Author's Note: I am so, so sorry that this took this long to come out. My life went a bit haywire and the multi-chapter projects that need ridiculous things like plots are the first things to bite the dust unfortunately. Nevertheless, thank you for all your support and reviews! Here it is!

Disclaimer: The following characters belong to J.K. Rowling, and this story derives from her original works, storylines, and world. Please do not sue me, I can barely pay tuition.

Warnings: PTSD-related nightmare

Beta: Bailey, thank you kindly!

Stacked with: MC4A; Shipping War; Animal Verses; Tasty Yandras; Ornate Oscillating Obelisks

Individual Challenge(s): Cracked Facade; Scaly Tales; Gryffindor MC (x4); Bow Before the Blacks; Stolen Plot; Spring Rain; Seeds; Golden Times; Old Shoes; Themes and Things A (Secrets); Themes and Things B (Risk); Trope it Up C (Secret Relationship); The 3rd Rule (Y); True Colours; Rian-Russo Inversion; Real Family; Long Haul; The Real MC

Representation(s): Remus Lupin; Christmas vacation; Easter vacation

Bonus challenge(s): Creature Feature; No Touchy; Enfant; Second Verse (Unicorn); Chorus (Unwanted Advice; Brooms Only)

Tertiary bonus challenge: Orator

List (Prompt): Service Multi-Word Prompt (Getting Caught)

Word Count: 3744

Shipping Wars

Ship (Team): Nymphadora Tonks/Remus Lupin (Technicolour Moon)

List (Prompt): Summer Medium 2 (Different First Meeting)

7.

Part II : Mapping All the Lost Things

"Remus has a girlfriend," Harry informed them as soon as they sat down for lunch after picking him up from the train station.

Sirius made a loud sound, something like a guffaw but with more pep.

"What makes you say that, love?" Lily said.

"Tonks—you know, the Auror that we don't hate?" Harry asked. "Yeah, she's assigned to patrol the school a lot and he always brings her tea and walks with her and things."

Lily and Sirius exchanged glances over the table. Sirius threw an arm over Harry's shoulders.

"Oh, having you home is fantastic," he said with a grin. "Go on; tell us more."

Lily sat down on the reading chair next to Harry's bed, and rested her chin on her hand.

"How are you, love?" she asked.

"I'm good," he said, closing the book he was reading. Medusa the snake was draped over his shoulder. Lily wasn't necessarily a big fan of snakes, but she recognized how much her son was happy to be reunited with his pet—who unfortunately fell off the list of accepted pets at Hogwarts and therefore had to stay home.

"I'm happy to be home."

"I'm happy you're home too," Lily said. "School sounded… school sounded unpleasant, this term."

Harry hesitated, but nodded.

"It was like I wasn't at home at Hogwarts."

"I'm sorry."

"Ron and Hermione are fighting all the time. Neville and I don't know what to do. It's about her cat..."

"Okay," Lily said.

"And I hate Divinations class. Trelawney keeps telling me I'm going to die tragically."

"Of course she is," Lily sighed.

"I want to go to Hogsmeade. Wood is driving us mad at Quidditch and I feel so bad for falling off my broom and putting us behind in scores and I know that he's not trying to make me feel bad but I do, I really do, we were supposed to win the Cup this year. I'm not doing well in Flitwick's classes at all and I know Charms is your favourite. The Dementors are everywhere which means that there's nobody there to breathe. Malfoy's even worse than usual. I'm worried about you and Sirius because I don't want you looking for Pettigrew. Buckbeak has to go to trial and we don't know how to help Hagrid. Also, I like a boy."

That last complaint obviously hadn't been supposed to come out with the rest of the laundry list, and Harry looked surprised by himself.

"Right," Lily said. She shifted from the chair to the bed and wrapped her arms around Harry.

"As far as Ron and Hermione are concerned, that's not your responsibility. Don't get involved in drama that isn't yours. They'll figure it out, but make sure they know that it's bothering you and Neville. As for Trelawney, ignore her. She used to say the same thing to everyone in our grade; if you can make it through this year, you can drop Divinations, I promise. Charms isn't supposed to be easy; if there's a way for me to help, I'll be really happy to do that. I'm so, so sorry about the Dementors. That… you shouldn't have to deal with that. Nobody should. Short of pulling you out of Hogwarts, there's nothing I can do about that and I'm so sorry."

