Ron was the one who gave him the idea. Although the redhead had no idea that his joke would actually be taken as even remotely serious.

"Damn, if only someone had killed Riddle back when he was in school. He had to be an asshole back then too, right?"

It was only a few months after the final battle and everyone was struggling to find themselves in this now Voldemort free world. Which would be why everyone over seventeen and under forty was currently drunk out of their minds.

They'd been talking about the trials and how they were all ready to just forget about the war entirely when Ron had made his random comment, which had resulted in a toast. But Harry couldn't just ignore what the words could mean.

Imagine living in a world where Neville Longbottom grew up in a loving, supportive, and nurturing household. Without the stressors of his parents' conditions he may have outstripped anyone. Maybe Snape would not only be alive, he'd be willing to give out points to Hufflepuffs (in no universe would he ever give points to Gryffindor). Draco Malfoy may not have been a prat… Okay maybe that was a little far-fetched but it totally could have happened. Possibly.

He pushed away from the table with a brief, mumble of the need for a bathroom. Which the youngest Weasley offered to help with. Harry denied her with a slight smile, not entirely sure if that was actually supposed to be an innuendo or if it was really just awful flirting.

Harry had finally given in under Ginny's badgering. She was cute enough and already a part of his family. Who cared if he didn't really want to sleep with her? It was still early in their relationship. But they were technically dating and Harry was quite sick of the smug looks Hermione and the Weasley's kept sending their way because of that.

He stopped along the way to shake hands and smile at people as they toasted him. He'd seen a picture of him in the paper this morning and knew that his smile looked real, sincere, and humble as he accepted everyone's thanks. A far cry from the near meltdown he had experienced the first time someone thanked him.

Finally, he made it into the restroom.

The door shut behind him and Harry had no hesitation and no regrets as he sealed the door behind him. The noise outside barely leaking through as the spells muffled their voices and left Harry alone with his thoughts.

He moved over to the sinks taking a moment to splash cold water on his face, sponging it away with the arm of his robe. He stared at the pale face in the mirror, taking note of the pale forehead, flushed cheeks, and the undeniable wrinkles which were already beginning to form at 18 years old.

"This is all so stupid!" He slammed the side of his fists against the mirror, not noticing the loud crack that echoed with the shattering glass, too caught in the circling words racing through his mind.

"I… I wish I could change all of it. No Dark Lord. No Boy-Who-Lived. Just Harry and his parents. And Fred. And Sirius. Fortescue. And even Bellatrix. Everyone and no war to fight."

He shook his head as he looked into his reflection, "I'm not a hero. I'm nothing special. The only reason anyone sees that is because they're all delusional and pathetic. How much effort would it have taken the aurors to take him down. How many spells did they think he could defend at once? They all just gave up and accepted his power. I was the only one who could bloody well stand up to him and I had to die to do it. Then I had to come back because my death still wasn't enough for them."

His complaints were interrupted by the sound of a stall door opening. Harry flinched back at what the sound meant and nearly wanted to cry as a familiar face appeared around the corner.

"Malfoy."

"Potter. You should really learn to clear a room before you go spewing your inner diatribe."

Harry shook his head, "Whatever, Malfoy."

He moved towards the door but stopped when Malfoy called his name. He spun reluctantly his shoulders tight as he took in the blond.

"What."

"There is a precedence for time travel, if a person is desperate enough. They can go back at least fifty years."

Harry blinked, "Don't pull my leg, Malfoy. I know the only way we can go back in time is a Time Turner. And they work for a few hours. You can't go back more than that."

"As I said, you have to be desperate enough. Most wizards only need a few hours and even that is relatively rare. It takes a desperate man and a valid reason to use a time turner. But it takes someone who is desperate, crazy, idiotic, and potentially suicidal to attempt more than that. I figure you just might qualify."

"I've never even heard of anything like this."

Draco rolled his eyes, "Believe what you will. I have to return to the… festivities now. After all they are currently celebrating the end of the Death Eater trials. So happy that all of the monsters were locked away."

