One Big Happy Family

"Come on Ryan, walk to mama!" Lily encouraged her thirteen month old son, who sat only a few steps away. Ryan simply giggled and watched his mother's attempts to get him to rise.

"Mama!" Harry exclaimed proudly, tugging on his mother's shirt after managing to clumsily walk the distance between the coffee table and his mother.

"Good job, Harry!" Lily turned to her other son. Harry giggled more as Lily crushed her son in a hug.

"Is there a reason you're trying to crush my godson to death?" Sirius asked as he entered the room with James from the kitchen, the two having just finished cleaning up from dinner.

"I'm encouraging my sons to walk around more." Lily explained, letting go of Harry.

"They walk around plenty." Sirius disagreed, grabbing Harry, who began to giggle as Sirius tickled him.

"Not with you carrying them around all the time." Lily admonished sitting cross-legged on the carpeted floor. She leaned back onto the front of her favorite reading chair and watched Sirius interacting with Harry with a smile. "We give in to them an awful lot. I feel like if they wanted they wouldn't have to walk anywhere for the rest of their lives."

"They've got you wrapped around their little finger." Remus agreed from his spot on the couch, idly turning a page in the book he was reading.

"What happened to everything we talked about James? We always said we wouldn't give in to our kids and we wouldn't be the type to baby them constantly." Lily complained with no real malice as she tucked a piece of hair behind her ear.

"I know, but that was before we knew how cute they were." James joked as he began to tickle Ryan, who had previously been watching the adults. He began to giggle uncontrollably. It seemed perfect; the entire extended family wrapped up in a moment of bliss. Things hadn't been exactly perfect the last few months. How could they be when a war had been raging in their backyard with no definite end in sight. But in this moment, none of that seemed to have mattered. They were all together, enjoying each other's company and relative peace.

Then the doorbell rang, breaking them all from their own thoughts.

"Who do you suppose that is?" Sirius asked as he continued to play with his young godson, sending the boy into an uncontrollable giggling fit.

"I don't know. I know Peter is at home up north. His mother just recently got sick and he's taking care of her." Lily replied, shooting James a glance. "It not as if we don't have friends in the neighborhood, but none of them have every come to see us before."

"Well, I suppose I'll have to be the brave soldier that goes to answer the call then." Remus said in a mock serious tone, snapping off a salute to the others. Sirius playfully shoved Remus as he walked past the man. Remus continued to the front door with a laugh and after looking through the peek hole, he quickly opened the front door.

"Professor," He greeted. "It's such a pleasure to see you. It's not my home, but please, come in."

"Thank you, Remus." Albus Dumbledore replied with a small smile. Albus was generally a cheerful man, with his light twinkle almost always present in his eye. This small trait was noticeably absent tonight. The small smile he had given Remus had seemed forced and it didn't quite reach his ears "I'm sorry for coming on such little notice. I've just been from the Longbottom's house."

"Professor?" James questioned, eliciting a sigh from the wizened old man. "Is Frank and everybody alright?"

"Frank, Alive, and Neville are quite alright as of right now, but I'm afraid I've come with some terrible news." Dumbledore replied as he stood in the center of the room, looking quite unsure of himself, something the man very rarely ever was. He looked around the room with a strange sadness in his eyes, meeting each member of the group in the eye briefly. His eyes lingered on the two boys, in the room before settling themselves on the floor in front of him.

"Please Albus, take a seat." Lily said as she stood quickly and gestured to a chair in the corner of the room. Albus accepted the offer with another small sigh.

"What is it? Has there been an attack?" James questioned, a little too fiercely. He shot Lily a look, seeing her pale at the thought. Her own parents had been attacked just last month as the couple's activities in the Order had started to paint a target on their back. James and Lily had just barely arrived in time as the Death Eater's attack had raised alarms that the couple had set up along the perimeter of the Evan's house.

"No, tonight has been unusually quiet with all things considered." Albus gave one final look around the room before taking a deep breath, as if to gather the courage to say what he needed. "I am afraid that I bring rather horrible news of another sort.

"Some time ago, there was a prophecy made regarding a child of destiny who would grow to defeat the Dark Lord. This prophecy, quite luckily, was made to me and to me alone. I have kept this prophecy a secret due to the fact that should it get out, the child, and all of their loved ones, would be placed in an extremely dangerous situation. It has only just recently come to my attention that the content of the prophecy was not as secure as I thought. Just hours ago, I was informed that Lord Voldemort has received information that will likely lead him to discover some, if not all, of the prophecy. I have already taken some measures to stop this for as long as I can, but nothing is a guarantee in this day and age. I'm here to tell you, Lily and James, that your lives, as well as your children's, have been placed into extreme danger."

Four year old Harry Potter very much enjoyed books. He even had his own bookcase in his room that was filled with them. He had it stocked with plenty of different subjects, never mind the fact that he couldn't actually read most of them. He was learning though, thank you very much. He often felt like he could turn to the books if he was feeling particularly alone in his house, something that was happening more and more often lately. He knew something had happened recently that scared his whole family and things hadn't been the same since. The whole thing gave him a headache whenever he tried to think about it, so he often didn't linger on it for too long.

