Chapter 19
Harry woke up on the morning of the party feeling incredibly nervous and excited, a jumble of feelings he had become all too familiar with in the span of just a few months.
Lily had woken him up by throwing a slipper at his head, demanding that he wake up and to let him know that she had told James and Sirius that she was going over to St. Mungo’s to see the Longbottoms and then to Hermione’s to do some wedding planning and that it would likely take the whole day. In reality, she was going over to the manor to unbox all the decorations, set up the food with the help of Kreacher, and ensure everything was as it should be and running smoothly.
His only job was to keep James and Sirius occupied until it was time to go over. They had planned it so that they would be arriving at the manor ahead of the time that was listed on the invitation so that they could let the new information of the house sink in before they would celebrate it with friends.
Thankfully, James and Sirius were professionals at finding entertainment when there was none provided.
Today it came in the form of ordering a blow up pool from a catalogue. Harry had so many questions about how they had acquired it and/or paid for it but all they offered were sheepish looks and evasive answers and Harry just let it drop. He had a sneaking suspicion they had been taking joyrides on Sirius’ new bike in muggle London and making a few stops along the way while he was out.
Either way, he had to admit it was rather fun.
While out, Sirius had also bought swim trunks for each of them. He bought Harry a pair of green ones with lightning bolts across the front of them and while Sirius claimed it wasn’t a joke about his scar, he didn’t quite believe him.
He’d gotten himself and James a matching pair. Harry recognized the cartoon instantly, he’d gotten James Spongebob trunks and himself Patrick ones and he’d busted out laughing at the sight of them. Sirius had no idea who the characters were but said that he ‘resonated’ with them and Harry said he couldn’t have been more right.
Harry blew up the pool by magical means while James made some drinks for them inside and Sirius, who had gone inside to look for snacks, came back outside with a confused look, “Where’s Kreacher?”
Harry scrambled for an answer, “Er, day off I think.”
“You know, back in my day, elves never got time off but these days all of you care about ‘rights’ and that lot, I think it’s a load of bunk,” Sirius drawled, crossing his arms.
“Careful, your age and surname are showing,” Harry pointed back and ducked away when Sirius lunged at him, tackling him to the ground for that slight.
Sirius ended up just grabbing bags of crisps and candy that Harry had ordered Kreacher to get from the store a while back and once everything was set, James took it upon himself to transfigure a plastic container into a diving board for them to use.
Harry wished Lily was there to join in on the fun but safe to say, Harry was doing his job of distracting them sufficiently well, not even realising himself that the day had passed in a quick blur as they swam, dived, ate loads of junk food, and sunbathed.
It was only when they had all laid side by side on the grass that Harry had even spared the day a thought. He had been so consumed by the joy and genuine fun they had together that he hadn’t spaced out like he usually did.
He supposed this is what it was like then, to have a sense of permanence and comfort with them. Before, when James and Lily first arrived, every interaction was so fraught and fragile that Harry couldn’t quite believe it was happening. He couldn’t even sit through a meal with them without thinking that they would disappear and this was all some fantasy he had conjured up in his traumatised mind.
Now though, days would go by before he remembered that they hadn’t always been there. He had fallen into such easy domestic comfort with them that it was like they had been together all their lives.
Once they had finished, James made lunch for them all, a spread of chicken, rice, and multiple sides and once they had all finished, they only had enough energy to drag themselves to their beds and fall into a food-induced coma.
______
Harry woke up around 4PM to his owl tapping at his nose and once he’d pushed the little beast away, he saw that he bore a message from Lily. She hadn’t told him that she’d be stealing his owl but it must have been ‘part of the plan.’
She had messaged to let him know that everything was ready and that they were good to come over now.
He jumped up then, his heart thrumming in his chest, and set off to find James and Sirius.
