Harry Potter and What Should Have Been

What Should Have Been: Philosopher's Stone

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. J.K Rowling owns the world of Harry Potter.

Story Summary: James and Lily raise Harry to the best of their abilities.

A/N: I would like to thank J P McMurphy for taking the time to beta my work for me. Also I would like to thank Time-Turner for taking the time to improve the dialogue of my story. There time for doing this is greatly appreciated.

Chapter Three: Harry's Childhood

The next ten years went by quickly for James, Lily, and Harry Potter. While it only seemed like yesterday, that the Potter family had moved to Nottingham, the time spent there was very happy.

After settling into their new home in Nottingham, James and Lily set about raising Harry. For the first couple of days there, James and Lily found it difficult to settle Harry down, especially at bed-time.

Harry suffered from nightmares of the attack at Godric's Hollow. To help Harry adjust to his new surroundings, James transfigured Harry's bedroom to match the room that he had had at the Hollow. As soon as James transfigured the room, it seemed that Harry settled into the familiar environment, and he was able to relax a little more than he had previously. As for the nightmares that were plaguing Harry, James and Lily took turns staying with Harry until they heard the sounds of his deep, relaxed breathing. Once Harry was sound asleep at night, James and Lily were free to enjoy each other's company.

After Harry had finally become used to their new home, and the nightmares had eased up a little bit, he became the ideal child they had had to begin with. James and Lily raised Harry without any major hassles or problems. Well, other than the minor dramatics of daily life. Little did they know that they were in for quite a surprise as Harry grew up.

As Harry approached complete autonomy, he discovered the wonderful world of cupboards and drawers. James and Lily tried to make sure that everything was locked down to where he couldn't get inside them, but he occasionally wormed his way through their preventative measures. Whenever Harry had the opportunity, he would open up drawers and doors, and he would proceed to pull out all of their contents, so that he could play with them on the floor. While there was no real harm done when Harry got into the drawers, and cupboards, there was the fear he might hurt himself. James and Lily would, sometimes, have to discipline him. They didn't like to punish Harry, but there were times when a smack on the backside had to be administered

By the time that Harry had outgrown this particular phase, he discovered the wonderful world of books. He also discovered that colouring pictures was great, but it was even better to take the crayon to the wall in the dining room. In short, Lily attempted to encourage a love of reading into him. She made sure that he had a wide range books to read, all of which were in his reading level. His father encouraged him in his mischievous habits.

One night, just after Harry had gone to bed, James sparked a teasing conversation with his lovely wife. “Lily, just where on earth did Harry get his love of books?”

“I believe Harry inherited those traits from his wonderful, caring mother.” James roared with laughter as she put down her book to cross her arms in a huff. She raised an eyebrow at him, “Speaking of Harry's traits, who gave Harry the love of exploration, and getting into every mess that he can manage to find?”

“I believe, my darling, those things came from me. Also, don't forget that Sirius has also encouraged Harry.”

“James Potter, don't you dare remind me of the antics that Sirius got up to with Harry. I still worry about Harry, whenever he goes for a ride on either a broom or a flying motor-bike, I think I'm going to have a heart-attack. Speaking of flying, just when are you going to give Harry that toy broomstick that Albus gave him?”

“Harry is five years old, and now that you mention it, I want to teach him how to ride very soon.”

“Just please be careful when you teach Harry how to fly. I don't want to see Harry get hurt in some way.”

“Don't worry, I'll make sure that Harry is safe, the broom is charmed. It can only go a few feet up into the air, and it can't travel very fast.”

“Alright, I'll leave it up to you to teach him to fly, but if he gets hurt, I'll jinx you into next week. And, you'll be sleeping on the couch for a week, possibly a month.” James just raised his hands up in defeat. He knew that it was useless to argue with his wife.

True to James' word, he was soon teaching, and explaining to, Harry all about riding brooms and the wonderful, wizarding sport of Quidditch.

After showing, and demonstrating, what Harry needed to do, James said, “Now, hold out your right hand and say to the broom `up'. Remember to speak in a clear, precise voice. The broom needs to know who the boss is. Go on, have at it.” With that, James squatted down and looked eagerly at his son. He was anxious to see what the outcome would be.

