DeRanged here! I realize you guys are still waiting on the sequel to my version of the "The Mummy" with the Avengers as the characters, but I currently have nothing to play the second movie on so I can't really pull from it and type like I normally would. Until such a time that I can get my stinkin' DVD player to work, I'll be revising and editing my original trilogy that I started on with. I hope y' all don't mind too much. I was re-reading it and realized just how childish my writing was back then compared to now so I started editing and re-writing to cover obvious plot-holes and to fix the mistakes I made the first time around.

For those who are coming back, I hope this is just as good – if not better – than the former and if you are only now reading it then I hope you enjoy! Thank you

Disclaimer: I do not own either Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings otherwise I'd be stinkin' rich and probably not writing fanfiction due to the fact that all of my characters would be gay from the beginning ;D

Chapter One: A New Home

Fire ate at everything it could get to as bodies littered the ruins of what had once been a great castle and school known as Hogwarts. Mangled and bleeding, young and old – it didn't matter, they lay dead on what had once been school grounds full of chattering and laughing children. All dead, all gone, all but one. A man still drew breath and sat hunched over a dead body, his shoulders shaking from suppressed sobs as he caressed the face of a bushy haired woman – her eyes were open and glassy and filled with love and determination. The man's messy black hair fluttered in the small breeze and tears filmed emerald green eyes. His clothes were torn and crusted with dried blood – some his own and some his enemies. This mysterious man was none other than Harry Potter, the esteemed Boy-Who-Lived.

Slowly tears stopped and the last flame of life leaked from his expressive eyes leaving behind a dulled, soulless pea green orbs. He brushed his hands over his best friend's eyes and shutting them gently, whispered a soft, "Have fun up there with the others 'Mione."

He settled her gently on the war scorched lawn of what once had been his home before standing and searching over the battleground for any who might still be alive – friend or foe. What had once been jeans were torn in every imaginable place and were near falling off and his shirt had long fallen off his torso in tatters. Scars – old and new – littered his chest, arms, and back while his feet were bare and bleeding. Eyes widened in shock when he saw movement from one of the bodies nearby and he was soon jumping over the dead bodies that lay in his way, not even daring to glance down to see the accusing faces of his loved ones.

When he reached the body, he saw they were laying face down with their face buried in the dirt leaving little to identify the body. What Harry could see was sandy brown hair with streaks of gray. Heart beating in his throat, Harry quickly turned the body to see Remus Lupin – the only remaining link to his parents and the last bit of family he had left – with a deep slash across his stomach.

The elder's eyes fluttered open to show weary gold that lit up the moment they set blurrily on Harry's face, "You're alive!" he said, his voice filled with love and happiness, "Does that mean -?" he stopped not daring to hope.

"He's gone Remy. We're finally free, but at great cost," Harry said, looking brokenly around the battlefield.

Remus also glanced around as best he could from his position and his eyes filled with tears that slowly overflowed and fell down his cheeks. Harry gently lifted him softly so the man was braced against his chest and placed a gentle hand over Remus's bleeding wound – he would not lose the only person he had left. The elder man gave a gasp as warmth spread through him from his stomach; where once there was pain there was nothing more than warmth and comfort.

Slowly the warmth leaked away until it was completely gone, this is when he looked down to see his stomach healed completely. Quickly, he forced his tired limbs to move so that he could turn in his honorary godson's arms to wrap his own arms around the boy who had quickly become a man before his eyes. Harry needed as much comfort, if not more than, he did.

They took their time in pulling back, but when they did they were inspecting each other to see if they were truly okay. Remus's khaki pants were now torn at the knee and his shirt was long gone, much like Harry's, and his robes had been abandoned near the beginning to offer larger range of movement. They helped each other stand before both set about finding something to cover themselves with, extracting the few remaining intact robes from the dead bodies around them, apologizing profusely as they did so. They quickly donned them, shrinking them down to fit them better with a bit of wandless magic, before meeting up with each other once again.

Harry looked around at the strewn bodies as Remus stood silently beside him, watching him closely. Then Harry spoke up, "We'll bury our allies and burn our enemies," he said, rolling up the sleeves of his robe and pulling his wand from its invisible holster with a deft flick of his wrist.

Remus quickly copied the younger man's movements, but as they both raised their wands to get started sorting the bodies a bright light nearly blinded them. When it disappeared and they could see again, the two men found an unearthly woman standing before them – or rather floating before them – as her bare feet didn't touch the bloodied ground. Her silver hair fell down her back in lush waves, filled with braids and flowers revealing pointed ears resting beneath. Her eyes were iridescent and seemed unwilling to settle on a color while her face was unblemished, pale, and glowing like the moon. A Greek toga was wrapped lovingly around her body and flowed like a gurgling creek over her lush curves.

