Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of its characters. However, since Rowling discarded my favourite characters I picked them up and took them into my care to give them the love and attention they deserve...and occasionally give them reason to need that love and attention no matter how much they deserve it without needing a reason.
Summary: James and Sirius' first Christmas at Hogwarts is both memorable and eventful. Takes place in between chapter 9 and 10 of The Forming of a Legendary Friendship, but can be read separately without a problem.
Warnings: Strong bromance, can't stomach boys being extremely close without it being sexual, then this is not the story for you and you should hit the return button.
This story is part of a series called A Bond of Family. If you are interested in reading the entire series, then the chronological order can be found on my profile.
Special thanks to Kitty for beta-ing this story for me. I cannot thank you enough for all the patience you have with my grammar and the ideas I get through our conversations. I wouldn't have gotten where I am today without you, so thank you!
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Sirius trailed his fingers over the wall he was walking by, aimlessly wandering through the hallways.
"You look like the weight of the world is on your shoulders," despite the familiar voice, Sirius still tensed and dropped his hand.
"I…" finding himself unable to meet the Poltergeist's eyes, Sirius looked down at his hands. "I thought the corridor was deserted."
"I was invisible until I saw you, so you can never truly decide a corridor is empty on sight alone."
"I hadn't realised the ghosts here spend time invisible since no one is hunting them here," biting his lip, Sirius leaned against the wall as he turned to Peeves.
"Sometimes it is easier to move around when unseen. That little map of yours doesn't show us, then?"
"No, would it even be possible to include ghosts?" he didn't bother asking how Peeves knew about his map.
"Technically not since ghosts are not a part of the living world," Peeves admitted. "But there are ways to still detect when a ghost is present. Muggles have this thing that is called an electromagnetic field detector and it can detect the presence of a ghost to those trying to hunt us."
"Electromagnetic field?"
"Yes, it is something produced by electrically charged electrons and it affects the behaviour of other charged things in the vicinity of them," Peeves smiled. "It is a fairly difficult subject and I do not entirely know how to explain it in easy terms when I don't fully understand it myself, but that is what is basically responsible for the small electric shocks you humans sometimes get when touching metal or another person highly charged with electrons or even strong magic."
"And Muggles use that field to track down ghosts?" Sirius asked interested.
"They try and sometimes succeed. They also use atmospheric environment monitors or thermal-imaging cameras."
"Of course," Sirius realised. "Because the temperature changes when a ghost is in the vicinity and it's the main reason why the castle is cold despite the heating charms constantly in use around the castle. A thermal detector would be able to detect them in the Muggle world regardless if they are visible or not, simply because of the change in temperature."
"Yes," Peeves nodded, cocking his head a little to the side. "Where are you going with this?"
"If I can add a thermal charm to the map, it would be able to detect the ghosts regardless of their visibility. Which is also how I would be able to detect other people not related by blood, by using the same charm. I would only need to find a way to link the thermal signature to the kind of being detected, to determine if it's human, House-elf, ghost or an animal," Sirius looked up to Peeves. "You just gave me the answer to a question we have been pondering about."
"You are welcome," Peeves grinned momentarily before turning solemn again. "But I doubt that little problem is the reason you looked so gloomy. Care to tell me what is on your mind so that I can perhaps help you?"
Sirius dropped his gaze again. "I was thinking of doing something very wrong."
"And why would you do that?"
"Because I do not want to return to my relatives' house for Christmas," he swallowed as he answered honestly. He wasn't stupid enough to speak about Grimmauld Place to anyone; his parents threats always in his mind. But Peeves had already sworn himself to silence and he really was running out of time to think of something. "I signed up to remain at Hogwarts, but Mother is demanding my return for the holidays and I cannot refuse without a good enough reason."
"So what were you planning?" Peeves' black eyes darkened, clearly aware of just why he did not want to return.
