10

Chapter 10: Tidbits of News

Thanks for all the reviews. I know a lot of you are asking for Hermione, but I'm holding off on that for the moment. I might have her later, but not just yet. Also, just an FYI, I'm not saving everyone. This story is mostly focused on Harry and Lily.

I had a mini rant, but the person it was directed to said they weren't reading this story anymore. Oh well, not my fault s/he misconstrued the last chapter.

Enjoy.

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The small family, which now included Neville, went to the zoo the next day. They had a great time going around to the animal exhibits and seeing all the new and sometimes dangerous animals. It seemed the zoo was going through a transformation where they were making the exhibits more animal friendly.

The boys thought it was great. They rode the train and got to play the few games that were their age specific. They won some prizes and gave them to the two men that were accompanying them. Sirius and Remus were having fun just watching the two boys unwind and be boys.

There was a petting zoo, filled with animals like sheep, goats, rabbits, and other small animals, which the boys liked too. They met quite a few children their age there. None that lived near them, so they didn't get too close to them. Neville was painfully shy, so Harry did most of the talking. Since his Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon were in prison, he felt braver and more adventurous. There was no one to yell at him and his mummy was in his head giving him encouragement to be more open with people.

They got to feed quite a few animals at the petting zoo, but Harry wanted to go see the reptiles. "Come on, Neville. I want to see the lizards," he said, going to the large cave like structure in the far end of the zoo. It looked ominous in the bright sunlight, but Harry thought it looked cool.

"I'm coming, Harry," the shy boy said, wheezing a bit. He was not used to walking this much, and he was a bit on the pudgy side. Harry was running, which was something Neville was definitely not used to. "Wait up, will you?" he asked, stopping to catch his breath. He put his hands on his knees and his head down.

Harry and Remus stopped and watched Neville breathe. They were going to go back to him, but Sirius was there.

The dogman stopped with him, he too out of breath. "Go on, Remus. We'll catch you up," he said, waving the other two on. "I'll stay here with Neville," he said, putting a hand on the boy and guiding him to the nearest bench. The two out of shape wizards sat and watched the world go by them. They were both experiencing new things. They had little to nothing to do with the muggle world and it was exciting to them. It was interesting to see how they dressed and the gadgets they used to just get by day to day. Not a shred of magic in sight, but they got on pretty well without it.

Remus and Harry, with Lily in the boy's head, went to the reptile house. In there was much cooler and they got to see many lizards and snakes. Harry was watching one snake eat a mouse with creepy fascination.

"He says that he's tired of mice," Harry said, loud enough for Remus to hear. He could hear all the snakes complaining that they got the same thing to eat every day. He wondered if he should tell someone.

"You understand what he's saying?" both Remus and Lily asked, though only Remus was heard by the people around them.

"What did you say?" one man asked, looking at them queerly. "Are you talking to me?" he asked, with an affronted tone as if he had just been insulted.

"No. It's nothing, my nephew is just having me on," the werewolf said with a chuckle as he guided Harry off to the side and crouched down to look at him. "Is your mum talking to you?" he asked, hoping that Lily was explaining that he needed to keep quiet about his new talent.

"Yes, sir," Harry said, worried that both Uncle Remus and his mummy were upset that he could talk to snakes. He thought it was neat. Even if all the ones here seemed to be bored. It made him wonder if all the animals in this zoo thought the same thing. Some of them did seem to do nothing but sleep. Like the bears and the cats. They just slept the whole time he and Neville watched them.

"I'll let her do the talking then," Remus said, standing and leaning against the wall. He watched the people go by and wondered what the snakes were saying about the humans.

Lily was telling Harry that it wasn't a bad thing, necessarily, but that he had to keep it quiet for now. That if some people found out, they might react badly. And she didn't want anyone to do bad things to her baby.

"Can I tell Neville?" he asked in his head. "I don't want to lie to my new friend," he thought to her. He had only met Neville last night, but the shy boy was his best friend.

"Yes, but wait until we get home and we can all talk about it," she thought back. They'd have a family pow-wow and get it all out in the open. That way no one could say that they didn't know or were left out. This way, everyone could also give their opinion and support.

"Okay, Mummy," Harry thought back and brightened a bit, knowing that he wasn't in trouble.

