Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of its characters.

Thanks so much for everyone that reviewed. I have had a couple of reviews bring up two points. First, nobody has used the truth serum on Sirius because they all believe him to be guilty. I may use it later in the story, but if I wrote about it now, it would kind of ruin the whole purpose of the story. Also, many people asked why Remus believed Sirius so easily. Remus does not believe Sirius. He is only entertaining the idea that his friend is not evil.

Chapter 6: Alerting Dumbledore and the Ministry

Remus stood in the headmaster's office examining the sleeping portraits of Hogwarts' previous headmasters. He had owled Dumbledore immediately after reading Sirius's letter, telling the headmaster that he had an urgent matter to discuss with him. Dumbledore had responded quickly stating that he was headed to a meeting, but Remus could floo to his office and he would be there as soon as possible.

Remus walked around the room, staring in amazement at the mess before him. How Dumbledore could find anything in this mess was beyond him. There were rolls of parchment everywhere, weird trinkets, half of which were broken, were thrown about and books littered the floor causing Remus to step carefully.

Remus finally sat down in a comfy chair before the Headmaster's desk. His mind quickly turned to Sirius. He wanted to believe Sirius was innocent. He wanted to think that this was all a misunderstanding and that Sirius had played no part in it whatsoever. He wanted to have one of his best friends back. He wanted to hear Sirius laugh again as he played on of his stupid pranks on an unsuspecting victim. Above all, Remus wanted to no longer be alone.

His childhood had been difficult. After he was bitten, he kept to himself. He didn't want to make friends for fear of what they would think of him if or when they found out he was a werewolf. Growing up, he watched children his age make friends. He longed to be one of them. He saw their smiles and watched the games they played with a longing in his eyes. He knew, though, that he would never have friends. His friends would turn on him as soon as they knew what he was. He didn't think he could take that kind of humiliation, so he always watched from afar, never letting people close enough to become a friend.

When he went to Hogwarts everything changed. When he had received his letter, he was ecstatic. He didn't think that he would be allowed at Hogwarts due to his condition. For the first time in his life, Remus entertained the thought of actually making a friend. However, he quickly pushed that idea out of his head. Coming to Hogwarts didn't change anything. He was still a werewolf and he knew no one would want to be friends with such a disgusting creature.

It was on the train that he met Sirius and James for the first time. He had been in a compartment all to himself, thinking about his future classes at Hogwarts, when two boys had thrown the compartment door open and quickly slammed it shut behind them. They peeked carefully out the door's window as a boy with greasy black hair came walking by, covered in some kind of green liquid, muttering about blood traitors and muggle lovers.

They had turned around, noticing him for the first time and introduced themselves. Remus remembered how they began telling each other all the pranks they had played on their family, each boy trying to better the other. He remembered laughing and thinking how these were the kind of people he would like to have as friends, if he ever made any. They included him in their conversations and he quickly began to feel comfortable around them. When they all three became sorted in the same house, Remus felt a since of relief. Even if he wasn't going to be able to make friends with them, he wanted to at least have them around.

How they became friends, Remus really didn't know. He tried to block them out as much as possible. Whenever they invited him to join in on one of their pranks he always turned them door, telling them he already made plans. They were persistent though, and before long Remus could no longer avoid them. They were everywhere and Remus eventually caved and allowed someone close to his heart for the first time since he was bitten.

He knew that Sirius and James were curious about him and his condition. He was always weak and he was constantly in the hospital wing. He knew they never bought his stories about visiting a sick relative, but they never questioned them either. When they finally confronted him and told him that they knew he was a werewolf, he didn't know how to respond. He thought they no longer wanted to be friends, but Sirius told him he was being mental and even joked that he would rather be a werewolf than a member of the Black family.

