Harry Potter: Chronicles of the Sorcerer Supreme
Disclaimer/Plot/Challenge Information/Author's Notes: SEE FIRST CHAPTER
Recommended Reads: Lily's Plan by sheltie, Fate's Gambit and FG2: The Trio Hit Hogwarts by RobSt, Trickshot, Silver King and Wands and Claws by JustBored21, Soul Scars by Rtnwriter, The Rise of the Last Potter by HPfanfictioner66, Child of the Storm, Ghosts of the Past and The Phoenix and the Serpent by Nimbus Llewelyn, A Harmonious Beginning by SeventhChordHarmony, The Harmony Bond by brigrove, H J Potter by SM wane, Adventures in Magick by PseudonymousEntity and The Last Casualties by muggledad
Key Pairing: Lunar Harmony
Other Pairings: Daniel/Emma; Sirius/Amelia; Xenophilius/Pandora; Others TBD
Normal Speech
'Thoughts'
'Mental Speech'
/Parseltongue/
Review Answers:
www sxyangaming: Well, in that case, I hope you enjoy the show;
Jostanos: A sad truth that is about to hit the ground running in a BIG way;
After the party was done and the final arrangements were made, the three families went their own ways with Lily and James vanishing back into hiding, the group of friends believing that all was well.
However, they couldn't have been more wrong if they tried…
BOOK 1: A Mother's Love
Chapter 2: The First Law of Magic
There was nothing about the almost-perfect starry sky that night, to suggest that anything strange or unusual was about to happen.
Within the hidden house where Lily and James were staying, the young redhead was busy trying to wrestle her baby boy out of his favourite outfit, which he'd worn all day, ever since that morning. It was the same lion cub costume that Lily and James had magically-crafted for Harry the previous Halloween, though it was recently altered to make up for the boy's new size; to James' amusement, there was even a small tuft of fur on the neck showing the cub's slowly-growing mane.
"Harry James Potter," gasped Lily, wrestling with her stubborn infant of a son in a bid to pull the hood – aka the lion's head – down as she looked into her son's beautiful, but, at that moment, teary and petulantly-focused emerald-green eyes, "Aww, come on, my baby boy: we need to get you ready for your bath and then…then it…it'll be time to go beddy-bye's."
"No!" argued Harry, his small hands moving to grab at his lion head in a bid to keep it on his head as he added in a classic infantile cry, "No bath! Cubby…peas Mama…peas cubby?"
"Once you've had your bath, little cub," laughed James, walking into the living room, having just finished preparing the tub for his special little cub of a son, "Then, once your smelly little butt is all squeaky-clean, you can spend as much time as you like in your…cubby."
He had to pause to let out a laugh as he saw the eyes of the little cub light up so brightly, it was almost like the sun was shining in his gaze as he looked over at an amused James before Harry laughed excitedly as he asked, "Can Daddy? I can?"
"As long as you want, Daddy promises, little guy," chuckled James, tousling his son's covered head, his fingers brushing through the small mane on the outfit, "But only if you're a good little lion and get your little chubby butt in that…"
The words were barely out of his mouth before Lily gasped as Harry suddenly flashed – as James called the power he used to teleport in a flash of phoenix fire back when he'd said his first word – out of his Mother's arms, leaving a surprisingly-empty outfit behind.
Seconds later, excitable laughter echoed from upstairs accompanied by the distant sound of splashing.
Shaking her head in apparent disbelief, Lily cast a cleaning charm on the outfit, getting it ready for her son to sleep in while, picking herself up from where she'd been lion cub wrestling, she looked over to her amused husband as she asked, "Why is it every time that I ask him, he says no, but then you tell him and he always does what you say?"
"Because, my love, as you well know, no lion disobeys the King," laughed James, letting out a false roar of playfully-sounding power and pride dominance as he accompanied Lily up the stairs; shaking her head in amused disbelief, Lily stopped outside the bathroom door while James knocked lightly on the aforementioned door, his voice laced with amusement as he asked, "Hey now: is that a good little cub I hear cleaning himself up in there?"
"Yes Daddy," cried Harry, earning a laugh from James while Lily wiped a tear from her eye.
She might not understand why Harry always seemed to be smarter than the average child of his age, but she was also happy that he'd never lost that innocence.
As James walked into the bathroom, however, Lily's smile faded only slightly as she looked down, clutching the small outfit in her hands before, moving one of her hands away from the outfit, she pressed it lightly against her stomach, a look of hope and fear in her eyes.
'Is it tonight that I tell him? Another few weeks and he'll know anyway…but…what about Harry? He's only young…will he understand?'
"Lils?" asked James, earning a shocked look from his wife as he poked his head out of the door, earning a round of belly laughs from Lily as she saw the Georgian-style-wig of soapy bubbles that covered his head, the water stains trickling down all over his face, neck and hairline as he groaned softly. "Can you come in here? This little terror's just sprayed me because he thinks I won't let him dress up again."
"I'm coming," said Lily, her voice laced with hope as she walked into the bathroom.
