Hello All!
I think I should be commended on updating in a respectable time period! If you want this to continue, you know what to do…. REVIEW!
WARNING!
MODERNATE COARSE LANGUAGE IN THIS CHAPPIE, don't worry kiddies, it won't be that scary, I just thought I'd let y'all KNOW so you don't complain later
Oh oops I haven't been disclaiming in a while… I don't own Sirius, James, Remus or any other character you have recognized. I love them too much to let them die. (Obviously miss. Rowling didn't….)
So the day wore on, into night. No one left the hospital wing almost through unspoken agreement. Everyone was too afraid to go looking for the news that might break them. But they stood together, banded together, and somehow it made the pain a little better. James and Lily, Sirius and Remus. Other people visited during the course of the hours, Tonks, moody, Frank and Alice, and other order members, but the four of them stayed together. They talked, but skirted around the subject that was always on each other's minds. What they were talking about didn't matter, it felt like the words and subjects were mush and their mouths were lead, but the fact that they were talking, together, made the difference. They were there for each other. That's what counts.
Then, Dumbledore, in his magnificent midnight robes, swept into the room.
Lily and James, who had melted to the floor, in each other's arms, stood up, hearts racing.
Remus and Sirius stood up too.
Everyone knew this was the moment. This was the news that would change everything.
Was Harry's heart still beating? Had it stopped, was he dead? Was Harry alive? Would he wake up? Would he stay in this horrible coma forever?
James swallowed and stepped forward, towards Dumbledore. Would he make it?
Lilly swayed again, unsteady on her feet. Would he make it?
Sirius dared to hope, a small boat in this sea of anger he had constructed for himself. Would he make it?
Remus was a werewolf; he had loved Harry from the beginning. He could picture his small hands and innocent green eyes, and a small ribbon of drool hanging from his lips. Remus wanted to smile and cry. Would he make it?
Dumbledore looked back at the four faces. Devastation, fear, anger and sadness. Blended in the form of four friends, friends for life.
Dumbledore allowed himself a small smile, a sign of life, of love. "He's going to wake up. Harry's going to live."
His words were sprinkled over everyone, like softly falling snow, transforming the world to beautiful crystalized white. Slowly making everything sunny and beautiful and bright. Like Christmas. There was laughter, shaky but loud. James cried, out of everything he could feel, he couldn't feel anymore, he had reached maximum capacity. He had no more room. This is what love has done to him. No, this is what Harry had done to him.
He turned around to Sirius, teary eyed. His best friend's face was transforming, they locked eyes and James couldn't help but laugh through tears. "Harry is alive." Every opportunity James took, to prove his friend wrong.
It turned out that not one out of the four of them could bear to go home, or even leave the castle, so the house elves brought food up to them. They had relocated to a cozy red and gold room in which Harry lay on a bed of cushions, ("Harry's breathing, Sirius! He's breathing!" "SHUT UP!") And all of them circled around him. It felt like they were the only people in the world.
It was the middle of the night, but none of them could even think about sleep, they were all drunk on the idea that Harry would be able to speak, live, breathe again.
Lily stroked his hair. "He looks so much like you, James." This was another largely repeated phrase, but Lily couldn't help but say it, it seemed to just spill out. Sirius, who was spread out lazily on the floor, barked out his trademark laugh.
"I think he looks a little like me, actually." Sirius announced happily.
James, who was on the other side of Harry, whipped his head around to face his best friend.
"Bad move Padfoot." Remus chuckled, still nursing his tea.
"What do you mean? How does he look like you?" James said.
"You know…." Sirius shifted to a sitting position. "His face, it's shaped like mine… His nose is like mine, all pointy and his chin is flat like mine. Even his hair is long and black, just like mine."
"No way! He looks like me. I'm his father!
"About that… Lily did you want to give James the real truth about Harry's father?" Sirius grinned. Lily gave him a dirty look, and threw a pillow, over Harry, to his head. "You are such an idiot, Sirius." She announced, but still couldn't keep a smile from her face. Sirius laughed, but then stopped abruptly when Remus started talking, worriedly.
