Fathers and Sons

Summary: An in-depth look at Harry and James's father and son relationship.

No love is greater than that of a father has for his son.

This was especially the case for James Potter. He didn't quite understand the unconditional love of a father until he became one himself. The love he had for his son was beyond words. Harry was the pride of his life, no doubt about that. Ever since the day Harry was born he had been the joy and the center of James and Lily's life. The love James had for his son only grew over the years as Harry got older.

Now at sixteen, James felt they had a great relationship. While some teenager sons would die to be caught in public with his parents, Harry didn't care, although he had a few incidents with Lily who would pick inopportune times to inquire if Harry needed underwear.

One time at a Quidditch match when Harry was fifteen, someone had made the comment they didn't see many father and sons attend a Quidditch match together and sit together. Occasionally, Sirius joined them, but only if his favorite team was playing.

"It's nice to see a father and son enjoying a Quidditch match together," one man commented at the last match James and Harry went to. James smiled and nodded, looking at his son. Harry had just stuffed a handful of popcorn in his mouth and then turned his head when he felt James's eyes on him.

"What?" He asked around the mouthful of popcorn, fully knowing if Lily was there she would be scolding him. James smiled.

"Nothing son, nothing," James said.

After the match they would leave talking about the match, never rubbing it in the other's face if their favorite team won if their two favorite teams had played against each other.

Looking at his desk in his home office, James smiled as he found the picture frame with a picture of him and Harry before they left to go to a Quidditch match. There was one for every year since Harry was five. Eleven years and eleven pictures later, James now imagined the day when a grandson would be in the picture with them.

He opened the frame to look back over the pictures, noticing Harry went from sitting on his shoulders to standing at his side. Another thing he noticed was how tall Harry had gotten. They now matched each other in height.

James remembers growing up an only child and how lonely it was. His parents were older when he came along and he made a promise that his children wouldn't be alone. Well, at least he had one. Since he and Lily both worked, Harry spent a lot of his time with Andromeda until he met Ron and then he went to the Burrow on the days that Lily worked and sometimes, even on the days when she was home because he got lonely. Otherwise, Lily would call Molly and within a few minutes Ron would come through the floo and as quick as a flash of the lightning the two boys were outside or up in Harry's room.

Sometimes when James would see Harry he questioned just where did the time go? What happened to the little boy who came running when he came home from work, dressed in his play Auror outfit Lily had made out of his old uniforms?

Harry was still that little boy. The king of Monopoly and Scrabble James just wondered where Harry got his cunningness from and he realized from him.

Entering the kitchen, he peeked into the family room and found Harry sitting on the couch, playing video games. Mario Kart was a thing between them, one they would trash talk each other about, someone got mad when they lost (James) and then declare they're never playing again only to say yes the next time they were asked.

Upon closer inspection, James found that Harry was playing another Mario game and seemed to be finishing up when he saved his progress and turned off the gaming console.

"Hey, Harry?" He called before Harry headed up to his room.

"Yeah?"

"How long has been since we've played one on one Quidditch?" James asked.

"Too long," Harry replied.

"Come on."

As James headed out to the Quidditch shed, he thought back to the week he had at work. A mission had ended with a fatality. James had to go with Kingsley to notify the family and he found that they had a son the same age as Harry. When he came home from work that day without saying a word, he pulled Harry into a loving embrace, making Harry question what was going on.

Lily didn't question it, knowing James would tell her later, especially when he asked her to touch up his Auror dress robes.

Later before they went to bed, James told Lily what happened.

"They had son Harry's age and I keep thinking…."

"James," Lily cut him off. "You don't go on missions anymore. Unless some madman comes in the Auror offices which would be difficult, I don't think we have anything to worry about."

Since then, James took advantage of every single opportunity to spend time with Harry.

"When did I last tell you I love you?" James asked.

The question made Harry pause, broom hoovering over the racks James had built in the wall to store them.

"Last night before we went to bed," Harry eventually answered.

He soon found himself pulled in an embrace. He didn't question it, as Lily had told him what happened at work that week.

"I love you, son, never forget that," James whispered in his hair.

"I love you too, Dad."

Years later when James was standing in a corridor at St. Mungo's looking at a baby who shared his name, Harry, who was standing beside him said, "I never knew unconditional love until I was handed this little guy."

James smiled, wrapping an arm around Harry's shoulder.

"Harry, no love is greater than the love a father has for his son. I never understood it either until I was handed you. Now, you have a son of your own," James said, voice cracking at the end.

"I need your help, Dad," Harry whispered.

"I will be there, Son," James replied. Looking in the window at his grandson, he added, "And you little fella."

There is no greater love a father has for his son and this was especially true for Harry and James Potter.

I don't want my children to follow in my footsteps. I want them to take the path next to me and go further than I ever dreamed possible.

Becoming an Auror was something that James hoped that Harry didn't follow in his footsteps. But unfortunately, that was the path Harry had decided.

It was one summer day, following Harry's fifth year, when James realized he hadn't had a chance to talk to Harry about it.

He had asked Harry to come into work with him to see some behind the scenes in the Auror offices. One of the perks of being Deputy Head was being allowed to bring anyone into work, of course, keeping them from finding out private information.