As soon as Harry saw his favourite outfit in his Mama's hands, he calmed down enough for the two to bathe him, even letting his Daddy wash his unruly black hair while he giggled at the ticklish touch of his washcloth rubbing over his smooth skin. Finally, with help from a big fluffy towel and a warm hug from his Daddy, little Harry was returned to the warmth of his favourite lion cub outfit and, once he was dressed and clean, he was safely placed into Lily's arms, leaving James to dry himself off and rinse the water out of the tub.
Back downstairs, Lily settled down on the sofa with her son cradled against the crook of her neck, looking down at him as she smiled, a feeling of peace radiating from him as he cuddled her.
Gently brushing his mane out of his eyes, Lily placed a soft kiss against her boy's brow as she whispered, "You are so beautiful, Harry James; you will make a brilliant boy, an amazing young wizard and…"
Swallowing hard, Lily looked past Harry to her stomach before, holding back tears, she added in a soft voice, "And the world's greatest big brother: I know you will."
"Lily?"
Snapping her head up at the sound of her husband's voice, Lily's eyes widened as she saw James standing there, his eyes wide with shock while his expression was somewhere between disbelief and pride as he looked from Lily's eyes to her stomach and back again before, swallowing hard again, he asked, "Did…did you just say…"
"What did you think, Jay?" asked Lily softly, watching as her husband walked across the floor and, kneeling down, he placed his soft hands against her belly while she asked, "That I was getting fat? You already got away with that excuse already when I got around to telling you about our little cub here."
Lifting his eyes to those of his wife, James' eyes sparkled with tears before he asked, "How…how long?"
"Three months," said Lily, her soft voice showing the relief and warmth that she'd felt ever since she had been told of the wondrous news currently growing inside her womb, as she explained, "If I'm right, it was the night of our baby's first birthday when you had a bit too much to drink because you were worried about his safety. Of course, I wasn't exactly sober, but still…"
"Lily…" gasped James, placing a soft kiss against Lily's stomach as he added, "Do…do you…"
"Not yet," admitted Lily, petting Harry's black hair as she told James, "I was hoping to get it checked tomorrow so that we knew for sure and then we could reinforce our defences, but then…well things have been changed lately, what with you convincing me that Peter would be a better Secret Keeper, not that I'm completely satisfied with that, even after the past six weeks, and then…"
"That's no excuse!" argued James, lifting his head up with a fierce look in his dark eyes as he told her, "You should have said something before: I mean, your worried state, how you were always on edge and everything else. I thought…I didn't know what to think, but…"
"I know," agreed Lily, placing a soft kiss against her husband's lips as she told him, "But it's okay, Jay: I forgive you. Now, let's get this little lion cub up to bed and then we can have a proper talk while we're reassured that he can dream his nice dreams."
While James nodded slowly, he couldn't resist one last look at his wife, a smile spreading across his face at the thought of being a Dad again and having a little brother or sister for his little prince of lions; at the same time, he couldn't help but wonder how Harry might react, much less what sort of witch or wizard they would be, especially if Harry's own magic was anything to go by.
As they made their way upstairs, however, the calm peace of the moment was broken when a cold feeling crossed James' mind.
Seconds later, a ferociously-loud alarm went off in the house, the sound so loud that it tore Harry from his sleep.
"No!" cried Harry, his eyes shining with fear and panic.
At the same time, James turned to his wife, son and unborn child; placing a kiss against Lily's lips, he drew his wand and turned away, though not before Harry screamed, "No Daddy, please!"
"Lily! It's him! Take Harry and run!" exclaimed James, earning a wailing cry from Harry while Lily, holding tightly to her son, turned and fled, a part of her aware of James' eyes watching them as they entered the nursery.
At the same time, Lily sealed the room before, turning to her panicked son, she bent down and gingerly held his cheek in her fingers, her voice soft as she told him, "Don't be scared, baby: your Daddy's going to get through this. He's stronger than the strongest giants, more powerful than the wildest dragons and better than…well, he's better than any man I know."
"Daddy…" sniffled Harry, tears rolling down his cheeks.
At the same time, Lily gasped as what could only be described as raw magic suddenly crackled in the air around him, dimming the lights and causing a great wave of emotion to wash over Lily.
Thinking quickly, especially since – when she'd sealed the nursery – she had already discovered, to her horror, that she was basically trapped in the house with her baby boy and his Daddy, as well as their unborn son or daughter, Lily reached out and hugged her son to her chest, gently tousling and fondling his little outfit's makeshift mane as she whispered to him.
"Harry, you are loved, so loved: no matter where we may be, no matter what may happen to you, never forget that Mama loves you. Dada loves you…and Harry, you must be safe, be strong and never forget that you are always loved: in this life and the next, always and forever, we, Daddy and Mama, we love you so much!"
As she finished saying the words, Lily felt her heart grow cold as Harry wrapped his tiny arms not around her neck, chest or her face, but, instead, he put his hands on her belly, sobbing against her nightgown as he then asked, "Love her too?"
Lily's heart suddenly burned like a phoenix rising from the ashes: a girl!
