AN: Wow, three more people reviewed this story!! I'm so happy about that, and you were all so positive :). So here are your individual responses:
Alice Dodgson-- Thank you so much, I'm really glad you like it so far, and hope you enjoy this chapter too. I don't know why there aren't more stories about Remus's family, he obviously had one, and it's a safer bet than not that he did have some siblings. He's just never struck me as an only child, you know? At any rate, it's good to know my idea's semi- original.
Lucidity Thanks for continuing with this fic. Theodore Nott isn't much more than a name in the books, but given the info about him on JKR's site (maybe you shouldn't read that, as it might spoil this story a bit, but oh well) and combining that with the end of OotP, I figured he must have had a rather difficult summer and then the idea of relating it all to Remus came to my mind (somehow, I really don't know shakes head in annoyance), so there you have my fic. I like Sev too, and he'll make a physical appearance in this chapter. My title just doesn't strike me as very clever and for that I don't like it. I'll probably come up with a really good one after I've finished the story :). And yes, you'll find out what happened to Roberta, if you keep reading hint hint.
Moony Lover Glad you found it interesting. I'll try to e-mail you, but I don't know if I'll always remember. You could put me on your author alert, I think that's supposed to send out an email or something. As for Remus's parenting duties, I don't know if I wrote it out clearly (probably not), but he's inherited Sirius's guardianship of Harry and I interpret that to be no actual custody (unfortunately, that's still the Dursleys' responsibility), but just in general being there like Sirius was (I think as far as actual parenting goes, Harry's grown so close to the Weasleys, that he would be more likely to see them as his parental figures rather than Remus or Sirius). As for his nephew, the Ministry, under control of the ICW, has given Remus temporary custody, meaning Remus is his main care giver, if you will. But that's only on a trial basis for now, they'll be reviewing the case later on to see if he'll stay with Remus. Hope that clears things up a bit. Now onto the fic!
Remus got his answer that evening when he Flooed into Dumbledore's office in Hogwarts. As he brushed the soot from his robes, he noticed that Dumbledore appeared to be having some tea with Minerva McGonagall. Both looked rather fatigued, and Remus suspected they hadn't been discussing school matters.
Despite this, Dumbledore greeted his former student warmly, "Ah, Remus, I've been expecting you. Please, come have a seat and join us," as he said this a cushy purple chair appeared with a wave of his wand. Remus sat down with a few mumbled words of greeting to Minerva and Dumbledore.
"You look as though you could use a good meal, Remus," commented Dumbledore, concern in his voice. Remus, however, declined the offer. Although he hadn't eaten since breakfast, he wasn't very hungry and, after the day's news, his stomach felt as though it were twisted into several elaborate knots. But Albus Dumbledore was not someone to be deterred, and eventually Remus had a cup of very hot tea in his hands.
Remus didn't bother speculating on how Dumbledore knew his Potions Master's exact location. Some questions were best left unanswered. Sure enough, in less than a minute Snape was swooping about in the office, his robes billowing menacingly behind him.
"Good evening, Severus," said Dumbledore, smiling widely at the black- clad man. "Would you like some tee?"
Snape declined the offer and looked as though he was trying desperately not to glower at the headmaster.
"I believe you wanted me to speak with Lupin regarding young Mr. Nott, is that not correct?" When he said Remus's name, he gave the werewolf a nasty look, which Remus casually ignored.
"Yes, if you would please, Severus," replied Dumbledore, not missing a beat. "And do have a seat."
A comfy-looking green armchair appeared at the table. Snape sat down, but not before giving the offending chair a withering glare. Remus swore the man couldn't stand anything remotely pleasant looking.
"Theodore Nott, as you know by now, is your nephew," began Snape in a neutral voice, getting right down to business. He wouldn't meet Remus's eye, but stared at the wall behind Lupin as he spoke.
"I've known his father for years, but only recently found out that his wife was in fact your sister." Snape paused for a moment, and to Remus's surprise looked a bit guilty and saddened by this fact. In all truthfulness, Remus had thought it impossible for his former school mate to look anything other than angry and annoyed. But the next words out of Snape's mouth stunned him even more.
"I met her once, you know," he said slowly, his face becoming the slightest bit softer, "just before the war ended, at Theodore's first birthday celebration. Had I known, I would have done something for her. For what it's worth, Lupin, she appeared to be healthy and happy, but considering all the Dark Magic Nott knows, that could have been an illusion. I'm sorry."
Remus knew this was as close as Snape got to comforting anyone, and the apology in and of itself was astounding, considering the Slytherin usually didn't apologize even when he was at fault. In this instance, Remus did not believe the man could have done anything more, and felt there was no need for an apology. He told Snape this, but the man brushed him off quickly with a wave of his hand and continued to address the matter at hand."Over the years, I've kept in contact with Nott, though not as closely as I would have liked. We did not consider him to be a great enough threat to warrant my keeping in touch with the family, such as I have with the Malfoys, Goyles, and Crabbes. But, through my other contacts with former Death Eaters I have been able to glean some information about Nott, Sr. and his family.
