A/N: Thank you for all the reviews and the alerts. I didn't expect this story to be appealing at all.
Again, please tell me what you think!
By the way, my next update on all my stories will probably be next week since I have midterms this week and I won't be able to write much. Hope you understand.
CHAPTER TWO: Shocking Revelations
"Harry Potter?" James repeated, scanning his mind for anyone named Harry in the family. He couldn't think of anyone though. He had never heard that name before. Potter wasn't an uncommon family name, and yet they were the only Potters he knew in the Wizarding World. It was quite odd to hear all of this from Dumbledore. This information suddenly drew James nearer and nearer to the edge of his seat. "I don't know of any Harry Potter in our family, sir," he said. "Is he someone related to me?"
Dumbledore was silent for a moment. Remus thought that the man was unsure of something, but no one really knows what goes through the Headmaster's mind. He can be pretty mysterious if he wanted to. Many called the man mad, but Remus had always thought that Dumbledore was a genius. He leaned closer, folding his hand and setting his arms on his leg, bent over. Because of the look he found on Dumbledore's face, all this somehow fascinated him, just like James.
"Well," started Dumbledore, "you don't know him just yet." James raised an eyebrow. Sirius scratched his head. They thought arriving at the office would give them answers, but apparently it probably had taken them farther and farther away from being enlightened and nearer to being confused. Dumbledore cleared his throat as his eyes set on Lily. "First," he said, "let's make one thing clear. This is the last you'll remember of our meeting here."
"What?" said Sirius suddenly. "Professor! What's going on?" He was very irritated by now, since they hadn't had any answers yet, just more and more questions to their minds. It was somehow past confusing for them. Sirius leaned back on the couch, waiting for Dumbledore to explain himself clearly. Although he was getting impatient, he knew his outbursts would get them nowhere so he decided to keep hi mouth shut. Besides, it was James who eyed him to do so in the first place.
Dumbledore whipped out his wand. "I must remind you that this is really going to be awkward for all of us in this room. It is not an easy discussion, this one we're going to talk about. But for now," Dumbledore slowly said, "I will tell you about Harry Potter." He looked gravely at James and Lily. James could feel a bad news coming right at them. "Harry Potter is-"
"Let me guess," interrupted Sirius, quite eager to finish the discussion. "Harry Potter is James' missing brother and now you've found him." He stopped, but it didn't take him long to finish his conclusion. "But why did you have the rest of us in here too, Professor?" He looked sideways at James. "I'm sure Pr-I mean James could very well handle this on his own." Remus and James could both tell that Sirius was either getting bored or he wanted to speed the news up just because he wanted the answers to come right at him.
Dumbledore patiently shook his head. "Wrong, Mr. Black," he replied gently. "Now please, let me finish." Sirius let out a sigh and indicated that he wasn't about to interrupt again any time soon. "Harry Potter is your son." His eyes looked at James. James blinked thrice. Dumbledore then turned to Lily. "And he is also yours."
"Does this mean…?" Sirius once again said, eyes wide open. He looked at Lily and James who looked just as stunned. All four students'' mouths went dry. They were only seventeen. Of course marriage would have crossed Lily and James' mind every now and then, but this was a shocker. Married, have a son…what else could Dumbledore know? Sirius looked at the pair then back at Dumbledore. "What about me, sir?" he asked. "Did get to marry Elaine Watchers?" There was no doubt that Sirius was hopeful about it.
James saw a trace of sadness in Dumbledore's eyes. "I'm afraid not," Dumbledore replied honestly. "Things got very complicated when you graduated out of Hogwarts. Messy things took place." His eyes shifted from one teenager to another. Dumbledore spotted Lily holding James' hand, but he did not voice out his thought of telling them to cherish every moment of them hand holding of theirs. Dumbledore looked at the four. "What I am about to tell you would probably shock you off your seats," he said, "and that is why I had no intention of bringing Mr. Pettigrew here."
"Did he do anything wrong?" asked Lily, who had been quite silent because of her astonishment. She was confused but still pleased that she would have a son with James in the future, but he would rather not express her feelings just yet. She knew there was something wrong, because she had never seen the Headmaster looked so concerned. Usually, he was pretty lax with the boys, even if they had gotten into too much trouble.
Dumbledore tried not to meet any of the teenagers' eyes as he said it, "He betrayed Lily and James." All four pairs of eyes widened. James' heart was thumping like mad, jumping around his chest. He didn't know what to feel. "He was their Secret Keeper. There was this man who hunted you down, a vicious killer. Peter, he gave you away to the man. This…This led to your," Dumbledore finally met James' eyes, "deaths." James felt a frog being chucked down his throat and he couldn't find any word to say. Peter, after all, was one of their closest friends. "I'm sorry, James," added Dumbledore.
