A/N - Hello everyone. Here's the newest chapter of Lightning, Part 3. I've been a bit leery of posting it (or anything) lately since I've seen chapters in stories sometimes suddenly and randomly being unavailable for viewing. It's happened here more than once so I hope no one has any trouble reading this chapter.
Also I may have delayed posting this chapter because the story is ending and after more than four and a half years and three full books (and a preview) that just seems weird. This story has grabbed me like no other fan fiction story I've written ever has and I'll be sorry to see it end.
There will be an epilogue but this is the last main chapter.
Disclaimer: The X-Men were created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby and belong to Marvel Comics. Harry Potter was created by and belongs to J.K. Rowling. I make no money from this and the only thing that's mine are the original parts of the story.
31) BRAVE NEW WORLD
With the Sentinels defeated and the Master Mold destroyed most people tried to get back to their normal lives as quickly as possible. They were mostly successful since the Sentinel crisis hadn't done as much to disrupt normal day to day elements of life as it had first appeared. Some people had gone into hiding, some businesses and schools had shut down (like Cain's school in Colorado) but on the whole the mundane world hadn't been as badly affected by the Sentinels as the magical one had been and most mundanes had been able to go about their daily lives without too much trouble. They still got up in the morning, went about their regular routines, and went to sleep at night. The main thing that was different was that all of the time they were aware of being watched by the Sentinels with the possibility that at any moment they could be attacked for one reason or another. There was a great deal of relief felt when the Sentinel surveillance ended.
Although the Sentinels were defeated and deactivated their robot bodies were still strewn all over world which raised the question of what to do with them. Most of them were destroyed but some of them were kept around, mainly by academic institutions that wanted to study them. Both MIT and Cal Tech each got a couple as did Oxford and Cambridge. Other universities also managed to get one or two for their own studies. The Smithsonian Institution put a pair of them on exhibit at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington D.C.
Dr. Doom did snag a few Sentinels which he took back to his castle in Latveria and studied very closely. He realized pretty quickly that although the Sentinels were complex robots they weren't as good as the ones he could make himself. He could build robots that were human sized and were so well made that they could fool most people into thinking they really were human. That was something the Sentinels couldn't do. No, good as the Sentinels were his own robots were better and he eventually stopped studying them and put them away in a lower storeroom. He didn't destroy them as you never knew when they might come in handy and Doom wasn't one to throw anything away that he might eventually find useful.
Like the mundane world the magical world also tried to return to normal. People who had been in hiding came out of hiding and returned to their homes. The various magical governments returned to work. The schools were reopened. This included Hogwarts, where the students and staff (along with some others) came back from the Underground realm, and Ilvermorny where the students returned from where they had been hiding, mainly with their families.
As one of the only groups to have comparatively amicable relations with the Sentinels the goblins of Gringotts were almost disappointed when the robots were beaten but they didn't really mind and they found a use for the Sentinels after everything was said and done. The goblins managed to seize a bunch of Sentinels during the clean up. They spent time studying them with both magical and mundane means but never did get any of them working again. That didn't stop them from using them in another way. Many of the more prominent Gringotts branches got deactivated Sentinels and set them up in strategic places in the main rooms of their banks. Every customer who came to do business at these branches of Gringotts would see at least a pair of Sentinels (sometimes more) standing against the walls inside the main entrance and looking like they were watching everything going on in the room. They were completely inactive and never moved again but they still looked quite intimidating, which was the point after all.
The return to normality went on as people tried to put it all behind them but, despite people's best efforts, in a very real sense the world was irrevocably changed. The magical world was now fully exposed and there would be no going back. The ICW recognized this fact and formally repealed the Statute of Secrecy although this was just a formality. Under the circumstances what else could they do?
