From Phoenix Reborn
By Honest Beauty
Part 1
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters there in. I'm just borrowing them for my own pleasure ^^
Also, my muse has not beta'ed this story, so even though I am posting it, it's not as good as it could be.
Rules never seemed to apply to the men in the Potter family. And the rules of life and death itself had never stopped Tom Riddle. So on that fateful night when two brother wands, whose cores both came from Fawkes, a Phoenix that will be reborn again and again, were forced to duel one another, it was not at all surprising that the incredibly rare and powerful spell of Priori Incantatem that Harry and Voldemort unwittingly cast that fateful night affected the world of the living and the world of the dead in an unimaginable way.
Somewhere in the bowels of the Ministry of Magic, a certain eerie arch, with its whispering veil, trembled and glowed as the ragged length of cloth shuddered violently for a mere second. Then everything was just as it was. At least outwardly. The very fabric of time and the world buckled and warped in that second, and if someone had only been there, they would have seen two silhouettes glowing softly just on the other side of the shroud before disappearing entirely.
About a month later, a wiry young man with extremely untidy black hair bolted out of the house at number four privet lane, his huge cousin giving chase.
"Oi freak!" Dudley shouted, a nasty smirk on his face as he somehow managed to keep up with his lighter and smaller relative. Harry rolled his eyes and continued to run, aiming for the park. He knew Dudley couldn't climb and there were several fine, tall trees where Harry could take refuge from the boxing champ.
But his cousin was getting smarter Harry realized as he rocketed around a corner into Piers, who was ready and waiting for him. Ambush Harry thought grimly as he struggled with the other boy, who had tackled him to the ground when the bespectacled teen had bounced off him, losing his balance and momentum. Damn, I hate it when Diddy-kins learns a new trick.
The young wizard elbowed the boy on top of him viciously and bucked the now winded Piers off of him. Harry scrambled to his feet and had just turned in the direction of the park when a heavy, strong hand grabbed his upper right arm. Bloody hell Harry cursed as Dudley swung him around. He raised his hand to defend his face, but again Dudley had been getting smarter.
The leather clad boy who turned out to be a very good boxer, drove a powerful uppercut into his cousin's torso, knocking the wind out of him. Harry wheezed as his knees gave out on him. He dropped to the brown grass when his cousin let go of him.
"Well, now Harry, that wasn't very polite of you to run from me, you know." Dudley smirked as Harry glared up at him. "After all I just wanted to give you your birthday present." He continued amiably, while his small eyes glittered with petty cruelty. Piers hauled Harry back up to his feet and held his arms behind his back. The teen was struck by a sense of déjà vu, and knew what would come next.
"I wouldn't call getting slugged by my cousin every year on my birthday to be a present, Dudley." Harry retorted, struggling against Piers.
"Ah but it's a tradition." Dudley shot back and punched Harry in the face. Said teen turned his head at the last second so that it was just a glancing blow, but the unfortunate fact was Dudley was very strong and threw a powerful punch. Harry saw stars and tasted blood in his mouth as he hissed in pain.
"Happy fifteenth birthday cousin." Dudley sneered as he and Piers turned and swaggered away. Harry held his abused cheek and glowered at their retreating backs before turning and walking the rest of the way to the park.
Once there he flopped in the shade of a large oak tree. Harry angrily spat out the blood that had built up in his mouth onto the ground beside him. The coppery taste of it reminded the young wizard of the night Voldemort returned and the shades of his parents had appeared and encouraged him.
"Mum, Dad." Harry whispered. He had been dreaming of them constantly, when he wasn't having nightmares about Cedric or Voldemort or the odd dreams of long dark corridors and dead ends. In the dreams they were always trying to tell him something important, but when he woke up Harry could never remember them. He was sure they were instructions of some sort, but all he could ever remember from them was the feel of being hugged by his parents.
The park was deserted, so Harry tucked up his legs laid his crossed arms on his knees and rested his throbbing head on his arms. Unbidden tears welled up in his green eyes as Harry felt more blood trickling out the corners of his mouth. He felt two drops of blood fall from his loose lips and a tear from each eye fall to the parched ground beneath him as he wished with all of his heart that his parents were still alive.
