The next morning saw Sakura awakening with a yawn before looking down to see Harry cuddled up against her stomach. Smiling, she ran her fingers through his hair gently. It was moments like these that she wished she could freeze, and remain in forever. Everything was perfect. Then the familiar sound of Kotaro's voice sounded out from downstairs. "SAKURA! YOU AND HARRY ARE NEEDED DOWN HERE! ON THE DOUBLE!" Harry's eyes shot open, fear shooting through his body.
"I'M SORRY!" He exclaimed in terror. "I'LL GET TO WORK RIGHT AWAY!"
"Harry! It's okay!" Sakura exclaimed, trying to calm him. "You're safe!" Harry breathed heavily to calm himself down, then looked at his adopted mother and sighed in relief. "See? It's okay, it's just Mr. Kotaro being a drama queen." It took a minute of Sakura rubbing his back, but Harry eventually seemed to have calmed down.
She picked him up and walked downstairs to meet up with Kotaro, who stood with crossed arms. "You're exactly one minute late getting down, Sakura! Hustle in the future!"
"Oh, I'm sorry your screaming terrified Harry and I was trying to calm him." Sakura replied sarcastically.
"Apology accepted. Now there's a very important discussion we need to have right now. Someone came here looking for Harry last night." Sakura seemed surprised by the news.
"Really? Who?" She asked.
Harry suddenly became scared again. "Is it my uncle?!" He said in a panic, looking around nervously and wringing his tiny hands together.
"No. Don't worry kid, it wasn't him." Kotaro shook his head. "I wouldn't have let him in if it was."
"Admittedly, he wasn't much better..." Saki grumbled.
Sakura frowned and held Harry closer. "Okay, well if it wasn't Harry's uncle, then who was it?" She asked with great concern. Kotaro frowned.
"The old man that put him there." Sakura's grip tightened exponentially on Harry as anger flared through her.
"What?" She finally got out.
"Easy, Sakura. He seemed to feel really bad about leaving him with those monsters. In fact, the whole reason he showed up was so he could personally apologize." Sakura went silent for a few moments, rubbing Harry's back, his face buried into her shoulder.
"No." She finally said through clenched teeth. "After what he put Harry through..."
Ai put a hand on Sakura's shoulder. "He didn't mean for that to happen. He never expected it to be so bad..."
"Well if he cares so much, why did he never check on him?" The others went silent, realizing they hand't asked him that. They looked to one another before finally looking back to Sakura.
"We don't know."
Sakura snorted and hugged Harry tighter. "Well then in that case, I don't know why I should give him what he wants. If he can't be bothered to look after Harry, he doesn't care enough."
"...Listen, Sakura, he explained something to us, and... it was kind of hard to believe, but I think it explains why he hasn't been around too much." Ai sighed.
"Which is?"
"Well...Harry is...well, he's a wizard. A powerful wizard that ended up killing an evil wizard." Sakura stared blankly at her friend for several seconds.
"Sorry, could you repeat that?" Sakura finally said.
"Harry's a powerful wizard who killed a super bad wizard." Lily said matter-of-factly.
Sakura looked down at Harry with a blank expression. He looked back up at her, clear confusion on his face. Sakura turned to her friends. "That's a hard pill to swallow." She looked down at Harry, who looked up confused at her.
"Mama? What are they saying?" He asked, bewilderment clear on his face.
Sakura smiled down at the boy gently. "Nothing bad, Harry. They're just saying that you have magic powers, that's all." She noticed Harry flinch at the word magic.
"Y..you...you can't say that word!" He whimpered. "It's a bad word... I get hit when I say it..."
"Aww, it's okay Harry." Sakura smiled down at him, kissing his forehead. "You won't get hit for saying it here."
Harry still looked uneasy. "There's...There's no such thing as magic... I...I can't be a wizard...I'm just Harry..." The boy twiddled his thumbs nervously.
"Well, magic or no. You're my Harry, and nothing can change that." She said, nuzzling his cheek.
Harry visibly relaxed at this gesture and nuzzled in closer to her with a tiny smile. Kotaro cleared his throat. "So then you won't let the old man say his piece?" Sakura seemed flustered, a mix of thoughts running through her decomposing mind.