It was a lot harder for the magicals to adjust to the changes than the mundanes. In some parts of the world it wasn't too bad. In the Americas, both North and South, most magicals knew a lot about the mundane world and their lives tended to use the best of both worlds. They had no problem with the transition. Australia and Asia were much the same. Africa varied depending on the country, some took it better than others. It was Europe that had the most trouble with the new order. Britain had it especially tough. The pureblood society of magical Britain had been so insular for so long that most purebloods in it truly had lost touch with the mundane world and still thought that most mundanes were living in the late 18th - to early 19th centuries. As such, the Hogwarts Express and the Wizarding Wireless notwithstanding, the true state of the mundane world came as a massive shock that they just didn't know how to deal with. Even so-called "enlightened" purebloods, like the Weasleys for instance, still thought that mundanes were no better than smart children at best. The upshot was that magical Britain was afraid to move into the mundane world and was still trying to hide even though that was no longer possible. Professor Dunbledore and Minister Fudge were both worried about the situation in their country and they were in agreement that something would have to be done. In early December they began planning a course of action that they hoped would be helpful in getting Magical Britain moving in the right direction.
At the X-Mansion things quickly returned to normal, or at least as normal as life can be at a place that houses the X-Men and other super powered mutants. The team resumed their usual training routine in the Danger Room on most mornings and in the afternoons Harry went to study at Ilvermorny which had reopened less than a week after the destruction of the Sentinels. One difference at Xavier's school was that the newer students now began to train in the Danger Room too. The professor had decided that they should start learning how to defend themselves for the time when, not if, they were attacked again in the future. Unlike the X-Men they only worked out in the Danger Room once or twice a month for now, usually in the afternoon, and the tasks they faced were a lot less intense than what the team dealt with.
Cain stayed for a few days before leaving to drive back to Colorado as classes would soon resume at his college. Harry was sorry to see him go as they were becoming good friends but before leaving Cain promised to return to the mansion over Christmas. He and Xavier were also now on much better terms. Finally Cain and Logan got along really well with each other and had taken to sparring regularly during the days Cain was at the mansion. Despite the big difference in their sizes they were actually fairly well matched as long as Cain suppressed his Juggernaut powers while they sparred. Logan knew how to use an opponent's size against him and often came out on top in their spars.
Logan decided to stay on at the mansion, at least for now. As he'd said to Harry not only did he now have a real chance to get to know his grandson but he also didn't have anywhere else to go. He'd not had a permanent home since he and his wife were attacked back in Britain over a decade ago. His time at Weapon X didn't count. Harry was happy to have Logan there as was Sirius, and so was Remus when he visited during Christmas break.
Eventually Professor Xavier asked Logan to become a combat instructor at the school. Although he would train with the X-Men from time to time they were already experienced fighters and a formidable team who worked well together. They didn't really need his help as a teacher but they did make use of his combat skills during training sessions now and then. He spent time with Harry teaching him how to use his claws effectively and eventually Harry began incorporating them into his X-Men training. The professor modified Lightning's uniform gloves so his claws could be extended through them without shredding them.
Beyond that, Logan mainly worked with the newer students because they were the ones who needed to learn how to defend themselves. He was an effective teacher and he pushed his students hard. More than one of them was heard to call him a slavedriver which made him smirk and tell them that if he didn't push them as hard as he did they wouldn't learn nearly as much.
"If you wanna join the X-Men someday you gotta learn to take it and be as tough as they are" he'd say to his students, "you've got at least a couple of years before any of you can do that so I suggest you make the most of it."
As everyone else at the mansion had a code name Logan eventually began using his old code name of Wolverine again although that was more for form's sake than anything else as he didn't go on missions with the team, at least not until much later. But that's another story.
It was a couple of weeks into December when Harry was summoned to Headmaster Pope's office at Ilvermorny. The school was back to normal and the lost time due to the Sentinel takeover had been quickly made up. The term would end soon and everyone, student and staff alike, was looking forward to the Christmas vacation even more than usual. Harry, in particular, was looking forward to it as he had gained a new appreciation for being able to celebrate such a holiday in a free society.
When Harry arrived at the headmaster's office he was surprised to see both Professor Dumbledore and Minister Fudge waiting for him with Headmaster Pope.
"You wanted to see me headmaster?" Harry asked Pope.
