History Repeated
So, I don't own Harry Potter...Damn.
Thanks to those who have followed, favored, and/or reviewed.
1 August 2015
Wizards shuffled about Diagon Alley, keeping their eyes on everyone, as though they were out to get one another. That was the first thing James noticed as he stepped into the wizarding street of Diagon Alley. Shops lights were on but seldom walked through the doors.
A ping of coldness hit James. Not the freezing kind of cold that happened when it was winter but the one where everyone was alone in a street of a thousand. No one interacting or acknowledging the person next to them. Even if they knew one another.
Looking up at Professor Longbottom, the man was unfazed by the lack of association the other wizards on the street had. He was used to it, James realized as he followed the professor down the street.
"Off to Gringotts first, James," Professor Longbottom said as he glanced at James before looking back at the street. "Our world's bank. It once was one of the few secure places in the magical world. It still is...but reputation's a funny thing."
"When did it stop?" James asked as his eyebrows furrowed close together. "Being a secure place?"
A ghostly smirk crossed Professor Longbottom's face, as though he were remembering something he heard long ago. "Your father," the professor said as he guided James along the brick road.
No other words were said as the two wizards made their way to Gringotts Bank. James wanted Professor Longbottom to elaborate on that before figuring the wizard would tell him later when they weren't so out in the open.
When James and Professor Longbottom came across a building white as snow, James' eyes widened as he took notice of the small figure dressed in scarlet and gold.
"A goblin," Professor Longbottom quietly told James as they walked up the stone steps to the goblin, who glared mistrustfully in their direction and begrudgingly bow at them as the two wizards entered the bank.
Once inside, James saw an inscription engraved on the second set of doors.
Enter, stranger, but take heed
Of what awaits the sin of greed,
For those who take, but do not earn,
Must pay most dearly in their turn.
So if you seek beneath our floors
A treasure that was never yours,
Thief, you have been warned, beware
Of finding more treasure there.
James frowned, wondering if the goblins had taken retribution out on his father after whatever he did to their bank. He stared at the goblins he passed, and they glared right back until he and Professor Longbottom stopped in front of one. They were the only wizards in the bank, which didn't sit right with James but appeared normal for everyone else there.
Professor Longbottom held up a key chain filled with keys he had to fish out of his trousers pocket towards the goblin in front of them. "We're here to receive access to Vault 687."
The goblin, with his ugly, twisted face, pressed his eyes closer together. He wordlessly took the key out of Professor Longbottom's hand and said, "Follow me...please."
Looking a bit nervous, Professor Longbottom kept his hand on James' shoulder and the two began walking behind the small goblin.
As they stepped into the stone passageway, James glanced at the flaming torches on the walls and suddenly wondered if wizards had electricity or not as he remembered how the Leaky Cauldron and the main area of Gringotts lacked lighting not supplied by fire. He frowned, wondering if that meant Hogwarts didn't have any electricity, meaning no phones for him to call his Uncle Dudley and Aunt Helen and no telly to watch when he got bored and decided to procrastinate his schoolwork, which was often despite his family limiting their television time when school was involved.
James was pulled out of his thoughts as a small cart stopped in front of him, Professor Longbottom and the goblin. He climbed onto the cart after the goblin and Professor Longbottom followed him.
"I've never liked this part," Professor Longbottom said as he sat down next to James.
"Why?" James asked before the professor shook his head, looking pale as the cart started to move and quickly pick up speed.
Closing his eyes as his skin twinged as piercing cold air pinched his skin, he began to laugh at the fast speed of the cart. His body jerked at every turn and jumped at every bump, making James feel as though he were on a dangerous roller coaster or riding in the car with his Aunt Helen's mother at the wheel, she wasn't the safest driver and always indulged Daisy when the little girl demanded she to go faster.
When the cart stopped, James opened his eyes and looked up at Professor Longbottom, grinning as the wizard looked ill.
"Are you alright?" James asked, unfazed.
"Not in the slightest," the professor admitted as he climbed quickly out of the cart. James grinned and jumped out of the cart before he looked at the goblin, who was eyeing him and Professor Longbottom.
"Does the cart go any faster?" James asked the goblin, who, if surprised, didn't show any visible emotion.
"No," the goblin flatly said as he began to walk towards Vault 687 and unlock it. The goblin rudely motioned for James to go inside, and the boy did without hesitation. Professor Longbottom slowly followed him, looking pale and green, as though he were going to become ill at any moment.
James felt as though he was feeling the aster when he saw the mountains of gold coins.