"Whoa, James! Are you alright?" Remus even put his tea down, and shuffled closer, to put a hand on his friends shoulder.
James was crouched over, shaking, his head down and knees drawn up to his chest. "James! I was joking around! Lily didn't cheat on you!" Sirius was confused as to why James didn't see the joke.
"Of course Harry looks exactly like you! Splitting image, I was just joking… I'm sorry." Sirius squirmed uncomfortably.
"It's not that, Sirius. It's just, I'm his father. His dad… I don't know how to take care of a 13 year old boy!" Sirius could see that James was really starting to freak out. It must be a scary prospect, having a son only one year old, and then suddenly 13 years old. Sirius stared at Harry in the room. His thick hair and peaceful expression. His long lanky frame. "I don't know anything about him, his past, what he has been though. He has lived with Death Eaters… Do you know how much that would have changed him? Almost since birth being molded to be someone evil. I don't know him at all…"
Lily intervened, no one else having anything to say. "Do you love him James? I watched Tonk's memories, and I couldn't stop crying, because he is just like you, inside and out, he's strong and brave and he is not evil. How could you think that of Harry? We are going to learn about him, get to know him, but I know that I already, love him, I always have. I'm not giving him up James. He's my son and He's perfect. I won't go back to what it was like without him now that he's here." Lily finished her little speech with teary eyes, and James quickly, reached over their thirteen year old son to grab her hand.
"I am not saying we should give him up! Never. I would never give him up. I… I love him too. I'm just scared of how things will change; I'm scared of being a failure, messing everything up. I'm scared he won't like me. But I am excited too. I am so excited." And James laughed, thinking of all the years ahead of them, a family.
"I love my son too." Sirius said, breaking into the emotional fuel of the room. James grabbed one of the cushions and whacked him over the head with it, shouting out that he was a mangy mutt, and chasing him around the room, still he couldn't keep from collapsing form laughter.
It would be dawn in a couple of hours, and Lily didn't want the night to end. The laughter, the tears had all been surreal, as though they had been transported to a different world in one night. It was like a sleepover, the very best kind. However, they did get kind of delirious form sleep deprivation near the end.
Remus had gotten a house elf to bring him tea every half an hour, and had a stack of mugs around him. The last one taken to him, Sirius had jinxed to make his hair turn different colours and added sneezing powder as well. Remus was furious, trying to berate them, and shaking his fist, while being racked by sneezing fits so extreme he kept falling straight on his face, toppling over like a domino. Sirius and James and even lily were rolling around on the floor in laughter. Soon he spell started to wear off and his hair only blinked from purple to red lazily and he sneezed quietly every once in a while.
Each sneeze always enticed more laughter though.
Lily started stroking Harry's hair again, wishing him to wake up. Sirius lay down on the thick carpet staring glassy eyed at the ceiling and Remus and James played muggle card games Lily had taught them.
It was peaceful. "GO FISH!" James shouted, making Sirius jump. Well, as peaceful as it was going to get.
James kept glancing over at his sleeping son, each time his heart filling with anticipation and love.
It was probably about 5:30 when Lily and Sirius joined into their card game, and things started getting heated.
"Your cheating, James!"
"Sirius is too!"
"No I'm not!"
"Yes you are!"
"I win, ok!"
"NO YOU DON'T!"
Then there was a faint murmur, everyone in the room whipped their heads around to Harry. Harry flung his arm across his body, and his breathing accelerated. Harry made a choking sound in the back of his throat, loud and hacking, and then his breathing stopped all together.
"SHIT!"
Lily, flung herself over to Harry, her hands fluttered hopelessly around his body, and even with all her training she couldn't think what to do. Sirius, James and Remus we beside Harry in an instant.
James body was going cold. Here was the moment he was waiting for. Everything seemed too good to be true, Harry breathing, Harry being alive, everything being OK. James, subconsciously, was waiting for the moment where everything comes crashing down. Even though he was expecting it, it still tears him apart.
