Upon seeing the screaming baby, and after the initial shock had passed, the Slytherins fell about with helpless laughter. Montague and Bletchley both clapped a rather stunned Draco on the back.

‘Well done Malfoy,’ they said.

‘Silence!’ Snape snapped. As he did so the baby that he was looking down upon suddenly paused from its screaming. His glistening green eyes looked up at the large man with the huge crooked nose and whimpered. He wondered why he had to speak so nastily. Slightly frightened he looked around and was not comforted by the sight of hundreds (or so it seemed) giants all staring down at him. He began to cry again with even more gusto than before. Somewhere in the back of his mind the baby was aware that this was a very childish thing to do, but it seemed like the only way that he could let the crowd of monsters know that he didn’t want them anywhere near him.

‘Will you be able to change him back, Sir?’ said Hermione anxiously.

The whole Gryfinndor team were looking with concern down at their star player. The match with the Slytherins was only two weeks away and apart from anything else they needed their seeker match fit. Ron was even more furious than before. He knew that it was a very humiliating position for Harry to be in – reduced to a baby by his sworn enemy in front of the Slytherin team – and he wished that Snape would just get on with it and change Harry back. He decided then and there that whatever revenge Harry wanted to take on Malfoy he would back him up one-hundred-and-ten-percent!

‘I daresay,’ said Snape, casting a weary eye over the screaming baby, who was beginning to get on his always-already overstretched nerves. He spun round to face Draco. ‘If you know the counter-curse, Mr Malfoy, now would be a good time to share it.’

‘Er – no Sir,’ Draco spluttered.

‘I see.’

Snape pointed his wand carefully at the cowering baby and muttered a few inaudible spells. When these had no effect other than to increase the wailing he sighed getting to his feet. ‘Miss Granger,’ he said, ‘kindly pick up Mr Potter and follow me. The rest of you may dismiss. But,’ he added, so sharply that almost everyone (including Harry) jumped you will not breathe a word of Potter’s predicament to any other student. If I find out that anyone has disobeyed my word then I will personally see to it that they are expelled from Hogwarts.’

The Slytherins looked at one another with slight surprise and much disappointment at this – they had been looking forward to spread the news of the ‘famous’ Harry Potter’s demise about the school. They would not have thought that their housemaster would have stopped them, since it was well known that he hated Potter more than any other student. Still none of them would dare to contradict Snape in this mood.

‘What?’ said Ron indignantly, ‘You’re just going to let Malfoy get away with cursing Harry?’

‘Ten points from Gryfinndor, Mr Weasley,’ Snape said silkily. ‘I do not take insolent outbursts from anyone. Dismiss.’

Ron looked like he was about to burst with fury but Fred and George were able to usher him away without another comment. Hermione stooped down to take Harry in her arms. Harry was still wailing but he obligingly held out his chubby arms to Hermione. He thought that she looked like the least scary of the giants and he was glad that the horrible hook-nosed man had put his stick away.

‘There, there, Harry,’ Hermione said as she lifted Harry up, patting his back slightly awkwardly. She hugged the crying baby automatically to her chest, wrapping the crumpled cloak round him like a blanket; all the time, however, she couldn’t escape the feeling that she was in a strange, very surreal dream.

From behind her Draco snorted at the way Granger fussed over Harry. He smirked; he was feeling very pleased with how the curse had turned out - not only had he managed to reduce the boy-who-lived to the baby-who-lived but he seemed to have got away with it scot free.

‘Just a minute, Mr Malfoy,’ Snape said darkly. ‘You will accompany Miss Granger and me to the headmaster’s office.’

Draco hesitated. In response Snape walked over to him and unceremoniously grabbed his ear firmly between his thumb and forefinger, causing him to yelp (and baby Harry to temporarily to stop crying). ‘Pick up Potter’s things and carry them’ Snape said, jerking him violently towards the place on the pitch where Harry’s broom and clothes were. He was furious that his afternoon off had been disturbed, and even more furious that the cause was Potter. ‘Leave the wand,’ he said as Draco reached for it. He picked it up himself.

Draco scrambled to comply with Snape’s order. He knew from the housemaster’s tone that he was in serious trouble.

‘Come,’ Snape said to Miss Granger, aware that time was of the essence if they were to change the boy back successfully, if at all. ‘And try to keep Potter quiet.

***

In Dumbledore’s office an obstinate Draco was refusing to admit where he had learned the curse that had transformed Harry. He knew that if he did Dumbledore would tell his father and he shuddered to think what Lucius would do to him then. He would know that Draco had sneaked into his office and looked in his spell-book. To say that he would be angry would be putting it mildly.

‘Spit it out Mr Malfoy,’ Snape growled.

‘I-I don’t remember.’

Snape advanced on Draco, looking about ready to throttle his young charge, but Dumbledore held up his hand.

‘Severus,’ he said firmly, ‘you will not wrestle out of Draco what he does not wish to tell.’ He turned to Draco. ‘Mr Malfoy you will return to your dormitory immediately. Professor Snape will decide on your punishment in due course. Until that time you will not speak to anyone about Harry’s state. If I hear one word to suggest that you are using this unfortunate situation to your advantage then I will not hesitate to inform Lucius immediately. As your father I am sure he might be able to shed some light on where the curse came from. Do you understand?’

‘Yes Sir,’ Draco muttered.

‘Very well you may go.’

As Draco left the room Dumbledore held his arms out for Harry. Hermione readily gave him up to the Professor. She had eventually managed to quieten Harry down and the exertion of crying seemed to have tired him out as he was sleeping soundly, his tiny fingers curled up in his mouth.

‘You instructed the students who witnessed the transformation not to spread the news?’ Dumbledore said.

