Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter

Hello Harry Potter fans. If I seem familiar you may have read my first Harry Potter fic, "A Life Never Meant to Be". That was quite an epic story. I've never put so much work into a fic before. After that, I hadn't planned on writing anymore Harry Potter stories (even though I had ideas for them), because I found it somewhat difficult; well to keep up with everything in the HP world. Anyways the reviews on that story inspired me to try again, this time a lighter, more positive story than the last. So I hope you enjoy this new epic, "Those with Wings"

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Ch1: Special Arrivals

1880.

Mrs. McKinley hated that she had stayed out so late shopping. It was far too dangerous to be on the streets now a days, especially at night. She would definately be hearing about this from her husband, but by now she had built up a good excuse: There was nothing at all to eat in the house so she had to run to the store otherwise they'd starve. He would say she was being over dramatic and she would tell him that he was being unreasonable. They both had their arguments, but when it came down to it he was never truly angry with her; just relieved that she had made it home safely.

She took a turn down Maple street, adjusting her bright red bonnet as she went. She was in her late 70's but the few gentlemen who were still on the street tipped their top hats as if she were a fine young woman in her 20's. blushed. They were right to think that way of course and she gave them a smile for their acknowledgment of her beauty. She continued on her way turning toward a street that had very few lamp posts.

"Oh miss, I wouldn't go that way if I were you," cried one of the gentlemen.

"It's the quickest way home," she replied.

"But it's a dark route to take. And besides that, that's where--"
"I assure you I'll be perfectly fine. I simply have to get home before it gets any later."
"But Miss!"

His cries were deaf on her ears as she bravely walked down the semi-lit street, too stubborn to listen to reason. Too worried about arriving home any later than she already was. As she walked, the only sound she could hear was the sound of her footsteps on the cobblestones. Everything else was quiet.

Suddenly she heard a strange whooosh above her and stopped. Looking up she caught the sight of what appeared to be a giant bird. She gasped and dropped her bags. Never had she seen anything like it. There were rumors about it, but she had never believed them.

Its great white wings were spread out far and wide and shimmered in the glow of the moon. As it passed under the clouds she was able to get a good look at its body, which wasn't that of a bird, but of a man.

covered her mouth to prevent herself from screaming out loud. "Good gracious!"

"Hemmley there he is! Get him!"

"With pleasure sir!"

"Fire!"

barely had time to register what was happening before she was knocked to the ground by a tremendous blast. Though it wasn't near enough to harm her, the vibration was enough to throw her off her feet.

"Ma'am Ma'am! Are you alright!"

The street that had been quiet and empty a few minutes ago was now filled with the noise of a crowd of people. was helped to her feet by a young man, but her eyes immediately went to the sky. "Oh my. He isn't there anymore. He isn't there!"

"What are you talking about Ma'am?"

"I know I wasn't seeing things, he was there! He was."

"Who?"

"Look!" cried a woman and the crowd around her hushed to see see where she was pointing. Mrs .McKinley stared in horror at the sight of a falling white feather with a spot of blood at the tip. She watched as it fell quietly and hit the ground near her feet. Then there were many more. The sky was raining pure white feathers, but Mrs. McKinley kept her eyes on the bloodstained one that first caught her attention.

"Ha Ha we got him!" cried the man who had given the order for the blast. Mrs. McKinley wasn't interested in who he was. She was only interested in the winged man she had seen earlier. The one who wasn't hurting anybody, not even in the rumors. Nothing else roused her attention.

"But where's the body?"

"We don't have the body!"
She looked up at this bit of information and saw a couple of uniformed men talking not too far away. The crowd quieted down again to hear the conversation.

"We didn't see it fall."

"What about these feathers?" There was no response to his question. "Then find him. Spread out men. He may be well alive and on foot now. Bring him back alive if you can, if not shoot him."
"Yes sir."

Mrs. McKinley turned back to the bloody feather. The young man who had helped her turned to her, concerned.

"Are you alright ma'am?"

She wasn't sure what to say or how to feel. She just kept staring at the feather. "I'm not sure. I'm really not sure."

Suddenly, a frightening screeching scream echoed throughout the street. The hairs on the back of everyone's neck stood up as it cried.

