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"No by father did not fight in the war! He was a Ministry official working in the Department of Magical Creatures."
Harry stopped himself from snorting. That sounded so much like something the kid's uncle would say. "That's what your uncle told you. He didn't hold with your father's ideals. He thought he should have stayed here and not gotten involved."
"You fought in the Wizarding Wars?" asked the teenager, his voice full of surprise and awe.
Harry, so much older than he once was, looked in fondness at the red-haired teenager standing next to him. He looked so much like his father, though Harry could tell he had his mother's temperament and intelligence. "Yes." he answered, chuckling. As the Chosen One, it would have been impossible for him to stay out of the war. "I was once a member of the Order of the Phoenix, the same as your father."
The kid looked down, sad. "I wish I had known him."
'So do I,' he thought. "He was the best strategist in the world. And a cunning duelist." A wave of grief suddenly hit him as he tried to blink back tears. "And he was a good friend." he said, emotions bleeding through his voice. Not willing to let the kid see how much he grived for the parents he never knew, Harry decided to show him something. "Which remind me-"
He stood and walked toward a small chest. Opening it, he grabbed a wand he had stared at so often. "Your father would have wanted you to have this once you were old enough." he said, giving it to him.
"What is it?" the teenager asked.
"Your father's wand." he said. The kid grabbed it with reverence. "It is the tool and weapon of a wizard. Not as clumsy or random as a pistol. An elegant tool from a more civilized age." He sat back down, admiring how the kid tried casting simple spells with the wand. His mother would be so proud of him. "For over thirty years the Order of the Phoenix were guardians of peace and justice in the old Ministry." Then, his eyes turned cold as he remembered what happened twenty years before. "Before the dark times. Before the Empire of Magic..."
Hugo Weasley put the wand in his pocket and sat next to Harry. "How did my father die?" he asked.
Harry looked away as he choked on emotions. He remembered Ron becoming a pawn of Lord Voldemort, remembering how he cursed the still-pregnant Hermione when she tried to bring her husband back to the light side. He remembered cripling Ron and leaving him for dead next to a volcano, his body aflame. And, he remembered learning in the Daily Prophet about Lord Voldemort's new apprentice, Lord Vader, who could only be Ron Weasley.
When he looked at Hugo, he knew he could not tell him the truth. Telling him that his father was still alive and commiting attrocities as Lord Vader would destroy him. No child needed to have this burden on their shoulders and suffer from the sins of their parents. He wanted Hugo to know Ron when he was at his best, not at his worst. So, he decided to tell the truth, from a certain point of view.
"A young recruit in the Order named Vader - who was a friend of mine until he turned to evil - helped the Empire hunt down and destroy the Order of the Phoenix. He betrayed and murdered your father."
Upon seeing the shock, grief and anger on Hugo's face, Harry realized pining Ron's murder on Ron might not have been the best idea. But, he could not go back on his words without revealing the truth. So, he decided to quickly change the subject before Hugo could put too much thought on it. "Now, why don't we look at the memory?" he said, taking a vial out of his pocket. Hugo nodded.
After bringing the pensieve, Harry poured the memory in it. Then, activating a special function of the magical artefact, created a sort of hologram hovering over it, revealing a woman he immediately recognized. It was Hugo's twin sister, Ron and Hermione's daughter. Rose Weasley - or Lupin as was her adopted family's name. She looked so much like Hermione it was crazy.
"Auror Potter, years ago you served alongside my father Remus in the Wizarding Wars. Now, he beg you to help him in the struggle against the Empire. I regret I am unable to present my father's request in person, but my convoy has fallen under attack and I regret my mission to bring you to the village of Alderaan has failed. I have placed information vital to the survival of the Rebellion inside the memory vial containing this message." At her words, both Harry and Hugo glanced down at the pensieve. "My father will know how to use it. You must see this memory safely delivered to him at Alderaan. This is our most desperate hour."
Memory-Rose then looked at him in the eyes almost like she predicted where he would sit relative to the hologram. "Help me Harry Potter. You are my only hope." she pleaded. Then, an explosion was heard and Memory-Rose looked behind her in fright. The memory ended suddenly.
Harry began rubbing his graying beard with his hand. The question whether he was going to help or not was naught - as there was no way he wouldn't try to keep Ron and Hermione's daughter safe. And, it had been a long time since he last talked to Remus and Tonks.
He looked back at Hugo, who was still looking where the hologram had been. Sensing his stare, he turned to look at Harry. Harry spoke. "So, up for a trip to the village of Alderaan?"
