Back to the future
30/9/71
Hi Mum.
Thanks for the candy, Sookie's first treacle tart was as perfect as Janie's was. Tell her she's amazing. Classes are almost too easy, did you know about the supposed curse on the DADA? Frank Longbottom, the sixth year Prefect said no one has had the job more than a year in almost fifteen years. How crazy is that, I wonder who cursed it?
Sirius and Peter say hello Remus said thanks for the books but waffled on about how it isn't necessary but none of us listened. He's way too non material, you know he only brought three pairs of pants and two sweaters with him outside of uniforms.
Lily has decided she hates me but everything she says against me sounds parroted from Sniv, Snape. She'll come around to my awesomeness eventually.
I miss you and Dad but school is really fun. I have class soon but I'll write to you later.
Love James.
Pain is usually the best indicator that Harry isn't dead. It's a depressing thought to have when you first wake up but Harry feels relieved anyway.
"Harry!" A feminine voice cries and Harry is suffocated in a hug and red hair. His brain feels like it's being hit with a hammering charm and breathing is barely doable with the stabbing pain but he accepts the hug anyway. Harry grabs his glasses and sees she's obviously been crying. He's in his room in seventy nine or Ron's room in ninety three. There are six different potions on his bedside table that Lily makes him take all of and not one tastes good but breathing is easier and his head stops throbbing.
"What happened?" Harry blinks rapidly to adjust to the light, it was midday at least and he feels stiff. Like he hasn't moved in days.
"You're grounded is what happened. When we get home I'm confiscating your firebolt, map, cloak and you can't go to hogsmeade until I say otherwise." Aunt Nia says from the doorway and his stomach churns with guilt. She looks fine, angry and tired and worried but she's healthy.
"I'm sorry, I couldn't let you hurt yourself for me." He whispers as she sits next to Lily.
"And I can't let you go headfast into danger when there's another option." She replies just as sternly as before. Harry hasn't seen her anger directed at him before but even Dumbledore is afraid of her without knowing the extent of her abilities. He knows better, Nia would never hurt him of course. She can still out the fear of God in him though, especially since she kinda is one.
"Losing you isn't an option." He states trying to look forceful despite how weak he feels. She has to understand why. "You are the one person who takes care of me. Sirius is more dog than man most days, I barely know Remus. It's you and Sookie that keep the family stable. At school you're the one with the cheat code to the future. I've been out for what three days? You would have been unconscious for six months." Lily is caught between them watching with wide eyes.
"No, that's not quite what happened, you only drank half the potion and we had to resuscitate you twice. The other half James took and he's in his bed slightly more stable but he hasn't woken up yet. If you finished that potion it would have killed you. It might have killed James and he's not a recovering chronically malnourished thirteen year old anaemic." Nia lectures with an intensity Harry recognises from her arguments with Snape or Dumbledore but it's never been directed at him.
"Hope I'm sure he feels guilty enough." Lily tries to defend him as he starts to cry, the potion helps his headache but not enough for thus.
"This isn't about guilt," her voice is too high, not raising her voice but almost. She takes a breath and tries again. "I'm your guardian Harry, it's my job to take care of you and you have to let me." Harry's crying
"This really isn't the time. Harry needs rest, Hope can you let Remus know Harry's awake and check on James. Lily isn't subtle in her de-escalation but Nia walks out after a deep breath.
"She wouldn't have woken up, Madam Pomfrey tried healing potions after she was poisoned by a Basilisk last year and they barely kept her stable till the Muggleborn Doctor arrived. I knew you'd heal me, I knew you could." Harry says and turns to his mother who's crying.
"I think you and Hope are far too eager to put yourselves in danger to stop the other you're both blind to other options. Why didn't you ask for help? We could have come up with a better plan."
"Someone had to drink it." Harry says and the knowledge that his Dad did when Harry broke character is more painful than the potion was.
