I have no idea how long this will be now. A lot of things are being described better, other things are being added, probably a few things will end up taken out. Of course, I'm writing these chapters one by one at the moment. So, the actual number isn't known at this point. I just don't know.… That also means I'll need to think of more chapter names… maybe I'll just ditch chapter names….

Warnings: Shounen-ai, yaoi, slash, gay, whatever. Tom Riddle/ Harry Potter.

Notes: (X) is pov change and or time jump

Chapter 3: The Arrival

The hallway seemed to go on forever, torches set every few feet inside stone holders attached to the wall. The swaying flames cast numerous shadows, each of them dancing hypnotically across the never-ending hall. Every time he saw them, he would stop and watch. The shadows taunted him; the room spinning as his eyes darted from one to the next.

He forced himself to take a step forward, another. The dancing halted. The room stopped spinning. He leaned against the stone wall, his eyes adjusting to the now dim light before he dared to glance back. Any signs of the entrapment were gone.

I have to keep moving…. He wasn't sure how he knew this, but he did. If he didn't keep moving, something horrible would happen, something he could prevent. He began walking faster. There was no time left. If he didn't make it… He could hear footsteps coming up behind him now, more than one. They were trying to stop him from his goal, but if they caught him, someone important to him was going to die.

The hall grew dimmer, his fast walk turning into a full-blown run. If he could just make it to the end. Before him was a large, thick wooden door. The footsteps grew closer. He was almost there.

CRASH!

Harry lurched up in bed, sweat pouring down his face, his breath coming out in gasps. He switched on the lamp sitting on his bedside table. The dark room illuminated, revealing Hedwig's cage on the floor and rolling towards his bed. One quick look told him Hedwig was not in the cage, nor in his room. His eyes closed as he let out a sigh. Thank goodness she was safe. He sunk back down onto the bed, waiting for his breathing to even out. What would he have done if she'd gotten hurt? Maybe, just maybe, if she had, Hagrid would come fetch her if he pleaded with him in a letter. Surely his friends' abandonment didn't extend to Hedwig and her wellbeing.

Calmed, he climbed off the bed and approached the cage. Given the distance between where the dresser stood and where the cage had landed on the floor, there was no way it had just somehow fallen. Even if it had, Hedwig's cage had never once fallen off the dresser. He lifted the cage and set it down on top of the dresser, waiting to see if it would fly across the room again. When nothing happened, he gave the dresser a hard push. The cage didn't budge.

As long as she isn't hurt. There was no indication that Hedwig had been in his room when the cage had fallen. Actually… He turned towards the window. It was shut. He gave the cage a slow look over to see if anything on it had broken or gave any hint as to why it had fallen in the first place but could find nothing.

"Weird." He sat down on his bed, watching on the cage. Nothing. Satisfied it wouldn't move again, he dropped onto his back on the bed. At least something different had occurred. Harry had begun to think he was trapped in a repeating cycle of waking up, eating when he could get himself to, and going back to sleep. He had never thought it possible for someone to sleep as much as he had within the past few days, but there'd be no reason to stay awake. No letters telling him anything, no visits from Ministry. Maybe he'd dreamed the entire run in with the Dementors. It was that or the Ministry of Magic had forgotten about him as well. Not that that bothered him. He was perfectly fine with staying in bed and sleeping the rest of his life away with the necklace grasped in his hand.

Sighing, he wrapped his fingers around the necklace pendant and closed his eyes. He'd worried at first about his new behavior. Sleeping all the time was not a good habit to have, but then neither was having a magical object as your only friend and source of interaction. He'd tried fighting it, but as the days ticked on and still no one bothered to write him, he realized there was no point. The necklace gave him a sense of peace that allowed him to forget everything going on in his life. If nothing was going to happen, why bother being awake for it? It was so much easier to let the necklace lull him into a false sense of security where he could dream about a life that didn't include Voldemort. Not that all of his dreams were pleasant. Every now and then, the one with the hallway would slip in….