Harry nuzzled into her shoulder.

"And as for liking a boy; you have a gay uncle two doors down, and a bisexual uncle at school," Lily said, resting her chin on top of his head. "You should probably talk to them; they'll know how to answer your questions and talk you through it best. But I'm here to say I love you, and I love you always."

She felt him relax in her arms, and kissed his hair.

"I love you."

"I love you too."

"Do I get to know who this boy is?"

"No," Harry said, pulling back. "I'm not telling you!"

"Oh come on," Lily said. "Why not?"

"Because… I don't know, it's just weird!"

Lily laughed. "Is he a Quidditch player?"

Harry's jaw dropped. "How did you..?"

Lily laughed some more and ruffled his hair.

"Because of course, he would be," Lily smiled.

It was a good thing Remus was at that school. He'd help her figure this out.

Now that Harry was safely back in school, they began hunting down Peter Pettigrew.

He was a rat; a small and crafty creature containing a still craftier man. They may as well have lost a needle in a haystack, but Lily and Sirius looked.

They were determined to find him.

Lily sat in Dumbledore's office, not for the first time nor, she suspected, the last.

She leaned back in her seat.

"So you agree then," she said. "You think it's Pettigrew who broke into the castle?"

"I do," Dumbledore said. "I hope you can appreciate the complexity of barring the castle against a rat."

"Call back the Dementors," Lily said. "If you admit that they don't work, at least they can stop torturing the students."

"I would if I could," Dumbledore said. "Believe me, I want these foul creatures nowhere near this school. But the Ministry has tied my hands on this front."

Lily sighed.

"I can give you the happy news that the Ministry has decided to provide Harry with a permanent guard," Dumbledore said.

"That's… Why wasn't I consulted? Who thought of that? He doesn't like strangers," Lily said.

"I do believe that he knows Nymphadora Tonks quite well," Dumbledore said.

The tension in Lily's shoulders practically melted away.

"Okay," she said. "We do like Tonks."

"She's lovely," Dumbledore agreed. "And will keep Harry safe."

"She'll do her damned best, I know it, but there's always something at Hogwarts," Lily said, twisting her hands together.

They looked at where Mrs. Pettigrew's house had once stood. It had been torn down and replaced by a parking lot.

"Not here," Lily said, shaking her head.

"We'll keep looking," Sirius said. "Padfoot has a good nose that goes well with my tracking spells. Once we find a lead, we'll have it."

"Evans," Sirius said.

She shot up, breathless, and clung to him reflexively. He put a hand on her shoulder and another on her waist, grounding her.

"Hey," he said. "Hey, deep breaths here… Deep breaths…"

Lily closed her eyes and rested her forehead against him.

"It's the trial again," Lily said. "I keep dreaming of it. About how we all had to testify—about how I snapped at Pettigrew when he lied about the Fidelius Charm, about how I cried on the stand, about how I told Mrs. Pettigrew I never wanted to see her again, about how Harry was crying by the end of it, about the Dementors everywhere… Oh God, Sirius, what if that's why the Dementors affect him so much? Because he was exposed as a baby? And in the dream Pettigrew is convicted, but then he turns into a rat and slips away and…"

"You need to take a deep breath," Sirius said. "It was a dream, Lily. You didn't do anything wrong at the trial, or in that dream… do you want to sleep with Padfoot tonight?"

Lily took a deep breath.

"If you don't mind."

Sirius nodded, and made her drink from the glass of water on her bedside. Then he tucked her back in, turned into a dog, and came to snuggle up against her.

Dear Lily and Sirius,

As per usual, I miss both of you but am writing too quickly with too good news to dally on salutations.

Harry produced a patronus today. It was a project we were working on after hours, to try and build up his confidence around the Dementors and he did it! It was non-corporeal, naturally, but as I told him the mere fact that he managed it is extraordinary.

He was quite proud of himself. Please don't tell him that I spoiled his good news and act surprised when he writes it to you himself. I was just so very proud. I had to share.

