AN: I'm excited about this chapter.
Lupin left Harry to explore his new bedroom and went down to the kitchen. He scribbled a letter to Dumbledore asking how best to tell a four-year-old he was now a werewolf. Lupin was not sure how best to handle the situation but he knew he had to handle it better than his parents had.
His parents simply locked him into the basement without even telling him what was going to happen. The experience had been terrible and it was three months before his parents actually told him what was happening. The experience had been terrifying and left him mildly scarred. Lupin let out a sigh as he thought about Harry having to go through the change at all. All Lupin could do now was hope for a cure to come.
Upstairs Harry was laughing as a stuffed bear read Harry a storybook. Harry and the bear were curled up in the large rocking chair by the window. As the bear read the story, Harry would point to the words and if Harry pointed to the wrong words, the bear would correct him. Harry found this to be very fascinating and highly amusing. Harry never had anyone read to him before and it made him feel very special; even if it was just a teddy bear.
"Harry, come down for supper," Lupin called. Harry smiled and set the bear down on the chair. Before he dashed out of the room, a poster yelled at him to wash his hands before he ate. Harry jumped a little bit when he heard the poster speak but quickly smiled and went to follow the posters advice.
Downstairs Lupin was setting up a couple plates of food while Harry climbed into his seat. Lupin had carefully hidden some nutrient potions in Harry's drink because Madam Pomfrey was worried about Harry's vitamin levels. As Lupin watch Harry eat, he couldn't help get the impression that Harry thought his food was going to be stolen. Lupin was about to say something when a little pop indicated the arrival of Lupin's house elf, Laineth.
Lupin was about to say something when a little pop indicated the arrival of Lupin's house elf, Laineth. Laineth usually gave Lupin the better part of the day after the full moon to rest before she would come back to the house and start her duties again. Laineth was a free elf but she chose to stay and work for Lupin; in turn, he paid her quite well and made she knew just how valued she was.
"Mister Lupin, I am back but I see you have a guest," Laineth said nodding towards Harry who was unsure how to react to such a creature; he'd never seen anything like her before.
"No need to worry, Laineth, this is Harry; he will be staying with me for the time being," Lupin explained smiling. "He is my best friends son and I am quite happy to have him. Harry, this is Laineth, she is a house elf who works for me."
Laineth's eyes widened as she smiled at the young boy. The child was very small and way too skinny for his height; Laineth knew she was going to have to put some weight on the child.
When Laineth disappeared into the kitchen to start on the dishes, Lupin turned and looked at Harry. Lupin took a deep breath before he began talking to the child. This was not going to be easy but Harry deserved to know.
"Harry? Do you know what a werewolf is?" Lupin asked Harry. Harry thought about it for a second before smiling.
"I heard Madam Pomfrey saying the wolf that bit me was a werewolf," Harry said as he poked his fork into his noodles. Lupin stared at Harry for a second before thinking about what to say next. "She said she wasn't sure if she should tell me that I'm a werewolf. I think she's confused because I still look like a boy."
"Harry, a werewolf is a person who turns into a wolf when the moon is full. You still look like a little boy because you are still a little boy. Now once a month, you'll turn into a wolf."
Harry stared at Lupin for a minute, his eyes wide with worry and fear.
"Do I have to?" Harry asked, in a way only a four-year-old could with an expression that made Lupin wish he could tell him that he wasn't going to have to go through that transition. Unfortunately, that wasn't realistic.
"I'm sorry, Harry but I'm a werewolf, too and I have been since I was about your age and I promise, it's not the worse thing in the world."
Harry frowned and began pushing his food around his plate. He didn't look happy about the whole thing but he looked deep in thought and full of questions.
"Why did the wolf bite me, Moony?" Harry asked. "I wasn't being bad, I wasn't hurting him but he still bit me."
Lupin stared at his own plate and tried to figure out the best way to tell the child how werewolf instincts worked and what happens during the transformation without scaring the child. But Harry moved on to the next question without even waiting for an answer to his first question.
"Am I gonna be a monster, like him?"
Lupin sighed and scooped Harry up and went to the living room. Once they were settled on the couch, Lupin explained the transformations and told Harry about the wolfsbane potion.
"Because Harry, he's not a monster either; he's probably innocent just like you and something bad happened to him," Lupin finished and when Harry started to yawn, Lupin knew it was time to tuck Harry into bed.
Next chapter: Harry gets into a little bit of trouble.
