SEQ CHAPTER \h \r 1D/C: I don't own anything.
A/N: HOLY COW! FIFTY-TWO REVIEWS! Thank you so much for reviewing me! Your making my dreams come true people! Especially those of you who are compassionate. For those curious, my cousin's death was suicide, they've proven that fact. On a more depressive note, my school is, more than likely, going to close down. That sucks, considering that if my school closes, I'll have to go to a religious private school where I know absolutely no one. I don't want to leave my friends! ::cries:: But, for a happier mood, this story is almost done! An epilogue ought a do it! Be prepared, people, there will probably be a sequel...But that's a good thing, right? -__-
Family Portrait
Chapter Nine: The Order of the Phoenix
J-Chan
I was running.
I was running fast...Faster and faster, until the world around me seemed like a blurred image of that which I can no longer remember. But I needed to run...I needed to be that fast...I needed to be faster! Harry's life was at stake! So precious...my precious grandson...How could I ever let you out of my sight once again? So I ran faster. I ran for what seemed like hours, until I slowly came to a dead end. The end of what seemed to be eternity. It just sort of..stopped. Like a pleasant dream that you never wanted to awake from, but had done so so soon. The only thing that blocked me into that dark hallway was a mirror. A mirror I knew and I didn't. The mirror of Erised.
I stood there, and I waited. I waited to see myself. I waited to see myself, with my grandson at my side. I waited to see myself destroying Voldemort. I saw the first.
I sat there, trying to figure out what the mirror was telling me. So the one thing I desired above all else was Harry? So... I don't get it. I stayed there for hours, studying my grandson's mirror image, trying to figure out what the mirror was trying to tell me. It was only when I began to believe that I would never figure out how to rescue my grandson did the true image in the mirror reveal itself to me. It wasn't Harry that I saw in the mirror. It was James.
Why? Why of all things was James the one thing I desired? What purpose did my son have in my quest to save Harry? I could think of at least ten things I desire more than James, and that is off the top of my head.
Suddenly without warning, a large bird flew over my head, circling my like a voucher did it's pray. It wasn't a voucher, though. It was a phoenix.
I didn't get it. What did James and Dumbledore's pet have to do with any of this? What did it mean to me? Slowly, my gaze went from the bird, to my son. It was then that I noticed his mouth was moving. No words escaped the mirror image, but the lips moved. It took my a while, but I finally deciphered what he was trying to say. Order.
James. Order. Phoenix. James. Order. Phoenix. James Order Phoenix...What did it mean? Was I supposed to know? What dealt with an order, a phoenix, and a dead man....
The Order of the Phoenix!
**
When I woke up, I was dripping with sweat. It was all a dream. A strange dream, but it was still just a dream. Harry was still alive. He was still in his dorm with Ron. Everything was perfectly fine.
I looked around me to be sure. My dorm was the same as it's always been. The walls were still the walls my greatest ancestor, Godric Gryffindor helped to build. The floor and the ceiling was still the floor and the ceiling I had grown to know.
But something wasn't right. There was an eeriness to the air, one I wasn't fond of. It reminded me of the cold hideouts Tom used to hide in. Uh...
It was then when my thoughts went back to my dream. Someone, somewhere, or just some power greater than mine, wanted me to revive James by the Order of the Phoenix. I wasn't exactly for sure if I should do it. I mean, it was just a dream, right? Dreams pass, right? But not that sort of dream. This was no ordinary dream. It was a warning. A vision telling me what to do.
I had never believed much in Divination until now. I had a vision. I was going to bring my son back from the dead. Oh boy, how do I get into these situations?
The Order of the Phoenix was a very, very powerful spell. It was very similar to the spell Tom had used to bring himself back to life. The order of the phoenix works like this: A powerful potion is made on the first day of a phoenix's new life. It was drunk by the one you wish to revive's eldest relative. Slowly, the small droplets that remain in the glass would begin to reconfigure themselves with the new DNA placed onto the glass. Eventually, the glass would transfigure itself into the person who was desired to be revived. The only problem with the potion is that when the phoenix dies, so does the revived one. Another problem would be getting my hands on the potion ingredients, but I imagine that Severus can help me with that...
**
"Professor Snape!" I yelled. I figured he didn't hear me, because he was still walking. I groaned, and continued to run into the dungeons. "Severus!" I screamed, and finally he turned and looked at me.
"Oh, it's you. Well, come in. What may I do to please the great Harry Potter's grandfather?" Severus said, taking out a quill, barely listening to what I was saying. If it wasn't for the fact that I need him, I probably would have hit him at that point.
