A/N: New chapter up! Let me know your thoughts.

Chapter 3: Histories 1

September 1st

Harry finished his breakfast and went about his daily chores; feeding the chickens, clearing and weeds in his veggie patch and checking the traps he laid out the night before. He had managed to catch two hares and decided he would make a stew for lunch and dinner. He had found a peace in cooking. He enjoyed the process of preparing all the ingredients and playing with different flavours to create interesting meals. Despite his early bad memories with the Dursleys, cooking the muggle way, and indeed doing everything the muggle way, had become an escape for Harry. He was chopping his own wood, fixing anything broken by hand and had discovered a love for the process involved. He would even use the old ladders to reach books in the library rather than using accio.

After cleaning the rabbits and prepping the stew he was called over by Philip. 'Harry, your Grandfather would like you to meet him in the study when you are ready. He has much to discuss with you.' Slightly confused at this request Harry made his way into the study. He had spent many hours with his Grandfather over the last few months and had never been summoned before. At their initial meeting Harry had told his life story to Winston and any other ancestor who could fit in his portrait. He was thankful he hadn't had to explain it more than once because his ancestors had reacted exactly as he had expected. There was anger, sadness and awe at all that had happened and what Harry had done. Since then his ancestors hadn't pressed him for more details and it was usually Harry who approached them to ask about their lives. This was why he mostly spent his time with his grandfather as he was the man with all the stories of his parents. Despite his promise not to long for what was lost Harry had decided that he needed to know who his parents were. Sure he had heard many stories about them from people, he wanted the family version of things.

'Hello Harry, have you had a pleasant day?'

'Yes thanks Winston. Caught two hares overnight in my traps, I'm making a stew.'

'Excellent!' Winston cried proudly.

Harry knew that his grandfather loved hearing about what Harry was doing around the house, especially his hunting.

'You wanted to see me?' Harry inquired.

Winston's demeanour changed quickly and he looked thoughtful. Harry allowed him a few moments as he came over and sat in the large, high backed chair situated behind the large wooden desk.

'Yes, but before we get into it I wanted to ask you how you are going. How are your nightmares?'

Harry dropped his head. 'How do you know about those?' Harry asked his chest, ashamed that his family knew of his troubles.

'My poor lad, you often scream in your sleep and yell to Sirius and others. We have heard you from the hall.'

Harry sighed deeply. He didn't realise he had been talking in his sleep.

'They are the same as they have always been. Either I am a child in my cupboard being beaten by Vernon or I am watching my friends and family die at the hands of Voldermort. I have become used to them.' He replied, turning his eyes back to his grandfather.

The two men, one portrait, one human, studied each other for a few moments. The younger Potter saw sadness but a strange determination in the eyes of his grandfather, while the elder Potter saw a young man resigned to his fate and experiences. It saddened him to see his remaining heir in this state and resolved himself to help this young boy who would have seen too much TO move forward with his life and become a true Potter.

'I know that we have spoken many times since your arrival' Winston began, 'but there is much that I have not spoken to you about. I could tell from the first moment I saw you that life had not been kind to you and that you needed time. I can see that you are still suffering from all that has happened to you. I will not tell you to move on, to be happy or to find hope as that is for you to choose and do in your own time. However, I feel it is time for you to finally understand what it means to be a Potter and know who you are. Yes,' He quickly went on, stopping the interruption that was on Harry's lips. 'You understand that you are Harry Potter, son of James and Lily. However, you do not know what it means to be a Potter. Our history is linked with magical Britain going back over a thousand years and I feel that it is time you know your place.' Putting up his hand to silence another interruption Winston continued 'Not as 'Harry Potter the boy-who-lived', But as Harry Potter of House Potter. I know you have spoken of how you have been used for other people's agendas your whole life but this has nothing to do with that. I merely want you to understand who you are. Will you remain and listen?'

Harry took the words in. His grandfather wasn't telling him information based on some need for Harry to complete a task like Dumbledore always had. He just wanted Harry to know who he was. Harry sighed and nodded, settled into the chair so that he could hear what his grandfather had to say.

