Still haven't found the money to buy Harry Potter or one of his friends from J.K. Rowling. Oh well, at least the story's mine.
Ginny and Hermione were the first to arrive, followed quickly by the rest of the Weasleys, Lupin and Tonks, Professor Magonagall, Hagrid, and the Dursleys. Ginny practically ran to Harry's open arms. Hermione followed in a dignified walk laughing at Ginny's joy at the mere presence of Harry. Harry spun Ginny around in his arms before setting her lightly on her feet and kissing her gently. He released her to greet his other guests. Hermione gave him a sisterly hug saying, "Happy Birthday Harry." "Thanks Hermione," Harry said setting her gently from him. "Sorry I've been so distant with you and Ron this summer, I've been a little busy as you can see." "No, really Harry?" Ron asked sarcastically as he joined the three of them. "You have no idea" Harry replied smiling, "Just ask Ginny if you don't believe me." Ron and Hermione turned a questioning look at Ginny as Harry excused himself to greet the others, Dobby and Squeaky were running around happily serving everyone drinks and food. He spent about a half an hour talking to everyone and making them feel comfortable before taking his aunt aside. "I have a surprise for you but it may be a bit of a shock," Harry told her, "Would you like Uncle Vernon with you?" Aunt Petunia thought for a moment looking fearfully at her nephew. "I think so Harry. I'm sorry, I'm afraid I didn't get your or Lily's courage." "Don't worry about it Aunt Petunia, go and drag Uncle Vernon away from whoever he's comparing status with and meet me in the sitting room off of the entry foyer." Harry told her smiling at her. He signaled Ginny that he was leaving the garden as Petunia went to collect her husband. Ginny nodded, assuring Harry that she would play hostess while Harry gave his aunt a chance to meet her sister's echo privately.
Harry had Aunt Petunia sit in a large armchair with Vernon standing behind her. He told them both to relax and he would be back in a moment. "This had better not be any of his weirdo stuff" Uncle Vernon growled to Aunt Petunia quietly. "Whatever it is, you will accept it graciously Vernon," she said in a mildly threatening voice. "It's really very kind of him to give us anything after how we treated him." They were still bickering amongst themselves when Harry came back.
"Petunia, welcome to my son's home" Lily said from the hall. Petunia Dursley's argument with her husband died as soon as she heard her sister's voice. "What's wrong my dear?" Uncle Vernon asked. He was turning to start in on Harry for upsetting his wife when Aunt Petunia stopped him, "Lily…" Lily nodded as she entered the room followed by her husband. "How is this possible?" Petunia asked as she stood up weakly. "You both died seventeen years ago." She turned to her husband in confusion.
"There's nothing wrong with your eyes Petunia," James said in an amused voice. "We are both here and as real as we were seventeen years ago." Aunt Petunia was still staring at the sight of her dead sister and brother-in-law when Lily walked to her hugged her.
"Well, how is this possible?" Uncle Vernon asked terrified.
"Harry wanted to give his aunt the one gift he knew she would truly appreciate, the chance to talk to her sister again" James answered him, "So he cast a charm that created a kind of solid echo of us"
"So you're not real?" Aunt Petunia asked.
"For discussional purposes we are real, but not alive Petunia" Lily said releasing her. "No spell can bring us back from the dead; our bodies are still buried in the garden. We can linger in this solid form for only a short time, but we were all willing to try so that Harry could have a proper coming of age party and deal with some things that we didn't have the opportunity to settle before we died."
"Speaking of which," James said. "That's for treating my son like a piece of gutter trash." He said after punching Vernon Dursley hard enough to send him sprawling to the floor.
"James!!" cried an outraged Lily.
"No Lily, we had it coming. I'm surprised that you didn't slap me to the floor for treating Harry the way we did." Petunia said miserably.
"Oh Petunia I understand, you were trying to make him miserable enough that his powers would fade like mine did before James and I got together. You hoped to keep him safe by keeping him out of the magical world." Lily said in a reassuring voice.
"Besides, we know that Vernon came up with the idea" James said. "Forgive me for punching your husband. I may understand it but I just don't like the way that Vernon has always treated you and Harry."