They apparently hadn’t made it to their beds like Harry did as he found them slumped on a sofa in the living room. Sirius' head lay on one side and James’ was on the other and Harry didn’t think it looked very comfortable as half of James’ body was sagging on the floor and Sirius had basically taken to laying on top of James but they were both knocked out, not even thinking about the state they were in.
He started with Sirius considering he was on top of the mess and shook his shoulder gently, calling his name. He was clearly in a deep sleep because he hadn’t even moved, not even a twitch.
He tried again and again, shoving him progressively harder but he was literally a rock and so Harry covered his mouth with one hand and plugged his nose with the other and waited.
It only took seconds before Sirius jerked, eyes flying open and pushing Harry’s hands away so he could take hungry gulps of air.
Thankfully, he had woken up so aggressively that he kicked James in the shoulder, effectively waking him up as well.
“What was that for?” James groaned.
“Your son just tried to kill me,” Sirius complained, groaning as he sat up and he tried to run a hand through his hair but it got caught in a nasty tangle at the back and he cringed.
“I wouldn’t have gone through all that time travelling just to kill you again. Anyways, get up, we have plans,” Harry declared.
James looked at him in disbelief though it could have also just been confusion as he was pawing around on the floor for his glasses, “What plans?” he asked, voice scratchy.
“ Plans , come on, up you go,” Harry called again, already making to go back upstairs and ready himself.
“What about Lily?” James called.
“She’s meeting us there,” he cheered, before disappearing out of their view, “Oh and dress nice!”
He waited a minute before slipping into his room to ensure that the two of them actually had gotten up and when he heard a loud thump followed by particularly colourful language, he knew they slipped on the steps and were right behind him.
______
“Dress nice he says,” James grumbled to himself as he stood in front of his closet. It had certainly filled out compared to when he first arrived where he was stuck wearing Harry’s pyjamas but he still didn’t have a sense of the style yet.
It had taken a lot of getting used to, filling out a paternal role when he was still a child himself. He assumed he would be growing with Harry and he had only just gotten the hang of dealing with a baby when it had all been taken away from him.
He often worried that he was doing Harry a disservice, like he was ultimately failing at being a dad and that Sirius was more suited for the rule simply based on his age and the fact that he had a bit more time with him.
Though that thought was often whisked away in moments when he and Harry would go out for a fly or they’d work on the motorbike together and Harry would look at him with such gleaming admiration that it made him feel like maybe, just maybe, he was doing an alright job.
Though now he wasn’t sure what ‘dress nice’ meant and so he went for a button up top and trousers, keeping Regulus’ robes on the hanger for now, not wanting to relive that particular memory.
Unbeknownst to the others, the robes that James wore that day to Malfoy manor were actually the exact same set of robes that Regulus wore to their first official date. They knew they wouldn’t be able to get away with a date at Hogsmeade so they decided to sneak out to muggle London, having lunch at a nice restaurant by the Thames.
James almost told Regulus that no one wore robes, especially such fancy ones, out here and that he’d stick out like a sore thumb but when he saw just how good he looked in them, he didn’t have the heart to tell him and proudly held his hands as they walked through the streets, ignoring all the odd looks sent their way.
He dressed quickly and went back out to meet Harry downstairs who was dressed similarly.
“So, what plans are these then? I was in the middle of a particularly good dream when you woke me up. It was you, me, and Sirius and we were stuck in a video game and to get out we had to fight Lucius and his Nagini-sized blond ponytail,” James recounted his scarily vivid dream.
“Well did we win?” Harry joked back, looking at him with a twinkle in his eye and genuine curiosity.
“Eh, I’d just Accio’d a pair of scissors from somewhere so I’m leaning towards yes,” he winked.
Sirius joined them a moment later and Harry sobered up, already beginning to look a bit nervous.
“So, I’ve actually been planning this for quite some time and I just want to say before we go that…I hope you like it,” Harry cautioned, wringing his hands together and biting the inside of his cheek, and James couldn’t imagine where they were possibly going.
