Author's Note: So I was looking through a bunch of Marauders-read-the-Harry-Potter-books stories, and there were a lot of dissatisfying things I found, like everyone automatically assuming the books are accurate and instantly sympathizing with Harry (not to mention getting way too emotional about everything!). That got me thinking about how to improve on those points, and one thing led to another, and, well, here we are! The prologue explains how the books are going to end up back in the Marauders' era.

This is another ridiculously long-term project. One warning: I don't discriminate based on sexual orientation, so while I'm not sure what pairings will develop, you can reasonably expect to see slash and femslash as well as straight relationships.

Prologue

The war memorial was taller than Harry, tall enough that he would have needed a stepladder to read the names at the top of it. He wouldn't bother with that, though, not when he could recite the names from memory.

Albus Dumbledore. Sirius Black.

The monolith stood in the Great Hall, just behind the Head Table. It had taken a long time to build because the names of the dead had each been carved by a family member or close friend. Harry had carved several of those names himself.

Nymphadora Tonks. Remus Lupin.

Harry spent months arguing with the builders over whether to include the names of Slytherins and others who had died as collateral damage. He hadn't been sure until this moment whether or not he'd won out.

Severus Snape. Xenophilius Lovegood.

There were a lot of names on the monument – too many. Harry wrapped his arms more tightly around the book he was holding, his gaze not moving from the stone.

Ted Tonks. Andromeda Tonks.

Some of them were innocents.

Colin Creevey. Teddy Lupin.

Some of them were teachers.

Minerva McGonagall. Rubeus Hagrid.

Some of them were friends.

Fred Weasley. Neville Longbottom. Justin Finch-Fletchley. Luna Lovegood. Seamus Finnigan. Hannah Abbott. Padma Patil. Parvati Patil. Ronald Weasley. Dean Thomas. Percy Weasley. Bill Weasley. Arthur Weasley…

"Is that your book? You've finished it?"

Harry turned slowly at the sound of a voice. It was Ginny, standing just beside the empty headmaster's chair and leaning one hand on it. She looked tired, but she was always tired lately.

"Yeah. I finished it." Harry glanced down at the book in his arms. "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. That's the title."

"It sounds a bit like a children's book."

"If only it were." Harry looked back at the monument with unsmiling eyes. It occurred to him that he hadn't seen Dobby's name anywhere on there. He supposed the builders didn't count house-elves as worthy of memorial. At least Dobby had a proper grave and a stone of his own.

Ginny released the chair and walked over to him with unsteady feet. She reached out a hand to grip his arm tightly, her face carefully blank to mask her pain. "What are you going to do? Publish it?"

Harry shifted the book so that he could wrap an arm around Ginny's waist, supporting her, and he felt her lean into his touch. "Maybe. I don't know. It seems too… disrespectful, somehow. Like I'd be making money off of people's deaths."

"Then what?" Ginny's expression was shrewd as she looked into his face. "You sound as though you've got a plan."

"What? No! You cannot possibly be serious, Harry!"

"Hermione –" Harry tried to interrupt, but his friend was having none of it.

"Do you have any idea what kinds of things can happen when you mess with time? Don't you remember third year?" Hermione paced back and forth in front of him. They were in the Burrow, congregated in the otherwise empty kitchen. Mrs. Weasley had gone off somewhere and left them to it, for which Harry was grateful. He didn't want to know how she'd take it.

"I do remember, Hermione, but I've done some research and I think the risk is manageable," he said. "With your help and Bill's notes," and here he paused to nod at Charlie, who sat with Ginny on the other side of the room, "I can control the time flow enough to make sure they get all seven books before the paradoxes actively start changing our reality."

"That's the part that worries me," said Charlie. "The 'changing our reality' part. What exactly does that mean?"

"It means that when Harry's parents and their friends read his books, they'll do things differently than they did to lead to where we are now," said Hermione, her tone acidic. "And we have no idea how things will change, which is why it's so dangerous!"

"You mean, say, Lily and James could pick Sirius as Secret-Keeper instead of Pettigrew because they know he's a Death Eater?" said Ginny.

"It's worse than that," said Hermione grimly. "Lily might not even marry James in the first place. Harry wants to send the books back to when Professor Snape was still friends with her."

"Then you might not even exist anymore!" Charlie's expression was horrified as he looked at Harry. "Or you'd have Snape for a father, which might even be worse."

"I'm willing to take that risk," said Harry. "I'm not even convinced my parents were right together in the first place."

"Just because Snape had an unhealthy obsession with your mum?" said Ginny with a faint smirk.

Harry shook his head. "No, because my mum spent about six years hating my dad, and then suddenly had a change of heart. Anyway, it's not about me, can't you see that? I don't want Snape to become a Death Eater. I don't want Pettigrew to become a Death Eater, either. Take them out of the equation and Voldemort might never even hear the prophecy."

"Then how will he be destroyed?" asked Charlie.

"I'll include details about the Horcruxes in the books," Harry explained. "By the time my parents are out of school, they'll have the way to defeat Voldemort for good. Then they won't die, and neither will anyone else. There won't even be a second war."

The room was silent for a long moment as all of them contemplated this. Harry's mind went back to the monolith in the Great Hall, imagining what it would be like if that never had to be erected. Ron would still be around, and the rest of the Weasleys, and Remus and Sirius and Dumbledore… Sirius wouldn't even have to spend twelve years in Azkaban!

"I still say it's dangerous," said Hermione at last, lowering herself into a chair. "But maybe you're right. Maybe it's worth the risk."

"I'm all for killing Voldemort the first time around," said Charlie.

"I can't help," said Ginny quietly. Her eyes were fixed on Harry. "You know I can't help."

Harry gave her a small smile. "I know, Gin. But you can help me with the books. And when things start changing, hopefully you'll be back to normal. Easier than trying to find an antidote, right?"

Ginny bit her lip. "Anything," she whispered. "Anything to be normal again."

"That's it, then," said Harry, standing up abruptly. He picked up his book from where it lay on the kitchen table. "Let's get to work."