Chapter One- Learning to Fall
Harry was knocked down on his backside at the blast. He felt his head bounce of the ground and fainted instantly. It was the night before the mass funeral for those who died fighting in the war. Those who died before Harry could save them, and Harry had been wondering through the castle when he saw someone.
Eventually the dark haired boy came to and found himself in the same place he had passed out in. At least, it was almost the same place he had passed out in. He was still on the Astronomy tower balcony and it still had the telescopes and such that Harry remembered but the curtain that had hung on the other side of one of the windows was purple rather that blue and there were several rugs that he could see inside that hadn't been there before.
Harry picked himself slowly off the ground and stood up and examined his surroundings a little closer. He walked into the unlocked door of the tower and realized that it had truly changed, that it hadn't been some fragment of his imagination due to his recent unconscious state. The desks looked a little newer there were several outdated maps of star patterns on the walls.
Harry made his way across the room, after grabbing his fallen invisibility cloak, with an uneasy feeling and escaped through the door. It was dark inside the castle so Harry pulled out his wand and lit the tip. It was the same corridor that he had remembered and so Harry continued down it. He needed to go to the Gryffindor tower. He needed to go back to bed and forget about the oddities that had occurred this night. He slipped on his cloak and began to meander back.
Harry walked on, noticing subtle changes but dismissing them. He must have been passed out longer than he had expected. He thought of the fight on the way to the tower. It had been a little messy. Harry was finally going to get the man that had personally been responsible for doing some of Lord Voldemort's dirtiest deeds. Harry saw Lucius Malfoy walking toward the tower and realized that he hadn't seen him yet since he had his invisibility cloak. He pulled out his wand and muttered his trademark spell to disarm the man who was carrying his cane with the wand handle.
Lucius had been losing the duel until he hit Harry unexpectedly with a spell causing him to fall and pass out. By the time Harry woke up, he was gone. He was rather surprised the man didn't kill him. Maybe he had realized that if he did the entire wizarding world would hunt for him until he was dead too. Harry was lost in his thought but managed to make his way back without any disruptions. The fat lady was sleeping so Harry knocked slightly on her portrait. She awoke with a start and Harry whispered, "Mandrake Mayhem" to her. She asked who was there and told him that he had the password wrong and that she had never used "Mandrake Mayhem" before. Harry slipped off his cloak and the lady looked at him sternly. "James Potter, I have every right to go to Headmaster Dumbledore right now! I told you that if I saw you again this week leaving or entering this portrait than I would report it.
"I will be nice and pardon you one last time but this means you can't sneak out next week, no matter how ravishing you tell me I will look." Harry looked dumbfounded. What was she talking about? "You must have been dreaming; Dumbledore is dead and I am not James, I'm Harry, James's son. There is no curfew. Tomorrow is the funeral. Now please, let me in."
The fat lady looked sternly at him once again and said, "I don't know what you are trying to pull on me James but it will not work." She then turned and flew out of her frame and through the others to (Harry supposed) Violets frame.
Harry watched her jet off and sighed. The poor picture was mistaken. Dumbledore had died a year ago. But the rest of the castle had changed so Harry got his hopes up and walked to the old Headmaster's office.
He found himself at the gargoyles and Harry said, "Acid Pop" to them. They didn't move and so Harry took a few more guesses. A good ten minutes later Harry gave up. This night was going horribly and he wasn't sure what to do about it. He leaned against the wall perpendicular to the gargoyles and slid down it. "Bugger, why isn't anything going right?" As soon as he had said the word 'bugger' the gargoyles started to move. 'Whatever happened to candy?' Harry thought as he began to walk up the ascending stairs.
As he approached the office he heard a faint whistling and then a chuckle. Harry quietly knocked on the hard door and a voice told him that he could come in. Harry opened the door hesitantly and was greeted with the sight of a younger looking Dumbledore, this one still having a nose fairly straight and a little color in his whitening hair. A great, beautiful bird was resting on his shoulder, cooing at him. It was the phoenix. He took off the cloak making him reappear and his jaw dropped.
Harry gasped, "You aren't dead?" He then immediately ran to the man and wrapped his arms around him. He couldn't believe what he saw! He had watched the old man die and here he was. Tears made their way out of his ducts and Harry squeezed the confused old man even tighter.
"I am very much alive, thank you for noticing," Dumbledore said with a little chuckle. It wasn't often that students came into his office and attacked him like this. Harry pulled away from him and then started to fire off questions. "How did you come back, sir? I beat Voldemort! Is that how it happened? Does this mean that Sirius, Lupin, Fred, and the others came back too?" Dumbledore looked at him, his eyes displaying confusion. He then spoke with a quiet voice that told Harry to calm down, "I don't know what you are talking about James. And what did you do to your eyes?"
