Chapter 18- Questioning and Mothering

The head attached to Ryan's stomach nodded. She wasn't sure what to do. A bubble of hope swelled up, but there was always the chance…

She kneeled down to be on his level. A grubby, dirty face looked at her. But it wasn't the face that did it for her. It was the eyes. The eyes almost completely identical to hers, down to the tears welling up in them. "Oh, Merlin." She grabbed him and hugged him for all he was worth.

And that was when his sobs started. He jumbled words he attempted to gasp out between his sobs made absolutely no sense whatsoever. "He… Daddy… ran… Who…"

"Shhh," she murmured soothingly, just barely managing to hold back tears herself. "We can talk later." He sniffled and nodded into her shoulder, not letting go of her. Not that she could blame him, she didn't want to let go of him either. She looked for him to Dumbledore. "How—"

"Does it truly matter, Ryan?" he asked gently.

"Not right now," she said, squeezing her brother tightly.

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The sight of a usually calm and composed Renée Potter practically sprinting down the corridor of the Ministry of Magic was enough of a shock to have people stopping and staring even as they moved out of her way. It was enough to earn her comments like "Where's the fire?" and "You-Know-Who on your arse again?" But she was in no mood to respond to any of these comments. That was another sign that something big was happening.

But no one would have guessed what she was about to tell her husband.

"What is it?" Christopher Potter asked, starting to get up from behind his desk in concern.

She waved her hand, motioning for him to sit back down. "You might need to take a seat for this one, Chris." He eyed her warily, but he took a seat. She took a deep breath before saying out in a rush, "They found Danny. Alive."

Chris blinked. "Danny? As in Daniel Miller?" It was hard to shock an Auror. Of course, it wasn't every day that someone informed that his second son (or was it third? Fourth?) had been found after a month and a half of thinking he was dead.

She nodded. "I just got the message. Dumbledore has him at Hogwarts."

"Reasonable enough, I suppose. Best place for him to be. And that's where Ryan is."

"He's staying with us. As soon as she's willing to let him leave her side and he's willing to be in a different room than her for any length of time."

Chris nodded, not even pausing to consider it. It only seemed right for them to take in the son of her best friend. He could still remember the look on her face when Terry said he was taking Ryan away with him around the world, and he didn't fancy reliving the experience. "How did he survive on his own for this long?"

Renée shrugged. "I'm not sure. He hasn't said. Is there any way we can get off now? I… I just need to hug him. Make sure he's alright."

Chris nodded again. Another natural reaction and completely to be expected. He wouldn't be too upset about seeing if Danny was okay himself. "You go on. I'll talk to Moody and be there as soon as I can."

She didn't need telling twice.

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"Potter, Lupin, Black." All four of the male Marauders looked up. James and Sirius looked innocently curious while Remus was calm and Peter wondered how the hell he managed to get out of trouble. A few other people in the Great Hall looked over in mild interest, wondering just what the Marauders were up to this time.

"Hello, Professor," Sirius said cheerfully. "What can we do for you on this fine evening?"

"The three of you are wanted in the Headmaster's office," she said coolly. "No, Pettigrew, just Black, Potter, and Lupin." The four of them exchanged confused looks, but Sirius, James, and Remus headed out of Great Hall and towards Dumbledore's office.

"Why wasn't Pete in trouble?" Sirius wondered aloud as they walked down the hallway.

"Why are we in trouble might be the better question, Padfoot," Remus said, smiling slightly.

"Maybe Dumbledore just wanted to talk to me and Moony, and you're the only one in trouble," James said jokingly.

"Well, Ryan told her I did something, so that's possible," Sirius said, pretending to scratch his chin thoughtfully. "Or maybe he just thought it had been too long since he's seen me, and he missed me."

James and Remus both laughed. "Whatever you want to tell yourself." The three spent the rest of the way up to Dumbledore's laughing and joking about what they could be needed for. When they reached the gargoyle, James said the password, and they all stepped on the staircase.

James, who happened to be in the middle, knocked on the door. Dumbledore told them to enter, and the three walked into the room. They had completely expected to see Ryan in the office. The person they hadn't expected to see threw himself at James' middle as soon as they walked into the room.

"What the bloody hell?" James asked, looking down. "Oh, hi, Dan. Why are you—Shit!" He looked up to Ryan, almost asking out loud if Dan was really… well, there. Ryan shrugged from where she was leaning up against Dumbledore's desk as if to say, 'I'm not complaining.'

Sirius seemed to recover first. He kneeled down next to the ten year old and smiled slightly. "How goes it, Dan?"

Dan pried himself off of James, sniffling slightly. "Awful."

"Well, you're here now, at least," Remus said as he and James joined Sirius down on the younger boy's level. "You're safe."

"And your big sister's right over there," James added. "That should help."

Dan looked at Ryan before shrugging with another sniffle. "Still sucks."

"I thought that you three might be able to make Mr. Miller feel more at home for the time being," Dumbledore said. "Your mother is on her way, James."

James looked up, startled. "Why?"

