Carry On

By: Teenlaunch

Disclaimer: I wouldn't be writing if I owned it.

a/n: Right, well, this wasn't too long. And if I'm not mistaken, I think the chapter is longer. I also have a feeling that I will be getting a lot of feedback on this one, at least judging by other previous reviews. I really would like to hear what you have to say, even if I won't like it. Please review! (Remember to review and check out my profile for my poll. Again, you can do better.)

b/n: I have failed you all! This one's my fault, folks. Sorry! Seriously though, finals just sort of jumped out in front of me and projects that I had procrastinated on until the last second were due and, and, and………..

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"Harry, I can't believe I'm letting you do this. That picture you gave me was enough you know."

"Can't you just relax for a while? It's a miracle you're not completely paranoid," Harry grumbled, pulling the trench coat closer to him.

Lupin sighed. "Harry, you are putting me in a situation I have never been in before, and I don't like that."

"I was hoping you liked the picture," Harry murmured, straying from the topic. "I tried to make it everything I thought it could have been."

"It was that way, Harry. Believe me when I say that. You have no idea how close you are."

Harry nodded and looked around at the stores lining the street. They were in downtown London, and the city was practically buzzing with activity. Harry groaned. "I have no idea where I'm going!"

Lupin smiled. "Good! Back to Hogwarts!"

Harry glared at him and Lupin sulked. Harry grabbed his arm and dragged him to a cluster of stores a little further down. He pushed him inside the nearest one to get out of the cold. Almost immediately someone appeared, making Lupin jump.

"Welcome to Britain's only department store that carries Aéropostale, Gap, American Eagle, Tommy Hilfiger, and Old Navy apparel as well as some of the most famous lines in London. What are we looking for today gentlemen?" The young girl smiled.

Lupin looked so much like a deer in the headlights that the young woman was taken aback. Lupin just pointed to Harry, taking himself out of the spotlight. Harry silently fumed but smiled. "Sorry about him. He's new to this. I don't mean to be rude but, are you American?"

The girl nodded. "Yep. I'm afraid I'm still getting used to British customs. I'm sorry if I did something to offend you."

"It's nothing like that. He's just not happy about being here in the first place. This is like torture to him." The girl giggled at the affronted look Lupin gave him. "Anyway, we're looking for, well, just about everything. I decided he needs a new wardrobe. So, can you help us?"

She smiled and nodded. "This way to the changing rooms. It'll be best if he just stays there and lets us hand him stuff. That way he can't complain." Harry smiled and shoved Lupin into one of the small cubicles at the back of the store. As he and the girl walked over to the men's section she asked quietly, "Why does he need new clothes?"

Harry shrugged. "He has a medical condition that makes it hard for him to keep a job. With the little money he's been able to make, the only clothes he has are old and worn out."

She glanced at him as she piled clothes in his arms. "How old?"

Harry shifted the clothes so he could speak around them. "I'd say many of them are around seventeen years old."

"Seventeen?" She wailed, almost dropping the clothes in her hands.

"Stephanie!" A man yelled from somewhere in the back section of the store. "Not so loud!"

"Yes, sir!" She called and turned back to Harry, eyes wide. "Seventeen? But you're probably twenty!"

Harry smiled slightly. "I'm seventeen actually. But it's nice to know that my height doesn't make me look young."

Stephanie shrugged. "You're average height though. You're almost his height, the one in the changing rooms. Who is he, your father?"

Harry almost dropped the clothes he was carrying. He cleared his throat and pressed on, "Everyone's always thought I was really young. You should see some of my friends if you think I'm average height. Most of them are around five inches taller than me. But, my father and his friends were about the same, just around my height. I only noticed a few weeks ago that I've managed to gain three inches."

"So, he is your father?" She asked again, and Harry realized he couldn't ignore it.

Harry stopped outside the changing rooms, finding himself strangely calm at her questioning. He stared at her, his face blank. "Ask him that and tell me how he reacts." He handed her the clothes and retreated to the men's section. He glanced around and crouched behind a large rack, apparating without a sound to the stall beside Lupin's. Again using the complicated translucency charm, he peered out the door to watch the conversation between Lupin and Stephanie.

