The house in front of him looked vaguely familiar, but Remus couldn't quite put his finger on it.

Dumbledore had not told him much, simply giving him the address and warning him not to bring too much attention to himself near the house to avoid Harry's location being leaked. He'd also been told to tell Harry not to say where he's been in St. Mungo's, though Remus wasn't sure if that was possible.

James and Lily deserved to know, and Harry was a child. He shouldn't have to keep where he lives a secret from his parents.

Before he left St. Mungo's that morning, James and Lily had been entranced in a quiet conversation, trying to figure out who their son had been left with. Remus had to speak up only once, regretfully informing them that Frank and Alice Longbottom could not have him and why. They had several ideas that had interested Remus at the time, but the strongest suspicion of who had taken him in was the Abbott's, who were James' cousins and had a daughter the same age as Harry.

He stared up at the neat, square, Muggle house, and knew instantly that it was not the Abbott's.

His fingers itched to grab his wand and change his appearance before he knocked. He was never more self-conscious about his scars than when he was talking to children, and this was a child who was more important than all the others. He didn't want to scare him.

He resisted the urge and knocked swiftly on the door.

There was a short moment before the door opened. He could hear faint footsteps, and a woman whispering harshly, quiet enough that if Remus hadn't been a werewolf, he wouldn't have been able to hear.

"Don't forget to be good."

It was a phrase that he was sure many parents had said to their children, but there was something about the infliction behind the words that had his back stiffening.

The door opened and a skinny, horse-like woman wearing an ugly yellow dress and her brown hair pulled back in a bun stood in front of him. Her face was pinched in what must have been an attempt of a smile, and he instantly recognized the woman.

"Petunia?" he blinked in surprise, a sinking feeling in his stomach. He had only met the woman a handful of times, but she had always been less than pleasant, and he had heard many worse stories from Lily.

Her back stiffened and her eyes narrowed, not an ounce of recognition on her face, "And who are you?" she asked rudely.

"I'm here to pick up Harry," he said, mentally hoping that he had the wrong house.

Her eyes glanced back briefly, "I thought his parents were coming to pick him up."

Merlin. He had the right house. Dumbledore had left Harry with Lily's sister, who hated magic, who had called Lily a freak many times and treated her like dirt all through her childhood, who married a man who cursed James out when he dared to show up at his wedding. When Lily and Petunia's parents died in a suspicious house fire during the war (though it was never confirmed to have been Death Eaters), Vernon had tried to attack James and Lily when they came to their house, Lily wanting to be sure that her only surviving relative was doing alright.

"They haven't been released from the hospital yet. I'm a friend," he said after a moment of stunned silence upon the sudden realization, "I'm bringing Harry to them. Where is he?"

Remus had always been able to tell when someone was fake, so he eyed the woman suspiciously as she turned around and spoke in a sickly-sweet voice, "Harry, dear, are you ready to go?"

"Yes, ma'am," a small voice responded obediently.

Petunia moved out of the way slightly so that Harry could go through the doorway. Remus found himself thrown off by the sight of the child.

There was no doubt whose child was standing in front of him. He looked so much like James. His black hair was shaggy and messy, his face was thin, and he had a slightly upturned nose that was common in pureblood families. There were some differences in his appearance, though. Rather than brown like James' eyes, his were a startling emerald green identical to Lily's, and he didn't have glasses.

He was also small. Remus hadn't known James when he was eight, but by eleven he was the same size as his classmates, and by seventh year he had been one of the tallest. Lily had never been tall, but she was never short either. Harry, however, looked like he was five, rather than eight, and was all skin and bones.

His clothes, though they seemed to be in good shape, hung off him as if they were several sizes too big. His pants had been tightened with a hair tie to prevent them from falling off his hips. His shoes seemed to be the same and looked comically big on him.

He was staring up at Remus with large eyes, but he didn't say anything.

Remus smiled at the child, kneeling down so that he was eye level with him and holding out his hand, "Hello, Harry. My name is Remus Lupin. I'm a friend of your parents."

Harry blinked at him, head turned slightly as if he had a million questions in his mind, but he didn't ask them. Instead, he held out his hand and gently shook it, "It is a pleasure to meet you."

His voice was soft, and nervous, but almost like he was reading a script. Remus couldn't push the worry away.

