The sun rays from the noonday filtered through the leaves of the tall trees that made up the forest. There was a small clearing in the forest trees that allowed for the grass and moss to grow thickly and was typically used as a classroom for one magical branch of the Six Nations. There were a dozen children of varying ages lounging about with several animals that had decided to join that days lesson drawn to the calming nexus that natural magic makes. Some rabbits were curled up in the laps of the older children while some of the smaller children had squirrels in theirs. An Elk doe had taken a spot up against a tree that also had a smaller child and a raccoon laying up against her side. A great brown bear had even joined today's lesson, though she was really just an over-sized bed for the three children laying on her back. A large number of small brown and gray birds had perched in various places around the children and animals.
"Can you feel the magic around you? It is in the trees that stretch above you and sleeping in the ground beneath your feet. It flows with the water in the streams and sings in the wind around you," the lone adult woman spoke with a neutral tone as she walked around the group of children and animals.
Harry had taken his place just a little off to the side of the group next to white tailed stag that had five small birds sitting on different points of his antlers. All the children had their eyes closed as they followed the instruction of today's teacher. The animals were taking advantage of the quiet moment and the warm sun for a quick nap.
"When you can feel it, you can move it. Use the magic within you to move the magic around you. Help the wind to shake the trees. Help the young flowers and saplings grow," The woman instructed next.
Most of the children changed their positions when the instruction changed. Two of the children on the bear remained fast asleep and were left alone for the time being. The teacher handed pieces of pine cones to the children to use. Harry did as the other children did, laying on their stomach with the seeds on the ground in front of them.
Harry pushed the seed into the dirt and put his hands around it. He did as he was told, feeling the magic within himself and channeling it outward to the seed. Mooey always said that this type of magic was incredibly difficult and hard to control without a special stick. No one in the tribe other than Hausis had a special stick to aid their magic and even then hers looked much different than either of his parents. Harry's mothers told him that his fathers were simply taught differently but not incorrectly, unlike some of the teachers that whispered when they thought Harry couldn't hear.
After some deep concentration, Harry was finally able to push his magic to the seed. Laying on his belly he reached out with as much feeling as he could, feeling the deep thrum of magic in the earth and the fluttering whisper of magic in the air. A small bit of green slithered up out of the dirt and a few tiny leaves popped out from it. He was overjoyed by his success as some of the older children had not yet been able to channel their magic well enough to help the plants grow. He could feel the small bud of magic twinkling from the sprout, the thankful whisper carried on the wind.
"Very good Taini! So young and yet already able to channel your magic. Keep it up and you'll be great one day," The woman teaching them spoke happily to him as she patted his messy hair. A few of the older children seemed upset, enough to do furrow their small brows to try that much harder.
The teacher announced that the lesson was over not long after for Harry and the few others children that had guided the natural magics. The children that had not been successful stayed behind for some extra instruction in this first essential lesson for the children of the Six Nations. Harry happily ran through the woods back towards the village laughing with the other children. At the movement some of the gathered animals woke and carried on about their day. The stag stood and majestically strode toward the doe that was rising to her height. Both animals looked towards the village that a young black haired youth had retreated down. The children tagged and chased and laughed as they weaved between various adults that were milling around, he wanted to get home as fast as his little legs could take him. Mooey should be back from the Wolf Tribe by now and he just couldn't wait to see him.
Harry hit the door while opening hard enough to send it flying open, sitting now on his backside in the dirt at the threshold. Mooey was sitting at the kitchen table reading some papers, but set them down as soon as the door exploded open.
"Mooey!" Harry scrambled to his feet and ran towards Remus leaping at his missed father.
Remus was able to grab Harry just before he made impact, lessening the blow only slightly but turning his sour look into one of happiness. "Hello, Harry. Have you been good for your mothers and Sirius the past few days?" Remus asked in a gently parental tone. Harry wrapped his arms tightly around Remus' neck and nodded enthusiastically into Remus' shoulder vibrating with excitement. Remus smiled fondly as he kissed Harry's forehead. "Good boy, pup. That's what I like to hear."
Harry nestled into Remus' chest while firing questions that Remus only could understand a few of as he laughed and tried to calm his little boy. Remus went back to his reading with a smile as Harry began to quiet as Remus ran his fingers through Harry's untamed hair. Harry had started to fall asleep to Remus's heartbeat when the front door closed after Sirius walked in.
"Moony!" Sirius exclaimed as he quickly walked from the door into the room and towards his friend. His greeting startled Harry awake.
"Hello Padfoot," Remus greeted his friend, clearly amused.
Sirius tossed down his bag and some papers onto the table haphazardly. He quickly moved over to Remus and began checking over his face and pushing his shirt aside to check further.
"You look good," Sirius spoke, seemingly pleased with the state Remus was in. It was always like this, more so now that the Marauders had lost James and Lily, and considered Peter 'lost' to Voldemort as well.
"I feel good," Remus answered calmly batting away his friend's hands as he huffed at the touchy Animagus and nodded to a chair next to him at the table. "I didn't take the potion this moon," was his continued reveal after Sirius had sat down.
Sirius' mouth fell open as he collapsed into the back of the chair. "Really?! Remus, that's fantastic!" Sirius pulled Remus into a tight hug, squeezing Harry between them. Harry squirmed at the compression but giggled as Remus shifted and his mop of hair popped up between his two dads. "No issues? No problems? Nothing?" Sirius asked rapidly looking into Remus' eyes for confirmation. Remus nodded again, making Sirius smile.
Remus' smile tightened into a thin line as his jaw became tense and he picked up one of the papers from the table and held it up. "What this?" He demanded in a firm tone.
Sirius smile dropped in an instant as he sat back in his chair thinking for a moment and looking at the script on the parchment. "We talked about this," Sirius answered in a small voice.