Sirius, enraged, stood up from the couch. "I wouldn't have let Peter be their Secret Keeper," he roared quite loudly. Remus was surprised. He had never seen Sirius so angry before. "That little rat couldn't keep a secret." He looked at James, then back at Dumbledore. "But, James is my best friend. I believe he would have picked me to be Secret Keeper and-" He stopped and stared at Dumbledore. "How the hell do you know all this?" he demanded.
"Sirius!" Remus hissed.
Dumbledore held up his hand. "It's all right," he said. Dumbledore pointed his want at the other side of the room. A scroll flew towards them. Dumbledore caught it in midair. "You see," he began, "I managed to acquire this scroll. It's a deadly thing to play with time, to know so much about the future." Dumbledore opened the scroll. "It says here that Harry Potter is now eighteen, just a year older than you are. It doesn't go much into detail what's happening in the present, but more about what has happened in the past." Dumbledore looked up. "A Ron Weasley wrote this, probably a close friend of Harry's. He wrote some sketchy details…but that is not important as of now."
"But it is!" exclaimed James, who could no longer hold his tongue. "I mean, what? Why? What is all this? Why did he write to us out of the blue to tell us this? Where did you get that scroll?" He looked at the scroll that Dumbledore has been holding. He was getting agitated upon hearing the news. He really didn't know what to think or feel. He held Lily's hand tighter, but not tight enough to harm her. Lily looked at James. James kept his eyes on Dumbledore. "Professor…" There were so many questions running through his head, not all of them could fir into it.
"I believe," Dumbledore said, to calm James, "it's because Ron found out something about Harry."
"What about Harry?" asked Remus. Lily was still in shock, so were James and Sirius. Remus, of course, was stunned, but he was still more curious that stunned. This was something out of the ordinary, that much he knew. Even Dumbledore shouldn't play games with time, much less the what the future has to bring. He knew that so Dumbledore would know that too. Remus was just very skeptical at the moment. Did Dumbledore expect them to break the rules? What was he expecting them to do? They were only seventeen, for Merlin's sake!
Dumbledore continued, "He and Harry were talking, just casual talk and I believe Harry mentioned that he wished something very unique for his eighth birthday, and it was to see you, his parents." He looked at Sirius, who was still looking very much bewildered a bitter. "And for his sixteenth birthday, he wished to see you, his godfather." This gave a bit of a glow to Sirius' face who looked at James with a smile. James halfheartedly smiled back. He wasn't over the death part yet. "This letter is a request that you meet eight-year-old Harry…but not to tell him that you are his parents." He looked at Lily and James.
Lily was dumbfounded. "How would we manage to meet our eight-year-old son?" she asked. This was getting more and more ridiculous. She could tell that Dumbledore had felt so too, so did the other three boys. "There is certainly a Time-Turner to turn back time, Professor," Lily pointed out, "but there is no way that we could go to the future." She frowned. "What game is this, Professor? Is this a test of some sort?" She was looking as if the Headmaster was mocking her, and she wasn't all too happy about that.
"It seems," said Dumbledore carefully, "that there is a way to do so. The catch is, there should be great wanting of it. They managed to figure out that the wish was filled with passion, enough to cast something on it to bring you to that particular time." He looked at Lily then at James before he did Remus and Sirius. "A boy of eight wants it badly, a Wizard boy who had no idea that he is a Wizard. So, this Ron felt that it would be a great gift for Harry, since it explains here that he managed to find this old Charm to do so. These children must be desperate for Harry to see you." James was about to speak once more, but Dumbledore stopped him. "For one whole year, you will be able to spend time with him. This wanting, this burning passion of his, will be enough to bring the four of you there." He stopped before saying, "And this all happens at eight-thirty this evening. I was hoping that it would only take me thirty minutes to sum up everything." He looked at the astonished faces. "All you know right now, the boy must not know it. You are to be his friends, and merely his friends."
Sirius scoffed. "There's not such thing as wanting then actually having it, bringing people from the past to the future." It would take a great deal of evidence for Sirius to believe in something as such. Something so unheard of must be a tale. His childhood made him quite skeptical with things, made him quite resentful at times too. He looked at Dumbledore closely, "And how would we know this isn't one prank that would beat all our pranks the seven years we've done put together? Professor, we all know that you know what we're up to half the time," he pointed out.
