The Dursleys, residents of 4 Privet Drive are usually a quiet, normal family, living in a quiet and normal neighborhood. Not today though and not for the last year at least. For you see, precisely one year ago, on the first of November, there was a new addition to the family of three that lived there. A new, unwanted, addition, named 'Harry Potter'.
The wails and screams of a child filled the living room of the Dursleys' house. Young Dudley shouted for his mother's attention, with little Harry played with a toy car quietly in the corner.
Dudley seemed to be agitated. Nothing worked on him, not food, not changing his diaper, and not his favorite toy of the day.
"Come on, Dudders, what's wrong?" Asked a haggard, obviously tired, blond woman, while holding the wailing child, "Please tell mommy how to help you. So she can rest for a bit."
Before she could beg even more, the door bell rang.
The bell seemed to snap Dudley out of his tantrum; his eyes went to the door curious to know where the sound came from.
Thankful for the small reprieve, the mother went to open the door with the toddler in her arm.
"May I help you?" she said to the ragged young man at the door.
"Are you Petunia Dursley nee Evans?" he asked her. She looked at him for a few seconds; he had a scar on his face near his chin with light brown hair that had seen better days, he looked nothing like the residents
"Yes. Who's asking?" she said to him, he was obviously young, barely in his twenties, even if the misery in his eyes made him appear older than her.
"I'm Remus Lupin an old frien-" he was interrupted by the sound of tiny feet walking wobbly in his direction.
"Moomy!" Little Harry speeds towards him, recognizing the voice of one of his honorary father figures.
"Hello progslet. Glad to know you still remember me." Replied Remus squatting and holding his arms to catch the toddler
"You're one of Lily's freaky friends! Did Dumbledore send you?! He said that we will have no contact with your kind if we keep the Child!" screeched Petunia while holding Harry back with a hand, her other hand still holding Dudley, who started napping at some point.
"Moomy!" whined Harry, trying to reach Remus.
"Get back inside! NOW!" She pushed him inside the living room and closed the sliding doors. His crying could be heard from behind it.
Lupin looked longingly at the door before replying "No, he didn't send me. He doesn't know I'm here actually, I found you on my own."
That seemed to scare her even more than before.
"So we can be found?! What about the protection he said we will have?!" she said in a low frightened voice.
Sighing, he replied "I don't know what protection he meant, but I assume it only works if whoever is looking for you have bad intentions."
Just then, Petunia saw the curtains on number 6 twitch. Realizing that she would be the talk of the neighborhood if this continues, she dragged Lupin inside the house and closed the door.
"MOOMY." Harry continued to wail in the living room, Remus stared at its door.
"So what do you want, so you can get out and never come again?" That got his attention back on Petunia.
"Never-? I just wanted to see Harry and ask to visit every now and then." He didn't think it was too much to ask to see young Harry, but Petunia seemed to think otherwise.
"VISIT?!" She exclaimed loudly, waking Dudley who start screaming again.
"No, no, calm down sweetie. Mommy's not mad at you, never at you." She kept talking until finally he calmed down again.
Meanwhile, Remus had slide carefully to the door of the living room trying to talk to Harry through it.
"Hey Progslet, It's alright, I'll get you out." then started to do just that.
"Moomy." The child replied, his voice strained from screaming too much.
"I told you to stay away from him!"She said, once she noticed him, ignoring her screaming toddler for the moment. "I was starting to think he might not be like the rest of you freaks! He will be a normal child or so help me god-"
A loud crack interrupted her and Lupin found himself with a delighted child in his arms.
"Mommy. I find you." Harry said proudly.
"Yes, you did find me, prongslet." Harry giggled happily and reached out with his arms to pull at Remus' hair, causing him to smile.
Petunia screeched loudly in response, with her son still crying in her arms.
"You will what?" Remus said calmly but his eyes spoke volume of the danger she will be in, if she hurt young Harry. "He's the son of two highly talented witch and wizard; of course he will be magical too." She flinched, looking at Harry in horror.
"Don't speak of those tricks your kind do in this house, I will not allow it!" she spoke firmly even with the fear shining in her eyes.
"Is that how you will deal with Harry? What about his accidental magic? You just saw him do it." He looked at Harry with pride, "and at such a young age too."He told him playfully tickling the boy's stomach.
