Return to Your Roots

A/N: It's been a long while since I've published anything here on FFN. I'm so glad this is my first story back, since this same kind of story is why I stopped posting on here in the first place. Ah yes, the Great Purge™ of Characters Reading Their Stories fanfictions. That was a brilliant era. There were so many wonderful fanfictions that I read (mostly about Harry Potter) where the characters read the books. There was this one, I can't remember for the life of me what it was called, but the author had gender-swapped Harry and expanded on the abuse suffered by the Dursleys. It was brilliant. The day I got the email that my own story had been taken down for copyright infringement was the same day I realized it was in fact a purge of stories of the same manner. Anyways, I'm rambling, so here's my second attempt at a Characters Reading Their Stories fanfiction! Hopefully it won't be taken down this time. All parts of the text will be in italics, as I find writing in bold is hard on my eyes. Enjoy.

OH, I should mention that the story begins in OOTP, when Arthur comes back from the hospital and walks into Sirius and Snape fighting. Fun times. Read on!

Copyright notice: I do not own the Harry Potter novels or characters. All rights are reserved to J.K. Rowling, Scholastic, and Warner Brothers.

"Merlin's beard," said Mr. Weasley, the smile sliding off his face, "what's going on here?"

Before anyone could give him an answer, a chill swept through the house, and the occupants of Grimmauld Place found themselves standing in an unfamiliar room furnished with a rather long oak table and several chairs.

"Snivellus, I don't know what kind of curse this is, but whatever you did, fix it," Sirius demanded.

"I'll have you know, Black, that I didn't do anything," Snape said.

Sirius scoffed. "That doesn't seem likely."

"Actually, I think it does." Sirius turned and found himself facing none other than Albus Dumbledore, a familiar twinkle in his eye.

"What do you mean by that, Albus?" questioned Molly.

Dumbledore smiled knowingly and waved a folded piece of parchment in the air. "Not moments before we all arrived here I received this on my desk. I believe that we have been summoned here."

"By who?" Ron said.

"By whom," Hermione corrected.

Ron rolled his eyes. "Whatever."

"That's an excellent question," Dumbledore said. "However, I believe first some introductions are in order?"

"Introductions?" Sirius laughed. "Unfortunately, I believe we're all quite familiar with each other."

"While that is true, I do believe we are not alone. Follow me." Dumbledore spoke quietly. He led the group into a larger room, where a number of other people were already waiting. Dumbledore cleared his throat, gathering the attention of everyone in the room. "I think it would be best if we went in a circle and introduced ourselves?" Dumbledore asked, gesturing to the group. He was met with nods, and in some cases, sneers of agreement. Everyone standing scurried to an open spot and sat.

"So…" Sirius drawled. "Who wants to start?"

"I will," Percy spoke up. "I'm Percy Weasley." Fred and George scoffed at their older brother. He rolled his eyes.

"Cornelius Fudge, Minister of Magic."

"Amelia Bones."

"I think you all know me," said Hagrid.

"Molly Weasley."

"Arthur Weasley," Arthur said, squeezing Molly's hand and smiling.

The next name sent a shock wave through the group. "James Potter," said the man with unruly black hair, glasses, and hazel eyes. Harry stared at the man, his face somewhere between a look of shock and anger and a look of overwhelmed joy. Snape and Sirius stared at the man in question. James waved and smiled brightly. "Hi, everyone!"

"James?" Remus, who was also present, asked hoarsely. "What are you doing here?"

"That's an excellent question, Mr. Lupin, but perhaps we should continue our little introductions before we answer it," Dumbledore said. Remus nodded, still staring at James.

"Well, uh, I'm Lily," ventured the woman sitting next to James. "Lily Evans Potter." She rubbed her stomach gently. "And this here is going to be Harry James Potter." Harry moved his shocked gaze to his mother. He opened his mouth to speak, but Hermione elbowed him.

"Severus Snape, Potions master," Snape said lowly, with eyes only for the redheaded woman he'd sat down next to.

"Draco Malfoy," the blond boy sneered, crossing his arms and legs tightly. "And I'd rather be anywhere but here with these Mudbloods and blood traitors." Ron hissed and made a move to grab his wand. Molly shot him a disapproving look, and his hand stilled.

"Regulus Black," said the young Sirius look-a-like. Sirius's hand flew to his mouth. Harry and Remus moved forward to support him as his knees buckled, but he shooed them away.

"Sirius Black," he said, throwing his arms around his younger brother and pulling him down onto the couch next to him.

"Uh…" Harry cleared his throat, realizing it was his turn. He glanced fearfully towards Hermione, suddenly unsure. She nodded at him and shot him a confident smile. "Hi," he said, making a face that he hoped was a smile. "I'm Harry Potter."

"Harry?" Lily squeaked, her eyes widening. Her hands flew to her mouth. Harry nodded.

"Remus Lupin", Remus interjected, hoping to rush the introduction process along before the tensions in the room boiled over.

"Albus Dumbledore," Dumbledore smiled.

"Professor McGonagall," Minerva said coolly.

"I'm Forge," said George.

"And I'm Gred!" said Fred.

"Behave, boys," Molly hissed. The twins grinned unapologetically.

"Sorry, Mum," they said. "Shall we continue?" A hysterical laugh rippled through the group. Draco, Fudge, Snape, and Percy observed this with a sneer.

"Well, I'm Ginny Weasley," Ginny said, sinking into the nearest couch.

"Hermione Granger," Hermione said.

