BEGIN BEFORE THE END | WTM | R.A.B

PROLOGUE

Prologue

The great hall of Hogwarts was filled with the large numbers of students and the teachers as they all sat down at their respective house tables enjoying the feast of that had been made for Halloween. At the Gryffindor table sat the four trouble makers of Hogwarts James Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew.

“I’m telling you, she said yes.” James insisted. “I asked her out and she said yes.”

“Sure, she did.” Remus sipped from his goblet not believing James. “Are you sure she wasn’t being sarcastic. You know that thing people say when they don’t really mean--”

“I know what sarcasm is.” James said annoyed. “Sirius was there. Tell him, Padfoot.”

The group turned to Sirius who was busy staring off at the end of their houses’ table to see a brown-haired girl taking a bite of her food while reading a book which she held in front of her.

James frowned at his best friend. “Hey!”

“Huh? What?” Sirius looked back at his friends.

“Why don’t you pay more attention to this very important conversation and less on my sister you perv.”

“I’m listening. What were we talking about?”

“We,” Remus emphasized the word, “are talking about how deluded love has made James.”

“That’s not new.” Sirius said. “And here I thought we were having an important discussion.”

“It is an important discussion.” James declared. “Padfoot, tell Moony and Wormtail about what happened on our way here.”

Sirius thought for a bit before answering. “James messed with a few Slytherins and deducted some points from them.”

“Not that!” James said loudly.

“Could you please shut up!” the boys all turned to see Cathy, James’ sister, glaring at them. “You voice isn’t as nice sounding to the rest of us as it is to you.”

“No one was talking to you.” James retorted.

“Not everyone here was talking to you.” Cathy snapped back. “So please just shut up.”

“Two points for your cheek.” James smiled. Cathy responded by raising her middle finger at him. “Make that four.”

James ignored that and went back to their discussion. “Lily said yes to going out with me.”

Remus dropped the spoon he was using and stared at James speechless.

“You joking.” Peter spoke. “How? Why?”

“I don’t know why but I really don’t care.”

Cathy Potter rubbed her forehead as she tried to block out her brothers’ conversation with his friends. She looked at the book she was holding and peeped up to look across to Slytherins table. A certain raven-haired boy met her eyes and smiled with a hint of pink glowing on his cheeks.

The rest of the students of Hogwarts were all enjoying their dinner peacefully when the doors to the great hall burst wide open.

Everyone turned to see the entirety of the Black family along with the Potter, Weasley, Tonks, Malfoy and Lestrange households as well as the Minster of Magic and his entourage of Aurors trailing behind him.

Albus Dumbledore, the headmaster of the school stood up. "What is the meaning of this?"

"What's going on? What the hell are you lot doing here?" Sirius asked his family to which his mother glared at her disowned son.

"We received a letter that said that our son was in danger." Orion Black told the headmaster.

"As did we for our children." Fleamont informed everyone.

"We're fine though." Cathy Potter said standing up so her parents could see her. James who was sitting with his friends the marauders waved so his parents could see him as well.

"I received an owl from Professor McGonagall that you needed my help and several Aurors, Albus." Harold Minchum the current Minster of Magic said.

Minerva McGonagall looked surprised. "Minister I assure you, I sent no such letter."

"Cathy did you really not write this?" Euphemia questioned her daughter taking out the letter that had been sent to her and her husband.

Cathy stood up and walked over to her mother to take a look at the letter. He eyes turned confused at the sight of it.

"This is my hand writing but I swear I didn't right this, mum." Cathy said.

"Well then, why the hell called us all here?" Molly Weasley demanded.

All of a sudden there was a loud bang and a bright yellow light covered the room. When the light dimmed down between the tables of the teachers and the students was a desk that had a dark box with golden engravings all over it.

"What is that?" Someone whispered.

"Where did it come from?"

"I thought you couldn't apparate on school grounds."

Albus Dumbledore walked down to inspect the box. Holding his wand over the item a red transparent bubble seemed to block any contact from being made. The headmaster leaned down closer as the other teachers got closer to find a name engraved on the box.

