Here's the next chapter. I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review love Hermione xxx
Jim walked up the stairs to the meeting room his father had asked him to meet him in. In the months which had followed their divorce he had matured a lot. He was nowhere near Harry in terms of maturity level but he was close. He was surprised to enter and find a lawyer there with James. "Hello dad. You wished to see me are you alright?" he asked sitting down as the lawyer left.
"Yes I wanted to talk to you for a moment and then the lawyer will come back. He just wishes to discuss something with you but it's not a problem. Tell me please how is Lavender Brown in your year and do you get on well with her?" he asked as Jim frowned.
"You mean Hansen dad. Her name is Lavender Hansen now. She's actually very nice and kind. I asked her for some help a while ago and she was more then willing to help me. She didn't seem phased by my status as the boy who lived so she just normally helped me and to be honest it was nice!" he said sounding relieved.
"I don't know anything about her name being Hansen so I have no idea where she got that from. Well I don't care all that much about a name change anyway. I have a confession to make. As you now know your mother and I are divorced but it happened because I found love with Violet Brown many years ago and have been with her ever since. I love her so much son. I will even marry her soon if she will have me. Lavender Hansen is my daughter. I had her with Violet roughly at the same time you and Harry were born. Violet did not tell me that Lavender was my daughter until after she'd been born. Just last week Violet had my son Samuel" he said shocked at Jim's response.
"What are you doing just going around having random kids everywhere with whoever you can find to have them for you? I mean you had me and Harry and now you're saying we weren't enough for you so you went ahead and had other children. I know you hate Harry. Mum chose him and I am happy for them to be honest. He deserves her love. He didn't get it all his life like me and I can now see he does deserve it. To be honest I am sorry for him in that regard. She still loves me and I know this. Tell me this dad how many other children do you have out there and with how many other women?" he asked as James blanched.
"Jim I assure you that's not the case at all. I love Violet very much. She was pureblood and could give me everything your mother couldn't. Plus she was rubbish in bed your mother and anyway I don't care about her. There was only ever Violet and there will always and ever be only Violet! She will be living with us from now on. And so will your baby brother Samuel. Now then welcome back Mr Griffin" he said addressing the lawyer who had returned and sat down in James' seat as he rose and stood by the window.
"Good morning James. Now your father here and asked me to get you to sign this contract for him!" he said kindly as James took up the contract and smiled.
"I will sign it after I have read it thoroughly!" he said as James groaned from the window.
"Is that necessary? I mean can't you just sign it now?" he asked petulantly.
"Now Mr Potter there will be none of that. Impatience gets us nowhere. James take one hour and go to your dorm to read the contract. Then you can return here and tell us what you think ok?" he asked as Jim agreed and left. Once he was out of the room Jim called for Harry through his bond and asked him to meet him in the corner of the library.
"Hello Jim what is this about?" he asked as he sat down opposite his brother who looked deadly worried.
"Please Harry can you look over this contract for me? Dad has asked me to sign it in one hour but I have no understanding of it. He has a lawyer with him waiting for my signature!" he said as Harry looked at the contract and then frowned.
"Come with me to the seventh floor. We need to do something immediately and we cannot be seen to be doing it!" he said leaving so quickly that Jim had to run to keep up with him. They eventually made it to the room of requirement with Jim huffing and puffing behind an aggravated Harry.
They entered to find a ritual space much to Jim's surprise.
"The fact of the matter is Jim you chose dad and now he must live with that choice and all it comes with. This contract he is trying to get you to sign states that you will give up your future heritage and lordship to Samuel Potter who was born a week ago today. He is trying to disinherit you and this requires extreme cunning to handle. It would seem he is not above making vicious choices so we much retaliate the same way. I may hate your moaning and prattling most of the time but you are my brother and in a way I'll always love you. Now then take off your clothes and remain only in your underwear. I will ask the room to magically extend time in here and slow time outside. Half an hour will pass outside this room!" he said wisely as Jim looked at him weirdly but did it none the less. Soon he was sitting cross legged in the rune circle there.
"Thank you Harry for your help. I love you too you know even if I did hate you at the start. This divorce has been so hard on me. I know you didn't mean to upstage me at every turn. Can you forgive me for being a jackass?" he asked as Harry looked shocked to the core.
