A Different Beginning

Chapter XXVII - Power

  Ginny lay in the beautiful bedroom that she had been given to stay in at Potter Manor lost in thought. She was trying to go to sleep but she couldn't make herself tired even if it was after midnight. Her thoughts kept drifting back to the day that she had had.

Potter Manor was incredible and she loved everything about it. It was beautiful and fun and best of all was that it felt like a home. James had done a good job at making it feel like a home, especially without his wife. But this room she was in was just so beautiful. She had fallen in love with it. It was so ... girly and frilly, something that Ginny didn't really allow herself too often since she had grown up with so many brothers. She had thanked Maddy for picking her out such a beautiful room and the elf had informed her that Harry's grandmother had had it designed because she had thought that the rest of Glasgow Hall was too masculine so she had wanted one female room. Ginny had laughed at this, even if the room was incredible. But it wasn't Potter Manor that she was thinking about. It was a certain occupant of the manor named Harry Potter.

He had been acting differently today.

The day had been fun. They had spent almost the entire day in the pool playing water games but it had been Harry that she had paid attention too. It had started, if she was going to be honest with herself, when she had arrived and stumbled out of the fireplace. When his arms had encircled her waist her stomach had knotted itself up and her heart had beat quickly in her breast. She had cursed herself thoroughly about it. After all, she had gotten over her stupid girlish crush on Harry before the Chamber incident. Now they were good friends and she liked her friendship status with him. They weren't best friends, she had Colin, Luna, and Dee for that, but they were close and the feeling that she had gotten when he touched her had not been a feeling of friendship. But she had pushed it aside, painfully pinching herself that night to remind her of her great boyfriend Michael and she had come back to her senses.

Well, until the dream.

That night she had dreamt of lying next to the lake at Hogwarts on a blanket with Harry. They had been staring up at the stars and holding hands. Then he had leaned over and kissed her. It had been wonderful and her dream kiss had been so much better than any kiss that she had ever shared with Michael. But when she had woken up, she had cursed herself angrily and reminded herself that she did not have feelings for Harry.

But then today had happened.

It had started that morning when she had walked into the dining room and from the corner of her eye she swore that she had seen those intense green eyes staring at her with ... interest. But she had dismissed the idea quickly because her dream had still been too fresh in her mind. Then when she had come into the swimming room with Hermione, Harry's mouth had physically dropped open and his eyes had turned an intense shade of green. But again, her dream was simply still too close to the surface. But the way he had been acting all day. Why, if he had been any other boy, Ginny would think that he had been flirting with her? But Harry would never flirt with her, right?

She sighed and rolled over, snuggling closer into the warm bed. She had to be imagining things. Her mind was simply going into overdrive and she was going crazy. She didn't like Harry that way anymore and he only liked her as a friend. He couldn't possibly view her as anything else.

She bolted upright at the scratching noise coming from her door. Ginny climbed out of bed, tugging the hem of her tank top down over her pyjama pants before she pulled open her bedroom door. She grinned in relief when she saw Foolish sitting there, his tail hitting the floor happily.

"Hey handsome," she whispered as she knelt down to scratch him behind the ears. "What are you doing here? It's late." She gasped when a figure came out of the shadows. Her heart caught in her throat when she realized that it was Harry and that the feelings running through her were anything but friendly.

"Sorry to scare you," Harry's voice whispered back as he knelt down too. "I just came to find this guy. He deserted me for a woman I see." Foolish rolled over and turned his stomach towards Ginny so that she could rub and Harry shook his head. "Suck-up."

Ginny managed a small laugh as she glanced up at the sleep-tousled black hair and the faded white tee shirt that Harry was wearing over his black pyjama pants with gold snitches on them. He looked ... hell, he looked sexy, she thought. She shook the thoughts from her head and looked back down at Foolish. "He missed me. Didn't you, boy?"

Foolish nuzzled his face into her hand and she giggled.

