A/N: Hey guys thanks for the feedback. I felt bad about the cliffhanger and so I thought I would post this up now. To my knowledge this is the penultimate chapter - its so strange being at this point! - and for me the endings are always hard to write so I hope that this is okay. I'll try and post up the last one in a few days :)
DISCLAIMER: I do not own Harry Potter.
I apologise for any spelling and/or grammar mistakes.
Please Review!
James watched with anger as Professor Potter writhed on the ground, his teeth ground together and James knew that he was trying desperately to hold back his screams. Protectiveness surged through him, and he had to hold himself back from trying to leap between Harry and Voldemort. It was sickening, the way Voldemort took pleasure in this, his face was twisted into a mask of glee that was quickly turned to disappointment as Harry failed to deliver a reaction.
Wait, since when had he thought of him as Harry?
Hearing a gasp he turned to see Ginny, her face was full of horror and she was chewing her bottom lip trying to prevent herself from reacting. This was rendered useless however when Harry's pain seemed to peak and he let out a whimper. The sound tore at James's heartstrings and he felt someone grip his hand tightly. Glancing at Lily he saw that she took was staring at the scene with far away eyes. He knew that look, that look meant that she was thinking about something incredibly hard, the only indication that she was aware of what was going on was how pale she was and how tightly she was gripping his hand. Tearing his eyes away from Lily, he hoped that she would come up with something soon.
Voldemort was now advancing on Ginny, his red eyes almost glowing and making him look even more demonic. James shivered, this was the man that everyone had been brought up to fear and now he could see why. He seemed to exude power, the purposeful strides matched with the insane glee in his eyes chilled James to the core. Oddly enough though he wasn't frightened for himself, he could die and he wouldn't care, all he wanted was for Harry, Ginny and Lily to be safe. Ginny's screams echoed off the walls, rebounding back and filling him with even more rage. Harry looked impassive but James couldn't help but wonder what was going on behind those startling green eyes. It was strange, he felt like there was something he was missing, every time he stared into his eyes he was sure that something wasn't right. Lily's grip tightened on his hand and James looked up in time to see Voldemort say-
"I'm afraid you've forced my hand, maybe when you see her lifeless corpse you'll be more talkative."
Immediately James felt his rage bubble up and consume him. Seeing the green light fly towards Ginny he tugged at the manacles, unaware of the sharp pain that this was generating in his wrists. Drawing his eyes back to Ginny he saw the killing curse rebound, leaving a large hole in the wall. Looking closely James saw the colourful weave of the wards shining in the sunlight that was being emitted through the gap.
"What was that?" asked Voldemort, staring in shock at the hole. Stalking towards Harry he stared him in the eye.
"I'm afraid I cannot answer that" replied Harry smoothly and James could see that Voldemort had reached the end of his patience. He wanted answers and he wanted them now.
"Oh you will," promised Voldemort, "Legillimency."
Harry tried not to be sick as Voldemort invaded his mind. Images swirled to the surface: his parents being killed, his life at the Dursley's, finding out he was a wizard. It took almost all of Harry's concentration to skip over his school memories and instead he plunged Voldemort in his recent ones: . the hourglass, Salazar speaking to him, winding up in 1977. Feeling Voldemort become angry he shuddered as the man pulled himself out of his mind.
"I see now" said Voldemort, his face twisted in pleasure, "Do you want me to kill your parents again Harry? Do you want to see the light fade from their eyes knowing that it was you that got them into this situation? I'll make you a deal, if you tell me about the future I'll spare their miserable lives and you'll continue to exist, however if you resist then I will kill them and watch as you fade from history."
Hearing a gasp Harry looked over at James and Lily, their faces were masks of shock but underneath that Harry could see understanding dawn on them. They had suspected something was wrong and this was their confirmation. Seeing Voldemort advance on them Harry felt his magic spike and suddenly the chain disappeared, turning to dust and decorating the floor with their glittering fragments. His magic swirled around him and Voldemort turned round, his eyes widening in shock. Throwing a spell at Voldemort the dance began.