"That's the second time this summer I've been knocked to the floor by a Potter, "Uncle Vernon grumbled rubbing his jaw.
"One would have thought you would have learned from the first time Vernon," James said. He turned and helped Uncle Vernon off of the floor. "That reminds me," he continued glaring at Uncle Vernon. "I may fade from this world soon enough but my son will not. Petunia will always have him if you ever mistreat her again. Remember that Vernon." Uncle Vernon was too shocked and scared to do anything more than nod. Petunia was staring dumbfounded at first Lily, then James, then Harry.
"Mum told me about some of the early years of your marriage to help me understand why you treated me the way you did." Harry said quietly, "I don't know how or why you stayed with him and it's none of my business really, but if he ever does something you don't like again you let me know and I'll be there for you."
Aunt Petunia smiled and, for the first time in a very long time felt free to say what she felt. "Thank you all" she said. Finally everyone understood each other, Harry introduced Dudley to his parents and they spent another hour together as Harry's family before rejoining the party.
"Did everything go okay?" Ginny asked, "You were in there a long time."
"Yeah, Dad had a few more issues to deal with than I expected. But I think we got it all sorted." Harry said apologetically to her. He moved away from her to stand directly in front of his parents graves. Everyone quit talking and looked at Harry, sensing that he had something to say and everyone wanted to hear it. "Thank you all for coming," He began uncertainly. "I know that you all loved my parents and have tried to protect me since their untimely deaths. I also know that there is no proper way to thank you and none of you require one. And still I would give you a gift if you would accept it that is as close to a fitting thank you as I can imagine." Harry paused to look at each guest, and after seeing each nod to assure him that they would indeed accept any gift he chose to give them, he said, "I'd like everyone to turn around, I believe my parents would very much like to speak with all of you" There was a collective gasp as everyone's head whipped around to face the house where James and Lily stood. The reactions were like Harry expected.
No one moved for a long few minutes until James smiled and said, "Welcome to our coming of age party for Harry." Life returned to the garden in a rush. McGonagall, Hagrid, the Weasley children all walked to them and either hugged them both or merely said hello and shook James' hand. Molly Weasley fainted on sight of James and Lily, her husband caught her and stared at Harry's parents in disbelief, while Remus Lupin staggered to a chair. Tonks stayed right by Lupin understanding what a shock this was for him. Tears flowed freely from all eyes, but no one seemed to be embarrassed about it.
Ron, and Hermione were the only people other than Ginny not to make a beeline for James and Lily. Rather, they went straight to Harry.
"So this is why you wanted to know how to boost your magical powers." Ron exclaimed, clapping him on the back.
"Yeah, sorry guys, but I didn't know I could do it and I didn't want everyone to get all excited only to be let down if I failed." Harry said rather sheepishly.
"Harry, this is absolutely amazing." Hermione said throwing her arms around him. "I better not ever hear you doubt your abilities again. You realize, of course, that you're only the second person in history to properly cast this charm."
"How do you know that Hermione?" Ron and Ginny asked astonished at the same time.
"Well, I read about it in a book about famous wizarding feats when Harry got stuck in the Tri-Wizard Tournament. And if Harry learned how to cast it he must have learned that only Merlin ever succeeded in casting it though thousands have tried." All three of the other teens stared at her, simply amazed again at her extensive knowledge of magic and its history.
Remus Lupin had his head in his hands trying to pull himself together when two very familiar pairs of hands lifted him bodily from his chair at the same time that he heard James say, "Mooney, my old friend, we owe you so much." James folded his friend in a strong hug tears flowing from his eyes
"James, Lily, How?" He asked in a stunned voice.
"You'll have to thank our son for this chance to finish unfinished business. He cast that charm Merlin perfected that we learned about in history of Magic seventh year." James said with smile.
"Harry cast that spell by himself?" Lupin gasped.
"Well he may have had a little help from Ginny" Lily said, "At least she was there with her arms around him when he cast it, but other than that yeah."
James released Lupin so that Lily could hug him and kiss his cheek, "Thank you" she said softly.
