Chapter Text
Harry was giddy with excitement that he wasn’t going to Dursleys. It was almost 5 p.m. and Richard was driving them all home. Emma was talking with Hermione about her term, she told her mom about lessons cheerfully, Harry sat in the middle between Remus and Hermione and nodding and saying “Mhm” where needed if Hermione mentioned him or asked him to confirm something. Soon they parked in front of Granger’s house, Harry began to bounce, he couldn’t wait till he would be in his room and his home!
Remus helped Grangers to unshrunk the trunk and then they went happily, discussing what they were going to do in the evening to their house.
“Dad, let’s watch a movie or play Wizarding chess or….” Remus chuckled: “We can do whatever we want, cub! Let’s just get home!” Remus was ecstatic that his cub, his son would be with him the whole time and they had plans for the summer and they would have a nice summer vacation to remember it!
They came in to the house, Lermy and Pipsey greeted them. Harry ran to his room and jumped on his bed: “Best bed ever!”
Harry, grinning like a mischievous child, jumped on the bed, his wild laughter filling the room. His feet barely touched the mattress before he sprang up again, arms flailing slightly to keep balance. The bed creaked under his weight, but he didn’t seem to care. It was a rare moment of unfiltered joy, unburdened by expectations, past traumas, or the weight of his name.
The door creaked open.
Remus stepped inside, his worn-out robes swaying slightly as he halted at the threshold. His amber eyes, tired yet always observant, widened for a split second at the unexpected sight before him. His lips twitched, as though caught between a reprimand and amusement.
For a moment, he simply watched.
A flicker of something old and half-forgotten crossed his face—nostalgia, perhaps. Harry, in that moment, looked so much like James. The reckless energy, the carefree abandon, the boyish defiance of rules. But then there was something else, something uniquely Harry—an innocence that hadn’t yet been completely stolen from him.
Remus exhaled, shaking his head slightly. A faint, weary smile ghosted across his lips.
“I don’t suppose I should tell you to stop,” he said, his voice warm with amusement. “But I will remind you that beds, unfortunately, do not possess the same resilience as their occupants.”
His tone was gentle, but beneath it lay something unspoken—an ache, a quiet sorrow for all the moments Harry should have had but never did. And so, despite himself, despite the world outside pressing in, he let the boy have this moment.
For just a little longer.
Remus unshrunk the trunk, and Harry stopped jumping and went straight to his trunk he wanted to unpack it, but Remus smiled mischievously and waved his wand and all his things flew back to their places. Harry smiled widely at him: “What is the spell?”
Remus said: “Explico Locus, it’s a reverse spell for Pack! It makes life easier!”
He saw the anticipation in his son and asked : “Do you want to learn it?”
Harry nodded eagerly, watching as Remus put his suitcase from his pocket unshrank it, drew his wand with effortless grace. “The spell Explico,” he said, enunciating clearly. “comes from Latin—explicare—which means to unfold or unroll. Quite fitting, really.”
He pointed his wand at the suitcase and demonstrated the motion slowly. “Start with a small clockwise circle—this represents opening the contents. Then, a quick flick upward to lift the items, followed by a sweeping arc outward to guide them into place.”
With a fluid movement, he traced the pattern in the air, his wand glowing faintly. “Explico.”
At once, the suitcase unlatched itself, and its contents lifted gracefully into the air—robes shaking themselves out before folding neatly into the wardrobe, books floating to the shelves, and an ink bottle settling onto the desk without a drop spilled.
Harry grinned. “That’s brilliant!”
Remus chuckled. “Your turn. Just be careful with the flick—too sharp, and you might send your socks flying out the window.”
Harry raised his wand, mirroring Remus’s motions, and took a steady breath. “Explico!”
The suitcase trembled before popping open, and a few shirts haphazardly launched themselves onto the bed. One nearly smacked Harry in the face.
Remus pressed his lips together, clearly suppressing a smile. “Not bad. But maybe a little less enthusiasm on the flick.”
Harry laughed, adjusting his grip. “Right. Less flying socks.”
“It’s totally fine, let them fly, now let’s learn “Pack”
Remus adjusted the cuffs of his robes and gestured toward the desk, where books, parchment, and a few stray quills lay neatly stacked. “Now that you’ve learned how to unpack, let’s make sure you can pack things up just as efficiently.”
He drew his wand and gave Harry a small, amused glance. “This one’s even simpler. The spell is just Pack! No fancy Latin this time—just a straightforward command. The magic does the rest.”
Harry frowned slightly. “That easy?”
Remus nodded. “It’s all about intention. You’re telling the objects where to go, and if you do it correctly, they’ll sort themselves neatly.” He demonstrated, pointing his wand at the neatly stacked belongings.
His wrist moved in a small inward spiral—as if gathering the items together—then finished with a sharp downward flick. “Pack!”
At once, the books snapped shut, stacked themselves in a neat pile, and flew smoothly into the open suitcase. The quills rolled inside their case, and the parchment stacked itself tidily on top. The suitcase clicked shut with a satisfying snap.
Harry let out a low whistle. “That’s really useful.”
Remus smiled. “It is. But be careful—the flick at the end is key. Too sharp, and your things might just hurl themselves across the room instead of packing neatly.”
Harry raised his wand and mimicked the motion. Spiral, flick. “Pack!”
The books trembled before launching themselves into the trunk—not exactly neatly, but at least they landed inside. A few quills rolled off the edge of the desk before following suit.
Remus tilted his head, half-smiling. “Not bad for a first try. At least you didn’t send anything flying into the fireplace.”
Harry laughed. “I’ll take that as a win.”
They laughed at it! Then Remus took his suitcase, gestured him to come with him and they went to his room: “So now cub, unpack my things,”. Remus was watching his cub carefully, Harry knitted his brows in concentration, he said incantation and the suitcase unpacked itself, all his things flew to its places, Harry smiled, pleased with his success.
Lermy popped in to announce dinner, they went downstairs to a kitchen: Lermy outdid herself: roasted chicken, fluffy mashed potatoes and some vegetables on which Harry grimaced, Remus noticed it and said: “You know, if you eat a plate of roast chicken with vegetables and mashed potatoes we will go the movie after it,” Harry smiled at him and said: “Will there be a caramel popcorn?”
Remus chuckled and put him a spoonful of vegetables and a piece of roasted chicken and a little of his favorite mashed potatoes, and smiled mischievously: “If you eat this, you will have a caramel popcorn your favorite ice cream and a movie is your choice!” Harry’s eyes widened: “Promise?” Remus did the sad eyes face but playful one: “When did I ever lie to you?”
Harry’s felt a pang of pain and said: “Never!”
So they sat and ate, it was really funny for Remus to watch Harry, because he did so much “ew” and “disgusting” sounds but anyway he ate it all, even his “the most hateful” vegetable boiled onions, once he told him in confidence that he didn’t mind the onion at all but the boiled onion was the most disgusting thing.
“Dad, I am done!” he said drinking by big gulps orange juice.
“Ok, go take your jumper,” he said. While Harry was upstairs he sided the boiled onions and ate with gusto others respected vegetables in this house.
When Harry came back, he summoned his jumper and they apparated.