The hallway in his dream bothered him. Why was he seeing it now? Did it have something to do with all the stress he was under? He'd never had any dreams even remotely similar to it until after Cedric's death.

He turned over, so he was facing his door.

"Huh?" He climbed off the bed and went straight to his bedroom door. Right at eye level was a piece of paper taped to it.

We've left for the evening. No magic and STAY inside this room.

"Like I have anywhere to go," Harry said, rolling his eyes. No one was coming to get him unless someone from the Ministry stopped by to grab his wand. Leaving the house was no longer an option unless he wanted to risk Dementors and weird rabid dogs chasing after him. The thought made him glance down at his arm. He sat back down on the bed, leaving the note taped to his door, and removed the Band-Aid he'd covered the scratch marks with. To his relief he didn't see any blue tint to his skin and even better, the scratches looked like a minor paper cuts compared to the small gash he'd had a few days before.

"Sure, took it long enough to heal," he muttered, pressing the Band-Aid back down. No sense in giving the scratch a chance to get infected. With the way his luck was right now, he'd get gangrene while sleeping in his bed. He pulled the necklace out from under his shirt. "Pretty sure my arm isn't going to fall off. Why would an attack from…?" What had Mrs. Figg called it? "A Gatrash causes your arm to turn blue?" He'd been sleeping so much he hadn't had a proper Q and A session with the necklace since the morning after the attack.

The familiar light responded immediately. Grinning, he sat up with his back against the wall, his feet stretched out before him.

'Gytrash.' Harry could just hear the annoyance in those words.

"Okay, a Gytrash," he repeated the words rolling his eyes. If he hadn't known any better, he'd think Hermione had charmed the necklace.

The words vanished, replaced soon by another sentence.

'They produce enough poison in their bites to kill an adult wizard. You were lucky. You were only scratched.'

Harry winced at the words. No wonder Mrs. Figg had been so worried. He was glad he hadn't asked before now.

"And yet no one came to check up on me or even wrote to ask me if my arm was falling off," he said, the irritation in his voice clear.

'I would not have let you die.'

Harry stroked the pendant, his gaze shifting to the ceiling. The pendant had indeed saved him from his uncle by giving off a bright flash of light, but could it really neutralize a poison? And if it could, just what exactly was this necklace capable of? Had Dumbledore charmed the necklace so it would protect him? He did need help; he couldn't deny that. Maybe the necklace was the only way Dumbledore could send him help right now.

His train of thought didn't seem that important. Whatever the necklace was, whatever it could do, it was his. He would keep it for as long as he could. For now, what was he supposed to do? He didn't feel tired or hungry, he just felt like he was there and nothing more.

The light from the pendant got his attention. He looked down at it, wondering why it had responded when he hadn't asked it anything.

'What's wrong?'

He reread the words several times. Why did it keep asking him what was wrong when he stopped talking? And what wasn't wrong? His entire life had fallen apart since Cedric had died, and Voldemort had returned. The loneliness was the worst part. He felt abandoned now that his family and friends seemed to have given up on him. And sometimes he woke up feeling like he'd lost the most important person in his life, but he had no idea who that person was. He had only known Cedric as a rival in the Triwizard tournament, so it wasn't him. Sirius was alive, just not talking to him, and the same could be said about his friends. So why…?

A more intense light flashed, almost blinding him. He looked down again, glaring at the object.

'Answer me.'

"I don't know," he said, a hint of anger in his words. "Everything, but…" The strange feeling of loss faded. The power this thing has over me… "It's gone now," he said, unsure if he'd been feeling anything at all. He brought the pendant up to his lips and held it there, his eyes falling onto the window. A surge of warmth spread through his body. Whatever was going on, it didn't matter. So, everyone he cared about had turned their backs on him and his only friend was a know it all necklace. He'd be set for school at least. "Who am I kidding?" He repositioned himself so he was lying down again. He needed answers the necklace couldn't give him. "You aren't going to leave me right," he muttered.