Harry didn't hesitate to have a go. Harry held out his little hand and said, “Up.” When Harry said that one word, the toy broomstick jumped up into Harry's right hand. Harry excitedly said, “Look Dad, I did it!”

At this, James clapped, “Well done, I knew you could do it. How would you like to have a ride?”

“Yes, please.” James didn't need any more convincing. He demonstrated, and explained, what Harry needed to do to ride his toy broom.

Harry, eager and excited about riding his broom, took off before James was able to charm the broom not to leave the ground. Harry was soon flying about the yard.

As Harry was flying around on his broom, James saw that Harry had inherited his natural ability for flight. Since the broom couldn't go very high or fast, James allowed Harry a couple of moments to fly around on his own. Little did James know that Lily had chosen that time to come outside and see how Harry was doing with his broom.

As soon as Lily saw that Harry was flying on his own, she started screaming at James as she ran to them, “JAMES POTTER, WHY IS HARRY FLYING ON HIS OWN? WHY AREN'T YOU FLYING BESIDE HIM?” At the sound of Lily's voice, James knew that he was in trouble. Since James had experience at evading the truth when he was a Marauder, he decided to act innocent in order to stay in Lily's good graces.

“Lily, dear, as I explained to you earlier, the broom is a very safe toy for Harry. Before he took off, I placed a charm on him to prevent him from falling off. As it is it turns out, he has inherited my natural flying ability, and once he is competent at flying on his own, I plan on teaching Harry how to catch the Golden Snitch. Since he takes after me with flying, I am positive that he has the skills to make a great seeker.”

Lily pulled James to the side by his ear, “That may be the case, but from now on, I want you to fly beside Harry every time that he rides that broom. But, for now, here is a little reminder so that you won't forget.” With that, Lily pointed her wand towards James' backside, jinxing it with a boil.

Seeing that the curse had done its job, Lily continued, “I believe that should do as a reminder. Just so you know, you won't be able to sit down for about twelve hours.”

She smirked at her husband, “Now, you had better come inside because it is starting to get dark, and I don't want Harry flying in bad light.” Lily turned on her heels and headed back inside, leaving James to bring Harry in.

The years went by, and Harry continued to grow. Since Lily was a Muggle-born witch, it was her wish that Harry attend a Muggle school in order to learn how to read, write, and socialize. James, who knew of her desire, completely agreed with Lily's decision. However, James had one concern: Since Harry knew that he was a wizard, how would he manage to keep their secret?

With this thought, James spoke to Lily. “Lily,” he said thoughtfully, “since Harry will be attending a Muggle school, I was wondering how we are going to prevent Harry from giving away details about the wizarding world?”

“I've already explained to Harry that he must be very careful with what he says at school. He understands, and he has promised me that he will do his best. Harry's teacher is a Squib, and if he shows any signs of performing accidental magic, she promised to make contact with us immediately.”

“That's a relief.”

“I'm glad that I could be of help. Now, why don't you run along and play with Harry because once school starts you won't have much time with him.”

“Alright Lils.” James kissed his wife and headed off to find his son.

At the end of Harry's third year elementary school, James and Lily were proud of the report card that they had received from Harry's teacher. Harry had settled well into class, always helping and participating by asking and answering questions. Harry's teacher also said that Harry was well-mannered and that she was looking forward to teaching him next year at school. While the early years aren't graded in exactly the same way as the older students are assessed, the majority of Harry's ticks were placed in the highest column on the report card.

Pleased with Harry for his good marks and behaviour, James decided to reward his son. “Since you have a good report card, and you have kept the wizarding world a secret, how would you like to go and see Puddlemere United play?”

Harry grinned and replied, “I would love too! When are we going?”

“I thought we could go and see the game for your birthday. Does that sound all right, Harry?”

“That sounds great!” Harry said as he hugged his father.

After learning about Quidditch from his dad, Harry had followed the game with eagerness. The team that Harry favoured, and supported, was Puddlemere United. While there were heaps of teams in the competition, Harry was drawn to Puddlemere, partially because when they played, they generally won, and it was James' favourite team as well. Whenever it came to Quidditch season, Lily would just shake her head. Once the season started, she knew that it was going to be difficult to get James or Harry to do a thing until the games were over.

