We all know the story of Harry Potter. He is the only person to have survived the killing curse and went on to defeat the greatest Dark Lord of our time. We know that he's made lifelong friends at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and has maybe also found love there as well. We know he's refused the position of Minister for Magic on the basis of him not having the experience and instead went into the Auror Program so that he could continue protecting the wizarding world. But is this all there is to Harry Potter?

The answer is no. We have very limited knowledge of what happened in young Harry Potter's life before he re-joined our world and—as it turns out—little knowledge of the many trials Mr. Potter went through during his school years. I met up with Mr. Potter and his friend Miss Granger after Mr. Potter had kindly agreed to give me an interview. He asked that Miss Granger be allowed to attend for moral support and I had no objections. I had no idea then about what he would reveal to me during the hour session!

We start with the Hogwarts years first, as those seemed to be easier for Mr. Potter to talk about. I wanted to know what it was really like to be such a well-known figure in the wizarding world and going to school. It turns out that Mr. Potter had no idea how famous he was until his first trip to Diagon Alley where he was quickly surrounded by admirers in The Leaky Cauldron.

"It was scary," Mr. Potter says as he recounts the event. "I had no idea who these people were or why they were so eager to see me and shake my hand. I just wanted to leave and get my school stuff but there were so many people."

Sadly, Mr. Potter's first year was not the ideal first year of school. He was appointed as Seeker for the Gryffindor Quidditch team and subsequently almost killed when his broom was jinxed during a game. He and his friends faced a troll that had gotten into the school and rounded the year off by fighting with You-Know-Who himself! Yes, that's right, readers. Harry Potter had his second encounter with the Dark Lord at age eleven while he was in what was supposed to be one of the safest places in Britain.

His second year was no better. We all know that Hogwarts was almost shut down during the 1992-'93 school year due to mysterious petrifications. What we didn't know is that a basilisk was living in the very bowels of Hogwarts and was controlled by a shade of Tom Riddle during that year. It was only due to sheer luck that no one died from the basilisk's gaze. Mr. Potter bravely went to face the snake with his best friend Ron and then Defence teacher, Gilderoy Lockhart. Risking his life once more, Mr. Potter managed to defeat the King of Snakes. He would have died then had it not been for the healing tears of a phoenix eradicating the basilisk poison from his veins.

We have only seen two years of Mr. Potter's life at Hogwarts and already it seems to be too much for child to go through. Our hero's third year seems to be much calmer in a certain way, although he still faced almost certain death. It starts on the Hogwarts Express and with the dementors. We all know the story of how a young Harry Potter survived an attack and lost his parents. What we didn't know is that he remembers that night and the dementors bring that memory to the forefront. Imagine hearing your parents die every time a creature comes near you and then having to live with those creatures hovering around your home constantly.

It's a horrible prospect and yet it is the reality of Harry Potter's third year of schooling. Add onto that an escaped convict trying to kill you and you have nightmare material ripe for the picking.

Luckily, Mr. Potter had been taking private lessons with Professor Lupin to help protect him from the dementors and knew how to cast a Patronus charm. It is only due to this that our darling saviour is still with us today. If he had not known this spell, the hungry dementors would have sucked out his soul along with that of one Sirius Black.

Then comes a year we know very well. Mr. Potter's fourth year coincided with the Triwizard Tournament and he became an unwilling participant. We now know that this was due to an undercover Death Eater using the competition as a way of delivering Mr. Potter to Tom Riddle for a resurrection ritual. At the time, opinions were divided and young Mr. Potter had to deal with scorn from multiple bystanders while trying to survive a tournament meant for those three years older than him.

Year five was, apparently, the Umbridge Year. The Ministry was attempting to keep the world calm and refuted all proclamations of You-Know-Who's return, claiming both Albus Dumbledore and Harry Potter were liars seeking attention. Madame Umbridge was sent to Hogwarts to teach Defence Against the Dark Arts and reportedly made life there miserable for all who didn't agree with her.