Another flash of green.

'No.'

"My entire life is a bit of a mess. I can't promise not to jostle you or that you won't get chipped, but I'll take care of the necklace as best I can. So… if there's anything you need from me to keep you working longer, please, let me know."

A swirl of light showed up.

CRASH!

Harry jumped, the necklace falling out of his hand and onto the bed. The crash had come from downstairs, no doubt about it. He gave the necklace a quick look of longing and got up. He had no idea who was downstairs, but he couldn't risk putting the necklace in that kind of danger. It would be one of the first things someone would take from him, and he couldn't let that happen.

"I'll be right back." He grabbed his wand and turned off the lamp before he crept towards his door and unlocked it. He took a breath and stepped out into the hall. A quick look gave no indication that anyone was in his house. He strained his ears. Whoever had made the noise was making sure to be silent now.

"Are you sure this is the right house," a voice asked.

"Shh! Of course, it is! He has to be around here somewhere."

"Maybe we should call for him? It doesn't look like anyone is home."

Frowning, Harry followed the voices to the stairs. Three people stood at the bottom of the steps; their attention focused on each other. In the dark Harry couldn't tell who they were, but he was pretty sure he recognized one of the voices.

Like it matters if I get caught. If Death Eaters had broken into the Dursley's home to kidnap him, well, at least he'd have someone to talk to besides the necklace. Maybe they'd do him a favor if he went with them willingly and destroy everything for him too. Leave the mark above the house, you know. Turn the whole thing into a spectacle no one would forget anytime soon. Giving up his freedom in exchange for the Dursleys having a heart attack seemed like a small price.

He cleared his throat. All three people turned their wands out and lighting up. The spotlight created from the three wands fell on Harry. The Gryffindor brought his left hand up to shield his eyes.

"HARRY!" The lights dimmed, and soon Harry found himself in Lupin's embrace. "I'm so glad you're alright. How's your arm?"

Harry froze, his eyes wide. What was going on? Why was Lupin here? The warmth from that one hug had him fighting to hold back tears. He gripped Lupin's arm and turned his head away from everyone. He needed this more than he wanted to admit. The shield he'd been trying to create to keep himself from caring cracked.

"Harry," Lupin asked, his voice gentle.

"S, sorry," Harry said, willing himself to be strong. Lupin hadn't been writing him either, not that Harry had taken the time to write his old professor. He'd never given it any thought. "It's been a long summer…"

"I can only imagine. Dementors, Gytrash." He removed his free arm from around Harry. "I want to inspect your arm before we leave," he said.

"He'd be dead by now if he'd been bitten," Mad-Eye grunted.

It seemed the Death Eater portraying his teacher hadn't been far off from Moody's actual personality. The words also reminded Harry that he was mad at everyone who claimed to care about him, and yet he couldn't deny the happiness of Lupin hugging him.

"Moody," a witch with very pink hair snapped. "Don't listen to him, Harry," she added, trying to look cheerful. She fell just short of making it believable.

"I doubt even Potter can withstand that much poison."

"All the same," Lupin said. He led Harry back into his bedroom, the other two following close behind. Harry moved towards his lamp and stopped, his eyes falling onto the spot where the necklace was on his bed. What if the others wanted him to give it up now that they'd come to retrieve him? Had they even come to get him? They could just be there to check on his arm.

Let them try, he thought anger, sweeping through him. The necklace had kept him sane, or as sane as he could be, and safe. He snatched the necklace and dropped it into his pants pocket before flipping his lamp back on, flooding the room with light. Lupin motioned for Harry to sit down on his bed. He removed the bandage gently and inspected the scratch.

"This looks really good, Harry. You did a great job tending to this." Lupin offered Harry a smile.

"I didn't do much," Harry admitted. "I washed it off, put some Muggle medicine on it and then some healing cream." He hadn't been sure if putting peroxide on the wound would be worth it, but he'd tried it all the same after it had swollen.

"This looks like a professional healer took care of it," Lupin said.