Harry bit his lip, "For what it's worth, I don't think your mother deserved to be charged. Dark Mark or not she saved my life and without her we never would have won the war."

"It's worth nothing, Potter. Now would you mind removing your charms."

The dark-haired teen shook his head and waved his wand, the wards dissolving in an instant and the blond practically diving through the doors.

He thought about what Draco had said and made a note to look up information on the Malfoy family and time-travel. For the moment though he just splashed water on his face and downed his last dose of pepper-up.

He watched as the dark circles beneath his eyes receded and he looked the part of the fresh-faced savior of the wizarding world. Time to go and play his part.

(0,0)

For the next three years, Harry played his part. He dated Ginny, proposed to her at the Ball commemorating the third anniversary of the Final Battle. Ron and Hermione had been married the previous summer and Hermione was settling in at the Ministry. Apparently, they were debating trying for their first child. Harry figured they'd probably end up waiting a little longer seeing as Ron and Harry were fresh out of Auror training (Oh goodie, more fighting dark wizards) and Hermione was being promoted to head of her department.

Through it all Harry kept up a haphazard watch for any information on this Malfoy woman who had figured out how to go back in time over fifty years. For three years he played the part of the hero and smiled for reporters, dated the daughter of the light and helped the weak grow strong. He worked hard to encourage people to rehabilitate those who had been dark.

With Hermione's help they had instituted a program for werewolves where Wolfsbane was provided by students in exchange for community service and ingredients. Vampires were even helped when Draco Malfoy developed a potion for satiating a vampire's bloodlust. Hermione and Harry were quick to procure him and Order of Merlin and his name soon decorated the plaque alongside that of Snape's.

It wasn't until nearly seven years after Draco had first mentioned it that Harry had any luck.

Ginny was near-bursting with their first child and, since she knew Harry was researching for a case in the Ministry library, she asked him to pick up a book on developmental psychology. Harry was more than a little worn down by this point. It was exhausting playing the loving husband when he so often wanted to curse Ginny's neediness. He kept reminding himself that she was pregnant; and it was good for the baby's health to keep her happy. He started cringing as he remembered her request last night for chocolate-covered shrimp.

His distraction in his thoughts had him startling as he ran into a shelf. One book fell to the ground, sliding under a nearby table, and Harry shook his head to focus back. Bending down to pick up the book, he sat up in shock and managed to slam his head against the table.

Cursing slightly as he rubbed the back of his head, he managed to retrieve the book and stood still for a few moments as he attempted to take in the title.

Anthology of Time Travel: Hearsay or Success Stories?

Without really thinking about it he slid the book into his bag and grabbed the book Ginny requested before hurrying out the door.

Harry didn't have much chance to peruse the book until months after James was born. He'd been a little torn about naming the boy about two people who meant so much to him, but as James let his first smile curve his lips, Harry couldn't think about anything more perfect than his son.

Finally, one day when Ginny was practicing with the Harpies and James was down for his nap. Harry dug through his bag for paperwork on his latest case when he pulled out the small anthology. He bit his lip, glancing at the unsolved case in his bag, to be fair it was about twenty-years-old though. Definitely a cold case. Any evidence left wouldn't exactly be gone tomorrow if it had lasted this long.

Harry chewed on his lip for a moment before flipping to the contents. Smiling when he saw a familiar name on the last page.

"Malfoy, Aurora."

He quickly flipped through the pages until he got to the one where Aurora's story was written. Raise his ceramic tea cup to his lips and drank steadily before he allowed himself to take in the woman's tale.

'This is easily one of the most difficult to believe stories, yet it holds the greatest likelihood for truth, should the late Mrs. Malfoy's words hold true. Her story as seen here was taken verbatim from the memories of her granddaughter. The only one whom Aurora Malfoy nee Longbottom ever told her story too…

'You see, my child, it wasn't always as easy as this. The first time I found myself growing old I had panicked and been pushed to strive harder and harder for everything I had worked for. You see your grandfather had died. No, not his death last year, which I know you were aware of. He died what would have been 60 years ago to you, but to me… I can never tell if it feels like days, or hours, or months, but I remember it even if it was truly 115 years before now.