"There has always been gossip regarding Mrs. Nott. She was rumored among the Pureblood community to be a Squib, and you can imagine the scandal regarding that. There was also quite a bit of outrage regarding the age difference between her and Nott even the Death Eaters have their standards. But, more importantly, I have it on good authority that her memory had been modified. It was just an idle drunken comment from Lucius Malfoy about Nott being good with memory charms, one only needed to look at his wife. But considering what we know now, that leads me to speculate Nott used a powerful memory charm on her and just went from there.
"As to where Theodore comes into the equation, I'll explain that now. I know he and his father aren't close. And I believe that their relationship has turned violent at times; though I have no hard evidence of this, just instinct, which apparently is not enough to warrant even an inquiry," as Snape said this his gaze turned to Dumbledore and Remus easily determined the underlying message of this statement. Snape had wished for something to be done on the boy's behalf and, to his vexation, the headmaster had not allowed it. However, Remus was most awed by Snape's gall in openly challenging Dumbledore's decision, something few wizards had the gumption to do.
"Given all this, it is reasonable to assume that, with some encouragement, Theodore would testify against his father. He also is the most likely person to know what has happened to his mother. For the past five years or so, Nott, Sr. has been telling people his wife died in a broom flying accident, and no one else has suggested otherwise. But given her status as a Muggle, this is obviously a lie. Alive or dead, the only person other than Thaddeus Nott who could possibly know of your sister's fate, Lupin, is Theodore Nott."
There really wasn't a lot of new information in Snape's speech, Remus thought as he took a sip from his now lukewarm tea. Essentially, his missing teenage nephew was the key to his sister's case, and that thought didn't sit well with Remus. The only piece of potentially useful information Snape had given him was that Bertie had possibly had her memory illegally modified. Well, that could a year or two to Nott's sentence, but it was improbable they'd be able to prove anything. Until they found Theodore Nott, there wasn't much Remus or anyone else could do.
"So," said Remus putting his teacup on the table, "what should I be doing? Should I go out and look for Theodore Nott?"
"You could if you like," Dumbledore answered him softly, "but we do have that under control. As I'm sure Arthur told you, experts in this area are out looking for him now. It is very difficult for an underage wizard to hide from the officials for long. They'll likely find him by tomorrow, so you needn't worry about that."
"Well," replied Remus, feeling a bit useless and wanting to do something that might help his sister, "what about after he's found? What should I do then?"
"Take him home, of course," said Dumbledore simply. "After you introduce yourself, that is."
Remus, who had become used to Dumbledore's puzzling answers over the years, was about to ask for more detail when Snape, obviously losing his patience with the headmaster, spoke before Remus could even open his mouth.
"You are supposed to gain his trust, and thus give him reason to help you and your sister," snapped the irritable man whilst sighing in an exasperated manner, as if he were surrounded by incompetents. "How you do this, Lupin, is up to you. It shouldn't be too difficult, just get out some old photos and some particularly heart wrenching memories of the boy's mother and you'll likely win him over. Just do what you do with Potter and you should be fine"
Remus didn't respond to Snape's caustic and somewhat rude advice, instead focusing on the idea of becoming a guardian to a boy he didn't even know. To be completely honest, Remus didn't know what to expect, and the fact that his sister's case relied on his successfully befriending the boy only made the situation more intimidating. As if reading the former professor's thoughts, Dumbledore reassured him.
"We wouldn't ask this of you, Remus, if we didn't think you were capable of it," the headmaster said, as he stood up and magically cleared the small table of the now empty tea cups and flatware. "I know that you and Theodore will bring justice to Thaddeus Nott."
Minerva, who had been silent during the entire exchange, also tried to give Remus greater confidence, "I think you will find Theodore to be a very agreeable boy," she said in a maternalistic voice. "I find that the two of you are much alike, and now that I think of it, he reminds me of you in many ways."
"That's nice," murmured Remus with a melancholy smile. He was still unsure of the whole matter, but it was pleasant to hear words of encouragement from his two former colleagues, and he appreciated their attempts.
"Headmaster," said Snape, breaking the silence that had settled in the room for several seconds, "it is getting late and I really must leave. I have several potions to brew for the infirmary, and would like to get them started tonight."
"Yes, of course, Severus," Dumbledore said, smiling brightly at the man. "Thank you for all your help this evening. Good night."
"Good night Headmaster, Professor McGonagall," Snape then stalked out of the office, not bothering to utter a word to Remus, though he didn't mind the Potions Master's rudeness, and in fact had expected it.
With a weary sigh, Remus looked at his watch and realized that it was well past midnight. He suddenly felt very tired (and who could blame him, after all that had happened in only one day?), and politely said his farewells to Albus and Minerva before Flooing back to an eerily silent Grimmauld place.
Though he was exhausted, Remus could not find sleep that night. For hours, he lay awake, staring at the ceiling and trying to relax his mind. Eventually, the need for rest overwhelmed his thoughts, and Remus fell into a deep sleep.
DISCLAIMER: I own nothing, really, JKR owns all the characters, setting, world, and anything else.
LAST AN: Thanks for reading! So did you like it? Hate it? Tell me, by clicking on that button and taking a few seconds to review! Also, if you care to give a bit of advice, what do you think I should do for the next chapter? I'm thinking about either giving Remus a little time to mull over all that's going on, or should I get on with the action?
Unfortunately, I am still beta-less. If anyone really is aching to check over the spelling, grammar, and style of a fairly bad writer (it could be great practice for all you would-be editors out there! :), just contact me. Thanks!