Chapter Three
HARRY POTTER RETURNS FROM THE DEAD!
We all know the story; on Halloween 1981, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named attacked the home of Lily and James Potter and killed their youngest child, Harry Potter, before himself being banished by magics unknown. That night the Dark Lord vanished, and for ten long years, we have had peace, but that peace came at a terrible price, for it came from the death of an innocent child, at least that is the story that we have been led to believe.
But this morning, this reporter is happy to inform you all that the story of that night is an apocryphal tale that we all have been fooled by; for today, Harry Potter has been found alive and safely returned to his parents: Lily and James Potter.
How is this possible when so many of us remember the poor boy's death? There was even a funeral in which several noble members of our society attended, including our own Minister of Magic, Millicent Bagnold.
The story of Harry Potter's survival is fantastical, told to the Daily Prophet by Albus Dumbledore himself! The night that the Dark Lord attacked the Potter's residence at Godric's Hollow, aided by the betrayal of the Potter's secret keeper, Peter Pettigrew, we all believed that the poor boy had died when in fact, the boy used accidental magic to transport him to safety, nothing short of miraculous, in this reporter's opinion.
According to Albus Dumbledore, when the boy apparated to safety, he was transported to a muggle orphanage where he was, as Professor Dumbledore put it, "Lost in the bureaucratic system for a decade."
It was only when Harry's Hogwarts letter was sent out that it was discovered that the boy was, in fact, alive. Professor Dumbledore himself, believing it to be a trick, went to the orphanage in question to discover the truth and was shocked when he found Harry to be alive and ignorant of not only his magical heritage but also that his parents, as well as the rest of the magical world, believed him dead.
Unfortunately, Harry's survival came with a terrible price. Professor Dumbledore informed this reporter that the orphanage in which young Harry lived was exceptionally cruel to him due to his accidental magic. The poor boy has supposedly been horribly abused for the past decade by those who were supposed to protect him.
It is for this reason that Professor Dumbledore has allowed young Harry to skip his first term at Hogwarts; instead, the boy will be living with his parents at Potter Manor, where he will receive all the education that he would have received at Hogwarts, while he gets to know his family once again. Harry will attend Hogwarts at the beginning of the second term once he has become acclimated adequately to using his magical powers without the fear of being punished for them as he has become accustomed due to his decade-long sentence amongst the muggles.
For almost ten years, the Potters have been celebrated as the ones who defeated the Dark Lord, and yet that victory came at a terrible cost that no parent should ever have to pay, for no parent should ever have to bury their child. Now, a miracle has occurred, and Harry Potter has been returned to his family, and this reporter is not too proud to admit that she shed tears of joy when she heard the news. It is my hope (and many no doubt share my view) that Harry's life from now on will be a happy one after all the years of pain and fear that he has had to endure and that now that he has been reunited with his family, he will spend the rest of his life knowing what it is to be loved and cared for.
Voldemort's hands shook as he read and reread the article that his servant had brought him. It was impossible! Voldemort had watched the baby turn to ash when Voldemort had hit it with his curse; he had watched the brat's eyes widen in terror before his body had disintegrated into nothing. That night should have been his crowning glory, the night he had defeated the supposed 'prophesied one,' instead, it had been the night in which he had lost everything.
James and Lily Potter had arrived soon after Voldemort had killed the child, and James had attacked the Dark Lord while his wife had fought Peter Pettigrew. Both parents had fought with much greater magical power than anything they had shown before, fueled by their pain from losing their child and hatred for the ones responsible.
It had taken only a matter of minutes for Lily Potter to defeat Pettigrew, using a curse to blast a hole through the traitor's chest (Pettigrew had been dead before he hit the ground) while Voldemort was busy defending himself from the myriad of curses that James Potter had thrown at Voldemort, giving the dark lord no chance to do anything but defend himself, much to the Dark Lord's surprise, for never before had James Potter shown such power.
Both parents had then turned their attention to him, and Voldemort was shocked to discover that he was actually outmatched. He that had spent decades learning magics that had been thought forgotten and delved deeper than any wizard before him was being beaten back by a wizard who should have been beneath him and his mudblood whore!
