Miasma

Miasma

By Dimgwrthien

Friday

Remus was up much earlier than usual, sitting up in his bed, staring out of the open bedroom door, where he could see the corner of Harry's door. Worry filled him. Dumbledore had obviously been talking about the article mentioning Harry, Remus was sure of that seeing as he had been talking about that too. If only he read the newspaper for a minute longer and saw it to tell Dumbledore abou that -

But he had to have known already. Cursing the old man to a life of misery, Remus got out of bed and closed the door, getting changed into a set of patched robes. Well, there had to be one plus side to Severus' potion; he would no longer have to repair his robes every month. He walked out into the front room, glancing at the window. There was a distant shape coming from the light of the near-full moon, and a soft noise told him an owl landed on the sill. He let it in, taking the newspaper, and depositing several more Knuts.

He unfolded it quickly and glanced through the headings. However, Remus did not have to look far to find what he wanted; more news on the breakouts were on the first page.

The Ministry of Magic regrets to announce that, late last evening, there was an mass breakout from the prison of Azkaban.

Cornelius Fudge, Minister of Magic, confirms that five high-security prisoners have escaped near five in the evening and has already informed the Muggle Prime Minister that they are armed and dangerous. Muggles will be informed of their carrying "guns" (a Muggle object used to kill).

"We feel that this first breakout is only the start," admits Fudge, looking worried. "Dementors - though still in our control! - seem to have been... slacking off their duties."

Remus read no further than that. So more was to be expected. Bad news.

He put the paper down and rubbed his forehead, trying to think of what Dumbledore would be saying later. Another owl hit the sill and entered the opened window with a letter.

Taking the letter off and recognizing the Hogwarts crest, Remus read.

Remus,

Under the current situation, there are spells that will be needed on your home for both of your's protection. Come see me at nine.

Albus Dumbledore

'Like I didn't expect that to come,' Remus thought bitterly, crumpling up the letter and glancing at the clock. It was not even six, which gave him several hours to wait. He sat at the chair, closed his eyes, and returned to sleep.

When Remus woke, the sounds of footsteps filled the house again. Harry was padding up to him, standing in the doorway with the early morning sun filtering on his face and casting shadows. Remus guessed that he must have been obvious in his thoughts, for Harry asked, "What happened?"

Remus motioned for Harry to sit next to him, and sighed. "I'm assuming you've never heard of Azkaban?" Harry shook his head. "What about Death Eaters?" Shaking his head again, Harry furrowed his brows. "Well, Harry, Azkaban in a Wizarding prison, and Death Eaters are supporters of Voldemort, whom I'm sure you've heard of."

Harry's expression was frozen in anger once Voldemort's name came up. Remus could not blame him for it.

"Well, years back, around the time you were born, the Death Eaters were - were doing horrible things." He decided that that would be enough to tell Harry, rather than going into detail about the tortures they used on Muggles, whether by magic or just their own sick imaginations. "Some of them went to Azkaban. They've escaped."

Eyes going wide, Harry asked, "All of them?"

"Not all of them," Remus corrected. "But some of them. And there's a chance that more may get out, too."

Harry moved his dangling foot around in circles, staring at it. He glanced up at Remus again and asked, "Are they out to get me?"

Yes. It was the thing Remus felt the need to tell Harry, and he knew it was true. Why would the Death Eaters break out otherwise? He knew that Azkaban must be a dreadful place - and hopefully Sirius would rot there forever - but would they put so much risk into getting out? The answer to the question was so obvious, but how bad would it sound to Harry? What fear could it cause?

"They are," Remus answered. The truth could not hurt Harry as much as an unexpected Death Eater attack.

Harry just nodded. "Were you expecting something like this?" Remus asked him shrewdly, watching the boy go back to dangling his feet.

"Sorta, I guess." Harry swung his legs onto the couch beside him and leaned into Remus' chest. "I mean, if I'm special to so many people, I have to be hated by some, too."

Still wondering who the adult really was in the room, Remus wrapped his arms unconsciously around Harry's thin frame and caught what he was doing. It had been so long - too long, in fact - since he had held a person that close, hugged them. It was an almost unfamiliar feeling by that point, and the cold of the day did not seem to bother him as much.

"I have to speak to Professor Dumbledore in a few hours," Remus said into Harry's untidy hair. He would have suggested combing it, but after being near James for years, he knew that it was pointless to even give it a second thought. "Would you like to come?" Either way, Remus knew, Harry would be stuck going with him. There was almost nothing to protect him from the Death Eaters at that point.

'Except for me,' Remus thought. 'I'm in the way.'

"Alright," Harry murmured into Remus' chest, words slurring as he spoke. "Sounds like fun."

"Would you like some breakfast?" Remus asked, almost hoping the boy would say no so that he would never have to move again.