Before he could ask though, Harry walked them all outside, wanting to apparate there instead of flooing which they used for most of their travels and he just hooked his arm around his son’s before he turned on his heel and whisked them all away.
James took a second to reorient himself before looking up from the gravel path that they had landed on and felt the air rush out of him as the sight of the manor hit him like a physical blow.
Potter manor stood proudly in front of them, silhouetted by the setting sun that set the front lawn awash with its’ golden light. It was perfectly manicured, each and every bush and tree immaculately cut and he saw the small floral garden in the front was blooming with fresh flowers of every colour.
“Harry,” was all he could breathe out.
He hadn’t been back since he was forced to leave and go into hiding, a year before even Harry was born and he hadn’t realised just how much he missed it until now that he was faced with it.
He saw Sirius had a matching expression on his face and remembered it had been even longer for him since he saw it considering he had lived through time rather than just jumped like him. This house was as much Sirius’ as it was his and he felt tears well up in his eyes at the fact that they were finally back.
Memories rushed through his mind as he took in the brick facade of the large house. He saw the window that he broke while playing a game of quidditch in the front with Sirius that had long since been repaired. The front lawn where he shared his first kiss with Lily and the small pond just off to the side that housed beautiful koi fish, gifted to them by one of Fleamont’s work associates.
Even the air itself was familiar. The house was far away from any major city and James swore the air felt crisper here, more refreshing and he took a deep inhale of the sweet scent of grass mingled with memories.
Harry wore a tense smile as he watched him and James just lunged at him, enveloping him in what was surely a bone crushing hug but Harry just met him back with equal fervour. He felt a second pair of arms wrapped around them and knew Sirius had joined in.
When he pulled back, he looked to see a small figure standing in the doorway waving at them and he just knew it was Lily.
He laughed loudly before running up the long path to her.
With each step, he felt his life flash before him. He was running up to Lily now but in the next moment, he was five, seeing his mum standing in the doorway calling him in for dinner. He was thirteen, running inside with all his friends with him, high on the feeling. He was sixteen, running inside with Sirius, their new permanent resident.
He hadn’t slowed down even by a bit as he hugged Lily, inhaling the floral scent that permanently enveloped her and nuzzling into the space between her neck and shoulder that he had done so many times before.
“How did you-” he whispered to her, pushing back her hair with his hands and cupping her face, her pale freckled face a sharp contrast to his tanned hands.
“It was all Harry’s idea,” she whispered sweetly, pulling him in for a kiss.
By then, Harry and Sirius had reached them and Sirius pulled them all into the same hug, whispering “thank you” repeatedly to the two of them.
Lily opened the door further then and James reached the threshold, almost afraid of what would happen should he cross it but Lily, Harry, and Sirius were just behind him and he knew no matter what would happen, he would be okay so long as they were with him.
He was greeted with the all too familiar site of the foyer that was shining under the deep orange sunlight that filtered in through the windows. He marvelled at the tapestries and paintings that were bustling with life all around them.
He noticed the small centre table was different and a few of the paintings had been swapped out but the changes were so minute, he was likely the only one to even be able to notice the difference.
He almost expected his mum to walk around a corner, arms outstretched to envelop him in a huge or his dad to step out of his study and join them.
They had died just before the war had started in earnest and James felt their loss deeply, always had and always would and seeing the house had drawn on those memories, pulling them out of the deep recesses of his mind where he housed his most treasured memories.
“How did you two even manage this? It looks the same,” James awed, spinning in place as he looked up towards the ceiling.
“It didn’t always,” Harry snorted. “Though mum is a pro at restoration spells, I couldn’t have done it without her,” Harry complimented and Lily just waved a hand and shook her head, humble till the very end.
He took a few wary steps further into the house and wondered how he hadn’t appreciated it more growing up. He had taken it for granted then and even remembered all the times he told his parents he wished they moved, wanting to be closer to his friends, but they always told him that this was home .
He never understood the importance of the word till now.