He brought his attention back to the young mother and spoke to her softly but his anger was clear, "Will you ignore his magic? Or maybe try to beat it out of him? Are you really going to take out your jealousy on a small kid?"
"That is none of your business. Dumbledore left him on my doorstep, I get to deal with him as I see fit."She replied with conviction. "If Dumbledore wanted your opinion he would have left him to you."
"Dumbledore didn't have the right to take Harry from me at all. I only let him because he assured me that Harry was living with a loving family away from all the dangers the wizarding world poses for him right now." He confessed to her, but his eyes stayed on little Harry, so innocent and pure even after so much loss.
"Although I trusted Dumbledore for years, I now see he was wrong at least this once. You are too bitter to care for Harry as he deserves".
"If you don't like how I treat him then you can try yourself!"
He hesitated, not knowing how to respond. Thinking of all the problems he will face if he took Harry, tried to raise him, what will happen if anyone found out.
"Not so confident are you? And you claim to love the mutt." She said cruelly, thinking she won. It wasn't just about keeping the child, for she did not care for him, it was about admitting she was the only choice that they needed her, the wizarding world needed her help.
That seemed to resolve the mental battle in his head.
"I will take him."He whispered.
"What?" she almost didn't hear him, while her son noticing he didn't have her attention, has calmed down some time ago.
"I will take him." He repeated, "Give him to me and we will be out of your hair." He continued, getting more confident with every word.
"What if they come looking for him" she said referring to Dumbledore and his people.
"If you don't tell, they won't come looking for him until his 11th birthday at least." If they didn't check on Harry for a whole year still full of death eater attacks, the most recent one on Alice and Frank Longbottom, he doubted they will check anytime soon.
"And then what? They will find out we don't have him and kill us?!" she was getting hysterical at this point, which Dudley and Harry found hilarious for some reason.
"Of course not, Harry will be safe in Hogwarts at that point, so they won't even bother with you." He replied easily. "Dumbledore didn't tell anyone about where he put Harry, let alone who he left him with." He was sure of that one at least. If Dumbledore didn't even tell him, Minerva McGonagall, or any of the other members of the Order, then he doubted he would tell anyone else.
"Then how did you find us?" she asked skeptically, but she seemed appeased for now.
"I used the telephone directory." He replied smugly, "I'm a half blood you know, best of both worlds." He smiled sadly; these were the words Peter would always repeat to him.
"Lily…"He stopped for a second remembering his friend, "Lily told us you got married, last name and all."
He looked at her judgmentally for a second as if saying, "'Dursley'? Really?" before continuing "It was just the matter of looking for the area you were likely to be in. It took some time but I found you, didn't I?"
She ignored his look and thought for a few minutes before replying, "So this is it? You will take the kid and we'll never hear from you again?"
"Yes, unless you want to see him sometimes, he is your sister's son." She almost laughed, thinking he was joking, but his serious face stayed the same.
Petunia hesitated then, not refusing right away like he expected.
"Maybe, one day." She whispered as if afraid of saying it out loud.
"Very well, It's your choice in the end." he replies just as softly, not willing to break the moment.
After a few minutes of silence she came to herself, "you better go now before Vernon comes back from work." She got up with a calm Dudley in her arms, who she put down in the playing area in the living room, "Take the kid with you, he didn't come with that many things, but I'll give you a bag of diapers at least, you'll need it."
She put Harry's meager amount of toys and clothes in a bag with the diapers and gave it to him. He took it silently with Harry cuddling happily into his arms.
She hesitated at the door of the house, before saying, "If you need help with him, don't call Me." closing the door before he replied.
He stood there for a few seconds, until Harry started squirming in his arms.
"Hey, little guy. Want to go somewhere with uncle Moony?" said Remus turning his attention to Harry.
"Yeah, we see padfoo?" said the child hopefully, missing the fluffy dog and gentle man he always saw with Moony.
A pained look flashed on the adult's face before saying "No. No, padfoot is not around. He will never get near you if I have any say in it." Remus said solemnly, and then started walking with the toddler in his arms.
"No pafoo? Okay." Harry said sadly, but trusting in moony to know best, the simple logic of children.
They went on their way, the muggle way of course. If the ministry or Dumbledore found out what he has done, an Azkaban sentence for 'kidnapping and endangerment of the hero of the wizarding world' will be the least of his problem.
But if it means keeping Lily's and James' son safe, then he will take that risk.