"I knew he was powerful, but that is truly unbelievable." Lupin said staring at Harry with a new respect.
"Remind me not to get into a duel with him," Tonks said awe inspired.
"I'll take that as a compliment" Both of his parents said at the same time. All four laughed,
"Moony, I'm afraid you haven't yet introduced us to the lovely and charming lady beside you." James reminded Lupin.
"Oh, forgive me for that. Your appearance came as a bit of a shock. This is Nymphadora Tonks, My fiancée" Lupin said proudly.
"Please don't call me Nymphadora," Tonks whined.
"Who would much rather be known as Tonks." Lupin finished as James and Lily roared with laughter. "My dear, James and Lily Potter were two of the best friends anyone could have." Lupin told his fiancée with a warm smile.
"It's a pleasure to meet you both." Tonks said with a delightful smile. "Remus has told me so much about you both, especially you James. I'm curious though, he told me many tales of the Marauders but neglected to tell my which name belonged to whom. Which are you?"
James laughed even harder at Remus' omissions . "I'm Prongs" he said catching his breath, "and congratulations both of you."
"I assume he did remember to tell you of, to quote my husband, his furry little problem?" Lily asked her. Tonks looked questioningly at Lupin causing him to laugh a little at her expression.
"She is well aware that I am a werewolf Lily." He answered for Tonks, "while we were at school, or anytime we were around unfriendly people, James call my condition my furry little problem so we didn't get attacked or tossed out in the street." Lupin explained to Tonks causing her to laugh at the image this presented.
James turned serious for a moment, "Remus, we owe you an apology. We changed the secret keeper to Wormtail at the last minute."
"At Sirius' request, I know James. You don't need to apologize to me." Lupin cut him off.
"How did you know?" asked an astonished Lily.
"Sirius showed up at Hogwarts while I was teaching there and told me." He replied. "Actually, I should apologize to you. Harry, Ron, Hermione, Sirius, and I had Peter chained that night. But I had forgotten to take the Wolfsbane Potion that night." Lupin stared at the ground and paused.
"Okay, so exactly why would you owe us an apology?" James asked confused.
"It was a full moon that night James, I transformed and Peter escaped while Sirius fought with me to protect the kids. That's not even the worst part James. I nearly killed Sirius, but I heard a wolf's call. It was Hermione and Harry, I nearly bit them both." Lupin was crying openly now, but James and Lily both pulled him into a three-sided hug.
"You have nothing to feel guilty for Remus. We know better than anyone that you can't control yourself when you transform without the potion." " And I know that the chance to catch our betrayer would have made you forget to save your own life" said James.
"Besides, if the fact that James and Lily are here is any indication, Remus, you're bloody lucky Harry liked you or you might not be here" Tonks said lightly drawing a laugh from all of them.
"Mum, Dad, I hate to interrupt but I have two people I'd like you to meet." Harry said timidly, "And by the way congratulations you two" he added to Lupin and Tonks.
"No interruption Harry," his mother said, "we were just going to tell Remus about Sirius not betraying us but he tells us he already knew. Something about you and a couple of friends capturing Peter and then having to run for your lives when he transformed." She said smiling.
"Uh, yeah, Sirius really saved our butts on that one." Harry said, "Speaking of that little adventure, I'd like you to meet Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger my best friends and the two that were with me that night."
"It's truly an honor to meet you finally," Ron and Hermione said shaking both Lily and James' hands.
"Oh no, we are the honored ones," Lily said hugging them both. "Thank you for staying by Harry's side. I understand that he takes after me, which would mean he is unusually talented at getting into trouble." James said smiling at his son.
"Well, trouble does seem to seek him out" Ron said smiling slightly.
James and Lily laughed, "Well said Ron," Lily said.
"Yes, Harry you better not lose this one. Not many friends would try to keep you out of trouble with your own parents." James said still laughing.
"True enough, Mr. Potter." Hermione said, "But I have to say from what I've read, you really need to see Harry fly to see how he really takes after you."
"Oh yeah, James" Lupin said seriously, "he flies just like you, with a different style. You just gotta see this."
"Well, there's no time like the present is there?" Lily asked grinning at father and son.