"Ruby, I'm going out for lunch, I will be back in an hour," James informed his secretary.

"Okay, James," Ruby said.

"Come on, Harry," he called. Harry left Sirius's office where he had been reviewing sixth-year defense lesson and followed James out of the Auror department.

They went to the Leaky Caldron for lunch and decided on the chicken sandwich lunch special. When they were alone, James decided to talk to Harry about something he had been meaning to talk to him about.

"Harry, I've been meaning to talk to you about being an Auror. I'm not going to change your mind. Rather I want to hear your thoughts."

Harry paused and then said the speech he had prepared when James talked to him about being an Auror.

"Okay. First, since I'm your son I expect it to be harder. If I was to successfully enter the program, you will ask the Auror in charge whose name has left me, that I'm not to be given any special or preferential treatment," Harry paused, taking a long swig of his drink. "Actually I know you. You won't ask. You'll demand it, Dad."

"Of course, I would," James interjected.

"I wouldn't expect anything less," Harry retorted. "In fact, I expect that if I were to fail any portion of the training, even if it's by a fraction of a point, that my chances of being picked to have a second go at it would be horribly small." Harry paused when he realized how he sounded.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to be cheekily. Considering what could happen I would want to keep whatever happens from happening again. And if it does, help defeat the witch or wizard. I would have an obligation to do so."

James leaned back in his chair, impressed with what he heard thus far. "An obligation to whom, may I ask?"

"You, Mum, Sirius, Remus, Hestia, Ginny, Hermione, and Ron, their children if they had anything. My children if I have any. Our world." Harry waved his hand around the pub. "The life you and Mum had fought so hard to preserve." Harry took a long gulp of his Butterbeer. He sat the bottle down and waited for several agonizingly long moments for his father to respond.

James studied Harry's tense face and inhaled deeply. "Well, how can I argue against that?"

Harry visibly sagged in relief.

"You're right. I'd rather you did something else," James admitted. "You are my son, my child, and I can't help but feel like I should protect you from everything. But that's not your problem, it's mine. I realize, Son, you're not asking for my permission. You're too much like me in that you know exactly what you want. If it's my blessing you want, you got it. And once you began training, which I have no doubt you will qualify. I promise I will be as uninvolved as I can."

Harry sighed in relief, smiling. "Thanks, Dad."

"And in case I haven't said before, I'm proud of you. Even though at first I wouldn't want you to follow in my footsteps, I won't stand in your way. I do wish though, that you would go further than I did."

"I think I will, Dad," Harry said. "I think I will."

James thought back to that conversation when he watched Harry's head Auror inauguration from the side of the stage no just as a fellow Auror, but a proud father.

For most fathers, they don't want their children to follow in their footsteps. Instead, they want them to take the path beside them and go further than they ever dreamed possible.

It is a wise father that knows his own child.

It wasn't often that Lily left him and Harry on their own but James took advantage of those times by spending time with Harry. They'd get pizza for dinner, eating it in the family room, and playing Mario Kart until late at night or early in the morning. All James and Harry needed to do was to clean up and get rid of the pizza or takeaway boxes before Lily got home.

But James only needed two fingers to count the times Harry got sick while Lily was away. One time was last summer when Harry got food poisoning and Lily had left for a potions convention.

Today Lily was off to Edinburgh for a healer's conference. She never liked to leave without saying bye to Harry and James. This time, Harry was still asleep when she needed to leave. She tiptoed into Harry's room and kissed his cheek, running her hand along the back of his head, thus waking him.

"Mum?" Harry asked, sleepily.

"I'm going. I'll see you on Sunday," she whispered. "I don't need to tell you to be good for your father do I?"

"Aren't I always?"

"Cheeky monkey, I love you."

"Love you too, Mum."

Harry was asleep again by the time Lily flooed to the Ministry to catch her Portkey.

James didn't question it when ten came and went without a pip from Harry. But at one in the afternoon, James got concerned.

Heading up to his son's room, he found the door to Harry's bathroom and do was his bedroom door. Remembering Harry closes both at night he tried the bedroom door first before opening the door.

His concern increased at seeing the room empty.

"Harry?" He called.

"In here," a groan came from the bathroom. James approached the bathroom from Harry's room and opened the door after knocking.

"What's wrong, Prongslet?" He asked.

"No light," Harry whispered.

"Migraine," James thought. "Alright, do you still feel…?"

Harry leaned over the toilet, retching, thus cutting off James's question. He kneeled down behind his son, rubbing his back in soothing circles.

James flicked his wand to darken the curtains a little more making the room darker.

"Dad, I think I'm done," Harry groaned.

"Are you ready to head back to bed?" Harry hummed in agreement. "Okay."

"I'm sorry," Harry whispered.

"I feel like I'm the one who should say sorry. You inherited this from me," James retorted. "Do you think you can make it back to bed?

Harry thinks for a second, his stomach is settling, for the moment but experience told him he would need a trash bin or a bucket beside his bed.

"I'll get you the bucket once I got you settled," James promise, apparently correctly guessed what was on Harry's mind.