A baby girl was waiting to be born from inside her and, somehow, her beautiful boy had known it before she had done!
Lifting him up to her face, Lily sniffed again as she kissed Harry's cheek, nodding as she said, "Yes Harry, Daddy and I love you and your…your baby sister the same; always."
"Love Mama," said Harry, cuddling against Lily's neck.
As he did so, Lily's heart broke yet again as she heard the telltale scream from beyond the door accompanied by a flash of green light. Thankfully, this was one time that Harry didn't notice as he was resting against Lily's neck and, from the sounds of it, he'd actually cried himself to sleep.
Setting her son down in the crib, Lily kissed his brow once before, putting a hand to her stomach, she whispered, "This is for you both…I only hope magic…and, one day, maybe even Harry…forgives me for this…"
Then, as she rose up, Lily turned and looked to the door, her wand now in her hand as she saw the door open, revealing a monster of a man with snake-like features, red eyes that were like blood and a sneering, evil malice in his eyes and his expression.
"Get away from my son, you monster!" snarled Lily, firing off a spell from her wand, which was easily deflected by the figure in the doorway, a figure that was known to many as the darkest, most-terrifying force in the world.
The Dark Lord Voldemort sneered as he asked, "And what, exactly, makes you think you stand a chance against me, you pathetic little Mudblood? None: now, step aside and I will spare your miserable stain of an existence: Lord Voldemort does not forget those whom…"
"No!" screamed Lily, firing off another spell, but, once again, it was deflected by Voldemort as she snapped, "I will never give up my child, especially not to you! I'd sooner give my life before I let him die because I am a coward."
Red eyes widened in outrage at the level of defiance that was being thrown against him, while Lily felt the magic going to work around her; hiding a smile as she knew that this was her last hope, Lily then added, "Do it: take me instead, just leave my son alone…"
"Foolish girl," snarled Voldemort, aiming his wand at her as he asked, "Do you think me a fool? I have no use for a Mudblood's life; now step aside!"
"NO!" Yelled Lily, but as soon as she said it, Voldemort lashed out; firing off a flash of green light that flew across the nursery, its glow filling Lily's eyes with a sense of hope and pain and fear as she saw the magic drawing closer to her.
However, at the same time that it did so, Lily and Voldemort both gasped when a voice, so young and yet so powerful that it made the walls of the entire house tremble with magical backlash, screamed at the scene.
"MAMA NO!"
Before Lily had a chance to look back, her eyes widened as what could only be described as a raw field of pure, white-coloured magical energy suddenly rose up around her, the full fury of this arcane, mysteriously-sourced magic now laced with mystical symbols and runes the likes of which even she had never seen before, although she did recognise a shielding charm when she saw it.
Although calling this a Shielding Charm was like calling the destruction of Pompeii a little incident.
As the Killing Curse hit the shield, however, Lily's awe and disbelief turned into horror as what could only be described as a primal howl echoed through the nursery; the shield itself seemed to buckle and ripple with magical strain, but, beyond the shield, Lily's eyes widened as she saw lightning being redirected from the flash of green, striking everything in sight, including Voldemort himself.
'What is this magic?' wondered Lily, while Voldemort actually screamed the same words as he tried to fend off the lightning and finish the job in striking down Lily and the object of his dark, twisted desires. However, even the Dark Lord couldn't resist the dark powers of death for long, as was made obvious when his body was swallowed up by his own magic as more lightning collided with the spells, creating an explosion that was so great, it left nothing but robes and a broken wand in place.
As for Lily, she was blown back by the aftershock, sending her flying into Harry's crib, which allowed her to look directly at the source of the magic.
And, when she did, Lily's eyes widened, while her heart stopped dead in her chest as she saw her infant son hovering over the crib. However, as if the hovering wasn't enough, Lily's eyes widened as she saw what could only be described as an aurora of pure energy surrounding Harry's small body, parts of the white colour she'd noticed earlier, now tinged with emerald-green sparks and volts that made up part of the aurora's body.
And yet, as she looked at the aurora, Lily felt her breath catch in her throat as she saw that the aurora, the form that it was taking, seemed to resemble a great and powerful Phoenix-like energy, the wings and body of the great creature making up the majority of the aurora as it shielded Harry and enacted his will.
Staring in disbelief at the energy, Lily watched as the shield that had protected her from the Killing Curse faded away before, at the same time, a lone spark of magic passed from her son's body and, to her surprise, it entered Lily's stomach, making her tingle all over.
At the same time that the tingle passed through her, Lily gasped as she heard her baby's voice speaking once more, his only word coming with such an empowering edge that it made her shiver to hear it.
"Safe."
Then, before Lily could begin to ask about what she had seen, she watched as the phoenix faded away, leaving Harry alone, his body falling to rest back in the crib where, when Lily looked, she saw something that made her eyes widen even further.
Harry's brow was marked by what looked like a backlash from the collision of magical energies.
A backlash that was shaped like a bolt of lightning, its marked form almost crackling with magical energy all its own as it rested on Harry's brow.