"Yes ma'am" they both said as they walked to the broom shed.
Harry and James made their way to the broom shed through the small groups of people talking about everything from Harry's future, to the house's size. Uncle Vernon had stayed while Harry had opened his gifts just before he had surprised everyone with his parents' echoes, then excused himself saying that he had a lot of work to get caught up on at home. Dudley had stayed though, he was currently laughing with Fred and George Weasley about some of their latest products. Harry smiled when he heard Dudley tell them about the time he swallowed one of their Ton-Tongue-Toffees. They heard Aunt Petunia talking with Hagrid and Professor McGonagall about Sirius Black's unexpected death.
"It was so sad," McGonagall said, "He had just found him the previous year."
"Tha' boy can' git a break nowhere" growled Hagrid, "it just ain righ't."
Harry and his Father had just reached the broom shed when an explosion of angry voices rent the quiet garden air. Harry turned to the house to see an older woman and a man about his age both with sleek blond hair. Harry also noticed that half of his guests had drawn their wands. "Enough!" he shouted. The crowd parted miraculously as every head snapped around to stare at Harry. Narcissa and Draco Malfoy were both standing before him looking scared and careworn. "Hello Draco, Mrs. Malfoy." Harry began moving toward them as he spoke, "Welcome to my parents home, what can I do for you?" he asked graciously. The entire party gasped as both Malfoys sank to their knees in front of him.
"We need a safe place to live Mr. Potter" began Narcissa as Draco scowled. "You are the owner, I presume, of my aunt's home number twelve Grimmauld Place."
"I am" Harry stated.
"We have come to beg you to allow us to return to the safety of my aunt's home. Lucius will not survive long in the new ministry prison. And with Draco's quote failure to the Dark Lord, we must go into hiding or be destroyed" Narcissa said quietly trying to hide her tears.
Harry surveyed them both regally and then spoke to Draco. "Would you have killed Professor Dumbledore if the other death eaters hadn't arrived Draco?" he asked.
"No, I tried, but I couldn't make myself cast the spell. He was right I'm not a killer, I just wanted to save my family." Draco said embarrassed. "And with Sirius dead, I have no family to go to. I am sorry we had to disrupt your party."
Narcissa had just finished saying these words when Sirius' voice rang out. "Twice wrong dear cousin." Everyone gasped again and turned to the gate. Siruis stood leaning against the fence with his eyes flashing in pure hatred. "Firstly, I am not dead. Secondly, you were wrong to even show your face to Harry. What makes you think that Harry will give a house-elf's backside whether or not you or any of your evil family is destroyed by your master? Harry lost both of his parents to him surely you can pay for following him." Harry listened to Sirius rage in a state of shock.
But as Sirius finished Harry realized that he had a real problem. He was the rightful owner on Number Twelve Grimauld Place according to Sirius' already executed will, But Sirius certainly appeared to be alive and well. "Well, as your cousin seems to dispute the fact that he is dead I would say you must speak with him about returning to Number Twelve. After all it is his home.
"Actually Harry," Sirius began "It is not. My will is a binding magical contract, once executed all transfers are irrevocable." Harry looked stunned at him.
"What would you like for me to do with it Sirius?" he asked.
"I couldn't care less Harry."
"So you have no desire to return to your house Sirius," Harry stated raising his eyebrows mockingly.
"Not just no, but Hell no. I have no intention of setting foot in that foul place ever again." Sirius vowed. "In fact you can give the house to my cousin, otherwise burn it to the ground. And make sure that my mother's hideous portrait burns with it" he said staring at Narcissa coldly.
"Very well," Harry said turning back to the Malfoys. "Mrs. Malfoy, I am legally the head of your family now in accordance with your cousins will and as such I am charged with seeing to the well being of your family. Therefore in response to your son's honesty I will allow you to live at number twelve however, I will retain ownership of the estate until one of two conditions are met."
"Name the conditions my lord" Narcissa said respectfully bowing her head and elbowing her son to indicate that he should lower his gaze as well.
