Legacy

Chapter One

You said the world was magic I was wide-eyed and laughing

We were dancing up to the bright side

Forget about your ego, forget about your pride

And you will never have to compromise

But you were only joking

Joking, the Indigo Girls

*************************

October 2012

Minerva McGonagall had a problem.

Times like this she missed Albus Dumbledore the most. His portrait continued to give her sage advice and the benefit of all his wisdom as best as he could from his honoured place on the wall, but it was not the same.

The last time she saw him was at Harry Potter's birthday party, in Brendan Farms, the small village where Harry and Ginny lived. He had looked weary, she thought, and had surprised everyone with his gift to Harry - Fawkes, the lovely phoenix that had graced the Headmaster's Office for many years. Harry had been touched, but didn't understand why his former Headmaster had wanted to part with his companion of so many years.

But it had all made sense the next day.

At the funeral, everyone that Minerva spoke to mentioned how Dumbledore had pulled them aside at the party, and discussed the future with them. He encouraged Fred Weasley to open a second shop in Hogsmeade, even if that meant spending less time with his brother. He entreated Mundungus to keep an extra careful eye on the Aurors. A weeping Ginny Potter told her that Albus had held her hands and kissed her cheeks, before leaving the party. "Take care of Harry, my dear. You are the only one he has ever really needed," he whispered in her ear before leaving. Ginny was desolate that day. Everyone was beyond grief.

Minerva missed him very much.

So when she sat back in the high chair at his - her desk, she thought to herself, though it would be a long time before she automatically thought of it as her desk, she pondered this, and other more immediate staffing problems, and waited for Professor Lupin to arrive.

She had adopted the habit of making the password to the Headmaster's Office a candy treat, even though she had no real liking for the sweets. She preferred a chocolate biscuit to candy any day.

"Company's coming," tittered one of the small paintings by the door. Soon after, the door opened up and Remus Lupin walked in. Minerva stood up to greet him, and pointed to a small table with a teapot, tartan container, and two comfortable chairs.

"Remus."

"Headmistress."

Walking to the table, she poured two cups of tea before settling into her chair. "You are leaving me, too, Remus?" she asked severely.

Minerva had accepted the resignation of Madame Pomfrey before the beginning of school term. Pomfrey, after long years of service to Hogwarts, was needed to care for an ailing member of her family. She and Minerva spent an afternoon reminiscing about their time together, over forty years, at Hogwarts, and remembering former students and teachers, with laughter and tears.

She had filled the position with a Healer from St. Mungo's, but it was only temporary. She was still looking for someone with the right fit, someone who had experience with common childhood injuries, as well as the less common hex, curse, and jinx treatments that Hogwarts students were endlessly subjecting themselves to, and - most difficult to find - was willing to leave their life behind and take up full time residence at Hogwarts.

Remus Lupin straightened up in his chair, but had the good sense to look apologetic. "Minerva, I don't think I can pass this opportunity up. I think you are aware of the implications involved, for people like myself."

Remus had been working with a political organization in Wizard London to provide more legal rights to magical creatures, and equality for werewolves, goblins, and squibs. They had been putting political pressure to reorganize the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures Office in the Ministry of Magic, and they needed a well-respected spokesman, to lead the group through the elections, and help get the office off the ground. It had been an honour when they had approached him, and he was proud to be a part of the fight.

"Yes, I can't begrudge you the opportunity," she admitted, nodding her head at him. "But," she snapped, "I do hope you can understand what position you are putting me in, Remus. You are going to be very hard to replace."

"Minerva, I might have a solution to your problem," Remus said, his eyes shining. "Now, follow me here. You need someone to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts, correct?"

"Yes, as well as Head of Gryffindor House."

"And," he was smirking now, "you need a Healer," he said, looking at her knowingly.

Minerva looked at him with a blank expression for one second, and then suddenly understood.

"The Potters..."

Remus watched Minerva for a moment. Her face was unreadable, yet he knew her mind was processing this information.

Minerva was thinking - she was thinking of the problems that this would solve. Even if it were temporary, for the remainder of this year, this would give her more time to look for a permanent Healer, and who better to teach DADA than the most famous Anti Dark Arts wizard in the world? Even the parents, who were harder to please than most people realized, would be thrilled at the prospect of Harry Potter teaching their children. Well, almost all the parents...