"To get myself a bad enough punishment that I must remain here to serve detention," Sirius admitted. "But I don't know how to get one heavy enough that I would be kept here and not just serve it after returning. At least not without hurting someone in the process."
"That is a dilemma, indeed," Peeves mused, cocking his head to the side as if listening to something. "Yes, that could work."
"What could?" Sirius asked curiously, aware enough of the bond between the Poltergeist and the castle to know the two were communicating.
"It is strictly forbidden, on pain of heavy consequences, to cause destruction to the castle or anything on her property."
"I don't want to be expelled and causing destruction to the castle would still mean hurting her," Sirius pointed out.
"It depends on how big the damage is that is done," Peeves mused. "You could destroy the Whomping Wi-"
"No," Sirius cut him off. "That tree is the only thing keeping someone I care about safe when he is most vulnerable."
"Of course," Peeves nodded in agreement, falling silent momentarily as he went over their options.
"We could try and stage a confrontation with your relatives, one where yous will be forced to defend yourself but still cause damage to Hogwarts enough to warrant a detention requiring yous to remain here," Tiffy's soft voice made Sirius swirl around.
"Tiffy...how...just how many people are hiding in this corridor?" Sirius asked startled, though he knew Peeves would never have allowed anyone who could cause him trouble to come near undetected.
Tiffy came closer. "Tiffy did not mean to eavesdrop, but Tiffy could not help herself when she saw you two."
"I would have warned you if someone else but her would have approached," Peeves reassured him, confirming his belief. "And she does have a good idea there. It has happens often enough already that it will not be unbelievable and if we can rig the destruction caused to be just big enough to warrant an immediate detention, it will be enough to keep you here."
"That would still mean someone gets hurt," Sirius pointed out.
"Just some slimy Slytherin relatives who no doubt deserve it," Peeves waved his concern off.
"I don't care about them, I meant Hogwarts. It would mean hurting her."
"Hogwarts won't be minding if it means helping yous safely stay here for as long as yous can," Tiffy reached up to touch his hand.
"She knows you would never hurt her without a good reason," Peeves agreed with Tiffy, coming to hover before him again. "She will even help us lure them to the right location where the exact right amount of damage can be done."
"Us? I'm not about to let you follow me into trouble," Sirius protested even as both of his companions shook their heads fondly.
"And what makes you think we will be in trouble?" Peeves suddenly disappeared from view moments before Tiffy did as well and a smile crossed Sirius' lips.
"The two of you are sneaky."
"That is what we aim for," Peeves' voice crackled as both of them reappeared before him. "So, are you on board?"
Taking a deep breath, Sirius couldn't help a helpless smile from growing as dual mischievous grins met his gaze. "What do you have in mind?"
In the end, the plan was fairly easy and Hogwarts would lure a couple of his relatives she could to the agreed upon location where Sirius would just happen to wander alone; far enough away from curious eyes that no innocent bystander would get hurt but still close by enough that a teacher would come to investigate soon enough for no real trouble to arise.
Or at least that was the plan, but Sirius was fairly sure the castle would never have lured this particularly group to his location as he caught sight of Rosier, Avery, Mulciber, Wilkes and the younger Lestrange brother turning the corner into his direction.
"Sirius Black," Lestrange sneered, a cold huff of laughter escaping him as they stalked forward. "How splendidly nice to run into you here, all alone."
Sirius' heart hammered in his throat as those cold eyes stared him down. It were not Slytherins he had any desire to ever meet alone; all five of them strong and sadistic enough to be considered future followers of Voldemort on their own. He didn't think he would be able to hold his own against one of them, let alone all five at once as they were far too advanced for his current level of casting.
He felt Tiffy and Peeves shifting closer to him as they clearly realised things had not gone according to plan and their invisible presence gave him the courage he needed to untie his tongue.
"I cannot say the pleasure is mutual."
"Reducto," Avery clearly didn't want to waste any time in trying to harm him, but Sirius managed to throw up his shield in time to protect himself and his two invisible companions against the curse.