"One, You and your son renounce all practice of the Dark Arts and you file for divorce from Lucius Malfoy." Everyone gasped as Harry made his demands. "Two, you and your son renounce the Dark Arts and Voldemort and all of his followers are vanquished so as not to threaten the wizarding world ever again. I do not need these conditions met now, in fact I suggest that you both go now to Number twelve and spend the next several weeks closely examining your lives and options" Harry finished dismissing them both as if they were not worthy of more of his time. Narcissa nodded and the pair left. As soon as they were gone Harry and his friends bombarded Sirius with questions about how he returned from the dead.
"Whoa," Sirius said holding his hands up. "I didn't return from the dead because I was never dead. The veil in the Department Of Mysteries execution chamber is a portkey, it transports the condemned to place on the coast of the island that Askaban is on. Of course, the condemned usually go through without a wand. I, on the other hand, had a wand so I was able to fight of the Dementors that usually do the killing." Sirius explained a very confused group of friends. His voice trailed off as he spotted James and Lily, "How is this possible?" he asked them astonished.
James stepped up to his friend, put his arm around his shoulders and proceeded to explain about the charm Harry had cast, as well as everything Sirius had missed earlier in the party. "In fact, Harry and I were just about to settle who was the best Potter seeker before your cousin and her son interrupted us." James said smiling at the gasp that passed through the garden.
"Were you now?" Sirius asked grinning. "Well then, I'll just let you two get to it and enjoy the show with everyone else."
Harry and his Father laughed as the crowd backed away to give them room. James pulled a golden snitch from his pocket, "We face the house until your mother says go." He told Harry releasing the snitch, which promptly disappeared. Lily watched it go and waited another two minutes before starting the match. Both men streaked into the air like bullets from a gun. James stayed low to the ground while Harry soared above the garden both desperately searching for the snitch.
Sirius was standing next to Ginny, Ron, and Hermione saying, "exactly opposite styles" he said thoughtfully. Suddenly Harry started one of his breathtaking dives and James shot up extremely fast. They met at about twenty feet, and both grabbed the snitch and hung on for dear life.
"NO WAY, A PERFECT DRAW!!" Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and Sirius all exclaimed in total shock as Harry and James sank to the ground still fighting to tear the snitch out of the others hand.
"Well, I expected a close match but this is unbelievable" Sirius was telling the others as Harry discussed the match with his Dad.
"What was with you trimming the grass?" he asked. James laughed, "I never could dive well, I was much better at a sharp climb. If you fly low enough you can kick off the ground and get a boost on your climb. Good thing too, because you saw it first and that dive had me torched." He said clapping Harry on the back and smiling at him.
"You were right Moony; the boy can fly like a bird." James said leaving Harry's side to go and join the discussion around Sirius.
Ginny forced her way to Harry hugging him tightly and whispering "You were fantastic up there." Harry just smiled and kissed her,
"Feel like a victory lap?" he asked her. "I thought you'd never ask." Ginny said.
They flew around the grounds enjoying the freedom flying brought them both. Harry felt him before he saw or heard him. Ginny just happened to look down on the front walk as the Dark Lord apparated at the far end of the lane and slowly walked toward the house with his wand drawn. Ginny gasped and turned her head to give Harry a look of warning. Harry merely smiled, tightened his hold on her allowing her to relax into his chest as he flew lazily out to meet his nemesis. "Good evening, Mr. Riddle" Harry called down quietly in parseltongue. Lord Voldemort looked up at them after recovering from the shock of being addressed. "Do not bother to try to curse us Tom, you don't mind if I call you Tom do you? I rather felt that we may as well dispense with the formalities." Ginny was shocked to see Riddle's wand falter.
"Why should I not curse you Mr. Potter?" Riddle asked his wand snapping back to normal height.
"Two reasons Tom, and please feel free to call me Harry" Harry replied lightly. "First, it would be a complete waste of time and energy as I would just block the curse before it reached us. Secondly, your cursing me would make it more difficult for me to welcome you to my birthday party. And I would really rather be able to welcome you into my garden so we could sit down and discuss a few things. So unless you intend to be unusually rude even for your standards, leave your wand with the house elf behind you and join us in the garden."