Dumbledore chuckled. "I see you know so much," he said to Sirius. "Yes, I do know, but this isn't a prank." He paused, then said, "It isn't unheard of either, my boy. Only powerful magic could do this. Overflowing selfless desire and powerful magic could do this, but it is not permanent and once the Charm wears off so does the memory of it."
Remus' eyes widened. "You mean, this has happened?" he asked.
Dumbledore nodded his head. "Some claimed to have seen their dead loved ones this way, even loved ones they have never met before. Others have put them away as a dream and so on and so fourth. No one really has solid proof, but it is worth a try." He smiled. "Trying is the best way to find out. Too bad we don't really get to remember what happened after the enchantment wears off. No one really lives to tell the tale of this kind of adventure." He looked at the stunned Sirius, too at lost to speak.
"But Professor," said Lily, "if we already know what is going to happen to us, maybe, we can stop is." She didn't want to die, of course, not if she was going to leave a poor son behind without her parents. And murdered. She and James would be murdered. Of course Lily would want to avoid that too. It wasn't something she expected bother their lives to turn out. She couldn't think of anything she could have done to deserve such a death. Poor Harry! How alone he must be feeling.
Dumbledore shook his head. "No, we cannot," he countered. "There are serious consequences, in changing time." He raised the scroll. "Mr. Ron Weasley or possibly someone else has put a Charm on this scroll. Once I burn this, all memory of this discussion would be lost as well. We will get on with our normal lives, and live just the way it is as it will happen in the future." He once again laid his eyes on Lily and James, then on Sirius. "I believe that thoughts are running though your heads right now, that I must be mental to know all these things and not meddle with time. But," Dumbledore raised a finger, "to meddle with time would be much more foolish than to just let it be." He looked at his students. "I know it's hard to take it, being that you're only seventeen at present…" his voice trailed off. Even he had a hard time swallowing all of it. What more could four seventh years?
Lily suddenly burst into tears. James placed his arm around her as she sobbed. Sirius sat back down, very still. He did not understand why Lily and James would not make him Secret Keeper, would choose Peter over him. There was a slight pang of jealousy and anger. All this time, didn't James trust him at all? He and James, they were like brothers. How could James not trust him? He wanted to lecture James and beat him up and console him all at the same time. And yet, he felt powerless to do any of the three.
"Why burn it then?" asked James, who was in tears as well. "Why burn the scroll? I want to remember this I want to kill Peter," he said through gritted teeth. Anger was already burning inside him. That rat deserved to die more than anyone else. Why hadn't he chosen Sirius instead? Sirius would be the best choice. After all, Sirius was his best mate and he knew that Sirius would be more loyal to him than anyone else. James began to wonder how he could be so foolish? He put his and Lily's life on that rat!
Dumbledore calmly said to James, "That is why we must burn it. Every happens for a reason, James, even death." James blinked away his tears, although beside him, Lily was still crying. "We don't have the right to meddle with time, no matter what reasons we have. All we can do is take this opportunity and take it as it is. It is like an offer. Even if you would not remember it, it would be worth feeling that very moment you are with the boy." Dumbledore could think of many reasons to why these four students could hate him as they sat there. He would never blame them.
Remus looked up. "And me?" he suddenly spoke. "Sirius would be this boy's godfather, Lily and James the parents, Peter the traitor of us all…" his vice trailed off. He had been feeling quite left out all along. Even Peter played a role on the boy's life and his name was left unsaid. This was pretty hurtful to the werewolf. "I'm just the werewolf uncle, aren't I?" he said lamely.
Dumbledore smiled. "According to this Ron Weasley, you became their Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher," he stated. Remus could feel his ears clapping. He became a teacher at Hogwarts! "You played quite a role in Harry's life, helping him fight against Dementors…"
Lily's hand shot up, as if they were in class. "But why does Harry have to fight against Dementors?" she asked, already worried about the son she was going to have. "What has my son done to deserve Dementors chasing him?" She wondered if James' blood had anything to do with it, if it was because his father was into the mischievous side that their son would do something bad enough to be sent to Azkaban.
Dumbledore shook his head. "Dementors aren't exactly chasing your son," he explained patiently. He looked at Sirius. Sirius could tell that he knew something. At that moment, Dumbledore knew that James and Lily would be ready to hear about their deaths than have Sirius know why Dementors were chasing Harry. It was all too complicated, friendship and trust. He didn't really intend for these children to know, but somehow he had a feeling that Harry really needed them at eight years old. Besides, what harm could it do to them when after everything, the scroll would be burnt? Dumbledore looked at each of the four pairs of eyes. "Now it's nearly seven," he said quietly. "I want you all to go to Peter and explain that you found nothing. I shall meet only the four of you here." Instructions were clear as crystal.
