"Arrgghh!"

The book slammed shut and was tossed across the bed with enough force that it sailed off the other side and landed on the floor with a thud.

"Problems?" Harry asked his companion with a grin. "You know you'd best be glad Hermione's in the library. You'd get an ear full if she saw you treating a book that way."

Ron rolled his eyes. "Oh, I'd get an ear full over something regardless," the red head stated. "And yes, problems. I'm bloody sick of studying!!"

"Well, our OWLS are only. . ." Harry begin, still grinning. The grin turned into an outright laugh at the look Ron gave him.

"Don't YOU start," the other boy muttered. "One's enough."

Laughing Harry nodded. He had to agree there. One was more than enough if that one was Hermione. "I could use a break myself," he commented.

The two boys, along with nearly every other fifth year, had been swamped with homework and then had been trying to find time to do extra study on top of that so that they would be prepared for their OWLS in the spring. Granted it was only November at the moment, but the professors, and especially Hermione kept reminding them that time would pass all too quickly and they must be ready.

"Wish we could get out of this place. Go to Hogsmeade or something," Ron complained as he went to the window of the boy's dorm and stared out. The landscape was as bleak as his feelings at the moment. Cold and dreary looking with low grey clouds that brought neither rain nor the preferred snow.

"Well, we could," Harry commented. "Got the cloak and there's always the secret passage."

"Hey, yeah!" Ron's face lit up. "We could!"

"But then how are we going to explain all the candy wrappers. We finished up our lot over a week ago," Harry remarked.

Sighing, Ron nodded. "Since when do you worry about picky details? Now you ARE sounding like Hermione!" A well aimed pillow hit the red headed teen in the side of the head and for several minutes the room was filled with yells and thumps and few teasing insults as the two boys pummeled each other vigorously with assorted pillows.

Flopping side by side on Harry's bed at last, Ron spoke. "I wish there was a way to just sort of speed past the bloody exams. Just jump to our sixth year and never really have to worry about taking them."

"I think it'd be easier to hide the candy wrappers," Harry joked.

"Maybe not!" Ron sprang from the bed suddenly. "Fred and George have been working on new stuff. Maybe there's something there that will help us out. Come on!"

Dashing to the twins beds, Ron begin to paw through boxes of things. "Exploding wands, nope. Laxative candy, nope. Muscle enhancer, hmm, might save that for later." He slipped the jar in his pocket.

Harry had laughingly followed his friend and was looking through another box. Coming upon a small jar, he read the label and grinned. "Hey Ron, I think I might have found your answer."

Coming over, Ron read the label aloud. "Age Cream. Always look your best no matter your age. Fancy being more mature? A dollop of this will solve the problem. Use as little or as much as you like to change your age but still retain your good looks. Warnings: a little can go a long way and you must have good looks first before you can maintain them." Ron looked at Harry, his face wild with excitement. "This is it! The answer to everything. Try some, Harry. You first since you found it."

None too sure about this, Harry unscrewed the top and gave the pale blue cream a doubtful look. "Wonder what's in it?"

"Who cares so long as it will help! Try it!"

"I care. I've heard and seen enough of the results of Fred and George's experiments not to want to play guinea pig," Harry was still dubious.

"Oh come on. They wouldn't have labeled it already if it wasn't safe, would they?" Ron encouraged, not about to say that he didn't want to be the first to try it either.

"Well. . .maybe just a little to see if does anything." Harry scooped out a small blob. It was cool and had a pleasant smell to it. Smearing it on his arms, he looked at Ron. "Do I look older?"

Ron studied the dark haired boy a moment and shook his head. "Nope. Best use a little more. Try it on your face."

Harry followed directions and smoothed some on his face, the fragrance filling his nostrils. Then he felt a weird feeling as if all the hairs on his arms were standing on end. "Ron?! I think something's happening!"

"Oh yeah! Something's happening all right!" Ron watched as his friend's features changed and Harry got a bit taller. The teen was gone, leaving in his place a young man in his early to mid twenties. "Wicked!!! It's bloody brilliant!!"

Hurrying to the mirror, Harry blinked at his reflection, grinning. It was pretty cool. "And I maintained my good looks," he quipped.