"I need you to help me make a potion." I said, a little bashful. Severus laughed a horrid laugh, one that made you a little afraid of him.
"You graduated from Hogwarts, didn't you, Patterson? I trust you can do a simple..."
"It's not a simple potion! It's one of the most complex ever! I need someone like you to help me do the potion, or at least, help me conjure the ingredients!" Severus put his quill down, eyeing me strangely.
"What sort of potion are you trying to do, Patterson?" He asked, his eyes narrowing as he watched me. He knew I was once a Death Eater, and I had forgotten that he kept all of my secrets, unlike that git Malfoy.
"The Order of the Phoenix." I said, a little out of breath. I had held up my anger so far, and I would hold it more.
"Oh...I understand. I will help you mix the potion, and I will even get you some of the potion ingredients. But, for curiosities stake...who are you trying to revive?" He asked, and for the first time since my vision, I smiled widely.
"Someone you don't like." I said simply, leaving Severus with a most confused look on his face. I turned to leave, and as I was walking out the door, I replied simply: "I'll send a student to go get the potion ingredients sometime today, alright?" Today was a good day...
**
"Ok, which of you are Snape's favorite?" I asked, and no one in my double Defense Against Dark Arts fifth year Gryffindors raised their hands. Neville Longbottom tried to hide himself at the sound of Snape's name. I sighed. What exactly was I expecting?
"Alright..er... Hermione, run this note to Professor Snape. He should give you a box full of potion ingredients, so be careful not to drop it." I said. Hermione gave me a deadly glare, though quietly left the classroom. I'm willing to bet she was cussing me out under her breath.
"Uh, Granddad, what do you need potion ingredients for?" Harry asked. The rest of the Gryffindors listened intently. They knew good and well that they were my favorite class, and that they could pretty much get away with anything around me.
"None of your business, noisy. But I'll put it to you bluntly, you'll like it."
**
Once more, I was running. Running through the same dark tunnel that I had ran through before. Only this time I could hear Harry. I could hear him..He was in pain...Pain, and with it he was screaming. I ran with all my hearts continent, until I came to a dead end, where the mirror and the phoenix had been a few nights ago.
There was no mirror today, though. It was hidden behind one of the last likely people I would have thought. I saw Sirius Black.
And he was laughing. Laughing, while his own godson was very near death! I could have killed him then and there, but I didn't. Instead, I begged.
"Please, please Sirius, help me! Help me find Harry! How do I get past this mirror?!" I asked. I tried to grab Sirius shoulders, and then I realized it. Sirius was no more than an illusion. I looked in the mirror behind him, and I was shocked at what I saw. Rather than seeing the Sirius-illusion, I saw a very large, black dog...
**
That was the fifth time this week. Why? Why did these dreams keep haunting me? I was going to bring James alive, if only for a day or two...So? It was the best I could do, wasn't it? But something told me it wasn't enough.
Feeling restless, I got up and dressed myself. Today was the day. I was going to see my son, for the first time in my life, with the knowledge that he was my son. I was going to be wonderful.
The potion was already made. However, I couldn't drink it until today, when Fawkes was reborn out of the ashes for his first day of new life. A phoenix's life lasts for three days: The Birth Day, The Awakening Day, and The Burning Day. James would live until the burning day, and I was so glad for that. Harry would be so happy...I still haven't told him about my plan to revive his father. I think it would be good to surprise the child once in a while.
I took a look at my alarm clock. 9:30 a.m. Not too early...In fact, I needed to be early, this Saturday morn. I needed time to talk to James without Harry, if only for a little while. I needed James to understand that as soon as the three days were up, he would go back to the time right before he would die. He needed to understand that fate could not be changed, and that whatever he saw in the future would have to be.
I put my cloak on, wrapping myself up tightly. December may have come and gone, by the mist late January-early February weather was still chilly. I walked myself out of my dorm, and into the kitchens. I tickled the pear in the portrait, and I entered the kitchens. I walked into the largest freezer, and I grabbed the large potion vial that Severus had put it in. Now was the time, but not the place. I left, and I walked into one of the deserted classrooms. I lifted the lid of the vial carefully, so carefully as not even a troll could have disrupted what I was doing. Now was the time. I had to do it.
I drank the vial as quickly as I could, and I nearly gagged. This had to be the most disgusting thing that I had ever tasted in my entire life. I sat the vial down, and I watched it grow. Amazing thing, isn't it? Transfigurations, I mean. How something so meaningless can become something so pure and full of life. I sat and waited until instead of a glass vial in front of me, there was my son.
