Listen Now: A Harry Potter & Remus Lupin Hurt/Comfort Adoption Fic

Trouble

A/N: To make up for the late posts for the last couple of chapters, I'll make you this promise: the next chapter will be posted less than one week from today. Thanks to those of you who have stuck with it this long!

Chapter 13 - Promise

Harry finished the last of the cleaning spells on the dishes from breakfast. He was still getting the hang of it, and he had to magically repair three plates and one glass, though that was still a big improvement on the previous meal. As soon as he was done, he went to sit in the common area.

He was exhausted.

Hogwarts had been easy, compared to this. He knew the school would take away House points or give him detention if he messed up too much, but he didn't have to worry about whether they would send him away, not really. Even though he'd always known expulsion was a possibility, he couldn't bring himself to fear it, after his first couple of years and the way Dumbledore always seemed to swoop in at the last moment and prevent any serious consequences for breaking school rules.

But here, it wasn't just about following rules. It was about proving himself. At Hogwarts, he didn't have to try to be Hermione and get straight O's or even E's on his exams; he could be himself. Here, though, he had to be who Remus wanted him to be, or he might not be allowed to stay. That meant constantly keeping in mind what Remus would want him to be doing.

Right now, for instance. Harry was tired. He wanted to go up to his room, maybe read one of his Quidditch books or write a letter to Ron. The Order was brilliant, but he'd been hanging around them for days, and he wanted some alone time. Trouble was, he really couldn't go up to his room. Harry had spent too much time in his room during his first few days, and Remus had told him he'd like him to spend more time socializing.

By the time he made it to the couch in the living room, though, Remus was gone. Sirius and Tonks weren't around—they'd headed back in the direction of their rooms after breakfast—and Kingsley had left for the day on some kind of Order business. That left Moody, sitting on a couch reading a newspaper. Harry hadn't talked to him much, so he was still having a hard time keeping from calling him "Professor." Then again, he'd never been able to work up the nerve to ask him what he did want to be called, so that didn't make things any easier.

"Where's Remus?" Harry asked.

Moody didn't even look up from the newspaper. "Went to Hogwarts, I reckon."

"Hogwarts? Why?"

"Don't know. But judging by the way he was dressed and the direction he sent his owl earlier today, I'd have to guess it has to do with you."

Harry's heart skipped at that. He didn't want to wait until Remus came back to Grimmauld Place to find out what that meeting was about—he wouldn't have time to prepare himself for that conversation.

Moody didn't know anything; he'd made that clear. Harry didn't want to ask Tonks—she had a tendency to tease, and he didn't think it would help to ask Sirius—Sirius tended to smooth things over, claim everything was alright.

Maybe Harry could find some clues about where Remus might be. Remus had never specifically told Harry to stay out of his things—that was one of those rules that went without saying—but Harry doubted Remus would find out. He'd be in and out in no more than a minute or two.

He checked the hallway twice to make sure no one was watching before he slipped into Remus's room.

It was as tidy as he would have expected Remus's room to be. He was sure Sirius's would have been the exact opposite, and he would have spent minutes on end looking for what he needed and probably ended up being caught. But there were on a few papers on Remus's desk, and one sat right in the middle, a letter written in Remus's handwriting:

Minerva,

If it isn't too much trouble, I'd like to request a meeting with you at your earliest convenience. Perhaps as early as tomorrow morning, if it can be arranged. I have some concerns about Harry and some of his recent behavior, and I feel your insights might be valuable.

Sincerely,

Remus

Harry swallowed hard and turned over the letter to find that McGonagall had written her reply on the other side and sent it back.

Remus,

You are always welcome to visit, and I am happy to advise as well as I am able with regards to your little troublemaker. I will plan to be in my office at Hogwarts between breakfast and lunch. Please feel free to Floo in at any time.

Minerva

So that settled it. Harry had failed. Remus was concerned about Harry's behavior—Harry was going to be sent away, one way or another.

He could accept that, but he didn't want to hear Remus say it. He was sure it would be absolutely terrible for to hear, and difficult for Remus to say as well.

A couple of years ago, Harry had stayed at Diagon Alley for a few weeks at the end of the summer after accidentally blowing up Aunt Marge. He'd finished his school work, shopped for school supplies, and eventually met up with Ron and Hermione before heading to school. There were more than a few weeks left this summer, but it still wouldn't be too terribly difficult to live on his own. He doubted anyone would even question it.

Harry couldn't catch the Knight bus during the day, but he might be able to get a cab. He had some money tucked away in his suitcase. He started to pack his suitcase, but he thought better of it. He would draw too much attention, waltzing down the street with all of his things. Instead, he picked up a smaller bag and packed only what he would need for a few days. He could buy new ones in Diagon Alley, after making a stop to Gringotts.

His only regret was for Sirius, who would probably be lonely without him, but he would send an owl soon enough to let them know where he was, and he'd make sure to write more often.

Harry told himself it was better this way, but he couldn't quite swallow back the lump in his throat as he climbed out of his window and headed down the street.

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Remus hardly bothered to take the time to brush away the Floo powder and ash that covered his clothes as he stepped out of the fireplace. He needed to speak with Harry right away. He needed to tell him everything Minerva had said to tell him, of course, and make sure he knew he was welcome in their home, but it was more than that. He needed to make sure Harry felt at home, and felt like Remus was his family member. Maybe he could take him out to Diagon Alley some time to shop for supplies and other things Harry might like, or to Hogsmeade for lunch and to look around so Remus could get some ideas of what to buy him for a birthday present. He definitely had some ideas about ways to allow Harry to ride his broom, and he was going to tell him to invite some of his friends over as soon as possible.

Because Minerva was right. If Remus was going to do this, he needed to do it right. He needed to stop wading and jump in; to stop being slightly better than the Dursleys, and instead become Harry's family. Just because the adoption would never be legal didn't give Remus any excuse to give the boy any less than his best. It was what James and Lily would have wanted.

But the boy wasn't in the common area. Neither Tonks nor Sirius hadn't seen him since breakfast, and Alastor had only seen him briefly after.

Remus knocked on Harry's door. It had been a little while since Harry had spent most of his time in his room, but he certainly wasn't anywhere else in the house. When there was no response, Remus slowly pushed the door open.

Harry wasn't in his room, and most of his things were gone. And the window was open.