Harry furled his eyebrows in confusion and then stated, "I'm not James." Dumbledore made a humming noise before asking his who he was. "I'm Harry Potter, don't you remember? I'm James and Lily's son. I spent last year taking lessons with you to learn about Voldemort so I could destroy him… We destroyed horcruxes together, don't you remember me?
"I wasn't aware that James and Lily were parents. Maybe we should back up some Mr. Potter. May I start by asking you a few questions?" Dumbledore asked Harry who nodded back at him.
"What year is it?"
Harry answered with confidence, "2001."
"When were you born?"
"July 30th, 1984"
"Have you attended this school before?"
"Yes, for seven years…sort of, I didn't really attend the school my seventh year. I was with Ron and Hermione trying to find the rest of the horcruxes so I could defeat Voldemort. I was at Hogwarts for the final battle though."
Dumbledore looked troubled for a moment before his face went blank and he responded to Harry. "It is 1983 Voldemort is still at large and you are saying that you have already defeated him?"
Harry gulped and then nodded. "I guess this explains why the castle looks different to me."
"Harry Potter, I am not sure how this happened but if you are telling the truth then you are from the future. I am also going to assume that you are on our side if you defeated Voldemort as you claim. Are you telling the truth?"
Harry nodded furiously before blurting out that he swore he was telling him the entire truth. "Mr. Potter, do you realize that you are now the best weapon that the Order of the Phoenix- Do you know what that is?" Harry nodded, "that the Order of the Phoenix could ever have dreamed of?"
Harry turned pink before saying, "Sir, I don't know very much about your Order but I do know a lot about the one that was established after Voldemort's second rising. You see, Voldemort came after my parents when I was a year old. My mother, Lily Evans, stood in front of my crib and tried to protect me from him. Voldemort killed her, even though he told Severus Snape that he would spare her life. Then he tried to kill me and it didn't work and now I have this scar that used to be a partial link into Voldemort's head."
"Love. That is what saved you isn't it," the old man asked, his eyes twinkling. "Yeah. You also told me that during my time." Dumbledore looked at him as if he were an angel directly descended from above. He then asked Harry to tell him more, such as why Voldemort was after him.
Harry then explained to Dumbledore that Professor Trelawney, a descendent of the famous seer and the future divinations teacher, prophesized Harry's coming and Voldemort found out about via Snape. He told him all about his parents' deaths and who was involved, about how Snape was in love with Lily and that Peter betrayed them and acted as a rat for twelve years. He continued on to tell him about Sirius, Lupin and the deatheaters. Harry virtually told him about everything that could possibly help in this battle that Harry had already fought. He told Dumbledore about his death and his last wishes to Severus Snape and about the Wand, Cloak, and Stone. He told him that he still was the only one able to kill Voldemort.
Dumbledore listened patiently, taking in everything; he interrupted only a few times to ask questions. Harry then offered to put his memories into the familiar Pensieve so that Dumbledore could view them on his own time. The old man jumped at the chance and showed Harry how to do it. Soon enough the Boy-Who-Lived put the tip of his wand against his skull and extracted a slew of silver memories. Harry knew he would still have the memories but that there were now copies of them in the stone bowl.
"Harry, I think you have come back to give others a chance at life. Your can finally know your parents, they are quite the troublemakers though, let me warn you. This boy Neville you spoke of will also get to know the great people that Alice and Frank have become. Arthur Weasley won't have to bear with his son's death. You will change the future forever."
Harry nodded at the Professor solemnly and then asked him what the time was. He was told that it was nearly eight thirty. "Professor, do you mind if I meet my parents? I realize that I knew them as an infant but I never have really spoken to them in the flesh"
Dumbledore looked at him with a slight sadness in his eyes. "Harry Potter, you will now be a student here at Hogwarts, again, if you would like. I can have the hat sort you now or you can just join the house you were previously apart of. It is really up to you." Harry told him that he would just rejoin Gryffindor; he also thanked him for the extended invitation. Dumbledore then asked him if he could warn the rest of the Order about those mentioned who were going to end up betraying them. Harry nodded and then turned to leave the office. Dumbledore called and said that he would take care of supplies and clothing and other needs and that Harry and he would have to speak again very soon.
Harry walked out of the door to the office and headed to the Great Hall were breakfast was about to start.
Upon entering the room he saw food appearing on the tables as a few students meandered in. A few of them looked at him with interest. One of them waved and shouted, "Morning James!" Harry faced the boy who shouted and called back, "I'm Harry!"
He calmly walked to the empty Gryffindor table and set himself up a plate. He wasn't very hungry but he was nervous about meeting the teenage version of his father and his friends.
"Oi! James! Do you see that kid over there? He looks just like you? Do you have a twin that I didn't know about?" Harry whipped his head around so fast he nearly got whiplash. It was The Marauders. James, Sirius, Peter, and Lupin. The breath left Harry as they approached him. This was his chance. He was finally going to meet his dad.
