An Eclectic Catalogue of Ideas

It had been a normal day for Harry. Get up, speak to Ginny quietly, and leave to go to work. He and Ginny made their relationship work, as difficult as it was. They were best friends, and that was enough to make it tolerable. It was often that he damned Albus Dumbledore and Molly Weasley for putting them in the situation they were in. It was why he and Ginny had agreed that if they ever decided to have children, they would never bind a child with such a thing as a marriage contract.

But then an alarm had been triggered, and he rushed to the Department of Mysteries with a group of aurors, only to be caught in a firefight, spells glittering through the air. The other aurors fell quickly to an ambush but Harry and Ron, long used to fighting, had pulled through and put the attackers on the run. They split up to handle the attackers, Ron heading towards the Death Room and Harry the Time Room.

Harry didn't like visiting the Death Room, even decades later. Ron knew that.

These thoughts didn't distract him as he came upon one of the fleeing intruders. A battle in the Department of Mysteries. This is entirely too familiar a situation, Harry thought to himself as he dodged a Torture Curse, moving quickly to send a volley of curses back, wand moving quickly from one to the next. Severing Charm, Stunning Spell, and finally Snape's Sectumsempra flew outwards, and his opponent screamed in agony as the Stunning Spell shattered his shield and the Sectumsempra drove its way into his guts. It was Nott. Why was Nott here in the Department of Mysteries? One down, thought Harry as he moved further into the Department of Mysteries' Time Room after stunning Nott. He hoped he wouldn't bleed out, but couldn't take the time to make sure yet. They were using Unforgivables, so he felt no guilt in going lethal.

He still didn't know what was going on.

Skidding to a stop, Harry rolled to avoid a Killing Curse, looking up to see who he had been chasing turn towards him... Malfoy and Parkinson, plus an unknown. What were they doing here, anyway? Parkinson he could see causing trouble with some stooge, but Malfoy was reformed, at least to a degree. He was still an arrogant arse, but Harry had thought the man had changed his ways.

These thoughts were put aside as he dodged another Killing Curse from Malfoy, conjuring a chunk of granite to block Parkinson's Torture Curse and shielding the stranger's Blood-Boiling Curse. "Malfoy, what the shite is going on?" Harry's voice rose. "I thought you'd gotten this crap out of your system!"

Parkinson threw another Torture Curse at him as she, Malfoy and the other man split up, and Harry snarled. Getting boxed in could be deadly. No more nice auror. The spell chain he chose to use was dark - nothing illegal, but it definitely included spells that were frowned on. His wand blurred into a series of motions and Parkinson screeched as a Bone-Breaking Curse slammed into her chest after his Stunning Spell shattered her shield, splintering her ribs before dropping to another Sectumsempra. A second Sectumsempra took out the other man, who was apparently too stupid to shield.

Unfortunately, Malfoy had managed to get behind him in the distraction, and as Harry turned, he saw movement out of the corner of his eye. The green of a Killing Curse neared him and his wand was out of place. Harry lifted his other hand, wandlessly summoning the first thing he saw to block the attack.

Then he realized it was a Time-Turner.

"Ah, shite," was the only thing Harry could manage as the time-turner exploded.

HPHPHPHPHP

Harry woke up. He didn't open his eyes, not wanting to alert anyone near him in case he was captured by enemies. It was really sad that that was his first thought. Like he was channeling Mad-Eye. But you weren't paranoid if they were really out to get you. After his teenage years and decades as an auror, he knew to be cautious. All Harry heard was the soft sound of breathing, and so he slowly opened his eyes to see a familiar sight, something he'd not seen in a long time.

The red drapery around his bed in Gryffindor Tower.

What the hell?

Slowly sitting up, Harry looked around. There was Ron, and over there was Neville. He could see Dean and Seamus on the other side of the room, too. He looked down at himself and saw a slender form, almost too thin in places. He looked so young!