He glanced back at Petunia, unsure of what to do. Every fiber of his being said to interrogate the woman and make sure that his cub was okay, but he could hear Dumbledore in his mind telling him not to draw attention to himself.

"Are you ready to go, Harry?" he asked instead, resolving himself to go to Dumbledore about it before he took Harry back. He did not trust Petunia, and he could tell that something was off.

The child nodded simply, "Yes, sir."

It was odd. Neither James and Lily had been very quiet children. James had been boisterous and talkative and while Lily wasn't quite so energetic, she was very friendly. Harry, however, was not like either of those. He was quiet, perhaps even shy.

He nodded at Petunia respectfully, though his wolf was fighting to get out, and gently put his hand on the child's shoulder to guide him to the street. The child flinched at the touch but didn't move away. Remus squashed down his worry.

The door closed without either Petunia or Harry saying goodbye, and that only set off another alarm bell in his head.

"Have you ever apparated before?" he asked the boy.

Harry shook his head. His eyebrows were scrunched up just like James' was when he was confused, "No, sir."

The manners felt foreign to Remus. Harry was supposed to have grown up referring to him as Uncle Moony, as James had insisted on, not Sir. He was too thrown to correct it, though.

Remus hummed lightly in thought, "Okay, then it will probably be best not to apparate there. Wouldn't want you getting ill. We can take the Knight Bus."

Harry still looked like he had questions, but Remus was more focused on getting them to St. Mungo's. They were out of the Wards that Remus knew Dumbledore would have put up around the house to protect Harry, and he wanted to be sure that no one saw them.

He glanced around to be sure that no Muggles were looking their way before pointing his wand out to the street.

BANG!

Harry jumped a mile in the air at the sudden sound. Remus glanced down, noting that the confusion in his eyes had grown, and fear had mingled in at the sudden appearance of the triple decker bus. He looked like he was about to run.

It hit Remus like a bludger.

"Harry?" he asked softly, holding up one hand to Stan who had opened the door, and placing the other on the boy's back, "There's nothing to be afraid of. It's just magic."

Wide green eyes flickered to Remus, but Harry did not say anything. He did not voice the confusion and fear that was so evident on his face.

Remus glanced at the bus, then back at Harry, "They never told you about magic, did they?"

"Magic isn't real," Harry said firmly, as if he had repeated that statement hundreds of times.

Rage bellowed in his stomach, but he kept it down.

"It is," he insisted quietly, "but it's good. We're going to get on the bus, and it's going to take us to a magical hospital."

"Oi," Stan Shunpike spoke up, watching them impatiently and checking his watch, "I don't got all day, now. That'll be eleven sickles per person, thirteen if ya want hot chocolate."

Remus winced lightly at that, knowing how dangerous hot chocolate was on the Knight Bus, and knowing that Harry was rightfully confused and scared.

Why hadn't Dumbledore told him that Harry didn't know about magic?

"Okay. Harry, how about I explain things to you on the bus?" Remus suggested.

Harry took a step back, as if he was going to refuse and run, but then he took a deep breath. Determination entered his eyes and he nodded.

Never before had Harry had more questions than he did at that very moment, but never before had he been so determined not to ask them.

Good boys did not ask questions, even when strange buses appeared out of the blue and seemed to travel faster than anything he had ever seen before.

He sat on the window seat at the back of the bus and stared out, watching as the bus jumped from road to road. The man, Mr. Remus Lupin, had waved the stick in his hand and a seatbelt had suddenly appeared and wrapped around him, keeping him in the seat as the bus jerked around. He had resisted the urge to pull it off, and was now staring at the road, trying to make sense of everything.

Mr. Remus Lupin seemed nice, but he also seemed… freakish.

Like him.

"Harry," Mr. Remus Lupin said softly to catch his attention. He turned his head, but kept quiet, "Have you ever done anything peculiar? Something that you can't quite explain?"

Harry sat up straight, quickly looking away and shaking his head, "No, sir."

He couldn't know. If he was a friend of his parents, then he had to think that Harry was good. Otherwise, he would tell them.

There was a beat of silence. After a moment, Harry glanced back over. Mr. Remus Lupin's eyebrows were furrowed, and he was regarding Harry curiously.

