Author's Note:

For anyone interested in seeing the treehouse, you can find it on my tumblr — breaniebree

So I've had the idea for a while and today I finally managed to form my thoughts into words. I hope you like this chapter.

Reviews and Comments: To Claire Fraser: Thank you! I'm so glad you enjoyed the house rules and I know, I definitely want that treehouse! To ninaz08: I agree, it was an awesome birthday! Thank you! I wanted to show why Sirius and Remus drifted apart just enough that Remus thought he was guilty and how it all was because of Peter. Don't worry, we will see Neville soon, but no Hermione until Hogwarts. To coloredwords: Haha, you think Harry will do all sorts of crazy shit in his teens, hiding from Sirius and snogging girls? Well, we'll have to wait and see. Thank you! To darkhk: Heart melting was exactly what I was going for, thank you! To M: Thank you! I think having Harry with the rules really helps him establish it as a home. Yes, it will be the perfect place for him to sneak up to with girls one day. Thank you!

Thank you very much for reading and please, please review!

Your reviews give me life! They give me inspiration! And they make me want to keep writing for more than just myself! Thank you!

CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE:

The One With the Wolf

Harry, Sirius, and Remus spent that night in the treehouse. Sirius had made a campfire in the fire pit in the yard and they roasted marshmallows and made octopuses out of hot-dogs and Remus showed them how to make S'Mores. Remus was the captain of the pirate ship and Harry was their prisoner.

Sirius and Remus chased him through the treehouse; up the wall and through the net tunnel as he laughed and shrieked in delight. Sirius sang to him through the speaking tube and Harry sang back to him as Remus pushed him on the tire swing. He snuck down the trapdoor, gripping the monkey bars tightly and giggling when Remus tickled him as he attempted to climb across. They blared Queen from the wireless player singing about 'Radio Ga Ga' and decided to sleep with the windows open. Harry and Remus took the bunkbeds with Harry on the top and Sirius made himself comfortable in the hammock with Marauder sleeping beneath his swaying form. The fairy lights twinkled around them.

It had been a perfect night.

When Sirius woke the next morning, Harry was curled into his chest in the swaying hammock, the birds chirping through the open windows. Sirius snuggled the boy closer and just lay listening to the birds, to Harry's quiet breathing, and to Remus' loud snores from across the room.

Tonight was the day before the full moon.

He knew that he didn't want Remus to be alone, but he was worried about leaving Harry with Ted and Andy as well. He was meeting Snape for five to grab the potion and Andromeda was coming over to stay with Harry. The sunset was supposed to happen at 7:24 PM and Remus needed to take the potion by at least 6:24 PM for it to have any affect on him.

Harry stirred slightly, but didn't wake up, his dark head snuggling into Sirius' chest over his heart. Sirius gently ran his fingers through Harry's messy hair, a soft smile on his face. The kid was the greatest. Seeing his eyes light up yesterday when he realized that this fort was for him had been incredible. He and Remus had both had so much fun playing in it last night and he knew that Harry would be excited for his friends to come over. After the full moon, he'd send a letter to Molly to see if her kids wanted to come by for the day. Harry had been bugging him about it and they had yet to come over here, usually Harry would just go to The Burrow.

He wasn't sure how long he stayed there, lost in thought, fingers idling carding Harry's hair, but he soon became aware of bright green-eyes staring at him and he grinned at his godson.

"Good morning, Prongslet."

"Good morning, Uncle Padfoot," Harry said, sitting up in the hammock.

"Didn't like your bunkbed?" Sirius asked, gesturing the top bunk where Harry was supposed to have spent the night.

"I wanted to be with you."

Sirius smiled, ruffling Harry's hair. Hearing those words always sent a little thrill through him even though he knew that Harry was supposed to be sleeping in his own bed.

"Come on; let's go find some breakfast inside. We have a lot to do today."

Sirius handed Harry his glasses from the table by the bunkbed before he used the fireman's pole to get to the ground and Harry eagerly followed. Marauder was still sleeping so Sirius left him there with Remus. They found breakfast for the day and Harry chatted about the treehouse, Marauder, and his trip to the library the day before. Sirius sent Harry upstairs to get dressed and to brush his teeth and he hopped into the shower. He stepped into his bedroom in unfastened blue jeans as Harry bounded in happily.

Harry watched him in interest as he brushed and styled his hair so that it fell 'just so' around his face and shaved his face back to the 'five o'clock shadow' look of stubble. Harry sat on the counter next to the sink in the master bathroom and just watched him. He kept pointing to things and asking questions much to Sirius' amusement and annoyance.