'Good. As I said our history is linked with magical Britain. The earliest Potter in Britain was a man called Robert Potter. He was a Norman Wizard and Knight who followed William, the Duke of Normandy, a muggle who welcomed wizards into his ranks as he valued their fighting abilities. His army was made up of both muggle and wizard warriors and he made sure that despite their magic, the wizards in his army knew how to fight with a sword as sometimes in battle when your enemy is so close, you cannot always rely on a wand. He came across the channel with William in 1066 to help him claim the Throne of England. The Battle of Hastings would not have been won without Robert. After the statute of secrecy was announced by the magical world a campaign of obliviating and altering of muggle histories was undertaken. Where things could be omitted altogether they were. For other events they merely took out the magic used. Joan of Arc, for instance, was a powerful witch but her story was altered to take out the many times where she relied on her magic to help her achieve victory. I have read the edited muggle version of events of the Battle of Normandy, and even though they get things mostly right, the battle was only won due to magic. Both the Anglo-Saxons and Normans had magic on their side. Despite the Normans having the larger army for a long period of the day the fight was quite even as the Anglo-Saxons had used quite an impressive binding charm on their army. It meant that no matter how hard the Normans attacked their shield wall it held firm, forged together by magic. William and his army were getting frustrated and Robert came up with an ingenious plan on how to win the battle. The Norman army feigned a retreat and as the middle of the Anglo-Saxon forces crept forward to attack Robert fired a well aimed severing charm through the ranks which broke the binding charm on the Saxon army. The Normans reeled around on their horses and began to cut the Anglo-Saxons down. Their leader Harold Godwinson was a powerful wizard who had already defended his country from Viking invaders. Harold and Robert ended up locked in a fierce duel in the middle of the battle field. Many soldiers stopped to watch the fierce display of spells being thrown around. It was clear to all that the outcome of the whole battle hinged on this duel. Both men were fighting fiercely and dueling to kill. All manners of bone breaking, organ exploding and blood boiling curses were flying around, some hitting those who were unlucky enough to get too close or be hit by a deflected curse. Suddenly Robert managed to pull off a very fine piece of transfiguration and send an arrow at Harold. Harold, distracted by a few other nasty curses coming his way, missed the arrow and it slipped through his defences, piercing him in the eye. After watching their leader fall the Saxons quickly lost heart and were routed by William and his men. In order to establish control over the rest of England William gifted the Noblemen who had fought by his side land and power. The one exception to this 170 men was Robert. The rest of the men honoured were muggles, Robert was the only wizard to get such an honour and was given the land that you are standing on now. Originally it was a Motte and Bailey Castle that looked over the surrounding areas but over the many years it was abandoned and this Manor that you are standing in was built. It has been improved and changed over time but it is largely the same as it was over 200 years ago. If you head West from this house and make your way up the hill there should still be remnants of the Castle which you can explore. Myself and your father both spent a lot of our childhoods exploring the ruin.'

Winston paused here and went to say something, however he quickly changed his mind and continued his story, now wasn't the right time.

'William spent the next 20 years putting down rebellions across the North of England in order to establish his control and Robert would always fight by his side, aiding him to victory time and time again. After helping put down a rebellion in York, Robert decided he would venture further northwards to try and meet the Ancient Celtic tribes. Witches and Wizards who, despite being pushed back by the Romans, Anglo-Saxons and Vikings, had very powerful and ancient magic. While spending some time with them he fell in love with a Celtic with named Aoibheann whom he married in a traditional Celtic ceremony. Despite coming from a Christian country Robert happily adopted many of the traditions and beliefs of the celtic tribes. Aoibheann and her family were also able to trace their lineage back many generations. They were descendants of both the last Magical King of England, Arthur, and of the great Queen Boudica who nearly drove the Romans out of England. You see Harry, you have ancient wizards and witches blood running through your veins. England would not be the country it is today if it wasn't for our family, and this is just one of many examples.