Harry sighed. "Guess so. He doesn't usually leave my room at night. I guess I've been replaced."

Ginny smiled up at him. "No, you haven't been replaced. He just knew I'd be happy to see him. Do you mind if he stays with me tonight, Harry?"

Harry shook his head. "No, he can sleep wherever he wants. Goodnight Gin."

Ginny stood up and nodded. "Goodnight."

She watched him walk down the hall until he disappeared behind a closed door towards the end. She gestured for Foolish to follow her before she closed the door behind her. Foolish made himself comfortable on the end of the bed and Ginny laughed as she climbed in and covered up. He was a beautiful dog and she had fallen in love with him on first sight. She sat up to scratch him behind the ears as he fell asleep, snoring a bit. She smiled to herself before lying back down and thinking about the encounter in the hallway.

Ginny had definitely not been having friendly emotions towards Harry. Her heart had pounded quickly and she had gotten a tingly feeling in the pit of her stomach when she had focused her eyes on those emerald green ones. He had looked downright sexy with his hair all rumpled from sleep. His lean muscles from Quidditch could be seen easily through the old faded tee shirt he had worn. She sighed and shook the thoughts from her head. They were completely inappropriate. She and Harry were friends, nothing else and she refused to develop another kind of crush on him.

With that determination in her mind, she closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep dreaming of a raven-haired boy with emerald green eyes.

*********

The weeks passed after that with Harry silently lusting after Ginny. He dreamed about her most nights and woke up in the mornings aching to hold her and kiss her. But he refused to act on it. He didn't want to ruin their friendship and he didn't want to be the cause of her break-up with Michael. His birthday came and gone as well as Ginny's birthday only the day before. Nothing new had come up with the Order at least that they knew of and the summer was more fun with the Weasleys and Hermione living with them at the manor. It also helped Harry to keep his mind off of what had happened in June and off of wondering what Voldemort was up too. It was hard to believe that the summer was almost over.

Harry woke up one morning in August to someone calling his name. He was not too pleased to be woken up as he had been having an incredible dream about a beautiful girl again. He tried to remember who the girl was in his dreams, for some reason he thought it was Ginny. But considering the way that he had been feeling towards her lately, he realized that it probably was. When he opened his eyes James, Sirius, and Remus were all sitting on his bed.

"Um, hi," he murmured as he sat up yawning. He made sure that the blankets were still wrapped tightly around him as his dream was still really close to the surface.

James grinned. "Um, hi to you too. We need to talk to you."

Harry nodded, letting out another yawn. "I gathered that, so what's up?"

Sirius gave him a knowing grin. "Cold this morning, Harry?"

Harry blushed. "Yes."

Sirius grinned. "Hmm, those dreams ..."

"Padfoot, leave him alone." Remus replied. "Harry, we've got a problem."

"What kind of problem?"

"Well, Madam Bones seems to think that Hogwarts will be safer without you there," Remus replied quickly as if he thought blurting it out would soften the blow.

"WHAT?"

James grabbed Harry's hand. "Harry, we're not going to let this happen. You're going back to school."

"But, but why?" Harry asked. "I thought that she was going to be a great minister. Why doesn't she want me to go back?"

Sirius sighed. "Because of what happened in June."

"But she doesn't believe me! She has the whole wizarding world thinking that I'm some sort of loony!" Harry exclaimed.

James nodded. "Harry, something is very odd about this entire thing. We will figure it out and you will be going back to school. Dumbledore's not going to let you get kicked out. He gets the final word as Headmaster. However, I received an owl earlier this morning. We have to attend a trial next week to discuss this ... problem."

Harry groaned. "This is bloody ridiculous!"

Remus nodded. "It's more then bloody ridiculous, but we have to go. The three of us are going with you and Dumbledore and Minerva should both be there as well. We're not going to let this happen."

"You swear that I'll get to go back?" Harry asked; a hint of desperation in his voice.