"I...well..." She tried to think of an answer. She looked down at Harry and sighed softly, running her fingers through his hair gently. "I think I'll let Harry be the one to make that decision." Harry looked around at the idols, then back up at Sakura.
"So my mommy and daddy didn't die in a car crash?" He asked, sadness in his voice.
"I don't think so sweetie." Sakura replied with a gentle squeeze.
"And...somebody killed them...? On purpose...? Why would they do that...? That's... That's really really mean..." The little boy whimpered as he looked down. Sakura didn't know how to react, she continued rubbing his back, trying to comfort him. "I...I wanna meet him." Harry finally mumbled. "I wanna know why someone wanted to hurt my mommy and daddy..."
Sakura nodded her head sadly. "Okay, sweetie...We'll get this guy over so you can meet him..." She cooed gently. She looked at Kotaro. "So...yeah...Guess the man's getting what he wants after all."
"Okay." Kotaro nodded. "...did any of you get his number?" There was a collective face palm as it dawned on everyone thy had no way to contact the old man. Before they could dwell on it, however, they heard a knock on the door. Kotaro blinked. "Everyone hide, just in case...I don't know who it is, but we better hope it's the old man." Quickly making them self scarce, Kotaro sighed as he began to open the door. It was the old man, but he wasn't alone. Two other men and a woman were with him as well. Kotaro blinked, then narrowed his eyes. "Oh, I'm sorry. I don't recall the part where I was informed that I'd be hosting a party of four. Must be losing my memories."
"Ah, yes... about that." The old man replied, embarrassed. "These are people who also are concerned about Harry's safety..."
"Hm." Kotaro replied flatly. He studied the three newcomers. One was a stern looking woman. "Yeesh. Crack a smile why don't ya?" He turned to the hook-nosed man. "There's this wonderful new invention called shampoo. It'd do wonders for ya." Then he looked at the giant. "...Say, any chance I can hire you as the girls' bodyguard?" The large man seemed confused by the question, not knowing how to respond.
The woman pursed her lips at Kotaro's words, and the hook-nosed man sneered. "My, my, quite the cheek on this one."
"Uh... okay." Kotaro muttered in response, opening the door so the newcomers could enter. He sighed as he closed the door behind him. "So, old timer, good news. The kid's decided he wants to meet you, and I figure it's pointless to argue, so yeah... But there is a secret in this house that you must never reveal! Got it?!" Kotaro was somewhat surprised when the old man nodded.
"Of course." He replied. "However, we must ask that everything we discuss today remains only between us."
"Yeah. I can live with that." Kotaro nodded in agreement. He turned to the doorway. "All right, ladies, come on in now! Chop chop, let's not burn daylight!" One by one, Franchouchou piled in, Sakura holding Harry trailing in last. To say there was shock on their faces would be a massive understatement. Not only at the fact that Harry was alive and safe, but also that most of the girls were, well, zombies.
Dumbledore looked at the girls. "If I may ask, how did these girls become undead?"
"Ever watch a zombie movie or read a zombie book?"
"Yes."
"Well there's your answer!"
Silence.
"That wasn't much of an answer." Dumbledore stated.
"It's a bit of a story." Saki cut in. "But I don't see how that's important."
Dumbledore sighed. "Very well then..."
"So are you gonna introduce us to your pals?" Kotaro asked.
"Ah, yes, of course. These are Rubeus Hagrid, Severus Snape and Minerva McGonagall. I am Albus Dumbledore." Dumbledore introduced himself and the others.
"My name's Kotaro. These are Sakura, Saki, Ai, Junko, Lily, Yugiri, and the one chewing on ol' Hagrid's leg over there is Tae." Hagrid looked down and saw the zombie staring blankly up at him, gnawing on his leg. She paused and grunted, looking up at him. The giant chuckled at that and patted the feral zombie's head, causing her to lean further into the touch and grunt happily, much like a dog. Everyone stared surprised at the interaction between the two. Many felt like questioning this, but no one wanted to ask the question, so they simply looked back to one another.
