Teddy Through Time

“Did you know — then?” asked Harry.
“Did I know that I had just met the most dangerous Dark wizard of all time?” said Dumbledore. “No, I had no idea what he was to become. But I was certainly intrigued. I returned to Hogwarts intending to keep an eye on him—something I would have done regardless, given that he was alone and friendless—but even then, I felt I ought to do it not only for his sake, but for the sake of others.”
“His powers, as you heard, were unusually developed for such a young wizard, and—most intriguingly and ominously of all—he had already discovered that he possessed some—”

Dumbledore’s attention was abruptly diverted. His head turned sharply toward a blinding sphere of light that had appeared in the center of the office. Both he and Harry stood at once; Dumbledore drew his wand without hesitation. A warm magical energy radiated from him, and Harry instinctively turned toward the old wizard’s intense gaze, instantly understanding that whatever was happening—it wasn’t supposed to.
He followed suit, pulling out his wand and stepping forward behind Dumbledore toward the glowing orb, which was expanding rapidly. Both raised their arms to shield their eyes.
Harry suddenly felt a hand grasp his shoulder, yanking him back and throwing him off balance.
“Get away from the light,” Dumbledore ordered. “Try not to let it touch you.”
The sphere exploded, sending beams of blinding light across the room. Harry dropped to the ground, eyes clenched shut, as a crash rang out—followed by a cry. He blinked open his eyes; the glare still stung.
Dumbledore was already moving toward the source of the noise—toward what now appeared to have emerged from within the orb itself.

At the center of the room now stood a teenage boy, older than Harry, with a frightened yet curious expression, black hair, a sharp nose, and high cheekbones. He wore a gray cloak over torn black jeans and a white T-shirt adorned with a badger—its sleeves dyed a striking orange. The outfit, to Harry’s taste, seemed oddly stylish in a mismatched sort of way.
The boy held a wand in one hand. Between his fingers dangled a golden chain from which spilled black sand—dark and thick, like the ink that had once poured from Tom Riddle’s diary.
The boy scanned the room until his eyes fell upon Harry. His gaze widened in confusion and fear. Harry’s stomach dropped.
“Harry?” the boy whispered, eyes drawn instead to the older man before him. “Albus?” he asked, the name barely more than a stunned breath, clearly more shaken by the sight of the old man than the boy.
“And who might you be?” Dumbledore asked, gently but firmly.
“Where am I?” the boy asked, ignoring the question.
“You are in the Headmaster’s office at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry,” replied Dumbledore, his tone sharpening slightly. “And now, who are you?”
“The Headmaster’s office?” the boy echoed in panic. “You’re the Headmaster?”
“So it seems. I won’t ask again.”

The boy’s eyes widened further. “My name is Teddy,” he said, his gaze never leaving Harry’s.
“Well then, Teddy,” said Dumbledore, “what are you doing here?”
“Sir,” Teddy began, still staring at Harry. “I believe there’s been a mistake. I—I made a terrible mistake. What year is it?”
“It is the twenty-second of October, 1996,” Dumbledore answered with a calmness that made it sound as if Teddy had asked the time.
“Professor,” Teddy composed himself. Harry examined his face—something about it felt familiar, even comforting. Oddly, Harry felt calm in the boy’s presence, which unsettled him more than anything else. It was as though something was trying to lull him into dropping his guard.
“I came from the year 2019,” Teddy explained. “There was a controlled lab experiment in the Department of Mysteries that went wrong.” He raised the golden chain in his hand, now crumbling into black sand.
“You’re an Unspeakable?”
“An Auror,” Teddy corrected.
“How old are you?”
“Twenty-one.”
“Did you intend to come to our time—your past?”
“No, the explosion wasn’t meant to send me anywhere. It just… happened.”
“Do you know Harry Potter personally?”

Teddy nodded.

“And do you know me?” asked Dumbledore.
“No.”
“Harry, return to your dormitory,” Dumbledore instructed without looking back.
“What?” Harry protested. “Professor!”
“To your dormitory.”
“But—” Harry clenched his fists, but he knew resistance was futile. After a few moments of hesitation, he turned and stormed out.

Dumbledore waited until the door clicked shut before speaking again.
“Can you explain why you don’t know me?”
“Because in my time… you’re already dead,” Teddy said plainly, gesturing toward Dumbledore’s blackened hand. “Your plan with Severus worked.”
If Dumbledore was impressed by Teddy’s knowledge, he did not show it. “Now that Harry is gone, would you mind telling me who you really are?”
“I’m Teddy Remus Lupin. Son of Remus and Nymphadora Lupin—more widely known as Tonks. I’m a Metamorphmagus and a fully-trained Auror. I was born in April 1998. I was in Hufflepuff. And I’m Harry Potter’s godson,” he finished succinctly.
“I see. Remus and Nymphadora… a bit surprising,” Dumbledore admitted.
Teddy blushed. “Not many knew about them before they were married.”
“I never thought your father would give in so easily to your mother. I feared he would doom them both to misery by hiding among the werewolves.”
“Seems I was the one who ruined those plans,” Teddy said with a shy smile.
“You may have inherited your mother’s gifts,” Dumbledore said, “but that smile—that’s your father’s.” Teddy blushed again.