Ron snorted and was about to try out the cream for himself when he heard Harry gasp. Glancing over at his friend again, the boy blinked. Harry had aged again. "Um. . .think we might have used a bit too much?" he questioned as he walked to Harry side, both of them now gazing at the man with a beard in the mirror.

The next half hour proved to be a bit more than they had planned. Harry continued to age more at the rate of several years every five to ten minutes. At one point they thought it had stopped but then when streaks of grey begin to appear in Harry's dark hair, the duo started desperately digging through the twins' things to see if there was an antidote of any sort.

"Here! Try this!" Ron produced another container. "This one says it will make you look younger and youthful."

"But what if it reacts. . ." Harry began, only to find his friend smearing some of the honey colored substance on him.

"It has to help," Ron assured him. "You're OLD now!"

And it was true, Harry's hair was now completely grey and his beard had grown. Sighing, Harry allowed his friend to rub the stuff into his arms.

They waited. And waited. And waited a bit more.

"Well at least you stopped getting older," Ron pointed out.

Harry nodded, suddenly feeling a bit lightheaded. "Ron. . .I feel sorta. . .weird."

"Well you look weird too, being that old," Ron joked and then looked closer. "Hey! Your hair! It's starting to get dark streaks again."

Running to the mirror, Harry watched as he rapidly got younger and younger. There was only one problem. It was too rapid. And too young. "Ron!!"

"Harry!" the red haired boy yelled back as he watched his best friend become shorter. This wasn't supposed to happen, the teen didn't think. Harry now was almost the same size he was two years ago, his robes covering his feet.

"Get help!!!" Harry directed in terror.

s s s s s s s s s s

Madame Pomfrey flooed to the Gryffindor common room the moment the babbling youngest Weasley boy came charging into the infirmary yelling his head off about Harry Potter being in trouble and needing help. Granted the mediwitch wasn't certain what was going on, but Ron's fearful gasps of Harry too old and then too young spurred the healer into action. She had taken one look at the boy, who now appeared to be around ten or eleven, and whisked him straight back to the hospital wing via the floo.

s s s s s s s s s s

Harry was going to be sick. He groaned and rolled over on the bed. Fortunately someone was there with a bowl and he wretched for several minutes before falling back against the pillow, panting. He reached to wipe his face and felt. . .a beard?? Oh Merlin, no! The events in the dorm came rushing back and for a moment he fought back a wave of sick feeling again, this time mingled with fear. What was going on??

"Easy, Harry," Madame Pomfrey spoke as she wiped his face with a cool cloth.

Blinking against the fuzziness, Harry realized that he didn't have his glasses on. Just then a wave of pain caused him to cry out and he curled into a ball as much as he possibly could.

The mediwitch watched with a feeling helplessness as the middle aged man shrank and was replaced by a child no older than six in a matter of minutes. Where was Severus and that bloody potion?! She ranted to herself as she rubbed Harry's back as he sobbed in pain.

s s s s s s s s s s

Of all the stupid, impossibly ignorant stunts!! Snape fumed as he gathered vials and bottles and hurried back toward the main room of his chambers to floo back to the infirmary. Only Potter and his friends would even manage to get into this sort of mess!

The Potions Master had been unable to believe his eyes when he had first arrived in the hospital wing due to the urgent call from Madame Pomfrey. The little boy on the table had changed from a child to an adult and then to an old man before returning to a teen before Severus' very eyes. He had grabbed a terrified Ronald Weasley and been in the process of shaking the boy until his teeth rattled when Minerva and Albus arrived. Together the four adults had managed to get the story from the jumbled, nearly incoherent words of Ron.

And now it was up to him to fix things that the brats had caused. Typical! Snape thought to himself as he stepped out of the fireplace and back into the hospital wing.

"Well it's about time!" Pomfrey greeted him. "Did you have to brew it? I thought you said you had some on hand!"

"I did," Snape responded. "I merely stopped for a cup of tea first."

The glare the mediwitch sent him could have easily crumbled stone, but Snape paid it no mind. Going to Potter's bed, he viewed the now fifty year old looking form. "How many times since I've been gone?" he questioned.

