DIAGON ALLEY, FLOURISH AND BLOTTS — YEAR 2

The curtain rises with sweeping celestial music. HARRY, RON, and HERMIONE walk along a winding lane of delightful shops, all crammed together, on a beautiful summer's day. They have time traveled to the past.

RON: Blimey! Summer before second year at Hogwarts.

HARRY (euphoric): It looks so...

HERMIONE: Does, doesn't it?

The three of them round a corner to be faced with a young boy leaving a shop for quills. He has bright red hair and his head in a book — it's YOUNG PERCY. RON looks mesmerized.

HARRY: Was that —?

RON: Percy.

RON watches YOUNG PERCY walk away.

He carried that book around with him all year — Prefects Who Gained Power.

HERMIONE: Be careful what you wish for.

They walk further down the lane, only to be confronted by a massive, unmoving crowd made up entirely of witches.

RON: What's going on? Have we already caused a problem?

HARRY: It's because of him. Don't you remember?

HARRY points to a banner above the windows of the nearest shop, Flourish and Blotts. The banner reads: GILDEROY LOCKHART will be signing copies of his autobiography MAGICAL ME today from 12:30 P.M. to 4:30 P.M.

HERMIONE: The Indian peacock feather. Gilderoy Lockhart arrived at every book signing with a dozen or so feather quills — all of them peacock.

RON: How in Merlin's...?

Beat, he turns to HARRY.

My wife. Custodian of the world's most insignificant information.

HERMIONE: Seems pretty significant in this instance.

HARRY: In Ron's defense...

HERMIONE: There was an entire chapter devoted to it in Magical Me, if you must know.

HERMIONE moves them through the crowd. She looks a bit too eager. RON notices.

RON: Should we pick you up a signed copy while we're here?

HERMIONE: I mean, it would be worth something in the future. It's not as if he's signing copies anymore.

RON: You're joking. I wasn't being serious.

HERMIONE: What? (beat) Neither was I.

The exterior walls of Diagon Alley separate as the trio look in the windows. We can see that there is a winding line of excited customers, mostly women, leading to the back of the bookstore. And there, seated at a table, was their former Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, GILDEROY LOCKHART — 30s, in robes of forget-me-not blue, lush blonde hair covered partially by pointed wizard's hat.

HARRY: Unreal. Gilderoy Lockhart.

HERMIONE: He looks so much younger than I remember.

HERMIONE touches her cheek. She smiles faintly. RON is staring at her.

RON (aghast): You've got to be joking.

HERMIONE: Well... there's something about him, isn't there?

RON: Do you mean the dodgy bit? Where he's a bloody impostor?

HARRY: He does have a charming smile, Ron.

RON: Ugh...

HARRY and HERMIONE smile at one another. It's fun to torture RON.

HERMIONE: Now, keep your voice down. We need a plan of attack to get him away from those feathers. Some sort of distraction.

She points and a halo of light accents the extra feather quills behind the counter, each with a shining silver cap, arrayed on a bed of silk in forget-me-not blue.

RON: Oh, no — duck!

RON pushes their heads down as a SHORT WIZARD turns his large camera to the crowd. He takes a photograph. The intense flash was followed by a puff of smoke.

HERMIONE: Good reflexes, Ron.

RON: We might have to do this another time.

HARRY: There's no turning back now. And Lockhart stops signing when I come into the shop, remember?

RON: But we can't run the risk of having a camera taking our picture in the past.

HARRY: No. One camera isn't enough.

HARRY looks around himself. He spots two more REPORTERS with cameras and leads RON and HERMIONE over.

If I've learned anything about fame, it's how to use reporters to my advantage.

HERMIONE: I see where you're going with this.

RON (annoyed): Well, I don't.

HARRY positions himself casually beside the REPORTERS in the crowd.

HARRY (excitedly, to HERMIONE): Have you heard? Harry Potter is on his way over to the shop.

The two REPORTERS overhear this. They lean back to eavesdrop on HARRY, RON, and HERMIONE.

HERMIONE: Is he? I heard Gilderoy Lockhart is making an announcement this afternoon.

The REPORTERS lock eyes.

Could one have anything to do with the other?

HARRY: I wish I knew.

RON nods, eager to join in on the ruse.

RON (in a whisper): Oh, look! There's the Potter boy now.

The REPORTERS gather their cameras and shove themselves into Flourish and Blotts.

REPORTER 01: Out of the way, there. This is for the Daily Prophet!

YOUNG VOICE: Big deal.

RON's eyes widen. He speeds after the REPORTERS. HARRY and HERMIONE follow.

RON: That was me...