When he stepped into the large sitting room, he saw decorations hung all around the room, little jars full of coloured lights hung all around, encasing the room in a prism of rainbow light and music playing from a small device plugged into an even bigger machine, amplifying its’ sound.
He turned back to the masterminds behind this plan and Lily smiled even bigger, “What better way to celebrate than a housewarming party.”
That statement was punctuated by the sound of a doorbell ringing and Harry quickly went to open it.
Sirius stepped forward to join him in the room and he just turned to him, seeing the same emotions and memories flicker across his face.
He put a hand on his shoulder, squeezing hard, “We’re back home .”
Sirius’ face crumpled at that and James just pulled him in, not needing to ask what had him feeling this way.
Sirius always felt like a burden to them, constantly apologising since he showed up after running from home and promising to leave once he was of age but Effie and Monty weren’t having any of it. They had welcomed Sirius into the home immediately and Sirius had forged his own relationship with them, not as James’ friend, but as his brother and their son.
He would never forget the look of complete shock on Sirius’ face when he found out that they adopted him, despite the fact that he was of age. It was just further solidification of an already indisputable fact- Sirius was a Potter, no matter where he might have come from before then.
Once Sirius pulled back, he suggested going back through the house once more before others arrived and James readily jumped onto the idea, linking arms with him and intertwining his fingers with Lily’s before guiding them up the stairs.
______
Even Draco, who was always the picture of Pureblood composure, couldn’t help but openly aweing over the house once he stepped in.
“Wow Harry this is…” he trailed off, taking it all in.
“Better than yours huh?” he joked, voice dripping with amusement but when Draco didn’t immediately argue with him, his usual reaction whenever one insulted his ancestral home, Harry knew he must be really impressed.
Harry guided him further in, gratefully taking the bottle of wine he’d brought as a gift and giving him his own version of the tour.
“Your first day at school’s coming up, how do you feel?” Draco finally asked as they walked hand in hand through the garden outside, enjoying the final dregs of sunlight.
Harry had been steadfastly avoiding the topic as the day was fast approaching and now he almost laughed at the way Draco had worded it. He really did feel just as he did when he was eleven and was about to board the train with Hagrid as his only company.
He was thrust into this new world of magic all on his own with no one to hold his hand or guide him as an orphan with an infamous past. He was terrified then until he met a ginger haired boy that loved to eat and a girl with bushy hair asking about someone else’s toad, already caring for him despite barely knowing him. It was from then on that his life grew richer, he had made more friends and family until he was practically overwhelmed with all the love he was given when he had never received any growing up.
He then took major losses, losing so many of the people he had come to value in such a short time and just when his life was beginning to balance out again, he had gone to flipping his career, retiring his saviour complex and trading it in for a quiet life of teaching.
“I looked through Remus’ lesson book and it’s…thorough. I just hope I can actually do it, I mean it’s not like I have any qualifications, what if I just completely muck it up,” Harry sighed, confiding his fears to Draco, relieved to release some of the stress he had been keeping from his parents.
“I don’t think there’s anyone more suited than you Harry and with Remus to help you along the way, you’ll do amazing,” Draco assuaged him, rubbing small circles into the crux between Harry’s thumb and finger and he felt soothed both physically and emotionally.
Harry looked at Draco, really looked at him, and knew this was it.
It was terrifying when he first acknowledged that he actually had feelings for him after the war. His entire life was mapped out in front of him, marrying Ginny being at the forefront but it was clear their love was only meant to last them the war as they had come out of it with only the faintest flame flickering between them, fueled only by sheer force.
He was only meant to defend Draco at his trial and leave but then he met Draco outside the courtroom to give him his wand back. What was only meant to be a singular interaction turned into dozens more just at the slightest brush of fingers as he handed off the wand.
As he looked into Draco’s silver eyes, he thought about the ring that was tucked up in his drawer in his room at Grimmauld place just waiting for Harry to pick the time and place to finally pop the question he had been wanting to ask for probably longer than he consciously knew.
