Harry, never before having seen anything of his mother's, sat for many minutes just staring at her handwriting, letting tears snake down his pale face. As he ran his fingers over the page, he felt an odd connection to the women who had also touched the paper sixteen years ago. Finally letting his curiosity take over all emotions he was feeling, he went to read the first line before he was interrupted by a sudden knock at the door to his left.

"Harry?"

Harry recognized the soft voice immediately as Hermione's as soon as he had heard it. He slowly looked towards the door trying not to make a sound and also trying not to be mad at his friend for interrupting his private moment with his letter.

"Look Harry I know you're in there, even if I don't know what you are doing. Your guests downstairs are missing you and want you to open your presents now. Do you think you could come out now?" She asked through the door, obviously starting to get a little angry by Harry's ignoring.

Even though Harry knew that she knew he was in the room, he still didn't make a sound in hopes that she would go away. Going downstairs to open presents was really the last thing he wanted to do right now. He still had three quarters of the letter left and was just itching with longing to read it.

"Harry are you mad again because…" Harry heard Hermione begin before he heard another voice in the hallway. This time a man's voice, which was quieter then Hermione's and more relaxed.

"Hermione, let's leave Harry alone for a little bit. Don't you think he deserves at least that much on his birthday? I understand he is to be preoccupied for a while, so why don't you and I go back downstairs and entertain the guests," Remus Lupin said to Hermione. It was almost an order, but in the nicest way possible.

"Alright Professor if you think that's best," Hermione said in a defeated voice.

Harry heard their footsteps fade away down the hall, and then down the stairs, mentally making a note to give Lupin a big present when he next had the chance.

Now that his distraction had been removed, Harry returned his thoughts to the letter once more, paused for a brief second to take a deep breath, and then plunged into the neat writing that had once belonged to his mother, Lily.

i To My Son,

Thank you. I know that those two words are a weird way to start a letter, especially to someone who I have yet to meet, but they seem somewhat appropriate. Now you may be raising your eyebrows at me in the way that only a Potter can do, (your father does it a lot I'm afraid), but bare with me for the next page or two and hopefully by the end of my letter you will understand just why I am so thankful to you.

Now we, that is to say Sirius, Remus, James and myself, are not writing this giant letter to you to remind us of our love for you. No, it is mainly for those days sometime in the far future when you may forget how much we love you, or wonder why we wanted you in our lives. Hopefully it will serve as a friendly reminder of those that care for you. So please take this letter out if ever you feel separated or distant from any of us, and know that even if you don't feel that we can understand what you are going through, we do care. And probably can relate in some way or another. Especially your father, for he has been through so much to be the great man he is today and knows what it's like to be 'that Potter kid with the messy hair'. I'm sure with my luck you will be the spitting image of your dear father. But who can complain about that, right?

Today is your sixteenth birthday, congratulations! As I sit here writing this in your soon-to-be nursery with you in my stomach, I am picturing my life sixteen years from now. It's hard to say what everything, and everyone will be like then. But I know that I will be proud of you for who you are. If James and I can find that good parent gene inside of us, then you'll be in good hands. But I have to admit that we are a little insecure about the whole parent thing; I mean what if we're not good enough for you? I for one like to be prepared for what comes my way. Your father on the other hand does well with new experiences and I have no doubt that he rise up to the challenge and be the best father out there. Don't tell anyone this, but every morning, he likes to read or sing to you in my stomach. It's a little awkward I must say for me, but apparently he wants you to know his voice from the second you can understand sounds. I know that he just wants you to find more comfort in his voice then in Sirius' though. Those boys are always competing. Darn marauders. Can you believe that they actually have a name like that for themselves, my son? I have no doubt that they will tell you all about it one day soon, if they haven't already, so I won't write about all of the things unique to those boys, or about the trouble they get into everyday. That would take a whole book to tell, maybe multiple books.