"Is it a good idea to engage this particular group?" Tiffy's soft squeaky voice was barely heard as several strong curses were cast his way, the shield faltering under the strong offensive magic being thrown at them and pain flared through Sirius' arms at the effort it took to keep it up. Curses were redirected into the wall behind them and it was pure luck that his shield protected all three of them from the debris breaking off of the wall behind them.
"I don't think they're giving me much choice," Sirius managed to push Tiffy to the side while at the same time duck himself to avoid a bone shattering curse as his shield shattered.
"We will just have to make do with what we have," the cutting curse send Sirius' way suddenly bended off to slam into the wall behind him as the Poltergeist clearly intercepted it, though Sirius couldn't prevent the debris shattering from the wall from cutting into his back without leaving him open for more curses sent his way. "Thought it would be wise to blow up the passage immediately."
"They aren't near the passage," Sirius only barely managed to block a dark purple curse and send a counter-curse in return that made one of the Slytherins yell in pain and go down.
"Forget the passage, blows up the wall," Tiffy squeaked, another curse Sirius hadn't been able to defend himself from bended around them as well to slam into the already abused wall and he could sense the little elf move further away from him to freely use her special brand of magic without risking to harm him in the process.
"That'll damage the castle!"
"Better her than yous!" Tiffy's voice left no room for argument and Sirius honestly couldn't argue with her logic.
A brush of urgent warmth washed over him as he aimed his wand at the wall closest to the attacking Slytherins. "I'm sorry."
A sharp pain shooting through his arm broke his focus as he was hit by a curse he hadn't seen coming and he instinctively tried to recast his shield from the oncoming curses he knew would hurt his companions as well.
The pain in his arm was by far outstripped by the sharp white hot pain in his abdomen; a magical backlash slamming into him with incredible force and taking his breath away as he was knocked off his feet.
A wall of debris and smoke rained down all around him; a deafening collision of breaking stone stunned him momentarily before a sudden coldness washed over him and caught him before he could hit the ground.
The coldness swirled him around to avoid still falling debris before setting him down far enough away from the clearly collapsing wall that it could no longer endanger him but a bad case of vertigo made him stumble and fall onto his behind.
The same solid icy feeling shielded him from most of the smoke invading his sinuses, but he still coughed harshly; having just enough sense of mind to use the inside of his robe to protect himself from inhaling even more while trying to blink away the dark spots in his vision.
Most of the wall on his side of the corridor had exploded and he was suddenly more than grateful that they had settled on an outer passage by the Courtyard for their plan as the Courtyard itself showed signs of damage while the outer wall was all but gone. At least it meant no one else had gotten hurt by the backfiring plan.
"Tiffy..." he managed to bring out between coughing, relief crashing into him as small but familiar hands patted his back to try and help him regain his breathing.
"Tiffy was far enough away from the blast to protect herself," the little elf reassured him, looking up to him with large blue eyes.
"What happened?"
"You cast a shield but instead of raising it to protect yourself, you hit the wall with it," Peeves explained, hovering in front of him protectively and as he let his dark eyes roam over Sirius worriedly, he knew the Poltergeist had been the one to protect him.
"My shield did this?" Sirius asked incredulously.
"From what I could feel, you absorbed the magic being thrown at you into the shield and used it to actually strengthen it up. Well, you can see the result of what happened when it hit the wall," Peeves indicated to the clearing smoke and gaping hole in the wall where pieces of stones were still breaking off as a result from the explosion.
"I don't remember doing that," Sirius admitted between coughing. "I was just trying to protect the two of you since I knew I wouldn't be able to block those curses."
"Almost killing yourself in the process," the worry in Tiffy's eyes increased as she suddenly tensed. "Peeves..."
"Go, I have him," at the Poltergeist's words, Tiffy disappeared from view and Sirius could sense she had vanished from his side moments before hurried footsteps crossed the corner.
