Fic: Cold Feet, Part IV: Lyall

[author_by_night]

Title: Cold Feet / Part IV: Lyall (and Harry)
 Rating & Warnings: PG-13
Word Count/Art Medium: 2,888
Prompt(s): 38, Sirius's Prank
Summary: Sometimes the painful stories are the ones that need the most telling. Tonks delves into the story of The Prank That Must Only Be Alluded To.

 

“Aha.”

Tonks wasn’t sure how Lyall would respond to being asked about that night. After all, her mother’s response had been unprecedentedly emotional. Lyall was Remus’s father.

Lyall seemed to be considering the question deeply. “As you can imagine, it was very upsetting. For all of us. Finding out Sirius had used my son for bait… I went off the rails. But it’s also how I learned Remus had true friends.”

“Seems like an odd time to work that out,” Remus remarked.

“There’s an odd time for everything.”

                                                                            *

 

Lyall and Hope didn’t look at one another as they made their way to the castle. They were used to Remus being in some trouble, but it merited only a note home, not a request to visit Hogwarts. Their conversation was unfinished and stilted, making sure Hope could see the castle (she could once given its location) and commenting on the cool breeze.

Hope finally let out a deep breath. “Last night was a-”

Lyall nodded. “I know. I always know.”

“You don’t think he…”

“We’d know.”

“How? Would The Daily Prophet…”

“He’d come home immediately if that happened.”

“No, Lyall, he’d…”

“He wouldn’t run away.”

“Remus threatened once before.”

“Don’t all boys?”

“Not all boys are like him.”

They made their way to Dumbledore’s office, standing on the rising staircase and knocking on his magnificent door.

“Whatever you do, don’t get angry,” Hope cautioned Lyall. “That’s never done any of us favours.”

“You’re bringing that up now?”

“Oh, no, I didn’t mean - I didn’t think-”

Lyall knew she didn’t. She also didn’t know he still thought about it almost every day.

Dumbledore opened the door; his face was grave.

“Come in,” he said.

Next to his desk was Minerva McGonagall, who looked furious. Behind it were seven people - a young woman who resembled Sirius sitting next to him (a cousin?), James and his parents, and Remus. Perhaps out of desperation, Lyall looked for a sign of humor in all of them, for a stolen glance of “now we’re in for it,” a sort of invisible high five.

Instead, there was nothing. 

Meanwhile, Hope was looking around Dumbledore's office with an enthralled expression on her face, but her attention quickly turned to Remus. It was a shame, really, that this had to be Hope's first visit. 

“Are you okay?” Lyall asked his son. 

“You can go home,” Remus mumbled. “I’m okay.”

"Honey, what happened?" Hope asked.

"It's not important. Really."

Lyall put his hand on Remus's shoulder, hoping the horrible feeling of dread wasn't obvious to him. "We won't be mad, son. Just tell us."

“They need to know,” Dumbledore told him. "You did nothing wrong, but it is important for the guardians of all involved to hear this. Together.  They all appear to be aware of your being a werewolf.”

Lyall wasn’t thrilled to hear that people he’d never met knew, but he supposed it was his son’s right. 

“It doesn’t matter. No one needs to be here.”

“We’re already here,” Hope told him. “Whatever happened last night, we’re not mad at you, okay?”

“It’s not being mad at me I’m worried about,” Remus said. “I didn’t do anything. James reckons he saw me, but -”

“SAW you?” Hope gasped.

“Yes,” Dumbledore said. “It appears Mr. Black told the boy how to find Mr. Lupin during a full moon, after a row that turned ugly.”

The woman next to Sirius recoiled in surprise; James’s parents exchanged looks; Remus had buried his head in his hands.

Lyall jumped up, and without thinking, lunged himself at the tall teenager, cursing all the while; Hope and Dumbledore quickly restrained him. The boy hadn’t made any attempt to defend himself, which made Lyall more angry.

“HE USED MY SON AS BAIT!” Lyall yelled. “Do you know what would have happened if the student had - if he tells anyone-”

“He has reassured me that he won’t,” Dumbledore said calmly. “I daresay he won’t want the school knowing he was foolhardy anyway.”