They spent a few more hours at the zoo and went home around dinner time. Everyone was exhausted. They all had enough energy to eat a small dinner of leftovers and a confetti cake with Neapolitan ice cream. Then baths were had, and they all went to bed.

Yesterday, when Neville came to part-time live with them, Remus had just added a bunk to Harry's bed. It was an easy transfiguration for him. Neville slept on the bottom because he was afraid of heights. Harry didn't mind, he preferred to be on top. It made him feel safer.

The next morning, they ate a full English breakfast made for them by Twinky. She had stayed with them when Neville was there. He had yet to hear from his gran and the adults were a bit concerned and Sirius agreed to go and check on her. They thought for sure she'd send some sort of message for the boy for his birthday. Then again, Lily's appearance might have been a bit much for the old woman.

When they were done eating, Lily brought up the whole snake talking incident. "Harry, I want you to know that speaking parseltongue is not a bad thing. However, many people think it is," she said as she joined them at the table. She didn't sit at the table while they ate since she could not.

"Why, Mummy?" Harry asked at the same time Neville said, "What's parseltongue?"

"Wait, Harry's a parselmouth?" Sirius asked, looking at his godson with new eyes. He was excited. He had wanted to meet a parselmouth all his life. His mother had been sorely disappointed when neither he nor Reggie had been one. However, he read up on them and they were great. The things they could do with healing magic.

"Because they are ignorant, Harry. Parseltongue means he can speak to snakes, Neville. Sirius, yes," Lily answered them all in order. She smiled at each person, until she got to Sirius, who was looking too thrilled for her comfort.

"What is ignorant?" Harry asked, giving Neville an encouraging grin because he asked a question. He had been trying to get him to do that all day yesterday.

"It means they lack the knowledge, or they don't know something," Remus answered, giving his friend a sharp look. "In this case they think because the last bad guy could talk to snakes means that all people who talk to snakes are bad guys," he explained, trying to keep it dumbed down for the children.

"What?" Sirius said at Lily's and Remus' looks. He was still excited that Harry could talk to snakes. "This is great. Do you know the history of parselmouths? And I don't mean that sh… crap they feed us at school. I mean the real history?" he asked, bouncing in his chair. "They are powerful magic healers mostly, but they can go the other direction and be powerful pain-givers, like old Voldy," he said, looking to Harry like he'd never want to hurt anyone. "The key word here is powerful."

"Don't go giving my baby a big head," Lily said, making Harry grab both sides of his head to make sure it didn't get bigger. "Your head is fine, Harry." She giggled a bit at his antics.

"I'm just saying," Padfoot defended himself with raised hands. To him this was great news. He had to go and get all the books from Grimmuald Place. He'd need to get his grandfather's permission, but that was doable.

"Harry is going to be powerful?" Neville asked, looking at his new friend with awe. He knew Harry was strong.

"Yes, he will," Lily said, giving the shy boy a smile. She would say that even if Harry was a squib. Because she was his mother.

"You will too," Harry said with determination. He could feel the silent strength in his friend. It was like a giant tree.

"Lily, what is a green wizard? You called Neville that yesterday," Sirius asked, grabbing his teacup, getting up and heading towards the living room. Twinky had already cleaned the table and there was no reason for them to sit there.

Everyone followed him, with only Remus keeping his teacup. They filed into the living room and sat. Harry and Neville shared a chair, and Lily sat on the arm of said chair. Remus sat on the sofa and Sirius sat on the other side of the sofa.

"He is?" Remus asked, this time he was the one looking at someone with new eyes. He had heard of green wizards, but to his knowledge never met one.

"Well, I'm not 100% positive, but Alice was one. Well, a green witch. It basically means they are more in tune with the earth, hence the name. Their magic takes longer to show up because nature moves slowly. Even a hurricane and tornado take time to build. Alice said she didn't do any accidental magic until she was eight," she explained, looking at Neville fondly. She was still upset with Augusta for trying to scare the magic out of the boy.

"Is that why plants like me?" the shy boy asked, sitting next to Harry. Every plant he touched seemed to brighten. It was like they were trying to communicate with him, but he didn't hear any words. He just knew what they needed, either sunlight, or water. Sometimes it was food, but he wasn't smart enough yet to know what kind.

