Chapter 2
Minerva knew that caring for a baby isn’t easy. What she didn't know however, was just how tired she would feel, after just 2 weeks of taking in the three month old. She knew she wasn’t young anymore, but the nights she didn’t sleep, were showing it even more. She didn’t even have the energy to put her hair in her usual bun, that she had done, without a days break, for at least 20 years.
On day 17 of caring for the child, she knew, she needed help.
Minerva sat at her desk, brushing her hair out of her face. She opened the drawer, hoping the sound didn’t wake up the baby. He had fallen asleep for his afternoon nap, and has been sleeping since, so she hoped she could also squeeze in a nap before he wakes up. She pulled out some parchment, a quill, and some ink. She dipped her quill in the ink, and started to write
“Dear”
Dear who? Who was she going to write to? She didn’t think that far. With all that has happened, with the war ending, she didn’t know what to do anymore. As she sat there motionless, a drop of ink just on the tip of her quill, she heard a stir from the living room. That got her out or her trance. She wiped the tip of her quill and set it on her desk, and left her room. She can forget about that nap.
She picked up the little boy, who smiled at her and started babbling.
“Hi, Harry, did you have a nice nap?”
She said. With Harry she used a tone so gentle, her students wouldn’t recognize her, but she didn’t pinch her tone into a ‘baby voice’. At her question, the boy let out a giggle, and continued to babble. Looking at her watch, she realized she was thinking so long, it was time for supper. Still holding the boy, she went to the kitchen.
“Well Harry, it seems you woke up just in time for your bottle.”She said, preparing his food. Another thing she was surprised by, was just how much a baby could eat. In every bottle, he ate at least 4 ounces, which was in weight about 4 slices of bread. He ate every 3-4 hours, nights included, so daily he ate a loaf of bread, which for an adult wasn’t much, but he was tiny.
Just as she was done making the bottle, she was reminded of her own hunger, by a loud growl of her stomach, that Harry found particularly funny, and burst into a fit of giggles. She smiled down at him. In moments like these, she was reminded, why she took him in. Such pure laughter, brung out her own smiles, and fought away the tension in her shoulders. As he calmed down, and actually started to eat, the flames in her fireplace turned slightly green, informing her of an incoming call. She froze, wondering who could that be, Harry still happily eating, unaware of the turmoil of the woman holding him.
“Professor McGonagall?”
Sounded out an unsure voice of Remus Lupin. He was one of her students, that had already graduated. Then it clicked. She could ask him! He was friends with the boys father, surely he could help.
“Professor are you there?”
Even more timid, if that was possible, voice brought her out of her musings.
“Yes! I mean, yes, what can I help you with?”
“I was just wondering where you were! I mean, we expected you at one of the funerals, but when you didn’t show… I mean I was just woried something happened and-“
“Im alright Remus”
She cut him off before he got to stressed
“Why don’t you come through, we can talk face to face.”
“Oh okay”
His w disappeared for a moment, then the flames turned completely green, and he walked through. Then he looked at her, with a child still in her arms, stunned.
“I was quite busy the past few days.”
She answered the previous question, gesturing to Harry, who has now stopped eating and started making grabby hands at the man
“Is thats Harry?”
The man stuttered out, and without waiting for a response, he ran up to her to hug him.
“Yes it is.”
“Why is he here? Does anybody know about this? How did he get here?”
The man started firing questions at such speed, Minerva had to cut him off, before he forgot how to breathe.
“Well to how he got here, I took him in, and no, you’re the first person to know”
She started
“Well we have to tell somebody! We have to go to Dumbledore! Or the ministry”
The man started looking around, probably already planning what he’s going to say
“We are not going to Dumbledore”
She cut him of, quite rudely, in a tone so sharp he stopped in fear
“Why?”
He quietly responded after what felt like a minute, bit probably was just a few seconds.
“Because, he left Harry in the middle of a November night, still bleeding, on the doorstep od Petunias house!”
A shadow drew across the mans face, and she could see, he understood. She could see the moment, when the years old trust in the headmaster broke. He knew Petunia, everybody knew of her hate of magic, that started with jealousy over lily, and escalated into a falling out with the sisters.
“And you convinced him otherwise?”
Asked the man, still holding some sort of hope, for the old mans account.
“No. I kidnapped him right after he left.”
The last bit of hope flew away crom the mans face, but he stayed level headed, and took the child from her hands.
“Well w know were not doing to Dumbledore. But why not the ministry?”
He started bouncing the delighted child, while looking at her with a very serious face. It honestly looked ridiculous.
“Well to be honest I had no time.”
Admitted the woman, rubbing her eyes.
“You do look tired”
Said Remus with a smile. That was the moment her stomach took to growl
“And hungry”
He added with a laugh
“How about you eat, and go to sleep, and i watch Harry? You sure could use it.”
He said, still smiling
“Well im not gonna argue with that!”
She said, and did just that.
Left alone with the boy, Remus looked down and smiled. It was almost a month since he last saw him, and he grew a lot in that month. He walked around the house, searching for a place to lay him down. He found a cot in the living room, and set Harry on his tummy. He pet his head, and sat on the couch. He needed to think for a moment. His friends were dead, and Sirius, well he wasn’t going to think about Sirius. It hurt him too much.
While he thought, Harry lifted his chest and head by his arms to look at him. That was new. When Remus last saw him he could only support his head.
“And what do you think Harry?”
Asked playfully the child, and got a giggle in response. And with that, he left his thinking behind, and focused on his honorary nephew.
After a few hours of playing, cuddles, general cleaning and food, Remus heard a stir, from what he assumed to be the bedroom. Then he heard the running of a shower, and after a bit Minerva came out, her hair hanging loosely. Now that he had time to think, he noticed it was the first time he saw her hair in different hairstyle than a tight bun.
“Good morning”
He said, smiling softly.
“Hello”
Answered the woman, with a smile of her own.
“How was Harry?”
She asked, taking the child out of his hands.
“Amazing, he’s such an angel.”
Replied Remus.
“Well, I have to get going, but if you need anything , and I mean anything, call or write, I’ll be there“
He said looking into her eves.
“I will.
She said, and hesitated.”
“What will we do now?”
“For now, you should focus on Harry. I’ll handle the ministry.”
And with that, he went to the fireplace, and left.
After that he visited almost daily, even if for a moment, to check in on both of them, and usually to babysit Harry, to give her time to herself.
They worked out how to have Harry legally, without Dumbledore finding out. They worked with Amelia Bones and Alastor Moody, to phrase the cause for secrecy as a protection from people, who would want to avenge the fallen lord.
The process was long and tedious, but as promised, Remus did most of the work, she just had to sign the papers he brought her and show up for court.
They did run into unexpected trouble. The Malfoys found out, and technically, Narcissa Malfoy and Harry Potter were related, through the Black family. Surprisingly, they didn’t fight for the rights to the child, just requested proper upbringing for the heir. That was when Minerva and Remus found out that the boy was the heir of the Black family. They had worked out an agreement to tutor the child in everything a heir should know. The tutor would come every day for two hours once Harry turned three.
Remus also took the child to saint Mungos, to see if he was alright, and they detected an aftermath of a curse. Luckily, it was fresh I ought to heal, and Harry left with no scar. Another day he took the baby to Gringots. There they found out something even more disturbing. In what now was a sealed scar, there was a very dark residue. He stayed in the healing ward for a week after that. However, no one knew a safe way to remove it, so they decided to leave it until they did