October 31, 1981
The end of the war meant quiet but it didn't mean peace. Remus Lupin didn't like the quiet, not after having spent the past 10 years of his life surrounded by his three best friends and a school full of people. He was lucky to find quiet there, he cherished the moments of solitude when he was at school because they were so few and far between, but now the solitude was driving him mad.
He had shown up at the Potter's house that fateful night moments after Sirius, he could still smell the gas from the motorbike. The house was in shambles, the roof partly caved in and he could hear Sirius's wails coming from the inside. When he entered the house he saw why, James lay sprawled on the ground, his glasses slightly askew, his wand no where in sight. Sirius looked up and Remus saw the pain in his face and was mirrored in his own.
"Where's Lily? Harry?" Remus asked and Sirius shook his head. Remus made his way up the stairs alone, leaving Sirius sitting on the couch, his face clutched in his hands. He saw her hair before he saw anything else, bright red like fire. The door to Harry's nursery was open and Lily was laying in the doorway, her eyes still opened. Remus realized that Sirius must have shut James's eyes before he got there.
Remus closed them gently so that she might be sleeping and then he saw it, the figure of You-Know-Who was on the ground by the crib and little Harry was standing in the crib looking at Remus through eyes that looked just like the ones he had closed, "Moony," He said stretching his hand out toward him. Remus reached into the crib and pulled Harry out.
"Sirius," he yelled, "Come up here, Harry's alive!" He heard Sirius stumble and running up the stairs. When he saw Harry Sirius cracked a smile, a sad smile but a smile none the less. "Sirius," Remus said quietly, "How did he get in?"
Sirius's face was solemn, "I convinced James to change secret keepers, Peter, he must have told him." Then his voice changed, "I'll kill the rat bastard, I swear to it, if it's the last thing that I ever do."
Now it was Remus's turn to look solemn, "No." He said sternly as he held Harry tightly, clinging to him as the last piece of his best friends he had. "What good will that do? You'll get shipped of to Azkaban and who will raise Harry, you're his godfather after all."
He scowled but Sirius knew that Remus was right, "We should go to Dumbledore shouldn't we?" He asked and Remus nodded, "Come on then the bike's right outside, you can hold him in the sidecar."
They both took one last look at the bodies of James and Lily before leaving the house. "Think he'll be at Hogwarts or headquarters?" Sirius asked as they took off, pointing the bike in the direction of headquarters without really thinking about it.
They rode in silence, the only sound the wind in their ears and Harry's occasional murmur in his sleep. They landed in the village and as they landed Sirius sent a patronus to Dumbledore, a dog burst out of the end of his wand. "Told him to meet us at the Hogshead, Ab should be there and it should be safe."
The bar was so packed then they walked in that no one noticed them as they walked up to Aberforth and asked him if they could wait in the back for his brother. He grunted which the assumed meant yes and went into the back. Harry was still sleeping in Remus's arms and Sirius's eyes were still rimmed red from crying but they had both calmed down during the flight here.
Not ten minutes passed before Dumbledore walked into the room, his hand on his wand. "Explain," He said to Sirius who was white as a sheet. Sirius had forgotten that Dumbledore didn't know about the change in secret keeper.
"We switched places," Sirius said quickly, "Peter and I switched because James and I thought that picking me was too obvious and we all trusted Pete." He went on to explain the entire process and how Peter had been all for it, "Should have suspected him then." Sirius finished before looking back at Dumbledore who was surveying Sirius with a look of both skepticism and relief.
"I will need to verify your story, it should be simple enough, I have veritaserum that should do the trick, as long as you consent to it," Dumbledore said evenly, like he expected Sirius to say no or protest.
"Yeah, of course." Sirius said sitting down and waiting for Dumbledore to dose him. This look Dumbledore a little by surprise but not Remus who smiled slightly and shifted Harry in his arms just a bit so he could also sit down and watch.
Dumbledore pulled the small vile out of his pocket and dropped three drops into Sirius's mouth. His body slackened slightly and his eyes glazed over. Dumbledore wasted no time, "Who was the Potter's secret keeper."
"Peter Pettigrew." Sirius said in a monotone voice, "He and I traded places at the last minute, no one would suspect Peter of being the Secret Keeper."
"Why did you not tell anyone in the Order about the change?" Dumbledore asked next.
"We knew there was a leak somewhere and James trusted the three of us more then anyone, he didn't want to risk the information getting out." Sirius responded in the same monotone voice. Remus felt his stomach drop. James had trusted the marauders more then anyone expect Lily and Peter had betrayed him. James and Lily were dead because of that rat. Remus felt the sudden need to beat Peter to a pulp.
After another 45 minutes of questioning Dumbledore deemed Sirius to be clean and said, "I'll send the Ministry after Mr. Pettigrew straight away." Remus breathed a sigh of relief. He hated seeing Sirius being interrogated like a criminal, he wanted to pull him to his chest right there but thought he should wait until they were alone for that.
Suddenly Remus spoke, remembering something that Sirius hadn't been asked and therefore hadn't mentioned, "He's an animargus Albus, he turns into a rat."
Dumbledore nodded and then said, "I trust that you two can look after Harry, at least for the time being, Sirius you are his legal guardian after all."
Both Remus and Sirius nodded and they exchanged a smile, at least Harry would be with his family, not shipped off to some unknown relative or a stranger, or worse, Lily's horror of a sister and her terrible husband.
They headed to Sirius's London flat after they left, Sirius sitting in the sidecar this time as the effects of the potion were still making him a big groggy. When they arrived they pulled out the cradle that Sirius had for when he watched the little rugrat. "We'll need to get a real crib, and maybe a bigger flat, if you want to stay that is." Sirius said looking at Remus.
"Of course I'll stay, do you honestly think that I'd make you do this on your own." Remus said to him. They set Harry up and then sat down on the couch, Sirius throwing his arm around Remus's shoulder and kissing him on the forehead.
"We'll be like a proper family then," Sirius said, "No way people will think we're straight now that we have a kid together." They both laughed a little solemnly. "Not that we weren't before, we're just a smaller family now is all."
Remus felt tears burn hot in his eyes, he already missed the sound of James's booming laugh and Lily's off-key singing and Peter's overly enthusiastic commentary, it was too quiet without them. He knew that the war was over, at least for now, but more then that he knew that he and Sirius and Harry wouldn't find peace for a long time. They would just have to find ways to fill the quiet.
Sirius raised his glass of fire whiskey and said into the night, "To Harry Potter, the boy who lived." He clinked it with Remus's and then added, "And to our brother and sister-in-law who died saving him, don't worry Prongs, we'll look after the little devil for you."
