His mind was blank as he slowly regained consciousness, unable to recall what had happened to him. He woke up in a deserted, dark alley, cold and alone... and terribly hungry. There was a sharp pain in his chest, perhaps he had met with an accident, but he really could not remember. He slowly dragged himself to his feet, lumbering along in his emaciated form, sniffing the air for any signs of food.

He only managed to stagger towards the nearest source of light that he could see, emanating from the windows of a cosy little cottage. The smell of food wafting out of the cottage made him salivate. He pawed anxiously and loudly against the door, hoping the owner may have pity enough to throw him something to eat. There was no response. Desperate, he started to bang his own body against the door, in a vain attempt to break into the cottage. The impact intensified the pain in his chest, and he blacked out once again.

When he woke up, he was surprised to find himself placed on a rug, with food spread out right before his eyes. Without hesitating, he devoured the bread and meat served before him. Only when the plate was emptied did he then notice that there were bandages around his chest. There was also an aged woman sitting on a rocking chair not far from him, staring at him with curious, green eyes. "My, my, you must have been really hungry!" She finally said. "I was worried some robber has decided to take his chance with an old woman like me tonight, so I didn't dare open the door. You can imagine my surprise when the pounding stopped and all I found was you." The old lady smiled kindly. "Poor dear, someone must have ill-treated you, what with that burnt mark on your chest. And look how thin you are!" The old woman said as she shook her head and stood up, walking over to the table to refill his plate with more food.

His plate was refilled another 5 times before he was satiated. He got up gingerly and nosed the old woman's hand, grateful that she had fed him. "Hmm, what am I to do with you then? I can't possibly run you out on the streets with your injuries like that." Horrified that she may chase him out, he cocked his head to the side and stared pleadingly at the old woman. The old woman sighed. "Okay, so it seems I have gotten myself quite an intelligent dog... perhaps you could stay here for awhile", she relented. "My name is Megan, and I wonder what your name should be?" They both decided on the name "Blacky" (he voiced his opinion by barking happily) after his coat of coal, black fur and that was how Blacky spent his next few years, recuperating and keeping the old woman company.

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It has been a year since the war, and Arthur and his family were still trying to pick up the pieces after the horrific deaths of two of his children. Life has gone back to normal ever since Harry defeated the Dark Lord, but deep down everyone was still coping with the fact that they have lost loved ones. Like an open wound that could never heal fully, leaving scars behind. Sometimes Arthur would dream about talking to his dead son Bill, enjoying Butterbeer together like in the old days. Other times, he thought he would see his twin sons grinning cheekily at him, only to realise that there was but one left. His friends have also fought valiantly in the battle and died an honorable death, Mad Eye Moody, Sirus, Remus, Tonks... tears would well up in his eyes as he recalled the tragic deaths of even the newlyweds. But he had to stay strong, for the sake of his surviving children, he needed to rebuild his life and stop trapping himself in the past. Life had to move on...but it wasn't easy.

Feeling the onslaught of another bout of depression, Arthur quickly sought solace in the one place that he knew could make him forget the tragedies of the past. At Kingsway Street was a line of muggle shops full of knickknacks, where Arthur would spend his free days browsing through all the shops, marveling at the strange new creations that the muggles have brought into this world. Sometimes, when he felt generous enough, he may even buy some new inventions home. Take the gadget called a "vacuum cleaner" for example, which promised to suck up all the dust in the house and leave it spick and span. Molly would often chastise him for bringing "all this rubbish" home. After all, he knew fully well that a cleaning spell could do the trick, and would probably be more effective than the bloody vacumm cleaner. But Molly understood that was how Arthur coped with his pain, so she let him be, never bothering to throw out the muggle things that he held so dear.

So it was on one of those days that Arthur decided to go down Kingsway Street again, when he spotted a large black dog trotting obediently behind an old woman. And the dog looked... eerily familiar. Rubbing his eyes and staring again, Arthur had no doubt that the dog resembled Sirius's Animagus form. But how could this be? Perhaps it was his depression getting worse, that imaginary people (or animals) no longer disappear after awhile. But he doubted that. After all, he would have hallucinated about his sons, those he held closest to his heart, not Sirius. Sirius was a good friend, but nothing more. Arthur knew the pain in his heart when Sirius died was nothing compared to when his own family members' dead bodies, lined neatly at Hogwarts' Hall Entrance, greeted him. Perhaps it was just a normal dog that resembled the Animagus, but could it be that coincidental? Even if curiosity killed the cat, Arthur was determined to prove to himself once and for all that the dog was NOT Sirius. A simple spell to reverse the Animagus transformation would do, but Arthur would need to do this without any muggles looking, lest he get into trouble with the ministry.

The man has been following them for awhile, ducking conspicuously in between the myriad of shops that lined Kingsway Street. Honestly, is he that stupid? Blacky detected him long ago. Unfortunately, Megan was a little hard on hearing, and old... perhaps that explained how she could blissfully continue to shop for groceries when there's a dangerous man lurking a few shops away from her. Blacky would do everything to protect Megan, his saviour. With that thought in mind, Blacky turned swiftly behind and gave chase towards the man, barking loudly in warning. The man gave a yelp of horror and ran away, but Blacky wasn't about to let him go. He chased the man all the way towards a secluded alleyway, and knew in his heart that victory was imminent: The man was trapped. Blacky grinned menacingly, preparing to lunge forward and bite the leg of the man, so that he would never dare come near his mistress again. Without preamble, the man waved a stick in front of him. Blacky was confused. Is the man planning to fight him with a... stick? Before he could consider the bizarre situation, a blast of light hit him in the face and he was thrown backward. Angered, he prepared to get up again, only to find that his forelegs have transformed into human hands. Glancing sideways, he stared blankly as a naked human body met his eyes. "Sirius! It's really you!" The man who had attacked him with a stick was now staring openmouthed at him, spouting a name he did not recognize.

