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SIYE Time:22:38 on 28th March 2024
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Time for Family
By luukjn

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Category: Post-DH/PM
Characters:Harry/Ginny, Other
Genres: Angst, Drama
Warnings: Dark Fiction, Death, Disturbing Imagery, Mild Language, Mild Sexual Situations, Negative Alcohol Use, Rape, Spouse/Adult/Child Abuse, Violence
Rating: R
Reviews: 18
Summary: After his father died, James abandoned his family. Only when Albus is dying does James realise what happened. By accident, James travels back in time and is given a second chance to save his family.
This story is part of my 'Family of Harry Potter' series.
Hitcount: Story Total: 36113; Chapter Total: 3236





Author's Notes:
This chapter contains torture and character death




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Chapter 3: The Duel

We arrive at a hotel near the Russian Ministry in Moscow. Mum and dad have already booked rooms for us in the family suite. The duels are to begin tomorrow at nine o'clock in the morning, so we decide to eat a bite of dinner and then spend the rest of the day in the hotel.

The hotel is not very well kept. I have already spotted multiple mosquitoes flying around. It might be a good idea to cast a light repelling charm before going to bed.

We spend the evening playing exploding snap and discussing the changes of tomorrow's duel. Lily seems convinced that dad will win. Albus keeps unusually quiet. I remember that Albus bet against dad winning, but that I vehemently agreed with Lily, so Albus's silence unnerves me.

"Are you okay, Al?" I ask warily. Albus seems startled that I spoke to him.

"What? Yes, I'm fine," Albus says quickly.

"You are unusually quiet, Al," I say, worried. Albus gets a funny look in his eyes when he looks at me, like he is trying to see something that is not there.

"I'm just tired from the Portkey trip," Albus says. Strange, I don't remember that, but maybe I already changed some things without my knowing it. That must be it. My behaviour this morning is a bit different than the last time. And maybe it is like they say: even the smallest of changes can change everything.

Mum catches the comment and sends us to bed, so we can be up bright and early for the duel. Before we go to bed, dad casts a light repelling charm on us to keep the mosquitoes away.

Lying in the mouldy bed, I try to remember what had happened today. Did dad cast a light repelling charm then too? I can't really remember that. But knowing dad, he probably did. I try to go over all the changes I have noticed already. And most changes seem to be focused on Albus. He also acted differently this morning, but that can be attributed to my own behaviour. Lily is wearing her necklace, and it is the real one, you can't fake something like that. But I also have her necklace, and it is also the real one. The only conclusion I can come to is that I brought it back in time with me somehow. With that thought I fall into an uneasy sleep.

~O~

I am sitting against a tree at the edge of a clearing in some forest. I notice that my hands are tied behind the tree. I notice that there is a small fire burning about five feet away from me. Near the fire sits a red-haired woman who is looking at me.

"Ah, you are awake," the red-haired woman says. She moves closer to me and I see that she has chocolate brown eyes.

"Lily?" I ask shocked. What is going on here?

"I'm not Lily any more. They call me 'the Dark Dryad' these days. You do well to remember that," the woman says threateningly, pointing her wand straight at my chest.

"So what Al said is true? You are the Dark Dryad?" I ask, still somewhat in shock.

"Yes, Jamie, I'm the Dark Dryad. Like what you see?" Lily says mockingly.

"Are you going to kill me like you killed Albus?" I ask warily.

"Kill you? Not before I get what I want, James," Lily says glaring at me.

"What do you want?" I ask, trying to free my hands, but find them bound too tight.

"The locket," Lily says matter-of-factly.

"I don't know what you are talking about," I say stupidly. I have the feeling that whatever happens I should not give Lily the locket.

"Dear Albus gave you a locket when he stupidly took his own life," Lily says, sounding bored. What is this? Albus took his own life?

"Albus fought you when others would not!" I exclaim angrily.

"Yes, dear ASP has been a great thorn in my side. Unless you want to follow him, you should give me the locket," Lily threatens.

"You don't have to do this, Lily. I know you are still good in there somewhere," I say desperately.

In response Lily slaps me in the face, my head snaps backwards against the tree, I almost pass out from the hit.

"You don't have the right James! Any good I had left after you abandoned us was ripped away by mum's death!" Lily screeches in my face.

"I might have abandoned the family, but you turned your back on everything the family stands for!" I shout back.

"Weak, so weak," Lily mutters under her breath. "Very well, we can do this the easy way, or the hard way, James. Now, tell me where the locket is," Lily says, bearing down on me.

"Drop dead, Lily," I say scathingly.

"CRUCIO!" Lily screeches and the spell hits me like a Bludger, and I quickly pass out from the pain.

