A/N: Hey guys! yes, i'm still alive (shocking, i know)
I still do not own. (T.T why do they keep making me say that?)
i have some things to say, but (like the wise Albus Dumbledore) i shall save it till the end. therefore; nitwit! blubber! oddment! tweak!
thus, chapter 6...
Chapter 6: Moony's Musings, Padfoot's Prediction, and Teddy's Troubles
Remus Lupin sat alone in the empty drawing room, a mug of cooling tea in his hand, staring into the dying fire. Emotions, some more recognizable than others, swirled around inside him as he thought of the events of the last few hours. This was certainly not what he expected when he agreed to join the guard retrieving Harry from Privet Drive. After all, it wasn't every day you discovered that you had a nineteen year old son.
Remus sighed deeply and pinched the bridge of his nose, a habit he picked up from spending almost a decade in the company of Sirius Black and James Potter. It wasn't as though he was disappointed in finding out about Teddy. Or maybe he was…
Remus shook his head and tried to put his thoughts in order.
He was glad to discover he was going to become a father. That much he was certain of. And Teddy was so responsible and loyal. After all, he traveled almost two decades through time to retrieve his charges. Anyone would be proud to have a son like that, he thought.
But… at the same time, he was sickened with himself. He knew, better than anyone, exactly how difficult it was to live under the prejudice of being a werewolf. He had, after all, lived with it since he was six years old. He could still remember being cussed at and spit upon when he made his way home from the local convenience store. How could he be so selfish as to force that kind of prejudice onto a child? All because he had fallen for the pink hair-
Easy, Remus, he thought stubbornly, you don't know if Tonks is his mother. But were there any other explanations? Could it really be mere coincidence that he discovered he was going to have a Metamorphmargus for a son barely a week after meeting a certain clumsy Metamorphmargus who was somehow working her way into his heart?
Something stirred in his chest, a kind of monster growling at his own stupidity.
Remus forced Moony down, shaken. Moony never surfaced so soon before the full moon. Most of his astonishment of opening the door of the Order of the Phoenix's secret headquarters to find a group of young children had been how Moony had brushed against his consciousness and claimed the blue-haired boy as kin.
Remus would have remained frozen in shock had Tonks not politely elbowed him in the ribs.
Remus chuckled in spite of himself. She certainly had a fire in her. Unafraid to speak her mind or express herself. Unafraid of other's opinions. And, most shocking to him of all, unafraid of associating with werewolves…
Remus shook his head angrily. No. Stop that. You do not have a crush on Tonks. You do not have feelings for a girl almost ten years younger than you. You do not fancy someone when you know that you could never have a relationship.
Tonks's face flashed in his mind, hair a vivid pink, with a wide cheeky smile. Moony growled again.
Remus, said a teasing voice in his head that sounded faintly like Lily Evans, you're in denial.
I'm fine with that, he thought back stubbornly. He would not force his affliction on another person, least of all someone as amazing as Tonks. He would not do it.
"So, still awake, eh?"
Remus started and tensed before recognizing the voice and turning to grin sheepishly at his old friend, "Couldn't sleep. Not after…" His voice trailed off and he turned back to the fire.
The grin slid off Sirius's face. He came forward and sat next to the werewolf in an old moth-eaten armchair, absentmindedly picking at the fraying green cloth. Neither said anything for a while. Then-
"So, got any clue who the lucky lady is yet?"
Remus looked at Sirius to find the other canine smirking knowingly at him, then turned back to the fire, "No."
Sirius's grin morphed into a frown, "Liar."
Remus sighed, "Sirius, it's too dangerous for me to-"
"That's rubbish, and you know it," Sirius sat up, glaring at his friend, "you heard the kid yourself, he's not a werewolf-"
"But it's so much more than just that," Remus snapped, "Not that I'm not glad he isn't a werewolf," he added quickly, "I'm extremely grateful for that, but-"
"Dammit, Remus, but what?" Sirius was clutching the arms of the poor chair so hard now that his knuckles were white. His arms were shaking as he stared at his friend, "But you don't think any woman could be interested in you? But you don't think you deserve a chance to be happy?"
