Chapter Eleven - The Broken Limb

Tuesday 12th August, 1982

'Remind me again why London is out of the question?' Sirius asked Lily for the fourth time that evening. 'You could find somewhere near me in Highbury, then I'd be round the corner should you need me.'

She sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose, desperately trying not to lose her temper with him. Sirius only wanted to look out for them, she reminded herself, and he wasn't trying to be petulant or argumentative. He was being trying though.

'Let's start with the most important thing,' James thankfully interceded before she snapped. 'No child of mine is going to grow up anywhere near the Gooners.'

Lily dropped her head in her hands. The sensible, rational point she'd been hoping her husband would bring up was instead tossed aside in favour of restarting an oft-repeated argument about football. Once every week or two, she'd seriously regret ever introducing the men to the sport. Their enthusiasm for the sport in general wasn't the issue at all - growing up, her father had been an avid Aston Villa fan.

No, the issue was that the two brothers in all but blood had managed to fall for rival teams: Sirius supported Arsenal, while James backed Tottenham. The North London rivalry was as bitter as it was well-known, and apparently wizards were just as susceptible to the fanatical arguments it caused as the wider population were.

After five minutes of listening to them both regale the other with the successes of their own team and the failures of the other, she'd finally had enough. 'Pack it in,' she snapped, 'both of you.' Immediately they both quieted and apologised to her sheepishly. 'I don't want Harry to grow up in London. The chance is far too high that a wizard would end up finding us, plus any accidental magic would be far too easily noticed given the amount of people. The only way we'd solve that is living in a lower-density and nicer neighbourhood, and if he went to a school there, there's a pretty high chance that he'd end up supporting Fulham or Chelsea, and then I'd never hear the end of the bloody football arguments.'

James and Sirius both recoiled at that thought, their differences set aside in their mutual disgust at the mere thought of Harry supporting Chelsea.

'Every wizarding family and their pet crup lives in the West Country, so it'd be a safe bet to avoid going down there,' James said, making a sensible argument finally, thank God.

Sirius still screwed his nose up, though. 'What's wrong with Terra Cottage? Now, don't glare at me like I named the bloody place, Lils, that was all Flea,' he argued when she shot a look in his direction. Terra Cottage was the stupid name for the secluded log cabin they were currently taking refuge in. Calling it a cottage was optimistic at best - it had four small rooms, no electricity, and was barely water-tight.

'All I'm saying,' Sirius continued, 'is that nobody knows you're here. This is probably one of the safest places in the country for you right now. All it really needs is doing up a little, really.'

She shook her head and took a deep breath. 'And that would be fine for you, Sirius, but there are three of us. We need to go out and get jobs eventually, too. Don't get me wrong, the vault's nowhere near empty yet, but we can't live off of that forever.' Finally he seemed to accept that point, however grudgingly, and she continued. 'I was thinking about Cambridge. There's not really an established wizarding community there or anywhere near. It's small enough to be overlooked but still large enough to not stand out, and it'd be a good place for Harry to grow up and go to school.'

'And by "thinking about Cambridge", you mean that you've already decided, right?' James asked with a smirk.

'I might have seen a house,' she hedged, and sighed when they both gave her an amused look. 'It's not too expensive and it's in a nice village just outside of the city. Plus, there's a good primary school nearby and a park and the end of the street.'

The men exchanged badly-hidden smirks before James nodded. 'Cambridge it is, then.'

A comfortable silence settled on them for a moment as they all privately considered the future. Well, comfortable for two of them - Sirius broke it after a very short while. 'You mentioned both getting jobs. Anything in particular, or...?'

She shrugged. 'Nothing concrete. I'm only maybe a couple of weeks away from finishing my Charms Mastery and I'm sure Filius would be happy to work around me looking after Harry, so I'll probably do that. For a while I really considered the Department of Mysteries, but it's too much of a time commitment at this point, I think.'

'They'd probably jump at the chance of even having you as a consultant. I'm sure that your name was well known in those circles even before what's-his-face croaked it.'

'I've been considering private research and development, to be honest. That would give me the most freedom with Harry, too.'

'Here's something I've been wondering,' James piped up seriously. 'When we were... you know - dead - Death mentioned that Voldemort would have come back and caused even worse trouble, right?' Lily nodded. 'Merlin knows that Britain isn't the most progressive of magical societies, but how could they let all of this happen again, never mind let it happen worse?'

