Chapter 129: Harry's Arrival

"They're not in the house." James said the moment he entered the main hall. They had split up to look for Harry and Ginny for the past fifteen minutes and there was not a trace of them around the house.

"What if they're like - outdoors?" Lily asked in a low voice. It was midnight and it would be extremely dangerous outdoors at times like this.

"That's not impossible." Sirius added. "Let's go out together; at least there are five of us." They grabbed their cloaks which were hung by the door and went out into the cold. It was a bad time to be outside and the snow was giving them the chills.

"Don't split up. Let's move around as a group." James ordered. It was snowing lightly and vision was extremely low.

They tried to keep their voice low to prevent any suspicions and yet at the same time searching every possible corners in the humongous garden. After another ten minutes, they gathered in front of the main gate leading to the street outside. Since all of them were able to apparate or use the floo network, there was rarely a need to open the front gate these days.

"Do you think they're out there?" Lily asked; her voice was shivering slightly due to the cold. From where they stood, the street outside was in total silence and there was not a single person in sight.

"Shall we?" Remus prompted. "I don't want them to get lost out there or something."

"Alright. We're in this together." James said a charm to unlock the gates magically and then locked it up again once they were outside. The air outside Potter's Manor felt even colder and spookier, as if the magical protection over them were lifted.

"So where shall we go first?" Arabella asked. They were standing in the middle of the street, not sure which would be the right way to search first.

"Let's try the park." James suggested and the five of them turned briskly towards the direction of the park.

X

"Er.. Sorry, but who are you?" Harry asked. The girl in front of them look no older than both of them and was dressed a simple white dress all the way to the ankles.

"C-can you conjure a cloak for me – me first?" She requested. Harry and Ginny took a step backwards before transfiguring a leaf into a thick beige cloak for the lady. "Thank you."

"Excuse me, but how did you know our names?" Ginny asked as politely as possible. The girl was now sitting on the bench while both of them were standing up.

"You can say that I was Hedwig. But basically, Harry, I was your guardian angel." The girl said very softly. It was odd to see an angel who was afraid of cold. Then again, everything happening now just seemed totally bizarre.

"What do you mean?" Harry asked again. First they had traveled through time back to the unknown past, and now there was a guardian angel coming into the picture.

"It's not safe to talk here. Let me bring you two back to Potter's Manor." She stood up, tightened the cloak around her and walked forward. "Come on, I meant no harm." Strangely, Harry and Ginny felt a sense of security and followed the girl to wherever she was heading to.

X

"Look, there are people ahead." James said in a low voice. They could see an outline of three figures walking towards their direction. "Could it be them?"

"Let's wait till they move a little closer." Remus squinted to see if it was Harry among them. They were now standing close to the exterior fencing of the Potter's Manor in a straight line, hoping that the supporting pillars would block them from the view of the advancing strangers.

"They don't look as dangerous as deatheaters." Sirius muttered to no one in particular. "If they were deatheaters, they definitely didn't seem to dress like those." Despite the dim lighting, the colors of their cloaks were definitely not black.

"Belle, does the person in front remind you of Stef?" Lily whispered to Arabella who was standing close beside her. As the strangers moved nearer, they could see that the person who seemed to be leading the way was slightly more petite than the two following behind.

"Size, yes. But the way she walks, a little different." Arabella strained to see more clearly through the snow.

"Stef?" Remus called out suddenly and all of them turned to face him dumbfounded.

"Remus?" The petite girl who was leading the way replied. She pulled her cloak back to expose a bit more of her pale face. Remus held onto her hands immediately.

"Remus, Stef, let's talk inside." James interrupted their reunion by coming in between them. "You never know if there is anyone spying around or something." They nodded in understanding and carried on walking as if nothing happened. "Harry? Ginny?" He acknowledged the two people behind with a nod. James and Sirius walked behind the group to ensure their safety while Lily led the way back to the main gate.

