Chapter 95: 2-1

Author Note: For Florence's dream, please refer to the April Fools' SS (Short Story) on pixiv.

Inside the Room of Requirement—the usual spot for keeping secrets—I found myself shrinking back, utterly overwhelmed to be standing right in front of my mother, Lily Evans, during her own school days. (Lily, for her part, had been absolutely fascinated to learn that a place like the Room of Requirement even existed.)

I was glad I had given my daughter my mother's name. If it weren't for Lily Luna, it was doubtful whether I could have even brought myself to call the person standing before me by her name.

"So, it's like this, right? You are indeed children of the Potter and Malfoy families, but you aren't people living in this era. You don't know why or how you traveled through time—is that correct?"

I nodded quickly. When my mother’s eyes turned toward me, I couldn't help but hunch my shoulders and make myself small again. ...Those green eyes, how dazzlingly overwhelming they felt.

"But the eras must be close, right? I'd guess... yes, maybe a son or a grandson."

My shoulders gave a violent flinch. Lily wore a triumphant expression, looking proud of herself for having solved the riddle. Seeing her like that made her look exactly like Maria. ...No, Maria was the one who took after Mother.

I felt a resentful nudge of an elbow from beside me. I'm sorry, Draco, don't look at me like that. I'm feeling incredibly emotional right now.

"What makes you think that?"

"Well, because you... Draco, was it? You knew Lucius. If a student like you knows Lucius personally, I figured you had to be from a generation after him. If you're a blood relative close enough to bring up Lucius's name so familiarly, anyone would assume you're a son or a grandson, right? —My intuition says 'son.' Am I right?"

Lily's round, almond-shaped eyes sparkled with anticipation as she waited for her answer. Draco and I exchanged a quick glance, and we both gave a silent nod.

"Yes, exactly as you say—I am the son of Lucius Malfoy."

"And I am... James Potter's."

"Goodness! Really?"

Lily leaped up, and then, with a look of pure curiosity rather than suspicion, scrutinized us thoroughly once more.

"Draco, I can tell you're Mr. Malfoy's child. You look so much like him. Though, I must say—you are far more gentlemanly and wonderful than your father."

Draco gave a wry smile. Knowing what his father used to be like back then, it wasn't hard for him to imagine how Lucius must have treated a Muggle-born like Lily.

"And... Harry?"

I tensed up again. What was she going to say? Judging by her initial fury when we first met, this version of my mother must still be from the time when she was on bad terms with my father. Looking at me, the spitting image of James—what would she—

"You are... absolutely adorable!"

Lily's face lit up in a beaming smile, like a flower blooming. Both Draco and I were struck dumb.

"How mysterious. To think that the James Potter could have a child this quiet and sweet. You look just like him, but... oh, look! Your eyes are green when I look closely! What a beautiful shade. Your personality and eyes must have come from your mother. That is a very good thing, believe me! ...Oh, goodness, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to imply that inheriting your father's traits is a bad thing. For things like... talent, I'm sure it's wonderful."

Hearing my mother's unfiltered thoughts slip out, the tension finally left my shoulders, and I laughed.

That's right. —I got these eyes from you.

"It's alright. I know all about it. That... my dad used to have a bad attitude toward certain people. Along with his best friends, he was a real troublemaker."

"Exactly! Yes, he was! James Potter and Sirius Black! Those two... O-Oh, I'm sorry. Harry, you must love your father, right? It can't feel good to hear a stranger talk about your father like this..."

A stranger. That word sent a sharp pang through my chest. She probably had no inkling that she would eventually marry James Potter—that she was, in fact, my mother.

"No, I'm glad. ...I've never actually heard stories about my dad from my dad himself," I murmured quietly.

Because you both... died before I was even old enough to speak properly.

"I've always had to learn about my parents through other people's stories. I just have to imagine what they were like... So, hearing about my dad directly from you makes me really happy."

A mother talking about a father. A normalcy so mundane, yet... so utterly precious.

"...I see. I'm not particularly fond of them, so it might not match the ideal image you have, but—if that's what you want, Harry."

Lily reached out and gently stroked my hair. She clearly sensed there was a complicated story behind my words, yet her kindness prevented her from prying. Feeling her warmth, my vision blurred with tears. At the same time, Draco took hold of my left hand. It's so incredibly warm.