"Whoa," James said breathlessly. He looked back at Professor Longbottom and asked, "Is this all mine?"
"It is," the professor confirmed, a sad smile falling on his still pale face. He shakily pulled out a dark, cloth bag and passed it to James. "Fill that up with as many Gallons, Knuts and Sickles you can."
"What are those?"
"Er...Gallons are the gold ones," Professor Longbottom awkwardly said. "The silver ones are Sickles, seventeen of them to a Gallon, and the Knuts are twenty-nine to a Sickle. You'll catch on eventually."
Nodding, James began to scoop as much of the currency into his hand and drop them into the bag. He eventually heard the coins clatter against each other but James was confused when it took quite a bit before he could hear it.
Shrugging it off as an act of magic, James continued to pile the coins into his bag before he noticed a small wooden box in the corner of the vault. There was a lock on it.
"What's in there?" James asked, looking back at Professor Longbottom and the goblin.
"Some of your parent's possessions," Professor Longbottom revealed, a forlorn look appearing on his face. "I'll shrink it and put it in your bag for you. You can take it home with you."
"Really?" James asked, looking back at the professor, who nodded and walked into the vault.
Professor Longbottom pulled his wand out and silently shrunk the box before he dropped it into James' little bag.
They left Gringotts not long after that, quickly beginning James' school shopping and ignoring every side-eye they received from witches and wizards who passed them on the street.
"Thanks for the help, Mione," Hermione heard her brother-in-law, George, say as they walked along the darkened streets of Diagon Alley, a far cry from what was once a lively and bright atmosphere.
"You know you don't need to thank me, George," Hermione insisted as she unconsciously kept an eye on George's son, thirteen-year-old Freddie, as the boy walked ahead of them. Hermione's two children, nine-year-old Rose, and six-year-old Hugo were with their father, Ron, back at Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes, along with George's daughter, ten-year-old Roxy. It was safer having them stay there than it was to be wandering about Diagon Alley and they were only there because Ron was watching over the joke shop for George.
"How's he doing?" Hermione asked, nodding in Freddie's direction. "And Roxy? Since Angelina..."
"As well as can be expected," George said, his voice dripping with such gloominess it was impossible to remember the vibrancy he used to have before Angelina was injured in one of the recent attacks, before Harry and Ginny...not to mention Fred years before...
Sighing to herself, Hermione wrapped an arm around George's and walked with him through the dead streets of Diagon Alley.
Yesterday was Harry's birthday, Hermione thought as the image of her old friend played through her mind. He would have been thirty-five, Merlin, it was impossible for her to think of her best friend at that age. Would he have had any wrinkles yet? Beginnings of grey hair? An army of children with his eyes and Ginny's hair? That brought her to James, her nephew, and godson who hadn't been seen since the day of his parent's deaths, his second birthday.
He would have his Hogwarts letter by now, Hermione knew. She had questioned McGonagall on James' letter, had he received it? Had it ever been owled out? Or was it among the piles of students who were confirmed deceased before they could ever begin their journey to Hogwarts?
The wizarding world was different from when she started Hogwarts. Harry Potter was alive and, at the time, Voldemort wasn't at large. Now, Harry Potter was dead and his killer was free, wherever he or she was at.
She thought of Neville Longbottom, her former friend, and current colleague since she became a professor at Hogwarts for Study of Ancient Runes. She had been displeased about taking the job, but the position was vacant, and working at the Ministry was no longer an option for her after a family affiliated with the Ministry was found dead in their beds some months ago. Ron had to plead for her to take the job.
"Merlin, Hermione!" He had said, his words still fresh in Hermione's mind. "I've lost too much to this damn madness! I won't lose you too! Please leave the Ministry, not for me but our kids! For Rose and Hugo!"
"Hermione? Are you alright?" Hermione heard. She blinked and looked at George.
"Fine, just lost in my thoughts," Hermione admitted as she sent a shaky smile to her brother-in-law. She looked away and saw they were outside Flourish and Blotts. She saw Neville Longbottom through the window and frowned. She wondered why he was inside the bookshop, neither of his daughters was old enough for Hogwarts unless he was shopping for a muggle-born student. It had been become policy for Hogwarts professors to attend to new coming muggle-borns, often without their parents for safety reasons. She saw a boy with brown hair next to Neville but Hermione couldn't see his face. He had a pair of muggle headphones around his neck, which surprised Hermione. She realized the boy probably didn't know electricity didn't work correctly when surrounded by magic.
"I'll get Freddie's books, I know he needs his robes refitted," Hermione said to George, who nodded silently and untangled his arm from hers.