The two found themselves falling into bows subconsciously – it felt like the right thing to do. They heard a tinkling laugh over their heads from the woman, "You have no need to bow to me, my warriors. You have suffered much, and it is I who should be bowing to you," she said, her voice clear and soothing like a song.

They quickly straightened and their faces were nearly identical in their surprise and silent questions, "I see you have much to ask," she said, "why don't we sit?" the being asked, gesturing regally towards one of the larger chunks of rubble that jutted out of the ground – these pieces of worn stone were all that remained of Hogwarts and her history.

Exchanging weary glances, the two men stored their wands and made their way to the indicated stone, clambering up until they found a comfortable position to sit in before turning to stare at the being expectantly. She sighed, folding her legs beneath her so that she floated on the wind in a sitting position, and began, "I am Fate," she said, quickly adding, "not to be confused with my sister: Destiny," before continuing with what she had to say, "Both of you have faced many obstacles, many deaths, so I took it upon myself to give you a second chance at another life," she said, smiling brightly at them.

"So we would – what? Be reborn and have to live our lives all over again?" Harry asked, raising a disbelieving brow.

Fate raised a hand and wobbled it to and fro, "Partly," she said, "You will keep your memories, keep your bodies, but you will be in another world, in another life," she said, before grinning brightly, "I'll also be curing Mr. Lupin here of his lycanthropy," she snapped her fingers, "He's now merely an Animagus, though his form is restricted to that of a wolf," her voice was coated in giddiness.

The two turned to each other in disbelief and amazement – this couldn't be possible, they had to be dreaming.

"Why do mortals always think this is a dream?" Fate asked, voice coated in exasperation.

"Begging your pardon madam, but you have to admit that it's honestly a bit unbelievable," Remus said, placing a calming hand on Harry's thigh to help the younger man hold his tongue.

"Perhaps you're right," she said, before clapping her hands together enthusiastically twice, "Anyway, back to the present!"

Both men sent her a look that stated they were questioning her sanity – and their own, for that matter – but soon forgot this when they began to float off the boulder and into the air. They grabbed each other's arms on the off chance they would drift apart if they did not and fell unconscious, convulsing as if placed beneath the Cruciatus – they never let go of each other. Then, with a flash of red, the two men disappeared with a loud 'POP' that resounded through the clearing Hogwarts once stood and across the deforested Forbidden Forest.

The two men woke with pounding headaches in the middle of what appeared to be a lush clearing in a forest beneath the full moon. A fire crackled to their left side and was the only source of warmth in the strange, chilly night. Harry was the first to recover and sit up, glancing quickly at his surroundings to gain his bearings. All he could see was the dark shadows of the trees surrounding them and Remus, nothing else. Stretching his sense to his surroundings to ensure their continued safety, Harry began to check Remus over quietly in hopes the man hadn't gained any new wounds on their odd journey.

He was shocked to find the man was better than he had ever been: his once gray-streaked hair was now a deep honey that shined beneath the flickering firelight and his blurry golden brown orbs held a ring of silver around the pupil. What was even more surprising for Harry was the large change in the older man's body build – it was as if the man had been de-aged because the once worn and lined skin was now smooth, flawless, and bronzed while sagging muscles were once again hard as steel and lean.

As Remus finally sat up, eyes clearer now, he stared at Harry for a long time making the younger man uncomfortable, "What?" he asked.

"Harry, where are your glasses?" Remus asked in return, eyes wide.

Harry's hands flew to his face only for his own eyes to widen and for him to flick his wand into his hand and conjure a mirror. He stared at his reflection in shock; his glasses were gone and it made his deep emerald orbs glimmer magically, but that wasn't the only change to his appearance. His once messy locks now fell down his back in loose curls with streaks of auburn and his once deathly pale skin was now olive toned.

"I thought she said we would keep our bodies," Harry said, using his fingers to nudge his cheeks, not fully believing he was awake.

Before Remus could respond there was a rustling from behind the trees to their right; they were on their feet instantly with their wands pointed to the sound and glowing dangerously. They weren't prepared for an old man in gray robes to hobble out using a gnarled staff as support, his silver beard was long enough to tuck into his belt and his hair fell down his back at nearly the same length.

They met shocked cyan blue orbs and Harry couldn't help what he blurted next, "Dumbledore?"