It was worse in a way, now that the shades of his parents had talked with him. Before the pain of not having loving parents was like a dull constant ache. Now it was sharp stabbing pains of longing and loneliness.
Wiping his face, Harry rose slowly and walked back to the house. Hedwig was in her cage and she of everyone in the house was the only one who cared for him. Lost in his misery, the young man didn't notice the dark clouds boiling up on the horizon and slowly moving in his direction.
Back under the tree the four spots on the ground shined briefly a deep golden color before vanishing without a trace.
Later that night, Harry watched the rain drum on his window as he stroked Hedwig's soft head feathers. It was a vicious storm with exuberant amounts of lightning and thunder. He sighed and turned off the light and went to sleep, hoping that he'd dream of his parents and not Voldemort or Cedric Diggory.
Miles away in the small town of Godric's Hollow, residents never took notice as a huge, four pronged bolt of lightning struck the ground. The lightning hung there for a moment, lighting the area with its golden hued light. Two hit the ground in front of a large tombstone bearing the names of a couple, and the other two touched down in the ruins of a old house, that no one could remember who it belonged to or how it had collapsed.
Two seconds later, two flashes of light appeared, one in the remains of the master bedroom, the other in the ruined living room. The light consolidated into two bodies, one male and one female.
James Potter groaned and stirred slightly, trying to orient himself. He sifted through his memories, trying to figure out where he was and what was going on. Having the strangest image of him in a graveyard with Lily and they talked briefly with a boy that looked like a younger version of himself, only his eyes weren't quite right. But there was no way that he and Lily could have been talking to his younger self.
James concentrated on the image, but the more he did the more it fragmented and slipped from his mind. Giving it up as a lost cause, the wizard slowly rolled over onto his stomach and pushed himself painfully to his feet. His body ached something fierce, and he staggered as his knees shook under him.
Grabbing the remains of a wall, James steadied himself and looked around. He had to squint against the inky blackness of the night, but he could see relatively well thanks to the muggles' "street-lamps". His mouth slowly dropped open as he surveyed what was clearly the ruins of his living room. Bracing his back against the wall, the wiry man pulled his wand from his pocket. He attempted to say lumos but all that emerged was a strangled croak. Clearing his throat James tried again and was rewarded by the tip of his wand igniting.
"What the hell happened here?" He thought back to earlier that night. Lily had kept their energetic son Harry occupied while he had visited with Peter in this very room. His small friend had been acting very strangely, almost as if he felt guilty rather than fearful. James had shaken it off, figuring it was just his nerves. And later….
"Bloody Hell! LILY! HARRY!" James bellowed, his voice breaking. His heart racing, the tall black haired wizard remembered Voldemort arriving, him telling Lily to get Harry and run, him buying them a few seconds by facing the dark lord. The last things he remembered were the evil wizard's red eyes, a flash of green light and a rushing sound.
Panicked, James hurried through the wreckage of his home to the stairs, stumbling often over the uneven floor. The wizard cursed as he tripped over a warped floorboard and managed to catch himself on the banister, which cracked under the pressure.
Breathing heavily, James barreled up the dangerous steps headed to his and Lily's bedroom. Grabbing the doorway for a second he gasped at what he saw.
Lily awoke to the feeling of dread invading her. The memories of Voldemort, Harry and her last attempts to save him flooded her mind as her eyes flew open and tried to focus on her surroundings.
"Harry!" she whispered, unable to raise her voice anymore. Sitting up from where her upper torso was sprawled on the bed, Lily scooped up her wand automatically as her vivid green eyes darted around the dim room.
There was no sign of her infant son anywhere, only a faint burnt smell lingering in the air. Her wand dropped from numb fingers as she realized with her mother's instinct, that her son was gone. Desperately hoping she was wrong, Lily ran over to her son's empty crib. The redheaded witch noted in a remote corner of her mind that the crib was warped and rotting, as was the rest of the bedroom. But that didn't matter to the distraught mother at the moment.
"No." the word slipped from her lips as she crumpled to the warped floor, tears flowing freely down her face. So lost in her absolute grief, she didn't hear her husband's bellow or his panicked footsteps toward her.