The werewolf smiled humorously at Sirius, "You know, better than anyone, what I am, Sirius. You've seen me at my most dangerous moments. How could anyone love that?"
Sirius stared at him for a few seconds. Then he shook his head and fell back into the chair, "You really don't get it."
"Get what?"
"For god's sake, Remus," Sirius ran his hands through his hair in frustration, "Do you think James and I hung out with you because we wanted the thrill of running around with a werewolf?" A tense silence followed. The name Sirius had attempted to avoid seemed to hang in the air around them.
Remus sighed and opened his mouth.
"And it wasn't out of pity, either." Sirius snapped. Remus's mouth closed. "We stuck with you, because, werewolf or not, you were - and are - our friend. Not the furry canine that we ran around with at night. We liked you for you; the kind, modest, studious, sarcastic, chocolate-addicted you." Sirius grinned as Remus halfheartedly denied his chocolate addiction.
"You lot were one in a million, I'll give you that," Remus murmured, sending Padfoot a soft and grateful smile, "But I still don't see how that relates to-"
"Remus," Sirius gestured vaguely around at the faded green and silver wallpaper, "This dismal, dank, disgusting, decrepit, foul-smelling, dust-collecting, fungus-breeding, infested-"
"Get to the point, Sirius," said Remus dryly.
"This house is full of people who are, as you say, 'one in a million'. And before you dare say anything," he added as Remus opened his mouth, "Harry, Ron, and Hermione all saw how dangerous you can be last year, and unless my sources are wrong, Harry came bursting into your office as soon as he found out you had resigned. And according to Ron and Hermione, he wasn't the only one upset. The entire school was depressed to see you go. (well, except the Slytherins, but that's a given.)"
Remus smiled and shook his head, sure that his friend was only saying these things to try and cheer him up. And while he was sure they were lies, he was grateful.
"And for your information, I know that Tonks doesn't care any more than-"
"What does Tonks have to do with this?" asked Remus sharply, tensing in his chair, the knuckles on his clenched hands white.
Sirius rolled his eyes, "Do you think I'm blind, mate? I saw you two eying each other during the meeting." He smirked, "You've got a thing for my cousin, Moony."
Remus felt his face turning red as he sputtered, "W-What? That's completely-don't know how you could think that-I mean- Tonks is a colleague and nothing more."
"Honestly, Remus," Sirius snapped, "you find out that your kid is going to be a dead-clumsy Metamorphmagus, and you're saying that the only other dead-clumsy Metamorphmagus you know couldn't possibly be his mother?"
Remus's expression was rather wooden as he voiced his thoughts, "I'm having a hard time believing that I'd ever force my…affliction on anyone. Least of all Tonks."
"Because you care for her so much."
Remus opened his mouth, closed it again, opened it, shut it, then sighed and looked into the fireplace again. What was the point in denying? Sirius's grin suddenly faded.
"When you say 'you have a hard time believing', do you mean that you don't believe Teddy's your son?"
Remus hesitated, remembering Moony's sudden rise when he first lay eyes on the boy, before he had so much as learned his name, "No. I definitely think he's my son."
"You trust his word? I mean, you're not so desperate that you'd claim he's lying?"
"Not his word…well, not that alone, no…" Remus explained Moony's strange reaction to finding Teddy at the door, the sudden sense of familiarity, of, dare he say, family.
Sirius was quiet for a few moments, and Remus knew that this, more than anything said downstairs, proved to him just how real the situation was. If Moony had risen up and claimed Teddy, then Teddy not only had werewolf blood in him, but he had gotten it from Moony himself. Moony didn't just claim anyone as soon as he set eyes on them, not even Harry; it took time for those bonds to form. But to immediately recognize Teddy as kin…
"Do you…I mean, do you not want Teddy as a son?"