James pulled Harry into his arms for a hug. "I don't swear. I promise. I will not let them kick you out of Hogwarts for such a stupid reason. If you're going to get kicked out it should at least be for a good prank. Okay?"

Harry nodded as he hugged his father tightly. "Okay."

James pulled back to smile at him. "I need to talk to you about something else too."

"What?" He asked.

James turned to his friends. "Moony, Padfoot, can I talk to Harry alone for a bit now?"

Sirius and Remus nodded. "Oh yeah, see you two later."

They left, closing the door behind them and Harry looked up at his father. "Da, what's going on?"

James smiled at him. "Nothing bad, I just want to talk to you."

"Alright, about what?"

"First, I've noticed that I haven't heard a peep out of you since the first week back. Have you stopped having nightmares? I can't even hear you thrashing around in your sleep. On one hand, this is a good thing because I'm hoping the nightmares are gone but on the other hand I'm wondering what you did. Is everything alright?"

Harry sighed. "Um, yeah."

"Uh-huh, what are you keeping from me?" James asked his eyes suddenly going serious.

"Nothing, I've had a few nightmares I guess you must have just been in a deep sleep."

James shook his head. "No, what's going on, Harry?"

Harry sighed. "Okay, but don't be mad. I had Uncle Sirius put a silencing charm on my room."

"What? Why?"

"Because you've been too worried about me. I know that you haven't been sleeping much and my dreams aren't anything knew. They're just repetitive of what happened in the graveyard. This way I thought that everyone would just sleep normal."

James sighed and then he pulled Harry close for a hug. "Alright, I forgive you. And I'll let you keep your silencing charm, though I will be having a word with Sirius later. However, you have to promise me that you will come and get me if the dreams are really bad, alright?"

Harry nodded. "I promise, Da."

James grinned. "Good."

"So what's the second thing that you need to talk to me about?"

James nodded. "Second is your animagi. I know that you're getting frustrated because you haven't managed to get anything of the wolf yet but you will. Last night only proved that point to me. When you were working on trying to change your arm your eyes were closed when you were lost in concentration and this ... this power came from you."

"Power?" Harry asked, his curiousity peaked. "What kind of power?"

James smiled. "A good power. It was shimmering around you in this whitish-blue light. Sirius wasn't in the room at the time; it was when he had gone downstairs to get us some drinks. I didn't mention it last night because I needed time to think about it." He was quiet for a moment before speaking again. "I spoke to Dumbledore about it last night as well."

Harry looked a bit concerned now. "Dumbledore? Da, what's going on?"

James sighed. "It's a long story, Harry; alright ... I'm going to start from the beginning. But first I need you to promise that you won't tell anyone about this other then Ron, Hermione, and Ginny. Sirius and Remus only know half of it."

Harry nodded. "Okay, I promise."

"You do know the story of the four founders of Hogwarts right?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah."

James nodded. "After I turned fifteen my Da sat me down and told me this story as well. It gets passed down to every generation as soon as a sign of the power shows; which is usually around fifteen years old. So I guess now it's my turn to tell the story to you."

"What kind of story? Is it about the four founders?"

James nodded. "Part of it, well centuries before the story of the four founders even starts, actually. It has been passed down in my family for centuries but it has gotten to the point where we don't know how much is fact and how much is myth. Okay, so during the time of the Druids and the Celts living in Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and Britain, there were many gods and goddesses that they believed roamed the earth. Unlike the Greek gods, they did not picture them strictly in human form, though some of them may have been. These gods and goddesses tended to be part human and part animal. For example, some of them may have been in the form of a man, but bear antlers or horns. Each god or goddess represented a certain thing. The Greek god Zeus was the sky god; the Roman god Mars was the god of war and so on. It was the same idea here."

Harry nodded in understanding. "But they were viewed differently?"