He was currently on his way down to the living room where he knew his uncle, and fellow book lover, Remus Lupin happened to be. Remus was always bringing him books and he didn't seem to mind the fact that Harry couldn't really read or understand them, something Harry greatly appreciated.

"Uncle Remus?" Harry questioned, pulling Remus from his thoughts on the couch.

"How times do I have to tell you Harry, you can just call me Moony." Remus said with a laugh as he got up and picked Harry up into a hug.

"At least a hundred times." Harry said with a small giggle as he threw his arms around Remus' neck.

"It's fine Harry." Remus laughed. "What did you need?"

"Can you come to my room for a second?"

"Certainly." Remus agreed.

Putting Harry on his shoulders, he took off up the stairs. Remus smiled at the laughter of the young boy. His only wish at that moment was for Harry's room to be farther away from the living room to prolong the boy's laughter as it was quickly becoming a rare commodity. He could hardly blame the boy after what had happened, but he still missed it. Opening the door to Harry's room, Harry wiggled out of Lupin's arms and ran towards his bookshelf, carefully pulling out one. He stood there for a second, as if unsure of whether or not to go through with his plan.

"What's going on in your mind, little one?" Remus asked. Not bothering to answer, Harry nervously turned around to face him.

"Can you teach me this?" Harry asked quietly, opening the book to a certain page and handing it over. Not only did Remus share his love for books, but he often took to teaching Harry what was in those books. He knew Remus was a good teacher, and he was always willing to explain anything to the child, but Harry knew that this subject might be different. Picking up the book, Remus looked at its contents in surprise.

"Where did you even find this?" Amusement evident in Remus' voice, looking casually through the pages.

"No! Don't turn the page." Harry yelled as he grabbed the book back out of the werewolf's hands.

"Sorry." Remus replied, putting his hands up in a show of submission. "What was so great about that page?"

"It has the best picture." Harry said shyly, eliciting a happy chuckle from Remus. Remus sat down of Harry's bed and patted the dark blue bedding, signaling for Harry to sit down.

"If that's your favorite picture, does that mean you've looked through the whole book?" Remus asked with a raised brow. Harry nodded quickly. "Some of the photos in there are pretty descriptive, you understand what it's about?"

"Only some parts." Harry admitted meekly. "But I remember seeing daddy and Uncle Padfoot do it! Can you teach me?"

"I think you may be just a little bit too young, Harry. When you're older, I promise we'll teach you. How does that sound?" Remus asked as he put the book back in its place.

"You promise?" Harry asked excitedly.

"I promise." Remus said as he put his hand on Harry's shoulder, to guide him out of the room, both leaving behind the assortment of books showing pictures of magical transformations. One of which, the Marauders had studied reverently.

"Padfoot, why can't we go outside?" Harry asked sadly, gazing out of the window from perch on his window sill. His frown deepened as another flash of lightning streaked across the sky. His sixth birthday had been last week and he desperately wanted to try out the new broom Sirius had bought him.

"I don't know buddy. I never minded a bit of a storm, I always thought it added to the challenge, but your mother thinks it best for you to stay inside." Sirius commented idly as he continued to throw a toy quaffle into the air, laying sprawled out on Harry's bed. "What do you normally do when you can't go outside to play?"

"I normally read my books," Harry commented as he watched the raindrops race each other down the window. "But I don't feel like doing that today. I really wanted to go outside and fly with you!"

"Hmm, well let's find a book I can make up a story about based of its title. This one should be good!" Sirius said with a laugh as he pulled a medium sized book off the shelf. "101 uses of tentacles? What use could a kid ever get out of this book?"

"Leave it alone!" Harry said defensively, jumping up to grab it from Sirius.

"Sorry kiddo, I didn't know tentacle uses held that much sentimental value for you." Sirius said with amusement in his eyes.

"It's not that. Remus charmed it for me so only I know what's actually in it." Harry said as he carefully put it back in his bookshelf.

"What's in it?" Sirius asked excitedly at the thought of a secret. He tried to grab it from the bookshelf, only to have Harry snatch it away.

"It's mine!" Harry said desperately, attempting to keep the book away from Sirius.

"Come on, let me see." Sirius whined, as he began to chase Harry. "You never keep secrets from me!"

"No, Sirius!" Harry laughed, running out of his room. He quickly ran out of his room and down the stairs, jumping the last two at the bottom with Sirius following closely behind.

"Harry! Give Sirius back, whatever you took!" Lily admonished from the kitchen, her eyes lifting briefly from the pot she was standing at.

"I didn't take anything from him, honest!" Harry said, his mood changing in the blink of an eye. Sirius, who had tripped in the upstairs hallway, only just made it down the stairs and was unaware of the change in atmosphere.