"What's your deal? You are staring at me. I know I'm attractive but you are creeping me out," James said as he sauntered over. Harry came back to reality and rolled his eyes. "Sorry, I didn't know that degree of facial deformity actually existed, it shocked me a little," Harry replied back. Yes, it definitely was James Potter. Harry hoped that this knocked him off of his pedestal a little. Harry saw his dad's eyes widen a little and Harry hoped he hadn't said the wrong thing. He wanted to be his friend more than anything.
"I like this kid," Lupin announced with a grin before sitting next to Harry. Harry smiled at him and then announced himself to the group. "Hello, I'm Harry." James looked at him for a moment before sitting himself across from the new kid. Peter and Sirius followed suit. "Have a surname Harry?" Remus asked him with curiosity. "Potter, my last name is Potter." The four boys surrounding him gasped a little and then Sirius asked him if he and James were related. "Don't be foolish! If I was related to him don't you think that I would've told you about him? I know everyone in my family and definitely isn't someone I know," James said loudly. The rest of the group stared between the boys. They looked so very similar it was a little frightening.
"I'm Remus Lupin, this is Peter Pettigrew, and the two knuckleheads arguing are Sirius Black and James Potter. Do you have a schedule yet?" Harry wasn't the least bit surprised that Remus asked about a schedule since he was the bookworm of the group. He was also the werewolf.
Harry told him that Dumbledore was going to take care of it soon enough and that he would probably just take the classes he took at Hogwarts before. Harry soon realized his mistake as the rest of the group looked at him strangely. "Sorry, I meant my other school. I was home schooled, I had tutors and everything." The others nodded and James asked him who had tutored him, explaining he was curious since he had been tutored before he was able to go to Hogwarts. "Well I had… Professor… Marlow. He taught me everything I know. I just came this year to meet some people my age. Oh, and to play Quidditch." Harry knew that by saying this he would score bonus points with his dad who was a chaser.
Sirius and James brightened and asked him what position he played. He quickly told him that he was a seeker and then asked them the date. They told him it was September 16th and that auditions were going to be the next day. Harry grinned and asked them if they knew what a Wronski Defensive Feint was. They shook their heads, now in Quidditch mode. Harry told them that if they scrimmaged or if he made the team he would show them. He was happy that he was from the future when it came to Quidditch. No one knew the really modern moves and Harry would be happy to show them. He didn't have his Firebolt though or his money. Well, he technically had his money but it was residing in James Potter's family safe. Harry figured he would go and talk to Dumbledore about it later.
The boys talked about Quidditch more and Harry soon became their favorite person to nerd over the sport with. He had a lot of new ideas but he didn't seem like he was showing-off.
Harry was rather enjoying himself as well. He barely even noticed that breakfast was virtually over and he still had no schedule. He was stared at by quite a few students though. The resemblance between himself and James was uncanny.
Soon enough a boy, he looked like he was a first year, came over to the group of boys and handed Harry a schedule. Attached was a note. Harry turned away from the others so they couldn't read the note. After opening the paper Harry recognized Dumbledores loopy handwriting immediately. Mr. Potter, I felt that you might want to continue with the coursework you would have taken had you been here. Enjoy! Also, please meet me tonight at six o' clock in my office. There was a signature on the bottom but other than that the parchment was empty. Harry ripped the note off and shoved it into his pants pocket. He then felt very aware of the fact that he was still in his pajamas. This could also explain the strange stares.
The schedule he was holding was ripped out of his hands and James Potter started to read it aloud to the group. "N.E.W.T. Potions, N.E.W.T. Defense Against the Dark Arts, N.E.W.T. Herbology, N.E.W.T. Transfiguration, N.E.W.T. Charm, hey Moony, looks like you have competition. This kid is a brain!" Harry took back the paper and looked to be sure he was right. He was. Harry looked once more and realized that this was the exact schedule he would've had if he had actually attended Hogwarts his seventh year.
"So Harry, why aren't you wearing robes?" Peter Pettigrew asked, speaking for the first time that day. He looked scared and had really looked scared the whole morning. Harry figured that he was just intimidated by Sirius and James. They did seem a bit full of them themselves.
"I…haven't gotten all of my things yet. They should be in soon," he replied hastily. Sirius watched him for a moment and then spoke up, "You want to borrow some of mine?" Harry smiled at him and accepted. It would be hard enough trying to blend in when he looked like the twin of James Potter.
The boys walked to the Gryffindor tower and stopped in front of the fat lady. "Well, well, what do we have here?" She asked with her painted eyebrows raised. "I need to apologize to you James…and Harry, I suppose. Last night I confused you for this boy James." James shrugged off the women and said in a confident voice, "Metamorphmagus." Harry committed the password to memory and walked in, at the tail of the group.
