Chapter Text
Remus stumbled up the steps, fumbling with his keys. It had been a rather long day, and an even longer week. It had started out with a full moon, which always made a bad start to any week, no matter what happened the rest of the time. He had been spending more and more time with Greyback and his pack, infiltrating the small band dedicated to Voldemort’s cause. Though the Dark Lord had fallen, his supporters were still out there, Dumbledore kept telling him, and they needed to be caught in case he ever came back. While most would refute Dumbledore’s opinion of the imminence of Voldemort’s return, Regulus agreed that it was better to be safe than sorry.
Too wary of the surrounding muggle neighborhood to pull out his wand and perform a spell to get in, Remus messed with his keys for another five minutes before finding the right one. He could never figure out why muggles didn’t come up with a quicker, less cumbersome way of securing their houses and belongings. Walking in, he closed the door, kicked off his shoes, and collapsed on the nearby couch, far too aware of the fact that he hadn’t slept in his bed in over a week. The sun set, casting a brief orange light around the small apartment, only to be replaced minutes later by an ever-increasing greylight. Well after midnight but before the birds began to sing in the early morning, a sharp rap woke Remus with a jolt. He lay there for a moment debating on whether talking to the visitor was worth it, only getting up when another series of raps beckoned him from his slumber. Groggily pushing himself off the couch, he flipped on the porch light, and warily opened the door.
The sight that met his eyes was the last thing he expected. Werewolves, death eaters, Dumbledore with another mission, the Ministry… But no. Standing on the steps, a desperate look on his face, a bundle in his arms, was the friend who had supposedly forgotten about him. An Auror too busy with catching a traitor, Sirius Black had not so much as sent a single word to the werewolf. Remus stared blankly at the familiar face. In a moment of anger which was rarely seen in the slight man, Remus pulled his fist back and slugged Sirius in the jaw. Grabbing for his shirt, Remus pulled, ending up with instead with the bundle in his arms which, oddly, began to cry. Surprised, he carefully unwrapped the blanket to reveal Harry’s face staring up at him, a lightning scar clearly visible under the wild, black hair. His eyes traveling to meet eyes of silver, Remus stared intently at Sirius, a question in his mind, his tongue searching for the words. Before he ever did find the right ones, Sirius burst open, spilling the entire story.
“I caught Pete tonight, Remus. I finally found and arrested him. It’s over.”
“What does that have to do with you showing up with Harry? Dumbledore said he’s supposed to be with his aunt and uncle.”
“I’ve been keeping tabs on him. I’ve had someone watching over the house. I don’t trust them. The muggle sister of Lily’s despises witches and wizards. You can only imagine how Petunia reacted to Lily’s son after the brutal murder of her sister by a psychotic wizard? I didn’t trust her, or her oaf of a husband. Not as far as I could throw either of them.”
“And that gives you rights to kidnapping?”
“Imagine it Remus. What do you think they were like? What do you think happened?” At this, the two men paused. Sirius waited for Remus’ response as he thought over everything Lily and and James had said about Petunia and Vernon. What came to mind wasn’t kind, loving, or warm. “I had to do it, Remus. They were terrible to him. Yelling at the smallest thing he did.Leaving him crying when they didn’t feel like dealing with him. But he’s just a baby. Crying is all they can do. Spoiling their son and only giving Harry the bare necessities. They didn’t mean to neglect him. They couldn’t have that on their reputation, especially not with the neighbors watching. But they did. He slept in a cot in the cupboard under the stairs in dirty nappies. He was surrounded by dust, spiders, and the dark. They didn’t love him and made no pretense to.”
“How long have you known?”
“A while. But I couldn’t care for him and hunt for Peter. And I knew you were busy with Greyback and his pack so I couldn’t ask you either. Besides. Dumbledore said he would take care of it. Said it might be best for him. So I let him try, but nothing changed.”
“I wouldn’t have had the energy on my own, either. There’s only one thing, though. You’ve never been good with kids. You’ve never been able to really deal with them, nor do you even know where to start. I know you’re Harry’s Godfather, but I can’t let you keep him.”
Sirius’ face went from crushed to furious faster than you could say Merlin’s beard. “Now, see here, Moony-.”
“So you’ll just have to stay here for a while. We can take turns taking care of him. I’m not going to let you raise him by yourself. You’ll spoil the child and teach him terrible manners.”
“Would not!”
Raising his eyebrow, he turned into the house, leaving the door open to a gaping Sirius. After a moment, he entered and closed the door, finding Remus already asleep with Harry in his arms. The child had stopped crying, though he was about to fall out of Remus’ sleep-laden arms. “And I need your help.” Sirius chuckled as he strode over, picked up the boy, and settled into a chair, calming him until they both fell asleep.
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Remus woke to the cries of a hungry Harry. Jumping from the sound, he immediately sat back down, recovering from the headrush. Looking up, he saw a snoring Padfoot on the floor, curled up fast asleep around the young boy. Patting the mut on the head, Remus picked Harry up and went over to the kitchen. Opening the fridge he froze with a sudden and simple realization: he had no food. Not one scrap. No milk, eggs, bread. No candy, sugar, chocolate. Not even flour. Nothing. After a moment’s thought, he returned to the living room to wake the dog.
“Sirius. Sirius, wake up.” He slept on like the rock he always had been. Sighing, Remus pulled out his wand. “ Aguamenti .” A stream of water poured out of the wand and into Sirius’ ear. Yelping, the dog shook his head, transforming as he went.
“Seriously, Remus? What was that for? I was dreaming about quidditch and butterbeer. It was a good dream! I was about to get a free round-”
“I’m out of food.”
“What?”
“I’m out of food.”
“Yeah, I heard you. How can you be out of food?”
“I have nothing. Seriously. No food. I haven’t been eating here for a month now, coming back once a week to sleep and to keep my muggle neighbors from being too suspicious.”
“So, let’s go get some.”
“I don’t know where to go, let alone where to take a child. A baby.”
“Moony. Seriously. You’re hopeless. The grocery store. Come on.”
It was a rocky start. Neither marauder knew quite what they were doing. What to feed a baby and how, how to teach one to walk, talk, read. Manners were out the window from the get go. Bathing was an adventure, and one that Lily surely would have pummeled both of them over. Clothes were forgotten for a time and Harry ended up wearing the same outfit for a couple of months until one day his onesie wouldn’t stay buttoned and the two were forced to go shopping. This ended with two outfits they could hardly afford: jeans, a t-shirt, boots, a leather jacket, and pants, practical shoes and a sweater. And so began a very eventful, though loving, childhood of the Boy Who Lived.
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