"Yes Mr. Potter" said Headmaster Pope, "please come in." Harry did so, turning to greet the others as he did.
"Professor Dumbledore" he said, "it's good to see you again."
"Likewise Harry" said Dumbledore, "I hope you're well?"
"I'm fine" said Harry.
"As you always say" said Dumbledore with his usual twinkle before gesturing at Fudge, "and I believe you've met my companion, Cornelius Fudge, Minister of Magic for Britain."
"Yes" said Harry, "we met at the Quidditch World Cup the summer before last." Actually they'd met a few times more often than that but Fudge didn't know that since Harry had been Lightning on those other occasions.
"Indeed we did" said Minister Fudge holding out his hand which Harry shook, "a pleasure to meet you again Mr. Potter."
"Thank you" said Harry, "although this is a surprise. What brings you all the way from Britain to meet with me?"
"We need your help Mr. Potter" said the minister. Harry's eyebrows went up.
"Oh?" he asked, "and what can I do for the British Ministry?"
"It's not just for the ministry" said Fudge, "it's for the British Magical World as a whole. Albus, would you please explain?"
"Certainly Cornelius" said Dumbledore turning toward Harry, "as I'm sure you're aware the world has just gone through a tremendous amount of upheaval brought about by rapid changes that have left us all still reeling from them. The Statute of Secrecy has been completely destroyed and can never be reinstated. Whether we like it or not magic has been permanently exposed to the world."
"I know" said Harry, "it was kind of hard to miss."
"I'm sure it was" said Dumbledore, "now we're trying to deal with the fallout and adjust to the new world we find ourselves living in."
"How can I help with that?" asked Harry, "I'm sure you didn't come here just to tell me that."
"Naturally" said Fudge, "the problem isn't that the mundane world now knows about us, it's more that our own people don't know how to live in that world and to blend in so as not to draw attention to themselves. Yes, the statute is gone but that doesn't mean people should flaunt their powers."
"No, they probably shouldn't" said Harry thinking about his own secret identity as Lightning.
"Our difficulty" continued Dumbledore, "is that we in Britain, especially the old pureblood families, have become so insular and almost cut off from the outside world that many people don't know anything about the mundane world, what it's really like, and what it may have to offer. In short, people are afraid of it."
"That's probably true" said Harry, "it's not that way nearly as much in America though."
"No," said Dumbledore, "America has always been less rigid than Britain and Europe. Also the recent emergence of superheroes has helped with magicals gaining more rapid acceptance here."
"When we were first exposed back on Halloween" said Fudge, "the Prime Minister and I met with the Queen to discuss the situation. All three of us agreed that education about each others' worlds was probably the best thing to do to demystify our two worlds to each other."
"And that, Harry" said Dumbledore, "is where you can help us out."
"I'm listening" said Harry.
"I know you don't like your fame in our world" said Dumbledore, "and that's perfectly understandable when talking about the Boy-Who-Lived, but you have more than that. The Potter family is a very old one and has been a noble one for centuries. You even have a noble title in the mundane world as the Earl of Killigaer. It also helps that your family is wealthy and has investments in the mundane world."
"How do you know about that?" asked Harry, "I was under the impression we kept that part secret."
"Your grandfather, Charlus Potter, was a good friend of mine" said Dumbledore, "and he told me about your family's history of investing in the mundane world. He used to lament that almost none of the other old families did like he did because there were so many opportunities to make money out there. He mentioned one company in particular to me. I think it was called Stark Industries and he had a lot of faith that it would work out. I know enough about the mundane world to know that it worked out very well."
"Yes" said Harry, "that's one of the biggest companies in the world now. I even know the person who owns the bulk of it. He's quite a guy."
"You see Mr. Potter" said Fudge, "your name and words will carry weight in our world. And as you lived in the mundane world before coming to Hogwarts you know it and can begin to convince people that it's not as scary or as dangerous a place as many magicals fear it is."
"How will I do that?" asked Harry.
"We'd like you to address the Wizengamot to start with" said Dumbledore, "just talk about what it's like living in the mundane world and how it's quite doable and not something to be too afraid of."
