Daddy’s Boy

Preparations

They spent their last summer before Hogwarts in France, staying once again at the villa on the Riviera.

Unknown to the Granger parents, Sirius and Remus had already started teaching the children about becoming animagii. While none would be able to fully transform before they reached Hogwarts, so they thought, these studies would help them get better control of their magic and be able to fully transform much earlier.

The children were just sitting on "their" bench in the garden and talking.

"Have you found your true form?" Harry asked.

"I'm not sure. I think it is some kind of a cat, but it's not any kind of cat that I know of."

"How does it look?"

"I can't draw well. I'll show you," Hermione answered. She concentrated for a moment and then seemed to melt and turn into a new shape, similar to a large cat. She looked at him as if to verify that he was paying attention and then transformed back to her human form, looking a bit winded.

"Wow! You've transformed completely!"

Hermione shrugged. "I can only hold it for a few seconds, though. I've checked every book about the different cats and found nothing that fits. Maybe it's not really a cat?"

Harry thought for a moment. "Have you checked the book about magical creatures?"

"No. I don't have any."

"We have a full library at the castle, and a smaller one here. I'm sure we can find something," Harry assured her.

"We may try later. What is your form?" She was clearly still tired from the transformation.

"I don't know. Whenever I try to concentrate, as Sirius taught us, I can only see fire. That's not an animal!"

Hermione thought a bit. "Maybe it's an animal of fire? That would only be something magical. Let's try your library after dinner."

The library at the villa was really small, containing less than three hundred books, only half of them magical, but the book Harry had in mind was there. "Magical Creatures And Where To Find Them" was a kind of encyclopedia with only brief description of each creature, but it also contained photos or drawings of the different species.

Hermione was eager to look through the book, as always. She scanned the pages quickly until she found something of interest. "Kneazle – A magical species of cats. Its magic is displayed by its ability to communicate with all mammals and some birds as well. It makes a very good familiar but it's too unpredictable as a pet." There was a photo of what looked like a large cat with wide reddish bands.

"I look just like that as a cat!" Hermione squeaked. "I'm a Kneazle!"

It took her a moment to calm down. "Now, let's see what is fire-related."

She scanned some more pages. "Oh, what a formidable bird!" she claimed, looking excited. She then read loudly. "Phoenix – the fire bird – is very rare. Its origins are unknown. An old phoenix would start burning and then the ashes would coalesce to give birth to a new Phoenix, retaining all the qualities of its predecessor. It can travel by fire, bypassing any wards or walls. It can carry weight a hundred times or more its own weight. Its tears can negate any poison and heal any wound."

"Wow! It's really fantastic," Harry exclaimed.

Hermione looked at him critically. "I believe that is your animagus form. Look at the picture here."

There were several pictures, actually, as there are several races of Phoenix. The most known one was red and yellow, like a fire. Another was completely white – the Snow Phoenix, and yet another was black, with only its beak and talons in silver – the Night Phoenix. Other kinds were mentioned, but they were too rare to have been photographed.

It was the white one which made Harry feel something special. Without really thinking he started transforming, turning into a beautiful white bird with long tail and strong wings. Hermione looked at him with mouth agape.

"You have transformed!" she whispered, as if afraid to say it any louder.

Phoenix Harry just chirped, sounding like a beautiful pipe organ. A moment later he transformed back.

Sirius came running. "What was that sound we've heard? It sounded like a phoenix."

"Harry found his true form," Hermione said, still in owe.

"A phoenix?"

"A snow phoenix."

They were all quiet while the other adults joined them.

"Can you show me?" Sirius asked, not quite sure of himself.

Both children transformed at once, making the others gasp in surprise. Hermione returned to herself a few seconds later and Harry kept his form only a tad longer. They both looked tired after the transformation.