While Sirius and Remus were standing guard to make sure there was no one else around, James unlocked the door magically and ushered everyone inside before locking the door and casting a protection charm over it once again. The snow had gotten heavier and they walked briskly through the garden and back into the house.

"Stef, you're back!" Remus hugged a very frail-looking Stefanie the moment James closed the front door.

"Yes, I'm back!" Tears were forming in her eyes as she hugged Remus tightly. "I missed you."

"We missed you!" Lily and Arabella engulfed Stefanie into a tight hug once Remus released her.

"Harry, Ginny, thank you for coming back." Remus took their cloaks and hung against the wall while ushering them into the main hall.

James waved his wand and the candles lit up, brightening up the whole room. With another wave, the fire in the fireplace started burning softly warming up the whole room. They quickly dried themselves magically before Remus continued talking.

"Let me introduce. This is Harry and Ginny." Remus did the introduction as he was the only one who had seen Harry and Ginny before. "This is James, Lily, Sirius and Arabella." He pointed to his four friends who were standing at one side. "And this is Stefanie," who was standing beside him. "We mentioned about her back there." Harry and Ginny nodded.

"Welcome!" James gave Harry a firm handshake before shaking Ginny's hand politely. "Do make yourself comfortable here." Remus held his breath for the moment when James touched Harry, fearing there might be any repelling movements.

"Thanks. Er.. dad." Harry was at a lost of words. It was just strange to meet your parents in this manner.

"Call me James. I'm not used to being call dad yet." James joked to lighten the mood around. "It's getting quite late, let's talk about it tomorrow." There were too many questions to ask and it was not a good time to do so at one in the morning.

"Let me show you two to your rooms." James started talking. The guys went on telling Harry a little about themselves, hoping to make him more comfortable with the transition while Ginny were asking Lily and Arabella questions about the current time. On the other hand, Remus accompanied Stefanie to her bedroom directly.

"Ginny, make yourself comfortable here. Look for us if you need anything, we're just next door." James opened the bedroom door next to Stefanie's. "And Harry, your room will be opposite here." He led him to the room facing Ginny's. "This stretch of rooms is for the men here while we those are for the ladies." He pointed to the rooms at the opposite stretch. "Let's save the questions for tomorrow. Good night."

"Good night." Harry said gratefully before entering into his new bedroom at his father's house. It was an extraordinary feeling which he never felt before. Lying onto his new bed, he fell asleep almost instantly.

X

"Lily, you alright?" James asked in concern. Everyone had already retreated into their respective bedrooms except both of them.

"Just feeling a little weird, I guess." Lily shrugged. "Can I stay over at your room tonight?"

"Ah, are you thinking of-?" James winked suggestively.

"Don't even think about it." Lily hit his head. "Take it as I never ask." She opened her room door while James was holding onto her other hand.

"Do you want me to stay with you tonight?" James whispered softly next to her ear.

"Not in the way you're thinking of." Lily laughed. James' breath was quite ticklish on her neck.

"But isn't that what you're thinking of right now?" James held Lily tighter by her waist.

"No. No. No." Lily tried to escape from James' embrace but he was too strong for her.

"Alright, don't tease you for now." James let go of Lily and she went straight to her bed. "Since you're feeling scared and everything, I'll just keep you company here tonight."

"Who said that I was scared of anything?" Lily asked in a willful tone while James sat down next to her on the bed.

"Well, then I should head back to my room. I can hear my bed calling for me." James stood up, pretending to be walking out of her room.

"Alright, alright. I'm scared. Can you stay with me tonight? No tricks." Lily waved her index finger in front of her.

"Sure." James wrapped his hands around Lily's waist and made himself comfortable on her bed.

"Ouch, that's very uncomfortable." Lily pushed James' left hand away while she tried to pull the covers over both of them. Within minutes, both of them were sound asleep.

X

"Wow. I never thought these two sleepyheads will be so early for breakfast." Remus commented the moment James and Lily walked into the dining hall together.

