Snitches get Stitches

December 15th

Harry saw Remus standing there, he did. Remus wasn't a mirage, he wasn't a ghost. It was really Remus there, not dead.

"I hoped you were dead," Harry told him, forgetting about Sirius and Dudley. "I actually fucking hoped you were dead."

Because if he died, if Remus was dead, then he didn't leave Harry willingly. It was the worst thing Harry ever did, but he hoped that Remus died.

"I'm sorry," Remus said. "Harry, I am so—"

"You left," Harry told him coldly. "You left. Why come back?" Harry pointed behind himself at Sirius. "Why did you bring him back?"

"Harry, Sirius came here first," Hermione said quietly, taking a place beside Harry and putting a hand on Harry's shoulder that he shook off. "He walked in the backdoor a few minutes ago. I was about to come get you."

Sirius was a drunk, a mad man who wasted his best years in Azkaban. Sirius couldn't be trusted, he never tried to earn any trust. Sirius left in a fit, returned in a fit; Sirius was consistently inconsistent.

Remus though… Remus said he was staying. Remus said that he would be there and that he wasn't scared away by the awful things that happened or Harry's terrible luck and shitty decisions. Remus wanted Harry to trust him and he tricked him, he tricked him and then he left.

So Harry hoped that he died because that would have been understandable. People died. Remus committed a lot of crimes, he spent time around criminals. If Remus died, it would have been terrible and Harry would have believed Remus would have been with him if he could.

"Why are you here?" Harry asked Remus, raising his chin. "I saw the paperwork, in your dresser."

It told Harry everything he needed to know - the deed to the house and the ID that said he was three years older than he was. There had been one for Dudley too, Remus's final gift to both of them.

"It's my house. So why are you here?" Harry asked. "WHY THE HELL DID YOU COME BACK?"

"I came to tell you I'm sorry," Remus said. "I'm so sorry, Harry. I didn't intend to be gone so long. I - there were things I needed to do."

"Like find Sirius?" Hermione guessed. "Good of you, except nobody quite wanted him here either."

"Who're you?" Sirius asked, struggling to get out of Dudley's grip. It wasn't going to happen, Dudley had an arm locked around Sirius's neck and at least twice as much muscle as Sirius had. Dudley wasn't letting him go anywhere.

"Her name is Hermione!" Harry yelled at him, almost as furious with Sirius as he was Remus. "What is wrong with you?!"

"I've got blood in my fucking eyes, Harry!" Sirius yelled right back. "Sorry if your friend here is making it hard to see."

Harry's next shout died in his throat, choking him really. Sirius was scowling, spitting, snarling. And he called him Harry. It was sad, but Harry couldn't remember the last time that Sirius recognized him. It was sadder that it made Harry's heart jump in his chest some, a hopeful beat that he couldn't force himself to not do again.

Even though he knew better, it wasn't as if Harry could control his own wild hopes. Nobody could… probably.

"Harry?" Mandy yelled down the stairs and, as one, Hermione and Remus both tucked their wands from view. "What's going on? You want me to get Mickey?"

"No," Harry yelled back, quickly. "It's Remus and Sirius, they're leaving." Harry glared at Remus and hid all his hurt behind true anger. "I don't care why you're back, I want you gone," Harry told him. "And you can take Sirius with you. You're both good at leaving - do it once more and do it right this time."

Harry knew Hermione and Dudley would make them leave, so Harry hurried up the stairs to move Mandy out of the house again. If he knew Sirius was there, he never would have let her come inside.

"Remus and Sirius are down there?" Mandy asked, backing away from the door when Harry joined her in the kitchen. "Fucking seriously? Why?"

"No idea," Harry said, taking her hand and lacing their fingers together comfortably. "They're leaving though. Mind if we go back to the Gallagher's? Sirius is a fucking lunatic and Remus is an untrustworthy dick," he said loudly enough to carry down in the basement, "I don't want you to get hurt while they get the hell out."

"Like I'd let two bitches like them to put a finger on me," Mandy scoffed, also loudly enough for them to hear. Harry loved her, he really did.

Mandy let Harry take her through the back door and the alley over to the Gallagher's house. Carl must have lost interest in his science project, or he was doing something else for school that involved a lighter and hairspray. Harry wasn't sure, Carl was a strange kid.

Fiona and Tonks had moved to the kitchen and Fiona started to ask Harry why he was there just before Mickey jumped off the back stairs and slugged Harry in the stomach.

"Douche," Mickey laughed, backing off while Harry caught his breath. "Like I was going to fuckin' forget."

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Mandy scowled, helping Harry stand back up. "He's having the worst fucking day, could you like not?"