On the morning of Harry's birthday, James entered his son's room early to wake him in order for them to make it to the game on time. Harry's room was decorated with everything that could possibly have Puddlemere United on it. The walls were covered with posters of the team, Harry's bed covers, sheets, and everything else that you can imagine in a kid's bedroom had the Puddlemere logo on it. Seeing that Harry was sound asleep, James made his way over to his son's bed.

Upon reaching his bed, James shook his son and said, “Harry, its time to get up, the game is going to start soon.” At the sound of this, Harry slowly began to stir.

After taking a couple of moments to wake up, Harry mumbled, “It's so early, why did you wake me up?”

“Well, I thought that I would get you out of bed so that I could take you to see the Quidditch game. If you want to stay in bed, and miss the game, that is fine with me.” At the sound of `Quidditch' Harry jumped out of bed. Knowing Harry was finally up, James left Harry's room to allow him to get dressed and ready.

After having the wonderful breakfast that Lily had prepared in honour of Harry's birthday, it was time for James and Harry to leave for the Quidditch game. Lily placed a couple of Glamour Charms onto James and Harry to hide their real identities.

As Lily applied the charms to Harry, Harry questioned, “Why do you keep placing these charms on me every time that we go out into the wizarding world?” He crossed his arms and gave her a level look, “You don't put them on me when I go to school.”

At hearing this question from her son, Lily stopped what she was doing in order to respond to Harry. “Harry, I put Glamour Charms on you every time that you go into the wizarding world because your father and I want you to be treated normally.”

“What do you mean by `normal'?”

“Your normal to us, but, to some people, you are a celebrity, especially in the wizarding world.”

“Are you saying that I am famous?”

“Yes, you are, but for now, I think that you should simply forget all about this because today is your birthday. I am sure that you would rather go and see your favourite team play Quidditch instead of talking about this.”

“Alright, I'll drop this for now, but will you promise that you will explain it to me later?”

“I promise, Harry, but right now it's time for you and your father to be going.” Harry kissed and hugged his mother goodbye.

The game was played between Puddlemere and the Chudley Canons. It ended in a landslide victory to Puddlemere. During the game, Harry cheered on his favourite team with as much enthusiasm as he could muster. Seeing how animated Harry was, James matched his son's eagerness with his cheers.

As the game was being played out, Harry was impressed by the professional moves that the Seekers made. Harry asked, “Dad, do you think that you could teach me some of those moves when we get home?”

“I don't think that your mother would appreciate it if I were teaching you how to fly like the professional players. However, I will ask your mum, but if she says no, I am afraid that you will have to wait until you are older.

“Look, I think that the Puddlemere Seeker has seen the Golden Snitch.” Both Potters returned their focus to the Seeker.

True to James' prediction, the Seeker of Puddlemere had indeed seen the Snitch and was soon right on the little ball's tail. After making several manoeuvres on his broom, the Seeker was able to finally grasp the Golden Snitch. The moment that the Seeker had caught it, both Harry and James were jumping up and down in excitement: their team had won. After taking a few moments to get over the excitement of the game, James and Harry left the stadium and returned home to Nottingham.

Upon returning home, James and Harry were still excited and so occupied with the game, that they failed to notice that Professor Dumbledore had come for Harry's birthday.

As Albus had promised that day in his office, he always turned up for Christmas and Harry's birthday. Every time that Albus came for a visit, Harry was thrilled. Usually, whenever Harry saw Albus, he would usually drop whatever he was doing and rush over to hug his grandfather. Albus would always happily return the hug, while Harry asked, “Did you bring me any presents, Granddad?”

The moment that Harry would say those words, Albus would reply while James and Lily would either laugh or shake their respective heads. “Of course, Harry. Now, let's see what I have brought.”

Once James and Harry had finished talking about the game that they had just watched, Harry heard a very familiar voice say, “Happy birthday, Harry.”