"Is that......is that it?" a woman asked, frightened it was the winged man.

"No," said Mrs. McKinley. "It's not him." Somehow she knew it wasn't coming from the same creature. For it sound like a laugh. A dark laugh of triumph.

A beautiful, young red-headed woman gripped the sides of her bed in pain and gritted her teeth. She was sweating profusely but a nurse at her side wiped her brow with a warm cloth. "It's alright dear, just try to relax." She cried out and tensed against her bed. A tall young man with messy jet black hair hurried to her side.

"It's alright Lily dear. Just,....just keep breathing..."
"Oh James."
"You're doing fine Lily, just fine. Can't we do something more for her!"

"We've already given her a potion for the pain. The contractions are too close together. She'll be ready to push soon."

"James."

"It's okay sweetheart."

Outside in the waiting room another dark haired man paced about nervously while his friends watched, one of them with a bit of amusement.

"Sirius there's no reason to carry on so, I'm sure everything's fine," said a thin, worn sandy haired man.

"Fine! Fine! How can everything be fine? And how can you be so calm Remus? They've been in there for hours," Sirius replied.

"Well a baby isn't exactly produced within seconds."

Sirius moved over to the large glass window that was connected with the delivery room and peered in between the drawn blinds, but he couldn't see anything.

"That's not just any baby Remus, that's my godson or goddaughter being born in there. Why do they keep the blinds down? Just because we're not blood-related."

"Just because Lily wants privacy. The birth of a baby isn't exactly ...er..something everyone can witness."

"It wouldn't bother me. I should be in there with James. Ready to hold him or her for the first time."

The other occupant of the room, a squat nervous little man began wriggling his hands and decided to move closer to his friends.

"But what if Sirius is right Remus? What if somethings....wrong."

"Nothing is wrong Peter, just relax. Here, have some chocolate."

He offered a piece to Peter who snatched it up and gulped it down in one swallow.

"We'll celebrate later," Sirius said as he refused Remus's share of the candy.

Peter turned back to Remus, determined to keep his mind distracted.

"By the way, what names did they have picked out?"

"Well," Remus began in a thoughtful voice. "Harry if it's a boy or Rose if it's a girl."

"Oh it's no use," Sirius grumbled as he turned away from the window and sat in a chair, cursing under his breath.

"Really Sirius, you carry on as if it were your own child being born."

"That's not far from the truth. I am the godfather."

"Well what about us?" Peter questioned. "I mean,...what are we going to be?"

"The nursemaids of course," Sirius laughed.

"Just because we aren't officially named godfathers doesn't mean we can't be involved," Remus answered.

"That's right Peter. You two will be given the most difficult task of all; changing dirty dipers."

Remus shivered at the thought of it. "A task I believe Peter is more suited for."

"That's not fair."

Suddenly the door to the delivery room opened and all three men were alert and on their feet. It was a young nurse, who smiled at them warmly.

"Well?!" Sirius started, too impatient to wait for what she had to say.

"It's a boy."

"A boy! Did you hear that? A boy! I'm a godfather!" Sirius cheered as he turned to hug Remus and Peter.

"How is Lilly?" asked Remus.

"Just fine, a little tired, but that's to be expected."

"And James?" asked Sirius.

"As proud as any father can be."

The young men cheered again.

"Can we see him?" Sirius asked unable to keep his anxiousness out of his voice.

"You most certainly can."

Everyone turned to see James walking toward them with his newborn son in his arms. All three men gathered together and admired the baby who stared back at them curiously.

"He looks just like you James," said Remus.

"He most certainly does. We have ourselves a future Marauder," said Sirius.

"A future troublemaker with you as his godfather. Would you like to hold Harry Sirius?"

"Of course I would."

James gently passed the child into his arms. Sirius didn't think his smile could get any wider, especially when Harry turned to look up at him.

"Hello Harry, I'm your godfather. You and I are going to get into a lot of trouble when you're older."

The others chuckled at his comment.

"I'm not sure Lily would approve," said Peter. "She never did even when we were in school."

They laughed again. Unknown to all of the men, another man had been watching them from the hallway and decided to walk over to them.

"What a beautiful child."

All of them looked up, startled as they had not noticed his approach.

"Uh, thank you," James said warily.

