Harry Potter and the Children of the Clan

Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"Da! Mum! I've captured a lion!" James shouted as he burst through the kitchen door to the mudroom.

Since Harry was the only parent in the kitchen at the time he was the first to have to confront the situation his son presented. It was mid afternoon on the Saturday before Halloween and James had been up to his usual outdoor activities, tramping about the high grass and trees that comprised most of the grounds at Meadow Crest. He had roughed out a map of the property and was now working on filling in more of the details. He was dressed in his boots, jacket and hat. Around his waist was a belt from which hung several pouches and an old compass passed on by his Grandfather.

What was most prominent and the subject of Harry's scrutiny however was being held in both arms and obstructed most of the boys torso. It was a large cat. A large, furry cat, obviously not of the lion species but certainly more than a handful for a nine year old. It had a scrunched in face that looked familiar to Harry.

"A lion, son?" he asked as he continued to observe the fuzzy feline.

"Well, more like a cub I guess," the boy replied.

"Or just a big house cat, perhaps?"

"But Da, he was outside, in the trees. I was walking along the edge, pacing out distances and it just stepped out of the trees. Then it followed me around for a couple of hours."

At this point they were interrupted by the appearance of Ginny and little Lily, the daughter bearing a striking resemblance to the mother. The girl took one look at the cat and clapped her hands and said,

"Ooh, look at the lovely kitty."

At this point the cat transformed from a large immobile mass to a wriggling ball of fur that definitely didn't want to be held anymore. With a shouted 'easy now' James quickly set the cat on the floor and it made deliberately for the youngest Potter child. The girl watched in delight as the cat stopped in front of her, looking up into her face and then proceeded to rub up against her legs, setting her off into squeals and laughter.

"Harry," Ginny began, "doesn't this cat look familiar to you?"

"Yes, at first I thought it was Crookshanks but he's with Hermione's parents and they live miles from here. Plus the coloring is too dark to be him."

It was Albus' turn to put in an appearance at this point, hearing the commotion from his spot on the couch in his father's library. He took in the scene with his serious eyes and then said,

"What's all this, then?"

Harry turned to his second son and replied,

"It appears that your brother has found a cat and the cat has found your sister."

Albus studied the creature more closely, then said,

"Looks a lot like a kneazle, if you ask me."

With his curiosity apparently satisfied, the middle Potter child turned around and walked out of the room, most likely returning to the library. Now it should be stated that Albus had no interest in animals, unless he needed to make use of an owl to communicate with one of his cousins, most likely Rose. It is not to suggest he was maliciously inclined towards animals, he was simply completely indifferent to them. If, on a rare occasion, Snuffles would present his head to the boy for a rub or scratch, Albus would oblige with a brief rub or a scratch by the ear and then carry on with whatever he was doing.

What he was interested in, most intently, was objects, both magical and mundane. He would just as likely be found discussing some item of muggle manufacture with his Granddad Weasley as he would be reading a book on equipment required for potion making or talking to his cousin Rose about some bit or piece of magical nonsense obtained from Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes. At the age of six he had already accumulated a significant collection of items, currently on display in his room on a series of shelves built by his Grandfather.