A/N: We are finally back! Yay! Just a heads up for those of you who have read this in the past, the differences in this compared to the old one aren't that big.
To anyone new, for context; I have picked this story up again after a little over a year and decided to work on it again. Nonetheless, I hope all of you reading this enjoy!
Disclaimer: I have no rights. Except to my ocs.
Pitter. Patter. Pitter. Patter.
Hazel eyes darted along the dark road, eyes focussing intently on a house several miles away. At that current moment, he felt so many emotions yet at the same time, none at all.
Despite having waited six years for this very moment, the man could not stand to wait even a minute longer. For the first time in so long, he finally felt safe. Safe enough to see his family once more and bring them back with him.
Now, he stood next to a sign reading Privet Drive. The houses looked identical, dark tiling on the roofs, brown front doors, a driveway which was big enough to fit a standard hatchback. The only distinction in the neighbourhood were the numbers adorned on the doors of the individual residences.
The man eventually stopped walking, the lone noise of rain echoing around as he stepped closer to the door which read the number four.
How old would his children be now? His little girl would be eight at this point. Harry must be around seven. He still remembers the last night he saw them, the body of his wife on the floor and the younger boy in his crib, crying as he looked at the woman on the floor. The killer of his mother and the murderer of many others had been killed by a boy no older than one. Needless to say, the headlines were massive.
"For God's sake, I'm not interes-" The door swung open to reveal a purple-faced man who seemed far too large for his own good. He stared in shock for a moment before picking up a finger and waving it at the raven-haired person standing before him. "Y-you! You're that Potter." He spat out. "Petunia! Petunia, come have a look."
"Calm down, Vernon. I'm coming," Another voice spoke, exasperation clear in Petunia's tone. She walked closer, tucking her blonde hair behind her ears. "What... James Potter?! What on Earth-"
"Surprise." James quipped with jazz hands, watching Petunia's reaction with a look of amusement. "I'm not dead!"
"So that must mean... Lily? What about her?" Petunia asked a little slowly, pale eyes widening as a flicker of hope gleamed in them.
James' expression quickly shifted to a frown. He looked down, shaking his head. "She... She's not... She passed away." It was clear that any sense of confidence had floated away from him as he murmured back a response.
"I always knew you were no good! Now you've gone off and killed her-"
"I didn't kill her!" He mentioned, sounding a little annoyed now. "You know what? Let's stop with the baseless accusations. I just want my children back."
"Don't you talk to my wife like that." Vernon retorted, a crease forming between his eyebrows as he did so.
"Where are they? Where's Harry? Where's Hope?" James rushed out, ignoring the words of the plump man as he peered over Vernon's shoulders to try and see if the two were present.
"They're in their room right now, they're currently grounded."
"Well unground them then so I can take them home," the words he was saying became faster and faster. "I'm their dad, I unground them. Power play. I win, you lose."
Petunia gave him an unsteady look before turning to look at her husband who simply nodded in the direction of the staircase behind them. She sighed. Stepping towards the cupboard under the steps and opening it. Petunia whispered a few words and a moment later, two children walked out - an uneasy look on their face as they both glanced at each other and then at James. "You made my kids sleep in a cupboard under your shoddy stairs?" He asked, an unimpressed look on his face as anger entered his tone.
"Be glad we didn't throw them out the house. Now take them before we change our mind!" Vernon answered. Moments passed before Petunia came into sight, handing James a carrier bag which had some clothes in it and pushing the children, who were now wearing a coat and shoes, outside the house. "Good riddance." Were the last few words that could be heard as the door was slammed shut.
Letting out a sigh, James turned his attention to the children in front of him. He felt a small smile form on his face. They had the same hair colour as one another, but Harry had emerald eyes whereas Hope had hazel eyes. Yet, she still looked like her mother. From the way her hair flowed to the shape of her nose.
"Hey guys," James started, a gentle expression replacing the frustrated one as he crouched down and looked down at the children. "Do you remember me?"
Silence. They all stood there (minus James because he was crouching) in the cold for a moment before the girl meekly nodded. "You're our dad," Hope muttered quietly. James' face broke out into a grin and he clasped his hands together.
"Yes! I am." He responded, a gleeful expression on his face. "I'm afraid we can't be out here for much longer. Let's go home first and I promise that I'll explain everything there."
"I don't want to," Harry mumbled, tugging on Hope's sleeve. The older girl shared a worried look with him but ruffled his head.
"It'll be fine," She told him, trading her previous expression for a soft grin. "Trust me."
"I... Okay." The younger boy pursed his lips and said nothing else
James looked at Harry for a moment, hesitantly moving his fringe to reveal the scar on his forehead. "That's still there, it seems." He commented, a hint of sorrow in his voice. Letting out a soft exhale, he stood up. "Right. Let's go now." Taking hold of the two children's hands, he closed his eyes and made a gesture.
