Fan Fiction

          Harry, Ron, and Hermione were all sitting round at a table in the library, pouring over the possible subjects that they could take up in their next year at Hogwarts.
          "Wow, this looks interesting!" Hermione suddenly exclaimed.
          "Everything is interesting to you!" Ron answered annoyed.
          "No, I'm serious, look fifth one down the page, Wizard's Genealogical Family Tree." Hermione leaned over and pointed on the paper.
          Harry finally taking interest in the discussion leaned over to see what Hermione was pointed at. He read with a keen interest. If he took up this subject he might be able to find out more about the Potters.
                                 *****3 Months Later****
          Harry, Ron, and Hermione were all slumped in arm chairs in a cosy corner of the Gryffindor common room.
          I can't believe I ever took this subject up! It's boring! I was too quick to stop and think who would be teaching it. Professor Binns! He's dead boring, literally!" Harry grumbled.
          "It's your own fault," Hermione said in her know it all voice. "Anyway, I may have found a book to help you." Hermione reached for her bag and pulled out a book, 'Who's who at Hogwarts.' Harry read off the cover.
           "Look up Potter," said Harry eagerly, "I've been looking for a book like that for days."
           Hermione flicks through the book trying to find Potter, while Ron and harry wait eagerly.
           "Here it is, there's three recent entries, you, your Dad James, and a John Potter. It says here that John was James younger brother. James was friends with three different boys all in Gryffindor, while John was a Slytherin, and best friends with a certain Lucious Malfoy. James saved both their lives when they had a close incounter with a wizard going by the name of Tom Riddle. It says here both brothers wanted to marry Lilly Berker, a muggle born witch in Gryffindor. But James won her hand so John disappeared into the Albanian outback. He wasn't hear of again..." Hermione broke off here. Her face ashen. "Oh Harry."
            Ron leaned over and read what Hermione was unable to. "He wasn't heard of again until he resurfaced as a Professor at Hogwarts, of potions. He now goes by the name of Severus Snape." Here Ron broke into hysterics.
            Harry and Hermione stared at him until he finally calmed down.
           "What may I ask do you find so funny?" demanded Harry angrily.
           "Snape, your Uncle," choked Ron, "there must be a mistake!"
           "Well," said hermione, "there's only one way to find out."
           "Oh, and how's that?" asked Harry.
           "You will have to ask him," said Hermione. "There isn't really another way, books can't help us, if the book says he's your Uncle!"
           "Oh right, and what exactly do you want me to say? 'Umm...excuse me Professor, could you possibly happen to be my long lost Uncle John?'"
           "What do you think will happen if I do ask him? We'll all live as a big happy family, and have loads of fun? Yeah, OK! I'd rather live in that dusty old cupboard with the Dursleys for the rest of my life!"
           "Oh, come now Harry," Hermione sighed. "It won't be THAT bad, you might even grow to be friends one day!"
           "Right!" Ron gigled, "and I suppose we'll all be chummy with Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle too eh?!!"
           As usual Hermione was right and Harry gave in and decided to talk to Snape and he had started to plan his talk to Snape.

Potions Class:

          On his way to Potions, Harry thought about it. John Potter? It seemed surreal, he couldn't believe it. He pushed open the door to the dungoen in which Harry had his potions class. Snape was prowling back and forth across the room, wearing his usual scowl. Snape, there he was...his long lost uncle? He made his way to his work station and took his place next to Ron. The class began as usual, an average day's work...
          "Today we're going to make the copter potion, as I told you last lesson. I needn't of bothered though most of what I say to you half-wits doesn't stick anyway, your heads are too full with the likes of Quidditch anyway. I will have a test to see if any of you have managed to get this potion right at the end of the lesson. We will be testing it on match boxes. 5 points will be taken from your house if you fail."
          Neville was particularly nervous about this potion, he always went to pieces in Snapes lesson, but having a test in Snape's lesson was his worst nightmare.
           The hour of potions, didn't seem long enough for Harry, as he made his way up to the front of the class room as the other filtered up to the Great Hall for lunch.
           Harry knew he had to break the news to Snape somehow, maybe he could get a hint that Snape knew deep down too. Snape was busy with some papers on his desk, but when Harry approached he looked up.