Harry looked up and there, standing in the living room, was Albus Dumbledore. Harry shouted happily, “Grandad Dumbledore!” Harry crossed the living room so that he could hug Albus. He moved so quickly, that Lily would later have sworn that he apparated.

As they hugged each other Albus said, “I suppose you are wondering what your granddad has got for your birthday?”

“Don't I usually say that?”

“Yes, Harry, but after visiting you so many times, I always know what you are going to say. Now, since it's your birthday, here is my gift.” Albus removed from his robes a neatly wrapped rectangular-shaped present. Albus handed the present to Harry.

No sooner had Harry received the present from Albus than he quickly tore the paper off so that he could see what his present was. Once the paper had been removed Harry carefully opened the lid to see what was inside. As he removed the lid, Harry could see that he had received some kind of wand.

Seeing what was in the box, Harry looked up and said, “Does this wand mean that I can perform magic?”

At seeing what was in the box, Lily became concerned. She asked, “Do you think that it a good idea to give Harry a wand?”

Albus quickly explained, before he ended up being jinxed by Lily. “The wand that I gave to Harry for his birthday is a toy wand that I had Ollivander create for Harry.”

“What is so special about this wand?

“Harry's wand is so special, because every time that Harry correctly performs magic correctly with it, a light will come from the tip of it to indicate the magic was right. If a light doesn't appear, then you know that Harry incorrectly performed the spell.” By now, Lily fully understood what the intentions of the wand were.

“So, by giving Harry this wand, he will be able to practice his magic, and James and I won't have to worry that Harry will accidentally hurt himself, like he would with a real wand.”

“Yes, that is the purpose of the wand. I am very impressed that you are as bright as ever.”

At this, Lily smiled while James turned to face Harry and said, “Well, now that you have your own wand, how about I teach you a few tricks and things? Would you like that?”

“James, if you plan to teach Harry anything that has got to do with pranks then you had better change your mind very quickly. I won't allow you to corrupt Harry with all those high jinks that you pulled while you were at Hogwarts.”

“Love, I wouldn't dream of doing such a thing. Actually, I was going to teach Harry a few basic spells so that he can protect himself if anyone tries to jinx him.”

“As long as that is all that you teach Harry, I guess that will be okay. Now, why don't we head into the dining room so that we can have dinner, and Harry can open up the rest of his presents?” With that, Lily led the way to the dining room.

Once Lily was out of hearing range, James quickly whispered into Harry's ears, “Don't tell your mom this, because what she doesn't know can't hurt her, and as a marauder, I would be disappointing Sirius if I didn't teach you a thing or two. Let's head into the dining room so that we can really celebrate your birthday.”

For his birthday, Harry received some new clothes, books, and some of his favourite sweets. After dinner, and the opening of his presents, was over, it was time for Harry to head up to bed. Once he said his goodnights to his parents and to Albus, Harry headed upstairs to bed.

The next couple of years went by, and it was getting close to time for Harry to be going to Hogwarts. Harry did not fully understand why he was so famous, and he did not know the origination of the lightening-shaped scar on his forehead. It was during a trip to Diagon Alley that James, Lily, and Harry had heard a couple of people talking about the Boy Who Lived.

“Do you realise that it has been nearly ten years since You-Know-Who tried to kill little Harry Potter?”

“It's amazing where time goes, but I still can't believe how little Harry survived that Killing Curse.”

“From what have heard, no one knows how he survived it. But, I do know that the only thing that Harry received from that attack was a lightening-shaped scar on his forehead. Although I wouldn't…” It was at that moment that James and Lily decided to return home so and explain everything to Harry.

Harry finally understood everything that his parents had done for him by the time that James and Lily had finished explaining what had happened to Harry. At first, Harry was upset that they didn't tell him the truth earlier, but by the time that they were finished, Harry was able to understand that his parents wanted Harry to be as normal as possible. If there was one thing that did come out of that conversation, it was that both James and Lily promised Harry that there would no longer be any secrets between them.

As Harry's eleventh birthday was fast approaching, James and Lily were planning a special trip for Harry to mark the occasion. Little did the Potter family know, they would be running into some unfriendly members of the family.

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