"Lily!" James cried and hurried to where his wife was huddled beside Harry's crib. Dread chilled him as he dropped to his knees in front of her and grabbed her shoulders. Her beautiful emerald eyes looked slowly up at him as tears poured from them.
"Lily, where's Harry?" James asked, his heart in his throat.
"He's gone James." She sobbed. "I woke up and he wasn't here. All I found was this…" she held out the cloth she had been clutching to her chest. James recognized it as the blanket Lily had knitted for Harry. Then he saw the blood.
"No, nonono." He repeated shaking his head, willing it to not be true. He looked into Lily's eyes as he felt tears start to spill from his own. He could hardly see her, due to the tears and the dirt on his glasses. His wife sobbed and threw herself in his arms.
They stayed like that, lost in their grief and numb to anything else, until the night lightened to predawn. James took several shuddering breaths and forced himself to calm down and look at their situation objectively. He looked around. The house was a lost cause. He took stock of his own body, but found nothing wrong. Lily looked unhurt, but he couldn't be sure.
"Lily?" his beautiful wife slowly raised her head from his chest and looked at him as the sun peeked out from the horizon. James felt his eyes widen as he saw her face and registered the changes. There were fine lines and other subtle sign of age that his 21 year-old spouse shouldn't have. Why, she looked almost fifteen years older! From her shocked expression, he assumed his face matched hers.
"Let me guess, I look to be about 35 don't I?" he asked gently.
"Yes, and from your look, I must have aged as well." Lily replied slowly. Her quick conclusion didn't surprise him in the least. She seemed to gather herself as she took a deep, slow breath and picked up her wand.
"Let's go to Albus, he'll be able to help us figure out what happened." James suggested quietly as they helped each other to their feet. Lily nodded as James looked at the small blanket still clutched in his hand. After a moment of debate, the wizard carefully folded the cloth up and tucked it under his arm.
Slowly the couple gingerly picked their way through the remnants of their home to the kitchen hearth. The floo pot had fallen to the tiles and shattered, but there was enough for the both of them still on the floor. Lily lit the fire as James gathered up enough to transport her. He handed the powder to her and gathered up enough for himself as she threw the powder into the small fire.
"Dumbledore's office." She said clearly after stepping into the green flames. James waited until she had left then threw his own handful into the fire. He pocketed his glasses and stepped into the fire. Taking one last blurry look at his house, James tightened his grip on the blanket.
"Dumbledore's office." He too disappeared. A minute later the fire was out and the ashes cooling.
Albus sighed tiredly. Dealing with Fudge's idiotic bumbling and trying to stay two steps ahead of Tom was wearing him ragged. He had just had a meeting with Severus last night, discussing what information he should feed Voldemort. Straight after that Sirius had dropped in to report that most of the original Order of the Phoenix were back and that he wished that he could do more.
The powerful wizard could empathize with the younger man, but it was too dangerous to let Sirius do much else. Fawkes suddenly woke with a melodious chirp and glided over to land on his desk in front of him. Albus smiled slightly and stroked his companion, remembering how his feathered friend had helped Harry get through the ordeal of telling of the dark lord's rebirth.
He jumped in his seat as his fire roared up and turned green. A quick glance told him that it was five in the morning. Who would be trying to visit me at this hour? The headmaster wondered but flicked his wand at the fire, allowing whoever it was to arrive.
"Great Merciful Merlin!" he exclaimed as a woman appeared and climbed unsteadily out from the grate. She looked up and Albus saw her bright emerald eyes look straight at him, grief and heartbreak shining from their clear depths.
He rose to his feet and circled around his desk, searching the person's aura for any taint of dark magic, but could not find a single wisp of it. The fire flared again and Albus knew who it would be before the tall wiry man with messy black hair stepped out from the fireplace.
"Lily? James? Is it really you?" Albus asked softly as the two dead people stood together and stared at him. He noticed distantly that James had what looked like a small blanket under one arm.
"Yes Albus, it's us and we would like to know what the hell is going on and where our s-son is." James choked on the word 'son' and Lily's breath hitched.
"How can I tell you're not death eaters?" Albus asked, and saw the flash of anger in James' eyes. "I ask, only because both of you should be dead." The couple rocked back on their heels, as Dumbledore noticed that they looked to be in their mid thirties instead of their early twenties they had been when they died.
