And it wasn't just any old letter that she had written. It was meant for Harry, written to Harry. It said all the things that he had been longing to hear for all his life, though he had long given up hope. He reverently replaced his mom's note in the envelope and opened up the second letter.
Dear Son,
I don't know where to start. I am writing this letter because there is a very good possibility that I may not make it out of this war alive. Unless you are taken here beforehand, you will not receive this until you're fifteen, practically a man. I'm sorry I was not there for you while you were growing up. I would have loved to be the one to teach you to fly. You're going to be a great Quidditch player someday, just like your old man; I can feel it. You already love flying, but don't tell your mother that I've taken you on a broom. I'd never hear the end of it.
Sirius thinks you'll be a seeker, but I think you'll follow in my footsteps and be the best chaser Gryffindor has seen since your old man. You're already doing magic, which entertains us to no end. You even once levitated Padfoot into your crib to cuddle with as you went to sleep. Sirius would never say so, but I don't think he'd ever been so happy in his life. He loves you like you were his own son, and I know he will have taken good care of you.
Now for the fatherly advise that you've been missing out on your whole life. I don't imagine Sirius ever had too many words of wisdom to give you. One day you're going to find a woman who is everything that you could ever hope for in a partner. And I'll bet you she's got red hair. Some call it a curse, I call it a blessing, but you're a Potter, and Potters always end up with redheads. Though if you find yourself a winner without the hair, don't listen to me about this stupid curse. When you find the one, never let go. Fight to the end of the Earth for her if you have to. There will never be a more important battle than the one you wage for the love of your life.
I knew your mother was the one for me right away. She was a little harder to convince, but I never gave up. She fought me good and hard for awhile, but she eventually caved in and gave me a shot, and we never turned back after that. I love your mother very much, but we both love you more than life itself. We will always be watching out for you. Any time you stumble in life or need someone to turn to, know that we will always be there in spirit. Live your life whatever way makes you happy, and know that your mother and I will always support you.
I love you, Harry.
James Potter
Tears were again streaming down Harry's face, but he was aware enough to wipe them off before they managed to drip down onto the letter. It wasn't so much anything specific that was said in the letters but just the overall sentiment behind them that touched Harry so. His parents loved him. To actually have tangible evidence of it was overwhelming. He had always hoped and thought that his parents loved him, but it was just blind hope. His relatives hated him and had never shown him the slightest bit of sentimentality. So he imagined what his real family was like and how great it would have been if his parents were still alive. But it was never real before now. Now he knew that he was loved like a child should be loved by a parent.
He could remember times before Hogwarts when he was locked up in the cupboard under the stairs with nothing to pass the time but his imagination. He would imagine his parents and what his life would have been like had they still been around. He had never seen pictures of them before, not even of his mum who had been his Aunt Petunia's sister, so the figures didn't even look exactly like his parents. But at the time it didn't matter because he didn't know any better. His imaginary parents had loved him very much and doted over him the way any real parent would.
The more he learned of his real parents, the more his imaginary world was destroyed. Harry didn't mind, though, because reality was so much better than the illusion. He could only guess what his parents were like in his mind, and he always held on to his doubts. But he didn't have to doubt this because the letters had come from his parents. There was no guessing or imagining here. His parents loved him.
He slipped his father's letter back into the envelope with his mother's and extracted his trunk from his pocket. He put the envelope in the trunk before shrinking it up again and placing it back in his pocket. He wasn't going to let anything happen to those letters.
Wiping his eyes Harry resumed his tour of the vault. There were a couple bookcases filled with volumes upon volumes of old tomes. Harry glanced through the titles on the spines of the books and selected a few that caught his interest. Basic Healing Spells Every Parent Should Know, The Fidelius Charm: Guard Your Secrets Well, and Portkey Creation were among the few to be transferred into the collection in his trunk.
On a desk he found a pile of papers containing a couple deeds to properties he now owned. The only name he recognized from the pile was Godric's Hollow, but he apparently also owned a few other houses scattered throughout Great Britain. He found a collection of portraits and paintings in a corner of the vault. He selected a couple paintings of landscapes to hang in the rooms of his trunk. The walls had come bare and could use some spicing up.
Harry wandered around the vault for a couple of hours total, looking through things at random. He hadn't really come with a purpose. He just wanted something to link him to his family, his past. He had found it in spades in his parents' letters. There was still plenty more to look through, but he decided that he had had enough for the day. He still had other business to attend to.
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