See If I Care

32

"Another year has come to a close. And the House Cup needs awarding. As I understand it, the points are as follows. In fourth place, Gryffindor, on 320 points. In third place, Hufflepuff, on 370 points. In second place, Ravenclaw, with 470 points. And in first place, Slytherin, with 475 points." Slytherin burst into applause, the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff tables full of polite applause, while majority of the Gryffindor table sulked.

"Yes, yes, well done Slytherin. However, recent events must be taken into account. I have some last-minute points to award." Alex frowned. What was he planning? Did he not know the school rules when it came to the House Cup? Dumbledore continued talking, awarding ridiculous amounts of points to Gryffindor due to the actions of Ron and Harry for going down the trapdoor, and for Neville for informing a teacher. He had just announced that a change of decoration was in order, raising his hands to change the decorations when Alex acted.

"Envoyer missurum," they muttered, just loud enough for their friends to hear, waving their wand discretely under the table, concentrating on the message they wanted to send. Their spell took effect as Dumbledore attempted to make replace the green and silver with red and gold. Alex muttered the counter curse to Dumbledore's spell as a silver flash appeared in front of Dumbledore. Their friends all raised an eyebrow at them. They didn't reply, instead turning to face the head table again, happy that the decorations hadn't changed. The bright silver light faded, leaving behind their message for Dumbledore. Everyone in the hall could clearly see the writing hanging in front of him.

'Headmaster, you seem to have forgotten how the house points work. Allow me to remind you. At 5 o'clock on the last day of term, or in other words, the start of the end of year feast, the house points are frozen. No points can be added or removed as of 20 minutes ago. Regards, Heir Gryffindor.'

Alex looked over to the Slytherin table and caught Blaise's eye, winking. Blaise smiled in return before they both turned back to the front. Dumbledore was attempting to cover up his blunder. It didn't work and he ended up simply sitting down and simply allowing the food for the feast to appear.

The rest of the feast passed without incident. Alex was happy that Slytherin got the recognition they deserved for winning. They had worked hard for that and didn't deserve for Dumbledore to take that from them at the last minute.

-June 20th, 1992-

Once on the train, Alex was bombarded with questions from their friends. They all wanted to know how they knew that rule, why they did what they did, why they used their Gryffindor status, why they only said heir when they were lairde, etc. They weren't able to answer under the onslaught of questions. Their friends finally stopped asking questions when Akiras head appeared from under their robes, hissing.

$Thank you, Akira. Go back to sleep,$ they hissed, stroking their familiar's head. Akira obliged, moving back out of sight.

"I knew that was a rule because it was my idea in the first place. I suggested it to the Founders, and they agreed that it was an important idea and put it in the rulebook of Hogwarts. A rulebook that has been enchanted to not change and who's rules are still in effect today. I stopped the headmaster because it's not fair for Slytherin to have their victory stolen at the very last minute, in front of the whole school. Plus, I have a thing for following the rules. As for why I used my Gryffindor status. I felt that Dumbledore would listen to the Gryffindor heir more than an heir of the other founders.

"I also thought it would make an impact for the heir of Gryffindor to support Slytherin's claim to the house cup, especially when it was Gryffindor that he was awarding the points to. As for why I used heir rather than lairde, there was two reasons. Firstly, basically no one at Hogwarts has a Lord or Lady ship, as you can claim it at fifteen but only if you are the last member of the family. Most families pass on the Lord or Ladyship when the heir is in their mid-twenties or early thirties. Also, I am the only non-binary student at Hogwarts. If I had of said Lairde Gryffindor, no one would have known that it is the same level as Lord or Lady Gryffindor. And for those who would know, it would obviously point to me, as the only non-binary student," Alex explained.

"That makes sense, I guess. I don't even blame you for it. I agree that Slytherin deserved to win," Hermione said.

"Yeah, and the reasons that Dumbledore was awarding us points were ridiculous," Neville agreed. Blaise and Draco smiled, clearly pleased that their friends didn't mind losing to them. As the silence stretched on, Anthony pulled out a pack of cards.

"Exploding snap, anyone?"

~

{Remus' POV}

Remus stood on the platform, anxiously waiting for Alex to return. He really missed Alex while they were at school. He was standing near the front of the platform, a small gap around him. He wasn't paying attention to the people around him though. The only thing he could think about was seeing Alex again. He was broken out of his thoughts by a voice he recognised right next to him.

"What are you doing here Moony?" He turned to see Sirius standing next to him, confusion evident on his face.

"Hey Sirius. I'm waiting for the train to come in, just like everyone else." He saw hurt flash across Sirius face as he neglected to use his nickname. He hadn't used the nicknames for Sirius or James since Alex was 3.

"I mean, why are you here? I'm here to greet my godson when he returns." Remus studied Sirius face for a moment, trying to work out what to say.

"What do you want Sirius?" he asked, crossing his arms across his chest.

"I want to talk to you Moony. You never visit anymore. I miss you," Sirius said. Remus didn't reply, simply staring at him. He raised an eyebrow but stayed silent. Sirius sighed.

"I was going to come over tomorrow to talk, but I guess I can say it here instead. I want to try again Moony. I want to try being a couple again. I never stopped loving you Remy." Remus felt his heart clench slightly at the Sirius' words. He hadn't stopped loving him either, but there was so many reasons why they didn't work.

"There was a reason we broke up Sirius." He turned away, watching the place that the train would be when it arrived.

"I know there was. But that doesn't exist anymore. I'm not an auror anymore. I haven't been since Christmas. I couldn't deal with being partners with Prongs anymore, his head has gotten so big from Harry's fame." Remus turned to look at Sirius again, surprise all over his face. Sirius had always wanted to be an auror.

"So, what are you doing for work?"

"I'm a lawyer. I seem to have a sense of whether someone is really innocent or not. What about you Moony? I know it's hard for you to hold a job, with your furry little problem and all." His voice got softer and more understanding towards the end.

:Actually, I've held a job for almost three year now. Plus, I haven't had any issues with my furry little problem for 4, 4 and a half years now," he answered.

"What? What do you mean?" Sirius asked, voice showing his shock.

"You heard that there is a cure for werewolves, yes?"

"Yeah, but that was only released at Christmas."

"Yes, but I happen to be the spokesperson for the person who invented that potion. They brought it to me four years ago and I was happy to test it for them. After no side effects occurring after four years, they decided that it could be brought to the hospital for public use."

"That's great Moony. Do you think we could try again?" Remus thought about his request. He would be happy to be with Sirius again. But what would Alex think. Sirius was one of the people who forgot about them.

"Maybe. It depends," he said with a shrug. Sirius smiled, a hopeful look on his face.

"Depends on what? Never mind, I'm going to take that as a yes until you say otherwise. So, you never did say why you're actually here." He rolled his eyes at Sirius' actions.

"I'm here to pick up my child Sirius. Honestly, why else would I be here?"

"Child," Sirius spluttered.

"Yes Sirius, child. I have a child in first year. And our what our relationship becomes depends on what they say about it." Sirius was still spluttering a few minutes later when the train pulled in. Remus stepped forward with a wave as Alex stepped off the train, surrounded by friends.