Author's Note: I was so happy by the enormous amount of reviews I got for the last chapter (I got 9!) that I was thinking I should "hold my story hostage" more often. Thanks SO much to everyone who reviewed. You all made my day on Saturday. I tried to update sooner, but life kind of got in the way, so sorry about that. :)
Again, thanks for so many reviews! Honestly, I was only expecting two or three, but seven is… well, it's kind of unbelievable. I think that's a record for a single chapter for me. :) Thanks again, reviewers, you guys are absolutely amazing. Enjoy the next chapter, and if you could review this one too, that'd be great! :)
Chapter 15: Back at Kings Cross
"Daddy, where's Teddy going?" Four-year-old James asked as he tugged on my sleeve.
I smiled at my eldest son. "Teddy's going to Hogwarts." I told him.
James eyes lit up. Ginny and I had been telling him a lot of stories about Hogwarts, and if it were up to him, James would be boarding the Hogwarts Express that very day. "Really?" he asked in amazement.
"Really."
"Daddy?" asked three-year-old Albus quietly. "What's Hogwarts?"
"Hogwarts is a special school for witches and wizards just like us." I said with a smile. "You'll get to go there when you're eleven."
Albus frowned. "Eleven is a big number."
"Yes, it is, Al. But it isn't really as big as you think. You'll see."
"I'm going to be in Gryffindor when I go to Hogwarts, aren't I, Daddy?" James asked.
"I'm sure you will James." I replied.
It took five minutes to load you, the boys, plus fifteen-month-old Lily into the car, but we made it. Andromeda had asked me to Kings Cross station for your first year at Hogwarts, and was happy to agree, but after about ten minutes in the car, I was beginning to regret bringing my entire family along. James and Albus, even at such a young age, constantly bickered, and this car ride was no exception. You, as usual, tried to settle the arguments, but almost as soon as one stopped, another began.
"My broom's better than yours!" James exclaimed, holding up a tiny model of a racing broom.
"No, mine!" Albus argued, gesturing to his own broom.
"I like them both." You told them. "They're both special in their own way."
I gave you a grateful smile through the rearview mirror. The boys' arguing gave me a headache, and made it nearly impossible to drive, as if I wasn't bad enough at it already. I wasn't too terrible, considering I had rode in a car when my uncle Vernon drove. Then again, Vernon wasn't the best driver either. He was the kind of driver who would cut people off on purpose, where I, maybe once or twice, may have done it on accident. Unfortunately, the peace did not last long, and soon James and Albus broke into another argument. I was thankfully when I finally turned into a King's Cross parking lot and somehow managed to successful park.
As we approached the barrier between platforms nine and ten, you looked around in confusion and said, "I thought we were supposed to go to platform nine and three quarters. Where is it?"
I smiled. "You, Teddy are extremely luckily that your godfather is not in Azkaban for a crime he didn't commit and your grandmother is still alive. You have someone to show you where to go, something I didn't have. I'm lucky I found the Weasleys, though." I said, and kissed Ginny on the cheek.
"Yeah, I know, Harry you've told me before… and I'm very grateful, honestly I am, but that still doesn't answer my question."
I smiled mischievously. "Teddy, I want you to grab on to your cart, and when I say go you run." I instructed.
You gave me a strange look, but did as you were told. I warped my arms around you and placed both hands on your cart, to help guide you in the right direction, and then looked around briefly. There were no muggles in sight. "Ready, Teddy?" I asked, and you nodded.
"Alright… go!" I exclaimed, and we began to run toward the barrier.
"Harry, what are you doing?" You cried as you realized where we were going. "Are you in—?"
You stopped talking as we crashed through the barrier and arrived at platform nine and three quarters and gazed around in amazement. "That was amazing!" you exclaimed. "This place is so cool!"
I chuckled. "Just wait to you get to Hogwarts. That's where the adventure really begins."
Just then, the rest of my family crashed through the barrier. Lily's eyes were wide with shock as she was unsure what had happened, but the boys looked as though they were experiencing the best day of their lives. "That was cool!" James exclaimed.
You smiled at your little "brother". "It was, wasn't it!"
As Ginny and I helped you load your things on the train, you hesitantly tapped me on the shoulder. "Harry?" You asked timidly. "Do you think I'll be in Gryffindor?"
I smiled encouragingly. "I think there's a very good chance of that. And besides, if you think the sorting hat is leaning towards putting you in a different house, you can ask it about putting you in Gryffindor."
"Really?" you asked.
"Really."
You wrapped your arms around me and gave me a giant hug, and then ran off and boarded the train. A few minutes later, your face appeared in the window, along with the faces of two other boys. As the train pulled away, I found myself to have tears in my eyes.
About a week later, I received a letter from you.
Dear Harry,
Guess what? I got sorted into Gryffindor! The sorting hat didn't even consider any other house at all. I made three new friends. Michael Wood is the son of Oliver Wood, the famous Quidditch player! I guess that's not all that amazing, since James, Al, and Lily are yours and Ginny kids. He and another one of my friends, Alex Muellenton, are in my dorm. There's also Alex's sister, Amanda – or Mandy, as she likes to be called – who's really nice too.
I really like Hogwarts so far. My favorite class is Defense Against the Dark Arts. Are you going to come and teach our class? Professor Clearton said you did that before. I can't wait to come home for Christmas though.
Love, Teddy
During the next few months, I got several letters from Professor McGonagall, saying that you had landed yourself in detention. You really were your father's son. The worst letter I ever received from Professor McGonagall came in January.
Dear Mr. Potter,
I wish to inform you that your godson, Teddy Lupin has seriously injured a student using sectumsempra. Mr. Lupin will not be expelled, but he will spend a detention with Deputy Headmistress Lucianna Pasen.
Sincerely,
Minerva McGonagall
Thinking back, I realized it was partially my fault you had used the sectumsempra spell on a student. A couple of months previous, you had asked me what the worst spell I ever used was, not counting an unforgivable curse. I told you it was the sectumsempra curse, but I also told you to never to use it. Quickly, I wrote you a letter to express my disappointment.
Teddy,
I am very disappointed in you. You should know better than that. If I say never to do something, don't do it. Do I make myself clear? I demand an explanation, but don't expect me to change my mind.
Love,
Harry
You replied within the following day.
Dear Harry,
I'm really sorry about using that spell and disobeying you, but I didn't know what it would do. But there was this Slytherin in my potions class who called my dad a coward who never wanted me or Mum and abandoned us, which isn't true. Yeah, I know you said he left Mum at Grandma's for a little bit, but he came back! Charles also said that he was "a two-faced go-between who only wanted what was best for him", and that's why Voldemort had Dolohov kill him, but that's not true either. My dad was a very good man… wasn't he? So that's why I used the spell on him. I know I shouldn't have, but he just made me so mad. Are you mad at me?
Love,
Teddy
I wrote a reply immediately, saying no, I wasn't mad just disappointed, and yes, your father was a wonderful man, who not only fought valiantly in the battle of Hogwarts, he gave his life to give you a better one. Because of the discrimination against werewolves, I always knew people would confront you about your father, and that you would stand up for him. I just didn't think it would be that soon, and that extreme.