Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter and Co. J.K. Rowling does.

Summary: After one very eventful night ten years ago, Voldemort was destroyed and Harry disappeared. Where did he go? What happened that night? Only one man knows the answer: a teacher named James, aka Harry. But what will he do now that he has faced the two people who were once his best friends?

Chapter 12: Fines and Lies

----------------

"Can you believe the nerve of that man?" shouted Hermione in aggravation.

She and Ron were sitting in a grey room, back in England, with their luggage all around them. They were awaiting the Aurors who were going to come in and question Hermione about her actions.

"I mean," continued Hermione, "He flat out denied that he was Harry. He looked at me like he had no clue of what I was talking about."

"Maybe he wasn't Harry Potter," said Ron, beginning to get tired of Hermione's rants, which were just making him more and more confused as to what really happened in the bakery. Plus, it was giving him a headache.

"Ron!" said Hermione, shocked, "I think I would know my own ex-best friend."

"All I'm saying is that he didn't have black hair or green eyes or glasses."

"The hair could have been dyed and he could have been wearing contacts."

"What are contacts?"

"They help you see without glasses."

"So wouldn't his eyes still have been green?"

"No, they can change the color too-- oh, never mind it doesn't matter. I know that was Harry!" Hermione was getting very exasperated.

"And I didn't see even a trace of a scar, and I know it couldn't be covered up with that make-up you use," continued Ron.

"But he looked exactly like Harry! I could tell!" Hermione looked desperate.

"All my brothers look like me, but that doesn't mean that they are me. I have to agree with you that he did look somewhat like Harry, but there are a lot of people in the world who look like each other. Besides, I don't think that Harry would have been that cold."

Hermione threw her hands up in frustration. "You are infuriating! Do you know that?"

Just then the doors open and two Aurors strode in, one with a clipboard in one hand and a pencil in the other, and the other Auror trailing behind.

"Alright, Mrs. Weasley," barked the first Auror, "As I understand, you pointed your wand at a group of muggles and shouted a spell. Correct?"

"Yes, but--"

"And you knew that you were in a muggle store?"

"Yes, but--"

"So this would be a..."

"Class one offence," filled in the second Auror, "Because she was in a restriction B muggle area in a level 5 country and pointed her wand at two muggles, and with her being a C magic level using 57 of her power and casting a grade 1 spell, and since no memory charms had to be cast and no clean up crew was required, it would all add up to a fine of 3 galleons and 7 sickles."

"You're lucky that this is such a lenient fine, Mrs. Weasley," the Auror gave a short chuckle, "If I were you, I would pay the fine instead of fighting it. It would be ridiculous to bring such a small offence to court, especially since the fine is a relatively small amount. Have a good day."

The Aurors turned to leave.

"Wait!" called Hermione, "The man that I pointed the spell to, did you scan him for magical ability?"

"Yes, we scanned the whole place, Mrs. Weasley," said the first Auror.

"And did any of them have even a B level ability?"

"Um, no, that's why they are known as muggles, non-magical people."

"I'm not stupid, I know that. But the man, who said he was an actor or whatever, are you sure he didn't have any ability?"

"Ma'm, I don't know what you're getting at, but for the last time, no, there were no other wizard or witches, or even muggles who had an unusually high level rate, in that building, save for you and Mr. Weasley."

"But Harry was there! I know he was!"

"Who? Harry Potter?"

"Yes!"

"M'am, I think you need some rest. Why don't you go home and take a few days off from work to relax a bit."

"Listen, you pathetic--"

"You know," interjected Ron, "I think you are absolutely right. My wife is rather fatigued and I know that this whole ordeal has put her through a lot. I think sleep is definitely the best thing for her. We will pay the fine immediately. Thank you gentlemen so much for helping us out."

"Just doing our job," said the first Auror. "You can pay the fine at window eight. Just turn right at the end of the hallway to get there."

The Aurors went out of the room, leaving Ron with a very frustrated Hermione.

Ron quickly paid the fine and did his best to get out of the building before anything else could happen.

----------------

James woke up with his head pounding. It was dark out and there were no lights on.

Where am I? thought James frantically.

Slowly the events of that afternoon came flooding back, like a dream.

And for a few seconds, James believed that it really was a dream.

But then reality hit him full in the face. James sat up swiftly. What have I done?

James played the afternoon over and over in his head, with every detail standing out. He remembered how swiftly the ministry had come. They must have apparated over as soon as they heard that a wand had been brought out in a muggle store. That means photographers, thought James, Lots of them. There was no way that reporters would miss up on the chance to do a story on a Harry Potter sighting, especially when the sighting was made by the "Boy Who Lived"'s own best friends.

James turned his thoughts to Ron and Hermione, and tried to recall everything he had said. Much of what was said was un-planned and in the heat of the moment.

But there was something that stuck in James' mind. Ron had asked, "Whatever happened to the friend we used to know and love?" James struggled now to remember what he had answered.

After a few minutes of remembrance, James' eyes widened in astonishment. Stupid, he said to himself, That was so stupid. I said "that Harry Potter of yours must have died." Had Ron ever said my name? My full name? Maybe not. No, probably not.

James smacked himself on the head. How could he have done that? Said something so dumb and obvious? James yelled in frustration and threw a nearby pillow at the wall.

A light clicked on. "James? Are you awake?" asked a voice James recognized as Sarah's.

James was quiet.

"James?" asked Sarah again, coming into the room. "I can see you sitting up, you know."

"Yeah, I'm awake."

"I know that."

"Oh."

"What's going on?"

"I had a bad dream."

"Well, it's around 11:30, so if you are hungry I can whip you up a sandwich or something."

"That sounds good."

