Harry Potter and all characters, etc. belong to J.K. Rowling, not me.
More Important Than Any Broomstick - Chapter 12 - What's in the Box?
When Harry looked into the box his mother gave him, he noticed some pieces of jewelry on top of some papers. He gently placed the jewelry on his bed, decided to look through the papers first. The first piece of paper he found was a piece of muggle notebook paper that had been folded neatly in thirds. He unfolded it to see it was a letter written in green ink, and upon glancing at the bottom, he saw for the first time in his life, his mother's signature. Harry read his letter
My dearest Harry,
If you are reading this letter, then it means that both your father and I have died, but somehow you've survived. I left this box with your Aunt Petunia because I don't think Voldemort will attack her. I've instructed her to give this to you and Sirius immediately if we die. The first thing I want to say is that we both love you more than we ever thought possible, and that if our deaths have somehow allowed you to survive, then we haven't died in vain. You matter more to us than anything, and our only regret is that we weren't around to watch you grow into a man.
We went into hiding to try to protect you from Voldemort. He has targeted you because of a prophecy that was given to Professor Dumbledore. If you don't know about it yet, demand that he show you the memory in his pensieve immediately! His heart is in the right place, but he has a habit of withholding information when he believes it is `for the greater good.' I can't risk writing it down here, but it is extremely important that you know about it as soon as possible so that you can prepare! We've told everyone that Sirius Black is our secret-keeper, but that's not true. In actuality, Peter Pettigrew is our secret-keeper, and if we are dead, it may be that he has betrayed us. If that happened, then everyone may think Sirius was the traitor. If they arrest him, the truth should come out in his trial when they question him under veritaserum, but if the truth hasn't come out, then tell the authorities about this immediately! Sirius Black is a good man, and shouldn't have to pay for another's crime.
We hope that Sirius Black has survived, stayed out of prison, and raised you. If he has, then I'm sure he's already told you about us. I just want to make sure you know what your father was like from my point of view. When I first met him, I thought he was an arrogant git that half the girls at Hogwarts wanted to date for reasons that I couldn't fathom. He always was handsome, and even as a baby, you appear to have inherited that trait. I eventually came to know him as a good-hearted man who simply enjoyed pulling pranks on the deserving, usually Slytherins. I used to try to defend his and his friends, "The Marauders," victims until one day he was picking on a Slytherin by the name of Snape. After I defended him, he had the nerve to call me a mudblood. I didn't admit it at the time, but at that moment, I realized that the bigot had it coming. Snape eventually became a Death Eater, although rumor has it, he's working for Professor Dumbledore now. I wonder what the Headmaster's playing at. Anyway, after that incident, I came to realize that the Marauders actually were bringing justice to people that society was unwilling to punish. When people at school get into a fight, both parties are punished, no matter what it was about. People like Snape who strut around full of themselves insulting others who are only trying to help them deserve to have someone demonstrate that they're not as great as they think. I'll never admit it to your father, but I hope you do the same thing to people like them. After I realized what they were doing, I was more open to his flirting with me, and eventually went out with him. We fell in love, got married, and along came you. James loves you and I more than anything, and he would duel Voldemort himself for either of us.
I, on the other hand, have been more or less a bookworm. More than once I've been called an insufferable know-it-all. I've been accused of memorizing the entire Hogwarts library, but it's not true. There were many books in the restricted section that I didn't have time to read. At least a dozen. What can I say, I think knowledge is very useful, and I love learning. I hope that you inherit that trait, at least partially. Your father says I'm pretty. There are photos of me, as well as your father and our friends at the bottom of this box, so you can decide for yourself whether I'm pretty.
