Chapter - 18 : Chrono Conundrums and Consequences

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"So, can I go now?" I asked. "I think some of the other Gryffindors are having a pick-up game of Quidditch on the grounds."

He said, "One last thing, try not to stray too far from your Aunt's house this summer. Sirius Black is still on the loose, after all."

I nodded.

Dumbledore waved me away with a strained smile. "Enjoy your Quidditch."

I burst into the Gryffindor common room and approached my best minions.

"Ron," I barked. "I need you to organize a Quidditch game."

Ron jumped up from the couch, like a proper minion. He then ruined the effect by questioning me. "But I thought you hated Quidditch."

"This is a matter of vital importance."

"What could possibly be important about Quidditch?" Hermione asked.

"Dumbledore," I said, voice flat.

Ron scratched his head thoughtfully. "I guess I can get Dean, Seamus, and Neville. Ginny's always up for a game. The twins would usually be, too, but they're pretty focused on catching some master prankster, right now."

Hermione raised an eyebrow and asked, "Master prankster?"

Ron gestured towards the wall, where Fred and George were analyzing a tapestry with a variety of spells. "Yeah, apparently somebody tossed them into the wall last night. Percy got hit, too."

"I'm surprised no one did this earlier" – I sniffed disdainfully – "They're completely insufferable."

"Harry," Hermione said, "you do realize that was you, right?"

"What?"

"Last night, when you waved your wand and said 'accio Weasley…'"

She mimed the motion with her wand, and Ron fell into her with a startled squeak. Meanwhile, the twins stumbled and looked around the room with narrowed eyes. Hermione hastily lowered her arm, mumbling, "I probably shouldn't gesture with my wand."

"Don't be a Muggle, Hermione," I said, "and, Ron, assemble our Quidditch team. I've had enough of your procrastination."

"It was then that Lupin's fur exploded outwards, his skin bursting and bloody underneath…"

I had to shout to be heard above the excited chattering of my fellow students. The Great Hall was always cacophonous during the End of the Year Feast, and Gryffindors have painfully short attention spans.

I said, "…Lupin got Ron, but we valiantly saved his life."

Ron frowned. "Mate, you've got to stop saying it like that. People are going to think I'm a werewolf."

"Ron, our classmates aren't idiots. That rumor will go away after a couple of moons. Now, what was I saying?"

"Lupin was maiming Ron," one of my classmates said helpfully.

"Yes, thank you. I hit it with a stinging hex as a distraction. This gave Hermione and I time to grab Ron and run. The werewolf followed, of course, but a well-aimed curse knocked it off its feet."

"Where was Ginny?" Longbottom asked.

I looked across the table where the Weasley girl was gazing dreamily at me. "Wait, is that your name?"

"Yes," she said.

I snorted. "That's a house-elf name."

"It's short for Ginevra," she reassured me.

"Oh, that makes more sense," I said. "Yes, well, it turns out that Ginevra had fallen asleep by the groundskeeper's haunted hut, and we found her on the way out. Without our help, she surely would have died."

Dumbledore's voice echoed through the Hall. "It's once again time to award the House Cup. This year's totals are: Gryffindor, two hundred points; Hufflepuff, three-hundred and thirty points; Ravenclaw, four hundred and thirteen points; and Slytherin, five hundred points. Congratulations, Slytherin."

Dumbledore gestured so that the banners changed to Slytherin green and silver. I clapped along with the rest of the Slytherins, earning unhappy looks from my Gryffindor housemates. The only thing that saved me from a tirade was my heavy frown. This victory was a bitter one.

"This is terrible," I declared. "We lost to Hufflepuff. What is wrong with you people?"

It was not the first time in my life that two hundred people simultaneously glared at me, but it was the first occasion I can recall that was not preceded by murder.

I stared out of the Hogwarts Express's window. While I had absolutely no intention of joining Ron and Ginevra's game of exploding snap, the loud banging made it impossible to read any of the tomes I'd stolen from the library.

That didn't keep Hermione from her latest book, of course. Nothing ever does. Therefore, we were all surprised when, with a frustrated huff, she shut it and exclaimed, "I just don't understand!"

"Wait, there's something the Great Hermione Granger doesn't understand?" Ron said, clutching his chest in mock horror.

Ginevra giggled. "Impossible."

"I believe that's a sign of the apocalypse," I said gravely.

Hermione shot us an annoyed look. "Stop being ridiculous. I was just thinking about the, um…"

With a nervous glance at Ron, she said, "…the you-know-what that helped me get to class on time."

"It's called a time turner, Hermione," I said.

Hermione stood up angrily, once again trying to use her height advantage against me. "I know what it's called! I just wasn't supposed to tell anyone else, and you promised to be discreet…"

"Hermione, I never promised that." I was quite certain of it. I avoid promises on principle – notably the principle of not being held accountable for things.

"I still wasn't supposed to tell anyone," Hermione mumbled.

I dismissed the Weasley kneeling on the train car floor with a flick of my wand. "It's not like he has any idea what we're talking about."

"What's a time spinner?" Ron asked.

"See? Completely clueless," I assured her. "You were saying?"

Hermione sat back down, though with more of a thud than was strictly necessary. "It's just this whole business with Lupin. We had to use the turner to save Ron from Lupin. But Lupin only forgot his potion because he was looking for Ginny. But Ginny was only missing because we took her with us to save Ron. So…how did it all start?"

I chuckled. "Oh, Hermione. This is time travel. These things never start. They just happen."

"That doesn't make any sense," she said flatly.

"Sure it does. You just haven't spent enough time in the magical world yet," I reassured her.

"Wait, you guys time traveled?" Ron yelped. "Was that what happened?"

It was really no surprise that Ginevra was making better progress in acquiring her family's Dark Magic. Ron simply had no cunning. "Yes, Hermione time travels to attend all her classes."

"Not anymore," Hermione quickly said. "I've given up Divination and Muggle Studies – they were useless anyway – and returned the time turner to Professor McGonagall."

My jaw dropped in a very Weasley fashion. "You returned the time turner? But Hermione, we had the power to bend time to our will. We could have done so many things."

"That's why I returned it," Hermione said primly.

Traitorous, selfish, and unrepentantly evil…Yes, she was exactly like me at that age.

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