Chapter 7: Hogwarts Again

Harry began the walk toward the castle, feeling overwhelmed with memories. He focused mostly on his parents, and his happy childhood. He still could remember the miserable experiences he had had with the Dursleys, but those memories were fading into the background like a bad dream.

"Potter! Where have you been? I've been waiting for almost half an hour!" A familiar voice called out. Harry looked to his right, and saw Draco Malfoy striding toward him, looking aggravated.

"I...uh...had to do some things...?" Harry stammered, not sure how to respond.

"Well, you're the one who offered!" Draco said accusingly. He stared at Harry, and then rolled his eyes at the apparent blank look on Harry's face. "Last night? At dinner? You said you would show me how you did that move that won you the last Quidditch match! It was your idea to meet on the field at 4!" Harry ran his hands through his hair absently.

"Oh...oh, yeah. I've had a lot on my mind, Malfoy...sorry, must've forgot..." He sifted through his "new" memories, and realized that while far from "friends," he and Draco Malfoy were amicable competitors who respected the skills and talents of the other. In exchange for helping him with Quidditch, Draco had shown Harry how to make a particularly difficult potion the week before. Draco continued to look at Harry, and then frowned.

"You feeling okay, Potter? Kind of look like you've been Confunded! You and Goyle have to stop baiting each other like that in class, I knew he'd catch you unaware one of these days!"

"Goyle...yeah." Harry answered, knowing he certainly sounded like he had been Confunded. "Look, Malfoy, I'm not really feeling my best right now, can we do this tomorrow? Same time, same place?"

"Yeah, guess so." Draco agreed, even though he seemed slightly annoyed. He shook his head and smirked at Harry. "See you around, Potter." He walked off in the direction he had come from.

Harry tried to focus. There were too many memories coming at him all at once. He lingered on his mother's face, the sound of her laugh, the way her red hair moved in waves around her shoulders. He passed a few students that he didn't recognize as he entered the castle. There were more students gathered in small groups outside the Great Hall. It took Harry a moment to realize what felt strange, and then it hit him. No one was staring at him. No one was whispering about him or pointing to his scar. His scar...Harry reached a hand up to his forehead slowly. There was nothing there. He wasn't The Boy Who Lived or The Chosen One. He was just Harry Potter.

Harry broke into a real smile for the first time that day and ran toward the entrance to the Gryffindor Common Room. The portrait opened as he approached it, and Harry felt his heart leap with pleasure at the sight of the person who climbed out.

"Hi Harry! I thought you were hanging out with Malfoy this afternoon!" Ginny ran over to him and enclosed him in a tight hug. She raised her face to him, and he instinctively lowered his head to kiss her.

"Oh, for the love of Merlin! Can't you two give it a rest for five minutes?" Ron was also coming out of the common room, Hermione close behind him. Harry noticed that they were holding hands. Not letting go of Ginny, Harry moved toward them.

"Ron..Hermione! I'm so glad to see you..." He caught the look they exchanged, but found he didn't care.

"Harry?" Hermione said carefully. "Are you okay? I mean, we just saw each other at lunch..."

"Yeah mate, did Malfoy hex you or something?" Ron raised his wand. "I knew it wasn't a good idea to meet with him..."

"Now, Ron, don't go getting all worked up." Hermione scolded. "Malfoy wouldn't dare do anything like that. Besides, it was Harry's idea to show him those Quidditch moves, remember?"

"Oh, yeah." Ron said, mollified.

"You do look...different, though." Ginny said, studying his face. "I can't put my finger on why...something in your eyes..."

"Which you certainly spend enough time staring into!" Ron laughed, which earned him a stern look from Hermione. Harry looked at each face, looking at him with concern. He searched his rapidly evolving memories, and saw that he and Ron had known each other for years, even before Hogwarts. James and Lily were good friends with Molly and Arthur, and Ron was the closest thing to a brother he would ever have. They had met Hermione at Hogwarts during their first year, and although they had not had the opportunity to bond over the defeat of a mountain troll, they had still become friends eventually. Hagrid had played an instrumental role in that, helping Ron and Harry to look beyond Hermione's surface personality and see the person she was inside. Hermione and Ginny had become friends during Ginny's first year and had been inseparable ever since. Somewhere around their 5th year, Harry had stopped seeing Ginny as Ron's younger sister, and started really noticing her. He had asked her to go out with him during his 6th year, and things had been progressing nicely between them.

Before he had the chance to respond, a voice from down the corridor interrupted them.

"Why are you all gathered here? Either go on to dinner or back to your common room." Harry turned to see Severus Snape, very much alive, sweeping down the hall toward them. He stepped forward.

"Sir...its so good to see you. You look great!" It was true, Snape looked healthier than he ever had in Harry's previous memories. His skin no longer had that yellow pallor and his eyes, while not exactly happy, had lost the haunted, empty look that Harry remembered well.

"I'm beginning to think your right, Hermione." Ron whispered loudly. "Git's lost his mind.."

"Shhh!" Hermione hissed back at him.

Snape seemed taken aback for a moment, but recovered quickly. "Sucking up won't get you anywhere, Potter. That essay on moonstones is still due by the end of class tomorrow or its detention." Harry smiled happily at him.

"Of course Professor. Thanks for reminding me..." Snape nodded briskly and walked away, a confused look on his face. Hermione faced Harry, hands on her hips.

"Okay Harry, game's over. What was all that about?"

Harry beamed at her.

"I had...this crazy dream last night...and it just came back to me. Let's go back inside, I want to tell all of you about it..." He climbed through the still open portrait hole, Ginny right behind him.

"Can't this wait, Harry? We were on our way down to dinner..." Ron grumbled, but followed the others back into the common room. They all sat down and looked at Harry expectantly. Harry could feel the memories of the alternate timeline starting to fade, as the reality of his happy life was front and center in his mind.

"Okay, there are a lot of details, and I want to tell you all of it before I forget. So please don't interrupt or ask me anything until I've finished, okay?" They all nodded, and Ginny settled herself against his chest. He smiled down at her, and pulled her close, causing Ron to smirk. Harry looked into each pair of eyes, and then began his story.

"Mr. and Mrs. Dursley, of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much. They were the last people you would expect to be involved in anything strange or mysterious, because they just didn't hold with such nonsense..."

THE END