"It shouldn't be you. Hope made sure it wasn't and you paralysed her so Regulus and I went back into Grimmauld place to not only rescue Sirius when he got captured but free the last Speaker, Hope's mother who died saving you and James from the long term side effects of the potion." Lily is still so soft as she tells him but it hurts like a bludger to the chest. Harry tries to apologize and say something but he can't, what can he say? He's sorry that doesn't cut it. Lily doesn't know what else to say either so they just sit until Harry falls back asleep.
The next time he wakes it's with James who looks just as beaten down as Harry feels. His dad smiles and grabs matching potions and offers one to Harry. When Harry takes it James clicks glasses like it's a fancy dinner before downing it. Harry recognises the disgusted face he makes from the not so secret photo's Sookie has in an album labelled seventeen.
There are two more potions and then Harry feels well enough to launch into a hug. He's a little light-headed so James has to catch him a little but he still gets his hug.
"I'm so sorry. Are you okay, how much did you drink?" Harry says quickly as he sits back down on the bed and assess his father. The benefits of being more or less identical is he has almost the same tells. The main difference is where Harry would make himself look smaller, James will try to look bigger. Like right now his posture is perfect despite the tension in his shoulders proving it's not comfortable trying to make them seem broad.
Another worrying outcome of his shitty childhood no doubt. Their faces are identical but Harry feels like he still looks ten. Sure he's grown since leaving Privet drive but he was a small ten year old
"I'll live. Good thing we're going into hiding anyway I suppose." James answers and Harry goes cold.
"He's after you?"
"Apparently there's a prophecy about a child born at the end of July with the power to destroy Voldemort. Suppose it's not long now." They both know what he means.
"I'm sorry." Harry cries, the floodgates are opened and everything he's been trying not to feel breaks through because he has days left and there's so much he still needs to say, to hear. He's not ready to lose them again.
James let's him cry for a while brushing his hair in a way that actually seems to get results thanks to a soft cream in his pocket with the Potter family crest. A ridiculous old Urn with snake handles and writing in Latin and Tamil.
"You don't have to apologise to me because I don't regret a thing. I had parents who loved me to the point I was a spoiled ass. I have three best friends who would do anything for me as I would for them. I'm married to the woman of my dreams and have the most amazing Hero for a son. So I'll gladly spend however little days left hiding with you and when the day comes my name will be forever written in the history books as a testament to how much I loved my son. I'll die a happy man."
They hug again and there's a new round of tears as the door opens. It's Lily with lunch on a tray for all three of them. Sookie following soon behind with drinks.
So they have lunch in heavy but companionable silence until Harry's done. "What's the date?" He asks, he doesn't know how long he was asleep and they only have till the new year.
"The thirtieth." Lily admits after a pause and a shared look with James.
"No, it can't. I'm not ready yet."Harry says lamely and Lily takes his hand with pursed lips.
"I know but you need to go home. Ron and Hermione will kill each other without you and what will Malfoy do without you there to annoy." James goes for casual but it sounds forced. Tomorrow, he goes home tomorrow.
It's just past noon and despite Lily's arguments he has to get up. Won't spend his last days with his parents in bed. It's slow going for Harry to get dressed with his head spinning but they eventually make it downstairs to the library where Lily charms the grand piano to play as they spend the day on couches reading books. James helps Harry clean up his Tamil and teaches him family secrets about the house and old stories, it's amazing how much history there is.
The Potters are older than the Malfoys and in India older than the Blacks. They only came to the UK because Hogwarts is the best wizarding school on offer. A sad thought given the near death experiences and horrible staffing choices at times Harry thinks. Around dusk Regulus walks in all stuffy and posh to poorly cover up nerves. He asks to see James and they disappear for half and hour while Lily does Harry's hair using the same cream James had before. Which apparently is the Sleakeazys prototype that's only really necessary for the signature Potter mop. By the time James returns, Harry's looking at his hair in a hand mirror and It actually looks good. A bit like he's in a boy band but he wasn't getting points for masculinity anyway so that might be a good thing.
