Shattering Timelines

Harry sat staring at his letter to Dumbledore in his small room at the Leaky Cauldron. He had no clue what to write. Yes, going to Hogwarts had always been parted of the plan, but he had no idea how to do that. With a quiet sigh, Harry set his quill to the parchment.

Headmaster Dumbledore,

My name is Hadrian Emrys-Slytherin. I have spent most of my life homeschooled, and until recent events took place, that was how I was supposed to finish my schooling. Unfortunately, certain events have forced me to look for alternative choices. I have researched many schools, including Beauxbatons and Durmstrang, but I would prefer to attend Hogwarts since Salazar Slytherin was one of its founders and it is rumored that Merlin, himself, has gone there. I have done a lot of research in the past few months and have deemed Hogwarts beyond satisfactory in all accounts. I have enclosed a copy of my OWLs inside the letter to help you determine whether or not to allow me into your fine establishment. It would truly be a great honor for me if I could attend the school that my ancestor created.

-Lord Hadrian Emrys-Slytherin

Hadrian Emrys-Slytherin

Harry looked it over. Surely that would be good enough. Even if Dumbledore didn’t want him at Hogwarts as a student, he would still be forced to accept Harry in order to keep an eye on him. With Harry being the Lord Slytherin and Emrys, Dumbledore would want him as far away from Voldemort as possible even if he had to allow him to come to Hogwarts.

Harry glanced over his OWL results. He had been forced to go to the Ministry in order to take them again in this time. Unfortunately, he couldn’t use the results from his own time because it would be too hard to cover up if someone decided to go through all of his records. Not that he wanted to keep his old results, though. His scores had been terribly low since he had been so worried about Umbridge, not to mention he completely failed his History of Magic exam because of his vision. The results from the OWLs he took in this time were much better, with Os in everything except potions where he received an E. Amazing how much a war forces a person to learn.

Harry glanced over the papers again before stuffing them into an envelope. He walked over to the one tiny window in his room and whistled for one of the many post owls in the alley. A plain barn owl flew to his window with a glare. “Don’t look at me like that. I’m willing to pay,” Harry grumbled. He tied the envelope to  one of its legs and put a few coins in the pouch that was tied to the other leg. “Take this to Albus Dumbledore right away. I’d prefer if he got this tonight. It’s very important.”

The owl glared at him again before taking off. “Why are owls so rude?” Harry mumbled to Kali. The silver dragon seemed to ignore the question and settled for curling around Harry’s neck. “All we can do now is wait.”

Harry was pacing around his room. Three days had passed and he still hadn’t received a reply from Dumbledore.

Although a lot had happened in three days. Harry had gotten the reaction he wanted. The evening Harry had accepted his lordships, The Daily Prophet had released a special edition evening paper. It was supposed to have covered a large attack Voldemort had perpetrated on a muggle town, but it mainly covered the new handsome, mysterious wizard that had accepted two lordships that were thought long dead. Already rumors were spreading about how powerful he was and where he had come from. Some people were already claiming he was going to run for minister in the next election.

Harry continued to sulk over the missing letter. “He’s just doing this to mess with me,” Harry said, “I forgot how much of a bastard he was.”

Kali hummed from the spot where she was curled up on his bed. Harry glared at her. “I know you’re enjoying my frustration much more than you should.” Kali looked up at him and blinked innocently.

Suddenly a soft pecking filled the room. Harry’s head snapped to the window. “Finally! I thought he would never reply.”

Harry quickly opened the window and stared in shock at the bird he thought he would never see again. “Hello, Fawkes,” Harry whispered. The fiery bird cocked his head at Harry and watched him curiously before laying the letter he had in his beak down on the ground. Fawkes trilled softly as he nudged the letter over to Harry.

“Thank you,” Harry quickly grabbed the letter and opened it. He glanced over the letter and the tension that Harry had had for the past three days finally disappeared.

“Tell Headmaster Dumbledore that I am thankful for his consideration and will see him soon.” Fawkes trilled again as he nodded before spreading his wings and catching on fire. Harry watched the majestic bird burn until he disappeared, probably returning to his master.

Harry glanced over at Kali. The sleepy facade she had worn just moments before was gone now and replaced with a look of anticipation.