In a matter of moments, they had gone from the familiar Privet Drive to standing in front of a house twice the size of the Dursleys' residence. Hope stared at the site in awe before churning out and vomiting on the grass.
"That... Yeah, I'll clean that up later." The eldest Potter mumbled to himself, glancing at Harry to see if he'd do the same thing. Apparition tended to have that effect on people at first. "I know you both have lots of questions, so I'll explain everything when we get inside." He told them, walking over to the door of the house and unlocking it. His children walked after him, a nervous look on their faces as they did so. Although they knew that he was their father, there was nothing that stopped them from shaking off the anxiety that came with having to now live with someone who was practically a stranger to them.
As they stepped in, the two of them were quick to note the fortune which their father had. Although the house looked generic enough, the smaller details were hard to gloss by. The mahogany flooring, the expensive-looking front door, the intricate designs in the ceiling. Walking into the living room, they only proved to be definite about their assumptions of the man's wealth. An extravagant fireplace made out of marble and stone was placed in the middle with two grey chesterfield sofas placed in an L shape. There was no TV but a radio was placed on top of a glass coffee table. Walking over the magnolia planks and to a sofa, the two sat down. Eagerly eyeing everything around them.
"Do you want anything to drink?" James could hear his voice shaking, despite how slight it was, he sounded almost hesitant. Since when had he been so nerve-wracked about anything? Yet, looking at the children now, his heart clenched. If only Lily were here, this would've been much easier.
Hope shared a look with her younger brother, only to shake her head a long moment later. "No thank you. We just want to know what happened."
"Fair enough," James took a seat opposite to them, pushing his glasses up with his knuckles as he looked at his hands. "I... I just want to say I didn't abandon you." He started. "Do you know what happened that day? When your mother... Passed on..."
"You both died," Harry stated shortly. "That's what we heard anyway. Aunt Petunia said you died in a car crash."
"Of course she did. Couldn't have made my death anymore anticlimactic, Bitchunia." James mumbled to himself, though the two had managed to hear and did their best not to burst out laughing. "Looks like I've got a lot of explaining to do."
They sat there for the next hour, James explaining everything that happened. He explained who Voldemort was, how their mother died and how he was outside with Hope at the time and that was the only reason he managed to stay alive. He informed them about the existence of magic, the existence of Hogwarts, all about the marauders and how he fell in love with Lily who was one of the most perfect beings he'd ever met. He told them how he was in hiding for the past few years even though Voldemort had died, how there were death eaters after him and he didn't want to risk their lives.
"Do you think they're still alive?" The older girl asked.
"Who?"
"Your friends. Moony, Padfoot and... Umm..."
"Wormtail." James finished. "Padfoot is in Azkaban, I know that much. I don't know what happened to Moony but Wormtail... I'm glad he's not."
"Why's that?" Harry piped up.
"Well, I suppose that story of betrayal is available for another time." James paused. "Being a dad is easy, I should've done this earlier. Wait no, then we'd all have died."
The two children shared a look, raising an eyebrow at their father who let out an awkward chuckle. "Sooo... Who wants to drink hot chocolate and hear dad talk about Quidditch, the best sport in the wizarding world?"
"We do!"
Neither of the Potter siblings could have guessed how quickly they would've settled into the Potter manor with their father. Caution was taken during the first few days, but a fortnight later it felt like they had always been there. Harry found it almost suspicious how little time it took for them to get settled, to which Hope pointed out that it was only natural since they were now with their father and not their neglectful aunt and uncle. Rather, that was something which even James agreed on, and on more instances than one he was found cursing them under his breath for the way they treated his children.
Months passed before they finally moved back into their cottage in Godric's Hollow. James admittedly spent far too long trying to fix it while ensuring their home still looked like the place they were living in all those years ago. Harry initially complained about how this was smaller than the manor they were staying in before, though after a few weeks passed, he had grown too fond of it to keep whining. Perhaps it was due to the bidaily game of Quidditch between him and James that Hope would spectate (mainly while reading a magic textbook or a muggle story that belonged to Lily) or the family dinners they'd almost always mess up. Between the everything and nothing which took place each day at Godric's Hollow, they all finally began to fill the void left in their hearts by the other's absences. For the first time in a long time, there was a place for the three of them to call home.
Just as months passed then, they flew by now, and now James stood in the living room, reading the shopping list for Hope's first year at Hogwarts out loud for the seventeenth time that day. To him, it felt as though it were just yesterday when they had moved in from the manor. It probably sounds a bit cliché, but he wasn't ready for any of his children going away in the slightest.
"Why can't you come with us?" Hope whinged, dragging James' arm towards the fireplace as if that would make him change his mind.
