Chapter 4

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!" A figure yelled as they fell out of a portal and into a body of water with a resounding splash.

"Mother.... Blub.... Of... blub... Merlin! What the bloody heck?!" Harry shouted towards the sky which now had no trace of portal. "Death!!!"

Harry looked around, spotting the castle nearby, and started swimming towards the rocky shore. "Death!!"

"You rang?" A cloaked figure materialized near Harry, floating just above the water's surface.

"Why did you drop me in the bloody lake?!" Harry questioned angrily as he neared the shore and started walking out sopping wet.

"Would you have preferred to have gone splat on the courtyard stones?" Death questioned while flicking a skeletal finger against Harry's forehead. "You might be immortal now but it would not be pleasant,"

"Right.... So where are we.... Better yet, when?"

"Death?" Harry questioned again upon seeing the skeletal entity distracted.

"Oh... uhm... approximately February 1965," Death answered. "I wonder why Fate chose this year. Odd,"

"Might as well head up to the castle. Perhaps the Headmaster could help," He pondered aloud.

"Hmmm...." Death uttered which got Harry's attention.

"What?"

"Nothing," Death replied. "This is where I have to leave you." when Harry shot the entity a look he added "You and I both know that my prolonged appearance on the living plane is detrimental. I will pop in once I have conferred with Fate,"

"Right," Harry muttered before casting a quick 'exaresco' to dry his clothes. He then proceeded on the long trek up towards the castle. He'd never get tired of the sight of Hogwarts and idly wondered what his parents were up to now given that they both should be approximately five years old.

Harry, who was nearing the courtyard after his long trek from the boathouse was suddenly accosted by a female student.

"AH! What the devil?" he exclaimed.

"Huh? You're not Arthur," The girl uttered with wide eyes, and after realizing that she had all but bowled a stranger over she quickly let go and took a few steps back to give Harry a chance to recover.

"Sorry about that," The red-headed girl muttered. "I thought you were someone else,"

"It's alright... Miss..." Harry questioned.

"Prewitt, Molly Prewitt," she introduced and Harry's brain nearly screeched to a halt. He gulped but shook the offered hand. "If you excuse me, I have to find Arthur. Honestly, where has that boy gone?"

'This is so weird,' he thought as he watched the retreating back of the future Mrs. Weasley. She looked like a woman on a mission and Harry silently hoped Arthur hadn't pissed her off. He was after all, speaking from personal experience considering Ginny's proficiency with the Bat-Boogey-hex.

Harry thought it best to cast a Disillusionment spell on himself to avoid any other awkward meetings. The trip to the Headmaster's office was furthermore uneventful.

"Chocoballs" .... Nothing.

"Fainting Fancies" ..... Still nothing.

Harry was getting frustrated trying to guess the password to the office.

"Lemondrops,"..... "Bat's Blood Soup," Finally the gargoyle deigned to move. Harry just shook his head at the last one but made his way up to speak to probably the only wizard who could help him right now.

"Ah, I was wondering if you were going to give up," A familiar voice stated once Harry stepped into the circular office. It looked a lot different from how he remembered it from the future. There were books strewn around and the desk was littered with various scrolls. But what was even more apparent was that this Dumbledore looked... handsome. Especially while wearing a three-piece beige suit.

"Excuse me, but I don't think we've met. You don't seem to be a Hogwarts alumnus," The man pondered as he looked Harry up and down while stroking his chin. Gone was the long grey beard. It seemed the younger Dumbledore preferred a shorter cut.

"Well, sir. I was a Hogwarts student... or I will be," Harry frowned. Time travel made grammar a bit hinky.

"I'm afraid I don't quite understand," Dumbledore stated thoughtfully.

"Sir, I'm from 2062 and I landed in this time by pure accident," Harry stated bluntly. "Right now you are the only person I know of who might know any obscure texts that could send me back,"

"I see..."

"I'm not crazy or anything!" Harry quickly said as he noticed the Headmaster fiddle with his sleeve, probably to have his wand ready. "I'm just really desperate. None of this was supposed to happen if those obsessed Unspeakables didn't screw up!"

"You must see why I am so skeptical, Mr...."