“Ever get the feeling that Dumbledore likes to brag?” Harry asked, glancing down at the dark burn mark Fawkes had left on the floor. “I mean, who uses a phoenix as a messenger bird?”

Kali glared at him and took off from her spot on the bed to land on his shoulder. She growled at him and pawed at the arm that was holding the letter.

“Oh, did I forget to tell you?” Harry said playfully, “We’re going home!”  

Harry looked at the large crowd in Kings Cross with a small smile. It looked exactly as he remembered. He quickly walked through the crowd of people. He had waited long enough. He needed to finally be doing something. Finally, he was at the small barrier between platforms nine and ten. Harry carefully looked around at the people to make sure they weren’t looking before casually walking through the brick wall.

Harry had to fight a large grin from breaking out on his face. People couldn’t see the new Lord Emrys-Slytherin acting like a child. Already he could see several pureblood families in the crowd. Harry struggled not to laugh when he saw Lucius Malfoy standing with his parents. His hair which had been unkempt and shaggy in the last years of his life was now curled. Evidently, Draco got his fascination with his hair from his father.

Harry quickly walked past the family before he could laugh and boarded the train. He glanced at all the kids, seeing some familiar features and some completely foreign ones. Harry automatically began to walk to the compartment he, Ron, and Hermione always sat in. It seemed like forever since he had been on this train. With a faint smile, Harry turned the corner into his usual compartment before stumbling to a stop. It was full.

Harry stared at four people he never thought he would see again. One of the boys looked exactly like him. Well, what he used to look like. He was tall and had black hair that looked like it had never seen a comb. He, James, Harry tried to remind himself, was almost falling out of his seat, laughing uproariously at something his friend beside him had said, tears streaming from his hazel eyes.

The boy beside James was so much happier than Harry had last seen him. His silver eyes seemed to only contain laughter, but Harry could see the darkness that it masked. His face that was once so sallow and sickly now had a healthy glow and was full of life. Sirius’ hair that was once shaggy now gave him the appearance that he had just been shagged.

The boy across from them looked just as happy as the first two but more subdued. He looked genuinely happy, something Harry hadn’t seen very often in his time. He looked healthy too, with only a few pale scars on his face and hands. His bright amber eyes seem to light up with joy looking at the two boys across from him.

The fourth boy Harry was not happy to see. He was pudgy and had sandy blonde hair that reminded Harry of Dudley. He was laughing with the other three boys in the compartment, but he had chocolate smeared over his face. Several chocolate frog wrappers lay forgotten on his lap. Harry had to fight a sneer from appearing on his face.

“Sorry, mate,” Sirius’ voice was still filled with laughter, snapping Harry out of his thoughts, “But this compartment is full.”

A fake smile appeared on Harry’s face. “Right. Sorry for the intrusion.”

Harry quickly backed out of the compartment and walked, not sprinted, Harry told himself, to the end of the train. He went into the last compartment and closed the door with a sharp snap. He flung himself on the seat by the window and tried to calm down.

Harry thought he had been ready for this. Seeing his parents, Remus, Sirius. It just hurt so much seeing them alive and happy. ‘It’s because of me they didn’t stay that way,’ Harry thought to himself.  He hadn’t expected to see them in his old compartment; he hadn’t been prepared at all. Harry gasped for breath. Damn it, he should have expected something like this to happen.

Quiet chirps filled the room as Kali uncurled herself from the place on his wrist and carefully crawled onto Harry’s chest and nudged his chin. “Don’t worry, Kali. I’m fine,” Harry gasped out. Kali nudged his face again and a low purring filled the room. Slowly, Harry’s breathing even out. “Thanks,  Kali,” Harry chuckled weakly before sitting up and straightening his clothes. “What would I do without you?”

The silver dragon squawked at him and clawed her way up his shirt until she could curl around his neck. “Hey! Watch the shirt! It’s bloody brand new!” In fact, he had gotten an entirely new wardrobe. And so what if it had more black and green in it than he had owned in his life.

Kali ignored him and snuggled closer to his neck. “Bloody beast, you’re more like a cat than a dragon.”