"James..." I cried, and literally, I did. I didn't realize it until then, but there were strange tears running down my face. He looked at me strangely, and then at the classroom surrounding him.
"Where am I? Last thing I knew Voldemort had come into our house and I was telling Lily to take Harry and run, and now...I'm here. What's going on?" He asked, completely clueless. I smiled.
"Welcome, James, to the future." I said plainly, and James' eyes widened to the size of his overly large glasses.
"T-the future? How..." He said, running to the window. He looked out of it, watching a game of Quidditch being played in the field over far.
"Do you remember, James, about a potion you learned, oh, in your seventh year called the Order of the Phoenix?" I asked, and he shook his head, listening to me and ignoring me at the same time. He was far too involved with the game now. I laughed silently. Somehow we men are instantly attracted to a Quidditch game, no matter what's going on around us.
"Would you believe me if I told you you were here because of that potion?" I asked. Now I caught his attention.
"There's no way! The only way that potion works is if the person is..." His voice lowered quite a bit at that point. I shook my head yes.
" Dead, James. Your dead. When you are sent back to your time, you will die almost instantly. There's nothing you can do to change that." His eyes filled up a little with water, almost in disbelief.
"B-but Lily! And H-harry..." I pointed outside the window at the Quidditch match. His attention returned to the game, but this time he was willing to listen to me.
"The Gyffindor Seeker is Harry, James. He lived. You and Lily die." He looked closer at the game, finding himself trying to focus on the Seeker in red. He smiled widely.
"He-he flies well..." He said, chocking a bit as he spoke. I smiled.
"Yes. That he does. Almost as good as his father, who was just as good as his father." I said, and James looked at me oddly, like I was crazy.
"Who are you, exactly?" He asked, a little harsh if you ask me, but all fine just the same. I sighed loudly. I was never the best speech giver, and this would be one of the most important in my life.
"Your father, James."
We sat there, and we talked. We talked about a lot of things. We talked about each other, we talked about James' mother. We talked about Lily, and what Sirius, Remus, and Peter had done with their lives. We talked about Quidditch a great deal, too. Above everything else, we talked about Harry. I told him about his son, and what would happen as soon as James died. He didn't say it, but I could see it in his eyes: James was very proud of his son. Just like I was.
Worst part of it was that we were being watched...
**
I heard the door open, so I shut my mouth. I motioned for James to do the same. Much to my surprise, it was Harry, Ron, Hermione, Sirius, and Remus. (The two had come for Harry's Quidditch match.) I sat there, and I smiled. I watched as Harry's face went from red with sweat, to pale with a ghostly feel. I watched Sirius break down and cry, too.
"James, I would like you to meet your son. Harry...This is your Dad..." He didn't need to be told. Slowly he walked up to James, and I was worried for a moment, what he'd do. He had a look of anger in him, but at the same a look of both hope and fear at the same time. After what seemed like forever, he fell into James' arms, and he balled. James did too.
"Dad..." It felt so good to hear those words uttered from Harry's mouth. The word wasn't used near enough in Harry's vocabulary, and it seemed to fit him so well. He needed the love and the nourishment that only his father could give him.
"How..." He started, but James hushed him. I think it gave James a lot of self confidence, to hold his baby, now a grown teenager, in his arms for the last time. Sirius, Ron, Remus, and Hermione gave me the same look, and I mouthed to them the three words in which the potion was for.
Remus, who caught on quickly, and Hermione, who was naturally smart, both smiled, understanding what I had done. Sirius and Ron looked completely and utterly stupid, until the smart ones whispered into their ears what I had done. The two smiled, and Remus picked up the camera that hung around his neck. Harry wiped his eyes, and James did too, looking up at Remus' camera. I got in the picture as well, putting my arms around Harry and James. A quick snap, and Remus took our picture. Our family portrait, you might say.
**
"So your Harry's...girlfriend, right?" James asked, with all of us sitting around in the empty classroom. Professor Dumbledore had came in a little earlier, but had now left. Hermione sighed.
"No, Mr. Potter. I'm Harry's friend. Not his girlfriend, his friend..." Hermione said, and Harry's face turned a very bright shade of red. Ron laughed more than anyone else.
"Er, a smart one, aren't you? You know who you remind me of, Hermione?" James said, and Hermione listened in closely. Remus did as well, though he already seemed to know the answer.
"A little bit of Lily, and a little bit of Remus." Sirius busted into laughter. It was so...odd. We were all here, and we all probably had a billion other things we could talk about, but instead we were cracking jokes about each other. I guess that's James, though. Not a serious bone in his body. For some reason, now that James is here, now I feel sort of...complete. I've done it all, I've seen it all. I feel sort of, useless.