"Exactly," James replied. "Well, it is said, that a Scottish goddess by the name of Corra appeared outside of the home of the Potter family in Scotland. Corra took upon the form of the crane. Now the symbol of the crane is said to have the knowledge to transcend messages to the otherworld or to the underworld. So Corra appeared and changed back into human form. She was a beautiful goddess, the goddess of prophecy. She told the Potters a prophecy. The prophecy stated that the Potter family would become powerful and strong and that hundreds of years later that power would grow stronger and continue to be vital to the magical world. Now, the Potters at the time had absolutely no idea what to make of this. They liked the idea that one day they would be strong and powerful, but they were already powerful and strong. The Potters were the chieftains of the village and they had lots of animals and food. What more could they ask for? But they heard the prophecy and accepted that something good was going to happen to them or their family generations later. But something good never comes without a price."

"So this goddess of prophecy just appeared in the form of a crane and told them they would be powerful one day?" Harry asked. "I'm not sure where this is going."

James nodded. "Don't worry; it's a really long story. But you will understand it. Now, the Potters continued to live their lives normally and eventually the elder Potter died and his oldest son took over and so on and so on. This went on for five generations, but still nothing ever happened to relate back to Corra's prophecy. The Potters continued to pass down the story but nothing happened. Then one day, an elderly woman appeared at their door. She had traveled on foot from a neighbouring village and she was looking for food and water. Never ones to turn down a guest, they let her in. The woman was so happy to be accepted and cared for that she revealed her true identity, Dia Greine, the Celtic sun goddess or the daughter of the sun god himself. She granted them one wish. Now, the eldest Potter at this time was greedy and he wanted to be powerful and strong, much more powerful and stronger then he already was. He wished for Corra's prophecy to come true. Dia Greine granted him his wish and that's when trouble befell them all. The eldest Potter got his wish, he became powerful and strong like Corra had predicted but he did so on the expense of the people that he was supposed to protect. The villagers became angry and in the dead of night, they snuck into the Potter house and murdered them in their beds. Only the youngest son managed to escape. He was sixteen years old and he was called Brone. He ran from the village and found himself somewhere else to hide. But it was there that he met Blodeuwedd, the goddess of flowers or the western isles of paradise. She was known as the white flower or the Lily maid of the Celtic initiation ceremonies."

"Lily maid?"

"Yes. Her symbol was that of the lily as well. She was beautiful and she seduced him. But she was betrothed to another god Lleu, someone that she didn't love. She had been created by Gwyddion and Math from the flowers of oak, broom, and meadowsweet. Gwyddion wanted her to marry his nephew, Lleu. Gwyddion and Math had been planning on Blodeuwedd marrying Lleu since she was created. Blodeuwedd had the power of flowers, wisdom, initiations, and lunar mysteries. She was an earth goddess and she was powerful. But Blodeuwedd did not want to marry Lleu so she set out to avoid it. She seduced the young Potter one afternoon in the woods. He had become enchanted by her beauty. But her seduction went against her when she became pregnant with his child. Blodeuwedd was not pleased and soon she had other problems. She fell in love with a young god who she met in the woods named Gronw and they knew that they could only be together if Lleu was out of the picture. They tricked Lleu and Gronw killed him. Gronw was furious when he finally managed to return to his beloved and found her pregnant with a common wizard's child, a mere mortal. He wanted her gone from his life. She gave birth to the child, a boy, and Brone left and took his son, escaping from the goddess. She was changed into an owl for her adulterous crime as well as for plotting in the death of Lleu by Gwyddion. He turned her into an owl, a carnivore, something that the other birds would shun and fear."

"Wait, wait, wait, so our family has the blood of a goddess in it?" Harry asked in awe. "That's huge! Does that make us really powerful or something?"