"Remus, do you think they'd do it?"

Remus nodded. "I was asking him some indirect questions at dinner last week, and I think that Harry is looking for a change. I had mentioned that I was going to be taking a leave of absence, and while I didn't say anything about him taking the position, I know he was going over it in his mind. The only reason he didn't come out and ask about it was that he can't stand to be away from Ginny for more than a day."

"But if there was a place here for a Healer as well, then..." Minerva pondered aloud. Yes, this would solve two problems brilliantly. Ginny Potter was an accomplished Healer, well respected in the Wizarding community for her work with anti-Dark Arts related treatments. Her research into the Cruciatus Curse was credited with helping many wizards, including the Longbottoms, to regain some of their former intellectual capacity.

Minerva stood up. "I'll ask him for an appointment today," she said in the brisk, no nonsense manner that told Remus that she had set her mind.

Remus smiled, happy to think of his young friend, though at thirty-two years old, Harry was fast leaving "young" behind. He always thought Harry would have made an excellent teacher, and had he not been so adamant about pursuing the Auror training program with Ron, it would have been a natural career choice.

Remus said goodbye to the Headmistress, and walked back to his set of rooms. He was anxious to hear Harry's reply, and as much as he would miss the students, for he loved teaching, he wanted to get to London and start the new Ministry work as soon as possible. Elections were approaching fast, and there was so much to do.

Once he got back to his room, though, the small voice in the back of his head, the voice asking the questions that he had been avoiding for two years, began to work its way again to the front of his thoughts. "Remus," said the voice, sounding too much like Sirius. He closed his eyes. "Remus, you have to tell him."

"I don't know what to tell him."

"He has to know," his Sirius/conscious scolded.

"This isn't the kind of thing you ask in a letter," Remus retorted. "Hi, Harry, how are you, by the way, did you get any girls pregnant when you were at Hogwarts?"

"You have to talk to him," the voice chided.

"He might have a very good reason for not telling anyone."

"He doesn't know about the boy. Harry would never do that."

Remus sighed. He wasn't sure what was worse; that he was fighting with his Sirius/conscious, or that his Sirius/conscious was right.

"If Harry agrees to take the job," he said aloud to himself, "I'll talk to him. No sense making a problem if... the boy might not even be Harry's son."

"He needs to know..."

Yes, Remus said to himself, he needs to know.

********************************

Remus Lupin did not like keeping secrets.

For two years, Remus had tried to keep a secret from his best friends in the world. Every time he had to make an excuse for his disappearances, some lie to keep them from knowing the truth, he was filled with remorse, shame, a feeling that was worse than the secret he was keeping. He had never been so relieved when he realized that his friends not only had discovered his secret, but also accepted it.

He had been a child then. He had been doing what he was told to do by his parents, who wanted him to receive the best education possible.

But what was his excuse now?

For the past two years, Remus had been keeping a secret from one of his best friends in the world. He had almost talked himself into believing that it wasn't true, but it was eating at him, the uncertainty. It felt good, almost, to think that all his questions might be answered soon. But what would happen to the people he loved if it was true?

It was the Masquerade.

During the fall of 2010, Hogwarts celebrated the 40^th anniversary of Albus Dumbledore's tenure as Headmaster of Hogwarts with a Masquerade Feast, followed by a Ball for the older students. Remus watched the costumed students' merriment with great satisfaction, his eyes darting from table to table. Before the younger students had been sent off to bed, however, they were allowed to join in some games and dancing before the formal Ball began. It was then that Remus saw him. His heart stopped.

It was Harry.

Remus looked up again, dizzy. No, it was one of the first year Gryffindors, Renato de Cassini, with a pair of black glasses and a crude scar drawn on his forehead.

It was easily the most convincing costume he had seen that evening, but on a first year? And it really wasn't much of a costume, just the glasses and scar. How could the boy manage to look so much like Harry?

He looked again, then sat down, his head full of confusing thoughts. At that moment, as if he felt Professor Lupin's eyes on him, Renato looked up and stared at him across the room.

The eyes...

Remus jerked, noticed that he was staring, and smiled weakly at Renato. He smiled back.

The smile...

Remus felt his stomach lurch slightly. No, this was simply a coincidence. Harry didn't have any family, no cousins, other than those horrid Dursleys. No, this child simply favoured Harry, and in costume it had been more noticeable. The dark hair and bright green eyes belonged to the boy. It just hadn't been so noticeable without the glasses.