"Is he yours?" the stranger asked. He was rather thin and wearing robes of the richest violet color that seemed to sparkle in the lights. He also appeared to be a bit shabby, but he was able to keep a gentlemanly look with his light brown hair combed back in an elegant manner. But the thing that caught James off his gaurd was his eyes which were a piercing golden brown.

"Yes he is."

"Well congratulations. I'm sure he'll prove to be, a very special young man."

"Ah, thank you."

The stranger nodded then moved away from them and out of their sight.

"Who was that James?" Peter asked.

"Don't know. But he is right about one thing; he is going to be special. I just know it."

While they continued to fawn over the baby another stranger stood admiring the moment from a distance. Sirius walked over to his friends and himself to look down at the baby. He went unoticed as he stood nearby.

"You were so right about that James and in a few days we'll learn just how special he really is," Sirius said to himself. He then straightened himself up and took a tighter grip on the wand in his pocket. In an instant the room and his friends, including his other self began to swirl as though they were an illusion made up of a smoke like matter. Sirius felt a tug and pulled himself away from the changes. The next thing he knew he was pulling his head out of a pensieve, which currently consisted of one of his fondest memories. Sirius sighed and rubbed his brow in a tired manner. For that memory held the happiest moment as well as the saddest moment of his life.

After taking a minute to process what he had relived, he used his wand to pour the gas like substance into a vial, then he placed the pensieve back onto an empty shelf next to other vials filled with memories. Sirius was standing in the room of a basement in his home where he kept many reminders of the past. There was an old trunk where he kept his old school robes and books, a wall containing posters of motorcyles and young girls, and a desks filled with old letters. Even after all these years he still liked to look through them.

So much had changed since then. It had been thirteen years since his godson had been born and instead of living with his parents, he was living here with Sirius. It wasn't as though Sirius was bothered by it; he couldn't be happier. The only thing he was bothered by was the reason for it.

Harry couldn't have been but a few months old when it happened. When tragedy struck and Sirius and Harry lost two of the most wonderful people in the world--James and Lily.

It was a tragedy that became headlines in the Daily Phrophet, due to the nature of the death. Both James and Lily Potter were murdered by a dark unknown creature that was on the rise of spreading terror. Traveling mainly during the night and killing countless innocent victims, leaving their bodies bone dry. He was like a vampire, swooping in and collecting blood from sheep. The horror of it all didn't come til later when they discovered that this creature was a wizard, or once a wizard, going by the name of Voldemort. After the deaths of James and Lily, he expressed his voice and his power by demolishing several homes and buildings, sheadding more blood; causing more horror.

His agenda was unclear, but it appeared the only thing he was after was to be the most powerful. To express his power among people at random. But to Sirius, his attack on the Potter's wasn't random. They had become two of his first victims in London; murders that haven't been seen nor heard of in ages. But why? There was no reason for it. Rumors by muggle witnesses in other cities reported a break in of something they couldn't see clearly. Something dark and terrible that forced the screams out of his victims. They were proven to be true when Voldemort broke into the home of the Potters and murdered them in cold blood.

All Sirius could do was thank the heavens he had Harry with him that night; babysitting the boy while James and Lily had a quiet evening to themselves. However, he also blamed himself for it, as it had been his idea. He'd talked James and Lily into spending a romantic evening at home, alone, as he felt they didn't get much quiet time together since their son arrived.

A great mistake that James, Lily and Harry as well as Sirius had to pay for.

The shock of leaving Remus and Peter behind to take Harry back home, only to find it in ruins and the slaughtered bodies of his best friends on the floor was indescribable. He could still feel it at times.

Not long after that night he experienced another loss of his friends. Peter Petigrew went missing. He was still living with his mother at the time, just barely making an effort to find a flat and move out of the house when it happened. Sirius had joked that Peter may have moved out without telling her, but the lack of post told them it wasn't a joke. Weeks passed by without a single sign of his friend. Aurors were sent to track him, but there was nothing. He would forever remain a mystery. Sirius had been an auror, but only briefly. All the horror that struck his friends was too great; he became too emotionally involved and far too frustrated to act logically. In the end, he was relieved of his services.

At least Remus wasn't killed or missing. He remained right by his and Harry's side. Sirius didn't know where'd he'd be if it wasn't for Remus.