Remus passes through with information about Sirius who's still bedbound and a message from Nia. Essentially she says Sirius's memory needs to be altered. It'll be blamed on the attack so he won't question the lost time but in the future Sirius didn't know who Nia was and Remus did. Moony doesn't look comfortable with the idea of Obliviating his partner but doesn't disagree that it needs doing.
"Where is she?" Harry asks softly as he turns to go back upstairs and Moony smiles sadly.
"In the pool. She's a bit emotional." He doesn't say she doesn't wanna see Harry but it's implied so Harry sinks back into the couch and grabs his sketchbook and tries to match Lily's freckles as closely as possible.
Dinner is a Potter family house elf Racipe of a hopefully chicken curry that Nia doesn't join them for but Lily takes some to her while Harry and James settle in on the quidditch meadow while Sookie sets up a magic run vintage projector courtesy of Arthur Weasley. There's a picnic blanket in gryffindor red and an assortment of muggle snacks and Willy Wonka, Robin Hood and of course Bambi. Lily comes out a while later on her own and Harry tries not to let his stomach sink. He can grovel tomorrow, tonight is all he has.
"Willy Wonka is definitely a wizard, he even looks like a Prewitt. Doesn't Molly have a crazy uncle William?" James says around the bubbles that make you fly.
"It's based on a book that came out in Nineteen sixty four, so maybe? We'll have to ask Molly after dinner next time." Lily laughs out a reply and Harry yawns, pulling out more liquorice as Veruca proves herself a bad egg.
"Veruca reminds me of Dudley. His eleventh birthday he threw a fit because he had thirty six presents and last year he had thirty seven. Whereas for my last birthday there I got Dudley's old underwear and locked it in my cupboard for three days because I accidentally grew my hair back overnight when Petunia shaved it." Harry mutters more to himself as he starts slipping too close to sleep for his liking. He tries to shake himself awake and realises what he said and to who.
"So, that's one of the things I'm not meant to say anything about and Nia is mad enough at me so if you could forget I said anything."
"No way In hell Kid." James says his voice tight.
"They hurt you?" Lily doesn't want the answer. He can't give it to her and expect her not to change something. He can't lie either.
"Not much, they mainly ignored me really. But I'm okay now, Nia brought me home and Sirius and soon Remus and we're happy."
"Harry, when you were out, I did some checks on your general health. You're not just waiting for a growth spurt. You know that right?"
"More or less. I'll get some taller, about five-eight or so and I eat well now so it's not a continued problem. I'm never gonna look like you but it's okay, if I'm smaller I'm faster and harder to hit. Which is far more useful in my line of work than brawn." He mumbles, excusing himself to pee.
Great, fantastic. Last night with his parents and he just casually oh yeah after you die they send me to be neglected, starved and treated like a Malfoy House Elf. All with no Nia buffer, slowly he makes his way back to the picnic where Robin Hood is about to start. He laughs when James mention how maid Marian is kind of a babe and Lily reminds him she's a cartoon fox so they argue about intent for the rest of the film. When Bambi starts James has more commentary until Bambi's mother dies and watches the rest in silence.
At some point Harry falls asleep, because he stirs from darkness as someone lifts him from the soft warm blanket.
"He's so light." James whispers and Harry starts to think he should let them know he's awake so he walks but he's paralysed by not wanting to so he doesn't.
"Why Petunia, even if our family can't there are a million people I'd prefer he go to."Lily whispers back. Dumbledore is the answer but Harry gets the feeling Lily isn't far off the conclusion on her own.
"I know but we can't do anything, not without risking his future."
"Would that be so bad? They're going back into war James. A war it's his job to end and he's barely five feet tall." Lily argues and sleeping is less fun now.
"Five-two technically." He mumbles and yawns. James stops short in shock but covers by letting him to his feet. "I win by the way. My height has little to know impact on my destiny, and that's without Nia's help. She's been working to help us win faster and with less casualties in an already short war. Voldemort comes back next June which isn't ideal, but he dies before I turn eighteen so really that's only three years of heightened danger, most of which I spend at Hogwarts." He tries to put a positive spin on it. He doesn't have all the details and another of the dates he only knows because he has Sona listen under doors sometimes.