Now I'll tell you about the contents of this box. This box contains a few self-explanatory documents, such as our marriage license and your birth certificate. As I mentioned, I've left a photo album with every picture labeled in it. I hope that you've had the opportunity to meet most of the people in those photographs. Also enclosed are your father's and my wedding bands. They are connected by a charm that works this way. If someone rubs the jewel of one of them, the other will heat up (not enough to burn you, only to alert you) and the person wearing it will know where the other is located, and will even be able to apparate directly to that location (provided they know how to apparate). If wards are blocking the exact location, then the person will apparate just outside of the wards. The rings will work whether worn on any finger or on a chain around the neck, so you don't have to wait until you're married to protect and be protected by someone special. The important thing is that it has to be touching skin to work, so it can't be in a pocket. My engagement ring is also included, but alas, it has no charms on it, except for its beauty. There are also two necklaces enclosed. One is gold and has a locket in the shape of a lion. It contains a photo of your father and me on one side, and a photo of you as a newborn on the other side. Your father used to wear it under his shirt to keep his family near his heart. The other necklace is silver, and is the shape of a stag. Your father gave it to me while we were dating. It's charmed so that it works as a shield against most minor hexes. It weakens some stronger hexes as well. I still think that the best block is not to be there, but a little extra protection never hurts. As a muggleborn bookworm who got the best grades in school, I was often the target of pranks by bigots, and when I started dating James Potter, their pranks only increased. Most of the time I was able to defend myself against those idiots who thought that they were automatically more powerful than me simply because of who their parents were. They didn't realize that studying and practicing hexes helps one to be very formidable, and allows one the pleasure of humiliating pureblood bigots.
Please take your studying seriously, but don't forget to enjoy yourself. Although I'll never understand his obsession over the game, your father greatly enjoyed Quidditch. Maybe you will too. I don't know how old you'll be when you read this letter, but I hope that one day you'll meet a nice girl (whether muggle or witch) that loves you as much as I love your father. I also hope that one day you'll know the joy of fatherhood, and understand how much James and I care for you.
I guess I've rambled on and on, but that's my privilege as your mother. There isn't enough space on this paper or enough words in this language to tell you how much your father and I love you, and I hope you love us too. I don't know what comes after death, but if it's possible, we'll be watching over you.
I will love you forever. Never forget that.
Your mum,
Lily Potter
By the time Harry finished the letter, tears were freely flowing down his cheeks. He hugged the letter to his chest as he whispered, "I love you too, mum." He sat in his bed thinking about all that the letter had said. He realized that his mother must have been a lot like Hermione. He wished he could have seen his father pull a good prank on Snape. He then considered that Snape had called his mum a mudblood, which gave him one more reason to add to the list of why he hated Snape. He angrily realized that if the Dursleys had given the box to him earlier, Sirius wouldn't have spent as much time in Azkaban. He also remembered the end of his first year at Hogwarts, when he'd asked Dumbledore why Voldemort had wanted to kill him. Dumbledore refused to answer, promising to tell him he'd answer when he was older, and to `put it from your mind for now, Harry.' At the time, he'd accepted that kind of answer from Dumbledore, but no more. His mum had mentioned something about a pensieve. He'd have to ask Hermione or Sirius what that is.
Thoughts of Hermione made him examine the jewelry his mother had left him. He'd immediately decided to give the silver stag necklace, as well as one of the wedding rings, to Hermione. They could wear the rings on strings or chains around their necks. He briefly thought about how many necklaces Hermione would end up wearing. She had the locket he'd given her on Valentine's Day, as well as that strange hourglass necklace she wouldn't let him touch. He figured she could also wear it on another finger if she liked. Both rings were gold, with a red gem that looked like a ruby on each. He then briefly glanced at the legal documents. He didn't notice anything unusual there except for a few deeds to houses he was already aware of.
He finally reached the bottom of the box, where the photo album was. It had muggle pictures of his mother growing up from the time she was a baby until she went to Hogwarts. Some of them included her parents, as well as Petunia. One picture that stood out to Harry was of Lily and Petunia standing with their arms around each other's shoulders. His mum couldn't have been older than ten. They appeared to be very close at that time. "Before she got her Hogwarts letter," Harry thought to himself. After that, most of the pictures, even the ones with Lily's family, were moving pictures. He saw his mum wearing her Gryffindor uniform in several pictures. He noticed a few girls, one from Gryffindor and the other from Ravenclaw, that appeared in several of them. He also found pictures of his parents together in their school robes, even a few with other Marauders. He was pleased to see that every one with Peter Pettigrew in them had him cowering in a corner while the others glared at him. He saw several pictures from his parents' wedding, as well as a single picture from Vernon and Petunia's wedding, which had a notation that said even though they weren't invited to the wedding, she'd gotten her sister to mail one picture to her. He also saw several with him as a baby, including one of him being held by each of the Marauders. He chuckled when he saw himself crying in the one where Wormtail was holding him.