The train jerked to a start. Finally, he was on his way to Hogwarts. Harry laid his head against the window and watched as the train passed the waving parents before a somebody quietly knocked on the door. The door opened slightly and a head peeked through the crack. “Sorry, I thought nobody was in here. This compartment’s usually empty.”

Harry straightened up further and leaned forward trying to get a better look at the person. “No, it’s okay. You can join me if you want.”

Slowly a boy stepped into the compartment. He looked young, but everyone looked young to Harry. Everyone looked innocent to him and that made them young in his eyes. The boy had silver eyes. Harry could see a half-formed wall behind them trying to block all emotions from showing but not quite doing it. A deep sadness seemed to resonate from the boy in front of him. He was clearly a pureblood. His clothes were impeccable and his hair had a slight curl to it. Although the boy projected the confidence of a pureblood, Harry could see the slight insecurities he had. He stood proudly, yet his attitude seemed to curl into himself, and although he was looking straight at Harry, he wouldn’t look him in the eye.

“What’s your name?” Harry asked curiously.

The boy’s eyes darkened slightly, and he jutted his chin out. “Regulus Black. And you are?”

Harry looked at the boy in shock. So this was the boy who would in a few short years kill himself while trying to defeat Voldemort. It seemed impossible. The boy in front of him seemed so incredibly young, so insecure.

Harry shook himself out of his thoughts. “Hadrian Emrys-Slytherin. It’s a pleasure to meet you,” He said as he held out his hand.

Regulus eyes widened slightly before he could mask it. “So you’re the new lord everyone’s raving about.”

Harry grimaced. “Well, I hope they’re only saying good things.”

Regulus raised an eyebrow at him and blatantly looked Harry up and down. “Yes, they are definitely saying good things about you.”

Harry turned bright red. Sure, he was used to people hitting on him, but not his godfather’s baby brother! He quickly tried to steer the conversation in a safer direction. “I just transferred to Hogwarts. I don’t suppose you can tell me more about the school, other than how it is such a ‘great place for all witches wizards and one of the safest places in the world.” Harry drawled sarcastically.

  The first real smile Harry had seen from the boy appeared on his face, albeit small. “I believe I can tell you quite a lot actually,” Regulus said as they sat down across each other.

“I’m a fifth year Slytherin. So I may be a bit biased and say that Slytherin is the best house there is in Hogwarts. And it is, compared to those ridiculously trusting Hufflepuffs and idiotic Gryffindors. The only decent house besides Slytherin is Ravenclaw. At least, they appreciate intellect even if they don’t use it correctly.”

Harry raised an eyebrow at the small speech. “Strong words to somebody who hasn’t been sorted yet. What if I join the ‘ridiculously trusting Hufflepuffs’?”

Regulus scoffed at Harry. “You? A Hufflepuff? No offense, but you are Lord Emrys-Slytherin. Both of the people you received your titles from are renowned Slytherins. One was a Slytherin by blood and created the house, and the other was sorted into the house and is the greatest wizard known to man. I sincerely doubt you will end up anywhere other than Slytherin.”

Harry smiled slightly, wondering how he would react if he knew he had already been sorted into Gryffindor once in his lifetime. “If you say so,” Harry said with a shrug.

Regulus ignored him. “What classes do you like?”

“Defense. I’ve always done well in that class,” Harry said with a small smile. He would be dead now if he hadn’t been good at that class.

Regulus grimaced. “Well, I can’t tell you much about that class. Rumor has it that the position’s cursed. Nobody teaches more than a year if you’re lucky. Most of the teachers are crackpots anyway.”

Harry groaned. Looked like the position hadn’t changed all that much in this time. “Maybe we’ll get lucky and get somebody competent?” Harry asked hopefully.

“Keep telling yourself that,” Regulus snorted.

Harry groaned. He had really wanted a decent defense teacher this year. “What about the other classes? Are they any good?”