Harry thought about the request for a few moments.
"I'll be happy to speak to the Wizengamot if you really think it will help but I'm not sure I'm really the best person to do that" Harry finally said and then raised a hand to stop Dumbledore from speaking, "the thing is, back when I grew up in the mundane world before going to Hogwarts I didn't know I was a wizard. Everyone knows I grew up in the mundane world so of course I can handle it without any problems. If you're looking for someone to help wizards and witches become comfortable operating in the mundane world then what you really need is someone who was raised in the magical world but has since moved to the mundane world and lives there now without having much trouble. It will help even more if that person is from an old pureblood family that people know about and respect."
"That probably would help" said Fudge, "do you know of someone like that?"
"Actually" said Harry suddenly grinning a grin that reminded Dumbledore of James Potter just before he pulled a prank, "I think I know just the sucker for the job."
"You want me to do what?" asked Sirius when Harry and Dumbledore (without Fudge who had gone back to Britain) both spoke to him later that day.
"You heard us Padfoot" said Harry with a grin.
"Oh Merlin" said Sirius, "not the Wizengamot. That stuffy body of old fuddy duddy purebloods who think King William III is still ruling the British mundane world?"
"Surely it's not as bad as that Sirius" said Professor Xavier who was sitting in on the meeting which was taking place in his office at the X-Mansion.
"Unfortunately a lot of them do think that" said Dumbledore, "William III and his wife Mary II were the monarchs who signed the British Statute of Secrecy in 1692. Ever since then, the Hogwarts Express and Wizarding Wireless notwithstanding, a lot of pure bloods cut themselves off so much from the mundane world that they really do think that it hasn't progressed much since that time. That's why we need your help as well as Harry's."
"But surely the mundane-born have told them otherwise" said Xavier. Sirius sighed.
"How many British purebloods are there who listen to mundane-born magicals?" he said.
"Probably about as many Europeans who listen to Africans or Asians" muttered Harry thinking of something a dragon tamer had said during the first task of the Triwizard Tournament.
"Unfortunately you're both right" said Dumbledore, "that's why they need to hear it from someone like you Sirius, or you Harry."
"We can speak to the Wizengamot" said Sirius, "Harry and I both, but I don't know how much good it will do."
"We can only try" said Dumbledore, "sooner or later magical Britain is going to have to catch up to the rest of the world. I want to minimize how traumatic the transition will be as much as possible."
"All right" said Sirius, "we can try."
It was several days later that Harry and Sirius both attended the last meeting of the British Wizengamot before the end of the year. The two of them had discussed what they would talk about a number of times and they decided that Harry would speak first. When they entered the Wizengamot chamber at the Ministry in London Harry looked around. It looked much the same as it had the previous spring when he'd been there with his fellow X-Men to receive their Orders of Merlin. The visitor gallery wasn't so crowded this time although the press was there and all of the sitting members of the governmental body were present for the meeting.
"Hello" Harry said to the members of the Wizengamot after he and Sirius were introduced by Dumbledore and Harry stepped forward to speak, "I'm honored to be here today to address the Wizengamot. The minister and the chief warlock asked both myself and my godfather to speak to you about the mundane world and why it isn't something to be overly feared..."
Harry went over the basic history that everyone knew about the Statute of Secrecy and why it had been put in place to begin with before making the transition to the irrefutable fact that the Statute was broken beyond repair. The magical world was exposed and there would be no going back. Magicals would have to learn to live with that fact.
"Minister Fudge told me" Harry continued speaking, "that on Halloween when the Statute came down that he, the mundane prime minister, and the Queen had gotten together to discuss the situation. Fudge said that they had agreed that the best path forward was for both worlds to educate themselves about each other.
Harry stopped and looked around the chamber, meeting as many eyes as he could.
