Chapter Text
Harry had dreamt of dead things all year, dead things, rotten things, beyond rotten things, bones that had aged so long from the life of their bodies that they were bare of all flesh and sinew and were yet malevolent. It was worse when he had to wake to the living nightmare that was the Dursleys, but things were better now.
Voldemort and whatever minion his brain concocted to torture him with faded easily to the background when for the past few weeks Harry had been staying at the Weasley’s ancestral home, otherwise known as the Burrow. He had even been able to visit with Sirius and Remus who were both blissfully happy. Harry had told them about the dreams, but that it was nothing to worry about. Whether it really was or not, Harry didn’t want to think about. The pair didn’t seem overly concerned or at least they never let on.
Remus was the one who had saved him from the Dursleys. Harry still held a lot of affection for his former Professor, but being rescued from the Dursleys felt more personal, made the man more Remus and less Professor Lupin in his mind.
Things had been slightly better after Sirius’ visit with Aunt Petunia, but this was Pivet Drive and Sirius was still on probation. Remus would have went ahead and claimed for rights to care for Harry, but Harry knew that the law restricted Remus’ moves heavily because of his status as a werewolf.
Ron had wrote to him. Somehow Mr. Weasley had gotten tickets to the Quidditch World Cup, and they had invited Harry to come along. They wrote to say that someone would be along to collect him soon and the Dursleys were more than glad to get rid of him.
On the day of his departure the atmosphere at Pivet Drive was extremely tense. The imminent arrival at their house of an assortment of wizards was making the Dursleys uptight and irritable.
“I hope you told them to dress properly, these people,” Uncle Vernon had said. “I’ve seen the sort of stuff your lot wear. They’d better have the decency to put on normal clothes, that’s all.”
“They are going to drive aren’t they?” he had asked when a knock sounded at the front door.
“Early? How inconsiderate? Do they think that that we have nothing else better to do then to make sure that you get gone some place? We could have been out and not returned until five o’clock on the nose.” Harry merely rolled his eyes, knowing that they would have complained either way.
Harry went to the door and threw it open, ready to accept Mr. Weasley or Ron, but it wasn’t either of them.
It was….
“Remus!” said Harry as he hugged the other man.
“Harry!” he said, returning the hug. The two pulled back and Remus said, “Are you ready to go then? Let me help you get your stuff.”
And since Harry was more than ready to go, he ushered Remus into the house.
“Vernon. Petunia,” Remus greeted the Dursleys politely.
“Ugh,” they said, barely acknowledging him. Remus merely chuckled.
“Having a good holiday, Dudley?” Remus asked kindly. Dudley hugged his bottom like he was suffering from a very heinous memory of a particularly bad bathroom experience and hid behind Aunt Petunia’s frail frame.
Harry and Remus gathered his things. Remus levitated his trunk, causing Uncle Vernon to have a minor coronary, while Harry carried Hedwig. It would be good to let her out at the Burrow. Mrs. Weasley always said that she was the best rat hunter she had ever seen.
“Well…bye then,” Harry said to the Dursleys.
They didn’t reply.
Harry moved toward the door, wondering what kind of car Remus had borrowed to pick him up in. But just as he reached the boundary between the living room and the hall, Remus put out a hand and held him back. He was looking at the Dursleys in amazement.
“I believe Harry said goodbye to you. Didn’t you hear him?”
“It doesn’t matter,” Harry muttered, anxious to leave.
Still, Remus didn’t remove his hand from Harry’s shoulder.
“You aren’t going to see your nephew til next summer,” Remus said, voice cold. “Surely you’ll say goodbye to him.”
Uncle Vernon stiffened as Aunt Petunia and Dudley cowered behind him.
“Good bye, then,” Uncle Vernon said shortly.
“See you,” said Harry, putting one foot further. But Remus still wasn’t moving.
“It isn’t worth it, Pro... Remus,” he said. But Remus stepped further into the room.
“You have a very nice place here,” he said to the Dursleys. “Very clean,” he walked to the fireplace and ran a hand along the mantel. “Good job, Harry,” he said. “You are the one who dusts aren’t you? And mops and sweeps and cooks? Isn’t that what you said?”
Harry merely nodded, wondering where the man was going with this. He may have only been starting to get to know Remus, but he knew this man really well.
This man was Professor Lupin and he was about to teach a lesson.
“Ah,” he said, startling the three stick figures. “It seems as if I’ve found a problem.”
“There’s no problem with our home,” said Uncle Vernon bravely. “It’s even better if people like you don’t like it.”
Remus smiled.
“Of course not, good sir. There’s nothing wrong with your house stylistically. It’s just not entirely functional for a wizard. Besides I think there’s something wrong with your fireplace. I’ll just fix it for you.”
“Oh no you do…”
Remus drew his wand, drying up Uncle Vernon’s words.
“Oh,” he said smiling wide. “It will only take a moment.” Remus tapped the fireplace once, twice then asked Harry to move to his side. Harry did.
Then the boards that had been blocking up the fireplace exploded out into the middle of the room, dust and debris littering the area.
“There we go,” said Remus as he chucked a handful of Floo powder into the fireplace and inviting green flames lit up inside. Remus stepped into the flames and then Harry followed, an awed look on his face.
Did he really just?
Oh, yeah, he did.
Uncle Vernon was looking around the living room in shock, but Dudley was sitting in a corner devouring something off of the coffee table.
“Oh,” said Remus. “I do hope that you’ll accept the cake I left. It’s a special thank you from Sirius and I for taking care of Harry this summer.”
Aunt Petunia looked toward the coffee table and the cake that was not sitting there, but that was being steadily fed into Dudley’s wide mouth and froze in terror. “No!” she screeched as Dudley dropped the cake and started to bloat.
And perhaps, Harry considered, it was the water weight that he had been putting off and putting on again this whole summer as he fought to control his new “diet”, but then Harry saw his ears and his face enlarge in a distinctive and very familiar circular fashion.
Remus had pulled an Aunt Marge.
Harry looked to his right and grabbed the offered Floo powder out of Remus hands.
“Don’t worry,” Remus shouted. “He should return to normal in a few hours. Wouldn’t open any windows though.” And then together, Remus and Harry threw the powder to the ground, and shouted, “The Burrow!”
Mischief managed, Harry thought with a wry smile as he and Remus were swept up in green flames.