No, Harry deserved it a bit. He knew it was going to happen at some point - at least it wasn't his face.

"Why's Harry having the worst day?" Ian asked, hopping down the staircase behind Mickey.

"Sirius and Remus are at his house," Mandy told them all. "Dudley and Hermione are kicking them back out now."

"Remus is there?" Tonks asked, her head picking up and swiveling to find Harry. "With Sirius?"

Harry worked his jaw and nodded shortly. Tonks didn't have to look so bloody pleased about it. Harry certainly wasn't.

If they were dead - they didn't leave him.

"I'll be back, love." Tonks kissed Fiona quickly on the cheek and rushed to the door, snagging a black leather jacket off the hook before she left. If she wanted to talk to them, fine, but if she tried to convince them to stay then Harry was going to have a problem with her.

"So you movin' in too?" Mickey asked Harry. "Basement's getting a bit full."

"Not that you'd know," Fiona scoffed. She was cooking something, something that smelled warm and good. "You spend so much time in Ian's bed that Lip's the only one who sleeps in the basement."

Mandy glanced at Harry then and he adamantly looked up at the ceiling. Harry didn't care where Lip slept, no matter what Mandy tried to imply. Harry couldn't keep ‘barking up the wrong tree'. The sparks that built under Harry's skin when he was around Lip were on Harry's part, that was it.

If Harry stopped shagging all of his friends, maybe he'd have a lot less problems.

It didn't help that Lip's eyes seemed to linger on Harry, Harry could feel it ever since their - their hummer incident. Why did Lip stare at him if he wasn't interested? Was trying to buy Harry's baby for him considered just a friendly thing to do? Harry had Lip's bloody name tattooed on his arm, it sort of made him think that Lip was more interested than he let on.

Except Lip's words went against his actions every single time so Harry was done. All Harry needed to focus on was his child, his future. Even if Lip slipped in Harry's thoughts much too often.

"I'm not moving in," Harry assured them all. "Remus gave me the house, I told him and Sirius to get lost."

"A minor can't own a house." Lip walked down the stairs slowly, favoring his good leg. It irritated Harry sometimes to think about Hermione shooting Lip, then there were plenty of times where Harry wished he could shoot Lip himself.

Harry probably shouldn't shoot his friends either. No shooting, no shagging. Even if Harry's blood buzzed with the urge to do something.

"I think it's a forged deed," Harry shrugged. "He left me an ID too, kind of him, I suppose."

Fiona snorted and then nodded when Harry looked at her. "Good for you, Harry," she said. "Don't forgive him for being an ass, you deserve better."

"Frank disappears on us every day and you let him come back," Ian said. "How's Remus different?"

"Because Frank never pretended to not be an ass," Fiona said - it made sense to Harry. "Remus like - he - he fucking baited and switched on Harry."

"Which is a crime for car salesmen," Lip said, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed. His eyes were lingering again, Harry could feel them. "Want me to go over and make sure they fuck off?" he offered. "Or is Hermione just going to shoot them out the door?"

"She might," Mandy said, batting her eyelashes sweetly. "Hermione has really good aim with a gun, don't you think?"

Harry grinned, even if he shouldn't.

Lip muttered something that Harry was sure was ‘crazy bitch'. Harry should have also probably defended Hermione, but he didn't think she'd mind being called a crazy bitch. Hermione seemed to really take to life in Chicago, Harry was actually worried that she wouldn't be happy when she moved to her little posh part of the city.

There weren't going to be as many kids carrying guns and swapping joints and cigarettes in her new area. That was what Mandy said, Harry was sure she was right. As polished as Hermione acted, she fit in just perfectly with Harry's new friends.

"Well you can't just live alone," Fiona told Harry. "You're a kid, kids need adults or they turn into Mickey."

"Hey! What's wrong with being me?" Mickey jumped up to sit on the washer and glared while he lit a cigarette. "I'm a fuckin' delight," he said.

"How many times have you been arrested?" Fiona asked.

"Arrested? Seven," Mickey said. "Convicted? Only three times and that's a good fucking percentage. Everyone should have that kinda success rate against the crooked ass justice system."

"Harry's not going to be a felon, he's going to be a father," Fiona said. "So no, he doesn't need to be just like you. He needs to be like - like… oh!" Fiona snapped her fingers and pointed at Harry. "You should be more like Kev, right? Kev's a great fucking dad. He loves it! That's who you should be like!"

"I sort of thought I'd be like you," Harry told Fiona, accepting the cigarette Lip passed him and lighting it at the table. "You know, you're a great mum… so if I just do what you do, I'll be fine."