"Why do you have black hair there?" he asked, pointing to the trail of dark hair that started under his belly button and disappeared beneath his jeans.

"Men grow hair in different places. See?" He gestured, lifting his arm and showing Harry the long dark hairs under his armpit.

"Why?" Harry asked.

Sirius smiled at him. "It's just something that happens to you when you grow up. You get hair all over. Sometimes here too," he gestured across his chest. He had never really grown much chest hair, sticking mainly to his lower abdomen. "Uncle Remus has hair here," he said.

Harry pointed to the thin jagged scar on Sirius' left hip. "What's that?" He reached out and gently traced the white scar with his fingers.

Sirius smiled at him. "I got into a fight with Uncle Remus and he scratched me."

Harry's eyes widened. "Uncle Remus did that!"

Sirius chuckled. "We were just horsing around. See here," he gestured to the circular scar under his right arm. "This one is when your dad jumped in front of me and me, your dad, and Uncle Remus fell on top of one another in a tangled mess of limbs and I got nicked."

"If it was only a little one, why did it scar?" Harry asked.

Sirius hesitated. He hadn't discussed it with Remus yet, but he wanted Harry to know that Remus was a werewolf. But he knew that he had no right to tell him without first asking his friend's permission. "When a werewolf scratches you it scars forever."

"What's a werewolf?" Harry asked.

Remus chose that exact moment to step into the master bathroom and his eyes widened in horror. "Werewolf?"

Harry nodded, reaching up to touch Sirius' scar. "Uncle Padfoot said he got scratched by a werewolf. What's a werewolf?"

Remus swallowed slowly. "A werewolf is a dangerous creature that lives in the body of a man. And when the full moon rises, the wolf bursts out and takes control of the man's body. They are very dangerous!"

Sirius finished brushing his teeth, ignoring Remus' glare. "Harry's been full of questions this morning."

"Uncle Remus, do you have hair on your chest?"

Remus looked bewildered and slightly confused by the sudden turn of the conversation. "What?"

"Uncle Padfoot has hair under his belly button and under his arms and he said men get hair in different places and you have hair on your chest. Can I see?" Harry asked, his voice full of childish curiosity.

Remus hesitated for a moment, still confused by the rather sudden turn in the conversation, but then he nodded and carefully unbuttoned his shirt. The white zig-zagging scars across his abdomen Harry had seen before so he paid them no mind, but his eyes went to the light golden brown curls across Remus' chest and under his belly button.

"Why is the hair there?"

Remus chuckled and shrugged. "I don't know, Harry. Men just grow hair there." He jerked in surprise when Harry's fingertips traced his scars.

"Are these from a werewolf too, Uncle Moony? They look like Uncle Padfoot's."

Sirius rinsed out his mouth, eyes meeting Remus' in the mirror. "Yes, Harry, they are." He picked up his godson, carrying him into his bedroom and sitting him on the massive bed. "Prongslet, Uncle Moony and I need to talk to you about something very important."

Remus shook his head as he buttoned his shirt back up. He knew exactly what his friend was thinking. "No, we don't."

Sirius nodded. "Yes, we do."

Harry looked between the two of them curiously. "About what?"

"It's nothing, Harry, we're not talking about it today," Remus said, shooting his friend a rather menacing look.

"Yes, we are," Sirius insisted. "This isn't something that we're keeping from him. We tell the truth in this family, Remus."

Remus opened his mouth to protest and he promptly shut it. "We tell the truth."

"What truth?" Harry asked, his gaze dancing back and forth between them.

"About werewolves," Sirius said, sitting down next to Harry and gesturing for Remus to sit on the child's other side.

"Uncle Moony said that they are dangerous."

"They are," Sirius told him, smiling. "But that's only because they are wolves. But what's a wolf like?"

"A dog," Harry supplied with a smile.

"Exactly. Wolves are like dogs, but unlike dogs they don't want to be pet or cuddled or played with or fed. They want to hunt for their own food. They want to howl at the moon. And most importantly, they protect what is important to them," Sirius explained.

"My stuffed wolf is named Moony. Is Uncle Moony a wolf like you're a dog?" Harry asked, turning to look at Remus for confirmation.

Remus' hands fisted at his sides a little surprised by how easily Harry had made the connection and he jolted when Harry simply crawled into his lap.

"Are you a wolf, Uncle Moony?" His hands cupped the sides of Remus' face, looking into his eyes in wonder.

"Yes," Remus said quietly.

Harry grinned. "Can I see? Like Uncle Padfoot?"

"NO!" Remus exclaimed, standing up so quickly that Harry almost fell and he shoved Harry into Sirius' arms. "Absolutely not, Harry!"