None of them, James included, had the answers to his question.

'Something needs to change, dramatically and with haste,' he said solemnly.

Lily snorted sardonically. 'Wizarding Britain needs a bloody revolution.'

'Vive la France!' Sirius exclaimed, only to be met with incredulous looks from both Potters. 'Les Miserables? No?' he offered, and frowned when their expression turned even more disbelieving. 'What?' he insisted huffily. 'I read. Occasionally.'

-oOo-

Wednesday 16th August, 1989

The park at the end of Thornbrook Avenue wasn't as big as some of the other parks that his parents or Sirius had taken him and his sister to, but he quite liked it that way. Their neighbourhood was a relatively small one, and there weren't all that many children living there. Almost all of Harry's school friends lived nearer to the centre of the city while their village of Eppington was just on the outskirts.

All of this, of course, meant that he and Thea had free reign over the playground and the green areas pretty much whenever they wanted. Mrs Levisham had brought them over today - she was a kind old lady who sometimes babysat for them both when Mum and Dad had needed to attend functions or parties or galas, or when they'd gone away for a weekend for their anniversary and Auntie Alice and Uncle Frank couldn't host them as they usually would.

She'd offered to accompany them both today, and Dad had eagerly accepted on their behalf. In fact, Dad's eagerness had surprised Harry a little; he and Thea certainly weren't very likely to turn down a trip to the park, so it didn't really make sense as to why Dad had been so quick to speak for them. Harry had asked him about it later that day, but didn't really get an answer he was. Dad had said that he and Mum had some long overdue business to attend to which they couldn't do with the children in the house. Of course, Harry didn't believe him for a moment, but judging by the look on Mum's face, he'd resolved to let the matter go.

'Tag!' He was broken from his thoughts as an auburn haired bullet flew streaked across his vision, lightly hitting his arm as she passed. Oh, it's on, he thought as he set off after her.

For a girl of almost six years old, Thea Potter was impressively quick. By no means could she outrun Harry, but he also didn't have to try very hard to make it look like chasing her was a challenge. As she quickly turned and ducked under the slide, he absently noted that she'd probably make a wicked chaser one day.

Leaping over the swings as she ran around it, he nearly caught her, but she just managed to avoid his reach and then dashed off as he recovered his balance. They squared off on either side of the seesaw, staring each other down, trying to anticipate in which direction the other would run. Thea giggled as she feinted left and Harry jerked to follow, only to have to double back as she shot right and sprinted around the carousel. He jumped onto it and let the momentum carry him around, springing off of it at a run once he'd got the right angle.

The siblings reached a stalemate again on either side of the slide, each attempting to fake the other out. Harry slowly started to creep around, and they both circled it while a plan came to his mind. As soon as he got a clear shot, he dived under the slide and reached out to her. 'Tag!' he exclaimed and Thea squealed and jumped out of the way.

'You missed!' she said joyously, and laughed as she ran away once more. Frustrated, he picked himself up off the ground and made after her. By the time he'd reached her again, she'd clambered onto the climbing frame and was being careful to remain out of his reach. 'I'm the Queen of the castle, and you're a dirty rascal,' she sing-songed at him teasingly.

He smirked at her and jumped, stretching as much as he could in an attempt to reach her. Thea's giggles turned to a squeal as she jumped over his swiping arm, before turning around and grabbing onto the fireman's pole behind her to slide down and make her escape. Harry darted around the structure, intent on reaching her before she got the chance to make a run for it again.

Before he got around there though, he heard his sister give out a yelp of pain and all thoughts of chase promptly left his mind. Kneeling on the floor by the fireman's pole, Thea was clutching her wrist to her chest, sniffling as she obviously tried to hold back tears.

'Hey, what's wrong?' Harry asked as he dropped to his knees beside her.

She sniffed as she looked up at him. 'I fell over and now my arm hurts.'

Harry frowned. 'Can I look?' he asked, and at her nod gently reached out and held her arm in his hands. Her wrist was all red and puffy where it met her hand. Thea's breath hitched as he gently ran his hand underneath where she'd hurt it and he winced sympathetically. 'Sorry.'