Harry only shrugged. "Not hungry right now." He moved his head, trying to find a more comfortable spot to rub against on the older man's body, but soon gave up. Remus remembered Sirius doing something similar when they were at Hogwarts, leaning up against him and complaining that Remus was too bony to lean against. Smiling at the memory, Remus had to admit that the problem had not yet been solved.

Don't think about Sirius.

He forced himself back into the present, still frozen there with Harry in his arms. From the deep breathing coming from him, Remus guessed that Harry had fallen asleep again, but did not make to move.

Ten o'clock came too quickly, and both were dressed fully only just in time for Remus to remember that it was near impossible to Apparate anywhere nearer to Hogwarts, and even if he could, Harry would not be able to.

Grabbing the pot of Floo Powder on the mantle, Remus lowered it to Harry's height. "This is Floo Powder. Have you ever used it?" When Harry shook his head, Remus explained, "You just throw it into the fire and say where you want to go, and it takes you there. Interested? Good. Just take a handful and throw it in - oh! Incendio." Remus directed his wand to the fireplace and lit the fire, turning back to Harry. "Throw it in and say 'Hogwarts' clearly. Don't panic or anything. It feels weird the first time, but it's not too bad."

Harry took a small handful of the powder and threw it into the fire, then stepped into the green flames. When he opened his mouth, Remus guessed ash scrpt in, for his voice sounded weak while he said, "Hogwarts!" Remus followed soon after, managing to keep a clear mouth.

Once falling out into the Headmaster's office, he found Harry on the ground, having fallen from the fire, coughing. Remus picked him up and placed him back down on the ground, clapping his back to help him breathe. When Harry stopped coughing, Remus repaired his now-broken glasses and gave them back.

"That - that was weird," Harry spluttered, wiping his mouth with his long sleeve. Remus smiled.

"You'll get used to it."

However, at these words, Remus wondered if Harry would get used to it soon. If he only had about a month with the boy, there would be so little time to do so much.

An amused voice came over them. "Have a fun trip, Harry?" Dumbledore had appeared behind them, having just stood up from sitting in a large armchair. He glanced at Remus. "I am surprised to see that you've shown him the magic of Floo Powder so early." He smiled at Remus' look. "It's better to show him now rather than when he's in a constraint of time while leaving."

"Yessir," Remus answered, almost reverting to school-boy manners.

"I believe we have several matters concerning Harry's safety - and your own - to discuss. Harry, I think it would be best if you sat in on this. Come." He led them both to the set of chairs where he had been sitting. Harry and Remus both sat, but Dumbledore remained standing, picking up a piece of parchment. He glanced at it. "First off, spells will need to be cast, including - but not limited to - the Fidelius Charm." Remus nodded. "Would you like me to be your Secret Keeper."

"Yes," Remus answered without bothering to think it over. He trusted no one in the world more than he trusted Dumbledore. He had to admit, the man made mistakes, many of them, but he would never betray them.

"Good. We can preform the spell once this meeting is over. Next, Remus, I believe teaching Harry side-along Apparation would be a good idea, along with a basic guide to Floo Powder." He smiled at Harry, who gave him a faint smile. "I believe it is also time to teach Harry several defensive spells. I will assure the Ministry that he in safe hands and that he will not misuse this power. Head up to Diagon Alley at any time you wish to pick up a wand. I daresay Mr. Ollivander will be very interested to meet you, Harry. It appears he is very interested in the type of wand you will choose." Lowering his voice slightly, Dumbledore told him, "Mr. Ollivander is not one of the people who is interested in your gift. He is interested in you as a person. He knew your parents too, not too personally, but he can tell so much about a person by their wand."

Harry just nodded, sounding amazed at more mentions of his parents.

"I would suggest defensive spells, along with simple jinxs in case of an attack, which should be unlikely after the Fidelius. Does that sounds good to you, Harry?"

He nodded, then asked, "So I'll be allowed to use magic?"

"Not quite," said Dumbledore. "While Remus teaches you, you can practice them, but other than that, you may only use these spells as a defense when being attacked. It is hard enough to convince the Ministry to allow you to use them then. You'll have a small headstart to the children going to Hogwarts in your year, and they will have no power if anything happens to them at this point." He frowned. "I've been trying to convince Cornelius to ease up on the underage wizardry laws for years, but he won't listen." He shook his head quickly before returning to Remus. "Do you understand what Harry needs to learn?"

Remus nodded. "I'll be onto that as soon as possible."

"That's settled. Take this." He handed the parchment to Remus. "A list of spells that you should teach him at once." Remus took it and glanced over it before pocketing it. "The next matter I have to speak with you is a note passed on from Severus. He says to meet him at the same time and date, but you will report to his new address." He took another parchment off his desk, which had been ripped into pieces, Remus could tell, and scrawled onto a piece, then handed it to Remus, who pocketed that, too. "And last of all, I have several notes for you from people willing to be tutored by you." He handed Remus another several pieces of parchment, all of which seemed to have been resealed and addressed to Remus. He smiled.

"Thank you, sir." Dumbledore nodded and moved out of the way, waving his hand at the fireplace.