James was in shock. Harry, their teacher was his son from the future. Individually those words made sense but when strung together James muddled mind couldn't make sense of them. Sure they had known that there was something odd about him but this, this was just unbelievable. Glancing at Lily he saw that she too was shocked but underneath that he saw that she had accepted it as the truth. He had to admit the evidence was startling. When he looked over at Harry he felt he was looking at him through fresh eyes. Even from here it was evident that they were related, the fact that they shared the same surname only backed this up. Why hadn't he seen this before? Had there been some sort of notice-me-not charm on him?
Hearing a shriek James was brought back to the present, locating the source he saw Voldemort's face contort with rage as he began duelling Harry. However it was evident that Harry was tiring quickly and running on pure adrenaline now to activate his wandless magic. Ginny saw this too and said-
"Accio Harry, Ginny, Lily and James's wands" and sure enough they soon forced their way through the door, eager to be returned to their owners. Grabbing his, Harry began to fire more complex curses, clearly startling Voldemort who responded by firing a barrage of hexes at him. Ducking, Harry shot back a purple orb of light, that soon expanded around Voldemort, obscuring him from sight.
"Are you guys okay?" asked Ginny, hurrying over to Lily and James, their wands in their hands.
"Yes we're fine, what about you?" asked Lily, her voice filled with concern as she took her wand.
"I've been through worse" replied Ginny, grimacing.
It appeared that Voldemort had managed to throw off Harry's spell and James ran forward, eager to help Harry out. Throwing a golden jet of light, Voldemort easily negated it and threw an orange one back. It was almost like dancing the way they moved, Voldemort's strikes were more like a snakes, their gracefulness contrasting with his menacing appearance. Harry's meanwhile were more fluid, and every move seemed almost second nature to him, like he was used to this and relished it at the same time. Wondering where Lily and Ginny were James glance at the door, seeing them weave enchantments to prevent the Death Eaters from entering. However this one glance was a mistake and James felt his body become consumed with pain, his knees buckled and he crashed heavily to the floor, his body spasming as wave after wave engulfed him. As quick as it came however it left and looking up James saw Harry rapidly throwing hexes at Voldemort, his face filled with anger. Dodging them Voldemort became acutely aware that he was at a disadvantage. Deflecting Harry's hexes, he growled and dissapparated with a sharp crack.
"Why did he do that?" asked James.
"Be on your guard" said Harry, his face was contorted into a mask of worry and his eyes were darting about the room.
Suddenly James felt a pain explode in the back of his mind, it consumed him, swallowing him up like a maelstrom and submerging him in agony. He was vaguely aware that he had fallen to his knees, clutching his head as if that would somehow dull the pain. Then agonisingly he felt his jaw move, but it was not his voice that came out-
"Harry if you want to kill me so badly then do it" the voice was cold and harsh, contrasting magnificently with his own.
"Voldemort get out of his head" ordered Harry, his voice emotionless and his wand trained on James.
"No, please just kill me, I can't take this please hear me!" James mentally screamed. It felt as if he were being compressed, forced out of existence. The pain was excruciating, snaking through his mind and tainting his thoughts.
"JAMES!" the voice penetrated his bubble of pain, piercing right to the centre of his thoughts.
"Lily?" James chest filled with warmth, like a fire burning through his veins and eradicating his desire for death. If he died he wouldn't see Lily again, hear her sweet voice as she scolded him for not doing his transfiguration homework, watch as her eyes crinkled with laughter whenever he said something funny and they wouldn't create Harry, he would never see him grow up to be the magnificent person he was today. And with that the pain was gone, all traces of it vanished, opening his eyes he saw Lily staring at him, her face tear streaked and anxious.
"Are you okay?" asked Harry, his voice tinged with worry.
"Yeah, I'll be fine" said James, shaking all over, it felt as if he had be plunged into icy water and his whole body seemed to tremble.
"Harry, I was thinking, could you and Ginny possibly create a gap in the wards?" asked Lily, her eyes still fixed on James.
"We could try, Ginny learnt a little about wards from her brother Bill, do you think his techniques would work?" asked Harry, glancing at Ginny who nodded.