His anger that these two dared to defy his will had burst forth and allowed Voldemort to cast a spell that threw Lily Potter through the bedroom wall. Thinking his wife had just been killed by the same man who had slaughtered his son, James Potter's rage became absolute, and Voldemort remembered the man's want glowing bright red. Then, thinking that James Potter was about to stun him, Voldemort tried to cast a shield, only to be shocked when the spell burst through his shield and slammed into his chest; whatever James Potter had cast was no stunner. Instead, it had ripped through Voldemort worse than any curse he had ever encountered, even the Cruciatus curse paled in comparison to the agony that Lord Voldemort found himself in, and he knew at that moment that if he didn't escape, he would die.
The wards that Pettigrew had placed around the Potter's cottage stopped them from Apparating to safety, but they only affected the Potters, not Lord Voldemort. So in desperation, the Dark Lord had apparated away, knowing that he would not be able to defeat James Potter, much to his eternal shame and anger.
It was only later that Voldemort discovered the horrifying truth; whatever spell James Potter had hit him with had severely damaged his magical core to the point where Voldemort had less than five percent of the magical power that he once was master over.
Even simple summoning spells left the Dark Lord gasping in exhaustion; anything more powerful than that often left him barely able to breathe and sometimes caused him to pass out from magical exhaustion.
Seeing their once mighty master fall to such a state, his followers abandoned him soon after, believing his power was broken and that he would never again become the powerful Dark Lord he once was. Now, he had only two servants left, and even they were beginning to show signs that their patience had run dry as he desperately searched for anything that might return to him his powers.
Voldemort had spent a decade looking through millions of books, visiting ancient seats of power in far-off countries for anything that might alleviate the curse that that bastard James Potter had placed upon Voldemort. Yet, he had found nothing to explain what had happened to him.
After ten years, Voldemort was beginning to lose hope and had all but abandoned any hope that he might one day regain his powers when his servant brought him the paper showing that Harry Potter was alive; that was the icing on the already depressing cake that was his life now.
"It's impossible…." Voldemort hissed as he reread the paper for the third time, "I saw him die!"
"My lord…." Voldemort's servant said nervously, "Perhaps you only thought you saw him die; you might have been mistaken, after all…."
"NO!" Voldemort snarled as he rose from his seat and flipped the table in front of him, scattering his breakfast across the floor, his rage beyond control at this newest development. "I SAW HIM DIE! I WATCHED HIS BODY TURN TO ASH!"
"Then perhaps this boy is an imposter," the second servant added, "Perhaps he is not whom he claims to be."
"YES!" Voldemort said quickly, quickly reigning in his rage as his vision began to blur, "Yes, that must be it! Both of you, go and discover who this brat is! Report to me once you have!"
"Yes, my lord," the two servants replied in unison as they bowed before quickly making their way out of the room.
Once he was alone, Voldemort collapsed once again into his chair; he was getting weaker and running out of options on how to remedy that; if something wasn't done soon, he would be nothing more than a filthy muggle with no magical power at all, and that was a fate that he would rather die than experience.
XXXX
Once news of Harry's miraculous survival was spread, Potter Manor was bombarded with reporters and others who wanted nothing more than to see the boy who had supposedly 'come back from the dead.'
Luckily for the Potters, the mass of people could not get through the wards that surrounded the Manor, and thus, the Potter family was allowed peace while they showed Harry his new home. Potter Manor was massive to Harry, who had known only his relative's house on Privet drive; the Manor contained a huge three-story library that held enough books to make the British library look small in comparison. On top of this, the Manor also held a large dining room, an equally large sitting room, a vast kitchen manned by over a dozen creatures that James called 'house elves,' a ballroom that looked massive to Harry's small frame, and more than two dozen rooms for guests and other purposes. Even with James' assurances that Harry would grow accustomed to the size of the Manor, Harry began to wonder if he ever would, as it just seemed too massive to be allowed to exist. To Lily's joy, she would often find Harry in the library reading and, more often than not, would join him, if for no other reason than to spend time with her son, who had been lost for so long.
XXXX
About a week after Harry had moved to Potter Manor, he had come downstairs for breakfast when he was suddenly tackled by a large black dog that seemed determined to lick every corner of Harry's face. James had come to see what all the noise was about and had broken into smiles at the sight of Harry laughing as he was licked to death by the giant black dog.
