Disclaimer: This is a Harry Potter fanfiction. As you all know, JK ROWLING, owns the Harry Potter universe, and therefore I have no claim to it. I read a lot of fanfiction, and as such have probably been influenced by these stories when writing this, however no 'copying' has happened intentionally. I like to think I have been as original as I can be when writing a style of story that has been done countless times by countless people! Nevertheless, enjoy! Please review, I know I would benefit greatly from the feedback and constructive (hopefully) criticsm. Flame if you must, but that's really just a waste of my time, and your own. It won't stop me from writing this!

Chapter 2:

Harry had left work early. His mind was elsewhere since he received the letter from his ancient Headmaster, and after giving the two CEO'S of a large company he represented divorce papers to sign instead of a routine business contract, he knew he was better off at home.

He paced the kitchen with his shirt sleeves rolled up to his elbows and his tie hanging loosely around his neck. Paddy watched him curiously from the back door, and pawed on the glass from time to time to be let in, his whines ignored by his distracted owner. Harry knew that before he made any decisions about even meeting Albus Dumbledore, there were people he needed to consult. Hearing a key turn in the front door, Harry drew a deep breath, and winced as he heard bags being dumped unceremoniously onto the polished wooden floor. Two pairs of footsteps were coming towards the kitchen, no doubt to raid the fridge for cans of coke and whatever else they could scavenge.

Harry stood out of view of the kitchen door, and as the fridge was flung open, he cleared his throat.

"Dad! I… What are you doing home? And yeah, Indian sounds great!" A slim girl of fourteen with long, straight black hair looked surprised, and just a little bit guilty of getting caught at the fridge when it was one of the few rules in the household – no food within three hours of dinner.

"Luda," Harry said, and then looked to the other girl standing apprehensively in the doorway. "Aida. Sorry to sound clichéd, but we need to talk."

The girls looked at each other, but said nothing as they followed Harry to the living room.

Harry was extremely nervous as to how his daughters were going to react to this news. Luda was the elder of the two, at fourteen years old, and Aida, only a year younger, looked nearly identical to her sister. The only difference was that she was about an inch shorter, and her hair was chin-length and quite layered. Both took after their father in appearance – they had black hair (albeit neater than their father's), pale skin and were both very slim – and not exactly tall for their age either! Their eyes however, were a piercing blue, and practically glowed when they were excited or angry. Neither had had heaps of experience in the wizarding world.

"Girls, I got a letter today. From Dumbledore." Harry said bluntly. His daughters were well aware of their father's history. Harry had made a point of always being straightforward and honest with them, as he knew how frustrated he had been when secrets and information were kept from him.

Aida and Luda's eyes darted briefly towards each other, and then they both stared intently at their dad. Both had an idea of where this conversation would be heading, but neither wanted to speak up just yet. As young girls, they had seen Harry send away countless letters which arrived by owl without opening them, and were curious as to why their dad had opened this particular letter, and what it contained.

"I've had a gut feeling lately that I am eventually going to have to return to England, well, Scotland I suppose…And with today's letter, I am thinking that it's going to be unavoidable. Dumbledore wants me to meet up with him – he says to discuss some 'dire situation' that's come up and well, I think you can both guess where that's heading. Just thought I'd better raise the issue now, so no big shocks when…yeah…You'd be coming with me of course, if I had to go." Harry fell silent and observed the expressions on his daughter's faces. Both looked surprisingly calm at the prospect of leaving the muggle world which they were so accustomed to, and venturing into the magical world which was a place the girls were taken only for treats on their birthdays.

"What would happen with school?" asked Luda, thinking practically about it. Not that she wasn't used to changing schools, quite the opposite, except she had never attended a magical school, and wasn't even sure if that was an option.

Harry had enrolled his daughters at private muggle schools in each of the countries they had lived in. Both girls displayed signs of being highly powerful witches from a young age, and Harry nurtured their magical development himself, yet maintained that they receive a muggle education as well.

Harry had already thought about this. "Well, I'm pretty certain that if Dumbledore insists that I return to the magical world, he will want me close by, so I'd likely be based at Hogwarts. In which case, I will insist you are enrolled there. He can't say no, not if he wants me to work with him on whatever this current problem is." Harry's brow creased, as he thought for a moment. "You are both way, way more advanced than the other students your age, but I think it would be best if you took lessons in your appropriate age groups…"

Luda's eyes lit up. She had always dreamed of going to a magical school but never brought up the idea to her father, as she understood his reasons for abandoning his old life. But now she was possibly getting a chance to fulfill this fantasy! Aida however looked more apprehensive. She loved magic, except she felt at home in the muggle world. When ever she visited a magical community for a day, she always felt out of place, while she marveled at the intriguing people and objects around her.

"But Dad," she said quietly. "You don't want to go to Hogwarts. You left for a reason remember?"