"What on earth happened here?!" McGonagall's voice sounded shrill to Sirius' abused ears and he winced, unintentionally having tried to make himself smaller at the stern voice.
"They attacked him out of the blue," Peeves spoke up before Sirius could, though the Poltergeist didn't move from his protective stance.
Alarm rose in Sirius as that was not the agreed upon plan regardless of how messed up things had become, but another coughing fit prevented him from speaking up and he tensed when unfamiliar hands came to rest on his back and chest.
"Easy, you shouldn't move," Professor Flitwick's hands held him in place and he stopped his struggle as the same coldness settled onto his shoulder, letting him know Peeves hadn't left his side. "He inhaled a lot of smoke."
Blinking as McGonagall immediately strode over and knelt down before him, Sirius could only watch through his coughing as she examined him. "Where does it hurt, Mister Black?"
"I...," years of experiencing his parents' wrath had taught him to hide any pain he felt, to never let anyone notice something was wrong or give them the satisfaction of knowing they were having an effect. To have people clearly realise he had been hurt made Sirius clench up completely now, unable to disregard his default response. "I am fine."
"Nonsense, you are most definitely not fine," McGonagall reached out to his forehead, making Sirius tense back and she paused. "Did he hit his head?"
"No, I managed to catch him before he could hit the ground," Peeves denied. "The blood must have come either from the cuts or from his arm as he flung it up. They hit it with a curse right before the wall exploded."
"All right, so it is shock. Take him to the hospital wing, Filius. I will get the full story of what happened here after he's been examined by Poppy."
"And the others?"
Sirius let himself be helped up by both Peeves, shying away from Professor Flitwick's touch involuntarily as adults' touches never meant anything beyond pain. But the Professor seemed to take his flinch in stride and refrained from touching him again without comment, letting him regain his balance through Peeves' hold instead.
"I will deal with them," McGonagall's reply was short and apparently enough for Professor Flitwick as he began to direct him to the hospital wing. "Peeves, tell me what exactly happened here."
"I'm not leaving him," Peeves raised an eyebrow. "Any questions you have will have to wait until he has been looked after and I know he will be all right."
"I am fine, Peeves," Sirius tried to protest but the look in Peeves' eyes was enough to make him shut his mouth with an audible click again.
McGonagall looked ready to argue, but saw something in Peeves' eyes that made her back down and nod. "I'll come to the hospital wing as soon as I have sorted the others out."
Sirius was only vaguely aware that Professor Flitwick gave a reply as Peeves guided him to the hospital wing, the pain in his chest and the ringing in his ears overwhelming him from paying attention to what was happening around him until it disappeared suddenly and he could suddenly breathe properly again.
He looked up to see Madam Pomfrey stand in front of him, though her attention was on the Charms teacher beside him.
"His ribs are set and he should not have any lingering pain from the shattered arm if he rests it for two or three days," she was telling Professor Flitwick while fitting a sling around Sirius' now bandaged arm, making Sirius wonder how she had managed to touch him without him noticing. "But I would like to keep him for tonight, just in case."
"I am fine," Sirius repeated for what felt like the tenth time even though he was fairly sure he hadn't spoken on the way there. "I do not need to stay here."
"I will be the judge of that," Madam Pomfrey disagreed.
"I am not staying here," if there was one place he hated almost as much as Grimmauld Place, it would be a place of healing where his guarded secret could be discovered at any moment if he was not careful. Crossing his arms in an attempt to look stubborn, he used the movement to feel if his Rune was still activated and was relieved to find it was in place.
"You will not," Peeves' presence seemed to unnerve both Madam Pomfrey and Professor Flitwick a little, but Sirius was relieved the Poltergeist had remained at his side as a grounding presence.
Madam Pomfrey opened her mouth to argue but Professor Flitwick surprised them both by agreeing with Peeves. "If he stays in his dorm over the weekend, I think it might be wiser. We do not want him to be in here with the next group of patients you will receive if he doesn't have to be."
