Remus walked in to find Sirius laying on Harry's bed, and Harry wrapped in his arms, now asleep again. He looked to Sirius, who he could tell had been crying.

"This might be a stupid question, but how is he?" Remus asked softly, sitting in the chair that Sirius had vacated.

"Oh Moony… I just had no idea. How long do you think that went on for?" Sirius croaked, his throat still sore from crying.

"Arabella Figg was watching him constantly when he lived there. Abuse to this extent is new according to her, though she said he's always appeared smaller than he should be. He also did most of their chores for them and his bedroom was a cupboard, but we already figured that much. Nothing beyond neglect, as Albus had put it to us at the start of the summer. I'm honestly not sure what prompted them into such abuse, and I have a feeling the only way we'll really know is if Harry tells us." Lupin smiled softly, tears brimming his eyes.

Sirius looked down at his sleeping godson. From this angle, he looked peaceful and innocent, almost like the happy one year old he remembered him to be. Despite this, he knew when he opened his emerald eyes there would be nothing but a hollow pain reflected in them. "Do you think he'll tell us? I mean, I think he trusts us, but I know that it's not an easy topic to talk about." Sirius mumbled, having flashbacks from his own confrontation about his abuse and his escape to the Potter's. It took him years to open up to his best friends, and with Harry's abuse being so recent, he knew Harry would not be keen on sharing.

"He will have to Sirius, we have a strong case against the Dursleys. We need to be there for him, but we can't baby him. Justice needs to be served, and I think it will help you too. I can tell you still blame yourself for all of it." Remus said this last part slightly louder, trying to get Sirius's attention.

"I'm the reason he was there in the first place Remus… and it's just strange. How come his relatives waited until I was out of Azkaban to be so cruel? There's something more to it, and I have a strange feeling it's my doing." Sirius choked out this last part, giving in to tears that were threatening to escape.

Remus put a strong hand on his shoulder. "Sirius, it is not your fault. None of it. All of the fault resides with Voldemort and the Dursley's. Ask Harry when he wakes, I doubt he blames you either... for any of it."

Sirius nodded, not taking his eyes off Harry's sleeping form.

"So, back to getting Harry to tell us…" Remus started softly, not wanting to irritate his emotional friend.

"Right," Sirius said distantly, clearly still thinking about other things.

"You have got to remember, Sirius, that Harry's been targeted since he was born. According to Dumbledore, he's been through a lot in his first three years at Hogwarts and holds a weight upon his shoulders that no thirteen year old-"

"Fourteen." Sirius corrected absent-mindedly.

Remus smiled. He admired Sirius's devotion and love for a boy he had only just reunited with after more than a decade. "Right, Harry holds a weight that no fourteen year old should be burdened with. Dumbledore suggested that we offer Harry a way to show us how his first years went, without having to relive them in such detail. This will give us a chance to get to know him better, as well as see what we're dealing with as his guardians. If the plan works, then he might trust us more as well, and be willing to open up about his abuse."

"What is the plan then?" Sirius asked, curious. He wanted to help Harry in any way possible, but he had major doubts that Harry would want to open up so soon.

"Well, if Harry agrees, we could use a pensieve. I know he's never seen one before, and he'll be confused at first, but it might make opening up to us easier if he doesn't have to relive every single moment. Now, we can't use the pensieve for his abuse, he needs to come out to us with that. It won't help anyone, including Harry, if we just watch it happen in a memory. He needs to come to terms with it himself, then tell us. That's when we'll know he really trusts us." Remus explained, trusting Dumbledore's idea. He had used a pensieve a few times in the past, and felt that it could be very beneficial for both Harry and Sirius.

Sirius nodded. "You explain it to him when he wakes up, I'm sure he'll be confused. If you think it will help, I'm definitely willing to do it."

"Good," Remus said, relaxing in the chair to wait for Harry to wake up. "Madam Pomfrey said she's done everything she could for him. She said that he might still be weak and will definitely need to be put on a better diet, but that he'll be fine. Other than a few nutrient potions, our job will be to show him love, and care for him in the way that his aunt and uncle did not."

"Of course," Sirius replied simply, pulling Harry into a closer embrace.


Frank Bryce walked upstairs to where the strange lights were coming from to peek inside at the intruders. He knew if he got away fast enough, he could call the police.

"Hmm, Crouch, it appears you are my only faithful servant alive. Thanks to that foolish Bones woman, I have found you and I will return to power soon. Now, is the plan at Hog-"

"Master, I believe there is someone outside. A muggle, perhaps." Crouch whispered, frightened his master might harm him for interrupting.

"Right you are, Crouch. Nagini, go invite our guest inside."

Frank watched in horror as a large snake approached him and the intruder in the chair began to turn, aided by the Crouch man. He screamed as a bright green light flashed across the room.


Harry attempted to shoot out of bed, a scream erupting from his lips as he thrashed against four strong arms holding him in place.

After a minute of struggling, Harry realized where he was and registered the pain erupting from his scar. He sucked in a breath as he felt the arms around him soften their hold.

"Harry," Sirius whispered, pulling him closer to him. Harry whimpered against his chest, then looked over to Remus who was smiling softly at him.

"Nightmare?" Remus asked, understanding dawning on his features.

"Uh…" Harry wondered whether or not to tell them. He didn't want them to worry, but the last time his scar had hurt, Voldemort had been near. He couldn't be in Hogwarts again, could he? Mustering up his courage, Harry nodded. "Kind of. My scar was hurting and I could… I don't know, it was weird. The last time my scar hurt, Voldemort was near me here at Hogwarts."

Remus and Sirius gave each other a look. "We need to tell Dumbledore about that," Sirius said gently.