"But Uncle Siri said they keep safe what's important to them so you wouldn't hurt me," Harry told him simply.

Sirius touched Harry's shoulder. "Uncle Moony isn't a regular wolf, Harry. When he was a little boy, a bit younger than you, he was bitten by a werewolf. Every month when the full moon happens, he is forced to transform into a dangerous creature."

Harry's eyes widened. "Does it hurt?"

Remus was watching Harry in bewilderment. He was waiting for the look of horror and disgust to come across the child's face, but he just looked sad. "Yes."

Harry jumped off of the bed and monkey crawled up Remus' legs making him chuckle as he lifted Harry the rest of the way up into his arms. Harry kissed the faded scar on his left cheek. "Is that better?"

"All better," Remus said softly, love pouring out of him as he snuggled the child. He took a seat on the bed next to Sirius as he held Harry in his arms. "Harry, when I change into a werewolf, I am very dangerous to be around. Do you understand? I'm not safe."

Harry nodded, his eyes wide. "Is that how you got all your scars?"

Remus nodded. "Yes. I sometimes hurt myself because I don't know what I'm doing."

Harry simply stared at him. "But only sometimes you're a werewolf?"

"Well, I'm the wolf all the time, Harry, but only when the full moon comes up am I forced to transform and it is when I am transformed that I'm dangerous," Remus explained.

Harry hugged him tightly. "That's okay then. Can we go play in the treehouse again?"

Remus simply looked at Sirius who grinned at him. Children were very accepting of things, he thought. Sirius was right. The truth was important and he felt relieved not to have to keep his secret hidden from Harry.

~ ASC ~

Andromeda and Ted came by that evening to have dinner with Harry. Andromeda promised to read Harry a bedtime story and Ted said they were going to have a party in the treehouse. Harry seemed very excited at the prospect of having new guests in his his treehouse. Remus had gone home to lock himself in his cellar and Sirius used the Floo to get to Hogwarts and to meet with Snape.

When he stepped out of the fireplace into Dumbledore's office, he tried not to grimace at the greasy-haired man who stood before him in black robes and holding a smoking goblet.

"This is it?" Sirius asked, looking into the potion.

"He must drain the entire cup." He handed the sealed cauldron to Sirius. "Here is the rest of the potion for the next two nights. It must be kept on medium heat; the charm I placed on it for travel will only last an hour before it must be placed back on the heat. Lupin has to drink it at the same time all three nights for it to work."

"Got it. We really appreciate you doing this, Snape," Sirius told him honestly.

Snape sneered. "I assure you, I did not beg for this job, but Dumbledore insisted it was important that I brew this correctly to take away Lupin's pain. I think we both know that taking away his pain isn't going to make him any less of a monster."

Sirius glared at him. "I was going to be the adult here, but I can see that you're still a snivelling little prick, Snivellus!"

"Too bad there wasn't a potion around to teach you how to not be a murderer."

Sirius' eyes darkened. "I am not a fucking murderer!"

"You proved you were capable of it when we were sixteen!" Snape sneered. "Don't even try to bullshit me!"

Sirius grabbed the cauldron and the smoking goblet of potion. "This better fucking work, Snivellus, or I'll show you exactly what I'm capable of."

He disappeared into the fireplace, the feel of Snape's antagonizing sneer on his back and he stepped into Remus' living room.

Remus had both of his hands on his head, kneading his wavy hair anxiously. He turned to look at Sirius, eyes wide. "Is that it?"

Sirius nodded, handing the smoking goblet to his friend. "Drink it all."

Remus accepted the goblet, took a deep breath and drank the potion in three big gulps. He coughed and grabbed his throat in disgust. "I can't decide what was worse, the taste, the burning sensation, or the smell."

Sirius gave him a half-smile and lifted the cauldron. "Snivellus says that this has to stay on medium-heat until you drink the rest of it on the third night."

"Snivellus? Really, Sirius?"

"Hey, I tried to be civil, but he's even more of a fucking ponce now then he was back then. How do you feel?" he asked eagerly, moving into the kitchen to settle the potion on the burner.

"A bit queer," Remus told him, placing a hand over his stomach. "It's like I can feel my skin bubbling and boiling under the surface like it usually does in getting me ready to transform, but my stomach is in knots. That might be nerves on my part. I imagine it doesn't work right away."

Sirius nodded, putting a protection charm around the cauldron to keep it on medium-heat and to make sure that it was fire-proof as the burner would be on for the next three days.

"I imagine not." He glanced at the clock. "Sunset's in an hour."

"How was Harry when you left him?"