It had not even occurred to Sirius that the Slytherins who had attacked him might need medical attention, too, and he immediately vowed to himself to hit the books dealing with healing spells even more so than he already was.
He had absolutely no intention to ever be put into a situation where he would be locked in place with enemies and no way to escape. More so that for Remus' sake, he would need to learn as much about Healing as he could for his own. If he could learn enough to just heal any injury he received, he would never have to visit the hospital wing again and risk exposure.
"If I am cleared, then can I go?"
"One moment, we still need to know what exactly happened," Professor Flitwick paused as he seemed to take Sirius' skittish behaviour and misinterpret it as nerves to face his attackers. "On second thought, I can just as easily get that story on the way to your dorm."
Wanting to be long gone from the hospital wing before the teacher changed his mind, Sirius rose to his feet and ignored Madam Pomfrey's immediate protest.
"Will you be all right on your own, Siri?" Peeves spoke over her as he hovered in front of him, hands held out to steady him should he falter. But Sirius managed to hold his own weight and balance now that his head wasn't ringing any more.
"Yes," giving the Poltergeist a fleeting smile, Sirius reached out to place a hand on his biceps. "Thank you, for everything."
Peeves gave a single nod. "I will spread the word that you are all right."
Knowing the Poltergeist meant Tiffy, Sirius nodded relieved even as a pang of guilt washed over him at the trouble he had caused by his selfish desire. "I'm sorry."
"You are an idiot, Siri," Peeves suddenly reached out to pull him into an embrace and although Sirius automatically tensed at the contact, the Poltergeist ignored it as he whispered in his ear. "She is sorry she couldn't prevent that group from reaching you and knows you did not mean to harm her beyond the initial plan. I am also to wish you well and to tell you that she hopes you will be all right soon."
"I...thank you," Sirius swallowed back the lump that had suddenly formed in his throat when Peeves pulled back again.
"Are you ready?" Professor Flitwick looked curious about the interaction between them, but made no comment as he led the way to the doors, pulling Sirius to the side just in time as they suddenly opened and Mulciber and Wilkes entered.
They shot him a look of pure hatred as they were being pushed forth by a following McGonagall, the other three Slytherins floating behind her, unconscious.
She magically deposited the three onto beds and forced Mulciber and Wilkes towards Madam Pomfrey before turning to them. "Where are you going?"
"Why don't you wait just outside for a moment?" Professor Flitwick suggested and Sirius did as requested without comment.
"I am taking him to his dorm, there is no need to cause unneeded stress by having them all in one place when it is not needed," the words were said softly enough that most of the room probably couldn't hear them, but Sirius was used to trying to understand what was going on by eavesdropping from a distance and could hear them just fine.
"Did he tell you anything about what happened?"
"Not just yet. Did they?"
"They said he blew up the wall out of nowhere when he saw them, that they were unaware he was even there until it was too late."
Anger rushed through Sirius at the unfairness of it all as they were placing the blame on him. But he held his tongue as he had technically been there to start a fight to receive detention.
"Fancy that," Professor Flitwick said. "How odd then that Peeves said they hit him with a curse before the wall blew up and the last spells his wand cast were defensive."
Sirius hadn't even realised the Charms' teacher had taken it from him and he was relieved to find his wand in his pocket.
"I thought the same, but although their wands have all last cast offensive spells there was nothing that would have blown up the wall the way it has."
"Regardless of the outcome, I think we can be clear on who was the initiator here."
"Yes and I will make sure they are punished."
Sirius could feel McGonagall's gaze on him through the small opening of the door, but refused to look up at her and give away that he was listening in.
"What are his injuries?"
"Three broken ribs, multiple cuts and the bones in his right arm were shattered. He inhaled quite a bit of smoke but it seems Peeves managed to protect him from the worst of it. He got off extremely lucky."
"Extraordinary as from the debris on both his and Peeves' clothes I determined he had to have been much closer to the blast than the others."