"Because she's like our second mum," Ryan said, speaking up for the first time since the boys had walked into the room. "So as soon as she heard about Danny, she needed to come in to… well, make sure he's alright, I guess."

James caught the look passed between Remus and Ryan, even if no one else did. When he saw Dan looking between Remus and Ryan with a vaguely curious look on his face, though, he was pretty sure that he wasn't the only on to see it.

There was a sudden rush of Floo powder that made everyone except for Dumbledore and Ryan jump, although Danny jumped especially high. Renée Potter shot out of the fireplace rather gracefully for something so completely ungraceful. She straightened herself, her eyes searching the room until they landed on Dan.

Danny didn't hesitate to run to her and hug her. He was perfectly willing to hug anyone solid. Anyone safe. Anyone reassuring. "Oh, sweetheart," Renée said, hugging the little boy tightly. She pulled away after a few minutes to look at him. His hair was a little shaggy, his clothes were torn in random places, he was dirty and grubby and his fingers were bleeding slightly. In short, he was a complete mess. She hugged him again anyway. She looked over his shoulder to Ryan. She let go of Danny long enough to reach for Ryan, who let herself become completely engulfed in a hug too.

Under normal circumstances, the fact that his own mother might have been slightly offensive. But in this situation, James fully understood. She was their mum just as much as she was his. And they needed her more at the moment than he did.

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"There you are! We were wondering… Oh, hello."

"Wha—Oh, hi." Ryan gave the three girls a slight smile before dropping her bag next to them. "Can someone look over that for a bit? Maybe take it up to the dorm for me? I need to go down to the kitchens, and I don't want to take my bag with me."

"Um… sure," Lily said slowly, looking at the little boy clinging to Ryan's hand.

"Oh," Ryan said, suddenly seeming to realize that they were looking at her curiously. "This is Danny, who is apparently much more self sufficient than the rest of us had originally thought. I – well, me and the rest of the idiots I call my friends – are going to the kitchens so he can get some real food. I'll be back up before too long, I'm sure."

"Is that why McGonagall called you out of class?" Alice asked.

"What? Oh, yeah. Dumbledore—You know what, I'll explain it all later when I can talk in complete sentences and I know that he's eaten. Because I'm not entirely sure when the last time he ate real food was. So yeah. I'll be back later."

She turned, Danny trailing along behind her. She heard one of them, probably Morgan, say, "That was strange even for Ryan," before she climbed out of the common room.

She looked down at Danny to see him grinning. "What's so funny?"

"That was strange even for Ryan," he repeated in a surprisingly good imitation of Morgan. "That means you hang around James and Sirius too much. You're not talking in half sentences so much anymore. Not like you were when you were trying to talk to Remus earlier."

"Thank you, my little genius," she teased. "Anything else?" He stopped suddenly and hugged her tightly, surprising her slightly. She smiled slightly and hugged him back.

He looked up at her. "You saw, didn't you? With Dad? That's why you were so surprised to see me, right?"

It never ceased to amaze her how well he could read her. And she him, if she wanted to get to that. He knew her better than she knew herself. Merlin, she'd missed him. "That and when an Auror says that your little brother is gone, you generally don't question it." She smiled at him for a second before taking his hand and tugging him down the hall. "Now come on. You need to eat, no matter what you think."

When the pair slipped into the kitchens, the piles of food spread out on the table made Danny stop and stare. Ryan smiled slightly and pulled him all the way into the room and over to the table. "Sit. Eat. Please don't get sick, because that would just ruin the happy glow I'm feeling right now."

He shot her a look that made her laugh. She ruffled his hair with an affectionate smile before giving him a light push towards a seat. She had never been one to stand on the outside of a conversation, but as the boys quickly loaded up her brother's plate with food and began teasing him just like it used to be, she just stood off to the side and watched.

Was it really that morning that she had had to keep James from beating up Cameron for mentioning her family? Was it just that morning she woke up, wishing that there were some way she could have stopped Voldemort before he had gotten anywhere close to her family? Had she really spent the entire day forcing down memories and emotions to keep herself from breaking down in front of everyone?

Yes. But things were different now. And with a concerned look from Remus and a call from her brother, Ryan went and joined the idiots at the table.

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"I know, Dan, but the stairs don't know that."

"There's got to be a way around it."

"There's not. Trust me, I would know. I've tried every possible way I can think of, and nothing has ever worked for me."

"Your intentions are never completely honorable either."

Sirius grinned. "Maybe, maybe not. But there's no way to do it. I even tried my broom, and it put up a bloody wall so that I couldn't get through it."

Ryan looked up at him. "Maybe it'll… hang on." She dashed up the stairs, leaving the boys to look at each other in confusion.

"Um… Okay," Peter said. "What is she doing?"

"Getting her broom," Danny said.

"You two can read each other better than twins I know," James said, shaking his head. "Are you sure you aren't a Phoenix too?"

Dan smiled. "No. It's just the first born. I don't explode like she does."