"Ha! Ha! Ha! How true, James, how true! It was bad enough growing up with two goodie-goodies like Remus and Lily, only to have my godson have one for a best friend!" Sirius busted into laughter. Remus seemed not to find it so funny.
"Oh really, Sirius? Is that how you feel about me? After all these years I've been lying for you, letting you sleep in my own house, and you think I'm a goodie-goodie?" Remus said, winking at Hermione.
"Not like that! I mean, you're a teacher for crying out loud! You can't exactly be the Marauder you used to be!" Sirius yelled, not wanting to upset his friend who had done so much for him. Hermione caught on to what Remus was saying.
"Sure, Sirius! Remus and I believe you...Not!" Hermione said, and we all laughed our heads off. Then, suddenly, it got really, really quiet. Too quiet. The wind began to pick up in the empty classroom, making a chilly feeling in the air. The torches dimmed, and I felt a very insecure feeling of familiarity.
"W-what's going on?" Ron asked, and Harry shook his head.
"I'll go look." He said, and he opened the door. For some odd reason, the feeling of dread overcame me. This shouldn't be happening.
"P-Peter Pettigrew!" Harry cried out, and we all, (Sirius running a little faster than all of us,) ran to Harry. Only to see that he was..gone.
I panicked. I usually did in such situations, I've come to expect it from myself. Unfortanitly, I wasn't the only one.
"It will be easier to find him if we split up! Sirius and I will go this way, Ron and Hermione can go to the left, and James, you go with Richard! Come on!" Remus yelled, panic obvious in his voice as well.
James and I began to run. Man, did I run! The torches that once lit the way were now out, making an illusional feel to the dark corridor. I had to save Harry! He was the only thing that mattered, now anyway.
It was then when I realized why everything in this dark corridor felt so familiar. The emotions running through my head were emotions I've felt elsewhere. It was the same corridor that I have seen the Mirror of Erised twice, in my dreams.
This thought only made me run harder, and faster, like I've never ran before. Something somewhere was trying to warn me! Warn me about what, I wonder? That made me and James run faster, for the safety of Harry was the only thing that either of us really cared about.
Suddenly, we came to a dead end. The dead end in which I knew all too well. Only, the mirror was not there. Instead, it was four people: Lucius Malfoy, Peter Pettigrew, Tom Riddle, and my grandson. Harry was being held down tightly by Malfoy and Pettigrew, and my anger grew louder.
Though not as loud as James'. He ran towards Voldemort with all his heart. He held his wand out, ready to strike.
"Don't you dare hurt my son!" James cried, and I pulled my wand out as well. To my dismay, Voldemort laughed.
"Thinking about killing me, are you James? You couldn't kill me before, and you still don't stand a chance!" Voldemort said, waving his wand directly at James. The killing curse...
He had just done the counter curse to the Order of the Phoenix. A person can never die twice, and when they tried to, it sent them back to the time before they died. I watched gloomily as my son transfigured into a glass vial.
My anger turned to rage, not only had he killed my son once, but he killed him twice! And in front of Harry as well! So much for former best friends...
"Tom, give me Harry, and I won't hurt you!" I said. As I said before, it is very dangerous whenever a wizard is sad or angry, because they no longer have control over their powers. That's what Hogwarts was originally for, actually. Not really to teach them magic, but to help them control their anger. I didn't want to control my anger.
"How about I offer you a deal, Rich? One even you can't refuse..." I listened intently, ready to hear any loophole in the agreement. I shook my head yes.
"If you join my forces once more, I'll let your grandson go." He said, and I looked towards Harry, ready to bet if I did that, Harry wouldn't do so much as get out of the school before Voldemort tracked him down.
"A little unfair, isn't Tom? I have a better idea, anyway. We duel. Winner get's Harry. That's about as fair as we can get." I have full confidence in my dueling ability. I know I can win.
"Fine then. Lucius is my second." Tom said, and I shook my head.
"Harry is mine. Shall we do this properly, old friend?" I asked. Whenever I said Harry was my second, his face sort of went blank. I'm guessing he's not a good dueler, ek...Oh well, I figure if I die, there isn't much chance left, is there?
"I suppose. But just so you know, Richard, I don't want to kill you. I just want you to see things my way, like you used to. I'm sorry things had to come like this." I smiled, remembering somberly why Tom was my best friend.
"It's a shame, too. But I guess what they said fifty years ago is correct: No Gryffindor and Slytherin can ever stay friends, can they?" Tom sighed.