Harry Potter, George Weasley, and Fred Weasley were all given life-long Quidditch bans. The students created their own study group for DADA just so that they would actually learn something. Professor Umbridge even used a Black Quill in her detentions. For those who don't know, a Black Quill uses a writer's own blood and etches out the words on the skin of the writer. It is a horrendous device and most definitely not for use with children.

During his sixth year at Hogwarts, Mr. Potter was being taught the history of Tom Riddle and guided to the first of many objects necessary for his defeat. It was this year when Headmaster Albus Dumbledore lost his life. "I hated him then," said Mr. Potter. "I was still just a kid and I didn't know what to do. He hadn't told me enough before he died."

You may be wondering what happened in Mr. Potter's seventh year at Hogwarts. Mr. Potter, however, didn't attend Hogwarts for his seventh year. Instead, he travelled the country in search for the items he needed to defeat Tom Riddle with the help of Mr. Ron Weasley and Miss Hermione Granger.

This is only slightly worse than Mr. Potter's young life from age one. Until now, we all thought that Mr. Potter lived a life of luxury with his doting relatives. Mr. Potter has now revealed to me and you that his bedroom until he was eleven was a supply cupboard under a flight of stairs. He was treated as a house-elf for the entirety of his stay there, even after he had returned to our world.

For more about young Harry Potter's life, see pg. 6.

Theo threw the newspaper on the table. He had seen the signs and not read them. He had allowed himself to sit back and watch as the rest of Slytherin House did. He didn't go to Professor Snape with his observations, knowing that doing so would be an exercise in futility due to the Professor's hatred of all things Harry Potter.

The man had done so much for their world and all they had done was ask more of him. It was time to do something about that. With swift movements, Theo moved about his house to collect all the things he would need. An Unspeakable's work never left their side and Theo just so happened to be working on a new type of time travel that would allow him to return to his school days and help out Harry Potter.

With the Rune Room ready, Theo settled into a comfortable position and relaxed. A spark of magic lit up the runes and Theo's mind drifted back nine years to when he was just eleven years old.

Theodore woke with a jolt. He looked around and saw that he was in his old bed in the Slytherin dormitories. Quickly, he sat up and examined himself. He was eleven years old again; a long-ago memory now. His hands seemed to be so small and when he stood up, he found it hard to walk with the height difference. Smiling, Theo wandered down to the common room and settled in to see how the House was doing.

That afternoon he found himself muttering a counter-jinx to keep Harry's broom stable. Surrounded as he was by the small gang of first year Slytherins, his actions were not unnoticed. Thankfully, a simple explanation of not wanting the Saviour to die too quickly and deprive them of entertainment had the others leaving him alone.

The combined forces of Theo and the other person counter-jinxing were enough to significantly nullify the jinx so that Harry was able to play properly. There would be no catching the snitch in his mouth this time around. Of course, that was when Harry decided to lean too far off his broom, struggle to both hold on and catch the snitch ending up in him grabbing the snitch with his mouth as his hands held onto the broom above him. Theo stared in utter horror at the ridiculous move.

Some things he couldn't change, apparently. Such as the madness that was being Harry Potter. But he could help.

Time skipped forward to the next date Theo had selected for his journey into the past. On the night the Golden Trio made their way through the trials leading to the Mirror of Erised, Theo was sitting on his bed in Slytherin House fiddling with a blood red stone. He had retrieved it earlier that day and left a note for Riddle: Deepest apologies, you will not find what you are searching for here. The stone is gone.

The next morning, when Harry and his friends were seen wandering the corridors unharmed, Theo grinned. Harry Potter's first year at Hogwarts was no doubt massively improved by the fact he didn't have to kill someone at the age of eleven to save his own life. Quietly, he slipped into an alcove and let the magic take his mind back to the present—leaving behind a young version of himself feeling strangely protective over one Boy-Who-Lived.

A quick break for a cup of tea and a snack provided by Tippy gave him the time to refresh his mind. It had been strange being in the past. All of his classmates were so young and innocent in their first year, the war hadn't truly affected them at that time. Theo sighed and finished his cup of tea. It was time to go back to the Rune Room and the past. His eyes caught on the copy of The Daily Prophet that was still sitting on the table.