The others chuckled as Ryan raced back down the stairs, a broom in her hand. "While I'm pretty sure that you're all making fun of me, I'm going to pretend that I don't know anything. Okay. Here." She handed her broom to Danny. "I'm going to go up to my dorm like normal, and I want you to try and fly up them. If you can't, go up with the boys and fly around. James knows how, he'll show you. If that doesn't work, use the demon bird or something and I can sleep in their dorm with you. But that's a last resort. You got that, boys?"

"Yes, ma'am," James said innocently, making her reach out to cuff him and making him laugh when he was able to avoid being hit.

"We'll take care of him," Remus said.

She smiled gratefully. "Thanks." She turned to her brother and smiled at him. "Try not to go too fast or you might get knocked off if it puts up a wall."

"Okay," Dan said.

She nodded, waving goodbye to the boys before going up the stairs. The dull clunk told her what she didn't need to look to know. She climbed the rest of the stairs and went into her dorm, smiling at her roommates cheerfully, glad that Meredith and Katlyn were prone to sleepovers in other dorms in the middle of the week. "My baby brother is going to be joining us tonight."

The other three looked up. "I was wondering what you were rushing around about," Morgan said. "Can he not ride a broom up here?"

"No, but he can get through the window," Ryan said, nodding. "At least I think he can. He's lost so much weight… But I'm pretty sure he can fight through the window. James just has to help him find it."

"How did he get here?" Alice asked.

"Not a clue," Ryan said. "I haven't asked him. It's not really… welcome home conversation, you know? We just haven't talked about what he did or where he's been or how he got away… Although I'm pretty sure I know the answer to the last one. But still. I mean… You know what I'm trying to say, right?"

"That you're really glad he's home but you're slightly worried that it's just your imagination playing tricks on you," Lily offered.

Ryan nodded. "Yeah. I—"

The knocking on the window made everyone but Ryan jump as she raced to the window and yanked it open. Danny all but dove through the window, followed by a struggling James. James flopped back on his back after finally making it through the window. "That was harder than it should've been. Remind me not to try that again. It's wounding to my ego."

Ryan cocked her head and looked at him, about to say something, but Lily spoke up first. "I think a little ego wounding might do you some good."

He shot her a mock glare from upside down. "Oh, very funny, Evans. Please, keep the jokes coming. Meanwhile my manly pride—Oof!" He looked at the ten year old currently sitting on his stomach. "What the hell are you doing?"

"Seeing how much fat there is," Dan said, grinning. "I think you need to lay off the chocolate frogs."

"Oh, hilarious, munchkin. Get off. You're sitting on your clothes." Danny got off of him, and James pulled a package out of his cloak as he sat up. He tossed it to Ryan. "Mum sent some stuff over. She said…" He trailed off, stopping himself.

Ryan raised an eyebrow before giving the package to Dan. "Go on and take a shower. It's pretty easy to work, but—"

"Let me know if I need any help, got it," Danny finished before grabbing the clothes and racing into the bathroom without hesitation.

Ryan turned back to James questioningly. James sighed. "She said those were the only sets of Danny's clothes that could be restored. She'd buy him new stuff, but she figured he'd want his own stuff for a little while anyway. She also said it would probably be best if he didn't stay here too long, because someone is going to tell Voldemort that he's still alive."

"Oh, Voldemort doesn't care about him," Ryan said, waving her hand easily. "He just wants to get to me."

"Well, Danny's your weaknes—That's it, I'm leaving. We sound like my parents." Ryan laughed as James got up and grabbed his broom before calmly going to the door of the dorm. He turned back to the room with an easy grin. "Cover your ears, ladies." He stepped out onto the staircase, managing to close the door before the wailing started.

"You two have the strangest friendship," Morgan declared.

"Old friendships usually are a bit strange. Take me and Sirius. That's not exactly normal. And Remus and I have a tendency to snog each other, and that's not really normal either."

"You mother him," Alice said, gesturing to the bathroom door. "I know you said you two really rely on each other, but I never thought that you would be that mothering to him."

"Yeah, he's used to it," Ryan said, shrugging. "He's a kind of used to it. He usually doesn't let me do it when other people are around, but circumstances are different."

"You and James are really protective of him too," Lily said.

"That's to be expected, I think." The bathroom door opened and suddenly a little boy rushed out, nearly tackling his sister. "Oh, Merlin. You're still soaked. Didn't anyone teach you how to use a towel?"

"Nope," he said cheerfully, making the other three laugh.

When the lights were out and everyone was asleep, Ryan tried to convince herself to sleep. It was impossible. There were too many questions left unanswered, too many holes in the story. How in the world could a ten year old boy have survived by himself for two months? Not that she didn't think he could fend for himself, but he was ten! In a world where terror and distrust reigned.

She looked down at her brother and couldn't help but smile. All would be answered in due time. All the questions answered, all the holes filled. And then maybe it would all make sense.

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There's no scene with someone talking because... I forgot. There will probably be two in the next chapter. I'm taking requests for whose PoV you want it from and what topic you want it about. Lemme know.