Smarter Than Before

Harry James Potter was pissed off. Seriously. He had just defeated Voldemort, he should be on top of the world but instead, Harry James Potter was pissed off. The reason; Headmaster Dumbledore popped out of nowhere, apparently not dead, to kill him. Yeah, that's right; the old bastard had played him right into his grave. After spouting about the greater good for a while, as is his whim, (why can the bad guys never realise that gloating before you kill someone is never a good idea?) and how he had been controlling his life since the first time he ever heard of magic, he had informed Harry that someone with the amount of power the young Potter heir had could not be allowed to live. Yeah, that's it, Harry had done his job, and now it's time for him to meet his maker. Honestly, you would think that the Great Albus Dumbledore would have realised that the boy who lived, doesn't die easily. It also helps when Severus Snape is behind the said Great Albus Dumbledore, ready to stun him in the back.

So I shall reiterate the point, Harry James Potter is pissed off.

Current place of ranting, Severus Snape's quarters in the Hogwarts Dungeons.

"I can't believe the old bastard would do that," Severus muttered darkly. "I knew he was a bit twisted but bloody hell, I should have shot a proper A.K at him and have done."

"How did that work?" Harry asked, interested in spite of himself.

""It was a stunner, nothing more nothing less. There was a cushioning charm at the bottom of the tower, and he just conjured up a golem of himself and ran. He told me you had to believe he was dead so that you would stand on your own two feet as it were."

"Conniving old fucker."

"Indeed, although now I look back, he played us both like a fiddle. I think I should have stuck with Voldemort. At least he was straight up about his plans. He never tried to be seen as being good."

"There is that. That isn't really the problem though, the thing is, look at all the problems and deaths and everything else the two of them caused. Surely there's a way to fix it."

"There is, but I don't think you are going to like it."

"Sev, I don't like anything you say when you've got that look on your face, but it doesn't stop me from doing whatever it is you suggest."

Severus rolled his eyes at Harry. What the boy said was true, no matter how much it annoyed him. Severus came up with the plans; Harry followed them through, nine times out of ten, with a dash of luck and stupidity thrown in.

"I can make a potion that will send you back to your eleven year old body. You will keep all of your knowledge and magic, but be back in the body you were in when you were eleven. You can change everything you want to change, keep the bits you liked, and save the world…again."

"That's…actually one of the better plans you have come up with Sev."

"Think carefully about this Harry; do not enter into it lightly. Once you have taken the potion, I cannot reverse the effect. You will be changing the whole timeline. I will accompany you on this trip also, you will need someone to keep you in line."

"Awww I didn't know you cared, you greasy git. Before we do this though, is there no other way? I mean, seven years is a long time, and just one mistake could fuck the whole thing up again. Can we not just go back with a special time turner, kill the old bastard, kill Voldemort and job done?"

"We could, but then your godfather, and Remus and Nymphadora and a lot of other good people would still die. Maybe not in the same way, but they would still die at the same time. Time is a funny thing to be playing with Harry, we have to do it right. By using the potion, we will be changing the time line completely, tricking it if you will. It will be as though these past seven years haven't happened yet. Do you understand?"

"Yeah, I suppose. I'm just pissed that I'll have to go and play nice with the Dursley's again."

"Ah, yes, but maybe not. The Dursley's got a monthly allowance to look after you, were you aware?"

Harry shook his head, eyebrow raised.

"Yes, straight out of the Potter Vault, although as far as I am aware, they believed it was off Dumbledore instead. They received 400 pounds a month for you in the years before you came to Hogwarts, and then they received 1000 pounds every time you were home for the holidays."

"He knew how they were treating me, and he paid them to do it?"

"It was on his orders that they treated you the way they did. Well, I shall rephrase, I believe your aunt Petunia would have treated you better had he not told them that it would be damaging for you should you be treated well."

"I'm going to take great pleasure in killing him very slowly, you realise this don't you?" Harry said frowning.

Severus smirked. "I'll enjoy watching."

"Then let's get planning."