"Hello Ginny," Lily said, appearing beside the staircase.
"Hi Mrs. Potter," Ginny said brightly, trying to act innocent.
"What's going on? Surely Harry hasn't spoken to you yet; he's still asleep."
"I know, I just thought I'd come- Sh-" Ginny nearly cursed as Lily's eyes watched her drop a bottle from inside her coat. She altered her expression of anger to, "Crap." She bent to reach for the bottle but Lily said, "Accio," and summoned the bottle before Ginny could reach it.
Lily undid the cork and sniffed the brew briefly. "This is your mum's hang over remedy, is it not?"
Ginny bit her lip, unsure of how to answer. Her lack of answer confirmed to Lily that it was the brew she had assumed. "Ginny, what's this for?"
Ginny studied her feet and Lily called up the stairs, "Harry! Get down here right now!"
James appeared at Lily's side and kissed the top of her head before greeting Ginny.
"Hi Mr. Potter, how are you?"
"I'm fine, but I'm kind of wondering what you're doing, sneaking up my stairs on a Wednesday morning."
Ginny began studying her feet again as Lily wordlessly passed James the bottle. He sniffed it as well and roared, "HARRY JAMES POTTER! GET DOWN HERE THIS INSTANT!"
Lily looked up at James, mildly afraid herself. and said, "Can you deal with him? I can't do this again. I'll take Ginny home."
"That's alright, Mrs. Potter. I can floo by myself."
"I just want to talk to your mum and make sure she knows that you took some of that."
"She made it because I asked her to because-"
"Did you know Harry was going drinking?"
"Erm, well, he owled me last night-"
"So you knew?"
Ginny hung her head and nodded sheepishly. "I'm sorry. I should have told you."
"You're right, you should have but I still want to talk to your mum."
Harry came down the stairs rubbing his temples.
"Blimey Dad. Do you have to be so loud?" Harry asked, before realizing what the scene before him meant. Ginny mouthed, "Sorry," to him. Harry realized he was in for it as his mum stepped into the floo after her. He was going to be left alone with his dad, and his dad was always more lenient when his mum was around.
At the Burrow Molly heard the fireplace whoosh and she turned to greet her daughter, "Hello Ginny, did Harry-" and was surprised to find two red-headed women looking at her.
"Go up to your room Ginny. I put some laundry in there for you to put away okay dear?" Ginny nodded and ran up the stairs leaving the two mothers alone.
Molly said, "I'm so sorry Lily. I didn't mean to have the kids sneaking-"
"It's whatever Molly. Thank you for looking out for him."
"Lily, don't say that. Are you alright?"
"I'm tired. I don't know how you do it with seven kids."
"I've wanted to rip my hair out a few times myself Lily. I'm sure Harry is just going through a phase."
Lily looked up into Molly's sympathetic brown eyes and said, "I cry, because I'm afraid that he's going to mess up so bad and I won't be able to fix it."
"Lily, Harry is a good kid. He's just being stupid. Just remember how much you all love each other. Don't be too harsh or he'll rebel more. Would you like some rea love?"
Lily nodded and the kettle came over to her mug and poured in water and Molly dropped a teabag in it.
"I remember when he was a little boy, how much fun we had. He never threw fits, and he always wanted us around. He hated being away from James more than anything. I mean, if James handed him to me, he looked ready to bawl, and if James left the room, he did. Then when he started walking, all he did was follow James."
"My children, every single one was a terror toddler. It's just coming at different times. He'll get over it."
The two women sat, reminiscing about their young children until Ron ambled down the stairs. "Hi Lily," Ron said. "Hi Mum, is there food?" Molly pointed to the stove and Lily said, "The one thing I will never understand is that Ginny calls me and James Mrs. And Mr. Potter, yet Ron calls us James and Lily, and Harry calls you Molly and Arthur."
Molly shrugged and Lily asked, "Ron, can I ask you a few questions about the party last night?"
Mouth full of food, Ron nodded and sat down across from her. He swallowed and asked, "What can I tell you?"
"How much did you drink?"
"I had two beers and that was it, I swear."
"I believe you, I'm just wondering. How much did Harry drink?"
"Don't tell him I told you, but he drank so much. He was doing shots of tequila, and he drank three beers easily. Let me say, he is a lightweight."
Lily tried to hide her laughter as she said, "He gets that from me."
Ron snorted, "Anyway, he was a mess. I'm honestly surprised he made it to his room."
"Do you know why he drank so much Ron?"
He shrugged his shoulders and said, "He's a bit thick sometimes, you know."
"Believe me, I know."
"I'm going to take this up to my room, if that's alright," Ron said, gesturing to his food. Molly nodded and Ron walked up the stairs and Lily was sure that she heard two pairs of footsteps; Ron's obviously, and the other one was surely Ginny's, after listening to her brother talk about her boyfriend to their mothers.
"You didn't allow Ginny to go to this did you?"