Robert was the only wizard honoured by William and because of this he managed to elevate the status of witches and wizards throughout England for many generations to come. He was respected by the Normans for what he had done in the Battle of Hastings and the subsequent rebellions and therefore was listened to by all. Over the next 600 years the Potters had increased their wealth, power and prestige amongst Muggles and wizards alike. Marrying into powerful and wealthy families also helped our family grow, including such families as the Peverells and the Gryffindors. Both of those families were left with only daughters and they ended up marrying into the Potter line at different times. The Potters were often looked to during times of trouble as they were fierce fighters and would fight hard for their country and their fellow witches and wizards. When the statute of secrecy in 1689 was made the Potters had been big supporters of the statute. About 50 years earlier the English country had been torn apart by civil war as muggles quarreled over how their country should be ruled and you ancestors had feared for the safety of their people. Both the Parliamentarians and Royalists had used wizards as cannon fodder for their own purposes and the Potters hated to see magical blood spilled. It was clear to the Potters of the time that muggles were headed down a road of every increasing destruction, their inventions were focusing on greater ways to cause death and they swore to protect the magical community. What made it worse was that Oliver Cromwell, the man who ended up ruling England after the war, was a Puritan. He raged against anything that he felt wasn't of God, and this meant our kind. Under his rule we started to see more and more persecution of witches and wizards, despite the fact that for generations previous our magical abilities had been seen as an extra gift from God. His determination to wipe out the magical population of Britain made it necessary to hide our existence from the world. Once the statute was agreed upon the Potters worked swiftly to erase themselves from Muggle records as well as any trace of magic in the histories of the muggle world. It was an incredible feat of magic to obliviate so many muggles and change so many records in the space of a decade. Despite being an upstanding family in England they decided to fully retire into the wizarding world. The Potters had always been great fighters and continued that tradition throughout the ages, often engaging in magical and muggle wars when they felt it was necessary to defend either their country or their people. We have always taken pride in our history Harry and it is important that you do too. This is just one of many family stories that I intend to tell you to help you know who you are and know your family. We will meet again soon and I will tell you my story Harry, but for now I have kept you long enough. Enjoy your stew!'

Winston finished his story and smiled warmly at Harry. Harry smiled in return, although it didn't reach his eyes, and thanked his grandfather for the story.

He made his way to the kitchen to make his stew and realised that it had been a good few hours of listening to his grandfather's tale and he was equal parts amazed and angry. He had no idea his family history went back so far, and this knowledge was the reason for both of his emotions. He was a Lord whose family could trace their family history so far back. He was from the most ancient house in all of England and no one had told him of his place in society.

Harry debated on why this could have been for the next few hours until, as he was leaving the kitchen after dinner, a thought struck him, 'I was never supposed to survive the war' he said aloud.

'What was that?' came Philip's voice. Cursing himself for speaking out loud Harry told Philip and Cassandra his thoughts.

'I don't think Dumbledore planned for me to survive this war. I think I was supposed to die; for the greater good.'

'Why do you say that?' pressed Cassandra.

'It's the only reason I can think of for why he didn't tell me anything about you all. About this house, my grandparents, any of it. If I was to survive and take up my position as Lord Potter then I would have needed to be educated on what that meant, yet I only found out I was a Lord a couple months ago. Dumbledore himself told Snape that I needed to die willingly for the Horcrux inside me to die. I think he thought that would be the end of me. No more Harry Potter means no more Potter line so why bother to educate me on such important things? He gave me enough information about my family to keep me distracted from all that he didn't tell me. It's what he did my whole life. Dropped little hints and offered me small bites, not only of my family but of the prophecy and Voldermort. They were enough to keep me going, enough to make me feel like I could trust him, but it was all bullshit. I was the lamb being led to the slaughter. Fattened up enough to make a good meal but never having a real clue as to what was going on.'

Harry paused as his whole life became clear in front of his eyes. He had never had control of his life. He had been used by those around him for their own purposes, forced into a role who never wanted. Dumbledore was no saint. Perhaps Rita was closer to the money on him than any had dared to believe. Cassandra and Philip had been watching him closely, wishing they could reach out and hug him, but before they got a chance to say anything Harry continued, His voice growing colder and colder as he spoke, his fingernails digging into his palms.

'When I saw him at Kings Cross after Voldermort's killing curse hit me I knew it wasn't really Dumbledore, but it was the man I thought he was, the man who I thought cared for me, loved me even and wanted to see me live a long happy life. He wasn't the real Dumbledore, the man who manipulated me my whole life, hid my family from me, lied about what was inside of me, consistently left me to fight the Darkest Lord of our time by myself. Ever pushing me towards his end point. My death.'

Starting to discover the rich heritage of the Potter Family now!