           "What is it, Potter?" Harry thought about this for a moment then asked the same back.
           "What is it, Potter?"
           "Potter." Snape replied looking confused. Meekly harry said back,
           "Yes, John Potter." Snape's expression changed entirely to a 'so you have been enlightened' look on his face.
           "I see, you see."
           "Yes." Was Harry reply. The conversation enede with an awkward silence after Harry's "yes." Harry then turned on his heel, and with a sigh of relief walked briskly down the corridor with a strange new feeling in the pit of his stomach.
            What would happen now that Snape had found out that he knew he was John Potter? Would life at Hogwarts change? Would snape dislike him more or less? What if he had to live with Snape? The thought made him shudder. Even if he was Harry's Uncle, Snape was still the horrible potions teacher Harry had always known.
            While everyone was still at lunch, Harry wandered up to his bed room, feeling unable to eat a thing after his confrontation with Snape.
            Harry lay down on his bed and reached for the photo album Hagrid had given him many years ago now. Harry turned to one of the pages with his father on it. Then something happened whith Harry would have thought not possible. The portrait of his father actually spoke.
             "Harry, Harry?" questioned the picture.
             "Yes, I'm here," Harry whispered.
             "I know, you know, and you know I know, I am sorry for the way John has treated you. It wasn't fair of him. He only hates you because of me, I'm sorry."
             "I don't blame you, I never have." Interrupted Harry.
             "Stand up to Sanpe, always be brave, and pass on a suggestion from me that he should wash his hair!"
             "I will." Harry whispered and with that, the photo returned to its normal status, not saying a thing, even when Harry tried to speak to it, the photo just waved and waved.
             Harry's head was spinning, was his imagination playing tricks on him or had he really just spoken to his father for the first time.
             He made up his mind that he had to see Dumbledore.

Bit of Trivial Information:

            Slowly and cautiously Harry approached Dumbledore's office. He knocked, and the Professor's voice on the other side said, "Come in." Harry entered closing the door behind him.
            He sat down in the chair and said, "I thought I should see you about something that is troubling me."
           "Yes?" said Dumbledore.
           "Well, you see I was looking up the name Potter in the book called 'Who's Who' and well...."
           "Say no more." said Dumbledore. "I thought this would happen sometime."
           "No, there's more. After finding out about John Potter, I was looking at a photo, you know the wizard sort and, well I didn't think it was possible, I knew the images moved and all, but the photo talked to me."
           Dumbledore looked astounded, "You say it talked to you? It did?"
           "Yes, is that bad?" asked Harry, worriedly.
           "No, it's just extremely rare for a person to be able to communicate with a photo, a painting is one thing, but a phot is a different thing all together. I'm afraid that the only other person I know who can do that is Professor Snape." Now it was Harry's turn to look surprised and horrified. "It's not all that bad Harry; Snape is a good potions teacher, is it really that bad to be related to him, after all your father was too. And your father saved him, and he saved you during that Quidditch match your first year here, remember?"
            "I suppose," said Harry quietly.
            "Well there's only one other thing that goes along with him being your uncle, but I won't trouble you with it now. I'll talk to you later Harry."
            "Bye." Said Harry.
            That evening in the Gryffindor common room Harry, Ron, and Hermione were sitting around a table.
            "I thought you might find this interesting," said Hermione, "if not entirely disturbing." She sounded as though she were trying to stay cool when her real thoughts were more likely to lead her to a dumfounded expression.
            "What is it?" said Harry in a curious tone, swirling the book around to read the thing Hermione was pointing at he read, "here is a bit of trivial information for the reader: when a wizard and his wife are killed all children should be handed directly to the custody of..." He broke off, his jaw dropped, a look of horror spread across his face. Thoughts rushing through his mind he nearly couldn't comprehend.
            Casually walking by Ron said, "what is it? It can't possibly be that bad Harry."
            Hermione replied, "oh yes it can!" Pointing to the sentence Ron read it silently, ending aloud as though it were a spooky old legend, "...to the custody of the wizard's oldest brother." The three exchanged looks, "Well, maybe your dad had an older brother, Harry."
            Harry sincerely doubted this, but trying to be optimistic said, "yeah, maybe."
