Mind Over Matter
A/N: Yay, new chapter time! And this one's hot off the press, folks, so let me know if there are any errors. I tried to comb through it as best as I could but I may have missed something. Also- this is now my longest chapter! And with good reason, too! Oh, you guys are going to LOVE this chapter. Seriously. I'm gloating right now because I know something you all don't- so unless you have a review response, get to reading if you aren't already! You really don't want to miss this! (Not that the chapter's going anywhere… )And as always, thanks for your awesome reviews, especially for how quickly I got each one- you are all wonderful!
Review Responses;
BewitchedOne: Bad doctor indeed! I was never even informed that they had antibiotic mouthwash- further proves my theory that dentists are the devil.
Mrs. Weasley is pretty easy for me to write because she's a lot like my grandmother. They're a bit overbearing at times but they're always proud of you and the first to stand at your defense. Lovely personality, in my opinion- except when Molly's being her clueless self as with the Ron situation.
I love writing the interaction between Lupin and Sirius- they're a fun pair, in my opinion- as are James and Sirius, for that matter. The only thing that slightly irks me about writing their scenes is I always type 'Remus' and have to go back and change it. That's a bit annoying, but it's worth it for some Sirius-Lupin craziness! I'm actually very glad you like my depiction of the characters as I'm always nervous about whether or not I'm portraying them correctly.
The nightmare? I didn't even know it was coming until I began writing it. Honestly, I pull most of my chapters out of thin air- I have no idea most of the time what's going to happen in my own story, I just sit and write and there it is! Odd, huh? The story's turning out so well and I have no set plot- it just is what it is. I like writing that way, though- it makes what I write exciting, even for me, and I never get bored because I have to keep to one specific plot. Really, I'm almost as clueless as my readers when it comes to what happens next. That's a bit weird, isn't it? I'm glad it got such a great response, very happy that I wrote it. Anyway, glad you enjoyed the chapter! Thanks for reviewing!
DementedViper: I think everyone would be traumatized being subjected to that. Thanks for the review! I'm happy you enjoyed it so much!
A/n Updated: Thanks to everyone who left me a review- really helps get me going, especially lately. My grandmother has cancer and just went into a coma this morning, they don't expect her to be alive by Monday. I'm going to try to keep my regular updating schedule through this, but understandably it may take a little longer than usual. (My life seems so hectic lately- pulled teeth, infected gums, then my grandmother) I hope you all enjoy this chapter and please let me know what you think.
Full Summary: When seventeen year old Remus Lupin is thrust into the future, during Harry Potter's seventh year at Hogwarts, what's a poor werewolf to do? Furthermore, Dumbledore doesn't have any idea how to send him back? Is he to be stuck there forever? And will he want to be?
WARNING: This story contains SLASH- which means male-male relationships, and may or may not contain sexual situations (Will be decided later). It also contains cursing, sometimes used in excess. This is for mature readers only. Ignores some of Book 6, completely ignores Book 7. Sirius does not die.
Chapter Ten
Reconciliation and Realization
Marauder Era
James and Sirius were bored. Mass mayhem and destruction were on the agenda for the rest of the school.
They had to wait a month before they would be able to bring their missing comrade back from wherever he'd gone, and in the meantime they were making sure no one doubted the Marauders' power minus two members. Peter was still off elsewhere, some speculated that he had finally found a girlfriend and that was why he was gone so much, others thought he was working on a top secret Marauder prank for the end of year speech.
Had anyone actually known Peter like Sirius and James did they would understand the hilarity of the latter accusation, as Peter was the stupidest prankster to grace Hogwarts to date. What Peter was really doing remained a mystery though, and as the boy repeatedly blew the two egotistical Marauders off they both sharply marked the teen off their Christmas card mailing list. This may seem trivial to some, but those who knew the Marauders also knew that they weren't going to take a brush off like this so lightly. Bad things were coming toward their mousy friend, Christmas was just the beginning.
As of now, though, the remaining Marauders were sitting at their table in the Great Hall, each having a poker face that the most avid players of the game would sell their soul for. The two calmly ate their pork and beef, casually sipped from their pumpkin juice goblets. Those sitting around them were squirming in their seats, knowing the signs of a prank in progress and hoping that they wouldn't be the intended targets- though it was a rarity for the boys to prank their own house, it wasn't unheard of if they needed to cover their tracks. They'd been known to even administer whatever prank they pulled on themselves just to ease suspicion.
