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Napoleon's Children

Chapter 6-In Memory Of

Harry and James meet for the first time (I promise)

He was shaking, violently shaking. Shaking so much that Mooney had taken away his wand. Dumbledore had been up there a long time and Sirius had taken to fiddling with the muggle cigarette lighter in his hands as a distraction. James tried very hard not to snap at him. It would do no good for it to end this way. The first sight of his father that his son should see shouldn't be him murdering his best friend and godfather of said son but…has Dumbledore gone to Siberia? What is taking so long?!

"Breathe James" Mooney says again and James nods. His hands are shaking still and he rubs them against his pants desperately hoping that they weren't sweaty though he thought that they undoubtedly were.

"Breathe James" Mooney says again and he nods again though he suspects that the message is not getting into his brain. The truth is he doesn't know what to do. He doesn't know what is taking so long and at the same time he one hundred percent does. He knows that Dumbledore wanted to explain things, wanted to see him first and he had fallen back in that age old trust of his old headmaster because he trusted Dumbledore. He did not think that he could stand it if this was a random Harry Potter with no connection to his son which it could undoubtably be. He knew enough to know that the world was cruel and for reasons beyond his comprehension he seemed to have done something to spectacularly piss someone off a long time ago because bad things did seem to keep happening to him.

But at the same time he felt like was dosed up on drugs because if he was right (and God did James want to be right!) then his son was just upstairs and he was going to meet him for the first time in the longest time. His son, his baby who giggled when he made smoke come out of his wand, who Lily had given her life for and he would have done too a thousand and one times over.

He felt shaky and then he felt sick, like something was gnawing away at his stomach and then just as he was sure he was going to really, really fucking lose it there was a padding of footsteps on the stairs and there Dumbledore was. Sirius stood up. Mooney stood up. James didn't dare think he could move. He waited looking at Dumbledore for anything and then…

Behind Dumbledore someone else came into the room.

And James felt something in him stop.

It might have been his heart.

There behind Dumbledore was a boy.

Not just a boy…the boy…the only boy…James didn't need some letter or some fancy magical DNA test or what not to know that this boy was his son. He didn't need to hear Sirius's blue streak of swear words under his breath or the way Mooney had sat back down again as if his legs didn't have the strength to hold him up.

This was his son.

James knew it. He knew it with ever fibre of his being. This was his son.

This was Harry.

Harry looked at him evenly with a gaze that seemed far to mature for the average eleven year old. His gaze didn't flicker. It seemed he was taking in as much of James as James was taking in as much of him. The two of them stared at each other.

Harry looked like him. As a baby he had always looked like him and he was skinny and small for his age. He was in jeans and an old grey t-shirt that was too big for him which made him if possible even smaller. His hair was jet black but James knew from the way it was that there would be a bit at the back and at the front that would never lay flat. He had on glasses, big round ones that reminded him of the ones that he had worn once as an eleven year old and…

And his eyes.

Merlin…his eyes.

They were Lily's eyes staring back at him. How many times had James stared at those eyes? They had looked at him with love, anger, terror, annoyance, been blissed out with pleasure, had crinkled when she laughed…he had lived and died a thousand lifetimes in those green eyes and he had lived and died a thousand more trying to remember them. His last memory before today had been that look on her face when she had been killed, frozen in time, defiant to the last, staring down the most powerful Dark Wizard that had ever lived just in the change that she could keep this boy alive for just one second more.

This was his son. There was no denying it.

Harry looked at him evenly and then.

"Hello"

James was suddenly standing. He was very glad his knees didn't buckle.

"Hello" he said back swallowing down the tears in his throat.

Harry looked at him and then his eyes darted to Dumbledore who smiled encouragingly.

"So…he says your my Dad"

"Yeah…I am" James said and wow…now that he had said it out loud he knew he was grinning like an idiot…after all had a sweeter sentence ever been said out loud? He was Harry Potters Dad.

Harry Potter was alive.

"He also says you didn't…well…he says I'm a wizard"

"You are" James said and then before he could ask for a hug Harry spoke again.

"What do I call you?"

It threw him for a second.

"I…I…" he looked at Dumbledore who was watching one of the plants in the corner magically come back to life again.

"I believe" Dumbledore said calmly. "That Harry you might not be ready to call James Dad?"

"I just met the man!"

"That's fine" James said over his son's tone of indignation that was about as fearsome as a kitten with a ball of wool. "It's…" he turned back to look at Harry.

"You can call me James" he said quietly. "Or Prongs if you want…until your ready"

He told himself that he had his son back, it didn't do well to be greedy.

"Why Prongs?"

"Oh err…"he shot Dumbledore a look. He was not entirely sure how much Dumbledore knew about the four of them becoming animagi illegally under his tutelage.

