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Chapter Text

He was scratching away with red ink when the door opened to his classroom. He glanced up to see Harry walk in. He went to the second row from the front of the classroom and three sits in. Placing his books softly on the desk he carefully removed his backpack and set it next to his chair. The boy then looked up at him.

“Good morning, Professor.” He sat down and pulled out his black-lined book he was constantly writing it.

“Morning,” He mumbled back and watched the boy a little longer before he returned to his grading.

His thoughts wandered to the boy, as they often did. He was nothing like he expected. He was waiting to see a carbon copy of his father when the boy arrived. Then he walked up to the sorting hat with a small smile and sat quiet and straight. He was respectful and never fidgeted like most kids do when waiting. The process took a while but the real surprise was when the hat called out “RAVENCLAW!”. Harry thanked McGonagall before moving to join his new family. Like Severus, the Gryffindor table starred with disbelief.

Harry, Severus thought while dipping his quill, was different than most students here. Despite the sneer he sent him, Harry was never impolite. Whenever he saw any of the professors he greeted them with a soft smile. He was punctual, unlike his father, and even arrived early to his classes. A habit his mother had.

He asked questions that Severus never even thought to ask. Such on the first day of potions, “Sir, why don’t they describe in the book different results of a potion? Wouldn’t that help student identify where they made a mistake?” The teacher had to blink a couple of times. He was not expecting a question such as that from him. He quickly answered that it would make the books to thick and heavy to carry around. He watched as the boy looked ready to ask more questions before nodding and turning to his journal.

From what he heard he asked questions like this in all his classes. Something that Flitwick appreciated. He asked questions most people didn’t think about.

“If you change the material from wood to stone how does it change is dexterity overall? Wouldn’t rearranging the structure cause long-term effects even if it’s reverted?” He heard Minerva’s eyes almost popped out of her head from the question.

“How does a star’s death effect magic and the rituals performed under them?” Sinistra was excited to see someone taking her class seriously.

“How does range affect a spell? If you are closer is a spell more powerful since the magic has less distance to travel and less interference?” Flitwick told Harry if he wrote an essay on this topic, he would give him extra credit.

Severus had to take a step back a reevaluate his assumptions about the Potter child. Besides the hair color, sharp jaw, and long limbs, James Potter didn’t shine through his son. Unfortunately, besides a few habits, his laugh, his nose and eyes, his mother didn’t either. He was his own person. Something that he felt Albus wasn’t counting on.

“Hello Harry,” the soft voice of Susan Bones pulled Severus out of his thoughts. He looked down and noticed a small pool of ink was forming on his desk below where his ink was idly hovering. He cleaned it up with a frown.

“Harry,” Hannah said with a smile. She gave his soft hug before continuing, “Did you get a letter from Mom?” Severus frowned at the way she said it.

“Yes,” He pulled out a box from his backpack, “Mint brownies. Would you like one?” The girls agreed and grabbed one then sat next to him.

“Mom sent me ones with cream cheese in the middle. They’re my favorite.” Snape wrote a score on top of the essay before flipping it into the next pile. He reached out to grab the next paper when he saw a body in front of him. He looked up to see Harry holding a box.

“Excuse me, Professor,” He said, “My foster mother sent me mint brownies. Would you like one?” Severus blinked at the boy. He never had a student share sweets with him.

“If you wouldn’t mind sharing,” He watched Harry reach into the box with a napkin before passing the little brown square to him. “Thank you,” he murmured after grabbing the treat. Harry then walked back to his seat closing the container and putting it away.

As he nibbled on the brownie, which was quite delicious might he add, he thought over what Harry said. He had a foster mother. Which if the way they spoke said anything, was Hannah Abbott’s mother, Delana.

Delana was a head matron at St. Mungos in the Child Ward. She was a muggle-born Hufflepuff and two years ahead of Severus when they attended Hogwarts. She was a very friendly and compassionate person. At one point she had offered to help Severus prepare for a Herbology exam. Other than that, they never really spoke. They knew of each other but never spent time together.

Though he didn’t know much about her, he knew she didn’t have connections to the Potters. So, why did she have custody of the boy? Why wasn’t he with relatives like Dumbledore had explained to Severus all those years ago?

Terry Boot entered the Room with his Friend Ernie and Justin. The two latter waved at Harry before sitting in the back row. Terry sat behind Harry. He ruffled Harry’s short hair, unlike his father’s messy ear length hair, and took a piece of Harry’s brownie when offered.

Soon they classroom filled with students and low chatter. Essays were placed on the corner of the work tables ready to be collected. This was Severus’s fourth class with Harry. The Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs having two smaller classes to their counterparts one long one. He enjoyed teaching this class more for two reasons. One, no one was sabotaging each other. Two, Harry had always interesting questions. He found he wasn’t the only one enjoying the questions the boy asked. Many of the students stared at him whenever the professor asked if anyone had any. Though strangely enough, he would only ask two per class. Whenever he seemed to have more, he would take to his journal.

After collecting the essays he started in theory about medical potions. Explaining potions, their side effects, their benefits, and why they couldn’t change the taste without changing the effectiveness. It was nearing the end of the class when the boy’s hand shot up, “Yes, Mr. Potter?”

“Why can’t you put the potions in gel capsules as muggles do?  That way you would just swallow the potion without tasting it and the capsule would dissolve in your stomach releasing the potion. They make the material out of gelatin so it has no taste and doesn’t affect the ingredients. Couldn’t you up the potency of the potion to create a smaller amount that could fit into a small capsule?” Severus stopped his pacing and blinked at the boy. Chatter around him started, stating what an amazing idea that was, some were asking what gelatin was. Severus had to agree with them, that was an impressive idea.

And he had one equally as impressive. One to get questions answered and learn more about the boy. “Mr. Potter, Meet me after class to discuss your idea.”

Chapter Text

He was writing in his journal again. The corners of the book were bent and the spine was creased in places from the constant use. The bottom of his lip was sucked in between his teeth. He was writing with what looked like a pen instead of the quill he used in his class. His glasses, shaped more in an oversized trapezoid shape compared to his father’s rectangular ones, were skewed as his hand rested against his temple.

“Mr. Potter,” The pen stilled and was sat neatly in the crook of the book.

“Good afternoon, Professor,” A small smile and a tilt of the head was shown to the dour man. He looked at the book, trying to see what was written in it. The child noticed his gaze and slowly closed the cover, the pen prevented it from closing all the way. “It’s my journal,” the boy explained, “It helps me process everything in my head. Very private,” He pulled the pen out from the book and threw a wandless charm on it. Severus’s eyebrows shot up at the act but didn’t say anything.

“I apologize for having to move the meeting till the weekend,” He pulled his own journal out from the desk and sat across from the boy, “Let’s discuss this idea of yours.” He was given a nod.

“When I was treated in a muggle hospital they used to give me medicine that was wrapped in a capsule with a gel on the inside. I believe it could be recreated with a substance like gelatin.” Harry pulled out a textbook that had paper pieces sticking out of the edges. When Severus looked closer he noticed they had thin neat writing on them.

He had to stop and process what he had said, Harry was treated in a muggle hospital. He decided to question that statement further, “What were you being treated for?”

Harry’s hand paused above his book for a moment. He took a deep breath then answered, “There was an accident. It’s okay now.” He tapped his finger against the desk. It was a rhythm, tap, tap, tap, taptap, tap. After the second round of tapping he stopped, “Beside spelling a potion and drinking it, are there other ways to ingest it?”

“There are a few that need to be poured into a cut or some rub into the skin.” Harry nodded and reached to his back and pulled out a new journal. This one wasn’t worn and had a velvet blue cover.

“I was given medicine one of three ways in the hospital,” He drew in the notebook while he talked. “Capsule, injection, and fluid. I guess an I.V. is technically considered an injection but I’m putting it in a separate category.”

“Was it a big accident?” Severus asked nonchalantly. He was glancing at the notebook trying to collect as much information from the child’s words as he could. Once again the boy stilled, his muscles tense before answering, “Yes.”

It was silent before Harry spoke again, “I would rather not discuss the nature of my accident. It was a difficult time and I am still working on the aftermath with my therapists.”

Therapists, Severus thought while nodding to the boy. He had more questions with too few answered. He was in a muggle hospital, and if he had several medical treatments it must have been a big accident. Whatever happened it apparently had lasting repercussions.

For the next hour, they worked through his idea and discussed starting working with calming draughts. He left for his common room with a two page spread his journal of drawings and half-written sentences. He had left the classroom like he always done, a wave and a “Good Day Professor.”

He hadn’t gotten much from the boy over the next hour. He found that he was indeed living with the Abbots’. He hadn’t found out why he was with that family but the way he spoke about it, he seemed happy and enjoyed their company. He refused to talk about anything before the accident, which he had found out happened when the boy was nine and a half. When he asked, Harry had sternly told him he would not answer any more questions regarding the matter. It had made Severus’s eyebrow raise in surprise.

He noticed one thing when the boy left the room though, he had a limp from his left side. It was slight and you had to look for it, but once he saw it he knew it was there. From then he watched the boy more closely in class.

The following Monday showed the boy in his class before everyone else. He was quiet in his usual manner, but he seemed different today. His form hunched slightly in exhaustion and bags hung darkly under his eyes. He paused quite a few times in his writing to stare off blankly in front of him before jerking rapidly and continuing his work. His movements were still precise but they were shaky and slow.

Severus watched him from the guise of reading the paper, his eyes staring intently over the edge of the print. He was rubbing his eyes with his fists. A yawn followed his actions before his pen was placed on the book. He rested his head on his right hand and closed his eyes. It only lasted a few minutes before his two friends came into the classroom.

“Harry,” It was Hannah who spoke first, “Madam Pomfrey told you that you could spend the day in the infirmary recovering.” Severus was looking down at the newspaper but his eyebrows knitted together. Did the boy get hurt?

“We aren’t doing potions today, just theory,” Harry stated, “I’ll be okay. Plus it was small, nothing to worry about.”

“Auntie said you can’t rush through recovery,” It was Susan who spoke to Harry next.

“I’m not!” Harry sternly told the redhead. “I know my limits.” Susan sat next to Harry, Hannah took his other side. The Hufflepuff's squished him in a hug which put a smile on the boy’s face.

Terry sped walked into the classroom and sat behind Harry like usual. He leaned over the desk his elbows propping him up. “You okay?” He asked.

“Yeah,” He replied tiredly.

“Man, that was scary. I didn’t know what to do. Thank god you had your charms.” Severus had folded the paper and pulled out a black journal from his top drawer while listening to the conversation.

“Mom is thinking he needs a service dog,” Hannah stated. It was in a lower voice and Severus nearly missed what she said. “Just in case.”

“I think a service dog would be a distraction. I don’t need one. I have my charms.” Harry said defiantly next to her. She huffed and turned to her bag.

Severus had started to write in his journal again. He had created a list underneath the boy's name. Quickly he wrote Needs a service dog? He closed the book and slipped it in the desk as the rest of the class walked in. After everyone sat down he turned to the board writing out the topics of the day. Though he said one thing, his mind kept wandering to another.

Chapter Text

He found the boy sitting on a window sill. His legs were pulled up and his robe was draped over him like a blanket. He was talked to someone outside that was below him. He couldn’t see or hear what he was saying but he could see his shoulders shake from laughing. There was a book next to him and his owl was perched on top of his head looking at Severus.

A yellow cat was sitting on the stone floor looking up at Harry, its tail was flicking wildly. She was staring at a string that was dangling in his hand. After a moment he moved it rapidly. When she caught he tugged on it until it let go. Once the string was free he started moving it again.

“Mr. Potter,” Harry turned towards the professor, there was a smile on his face.

“Hello Professor,” His voice was light. The tiredness from the previous day was gone. “It’s such a nice day outside.”

“Yes, it is.” He walked over to the boy. The cat stood up and walked away. He saw it turn and walk out to the courtyard. “Why are you not heading to Quidditch practice with your friends?”

“I can’t participate in sports,” He reached up and stroked the bird on his head.

“Does it have to do with your accident?” The teacher looked out to see his friends walk away. They waved at the boy which Harry returned.

“Yes, Sir.” He wrapped his hands around the owl and set her on the windowsill before standing and throwing the robe over his shoulders. He grabbed his bag from the floor and placed it on his shoulder. “I have to go to meet with my therapist.”

“I will accompany you.” He addressed as the boy walked past the entrance of the doorway. “What is your therapist like?” Maybe he could get information in a roundabout way.

“Oh. She’s very helpful.” He said looking up to his teacher, “I had a lot to deal with when I first started seeing her. We found that the circumstances of my accident were just the beginning. It was through her that we found I need more physical therapy, a nutritionist, and medication.” The turned down a hallway. Minerva was walking towards them, both males said hello to her as she passed.

“That’s a lot of services,” Severus murmured. What had happened that required that much help and medical attention?

“Yeah,” Harry scratched the top of Mrs. Norris’s head as she trotted by. The cat halted as he did so. There was a small bout of purring before they picked up their walk. “When Mrs. Abbott came and took me in we no longer needed the nutritionist. Plus having someone to talk to me at any time helped. I also enjoy having someone my age who isn’t trying to beat me to a pulp.” Severus’s eyes narrowed but he didn’t comment. “I’m really happy there. I didn’t know you could be so happy. It was weird having people treat me nicely.” Harry then froze. He seemed to realize what he said and looked at his professor.

“Did your family not treat you nicely, Mr. Potter?” Severus asked.

“My new family treats me perfectly,” He avoided the question. Moving to try and change the subject. He didn’t want to talk about his old family.  “Have a good day. Professor.” And with that he opened the door they stopped in front of and walked through. He heard a woman’s voice welcome him.

As he walked back to his office he pondered about the small details that were revealed. His accident had created limitations. It was bad enough that he needed a lot of medical care, and from how he made it sound, not all of it was from this accident. Though what he needed help with from before the accident was undetermined. Possibly the nutritionist.

Before he reached the stairs leading to the basement he stopped. Instead of going to his rooms and brewing while milling things over, he turned on the ball of his foot and started to the other end of the castle. If there was anyone he could talk about this inquiry it would be the old cat that he had a great admiration for, not that he would admit.

After knocking on her door and walking through, he found her reading over several assignments. She placed the paper down and looked up to him, “Hello Severus.”

“Hello,” He took a seat, “Do you know anything about where Potter lived?” Her eyebrows raised in surprise but she made no mention his interest in the boy.

“He lives,” She tried to correct the man, “with his mother’s sister and her family. Why?”

His body stilled. He lived with Petunia? Who in their right mind thinks to put a magic-wielding being with a magic-hating muggle? “Are you sure?”

“Yes, I was with Albus when he was dropped off.” She stacked the papers on the corner of her desk and waved her wand. A teapot and cups came to the desk.

“He doesn’t live there. Not anymore.” He grabbed the tea that was poured for him, “He lives with the Abbotts.”

That made Minerva pause, “Why would he live there?”

“From what I have found out there was an accident. I was wondering if you could ask around with some of your connections and see what you can find out. I would but if it got back to me that I was digging around a muggle neighborhood, it could be bad.” His index finger tapped lightly against the cup, “The boy is very tight-lipped about the ordeal. Based on what I’ve deducted, it was a big accident.”  

“Do you have any idea how bad?”

“Bad enough that he can’t do sports and he has a variety of therapists.” A thought came to him, “Do you think Albus knows?”

“Seeing as he had someone keeping an eye on the boy, I don’t doubt it.” She said through gritted teeth. She took a deep breath, “I’ll send a few letters.”

Chapter Text

The next time Severus found Harry, was once again in the hallway. He was watching a pair of redheaded twins throwing firecracker spells. He was laughing and cheering them on from the sidelines. The twins then started showing the younger years how to cast the spell, how to catch them and throw them back. Soon the hallway was alight with dancing lights and laughter.

A Ravenclaw that was a year older than Harry, Brie Lawson, was juggling four different colored lights. Several noticed her talent and started to watch and cheer her on. A Hufflepuff, Cedric Diggory, was rolling them up his arm and across his shoulders. A girl next to him made a comment that Severus couldn’t hear but caused a blush to form on the boy's cheeks. Harry grabbed a passing Slytherin and quickly showed the boy the spell. After the boy turned to look behind him, he saw that it was Draco Malfoy. Harry had convinced the blond to join in the fun, Severus was impressed that the ever-present sneer quickly faded into a smile.

Silently awarding the three houses five points for unity, he watched as several students waved goodbye. Harry waved back at Terry and Brie as the wandered away. The twins were in the middle of the group and caught the attention of the younger years. Lighting the tips of their wands the smiled mischievously and brought them together before thrusting them above their heads.

There was an explosion of lights. It flashed rapidly and quickly in different colors. Severus was baffled by the marksmanship and applauded their dedication to the creation. Several gasps and shouts were heard but they quickly turned into sounds of wonder and amazement. He would have walked away then if it wasn’t for Susan Bones.

“HARRY!” He turned back to the group and saw the students clear away leaving a perfect view of Harry’s convulsion limbs. He was on the floor jerking rapidly against the stones. Hannah quickly rushed to his head and stripped off her cloak. After folding it she stuck it under Harry’s head. Susan had managed to untie the bronze and blue scarf and throw it the side before starting to loosen his buttons around his neck.

Severus was at the boy’s side immediately. He grabbed the boy's arms and pinned them against the floor. He was going to put his legs over the boys lower half when Hannah started shouting at him. “DON’T! DON’T HOLD HIM!” She pushed against his grip. He reluctantly let go and listen as she told him to help turn him on his side, “It’ll help him keep his airways clear,” she said as Susan made sure to keep the rest of the students away. Most of the red-headed girl's attention was on a tempus spell, she was watching it intently.

“How long?” Severus looked up to see Madam Pomfrey push several children out of her way.

“Two and half minutes,” Susan stated.

The jerking body below Severus’s grip started to still. His muscles started to relax and a groan could be heard. There was a little bit of blood trickling out of the boy's mouth.

“Oh dear,” the healer turned his face towards her and quickly healed his bitten tongue before checking him over.  She cast several spells and then started to levitate the boy towards the infirmary, Susan and Hannah were following the floating body whispering reassurances. Harry looked around dazed with half-lidded eyes. After a moment's hesitation, Severus followed the group.

“What happened?” He asked as soon as Harry was resting in a bed. His breathing indicated that he had fallen asleep. Hannah had curled up next to him and was dozing off as well. Susan was tracing circles on his wrist from the seat to his left.

“Just a seizure,” The healer told Severus. She had draped a blanket over Hannah. “How about you head back to your dorms. I would say take your friend, Hannah, but you know how that will go.” Susan laughed and patted Harry’s arm before getting up and leaving. She watched the sleeping pair before turning back to the potion master. “He developed epilepsy a few years back from an accident.”

“Do you know what happened?” Severus asked. If the boy hadn’t had seizures before perhaps it was a head injury that he had suffered from. He could have also had an infection that left scarring or by some freak accident had a stroke. Or it could have been dormant and the accident triggered the condition. Severus ground his teeth in frustration.

“It’s very hush hush,” She said as she made her way to her office, “It was kept under wraps so the press didn’t get.” She sat down in her chair as Severus stood and leaned against the door frame. “All I know if there was trauma to the head. I don’t what kind, I don’t know what it stemmed from. Harry has a personal healer that comes in every week. They help with his physical therapy and take the records I have of each seizure. Normally I wouldn’t allow this, keeping information about his health could be detrimental.” She sighed, “But legally I am in a bind. I am told he has seizures and that I am to monitor his brain after each one.”

“Why is it so hush hush?” Severus asked in frustration. “I’ve tried getting answers from the boy but he refuses to speak.” He grabbed the chair across from the woman and sat in it. “Minerva doesn’t know anything, I want to ask Albus but if he doesn’t know I don’t want to bring it to his attention.”

“Why not?”

“Because from what I learned, he thought it was a good idea to put the boy with a magical hating family.” Severus felt the hair on the back of his neck rise from the glare the healer gave. “Did you know he is living with the Abbotts?”

“Yes,” She leaned forward on her desk, “Delana has it set up to visit every other Saturday. You know he calls her Mum?” Severus’s eyebrows raised at that.

“Really?”

“Yeah. As far as he is concerned the Abbotts are his real family. He calls Hannah his sister. He is very protective of her.” Severus nodded. He had noticed the slight protective behavior he had over the Hufflepuff girls.

“I have to go speak with someone,” Severus stood and made his way to the door, “If I find out anything, I’ll pass it along.” With that, he left the infirmary and made his way to Minerva’s office. He knocked on the door opening it to see Minerva talking to a man. He didn’t know who it was, seeing as his back was to him.

“Severus, come in.” The man turned to him with Minerva’s words. Staring back at him was his old scar-faced rival. “Remus has agreed to go back to Harry’s old neighborhood and do some digging.”

“Have you found out any new information?” Severus asked after shooting a glare to the man.

“Not much,” She admitted, “Hopefully Remus will be able to talk to the neighbors and see if they know anything.” She folded her arms, “Have you found anything?”

“Yes. The boy suffers from seizures.”

Chapter Text

He wondered if starting in the neighborhood was the best place. He held the address in one hand on a torn piece of parchment and a map in another. Quickly he glanced up and noticed that he was on the right street. Folding the map he shrunk it and stuffed it into his back pocket before walking down the sidewalk. His breath was coming out in short puffs from the cold foggy morning.

Stopping in front of Number 3 he hesitated. Should he ask the neighbors or go straight to the source. Tapping his thigh he turned on the ball of his feet before walking up the drive of the house he stopped in front of. He climbed the porch steps before ringing the bell. He heard footsteps before the door was unlocked and a blonde woman opened the door.

“HI, Can I help you?” She asked from the half-open door. She was wearing jeans and a blouse with triangles on it. There were bags under her eyes and Remus could hear music from a kids toy in the background.

“Oh, I’m terribly sorry,” He faked embarrassment, “I’m looking for the Dursleys, I thought this was their house.”

“Oh,” She reached down and grabbed a little girl who had toddled up to her mother, “Didn’t you hear?” She placed the little brunette on her hip. The girl looked at Remus and stuck her hand out and waved at him. Smiling he returned the gesture.

“I’m sorry, I have been out of the country for some time,” He rubbed the back of his neck, “Did something happen?”

“I’ll say!” She exclaimed, “It was the talk of the town.” She opened the door wider, “I usually don’t do this but it’s cold, why don’t you come in. Mind you if you do anything I will taze you.” He furrowed his brows but stepped and watched as she shut the door behind him. The toddler was placed on the ground and she walked towards the room with music playing. “Marly,” she introduced herself. Remus took her hand and shook it, “Remus.”

There was a whistling coming from the kitchen. She motioned to follow her. After stepping over a baby gate he was standing in a small and slightly cluttered kitchen. There was mail on the counter, sippy cups drying on a towel, and a baby doll sitting on the table. She turned grabbed the doll and chucked into the other room, he heard it hit other toys and tried his hardest to not laugh.

“Being a single mother is difficult,” She said as she handed him a cup of tea before sitting down. She saw his expression, “She was my best friend’s daughter. She survived the car crash, her parents didn’t.” She looked into the room with the toddler. “Her name is Caylee.”

“I’m sure she’s grateful that you took her in, even if she doesn’t know it yet.” She nodded and set her cup down.

“What are you looking for the Dursleys for?” She asked.

“Their nephew is my best friend’s son. A lot like your situation he lost his parents. But I didn’t get the chance to take him in. He went with his Aunt.” He felt a pang of sadness that must have shown because she placed her hand on his wrist. “I was never allowed to visit, but I had finally dug his address.”

“I don’t know what exactly happened. No one really knows, seeing as he was underage a lot of the information was withheld.” She removed her hand and stirred her tea, “But there was a lot of rescue workers after it happened. I remember that no one was allowed near the boy. They put up a lot of precautions to hide what happened, they were walking around with blankets hiding him. They said it was too gruesome to see.

“I remember that my friend was over that night. I had just bought the place a few months prior. And we were watching from the porch. Strangely enough at one point, I heard something strange, no idea what it was but it happened before the boy was put in the ambulance.

“The Uncle, now that was what the talk was about. We all knew it was him that did it to the boy. Don’t know what he did but we knew it was him. He went crazy. He was screaming about how the devil was in the boy and he had to get rid of it. Mind you, we heard this clear as day while he was in his house.  At one point he rushed out the house trying to get to him. Police were trying to restrain him and he ended up stabbing one. The man died later in the hospital it was terrible.”

Remus was not expecting to find out that his friend’s son lived with a mad man. He was supposed to be safe. He was told he was cared for and loved. Why couldn’t he try harder to get him custody? Why couldn’t he have visited?

“Hey, It’s not your fault. It’s that sodd-” Suddenly they were cut off as the little girl wandered into the kitchen. She held a doll up to Remus to take. He held the plastic toy with curly hair and smiled at the girl. She then walked back to the living room.

Relaxing more into the chair he smiled at her, “Could you tell me anything else about the Dursleys?” And she did. She said that in the four months that she had lived there, all she ever heard the boy being called were insults. She said she called the police several times after hearing screaming coming through the walls, but nothing was ever done after their visits. She told him how the boy always looked sickly and thin. How he would sway on his feet after standing. How he never spoke to anyone. How he never played with any kids. She said she stopped the neighbor kids picking on the boy only for an overly large boy to kick her. His parents weren’t happy when she showed up at their door with his ear in her grasp and a murderous look.

She explained that when the boy’s family would leave she would sneak snacks over the fence to the boy when he was left out. She said when no one was looking she would tell him about the latest movie she watched. She told him about her classes. She told him about anything. He never responded or said anything back but she would always get a smile.

“I hope wherever he is, he’s happy.” She took the doll from Remus as he stood up.

“I hope so too.” He said as he went back to the front door and pulled his coat on.

“They can’t hurt him anymore.” She said as she walked towards the door. “From what was in the news they are in prison, at least the husband. I think the wife is in an institution.”

“That’s comforting,” He waved goodbye to the girl in the room, she was surrounded by blocks, balls, and dolls. When he made it to the end of the drive he watched an owl with a package dive down to the kitchen window. It hopped in after the window was slid open. 

“Huh,” Remus thought as he made his way to Arabella’s house. The question rang through his head, bouncing from one side of his brain to the other, what happened? 

Chapter Text

Severus did not know there was a step when he walked out of the fireplace. He stumbled forward and on an attempt to catch himself he threw his hand out and steady himself. He happened to catch Remus’s shoulder, this caused Remus to stumble himself and dump hot tea on himself. Remus cussed loudly as the liquid scorched his skin. Arabella not seeing this had heard his loud exclamation. She swatted him on the head with a rolled magazine for his foul mouth, causing him to spill more tea on himself.

After he cleaned up the mess and Minerva had walked through Remus looked up with narrowed eyes, “I enjoy drink tea, not wearing it.”

“It was not intentional,” Severus said as he took a cup from Arabella and sat on the armchair next to the fireplace. He took a sip and looked up at Remus, “Learn anything?”

“Yes. He was attacked by his Uncle. He suffered from severe injuries, I don’t know what they are though.” Remus picked up a cat and dumped him on the floor before sitting, “He was abused from what Marly has said.”

“Oh!” Arabella exclaimed, “You met Marly? She’s such a sweetheart. From what I heard is she’s a specialist from the States.”

“What does she specialize in?” Remus asked.

“Oh goodness,” She tapped her fingers against her chin, “I can’t quite remember. She works for an organization that helps different types of governments throughout the world.” She reached down and scratched an orange tabby between the ears, “She was always so sweet to Harry. Never really did like the Dursley’s but not many on the block did.”

“Why not?” Minerva asked. Her hands were placed neatly on her green robed knees. She looked tired, and Severus could see her throwing a glare at a cat trying to steal her biscuits.

“The Dursleys were not good people. The believed they were better than everyone. They hated anything that didn’t fit there standards. Most of all, they were quite physical with Harry.”

“Did you tell Albus?” Minerva asked as she slapped the cat’s paw that was touching her plate. It meowed at her in return.

“Of course! Many times. Said that everything was fine. That they wouldn’t really hurt him. That he was safe with family. That was until the night the Dursleys got arrested.”

Remus added to the conversation then, “I was told that Vernon killed someone?”

“Oh yes,” She sighed, “He was trying to go after Harry. He was ranting and raving about how the boy was evil. He must’ve snapped. He stabbed an officer with a fire poker. The poor man died in the hospital from his injuries. Petunia was yelling that they had to beat the freakishness out of him. The son was sitting on the porch steps laughing. It was utter madness.”

“Albus thought he was safe there?” Severus asked with disbelief. He, like the rest of the room, was wondering how the signs could be ignored when so many were brought to light?

“He was adamant that Harry stays with his family. He admitted that someone kept calling the cops and that he had to redirect them every time. I couldn’t believe it!”

“That was Marly,” Remus said, “She said she called several times but they never showed.”

“It wasn’t the cops that showed up first that night.” Arabella admitted, “Two cars showed up with people dressed in all black suits. I was throwing out the trash when they showed up. Marly had talked to one of them and pointed out their house. I believe she called them. The cops then showed up after them and then everything went to hell.”

“She didn’t mention that when I asked,” Remus told Arabella.

“Probably doesn’t want anyone to find out that she ratted them out.” Arabella leaned back with her cup in her hands.

“What do you know about his injuries?” Severus asked. He had leaned forward and propped his elbows on his knees. His hands were steepled in front of him.

“Head injury. They covered it up. No one really knew. Details were kept out of the media and no one was allowed to visit him. Apparently, it was extremely gruesome. I just remember a whole bunch of people huddled around him before loading him into the ambulance. Heard some weird noise beforehand but I’m unsure what it was.”

“Marly said the same thing,” Remus added.

“I remember them hosing down blood from the driveway. It was horrendous.”

“Is there anything else you may know that we can use to look for more information?” Minerva asked as she finished her tea?

“Oh, let’s see,” She tapped her fingers against the floral teacup. Each time her nail touched the cup it made a soft tapping noise. “Ah, he was in The Royal Marsden hospital. I believe he was transferred at some point but that's where his treatment started.”

The trio all thanked Arabella for her help before stepping through the fireplace into Minerva’s office. Severus wanted to know who those men in suits were. He also believed Marly had more information then she was letting on. Minerva wanted to know how they had kept it a secret from Albus. Remus’s question would provide more answers if they could answer it.

How do they sneak in and steal files from a hospital?

Chapter Text

“I got a letter from Marly today,” Severus had stopped mid-step when he heard that. He looked down the hall to his right and saw Harry walking with Terry Boot and Hannah Abbott. Hannah was carrying a basket. Terry had a couple of thick blankets draped over his shoulder and Harry was carrying a guitar on his back. The neck of the guitar bounced against his leg with each step. He turned away from the route he was taking, one that led to the Headmaster’s office, and followed the trio down the hall. He listened into the conversation.

“The pretty blond that used to be your neighbor?” Terry asked with a smile.

“She is a good 15 years older than you, Terry!” Hannah hissed at the boy. Terry shrugged not caring. The action caused him to drop a blanket. He reached down to pick it up. Instead of putting it back over his shoulder he threw it at Hannah causing her to stumble. She grabbed the blanket by the corner and whipped it back him.

Harry ignored them and kept talking as they walked out the doors to the courtyard. He waved and said hello to the Weasley twins and their younger brother as they passed. Severus stopped and threw an eavesdropping spell and stationed himself at the window looking out to the lake.

“Yeah, my old neighbor. She said there was an old friend of my biological dad who was looking for me.” So the boy was still in contact with Marly? Of course, she would mention Remus’s visit. “Apparently he didn’t know I didn’t live there. She said he asked about what happened.”

“What did she say?” Hannah asked as she grabbed a blanket from Terry and laid it on the ground. She moved the basket from the tree roots to the center of the yellow and blue striped blanket.

“That she only knew that I got hurt and that she didn’t know anything,” Harry replied as he pulled the instrument off his back. Susan and Hermione Granger walked up to the group. The first girl introduced the rest to the second. Harry motioned for her to join them. The bushy hair girl said she had to grab something quickly from the dorms but would be back. Hannah quickly filled Susan in.

“What was his name?” Susan asked pulling grapes from the basket.

“Remus.

“Are you going to try and get in touch with him?” Terry asked while lodging a grape at Hannah. She picked it up from her lap and threw it at him so hard it exploded.

“I’m not sure. It would be cool to know about my parent’s earlier years but,” He faltered for a moment, the guitar in his hands dipping forward. “I don’t know. I’m happy now, if I don’t know what I’m missing, I can’t miss it.”

“Uh oh, Harry’s get philosophical.” that was met with a “Shut up, Terry!” From Hannah.

Severus watched as the group's conversation changed to classes as Hermione came back. She had brought Neville with her, who was looking very nervous. Severus canceled the spell and walked down the steps into the courtyard. There were kids playing exploding snap by the fountain and one of the twins was spinning the younger Weasley around on their shoulders. Several others were sitting around the benches chatting and intermingling. He turned to walk back to the halls when the music started.

It was soft, but there was something about it. Something that seemed to catch everyone’s attention in the area. One by one they turned to Harry, Who was strumming away with a smile on his face.

He watched the boy as he played. He watched as he relaxed completely, his shoulders loosening and his head bouncing softly from one side to the other. Susan and Hannah were humming next to him enjoying the melody.

The toned switched and Hermione's eyes shot up, “I love this song!” Then on cue, Harry, Hermione, Hannah and Terry all started to sing while Susan continued to hum along. Several students made their way over to the tree where Harry was sitting and watched him play. A muggle-born student jumped into the song on the second verse, causing Harry’s smile to widen.

Severus sat at the now empty fountain and listened to the singing of voices.

“ Do I have to tell the story

Of a thousand rainy days since we first met

It's a big enough umbrella

But it's always me that ends up getting wet.”

Severus had heard the song before, so he hummed quietly to himself as the voices grew louder and more confident. More voices joined in, several off-key, some cracking but each one sounded happy.

A few kids that were passing by heard the music and decided to investigate. He watched as Draco and Blaise walked towards the mixed group of students with curiosity. The group had slowly doubled in size and it looked like a few older years had started dancing. A seventh year Slytherin, Annabell Thomason, was dragged into a dance by a Seventh year Hufflepuff, Nymphadora Tonks. The latter was extremely clumsy and stumbled over the uneven ground and tree roots. Charlie Weasley came up from behind her and grabbed her spinning her around in the air. Kids around them laughed and more people broke off to throw their limbs around in an attempt at dancing.

After the song ended Severus thought he should probably go see the Headmaster as he planned. Then Harry started to play and sing along to Take On Me by A-ha and he decided that his plans could wait. Instead, for the first time in a long time, he looked up at the sky and watched the clouds drift of the treetops.

Why hadn’t he done this earlier? Why hadn’t he come out and enjoy the sun and the soft breeze? His shoulders relaxed and he felt at ease while he listened to the guitar play and the children laugh and sing. It was peaceful, and he had avoided it for years. But why?

Maybe it was time to enjoy the small things in life.

Chapter Text

When Severus walked into the potions classroom he was not expecting a student to be in the empty and dim room. There was an unopened box of Nestle Quality Street next to him, several pens surrounding him, and a little music box chirping away next to his inkwell. Severus blinked a couple of times thinking he was seeing things but when the vision persisted he walked forward to the boy.

“Mr. Potter,” He drawled next to the boy. He didn’t flinch, just stilled the muggle pen he was scratching away with before looking up to his meet his eyes. “How did you get in here?”

“The door,” He replied setting the pen beside his notebook. Severus rolled his eyes so hard they hurt.

“How did you get through my locks and wards?” He asked trying to peer into the notebook. He could see a few runes and questions marks but he didn’t have a clear enough view to see the full picture.