"Yes, Neville, that is why plants like you. And if you want, we can set a greenhouse up in the backyard. We'll even get a magical one that expands," Lily said, giving a pointed look to the two adults that could make such a purchase. "We'll make sure to get regular plants and some starter magical plants," she offered, thinking she and the men could help the boys with Herbology. It wouldn't hurt to get them started on it now. Potions too, now that she thought about it. The easy stuff.

"We can do that. Do you want to get some snakes for said greenhouse?" Sirius asked, thinking that would be a great idea. That way he and Harry could practice what was in the books he was going to gather.

"I'm not sure. I don't want Harry to bond with any. He'd have to leave them behind when he goes to school," Lily said, tapping her chin in thought. "Perhaps if you just got some garter snakes. They are harmless," she decided. "The non-magical kind."

"I can do that. Neville, do you want toads for your greenhouse, or will snakes work?" he asked the boy. It would be his workspace after all.

"If Harry makes sure the snakes know what to do, then that's all we need," the little boy said, looking at his friend, who was smiling and nodding.

"I will," Harry said, grinning at everyone like they were getting more birthday presents, which they kinda were. They were just late birthday presents. He never felt so loved and he didn't want it to end.

"Okay, Sirius while you're out, check on you-know-who," Lily said, jerking her head to Neville. She wanted to make sure the old woman was alright. She could send Twinky, but Augusta could order her to lie.

"I will," Sirius said, getting up to get his wallet and keys. He still couldn't drive the car very well. But he took the house key with him, and the car keys were attached. "Remus, you coming with? Or am I going to have to take the bus?" he asked, not bothered by either prospect. The Knight Bus would be faster; however, he did love to see the scenes in the car.

"I'll stay here and look for work," Remus said, picking up the paper and looking through it. "I don't like living off you and Lily," he added as an explanation, which had both Sirius and Lily rolling their eyes.

"Suit yourself," Sirius said, and he left. If Remus wanted to work, who was he to say anything about it?

"Remus, why don't you use your magic to set up a repair shop or something?" Lily asked, concerned that her friend was going to get another job that was going to fire him because he missed too much work a month.

"Isn't that against the law?" he asked, still going through the paper.

"Boys, go play in the backyard," Lily said, not worried about them back there. It was completely fenced and there were monitoring charms all over the place. Twinky would watch them and if they got hurt, she'd let Lily know.

"Okay, Mummy," Harry said, squirming off the chair and taking Neville with him. It was a hot summer day and there was a sprinkler back there. Maybe his mummy will turn it on later. Until then, there was a swing set that they could play on. It had a slide and everything.

"It skirts the law," Lily said, picking up the conversation from where it left off. "No one has to see you do the work. That's what the back room is for. You can set your own hours and lock up the store whenever you want. Though I recommend you don't do it just on the full moon. Or that you come to work feeling sick." Sometimes she couldn't believe how gullible the magical folks were. She and a few of the others that roomed in Gryffindor tower figured out what Remus was when he was in first year. They just didn't care, thinking it was a magical thing. She guessed that made them just as gullible.

"Why do you say that?" Remus wanted to know.

"Because people are paranoid and like your dormmates, they will figure it out. Unless you say your Wiccan, they will think something fishy is going on," she said, thinking that might not be a bad idea.

"What is Wiccan?" he asked, putting the paper down and paying attention.

"Someone who practices the Wicca religion. I don't know overly much about it. I only heard a few people talking in passing. But they hold rituals on the night of the full moon, so you might want to look it up," she said, going over in her head the little that she did know. "I know there are books on it." She had seen tons of them in the non-magical shops when she went when she was pregnant with Harry. She just didn't care enough about the religion at that time to read up on it. She had thought she'd survive the war and would have time later.

"I will do some research on it. It might come in handy," Remus said, picking the paper back up and scanning the want ads again. "Even if I don't open a shop, I could use it as a valid excuse for taking the full moon off," he added, still looking for work.

"I still say my idea is better," Lily said, shrugging and going to see what the boys were doing.

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Sirius came home much later than expected and with him he brought Alex. They were all sitting down in the living room with tea.

"Alex, what are you doing here?" Lily asked, waving for the man to sit. She picked up the teapot and a cup and started pouring the two men some tea. While she didn't eat with them, she did sit with tea, to teach the boys manners.