“Plus, you’re the Chosen One so if you do mess up, it won’t even matter really,” Draco laughed, tongue poking out his cheek and Harry just shoved him before pulling him back in for a kiss.
Draco pouted at being treated like his own personal rag doll but melted into the move all the same.
They only had a moment together before they heard more noise coming from the house and knew other guests had likely arrived.
Once the clock had ticked to the time actually written on the invitation, guests arrived in earnest- first the entire Weasley family, then Ron and Hermione, Narcissa, Draco’s friends, and the list goes on and on until the house was a bustle of voices and music.
Harry was genuinely glad to see Dudley arrive, stepping into the house with a nervous look on his face that eased only slightly when he saw Harry.
“You came,” Harry smiled, holding a hand out to the cousin he had made relative peace with.
“Thank you for inviting me Harry… I know what mum and dad did can’t be fixed, and I’m sorry for the role I played in that growing up but I’m happy for you, really,” Dudley offered in a rare moment of vulnerability between them.
Harry was happy to finally be able to address Dudley not as his tormentor but as family, his cousin, and Lily came over quickly, delighted to see her nephew and immediately dragged him away, questioning him about everything, eager to learn more about him.
Harry floated between groups, mingling with everyone, but his eyes continuously sought out his parents who wore matching faces of joy and not only being in the presence of everyone else but just by being here, bringing life into the house that had been quiet for so long.
After some time had passed and everyone was seated in various parts of the downstairs space, James stood up, clinking his wand against his glass, effectively silencing the room and gathering everyone’s attention.
“I wanted to first thank you all for coming,” he directed, casting his gaze across the room with a genuine smile, “I know it probably came as a shock to you all when Lily and I first showed up. It certainly came as a shock to Harry when we showed up at Grimmauld. He came home, completely pissed, thought we were a figment of his imagination, and left us alone downstairs while he went upstairs to sleep.”
Everyone laughed at that, some clapping Harry on the back who had only turned red and buried his face in his hands at the memory that still made him cringe.
“I don’t know if he knew that Lily and I were just as terrified. I still remember every moment of what happened but I especially remember the feeling of waking up and knowing that Harry wasn’t a baby anymore but a young man. Since then, I have learned more about our world, about all that we had lost and I can’t help but feel grateful to be standing in this room with you all- to be given a second chance.”
The mood was sombre as they all took a moment to remember just who would be filling the blank spots in the seats around the room.
“On top of that, Harry just had to go and bring Sirius back,” James pointed to Sirius who whooped in reply.
“This is all just to say that I am incredibly thankful to all of you for helping Harry when we could not. Without all of you, I fear what might have happened to our boy,” James spoke, holding Lily’s hand to pull her up with him and choking up as he made eye contact with Harry.
“Here’s to many more years together,” James concluded and the room broke out into a combination of clinking glasses and cheers.
Harry went straight to him after, “Did you really have to tell them that story?” Harry asked but his watery voice betrayed his true emotion.
Harry was distantly worried about having so many people here and seeing what had happened but he trusted all of them, knew that they wouldn’t expose their little secret. That wasn’t to say that James, Lily, and Sirius would forever stay in hiding but they had no desire for a life where they’d be hounded by the Prophet or tested on by Unspeakables in the Department of Mysteries.
He kept flicking his eyes to the door, waiting, but came up short each time when no one else arrived and he couldn’t help but feel a pit develop in his stomach at the disappointment that seeped through him.
Nonetheless, after hours of drinking and chatting, guests slowly left, making promises for plans in the future and explaining just how grateful they were to see them and Harry happy again. Hagrid had been particularly emotional, hugging both James and Lily at the same time, squeezing them until their feet left the ground and James had to slap him in the arm and beg him to let him breathe again.
The stayed behind to begin cleaning up all the mess left behind, a clear sign of a good party, when the doorbell rang,
They all looked at each other with looks of confusion.