"W-What?!" Lily blurted. James' brows slammed together and he put his free arm around Lily's shoulders.
"I swear Albus if you are lying to us, I'll toss you out of that window with my antlers." He growled.
"What day is it Albus?" Lily asked fearfully.
"August 1st, 1995." Albus stated softly. Both looked shell-shocked. Albus went to one of his many cabinets and pulled out a small vial.
"If you two don't mind, I would like to confirm that you're telling the true." He said gently.
"That's veritaserum isn't it?" Lily asked. Dumbledore nodded. They couple shrugged.
"We don't care. We're just trying to figure out what the hell is going on." James said bluntly.
They both took the three drops and sat stoically in the chairs Albus had conjured for them.
"Who are you?" Albus asked Lily first.
"Lily Potter nee Evans." She said tonelessly. He turned to the messy black haired man next to her
"Who are you?"
"James Potter." He recited flatly.
"Who was your secret keeper on the night of October 31st, 1981?"
"Peter Pettigrew." Albus nodded.
"Lily, why did Voldemort kill you?"
"Because I would not stand aside and let him kill my son." Albus nodded once more and administered the antidote to both of them. Once they came back to themselves, Albus spoke.
"If you would both produce your patronuses…" he trailed off, producing his own to reassure them HE was who he said he was. His phoenix was joined by a dainty doe and a handsome stag. Then James spoke up.
"Oh hell, why don't I go the extra mile and transform for you too?" he gave his wand to Lily and morphed quickly into a large stag with very messy fur at his antlers. James reverted and the couple stared at Dumbledore, daring him to give them anymore tests.
"Why don't you sit down and tell me what happened?" he suggested, resuming his seat while they slowly followed his example.
Fifteen minutes later both were finished. He saw the shock wearing off in Lily first.
"Albus where is our son? Is he…." She sobbed, unable to continue. James hugged her, his hazel eyes begging the older wizard to tell them Harry was still alive.
"No, Lily, he is alive and relatively well." He said gently, smiling slightly. Both parents shot to their feet, but Albus motioned for them to sit back down. "Let me explain everything to you. A lot has happened since the night you two were murdered by Voldemort."
"Oh my God." Lily whispered. She and James just stared at Dumbledore in silence. He had just told them of Voldemort's return and their part in the Priori Incantatem spell. Well, that certainly explained both her and James' fragmented almost memory.
"Our son has gone through all of that?" James asked faintly, pride, horror, love, worry and grief for his son's pain showing in his eyes.
"Yes. Harry faced Voldemort in his first year, an apparition of Tom Riddle and a basilisk in his second, a horde of dementors in his third and the rebirth of the dark lord not quite two months ago." Albus said.
"Prove it." "What does he look like now?" James and Lily asked simultaneously.
"I believe I can answer both of your queries at one time." The Albus replied and flicked his wand. The headmaster's pensieve floated down from its cupboard and onto the desk.
Dumbledore placed several memories into the bowl and motioned for James and Lily to join him:
A young boy with messy black hair was clutching a man's arm. The man was screaming as his skin blistered horribly where it made contact with the boy's, whose young screams of pain tore at the observers. Over both of them a high cold voice yelled at the man to 'KILL HIM!'.
Suddenly as the other Dumbledore blasted the man away from the boy, a dark shadow escaped from the man and fled. The man promptly stopped screaming and fell down dead. A nanosecond later Harry collapsed. The past Albus ran up to the fallen boy, calling his name worriedly.
The scene changed to Albus explaining what had happened to Harry in the hospital wing. James glowed with pride for his son's intelligence and bravery. Lily stroked and hugged her son, even though he was just a memory.
"This one is actually Fawkes' memory." The present Albus said as they smoothly shifted to the next memory. James gasped in horror as Lily screamed at the scene. A huge serpent, a basilisk, blinded but dangerous, was fighting Fawkes as their son jammed the old school sorting hat onto his head. The next second he pulled a glittering sword from the hat's depths.
Lily's heart was in her throat as she saw her son fearlessly run up to the monster and engaged it. But she and James both screamed in horrified disbelief when the basilisk's fang pierced Harry's arm. They watched breathlessly as their son was saved from death's clutches by Fawkes' tears and his brilliant defeat of Tom.