'It was a simple day, truly nothing remarkable happened. But I have always been a touch scatter-brained you see and that day, when I'd gone to luncheon with my parents, I… I forgot to put out the flames on my cauldron.

'It shouldn't have been a problem you see, the flames were innocuous and were helping to settle the potion they were working on, but I always put them out. That day though, my darling son, Roman, your father, wandered into my workroom. He knew he wasn't allowed, but he'd been hoping to surprise his father with a present and needed parchment. He accidentally knocked over a potion that had been on a shelf and it fell into my potion.

'I… I never could have predicted it. The heat from the flames had kept the potion just hot enough that the new potion made it unstable. It exploded. Soaking the lab and young Roman. He was seven at the time. His father heard the explosion and my dear Titus didn't hesitate to race inside. He pulled the broken tables off our son and carried him from the room sealing it with a protective charm.

'The explosion hadn't killed our son, but the potion soaking him did. I was called home in time to hear my son apologize for breaking into my lab. I barely managed to tell him there was nothing to be sorry for when the pain won out and his heart stopped.

'I was desolate, inconsolable with the guilt, but I promised your grandfather that I would be alright. I would push through and we would ward the room better against any future children. We sealed that room permanently and bought a brand new lab to install in the basement, along with my experimental charms room and my husband's dueling chamber. We created a specific ward on the door which no one could pass without us and installed a bell charm so that we could be signaled.

'What we didn't know was that the potion explosion had released a toxic gas. Within a fortnight of burying our son, my husband grew deathly ill. I was a widow before the year was up. The only thing that kept me going were my husband's last words. He told me to be strong, to continue using my genius and to never let their deaths prevent me from achieving all that I could. He told me to find someone who could love me as he did and that he loved me till the ends of time before the light fell from his eyes.

'I threw myself into my work and was working on charming jewelry to never tarnish and self-polish when I noticed something on top of my desk. My husband's hourglass. Titus had always claimed the sands were a more effective motivator and kept him on track. When I went to flip it I couldn't help wondering why I couldn't just push the sand back the way it came.

'It took nearly fifteen years of dedicated work, but I created the first time-turner. However, it would only work for mere hours at a time. Potentially for a day, perhaps a week but it was too challenging, too iffy. If you saw yourself- you could destroy it all. Besides I needed to go back nearly 17 years by that point.

'I resumed my work, gradually I was able to perform further and further hops through time. But never as far as I needed to. I was nearly 86 before I found the solution. It had taken 50 years of work. I'll not tell the details as someone without a decent cause could alter everything and destroy the universe as we see it. But it took a potion, a charm, and a time-turner to make it happen.

'I went back to that day and waited until I left the manor. I hurried to douse the fire and move the cauldron into a safe corner. Away from all of shelves. I cast a stabilizing charm and left parchment on the work table in plain sight.

'I hid myself in a corner, ready to intervene more but hoping it would not be necessary. Within the hour my little Roman made his appearance. He found the parchment and left with a skip. He'd never seen that they were notes I had made the night before in this time. Roman needed to be protected and that wouldn't happen if he wasn't caught.

'As the door clicked shut I felt a pain in my chest. I bent over, assuming this was the end and ready to accept my death if it meant my son and husband survived. Instead though I was yanked through space, similar to apparition and found myself staring into the young face of my dear mother and father.

'I glanced down at myself and found the body of a woman in her thirties and made my hasty apologies as I immediately rushed home. There I found my beloved Roman and Titus. I never told them this story or why I insisted on moving our labs to the dungeons but they loved me regardless. And I have lived my life as perhaps it should have been.

'I'm ready to leave this plane now. My son is taken care of and my husband is missing me. No matter the cost we'll be together again. I have spent 51 years without my husband now, I plan to not waste another day. Take care of your father, mother, and brothers. You need them more than you can know. Take care of yourself as well, marry well and be happy, my child.