Harry smiled at the man, “Well I learned several detection spells, disarming spells, and unlocking spells from Susan's Aunts library.” He closed the notebook before pulling the purple candy box next to him popping open the lid. He grabbed purple wrapped chocolate and held it out to the potions master who hesitantly took it. “She showed them to me when I told her I was interested in curse breaking after meeting Bill Weasley at the Ministry.”

“Congratulations,” Severus mumbled as he placed the candy on his desk, “You’ve managed to break into my potions classroom without my knowledge, something no other student has managed.”

“I’m sure some could have,” Harry pointed out, “But if they broke into here without your knowledge, then how would you know? The only reason I was caught was because you came in here.”

Severus couldn’t argue with that logic. Instead, he moved on, “Why are you in here?”

“It’s quite.” He said, “No one would think to look in a locked potions classroom for me.”

“Why are you hiding from people?”

Severus watched as Harry looked for the right words. His eyes were pointed towards the ceiling as he tilted his head to the right. He could see the boy chewing slightly on his tongue looking for a way to properly express what he wanted.

“Have you ever thought something was going to be one way only for it to be totally different?” He finally asked his teacher. Severus thought it was ironic that Harry asked that. He thought when that mop of black hair walked through the door, he would see an arrogant boy who thought the world belonged to him. Then he saw his eyes, how he had many questions running through them. How he smiled truly at his friends and always used manners. How he was polite even when someone threw an insult.

“Yes,” Severus finally admitted after a moment of thinking.

“Well,” Harry started cracking his knuckles in his lap, “Everyone wants me to be this adventurous person. They think I should be brave beyond anything. They ask me about things I can’t remember. I’m not some great hero,” He admitted, “I am Harry. I play the guitar, I go to therapy and I want to be a curse-breaker. I don’t want to be an Aurora. I can’t play quidditch and I really don’t care about breaking rules.” His hands were clenched in fists, “I came here so I wouldn’t be asked to do something stupid. So I wouldn’t be compared to people I don’t know.”

Severus let the words cross through his mind before turning to the wall with cauldrons, “Why don’t we work on some of your ideas.” He set the ingredients and a box of gel capsules on the desk. They had to be ordered from a contact in the muggle world then sent over to him with an owl. “I think I have worked out a way to powder a calming draught to put into the capsules.”

Harry hummed happily and shoved his notebook into his bag and joined his teacher on the other side of the room. Grabbing the ingredients instructed by his professor he quickly got to work dicing lavender roots. They worked in silence for a while before Severus decided to get some more information from the boy.

“So you play the guitar?” He scraped some ingredients into the cauldron before stirring, “I saw you in the courtyard.”

“I started to play in therapy, turns out I really liked it.” Harry was scratching on a piece of parchment next to the workstation, “It helped with my fine motor control. Marly actually gave me the guitar I have now.”

“Marly?” Severus inquired with a raised eyebrow.

“Oh, she was an old neighbor but has become a close family friend. She had a little girl who loves bubbles.” He said with a smile on his face, “I’m going to see her again on the holidays.”

Taking a chance, Severus asked, “What does Marly do?”

Harry paused. He then looked at his professor, “It’s complicated.”

“Why is it complicated?” He laid some of the draught onto a thin pan before throwing a dehydrating spell over it.

“Because she works for the government but doesn’t.” At Severus confused expression he continued, “She works in between governments. Like between the British government and the Ministry. She works for both of them but none of them, I really don’t know how to explain it.”

The worked in silence for a little while longer. Harry watched as the liquid in the potion dried leaving a residue that needed to be scraped from the pan. While Harry was helping pack the powder into the capsules, Harry made another confusing comment.

“I wouldn’t get on the bad side of Marly, or anyone she cares about. She has resources and will not hesitate to taze you.”

“Taze?”

“Yeah she has this thing that has electricity in it and it super powerful. She then touches it to you and it like being electrocuted. Some guy tried to steal her purse and she tazed him till he peed,” Harry smiled, “It was a little funny.”

Severus snorted.

Chapter Text

“Shit!” He hissed as hot tea spilled on his hand after being bumped into. Switching the cup into his other hand he shook off the scalding liquid. Huffing, he pulled on the cord to signal his stop. Using his elbows, he was able to push himself off the bus and onto the sidewalk. Why had he decided to take public transport instead of apparating? He knew it was because he could be tracked and this way left a harder trail for wizards to track. Sipping his tea he made his way back to Privet Drive. It was noon on an unusually sunny Saturday, meaning more people were around. More people to ask questions with.

There were several kids running around a very green yard. One was wearing a pink and white striped dress with green grass stains. There were two boys running around the girl wearing shirts with logos he didn’t understand. He stopped a moment watching as the kids ran and avoided each other touches. They giggled and shouted excitedly as they played. A pang of sadness went through him as he guessed Harry didn’t enjoy moments like these. Ones that were carefree, loud and simple. He turned away from the children.

He walked past Harry’s old home, the grass was overgrown, one side of the house was spray painted with accusatory messages. Windows were broken from where kids threw rocks at the panels. The house was out of place on the street, the flowers were dead and overcome with weeds. The paint was chipping off the door. Dust and dirt seemed to settle on every available surface.

“No one wants to live there,” a throaty voice stated. He turned to see a man with a full beard and greased stain shirt rubbing dirt from his hands with a rag.

“Why’s that?” Remus glanced back at the house.

“No one wants to live in a house that held a child abuser, not to mention a murderer.” The man said crossing his arms. He stepped to the side and motioned for Remus to move over. A teenager with a backpack rode past on a blue bike.

“I heard the Uncle went crazy?”

“You can say that again,” The man mumbled.  “The guy went off the deep end.”

“Where is he now?” Remus implored while taking a big sip of his tea. It was sweeter than what he usually drank but the feeling of warmth flowing down his chest was pleasant.

“Don’t really know, Don’t really care.”

“Do you know what he did to the boy?” Remus could tell that the man was getting suspicious of the number of questions he was asking. He kept tilting his head back and looking at him. Remus felt as if the guy was trying to read his thoughts. Trying to figure out who he was and why he was so interested in the family.

“No. Listen I need to finish changing the oil,” He started to turn and walk away from the man with a birch colored button down and gray slacks.

“Oh sorry, I just want to find the boy, he was my best friend’s son.”

He stopped at that. He stroked his beard before speaking.  “Go talk with Mariette, she always knows the latest gossip.” The stocky man pointed to a house across the street with a baby blue mailbox and yellow flowers under the front window.

“Thanks,” Remus threw at him quickly as he crossed the street. A couple was walking down the sidewalk and waved at Remus as he stepped up onto the sidewalk. He returned the gesture with a smile and wave of his half-empty cup of tea.

“Hello, Ma’am,” Remus greeted as he walked up the paved way. A lady was sitting on a rocking chair with a gossip magazine in her hands and a bottle of water sloshing next to her leg as she moved back and forth. Blond hair with tight curls bounced under an oversized hat on her head. She looked up at Remus with a closed mouth smile and pale blue eyes. “Are you Mariette?” Remus jerked his thumb over his shoulder, “The gentleman over their thought you would be able to answer some of my questions.”

“His name is Brutus, dear,” Her voice was silvery and seemed to calm Remus' nerves. She folded her magazine and placed it gently on her lap. “What do you want to ask about?”

“Harry Potter. He used to live with the Dursleys.” Remus informed the lady.

“Sit,” She motioned to the chair next to her. He hesitated before making his way up onto the porch and settling in next to her. He set his cup down beside him and clasped his hands together loosely on his legs.

“Harry was a very sweet boy who had the unfortunate luck of living with monsters. How he was able to smile at the end of the day was beyond me, but he did.” She took a swig from the bottle of water next to her. “We were always told he was a bad kid. His family told us he would break things and constantly hurt their little boy. I honestly think they thought we were stupid. They would say one thing but we always saw it differently.”

“Did any of you try to help him?”

“Oh, dear, we tried. We really did. Complaints went unheard. The family then wouldn’t let him near us. They isolated the poor boy. He had no friends, he had no one to turn to, well for a while anyway.” When she saw the raised eyebrows of Remus, she continued. “That sweetheart that lived next to him, Marly, she refused to be deterred.”

“I’ve met her. She seems nice.” Remus picked up his tea and sipped it slowly.

“She bakes fresh bread for the neighbors on the holidays.” She said offhandedly. “Anyways, she was always talking to the boy. Calling people on his relatives. One time Dudley, Harry’s cousin” She clarified, “Was ganging up on Harry with a bunch of his friends. When she came by they all scattered, not Dudley. She told him to stop and he told her to mind her own business and that he can do anything he wants. He then stomped on her foot. She threw her coffee in his face. It was glorious. She takes no shit." The woman chuckled at the memory.

“I bet the Dursleys loved that,” Remus told the woman with a smile.

“Well, the Aunt came out to confront her while she was cleaning up Harry. She was ranting and screaming at her and the boy. Marly grabbed the power washer that she keeps by the garage and nailed her with it.”

“Power washer?”

“It’s a high powered machine that sprays water. It’s great for cleaning cement and stone. Petunia’s dress was destroyed when she was done. I thought Brutus was gonna need stitches by the time he was done laughing. I think Marty got a short video of it.” Remus was imagining the horse-faced woman he met all those years ago in a floral dress tumbling over herself. “First time I ever heard that boy laugh.”

“What happened? The night that Vernon killed someone?” Remus asked after his smile faded from the sadness that was starting to build in his chest.

“I don’t know much about what happened to Harry. I heard that he was sent to one hospital but then transferred before getting sent to a foster family. He apparently needed a lot of therapy from his head injury. There was talk that he lost a lot of blood, so I’m guessing a possible blood transfusion. I really don’t know the specifics.”

“Do you know what happened to the Dursleys?” Remus placed his empty teacup on the ground under his seat. He slouched in his chair and rested his left ankle on his right knee.

“Vernon is in a maximum security prison. Word of what he did to the boy got out and now they have to keep him in solitary. He kept getting jumped. I think there was a report that several months ago he was stabbed several times by some other inmates. Damn bastard lived.” Mariette grumbled taking another swig of water. “The Aunt? Went crazy. Saying stuff how the boy was freakish and did freakish things. Yelling things about witches and wizards- which if you do witchcraft that's fine but keep that devil worship to yourself, please-  no surprise, she was evaluated. They didn’t like what they found. The wizard thing could have been overlooked. It was other things that she said that raised eyebrows.”

“What were these other things?” He was picking at a loose thread on his pants. He pulled the small thread causing the stitching around the area to bunch up. He pulled on the material to straighten out the gray fabric.

“She said things about what she did and why she did it.” Mariette watched as he picked at his clothing, “She said that she hit him with frying pans so he’d forget things he would do. He had talents and she wanted him to forget how to do them. She told everyone that the boy was a creation of the devil and he did evil things. She said she had to lock him up at night so he wouldn’t go back to his people, whatever that meant.”

“Is that all?”

“Oh, she ranted about how she used the boy to protect her. She kept him in the house so these wards would keep her and her family safe. Once he was taken away she started to lose her mind. Mumbling to herself. She started to say things that didn’t make any sense. She became a shell, stopped eating, didn’t take care of herself. Three days in holding and she was deemed unfit to live in society. There was a rumor that she was going to poison herself and child to protect herself from evil wizards.”

“That’s, well-” Remus started to say but was cut off when a phone in the house started to ring. Mariette got out of her chair and bustled to the door.

“Sorry, I need to get this,” She told him as she opened the front door, “It was a pleasure to meet you though.” With that, she was behind a closed door.

After picking up his empty cup and dropping it in the trash bin at the end of her yard, he made his way back to number 4. The kids in the neighborhood had seemed to all go back inside their homes for their afternoon snack. Looking around and seeing most people were occupied or not paying attention to him he quickly made his way into the abandoned house.

The first thing he noticed when he walked into the home, was that is was dusty. It covered the abandoned furniture and items that were deemed unworthy when the respective families came to clean up possessions. The air seemed thick and dirty in the house and part of Remus wished he had a face mask.

Crooked frames and yellowed photos hung on the dirty walls. The floorboards creaked under his weight and it seemed to echo through the still air. While looking at the photos, he noticed that none of them had Harry in them. He moved from the hallway to the living room before stopping in his tracks.

In the middle of the floor past some discarded police tape was a large badly clean brown spot. It sat in the middle of the room between a floral couch and a broken tv. In the cracks of the spiderwebbed screen, he saw a dark substance and his stomach clenched painfully at what it was. He quickly stepped back into the hallway and turned away from the room while taking deep breaths of the thick air.

After a few deep breaths, he walked down the hallway towards the kitchen. Through the doorway, he could see a chair tipped over on the floor and shards of a broken plate. He looked around the hallways walls. Photos and ugly wallpaper lines the forgot home. The only thing that stood out in the hallway was the largely complicated lock on the closet that was underneath the stairs.

Crouching down, he grimaced as his knees cracked under his weight, he fiddled with the lock until it clicked open. Pulling the door, he froze when a yellowed paper taped to the other side of the cupboard came into view. Surrounded by childish doodles, the word “ Harry’s Room” was written in blue crayon. He traced the letters with the tip of fingers while tears welled up behind his eyes.

They locked him away.

His family locked him away like he was an old coat.

He had to take another deep breath. He closed his eyes as his chest shook in emotion. His fists balled tightly by his side. Slowly opening his eyes he leaned into space. It was filled with cleaning supplies, ragged old socks, a makeshift bed that seemed thing than his shirt, and a few broken soldier toys. There was a ripped cook by the head of the bed. Large dull ripped sweaters were folded and stacked as a makeshift pillow. Old towels were at the foot of the bed, Remus guessed they were used as blankets.

“What are you doing in here?” Remus jumped harshly at the voice and managed to knock his head roughly against the top of the closet. Swearing he withdrew from the space to see Marly looking down at him with a gun in her hand. When she saw his face a look of surprise fluttered over her features. She clicked the safety back on the weapon before offering her hand out to him.

After helping him up, Remus asked her, “Why do you have a gun?”

“I saw someone in the house from my kitchen window. As far as I knew, it could have been a doped up madman. I was not going to take my chances.” She said as she leading him back out the front door. He tried to stay in the house but she had gone behind him and slowly moved him out of the house. He felt like he was being herded like an animal.

She watched him and made her way off the porch when she turned back towards him. She seemed to have misstepped. She threw her hands out towards Remus who instinctively tried to grab at her. Her hand ran roughly down his forearm scratching him in the process. He hissed as she caught herself.

“Oh! I’m so sorry!” She grabbed his arm, blood was starting to seep out of the long cut. “It’s my stupid ring! The prongs are sharp and I have been meaning to get them sanded down.” She pulled at his arm leading him towards her house.

“It’s fine. It’s just a scratch.” He tried to pull away from Marly. He wanted to go back into the house and investigate more.

“I insist that you let me clean it up, it’s the least I can do.” Remus couldn’t have argued with him seeing as she had already managed to get him onto her porch. She quickly directed him to the kitchen and pulled out a first aid kit from the bathroom in the hall. She had just set it down when there was a knock on the door. She handed him a cleaning cloth and excused herself. He was dabbing at the blood when he stopped. A deep voice was on the other side of the door. Curious, he used a hearing enhancing spell to listen to their conversation.

“The alarms went off,” A thick voice said.

“I know. I’m taking care of it.” Marly replied.

“Do you need any help?”

“No, No, I got it taken care of.” She told the man. There was shuffling and the clicking of the door. Remus swore and quickly canceled the spell as soon as Marly yelled towards him, “I’m going to go grab Caylee from her nap. I’ll be right down.” He then heard her head up the stairs.

Remus quickly shot out of his seat and decided to look around the room. There were dished drying in the rack and mail on the counter. Heading over to the stack of mail he quickly flipped through it stopping when he found a piece of folded parchment. He looked over his shoulder to the doorway then quickly opened and started to read the letter.

 Oct. 12th, 1991

Marly,

Thanks for the chocolates, I’ve been sharing them with my friends. I think I might give one to the potion professor. He seems nice.

I’m not sure if I want to write to this Remus person. I don’t know anything about him. I get that he’s a friend of my biological Dad but I have a lot going on right now.

Had another really bad seizure last week but I’m sure Mom told you. Speaking of Mom, she said she was going to try and sneak us to Hogsmeade this coming weekend. Maybe you can come and see us. I know how much you love butterbeer.

Take care,

Harry Potter

P.s. Have you heard anything about the adoption yet?

Marly still talked to Harry. Marly knew about witches and wizards? Was she a witch herself? She had a good enough relationship that she sent him mail and gifts. She had told Harry about him? Why didn’t he want to speak to him? What adoption was Harry talking about?

Hearing footsteps coming down the stairs her quickly folded the letter and put it back into the stack with the other mail. Making his way towards the sink he looked out the window. He opened the cabinet next to him but stopped as he realized something.

There wasn’t a window on the side of the house that Marly could see, that wasn't boarded up. How could she have seen him in the house?

“Looking for something?” He turned back to Marly ready to accuse her of lying. At the last moment, he decided against it.

“Cups? I think I would like a glass of water.” She looked at him and to the window before setting Caylee on the ground. She toddled over to Remus and patted his leg with an open palm.

“One over,” She then sat down and opened the first aid kit. “Come on let’s clean you up.”

Chapter Text

“Hello Mister Potter,” Severus heard the matron say on the other side of the room. He was quietly and carefully putting away the new stock of Pepper-up Potion that he had just made when the boy had entered. “I see you are missing your other half,” She said jokingly to the boy.

“She had to stop and grab a fresh pair of sock, she stepped in a large puddle outside of the bathroom on the second floor.” The boy replied looking up at the lady. He looked tired, dark circles were hanging under his eyes. Severus caught the boy yawning and rubbing tiredly at his eyes with the back of his hand. He was wearing a t-shirt with a triangle. It had a line turning into a rainbow on it and it seemed very familiar to Severus but he couldn’t quite place it. The rest of the boy's outfit was a pair of black skater shoes with white a white stripe on the side. He was also wearing a black hoodie unzipped and jeans. It was distinctively muggle.

Hannah raced into the room with Susan on her tail. Susan was wearing a jean skirt and a striped shirt while Hannah’s attired looked more like Harry’s. Her shirt had a weird looking yellow smiley face and her sneakers were gray. She wasn’t wearing a hoodie but had a pullover tied around her waist.

“Oh, I see your other half and best friend have found their way to you.” Poppy smiled down at the two girls who stopped beside Harry.

“Susan’s my best friend,” Hannah informed the healer.

“Can’t Susan have two?” Poppy asked while remaking a bed. She puffed the pillow before dropping it back to the head of the bed.

“No, Harry can get his own.” Severus had to bite his lip from laughing at how the girl said it. Harry, on the other hand, decided to laugh out loud.

The sound was one that he would always remember. It was light and airy. It seemed to dance its way through the room. It bounced from wall to wall. It slid over every surface until it seemed to touch the people in the room until it soaked into their ears. It appeared to call forth laughter in other for both Susan and Poppy giggled before Hannah had joined them with a bright smile.

Severus wasn’t surprised, Harry had that effect on people. He brought them together. He made the laugh and put everyone he talked to at ease. The potion master had caught the boy making the youngest Weasley boy and Malfoy laugh earlier in an alcove. The three boys were laughing, not at each other, but together. He thought he was seeing things when the redhead had smiled to the blond before waving and walking away.

Who would have thought it was a Ravenclaw that brought people together and not a Hufflepuff.

Harry seemed to have that quality. Lily had it, to an extent. She managed to make friends in each house. She was able to get several houses to be civil together. There was always that tension, though, that rift that she could never overcome. The deep tear that could never quite be mended.

Harry, on the other hand, seemed to erase darkness and hate. When he was around people, they seemed to become better. They wanted to become better. They wanted to be the best they could be. To be what Harry saw in them.

Severus had noticed that the people that Harry hung out with the most, were some of the most dedicated and unique people Severus had ever encountered. They were so sure of themselves, and not in a narcissistic way. They knew what they were good at. They were aware of their flaws and embraced the ones that made them special and quirky and worked to eradicate the ones that seemed to dampen their potential.

Looking at the boy laughing with his friends, Severus wondered if the boy had something more magical about him, or if that was just who he was. Was he just a carefree guitar playing boy? Or was he covering something up? Was he hiding how he really felt behind fake smiles and kind gestures? He watched him, his smile toothy and lopsided, and Severus couldn’t see anything but genuine emotion.

How could someone who was brutally attacked be so happy?

A flash of green quickly decorated the room before fading away and leaving Delana Abbott standing in soft blue robes. Her hair was wavy and draped over her shoulders. Smiles lines were deep around her mouth and he could see some worry lines as well. Her eyes lit up when Harry and Hannah turned towards her. The kids made sounds of excitement and ran towards her. She dropped down and enveloped the children into a deep hug.

A pang of envy shot through Severus’s chest. It speared through his heart as he saw the faces of the two children who wore utter contempt and love on their faces. He wasn’t sure if he was envious of the children or their mother.

When they pulled away, Harry noticed him. A small smile spread across his face before he addressed the professor, “Hello,” the boy chimed. Hannah and Delana turned to look at him. Delana straightened out, smoothing her robes with open palms.

“A pleasure,” He directed to the family in front of him. The envious feeling was slowly ebbing away from his heart.

“Severus,” Delana’s soft-spoken voice addressed him. Her voiced portrayed her character perfectly. Soft and kind but held the sound of intelligence, aiding in people trusting her. A good quality to have when a healer.

“Mrs. Abbott.” He addressed her with a slight nodded. She smiled at him and clarified that it was okay to call her by her first name.

“Well kids,” She placed one hand on Hannah the other on Harry, “Shall we make our way towards town? I don’t want to keep our friends waiting.” Harry looked up to the woman and beamed. The made their way through the floo, Susan being followed by Harry, then Hannah, then completed by their mother.

“Where did they go?” Severus asked as he started to head out the door.

“Hogsmeade, I believe,” Poppy said before disappearing into her office. It didn’t take long for Severus to decide to make a trip to the small village. He had Sir Nicholas to inform anyone who was looking for him, that he was out making purchases. With haste, he left the castle through his floo and landed in a bar run but Aberforth Dumbledore. He grumbled at Severus about the dust as he made his way through the fireplace. Ignoring him her dropped two knuts on the counter and was out the door.

Standing out in the open air he was met with a new dilemma. He had no idea who the group was meeting and where. He turned quickly to the right gasping as he was faced to face with Remus.

“Lupin!” He hissed at the man.

“Snape, my apologies,” Remus muttered as he took a step back.

“What are you doing here?” Severus asked looking at the man. He was wearing a mix of magical and muggle clothes. Slacks with a button down shirt that was engulfed by a worn cloak. He looked tired, his eyelids drooping ever so slightly.

“I think Marly is meeting with Harry. What are you doing here?”

“I followed Harry and his family. I’m trying to find out what they are doing in Hogsmeade. Parents don’t typically take their children to the village.” Severus noted that Remus was looking at him but past him. Turning he saw as Harry ran to catch a toddling child with brown hair pulled into a single braid down her back. He caught the child with the biggest smile that Severus had ever seen on anyone.

The men watched as he twirled the little girl then pulled her into a deep hug. Before passing the child the opening arms of Susan, he placed a kiss on her forehead. He then turned his attention to a blond woman sporting a bob and wearing an identical shirt to Harry. She made a motion between the two of them, drawing attention to their attire. She laughed then, her head tilting towards the cloudy sky with closed eyes. She moved forward pulling him into a hug, twisting him to each side before letting go. Harry’s body was quickly replaced with Hannah’s.

“Who-?”

“That’s Marly,” Remus stated. His focus was on the only boy in the group. The one with the oversized glasses and short hair. The boy who was laughing at Marly who was trying to untangle a toddler’s fingers from Susan’s hair.

“As in Harry’s old neighbor?”

“Yes,” Remus confirmed.

“How did you know they were going to be here?” Severus looked away from the happy group. The tawny-haired man watched a second longer before redirecting his gaze to the potion master.

“I saw a letter from Harry to Marly last time I was at her place.” He rubbed the back of his neck as he acknowledged his invasion of privacy.

“Is she a witch?” Severus asked as he watched the children lead the two older woman into the three broomsticks. Hannah and Susan were swinging the little girl between them while Harry walked backward cooing at her.

“I can’t be certain. I haven’t seen anything that says she is. She dresses like a muggle. She lives like a muggle. It sounds like she has a muggle job as well.”  Remus walked towards the shop. “Come on, let’s go in.”

“Isn’t that a little suspicious?”  Severus drawled from where he stood.

“Do you have a better idea?” Remus asked walking backward as he addressed the man. He stumbled over a step catching himself before ending sprawled on the ground.

Huffing Severus followed the other man in through the door. They took a spot at the bar, avoiding the table that students had taken. Both men waited until their drinks were delivered before used an eavesdropping spell.

“How’s work going?” Delana asked Marly while trying to wrestle the jacket off of Caylee. She was more interested in the food and drinks that were placed on the table than her clothing. Delana finally got Caylee’s left arm free. The child threw herself forward towards the food. The only reason she didn’t end up covered in it was that Hannah managed to catch her.

While Marly was scolding the little girl, Harry was cutting up pastries for the little hands that were outstretched to him. She squealed happily when a small piece was placed in her hand. The kids were laughing at her. Marly reached over the drinks to grab a napkin when she started to speak to Harry.

“That man I mentioned to you in my letters? Yeah, I found him snooping in your old house last weekend.” She dabbed the white cloth against the messy mouth of Caylee. When she saw his horrified expression she reassured him, “Don’t worry, I’m taking care of it.”

Severus and Remus sipped their drinks while listening to the group speaks. The conversation didn’t go into much detail. Talk of classes, friends and hobbies were the main points of discussion. They finished their drinks when Amelia Bones walked in through the door. Her eyes swept over the pub, causing Severus and Remus to turn towards each other to appear in conversation before she made her way to the small group.

“Hi, Auntie.” Susan chirped from the bench next to Harry. She bounced and quickly hugged the woman before Harry and Hannah followed suit. After their hugs and smiles were exchanged, Delana told the kids to visit Honeydukes.

“We’ll pick you up from the shop when we are done. Don’t get into trouble!” The blond said as the kids pulled Caylee out of the booth and shimmied her jacked on her short arms. She was protesting the jacket being zipped crying that she wanted to do it. Huffing, Susan started the zipper and let the little girl drag it up, she was rewarded with a toothy smile.

After the kids disappeared and the door was clicked closed, Marly turned to Amelia. “Does he know?”

“I reached out and none of my people have been contacted by Dumbledore,” Amelia said, her fingernails tapping softly against the cup. “What about you?” The question was directed to Delana.

“No one in my ward has been asked any unusual questions.”

Marly hummed. Her left arm was draped across the table. Her fingers rubbing together absently as she thought. She turned towards Amelia, her whole top half twisting to the woman when her body stilled. She wasn’t looking at the woman, but past her to two men stationed at the bar.

“There are ears here. We should leave.” It was said quickly and none of the women hesitated to slip on coats and cloaks and heading out the door.

Remus and Severus quickly threw down several coins and rushed out the door wrapping their outerwear on as they stepped out the pub. There weren’t many people out on the roads but with a quick scan, they found that they couldn’t find the three woman.

“Honeydukes.” Severus deep voice pulled Remus towards him. After receiving a puzzled look Severus clarified, “The kids are at Honeydukes.” They quickly weaved between the now growing crowd of people. They reached the shop just as the kids walked out with their purchases. Laughter danced around them as they walked towards the three older women standing by a side alley.

“Ray-Moose!” Remus and Severus stiffened at the voice being directed towards them. Severus turned a harsh glare to Remus, who could feel the intensity burning a hole in the side of his head.

“RAY. MOOSE!” The little squealed as she had spotted the two men. She had pulled away from the group and was running towards him with a smile. She stumbled a few steps away from him and Remus reached out stopping her fall. He picked her up probably and she smiled. He could still feel the intensity of the stare Severus was giving him as the girl waved a lollipop at him. She then turned towards the group of people staring at him.

“Mar-wee! Ray Moose!” She yelled out the blonde who was staring at the werewolf with narrowed eyes. He gulped harshly at the cold shiver that ran down his spine.

Suddenly Delana and Amelia had herded the kids and passed the two, walking back towards the Three Broomsticks. They called out goodbyes to Marly and Caylee as they walked away. Harry seemed to have his sight linger on Remus before jogging to catch up with the group.

Remus placed Caylee back on the ground who had wandered over to Severus and was showing him her lollipop. He awkwardly acknowledged it as she babbled to him. She started talking about something that he didn’t know and just hummed at her in response. The child seemed content at the attention she was receiving, even though it was minimal.

“Why are you following me? Who sent you?” Marly hissed as she took several large strides to become face to face with Remus. She was looking up at him with anger displayed on her face.

“What? No one-”

“Leave him alone,” she spat, cutting him off. “Tell whoever sent you that they need to leave him alone as well.”

“Who do you think you are?” Remus shouted at the blond. Severus was standing a small distance away looking at comfortable at the attention they were drawing. Caylee was started to get upset and he had patted her shoulder in a form of comfort.

“ Excuse you? I’m the one who helped him when no one else did. I’m a friend. I, unlike you ,” She gritted out between clenched teeth, “Care about what happened to him. I don’t just disappear for his whole life and come back and act as if nothing happened.”

“You have no-” He started but was cut off again by the irate woman.

“Oh Please. You need to stop sticking your nose in things you have no business in.” She quickly glanced at Severus who was crouched down and rubbing a crying Caylee’s back.

“You're a stranger!” Remus yelled at her, “I knew his father! I was there when he was born! You only think you care about him!” He growled at him. She snapped her gaze from the black hair man to Remus. He could see the fire in her soul through her eyes. Her jaw was clicking painfully back and forth as she tried to keep her anger in check.

“I mean more to Harry then you ever will.” She hissed at him. This seemed to be the wrong thing to say. Remus’s anger flared and he whipped his wand out.

Before he could call a spell to his mind she had punched him. Hard.

Chapter Text

It’s not that Remus couldn’t deal with pain, he could. Having his body ripped and stretched into an unnatural from once a month, helped with increasing pain tolerance. Yes, Remus could deal with pain, when it’s sharp and hot. When it’s pulling and tearing. When it fades to a dull ache, he can deal with it.

A throbbing? One that seemed to worsen with each pump of his heart? A pain that seems to pinch and cause half of his face to spasm? One that causes short and quiet whimpers to slip through his chapped lips? That’s a pain Remus didn’t enjoy. One that he wasn’t use to. It couldn’t be ignored like an ache, for the moment you got used to it, then it flared to life again.

“You’re an imbecile,” Severus said next to him. He had to turn his whole body to see him, seeing as the right side of his face was covered with an ice pack. He narrowed his eyes only to gasp in pain as his muscles in his eye rebelled and screamed at him.

“How was I supposed to know she was going to, um.” He paused, “uh, punch me?” The wolf asked the other man as he relaxed the muscles in his face. Severus was starting to think the man had a concussion.

The weather had dipped after the left the village. They were now walking back towards the grounds gate. They would have flooed back but the only floo that allows visitors to come through is Madam Pomfrey's, which they, unfortunately, didn’t have the password for, or the Headmaster’s, he wasn’t in his office so his floo was closed. Severus was swearing his oversight in not allowing an open connection to his floo when the rain had started.

It was a slight drizzle at first. It took several moments for the men to notice, but when they did the sky seemed to open up and drop the entire storm on them. Both men quickly cast a repellent spell and rushed towards the castle. Severus managed to slip and nearly fall in a patch of mud while Remus stepped into a puddle soaking his shoes and socks.

Their huffing breaths were the only sound when they entered the main corridor. After taking a few moments to catch their breaths they started to spell themselves presentable. It took Severus three spells to get the mud off his shoes entirely. Remus decided to leave his hair wet, not wanting to chance and spells around his injury.

The only students that they saw on their way to the hospital wing was Nymphadora Tonks and Charlie Weasley, who were half hidden in an alcove behind a suit of armor. When Severus drug the two out from their hiding spot it was clear what they were up to. Severus handed out each a detention while they attempted to straighten their clothes and hair. Charlie was so red his face was starting to blend in with his hair. Severus dismissed them when he tired of their averted eyes and awkward shuffling.

“Weren’t you the one who caught Peter and- um-” Remus blinked trying to figure out what he was saying, “Peter and uh-”

“Don’t finish that.” Severus growled at him. Yes, back when he was a Prefect in his fifth year he had caught Peter Pettigrew and a a blond fourth-year Hufflepuff in a compromising position. Severus still struggled walking by the transfiguration room because of that horrifying encounter. Minerva never did figure out why Peter had been given a half week of detention or why he refused to look Severus in the eye half way through their fifth year.

Remus had started to laugh but it switched into a groan. Severus snorted, feeling pleased by the small amount of karma he had witnessed. Remus couldn’t directed a glare at the other man but he could introduce the man to his middle finger. That made Severus  pucker his lips in distaste. Before Severus could respond, they had reached the infirmary doors.

The doors were carved with squares and rectangles overlapping. Simple shapes laid over others creating a maze of lines and shapes. The handles were made of brass and stained dark from use. There were darker spots above the handles from the oils of fingers. Some of the edges of the shapes were rounded in this spot from the fiction of the time.

Severus was one of those people who placed his fingers against the wood as he shut the door behind him. It clicked through the room, mixing with the sounds of a younger girl whimpering. The girl looked away from the nurse to the two newcomers. She was cradling her arm against her chest. She had scratches along the right side of her face and busted lip. It took Severus several moments to realize he was staring at Lisa Turnip, a first-year Ravenclaw. The ever-present smile and messy bun was missing, making the girl look completely different.

On the bed next to her, was the still and sleeping form of Harry Potter. His lip was cut open with dried blood around it. There were worry lines creased into his face. His eyes twitched under the closed lids. The nurse noticed the two men and tsked when she saw the swollen face of Remus. She pointed to a free bed on the other side of Harry.

“What happened?” Severus asked as Remus sat on the side of the bed staring at Harry. He removed the ice back and moved it around in his hand. It was almost completely melted and useless.

“Harry had another seizure. He was in the library with Mrs. Turnip when it happened. In her mad dash to get the help, she unfortunately tripped and broke her arm,” The nurse said to the potions professor while handing a potion to the young girl.

“I didn’t mean to fall,” The girl said affronted.

“I know, dear.” The nurse patted her shoulder. “I understand you panicked. You did do the right thing and get help, five points to Ravenclaw.” After directing the girl under the covers she turned to Remus. “Now, who would like to explain what happened?”

“I got punched,” Remus told the matron as he continued to watch Harry sleep. He was seeing so much of James, yet Lily was shining through clearly. His view was blocked when Poppy stood in front him to run a diagnostic.

“Well, not only do you have a concussion, but you managed to break your orbital socket. What’s probably causing the most pain is that your Orbicularis oculi had become pinched between the break.” She continued running her wand down his body to check to see if there was any strains from the hit or other damage. She stopped when she got an unusual reading on his forearm. She turned his arm over looking at the thin line on his skin.

“Can you dumb that down just a little?” Remus asked.

“You broke the bone around your eye and the surrounding muscle is being pinched.” She tapped his arm, “Are you aware there is a tracking charm on you?”

Remus widens his eyes only to hiss in pain. He looked at the pink line, “No, I was not.”

“I’ve never seen anything like it,” She ran her wand over the area again, “It’s as if the spell has healed into your skin. It has a very ancient feel to it as well. This will need a bit of research before being able to be lifted.”

“Do you know where you got it?” Severus asked from behind the nurse. He quickly glanced at the girl as she started to snore lightly.

“Yes,” Remus growled, “Marly scratched me when I-” He stopped looking past the woman to make sure Harry was still asleep, “When I, um” He clicked his finger searching for the words. “Harry’s house. She caught me. She scratched me with her ring.”

“Let’s take care of the concussion,” Poppy said noticing his struggle with words. “Then I’m going to knock you out while I fix your eye.”