"Yes sir." James was the first to relieve himself from the shocking news. He stood up, and held out his hand to help Lily do the same. His eyes met with Dumbledore. He couldn't tell what the old man was playing at, throwing things like these at them, calling their friend a traitor. He didn't understand why he would allow them to meet their eight-year-old son, or what possible spell could do this. He himself hadn't heard of it, and he was one of he most talented students in Hogwarts. There was something eerie about this situation, something odd that Dumbledore would want them to take part.
The four students left just as Phineas came back into his portrait. "Everything said and done, I believe?" he said quietly. He looked on to the door of the office. He was quite sure that the four of them would be rendered speechless, just as he was when he first heard Dumbledore talk about it. Phineas looked at Dumbledore closely. "How did you know about this Ron Weasley boy?" he asked. He eyed the scroll in his hand.
Dumbledore managed a nervous chuckle. "I believe my future self once told me that," he replied as if seeing his older self was quite nothing. "I suppose I was toying with the idea Harry could at least have a fragment of a memory of a good time as a child." Dumbledore placed the scroll on his table. "I was told a thing or two about Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. I believe they're as loyal friends as Sirius Black and Remus Lupin are." He smiled. "At least the four of them believed that this was the doing of a Charm done by Ron Weasley."
Phineas scoffed. "Aren't they the least bit suspicious?" he asked.
Dumbledore's smile widened. "Just as I suspected from them," he countered, "they were very suspicious about it. Lily, then Sirius. James too. Remus didn't say a word, although I could tell in his eyes that until the very last moment in this office he did not believe that this could be done by a Charm." Dumbledore chuckled. "They might be walking down the hall and thinking that I am linked to some sort of Dark Arts, or that I am mad." Dumbledore popped a lemon drop into his mouth. "Not that I'm saying I'm not," he added with a twinkle in his eye.
"How then," started Phineas, now getting curious, "did you manage this one? Isn't it a little odd for the Potter boy to meet the younger version of his parents randomly?" He looked very anxious, but he could tell from Dumbledore's face that the man has a plan. "No Wizard can summon anyone from the past and if this boy is only eight and could do so, he must be a very dark wizard, this Harry Potter."
Dumbledore again shook his head. He seemed pretty sure of himself. "The boy is just like his parents," he explained. "Talented, and brave. Quick-witted and rather loyal to his friends. Unlike the other dark wizards that are after his head, Harry is one of those you could put your trust one." He seemed rather cheery as he said it. "No, only one thing could have done this. I managed to notice the flames of my fireplace." Dumbledore indicated to the flames burning. "Purple, I saw last night. It was indicating that the boy had much need for friends and family, and the wish he made at eight was strong enough to bring James and his friend to Harry's time. I believe Harry's childhood wasn't an easy one." Phineas frowned. Dumbledore continued, "Only one year. As for my opinion, it's never enough. But it is indeed better than nothing," he said.
"How did you know what would happen to them in the future? I believe they took it as I did. Aghast, I suppose. Will the boy remember all this? How about James and the others?" asked Phineas, who was much as lost as the students about the situation.
Dumbledore motioned to the scroll lying on his desk. "That scroll is filled with information written by my future self and brought to me," he explained. "It's very sad that this has to happen, the fate of these children are the most unfortunate ones. I believe that their names will go down in history." Dumbledore looked very melancholic. "I cannot believe myself that we all made mistakes in this. We all were really to blame if it was not for fate itself." He turned to Phineas. "But there is a Charm to the scroll. If I burn the information written on it, I also burn everything that we all know right now." His eyes then shifted to the fireplace. "I believe that it is wise to do so. We cannot play with fate although we want to. The only thing we can do for Harry James Potter, is simply to be his friend." He looked back at Phineas. "The boy will be able to remember, of course. But he will be too young to take any of his memory into account."
Phineas nodded sadly. "I see." That was all he could say.
Sirius walked over to the fire. He was silent, and it was uncanny for him to be so. Peter noticed that no one was talking, and that his friends were a bit cold towards him. H e was informed that they had found out nothing, but Peter knew his friends better than that. He could tell that he was being kept information. He didn't dare as James or Sirius. Once said all said, that was what James and Sirius believed in. He wanted to try Remus and Lily, but the both seemed to be in the same state as Sirius and James.
