A/N: Ok so I got my other HP stories next chapters mostly written but seeing the challenge posted to DZ2s forum where he lets his readers post their ideas for like minded readers to do, or the off-chance DZ might do it him/herself, I saw this one really open ended challenged posted by Dis Lexic that kinda fit with a half written one-shot I started a long while back. The idea behind the challenge and the one-shot that I had written so long ago was that canon timeline happened as it in the books, well for the nost part since I had written this as sligbtly AU tinged after the battle for hogwarts, and after the fall of Voldemort Harry lived a peaceful life with the love of his life and lived to a ripe ancient age where he saw the magical world usber in a new age of peace because of all the sacrifices made to end Voldemort & the Death Eaters reign of terror. But there was always one thing thing that he wished ever since he was a kid he never had despite being able to give it to his own children, knowing the love of his parents growing up. The universe has deemed to give Harry upon his death just that but there was always one saying Harry had never paid heed to and it'll come back to bite him in the ass: BE CAREFUL AND SPECIFIC ABOUT WHAT YOU WISH FOR!
Wrong boy-who-lived, Twin! Harry, alive James and Lily though they aren' the perfectly doting parents(harrys twin is heralded the vaniquisher of voldemort by Dumb-as-a-door so he gets more attention), Pervell! Harry(eventually takes the Lordship as permanent separation from the Potters as a whole by completely and willing disavowing himself from the House of Potter)
Pain. It was the first sensation to lance through Harrys body as his body stiffened involuntarily. The last thing he remembered was laying down to bed beside Luna, his wife of more than fifty yesrs and mother to their many children, and... Flashes of the train station that he saw only once when he was younger and he had died the first time during his confrontation with the bastard who was the center of his lifes suffering. Was he finally dead again?
"Its been some time pup."
Harrys head snapped to the side as his eyes went wide. He knew that voice anywhere despite the sheer amount of time since he had seen the voices owner die at the hands of Bellatrix LeStrange. "Si..Sirius?" he asked, surprised at how youthful his voice sounded though his surprise centered on just who was gathered in front of his of his gaze. Sirius, his mom and dad, all the friends he had lost during the war with Voldemort & to the cold embrace of death in its aftershocks- they were all there as he remembered them best and most fondly. "Am I dead?" he asked feeling the pain fade at last and looked down at himself. Instead of the wizened old sorcerer who helped to usher in a new era of peace and harmony in the calm after Voldemorts fall he saw that his form was that of him in his prime, his hair as untamed and messy as it always had been with a slight tan to his athletically trim and battle scarred form.
"Indeed my boy you are but.."
Emerald eyes hardened to almost onyx gems as Harry glared at the ancient form of Albus Dumbledore like he had seen the last time he was face to face with the former headmaster. Before the man could say more a hand was raised in a gripping like motion. A satiafied dark smile came to his lips as he saw the visage of the Dumbledores spirit struggle to breathe. "You have no right to be here bastard. For seventeen years of my life you played god with MY life. Lied to my face about everything all for your farce of the so called 'Greater Good'. You are not ruining my reunion with my family and friends now that I died in peace long free from war and conflict that you put on tbe shoulders of a child to end. Begone and suffer in hell for all the lives you let be snuffed out because of your inactions and machinations." The symbol of the Deathly Hallows glowed against the back of his hand as Dumbledores form faded away in black flames, silent screams ripping out of the mans throat as the last shred of him disappeared.
Sirius, James and Lilys eyes widened at the callousness that Harry used to rid of Dumbledore like he was a gnat to squish under thumb. As much as the man before them was the hero who ended the threat of Voldemort for the entirety of magical Britain, the driving heart of the movement that brought in a new era of peace to the magical world and held dearly to all assembled in one form or another they had to admit there was something none of them could deny- first and foremost before Harry was anything dear to the people he was a comannder & a war hero. Harry was a man hardened and tempered in blood he shed in the defense of the people he cared about and those he had loved; he was a man capable of great violence and righteous fury as much as he was capable of great compassion and kindness.
Cedric, as young as he was the day he had died during the Third Task of the Tri-Wizard Tournament, was the first to speak after clearing his throat. "You look like hell Harry" he said with a sort of wry smile offering out a hand to the man across from him.