"Hopefully these will fit, sir."

Lupin nodded and looked the clothes over. "They look like they're just the right size. How'd you know?"

She smiled. "I judged by your son's figure." She paused. "That…didn't come out right," Stephanie mumbled, blushing. Lupin was staring at her, not caring how it sounded. "Sorry. I didn't mean to offend you."

Lupin gave a strained smiled. "You didn't offend me. I just…did you ask him if he was my son?"

"Yes," she answered slowly. "He told me to ask you."

Lupin's face softened. "Did he act strangely?"

"He just stared at me and switched the topic. Why?"

Lupin pinched the bridge of his nose. "Harry is not my son," he said quietly. "I was one of his father's best friends."

Stephanie gasped. "I'm sorry! It's just, well, you two did come in together and, in America, kids are dying their hair a new color every day."

Lupin nodded absently. "It's alright. Harry lost his parents at a very early age." He paused. "I sometimes think that if I had a son, he'd be like Harry." Lupin smiled wistfully, giving a small laugh. "He's almost just like I thought he would be. The perfect blend of Lily, James, and Sirius."

"And you," Harry murmured, wondering if Lupin would hear him even with his heightened senses, unsure if he really wanted to be heard.

Lupin froze and closed his eyes. "No."

"Sir?" Stephanie asked quietly.

"Yes," Harry answered.

"Harry, I am not someone you should be proud to be like."

Stephanie stared at Lupin as though he was mad. "And why not?" Harry asked, still whispering while gripping the handle to the door.

"Because I…"

Harry opened the door and moved in front of him, ignoring Stephanie's gasp. "Why not, Remus? Because you're the kindest person I've ever met? Because you're brilliant at everything you do? Because you're compassionate, loving, forgiving, humble, fun, energetic, patient?" Harry smiled softly. "Or is it because you're a cranky, overprotective, chocolate-loving mutt?"

Lupin stared at him. "Harry-"

"You're too hard on yourself. I don't judge Remus Lupin by what other people see. I judge him by what's in here." Harry placed his hand over Lupin's heart and let it fall. He reached up and removed the collar still hanging around Lupin's neck. He pressed it gently into Lupin's hand, closing the werewolf's limp fingers over it. "Now get in there and try on those things before I make you!"

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Harry groaned exasperatedly as he waited for Lupin to come up to the common room. It was the end of the fourth day of the shopping spree, New Years' Eve, and they were finally done, leaving the last wizard clothing store with grins on their faces. Harry had fought Lupin every day to convince him what looked good and what didn't. Harry was extremely proud of himself. From what little experience he had in fashion, Lupin's new look had turned out nicely. All the man had needed to look years younger was the new wardrobe, most of which was t-shirts, jeans, and every piece of youthful clothing in sight. Most of it, Lupin complained, was too snug on him. It made him look bad. Harry argued that it didn't. It was what most young men were wearing. He had been careful to choose things still in fashion in 1997. The one thing Harry could have done to complete Lupin's look was to dye his hair, but Lupin had refused. Unless Harry found a permanent way to keep his hair its original color for longer than a few months, Lupin wasn't going to fool with it.

After they had gotten Lupin new robes as well, they had returned to Hogwarts, both glad the ordeal was over as Lupin had forced Harry to do some shopping of his own. It was remarkable how alike their wardrobes had turned out though Lupin had commented that Harry's was certainly a 'teens' wardrobe. Harry had just rolled his eyes and continued on. After they had reached the castle, Harry had made Lupin promise to attend the Gryffindor New Year's Party, but Harry was about to give up on him. He had been sitting in the same chair for well over an hour. He was constantly playing with both Slytherin's fake locket (which was around his neck, hidden under his shirt) and Sirius' ring. It was almost second nature to him he had been doing it for so long.

It was one minute to midnight. Harry stood, ready to leave the party and go to bed when someone grabbed his elbows. He whipped around. On one side was his mother, on the other was Lupin. They smiled at each other and laughed, both letting go.

