Disclaimer: I own nothing but Leo and Fawn, everything else belongs to JKR.
Chapter 1 The boy who Lived
Mr and Mrs Dursley, of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say they were perfectly normal, thank you very much.
"You're welcome," said Leo and Sirius together, grinning at each other and creeping everyone else out a bit.
They were the last people you'd expect to be involved in anything strange or mysterious, because they just didn't hold with such nonsense.
Mr Dursley was the director of a firm called Grunnings, which made drills.
"What are drills?" said Regulus, curious about what was obviously a muggle invention.
"Write down everything you want to know about and I'll explain them later," Lily offered kindly.
He was a big, beefy man with hardly any neck, although he did have a very large moustache.
"Well, he sounds like a very handsome man, doesn't he, Pads?" said James in a sarcastic drawl.
Mrs Dursley was thin and blonde and had nearly twice the usual amount of neck, which came in very useful as she spent so much of her time craning over garden fences, spying on the neighbours.
"That sounds like my sister, Petunia," said Lily absentmindedly, not noticing Harry's slight grimace, but Leo did, tighten his hold on Harry's hand a little.
The Dursleys had a small son called Dudley and, in their opinion, there was no finer boy anywhere.
The Dursleys had everything they wanted, but they also had a secret, and their greatest fear was that somebody would discover it. They didn't think they could bear it if anyone found out about the Potters.
"Wait, are they talking about us?" James said looking at Lily confused. It was obvious that the two were together if they had Harry.
"I think that is my sister, she's dating someone called Vernon at the moment, I can't remember his last name though," said Lily.
Mrs Potter was Mrs Dursley's sister, but they haven't met for several years, in fact, Mrs Dursley pretended she didn't have a sister, because her sister and her good-for-nothing husband were as unDursleyish as it was possible to be.
"If they are talking about you two, that is extremely rude!" Andromeda spoke for the first time, Leo perked up at the sound of his aunt's voice.
The Dursleys shuddered to think what the neighbours would say if the Potters arrived in the street. The Dursleys knew the Potter's had a small son too, but they had never even seen him. This boy was another good reason for keeping the Potters away; they didn't want Dudley mixing with a child like that.
"A child like what? A wizard?" Remus asked confused, looking toward the people from the future but none of them met his eye, they didn't want to give away too much.
When Mr and Mrs Dursley woke up on the dull, grey Tuesday, our story starts. There was nothing about the cloudy sky outside to suggest that strange and mysterious things would be happening all over the country. Mr Dursley hummed as he picked out his most boring tie for work and Mrs Dursley gossiped away happily as she wrestled a screaming Dudley into his high chair.
None of them noticed a large tawny owl flutter past the window
At half past eight, Mr Dursley picked up his briefcase, pecked Mrs Dursley on the cheek and tried to kiss Dudley goodbye but missed, because Dudley was now having a tantrum and throwing his cereal at the walls. "Little tyke," chortled Mr Dursley as he left the house.
"He must have really wanted to have a brat of a son," Leo sneered as Hermione and Ginny nodded in agreement. The group of five knew exactly who these people were and what they've done to Harry during the years.
He got into his car and backed out of number four's drive.
It was on the corner of the street that he noticed the first sign of something peculiar- a cat reading a map.
"Minnie!" yelled the Marauders and Leo happily as Professor McGonagall scowled at them but everyone could see that she was happy about having a nickname from her students, whether they were from the current time or the future.
For a second, Mr Dursley didn't realise what he has seen- then he jerked his head around to look again. There was a tabby cat standing on the corner of Privet Drive. But there wasn't a map in sight.
"How did you hide a map that fast as a cat?" Remus asked his professor who only gave him a slight smile, not answering his question.
What could he have been thinking of? It must have been a trick of the light. Mr Dursley blinked and stared at the cat, it stared back. As Mr Dursley drove around the corner and up the road, he watched the cat in his mirror. It was now reading the sign that said Privet Drive- no looking at the sign; cats couldn't read maps or signs.
"As much as I hate him, you got to admit that as a muggle, that is a strange sight," comment Leo as the others nodded in agreement.
Mr Dursley gave himself a little shake and put the cat out of his mind. As he drove towards town, he thought of nothing expect a large order of drills he was hoping to get that day.
But on the edge of town, drills were driven out of his mind by something else. As he sat in the usual morning traffic jam, he couldn't help noticing that there seemed to be a lot of strangely dressed people about. People in cloaks. Mr Dursley couldn't bear people who dressed in funny clothes- the get-ups- you saw on young people! He supposed this was some stupid new fashion.
