Chapter Text
Lily would be disappointed in you.
This thought alone is what kept Severus Snape up at night: thoughts of the six students who had just risked their lives at the Ministry of Magic. Six children who he did not particularly care for, but six children nonetheless. For once in a very long while, Severus did not know what to think. He supposed he should feel some elation. Sirius Black had fallen behind the veil. He had never cared for Black, especially after the stunt he pulled in their 5th year. Yet, his thoughts still plagued him. Lily's son nearly died, along with five of his friends. Had she been alive...the thought scared him a bit. Lily had a fiery temper when she got mad, and this would make her mad. He couldn't stand his thoughts any longer. He arose from his bed, and trudged over to his potions cupboard. He flicked his wand, creating a small light at the tip.
"Let's see here," he mumbled sleepily. "I should have some Dreamless Sleep potion here." He rummaged through the small bottles and flasks, cursing himself for not keeping them organized. It's unlike him to not have everything orderly. He moved aside a bottle. Behind where it had been, something shone. The light from his wand reflected on it's golden surface. It was something he had forgotten about since he had tossed it into the cupboard for safe keeping.
It was a piece of Miss Granger's time turner. After the events of her 3rd year, he had found a small piece lying in the grass by Hagrid's cabin. He was a naturally curious man, perhaps curious to a fault. So curious, he had to investigate the Whomping Willow upon discovering it's secrets. So curious he could have been killed. He banished those thoughts, the glint of the time turner reflecting the glint in his dark eyes.
Much knowledge of time travel was purely theoretical. He had done his research, just to be completely sure that Miss Granger wouldn't get herself killed if she used it. She was a know-it-all for sure, but she was by far his brightest student. And yet she had nearly gotten herself killed by meddling with the events of time...meddling with time. He held the time turner up to eye level. Something was formulating in the recesses of his mind. An absolutely asinine plan, no doubt, but a plan. One so ludicrous that it just might work. He was the reason Voldemort knew about Potter being his demise in the first place. If he could stop himself from joining the Death Eaters...
"I'm so sorry, Lily." he murmured to himself. "I'll do it right this time, I swear." He looked up at the ceiling, as if expecting some sort of response. "I won't disappoint you."
He flicked his wand, causing the wall sconces in his chambers to come alive with flame. He found his travelling cloak and fastened it. The moon was new that night, offering very little light to the few who were up this late. It was perfect for slipping away into the night. Perfect for the somewhat illegal thing he was about to do. He flicked his wand again, the flames disappearing just as soon as they had appeared. He slipped out of his chambers, letting the darkness of the quiet castle consume him.
The protections on Hogwarts grounds regarding apparition were both a blessing and a bother to Severus. On one hand, he'd be dealing with idiotic splinchings on the hour if there were no limitations. On the other hand...he shuddered as he heard a blood-curdling scream from Gryffindor tower. On the other hand, he had to listen to Potter screaming every time had had a bloody nightmare. The boy had a nightmare every night it seemed, which did not help Severus' recent blight of insomnia. He ascended the stairs from the dungeons up to the first level of the castle in search of a way out.
Severus did not want to just walk out of the main doors. For one, they were massive. It would be quite obvious if someone left through them. He also did not want to alert anyone, particularly Dumbledore, of his venture out of the castle. Especially Dumbledore, on second thought. That man would know his plan within seconds of seeing him, occlumency be damned. He turned down a hallway, still lost in thought. He kept trying to come up with a plan when he suddenly felt cold. Very, very cold. He looked up as gooseflesh ran down his arms, to come face to face with the Grey Lady.
"Severus." Her voice was soothing. She seemed inquisitive, which made sense. Severus was seldom out of bed at this time of night. "What plagues you?"
"Nothing. Just thinking." He watched her ethereal form float effortlessly in front of him. He wondered if anyone could become a ghost. Maybe Lily was hovering before someone, an ethereal presence in some corner of the world. "Couldn't sleep is all."
"You seem troubled," was her reply. She floated around him, taking in his stature. His expressions. His clothing. "How strange."
"What is it?"
She passed her pearly hand through his cloak. It appeared out of the other side, where it fluttered ever so slightly. "You have a travelling cloak on."
He looked down. "I suppose I do. Thank you for informing me of this."
The Grey Lady floated to face him directly. "Whatever you're thinking of doing, don't," she said. "I fear it will not end well."
Severus looked taken aback. "What is that supposed to mean, exactly?" he asked. He got no response from her. She merely passed through a wall, on to new areas of the castle. She left him alone in the corridor, where he stood confused and mildly perturbed. He remained there for a few moments, utterly confused by what she had said. After a bit, he remembered his task. He needed to get to Hogsmeade. He needed to get to the Ministry. He continued down the corridor, hoping he had no more run-ins with cryptic ghosts.
He found a door towards the end that led to a courtyard. He was surprised at how difficult navigating the castle at night was, considering he had been at Hogwarts for years. Perhaps Potter had had some rare stroke of intelligence when he created that map back when they were students. Him and Black gallivanting around the castle as if they owned the place. His mouth curled into a sneer, the thought sickening him. He, Severus Snape, calling Black and Potter intelligent. What had the world come to.
The door opened up to a courtyard adjacent to the Greenhouses, not too far from where he needed to go. The stars offered very little light, but what light they did provide shone off of the glass of the greenhouses. It was a relatively clear night, with a few clouds drifting lazily along. It was a bit cool for the time of year, with a small gust of wind sending gooseflesh rippling down his arms. He tightened his cloak a bit, and continued his trek away from Hogwarts. All he really needed to do was go a bit left away from the Greenhouses, and he would be on his way to Hogsmeade. From there, he would apparate to the Ministry, find a working time turner, and go back to his third year of Hogwarts. That should give him enough time to steer himself away from the Death Eaters without him being there for seven whole years. It would save Lily, and keep him from living his life with a constant reminder of all he lost.
