Eleven years had passed since Sirius had carried little Harry Potter out of the wreckage of the house in Godric's Hallow. Since then Harry had grown into a bright, happy, inquisitive little boy. He was equal parts Lilly and James. Equal parts Remus and Sirius.
Some days he spent out exploring the acres of land around their house in Hogsmeade, coming home covered in dirt and leaves. Those days would leave Remus in a fit, after all, how could one scrawny boy bring home all that dirt? Sirius had laughed himself silly.
"A boy is a boy, Moony. Don't worry so much, yeah? Merlin knows you don't need anymore gray hairs." Sirius would chortle as he got Harry ready for his bath. He secretly loved the grays, it made Remus look more distinguished.
Other days Harry would sit in front of the fire reading any book he could get his hands on. These were the days that Sirius worried that Harry was not normal. After all, what normal child spent a whole weekend reading? Remus had beamed with pride on these days.
"Books are important too, Padfoot. He can't start Hogwarts with nothing but dirt and dust between his ears, can he? Just because you did, doesn't mean Harry should too." Remus would smirk in response to the outrage on Sirius' face.
Harry had grown up without a care in the world and loved immensely by his godfathers, or dogfathers as he'd come to call them. Sirius was his best friend, his partner in crime. Sirius doted on the boy, spoiled him with anything he could ever want.
Remus, on the other hand, was the father he knew James would have been, while also honoring Lilly's legacy as well. He had read to Harry, studied with him four days of the week, focusing particularly on potions, as Harry had developed a certain liking to it.
Sirius had convinced Remus to leave Friday's for quidditch practice. He had absolutely lost his mind when Harry had first flown on a Child's Broom at the age of 4. Sirius had been playing catch with him and had thrown the ball with a little too much force sending it sailing through the door and into the kitchen.
Sirius winced, waiting for a crash that never came. Remus flung himself off of the couch where he was reading, and together they ran into the kitchen. Harry was there, floating about three feet off of the floor holding the ball. Remus had never seen Sirius so happy, he had whooped and hugged Harry yelling "He's a progeny, he'll be a quidditch legend!." He ran to Remus and hugged him too, kissing him with as much joy as he could.
"James would be so proud, little pup" he said, turning back to Harry. While Remus rubbed the back of his head, worrying about what this meant.
"I'm more concerned about how he was able to go that fast. This is a child's broom, Sirius. There are speed and height restriction charms on it. Strong ones at that." Remus spoke with a gravity in his voice that Sirius hadn't heard since the night he broke down in his arms.
They had discovered that Harry had overridden the charm and forced his own magic to counter the charms already in place.
However, it was when Harry was 6, that they had really begun to worry. Harry had learned to control his magic, he had learned to focus it and command it. Where most children his age had barely begun to show even accidental signs of magic, Harry was already wielding it like an adult. Using it to get cookies that he was not allowed to have, to turn Remus' hair different colors and Sirius' goatee bright pink.
They had brought him to Dumbledore that same day, worried that something might have happened that night in Godric's Hollow that they knew nothing about. Dumbledore had smiled that day, wider than he ever had.
"He is flourishing in your care, Remus, Sirius. He is controlling his magic because you two cultivate it. You two bring out the best in him, his magic can sense it. The magic flows freely because young Harry is loved. After all, there is no more powerful magic than love. I am sure Lily and James are so proud of how much the boy has grown under your care". Albus now held Harry in his lap, conjuring a little fireworks display for the giggling child.
"He will be a very powerful wizard and he will need the both of you in the coming years. I fear they will be filled with challenges. Some of which I fear, even I am ill prepared for." Dumbledore finished in his cryptic way. They recognized the tone of finality, he would tell them no more.
The day Harry had turned 11 had found him squealing happily, clutching an envelope in his hands.
"It's here! Look! Harry Potter, The Biggest Bedroom, Number 8 Hogsmeade Way, Scotland. It's finally here! I'm going to Hogwarts!" Sirius and Remus sat at the kitchen table laughing at his exuberance.
"I guess we should go into Diagon Alley tomorrow." Remus had said. They had packed up Sirius motor bike the next day. Harry in the sidecar and Remus clutching Sirius from behind, his eyes tightly shut. He had always hated heights.
They had spent the day shopping. Remus taking him to buy robes, potions supplies, quills, and anything else he would need for school. They had stopped off for lunch in a small cafe and then continued on.
Sirius had taken Harry to buy his new familiar, a snowy white owl he had named Hedwig. Finally they stopped at the last shop of the day. Zonko's joke shop, the Holy grail of back to school shopping.
"What sort of Marauder would I be if I didn't send you back to school fully equipped?" Sirius asked. Remus had rolled his eyes and pretended not to hear. He shuddered at the thought of Filch's next seven years. Then he laughed. It served the old crank right. Remus secretly hoped the boy would hold up their legacy. Though he'd never say it out loud, that was Sirius' job, after all.