"What is your plan?" asked Ginny.
"That hole that the killing curse created, if you can disable the wards then we can get out of here and dissaparate" explained Lily.
Walking over to the hole, Ginny and Harry began studying the wards, gazing at the intricately laced threads before apparently coming up with a decision. Moving their wands in a complex fashion they began chanting, the mantra was soft to their ears and calmed James's frayed nerves, making his shaking less severe.
"James are you really okay?" asked Lily, her green eyes filled with worry.
"I'm fine, just tired and cold" insisted James.
"I still don't believe you" said Lily.
"Okay, I feel awful but its hardly going to help us now if I start acting it" rationalised James.
"Well if you need any help just ask, you won't lose any manliness points" said Lily smiling.
"I just hope Ginny and Harry can get us out of here" said James quietly.
"Its strange to think that Harry's our son" said Lily.
"Not really, he has my stunning good looks" replied James, attempting a haughty look.
"James Potter even in the most abnormal situations you still find the time to be a moron!" exclaimed Lily, laughing and rolling her eyes.
"You love me for it really" said James grinning.
"Guys we're ready" called Harry.
Walking over to them James could no longer see the ribbons of light glowing in the sun. All he saw were the vast green lawns, dotted with trees that made up the castle grounds. For the setting it looked innocent and quiet, too quiet.
"Now we can safely assume that there are Death Eaters out there, Voldemort wouldn't let us escape so easily and whilst he tries to remove the wards on the door he will have posted extra guards outside" warned Harry.
"Wait, surely Voldemort would be able to take down your wards in an instant" said James.
"No, those wards haven't been developed yet, trust me he won't be getting through them anytime soon" assured Ginny.
"But won't that affect the future?" asked Lily.
"And you knowing Harry's your son won't?" retorted Ginny.
"Look we can discuss this back at Hogwarts, I'm going to cast disillusionment charms on us now, these won't protect you from any stray spells so remember constant vigilance."
Harry rapped his wand on top of each of their heads and James felt the disturbing sensation of an egg cracking on his head. Shivering slightly, he watched as Harry clambered over the rubble before dropping and rolling onto the grass. Checking the coast was clear he motioned up to them and one by one they came down. Once they had dusted themselves off they crept in the shadow of the building, it was always possible that an observant Death Eater would notice their footfalls or the shrubbery moving. Seeing the steps that led to the entrance, Harry ducked behind them as a group of Death Eater's came out. As their footsteps faded, James let out the breath he had been holding and they crept through the courtyard, staying in the shadows whenever possible. Nearing the gate Harry cursed and stopped in his tracks.
"Only someone with a Dark Mark can get through the gate" he hissed.
"Leave that to me" said Ginny.
James watched as she went back the way they had just came. A short while later she came back, a Death Eater walking right next to her. Looking into his eyes James saw that they were glazed over and recognised that he had been imperiused. Walking on they saw that the gates were clear as since none of them had a Dark Mark no one expected them to get out this way. Ginny let the Death Eater walk in front, and instructed him to let them through. Placing his hand on the side of the gate it suddenly disappeared and they passed through before ordering the Death Eater to forget that he had seen them. Grasping James and Lily's arms Harry turned on the spot, disappearing with a sharp crack.
Harry materialised next to the gates of Hogwarts. Letting go of Lily and James's arms he saw Ginny appear next to them. Breathing a sigh of relief he entered the gates, feeling a weight lift off his shoulders as he entered. Clasping Ginny's hand he felt her squeeze his slightly, giving him strength. As much as he hated it he felt weak, it was only sheer adrenaline that had kept him going up until this point and now that they were safe again he felt the tiredness crash down on him and all he could think about was bed. Unfortunately that wasn't going to happen and, approaching the castle, he saw Dumbledore hurrying towards them, the aged wizard's face filled with relief but also a flicker of confusion. Behind him were Madam Pomfrey, Professors Slughorn and McGonagall.
"What happened? Are you all okay?" asked McGonagall.
"Poppy, Horace could you please take Mr Potter and Miss Evans to the Hospital Wing, they look dead on their feet. Harry, Ginny would you care to come to my office first?" asked Dumbledore.