"So you had something you wanted to say to Harry?" A rather cross Sakura asked Dumbledore with narrowed eyes. Harry was looking at the old man curiously. Dumbledore looked a tHarry, then sighed deeply. Just from looking at the boy's small frame, it was clear what he had been through.
"My boy, you may not know who I am, but I am an old friend of your parents. When they... died. I was the one who left you with your relatives."
Harry winced at that and looked down. "Oh...Okay..." Minerva's eyes narrowed as she looked at Albus.
"Look at him, Albus. Just look at him. Why did you think putting him there was an acceptable arrangement?"
"At one point, I may have believed it was to protect him for the followers of you-know-who, but I should've seen they were worse for Harry than anyone. I wanted to do what was best for everyone, I never stopped to think about what that would mean for the boy..." Harry didn't look up from the floor, upset at having those miserable memories brought back. Sakura tightened her hold on him and kissed the top of his head. Minerva noticed the interaction between the two and smiled sadly at them. It broke her heart seeing Lily and James' son reduced to such a state, but seeing the clear love the woman gave him reinforced a sense of hope that Harry would be okay, then again, practically anywhere would be superior to where Albus had left him. As for Severus, he looked at the boy and found himself internally wincing when he remembered all the horrible things he had thought about him just for being James Potter's son.
"And because of what you chose to do, Harry's been through hell before he even turned seven." Sakura continued bitterly. "The physical abuse, the verbal insults... how can you justify any of that?"
Dumbledore shook his head and sighed. "I won't try to justify my failings. I will only sincerely apologize for them. Harry, I am very, very sorry."
Harry still didn't look up, and honestly, no one could really blame him. Finally, a tiny voice simply said.
"Idongetit"
"Harry?" Sakura asked, rubbing his back.
"I don't get it..." Harry mumbled. "What did I do wrong?"
The adults and teens in the room looked around at each other in confusion. "Erm...Nothing at all, my boy. What makes you think you did anything wrong?"
"But why did my parents have to die then?" Harry whimpered, and a cold wave of realization washed over the faculty staff. They all seemed to clue in on what Harry was getting it.
"There was no true reason for Lily and James' deaths, Harry. There are simply horrible people out there that will do whatever it takes to make themselves look powerful." Severus finally said.
"Oh." Harry replied, not feeling much better at the answer.
"Harry, I don'expect ya to understand why some people do what they do." Hagrid began soberly. "But the fact of the matter is that while they're are people who do bad things, there are just as many, an'many more who do good."
Harry perked right up when he heard that. "Oh, I know! My mama and aunties are all super nice, and they make people really happy with their songs!" The others smiled at this, seeing Harry happy was a warming sight, and the half-giant nodded.
"Aye. Considering how they seem to treat you, they'd be a good example." Tae moaned in agreement, still sitting on the ground next to him. The half-giant chuckled and patted the feral zombie's head. "This one reminds me of me dog back home. His name's Fang. No bite in that one at all, really."
"Tae's... odd." Sakura admitted. "She never woke up like the rest of us."
Hagrid shrugged. "Well, I'm sure she'll be just fine if she ever does, but ey...We're gettin' off topic here, aren't we?"
"Right... so, what exactly does all this mean for Harry?" Sakura asked. "If he's the hero you claim he is, why did you just ignore him for so long?"
Albus shook his head. "I thought it wouldn't be necesarry to need to check up on him... I am a very busy man, and I never imagined the Dursleys could be so awful."
"Sure." Saki grumbled, it was clear to everyone present that if they was the best reason Dumbledore had, this may not end well for him.
Sakura agreed wholeheartedly. "If Harry's so important to you, you should have checked up on him at some point. And yes, this goes for all of you."
"We didn't have a choice in the matter. If we-"
"No." Sakura cut in. "If this evil force was gone, then what risk did you have? You were too scared of facing Harry's family and seeing the mistake you made?" Dumbledore was stunned into silence at what Sakura said, and that told the girl everything she needed to know about why the old man failed so miserably.
"She's not wrong." Minerva agreed. "I tried to tell you it was a mistake, but you chose to do so anyway. At the end of the day, the suffering Harry endured is on your hands. Nothing you can do can change that."
Sakura nodded her head, but then frowned. "Hey, wait, you're working under him too. You totally could have went to check on him. Why didn't you?"