"Harry. No please, not Harry again." He pleaded. Sirius started shouting things loudly that didn't make sense, and Remus tried to calm everybody, but just added noise to the chaos. James had already started imagining life with Harry. They would practice quiddich and pull pranks, He would go to Hogwarts. Harry would study for exams and ask James for help, and get so sleepy that he would fall asleep on the couch. He would come home for Christmas talking about an amazing girl he had met, and James would teach him how to ask her out without her hexing him. He, with Sirius and Remus, would tell Harry about the marauders and all the secret passageways. Then Harry would have his own children, and James would be a grandpa and Harry would tease him about how old he was getting…
James could feel that all being tugged away.
Harry's face was turning blue.
"HE CAN'T BREATHE!"
James got a quick flashback of himself pacing and jumping around.
"He's breathing, Sirius! Harry's breathing."
"He can't breathe."
Both of the sentences bled together, and all James could think was that they were back to square one, Will he make it? Will he make it? At the moment, James would do anything for Harry to make it, and live, forever.
Lily must have snapped out of her brain freeze, she started CPR, and she did the movements mechanically, her arms numb, tears falling from her eyes.
Harry's breath came back with a gasp, and James stumbled in relief.
Then, Harry's eyes popped open, green, bright and beautiful, Lily's green.
Everyone gasped. "Harry…?" Lily whispered, tears in her voice.
Harry started screaming and shuffled back as far as possible, so he was basically sitting on the window sill.
Everybody started screaming and laughing in pure ecstasy, crying loudly, or just shouting because they wouldn't hold any more emotion. James was overcome with pride. His son was so grown up, so… alive.
Harry was terrified. He had just woken up and saw a crowd of people in the room, many scruffy and haggard looking as if they had stayed up anxiously all night.
Death Eaters. Harry instantly knew they couldn't be anyone else, and he knew he needed to escape. To find his father, find a home or just a place to stay. He wished he had Nick right now.
All the people, with tear stained cheeks were reaching out for him and Harry was so scared, he instinctively unlocked the window behind him. He ripped out his wand from the secret lining in his sleeve. He was about to jump out, the height was large and wobbled beneath him, but he knew his cushioning charm quite well. When one of the men yelled an anguished cry and silences the rest of the room.
"Harry! STOP please! Step away from the edge!" The man looked just like him, except his eyes were hazel. The man's whole frame and voice trembled.
James had never felt like this before. Everyone had left their wands on the other side of the room on the couch, and Harry probably didn't even know what magic was, rather than any spells! He was brought up with Death Eaters. If he fell now no one could save him… James swallowed and repeated himself to the boy.
"Harry, I know you are scared, just please close the window, we can explain everything! My god… Harry, please."
"Give me one good reason why I should listen to Death Eaters like you?" Harry asked sharply, ready to jump.
"Because he is your father!" Sirius yelled, and his voice silenced the room and Harry just stared, his mind hurrying to process what was said.
My father? My…. Father? Harry's legs crumpled and he was sure he had blacked out, but only for a second or two, because when he opened his eyes, the man who was his father, was kneeling down beside him.
It's a shorty but a goodie… right? You guys are going to KILL ME for this cliffy
IMPORTANT NOTE…
(Ok so it's not that important)
I just thought about how many people have added this story to their story alert compared to how many people review. I am hoping for at least 10 reviews a chapter. Is that too much to ask? Because lately I would be lucky to get that. So please don't leave the reviewing up to someone else. SHOW that you are reading, because all your reviews actually mean EVERYTHING to me. I MEAN IT! Please, pretty please, show you care and review. I will love you for it. ALSO, I am thinking of writing all the names of the reviewers up in the next chappie. Love you all… (Maybe not some of you nasty non-reviewers… just kidding, I have a tiny space in my heart for you too) sorry for nagging…
xxx
ill update soon, I am struggling with this next chapter I am in the middle of writing, I have written it like five times and am very perfectly happy, I want it to be perfection for you!