"Wizard wear isn't stupid!" said James with a frown.
"I mean…" Leo trailed off making Harry laugh quietly.
He drummed his fingers on the steering wheel and his eyes fell on a huddle of these weridos standing quite close by. They were whispering excitedly together. Mr Dursley was enraged to see a couple of them weren't young at all, why, that man had to be older than he was, and wearing an emerald-green cloak! The nerve of him!
"Yes, how dare he wear what he likes," Remus rolled his eyes.
But then it struck Mr Dursley that this was probably some silly stunt- these people were obviously collecting for something… yes, that would be it. The traffic moved on, and few minutes later, Mr Dursley arrived at the Grunnings car park, his mind back on drills.
Mr Dursley always sat with his back to the window in his office on the ninth floor. If he hadn't, he might have found it harder to concentrate on drills that morning. He didn't see the owl's swooping past in broad daylight, though people down in the street did; they pointed and gazed opened-mouthed as owl after owl sped overhead.
"Why are we being so careless? Even the muggles are noticing something now," asked Lily concerned, but no one answered her.
Most of them had never seen an owl even at night-time. Mr Dursley, however, had a perfectly normal, owl-free morning. He yelled at five different people. He made several important telephone calls and shouted a bit more. He was in a very good mood until lunchtime, when he thought he'd stretch his legs, and walk across the road to buy himself a bun from the baker's opposite.
"Just what he needs, a bun," said Ron with a roll of his eyes, Leo couldn't stop himself from getting out a loud bark of a laugh.
He'd forgotten all about the people in the cloaks until he passed a group of them next to the bakers. He eyed them angrily as he passed. He didn't know why, but they made him uneasy. This lot were whispering excitedly, too, and he couldn't see a single collection tin. It was on his way back past them, clutching a large chocolate donut in a bag, that he caught a few words they were saying.
"The Potters, that's right, that's what I heard- "
"-yes, their son, Harry- "
Everyone turned to Harry, causing his cheeks to heat up with a bright blush.
Mr Dursley stopped dead. Fear flooded him. He looked back at the whisperers as if he wanted to say something to them, but thought better of it.
He dashed back across the road, hurried up to his office, snapped at his secretary not to disturb him, seized his telephone and had almost finished dialling his home number when he changed his mind. He put the receiver back down and stroked his moustache, thinking… no, he was being stupid. Potter wasn't such an unusual name. He was sure there were lots of people called Potter who had a son called Harry. Come to think of it, he wasn't even sure his nephew was called Harry.
"He didn't even know your name? You're one at this point, and he didn't even know your name?" said Lily in disgust.
Harry nodded but didn't say anything, he wasn't really surprised that Vernon didn't know his name.
He'd never even seen the boy. It might have been Harvey. Or Harold.
"I would never name my son Harold!" James exclaimed offended.
There was no point in worry Mrs Dursley, she always got so upset at any mention of her sister. He didn't blame her- if he'd had a sister like that… but all the same, those people in the cloaks…
He found it a lot harder to concentrate on drills that afternoon, and when he left the building at five o'clock, he was still so worried that he walked straight into someone just outside the door.
"Sorry," he grunted, as the tiny old man stumbled and almost fell. It was a few seconds before Mr Dursley realised that the man was wearing a violet cloak. He didn't seem at all upset at being almost knocked to the ground. On the contrary, his face split into a wide smile and he said in a squeaky voice that made passers-by start: "Don't be sorry, my dear sir, for nothing could upset me today! Rejoice, for You-Know-Who has gone at last! Even Muggles like yourself should be celebrating, this happy, happy day!"
"He's gone?" Sirius cheered sharing a bright grin with his friends.
Everyone was happy to hear that the Dark Lord was finally gone, even Regulus and Narcissa were relieved but they didn't show it, it wouldn't be good if anyone found out that they didn't want to support the Dark Lord, their families would kill them.
And the old man hugged Mr Dursley around the middle and walked off.
Mr Dursley stood rooted to the spot. He had been hugged by a complete stranger. He also thought he had been called a Muggle, whatever that was. He was rattled. He hurried to his car and set off home, hoping he was imagining things, which he had never hoped before, because he didn't approve of imagination.
"How can you not approve of imagination? Everything happens because of imagination! I would never be able to pull my pranks if I didn't have imagination!" said Leo with a confused frown, it just didn't make any sense to him.