"Give it back, Harry!" Sirius demanded in jest. As Sirius stopped himself before he ran into Harry, he missed the glare Lily sent towards her son.

"Harry! Your godfather just made it sound like you took something from him! Are you lying to me?" Lily yelled, suddenly overtaken by an unexplainable anger. Harry whimpered in fear and took a step back. He cowered into Sirius and Sirius looked at Lily in shock.

"Lily…"

"No Sirius! He shouldn't be lying to his own mother! His behavior has been going downhill lately and I won't have it! You come here young man!" Lily ordered fiercely as the boy stared on in fear. "Now!"

Harry quietly shuffled towards his mother and was punished with a swift hit to the back of the head from the wooden spoon lily had been wielding.

"Lily!" Sirius said in horror, quickly pulling Harry close to him. "You can't just hit him like that! He's only a boy!"

"I… I don't…" Lily replied, a war raging in her eyes, before steeling themselves in a cold glare. "It wasn't the first time he's been hit, and it likely won't be the last. I can't handle Harry acting out when we have to worry about protecting this family! You know that ever since Voldemort's last attack on us our family has been a huge target for him and his followers! Just the other day James caught someone surveying the wards! I don't have time to deal with this Sirius!"

"I'm going to take Harry back upstairs Lily." Sirius said, eyeing the woman warily. He quickly scooped Harry into his arms and made to leave the kitchen, turning around one last time. "I think you should think about what you've said and realize this is no way to go about the situation. I'm really disappointed in you Lil."

Lily watched the pair leave the room and seemed to struggle with herself before turning back to her cooking with fervor.

"Please, just let me keep it!" A seven year old Harry begged with tears in his eyes.

"No. You shouldn't have taken it without permission!" James yelled back. "Now, where is it?"

"Over there." Harry said quietly, pointing to his bookshelf.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Go and get it, unless you want me to tear this room apart, looking for it." Harry shuffled over to his bookshelf and hesitantly raised his head.

"Please." Harry pleaded, tears in his eyes. "Can't I just keep it for a little while longer? It's not like you need it anymore..."

"No, you cannot keep it any longer! You shouldn't have taken it in the first place! It's not like you'd ever be able to understand what was in it, anyway." James yelled at Harry. Harry flinched at the noise but reached up to grab the book nonetheless.

"Here you are." Harry whispered quietly. James snatched the book out of his hands and glared at Harry.

"If you ever take something from me again," James whispered, anger shining through his eyes. "I will make you wish you hadn't."

"I'm sorry." Harry whispered again, just wishing his father would go away.

"As you very well should be." James replied and turned to leave. Something inside Harry snapped at James' words, exposing the anger that had been previously hidden by his fear.

"I hate you. You're the worst father ever! I wish you and the rest of this family were dead!"

"Excuse me?" James quietly asked, the white knuckles he gripped the book with the only evidence of his anger.

"I hate you! I wish I could go and live with Sirius, he's more of a father to me than you ever were!" Harry screamed, trying to stand his ground as James advanced on him.

"You shut UP!" James said as he whipped the book at Harry, hitting him in the stomach. Harry fell to the ground as his breath rushed out of him, not realizing James was still yelling at him "…mother have provided everything for you! We give you a room, a bed, we even buy your stupid books! Me and your mother are going out, so you better get off the floor and help your uncles!"

Harry felt himself let out a breath as he heard the door slam shut. He felt the pain in his stomach and the tears cascading down his face. He lay there, eventually pulling his knees up to his chest. He wept for himself, not caring how much trouble he'd get into for laying on the floor. His parents always hated it when he did "nothing".

"Are you ok, Harry?" A quiet voice enquired, somewhere in front of him. He looked up to find Remus kneeling in front of him, concern etched in his face. Harry just looked up at him for a couple of seconds before something in his mind clicked into place.

"You…" Harry whispered.

"What, Harry?" Remus asked cautiously.

"You… You told him I had the book! You're the only person I told! How could you do that, Uncle Moony?" Harry asked, his voice becoming more hysterical as he continued. Remus just looked down at him with shock and sadness.

"Harry… I really didn't mean to. It just slipped out. I swear, I never wanted this to happen. I didn't know things were this bad. I would have never let it happen if i knew..." Remus said quietly. Harry got to his feet.

"No. You're just like them, I hate you!" Harry screamed. He began to push Remus, who had stood up with Harry. He didn't care that Remus was significantly larger than him, he just continued to push. "I hate you! I hate you! Get out of my room!"

"I'm sorry Harry." Remus said quietly. "I'll leave you alone for now."

"Good. I don't ever want to see you again!" Harry screamed as Remus shut the door with an inaudible click. With a scream, Harry kicked the closed door. His scream quickly turned to sobs as he grieved over the way he was treated. He didn't belong here, with this family who didn't even want him here, and he knew he deserved better than this. Looking at his calendar, Harry Potter decided that this day, October 31st, would be the last day he was walked over.

A/N: Updated and rewrote a few parts of this chapter.