"I will see if I can discover what he remembers," Professor Flitwick promised, giving McGonagall a final nod before making his way over to Sirius. "Ready?"
"Yes, Sir," pushing himself off the wall, Sirius followed him down the hall.
"So, do you think you could tell me what happened?"
"I blew up the wall, Sir," Sirius readily admitted. "I did not start the fight, but I did do that."
"How did you blow it up when your wand shows no offensive spells?" Professor Flitwick did not seem surprised by the admittance, only looked at him curiously.
"I am not quite sure, Sir," Sirius wasn't ready to tell anyone about his specialised shield just yet, especially not a teacher. It would lead to questions as to how he had developed it that he was not at all sure to answer and rather prevented to be asked at all.
"Shock and fear can do a lot to a person, especially when they are cornered."
"I was still the one who blew up the wall, Sir."
"Due to the circumstances, I think you can be forgiven for it."
"Nonetheless, I did blow it up," Sirius was not quite sure their plan was still salvageable, but he had to try or he had put Tiffy and Peeves in danger for nothing.
"I suppose a few points will be taken, but nothing serious," Professor Flitwick admitted.
"Should there not be consequences for me personally, Sir?"
"It almost sounds like you want to be punished for this," the Ravenclaw Head of House turned to him amused.
"Well, I should deserve detention for this, Sir."
"Let's imagine I agree with that, when exactly would you want to serve it? The Christmas holidays start in two days. Would you like to serve it before that, or after," Professor Flitwick's eyes met his. "Or perhaps during would be better."
His heart skipped a beat as the Professor stared at him for a long moment before seemingly come to a decision.
"Yes, I am afraid I will have to give you a detention, perhaps I will even have to let you serve two detentions depending on the injuries the other boys received. And because I am a very busy man with little time, your detentions will have to be taken when it suits me," Professor Flitwick said solemnly. "So you will have to remain here at the castle for the holidays as I am fairly sure you will have one detention before Christmas and the second probably after New Year."
"Sir?" staring at his teacher, Sirius was terrified of why the Charms teacher was going along with what he wanted. What had he seen in him that had made him change his mind so suddenly.
"No, I am sorry Sirius, but my mind cannot be changed. You will have to remain here at Hogwarts with Mister Potter and I will be sure to inform your parents that you absolutely must sit through those detentions for the damage you have caused to the castle," Professor Flitwick actually smiled and a wave of relief washed over Sirius as he realised the kind teacher thought he wanted to remain here to keep James company.
"Very well, Sir, if you are absolutely sure I cannot change your mind then I will just have to accept my punishment," managing to keep his expression straight, Sirius let the man believe he had figured him out. "I do not actually need a chaperone to get to the dorm, though, Sir."
"I am afraid I must insist on that as I am fairly sure a certain Poltergeist will make my life very difficult if I do not accompany you to Gryffindor Tower," the Charms' Professor smiled. "He seems to have taken a fair liking to you and if he was bad when Pandora was bullied, I dare not leave your side and provoke his ire with how protective he is of you."
Professor Flitwick looked remarkably calm, even though he did chuckle wryly. "But even if Peeves wouldn't retaliate for my lack of duty, I must still admit that I am much too terrified of all the pranks Mister Potter will target me with to let you travel alone."
"He wouldn't," Sirius couldn't hold back the small chuckle that escaped at the raised eyebrow. "Well, I'm fairly sure he wouldn't."
"I am not taking the chance. And since I have no desire to have Madam Pomfrey bristling down my neck either, I hope that you will rest that arm for the upcoming days as well as your body."
"I will, Sir," Sirius readily agreed, unwilling to return to the hospital wing.
"Good, then I will leave you in the hands of your friends as I'm fairly sure they will be worried about you," Professor Flitwick took in Sirius' form as they reached the Portrait of the Fat Lady.
"What happened to you?" The Fat Lady asked curiously.