"Minister Fudge is right" he finally said, "many of you are afraid of the mundane world because you don't know it as it is today. It's fear of the unknown, plain and simple. Going out of here and seeing that world for what it truly is will go a long way toward destroying that fear. I know what I'm talking about. I grew up in that world without knowing I was a wizard. Whenever I did accidental magic I didn't know what it was and that was far scarier than it would have been if I had known what I was doing. Being afraid of the mundane world because you don't know it isn't that much different.
"Of course it's possible that once you know what the mundane world is all about that you'll still be afraid of it" added Harry with a rueful chuckle, "but at least you'll know what it is that you're afraid of and that's much easier to handle.
"Now you may say 'Harry Potter, you grew up in the mundane world. You know all about it. Of course it's easy for you to say such things.' You're right. That's why I asked my Godfather to come with me today to speak to you too. He's a Black. You can't get more British Pureblood than that. He grew up in the magical world but he lives in the mundane world now. If you won't believe me maybe you'll believe him. Lord Sirius Black? Would you please take over now?"
"Yes, Lord Potter I will" said Sirius as he stepped forward to address the Wizengamot. His speech was direct and to the point. He told everyone that although he had grown up in the magical world he had gone to the mundane world two years earlier after being released from Azkaban. He went there because he had wanted to find his Godson whom he hadn't seen since he was a baby. He'd found Harry living in the mundane world when he wasn't at Ilvermorny. He wanted to be a part of Harry's life because of how much of it he'd missed and he didn't want to make Harry leave a situation that he was happy with. That meant he had to learn to live in the mundane world too (Sirius did not mention the X-Men or Harry being a mutant). After two years there he found that he liked it and talked at length about the many things he'd learned about the mundane world and how it worked, especially the incredible advances in technology in recent years.
A lot of the people listening to Harry's and Sirius' speeches that day were quite surprised to hear about many of the different things the mundane world had to offer. They honestly thought that the mundane world was still stuck in roughly the same time period their magical world was, (roughly the late 1700s-early 1800s apparently). Harry had seen that mentality when the X-Jet had come to Hogwarts for the first time after the fight there with Magneto and the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. Many of the pureblood children hadn't even known what an airplane was and he remembered the looks of amazement and confusion on some of their faces when the plane had landed on the Hogwarts front lawn.
Harry and Sirius didn't think their words would cause immediate massive change in the British Wizarding World. They thought that the process of getting British magicals to catch up with the rest of the world would be a slow process. On the other hand if their speeches affected just a few people and got them to start thinking about getting more information on the mundane world then perhaps it was worth it. They both knew that their words would spread beyond the Wizengamot because they'd seen members of the press at the session so they knew the story would break by tomorrow at the latest, possibly even by this evening if the Daily Prophet put out an evening edition. Harry had seen that Rita Skeeter was one of the reporters in the session and although they didn't speak to each other he did nod at her to let her know he had seen her. She nodded back
"Do you think we should have told them about how the curriculum of Hogwarts is going to be updated?" Harry asked Sirius after the two of them had left the ministry to head home.
"No" said Sirius, "that would have been too much. They'll learn about that soon enough. No need to overwhelm them even more than they already are right now after listening to us."
"Good point" said Harry, "hopefully somebody, or a few somebodies, really took in what we said today."
"Let's hope they did" said Sirius as the two of them used Harry's Ilvermorny portkey to return to the X-Mansion.
Christmas happened about a week after the meeting at the Wizengamot. It was an especially lively Christmas that year at the X-Mansion. The school was full. All of the students were there. None of the ones who had homes to go to had gone there. Instead their families joined them at the school. The families of Jean, Bobby, Hank, Warren, Kitty, Sam, and Peter all came to the X-Mansion to celebrate. Even Cain showed up much to Xavier's pleasure, and Logan managed to be more sociable than usual. In addition, Neville was there, arriving following the end of the Longbottom Ball at Longbottom Manor in Britain. Remus was there and Dumbledore came with him bringing the Weasley family and Hermione along as well. Even Mad-Eye Moody showed up that day. He and Logan hit it off at once which everyone thought was scary but no one seemed surprised about. Best of all, as far as Harry was concerned, Ororo came to visit bringing both of her parents with her.