"He's fine, Remus," Sirius told him. "We talked some more this afternoon after you left about you turning into a werewolf. I told him how me being a dog and being here with you made you feel better; like how he felt when he had a bad dream, and he wanted me to stay with him. I told him that I was going to stay with you all night until the morning and that Andy and Ted would be downstairs the whole time if he needed them."

"And he was okay with that?" Remus asked in disbelief. "He's not ready to be left without one of us at night, Sirius. You shouldn't be here. He needs you."

Sirius ignored his friend, leading him out into the backyard. "Yes, I should be. And Harry is fine. He likes Andromeda and Ted. Plus, Ted told him he and Andy want to play in his new treehouse so Harry was excitedly showing them every angle of the treehouse. Harry told me that he doesn't want you to be alone and is excited for Ted and Andy to be staying with him. You need me tonight."

"What about Andy and Ted? What did you tell them?" Remus asked, taking a seat on the bench in his backyard.

Sirius sat next to his friend. "That I had something important to do and couldn't be there tonight. They don't know that you're a werewolf, Rem. I won't tell them and neither will Harry. We spoke about the importance of keeping it a secret."

"Harry, it's really important that you remember never to tell anyone that Uncle Remus is a werewolf, okay?" Sirius told him, kneeling in front of him so that his eyes were level with his godson's.

"Why?" Harry asked, innocently.

Sirius sighed, smiling kindly. "Harry, there are a lot of people in the world who are ignorant and they don't take the time to understand things. There a lot of werewolves in the world who are truly bad and truly evil, but many of them are just regular blokes like Uncle Moony who are forced to undergo this transformation without their consent. If someone found out that Uncle Remus was a werewolf, they might try to hurt him not understanding that he's good. You can talk about it with me and Uncle Remus whenever you want, but to no one else, okay?"

"I don't want anyone to hurt Uncle Moony," Harry said quietly.

"Me neither, Prongslet. So, it's very important that we keep it a secret between just the three of us, okay? Not even to Tonks. It will keep him safe. Can you promise me?"

Harry smiled and hugged Sirius tightly. "I promise. And we Marauders always keep our promises."

Sirius kissed his cheek. "That's right, Prongslet. Marauders always keep our promises."

"He knows that by telling anyone it will be unsafe for you and he doesn't want that. He promised me," Sirius told him.

Remus rubbed his stomach, rolling his neck around on his shoulders. "I still don't think that you should be here. We don't know what this potion is truly going to do, Sirius. It might affect me differently and I won't be tame. I could become more feral and more dangerous."

Sirius reached out to grip his friend's hand tightly. "I'm not leaving you alone again, Rem. I'm not. End of story."

Remus smiled gratefully at him and nodded. When the sun started to set, they headed inside and Remus carefully locked the cellar, using his wand to triple secure it closed. He locked his wand into a secret alcove up near the ceiling so that when he changed he wouldn't break it and then he began to undress. Once he was naked, he curled up in the corner, trembling from the chill of the room.

Sirius, who had already transformed into Padfoot, padded across the room, putting his head on his friend's shoulder in comfort and Remus scratched the dog behind the ears quietly.

When the transformation finally started, it was just as terrible as Sirius remembered. Remus' body seemed to shift and stretch and bend in impossible ways as his skin bubbled and boiled; fur sprouting across his body in dark golden brown and covering him. His face lengthened, snout-like and his ears elongated. His teeth grew sharper and he growled as the pain shot through him and he howled.

But when the transformation was over, the amber eyes of his best friend looked at him from the wolf's snout, without the feral gleam to them, and Sirius knew that it had worked. He lay with his friend quietly, the wolf snarling at the room, desperate to be set free. He sniffed Sirius suspiciously and then recognizing his friend's scent, merely moved on.

When the sun came up and Remus changed back into himself, Sirius covered his sleeping friend in a blanket and unlocked the cellar, using the Floo to get back to his own house. Andromeda and Ted were sleeping upstairs in the guest room so he snuck into Harry's room, climbing into bed with his godson, and kissing his cheek.

Harry stirred a little, snuggling into Sirius' embrace.

Sirius woke up two hours later to the feel of Harry's body wiggling from his grasp. He opened one eye and found Harry grinning at him. "I was comfortable, get back here, Prongslet, you were my pillow."

Harry giggled and shimmied away from him. "Is Uncle Moony okay?"

Sirius smiled and reached out to gently brush a hand through Harry's hair. "Uncle Moony is going to be just fine. Come on; let's go get some breakfast."

~ ASC ~

Remus showed up just before lunch. He looked tired, dark circles under his eyes, but his eyes lit up when Harry ran into his arms and he hugged him close. He sat down at the kitchen table, smiling gratefully when Sirius placed a plate of bacon sandwiches in front of him.

