A/N: Hey all! This chapter took a lot faster than I thought it would. For all of you who are dying to see the Dursleys get their due, it will show up in the next two chapters, as you will see at the end of this one. Any opinions on what should happen? I'm very torn between tormenting them and killing them.
Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed, favorited, and followed!
Remus looked around the small house incredulously. "You…you did this? Yourself?"
"Who else would have done it?" Severus flicked the light switch on, brightening the sunlit house even more. He'd worked hard to set all this up, to get his house into good shape. It was far from perfect, but it was comfortable and suited him very well. "Keep the child away from the couch. I do not need to see it dirtied."
"Of course not." The werewolf looked at the camel-colored sofas on either side of a darker brown end table. The entire house was done in shades of brown, colors he would never have expected in Severus's house. He would've expected either silver and green or black, those fit the man's personality more. "Harry, don't touch anything with dirty hands, alright?"
"'Kay." Harry wiggled to be put down. Once his feet touched the ground he started exploring the living room.
"What did you have in mind for lunch?" Remus asked, following the other man to the kitchen.
"A light pasta dish, something Harry can have as well." Pulling out a couple of pans, Severus began to get lunch ready. "As for Dumbledore..."
"Yes, I was wondering what you found in Sirius's blood." He sat down by the kitchen table, knowing the Potions Master would get upset if he was in the way. "Was it a potion in the end?"
"It was. Several potions, in fact." Severus filled a pot with water and set it on the stove. "It...is not a good situation. Even considering how long it's been since Dumbledore gave Black the potions, I would suggest something to flush his system just in case. The potions are strong, very strong, and should not have been used in concert with each other."
Remus's brow furrowed. "What were they?"
"A potion to make the drinker trust the person who gave it to him. Another one to keep someone from asking too many questions. A third to make a person open to suggestions from the person giving the potion." He shrugged. "I would be interested in testing a few more people to see if they have the same traces in their bloodstream. I do, in approximately the same concentration as Black, although I would assume that that is because he had to counteract some other potions that I brewed for myself. Black is headstrong which would explain why he was drugged to that level."
"What about me?"
Severus considered the werewolf. "I would assume that you have less than either of us. You already trusted Dumbledore and did most of what he said out of gratitude. In addition, he had you out on missions and could not give you the potions himself, which would have negated the effect of potions that bond with the giver's magical signature. As a werewolf the potions would have had to be modified slightly and I highly doubt that there are many Potions Masters out there that can brew like that."
"And I would presume that you consider yourself one of the few that can?" Remus replied with a small grin.
"I do. You have used my potions, have you not?" At the man's nod, Severus continued, "They are more effective than most potions you have used, I'd expect. I modify my potions to specifically target a werewolf. In the long run they are more effective on all people, not merely werewolves, which helps for my potions-selling business in general."
"You...sell potions?"
"I do. Hogwarts does not pay enough for me to not have another source of income, not if I want to create my own potions." His face took on an annoyed look. "Albus appears to think that since professors have room and board for free while working in a school, we do not need large salaries as well. Cut the peppers if you do not mind."
Remus took the knife the other man held out to him and began to do as he was told. "Why did you decide to become a professor, anyway? I cannot imagine it was your first choice as a career."
"Albus insisted I take up the position after I returned to him from the Dark Lord. I suppose it was to keep me close enough to drug me, as well." Looking down at the floor, Severus raised an eyebrow. "I presume you know where the child is, am I correct?"
"What – Oh, Harry!" The werewolf dropped the knife and vegetable and raced from the room.
Severus took one last look at the food before following the other man to the living room. "How could you lose a child the second day you have him?"
"Your house is not that large, he has to be close by," Remus said calmly. He had babysat Harry before and this was something the toddler enjoyed doing. Despite Sirius's shouts to the contrary, Lily had always felt that it was he who taught the toddler to be the little prankster he was. "It – there we go."
"What are you – ah. I see." The Potions Master found himself nearly grinning as Remus pointed to the small foot sticking out from behind the couch. "Out, child."
Harry crawled out, a book in his hand. "Hawwy in twubble?" he asked nervously.
"No, you are not in trouble." Remus shot Severus a quick look to keep his mouth shut. "We were just looking for you. Come here to Uncle Moony."
