Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter

Title: The Poet's Wish

Author: ReadingRed

Beta: DukeBrymin

Chapter Three: The Answer

Harry stared at the one called Watcher for a moment. It didn't take long for him to decide what he would do. There was not much left for him in his old life. Most of his friends had long since died. The magical world was barely hanging on, and to think that he could go back in time and not only give his younger self the life he deserved, but possibly change the outcome of the war was a chance that Harry hadn't ever thought possible. One he could not pass up.

There was only one thing that stopped him from immediately saying yes, his family.

Harry loved his wife, Ginny, more than anything else in the world; except, of course his son, Teddy. Together they were his life. He would do anything for them.

Harry and Ginny had been made legal guardians of Teddy when the boy was only three months old. After Tonks and Remus had been killed in an attack on their home, the little boy had been sent to live with his maternal grandmother.

Andromeda had tried to raise the boy but having a living reminder of the daughter she lost had been too much for her. She had been unable to bond with Teddy and instead of forcing him to live in a home where he would be taken care of but not truly loved she made the difficult choice to give him to Harry.

Those first few months with the baby had been difficult for Harry. He had been a teenager trying to raise a baby; it was only with Ginny's help that he had managed to do such a good job. Harry and Ginny had been together before they were given Teddy, but after the little boy had come into their lives was when their relationship truly began to flourish. They became partners in every sense of the word, depending on each other, not only on the battlefield, but now in the home as well. He would forever be grateful to Andromeda for giving them Teddy.

Harry and Ginny had officially adopted Teddy when he was a year old and they became a family. He couldn't imagine spending his life without them. That's when the solution came to him.

Praying the Watcher would say yes, Harry stated his position, "I'll do it, but only on one condition. Ginny, my wife, and Teddy, my son, have to be able to come too. I can't leave them alone in our old world. If I am going to the past they have to be with me. That's the only way I'll go." Harry looked directly at the Watcher, waiting for its answer.

"Harry Potter, it will be as you ask. In a moment I will send you to young Harry, and your wife and son will be sent there too. You must know, though, that this is irreversible. I can never send you back to your own time. You are making this choice not only for yourself but for your wife and child as well. Are you sure this is what you want?" the Watcher asked.

Harry instantly replied "yes, this is what I want, and I know Ginny and Teddy would agree. She would never give up an opportunity to change the lives of so many people for the better, and Teddy is my son-I won't leave him alone in that world."

"As you wish." The Watcher waved his ghostly pale hand in a complicated manner and Harry knew no more.

Six year old Harry Potter was weeding the garden when something…..odd happened. One moment he was alone and the next a woman was on the grass next to him. The woman had a small boy wrapped tightly in her arms. They were both asleep so Harry took a minute to observe them-after all it wasn't every day people suddenly appeared right next to you. The lady had red hair and a kind face. Even though she was lying down Harry could tell she wasn't very tall, well, she was shorter than Aunt Petunia anyway.

The other boy had red hair, just like the lady, but his hair was very messy. The boy's hair was even messier than Harry's was and that was saying something. Aunt Petunia always told him that he had the messiest hair in the world. He knew she said it to hurt him, but he actually liked it. It made him feel like he had broken a record and should be in the Guinness Book. Harry shook off that train of thought and was about to reach over and tap her shoulder when she woke up.

Well, woke up isn't really the right way of putting it, in reality she sprang up into a sitting position, her arms tightening even further around her little boy. Instantly awake and alert, she looked around and took in her surroundings before resting her gaze on him. Harry watched her eyes soften and her mouth form a small 'o' shape.

"Hello, child. What is your name?" Her voice was melodious and Harry instantly warmed to her. The little boy woke up and looked at him with a smile. Harry smiled back. Maybe this boy would be his friend.

"Harry, ma'am, Harry Potter." The lady gasped softly and appeared shocked for a moment, and then all of a sudden her eyes focused just over Harry's shoulder. She jumped to her feet, careful of the boy on her lap. She expertly transferred him to her hip and ran past Harry. Harry turned just in time to see her throw her free arm around a tall man. The other little boy smiled a huge smile and wrapped an arm around the man too. Harry watched them tighten their embrace and saw the man whisper something into the woman's ear.

She gasped again and turned her head to look at Harry, all the while never leaving the man's arms. She turned back to look at the man and asked something Harry couldn't hear. He saw the man nod, and then smile. The lady stepped out of the hug and took the man's hand instead.

"Harry? Would you come here, please?" Harry stood and walked over, obediently.

"Harry, this is my husband," she said motioning to the man at her side. "And this is my son, Teddy," she said with a warm smile, "and I'm Ginny."

"Hello, Harry," the man said in a strong, kind voice. It was the type of voice Harry often imagined his father might have had. Harry studied the man. His hair was messy, just like Harry's, and his eyes were the exact same shade of green. The more he looked, the more similarities Harry saw between himself and this man.

Suddenly a thought came to him. The thought that it might be true drove Harry to ask the stranger a question.

"Sir, are you, might you be, umm… that is, are you my father?" Harry stuttered out looking down at his feet. He only glanced back up when he felt a hand on his shoulder. The man was now kneeling in front of Harry.

"No child, I'm not, but I am related to you." The man smiled when he said that and it puzzled Harry. Never before had someone appeared proud to have Harry in their family.

"In fact, Ginny, Teddy, and I were wondering if you'd want to come live with us. You'd have to wait a couple of days so Ginny and I could set up a place for you, but after that you could live with us and you'd never have to come back here again."

Harry couldn't believe what he was hearing. The thought of leaving the Dursleys for good was like a dream come true; even if he had to wait a little bit to leave it was still better than he had ever hoped for.

"Yes!" he answered, emphatically, and Harry saw the man and Ginny look at each other and grin.