"Slytherin trouble," Sirius replied, hesitating as he tried to remember the password. But the Fat Lady swung open without requesting it. "Are you allowed to do that without a password?"
"I just changed the password momentarily to Slytherin trouble, so you gave the correct answer," the Fat Lady winked at him, making Sirius smile.
"Right, a shower is allowed, but you should try not to move your arm during it," Professor Flitwick studiously ignored the open portrait technically breaking the rules.
"I won't, thank you Professor," making his way into the Common Room, Sirius gave a little wave before the Portrait closed again and he made his way to the dorm.
Being relieved his friends were not present yet; he showered and changed his clothes with some difficulties before returning to the bedroom, only to find Tiffy there.
"Are you all right?" He immediately hurried to her side and almost automatically reached out to her but managed to stop himself in time.
"Tiffy is fine, how is Sirius?"
"I'm all right. I'm sorry I put you in danger," he sat down on his bed.
"Yous did not, they did," she came to his side and placed a hand on his uninjured arm. "Tiffy is sorry the plan failed."
"It didn't, actually. Professor Flitwick gave me two detentions, one for before Christmas and one for after New Year," Sirius felt warmed by her outraged expression. "I pretty much asked for them, to be honest. He agreed because he thinks I want to remain here to keep James company."
"But Sirius' Jamsie is nots staying at Hogwarts, is he?"
"No, but I don't think the professor knew that," he shrugged. "It doesn't matter, though. The plan might have failed, but the end result was what was desired since neither you or Peeves were injured."
"Yous were, though," Tiffy pointed out.
"I can live with that," Sirius grinned. "I get to stay at Hogwarts during the Christmas Holidays."
"Tiffy is glad, though Tiffy does not like that Siri had to stay alone."
The warmth he had felt at her outrage on his behalf was nothing compared to what he felt at the nickname Tiffy was giving him, one he had noticed James use unconsciously sometimes since that first hug. The endearment did funny things to his stomach and made him feel like smiling any time he heard it come out of James' mouth and he found it was the same with the little House-elf and even Peeves, though he hadn't realised it at the time.
The little elf frowned at him, clearly confused at his sudden smile and tensed momentarily as she seemed to realise what she had said before looking down.
"Tiffy is sorry for the mistake."
"You can't take it back now," Sirius couldn't help but smile as blue eyes snapped up to him surprised.
Tiffy stared at him for a long moment before shaking her head fondly. "Only yous would react like that. Yous are very different from most wizards."
"I'm glad to be," finding the courage to slip off the bed and take both of the House-elf's hands in his, he smiled again. "I don't care about the nickname."
He hesitated, biting his lip as it was his turn to look down. "James uses it at times and Peeves did this afternoon. It...makes me feel happy when they do, when you do. It means I am your friend and I like that."
"Tiffy giving Sirius a nickname makes him happy?" Tiffy reached out to lift his chin, forcing him to look her in the eye. "Then Tiffy will happily refer to Siri as that from now on as Siri is Tiffy's friend and always will be."
"I'm glad," he swallowed thickly, gazing into earnest warm blue eyes and smiled as she caressed his cheek.
"So is Tiffy, but yous should get some rest now. Yous looks terribly pale."
Sirius didn't argue and let her shoo him underneath the covers, feeling grateful and warm as she insisted on tucking him in.
"Tiffy will wash and fix Siri's robes while yous sleep," she smiled at him as she retrieved the battered robes he had discarded into the empty bin. "And Tiffy will bring something to eats up to yous for dinner so yous can stay in bed."
"You don't have to do that for me," he protested tiredly, the events of the day rapidly catching up to him now that he was lying down.
She only smiled and returned to the bed to brush his fringe aside. "You are silly. Just sleep, my little Siri and call Tiffy if yous need anything."
"I promise, thank you Tif," he smiled through a hurriedly covered yawn, her broadening smile the last thing he saw before sleep claimed him.