“She’s a witch,” Severus told Remus as Poppy passed him a small vial.

“Or she has charmed items,” Remus countered, “Muggles are able to use them.”

Severus sneered. He was getting tired of not knowing. He was tired of not having answers and not being able to find them. It seemed as if there were forces working against him. Not only him but seeming Remus and-

“The woman mentioned Dumbledore. When you confronted Marly she thought someone had sent you. Do you think she believes you were sent by the Headmaster?” Severus was trying to remember the small bits of information they had recovered. “Amelia keeping the ministry out of it while Delana is keeping the hospital silent.” He blinked, “Dumbledore doesn’t know.”

“I don’t think he knows of Harry’s living situation either.” Poppy piped in.

‘How so?” Remus asked as he was directed to lay flat on the bed.

“I can’t say.” Remus opened his mouth to protest, “I’m under contracts. I won’t say either if I could. All I can say is, I was told to keep Harry distanced from the Headmaster. I wasn’t told why only that they were afraid that the Headmaster would start digging if given a reason and that they couldn’t have that.”

“Who’s they?” Severus questioned.

“I’m not saying anymore. The only reason I said anything is because I’m only around him so much. I could use another set of eyes.” She removed her hands that had gravitated towards her hips. Turning to the tawny-haired man she pointed a spell stunning him. She stepped closer to him and started to numb the area around his eye. After waiting for a few minutes for the spell to take effect, she started to move her to want around in twirls and twists.

Severus watched her work for a moment before walking over to Harry. His breathing was deep and his mouth was ajar slightly, giving away his slumber. He tugged off the trapezoid shaped frames and folded them before setting the softly on the night table. He pulled his wand out of his robe and pointed it at his split lips. Before the spell started to build within him he was stopped.

“You can’t use magic on him so soon after a seizure, It’ll just trigger another one,” The nurse told him while scooping a bruising balm out of a jar. “I’ll heal it later.” Severus nodded in understanding.

He sat down beside they boy. He watched as his nose twitched and his lips pucker before smoothing out. A soft snort escaped him before he turned his head to the right. He pulled his arms up and tucked them under his chin. Severus went to move his arms, it could cause wrist pain if held to long in one position, but stopped. He redirected his hand movement to the side of Harry’s head and tilted it backwards slightly to get a better view. Brushing his fingers through Harry’s short hair, he saw it. It was concealed by the black strand but it was their. An oddly shaped round scar right behind his temple and above his ear. The sides were jagged and it seemed to pucker in few spots, but it was completely healed. It was several shades paler than the boy’s sun tanned skin, but it was there. He rubbed his finger over the spot and nearly jerked his hand back when he didn’t feel sturdy roundness of his skull. It felt like there was something patched underneath the skin.

Several ideas of what caused the injury popped to the adult’s mind. Was he hit with a hammer? It was the right size. Could he have been hit with a bay? A metal one could do damage to a skull, but would it take a chunk out like that? Did muggle doctors go in an do something to his head? Severus remember hearing that they sometimes took chunks of skulls out of people to alleviate pressure. He was scowled at the wall. It felt as if every time he got a little more information, it just led to more possibilities. He has yet to get anything concrete about Harry’s injury. With that thought he turned back to the boy.

He ran his hand through the boy’s hair and whispered to him, “What happened to you?”

Chapter Text

It wasn’t the sun that woke him up, but he did notice it. The rays that were starting to stay shorter throughout the day as the weather turned brisk. They were slowly creeping across the stone floor, covering everything in its path and declaring the beginning of the day. He wished there was a curtain over the window that he could draw and shut out the morning call.

No, It wasn’t the sun that woke him up. It was the sound of metal sliding across metal. It was the mixture of quiet footsteps, the ruffling of fabric and wood bouncing against the uneven stone floors. A man, Remus guessed from the outline he saw between squinted lids, was what woke him up. It was too early and bright to assault his eyes with the morning light so he kept them half closed and he looked towards the bed Harry was laying on.

He knew who the person was once they started talking to the boy, “Good morning, Harry,” The gentle and low voice of Albus Dumbledore said. He was talking quietly, either to avoid waking up the other residents of the hospital wing or to avoid detection. Remus decided to stay quiet.

“Hello, Headmaster,” The boy replied back politely. There was a rustling of pages. Remus guessed that Harry was either working on homework or reading. He couldn’t see anything past the darkened outline of his old professor through the fabric.

“You know it was quite a shock to see you end up in Ravenclaw. Both of your parents were in Gryffindor.” Remus could guess the man was smiling down at the student. “I’m surprised to hear you aren’t as adventurous as your father.”  Remus crinkled up his nose, who tells that to a kid who doesn’t know his parents? “He was always hanging around friends and experiencing new things. Always putting others before himself, you know.” What was the man getting at? Remus rolled from her left side to his back.

“No, I’m sorry I don’t know that. I don’t remember anything about my father.” Harry stated. Remus had to bite his lip to prevent from making a noise of amusement. Harry had stated in a deadpan voice that reminded him of Mary, Lily’s best friend.

A sadness bloomed in his chest, remembering the way the girl use to talk to Sirius. Mary was a woman Remus hoped to hang out with more in school. She was always able to get Sirius to act responsible and even stop his pranks. He admired her and the way she could scare the man more than McGonagall. Their classes always conflicted and he didn’t get the chance to spend time with her until after James and Lily’s wedding. It was shortly after that she was killed.

“What a shame.” Remus could hear Albus shifting in his seat. “Why don’t we head to my office? I would be happy to share stories of your parent’s time here.”

Remus wasn’t sure why but the feeling of unsettledness flowed through him. It felt heavy in his chest. His brain was screaming at him, the word ‘No” was spearing itself into his every thought. His skin felt as if it was drenched in the feeling. It felt as if everything was tilted and twisted. He wasn’t sure why, but the Headmaster needed to stay away from the Ravenclaw.

He quickly bolted out of bed, keeping his footsteps light. He had to stop himself from ripping the cotton from the metal rings as he slid it open. He clenched his fingers into the curtains in an attempt to hide the shaking they were doing. He was so focused on keeping his breath even that he nearly missed the question Albus shot his way.

“What are you doing here, my boy?” Remus stared at the man trying not to give in to the overwhelming urge to slam him into the floor.

“I obtained an injury while discussion matters with Severus,” Remus spoke through an aching jaw. He could feel the bones grinding together as he moved his jaw in a tight circular motion.

“I see,” The jeweled robed man stood up from the chair and motioned for Harry to follow. Remus could see the panic starting to pool into his features. His eyes darted quickly between Remus and the Headmaster. His breath had picked up and his fingers were wringing the knitted blanket on his bed.

“I’m sorry,” Remus blurted out, “Harry and I actually were going to head to the library this morning.” He darted his eyes to Harry who seemed to be able to take a breath. “Hopefully you can find another time to invite Harry to some tea,” Or not, his mind supplied.

“Surely you can find-”

“No,” Remus sternly told him. He watched the displeasure mix with anger on Albus’s face. It was so sudden that when he blinked it was gone. Though Remus could never remember seeing an expression like that on the Headmaster, it seemed genuine. Part of his brain was trying to smooth over the image and erase it but a larger part was sounding sirens. Something was off about the Headmaster. Something was wrong.

“Very well,” the older man said. Both Harry and Remus could hear the frustration in his voice. “I will try to find a better time.” He informed the boy. “Have a good day.”

After Albus had left, the door’s clicking latch sounding through the room, Harry quickly spun his body towards Remus. Wide eyes and a worried expression was thrown to the man. Talking up to him Harry said, “You need to go to Marly. She’ll help.”

“I do not want to see that woman again.” Remus deadpanned to the boy.

“Trust me!” He frantically told the man, “She can help. Just let her know you don’t help him. You felt it, right? How something’s off? Marly can help.”

“I’m sure I can-”

“Please,” Harry asked so quietly that Remus nearly missed it. It was the sound of sheer desperation that led Remus to leave the hospital wing wearing yesterday’s clothes. It was the way that his eyes seemed to hold an urgency that led the man to push away his misgivings about the woman and apparate to her front porch. He was thinking of Harry when he rapped his knuckles loudly against the closed door on Privet Drive.

Marly opened the door wearing an extremely loose gray shirt paired with plaid pajama bottoms and bare feet. Her skin looks dull and tired and she had to blink a couple of times to focus on the figure at her door. Once she noticed who it was she started a nasty question but was cut off.

“Harry sent me.”  She paused, blinking several times before closing her mouth and just staring at him.

“Why?” She asked after almost a minute of quiet staring.

“Something’s wrong with Dumbledore. Or me? I don't know. I looked at him today and it felt,” He paused looking for a way to describe it. “I want to say wrong but it was more than that. “

“It was like you were actually seeing him for the first time?” She supplied.

“Yes.”

She pulled the door open. When he didn’t walk in she hissed at him, “I’m not a morning person! I need coffee!” He huffed and quickly stepped in and out of his shoes. He followed her to the kitchen, stepping over the baby gate he plopped himself at the table. Marly started the coffee pot before sitting across from the man. She leaned heavily on her arms as she stared at him. Her elbows were resting on the oak table. The shine didn’t seem as bright on the side of the table she sat on, so he guessed that was a regular place that she sat at.

“I’m sorry for hitting you.” She told him. “But it seemed to have work in your favor. I’m guessing you had a concussion?”

“Yes. And how would getting punch help me?”

She didn’t say at first. She let her hands tangle into the unbrushed and slightly dirty locks of hair that was hanging in front of her face. She watched the table while listening to the dripping of coffee into the glass pot. It was when the pot was half brewed did she start, “There’s a very powerful but extremely illegal compulsion charm that affects the processing center of the brain. The spell settles over the area and feeds false information to the senses. It overrides your gut instincts. It can alter your memories, what you see or hear, to have it match what it’s caster wants.  That’s why Albus felt wrong to you. You saw him how he really is and not how he’s charmed you to see him.” She got up and grabbed two mugs pouring milk and coffee into them before sitting back at the wooden table. She slid one over to Remus who warmed his hands with the ceramic.

“So you are a witch?” He asked for clarification. His right index finger traced the lip of the mug. It was a rusty brown color with a black handle.

“Yes,” She clarified before moving back to the previous topic, “The concussion,” She started after taking a few gulps of coffee, “Damaged the processing center. Therefore it damaged the spell. I can take a look and get rid of any lingering shards of it. I also have charms that I can use to prevent any future compulsion charms. There is good news.” Before she addressed the positives, she pulled out a long thin wand.

The wand looked to be about thirteen inches. It was skinny with light purple gems inlaid by the handle. The small little gems were surrounded by swirls that were burnt into the wood. Remus had never seen such a detailed design on such a thin wand before. It looked to be made of birch wood but he couldn’t even begin to guess what the core was.

Quickly she started to wave it in a pattern that was not familiar to the werewolf. It started out as a circle but as her wand moved inward the pattern grew tight and complex. Finally, she flicked the wand towards him. He felt as if he was covered completely by small bubbles that were popping and ticking him. He could feel something shift ever so slightly in the back of his mind. It reminded him of cracking his knuckles. As quickly as the sensation started, it had stopped.

“And the good news would be?” Remus asked taking a sip of the coffee. There was a nutty flavor to it but it wasn’t bad. Not as good as tea but still enjoyable.

“That charm? It can only be used once on a person. Usually once is enough as it doesn’t need to be reapplied or strengthened. Conguagraulatons, you’re free of Dumbledore’s control.” Marly stood up and pushed her messy hair behind her ears, “Follow me, I need to wake up Caylee.”

Remus wasn’t sure why he did. This woman had just broken part of his skull the day before. Granted he did pull a wand on her, but her she was inviting him back into her home. Inviting her around her daughter. Yet here she was directing him up the stairs, over toppled toys and past a basket of dirty laundry. And he was following her, into the room with constellations painted on all the surfaces, a pile of folded laundry on top of the dresser, and a smiling toddler sitting upright in a messy bed.

“Ray. Moose.” The little girl with two small braids and tired eyes said to him. She untangled herself from the blanket that had a girl with red hair and a green tail printed on the front. Walking up to him, she lifted her arms above her head towards him. With the smile she gave him, he couldn’t resist lifting her onto his hip. She pointed down to her bed, “Mewmaid.”

“I see that. She’s pretty.” He watched as Marly pulled out a pair of jeans for the girl and had her choose between two different long-sleeves. The girl picked the purple one with doodled hearts on it instead of the blue one with stripes.

Once the clothes were put on the child and her teeth were brushed she was placed in Remus’s arms. “I’m gonna get dressed. Can you keep her entertained for a few minutes?” Remus couldn’t answer because when he looked back up Marly was behind a closed door. He followed the girl back into the room and politely took the stuff fo that was handed to him. They quickly started a game of dancing animals and off-key singing to a song about living life under the sea. It was after the third song, one that Remus mumbled along to, that Marly walked back in.

She was wearing a button down shirt with teal and green dots all over it. It was paired with khakis and mismatched socks. Her hair was pulled back into a messy bun and small silver balls dangled from her earlobes. Remus stood when she held a closed fist out to him. A small trinket was dropped into his hand. Looking down he saw a crystal that was held between twisted metal and placed upon a black cord.

“It’ll protect you from compulsions and memory charms. Harry, his family, and friends all have one. Hid it underneath your clothes or glamour it.” After he locked it around his neck and tucked into his shirt, he met her eyes.

“I’m really sorry that I hurt you.” She turned to the stairs with Caylee’s hand grasped in hers. Before the started down she looked over her shoulder, “ Now that your protected, I’m going to need your help.”

“Doing what?”

“Protecting Harry.” She whispered to him.  

Chapter Text

He was having trouble trying to find it. The source of the chords flowing through the halls and into the alcoves. Making yet another turn, he noticed that the sound was growing fainter once again and he turned back. Retracing his steps, he passed a trio of Hufflepuffs sitting in a windowsill petting a cat. The one in the middle was humming along to the tune that he couldn’t find.

He stopped at the stairwell, the music was louder here than the previous hall but it still sounded distant. He stepped into the stairwell. Instead of the music increasing in volume it seemed to be completely gone. Pursing his lips he stepped back into the hall. Then he noticed the window.

It was open slightly. The right panel was cracked open letting in the smell of dried leaves and morning dew. He walked over to it, pushing against the cool glass, his warm hands marking the material. As the window was pushed further open, more music seemed to enter the hall. He leaned out the open window.

There, looking through his greasy black hair, he found the source of the music. When he looked out, he found Harry sitting in a hammock in the courtyard. Unlike the last time Severus found the boy playing his guitar, he wasn’t singing. He was laying leisurely in the dark red fabric strumming along carelessly. Severus saw people greeted him as they walked past but none started up a conversation.

Harry’s robe was dangling off the side and was dancing with the breeze. It fluttered as he swayed slightly. His sleeves were rolled up and his glasses were lopsided on his face. Below him, the boy’s backpack was a sitting with the flap open and a few books were slowly starting to slide out.

Severus wanted to yell at the boy. He should be wearing his robe and possibly even a jacket. The weather has been turning colder as the season started to move into winter. Noticing the pink hue coloring the boy's fingers and face he started to call out before he stopped.

Albus was walking towards the boy. He was still a distance away but he could tell where he was headed. Apparently, Harry noticed as well. The music that was calming and comforting ceased once the boy noticed the approaching man. The boy had quickly hopped out of the hammock and spelled it down. In a flurry of hand waving the fabric was folded and flown into the bag. He quickly closed it and darted off, the headmaster calling after the boy. Harry made no acknowledgment of hearing him as he ran out the courtyard, the instrument slamming into his back with each rushed step.

That was odd, Severus mused. Why was the boy running from Dumbledore? Everyone else loved being in his presence. Something was missing. Severus wasn't sure but something seemed off. Like a wrong note in your favorite song. It’s was easy to miss the mistake but it was something you noticed. Severus wasn’t sure what he was missing but there was something. Otherwise, it wouldn’t feel as if his brain was fighting itself.

Then, as soon as the feeling of unease started to gain traction in him, it was gone. There was nothing wrong, his mind seems to demand. A boy just disregarded authority, it whispered to him. Nothing was missing. Nothing was wrong. Everything was the way it should be. A sensation of warmth radiated from the back of his head. Then there was a slight buzzing, like a wasp swarming around his head.

Severus shook his head. Why would something be wrong? He wandered back to the dungeons, his mind-erasing any lingering feelings of unnerving. There was nothing wrong but for some reason, he stopped in front of his locked cabinet. He wasn't sure why but his body had taken him to his most valuable potions. Ones that could clear the strongest charms and hexes. It wasn’t the first time that he had found himself standing there staring at the stained ebony wood. No, there were several occasions where he would blink and find himself in this exact spot. His eyes would start to dry out from him staring intently at the furniture with thin lines etched around the handles and hinges.

He walked back to his desk and opened his journal. Flipping to the most recent page, he dipped his quill and started to continue with the potion idea he had the night before. Once he was halfway down the next page, his narrow writing filling the yellowed paper, his door opened.

Of the guest he was expecting in his classroom, he did not imagine the Headmaster to be one of them. He would have guessed Harry, the over curious and ever questioning boy, had been wandering into his rooms more often. He had the drawer that was slowly filling with candy and random notes to prove it.

Part of him thought it would be Minerva, she had been starting come down for tea more often. She had been directed to a lovely tea shop in London by Miss. Granger. Severus had tried more types of tea in the past two weeks then he had in his whole life. He wasn’t entirely ungrateful, though his bladder may say otherwise, he had found a fruity white tea that seemed to put him at ease. The downside was the container he kept it in apparently wasn’t airtight and now his whole kitchen smells like a kids cereal.

Never thought there would be a day, but he did think it could have been Remus. Granted he hadn’t seen the man since yesterday when he dropped him off at the infirmary. Remus had made a few more appearances in his life since they started to search for answers. He would bring tales of his travels and offered Severus new locations to investigate for herbs and potion ingredients. Remus even mentioned a shop that he worked at for a short period of time that Severus had made plans to visit over the holidays.

It wasn’t any of those three that were in his doorway. No, it was Albus, standing there in maroon colored robes with gold trim. A flash of disdain popped up and vanished. It was so sudden that Severus didn’t even have time to register it in his own brain.

“Albus,” Severus greeted in a low voice. He quickly blew on the ink making sure it was dry before closing the journal. His pale fingers rested on the worn brown color. Fingertips settled on the embossed edge of his name.

“Good evening, Severus,” He walked further into the room, his robes bouncing against his legs with each step, “I hope I’m not interrupting anything.”

“Of course not” He drawled.

“I have noticed that you’ve built a relationship with Harry Potter.” Albus transfigured a chair on the opposite of his desk. Seating himself, he leaned back his fingers intertwining themselves in his lap. “Do you think that is wise?”

“I am merely teaching him the art of potions.”

“What if it got out that a former Death Eater was tutoring the Boy-Who-Lived? You would be a target, the boy would be even more of a target.” That feeling was back. He didn’t realize he felt it before until it popped back up. The Headmaster rarely brought up his past. There was a buzzing in the back of his head mixing in with the unease.

Severus didn’t know what to say. He wanted to tell Albus that of course, he would stop the extra sessions but something didn’t seem right about that. Why does it matter that he teaches the boy potions? “I think most people would see it as a teacher tutoring his student?” It should be a statement, why did it come out as a question?

“Of course that’s how you would think, but the world wants villains. They want someone to blame. They might just turn that blame you.”

“I have nothing to hide. It’s simple I’m teaching him.” Severus could feel anger rise in him. It was slow building, almost as if he wasn’t supposed to be getting angry.

“Are you sure you are just teaching him?” Albus accused. The unease in his head was so strong it was causing a headache. “I know you didn’t get along with his father but you should drop old grudges.”

“The boy is nothing like his father.” It was hard to get the words out. Albus was looking at him questionably when he said it as well. Squinted eyes were observing Severus as he seemed to struggle against himself.

“You seem to need help,” Albus informed him as he pulled out his wand. A rotten taste bloomed in his mouth and the feeling of nausea was unbearable. Severus shook his head at Albus.

“It’ll be fine. You just need to stop fighting against it,” He whispered to Severus across the table.

The buzzing in his head was becoming unbearable. It was overriding his senses. It felt like his mind was starting to crack. A battle was waging war in his skull. Rubbing his fingers against his temples he spoke harshly to the other man, “You need to leave.”

“I’m sorry if what I-”

“You need to leave!” He hissed at him. “I’m dealing with a massive headache and you need to leave.”

Albus watched him closely. Those blue eyes roamed over the pain that was etched into Severus’s face. His eyes were closed tightly and the fingers that were rubbing circles on the side of his head started to drag against his features.

“If you need anything, I’m here for you.” And then Albus was gone leaving the door slightly ajar.

Severus surged towards the cabinet. The chair fell and bounced against the cold stones of the dungeon. He quickly unlocked the doors and thrust his right arm into the compartment. He pushed all the brightly colored vials to the side looking for the miracle. It was in the very back, hidden behind two ocean blue healing potions. He wrapped his fingers around the vial and brought it to his face.

Don’t ! His mind was screaming at him. The buzzing and screaming made him want to bash his face against the walls. When he popped the cap of the black potion he nearly dropped it. His whole body was shaking and rebelling against the action of taking the potion. It was a miracle that he managed to swallow it.

After the second gulp slid down his throat, the buzzing stopped. He blinked. After a few moments of blinking, he felt wetness run down his cheeks, over his lips, and out his ears. He touched the liquid as an overwhelming sensation of dizziness overcame him. His finger was covered in the dark navy blue of a compulsion charm leaking out of his brain. Before his brain could register that he had just seen the release of the strongest compulsion charm, he had passed out.

Chapter Text

He shoved his bag up higher on his shoulder. Next, he switched his tea to his other hand and knocked on the door. He waited in front of the door, hearing someone behind it. After a few loud thumps, the door was wrenched open revealing Marly with a toothbrush in her mouth. She wasn't wearing any shoes and she had toothpaste all around her mouth. 

“Oh thank god, a Miracle.” She said through a mouth full of foamy toothpaste and a red plastic stick.

Raising his eyebrows he chuckled, “I don’t think I’ve been called that before.” Marly rolled her eyes in response and grabbed his forearm yanking him through the doorway. She stopped and turned with a confused look when he hissed in pain.

Remus moved his tea back to his other hand and started to shake the hot liquid off his hand. Marly darted into the bathroom under the stairs and grabbed a hand table and threw it towards him. He grabbed it out of the air and wiped his hand.

“Since I’ve met you,” Remus told her, “I’ve ended up wearing my tea more than ever in my life.”  He leaned into the doorway watching as Marly spit the toothpaste into the sink before running the water over the porcelain. She rinsed her mouth off and pat her hands and face off with a floral hand towel that was hanging next to the sink. She took the other towel from Remus and tossed it into a basket in the corner. 

“What are you doing today?” She pushed past him and he followed her up the stairs and into Caylee’s room. Caylee was sitting on a round rug with a bear sitting next to her and a blue stick with a yellow star attached to the end. She turned around when the two people entered the room and squealed when she saw Remus behind Marly. 

“Moose! Moose!” She started chanted as she got to her feet and ran towards him. Remus grabbed her under the arms and lifted her up and rested her on his hip. She shoved the blue stick towards him and twisted in her hand. Laughing he grabbed it and tapped it against her nose. She pried the item out of his hand and repeated the gesture to the man.

“How would you like to make some cash?” Marly asked Remus while pulling socks onto Caylee’s feet. She had taken the opportunity to finish dressing her while Remus was keeping her occupied.

“Um?” Remus looked at her and followed the blond as she walked around him and into the hallway.

“So apparently there was a bust at the daycare that Caylee was attending and I-” Marly started to explain.

“Bust?”

“One of the ladies was selling coke on the side.” Remus decided not to push the topic after the pissed off look that she gave and the growl the accompanied it. He went to tell her to continue the conversation but was stopped when Caylee slammed her wand down on his head. He jerked himself away and grabbed the toy away from her. Caylee laughed and tried to reach for it.

“Like I was saying,” Remus followed Marly down the stairs with a wiggling and giggling toddler in his arms. “You are really good with Caylee and she seems really taken with you. If you want to make some cash I was hoping you could babysit Caylee.”

“Yeah.” He didn’t realize he was saying it until the words tumbled out of his mouth, “I can watch Caylee for the day.” The wand that was in Caylee’s hand clattered to the floor. Before any of the adults to pick it up, Caylee had outstretched her arms and the toy flew into her grasp. Remus was impressed with the accidental magic.

“Oh thank the lord,” she murmured while looking up at the ceiling. “Okay,” She turned on her heel looking up to the man. She had to crane her neck a bit to meet his eyes. “Her oatmeal is in the fridge in a small blue container. Don’t warm it up, she hates warm oatmeal. She can use the bathroom mostly by herself, you just need to make sure she doesn’t fall in. No bell peppers, she is allergic. Don’t worry about putting her down for a nap, she will fall asleep when she’s tired no matter where she is. My work number is on the fridge. There is money in the cup cabinet in a yellow sippy cup.”

Remus blinked quickly as Marly started to rush the information at him. He listened closely trying to catch all the information as the woman pulled on black heeled boots. After straightening her shirt she pulled on a black blazer to cover her coral blouse. She had to untuck a gold necklace that had tucked itself into her shirt.

“There is a children’s reading this going on at the library, it’s at noon, there are bus passes in the top drawer of the desk in the kitchen. There is apple juice in the fridge, don’t let her convince you to buy grape juice she just spills it and It’s a pain to get out of the carpet.” She leaned towards the little girl and placed a kiss on her forehead.

“Oh!” She exclaimed, “There is a toy shop not too far from the library. You can take her there to look around. Take some money from the cup.” Marly pulled a bag over her shoulder, “Her thing right now is dinosaurs.” With that, she waved at the two in the hallway and left. The door clicking and locking behind her.

Remus looked down at Caylee when she started to squirm in his hold. She looked up to him, “Food!”

Placing the little girl on the floor he followed her into the kitchen. She walked to her chair and waited for Remus to pick her up and strap her into her booster. He pulled her food out of the fridge and opened a variety of drawers until he found the silverware. Popping open the container he set it down in front of the little girl.

“Do you need help or can you do it?” He asked her.

“I do it,” She smiled while grabbing the spoon. He realized his mistake when she lifted it up and looked at it. He glanced around. His eyes falling on the drying rack by the sink. He pulled out a bright green spoon that was smaller and handed it to the little girl. She smiled and shoved it into her food.

Breakfast was a quiet affair. Remus drank his tea while Caylee fed herself her oatmeal. He helped wash her up and get her to go to the bathroom. He was surprised when she shut the door on him saying she could do it herself. He stayed by the door just in case, which was a good call because she couldn’t reach the sink.

Caylee, for the next few hours, alternating between watching brightly colored cartoons and playing with a variety of stuffed toys. She insisted Remus holding on to a stuffed white seal. It was nestled in the crook of his arm. An orange fox has somehow made it underneath his leg. He pulled the stuffed animal out from his leg and bounced it off the child’s nose. She squealed and giggled.

When leaving the house, there was only one issue that arose. Caylee was adamant on putting her own shoes and coat on. There was a little battle when he tried to switch her shoes to the right feet but they had managed it. Now, Caylee was sitting on Remus’s lap holding a plastic T-Rex to her chest. Her shoes flashed with each step, a purple and pink light pulsing around the sparkling pink sneakers. 

Remus was talking to her absentmindedly while trying to avoid the cooing woman next to him. She wasn’t the only one, there was a woman on the other side of the bus was batting her eyelashes so much that, Remus honestly wondered if there was something in her eye. 

Unfortunately, they had to get off the bus several stops early. Caylee had gotten fed up with the woman next to him staring at them and Remus didn’t want to figure out how to tell the lady that it was the child that caused her purse to explode. Remus scolded the girl as she walked next to him, the T-Rex was dangling in her other hand. The little girl mumbled a sorry to Remus right before they walked into the library.

If Remus though the staring would stop on the bus, he was wrong. Several women had come up to him striking up conversations while placing their hands on his arms and shoulders. When the reading and dancing around was done, Remus had scooped the girl up and nearly ran from the library. He heard a couple of ladies try to stop him. He had to shush Caylee when she tried to point out the fact that people were calling at him.

He finally placed Caylee back on the floor when they arrived at the toy shop. She ran towards the third isle once she had gotten her footing. Pushing his hair back, he found Caylee pushing herself up on to her tippy toes trying to reach a dinosaur the was on the third shelf.

“What do you find?” Remus asked the girl.

“Rawr!” She yelled trying to push herself up higher.

Chuckling, Remus pulled the toy down and presented it to her. She cried out happily and started moving its tail. Remus turned back to the shelf and stopped.  He reached out and grabbed a box that was dark with a moon printed in the corner. There was plastic on the front revealing a werewolf figurine. It looked as if it was stalking something unseen.

“Dat’s like Daddy,” Caylee told Remus.

“Hmm?” Remus moved the box so he could see the child’s face.

“Dat’s like my Daddy.” She pointed at the picture on the side.

Remus looked between the box and child, “Is your Dad a werewolf?”

She put her finger to her mouth in a gesture of silence. He leaned down, his right knee popping as he did so. She watched him as their eyes leveled. He pushed her dark hair from her face, tucking it behind her ear.

“Caylee,” Remus whispered to her, “Are you a werewolf?” Suddenly her eyes widen and she looked ready to run. Before she got to upset he leaned closer to her, “It’s okay. I am one too.” When the words fell out his mouth he could see her relax. The panic was replaced with curiosity and she turned back to the box in his hands.

“Do you want the dinosaur?” He asked.

The conversation that they just had was gone from her mind. She gave him a huge smile and held up the tan plastic toy. Remus laughed at her antics and grabbed the toy from her placing the other one back on the shelf. She happily skipped next to him as they made their way to the register.

The conversation of werewolves never came back up between the two. He did let his mind mull over the knowledge as they ate a late lunch. He even thought it about it as Caylee fell asleep on his shoulder on their way back to the house. It was late when they got back, nearly four o’clock.

Caylee was awake now, but she was moving slowly as if she was half asleep. She talked nonsense to the older werewolf. Most the words were slurred together and he had no idea what they meant. Other words he would hook onto and have a small conversation.

Right as the child’s feet met the concrete front porch, the front door opened. Marly scooped up the girl and gave her a big hug and kiss. The girl showed her the new toy.

“Moose is a werewolf,” Caylee stated matter of factly. Remus froze. He felt his heart stop in his chest and his blood run cold. He didn't think about the consequences of telling the little girl his secret until now. 

Marly smiled at the girl, “I know.”

Chapter Text

Trying to open his eyes was proving to be difficult. His eyelids felt heavy and wouldn't respond to what his brain was trying to tell them. That wasn't the only thing that was amiss when he tried to pull himself to the conscious world. It seemed all of his senses weren't responding correctly.

Everything that he was hearing seemed to be happening under water. The rustling to his side, he wasn't sure if it was his left or right, was warped and was loud at some points and undetectable at others. When someone spoke, he wasn't sure if they were trying to talk to them, seemed to rapidly change in pitch. If he was fully awake and knew what was happening, the distorted voices that seemed to emerge from his deepest nightmares would have made him lash out it fear. He was stuck listening to the horrifying voices penetrate his mind asking him if he was okay. He wasn't sure what was worse, that the voice sounded like it was coming from hell or that it seemed to be concerned for him.

The whole experience was hellish if he was honest. Partnering the voices with and the non-responding body was bad. What made him wish for death was he didn't know where he was. This wasn't a location question, no, it was more of a question of if he was even alive. He couldn't feel anything above him, nor nothing below him. His body seemed to be riding a wave. He felt like he was tumbling. When it felt like he got his bearings, he was jerked to the side. Every time it felt like he was corrected, he body was twisted in another direction than his limbs. It reminded him of when he was little and he watched the laundry roll around in the drum of the dryer.

A new voice came to him right as a new wave threw his body in another direction. It was as high pitched as the one before. It was sharp as glass or making him want to drive his wand into his ear. It wasn't pleasant either. It was warped and certain vowels seemed to sound higher than the rest of the voice. A constant up and down of trying to listen to the voice. It was talking to him about something. He tried to focus on the message and not the voice.

"Marly sent mail earlier," The voice gargled at him in the void around him. Marly? Did he know a Marly?

"Remus has become Caylee's full-time babysitter." There was a sense of familiarity for the names he was hearing. He couldn't place it. Trying to recall his memories was painful and it made the endings of his nerves surge with pain.

He couldn't make out every sentence that was said. Sometimes the voice was too distorted to understand and other times it was too far away. There were even times where it didn't seem distorted but right next to him. It was familiar but he could place it. He could feel pain, one that was deep and ached, a pain that was forged from sadness.

"You need to wake up, Professor." This time it sounded normal. It sounded right next to him.

He tried to latch onto it. The small sound of a boy, one who was sad and sounded lost. Propelling himself forward he searched for the voice in the darkness. Hoping it would manifest as a light, something, anything to break through the emptiness. He felt like he was making progress when he was jerked backward.

He fought against it, but it's pull was strong. It was dragging him down, then it was swishing him to the side. He couldn't fight something he couldn't see, something he couldn't touch. Twisting his body in an attempt to free himself of the invisible grip, he felt something different. It was warm, a stark contrast to the cold that touched every part of his body.

He looked down at his forearm, finding the source of the warmth, and saw a glowing golden handprint. It was wrapped loosely around his limb. He placed his other hand over it and closed his eyes focusing on the feeling. It was warm and fresh. The more he focused on it, the warmer he felt. A scent accompanied it, freshly squeezed oranges and fresh grass overtook him. He focused on the scent next, letting it overtake him and soothe him. Instead of the feeling of being dragged down, he was being lifted.

Before he could register that he was being thrust forward, he was blinking. It took a few minutes for him to realize he was laying down. He was staring up at the stone ceiling of the infirmary. The shadows flickered on the walls from the flames of the candle. In the distance, he could hear paper rustling and footsteps.

His body was heavy and stiff. Turning to the side was painful and caused him to groan. It rumbled painfully in his chest as he did so. When he managed to turn his head completely, he found a sleeping student with skewed glasses. Harry was laying on his arm, his hand resting on his forearm. The boy’s uniform was wrinkled and crumpled where he was leaning against the bed. His face was scrunched up and his nose was twitching as he dreamed.

“You’re awake,” His eyes slid of the sleeping boy and found a blonde with dark bags under her eyes. He hair was messy and pushed up into a messy pile on the top of her head.

“Delana?” His voice came out cracked. It was barely above a whisper. He winced at the dry sound.

“You’ve been out for several days now,” She told him as she carded her fingers through Harry’s hair. He started to stir under her touch. Her eyes flickered down to the boy and she gave him a quick smile.

“What happen?”

“You broke a very strong compulsion charm.” She walked up to him and moved her illuminated wand past his eyes. “You did the impossible Severus Snape, You broke free of the Headmaster’s control all by yourself.”

At that moment Harry seemed to wake up. He rubbed his eyes with the back of his hands. He yawned and stared at his professor before his eyes widen and he darted forward. The boy wrapped his arms around the man and squeezed him comfortably.

Shocked, the man patted the boy’s hair. He hasn’t been hugged in the longest time and he couldn’t quite remember where to place his hands or how to react. There was a warmth to the hug. The nostalgia of his mother’s hugs hit him so hard that Severus had to blink rapidly to stop the onslaught of watering eyes. Harry’s hugs were tight and refreshing. The feeling reminded him of wrapping up in a favorite blanket. It was calming. It eased him in a way he didn’t know was possible.

“Harry,” Delana spoke softly to the boy, “You need to get back to your common room.” When the boy’s eyes flicked from his mother to his teacher, she placed her arm on his shoulder and bent down to meet his eyes. “Don’t worry, I’ll take care of him.”

