I do not own Harry Potter, only the OC

Hello guys Badger here. If you haven't read chapter 31, I recommend you go and read that one first, before reading this one, just so you understand everything that is going on. If you have read chapter 31, Hi, I am sure you were looking forward to this. Today, not only will you learn who the girl was, but who James, himself, is. Read on and enjoy.

Chapter 32

A Badgers Tale

James sat on a rock, overlooking the Black Lake. Tears were stinging the corners of his eyes, but he refused to let them fall, though it was proving difficult. His thoughts remained on what he saw in the Defence classroom. It was the first time he had seen the face, in person, that plagued his nightmares for several years. How long had it been? Five years? He couldn't be sure. Jinx, sensing her masters distress, popped to him and gave him a teary hug, before he asked her to leave, to which she did; understanding what he was currently going through. Footsteps alerted him of others approaching. He turned, to see Harry, Daphne, Neville and Luna heading towards him. James assumed they ran into Luna while looking for him and told her what happened.

"How did you find me?" He asked

"Me" Luna replied, approaching James, kneeling next to him and holding him, in hopes of giving him comfort "They told me what happened, and I figured this is where you would be"

James nodded slightly, as he leant into her embrace, enjoying the warm feeling it gave to him. Harry approach and sat next to him, as well, though Neville and Daphne kept a few steps back.

"We were worried when you left" Harry spoke "That girl…who was she?"

"Her name was Aila…she wasn't just someone I knew" James replied, looking haunted "She…she was my sister"

Everyone looked at James in shock, except Luna who only tightened her grip. Harry watched, as James pulled something out of his pocket, which he immediatley recognised; his photo from first year. James unfolded the photo, to reveal the same young girl from earlier, Aila, standing next to James, looking up at him with love and admiration.

"She was born about a year after my parents decided to go into hiding, a year younger then me…and she died about a month after this photo was taken" James continued, keeping his gaze on his sister

"How did it happen?" Daphne asked, horrified with the idea of losing a sibling

"After Death Eaters stormed into our hideout, thanks to some unknown traitor, Jinx was ordered to take us somewhere safe" James explained "She took us to the Albrights…as we grew up, I promised that I would keep her safe and protect her…she was a late bloomer, in terms of her magic. One day, she was being pushed around and verbally assaulted by bullies, she was getting angry and…due to having little to no experience or practice with her magic, she suffered a magical backlash…which burned her up from the inside out…she was only seven years old"

A horrified silent filled the air. Harry was finding it difficult to think of something to say. Luna continued to hold James, not wanting to let go. Daphne had tears dripping down her face, as she was being comforted by Neville. The idea of losing Astoria in such a manner was too much for her.

"James…I am so sorry" She said softly "I couldn't begin to understand how it must feel to lose a sister"

"Believe me, I wouldn't want you to go through something like that" James replied

James then looked at Harry. He opened his mouth to say something, but closed it again, as he looked to the others.

"Do you mind giving me and Harry a bit of privacy?" He asked "I…I want to talk to him about something"

The others seemed a little bit reluctant, but nodded. Luna looked at James for a moment, she started to lean closer to him, before stopping. She looked conflicted about something for a moment, before she gave him one last hug and got up and left. Neville, Daphne and Luna, gave them a bit of space, as to not overhear, though they didn't leave. Harry looked at James, confused.

"I didn't want them to overhear" James said, answering his unasked question "Its…I guess you could say personal"

"What is it?" Harry asked

"I wanted to tell you something" James replied, taking out a book, which Harry guessed was another one of his fathers journals "Something I probably should have told you a long time ago…I told you about the Albrights being my parents friends right?"

"Yeah" Harry nodded, wondering where he was going

"Well, they were named in my parents' Will, as guardians should something happen to them" James continued, opening the journal "But they weren't the only ones…the Longbottoms were named, as well as Susan's parents and also…the Potters"

"What?" Harry asked

James pointed out a small paragraph in the journal. Harry read the passage and his eyes widened at what he saw.

"My parents were your godparents?" Harry asked

"Yes" James nodded "After I was born, they asked your parents and they agreed…if things had gone differently, me and you would be living together, as godbrothers"

"Is…is that why you wanted to be friends in First year?" Harry asked, beginning to connect some dots

"Yes" James sighed "After Jinx took me to the Albrights, she immediatley went to see if my named godparents were available…unfortunately Susan's parents were killed and the Longbottoms were tortured into insanity…then she heard about you and your parents…she heard that they had been killed and immediatley tried looking for you, but every attempt she made was unsuccessful…she couldn't find any leads on where you went…however, that didn't stop me from holding out hope that I would meet you"

"Why didn't you tell me sooner?" Harry asked

"Believe me, I wanted to" James sighed, looking ashamed "but, I wasn't sure how you would respond…after all, we didn't know each other until we met on the platform…so I decided I should remain your friend…I should have told you sooner, I understand if you are mad"

"I'm not mad" Harry replied instantly "Yes, I wish you told me sooner, but I am not mad…we may not be related by blood, but we are family"

Harry gave James a tight hug, which James returned. Tears, once more, threatened to fall from his eyes, at Harrys words. If his sister was watching over him, James was afraid of what she thought about him…fearing the words the Boggart spat at him would happen, one day. Right now though, his fears were temporarily extinguished at Harry's hug. Brothers, reunited.

...

And there we have it. We finally know who James is.

I know this chapter is pretty short, compared to others, but I felt like the chapter wouldn't be impactful if it ended when it did. But what did you guys think? Congratulations to Mizzrazz72 for being the first to get the right answer. She was James' sister. The idea came pretty early on. Remember the photo from chapter 3? Well, now we know what it was! A picture of him and his sister. Not having a sister myself, I wouldn't know how someone would act, after losing them, so if you lost a sister, or anyone else close to you, yourself, I apologise and I hope you are doing okay.

Then, we come across the massive reveal at the end. This idea actually came about later, but James is Harry's godbrother. WHAT! I know shocking right? This means, there will be no Harry/James pairing, sorry to those who wanted it to happen. Maybe in some other story. I already have an idea as to who James should get with, can you guess who? I have left a couple of clues, one being in this chapter.

I hope you guys enjoyed and I apologise if I hit a nerve of some kind and I will see you in the next one.

Badger out.

[Side note: I have started posting art on Insta, if you want to see some drawings and shit, give me a follow if you wish: thatbadger_artworks...ok I will stop self promoting now]