The common room was exactly as Harry remembered it. The only difference being the announcements on the board. Sirius and James led them to their dormitory. It was the one Harry had slept in during his first stay at Hogwarts. Harry quickly scanned the room and saw that Dumbledore had put a trunk at the foot of an unoccupied bed. The initials on the trunk were H.J.P. "Maybe I won't need to borrow your clothes after all Sirius," Harry said as he made his way over to the bed. He unlatched the new-looking trunk and saw it full of robes, the uniform, casual clothes, shoes, and a set of dress robes, underclothes, shoes, and lastly his books and potions kit.
"Lucky you, that everything arrived on time for you not to make yourself seem even more like a git," James said and then made himself clearer, "I mean, you were wearing your pajamas to breakfast."
Harry nodded and quickly began to change; the boys turned their heads so they wouldn't be rude. Once in his uniform Harry took his wand off of his bed, where he had placed it after removing it from his pajamas pocket, and shoved it in his robe. He also picked up his copy of the Marauder's map, his invisibility cloak, a small bag of money, and a brightly wrapped piece of candy. Harry had made a habit of carrying these things, aside from the candy, with him during the war and it had never really gone away. He quickly shoved the items in his jean pockets.
Harry knew that the map had to stay hidden. The boys' had probably created it by now but he wouldn't be able to explain it to them if they discovered he had one too. Harry mad a coughing noise in the back of his throat alerting them that it was okay if they looked again. Harry grabbed the new bag he saw in his trunk and started stuffing books he would need for the day and supplies, such as quills and parchment and inks. The others joked around with each other and talked while Harry got ready. The butt of the jokes was mainly Peter.
A few moments later Harry was situated. The others noticed and the group left the room to go to their first classes. They parted at the staircase though. James, Sirius, and Peter left to go to their muggle studies class, and Remus and Harry headed off for N.E.W.T. Transfiguration. The fact that Sirius was in a muggle studies class Harry figured was an act of rebellion against the boy's parents and James took the class with him since they were best friends. Harry would've done the same with Ron had the situations been similar. Ron's dad was a devout muggle-lover though so there was really no point.
The two walked into the classroom after making small talk, mostly Lupin asking Harry about his past, which Harry quickly fabricated. Professor McGonagall was standing at the head of the room and when the two boys walked in she immediately called the new one over to her.
Harry walked quickly and joined her. McGonagall wasted no time and got straight to business. "Mr. Potter, Professor Dumbledore has informed of your…sticky… situation. I am a member of the Order. I need to stress to you the importance of you blending in. No one other than the select few Dumbledore chooses to reveal it to can know about where you are truly from. He will tell you tonight who knows and who doesn't but until then: Keep your mouth shut." Harry looked a little taken aback by her bluntness but quickly recovered and told her that he would.
Lupin was sitting in the front row so Harry sat in the empty desk to his left. McGonagall took her place in the front of the class room as the bell rang and asked for a few volunteers to pass out cats. Lupin raised his hand along with a few others in the room. A few minutes went by while they distributed the animals before Harry received his own orange cat. It was oddly familiar to him and after looking at it for a few moments Harry realized that it was Crookshanks! Granted, it was a younger version but he was fairly positive it was her. I will have to tell Hermione later today Harry thought before realizing that Hermione hadn't even been thought of yet. He then made a mental note to tell her if he got back.
McGonagall told them that they were going to practice turning the cats into sheep. She gave them the spell and demonstrated it before setting them loose.
By the end of the class only Remus had been able to completely transfigure his animal. Harry had managed to turn the cat into a sheep but it still mewed. The two boys swiftly left the classroom leaving their sheep behind. They had been assigned to work on the charms for the next class.
"So Harry, during break do you want to come work with me on that spell? I mean, I'm not sure where we could go or what we could use but maybe we can talk to Professor Kettleburn about an animal to practice on," Lupin looked at him, waiting for an answer. Harry knew that Sirius and his dad were smart but he figured that Lupin, a real brain, often had to study alone since his friends were often more concerned with fun and games.
Harry nodded as they walked on, knowing he had made a real friend. Today was his favorite day ever. He was getting the opportunity to know his dad. He hadn't met his mom yet and he could only dream about that. Harry figured that this day was what Heaven must be like.
A: N/ Hey it's Katie. If you have read any of my other stories then you will know me. If not then maybe you should get to know me. I have a story called "Miss Me, Miss Me, Now You Have to…" and another called "How to Save a Life" The title of this story was inspired by a song called "Something 'Bout Heaven" by Billy Gilman. It really has nothing to do with the song but I liked the title. Please review. I will give you each kudos, some brownie points, and an air-hug.