Chapter Text
A week in to living with Remus Lupin, the man noticed at all of Harry’s clothes were too big and worn out. He told Harry how they were going to go shopping for clothes in a few days. At that moment, Harry’s gut twisted. Just looking around the house, Harry knew the man didn’t have a lot of money and was probably scrapping by every month.
The house was a little cottage. There was two small bathrooms and one tiny bathroom. The living room and dining room were squeezed together. The kitchen was also small, but big enough for both Remus and Harry to cook dinner. But the cottage was near some woods and it had a small garden that Remus uses to grow his own food. It was homey and Harry loved it. Sure, his room was bland now, but over time, it will grow.
The money problem was that he worked at a small book shop. The owner was a muggle-born that just wanted to own a book shop. The town was filled with Muggles and Wizards, so the shop had both types of books. The Wizard ones were hidden in a room only wizards could walk in and see.
Harry didn’t want Remus to send any money on him when he barely had any to begin with. Harry quickly owled Hagrid, asking for his key to his vault so he could buy his own clothes. In two days, Hedwig was back with the key but no note. Weird.
“Ready to go, Harry?” asked Remus as they stood in front of the fireplace. Harry nodded and took some floo powder from the tiny bowl.
Harry learned about the Floo Network the day he got back. Remus led Harry to a room were a man stood outside the door. The man asked for a I.D., which turned out to be his wand, before letting them in. The room just had a large fireplace and a small table. On the table was a large shallow bowl with powder inside. Remus then explained how it worked and they flooed home.
Harry stood in Remus’s small fireplace and threw the powder down, yelling “Diagon Alley!”
Harry stumbled into a warm shop and the store clerk didn’t even looked up. The shop was pretty small with only the fireplace and the checkout counter with shelves behind it, lined with jars filled with floo powder. Harry moved away from the fireplace and Remus walked out. Dusting off himself and Harry, Remus smiled.
“Come on, Harry. Off to the first store.”
“Wait, Moony,” Harry called out, holding onto his pinky. “Can we go to Gringotts first?”
Remus’s cheeks went pink. “Harry…”
“No,” said Harry. “I have my own money; I can pay for my own clothes. I know you can’t afford it.” The last sentence was a whisper and Remus gave him a guilty look.
“I’m supposed to take care of you,” said Remus.
“And you are,” said Harry. “But my vault has enough for clothes and school supplies.”
The man agreed and both of them headed to Gringotts. With the key, the goblins let them through, and they filled a ragged money bag with galleons, stickles, and knuts.
They went through different shops in the alley. There was a muggle clothes shop that sold different clothing items. At the end, Harry got: two robes, black and green; five pairs of trousers, black and gray; two jumpers, both different shades of green; eight shirts, green, black, gray, and maroon; two hooded jackets, blue and green; and a pair of shoes. Remus’s face went white every time Harry got rang up.
At the end of their shopping trip, Remus got ice cream for them both at Florean Fortescue’s Ice-Cream Parlor feeling bad that Harry had to spend his own money. Harry got lemon in a bowl while Remus got chocolate swirl. The shopping trip was fun for Harry. Remus told more stories about his parents and Harry told him storied about his first year in Hogwarts. Like the time Kate made Draco laugh so hard, he snorted up pumpkin juice. He also told him the time he let a snake lose at the zoo.
Most people gave the two weird looks; not because he was Harry Potter, no one really knew what he looked like and he kept the scar hidden, but because they looked nothing alike. Harry was a small little boy with warm, tan skin, big green eyes, and messy jet-black hair. Remus was more on the pale side, with scars covering his whole face, soft brown eyes, and brown hair. But Harry was proud to call Remus his parent even if they weren’t blood related.
All summer, none of Harry’s friends sent him a letter. It was now the morning of his birthday and he woke up to Remus walking in with a cupcake. He was singing Happy Birthday in a soft voice which made Harry give him a smile. When he was done singing, he was standing next to Harry’s bed, holding out the cupcake. Harry sat up and took the cupcake from his hands.
“Thank you, Moony,” whispered Harry as he blew out the single candle.