When there were only four minutes left of lunch all hell broke loose. The sound from the Hall was nearly deafening with all the screams and noise. James and Sirius calmly glanced away from their meals to take in their work and bask in the results. The students were in a state of panic, the teachers were trying their best to get things under control. No one was succeeding.
Every single student in the Great Hall had been turned into a naked version of Dumbledore. You can understand the hysteria at this vision. The teachers on the other hand were all being attacked by their food, and the food was winning the battle. Sirius was particularly amused when he spotted Professor Slughorn being choked by his roast chicken.
Of course, a prank of this magnitude would render severe punishment, so the Marauders had also administered polyjuice potion into their own goblets. The two teenagers sent each other winning smirks that looked oddly demented on Dumbledore's kind face before joining in the hysteria as if they didn't know what was happening either.
The real Professor Dumbledore's face was tinged pink.
Present-time
Harry slowly came into consciousness with a feeling of absolute security surrounding him. He was warm and comfortable and had he had the choice, he would never leave the confines of his soft bed. The teen snuggled into the warmth, rubbing his nose against his pillow with a content smile on his lips. He couldn't remember exactly what he'd dreamt about that night, all he recalled was a soothing voice telling him gently, lovingly that they'd always be there for him.
As he awakened further an alarm went off in his head; when had his bed ever been this comforting? Harry cracked an eye open to check the time and froze when the first thing he saw was a head of blond hair. He leaned his head back to get a better view of the situation and discovered that it was Remus laying half on top of him, head just below his chin, sleeping soundly. When had this happened?
The teen was at a loss on how to carefully extract himself from a possibly embarrassing situation. Why had Remus gotten into bed with him in the first place? Harry was confused and it showed in the curious twist of his lips as he stared at his friend wonderingly. A few minutes later Remus began to stir, as if feeling the other boy's stare on his head, but remained sleeping. Harry bit his lip in nervousness, unsure of what to think or how he was supposed to react to something like this. A stray thought ran through his head and he was suddenly reminded of the news he'd received last night. His last living relatives were dead.
A sadness grabbed his heart and held on- sure they were particularly nasty to him, but they hadn't deserved death. No one deserved that. A slow trickle of tears began to form and fall down his face as Harry remembered the few nice words he'd heard his aunt say to him, remembered how misguided his cousin was and how he had once snuck him food just because he hadn't ate when they were young. Vernon was certainly a bastard but he was a generally good person, just not to Harry.
The boy sobbed, hand flying to his mouth to try and stifle the noise as he remembered his life with the Dursleys and the news of their death. He never thought he'd be this upset if something happened to them, just goes to show that even if you think you hate your family, you always love them deep down. Another sob escaped the teen and suddenly Harry found himself wrapped in a tight embrace, hands smoothing his hair and rubbing his back while the owner whispered reassurances in his ear. An indiscernible amount of time passed before the teenager calmed down to a few sniffles. Harry pulled his face away from the chest it was pushed against when his friend pulled him into his arms.
Remus looked at his friend closely, noting the signs of sadness still lingering on the boy's features. His heart went out to Harry and a frown graced his lips. "Are you alright?"
"Been better." Harry said honestly, wiping the tear trails from his cheeks. The two lay for a few moments just staring at each other before Harry spoke once more, "Thanks for that."
"It's alright, I told you I'd be there and I meant it." That struck a chord in the green-eyed teen. Where had he heard that before? From his dream, he recalled, but it wasn't in the youthful voice Remus had. It had sounded more aged, scarred in a way. Why was it so familiar? Before Harry could think on it anymore he was interrupted.
"Well, imagine Ron seeing this picture! He'd think you were both together for sure!"
With a groan the two turned their heads to be met with the sight of Lupin and Sirius standing in their doorway. Harry sent a glare to his Godfather who had almost blabbed his secret in front of the still unknowing Lupin. Remus found this insanely amusing since he knew damn well that his older half knew of the circumstances clearly. The two men entered the room as the teenagers sat up and moved away from each other's personal bubble. Lupin sat on the bed in front of Harry as Sirius sat in front of Remus. The four were silent for a few seconds, each collecting their thoughts.
