Snitches get Stitches

Remus had a difficult time sleeping the night Harry returned home and he ended up in the kitchen quite early. There was a distinct lack of groceries as food had been the last thing on Remus’ mind recently and he pulled on his boots and jacket to rectify it.

There was an all night petrol station not far that had a decent amount of groceries offered as well. They were pricey, but Remus only planned to get bacon, eggs, and milk for the boys and coffee for himself. It wasn’t nearly a long enough walk for Remus to work off the deep sense of shame that kept him awake.

A muggle boy that Harry used to despise had been the safe harbor that Harry ran to. They were kin, yes, but Remus was meant to be Harry’s safe place. Remus was meant to be the one to identify Harry’s depression and treat it.

Dudley Dursley had been the one to see that Harry was dangling off the edge of a cliff, waiting for the wind to push him over, and pulled him to safety.

Remus had been a terrible guardian and he only hoped that it was not too late to rectify it. Starting with getting Harry his own prescription. It was resourceful, the way Dudley obtained the medicine for Harry, but there were many differences between them that could skew a prescription.

And Remus was certain that it wasn’t what James had. Remus wasn’t foolish enough to believe that Harry had to have the precise thing James did, Remus was just sure that he did. Remus was also sure that Sirius would know what it was immediately - Sirius tended to know everything about James.

A likely side effect of spending twelve years locked in the past within his own mind.

Regardless… Remus ruminated over the merits of taking Harry to a magical healer or muggle doctor as he walked home with his purchases. A healer would understand Harry’s specific genetic makeup, but Remus knew for a fact that there was no magical equivalent to SSRI’s.

Remus likely would have taken them years ago if so.

Remus was pondering the difficulty of finding a squib or muggle who married in the magical world that operated as a medical practitioner. It was a specific search, but Nymphadora may have ideas. If Remus remembered correctly, her father had went through healing courses during the last war.

Shuffling footsteps descending down the stairs took Remus from his thoughts and he turned from the stove to see Harry slowly entering the kitchen with a guarded expression.

“Good morning,” Remus said, interjecting as much warmth in his voice as he could. Remus even smiled, an unfamiliar gesture after the recent week. “I have bacon and eggs frying up.”

“Oh, thanks,” Harry said flatly. When Harry sat down and Remus slid him a plate, Harry pulled a face that he didn’t hide quickly enough for Remus to catch.

“Sorry,” Harry muttered, glancing at Remus guiltily. “It’s- er… well Dudley got me this medicine, and it just makes me feel kind of sick, you know?”

“Ah, of course.” Remus didn’t skip a beat before pulling down the loaf of bread and popping two pieces in the toaster. “Nausea is a common side effect of many muggle medications, my mistake.”

Harry looked unfairly surprised when Remus swapped him the fry up for the toast. If nothing else, Remus had endeavored to at least ensure that Harry ate twice a day.

Though, Remus may have misjudged where Harry’s surprise came from.

“I bet you’re furious,” Harry said quietly after Remus sat down with coffee and bacon.

Remus has been, truthfully. He was concerned, terrified, worried out of his mind, and a part of him had been angry that Harry just left. Harry, who had been - and likely still was - so hurt by Sirius’ abandonment had done the exact same thing to Remus. Remus felt betrayed and hurt. It felt as if Harry acting selfishly and didn’t care what devastation he left behind him.

But selfish wasn’t one of Harry’s flaws. Emotional, impulsive, and withdrawn were and any one of the three could have led to Harry leaving.

“I’m not,” Remus told Harry. Harry looked at Remus with curiosity and Remus hoped that Harry could see the truth in his eyes.

“I was scared,” Remus said, not an easy admission to make. Remus couldn’t even hold Harry’s eyes when he said it, Remus looked down in his coffee instead. “I thought you might be dead, Harry. I was terrified.”

Remus had been truly terrified only a few times in his life—

When Remus was five and he transformed for the first time. It had been pain beyond comprehension that had Remus crying for death, a concept he barely understood at that age.

When Remus was twenty and received a patronus from Sirius. “Something’s happened, tell me you’re alive.” Remus had been on edge for hours, waiting for another patronus from Sirius that never arrived. What did arrive next had been an owl delivering a letter from St. Mungo’s hospital, requesting Remus identify James and Lily Potter’s body for the official report of death.