"Because Albus convinced me it would be better for all of Harry's life was strictly monitored. Despite our hesitations, we agreed."
"Strictly monitored?! You didn't even know he was being abused! How is that even slightly monitored?! And what are you, a sheep?! Do you not have a mind of your own?! You need the old guy to make your decisions for you?!"
"Pretty sure the one of the right is a snake of some sort... or a deformed muskrat..." Saki muttered to Ai.
Snape overheard her and sneered in her direction. "You're not exactly as quiet as you'd like to believe, young lady. Or perhaps you're technically an old lady."
"I may not be quiet, but at least I care about Harry's well-being." Saki retorted. Snape let out a slight huff, but said nothing in response. He knew very well her accusation was correct. He had absolutely no room to argue.
"Sakura, I get you're mad, but if not for your sake, then Harry's, maybe you should calm down a bit." Junko spoke up, concerned for her friend.
Sakura blinked, then looked down to see Harry looking nervous and shaking slightly. She took a deep breath and forced herself to relax. "Yeah... You're right..." There was an always silence, the only notable sound was Harry shifting in Sakura's arms so he could try and hug her.
"I'm sorry I upset you mama..." He said quietly.
Sakura blinked down at him, then frowned sadly and hugged him back. "Aww, Harry, you didn't upset me... It was that bonkers old man."
"But... it was because of me right?" Harry asked timidly, and Albus felt all eyes turn to him, most in anger. Even Hagrid seemed to have reached his limit.
"No, Harry, it was my own fault. I made a poor decision and you paid the price for it. And for that, I am sincerely sorry."
"...That's okay." A few people tried to say something, but the shock of what Harry had just said left everyone speechless. Sakura was a mixture of shocked, angered and oddly proud.
"Wow, Harry, you're...really forgiving him, just like that?" Sakura asked in amazement. Harry nodded.
"He said he was sorry."
"But... after what he did..."
"He did it to try and help me. Doesn't that mean something?" Harry asked aloud, looking to the others for an answer.
The room was silent for a few moments. Sakura sighed softly before giving the boy a small smile. "Well, okay...If you say you forgive him, then that's good enough for me."
"Wow. Really?" Saki asked, surprised.
"Well, if Lady Sakura is willing to forgive them, perhaps we should give them a chance." Yugiri nodded.
The others slowly mumbled their agreements, Saki being the last to do so. "Yeah, fine, I guess I'll let it slide...
"Excellent, with that out of the way, I have an important question, and I suggest you think long and hard before answering." Kotaro spoke up, seemingly uncharacteristically serious. "Are you going to try and take Harry?"
Dumbledore shook his head. "Certainly not. I won't take him from a home where he is well cared for and treated as a part of the family."
"Wait... you think of us... as his family?" Sakura asked, taken aback by his statement.
"Of course. You all clearly care for him, you claim to have taken him in from the streets without a second thought, if that isn't what a family would do, I don't know what is."
Saki surprisingly didn't comment. Sakura smiled softly at Harry. "I mean, to be fair... Just about anyone would have taken him..." She said softly and somewhat bashfully.
"Well, that may be true, but it's clear now he wouldn't want anyone else." Minerva remarked with a warm smile. Harry nodded his head rapidly to affirm that point, an action that did not go unnoticed by Sakura, who smiled warmly at the boy and kissed his cheek. Harry cooed at the contact and snuggled into her chest. The zombie smiled and rocked him in her arms. This action brought a smile to the face of everyone in the room. Minerva felt immensely relieved to see that Harry was so loved by his adoptive mother. "This should go without saying, but if Harry needs anything. we are more than willing to help in any way we can." The witch stated.
"Um... I have a question." Harry finally spoke up, raising his tiny hand slightly.
"Yes?"
"What were my parents like?"
Snape was the first to speak up. "Your mother was an angel dropped from the heavens while your father was a devil dredged up from the fiery pits below."
"...what?" Harry asked confused. Sakura's eyes seemed to flare up in anger at the remark.
"Severus!" Minerva hissed in anger at the man. Dumbledore looked at him with great disappointment and Hagrid chuckled nervously at Snape's bluntness.