"You pull pranks?" Sirius asked at once, looking at his future son with wide, hopeful eyes.
Leo grinned his Cheshire grin but didn't answer.
As he pulled into the driveway of number four, the first thing he saw- and it didn't improve his mood- was the tabby cat he'd spotted that morning. It was now sitting on his garden wall. He was sure it was the same one; it had the same markings around its eyes.
"Shoo!" said Mr Dursley loudly.
"Don't be rude to Minnie!" said James with a scowl.
The cat didn't move. It just gave him a stern look. Was this normal cat behaviour, Mr Dursley wondered?
"It is when you're Minnie," Remus chuckled.
Trying to pull himself together, he let himself into the house. He was still determined not to mention anything to his wife.
Mrs Dursley had had a nice, normal day. She told him over dinner all about Mrs Next Door's problems with her daughter and how Dudley had learnt a new word (Shan't!).
"What a horrid child," said Lilly with everyone nodding in agreement.
Mr Dursley tried to act normally. When Dudley had been put to bed, he went into the living-room in time to catch the last report of the evening news.
"And finally, bird-watchers everywhere have reported that the nation's owls have been behaving very unusually today. Although owls normally hunt at night and are hardly ever seen in daylight, there have been hundreds of sightings of these birds flying in every direction since sunrise. Experts are unable to explain why the owls have suddenly changed their sleeping pattern." The news reader allowed himself a grin. "Most mysterious. And now, over to Jim McGuffin with the weather. Going to be any more showers of owls tonight, Jim?"
"Well, Ted,"
"Wait, Leo, isn't that your uncle?" Ginny asked looking at Leo.
Leo grinned proudly with a hint of sadness and nodded, "Yep, good, old, Uncle Ted."
-said the weatherman, "I don't know about that, but it's not only the owls that have been acting oddly today. Viewers as far apart as Kent, Yorkshire and Dundee have been phoning in to tell me that instead of the rain I promised yesterday, they've had a downpour of shooting starts! Perhaps people have been celebration Bonfire Night early- it's not until next week, folks! But I can promise a wet night tonight."
"You-Know-Who might be gone but that's no excuse to act so recklessly," McGonagall reprimanded.
Mr Dursley sat frozen in his armchair. Shooting starts all over Britain? Owls flying by daylight? Mysterious people in cloaks all over the place? A whisper, a whisper about the Potters…
Mrs Dursley came into the living-room carrying two cups of tea. It was no good. He'd have to say something to her. He cleared his throat nervously. "Er- Petunia, dear- you haven't heard from your sister lately, have you?"
As he had expected, Mrs Dursley looked shocked and angry. After all, they normally pretended she didn't have a sister.
Everyone could see how hurt Lily felt at the future words of her sister, they may not be on the best of terms but they were still sisters. James swapped spots with Fawn so he could comfort Lily with a one-armed hugged, which the red head surprising accepted without any hesitation.
Snape watched from his spot with a scowl.
"No," she said sharply. "Why?"
"Funny stuff on the news," Mr Dursley mumbled. "Owls… shooting stars… and there were a lot of funny-looking people in town today…"
"So?" snapped Mrs Dursley.
"She doesn't need to snap," said Leo, sneering slightly at Harry's aunt and uncle.
"Well, I thought… maybe… it was something to with… you know… her lot."
"He says that as if we're some kind of diseased animals," Regulars frowned in disgust. He knew that not all muggles were like this man but if most of them were, he was staying in the wizarding world and never leaving.
Mrs Dursley sipped her tea through pursed lips. Mr Dursley wondered whether he dared tell her he'd heard the name 'Potter'. He decided he didn't dare. Instead, he said, as casually as he could, "Their son- he's be about Dudley's age now, wouldn't he?"
"I suppose so," said Mrs Dursley stiffly.
"What's his name again? Howard, isn't it?"
"Harry. Nasty, common name, if you ask me."
"Oi! Harry may be a common name but it's a good name!" Leo snapped, offended on his boyfriend's behalf.
Harry couldn't stop the stupid grin even if he wanted to. It always makes him feel special and important for just being himself whenever Leo stood up for him or got angry for him.
"Harry's a great name!" James agreed with his son's boyfriend, he was pretty sure that he was the one to choose Harry's name, it was similar to his grandfather's name, Henry.
"Oh, yes" said Mr Dursley, his heart sinking horribly. "Yes, I quite agree."
He didn't say anything word on the subject as they went upstairs to bed. While Mrs Dursley was in the bathroom, Mr Dursley crept to the bedroom window and peered down in the front garden. The cat was still there. It was staring down Privet Drive as though it was waiting for something.