That was it, twice in thirty-five years did Remus feel the sort of bone deep fear that wanted to paralyze him the entire time Harry had been missing. There were times where Remus had been nervous. There were close calls during business calls where Remus had a knife at his throat or a gun to his head. There had been the time that Remus thought he would be killed for Sirius’ grand prank on Severus. Once, during an ill-advised entanglement with Barty Crouch Junior, Remus had to dodge the killing curse.

But those were things to look back at and laugh about. No amount of time would have Remus look back on the prior week and feel the urge to laugh.

“I’m sorry.”

Remus lifted his eyes when he could feel Harry’s eyes burning as they gazed at Remus. As much honesty as Remus tried to interject in his words, he could see it matched in Harry’s young face. Harry looked truly sorrowful and it gave Remus hope that their relationship had never been as damaged as Remus thought it must have been.

“It’s forgiven,” Remus said simply. He reached across the table and smiled lightly when Harry let him grip his arm for a moment. Remus cleared his throat and tried to ease the tension in the room then.

“Though I am incredibly curious how you ended up in England,” Remus said after he withdrew his arm. “Your broom was here?”

As was Harry’s muggle passport that Remus used for Sirius once before. Remus hadn’t worried excessively that a fifteen year old without a wand, apparition license, passport, or broomstick had been able to leave the country. Hermione had checked with every portkey authority in the three nearest wizarding cities as well. The likelihood of a shopkeeper not recalling selling Harry Potter a portkey was low, if they would even bend the age-restriction on portkeys for Harry.

Harry was resourceful, Remus would give him that.

“Er… I might have stowed away on an airplane in my cloak,” Harry said, smiling rather bashfully at Remus. “It wasn’t hard to get there with my cloak, but Dudley and I might have had a near miss on the way back.”

Remus listened and laughed as Harry described trying to fit himself and his cousin beneath James’ cloak to travel back on a flight that had been sold out of seats. By the time that Harry’s cousin joined them, the air between Remus and Harry was much improved.

“Mind if I get a cuppa?” Dudley asked Remus as he sleepily shuffled from the staircase straight to the coffee pot. Dudley Dursley was - oddly - yet another teenager after Remus’ heart with his dark hair ruffled in all directions while his nose led him directly to coffee.

“Help yourself,” Remus said. “There’s food on the stove too.”

Dudley nodded absently at Remus while he made himself a plate and filled a mug with coffee. It only made Remus dislike him a small amount when he immediately ruined the brew by adding in an unholy amount of sugar.

“So… do we need to schedule you a flight home?” Remus asked, not unkindly, after he gave Dudley a few minutes to fully wake up at the table. Surely Dudley didn’t need to return home until the end of the weekend, but Remus was sure that he would have school on Monday he shouldn’t miss.

Dudley took a large bite of a strip of bacon and looked at Harry pointedly as he chewed. Harry rapped his fingernails on the tabletop and looked anywhere except for at Remus.

“Dudley was actually thinking maybe he’d stay for a while,” Harry said slowly, agitation nearly rolling off him in tangible waves. “Er… if you don’t mind. I know it’s a bit of a full house, but we can probably stuff him in a cupboard or something.”

Dudley snorted and reached over with a fist to bump it against Harry’s. Their obvious inside joke aside, Remus frowned as he tried to recall any positive mention Harry ever made of Lily’s sister.

None.

There were precisely zero positive mentions.

And Harry was the same child willing to give up his muggle relatives altogether to move in with Sirius only just two years ago. The boys were clearly close, but Remus didn’t imagine that Petunia and Harry had a course relationship.

Petunia never even attended Lily’s funeral. A fact Remus knew because he started painfully sober that day and took Mac with him to bury his friends in the hopes that they could kidnap Harry afterward. It had been a foolish plan, one that Remus didn’t get an opportunity to even enact because Petunia never showed.

“Your parents are okay with this?” Remus asked Dudley, watching him closely.

Dudley squinted one eye and twisted his lips to the opposite side.

“Weeeell…”

So, no. Petunia did not know that the boys were plotting to have Dudley stay for an extended visit. And, as Remus quickly learned, they had no idea that their son left the country to begin with. Even best, Harry had a brilliant plot to keep his cousin in Chicago until summer.

“I thought… maybe… I could - er… well, you sort of seem to like breaking the law? So I hoped you might go, you know… maybe make them forget that Dudley isn’t at Smeltings?”

Remus looked from Harry’s nervous face to Dudley’s perfectly serious - even moderately excited - face.

“Boys… you can’t be serious,” Remus said. A small part of Remus’ mind automatically finished the joke, but the rest of his mind was distracted by Harry’s request that Remus go obliviate and toy with the minds of two muggles.

