Hope you are all enjoying the journey! Harry learns more about being a Potter in this chapter.

'I am proud of you Harry.' Winston broke the silence that had lingered since the departure of the Minister and Headmistress.

'That was awful.' came the muttered reply.

'You did what you needed to do. You stood up for yourself. You have now made it clear to them that you are no longer their poster boy and their tool to use when they need you. They will think twice before trying to use you for their gain again.'

'I know. And I know I should be relieved that it worked out, but those two have always cared for me.'

'Yet they never told you who you are Harry! They have all kept so much from you. It is inexcusable. Despite how you feel it was the right thing to do, for your sake and no one else's. I am proud of you Harry. Now, go and get some rest we will talk in the morning.'

Harry nodded his ascent and made his way to his room. He fell asleep quickly.

The next morning didn't bring any great sense of clarity or relief from the previous days conversation. Nor did Harry worry about the consequences of what he had said, he felt detached from the events in the study and instead found a peace in going through his normal morning routine. It was quite a miserable day with rain steadily falling throughout the morning. Harry didn't mind the rain and went about feeding the chickens and checking his traps as usual. With nothing in his traps he decided that it was eggs for breakfast today and after drying off enjoyed a peaceful breakfast looking out over his garden. He watched the rain beat against the windows for a while, studying the way the droplets interacted with each other as they made their way down the window sill.

Pulling himself from his trance he entered the study to talk to his Grandfather. Harry walked into the study and couldn't but chuckle. Winston was practically skipping around his portrait.

'You seem quite chipper this morning Winston.'

'Ah Harry! Thank you so very much for last night. I know it left you quite drained but I hadn't had that much fun in a long time. I always enjoyed putting a politician in their place and seeing them walk away with their tails between their legs. Did you see Minerva?' He asked, eyes wide with delight, Harry nodded and his Grandfather continued 'Oh wasn't she on her best behaviour! Waiting to be shown her chair, proper title immediately. She kept looking up at me worried I was going to jump out of the frame and start yelling at her!' A large and long laugh followed this statement.

Harry couldn't help but join in ever so quietly. 'It just occurred to me that you would have known her. Did you not like her?' Harry inquired.

'Oh, she was alright. Just far too stiff for my liking. Enjoyed rules and basically worshiped Albus. I have refrained so far from telling you my opinion on the man but now that I have heard yours I feel I can say mine freely. I never liked that bastard. He was an arrogant young man, always trying to prove himself to be the best at everything. His family was rich and he tried to parade around like he owned the place, nose always pointing upwards. Spoke of being Minister of Magic and changing the world.'

'Sounds a bit like Malfoy' Harry muttered.

'Ah yes, the blonde lad you told me about. They do have similarities, except Albus was actually intelligent. But as you know things changed with the death of his sister and well we didn't see each other for many years. His defeat of Grindelwald was well publicised and he was branded a hero, but that honour was a complete farce and slap in the face of those who actually fought against Grindelwald for years before that. Albus sat on his arse for 5 years while millions died and many of us did all we could to stop him.'

Harry had only seen his grandfather this angry once before and it was when Harry had told him his life's story.

Winston managed to control himself and looked at Harry. 'Harry I feel it is time that I tell you about my life. You of course know about my wife Charlotte and your father but there is much more to tell you. Get comfortable and I will begin.'

Harry settled into the chair and got ready for his Grandfather's tale. He had not spent a lot of time talking about his grandfather's life before. Mostly they talked about Harry at first and any of Harry's questions were usually about his parents and his dad as a child and teenager. The other dominating conversation was of course the hunting and other practical skills. Harry had asked once who his grandmother was but Winston had gotten rather quiet at that question and told him her name was Charlotte and that she didn't have a portrait. It wasn't finished by the time she died and so wasn't around. Harry could tell that this memory was particularly painful for his grandfather and so didn't press the issue. He knew how annoying it could be when people forced you to talk to them and he felt that the company was enough. His grandfather would tell him in his own time, and it seemed that the time was now upon them.