            Ron said, "no way, it would have been in the 'Who's Who' book."
           Well my best advice to you Harry is not to say anything about it, and maybe somehow it will never come about," said Hermione.
           "I hope no one else finds out, especially Malfoy. That could be horrible!" thought Harry aloud.
           There are very different ways of how rumors get spread. Sometimes someone is careless and says something to the wrong person. Sometimes the one you confide in decides to use this for their own gain and starts to talk behind your back. Regardless of how rumors start or why they start there is always that person that is ground zero. The one who starts it all. But always in the end, what goes around comes around.
           Today Peeves was feeling rather restless. He had only started one fire, made Myrtle cry twice, tossed around Nearly-Headless-Nick's best plumed hat and threw it into Hagrid's manure pile (of course it was only a ghost hat but Nick saw it as a prime symbol of disrespect...) made Filch scream bloody murder at him five times, tricked two first years, and had made Mrs. Norris lvitate upside down. Peeves gave a tiny little ghost sigh. Nothing! He had done absolutely nothing chaotic or interesting int eh past week. He flipped upside down slowly, thinking about roasting Fawkes when he heard it...
           "Poor Harry, why did even say it? Why couldn't I just lie..." Peeves stood up so fast he nearly went into the ceiling.
           "Ahh," he breathed. "Potty'll make my day." He leaned up against the wall and listened to whoever was talking on the other side.
           "Why, why, why, WHY!!! Why did Hermione make me and Harry take that stupid, stupid genealogy class? Why she'd pick that stupid book? Why did she read it aloud about John potter? Why did I have to finish that last sentence for her? The one that said John Potter was Snape?" It was Ron. Talking to himself, depressed in more ways then one.
           Peeves grinned, grinned so hard it hurt his tiny little poltergeist's mouth. He started laughing hysterically, turning around in ways a human couldn't imagine. He bent over laughing and couldn't stop until the classes ended and even then students wondered why, the rest of the day, Peeves locked himself in a broom closet.
          Ron knew it was bad when he heard laughter streaming from the other side of the wall. He just didn't know how bad until he woke up with Fred in his face the next day.
          "IS IT TRUE???!!" The Weasley twins could never be subdued and quiet. And whenn there was a rumor of this going around...
          "WHAT?" Ron was angry at not knowing something obviously so important and grumpy at being awakened by a scream.
           "HARRY IS SNAPE'S KID!! HE'S HARRY SNAPE NOT HARRY POTTER!"
           Ron was shocked. How did they know? "Look, Harry's parents are Lilly and James." Fred and George blushed.
           "Of course. Why should we believe what Peeves says." They laughed nervously nudging each other.
           "But," Ron said slowly.
           "But what?" Said Fred and George looking worried. "You can mean Harry's somehow, somehow related to, to him?" Ron lowered his head. The Weasleys went ecstatic.
           "You really got us there! We thought Harry and Snape really were..."
           "They really are." Ron said quietly.
           When Harry walked into the hall to get breakfast, he thought it was odd nobody had talked to him at all. Ron avoided him and Hermione gave fake smiles to him. But he knew why as soon as he walked into the room.
           "Hey Potter," Harry whirled around. It was the drawling voice of Draco Malfoy. The whole school turned around and watched their breakfast sppons hung in mid-air, jawas open. "Why didn't you tell us Potter, or should I say Snape? You could have trusted me!" Draco went forward to Harry coming right up to his face. "My dear friend the Baron heard it from a very reliable source that you were somehow related to Snape. Well I think teh whole school is dying to hear if it's true or not? I mean Peeves went just crazy waking up everybody with the wonderful news. I think you owe the school the truth for all the trouble we've been through getting up early."
            Harry looked. The whole school was watching him silently. Waiting for him to speak. Even the professors were all tense and waiting. Well, everyone minus one. Snape, the man of the hour, was nowhere in the room. Then Ginny Weasley broke the silence with a wail.
            "He's lying, right Harry?" Again silence. Harry was stunned. All the words he had died on his tongue. "Well," said Malfoy triumphantly. "He's in denial. But listen here, I took the liberty of checking out 'Who's Who at Hogwarts' in order to educate our fellow students.