“We are,” Harry said with a straight face. Not even a lip twitched. There was no laughter in his eyes or James-like expression to lead Remus to believe it was a grand prank.

“I’m staying anyway,” Dudley said firmly. “I reckon it would be better to make Mum and Dad not be looking for me, eh?”

Remus was beginning to feel quite like Albus with the way he was collecting teenagers.

Harry decided to give Dudley a tour of their neighborhood after breakfast, leaving Remus to sit outside and ponder his options in peace.

Truthfully, Remus didn’t give a damn about Harry’s cousin staying with them. It was one more person around that would give Harry the sense of family that he craved so badly. Remus also didn’t care to stall away Petunia and her husband’s son- they had done it to him, in a round about way that really wasn’t the same at all.

Remus had been a twenty year old gang member who specialized in armed robbery and turned to a monster once a month. Dudley’s parents were actually parents, Remus was conflicted.

Though, Dudley did attend a boarding school, so it wasn’t as if his parents were expecting him… but Dudley attended a boarding school, a much higher standard of education than the local high school offered.

Remus was halfway through his joint when a car that was becoming too familiar pulled up to the curb. Remus watched as Tony parked his car and climbed out, dressed in casual sweatpants and a plain white tshirt.

An adequate distraction, in any case.

“Morning,” Tony called. He had two paper cups with the Starbucks logo on them in his hands and a cheerful smile on his face as he bound up the stairs to Remus’ porch. Tony handed Remus a cup of coffee then sat on the porch railing as if it were absolutely normal for him to do so.

Remus popped the top off the cup he was given and saw that it was precisely how he took his coffee… a bit of information that Tony must have picked up on during the week he assisted Remus in searching for Harry.

“I saw Harry and that other kid walking down Main Street,” Tony said, entirely too cheerfully for the hour. It was eight, Remus only faked cheer until at least eleven.

“And you had to fight down the urge to arrest them?” Remus asked. Remus took a sip of the coffee then only because it was free coffee being offered and not to hide what some may call a teasing smile.

“You know, I did see Harry jaywalking but I figured I’d just write a ticket,” Tony said with a wide smile, clearly delighted by the banter. Remus could just imagine a tail wagging behind the man.

It was absurd.

“I once saw him ride in a car without a seatbelt,” Remus said deadpan. “Surely that’s worth at least a night in jail.”

“Oh, that’s not funny.” Tony’s smile slipped and he began frowning deeply at Remus, leaving creases in his forehead. “Seatbelts save lives.”

When Tony only held his serious expression for an uncomfortable second before winking, Remus smirked.

It was not a grin, it was a smirk.

“Wotcher, Remus!”

Remus jumped and felt a needless sense of embarrassment wash over him as he looked away from where Tony’s car had disappeared around the corner. Nymphadora stepped out of the Gallagher house dressed in only a buttoned up flannel shirt, her bare legs a momentary distraction before Remus noticed her Cheshire Cat smile.

“Spying is rude,” Remus told her with a scowl to hide his embarrassment. “Don’t you have a lovely brunette to piss on?”

“I left pink hairs on her dresser and in the shower. I also hid my second favorite bra behind the toilet.” Nymphadora climbed on the wall of Fiona’s porch and slowly eased her way across to Remus’ porch.

“I can’t think of anything else besides a hickey on her forehead,” Nymphadora went on as she plopped down beside Remus and immediately stole the cigarette in his hand.

“Foreheads are tricky,” Remus told her knowingly. “Do the back of her shoulder. It’s unlikely she’ll notice it, but anyone shagging her from behind will.”

“Fuck—” Nymphadora began laughing and then choked on her inhale, leaving Remus free to pluck his cigarette back while she hacked.

“You’re such an arse,” Nymphadora wheezed when she finished her fit. She was still grinning though, so Remus knew he was forgiven for his timing.

Or not, apparently.

“Saw you ogling To-oh-ny,” Nymphadora moaned his name with her head thrown back and her eyes closed, nearly the exact face she made when she would moan Remus’ name.

Except Remus had always made Nymphadora unintentionally change the colors of her hair.

“I was not ogling Tony, I was… admiring a work of art,” Remus said carefully, not wanting to hand Nymphadora any ammunition. “He’s an attractive man.”

“So shag him.” Nymphadora lunged then across Remus’ lap to steal the rest of his cigarette once again and Remus accepted defeat and let her keep it.