“Maybe someone left something behind?” Harry offered before heading to the doorway.
When he pulled open the large oak doors, he saw Mary, Emmeline, and Pierre, wearing sheepish smiles.
“Are we too late?” Emmeline asked anxiously.
Harry was ready to jump over the moon. He thought they weren’t going to show up after not appearing at the designated time and was delighted that they had shown up at all.
“We thought it might be a bit much to show up when everyone else was here, we’re sorry but if you’ll still have us…?” Pierre trailed off nervously, holding out a bottle of wine and Mary offered her bouquet of flowers, as if Harry needed to be bribed to allow them entry.
“Harry?” he heard Lily call and he turned back to see her just round the corner then.
Her eyes landed on the figures in the doorway and a hand shot up to her mouth immediately as she inhaled a sharp breath and her steps faltered.
“You…Mary I- Emmeline-” Lily began, unable to find the words to explain the feelings that were rising within her.
“Lily,” Emmeline cried, already wiping at her eyes.
Mary wore a great smile on her face as tears streamed freely down her cheeks at the sight of her former friend.
Pierre nudged Mary forward, shocking her out of her stupor, and she ran into the house and right into Lily’s arms, laughing and crying in equal measure.
“What’s going on?” James called, walking into the room with Sirius in tow.
They reacted just as Lily did, shooting forward to hug Emmeline before switching with Lily and hugging Mary.
Harry ushered Pierre in who shook hands with them all, happy to meet them after hearing so much about them.
“How did you- How is this happening?” Lily tripped over the words in her haste to get them out, still clinging onto Mary’s hand and keeping her eyes on Emmeline, afraid that if she took her attention away, they would disappear. “I thought you both-”
“I did a little digging,” Harry shrugged.
“I remember this place,” Mary whispered looking around and while the sentence seemed to confuse Lily who had overheard what she said to Emmeline, Harry was relieved to hear it.
“Did it work?” Harry asked Pierre in a moment of quiet while the others caught up together.
“It did. The Healer did well and Mary remembers almost everything. She still gets a little confused but the memories are all there, Emmeline just helps stitch them together in the right order,” he explained.
Harry nodded, thinking that would be all, but he continued.
“I want to thank you Harry…Mary is much happier than she was before, she looks more like the sister I grew up with, not the one who was returned to us after your war. I missed that part of her which I believed to be gone forever,” he offered honestly and Harry didn’t even know how to answer.
He just nodded genuinely to Pierre, assuring him he had no part to play in this and joined the rest of them on the sofas as they were exchanging small stories and catching up.
Mary explained how she had Obliviated herself and the others all nodded along seriously, never questioning her or judging her, just openly hearing her out and assuring her that they were just happy to have her back after so much time spent apart.
The night dragged on until night had become day and they had to drag themselves back home at 3AM, leaving the rest of the mess to Kreacher who could clean it up with a snap of his fingers.
______
Harry was in the kitchen, filling up a cup of water before he was planning to head up to bed and James joined him, matching his actions exactly.
“Thank you Harry, I don’t think I could ever thank you enough for all you’ve done,” James whispered when he came over to him.
“Oh it was nothing, mum helped too and-” Harry began rattling off but was cut off.
“I’m not just talking about the house,” James clarified and Harry turned to look at him.
Harry was again struck by the sight of James, his mirror image in so many ways.
“I mean everything you’ve done since the moment you were born. When we found out Lily was pregnant, we were terrified. It was the middle of the war and we were so scared, every day felt like our last and we were losing so many people but you gave us hope , something we were sorely lacking,” James began.
“And then when you were one, you took down the tyrant that had taken so much from us. Then everyday since then you fought Petunia and Vernon, surviving a life that constantly tried to take you down and break your will.”
Harry could feel tears well up in his eyes as James took him down this trip of his life, wondering what it meant.
