THE CONNECTED

Summary: Years ago a connection was formed between two people and that connection may just save a young boy's life in later years.

Chapter One

"HOLD HIM BACK, SIRIUS!"James Potter yelled as he rushed up the steps to get his wand from his bedroom.

"WHAT DO YOU THINK I'M TRYING TO DO?!" Sirius Black yelled back, using all his strength to hold the wild, half-changed werewolf. "James! Hurry! GET HARRY OUT OF HERE! I don't think I can hold him back for much longer!"

Just as he said that, the half-changed werewolf broke loose of the grip around his waist with a vicious growl. Sirius fell backwards onto the cocktail table, breaking it in the process. He struggled to get up quickly, but he was too late. The werewolf's yellow eyes found the green-eyed baby sitting in his rocker. The werewolf jumped next to the rocker and growled. The baby giggled up at him and lifted up his arms like he wanted the werewolf to pick up him. The werewolf bent down and bit the baby's left arm.

"HARRY!" Sirius yelled. He stumbled to stand up, but a piece of the wooden leg was jabbed into his leg and he fell back down. "JAMES! JAMES, GET DOWN HERE NOW!" He crawled over to the werewolf and baby as fast as he could, trying to ignore the pain in his leg.

James rushed down the steps, but froze in fright when he saw the werewolf's teeth in his son's arm. "NO!" He lifted his wand and shouted the first spell that came to mind. "Expelliarmus!" The werewolf flew back from the force of the spell and hit the bookshelf. He fell onto the ground, momentarily unconscious. James rushed into the room and ran to his son. To his amazement, Harry wasn't crying. He used his sleeve to carefully dab the blood off the wound. Harry cooed up at him, seemingly unaware of what just happened. James gasped when he finally removed much of the blood. "Sirius, come take a look at this!"

"Oh, trust me, James, I would…if I could move!" Sirius snapped from the ground. He hissed in pain when he tried to move his leg. "What is it? What's wrong?" He asked.

"The wound. It's…scarred over already. In the shape of a crescent moon. It looks years old already. It…it looks more like a birth mark then a scar." James answered in amazement. He rubbed the scar with his thumb gently. It felt like it was a part of the skin. There was no bump indicating a scar, just smooth skin.

"How is that possible? What does it mean?" Sirius asked, leaning against the front of the couch.

James shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know and, at the moment, I don't care." He sighed in relief and lifted his son into his arms. He hugged him tightly to him and kissed temple. "Oh, my son." He muttered into the top of his son's head. "That was the scariest moment of my entire life."

Sirius nodded in agreement and looked over at the werewolf. "What made him go off like that? There's no full moon tonight."

James reluctantly set his boy back into the rocker. "It must have been that potion Albus told us about, the one Voldemort had invented. Death Eaters must have injected him with the potion on that mission last night."He looked over at the unconscious werewolf. "We should tie him up before he wakes. Incarcerous!" Ropes flew out of the end of his wand and bounded the werewolf. "Here's your wand." He tossed Sirius his wand. "Why was it in Harry's nursery?"

"I placed it there when I was putting Harry down for his nap. I forgot I left it there." Sirius answered.

"Right. I'm going to floo Albus. He said something about his spy finding a counter-potion at the last meeting." James walked out of the room and headed upstairs to his study.

Sirius kept his wand trained on the werewolf, knowing that ropes would not hold a werewolf down for long. "Floo Madame Pomfrey as well! My leg hurts like crazy!" He yelled. He wanted to curse and swear, but kept in mind Harry was still there and awake. Lily and James would kill him if they ever found out Sirius was swearing in front of their little boy.

A few minutes later, the werewolf was still out like a light, but was now tied to a chair in the middle of the room and the mediwitch was looking over his leg. Albus was examining Harry's arm and James was injecting the counter-potion into the upper arm of the werewolf. "Albus, do you think he'll remember?" James asked, referring to the werewolf. He hoped he wouldn't. That was the last thing Remus Lupin needed.

Albus shook his head as he turned away from Harry's arm. "I do not know. This is the first case I found where Voldemort used the potion. But I do dearly hope not. Remus is the type that would beat himself up about it." James nodded in agreement. "As for this mark on Harry's arm, I cannot say for sure what it is." He said turning back to the mark on Harry's upper arm. "I don't believe you have to worry about Harry turning into a wolf every full moon, though. It doesn't appear to be that sort of mark."James walked over to stand next to Albus. "I believe it some sort of family mark, perhaps. I don't think you have to worry about it, James. If anything, it shows just how much Remus cares for Harry."

