REWRITTEN! The Truth Untold

Chapter Eighteen

*** Not sure if I am 100% happy with this chapter but it's suddenly Wednesday and this is what we have and it's fine...great even..I'm happy with it so here it is. Side note this is a mostly filler / relationship building chapter. Getting to see James and Henry interactions and see their relationship change. Lily's actions in this chapter will be expanded on in the following chapters so do not worry. Anyway carry on.. oh also this kind of ends in a weird spot I think but every time I tried to expand on it, it felt dragged on so we are all going to have to deal with it. ***

When Sirius and Remus first mentioned the idea of taking Harry to their old place in the woods James' first instinct was to tell them absolutely fucking not. However he held that back and instead had stared at his two best friends and simply raised his eyebrows.

"What?"

"Well Harry said he has too much work to come here, but what I really think he meant was that he has too much work to be here...around so many people. So I was the one to actually come up with the idea. Sirius and I are behind as well and the house helps us focus a little more, it's quiet and away from distractions, maybe it'll do Harry some good too." Remus said

"Right...um...right. So you want what? My permission?" James asked confused as he turned away from them and instead stood up to grab his empty dinner plate having chosen to eat in the room tonight rather than the Great Hall.

"Of course. Harry is still only sixteen and you are his father and you are our best friend. We're not going to take him to a remote house without asking first." Sirius said, "Moony and I are going to go there anyway, but we thought we could bring Harry with us too."

James set his plate in the sink then grabbed the countertop edge, "For the weekend?"

"Yes. We'll leave Sunday evening after dinner just like we do any other time we go there." Remus told him standing up as well, "If you're not comfortable with it James we'll understand. It was just a thought that we thought to run by you first."

"Fine." James said before he could say something else. "But only if instead of you all eating dinner there, we could meet somewhere else and eat dinner together. I want to see him too, you know."

"Really?" Sirius asked clearly surprised

"Henry says I need to work on trusting Harry more and if he hears that I agreed to this then maybe he'll open up more...You know before we yell at each other again."

"You told him about Friday?"

"Not in so many words. I just told him Harry and I had another fight. Harry told me some things that he hasn't exactly told Henry yet about Matteo so...I didn't want to tell him anything more than that."

"The only condition you have is we all eat dinner together?"

"Do I need more than that?" James asked, raising a brow at Remus who shook his head, "Didn't think so. Now stop asking me about it or I might change my mind."

"Okay well then Sirius and I are going to owl Henry and ask him-"

"Oh um...no need. I am going to see him tomorrow." James said quickly

"You are? What about?" Sirius asked

"He is going to go to the Ministry with me. Legal stuff, nothing to worry about." James told them

The next day James met Henry in the Atrium of the Ministry just after ten o'clock.

"Are you sure about this?" Henry asked as they made their way through the busy atrium towards one of the lifts.

"Yeah of course. I even ran it by Lily and she was surprisingly okay with it." James said, "Got written consent." He pulled out the parchment scroll from his inside pocket and showed it to Henry.