A raspy, kind voice spoke up, "I'm afraid you may have me confused with someone else, young man," he said, giving a slight smile that caused his eyes to twinkle reminding Harry and Remus so much of the former Headmaster they had both loved dearly, "My name is Gandalf," this is when he noticed their glowing wands causing his bushy brows to raise, "You are Istari?" he asked, obviously in shock.

"What?" Remus asked, glancing between the Dumbledore-look-alike and their wands.

Harry chimed in, "What is an Istari?" he asked.

Gandalf gestured towards their wands, "An Istari can use Magic by blessing of the Valar," he said, "I myself am one of eight here in Middle Earth."

Remus and Harry exchanged glances, "Do you mean wizards?" Remus asked, but Harry shook his head, "Middle Earth?" he asked.

Gandalf looked between the two men, more precisely at their strange clothing before gesturing back towards the fire, "Perhaps we should sit and exchange our tales," he said.

The two men quickly settled back down to where they had awoken only closer together, one constantly checking their surroundings at all times. Gandalf observed this, but didn't comment as he too settled beside the fire with a large boulder at his back.

The three Men sat in silence for a few moments before Harry broke it, "So who starts this little campfire story time?" he asked, seemingly unconcerned.

Gandalf was quite amused with the young Men before him, both held a flawless façades of calm and cool and relaxed. Pulling out his pipe and filling it with the last remains of his Longbottom leaf, he lit his finger to light his pipe only to watch in surprise as a foreign magic smothered his own and put out the flame. Eyes shooting up he met twinkling emeralds that met his own directly without fear.

"A man of your age shouldn't risk the disease that comes with smoking so late in life," Harry said, tone teasing causing Gandalf to splutter slightly in shock at the Man's gall before the old Istari began to laugh.

"That should be enough to prove that you are not from Middle Earth," Gandalf said, chuckling, "May I get the names of my story tellers?" he asked.

Harry looked towards Remus, silently questioning who would lead tonight and Remus merely nodded to the younger man before Harry turned to Gandalf and began to speak, "I'm Harry Potter-Black and this is my godfather and honorary Uncle, Remus Lupin and you're correct: we aren't from Middle Earth. We come from a world where magical beings – whom we call wizards – are many and magical creatures are few and seen as lesser. Prejudice runs high in our world and anyone seen as inferior is sneered at," Harry said, continuing to explain everything he could think of.

He told Gandalf about the Founders, about Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, about Voldemort's first rise to power, about his parents' murders and Voldemort's supposed demise, about his first four years, about Voldemort's return, about the War against the Darkness, and about Fate's visit in the end. Gandalf listened closely throughout and was amazed at what these Men had been through and felt sympathy that they had been placed in a world that was in a state of upheaval similar to their own on the precipice of war.

Harry stared silently into the fire now, watching the flames dance numbly as he relived everything in his head that he had told this stranger. Remus was no better, but he stared up at the starless sky at the ironically full moon.

Gandalf interrupted the endless loop and began the history of Middle Earth. The beginning, the creation of each being that lived across the lands, the divisions of each land – the Shire, Gondor, Rohan, etc. – the story of the rings, Sauron and the One Ring, Isildur and his betrayal, the attempts to regain Erabor, and his suspicions that Sauron's return. He finished with how he had discovered Harry and Remus's unconscious forms on his journey to the Shire to visit an old friend.

They all sit in silence – Gandalf to allow the two Men before him to absorb everything and Harry and Remus to memorize all that they had learned about their new home. Finally, it was Remus who broke the silence, "So what now?" he asked, wrapping a comforting arm around his adoptive nephew.

Gandalf leaned forward to stoke the fire while he spoke, "There are many options before you: you can travel with me to the Shire, you may go on your own adventure, or I can point you in a direction," the elderly man said.

Remus turned to Harry only to see the young man had fallen asleep causing the older man to smile fondly at the sight. Turning back towards Gandalf, Remus spoke in a low whisper, "Perhaps we can get back to that decision in the morning when my nephew and I aren't quite as exhausted?" the former werewolf asked.

Gandalf smiled kindly across the lower fire, "Of course," he said, "get some rest. You will be safe here," he gestured towards the clearing, "We are so close to the Shire and protected by Rangers."

Remus nodded politely, unwilling to tell the Istari that he and Harry had never fully fallen into a complete sleep since before Harry's fourth year. He quickly conjured a sleeping roll for himself and his young cub before gently moving the younger man onto it. From there he moved his roll beside the young man's before laying down himself, wand in his hand out of caution and habit.