"Umm well yes I can. This is indeed unexpected. Now then hold out your wand and repeat after me. This is a family ritual I know about what with being Lord Black myself so it will work in this instance. It was in fact designed to correct wayward behaviour in Lords. Now then repeat after me: I James Sirius Potter do hereby ask Lady magic to judge the worthiness of Lord Potter and reassign it to me where necessary if she deems it to be so!" he said as a stunned Jim put out his wand and repeated the words exactly as Harry had told him to. Initially nothing happened and Harry looked disappointed. He had been sure it would work out. Then all of a sudden Jim screamed out so loud as he was surrounded by a golden light and obscured from view. He screamed until his voice was gone and when the golden light had subsided he was unconscious. The room provided him with various potions he was to spell into the stomach of Jim which he did. There were six potions much to his surprise.
It had taken three hours of their time in the room and twenty minutes outside of the room. When Jim awoke he looked different slightly. His hair had calmed down to an acceptable level and he seemed to have this level of maturity he'd not had before. He glanced down at his finger and screamed as the ring of Potter was now on it.
Then a howler floated in from somewhere and opened speaking by itself.
Dear Lord Potter,
It has come to our attention here at Gringotts that magic herself has deemed you to be the new Lord Potter and your father James Charlus Potter is now merely a family member and nothing more. We have learned he disgraced his position by trying to force you to illegally sign a contract which would have seen you thrown out of his family causally at a time he later decided upon. He is not allowed to do this however as his marriage contract with Lillian Marie Evans did not allow him to do this. He disgraced magic and now has been forcefully stripped of the right to be Lord Potter anymore. He violated his position and doesn't get to complain now. We will be in contact in the next few days to let you know what you should do next. The next time you are with your father he will receive a howler about this. We thank you for your continued custom,
Signed Gringotts of London.
Jim smirked at that. "Well yes it would serve James right for messing up. Geez even I know you don't mess with a magically binding contract ever. He's such a bellend!" he sneered as he redressed and exited the room with his brother in tow. Now the twins were the heads to two of the most important houses in their world and for some reason Harry couldn't explain he felt a bit like they were like the Cray brothers as they walked side by side down the hallway most of the people in their way moving out of it. They went their separate ways and he once more entered the room with his father and secretary in it.
James was about to speak when a howler arrived.
James Charlus Potter,
For severely violating a magically binding contract which you signed prior to your marriage to Lillian Marie Evans your Lordship has now been stripped from you and handed over to James Sirius Potter the new Lord Potter who magic herself feels he will make the best choices for that house then you ever could. You do not screw with a magically binding contract as well I am sure you know. There is no point crying over spilled milk now. You will have an allowance your son deems appropriate and you may only marry now if he permits it! Thanking you for your custom as always,
Gringotts of London!
James looked murderous as he glanced at the contract in his now head of houses hands which caught fire and disintegrated almost immediately.
"Dad I have no idea how you managed to screw up so badly but you did and now I am stuck being Lord Potter because you couldn't do it properly. You can have my trust vault and I will give you access to that right now. Here is your new key so to speak. You may marry Violet Brown when I turn seventeen if she is legally divorced by then. I cannot allow you to break up another home without thinking of the factors involved. Right now you will spend your time wisely thinking of how you wish to proceed there. If you have a good enough response for me in six years you may then marry her. I do not hold a grudge against those too little to defend themselves so I will be setting up a trust fund for my new brother Samuel. He should have his education paid for but nothing more or less!" he said wisely as the lawyer who was still present looked impressed.
"What the fuck is this bullshit? I swear to god you better fix this!? You expect me to just wait six years huh? Well that won't be happening so you can forget it!" he snapped as Jim yawned.
"Yes well its either wait six years or be disinherited by me. What do you choose?" he asked as James paled considerably and looked so angry right now that he could spit fire if that were even a possibility. How could this be happening to him again and with a new Lord Potter his own son no less. It was like everyone hated him. Magic had judged him fairly though as he had tried to force his heir to do the wrong thing knowing he would probably not understand and do it anyway!
"I will wait six years! But I do hate you for this and I never thought I could hate you more then Harry but maybe I can!" he snapped as his lawyer looked at him in shock.
"I can't believe you almost violated my own magic by having me be a party to your plans James Charlus. I would have thought you understood contracts of a magically binding nature better but I can see you do not. We are through!" he snapped leaving at once but not before bowing to Jim and apologising profusely.
"Not to worry Mr Griffin. My grandfather was a lawyer himself and often spoke to me about reading contracts properly. It would seem that James did not know everything mum and I did. Goodbye James. You can see yourself out and we will discuss this later when you have had a chance to discover where your loyalties truly lie!" he snapped as a broken James sunk into the seat behind him once more. This just wasn't his day.