Becoming a True Potter
As Harry grew older and older, he started to find himself unable to let go of things. He held onto his possessions and memories as best he could, not wanting to lose them. He often became irritated when Ron misplaced something and didn't seem to care, as though the object had no meaning to him, but he held it in the best way he could.
Harry hadn't always been like this; in the past, he barely had anything to hold on to, and through the years, he had lost more friends and acquaintances than one knew was possible. Was that when he started to become possessive over his things and memories? He wasn't sure.
Ginny had just announced her pregnancy, and Harry couldn't have been happier. Unfortunately, something kept pulling him.
When on a mission to help some waylaid creatures, Harry walked away from his group of Aurors and found himself in his first home. It still had a hole in the top, was covered in dust, and was abandoned.
But this had been his home.
Harry walked into it, his fingers touching the hallway wall.
What would it have been like if he had grown up here?
So much, he knew that, so much would have been different. He would have been loved and cared for. He would have been allowed to play with other children. He would have been fed daily… hell, he would have been fed three times a day! Maybe even more.
Everything would have been different.
Harry wondered if he would have been different. From what he could gather, his father had been a headstrong and impulsive man; would Harry have been more like him if he hadn't died? Or would he have been more studious like his mother?
He would never know.
Harry found himself at the back of the kitchen, sitting on one of the carefully carved chairs - these must have cost a lot of money. He wished he had one memory of living here as a baby which he could hold on to.
Instead, the only memories he had as a child were living with the Dursleys.
"You shouldn't be in here," a voice pulled him out of his thoughts.
Harry looked up at the much older gentleman who was standing at the back door, a solemn look on his face and a cane supporting his weight. "Can I just have a minute?"
The man looked annoyed at that request. "Who do you think you are to break into here?"
Harry's eyebrows furrowed together. Surely anyone in the Wizarding World would know who he was? It wasn't like he'd been hiding under a rock or anything; he'd been in the public eye for years now. The man couldn't have been a muggle; the protection charms would have prevented him from seeing the property.
Standing up, Harry noticed that he was shorter than the other man.
"I am only here to…"
"I don't care why you're here," the man interrupted. "This land is mine!"
Harry's mouth opened to reply, to call this man a liar, but he couldn't. Harry had never inherited this property or the land. He had never thought much about it. Therefore, this man might have been telling the truth. "Yours?" was all he could come up with.
"Yes."
"The Potters… you knew them?"
The man huffed his wand now out. "Leave before I call the Aurors on you! No one is allowed in here! I made sure of that!"
"I… I…" Harry cleared his throat. "I am an Auror."
"Is someone else here?" the man questioned, his eyes darting around nervously.
Harry shook his head. "No… Just me. I'm Harry, Harry Potter. I'm sorry for intruding, but…"
"Prove it!"
It had been such a long time since Harry had to prove his identity; in fact, it was only in Muggle London that he was required to do so. Regardless, he pulled out his Auror ID and handed it over.
The man looked over it for much longer than required and nodded, placing it on the table. "Why are you here? Is it for me? For the property? Did you want to knock it down? Restore it?"
Harry sat back down, slumping into the seat. "I just wanted… I don't know… to be where someone once loved me. I…" he paused, not sure if he should share the news. "I'm about to be a Dad myself."
The man didn't reply.
Harry looked up at him. "And I'm sorry… but… who are you? And how do you own the property?"
"You really don't know, do you?"
"I'm sorry, should I?"
The man shrugged. "I suppose not. Come with me, Harry."
Harry stood up curiously, picked up his ID, slid it into the back pocket, and followed the man out of the back door and down the muddy, overgrown garden. His trouser legs were dampened from the recent rain which had fallen earlier that day.
"Where are you taking me?"
"To my house," he replied.
Harry wondered if he should be following a stranger when he was on the clock at work to find the creatures but couldn't stop himself - it wasn't magic forcing him to do more, nor random curiosity, but he felt like he may have once known this man, or at least could trust him.
After a few more steps, he paused and looked behind him; he was further away from the house than he could have imagined. How was that… as he turned back around, he saw a manor house about eight metres away. "What?"
"Come, I'll explain everything."