"This one is courtesy of Miss Hermione Granger." James and Lily watched as their thirteen year old son managed to defeat a horde of dementors from sucking the souls from his past self and Sirius with his stag patronus.
"Our son was able to conjure and hold a CORPORAL patronus in his THIRD year?!" Lily asked in wonderment as the scene dissolved. Albus nodded, a proud twinkle in his eyes.
The next memory was the worst. It broke Lily and James' heart to see their son so traumatized and pained. They listened as he described his terrible ordeal at the hands of Voldemort and of the shades of his parent telling him what to do. Tears sprang to Lily's eyes as she heard the raw longing and smothered hope in her son's voice.
"Oh James, he was only fourteen. How could he have possibly survived this?" she whispered as the memory faded.
"The answer to that is fairly simple Lily." Albus replied as they found themselves once again in the headmaster's office. "He inherited his parents' strength, love, intelligence and courage." Fawkes chirruped his agreement. "Now I think that the both of you need to rest for a few hours, while I tell the rest of the people who need to know about your return. The couple yawned and suddenly realized that Albus was correct.
The older wizard escorted them to an adjacent room and conjured up pajamas and a large bed for them to share. They gratefully fell into the bed as soon as Albus exited the small room.
Albus shook his head to clear it as he closed the door. Ah the mysteries of love! He thought to himself as he sat down at his desk. Pulling a small piece of parchment towards him, he selected a quill and bent his head.
Something very unusual, but good, has happened. Would you kindly come by floo to my office as soon as possible?
Sincerely – Albus Dumbledore
He addressed it to both Remus and Sirius after rolling it up. He then gave it to Fawkes, who clamped it gently in his sharp beak. After his scarlet bird vanished in a flash of fire, the headmaster sat back and waited.
Sirius was eating a late lunch when a ball of flames appeared right in front of him.
"Bloody Fucking Hell!" he yelped as Remus, who was across from him, jumped in his seat. The ball resolved itself into a phoenix, Fawkes to be exact.
"What the devil…" Remus asked as the bird dropped a small roll of parchment on the table and disappeared. Both men leaned in to see each of their names written on it.
Sirius raised his eyebrow at the short, cryptic message.
"What do you suppose it is?" Sirius asked his friend. Remus shrugged.
"I haven't the foggiest. But let's go." Both men stood and went to the kitchen hearth.
"Well, that didn't take long." Albus whispered to himself as the two people stepped out of the grate in rapid succession.
"What's up Albus?" Sirius asked after the preliminary greetings were done and they were comfortably seated. Albus closed his eyes for a brief moment.
"James and Lily Potter have been brought back to life. They are currently asleep in that room over there." He said softly. All hell broke loose.
"WHAT?!" "How did this happen Albus?" "Is it really them?" "Does anyone else know?" "Have you told Harry yet?" he raised his hands for silence and slowly got it. He quickly explained everything.
"When can we see them?" Sirius asked eagerly. Remus shot him a look.
"How long have they been asleep Albus?" he asked pointedly.
"A half hour, but the bed they are in is one of my better pieces of work. It allows the sleeper, or sleepers, to get a full night's rest in one hour. Useful thing when you have too much to do and not enough time to do it in." Dumbledore smiled, his eyes twinkling. "Let me go wake them up."
James stirred slightly as Lily yawned and a knock sounded.
"Come in" he muttered sleepily. Albus did so and with his arrival the couple remembered everything that had happened to them. The headmaster must have seen that in their faces as he lit the lamps.
Lily and James stepped out of bed as Dumbledore erected a dressing screen so they could get dressed. After both had finished and joined him at the door, Dumbledore spoke.
"You have some visitors." He said and beckoned them out of the room. Curious, James went first and froze at the sight of his two best friends.
"Sirius! Remus!" he shouted joyfully as the two said men looked incredulously, but happily at him. Then they ran at him and engulfed him in hugs and backslaps.
"Oh my god I can't believe the two of you are alive!" Sirius said as Remus gave Lily a brotherly hug. After a few minutes of reuniting, all four sat down and looked at Dumbledore, who had resumed his seat much earlier.