Was he imagining things? Could all this have to do with the Potters? If it did… if it got out that they were related to a pair of- well, he didn't think he could bear it.
"Oh, the tragedy, having a wizard in the family is just the worse," Sirius said his voice laced with heavy sarcasm, a hand on his forehead as he leaned into Fawn dramatically. The others let out loud laughs at Sirius's act, everyone but Snape, who only rolled his eyes and scoffed at the stupid act Black was putting on.
The Dursleys got into bed. Mrs Dursley fell asleep quickly but Mr Dursley lay awake, turning it all over in his mind. His last, comforting thought before he fell asleep was that even if the Potter were involved, there was no reason for them to come near him and Mrs Dursley. The Potters knew very well what he and Petunia thought about them and their kind… He couldn't see how he and Petunia could get messed up in anything that might be going on. He yawned and turned over. It couldn't affect them…
"Why does he even know? Surely Petunia couldn't have been allowed to tell him?" Ginny asked confused.
Everyone paused at this but no one had an answer, not even Professor McGonagall could think of one. If the Ministry knew that a muggle knew about them but weren't actually related to the witch or wizard their memory would be erased.
How very wrong he was.
"Constance Vigilance," Ron and Leo said at the same time sharing a grin.
The group from the future chuckled or rolled their eyes fondly but the ones for the past were a little confused.
"Don't worry, you'll know what we mean later on," Ron assured them.
Mr Dursley might have been drifting into an uneasy sleep, but the cat on the wall outside was showing no sign of sleepiness. It was sitting as still as a statue, its eyes fixed unblinking on the far corner of Privet Drive. It didn't so much as quiver when a car door slammed in the next street, nor when two owls swooped overheard. In fact, it was nearly midnight before the cat moved at all.
A man appeared on the corner the cat had been watching, appeared so suddenly and silently you'd have thought he'd just popped out of the ground. The cat's tail twitched and its eyes narrowed.
Nothing like this man had ever been seen in Privet Drive. He was tall, thin and very old, judging by the silver of his hair and beard, which were both long enough to tuck into his belt. He was wearing long robes, a purple cloak which swept the ground and high-heeled, buckled boots. His blue eyes were light, bright and sparkling behind half-moon spectacles and his nose was very long and crooked, as though it has been broken at least twice. This man's name was Albus Dumbledore.
"Dumbledore!" The marauders shouted happily. No one noticed the side glance Harry and Leo shared at the mention of the headmaster.
Albus Dumbledore didn't seem to realise that he had just arrived in a street where everything from his name to his boots was unwelcome. He was busy rummaging in his cloak, looking for something. But he did seem to realise he was being watching, because he looked up suddenly at the cat, which was still starting at him from the other end of the street. For some reason, the sight of the cat seemed to amuse him. He chuckled and muttered, "I should have known."
He had found what he was looking for in his inside pocket. It seemed to be a silver cigarette lighter. He flicked it open, held it up in the air and clicked it. The nearest street lamp went out with a little pop. He clicked it again- the next lamp flickered into darkness. Twelve times he clicked the Put-Outer, until the only lights left in the whole street were two tiny pinpricks in the distance, which were the eyes of the cat watching him. If anyone looked out of their window now, even beady-eyed Mrs Dursley, they wouldn't be able to see anything that was happening down on the pavement. Dumbledore slipping the Put-Outer back inside his cloak and set off down the street towards number four, where he sat down on the wall next to the cat. He didn't look at it, but after a moment he spoke to it.
"Fancy seeing you here, Professor McGonagall."
He turned to smile at the tabby, but it had gone. Instead, he was smiling at a rather severe-looking woman who was wearing square glasses exactly the shape of the markings the cat had had around its eyes. She, too, was wearing a cloak, an emerald one. Her black hair was drawn into a tight bun. She looked distinctly ruffled.
"I would love to be an animagi, that would be so much fun!" Leo pouted.
"Why don't you become one?" Fawn asked curious.
Leo looked at her before changing his hair colour to match her soft blond locks, then to Lily's bright red hair and then back to his white hair with a black streak.
"You're a Metamorphous!" Lily exclaimed surprised, she thought Leo had just dyed his hair.
"Yep!" Leo beamed proudly. "Get it from my dad's side," he beamed at Sirius who returned his look, just as excited.
"How did you know it was me?" she asked.
"My dear Professor, I've never seen a cat sit so stiffly."