It was a genuine statement, Harry wasn't kissing Fiona's arse for any reason. Fiona was raising her siblings, all of them, and she had been for years. The Gallaghers were a bit wild and fun, but they were a family and they looked out for each other, cared about each other, took care of each other.

Fiona had to have been the one to teach them how to do that since Harry was sure that Frank and Monica never did.

"You know she's into chicks now, right?" Ian asked, grinning almost half as much as Fiona was. "So if you're looking for a step-mom, you're barking up the wrong tree, dude."

"I'll marry you, Harry!" Debby offered. Harry didn't even notice her, but she was sitting on the floor by the wall, coloring something on a poster board. "I love babies," she told him. "And I can cook and clean really good!"

"Thanks, Debbie," Harry said kindly, thinking of another redheaded girl who used to have a silly crush on him. "Maybe instead of us getting married, you can help babysit sometime?"

"Since he's into dick and all," Mickey pointed out.

"Excuse you?" Mandy pointed at herself while the Gallaghers all cracked up. "I think I'm proof that Harry's not a total fag."

"Or he was aimin' for your ass and missed."

That time, while Fiona scolded Mickey for language in front of Debbie, even Harry joined in the laughter. It really would be great if Harry's life turned out like that all the time - sitting in a warm kitchen with a family, trading jokes and laughing about stupid shit while they picked on each other.

Nobody leaving, nobody fighting, just… just being there.

Harry had a good time staying for a while, insulting Mickey almost as much as he insulted him. Fiona rolled her eyes a lot, Ian had an easy smile, and Lip eventually sat at the table with Harry and Mandy. When the conversation lulled, Harry brought up the basement project he had going on to Lip and got his agreement that he'd help him get it finished soon.

It was such a good time that Harry almost forgot completely about Remus and Sirius until Hermione and Dudley walked in through the backdoor.

"They're gone," Dudley told him bluntly. "I had to knock Sirius's bloody head in the wall a few times, but he left."

Harry nearly asked where they went then told himself he didn't care. "Good," he bit out instead. It was good. Harry didn't want them there, he didn't want them around. If they weren't going to stay, then they should leave and not return.

"Remus left something for you at the house," Hermione said, her eyes and voice much softer than Dudley's. "I put it on your desk for you, when you're ready."

"What? An apology letter?" Lip scoffed while Harry tried to read the silent message in Hermione's eyes. "That guy can shove it up his ass."

"Not a letter, no." Hermione was still staring at Harry and he had to assume it was something magical based on the secrecy act. "Remember that thing you bought on your eleventh birthday? It was broken before you moved here?"

It took Harry a second longer to understand and then he was on his feet instantly, a hot wave of hope rising up from his stomach. Because surely Hermione didn't mean - there was no way that she meant…

"It's on your desk and yours to freely use," she said, moving away from the doorway so Harry had a path. "Try to not be stupid."

Oh Harry was going to be stupid. Harry was going to be an absolute fucking moron because he was nearly 100% sure that Hermione was telling him that Remus got him a wand to use and that it was waiting in his bedroom.

And nearly 100% positive was much better odds than Mickey's success rate against the criminal system.

*****

Lip waited for like three days for Harry to say a single fucking word to him about the basement he wanted to finish. Every time he saw him, Harry seemed to be locked up in his own little world and it was starting to grate on Lip's nerves that he wouldn't share anything going on in his head with him.

When Lip couldn't take it anymore, he climbed the fence between their yards and pounded his fist on Harry's door. Just before his fist hit the door for the third time, it was thrown open and Dudley slipped right out of it.

"Mate, you're on Harry watch," Dudley said quickly, pulling his jacket on while he pushed past Lip. "I can't do it. There's only so much crazy a bloke can take, isn't there?"

Lip didn't even get a chance to ask what the fuck Harry was doing to be crazy before Dudley was charging down the stairs and jogging toward Kevin and V's house.

Harry watch? Was he like fucking depressed again or something? God damn it, could Harry ever be normal for five fucking seconds?

Lip let himself in through the front and tilted his head, listening for sound. When he didn't hear anything upstairs, he thought he might check the basement first.

Harry had been all fucking giddy about redoing his basement, it was as decent of a place as any to check first. As soon as Lip made it to the kitchen and heard the noise coming from behind the basement door, he figured he guessed right.

"Harry?" Lip yelled down the stairs before he started down them. Lip wasn't a bitch or anything, but there was something kind of cold in the air, something that had Lip walking down the stairs a little more slowly.

The banging that Lip heard quieted down, but the literal fucking dust still didn't settle when Lip hit the floor and got a look around at the mess Harry had happening.