Harry shrugged. He didn't have an answer. No one had bothered to send any healers to check on him.

"I'm glad it worked. No one actually gave me instructions on how to care for a Gytrash bite." He kept his voice neutral, but his words had hit their mark. The witch looked towards his window, her face red, while Moody smirked, his magical eye swirling in every direction at high speed. Lupin flinched, which Harry regretted somewhat, but his ex-professor hadn't sent him a letter either explaining what he should look out for or what to do if his arm did turn blue.

"There was a section about it in the book I sent you, I just thought…" His voice trailed off when he saw Harry's face turn red. "You didn't read it, did you?"

"I didn't," he admitted. "I was going to…"

"I shouldn't have assumed you would right away. At least we won't need to stop by St. Mungo's," Lupin said, moving towards Harry's trunk. "Let's gather your things and get out of here."

"St. Mungo's," Harry asked. The rest of Lupin's sentence sank in then, his heart leaping. "I get to leave?"

"Wizarding hospital," the witch explained. "Looks like you're already packed."

"Good thing Potter knows to always be ready," Moody said, his voice loud. He brought his hand down hard onto Harry's shoulder, causing the Gryffindor to wince.

Harry didn't want to tell them he'd kept his things away so he wouldn't feel compelled to destroy them again. Or that he hadn't touched them since he'd thrown them into his trunk, because he'd been sleeping the whole time. If they thought something was wrong, they might leave him at the Dursley's or worse. They might start questioning him, and that could eventually lead them to the necklace.

"Of course, you get to leave," Lupin said, looking surprised. "I know you must feel like we've abandoned you, but I promise, we haven't. Things have just been going slower than we thought they would."

"I wasn't sure," Harry admitted. "No one has been writing me."

"I know," Lupin said, giving Harry's shoulder a tight squeeze. "Let's get moving. Sirius isn't going to calm down until we've returned."

"We're going to see Sirius," Harry asked. He knew Lupin had suddenly changed the subject, but he couldn't help but feel happy at hearing Sirius' name despite all the anger he had towards his godfather at not writing him.

"Of course," Lupin said. Mad-Eye pointed his wand at Harry's trunk, and it followed them out of the room. "A lot has happened this summer. Sirius' old family home has been converted into our headquarters. We just started cleaning it out a few days ago," Lupin explained. "It's a right mess. You might actually regret coming so soon once you see it."

The four of them descended the stairs, Harry's trunk bouncing off each step. It crashed onto the floor with a loud thud. Harry couldn't believe that the trunk had remained shut. He smirked when he saw a rather large bruise on the floor.

"Alastor," Lupin said. "Don't harm Harry's trunk."

"I shielded it."

Lupin gave Mad-Eye a look, then smirked.

"Make sure to hit the door on our way out."

Harry couldn't hold back a laugh. He followed Lupin to the door, shocked at his ex-professors behavior. Sirius had said Lupin was his friend. And even Lupin had admitted to being a trouble maker during his days at Hogwarts. Was this his real personality? If so, Harry was impressed.

"So how are we getting to Sirius," Harry asked.

"By car," Lupin explained. "I need you to promise me that you'll listen to everything we say once we go outside. There's only three of us here so we don't attract too much attention, but that doesn't mean we weren't followed."

Harry nodded. He trusted Lupin, he realized, more than he thought possible given how betrayed he felt towards everyone. Maybe because Lupin was here, at the Dursley's breaking him out and taking him away.

Lupin opened the door and pointed to a vehicle in the driveway. It was so plain; Harry didn't think he could remember the car even if he studied it for the next hour.

"It's been charmed not to stand out," Lupin explained.

A loud crash behind them told Harry that Mad-Eye had indeed borrowed his trunk to harm the Dursleys' front door, and he found himself grinning. Once the trunk was outside, Lupin placed it into the back of the car. Harry climbed in after it. The witch took a seat beside Harry while Lupin got into the driver's seat and Mad-Eye in the passenger seat.

