Chapter One
-November 1, 1981-
James Potter didn't wake with a start or wake up wide eyed, remembering every little detail about the night before. He woke up slowly. He woke up thinking his two boys were completely safe in their crib and Lily was beside him or downstairs starting breakfast. When he did allow his eyes to open, he found himself in a room at St. Mungos. James sat up, confused, as he looked to his right, finding Lily in another bed beside him. He then looked around the room, finding Sirius and Remus sitting on a sofa holding only one baby, both of them crying, not having noticed James was awake yet.
"Where's...where's the other one?" James asked, looking around for a St. Mungo's cot with a sleeping baby inside, but only found one.
"James." Sirius sounded relieved as he and Remus came over. "Hey, how are you feeling?"
"Why are we at St. Mungos? Why is there only one baby here? Where's- are they okay?" James asked, looking down at the baby finding it to be Charlie. "Where's Harry?"
"We don't know." Remus spoke gently, "when we got there...only Charlie was in the crib."
James felt his world crashing. He was grateful to be sitting down because he knew he would have fallen hearing Harry was missing.
"There is evidence that he is alive. Whoever took him took his baby blanket and his plushies, oddly enough." Remus told him.
"So he was just taken? Kidnapped? After Voldemort attacked us, someone came in-"
"We believe Peter panicked and stole Harry when Voldemort vanished. Dumbledore has more of the details on that particular detail, but the aurors are looking and the Order too. We'll find him, James." Sirius explained, rocking Charlie as he started to squirm. James took Charlie from Sirius' arms and held him close to his chest, his hand rubbing Charlie's back.
"How am I going to tell Lily?"
"With us." Remus told him as he and Sirius wrapped him in a comforting hug. James closed his eyes and nodded, "We'll find them."
"Yeah. We'll find them." James said
Days turned into weeks which turned into months which slowly turned into years. There was never any sign or clue of the rat or baby. Despite that James never gave up hope, not even when Lily planted Larkspurs in memory of Harry.
-March 1, 1997-
Despite Harry being a year younger than the regular first year student, his magic had been out of control by the time he was nine. The many Healers had finally suggested getting him a wand and starting his education early. So through hard work and many months of studying Harry was accepted into Kreasiara institute at age 10 making him the youngest student in the school.
Kreasiara was like Hogwarts only more selective as they were a year-around school with occasional breaks to go home to. They accepted all magical creatures and all magical backgrounds as long as they could pay for their intuition, but they only accepted ten to twenty people a year. They were known for their excellent course selections as well as their high testing scores.
Kreasiara was an elite school and they offered many courses, even courses that were in different schools through their Owl Education program. It allowed students to take classes through owl post with other schools or Ministry tutors as long as their mandatory classes weren't affected. Harry took his mandatory classes and also a few electives through the schools selection and Owl Education program.
One class he took as a selective at the school was History of Magical Families. He took it because it was well known you did a family tree at the end of your last year and as an adoptee Harry always wanted to know more about his birth family. That assignment was finally brought up before Yule break and finally the day came they were going to start it.
"Now remember to only cut down one finger, not all five, just one. Preferably your index finger. Palm up, start at the knuckle and cut down to your fingertip. Five drops of blood directly into the cauldron. Heal it immediately then once the potion turns a dark purple put the scroll of parchment inside the cauldron and let it sit. It needs to sit for 24 hours so tomorrow we will begin. The next two months will be this assignment. You will be digging up every possible thing about your closest magical family's history using our books here at the school and any other information by contacting the direct Head of the family. If there is no one to talk to you will trace that bloodline to see if they died out or were married into a different family." Professor Maldonado told the class
Harry did as told, sliding the tip of the knife down his finger over the cauldron. He counted the five drops and pulled his finger away, healing it quickly. Watching the potion he waited for it to turn a dark purple then he grabbed the rolled up parchment and pushed it into the liquid. Once that was done he covered it with the lid and turned the low flame off. When the class was dismissed Harry headed to his next class excited for the next day when he'll get his results.