'As you know the Potter's had always been a powerful house. Over the generations we have consistently been blessed with lots of children and many of the magical families in Britain can trace themselves back to the Potter Lineage. The Greengrasses, Bones' and Blacks' are the closest in relation. Various members of the Potter family, usually the second and third sons, have ventured to new lands and new opportunities and now there are Potter's all over the world who share our ancestors. America was a popular place to go to, especially after the Civil War in England and the Statute of Secrecy. Many European countries have various offshoots of the Potter tree represented. Even Australia! In fact one of my great great uncles went and settled in a place called Whyalla to run a pub! He was a bit of an odd ball apparently but there you go. At the start of the 20th Century the Potter family in England was still quite well represented. My father, was one of 6 Potters born near the end of the 19th century. When WW1 broke out the six children decided that it was their duty to help their muggle brothers and sisters. Doing what they could in the trenches to protect the soldiers our family was dealt a major blow with three of the siblings dying. They were not prepared for the barbarity of the muggle weapons and at times magic was useless in the face of such large scale destruction. Surviving the war was my father, his younger brother Charles and his sister Elsie. They each married and between them had ten children. Seven holding the name Potter and three holding the name Greengrass. Once again when war broke out we followed in our parents footsteps and went to help protect those in danger, only this time there was a powerful Dark Wizard aiding the Evil Muggle leader of Germany. The two men were determined to conquer the whole world and we knew that if we sat back and did nothing then England would fall quickly. Out of that number only two of us survived the war. One Potter and one Greengrass. I carried on the Potter name while my cousin Frederick carried on the Greengrass name.'

Harry had been wanting to interrupt for a while but finally couldn't hold it in any longer. 'We are related to the Greengrasses and Blacks? I went to school with two Greengrasses and they never said!'

'That is strange.' mused Winston. 'Perhaps they had their reasons, I cannot say. But yes they would be your third or fourth cousins, perhaps it would be prudent in the future to reconnect with them. Family is family. In terms of the Blacks our connection to that family goes back quite a few generations before mine. They unfortunately went in quite a dark direction so it was quite a pleasant surprise when Sirius wound up living with us. He was a fiery young man and I loved him dearly.'

'Wait.' Harry jumped in again, disturbed by an ugly thought 'That means I am related to Malfoy, however distant.'

'Yes, well we cannot always choose family, as you are well aware.' Both men let that thought sink in for a bit before Winston decided it was time to continue his story.

'You can see why I dislike that fool Albus. While we went out and fought against this evil from the first day, he sat around watching the man he helped create tear families apart. He kept trying to preach peace and asking for negotiations to commence with Grindelwald while people kept dying, all the while sitting on his comfy chair as transfiguration professor. Stupid fool.' Winston paused in his anger before moving forward.

'We had many successes against Grindelwald early on in the fight but with Dumbledore preaching peace the Ministry kept out of the war and we had no support to help us press our advantage. They said it was for the wizards and witches on the European continent to deal with, it wasn't a British problem! Despite the fact the British Muggles were fighting no British witches and wizards were sent across, an absolutely ridiculous decision. It wasn't until the muggle Germans started bombing London and other areas of England that the ministry woke up and sent some forces. The only problem was by that point Grindewald and Hitler had a strong hold on Europe and had recruited many others to their cause. I, like you Harry, hold Dumbledore responsible for the loss of my family, if he hadn't interfered and convinced the ministry to stay out of the conflict I may never have lost so many members of my family.

Despite our early victories the combined forces of Grindelwald and Hitler started to gain a strong foothold in Europe and the English forces in France were forced to evacuate from a beach in Dunkirk. We knew that they were in danger there as the combined Nazi and Grindewald armies were making their way to their position. Their death was certain if we had not intervened. The 10 of us decided to place ourselves in between the two forces to give our muggle brothers time to get home, we were surprised when we arrived that there was already a small group of French, Belgian and German wizards setting up anti-apparition and anti-portkey wards over the area. After we quickly established that we were on the same side we agreed to work together to defend the muggle British army. They lead us to the rest of their group of resistance fighters and this is where I first laid eyes on your grandmother.'

Winston paused and had a slight smile on his face, clearly remincising.