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The next morning Harry woke up early in anticipation of the events of the day. This was Harry's first time waking up knowing that the Dursleys had no legal claim on him! Harry was going to show the contents of his mum's box to Sirius and Hermione. Hermione and he were going to get their laptops, and get started working on them. Sirius was going to give them books on becoming animagi. This was definitely going to be a busy day! He took his mum's box downstairs with him, intending on showing the contents and giving Hermione the charms before they left. When he got downstairs, he was surprised to see Sirius already up, eating an omelet that Dobby had apparently made. He said, "Good morning, Sirius," just as he sat down at the table.
Before Sirius could reply, Dobby popped at Harry's side and enthusiastically said, "Good morning Harry Potter sir! Is Harry Potter wishing for breakfast?"
"Yes Dobby, that would be great," said Harry. He didn't think he'd ever get used to having a servant, even if he was getting paid.
"What is Harry Potter wanting?" asked Dobby.
"Er, the same thing Sirius has got."
Dobby snapped his fingers, causing a plate with an omelet to appear, along with a glass of pumpkin juice. Dobby then asked, "Is there anything else that Harry Potter wishes Dobby to do, sir?"
"No, Dobby. Thanks for the breakfast." Dobby then disappeared.
"Is that your mother's box you brought with you, pup?" asked Sirius.
"Yeah," said Harry. "I went through it last night, and I wanted to show you and Hermione what was in it."
Sirius smiled. "I'm glad you want to share this with me. Do you want to wait for Hermione?"
"No, that's ok. I can show you now, and then when she shows up, I'll show her in private. Which reminds me, based off of the letter, my mum seems to be a lot like Hermione."
Sirius smiled. "Yes she was Harry. I didn't want to make you uncomfortable by mentioning it, but Hermione does remind me a lot of your mother." Sirius sighed. "Now let's see what's in the box."
"The first thing I should show you is the letter my mum wrote me."
While Sirius was reading the letter, Harry could see him look very sad at some parts, angry at others, and happy at others. Aside from chuckling a bit at what Harry figured was memories of the Marauders, Sirius was silent while he read the letter. When he was finished, he grinned. "Lily never admitted that she approved of the Marauders' pranks." Harry chuckled. "If I'd known that the Dursleys could've gotten me out of Azkaban years ago just by giving you what was yours, I'd have been a lot less friendly when we visited them."
"Yeah," said Harry, "But you'd have landed yourself back in Azkaban, and this time you'd have been guilty."
"I suppose so. Lily and James never told us about this prophecy. I don't suppose Dumbledore told you about it."
"Well," said Harry, "Near the end of my first year at Hogwarts, I asked him why Voldemort tried to kill me. He said he'd tell me when I'm older, and I should put that question out of my mind."
"That sounds just like Dumbledore!" said Sirius, clearly upset. "He always decides who gets to know what! If this prophesy is about you, then you have the right to know about it! Come to think of it, as your guardian I have the right, too!" At that moment, an owl flew inside, carrying a copy of the Daily Prophet. After Sirius took the paper and paid the bird, he said, "Let's see if Dumbledore's kept his promise about the teachers yet."
He unrolled the paper and smiled when he read the headline. He put it on the table so Harry could read it too.
"Headmaster Dumbledore of Hogwarts fires four teachers on the same day!
By Rita Skeeter
In an unprecedented move, Albus Dumbledore has just terminated Professors Snape of Potions, Trelawney of Divination, Binns of History of Magic, and Willoford of Muggle Studies. When asked about his decision, Professor Dumbledore replied, `Over two thirds of my students signed a petition demanding that I raise the quality of education. After investigating their allegations, I came to realize the errors I have made in allowing those professors to continue teaching here. I wish to apologize to the parents for subjecting their children to a lower quality of education in those subjects, and promise to raise the quality of education back to where it should be for as long as I am headmaster. I've simply been reminded that the students should always come first.' Professor Snape, who was also the head of Slytherin house, on the other hand, said that the petition was, `Utter nonsense,' and that Professor Dumbledore was letting `Harry Potter run the school.' Potter was one of the many students to sign the petition. Interestingly enough, the only people we could find that had anything good to say about Snape were students from his own house. This shouldn't be surprising, considering that one of the many allegations on the petition, which is on page twelve, was that he favored his own students. Trelawney appeared distraught, but claimed she had foreseen it. When this reporter asked if that meant she'd found another job, she refused to comment. One of the accusations against her is that she is a fraud. Binns is a ghost that has bored generation of students, including this reporter, and had no comment, which was a great relief. This reporter was concerned that he would bore us with a five hour lecture on the history of Hogwarts. Willoford also had no comment, although an investigation into his past suggests that he has never once in his life left the wizarding community. We can't even prove he's ever met a muggle in his life. What this reporter wonders is why Albus Dumbledore has let these kind of teachers stay at Hogwarts until the students, sick of the low quality of education, had to practically force their headmaster to do anything about it. Of course, Professor Dumbledore has always been eccentric…"
"Well," said Sirius, "At least the Prophet favors the teachers getting fired. You may notice that this particular reporter seems incapable of portraying anybody in a positive light."
