I'm soooooooooooooooooooo freakin sorry for leaving you all hangin for a while. My computer had a bit of a brain fart. I really do love all of your reviews, but it's hard to answer them all through (not that I'm complaining!), so if you actually want to get in touch with me, drop a line at .

Chapter 4: Promises, Promises, Promises

Remus paused at the door before casting an alohamora and pushing it open. His eyes scanned the room, but he heard Harry before he saw him. There were strangled sniffles coming from the corner, behind the cabinet.

"Harry?" He called, and the sounds stopped immediately. Looking to the source of the shallow breathing the replaced them, he noticed a small foot. "Harry, it's me, Remus. I just want to help you, okay? Remember… I promised I wouldn't hurt you. I don't break promises."

Harry was curled up in the corner, and was refusing to look this stranger in the eye.

"Promises don't change anything."

"Mine do." He gave in, and green met gold. Harry was hypnotized by the swirls in the older mans eyes, and just sat there, allowing tears to well up in his own again.

"What're you gonna do?"

Remus breathed out a deep sigh. Progress. "Well," he started, speaking slowly, "First, we need to get you cleaned up. Then, I'll help you with your medicine. You have some stuff you need to take, and other lotions and thing that are supposed to be… well… rubbed into wherever it hurts."

At the last sentence, Harry locked his knees together tightly. His do… his do…he won't hurt me…

Harry was sitting on top of the counter, fully clothed and face washed, as Remus rubbed salve after salve into the wounds on his face. The silence was uncomfortable, and Harry was getting shifty. Sirius had cleaned up Harry's room, and had left to see James.

"How did you know my name?" Harry finally asked. He turned his head toward Remus, noticed he was staring intensely back, and looked away, that same innocent blush creeping across his nose and cheeks.

"Didn't Sirius tell you the story?" receiving no response, he continued. "The two of us were best friends with your father back in school. We came to get you after we found out where you were, and your dad told us to bring you here, to make you feel better. So-"

Harry pulled back and looked at him as if he had just sprouted another head.

"Harry, what's-" He was cut short by Harry's screams.

"SHUT UP!" and then, as if suddenly realizing what he had just done, fiercely wiped back the tears, looked away, jumped of the counter, and tried to limp away as fast as he could. Remus reached forward and firmly-but-gently wrapped his fingers around the tiny wrist. Harry whipped around, and stared, wide-eyed at his concealed wrist.

"Harry, look at me." Harry looked up, eyes shut tight, and was muttering "You promised, you promised, you promised," like a mantra.

"Yes, I did promise, and I still haven't broken that promise, have I? Look, I'm not hurting you- well, maybe it might hurt a little, but in a different way. I'm just trying to help you. From now on, that's all anyone you'll meet is going to do- try to help. Me, Sirius, Dumbledore-you'll meet him later, you'll love his hair. It's crazy. Mema and Pepa- they're your grandparents- your aunt Rachel, and especially your dad."

Harry was trying and failing to pull away at the end, and then it hit Remus.

"Harry, you do know what's going on, right? Of course you do, I mean, it's already been explained to you. I mean- do you believe it? All this stuff about your dad?"

Harry still wasn't looking at him. "Harry- I think it's time you met your dad. He's still in the hospital, but he wants to see you, and well… don't you think it would be good to get back outside?"

Harry whimpered his response, and shrugged. Remus let go of his hand, stuffed Harry's medicine into a bag, and led him out the door and down a flight of stairs. Outside, they clambered into the old car (Harry in the back, as far away from Remus as possible).

They drove for what seemed hours, stopping for burgers (which Harry did not touch) and listening to the soft radio (songs that Harry pretended to not enjoy).

After parking and making their way through the hidden entrance (Remus's hand was on Harry's shoulder, so the later's eyes were shut), Remus went to talk to the receptionist. Harry wasn't listening, and with all of his stitches and his pronounced limp, no one gave him a second glance. He just looked like another patient.

He wasn't paying attention in the lift, concentrating on the clean shoelaces on his new trainers. They fit like a glove and were extremely comfortable, but they just didn't feel right. In Harry's eyes, they didn't look right, either. Too clean.

Bing. They had reached their destination, and Harry looked up when the doors whooshed open. He was standing in a sterile hallway, long and wide with crying families and their friends left to comfort them sitting on benches and couches and chairs.

He froze- he didn't want to be one of them. What if he didn't like him? What if he didn't even exist, and Sirius and Remus were just trying to hurt him? What if…

"Harry, we're here."

A/N: Sorry! Cliffhanger… couldn't resist. Chapter five's all ready to post, so I'm just waiting for tons and tons of reviews! Oh, and I'm in the market for a good couple of betas. If your interested, drop me a line at or leave me a review. Remember, betas see the chapters before anyone else! The coast is freakin freezing! On the plus side, though, I have the whole of next week off to write, and I promise this is the last short one! Well, I got to go get ready. I have a date for the midnight premier of Goblet of Fire! Wish me luck… this calls for the padded bra!