**
"Alright class remove your lids and the parchment should have soaked in the entire potion. A little liquid left over is normal but if your parchment is still soaking in potion then it wasn't done correctly and we'll need to restart. Now remember for some people this will be easy, for others not so much. Do not feel bad if one person is finished in two weeks when you're just beginning to write your first notes."
Harry removed the lid and was relieved to find his potion was completely gone. He pulled out the dried up scroll and pushed the cauldron off to the side. Harry held the rolled up parchment in his hand for a moment staring at it, he was finally going to learn of his true parentage. He was finally going to know almost everything about himself with this single scroll. Harry unfurled the parchment and laid it on the table, his eyes raking over the words written in his blood.
Closest Magical Bloodline - Noble House of Potter.
Direct Descendant
Biological Father -
James Fleamont Potter (1960 -)
Biological Mother-
Lily Ethel Potter née Evans (1960-)
Godfather-
Sirius Orion Black (1959-)
Godmother-
Alice Rae Longbottom nèe Fortsecue (1960-)
Adopted Father-
Matteo Leon Black née Milani (1955-)
Adopted Father-
Henry Samuel Black (1956-)
Harry knew the Black family was quite large. His Papa and his godfather sharing a last name really was just a coincidence. Papa always told him he didn't know anything about his birth family and Harry believed him. Papa was always supportive when it came to Harry wanting to know more about his birth parents and would often help when he was able to. If he had known something he'd have told him.
"Alright class for the ones who have their parchment I want you to repeat after me ready? Celo. Celo. It means conceal, hide, keep secret. I want you to tap on everything except the Closest Magical Bloodline and their results. Everything else is yours to keep secret until your final project. This information is private...it will only be shown to me and once it is graded it will be returned to you via Owl in a blood-locked envelope. These results will be with your final project so do not lose them. I'll come around and check your papers to make sure everyone has something. It's very rare to have a true new blood in this day and age, every Squibborn or rather Muggleborn came from a magical family at some point. New blood is rare. If you do have new blood I want you to pick a magical family to do a project on. Any magical family will do."
Harry covered all the information up except the bloodline and when Maldonado came to check his he was surprised to find it wasn't Black like most of the class would have expected. Maldonado was an older man, his white hair curled and fell just above his shoulders. He had a full white beard that he kept trimmed and always combed to perfection whenever Harry saw him. He was always in a more modern style robe, a four piece almost similar to muggle suits though what would normally stop at the suit jacket for muggles now had a matching robe or cape.
"I knew you were adopted, but I'm still surprised. I can't wait to see the connection. You will have a great report I can already tell. Good work Harry."
"Thanks Maldonado. Am I excused then?"
"Yes. Off you trot. If you need any help my door is always open."
"Thanks. I'm going to start my letter I guess."
On his way to his dorm Harry thought about his birth parents. He did the math in his head and realized they were fresh out of school when they had him. Probably nineteen when they learned they were expecting and twenty when he was born. He could understand why they'd put him up for adoption. Especially if they were studying to further their education for a career path like a healer or something similar. Or maybe they just weren't ready. If he remembered correctly back then Godparents were assigned at birth due to the War so him having godparents wasn't odd or unusual as far as he knew.
Sitting at his desk in his dorm room he first wrote a letter to his Papa telling him about his results and the shared last name of his godfather which is going to be very confusing if he ever met his birth parents and by extension his godparents. He wondered if Alice Longbottom was Neville Longbottom's mother, Neville was his Herbology pen-pal who studied at Hogwarts. They met at a Herbology Seminar in Glasgow a few years ago and now celebrated their birthday together.
Neville was probably Harry's only friend that he actually considered to be a friend and not a ''school acquaintance whom he speaks to''. Yes Harry actually used those words to describe everyone at school whom he has said more than three words to. Call him a lone-wolf all you want, but Harry didn't need friends that gossiped and talked about cute boys or girls. He had a mate somewhere out there and that was all he cared about.