So I suppose you'd like to know what your parents were all like 'back in the day'. Let's start with your father, because everyone always starts with James. I can't even start to tell you the many great things about your father, but I'll hit the important ones. If there's one thing your father wants, it's always the best of what there is. He doesn't settle for ordinary and fights for what he wants. I hope you have inherited these traits because they are important as one develops. He is a very smart man, and one of the funniest I've met I'd have to say. I know he will always want what is best for you, and will always strive for higher knowledge. Please don't ever grow to say that you hate him like many children say to their parents, because it would kill him inside. He possesses a lot of love for those people closest to him and would do anything for them. You included. Know that I think very highly of him as a person, for he is a great man and wizard, and one that you should look up to. Right now he is currently downstairs doing god knows what with Remus and Sirius, his two best friends. But I know he is planning what he wants to say to you in his portion of this letter, for it is that important to him.

Now I on the other hand, your mother, are slightly different then the infamous marauder I just described to you above. They do say that opposites attract, and that proves true with your father and me. The main values that I'd like to teach you include a little of my own and a little of your dad's. For instance, always use your full potential. If someone says that you can't do something, please, prove them wrong. For me. Now your father and I agree that grades are important as well while you are getting your education, but don't forget to experience all of the other things in life. For with experience, we grow. I learned that from him and would like to pass it on to you. So remember to try new things, and do things that you may be a little uncomfortable doing at first. You'll get stronger, my dear. I talk from personal experience. But I'm not really good at talking about myself, so we'll let your father tell you about me in his part of the letter.

But how about you? I hope that you have found who you are in life so far, and have found those friends that complete you. I also hope that you go to Hogwarts…it's a great school, isn't it? Many memories I have are from there, and just think, you can walk and sit in all of the places where I used to hang out! Your father used to always sit under this one tree by the lake; I wonder if you know which one I am talking about? So I am almost positive that you play Quidditch. I mean, how could you not? You're James Potter's son. I know you'll make him proud.

I've sat for many hours just thinking about what you are going to be like, but also what to name you. I know it's kind of sad that we haven't picked a name for you yet, but this is just one those many things that your father and I can't agree on. I wish you could tell us what you would like to be named. For your own safety, (and sanity), I've been turning down most of the names your dad has been putting on the table. Right now he's stuck on the name 'Snitch'. Snitch for crying out loud! It's a friggin' gold ball. I mean, what was he thinking? If you are ever thinking that he is a bit touched in the head, you have solid proof from this that he is. But I protested, and so did Remus, so you can thank us later, haha. We'll come up with something though, and I'll personally make sure that it's not too weird of a name, or that it's not James Jr., for that matter!

I hope I haven't bored you to death with my ramblings about your father and myself, we really are interesting people, I swear! And talking about swearing, I bet that Sirius told you some swear words in his part of the letter didn't he? I wish I could've written first to tell you not to listen to any of the nonsense that he spills out. He is a smart one though, deep down. You just have to dig deep. I hope you feel that you can go to him at any time because he is almost overly excited about having you as a godson. Good old Sirius, he'll be your second father I bet. And by second father, I mean that he will actually ask you to call him father or something. But it might be just to annoy James, so watch out. Remember what I said about the competition thing. It's brutal between those two.

I am now going to give you my ten pieces of advice that I've asked everyone to give. I've been thinking of all of the things I want you to know and there's just so much that it was very hard for me to fit it into ten points. So know that a lot of thought went into this. Here it is, look back on these and know that they are coming straight from your mother and are what she truly believes.

When a rose becomes weak and dies, is it not still a rose? You will go through many stages in your life and the love you have for those close to you will be tested. Remain faithful always to the people you know, no matter what happens to them or how much they change over time.

Find the balance between inner and outer self-confidence. Be proud of who you are on the inside and I promise you that it will show on the outside. Your father is a good example of this. Love who you are…every positive thing to every flaw.

Give second chances. Especially to those who ask for them, for you may just find everything you were looking for in that person who you dismissed on first glance.

If you ever feel alone, scared, or angry, talk to someone. Anyone. I talk from personal experience here…it really helps.

Trust that your father and I will always want what is best for you, and will always be with you even when it seems like we couldn't be further.

Do what you want to do in life, set goals, follow through with them, and never settle for anything less then what you truly want.