“Bring it out so you can eat it for breakfast,” said Remus as he kissed the top of Harry’s head. The two months they had together, the man was getting more comfortable with showing affection. Harry loved it. “I have the day off so we can spend it together.”
They walked out of Harry’s room and to the dining table. They were two plates of breakfast set out and hot chocolate. Harry rushed over and placed his cupcake next to his meal. Sitting down, he looked over to Remus who was smiling.
When they were both seated, Harry started eating. It was chocolate-chip pancakes with eggs and bacon. Remus finished before him and Harry was shoving the food down. The man seemed to be always hungry. Even with the amazing breakfast Remus made him, he was still feeling down. Now, don’t get him wrong, Harry knew this was going to be a great birthday, but he wished his friends were here.
“What’s the plan for today?” asked Harry, standing up to wash his plate off. Remus was sipping at his hot chocolate.
“It’s a surprise,” said Remus in a cheery voice. “Now, after you’re done, go take a shower and get dressed.”
Harry nodded and put his plate on the drying rack. Remus and Harry made a plan for showers. Remus would take one at night while Harry took one in the morning. This was so they could both get hot water. Harry walked into the bathroom and took a quick shower. As he washed himself, he thought about what Remus could be planning. He knew he wouldn’t get a big party since Remus couldn’t afford it but maybe they were going out to eat.
Wrapping the towel around his waist, he exited the bathroom and hurried to his room. Luckily, Remus was in his own room with the door close which meant he was changing himself. When the door closed, Harry unwrapped the towel and dried off his hair. He slipped on black trousers and a gray shirt. Opening the window and sticking his head out, he determined it was cold enough for a second layer. A pale green jumper was added to his outfit. After he put on his shoes, he walked out of his room to see Remus waiting on the couch.
“I’m ready,” said Harry.
“Ok, lets head out,” said Remus, standing up. He was wearing his nice robe and a soft gray jumper. He had on black trousers and his shoes were shiny.
“Are we going somewhere nice?” asked Harry as they walked to the front door.
“You could say that,” said Remus. He held out his hand for Harry to take and took out his wand then popped away.
They now stood in front of a large metal gate with a large ‘m’ on it in fancy writing. A large manor was behind the gate with a large pathway leading to it. Harry’s mouth opened wide. What? They stood in place for a minute, letting Harry’s legs get feeling again. He was still not use to appearing. Remus then placed his wand onto the gate and a loud pop was heard. A tiny little creature was standing near them. It had large floppy ears and big blue eyes. An old potato bag covered its body.
“Tinky will bring you inside,” it said. Harry looked over at Remus who didn’t look surprised to see this creature. It held out it’s hand and Remus took it, bending down. Another pop was heard, and they were inside an entrance room. They walls were a light gray, and the only light came from the window above the large metal door. A long, skinny was placed by a wall with a single potted plant on it. Two coat hangers were on either side of the door. One had lots of hats while the other had thick coats. The entrance way led to a set of large marble stairs and two halls leading different ways.
The creature bowed and disappeared with a pop after saying “Third door to the left.”
“Come on Harry, we’re late.” Remus started walking and Harry hurried after.
“Is this someone’s house?” asked Harry, looking around the hall. The doors were largely spread out and there were marble columns lining the walls. Paintings were hung up on every wall between the door. They were blinking at Harry as he walked with Remus. Some sneered and a lot were blond. They stopped in front of a large door; this one was black wood instead of metal.
“Yes, this is someone’s house,” said Remus, grabbing onto the handle. “They planned your party.”
With a click, Remus pushed open the door. The room was large and bright. It looked like a living room with a fireplace and multiple leather couches. But that only took up part of the room. There were long tables on one side of the room, covered in snacks, drinks, gifts, and games. On the other side was a long table with many chairs around it. A plate and goblet at every chair. Green streamers hang from the ceiling and white balls of light covered the high ceiling. There were lots of red-heads around the room with two blondes and two brunettes. There was someone with black hair and two people with dark skin. Harry looked up at Remus with wide eyes and the man smiled.
“Surprise.”
The first to notice the two was Kate. She walked up to them and smiled.
“Why hasn’t anyone sent me a letter?” asked Harry before Kate could speak. She blinked, taking in the question, before speaking.