Queen N'Dare was quite happy to get away from the problems in Kenya that the exposure of magic had caused. For the last month the magical and mundane governments had been working on how best to adapt to the new world they all found themselves in. They were making progress but there was still a lot to do.
It was a full house with over 40 people there for the late afternoon / early evening party. Dobby prepared a sumptuous feast for everyone to enjoy and laid it out buffet style on the diningroom table. Now that the magical world was revealed he no longer had to hide away from people who didn't know about magic and he got many compliments on the food throughout the party. Even Mrs. Weasley had nice things to say to him about his cooking. Coming from her that was high praise.
Since there were too many people for the diningroom to comfortably hold once people served themselves from the buffet they either went into the hall to eat, the gym, or the livingroom. Extra tables had been set up in all of those places for people to use. Everyone mingled during the party and even if many people were meeting each other for the first time it was still an enjoyable affair that went off without any problems.
Near the end of the party the professor called everyone into the livingroom so he could speak to the whole gathering.
"It does me good to see everyone here" said the professor, "after the fall season that we've all had, and for some of us the preceding spring and summer too, it's wonderful to be able to gather together in peace once again."
Harry knew the professor was right. It had been a very eventful year starting all of the way back in January when the X-Men went to Antarctica for a very unusual adventure which culminated in him, Jean, and Warren riding on the back of a Tyrannosaurus Rex who went by the name of Moltar. It had been followed by so many other things after that including the second and third tasks of the Triwizard Tournament, Magneto's first capture by the Stranger, Juggernaut's attack on the X-Mansion, the healing of Snape and Neville's parents, and Voldemort's attack on Hogwarts – and that was just January to June! The summer had contained his trip to Britain, Tanzania, Kenya, and Wakanda, as well as the arrival of the newer students, an incident involving Lightning and Iceman at a CBGBs Hardcore Punk show, the Sentinel crisis that fall which was immediately followed by Magneto's return and second capture by the Stranger, and finally the visit to the Wizengamot just a week ago. All in all, it was a very busy year.
"Let's all hope" the professor continued, "that good things will come out of the crises that we've just endured and we can have a better future because of it. Is that definitely assured? Not by any means, but as long as we stay constantly vigilant – " here he nodded at Moody who smirked " – and do what needs to be done we can help bring a better future into reality. So here's to all of us, now and for the future."
"Hear, hear" said Sirius and many of the other partygoers echoed him.
Later that evening after the party was over and most of the people who weren't staying at the mansion had left for the night Harry and Ororo sat side by side on the bed in his room. They were both fully clothed and the door was somewhat open although neither of them expected that anyone really thought they might do something inappropriate. But Ororo was still a crown princess and even though her parents trusted both her and Harry the teenagers still felt it was best to be safe rather than otherwise. Ororo and her parents were all staying in the mansion while they were in New York before heading out to visit her father's family in a few days.
"I've missed seeing you" said Harry as they talked quietly, "can you believe today is the first time we've seen each other in person since August?"
"Is it only since August?" asked Ororo, "with everything that's happened it seems so much longer. It makes me consider returning to Ilvermorny for my last two years of schooling after I take my OWLs."
"I'd like that" said Harry, "you could come here again too and train with the other students and maybe join me with the team. Is that something you might do?"
"Unfortunately no" said Ororo, "my family wants me to stay nearby. After what's happened this fall I don't blame them."
"Neither do I" said Harry, "I could transfer to Uagadou."
"You'd have to leave the X-Men if you did" said Ororo, "and I know you don't want to do that."
"You're right" said Harry who was silent for a moment before asking, "did the Sentinels find Uagadou?"
"No, they didn't" said Ororo, "I think it was the only major school they didn't find although that didn't stop my parents from sending me to Wakanda during the crisis. I'm not sorry they did though. Better to be safe just in case."
"That's true" said Harry, "they found Ilvermorny and Hogwarts but both schools were evacuated before the Sentinels got there. How was your time in Wakanda?"