"How are you today, Harry?" Lupin asked carefully. He didn't want to bring up the situation and cause the teenager any more upset than he was already experiencing but he also needed to know that the boy was doing as well as could be expected. Sirius also wanted to know Harry's response and paused his suspicious glancing at Remus to pay attention.
"I'm doing alright, I guess. Still trying to wrap my mind around their absence, honestly." He told them softly, looking at the blanket on his bed as he picked at the comforter. "When's the funeral?"
"Tomorrow." Lupin answered.
Sirius bit his bottom lip in thought for a moment, deciding whether now was the time or not. "Harry, they need you to go through their belongings and choose what you want to keep and what to send to charity."
"Alright, when do we leave?" Harry responded, a slow intake of breath being the only indication that he might not be ready to do this just yet. The other three glanced at each other in concern- Sirius slightly amused at the twin expressions on the two amber-eyed males' faces.
"Whenever you're ready. We have until Thursday to do it, there's no need to rush yourself Harry." Sirius answered and Lupin nodded. Remus watched his friend closely to see if he were going to break down again and was relieved when he saw no sign of it in the other teenager's eyes. There was a thick silence after Sirius spoke, none knowing what else to say to the wounded boy.
"Knock, knock." Hermione said as she stepped into the room and eyed the scene. With not but a raised eyebrow she turned as if to leave, grabbed hold of something and tugged. Ron entered the room with a red face and a bashful expression, wrist held tightly in the girl's grasp as she pulled him over to the bed in front of Harry. "Ron has something he would like to say to you, Harry."
Every eye in the room was on the red-head in an instant. Ron was extremely nervous and fidgeted with the hem of his shirt as he cleared his throat nervously. Why did Hermione have to make me do this in front of everyone?! He thought in despair.
"Uh… H-Harry. Hi." He said slowly, nearly smacking himself when he realized how stupid he'd sounded. Remus and Lupin chuckled in unison, Hermione shooting the younger a look that no one could discern. "Look, I'm sorry for being a prat about all this. I didn't mean to give you a hard time, I just couldn't understand you liking… liking…"
"Our own gender?" Harry supplied with a stiff voice, shoulders squared as if he were expecting Ron to hit him. A small glance out of the corner of his green eyes let everyone know that he was weary of Lupin's reaction to the news. The older wolf didn't bat an eye. The red-head nodded slowly.
"Yeah. Sorry." He replied simply, not knowing what else to say. Harry looked in his friend's eyes for a full minute, amused as the Weasley squirmed under his calculating look.
"Okay." Was all he said. Hermione clapped her hands enthusiastically while Ron smiled slowly.
"Okay? We can be friends again?" Ron wanted clarification.
"We never stopped being friends, you just temporarily turned into an asshole." Harry told him with a laugh. The red-head was a bit offended at that but decided to shrug it off; he probably deserved much more after all that.
Sirius and Lupin glanced at each other with huge grins- things were starting to get better for the teen.
The six friends had been talking for little over an hour when a giant explosion rocked the very foundations of Grimauld. Instantly on alert, they whipped out their wands and ran down stairs to see what was going on, ready for any situation and mentally cataloguing the spells they might need to make use of. However, the sight that greeted them in the kitchen was something they were not prepared for.
Molly Weasley was standing in the center of the room, fists on hips, red-faced and screeching at the ceiling. The stove behind her had the oven door blown off, remnants of dishes littered the floor and counters and a kettle was apparently doing the tango with a juice pitcher in midair above the red-headed woman. The walls were marred with what appeared to be breakfast.
The six blinked in unison before bursting into laughter at the scene. A small red-head pushed through the group and came to stand beside Harry, taking in what was going on.
"The twins must be here." Ginny Weasley muttered with a small smile on her face. A set of arms wrapped around her waist and hoisted her up into the air, someone mussing up her hair as she was being lifted. With a frown she glared at the offenders.
"Right you are, our dearest violent little sister, right you are!" George exclaimed with a jovial grin as he made the female Weasley's hair resemble something you'd only find in the bottom of the Loch Ness. Fred let his sister drop back to the ground and poked her sides teasingly, causing her to emit a squeal that hurt the particularly sensitive ears of Remus and Lupin. The two glared daggers at the petite teenager as they rubbed their abused appendages. Sirius had had enough and firmly clamped his hand down on Remus' shoulder, turning toward the stairs.