Then, he suddenly spoke, "When I was your age, I was angry at my dad because he wouldn't let me go to the park. I just kept staring at him, and I was so angry because I wanted to make friends, and all of the sudden, his skin turned a bright, vibrant pink."

Harry blinked at his words and didn't respond, trying to hide any ounce of emotion from his face. That sounded very familiar.

"When I was five, I really wanted to be like my dad who read all the time, but I was not supposed to touch his books. I was sitting in the living room and was really bored, and one of his books started floating towards me," Mr. Remus Lupin continued.

Harry's eyebrows furrowed, thinking of the time he had been staring at the plate of bacon that he wasn't allowed to eat and some of it had floated towards him. Aunt Petunia had been furious, and he had been locked in the cupboard for two whole days.

"When I was ten, I made the curtains burst into flames when my dad told me that I couldn't go to… a school that I really wanted to go to."

Oh. Mr. Remus Lupin was a freak like him. Harry blinked in surprise. He had thought that he was the only one. Did that mean that Mr. Remus Lupin was bad, too?

He stopped talking then and looked at Harry expectantly, but Harry had always been told only to speak if spoken to, and he had not been asked a question.

Finally, Mr. Remus Lupin asked in a soft, patient voice, "Have you ever done anything similar?"

Hesitantly, he answered, looking wary, "I turned my teacher's hair blue once and I, uh, unlocked a door without touching it."

He didn't want to tell him about the really bad ones like when Vernon hit him and got shocked, or when Dudley got knocked over when he tried to trip Harry, or when Petunia's mouth was glued shut for a full minute after she yelled at him for making a mess when Dudley had done it.

Remus smiled, "That was your magic," he said, "You're a wizard, like me. This is a magic bus."

"Magic isn't- "

"It is," Remus cut him off, "Your Aunt and Uncle lied to you."

Harry almost wanted to argue, because his Aunt and Uncle didn't lie. They were good. He was bad. They had to teach him to be good, and good people didn't lie.

He didn't, though. Good boys also didn't argue. Instead, he just fell silent, eyebrows furrowed as he tried to figure out what exactly was going off if he wasn't the only freak.

His eyes flickered around the bus, at the weird-looking man sitting up a bit and the bouncing nature of the automobile that they were in.

Magic?

Lily looked up sharply when the door to their hospital room opened. Her heart soared when she saw Remus leading in a young child.

Despite her muscles still being a bit weak despite the potions they were giving her to regain them, she pushed herself to her feet, grabbing onto the wall, "Harry?"

He had been looking behind him, as if entranced by something in the hallway, but he turned when he heard his name. Lily felt all the breath leave her chest at the sight of her son. His green eyes, identical to her own, looked at her, wide and nervous.

Remus shut the door behind them. Before Lily could recover, he spoke, "Lily, you aren't supposed to be getting out of bed yet without a Healer. Sit down."

He crossed the room quickly, pressing a hand to her shoulder to get her to sit. Harry shuffled over behind him, eyes flickering around the room.

He was perfect.

James shifted on the bed, but he gave a wide smile, "Harry! Look how much you've grown! Last time I saw you, you could barely walk! Look, Lils! Look at his hair!"

Harry brought a hand to his messy hair unconsciously, moving back lightly, as if he wasn't sure exactly what to do.

"He definitely got the Potter hair," Lily said with a smile.

"But your eyes," James continued with a grin.

Lily couldn't take her eyes off him, but she could quickly tell that something was off. Maybe he was just nervous to meet his parents, but he wasn't speaking. His eyes flickered up to Remus, then over to James, and then back to her. He looked unsure.

Lily gestured to her bed, "Come here, Harry."

He obeyed instantly, shuffling over to her bed and sitting down next to her. Lily placed a hand on his arm, opening her mouth to ask him all about himself.

He flinched.

Her mouth snapped shut, alarm bells blaring in her mind. She glanced at Remus and James, who had both noticed and looked concerned.

"Remus, mate," James spoke up, "help me over to Lily's bed."

He had already pushed himself into a standing position, but he was a little shaky. Remus quickly grabbed his arm to steady him, helping him walk over to the bed. James sat down on the opposite side of Harry, forcing a grin on his face despite the worry that Lily could obviously see on his face. He was thinking the same thing she was.