"What…what in the name of magic was that?" asked Lily, her eyes wide with disbelief as she reached out to her son.
However, as she did so, the redhead gasped when she felt her body buckle and, before she had a chance to say anything, her body fell and her mind succumbed to darkness.
The last thing that she heard was a soft, familiar voice whispering to her from a place that she could neither see nor hear.
'Mama…you are safe…'
Supreme
Some Time Later
Darkness;
That was the first thing Lily knew when she felt the tingles and itches of apparent consciousness begin to fill her body from the tips of her toes to the finely-brushed tips of her hair: it was dark, but she was warm, comfortable; a little stiff in places, but, at the same time, she was alive!
As Lily's eyelids flickered, her mind started to wake up along with the rest of her and, as it did so, Lily's eyes tightened themselves shut while her hands, which were lying almost peacefully over her stomach, suddenly clenched into fists as she felt sensations pass through her that, although it seemed to be unusual, were perfectly normal to her.
'I…I can't believe it! That magic…that…that destruction…him! And, somehow, I survived!'
Lifting her linked fingers for the briefest of moments, a small smile touched Lily's face as she thought, 'I feel strong…really strong, but…'
Then, as suddenly as her thoughts had come back to her, Lily's fingers dropped while her eyes opened and, quicker than anyone else in her condition might have done, she shot upright, her green eyes shining like the colour of spring as she gasped out a word that, even in her befuddled state, she knew should have been her first, if not only, thought.
"Harry?"
Nearby, the sound of glass breaking made Lily look around, a small part of her then noticing that she was lying on a bed within a closed-off area of what smelled like a hospital.
Even so, the curiosity that Lily felt concerning her surroundings was nothing compared to the determination, fear, anxiety and hope that she felt as she realised that she couldn't see or hear any signs that told her about the one, true care in her life.
Her sweet angel…her beautiful baby boy, Harry James Potter.
He wasn't anywhere close by and that was more pressing for Lily than the fact that she seemed to be lying in a medical wing, which she guessed was St Mungo's given that she couldn't hear anything electronic going to work.
As she tried to think of a way to be sure of her son's fate, Lily saw a young female figure step through the curtains, dressed in the immediately recognisable uniform of the magical hospital, her eyes as wide as saucers as she looked at Lily before she whispered one word.
"Impossible."
"Who are you?" demanded Lily, her voice edged by a slight growl that almost sounded like a tremor that might take place during an earthquake.
"Healer Addams," replied the woman, her dark hair and clear-blue eyes showing her to be young as well as kind in appearance, which probably suggested why she was on this particular ward of the hospital. "I…I've been monitoring you since…since your admission…try to relax; everything's all right, Lady Potter; you're safe with us."
"Where's my son?" asked Lily, her eyes fixed on the healer as she asked, "Where is Harry Potter?"
Healer Addams seemed to blanch for a moment before, twisting the tips of her hair, she stammered out, "I-I-I'm afraid that I-I d-don't know, Lady Potter. The…the location and the…the a-a-affairs of the…the Boy-Who-Lived are…"
"Excuse me?" asked Lily, her eyes now as wide as the healer's as she asked in a half-suspicious, half-annoyed voice, "What did you just call him?"
"The…the Boy-Who…Who-Lived, Ma'am," answered Addams, her eyes filled with a hint of respect as well as truth as she explained, "It…it's what everyone calls him after…after what happened that…that night in Godric's Hollow. It's…it's what they've always call…called him in the five…"
"Weeks?" asked Lily hopefully, but Addams shook her head sadly.
"Years, my Lady," replied the medical witch, partially-aware of the look of horror that crossed Lily's face, while the Healer's voice grew stronger as she explained, "You've been a resident of our long-term-care ward for five years…to the day, in fact: today marks the fifth anniversary of…of the fall of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named and the night that…that Harry Potter became known as…as the Boy-Who-Lived."
"And just who gave my baby boy that pathetic title?" asked Lily, her voice again holding that rumbling-like boom as she demanded, "What sorry excuse for a magical being gave my Harry such a stupid, unnecessary accolade like that?"
"Chief Warlock Dumbledore, ma'am," answered Addams.
As soon as she said it, however, the Healer regretted it as she saw a powerful magical aura suddenly rise up around Lily's body, her eyes now glowing in a manner that was almost like the Killing Curse. At the same time, the air around them seemed to become thick with rage while the metal of the bed that Lily was sat on suddenly buckled and creaked under the strain of impossible powers.
"Where is Dumbledore?" demanded Lily, her voice edged by rage and fire as she asked, "Tell me right now where I can find him!"
"I…I believe he…he is at Hogwarts; I…I can…can summon him here…" said Addams, her eyes once again as wide as saucers as she saw the infamously-fiery temper of Lily Potter starting to show itself.
In the mind of the healer, it was dangerous enough, not to mention impossible enough that a woman that many had said would never wake up had actually recovered, but for her to have such a powerful sense of protective desire and fury about her, it was worse than that.