"You'd be stiff if you'd been sitting on a brick wall all day," said Professor McGonagall.
"Why would you be there all day?" Peter asked, brows furrowed in confusion.
The group make sure to keep their faces natural, not wanted to bring suspicion upon the cowardly teen. Before they had even come to the past, they had agreed to tell the people of the past as little as possible, so not to spoil anything from the books for them.
"I'm not sure, Mr Pettigrew, I'm sure if were keep reading we will find out," Professor McGonagall answered honestly, just as curious as everyone else.
"All day? When you could have been celebrating? I must have passed a dozen feasts and partied on my way here."
Professor McGonagall sniffed angrily.
"Oh, yes, everyone's celebrating, all right," she said impatiently. "You'd think they'd be a bit more careful, but no- even the muggles have noticed something's going on. It was on their news." She jerked her head back at the Dursley's dark living-room window. "I heard it. Flocks of owls… shooting stars… Well, they're not completely stupid. They were bound to notice something. Shooting stars down in Kent- I'll bet that was Dedalus Diggle. He never had much sense."
"Of course, it would be that foolish man," Professor McGonagall said with thinned lips.
"You can't blame them," said Dumbledore gently. "We've had precious little to celebrate for eleven years."
"I know that," said Professor McGonagall irritably. "But that's no reason to lose our heads. People are being downright careless, out on the streets in broad daylight, not even dressed in muggle clothes, swapping rumours."
"That was pretty dumb of everyone," Remus winced, thinking about how much damage control the ministry would have to do.
She threw a sharp, sideways glance at Dumbledore here, as though hoping he was going to tell her something, but he didn't, so she went on: "A fine thing it would be if, on the very day You-Know-Who seems to have disappeared at last, the muggles found out about us all. I suppose he really has gone Dumbledore?"
"It certainly seems so," said Dumbledore.
Everyone gave another cheer, Narcissa and Regulus couldn't stop a small smile of relief but were quick to hide them. They would love to cheer with the others but with Snape in the room they needed to keep up their apparencies.
"We have much to be thankful for. Would you care for a sherbet lemon?"
"A what?" asked Narcissa.
"A what?"
Narcissa blushed slightly at everyone's good natured chuckles.
"A sherbet lemon. They're a kind of muggle sweet I'm rather fond of."
"No, thank you," said Professor McGonagall coldly, as though she didn't think this was the moment for sherbet lemons. "As I say, even if You-Know-Who has gone- "
"My dear Professor, surely a sensible person like yourself can call him by his name? All this You-Know-Who nonsense- for eleven years I have been trying to persuade people to call him by his proper name 'Voldemort'."
A couple people flinched at Voldemort's name: Narcissa, Regulus, Andromeda, Peter and Snape, no one mentioned it.
Professor McGonagall flinched, but Dumbledore, who was unsticking two sherbet lemons, seemed not to notice. "It all gets so confusing if we keep saying 'You-Know-Who'. I have never seen any reason to be frightened of saying Voldemort's name."
"I know you haven't," said Professor McGonagall, sounds half-exasperated, half-admiring. "But you're different. Everyone knows you're the only one You-Know- oh alright, Voldemort- was frightened of."
"You flatter me," said Dumbledore calmly. "Voldemort had powers I will never have."
"Only because you're too- well- noble to use them."
"It's lucky it's dark. I haven't blushed so much since Madam Pomfrey told me she liked my new earmuffs."
"That's kind of gross," Ginny muttered, everyone nodded in agreement.
Professor McGonagall shot a sharp look at Dumbledore and said, "The owls are nothing to the rumours that are flying around. You know what everyone's saying? About why he's disappeared? About what finally stopped him?"
It seemed that Professor McGonagall had reached the point she was most anxious to discuss, the real reason she had been waiting on a cold hard wall all day, for neither as a cat nor as a woman had she fixed Dumbledore with such a piercing stare as she did now. It was plain that whatever 'everyone' was saying, she was not going to believe it until Dumbledore told her it was true. Dumbledore however was choosing another sherbet lemon and did not answer.
"What they're saying," she pressed on, "is that last night Voldemort turned up in Godric's Hollow. He went to find the Potters. The rumour is that Lily and James Potter are- are- that their- dead."
Everything went deathly still, no one knew what to say or what to do. The group from the future moved closer to Harry, Leo throwing his arm around his boyfriend in support.
Sirius, Remus, and Peter stared at James and Lily with horrified expressions. James and Lily were frozen. They die? But Harry was only one, how could they die and leave him alone?