            Then Malfoy read the whole entry of John Potter and smirked at the gasps when he finished. He turned to an enraged Harry, "you might want to thank me Potter for telling the Ministry of Magic about your change of name. Soon you'll won't have the shame anymore of not having any proper wizards in your family."
             "That'll be QUITE enough of that Malfoy!"
             Harry spun around. Snape stood right in the doorway.

The Plot Thickens

            On the bright side Snape was on Harry's side. As well as the fact that no one other than Hermione had brought up the fact that Harry was suppose to be in official custody of Snape. On the bad side, it had become apparent to all in the school that Snape was Harry's uncle. Although it seemed obvious to Harry that his last name would not be Snape even though his newly found out Uncle was using that as his last name in his new alias. Of course Malfoy couldn't change his last name officially since the name Snape didn't really have to do with him, it was just the person John Potter who was related to him, alias Severus Snape.
            Of course Harry couldn't hide forever behind the hope of not being adopted by his long lost Uncle John. Dumbledore approached him along with the Ministry and they were surprised to find that Harry already knew of this adoption policy. Harry had gotten used to the idea by this time. After going to the wizard's family court and being adopted by John potter by order of the law, Dumbledore had persuaded him to take a break from school. He was going to go to John's house for the weekend to "get better acquainted" as Dumbledore put it. They were both silent on the way there. They drove a car in the normal fashion, it being broad daylight. They approached a large and extravagant mansion, nearly a palace. The sign on the door read "The Potters." They exited the car, both feeling a little uneasy. It was a strange feeling leaving Snape's car and going to Snape's house with Snape his long lost Uncle John Potter.
             They went up the walk and as John fiddled with the key Harry asked curiously, "how long has this house been the Potter Manor?"
            "At least 77 years," replied Uncle John.
            They entered together awkwardly and John showed Harry up the stairs to his bedroom. It was a huge establishment, kitchens, gardens, and rooms on end. John showed Harry aorund a bit.
            "And behind this door is my study. I would appreciate it if you steered clear of it." He continued on for a bit and then stated that he was going to turn in. he went up the stairs and out of view.
            Harry decided to get ready for bed as well, and then maybe explore a bit later after Snape was asleep. He was used to exploring large new strange buildins as he had at Hogwarts. The main difference here was that everything was so empty that it made it all the scarier, plus he didn't have Ron by his side, or Hermione.
            At midnight Harry stole back to the forbidden study breathless with anxiety over what his uncle might do finding him here. He shivered slightly, the window with the pretty view of the ocean was open, and Harry was dead scared of closing it and waking up Sanpe. The statues and suits of armour casts shadows on the wall that made an already nervous Harry wild with panic.
           "Is that Snape? Is that Snape?" He whirled around, breathing hard, to every sound he made thinking stupid panic-driven thoughts. "They'll never find my body here!" he thought with terror. "But I have to find it. If it has anything to do with my mom or dad, I'll crazy if I had an opportunity to find out and I never did. I can't leave not! No turning back!" He paused at the mahogany study doors and, hesitating, opened it ever so slowly so whatever it was in there wouldn't take him out right away. He gasped.
           It looked like a gallery. Dozens of paintings lined the wall and it looked like twice as many books than the Hogwarts library. He looked around in amazement as he looked at the portraits of the Potter family. They all stared at him. It would have been better if they had been talking or whispering but their stony stares froze him to the spot. It was if he was the first person in here for a long, long time.
           Harry slowly pivoted in a circle, taking in the hallway with wide eyes straining in the dark. "luminous" he breathed and instantly a tiny ball of light floated a few feet above his shoulder. His voice had seemed so out of place when he spoke that he decided not to do so again. The light softly illuminated his face and feet in a pale blue glow. With hesitating steps he walked up to the first portrait.
           A women that seemed to have been trapped on a tapestry grimly nodded at him. Her eyes were bright green and distant looking directly to the side of his face. Shifting his weight, he tried to look directly into her eyes but she seemed to be avoiding them. Was that shame he saw in the set of her mouth? Her black hair was scrapped back into a tight bun at the nape of her neck and the high lacy collar of her dress brushed her chin. She was obviously hundreds of years old. Beneath her in spidery writing was "Clemance Potter, Artist of Wizardry."