“I will… after I return from England.” Remus loped an arm around Nymphadora’s shoulders and tugged on a lock of her hair. “Would you be able to stay long enough to watch Harry, his muggle cousin who diagnosed depression before I did, Harry’s pregnant ex-girlfriend, and the girl with the gun?”

“Why are you leaving?” Nymphadora turned in the bench so she could whine in Remus’ face. “I don’t want to babysit. Harry’s a runner, Mandy makes me sad to look at. The muggle boy hit Mickey and he’s my favorite and Hermione… I just don’t like her.”

“Hermione is my favorite,” Remus said. He tossed his other arm around Nymphadora and tried to stare deeply in her eyes. “Please, love? For me?”

“For you?” Nymphadora raised a hand to lightly cup Remus’ cheek and draw his face toward hers.

“No,” she breathed sweetly, her lips ghosting over Remus. “You wanted a house full of teenage brats, they’re your problem now.”

Remus pushed Nymphadora away with a scowl, not that she cared as the wicked witch giggled at her own dramatics.

“I hate you,” Remus complained. “Where’s your Hufflepuff sense of loyalty?”

“Where’s your sense of adventure?” Nymphadora countered with a cheeky smile. “Take Harry with you, it’s not the full moon, so how dangerous of a trip could this be?”

Quite, apparently.

Of all the places Harry didn’t want to be at, Little Whinging was tied for second place. Malfoy Manor would likely always be first, but Little Whinging and the Wizengamot Chambers tied one another for second.

Harry licked his dry lips and tucked his hands in his trouser pockets. Remus kept sending Harry curious glances as they walking from the corner of Magnolia Crest toward Harry’s relatives house. Harry couldn’t be sure, not without asking, but he was confident that Remus made Harry accompany him as punishment for leaving before.

It wasn’t that it was unfair, it was just that Harry would prefer Remus strike him or take away meals for a few days instead.

“You look ill,” Remus said when Number Four came in view. Remus was frowning at Harry, but Harry was watching the house grow larger as they approached it.

“I don’t like being here,” Harry muttered truthfully enough. Remus opened his mouth to make another comment, but Harry shook his head.

“I won’t leave, but can I wait out here?” Harry asked Remus, a pointless question.

They had no more walked up the drive before the front door of the house was thrown open with a slam and Aunt Petunia stepped out with her arms crossed and her lips pursed.

Harry didn’t have a lot of memory of the two weeks he spent in Privet Drive that summer, as overwhelmed as he’d been by his recent torture and branding and then the attack of dementors, but Harry remembered that Petunia didn’t say a single word to him all summer.

It was preferable, Harry didn’t know why it had hurt him.

Petunia didn’t lack for words then. The woman strode across the lawn with a single-minded look of fury. As soon as she was within reach of Harry, she pulled her hand back and slapped him.

Harry’s head snapped back with the force of her hit and his ears rang almost loudly enough to block out Petunia and Remus’ shouts.

“HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MIND?!”

“WHERE IS MY SON??”

“I WILL SLIT YOUR THROAT, YOU MISERABLE COW!”

“THE SCHOOL SAID HE LEFT WITH HIS COUSIN!!”

Harry shook his head, a bit dazed, and had to blink a few times to make sense of what he was seeing. Remus had Petunia pinned against the garage by the collar of her blouse. Petunia was screaming at Harry, Remus was screaming at her. When Remus looked over his shoulder at Harry, Harry schooled his face to something bored at best, unaffected at worst.

And then Remus snarled.

“Inside, now.” Remus jerked on Petunia’s shirt and began dragging her to the front door. When Harry mistakenly thought that Remus wanted him inside as well, Remus only barked an order for Harry to wait outside.

Since Uncle Vernon’s car was in the drive and he hit a hell of a lot harder than Petunia, Harry was relieved to comply.

It was cold outside, much colder than it was in Chicago. Harry rubbed his arms with his hands and wondered how Dudley was getting along without them. Dudley had only snorted when Harry suggested he stay with Kevin, then he sighed when Harry reminded him that Hermione and Mandy technically lived in their house.

“But I hate Mandy,” Dudley whined. “She’s a twit.”

Harry frowned at Dudley and shook his head. It wasn’t Mandy’s fault that she basically sold Harry their baby. If someone offered Harry enough money to start a new life when he’d been ten, Harry would have sold his first born too.

“Don’t be rude to Mandy and don’t hit her,” Harry told Dudley firmly. “Just… hang out with Hermione or something.”