Regulus began to prattle on about the classes and teachers Harry already knew about, allowing Harry to zone out of the conversation a bit. He was still trying to get over the fact that this boy would be dead in a few short years. Harry started to think over everything he knew about Regulus which wasn’t much. Did he have any friends. He couldn’t really have friends if he was going to spend the entire seven-hour train ride with Harry. Unless he was only staying with Harry for political reasons Harry groaned in his heads. He hated politics. When did Regulus get recruited by the Death Eaters anyway? For all Harry knew, Regulus could be a Death Eater now. He glanced over the boy across from him. No, Harry didn’t think he was a Death Eater yet. He was still too innocent, but he would be the perfect target for recruitment. Regulus was a pureblood and insecure. He was a follower and that was exactly what Voldemort wanted.

“That’s an interesting necklace. It looks familiar,” Regulus voice snapped Harry out of his thoughts. His hand subconsciously reached to touch Kali. He had completely forgotten about her. His mind rushed through the time that had passed since Regulus had come in. Had Kali moved. Harry couldn’t remember.

“It’s a family heirloom. It’s all I have left of them,” Harry managed to say.

Regulus nodded slightly. “Maybe one of your family members wore it and that’s where I saw it. I could have sworn-” Regulus was cut off by the compartment door snapping open.

Lucius Malfoy stood there in all his glory. He looked at the two in the compartment before focusing his attention solely on Harry and smirked. “I heard that Lord Emrys-Slytherin was on the train. Am I right to suppose that is you?” Lucius said, ignoring Regulus completely.

Harry immediately thought back to when his son had done almost the exact same thing. This time, Harry would have to be more careful about what he said. He couldn’t afford to make enemies this early into his time here.

Harry stood, cautiously walking closer to him and held out his hand. “Yes, but I prefer to go by Hadrian. And you are?”

Lucius looked affronted before he masked it with a pleasant smile. “My name’s Malfoy. Lucius Malfoy.  I must say it is a pleasure to meet you.” Lucius took his hand, but instead of shaking it, he kissed the back of his hand. He smirked as Harry turned bright red and yanked his hand away. “I do believe we shall become good friends since we’ll be in the same house. I’ll show you around Hogwarts sometime if you wish.”

Harry spluttered slightly. The father of his childhood nemesis just kissed his hand! “What if I’m not in your house?”

Lucius gave him a condescending look before deciding to go along with Harry. “Even if you weren’t sorted into Slytherin, which I sincerely doubt, I still believe we would be great friends.”

Lucius glanced at both Regulus and Harry. “I suggest you put on your robes. We’ll be at Hogwarts soon.”

Lucius started to walk out of compartment but stopped. “Can’t wait to see you in Slytherin, Hadrian,” he said with a wink before he left.

Harry stared at the spot that Lucius had just vacated. “Did-did that really just happen?”

Regulus snorted at Harry as he opened his trunk and dug out his robes. “Don’t take it personally. He flirts with everything that moves. Although, it doesn’t help that you’re the lord of both the Emrys and Slytherin line. He’s all for gaining power, and you are extremely powerful in the political sense. Now, get dressed. He wasn’t lying about being close to Hogwarts. We should be there any minute.”

Harry nodded dumbly as he pulled out the shrunken trunk from his pocket and resized it. Regulus whistled quietly. “Impressive, Emrys. You did that wandlessly.”

Harry looked up in shock. He hadn’t meant to; he had just been preoccupied thinking about Lucius. He forgot his magic had been acting up. He gave Regulus a shaky smile. “That’s about the only thing I can do wandlessly. Ask me to levitate something, and I fail miserably.”

Regulus watched Harry carefully before shrugging. “If you say so.”

Harry quickly pulled on his robes before reshrinking his trunk again, making sure to use his wand this time, and putting it back in his pocket.

Regulus eyed him curiously. “You know you can leave it on the train. They take all your luggage to your dorm.”

Harry shrugged helplessly. “I don’t want to take the chance someone would go through my trunk. This way I know exactly where it is and who has it.” That was true. He wouldn’t put it past Dumbledore to try to search his trunk. Too bad Harry had used several locking charms from both the Black family grimoire and Potentia Dracones Praecedentes on his trunk. Taking it with him was just a precaution.

Regulus nodded thoughtfully before shrinking his trunk as well. The train slowly screeched to a stop. A bright smile appeared on Regulus’ face. “I hope you’re ready, Emrys because we’re here!”

Harry grinned. He was finally home. “Oh, I’m definitely ready.”