           "Potter?" Whispered Harry no more confused then ever.
           Quickly striding over to the next one he ignored the black garbed man glaring sternly own at him and swung the light down straight to the name, "Donald Potter." Than "Christine Potter" "Natasha and Charlie Potter", "Evelyn Potter" "Frank Potter." Potter, Potter, Potter! Everywhere Harry turned in Snapes gloomy hallway the name Potter slapped his face mockingly.
Potter.
           Shaking his head and running down the hall his light bounced unexpectedly off the last painting. Turning slowly with fear and doubt Harry looked at the face grinning back. His jaw fell open, recognising them from his dreams and faint memories.
           But it was the covered art easel that drew Harry's eyes. The other portraits nodded somberly. Harry still couldn't get over the fact that Snape, of all people inherited and lived in the ancestral Potter home. But that easel was clouding out all other thoughts. It was the focal point of the room, right behind a huge drape-covered window. It was as though the Potters had owned their own art museum/library. The portraits were done by masters. DaVinci, VanGogh, Picasso. Harry had never known the Potters had such rich cultural background as he looked around the room. The books by the look of it, were first editions. Harry chanced he saw a first eidition of Macbeth. He was trying to avoid looking at the covered art easel. He had strong attraction to it, but an even stronger sense of dread. It didn't help that Evelyn Potter kept pointing to it. Finally Harry lost it and ran to it. Without thinking he lifted up the cover and gasped.
          It was the most beautiful painting he had ever seen. She was a young woman with the most gorgeous red hair and brilliant green eyes. She was painted with Muggle oil paints she couldn't move. But she didn't need to move. She was smiling at Harry in a way that he kept thinking she was real. She was wearing a white dress and her hands were crossed. She had on a ring which looked like a blue diamond surrounded by tiny bright white ones. The only thing off about the picture was that the eyes looked too sad to be on such a beautiful painting. He was curious to know who she was and who the master painter was. The painter must've gone through years of Muggle art school and have had considerable talent. Harry looked at the bottom of the frame where there was a little tag underneath it. Lilly Berker Potter on her Wedding Day it said. Wife of John Potter. Painted by John Potter.
          "It took me twelve long years to do that one painting." Said a soft voice. Harry looked behind him to see a man standing in the shadows of the gallery. Harry's heart thumped but the man made no threatening gestrues. The man sighed and continued.
           "I started to paint her the very day I saw her. So was so beautiful I dreamed about her. She became my obsession and my soul's delight. I painted her when she was still mine, dreaming of our wedding day. But then my brother saw her and then she was his." He paused for a moment. Harry waited patiently. After a few seconds of painful silence, the voice continued much more softer, and much sadder.
           "I couldn't bear not to finish painting her. My quarrel was with James. Not Lilly. Never Lilly. I never saw James again. I wouldn't. I couldn't. He had stolen what was my only love, my only passion out from me. But not seeing James had its price too. I never looked upon my Lilly again. Finally the day came when the only thing left paint were her eyes. Her soul was in her eyes, that's why I saved it last. I painted those eyes the day she died, Harry. That's the reason they're so pained. Pained of the death of her husband and the loss of ever raising her baby boy. But also pained that me and James never reconciled."
          Yes, her sadness was my fault, Harry. When I heard of you orphaned I ran away. I couldn't bear being reminded of James and Lilly's pain. You symbolized James taking Lilly away from me, and Lilly's death. I hated you Harry. Yes I hated you. When I saw you at Hogwarts I saw those eyes. Not James' eyes. Lilly's eyes. Every time I saw you, you reminded me of my sins. And for the first time, I have realized that the only way that my painting of dear Lilly will ever be at peace is if I don't make my second mistake. I never forgave James..." here the man stepped out into the shadows. His face pained and full of sadness and agony.
          "....But Harry....will you forgive me?"
          It was John Potter, not Snape, even though he looked a lot like Snape. In fact, Harry thought, it was Snape. But it was Snape's other side, John Potter. John Potter, a man who loved Lilly Berker, but had lost her to James Potter. John Potter, a man so consumed by hate, he could never forgive James for taking away Lilly. And John Potter, man who ran away from the care and responsibility.