AN: sorry for the delay writer's block got me down but im back for a short update.
January 2004
Harry was getting used to living in Montana. And the locals were getting used to him and his little family. Teddy, with a specially applied notice-me-not applied to his hair to keep mundanes from noticing his metamorph abilities, was a heartbreaker at the diner and even the boys on the ranch had warmed up to him. They especially liked putting him on the backs of easy going horses and leading him around the corral. It was tricky to manage since Teddy was starting to morph his skin color. He was born with Tonks and Remus' fair skin but had shifted to Harry's tawny brown at some point. They looked like father and son to most people. Which Harry supported; he saw nothing wrong with the little boy wanting to look like his favorite caregiver, but worried it would mean trouble. Harry already got a lot of flack in town for being South Asian even though he knew nothing about his father's culture.
Whenever Harry went to the shop to buy treats for the house, the shop keeper would ask rudely if he needed curry powder for his stinking meals. Harry shrugged it off. It was no worse than growing up in Surrey, surrounded by white well-to-do, holier-than-thou types who had no trouble believing the Dursleys' lies about him based solely on his skin color.
He had set Teddy up to go to primary school though. Hopefully, he would make friends. It was lonely for the little boy, surrounded by adults all the time.
They had celebrated Christmas in their new house, and Teddy had accepted that Severus was a new member of the family. Severus still maintained his home near the ranch but spent most nights with Harry.
As the new year started, Harry was finalizing a move to name Andromeda as his proxy in the Wizengamot as well as the Black seat on the school board for Hogwarts. He still wasn't convinced on sending Teddy there in a few short years, but time would tell. Andromeda would be a good choice though; connected to his Houses as she was. Plus, she had a strategic mind well suited to politicking.
As of now, he wanted time to see Teddy grow up and some time to unwind and find what he actually liked doing. He knew he liked cooking and baking, now that it wasn't being ordered by his relatives. He enjoyed taking care of Teddy and the rest of their small family. But beyond that, he had never had time to devote to a hobby. That fortuitous trip Andromeda made him come on that had begun his new life in Montana was the first vacation he'd ever taken.
He looked up from where he was doing correspondence at the dining room table and saw Severus with Teddy laying in his lap, nattering about the things he'd seen today, mostly birds. Harry smiled softly. These two boys and Andromeda were all he needed these days.
His brow furrowed though as he thought of the poor reaction Severus was getting even though they took steps to conceal the exact nature of their relationship. The other men on the ranch had taken to ribbing Severus and some rather mean spirited comments but nothing physical, yet. He would have to keep an eye on the situation. Severus could no doubt take care of himself, but did he have to?
With a sigh and a drawn out stretch, cracking several vertebrae against his chair, he stood up and asked the boys if they wanted a hot chocolate and a slice of the cake they had gotten a few days earlier for Severus' birthday, information that was carefully sussed out.