As if on cue, his left forearm began to burn. Severus grimaced, the feeling not unfamiliar to him. He needed to get away from here fast, before Voldemort came looking for him. He quickened his strides towards the Hogwarts grounds, where the path to Hogsmeade lay just ahead.
After a rather uneventful walk to Hogsmeade (aside from the continuous burn of his left forearm), he finally saw the silhouettes of the village up ahead. He drew his wand, prepared to apparate as soon as he set foot there. He grew weary, and wanted to get to the Ministry as soon as possible. He approached the entryway to Hogsmeade, and passed through, apparating as he walked through.
Apparition, no matter how many times one does it, is always a relatively unpleasant experience. The familiar dizziness that comes from it hit as soon as he appeared outside of the Ministry. He stumbled a bit, finding a railing to balance himself upon before he face planted on the concrete. Once the world had stopped spinning, he steadied himself, trying to figure out the best way into the Ministry. Severus was not an idiotic man. He knew better than to just walk through the front entrance of a heavily guarded government building.
That did not stop him from doing just that. He walked through the front entrance, to find the Ministry in pieces. The aftermath of the days events was still present for anyone to see. The fountain in the Atrium was in pieces, with the sign for it only reading "Fountain of Magi-" before being interrupted by a large crack. The other half was nowhere to be seen, and would not be seen for some time. He stepped over what appeared to be a head from the fountain, continuing his way through the debris-strewn Ministry.
The most curious thing of all though, was the complete lack of Ministry workers. The place was eerily silent. Not a soul was to be found anywhere. Not that this mattered much to Severus. Not now, at least. His mission was made easier by the absence of witches and wizards. He passed by many elevators, all of which were not in service, and made his way towards a door. It was hidden, where only someone with a keen eye would notice it. Why they would hide the stairs was anyone's guess, but the door opened to a pristine stairwell. He ascended the stairs, going until he landed on the floor for the Department of Mysteries.
In all honesty, Severus had no idea where the time turners would even be located. The Department of Mysteries seemed like a good place to start. Time travel was a sort of mystery. How time turners work was something that the Ministry would study, so they could use it to their advantage in the events of a war. Much like what he was doing now.
He opened the door, and found himself in a circular room. There were doors all around him, all of which were unlabeled. A few of them were open. One led to a large storage room, filled with shards of broken glass and toppled shelves. There was a room with a large veil, fluttering in the wind. Across from it, a dark room with an ominous looking tank sat just in view. His eyes fell onto the room with the veil. Despite his loathing of Black, he did feel a small pang of remorse for him. He had spent his entire youth trying to make his mark. To show the world how he was nothing like his family.
His family wouldn't have a body to bury even if they wanted to.
He tore his eyes away from the veil, lest the same fate that fell on Black fell on him as well. He looked around, noticing one door was slightly ajar. He opened it, revealing a room full of destroyed time turners. He grimaced. Well there goes my plan, he thought sourly. The time turners were his only idea, and they were all broken. Every last one, unusable. He sighed, and moved further into the room.
The floor was covered in minuscule shards of glass, and even more microscopic grains of sand. The ground crunched beneath his shoes as he began searching for any time turners that were not completely destroyed. He sifted through the pieces, holding each one up to check if there was any chance of salvaging it. After a while, he began to grow hopeless.
Something glinted in the corner.
His dark eyes traveled to the source, finding nothing but an oddly placed brick. He shook his head,and went back to searching. Nothing but broken pieces. Absolutely nothing.
It glinted again.
Once more, his eyes fell on the brick. He moved over to where it jutted out slightly, and placed his wand tip to it. He pushed it slightly, which caused the brick to push into the wall. Curiously, he pulled the brick out of the wall. A small box, no bigger than a ring box, rested inside of the brick itself. A small hole had been crudely carved into it, just big enough for the box to fit snugly. He pried it out, and opened it.
Inside the box was a singular time turner with a small note attached to it.
Emergency Prototype Time Turner. Use only if: All others are destroyed. Capable of long time travels; untested. Turn sideways to travel through days, Diagonally to travel through years. ONLY IN EMERGENCIES.
It was unsigned.
He looked around, then looked back down at the note. He put the time turner around his neck. He held, about to turn the hourglass, then decided he should step outside of the Ministry. It would be quite strange if he just appeared out of nowhere in the year 1973. He made his way back through the Ministry, avoiding looking at the veil on his way back.
He went outside, where the sun had just begun to appear from below the horizon. A few muggles had begun to go about their day, ambling about the streets of London. Some walked briskly, briefcases in hand. Others chatted, sitting on benches as the sun washed over them. Severus smiled faintly, taking in his last sight of this world. His hands reached for the time turner around his neck.
He began to turn it. Diagonally, he remembered, as he started his journey. Everything moved in a blur around him as the times began to change. People grew young in blurs before his eyes as they moved about life backwards from how it went. Buildings deconstructed, muggles moving around them like hungry termites as they reduced to nothing, before being rebuilt as different buildings. Every car on the street changed, going from 90's models to 80's to 70's. He began to grow dizzy from this motion. Everything was becoming too much for him to handle. Yet he kept turning, determined to turn back to 1973. He had made it this far, and he wasn't about to chicken out because of some time travel induced motion sickness. He completed the final turn of his time turner, then shut his eyes as everything began to settle down. After a bit, he opened his eyes once more.
The times had changed alright.