With a quick nod, he turned to his professor, “Feel better soon.” Turning on the heel of his foot he rushed out the infirmary doors. The clicking could be heard mixed with the snoring children in the infirmary.

“You need to wear this,” She dropped a small necklace into the palm of Severus’s hand. He looked at the crystal that was set in a swirl of metal and strung on black card. He thumbed the smooth light blue crystal as Delana pulled up a chair and sat next to the man.

“What is it?”

Delana pulled an identical necklace out from underneath her robes. “It is a protection crystal. It keeps you protected against compulsion charms and potions. It also prevents you from being oblivated.”

“Who put the charm on me?” He asked as he struggled to clasp the item around his necklace. Delana leaned over and took control of the action.

“I can give you one guess,” Severus looked past Delana to see a man with light brown hair and hazel eyes. It took longer than Severus cared to admit to putting a name to the face. It was John Abbott, Delana’s husband, and the children’s parents.

The man had a short beard that was neatly trimmed. Severus instantly knew where Hannah, had gotten her eyes from, while the mother had hooded eyes, their father had wide eyes with thick eyelashes. There was a scar that ran from his right ear to the bottom of his chin, thinking back, Severus could recall that the injury came from Bellatrix when she was in her fifth year. Unlike his wife, his nose turned upwards at the end. Hannah must have gotten her mother’s facial structure, seeing as John’s cheeks sunk in slightly.

“Albus?” He guessed tiredly.

“Yes,” Delana replied while she waved her wand in circular patterns above his head. He watched the movement for a moment before his eyes flicked back to John.

“We’ve been slowly trying to break his reach. It’s very difficult. We have yet to find a countercurse and all the potions we try have failed. So far we found that concussions break the spell and death. There was talk of a complicated ritual but we haven’t found the details.”

“Death?!” Severus gaped at the man, he ignored the last sentence the man said.

“That didn’t come out right,” John admitted, “Reviving a person, I think would be a better way to explain it.” Severus just blinked at the extreme measures that had to be taken at break whatever was put on him by the Headmaster.

“That’s why we are so interested in you right now.” Delana spoke up, bringing Severus’s attention back to her, “You broke it without doing neither of those.” She sat back into the chair that she had dragged over. “How did you do it?”

“I had a potion that can purge the body of any magic. It removes curses, jinxes, hexes, you name it. It’s very rare and extremely expensive to make.” His voice was taking on his neutral tone again. The dryness in his throat was dissipating. “Some ingredients are only grown in certain countries. Some have a hefty price tag. Other’s take rituals just to obtain.”

“Can you make it?” John asked while he rubbed his wife’s tight shoulders.

“It what got me my Mastery,” Severus confirmed.

Delana looked up at her husband and smiled. “Contact Marly, it’s time for them to meet The Collective.”

Chapter Text

His hands were resting lazily on Marly’s knees. With his head tilted back against the couch, he was struggling to keep his eyes open. The full moon was tonight. That coupled with the fact that he ate too much of the orange chicken that Marly brought back with her after she left work, he was surprised he wasn’t already drooling on the couch.

When he tried to leave after eating the most food he had in years, Marly grabbed his wrist and told him that he was staying. When he told her that he had to go and prepare for the night, she told him that she had something set up.

“Where?”

“With my work,” He again wondered what she did, but just like all the other times he asked, he got no solid answer. “I take Caylee there every full moon. Trust me?” Though he would have opposed a week ago, their dynamic had changed.

The more she revealed to him, slow as she did, he found that his trust has previously been placed in the wrong hands. Where he used to blindly follow his old mentor without questions, Marly explained her requests. She had evidence to back up what she claimed. The one thing that Remus really enjoyed about Marly that Albus didn’t think about was, she had options. She had back up plans. She didn’t just sit behind a desk and throw out orders, she put herself in the middle. She got her hands dirty and refused to ask anyone to do anything she wouldn’t.

Throughout the week and a half that he had babysat the toddler, he learned a lot about the blonde who likes to wear patterned blouses and heeled boots. He learned that she had three older brothers, apparently, that was where she learned how to punch, and she was the only daughter. She was also the only magical being in her family. Once she was accepted into Ilvermorny for her education, she had moved from Colorado to Massachusetts and donned blue and cranberry robes. She was claimed as a Wampus and quickly learned everything about magic that she could.

She had told Remus that she met her best friend the first night in her dorm room.  It was tall and very tan, Alona Locklear. She had long thick hair and a smile that could light up the room. Instantly the two bonded when they found out there were both from Colorado. Marly said Greely as her home while Alona lived with her Native American father on the reserve.

That was the start of her story. He slowly learned more about Marly and Caylee as through the week. Marly couldn’t start her day without chugging two cups of coffee. Caylee was a morning person who would get upset if Remus didn’t take the bite of oatmeal she offered. He also found that Caylee actually didn’t like grape juice, she just asked for it so she could dump it on the floor. After the second time, Remus refused to buy her the juice no matter how long she stuck her bottom lip out at him.

The three of them have become quite comfortable. Remus was given a key to the home, Marly had started to stock his favorite tea in her cupboard and Caylee had learned to fake a stomach when a random woman started to put her hands on Remus. Remus also found out that Caylee maybe a future Slytherin when she declared the only way to fix her fake stomach aches were with goldfish crackers.

It took him twenty minutes to find those at the store.

Remus could confidently say he was happy. His life really wasn’t what he was expecting when he was a kid but he was comfortable. He had a paycheck going into his bank every other Friday. He didn’t even use up all the money from each paycheck, so a cushion was slowly forming. He had a friend, even if they did have a rough start, who didn’t care what he was. He wasn’t worried about where his next meal was coming from. It was better than he thought he would ever get.

It would be even better if Marly wasn’t insisting on him getting a new wardrobe and visiting the dentist. Seeing as she was supplying his funds he would bite his tongue and push through it. He could see the long term benefits after all.

“We should leave in about a half hour,” Marly mumbled looking down at the project in her hand. She had a crochet needle pulling gray yarn through holes. She tried to get Remus to try and he ended up knotting the project and the yarn broke when he attempted to straighten it out.

“How are we getting there?” Remus asked the woman. Caylee looked away from the TV at the two and blinked tiredly at them. She was struggling to stay awake. If they took Marly’s car he knew she would be asleep by the time they got to the end of the street.

Remus was right. He looked back at the toddler who was strapped into a car seat after a few turns and her head was resting on her shoulder. Her mouth was open and her dark hair was slowly moving to cover the child’s face. He tried to maneuver her head to prevent a kink but she was sitting directly behind him and he couldn’t reach her that well.

“Just leave her,” Marly told him as she made another turn, “Kids are made to sleep in weird positions.” Remus chuckled and straighten himself as she pulled up to a large concrete building with thick iron gates. She pulled up to the guard and handed over a badge and spoke in a friendly manner to the man. He passed the badge back before handing her a separate package that she threw onto Remus’s lap. He threw his hands out and caught it before it bounced onto the floor of the car.

“You’ll have to fill that out in the morning and get your photo taken.” After she said that, everything became crazy. He doesn't remember when but a sleeping Caylee was put into his arms and he was walked through several checkpoints.

If Marly was talking to him, he didn’t notice. He was watching everything around him. He saw people dressed in muggles clothes, tribal patterns, and some wearing very reflective material. He saw people with blue skin. He saw people with cat eyes, some had scales on their face, some looked more like animals, some had several extra limbs. From the way he was looking around his rapidly, Remus was surprised he didn’t have whiplash.

Then he was in a room. Turning behind him, he noticed Marly wasn’t there. He pulled Caylee tighter to his chest and looked around the room full of tired people. Some were older than him, some his age holding children as he did, and some were younger standing alone. To his right two teenagers were leaning against the wall, loosely holding hands. The boy had two piercing in his lips and the girl had a tattoo on her neck the disappeared below her collar.

“Hello,” A woman shorter than him with green lines on her face appeared in front of him, “You must be Remus. Marly told us you would be joining the transformation tonight.” She looked down, her green hair that was pulled into a tight ponytail tickled past her ear. “Hi, Caylee.” She cooed.

Caylee blinked at the woman before smiling and reaching her hand out. The woman, who Remus still didn’t know the name of, placed a vial in her hand. The child drank it and gave the glass container back to the lady. She took it in her left hand and gave Remus a vial with her right.

He took it and looked at the liquid inside. It was purple and there seemed to be varying shades of purple swirling around in the vial. He tilted it and is slowly moved to one side. He looked back to the woman. “What is it?”

“It’s a concoction that erases the pain of transformation. Everyone here takes it.” She replied patiently waiting.

He took a deep breath and shot the liquid back. It wasn’t horrible. It didn’t make him gag but he did scrunch his face up. Not something he would willingly drink in his free time. He gave the bottle back to the woman, “If purple had a taste, that would be it.”

She laughed and pocket the vial. “My name is Ay-Ka. I am a scientist in the Transformation unit. We work with people, or species,” She added as she directed him to two large metal doors. She moved to the side in front of a large glass window. “That transform. Werewolves are one of those species. Everyone that is here and not in a lab coat is a Werewolf. They either know someone who is in The Collective, like yourself, works here or has family that works here.”

Remus glanced around the room seeing about twenty-five different people waiting. Some were talking to each other while others were talking with a lab coat.

“This is just for our London office,” Ay-Ka told him. “We have several offices in the UK. People usually go to the office they work at.”

“There’s a lot of werewolves,” He murmured looking around. Caylee had wiggled out of his arms and walked over two a blonde boy that was her height.

Ay-Ka chuckled, “You should see our Shanghai location. Last moons attendance was a hundred-sixteen there.” Hearing that Remus’s eyes widen.

“You don’t care? That they are you know?” He waved his hand trying to think of the word.

“Different?” She asked with a raised green eyebrow, “I think that would be hypocritical of me.” When she saw Remus’s question look she answered, “I’m from a different planet. I was exiled because I was born with a mutation that allowed me to change into one of our most feared predators on that planet.” She looked around the room, “But it’s not about me right now. I would get ready for your change.”

When she walked away Remus found Caylee sitting on the floor rolling a ball between the blonde boy she found earlier and a young girl wearing a hijab. They weren’t talking just enjoying each other's company. Right as he reached down and grabbed Caylee the large metal doors open revealing a forest behind them.

He followed the others in what turned out to be a dome. He, like all the others, left his shoes and outer clothes at the door. Instead of hearing the cracking of bones he used to on nights like these, he heard the rushing wind. The others seemed to just change effortlessly into their other form. He set Caylee down who swiftly changed into a small black wolf that ran up to two smaller ones.

Suddenly Moony was running. There were werewolves running beside him chasing bunnies and squirrels. He was bouncing around with a little wolf. He was howling at the moon with the others. Not once, did he bite or scratch himself.

In the morning when he woke, sleeping on a bed, he didn’t have any pain. He wasn’t overly tired. He felt free and comfortable. That was until Marly appeared at his bedside.

“I think it’s time you learned what happened to Harry.”

Chapter Text

Rubbing at his eyes, Remus took the ceramic cup in front of him and wrapped his long fingers around it. Steam rose slowly from the rim twisting and turning in front of him. There was a soft fruity aroma coming from the liquid. When passed a small packet of sugar he quickly ripped the package and dumped the contents into the cup.

Marly was flipping through the pack that she threw at him yesterday. While he stirred the sugar into his the cup, Marly scribbled her initials and signature next to his through the stapled stack of papers. After checking over the last page, she flipped it closed and pulled the next stack next to his arm. This packet had a blue cover and was filled with non-disclosure agreements and other compliance contracts through it.

Waiting for her to finish reading through the packet, he grabbed his new badge and hit it against the metal table. He rotated between his fingers and tapped it against the table again. He kept rotating and tapping it until Marly hit his fingers. He flicked his eyes over to Marly and seeing the annoyed expression he laid it flat. His image that he took hours ago was staring at the ceiling.

“Sign here,” Marly pushed a single sheet over to him. He read through it. It was talking about enrolling him into the Werewolf Run monthly. He signed and dated the sheet before sliding it back to the woman.

“You have bananas on your shirt,” Remus said before sipping his tea.

“Yeah,” She looked down at the light cream blouse with the repeated images of bananas over it. “It’s really ugly and I love it.” She smiled when Remus snorted. “Plus my oldest brother got it for me so I like to wear it when I miss him.”

“Isn’t that sweet,” Remus said with a half smile. He watched as Marly collected all the papers and packets and tapped them against the table straightening them. Aster quickly tapping against a black rectangle, she explained it was a tablet, a woman with dark skin and silver markings all along her body walked in and took the pile.

“Weren’t you going to tell me about Harry?”

“We are waiting for Severus to finish his paperwork.”

Remus sat up straighter. “Severus is here?”

“Yes. He was brought here yesterday after lunch to make sure his compulsion was completely broken.” The door opened and the woman that had come and taken the stacks of paper was back. She handed over a small stack of newspapers before leaving again. Marly passed over The Prophet while she opened one from London.

Remus really didn’t read the paper. He thumbed through the yellowed paper paying little attention to the moving photos. The front story was about the Minister attending a charity event. When he opened the spread Marly glanced up, “That man’s an idiot.”

Remus folded the corner of the paper towards him. The image of the minister became distorted causing the image to stare at him. “While I agree,” He started, “Why do you say that?”

Marly waved her hand dismissively, “He’s easily manipulated and can’t think for himself.” She then chuckled to herself, “I bed his Patronus is a panda.”

Remus folded her paper and set it on the table, “A panda?”

“Pandas are useless!” She cried out, “They eat 9 hours a day and have no defense. Pandas will kill their own children because they are too stupid to realize it’s their child. If it wasn’t for human involvement they would have gone extinct.”

Remus’s body was shaking while he tried to not laugh out loud. It wasn’t the first time the Marly shot off into a random rant, but it was one of the more funnier ones. Her hands and arms were flailing around her as she rapidly shot words out of her mouth to defend her case.

“So yes, I believe the panda perfect matches the minster. Just image summoning one and it just sits there.” She finished by taking a sip of her coffee.

“What’s your Patronus?”

“A ram,” She nodded proudly as she told Remus.

“Okay,” Remus said dropping his arms flat on the table, “That fits you perfectly though.”

She shot him a smile, “Yours?”

“Wolf.” He said quickly.

“Is that before or after the charm was broken?”

Remus opened to his mouth to speak then stopped. He hadn’t cast that spell since beforehand. He had no reason. He was about to say something when the door opened loudly.

John Abbott walked in first and set a box on the table with a loud  thud. Delana was through the door next and set another box down, much softer than John had. Behind both of them was Severus who was struggling with carrying several drinks. Though they couldn’t see it from his black robes, he had spilled a little of John’s drink on his left forearm.

‘What took so long?” Marly asked sliding the box that Delana had placed on the table. She pooped the lid off and started to finger through the files. She grabbed several folders and dropped them onto the table.

“One,” John started motioning for Severus to sit on the other side of Remus, “someone couldn’t decide what to drink.” Remus could hear Severus mumble about not knowing what a latte was as he sat down. If John heard him, he ignored him. “Two, Daye wanted to do a scan of Severus’s mark.”

“Ah?” Marly peeked up quickly meeting John’s eyes before looking back into the box.

“Yeah, They think they can remove it. It’ll take a few sessions to unstitch it from his magic and cells.” He pulled a chair out for Delana before he himself sat next to his wife. The door opened and Amelia Bones walked in with a tired expression. She didn’t say anything as she sat at the end of the table between Delana and Marly.

“That’s exciting.” Marly slid the box away. “We,” marly motion between herself and Remus, “we're talking about patronuses.” She paused, “Patroni?” Turning to Remus he shrugged his shoulders.

“Anyway,” She slid a small packet to the two men. “More NDAs!” Yay!” She exclaimed with false excitement. Both men grumbled but took the packet and signed after reading.

While they signed them Marly made a quick comment which would leave Severus and Remus questioning themselves. “I wonder when the charm was put on you. If it was when you were very young, I don’t know,” She stopped and looked at Delana. “Would they develop normally or?”

“The charm,” Delana started very calmly, “is complex and has a lot of unknowns. If the charm is placed on a child the child’s behavior would develop and reflect what the caster wants. If it’s placed on adults it just affects actions and thinking to cause a shift in personality. It can be identified. With children, they are still growing into themselves. That makes it harder to identify.”

Both men’s pens stilled, “There is no way to tell who he affects at Hogwarts.”

Delana nodded as Severus's words, “That’s why we are going to recreate that potion and sneak it into the school.”

They went quite again. Marly took the signed papers and placed them in the box she dug through earlier. She then pulled out a recording device. She placed it in the middle of the table and turned it on.

“What we are discussing today is an ongoing investigation. You are being informed about such an investigation because you have been authorized to help the cause. Everything said about this case stays in this room. No files can be taken or discussed outside of this room. You can not speak to anyone about this case that is not in this room.

“You will be given a cover story at the end to tell people if they ask. You have been given charms to protect your mind and body. You will be given a potion that will render truth serum useless after you have been briefed.

“Failure to comply with these terms with result in legal action, memory wipes, and life-altering consequences. Are there any questions?” When both men verbally answered ‘no’, she continued.

“We will start with the medical reports from August 9th, 1989,” With that, she touched a button on the side of the table. The glass in the middle light up and she place two thick films on to the glass. Remus and Severus leaned in. “These are are X-rays showing the head trauma of Harry James Potter after being rushed to the hospital.”

Remus tapped the side view of Harry’s skull, “What’s that?”

“That is a steel pipe. “ Amelia spoke up for the first time. “More accurately, that is the steel pipe that Harry’s Uncle speared through his skull.”

The color drained from the men's face. The stared at the white object that he been thrust through the child’s skull. Remus’s breath was shaky and Severus’s mouth had gone dry. They couldn’t take their eyes off the films in front of them.

“It was a miracle. Where did it hit? It was a surprise he was still alive. They are still trying to figure out how he is able to walk.” Delana told the men.

Marly then pulled out more images. Images of the scene of the house from that night. Some were of the floor where they had found Harry laying unmoving. Some of the cupboard under the stairs. Some were of strange spots found in the back shed.

Then the images from his injuries were brought out. There were more X-Rays, photos of stitches, photos of broken bones and bruises. There were scans of his brain. There were photos of the boy lying motionless on the bed with tubes coming out his mouth and going into his veins.

Severus had to ask for a break halfway through the medical images. He was looking quite green. John gave him a stomach soother and a glass of water. After hearing the intense breathing from Remus, he decided it was best to give one to the werewolf as well.

After color had returned to their faces she pulled out a black box. “Maybe we should get the recordings out of the way now,” Marly told them before pressing the play button.

Chapter Text

He was rubbing his hands in a circular motion on his temples. The migraine that had formed was making his eyes cross. His mouth was dry and if you looked closely you could see the small tremors in his fingers. You would see how his shoulders were slumped ever so slightly. How his eyes were dull and sad. How he had to stop and blink back tears that were lining up behind his eyelids.

He thought there would be kids in the courtyard. That someone would be playing a game. He had hoped that there would be noise, chatter, singing, anything to cover the echoing of screams in his ears. It had been several hours since they revealed the audio but it was still blasting loudly through his brain. He had to stop on several occasions and whip his head around when he thought he heard a scream. It was just his mind. Repeating the horrific sounds over and over.

He dug his blunt nails into the palm of his hand to focus on something besides the images that kept popping into his mind. Small droplets of blood had formed into his palm. He dragged his nails inward focusing on the pain. He was so focused on not hearing the horrors, that he didn’t hear someone walk up behind him.

“Professor?” Severus jumped slightly. He turned and looked down to see Harry looking at him questioningly. The boy’s tie was undone and dangling loosely off his shoulders. His top two buttons were undone. Not only did the little puffs of air coming from his mouth indicated the cold weather but also the pink tinge of color on the apples of his cheeks. “Professor, Are you okay?”

He didn’t know what possessed him to surge forward and pull the boy into his body but he was happy to do so. It reassured him that he was alive. That he was no longer there. He was whole and alive. When Harry returned the hug he squeezed ever so slightly. He could feel the small thumbing of the boy's heart. Small huffs of breath warmed his torso where the child’s face was buried.

“I’m sorry,” Severus whispered into the boy’s hair, “I’m so sorry. I should have been there. I should have asked questions. I should have-”

“You couldn’t.” Came Harry’s muffled response. “The charm wouldn’t have let your mind go there.” Harry pulled back looking at his professor. His glasses were slightly crooked. “I don’t blame you for what you couldn’t do. It’s not your fault so you shouldn’t hold the guilt.”

Severus straighten the thick frames of his student, “Quite wise of you.”

“I learned a lot through therapy,” His shoulder raised and dropped. “I had to learn that I didn’t deserve it. That I wasn’t in the wrong.”

He started to open his mouth but stopped at Harry’s shivers. He turned the boy around and pushed him into the castle. He didn’t notice Minerva standing there until they reached the steps. She was looking at the two with raised eyebrows. He noticed she started to say something but he shook his head cutting her off.

“Oh! Professor?” Harry caught Minerva’s attention. “Wood all has a similar structure, is it possible to permanently transfigure one type of wood into another? Wouldn’t you be able to effectively make a walnut trunk with the use of a pine? I know walnut is a Hardwood. You could decrease labor by using softwood and-”

“Mister Potter, I’m surprised you know so much about wood,” Minerva said. Severus gave her a look as if to say ‘Really?’. She ignored the look, “Though you could potentially change it, all transfiguration have a duration limit. It may take many years but the wood would slowly deteriorate back into it’s original-”

“Could the combination of a preservation rune weaved in to eliminate the aspect?” Harry interrupted as Severus cast a light warming charm. He had tried to herd the child away from the doorway but he just moved back.

Minerva blinked. “It could possibly work.”

“Fantastic!” He breathed out, “Jason would love to know about this. I’ll have to do some research.” Severus was going to ask who Jason was, but Harry had already walked away from the two. He quickly walked after the boy catching up.

“How about we go to my office?” Severus suggested as Harry whispered ideas under his breath.

“Hm? Oh, okay.” Harry smiled and followed the potion master at the next turn. Severus could hear Harry mumbling behind him. From the excited whispers, he was talking about mixing runes with transfiguration.  

Severus realized that Harry’s mind was always active. He always searched for new information. He was always ready to have a question. As the bound down the stairs he realized something, Harry didn’t have his notebook. The hardcover book that was always in his bag or under his arm was missing. It was very odd to see Harry without it, it seemed unnatural.

“No notebook?” Severus asked as he opened the door for Harry.

A slight pink color appeared on his cheeks before he spoke, “I filled out all the notebooks that I brought to school.”

“How many did you bring?”

“Eight,” Harry mumbled.

“You’ve gone through eight full-sized notebooks already? You’ve been in classes for about two months,” Severus pushed a mug to Harry. There was a chip on the rim and the string of the tea bag sat perfectly in the groove.

“I had several ideas that just kept moving to more ideas.” Severus chuckled at the boy.

“You seem different,” Harry said to his professor. “It happens a lot after the charm breaks,” He stated matter of factly. “The revert back to who they are truly are.”

Harry wasn’t wrong. Since he woke up in the hospital wing he felt different. The coldness that seemed to seep into his bones was gone. The urge to snap and snarl at the students vaporized. His patience had seemed to increase. He was pretty sure Neville nearly had a heart attack when he came up to the boy and demonstrated how to properly crush pixie wings. He had gotten several weird looks but after the boy’s potion came out passable no one decided to say anything against it.

Severus felt happy. He was enjoying his brewing again. The conversations that he was having with Minerva were enjoyable. He had taken Filius up on his invites for tea. He went out of his way to talk with Pomona in her greenhouse. He even was enjoying the flirting banner that he had started with Sinistra. The giggles that he was able to get out of her put a smile on his face.

He started to enjoy the small things too. He walked outside more, a small tan had started to form on his skin. He started to wear more colors, blues and greens started to break the black streak. He was even thinking about just wearing slacks and button downs on the weekend. He would have to make a stop and buy some more shirts though.

The staff had noticed the change. Minerva has asked him what brought it on. Instead of telling her the truth he looked at her and softly said, “I wasn’t allowed to enjoy life before. I need to do some catching up.” She responded with a confused expression before walking away.

“I am different.” He agreed with the boy who was slowly stepping sideways to the bookshelf. It was a game that they had started after the third time Harry came in to brew. He would slowly sneak over to the personal collections of text that Severus kept in his lab, the goal was to see how close he could get before being caught. Whenever Severus noticed him by the shelves he would call him out and get laughter in response.

After taking another small step to the side Harry nodded his head, “You seem to be enjoying things now. It’s weird, isn’t it? To not be able to enjoy anything then suddenly be allowed to?”

Severus stopped tipping his tea bag when he heard that. The written reports and audio recordings of Harry confessing that he didn’t know what to do, sprung to his mind. The boy knew how to cook and clean, how to avert his eyes, how to be quiet and blend into the shadows and be forgotten. When he was asked about his likes and dislikes not only did he become extremely confused, but he panicked.

From what John and Delana had said, Harry always looked over his shoulder when they started visiting to take care of him. They were an ideal family, Delana a healer and John a therapist. They would be able to help him find himself. They knew he needed constant reassurance, he was going against everything he was taught. With the help of their little girl, numerous therapist appointments, physical therapy, a dietician, and a stray cat, Harry learned how to be a child.

He remembers the tape where Harry confessed that he didn’t understand playing with friends. He never experienced it. He was so nervous, his voice cracked over the tape when he admitted he was afraid he’d do it wrong. Those questions had made deflate in his chair. “What if they don’t like the game I suggest? Will they hit me? What if they think I’m freaky? Why would you run around for fun, isn’t someone chasing you? You can like different things than your friends?”

Harry never had friends. Harry never played with kids his own age. He ran from them. He hid from them. He never spoke to them. The tapes revealed he was never taught. His social skills were non-existent. Hannah, apparently, was the miracle who was able to fix that.

“Certainly strange,” Severus mumbled after pulling himself out of his thoughts.

“Did they just show you the reports or did you get the entire package?” Harry asked halfway to the bookcase.

“All of it,” Severus admitted.

“Don’t pity me,” Harry demanded.

“I wasn’t planning on it,” He responded. Harry had managed to make his way to the bookshelf. He was an arm's length away. Severus straightened up and called out him. Unlike the other times, Harry didn’t start to laugh and walk back. No, he was staring at a shelf right below his eye level. It was one that Severus would put texts on he didn’t plan on reading. The lower the shelf, the less important the texts became.

“Harry,” Severus called again as the boy walked to the bookshelf. He started pulling books off and stacking them neatly on the floor. Severus made his way over to his student. Harry had reached into the shelf and he heard thumping before a box came into view as Harry pulled his hand back.

The potion master reached for it but Harry had already flipped the lid open to reveal dozens of small vials. Each vial held a swirling memory. Severus just stared at the box confused.

Who’s memories are in the box?

Chapter Text

Remus couldn’t help but wonder how much he had changed. He would sit on the loveseat while Caylee was taking a nap and just stare blankly at the wall. Not seeing anything but thinking. Wondering who he was. Wondering if he had ever got the chance to be himself.

Soft breathing and the wind outside was the only thing that was making noise. It helped his thoughts flow. There was nothing to distract him. Nothing to take his mind off the questions that had haunted his every waking moment since he learned of the charm. They begged loudly for answers, ones that he didn’t have. One that he was terrified he would never figure out.

Marly had started to throw him more and more glances. They would be filled with concern. Sometimes she looked at him with pity. Every time she did he would narrow his eyes at her, challenging her. Instead of looking guilty she would smirk and raise an eyebrow, an invitation of sorts.

Caylee shifted and rolled against the barrier he through up on the couch so she wouldn’t fall. He stumbled upon the book when he was trying to find Caylee’s right sock. It’s been a week and the little pink fabric had yet to reappear. He wondered if it somehow managed to get into the frame of the couch.

He looked back down at the book in his lab. He was a chapter in but he couldn’t push past the first handful of pages. He used to love this book. He would read it late at night when sleep wouldn’t find him. He would enjoy the characters and the conversation. He looked up to the mentor of the main character. He admired how they would blindly trust the mentor and follow orders without a second thought. Now it disgusted him. It seemed to hit too close to home. He could feel bile slowly rising in his throat at the characters.

Snapping the book closed he dropped by the lamp and made his way to the kitchen. He pulled the fridge open and rummaged through the containers before he found something that appeased his stomach. He popped the lid off some spicy chicken and closed it in the microwave before starting it. He listened to the hum.

Remus noticed some small changes in himself. Not just mentally but physically. He noticed that the number of scars that littered his body seemed to fade away. There were still several large ones across his face and chest from the initial attack when he was a child, but the ones afterward seemed to blend into his natural skin. He had gained weight, his cheeks were no longer hollow and his ribs weren’t trying to make an appearance anymore. He chalked that up eating several meals a day and no longer wondering which was more important, food or rent? He also seemed to be putting on muscle extremely fast. Marly had pointed that out one day when she rushed through the door and begged for pizza.

“Werewolves are naturally toned. They are strong and that carried over into their human form,” She had told while cutting up Caylee’s pizza. “I wonder if he had placed a glamour on you that was tied to the charm.”

“It could be from all that running after Caylee,” Remus told Marly before sneaking a pepperoni off her pizza. She swatted at his hand while he chuckled.

“I thought of that but Delana says Severus is starting to look different too. Not as sickly, filling out.” Remus paused, “What?” Marly asked before taking a bite of her pizza.

“What if it’s not glamour but the charm itself? What if it makes us sick? What if the charms feeds off our bodies? It could be why to reapply isn’t needed.”

“Oh my god.” She whispered staring down at the scratched table. ‘Why didn't I think of that?”

“Too close to the case?” Remus suggested.

The microwave went off behind him pulling his thoughts back to the present. Pulling the container out he stirred the rice into the sauce before sitting at the table. He had to move a couple of dolls off the chair before being able to sit.

This is how it has been for the past several days since the full moon. His mind constantly wandered to his past. He thought about the relationships he had, his friends, his parents. He noticed whenever a memory would pop up a sick feeling came over him.

At one point he thought of Peter. Instead of the sadness that used to fill his chest, an overwhelming feeling of revulsion attacked him. Not only did the memory of the man make him gag, but it seemed weird. He could never make out full details. Peter’s face was always blurred, there was never any detailed. It was generic, his mind trying to find a face that fit the person caused new features to arrive every time he thought of him. Sometimes there were silver eyes staring at him then he would blink to see blue. He was pale in some memories but tan in another.

He thought of Sirius Black next. Like Peter, there was a different emotion now tied to the man. He waited for the rage and betrayal to hit him, but it never did. He missed the man. Trying to think of any of the dark thoughts he thought of the man started to give him a headache. He could remember his laugh, mixed in with a group of others that he could pick out. The images of the man in his mind weren’t blurry like Peter but it felt wrong. Remembering one where they were picking on Severus was wrong. He wasn’t sure why but he knew that Sirius wouldn’t do that.

He felt his wand vibrate in his pocket. Getting up he walked into the living room to see Caylee blinking at him. Her dark hair was tangled and knotted on one side of her head and her pant legs had started to creep towards her knees. Righting her pants, he picked up up and took her into the kitchen. She was usually quiet and docile after her nap.

“Hungry?” He asked the girl who was staring at the table. She nodded her head after a few seconds of silence. “You know what you want?”

“Sam-ich,” she told him tiredly. He chuckled and pulled out the deli meat and cheese. After plating the sandwich he peeled an orange for the girl. Once he set it in front of her she went after the oranges. He was happy to learn that not only was Caylee not a picky eater but she was a good eater. Marly said it was a werewolf thing.

Before he could tuck in and finish his leftovers, the front door open. He turned to see Marly standing in the doorway with a dripping umbrella. “What are you doing home?” Remus asked standing up.

“Severus found something,” She breathed out, “You’re going to want to see this.”

Chapter Text

Amelia was trying to get him to try her drink. He was hesitant to try anything that color but she was adamant. She would take a sip then tilt the cup towards him the straw facing towards him. After the third time, she did it he huffed and leaned forward taking a sip. It was thick and cold but it wasn’t bad. Not something he would drink every day but something he could enjoy on a hot one.

“What’s in that?” He asked as she put the straw to her lips.

“Spinach. Apple. Mango,” She stopped her eyes rolling back in thought, “and Banana.” She took another sip.

“You made me drink spinach?” He asked in disbelief.

“Good wasn’t it?” She smiled at him. Instead of sneering like he would have done it the past he lightly laughed at her and shook his head. “This happy guy that you turned it to? I like him. He doesn’t seem as stressed.” Severus nodded in agreement with Aurora Head.

“The same can be said for the students. Their grades have all skyrocketed. Been having some good talks with those in my house. I think I’m making a difference in some of them.” Severus admitted as he reached out and refilled his water cup.

“Can you send some good ones to me, please?” She asked as she finished the smoothie. She threw it into the trash can. It landed with a muffled thud .

“Why do that when I can just watch you suffer?” He laughed at her.

Huffing Amelia pointed a finger at the man, “Listen here you-” She couldn’t finish what she was saying as the door was thrown open. A little girl with long black hair dashed in and hugged Amelia.

“Caylee, What have we said about throwing doors open?” Remus’s voice came into the room from the hall. He followed in a few seconds later.

“Open ‘em nice-wy.”

“Hello,” John said as he walked into the room passing Marly who was stopped in the doorway talking to Delana. Remus grabbed her elbow and pulled her into the room. She stumbled before catching her footing and standing behind Severus’s chair.

Delana didn’t say anything when she walked in. Her hair was halfway pulled up with thin wisps falling in front of her face. She wore tan robes with sleeves stopping at the elbow. She had a pensive in her arms and was looking over the rim making sure she didn’t bump into Caylee. She placed the bowl on the table before turning and picking up the child.

“We’ll” she nodded her head towards the child in her arms, “be at the koi pond. If we leave before you guys are done I’ll send a message.”

“You have the spare key right?” Marly asked plopping herself into a chair next to Amelia. Like the woman next to her, her hair was pulled up into a hasty messy bun. She had missed some hair in the back, they hung loosely and curled around her shoulders.

“Yes. Don’t worry I’ll feed her dinner too.”

“Thanks, Del,” the woman smiled then left shutting the door behind her. John was leaning against the wall his arms crossed as he watched the group. He waited a moment before making his way over to the people who were staring down at the bowl.

It was made of metal, the pensive. It was polished and have runes and words engraved alongside the ridge. There were smudge marks around the base where Delana’s fingertips rested against the object. A way for to still be here even when she wasn’t in the room.

Amelia pulled the box that was over by Severus towards her. She carefully lifted the wooden lid up revealing the goods inside. There were no markers on the glass bottles. Just a soft swirling of blue wisps in the containers. “I guess we are doing this blind.” She mumbled popping the cork and dumping it into the bowl.

They all leaned forward into the memory together. The falling sensation slowly coming to a stop once they were fully in.  They all looked around at the new environment they were in. There was light streaming into the hall from the window. In the rays the could see small particles of dust floating around the hall. Peering out the window Severus concluded that it was either late spring or early summer. He also discovered that they were in Hogwarts.

Severus turned to question the others when voices could be heard entering the hallway. It was familiar, the windows, the darkened spots on the windowsills from oily fingers, even the smell of a cleaner was starting to jog something in the man’s mind.  He joined the rest of the group by the wall and looking around the hall as the distant voices became louder and clearer. Suddenly two boys were turning into the hallway. Both had black hair down to their shoulders. One had a red and gold tie wrapped around his forehead while the other had a silver and green tie hanging loosely on his shoulders. The appeared to be about 13 or 14.

Severus watched as his younger self laughed alongside the boy next to him. When did he casually stroll around the castle grounds with Sirius Black? He did have a feeling familiarity as he watched the teen Severus push Sirius’s shoulder and scrunched his nose up. This memory didn’t have the sour taste and distorted view of the memories he had been trying to think about the past few days. There was no blurry spots or incomplete details. It was solid. It was clear.