“I’m sorry,” Sirius told Lyall. “I didn’t mean for him to be bait…”

“Then what did you mean?” The woman next to him snapped. 

“Andromeda, Snape was talking to Regulus about Death Eaters! Can you blame me? I snapped, Remus wasn’t supposed to get in the middle of it-”

Remus lifted his head. “So I ended up in the forefront?”

“Moony-”

“Don’t call me that,” Remus said in an uncharacteristically angry voice. 

“How did this… Snape boy get away?” Andromeda asked.

Dumbledore’s gaze turned to James’s parents. “Your son pulled him away. We have no reason to believe he - nor his friend Peter - were involved. Indeed, it seems as soon as he heard what Sirius had done, he risked his life to save Snape’s.”

“See? Prongs is a hero now,” Sirius said with a playful wink. 

It was Remus’s turn to jump to his feet. “HE ALMOST DIED, SIRIUS! BY MY HANDS!”

Sirius’s grin vanished. “I know that, I was just trying to lighten the-”

“I expect he’ll be expelled, then?” Lyall interrupted.

“Your son was not at fault.”

“I meant Walburga Black’s son.” Lyall looked at the young man from the corner of his eye, and was pleased to see that Sirius had clearly grasped his full meaning.

“That decision will be left up to me,” Dumbledore told him. “Not you. I simply thought you deserved to know.”

Lyall stood up. “I have to say, Professor Dumbledore, I thought we had your word that this kind of event would never transpire.”

“Don’t blame him,” Remus said quietly. “I told them where I go…”

“Why?” Lyall demanded. “Why on earth would you tell them?”

“We saw him,” James said. “We were trying to find out where he'd wandered off to, and saw him go into the Willow with Madame Pomfrey."

 “Well, I’m glad Remus has some friends,” Hope said, with a pointed glare at Sirius.

“Friends? Knowing that lot, they loved the idea of their son having a dark secret,” Lyall said coldly. “I very much doubt that’s the end of it!”

“Dad-” Remus began.

“I don’t need to know if there’s anything else,” Lyall told him. He had a feeling there was, but it didn’t matter anymore. “Remus, get your things. It’s apparent you’re no longer safe here either.”

“Lyall, calm down,” Hope reproached him.

Lyall turned to her. “Calm down? Do you know what would happen had Remus killed this peer of his? If we were lucky, they’d send him to Azkaban. IF WE WERE LUCKY. Go ahead and spew your guts out, boy,” Lyall snapped at Sirius as his face turned green.  

“Dumbledore wouldn’t let anything like that happen,” Remus said. “I’m safe here.”

“Evidently not. Collect your things and meet me at the entrance of Hogwarts.”

“Dad-”

“Exactly. Dad. You can keep all the secrets you want from me, you can trust the wrong people and do God knows what with your friends, but I am still your father, and I say we are leaving.”

“You can’t do this!” Sirius exclaimed.

“DON’T YOU DARE DEFEND ME!” Remus yelled. “ I ALMOST KILLED SOMEONE, THANKS TO YOU! HOW WOULD YOU FEEL IF I USED YOU TO MAKE YOUR COUSIN BELLATRIX KILL SOMEONE, AND ALMOST GOT JAMES KILLED IN THE PROCESS? YOU’D HATE ME, WOULDN’T YOU?”

Sirius didn’t say anything.  Lyall had never heard that much anger and hate in his son’s voice; it was unnerving.

 

Remus turned back to Hope and Lyall. “I’ll meet you at the entrance in ten minutes. If I’m not there, it’s because Snape’s told the Ministry of Magic anyway, in which case I’ll meet you at the Wizengamot."

“I’ll help you,” James said. 

Remus hesitated, then nodded. Sirius made to follow them, but James shook his head slowly and shut the door. Lyall looked at Dumbledore.

“You let us down, Headmaster,” Lyall said coldly.

Lyall made his way towards the entrance, Hope following him very quickly.

“Is this really wise?” She asked.

“No, but he’s not safe here anymore.”

“He still has James… James risked his life to save the other student, Lyall. And it seems Peter wasn’t involved at all.”