'She was incredible, I was immediately drawn to her passion and her righteous anger. Despite only being in her 20s she was already a leader among the witches and wizards around her. They looked to her for guidance and direction and in her we all saw a hope of victory. Our two groups decided to band together and stand against the coming attack. We helped with the wards, putting a few Potter ones into the mix to ensure the safety of the muggle soldiers who were oblivious to our aid. Obviously the muggle army moved slower than Grindelwalds and he, along with his personal bodyguard and group of 50 fighters came across us blocking their path to the British soldiers. After failing to apparate directly onto the beach Grindelwald and his forces suddenly appeared in the field in front of was no talking, no deals being made, both sides knew what they were here for and a fierce battle erupted. Both sides were casting to kill and it was a blur of spells. Grindewald's forces were fierce, cruel and their wand casting was impressive and brought down many of our new friends, however we were no ordinary witches and wizards either.

The Potter magic is specifically designed for combat and we are trained in it from a very young age, even before we get our wands. There were casualties on both sides and it seemed that we had the upper hand. That was until Grindewald himself joined the fray, despite the skills of my siblings and cousins I saw him kill my two brothers who had put up a fierce fight. I knew that I had to face him as I had always been the best in a duel. After I dispatched two of his closest followers I apparated to where he was on the battlefield and we dueled. He was incredible with that wand, but I could hold my own. After a few minutes of fighting we were both weary and injured and he began to gain the upper hand when I suddenly felt someone next to me. Charlotte had joined our fight. Together we began to push him back and he began to look worried. Despite the deaths on our side it was clear to him that he wasn't going to win this battle. Before we were able to finish him off he apparate away from the battle field. As he did, muggle bombs were dropped near our location and I was very nearly killed. I felt Charlotte's hand grab me and we suddenly disappeared from the battlefield.

I woke three days later from my injuries to find I was in a farmhouse in Southern France, a safehouse for the French resistance. It was an incredible organisation where muggles and magical folk worked together to resist those who were trying to oppress them. I found out that none of my family had come back with me and they didn't know where they were. I found out later that Frederick and his sister managed to survive the battle as well. They spent the rest of the war in Russia of all places helping the stop the German's advance. Unfortunately his sister perished during the Battle of Stalingrad, Frederick and I only saw each other again once the fighting was done. We were a tight knit family and it pained me more than I could express to hear that I may have been all alone. They never got a chance to make their own portrait and I miss them everyday. I couldn't bare coming home and facing my parents, and I didn't have the courage to go back and fight and so I just stayed at the farm. I did all I could to help the resistance but didn't go into battle for the next year and a half.

During that time I fell in love with your grandmother, Charlotte. She had saved me from the muggle bombs and had nursed me back to health. She too had lost during the war, both her parents had been killed by Grindelwald's followers for standing against him and we bonded over our pain and our hope for a new world. Eventually she gave me the strength to rejoin the fight and together we helped defend many muggles and magic folk who were being threatened. By this time the whole world was involved in the war, magic folk all throughout Europe and even America had come across to help us fight, however England stayed out of it. Dumbledore held much sway over the Ministry even back then. Although not the Headmaster yet he always had influence over his students and the wider magical Britain. Grindelwald seemed to avoid conflicts with us after that battle near Dunkirk.

Every time we arrived where he was he would create distractions and prevent us from fighting him head on. He knew that he was fallible and our magical abilities combined he feared he would lose. For the next few years we kept fighting, for a long time it didn't seem to do that much good, the hold they had on Europe was too strong. We spent a lot of our time saving and protecting different groups of magical creatures, all were being crushed under the boot of Grindelwald and his followers. Eventually the Nazis and Grindelwald were pushed back. Grindelwald lost all his forces and only then did the oh so great Dumbledore step in and defeat him. To this day I do not know why he was so lavished with praise for his victory. The duel between the two men was indeed an example of what two masters of magic could do, Charlotte and I were not there to witness it, but those who were there spoke of how incredible it was to see such a display of wand work. However it was a pointless duel, Grindewald had no followers left and was no longer a threat to the wider world. Dumbledore may have defeated the man in a one on one battle, but is was due to the sacrifice of thousands of brave witches, wizards, goblins, centaurs and many more magical creatures that his myth and his real power were destroyed. They deserve the praise, not him.

After the War Charlotte and I decided to get married. We held the wedding in the same barn where we had first met and decided to remain in France. Much of the magical world in France and Europe had been turned on its head and we knew they would need our help to rebuild it. We spent the next 5 years in Paris doing all we could to establish a working ministry. We travelled to other European nations in the West and supported them as well. However it soon became apparent to me that I was needed back in England. Some new families started to gain influence in the ministry spouting pureblood rhetoric all under the guise of rebuilding after the scourge of Grindelwald.