"Albus, where is our son now? Where is Harry?" Lily asked, a fierce longing filling her soul. She felt James' arms encircle her.
"At your sister's house." He replied as both jumped to their feet. "Sirius, Remus if I could have a moment with you while I lift the anti-Apparating spell for Lily and James?" Dumbledore said. The other two men nodded as Albus flicked his wand and the couple vanished with a crack.
"Now we need to plan this carefully. I don't know how Harry will react, he is a teenager after all and probably more than a bit paranoid right now. So I propose that Remus be stationed outside their house to contain anything magical or too noisy and Sirius should be out of sight but ready to be help if needed." Albus explained to the two men.
"Why didn't you warn Lily and James about this?" Sirius asked, crossing his arms.
"Call me a fool, but I didn't want to worry them needlessly nor put their guard up at a crucial time like this." Remus nodded, seeing the logic.
"You two will get to Privet Drive via Arabella's chimney and your feet. I suggest you hurry." He smiled slightly. "I, myself will be telling the good news to Minister Fudge and will be there should Harry need a bailout from illegal underage magic." He finished with a twinkle in his eye. The two friends nodded.
"Sounds like a plan. If you could lend us the powder..." Remus said as he and Sirius got to their feet. They were all in muggle like clothes and it was dusk outside. It would be full dark in Little Whinging. Albus pointed them to the pot and they were gone in a swirl of emerald flames.
Harry was doing his best to ignore the other three people at the dinner table as he hurriedly ate his small portion of food. It wasn't nearly enough. The teen had been shooting up like a weed lately and it seemed like he was always hungry. Not that the Dursleys' cared at all. He had just pushed away from the table when two cracks sounded from the backyard. Dudley jumped and cowered in his chair, Petunia screeched and Vernon rounded on Harry.
"What have I told you about doing 'that' in this house?!" He roared. Harry jumped to his feet, his temper rising dangerously.
"That wasn't me you idiot!" he snapped loudly, pulling out his wand. The teen was sure that those cracks had been people Apparating.
"YOU PUT THAT DAMN THING AWAY THIS INSTANT BOY!" Vernon yelled, charging around the table at his nephew. Harry raised his wand and aimed it at his uncle. The beefy man skidded to a stop just as a knock sounded at the back door.
James was more than a bit peeved at his brother-in-law. He recognized the voice alright, but was more focused on the man's obvious mistreatment of their son. Lily sucked in her breath at the sound of their son's angry baritone voice.
"He sounds so much like you James." She whispered as they made their way to the back door. Her husband nodded as he rapped firmly on the wood. It was opened a minute later by Lily's horsey sister, who was armed with a wooden spoon
The look on Petunia's face was priceless when she saw her supposedly dead sister and brother-in-law. The woman backed up unsteadily into the kitchen.
"Petunia? Who is it dear?" Vernon asked from behind her a second before she fainted dead away. Vernon managed to catch her as he stared, dumbfounded at the two people came inside. "What the bloody hell is going on here?!" he gasped as Lily and James heard slow, stealthy foot falls coming from the door to the dining room. They had their eyes fixed firmly on the white door as it slowly swung open.
Harry heard Vernon's gasping inquiry and decided to investigate. Keeping his wand at the ready, Harry slowly pushed the door open. He froze at the sight awaiting him.
His aunt was unconscious in Vernon's arms and the back door was ajar. But that wasn't what truly shocked Harry. It was the two figures facing him with joy and uncertainty on their faces. Harry stood rooted to the spot in shock. For five seconds he tried to fool himself into thinking that they really were his parents by some miracle, but his practical and hardened part immediately kicked in thereafter.
He raised his wand back up and aimed it at the couple. They had to be death eaters of some kind, or someone else playing a sick, sick joke on him. His breath caught involuntarily at the hurt in his soul of having to face dark wizards wearing the beloved faces of his parents.
"Who the hell are you?" he asked harshly, managing to keep his voice mostly under control. He saw the surprise and hurt flash in their eyes.
James stared at the startling transformation of stunned teen to hardened wizard. He could hear the tremor in his son's voice and longed to comfort his son.