"Thanks. How was Harry?"

"He was fine. Andy and Ted left just after breakfast," Sirius told him, sitting down next to his friend. "How are you?"

Remus hesitated. "I'm tired and a little sore, but… I'm not in pain."

Sirius' eyes lit up. "At all?"

Remus nodded. "Just the normal soreness of my muscles from the transformation. I feel… fine."

"Do you remember?"

Remus nodded. "It was me the whole time, Sirius. I was the wolf and I was in complete control."

"I know. Your eyes, Moony, they were your eyes not the wolf's," Sirius told him.

Remus smiled. "I think it really worked, Siri, it really worked."

Sirius grinned and stood up to hug his friend, embracing him tighter when he felt his friend's tears on his shirt. Harry came into the kitchen after washing up for lunch and saw Sirius hugging Remus. He crawled into Remus' lap, hugging him tight and he felt Remus sigh in contentment as he accepted child's embrace in comfort.

When he finally pulled away, Remus wiped at his tears. "I can't thank you enough for doing this for me, Sirius."

Sirius shook his head. "You don't. I'm just glad it worked. Now remember, tonight you have to take the potion at the same time for it work."

Remus nodded, grinning widely. "I will."

"And this time, Rem, you're not locking yourself in that dark, dank cellar."

Harry's eyebrow furrowed. He was still sitting on Remus' lap. "You lock yourself up, Uncle Moony?"

Remus kissed the top of Harry's head. "I have to keep myself away from people so that I don't hurt them."

"But with this potion, we know now that's not a problem," Sirius said casually.

"We don't know for certain," Remus told him. "It worked last night, yes, but tonight is the actual full moon. The effects might be completely different."

Sirius nodded. "Fine. Tonight and tomorrow, we'll be in the cellar. But if both nights are anything like last night, Rem, you're not staying in there another night."

"Are Andy and Ted coming back over tonight?" Harry asked, looking from Sirius to Remus. "So, you can keep Uncle Moony company again?"

Sirius reached down and picked up Harry, kissing his cheek. "No. We're both going to keep Uncle Moony company tonight."

Remus' eyes widened in horror. "Sirius, are you fucking mad? You can't let Harry anywhere near me when I'm that monster!"

"Uncle Moony!" Harry exclaimed. "No bad words!"

Remus flushed. "I'm sorry, little Prongs. I'm just so worried that if Uncle Sirius brings you with him tonight, that I might hurt you."

Harry simply smiled at him. "No, you won't." He jumped down from Sirius' arms. "Marauder and I are going outside to play in the treehouse."

Sirius watched him hurry off with a grin. "See, the kid gets it. And he'll be fine, Remus. I'll tuck him into bed in his bedroom and I'll be there with you in the cellar."

Remus looked hesitant. "Sirius… if I get out…"

"You're not a monster, Rem. You were you last night and you had total control over the wolf."

Remus managed a small smile for his friend. "He'll be safe?"

"You'll be in the cellar, Remus. He'll be safe upstairs."

~ ASC ~

When Remus woke up the next morning, he found himself wrapped in a thick quilt with a child snuggled on one side of him with a puppy and a big black dog on the other side of him.

All perfectly safe.

He remembered how Harry had snuck into the cellar, Sirius had refused to lock the door, and how Padfoot had simply ushered the boy forward wordlessly.

Harry had knelt down in front of Remus, arms outstretched and hugged the wolf. Remus remembered how happy he had felt to see his pup and the sense of protection that had washed over him. Harry hugged him tightly and Padfoot and Marauder had wrestled nearby.

The child completely safe in a room with the pack.

He stood carefully, extricating himself from child and dogs. He got dressed and went into the kitchen to make breakfast, looking out into his yard as Sirius came into the room carrying a sleeping Harry.

"I told you that it was safe."

"It was stupid of you to let him in there, Sirius. What if I had hurt him?"

Sirius merely glared at him. "You felt even more protective of Harry last night then you do right now. You would never hurt him. The potion makes you safe, Remus. It makes you safe. And you'll never have to be alone on the full moon again."

Remus only nodded, a sense of relief coursing through him. He wouldn't be alone again. And Sirius was right, Harry had been safe.

The potion helped him tame the monster and the child helped him feel safe and protected as much as he wanted to keep the child safe and protected.

Belby had created a gift for him and Sirius had made sure that he was able to obtain it.

He had never felt so blessed in his entire life. Nor as grateful.

For once, he wasn't truly a monster. For once, he was Remus, just Remus John Lupin - the man and the wolf - and he couldn't have been more happy.