I Do Not Own Harry Potter. I would like to, but I don't. So this Fanfiction will do for now.
Chapter 1: The Boy-Who-Lived and The-Boy-Who-Returned
On the night of October 31st, 1981, a most dreadful event took place. This incident would be one of the many tragedies taking place in the life of one Harridan James Potter. Harridan, Harry to those closest to him, was only a baby when Lord Voldemort, fearful of a prophecy depicting his downfall, came for him and his twin brother Henry 'Hank' Fleamont Potter.
It just so happened that James and Lily Potter (nee Evans) were called away to an Order meeting by Albus Dumbledore to discuss a possible attack on Hogsmeade in the near future.
While this meeting took place Voldemort chose to attack the Potter residence to kill the two brothers and ensure his own survival. Arabella Figg, whom Lily had asked to watch Harry and Henry, was quickly dispatched by the Killing Curse.
Minutes after the wards had been breached, and Figg's immediate death, the entirety of the Order had apparated to the house. What they found fell Lily to her knees and saw James running into the house and up the stairs yelling for his children.
The door was broken in and a dead woman lay peacefully on the floor. There was smoke coming from the upstairs and from the outside of the house one could see a portion of the roof had been blown away.
James reached the top of the stairs and to the boys' room to see a discarded cloak on the floor and his children sitting in their crib. His relief was immense and could only thank the heavens that his sons were still alive.
While Hank was shaking, terrified of what had just transpired, Harry sat where he was as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened. If James noticed it he didn't let it show in any other way but relief. That is until he remembered the prophecy Dumbledore had told them of.
This thought crosses his mind as Albus and Lily walk through the door and see what remains of the Dark Lord. James takes this moment to ask about the prophecy while Lily rushes over to hug her babies.
"Albus, what does this mean? What about the prophecy?" Albus remained silent as he walked to the two boys and looked them over. He seemingly found what he was looking for as he finished with Hank. "It would seem thank young Hank here is the child of prophecy. Although both children are marked, Hank's is more distinctive. It seems he protected his brother from whatever spell was used. I assume it was the Killing Curse."
Lily paled as she picked up Hank and held him like one would hold a lifeline. However it was in this moment that Harry, who had actually been the one to survive Voldemort, was unconsciously placed at a lower value in their hearts. From that moment on he would never truly be worth as much to his parents as Hank was. In fact, the Potters almost left him behind had it not been for Albus reminding them that their other son was still in the crib. Unfortunately Albus chalked this slip up as nothing more than nerves from the night they had had and the days to come following it.
The next few years of Harry's life were by no means a smooth ride. Harry was always forgotten in the shadow of his brother. Birthdays, Christmas, vacations, family gatherings, Galas were all about Hank.
But never once did Harry complain. Not after the first time. Hank had thrown a vase down a flight of stairs and Harry happened to be nearby. They had assumed Harry to be the culprit because in their minds it was impossible for Hank to do wrong. He was their perfect angel while Harry was merely the other brother. Anyone who says otherwise goes to bed hungry.
Harry, unbeknownst to either of his parents or his brother, was unusually intelligent. At the age of three he could speak full sentences and have conversations with most adults. He was able to discover that his mother would soon give birth to a baby. He was excited at the prospect of having a possible connection with his new sibling. At age six he became proficient in wandless magic due to the lack of a wand, no parental supervision, and an abundance of books and a desire to learn. At the age of nine he had learned what most fith year students knew.
It was around this time that he was told that he would need to start making sacrifices for the good of his family. Harry, while keeping his thoughts to himself, was disappointed to find out that he would no longer receive presents for Christmas. He consoled himself with the fact that he was not the only one to have to suffer such conditions and that his family would at least suffer that Christmas together. How wrong he was.
Not only was he the only one to sacrifice his Christmas gifts, they gave what was supposed to be his to his brother as a way of making up for the lack of things he wanted. How enraged he became that they did this to him. Did they not love him? Wasn't he their son as well? Would they only take and take from him until he had nothing left to give?
He found out a short while later on that there was indeed a shortage of money. Apparently his father had gambled away their fortune. Had it not been for the intervention of House Black the House of Potter would have ended up knutless.