Lily felt her heart contract painfully at the hurt in her son's green eyes, at the defensive posture. She licked her lips.
"Harry, it's us, your parents." She said softly, looking uncertainly at James. She had not expected this reaction out of Harry. From his expression, neither had her husband.
"Bullocks!" Harry snarled, and advanced on them, all his bottled up rage, frustration and fear coming to a boiling point. "Now you had better show me who you really are, death eaters, because I'm not a naïve little boy who believes that dead people can come back to life." He continued, as they slowly backed up out onto the lawn, their hands raised halfway.
"Now you listen to me Harry." James started in a stern but calming tone. "We are not Death Eaters, we really are your parents."
"Yeah and I'm Merlin!" Harry shot back sarcastically.
"Albus was right." Sirius muttered to himself. He was crouched on top of the roof, out of sight of everyone. Remus was outside the front door in the street.
James was flabbergasted. He had never even guessed Harry would react this way, though he supposed that he should have.
"Yeah and I'm Merlin!" damn! He's obviously inherited my tongue. The older man thought, sighing.
"Harry, listen to me, pleas—"
"No!" Harry shouted. "Stupefy!" James stood rooted to the spot as the red beam blasted from his son's wand. His wife wasn't so frozen. She stepped out in front of him and pulled out her wand quickly.
"Protego!" Lily shouted and a shield appeared just in time to deflect Harry's spell. James pulled it together and pulled out his own wand.
"Petrificus Totalus!" Harry dodged with reflexes sharpened by Quidditch.
"Expelliarmus!" the younger wizard shot back. James dodged and stepped in front of Lily at the same time.
"For Merlin's sake, James!" she snapped as he and her son continued to fire spells at each other. "You two haven't been together even for an hour and already you're having a father-son argument!"
"I'm a bit busy right now dear." James snapped as Harry yelled.
"Stop lying to me! My parents are dead! There's no magic in the world that can bring them back!" Harry's emotions were as chaotic as his hair. He was hurt by the death eaters' trickery and all the rage, frustration and fear that had been bottling up in him was boiling out of him.
"Minister!" a high girly voice called as a short, toad-like woman in pink burst into Fudge's office. Dumbledore had been in the midst of explaining the Potters' miraculous return
"What is it, Dolores?"
"The Potter boy has used at least a dozen spells in quick secession."
"Expel him them." Fudge said a smug smirk on his face.
"Yes sir!" the woman looked like she had been given candy.
"One moment please." Albus raised a hand. "I take full responsibility for Harry's actions. I sent his parents to him to reunite them, and Harry naturally suspects that they are death eaters trying to harm him." Fudge stared at him and Dolores looked cheated. Albus sat back down.
"Please let me finish and do not send a letter of expulsion to Harry." It was phrased as a request but was given like the order it was. Fudge reluctantly sat back down and waved for Dolores to wait just outside.
Vernon apparently had had enough. He came roaring out of the house.
"I don't care who you are, both of you stop doing 'THAT' this instant!" The beefy man yelled.
"Silencio!" Harry shouted pointing his wand at his uncle. Vernon's mouth moved but no sound came out. "You keep out of this, Vernon!" he snarled and turned back to face his two adversaries.
"Well I guess they're going to need my help after all." Sirius muttered and diappearted with a pop.
Harry had just fired another spell when he heard a crack behind him. Before he could turn, he was caught in full nelson. He immediately started struggling.
"Harry calm down. They really are your parents!" he heard Sirius' voice from behind them. His eyes blazing in rage and hurt, Harry turned his head around as far as he could to glare at the man holding him.
"And what proof do you have that you're really Sirius?!' he shot back and kicked the man's kneecap. The man cursed as an exasperated shout drew Harry's attention back to the person wearing his dad's face.
"Fine!" James yelled throwing up his arms. His wand went flying, but he saw Lily catch it so he wasn't worried. "You want proof, Harry James Potter?! Proof that I'm your father?" he snapped, irritated at his son's attitude, though he was secretly proud that his son was street smart and a good dueler.
"If you've got it, let's see it, imposter!" Harry yelled back at him, still trying to get free.
"FINE!" James repeated and flashed to his animagus form. Harry stared dumbstruck at the majestic stag that looked extremely peeved and hurt.