"No," said Lily suddenly, her voice still booming as she told the healer, "He'll hear about this soon enough: just tell me where I can find my son!"
"I…I told you, Lady Potter," replied Addams, her voice wavering with fear and respect once more as she told the infuriated redhead, "All information concerning the…I mean, concerning your son is…is sealed and blocked by his authority and the Ministry."
Letting out a growl that seemed to remind Addams of the pre-emptive snarl of a lion, Lily changed tack as she asked, "Who is Head of the DMLE?"
"M…Madam Amelia Bones, Lady Potter."
"Then fetch her!" Lily insisted, although she was mildly-amused that her old friend had risen to such high standards, which probably made her the youngest Head in…ever! "And then you can call on a few others for me, but do not allow Dumbledore here until I'm ready to see him!"
Frightened as she was of making things worse given the powerful magic that she had seen rise up around the redhead, Addams quickly set to work on getting the list of names from Lily.
Supreme
It was nearly twenty-five minutes later that Lily, now fully cleaned up and wearing a loose, comfortable set of robes, looked up as the door to the Medical Ward's Meeting Room opened, admitting a fair-haired witch with fierce navy-blue eyes, whom was also dressed in a set of official-looking robes, one of her eyes holding what looked like a monocle, the sight of which made Lily chuckle as she shook her head.
"You know, the hoity-toity, one-eyed-glasses look really doesn't suit you, Amie," remarked Lily, earning a soft smile from the other woman.
"Only you ever called me Amie, Lily," replied Amelia Bones, taking a seat in the chair opposite Lily before she added, "James tried it once and I wound up hexing him to do Riverdance in a way-too-short ballet tutu: I remember Sirius rolling around on the floor laughing his ass off, while you wished that you had a camera on her for the moment."
Both women then chuckled before Lily, steeling her features once more, looked to Amelia before she asked, "I won't waste time because I don't have the time to waste: where is my son?"
"Safe," said Amelia, earning a frown from Lily before Amelia raised her hands defensively she added, "I don't know anything more than that, Lily: yours and James' wills were sealed two days after…after that tragic night on the authority of young Harry's magical guardian."
"Well that's funny, seeing as how James and I never named a magical guardian," insisted Lily, before her eyes hardened as she added, "We named Frank and Alice as guardians, after our first choice of Sirius, but, apparently, Frank is dead, Alice is as incognito as my son. And then they tell me that Sirius is in Azkaban, Remus has vanished to who-knows-where, Severus became persona non grata, even with some of our old friends and even Andi and Teddy have turned away my son's upkeep."
Here, Lily actually held her hands up, showing that they were empty as she told Amelia, "Now, I don't have a wand on me, Amelia, but you more than anyone should know that I don't need it to do magic, especially when you piss me off, so I'm going to ask you calmly to do something for me."
Amelia, a little surprised at the ferocity and the strong determination that Lily felt towards locating her son, swallowed hard before she told her old friend, "Lil, we were once as close as sisters, so please…help me understand how…how you're even sitting here and then…"
"No!" Roared Lily, her words once again booming like thunder as she snapped, "I'll answer any and all questions that the people I can trust have for me, but only when I can sit my boy on my lap and hold him in my arms once more. Until then, nothing else matters! So, now, I'm going to ask you a question, Amelia, and, for the sake of our friendship more than anything else, you had better give me the right answer."
Amelia, sweating slightly as she too experienced the infamous temper of the Potter Lady as well as the magical outburst that the Healer had told her about, swallowed hard before she asked, "What would you like to know?"
"Is…is my son located at…at Number Four, Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey?" asked Lily, her voice almost dangerously-close to going beyond just plain anger, as though she herself hated the fact that she might be about to hear the very last thing she wanted to hear, as she asked Amelia.
"Is he at my…my sister's?"
Amelia's eyes widened before she shook her head, "Lily, even if your wills were sealed, you know I'd never let it…"
"Is he there or not?" demanded Lily, pointing to Amelia as she told her, "You're the DMLE Director, now Amie, and congratulations on that success, really, but still. It shouldn't be too hard for you to cast a Location Spell for my son: here, use my blood if you want, but tell me!"
As Lily held out her arm, Amelia held up her hand, her eyes once more looking to the other woman as she remarked, "There's no need for that, Lil."
"Why?"
"Because you've just given me the full address," replied Amelia, her voice laced with consideration for the friendship that she had once shared with the redhead while she went on. "Which means I don't need to find the address or the location: instead, I can go there and find out for myself: in the event that I find that both of our worst fears have been confirmed, I will do everything in my power to bring your son back here."
"If you're going, you're taking me with you," hissed Lily, rising from her seat while Amelia, rising with her, put a soft hand on the redhead's shoulder, a look of care in her navy-blue eyes as she looked at Lily.
"I wouldn't recommend it," Amelia told her, but Lily just scoffed as she shook her head. "I don't know exactly how much you know about the last five years, Lily, but there's…"
"He's my son!" exclaimed Lily, cutting off Amelia's explanations with a sharp empowering glare as she told Amelia, "And if we're both right and he is there, I want to see what sort of caring life my unreservedly-jealous bitch of a sister has given my only son."