Running his hand through his hair, Harry considered possibilities. It was too detailed to be an illusion. Nor was it polyjuice, body samples wouldn't last this long even with magic. They couldn't be metamorphmagi, there weren't this many in all of Europe. Some form of forced dream? Unlikely, he had managed to become quite skilled at Occlumency over the years after the horcrux disappeared. Insanity? He considered, before dismissing it. If he hadn't snapped after all the shit he'd endured during his teenage years, it was unlikely he'd do so now.

It had to be the Time-Turner. Somehow, its explosion interacted with magic of the Killing Curse and had pulled his soul back in time. He was somehow in his teenage body. Glancing at his hand, he noted the lack of scarring and decided he was before the hell that was his Fifth Year. He slowly leaned down and dug through the table by his bed, and found a few school books. Looking them over, he sighed.

Fourth Year. Fourth bloody Year. So he was a Triwizard Champion. Yay for him.

Sighing again, Harry got to his feet, and slipped his wand into his sleeve pocket. Digging into his trunk, he took the Map and his cloak, sliding them into a pocket in his robes. He headed down to the common room, walking slowly so as to not wake anyone up. Looking around and not seeing anyone, he searched the area. There was usually a newspaper or two scattered about before the house elves cleared them out in the morning, if I remember right... yes!

He stared at the date and just sighed. June 23rd. So it was now June bloody 24th. It was the day of the third task. The day when Voldemort came back, and Cedric died.

Not bloody likely, not this time. Cedric would not die. Nor would Sirius. Nor Remus. Nor Fred. Nor Tonks. Especially not Tonks. He'd admited to Ginny years later, when they were discussing things, that he'd loved Tonks but hadn't realized it. Couldn't, really, as he had no real experience at the time, thanks to Dumbledore.

He considered his options. If he did nothing and let one of the other Champions take the cup, it was possible that Voldemort would use one of them instead to come back to life. Even if the madman preferred to use Harry due to his blood protection. He might also simply kill them in a snit and try a different plan.

So, the best option was for Harry to get to the cup first, and not let Cedric come with him. He was damn sure he could handle Wormtail, even with the pain from his scar. Occlumency would help there. He might even get Nagini, too.

Nodding to himself, Harry idly glanced at the map, and then pulled his cloak over his shoulders. He moved to open the door, taking another look at the map to be sure. Slipping into the corridor, Harry moved through the archway leading into the hallway that led to the Room of Requirement. He paced back and forth, and when the door of the Room appeared, he entered. It revealed a large room with a few chairs and an open space in the center. Perfect. He'd need to practice a bit to get used to his young body. That was enough space to move around easily.

Even as he planned, Harry moved to sit in one of the chairs. Even if the day worked out as he wanted, he'd have more to do. "Dobby?" he called, unsure if the elf would appear.

"Harry Potter Sir calls Dobby?" the energetic house elf asked.

He couldn't help it; Harry smiled, glad to see the elf. He was one of the many innocents he missed over the years. "Hello, Dobby," he said. "I was wondering. I'm in need of a house elf. Would it be possible for me to hire you?"

"Harry Potter Sir wants to hire Dobby?" the elf asked, hopping up and down.

Harry lifted a hand, "Relax, Dobby. If you're willing, yes. If I hire you, can anyone make you tell my secrets?" He didn't think so, but he didn't really research house elves. No real need as an auror and hit wizard.

"No, Harry Potter, sir," the elf explained, "Even without a bond, if Dobby agrees to work for Harry Potter, Dobby cannot tell anyone anything Harry Potter doesn't wish him to."

Nodding, Harry said, "All right, Dobby. This is my only offer. One, you will receive one galleon a week and get one day off every week. You must also never overwork yourself. Two, you will never punish yourself. If you think you've made a mistake, you will come to me and we can discuss the situation. Three, you will call me Harry, or if you absolutely must, Harry Sir. Not Master, Master Harry, or anything like that. Four, you aren't to reveal that you work for me. That's not because I'm ashamed of you, but because I'm going to need you to do a few things on the sly, and people might try to stop me if they find out you're my house elf." He paused, and looked at Dobby, "Do you accept these terms?"