Something was wrong.

"Hey, Harry," James said with a smile, "I'm your dad."

"I'm your mum," Lily added on, "I'm so sorry that we haven't been around, Harry. We were both hurt very badly and were in a coma, so we couldn't."

Harry's eyebrows furrowed. His mouth opened as if to ask a question, but he quickly snapped it shut.

"You can ask questions if you want, Harry. I know this must be very confusing for you," Lily said, "I have many questions for you, too."

The child shook his head sharply, "I'll be good."

Lily blinked and looked up at James, whose face was twisted in confusion. She glanced over at Remus, who looked very worried.

"I'm sure you will, Harry," Lily said softly, "But do you have any questions?"

He looked conflicted for a moment, then shook his head, "No, ma'am."

Lily bit her lip, but let it go. James looked uncomfortable at the use of manners, and decided to speak up, "Harry, can I ask you some questions, then?"

The boy nodded a bit hesitantly, fingers hooking into his overly large shirt and twisting the fabric. Lily frowned lightly as her eyes flickered over the clothes.

Something was very wrong.

"Okay," James said with a small hum, "Well, what do you like to do?"

"Uh," Harry mumbled, eyebrows furrowed in thought, "Uh, I like to read."

Lily smiled at that, "What books do you like to read?"

He shrugged lightly, "Anything," he said, "Whatever my teacher assigns."

James perked up in interest at that, "Teacher? Do you have a tutor?"

A confused expression crossed over Harry's face and he shook his head, "No, sir. In my primary school."

"Primary school?" James asked, but Lily cut him off.

"Oh! You go to Muggle school. Wonderful! I had always told James that I wanted you to go to a Muggle primary school to learn your basics," she sent a victorious look at James, "But he was too scared to send you to one."

James held up his hands in surrender, "Hey, I've heard bad things about that. Why would you send away your child for hours at a time when they are only five?"

Harry didn't say anything. He simply blinked in confusion.

Remus spoke up, "Muggle is someone who in non-magical, Harry."

"Magic isn't real," Harry spoke quickly, as if on auto-pilot.

The phrase caused both to freeze. James pulled back in shock and Lily tensed, eyes flickering over to Remus for answers, but the man just shrugged helplessly.

"Harry," Lily spoke slowly, turning back to the child who had curled in on himself slightly, sensing the tension in the room, "Who told you that?"

Harry didn't answer for a moment. He seemed to be making himself seem as small as possible. Then, he spoke softly, so softly that Lily almost didn't even hear.

"Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon. They said magic isn't real. It isn't."

It was Lily's turn to pull back as if she had been burned, dread and fury filling her entire body, "What?"

"I'm sorry," Harry said quickly, hearing the anger in her word, "I'm sorry. I'll be good."

James quickly put a hand on Harry's shoulder, but he flinched away, breathing heavily. James looked absolutely horrified, "No. No, Harry. She isn't mad at you, mate. It's okay. It's okay."

"Harry, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you. I was just angry that they lied to you," Lily said, "Petunia is my sister. You were never supposed to go to her."

James nodded in agreement, taking several deep breaths to try to calm down. Harry didn't look like he had calmed down, though. He twisted his fingers nervously in his shirt, biting his lip and glancing around, as if looking for an escape.

"Harry," James spoke slowly and calmly, "Do they mistreat you?"

"No, sir," Harry spoke immediately, shaking his head, "They teach me to be good."

Lily sucked in a breath at his words, hearing the undertone behind it. She knew Petunia wouldn't treat a wizard child well, even if it was her own nephew.

She looked up. James had his jaw clenched. Remus was staring at Harry blankly, mouth fallen open.

"Harry, they shouldn't treat you badly," Lily said, forcing the anger out of her voice for fear of scaring him.

"They don't, ma'am," Harry whispered, shaking his head, "They treat me just as I deserve to be treated."

Lily shook her head and let out a breath. She didn't say anything else to Harry. Instead, she turned to Remus.

"Tell Dumbledore to get down here, right this moment."

AN: Hope you guys enjoyed! I'm so glad for all of the review that I've gotten so far. They're the reason that I've been so motivated to get these chapters out! I'd love to hear what you guys think about this one! What do you guys think of it so far?