"What you see now will be the fifth," Pomfrey replied.

Snape frowned. That was much too excessive. He eased Harry into a half sitting position and put a vial to his lips, forcing him to drink the contents. Once every drop was gone, the Potions Master laid Harry back down and covered him with the sheet which Harry had half kicked off in his struggles.

"That should stabilize things for a full hour. Beyond that. . .I will have to know what was in those creams and how much in order to make a stronger stabilizing potion," Snape stated. Producing the other medicine he proceeded to consult with and give directions to Madame Pomfrey.

s s s s s s s s s s

"Two days? Will he be able to stand it that long?"

"That is the quickest I can have it ready, Minerva," Severus stated. "Perhaps if they hadn't been meddling with unknown things to begin with. . ."

"I assume that you have given Madame Pomfrey enough of the stabilizing draught?"

Snape sighed. Why the bloody hell was HE the one being questioned and reproached?? He had done nothing wrong! "Yes, Headmaster," the younger wizard answered dutifully. "And Poppy and I have been taking turns watching the brat."

McGonagall harrumphed at the term. "Really, Severus. The boy is in pain. You could show a bit more compassion.

"Pain of his own making," Snape returned coolly. "I don't sing lullabies, Minerva. But I am not allowing him to suffer unnecessarily either."

"Of course not, my boy. We didn't think that," Dumbledore countered. "Now if there is nothing further we can do, we will allow you to carry on with your work."

"Thank you, sir," the Potions Master managed not to grit his teeth as he spoke. . .at least not too much. Fuming inwardly as the Headmaster and McGonagall left his rooms, Snape returned to his lab and the restorative potion that he was working on for the most annoying boy who ever lived.

s s s s s s s s s

Harry was hot. Too hot. He felt as though his entire body was in flames. Tossing and turning, he struggled against the confining sheets and the arms that held him down, muttering unintelligibly. But he couldn't break free. The arms were too strong. Heck he couldn't even force his eyes to open to see who his captor was and they spoke not a word. Panting, and still burning up, Harry fell limply backwards, to land against the pillow.

Then he felt it. Coolness, drifting over him like water rippling along. No, not water. A cool wind. . .and the tingle of snowflakes landing on him. That was it, it was snowing. He was outside now, he had to be. And it had finally started to snow. He fought to open his eyes, but to no avail. The peaceful coolness was such a relief after the searing pain of the heat. With a small sigh, Harry stopped worrying about opening his eyes and instead let himself slip into sleep.

A hand stroked the recently fevered brow and Snape looked down at the now relaxed young face. How many more rounds would they all have to endure before it was over? The potion to counteract the stupidity of Weasley and Potter was nearly done, but the Potions Master had not left the brat's bedside for the last hour or more as Harry thrashed around in a state of delirium.

At least together he and Madame Pomfrey had managed to get their patient stabilized enough that Harry was no longer rapidly aging and then rapidly de-aging. That was a bonus. However, the Potions Master knew that the draught which Harry had taken half an hour earlier was the last one that could be safely administered to the boy before he drank the new potion. After the effects of the stabilizer wore off this time, Harry would be left for a short period with no help for the rapid age changes until the effects of Snape's restorative potion could begin working. 

s s s s s s s s s

Three nervous adults gathered around a bed watching as Snape held a writhing, moaning form close and pressed a vial of sickly green liquid to the old man's lips. Snape knew that Harry was in pain even though the Potions Master had timed it so that the boy had just undergone an age change and would be fairly free from another change for a few minutes. Still he could feel the twitching of the muscles in the form in his arms as he forced Harry to accept the potion which was to restore him to a teenager once and for all.

Once the contents were all gone, Snape sighed and released his hold, helping to settle the man who appeared to be someone's grandfather on the bed again. "Now we wait," he stated to those watching. "I will stay with him."