Harry returned a thin lipped smile finding the humor in Cedrics words as he took the other mans hand is own. "War and a career in the service of your country will do that Ced." His eyes swept over the others assembled and he felt a sense of nostalgia crash over him in waves. Flashes of memories, good times and when the loss of seeing them fall before his eyes, played behind his momentarily unfocused gaze. They were all there, his greatest triumphs that stood at his side fighting til the end in the face of evil & darkness but also his greatest failures in that their deaths & their blood forever stained his hands no matter the decades of redemption he sought in trying to keep fighting the good fight for all the right reasons. Brothers and sisters in arms, chersished friends who fought and died for the cause he spearheaded to do the right thing, locked arm -in-arm like it was only yesterday the battle for Hogwarts was underway and they were fighting under his banner & leadership once more awaiting his words and guidance. "Brothers, sisters, dearest of friends.. Theres only one thing I can say to all of you." His gaze refocused as his grip loosened on Cedrics hand.
"Don't even think of saying what we all know you're thinking Potter." From the crowd of faces Daphne Longbottom nee Greengrass, every bit as beautiful as she was before she was lost to eternity, emerged clad in the same armored robes as her friends and allies behind her. "There is no forgiveness to seek because we chose to fight under the banner of what was right. We chose to fight with our brothers and sisters, with those we love" she raised both arms on either side of herself as if to motion the ones behind her "and you Harry. Our friend, our leader, our brother in heart. Don't you dare ask our forgiveness for our deaths, we'd do it all again in a heartbeat because thanks to your drive for what was right and just we made the world a better place for our children and their children."
One by one arms were unlinked as they all took a single solitary step to be in line with Daphne and in unison crossed their right arms across their chests and placed a closed fist over their hearts as they fell to bended knee. "There are no Angels in the Light" Nevile began as the magic around them glimmered into existence and pooled together forming the ghostly image of a blindfolded angel with the left wing being colored white while the other was pure black like the leathery hide of a thestral.
"There are no Demons in the Dark." More magic pooled together forming a demonic looking warrior with a skeletal tail and horns on its head opposite of the angel.
"There is only we Nephilim who seek Divine Retribution to bring the guilty to justice and protect the innocent" Harry finished as the two beings blades crossed issuing 'sparks' from the point of contact.
James and Lily shared a troubled silent look. Knowing Harry, and by extension his friends whom he called brothers and sister, was the spearhead of a paramilitary unit that was responsible fore taking out the worst threats to Britain & he had their both their loyalty and respect as a leader and surrogate sibling by virtue all they had been through was a big pill to swallow all at once. "Not to interrupt this lovely reunion I'm sure you have long been waiting for my son but no hugs for your mom or dad?" Lily asked. "No happy to see you again?"
Harry turned his head and gave a sort of tired grin looking at his parents. They appeared the same as when he saw them last, his father having that kind of aristocratic air about him while his posture and laid back choice of clothes spoke of the man who was more at home in the company of friends than he was in his duties to the families politcs. His mother was just as beautiful; her hair pulled back into a ponytail leaving pale flesh exposed to the light from the 'sun' shining down on them and her eyes, the same eyes he himself possessed, glimmered with want of something. "Sorry, its been too long since I saw my brothers and sisters. All together like this anyway" he said making a gesture for them all to stand. His mother was the first to embrace him tightly, something he returned wholeheartedly as she buried her face in his chest. "You'll have to forgive that your grandchildren are going to be a long wait. My eldest just turned forty nine not too long ago and she doesn't look a day over twenty something to early thirties at most."
James chuckled quietly at that and clapped Harry on the shoulder. Their son was a man now but even now he saw pieces of the boy that he and Lily sacrificed their lives to protect. He might be battle hardened and his hands stained with the blood of the wicked in defense of those who could not fully defend themselves but that heart of gold he had seen in their son as an infant was still there. Their sons protective loyalties was still there as evidenced by the number of young men and women looking so fondly upon Harry. "Its alright son. We're proud of you. If we had known what Albus was going to do to you we would have never of trusted him. All the same" his eyes travelled to the others who paired off but remained a whole crowd, probably married couples or those who were romantically involved he though "you thrived and found friends. Found a new family to fight for and with." He turned fully to the mass of armored robe clad witches and wizards. "On behalf of myself and my wife you all have our sincerest gratitude for looking out for our son."
"Thats what we Potters do. We protect our own" Daphne said as she nestled into Nevilles side and rested her head on his shoulder.
"Honor thy blood and find solace in the pack." Nymphadora Tonks' hair cycled rapidly as she wrapped an arm around her man and toyed with Remus' unruly hair. "Harry put his faith in us and in kind we returned it to him."
"Oh yeah, I knew I was forgetting something." Freeing himself from his mother Harry made his way over to Remus and gave him a swift hard closed fist punch down on top of the werewolves head sending him face first to the floor. "The next time you ever do something that stupid again Remus I am so telling Nym that thing you know she will punish you to hell and back for. As much as I liked being the father figure for Teddy and telling him all about you both it should have been you both to raise your son" he said chastising the downed man. Even as he said all that a hand up was offered to Remus.