There was shit everywhere, chunks of drywall busted on the floor, boards put up as a half-assed wall. Someone carved out a little area that was either a small bathroom or a big closet. All of it was sloppy work though, crappy work done by a fucking crazy guy.

"Hey!" Harry sat in the middle of a mess of paint samples and grinned up at Lip. "I'm picking colors," he explained.

"Yeah, that makes sense," Lip said, taking in the destruction again. "I mean, it's like step twenty and you're on step two, but why the fuck not?"

"Exactly," Harry said quickly, like Lip wasn't being sarcastic as fuck. "I'll save the baby's room for last, but I think I'm going to go with blue for the rest of it. What do you think?"

Lip thought Harry was high, actually. It wasn't weed, weed didn't have Harry tweaking out.

"Did you snort something? Smoke meth?" Lip guessed, kicking a pile of crumbled plaster away so he could sit on the floor by Harry. Harry wasn't sweating like a tweaker, he sounded like one though.

"No, don't be fucking daft," Harry said, pushing paint samples to Lip. "What color do you think?"

Lip looked down at all the paint samples and tried to understand how anyone gave a fuck about the different shade of blue. Periwinkle, sunny skies, they were all the damn same.

"Do it in fucking stripes," Lip said carelessly. "Hey, why'd your cousin run out of here? He said you're crazy."

"Pft." Harry scoffed and then grinned, crooked, freely. His eyes were sparkling and if it wasn't drugs then it was just craziness. "Dudley's missing his boxing buddies, that's all. I think he's fucking bored. Stripes could work though… no, I don't like stripes. Here, look, what if I did each wall a different color?"

Lip pulled a cigarette from his pack and lit it slowly, listening to Harry talk his fucking head off the whole time. It took about half a cigarette before it clicked for Lip, for the whole fucking thing to click:

Bipolar Disorder.

That was what Monica had, what Fiona was waiting for one of the Gallagher kids to have. It was mood swings, high-highs, low-lows. When Monica used to show up, she'd be manic and excited and full of energy. Eventually it would crash down and she'd be stuck in bed, depressed, ready to give up on everything.

It was a sick rollercoaster and Lip hated seeing it as a kid, he wanted to shake Monica and scream at her. And there was Harry, with all the same fucking symptoms, and Lip didn't feel like shaking him even a little bit. He needed help, he needed help fucking bad.

"You seen Remus since he showed up?" Lip asked, wondering if Remus was even the right person to help Harry. If Fiona didn't have so much shit on her plate, Lip might drag Harry to her. Fiona had the kids though and Ian's dumbass boyfriend, she had work and her shiny new girlfriend. Fiona didn't need to take on another whack job, but Lip couldn't expect Harry to just deal on his own either.

"He stops by every morning, I shut the door in his face," Harry said carelessly. "I wish he'd fuck off. Hey, do you want to smoke? Mandy's out with Hermione, I think they're sight-seeing. Hermione's parents will be here next week, she keeps saying she's taking Mandy with her."

"Your friend stole your girl? Cold," Lip said. Lip had some weed on him and Harry didn't seem to care if he lit up right there in the basement. They passed the joint back and forth and Lip tried to think of the shit Fiona would try when Monica was being fucking nuts.

"Hermione's a better influence than I am." Harry leaned back on his hands and grinned, slow and lazy. It was like a punch to Lip's gut though, every fucking time.

Sometimes Lip wished he'd never met Harry. Lip might still be fucking Karen and running his usual scams. Lip wouldn't have ever tried to buy a fucking baby or get his dick sucked by a dude. And, when Lip's stomach flipped, it would be from a nice rack and not green eyes and a stoned smile.

"Hermione's a lesbian with a pistol," Lip argued. "I wouldn't say she's a great fucking influence."

"I was arrested for murder, tried to cut my arm off, and I got shot during an armed robbery," Harry laughed. "Hermione's just healthier though, she doesn't smoke and she takes vitamins, that's what I meant."

They made pills for crazy people, Lip remembered suddenly a very brief period of time before Monica left when DCS got up their asses and Monica took medicine. Lip probably only remembered because Monica spent a week acting like a fucking zombie and then… then she made cookies.

It was one good memory Lip had with Monica, they made cookies together. She apologized for the shit she put them all through and let them have fresh baked cookies for dinner.

Fiona didn't need another nut case on her plate, but Lip? Lip didn't have shit to do anyway. If it meant he needed to figure out how to get Harry some pills to even his ass out, whatever.

Lip wouldn't do it for any of his other friends, but Lip didn't really have other friends anyway.

If it meant Lip had to hang out and babysit Harry and keep him from tearing down support beams, it wasn't a big deal. Lip would feel like a dick if he left Harry alone and his dumbass got buried under his house anyway.