Harry rolled his eyes and grabbed their hands, leading them into the crowd gathered around the clock. Ten seconds until midnight…nine…eight…It was odd, being in 1977, soon to be 78. Was it New Years' at home too? Seven…six…five…four…Was he missed or had anyone even noticed? Three…two…one! Harry cheered as a long banner strung across the room began to flash every color of the rainbow and emitted loud bangs and whistles while confetti fell everywhere. Harry had seen the Marauders setting it up earlier in the day.

Lily hugged him tightly and said goodnight as she left to join her friends. Harry turned to pick up his drink from a nearby table and took a long draught from it as he faced Lupin. He was talking rapidly about how much trouble the shopping had been and how many people had stared at him in the hallway when he suddenly lost his voice. Harry frowned. That couldn't be right. Lupin was still talking and he acted as though nothing had happened. Harry's eyes widened when he realized that Lupin hadn't lost his voice, he had lost his hearing! Before he could point this out to Lupin, his professor was drawn over to the fire by another student.

Harry was about to follow when his vision blurred. He froze and squinted but even the fire had become a large blotch of red sitting with a multitude of other colors. Harry whirled around in confusion, trying to find the source of his sudden problem though he couldn't see anything clearly. He couldn't even think straight. His mind was throwing random questions at him. He couldn't remember where he was. What was he doing here? What was going on? Why couldn't he remember what he had been doing a couple minutes ago?

As his muddled brain tried to sort everything out, three of the smudges in his vision, which he could only assume were people, detached themselves from the others and came toward him. He was floored when they became clearer as they approached and he saw their faces. He knew them from somewhere. He just couldn't remember where. But he knew one thing. He didn't like them, and they definitely didn't like him. He'd lived with them for some time, hadn't he? Yes, he knew that, but why couldn't he remember their names?

Two of them were rather stocky and had little neck. The man had a mustache that seemed to bristle at the very sight of Harry. The women on either side of him were no better. The shorter one looked almost identical to the man, obviously her brother. They were almost exact replicas, one male and one female. The second woman was blonde, tall, horse-faced, and had an unusual amount of neck. They stopped a few feet away from him. Harry backed up and bumped into the table. He was scared of these people. They could hurt him. They could put him in a small, dark space that he could barely remember, but he knew it had been these people that had put him there.

The horse-faced woman marched up to him first and backhanded him. Harry flinched and his hand flew to his cheek. He couldn't remember a time she had ever hit him, though she had threatened it. She sneered at him. "You stupid, foolish boy! How dare you disgrace us, after everything we've done for you? We took you in! We clothed you! We fed you! All out of the goodness of our hearts! We even let you go to that horrible school!" They had let him choose his school? That wasn't right. There was only one primary school in the district, wasn't there? He'd had to go.

The man waddled, there was no other word for it, up to Harry. "Go on, boy!" He stuck his face in front of Harry's, who noticed the man was turning an odd shade of purple. "What's your excuse this time? I'll have none of your sort around here! I want answers, boy!"

"I don't-"

Boy – Someone had always called him that, and he had never liked it. Who was it that always called him that?

"Yes, boy, answer him!" It was the second woman, the one who so resembled the man. She snarled ferociously at him, reminding him of a bulldog. "You woke up Ripper with all that screaming, you stupid boy! In the throes of passion, were you? I knew you were filth, the lowest kind. All your screaming and moaning! I told your uncle he should make you stay year-round at St. Brutus'. It would be the right thing to do for your case! But he suggested locking you up for a while."

His uncle? Harry was on his knees now, shaking at the thought of being locked up in that tiny space he couldn't quite picture. He had no idea what he'd done, but he knew the only way to get a lesser punishment was to beg. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry…I won't do it again. Please, don't lock me up…please…"

The man – his uncle, he realized – grabbed his hair and yanked his head back. "I'll show you what happens when you wake me up, boy!" Spit was flying from his mouth and a vein in his temple was throbbing wildly. He shoved Harry back against the table, making the glass sitting there fall to the floor unnoticed. The three circled him much like vultures would a dying animal. "After I'm done with you, I'm going to lock you in your cupboard and you'll never be let out again if I hear one syllable from you! And if I hear you crying, I'll make sure you starve until you're begging for mercy! Understood, freak?"

