Time Particles

Under Wade's gaze, the Headmaster picked up a tiny bird's egg and gently placed it into a glass jar.

Crack!

The egg split open, and a tiny Blue-crested Jay wriggled out. Its body was swiftly covered in cobalt-blue feathers, while its belly was a bright, tender yellow.

The little bird spread its wings and had just let out a crisp chirp when it seemed as though someone had pressed a rewind button on the jar:

Its feathers fell away, its body became wet, its claws and wings drew inward, and it curled into a reddish little lump...

It became an egg again.

Two seconds later, the scene repeated itself. Then Dumbledore waved his Wand and removed the egg from the jar.

He gently placed the egg back on the table. The phantom of the Blue-crested Jay seemed to remain faintly visible within the golden current.

Dumbledore's deep eyes watched Wade through his spectacles as he said, "This is the 'magic' Voldemort's people used on you and Harry before... turning you back into children. In truth, those people had merely found a way to operate this kettle."

"Their rewind wasn't actual time reversal?"

Wade recalled, "At the time, my Magic Power hadn't completely returned to the level it was at when I was a child... and I remember recalling some scenes from later on."

A faint, approving smile appeared at the corner of Dumbledore's mouth. He nodded and said, "I may have said this before, but I must say it again—few people can perceive the essence of things as keenly as you do, Wade."

"When the effects of these particles were first discovered, many believed they could turn back time and restore youth. People were ecstatic, thinking they had finally found the secret to immortality."

"Yet the truth was that they