Disclaimer: Harry and everybody else don't belong to me. I'm just borrowing them.

Warning: Slash. Slashy themes herein. Slash ahead! Be warned of the slash. Male on male interaction. Male on male intimate interaction. That means some form of sex. Flirting, hand holding, hugging, kissing, petting, screwing...be warned! The warning's mild at the moment, but things may heat up in later chapters.

Dedication: To Kitten, for the wonderful and perfect idea. I really don't know why I didn't think of it. Thank you, so much!

Author's Note: Somewhat a challenge fic. A challenge issued by a friend, at any rate. And I took it up. I think I made it work, also. It was difficult...

Every time travel slash fic I read is the same. Harry travels back in time to when the Marauders were in school, and falls in love with usually Remus. Sometimes Sirius. I have done something a bit different. I'm not telling you who Harry ends up having those fluttery adolescent feelings for. It's more fun that way. I'll give you a hint: it's not Snape. It's actually pretty obvious, even if we don't get around to names for a while. And I think it's the only one of its kind. Anyway, please review! And this is, as I consider all time travel fics to be, AU.

I didn't mean for this to be more then one chapter, but I realized it's probably going to be rather large. So multi-chapters it is!

Timeless

"Malfoy..." Harry cursed through gritted teeth. He really did hate the Slytherin. Draco was at the moment taunting Harry, his high voice grating on the Gryffindor's ears. They were alone in a corridor, and Harry wasn't going to stand for it anymore. He had put up with enough of Draco over the past five years. He pulled out his wand, watching Draco's grey eyes narrow as he did so.

"Want to play rough, eh Potter?" Draco's wand was out a split second afterwards. He muttered a few words, a burst of light shooting out of his wand. Harry ducked out of the way, taking off after Draco as the Slytherin darted down the hallway at a run. Harry readied a hex in his mind, nothing too dangerous, but enough to incapacitate his rival. Draco apparently had the same thing in mind. A burst of light shot out of Draco's wand a moment before it shot out of Harry's. The blasts met in midair, momentarily blinding Harry. He stumbled on, hand held up to his eyes, until he hit something very solid and fell backwards.

"Oof!" He grunted, falling flat on his back. he felt a pain in his rear and his head, and he could hear someone breathing heavy and groaning. Malfoy, he assumed. He sat up, opening his eyes rather painfully. For a moment, he wished he hadn't.

It hurt. His eyes were sore. That must have been from the flash of light when the spells hit. He rubbed his head, squinting hard at the corridor around him. He saw another student, also sitting and rubbing his head, in the corridor ahead of him. It wasn't anyone he recognized, despite being his own age. The boy was about sixteen, with short tousled brown hair, light green eyes, a round friendly face and a slightly teddy bear figure-the kind that is best described as huggable. He was actually quite cute, and Harry wondered why he'd never noticed him before. Must be a Hufflepuff. Harry's head hurt, rather badly.

"Oh geesh...I'm so sorry!" The boy exclaimed, frowning at Harry. "I'm a klutz, I know. They're always saying so..."

"Nah, it was my fault. Stupid Malfoy..." Harry groaned. Where was Draco?

"Malfoy?" The boy cocked his head at Harry, looking a bit puzzled.

"Yeah...Malfoy and I got I got into a...well, he sent a curse or a hex or something at me, and I got disoriented. Then I ran into you."

"You know, something ought to be done about that Malfoy." The boy stood up, unsteadily, brushing dust and dirt off of his robes. He held his hand down to Harry, to help him up.

"Tell me about it." Harry muttered, standing, and wincing at the pain in his head and rear.

"Do you want to go see Madame Pomfrey? And you can complain about Malfoy..."

"I don't think complaining's going to do any good." Harry made a face. "Malfoy gets away with everything!"

"He really does..." The Hufflepuff shook his head, still frowning. "It's not right."

"That's what I say. Just because his father's rich..."