Harry nodded, his eyes wide, still on his knees. He couldn't understand. His mind was scrambling for answers, but all he could come up with were jumbled words, distorted pictures, and other useless pieces of information that had no relevance to what was happening. All he knew was that he wanted away from these wretched people. He put his hands over his ears to block out their hateful voices. "I'm sorry! Please don't lock me in my cupboard! I'll cook! I'll clean! I'll do the dishes, mow the lawn, wash the car! I'll take Ripper for a walk!"

The horse-faced woman took his chin in her bony hand and sneered in his face. "My good for nothing sister certainly got what she deserved."

His mother and father. Their faces leapt unbidden to his mind. Their names, if only he could remember their names. Potter. His last name was Potter. He could remember his name. His parents' names had to have Potter in them. What other Potters did he know? James! That was one. His father was James Potter, but what about his mother. Evans. His father had called her Evans. What was it? Lily…Lily Evans! And this woman in front of him was his mother's sister, his aunt! Aunt…Poppy…no. Pansy…Petunia! His Aunt Petunia and her husband, Uncle Vernon, and his sister, Aunt Marge! That was it!

Aunt Petunia continued as his mind jumped through that set of hoops in quick succession. "She's better off not having to cope with you. If only she could see her precious son! How disappointed she'd be!" His aunt laughed. "I wish I could see her face. She and her mongrel husband probably would've disowned you by now. Pathetic boy!"

Harry felt something inside him snap. He yelled and Aunt Petunia reeled back, a shiny burn running up to her elbow. Before Harry could attack her himself, someone rushed into his line of vision and tackled his aunt, but he ignored it.

Harry slammed Uncle Vernon against the wall, ignoring the fact that his uncle could hurt him easily even though he had magic on his side. Using magic would only make the Dursleys angrier. But he could scare them. He drew out his wand and pointed it at his uncle's face. Uncle Vernon's horrified face started changing. Harry's hearing and sight came back so suddenly that it left his ears ringing. He realized that he was no longer holding his uncle but a wide-eyed James Potter. (I so wanted to end it here…Should I?) Harry immediately recoiled and stared at his young father as he slumped to the ground, breathing heavily.

His mother's voice sliced through the new silence in the common room. "Professor!"

Harry turned and saw to his horror that Lupin had Sirius pinned against the wall. Sirius looked like he was about to pass out, and Harry saw why. Lupin was gripping Sirius' shirt in his fist and Sirius' feet were dangling almost two feet above the ground. He couldn't be getting much air. Sirius' hands were pulling frantically at Lupin's fingers. Sirius' right arm had the same burn on it that Harry had given Aunt Petunia moments before. Harry couldn't decide whether to intervene or not. A part of him felt that his godfather deserved whatever Lupin did to him.

Lupin ignored James and Peter even as they tugged on him, using their weight to throw him off balance, but Harry knew the werewolf in Lupin was making him stronger because it was feeding off his anger. They would never get him to move. Lupin snarled and stuck his face in Sirius'. "That has to be one of the most low-down things I've ever seen someone do." Sirius whimpered. "Now I know you have a very hard time trying to pay complete attention to me in class, Mr. Black, but you're going to listen to me now, aren't you?" Sirius nodded slightly, his eyes locked on Lupin's. "Good. Because I'm only going to warn you once. If I ever catch you tormenting Harry again, you might just find yourself incapable of reproducing, Mr. Black. Last time I checked, castrating someone is not an extreme federal offence. Do I make myself clear, Mr. Padfoot?"

"C-crystal," Sirius stuttered.

Lupin dropped Sirius' shirt and Sirius sprinted to the other side of the room. The common room was unearthly quiet. Harry still couldn't force his legs to move. Lupin spun around and looked at the startled faces of his pupils. "Can anyone tell me," he asked loudly, abandoning the deadly whisper he had used with Sirius, "what these four did to Mr. Times?" It was like he was teaching a class again.

No one dared answer him. "No? Surely you all heard the voices coming from Messers Potter, Black, and Pettigrew's mouths!" He spat venomously, face twisted uncharacteristically into a snarl. "And surely you all heard what those voices were saying!"