"Lily…" James mumbled out; no words seem to form in his mind. Lily nodded with teary eyes; her eyes fixed on Harry's slightly slumped form in his boyfriend's arms.
"Harry, we- we're so sorry!" She managed to get out before sobbing.
Harry's head shot up from where he was glaring at the ground. "What? You have nothing to be sorry about! None of this was your fault! Either of you!"
Lily nodded jerkily as she stood up and made her way to Harry who stood up. Lily threw her arms around her son tightly. James made his way over and brought the two into his arm in a protective embrace. Harry could feel his shoulder getting wet from Lily's tears but didn't care, he was doing everything he could to stop his own from spilling over.
Leo moved so he was sitting on the arm of the chair letting the small, slightly broken family sit down, none of them caring about the tight space before Leo made himself at home on the floor, leaning back into Harry's legs, letting him know he was there. Harry leaned forward a bit and put his hand on Leo's head as thanks before relaxing back into the couch, soaking up the warmth of his parents for the first time he could remember.
Dumbledore bowed his head. Professor McGonagall gasped. "Lily and James… I can't believe it… I didn't want to believe it… Oh Albus…"
"Thanks Minnie!" James said with a small smile. McGonagall just nodded with a watery smile.
Dumbledore reached out and pattered her on the shoulder. "I know…I know…" he said heavily.
Professor McGonagall's voice trembled as she went on. "That's not all. They're saying he tried to kill the Potters' son, Harry. But- He couldn't. He couldn't kill that little boy. No one knows why, or how, but their saying that when he couldn't kill Harry Potter, Voldemort's power somehow broke- and that's why he's gone."
Everyone but his friends looked at Harry with awe. A one-year-old defeating Voldemort, that should have been impossible.
Dumbledore nodded glumly.
"It's- it's true?" faltered Professor McGonagall. "After all he's done… all the people he's killed…. He couldn't kill a little boy? It's astounding… of all the things to stop him… but how in the name of heaven did Harry survive?"
"We can only guess," said Dumbledore. "We may never know."
Professor McGonagall pulled out a lace handkerchief and dabbed at her eyes beneath her spectacles. Dumbledore gave a great sniff as he took a golden watch from his pocket and examined it. It was a very odd watch. It had twelve hands but no numbers, instead, little planets were moving around the edge. It must have made sense to Dumbledore, though, because he put it back in his pocket and said, "Hagrid's late. I suppose it was he who told you I'd be here, by the way?"
Everyone perked up a bit at the mention of Hagrid, the half-giant was beloved by everyone.
"Yes," said Professor McGonagall. "And I don't suppose you're going to tell me why you're here, of all places?"
"I've come to bring Harry to his aunt and uncle. They're the only family he has left now."
"No!" Lily snapped suddenly, making everyone jump. "You can't let him leave Harry there! They won't treat him right! They hate anything to do with magic!"
"I agree with you Miss Evans," Professor McGonagall admitted. "If anything like this should ever happen, I won't allow Harry to go with those people!"
This seemed to calm Lily down slightly, as well as Harry grabbing her hand in reassurance.
"You don't mean- you can't mean the people who live here?" cried Professor McGonagall, jumping to her feet and pointing at number four. "Dumbledore- you can't. I've been watching them all day. You couldn't find two people who are less like us. And they've got this son- I saw him kicking his mother all the way up the street, screaming for sweets. Harry Potter come and live here!"
"You tell him Minnie!" Sirius encouraged. He loved seeing his favourite professor like this.
"It's the best place for him," said Dumbledore firmly. "His aunt and uncle will be able to explain everything to him when he's older. I've written them a letter."
Harry's friends all scoffed.
"A letter?" repeated Professor McGonagall faintly, sitting back on the wall. "Really, Dumbledore, you think you can explain all this in a letter? These people will never understand him! He'll be famous- a legend- I wouldn't be surprised if today was known as Harry Potter Day in future- there will be books written about Harry- every child in our world will know his name!"
"Exactly," said Dumbledore, looking very seriously over the top of his half-moon glasses. "It would be enough to turn any boy's head. Famous before he can walk and talk! Famous for something he won't even remember! Can't you see how much better he'll be, growing up away from all that until he's ready to take it?"
"Imagine you with a massive ego," Leo joked, laying his head back to look at Harry upside down, a Cheshire grin showing all his teeth. Hermione let out a giggle at the mental imagine. Harry flicked his boyfriend on the nose gently, chuckling when Leo's nose scrunched up cutely.