“I can’t believe Moony dumped you on me for potions.” Young Severus mumbled pacing in front of a blank wall. “You have the attention span of a goldfish.” The boy would walk to one side of the hall only to stop and spin on the sole his foot and walk to the other.

“Hey,” Sirius pointed a finger at him with faux sternness, “That’s an insult to fish.”

Right as the door appeared, the stones morphing in front of their eyes, the younger Severus burst into laughter. After a second Sirius joined in, the sound filling the halls fitting in perfectly with the sun’s rays.

“You guys are late,” James whined as the two walked in. A younger Remus lowered the book from his face and narrowed his eyes at the boy. As the older versions watched this, pain and sadness filled their chest for the dead friend. Remus rubbed at his chest absentmindedly while Severus bit the inside of his cheek.

“Well some body,” Sirius turned to the small potion master, “forgot his notebook in his dorm.”  

“We had time to get my notebook,” Severus dropped his bag next to James’s leg before sitting next to him, “we didn’t have time for you to try stupid pick up lines on Maise.”

“You are still here before the other two,” Remus said shutting his book and putting it on the table next to him. The whole room seemed to be designed like a living room. It was filled with neutral calming colors, overstuffed seats, polish wood, and the occasional knickknack. The far wall had a fireplace with a painting of a forest above it. Throw pillows littered the floor from when James tossed them away from under his body. Natural light filtered in from a bay window behind them. On top of the chair, Remus was sitting on was a gray striped cat with a red collar.

Sirius dropped onto the sofa next to Severus. He swung his legs onto the boy’s lap with a lopsided grin. Severus shot him a strong glare before roughly shoving the legs off him. Instead of his body twisting him into an upright position he tumbled to the floor. James laughed and stuck his tongue out at his friend.

Sirius popped up with a cheeky smile when the doors opened allowing entrance to two girls. One with dirty blonde hair that stopped at her shoulders and another with bright red hair that was pulled into a braid. The girl with the braid had bright green eyes and a button nose. The girl with blonde hair has long slender features with light brown eyes.

“The Evanses have arrived!” James called out happily.

Those watching the memory froze at the statement. They all turned to stare at the blonde and study her. She indeed was related to Lily if their features were any indication. They both had the same chin and jawline, their ears were identical as were their eye shape. They both had high cheekbones and arched eyebrows. It wasn’t until the blonde shot a look to James that someone spoke.

“That’s Petunia,” Marly whispered to the group, “When I met her though, she didn’t have magic.” She finished confused.

“Hey Pet,” Remus waved at the woman. She waved back and sat on an armchair across from him. The cat above him lazily stretched and jumped on to the arm before making into the floor. It trotted over to Petunia and mewed until she scratched under its chin. The cat then moved onto Lily who stroked the cat.

“Sorry, we had to shake a tail.” Petunia said as she loosened the Hufflepuff tie around her neck. Lily was leaning on the arm undoing her own Gryffindor tie.

“Let me guess,” Sirius said, “Pettigrew?”

“Yes,” she groaned, “I don’t know why he is so insistent on trying to hang out with us but anyone who spends that much time with the headmaster can’t be trusted.”

“Wait,” Remus stopped the conversation, “Who’s Pettigrew?”

“Some Gryffindor a year below us,” Lily answered while digging into her bag. She pulled out some candy wands and started to pass them around. James and Severus started to fight with the food while laughter spilled out of their mouth. Remus took a big bite out his while Petunia peeled it before sticking it in her mouth. When James’s bent and didn’t stay upright, the group laughed as he frowned.

They started to feel the memory fade first. Then the colors around them lost saturation. The crisp lines blurred and everything twisted and warped together into a haze of blue. Feeling as if they were being pulled upwards by string they all jerked back into their bodies. John had to reach out and grab the table to steady himself. Amelia was shaking her head, hair coming loose from her bun and it spilled onto her shoulders. Remus was scratching the middle of his forehead with a confused look. Severus had placed the heel of his hands against his eyes as the memory came unstuck from the fog in the back of his mind. 

Most of them were blinking rapidly trying to process all the information that they had gained when there was a knocking at the door. The first knock was light and hesitant but they grew more confident. Marly was out of her chair first opening the door. After seeing who it was she opened the door wider allowing entrance.

“I was hoping you would make time to visit.” She told the man who was turned towards Marly and away from the seated group.

“I also bring a message that Caylee has been taken out for dinner.” Severus and Remus suddenly still. The voice was deep, calm and familiar. It wasn’t until the man turned around and smiled at them could they place it.

“Sirius?” Remus and Severus whispered in awe together.

Chapter Text

Happiness.

If you were to ask Remus what he was feeling right now, he would say pure, unfiltered happiness. The type you feel when you wake up on sunny Saturday with no plans and commitments. It was the kind that wrapped around your chest when you hold a puppy and pulled it up to your chest and rest your cheek softly on its head. This happiness rivaled the feeling of seeing your friends after a long summer and rushing forward to hold them in a tight hug and feel that they truly are okay. It filled every fiber of his being, woven into his body and soul.

Why wouldn’t he be happy? On his lap laid two heads. Both heads had black hair, one long one short. On his right laid the body of a girl with olive skin. A girl that had thrusted herself into the man’s heart and a pink shirt with a white cat and a bow on its head and a frilly white skirt. Her shoes had fallen to the floor leaving her blue painted toes exposed. She had fallen asleep first, her breathes evening out as Remus talked with Delana and John.

On the left was a boy. One with rumpled blue trimmed robes and glasses that had been pushed to the top of his head. His tie was pulled loose. Slacks were hitched up from where he pulled his legs up showing the striped pattern on them. He was tired when he walked in with his parents. Deep splotches hung under his eyes from the seizure that he had come to visit. He started in an upright position sitting next to Remus before dropping onto his shoulder. Remus had repositioned the boy after looking at the awkward angle of his neck. The boy started to snore after a few minutes.

Severus was next to Amelia, his body angled slightly towards her, which made Remus wonder about the two. He didn’t say anything but watched as quick glances passed between them. He saw when Severus would ghost his hand over the woman’s arm before pulling his hands back to himself. He heard the soft chuckle that Amelia would give the man after a quick-witted response jumped from the man’s lips. He didn’t call attention to the actions, no, but he did glance over to Marly. From her smirk and side-eye that she gave him, he knew he wasn’t the only one noticing it.

Sirius was on the couch. His right ankle crossed over his left knee while he sunk into the back. He was listening to something John was saying. A smile would form only to morph into the next expression needed for the conversation. He would make a witty one-liner which made both men laugh and Delana to sigh and roll her eyes. She was angled away from the other two men on the couch, her knees pointed towards her daughter as she braided the girl's hair. Susan sat in front of Hannah chatting about a girl in the Slytherin house.

They were in a small hideout not too far from the Hogs Head. The only entrance was nestled between to buildings and looked like an alleyway to a set of trash cans. Then you would walk two steps forwards and feel the glamour wash over you with a buzzing sensation on your skin and a high-pitched ringing in your ears. It would fade after a moment and then reveal a set of stone stairs waiting for you to climb.

“The Collective have small hideouts like this all over,” Marly explained as Sirius, Severus, and Remus followed her up the stairs. This wasn’t new information to Sirius, who apparently has been with the organization for the past seven years.

“They set them up so Agent’s can hide, meet up, or store vital information,” Sirius finished for the blonde. “It’s where I would come to meet Poppy to see if you guys happen to manage to break the charm.” He confessed after a moment.

It turns out that The Collective had been watching Dumbledore before the incident with Harry. They started to take notice of the man back in the boy’s second year. That’s how they knew to keep an eye out for Remus, Severus, and others. When Sirius was sent to jail without a trail they had come and switched him out with a golem.

That’s also how the found out dementors can break the charm. It came at an extremely high cost. The mixture of the charm with the effects of the dementors caused extreme damage. After being in the prison for several months before they were able to get them out had caused a slew of issues for Sirius. The charm wasn’t lodged loose from a concussion or bled out from a potion, no, it had been shattered. Pieces of the charm splintered and embedded themselves into various parts of Sirius. It took several years to isolate the shards and slowly work them out of the man. They had a team who pull his memories out of his head and remove the fake snippets that were implanted by the charm before being woven back into his head. It took nearly three years till Sirius was able to be who he really was. Desperate to get his friends back, he joined The Collective.  Since then, he had been working behind the scenes tracking down various informational sources and collecting forgotten rituals.

Now, he sat on a couch across from his lost friends. Remus caught the fond glances that he shot at Harry. He saw the hug that boy gave him when he entered the room. He saw the kiss that Sirius bent down to place on top of the boy’s head. How he knew what was going on in the kid’s life. Some jealousy had bubbled when he saw how close that the two were, but when Caylee had grabbed his hand a moment later, it disappeared.

“Sirius,” Marly grabbed the man’s attention, “Do you have the information?”

“Oh!” He straightened up and pulled the files off the table next to him passing them to the woman, “Here. The blue is everything I could remember about her and photos of her that I had. The yellow is legal information. Red is everything that happened after graduation.”

Remus, Amelia, and John were all going to visit Petunia after lunch. John was going under the guise of a therapist, not a long stretch seeing that that was his profession. Remus was going to be his assistant and Amelia was the mediator. They were hoping that they could see if she one, remembered Remus, and two, figure out what happened to her magic.

Marly had already told them that she couldn’t go. “Petunia knows me. She’ll freak out.” She told Remus before taking a swig of water. Sirius was still technically in Azkaban. He wore a special bracelet that glamoured his features to those not in The Collective when he was out in public. Though he could go, since Petunia wasn’t part of the organization, she wouldn't see through it, therefore he couldn’t test to see if she remembered him. Delana had to go back to work.

John was handed the files last. He read through them carefully. “It seems she had a psychotic break,” he told the rest of the group. “I’d have to do some digging to see if I can’t find a stressor.” He closed the folders and looked up at Remus, “Ready?”

Remus didn’t remember the trip to the building. Nor did he even remember walking up the path and through the glass doors into the reception area. He was focusing on some snippets of memories that have been slowly breaking loose. It had started happening after the first couple of memories. Severus was dealing with it too. Flashes of faces or bits of audio would interrupt there day. The one that had slipped to him at the moment was of James talking with a blonde Slytherin. It wasn’t until he saw her eyes did he place a name. Narcissa.

“Hey, Spacey?” Remus jerked his head in the direction of Amelia. He was holding the door open for him. Inside the room was Petunia Evans. She looked different from the last time Amelia and John saw her after Harry’s accident.

She was wearing blue scrubs that were wrinkled, folds and creases painted nearly every inch of the cotton she was wearing. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail, it was tangled and starting to gray. There were some bald patches by her temples. Her skin was pale and sickly. Remus though if he looked closely he could see the thin string of her veins living underneath her skin. Her lips were dull and chapped, her mouth slightly open as she sat there. Staring down at the table, she didn’t show any indication that she noticed their arrival. When she did look up, she looked haggard. Her eyes didn’t focus on anything, just blinked mechanically.  

“Hello Petunia,” Remus said softly once Amelia closed the door and sealed the room. “It’s been awhile. Do you remember me?”

It took too long for her eyes to make her way to Remus and even longer for her to find his eyes. There was nothing in them. Not a single indication that she knew the man in front of her. There was no emotion either. No life. Just glassy blank irises looking into his own. He had to look away, he felt as if he was staring at a lifeless doll. She may be alive, he thought, be she sure as hell wasn’t living.

She couldn’t answer any questions about herself. She couldn’t remember anything prior to waking up and finding a boy on her steps. She had no memory of schooling. She didn’t know where she used to hang out. She didn’t know what foods she liked. She didn’t have details about her sister besides general information. Every question that asked for detailed answers made her eyes narrow and her face pinched in pain. At one point she had thrown her fingers into her hair and started to tug. It explained the patches. They moved back to generic questions.

“What’s her name?”

“Lily.”

“What’s her middle name?”

“I don’t know.”

“What house was she in?”

“I don’t know.”

“What are your parent's name?”

“I don’t know.”

“Where did you grow up?”

“I don’t know.”

“Who is your husband?

“Vernon Dursley,” She seemed confused on that one but didn’t add anything to her answer.

“Where did you meet him?”

“I don’t know.”

“Who’s your son?”

“Dudley Dursley,” John expected to see a fondness on her face at the mention of her son but there wasn’t.

Remus leaned forward, “Do you remember your pregnancy?”

She opened her mouth and stopped. Her face scrunched up again as she looked into her vague and missing memory pool. “No.” She admitted. She waited for more questions.

Her voice was monotone. One that could be forgotten easily. She was bland. Falling into the background. Nothing stood out about her. Nothing resembled the information he knew of his old friend.

“John,” Amelia caught the mans attention, “Check her with the crystal.” The man nodded and reached into the front pocket of his worn messenger bag.

He placed the smooth object in the woman’s hand. After it rested there for nearly a minute, she looked down at it. It seemed that she was trying to figure out how it got into her grasp. She rubbed her thumb over it as it glowed orange. She cooed at the color, “Pretty.”

“What’s orange mean?” Remus asked looking up to Amelia.

“She has the charm on her,” Amelia bite the inside of her lips after the statement. “I want to try something else.” She moved towards the woman and kneeled down to her level. Petunia was still rubbing her thumb up and down the chiseled crystal.

“What are you doing?” John asked as he rolled up the parchment and stuck it back in his bag. He rubbed his beard with his left hand before resting both of them on the table in front of him.

“A simple spell that some people don’t like. It requires a little blood but I have a theory.” Before the men could ask any more questions, Amelia grabbed Petunia’s free hand made a small cut with her wand. Petunia was still looking at the crystal. She didn’t shift her focus until Amelia was nearly done with the spell. She just blinked at the woman.

“Oh,” Amelia whispered after a thought paper floated into her lap. She looked at the men, “She’s not a witch.” Both men knitted their brows together in confusion.

“But Petu-” Remus started when Amelia cut him off.

“This isn’t Petunia Evans.”

Chapter Text

Even though Marly was angrily pacing, Severus was having fun. He was slowly placing clips on Harry's robes. Three were on the hood, two on the seam of his left shoulder, and four were in the middle of his back. The boy hadn't noticed, his focus on the tablet in his hands, but his sister did. She watched as he transfigured the little pebbles that were in the plant dish into little clips. To stop herself from laughing and ruining Severus's fun, she rolled her bottom lip inward and lightly bit down. He could still see her laughter around the pupils of her eyes.

Severus, like Harry, hadn't noticed when clips were placed on his own robes. Sirius had made his way behind his friend when Remus had pointed it out to him. He only managed three on the man's left arm so far. At least there were two in the man's hair. Amelia saw him put the first one in and started to laugh. She tried to cover it up but it sounded more like she tried to swallow her tongue.

“If it isn’t Petunia than who was watching over Harry when he was little?”  Harry stilled at the name and glanced up at John for reassurance. His father looked down and gave him a small nod. A small breath that Harry was holding filtered out his lungs.

“Amy Taltz,” Amelia said brushing her bangs out of her eyes. She was tired. After the spell revealed a name she had contacted some of her law friend in the muggle world. There was no missing Amy Taltz. No one had filed a missing person report with her features. At least not in the UK.

“There aren’t any leads on the name,” Marly informed Delana when she went to ask the next question. She had grabbed her own tablet, it was smaller than the one Harry was using but bigger than her her hands. “There is more information at my job with Interpol for non-majs than there is with The Collective and Ministry.” She returned her attention to the file she had started when they got back to the hideout.

“Now we have another problem,” Sirius said rubbing his face, “We have to find where Petunia is.”

“Or what happened to her,” Marly added.

“I don’t want to think like that,” Sirius grumbled. He stopped clipping his friend and grabbed the tablet from Marly.

“We know who,” Harry said, his fingertips stilling over the glass screen of his tablet.

“Do we?” Susan asked from beside her aunt.

“Who has interfered with our lives?”

“Harry’s right. Remus, Severus, do you guys think you can sift through your memories and see if there is a reason why he would take Petunia?” Marly asked the men.

“I think I might know the why,” Sirius spoke up. When everyone turned their attention he continued, “Petunia was onto the Headmaster. She had overheard a conversation he was having. She was always hesitant to tell us.”

“Why,” Amelia asked.

“Petunia was always someone who wants to be 100% before revealing her hand. She was gathering evidence. Building a case,” Sirius told them with a fond smile.

“She wanted to be a Private Investigator,” Remus remembered.

“A hard worker,” Marly noted.  

“Why not make her forget?” John asked. His wand was resting loosely in his fingers, the tip rest against the thigh of his left leg.

“What if she’s like me?” Harry asked with a raised eyebrow. He turned towards Marly waiting for an answer, “What if she is more resistant to the charm?”

“You’re resistant to it?” Severus asked the boy in front of him.

Amelia spoke next, “There is evidence that Albus has tried to use the charm on Harry. Either it never took or the charm didn’t hold,” Amelia looked over Severus' head to Delana, “We aren’t sure which.”

“Not only do I avoid him to prevent him from trying to place the charm,” He grabbed the pendant that was tucked under his shirt. He rubbed the fabric of his button down over the stone. “I avoid him because of what he had done to me and my family.”  

“As you should,” Marly said. She was sitting next to Remus now. She had given up with pacing and dropped onto the couch next to him. Half her body ended up tangled onto of Remus. He laughed and shoved at her getting a playful smile in return.

Harry had noticed them over the past few times they had visited together. Though they had started with a tense relationship, it seemed to melt into a relaxed calming one. They seemed to unconsciously reach out to each other. Be that through glances or brushing against each other. It made sense to Harry. He crazy outgoing behavior seemed to balance perfectly with Remus’s calming nurturing one. He had been able to calm her down when others couldn’t. She seemed to be able to bring out confidence that had Severus and Sirius impressed.

There was also the fact that Caylee has practically claimed Remus as her father. That was good, in Harry’s ever thinking mind. She needed him just as much as he needed her. He had brought a mischievous spark in her eye.

While Harry thought about the two on the couch across from him, Severus spoke up. “Can we check his properties?”

“Not as the Ministry. We have no reason and no warrant.” Amelia declared.

“The collective,” Sirius said, “Isn’t bound by the laws you are.”

“We could send out several search teams,” Marly added from the couch. She had taken to playing with the zipper on Remus’s jacket. He would swat at her hand to stop. She would wait a few minutes before continuing with what she was doing.

“Godric’s Hollow,” Harry said after everyone went silent thinking. “No one would think to look there. Why would they? The last anyone heard it was completely destroyed.”

“Mum,” Hannah looked over her shoulder from Harry, “Wasn’t there a rumor that the place became cursed after the attack?”

Delana was quiet for a moment, “That’s right. There was a rumor going around after the attack that the curse that had failed you,” She directed her attention to her son, “Had ended up cursing the home instead.”

“That doesn’t make sense,” Harry and Susan said at the same time. The looked at each other before Harry continued, “That’s not what the spell is designed to do. There is no report of that ever happening before, why would an age-old spell suddenly change?”

“Harry’s right,” Severus said behind the boy right after he stuck another clip on the boy. He moved as he did so and Harry felt the tug. He ran his hand over his back and felt the various clips on him before snapping his head back at his teacher. The movement was so quick Severus momentarily worried for the boy's neck.

Harry narrowed his eyes at the man who was sitting behind him. After seeing a grin slowly paint itself on the man’s face he started to pull the clips off and chucking them at him. There was a soft click as Harry yanked each one from his now wrinkled school robes. Severus had jerked away trying to duck from the objects only to lay on the clips that were on him.

Amelia laughed at him when Severus sought out Sirius. Her laugh was cut short when she had to dive out of the way to avoid a jinx that was aimed at Sirius, who was standing behind her. Susan laughed at the heap on the floor that was her Aunt. Unlike Amelia, Sirius hadn’t been able to get out of the way and was now sporting neon pink hair. He didn’t look amused.

John was chuckling at the antics of his new friends while Delana just sighed next to him. Marly was laughing her body leaning into Remus as she did so. Caylee looked over to her Aunt and watched her with a confused look. Remus was laughing as well. He leaned back into the couch causing Marly to lay in his lap. Remus placed his hand on the blonde’s head without thinking.

After the laughter died down and the heavy atmosphere felt a little lighter and cleaner the moved back to the topic. “How about we send a team to Godric’s Sunday?” Marly said from Remus’s lap. Everyone had noticed the position but no one pointed it out.

“That gives us today and tomorrow to  prepare.” Sirius pointed out.

“We have several teams on-call,” Marly countered.

“I want to be there,” Remus informed Marly looking down at her. He finally took notice of the comfortable position that the woman had taken.

“That’s fine. Sirius can lead the team. It wouldn’t be the first time.” She shifted in his lap to look at him. Her hair was started to tangle and knot from the movement. Her blue shirt with the faded words ‘ Coexist ’ had started to ride up her torso showing a sliver of pale skin. If they were to look closely they would see a think scar on her right side of her hips that disappeared below her jeans.

“I think it’s best if I stay at the castle,” Severus spoke up, “The Headmaster will start to notice if I keep disappearing as frequently as I have. Minerva is getting suspicious as well. I trust her not to say anything but I have no proof if the charm was placed on her.”

“That’s a good idea,” John spoke up, “Delana I think you should go.”

“Me?” She asked confused.

“It would be good to have a healer on hand just in case. Plus you have the basic combat training seeing as you started as a field medic.” John explained. She tilted her head to the right then to left before agreeing.

“Keep me informed,” Amelia told Delena.

“Of course,” Marly and Delena answered at the same time.

Chapter Text

He jiggled the key out of the lock before turning to close the door. He stilled once the door was closed, his palm flat against the painted wood. He was waiting, listening. It took two breaths for him to hear it. The scrapping of the chair legs against the cold kitchen tile. That sound was replaced with small feet slapping against the floor towards him. Right before the child reached him he turned and scooped her up. She giggled happily as he lifted her above his head.

“MOOSE!” She cried out.

“SHRIMP!” He replied in the same tone. She extended her hands out opening and closing her hands in a grabbing motion. He pulled her close into his chest giving her a hug.

“Miss you,” She mumbled into his shoulder.

“You saw me yesterday,” He declared while walking into the kitchen. Once they passed through the wooden frame he set her down and let his eyes wander. They didn’t stop until his hazel eyes found Marly. She was by the sink washing dishes, her back to him.

“Morning Ray,” She said after placing wet mugs on the drying rack, “Or should I say, child stealer?”

Grinning at her he welcomed her into a hug. “I’ll have you know, I worked hard on trying to get Caylee to favor me.”

“You bribe her with peach rings,” She deadpanned. At the mention of the candy, Caylee walked between the two and looked up at them.

“Do you know how hard it was to figure out her favorite candy? That was a lot of trial and error,” He informed her while reaching over her shoulder to grab a clean mug from the cabinet.

“You free today?” She asked hanging the patterned towel onto the handle of the stove. She smoothed it out while Remus poured himself a cup of coffee. He poured some creamer into before turning and looking at her over the mug that was up to his face.

He answered her after he finished gulping down half of his cup, “Depends on what you want to drag me into.”

“The farmer’s market was fun,” She retorted.

“Sure, that’s what we’ll call it.” He teased. She grabbed the towel that she hung up and smacked him with it. He laughed before grabbing the cloth and tugging it. He assumed that her grip was loose and it would easily pull out of her hand. Instead, he managed to pull her towards him. If Caylee wasn’t standing between the two, Marly wouldn’t have stumbled and landed into Remus’s chest. Unfortunately, Caylee got knocked to the floor. Glaring, the child got up and left the room with a huff.

“That’s on me,” He mumbled watching the child retreat to the living room. He turned back to Marly as she pushed against his chest and straighten herself, “What do you have in mind?”

“House hunting.”

Remus stilled and looked at her for a full minute before saying anything. “House hunting?”

“I want to move,” she informed him. Her hands came up and started to play with the ends of her hair. She twisted and looped it over her index fingers.

Remus wanted to ask where she was moving. Would he still get to see Caylee? He wanted to watch her grow. To see her laugh and make friends. He wanted to witness her getting her wand. Would he be there when she lost her first tooth? Would he be there when she cast her first spell? The thought of missing out on those moments made his chest tighten.

What about Marly?

Though the had a rocky start, after getting to know each other, they clicked. They fell into a routine. He knew where to step when she couldn’t move. She knew what to say when he couldn’t find words. They pressed the right buttons with each other. He could calm her while she could ignite him.

Would they still drink from a cheap bottle of wine while the fireplace crackled in the background? The conversation becoming lighter and sillier as the wine entered their system. Would she still laugh and through her hands towards his arms and look up at him with a goofy and soft smile?

What about their morning routine? Would he still get to her house earlier to wake her up so she had enough time to drink her coffee and give Caylee the hugs and snuggles she needed? Would he still hug her before she left? The ones where he would wrap his arms tightly around her torso and lean down to rest on the top of her head. Where the warmth would build from her scent. Would the empty fee-

Oh.

Oh no.

He had fallen for her and he didn’t even realize it. He looked towards her as the realization washed through every part of his being. She was watching him closely. Her shoulders were tight and she looked worried.

Then she noticed his realization and she relaxed. “I didn’t realize either,” she confessed. “Delana noticed how touchy I became with you.”

Remus thought back to yesterday where she had laid in his lap. He thought back to their wine sessions. How she was always pressed to his side during a movie with Caylee. His mind wandered to the times where she would rest her hands on his shoulders when he was washing dishes. The hugs every morning and every night.

It dawned on him that he did the same. He would reach out towards her when they were sitting and reading during Caylee’s naps. He would rest his head on her shoulder when she was sifting through files. His fingers seemed to find themselves tangled in her hair more often than not.

“Where do you want to move to?” He asked her hesitantly.

“Different neighborhood,” She breathed out. “I think we just need,” She trailed off looking around the kitchen. Mail was starting to pile up on the counters. Caylee’s sipping cups were spilling out of the cabinets onto the open surfaces. There were dolls that had taken residence at the table. Several of Remus’s books and notebooks had piled up by the window sill. “Space.” She finished with a smile.

“Why do you want me to help?”

“I was hoping it wouldn’t just be me and Caylee living there.”

Remus tilted his head while looking at the woman. There was a slight blush on the apples of her checks. Her bangs were pinned to the top of her head today. The hair that wasn’t pinned curled underneath her chin framing her face.

“You want me to live with you?” He asked.

“Yes.”

“Isn’t that moving a little fast?”

She raised an eyebrow, “You spend more time here than your own place. You practically live with us already.”  

Remus had to concede. She was right. Half the time he even slept here. He had fallen asleep more times on the couch then he could count. He ate all his meals here. Most of his clothes had slowly made its way over. Once again, it wasn’t something that he had realized until he took a step back and thought about it.

“Any places in mind?” He asked after a moment of silence.

Marly leaned over and pulled several printed out flyers from the counter. He grabbed the five flyers from her hands. The paper was smooth and glossy. Each house was a four bedroom. Three had two and a half baths. One had three and the last had four. All were two-story homes with fenced in yards. He lingered the longest on the home with teal vinyl siding and a large porch.

“I want to look at this one,” He told her while pushing the flyer with the teal house towards her.

“Oh,” She smiled, “I liked this one too.” It had a single garage, a large front porch and was further away from the city.

After planning out a route, Remus and Marly decided to visit three of the five homes. They decided they would look at the homes with the lower cost first and decide if they wanted to keep searching. Caylee was excited to go exploring.

The first home they went two wad red. It had a black front door that led into a mudroom. Marly wasn’t a fan of the white walls and Remus was horrified to see that the stairs had no railings. Remus hated that wood in the kitchen was painted over and Marly noticed that there were warped wood boards throughout the house. Caylee and Remus were found of the bay window in the front room. Marly enjoyed the walk pantry next to the kitchen.

The second home they went to was a brick home. When entering they walked right into the living room. It was spacious with a fireplace and mounting for a TV. Floor length windows took over the front wall. The kitchen was nicer than the last house. There were lightly stained oak cabinets with a light blue wall and a gray stone backsplash. There was also a den past the stairs after the front room. Caylee hadn’t realized that you need to step down into the room and fell face first into the carpet. Remus ended up covering his snort with a cough while Marly helped the little girl up.

The final house was the furthest. It was the teal house they both liked. There was a porch that stretched the entire length of the house. Caylee gave a squeal of delight when she saw there was a built-in porch swing. This house was all dark hardwood floors and tile. Marly had fallen in love with the kitchen the moment she walked in. She excitedly pointed out the island that had a sink, Remus was confused with why a kitchen needed two sinks. Caylee found the lazy susan to be amusing while Remus admired the glass panels on the overhead cabinets. There was a room that was designed to be an office, Remus kept remarking about the number of built-in bookshelves. Caylee had found a room that was painted lilac and feel in love. Both Remus and Marly found the view from the master bedroom to be breathtaking. It looked out over the backyard and into the surrounding forest.

Now, they were at home and had finished dinner. Caylee was in bed. Marly and Remus were breaking down numbers and listing the pros and cons of each home. It was quickly settled the first house wasn’t going to make the cut. Remus suggested that they place a bid on the teal house and have the other as a backup.

Remus was grabbing his coat and standing in front of the door while Marly was rinsing out their wine glasses. She quickly made her way over to him. Instead of the usual hug, she pressed against her toes and planted a kiss on his lips. It was soft a sweet. Right as she started to pull away his hand went to the back of her head and he pulled her back towards him.

The kiss was deep and heavy and both felt the heat building. Her arms wrapped around the back of his neck. She could hear his jacket drop to the floor as his other hand came and wrapped around the small of her back. He stepped towards her, pushing her into the wall next to the stairs. Her kissed started to trail along his jaw and down his neck causing him to moan.

Suddenly the kisses stopped and Remus was being pulled. He barely managed to slip his shoes off before he was dragged up the stairs. When he was in the hallway she smirked at him. He grabbed her shoulders and pushed her into the wall leaving small bites down her neck. His thumbs pressed into her shoulders, pinning her against the wall. Her fingers tangled into his hair. She jerked her hands down exposing his neck which she happily decorated with love bites.

Without a warning, she jerked him towards the bedroom. He grabbed her before falling into the door. He placed his hands firmly on her hips and shoved her into the door. A soft oof escaped past her lips but he caught it with his mouth.

Marly reached behind her and twisted the knob. They both stumbled as the door opened but their balance was regained quickly. She sent him a challenging smirk before shutting and locking them in her bedroom.

Chapter Text

Sirius was sitting across from John who was talking about brains. John was having to reword a lot of his definitions for Sirius to grasp it. The problem isn’t that Sirius wasn’t unfamiliar with how the brain works, no he was quite educated through first-hand experience, the problem was that John had been taking Muggle courses in the subject. Now the man was talking about Muggle studies and Sirius's basic understanding didn't cover what John was trying to explain. 

“What is grey matter?” Right as John open his mouth Sirius cut it, “Simplify it please.”

John stopped, his mouth hanging slightly open before closing it. He blinked twice then started to speak again, “It’s the main part of the central nervous system.”

“Is it just in the brain?”

“Brain, brainstem, spinal cord and cerebellum,” John answered.

“Well, I’m going to pretend I know what you are talking about.” Sirius smiled and raised his teacup up and towards John, motioning him to continue. Once he did he tried to lose himself in his tea before his eyes started to glaze over.

“It’s extremely important in an individual. Not only is it present in parts of the brain that involve memory and emotions but also-”

John was cut off as Marly opened the door to the room there were sitting with. “I BROUGHT SCONES.” She bellowed out happily. Remus had walked in behind her with Caylee in his arms. Remus's gear was a stark contrast to the bright blue shirt that Caylee was wearing. Marly was wearing a plain gray shirt with a white beanie and jeans. 

Delana got up with Amelia and grabbed the box from the blond while Remus placed the little girl on the floor. She wandered over to Sirius and John. John poked the image of a unicorn on her shirt. She giggled and pushed away his finger. 

“Hi, Peanut,” Sirius greeted. After placing his cup back on the table he gave the girl a little hug after she gave one to John. “What’s new in your world?”

“Moose and Mawly made weird sounds in theiwr woom last night,” She told him as she looked at the two adults she walked in with.

Sirius had looked up to see Marly’s face complete red and it was crawling down her neck and on to her ears. Remus had looked absolutely mortified at what the girl said. John had busted out laughing after Sirius did. Amelia started to choke on her food and Delana had placed her hand on her face. She was giving the two exasperated looks.

“I can’t wait to tell Sev,” Sirius got out between bouts of giggles.

“NO!” Marly shouted an octave higher than her usual voice.

“This is what you get for picking on me about Vi,” Sirius threw back at her.

“Who’s Vi?” Remus looked between the two.

“His girlfriend.” Marly told him as Sirius said, “No one.” After Sirius realized that Marly had also spoken he gave an annoying whine in her direction. She spat her tongue out at him before turning towards Delana.

Sirius watched Remus focus on Marly. He saw as the man’s eyes seem to follow the curve of her body. It wasn’t a look of possession, no. It was a soft look. One that reminded him of James and Lily. It was a look that he had even directed to Vi. That look? One of pure trust and admiration.

Sirius slapped the back of his fingers against Remus’s shoulder grabbing his attention. His gaze lingered a few more seconds before he peeled it away and gave a raised eyebrow at his friend. “Yes?” He asked when Sirius smirked at him.

“Now that you have someone to show off,” He laughed lightly at the goofy smile that Remus gave, “You need to help me get Amelia and Sev together.”

“I thought with age you would become a little less interested in his love life,” Remus admitted.

“Listen,” Sirius started, “He has the charisma of a cucumber.” There was a pause before Remus started laughing. He wasn’t the only one. John’s laugh bubbled out of his throat and through his lips.  

“We should get going,” Delana said over there laughing. Her blonde hair was in a tight braid that cascaded over her shoulder and followed the curve of her bust. She was wearing a black tactical suit that was standard to The Collective. Her suit was different than the one that Sirius wore. She had a large number of protected pockets. Where Sirius and Remus’s suit was light and flexible hers was a thick material.

There were many uniforms throughout the organization. The one that Delana was wearing was designed for field medics. It was embedded with more protective magic since they were focused on healing and not fighting. The pockets seemed small but they had expansions on them, they held various herbs, potions, and healing items. They were a thicker material to prevent slashes and stabs. It wouldn’t interfere with their movements since they weren’t throwing kicks and diving from blasts.

While the field medic’s gear was all black. The offense gear that Remus and Sirius were wearing was black with navy blue accents. Their gear had fewer pockets and more weapon straps. Knives and vials of combat potions littered their chest. Each strap was woven with charms to prevent breakage and summoning techniques. Their gear was created with a lighter material. Where the medic’s suit had a bubbled shield to protect them and their patients, the offense gear was designed to reflect spells and was impenetrable against bullets and sharp objects. That didn’t mean you would have one hell of a bruise if you got shot, it just meant it wouldn’t pierce you.

The defense gear was nearly identical to the offense gear, the most notable difference was the navy blue was a dark olive green. While the offense had more spell protection and enhanced their wearer's strength and speed, the defense gear was more durable than even the medic’s gear. Designed to move the wounded and flank the medics, their material was stronger but much heavier. Where offense had knives they had net bombs and flash bangs strapped to their chest. They were also equipped with shields that were strapped to their backs.

There were more suit types, Remus realized as they made their way through the forest outside Godric’s Hollow. Some had different colors, some had different items, looks or magic embedded in them. One thing was universal. They all wore helmets. These helmets protected the wearer's ears, eyes, and had a built-in respirator. They could switch through various sort of viewing modes. Remus was currently in a thermal mode as they quietly made he was through the last row of trees.

“I’ll secure the perimeter,” a female voice came through into everyone’s helmet. It took a few moments for Remus to realize it was Sirius’s girlfriend, Vi. She was a blue Kree from Hala. Those words meant nothing to the werewolf but he decided against asking for clarification.