Papa hadn't known for sure if Harry had gotten infected enough to have a mate and by extension have a second gender. For an entire four months they had believed Harry wouldn't be infected, but then on July 31, 1993 he woke up an Omega, just days before his first heat was to start. Barely enough time to build his first attempt at a nest. That's when they had learned his real birth date.
When he was five he had begged his parents to let him camp outside during the full moon. He had always been obsessed with it, he hadn't known why, but he knew it was important to him even before he really understood about werewolves.
His parents finally allowed him to camp out when a pack Papa worked with offered to guard the yard. Uncle Frankie was probably Harry's favorite person back then and remains to be so to this day. Uncle Frankie and a few other werewolf uncles and aunts guarded the yard that was on the border of a werewolf forest. Then a first time wolf appeared that night and had come to the backyard by the street, not the forest. Frankie had smelled him, but the new wolf had been fast and had attacked his tent just as Frankie and the others came into the yard.
Harry knew not to scream so he didn't. He knew to become as small as he could be and not make any noise so the wolf couldn't easily find him. He remembered the growls and the sound of jaw snapping around him. He remembered the tent shredding so easily then he remembered the claws. He remembered the cry he let out and then he remembered Frankie's growl before he killed the new wolf to protect Harry. His parents had run out just as Frankie dropped the dead weight of the new wolf on to the ground and came over to Harry.
Harry didn't remember much after that, only Frankie hovering beside him for the entire night. When Harry had woken that next morning Frankie was there beside him apologizing to him and his parents. Papa never blamed Frankie, Father did though but Father didn't much care for werewolves in general despite being married to a pro-werewolf/creature activist. Father left not a year later despite Harry not being turned every full moon. Papa never let Harry blame himself for that and promised Harry that he loved him no matter what.
Frankie had made Harry part of his pack and though he didn't shift by force he did have a wolf form much like an animagus and had many characteristics and traits of a werewolf.
Male omegas were rather rare as males who weren't Alpha were typically Beta. When his second gender was learned Frankie and many other alphas of the Pack became even more protective of him. So much so that unmated alphas hadn't been allowed twenty feet of him for the first six months before Harry finally told them they were being ridiculous. He then had to remind them he was top of the class in his dueling, defense against Magic, and Defense against Creatures lessons. Only then did they relent...a little bit.
Once Papa's letter was finished he dried it then put it in an envelope and gave it to his personal owl, Hedwig. A beautiful snowy owl he adored and was given to as a going away present when he started school. He then moved on to his next letter. A letter he has practiced writing for many years so that when it came time to send it it would be perfect.
To James-
Dear James-
Hi! My name is-
To Whomever May Read This-
Harry crumbled up the fourth paper and tossed it in the bin sighing heavily. He took a deep breath thinking about everything he learned in his classes about writing formal and informal letters to heads of families and to a business employee. With that done he dipped his quill in his ink pot and began writing again.
Dear Lord Potter,
I am writing to you as part of my History of Magical Families class. This is my final year for this class and the last three months of my schooling will be dedicated solely on this project for this class. I guess I should explain what the project is and why it has led me to write this letter to you.
To begin I was adopted from a muggle orphanage with only a few things that were mine. I was always curious about my birth family which has led me to this class. At the end of one's last year of this class they do a bloodline test to see their closest magical bloodline. Mine is you. Or rather this family.
While Kreasiara Institute has a vast library of thousands of books on magical families it's always a good recommendation to talk to a living blood descendant. That is you. If you are comfortable with it, I would greatly appreciate discussing what you are willingly to share and including it in my project.
I understand if you do not want to exchange letters or share anything too personal about the family. If you would like I can give you the final edit of my project for approval a week before it is due.
Sincerely,
Harry.
Harry ended his 'y' with a flourish he learned in his calligraphy/writing lessons as a kid and student here. He read over the letter a few times before drying it and tucking it into a more formal envelope than what he used for his Papa. Harry folded the top flap down and poured the red melted wax on the end then pressed his School Crest stamp down on it. Once it was done he painted the print of the crust gold so it stood out like he was taught and then headed down to the school owlery. He put it in the envelope pouch the school owls had then put the vest on the owl and sent it off with the name of the recipient.