It was clear they were using the fear and devastation of the last 5 years to push their agenda. The Lestranges, Malfoys and the like had profited off the war greatly and were wielding great power. Due to many marriage contracts over the years the Potters had gathered 5 seats in the Wizengamot and I decided to use them to our advantage. Besides, I was also a War hero, people listened to me! After many years of wheeling and dealing in the Wizengamot Charlotte and I decided we needed a change. We had been unsuccessful in our attempts at having a child and it was taking its toll on the both of us. We decided we would spend some time in France to let the wounds of fighting both real and political wars over the last decade or so finally heal. While I felt a little guilty leaving my seats to a proxy I knew for the sake of my family I needed to withdraw.

Eventually we managed to conceive and have your father James. It was the happiest we had ever been and finally our family was whole. After a few years we decided to move back to Potter Manor so that James could understand who he would grow to be; Lord Potter of Britain. It was around the time that James went back to school that the deeds of Voldermort began to be known. At first I had hoped that Dumbledore and the Ministry had learnt from the past war and would immediately take action to crush this uprising. However, again Dumbeldore preached peace and caution and before we knew it, the country was filled with death and terror. It was then that I knew we had to act or we would see our whole world brought down.

James and I decided we would fight this evil as we always had. It seemed there weren't many others who were willing to even try except Dumbledore and his bloody order. James thought it would be a good idea for him to join the order so he could keep tabs on what Dumbledore and the others were doing. Many of the order members were his close friends from Hogwarts and even though I hated the man and James never trusted him we knew it was the best option we had at the time. After a few years of working with the order we though, we were making headway we soon found we were betrayed. I was doing what I could on the political front, while James, Lily and their marauders fought the Death Eaters wherever they could find them. Unfortunately Charlotte's health was deteriorating and was forced to stay home. Despite all the gloom a bright spark entered our lives, you! We were all overjoyed and Charlotte gained a new lease on life, I hadn't seen her so lively in years. It was just a cruel twist of fate that Charlotte died not long after your birth. She was so happy to see you born and get to hold you but she didn't get to see you reach 6 months.'

Winston paused again in his story and a look of regret and shame fell over his face. He was close to finishing his story and this was going to be the hardest part he had to share.

'I must admit that what I did next was not helpful to anyone. I was so full of grief over losing my beloved that I went out in search of Voldermort. I found a group of his people and I slaughtered them all. Soon more arrived, including Voldermort himself. Despite my power and experience I had grown old and could not maneuver as I once had and was killed by Voldermort. It was my death that caused James and Lily to be swayed by Dumbledore to leave the Manor. I had abandoned my family in my grief and Dumbledore used their pain for his advantage.'

Harry stood up and approached the portrait with soft eyes. 'It's not your fault. It's Voldemort and Dumbledore's. Those two men loved playing with other people's lives, you are a Potter and we often rush head first into danger.'

The two men looked at each other for a long while before Harry spoke again. 'Thank you for sharing this all with me grandfather, I wish I had got to know you both while you were alive. I know I would have loved you both… Charlotte sounds amazing, you were a lucky man.'

'That I was Harry. I am so sorry that I couldn't stop what happened to our family and to you. I wish I could go back and not go after those men.'

'I do not hold you responsible, but I forgive you nonetheless.'

Both men paused for a long time, thinking on all that had been shared during the conversation, thinking on what had been lost and what could not be restored.

After a long time Winston spoke to Harry in a soft voice 'I hope you can feel proud of us Harry. Your grandmother and I spent our lives doing what we thought was right and even though our endings were not as we had wished I had tried to leave a good example for my family.'

Harry looked at the portrait in shock. Winston had his eyes down with his shoulders slumped forward, Harry had never seen him like this before. He usually held himself with such strength and pride.

'Of course I'm proud of you!' Harry offered. 'You stood up against tyrants and evil men. I am proud to have the name Potter.'

Winston looked up and smiled sheepishly 'Thank you Harry, that means a lot to me. I think it is time we stop dwelling on the past today and you stretch your legs.'

Harry nodded and turned to leave but before he exited the door he spoke once more 'Thank you for telling me your story. I feel closer to you all now... it seems that pain and loss is what unites us.' And with that he left the room.

There we have it! Hope you enjoyed it.