Renato had gone back to playing with his friend, Jack Weasley. Remus watched him closely, from one of the corners of the room, for another hour, then the younger students were sent to bed. He shook his head, then walked over to the Staff table, and sat down, deep in thought.

"It is understandable, Remus," he heard someone say quietly.

"Headmaster?" Remus said quietly to the man who sat down next to him.

"Your confusion," said Dumbledore, looking over at him. "Your questions..."

"I'm sure I don't understand, sir," Remus stammered, not knowing if he had missed part of their conversation.

Dumbledore smiled, "Children are magical, Remus. They are gifts to us. We are entrusted to keep them safe, and make them strong." He stood up, gave Remus a knowing look, and sauntered off.

Remus never spoke to anyone about the resemblance, but he began to take notice of certain events that related to young Renato. He had caught Minerva, on occasion, looking at the Gryffindor table and at that student in particular, with a focused look on her face. He had heard that Professor Snape had taken 50 points from Gryffindor because he had become flustered and dropped a tray of empty glass vials. When he asked Diana Barrett, the Gryffindor prefect, for more information, she told him that Snape was enraged when Renato answered a difficult question correctly, and just threw the tray on the floor and left the room.

He took a closer look into the personal files of Renato, as well. He found that he was born in England, but spent his childhood split between a stately manor in the north, near Durham, and Italy, where his mother's family was from. There was no information about his father. "Deceased" was written in the forms. That was unusual. There was no name...

It wasn't unheard of to have single parents nowadays - he knew that sometimes, couples didn't feel the need to marry, to bond together before having a child. He wasn't pleased about the trend, but he understood he couldn't do much about it, and his job was to teach the children, not pass judgement. What was almost unheard of was to have no father listed at all. It wasn't hard to determine paternity; any first year Healer could probably do it. Why was there not a father listed?

The only reason Remus could think was that Renato's mother didn't want a father listed.

After the end of the first year, Remus dropped the research, went home to London for the summer, and immersed himself in the advocacy work that had become increasingly important to him. Wizarding Britain was on the threshold of new tolerances, new acceptance for those like him, and while the opposition remained strong, those who saw though the bigotry were growing louder. It was conceivable that they might take real positions of power in the elections that were coming up. That could mean great things for all magical creatures.

When Remus returned to Hogwarts that fall, he had made up his mind to forget about what he must be imagining, and keep his thoughts on his work, his teaching. He noticed Renato, still best friends with Jack Weasley, and another boy, Nigel Longbottom, a first year. They made a friendly trio, and from a respectable distance, Remus kept an eye out for anything unusual.

Two things happened that second year, one at the beginning and one at the end, that stood out in Remus' mind.

The first happened in October, as Renato and Jack both tried out for the Quidditch House team open Keeper position. They both flew well, and did outstanding in their tryouts, as Remus noted, watching from the stands. The Team Captain, Graham Reid, was talking to Madam Sarah Fawcett, the Quidditch coach, and the rest of the team when something in the air caught his attention.

Graham jumped on his broom and flew out to Renato, sitting on his broom 50 feet in midair, tossing a small ball high in the air and flying up to catch it, throwing it higher and higher each time. When he saw Graham approach, he stopped. There was some discussion, which Remus could not hear. Jack flew up to join the conversation, and nodded his head vigorously, while Renato shook his head just as strongly. Remus saw Jack take the ball from Renato's hand, and throw it as hard as he could. Ren swept up, turned in midair and flew, catching the ball in his outstretched hand, his expression fierce. He looked like he hadn't realized what he was doing until he had caught the ball. Graham flew back to the ground, ran over to the trunk where the Quidditch balls were kept, opened it, pulled out the Snitch and released it high into the air.

Remus saw the other players walk over to their captain, looking questioningly, while Eli Johansson, the Sixth year Seeker, looked downright angry, and began speaking sharply at Graham. Remus saw the Quidditch coach listening to the students, and wondering what was happening, walked down to the pitch with the other students.

"No, I don't think I care, Graham. I am the team Seeker," the agitated boy was saying.

"Look at him! He's the answer!" Graham, his eyes still on the boy who had caught the Snitch, released it, and was in the process of catching it again, flawlessly.

"He is amazing," noted Susanna Dobbs.