It took the adults some time to fully understand what they had seen. James simply hugged both children tightly, congratulating them for their achievement. "You two are formidable. We've only managed this during our fourth year, using a special potion, while you did it so much younger and with no help from that dangerous potion." Liz joined the hug immediately, with some tears of joy in her eyes.

Sirius was almost dumbstruck, not knowing what to do. James had already told him these two were well above the average, but seeing this with his own eyes was certainly humbling. Remus, after recovering his initial shock, joined James in congratulations.

Only the Grangers stayed confused. They understood this was something special, yet didn't know what it could mean for their daughter. It took them another day, during which Liz explained to them what this really meant, to start understanding how special Hermione was.

It was that summer that the Grangers let the Potters learn a secret of theirs: they were naturists, enjoying nude beaches and resorts. They had found a naturist beach nearby and persuaded the others to try it. Liz didn't really care, making James less nervous about it. Sirius was the most unsure about nudity, yet the opportunity to see many naked women was too good to miss. Harry was surprised to see Hermione undressing on the beach without a second thought.

"Aren't you nervous being naked?" he asked her, still wearing his shorts.

"Why should I? You can see we're all built the same, and it's all natural. Why should I be ashamed of my body? It's not deformed or ugly, is it?"

"Of course not! You're the most beautiful girl I've ever seen!"

Hermione smiled thankfully. "And you're the sweetest boy I've ever seen," she said, making him finally let go of his shorts.

James made sure to buy most of Harry's school supplies in France, as well as Hermione's. They even visited a wand shop and had their wands custom made for them. This had an additional benefit – no Trace on the wands. "We shall still buy you wands at Ollivander's, so you won't attract undue attention. Those will be fine for schoolwork and simple tasks. We shall train you with these, though, as you may need any advantage you can get in some situations." His face darkened, thinking of the night he had lost his Lily.

Once back in England, Sirius took Harry to buy his "official" wand and the books, which could not be bought in France. Hermione shopped for the same items with her parents, as James thought it prudent not to attract attention to her friendship with Harry.

The two families spent the last night of August at Sirius's house in London, so they could Floo to King's Cross station and bypass the heavy morning traffic while still not disclosing the Potter's address.

As Hermione insisted, they reached platform 9¾ more than half an hour early, when just a few were present, mostly muggle born who had to use public transportation and needed to take large spares. They easily found an empty compartment and settled in, after saying their goodbyes and promising to write home regularly.

They soon saw a chubby boy accompanied by a stern-looking old lady with a vulture hat. The boy seemed utterly confused as the lady talked to him, repeatedly nodding without seeming to really understand anything she said.

Another boy attracted their attention, this one being a blond with a snotty expression. His mother – a tall blonde with perfect figure – seemed to fuss a bit about him, while his father, who was also blond and was using a cane, seemed to give the boy instructions, keeping a constant snarl on his face. Neither Harry nor Hermione liked father or son.

They also noticed some other children about their age. Two twin girls of Asian origins – probably from India. Harry noticed they were very beautiful but said nothing. He knew Hermione didn't think she was even pretty, despite him always telling her she was. Two contrasting girls, one a pallid blonde while the other a tanned brunette, seemed to be very close friends. A dark skinned boy caught their eyes – he was taller than most first-years and quite unsure of himself.

Most passengers had already boarded and the platform was getting empty when another group arrived: Two redhead twins who seemed at least a year older than Harry, a redhead boy who seemed much older, a boy about Harry's age and a girl, a bit younger. Their mother seemed to herd them to the train and they barely made it before the train started moving.

"How irresponsible of them," Hermione commented. Harry nodded his agreement.

The compartment door opened a short while later, revealing the red headed young boy. "I can't find an empty compartment. May I join you?"

Harry shrugged. He would have preferred not to share compartment with the boy, yet the compartment wasn't reserved, so he couldn't really refuse.

"I'm Ron Weasley," the boy said. "Who are you?" he added.

"I'm Hermione Granger. Are you starting first year?"

"Yea, I am."

"Harry Potter. We're also starting first year."