"Of course not. I barely let Ron go! And you know that Ginny is closer to two years younger than our trio, so, no I would never have let her."
Lily finished her tea and excused herself back home to make sure her husband and son hadn't burned the house down in an argument.
Harry groaned inwardly as he followed his dad to the kitchen table. His dad gestured for him to sit down and Harry began feeling scared. He knew that his dad would never hit him, but he was a fine yeller and quite good at making Harry feel guilty.
"What in the name of Merlin is your girlfriend doing, sneaking up to your room at seven thirty in the morning?"
Harry shrugged.
"With a draught of hang over medicine?"
Harry shrugged again.
"Were you drinking last night?!"
Harry didn't move for about fifteen minutes, hoping that if he didn't do anything that maybe his dad would leave. James didn't move though.
"You were, weren't you!?"
Harry nodded after a moment.
"What the bloody hell were you thinking?! Oh right you weren't! What a fine example to set for your girlfriend, who's younger than you! What Molly and Arthur must think of us now! They probably think that we just let you do whatever you want!"
"Ron was drinking last night too!" Harry argued. "His parents didn't care!"
"Bull!" James yelled. "Their kids never get drunk!"
"But Ron was still drinking!"
"Ron didn't get smashed as you clearly did!"
Harry didn't have an answer.
James continued, "I don't know why you think it's acceptable to drink so much! Yeah, I don't have a problem with you going out and having a beer, maybe, maybe two, but you don't get to get hammered like this! Your mum and I didn't set this example for you! And did we even give you permission to go to that party last night?!"
Harry shook his head.
"How did you even get home?!"
"Hermione," Harry muttered reluctantly.
"So you let someone who has been driving licensed for three weeks and now drunk, drive you home?! Glad to know that everything we sacrificed to keep you alive was just so you could die now as a result of a poor decision!"
"Dad! Stop it! Hermione wasn't even drinking! I know that you and Mum did so much when Voldemort was around, but I think you're overreacting just a bit."
"It's not overreacting when your mum is so tired of dealing with you that she can't even stand to be here! And I will make sure that she calls the Grangers so that they know what Hermione did last night."
"What? You can't?" Harry asked with a smirk.
"You know full well that I am atrocious with muggle contraptions and that is not the issue here! You are grounded for two weeks! No Ginny, no Ron and Hermione, and if I were you I would expect a lot of chores."
Harry opened his mouth to argue, but thought better of it. He heard a familiar whoosh in the fire and knew his mother was home, so maybe he was saved.
"James," she called.
"In here love," he said, ignoring the gagging that Harry did at any affection between his parents. Lily walked in and said, "Go to your room Harry. I expect you'll come down if we call you again."
Harry walked by Lily on his way to his room and she grabbed him by the shoulder and looked at him. She pushed the bottle into his hand and said, "You're lucky I love you baby." Lily kissed the top of his head before shoving him towards the stairs.
As soon as Harry was out of earshot James sighed, exasperated, and sat down in a chair.
"What honey?" Lily asked, standing behind James and rubbing his shoulders.
"You're too soft on him," James muttered.
"You're way too harsh. He needs to know that someone in this house loves him."
James whirled around and stood up. He all but snarled in his wife's face, "Are you suggesting that I don't love my son?!"
Lily realized what she had said and amended, "I didn't mean that James. I know that you love Harry more than anything in this world, and I know that you would do anything for him. I just meant I think sometimes you're so hard on him that he doesn't realize it, and I don't want him to not w ant to be here."
James sighed again and pulled Lily into a hug against his chest. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to snap at you. I love you."
Lily smiled up at her husband and said, "It's alright. I should have thought that through before I said it. Harry knows that you love him, but I think he might forget it from time to time, especially when you're right; I do coddle him a bit much for a fifteen year old."
"Sometimes I feel like he loves you more than me," James admitted.
"No, love. I know he doesn't. He doesn't want to disappoint you."
James pulled away and muttered, "Yet he'll do something as idiotic as getting drunk. What did Molly have to say?"
"Well, Ron was drinking as well, but I talked to him and he said that he only drank two beers, but apparently Harry was drinking a lot. Ron said something about shots and beer and tequila."
"You wouldn't happen to have spoken to the Grangers?"
"No why? Was Hermione drinking too? Did she bring Harry home?"
"No and yes. Harry said that she was there, but that she didn't drink."
"What did you tell him?"
James sighed and admitted, embarrassedly, "I played the 'your mum and I fought the Dark Lord card.' I told him that I was angry that he was setting a poor example for Gin, and that Molly and Arthur probably think that we're terrible parents. I basically said that he was a sodding idiot and that he made some poor decisions."
"James, don't you think that was a little much?"
James nodded his head and he said, "I just really was angry that he's got you to the point that you don't want to deal with him."
"I know."
"What did we do wrong? Maybe it was just me. He loves you so much Lils."
