But what if Remus did raise Harry?
What if, after Peter was confirmed as Secret Keeper, James knew that if they were betrayed, theyâd be betrayed by Peter (which obviously wasnât going to happen, but just in case it did), so he arranged that Sirius and/or Remus would get custody of Harry, so long as they werenât the spy?
And since he used binding magic, when all the shit went down Dumbledore realized that Remus would be the best option for Harry and he convinces Remus that he has to be in charge of Harry, now. Hogwarts will take Harry, and the Shack will take Remus, at every full moon of them, but otherwise, itâs to be the two of them?
Remus having access to the Pottersâ bank accounts. He would never take any for himself, but Harry needs a home and food, and so they get by. They donât live well, but they live good enough (better than Harry wouldâve at his aunts, especially) and because Remus doesnât feel bad about spending money on Harry (obviously, James would have spoiled his son), Harry grows up with all the toys and games he could ever want.Â
Itâs as happy a childhood as could be expected, under the circumstances. Harry gets a dad who loves him, with all his heart, but he also grows up knowing about his own world, and his real parents, and magic, and his role in everything.Â
When Harry turns 11, heâs going to miss Remus terribly and cries on August 31st. Remus tries to stay strong, but itâs hard. He manages by telling Harry to convince the hat he must go to Gryffindor, but of course, if he ends up somewhere else, heâll still be loved, regardless. (No green and silver in the house, though, it would just clash.) And perhaps Harry could visit him in the hospital wing after full moons, so long as he doesnât tell his friends what heâs up to. Harry loves the idea; heâs terrible at it, though, and by October, Ron knows Remusâs secret and comes to visit, too.Â
Third year, Harryâs ecstatic when Remus comes to teach. Finally will he get to learn defense, and obviously, Remus will be the best teacher ever. Remus had been weird for the last couple weeks of the summer though, and wouldnât tell Harry why. A few weeks in, he realizes that Sirius was the other best friend of his dad and his real dad, and he gets it. Harry, with Ron, spend all year trying to figure out a way that Sirius might not be guilty, because how could he just turn on Remus like that? And Harryâs parents? It makes no sense.Â
When Fred and George give Harry the Maraudersâ Map, he immediately shows it to Remus. âLook how cool this is! I canât wait to use it to sneak around!â Remus lights up and tells Harry to use it well, otherwise, the owners would not be very happy. Heâs very evasive when Harry then asks if he knew the owners, making Harry suspicious.Â
After about a month, Remus canât take it - he asks to borrow the map and of course, Harry gives it to him. He sees Peterâs name and canât believe it, the map canât be wrong, the map is never wrong, and all of a sudden - it clicks. Everything, the truth, finally falls into place. After DADA the next day, he asks Harry and Ron to stay after. Ronâs a little confused when Remus asks to see his rat, but Harry tells him to pass Scabbers over, so he does. Before the boys know it, Scabbers has disappeared and a naked, disheveled man appears in his place. Before they know it, Remus has muttered Petrificus Totalus, and the man freezes in place. Remus asks Harry and Ron to run and go find Dumbledore, and bring him right back. They do, and the truth finally comes to light. Sirius didnât kill Harryâs parents; it was Pettigrew all along. Dumbledore announces this to the Wizarding World and forces a reluctant Fudge to pardon Sirius Black.Â
Remus writes to Sirius, apologizing for believing him guilty all this time, and perhaps Sirius would like to come out of hiding and meet him in his staff apartment at Hogwarts? Sirius shows up three nights later, looking worse than Remus has ever seen him - straggly, shrunken, dirty. But his smile when he catches sight of Remus, well, thatâs all that matters. Remus forces Sirius to have a proper shower, so he does, and they stay up all night talking, reminiscing. Sirius does not talk about his last twelve years, but he learns all about Harry and how wonderful he is, how proud James and Lily would be.Â
The next morning, at breakfast, Remus is missing, so Harry goes to check on him, make sure heâs okay. Remus is showering, though, when he arrives, and even though he shouldnât, Sirius is too curious not to answer the door. So he does, and falls into a bit of shock when he meets Harry, but Harry figures out who he is, and smiles and introduces himself, and he looks just like his dad and Sirius doesnât know how to react, but he lets Harry in, and they start talking.Â
When Remus gets out of the shower, fifteen minutes later, he notices Harry sprawled out on the couch the way he likes to, and Sirius sitting in a chair next to him, both of them deep in conversation, looking so very happy. âThis could be my life now,â he thinks, and grins, before going to join them.Â