"And you know what? I'll get the others, so we can all be down there while you explain what this is all about."

James sighed. "Fine." The idea didn't sound so good after all.

"Good. Jacob and Emma are still here. They're downstairs talking or something. They helped with the rest of the éclairs and with cleaning up from the flood of people we've had in and around the store."

James immediately felt guilty and hung his head.

Sarah noticed. "Oh, James, we are all your friends, and will always be there for you no matter what."

"Thanks," mumbled James. He got up and swallowed a few pills, then headed downstairs to face the madness that was himself.

Once everyone was downstairs with a hot drink in their hands, James knew it was time to tell the truth.

They were sitting back in the kitchen, Jacob and Emma sharing a crate to sit on, Peter and Sarah sitting next to each other, and James, by himself, facing his friends.

James took a deep breath. This was it. After this, there was no going back. He would be acknowledging who he was. Who he is. He was not some person who moved to Canada. He was not some guy who liked to teach kids. He was not James Potterson. He was—dare he say it?—He was Harry Potter, a wizard, who had power beyond what people had seen in hundreds of years, and who was too cowardly to face his past.

James looked at the expectant eyes of his friends, Peter, Sarah, Emma, and Jacob.

"You guys want to know what I am hiding," he started out, "And it's understandable. Peter has known me for ten years, and he doesn't know anything about the real me. He doesn't even know my real name." Emma, Sarah, and Jacob looked over at Peter in surprise. Peter also looked rather shocked. "So I will tell you now. My real name is--" he faltered. Do it, James told himself sharply. "My real name is Harry Potter, and I'm a-- I'm a wizard."

There was silence.

Then Emma gave a small giggle. "You mean to tell me," she said, her giggling rapidly turning into flat out hysterics, "That you think you are a wizard?"

This statement caused Jacob and Sarah to start laughing too, although they tried to hide it.

James was at a loss. This was not supposed to happen. His friends were not supposed to laugh.

"It's not really that funny," said James indignantly.

Unfortunately, Jacob, Emma, and Sarah were laughing to hard to hear James defense.

The only person who was not laughing at James was Peter. In fact, he looked far from amused. He looked angry. Very angry.

Slowly the hysterical trio calmed down, which only led to a very awkward silence.

"I don't know who you think you are trying to fool," said Peter angrily. "How hard would it be to tell the truth?"

"But I am!" cried out James in exasperation.

"Then why don't you show us some magic?" asked Sarah diplomatically.

"Because I can't."

"And this makes you a wizard because...?" asked Emma, smiling slightly.

"Look, I can't do magic because one, I'm taking special medication, and two, if I did, then everyone would find me and most likely drag me to the ministry and force me back into the wizarding world where they will ask all sorts of complicated questions about the murders and the hostages and the crazy homicidal madman who was trying to kill me and they will make me relive the most horrible time of my life over and over again."

"So that's what those pills are for," said Emma thoughtfully.

"Would you guys just listen to me?" asked a very annoyed James. "My real name is Harry Potter, I am the most powerful wizard, and I have no idea as to why nobody will believe me."

"You are a very irritating person," said Peter, "All I want is the truth, and you are spouting out some messed up story about 'being the most powerful wizard' or whatever. Do you really expect us to believe all that?"

James was tired. He had a headache. And the whole situation was going completely wrong. "You want to know the truth?" he asked quietly.

Peter, Sarah, Jacob, and Emma nodded.

"Fine. I was a lawyer in Britain and I was the defender in a criminal case that had Hermione, the woman you saw in the store this afternoon, as one of the witnesses. I won the case, but due to several mistakes made by other employees, the witness protection papers were confused and Hermione's entire family was killed by the man I was hired to defend in court. I couldn't forgive myself. So I quit my job and ran away here to Canada. I threw in the part about me being a wizard as one last attempt to escape my past. I told you that my last name was Potter to make the wizard story more believable. And now you know the truth. I'm just Harry James Potterson, known as James, a poor confused lawyer trying to escape horrible feelings of guilt."

Everyone stared at James. They looked shocked and concerned.

"Poor Jamesie," cooed Emma.

Sarah shook her head slowly. "I'm so sorry."

"You could have told us earlier, James," said Peter, "But I understand why you didn't. I do not blame you in any way, and I will always be there for you. I just want you to know that."

"Thank you all for listening to me," said James in a tired, monotone voice, "I am truly blessed to have such understanding friends."

"Well, we'll always be there for you, dear," said Sarah standing up and patting James on the shoulder. "Anyway, I'm tired. I think it's time for all of us to go to bed. Good night everyone."

The conversation had ended. And rather abruptly, too. Everyone said their goodbyes, each person giving James an extra hug as if in understanding. James and Emma drove home, Peter and Sarah stayed behind, and James was left to drive back to his apartment.

That night, as James was lying on his bed, he thought about that day. Sure it had started off innocently. A regular school day. In fact, most of the day was normal. But the last six hours seemed like something out of a nightmare. Not only had his long lost friends from another world burst onto the scene, but then, when he had finally worked up the courage to tell his current friends the truth about himself, they laughed. They believed some made up story about a poor guilt-ridden lawyer running from his past. And no questions were asked about the poor lawyer story. No, his friends blindly accepted it. Indeed, they sympathized with that lawyer. But they laughed at the real James. The real Harry.

James gave a soft chuckle of tiredness and disbelief, and fell asleep wondering at the irony of the world.

----------------

Whoo-hoo! One hundred reviews! Thanks a bunch to all of you!

Phoenix-flames

Hyper Princess

Sons

Sister

Phoenix220

Otaku freak

The Person Who Didn't Do It

Erzengel

Arizosa

Thank you so much for reviewing!

Love you all,

Adah