The fire crackled. Peter finally spoke. "What really happened?" he asked, his voice ringing about the Common Room. No one was there except the five of them. "I know you guys must know something. I know I neglected guarding the office and that much I'm sorry if I landed you all in detention!" he cried. He was really apologetic about his neglect.
This gave James an idea. He had been thinking about how to rid Peter without him noticing that he was being ditched that night. "You did land us in detention," he suddenly said coolly. Remus and Sirius didn't react, only Lily did, but even she did not say a word. "We're used to it, the boys." He motioned to Lily. "But not her. You just ruined her perfect record and we're not going to forgive you easily on that, Wormtail." Peter whimpered at the thought. "We're going tonight, at eight. You're not to come along with us. I just want you out of it," he said.
"We just want you out of it," Sirius growled.
Peter nodded. Remus looked at him. "I'm not really angry," he said. James spun. Remus looked calm. "I'm just disappointed. But I know how much you needed to study up on Transfigurations." He looked at James' face before turning back once again to Peter. "Give it time, we'll forgive you. But for now, I just want you to concentrate on passing the exams so we could all graduate together." He looked at his watch. "We have to go. It's nearly eight."
Lily stood up from her seat and walked past Peter who gulped. James and Sirius did the same. They were cold. Only Remus managed a smile at Peter, who thought that it was find for him to do so. The four left the Common Room and walked towards the Headmaster's office for their next grand adventure, and it might be their grandest one.
"I can't believe Peter," James finally said. "I can't believe I didn't make you Secret Keeper." He looked at Sirius ruefully. His present self would have chosen Sirius, of course. "I don't know why I was so stupid to make him the one to lead us to our deaths. He was never the one to stick up for himself." The group walked past several hallways, still deeply in thinking, all of them.
It didn't take long before they arrived at Dumbledore's office. The Headmaster was already waiting for them. He was looking rather cheerful now, and a lot less solemn. Still Lily and James weren't as excited. Remus was quite suspicious even. After all, this wasn't something uncomplicated. To bring the future to the past was a lot easier to bring the past to the future. Time wasn't something to be toyed with, that much they were taught in Hogwarts. He simply couldn't believe that Dumbledore would allow this to happen, him being the Headmaster and all.
"Will we disappear from this time?" Lily suddenly asked Dumbledore. It seems to be that she was thinking about schoolwork right at the moment that she was about to meet her future son. Lily was looking rather pale and worried. "What if someone notices we were gone? We only told Peter that we would be in detention." She glanced at James. It was a brilliant excuse to leave Peter behind, but they didn't think a step ahead because of the confusion, and this very much worried Lily Evans.
Dumbledore indicated to the fireplace. "Let me worry about that," h said gently. "For the year you are with Harry, you will be with us as well. Besides, after this is all trough, we will revert back to this day as if your little adventure never happened." He took a quick look at the scroll. "I will leave you all to be discreet about what you know. Mind you, this is an eight-year-old boy we're talking about. Someone who doesn't even know that he is a Wizard, so I believe you must also keep this information from him."
"Surely I would have told him," said Sirius out of the blue. "If James and Lily are gone," he said, although dryly, "then I am his godfather, I would have kept a good eye on him and told him that he is a wizard." He was getting more and more irate that Dumbledore wasn't explaining everything properly enough for him to understand what was going on.
Dumbledore looked at his pocket watch. "No time to explain, dear boy," he said quickly. He ushered the four near the flames. "Now, once it turn purple, I want each of you to jump into it," he instructed. James looked more suspicious than anxious. "James, I want you to be the one to go onto it first. Then you Sirius, then Lily. Remus, you be the last one to go into the flames." There was seriousness in Dumbledore's voice as he said. "Like I told all four of you. Once you come back to this time, it will revert to this day. I will burn the scroll and we'd get on with our normal lives." James nodded, followed by Sirius. "Now watch the flame."
Suddenly, at exactly eight thirty, the flames of the hearth became purple. Remus was surprised. James hesitated but he jumped in. Lily gave a rather silent scream once James disappeared. They could only trust Dumbledore. Sirius jumped in next. He too disappeared like James did, and there was no cry of pain. Lily turned to Dumbledore who nodded. With a gentle coax from Remus, Lily jumped into the flames as well.
"Remus," said Dumbledore as he held Remus' shoulder before letting the boy jump in, "be careful. Look after yourselves." Remus nodded. He knew what Dumbledore meant. With that, the boy jumped into he flames after his friends.
"Time stops for them here?" it was Phineas, curious and all.
Dumbledore nodded. "Yes, but I believe, for them, it will be all worth it."