"Sirius, that's enough!" James had laughed, "You're going to drown the poor boy!"
Then, to Harry's astonishment, the black dog transformed into a large man with long curly black hair that hung to his shoulders and piercing gray eyes; but the strangest thing was that Harry seemed to remember him for some reason.
"Hello, Prongslet," the man said in a sad voice that Harry couldn't understand, "I'm so happy to see you again."
"Again?" Harry asked in confusion, "Do I know you, sir?"
"Harry, this is Sirius Black," James clarified with a smile, "He's my best friend and your godfather if your world is anything like this one."
Harry paled slightly at the words, and it was a moment before he found his voice again,
"If you're my godfather, why didn't you come for me in the other world?"
"I don't know, pup," Sirius said sorrowfully, "I have no idea why the Sirius of your world would leave you behind, and I am so sorry that he did."
For a moment, nothing was said, and Harry simply stared at the man who looked so sad for some reason,
"Um….why did you call me Prongslet?" Harry asked softly, making James and Sirius share a grin before Sirius replied.
"You saw how I transformed into a dog?" Sirius asked, making Harry nod, "Well, your dad can transform into a stag, and as such, we nicknamed him 'Prongs,' when you were born, I gave you the nickname Prongslet.
Harry looked at his dad in astonishment for a moment as James quickly transformed into a stag and back into a man,
"That's wicked!" Harry said in a whisper as his dad grinned happily,
"So, what's your nickname, then?" Harry asked, turning back to Sirius, who smiled warmly,
"Padfoot," Sirius said simply, making the boy grin.
"Remus wanted to be here, but unfortunately, his job has held him up," Sirius said, turning to James, "He said he'll introduce himself when he returns to England for Christmas. He's looking forward to meeting the pup."
Harry had no idea who they were talking about but enjoyed being a part of the conversation anyways as the three made their way to the dining room, and Sirius bombarded Harry with questions about himself and what the boy liked and disliked.
XXXX
Harry laughed as he sped through the air on the new broom his parents had bought him a few days ago; it had been a month since Harry had come to Potter Manor, and it seemed to go by in a flash due to how happy Harry was. For the first two weeks, Harry spent nearly every day with his parents, telling them about his life before he came to this world, and they seemed to never get tired of hearing him talk, even when he told them about how bad the Dursleys had treated him. Lily would always hold him tight when the memories became too much; at first, it was a strange feeling to Harry, who had never experienced such comfort. Still, Harry soon began to enjoy being held by his mother. The one thing Harry hated most was how often his nightmares would attack him. On more than one occasion, Harry had awoken in terror, afraid that it had all been a dream and that he was still with the Dursleys and his parents were still dead. Still, when Lily and James would come running into his room due to the sound of his sobs, he had been so happy to realize that he had been wrong and would often fall back asleep with his parents snuggled up next to him. Once a week, Harry was forced to return to Hogwarts so that Madam Pomfrey could continue his treatment in repairing the damage that Harry's relatives had performed on him over the decade that they were responsible for him. The past week had been his last appointment and as a reward, Harry's parents had told him that he could have anything he wanted, within reason, of course.
Harry had mumbled that he would really like a broom to replace the Nimbus 2000 he had in his previous world. James' eyes had lit up with excitement upon hearing that his son had been the youngest seeker in a century, while Lily simply shook her head and mumbled something that sounded eerily like, "Like father, like son."
Rose had been ecstatic when she learned about Harry's Quidditch past and demanded he try out for Gryffindor's team when he started school. She was on the team herself as a chaser, but their current seeker was incompetent, according to her, and needed replacement as soon as possible.
Harry was chasing a practice snitch across the Family's Quidditch pitch; he had been flying since breakfast and yet was still not ready to stop. The freedom he felt while on a broomstick was like a drug, as far as Harry was concerned.
Suddenly, the snitch took a nosedive, and Harry eagerly followed it straight down; he could see the ground getting closer, yet he was not afraid, even as it appeared that he would end up crashing face first into the ground.
At the last minute, the snitch pulled up, and Harry followed, his feet grazing the grass because of how close he had come to crashing. Then, with a triumphant laugh, Harry reached out and closed his fingers around the metal object, relishing his skill for a moment before a voice rang across the field.
