Pinky Promise || Wolfstar

Chapter 8

The gentle sound of waves lapping against the shore soothed Remus' anxious heart as he and Harry sat on a bench near the lake. It was still, but Remus' ears had always been sensitive, and his furry little problem had just made them more sensitive. He hated it most of the time, choosing to place muffling charms over his ears to tune out the extra noises, but when he was stressed, the ambient noise was soothing.

Not that he should be stressed, of course—after weeks of letters and angry Ministry visits, they had finally gotten Sirius' trial moved up and his name cleared. Well, he said they—in reality, it had taken Minerva stepping in and shouting about Sirius' wrongful imprisonment, and using Harry's Boy–Who–Lived status to force the Ministry to speed up the proceedings. Sirius wasn't actually present for the trials, of course, as he was still on the run. The paper announcing Sirius' pardoning had been released this morning, which meant that as soon as Remus could find him, he could bring Sirius home. Where home was, Remus didn't know—but he and Sirius had always said that home was with each other. A sappy sentiment, but maybe it would hold, even after all these years.

Harry was gazing across the water with a soft smile on his face, but Remus noticed the tightening of his wiry shoulders and the way his eyes didn't crinkle with his smile.

"What's wrong, pup?" Remus murmured.

"Nothing," Harry answered, matching his low tone.

"Nope, none of that shit, Harry." Harry glanced at Remus in surprise. "You can't lie to me."

Harry huffed, resting his face in his hands, elbows propped on his knees. "I'm wondering why Dumbledore hasn't said anything to me."

"About the adoption?" Remus paused when Harry nodded, then continued. "That's because I already spoke to him about it."

Harry looked up, his eyebrows raised. "You did?"

"He wasn't happy about it, as much as I hate it—I know," he agreed when Harry grumbled under his breath. "The blood wards at the Dursleys fell as soon as the adoption was approved, and they can't be reinstated, so there's no chance of him trying to make you change your mind."

"Good," Harry sighed deeply, his eyes going unfocused as his gaze returned to the lake. "Thanks."

"Is there something else?" Remus frowned, recognizing the tired, heavy look in Harry's eyes.

Harry sighed. "I trust you, and of course I'm so excited to live with you—and I trust your judgement, but I've never even met Sirius. I haven't heard anything about him other than 'he was a bit of a troublemaker' and he 'betrayed my parents,' which isn't true."

'Bit' is definitely an understatement, Remus thought.

"I just...I don't know." Harry continued, "It's hard to trust adults, I think, after...everything, and just living with a brand new person—it couldn't be worse than the Dursleys, I know you'd never let that happen, but I can't help but be nervous."

Remus smiled slightly at the explicit trust Harry had in him. Of course he'd be nervous—Remus mentally slapped himself for not considering it—and mulled over Harry's words.

"If I told you a little about Sirius—from before Azkaban, as I knew him," he suggested, "would that maybe help, a little? Of course I'm going to make sure that you two meet before we move in together, but just a little forewarning, so to speak."

Harry sat up and leant into Remus' side. "I think—I think that would be okay."

Remus sighed lightly. Where to start?