"Let's you and I have a little chat, shall we?" He said sociably. Remus felt his impending doom upon him.
They were vermin, every single one of them. Little rats that scampered around as if they owned the place, taking and taking and taking until there would ultimately be no more to steal. Even that wasn't enough, oh no, for they not only required the skills and secrets of magic, they also needed to be equal to all who were rightfully born and bred to wield it. Equal. How preposterous a notion! They were vermin! The very scum of the wizarding world and he intended to show them for what they were. After he rid the world of half-breeds and mudbloods, his name would go down in history forever alongside of Salazar Slytherin himself!
He could already feel the majesty of fame and fortune that would shine upon him- hear the victorious, worshiping cries of those he protected. It made a feeling of ecstasy run through his body, to the tips of his fingers and toes as he imagined them hailing him as their savior, their God. And all that stood in the way of his rightful glory were a few undeserving vermin. Well, he would bestow his righteous judgment upon those ingrates, those thieves. It was only a matter of time before he succeeded in annihilating every single spec of dust on the wizarding world. Only a matter of time. Fist clenched, teeth bared in a grim excuse for a smile, the monster addressed his troop.
"Men… have we not suffered in silence under the rule of an uneven justice system for far too long? Put up with the disgusting sight of mudbloods, half-bloods, blood traitors roaming our land? Going to the same school as our children?" He spoke commandingly, calling every individual in the room to attention as he carried out his speech. A roar of agreement erupted from his would-be disciples, fists raising in the air to show their indignation. His demented crimson eyes gleamed with the anticipation of blood shed, body buzzing with the natural high of being in power. His smile turned slowly into a malicious smirk. "We have dealt a large blow to the heart," Voldemort spat the term as if it were acidic, "of the supposed savior of the impure ones, but it is not enough! We have to get closer to Potter, find out what he cares for the most and rip it apart. Only then will we be able to cripple him in such a way that our victory is assured."
In the silence that followed his words a lone voice raised from the back of the crowd. "We have discovered what the boy cares about most, my Lord!"
Voldemort indicated with a wave of his hand that the speaker should come forward. Into the light stepped Malfoy senior and junior, superior smirks on each face. Voldemort addressed Lucius, "What is it that you have found, Malfoy?"
"The driving force behind Potter is his friends. Hermione Granger, Ronald Weasley-" Voldemort cut him off;
"We already know about these two, Lucius. Unless you have new information I suggest you step back into your place before I get irritated."
The Malfoys had been on bad terms with the Dark Lord since the incident in the Ministry of Magic last year. In order to redeem themselves as Voldemort's right hand they had been tailing Potter in school and outside of it. Smirk turning knowing, Draco spoke up.
"Potter," He snarled at the name, "Has acquired himself a lover."
Voldemort's facial expression changed immediately from agitation to interest. Eagerness laced his tone, "You're sure?"
"Yes, sir. I confirmed it shortly before Easter holidays began."
"And what is the name of this new lover?"
"Remus Holmes."
"Hmm… this is very good news. Can you name the nature of their relationship? Is the Potter boy… in love?" Voldemort's face seemed to turn slightly green at the last word, as if he were going to be physically ill just by saying it.
"From what I've seen of their interactions, yes, he is."
"Very good news, indeed." Voldemort murmured with a smile.
Remus and Sirius were sitting in the library across from each other. The dark-haired man was eyeing the teenager as if he were a complex puzzle that he was on the brink of solving. Remus was staring at Sirius as if he were death himself. A long silence was between them, neither having spoken since they stepped through the doors to the room. Remus had noted with disgust that the family tapestry was still very much in place.
A cough broke the tension. "So, Remus… how are you?"
"I'm doing alright." The amber-eyed boy answered evenly, knowing this was just a trivial prelude to the real reason they were there. Sirius gave his world-famous smirk and began baiting the boy.
"How long have you been here now?" He asked innocently.
"For nearly three and a half weeks."
"I see. And how are you liking Hogwarts? I imagine it's not very much different from where you went before?"
"A bit." Remus had decided to keep his answers short and to the point so he wouldn't give anything away. He wasn't completely sure of Sirius' intentions yet and was loathe to give away his identity if the dark-haired man didn't actually know.
