A Christmas Carol: Harry Potter Style

Chapter 3: Future

A Christmas Carol: Harry Potter Style Chapter 3: Future

"Obviously Mr Malfoy, you are being delusional. Did Professor Moody turn you into a ferret again?" Severus smirked.

Draco's cheeks went pink, "No sir! I- I. . .-Never mind sir." He then walked towards the door, looked back, gave a curt nod, and walked out into the corridor. 

In this short time of conversation, Ron had floated out of the wall, and took off the spell Hermione had put on him with a simple, "Finite." Rons eyes were dark as he approached Harry, who had fallen asleep in his dress robes against the wall. Ron sat down next to him and shook him awake.

"How come you never told me how those muggles treated you Harry?" Ron asked, still angry at the Dursleys. Harry blanched.

"It never came up," Harry whispered sadly.

"Do they still. . . you know? Hit-" Ron began to ask uncomfortably. 

Harry cut him off, "Sometimes if my accidental magic is set off, they'll punish me. But usually they lock me in my room."

"Harry, do they give you food?" Ron asked sadly. 

"Not often," Harry said, shrugging. As soon as they saw Malfoy walking up the corridor, Harry whipped out his invisibility cloak and draped it over the two of them. Once the ferret was out of sight, Harry got up and told Ron he had to show Snape his future.

"You are not going back there in the summer holidays, you hear me?" Ron called up the corridor. Before Harry reached the door, he got out a black cloak and put it over his dress robes, pulling up the hood. He walked through the wall, after putting the spell on himself.  

Harry stood in a shadowy corner, waiting for Severus to notice him. When Professor Snape's back was turned, he approached silently. When Severus turned back around, he jumped and his eyes widened in surprise. 

"I am the ghost of 'Christmas Future' Basically I'm gonna show you how you die, and I'm going to try and convince you to change your ways. I've taken up the form of Harry Potter." He removed the hood over his head and pulled out a timeturner. He put in around his neck and told Severus to do the same with the long chain. 

Harry began to turn the nobs on the side, and landed in the evening of May the 2nd, 1998.

~~~~~~~~~~~

They walked in silence, as everyone was battling for their lives. They were still invisible to the others. Harry opened the passage to the whompng willow, to the shrieking shack, and they quietly entered the living room. Severus was standing mere meters from his future self, who was talking to Voldemort. A poisonous looking snake was moving freely in a levitated sphere.

He then saw a tuft of black hair near the entrance the room, close to the cave. A a slight glimpse of fiery red hair. Both present and future Severus noticed this.

“. . . my Lord, their resistance is crumbling —” Severus hated seeing himself suck up to a half-blood, equal to himself. 

“— and it is doing so without your help,” said Voldemort in his high, clear voice. “Skilled wizard though you are, Severus, I do not think you will make much difference now. We are almost there . . . almost.”

“Let me find the boy. Let me bring you Potter. I know I can find him, my Lord. Please.” Severus felt a pang of guilt, he couldn't believe that his future, his death, would be like this. In the place where he was almost eaten by a werewolf. In front of a man conceived on love potion.

Snape was pacing, and soon after Voldemort stood up. Severus was scared, the dark lord really would rise again, and he looked terrible. 

“I have a problem, Severus,” said Voldemort softly. “My Lord?” said Snape. Voldemort raised Dumbledore's wand, holding it as delicately and precisely as a conductor’s baton. Dumbledore couldn't be. . .dead? Could he?