Second Savior // Dramione ✔️

+ Epilogue +

Harry reached into his coat pocket for the house key, sighing as his fingers came out with nothing.

It had been a long day at the Ministry. His secretary was out sick, causing Harry to fall behind in paperwork. In the end, he'd given up on trying to finish everything and leave it for next week, when his secretary returned.

He finally found the key and put it into the lock, turning the doorknob.

"Dad!"

Harry smiled at the sound of James' voice. He hung his coat on the hook and turned to see Teddy and James playing cards.

"Hello boys. Where's Albus?"

Teddy glanced up. "He was upstairs earlier, reading, I think."

Before Harry could reply, Ginny entered the room with Lily on her hip. Wordlessly, she handed the baby off to her husband and collapsed on the couch.

"Harry, can you handle making dinner? Lily's been crying all afternoon and I think I'll lose it if I'm with her another second. I'm going to take a nap."

Harry held Lily up to face him, smiling at her bright green eyes.

"Yeah, Gin, don't worry about it. Teddy and James can help with cooking."

Both boys' heads shot up in response.

"What? We didn't agree to that!" James cried, earning an elbow in the side from Teddy.

"Shut it, James. Mum's tired, yeah? Let's just help make dinner."

And so they all went to the kitchen, deciding on making pasta with a cheesy sauce, salad, and roasted vegetables. Teddy and Harry worked on chopping the vegetables while James, who was only seven, washed the lettuce.

"Dad, why don't we ever make dinner with magic? Mum does!" James asked.

Harry placed Lily in her high chair. "Because I grew up in a Muggle household, where magic was forbidden. For eleven years I lived without magic, and sometimes I like to do things by hand."

"What was it like living with Muggles? Mum said they weren't nice to you. Something about you sleeping under stairs?"

The faint memories of living in the cupboard under the stairs at Privet Drive washed over Harry's mind. He remembered all those nights Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia would feed him a can of beans for dinner while they feasted on roasted chicken and potatoes. Though the memories grew weaker as time passed, Harry was certain they'd always haunt him somehow.

But his sons were too young to learn about his semi-dark childhood.

"Living with Muggles was sort of fun. They don't realize how much they're missing out on. My Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia weren't the nicest people to exist, but they did give me a place to live. I think the idea of magic scared them."

"But why would they make you sleep under the stairs?" James pressed.

"I don't know," Harry replied honestly. "They just didn't like me. Not everyone you meet is going to like you. But that doesn't mean you're not a good person."