"Ron Weasley."

"Neville Longbottom."

"Excellent!" Dumbledore chuckled. He gave a slight nod to Lily, who was sitting on the edge of her seat and staring at her son. "I'd wager a guess that several of you would like the chance to mingle before we discover why we've all been gathered here?"

Dumbledore received no verbal response. Instead, Harry found himself in the rib-crushing embrace of one Lily and James Potter. It was a strange feeling to him, but it felt right, and for the first time since Harry had step foot in the Gryffindor tower his first year, Harry was overwhelmed by the feeling that he was home.

Lily sighed and pulled away enough to cup Harry's face. "Are you really my Harry?" she asked. "My Harry, all grown up?"

"Of course it is, Lils, he's got your eyes," James said.

"Yes, and your unruly hair," Lily chuckled, drinking in her son's appearance.

Harry felt his face turning red. "Hi Mum, Dad," he said, voice cracking. "It-it's good to see you."

"I think that's an understatement, Harry," Remus said. He and Sirius joined the tiny family reunion.

"Moony!" James grinned. "Padfoot! You guys look…old," he commented.

Sirius's lips twitched. "And you don't look a day over 20," he said.

"Almost 20," James corrected. "One month to go."

"So you're 19 right now?" Remus asked. "God, you're so young!"

James scoffed. "No need to sound so surprised, Moony. You're talking like you haven't seen me in years. Surely the war hasn't gotten that bad, not if you know Harry?"

Sirius looked away, an odd expression on his face. Remus swallowed and found a sudden great interest with the hem of his sleeve.

Lily sighed. "Harry?" She asked, staring at her son. "How bad is it?"

"Well, uh, I don't really know…you?" Harry's voice cracked. He pulled away from Lily's embrace and shifted his weight from foot to foot. "You were…Voldemort killed you both when I was a baby."

"Oh," Lily said. Her hand was on her mouth again, and her emerald eyes were watering. "Oh, Harry, I—"

Harry waved his hand. "It was alright," he said. "I…did alright."

Sirius snorted. "That's putting it mildly."

"Sirius!" Harry hissed.

"What do you mean?" James demanded, glancing from Harry to Sirius.

Dumbledore cleared his throat. "I believe everything will be explained if we sit and read this letter." He held up the parchment again. "Shall we all be seated?" This statement was met with a flurry of movement and grumbling. Dumbledore opened the parchment and began reading.

"Dear friends and family: We have gathered you here to give you a chance to change what happens in the future. Not to be blunt or anything, but a lot of you will be dead by the end of the second war."

"Second?" Lily interrupted, incredulous. "Sorry," she added. "Continue."

"A lot of you will be dead by the end of the second war," Dumbledore read. "And these deaths do nothing to prevent a third war. We wish this was not the case, but unfortunately unforeseen circumstances did nothing to change the sacrifices of the deaths that for you have yet to happen.

Once you reach the end of this letter, seven books will appear. These seven books document Harry's seven years in school—"

Harry groaned.

"—And they are your opportunity to change the future that we live in for the better. Please take care of each other. No pressure, but try and change things, too. We're counting on you. Much love, A.S.P. and S.H.M." Dumbledore finished reading and set the parchment down on the table in front of him. Next to the letter, the air shimmered, and a stack of books appeared.

"Well," Minerva said. "Are we actually supposed to read these?"

"I vote no," Harry offered.

"I say we read them," James said. "If I'm dead to you all by this point, anyways, I'd like to know about my son's life."

"As would I," said Lily.

Harry ran his hands through his hair. "That's really a bad idea."

"It could be fun, Harry," Hermione said. "And logically, it could give us a way to defeat You-Know-Who."

Harry looked pained. "Hermione…"

"Let's put it to a vote," Minerva said. "Those who do not wish to proceed with reading these books, raise your hand." Among the people to raise their hands were Snape, Draco, and Harry. They all glanced at each other. Draco sneered at Harry, who sneered right back.

"Those who wish to proceed with reading the books?" The rest of the group raised their hands.

Sirius barked out a laugh. "Sorry, kid, looks like you're outvoted!" He said, winking at Harry. Harry sighed and leaned as far back into the couch as he could, wishing he could disappear.

"Well, who would like to start?" Minerva asked.

Neville raised his hand. "I will." He grabbed the book on the top of the stack and opened it. "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. Chapter one, The Boy Who Lived…."

A/N: Well, there ya have it, that's chapter one for Return to Your Roots. Stay tuned for chapter two, Dumbledore bashing, Potter family drama, and more! I'm….kidding, mostly. There most definitely WILL be Dumbledore bashing. I am Not A Fan of Albus Dumbledore. Don't get me wrong, he's a great character, but dear lord, did he do a lot wrong. We'll get into that in future chapters, though.

As for now, here's a list of who will be reading (it'll be in opposite order of who introduced themselves, if you're curious):

Neville

Ron

Hermione

Ginny

Fred

George

Minerva

Dumbledore

Remus

Harry

Sirius

Regulus

Draco

Snape

Lily

James

Arthur

Molly

Hagrid

Bones

Fudge

Percy

On a fandom related note, if you haven't heard of Voldemort: Origins of the Heir, you should totally check it out. It's a fan made, fan written, fan produced film that I believe recently got the greenlight to be released in theaters! Anyways, check it out, it's a pretty sweet deal, and I for one am excited for it! Check back soon for chapter two!

Signing out for now,

WolfMist