"Well, now that that's settled, we need the Invisibility Cloak. Let's borrow it from your father."

"Huh?"

Lily stood up with a momentum that completely shattered the emotional atmosphere. Hair of the exact same shade as Maria's waved gently a moment later.

"I've decided to spend the whole day with you two. I've already skipped class anyway, so it's too late to go back now. I'm sure Mary is taking notes for me."

"L-Lily?"

"You're a Potter, aren't you? Naturally, you know about the Invisibility Cloak, right? Have you already inherited it? Potter... James constantly flaunts it and abuses it for all sorts of mischief, but... looking at you, you don't seem much different in age from us?"

"I'm fourteen. A fourth-year at Hogwarts..."

"Oh! What a coincidence, we're the exact same age! No wonder you look the spitting image of him. ...Right, wait here. Even James wouldn't think twice about lending a family heirloom to his own future son."

"What?!"

Startled by her sudden declaration, I scrambled to my feet. Beside me, Draco's eyes were wide with utter disbelief.

"B-But to my dad...!"

Lily giggled.

"I'm only joking. I won't breathe a word about you two to him. It would give me the chills if people mistook this for some sort of Dark Arts. Between you and me, though... Harry, you have to promise to keep this a secret from your mother, alright? The truth is, James Potter is utterly head over heels for Lily Evans. I can easily wrap him around my finger enough to secure the Invisibility Cloak. Leave it to me."

Her green eye gave a charming wink. And with that, leaving no room for argument, Lily promptly marched out the door. Left completely behind in both thought and action, we could only stare blankly at the closed door.

"...Harry, your mother is quite something..."

"Maria and I are always told we take after Dad... but now I'm starting to think she takes after Mom, too."

Mom is plenty tomboyish herself...

Sitting back down, the reality that had been masked by the sheer emotion of speaking with my living mother finally caught up with me, and a dull ache began to throb in my stomach.

"What are we going to do, Draco? This is insane. We're actually in the era when my mom and dad were still students?!"

My mother, who had only ever existed in my memories, was right there, so incredibly full of life... No, wait. That wasn't the main issue right now.

"What on earth is going on? I'm not Maria, and we've slipped so unbelievably far into the past—to a point in time that even Albus doesn't know about. What if we meddle too much and accidentally cause a timeline where we're never even born? Right, just like that grandfather paradox Hermione used to talk about—"

"Harry. By the way, why don't you go look in a mirror?"

"...Huh?"

I gave him a deeply skeptical glare at a response that seemed entirely irrelevant to the crisis at hand. You really need to start taking this situation more seriously!

"You haven't checked your own appearance yet, have you? Go look."

"What's with the attitude?"

"I think someone who dotes on his younger brother as much as you do would notice."

"........"

It was annoying to follow his orders, but sensing something in the way he was trying to suppress a smirk, I looked around for a mirror as directed. Naturally, the room obliged, and a hand mirror was placed face down right beside me.

I peered into the glass. And then.

"...Wait, what?"

I stared intently at the reflection of the green-eyed boy staring back at me.

"—It's me?"

The reflection looking back wasn't my younger brother Harry. It was me—the original Harry.

My younger brother's hair was always soft and neatly kept thanks to years of dedicated brushing. But the Harry in the mirror had a bird's nest of untamable, messy hair that practically mocked the very concept of grooming. It was so nostalgic.

Even though Draco was the same Draco that Maria knew, why was I me? What was going on here?

"—I think," Draco spoke.

"This might be a parallel world, different from both our own world and the world where Maria exists."

"A parallel world—?"

Crossing his legs elegantly, the ice-grey hidden behind his blonde eyelashes gleamed sharply.

"Exactly. It's an entirely separate reality. Meaning, no matter what we do here, it won't have any impact on the future we come from."

I nodded as the realization set in. So it's similar to Florence's dream, then.

"But why are we in a place like this?"

"Who knows."

The platinum blonde shook his head, bringing his deduction to an abrupt end.

"The cause is naturally unknown. Our only choice is to follow Granger's example and look for relevant literature in the library. ...While dealing with Lily Evans for the time being, of course."

I cast another glance at the door she had just stormed out of. What on earth is going on to happen to us now?