She streaked past in front of him and Sirius. He saw the flash or purple of her stealth suit as she scaled the trees.

There were five colors on the team. The black of medics, navy blue of offense, the olive green of defense, purple of stealth, and the yellow of flight. The yellow suit, neither Sirius or Remus caught their name, stayed back with the jet.

“Clear,” Vi said through their communication device, “Move in.”

Sirius led the other through the broken gate of the home. Remus and Jax were right behind him. Ak-oh, a small alien that could throw a truck, moved in and pressed against the hinges of the door until they broke with a soft snap under her pressure. She then pulled the door outwards and leaned it against the side of the home. Sirius was the first inside the house.

“Jax, Ak-oh, clear the first floor.” Sirius directed, “Remus, Kada, and myself are taking the second floor. Delana and Foz, stay in the tree line unless directed. Vi and Sarah alert us if you see anything.” Once he got confirmations on their orders they moved to their positions.

It was hard for Sirius to be back at the house. The last time he was here he was looking at the dead body of his best friend and his wife. It was much different this time around. Their decorations were gone. There was no color or light left in the home. Dirt and dust clung to every surface. The floorboards cried quietly on their weight as they made their way through the home.

“Kitchen cleared,” the gravelly voice of Jax came through the comm.

“Upstairs bathroom cleared,” Kada informed.

Sirius stepped into the nursery that Harry used to sleep in. The items were all gone but the baby blue walls remained. There was a hole in the ceiling and the floor was warped from water damage. After checking every nook and cranny of the room he spoke into his headset, “Nursery cleared.”

Remus chimed in next, “Master bedroom clear.”

“Guest bedroom clear,” Kada said meeting Sirius in the hallway.

“Guys I got something in the den,” Ak-oh told the team.

“What do you have?” Sirius asked making his way down the stairs.

“Disturbed floorboards,” She said as the team met her in the room.

Ak-oh looked at Sirius awaiting orders. He nodded and she dug her fingers under the wood and ripped it up. It splintered and snapped from her force but no one paid any mind. Sirius aimed a flashlight into the black hole and saw a set of stairs. He took a breath before making his way down them.

There were shelves at the bottom. They were filled with books of varying sizes and colors. There were shelves that held potions. Other’s held dried herbs and some had ingredients in jars. Rocks and stones of odd colors caused one shelf to bow in the middle.

“Sarah,” Sirius called into his device, “Call Evidence and Retrieval. Tell them to send a team to us.”

“On it,” she replied back.

Remus had called Sirius’s attention to a stone door on the wall. Kada has pointed out the wards that surrounded the door frame. Sirius had seen the same wards years before on a mission in Brazil. Thankfully he knew how to disrupt them.

After the door was open several flashlights were pointed into the black room. They moved around until they landed on a body leaning against the corner. It was a female with long dirty matted blond hair. Dirt seemed to cake every inch of her body. She was barefoot and wore long ragged robes. They could make out the tear streaks that had cleaned paths under her eyes. She shifted away from the light that they shone in her direction. Eyes closed tight she turned her face away and tried to cover her eyes but her arms where changed and there wasn't enough give for her hands to reach her face. A whine started in her chest before it broke through her mouth. It took several moments before anyone recognized the dirty woman. Once they did both Sirius and Remus touch the button to turn off their helmets.

She blinked before her eyes were able to focus on the men. “Sirius?” She asked her voice dry and rough, “Remus?”

Both men darted forward and started to break the collar around her neck and the shackles to her ankles and wrists. Her body was so skinny. They could almost see through her skin. There seemed to be no color to their old friend.

“I thought you forgot me,” She croaked out.

“We did,” Remus admitted, “But we won’t ever again.” He soothed pulling her carefully into a hug. “We’ll never forget you again, Pet.”

Chapter Text

“MUM!” Harry called from the top of the staircase. Severus was standing next to Delana was trying to untangle a hair tie from the top of her head. She managed to get it halfway through her hair before it tangled and knotted. 

“Hold on!” She called back to him while tugging the tan elastic ring. Severus wanted to offer his help but he was unsure of what to do. Finally, she tugged roughly at the object, ripping it out of her hair. Her face morphed in displeasure and was accompanied by a soft whine. 

Severus raised an eyebrow while staring at the elastic ring in her hand. It had knotted strands of hair tied around it. Delana started to scratch the roots of her hair with her long painted nails. A few more strands of hair cascaded to the floor from her head. 

“That looks less than pleasurable,” He drawled next to the woman. His arms were crossed in front of him. The sleeves of his light gray shirt were rolled up uniformly to his elbows. 

“It felt less than pleasurable,” She admitted to him. She walked to the staircase to see Harry waiting patiently with his hands resting on the railing. “Yes?”

“Can Hermoine come to the party tomorrow?” He asked softly.

“I thought she was going to France to visit family.”

“Her grandmother got sick and they had to cancel,” Harry informed his mother. He started to fiddle with the hem of his t-shirt. It was a Queen shirt that was incredibly soft.  Marly had gifted it to him earlier in the morning. 

Instead of the usual four members of the family, John had extended it to the new friends. Sirius was excited to bring gifts. It was a miracle he didn’t drop anything on his way through the door. He nearly kicked Marly in the shin when she asked why he didn’t shrink them. Remus was too busy sticking a crying Caylee in the corner after arriving to be part of the conversation. 

Amelia and Severus arrived with Susan last. Instead of greeting them with good tidings Severus asked why Caylee was crying into the corner. 

“Because she dumped applesauce in my pocket when I took away her stuffed animals to get dressed,” Remus told them after giving the girl a pointed look when she tried to turn away from the painted walls. 

Both Amelia and Severus had laughed. Remus gave them a two finger salute. 

Remus was now helping John put up the new charmed wallpaper in Hannah’s room. Amelia was in the kitchen with Marly and Sirius cleaning the dishes from dinner. Caylee had fallen asleep on Susan’s lap. Severus was now moving up the stairs into Harry’s room.

Harry’s room was without a doubt an embodiment of the boy. The room was charmed to look like outer space. Stars twinkled periodically at different brightness throughout the room. There were painted spheres hanging from the ceiling by clear lines. There were three floor-length bookshelves filled with books. Beside the wooden shelves, books and papers were starting to stack up against the wall. The bed was a twin pushed against the corner of the wall. Though it was made, the blankets and sheets were wrinkled from the boy sitting on them. 

Harry himself had positioned himself as his desk. He was leaning into a piece of equipment Severus didn’t know the name of. Harry was sliding a small piece of glass under a tube that rotated. After staring into the tube with one eye he would pull back and scratch something down into one of the many notebooks he was gifted. 

“What do you have there?” Severus asked moving a stack of books off of the extra chair at the desk on to the floor. The top book was a biology book with a creased spine. 

“A microscope,” Harry smiled as he pushed the device to Severus. Though he noticed the jerk motions the boy made and the slight slur to his words, he didn’t say anything. “Look into this with your eye.” 

When Severus did he could honestly say, he had no idea what he was looking at. The patterned material seemed to shine with different colors. There were cracks through the object. It seemed to be a very light blue color overall. 

“Here,” Harry shifted a portion below the eyepiece. “Look now.”

When he looked through it again it seemed to magnify what he was looking at. The small divided he saw earlier had become enlarged. He could now see the small blue material was actually very small squares seemingly stuck together. 

“What am I looking at?” Severus asked the boy. Harry looked at him tiredly. Severus than noticed the boy was slightly paler than usual. The left side of his body seemed to move sluggishly compared to the right. It didn’t escape the professor’s eye that Harry had to make three attempts to be able to grab his pen. 

Yawning, Harry answered him, “The cellular structure of cornish pixie wings.”

“Bed,” came John’s voice from the doorway. Harry just looked over Severus’s shoulder to see his Dad while Severus had to turn his whole body. 

“But-”

“No,” John stated firmly. “You know when you get like this you need to sleep. Harry, we’ve talked about this.” Quickly he ushered the child into the bathroom to wash his face and clean his teeth. John pulled his son’s PJs from the dresser and chucked them into the washroom. John figured he’s hit his son from the annoyed grunt he heard. 

Severus saw white scars on the boy’s shoulder from where the oversized shirt hung on him. Instead of mentioning it, he hugged the boy and wished him one last ‘Merry Christmas'. Harry then walked over to the bed where his father had the duvet waiting to be draped over him. He was asleep by the time his father finished tucking him in. 

Both men quietly slipped out of the Ravenclaw’s room. John closed the door with a soft click before making his way down into the kitchen. 

“Harry’s in bed,” John told the room. He grabbed a cookie from the plate on the counter. 

“Hannah fell asleep halfway through putting up the wallpaper,” Remus mentioned to Severus. 

“Susan and Caylee fell asleep on the couch,” Delana told the newcomers. She was dunking a portion of a broken cookie into the glass of milk in front of her. 

“Does Harry always act like that when he’s tired?” Severus asked. Noticing a cookie in Amelia’s hand he leaned over and took a bite out of it when she turned away from him. She whipped her head towards him and shoved his shoulder and moving the treat to her other side. Sirius plucked it out of her hand and popped it in her mouth. She threw her hands up before grabbing another cookie and walking away from the men.

Delana was chuckling when she answered Severus. “Yes. The muggle doctor’s explained it has to do with no-ons.”

“Neurons,” John correct.

“That’s what I said,” She said back to him. “Haven’t you noticed how he struggles after a seizure?”

“I thought it was just part of him having a seizure,” Severus admitted. Marly yawned next to him causing the rest of the room to start yawning. 

“Partially,” Delana said after her own yawn. “I’m heading to bed. You know where your rooms are.” 

The next time all the adults would be in the same room again would be the following night. It was after the party had started and food had been set up. Everyone was wearing formal robes and champagne was being spread around for the older audience. 

It was a tradition for the Abbotts’ to have a Yule celebration the day after Yule. What was more modern about the celebration was a Refreshing Ritual. Marly had learned it from her best friend before she perished. It was a way to cleanse your magic, your mind, and soul. They had started to do it to benefit Harry. Not only has it helped with his recovery (also got rid of the stuttering that he had suffered after the attack) but it helped bring the family closer. Their magic had mixed and became one. Whenever one grew, so would the rest. 

Amelia was excited about this ritual. They would be bringing in Sirius, Severus, Remus, and Petunia. Not only would it boost their magic but it would officially bring them into the family. She eagerly awaited for the end of the party to come. When the guests would say farewells and the dinner would be cleared for the table. For now, she would mingle with Severus on her arm. If she could figure out where he had disappeared to. 

Marly had seen him first. Caylee was propped on his shoulders. The little girl was patting a rhythm on the top of his head smiling. He was more concerned with trying to pry a giggling Harry and Susan off his legs. The two had wrapped their bodies around his limbs. Amelia caught a photo of the scene before Hannah had called the two leg huggers away. 

“Wow look how tall you are,” Marly looked up to the little girl with a flower crown in her hair. Much to Marly’s displeasure, she wanted to wear light pink robes. Both Amelia and Delana had seen her wearily eye the child whenever she came close to the food tables. Apparently, the child had a way to disarm the repelling charms that were placed on her. 

“Down,” She demanded while bringing both her hands down on Severus’s head. 

After both feet had been placed firmly on the ground she hand darted away to a girl wearing a hijab. Remus thought she looked familiar but he couldn’t place it. 

Marly had laid her hand on his arm to grab his attention. She told him she was going to speak with someone named Anna. He nodded his head in understanding and watched her walk over to a woman in lilac robes holding a flailing but silent baby. He let his eyes wander off the guests who were either happily chatting or dining on the various foods that were offered. 

Remus noticed when Petunia arrived. She was wearing red and silver robes that bunched up on the pedals of her wheelchair. Her hair was no longer matted as it once had been. It was now cut short. The front of her hair curled on her chin while the back was cut a few inches shorter creating an A-Line style. Behind her, Delana was leaning down to chat with her. 

They made a stop beside the kids that were dancing with glittery ribbons and smiles. Harry noticed he first and bounced over giving her a hug. Thankfully Petunia, the real Petunia, had been able to build a healthy relationship with the young boy. They were able to relate to through torture, a fact the made John cringe and were able to help each other heal. 

Hermoinie and Susan waved to her from the fruit table while Hannah walked over and gave a hug to the woman. A small chat later Petunia was pushed over to where the rest of the adults were standing. 

“Looking good,” Sirius motioned to her robes, “I bet you’ll have ladies lining up to ask for a date.”

A blush formed on the apples of the woman’s cheek but she spoke through it. “Hush you,” She took the glass that John offered her, “Don’t make me call Vi her to keep you I line.” 

“You guys suck,” Sirius mumbled under his breath before taking a sip of his wine. 

Remus laughed at his friend. “Sirius is right, you look-” Remus stopped himself after glancing over Petunia, “Caylee stop putting sausages in people’s pockets!” He cried out to the little girl standing next to a man with dark green robes. Remus passed his drink off to Severus and dashed to the little girl. The man that was a victim of the little werewolf’s antics looked down and started to pull the meat links from his robes. 

Petunia had placed her hand over her mouth to prevent from laughing but her shoulders shook against the back of her chair. Amelia was pinching the bridge of her nose with a fond smile. 

“I have no idea what started the rebellious streak but I blame Sirius,” Marly popped up next to Severus. Her appearance startled Severus who jerked and ended up spilling his drink on his hand. He shot her a scowl which she chose to ignore. 

“Why does everyone just blame me?” The accused man threw his hands up in irritation. 

“Have you met yourself?” Marly asked with a raised eyebrow.

“I’m getting food,” He huffed out before stalking away from the now laughing group. 

Remus then walked over with Caylee trying to wiggle out of his grip. Marly took the child from his grip and stuck her on her hip. Caylee started to whine but a stern glare from her guardian quieted her down and got her to stay still. 

“How do you do that?” Remus whined.

“It’s called the Mom glare,” She informed her boyfriend. Delana, Petunia, and Amelia were nodding in agreement. “I learned it from my mom who learned it from her’s and so on.” 

John nudged Remus to grab his attention, “Just so you know,  it works on husbands too.” That got the group to laugh. 

It wasn’t long until the guests started to leave. Each saying a tired goodbye with good wishes. Harry, though tired, was very eager to start the ritual. He was excited to bring in new members to their family officially. He was currently trying to climb onto Remus’s back. After a little struggle, Remus had two little arms wrapped around his neck and legs wrapped around his waist. Both Severus and Sirius had started poking the boy’s side making him squirm. Remus snapped at the two friends who walked into the ritual room laughing. 

Once everyone entered the room, they got to work. Amelia and Marly started to draw the runes on the floor with shimmery paints. Delana and John had started to place and light candles in the room. Susan, Hannah, and Harry were walking around placing various colored stones inside circled runes. The members that were joining the ceremony for the first time stayed close to the wall and watched the others work.

After everything was set up everyone moves to sit within the runes on the floor. Severus had picked Petunia up from the chair and gently placed her between Marly and Harry. He then sat between Amelia and Susan. 

The chant has started in low whispers. It was in a language none had truly understood. The still feeling in the room slowly became breezy. The wind circled around each member. It caressed their skin and invoked a feeling of belonging. As the chant slowly became louder the candle’s flame burned brighter. The flames flickered and danced throwing scenes on the walls.

If one were to look, they would see the shadows of past memories play out. Shadow figures laughed and joked on the wall as they focused their magic into the runes on the floors. The runes, which helped conduct the magic, flowed freely between each individual. The crystals that were placed beforehand glowed brightly. 

Each crystal had a purpose. The blues on that Harry had placed between each place a person would sit, absorbed the energy and cleansed it before releasing it back into the room. The purple that Susan had placed boosted and balanced the cleansed magic. It mingled with each individual and merged the surrounding magic, at the end of the night everyone who was in the room would have similar magic running through their bodies. Finally, the pink crystal that Hannah had placed brought in new magic. After each person pricked their finger and offered their blood to Lady magic, new and refreshed magic would be introduced. It would strengthen and heal them. It was protective magic that would last until the next ritual in the summer. 

After the runes on the floor stopped glowing and the wind had died, did the individual open their eyes. Each person opened them, a bright flash of white as their new magic settled, and looked around to see their family surrounding them. They felt content, healthy and strong. The new magic that was rushing through their veins reminded them of laying bed after a long day. It was the feeling of a big hug after a stressful day. It was pure and inviting.

Now that they were here, they were bonded, they could openly move against Dumbledore. 

Chapter Text

“Move.”

“Move.”

“MOVE.”

“MOVE FASTER.”

“MY GRANDMA WALKS FASTER THAN YOU AND SHE USES A WALKER.”

“Has anyone ever told you that you have road rage?” Remus asked Marly as the guy crossing the street looked at the couple through the windshield and shot them a dirty look. Marly threw her middle finger at the man before continuing down the street. 

“Jason may have mentioned it,” she told him before making a turn.

“Who’s Jason?” Severus asked from the backseat. Caylee was sitting on the other side of the car’s bench playing with a mermaid doll that changed color when it was placed in water. She had gotten it from Marly for Christmas. 

“One of her older brother’s,” Remus glanced back while answering his friend’s question. 

“Did he give her the banana shirt?” 

“No that was the oldest, Cal,” Marly told him from in front of him,

Severus lurched forward as Marly slammed on her brakes. The seat belt tightened and he made a choking sound. Marly honked at the van that pulled in front of them. She was flailing her hands wildly while trying to not use obscenities. Instead, it was just a lot of frustrated screaming that she half attempted to muffle. 

“Why did you have to send the potions to be produced at this lab?” Marly asked looking at the man behind her through the rearview mirror. 

“Because pissing you off brings me joy,” Severus deadpan while Remus snorted. 

Caylee took that moment to reach forward and yanked at Remus’s hair.

“Yes, Shrimp, I am aware I need to cut my hair,” Remus told her while detangling the girl’s fingers. His hair was much longer than he preferred it. It was nearly touching his shoulders at this point and it was starting to drive him crazy. 

“Bows.”

“I am not putting bows in my hair.”

Caylee turned to Severus and looked at his long hair before cheering, “Bows!” 

“No.” 

“Bows!” She repeated.

“Listen here sticky fingers,” Severus started, “You’ll have more luck trying to cut my hair than putting bows in it.” In response, she stared at him unblinking for an uncomfortable amount of time. She then turned to her doll. 

“Remind me to not have a three-year-old,” Severus mumbled while straightening out his seatbelt.

“She’s four.”

“Whatever.” 

It didn’t take long to get to the lab and pick up the first batches of potions that Severus had sent the recipe for. They were each tucked into a small rectangle in the box to prevent jostling and breakage. The first batch consisted of 24 potions. Each a thick consistency sluggishly moving against the sides of the crystal vials. 

They met Delana and Sirius at the hideout in Hogsmeade.

Delana was wearing her blue Healer robes. Her hair was braided and pinned up in her hat. Sirius was wearing his navy blue offensive gear. Thankfully Marly noticed that he had a change of wizard robes hanging on his left arm. They were black with maroon etchings throughout the fabric. 

The plan was simple compared to some of the others that they have done. Sirius, Delana, Severus, and Remus would all head back to the school. Sirius would be under a glamour that was designed at The Collective to avoid detection through magical means. If anyone were to ask, he was an old friend of Severus’s from when he was gaining his mastery.

Remus had set up an appointment with Minerva and Poppy. He was walking in with the promise of information on Harry. He would accidentally run into Severus and Sirius on the way to the infirmary where Delana would be with Poppy. After getting through the wooden door, Sirius would drop ward stones and place them at either side of the door. This would bar anyone from getting in while they worked. Delana would be outside of the door and would help anyone that had come with injuries. She would, of course, alter their memories to think they met with Poppy inside the hospital wing. 

On the other side of the door, Severus, Remus, and Sirius would be giving the woman a diluted version of the potion. Severus reworked the potion so it would break down over a three day period instead of the instantaneous breakage. This would prevent from putting the two woman out of commission. The potion would dissipate instead of leaking the charm out of the body as his had. The potion couldn’t be mixed with anything, Severus had decided to tell the two women that there was a wizard flu outbreak that had started in Hogsmeade and this would help prevent from catching it. If that didn’t work they would resort to physically giving it to the women. 

They all hoped it wouldn’t come to that. 

“Good evening Remus,” Minerva called to him from the front doors. Severus and Sirius had already walked into the castle. They were going to wait for Minerva and Remus down the hall by the portrait of a woman singing to birds. 

“With the news I bring?” He asked, “I wish it were good. We should head to the hospital wing.” 

Minerva’s face darkened showing her true age. Her grey eyes narrowed in distaste before she nodded briefly. They set down the hall. It was empty save for a few Prefects walking through their shifts. At one point a girl with pink hair stumbled out of a classroom and made her way to the bathrooms. It took a few minutes for Remus to place where he had seen the girl.

She was the one Severus caught snogging a Weasley in the hallway. 

“Miss Tonks, I do hope you have a pass.”

“Right here, Professor M!” She cheerfully showed the charmed pass between two fingers.

“Carry on,” Minerva nodded. 

The girl ducked into the bathroom. They heard a yell as they passed. Both turned around to see Peeves floating out while cackling. Instead of investigating Remus turned around and kept walking. Minerva seemed torn but ended up following Remus. Miss Tonks was a smart girl that could handle herself.

Just in case she sent out a silent prayer. 

“Hello Minerva,” Severus’s deep voice drew her attention. He was standing off to the side with a man that she didn’t know. He had curly blonde hair and hazel eyes. High cheekbones were paired with a round nose and dimples. He was dressed in fine black robes and dragonhide boots. The man, shorter than Severus but taller than herself, watched her as they approached.

“Severus,” She greeted, “I see you have a guest.” 

“Alexander Payes,” The blonde reached forward and grasped her hand. “I work theory with Severus regarding several potions we are trying to create.”

“Lupin,” Severus spoke. He hated acting like he could stand to be in the room with his friend but there were eyes everywhere.

There was a reason Marly refused to come into the school. As of now, the Headmaster had no idea she exists. Thankfully, Minerva hadn’t spewed out the name in front of the man. She decided that working in the background suited her better. She had also admitted if she saw him, she wasn’t sure if she could resist punching him.

Better not tempt fate. 

“Severus,” Remus said with a slightly amused twitch in the corner of his lips. Severus narrowed his eyes in warning, thankfully Minerva took it as distaste. 

“Where are you two heading?” Sirius said under the disguise of Alexander. 

“Medical wing,” Remus supplied for the men. 

They walked in silence. They passed a student who was sitting in the window for her free period. There was a grey at on her lap that hissed and swiped at Remus on his way past. There were two kids walking out of the hospital wing as soon as they reached the worn doors. One had blue hair and a grimace while the other was following stammering out apologies. 

“How can I help you, Minnie?” Poppy asked smoothing out a new sheet on the bed. 

“Remus has brought news of Mr. Potter’s health.” She gravelly told the other woman. A suffering sigh came from the matron. 

“Actually, while I am here,” Severus spoke up, “I brought a potion for you ladies.” He pulled two vials out of his robe pockets. Marly charmed the bottles to make the black potion to appear a thin light blue. “There have been reports of a serious case of Wizard Flu not too farm from Hogsmeade. I thought it best to prevent such an illness from coming into the school.” His lie spilled easily from his lips as he passed the vials to the fingers of each lady. 

“What about the other teachers? And students?” Poppy asked her fingers resting on the cork of the vial. 

“I am in the process of brewing more for the other professors,” Marly had brought up several questions that could be asked before they left the hideout. She wanted him to have answers just in case they didn’t blindly take the potion. He continues with another lie, “It appears to be just affecting those in adulthood.” 

Both women nodded and tossed back the potion. Distaste etched onto every feature of their face but they didn’t say anything. 

Remus then informed the woman of the malnutrition that Harry had suffered. It was agreed that he would and wouldn’t tell the woman by Delana. She wanted to keep control of what they did and didn’t know. He guessed Poppy had figured it out by the stark difference of reactions. 

Minerva started to spew out some heavy vulgar words. At one point she had shot a hex at the bed Poppy had made when they entered the room. Poppy had just sighed and looked crestfallen. 

Once the woman had calmed down, and the first signs of the potion seemed to take effect, they started to extract themselves from the room. Severus watched as Minerva's eyes looked between Lupin and himself confused. Poppy had taken to blinking hard to try and clear the confusion. They were both rubbing their foreheads when the doors closed behind the three men. 

“How’d it go?” Delana asked from the wall next to the door. 

“Easy, thankfully,” the blond Sirius stated. He was tugging at the curls on the top of his head. He found it amusing when they bounced back into place. 

“In three days we should have two more people on our side,” Remus smiled, “We’ll then move onto the other House heads before trying to find a way to put it in the food for the kids.” 

“I’m working on a version that can mix with tea,” Severus stated.

“Are we really just going to spike-”

“MUM!” A breathless Harry called out from the end of the hall. He was darting towards the adults with a panicked expression on his face. All three of them went on high alert as the breathless boy stopped in front of him. 

“Harry? HARRY!” His mother tried to soothe the freaked ou child, “What’s wrong?”

After a few gulps of breath, he looked his mother in the eyes, “There’s a face on the back of Quirrell’s head.” 

“WHAT?!” 

Chapter Text

“I’m guessing having a face on the back of your head isn't normal in Britain,” Marly spoke trying to wrestle Marly out of her shirt. It was covered in mud and grass stains. The girl slipped through her arms to the door. Remus swooped her up keeping the dirty girl at arm's length.  

“Not that I am aware of,” He plopped the girl in front of Marly. He grabbed the hem of her shirt and yanked upward. Her head got stuck and she stumbled once it popped out. “What did you do? Throw her into one of the Hogwarts Greenhouses?”

“You would think that with the snow that has settled, she would be less messy. No, she found the only area where there wasn’t snow and decided to dive in face first.” Marly informed her boyfriend. Caylee cried out in frustration. All the items that were on the vanity flew at their heads. Marly got a tube of toothpaste and cups with toothbrushes slamming into the back of her head. Remus got hit in the side of the face with a brush and red lipstick hit him on the temple. 

“Why did you have us give a potion to Poppy?” Remus asked rubbing the side of his face. “I remember you said that she would meet at the hideout.”

“We got rid of the compulsion charm,” She told him as she finally dunked the muddy girl in the water, “We weren’t able to get rid of memory blocks, and other charms. He has been around when we haven’t, he could have easily done something.”

“Makes sense.” 

“Caylee Alona Kroning!” Marly yelled at the little girl, “If you keep trying to flood this bathroom you will be grounded!” It was silent for half a minute before the little girl started to sniff from being yelled at. 

“Never heard the last name Kroning,” Remus mused. 

“Her father was from Papua New Guinea,” She informed him pulling the wet child out of the tub and wrapping her in a towel. After drying the kid off she started hand the girl clothes to change into. “He defected from his organization to ours after he was sent to kill Alona. He was supposed to get close to her for information and ended up becoming attached. It was his old organization that caused the accident that killed her parents.” 

“I’m sorry,” He whispered, “what was his name?”

“Nollen Kroing.”

“Does she have family from either her parents?” 

Marly let the child run to her room after brushing her tangles out. “Yeah, she has family in Colorado and Papua New Guinea. Every summer I take her to see family in the states for a month and then I spend another month with her father’s family. I want her to learn and understand the cultures her parents are from.”

“Why do you have her and not her family?”

“Ten minutes till bed,” She called into Caylee’s room. 

Turning back to Remus she continued, “Her parent’s family wasn’t part of The Collective. There is always that possibility that her father’s old organization will come for her. My organization can keep her safe. I’m just following her parent’s will.”

She clapped her hands signaling the end of the conversation, “Alright back to two-face.”

“Please don’t call him that.” 

She ignored him, “So I’ve never come across a possession that ends up as his did. So,” She trailed off as she started to think through things. After some silence, she snapped her fingers, “Maybe we can ask Talia.”

“Who?”

“Historian at The Collective.”

“You can’t just spout off names thinking I will know them,” He told her. 

She waved away his comment with her hand. She then proceeded to run into a box that was sitting in the hallway. “I thought I asked you to take this downstairs.”

“I was going to when I went back down, I haven’t gone down yet.” 

“Finished packing your apartment?” 

"Yeah,” He replied picking the box up and following her downstairs. “It’s not like there was a lot to pack.” 

The rest of the night went quietly. Marly tucked the small child into bed and whispered words of comfort and love to her. Reminding the girl how proud her parents would be, just like she did every night. Remus made sure her night light was on, flowers spun around the painted walls of the child’s room. The left the door opened a crack just in case she needed to get up. 

In the morning, Marly was laying her head on the kitchen table. There were half-filled open boxes spread throughout the room she was quietly residing in. She had woken up with a headache. Her pillow had managed to find it’s way on to the floor leaving her with no support. 

“There’s a letter from Harry,” Remus spoke softly. His girlfriend raised her head slightly and looked at him with a pained expression. 

“Anything good?”

“He’s asking about Flamel.”

“Isn’t that a shirt?”

Remus moved the letter from his face and looked down at her, “Flamel not Flannel.” 

“Oh.” She placed her head back against the cool surface, “Why does he want to know about Flamel?” 

Remus’s voice changed into a panicked tone, “Because he thinks the Headmaster is hiding his stone behind a three-headed dog. And he believes that Quirell is going after it.”

“What!” She screamed. Immediately regretting it she threw her hands up to her head, “Owwww.”

“What’s today?” Remus walked over to the calendar, “It’s only been two days, do you think the charm has broken enough to go to Minerva with this?” 

“We’ll deal if it doesn’t,” Marly said while grabbing her coat and pulling Caylee away from her toys. Remus scooped up a T-Rex and a stuffed seal to take with them. “Grab the tablet and call Delana and John, tell them to meet us at the Hideout.”

“Sev, Sirius, and Pet?” Remus asked pulling the tablet from his girlfriend’s bag. 

“Call them after or ask John to call them.” 

Delana and John had already been informed by the time their call connected. When they walked up to the hidden stairs and through the door, they were met with a pacing Delena. She was wringing her hands. Her bottom lip was stuck between her teeth. Short shallow breaths were the only ones she was able to manage. Once the woman noticed them she dart towards the two.

“Marly I want you to go after him,” Delana’s fingers were digging painfully into her arms above the elbow. 

“What? I can’t go to Hogwarts, you know it’s too much of a risk.”

“The Headmaster isn’t there. He won’t see you,” tears were starting to line the lids of the mother’s eyes. 

“The portraits! What about Sirius? He has a disguise.”

“He won’t make it in time. Marly, please,” she begged.

“Okay, okay,” She conceded, “Who’s staying with Caylee?” 

“I will,” John spoke up. “You might need a healer.”

“Okay,” Marly repeated again. 

They quickly pulled out outfits that have been stored in the small space. It didn’t take long to zip up the last zipper and sheath the last dagger. Marly wanted to put her helmet on. It would keep her identity hidden as well as the others. That way they couldn’t be tied to the organization and no one would really know who was there. Remus vetoed that stating that it would cause panic among the students. She cursed that they only had offense and medic suits here and not the stealth ones. 

Remus decided it was best for them to take the tunnel through the Shrieking Shack. Halfway through the tunnel, Remus sent off a Patronus with a message, the first one he had cast since the charm was broken. Imagine his surprise when an elephant went stampeding out of his wand. Marly gave him a grin but kept rushing through the passage of packed dirt and twisting vines. 

When they had emerged from the tree - ” WHY IS THERE A MURDER TREE, REMUS?”- Severus and Minerva were standing out of the branches reach. Severus was wearing light armor that Marly gifted him for Christmas and Minerva’s gray hair was hanging loosely around her shoulders. 

“Who has an elephant Patronus?” Was the first thing out of Severus’s mouth. Minerva was busy eyeing the outfits they were wearing. 

“Me,” Remus called rushing past. Instead of waiting for answers Severus rushed after him. There were several students watching them and jumping out of the way as the made it to the castle. “Where are the kids?” 

“They’re missing,” Minerva huffed, “They were with Sprout but she was found stunned in the hallway. We haven’t been able to find them.” 

“He probably took them,” with that statement Marly pumped her legs harder. 

They all learned how fast Marly was, her legs propelling her past the others and even separating them by a few feet. When they reached the moving stairs, she didn’t even slow. She treated it as another obstacle course she would have run if she was at Headquarters. She jumped from the raining of one staircase to the other. She jumped at the end of one and caught the one above her by the fingers. She pulled herself up before launching off it onto the floor’s landing. 

“Am I go the right way?” She yelled over her shoulder. A grunt followed by a “yes.”  had her continuing down the hall. 

There was an open wooden door down the call. She could hear music softly playing through the hall. She turned sharply and stopped when she saw an overly large dog slowly waking from the enchanted slumber. She pulled her wand from her holster and started tracing a loopy rune on her inner arm. Remus caught up to her as she whispered, “ Dziilí Bee .” The rune emitted a glowing gold light as it ran through her veins before dissipating. 

“What was that?” 

“A spell Alona and I learned from her elders,” Once the words left her mouth she rushed forward. She jumped up above the middle head of the dog and slammed down harshly on its muzzle with both of her fists. The other two heads whined when she knocked it out cold. She threw a punch to the head on the right before rounding and bringing the heel of her foot down on the other. 

“Merlin,” Minerva whispered from the open doorway. “I want to know that spell.” 

Marly ignored her and drug the body of the dog off the door before ripping it off its hinges. She turned back to the others, “The spell lasts for an hour. We need to move.” She then jumped down the hole through the Devil’s snare. Remus was the only other person to land on their feet. Severus attributed it to his gear. 

The blond woman didn’t even try to stop for the door with keys embedded in it, she just barreled through it. The spell didn’t block the pain but she had enough training to be able to ground her teeth and keep moving. She couldn’t imagine what her arm would look like in a different outfit.

Coming up on a giant chessboard, Susan was laying on the floor with a small pool of blood forming around her head. Marly motioned for Delana who diagnosed and started a healing spell with ease. She had become proficient in getting the two done within minutes after taking several medic courses in the organization. She was also equipped with more healing spells and runes than a wizard emergency responder. 

Once Susan was awake and moving she informed the adults of her teacher attacking them and dragging them down. Susan was adamant at going and speaking with her Aunt. After being told of the way to leave she left the adults with a promise of more help. 

The smell of the troll made Marly and Delana gag. They just stepped over the body and went to the next room.

At the table, Hannah was tied and gagged. She was crying wiggling fiercely trying to break free. Delana rushed to her daughter and canceled the spell pulling her into a tight hug. Tears were dropping onto the blond braids of her daughter but she didn’t care. 

“Where’s your brother?” She asked between sobs. Hannah pointed to a doorway blocked by flames. 

“Delana, stay here,” Marly told her while motioning the others to follow. 

“There isn’t enough for all of us to go through the flames,” Severus looked at the vial with a thin layer of liquid on the bottom. “Would your suits protect you?”

“Good thing we aren’t going through but over.”

“What?” Suddenly Severus was thrown over the flames and into the connecting room. He landed harshly on his shoulder. He barely had enough time to roll out of the way as Remus attempted to land on his feet but lost his balance and pitched forward. Minerva had the sense to use an air spell to slow her fall. Marly climbed a pillar and hung from the frame swinging her body over the flames. She landed on the balls of her feet and made quick work of pulling the potion master up. 

“Stupefy!” A strained voice hissed towards the group. Remus threw up a shield around himself and Severus. Minerva had already moved out of the direction of the spell. Marly backflipped over the spell when it rebounded off the men’s shield. When she landed she threw a dagger from her hip. It missed him and embedded itself into the frame of an overly large mirror.

Minerva was quick to start throwing rubble at the man. He was standing in front of the mirror one foot placed on Harry’s chest holding him down. He was throwing curses in between blowing the flying stones up. Marly threw out a few silent curses at the man, carefully to keep them above the waist. 