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, mentally picturing Thea's arm and concentrating on the injury, willing it to heal. When nothing felt different, he cracked open one eye and saw no golden light either, only Thea's wet eyes looking at him expectantly. Frowning, he screwed his eyes shut harder and focused on his breathing for a full minute before opening his eyes again desperately. Tears were actually running down her cheeks now, and her sniffles had become more apparent.

'It won't work,' he said hollowly, and Thea's eyes grew wide with panic. 'I can't heal it. Why won't it work?' The question, no matter how emotional, was bound to be rhetorical. Neither of the young Potters could even begin to provide the answer.

Mrs Levisham's voice snapped him back to focus. 'Is everything okay?' she asked as she walked towards them. 'Oh dear,' she said softly, 'what happened here, then?'

'Thea fell over and hurt her arm, Mrs Levisham, and now it's gone puffy,' Harry answered, taking charge of the situation as any good big brother should. 'I think Mum and Dad will need to take her to hospital,' he added as an afterthought. Obviously he knew that it wouldn't take much for an adult to heal her arm, but most people would need to see a doctor for it.

His astute reasoning fell to pieces as their babysitter of several years produced a wand from her sleeve. 'I don't think that'll be necessary, Harry. You can't see anybody else around here, do you?' she asked as she checked their surroundings. Getting over his surprise, he looked around and upon seeing nobody in the area shook his head. 'Now, I'm afraid that I can't fix your wrist, Thea, but how about we make it so it doesn't hurt as much?' Thea nodded weakly as she sniffled. 'Lenio,' Mrs Levisham cast, and immediately the relief was visible on her face. 'Let's get you back home to Mum and Dad, then. They'll have you right as rain in no time.'

The old lady gently helped Thea to her feet, being mindful of her arm, and handed over a hanky so she could dry her eyes and wipe her nose. It wasn't a long walk back home - a few minutes at most, really - but Harry used the time with full efficiency. 'I didn't know you were a witch,' he said, almost accusingly.

Mrs Levisham smiled at him good-naturedly. 'Not many people do,' she confided. 'That was the idea.'

He didn't really understand that, but pressed on with his questioning regardless. 'Did you go to Hogwarts?'

'Ooh, a good many years ago. Hufflepuff, to answer your next question.'

'Was Mr Levisham a wizard, too?' he asked cautiously. Mrs Levisham rarely spoke about her husband, who she had told him had died in the war. Since learning about it in school, he'd always understood her to mean the Second World War, but now that he knew she was a witch, he had to wonder if Mr Levisham had actually been involved in the last Wizarding War.

Mrs Levisham had the oddest expression on her face as she answered - it was a mixture of both happy and sad. 'We were the Head Boy and Girl together all the way back in 1923 - he was a Hufflepuff too.'

Before he knew it, they had reached the front door of the Potters' house. 'I bet he was fantastic,' Harry said quietly before he knocked on the door.

'The best,' came her reply.

The front door was opened by Dad looking really quite messy. He wore a silly grin below his wonky glasses and messier than usual hair and his t-shirt was unusually crumpled. His expression soon changed when he noticed Thea's red face and the way she was nursing her arm. 'What happened?' he asked concernedly as he ushered all three of them into the house.

'Thea fell over on the playground and has broken her wrist by the looks of it,' Mrs Levisham explained. 'I cast a numbing charm on her so it wouldn't hurt as much, but I didn't want to risk healing her myself.'

Dad looked at Mrs Levisham strangely as they moved into the living room. He lifted Thea onto the sofa and inspected her puffy wrist carefully. 'I didn't know you were a witch, Ruth,' he muttered, unknowingly echoing Harry from just a few minutes ago. 'I thought the Levisham line was absorbed by the Dunbars centuries ago.'

'It was. My husband was a Dunbar, and I changed my name to Levisham when I left the wizarding world behind in the war. It's been about fifteen years since I last visited Diagon Alley.'

'I must admit I was tempted to do the same after we graduated,' Mum spoke from where she'd appeared in the doorway. 'How bad is it?'

Dad shook his head in a so-so manner. 'Not St Mungo's bad, but I wouldn't want to do it myself. Maybe call the Tonks and see if Andi's free to pop in?' Mum nodded and disappeared into the kitchen where the phone was. 'We'll get you all better in no time, fawn,' Dad said to Thea before turning around to face Mrs Levisham. 'You moved in not long after we did, didn't you?'