"I'm Tonks, by the way, Sirius' cousin," the witch said cheerfully. "Glad to finally meet you, Harry!"

Harry studied the pink-haired witch. Did that make her family too? Yet another relative that had left him to survive on his own for all these years?

If the Dursleys have taught you nothing else, it's that family doesn't mean anything. Only he knew that wasn't completely true. Ron and his family were very close and while they bickered from time to time, they always watched out for one another. Harry had thought he was a distant extension to that family, but this summer had shown him the truth. He was just Ron's pitiful friend who they ended up tolerating over the summer, probably because Dumbledore made them. I don't need their pity. He decided he would no longer be staying at the Burrow again, ever. Harry was forced on the Dursleys every summer. He could spend half of it with them, the other half with Sirius, and then he could go back to school. Once he was of age and Dumbledore couldn't force him to stay with the family, he could go somewhere else. His parents had left him with enough money to rent a flat, perhaps he could find one in Diagon Alley.

He lowered his head, his hand slipping into his left pocket. With this it didn't really matter though, did it? As long as he had the necklace, he could stay anywhere. An urge to talk with the necklace struck him, but he knew he couldn't in the car, not with the other three with him. Instead, he squeezed the pendant, a tiny amount of warmth coming from it.

(X)

"We're here," Lupin said.

Harry yawned. He must have fallen asleep, because he couldn't remember anything after squeezing the necklace. He staggered out of the backseat, using the car to get his balance back. How long had they been driving?

Beautiful large brick homes lined the street, homes that made the Dursley's house look like common shacks. This was not what Harry had expected. His godfather had been in Azkaban and then on the run. How could he have acquired such a place? He took a step forward, wondering which one belonged to his godfather.

"Right," Lupin said, moving towards Harry. He handed Harry a small piece of paper with the words 'Number Twelve Grimmauld Place' written on it. No sooner had he read the words did another, larger, Muggle townhouse began to grow. It shoved its way in between numbers eleven and thirteen, pushing and jostling the two buildings, until it was at its full height. Harry stared at the enormous structure, unsure how it could have appeared without making any noise or causing anything short of an earthquake. The piece of parchment paper in Harry's hand went up in flames, the ashes disintegrating before they touched the ground.

"Wow…"

"Come on, need to get you inside," Moody said. He shoved Harry towards the door which, to his disappointment, was not nearly as clean or fancy as the other houses on the street. The other two in their group followed behind. "And don't yell."

Harry wondered why they couldn't yell. Could the Muggles on each side of the townhouse hear them if they got too loud?

"We're back," Lupin shouted as he opened the door. So much for being quiet. "And we have Harry," he added once Harry had stepped over the threshold. Harry couldn't help wondering if the warning not to yell was just for him.

Lupin's words were met with yells and the stomping of feet running towards them. Harry almost stepped back out of the house they'd just entered, but Lupin shut the door as if reading Harry's mind. Moody locked the door with his wand, a glimmering blue shield wrapping around it. It remained in sight for a second before it vanished.

The stomping grew louder. Harry dropped his hand into his pocket, his hand wrapping around the necklace. He didn't know what good that would do, but it had saved him from his uncle. Perhaps it could shield him from whatever was charging towards him.

"Harry!" Suddenly there were arms wrapped around him. Harry released the necklace, returning the hug. "You've gotten taller!" Sirius tightened his embrace. Harry allowed himself the joy. First Lupin, now Sirius? He hadn't been hugged like this since he'd first visited the Burrow, and Mrs. Weasley had been determined to make him another one of her sons. "Is your arm alright?" He released Harry and grabbed his arm that had the band-aid on it.

"Fine," Harry said, a smile forming. His heart soaring now, most of his bitter feelings fading. Sirius had sent Lupin to retrieve him. Even if his godfather had forgotten to write to him, there was no way he was pretending right now. Sirius had to love him.

