The Burden of Memory

“Potter you say?” the man with reddish brown hair sitting across from him asked, his face a mask of skepticism.

Harry nodded to the Dr., his uncle, and tried not to let the scrutiny get to him. “Yes, I’m the son of James and Lily Potter, your sister Lily Evans,” he said plainly, and for the fourth time since Lara introduced them.

They were sitting in a crowded hospital cafeteria, but no one was paying them any attention. “Can you prove any of this?” he asked.

“Well,” Harry started, “aside from my eyes, which are my mums, I look mostly like my dad. You could always ask Petunia though. She and Vernon raised me till I was eleven.”

His eyes flickered to the scar on Harry’s forehead for a moment and Harry’s heart clenched. “I can also tell you, that I know for a fact that my parents didn’t die in a car crash,” Harry finished at last.

Dr. Evans eyes went wide and he spared a small glance for his daughter, who was over at the vending machines getting a juice. “Have you told her any of this?” the Dr. hissed.

“Merlin, no. You’re her father; it’s up to you if you want me to tell her about magic and whatnot. I will warn you however, I’m a terrible liar, so if for any reason she asks me outright, not that it’s likely mind you, I will tell her.”

The Doctor nodded. “That’s plenty fair I suppose. I really need to think about all this.”

“Can I ask you something?” Harry asked and the Doctor nodded. “I can sort of understand why you have never heard of me, with my being in mortal danger most of my life, but why have I never heard of you?”

Dr. Evans winced slightly. “I’m actually only your mother’s half brother. We share the same father. I lived with them mostly until Lily got her… letter. That was the same year I started University, so I’m afraid I lost touch after that. Lily was away most of the year and so was I, and I never really got on with Petunia. She was a bitter pill to take, especially once we all found out your mother was special.”

Harry nodded, he knew all about the resentment his Aunt had for his mother. “Did you know about me?” he asked softly.

“I did. Once I found out about Lily, I tried to see you but Petunia refused. She and I hadn’t spoken for years before that and… well she said if I didn’t care to see you when Lily was alive, then I had no right to see you then,” he replied, rubbing his brow as if to fight off a headache. “I conceded the fact then, though now I realize I should have pushed the issue. I had only just had Lara that year though, and I had started a new residency here at the hospital… so my life was a little hectic.”

“I understand,” Harry said resignedly. From what he could see so far he would have far preferred a place in his household rather than the Dursley’s but what’s past was past.

“Your mother and I were very close up until she got her letter though. She was a very sweet and bright girl. From her letters she made it seem as though she wanted to go into a field like mine, only in your world. She mentioned being a mediwitch or a healer,” he whispered the last words, glancing around quickly to see if anyone had heard him.

Harry beamed at him. He had never known what his mother’s career plans had been; no one had ever mentioned them. “I don’t suppose you still have any of those letters?”

The Doctor returned his smile. “I’m sure I do somewhere. I’m a bit of a pack rat… never throw anything away. Lara gets onto me all the time for it.”

“What about your wife? Could I possibly meet her? I don’t really have any living family aside from the Dursley’s and I’d rather not count them to be honest,” Harry said with a grimace.

“I’m afraid my wife died almost a year ago,” he started. His face fell into a hard expression. “It was odd, and I don’t remember much about it… the whole incident is a bit fuzzy.”

“I’m sorry,” Harry replied quickly. “I didn’t know.”

Dr. Evans shook his head. “No, there really was no reason you should. It’s quite alright.”

Harry looked up to see Lara making her way back over to their table so he shot the doctor a pointed look. “As I was saying, I just moved here from Dover, but before that I lived in Mayfair,” Harry continued as if the touchy topics had never been addressed.

“Mayfair is lovely,” the doctor replied as Lara sat down. “I tried to get Lara to find a flat there, even offered to pay for it, but she wanted a place closer to mine. She’s stubborn this one,” he said with a grin and a light finger jab to her shoulder.

Lara laughed. “Well, I’m glad I didn’t listen, otherwise I never would have run into Harry. Plus my flat in Kensington is closer to the hospital then anything in Mayfair would have been.”

The doctor took the last bite of his soup and pushed it away. “Well, I really should be checking on Mr. Gray,” he said as he got up from the table.

“Oh! He’s the patient I mentioned that woke up from a six month coma with selective amnesia,” she said to Harry. “Do you want to meet him?”

“Er… sure. If it’s okay with Dr. Evans, that is,” Harry said, looking up at his uncle. The thought of this prestigious and polite man being in some way related to him made Harry hopeful for his future. Maybe he could settle into the muggle world and have a real family.

“I see no problem with it, but please Harry, call me Henry… or at least uncle,” the doctor said with a wink.

Harry beamed and followed his new relatives from the cafeteria. Lara was chatting along about her father’s patient as they made their way down the gleaming white corridors. Harry’s shoes squeaked against the laminate floor and the sound made him cringe.

“Father let me examine him when he came in. They found him in an alley by King’s Cross Station. He looked like he had been in a fire. He was pretty banged up. I named him Dorian Gray, after the novel you know? He’s very… well handsome could describe him, but really he’s more pretty than handsome. I thought because of his gray eyes and because I could see him primping in a mirror easily enough,” she said with a giggle, “though since he’s woken I’m not even sure he’s asked for one, so maybe he isn’t so vain after all. It’s still a fitting name though, because his eyes are really quite breathtakingly gray. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Harry wondered briefly if he sounded like Lara did when he babbled nervously. He also wondered if like him, she would want someone to stop her. He resolved to ask once he got to know her better. Instead of making a big deal out of it, he just nudged her lightly with his shoulder and grinned.

She laughed and nodded, running her fingers along her lips like a zipper. She nudged him back with her own shoulder, but with more force than Harry thought she intended, because his two left feet sent him stumbling in the way of a supply cart. He narrowly avoided it but ended up tripping and sliding along the tile.

Henry looked at him with concern, but a look to Lara held only barely contained amusement. “Look, your klutzy just like me. We must be related,” she said with a laugh.

Harry grinned and stood and brushed himself off, shooting Henry a reassuring look. The doctor looked just as concerned and Harry realized why the moment Lara walked up to him, her hand extended, holding out his wand.

“I think you dropped this,” she said, looking curiously at the slick piece of wood. “What is it?”

Harry went pale and Henry didn’t look so well either. “Er… I collect… bits of wood, special looking pieces. This is one from my collection… and…” Harry’s voice trailed off.

“You collect wood?” Lara asked skeptically. “Why isn’t it in your flat then?”

Harry’s eyes flicked up to Henry, who looked mortified, but equally confused as to what Harry should tell his daughter. “Well… funny thing that. I found it on the steps when I was on my way to meet you here… it must have fallen out of one of the boxes. I was in too big a hurry to run it all the way back upstairs so I just shoved it in my pocket.”

Lara looked on the verge of laughter. “So you collect wood, and this bit fell out into the corridor when you moved, and you just found it laying about. Is that the story?” she asked pointedly.

“Er… yes?” Harry was baffled. Never had he needed to explain his wand to a muggle. He’d been very careful to conceal it before.

She narrowed her eyes and gave him a withering look. “Funny, because it looks like a magic wand.”

Both men gaped at her and looked back and forth at each other for a few moments, trying to decide what to do. “I think I should go… I have a lot of unpacking to do,” Harry mumbled and turned, practically running from the hospital. He hated to leave Henry to explain things, but it was his daughter. He made it clear that he didn’t want Harry to tell her about the magical world, but it seemed she already knew enough about it to justify her unlikely conclusion.

He decided to head home and wait it out, hoping he hadn’t already made a bad impression on his new family.

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