James grinned. "You'll find out, just listen. So Brone moved to the other side of Scotland to raise his son who he called Maponos meaning 'divine son'. But Blodeuwedd followed him in her owl form. She had nothing left now, but she was an owl, yet still the earth goddess. Blodeuwedd watched from a distance as her son was raised. When he was about two years old, the father married a witch who was more then willing to become a mother to the boy. But as the boy got older it was shown that he possessed powers much larger then a normal wizard. He had powers that the earth goddess possessed."

"He had the powers of a goddess?"

James nodded. "Yes, he did. Now remember, Blodeuwedd's powers had much to do with flowers, wisdom, initiations, and lunar mysteries, well, the young boy inherited all of them. Now the one thing that was different between a wizard and a god was magic. Not all of the gods could do magic. They had power, yes, power to control certain things but not all of them could do magic. Now combined with magic, the power of the earth goddess was very strong. So strong in fact, that Maponos soon learned how to control two vital elements, earth and air. By being able to control the element of air, he had power over the wind, the breeze, and the weather. When it stormed he could control the weather. One thing that he noticed particular was that when he got angry lightning might strike, which was similar to Zeus in Greek mythology, or when he was sad it might rain. But if he called upon the element of air his powers would increase. Now earth was his second element and earth was much stronger because after all, his mother had been an earth goddess. With the power of the earth element he could heal and could control the flowers and the earth. The power was raw and strong."

"Da, what exactly do you mean by control the air and control the earth?" Harry asked. "I mean, so he could control those things? What good did it do exactly?"

"See that's where it's interesting, by having that control he could call upon those elements for help." James explained. "When he needed help with anything all he had to do was call upon the elements to help him out and they would come. Another thing he could do was physically make a form of an element and name them. Then he would only have to call them by name and they would come to help him out. The forms of the elements depended on the element itself. The earth elements would appear as any type of earth animal such as dogs, wolves, lions, bears, bulls, deer, bison, stags, mice, and so on. Air contained animals of the air such as owls, eagles, ravens, and other birds. He could also become multiple animagi because of this power."

"So I'm not the only Potter to have more then one form?" Harry asked. "But you had said that you never knew of anyone to have more then one form?"

James shrugged. "No I don't know of anyone else, except now for you and Dumbledore. This story has been passed down in the Potter family for centuries but I didn't think about it then, I've always thought of it as a story or a background to my power and nothing else."

Harry nodded. "So, now that he had this great power what happened?"

"Well, I'll tell you." James replied. "He used it to help others. He became a healer and he could heal people with the help of his elementals. The elements of air and earth could help him heal arms, blood, bones, the chest, the feet, the hands, legs, lungs, nose, skin, teeth, and throat. Maponos was vital to the village because of this power. Then he fell in love. He met a beautiful witch named Bricta Ravenclaw who was a descendent of the god of the waters of Luxovium.

"Wait, Ravenclaw? We're related to one of the four founders?" Harry asked in shock. "That's ... that's brilliant!"

James grinned. "It is brilliant, yes, but remember that this all happened before the story of the four founders. They gave birth to twins, a boy who they named Lugus meaning oath and a girl named Cinnia meaning beauty. The twins inherited these powers as well as the powers of magic and the power grew in the Potter family. They now possessed the powers of the elements of earth, air, and water. Water is an interesting element because it can be obtained from a puddle, an ocean, a lake, or from the air. Water energy is also very powerful when it comes to dreams, reflections, psychic abilities, prophecy, and divination. This powerful element mixed in with the powerful elements of earth and air only added to the power that the Potter family possessed. Now Cinnia and Lugus decided to follow in their father's footsteps and they used their powers for good such as healing. Now with the added power of the water element they could also heal the ears, eyes, stomach, and the uterus. The element of water also gave them more physical elemental animal forms such as dolphins, fish, whales, serpents, or any other creature of the sea."