He had been surprised that the weren't disgusted, but he knew from that day forward that they would be the best friends he would ever have. He trusted them with everything, never keeping a secret from them. He knew that they would stick with him regardless. Being friends with James and Sirius, and even little Peter, had made Remus happy for the first time. With these three friends, he knew he wouldn't be lonely anymore. That happiness had lasted until Halloween 1981, when all three of his friends had been ripped from him in a single night.

-x-

Dumbledore stood silently at the door, watching Remus. He pitied the young man. Dumbledore knew what Remus had been through as a child and he knew that making three incredible friends was more than Remus could ever ask for. Loosing all three of his friends at once had to of been hard. Out of all the people grieving over the death of Lily and James Potter, Dumbledore knew that Remus was grieving the most. He hadn't only lost Lily and James, but he also lost Peter to one of his best friends, and the betrayal Sirius hurt just as hard. No one had ever expected things to turn out this way, especially with Sirius.

Taking one last sorrowful look at the man before him, Dumbledore decided to alert Remus of his presence.

-x-

"Hello, Remus."

Remus jumped slightly at being addressed by the Headmaster. He hadn't heard Dumbledore enter the room and he wondered slightly how long he had been there.

"You said you had an urgent matter to discuss?" Dumbledore asked as he sat down behind his desk.

"I received a letter from Sirius today. It was about Harry." Remus said, noticing how Dumbledore became more alert at the mention of Harry's name.

"What about Harry?" Dumbledore asked quietly.

"Sirius doesn't want him cooped up in Azkaban all his life. He thinks that Harry needs to get out and explore the wizarding world." Remus stared, but was interrupted by Dumbledore.

"Is he giving up custody of Harry to you?" The headmaster asked with a hopeful gleam in his eye.

"Sirius won't ever give up Harry. We both know that. Regardless of whether or not Sirius is really guilty of this crime, he loves Harry and plans on raising him as his own son. Sirius merely asked me to be a part of Harry's life. In his letter he said that, with his permission, I could take Harry once a week to explore the world that he was born into. He wants Harry to be around people and around magic."

"Do you question whether Sirius is really guilty of betraying Lily and James?"

"I don't know." Remus answered. "I want to believe that Sirius is innocent. I never expected him to turn against us, but the evidence is against him, so I don't know what to believe."

"Alright then. If Sirius has given you permission, then I don't see the Ministry having any problems allowing you to visit Azkaban once a week. They want Harry away from Sirius as much as possible." Dumbledore replied as he stood up and motioned for Remus to do the same. "It's off the Ministry."

-x-

Remus stood outside of the minister's office as Dumbledore talked to him about the situation. He could hear mumbled responses, but was unable to hear the actual conversations. After about ten minutes, the wooden door open and both Dumbledore and the minister stepped out of his office.

"Do you have the letter that Black sent you?" The minister asked Remus, who produced the roll of parchment from his pocket. The minister read it slowly, shaking his head at Sirius' attempt to prove his innocence. Finally he looked back at Remus, and nodded his head. "If Black wants you to be a part of Harry's life, the better for the rest of us. Maybe with your influence the child won't turn out like him. I will get the paperwork ready and you should be able to go get him tomorrow, if you would like."

"Thank you, Minister. There is one more thing that I would like you to do for me though." Remus said, glad that they didn't try to keep Harry from him.

"And what is that?" The minister asked, looking skeptically at Remus.

"Don't alert the media to this. Harry is already going to be under the media for the rest of his life. I don't need them following me, taking pictures and asking questions, whenever I have Harry for the day." Remus replied.

"I can do that. Now if you follow me, we can get this paperwork done." The minister answered, as he turn his back and began walking down the Hall. Remus follow, Dumbledore closely behind him. All Remus could think of was by this time tomorrow, he would have baby Harry safely in his arms.

A/n: That's chapter six. Not much action, but I promise there will be a Sirius and Remus interaction in the next chapter. I'm still trying to think where I should have Remus take Harry on their first outing. Please review and let me know what you thought of this chapter. I love reviews, they make me write faster.

Thanks again,

PadfootObsessed329