Dobby considered, "Dobby can accept, but doesn't like the first part of the offer."

"Dobby, if you choose to work on your day off, that's fine. It's your choice. But you -must- rest some, and I want at least one day a week you can relax if you want, all right?" Harry said to him. "It's important to me, I don't want to treat you like the Malfoys did."

Dobby nodded and said, "All right. Dobby accepts Harry Sir's terms!"

Harry nodded at him and pulled a galleon from his pocket, handing it to Dobby, "There's your first week's pay. Can you bring me some breakfast? After you return, I will give you a few things to do later today, all right?"

"Right away, Harry Sir!" Dobby said, popping off. Harry returned to his planning. Today was going to be an interesting day.

HPHPHPHPHP

Even as Harry was making plans and practicing in the Room of Requirement, his friends were looking for him. "We have to find him, Ron!" declared Hermione. "I didn't see him at all this morning, and he wasn't at breakfast. What if something happened to him?"

"He's probably preparing," Ron assured her, though the red-head looked a little worried, too. They stood in the Gryffindor common room, having returned after lunch to see if Harry had shown up. "It's the final task, he probably wanted to get some last minute stuff done."

Hermione frowned, "You'd think he'd have come to talk to us if he was going to do that."

Ron shrugged, "Maybe he wanted to do the last bit himself. You know Harry, Hermione, he probably didn't want to have us worry and thus... made us worry." He looked amused. "Just his luck, he never catches a break."

Hermione rolled her eyes and slapped his arm gently. "Let's ask the Fat Lady," she suggested, moving to leave the common room. Turning towards the portrait, Hermione cleared her throat, "Ma'am, have you seen Harry today?"

"I haven't seen him, no," the Fat Lady told her. She paused and added, with a knowing smile, "However, very early in the morning, the door was opened and I heard someone come out but didn't see anyone."

"Harry's cloak?" Hermione murmured, "If he left before curfew ended, that makes sense. Where did he go?"

"He didn't take the stairs nearby, that's all I can tell you. I'd have heard them moving if he had," the Fat Lady explained.

"I don't know where he'd be going on this floor. Sometimes people meet up near the North Wing, but he doesn't have a girlfriend, does he?" Ron asked with a frown.

"Not that I know of. Harry can be a private person," Hermione said musingly, "But I don't think he'd hide a girlfriend."

Ron sighed, and touched Hermione's arm, "Come on. We can go wait downstairs. If we don't see him, I'm sure he'll be down in time for the Third Task, we can catch him after."

Hermione nodded and turned to follow Ron.

HPHPHPHPHP

Harry didn't bother to leave the Room until it was time for the Third Task. He wasn't sure how he'd deal with Ron and Hermione and had decided to put it off until later. They would be so young and innocent. They hadn't yet had a year of hell, nor dealt with the death of a man they respected - whether he deserved it or not. They hadn't gotten married, nor had children yet. It was going to be hard.

He pulled on his cloak and slipped out the door, taking the stairs quickly and leaving the school. He'd timed it perfectly and arrived at the tent on time. Pausing to slip his cloak off, Harry pocketed it before entering the tent. He nodded towards Cedric, Fleur, and Krum before taking a seat.

"How you feeling, Harry? I haven't seen you all day," asked Cedric, and Harry flashed him a wry smile in response.

"About what you'd expect," he said to him, shrugging his shoulders. "I just hope I get through this, I bet this maze will have a lot of dangerous creatures in it."

"You're probably right," Cedric agreed, pausing to think. "Skrewts, y'reckon?"

"Oh, definitely. Probably lots of things," Harry said. He smiled and looked at Fleur and Krum, "Good luck, you two."

"Thank you," Krum said tersely.

Fleur nodded at him with a warm smile, "You too, 'arry," she murmured. "Be safe, my sister is rooting for you." Her eyes twinkled, "After me, of course."