"Hm, yes I imagine it would be a bit different after all." The rest of his sentence hung in the air- after all this time. "What's your favorite class, Remus?"
This was tricky business- Sirius knew everything about Remus, so of course he knew his favorite class as well. Should he lie about it or keep it the same? Lie, of course.
"Arithmancy."
"Is that so?" Sirius said with a chuckle, "I would've thought it was Defense."
He's implying that he knows! Remus thought frantically, outwardly showing no sign of his turmoil. He'd learned the legendary Marauder poker face early on- you needed it to be a member of that particular group after all.
"Harry really looks a lot like his father, don't you think so Remus?"
"Sirius, just give it up and tell me what you're after." Remus said finally, sternly and was met with a twinkle-eyed look that resembled Dumbledore's all-knowing expression. The amber-eyed boy's face turned suspicious.
"Why are you being so defensive?" Sirius countered.
"I am not being defensive." Remus retorted with a snort, "You're playing twenty-one questions like I'm a convict."
"Seems defensive to me."
"It isn't!"
"I think it is."
"Well, it's not!"
"You're being defensive."
"Am not!"
"Are too."
"Am not."
"Are too."
"Am not!"
"Are too, Moony." Sirius sang in a way that had always got on Remus' nerves. The 'Nana-nana-na-na' preschool way. Remus' glare turned ice cold.
"I. Am. Not. Being. Defensive." Remus growled threateningly and Sirius grinned in triumph. At the look on his long-time friend's face, Remus ran that conversation over again in his head and groaned. "Prat."
"Always worked when I needed to get something out of you. You're a great thinker, Moony, but you suck under pressure."
"I should bite you right now, but a slice of Sirius just don't agree with my stomach- plus the taste is horrid."
"Always have something witty prepared, huh? You haven't changed, not that I thought you would. At least this is a mystery solved."
"What do you mean by that?" Remus questioned as he shifted in his seat.
"Where you went when the potion went wacko- we never knew to this day." Sirius informed him.
"You never knew?" Remus was shocked by this- he'd been keeping careful notes of everything in his journal which no one knew of- how could it be that Sirius and James weren't informed of everything when he went back? What had happened? "What happened when I returned?"
"You didn't know anything about where you went- it was as if your mind was wiped clean. We figured you either suddenly got amnesia or someone memory charmed you."
"Was I carrying anything when I got back?"
"No." Sirius told him evenly, not wishing to divulge certain things to the teen that might change what he would go through before he returned. Things had to stay the same, after all. "Let me ask you something, now. If you returned right now, memories in tact, what would you say happened to you when you were gone?"
"I was informed of many things that need rectifying- that's what I would say." Remus responded with a nod, sure of his answer. Sirius frowned slowly- obviously not the answer he was searching for.
"I'll ask you that again in a month, I wonder if your answer will be different?" Sirius contemplated aloud, remembering vividly what Remus had told them when he returned- the only thing he seemed able to remember about his absence. Now the dark-haired man knew what it meant, thought it saddened him to know that it would be years before anything could work out properly, and even then there might still be trouble. Shaking the feeling off, the man waved the conversation away mentally and changed the subject to something of particular interest.
"Is there any truth to you dating Harry?" Remus glared, annoyed that another person was bringing up that idiotic idea.
"No, Padfoot- for the love of God, he's James' son! And he looks just like him! It was all a figment of Ron's limited imagination." He said indignantly, crossing his arms in a slightly childish manner.
"Hey, looking like James isn't a bad thing- that guy was a looker." Sirius said with a small wink that Remus rolled his eyes at. Of course Sirius would say that- for the first five years of the Marauder's school days Sirius had had a huge crush on their friend. And the reason why Lily turned James down repeatedly through the years? Sirius sabotaged all of James' 'love' acts. Padfoot was and will always be childish and selfish, but he was a lovable prat.
"Yeah, yeah. I know all about your fascination with James. Luckily you came to your senses this year." Sirius was amused- 'this year' had been twenty years ago for him, yet Remus was still experiencing it. "Sirius… I'm sorry."
"Whatever for?" Said man asked in confusion.
"I could have changed it all when I got back- I've been keeping note of the horrible things that happen- but somehow I botched it."
"Keeping note? You're writing down facts in order to change the future, Remus? That's extremely irrational and totally unlike you."