Amelia wanted to say otherwise, but one look into Lily's emerald-green eyes told her that there was no changing her mind:
She was a Mother first and everything else second.
Everything, even questions about her recoveries and how she'd managed it, was second on the list.
Like it or not, Amelia was taking Lily with her to Little Whinging.
Supreme
Filling out the papers that meant that Lily could be discharged from the hospital took longer than Amelia would have liked, especially when she noticed her old friend was blissfully oblivious to a point that might as well have been staring her right in the face.
One that Amelia did not look forwards to having to say.
Every now and again, Amelia's eyes lowered slightly as she tried to get Lily to listen to reason, but Lily was a woman on a mission; in her mind, nothing was keeping her from her son a second longer than necessary: everything else could wait because the one and only thing that mattered to Lily was the fact that she could hold onto her son, kiss him for all he was worth and smother him with love, affection and warmth.
Even as Amelia arranged for the Portkey to take them to Number Four, Privet Drive, she couldn't help but think to herself, 'Merlin help those people if anything has happened to that child, because she will not forgive them.'
Once she was sure that Lily was ready, Amelia gave the command for the Portkey to activate, which resulted in Lily stumbling slightly as they were sent hurtling across space before being deposited at the end of what looked like an ordinary, well-kept garden. However, as soon as Amelia looked upon the house and the empty driveway, a feeling of cold took hold of her as she noticed something that was off with the picture.
And it wasn't just the dark, foreboding truth that Lily was yet to notice.
"It's too quiet," said Lily, summing up what Amelia was thinking.
As the DMLE Head turned to her old friend, she saw Lily eyeing the house with disdain and loathing while her hands were clenched into fists as she added, "I can't hear anything inside the house, even for somewhere that the normal people tend to live in."
"Can I help you ladies?"
Turning to the source of the voice, Amelia watched as Lily seemed to become a whole new person as she looked into the eyes of an elder man, his eyes laced with curiosity at the sudden appearance of the two women. While Amelia tried to think of an explanation for them being there, Lily took control of the situation as she drew herself to her full height before addressing the old man.
"Can you tell us where Petunia, Vernon and Dudley Dursley are, please?" asked Lily, the formality rolling off her tongue almost perfectly as she told the surprised man, "We're…old friends of theirs from abroad, who recently came to the country for a holiday, and we remembered they lived at this address. Is that still true?"
"Oh, I…I'm sorry, but they don't…in fact, they haven't lived around here for a few years at least," replied the old man, a solemn note in his voice, which earned him a curious, if not suspicious frown from Lily as he told them, "In fact, there's not been any Dursleys living here for quite some time. Not since the night the police took that…that woman away from here and had the body of that obese…man carted off to the cemeteries."
He seemed to have trouble actually identifying either gender and, when he did, the venom in his words was so thick, it could have melted diamonds.
This only seemed to make Lily even more-curious, while a note of raw dread suddenly filled Amelia's heart as she could only imagine what sort of horrors, traumas and reasons may be necessary for the female Dursley to be sent to the Muggle authorities, and, worse, the male Dursley to be sent off to be buried.
Lily, meanwhile, was somewhere between frightened and curious, though she managed to keep her expression one of appropriate calm and resigned curiosity as she asked, "Well, thank you for the information, but…um…what about anyone else who might have been living there with them? A young boy, maybe?"
"I do recall something about two young boys living here, yes," answered the man, giving a thoughtful look as he explained, "Yes, I remember now: one of them was this morbidly-obese, horribly-spoiled-rotten little brat that was as rude as you could be, even to his neighbours, let alone any strangers to the village. But as for the other boy…well, to be honest with you, Miss, I never really saw him myself…in fact, none of us did. But, from what I remember hearing about him, I heard he was an orphan…so, maybe you need to find answers elsewhere. Tell you what, if you head up into town, Surrey Police can probably tell you what might have happened to him."
"Thank you," said Amelia, watching as Lily trembled while the man tipped a hat to them and walked off down the street, whistling as he went.
Amelia, meanwhile, had to steady Lily as she seemed like she was about to keel over, while the director could only feel a mixture of dread and pain for her dear friend and sister-in-all-but-blood as she asked nobody in particular, "A…A…A Cemetery? The Police were needed? A brute to them? My God: what sort of people left my little boy with them, willingly ignoring everything James and I had planned in the process?"
As Amelia opened her mouth to respond, Lily then turned before she added, "And…and five years, Amie? What…what about my…my…"
"Lily…" whispered Amelia, earning a gulp from Lily as she took the hands of the redhead, her eyes looking right into Lily's as, taking a deep breath, recognising the sign for what it was, she added, "I…I'm so sorry to have to…to be the one to tell you this, but…"
Lily, looking into her old friend's eyes, then looked down at her stomach, which she only just realised had been flat and lean from the moment she had woken up in the first place.
As she looked, all-new waves of dread, fear and a renewed sense of rage and determination filled her heart as she looked back up and, taking a breath, she asked in a shaky voice, "I…I lost her?"