"Considering how you speak about him, it's clear Harry's mother would never have thought about you." Sakura scowled angrily.
Snape winced at her words. "Yes, well, actually, his mother was a very dear friend of mine, at least until some poorly chosen words led her to fall for the one who bullied me."
"And that makes it okay to badmouth him right in front of my baby's face?!" Sakura demanded, hugging Harry protectively. Severus raised his hand placatingly, and Sakura huffed. "Okay then, can someone who's NOT a total jerk answer Harry's question?" She asked.
"While James was a bit of'a Mischief maker, Lily was one o'th kindest witches yad evar meet." Harris decided to answer. "The two were pure-hearted, carin' for everyone around em' and carin' for their boy more than anyone." Harry smiled softly at that, feeling happiness swelling up in his heart. His parents really did love him... His aunt and uncle were complete liars... Sakura saw his smile and playfully ruffled his hair.
"Well, you certainly got the best from them both." She remarked.
Harry giggled softly at that comment and smiled up at her. Hagrid nodded. "Aye, tha' e did... Yer parents are lookin' down on ya real proud, Harry." Harry seemed confused, but understood it enough to smile back at the large man.
"Thank you..." He said timidly, smiling at him. Hagrid chuckled in response and Sakura smiled at him. She was grateful Harry received a far more...tactful description of his parents from the half giant.
"So if Harry's a wizard, what do we need to know about that?" Junko asked. "He mentioned that he can't control his magic, should we be worried about that?"
Dumbledore shook his head. "Not at all, my dear. Harry may be powerful, but there has never been a case where a magic child has accidentally harmed a loved one."
"Oh, that's good to hear." The zombie sighed in relief.
"In about six years or so, Harry's magic will begin to grow stronger, and he may require teaching in order to control it, but you needn't worry about it for some time." Dumbledore added.
"Which brings us to our next point." Minerva cut in. "When young Harry reaches his eleventh birthday, we would like for him to attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The girls (and Kotaro) all looked to one another in surprise then back to the newcomers.
"A magic school?" Ai finally asked.
"Correct. One of the most prestigious in the world." Dumbledore affirmed with a nod. "It would be an honour if you were to allow Harry to attend." Sakura frowned, thinking it over. She looked down at Harry, who looked up at her confused, then finally replied:
"We don't have to decide this today, do we?"
Dumbledore shook his head. "Not at all. You'll receive the letter three months before it is time for him to go. You will have plenty of time to decide then."
"Alright, good to know." Sakura nodded. She wasn't sure she wanted to send Harry to where these people taught, especially considering Dumbeldore's judgement, but she had time to think and talk it over with Harry at least.
Dumbledore rose to his feet. "Thank you for your time. We must be going now, I'm afraid."
"Oh. Well, alright then." Sakura nodded, admittedly a bit thankful to see them go.
"Before you leave, I need you to promise me one thing." Kotaro said, prompting a nod from Dumbledore. "You must keep the girls' zombie identities a secret."
"Of course. I assume we can trust you to keep the wizarding world a secret as well?"
"Naturally."
The two men exchanged a handshake, and Dumbledore turned to the others. "Come now. We must make our leave." He said to his group. Harry gave a tiny wave to Minerva as they left, making the old witch smile at him. After they had left, the girls all collectively sighed.
"Well, that was intersting." Saki said sarcastically. The girls all nodded in agreement before falling into silence, processing what they learned. Ai then looked over to Sakura, concern clear on her face.
"How's the little guy doing?" She asked.
Sakura looked down at Harry, who seemed to be very focused on something. "I think he's thinking about what he just heard." She explained.
"Mama?" He finally said, looking up.
"Yes sweetie?"
"Um... I don't know what to think..." he admittedly sheepishly. "I'm not a freak, but I have m..m.." the word seemed to be stuck in his mouth, probably in fear of what would happen if he said it.
"Magic." Sakura concluded for him gently. "You have magic. And there's nothing wrong with that at all. You can say magic. It's okay."
"M'kay." Harry mumbled, the idea of this being normal still seeming new to him. Sakura mentally sighed, seeing how deep these scars would go, and adjusted him so he faced her.