Learn a few good charms and hexes for those 'certain' people. But show mercy as well. I give you permission to practice on your father.

A simple smile can really get you places. Remember to never start frowning because you never know who might be falling in love with your smile.

Read books! They help with everything like school, common knowledge, dealing with problems, or even learning life lessons.

Have no regrets. As simple as that.

I hope that you can check back on these points in the future because it took me a couple of years to figure out just how important they are. But hopefully you will have learned some of your own life lessons by now, seeing as you are sixteen years old.

Since you've been in my stomach, it's been really great around here. I get waited on constantly by James, Sirius, and Remus. It's good having control over those boys for once, so thank you! Also, as we draw nearer to the date where you are expected to be born around, I've noticed definite changes in the perspectives of all of us, and I think we've even matured a little bit. I guess it just took you for us to notice how good we've all got it, and how good it is going to be in the future. So thanks again, my son!

Alright, now for the more light part of my letter. I'll give you some tips for getting around the marauders, or for finding out what they are up to for example. First, and most importantly, if you ever notice that 'special sparkle' in their eyes, and it's not someone's birthday or full moon, (you'll learn about that later), then they are most definitely up to something. I trust that you and I will make a good team in figuring out what they are behind. It's always a fun pastime, as you'll come to understand I'm sure. Now, to soften them up, or to get out of trouble, (even though they will probably reward for you getting into trouble), here are the most sure-fire ways to…er…distract their attentions. Alright for Remus, it's very simple. Just offer him chocolate and he goes nuts. Even a hug works sometimes, or a sentimental talk. But go with the chocolate first, you'll see what I mean. Now for Sirius, it's a little more difficult because he is very loyal to James and Remus but there are a few ways to get him off topic, or distracted. One, tell him that James thinks he is the best marauder or something along those lines for example. He will go crazy and instantly start listing off the numerous times where he proved he is worthy of the 'best marauder' title. Only use this if you have a lot of time on your hands though. Remember not to smart talk him, because he has to be the king of comebacks. And he does like a challenge. Now James is the hardest but he does have his weak spots. You for example. Just tell him how much you love him and think he is the best, and he will do whatever you want. Trust me. He likes when people inflate his ego. Or you could always start up a conversation about Quidditch, that's a never fail method for distracting him. But you probably have found out all of these tricks in the last sixteen years of your life already because I know you are most likely very smart!

So hopefully you know that the previous paragraph was all in fun, (but all useful tips at the same time!). I have to say goodbye soon because I can hear the boys coming upstairs, sounding like a heard of elephants, heading for what I'm sure is this very room.

Please take all of what I have told you and use it to achieve your full potential. I know that the days I spend with you with be among the best of my life, and I can't wait. I look forward to meeting you and watching you grow, and mature, while keeping a good reflection of your parents at the same time, (ha). Go forward with a positive attitude, but remember that it's ok to be angry or sad at times. It shows that you are human. I hope that you are having the great sixteenth birthday that you will so fully deserve. It's your day, so enjoy it the best you can, with the people you want to be around. Thank you for the new outlook I have achieved just by knowing that you are coming into my life. Know that I love you, and always will. A love only a mother can know. An unconditional love. For to really live, all you need is love.

Talk to you soon,

Love Mom /i

Harry put down the letter onto the floor next to him and looked out a nearby window taking in all his mother had said to him. He was overwhelmed by the amount of love that she seemed to have for him even before he had been born.

A feeling of guilt fell over him as he cried again that day for knowing he was ultimately the cause of this great women's death. His mother's words ran deep inside of him as he felt her speaking to him. He knew that her advice and letter would stay with him forever, but didn't know when he would have the courage to read it again any time soon.

Harry wiped his tears and felt angry that he hadn't got to spend as much time with his mother as he felt he deserved. Remembering what she had told him to do whenever he felt he was angry or sad, he stood up and started heading for the door, wanted to find Remus to talk to him before he read the last half of the letter.

Entering the hallway, Harry closed the door behind him, leaving the opened letter lying alone on the middle of the dusty floor, waiting for him to come back and finish.