"You're saying you're happy to risk your life to kill Voldemort?" Lily argues and Harry gives a tired shrug.
"'That's the gig. Neither shall live while the other survives. It's him or me no matter what we do, so unless you plan on holding me in till midnight on the thirty first of July this is it. I'd rather know what I'm getting into with a Fae Goddess on my side. If I can get her to talk to me." He responds as they pass his bedroom. He hugs them both tightly. They have until noon tomorrow, today technically as it's past midnight. Harry doesn't want to waste it sleeping but he can barely keep his eyes open as Lily and James tuck him in and leave forehead kisses before they go.
Harry wakes at seven, eager to get out of bed he's the first one in the kitchen helping Sookie with breakfast. The next one down is Nia and she just stares at Harry standing still as a statue.
"Mum said you met yours, your mother that is." Harry tries nervously.
"Briefly." Is all she responds with.
"I am sorry. I wish I didn't use your name. It was too far and I understand you're angry with me. I just, we're going home today and I need you." Her resolve breaks and she rushes forward to hug him. "I'm sorry." He whispers into her hair.
"Me too Hero. I keep promising to be careful but I don't. I don't fully know what I'm capable of but sometimes I feel invincible and with everything you have to go through what better help could I bring than taking the hits for you."
"You're not a human shield. You're my Mum and I need you to look after me without dying or being hospitalised or imprisoned." There are steps on the stairs and Harry pulls out of the hug.
"Everything okay?" Remus asks from the door. He looks like he hasn't slept and the full moon isn't far off. Harry gives him a quick hug before sitting to eat his French toast.
"Better. You alright Moony?" Nia answers and Remus just shrugs.
"Sirius isn't doing well. The lacerations on his chest keep reopening. I don't know why they won't heal."
"Sectumsempra. It's a Snape special. He knows how to heal it, if Lily asks he'll help. Especially once Voldemort realises she's pregnant." Nia responds and Remus looks solemn as he nods.
"In the future. I warned you not to come back didn't I?" Remus says like he decided recently.
"There were a few arguments about the wisdom of my plan. Specifically bringing Harry. Which I understand now. Harry suddenly finds the colouring of his toast very interesting.
"Do you ever take advice?"
"Haven't needed to really. But I'll try to be better." She promises Harry as much as Remus and he smiles sitting down next to Harry with a plate holding far more meat than Harry's.
"Why don't I believe you?" He asks as he eats a sausage and nia takes the seat opposite Harry with a smirk.
"My magic doesn't work on a fellow magical creature, Wolfy McWerewolf." Nia's plate is vegetarian which Harry finds odd. Her refusal to eat meat at breakfast time. Regulus is next downstairs and he seat the opposite end of the table with a black coffee and various tarts and Danishes.
"Ready to go to the future Reggie?" Nia asks as he takes a sip of coffee.
"I'm eager to see Lyra again. The rest is just more of the same."
"Not necessarily, I was thinking instead of having Barty Crouch infiltrate Hogwarts as defence teacher next year we cut out the middleman. He'll be at the Quidditch cup so we just need to ensure you catch up. I'll convince Dumbledore to give you the job." She explains her immediate plan for him and he raises a single prefect eyebrow.
"I'm eighteen, do you expect students barely two years younger to listen to me?"
"A time travelling former death eater. You may have a chance. And if not there's always the fact that you're young and hot so they'll wanna impress you." She replies and Harry makes a face.
"It'll be worse than Lockhart. I've already overheard more than I wanted to in the common room about Professor Moony." Harry groans and Remus laughs as Lily and James come down.
"What's funny?" James takes the seat at the head of the table next to Harry. His official seat as Head of house in a formal setting but currently it's just the closest to Harry. Lily sits next to Nia but not before dragging Regulus to their side of the table.