"Is no reason he should get whatever he wants, and get away with everything." Harry found his sentence finished for him. He smiled, chuckling.

"Exactly!" He liked this boy, whoever he was. //Maybe he's a year behind or ahead of me. I really don't pay that much attention to Hufflepuffs, and not in other years. And I think...he might be flirting with me.// Harry had very little experience when it came to those sorts of things. With girls it was much easier. With other boys...

"Well, I'm sure he'll get his some day. Er...*did* you want to go see Madame Pomfrey?"

"I dunno." Harry shrugged. He was pretty certain he was just bruised. "Did you see Malfoy at all?"

"Nope. I didn't even see you. But...I wasn't looking very hard. He could have gotten by me without me noticing. You hit your head, I think. You might have a concussion."

"I don't think so." Harry shook his head. It didn't hurt that badly. "I just...I dunno. Our curses hit each others, and there was a flash and then I couldn't see very well. I didn't pass out or anything. I think you pass out, when you have a concussion."

"Oh." The other boy nodded, somewhat nervously. Harry noticed he was wringing his hands, and shifting his weight from foot to foot. "Uh...I don't think I know you..."

"No, I don't think I know you either." Harry was amazed. Someone who didn't know him? Everyone knew him...or maybe the other boy just meant he didn't *know* Harry. Had never spoken to him, or been in any classes with him. That made much more sense.

"But you look a whole lot like on of my friends."

"Really?" Harry cocked his head. That did hurt. "You know...maybe I ought to see Madame Pomfrey after all. I've got a killer headache coming, I think."

"I'll take you." The brown haired boy nodded, sucking in his lower lip. Harry decided he looked very cute when he did that. And he had nice eyes. A little weak, a pale, almost watery green, but nice.

"Thanks...I'd really rather not pass out in the hallway. Who knows who'd find me..."

"Malfoy." The boy rolled his eyes, and they both laughed again. //Why don't I know him? He seems really nice...// Shy, and a bit awkward, but very nice.

"You said I looked like a friend of yours...?" Harry asked as they began walking.

"Oh yeah!" The boy watched Harry like a hawk, as though afraid he might topple over. "It's scary actually. I'd swear you were brothers, 'cept I know he's an only child. And he would have told me if he had any family coming to Hogwarts. I think." The boy paused, sucking in his lower lip again. "Well, I would have heard anyway. Are you new? Because I've never seen you before. And I do know a lot of people. They don't know me, but I know them. You know how that is..."

"Huh?" Harry wondered if maybe he wasn't the one with the head injury. //Doesn't he know who I am? I figure the scar would give it away. And the fact that everyone in school knows who I am. Hell, they could find me in a snowstorm across the Quidditch Field.//

"I've never seen you before. What year are you?"

"Fifth..."

"Really?" Now the boy looked very confused. "So am I..."

"Different Houses..." Harry suggested. //Wait, what am I doing? He has to know me!// Much as he hated the constant recognition, finding someone who *didn't* know him on sight was a bit disconcerting. He didn't like this. Something was wrong. Well...hadn't they learned that spell collisions could cause all sorts of dangerous side affects? Could this be one of them?

"I guess..." The boy was now looking at Harry suspiciously. But...everything seemed normal. He knew who Malfoy was, and this was obviously Hogwarts.

"Um...what House are you?" Harry asked. He suddenly dreaded the answer.

"Gryffindor. Even though I'm probably more suited for Hufflepuff."

"G-Gryffindor?" Harry could feel his voice peeking at the end of the question. //No. He's not a fifth year Gryffindor. We'd *know* each other. This is...something's wrong. This isn't the Hogwarts I know. This is...an alternate reality, or something. Oh hell...I've gone and zapped myself into an alternate reality. What do I do? Play it off. Claim you're a transfer. Then get to Dumbledore as soon as possible...if Dumbledore's even in charge! If he even exists!// Harry was advancing rapidly into the more hysteric stages of panic.