"Oh, I plan on it," Harry said. "I honestly was tempted to just walk in then immediately bow out, but I was worried that not even trying might cause an issue with the goblet, so." He shrugged.

"It's probably best to not take chances," Fleur agreed, while Cedric shuddered.

Harry smirked, "No, I don't want to lose my magic or die or whatever a broken contract with the goblet causes. I doubt it's good." After doing a bit of research in the future, he'd found out it was a little of both. You would lose some or all of your magic, and doing so might kill you.

"All right, Champions!" Bagman said as he entered, "It's time. Each of you will enter the maze from a separate entrance. Harry and Cedric enter at the same time, then Viktor, and then Miss Delacour!" Fleur rolled her eyes at his phrasing. "If something happens and you are hurt, or need to retire, just cast the Red Sparks spell into the air and we'll come get you." He gestured, "Now right this way."

Harry followed the others out of the tent and let himself be led towards his entrance of the maze. If he was fast enough, he could get to the cup before Crouch used the Imperius Curse on Krum. He could do this. He remembered the maze, even after all this time.

He'd spent far too much time remembering this day. Going over what could have been.

When the alarm sounded, Harry ran. Darting into the maze, he didn't pause, just kept running. Spotting the Boggart, he paused as he saw it turn into a dead body. Tonks. "Okay, fuck this shite." Instead of casting the Boggart-Banishing Spell, he waved his wand and sent forth a powerful Exploding Charm. With a loud crack, the thing disappeared. It'd return eventually, but he didn't care. Harry dashed by as it tried to recover, and kept running.

He quickly reached the golden mist, still moving, and closed his eyes, diving through it. He felt a brief sense of vertigo before he rolled out the other side. I have to outpace Crouch, so he doesn't have time to use the Imperius Curse on Cedric, Harry thought.

He did take a few wrong turns. His memory wasn't perfect even with Occlumency, after all. But he didn't slow down, just turned to run back the way he came, and took another path, using Hermione's Point Me charm now and again.

He was worried, he wasn't seeing any new monsters. Was he not outpacing Crouch? Perhaps Crouch had cleared out the monsters on his side of the maze before Harry had entered; he'd never had a chance to check on that.

Soon enough, he reached Hagrid's skrewt, and he didn't even stop; he snarled, "Defodio!" That's all it took; the Gouging Spell drilled through the skrewt's armor with the power Harry put into it and the creature dropped to the ground, twitching.

Running past, Harry looked back and forth, and saw movement. Cedric? No. Crouch. The man was looking in the other direction, perhaps waiting for Viktor to appear. Without a thought, Harry snapped off a stunner and quickly ran up to the fallen man, tapping him with his wand and disillusioning him.

"Dobby." When the house elf appeared, Harry told him, "Stay out of sight. Crouch is here, under a disillusionment charm. Please take him to the Room and keep him prisoner like I told you. Don't forget to strip him in case he has a portkey. If he wakes up, stun him again. Do not risk yourself."

With this, Harry turned, and continued to rush towards the center of the maze. At least he had an advantage in that he knew, generally, what was there from the last time. He couldn't let up. Just in case something changed and one of the others were quicker than before.

Paranoid? Perhaps.

Harry continued to wend his way through the maze, and stopped suddenly, panting, when he reached the sphinx. He listened to the creature as it spoke, "Just pass me lies your prize, young Champion! Answer this question, and you may pass. Fail, and you will have to face me." She took a breath and began to recite:

"First think of the person who lives in disguise,
Who deals in secrets and tells naught but lies.
Next, tell me what's always the last thing to mend,
The middle of middle and end of the end?
And finally give me the sound often heard,
During the search for a hard-to-find word.
Now string them together and answer me this,
Which creature would you be unwilling to kiss?"

Harry immediately said, "Spider, now let me through, please." As the sphinx moved to the side, Harry darted past, still running, and saw the cup. As he reached the cup, he pulled his cloak from his pocket, and put it on, taking a breath. Here goes nothing.

He grabbed the cup, and felt the characteristic pulling sensation of a portkey.