Risen from the Ashes (A Harry Potter Fan Fiction)

Chapter 11

Harry swayed a bit as the apparated into Remus' house. He would never quite get used to the feeling of being in one place, then quickly being thrust into another. James grabbed his arm to keep him from toppling over. "Sorry..."

"Don't be." He smiled down at him, "I remember it took me ages to get used to apparating."

"It's not usually this bad..." Harry held his head as it continued to spin, "I got hit in the head last night, so everything's been a little extra wobbly."

Remus walked over to him and looked at his eyes, "His pupils are dilated. I think he has a concussion."

"Oh, I know." They all looked at him in surprise at the nonchalance in his voice. "I just need a couple aspirin and I'll be good to go..." he tried to walk out of James' grasp, but he held him back.

"Oh no you don't, young man." Lily looked down at him. "You should be in bed resting."

"I'm fine. Really." This time when he tried to wriggle free, James grabbed his wrist to stop him. Harry let out a small yelp and James quickly withdrew his hand.

"I'm so sorry! Are you ok?" Panic was written all over his face.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Harry gritted and looked down at his wrist. "It just popped out of place again, that's all." He quickly jerked his wrist, setting it back into place. Sirius nearly fainted from the sickening crack it made.

"Ok that's it." Lily quickly scooped him up in her arms, surprised at how light he was. "Remus and I are going to be taking care of these injures. James and Sirius, you two work on setting up Harry's room. And I don't want to hear any arguments from you, young man."

Harry looked at her in surprise, "You sound like Mrs. Weasley..."

Lily beamed down at him, "Molly is a good friend of mine, so I'll take that as a complement."

Remus and Lily took Harry up to the couple's bedroom. "Alright," Remus started getting out different types of healing potions and salves. "I'm no Madam Pompfrey, but between the two of us we should be able to patch up a few bruises and a dislocated wrist."

"Um..." Harry wouldn't meet their eyes.

Lily glared down at him, "Harry, are there any other injuries you're not telling us about?"

"Do you uh..." he looked away, "Have anything to fix broken bones in your bag?"

"Yes..." He too glared down at him.

"Good. Then uh... I could probably use a shot of that..." he rolled up his pants and showed them the shoddily made splint.

"How are you even walking?!" Lily said in horror.

He shrugged, "Loads of practice, I guess. Also, I think a couple ribs are cracked. One might be broken, but I've always had a tough time telling the difference. Oh, and there's my nose obviously." He poked at it. "I got it back in place, but I still think it might be a little crooked."

Remus and Harry watched as Lily went over to the wall and punched a hole clean through into the next room. They could see Sirius and James staring at them in fear. "Sorry..." she muttered and repaired it with her wand. "I'm going to kill that man..."

"It's alright really." Harry assured. "He only got upset because I threatened Dudley after he poured mop water on my head. I shouldn't have said that. It wasn't very nice. So, I needed to be disciplined."

Lily choked on a sob, then glared at the former professor, "Remus, a word?" Harry was confused as he watched her practically drag him into the next room.

"Is Harry, ok?" James asked as she saw his wife and friend walk into the room.

"No. Harry is not ok!" She glared at Sirius and Remus. "Did you two know about this?! That our son was being abused! We're gone for 13 years and what, you just forget about him?! We trusted you!"

They both hung their heads in shame, "We... have failed you both. I... have failed you." Remus corrected himself. "Do not blame Sirius, he could not be blamed for being sent to Azkaban. I on the other hand, had a choice. I could have introduced myself to Harry when he was young, and told him about his being a wizard and what the world thought of him. Or, I could leave him with his relatives, who I thought would care for him, and let him grow up with a happy childhood before everything changed when he turned eleven. Obviously, I chose the latter.

"You have to understand..." he looked up at them and had tears in his eyes. "I had just lost the two of you, Peter, and I believed that Sirius had killed you all. I had no one left. I... everyone I had ever loved was gone, so I figured... I must have been cursed. I thought it would be better if Harry never knew I existed. For if he did, he too might have wound up dead. But I promise you, if I had had any idea of what was going on..." he broke down, "I'm so sorry... I... I failed you..."

"Oh Remus..." Lily went over to the man and hugged him, "I'm sorry for snapping at you... I don't blame you. I... blame myself for not being there for him when he needed me..."

Sirius put a hand on her shoulder, "But you're here now. And that's what matters."

"We're finished in here. Why don't we all go in and sit with him while you and Remus finish patching him up." James suggested.

They all nodded, and walked back into the other room, to find Harry fast asleep. Lily smiled and sat down on the bed next to him. She gently brushed his unruly hair off of his forehead. "So, this is where...?"

Sirius nodded, "The only person to ever survive the killing curse. He's become quite the celebrity. People call him the boy who lived."

"He hates the attention though." Remus said sadly. "He told me once after class that he wished no one knew who he was. That sometimes he wished he had never even come to Hogwarts, and just stayed in the muggle world."

James gently reached down and pulled off his glasses, "We're going to set things right mate..." he gently brushed his fingers against his hollow cheek. "You don't need to worry about another thing..."

(A/N - Thanks for reading!)