Nymphadora quirked an eyebrow at the scene of her cousin berating her man like a puppy that chewed up the furniture while its master was outside. "What did he do Harry?" she asked tapping her foot with her hands resting on her hips. If Remus did something stupid again she would have to sit him down for another lecture on beig careful, ironic since they died not being careful.
"Nothing of real consequence love honestly" Remus said making a placating gesture with his hands. The last thing he needed was Nymphadora jumping down hks throat about that particular incident.
"Brother, not that I don't find you torturing him like this entertain" Daphne said with a drawl that was tinged with amusement "but our train is waiting for us" she said pointing to a silver and black version of the Hogwarts Express. It was a little ironic that the platform was Kings Cross Station, the same platform they had all used to go to Hogwarts, and that the train to ferry them on to the next great adventure was a version of the Hogwarts Express done in Nephilim colors & bearing the same crest emblazoned into the metal that was on their robes.
"I suppose it is." Hary watched them all board before him feeling a sense of deja vu seeing the filled train with all their faces. "I guess this is it then." His hand grasped the outside pole as the whistle blew.
"You're not going to wait for your wife or kids?"
Harry turned his head head and caught the gaze of his father. "No. Luna and I both had long discussions ages ago about neither of us waiting for the other if we should be the first to die, truly and really die that is, between us. Love has a way of bring those who are ensnared in its grasp back to each other in the end." A sort of whimsical tug pulled at his lips thinking of the blonde who was the center of his whole world besides theor children. "My wife and children will find me, I know that for certain dad." He entered the train completely and the moment his feet were solidly in the platform was gone in a flash, the train speeding away into a white light. "Let the next great adventure begin" he muttered to himself.
For the second time a stinging sensation of pain erupted through Harrys nerves. Gods above, what was with coming to in pain? His gaze turned around his surrounding finding himself in a rather large music room. It took him a moment to shake the stinging sensation free before a frown marred his lips. His surroundings were unfamiliar to him as was the sour faced old crone looking at him like he had told her she was ugly.
"Young master Potter, if this is truly a discipline you wish to learn without the aid of magic you must concentrate and listen to me" she said withdrawing the ruler. "Now, play the scales again."
Harry was lost as his body seemed to react on its own and his fingers began to dance across the keys of the Steinway piano. His mind reeled as he was hit with a set of memories that clashed with the ones of his life before. 'Son of a bitch!' he cursed entirely. Magic or Karma truly was a bitch. The next great adventure it seemed was a fulfillment of his childhood wish but it was twisted and warped beyond recognition. He was now just turned eight, his parents were alive but he now had a two minute younger twin who was pronounced the boy-who-lived & had the iconic scar. Harry James Potter had a chance at a do over in life with his family but at a cost; he was the forgotten and neglected child pushed off to nannies and tutors while his parents fat heads fed the ego of his brother who was already a ponce bigger than Malfoy was at his most egotistical point.
"Apologies Mrs. Graybeard, a stray thought crossed my mind. A rather... Grimm thought" Harry replied in a dull flat tone, the action as automatic as his body being able to seemingly play the basic scales of the piano without thought while his eyes tracked the sight of Sirius playing with a boy who looked exactly like him except he had a noticeable tan while Harry himself was pale and sans scar.
The older woman sighed and made a motion with her hands for him to stop. "As much as the master and mistress are brilliant young master, your family is flawed and as human as everyone else is" she said as her lips pursed into a grimace. The young master had always been a grimly seirous child, the last time either she or any other of his tutors saw a ghost of any expression that wasn't grimly serious had been last week on his and his brothers birthday when the master mistress and his twin had left young master Harry alone in the manor forgetting he was there and they went out to celebrate at Jasons favorite restaurant leaving a resignedzannoyed Harry to fend for himself that night, unlike his twin who seemed to be dumb enough to not understand there was a time and place for fun but in the moments he had blanked out completely she could tell something was different about him, something wrong. His usually dull gaze had hardened beyond dangerously sharp, his muscles had tensed ever so slightly like a jumpy war veteran and the way his posture shifted belied something that young master Harry was not saying.
"Flawed is putting it mildly." His words were still dull and flat but there an edge to them as Sirius tackled his twin in his grim form making the boy laugh as the duo tumbled into a pile of fall leaves sending the scattering. A violent wave of his hand nearly tore the thick curtain off the rod as it barred sight of the ouside world from his dull gaze. "Shall we continue then Mrs. Graybeard?" He would need to integrate the memories of this version of himself with his occlumency at the earliest point possible and figure out what the blood hell was going on with this universe. Until then he sat as a backseat passenger to an alternate version of himself, a borderline emotioness child version of himself, sat sequestered away from almost all human contact channeling the unresolved feelings into music that escape the piano he was seated at.