The elderly witch nodded. 'A good thing too. There was more than one occasion that a reporter from the Prophet managed to find their way around here in the first year or two.' She smirked as Dad looked at her curiously. 'I usually confunded them and let them get lost until they gave up.'

Dad laughed at that. 'Well, thank you for all of your help.'

'It was my pleasure,' Mrs Levisham replied, with a mischievous smile that Padfoot would have been proud of.

'Andi will be here in a few minutes,' Mum said as she re-entered the room. She approached the old lady and embraced her. 'Thank you for looking after her, Ruth.'

'Well, that's my job when you two have important business to attend to,' she said cheekily, the smile still on her face. Judging by the way that Mum and Dad blushed at that, Harry decided that he definitely didn't need to know the truth of whatever work they were doing. A quiet crack of apparition from the back garden snapped them all out of the weird silence that had fallen after Mrs Levisham's comment. 'I'll be off then,' she announced, and added to Thea, 'I hope you feel better soon, dear.'

'Thank you, Mrs Levisham,' his sister said, and he echoed her as their babysitter left, passing Mrs Tonks as she entered the room.

'She'll be back to normal in a jiff,' Mrs Tonks said cheerily. 'What are you like, hey, Thea?'

-oOo-

Andromeda Tonks had been a Healer at St. Mungos since she'd left Hogwarts, if James remembered correctly, but after being injured in an attack on the hospital within the first couple of years of the war, she'd taken a step down and become a reserve Healer as she recovered. After having Dora in 1974, she never did return to the hospital full-time.

Over the years since, she'd visited the Potters' house a number of times - usually to provide healing, and had always been a blessing, today included. Ruth's numbing charm had done wonders to keep his daughter calm, and had lasted until after the fracture to her wrist had been healed. Andromeda had given Thea a potion to reduce the swelling and heal the muscle and ligament strain which had knocked the young girl out for an hour or so, but once she'd woken up and they'd had a late lunch, she was happily acting as though nothing had happened at all.

Which was much more than James could say about his son. Since returning home from the park, Harry had been uncharacteristically quiet and subdued, and then once lunch had been finished with, he'd taken himself upstairs to his bedroom. It was now three o'clock, and they'd nary heard a peep from the boy in more than an hour.

'I don't suppose you've any idea what's up with Harry, do you?' he asked Lily.

Her face took on a concerned expression and she shook her head. 'I was just about to ask you the same thing.'

James hummed in thought. 'Reckon he'll open up if I take him flying?'

'Possibly. Please don't take the Nimbus with you, though,' she said. 'I don't want to have to call Andi again.'

Nodding to acknowledge her request, he left the room and grabbed two broomsticks from the cupboard under the stairs. There was a choice of six: a Nimbus 1760, which was off-limits for today; two Cleansweep Fives; his father's Moontrimmer, which was more of a collectable these days; and old Comet 180; and the Comet 220 he'd played Quidditch on in Hogwarts. After a moment's deliberation he settled on the Cleansweeps. The Nimbus was Harry's favourite, but it wasn't all too often that he was allowed to fly them, so it would be a good treat. The last time Lily had seen her son fly one, she swore blind that she'd lost at least two years of her second chance of life purely from worrying that he'd fall off, so they generally avoided them unless Lily wasn't around.

The Cleansweeps had actually turned out to be an absolute steal from a second-hand shop on Ayave Avenue, the hidden wizarding street in the nearby (and very aptly named) village of Witchford. The old shopkeeper who owned the place obviously didn't have the first clue about broomsticks or their maintenance because he was selling the Fives at less than half the price they were available for as new, despite the fact that the only thing wrong with them was that a few of the bristles were bent. Once he got home, it had taken him all of fifteen minutes to fix them both up and they were good as new.

He shrunk the brooms and put them carefully into his pocket before setting off up the stairs to coax Harry out his room. This was a strange situation for James - the children very rarely misbehaved, and even rarer still were they particularly moody or stroppy. Sure, Thea had her moments, but he figured that was the right of a six year old girl. Harry was really quite mature for his age, and had always been the more level-headed of the two; never before had he shut himself away, so dealing with him right now was kind of uncharted territory.