Again no one responded, just a few nods. "These three spiked Mr. Times' drink and then used its sister potion on themselves. Can anyone tell me what those potions did? No. I thought not." He paused. "The potion Harry unknowingly drank made his vision blur and all sound to cease. He momentarily forgot where he was, what he was doing, possibly even who he is. It all but wiped out his memories. He reacted to that situation like a child. He reverted back to his – what – perhaps four-year-old self. How do I know that? Because Harry has never begged for anything his entire life save when he was a child. The same goes for crying. You all heard that remark. Harry was told to never cry again if he expected to still be cared for, if you can call that care.

"All he could see and hear were the three in front of him. But they had taken on the form of three of the most wretched people I have ever had the misfortune to meet! And Harry remembered those people because the potion latched onto something it could use, something that Harry fears, and I'm surprised it wasn't someone or something far worse.

"You may have noticed the shocked looks on their faces. Apparently, they didn't know that they can't control what they say while under the potion. Whatever Harry's confused mind thought of first when he saw those people, was forced out of the Marauders' mouths." Lupin looked over at the stunned Marauders.

"I assure you if I had not intervened when I did, you three would have been lucky if you weren't paralyzed. Had anything else come out of your mouths, Harry would have taken out his anger and shock on you. He was fighting the potion and winning, meaning he was beginning to snap out of his immediate reaction. I want you to imagine me angry again." Everyone winced. "Now, imagine that ten times worse, with righteous fury blazing in my eyes. Then, change my face to Harry's, and you have a basic idea of what you would have been up against." Everyone glanced at Harry, some edging away from him.

Harry finally stepped forward and grabbed Lupin's hand. Lupin glanced down at him. Harry tugged on his hand insistently and he reluctantly moved, letting himself be led into the halls of the silent castle. They stopped outside Lupin's chambers and simply stood watching each other for a few moments. "Thanks," Harry said, his voice cracking slightly.

"Don't thank me. I could have stopped it. I knew they were going to do something. I was the lookout," Lupin said, still too upset to become rational again.

Harry sighed. "Just forget it."

Lupin gripped Harry's shoulders. "No! I can't 'just forget it'! I should have tried harder to get custody of you. You would have never seen the Dursleys. I should have fought!"

Harry, his throat constricted at the thought of living with Lupin, shook his head. "Even if you had gotten it passed in the Ministry, Dumbledore would never have let you, even if he wanted it."

"True," he sighed before almost pleading with Harry to understand. "But there is no excuse for these people, Harry! I could have at least asked to visit you without the Ministry's approval!" He growled and started pacing but stopped suddenly as hurried footsteps came thundering down the corridor.

Remus came vaulting down the corridor at that moment and skid to a halt. He was panting heavily. He bent over and caught his breath while Harry and Lupin watched. Remus straightened up and took a deep breath, but Lupin stopped him. "First of all, those people were Harry's relatives. Second, he did not live with them for long. It was a short term thing for a time when he was young, part of a protection program of sorts." Harry was astounded at the brilliance behind the statement. While not one hundred percent true, it had a basis on the truth, and Remus didn't need to know the difference at the moment.

Remus nodded then panted, "I'm so sorry, Harry! I knew they were up to something! I could have knocked it out of your hand! I-"

"Remus, shut up! Stop blaming yourself for something your half-witted friends did to me! It's not only stupid. It's not healthy! Guilt is not a good thing!" Harry roared. He could feel his magic reacting to his anger. He was used to it by now, but he wasn't prepared for what happened next. His hands were suddenly engulfed with emerald green flames. He lifted them to eye level and stared at them. "What in the-"

"Bloody hell!" Remus and Lupin chorused. The flame licked his fingers, not burning him at all. Harry was so shocked, he didn't even think to joke that he'd finally caused the laidback werewolf to curse.