“As long as Sirius Black still attends this school, I don’t want Remus in it. Besides, Hope, how do we know Peter or James wouldn’t have done it? We didn’t think Sirius was capable either. They clearly think it’s all a joke.”

“Well, they know it’s not one now…”

“They’ll forget. Boys like that always forget. They hurt birds, get reproached, feel horrid - then the next week they’re back at it, hurting innocent animals for fun.”

“Those types of boys don’t generally befriend werewolves,” Hope pointed out.

“He’s not attending Hogwarts anymore, and that’s final. I’ll look at other school.  Beauxbatons has a new Headmistresses who is supposedly quite open minded. Word underground is that she’s got giant blood.”

“He doesn’t speak a word of French.”

Right now, this was a minor detail to Lyall. 

Remus soon joined them at the entrance; James and Peter were helping him with his things. 

“I’ll… see you this summer?” James looked at Remus hopefully.  Remus uttered a noncommittal sound.

“We’re never talking to Sirius again,” Peter added.

“Don’t be stupid, ‘course you are,” Remus said. “And you should. You’ll have more freedom now, I expect.”

James and Peter both looked very sad.

“We really are grateful,” Hope told James. “For  everything. We don't blame you. Either of you," she added, looking at Peter. "Right, Lyall?”

Lyall said nothing, turning away instead. He heard Hope say in a soft voice, “he’ll be okay once he calms down.” 

 

                                                                                  *

“But you let me go back,” Remus said.

Lyall nodded. “Yes. Did Sirius never tell you why?”

“What on earth did Sirius have to do with me going back?”

“Everything.”

                                                                                  *

In the days that followed, very little was said. Remus agreed that if he got accepted, he’d go to Beauxbatons. Lyall didn’t think his son loved the idea, but the only other option was Durmstrang, and while they would always have accepted him, Lyall didn’t think Remus would have any luck finding a job afterwards. Being a werewolf made it hard enough, but being a werewolf who’d attended a school notorious for its association with the Dark Arts? It wasn’t a good idea, even if the stereotypes were just that.  Lyall didn’t care if that line of thinking made him a hypocrite. There were schools outside Europe too that may have taken him, but they were too far away for Lyall’s liking.  In the meantime, Remus was practicing magic at home.

One day, when  Remus was with a friend of Lyall’s practicing potions, Lyall and Hope heard a knock at the door. To their dismay, Sirius was on their front step. He looked resolute.

“You can’t come in,” Hope said immediately. “Remus isn’t home.”

“And even if he were,” Lyall added, “you’re the last person he wants to see.”

“I know. Believe me, I know.  I did something horrible, and I regret it.”

Hope let out a cat-like hiss. “Regret it? You nearly ruined our son’s life.”

“I know.” Sirius shuddered. “But this isn’t about me. It’s about Remus.”

“I’m glad you finally realize that,” Lyall said.

“He needs Hogwarts, Mr. Lupin. I remember him his first day. Moony looked so… pathetic and lonely, as though he’d never had a friend in his life. He didn’t talk to anyone. So James and I forced conversation out of him, annoying buggers we are, and suddenly he was… well, the person he is now.”

Lyall knew this was true; when he’d come home that Christmas, Lyall had instantly seen the young boy he’d known before the bite. Remus had been cheerful and animated, making jokes and talking happily about his new friends. Judging from Hope’s expression, she remembered that, too.

“I don’t care if Remus never speaks to me again. I don’t care if he never speaks to any of us again, although it wouldn’t be fair of him to blame James and Peter when they’re on his side, not mine. They’re not talking to me either. But he’s happy at Hogwarts, and I don’t want him to lose that because of my mistakes.”

“Right,” Hope said. “And why should we believe you’re remorseful?”

“If I break any further rules, I’ve been told I’ll be kicked out of Hogwarts. And yet I created a Portkey just to come here.”

With that, Sirius picked up a hat and disappeared.

 

As much as Lyall wanted to hate Sirius, he knew that he was right. He’d also realized that Sirius had called his son Moony. Not for the first time, obviously, he’d heard it many times - but something had begun stirring in his mind. 

“Let’s talk,” Lyall said to Hope. 

An hour later, Remus returned from his lesson. Lyall and Hope motioned for Remus to sit, which he did.