"Good. I tried to get Dumbledore to let us get you right after the attack, but the Ministry was watching the house," he growled. "Can't have them finding this place." He removed the band-aid and inspected the scratches intently, just as Lupin had, a grin crossing his face. "This looks pretty good. Your work, Remus," he asked, looking towards his friend.

"No, it was like that when we arrived," Lupin said.

"Oh…" It was the only word Harry could get out. Sirius hadn't been ignoring him, hadn't forgotten him, had even been protesting for his release from the Dursleys. The Ministry had been the problem! If he'd known that he'd have… what? As much as he hated the Ministry, he couldn't exactly do anything to them. He didn't even know where they were at.

"Look at how much you've grown," Mrs. Weasley shouted from the staircase. She rushed Harry and hugged him tightly, just as the others had. "We're so glad you're alright! Oh, my goodness, I can see your…! Food!" She released Harry and darted off down the hall.

"You do look a little underfed," Sirius said. He gave him a complete look over again and frowned. "Don't they feed you over there?"

"Umm…" They did, sometimes. The few times they'd left food for him the past week, he'd ignored it for the most part. Sleeping had been more important. "Not really." Harry saw a flash of anger in his godfather's eyes. "But that's not, I think the Gytrash poison had me sleeping most of the last week," he tried. As much as he wanted to see the Dursley's pay for everything they'd done, or hadn't done, he didn't want Sirius to storm out and do them harm. It wouldn't do any good if they were — We're both already wanted by the Ministry, he reminded himself.

"That's a common side effect," Lupin said, moving towards them. "Let's get some food into him before he gets tired again." He gave Harry a small push towards the kitchen door. The push had more strength to it than Harry had thought possible for such a slight gesture. He stumbled forward, catching himself before falling.

"Remus," Sirius warned.

"Sorry, Harry," Lupin said. "I've been trying a new potion, and it's been doing me some good."

Harry stopped to study his old professor. It was true. Lupin no longer looked haggard or sick. His face had color, the bags under his eyes gone. Walking no longer seemed taxing on him. He looked rested. Happy, even.

"Doesn't he look good," Sirius asked, grinning. He moved past Harry and pushed the door to the kitchen open. The kitchen was, to be polite, a mess. There was a single large table placed to one side, where Mr. Weasley and Charlie were talking. They both saw Harry at the same time, smiles breaking onto their faces.

"Hey Harry," Mr. Weasley said. "Glad you could make it."

"Glad I could too," Harry said. He took a seat next to Mr. Weasley. The table and the countertop were the only clean spots in the room. The rest had cobwebs, dust bunnies, and what Harry suspected to be mold, as well as a few things he was too scared to even think about.

"I hope roast beef is alright? We only have so much, and we just started cleaning," she explained quickly.

"Anything is fine," Harry said.

Mrs. Weasley beamed at him and went straight to work with her wand. Bread flew out of a cabinet, roast beef out of the fridge.

Sirius took a seat beside Harry, Lupin sitting across from them.

"I'm sorry it took so long to come get you," Sirius said quietly. "I've been giving Dumbledore hell since the attack, but he wouldn't hear of it, and…" He let out a frustrated growl. "Should have done it, anyway."

"And risk exposing the Order," Lupin asked, raising an eyebrow.

"We should have at least sent someone to check on him," Sirius snapped. "Gytrash bites aren't a joke!"

"But he's fine," Lupin said evenly. "It was extremely frustrating waiting, and you're right. We made a mistake not checking in on him properly, but we had to have somewhere safe to take Harry."

"He could have stayed with us," Sirius said.

"Because we were so well hidden," Lupin asked and chuckled. "Save the dramatics for someone who doesn't know you."

"I'm serious, Remus," Sirius growled.

"I know you are."

The two men locked eyes, Harry wondering what in the world was going on. He knew Lupin and Sirius were friends, but this seemed… different?

"Don't start this nonsense," Mrs. Weasley said, angrily. She dropped a plate with a roast beef sandwich on it in front of Harry, her hands falling onto her hips. "None of us wanted to wait to get Harry, but Albus asked us too. I thought both of you trusted him enough not to question him."