Hermione entered the bookshop as George and Freddie went off in the direction of Madam Malkin's.
"-Red Hood's my favorite DC character, though," Hermione heard the boy next to Neville say as they looked through the pile of first-year books on a table near the check-out area. The books were new editions and hardly touched due to parents' fear of physically entering the shop. Owl post often fulfilled the need for witches and wizards to get their children's school supplies, though it was trickier getting their wands and robes. Hermione and the Weasley's often disregarded this, opting to show their children some normalcy, even as people died around them more often than not.
"I'm not happy Young Justice was canceled but I still like the show and watch it a lot," the boy with Neville said. "I've got the DVDs and a portable DVD player. Will it be possible for me to bring them to Hogwarts?"
"Er...What's a DVD?" Neville said, confusion hitting his voice like a mountain of bricks.
"It's like a book but you can see what's happening instead of reading it," the boy said, sounding surprised. "You haven't got DVDs in the wizarding world? Movies? Television?"
"There's never been the need for them here," Was all Neville said, still looking confused.
"Oh, yeah," the boy said. "What's that weird-looking cat thing I saw in a window? It looked like a small tiger!"
"That's a Kneazle," Neville said as Hermione walked up to him and the boy and stood at the other side of Neville, who jumped when he realized Hermione was there. "Hermione! Blimey, you frightened me!"
"My apologies, Neville," Hermione coolly said, taking notice of his skittish disposition. Neither had been on good terms with one another since Harry and Ginny died since he admitted to not being their Secret-Keeper and refusing to disclose what he knew about the real one if he knew anything at all. The topic of James was always shot down by Neville as well, leading Hermione to suspect he had an idea of where the boy might be if he were alive still.
"H-Hello, Hermione," Neville said nervously. The boy beside him looked confused as he glanced from Neville to Hermione.
"A new student, I take it?" Hermione questioned as she glanced at the boy, who gave her an awkward wave.
"Yes...this is Jimmy. Jimmy, this is Hermione Granger."
"Hello, Jimmy," Hermione said, sounding more kind to the boy than she was with Neville, though a wave of sadness overcame her upon saying the boy's name. James' nickname. "Are you excited to start Hogwarts?"
Jimmy smiled and nodded. "Yeah, I'm going to miss my family though."
"I know how you feel," Hermione said, smiling. "I missed my family too when I first went off to Hogwarts. And I'll miss them when I go back this year."
"Not to sound rude but you don't look young enough to be a student," Jimmy said and Hermione laughed.
"I hope not," She said. "I'll be one of your professors, at least if you end up taking Ancient Runes in your third year."
"Ancient Runes?"
"Oh, yes, it's a brilliant subject," Hermione said. "I could spend all day telling you about it, though I imagine your parents are expecting you home soon."
Hermione noted the uneasy look on the boy's face when she brought up his parents before he attempted a sincere smile. "Yeah," Jimmy said. "They're nervous enough as it is with me being away from home."
"Of course, I best let you and Professor Longbottom finish your shopping," Hermione said as she carefully examined the boy's face. He looked familiar. His eyes were bright and brown and his hair was terribly messy, as though he just rolled out of bed. His clothes were wrinkly like he'd worn them to bed and not bothered to change out of them. Though judging by the new looking shoes on his feet, the state of his clothing seemed to be a choice of his, and no doubt an irritation for his mother.
Looking at Neville, a neutral look formulated on Hermione's face as she addressed him. "Shall I see you before the beginning of the term?"
"How about later, say around ten or so?" Neville questioned as he briefly glanced at Jimmy before looking back at Hermione. "There are some things you and I need to discuss. Away from straying ears."
Hermione frowned as her eyes darted around the room in the bookshop. It appeared empty but looks were always deceiving. She nodded and said, "Come to my home. Ron will be home by then and George will have the kids for the night."
Stiffly, Neville nodded. "Alright, then. See you then."
Hermione nodded once and left Flourish and Blotts, wondering what Neville wanted to discuss with her and why it had to be private. As she looked back at the shop, she saw her former friend talking with Jimmy. From a distance, he looked more familiar. He was tall for his age and had light freckles splattered generously around his face. His face was thin and his eyes were almond-shaped. He looked familiar but Hermione didn't know-how. Did she know his parents? Maybe from her school years before Hogwarts?
Shaking her head, Hermione turned and began to walk away, reasoning that she was overthinking things again. Though, she did wonder what Neville wanted to discuss later that night.
The wand shop, Ollivanders, was shabby-looking on the outside and crammed with shelves of wands on the inside when James entered it. Professor Longbottom had left him to attend to a private matter. He wondered if the professor was going to see his wife or Professor Granger.