RON stops and stares, admiring the sight before him. HARRY smiles. The crowd blocks the audience from being able to view what our heroes are seeing, but it's obvious.

Look at us, Harry. We're so young.

HARRY: And so confident.

HERMIONE: Look at your parents.

RON gasps.

HARRY: What is it?

RON: Fred... It's Fred...

HERMIONE: Are you sure that's —?

RON (confidently): Yes.

RON watches his brother with older eyes. We only see the top of FRED's head as he zig zags through the crowd. HERMIONE holds RON's hand.

HERMIONE: He's not much older than Rose.

RON: I know.

He rubs his eyes.

What a wonderful gift this is...

HARRY reaches into his bag to subtly take out the invisibility cloak. He stretches it wide, then looks less confident.

HARRY: I'm not entirely sure all three of us can fit under the cloak anymore.

HERMIONE: We'll crouch.

RON and HARRY lean down. HARRY raises the cloak.

HARRY: This is going to be slightly weird, isn't it?

RON: Nah, mate. Just like old times.

The three of them seem to disappear beneath the cloak. They push through the crowd and we can see the confusion on the faces of the people they pass. Something touched me! Why did that stack of books fall over?

But then come the whispers. And the crowd parts. HARRY POTTER, the Boy Who Lived, has entered the shop!

The REPORTERS stake their claim near LOCKHART's table as the entire scene turns on its axis. We are able to watch HARRY, RON, and HERMIONE as they move closer to the peacock feather quills behind LOCKHART's table. The crowd and the cameras are now facing forward, as LOCKHART leaps over to ensnare the arm of a young boy with glasses and messy hair, smudges of soot on his face — it's YOUNG HARRY. He turns the boy to the cameras, their backs to the audience.

RON: Now's our chance.

They crouch below LOCKHART's table and reach for the peacock feathers as the crowd cheers in approval. The three cameras, at different heights, flash brightly behind our heroes. Three wide, intense, and intimidating flashes — at different intervals — followed by bursts of smoke that seem to take over our senses. If our heroes are discovered, if their photograph is taken by one of these three cameras, all is lost. RON musters up the courage and successfully steals one of the quills. They duck back behind the desk as the cameras stop flashing. RON and HERMIONE breathe a sigh of relief. HARRY is watching his younger self with LOCKHART. He looks pained by this.

RON: You never really were one for popularity, were you?

HERMIONE (off HARRY's expression): What's wrong, Harry?

HARRY: I did this to him. To Albus — on the platform — on his first day of school. Look at me. I'm miserable. No wonder he didn't want to be anything like his father.

HERMIONE: You can't blame yourself.

HARRY: For this, I can. I should've known better.

YOUNG HARRY tries to get away, and LOCKHART smiles widely as he pulls the boy closer. The crowd applauds and he's triumphant as he quiets them with a gesture.

GILDEROY LOCKHART (grandiosely): Ladies and gentlemen. What an extraordinary moment this is! The perfect moment for me to make a little announcement I've been sitting on for some time!

RON: They're all watching him. This is our chance to slip away unnoticed.

The trio inch their way around the crowd, peacock feather quill in hand.

GILDEROY LOCKHART: When young Harry here stepped into Flourish and Blotts today, he only wanted to buy my autobiography — which I shall be happy to present him now, free of charge — he had no idea, that he would shortly be getting much, much more than my book, Magical Me. He and his schoolmates will, in fact, be getting the real magical me. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I have great pleasure and pride in announcing that this September, I will be taking up the post of Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry!

With the cameras going off again, and the crowd erupting in cheers, even more people are entering the shop, making it difficult for HARRY, RON, and HERMIONE to exit. They have no choice, they remove the cloak and head for the door. HARRY stops. We cannot see what he's looking at, but something has caught his attention.

HARRY: Wait...

HERMIONE: Whatever it is, Harry — we haven't the time.

HARRY: It's Ginny. She's about to defend me to Draco.

HERMIONE looks over at RON. Together, the three of them watch the scene play out. And we are only allowed to see their reaction to it.

RON: Malfoy was right. I might kick him in the head.

HERMIONE: You'll do nothing of the sort.

The three of them look at each other. That was a special moment. Then HERMIONE leads them out the door and back into the winding lane of Diagon Alley.

Come on. Every second we waste back here is another second we risk changing things.

HERMIONE takes out the Time-Turner.

HARRY: What's next?

HERMIONE: Pearl dust?

RON: Love potion, then. Bit further down Diagon Alley.

HERMIONE hands RON the Time-Turner.

Fred and George's joke shop. Fifth Year.

The three of them lock arms as the entire set spins. The next scene will play out on the reverse side. And time stops. Then it turns over, thinks a bit, and begins spooling.