Hermione was safe enough, as long as she didn’t do anything insane either. It was no wonder Dudley gave Harry’s symptoms to a doctor and got crazy pills. Everyone around Harry was bloody insane; at least Harry wasn’t buying or selling babies, shagging a grown man, or shooting people.

The longer Harry sat outside his childhood prison, the more his mood dipped despite the medicine Dudley insisted Harry needed. The medicine didn’t do anything aside from making Harry feel groggy and nauseous anyway. All the thoughts Harry had before were still there, keeping him awake and miserable.

If it weren’t for the baby, Harry would have followed through with his original plan. The only reason Harry stopped to see Dudley was because Dudley had gotten Harry through a few rough times and Harry couldn’t stand not talking to him one more time. Since he didn’t have his phone and he was in the country anyway, it made sense to just stop and see him.

Then Harry was going to use his cloak to steal a gun, make his way to Little Hangleton, and end it.

Harry shouldn’t have survived the graveyard, he really shouldn’t have. Harry planned to go there, see if it was as cold and bleak as his memories made it seem, and then he’d finish what Voldemort didn’t.

It was a sad day when Harry’s thoughts agreed with anything Voldemort said, but death was a mercy.

Harry was properly frozen from the chill and his head ached fiercely by the time Remus stepped smartly out on the porch. Harry turned and looked up at him and recognized Dudley’s old backpack over his shoulders.

“Some of Dudley’s things,” Remus said, noticing where Harry looked. Remus watched Harry’s eyes intently in a way that made Harry squirm internally with discomfort.

“Your bedroom had four locks on the door.” Remus offered Harry a hand that Harry accepted to pull himself upright. “Why?”

“I’m easier to track when I can’t open a door,” Harry said dully. “Can we go?”

Remus continued to scrutinize Harry and Harry wondered what all Remus found while inside. Harry didn’t like the idea of his pathetic childhood being displayed to Remus, but it wasn’t as if Remus wasn’t aware that Harry’s entire life was rather pathetic.

What did the Dursleys have on being branded by Voldemort or punched by Lip? Was being locked up as a kid more or less pathetic than Mandy only keeping Harry’s baby because someone paid her? Did it matter that Harry’s mother’s sister hated him when Harry’s father’s best friend hating him hurt so much more?

“Let’s go,” Remus said. When he released Harry’s hand and made to put his hand on Harry’s shoulder, Harry shrugged him off.

Apparently Remus found Harry’s childhood to be more pathetic than the rest of Harry’s life and Harry didn’t need the pity.

If Remus was bothered by Harry’s rejection, he didn’t show it. Remus only looked thoughtful as they made the walk back toward the bus stop.

“I miss James quite often,” Remus said apropos of nothing when they reached their stop. Harry chose to stand instead of sitting on the cold metal bench, but Remus sat down and looked up at Harry with an open expression.

“James would know just what to say to make you smile, he always could,” Remus went on. “It’s ironic, in a way, because I think that James struggled with depression more than anyone, except possibly Sirius.”

Harry didn’t know that. Nobody ever described James as anything other a happy go lucky kind of bloke with a big smile and bigger heart. Or, at least, that was how Harry pictured him.

“Nobody tells the orphaned child the less appealing parts of a person’s life,” Remus said, not unkindly, as he must have read Harry’s thoughts on his face. “James was a good man, but there were plenty of times in our youth that I doubted if James would make it to adulthood.”

“Yeah?” Harry sat beside Remus slowly, his discomfort with the cold being pushed away with his curiosity. It wasn’t so bad anyway, Remus’ arm was warm beside Harry’s.

“Yes,” Remus said smartly. “There were days that James wouldn’t leave bed for anything; not quidditch, not your mother.”

Harry grinned faintly at his father’s priorities.

“James used to talk about killing himself as if it were a forgone conclusion that he would.” Remus’ voice softened when Harry flinched and looked down at his hands. Harry picked at his cuticles while Remus talked about James and described Harry too painfully.

Harry never thought about the future before Mandy got pregnant because a part of Harry always doubted he’d have one. If it wasn’t Voldemort or something mental, it would be the quiet voice in his head that taunted him at times.

Death would be easy, peaceful.

You wouldn’t be a burden anymore, you’d be free.

The voice wasn’t so loud before the graveyard. Then Harry saw his parents, watched Cedric go on, and spent two weeks waiting and hoping to die.

“Harry?”

Harry blinked and realized he’d actually ripped the skin off his finger and he was quick to pull it in his jacket sleeve as he looked up at Remus. Remus wasn’t frowning, but he looked as solemn as Harry had ever seen him.