"I am the Seeker!" bawled Eli.

Graham turned to Eli, pulled him aside, spoke to him for a few minutes, and then watched as Eli left the Quidditch pitch, Madam Fawcett following him. Remus walked over to Graham, and asked if he could help.

"I just asked him to consider sharing the Seeker position, maybe taking a Reserve position. I didn't want him to quit the team, I couldn't ask him to do that, but..." he pointed up to the air, where Ren and Jack were chasing the snitch, Ren continuing to make incredible catches. "Look at him! How can we not use him?"

"What did Eli say?"

"He quit," Graham looked morose. "I'm not sure I handled that right."

Remus clapped him on the back, sighed deeply. "Never easy, being in charge. You learned a lesson. Eli is a good boy, he just needs some time. I'm sure we can talk him back onto the team. In the mean time," he smiled, "you have a new Seeker and Keeper, if I'm not mistaken?"

Graham smiled, "They're both great. We are going to be unbeatable this year."

Sure enough, the team had been undefeated, guaranteeing Gryffindor the House Cup for the first time in four years. There had been hard feelings in Gryffindor when Renato had replaced Eli, a popular and well-liked student, but after the first game, when Renato caught the Snitch in spectacular style, after a 50-foot dive, the older students came around. Eventually, even Eli admitted that the younger boy was a better seeker that he had been, and a truce was called.

The second event took place at the End of the Year Feast, when Gryffindor was given the House Cup. It was a lively evening, Minerva was thrilled that the House Cup was returning to her offices, and the teaching staff was pleased - it had been a good year, nothing out of the ordinary, and no problems to trouble them. Remus was enjoying his second helping of trifle when he saw Dumbledore pulling a chair next to him, sitting down slowly.

"Remus, my dear boy," he said quietly, pulling one of Remus' hands into his own, "I have a favour to ask you."

"Anything, Headmaster."

"I must warn you," he added gravely, "this involves some faith on your part. I cannot answer the questions you are going to want to ask me."

Remus nodded, "I understand, Professor."

There was a pause.

"When I am gone, please watch out for Renato."

"Headmaster?"

Dumbledore shook his head. "I am asking you to keep an eye out for young Mr. Cassini. As a personal favour, to me, in the event I am unable to... keep an eye out for him myself," he tilted his head, looking at Remus.

"Yes, sir." Remus head was filled with questions, but understood, nothing more was going to be said today.

Nothing more had been said.

When school started the next year, there was a new Headmistress, and the Start of Term Feast had been more melancholy that anyone could remember. The First Years were sorted, the new Transfiguration teacher and Healer had been introduced, and Snape took his new place, at McGonagall's right, as Deputy Headmaster. Lupin had also been introduced as the new Head of Gryffindor House, probably the most cheerful moment for most students that sad evening. Remus Lupin, aside from being a werewolf, was an enormously popular teacher, and the students were glad to see him recognized.

That had been five weeks ago. Things had settled into a peaceful routine, and Remus continued to watch Renato from a distance. But instead of time alleviating his fears, he was becoming more convinced that the young man was indeed related to Harry somehow.

Remus was still lost in thought when he heard someone call his name.

"Moony!"

Only one person still called him Moony anymore.

There, in the fire, was Harry's face, poking out, looking around at his room for him.

"Oy, right here, Harry."

"Remus, I've gotten an interesting owl from Minerva. What do you think?"

"It was my idea, Harry. What do YOU think?"

Harry scrunched his face together, like he was thinking hard. "My first reaction is yes, great idea. Of course, I have to talk to Gin, but... yeah, I'm gonna talk to her tonight and let Minerva know tomorrow. When are you leaving?"

"As soon as a suitable replacement can be found. Harry, I really think this would be a nice change for you. Get away from the bureaucrats, the stuffy office, do something different for a while."

"Thanks for the encouragement, Remus. I think I'd like to do this. I'll owl you tomorrow."

"Okay. I'll talk to you later, Harry," and he was gone.

Remus walked over to his desk, and pulled out a thick file, and for the first time in over a year, started to seriously think about Renato de Cassini.

The next day, Minerva sent a message to Remus asking for a meeting with him before dinner.

Remus arrived at the Headmistress Office, whispered, "Jelly Slugs," and found himself at inside her office. She was sitting at her desk, looking troubled. She was not alone.