"Hypothetically!" Remus slammed the paper onto the table, Harry jumped in his lap and looked at the simmering anger in Remus features. "We don't know who we can trust back home!"
"We can trust Andy!" Sirius implored loudly with a whine as he stood to walk out of the room and avoid the rest of the conversation.
Remus pointed to the free chair, a silent command that Sirius was slow to follow. Harry popped up off Remus' lap and puffed his chest out like he had seen the adults do when they wanted to appear intimidating pointing, just like the werewolf father he loved, at the chair. Sirius looked between the two of them before sitting down in the chair both defeated and amused.
"What have you said to Andromeda?" Remus' tone had turned even harder.
"Nothing specific," Sirius raised his hands in surrender, the mirth driven from the moment. "Just a few vague explanations and a request for information."
Remus didn't answer as he opened the most recent letter carefully. "Has she asked for more details?"
"Of course she has, she's a Slytherin at her core, but she understands my resistance and she doesn't push too hard," Sirius returned as he opened his arms to Harry who lost his stern look at jumped into his arms.
Remus nodded slightly as he opened the envelope and pulled the contents out. Harry was confident that he had helped end the blossoming fight with his dads and crawled into a comfortable position Sirius' lap to look at the table and the papers like his fathers were doing. Sirius ruffled up his dark hair roughly which Harry knew was his way of telling him that there were no hard feelings.
"Wow," Remus whistled, "How'd she get the final write up of the investigation?" He questioned quietly
"She told me that she knew someone whom was close to someone in the Ministry. No names given."
"And you didn't think that was suspicious?" Remus questioned his mild accusation.
"Considering how little I've told her? Not at all but," Sirius shrugged as he leaned his chair back on two legs as he continued, "I didn't even confirm my name for the first three letters. She's in an interesting, albeit dangerous, position but she's still helping us, or me."
Remus nodded at Sirius' comment, seemingly assured that Sirius had made the right decision despite being the only one involved as he started reading the note aloud.
26 May 1983
The findings during the investigation of the deaths of Lord James Fleamont Potter and Lady Lily Juniper Potter (née Evans) have verified the account provided by Peter Pettigrew. The evidence supports his claim that one Sirius Orion Black used his position as the secret-keeper of the Fidelius Charm that was hiding the Potters, to betray them to his master, Lord Voldemort. Black murdered Lord Potter at the top of the stairs using the Killing Curse while Lord Voldemort died during a duel with Lady Potter in the nursery where Harry James Potter was. Black abducted Heir Potter before the Aurors were able to intercept him. Remus John Lupin was considered a person of interest when he was unable to be located, but that was rescinded with Pettigrew's testimony. At this point Harry James Potter is still listed as missing with no information on his or Black's whereabouts.
"That dirty rat!" Sirius roared startling Harry out of his lap and back into Remus'.
"Sirius…" Remus sighed as he rubbed Harry's back as tears streamed his face at the outburst from his father.
"I should have killed him!" He stood up abruptly and began to pace through the living room. "He thinks he can just lie like that?!"
"Nothing to do about it now, and taking Harry was more important anyway," Remus waited for Sirius' pacing to slow down before he continued. "Good job, though. Your instincts were spot on."
That comment halted Sirius' angry pacing, "What?" he growled.
"Your instinct's that night were spot on," Remus continued calmly. "Everyone is blaming you since we kept the secret-keeper switch a secret. Leaving seems to have been the best course of action, all things considered," He finished with a smile.
The anger that had been consuming Sirius seemed to dissipate with his friends gentle words and kind smile. He walked back into the kitchen and plopped down hard into the chair. He held out of hands and motioned for Harry to return to his lap, which he gladly did so. Harry snuggled into his chest much like a puppy, making Sirius smile. Sirius wiped the tears away from Harry's cheeks and kissed the boy's hair.
"Sorry pup, I got angry at some bad people," he whispered. "Thank you, Remus. Good to know not all my ideas are terrible," Sirius chuckled as he turned his attention back to his friend.
"If you trust Andromeda, I trust her as well. It was a huge risk getting that write up," He shook the envelope slightly at Sirius and Harry.
"We blood traitors need to stick together after all," was Sirius' coy response.
"Have you said anything about me or Harry?" Remus asked quietly as the thought occurred to him as he reread the investigation report.
"Nothing. She hasn't asked about either of you yet, either," Sirius ran his fingers through Harry's hair as he began to snore softly. "But she's not simple. She'll probably ask before long."
"I'll leave the correspondence with her to you then. It's seems you have a good handle in things," Remus smiled as he slipped the papers back into the envelope and tossed it in front of Sirius. Remus got up from the table and walked into the kitchen while Sirius fiddled with the envelope in silence. He brought back a couple tea cups and placed a hot tea pot on a knit hot pad in the middle of the table.
"How did this moon go for you?" Sirius probed kindly as his grin spread and mischief lit his eyes. "You got me off topic."
"It went well. Qaletaqa suggested I not take their potion this time so they could see if their teachings had been having any effect. And it appears that it did," Remus explained as he poured tea in the two mugs.
"That's fantastic, Moony," Sirius sighed in relief. "Who knew that the solution to your furry little problem was hiding in Canada," He joked.
Remus rolled his eyes. "Yes, yes. Hilarious." Remus sipped on his tea before continuing. "I'm still going to grow the ingredients, however. So I can still brew it while we're on the road."
"We're going to be leaving again?" Sirius questioned delicately.
"I have no plans, but Hausis has been making some cryptic remarks lately, so it's something we need to plan for now," was the werewolf's reply.
Sirius nodded as he sipped his tea in companionable silence with Remus and a snoring Harry against his chest. Their life was being dictated by that old woman for over a year now, he wasn't surprised to hear that she had some plan in the works.