Alius Praeteritus (WIP)
Title: Alius Praeteritus
Author: vfic83
Rating: PG so far, possibly PG-13 overall
Fandom: Harry Potter
Pairings: HP/DM
Length: 994 words, WIP
Disclaimer: I am (unfortunately) not J.K. Rowling, therefore Harry Potter and Co. are not mine. I'm just playing with them for a bit.
Spoilers: Up through OOtP, I think
Summary: Harry royally messes up a potion and faces the consequences.
Warnings: AU (ignores HBP), minor charactor death (sort of), kind of a PWP
A/N: First- I'm American, so I'm going to apologize ahead of time for any "Americanisms" that made their way into this fic, or if any of the British slang is wrong or out of place. I'm still very much a newbie in the world of fanfiction, so keep that in mind. No beta, all mistakes are mine.
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Harry peered at the blackboard for what felt like the millionth time, trying to decipher the small, cramped writing that was scrawled across it. He quickly added two porcupine quills to his cauldron and stirred it counter clockwise five times, not giving himself time to second guess what he'd read. He glanced over at Hermione, whose potion was a very angry looking red and smoking. Ron's was neon orange. Harry looked down at his own cauldron sadly, the potion inside looking sort of like he'd boiled a Smurf into it. No marks again today.
"What, Mr. Potter, is that?" a voice sneered above him. Right on cue. He could hear the Slytherins giggling gleefully in the background.
"The Gravira Potion, sir." Harry said through clenched teeth.
"I think not." Snape smirked. "How many porcupine quills did you use?"
"Two."
"And did you put those in your cauldron before or after the dragonfly wings?"
"After."
Harry was suddenly wishing he hadn't eaten quite so much at breakfast. He had a very, very bad feeling about this and he knew that it didn't bode well for his Potions grade.
"Hmm." Snape had taken a vial and poured some of Harry's potion into it. The bright blue color stood out even more in the glass than it had in the cauldron. Harry's stomach sank even further when Snape smelled the potion and smiled. He just knew he was completely and utterly screwed.
"This should be a particularly interesting demonstration of the Gravira Potion." Snape sneered, handing the vial to Harry. "Drink it."
"What?" Harry asked, wincing at the sound of his voice, which was definitely a couple of octaves higher than normal.
"Drink it, Mr. Potter. If it is what you say it is, you should have nothing to worry about." Snape smirked again. "Now, or else Dolores Umbridge's detentions will seem pleasant compared to what I will do."
"But-"
Snape's eyes narrowed dangerously.
"Twenty points from Gryffindor for your insubordination. Now drink. The potion."
Harry glared at the Potions Master as if he could cast Avada Kedavra with a simple look and then swallowed the liquid. It actually didn't taste that bad, kind of like blueberries and ginger ale mixed together. Snape was looking at him with a completely blank expression, but his eyes glittered malevolently, and Harry felt his stomach sink again. Definitely not a good sign.
That was when everything went black.
---
"Harry!"
"Sit down, Miss Granger."
"But Professor Snape-" Ron started, looking panic stricken at the form of his best friend lying on the dungeon floor.
"Silence!"
Ron promptly closed his mouth. Hermione glanced at Harry, tears stinging at the corners of her eyes. Was he alright? She didn't think Professor Snape would've poisoned him on purpose, but then again...
"Can anyone tell me," Snape began in a quiet and thoroughly frightening voice, "what our dear Mr. Potter has actually consumed?"
Hermione's mind raced. Blue color... similar to the Gravira Potion in composition...
"Something poisonous, I hope." Malfoy drawled. The Slytherins snickered.
"Unfortunately not, Mr. Malfoy."
Snape ignored the sudden horrified gasp from the Gryffindor side of the room.
---
Harry's stomach felt like it had been tied into a gigantic knot. He was sitting in front of the entire school, waiting to Sorted. He smiled nervously at Ron, still standing with the Unsorted students, and Ron grinned back, giving him a thumbs up sign. Harry hardly even noticed when the Sorting Hat was dropped on his head.
"Hmm," said a small voice in his ear. "Difficult. Very difficult. Plenty of courage, I see. Not a bad mind either. There's talent, oh my goodness, yes-- and a nice thirst to prove yourself, now that's interesting... So where shall I put you?"
Harry gripped the edges of the stool and thought, Not Slytherin, not Slytherin.
"Not Slytherin, eh? Are you sure? You could be great, you know, it's all here in your head, and Slytherin will help you on the way to greatness, no doubt about that."
"Greatness?" Harry thought, "Me?"
"Yes, you have a rather large amount of potential, Mr. Potter. I see where I must put you- better be SLYTHERIN!"
There was a deafening silence as everyone in the Great Hall stared at Harry as if he'd suddenly grown an extra head. Then the Slytherin table exploded with cheers and yells of "We got Potter!" and "Good show, Potter, we didn't think you had it in you!" Harry tried to catch Ron's eye, but the red head refused to look at him. Harry's chest constricted with the rejection.
---
"Anyone?" Snape asked, diligently ignoring both Hermione's hand in the air and her expression of utter horror, "I must confess myself disappointed."
"Sir, aren't the side effects potentially fatal?" Hermione suddenly burst out.
"Twenty points from Gryffindor for speaking out of turn." Snape sneered. "And yes."
Hermione saw the color drain completely from Ron's already pale face, and she resisted the strong urge to grab his hand.
"However, the key word here is POTENTIAL, Miss Granger. It so happens that I have the counter potion in my personal stores, should he show any of the warning signs."
She let go of a breath she hadn't even realized she was holding. So Professor Snape really wasn't going to let anything happen to Harry.
"This," Snape said, holding up a second vial of Harry's potion he'd apparently pocketed, "Is called Alius Praeteritus. Those few of you intelligent enough to be familiar with Latin will know that this roughly translates into 'Other Past'. When taken, it creates a dream like state in which the person will relive one significant choice in their lives. The vision will allow them to take the unchosen path. It will then show where that path would have taken them up to the present moment."
Hermione paused in her notetaking, wondering what Harry would relive. There were so many things that could've gone very differently for him... she started to raise her hand, but then realized that Ron had actually beaten her to it.
"Mr. Weasley." Professor Snape said, seemingly more out of shock than anything else.
"What happens if you die on this other path?" Ron asked, "Does that mean you die on this one?"