Riddle nodded and turned to see Dobby glaring at him, "Your wand sir" Dobby said with an almost sarcastic emphasis on the "sir". Riddle regarded him warily and after a moment's hesitation surrendered his wand. "I will place your wand in the guest wand cabinet, when you leave the grounds your wand will return to you at your summons" Dobby informed him in an official tone. Riddle nodded as Dobby muttered and incantation and his wand disappeared. "If you will follow me sir" Dobby said leading him around the side of the house.
Harry and Ginny landed in the garden knowing that their preparation time was short. Harry had a very distinct plan for the conversation with Voldemort. "If I could have everyone's attention please" he called. The chatter died down instantly as everyone turned to their living host. "I need everyone to move away from the house and stand behind this table facing the house, Mum and Dad at the back if you please." Everyone looked at him slightly confused but did as he asked. "Thank you, now in a few moments Lord Voldemort is going to enter this garden," he paused as people gasped, and Ron and Hermione drew their wand looking murderous. "No one is to attack him, he has surrendered his wand temporarily, He is to be treated as an honored guest. However, everyone should address him as Tom. After he is seated and has been served, I want my parents to make their appearance. Everyone keep a hand on your wands though, just in case." Everyone nodded and Harry sat down and Ginny moved to stand with Ron and Hermione just to Harry's left, just before Dobby showed Voldemort into the garden.
Harry stood as Lord Voldemort entered the garden and looked around taking inventory of everyone there. "Welcome to my parent's home Tom. Please have a seat; we have a great deal to discuss." Harry said courteously.
"Thank you Harry," Voldemort said taking the chair Harry indicated, "However, as you know, I really am no longer Tom Riddle. Tom Riddle died in my seventh year giving birth to Lord Voldemort."
"I am aware of your nickname, and yet for all you have done you remain Tom Marvolo Riddle. Can I offer you a drink? Something to eat? You must be tired; after all it's a long journey from Little Hangelton is it not?" Harry asked politely.
"It is." Voldemort said with a slight smile, "Perhaps a small glass of wine."
"Of course," Harry said nodding to Squeaky who had been standing by for his order. Within moments she had set a dusty bottle of wine in front of him, a butterbeer in front of Harry, and a plate cheeses between them.
A heavy tension settled on the garden now, as Voldemort accepted the wineglass that Squeaky had filled for him. He sipped the wine and smiled to Harry, "I must compliment you on your wine cellar Harry, this is obviously an excellent year."
"Thank you, though I must confess that I know little of these things at my age. You should probably thank my Father, I'm sure that Squeaky brought out a bottle he would have served a guest of your significance." Harry said inclining his head toward the mahogany tree that grew over his parents graves. Voldemort looked briefly once following Harry's nod, then looked fearfully a second time. James and Lily stood on their respective graves staring unblinkingly at the table. Harry allowed the shock to sink in fully before saying, "You see Tom, even a great wizard like you is not entirely foolproof."
"Why do they not attack then?" Voldemort asked his voice shaking with fear.
"Because of the Prophecy Tom" Harry replied. "Yes, I know the entire Prophecy Tom. You have spent years and lost countless devout followers trying to steal what you could have merely asked for." Voldemort looked stunned. "The prophecy stated that the one with the power to vanquish you comes as the seventh month dies, born to those who have thrice defied you. It goes on to say that you will mark him as your equal, and he will have powers that you know not. It also says that neither can live while the other survives" Harry said calmly. Now Voldemort was really shocked,
"Well that's helpful now isn't it?" Voldemort muttered, "Why would you tell me this so freely when Dumbledore fought so hard to keep it hidden from me?"
"Dumbledore kept it from you until I understood it Tom, as I now understand it perfectly you knowing it is irrelevant." Harry answered him. "You see Tom, what the prophecy means is that you and I must meet in a duel. You marked me as your equal the night you tried to murder me, he gestured idly to his scar. You also gave me many of the same powers you possessed at the time, the ability to speak parseltounge for instance."
"So the prophecy means nothing more or less than you will have the power to vanquish me in a duel." Voldemort summarized.