The next thing I know I'm lying on a hard-board floor and a voice nearby says "Finally, you are awake!". I slowly open my eyes and see a red-haired girl standing over me. I quickly push her away and the girl falls hard on the ground, before I finally take in my surroundings. I'm in the old dingy hotel we are staying at in Moscow, not in some forest clearing getting tortured.

"What was that for?" Lily asks angrily from the ground. I quickly move to help her of the ground.

"Sorry, Lily, had a nightmare," I say carefully. I notice again that Lily is wearing her necklace.

"Right, okay," Lily says, glaring at me and storming out of the room. Just what I need, an angry Lily. I think warily.

I quickly dress and notice that I also still have Lily's locket in my pocket. I try to remember the nightmare I just had. It seems important, but the more I try, the more the details slip away. There was this woman, but I can't remember her name, or her face. She said something about Albus, but I can't remember what. The last thing of the dream I remember is a lot of pain.

"James, are you coming?" a voice asks from the door. I see mum staring at me.

"Huh? Oh yeah, the duel," I say lamely and follow mum out of the room to the breakfast table.

At the breakfast table Lily is looking at me strangely. I can tell she is not angry any more, but I have no idea what to make of her look.

"Are you okay, James?" mum asks me worryingly.

"I'm fine," I say defensively, but mum just gives me a look like she doesn't believe me.

"Just had a nightmare," I say, hoping that it will be the last of it.

"A nightmare?" Albus asks, looking suspicious.

"Yeah, I have no idea where it came from though," I lie quickly. This answer seems to satisfy mum, dad and Lily. But Albus once again looks at me with a strange look in his eyes.

"Al, if you keep looking at me like that you are going to make aunt Luna proud," I say, attempting to divert the attention away from me with a joke.

Albus flushes and quickly looks away.

"Enough! We have to hurry so we can meet up with Ron, Hermione, Teddy, Rose and Hugo," mum says warningly.

"I have to go and get ready," dad says, standing up and leaving the hotel after receiving a good luck snog from mum, to our loud protests, which they ignore, as usual.

It is a hour later that we are ready to go to the Ministry.

~O~

We are sitting in the stands that are standing around a raised platform in the atrium of the Russian Ministry of Magic. I'm sitting between mum and Albus, and at the moment we are waiting for dad's turn to duel. First are the group duels. The English Aurors were disabled in this competition pretty early. I'm not really paying attention to the group duels, I'm more worried about what will happen in dad's duel. I have a funny feeling that it will be the last duel dad will ever fight.

Just as the last of the group duels ends I hear mum next to me mutter about 'damn mosquitoes', but I pay it no mind. Dad had refreshed our light repelling charms before he went to the changing rooms.

"Now it is time for the last duel of today," the announcer's voice says. I quickly sit up and pay close attention to what is going on.

"On the green side, we have Bulgarian Head Auror Viktor Krum!" the announcer's voice says to a tremendous applause from the crowd, while Viktor Krum steps on the platform. I look around and spot Aunt Hermione and Uncle Ron in the crowd. Ron is scowling at Krum. Ron got defeated by Krum in the semi-finals. Teddy got defeated by dad in the other semi-finals, and is sitting in front of Ron.

"On the red side, we have 'The-Boy-Who-Lived', 'Saviour-of-the-Wizarding-World.' It is the English head Auror Harry Potter!" the announcer's voice says to an even greater applause. And with that dad steps on the platform, scowling slightly towards the announcer. He never liked all his titles.

Dad and Krum bow to each other and the duel begins. It is a duel like I have never seen before. Both dad and Krum are firing spells at a very rapid pace. Krum seems to be using more aggressive spells than dad. Dad, true to form, is using illusions to try and distract Krum, but Krum, true to his form, just blasts them away and avoids getting hit by anything dad throws at him.

A half hour into the duel, dad summons a lot of smoke, blocking the view of the podium completely. When the smoke clears, the duel continues with renewed fervour. Though it seems that Krum's spells have become somewhat less aggressive than his usual style, and dad's spells have become more aggressive then usual. This does not really surprise me, though. Dad is a long-term dueller, the longer a duel takes, the stronger he gets. Viktor is exactly the opposite. The longer a duel takes, the weaker he gets.

It is fifteen minutes later that the duel is concluded, and Viktor is finally stunned by one of dad's stunners. Dad revives Viktor and they both shake hands, and dad is declared the winner. It is then that all hell breaks loose. From seemingly nowhere a sickly green light approaches dad. I try to shout out a warning, but it is too late. The light hits dad straight in the back, and a moment later his body bursts into flames. When the flames die down, the only sign of dad's body is a pile of dust.

My mind has frozen. This can not be happening, not again, not again, NOT AGAIN! I resist the urge to Apparate away immediately. Distantly I hear someone shout "I'LL GET YOU KRUM, EVEN IF IT IS THE LAST THING I DO!," but the words do not register. All I can do is stare dumbly at the spot where my father was standing only moments earlier.

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