"It was all right for what it was" said Ororo, "though I worried a lot while I was there about how things were at home. Fortunately everyone was safe as you know."
"I was glad you were safe" said Harry, "I worried about you even though you were in Wakanda. I saw the Sentinels up close you know."
"I know" said Ororo, "although I haven't heard the full story. King T'Challa and Princess Shuri told me they'd seen you at Dr. Strange's War Council."
"That's right" said Harry, "I met Dr. Doom there too."
"Yes, Shuri told me she worked with him on a weapon against the Sentinels" said Ororo, "what did you think of him?"
"He wasn't anything like what I thought he'd be." said Harry, "he was quite normal actually. I asked him about Durmstrang and we also talked about Quidditch and where Latverians go to school and things like that." Ororo giggled.
"I love it" she said, "Lightning the X-man and Dr. Doom talked about school."
"You're not the first person to say that" said Harry with a grin before turning serious again, "the 36 hours after that were some of the most intense and scary of my life."
"You want to tell me about it?" asked Ororo "I'll understand if you don't."
"That's all right" said Harry, "I'll tell you what happened..."
It took Harry a while but he told Ororo all about invading the Sentinel fortress, getting separated from most of his teammates, finding the Master Mold, getting captured and meeting his grandfather for the first time and the talk that happened from that, spending the night in their cell before escaping the next morning and meeting up with Mage and the reformed Juggernaut, freeing the other prisoners and the team, the arrival of Thor and using Mjolnir, and the final fight against the Sentinels and the Master Mold before escaping the fortress and seeing Godzilla flatten it down into a metallic pancake.
"And as if all of that wasn't enough" finished Harry, "Magneto showed up again and invaded the mansion. It took Juggernaut, myself, Iceman, my grandpa, and Dobby to take him down so the Stranger could take him away again. What a day and a half that was!"
"I agree" said Ororo, "but it wasn't all bad. You found your grandfather."
"Yes" said Harry, "I couldn't be happier about that. He's the only blood family I have left. I used to think the Dursleys were blood relatives too but they're not. Aunt Petunia is my aunt only through adoption. I thought it was because of magic that she hated my mum and me but she also knew we weren't actual blood family. That was another thing Petunia was jealous of my mum about, that Lily was Logan's real daughter but she wasn't even though grandpa says he did everything he could to convince her that it didn't matter and she was loved as much as mum was.
"I guess that's why Aunt Petunia never treated me like family, because we're really not and she knew it but never told me. Logan is the only real blood relative I have. If he wasn't around I wouldn't have any real relatives at all. Thank God he likes me. You have no idea what it means to me to finally have an actual family member who likes, even loves, me."
"I'm glad you have him" said Ororo, "I can't imagine what it would be like to grow up without my family."
"God forbid you ever have to find out" said Harry. They sat in silence for a moment.
"Your grandfather's a real character" Ororo finally said.
"Yes he is" said Harry with a grin, "and I wouldn't have him any other way. Did you know he fought in both World Wars?"
"Really?" asked Ororo in amazement.
"Really" said Harry who told her about how old Logan really was and why he aged so slowly.
"Magicals live longer than normal people on average" said Harry, "but I wouldn't be surprised if Logan outlives all of us with his healing factor."
"But you have that too" said Ororo, "perhaps you'll live as long as he does."
"As long as there are good people by my side that would be okay" said Harry, "like, say, you?"
"Is that a proposal Mr. Potter?" asked Ororo in a teasing manner.
"Perhaps it is" said Harry in an equally teasing manner as he leaned toward her, "someday when we're ready."
Ororo didn't respond to that, at least not with words as her lips had been claimed by Harry's lips and that said everything that either of them had to say right then.
"Merry Christmas and Happy New Year Ororo" said Harry when they broke apart.
"The same to you Harry" said Ororo.
(To Be Concluded)
A/N - And that's that. The only reason I didn't write "The End" here is because there will be an epilogue. Meanwhile, as always, please take a moment to leave me some feedback. Constructive comments are always welcome but no flames or trolls please. Stay safe and well everyone.