The door to Harry's bedroom was ajar, so he knocked softly and let himself in when there was no response. Inside, the boy was sitting cross-legged on his bed reading a book - Hogwarts: A History if he had to guess, which he didn't really; the book's distinct maroon cover was worn at the edges and the binding was fraying. Whether that was a marker of how well-loved the book was or its age was anybody's guess. It had been Lily's from before her first year, and James suspected that Harry had already read it through more times than she ever had. Absently, he noted that he might send an owl to Bathilda and ask if she might be willing to speak to Harry - he'd certainly love that.

'I'm going to Uncle Moony's to fly around for a bit,' James announced without preamble. Immediately, he could see that he'd caught his son's attention, but Harry kept his head stubbornly down facing the pages of his book. 'The second Cleansweep has your name on it if you want to join me?'

Even with his face hidden, the battle Harry was having with himself was clearly obvious. James stayed quiet for a moment but still received no actual response, so deployed his third and final tactic as he retreated from the room, pulling the door closed after him. 'Alright, I'll see you after dinner then. I'm going to try to convince Moony to get the barbecue going.'

He went back downstairs and slipped a pair of shoes on, before heading back into the living room to grab his keys. 'See you later,' he said to Lily. 'Probably won't be back until the evening.'

She looked up at him from the book she was reading. 'Is Harry not going with you?'

'Yeah, he is,' he replied, and smirked as the sound of someone running down the stairs proved his point. 'We'll sort ourselves out for dinner. Enjoy your girls' night in,'

'Oh, I will,' she promised. 'No doubt I'll get to see Fox and the Hound for the seventeenth time.'

James laughed as he left the room. 'That's your own fault for falling asleep every time,' he called over his shoulder. 'You might find that you like it if you were to ever actually make it to the end.'

-oOo-

Remus' so-called 'Den' was on an unplottable and heavily warded piece of farmland about a twenty minutes' drive away from their house, near the also quite aptly named village of Wicken. James had tried to engage Harry in a number of conversations, but had given up pretty quickly as the nine year old remained resolutely quiet. He wasn't being rude or ignoring James, mind, but the only responses the boy was giving were short and mumbled, so he gave it up as a bad job and the rest of the journey continued in relative silence.

They parked up outside of the farmhouse at the end of the long, private drive and made their way to the heavy oaken door. James knocked loudly and soon enough his friend answered the door with a smile.

'Prongs, cub, I wasn't expecting you,' Remus greeted them cheerfully.

'Yeah, sorry for not calling ahead. We were just wondering if you'd mind us making use of your land?' James pulled the shrunken broomsticks from his pockets by way of explanation.

Remus gestured towards the kitchen and, by extension, the back door. 'Be my guest,' he said. 'You know you're always welcome to it.'

James led Harry through the house and enlarged the Cleansweeps, handing one over to Harry. 'I'm just going to have a chat with your uncle, then I'll come and join you. Be careful, don't do anything I wouldn't do, and don't do some of the things I would do either until I come out, okay?'

'Yes, Dad,' Harry mumbled, and James ruffled his hair.

'Good lad.'

Harry quickly made his way out of the house and mounted the broom with a practised ease that never failed to make him jealous of his son's natural ability. He'd never been a slouch when it came to flying, but even being raised fully in the magical world it had still taken until his third year in Hogwarts before he was anywhere near as comfortable on a broom as Harry was now.

James made his way back into the living room to find that Remus was already entertaining company in the form of Albus, who looked to be getting ready to leave. 'Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't realise you were in the middle of something. Please, don't leave on my account, Albus.'

'You've not interrupted anything important, Prongs, don't worry. He was just asking me if I'd be interested in taking up the Defence professorship in September.'

James chuckled. 'Does that make this the fourth year in a row, or was that last year? Tim's finally had enough of waiting, I take it?'

Albus smiled good-naturedly. 'Timothy hasn't resigned the position just yet, but he makes the plans for his retirement more widely known with each year that passes. This is the fourth year, now, but it's a number that will continue to increase until Remus agrees. I'm afraid I can be rather insistent,' he said with a teasing smile.

