Disclaimer:

Harry Potter and all its characters belong to J.K. Rowling.

I own nothing but the original characters I create.

"Dialogue"

'Thoughts'

-Author notes-

The night of his arrival home, James went downstairs to the dining room, where the female elf, Dipsy, had told him his parents were waiting.

When he got there, he found a massive feast waiting for him, along with many fancy decorations and a sign that read, "Welcome home, James."

'So that's what the other elf was preparing.' He had wondered about that comment earlier.

"Come on, son. Take a seat," his father, Fleamont, said as he pulled out a chair for him.

"Welcome home, James!" Euphemia gave him a warm smile.

"Welcome home, Master James," Dipsy said.

"Welcome home, Master." The other elf, Loory, was much older than Dipsy and reminded James of Gretchen, though James could tell at first glance that Loory was far more polite and far less insane.

"Thank you, all of you… really," James said before sitting down and enjoying his dinner.

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A few days passed, and James became more accustomed to being back in the body of a young man. Once again, he could do things like jump and run...simple things that he hadn't been able to do for decades.

There wasn't much entertainment in the castle beyond exploring and reading. He glanced over all his schoolbooks to refresh his memory of the subjects. From what he'd seen, the fourth year didn't seem like it would be much of a challenge. Not that he had expected to be challenged at school.

His exploration revealed that not much was left of the three broken towers, and the entrance to the fourth was sealed since it was too dangerous to enter. His father had apparently done this after James was born, to ensure his protection.

Much of the central building remained unused. Of over fifteen bedrooms, three dining rooms, two large halls, six studies, and other rooms, only a small portion was in use. Still, the elves ensured everything was kept clean.

In the backyard, he found a magnificent training ground with plenty of space to move around and some dummies charmed to repair themselves automatically.

He wanted to try some magic but remembered his current status as a Hogwarts student. He wasn't allowed to perform magic outside school until he passed his O.W.L.s.

James could only hope his old wand would still respond to him.

One day, while walking through the halls, he overheard a conversation between his parents.

"He behaves so differently now," Fleamont said to his wife. "Have you noticed it?"

"Of course I have, dear… how could I not? He is my son."

"He's so quiet and polite… he hasn't even tried to pull any pranks on the elves yet," Fleamont muttered.

"Well, the healer warned us we might see some small changes in him. After all, that disease had spread to his brain…" Euphemia reminded him.

"This isn't a small change. He's like a completely different boy!"

"He is still our son. A mother can always tell...and that's my boy there." She sounded defensive.

"What if he's become… 'slow'? Or what if he can't do magic anymore?"

"Don't use that word!" she shouted at him. "And as long as he's happy, I'll be happy for him."

"Of course, me too! But… I just want my son to achieve great things in life. Is that bad?"

"No, my dear, it's not. But I don't think you have to worry about his intelligence. I've seen him spending a lot of time reading academic books. He might even become a better student now."

"Mmm… you know, you might be right. If he lays off the pranks and Quidditch a bit and focuses more on school… yes, that can only be a good thing."

James stepped away from the door and continued walking. He didn't want to intrude further.

But the conversation highlighted a problem: he didn't know how to be James Potter. He had only heard stories from Sirius and Remus about him being somewhat of a prankster, but he never had the chance to meet his father.

From Snape's memories, James knew his father had been a bit of a bully...at least to Snape.

The fragments James had gathered on his first day in this world didn't help much. They were too incomplete and hard to interpret. Most pieces made little sense without context.

'I guess there's no way to prevent people from questioning the change in his personality. Instead of hiding the fact that something happened to him, it would be easier to invent something that justifies the changes.'

He didn't have to think for long. His mother's comment earlier gave him the perfect excuse.

The dragonpox he had suffered had spread to his brain and put him in a coma for over a week. Something like that could certainly have lingering effects on someone's personality...or at least, that's what he planned to tell people if they asked.

During his remaining time at home, he received several letters from his friends, though they weren't able to visit him.

Sirius seemed to be having a hard time at home. The Blacks weren't going easy on him. James wondered if there was something he could do to help.

Remus wasn't allowed to leave his family home much due to his werewolf curse. His parents were extremely protective and lived in near reclusion. His visit to the hospital had been an exception, given the severity of James's condition.

James didn't know much about Peter's situation. All he knew was that Peter's family lived in a wizarding settlement called Upper Appleby and that they were somewhat poor.

It didn't matter much. He would see them all soon at Hogwarts.

There was one more person he was looking forward to seeing...someone he had wanted to meet for his entire early life, and that would be his former mother, Lily Evans. Although he wasn't sure how he was supposed to act with her.

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