Remus met his friend's gaze and looked away, pondering how to answer, "If the situation-my situation-was different? I'd love to have him as a son. I mean," Remus barely noticed the fond smile that spread across his face, "he's responsible and kind and intelligent. Anyone would be proud to call him their son. I think part of me is right now. But…" he squinted at the faded hearthrug, "Its not that I don't want him as a son, I just wish he didn't have to put up with me as a father. Its just that…"
"You don't want him to have to live with the prejudice of having a werewolf for a father." Sirius's voice was soft and full of understanding. Not sure what else to say, Remus nodded, and they were engulfed in silence again.
"Well," said Sirius finally, grin somehow back in place, "I'd be very surprised if you and Tonksie aren't together by the time our time traveling friends leave."
Remus raised an eyebrow, "Really? You're so sure?"
Sirius nodded wisely, "Our dear shape-shifting half werewolf is proof that you two eventually tie the knot. Now that he's here I can bet that it will only accelerate the process."
Remus looked at his friend, rather amused, "The 'process'?"
Sirius nodded again as he stood up and headed to the door, "Of course, Mr. Moony, the process," he smirked, "of falling in love."
Remus stared at the Animagus, feeling his scarred cheeks burn.
"And for your information, Remus," said Sirius, grin fading as he looked, well, serious, "Teddy didn't seem to mind you being a werewolf. You saw how he defended you against James. Before you start feeling guilty," he called as he headed towards the door, "you might want to get his opinion on the whole 'werewolf-for-a-father' thing."
Remus frowned at the dying embers of the fireplace. By the time he turned to fire his retort, Sirius had gone.
~~I'm a line~sorry to bug you~I'm here to tell you that the scene has changed~are you really reading this?~~
Teddy stumbled as he landed on the mess of blankets he and Harry had lain out earlier, inwardly cursing. He really needed to practice the whole Apparating thing; he never got the landing right.
Brushing invisible dust from his T-shirt, he looked up and scowled at James, who had that wide-eyed, innocent look that always screamed trouble, "James?"
"I didn't do it!"
Albus snorted, from his position, leaned against the headboard of the boys' bed, "That's a sure confession, James." He was immediately hit in the face with a pillow.
"Cut it out, you two," said Rosie, who was sitting on the girls' bed brushing Lily's hair, her own mane pulled back in a plait for the night, "Honestly, Teddy, you're gone for five minutes and James slips Hugo a Nose-Bleed Nugget."
Teddy whirled around as James shook with laughter and, sure enough, there was Hugo, sitting cross-legged on the ground, a large amount of tissue pressed to his face, the white slowly staining red.
"He tolb me id was a new Honeydukes sweed."
"Yeah," James snorted, "I just can't believe you believed me."
Teddy sighed angrily, stopped the flow with his wand, and cleaned Hugo's face with a quick Scourgify. James really needed to get his act together. He had no idea how much danger they were really in.
Teddy remembered, with heart stopping clarity, the horror that had gripped him (was it only hours ago?) when he had burst through Harry's office door and saw his god siblings and their cousins disappear, a time turner clutched in James's fist. But not just any time turner; the same one he and Harry and about half the Auror office had been stressing over for the past eight months.
It was painful enough to see faces of people that he knew were going to die. And as soon as they were in private, Teddy had been sure to stress the importance to the others of not mentioning it (thanking god that they had the smarts, at least to not say anything like, "Hey, look guys, it's our Uncle Fred who's going to die in two years!").
But they had much bigger worries than accidentally altering the time stream, thought Teddy as he enlarged the boys' and girls' beds to give them more room. In that one moment that James decided to go snooping into his father's office, he had unknowingly shattered a delicately constructed mission that he and Harry had been working on for months. His first mission, Teddy thought with some pride, as an official Auror, working as a partner to his godfather (second youngest [the first, obviously being Harry]-only two years out of Hogwarts).