'Here the woman's granddaughter says her grandmother had smiled at her, brushing her hair from her face with a smile. She then settled back on her pillows and breathed a huge breath on which flew her husband's name. A quiet rattle then echoed in her throat and the woman stilled as if falling into a comforting warmth.'

Harry shut the book just as James' cries split the air. He comforted his infant son, changing, feeding, and then playing with a smile but half of his mind was solely on the woman and how she had done the impossible. Perhaps though, perhaps it was possible, if one were desperate enough…

(0,0)

The next years passed quickly as Harry buried himself in his research. Research no one knew about aside from himself. He kept it out of public eye, the last thing he needed was a report on his dwelling or depression or better yet obsession. He had a strong presence in raising all three of his children. He was always assuring his kids that it didn't matter where they were sorted.

It was a bit of a shock to hear that Albus Severus was in Slytherin, more so when he admitted that he'd chosen Slytherin in the hopes of staying with his new best friend, Scorpius Malfoy. Harry really tried his best to support his son but it was hard to wrap his mind around his son choosing to be in the same house as a Malfoy when he had done the exact opposite.

It also didn't help that his son was so much like him. Harry hated anyone talking to him about his choices, it always felt demeaning. So he knew that Albus felt the separation, but he didn't know how to close the gap without making his son feel stifled. He'd already repeated his belief that it didn't matter which house he was in, but could tell his son didn't believe him.

Which was fair. Because no matter how close their sons were, there seemed to be a wall between himself and Draco Malfoy.

It all changed when Al wrote home in his third year asking to spend the break at the Malfoy Manor to help his friend cope with the loss of his mother. Harry was the one calming Ginny and he told Albus to come home first. He'd spend a few days at home and then Harry would escort him over personally. Harry took those days to cook some things that he thought might be good. Granted Malfoy had house elves so it wasn't like he would starve, but he thought it might be nice to have something anyways.

Mostly though Harry just didn't know what else he could do.

Ginny wasn't happy with Harry's interaction. She'd never really denied Al his friend, but Harry knew she still didn't like the elder Malfoy. Harry thought it would be good to heal the gap, Al and Scorpius would probably be friends forever seeing as Al had followed all of Harry's habits up to this point.

It would be easier for everyone involved if Harry and Malfoy could at least learned to be civil with each other. So Harry came over with a casserole that his aunt used to swear by and a plate of cookies and other desserts that Albus had helped to make, insisting on making some of Scorp's favorites.

So Harry knocked on their front door and thanked the elf who greeted them and led them to the parlor where Scorpius and Malfoy were waiting.

Scorpius smiled at his friend and only nodded at Harry before dragging his friend off.

"My apologies," Malfoy said as he frowned after his son, "His is typically better mannered than that."

Harry nodded, "I'm aware. I've met him on the platform a few times. He seems polite and bright, it's no wonder he and Al get along so well."

Draco snorted, "I still can't believe you named your son 'Albus.' The poor kid."

Harry grinned, "His middle name is Severus. I thought 'Al' would be better than 'Sev'."

The blond blinked and Harry found he quite enjoyed getting one over on the man even more satisfying than when they had been kids. The older Slytherin quickly recovered though and gestured for Harry to join him calling his elf for some drinks. He graciously accepted the offer and they both sat in silence for long moments.

It was Harry who broke the silence, "So what have you been up to lately?"

Draco blinked, "Really, Potter?"

"You should probably call me 'Harry,' I feel as though we'll be seeing even more of each other now. And yes. I want to be able to see beyond the spoilt teen who was drug into a disaster he never asked for. And to apologize for some of the crap I pulled, but I can't seem to drag the words forward for the Malfoy I knew."

The man nodded, "I'm mostly working with potions, as you know. I still fly occasionally but most of my time lately has been overseeing the Malfoy fortune and our investments in businesses."

Harry nodded, "I understand that. Well the spending time with work and missing out on flying. I am lucky though because all three of my kids like to fly, as well as Ginny, so they drag me out every weekend. Other than that, and cases, I've mostly been researching different topics."

