What Voldemort Left Behind

Chapter 34 - A Surprise

AUTHORS NOTE: so i just realized that 2 chapters in a row were chapter 32 by mistake, they're both different chapters so if you haven't read both they aren't the same thing. also i'm aware that most people voted post the chapter on tuesday or wednesday but i wanna post today so it was pretty stupid of me to ask options and also some people can't read judging by their dms so who cares about them since they clearly won't be reading anyway. anyway back to the story, i think this is my favorite recent chapter cause it's super sad and i felt really sad writing it (in a good way but some of those bits didn't make it in since they were not relevant to the story at that time). also the main focus of this fanfic is harry and his children so they are portrayed as the good characters nearly all of the time since it is their pov and also i like them better. this note is probs nearly as long as the story itself but idrc.

James stared outside as a pigeon flew past. It came close to the protective boundaries around their home but never touching. He wouldn't usually be so interested in a bird, but there was nothing else to look at out of the window and he was already bored of the house. He was sick of Quidditch, sick of his grandmother's cooking, playing chess, talking. Anything he could think of had been done in the past few hours and days and weeks. He wanted to go home.
As the pigeon flew into the distance James slumped back into his seat. Albus tossed the book he was reading aside and Lily tried unenthusiastically to get the hang of knitting, she was terrible at it but it was better than James who had smashed the window with the knitting needles as soon as his grandmother had left. He'd repaired the glass but couldn't be bothered to summon the half done scarf from the grass.
"I have a surprise for you dears."
James perked up at his Granny's words. "Can we go home?"
The other two smiled hopefully as their grandmother's face fell. "I'm sorry but not today. I don't know when. However I do have something that might take your mind off it for a while."
The door opened to reveal a man in his early twenties, today with dark, Potter style messy hair.
"TEDDY!"

"FINALLY! How was your trip, tell us everything..."

"Did you bring us anything back?"

"Please tell me you brought a dragon....."

Teddy laughed as the three he saw as younger siblings fought each other to hug him first.

"Nothing's changed in six months then? Glad to know you still remember me."

Teddy messed his hair up with one hand as he sat, a habit that he shared with James and Lily but not Albus. Their mother assured them came from their father, or in Teddy's case godfather, but none of them were consciously aware of it.

"Victoire went to her parents' place first, Bill told me you three were here today."

Lily was confused. "Today? Teddy we've been here for a month, how did you not know?"

Their grandmother looked slightly concerned. "Teddy dear, how much have you been hearing in letters?"

Teddy thought for a second. "Not much honestly. Harry hasn't been telling me much... It was weird it seemed like something was wrong but I didn't like to ask. He's usually very honest, even in writing, but this year it's been different. It's been quiet since about Easter time."

James heard his grandmother sigh. "I was afraid of that."

James exchanged glances with his siblings and none of them knew what to say. The idea of retelling what had happened, even to Teddy, didn't feel good. James just wanted to forget the past six months and never speak of it again, the sadness and anger was supposed to be over for now. He felt a sudden inexplicable urge to shout at Teddy for not being there so he kicked the table to stop himself. This wasn't the best idea as the table, being magical, kicked back hard. Somehow in the awkward silence, no one noticed.
Finally their grandmother broke the silence by asking the three children to feed the chickens for her, but they knew it was easier to eavesdrop afterwards than it was to argue with her. James quickly grabbed his Cloak while Lily found the Invisible Extendable Ears.

"Teddy....... Your godfather, it's quite hard to explain because Dark Magic can work in strange and horrible ways. The previous connection he had to Voldemort can never be fully.... fully erased, and it makes him very sick."

The conversation went on for a while, most of the information James and his siblings had heard before, either they were told or they had found it out from listening at doors. There was a small window outside which was the ideal spot for conversations in the living room as it was nearly always open in the summer and they could see as well as sliding the Extendables through. A quick Muffliato charm was enough to stop most adults from catching them, apart from their dad who had taught them the charm and saw through almost any of their disguises.

"That's part of the reason why I wanted you to come back for his birthday dear. I wanted to make it special since, since it's very unlikely that he'll make it to his next..."

As they watched Teddy hug their grandmother, James felt guilty for listening in and he glanced at his siblings under the cloak, he knew they felt the same way, like they were intruding on something private. Teddy conjured a tissue for her as tears had begun to fall down her face.

"I'm so sorry for leaving when things have been so bad at home, I should've been there for Harry and their kids..."

"Teddy Lupin, don't you dare apologize for doing exactly what Harry wants for you, exactly what your parents..." She paused for a second, it was difficult for any of them to talk about what Remus and Tonks would want for their son, even after all those years. "They would've wanted this too, traveling the world with your girlfriend, happiness, that's all any of us want for you now, your grandmother included."

James began to feel very uncomfortable but none of them moved, they had listened so long that it was probably safer to not risk moving.

"I just want you to know Teddy dear, that no matter where your relationship with Victoire ends up, whatever happens with, with your godfather, you will always be as welcome here as any of my biological grandchildren. And I also wanted to thank you, I never did when you were a child, for saving Harry. After the war... oh it was awful for a while. He wouldn't speak to anyone, Ron, Hermione, even Ginny couldn't get through to him some days, but you gave Harry a reason to keep on living. He saw himself in you and he wanted to give you what Sirius, what Sirius couldn't give him and it gave him something good he could do with his grief. You were a miracle and I don't think Harry would have recovered from that time without you."

James couldn't stand it any more, even if he revealed himself it would be better than staying and listening to all of this, he nudged his siblings and Lily reeled in the Ear as they crept away. They headed for the chicken shed and closed the door, they each lay against a wall absorbed in their own thoughts.

After about five minutes, Lily broke the silence. "Very unlikely he'll make it to his next birthday..."

"We knew, but it's different hearing it out loud just like that, it makes it, more, more real." Albus whispered.

"That's why she didn't want us hearing. But it's better knowing now than, whenever it happens." James replied, his voice shook slightly.

They remained there for at least ten minutes, each silently thinking of their guilt and sadness. Eventually Albus pushed himself up and there was an unspoken agreement between them that they would head back in and pretend everything was all right.