"Wouldn't you do the same thing in my situation? Our friends die, Sirius, I can't stand by and let it happen when I can change it!" Remus responded heatedly and Sirius was silent- he didn't know what he would do in the wolf's situation.
"Remus, it's been twenty years for me. I've accepted their deaths and dealt with it as best I can. I can't go down memory lane and place myself in your shoes- I'm an adult and I have to be rational. There's no way to bring them back, no way to save them from their path. If it's fate that they die, then they'll die no matter what you try to do."
Remus wouldn't, couldn't, accept that answer and his expression told his friend that quite clearly. A large sigh escaped the man as he remembered how stubborn Remus could be when he was a teenager- Nothing he said was going to change the boy's mind.
Harry stared at the tombstones of his family. They were side-by-side, black granite with their names, birthdays and date of death inscribed on each. On either side of him were Sirius and Remus, both of whom had offered to accompany him to the funeral. Lupin had been needed for Order business and regretted that he couldn't be there for Harry as well. There were black bags under the emerald eyes- the teenager hadn't been able to sleep that night and Remus- bless him- had stayed up talking with Harry and offering his support until the raven-haired teen had finally passed out in the early morning hours. They were both exhausted and barely able to function that day.
Harry's tired eyes were locked on one name in particular- Petunia Evans Dursley. Evans. It drove home the fact that they were family and now they were gone. Harry didn't have any left and he felt total rage toward Voldemort for taking them away- them, who hadn't done anything to that bastard. Fists clenched, Harry turned sharply away from the gravesite and started walking away. Out of the corner of his eye he saw an aged man standing beside the trees next to the road- watching them. It was either a Death Eater, Order member or some stray funeral attendee that was late in arriving.
As they walked further toward the town proper the emerald-eyed boy kept watching the lone figure and discovered that he never stopped watching them. A glance at Sirius showed that he saw the guy as well and was keeping his eyes trained on him, hand in pocket most likely grasping his wand. Remus remained mostly oblivious of the figure but could feel the sudden tension in his companions, which sent him on alert. They had almost reached the sidewalk to begin walking to their apparition point when it happened- a sudden shot of green flew toward them and the shit hit the fan.
A slew of Death Eaters popped in from numerous locations, disregarding the possibility of muggles seeing them committing magic. That was just further proof of how deep the Dark Lord's reach into the Ministry ran that they could get away with that type of action. A simultaneous glance at each other and the spells started flying from the three Order member's now revealed wands. They took off running in the direction of the apparition point, all three shooting spell after spell at select Death Eaters along the way. The odd thing about this attack was that they seemed to be targeting someone in particular, and it wasn't Harry.
A cry revealed the target- Remus was down, knee held in his free hand bleeding profusely from a nasty curse aimed his way. The Death Eaters seemed to come together as one group before advancing quickly on the werewolf. Sirius and Harry frantically ran toward their friend, whipping out hexes and curses at the speed of light to stall the enemy. Just as they reached Remus the Death Eaters did as well. Two dark-robed and masked wizards disarmed Harry and Sirius, and in a split second they were on their knees beside Remus, surrounded by Voldemort's pawns.
The two who had disarmed Harry and Sirius broke from the group and started to slowly circle the three on the ground, wands pointed firmly at their faces as they gloated in their victory. A third stepped from the pack and walked toward them, cast a spell and the three were tied together by thick ropes, backs pressed together. The third walked toward them slowly and kneeled before Remus, hand coming up to move the teen's face left and right. After what seemed like a careful inspection, the third rose and addressed the troop.
"We got him."
"You won't have Harry for long you boot licker, we're due back at a certain time- when they realize we've been detained they'll send back up. They probably already have!" Sirius snarled at the third man who turned, whipped off his mask to reveal the face of Lucius Malfoy and back handed the dark-haired man. Harry and Remus growled simultaneously at the abuse of their friend- the former doing a surprisingly good job of sounding like an angry wolf as his teenage companion did.
"Harry this, Harry that." The pureblood wizard said mockingly. "We're not after Potter this time, Black."
"Then who-" Harry began in a confused tone, cut off by one of the two Death Eaters who were circling them.
"That one." He quipped and lazily flicked his wand in Remus' direction, a non-verbal spell slicing the teen's cheek. Remus gasped sharply at the injury and Harry felt his blood boil.