James stood up now and wandered around his son's room as he continued the story. "Generations passed and the Potters kept their powers to themselves, keeping it a secret. No one needed to know that they were as powerful as they were. It was a time when muggles believed in magic and were not afraid of those who were different but only to some extent. If they knew of the huge power that the Potters possessed they would have tried to kill them in fear. Well, as time went on, the power of the goddess and the power of the elements only increased and melded with the magical power in every child who was born. The Potters moved around a bit but always seemed to end up back in Scotland. There was an Egyptian princess somewhere in the family as well as the daughter of an English lord. Then around one thousand C.E. the four founders of Hogwarts created Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry because of the fear that the muggles would end the magical race. You know what happened then, about the fallout between Gryffindor and Slytherin. But I'm sure you weren't aware of the love affair between two of the founders."

"Huh?"

James laughed. "'Huh', about sums it up. You see, Rowena Ravenclaw and Godric Gryffindor had a daughter together named Alexandrea Gryffindor. She fled to Godric's Hollow with her mother and father after the fallout between the founders and there they lived in the small cottage house that we lived in while hiding from Voldemort."

"I didn't know that Gryffindor and Ravenclaw were married." Harry replied. "You think something like that might have come up at school once."

James nodded. "They weren't married, they just had an affair. Alexandrea was their pride and joy and they loved her. But one thing that a lot of people don't know is that Salazar Slytherin and Godric Gryffindor were the best of friends. The fallout that happened between them was terrible because both of them felt that the other had betrayed them. Helga Hufflepuff tried to be peacemaker between the two of them, but even Rowena could not get Godric to stop the fight, so they split up. But Hogwarts stayed where it was. Alexandrea grew up in Godric's Hollow with her parents. When she was sixteen years old they began to look for a suitable husband for her. That's when Slytherin appeared. His son was only a few years older then Alexandrea so he talked to Godric about a possible union between the two as a token of forgiveness. This way they could keep the power in the family."

"Wait, Gryffindor and Slytherin were related?" Harry asked.

James shook his head. "No, this was what Gryffindor and Slytherin wanted but Alexandrea had other plans. She had been out in the forest, riding her horse, without her father knowing of course, as at that time this was an improper way for a woman to behave; anyway she stumbled upon a wolf in the forest who was hurt. She had always been taught to help and her heart ached at the poor wolf. She jumped down from her horse and called upon her own personal element of fire. The element of fire is one of the most powerful elements there is. It's all of those out of control, wild emotions and powers such as anger, lust, love, sex, passion, and light. With the element of fire, the animals that can be formed are dragons, snakes, lizards, and phoenixes. Fire can heal the abdomen, the heart, genitalia, and the mind. Alexandrea used her element of fire to save the wolf, who was cut open in the abdomen. The wolf was healed and after he healed he turned into a man. The man was Grant Potter and he fell to his knees kissing Alexandrea's hands in thanks as he recognized a powerful witch like himself and he knew that not all power was used for good yet she had taken the time to help him. And when he looked up into her beautiful grey eyes he fell in love. He introduced himself, but his introduction was stopped by a kiss. It is claimed that they fell in love at first sight. They made love that afternoon in the forest and pledged their love to one another. Godric was furious when his daughter returned with Grant and told her father that they were to be wed. Godric and Salazar had agreed on the marriage idea of uniting their families. Slytherin was not pleased either and they again broke apart, never to speak again. Alexandrea and Grant married. They had a boy who they named Kerr meaning 'man of strength' because he now had the power of the earth goddess as well as the power of all four elements."

Harry was staring at his father now, unsure of what to say. It was a remarkable story but how much of it was myth and how much fact. "So, we have the power of all four elements, is that what you're trying to say?"

James nodded. "Basically yes, but that's not all. There's something else, something that has remained a secret for centuries. Murray Potter, a young man from a few generations later fell in love with a beautiful woman with golden hair but she was forbidden to him. Murray did not know this and he pursued her. Her name was Zaira meaning 'princess' and she was the daughter of Merlin."

"As in Arthur's Merlin? As in, Merlin?" Harry asked, his eyes widening in shock.