"Uncle Moony being a hot teacher fantasy for the fifth to seventh years back home." Harry rolls his eyes as he explains and Lily giggle while James grins.
"The Cassandra of Gryffindor tower strikes again. Did you know he was the first kiss of every adult in the house except Reggie. It was Reggie's first kiss." James says and Nia flicks his shoulder in annoyance. Harry suddenly remembers what was promised to never be spoken of and makes a face.
"How ironic Mrs Weasley thinks Sirius was the playboy." Nia laughs with a waggle of her eyebrows in Moony's direction and Harry wants to change the subject.
"What are you telling Dumbledore?" Harry asks and Nia shrugs like it doesn't matter."
"The public story."
"And when he doesn't believe it."
"I'll dance around his questions like you always hate and end up leaving him more confused than I started. Have faith, Hero. Screwing with people is what I do best." She promises and ruffles his hair.
When breakfast is over Lily and James help Harry pack his stuff while they talk about school and family and everything they can think of other that the clock ticking closer Nia finishes first having done most of her packing last night and comes in to join the mock James with a scene from the original timeline about James' strut and Harry wrongly defending him.
All too soon Harry, Nia and Regulus are standing by a familiar faintly glowing tree with Remus, Lily and James waiting on the other end. James pulls Harry in for a hug, the first final crying.
"Be safe Harry, listen to Hope if at all possible but follow your heart. You're a brave person and I love that you want to help everyone but just stay alive yeah? Make up for the ones I lose by getting at least as old as Dumbledore. Plus more Potter, biological or not I always wanted to have a family like the Weasleys. Can't throw a stone without hitting one." James' final requests to Harry are unexpected but instead of filling Harry with pressure he feels something lift in him.
"I don't think we can stop Nia picking up strays. It'll probably rub off on me." He promises with a tearful laugh as Harry's pulled from his Father's arms into his Mother's.
"I love you so much. I'm going to research this prophecy and voldemort, If I find anything I'll hide it in the potions lab cupboards. I wish I could do more for you but I need you to know what happens that night. I don't regret it, not now, not when it comes. You are everything I could've hoped you would be and I am so proud of the young man you're becoming. Thank you so much for coming back and giving us a chance to get to know you." Lily is in tears from the first line and Harry doesn't even pretend to hold back.
"Thank you Mum. Everyone always tells me what you did to show you loved me but I needed to know for myself. It sucks so much that this is all we got but I'm so glad I came." James wraps his arms around them both and they just stand, they just hold each other a moment.
He hears Nia shuffle to Remus. "Give Padfoot a kiss for me," Nia's tone is joking but they're suspiciously quiet for a second and Harry hears Regulus snort on his left.
"I'll pass on the message," he sounds far too pleased with himself, almost like Sirius and Harry separates from the group hug to glare at him.
"You understand when we touch that tree she's still going to be twenty and beautiful while You'll be one the wrong end of thirty with more grays than Hagrid." Harry sharks and James breaks out laughing when Moony makes a face.
"Harry I normally encourage all forms of self expression but please shut up." Nia laughs going pink and Lily lets out a soft laugh.
"Since we're saying goodbye, old times sake Reg?" James asks after a loaded look with Lily who nods. Regulus blanches as James crosses the distance in one step, because he's studied tall. He barely nods before Harry sees his Dad kiss another man. Is this normal? None of this is normal and Reg and James were in love and in a way they're both dying to the other. Harry meets Mum's eyes and she's just smiling sadly. So they talked about this. Okay, sure.
It isn't an inappropriate kiss and over before Harry looks away from Lily but Reg Is white as a sheet. After a moment he furrows his brows an whispers bastard and James smirks. "Remus, I'll see you in a moment." Reg says instead and Moony smiles.
"And I'll see you in fourteen years." Remus agrees.
"Ready Hero?" Nia asks, taking his hand and Regulus's.
"Not at all," he says with one last look at his parents holding hands and smiling at him just like in the mirror of Erised. "Let's go."