"He had better not have ruined my book. Hand it over." Taking the book from Harry's hands Severus began to flip through it, noting that the child had not damaged it in the least.
"Is it good enough for you?"
Severus gave the werewolf an unamused look. "Yes. For some unknown reason, he did not decide to completely destroy the volume."
"He's been trained. Lily didn't want her books ruined and therefore taught him from early on that books are not made to be destroyed," Remus replied, lifting Harry into his arms. "You're a good boy, aren't you, Harry?"
"Hawwy good boy," the child agreed. With that, the trio went back to the kitchen to finish cooking and eat.
HPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHP
Remus looked up from his book as his front door opened. A couple of minutes later Sirius entered the room and collapsed on the couch. "Long day?" he said pleasantly.
Sirius shook his head. "You don't even know. First of all, someone's been taking money out of the accounts – "
"I'm not saying Dumbledore is not at fault, but are you sure it can't be someone else taking it?" Remus closed and folded the newspaper and set it on the end table. "Your family is known for backstabbing each other."
"It can't be. The only ones still alive are the Black sisters; Narcissa, Andromeda, and Bellatrix. Narcissa doesn't have access anymore because she's married to Lucius, Andy was disowned, magic won't recognize her, and Bella...Bella doesn't want to acknowledge that she could use our money. She's barking mad, anyway." The man shook his head. "The only person it could be is Dumbledore. I allowed him limited access to my accounts for funds for the Order. Nothing should be taken out now, though."
"I see. Thinking about it now...Bella's madness." Meeting his friend's eyes, Remus continued, "There are plenty of potions that cause madness. She could actually enjoy the death and destruction of You-Know-Who, but on the other hand, if she's not insane, she could be a good ally."
Sirius shook his head. "She's always been a sadist. Maybe Dumbly gave her potions to push her more towards insanity, but no, she's definitely not an ally. I sent letters to both Narcissa and Andromeda inviting them back into the family –"
"You were disowned. How can you do that?"
"You're really not familiar with the Pureblood family system, are you?" At Remus's head shake, Sirius crossed his arms and continued, "My father did not disown me. My mother blasted me off the tapestry and I left my home, but I was still part of the family. Regulus was put into the place of the Heir, but you always need a spare. After my parents died I received a letter from the goblins calling me to take my place as Head of the family. I can bring Andromeda back into the family as well as give Narcissa her old Black privileges despite her marriage."
Remus nodded slowly. "So you did that. Did you take care of anything else?"
"I'll be overseeing my father's – I mean, my – businesses once or twice a week from now on. I've also taken up my seat in the Wizengamot and will start voting." He leaned back and crossed one leg over the other. "I also figured we should possibly start looking for a babysitter."
"For what?"
"To go visit the Dursleys. They deserve to suffer for what they've done to Prongslet." A dark gleam entered Sirius's gray eyes. "They will not get away with this."
"I told you, we're not going off to kill or torture them if it's going to get us arrested. That will put Harry right back into their hands." Remus met his friend's gaze and held it. "If you want to go get yourself arrested, go ahead, but you do realize that that means that Harry will be forced to live with the Dursleys. I am not considered a fit guardian for a child."
"Fine. Tomorrow I have a meeting with Narcissa in the Black offices in our business buildings in Finance Alley. Tell Severus to come over tomorrow afternoon and we'll come up with a plan. It's about time we take care of this." Sirius stood up. "I'm going to go check on Harry and go to bed. We'll sleep on it and see about coming up with a real plan of action, including what to do about Albus and my...family."
The werewolf nodded and got to his feet as well. "I suppose we'll discuss Severus's findings tomorrow as well?"
"Yes. I'm sorry, I'm tired. I've just been so worried about Harry and Albus getting to him..." He ran both hands through his thick black hair. "Tomorrow afternoon we'll discuss Albus and the Dursleys with Severus and figure out what to do. I won't do anything without a plan."
"Good. Then have a good night." The two men went upstairs, and after ensuring that Harry is okay, went their separate ways to get to sleep. If today had been long, tomorrow would be even longer.
A/N: Looks like the Malfoys are going to show up! What's going to happen with that...?