"Remus." Snape looked murderous.

"Severus."

The animosity between the two had decreased as the years passed, but it was never going to be gone entirely. Remus just realized that Snape had heard about Harry's temporary position at Hogwarts, and was not pleased.

"Remus, Harry owled me this afternoon. He and Ginny have agreed to take the open Staff positions, and will begin the first week of November. Will that give you sufficient time to alter your curriculum for Harry to follow?"

"I'm sure he'll be able to carry off any lessons superbly," Remus said.

Snape snickered. Remus ignored him.

"Very good. Your quarters might be a tad small for the two of them, so I am giving them a larger suite nearer to the hospital wing. You can keep any personal items in your rooms while you are away, they won't be disturbed," McGonagall added.

"Thank you, Headmistress."

Minerva got quiet. She looked at Snape, then folded her hands in her desk. Remus was under the distinct impression that she was nervous.

"Remus..." she paused, searching for words, "someone needs to tell Harry about..."

"Minerva?"

She took a deep breath. "Renato. One of us needs to tell him about Renato."

Remus felt cold air brush past him. He wasn't the only one. They knew, too.

"What..."

Snape retorted, "That his son is currently attending Hogwarts, Lupin. Surely you haven't failed to notice that, the boy IS in your house."

Remus nodded. "Are we sure that he doesn't know?"

Minerva nodded her head. "Very. He has no idea," she said, sadly, "but he must be told before his classes start. This situation must be settled, between the adults, before any news becomes common knowledge."

"Do you think that's likely to happen?" asked Remus.

"Right now, it's only obvious to those who know Harry well, or those who remember him as a student, and there are precious few of us left," she said, looking sadly at both men sitting in front of her, "however, once he's here, people will start to make the connection. It's only a matter of time."

"There are significant differences," Snape said quietly, "but," he snarled, "the resemblance is most definitely there."

Remus thought for a second, then volunteered. "I'll talk to him," he said. "I should be the one, we're family."

Minerva nodded, obviously grateful for Lupin's help in the matter. This was a sticky situation, and although she knew that Dumbledore had his reasons for not telling Harry Potter about this boy, she did not know what those reasons were, and simply trusted in his judgement in the matter.

For better or worse, that had to change now.

"Gentleman, shall we go to dinner?" the Headmistress of Hogwarts asked, and accompanied them out of the office.

*********************************

It was the end of October before Remus started to panic.

This was going to be an uncomfortable conversation, and Remus wanted to speak to Harry alone. He had rehearsed his speech several times in the week before Harry's arrival. There was some good news, for Remus at least - Ginny needed additional time at St. Mungo's, to finish her research project, and would be joining Harry a few days later.

Ginny seemed very excited about the opportunity to study the students firsthand. Remus was sure that she would be spending a great deal of time observing them; her mind was constantly looking for items to investigate and study.

And Harry would be a natural, there was no doubt in his mind.

A soft chime brought him out of his thoughts. He was sitting in his office, and had set his clock to go off at two o clock. Harry would be arriving soon.

Hurrying to the school's entrance, he met McGonagall in the Entrance Hall.

"Headmistress," he smiled, nervously.

"Remus," she said, then silently walked next to him, up to the front gates of Hogwarts, where Harry would be Apparating.

They arrived at the Apparition Point, and within moments, they heard a 'pop' and Harry appeared, with several trunks.

Remus reached out to embrace him.

"Harry, good to see you," said Remus, hugging him tightly.

"Hallo, Moony. Oh, hello, Professor McGonagall," Harry said, taking her hand.

"Harry," she reached over and squeezed his hand gently. "It's nice seeing you, my dear."

"Thank you for this opportunity, Professor. I can't tell you how much Ginny and I appreciate being able to... well, come back and do something different, if only for the remainder of the year. It means the world to us," Harry rambled on as Remus waved his wand and whispered loco-motor trunks to move them up the walk in front of them, as they all walked into the castle.

"Harry, could you meet with me in an hour? I'd just like to go over some things before dinner, and you can speak with Remus about the classes afterwards."

"That would be fine. Thank you, Minerva."

"Please show him his rooms, Remus?" McGonagall asked. Remus nodded.

She reached over and gave Harry an unexpected hug, and walked off in the direction of her office. Harry and Remus took the trunks to his suite of rooms.