‘Yes headmaster,’ Snape said, ‘though it would not surprise me if some of the more wilful students disobey.’ He looked purposefully at Hermione as he said this and she had to try very hard not to glare at him – she knew that none of the Gryfinndors would ever say anything to put Harry in any danger, which would be Dumbledore’s primary concerned until Harry could be changed back; if Voldemort got wind of the transformation he would probably be able to use it to his advantage.

Apparently satisfied with this Dumbledore turned his attention back to the baby. ‘Ah Harry,’ he said, his blue eyes twinkling, ‘just as you were all those years ago when we left you on your Aunt’s doorstep.’

Harry opened one eye as he felt the arms that held him change. He saw a smiley man looking down at him, his long grey beard hanging over his body. He raised one arm up lazily and gave it a sharp tug. Dumbledore laughed.

‘And still your mischievous self I see,’ Dumbledore said, trying to pry the surprisingly strong fingers from his whiskers. Harry wouldn’t budge. He vaguely recognised the old man with his big blue pyjamas and he knew instinctively that he was funny and not cross like the bat-man (as he had silently named Snape).

From the corner of the room Snape cleared his throat. ‘Perhaps headmaster,’ he said wearily, ‘we could get to the problem at hand.’ It did not surprise him to see Dumbledore cooing over Potter, but he had more important plans for the day than to pander to a baby.

‘Certainly Severus, I have summoned Poppy of course.’

At that there was a whirl of green activity in the grate behind the desk and Madame Pomfrey appeared.

‘You called headmaster – Oh who is this?’ she said, interrupting herself, her eyes gleaming at Harry with the type of maternal enthusiasm that made Snape’s eyebrow raise disdainfully.

‘You can see the scar,’ he said impatiently.

‘The scar? What are you … Good lord! Is this Harry Potter?’

‘It would seem so,’ Snape said dryly. ‘It seems Draco Malfoy accidentally cursed him with a de-aging spell.’

‘It wasn’t an accident,’ Hermione said indignantly.

‘Don’t interrupt Miss Granger,’ Snape said icily.

‘Well Poppy?’ Dumbledore said handing the now very alert bundle to the school nurse.

‘It must have been a very unusually concocted spell,’ Poppy said after a few moments consideration, ‘to take the boy right back to – well, just a minute.’ She reached deep into one of her pockets, balancing Harry deftly, and pulled out a contraption that was shaped like a spring. She placed it near Harry’s left foot. ‘Ah yes,’ she said. ‘The boy is fifteen months old.’

‘The same age that Lily and James were killed by Voldemort,’ Dumbledore said thoughtfully.

From the corner of her eye Hermione saw Snape flinch at Dumbledore’s use of the dark wizard’s name.

‘Exactly,’ Poppy said. ‘De-aging, as you know Albus, is a very complex thing. One, two, maybe even five years are possible. Skin, hair, teeth – every one individually are easy to de-age; but to transform a fifteen year-old boy to a baby? That’s something almost unheard of from a curse.’ She turned to Snape. ‘You are sure that there was not a potion administered?’

‘I wasn’t present at the time,’ Snape said, ‘if I were I would never have allowed such an unfortunate accident to occur.’ Snape said the last words as though he thought it wasn’t unfortunate at all.

‘There wasn’t a potion,’ Hermione said.

‘And you tried the usual counter curses?’

‘Of course,’ Snape said, again impatiently.

‘Very well headmaster,’ leave the boy with me. I will look into it. Though of course Severus is probably better equipped to …’

‘I have things to attend to Headmaster,’ Snape cut in. ‘Important things.’

Dumbledore sighed slightly. ‘Very well, for now I will leave Harry with you Poppy. Do we have the necessary supplies to cater for such a small patient?’

‘I will make arrangements.’

Harry was looking with wide eyes between the grown-ups in the room. He was getting bored. Now he had left the bushy-haired girl with her long tangly ropes and the man with the beard he had nothing to play with. He wriggled in the woman with the funny white hat’s arms. He wished that they would let him down. He got bored just being held. He wanted to explore the strange room. There were lots of brightly coloured things around and he wanted to touch them. He scrunched up his face. He could think of no way to get their attention but to scream, though somehow he knew that there must be a better way.

‘Look Albus,’ Poppy said her mouth twitching, ‘I don’t think he wants to come with me.’

‘Typical Potter,’ Hermione heard Snape mutter as he turned to leave.

‘I’m sorry Harry – we will meet again soon though,’ Dumbledore said. Harry began to wail again. He struggled against the white-hat-woman but she held him tight.

‘He is a wriggler isn’t he?’ she said smiling. ‘Shush now. We’ll get you something to eat when we are back in the hospital wing.’ This only made Harry cry harder. Why were grown-ups such idiots? Didn’t they realise that he just wanted to get down and explore? He beat his fists on Madame Pomphrey’s back. She now had him over one shoulder, rubbing his back gently. He tried to say ‘down’ but it came out as ‘da-gi’.

‘Perhaps you would accompany Harry to the hospital wing as well Miss Granger,’ Dumbledore said.

‘Yes Sir.’ Hermione was trying very hard not to laugh at an obviously frustrated Harry – even as a baby he was proving to be extremely strong-willed and Madame Pomfrey had had to reposition him at least three times to prevent him from injuring her. ‘What are we going to tell everyone?’

Dumbledore suddenly looked grave and Hermione was reminded that though at the present amusing, this was also a very precarious situation for Harry to be in. Especially now that Voldemort had risen and would be looking for anyway he could to get to Harry.

‘I don’t know Miss Granger,’ Dumbledore said sighing. He turned his head to the squirming Potter, ‘let’s just hope that we have Harry back to normal soon.’