As a result of their poverty James had to take more hours to pay for their needs while Lily couldn't even work at all. She had to take care of Harry's little sister. He, while unable to stand the rest of his family, had high hopes for his sister. He hoped she would relate to him more rather than them.
His growing dislike of his family had allowed him more time to read and learn, to grow in both strength and mind. By the age of eleven Harry had enough of an education to graduate Hogwarts before he even started. He was proud. Proud that he had gotten here all on his own. But that was all he had. His own pride. No one else's.
As he knew it would most likely happen, deep down in his poor lonely little heart, his sister did not like him. In her eight years of life, her head was filled with lies from Hank that Harry was evil; that she needed to be careful around him because he was not worth her time. His parents however had filled her head with stories of her 'amazing' brother Hank and how she should always be there for him. And so his sister, Elizabeth 'Lizzie' Euphemia Potter had put Hank on a pedestal that would never be high enough.
The loss of what could have been between him and his sister had nearly broken Harry. He had been on the brink of giving up for a long time, but this might just be the straw that broke the Nundu's back. However, a tiny light had made its way onto his dark and desolate life. On a quiet Tuesday afternoon a letter addressed to Harry had come via Owl.
Hogwarts! His would be home away from home. At least, that's what he thought at first. But upon realizing the reality of the situation he went pale. Hogwarts requires students to pay tuition. Tuition required money and money was something he did not have. He knew his parents would choose to send Hank over Harry to Hogwarts if they could only send one.
But Harry was not one to give up so easily. Rather than sit and wait for his doom he sent a reply letter to this Professor McGonagall.
In the letter he, in no uncertain terms, requested the school to loan him the tuition fees. He would pay every knut back to them as long as they put their faith in the fact that he would. To his enormous shock he received an invitation to meet with her to discuss such a loan. He agreed.
On September 1st Harry was on the Hogwarts express with hand-me-down clothes, a secondhand wand and almost no new books. The ones he had with him were the ones Lily and James, he stopped considering and calling them his parents long ago, used when they went to Hogwarts. Most had doodles in them and the rest were out of date. What a great way to start his school life.
This next seven years of his life went by faster than he would have liked. His brother had gotten into many misadventures that usually landed him at the center of attention or in the hospital. Usually both. His sister grew further and further apart from him until she completely forgot she even had a second brother.
Oddly enough, that didn't stop Harry from keeping a close eye on her. He would never admit this, not that he had any friends or family to admit it to, but he still loved his little sister. If he didn't included the reverence she held for his ridiculous older brother or the fact she barely remembered Harry even existed at all, he was proud to be her brother.
Harry often thought how if someone were to know they would think him crazy, but he was nonetheless proud of the fact that she was both smart and powerful. His years at Hogwarts weren't as bad as they could've been but they could have been so much better.
It was during his seventh year that things really took a turn for the worst. Out of nowhere his world had started to crumble down around him. The second war was reaching its peak and Harry had a feeling it would only end in tragedy. Voldemort had come back stronger than ever and swiftly took control of Magical Great Britain. Hogwarts had been breached, his 'family' killed off, and all because of one man. Himself.
You see, hindsight is 20/20 and when Harry looked back at his life he saw at least nine different ways he could possibly have prevented the rise of the Dark Lord. First year with the philosopher's stone. He could have written to Nicolas Flamel or even stolen it for himself. Second year he could have convinced the Basilisk not to kill any Mudbloods or Muggleborns, personally he doesn't really care as long as it's not directed at him. Even then it's not so much the word than its intended effect. Belittlement. Also he could have made a connection with Ginny Weasley. He kind of blew it by ignoring her interests. (A/N The fool. He could've been in redheaded heaven)
Third year was actually kind of peaceful. He spent most of it with Hagrid the groundskeeper. Nice guy. But just tad bit emotional in Harry's opinion. The only thing he regrets is not being able to help Hagrid keep Buckbeak. They rescued him sure, but such a majestic creature should never even need to run in the first place. That's another thing about Harry. He's very equalistic when it comes to living things.
The Tri-Wizard tournament in fourth year was such a bloody sham. They made two underage competitors compete and then they were the only two left alive. And believe it when Harry says he tried to save Cedric, Viktor, and Fleur. Hank could go die for all Harry cared but the other three became the only real friends he had had up to that point. It was devastating to Harry that he failed his only friends.