The dark-haired man seemed surprised to hear those words come out of his mouth. He'd hidden his obsession quite well over the past 14 years. It was quite a surprise to hear himself admitting it and to Malfoy of all people.

To his credit, aside from a slow blink, Malfoy seemed to accept the words, "I never thought I'd see the day the Gryffindor Golden Boy started spending time in a library pouring over books."

Harry snorted, "Whatever you do, don't tell Hermione. She'll never let me live it down."

Draco laughed slightly and Harry found himself grinning as the tension faded from the blond's face- however temporarily. After this though the tension seemed to settle in and Harry found himself wanting to depart before he overstayed his welcome.

"Albus and I made some things for you. I doubt they're as good as your elves' but we wanted to bring something nonetheless."

The blond nodded and accepted the offering, starting when he noticed the treats the were assembled, "These look wonderful, you made them?"

Harry shrugged, "Al helped, he wanted to make sure some of Scorpius' favorites were in there."

"Scorpius hates fudge."

Black hair shook as hair denied the claim, "He eats nothing else at our home and tends to steal it out of Albus' care packages. Apparently he won't eat it here because he knows you like it and he doesn't want you to have to give up any of it for him."

Draco blinked and Harry carefully avoided staring at the wetness that suddenly appeared in the blond's eyes.

"I should get going though, I promised Lily that we'd go visit her godmother today."

He made his way to the door after Draco absently nodded, his eyes still flicking back and forth between the fudge and the door their son's had disappeared through.

"You know our floo address, but if it's an emergency you can call 'Prongs' in after and it will let you bypass the security. And I'll get the message no matter where I am. Also I…" Harry swallowed before forcing himself to continue, "I am truly sorry for your loss and if you need anything, to talk or go get drunk or whatever you can feel free to call me then as well."

He hurried to the door, not really wanting to hear Draco's polite refusal but was stopped by a quiet sentence which had him smiling before he headed for the front gate and the edge of the apparition wards.

"Thank you, Harry."

(0,0)

Draco and Harry would never share the same relationship that they had with Blaise and Ron respectively but they grew to be friendly rivals and were often seen racing each other for a snitch in the backyard or tearing each other down harsh words countered with warm smiles.

Albus and Scorpius loved that their dads were getting along and were quite often found instigating the verbal sparring matches. Eventually Harry was found over at Malfoy Manor to watch Scorpius and Al while Draco went to a business meeting. Which was how Harry discovered the Malfoy family library.

Every weekend Harry would spend an afternoon or morning at the Manor and would managed to finagle his way into the library. When Draco caught him the blond merely shook his head and asked that Potter keep an eye out for a solution to pickled doxy brains contaminating the wormroot in his latest invention.

Which Harry found the answer for three weeks later. And so Draco ended up bouncing ideas off Harry at their weekly pub night and would join Harry in his library forays. Ginny eventually grew to tolerate Draco but Harry could see that she would no more become his friend than Ron or Hermione would. Harry understood that though, Draco had been a prat for years but he'd never really done much to Harry most of their fights had been over his treatment of Ron and Hermione.

Harry eventually settled into a routine. Monday, Tuesday, and Thursdays were for work and so long as he was home in time to say goodnight, Ginny wouldn't fuss. Wednesdays evenings were spent at the pub with Draco. Friday nights were date night and he would take Ginny out somewhere nice. Saturday was when the kids went to visit their friends and Sunday's were family day.

During the school year nothing changed, except Harry had fewer bodies to drag around on the weekends. Ginny retired from quidditch the year Lily turned 13 and began her own small business selling robes and competing with Madame Malkin's.

Eventually Harry managed to discover the secret to time-turners and made five of them, each more successful than the last. He willingly handed the first four of them over to the new Minister of Magic, Hermione Granger.

So the years passed and Harry watched as James' crossed the stage in the first Hogwart's graduation Harry had ever seen. A year later he was able to hug both Al and Scorp who had officially started dating the year before much to Draco's dismay as he handed Harry 5 galleons. Lily graduated two years later and Harry smiled brightly as she was kissed in congratulations by her boyfriend the four-year-older Dax Longbottom.