All my love,

Remus

PS — Dora says hello.

"Dora," Sirius said, frowning at the letter.

"I think that might be short for Nymphadora," Lily whispered back.

"Scandalous," Sirius gasped, making her laugh.

"That's our Moony," Lily grinned.

She was drenched in sweat by the time Sirius told her to stop. They'd built the obstacle course in the backyard and she'd been going at it for hours; jumping the fence, walking along a row of tires, crawling under a rope bridge… He'd been running alongside her in his Animagus form, as if it would inspire her, but was finally calling in defeat. He returned to his human form.

"It helped me when I was starting to transform," Sirius said.

"It was a good workout," Lily said, panting. "But I don't feel any closer to taking on an animal shape than I did when we started this…"

"And you smell," Sirius noted. She smacked his arm.

"I wish Moony was my teacher."

"Well, unluckily for you, he's with the youths," Sirius said, sticking his tongue out.

They were lurking in the bad part of Knockturn Alley. Lily kept her cloak's hood low—she was far too recognizable, and the scar sprawled across her face was impossible to hide. Sirius was doing all the talking. He tapped her arm thrice after talking with one particularly strange character—their cue to head back to The Three Broomsticks.

Lily threw her hood back. "And?"

"Nothing," Sirius said. "Even amongst ex-Death Eaters, Pettigrew is an enormous mystery."

"Ex?" Lily asked, arching an eyebrow.

"You know what I mean," Sirius sighed. "Drink your butterbeer, Evans. We'll have to think of something else."

Dear Mum,

Buckbeak's trial was today and he lost. Hagrid is so sad and I don't know how to make him feel better because it's really not fair that Buckbeak is going to get killed, so I don't feel right telling him that everything is okay. Hermione is at the library right now because she says that there must be a legal precedent that can help out, and Neville went to help even if he wasn't so sure. Ron and I don't think it'll help—Ron partially because he's mad at her cat again for dragging a dead mouse onto his pillow, but me because I just really don't think so. Why is justice broken like this? So that Peter Pettigrew is somewhere out there but they're going to take away Buckbeak forever.

I'm so mad, Mum, I don't know what to do. It's not the most unfair thing that's ever happened, but still. Tonks agrees with us (but she says we're not allowed to repeat it since she works for the Ministry and should be impartial), and she taught Ron and I all about the Wizarding World's justice system. It was really nice of her because she stayed past her shift to do it, but I didn't feel better. At least I knew exactly how the broken-ness works now.

I love you, sorry for venting.

Harry

At Easter, Remus came home with Harry and Lily couldn't help but feel relieved as they all sat around the kitchen table on that first night back. She'd made grilled cheese sandwiches, Harry's favourite, and she'd opened a bottle of wine since Remus didn't drink while he was at Hogwarts. Of course, this brought an end to their weekly searches for Pettigrew, which made Lily somewhat antsy. But all her people were home.

After supper, Harry rushed back upstairs to catch up with Medusa, and the three of them retired to the living room. Lily saw an Auror standing outside, at the end of the driveway, and got up to draw the curtains.

"Which one is it now?" Sirius asked.

"Looks like that one named Richards who picks his nose," Lily mused.

"Disgusting," Sirius said.

"There's no way he's done it in front of you," Remus said, smile teasing his lips.

"Lily swears she saw it."

"I did!" Lily said. "And then I offered tea anyways."

"You're too nice, Evans," Sirius said. "But on the subject of less disgusting Aurors…"

"Oh yes," Lily smiled, spinning around. "So: Dora."

Remus rolled his eyes.

"I knew I should have stayed at the castle," he said.

"How would you tell us all about her if you had?" Lily asked. "Do it now while you're sober, or we'll talk you into it in a few glasses. Your choice."

Neville and Harry were sitting in the living room, digging into the chocolates they'd found hidden all over the house that morning. Lily knew how strict Augusta Longbottom could be (she'd heard enough from Alice back in the day) and so she was more than willing to let Neville have chocolate for breakfast on Easter. Remus was making her laugh, whispering outlandish strategies in her ear about how best to steal chocolate from the two boys when a loud knock on the door broke the morning.