"Sirius was at the Longbottoms when I was there getting young Neville's papers. Madam Longbottom is not well," he said with a sad note in his tone. He took one of the pastries and took a bite. It was nice and flaky.

"Is Gran alright?" Neville asked, sitting up straighter and feeling bad that he had been having so much fun while his grandmother was ill. He was holding a glass of orange juice that was mostly empty. He had almost spilled it, but Harry grabbed it.

"She will get better, but she has decided that Sirius and Remus here can take care of you better than she can," Alex said, pulling some paperwork out of his briefcase. "She wants to see you when she gets better," he added, giving the boy a smile. "She said to tell you that she loves you very much and that you are to be a good boy for your Aunt Lily," he finished, handing the papers to Sirius.

"This is unexpected," Sirius said, then he called Twinky.

The elf came and said, "Yes, sir?" Her demeanor was much more relaxed here since none of the humans here treated her poorly.

"Can you go and get all Neville's toys and clothes from Longbottom Manor, please? He's going to be staying with us. Wait, only bring the toys that will fit in the smallest bedroom and nothing too overly magical," Sirius said, looking to Lily who nodded. She really didn't need the room. They might have to look for a bigger place or add expansion charms on this one.

The elf nodded and popped away. She knew what the shy boy liked to play with, and they would fit in the bedroom. She could expand it a bit so that she could fit more.

"Boys why don't you go upstairs and play. You can take some of the biscuits with you," Lily said, pointing to the cookies.

"Yay," Harry said, setting his glass down and grabbing a handful of biscuits, then taking off like a bat out of hell, while Neville set his glass down calmly, and grabbed three and slowly walked out of the room. He was thoughtful on what he just heard and wondered what the adults were going to talk about.

"How bad is she?" Lily asked after she heard them go up the stairs, feeling bad for the old battleaxe. While she didn't like the woman, she didn't want her in poor health. Well, maybe a little bit, for what she put Neville through. But for Neville's sake, she hoped the woman pulled through.

"She's old," Alex said, like it explained everything. "She's in her 70s, so not that old by magical standards, but she has had a difficult couple of decades," he added, counting in his head the ways the woman had suffered loss. He took the teacup Lily offered and drank a large sip. He was quite thirsty.

"So, she's not sick, per se, she's just broken hearted," Lily concluded, thinking about all those that suffered the same losses that Augusta felt. Her husband, her brother, and then her son and daughter-in-law. "I thought her stronger than that," she murmured, wondering if there was something else ailing the woman.

"Her finances aren't the best. The stress of keeping her son at St. Mungo's is taking a toll on her health," Sirius said, confiding in them that tidbit he had picked up. "She told me that's why she's giving Neville to us."

"What exactly is wrong with Frank and Alice?" Lily wanted to know. "Is there a prognosis or are they just fleecing the poor woman?" she asked this question to Alex.

"I don't know, I am not familiar with the Longbottoms," he said, with a 'what can I do' gesture. He didn't know the couple, and he had only heard about them in the news.

"Sorry, I'm just frustrated," Lily said, not sure where that frustration was coming from or who to direct it at.

"Frank and Alice are in comas. Well, Alice gets around a bit, but she's not all there," Remus explained, since he knew more about it than the others. "I visited them once, and it was heartbreaking to see." His head hung a bit at the memory.

"I need to know if the hospital is doing them any good," Lily said, thinking that if they were just charging Augusta for letting them lay there, she could take them home and care for them there. Now that Neville was here, most of the time, then she'd have time.

"I'll see what I can find out," Sirius said, not wanting Alex to charge for something he could do.

"Alright, thanks. Alex, thanks for coming. Did you want more tea?" she asked, holding up the pot, which was still hot.

"No, thank you. I must go," the lawyer said, putting his cup down and gathering his things. "If you need me, you know how to contact me," he said as he departed.

"I'll check on the Longbottoms tomorrow, but it doesn't look good," Sirius said, not sure what they could do to help, other than take good care of Neville.

"Thank you," Lily said, thinking along the same lines as he was.

"Let's call the boys down and set up this greenhouse and plant these plants," Sirius said, going to get the package he had left in the hall.

"Boys, come and help set this up," Lily called up the stairs.

"Yay," came the twin calls. Both boys ran down the stairs, and the little family spent the rest of the day doing just that.