"Now if only he'd done that sooner." Harry heard the man behind him mutter. The next second Harry fell over backwards over the back of a large black dog. The dog gave Harry a slobbery canine kiss and trotted over to stand with the deer. Harry absently stood, rubbing his bruised bum.
"Well, I'm not an animagus, but this should prove I am who I say I am." Lily sighed to cover her heartbreak at the hardened and hurt young man her son had become.
"Expecto Patronum!" she said and a white doe burst from her wand tip. Harry realized that they were telling the truth. But if they had been…
"No. nonono." Harry whispered as tears leaked down his face. "This must be a dream. Dumbledore said people couldn't come back to life. This is just too cruel." He choked on a sob, now knowing that this was all just a horrible nightmare.
His mother came forward slowly as her patronus evaporated into mist. Behind her his father and godfather transformed back into their human forms.
"Harry this isn't a dream." She said softly and soothingly. Harry backed up, stumbling slightly, his wand up and pointed at her but trembling. "Harry, it's really me, your mother." Harry was shaking his head. He pinched himself hard to wake him up, but it didn't work. Harry backed into the garden fence as his mother steadily but slowly advanced on him, muttering soothing noises to him.
Harry couldn't move as she came near enough for the skinny young man to smell her perfume. He shuddered as more tears coursed down his face and her hand came up to reach for his face.
Harry felt like a deer trapped in the headlights of a car. He almost couldn't breathe as Lily Potter gently placed her hand on his left cheek gently. Then somehow his skin tingled all over, like it was welcoming a piece of it back home.
My mother's love in my skin! Harry realized as total belief abruptly swept through him. There was no way that anyone could counterfeit that or that he could dream it up. He felt himself shiver violently as his wand dropped from his nerveless fingers.
"Mum…" Harry whispered, daring to believe. Suddenly all the events in the past ten minutes caught up with him and the young wizard felt his knees give out on him. He collapsed onto the ground, his eyes never leaving the identically green ones of his mother.
"Oh Harry, my poor baby." Lily exclaimed dropping the two wands in her hands and kneeling rapidly beside him. She folded her warm arms around him and pulled him close. Harry's defenses crumbled and he buried his face in her shoulder and just let himself cry. He felt his mother start rocking him gentling making soothing noises, between encouragements to 'just let it out'.
James nodded to Sirius.
"Thanks for the help."
"Don't mention it, now I'm going to get out of here and let you guys have some alone time." He looked to where his godson was crying his heart out on Lily's shoulder. Lily's emerald eyes were shining with her own tears of joy and mourning. James understood the mourning. His wife mourned for their son's lacking of parental love, of the dangers he had been through and how he had grown up without them.
"Hey, Sirius could you do me a favor?" James asked not bothering to conceal his own tears.
"Yeah?"
"Take care of Vernon and the rest." Sirius looked over to where the beefy man was grabbing his throat and trying to speak and almost laughed. He nodded and watched with quiet but fierce joy as his best friend, his wife and his beloved godson were reunited once and for all in a family hug, their wands all discarded carelessly on the ground.
Vernon's eyes bulged as the ragged looking man approached him. The beefy man was very frightened and pissed. The black haired man flicked his wand at him and Vernon found himself rising to his feet and moving quietly back inside. As they moved into the brightly lit kitchen, Vernon recognized the man. The man smiled grimly and muttered something while pointing his wand at Vernon's neck.
"You!" Vernon spluttered, too shocked to find the infamous criminal in his kitchen and wielding a wand to notice he had his voice back.
"Yes, me." The man said pleasantly. "Name's Sirius Black, best friend of James, godfather of Harry, and pure hell to whoever dares interrupt that family out there." Vernon's mouth worked but he couldn't think of anything to say as the man raised his wand again.
"Stupefy!" Vernon dropped like a rock and Sirius swept out of the house, stunning Dudley on the way out, and joined up with Remus to return home.
AN: I made up the marker for James' animagus form.
James and Lily were both 21 at time of their deaths they're now physically 35 years old.
Oh and I changed the dates to what they should be and made sure everyone's ages are accurate. Thanks to KatherineGrace79 for pointing that out to me