When Harry woke next, he discovered he was lying on a quite comfortable bed and when he opened his eyes he found he was in a strange room with a small, round window on the wall at his feet. Grumbling to himself about waking up in weird places every time he fell asleep, Harry pushed himself into a sitting position only for his head and wand to snap towards the doorway where a small creature walked in and jolted in surprise at seeing him awake.

The creature, for it wasn't a Man, was as tall as a goblin with graying curls revealing slightly tipped ears while his feet were large, bare, and covered in fur on the top – because there was too much to merely be hair – and was just as curly as the hair atop the creature's head.

"Ah, I see you're awake," he said, over his surprise and walking towards Harry without fear of the Man's glowing wand, "Gave your Uncle quite a scare when you didn't wake up, lad," he said, sitting down in a tiny chair beside the bed.

"My Uncle?" Harry asked, his head felt muddled and his tongue felt as if it were made of cotton. The image of Vernon flashed in his mind making him cringe and fight back a gag; thankfully the stranger spoke up and distracted him.

"Aye, lad," the man said, looking at Harry in obvious worry, "Remus? Perhaps you hit your head recently?" he began muttering to himself all the possibilities of what could be wrong with Harry.

Harry sat in the bed staring down at the creature that was steadily muttering worriedly about his health and couldn't help the laughter that bubbled forth as he remembered everything that happened the night before – was it the night before? How long had he been asleep that it had scared Remus? This stopped his laughter and he turned a curious gaze towards the man – a Hobbit he recalled from Gandalf's history lesson – who was staring at him with a relieved grin on his own slightly aged face.

"I'm sorry, but I didn't get your name Mr. -?" Harry began, moving himself into a more comfortable position back against the pillows he had been sleeping on.

"Oh! Baggins, lad, Bilbo Baggins," here the Hobbit bowed cheerily, "But you can just call me Bilbo, no need for formalities here in Bag End," he said.

"Right," Harry said, rolling the syllables slowly across his tongue before getting back on point, "How long have I been asleep?" he asked.

Bilbo sat back into his chair and pulled a wet rag from the folds of the blankets that Harry had somehow missed falling when he sat up, "Three weeks, my boy," he said in a grave tone, "Like I said, gave your Uncle quite a scare especially when you gained a fever within the first night," the elder Hobbit shook his head, "Kept young Frodo and I on our toes for a fortnight until your fever finally broke, thank Yvanna," Harry just sat listening to the Hobbit ramble, getting everything he wanted to know and yet nothing at the same time.

Where was Remus? Where was Gandalf? Where were they? Why had they come to this odd Hobbit's home? And who was this "young Frodo"? Harry got his question answered only to have more pop into his head.

As if sensing his growing distress, Remus came stumbling into the room looking tired with large, dark bags beneath his eyes and carrying a bowl of what Harry assumed was fresh water. When the man's blurry eyes landed on Harry's conscious form, the bowl tumbled from his hands and with a cry of relief the man lunged towards Harry and the younger man soon found himself with a lap full of a sobbing former werewolf.

"Thank Merlin," Remus managed between sobs, "You scared the shit out of me, cub," he said, pulling back to smack the younger man upside the head before pulling him in close again in a desperate hold, "No more going months without sleep, do you hear me?"

Harry stared incredulously over the man's shoulder to see a smirking Gandalf with a giggling Hobbit child at his feet and a grinning Bilbo kneeling to clean the water that was steadily soaking the wooden floor of the room, "Okay?" Harry's response came out more as a question than an actual response.

This brought Remus back to the present and the Man pulled back sheepishly only to jump to his feet and wave his wand intricately making the water return to the repaired water bowl before Bilbo's amazed eyes.

"You can do magic!" a young voice said, causing all eyes to turn to the young Hobbit beside Gandalf who was staring down at the lad with a fond smile.

This must be "young Frodo" Harry thought to himself before he smiled kindly towards the Hobbit, "I take it Gandalf didn't tell you our story while Remus here acted like a mother hen?" he asked, turning an exasperated smile towards the blushing Man now standing at the foot of his bed.

"It wasn't my story to tell," Gandalf said, moving to stand inside the room rather than in the doorway, "And may I say it's wonderful to see you well again, Harry?"

Harry tilted his head in confusion but nodded politely, slightly surprised at the lack of meddling on the part of this Dumbledore-look-alike. Bilbo's voice interrupted Harry's musings and drew everyone's attention to the small being who took charge so expertly.