"Castle looks the same," Harry said. Students were flying down the hall, trying to get outside. It was a fine November day.

"Not much changes. One of the reasons I love teaching. There is a cyclical nature to it, if you do it long enough. You'd think it would get dull, teaching the same thing every year, but... the kids are different, and that makes a world of difference. Its great, watching them grow up," Remus smiled wistfully, looking at the students as they walked up to Harry and Ginny's new rooms.

Harry laughed, "I know, you should have been there for Jack's birthday. It was a madhouse."

His favourite nephew had turned thirteen the month before the school year started, and had received enough Weasley Wizarding Wheezes from various members of the family to last until he came of age.

"You've missed too many Sunday dinners," Harry said. Remus nodded. Every Sunday at the Burrow, Molly Weasley put on a feast, and an open invitation for everyone. Not everyone always showed up, but there were always people, old friends, young children everywhere, and the older children underfoot in the summers... the Burrow was never quiet.

************************************

Harry was settling into his rooms. He looked around, surprised how much space he and Ginny had been afforded. There was a large room, with a comfortable sofa, a large stone fireplace, and a small table for eating, though no kitchen. There was also a large bedroom, with a spacious private bathroom. This, in addition to his classroom and office, gave him sufficient space for the items he brought. He could even ask Ginny to pack some more, and bring them with her when she came next week.

He had an interesting visit with Minerva. The actual administration of a school this size required an enormous amount of work, but she made it easy for him to understand. She had gone over several pages of parchment with him, magical contracts, and officially assigned him Gryffindor Head of House duties. There were assorted keys, passwords, and instructions for emergencies. He has rolls and rolls to look over this evening.

He was pouring a cup of tea from a steaming pot when there was a knock at the door. He had been expecting Remus, but not this early. He opened the door to see Remus in the hall.

"Harry?" Lupin had a gaunt look on his face. He was clearly worried about something.

"Remus, is everything okay?" Harry asked, as he invited him inside his room.

"No, no, just wanted to go over some more things with you, you know. We can talk about the schedule tomorrow, and I've already sent you the lessons, right? Right, then..." he was muttering. Harry looked distinctly worried now.

"Moony..."

"I'd like to take you over to the common room after dinner, is that alright? You can get a look at all the students, together, make a short speech if you want," Harry made a face at this, "or not, it's up to you," Remus said, nervously laughing. Then the smile left his face.

It was time.

"Before we go into the common room, Harry, I need to talk to you about something."

Remus paused for a moment. "I don't want to pry, really I don't, but I need to ask you some personal questions. I wouldn't do this if I didn't think it was important. You understand that, right? Is that all right?"

Harry nodded, "I guess so, Remus, you're scaring me a little."

They sat down together on the sofa. "What's wrong?" Harry asked.

Remus looked down at his hands, fidgeting. "I'm not sure how to say this," he said, looking up again. He took a deep breath. "Okay, here it goes. Aurelia de Cassini. I think you knew her?"

Harry looked ahead, then lowered his eyes to the ground. He looked up and gave Remus a slow smile. "Yes, she was a friend of mine back in school, that last year." Harry looked wistful now. "It was a ...it was a really crazy year."

"Best of times, worst of times?"

"Something like that," he said to himself, "but I haven't seen her in years. Not since school ended."

"How well did you know her?"

Harry looked up, a little surprised. "Why are you asking me this, Remus?"

"Harry, please," he paused, "I need to know if you had a ...relationship with Aurelia de Cassini."

Harry didn't say anything. He looked up at Remus, staring at him with those green eyes, now dark with confusion.

Remus couldn't wait any longer. His voice broke as he was speaking.

"Harry, there's a boy... her son."

Silence

"Harry... he looks just like you." It was a whisper now.

The room grew quiet around them. Harry opened his mouth to answer, and stopped. He stood up, walked across the room to the fireplace on the other side, his eyes never leaving the fire. For a full minute he stood there, before turning around and facing Lupin.

"How old is he, Remus?"

"Fourteen in December."

Fourteen in December, that means he would have been conceived... dear god, no, what was happening? Harry put his hand out on the mantle and braced himself. He felt his head swimming. He swallowed hard and whispered, "Why are you asking me this?"