"After you," he said. "We can preform the spell at once. I believe Minerva would be more than happy to preform the actual spell." He raised his wand, waved it once, and Remus watched as a phoenix burst from the end of it, running through the walls and out of sight.

"What was that?" Harry asked, amazed.

"A Patronus," Dumbledore answered. "They're very useful, whether against dementors or sending a message." He handed the small packet of Floo Powder to Remus, who took some and entered the fire, finding himself at his home very quickly. Harry followed him soon after, managing to stay upright on his landing, and crashing into Remus. Remus swung the boy out of the way as Dumbledore appeared, looking as if he rather enjoyed the whole thing.

He turned back and glanced at the fire, watching as a fourth shape came through, and there was Minerva McGonagall again, straightening her glasses and brushing dust off of her green robes. She gave Harry a rare smile and Harry returned it.

"Minerva, would you be so kind as to preform the Fidelius Charm using myself as the Secret Keeper?"

Paling slightly, she answered, "Albus, is that needed? I mean, it's so difficult and only used when -"

"I am sure that the protection is needed," he answered back rather sternly. "Let us step outside."

The group walked outside, and Harry stared at everyone in turn as though asking for an answer as to what was going on. McGongall had already taken out her wand and looking between Remus and Dumbledore. Remus and Dumbledore both took out their own wands, holding them at their sides.

Remus had never seen the spell preformed. All he knew was that it was rather like taking an Unbreakable Vow, though the results were different.

"Remus Lupin, do you understand the risks of taking Albus Dumbledore as your Secret Keeper?" she asked him, looking rather nervous.

"Yes," he answered.

"Albus Dumbledore, do you recognize the risks there are in taking the position of Remus Lupin's Secret Keeper?"

"Yes," Dumbledore answered, looking rather serious.

McGonagall watched as two gold threads floated from each of the men's wands and hovered in the air for a moment, linking, then slowly becoming invisible.

"Remus, tell the address to Albus."

"Eighteen Miasma Lane, Hogsmeade."

Dumbledore repeated the adress back to him, and then McGonagall closed her eyes, moving her lips as she made difficult movements with her wand. Harry watched everyone in confusion.

When Remus saw her open her eyes again, she glanced around. "I think it worked. Harry, does anything look different to you?"

Harry glanced around and gasped. "The house is gone!" he said, pointing to what Remus knew would be a nothing that used to be his house.

"Good," Dumbledore said, waving his wand and catching a pen and parchment that fell from the air. "These are amazing Muggle inventions," he told Remus at his confused look. "Pens make quills look so hard." He unscrewed the top and wrote on the parchment. Then, he handed it to Harry. "Read this and memorize it, Harry."

Harry did so and handed back the paper, which Dumbledore pocketed. "Now think about it.

Closing his eyes as he did so, Harry waited before opening again, and gasped. "It's back!" he told them excitedly.

"I'm assuming that will be it?" McGongall asked Dumbledore, pocketing her wand. When he nodded, Dumbledore turned back to Remus and placed an aged hand on his shoulder.

"Take care," he said to Remus, squeezing his shoulder. He walked over to Harry and said something to him, but Remus was too busy thanking McGonagall and admiring her spellwork to listen. Finally, the two teachers turned and walked out of the street.

"What happened?" Harry asked.

"I'll tell you once we're inside," Remus answered, still gazing around. "It'll take a while to explain, so feel free to get out your candy."

The rest of the afternoon was spent telling Harry - who munched happily on chocolate frogs and picking his way through boxes of Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans, which he grew to know - about the Fidelius Charm and what it did. The boy was in open-mouthed amazment during most of the talk, asking more questions than Remus would have thought possible from such a small boy.

Remus ended by telling Harry that his parents were under the Fidelius Charm, too, which he was not sure wasa smart thing to do once Harry asked him the question he had been dreading to answer.

"Who was their Secret Keeper?"

There were two choices, Remus knew. He could lie to the boy and deny the knowledge, or he could tell the truth straight out and risk loosing his temper. However, while thinking of his own father holding the truth about the werewolf who had really bitten him and how he flared up then about keeping such an important thing secret, he knew that Harry deserved the truth. The truth, he knew, no matter how painful, was important. It would have helped so much during the First War to know about Greyback when he went to get the werewolves on their side. All of the hints Greyback dropped had suddenly made sense once he was told the truth.

"It was our friend, Sirius Black." After a moment of silence, Remus added, "He's in Azkaban."

"Why did my parents die then? Was he a Death Eater?" Harry did not seem too disturbed about the information yet, though Remus figured the way he acted after living with the Dursleys may have had something to do with his own temper.

"He ended up being a Death Eater," Remus explained quietly. "But Harry, it's - it's not something to talk about, really." 'What I really mean,' Remus thought bitterly, 'is that if you make me talk about it, you really will be the only adult around.'

Instead, he said, "Harry, could you pass me some of my chocolate? I think it got into one of your bags."