"Lay another finger on either of them and I'll slowly disembowel you with my bare hands." The boy said threateningly, Remus shivering at the suddenly icy tone. He'd never known Harry could speak that coldly, that chillingly.
Sirius was having a glaring match with the one who'd injured Remus, the man looking as if he wanted to transform into Snuffles and rip out the other man's throat. In the meantime Lucius had moved around to stand in front of Harry, cane in hand. He smiled at the angry boy before smashing his cane against the raven-haired boy's cheek bone. A thin scratch began oozing blood and a light red welt began to form over the brushed flesh. Harry didn't let out a single noise of pain, used to being treated like this by Voldemort's minions. Remus, however, saw red and began snarling as if he were in wolf form and could rip Lucius to shreds.
"You will do no such thing, Potter, no matter what we do to your lover." The three comrades froze, looked awkwardly at each other before bursting into laughter that the situation really didn't call for. Lucius frowned at their mockery and whacked the boy again, effectively shutting him up and causing him to bite his cheek. "What on Earth do you find so funny, boy?"
"Remus is not my lover, I have no idea how this misunderstanding reached Voldemort's ears-" The look on Harry's face, however, showed he knew damn well how that had happened- "but you've been severely misinformed."
"Oh, have we? Why the strong reactions to each other's pain, then?" Lucius asked with a raised brow. "That has to indicate something, hasn't it?"
"Only that you're an idiot who doesn't have any real friends." Remus mumbled under his breath, causing the other two to snicker once more. Harry got another bashing for that and the other Death Eater who'd spoken before smacked Remus across the face for his comment. In anger, the raven-haired boy spat the blood flowing into his mouth from his now bleeding cheek on Lucius' shiny designer shoes with a smirk.
"You're going to regret that, boy." The platinum blond said with a twisted look on his face, disgust in his eyes. As he readied his cane for the blow that would most likely knock Harry out after so many hits to the head, he was halted.
"Oh, I severely doubt that." Lupin said casually as he walked toward them, a sizable group of Order members following behind him with their wands out. The three Order members tied up wondered how they'd all arrived without making a sound. Lucius glanced toward the new arrivals.
"Oh, it's the half-breed to the rescue, is it?" Both Lupin and Remus snarled at that comment. "You seem to be incapable of basic math, so let me inform you- you have your small herd of cows, I have twenty Death Eaters. This is suicide."
"Indeed it is, we'll make sure to spit on your grave you great buffoon!" The voices of Fred and George Weasley piped up from within the group.
"Did you just call me a buffoon? How dare you? No one calls a Malfoy a buffoon!"
Lupin smirked and called the charge. Spells went flying between the Order and the Death Eaters, in the midst of it the three companions watched avidly as their side slowly took over the battle and pushed the enemy back. As one Death Eater in particular ran past them Harry was able to recognize the features of Severus Snape, likely the one who'd informed the Order of the surprise attack as they hadn't actually had a set time to return as Sirius had claimed. A small flick of the wrist and a non-verbal set the three lose. Their wands were tossed to them discreetly by the Potions teacher.
It took little over thirty minutes for the Order to completely overwhelm the Death Eaters, Sirius and Harry spending the majority of that time guarding the wounded Remus. When the last Death Eater apparated away from the battle field, the Order members surrounded the three bruised and battered males. Harry and Sirius supported Remus' weight with an arm over either shoulder. Lupin came up to them with a small frown.
"Are you alright?" He asked Remus in concern and the teen nodded.
"We need to get him back to Headquarters." Harry told him, shaking his head a bit to stave off the dizziness plaguing him from the numerous hits Lucius had dealt to his head. Lupin's frown deepened.
"You need medical attention yourself, Harry. Let me help Sirius get Remus home, you take it easy for the trip. Fred! George! Come escort Harry." Lupin commanded.
The two Weasleys stepped from the group and pulled Harry away from his still-bleeding friend, keeping vigil at his side as they waited to start the journey to the apparition point. Meanwhile, Lupin took Remus' free side and slowly began to help the teenager toward their destination. The rest of the Order followed at the same pace, apparently deciding that the old phrase 'strength in numbers' was definitely applicable to this situation.
