Forgive, but not forget.
Em
Authors note: shall I continue?
Disclaimer:
I am not the owner of any of the characters or any of the places. As many fanfic authors say, I am just taking them all for a spin. The characters and their personalities were made up by the renowned JKR. Whom I'm sure you're all familiar with.
The room was bare save for a red rug covering the cold wooden floor and two tapestries adorning the walls. He turned around and was met with a very blank Dumbledore. It was obvious that the old man was trying to not show his surprise. Harry coughed.
"I" He started then with a flick of his hand conjured up two comfy chairs reminiscent of the ones in the Griffindor common room. "I am Harry Potter. Son and only son of Lily Evans and James Potter. I have no idea how I got here and am only telling you this because in my world my parents are dead and seem to be alive and well. By the blank look you have and because I know you so well I guess you don't recognise me and because I recognise some Hermione Granger who is my age at the teachers table I think I can safely say that I am not back in time and are therefor in another dimension. I would appreciate it if you would fill me in on what your world is like before we enter the great hall again." He stopped and as Dumbledore opened his mouth to speak he added. "Briefly would suffice."
It was an hour when the two finally emerged. The old man hadn't trusted harry to begin with, but as the two swapped stories. Some relevant and some not, trust seemed to form. Harry didn't know why he was there and his eyes kept glancing around waiting for the trap to be sprung. It was with a slight sadness that he found out his other self was dead, but he soon cheered up when he realised he'd have his mum and dad to himself.
Hundreds of pairs of eyes greeted him as the two entered and all that could be heard was the echo of Albus's laugh from the telling of a rather embarrassing memory that harry chided himself for telling. However well he got to know the old man, he always managed to be able to prise information out of him. It was a few minutes until the hall went back to its usual level of chit chat as the two made their way out of the hall and with a quick whisper in Minerva's ear which resulted in the deputy herself and the Potters also leaving the hall.
The small train of people walked in silence to the stone gargoyle. Harry could feel three pairs of curious eyes bore into the back of his head. A faint despair began to tickle his skin, making it tingle. 'What if they don't like me? What if they don't believe me? What if they suddenly disappear? Why is this happening? Is it an illusion? Is some dark wizard fooling me? Making me vulnerable? Tricking me into spilling my secrets?' The thoughts stopped as the gargoyle neared and with a hastily whispered password, stepped aside.
The office looked almost like a brick-a-brack store with odd antiquities covering every surface imaginable. The large wooden desk in the centre of the room looked as if it had seen better days but was sturdy none the less and large, very large.
"Lily, James." Albus started as he sat down behind his desk as the others took their own seats. "This is your son, Harry Potter." He gestured towards the man before them. His hair and bone structure remarkably resembled James's own, but nothing more of the childhood uncannyness was left. Time had taken its toll. Tanned and weathered skin hinted at hot climates and a harsh life. His lips were impassive, betraying no emotion. It was as if he'd had to guard himself his entire life. Callused hands sat neatly in his lap. He sat surely yet with a slight dejectedness that told of many bad experiences. His head was tilted slightly to the floor, which indicated uncomfortableness with the attention, yet it would momentarily snap up and stay. The contradiction with his demeanour was very apparent. Dark bags under his eyes revealed to them that he slept little, yet his bright eyes that were Lily's spoke of life and overpowered the impression of weariness you got when looking at him. Intelligence and power could be seen in those green depths and at fist it was quite startling, but as they looked closer they felt safe in his presence. Safer than ever before.
"Harry?" Lily spoke first. Afraid that she was imagining things. Her boy, her baby boy was sat in front of her. He was as alive as she was. How she had dreamt of him turning up out of the blue. A radiant smile on his lips, telling her he loved her and that everything was all right and that he didn't die. His eyes, so much like hers, yet so much more, stared at her intently. It was as if he was trying to see if she was real.
"In my world you died when I was one." He stated simply. Her heart ached to hear those words, but so as to reassure her that he was all right he reached out and held her hand. His gaze never flickered, boring deeper and deeper into her soul. "I love you" He paused to clear his throat. "I love you both." His eyes travelled to his father who had been watching the two interact. His wife and son. They were a family again. He snapped out of his reverie at those four tender words. At once the couple reciprocated and embraced tightly under the watchful eyes of Minerva McGonnagall and Albus Dumbledore.
Thus ends the second chapter. Want me to continue?