Harry's posture slumped and he mussed up his hair like he always did in these situations. "I know Aida, I haven't forgotten that. But, sometimes a person has to act for the greater good, as opposed to following their own agenda all the time. I don't want to go back no, but I feel that I'm needed, and I think I'm ready to – it's been almost twenty years, and I owe some people explanations, and they do to me." Harry smiled grimly as he looked at Aida intently. "Plus," he chuckled, "remember how I told you that Hermione used to say I had a 'saving people thing'? I just can't help myself!"

The girls laughed a bit at the brighter note in their father's voice, and Aida decided that she would keep her own worries about fitting in to herself. It sounded as though her father was soon going to have a lot more on his plate to worry about without her adding to his concerns.

"But!" Harry exclaimed. "Let's not go jumping ahead of ourselves too much – I haven't even replied to Dumbledore's request of a meeting yet." He stood up, thereby closing the conversation for the time being. "Girls, go get changed out of your uniforms. I was going to just get take-away Indian, but I think it would be nice to eat out tonight don't you think? We'll have to leave in half an hour if we want to beat the rush hour traffic into the city."

Harry waited for some noise of assent, then felt rather stupid when he realized he was talking to an empty room. He could already hear the girls racing up the stairs to who got the shower first. He laughed exasperatedly, Why did I have to have daughters?

…………………………..

At their favourite Indian restaurant, Harry requested the most secluded and private table, which was in the corner partially blocked by an Indian statue. While they ate a delicious tandoori chicken curry, Luda fired question after question at Harry, asking about specifics about Hogwarts, while Aida ate in silence. Harry answered Luda's questions, but eventually had to tell her to drop the topic at least until they knew for sure if they would be returning to the UK.

The small family got home around 8 o'clock. As they took off their coats, Harry reminded the girls about doing their homework and they groaned. With a gentle push, he sent Luda off in the direction of her room to start her English essay, but motioned for Aida to sit down with him on the stairs. He put her arm around her small frame and she rested her head on his shoulder. "You don't like the idea of going to Hogwarts do you?" Harry asked his youngest daughter gently.

"Not really," whispered Aida. "But don't worry, that's not important. I mean, if you gotta go, you gotta go don't you?"

Harry sighed. Like Aida, he had accepted that he had to go if he was needed, regardless of whether he liked the idea or not. Scruffing up her hair and making her squirm away from him, he replied, "Unfortunately, you're right. Life's a bitch hey?" Then immediately cursed under his breath for letting that slip.

"Ooooh DAD!" Aida squealed, acting mock-offended. She laughed then jumped up and raced up the stairs before her dad got another word in. As she passed her sister's room, she stuck her head in the slightly ajar door. She smiled. Luda was sitting in her window seat with her back to the door, laptop resting in front of her as she tapped away at the keys rapidly, pausing every now and then to look up references in a well-read novel on her lap. Typical Luda, thought Aida. Although both sisters were very intelligent and astute, Luda was more inclined to study than Aida, to whom new concepts came annoyingly naturally. I'll bet she'll be in Ravenclaw, Aida giggled. Strolling to her own room, she realized that she was slowly warming to the idea. It may not have been an ideal situation, but she was always willing to have a new adventure. She turned on her CD player, and sang along to the Veronicas album.

………………………

Downstairs, Harry rolled his eyes as music blared down the stairs into his study, where he was penning a letter to Dumbledore. He pulled out his favourite pen (one of the things he adored about a muggle lifestyle – he always made such a mess writing with a quill!), and a crisp sheet of clearly expensive watermarked paper, which had his details in the top corner.

Professor Dumbledore,

Regarding your request: I will meet you for an hour on Thursday morning, from 10am 'til 11am (Australian Eastern Standard Time.) Please be prompt, I have a very busy schedule and I like to stick to it. You seem to know whereabouts my office is. Please enter through the front office, and leave your name with my Personal Assistant, or else security will be called (office regulations.)

Do not interpret this willingness to talk as a sign that I will agree with whatever you have to say or any proposal you may make.

Please bring your 'informant' with you; I will not speak to you if they are not in attendance. Do not bring anyone else however.

Sincerely,

Harry J. Potter

After re-reading the brief note several times, he folded the letter than pulled open the draw to his grand wooden desk. He took out a wax seal, which he had used few times since leaving the wizarding world, and sealed the letter. He then whistled out to Hedwig, and then felt sadness wash over him as he recalled that she had passed away only four years after the final battle. "Magical bird flu," the vet in Salem had told him sadly. This left Harry with a slight problem. He had not bothered to replace Hedwig, and it was too late for the closest Wizard's Owl Post Centre to be open, so how was he to get his note to Dumbledore?

No less than a minute later, a flash of flame erupted in front of him, and there, perched on his desk lamp, was Dumbledore's familiar, a beautiful phoenix named Fawkes. As Fawkes trilled at him, Harry scowled. Not only had Dumbledore tracked down his workplace, he had found his house as well, and was somehow keeping an eye on him once again. Harry was baffled as to how Dumbledore had achieved this; he had warded himself, his daughters and his property – including his car – to be impenetrable to tracking devices.

Letting the issue go for the time being, Harry held up the folded letter to Fawkes, and said grumpily, "I suppose you're here to collect this from me aren't you?"

…………………………..