Harry stood in the Owlery watching as the owl disappeared from view. One of his many goals he had was finally completeld on his end. His goal was to find out his birth family and contact them, he did just that. Now it was up to them to make the next move. A move Harry still didn't know he was absolutely ready for yet. So many things could go wrong still after all and not knowing what their views were on anything unnerved him. When the owl was long gone Harry turned and left the owlery deciding to do some studying for his other classes. He headed straight to the library and found a secluded table then got to work.
******
"I'm just saying that we shouldn't give up. Peter is still out there even if...even if Harry isn't." James was saying as he followed Remus, Sirius, and Lily to the Great Hall for dinner that night.
"We're not saying to give up on Peter." Lily argued
"No, only Harry." James said bitterly
"It's been fifteen years James. It's time." James didn't say anything, it seemed like any time he and Lily spoke to each other it was the same argument the exact same way with the exact same words.
Sirius and Remus had thankfully kept the fighting from being noticed by Charlie and Ariel. However James was sure they knew something was going on between them. After all, it has been the same argument for five years come this Yule when Lily asked about doing a memorial for Harry. An official one. With an empty casket. Sirius and Remus haven't made their stance known yet, but James had a feeling they were leaning towards Lily's side of the argument. Especially recently.
Sitting at the Head Table, James filled his plate with different foods and looked over to the Gryffindor table finding Charlie with Ron and Hermione and Ariel was sitting with her friends. His eyes darted up to a Hawk Owl flying in the open archways near the ceiling. The owl flew around the Great Hall for a quick lap then it landed in front of him.
"Expecting a letter?" Sirius asked
"Not that I know of." James said, reaching out to look at the pouch, "Kreasiara Institute. Isn't that the really elite school in Ireland or something?" He asked Sirius assuming he'd probably know.
"Yeah I think so. They only let like ten people in per a year and it's really expensive." Sirius said, shoving a forkful of his potatoes into his mouth, "you know someone there?"
"Not that I know of." James opened the pouch and pulled out an envelope that was addressed only to his name, not Hogwarts or the Manor.
"Well go on Mister popular." Remus teased bumping into James. James playfully glared at Remus, but flipped it over and looked at the wax seal before flipping it open. He pulled out the trifold letter and his eyes went down to the signature.
"Harry." James spoke softly, shocked to see the name of his son he had just been talking about.
"What?" Lily asked, turning from her conversation with Snape to him.
"It's- the letter...it's from a uh- a Harry." James said, swallowing heavily as Lily and his two best friends also looked at the letter in shock.
"I'm sure the name is just popular. After all, isn't the Prince named Harry?" Sirius tried to dismiss
"Right of course." James agreed before he stood up, "I'm not hungry anymore. I'm just going to my office to look at this and see what they want." Before either of them could protest James hurried out of the Great Hall and headed straight to his office where he began to read the letter before he even moved to sit down. With each word he read he knew, each other he processed his heart began to ache and he had to sit on his desk before he fell as his knees weakened.
To begin, I was adopted.
Mine is you. Or rather this family.
Those two sentences stayed with him later that night as he tossed and turned in his bed. He had been able to dismiss the questions his family asked him that evening. Telling them it was just a student asking about Pureblood Lines for his class project. Which was sort of the truth. For some reason he couldn't bring himself to tell the three people who were ready to bury an empty casket with Harry's name on it that Harry was alive and writing to him.
Not yet.
Not until he had evidence of what his heart was telling him at this very moment. That somehow his son was alive. His son was out there and had just written him a letter. If they did the bloodline test James thought they did then Harry knew James was his biological father as well.
He had to either get that test result or get Harry's blood for a test of his own before he told the others. With his next steps planned out James turned over once more and willed his body to go to sleep. He had a letter to write tomorrow after all