“Sent owls off ter all yer parents’ old school friends, askin’ for photos…knew yeh didn’ have any…d’yeh like it?” – Hagrid, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone

            The owl rapped at the glass windowpane with its beak, a roll of parchment nestled against its leg.  The man walked over from the kitchen table, setting his steaming cup by the window. He opened the window, the owl flapping inside as he set an owl treat from the table on the sill. He pulled the parchment from owl’s leg as it nibbled at the owl treat, picking up his cup as he turned to the table, opening the parchment. He brushed the loose belt of his faded brown bathrobe from the chair, detangling it from the chair’s back. 

            He sipped at his cup, the medium sized brown owl giving out a small hoot as the owl toddled about the sill.  He looked down at the parchment, a thick black scrawl spread over the page. 

            Dear Remus,

                        It’s been a while since we last saw one another, but was hoping you could do me a bit of a favor. It’s Harry Potter’s first year here at Hogwarts, and I was figuring to put a photo album together for him.  I was hoping you could donate some pictures of James and Lily for him.  – Rubeus Hagrid

P.S. – The owl can wait for pictures, if you’ve any to spare.

            Remus read the letter again before turning away.  He pursed his lips, blinking furiously, as set his cup down on the table.  He turned towards his den, walking out of the kitchen into the other room.  The tall standalone cabinet centered in back corner was lit up by the rising morning sun, the polished metal knobs and handles making small marks of light amongst the wood finish.  He came to the cabinet, casting a shadow as he opened up the two large central doors of the cabinet, four shelves within stacked with papers and boxes and various trinkets.  He reached into the upper shelf, pulling out a book-sized box. He closed the cabinet and brought the box into the kitchen, the owl was still nipping at the treat in between hops about the sill. 

            “I’ll be sending you off soon with a parcel, it shouldn’t be very long now,” Remus said in the general direction of the owl.  Remus slid a chair out from the table, sitting down. He opened the box, a stack of photos sliding out into his hand. He set the box to the side, taking a moment to straighten the photos in his hands. Focusing on the stack of photos, he brought them closer until he clearly saw the first picture.     

            A newborn baby and a redheaded woman were in this picture, their green eyes shining out of the photo, as a trim, dark haired man joined them in their pose, smiling and laughing. The baby waved its small hand.  He flicked the picture to the back of the pile, the second picture having the baby crawling on a blanket in the middle of a park. A black dog passed right behind him, walking off the edge of the picture.  Remus stared at the photo, a young man with dark hair and a wide smile crawled onto the blanket with Harry from where the dog had just exited.  The pictures he went through quickly, setting a few aside on occasion without much hesitation.  The last photo, a wide-angle shot of the couple with their child, as well as the dark haired man and two other men, was kept in the pile.  Remus placed the pile back into the box, closing the box shut.  He reached into a robe pocket by his waist to pick his wand out, tapping the box and wrapping it up in dark brown paper in an instant. 

            The owl had finished its treat, pecking at a few last bits as Remus came over to the window.  Remus took a pen from the table next to the window, quickly writing his name and Hagrid’s name upon the package.  The owl stood still for a moment, allowing Remus to place the parcel next to its leg.  With a flick of his wand, Remus conjured bindings to secure the package to the owl’s leg.  The owl gave a small hoot as it took off into the sky, Remus closing the window as the owl flew out of Remus’s vision.  He walked back to the table, picking up the pictures he had kept from the box. 

            The top picture was of the dark haired man, smiling widely, his arm wrapped around the shoulders of the taller of the two other men in the group shot.  They were both grinning, as the smaller man crept into the shot from one side and the child’s father snuck onto the other side of the shot.  Soon all four were crushed together, laughing and stumbling all over one another.

            Remus walked back over to the cabinet, looking at the picture. He knelt down and opened the bottom drawer, placing the pictures in the back left corner under some documents.  He slid the drawer back into place and returned to the kitchen.