"It's a nickname…from school" he said quietly. "Harry I…I am so happy to finally meet you"

Harry shot him another long look at him and then…

"Professor Dumbledore says you didn't…he says that you didn't know that I was alive and that you didn't…you wouldn't have left me if you'd have known"

"Never" James vowed softly. "Harry I…I have thought you were dead for such a long time I don't…" he bit his lip feeling tears well in his eyes despite the fact that he didn't want to scare his son more than he had been scared today.

"Harry…would you mind if I hugged you?"

Harry started back shock on his face for a second and then…

He didn't look around for someone to speak for him, he simply eyed James for a second as if he was thinking hard about something and then.

"If you want"

If he wanted…as if James had wanted nothing else for eleven long fucking years…

He reached out and gently folded his son in his arms.

The last time that he had held Harry his boy had been a baby, a sturdy baby who had fitted perfectly into the crook of his arms, whose head had rested on his chest and who he had loved so wholeheartedly. This Harry was older, bigger and he stiffened for a moment as James held him before he relaxed and awkwardly patted him on the back. James knew what it must look like, this stranger who had come into his life and completely upended it in the space of an hour and a half now hugging him and clinging to him as if he was going to disappear again.

Eventually he let go and sat back on his heels looking at Harry.

Harry looked back at him and then.

"It's nice to meet you…James"

Well…it was better than what he had yesterday James supposed.

"Nice to meet you Harry" he said finally wiping his eyes on the back of his hand.

Harry's green eyes slid over to Sirius and Remus who were stood behind him and Dumbledore suddenly launched into introductions and James hardly listened. He was still looking at his son. He didn't think there would ever come a time where he wasn't.

It was agreed that Harry would come home with him. It was only a month before he was due to come to Hogwarts. Harry made no comment on this other than to ask if Remus and Sirius were together. When they confirmed they were he nodded and then.

"That's cool"

"Well…I wish my father had said that" Sirius had said with an ease with his son that James most certainly did not.

"What did he do?"

"Cursed me"

Harry's eyes were big behind his glasses.

"What like…with boils?"

Sirius opened his mouth but Remus shot him a look and he changed tact.

"Eh…something like that"

"Wow" Harry said shaking his head. Dumbledore had left them citing a meeting over knitting patterns with Rosmerta back at Hogsmeade (a lie if ever there was one) and it was the three of them alone. They had gone out for food but Harry was mostly picking at his burger.

"That's stupid" Harry said finally. "If you love someone then you should be with them no matter what." He met Sirius and Remus's looks with one of his own.

"I think it's really cool"

"Thanks Harry" Mooney said in that soft tone that he still used when he was surprised that people treated him like a human being. Sirius grinned catching James's eyes and winking. James smiled back and tried to tell himself that this was a good thing…this was going good.

"Can I see your wand?" Harry asked his gaze back at James and James nodded. In truth he was sure that he would do anything to get Harry's attention on him.

"Here" he said handing it over.

"So…so you just…"

"Not in a muggle pub you don't" Remus hissed taking the wand back before Harry could flick it and more than likely make something explode. Harry watched the wooden stick with something akin to hunger.

"It feels right" he said suddenly "When I hold it, it feels…I dunno…right"

"It will" James said smiling. "And when you get your own—"

"Wait I get my own?"

"Yes" James said smiling at his son's wide eyed enthusiasm. "Everyone at Hogwarts will have one, we can get your stuff in a couple of weeks. But you gotta understand Harry…magic is not a toy. You cannot abuse it. You also cannot use it outside school. The muggles…they can't know about us"

"Why?"

"Because they'd want us to fix everything for us" Sirius said grinning. "Can you imagine what their world would be like if they knew about us. Nah kiddo were best left alone"

"And the Ministry of Magic—"

"We have a government?"

"Yeah we do" James said smiling. "There is a whole new world that you are stepping into so—Harry." He said catching himself just in time before he said son. "So you have to know what is going to happen. We…I can help you with that, I can help you…"

"Bet I won't know anything"

"Don't be ridiculous" Remus chimed in. "Loads of children come to Hogwarts from non magical families. They all do well…your mother didn't have a magical family and she was the brightest witch in her class"

The casual use of Lily shocked James for a second and he watched Harry's reaction but Harry gave no outwards reaction of it. Instead he turned those bright green eyes back to James and this time they were alight with a burning curiosity he knew needed sating.

"Can you tell me more about Hogwarts…James?"

He nodded and smiled and launched into stories.

He was no fool his son he thought beaming with joy.

He would do just fine.

Next Chapter-Harry moves in with James. Both of them keep wondering when the other shoe is going to drop.