"Good afternoon, Mr. Potter," a soft voice said and James jumped as his eyes darted towards a man with wide, pale eyes and wild white hair. He was Mr. Ollivander, James realized as the man stood between his shelves of wands.
"Er...Hello?"
The wandmaker examined James, his pale eyes moving every time James blinked.
"It seems like yesterday your father came in here, smaller than you, with his scar..." Mr. Ollivander ran his hand across his forehead, making James uncomfortable when the wizard's eyes drifted away. "His wand was quite curious." His eyes snapped back to James as he continued speaking. "Eleven inches, made of holly and a phoenix feather...a marvelous combination. Such greatness it was, a pity it didn't help him in the end..."
Grimacing, James rubbed at his right arm, which the wandmaker seemed to notice.
"Your dominant hand is your left," Mr. Ollivander stated, not asked.
Frowning, James nodded. "Yes, sir."
Mr. Ollivander waved at James dismissively. "I'm no sir, Mr. Potter. Your father saved my life, long ago. Hold out your arm."
James did and before he could blink, Mr. Ollivander was measuring his arm and by the time he blinked, a wand was in his hand.
"Hmn...Not that one," Mr. Ollivander said as he swiped the wand out of James' left hand. He pushed another wand into James' hand and said, "Ash and phoenix feather, ten inches...No, not that..."
Mr. Ollivander took the wand and procured another, and another, and another, with the last one blowing up a shelf of wands after encouraged to swing it about.
"I see...Try this one," Mr. Ollivander said as he gave James a jet black wand. "Ebony wood and dragon heartstring. Eleven inches."
When the wand hit James' palm, a wave of warmth moved throughout his bones. A light shot off from the wand and a small smile appeared on Mr. Ollivander's face.
"Yes, that's the one," the wandmaker said. His pale eyes stayed on James, who left after paying him, even after he left the shop.
When James came out of the shop, Professor Longbottom was waiting for him with his school items and a grey colored Kneazle in a silver cage.
"Happy...Early birthday?" Professor Longbottom said and James smiled as he looked at the Kneazle.
"You didn't have to get me this, Professor," James said immediately as he looked down at the Kneazle, its bright red eyes staring up at him.
"I know but it's always fun to go to Hogwarts with a friend," the professor said with a smile on his face. "I originally was going to get you an owl but I saw how interested you were in the Kneazle. Do you like him?"
Looking up from the cat-like creature, James nodded and said, "Thank you, Professor."
"It's...You're welcome, James."
When James came home not long after, Aunt Helen had screamed when she saw his new pet.
"What the Hell is that thing, James?" She had screamed, staring down at the oversized-eared, lion-like tailed creature.
"I don't remember what Professor Longbottom called him, but I was thinking about naming him Red Hood," James said as hot tea spat out through Uncle Dudley's nose.
Hermione and Ron lived a few blocks away from the Potter's old home, Neville knew. He wondered if they had ever gone to the house after the old wards were destroyed. Legally, the house was in James' name, something no one but Neville and McGonagall knew. They visited the house often, keeping it maintained and out of sight from wizards wanting to break in. They had no time to make new wards for it since no one lived there. No one but Kreacher, who often asked about James' whereabouts. Harry had freed Kreacher years ago, and the house-elf found employment at Hogwarts before the Potter's deaths. Though from time to time, Neville found Kreacher in Harry and Ginny's home, cleaning and mumbling about James coming back seeing as it was still his home. Neville never knew what to say when he overheard the house-elf, so he kept his mouth shut.
As he walked up the few steps to Hermione and Ron's family home, he thought about Kreacher the house-elf, if he was at Harry and Ginny's home, waiting for a boy who didn't know he existed.
Knocking on the oak door, Neville braced himself when Hermione Granger opened the door and before he could step inside, he impulsively blurted something he had been wanting to say for years.
"I know where James' at."
So, what do you think?
Please, review, like, and/or follow. That would great.
Until next time...
Review(s):
Guest (Chapter 2): Thanks for the review. I'm glad you like Dudley in this.
Guest (Chapter 3): Thanks for the review. It is sad he can't meet the Weasley's.
cheese12345: Thanks for the review. I'm glad you liked chapter 3 and Neville being the Deputy Headmaster. A lot has changed in the wizarding world, I hope I'm giving a good depiction of it. I actually had a lot of fun writing Dudley as James' guardian, and I've already got ideas on how I'm going to write him meeting the Weasley's, which will be happening soon.