"Of course sir" replied Harry as they proceeded to the castle.
After saying goodbye to Lily and James and promising they'd visit later - they had been ecstatic about this, no doubt burning with questions - Harry soon found himself in Dumbledore's office. The room look exactly as it had last time, and the rays of the morning sun were cascading through the window, illuminating the room and bathing it in its warmth. Sitting in the chair opposite the desk, Dumbledore conjured two more for Ginny and McGonagall before taking a seat himself.
"What date is it sir?" asked Harry, looking out the window and smiling as the sun's rays hit his flesh.
"It is the 27th of December, you have been gone for almost two days. Now I know that you are tired but we need to know what happened now while the memories are still fresh" said Dumbledore, an apologetic look on his face.
"Well during the battle a Death Eater managed to trap Ginny and I, Lily and James tried to help us but they ended up trapped too. Anyway we were taken to a castle, I'm not sure where and as we were dragged into the entrance hall I lashed out with my wandless magic in an effort to free us. However this was in vain and we were stupefied. Upon waking we discovered we were in a cell and soon a Death Eater came to take us to Voldemort. Voldemort tortured us and then tried to kill Ginny-"
"What do you mean tried?" asked Dumbledore, his blue eyes sparkling with curiosity.
"The answer to that lies in the future sir" replied Ginny.
"Wait your from the future!" gasped McGonagall.
"Yes" said Harry wearily.
"Minerva I'm afraid you cannot ask any questions of the future as the consequences may be severe" interrupted Dumbledore, McGonagall looked annoyed at this but otherwise kept quiet.
"Well anyway the curse rebounded and created a hole in the wall, Voldemort read my mind, threatened Lily and James, my magic flared up and destroyed our restraints and then I began to duel Voldemort. Ginny summoned our wands and James began to help me whilst Ginny and Lily warded the door to prevent the Death Eaters coming in. Seeing he was at a disadvantage Voldemort dissparated before possessing James in an attempt to make me kill him-"
"But why would he think that you would be that driven to kill Voldemort?" asked McGonagall unable to restrain herself.
"We have quite a bit of history where I come from and when he read my mind he saw a little of that before I forced him out. Anyway we made a gap in the wards and by using a Death Eater managed to get through the gates and escape" finished Harry, something had told him not to mention Lily and James knowing the future and, rather selfishly, he wanted to get to know his parents a little before having to obliviate them.
"Thank you for telling us that I am sure it wasn't easy. You should report to the Hospital Wing now, I'm sure Poppy is dying to get her hands on you" said Dumbledore, smiling when both Harry and Ginny grimaced.
Climbing down the stairs they made no move to go to the Hospital Wing. Instead Harry leaned against the wall, the events at the castle crashing down on him. Feeling an arm on his shoulder he looked up and saw Ginny smiling at him.
"Harry, your parents were bound to find out sooner or later, there's no point in beating yourself up about it."
"I'm not, I'm happy" groaned Harry.
"You make it sound like a bad thing."
"It is, we may have screwed up the future and instead of feeling awful I feel happy, its just not right!"
"Well put it this way, now you can show them the real Harry Potter and if they take it badly obliviate them. There's no shame in being happy that your parents can finally get to know you and vice versa."
"Fine lets go" grumbled Harry, giving in to Ginny's logic.
A/N: Important Note: Ginny survived the killing curse because remember in DH when Harry sacrificed himself for everyone thus protecting them in the final battle from Voldemort and the Death Eaters? That protection survived and so saved Ginny's life - I'm not sure how long the protection of Harry's sacrifice would have lasted but for the purpose of this fic it was indefinate.
Voldemort went away because as soon as Ginny and Lily were finished with the door it would be four against one and he was already have trouble with Harry and so in the interest of him not dying it was better to run away... er I mean make a strategic withdrawl. Also the reason that Voldemort possessed James was so that Harry would kill James and therefore cease to exist as he couldn't defeat them all on his own and this was the easiest way to get rid of Harry.
If you have any questions don't hesitate to get in touch and as always reviews are appreciated :)