"I'm afraid so," said Amelia sadly, before a lone tear rolled down her cheek as she indicated Lily's covered abdomen as she explained, "When you were admitted to St Mungo's, your…your body was suffering from some intense magical backlash: we can only assume it was because of whatever magic shielded you from You-Know-Who's attempt to murder you, but, in the Healers' attempts to stabilise you, they…they were forced to remove your…your unborn foetus and…and remove your uterus in the process…which…which means…"
Even as she trailed off, not sure of exactly how or what she could say to make her friend feel better, Amelia admitted, if only to herself, of how she expected Lily to start crying or trembling in inconsolable fear, dread, horror and loss.
However, as she looked down at her stomach, Amelia gasped when Lily instead became cold-faced and distant, her eyes fixed on her clothed belly as she whispered to nobody in particular, "There's always a price…the First Law…"
"I'm sorry," said Amelia, but Lily shook her head, looking back up at her friend with a renewed glare in her emerald-green eyes.
"You can apologise after we find my son: let's get a move on!"
Supreme
As the morning turned into the afternoon, and an autumnal chill blew across the country, finally, after what seemed like hours of fielding questions, having to come up with the necessary information that the police would believe about her absence, her identity and making sure that none of them could get word to the wrong ears, Lily breathed a sigh of relief as she and Amelia stood before the address that the officers at Surrey Metropolitan Police Station had finally announced was the location of her child.
At first, Lily had actually been frightened that she might find Harry to be hurt, abused and abandoned in some rundown children's home where he was made a target for his special gifts. At the same time, she was frightened because, thanks to what Amelia had told her – or, to be specific, what Amie had confirmed and Lily had managed to say before she confirmed it – Lily also knew that she was going to have to look her special little boy in his beautiful green eyes and tell him that he wasn't going to have a little sister after all.
Even now, with her mind fully-awake once more, Lily could still remember how hopeful and warmly he had sounded when Harry himself had been the one to break the news that she was going to have a baby girl, and how he had been worried that she wouldn't love his sister as much as she loved him. Not to mention how he'd been worried that said sister wouldn't love him like Mama and Papa did, but Lily had put those fears aside.
As she stood across the street from the house that she and Amelia had been directed towards, a feeling of mild, but still-overwhelming hope rose up in Lily as she then remembered the shielding magic from the night that Harry had saved her life, when, unknown to him, she had been trying to preserve his life with the art of self-sacrifice, an ancient, borderline-forbidden magic that wasn't supposed to be known to a Muggleborn like her.
Or so blind, ignorant fools like Voldemort had believed, until Lily proved him wrong.
She remembered how he had cast his magic not only around the two of them, shielding her from the Killing Curse in the process, but also tapping into some sort of power that, time was, Lily had only ever read about in Muggle comics.
A runic magic that both shielded her and absorbed, redirected and dissipated Voldemort's Dark Magic, saving his Mummy's life in the process.
But, as Lily had been reminded, rather-harshly, Magic as powerful as that always came with a price.
She just hoped she was ready to share this news with her boy, not to mention trying to understand how he'd been able to harness so much power.
Staring at the house with a glimmer of hope in her bright emerald-green eyes, Lily took a deep breath before, turning to Amelia, she asked, "Amie, can you promise me something before we go in here?"
"What's that, dear?" asked Amelia, noticing the look of hope in Lily's eyes while her hands were trembling with anticipation and fear.
Swallowing down her nerves, Lily coughed as she asked, "Can you promise me that, no matter what you're about to hear, you'll remember that he is my son and not some idol to be put up on a pedestal? Can you promise me that you won't try and frighten or somehow force him into performing whatever magic might have been responsible for that night five years ago?"
"You have my word," replied Amelia, smiling softly as she added, "I know you named me as one of Harry's godmother candidates, just like you named Alice the other. Unlike some people, I know how much trust comes with that honour, especially for such an old family as Harry's."
"Yeah, that reminds me: you should know that Sirius didn't betray us, Amelia," Lily argued, her green eyes hardening in their sockets, giving her a look that strongly resembled the curse that had almost ended her life, as she told the stunned DMLE Head, "I heard about his current circumstances and I can tell you, with absolute certainty. He was framed for a crime he didn't commit: whatever evidence you might have against him that suggests otherwise, I will swear any oath to you that he is not only innocent, but his first and only priority has been the wellbeing of his pup, my baby boy."
Amelia didn't know what to say.
However, before she could say anything else, Lily then smiled slyly as she added, "Besides Harry, I also know the other thing that Sirius has wanted was to ask you out: he has a thing for you, Amie, you know that, right?"
The look that crossed Amelia's face told Lily otherwise, earning a scoff from the Potter Lady as she said, "It's a good thing I'm not a betting woman, because, if I were, I'd wager every Galleon I have that, when he gets free, he'll ask you. In which case, I want you to know that you are going to be the world's biggest fool for letting him go if you say no, especially since he is, without a shadow of a doubt, the most-honourable man I have ever known then, now and forever, second only to James!"