It was two weeks after her graduation that Harry stumbled upon the answer he'd been looking for. Buried in the dusty shelves Harry found a strange looking lock. Not having the time nor the desire to puzzle it out himself he called over Draco who called and elf.

Within moments the drawer was sliding open and Harry gasped at the name embossed in the top corner of the dragonhide journal. Aurora Malfoy.

It took only a few weeks of reading for Harry to find the last few pieces of his puzzle and he eagerly set out to finish his project. Ginny, Draco, and the kids all complained as Harry disappeared, locked away in his study for two weeks. But finally, Harry had done it. The time-turner was perfect, the potion made, and the spell modified for what Harry needed.

He spent the next week with his family. Proving to his children that he loved them and cursing himself for risking their existence with his plan. But he could see how the death of Fred still haunted his family and knew how hard it was for Teddy growing up without his parents, hearing that they were heroes did nothing to soften the despair. He could see the pain in Draco's eyes when he received the letter saying his mother had passed away in Azkaban and knew how much he himself had missed his parents.

He could think of nothing he'd rather do than stay with his family but knew that they all deserved the chance their children were getting. The chance to grow up away from this war.

He spoiled Albus on his birthday and made sure to get a present for Scorpius as well, thrilled when Draco gave them his blessing of their 'secret' engagement and offered a small home for them to use when they wished to start their life together.

Altogether he was happy and proud of all that had happened and smiled at the thought that his family would be happy and strong whether or not he succeeded in his mission.

So in the early morning of a day late in March 2026, Harry dipped the time turner in the potion after stirring 365 time anti-clockwise. Dropped the chain around his neck before spinning on his heel and standing on a familiar street corner he'd ghosted around for the last ten years or so. He grabbed a vial from his pocket and thanked Draco's genius as he swallowed it down.

Nodding to himself he pulled on the chain and began carefully turning the small nob in 100 smooth rotations. Holding the twist in place he raised his wand. He made as large of a circle as he could as he began to speak. As his voice reached its peak he pointed his wand straight above his head and slashed it violently to the ground as the last syllable echoed in his ears, releasing the time turner and sending it spiraling as Harry was sucked into the vortex.

(0,0)

Harry blinked slowly as he raised his head. He was standing exactly where he wanted to be. He glanced down at his body and frowned at his skinny state, he'd forgotten how small he had been. He looked around furtively and was glad to see that no one had seen his sudden appearance.

He frowned at the building he had observed for so many years and was disappointed to find that it wasn't much different than it had been. He worried he had messed up the spell but settled on the front steps. Regardless of whether he had been successful or not, Harry was exhausted from all of the magic he'd used.

His head fell to his chest as the light of dawn began peeking through the clouds. He dozed lightly for what felt like hours, never really falling deep enough to dream. He startled awake as the door behind him was yanked open sending him crashing back onto the hard floor. He winced at the collision and rubbed at his head.

Slowly he came to notice a voice reprimanding him and he opened his eyes to see two pairs of shoes. One worn and holey, the other clean and practical. He followed the shoes up to seemingly appropriate garb and further up to faces.

He couldn't help but smile slightly as he took in calculating dark-grey eyes and tight lips beneath a carefully styled head of brown hair.

His last thought before he gave into the pounding at the back of his head was that he had done it. And that an 11-year-old Tom Riddle's glare was nearly as intimidating as his 60-year-old counterpart's.

Okay! So I always swore I'd never write a time travel piece. But after a prompt from a dear friend for the triplet's story and inspiration from one of my favorite stories ever (If you haven't read "The Love of a Good Wizard" you need to. It's on AO3 and is a wonderfully written Tom/Harry piece) I just needed to write down this idea.

Let me know if you like it so far and I'll get the next chapter up soon. Every time I get 10 reviews I'll update within 24 hours. I should update once a week regardless, but we know I get distracted. Review keep my muse fed and inspired! If you're looking to have input on my stories, or want to see minor expansions on old works check out my FB page under DanniCat!

Thanks for reading everyone and I'll see you soon!