"Potter, Harry Potter, sir." Harry quickly introduced.

"Well, Mr. Potter. As you are probably aware, time turners are not known for taking a person back... almost... 96 years into the past. All other time manipulation devices had been deemed too dangerous and were destroyed during the Ministry purge in the 1800s."

"Headmaster, it is a rather complicated story. I just really need your help right now,"

"Very well my boy. I'll hear you out at the very least." Dumbledore said pensively though the man still seemed to keep his wand at the ready within his sleeve. "Why don't you take a seat? I will send for some tea."

A tea set soon appeared on Dumbledore's cluttered desk causing some scrolls to fall. "Excuse the mess, Mr. Potter. I was knee-deep in some research," the man stated before taking his usual seat behind the desk. "Now, please help yourself to some refreshments and explain your situation clearly my boy. Though I fail to see how I may be of any help."

"Sir, does the name Voldemort ring any bells?" Harry asked.

"Not that I can say," Dumbledore answered and Harry surmised that Tom might not have coined the name just yet.

"Then how about Tom Riddle?" Harry questioned.

"Of course, I know Mr. Riddle. Smart young man though he had a rather dark sense of humor in my opinion." The Headmaster stated. "He graduated nearly two decades ago. How is he involved in any business from 2062?"

"Well sir, he is responsible for the Third Wizarding War and the annihilation of most of Western Europe," Harry bluntly stated causing Dumbledore to actually choke on the tea he had been taking a sip of.

"Excuse me what?!"

Harry proceeded to give a rough summary of the First and Second Wars to come as he did not want to change the outcome of those. He carefully omitted the names of key people in those wars and instead skipped to the Third war that was happening during his time.

"So you are telling me that, Mr. Riddle achieved some form of immortality, which was destroyed in the second war, and the Unspeakables who took his body into custody afterward decided to run experiments on it, instead of destroying it, which eventually caused him to be reanimated decades later only to start a new war in his bid for world domination."

"Yes sir," Harry nodded.

"And you, who had fought in the second war ended up battling it out with this revived Mr. Riddle who ultimately ended up overpowering you and in a last-ditch effort called upon Death, as in... the actual Death, to yank you through time and let Fate decide where you end up,"

"It was the only thing I could think of at the time!" Harry exclaimed. "It wasn't the best idea I know since I'm currently trapped here...."

"This all seems... highly impossible young man," Dumbledore stated. "You even claimed to be older than me,"

"Uhm, well sir. That part is really complicated." Harry answered.

"I certainly need to think on this Mr. Potter. Your situation is... unique, for lack of a better word." The Headmaster stated. "I will have a house elf show you the way to a set of guest rooms. It doesn't look like this situation will resolve itself in just one day. Perhaps tomorrow we should visit Gringotts to establish an identity for you."

"The Goblins can do that?"

"For a price Mr. Potter. Everything has a price," The Headmaster nodded.

Harry sighed. He knew it would be difficult. As he left the office a house elf appeared in front of him and led him to a set of spare rooms situated just off the Ravenclaw tower. The room was furnished cozy in shades of blues and silver. Harry flopped down on the plush sofa with a sigh. He couldn't believe the day he had, heck, he couldn't believe the week he had. Not only had his worst nightmare literally risen from the grave.... Again.... But this time the man's actions had been swift and deadly. Harry who, due to his immortality, had chosen to travel the world, instead of watching his children, grandchildren, and their grandchildren grow old and die, had been forced to return to the UK to face Voldemort again. By the time he made it back the Ministry and many magical communities were smoldering ruins.

"Tiffy sees that Master Harry is troubled." The house elf that had guided him popped back in, this time with a cup of chamomile tea. "Soothing drink for Master,"

"Uhm... well thank you, Tiffy," Harry said as he looked into the elf's big round eyes and took a sip of his drink. The tea was warm and sweet but Harry frowned as he detected some aftertaste. Then his eyes became unfocused.

"Tiffy is sorry Master Harry," The elf apologized as the room started to spin. Harry could hear the door opening and he saw a set of polished shoes approach him as his vision turned dark. The last thing he heard was a familiar voice saying "Well done Tiffy,"