The next three years after that could be summed up with Umbridge being and Umbitch, Dumbledore, dying much to Harry's sadness because the old man was like a grandfather to him, and Voldemort's return. Although that last one lasted about eight or nine years after seventh year. That actually leads us right to where Harry is right now. Dead. Or rather, almost dead. A sort of middle ground if you'd prefer.
He had never seen such a beautiful place. And so simple too. He reflected back on what he heard a muggle say to him once that perfectly describes what he was living 'Sometimes the only way to truly explain something is to have them experience it for themselves' Of course the muggle was drunk; but then again so was Harry at the time.
A voice suddenly boomed from everywhere at once
"DO YOU WISH TO REKINDLE WHAT COULD HAVE BEEN?"
"I-" the voice cut him off.
"WILL YOU DO WHAT YOU MUST TO PROMOTE THAT WHICH HAS BEEN DENIED?"
"I don't understand! What do you-" again the voice spoke.
"YOU ARE CHARGED WITH THE TASK OF RESTORATION! LEAD THOSE WHO MUST BE LEAD DOWN THE PATH OF SALVATION! DOWN THE PATH LESS TRAVELLED. DOWN THE PATH TO REDEMTION!" The voice grew louder and louder shaking the ground beneath him.
"I…I don't…..what the hell…." The scene around him begins to crumble and suddenly he falls. He falls and he falls and he falls until BAM! Nothingness.
Scene Break
Frank and Alice Longbottom, seeing how at risk the Potters became, decided to move their own family elsewhere until the death of Voldemort allowed for some peace to return. In the end it was a smart decision as they found later that their home was all but burned to the ground. They would spend the next few years rebuilding their manor to its peak once more.
Peter Pettigrew was soon hunted down and arrested by Alastor Moody Sirius Black, James Potter, and Remus Lupin. He was sent to Azkaban to spend the remainder of his life there. Unfortunately he broke out a week later as him being an unregistered animagus allowed him the opportunity to escape that forsaken prison.
Sirius Black wizened up after the attack on his friends and quit the auror force to take up the mantle of Lord Black. His grandfather Arcturus was very pleased at his grandson's choice and the two spent the next decade building up the House of Black from its state of ruin.
Andromeda Tonks and her husband Ted gave birth to their daughter Nymphadora three weeks after the Harry and Hank are born. She will go to Hogwarts at the same time they do. Andromeda and her family are invited back into the Black House by Sirius after the death of his grandfather around that time but refuse. They refuse because ten years is too little too late to offer them something he should have years ago.
Amelia Bones and Remus Lupin begin an 'on' again 'off' again relationship that leads into nothing more as a result of his Lycanthropy and the intolerance of the British Wizarding world. They may not be married but love each other as if they were.
Fudge takes advantage of the newly created peacetime that Voldemort's death has produced and stays on as Minister for Magic. He spends the next ten years slowly corrupting the Ministry with his toady Dolores Umbridge. With Fudge being in Lucius Malfoy's pocket, many Death Eaters escape being Kissed and end up in a recently made Dementor free Azkaban.
Severus Snape gets over Lily Evans, he refuses to acknowledge her otherwise, and at the behest of his mother Eileen Prince seeks a relationship. In the summer of 1987 he marries his longtime girlfriend Kristina Knox and they live happily as Mr. and Mrs. Severus and Kristina Prince. They use Prince instead of Snape because Tobias should have no influence in his new happy life. He and his bride stay at Hogwarts to shield themselves from possible Death Eater revenge. Severus has an attitude change. Pleasant.
Lily Potter takes a job as a professor teaching Charms alongside Filius Flitwick at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. James changes over the years. He makes several alliances with neutral houses that will ensure the balance of power in the Wizengamot remains exactly that. Balanced. They give birth to a daughter. She will be at Hogwarts during Harry's third year.
Minerva McGonagall remains exactly the same. A diehard Gryffindor Quiditch fan and a stern but overall lovely woman. (A/N She just rocks! One of my favorite characters.)
(A/N These paragraphs above are a general overview of what the other characters are up to since I will be focusing my efforts on the story being from Harry's point of view. A little background info on characters never hurts anybody)