"I told you, people don't know that I'm alive. Imagine us walking into a store and the shopkeeper gets a heart attack because 'Oh, James Potter is alive!'." He laughed. "Arthur Weasley won't do anything, he's sworn not to tell anyone that I'm alive. Not even his family knows."
"Alright." She sighed, staring down at her feet with slight frown. "But it'd be much more fun with you there."
"I know right? I do want to go with you." He responded with a small frown.
"How about I let you name my owl? Then we're equal!"
"Well, I suppose something is better than nothing." He grinned back, ruffling her hair. "I don't like that you're growing up so fast."
"I'm only eleven," She huffed in response. "Compared to me, you're ancient."
"I'm only thirty." He mocked the tone from before and stuck his tongue out at her, which resulted in a dirty look from the young girl. "Where's Harry?"
"He's upstairs. Probably getting dressed. Does he really have to come with me?"
"Yes. First of all, he'll complain if he doesn't go. Secondly, he'll get along with Ron. Probably. And also, just take him with you!"
"Why? No!" She blinked at him. "Why don't you both go and burn the kitchen down again."
"Because that's what we plan to do when you're off to Hogwarts?"
"Unbelievable. I miss out on all the fun. This family hates me." She grumbled, sighing dramatically. "Harry, hurry up!" Hope called out, sounding a little frustrated. "How are we even supposed to get there?"
"I think you're forgetting that we're wizards. Floo powder is the way to go, sweetheart," answered James with a wink. "If only I could become a dog like Padfoot. It's way more conspicuous if a stag shows up at Diagon Alley. A dog? No one would even notice."
"That's your fault." His daughter chuckled. "Should've become a dog."
"That's not how it works." He shook his head. "The form of an animagus is based on someone's personality," James explained, patting her shoulder.
"I guess that makes sense. Isn't your patronus a stag?" She asked, head tilting slightly.
"Who the hell taught you about patronuses?"
"A textbook."
"Stop being smart." James frowned before shaking his head. "Wait! No! Be smart! Your mother was smart."
"Um so... The answer is a yes?"
"Yup." He nodded. The sound of someone running down the stairs could be heard, and the presence of a ten-year-old Harry Potter was finally established.
"I'm sorry I took so long."
"As you should be. What were you doing? Writing love letters to some girl?"
"What? Of course not." Harry let out, his face heating up a little. "That's a daft suggestion."
"I'm onto you, son." His dad joked, narrowing his eyes at the two of them.
"We're running late now, Har." Hope frowned, tapping a non-existent watch on her wrist. James let out a chuckle, pushing them in the direction of the fireplace before placing some floo powder in their hands.
"Have a good day you two!" He said with a grin. "You know what to do, right?"
The two of them nodded, exchanging glances. Then, they stepped towards him, wrapping their arms around their father for no more than a few seconds.
"I'll go first," Hope told them, stepping inside the fireplace. Several seconds after throwing the floo powder, everything around her turned dark before she was enveloped by light and the sound of people conversing.
Diagon Alley was a strange place to be. Anything a wizard needed could be found here. Numerous cobblestoned shops sat next to each other, each one with a different purpose. Robes, telescopes, quills, parchment, potion books, donkey eyes and even globes of the moon were available. When they said anything a wizard needed, they really did mean anything.
Standing close to each other, the pair quietly walked behind the Weasley family who were merrily bantering away. Their red heads were visible from miles away and in a way, Hope was almost confident that it would be a challenge and a half to actually get lost and not be able to find them.
"So, you're Harry. Who're you?" One of the boys asked. He looked to be about Harry's age and he glanced between the two as if he'd be able to work out what their names were through their appearances. For a second, Hope wondered if she even looked like a Hope.
"Hope," the girl responded plainly, not sure of what else to really say. "Er... What's your name?"
"Ronald. But everyone just calls me Ron." He answered in an almost proud manner.
"Oh my, look what we have here! Is young Ronny attempting to flirt with someone?" One of the other Weasleys asked, looking down at his younger brother and letting out a laugh. He was one of the twins and despite what people say about 'two twins, half the personality', these guys definitely seemed to have twice the personality. "Fred, look here! He's gone as red as his hair."
"N-no I haven't!" Ron protested, face contradicting his words. He let out a huff, to which Harry chuckled.
"They're energetic, I'll give them that," Harry mumbled out of their earshot. Hope nodded.
"They'd get along well with dad, don't you think?" She mused, glancing at the boys who were now squabbling in the middle of the crowded alleyway.
"You miss him." Harry teased. "I thought you'd be glad to get away from home after so long."
"That's true. But this is something that I've always wanted to do with him here. But he's not here, he can't be here. I get that but it still makes me sad because it makes me wonder how much fun it would've been if it was all three of us."