Harry looked at the immaculate stone building; it was wider than Malfoy Manor but not quite as tall. It looked like it had been made around the same time as Hogwarts. How had he not known that this existed before now?
They walked into a large room - an entry room. It was easily the most oversized entry room he had ever seen. It had two large arches on either side, which led to two larger rooms and straight in front of him was a grand staircase with a door on either side of it.
He aimlessly followed the man left into a white-stoned room with a frosted glass wall across one side, clearly separating from the next room. "This is…"
"Please, take a seat."
Harry looked at the red set of leather couches and sat down, still amused and confused at the same time."
The man took a deep breath. "My name is Cyprian. I am the keeper and current owner of both Potter Manor," he said, indicating their current manor. "And the two Potter Cottages. Including the one your parents were killed in."
"So you knew them?"
"Your great grandfather, Henry Potter, whom you were named after, was like a father to me. I grew up with your grandfather, Fleamont, and we were best friends. James was my Godson."
Harry's mouth fell open. He had not expected that… he had not expected any of this. "Did you know me as a baby?"
Cyprian nodded. "I did. When your parents were in hiding, we needed to be careful. I didn't see you or them often. The location of Potter Manor has been protected since Henry Potter. You can only get to Potter Manor if you know where it is and have blood permission."
"Because I didn't know where it was…"
"Exactly, you couldn't gain entry. Now you can."
Harry looked around; it was a very empty room. But his mind came back to Cyprian. "If you knew me… and you are part of my family… why didn't you take me in?"
"I'm not a blood relative, I asked, but I wasn't allowed to take care of you; with your own Godfather being sent to Azkaban and so many people killed, you were sent away to live with your mother's family." Cyprian stood up and walked to the window. "I know you must have a lot of questions; I will do my best to answer them all."
Harry followed him to the window and looked out at Potter Cottage; it looked worse from this angle.
"I still remember that night; hearing the explosion woke me up. When I got to the front door, I saw figures moving around and knew it wasn't James or Lily. Aurors turned up seconds later, and I stayed back. As the keeper, I had to protect the manor."
Cyprian brought a napkin to his cheek. "I didn't know if any of you had survived. I didn't know what had happened. But I knew that it was terrible. They decided to stay at the cottage to have an escape plan - the cottage was always going to be found. And if they were here, they would also be found.
They had planned to escape back to the manor once the cottage was located or move to one of the other cottages; that way, it would deter the… it would give them extra protection."
Harry looked at the old man; he looked much older than he had earlier.
"I found out later and spoke to Mr Dumbledore and asked about you. I have always wondered if Mr Dumbledore knew where the Manor was or knew that it could have protected you, then maybe he would have reconsidered."
Harry put a hand on Cyprian's shoulder. "Thank you."
Cyprian looked at him.
"Thank you for everything you've done. I wish I could have been here, too, but I'm thankful that I can see it now. Could I… could I look around?"
Cyprian nodded. "This is now yours, and it's time the Potter family gets it back."
"What?" Harry uttered, looking at the man. "I am not taking your home away from you."
Cyprian smiled. "Let me show you your home, please."
Harry looked at the giant glass wall and mutely nodded. Now wasn't the time for arguing.
"Firstly, that wall was created by Henry Potter himself when I lived here as a child with Fleamont. This was the biggest room in the house where we would have our grand balls - portkeys were given to attendees, which meant the location was still hidden. This wall was put so there was a separate entryway for those arriving to allow them time to adjust and sort themselves out before entering the ball itself. On those days, the surroundings were hidden; my favourite had been snow, but your father, James, loved seeing the mountains."
Harry tried to soak up as much as he could as he followed Cyprian around, listening to all of the history, asking questions, and enjoying every second of it.
He had visited the home his parents died in out of anguish and was now feeling more fulfilled than ever. It wasn't because of the manor; it was because of Cyprian, a connection to his family and the name he would be continuing.
Hogwarts, Slytherin, Assignment 6, Ghost Hunting, Task 3: Write a fic set on the site of a tragedy.
Potter Complex, A character finding themself somewhere they shouldn't be.
Word Count: 1800
Betas: Queen Binte (Both of them)
Notes: I will be continuing this story! I have enjoyed writing it so much! Let me know if you have any questions for the next chapter!