"Right," Remus nodded. "Just know this is the safest place you can be Harry, Voldemort can't get you here."

"Well, he was in the castle my first year…" Harry mumbled, breaking eye contact with his previous professor.

Sirius tightened his grip on Harry and looked as if he wanted to ask about it, but Remus cut him off. "Actually Harry, we wanted to talk to you about that."

Sirius nodded, remembering the plan. "Right. Harry, we know you've had an abnormal three years at Hogwarts and we want to know about it. I want to know everything I missed the last thirteen years-"

"Which we know can be overwhelming and you might not necessarily want to talk about it all. So, we've got a solution." Remus interrupted, waiting for Harry's response.

Harry sat up, leaving Sirius's embrace. "Okay, what's the solution?"

Remus and Sirius both looked pleased that Harry so readily agreed. "A pensieve. It's a magical artifact that allows you to choose the memories you want to share with us and we can watch them, as if we had been there too. You can come with us if you would like and watch. There are three things I ask of you though." Remus paused, waiting to see if Harry had any opposition thus far. When the boy stared at him, he continued. "Please, don't leave any of your childhood treatment at the Dursley's out, and try to avoid changing any of the memories from your first three years at Hogwarts. This will help us get to know you better and I think you'll find it soothing as well. Finally, don't include this past summer in the memories you want to share. I know it might seem easier to just show us what happened, but you need to come to terms with it."

Harry's breath caught. He hadn't even considered this past summer, and he really didn't want Remus and Sirius to know anything about it. His childhood memories were one thing; some neglect and yelling, but nothing Harry couldn't handle. He really didn't want his godfather and his old professor to see him being strangled though, and he definitely didn't want to be the one to tell them about it. However, it seemed as if they weren't concerned with it right now, so he simply nodded to the plan with the pensieve, and decided to revisit the abuse problem later.

Remus and Sirius both smiled at him. "Great, Albus will let us borrow his and we'll start tomorrow."


"Okay Harry, just relax and think about the memories you want to share. We'll start with your childhood and your first year of Hogwarts." Remus said gently, placing the tip of his wand to Harry's temple.

They were sitting in the corner of Dumbledore's office, surrounding the pensieve. Remus dropped the silvery mist into the pensieve and Harry watched it swirl around, mystified.

He was taken out of his reverie by Sirius. "Ready?" Sirius whispered, gripping his shoulder. Harry nodded, and all of the sudden, he felt himself being tipped into the memory of his fourth birthday. He landed in the Dursley's living room, Remus on his left and Sirius on his right, watching.

"B-but Uncle, it's my birthday. And I-I'm scared I'll burn myself again." Little Harry was whimpering as his Uncle Vernon pushed him to his step stool in front of the stove, forcing the small boy to cook bacon for the family.

"Freaks like you don't get birthday celebrations," his uncle snarled, pushing his little face dangerously close to the frying pan. "Now get to work, we're taking Dudley to the zoo and breakfast needs to be done when he wakes up."

"They… they didn't even get you a present?" Sirius asked, anger welling up inside him.

"One time I got a coat hanger," Harry shrugged. He was long used to this neglect and even expected it from his aunt and uncle.

"But, you were four… they wanted you to cook for them?" Remus asked, bewildered.

Harry just nodded. "Yeah, I've cooked for them as long as I can remember."

They watched as the little Harry overcooked the bacon, and then was thrown back into his cupboard without so much as a piece of toast. The memories started swirling around again and they landed in the Dursley's bathroom, Aunt Petunia shaving all of Harry's hair off.

"B-b-but I like my hair," little Harry whimpered, watching the black locks fall to the ground.

"Well until you can learn to control it like a normal boy, it's staying like this." She hissed, throwing him out of the bathroom.

They watched Petunia and Vernon have a meltdown the next morning when all of Harry's hair had grown back completely. Sirius and Remus chuckled at first, but then began to frown when they heard the insults his aunt and uncle were spewing at him. The memories swirled, and they were then on the playground at Harry's school, watching Dudley and his gang chase Harry around on the playground.

"Come here you little freak," Dudley sneered, gaining on his smaller cousin. Harry was practically in hysterics while running, but then all of the sudden, it stopped. He was sitting on top of the school building, looking quite bewildered with himself as teachers around him began to panic.

This time, Sirius let out a bark of a laugh and turned to Harry. "What did you think of that when it happened?"

"I honestly didn't know, I was too worried about getting in trouble to think on it. I guess I thought a bird grabbed me and flew me up there or something." Harry couldn't help but laugh himself. It really was crazy sounding. The memories swirled again, and they were back at the Dursley's, but this time in the front yard, watching a younger Harry run from his aunt's dogs.

"That's right, get him Ripper!" Marge yelled, watching the boy frantically try to climb the tree. "Dogs can always spot a good for nothing boy you know, it's like they have a sixth sense. They can sense fear, that's why Ripper's going after him, he knows he's a bad egg."

Vernon Dursley laughed at his nephew and turned back to his sister, "Right you are, Marge! He's proven to be the biggest waste of space, don't know why we didn't send him straight to the orphanage when we had the chance."

"What a fat, ugly, b-" Sirius began, cut off by a look from Remus. He sighed. "Harry, I'm so sorry. I don't think anybody from our world, even Dumbledore, knew about this kind of treatment."

"Don't be sorry, I could handle all of this." Harry shrugged, looking back and forth at the two men. "Anyway, that sums up my childhood fairly well, maybe we can move on to my first year?"

Remus and Sirius nodded sadly, and then pulled themselves up and out of the pensieve to prepare for the next bout of memories.