Nine Years Later...
"Harry!" Lily shouted, as she ran inside the Potter home. It was the small cottage that they had bought after the dark lord almost brought tragedy, it had been abandoned for nearly two years while they were at the castle, but now it was their home again. The birthday boy groggily trudged down the stairs, "Morning, mum. What is it?" Lily pulled her son into a hug. "Happy 11th birthday! Oh..." she pulled away and handed him a white envelope with green writing. "From Hogwarts?!" Harry grinned and ripped open the envelope.
"'Dear Mr. Potter,'"he recited, "'we are please to inform you that you have been excepted into Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry!'" Lily pulled Harry into a hug again. "What's going on?" Dawn asked as she skipped down the stairs. "I got my Hogwarts letter." Harry handed it to her sister. "Why are you so surprised?" She shrugs and hands it back to Harry, "It's not like your a squib." James bursts through the door. "I'm back." He sees his son awake and places down the gift he was holding. "Isn't it a bit early for you guys to be awake on your summer vacation?" Dawn giggles, "Dad, it's 10." He checks his pocket watch. "So it is... Well, hurry into the kitchen for Harry's birthday breakfast."
Lily ushers her children to the kitchen as James grabs the mystery present and stashes it in the living room before going to grab some pancakes.
Harry unwrapped his presents, including a rememberall, some chocolate frogs, and a quidditch poster. "Harry, we've got one more gift for you!" James smiled and retrieved the mystery gift from the living room. A snowy owl perched itself inside its cage. It cooed when it saw Harry.
"My own owl?!" Harry exclaimed. "Thanks mum and dad!" He embraced each one in turn. "What are you going to name her?" Dawn was sticking her fingers through the little slots in the cage, clearly fascinated by the bird. "Hedwig. I'll name her Hedwig."
---
There was a knock on the door. "I'll get it," Harry went to the door and pulled it open. "Uncle Sirius!" He jumped into his arms. "Happy Birthday, Harry!" "Is that uncle Sirius?!" Dawn shouted and emerged from the dining room. "Sure is! And I came to give Harry his birthday gift." Sirius pulled out a long box. "Whoa, that's huge!" Dawn ran her hand over the brown cardboard.
Lily and James came out of the kitchen. "Padfoot?" James chuckled, "You just waltz into my house now without telling me?!" Sirius considered this. "Yep." "Sirius!" Lily exclaimed and pointed at the box, "What did you do?" He stuffed his hands in his pockets. "He's going into Hogwarts now, don't you think he's old enough for a... well, I'm not going to spoil it. Harry, open it!" Harry carefully lifted the top off the box, with all the talk of the gift, he figured taking caution wasn't a horrible thing to do.
"Merlin's Beard! A broomstick?!" He hoisted the broom in the air. "My very own broomstick! Thanks, Uncle S!" James peered over Harry's shoulder. "Son, that's not just any broomstick! It's a Nimbus 2000." Lily shook her head, "We agreed Harry shouldn't have a broom until his second year." Harry sighed. "Come on, Mum!" He pleaded with his eyes. They were her eyes, and the were screaming. She gave in. "Teach him right, boys." The adult men high- fived like second years, then followed Harry into the backyard.
Dawn shook her head. "Boys." Lily laughed and planted a kiss on her forehead. "I know, I know."
James pulled out his broomstick and handed his old one to Sirius. "Won't I learn this at Hogwarts?" Harry asked as he examined his broom. "Yes, but you'll be... advanced!" Sirius shrugged. He just really wanted to teach Harry to fly. "What do we do first?" Harry questioned eagerly. The adults looked at one another. "Um... oh! Let's do what Hooch did. Place your broom on the ground, son." James and Sirius did the same.
"Now," James cleared his throat. "Command it to come to your hand. Like this. Up!" The broom flew into his fingertips. "Easy. Up!" Sirius' broom did the same. Harry shrugged. It didn't look overly hard.
"Up!" He shouted, but the broom only rustled at his feet. "With feeling!" Sirius suggested. Harry squinted his eyes, gritted his teeth and clenched the fist that the broom wasn't going to go in. James and Sirius started chuckling. "What's so funny?" Harry demanded. "You!" James said through laughs, "You don't have to be mean to it! Just try again, alright?" Harry sighed and unclenched, released his grit, and returned his eyes back to normal under his oval glasses. "Fine." He wiggled his fingers. "Up!" The broomstick shot up and into his hand. "Whoooo!" Sirius pumped his fist in the air. "At a boy!" James patted Harry on the back.
"Can we get to the flying part now?!"
"Sure."
Sirius took his broom. "Mounting your broom 101." Harry and James both rolled their eyes. "Firstly, always make sure that-"
James cut his best friend off. "Sirius, just mount the bloody broom!" Sirius didn't question, he just tossed his right leg over the stick and mounted the broom. "Simple as that," James did the same, "you're up." Harry did like his father and godfather and threw his leg over the broom. Next thing he was sitting on it.
Harry gripped the broom. What now?! He began to turn to his father for help, and the broomstick swiveled around in line with Harry. "Whoa!" He exclaimed, and effortlessly spun his broom in circles. "Dad, this is easy!" James chuckled and flew beside Harry. "Is it, now?" Sirius rocketed above Harry, "Come up here, Harry!"
The scarred boy looked to his dad, "Can I?" James smiled, "Of course." Harry glanced at his godfather, and the broom was soaring skyward. "Harry! You're a natural!" Sirius exclaimed.
Dawn came sprinting out the back door. "Harry?! You're all the way up there?" She ran back inside and came back out with an astonished looking Lily Potter. "Harry James Potter! You be careful!" He laughed and touched his broom back down. He dismounted it and turned to his mum. "Did you see me, mum? How high I was? Maybe I can even play quidditch starting my second year!" Dawn picked up her brother's broom. "Can I have a go?" Lily's eyes almost burst out of her head, "Dawn! There's no way-"
"Okay, okay." She gently put the broom back on the grass. James and Sirius landed. "Lily, our son's a natural." James said as he set aside the brooms. Lily smirked.
"It must be magic."