"I guess not. Hey, do you remember that time when we were in..oh, our fifth year and we snuck illegally into Hogsmeade? Professor Dumbledore knew what we were doing,"
"Tried to give us detention,"
"But couldn't because he had no prove that we had done anything wrong?" We both laughed. Peter, Harry, and Lucius all looked at us as though we were crazy. Pretty much, we were.
"Do you remember that time at the Quidditch match?"
"Oh yeah. I never was any good a Quidditch match, but you made me try out."
"And you ended up crashing against one of the walls!"
"I would have fallen and gotten myself killed if you hadn't of saved me!" .We both laughed our heads off, until an uneasy silence filled the air. Neither of us wanted the other dead, but it was the only way...
In a desperate attempt to unease the silence, I wrapped my arm around Tom, embracing him in a hug.
"What went wrong, Tom? We were such good friends..." Lucius, Harry, and Peter, I knew, thought that we were even crazier than before. They didn't know just how hard it was to give up a friend.
"I don't know...I don't want to kill you, Rich." Tom said in a violent whisper. I nodded my head in agreement.
"I don't want to kill you either, Tom."
"But I want your grandson dead." He said, and I shook my head once more.
"And I will do everything in my power to stop you. Even if it means death." Tom nodded his head, and we both stood there for a second.
"Well, better get this over with." He said. We both stood in front of each other, like you would in a proper duel. We raised our wands, and Tom looked at me as though I was crazy.
"Please, just let me kill the kid! It would make things so much easier. I swear I'll never kill another soul long as I live!" I shook my head no.
"I won't let you kill Harry. Ever. Now come on!" I yelled, grabbing my wand up right. My anger slowly returned to me, reminding me that he was going to kill Harry, and that Harry is the only thing important to me.
And our duel began. It was like watching fireworks, for with every attack he hit me, I hit him back with a counter, as such. Finally, he had disarmed me, and I knew at once I was done for. I took one second to look back at Harry, and I mouthed him one word:
Love
**
When I woke up, I didn't know where I was exactly. All I knew was that I was connected to a lot of wires, and I had just drank a thousand plus healing potions. There was a ton of blood all over me, and I felt very weak. There were a lot of people there as well, a lot of them I recognized: Harry, Ron, Hermione, Sirius, Remus, Snape, McGonagall, Dumbledore...as well as a few others I couldn't remember off the top of my head.
I tried to move my mouth, but no sound came out. It was nothing more than air. I saw pieces of parchment and a quill sitting on the desk beside me, and with a lot of effort and energy, I grabbed it.
"He's almost dead." I could hear Remus talking to Snape. "There's nothing they can do for him. If it wasn't for Harry, I doubt if he would have lived this long." He said, and he didn't dare turn to look at me. They thought I was asleep, I supposed.
It has taken me many, many hours to write all of this down. For a day and a half I've laid here, finding it hard to breath, but still my hand moving slightly with a quill. I just want Harry to read this: This...journal of mine. Because I know my last minutes are coming.
Just to get this out of the way, everything I own will go to Harry. Including this:
Harry,
If you are reading this, then I will already be dead. Don't cry over me. I am no loss.
But you, Harry, you are great. You've lived for nearly sixteen years, and up until my last minutes on the Lord's Earth have I realized how. The Amythis charm your parents had kept hidden has kept you safe, but unless you find the actual charm, it's power can no longer protect you from Voldemort.
This is my last good bye, Harry. I can feel it in my bones...I'm dying. I won't live for many more minutes. I'll be surprised if I can finish this letter. Harry, I just want you to know...No matter what happens, I will always lov...
The letter was never finished. Richard Patterson died on March the twenty-seventh, at 3:14 p.m., with a quill in his hand, writing in his journal to be given to his grandson.
A/N: Oh my God...It's done...It's finally done...Somebody slap me!
I'm sorry if you don't like the end. But I had to, you see. If you remember the summary, it asks if Harry's grandfather would give up everything for him: The answer is yes. So literally, he had to give up everything. Including his own life.
Don't worry, people! There will be an epilogue. And a sequel! In the epilogue you will see a thank you list to all of you who reviewed. All fifty two of you! :) I hope I pleased you all. If not...I'm terribly sorry. I tried my best. I'm so glad you all liked Richard. I had never imagined him to be so well liked by the reviewers! Oh and by the way, that little bit of H/H was for one reviewer who requested H/H in the fic. It's not what you expected, probably, but it was good, no?
THANK YOU IF YOU REVIEWED! MAY YOU ALL HAVE A GOOD DAY AFTER YOU READ THIS! GOOD WILL TOWARDS ALL OF MAN KIND! AMEN!
Love from: J-chan