"Emotional range of a tea spoon... He,I... This version of me has the emotional range of a melted plastic tea spoon." As Harry looked to the ceiling of his bed, a million times more luxurious than anything he ever had in his previous life, his mind could only come up with that one comparison for his current selfs state of being. Integrating eight years of memories into an isolated corner of his mind and reviewing them had been a lot easier than he thought since sadly there was a constant recurring theme. Emotional neglect and a systematic lack of parental influence turned this version of himself into a cold detached arse with the emotional range of a tea spoon. His twin Jason made Draco Malfoy at his highest point of being so full of himself look like a breath of fresh air to a drowning man. His mother, while a genius Potions Mistress and renowned as the most fair yet strict Potions Professor that Hogwarts had seen since Horrace Slughorn, was a pushover when it came to his twin and his demands while his father was the respected veteran Chief Auror for the British Ministry & treated his youngest son like a friend more than his child. This combination of facts made the insufferable fat head that Jason already had ten times more annoying to deal with.
He turned on his side glaring into the darkness of the room, slivers of moonlight streaming in from the sole window. 'Its times like this I wish I listened to Hermoine about those stupid proverbs or whatever they were she spouted off so often about' he thought. "Be careful what you wish for indeed." A bitter laugh escaped his lips as his eyes closed. "I go on to the next great adventure which turns into some farce of a genie wish I used to make as a child in that fucking cupboard under the stairs." His eyes closed after catching slits in the wall from reflected moonlight. When he first entered the room, his bedroom, he had been shocked by how spartan it was. A bed, curtains, some books on a bookshelf, a desk and a closet was all that was in the room. He had almost thought his child self had walked into the wrong room until a bland voice, generated by an all too familiar identification ward, bade him welcome. There were no pictures of their family, no pictures of friends, not even a hint of color to suggest that the bedroom belonged to him and wasn't just a guest room. "Come on Harry, think. There has to be a reason for the current state of affairs. All the stories of them you heard from your last life paint them completely different than this. There has to be an explanation" he muttered to himself.
At breakfast the next morning Harry let his body continue on autopilot while he observed his family from behind dull green eyes. Jason was talking a mile a minute about something quidditch related that happened the previous night, he reasoned their must have been a match narrated over the radio, while his mother listened with half an ear as she worked on grading some papers she had off to the side of her plate. James had his attention focused solely on Jason adding in bits and pieces tonthe narration his twin seemed to either forget or seemed not to think important.
"What do you have planned for the day Harry?"
Harry didn't respond as he sipped at his tea, the only thing he had asked for from the house elf who brought them all breakfast earlier, before leveling a look at the elder Potter male. "Tutoring all day. As usual" he said stiffly as he set the mug down on the table. "Some of us have our priorities in order and realize that life isn't all about fun and games or enjoying yourself." His gaze shifted to Jason as he said this, his tone scathing and ice cold before he shoved his chair back from the table. "Ms. Mulroy is due soon so unless someone dies do not interrupt us." He stalked away ignoring the sharp words that demanded he come back that instant. "Whats wrong James? Disappointed your eldest son doesn't listen to you or your wife like that obedient little puppy you called your youngest? Too bad. If you two acted like equal parents or like you gave a damn about me all the time and not just when I defy what you expect I should do like a dutiful naive child I might respect you both. As it stands, Jason and I would have been better off separated at birth. Better yet, if I was still born. You would have your little perfect prince and I wouldn't be the blight you two treat me as. After all" his head turned with complete apathy filling his gaze "what kind of parent forgets their sons share the same birthday? What parents give the world to one child and treat the other like lepper that you shepard off to nannies and tutors so you don't have to look at me but mandatory meals? Answer me that." His head turned back as he left the dining room, the room pin drop silent.
Jason looked between his parents and elder brother with a look of confusion on his face. What did his older brother mean by all that? What in the name of Merlin was a lepper? Why did his elder brother have to treat their parents like utter dragon shite all the time? Sure they spent more time with him but Professor Dumbledore had told them many times over that as the savior of the magical world he needed to learn to control his magic from before Harry did. "Mum, dad whats his deal?" he asked with a scowl marring his lips. This wasn't the first time his brother had taken them down a far peg with his words but this time it felt different for some reason.
"Your brother chooses not to understand why the Headmaster has made such a big about you Jason" Lily said looking up from the current paper on top of her stack. Her gaze caught her husbands and a flicker of her eyes drew a grim from his lips. "Your brother will understand in time that the Headmaster knows what is best. Now finish your breakfast up Jason and scoot off with your dad to your control lesson."