"Alright, everyone out! We are going to leave young –Harry, was it? – to get some uninterrupted sleep and then we'll make decisions tomorrow," he said, clapping his hands and shooing everyone but Remus out.

Harry was slightly amused to see Frodo peek back at him with a curious glint in his eyes; he wouldn't be surprised if he had a little visitor in the dead of night.

He turned to Remus expectantly who only shook his head and pushed Harry gently back so the younger Man lay reclined on the bed, pulling the quilt back up to Harry's chin, "Get rest cub, Bilbo's right. You need one night of restful sleep not interrupted by fevered nightmares," Remus said in a low tone, before settling comfortably in a corner where a pallet piled with blankets rested Harry had seen before.

He went to protest, but found himself interrupted by a traitorous yawn and gave in because he really was exhausted. He'd grab a few minutes and then he'd demand answers was his last thought before he fell into deep unconsciousness and slept through the day and night.

Harry woke and quickly regained his full strength within the week, and in that time Harry found himself growing closer and closer to Frodo and Bilbo. The two Hobbits were endearing and found every crack in the wall that surrounded Harry's heart that he had built through the continuing war. He felt an odd connection to the younger Hobbit and soon found that he dreamed less and less of the horrors of war and more and more of the new adventures ahead of he and Remus as well as the fun times he had come to have with Bilbo, Frodo, and three other young Hobbits near and dear to the duo.

Harry was sitting in a field in the center of the Shire, watching the little children playing while he watched on as their parents went about their chores. Frodo was playing with his cousins, Merry and Pippin while Bilbo's gardener's son, Samwise, followed dutifully behind. Watching the four of them with a fondness, reminiscing to a better time when Hogwarts had still been whole and he had sat surrounded by his friends feeling safe and untouchable.

"They're a peaceful bunch aren't they?" Remus's voice came from behind him making Harry jump slightly and his wand to fall into his hand before he calmed and stored it back in his holster.

Turning back to watch Frodo and the young tweens playing cheerily among the flowers and trees, Harry responded, "Yeah, but I can't help but think it won't be able to last," he said, tone weary and aged.

Remus sighed regretfully, sitting beside the younger Man, "I agree," he said, keeping silent for a moment to share the innocent sight with his fellow warrior and nephew.

It was Harry who broke the silence, "We can't stay here permanently no matter how much I wish we could," his eyes were now trained on the distrustful gazes that were well hidden among the crowd of adult Hobbits and were equal to the welcoming smiles directed towards them.

Remus followed Harry's gaze before grunting in agreement, "But you know Bilbo and Frodo won't forgive us if we don't visit often," he added, turning back to meet Harry's eyes with his own.

Harry gave a huff of laughter, "It's been a while since I've had to worry about visiting someone," he said wistfully, turning away from Remus to check on Frodo and his friends, "but I find I don't mind the idea. I kind of like the thought of checking in with someone regularly again," he said, smiling softly.

Remus nodded, "I know what you mean," he said, before lowering his voice, "So when do we leave to explore this new home of ours?" he asked, not looking towards Harry.

Harry was surprised that he found he loved the idea of this new, magically world being home despite the brewing war on the horizon, but quickly shook away the shock and answered his honorary Uncle, "We should probably talk about it with Bilbo. He'll be able to point us in a general direction and help us figure our provisions we'll need," he said, glancing at Remus out of the corner of his eye, "We can't just magic up everything without expanding magic to keep our transfigurations permanent," he finished.

Remus nodded, "Sounds like a plan," with that said, he fell back to lay on his back, arms tucked beneath his head, and gazed peacefully up at the drifting clouds.

And that was the end of it. They discussed their upcoming journey with Bilbo and what they might need before setting a date for their departure. The day came faster than they expected and soon found themselves with heavy packs, sacs of money at their belts, and saying farewells to the five Hobbits that had quickly become like family to them with promises to visit and send copious letters. With that, they set out for adventures unknown.

Hey all! I hope this was worth the read and just wanted you all to know that the second chapter should be put up soon. Now I probably won't have a set schedule of updating and it will most likely be as sporadic as my schedule right now. I may post in bulk some times and then not post for weeks on end, so I hope y'all will stick with me and be patient.

For returning readers please tell me what you thought of my changes and for the new readers I hope you'll give me your opinions as well! Feedback is always welcome; notice I said FEEDBACK not some demented and idiotic attempt of baseless flaming merely because you don't like my style. That's not to say that I won't take constructive criticism because I can always grow as a writer and I hope you will help me along. Anyway, I'm babbling. I hope you enjoyed! Review please.