Professor McGonagall looked about to protest that, but Dumbledore lightly took her by the arm and with a gentle shake of his head, steered her out of the infirmary. Madame Pomfrey informed Snape that she would be nearby should he have need of her and then also departed, leaving the Potions Master and Harry by themselves.

s s s s s s s s s s

Never in his life could he remember hurting this badly and Harry wailed his agony, his arms and legs flailing in a vain attempt to ease some of the pain. But he was trapped suddenly. Something was holding him tightly and he couldn't get free. He couldn't win the fight. He had no where to go. Harry began to cry out of anger and frustration and instead of fighting more, he collapsed against the solid mass. He felt so tired and sore and small and helpless and for some reason the place he was now felt comforting even while being confining. It was dark all around, but the pain was receding gradually while he was here and he begin to relax ever so slightly. Harry realized that he was safe as he felt himself slipping away into a calm blackness.

s s s s s s s s s s

To Snape's relief Potter had finally calmed and the last yells and tremors had gradually disappeared as the professor held him. But his relief was short-lived as Snape realized what was happening. The Potions Master now sat as still as stone looking down at the sleeping boy in his lap. He was a child, well, even more so than usual! Harry Potter was now a small child!!

"Oh my!" Madame Pomfrey exclaimed as she entered and saw the results of the restorative attempt. "Severus, he's. . .a toddler."

Snape looked over at the mediwitch with a frown. "Yes, I figured that one out myself," the man commented dryly.

At that moment, Harry stirred slightly and then sat up. Blinking the child turned still slightly sleepy eyes to the man that held him. "Hi," he offered with a shy smile.

Pomfrey held back a chuckle at the look on Snape's face and extended a bit of mercy to the man who was thoroughly out of his element. "Bring him over to the table, Severus, and let me examine him."

Having gotten no response from the man other than a raised eyebrow, Harry turned at the other voice and gave his attention to the other person in the room. Trying again, he graced the woman with a smile and said brightly, "Hi!"

"Hello , Harry," Madame Pomfrey smiled back.

Pleased to have gotten a reply, Harry squirmed to get down. The movement seemed to bring Snape out of his trance. Standing, he carried the boy over to the table and plopped him down.

"There. All yours," he commented to Pomfrey and made to move away.

"I think it best if you stay as well, Severus. We need to discover what has caused this." The witch began taking out all manner of objects with which to examine Harry.

The toddler reached toward the shiny things, intending to pick them up and satisfy his curiosity, only to find them moved out of his reach. Harry frowned up at the man who would not talk to him. Now he was taking things away that needed to be looked at!

Bustling around Madame Pomfrey was soon ready and she gently explained each thing that she was using or doing to Harry so that the child wouldn't be frightened. Snape rolled his eyes as he watched the exam.

Once completed, Poppy turned to Severus. "Well he is three years old. Small for his age and underweight. He will need some supplemental potions. . ." She paused.

Snape noted the slight frown. "And. . .?" he questioned knowing there was something more.

"And I believe we need to summon the Headmaster and Minerva," Pomfrey stated.

Within a few moments the other two had been alerted and were present in the hospital wing. Harry had been tucked in bed and was sleeping again, giving the adults a chance to talk.

Madame Pomfrey explained her findings to all of them, starting with the simplest things that she had already related to Snape, such as Harry's current age and height and weight. Then the mediwitch went on to inform her listeners that Harry's body had undergone terrible stress and shock as a result of the rapid and multiple age changes. "The stabilizers helped, but his heart beat was still a bit erratic when I first checked it and there was excessive strain on his muscles as well."

Dumbledore nodded. "All that is to be expected no doubt. But I was not expecting him to regress this far back in age." The blue eyes turned to Snape.

"I checked and double checked the creams made and used by the young idiots, as well as my own calculations for the restoring potion," the Potions Master's voice was defensive.

"I'm sure you did, my boy," Dumbledore stated patiently. "But somehow, for some reason, Harry is now a toddler."

"How long will he stay this way?" McGonagall asked. "Is it permanent since you thought he would be back to his teenage self, Severus?"

"There are ways around the potion," Snape responded.

"Not for now there are not. That's what I was trying to tell you," Madame Pomfrey put in. "Harry's body simply can not stand any more changes for some time. We are going to have to let it have time to heal and become completely adjusted again before any type of aging potion is administered." She looked over at the sleeping child and then back at her fellow witch and wizards. "For the time being, Harry Potter is three years old."