"Because Harry, I love you, like the son I never had, and I didn't want to see you hurt, or Ginny hurt, until I knew the truth, but," Remus paused, and drew another long breath and pointed into the hall, "there is a thirteen year old boy out there, and I think he's your son, and you need to know that before you go in there and meet the whole House. Bugger, Harry, you're going to be his teacher..." Remus was looking at his shaking hands.

Remus stopped talking again, and turned to look at Harry, who was still standing by the fireplace, his eyes reflecting the firelight. "I couldn't let you go in there and see him, not knowing."

Harry didn't answer. He walked over to the chair across from Lupin, and lowered himself slowly. They both sat in silence for another minute.

The fire crackled, a log settled into the embers. Harry asked quietly, "You think he's my son?"

Remus smiled, "I do."

Harry looked up at Lupin. A small smile formed on his lips. "Is it that obvious?"

"Not to someone that doesn't know you, or didn't know you as a child. But I've been watching for two years now. I don't know, at first, he reminded me of you, but he's pals with one of the Weasleys, so I shrugged it off as just reminding me of you and Ron," Lupin said. "But before he left last year, Dumbledore... well, he asked me to keep an eye out for Renato, and I started really watching him. After that, it all fell together."

"Renato?" Harry asked quietly. Remus nodded. Harry took a deep breath and leaned back in his chair.

"Why did Dumbledore ask you to watch him? Was there some ..."

"I'm not sure," Remus interrupted. "He didn't say, he just smiled on of those... enigmatic," Remus said, emphasizing that word, "smiles. He told me that Renato was special to him, and would I please keep an eye out for him," He shook his head. "I imagine he knew."

"Then why didn't he tell me?"

"Maybe he wasn't sure."

Harry snorted at this.

Remus got up, walked to the window, looking for something on the far edge of the sky. "No really, if it's not true, what would be the point in worrying you?" Remus asked quietly. "I've had these questions for over two years, and I haven't said anything, either," he sighed heavily, "and I might not have, had you not taken this position."

"Why the hell not, Remus!" Harry said, anger creeping into his voice.

"Look, like I said I wasn't sure." He turned to look at Harry again. "In any event, there might have been a reason why his mother didn't say anything to you." Remus paused, and then asked softly, "She didn't, did she?"

Harry was immediately on his feet. "How can you even ask me that? Do you think that I would have run out on her, left my son to be raised alone, without me?"

"That's not what I meant, Harry," Remus stated quietly, "I only thought that..."

"You of all people know how much I missed my parents. I'd never do that to a child of mine, never!"

"Please calm down, Harry..."

"Don't tell me to calm down." Harry was beyond agitated now. He was pacing quickly, looking for something to focus his anger on.

"Harry, we're not even one hundred percent sure that he is your son," said Remus. Harry stared at him with a blank expression. There was just too much to take in.

"Look, I just... I wanted you to know this, seeing how you and his mum were..." Harry looked up at him, "close. You needed to know this before you met him."

Remus stood. "Quidditch practice is almost over. Lets go meet him, informally, without all the other students around, and you can take a look. Then we can talk again, and if you want to owl his mum, well, I guess that would be your decision."

Harry stood up, and without speaking, followed Remus out into the hall.

Walking out of the school, the men could see the afternoon sun setting low in the sky. They were almost outside when Harry spoke again.

"What's he like?" he inquired, quietly.

Remus held his thoughts for a second, before answering. When he did answer, the tone of his voice surprised Harry.

"Oh Harry, he's terrific," Remus said, sounding a little like a proud uncle. "He's smart, almost top of his class. Great flyer, too, Might be better than you at that age, since he'd had so much practice growing up with a broom."

"On the House team?"

Remus nodded. "Seeker," he replied.

Harry nodded, still in shock. It was like listening to someone telling a story. "What else?"

"He's got some good friends, Longbottom's son, nice bloke, and a Weasley - well, you can't swing a bloom without hitting a Weasley around here. They've even infiltrated the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw houses," They both laughed at that. Harry was familiar with all the Weasley kids; they were his nieces and nephews.

"Solid grades, polite to adults, well liked by his peers," Remus concluded. "I didn't want to throw this on you all at once, really, I didn't. But... you had to know, and I didn't want anyone else to tell you." He stopped talking as they stopped on the lawn, watching the team coming in from the pitch.

"Here they come," said Remus. Harry was unable to speak. An hour ago he had been worried about coming up with a new password every month. Now, it looked like his life was about to change forever.