They were hesitant to cast spells in case they hit the child. Marly was trained for this but the others weren’t. While she attempted to separate the two others would throw a spell forcing them back together. 

“I will kill you all!” Hissed a voice that no one could find a face for.

Throwing a pocket knife, the small blade sunk into the back shoulder of Quirrell. He attempted to reach behind him to pull it out but a blasting curse caused him to change his actions. Minerva has thrown a chunk of the ceiling at the man but it nearly hit Harry instead. Marly screamed at the older woman who turned pale. 

 A spell from Severus knocked the turban off the defense professor. Marly cringed when two red eyes found her and glared. She knew this was going to cause nightmares. Biting back the snarky retort she threw a stunner at the face. Quirrel whirled around a rebounded it causing Marly to drop to her stomach. With his back turned Severus cut him down with a Diffendo . He cast it on the back of the man’s leg severing a tendon. 

Marly reached in her pocket before quickly surging towards the downed man. He was starting to get back up and reach for his wand when she connected a metal box to his skin. She pressed a button on the side with a sadistic smile on her face. 

As the electricity surged from the two prongs on to the man’s pale skin he howled in pain. She didn’t remove the device until the body stopped flailing. 

“Did,” Harry said weakly trying to stand up, “Did you just taze Voldermort?” 

“Wait that’s what tazing is?” Remus asked from the floor. He was pulling himself onto his hands and knees. He had been hit by a stone that Minerva had deflected. 

Suddenly a high pitched wailing filled the room. Everyone present threw their hands over their ears. A black mist seeped from the body of the unconscious man. As it left the body, the flesh started to blacken and decay in front of their eyes. It smelled of rotten flesh and Marly thought the troll smelled better. 

Marly crawled over to Harry and pulled him to her lap. She placed a kiss on top of his head, covering her lips in the dust. Ruffling the dirt out his hair she looked to Remus. “I have the world’s worst headache right now.”

Chapter Text

The stone looked like a lab-created ruby, Marly mused as she ran her thumb across the surface. She could feel the magic thrumming inside of the object. Bringing it to her face she could see streaks of gold veining throughout the inside. She tapped one of the faces with her fingernail, other than a tinking sound nothing happened.

“This is very,” She paused thinking for the right word, “gaudy.” 

“It wasn’t designed for looks,” Minerva told Marly with pursed lips. 

“Look,” She rested her elbow on the table her hand facing away from her holding the stone, “If you’re taking time to create something, why not make it look good.”

Minerva watched Marly. Her eyes narrowing trying to figure the woman out. She turned to Severus, “Things aren’t clear.”

“That’s understandable. You have this charm that has broken down. You are no longer a puppet but who you truly are. Have you noticed a change in behavior?” 

“Yes,” She admitted folding her hands in her lap, “I don’t feel inclined to listen to Albus. Being in the same room with him makes my skin crawl. I’ve also taken more notice of my students. There isn’t a feeling of distaste to any other house like there was before. Overall, I feel like I’m actually seein- Did you just sniff that?”

Everyone in the room turned to Marly who had the stone up to her face. She blinked at the woman before answering, “Leave me alone.”

“Give me that,” Minerva demanded while reaching over the desk for the item.

“Hell no,” she moved the stone out of the reach of the older woman, “This is going to Evidence and Retrieval at The Collective.”

“That isn’t yours to take,” Minerva protested.

“That’s nice.”

“You can’t take other people’s property,” the lady tried to argue.

“We’ll get in contact with the owners,” Marly declared with a tone of finality. After a moment she added, “It’ll help with the case we are building against Dumbledork.”

“Did you just-” Remus looked down at his girlfriend.

“Anyway,” Severus interject moving the conversation back to Dumbledore, “It should finish breaking down tomorrow. Have you noticed a change with Poppy?”

“She’s had the same results as I have. She has taken measures to hiding reports of the students from Albus, as well.” 

“Give me the stone,” Remus hissed while snatching the stone from Marly’s grasp. She pouted but didn’t say anything as he placed it in one of his pockets. Severus and Minerva ignored them.

“Give these to Sprout and Flitwick.” The potion master passed two charmed vials into Minerva’s grasp. “I am currently working on a version that we can put in the children’s tea.”

“Will it hurt them?”

“No. If they have the charm placed upon them, it will just break down over a three day period. If it doesn’t it will protect them from having it placed on them. We can’t have anyone know that he’s been using this.” 

Before Minerva could say anything Marly spoke up, “DumbDumb doesn’t know anyone is working against him. We have been building a case against him for years. Once we show our hand there will be no way for him to weasel out of it. He’ll be cornered. Because of this, we have to be careful. If he finds out beforehand, he could run or even ruin everything. He’ll feel trapped and will become unpredictable.”

“We are going to pull his attention away from the students,” Remus pulled out a shrunken paper. He tapped his wand against the material making it enlarged. “Here’s tomorrow’s paper.”

Hogwarts, School full of Dangers?

By Talson Kane

Minerva picked up the printed bundle and quickly scanned the article. Her mouth started to slowly open as she read. “He sent them to the Forbidden Forest?!” She raged, the paper crinkling in her fist. 

“If you continue to page three it talks about a conversation he had with Minister Fudge about weakening wards around the school,” Marly piped in.

“Page two talks about how he left a mirror known for entrapment laying around where kids can find it,” Severus pointed to a lengthy paragraph. Severus had found the mirror in an unlocked room with a second-year glued in front of it. The girl had been sitting there for hours in a thin nightdress in the middle of the winter. Her lips had started to turn blue when he got to her. She had to be treated for hypothermia for several days after the incident. The poor girl had to be charmed to the bed, she kept trying to sneak away to get one last look of her older brother. It broke not only Poppy’s heart but Severus’s as well. Because Albus had left the artifact laying around an innocent girl had to go through extensive therapy. 

“My favorite is on page four about how he harasses students when they clearly don’t want to talk to him,” Remus mentioned behind Marly. Remus was, of course, referring to the time when Albus had tried to convince Harry to his office. Albus had tried cornering Harry after classes and between meals. Harry had refused to travel anywhere alone because of it. Thankfully not only did he have Hannah and Susan to help him but Terry as well. 

Terry’s mother had been one of Harry’s physical therapists. After learning about what had happened and who was responsible, the woman became paranoid. That paranoia had let the brown-haired woman to Marly who had promised to free her from the Headmaster’s entrapment at a price.

That price was a hefty right hook. 

Mrs. Boots wasn’t very happy about the concussion that she had obtained but she rather have a three-day headache while the potions took hold instead of not being in control of her actions. Terry had given himself a concussion the day after his mother’s when he fell down the stairs and bounced off the wall. He also lost his two front teeth. 

“How did I not notice?” She asked in disbelief before remembering the charm then threw her head back in a groan. “What else has he gotten away with?”

“Still figuring that out,” Marly said while standing up and heading for the door. “Let’s take this conversation to the infirmary, apparently my demon is getting fussy.” She had just received a message on her messenger from Delena. 

“Calling Caylee a demon is an insult,” Remus grabbed the door over her head as she walked out.

“Yeah to demons,” Severus said behind him. Remus sent him a glare and let the door slam into his body. He stumbled before catching himself and leaving Minerva’s office. She locked the door when they were all out and quickly made her way to the other side of the school. 

“Have you seen the paper for tomorrow?” John asked when the door was opened.

They all nodded as Marly reached up and took the child from his hip. She was wiggling and trying to get to the floor. She was tired and fighting it. 

“Hey,” She cooed at the child, “Hey sweety. My darling girl.” Finally, Caylee looked at her, “Do you want to lay with Harry?”

She nodded before being placed in the hospital bed with the Ravenclaw. He scooted to one side as she wiggled next to him with a smile. Harry waited until she stilled to wrap an arm around her. 

“They should be able to leave in the morning,” The matron said behind John and Delana. They were sitting between Harry and Hannah’s bed. While Harry’s focus was on the toddler Hannah’s focus was on Susan who was quietly chatting with her Aunt. 

“Any lasting effects?” Severus asked.

“Physically no,” She smoothed her hands over her apron, “I wouldn’t be surprised if they had nightmares. I would watch them emotionally,” she advised. While Poppy didn’t say it the adults all knew what to worry about.

They were worried about Harry relapsing. That had worked hard over the years to pull him out of the hole that the imposters had placed him in. He had gone through extensive trauma therapy. He had gone through so much and though he looked and was acting fine, they were worried. There is no telling if and when today’s events would catch up to him.

Delana, whose fingers were intertwined with her son’s, worried that she would be spending endless nights standing outside the boy's bedroom door as he screamed at an old horror. She was worried that he falls back and he would flinch away from her touch once again. The possibility of that weighed heavy in her chest and caused tears to swarm behind her eyes. 

John was worried as well. He worried not only for his son and daughter but every child in this school. He remembered how Terry had struggled after the charm was shattered and whisked away from him. The boy had second-guessed everything he did for months. He couldn’t do even the simplest of tasks without hesitation. He was nine when the charm broke. They guess he and his mother was under the charm for two years. What if some of the students here were under the charm for longer? Would they even know how to function without someone doing it for them?

Hell, would they all have to be resorted? 

“Are we eating in here or the great hall?” Susan asked shyly beside her Aunt. She looked pale and tired but an air of stubbornness that Severus had noticed with Amelia surrounded her. 

“Oh, I’m sorry, dear. Tappy!” 

There was a soft pop. 

Then high pitched screaming. 

Caylee was staring at the house-elf that had popped into the room. Her face was red as wails escaped her small body. Harry was trying to soothe the girl but her screams continued. Tears were leaking out of the corner of her eyes and snot was starting to run out of her nose. 

Tappy tugged on her ears and stepped forward to console the child but the screams increased in volume. Harry was becoming stressed beside the girl. Delana was starting to worry about him having another seizure, they were more likely when he was overwhelmed. 

Marly surged forward and pulled the screaming girl to her chest and buried her head into her shoulder while Minerva dismissed the elf. Marly was rubbing soothing circles on the girls back. Shushing her and she bounced around on her feet, Remus came up behind her and whisper soothing words. Slowly the tears turned into hiccups until she finally dozed off to sleep. Her head lolling to one side. 

“Why did you say she was afraid of house-elves?” The nurse asked.

“I didn’t know,” The blond replied honestly. 

“We should get going,” Remus spoke up beside Marly. His hand was placed on the lower back of his girlfriend and was steering her slowly to the Floo.

“Are you still doing it tomorrow?” Marly asked over the head of the sleeping child in her arms.

“Yes,” Delana answered. 

“What’s going on tomorrow?” Minerva asked from Harry’s bedside.

“Harry’s adoption,” John answered, “Why do you think the article is coming out tomorrow? He’ll be so preoccupied with dealing with that, he won’t notice Harry’s disappearance.” 

“Dumbledore’s luck has just ended,” Amelia voiced through a nasty smirk, “And I’m going to enjoy watching the fall.” 

Chapter Text

She watched Albus drop the paper to the wooden table before shoving the chair out and disappearing into the staff door of the great hall. Ponoma leaned over to look at the paper who’s corner had fallen into his bowl of fruit and was soaking up the juices. Ponoma let out a sound of surprise when she read the title of the article by Talson Kane. 

“What is it?” Irma Pince asked from Minerva’s right. Minerva set the toast she was butter onto her plate and moved the paper from Albus’s discarded breakfast to the librarian. She picked up the bread and listened to the chattering of the student’s in front of her. 

After reading the article yesterday, she had called Mr. Kane. Angered by the danger that the Headmaster had placed her students, her children, she had given him some more information. Thankfully another article was received late so the prints hadn’t started by the time she finished the interview. 

Minerva had gone into detail about how she was being undermined by Albus. How he was cutting the standards of the school. How when she took points for recklessness and bullying he would award them back frivolously. She spoke about his favoritism. She informed the reporter, a dirty blond haired brown eyed Mr. Kane, that she had tried to alert parent’s on happenings of the school only to find her missives would vanish or be outright stopped by Albus. 

After she left, her hair had become knotted from constantly running her aged fingers through it in frustration. He asked if he could request another interview when she seemed more well-rested. She had smiled at him and patted his hand and claimed how thoughtful he was and left. She was able to rest peacefully knowing that she was giving her student’s a fighting chance. 

A hand rested on the back of her chair pulling her out of her thoughts. She swallowed the toast before looking up to Severus. 

“You didn’t have to do that,” He nodded to the paper.

“I know,” she admitted, “It’s an extra layer of protection for you guys. He’ll be too focused on my charm breaking and going against him he won’t think of looking at Harry.” 

“Thank you,” He leaned forward to grab a cherry from the bowl in front of her. The movement brought his lips closer to her ear, “They had a breakthrough with the potion last night. You might notice a difference in the student’s in a few days.” He straightened up and popped the cherry into his mouth before leaving the hall from the door Albus had previously left. 

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. They saved them. The thought bringing a true smile to her face, They saved my kids.  

“You seem oddly happy,” Irma said next to her. 

“I got good news,” Minerva confirmed. 

“You mean the potion that had been made for the students?”

Minerva’s eyes snapped open and looked shockingly at Irma. Her blonde hair was braided and wrapped into a tight bun at the nape of her neck. She looked younger than she remembered, but she had noticed a lot of things were looking different then they use too. Her own chambers looked to be a stranger’s room when she had walked into it on the second day after the potion. 

“How?”

“I’m a Recorder for Evidence and Retrieval at The Collective. I’m not really Irma Pince,” The last sentence was whispered to the woman. When she noticed the older professor wanted to ask questions she motioned for the woman to follow her. 

As she left the hall she saw Severus standing by the front doors, waiting. Right as she passed the threshold of the door, she caught a glimpse of Harry, Hannah, and Susan running towards him.

Minerva had walked these halls for years. Every day she stepped on the same stones, looked at the same knights, and walked past the same windows. Yet, as she followed the blond, everything looked foreign. The walls looked more worn down than she ever remembered. The knights were no longer shiny but rusted and crooked. The stones were uneven and loose under her feet. The windows, ones she stared out during her free period, were now cracked and dirty. Dust drifted freely through the empty and quiet halls. 

Irma, or whoever was leading her away from the food hall caught her questioning look, “Hogwarts is alive. It reflects the health of the students and staff. It shows when we are meeting our true potential or not. The charm hinders that, which you can see. Thankfully it should start improving. Several rooms have already healed. The library, the potions classroom, the trees by the great lake,” She stopped at a cracked window and looked at the frozen lake. “Those are spots that are visited frequently by healthy staff and students. Ones that are learning and being who they truly are. Those areas are healing and improving. Hopefully in a few weeks time, with the number of healthy students, the halls will be as beautiful as the used to be.” 

Through the rest of the walk, Minerva took in the state of the castle. She had noticed a few windows that stood out. There was a window that she had caught a first-year Slytherin girl always sitting on after her Charms class. Instead of the broken panes and worn stones, this one was picturesque. There was stain glass detailing around the clear panes and metal frames. The stones were perfectly cut and two decorative candleholders were on each side. 

“Miss Bludstode doesn’t have the charm on her,” Pince informed her when she caught Minerva staring, “Her presence has healed this little area over time. Harry joins her on Wednesday after his therapy and they chat.” 

“The rivalry?” Minerva wondered.

“Pushed by Albus. A small rivalry always existed. It shouldn’t be what we have now.” Pince opened the doors to the hidden office of the library. Like the window they passed, it was beautifully decorated and in perfect condition. There were no scratches on the stones or wood. The walls were white with gold trim and oil paintings of lost and loved people. Everything seemed to have a decorative element. The frames of the doors, the trim of the room, the table legs and the backing of the chairs had carved flower clusters along them. Unlike her own chambers, plants were growing freely and happily in the space. 

 They settled into the chairs that sat opposite of the quiet fireplace. Images of smiling toddlers sat on the mantle. Between the frames, knickknacks of creatures reflected the light from the windows. A book rested on the corner of the mantle, a forgotten cup of tea sat on top of it. 

“I will start with who I am,” the younger woman informed while passing a steaming cup of cinnamon tea to the deputy headmistress. 

Sitting opposite, she picked at her collar bone. Slowly she peeled away a thin fabric from her skin. As it pulled away the skin tone changed to a shimmery silver. She placed the cloth on her lap before looking up and revealing her face. While Minerva studied the thinner and younger face of the woman, she had pulled the clip from her hair. The color shifted from Irma’s blond to a copper color. Hazel-green eyes blinked at the professor as she found similarities between the stranger and Irma. 

Holding up the fabric she explained, “It’s a nano-technology fabric. I couldn’t explain it if I tried. It can’t be detected by magic. It even fools charmed items.” She reached into her mouth and pulled a clear device that sat on the roof of her mouth. When she spoke again her voice was several octaves higher. 

“My name is Elizabeth Pince, I typically go by Lizza when I’m not impersonating my aunt. I took over my Aunt’s place about five years ago when it came to our attention that Albus Dumbledore was interfering with the lives of innocent people. He had put a charm on one of our undercover operatives which alerted our organization. 

“When we traced the magic back to Dumbledore, we started to investigate him further. We found large money transfers to him with no cause. We found traces of ancient magic that had been banned not only by your Ministry but by our organization. The deeper we dug the more concern we became.

“By the time we started to undercover some of the horrendous things he has done, we learned that we had to be careful with how we proceeded. He had so many people under his control. He has the media, the Minister, hell even the Ministry under his control. He controls what people learn. He controls what everyone hears. Learning this, The Collective started planning. 

“We placed operatives in all sorts of places. We have people in high places, such as Advisors to the Minister. We have some in smaller places, such as at the shops in Diagon Alley. Each agent has been collecting evidence against the man. They also have been detecting who does and doesn’t have the charm on them.”

Lizza pulled out a necklace the was tucked under the collar of her robes. It had two crystals on it. One was a light topaz color, next to it was a clear one. The topaz one had metal twisted around it holding it in place. 

She held the clear crystal in front of her face, “This was specially designed by our Warding Department. It heats up and glows orange when around a person who has had the charm placed by Albus. It was crafted to be tied to his magical signature.” She then held up the light blue crystal, “This one prevents from memory charms, compulsion charms, and ritual bindings. 

“All of our members have basic preventive measures. We have them weaved into our Sermo,” She held up her wrist to show a thick silver band, “But some of the magic he is using is bypassing them. That’s why this special crystal has been created.” 

Minerva at this point had finished her tea and had placed the cup on the round table between them. She smoothed her robes with the palms of her hands. Trying to process the information she asked, “Can the crystals break the charm?”

“No, only detect it. Before Severus brought the purging potion, the only way we were able to break it was with either a concussion on Dementor exposure.” 

“There was no potions that you had with all The Collective’s knowledge that could purge it?”

“I guess we should discuss this charm. Like I said it’s an ancient banned charm. It was created by the Romans. The charm was created for an innocent reason. It was designed for livestock. The charm is Audi Verba Mea.  It translates to ‘Listen to my words’. Not only was it used for the livestock to hear the commands of their shepherds but a compulsion element was added so they would be more compelled to follow instruction. Some farmers found that though it worked most the time, the livestock could ignore it. 

“Some of the wizards of the community had started to use a stronger variation. Obedire Verba Mea or  ‘Obey My Words’. It worked much better. The charm left no room for the orders to be ignored and the compulsion element had been increased on it.  Happy with the outcome, the wizards of the community quickly started to use the charm and increased the food source of the Empire. 

“The charm had no changes until Trajan took rule after Augustus. His is historically known for having the greatest military expansion in Roman history. He has an enduring reputation from the programs and policies that he constructed. But there was a dark side to him. 

“Trajan was a wizard, one who was very familiar with the Obedire Verba Mea. With the help of his wife, Pompeia, they reworked the charm. Instead of having the charm just layer over the person until the task was done, they had it attach to the person. It bound the person as a slave to the caster. Thus, Obedire velit mi, servum meum, was born.” 

“Obey my wishes, my servant?” Minerva questioned. 

“Yes,” Lizza confirmed while tucking a stray hair behind her ear. “The only two who knew of the charm was Trajan and Pompeia, they never spoke of it for fear that it would be used against them. 

“After Trajan’s death, all the notes he kept about the spell were found. Hadrian, his successor, had found them. Not being a wizard, he sold the information before taking reign. With the charms out in the open, chaos has begun. 

“Hadrian had died to illness leaving the clean up of his mess to Pius. Pius’s reign was known for giving slaves rights. What has been lost to history, was how he was preventing the Obedient charm from being used.”

“How do you know who casts the spell?” Minerva had found the history entertaining. 

“The charm requires the caster to crush Lycopus Europaeus and draw protective runes on one's forearms to prevent backlash from the charm. Lycopus Europaeus, also known as Gipsywort, stains the skin black. It was extremely rare seeing as back then it was mainly found in Egypt. Pius ordered anyone with Gipsywort found in their home or stained on their skin to be executed. All the information they could find about the charm was burned. Some books with the charm had already disappeared through trade.

“Pisus’s and the wizarding guild of Rome created spells to track anyone that casts the spell. A chain of sorts is created when Obedire is cast. It chains the victim to the caster. That chain leaks power and energy back to the source. They could track it, a task that has been lost to time, but they could not break it. It was noted after heavy hits to the head that people reverted back to their old selves but no cure was found. It was believed that the caster could break the charm themselves. It was also rumored that the death of the caster free the victims. 

“Originally we thought that the was what was causing the deterioration on the victims. Mr. Lupin has brought forth a theory that the charm is actually feeding off the victim to keep it alive. Turning Obedire from a charm to a parasite.” 

“When did it fall out of use?”

Lizza leaned back in her chair and took a deep breath before continuing, “Pisus was relentless with the hunt for these casters. When other leaders learned of its existence it was outright banned. Anyone caught with information, Gipsywort, or attempting to cast it was killed on sight. Fearing for their lives, no one dared to speak about it, let alone cast it. The charm was left hidden in heirlooms until it was eventually forgotten to history.”

“Forgotten until Albus found it,” Minerva mumbled. 

“Yes. Now my organization had to unravel the chains the Albus has locked around innocent people. Since we can produce a mass purge for it, we can start making more open attacks.

“The first stage is to free the castle. While Albus is trying to get the school under his control we will move to the Hospitals. We'll have it given under the guise of a vaccine. While Albus tries to figure out how people are breaking free and becoming immune, we move to the Ministry. Once that’s free we have him dig himself a whole.”

“After that?” Minerva prodded.

Lizza smiled, it was soft and hopeful, “We free the world of Albus Dumbledore.”  

Chapter Text

Severus was wondering when his job title had changed from ‘Potion Professor’ to ‘Babysitter’. 

It could be worse, he mused as Harry tackled him from behind, he could be dealing with Caylee’s flu. He sent out a silent prayer to Remus and Marly before turning and catching the boy around the middle. He giggled as he strung him over his shoulder and walked down the hill towards his friends. 

Terry was blowing bubbles from his wand while Neville ran around and popped them. Hermoine was laughing at Terry’s attempts to make them take different shapes. He managed something resembling a horse but it only had three legs. 

“Cateye!” Susan cheered from her spot next to Hannah. She was munching on some cookies that Mrs. Weasley had sent to Ron. 

Sirius had been using his old nickname around the kids. Telling the stories of The Marauders. He told him about them about the swift Prongs, who could transfigure anything in the blink of an eye. Spoke of the protective Moony, who could hide anyone in seconds. He told of Padfoot’s distractions that awed the students. Finally, he joyously spoke of the cunning Cateye and his infallible potions. 

The kids loved the stories. Requesting to see Sirius’s grim form and Severus’s lynx form whenever the chance presented itself. The other kids, Neville, Terry, Hermoine and, Draco, didn’t know of The Marauders but they had heard the nicknames. Like wildfire, he was no longer Professor Snape of Slytherin but Professor Cateye, the man who seemed to see everything. 

Both Harry and Severus had stopped their descent to say hello. 

“Professor Cat,” Hermoine had giggled after she said it but kept going, “Are we going to learn the anti-gravity potion this year?” Agreement burst from the lips of the students around them. 

“Yeah!” Hannah cheerfully backs up, “I want to float around the castle.” 

I’m an underpaid babysitter, his mind thought. 

“Only if I can tie leashes to you so you don’t float away.” That had gifted him with more giggles. “I will see about adding it to the roster for next year.” 

Harry chatted with his sister and friends before taking a cookie for both himself and Severus. Walking down to the forest, cries of “See you later” followed them. 

“Alright Mr. Abbott,” Severus drawled. He was rewarded with a blinding smile from his best friend’s son. “Are you ready to try and obtain so Wiggleroot?” 

After the adoption, Harry and Severus had returned to their potion-making. Now that Dumbledore was busy trying to get students back under his control, he had missed the number of times Harry and Hannah had visited the potion master. 

Severus had finally found a way to dehydrate the potion while keeping its potency. He had found the spell in a Cuisine book while waiting for Harry’s therapy session to finish. Severus was concerned that Albus would find Harry leaving one of his sessions and took to leading him there and back or having someone he trusted. Sirius, in the guise of Alexander, had come in several times to assist with making sure to keep the boy safe. Minerva had taken up walking him there on Thursday after her class. 

Severus was happy that Harry was in therapy with Mr. Inglebright. Though the changes that were being made around him were good, it was still a change and Harry was struggling. Not that he ever admitted it. No. Severus had come to that conclusion from seeing the red-rimmed eyes and pink nose when he picked the boy up. 

Mr. Inglebright couldn’t share a lot of information but what he did share was a little troubling. As his adoptive parents had feared, Harry had some relapse from the whole murderous teacher debacle. It had such an impact that when the fill-in professor arrived, Harry couldn’t even walk into the room. He had panicked so bad that Hogwarts itself had temporarily hidden the door to the room. He had to be taught the rest of his defense course by Remus and Severus. 

The adults had wished that was the only issue that had come from the kidnapping. Unfortunately, Harry refused to be alone. Delana had learned that the hard way when she had stepped out of the room to get some water. She returned with a rocking Harry with tears streaming down his face. Thankfully a conversation with Mrs. Boots had solved that issue for the time being. She had told terry to be there for Harry as often as possible and it had helped. They would work on it more in-depth when the summer came around. 

The relapse had also triggered more seizures. Nightmares had followed those. After the nightmares, came the frustrating issue of his limbs just not working. Like after the incident with Vernon, Harry’s limbs just seemed to give up at times. He left side didn’t always cooperate. His grip would just give away while carrying something or his legs would buckle randomly under his weight. After Harry had dropped a potion in class from his unresponsive arm and utterly broke down, Severus had asked John and Delana to up his Physical Therapy sessions. Though they thought the troubled stemmed from the psychological side; they wondered if they could trick his body into behaving again.  

Mr. Inglebright had revealed to his adult support group that the adoption seemed to help Harry. He had explained that going through the process had cemented the idea of having someone to turn to. Harry knew he could turn to any of the adults in his life, but having someone go out of their way to make them their son? That had helped his mental state. It was the best reassurance that his family wouldn’t leave him. 

Petunia, who was under disguise like Sirius was, had also been a lot of help. After changing her looks and name, Harry was finally able to look past the imposter he was placed with. Now as Remus’s cousin, Hazel Lupin, she had visited Hogwarts frequently. Every Wednesday after Harry’s fourth class, he would make his way to the sixth floor with Hannah and they would sit and learn about their aunt. After an hour and two cups of tea, the two students would leave for their Herbology class while Hazel would roll her wheelchair to the library and sit with the fake Irma Pince. 

Remus, Severus, and Sirius were all betting when they would finally go out on a date together. Severus had April, Remus was betting on May and Sirius didn’t think she worked up the courage until June. Delana had given them a disappointed look. 

“Remember,” Severus had knelt next to Harry, “Pull from the base of the stem. The roots have what we need. If you rip the stem it shrivels up and dies.” Harry nodded in understanding before jerking the plant upward. Once the roots were extracted from the ground, the plant glowed a faint yellow before it faded. After praising the boy, Severus took the plant and placed it in the basket. 

They returned to the Dungeons after Harry’s stomach rumbled. The wicker basket that they brought into the forest was half full of roots and leaves sticking out of the sides. Mud caked their shoes, and the smell of grass lingered on their clothes. Severus had Harry climb on his back after he stumbled, his body was tired and Severus didn’t want to cause any further problems. 

It wasn’t until they made it to the stairwell did the run into someone. That, someone, was Albus. His eyes were sunken in exhaustion and his hair and beard were unkempt. His robes were wrinkled and lacked their usual flair. The blue eyes that use to look warm and inviting reminded Severus of the sharp end of a knife. They were hard and cold, and even the briefest contact made his skin crawl in disgust. 

Harry’s arms tightened painfully around the front of his throat. He could feel his forehead pressed against the nape of his neck, trying to hide from the man in front of them. Feeling the slight tremble from the boy, Severus tried to step around the man only to be stopped. 

“Severus, I was hoping to speak with you,” As the words left the old man’s lips he could feel the crystal that he had hidden between his sternum and button-down shirt heat up. The man was trying to manipulate him with spells. 

“Apologies Headmaster,” Severus grounded out, “I am in the middle of something. Perhaps another time?” 

Harry’s trembles were starting to worsen. He needed to get out of the stairwell and away from the Headmaster. 

“Is that young Harry?” The bearded man didn’t wait for a response before reaching out and wrapping a wrinkled hand around the boy’s arm. Severus reacted out of instinct. He jerked away from the grasp while tightening his arms around the boy’s thighs. Albus glared at him.

“I feel that your relationship with young Mr. Potter is highly inappropriate,” Albus informed.

“Like your harassment of the boy is highly inappropriate?” Severus had managed to get around the man. His back was facing the stairs he needed to climb down. He didn’t move, afraid of having Harry exposed to the man. Slowly he started down the stairs backward. One hand on the cast-iron railing the other holding the boy. 

“I am just concerned for him,” Albus had stepped towards the duo. 

“You have no concern for anyone but yourself,” Severus snarled. He took three more steps down. 

Right as Albus drew his wand, Severus’s name was called behind him. 

Petunia’s disguised voice traveled to the staircase. She had quickly rolled her chair over when she heard the commotion. Though it didn’t look it, Petunia was planning several ways to murder the man on the top of the staircase. 

“Give me the boy, Severus,” Albus had commanded ignoring the woman that appeared.

“Never,” He snarled loudly back.

Frustrated, Albus threw a stunner. Severus dropped to his knees, bashing his right knee into the corner of the stairs. Hissing, he tried to get his wand but with Harry on his back, he couldn’t pull it from his side. Harry must have realized the issue and pushed his own wand into the man’s hand. 

The wood didn’t sing under his skin like his own wand but it responded exactly as he wanted. It must have realized it was being used to protect its owner and agreed to be used by another. Behind his Petunia had pulled out her new acquired wand and had it pointed at the older man. 

When another spell, one that was red in color, came for Severus and Harry, the older man was able to defend against it. Once the spell bounced against his shield, he threw a blasting curse. It struck the man throwing him against the stone walls with a deafening crack. 

Severus quickly turned around and dropped Harry into Petunia’s lap before spinning her around. He quickly ran down the hall pushing her chair. After gaining momentum he stepped up on a metal bar that Sirius had placed on her chair for this reason. Once they came to his personal quarters, he put his foot down stopping them. They were back in the safety of Severus’s wards before Albus had been able to get back to his feet. 

“He’s getting desperate,” Petunia mentioned after they had fed Harry and placed his sleeping body in Severus’s extra room. Though it was technically a guest bedroom, he could help be see it as Harry and Hannah’s room. It had started to collect the boy’s notebooks and the girl’s fairy knickknacks. The top bunk was decorated with a pale purple sheet and duvet while the bottom was a royal blue set. It wasn’t used often, only when Harry had a particularly bad seizure and they felt he needed to be hidden from the Headmaster. 

“He’s panicking” Severus agreed, “He’s losing control. He thinks if he has Harry, he’ll get it back.” 

“Should we contact Talson?” Petunia wondered. “I think someone should notice Sirius’s lack of trial.” 

“Might have to fight Poppy. She has been wanting to set up an interview about how Hogwarts has been restricting the help given to abuse victims. More specifically, she wants to talk about how it has changed after a new headmaster had come into power.”

“I can stop by and see her on my way out?”

“Could you?” 

Petunia finished her tea before heading to see Poppy. When the door was closed and warded, after a translucent lynx left to visit Harry’s parents, Severus found himself sitting on the bed to his nephew in all but blood. Stroking long fingers through the boy’s shortened hair, he leaned down and whispered, “I’ll protect you until I breathe my last breath.”

Chapter Text

Things had changed a lot since the potion was distributed a few months ago. The children, her kids, had become united. Biases seemed to have evaporated overnight as the young eyes opened for the first time in who knows how long. The divide that had been so strong and rigid had softened out. The colors merged as students became more aware of who they were. 

Minerva had been wanting to do a mass resort and the rest of the teachers were in agreement. Pomona was adamant about doing it as quickly as possible while Severus wanted to wait. Filius thought that it should be done in private while Sinistra thought it would be best to do it at the start of the next year. Thankfully a plethora of accusing articles had kept Albus busy and out of the conversation. 

The children hadn’t been the only change at the school. The castle has bloomed into a beauty that Minerva lacked words for. The smooth polished floors seemed to shine bright each day under the student's eager footsteps. The walls, no longer bare stone, was colored and held bright reflective trim. Decorations were swirled into the paint of the halls, which swirled and danced with grace when a student walked by. The windows were all decorated with colored glass and framed with elegant candlesticks. The small alcoves that use to hold a bare wooden bench now held plush victorian couches. The paintings, who use to be dulled by the age, had become vibrant and moved around with ease. 

Those were just the changes that took place in the hallways. The great hall had become a wondrous place to eat meals and watch over her children. The tables no longer had dents, scratches, and chips in them. No, the wood had slowly polished over time and now reflected the candlelight. The large windows that were set behind the staff table had shifted overnight. No longer were they plain but each large window had a stain glass rendition of the founders. Plants had appeared in the sills of the windows on the side of the room, each having vines crawling to the next sill. Flowers of all colors bloomed whenever a meal was being eaten. 

The classrooms had repaired themselves. The old carvings on the underside of the desk vanished. Books with torn pages and worn spines healed. Faded diagrams and posters returned to their old glory. The rooms all seemed to improve not only the morale of the students but their grades as well. More hands started to raise. Talk of new clubs had started to circulate. 

The most enjoyable thing to come from the changes was Albus’s frustration. It was proof that he was no longer in control. None of the potions, charms, or rituals he attempted seem to pull the children under his thumb. It was his fault, really it was. If he had chosen a different charm, if he thought he was infallible, if he wasn’t power-hungry, he wouldn’t be in this situation. 

Albus was a few moments from a break. Severus had spoken to her about how he had attacked him and Harry. She was horrified, so much so that she had to open a bottle of whiskey just to stop her from slaughtering the man. They had decided to put charms on the suits of armor that littered the school. Any hexes, curses, or violent action would activate them. It would capture the offender and holding them captive until an authority came to release them. So far it had only caught a Gryffindor with anger issues and a Hufflepuff who might have been on drugs. 

Remus and Caylee had become a common guest in the newly designed halls of Hogwarts. Minerva had him, Hazel Lupin, and Alexander come and help teach Defense after the event with Quirrell. Remus focused on offense spells, Alexander focused on defensive spells and Hazel focused on theory. The three new tutors were focused mainly on helping NEWT and OWL students but when the study groups were small they had the younger years join.

Delana and John had set up group therapy and wellness checks alongside Poppy. The group therapy had been so popular that they had to break it in half. Wednesday was for years one to three and Thursdays were for the upper years. Several students had been given information for a private therapist. Unfortunately, they had also found several abused children that needed new placement.