"Ouch!" Sirius complained, jerking his injured leg away from Madame Pomfrey.

"Well, Mr. Black, if you don't stay still, it wouldn't hurt as much!" She snapped.

Despite the seriousness of the situation, James found himself holding back a chuckle. A groan from the chair, took his attention away and that brief moment of humor drifted away. Remus rolled his head back and groaned again. James took a cautious step forward towards him. "Remus?"

"James?" He moaned. He blinked open his eyes and stared at the ropes tying him to the chair. "Why…?" His face slackened in horror as realization hit him. He quickly looked at James. "Harry? How's…Did I…?"

"He's fine, Moony." James reassured. "You didn't harm him."

"Didn't harm him? I bit him…Oh Merlin, I bit him."

James placed a calming hand on his shoulders. "Harry is alright, Remus. There's, surprisingly, no teeth marks or…well, wound, I guess." He struggled to say unsure what to call the mark that was left behind. "Let's undo those ropes." He started to untie him.

"No, no, don't, James. What if I go feral again?" Remus said, worriedly.

"You shouldn't, Remus. We've given you the counter-potion." Albus spoke up.

The ropes became lose as James finished untying them. Remus rubbed his wrist where there was a slight indent from the ropes, but he didn't get up from the chair. He glanced over to Sirius on the couch with Madame Pomfrey examining his leg. He felt guilt wash over him again. He looked around for Harry, but couldn't see over Albus's body. James, seemingly reading his mind, walked over and picked Harry up. Harry giggled and cooed in his father's arm.

"See, Remus, Harry is just fine." Albus said. "He is his happy little self." He commented with a twinkle in his eyes.

Remus eyed the happy child almost hungrily, taking him in as he never had before. He couldn't believe Harry was perfectly fine. It comforted him in seeing the child giggling at the weird faces Sirius was giving him. He could hear the steady heartbeat of the infant and it calmed him knowing there still was a heartbeat. He would never let anything harm that child. He was the cub Remus knew he would never have. Unknown to him, as he was drinking the sight of Harry in, his eyes had turned completely amber.

"Remus?" James asked in concerned.

Remus snapped his eyes away from Harry. "Yes?" His eyes turned back into the normal blue-ish amber.

James opened his mouth, astonished over the eye change, but closed it again and shook his head. "Nevermind."

They had decided not to tell Lily what happened and worry her unnecessarily nor did they tell Remus about the mark he made on little Harry's upper left arm. If they had told Remus, the event on Halloween might have ended differently.

Halloween, 1981

Remus snapped his eyes opened and suddenly sat up from his sleep. His heart was pounding in his chest, he was covered in sweat, and he was breathing heavily. A hand was placed over his pounding heart in an attempt to calm it. He took several deep breaths to try and calm down, but either helped. He struggled out of his covers and stumbled into the hallway to his bathroom like a drunken person. He slashed cool water on his face, but the feeling of dread would not leave him. He leaned against the sink and clinched his teeth together. Why was he feeling so…scared? It must have been some dream he couldn't remember. He felt like he had to go, like there was something he had to do, but what? He shook his head, feeling ridiculous. He was never one to believe in premonitions or prophecies. He sat up and looked at himself in the mirror. Water dripped from his nose and his hair was sticking up because of the sweat and water. He shifted uncomfortably, feeling needed. Who needed him?

He started to pace the hallways of his cabin a few minutes later, unable to fall back to sleep. He felt antsy and scared. Merlin, did he feel scared! Something must have happened, but he didn't believe in premonitions! He was so confused and uncertain. He felt like something had happened. The feeling of being needed had dwindled down as the night went on, but he still felt like it was there in the back of his mind. Somebody needed him.

He paused when he heard the fire blaze in his fireplace located in the living room. "Remus?" It was Albus Dumbledore and he sounded weary. He glanced out the window and noticed wasn't even dawn yet. Concerned, he immediately made his way to the room. Albus' head was floating in the fireplace. He knelt down in front of the fireplace. "Albus? What's wrong, sir?" He couldn't help but feel extremely worried. He had felt something had happened and, somehow, he knew Albus was here to tell him what happened. Why else would Albus floo him looking so weary and sad?

"I'm afraid something terrible happened last night, Remus. It's about the Potters." At that moment, Remus felt the world come crashing down around him. He knew that nothing would ever again be the same.