Lip mostly planned while he worked anyway. So what if Remus bailed? It was bullshit, but he came back. And as far as Lip knew, Remus never put his hands on Harry or pulled any of the crap Sirius did.

"When are you going to let Remus back in?" Lip asked Harry. Lip was hanging insulation, trying to actually fill the gaps that Harry left everywhere. God, he was shit at home renovation.

"Probably never," Harry said. The weed slowed him down some, but his twitchy ass was still more of a pain than anything. "I've got Dudley for now and Mandy for a bit longer. I don't really need Remus, do I?"

"Who's going to watch the kid when you have school?" Lip tried. Lip had to get the air nailer to hang up the next sheet, it would fall under the walls and bunch up if he didn't secure it.

"I barely go to school now," Harry said, just loudly enough for Lip to hear him over the nails. "Ian's talking about enlisting though, I might do that with him."

"That's a fucking two year commitment," Lip said. "And you can't take a kid to basic training."

"So I'll see if Ethel and Dudley will watch them. It sounds brilliant, Ian's already talked to recruiters. I'm going with him tomorrow."

Lip didn't know why Ian was all gung-ho to sign up fit the Army and he sure as fuck didn't think Harry needed to go either. It wasn't until Harry's shit plan got shittier that Lip's hand slipped.

"The recruiter told Ian that if I'm married that my spouse and kid would travel with me."

Lip turned, wondering if Harry was actually fucking serious. "You're fucking fift—"

The air nailer slipped when Lip looked away and it took one second for his finger to accidentally press the trigger. Then Lip's brain actually flashed with red as he drove a nail through his wrist and directly into the support beam.

"MOTHER FUCK!" It wasn't as bad as being shot in the knee, but blood immediately started spraying from Lip's wrist, hitting him in the face, and he was stuck as fuck when he tried to pull himself free.

Lip wasn't a bitch, but just seeing his wrist spurting blood and nailed to a board had his knees weak and his stomach ready to puke. It was sick and he was stuck and Harry was swearing twice as much as Lip.

"Don't move," Harry said, like Lip fucking could. "Hold on. Don't - don't freak out and quit fucking pulling on it."

Lip breathed in through his nose and looked away from his own blood. It meant he was looking right at Harry though and watched as Harry's eyes narrowed in what seemed like concentration. Harry didn't respect fucking personal boundaries and he was all up in Lip's shit with his hand carefully probing Lip's arm.

"Use a hammer, pry the nail out," Lip told him. "And slap me if I look like I'm going to faint."

"Or…" Harry pulled a stick out from his back pocket and grinned, like there was anything fucking funny going on. "I'll make the nail disappear and you sort of don't tell anyone else about this."

Lip's instinct was to tell Harry to quit being fucking crazy, it wasn't the time for it. Lip's wrist was fucking nailed to a post and every twitch of his muscles sent a wave of hot pain up his arm.

Then Harry flicked his stick and mumbled some shit under his breath and… and…

The nail vanished.

One second it was there and the next… the nail was gone and Lip's wrist was freed with nothing more than a puncture wound from a nail that didn't fucking exist.

Lip sucked in a sharp breath and looked at his wrist, at Harry's stick, at Harry's smug fucking face. His heart was racing, like unhealthy fucking levels of racing, and he was pretty sure it had nothing to do with pain anymore.

"What the fuck," Lip breathed.

Harry grinned like he didn't just defy the fucking laws of the entire universe. "You're taking it much better than I did," he said casually.

Lip jerked his hand to his chest and wrapped his hands around his wrist, probing for any sign of the nail. All he felt was his own pulse and some blood that had slowed. Lip should have been freaking out, he probably fucking was, but Harry's face was right there and Lip just thought…

"You can't get fucking married to some random chick."

Harry twirled his stick in his hand and Lip had never seen him so fucking cocky before. "If that was a marriage proposal, it was crap. I'm not saying I need a ring, but you could snog me at least."

There were… there were a million fucking things wrong with what Harry just said. That wasn't even - Lip wasn't —

Lip opened his mouth to tell Harry to fuck off with his weird nail-vanishing stick and his manic bullshit about getting married and enlisting at fifteen. Or maybe Lip was going to ask Harry how the fuck he did what he did, ask any of the million fucking questions he had.

Instead, Lip reached out with his bloodied hand and ignored the throb of pain when he grabbed the collar of Harry's shirt and yanked him even closer.

If nothing fucking made sense, if Harry was some fucking nut job, then whatever. If Harry could make nails disappear with a fucking wand then Lip… Lip could kiss a dude and pretend like it didn't feel completely fucking right.