"Okay," Harry whispered. Slowly James helped Harry to his feet. The room spins as Harry and James shuffled to the door. Harry blindly grabs for something to hold on to as he feels himself leaning to the left. James steadies him as they make the turn from the bathroom doorway to Harry's room.

"Easy Kiddo, take your time. Just lean on me."

Harry lets his dad led him back to his room and helps him lay back down into his bed, tucking the thin summer weight duvet around him as if he was a little boy.

"Be right back," James assured him, leaving the room quickly, returning with the grey bucket they kept under the sink in Harry's bathroom.

James sat down it beside the bed on the floor where Harry could reach it. He flicks his wand at the curtains repeating what he did with the curtains in the bathroom. He left the bedroom again getting a bottle of water and a cup from the kitchen and then headed down to the basement. He knew Lily had potions for migraines down the basement and a fresh batch. He was her inspiration for creating the migraine potions and he was forever grateful. They made migraine attacks more bearable.

Returning to Harry, he found his son curled up in bed.

"Stomach bothering you?" James asked.

"A little, sometimes my stomach hurts," Harry admitted.

James sat down the potion bottle of water and cup on Harry's nightstand. He went into Harry's bathroom and collected a stomach soother knowing it would be the only way that Harry would keep the migraine potion down.

"Did you close the curtains?" he whispers softly, noticing the dark room.

"Yes, Son," James replied, softly. He helped Harry sat up and then guide the stomach soother to Harry's lips, repeating the process with the migraine potion.

"Here, Son." James gave him the cup of water. "Slow sips, Harry. The potion should help. Trust me."

He helps Harry to lie back down, tucking the duvet around his shoulders. Harry turned to lie on his back to allow James to lay a cool damp washcloth on his head. He sighs as James laid down the cool washcloth across his forehead, folding in a larger square to allow it to cover his eyes as well.

"Try and rest, Son," James whispered. "Do you want to me stay with you until you fall asleep?"

"Yes, please."

James tapped his wand on the washcloth placing a charm on it so it would stay in place to allow Harry to turn to lie on his side. No sooner than James did that, Harry turned to lie on his side, back facing James. The position Harry was lying in allowed James to rub the back of his neck. This was a place where James felt tension when he had a major migraine and he figured Harry did too.

"Don't stop," Harry whispered.

James smiled, keeping the neck massage up until well passed he had heard the soft snores coming from his son.

A part of James wanted to kick himself for not noticing Harry wasn't feeling well. But then Lily would have noticed and nothing got past her. But James didn't dwell on that and decided to focus on taking care of his son.

The day passes in a haze of pain and exhaustion. Doing the same thing Lily does when he has a migraine, James rouses him every two hours to give him water and another dose of the migraine potion knowing the stomach soother has a twelve-hour window before the next dose. Harry, on the other hand, is aware of his constants presence. He's comforted by he's not going through this alone and James is taking Lily's place and taking care of him.

It's later when Harry is coherent enough to be aware of his surrounding. It's dark outside. Slowly he sat up and takes stock of himself, realizing he feels better a little stiff and tired. Regardless, the ache in his head is gone and his stomach doesn't feel like it's going jump up his throat.

At one point, he found James hand blindly and laid it on his stomach.

"Want me to rub?" James whispered. Harry slowly nodded and even though James' hand wasn't as soft as Lily it still did the job.

All and all, this episode seems to be winding down. He gets a shower, washing his hair, and when he finishes, he changes into clean pajamas and boxers leaving his feet bare. Stomach growling, he decides to head down to the kitchen to see what Lily had left them for supper.

As he approached the kitchen, he smells fresh chicken soup. Upon entering the kitchen Harry finds his father at the stove.

"I thought you couldn't cook?" Harry asked.

"I can," James answered. "Your Mum has this taking care of everyone thing and I find it easier to allow her to fix food. Harry sinks down into his usual seat at the kitchen table.

"Harry, when did you start getting a headache?" James inquired.

"Last night," He admitted. Harry remembers when exactly. The ache behind his eyes hit him right after dinner, but the tell-tale signs had been there since after lunch. The tension radiating from his skull down into his neck and shoulders, his stomach unsettled, and the nagging exhaustion which all pointed to a migraine.

When Lily woke him up, he didn't move his head which was why he didn't show Lily any signs of him having a migraine.

"How do you feel?"

"Much better thanks."

James sat a bowl of soup in front of his son. "Did you say you've had migraines?"

"Unfortunately, I do. That's something else you've gotten from me beside my looks, charm, and Quidditch talent."

"Lucky me," Harry quips.

"Sorry, son. I wouldn't wish them on anyone."

Silence followed, as James made himself something for supper and Harry ate his soup.

"Thanks, Dad, you did a good job, taking care of me."

"You're welcome.

Migraines might have been another thing, James and Harry had in common, but it also provided an opportunity for James and Harry to bond. Because he suffered from them himself, James spotted the signs before Harry did. This was because it is a wise father who knows his child.

Happy Father's Day!

AN: If you haven't already, check out the Father's Day fic I posted in Harry Lives with Sirius.