"In a nutshell, yes Tom. Not that this is new information to you. After all I've already escaped from, let's see now, I believe we're up to three face to face encounters with you including one duel." Harry stared into Voldemort's soulless eyes with his own eyebrows raised as if asking a question. "Of course that's not counting the first attack that my mother died to save me from."
Voldemort had been getting steadily angrier as Harry's recounting his failure to kill Harry had progressed, now his eyes glowed scarlet and his hands shook as he glared daggers at Harry. These reactions were not lost to Harry or anyone else, no one doubted for a second that Harry was succeeding spectacularly in rattling Voldemort. Harry abruptly changed tactics. "No need to worry Tom. No one in this garden doubts your ability." Voldemort stared at Harry astonished. "you know we are more alike than you know Tom" Harry continued ignoring the stare. "We were both orphaned at a young age, neither of us ever really had a home, and we both liked to collect magical things."
"Really, Harry and what have you collected?" asked an intrigued Voldemort.
"Oh a little of this and that" Harry smiled and waved his wand. Several small items appeared on the table between them. Harry picked them up smiling as he remembered where they had all come from. "You see this is the first snitch I ever caught, I keep it to remember the feeling of being good at something, And this" he picked up a small photo album. "Was a gift from Hagrid to help me remember my family." Voldemort nodded truly captivated by the dialogue. "Next of course we have an album of my friends from school." He pointed to a slightly thicker album.
"Yes," Voldemort said thoughtfully surveying the small collection noticing the basilisk fang and the dagger that looked like the sword of Gryffindor. "I can see that these would be very important to you Harry, but tell me are you ever concerned with losing them or perhaps someone stealing them?" Voldemort was smiling a dark smile now.
"Oh, no Tom." Harry replied laughing "I keep them, like you, in places that are important to me.
Voldemort began to stare into Harry's eyes as he said, "Really, and where do you feel is important, Hogwarts perhaps?"
Lily silently flicked her wand before Harry answered. "Well of course Hogwarts Tom, next there's the house at Godric's Hollow not unlike your grandfather's home is it not?" Voldemort's eyes flashed. "Then there's this house just like Riddle Manor to you. Then there's the Chamber of Secrets." Voldemort's eyes turned scarlet as many people gasped behind Harry. "Well it was the scene of our first real meeting Tom" Harry said smiling.
Voldemort couldn't stand it anymore. "You are confident now Harry Potter, surrounded by more powerful witches and wizards than you can ever hope to be. Enjoy it while it lasts, soon you will have to face me one on one again and when we meet I will be ready. You will die Harry Potter, for no one can kill me." Voldemort was nearly shouting as he finished his vow. He stood to leave but Dudley, of all people, stepped in front of him. Voldemort's eyes narrowed as he glared at Harry's cousin. Their movement's were lighting fast and both were deadly accurate. Voldemort's hand flashed out as he summoned his wand while Dudley's ham sized fists flew into a whirlwind of punches. Voldemort took punches to the stomach and head in rapid succession for perhaps five seconds before dropping to the ground as his wand finally found his hand. Harry reacted instantly and cast a banishing charm causing Voldemort to fly into the stone wall around the garden.
"You have no idea how powerful I have become Tom. I look forward to our next meeting." Harry's voice had an ice-cold tone and a deadly edge to it. Voldemort stared at him with pure hatred for a long moment, then fled from the garden.
A sigh of relief escaped almost everyone in the garden. Harry continued to stare at the gate that Lord Voldemort had just left through. His parents said nothing; they just moved to hug him along with Ginny who was muttering "Evil git." Ron however burst out laughing.
Everyone turned to give him dirty looks, but Hermione and Molly were the ones to ask, "Just what do you find so hilarious Ronald?"
"The fact that Lord Voldemort came here to intimidate Harry or worse, but thanks to Harry and Dudley's quick thinking and reactions he just left here nearly wetting and soiling himself." Ron replied still laughing.
Harry smiled, "Leave it to Ron to find something funny in the worst situation" he said. Just like that the tension in the air dissolved and everyone laughed with Ron until the tears were streaming from all of their eyes.