Lily went to open, but Sirius put a hand on his arm, shook his head, and went.

"What now?" she heard him say. Lily heard the door open wider and heavy footsteps as two Aurors, one of whom was Rufus Scrimgeour himself, burst into the room.

"For fuck's sake, some manners would help," Sirius called behind them. "Neville, don't tell your grandmother I taught you 'fuck.'"

"Yes, Mr. Black," Neville squeaked.

"Happy Easter," Lily said. "Let's start there, gentlemen. Can we turn to the kitchen to…"

"We have to search the house again," Scrimgeour said.

"On what grounds?" Remus asked more rationally behind him.

"You had previously testified that you had nothing of Peter Pettigrew's in your possession," Scrimgeour said.

"We don't," Lily said. "The Aurors took everything of his in as evidence when he was arrested; have you forgotten so quickly?"

"Our tracking spells have led us here," Scrimgeour said. He raised his wand. "Accio objectus homini cupiditatem."

Lily wasn't sure what to expect until she heard the door of what could only be Harry's room, by the awful squeak of it, open. Then, flying down the stairs, came a tattered piece of parchment.

"Bloody hell…" Sirius said.

"It can't be," Remus added. Both of their eyes were wide and shocked, and once Lily recognized the object before them she realized why.

"Is that..?"

"The Marauder's Map," Sirius said. "I thought it was lost."

"Filch mustn't have destroyed it after all," Remus said.

"You know what this is, then?"

"It's a toy," Remus said. "A toy we made while we were at Hogwarts, with the help of our friend James Potter. Peter Pettigrew was also involved in the object's creation."

"And what exactly does this do?" Scrimgeour asked.

"Why don't you cast a revealing charm on it and find out?" Sirius said, grinning coyly.

Lily sighed, knowing what would follow. If Scrimgeour didn't hate them enough as it were…

Words appeared on the parchment, first in Remus' neat and eligible cursive.

Mr. Moony would like to congratulate Mr. Scrimgeour on his most excellent find and does maintain that the Head Auror's ability to defeat decade-old pieces of paper is indeed nothing short of a complement to his most illustrious department.

Scrimgeour's eye twitched, but Lily was too busy admiring what she so easily recognized as James' frantic scrawl as it appeared.

Mr. Prongs agrees wholeheartedly with Mr. Moony and would like to add that even by his very, very low standards, Mr. Scrimgeour's hair is an absolute wreck that gives the appearance that he has been locked up in Azkaban for weeks himself. Should this be a tactic to blend in with criminals and gain their trust, Mr. Prongs would like to salute this clever maneuver.

Lily couldn't help but snicker.

Mr. Padfoot would like to ask Mr. Scrimgeour whether or not "AUROR" is an acronym for "Absolutely Useless Reduction Of Ministry Reliability." The extra 'M' in there really does ruin the acronym, but if anything Mr. Padfoot believes that this is emblematic.

Mr. Wormtail would like to suggest that Mr. Scrimgeour learn a few manners before knocking down doors at absurd times, though by the looks of him perhaps Mr. Scrimgeour was raised in a barn and truly cannot help himself.

And with that, the ink disappeared.

"What is the meaning of this?"

"We called it the Marauder's Mocker," Remus said. "It's a paper that insults its holder. Surely, you can understand why this was an amusing asset to a group of schoolboys…"

Scrimgeour's jaw locked. "It is strangely eloquent."

"That's thanks to James; he had quite the extensive vocabulary," Sirius said.

Scrimgeour looked about to burst. "And you did not think to signal to the Auror department that you had this in your possession?"

"The Marauder's Mocker did not belong to Pettigrew," Sirius said. "We all had a hand in its making, and for a very long time we were unaware of its location."

"It's mine now," Harry chimed in, getting to his feet.

"Harry," Lily warned. How many times had she told him not to talk to Aurors?

"Some other students stole it from Mr. Filch's cabinet, the one where he keeps confiscated items," Harry said. "They gave it to me."

"And why is that?" Scrimgeour asked.

"You will watch your tone when addressing my son who is, may I remind you, a child," Lily hissed.

Scrimgeour hesitated, and then knelt before Harry.