James and Lily shared a smile at the two boys' interaction, they were glad their son found someone who could make him smile. Sirius and Fawn shared the same smile from the other couch.
Professor McGonagall opened her mouth, changed her mind, swallowed and the said, "Yes- yes, you're right, of course.
"I agree about telling the boy when he's ready but not through a letter!" McGonagall said, disgusted with herself that she would let Dumbledore leave Harry with the Dursleys.
-But how is the boy getting here, Dumbledore?" She eyed his cloak suddenly as though she thought he might be hiding Harry underneath it.
"Hagrid's bringing him."
"Maybe that's why Hagrid likes you so much? You imprinted on him?" Ron said. Leo let out a loud laugh at the comment, Harry let out a bit of a laugh as well, but Ron had a bit of a point, he always gravitated more toward Hagrid than any other Professor he's had, apart from Professor Lupin.
"You think it- wise - to trust Hagrid with something as important as this?"
"I would trust Hagrid with my life,' Harry declared.
"I would trust Hagrid with my life," said Dumbledore.
"I'm not saying his heart isn't in the right place," said Professor McGonagall grudgingly, "but you can't pretend he's not careless. He does tend to- what was that?"
A low rumbling sound had broken the silence around them. It grew steadily louder as they looked up and down the street for some sign of a headlight; it swelled to a roar as they both looked up at the sky- and a huge motorbike fell out of the air and landed on the road in front of them.
"I want one!" Sirius said at once. Fawn let out a little giggle.
Regulus couldn't help snorting, he could imagine Sirius on the bike above a forest and getting distracted by a bird or something and losing control.
If the motorbike was huge, it was nothing to the man sitting astride it. He was almost twice as tall as a normal man and at least five times as wide. He looked simply too big to be allowed, and so wild- long tangles of bushy black hair and beard hid most of his face, he had hands the size of dustbin lids and his feet in their leather boots were like baby dolphins. In his vast muscular arms, he was holding a bundle of blankets.
"Baby Harry!" cooed all the females in the room making Harry blush and Leo snicker.
"Hagrid," said Dumbledore, sound relieved. "At last. And where did you get that motorbike?"
"Borrowed it, Professor Dumbledore, sir"' said the giant, climbing carefully off the motorbike as he spoke, "Young Sirius Black lent it to me. I've got him, sir."
Sirius stood up, throwing his arms in the arm, "I have a flying motorbike!"
The marauders groaned; they knew that Sirius wouldn't be able to stop talking about his future flying bike until he finally got it.
"You'll have to take me for a ride sometime, Sirius," Fawn said with a sweet voice.
Sirius felt his cheeks heat with a blush, much to Leo's open amusement.
"It's a date," The older Black winked. "Shut up Leo!" Leo just laughed louder, happy to see his parents fall in love.
"No problems, were there?"
"No, sir- house was almost destroyed but I got him out all right, before the muggles started swarmin' around. He fell asleep as we was flyin' over Bristol."
Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall bent forward over the bundle of blankets. Inside, just visible, was a baby boy, fast asleep. Under a tuft of jet-black hair over his forehead they could see a curiously shaped cut, like a bolt of lightning.
"I want to see baby Harry; he'd be so cute!" Ginny giggled
Suddenly a large screen appeared in the middle of the room. On the screen was a picture of baby Harry fast sleep in Hagrid's arms. All the girls cooed; Harry's face scarlet. Leo wasn't making it any better by cooing with the girls.
"You had such chubby cheeks!" Leo gushed.
"Why does he have a scar though?" Lily asked frantically, looking between the screen and Harry.
Sirius read ahead a few lines, "It explains it in the books. Kind of…"
"Is that where- "' whispered Professor McGonagall.
"Yes," said Dumbledore. "He'll have that scar for ever."
"Couldn't you do something about it, Dumbledore?"
"Even if I could, I wouldn't. Scars can come in useful. I have one myself about my left knee which is a perfect map of the London Underground.
No one knew what to say about that. How does someone get a scar like that?
-Well- give him here, Hagrid- we'd better get this over with."
Dumbledore took Harry in his arms and turned towards the Dursley's house.
"Could I- could I say goodbye to him, sir?" asked Hagrid.
He bent his great, shaggy head over Harry and gave him what must have been a very scratchy, whiskery kiss. Then, suddenly, Hagrid let out a howl like a wounded dog.