“Then by defeating him again, walking into that forest, knowing that you wouldn’t make it out.”
He supposed Narcissa must have told him that particular story.
“Then by saving us. I know it doesn’t technically fall into there in the little timeline but you did save us. Even if it was Dumbledore who gave the device to us, you brought us back, accepted us immediately despite the life you had already created that didn’t necessarily have space for us.”
Harry couldn’t believe James was thanking him when it should be the other way around but he couldn’t find it in himself to protest as James continued onwards.
“ Then for saving Sirius, despite how much we argued with you over it and now for restoring the manor. I just want to thank you for letting me be your dad, it is an honour that I hope to live up to every single day,” James finished, tears tracking down his cheeks and shining in the moonlight that filtered in through the kitchen window.
Harry didn’t respond, couldn’t manage words to explain the love he felt for his father not just in that moment but from every time he had seen him in his past life.
From the first time he saw him in the mirror of Erised to when he thought his father saved him with his patronus from the dementors, to the final battle when he saw their ghosts. Despite never having met him, he had loved him and that love only grew as he came to know him, from spending idle days at home together to cooking with him to flying with him.
He had spent so much of his life hearing about his parents through other people. Hearing about how great they were but nothing more, nothing about who they were as people. Snape’s subjective memory of James being the only time he had seen James as something more than just a dubious icon but a real person.
He was finally able to put together his own image of his parents and he loved them, it was simply an undeniable fact. Even if they weren’t family, Harry felt like he would still love them, love their generous hearts and strong character, their resilience in the face of danger.
He hugged James who was just a few inches taller than he was. His glasses clinked against James’ broad chest and James’ hair tickled Harry’s cheek but he didn’t feel any of it, just hugged him tighter.
“Thank you for coming back,” Harry whispered into his chest, crying through the words that pushed painfully out of him.
They stood there for long moments, embracing one another in the silent house, the moon their only spectator, ensconcing them in bright light.
“I’ll always be here for you, for as long as I live,” James whispered, kissing the top of his head before letting go.
They walked up the stairs together and James nearly slipped on the step and Harry couldn’t help but grumble, “I need to fix that bloody step.”
“Keep it, it’s grown on me,” James laughed a little and Harry had to admit he felt the same.
He still remembered slipping on that step when he first saw his parents through sober eyes and almost everyday after. He could tell exactly who was coming up the stairs just because of the particular swear the followed the trip and should no curse come, he knew it was Lily who was always aware of it.
When he made it upstairs, Lily was just just shutting the bathroom door behind her and smiled slightly at them.
Harry, emotions running high from his conversation downstairs, ran into his mum's arms that seemed perfectly moulded to his figure.
“I love you too,” she responded to Harry’s unspoken declaration.
After he pulled back, she softly pushed a piece of hair out of his eyes and cradled his cheek, her bright green eyes searching his for a moment, “You are an absolute miracle Haris,” she whispered aloud and from the look on her face, he wondered if she meant to say it out loud.
“I never thanked you for what you did…for standing in front of my crib, you saved my life,” he whispered.
“I’m your mother, only in death would I ever part from you,” she responded steadily though her eyes watered at the thought of being ripped away from Harry again, the memory from when she first landed in this time and seeing Harry’s baby blanket empty flashing across her vision.
“I wish I could have grown up with you,” he cried, looking at his parents.
“Well we have tomorrow, and the day after, and the day after to grow up together. We have forever together Haris, today is just the start,” Lily cooed to him, gently brushing his hair.
He took the words to heart then, repeating them over and over as he tried to go to sleep because they were so incredibly true.
There was no point dwelling on the past, remembering all he had gone through and wondering what would have changed had James and Lily lived. Maybe his life would be entirely different or maybe it would have been the exact same, some other stream of tragedies leading him down this path.
He thought that all the pain and suffering he had experienced in his short life might have been worth it just to be given this gift at the end of the fight.
Today is just the start .