"Blacky! Blacky! Where are you?" Megan cried as she hurried around a corner where she saw her dog disappear as it chased a man, wondering why her usually docile dog had suddenly given chase. She anxiously followed suit, as fast as her old legs could carry her, only to discover the man holding a stick and looking stunned. A naked man in his thirties was lying on the floor, staring at his hands with such utter confusion that she almost burst out laughing. She averted her gaze quickly and tried to look for her dog, calling his name in vain. In response to her calls, the naked man turned towards her, and his frustrated expression was wiped away by a smile so joyous, it was almost as if he knew her. Surely she hadn't met such a strange man before? After all, she had lived alone for quite some time now. Shaking her head, she was about to reprimand the young man for not putting on some clothes when she was captivated by the grey orbs of his eyes, the same intelligent grey orbs that Blacky had. What in the world is going on?

Arthur quickly recovered when the old woman appeared, and from the look on her face she seemed shellshocked at the scene before her. He raised his wand, about to cast 'obliviate' (memory erase) at her, but Sirius had faster reflexes. Sensing danger, he got up and pounced at Arthur, knocking the wand off his hand. Trapped under Sirius's body weight, with his arms restrained above his head, Arthur was unable to struggle free. The manic look in Sirius's eyes made Arthur realise that he would never be able to bring Sirius back with him if he laid even a finger on the old lady. After all, Sirius was fiercely protective of those close to him. Time to attempt persuasion... "Ahhem," he addressed the lady, "Uh, I can explain, but we need to get out of here." Arthur said politely. It took a moment for the old lady to tear her eyes away from Sirius to look at him. "Where's my dog? What have you done to him!" she demanded. Arthur did not know what to say. "Your dog is actually a human and he's lying on top of me?" As if the muggle woman would ever believe him. To his surprise, the old lady closed her eyes and took a few calming breaths before looking at him again. "Go find some clothes for this young man, and then we will go back to my cottage where we can talk. You'd better have a good explanation for this!" Upon being freed by Sirius, Arthur hurried to obey.

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A few moments later, Sirius was fully clothed and sitting at the table with Arthur and Megan, listening attentively as Arthur recounted the details of the Wizarding war, who he was, and how he had disappeared through a veil when he was defeated by his evil cousin, Bellatrix. His head thrummed painfully as he tried to recall what Arthur had mentioned, but his mind drew a blank. He was Blacky, Megan's dog, and whatever Arthur said could not be real. He glanced at Megan, who seemed to be enjoying the whole story that Arthur weaved, as if it was a fairy tale, sipping a cup of Earl Grey as she listened.

It was nearly dark when Arthur finally finished his story. After a moment's silence, Megan turned to Sirius and smiled. "And all this time, I've been wondering why you are so clever!" Sensing his loss and confusion, she gave Sirius a hug and whispered, "You will always be Blacky in my heart, but you are also Sirius. Perhaps it is time you leave to find out about your past." "NO!" Sirius cried, momentarily stunned by his own voice. "I don't want to leave you, Megan!" Megan smiled sadly and turned to Arthur. "I only believe you and all these things like magic and transformations because Sirius has Blacky's eyes and protected me. Speaking of which, do you think you can transform back for me, Sirius?" Sirius stared expectantly at Arthur, hoping he would use the stick... wand, again to transform him, but Arthur shook his head. "I can only transform Animaguses back into humans, not the other way around. You will have to use your own ability to do so. Perhaps you can try visualizing yourself as a dog, it may work."

Having no other option, Sirius closed his eyes and concentrated hard, imagining himself back as Blacky, having a sense of hearing and smell keener than humans, and a form with four legs. His whole body would be covered by a black coat of fur. His nose was small and round, always fitting just right in Megan's hand when she gave him something to eat. His bark would echo around the cottage with joy whenever Megan scratched behind his ears, and he enjoyed sleeping on the soft rug next to Megan's bed each night. He could run faster than the wind, and his body would reverberate with raw energy each time he does. In fact, weren't there times when he would chase after his fellow animal friends, immensely content when he managed to catch up and pounce on one of them, sending them all rolling down a hill? There was a wolf there, someone that was important to him... or was it all his imagination?

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Lost in his reverie, Sirius only came to his senses when he felt a hug around his neck. He opened his eyes and was delighted to see that Arthur's advice had worked. He barked happily and nuzzled Megan's cheek, licking her face affectionately. Megan scratched Sirius behind the ears but returned her attention back to Arthur. "Please stay for the night. I will be entrusting Sirius in your care, but I hope he visits once in awhile. It's the least you could do after snatching my only companion away." She glared at Arthur, before softening her gaze to look at Sirius's forlorn face. This would be the last night that she could spend with her beloved Blacky before he left her. She didn't know how long it would be before she could see him again. After all, he was leaving to experience a different world, something totally foreign to her. She had once believed in fairy tales and magic when she was a very young girl, and Megan never imagined that her childhood belief would be proven so pointedly in front of her in her old age. After all, her mind was still reeling from the fact that her dog was actually a tall, handsome man (albeit very thin) with short, glossy black hair, and she was sitting opposite a wizard. Inwardly, she was actually quite proud of herself for absorbing everything and not faint on the spot.

She had half the mind to just chase Arthur away and pretend the incident never happened. She would protect Blacky and they could continue their normal and peaceful lives together. But that was a selfish idea. She would never live with herself for condemning a man to live the life of a dog just so she wouldn't be lonely again. "Come back often and tell me stories of what you see in your world, Sirius," she slowly stroked the fur of the dog she had nursed back to health and willed herself not to cry. "I'm glad to have met you, and it's time you start your own little adventure.