"Aw, Hagrid!" Lily said with a soft smile, she was happy to know that someone cared so much for Harry already, she knew that Hagrid would take care of Harry when he went to Hogwarts.
"Shh!" hiss Professor McGonagall. "You'll wake the muggles!"
"S-s-sorry," sobbed Hagrid, taking out a large spotted handkerchief and burying his face in it, "But I c-c-can't stand it- Lily an' James dead- an' poor little Harry off ter live with muggles- "
"We need to do something for Hagrid," James said with a sad smile. His friends all nodding in agreement.
"Yes, yes, it's all very sad, but get a grip on yourself, Hagrid, or we'll be found," Professor McGonagall whispered, patting Hagrid gingerly on the arm as Dumbledore stepped over the low garden wall and walked to the front door. He laid Harry gently on the doorstep, took a letter out of his cloak, tucked it inside Harry's blankets and then came back to the other two. For a full minute the three of them stood and looked at the little bundle, Hagrid's shoulders shook, Professor McGonagall blinked furiously and the twinkling light that usually shone from Dumbledore's eyes seemed to have gone out.
"I'm sorry, what? He's leaving you on the front doorstep? What if it's cold? You'll get sick!" Leo raged, turning around to look at Harry in disbelief. Even Harry was a little shocked, he didn't Dumbledore had just left him on the doorstep without even knocking to let the Dursley's know that he was out there! "You must have spent the whole night out there, alone, as a baby! What a stupid old fuck!"
"Language!" Professor McGonagall said sternly but that only turned Leo's wrath onto her.
"You left him there too, Professor, don't forget that!" was all he said before leaning against Harry's legs to seethe silently.
Harry leant forward and threw his arms around Leo's shoulders, resting his head against the white-haired teens, whispering in his ear quietly so no one else heard.
Everyone else was just as angry as Leo but didn't say anything, Leo had said enough. McGonagall couldn't stop the guilt from creeping through her chest, she was disgusted with the way she was acting, first agreeing to let Harry be raised by magic hating muggles and then leaving him outside on a doorstep all night. She understood Leo's angry and she deserved it.
"Well," said Dumbledore finally. "that's that. We've no business staying here. We may as well go and join the celebrations."
"Yeah," said Hagrid in a very muffled voice, "I'd best get this bike away. G'night, Professor McGonagall- Professor Dumbledore, sir."
Wiping his streaming eyes on his jacket sleeve, Hagrid swung himself on to the motorbike and kicked the engine into life, with a roar it rose into the air and off into the night.
"I shall see you soon, I expect, Professor McGonagall," said Dumbledore nodding to her. Professor McGonagall blew her nose in reply.
Dumbledore turned and walked back down the street. On the corner he stopped and took out the silver Put-Outer. He clicked it once and twelve balls of light speed back to their street lamps so that Privet Drive glowed suddenly orange and he could make out a tabby cat slinking around the corner at the other end of the street. He could just see the bundle of blankets on the step of number four.
"Good luck, Harry," he murmured. He turned on his heel and with a swish of his cloak he was gone.
A breeze ruffled the neat hedges of Privet Drive, which lay silent and tidy under the inky sky, the very last place you would expect astonishing things to happen. Harry Potter rolled over inside his blankets without waking up. One small hand closed on the letter beside him and he slept on, not knowing he was special, not knowing he was famous, not knowing he'd be woken up in a few hours' time by Mrs Dursley's screams as she opened the front door to put out the milk bottles, nor that he would spend the next few weeks being prodded and pinched by his cousin Dudley… He couldn't know that at this very moment, people meeting in secret all over the country were holding up their glasses and saying in hushed voices: "To Harry Potter- the boy who lived!"
"That's the first chapter done," Sirius said, a tense air still hanging over everyone. "Who wants to read next?"
"I will!" Regulus said. Sirius gave his little brother a cheeky smile before tossing the book to him, ignoring Hermione's slight gasp at the way he handled to book.
"Chapter Two: The Vanishing Glass."
A/N: This chapter kind of got away from me, if you haven't realized but Leo is Sirius Black's son and my other OC Fawn Scamander, Newt Scamander's daughter.
There is so much that annoys me about so many things in the books when it comes to somethings like LEAVING A BABY ON A DOORSTEP WHEN IT'S COLD AND IT'S THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT, I never understood why Dumbledore didn't just knock and then apperate, it'd be 10x safer for baby Harry!
I've gone back over it and fixed the mistakes I could find, but if I missed any please just let me know, thank you.
Anyway, hope you enjoy, I have no idea when I'll upload next,