"Sirius are you down there!?"

"I'll be up in a minute Harry!" he shouted back.

Sirius took one last look around the room to make sure everything was in order. Once he was satisfied with it, he headed upstairs.

The house was small, but big and comfortable enough for two people in London. They were short on neighborhood kids around Harry's age, but Sirius wasn't too concerned by it. He was sure he'd be making lots of friends when he recieved his letter and headed of to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. For now he would just have to put up with the muggle students at the muggle school he attended. Students who already suspected something funny about his godson and strayed away or bullied him. However he was able to get along with some.

Sirius wished he could do more to control the situation, but a wizard was usually prevented from taking drastic means against muggles--especially a wizard who was an ex-auror.

"I made lunch," said Harry. "Tunafish sandwhiches if that's alright."

"That's all we have," said Sirius as he took one of the plates and sat down. Harry sat in front of him.

How Sirius wished James could see him now. He looked more like his father than ever. And his eyes; they were just like his mother's. Sirius hadn't been very descriptive on what happened the night he lost his parents. He had kept his news articles out of his reach. He did tell him it was the cause of a wizard named Voldemort, but he never described how terrible and powerful he was and continued to be to this day. He wasn't mentioned as often as he used to be in the paper, which caused many to believe he was no longer around; but Sirius knew better.

"Has the post arrived? Sirius?"

Sirius shook out of his daze and smiled.

"I expect you're dying to know if you've been accepted or not. Well I can tell you right now, you have."

"It should be here. Maybe it will be here today."

"You haven't turned thirteen yet."

"Then it will come tomorrow."

Sirius laughed. "Remember, once you're off to Hogwarts I expect you to be on your worst behavior. I promised when you were a baby that we'd get into trouble, but....well, no matter."

Harry frowned. "It'll be my first year. I wouldn't want to get chucked out so soon."

"That's true. Besides, you're too much of a nice boy to get into trouble anyway."

Harry grinned. "Well if it makes you feel any better, I'll pull off one of the pranks you did when you were in school."

"That would make me proud. A toast to the future Marauder," said Sirius and he raised his glass of juice and clinked it with Harry's.

As Harry went to lean back in his chair, he felt a hot sting on his back and pulled away quickly.

"Ouch!"

"What's the matter?"

"I don't know. There was a pain in my back just now, felt like a burn," Harry answered as he touched the area gently.

"Maybe you've been in the sun too long."

"If the dreams weren't enough, now I have this to deal with, and I haven't even started school yet."

"Dreams?"

"Yeah. Lately I've been having dreams. They're all the same really. I'm flying."

"Flying?"

"Yeah, flying over the clouds."

"Well it's pretty obvious. It means you're going to be a seeker like your dad, in Quidditch. There's no greater achievement--well maybe there is, but not to those who understand its importance." Harry seemed to consider this idea.

"Do you really think I'd be good enough?"

"I know you be, greater than all the rest. May even surpass your dad."

Harry smiled sadly at the thought of his father's achievements and attempted to cover his true feelings by finishing his sandwhich. But Sirius caught on.

"What do you say after lunch we head into town and pick out a good birthday cake for tomorrow? I'd make one myself, but you remember what happened the last time."

"Yeah, you still can't get the batter off the ceiling." As if on cue they both looked up to a moldy spot that was lumped over their heads and laughed. The rest of the day was spent searching out the perfect cake for Harry. Afterwards they went to the park then came back home. That was the usual routine. Unfortunately it would be broken once Harry recieved his letter, but luckily for Sirius Remus promised to keep him company. Still, he would miss his godson and Harry would miss him; but he was proud of the wizard he was about to grow into and that was the important thing.

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There's my first chapter in a long time of Harry fics. Originally I planned to have Harry found unharmed in the house after Voldemort attacked, but I didn't want Harry to be known for that miracle like he is in the actual series. I wanted him to be known for what's to come very very soon. As you've noticed there are a few changes, like in this story wizards recieve their letters at 13. This way I can make Harry old enough to deal with the things that are bound to take place. This is the first story I'm kind of making up as I go. Usually I plan them out all the way, but here I'm writing as I go, so I hope you'll stick with me to the end. Please review.