"Catherine Potter." Dumbledore looked up to the fifth-year student. "Your name is written on this box it seems."

Everyone turned to face Cathy who looked even more confused than she was earlier.

"Headmaster." Filius Flitwick, the charms professor, called the wizards attention to the other side of the box. "I believe that Ms. Potter isn’t the only one."

"Lily Evans." Professor McGonagall read out.

The red-haired Gryffindor girl stood up as her name had been called. James Potter looked to the girl who he had fancied wondering why her name was on the box along with his sisters.

"There's another." Professor Slughorn said looking from across McGonagall side. "Severus Snape."

"There's one more." Professor Sprout said read from the last side of the box. "Regulus Black."

"Can all four students please come up here." The headmaster said.

Obediently all four students came up and Dumbledore had them each stand on the sides that contained their names. They all waited for something to happen.

"So... now what?" Cathy asked.

As soon as she did all the lights in the great hall when out frightening most of the student. However, the box began to glow brightly. Four streams of light seeped out from the box and moved down the table to its legs and moved to encircle the four students.

Then the lights in the great hall came back on and the box ceased glowing.

"Well that was unusual." Sirius Black said breaking the silence.

A silt appeared atop the box and a white sheet flew out and covered the windows that were structured behind the teachers table.

The box began to twist and break and reshape itself. The great hall also began to change the tables and long benches all broke and shifted startling everyone. The food vanished and the wooden furniture transformed in comfy chairs that pulled the newcomers and teachers into themselves as well.

Soon the whole great hall looked like one giant movie theater. The students all sat in their houses with spaces between each house. Buckets of popcorn popped up from the ground and landed in front of them and drinks appeared on the holders built into their chairs.

"What the hell is going on?" James Potter shouted.

The box had stopped transforming and settled into the form of a projector.

"Everyone stay calm and silent please." Albus Dumbledore commanded.

"Albus what is the meaning of this?" Minchum who was sitting behind him questioned.

"I cannot say for certain but let's just wait and see hmm."

The Minister leaned back and settled down as the projector turned itself on.

The projector showed a young man who couldn't be much older than a seventh year. He had dark hair and looked like he had just come back from a fight.

"Okay then Ron turn it on when I tell you to." The man said.

"How do I do that?" A voice of another person asked.

"We've been over this just press the button." The man said.

"This button?"

"No, the one on my face, yes that button!" The man said.

"I already pressed it though."

The young man froze as he absorbed what was said. "So, this is being recorded?"

"Unfortunately, it seems so." Another female voice said.

"This is not very well put together." Cathy whispered to Lily who sat next to her. She, Lily, Severus and Regulus were all seated next to one another in the back with the teachers.

"Great." The man said.

"Just say what you have to say and get on with it." A new female voice snapped.

"Okay then." The man cleared his throat and began. "Hello everyone, to those of you who are here listening to this message don't be alarmed...well not yet at least. My name is Ryan Black and I am here to warn you."

"Black?"

"Did he say Black?"

"Do we have cousin or something we don't know about?" Regulus asked his parents who were seated in the second last row.

"No you don't." His father told him.

"For those of you who don't know me that's fine I'd be surprised if you did." Ryan Black continued.  "Seeing as I have yet to be born yet."

"What?"

"What did he say?"

"As some of you probably figured out, I am from the future. And this whole message is from the future."

"Impossible!" Someone shouted.

"Quiet." Walburga snapped at the student.

"I know that you are in the middle of a war and everything seems insane but what you're going through isn't as bad as what we've just gone through."

"I doubt it." Minchum muttered.

"We have just finished with the second Wizarding war and we have suffered too much." Ryan said. "Don't get me wrong we won but like a wise woman once told me there are no winners in a war, just survivors."

"Another war?" McGonagall repeated.

"That's why we've decided to save those we've lost the best way is to send this message back to before the first war ended to ensure that the second never starts."

"Oh my goodness." Molly Weasley said gripping her husband's hand in hers.

"Now then we've collected the memories of many people and complied them in a way similar to that of a film so that they're easy to grasp."

"Now let's start."