“Your Dad and I have been talking,” Hope said, “and we’ve decided that if you’re ready… you may return to Hogwarts.”

Remus hesitated, and Lyall could see he was fighting a grin. “I’d like that. But only if you’re okay with it.”

“What class should you be in?” Lyall asked.

“Herbology.”

“Then you’d better hurry. I don’t think Professor Sprout likes it when students are tardy.”

Remus unrestrained his smile, and while Lyall was still unsettled, he knew he had to put this behind him and let Remus return.

His son's friends had made their mistakes, to be sure, but even at the worst of times, they appeared to have his back at all costs. What more could a father hope for?

                                                                        *

“Sirius really never told you, though?” Lyall asked Remus.

Remus shook his head, looking amazed. “Never said a word to me about it.”

“But that’s not all that convinced me,” Lyall said. “I had suspicions about Sirius. About all of them. I figured out that they’d become Animagi.”

 Remus looked startled. "You did? But you acted like you didn't know when I told you about Sirius!"

Lyall shrugged. “Honestly, I was too surprised to mention that I knew the Animagi part.”

“How did you figure it out?” Tonks asked.

“Well, it had been bothering me for several days why, Remus, you would tell your mischievous friends how to find you. The rescue-from-Death-Eaters excuse didn’t hold up. And then I realised what your nicknames were. Animals. Which brought me back to a conversation I had with you, James, Sirius and Peter a few years prior. You’d been curious about Animagus, and how safe a Dark Creature would be with a wizard who could turn into one. Including, but of course not limited to, werewolves. I am a little insulted that you used me to break the rules so horribly,” Lyall added, but there was a twinkle in his eye.

“I don’t understand, though,” Remus said. “I’d have thought that would make you less likely to send me back.”

“Less likely? Remus, I realised all three of them put themselves at physical and legal risk to help you every Full Moom. Of course some of it was being mischievous - you did love saying ‘mischief managed,’ after all. But when I told Hope what I’d figured out, she agreed.  We knew you had true friends. After all, it hadn’t even occurred to me to do such a thing for you.”

“When Sirius escaped Azkaban, did you suspect he used his powers?” Remus asked. 

“Of course, but I didn’t think it wise to alert the Ministry. It could cause problems for you. Besides, I knew you’d tell Dumbledore.”

Remus didn’t say anything.

Lyall raised his eyebrows. “You did tell Dumbledore?”

“Not… exactly. I was too ashamed.”

No one spoke for a minute.

“Mischief Managed,” Tonks quipped.

Everyone laughed.

“Well, does this complete your collection?” Remus asked Tonks. 

Tonks nodded. “I think it does. And someday, we’ll give it to Harry. Where should we put it for safekeeping, though?”

“I’ll take it,” Lyall said. “Once you’ve shown Sirius, of course.”

                                                                      *

It was Tonks-Potter-Lupin night at Lyall Lupin’s. Every two weeks, Harry, Ginny, , Andromeda and Teddy - now five years old - would go to Lyall’s.

They’d become an odd little family of sorts; their lives had been gravely displaced by the war, but they formed a comfortable union. Harry regarded Andromeda and Lyall as an aunt and uncle of sorts, what Petunia and Vernon Dursley should have been. 

Andromeda also made Harry think of Sirius. She was a calmer, more stoic version of him. 

When they turned up at Lyall’s, Lyall was holding several pieces of parchment.

“I can’t believe I forgot,” he was saying. “I told her I’d give them to you, and I never did!”

“Mind backing up, Lyall?” Andromeda asked. “For those of us who just got here.”

Harry and Ginny laughed.

“Sorry. But Andromeda, look!”

Lyall showed Andromeda; her eyes widened.

“I forgot Dora was doing that,” Andromeda said. “Interviewing everyone about the night… oh, this is incredible.”

“What is?” Harry demanded.

Andromeda looked at Harry. “You’ll remember the story about Sirius telling Remus how to find Snape in the Willow.”

“Yes,” Harry replied. He remembered very well.

Lyall placed the pieces of parchment in Harry's hands. “You’re going to want to read these. Teddy must read it when he's older, too. It’s everything you ever needed to know about your father, Remus, and Sirius.”