New Beginnings

A/N: I hope you like this a lot. It was just a little plot bunny in my mind that I finally decided to write. I'm Irish so all spellings are in British English.

Disclaimer: I do not own the marvellous world of Harry Potter, or any of its characters. The honour belongs to J.K. Rowling. I just like to play with the characters sometimes.

Now on with the story….

Chapter One: Going Back to Hogwarts.

Twenty-five year old Harry James Potter and his four young children stood on the platform, waiting for the Hogwarts Express. Harry had been offered a job as the professor of Defence against the Dark Arts and had taken it. They all needed the break after he and Ginny had split up last month. Harry had come home after a long day in the office to see Ginny in their bed with another man. He had been furious and Ginny had been kicked out straight away with all of her belongings. The children, who were staying with their grandparents at the Burrow, were brought home.

Thinking of the Burrow made Harry think of his in-laws, who had been totally supportive of him. Molly and Arthur were angry and disappointed in Ginny and Molly had made their opinions quite known when Ginny had turned up the next Sunday. Harry couldn't face going home to their cottage so he and the children had stayed with Ron and Hermione. Up until now that was. Professor McGonagall had given him a wing of the castle to live in and he had his own office on the second corridor on the right.

He was shaken out of his thoughts by Teddy who was asking him a question:

"Dad, when is the train coming?"

Harry looked down at the battered watch, previously belonging to Fabian Prewitt, that Molly and Arthur had given him for his seventeenth birthday.

"Soon, in about another ten minutes"

Teddy nodded solemnly and Harry's mouth twitched as he tried to suppress a smile. Going to Hogwarts was all Teddy could talk about recently. He supposed it was better than Teddy moping around quietly, quite unlike him, like he had been for the first two weeks after Ginny left. Even though Harry adopted him when he was nineteen, he had never called Ginny Mum and only Harry was treated like a parent. Teddy looked up to Ginny, but only in the way of an older cousin or so. Harry couldn't blame him. Although Harry was only a little over a year older than Ginny, he had the maturity of a forty-five year old man. It was sad to say that sometimes even nearly eight year old Teddy was more mature than her.

Harry switched his gaze to his next oldest child, James. The four year old was trying, and failing, to eat one of Hermione's sticky buns. They were rock hard. Cooking and baking had never been Hermione's forte, and during the hunt, it was left to Harry and Ron to provide edible substances to eat. Harry smiled as James gave up his attempt to eat the bun in disgust.

His babies, two year old Albus and ten month old Lily, were asleep in their double buggy. Albus was a younger version of Harry in looks and Lily had inherited his mother's auburn hair. James had a softer version of Ginny's eyes and shared Harry's hair with Albus. Teddy, a Metamorphosis like his mother Tonks, often changed his features to mimic Harry or Remus or Tonks, depending on his mood.

Thinking of Remus and Tonks still made him upset but it was good for Teddy to know of his parents who had loved him until the end. Theodore Remus Neville Lupin-Potter was named after three strong courageous men who were three of the strongest people Harry had ever had the pleasure to meet.

Harry couldn't wait to see Neville and Hannah again. He had met with them the previous week for a cup of tea and to see his goddaughter. Alice. Harry had choked up three years previously when he was asked to be Alice's godfather, and he had cried like a baby when he was told that her middle name was Harriet, after him. After the war, he and Neville had grown closer and Harry was proud to call Neville one of his best friends. Neville was made Teddy's godfather and Teddy had been named after him during the ceremony four years previously.

Alice meant a lot to Neville and Hannah, because after the war, Hannah was told that a spell had cursed her infertile forever. Somehow she still had her eggs though and Luna had offered to be their surrogate. Their first attempt had been successful and nine months later, Alice was born. Six months ago, Luna had offered to be their surrogate again and currently she was five months pregnant. Neville and Hannah were overjoyed, especially so when they found out it was twins. They had decided not to find out the sex.

A tug on his sleeve brought Harry out of his thoughts. Teddy was beaming as the Hogwarts Express was making its way to Platform 9 and 3/4. Harry couldn't help but grin himself at the vessel that held so many great memories. With a sweep of his wand and the muttering of a spell, the babies in the buggy were lifted onto the train. Teddy pulled James on as Harry accioed their luggage. With everyone and everything on the train, the doors closed automatically and everybody sat down.

Two hours later, Teddy and James were asleep and Harry was wrestling with Lily, trying to make her sit still for once so that he could change her nappy. Albus was sitting quietly in his bouncer, laughing to himself.

"Lily, Lily pet, please lie down for Daddy", Harry begged his rambunctious daughter as the little girl giggled to herself.

He finally managed to close her nappy ten minutes later. He placed her into the travel cot that he had set up in the corner of the carriage and closed his eyes. Only to open them half a second later to Albus' cries. The toddler in question had managed to bang his head somehow. Harry sighed and lifted up the bawling child and summoned him a bottle from the changing bag. He made the bottle, warming it with a flick of his wand, and fed Albus before rocking him off to sleep.

Harry put Albus in the other travel cot and stretched. There was a sharp tap at the window and an owl that Harry recognised as belonging to Professor McGonagall. He opened the window slowly and brought the owl in gently. A letter was attached to the owl's leg and Harry removed it. He then opened the letter and read:

Dear Harry,

Now that you are my colleague, I think it is wise that you should call me Minerva

- Harry stopped reading and blushed. She had been trying to make him call her Minerva since the end of the war. He continued on -

I hope that this letter reaches you whilst you are on the Hogwarts Express. Your wing of the castle has been set up perfectly. I have included four extra bedrooms that can easily be converted for visitors and your leisure. Teddy, James, Lily, Albus and you all have separate bedrooms and I hope you find them to your liking.

I also took the liberty of adding several safety precautions onto the rooms to prevent the young ones from danger.

I look forward to seeing you all at the castle,

Minerva.

Harry smiled. His old Head of House knew his children had inherited his streak for getting into accidental danger, something that worried Harry to no end as a parent. Then again, he could hardly talk. He often wondered what his parents would say if they were alive during his teenage years and imagined his mother shaking her head sadly while his father paced around the floor and later would clap him on the back and congratulate him. Sirius would be there, laughing his head off and encouraging him by regularly secretly sending supplies and Remus ... Remus would be there, his reaction seemingly silently disapproving to appease Lily, but later on, Remus would grin sheepishly at him and sneak him chocolate, as a present to say well done to the second generation Marauder. Remus, who would never meet his son, and his parents who would never meet their grandchildren, and Sirius… Sirius would never meet his god-grandchildren and as good as grandchildren. A lump in his throat appeared and Harry gulped it away. Now was not the time to think of the past. He gazed at Teddy again, Teddy may never know the original Marauders nor his equally mischievous mother but that didn't necessarily mean he wouldn't be a prankster. Especially not with his Uncle George's help.

The train suddenly jolted as it sped along the tracks. Harry, torn out of his meditation on what could have been, turned to his children. All four were still asleep. After sweeping the hair out of James' eyes, whom like Albus had inherited the Potter hair, he conjured up some blankets and covered his children. Harry looked out the window, at his surroundings, and realised that they were but an hour away from reaching Hogsmeade Station. Soon, he would be back to Hogwarts, to his first proper home.

A/N: Hey everyone, I know this update is really short, but I wanted to finally finish this chapter before updating the story with another chapter, hopefully it will be up soon. Thanks so much to everyone who reviewed and followed this story and me. I really appreciate it :) Constructive criticism and reviews are always welcomed.