A lone tear rolled down Amelia's cheek as she heard Lily's firm belief in her words.
However, at the same time, the DMLE Head felt a modicum of surprise rise up inside her as she licked her lips, swallowing hard before she asked, "If…if I look into the…the records of his trial from five years ago, would…would you be willing to testify his innocence, even under Veritaserum?"
"I told you," answered Lily, looking back to the house in front of them as she explained, "I'll swear any oath to show you that a grievous miscarriage of justice has been performed here. But, for now, let's deal with the matter at hand: getting my baby back."
While Amelia was surprised at the firm, maternal instinct that had taken hold of Lily, she was also amazed by the way that the thought of holding her son in her arms had given Lily her strength back in ways that were much faster than normal patients who'd gone through what she'd gone through.
Then again, this was Lily Potter, a witch once hailed as the brightest, potentially-brilliant witch of her generation, not to mention she was the Mother of the one who'd vanquished the Dark Lord and the wife to the late James Potter.
What was it that James had said at their wedding?
Potters don't do normal?
Well, looking at the evidence, it was clear that the expression couldn't be truer even if it was written in stone.
Steeling her resolve, Amelia drew herself up to her full height as she followed Lily across the street, both of them walking past a new-looking Ford Escort parked on the driveway, the rest of the garden looking immaculately clean while, at the same time, Amelia could hear the sound of music coming from inside, showing that someone was at home.
As Lily stopped in front of the blue-painted door at the front of the house, she gulped hard before, lifting a finger, she rang the doorbell, causing a musical tune that sounded like Beethoven's Fur Elise to echo through the house.
While Amelia was in awe of the talent of the Muggle device, Lily just wiped a tear from her eye as the music brought back memories of when she'd been relaxing while pregnant with Harry. Back then, she remembered how Fur Elise seemed to do the job much better than any other music and, now that she heard it through a doorbell, she couldn't help but wonder if her little boy had something to do with its choice.
As Lily brought herself out of her memories, she adopted a look of curious kindness as the door opened to reveal a young woman with dark-brown hair that seemed to hold a bounce to its style while her eyes were a curious shade of grey.
The woman was dressed in an outfit that might be worn by a dentist while, seeing the two women on the doorstep, she returned the friendly air as she asked, "Good evening, can I help you?"
"We're sorry to disturb you, Miss," replied Amelia, her voice laced with the same authority that she'd shown ever since she became the Head of the DMLE, "But we were wondering if you could help us: you see, we have just come from Surrey Police Station with information pertaining to one Harry Potter, a boy whom is in your care: is this true?"
"It is," answered the woman, opening the door a little further as she looked to Lily, her expression softening as she added, "Wow, you know? His eyes are just like yours, Miss; either that's a big coincidence or…"
Before she could finish her statement, however, the woman, Amelia and Lily all gasped as what could only be described as a black-haired missile dressed in a Muggle-style wizards' outfit flew through the door, wrapping a pair of small arms around Lily's neck while a familiar excitable voice cried out in a great roar of ecstatic delight and eager excitement.
"Mama! You're alive! I knew you were! They all said you weren't, but I knew you were alive!"
"Harry," whispered the woman, earning a small smile from Amelia as she caught her staring at the reaction from the small boy.
"Allow me to introduce myself and my companion," explained the Head of the DMLE, indicating a tearful, smiling Lily, who didn't even wait to scoop Harry into her arms, kissing his cheeks fondly before she hugged the life out of him – and he did the same to her – while Amelia went on.
"My name is Amelia Bones and this is Lily Potter, formerly known as Lily Evans: might we come in so that we can talk?"
"Y-Y-Yes," stammered the woman, watching as Lily stroked Harry's messy black hair between her fingers, the now-six-year-old boy – as Lily had to remind herself, even as she held onto him – sobbing profusely against her shoulder while the woman added, "I…I think that would be wise: would you mind if I called my husband and asked him to come home? I know he has a few questions too."
"Take as long as you need, Mrs Granger," replied Amelia, who knew the name of the woman and the people living at this address because of the help from Surrey Police, her eyes filled with mutual agreement and delight as she stepped into the house, the tearfully-reunited Potters at her side.
"I can promise you the truth and the fact that, what we have to tell you is a long story."
Chapter 2 and, bloody hellfire: talk about consequences, but now Lily has been reunited with her long-lost son, can she also gather up the courage to tell him something he probably shouldn't need to hear?
Also, aww, it looks like Harry left the hell of Durzkaban and is now in the company of our favourite brunette: what might this mean for our Golden Couple, and what about those originally intended to raise the no-longer-orphaned Potter?
Keep Reading to Find Out
Next Chapter: Amelia and Lily have some things they need to talk about, but first, they meet someone who definitely has an interesting backstory with our boy-hero;
Please Read and Review
AN: Portrayals of characters introduced in this chapter
Amelia Bones – Emily Blunt
Mrs Emma Granger – Stana Katic
Healer Addams: Ginnifer Goodwin