"There is nothing wrong with you, Harry." She said gently, pressing her forehead against his. "You're fine just the way you are. You're amazing."
"Thank you mama." Harry said with a genuine smile. Sakura grinned as she kissed his forehead.
"Thanks aren't needed baby, it's the truth." Mother and son hugged each other tightly, enjoying each other's presence. The other girls looked on, smiling warmly at the scene before them. "Awwww! Sakura's such a good mommy!" Lily cheered.
"Don't you mean mombie?" Ai smirked.
"PLEASE don't start with that!" Sakura practically begged.
"C'mon, mombie, just accept it!" Saki said with a very sharklike grin.
"It's a terrible pun! Stop it!"
"But mombiiiieee!" Saki whined playfully.
"Mombie!" Harry giggled, nuzzling against Sakura's chest.
"Oh not you too..." Sakura muttered.
Harry giggled softly. "Sorry." He mumbled as he cuddled in closer to her bosom. She smiled.
"I can't be mad at you." Harry giggled again and enjoyed the warm embrace of his mother. Mommy, Mombie, whatever Harry called her, Sakura was okay with.
Sakura rose to her feet. "Guess we should probably get some breakfast now, huh?" She asked, prompting the others to nod and file into the kitchen. "Pretty sure it's Junko's turn to cook."
"That's right. So you two get comfy and the food'll be ready in a minute." Harry smiled and nestled closer in Sakura's lap, enjoying the feeling of her fingers running through his hair gently. Sakura smiled. He was just like a cat. Her thoughts were inturupted by Romero panting loudly as he entered the kitchen, heading for his food. Seeing the dog made Harry let out a childish giggle.
Romero yipped at Harry in greeting before digging into the food in his bowl, eager to satisfy his hunger. Sakura giggled. "Romero's a very hungry little guy, isn't he?" Harry was about to answer, when his stomach growled audibly, making him blush somewhat. "Awww, and so are you." Sakura laughed giving him a playful poke onthe nose.
Harry giggled softly, then smiled as Junko brought in the plates of food. "I thought I'd go more western today, so I made bacon and eggs... I hope that's okay with everybody." No one complained as the food was set in front of them, Sakura picked up some bacon on a fork and smiled.
"All right, Harry, open up!" She said, gently moving the piece of bacon to the boy's mouth. He ate it up eagerly and smiled.
"It's great Auntie Junko!"
"Aw, thanks honey!" Junko smiled. The group finished breakfast, then decided to go do their daily practice session. Harry bounced excitedly, eager to watch his family sing again. The idols all noticed and smiled warmly at his enthusiasm. Sure, they had met plenty of fans, some young, some old, and they all meant a lot to them, but Harry would always hold a special place above them all. Harry watched them dance, and he felt overwhelmingly happy at the scene before him. So much so that he felt like dancing as well. So he stood up in his little corner and did his own dance on the side. This didn't go unnoticed by the idols, and some of them began stumbling over their words or outright stopping to watch. It was too adorable! Even Kotaro couldn't bring himself to tell them to get back to work.
Harry noticed however, and blushed slightly, looking down at the floor. "Sorry...Am I distracting you?" He asked, feeling rather embarrassed.
"HE'S SO CUTTTEEE!" Lily exclaimed, her face lighting up brighter than anyone had seen before, and somewhat startling Harry.
He looked down shyly and tapped his fingers together. "Thank you..." He mumbled before sitting back down, still blushing heavily at her gushing.
"Why'd YOU have to fond him?" Saki whispered.
"You would've taken him in?" Sakura replied.
"Yes!"
Sakura smirked at her biker friend and shrugged. "First come first serve!" She explained. Saki just rolled her eyes and lightly thumped Sakura's head. Harry smiled as Romero walked into the room, settling down next to his friend, watching the idols return to practice. He rolled over slightly and Harry giggled, beginning to rub his belly. Romero panted softly in delight, loving the feeling of his belly rub. Harry was very happy... So far, this was a very, very good day for him.
He had a family full of people who loved him... He had food, a roof over his head, he finally had closure on his parents' deaths...
He squeaked cutely when Sakura picked him up and hugged him close. This was his life now... And it was perfect.