Harry didn't understand what was happening. There was a rustle in his pocket and the Founders' book, which he kept shrunken and on his person at all times, floated out of his pocket, enlarged itself, and flipped to a complicated family tree. Four lines, one red, one green, one blue, and one yellow, appeared beneath their respective owners: Gryffindor, Slytherin, Ravenclaw, and Hufflepuff. They ran slowly down the page, branching off, sometimes growing dim, but Slytherin's and Gryffindor's didn't fade. They met and stopped. The other two suddenly jumped from their own lines to merge with Gryffindor and Slytherin. But the two rivals' were darker than Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw's.

Harry drew closer to the book, keeping his hands away. But before he got a chance to read the name, the book was snatched away and brought to Albus Dumbledore's curious eyes. Harry gaped at him. He hadn't even heard the man come up. Dumbledore stared at the book then gazed calmly at Harry's still blazing hands. Harry noticed that the twinkle in the Headmaster's eyes was gone, as it usually was when he was thinking very hard.

Harry turned away to try to put out the flames. He loved how it felt though. Since he had started wandless magic, he noticed that his magic no longer felt as impersonal as before, when he'd used only his wand. His magic coursed through his veins as though it was alive. It was an extension of his body now, meaning he could control it. He'd first been reminded of Luke Skywalker and the Force. Strangely enough, that seemed to be almost exactly how it worked for him.

Harry took a deep breath and focused on drawing his magic back to him. It slowly absorbed into his skin and he sighed. He turned back to the others and found them staring at him in awe. He felt exposed now that his magic was once again locked away. It was something that was always present when he didn't confine it to his wand.

Dumbledore cleared his throat. "Professor Century, would you kindly take your young counterpart back to his common room?" Lupin nodded and led his younger self down the corridor, sending a last curious glance to Harry. Dumbledore handed Harry the book. Harry took it and traced the lines down the page. They joined at his name. Harry almost dropped the book in shock.

Gryffindor's line ran through his father's side and Slytherin…in his mother's. Written below his name was a message. 'The Chosen One is blood heir to the two greatest of the Hogwarts four, and chosen heir to all.'

Harry looked up at Dumbledore and murmured, "But, my mother is Muggleborn. How can she be a descendant of Slytherin?"

Dumbledore smiled softly. "There is an old wizard tradition that seems to have been still in effect almost a century ago. One of Salazar's children or grandchildren must have been a squib. If the magic in that family does not turn up in a descendent for five generations, they are officially registered as Muggles, and for good reason. They have the magical level of any Muggle you would find on the street. Remarkably, many wizarding families have had this happen. But they still carry the magical gene. It is simply dormant. It seems that Lily Evans is proof of this system. If one of Salazar's descendents was a squib, they were likely disowned, but not by Slytherin. He understood the importance of family ties, no matter the outcome. In all likelihood, neither James nor Lily know of their relations to the Founders."

Dumbledore closed the book in Harry's hands. Harry shrank it and dropped it into his pocket. Dumbledore stared at Harry, not unlike he usually did when trying to use Legilimency. Harry felt a small push in his mind and reacted. He threw up his mental shields and Dumbledore groaned suddenly, clutching his head. Harry had never seen his Headmaster react in such a way.

Dumbledore straightened and smiled, the twinkle now blazing in his eye. "It seems you have inherited Gryffindor's Occlumency skills, I suspect you must have at least a touch of Slytherin's Legilimency."

Harry looked down at his feet. "Among other things."

"You will likely find that you have many new abilities, Mr. Potter, many of which would flourish with the proper training. Please try to control them. Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff's characteristics will be harder to draw out, but it seems Slytherin and Gryffindor's will come quite easily. Parseltongue, Occlumency, Legilimency, elemental and wandless magic, as well as newly discovered potion skills that produced uplifting results." Harry smiled sheepishly at his Headmaster. "But don't be fooled. You are not invincible. These are gifts, not guarantees. Now, we must talk about your last visit to Hogsmeade. You will have to convince me that you can continue your visits unsupervised. But besides that, we have other things to worry about. I believe that you will not have a hard time defending yourself now." Dumbledore put a hand on Harry's shoulder and led him down the hall. "I think we can expect great things from you, Mr. Potter."

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You hear, O Lord, the desire of the afflicted; yu encourage them, and you listen to their cry, defending the fatherless and the oppressed, in order that man, who is of the earth, may terrify no more.

Psalm 10:17-18