"As in Arthur's Merlin. Merlin had a daughter with Niniane and when she tried to trick him to get his powers; he bestowed all of his power upon his daughter. Zaira knew this and when Merlin disappeared she ran from her mother because Zaira had fallen in love with Murray in turn and they married. Their son, whom they named Arthur after King Arthur himself, was a very powerful wizard in turn. He had the power of the earth goddess, all four elements, his own magical power, as well as the genius of Merlin." James explained. "By the time that the fifteenth century hit and the muggles went through the Renaissance, magic was completely hidden from the muggle world and the power that the Potters possessed was thought to be a myth."

Harry gulped. "Is it?"

"Is it a myth? I don't know. I've always been an extremely powerful wizard, Harry. I can control the elements and I taught you how to do so when you were only five years old."

"Elemental magic? But you said that all witches and wizards could do that and that most just didn't bother to teach it anymore." Harry replied.

James nodded. "That is true. But basic elemental magic is things like making a fire in the hearth, turning on lights, summoning things. All stuff that you can do, but controlling the elements itself is something a lot different. Something that you've managed to do from time to time without your knowledge. Something that I never realized that I could do until my da sat me down and told me the story as well."

"Like what?" Harry asked.

James sighed. "You learn quickly when you put your mind to it. I bet that you could do any spell you wanted without your wand. You don't think about it because the wand is always there, but you can do it. I could at your age and I know that you're a lot more powerful then I was at fifteen. Look at how quickly you picked up on the animagi transformation. In case you never noticed ,Harry, you haven't been using a wand to learn how to change. Most witches and wizards do need that. You can become four animals, though you have only mastered two of them. The owl is an air element, the phoenix one of fire, the wolf and the lion are one of earth. What does that tell you?"

Harry shrugged. "I don't know."

James smiled. "Yes you do. It tells you that water is your weakest element, but you can still control it and that earth is your strongest element. You have power Harry, more power then me, more power then even Dumbledore himself. That whitish-blue light that was radiating from you when you were trying to change into a wolf, that is your power. When I saw that light it showed me that you have reached the maturity level of the power. It usually appears in the witch or wizard around fifteen. Yours is starting to arise now, stronger then ever."

"So what does that mean? What am I supposed to do with this power? I don't understand what you're trying to tell me."

"I'm saying that you are going to be an extremely powerful wizard, Harry, and you already are now. You have the blood of the earth goddess Blodeuwedd, Rowena Ravenclaw, Godric Gryffindor and Merlin himself running through your veins. And Dumbledore told you that when Voldemort tried to kill you as a baby he transferred some of his powers to you and he is the heir to Slytherin. Adding Slytherin's power to what you already have only makes you stronger." James explained. "Which means that you will be powerful as long as you learn how to harness that power. I'm going to help you do that. It's very important that you learn how to control your power, especially now with Voldemort back in his own body."

Harry nodded as he stared at his father. Everything that he had just learnt seemed too unbelievable but at the same time he knew that his father wasn't lying. "You think that I'm going to come up against Voldemort again?"

"Do you?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah. He wanted to kill me when I was a baby for no reason and he failed. He's not going to let that go."

James thought briefly of the prophecy that Trelawney had made before they had went into hiding. Harry deserved to know and he knew that, but he couldn't bring himself to tell him. He was only fifteen years old. He closed his eyes, telling himself that it didn't matter if he waited a little longer. "He still wants to kill you."

"I know. I won't let him, Da. I'll kill him first if I have too."

James nodded. "You're more powerful then him. You just have to learn how to harness it all. Then you won't have to worry about Voldemort so much."

Harry nodded. "Good. So when do I start these lessons?"

"I figure we'll work on them once a day with your animagi lessons. Is that alright?"

"Sure, I can handle it."

James smiled as he looked down at his son with pride. "Yeah, you can handle anything."