“You were born after the war?”
“More or less.”
“And Harry? He survives?”
“Yes. But many others didn’t.”
“Please, spare me the details,” Dumbledore said, closing his eyes. “It is dangerous to know when one’s end will come.”
“You planned yours,” Teddy said, half-teasing.
“Only because I didn’t expect it to arrive quite so quickly,” Dumbledore replied, lifting his withered hand. “Do you know how to return to your time?”
“No. I don’t know the full parameters of the experiment, and I don’t know how to recreate it.”
“I see,” Dumbledore said slowly. “What kind of experiment was it?”
“I don’t know. They only asked me to supervise,” Teddy admitted, his face falling. “Professor, what should I do?”
“I have no answer for you.”
Teddy smiled gently. “You always seemed like the one who had all the answers.”
“I’m flattered,” Dumbledore replied gravely.

Teddy fell quiet.
“For now,” Dumbledore said at last, “you will stay here at the castle. But I must warn you—do not reveal who you are or what you know. Not even to those dearest to you. Especially not to your parents. It could alter the course of time—even erase your very existence.”
“Terrible things have happened to those who’ve meddled with time,” Teddy nodded solemnly.
“I see you’re a clever young man.”
“Thank you. Professor… do you think I’ll be able to return to my time?”
“I don’t know. You’ve intruded on our timeline unintentionally, not through conventional means.”
“What do you mean?”
“In Harry’s third year, he and Hermione Granger—whom I suspect you know—traveled back in time and saved the lives of a creature and a man.”
“Buckbeak and Sirius,” Teddy nodded.
“You’re well informed,” Dumbledore observed. “They succeeded because, in the original timeline, neither had yet died. They were saved before their sentences were carried out. At that moment, Harry’s life was also saved—by a Patronus charm.”
“When Harry went back in time, the original and altered timelines coexisted. In one, events happened; in the other, they ensured those events. Thus, Harry knew how to cast the charm and saved himself.”
“That means,” Teddy said thoughtfully, “time travel using Time-Turners only ever fulfilled what already was. What happened would always happen.”
“Precisely.”
“Then how did I come here?”
“Did Harry ever mention meeting you as a boy?”
“No. And if he had, he definitely would’ve told me.”
“Then clearly, this wasn’t meant to happen. You’ve fallen into our timeline by accident.”
“Time-Turners don’t exist anymore. Is that the reason?”
“Time-Turners were a human invention—not something larger than the universe itself. They existed because a rather clever, if simple, man made them. And they no longer exist because, quite inadvertently, Harry ensured their destruction.”
Dumbledore smiled faintly. “You didn’t come through a Time-Turner. That much is certain. You came through an experiment.”
Teddy absorbed this in silence.

“Albus,” he said finally, “why do you trust me? Not that I’m complaining, but—”
Dumbledore lowered his chin, peering over his spectacles with a smile. “You’re clearly your parents’ son—and that’s the highest compliment I can offer. I can sense truth and falsehood. And I can see the nature of a person. That comes more from age and experience than magic.”
“Are you going to keep me a secret?”
“That may no longer be possible. Harry’s already seen you. By now, he’s no doubt told Ronald and Hermione. But I don’t think it would be fair to you.”
“I want to meet my parents,” Teddy said earnestly. “Of course—not as their son. I just want to… see them. I never got the chance.”
Dumbledore closed his eyes again. In that moment, he looked very old to Teddy—not the mighty wizard of legend.
“I’m sorry to hear that,” he said softly. “That’s exactly why I asked you not to reveal anything of the future.”
“I’m sorry,” Teddy said sincerely.
“You must be exceedingly careful. Your memories and knowledge are like dynamite to our world. If you wish to meet your loved ones, you must act with great responsibility.”
“I understand.”
“You must let time do its work. Let events unfold. You understand that you cannot save your parents?”
“I do.”
“You understand that no matter what tragedy occurs—no matter who lives or dies—you must not interfere?”
“I promise.”
“I know it is hard, Teddy, to watch those we love fade away. But far greater dangers hang in the balance. Now,” said Dumbledore more gently, “let’s find you a bed for the night. And if you’re hungry… well, as the son of Remus Lupin and godson of Harry Potter, I trust you already know how to sneak into the kitchens.”