Harry, Remus and Sirius were seated in the kitchen at the Order Headquarters having their wounds tended to by Tonks and a few other members who knew first aid. Remus' wound was by far the worst, but thankfully he didn't have anything critical.
"A few blood replenishing potions and you'll be fine, dear." An older woman said with a small pat on his good knee as she closed the wound. Harry's injuries were more bruise and scratch-like than anything, so he was simply given a band-aid for his cheek wound and a pain-killing potion for the rest. Sirius, of course, was given a glass of water and the wizarding equivalent of aspirin in the form of a potion.
"What nerve they have, attacking Harry at that particular time! How dare they?!" Molly Weasley was ranting, pacing the floor angrily.
"Mrs. Weasley, we're fine." Harry tried to calm her, which not surprisingly didn't work.
"Death Eaters don't have morals, you know." Sirius said- instead of calming her, however, he further angered her.
"How can they not have a conscience? They're human beings- they have to know that what they are doing is despicable!"
"The fact that they're human is entirely debatable." Lupin muttered from his seat beside Harry. The woman huffed at his words but wisely chose not to comment further. After Remus was healed the healer who'd tended Harry spoke softly, as if not wanting to point Molly's attention in her own direction.
"Harry, you're going to be very dizzy and tired from that potion. Best get to bed immediately and sleep it all off, alright?" A nod and the three members left the room with polite goodbyes.
Harry told Remus to go ahead of him to their room, wanting to have some tea before going to bed himself. With a nod that he understood and a small smile in the direction of his friend Remus left the room with Sirius following behind him. Harry and Lupin sat in silence at the table as they both sipped from their respective tea cups, each thinking scattered thoughts but nothing in particular. When Harry finally finished his drink he stood to leave the room with a small 'goodnight' to Lupin though it was still afternoon. A single step forward made the teen dizzy and threw him off balance.
Lupin was there in a second to catch and steady the teen, arm wrapped around the boy's shoulders. "You alright, there?"
"I'm really dizzy." Harry grumbled as he closed his eyes to try and get rid of the feeling, only to have it magnify and nearly make him fall again if it weren't for Lupin's hands holding him upright.
"Here." Lupin said kindly and leaned over, picking Harry up gently with one arm under his back and the other under his knees. Harry's arms wrapped around the man's neck and they walked slowly to the teen's room.
Harry let his head drop against Lupin's shoulder, eyes closed. He was almost dozing when his eyes flew open just as they reached his bedroom door-
It was Lupin in my dream!
He kept his thoughts to himself, did his best to hide his surprise at the revelation. The two entered his and Remus' room, spotting Remus asleep on his own bed. The light-brown haired man laid Harry on his bed softly, murmured a quiet goodnight after covering the boy up and left the room. The boy rolled over onto his side and stared at his friend- one of his best friends.
He remembered how pissed he'd gotten when they'd injured the amber-eyed boy, scared when they'd proclaimed their intention to kidnap Remus, how happy when help had arrived to save the wolf. All of those feelings ran through his head again and again, the image of the amber-eyed teen sleeping peacefully on his chest yesterday morning (which Remus had explained that apparently Harry had a nightmare)- the incident at Malkin's and how close their faces had been- Remus' constant care and consideration for him. It all accumulated in the emerald-eyed boy and he felt his chest swell with a warmth that was familiar.
Harry had a crush on Remus. The boy groaned- now what? After all this idiotic 'Remus and Harry are/are not together' crap, how was he supposed to deal with actually liking the teenager? It was just one fuck up after the next in his life, Harry thought with a grim expression. This could not end well.
At midnight a figure entered the boys' room and went straight to Remus' school trunk, popped open the latch. The person searched quietly for a few moments before finally pulling out what they were looking for- a medium-size black notebook.
After putting everything back where it belonged and closing the trunk, the individual went to the door to leave, paused and glanced back at the sleeping Remus.
"Sorry Moony- the future's not meant to be changed." And with a sharp pain in his heart, Sirius Black left to destroy the only artifact that could screw up their time- Remus' notebook in which he'd recorded every detail of the future.
A/n: Ohh, the plot thickens! And it's an important chapter for once, yay us! Since this is a really big event in our story, please be sure to review! Even if you never review the story again, let me at least know your opinion on this chapter. I worked hard on it- finished it in a day . - And I'm excited for your views on it. Thanks so much for reading!