'And as flattered as I am by your persistence, Albus, you know my reasons for declining. That number will continue to increase for as long as there are children in the castle. It's not safe for me to be there,' Remus argued in an even voice.

'Oh, come off it Moony,' said James. 'Your being at Hogwarts is no more dangerous now than it was when you were a student.'

'Which is precisely what I was saying before you arrived, James,' Albus agreed. 'We could also put in place more preventative measures than we did back then. The risk would be absolutely minimal.'

Remus shook his head at the double team he was now facing. 'Be all that as it may, I find myself completely unwilling to be the source of any risk to the students. I truly appreciate the offer as always, but I'm afraid my answer remains unchanged. Thank you, but no thank you.'

Albus shrugged his shoulders. 'I had hoped to talk you around this year, but alas. I cannot fault you for standing by your morals. I shall take my leave and return this time next year.'

'Or you could save yourself the trip,' Remus said, not unkindly. 'My answer will be no different.'

'Actually, Albus, I wonder if you might be willing to stay a little while longer. I think I might need all the help I can get with Harry, if it's no imposition on you both?

Remus gestured his acquiescence and James took a seat next to him as Albus settled back into the armchair he'd begun to vacate. 'What's up?'

'I'm not sure. Thea broke her arm this morning while they were at the playground, but Ruth Levisham - who, it turns out, is a witch by the way - brought them home and Andi came by to fix her up, so she's back to her usual self now. Since then he's been quiet and took himself up to his room. I tried to talk to him, but he's not been very forthcoming, so I hoped that maybe flying would help him loosen up a bit.' James glanced at his friend out of the corner of his eye as a sheepish grin graced his face. 'I may also have mentioned the possibility of a barbecue.'

Remus rolled his eyes and snorted. 'I'm sure that Albus would be happy to help me prepare some wood while you go and wear Harry down a bit.'

'Certainly,' the old man agreed.

The men set the plan in action from there. James took up the second Cleansweep and flew up to his son while Remus and Albus set up the barbecue. For a good while the two Potters just flew around each other aimlessly, but that eventually turned into Harry chasing James as they weaved through and around the trees on one side of the farm. They continued with that for about five minutes or so until Harry got within reach of him, at which point he slowed down and performed a sloth grip roll, swapping the roles around and making him the chaser while Harry flew to evade.

After maybe an hour of flying about, Harry finally started to tire out and slow down. James flew up beside him as they gently flew back and forth in the air. 'Ready to talk yet?' he asked gently.

'I couldn't heal her,' Harry said in a small voice, and James just frowned in confusion. 'When Thea hurt her arm, I tried to heal her like I did in the hospital, but nothing happened. Why not?' he asked, as his voice broke a bit.

He nodded in understanding. 'I see. Why don't we go back to the house and talk about it? The Headmaster is down there with your uncle - I'm sure we can figure it out between the four of us.'

At his nod, they swept over the grounds of Remus' Den towards the farmhouse and landed just a few metres short of where Albus and Moony were tending to their dinner. Beside them, a large wooden picnic table was laid out with a modest spread of sauces, bread, cheese, and salad.

'Right on time,' said Remus jovially. 'The burgers have just finished cooking.'

Harry eyed the plate of burgers suspiciously as Moony placed them onto the table in front of him. 'Cooked how you like them or cooked how everybody else likes them?' he asked cautiously.

Albus chuckled as he took the seat beside him. 'Cooked properly. I supervised the process myself.'

That answer seemed to be acceptable, as the boy promptly grabbed a bread roll from a bowl in the middle of the table and set out making himself a burger, with the men following his lead, entering into an unspoken competition to build the best looking selection of food.

'So what's had you feeling out of sorts today then, Harry?' Albus asked once they'd all finished loading their plates.

Harry looked at James, seemingly for either permission or confirmation that he could talk about what was bothering him, which he gave without hesitation. Picking at his food, he spoke quietly without looking up. 'Has Dad told you about what happened at St Mungo's?'

'I know that you, rather remarkably, healed two ladies a fortnight ago. Is that what you mean?'

He nodded and nibbled a bit on a carrot stick, swallowing heavily before responding. 'When Thea hurt herself this morning, I tried to heal her like I healed those ladies. But it didn't work,' he said thickly, 'I tried - I really did - but nothing happened.'