“How much like James are you?” Remus asked with his voice hushed beneath the pounding of Harry’s blood in his ears.

Harry knew what Remus was asking, Harry just didn’t know how to answer.

Some days I think more about death than I do anything else.

The thought of getting out of bed makes me want to cry sometimes.

Is everyone actually meant to live long lives or would it be okay if I just… didn’t?

Harry had to swallow a few times before he could speak and he was too cowardly to look at Remus while he did. Instead, Harry focused very hard the shoulder of Remus’ sweater where there was a dark spot of either dried coffee or blood.

“I was going to do it,” Harry whispered, owing Remus an explanation if nothing else.

Remus did more for Harry than… well… anyone ever had. There was no legal obligation, no obvious benefit for Remus. Remus was just a good person who continued to do things for Harry even after Harry disappeared on him.

“I was going to tell Dudley bye then I was going to get a gun,” Harry said thickly, his throat swelling with emotion. The stain on Remus’ sweater blurred and Harry didn’t check the first tear that slipped free. When Remus said nothing, Harry found himself just…

Just talking.

Harry told Remus about the night with Lip and how it made him feel tiny and disgusting. Harry told Remus about how unfair it was that Mickey was proud to be with Ian but Harry had been a secret. Harry explained that Mandy only kept their baby because Lip paid her for it.

Their bus pulled up and Remus waved it off, leaving Harry free to unload every crummy thought he had on him.

Harry vented about Sirius and how damn badly Harry wanted him to love him. Harry laughed then and waved an agitated hand back toward his relative’s house and said how it had always been pointless that once Harry’s presence was an obligation, people tended to hate him.

Remus let Harry talk about feeling stupid in school and overwhelmed about his child. Remus didn’t judge Harry when he questioned if he could even be a good parent or if he should just let some nice couple like Kevin and Veronica adopt the baby. When Harry choked on a sob and said that he missed Fred and magic and quidditch, Remus didn’t laugh or remind him that Harry had told Fred to leave.

Remus just listened.

By the time the last bus of the day was scheduled to arrive, Harry was talked out and exhausted. Not once had Remus complained though and he didn’t seem annoyed when Harry scrubbed his face with the inside of his sweater.

“Sorry,” Harry said, his voice scratchy from using it more in one go than he had in weeks. “Er… I guess that you only asked about - well… you didn’t ask for all that.”

“I didn’t,” Remus agreed, causing Harry’s heart to sink.

It was daft to think that Remus listened because he car—

“But I’m glad you told me.”

Harry looked at Remus quickly, trying to decipher if he was being sarcastic. When there was no trace of mockery or sarcasm on his face at all, Harry risked an appreciative and small smile.

As much as Harry didn’t understand why Remus didn’t simply wash his hands of the mess that Harry was, Harry wouldn’t complain.

“Thanks, for… everything, I guess,” Harry said. “I don’t… I don’t know what I’d do if you weren’t here.”

“Luckily, you won’t need to find out.” Remus stood up and stretched when the sound of the approaching bus reached them. Remus smiled and offered Harry his hand, something Harry accepted long enough to get on his feet. The bus pulled up and they were both quiet until they were on and seated, headed back toward the city to transfer to a bus for the airport.

“When my friend Mac and I had difficult jobs we needed to do, we would break it down to a lot of different much smaller parts,” Remus said, catching Harry’s interest.

Mac was Remus’ mate in his gang. Not the gang of teenage wizards, but the honest to God gang of criminals that Remus joined.

“So I propose we do that as well,” Remus went on. He flipped Dudley’s backpack around and dug in it until he found a notebook and a pen. Harry watched as Remus wrote ‘Mandy’ at the top of the page.

“Ideally, in a perfect world, what would you like to see happen with Mandy and the baby?” Remus asked.

It was an easy question.

“She would keep the baby because she cares about it, not because Lip paid her,” Harry said.

Remus nodded and made a note on the page.

“How much money did Lip pay her?” Remus asked.

Harry looked away. Not only did he not know, but he wasn’t sure he wanted to know. Harry needed to pay Lip back, obviously, but to know what price Mandy put on their baby’s life?

“Nevermind,” Remus said smoothly, moving on. “Now… Dudley is quite welcome to stay, but I think we’re beginning to get a full house. Here’s what I had thought…”

Harry listened while Remus outlined his plans for the house. After that, Remus continued moving down a list and making notes with Harry’s input on all the little ways that life was rubbish.

And Remus… Remus had a lot of ideas.