"What do you mean?" asked Harry, "I agree with what she said about Dumbledore waiting until we demanded a change."
"Yes you do, but think about it. She could have made Dumbledore look bad by claiming the teachers were good. Or she could have made Dumbledore look good by claiming the teachers were bad. Instead, she's made all of them look bad so that parents who read this paper will be glad there are new teachers but still don't have confidence in the headmaster." He sighed. "She didn't even really compliment the students for demanding a better education. If she'd wanted, she could have pointed out how the petition was spearheaded by you and Hermione, two students at the top of their year."
"I don't really like to be famous, but I see your point," said Harry. "At least that would be for something I did."
At that moment, Hermione came through the fireplace beaming, carrying her own copy of the paper as she made her way to the dining room. "Good morning Harry, Sirius!" She then noticed the paper on the table. "I see you've already gotten the good news," she said, and then kissed Harry.
After they discussed the article for a few minutes, Hermione noticed the box on the table. "Harry," she asked, "Is that what I think it is?"
"If you think it's the box from my mother, then yes."
"I think I'll go to my room for something," said Sirius.
Harry nodded, "Thanks Sirius," as the door closed. He then turned to Hermione. "I already showed him the stuff, and I told him I wanted to be alone with you for this."
She smiled. "Okay."
She started crying right after she began reading, and didn't stop. When she was done, she hugged Harry tightly. After a few minutes in that embrace, when Hermione had stopped crying, she pulled out of their embrace enough so she could face him. "She really loved you, Harry."
Harry smiled. "I know." He then looked her directly in the eyes. "Does she remind you of anybody?"
"Er," Hermione blushed, "Well, I guess a little bit like, er, me. I have been called a know-it-all."
Harry chuckled. "I asked Sirius if you really were like my mum, and he said that you are very much like her."
Hermione turned even redder. "I know we both love you."
Harry then looked serious. "There are a few things I want you to have." He then took his mother's wedding ring and necklace out of the box. He was already wearing his father's ring on his right index finger.
"No, Harry. You can't give those to me. They're too important!"
"You're important to me, Mine! They can help protect you. Please Mine, take them for me." He then proceeded to give her the most pathetic puppy-dog eyes she'd ever seen in her life.
She sighed. "Since I know you won't take no for an answer." She took the ring and put it on her right index finger as she'd noticed Harry had done. She then said, "Fasten the necklace around me, Hero."
He did as she asked, noticing the heart locket that was already hanging from her neck. Realizing something was missing, he asked, "Where's that hourglass necklace at?"
She took a deep breath. "I suppose I can tell you about it now that I've returned it to Professor McGonagall. It's a Time-Turner."
"A what?"
"A device that allowed me to travel back in time so I could attend two classes at once."
Harry looked amazed. "That's how you handled that crazy schedule! I wondered, but I figured if you didn't want to tell me it was none of my business."
She smiled at him. "That's one of the reasons I love you. You respect my privacy. I wanted to tell you about it, but I'd promised McGonagall I wouldn't."
"Why'd you return it?" asked Harry.
"It was driving me crazy. I think it would have been even worse if I didn't have you. I don't need it now that I've dropped Muggle Studies and Divination."
"Why did you say it was dangerous?"
"I said it can be dangerous," corrected Hermione. "Before she let me have it, she lectured me on how many wizards and witches have lost their lives meddling with time and told me not to use it for any other reason than to attend my classes."
"Okay. So you didn't do anything dangerous with it then?"
"No, Hero."
"Alright. You ready to get Sirius so we can get some serious laptops?"
She smiled. "All right."
They carried the box up to Harry's room and then knocked on Sirius' door.
"Come in," they heard his voice call from inside the room.
They opened the door and saw him sitting on his bed staring at a piece of parchment. "What's that?" asked Harry.
"A letter I just got from Dumbledore." He then looked up at them. "He wants me to teach potions and to be the head of Slytherin."
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