"Not only are they early, they are fully dressed." Stefanie added teasingly. She had invited Harry and Ginny down for breakfast together since they were new here.

"There's always the first time for everything." Arabella laughed as she helped herself with another toast.

"Morning!" Harry and Ginny greeted together as James and Lily took a seat opposite them at the dining table.

"Morning guys!" James concentrated on his breakfast and ignored all his friends teasing comments. It was good to see Remus laughing so happily once again.

"Had a good sleep last night?" Lily asked Harry and Ginny; paying no attention to her three laughing friends.

"Yes, thank you." Ginny said gratefully while Harry just nodded simply.

"Did anyone see Pr-?" Sirius' voice could be heard before he even appeared in the dining hall. "Lily? James?" He was even more surprised to see his two friends in the dining hall before himself. "That's weird. You were not in your room when I checked earlier." He started grinning mischievously.

"That's because we are here earlier." James said nonchalantly. "Eat your breakfast." He chucked a piece of bacon into Sirius' mouth before he could continue talking.

"Good morning." Helen's voice was chirpy as she entered the dining hall. "Wow. What a crowd today. Stef, oh my god, you are back! How are you?" She gave Stef a motherly hug before settling down for an empty seat beside Sirius.

"Thanks, Mrs. Potter. I'm doing fine." Stefanie beamed, looking much more radiant than the night before with ample rest.

"It's wonderful having you back again. What happened to you?" Helen asked in deep concern.

"It's kind of a long story. I'm back for good this time." Stefanie said gratefully. Mrs. Potter, though rarely seen around the house, had treated all of them with great hospitality. "Thanks for your concern."

"Mum, this is Harry and Ginny." James introduced the two new additions at the breakfast table. He had no idea how to tell his mother that they were from the future. Helen raised her brows in surprise.

"Oh, I've never heard you mentioning about them before. So when did you arrive?" Helen asked Harry and Ginny politely.

"Last night." Harry answered honestly. He looked at James, as if asking him what he should say next.

"Mum, er.. this sounds a little complicated." James started. Everyone remained silent, listening to what James had to say. "Harry and Ginny are from – the future. They're here to help us to defeat Voldemort."

"I must be hearing things." Helen chuckled. "How can they return to the past just like this? Remus?" She was keeping an open mind to what the kids had to say.

"I brought them back from the future with the help of the Light Compass." Remus said as a matter-of-fact.

"Oh, so the Light Compass does exist." Helen gushed. "It had always been a legendary magical object."

"W-muat azactly is it?" Sirius asked in between his mouthfuls of food.

"One of those mythical stuffs we learn in History of Magic. Briefly touched on but no one knows for sure if it existed." Helen told them. "I don't think there was a lot of information given about it. Anyway, back to Harry," She looked up and studied Harry's features. "What's your family name?"

"Potter." Harry answered and Helen nearly choked on her eggs. "Oh-"

"Mrs. Potter, are you alright?" Ginny handed her some serviettes and poured a goblet of water for her.

"Oh – ya, sure. And your parents are?" Helen looked astonished while James and Lily were blushing away.

"James and Lily." Harry answered truthfully. Helen raised her brows and to everyone's astonishment, she burst into laughter.

"This must be the most interesting breakfast I ever have." Helen laughed, totally ignoring James and Lily's embarrassment. "To see my grandson all grown up eating breakfast with me. And Ginny is?"

"My girlfriend." Harry and Ginny was blushing as furiously as James and Lily now. Sirius, Remus, Stefanie and Arabella were struggling to not laugh too loudly and staring at their breakfast with undivided attention.

"That's really interesting." Helen seemed to notice the expressions among the youngsters. "I better get going. You all have a good day ahead. And don't hold back your laughter; it's not good for you." She smiled warmly before departing the dining table, grabbing her handbag with one hand and toast on the other. Four of them heaved a loud sigh of relief while another four broke into uncontrolled laughter.