'Well first off,' James interjected, to head off Harry from getting any more upset than he already was, 'Thea is perfectly fine now. Mrs Tonks came around and fixed her up like she used to do with you. Nobody expected you to have to heal your sister, Harry, and we're certainly not upset that you couldn't.'

'Why couldn't I though?' Harry asked despairingly. 'I've healed people before - not just the ladies in the hospital, but Mum too!'

Albus placed his hand gently on the boy's shoulder and spoke softly. 'Tell me what was wrong with the people you've healed.'

He furrowed his brow in concentration and nodded. 'Thea was really weak when Mum was carrying her and nearly died, so I healed them both and they were fine. Miss Jorkins' mind was broken because of a memory charm, so I removed it and fixed what was wrong. And the other lady's lungs were full of liquid, so I got it out of her and healed her lungs when they were empty,' he finished, screwing up his nose.

The Headmaster nodded thoughtfully. 'And that other lady, would she have survived if you hadn't helped her, do you think?' he questioned, to which Harry shook his head. 'Your Dad allowed me to watch his memory of the day in St Mungo's in a special device I have in Hogwarts. Do you remember what Miss Jorkins said before she left the room?'

Harry screwed his face up in thought for a moment. 'She asked about someone. A director?' he said uncertainly, looking at his father for clarification.

'She asked about Amelia Bones, who is the new Director of the DMLE,' James explained.

Albus smiled and nodded again, visibly pleased with the opportunity to impart new knowledge or wisdom. Once a teacher, always a teacher, James mused. 'Though I can't say very much about it, I can tell you that Miss Jorkins did indeed go and see Madam Bones that afternoon, having remembered something very important that very well might save many people's lives.'

'So it only works when people might die?' Harry asked confusedly, to which the old man smiled broadly.

'Though I couldn't say for certain, that is precisely what I think is the case.'

Despite the praise at his coming to the same conclusion as the wise old mage, the boy's face fell. 'But what if other people are hurt? I can't help them?'

'Of course you can, cub,' Remus answered softly. 'Maybe not in the same way, but you could always study Healing Magic in Hogwarts and become a Healer. That way you could help people in both ways.'

Remus' words seemed to placate Harry slightly, but he obviously still wasn't completely happy with that answer. 'But that's years away! What if Thea gets hurt again, or somebody else? What's the point in only being able to help some people?'

'The point is, Harry, that the extraordinary things that you are able to do have a higher purpose. What have Mum and Dad told you about that Halloween night?' Albus asked.

'Everything, I think?'

James nodded his agreement, and Albus shifted to look at him. 'And do you remember, Dad, what Death told you about Harry's role when Mum asked him about it?'

'I'll never forget,' he answered. 'Support those who are close to dying, help those whose time isn't up, and judge those who have caused, or are likely to cause, undue suffering.' Of course, that wasn't exactly what Death had said, but James figured that there were some things that his nine year old didn't need to hear yet - his ability to condemn being one of them, whatever that even meant in practice.

Albus smiled sympathetically, likely guessing James' thoughts since he too knew Death's actual wording. 'So you see,' he said, turning his attention back to Harry, 'all of the wonderful things that you can do as part of your role are part of the bigger picture. Should you want to help more people - which I must say is a very noble thing to pursue - then studying Healing Magic is certainly the way forward.

'I'm also quite sure that Madam Pomfrey would be quite happy to lend her assistance to you before the course is available to you, should you be interested.'

Harry was quiet for a moment as he processed everything that had been discussed. It certainly was a lot for anybody to have to deal with, let alone a young boy. Not for the first time, James idly wondered if the whole Master of Death thing really was worth it before realising, as he often did, that he wouldn't be alive today without it.

'I'm going to become a Healer when I grow up,' his son said decisively, breaking the contemplative silence that had fallen over the group.

James smiled. 'I think that is a fantastic idea.'

A/N: Sweet Merlin, this chapter took on a life of its own.

Please let me know if you notice any errors or inconsistencies in this chapter, or any others in the story.

Thank you all for continuing to read and enjoy this story. I appreciate every comment, review, and message.

Peace and love, amidland.

E: Thank you to tlc125 for pointing out a mistake with Thea's age. It's been fixed now, but if you find any other mistakes, please don't hesitate to let me know!