"Yes." The boy nodded. "Are you okay? You don't look well at all...we're almost to the infirmary..."

"I'm fine!" Harry said quickly. //No. Can't go to the infirmary. Too many questions. She'll know I'm not supposed to be here. What do I do? what do I do...//

"All right...I didn't get your name, by the way. I'm Peter."

"Oh. Hi. Harry. Uh...you were right. I'm...a transfer." Harry forced himself to breathe normally.

"Oh! I thought so, since you didn't look familiar. 'Cept that you look a lot like James."

"Yeah, that would....pardon?"

Harry's rapid projection to the more hysteric plains of panic speeded up. His mind reeled through the fields of hysteric panic and into the calm waters of shock that lay beyond.

"My friend James. He's the one you look like."

"Oh. Do I?" Harry's voice was now rather flat. //This is a dream? A hallucination? I mean...he didn't just...that's not....shit.//

"Yes. But you're taller. And your eyes are different. And you're skinnier. Not that James is fat!"

"No." Harry was working on autopilot now. He didn't understand what had happened. //he can't mean...not James my father James. Maybe if I...// "Does James have a last name?"

"Of course he does!" Peter shook his head. "Potter."

"Thought so." Harry nodded. "Er...I don't think I need to see Madame Pomfrey after all. Maybe later. I think I just need to lie down. If I don't feel better, I'll see her. But I really need to lie down..."

"Are you sure?" Peter again sucked at his lower lip. //Nervous reaction. I'm making him nervous. Ha! *I'm* making *him* nervous. At least he's in the right time...that has to be what happened. The spells mixed, and I got sent back in time.//

"Oh yeah." Harry nodded, swallowing hard. //Okay...you've been through worse. Much worse. Voldemort. Snape. Malfoy. Final Exams. This...this is fine. You just...you talk to Dumbledore. He'll fix everything.//

"Um...all right. Are you in a House yet?"

"Gryffindor." He said it before realizing what eh was saying.

"Then I guess I'll just take you to the dorm. I think it's empty now. Yeah...it's empty. You can sleep. I'll leave you alone, I have to be tutored anyway. That's where I was heading, but it's okay if I'm late. It's just one of my friends, he won't get mad. Especially when I tell him what happened. We all hate Malfoy too."

"That's nice." Harry was not listening anymore, not really. He allowed himself to be led to the dorm, listening with half an ear to Peter chatter pleasantly on. The dorm was empty. And it looked the same as his dorm, only the personal affects were different. One bed was a mess. Boxes of Bertie Bott's Beans strewn all over it, along with school books. On one chest was a neat pile of books, parchments and quills. One had a broom and the tools needed for caring, and the other was covered in stuffed animals. One last bed was rather blank looking.

"This is the extra bed. Which I guess means it's yours." Peter smiled. "I'm gonna be in the library. I'll leave a note though, in case you're sleeping."

"Thanks." Harry nodded, wishing Peter would just leave. //Thank you for helping me, and not asking too many questions, and giving a good excuse, but now I really have to think about getting back to my own time.// A very detached part of his mind-the part that dealt mainly with food and sex-decided it was a pity that Peter wasn't a Hufflepuff from his own time.

"Well, you get some rest. And if you aren't better later, go see Madame Pomfrey."

"I will. Thanks." Harry hoped the finality in his voice gave Peter the hint. Apparently it did. He left, frowning still, shutting the door to the dorm behind him. Harry let out a deep sigh, scrubbing his hands over his face, wondering what in the name of all the Muggle and wizard gods he was going to do. He was so far lost in his own problem, he didn't even connect many fine details and points. The fact that he had arrived, in tact, in his father's time, completely escaped him. Feigning sleep in case someone did come in, Harry tried working out his problem in his mind...

~~~

If anyone likes this, I'll keep it going. If not...eh. I like it, but it's not a priority. So let me know what you think! And if you liked this, read my other Peter fics!