"More like all four of us," Harry said under his breath. Though Hope frowned, she opted not to say anything about it. It wasn't worth upsetting Harry over.
"I suppose there's no point dwelling on the 'what ifs'. At least we have each other, that's all that matters."
"You're right-"
"On the other hand, it seems the Potter family are having a heart to heart!" One of the twins announced in a commentator's voice.
"Do you mind?" She asked rhetorically, crossing my arms. He mimicked her, crossing his arms and raising an eyebrow.
"No, I don't think I do."
"Right, well, who are you?"
"You came with us, shouldn't you already know?" He teased her.
"I know your parents, not you." She corrected in a firm voice.
"My my, Georgie it looks like we found a feisty one."
"So I suppose your name is Fred then, and he's George?"
"Smart and feisty. I'd say you're an interesting person." Fred (?) stated, nodding to himself as though he were a detective. "What about the boy who lived? He's destined to be an interesting character."
"Don't you think of bullying my little brother." Hope told them, trying (and failing) to seem protective while biting back the urge to laugh. Harry offered her a quizzical look, green eyes flickering between the three of them before going back to his conversation with Ron.
"Oh no, we wouldn't dream of that, Miss Potter." George (or Fred?) chuckled. "Say, do you play Quidditch?"
"Well, I was raised around muggles. Remember?" She lied. Despite wanting to tell the truth, she knew she couldn't. Little slip-ups would give away their family's secret and that wouldn't help anyone. "But there's a squib who lives on our road that told us about it. It sounds fun."
"It is." Fred (Definitely him now) chimed in. "George and I are beaters. Great game that."
"Certainly does sound like it is. Anyway, which store are we going to?" Hope asked, deciding to change the topic before she accidentally said too much.
Fred and George exchanged a look before glancing at the surroundings. "I'd say we're off to Flourish and Blotts - that's where you'll find your school books," George informed. "Though, mum's probably gonna have us split up since you need to buy a wand too. You got any money on you?"
"Fifty galleons, seventy-five sickles and a hundred and forty knuts," She responded calmly. "Will that be enough?"
"Bloody hell," Fred mumbled. "I think that's more than enough. Guess I forgot the Potters were a rich bunch."
"When did you have time to go to Gringotts?" George asked inquisitively.
"Right before you all came." Another lie. At this point, she was convinced she was going to make a habit of it. The truth was, they had met the Weasleys at the leaky cauldron less than three minutes after having shown up. However, it wasn't like she could say that their supposedly dead father handed her a pouch containing more than enough money before sending them off.
A few minutes passed as they all weaved their way through the crowd, busying away in conversation. At some point, Hope noticed that there was a little girl who stood close to Mrs Weasley. Through some expertise (which was really just interrogating the twins, and when she got tired of listening to their replies, she asked Ron instead), she later learned her name was Ginny and she was the only daughter of the family. Although she tried talking to her later on, the younger girl seemed scared of her and ran off, much to Hope's dismay. Truthfully, she had been hoping for the two of them to become friends, but decided that perhaps Ginny was too shy to bother right now and that she'd try next time they met.
George's prediction had been right through and through. They ended up stopping in front of Flourish and Blotts, somehow managing not to get trampled by the masses surrounding them. Molly turned to the Potters, a kind smile on her face. "Arthur, Ginny and I'll buy your books for you, Hope dear. You go ahead with the boys and get yourself a wand, alright?"
"Thank you." She responded politely, smiling back at the woman. Fetching out roughly 15 galleons from her pocket, she handed them to her along with the list that James placed in her hand before they left.
"Listen here you two, you best not make her uncomfortable or cause a mess anywhere." Mrs Weasley scolded, turning to the twins. "And for the love of God, don't leave Ron somewhere or Harry'll get lost too."
"It's fine, mum." George brushed off. "You're worrying too much."
"Don't be too long! Take care." She told the group, sounding a little less firm now.
"Alright. You take care too, Mrs Weasley." Hope replied.
"No, no. Call me Molly." She told the girl firmly. It didn't seem like the best idea to face her wrath, so Hope decided to give in without as much as a whisper of denial.
"And call me Arthur." Mr Weasley chipped in, a friendly smile on his face. "Right, we should be off now Molly, we're standing in everyone's way."
"You're right. Okay. See you all soon." Molly said, walking inside Flourish and Blotts.
"Let's get my wand super quickly so we can all get some ice cream," suggested Hope as soon as they were out of sight. "My treat."
"Well, who could say no to that?" Fred chuckled, grabbing the shorter girl's shoulders and beginning to steer her through the crowd. "Hurry, hurry! Let's get Hope a wand so we can quickly get ice cream before mum nags us to death."