"This has nothing to do with trust," Sirius shouted. "This is about my godson!" Everyone in the kitchen jumped as an ear-piercing scream erupted throughout the house. "Great! You woke up my mother!"

"W, what," Harry asked, trying to piece together what was going on. Sirius's mother? How many family members did Harry have that he wasn't aware of?

"Don't act like you were the only one who wanted to go retrieve Harry," Mrs. Weasley screamed. She stormed out of the kitchen, Mr. Weasley chasing after her.

Sirius muttered a curse and left the kitchen.

"SHUT UP YOU OLD HAG!"

"I… I don't know what's going on," Harry admitted. He couldn't make out the words, but he could hear Sirius and a woman screaming. He didn't recognize the woman's voice, but right now he was more concerned about Sirius and Mrs. Weasley fighting.

"Those two," Lupin sighed, resting his head in his hands. "I'm sorry, Harry. They've been at it the last two nights."

"Why?"

"Because Sirius wanted to go get you immediately and mum wanted to listen to Dumbledore," Charlie explained. "When you hadn't written for so long saying you were okay, Sirius got worried and tried to leave the house to check on you."

Harry didn't know how to react to that. He'd stopped sending letters, because no one had bothered to write back. Sirius, it seemed, had been reading every letter he sent. He just wasn't able to respond. Thanks to him being so petty and not writing, Sirius had tried to save him, and now he was fighting with Mrs. Weasley.

"Sorry," he said, trying to ignore the guilt he was now feeling. He didn't want them fighting. Sirius was the only real family he had left, and Mrs. Weasley had always cared for him like one of her own, at least until this summer. Sirius tried getting me too. The thought both horrified him and made him happy. He would never forgive himself if the Ministry caught Sirius because of him, but that his godfather had tried….

"Just ignore them," Lupin said. "Sirius will calm down now that you're here and knows you're safe." He stood up, motioning to the door. "I think you'll have more peace if you eat in your room."

Harry grabbed the plate with the sandwich on it and followed Lupin into the hall. The screaming grew louder as the two of them approached the steps.

"HOW DARE YOU—"

"I'LL DO EVERYTHING I POSSIBLY CAN TO RUIN YOUR LIFE!"

Harry paused at the bottom of the steps and stared at Lupin.

"Maybe just wait here a minute," Lupin muttered. He vanished up the stairs where the voice began screaming even louder.

"WEREWOLF SCUM! OF ALL THE FILTH IN THIS HOUSE! THE ONLY THING A WEREWOLF IS GOOD FOR IS A RUG!" The woman cackled, a mad laugh that made Harry want to turn away from the steps and go back to the Dursleys. Perhaps staying at Privet drive hadn't been so bad after all.

"ENOUGH!" Sirius's voice echoed through the house before it filled with wonderful silence. Harry waited a minute to see if the screaming would resume, briefly wondering if Sirius had killed his mother or just silenced her. When he didn't hear anything, he did his best to walk up the stairs, making as little noise as possible. He did not want to wake up Sirius' mother. He froze when Sirius and Lupin came into view. The two of them were hugging. His face flushed, and he went down two more steps.

"It's alright. I'm used to the insults."

"That wasn't alright. The second I get that picture removed I'm burning it, slowly," Sirius said.

"You're scaring Harry."

"He's fine, something like this wouldn't scare James," Sirius muttered.

"Harry isn't James," Lupin said. "He's smarter than that."

Harry crept down the rest of the stairs, not wanting to hear the rest. He shouldn't have been listening at all, but he really wanted to know what was going on and as usual, it seemed like no one was going to tell him. When he made it to the bottom of the stairs, he sat down and took a bite of his sandwich. It was dry and yet somehow more delicious than anything he'd eaten all summer at the Dursley' house.

(TBC)

And that moves chapter 1 now broken into four chapters. I had a feeling this would happen. Hoping it'll even out towards the middle…