The Curse of Time (Harry Potter Fanfic)

When I opened my eyes, I found myself in an unfamiliar place, but I could clearly tell it was a city.

The buildings were very tall, and their style was quite beautiful.

"Sorry for the delay. Have you been waiting long?"

When I turned around, I saw Marie running toward me.

"Marie, do you know where we are?"

She looked at me as if I were acting strange.

"What are you talking about? We're in Pandemonium for our date. You didn't forget, did you?"

I closed my eyes to think. I vaguely remembered a story like this, but I wasn't sure.

"I've never heard of Pandemonium."

"Are you sure you woke up properly? No one would dare say they've never heard of the capital of the world, with over a billion inhabitants in the city."

My mind was trying to act like this was normal, but I couldn't shake the feeling that something was very wrong with this story.

She took my arm to start the date, and all my scattered thoughts disappeared.

We were walking through the streets, trying to figure out what we could do first, when I noticed something strange—something beyond the fact that there were almost no normal humans. There were people with animal ears, others of immense or tiny size, and some with skin colors beyond anything I had ever seen. But the most shocking thing was:

"Why is there no man in this crowd?"

"What?"

"A man—a person who provides his genes to a woman so they can have a child together."

"Oh, you're talking about that, but what year do you think this is? The concept of men has completely disappeared. The closest thing to a man now are femboys, like that person over there."

She pointed at someone who, to me, looked entirely like a woman. She was even wearing a beautiful dress.

"I can assure you that's not a man."

"And I'm telling you it is. Just ask, and you'll see."

After questioning the person and asking directly, they confirmed they were indeed a man.

Something is seriously wrong.

We stopped in front of a luxury restaurant, and when we opened the doors, the staff bowed to us, warmly welcoming us.

"Why are they so polite to us when the people who came in after us didn't receive the same treatment?"

"It's because I'm... I mean, my parents own this restaurant. They want to make a good impression on me because I could fire them if I wanted."

A waiter arrived with the menu, and I have to say that although she had a feminine appearance, her masculine outfit suited her very well.

I noticed Marie sneaking a slightly perverse glance at the waiter, which I quickly put an end to by kicking her in the shin.

It was the first time I had eaten anything like this—I can't even pronounce the name of the meal. I didn't know how to read most of the menu.

It's not real.

The taste was so rich and velvety that it felt like there was a festival in my mouth.

I felt like I could eat dinner at this restaurant every day without ever getting tired of it.

They didn't charge us for the meal, saying it was a gift on the condition that Marie invites Gluttony to judge their new dish.

"Who is Gluttony?"

"She's my wif... a member of my family."

Did she just say something contradictory?

"And why does she have to judge the new dish?"

"She's one of the biggest food critics. Her word carries so much weight that a single negative review from her could shut a restaurant down."

Marie's family seems to be full of incredibly influential people. It's astonishing.

She took my arm, announcing that it was now time to go shopping.

She is not Marie.