"Why didn't you tell a grown-up about this?" he asked.

"She said I was a child, not an idiot," Harry sassed back. "I didn't tell anyone because the—the Mocker was stolen."

Scrimgeour took a deep breath. "Surely, you knew the meanings of the names you saw on the parchment. Moony and Sirius—your uncles, Prongs—your late father, and Wormtail…"

"Pettigrew," Harry said. "Yeah. But like I said, that was stolen. I didn't want to get in trouble, and it's like Sirius said, it doesn't belong to Pettigrew. I… I thought my father might want me to have it."

Lily's stomach twisted. She couldn't tell if this was just Harry playing his cards right, or if he honestly believed this.

Regardless, it got rid of Scrimgeour.

She closed the door behind the party of Aurors, and gave her boiling blood a second to cool. When it didn't, she proceeded to go to the living room anyways where the four boys were waiting.

"I just noticed that we're out of eggs," Lily said. "Sirius, Remus, Neville—why don't you take a walk to the corner shop and get some?"

"All three of us, Mrs. Potter?" Neville asked nervously.

"Yes sweetheart, it's a three person job," Lily said. Her cool tone must have said enough, because the three of them packed up. Sirius put a hand on Lily's arm on his way out and she shrugged him off.

The door shut, leaving her and Harry alone in the living room.

She raised the parchment.

"You are so, so lucky that Remus and Sirius are such tremendous liars," Lily said. "Because you and I both know exactly what this is. Why do you have it?"

Harry took a deep breath. "I wasn't lying. Two students gave it to me…"

"Who?"

Harry set his jaw.

"Don't lie to me," Lily snapped. "Not more than you have. Who was it?"

Harry looked afraid for a second. He was so rarely in trouble.

"Fred and George," Harry said quietly.

"And why did they give it to you?" Lily said, crossing her arms.

Harry opened his mouth but nothing came out.

"I married one of the men who made this and the other two are my best friends," Lily said. "Don't you think I know just how many secret passages it shows? How much damage it could do if it fell in the wrong hands—Pettigrew's himself, since he knows about the map oh-so-well."

Harry frowned. "I just wanted to go to Hogsmeade…"

"My God," Lily said, dropping her arms and looking away.

"If you'd just let me from the start!"

"How?" Lily said. "How did you get away from Tonks to do it?"

"Saturdays are her days off," Harry said. "The other Aurors are… well, dull, and they… they don't know me. I tell them I have headaches and want to go lie down."

"You tell them you have headaches," Lily nodded. "Wonderful. And so if something were to happen to you in Hogsmeade, who exactly would know to come help you?"

"I never go alone," Harry said, defensively. "Ron and Hermione and Neville…"

"Are children!" Lily snapped. "And so are you, but this… you should have known better than this. We have been so, so honest with you about who Pettigrew is and how good he is at getting in and out of places and situations that he should have been in. We told you everything about his trial, about the pain he caused… Your father is dead because of him, and both of us could be as well."

"I know!" Harry snapped back.

"Well, act like it," Lily said. "Think about the threat. Think about how we're doing all of this for your safety. If your father were here, he would be outraged—believe me Harry, you're getting it easy from me comparatively."

Harry looked stunned for a second. Lily suspected that she'd gone too far but her heart was beating in her chest.

"The boys will be back soon, and I don't want to do this in front of them, but there's nothing more to be said," Lily told him. "I'll be telling Tonks about your charades with her colleagues, and McGonagall as well. You'll sit in detention every weekend if that's what it takes, and you can bet your broomstick that I'll be holding on to this and your cloak when you return to Hogwarts after Easter."

Harry paled. "The cloak… The cloak's mine. It was my father's."

"Your father would do whatever it takes to keep you safe," Lily said. "Believe me, it's a conversation we've had. It's a sacrifice and a night we've lived, and this is a poor way to repay him."

Harry's face fell more.

"When I saw his name on the map… I thought I should use it," Harry said. "Because it was his."

"You thought wrong," Lily said. "There will be no discussion on this, or else I'll be pulling you out of school entirely, is that understood?"

Harry gulped. She saw tears welling up in his eyes that perhaps mirrored the angry tears she felt in her own.