"Three generations of Potter-" Sirius started commenting before James shut him up with another piece of bacon.

"That was certainly very interesting." Stefanie commented. "I don't remember seeing Mrs. Potter laughing so much before."

"Seeing you here must have made her day." Remus told Harry and Ginny openly. "So I guess there must be a lot of questions everyone wanted to ask, shall we get started?"

"Is there anything you want to know?" Lily asked warmly when Harry and Ginny was not responding to Remus' invitation.

"There are a lot of things I want to know but not sure how to get started." Harry admitted. "The only people I ever knew were Remus and – Sirius."

"How about you start with telling us about the future?" James prompted.

"Okay, erm.. both of you er.. died.. on Halloween's night when I was one year old." Harry summarized. What had happened to him all these years were too lengthy to be repeated over a short breakfast. "Then I was sent to stay with Aunt Petunia." Lily gasped before regaining composure in a few seconds. "When I was eleven, I received my Hogwarts letter and Hagrid helped me a lot to get use to this life. He was the one who bought Hedwig, my owl, for me." He turned to look at Stefanie who nodded supportively. "Then on my third year, Sirius Black escaped from Azkaban-"

"How can I even get into Azkaban in the first place?" Sirius exclaimed, scandalized at the fact that he was a prisoner.

"Padfoot, calm down." James pulled Sirius back to his sitting position.

"Actually Pettigrew was the one who betrayed everyone." Everyone gasped in shock.

"W-wormtail?" James asked.

"H-how-?" Remus was at a loss of words too.

"Yes. That bastard was on Voldemort's side." Harry's voice was filled with anger. "And then after that Sirius got killed by Bellatrix."

"That bitch." Sirius stood up again, muttering profanities, but this time, Remus and James pulled him back to his seat.

"Many more people had sacrificed; even Dumbledore was killed by Snape-"

"What?" All of them were shocked to hear that even their most respected wizard was killed by the slimiest git on earth.

"H-how could that be possible?" Lily spluttered.

"It was possible. The Deatheaters entered Hogwarts led by Draco Malfoy. Snape was a double agent." Harry closed his eyes, as though the thoughts were too painful to be reminded.

"Let's not continue on. It's too much for them." Arabella intervened, seeing that Harry was struggling with his memories.

"Harry, we talk about this later." James said solemnly. He handed Harry a goblet of milk.

"Harry, take a sip first." Ginny patted Harry's back and moving the goblet closer to his mouth. "All these years have been difficult for him." Ginny continued for Harry. "He was known as The-Boy-Who-Lived since he defeated Voldemort when he was one. The name Harry Potter was famous in the wizarding world and his lightning shaped scar on his forehead that had vanished along with Voldemort's death. He came face-to-face with Voldemort when he was in first year; saved me from Tom Riddle and the Basilisk in the second; fight with dementors and found the truth of Pettigrew in the third; took part in the Tri-wizard tournament and witness our fellow schoolmate's death in front of Voldemort in the fourth; undergo all the emotional stress and set up the Dumbledore's Army in the fifth; witness Dumbledore's death in his sixth and finally vanquishing the dark lord in his final year." Ginny told all of them. "It wasn't an easy life for him as what other might think."

"Harry, we're sorry to hear that." James said softly while the rest remain quiet.

"It's not any of your faults." Harry mumbled inaudibly. "It's all Voldemort's doing."

"Harry, we'll try to make it up for you." Lily's eyes were wet, feeling sorry to hear such a traumatizing experience her future son had to go through.

"That's not the point." Harry looked up. "We're here hoping to change the past so all our lives will be easier than what we had gone through and to avoid all the unnecessary casualties. I don't know how much time we've here, but Voldemort must be defeated before we're gone." Ginny gave him a support pat on his back.

"Well said, speak like a Potter indeed." Sirius added encouragingly. "Meanwhile let's eat more so we can have the energy we need to defeat Voldemort." Everyone could not help but laughed slightly at Sirius' carefree comment.