While his first year at Hogwarts seems relatively calm compared to the rest of them, he still faced almost certain death with a troll. He tells us this in regards to the event; "I'm kinda glad that happened, it's the whole reason Ron and me became friends with Hermione." He also became the youngest Seeker in a century the same year.

Theo rose an eyebrow at the article. Apparently, he had succeeded in making Harry Potter's life a bit better while he was at Hogwarts. Still, there was more to do. He made his way back to the Rune Room, made the necessary adjustments for his second year, and let his magic flow into the runes. This year was going to be harder to subtly help out in due to the entire school suspecting him of being the Heir of Slytherin.

"You know, being a Parselmouth doesn't mean that you're evil."

Harry jumped as Theo spoke from the other side of the library bookshelf. "Er, what?"

"In Hindu, Greek and other cultures, being a Parselmouth is considered a good thing as snakes represent healers. It's really only in Britain that it's both rare and feared. Especially since the last Parselmouth turned into the Dark Lord."

"Why are you telling me this?"

Theo shrugged slightly, "Just wanted you to know that the school is currently being stupid. And hey, if you need to talk to anyone about this that won't judge you, come find me."

"You're a Slytherin, why would you do that for me?"

"Not all Slytherins are like Malfoy, it's time you knew that. The name's Theodore."

Harry nodded and waved slightly as Theo left the library. "Bye. Thanks."

In his second year, Mr. Potter tells us that it is only due to a new friend that he didn't think himself as evil when he learned he was a Parselmouth. The knowledge that Parselmouths in other cultures were not so rare as in Britain aided him immensely during this year.

We all thought that Mr. Potter would be in mortal danger before and during his third year at Hogwarts with Sirius Black escaped from Azkaban. It was then thought that Mr. Black was the betrayer of the Potter family and devoted follower of Tom Riddle. Mr. Potter and his friends managed to reveal that Peter Pettigrew was alive and the true betrayer of the Potters. The year for Mr. Potter ended with his godfather being exonerated and willing to give him a new home.

We can all agree that Mr. Potter's fourth year was one full of excitement. The Triwizard Tournament returned with Hogwarts and visiting schools Beauxbatons and Durmstrang competing for the glory. However, the tournament ended up becoming the Quadwizard Tournament as young Harry Potter was entered against his will and selected along with Hufflepuff Cedric Diggory.

Mr. Potter reports that he likely wouldn't have survived the tournament if it hadn't been for his three friends working side by side with him to figure out the challenges and how to complete them. It was also thanks to the extra training he went through that he was able to hold his own against Riddle at the end of the third task.

"I don't know what to do, Theo!" Harry yelled in the privacy of the Room of Requirement.

"Snape keeps telling me to clear my mind but that doesn't tell me anything! What does it mean? How does one clear their mind?"

"Stop trying to clear it," Theo suggested, holding up his hands in mock-surrender as Harry whirled around to glare at him. "What I mean is, don't try to empty your mind. Think of one thing. I think of a library when I Occlude. You need to find your library. What makes you feel peace above all else?"

Harry shrugged as he collapsed on the opposite end of the couch Theo was sitting on. "I dunno, flying?"

"Are you asking me or telling me?" Theo rose an eyebrow at Harry and then ducked the cushion the other had thrown at him.

"You know that Ginny has been waiting for you to ask her out since you met her, right?" Theo asked, his mind latching onto the first thing that came to his mind to avoid seeming like a stunned idiot.

Harry rolled his eyes. "That has a basis in hero-worship and I think you told me not to be involved with anyone who might see more Boy-Who-Lived than Harry Potter."

"I did, but that doesn't mean you should ask me out. I'm a Slytherin!"

"You also told me that not all Slytherins were like Malfoy. I like you, Theo, a lot. You've always been there for me. Will you go out with me?"

Theo couldn't argue with that, and he also couldn't argue with the fact that his heart was currently leaping for joy as an unattainable dream suddenly became attainable. "Yes."

Mr. Potter concluded the interview by announcing that he would be marrying Theodore Nott in the coming year. The two have been dating since their sixth year and have now decided to tie the knot.