"He loves you too James. I promise. I know he's just frustrated. I'll try to be more stringent, and that way you can be more lax with him, alright? Harry loves you. He also knows that you won't stay mad at him forever. You're his father, and he knows that you love him."
"Can you call the Grangers?" James asked, rubbing away the tears in his eyes.
Lily nodded and walked out of the room to the phone and to leave her husband alone with his emotions.
She dialed the number and was surprised when Monica answered on the second ring.
"Hello Lily," she said. "How are you?"
"I've been better Mon."
"What's wrong?"
"Harry's been acting up a bit recently. Last night as a matter of fact. And with Hermione."
"Ah, yes that party. Wendell and I grilled her about it when she came in late last night."
"And?"
"She was completely sober, but I was upset with her for driving so late, since she just got her license but I got over it because she was Harry and Ron's ride."
"Right, um, here's the thing, Harry was drinking, and I didn't know if Hermione knew anything about that."
"Mhm, she did. She said that she brought him home so that he wouldn't have to call you or James. I was rather angry that she helped him sneak around. Is he in trouble?"
"Of course Monica!"
"Just wondering, because I know that Molly had given up on punishing her kids for drinking."
"Well her kids don't drink drink. Harry was wasted last night."
"I heard. Is James absolutely fuming?"
"He was, but I accidentally said something and now he's worried that Harry doesn't love him."
"As if," Monica scoffed. "Harry loves James more than any boy loves anything. Tell him, from me that he's an enormous git."
"Of course. Thanks for talking to me Monica. I think I'm going to go deal with my two brooding boys. And tell Hermione from me, that while I love her dearly, I will kill her if she comes to my house for the next two weeks I'm guessing is what James grounded Harry for."
"What do you mean you're guessing?"
"I don't know. I was bringing Ginny home from sneaking Harry a hangover cure from Molly."
"Oh, bad girl. Anyway, I'll let you go Lily. Good luck."
"Thanks, bye."
Lily hung up the phone and went back to the kitchen where James was still sitting at the table, with his head in his hands. Lily went up behind him and ran her fingers through his hair.
"James, if it makes you feel better, Hermione wasn't drinking last night."
James turned around and looked Lily, who looked emotionally exhausted. "I'm so angry with him, and I'm angry at myself for being this angry with him. I should just be happy that he's alright."
"No, he was an idiot last night, and we're going to go tell him that together. First, though, I want to decide officially on his punishment. What did you tell him?"
"Two weeks, no Ginny, no Ron and Hermione, and so many chores."
"You've got the basics covered, but I'd like to add no flying, no Hedwig, and I think that we should still allow him to have Ginny over for dinner if he wants. Just dinner, though. And you can tell him that."
"Fine. Want to go talk to him?"
Lily nodded and walked up the stairs with James at her heels. She knocked briefly before knocking on Harry's door. He said, "Come in."
When his parents entered, Harry was laying on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. Lily let James go in first and he laid next to Harry on one side. Lily followed suit and laid on the open side. James said, "So buddy, what do you have to say?"
Harry sighed and said, "I'm really sorry. I was really stupid last night and I would completely get it if you didn't want to ever see my face again and if you hated me.
Lily's heart broke at those words and James immediately sat up and looked down at his son. Harry looked away, refusing to meet James' gaze.
"Harry, look at me bud," James pleaded.
"Baby, look at your dad," Lily said. "He's not going to yell."
Harry finally looked at James and sat up and said, "I'm sorry Daddy."
Harry had not called James 'daddy' in nearly ten years. Lily stifled a cry, and James' eyes softened even more.
"Harry, I don't hate you. You're my son, and I love you even when you make stupid choices. I wouldn't ever hate you. The thought has never even crossed my mind. There's not a thing you could do that would make stop loving you. Sure, at times like these, it makes it harder, but I still love you. I'm disappointed in your behavior, but I can get over it."
"I'm sorry," Harry repeated.
The father and son looked at each other for a long while, before Lily cried, "Just hug already!"
James chuckled and pulled his son into a bone- crushing embrace, but Lily could tell that Harry didn't care one bit.
"Am I still in trouble?" Harry asked hopefully once his father released him.
"Ha, good one mister," Lily answered. "You are grounded for two weeks, no Ron, no Hermione, no flying, no Hedwig, and I expect you to pitch in a lot more around the house."
Harry nodded and James continued, "Ginny may come over for dinner if you would like, but dinner only, no extra time before or after."
"Thanks Dad."
Lily said, "Stay here and sleep it off for today, but tomorrow you had better be ready to clean."
"Thanks Mum. I love you both."
He pulled Lily into a hug and she smirked at her husband over his shoulder.
Lily kissed Harry's forehead, James ruffled Harry's hair, and turned out the lights on their way out. She took James' hand and led him to their own bedroom.
"I told you he loves you," she said sitting on their bed. "And by the way, Monica says that you're a git."