Teddy had had no choice but to follow them, knowing who would be waiting for them when he did. He dimmed the lights as his charges settled down for the night, trying not to shudder as he remembered that face looming out of the darkness at them, a face that had haunted the young Lupin since his first encounter with the man. The three parallel scars extending from his left eye to his right cheek stood out silver in the half light. Scars that Teddy himself had inflicted on the older werewolf years ago. The sight of them had dashed any hopes Teddy had that he might've been wrong, that the Intel the Aurors had received might've been wrong.
Greyback, like them, had traveled to the past. And if he was here, like Teddy and the other Aurors presumed, to warn Voldemort of future events, there was a good chance the entire outcome of the war was at stake.
The only advantage they had at the moment was that Greyback didn't know the most important thing; how Harry Potter had gotten the best of Voldemort.
The major disadvantage was that he, Teddy, did. And Greyback knew it. That meant that now Voldemort would be as desperate to get his hands on Teddy and the others as he was to get the prophecy, if not more.
Teddy bid the others goodnight and listened as they slowly fell asleep. Of course, on top of all this, he had to deal with five children who didn't know the meaning of the word obedient, two full moons in less than a week, and seeing and talking to his long-dead parents without breaking down.
He jumped slightly as he heard two soft cracks in the room across the hall. Harry and Ron's room. He fought back a grin as his enhanced hearing picked up Ron exclaim angrily and one of the twins respond softly. Talking about the conversation downstairs, Teddy thought in amusement, typical.
Teddy watched as the chess pieces that had been knocked under the dresser formed ranks and peer out at the room, and resisted the urge to snort as he was absurdly reminded of the Nutcracker, a Muggle story Hermione had insisted on reading to him around Christmas when he was younger.
Teddy yawned widely. The full moon two nights ago combined with the fact that he couldn't remember the last time he slept was starting to get to him. Deciding to brood on his thoughts in the morning, Teddy lay down and was asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.
Barely moments later, the door slowly and quietly opened. Remus peered around at the sleeping time travelers and rested his gaze on the eldest, who was sprawled out ungracefully on his stomach, head resting on his folded arms. Remus moved into the room, staring at Teddy. Now that he was asleep, all quirky colors had faded from his hair, replaced with his natural shade, the same soft brown that Remus's was. He looked so peaceful and calm and…and perfect. How could a monster like Remus have had any part in creating this amazing life?
Remus reached out as though to run his hand through Teddy's hair, but hesitated and pulled back. He stood and left the room as quietly as he had entered, pausing only once to glance back at his sleeping son. The door shut softly behind him.
A/N: yeah, the Lupin boys seemed pretty popular. i couldn't decide, so i did both.
now, first off, special thanks to 'way of life' and 'HarryPotterFan' whose reviews and messages really encouraged me to continue. you guys are great and i'm really flattered that you like my writing so much.
second of all, i've had some comments about how either "James doesn't look like that" or "those aren't the houses they're in" and even "that's exactly how J.K. described Teddy" and i would like to make it perfectly clear that 1) i have not, nor do i plan to, study up on exactly how JK imagined the Next Gen. to be. I'm only going off of what i got from the books, and the basic Weasley-Potter family tree. also, as for James, i based his (and his siblings') appearance off of burdge-bug's colored drawing 'Potter' on deviantart. in fact, most of their appearances are based off her art. (she's really talented, check out her gallery). and as for their houses, i just wanted to make it easier in the long run: keeping them all together and ensuring that they don't need to adjust to the new common room location and methods of getting in (ex. Gryffindor-password, Ravenclaw-answer question)
and lastly (assuming you're still reading this absurdly long AN) should i start to include chapters about whats going on in the future in this, or do you want to be surprised as to when the future Golden Trio+Ginny come to the rescue?
remember, reviews bring chapters!