“We have. Draco was upset you didn’t reply to his letters but Mr. Lupin floo called Daddy, asking why no one sent any. It is weird you never got them. Draco sent one every two days.”
At the mention of his name, Draco rushed up to the group. Harry opened his arms to hug him, but Draco stopped next to Kate.
“You git!” yelped Draco. “You made me worried all summer.” He flicked Harry’s nose before hugging him tightly.
“Sorry, but it’s not my fault.” Harry noticed Draco grew a few more inches and Harry’s head was below his chin now.
“It doesn’t matter now,” said Draco. “It’s your birthday party, it’s time to have fun.”
Then he dragged him around the room. Ron and his large family were there. Mrs. Weasley gave him a hug and Mr. Weasley asked about muggle stuff. Apparently, he worked with muggle things to find out what they do and what they were used for. Only two of Ron’s bothers were here, the twins. They were already in the party poppers and messing with their own products. They wished Harry a happy birthday by swinging him around. Ron was playing Wizard chess with Blaise. He gave Harry a smile with a “Happy Birthday, mate” and went back to playing, more focused on the game than anything else. Ron’s sister was also there, hiding behind her mom when Harry and Draco came over. Harry tried waving at her, but she hid away.
Snape, Mrs. Malfoy, and what looked like Blaise’s mom sat by the fire. Mrs. Malfoy wished him a happy birthday while the dark skinned lady smiled. The two women chatted away while Snape read his book. Remus joined them and sat near Snape, listening to the two talk. Neville and Hermione were having an interesting conversation about the different herbs and what they are used for. They only stopped their conversation to wave at Harry.
Harry, Draco, and Kate all sat near the gift table and Draco told Harry all about what he and Kate did over the break. Apparently, both of their families stayed at one of the Malfoy houses in France and stayed there for two weeks. While Draco talked about all the shops there and how magnificent they were. Kate told Harry how she was forced to eat cooked frogs and snails, she got sick the next day. The unusual food making her stomach upset.
Soon, Ron and Hermione joined the three while Neville and Blaise huddled by the fire whispering to each other. Harry watched them for a while before turning to the others.
“I think Neville and Blaise like each other,” Harry whispered.
“Really?” asked Ron, who looked over at the two. They were now laughing.
“I mean,” said Harry, “it really obvious. Look at the two of them.”
Hermione gave him a dumb look. “You just now figured that out. Harry, you are really bad at noticing people’s crushed.” Then she looked over at Draco who turned pink. A weird feeling bubbled in Harry’s chest while he frowned. Did Draco like Hermione?
The day went on with Harry having an amazing time at the Malfoy Manor. Luckily, according to Draco, Mr. Malfoy never showed up to the party. Lunch passed with loud chattered and clinking of forks on plates. The meal was tasty with roasted chicken, peas, mash potatoes, cranberry sauce, and warm sour dough. Harry had two plates with mostly chicken and mash potatoes.
Soon, it was time to open gifts. Harry was shocked with all the gifts that were passed to him. Hermione got him a book, ‘The History of Seekers’, and a hand full of chocolate frogs. Ron got him a tin of treacle tarts. Mrs. Weasley gave him some homemade fudge. Blaise and Neville got him dragon hid Quidditch gloves. They were a shiny green and fit him perfectly, a charm was placed of them so they would grow with Harry. Kate and Snape’s gift were a tiny picture book and inside was pictures of Lily Potter from her early teen years to before Hogwarts. Most of the picture were of her alone but some had Snape in them as well. Remus gave Harry a broom polishing set that was nice looking and a plain chocolate bar. And last, Draco got three nice button-up shirts, two green with a black one.
The last event of the day was blowing out the candles of a very large white cake. They sang him happy birthday, but Harry liked this morning’s cupcake birthday song.
This birthday was his best one so far, just beating the one last year when Hagrid told him he was a wizard. When Harry and Remus got home, Harry was too full to eat dinner. Remus made them tea and they sat by the fire until night fell.
“I’m heading to bed, Moony,” whispered Harry. “Good night.”
Remus looked up from his book and smiled at Harry. “Good night, Harry.”
Harry walked to his bedroom, ready to quickly go to bed but something stopped him. Someone was waiting for him on his bed.