Ron's jaw dropped and he looked at Harry with incredulous eyes. "You can't be!" he finally said.

"I can and I am! What's the big deal?"

"But... You're famous!... You're a hero!" Ron blurted.

"I'm not a hero at all. I don't know how I survived when that madman came to kill me and my parents, but I was just a baby, so I couldn't be a hero at all." Harry sounded quite annoyed.

Ron seemed to want to say something, but the door opened again. The chubby boy they've seen earlier stood there. "Has anybody seen my toad?" he asked, panic and shyness mixed in his voice.

"No, we haven't," Harry said.

"Maybe we can help you find it?" Hermione suggested.

"Will you really help me?" The boy sounded surprised.

"Sure, why not," Hermione assured him. "What's your name?"

"I'm Nev... Neville Longbottom."

Hermione stood at the door and raised her hand into the corridor. "Accio Neville's toad!" she said, holding her hand open. This was just one of the spells both Hermione and Harry had learned to perform wandlessly. They were even able to do a few silently, though the Marauders thought they needed some more training.

A moment later, a toad came flying, landing straight into her hand.

"Here you are!" she said, handing the toad to Neville. "Keep it safe, as somebody may step on it if you lose it again."

"Thank you! My Gran would be very upset if I lost it," he said, watching his toad with some disgust.

Hermione looked at the boy and she suddenly remembered. "We haven't introduced ourselves yet. I'm Hermione Granger. Pleased to meet you, Neville."

"And I'm Harry Potter. Nice to meet you. Are you also starting first year?"

Neville looked a bit overwhelmed, but it only took him a short moment to recover. "Harry Potter?!... Well, I'm glad to meet you, and you too, Hermione."

Ron seemed to notice the attention the others were getting. He shoved his hand at Neville. "I'm Ron Weasley!" he said forcefully.

"Yes, I know. I've heard your Mum shouting at you on the platform."

Neville looked as if he wanted to stay, but then he said, "I should return to my compartment now. See you later..."

Both children were fully aware of the ties of the two boys they've met. The Marauders had spent many hours teaching them about all the families of distinction in the magical world, both light and dark. They knew that the Longbottoms were an old ally of the Potters, very loyal and very brave. They also knew that the Weasleys, recognizable by their distinct red hair, while also brave and loyal to the light side, were generally not very smart and quite poor. They also suspected that the blond family they've seen through the window was the Malfoy – a family known for its dark ways better than for its money, which was probably made just as darkly.

They were visited during the ride by all the Weasleys on train, learning that the twins were Fred and George, although they couldn't distinguish them, and the older boy was Percy, who was a Prefect. They all wanted to see "The Boy Who Lived", as Harry found out he was unofficially titled. Some others also peeked into their compartment, not even hiding their curiosity.

Harry tried talking with Ron but was not impressed by the boy's response. Ron ignored Hermione completely once she let slip that her parents were muggles. He was only interested in the sweets Harry bought from the cart which was pushed by an old witch. Harry brought a bit of everything. He knew all the magical sweets, of course, but had very few occasions to really indulge, and he also wanted Hermione to get to know them.

Hermione protested. "Sweets, no matter how magical, are still bad for the teeth!" She glanced at Ron, who was stuffing himself with the sweets Harry had offered to share. While Harry and Hermione had eaten one each, Ron was already devouring his ninth sweet.

"Do you like these?" Harry asked him, showing the box of "All Flavours Beans".

"Sure!" Ron said, taking the whole box.

Harry smirked at Hermione while giving it to Ron, who seemed oblivious. Ron started pushing the beans in his mouth. A moment later, he stopped with a disgusted expression. "This one tasted like s**t!" he complained. This didn't stop him from putting some more into his mouth, grimacing at the tastes. Eventually, it was too much even for him. He put the beans into his trousers' pocket. "I'll save these for the twins," he said mischievously, before leaving the compartment, looking for the toilet.