Which is where Marly and Vi came in. The two women had been working with The Collective and Amelia to not only to file the correct paperwork but start up a safe haven home. The project had taken as a fire took to dry grass. The Collective found on old abandoned manor hidden in the magical forests of Scotland. They had hired many wizards to help rebuild it, the majority of those were werewolves and other creatures that struggled to find work in the biased world. The building should be completely finished and furnished by the end of the week, just in time for the end of the school year. 

The safe haven, Hecate’s Haven, had started to hire some of the builders for full time staff. Many werewolves were given maintenance and caretaking jobs. Several half Goblins had taken spots on the mentoring and administration staff. Other jobs were given to Muggleborns who were turned away from work based on their origins. 

Hecate’s Haven had been created to be mainly self-sufficient. Green houses had been built and warded to create the majority of the meal needs. One green house had been dedicated to just growing rice. There was a barn full of various livestock and farm animals. During the summer the students would be given a set amount of chores to help keep the Haven running smoothly. The excess food and goods would be sold to add income to the home. 

To say she was ecstatic would have been an understatement. 

“Incoming,” Filius mumbled next to her. Her eyes lifted from her plate to see Albus stalking up the great hall. Dark circles had formed under his eyes. Over the months, Albus had seemed to age before their eyes. 

No one felt any sympathy for him. 

“Where’s Severus?” Albus asked through gritted teeth.

“Good afternoon to you as well, Albus,” Minerva deadpanned with a raised eyebrow, “I believe Severus had a meeting with an old colleague of his. 

In reality, Severus had told Minerva that he was going to be spending the day with Amelia. This was the first Saturday that they both were free and they wanted to get the most from it. He mentioned taking the woman to a beach. 

“He didn’t approve it with me,” Albus responded.

“Why would he?” Pomona asked on the other side of Filius. “He’s a grown man and had already spoken to the other heads about it. We saw no issue with it.” 

“You must have my approval before leaving the school,” Albus stated.

“No, we don’t,” Minerva corrected, “Nowhere in the charter does it say that.” She stabbed her potatoes forcefully, “Anyway I would be more worried about what’s being printed about you than what your staff is doing in their free time.” 

Albus didn’t respond. He just sat down next to Sinistra who threw her head back and groaned quietly. It took only two sentences for her to get annoyed and leave the hall. 

Sinistra always seemed two words away from hexing Albus, nowadays. The feeling that they all got when around Albus had seemed to hit her two-fold. Whenever around him their skin felt like it was covered in ants. A high pitch ringing would slowly start in their ears until it became deafening. Filius experience his mouth drying while Vector’s eyes would become itchy and irritated. Hooch would break into a sneezing fit when the old man came within a five-foot radius of her. 

Minerva had taken to keeping the Quidditch instructor with her when they were discussing anything important as a warning system. Which was quite frequently, their friendship had quickly grown. Hooch, a natural at Transfiguration, had assigned herself as Minerva’s assistant. If they cracked open a bottle of wine on a late night and sat too close together, no one knew or seemed to care. 

“You know,” Lizza spoke up under her Irma disguise, “If there is a unanimous decision within the staff to get rid of the current Headmaster, Hogwarts would bar the said person from entering the castle.”

“Where did you hear that?” Minerva leaned closer to Lizza while swirling her tea bag. 

“So you know how my girlfriend always wanted to be a P.I.?” Minerva nodded. “Yeah well, she picked up on some interesting stealth skills. She managed to get into DumbDumb’s office and find the official charter.” 

Minerva just stared, unblinking at the librarian. 

“Did you say, girlfriend?” Alexander asked from the other side of Lizza. He had joined for breakfast since his study group was right after the meal.

“Uh,” Her cheeks burned a bright pink when she realized what she said, “yeah.”

“When did you start dating?”

“May 6th?” She spoke, confused at the question.  

“Damn.” He then got up and walked out the hall grumbling about finding his stupid friend.

“What?” Lizza watched the doors the man exit though, “What did I miss?”

“I am unsure, anyway,” Minerva dropped her napkin on the plate with crumbs, “Revolt at six?”

“I love how casual are about it.” 

When the time came, it was anything but casual. The teachers all stood in front of the Headmaster as he tried to enter the great hall from the double doors. They had blocked the staff entrance to force him in front of them. 

The students stood silently behind the Professors. Most heard the rumors that Hannah, Harry, and Susan had spread. How the Headmaster had poisoned them. How the man pulled strings and used the children as puppets for his games. Many had cried, for those who had been infected, he noticed the change. Memories had shifted in their minds. Their true thoughts rushing to the surface. Some were still struggling, for their relatives were trapped. 

Minerva stood strong and tall next to Severus and Pomona. Hooch had wanted to stand next to her but figures the constant sneezing would be distracting. 

“You are no longer welcome at Hogwarts,” She had started firmly. Agreement murmured around her. 

“I am the Headmaster. You-”

“Were the headmaster,” The stain glass portrait of Rowena spoke down to the man. 

Gasps and looks of awe filled the room as the newly designed pieces came to life. Each of the portraits turned in their frames to look down at the mass of people. 

“I, Rowena Ravenclaw, banish you from Hogwarts for harming and corrupting the creative and intelligent nature of our youth.” 

“I, Salazar Slytherin, banish you from Hogwarts for harming and corrupting the cunning and ambition nature of our youth.” 

“I, Godric Gryffindor, banish you from Hogwarts for harming and corrupting the daring and brave nature of our youth.”

“I, Helga Hufflepuff, banish you from Hogwarts for harming and corrupting the hardworking and trustworthy nature of our youth.” 

Together the booming voices spoke, “We banish you forevermore from entering the halls.”

The castle responded with sending in suits of armor to drag a furious Dumbledore to the wards and tossing him out. Once his body passed over the threshold, Hogwarts rearranged the wards. They were stronger than they had been in centuries, and she was ecstatic to be able to protect her students. 

Before retaking their poses and becoming animated once again, the portraits looked down at the student body. It was Helga who spoke on their behalf.

“It is time to be united. We are stronger as one. Go to your rightful house and show the world what happens when you tickle a sleeping dragon.” 

Once the panels stopped moving and the magic of Hogwart settled, Minerva cried out joyfully, “Bring me that hat!”

Chapter Text

Remus was sitting across from Harry at the dining room table. Severus was to his right while Sirius was to his left. Everyone had a set of cards in their hands. Remus was eyeing Severus who had managed to get his hand down to three. With a mischievous grin he placed a card down causing Remus to groan. Sirius and Harry giggled at him.

“Draw four,” Severus spoke tapping his remaining two cards against the tabletop.

Remus slapped his hand on the stack pulling the cards into his hand bringing the total to nine. Remus in a fit slammed a wild card down and switched the color to yellow after Severus had called green. The huff he received from his right made him feel a little better.

Marly was behind them by the sink. She had a phone pressed between her ear and shoulder as she unpacked her grandmother’s china. Occasionally she would tilt her body towards the boys after a loud reaction but for the most part she was busy chatting with her father.

“Draw four,” Harry cheerfully said next to Severus.

After a huff Severus looked towards the other two men, “Any news on Dumbledore?”

“Heard he was spotted outside his brother’s bar. Apparent he was greeted with a punch to the gut and a slew of curse words.” Remus informed.

“Abe never liked Albus even with the charm on him. Can’t imagine it getting better without it.” Sirius reversed the direction back to Remus who put another reverse on top of it. Harry complained.

Two weeks after the summer holidays started, owls were sent out from St. Mungos. It claimed of a flu outbreak and how the hospital was giving out medicine to help prevent it. They stressed that anyone could get it regardless of any infliction. They even sent owls to the parents of Muggleborns to receive the vaccine as well.

In the month that had followed a lot came to light.

A week after the first dosage was given, a shift seemed to tilt the entire wizarding world on its axis. A large amount of Dumbledore followers started to curse his name and pleaded to the Ministry for revenge. Years, if not decades had been lost to a man who used them like toy soldiers. 

After the second week, Albus was stripped of all his titles. Accounts of his were shut down buy the Goblins. No one welcomed him in their shops and he avoided a public appearance because of the amount of curses and hexes that were slung towards him. 

Marly caught him dodging a stupefy, if he wasn’t the most hated man in Britain she might have been impressed with how swiftly he moved. 

The changes had started slowly. Rules and laws were quickly removed when they were noticed. Common sense and morality had sprouted through the community. Bans that were placed under the charm were eradicated silently. Over night Vampires, Goblins, Werewolves and Veela were all integrated into the British Wizarding world. 

Amelia had started coming home later and later each night. The ministry was clearing people out of their ranks and trying to get the right people in the right place. When Marly had took Susan to see her Aunt one night, she had found Arthur Weasley in the department. Wearing fresh Auror clothes, Amelia explained that he had dreamed of being in law enforcement before Dumbledore’s involvement. 

Marly later found out that Molly Weasley had gotten a job at the new Haven. She had always dreamed of being a school teacher and she wasn’t going to give up now. 

Another department that was swamped? The Recorder's Office. More specifically the marriage sector. Divorces were being requested as soon as the charmed wore off. It was an unfortunate side effect that none really considered. Though sadden that families were breaking up and trying to find a new normal, it was better than being a mindless puppet. 

Divorce wasn’t the only new consequence that was being brought to light. Missing children was a new issue no one thought about. Several families had given up children as part of their roles that was placed on them. Many were demanding with heartbroken voices to find their children. A few were found at the Haven, others had either disappeared altogether, or just aged out of the system. The kids that were left in the muggle community to appear as muggle borns were the hardest to find. When they were found, most were happy with their new adoptive family. 

Such case was Hermoine Granger. The poor girl had no idea she was adopted till a Wizarding family had tracked her down. The magical couple were two half-bloods who had made the mistake of meeting Dumbledore. He had not only taken the girl from them, but split the two up and pushed them into new marriages. Overnight Hermoine went from being a muggleborn with no siblings to a half-blood with four half-siblings. 

Severus had made contact with forget family as well. While digging through Albus’s files, she uncovered records of Severus’s extended family. An elderly couple had been desperately trying to get in touch with his for years only for those letters to be redirected. Once Minerva had mentioned it, a few hidden memories of a house in Italy floated two his mind. He had vague memories of the couple from his childhood and sent a message back.

Severus had decided to surprise Amelia and Susan with a weekend trip to Italy. Marly had heard Sirius and Severus talk about rings but she wasn’t sure who they were talking about, Vi or Amelia? 

“UNO!” Sirius shouted only for Harry to reverse it back causing him to draw another card. Marly looked up from her box once more to see Sirius shoot Harry a dirty look. 

“Ray?” Marly called as he placed a card onto the overflowing pile. He tilted his ear towards her to signal he was listening. “Do you have a passport?” 

“No, why?”

“My family wants to meet you.”

“Ohhh,” Sirius taunted at his friend. 

“Is it a good time?” Remus asked as he turned towards her. Sirius tried to sneak a peek at the cards but Harry cuffed him. 

“Well, I can ask Lizza to take over the case for a month. She has some free time. Otherwise, I think the wizarding world is starting to fix itself. I think by the end of the month we’ll finally have enough support to arrest and charge Dumbledore.” 

And how weird would that be? To have a world without and old man looming over them with a twisted smile. How weird would it be to no longer have to watch their backs at every turn. To be able to walk outside and smile at your neighbor and know that it truly is your neighbor and not some actor reading from a script.

How weird would it be to no longer have to collect evidence and fight from the shadows, Marly mused. 

“I think we should arrest Dumbledore before taking a vacation.” Marly took his answer with a nod before returning to her phone call. 

“Uno,” Harry quietly said as he placed a green card down.

“What do we do when he’s gone?” Severus asked the table. “What do you do when you get to be free after forgetting how to be?”

“Well,” Harry started placing his last card down ending the game, “After I left my relatives I had to learn how to do things again. There was a lot I had to learn for the first time. My therapist told me that I should take it one day at a time. I asked her what if that was too hard? She said, then take it one hour at a time, one minute, one second. 

“Sometimes breaking it down smaller makes it easier. She told me that I don’t have to look at the bigger picture, that I can just focus on a corner for a while before moving on. She said when you focus on the small things it doesn’t seem so scary.” 

“Good advice, Harry,” Sirius rustled his hair with a smile. “My therapist told me the same thing. Just look forward. If you keep focusing on the past, you forget to watch where you’re going.” 

“Just keep going,” Remus spoke while nodding his head, “Just keep going.”

Chapter Text

Remus had no problem scaling the old stone building without a grapple. He was able to quickly find purchase from the small jagged rocks. His heightened reflexes and enhanced strength made achieving harder to reach areas his expertise. 

Pulling himself onto the roof he crouched and shuffled over to the opposite wall. He peered over and looked down at the building next to him. Not seeing any movement on the outside he tapped his mask twice on the left temple to change the vision. 

“I have four heat signatures on the fifth floor,” Remus confirmed into the mic. He pulled the weapon off his back and got himself into position. 

Unlike the last mission that he had been on, Remus was wearing the purple stealth suit. At the beginning of the summer, he started his training with The Collective as Harry and his friends babysat Caylee. 

After several weeks of training and testing his was officially placed in his role and team. Several more weeks after that he had gotten his advanced certification on sharpshooting. The team that he was placed on was Marly’s team. Their sniper had gone on medical leave several months prior leaving an open spot. 

“In position?” Marly asked.

The weapon, a sniper rifle that he placed his wand into to use as ammo, was perched on the side of the wall. After checking his sight, he confirmed he was in position.

“Shoob, set up the barricades. The only people that come out are either us or in handcuffs.”

“Got it, Leader,” Shoob acknowledged before running to the front door. He laid a small orb down on the ground. After playing with his activation device, blue lines shot out from the metal device. It quickly surrounded the entire building with a shimmery force field. Shoob backtracked into the alley next to Remus and confirmed the activation. “This is connected to my energy,” Shoob reminded, “I can hold it for ten minutes before I reach exhaustion.”

“We’ll be quick,” Ayada spoke from below. She was the defense for the team. She would follow Marly into the building with their other offense and defense members,  Michael and Serisi. The field medic was to the left on the ground floor to Remus. He would wait for instructions before rushing into the building. 

Remus watched through his thermal vision as four signatures climbed the stairs to their targets. The four figures were standing unaware of the incoming team. It didn’t take long for the two offense members to burst through the door. On defense, he guessed Ayada based on the height, was stationed right outside the door. The other, Serisi was at the end of the hall waiting. 

Micheal was throwing concussive blasts at two of the figures. Seeing an opening Remus radioed him, “Push them in front of the window.” 

Once he saw a figure, Remus took a deep breath. He pulled the trigger as soon as the last of his air exited. A Stupefy  shattered through the panes and stunned the target. With one down, Michael quickly took the other down. When one target tried to rush out the door both Serisei and Ayada electrocuted them, leaving a convulsing body. 

Marly, at this point, has grabbed the leg of her target and was dragging them into the middle of the room. After dropping them, she rolled them and handcuffed them before placing a PocketPortus on the middle of his back. 

“Clear  to take down the force field?” Shoob asked with a strain his voice.

“Yes, Are you okay? You sound a little strained.” Marly’s voice held concern.

“I will be. They just kept trying to apparate out. One had a Portkey they tried to use. It’s draining to hold those off.” 

“You did great, we have some energy bars back on the ship.” 

“Did we get him?” Remus asked tapping his vision settings back to normal. 

“Yes,” Ayada spoke, “Albus Dumbledore is officially under arrest.” 

Remus grinned when Marly whooped. Taking his wand out of the gun, he stored it on his wrist while the rifle was strapped to his back. He backed up before taking a running jump off the building and landing into a roll. Vetor, the medic, raised an eyebrow at him before offering him a hand up. 

Vetor said something in his native language. Remus waited for his translator to spit out. “ We’ve earned a hearty meal.”  

Serisi replied in the same language. She wanted to get a cake. 

“Cake isn’t dinner food,” Remus told his teammate in his parent voice. She scowled at him and stuck her nose up in distaste. 

It didn’t take long to get back to The London Collective branch. After peeling off their gear and making plans to get dinner later that night, Marly and Remus went to the case room while the other went to fill out their field reports. 

“Did you get him?” Sirius screamed from behind the door startling Remus. After watching Remus rested his hand over his chest and try to calm himself down, Sirius started to giggle. 

“Sod off, Pads,” Remus grumbled before tapping the screen of the table on. 

“Yes. We got him,” Marly informed him. “Now, we need to figure out who is trying him.”

“Wouldn’t it be the Wizarding World?” Sirius asked. 

“Well, maybe not. Yes, he had crimes against the Wizarding World but he also had crimes against the Goblin Nation and The Collective.” 

“Just shoot him into space.” Remus laughed at Sirius’s suggestion. Marly only scowled. 

“What polluting the Earth isn’t good enough? You know want to pollute space too?”

“It’s just a suggestion.”

“I think we should leave the trial up to the Director, Ministry and Goblin King. We do the fieldwork not the court work.” Remus flicked his wrist over the table sending out messages to Severus, John, Amelia, Minerva, and Petunia. “Plus, I already have enough paperwork to deal with.” 

The door to the room opened. Sarah, an offense from Sirius’s team, was standing holding a tablet in her hand. Taking it, Marly saw the clear feed of Dumbledore and the three other’s he was caught within holding cells. 

“He’s been fully booked and has a tracker.” After receiving a confirmation Sarah left.

“That reminds me,” Remus spoke up snapping his fingers, “Do you still have that tracking charm on me from when you caught me at Privet Drive?” 

“Yes.” Marly intoned before opening the door, “Let’s go pay a visit to our guest.” 

“Are you going to get rid of it?” He asked following her out with Sirius following behind. 

“Nope. If it makes you feel better Caylee has one too. This way if you get kidnapped or lost I can find you.” Suddenly she became somber, “It’s how I identified Alona’s body.” It came out as a whisper. 

“I’m sorry,” He replied feeling uncomfortable. “Wait, it lasts after death?”

“Only a week. It’s a charm that is embedded in the skin of a person. Once the person starts to deteriorate so does the charm. It was created during a time of war. A lot of people at this time were struggling to identify loved ones. This was a solution.”

“Oh.” Remus didn’t say anything after that and Sirius only frowned at the grim thought. 

A long and friendly ‘Hey’ greeted them as they walked to the Holding Unit. Vi, who was completing her weekly community hours, was waving them over when they entered. She laid a kiss on Sirius’s cheek before sitting back behind the monitor.

“Mr. Dumbldore has been very vocal about his displeasure,” She enlightened them. “He was also very educational on how unnatural I am. Apparently, he is prejudiced against the blue-skinned.” She then waved him to his cell.

“Ah,” Marly drawled walking up to the clear door of his unit, “How the mighty have fallen.” She then sent him a smirk which made his growl. 

He then looked behind her to see both Sirius and Remus glaring down at him. “My boys!” He called out cheerfully. It made both men nauseous. 

“Oh shove it up your ass,” Marly spat at him. “No one is going to help you. No one here likes you. And your only allies have been detained alongside you.” 

“No need to be so vulgar,” Albus spoke with a disappointed tone.

“You’ve been making mine and my friends' lives a living hell for years. I’ll be as fucking vulgar as I can be, you fucking dirty nipple.”

Sirius was unable to stop the snort of amusement.

Marly stepped closer, her glare piercing through the unbreakable glass. “I want you to know that everything that you built was destroyed by me. I want you to know that I was the one to start the ball rolling. I got my hands dirty. And seeing this,” She motioned to his cell, “Brings me so much fucking pleasure.”

“Hell is too good for you,” Sirius seethed behind her. 

Marly pulled her shoulders back and granted Albus with a twisted smile, “How does it feel to be one of the most hated men in the world? How does it feel to have every person who learns of you, hates you with a fiery passion?” 

Remus watched him as the rage built in his eyes. As the anger was so powerful that a coherent thought couldn’t be formed. Right before they turned and walked away to leave him with his fury, Remus leaned in and asked, “Was it worth it?”

Chapter Text

“The trial will start in ten minutes,” A burly man with a thick ginger beard shouted over the idle chatter of the room. Several people looked up as he spoke most just heard his voice and continued on. 

Remus was fiddling with the top button of his shirt. He had been twisting and knotting his tie with his fingers. Marly had taken it away since it was starting to annoy her. There was a small part of her that wanted to tie his hands together to stop the constant movement. It was making her nervous. 

“Why are you so anxious?” Marly asked while placing Caylee in his arms. Delana was picking up Susan before she came and retrieved the little girl. 

Now with his hands busy holding his ‘little girl’ as Caylee had termed herself, he was able to to focus on Marly. “I’m just afraid he’ll worm his way out of it. He always has something up his sleeve.”

“Remus, look around us. Not only are Wizards here to testify but members of The Collective and Goblin Nation. There are people here from all over the world. He can’t worm is way through. Not this time.”

Soothing away his fears, she leaned her head on his shoulder and rubbed circled on his back. He turned and placed a kiss on the side of her head. They stood there for a moment, listening to the chatter around them, before Caylee started to scream. 

The scream drew attention towards them as the girl’s face turned a bright red. With teaks running the curves of her cheeks, she shakily pointed past Marly. Turning, Marly found Harry walking towards the group with the Malfoy’s. Beside the Malfoy’s was a house elf. 

Remus was trying to soothe her while Marly quickly rushed to the group. “Hi!” She smiled politely before rushing out the rest of her words, “Can you send you house elf away? My daughter is terrified of them.”

Draco quickly requested the elf to leave. The coats it was carrying dropped to the floor following a pop. Once the creature was gone, Remus joined the group with a sniffling girl. Marly held her arms out and cuddled the child against her chest. When she started to sway, she noticed Harry was watching her. 

“Yes?” She hummed, her head resting on the child’s head. 

“You just called her your daughter. You’ve never done that before.” 

Marly blinked several times at the boy. Trying to find the right words to explain. Thinking back on it, it was true. She had called Caylee he daughter. It slipped out her mouth and she hadn’t even noticed it. Delana came back with Susan and Hannah in tow before she had to answer.

“Hi Caylee,” Delana cooed at eye-level with the girl. Taking the child she turned to the Malfoys. “Am I taking yours as well?”

“Excuse me?” Narcissa asked.

“I’m apparently the official babysitter for the Dumbledore trial,” She laughed lightly, “Would you like me to watch over your son as well? We’ll be going to the park and having lunch outside. It’ll be quiet the party.” 

“Yeah!” Harry cheered next to his blond friend, “I can teach you how to ride my bike.” 

Narcissa hesitated, unsure what to do. She was originally going to have her son sit between her and her husband but the look of excitement of playing with his friend had her conflicted. She had her mind made up once the man with a ginger beard appeared to open the doors. She knelt down and kissed his forehead before encouraging him to enjoy himself. Seeing him run alongside Harry and several other children his age, she knew she had made the right choice. 

After being seated, they quickly found out the trial would take a minimum of five days to complete. The schedule was as follows: 

Monday, Dumbledore would stand against the wizards of Britain.

Tuesday, He would stand against the International wizards. 

Wednesday, He would stand against the Goblin Nation.

Thursday, He would stand against The Collective.

Finally on Friday, He would be given his sentence that had been written up and agreed on by the four groups. 

Marly felt for Remus, Sirius, and Severus. Each of them had signed on to The Collective payroll meaning they wouldn’t stand against Albus until Thursday. Their case would be mentioned today along with Petunia’s. 

Petunia, or Hazel as she has gone by for the past half year, would stand with Britain. While she was under the care of The Collective, she did not contribute to the task force. Today, she would sit across from the man who hid her in a cellar, murdered her sister and brother-in-law, and kidnapped her nephew, and expose him to the rest of the world. 

And she did. Effortlessly. Her voice thick with emotion, she explained to the entire population of the over-sized room of why she was imprisoned. Why her sister was killed. Why Harry was sent to live with imposters. Why she was erased from the entirety of the Wizarding World. 

She knew too much. She had dug into Albus’s past like no other person did. She found that Gridlewald was a creation from Dumbledore himself. After the former had learned of his ideas of creating a world in his twisted vision, he sought to stop him. Dumbledore had killed him. Then he created a fake Grindlewald, the one that had been written in the books. 

By the time she had found this information out, Dumbledore had already found the Roman Slave charm. He had already used it on the majority of the staff at this point, leaving Petunia with little places to turn. Instead, she looked outward and found a PI that she had been wanting to apprentice under. Before she could send the entirety of the information, Dumbledore had come and attempted to use the charm on the girl.

Only, it didn’t work. The charm couldn’t take on the girl. It also didn’t work on Lily either. Nor would it work on Harry when he tried. These three had a natural immunity to the charm. Since Petunia knew too much, and he feared she had put something in her will, he locked her away. He killed of the Potter parents with Dark Lord he had created, and placed Harry in an abusive and near fatal situation.

Once Petunia was done speaking, she grabbed her crutches and slowly made her way back to Lizza. Her girlfriend helped her back into her seat as Amelia explained that Harry Abbott’s formerly Potter, evidence would be given Thursday alongside his guardians. 

The rest of the day was filled with evidence and testimonies with several breaks thrown in. The left that after the sun had set and had returned the next morning before it had risen. 

The International group had less evidence than the Domestic group had. They did have quite a few victims that had tearfully given there evidence of how their lives, their families, or their careers had been destroyed by this man. There were also several attempted laws that he had tried to pass but none had gotten passed the final stage. 

Wednesday, was a very different outcome than the day before. There were less victims and more evidence in their case. Piles and piles of false transactions, theft, forgery, and fraud trailed into the courtroom. There was so much paperwork that some people started to doze after their lunch break. One of those people was Sirius, who both Remus and Severus had to keep jabbing awake. 

Finally on Thursday, The Collective had step forward to share their evidence. They started with the first time anyone in the Organization had come to notice Albus. Like the Goblin’s, they had transactions that didn't add up and records of banished magic being used. 

The history lesson on the Slave Charm was given. How Dumbledore had used it for his own personal gain. They explained how they had combated the magic and ultimately created a cure from the help of Severus Snape. 

Sirius was the first of the three men to stand in front of the man. He looked him dead in the eyes as he explained the man placed the charm on him and convinced him to switch Secret Keepers with a man he didn’t know. How the Dementors broke the charm, having it splinter into his brain and filleting his personality. He only sat down after her wished the man a happy time in hell. 

Severus was after Sirius. He had told everyone how he had been stripped of his closest friends and forced to take a mark. A mark that he hadn’t been able to rid himself of until recently after joining The Collective. He then went into detail about how he met Harry and how it led him to his freedom. How it lead him to creating a cure that all in the room had taken. 

When Remus explained how the charm had affected him, he ended up snapping the corner of the oak table off. Remus told him how it made him sick, how it affected his wolf, how he lived in poverty because of this man. Remus had lost his friends, his family and nearly his sanity because of this man, and his displeasure showed. 

John and Marly went together. They presented Harry’s case and explained in detail of what the man’s actions had led to. As the two spoke, images and X-rays from the case file was projected to show the room how bad this man really was. What he was actually capable of. 

Once The Collective was done showing their evidence and tears were dried, four people stood up. Minister Fudge, the Goblin King, an International representative, and Director Cadmar. The addressed the other members of the deciding party as Dumbledore was lead out of the room. Director Cadmar told the remaining members to be back at seven am for the sentencing. 

The night Remus had pulled Caylee into bed and stuffed the girl between Marly and himself. He fell asleep as the little girl spoke about what she had done that day with the big kids in London. 

Marly was once again trying to stop Remus from twisting his tie and popping of his shirt buttons. They were sitting in the courtroom filled with chatter and flashes of cameras. More Collective members were here today as this was a public sentencing unlike the trials had been. 

Vi had joined Sirius today, which had gotten a few double takes. Many people had wandered up to her and asked about her skin. She would smile and explain that she was a Blue Kree from Hala. That didn’t clear anything up for the wizards but they would just nod as if they understood. 

Marly and Remus’s team had come to the hearing. They had tracked the man down and arrested him. They wanted to see the final outcome of their work. While the team waited, Serisi was explaining to Narcissa why cake was the best human invention. Narcissa was more interested in the translator that spoke for the small purple girl with four eyes then why cake was a tasty and healthy snack for her. At one point Remus mentioned that cane sugar was apparently very healthy for the Karazu, which apparently the girl was. 

The hall entered complete silence when the four representatives walked into the room with Dumbledore shackled behind them. Once he was locked into the chair, they each took a stand behind a podium. Minister Fudge cleared his throat before addressing the accused. 

“On the behalf of the British Ministry of Magic, Albus Dumbledore, you are charged with fraud, theft, kidnapping, murder, child neglect and enslavement. Your punishment will be given momentarily.”

“On behalf of the Goblin Nation, Albus Dumbledore, you are charged with fraud, theft, forgery and tax evasion. Your punishment will be given shortly.”

“On the behalf of The International Wizarding Council, Albus Dumbledore, you are charged with kidnapping, fraud, theft, and murder. You will be given your sentence by Director Cadmar.”

“On the behalf of The Collective, Albus Dumbledore, you are charged with resisting arrest, fraud, forgery, theft, kidnapping, attempted murder, murder, child neglect, and enslavement. 

“You have been sentenced to life in the mine shafts underneath the very place you tried to enslave for the rest of your life. You will never see the light of day after today. You will never get to enjoy life again, all food and water will be bland and tasteless. You will never know comfort again, you will sleep on a cot in the mines. You will have you magic bound to you. You will wear chains that prevent self-injury of any sort. You will have no aid for easing pains but you will be given the bare minimum medical care. All your items and belongings will be liquidated or gifted to you victims. All the money you earn in the shafts will be gifted to your victims. 

“We will never be able to undo the damage you have done. We will never be able to heal all those you have hurt. Unfortunately, we are unable to punish you like you truly deserve. It is my hope that one day when you pass on, you and your soul will truly be judged and sentenced. 

“It does bring me joy, though, to know that your name will go down in history as one of the worst men to ever live.” With that Direct Cadmar slammed his book closed and stepped away from the podium as the gagged criminal tried to spit words at him. His muffled shouts were drowned out by the rows of people wishing him to burn in hell.

Chapter Text

Six Years Later…

“Leave him alone,” Harry growled at the kid who kept walking up and trying to pet Felix. 

“I want to pet him,” The small child whined.

“He’s a service dog. You can’t pet service dogs.” Harry stepped in front of the yellow lab when the kid reached out for him once again. “Stop it.”

“Come on, Just let my kid pet your dog,” His father called out to Harry. 

“No,” Harry stated firmly. He could see Marly glaring at the man as she stuffed his and Caylee’s trunks onto the train. “He isn’t just some pet. He helps me with my disability.” 

“You don’t look blind to me,” His father retorted. Harry rolled his eyes, it wasn’t the first time he heard that. The kid tried once again to pet the dog. Harry smacked his hand away.

“Don’t hit my kid!” 

“Then teach your shitty kid manners. He said not to touch his dog, so don’t touch his dog. Now get out of here before I shove my foot up your ass,” Marly snarled at the man. He quickly grabbed his child and steered him away from the group. 

“Thanks,” Harry said while moving beside his service dog once again. 

“Final year!” Remus cheered behind Marly with a small brunette boy on his shoulder. Harry waved at Ryan who happily waved back from his perch. 

Ryan was a werewolf that had lost his parents during the final battle between Voldermort and the Ministry two years prior. While the opposing side lost the most numbers there were quite a few casualties on the side of resistance. Most of those casualties were parents who were fighting for a peaceful world for their children.

Once Marly found out she couldn’t get pregnant, Remus suggested adopting another orphan werewolf. He joked it would be easier since they’ve already done it once. The next day they went to the Haven and found four-year-old Ryan who was all too happy to have an older sister. The two siblings became inseparable. They had built a strong relationship over the past year, which was evident in the sniffling that Ryan was trying to hide. 

“Ma,” Caylee called out dodging under Sirius’s outstretched arms. He feigned hurt before walking up to the group with a small blue baby strapped to his chest. The baby’s legs were kicking wildly in all directions. “Ma, Khamala and Louis are here!” 

Marly looked past Sirius to spot her two werewolf friends. Khamala and Louis had met Caylee during her transformations at The Collection. They quickly formed a strong friendship. Caylee was over the moon when she learned that her two best friends would be following her to Hogwarts. 

Khamala noticed the large group of adults and babies and waved at them wildly. After quickly adjusting her hijab, she ran forward ignoring her mother who was yelling at her to come back. Louis saw Khamala running and quickly followed after her with laughter.

“Caylee!” Khamala cheered while throwing her body at her friend. Louis threw himself onto the stumbling couple effectively knocking them to the crowd. Amelia who was standing behind Remus strode forwards and helped Marly pull the kids to her feet. 

Severus was kneeled in front of a stroller holding identical triplets toddlers. The three two-year-olds were straining against the restrictive straps to look around the platform. Each girl was wearing a different color for Severus sanity. Amelia had been trying to dress them alike but he put his foot down. They were individuals and should be dressed as such. 

“Hey, Harry!” Draco called over the group. Harry waved his friend over. He was wearing his Slytherin colors with Hermione in her Ravenclaw colors and Ron in his Hufflepuff colors following behind. “How’s Felix’s training going?” 

Harry had started to train Felix to detect certain types of wards. He thought it would be a good way to impress some people when applying for an apprenticeship. He was right, of course. The prophet had done a story on it and several people had reached out hoping to take him on after his schooling. There was a position in Greece that he was extremely interested in. 

“Fantastic,” Harry grinned, “I just got him to detect invisibility wards. It’s been about six months of training but I think it’ll pay off.” 

“I’m going to go round up my siblings. Joan and Fawna start this year and I want to make sure they aren’t overwhelmed,” Hermoine informed before walking into the crowd. She already had two half-siblings in Hogwarts. Fiona was a fifth-year Slytherin who was crushing hard on sixth-year Luna Lovegood. Her only brother was a fourth-year Ravenclaw who relied heavily on BSL due to poor hearing. 

“Where’s Hannah?” Ron asked looking around them. Ron and Hannah had started dating halfway through the sixth year. They were a good couple and made an amazing team. Ron’s grade had improved after their relationship starting, bring him from an average student to one who could breeze through the classes test. His parents were ecstatic with the improvement and welcomed Hannah with open arms. 

Harry and Susan had finally stopped dancing around each other at the beginning of the summer. Their relationship progressed quickly as they had known each other since childhood. She knew the worst of his life and he knew her darkest moments. They understood each other and worked flawlessly together. 

Draco had started to date Drache, formerly Daphne. After his transition in the third year, the two had become a strong team. Thankfully anti-discriminatory laws had been put in place and the wizarding world had progressed widely by that time. Drache had been welcomed with open arms in his family and school, making the change easier than it previously would’ve been. 

The train whistle blew warning of the departure in ten minutes. The mulling students started to pile on the train shouting ‘good-byes’ and ‘see you later’ as the scaled the stairs. John and Delana hugged Harry as Hannah ran up with Susan to say their goodbyes. The teens went down a line hugging the adults and promising to right before waiting for the smaller children to finish their farewells. 

Ryan was bawling as he hugged Caylee goodbye. Remus was sniffling as she hugged him and Marly’s nose was red from holding back tears.

“You better write to us,” Marly said sternly as she smoothed out her daughter's robes. “I love you.”

“I love you too, Ma.” Caylee then turned to Remus, “I love you, Papa.” 

“I love you the most. Now go have fun. Make mischief for McGonagall.”

“Don’t listen to your Dad, he’s a bad influence,” Marly added. Remus mocked hurt before laughing. Sirius shouted as she boarded the train that he would sender her prank products from the Weasley twins.

Marly leaned her head on Remus’s shoulder as the train pulled out of the station. Ryan was sniffling in her arms as they waved to the departing students. Several of the children from their group of friends were starting to fuss for lunch. Once the train was out of sight, the oversized group decided to travel to London for lunch. 

“I’m glad we could send them into a world that we’ve always wanted,” Remus told Marly as he buckled Ryan into his seat. “I’m glad we could give them peace.”

“I’m glad they didn’t have to pay the price for it.”