"HARRY JAMES POTTER! WHAT THE DEVIL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING?! COME DOWN HERE THIS INSTANT!"
Turning to see who was calling him, Harry was surprised to see his mother standing beneath him with her hands on her hips, looking furious with him; beside her stood James Potter, who seemed torn between looking proud of what Harry had just done, and angry at the same time. Taking a quick gulp to settle his nerves, Harry slowly descended to the ground before finally jumping off his broom to stand in front of her.
"What's up, mum?" Harry said, trying to sound curious about what he was to have done to make her mad at him; James' lips twitched for a moment as though he seemed to be trying not to laugh while Lily's lips thinned considerably.
"What's up?" Lily asked coldly, "How about you nearly colliding with the earth after a sixty-foot dive! So that's what's up! What were you thinking?!"
Harry's eyes fell to his feet, and he shuffled nervously as he tried to think what to say to mollify his mother.
"I wasn't in any danger, mum! Honest!" Harry said quickly, looking into his mother's eyes, "My first game, I made a dive WAY bigger than that, and it turned out okay!"
That seemed to be the wrong answer as Lily's eyes widened in horror at her son's words,
"That's not the point!" Lily retorted harshly, making Harry flinch slightly, "You know that you're only supposed to fly if your father or I am here to watch you! You could have broken your neck, and there would have been no one around to help you!"
"Now, Lily…" James began before he was cut off by his angry wife,
"No, James!" Lily growled as she spun around to face her husband, who backed down in the face of her fury, "I know Harry has spent his whole life with people who don't care if he lives or dies, but it's different now! And I, for one, don't want to bury my son again!"
Harry and James paled instantly at the words, and Harry's head dropped in despair for a moment at how stupid he'd been for making his parents worry before he was quickly taken into a fierce hug by his mother, flinching at the sudden embrace.
"I don't want to lose you again, Harry," Lily said softly, "I don't mean to frighten you, but when your father and I tell you something, we need you to listen to us so that you don't get hurt. Do you understand?"
"I understand, mum," Harry mumbled, "I'm sorry I disobeyed you. I just love to fly, that's all."
"We understand, champ," James said as he went down on one knee to face Harry, "There's nothing else like it in the world! But it's also dangerous; you could be seriously hurt or worse! So, let your mother or I know first next time you want to fly, okay?"
"Okay," Harry mumbled back as his mother pulled away, her eyes shining with unshed tears.
"You know we have to punish you, right?" Lily asked softly; Harry's eyes went wide with terror instantly, and he began to back away from his parents, who were looking at him wide-eyed.
"NO!" Harry pleaded, his eyes beginning to tear up, "Please don't beat me! I'll be good, I promise!"
The color instantly fled from Lily and James' faces as both realized that Lily's words had been misunderstood and that Harry thought they were going to hurt him. Before Harry could take another step back, Lily and James had pounced on the boy and hugged Harry as though they never wanted to let him go.
"Harry, it's going to be okay!" James said quickly as the boy began trying to remove himself from their embrace, "We would NEVER hurt you like that! I swear it on my soul!"
"As do I!" Lily added quickly, tears running down her cheeks, "We will never lay a hand on you, sweetie, I promise!"
Gradually, Harry began to relax as their words reached through the terror to him, and a moment later, he was quietly crying into his mother's chest as his father gently rubbed his back.
"I'm sorry…." Harry mumbled softly,
"No, WE'RE sorry, Harry." Lily replied quickly, "I should have realized that after all you've suffered, the thought of being punished by us would terrify you. But I promise that WE will never punish you like that!"
"Yeah," James added quickly, "The most we'll do is ground you to your room for a little while, but I promise we will NEVER lay a hand on you!"
Harry nodded, which he understood as his parents finally pulled away, and Harry quickly wiped his eyes.
"Your punishment will be to have your broom taken away for a few days until you learn not to go flying without us, understood?" Lily said gently, her hands resting on her son's shoulders.
"I understand, mum," Harry replied softly, "And I'm sorry."
Lily just smiled gently at Harry for a moment as James stooped to pick up Harry's broom off the ground,
"Now, let's go inside and get ready, Sirius has invited us for dinner, and it would not do to be late, would it?" Lily said gently, smiling as Harry quickly nodded his head in agreement.
