Title: Harry Potter and the Missing Chapters - Birthday Celebrations

Author: Raven Grimm

Fandom: Harry Potter

Pairing: Remus/Sirius - Harry's POV

Genre: Slash

Rating: PG-13 to be safe

Total word count: 8290

Summary: Harry makes some unexpected discoveries while staying at Grimmauld Place...

Note: This is set towards the beginning of 'Order of the Phoenix'

Harry Potter and the Missing Chapters –

Birthday Celebrations

Ch1 - Secrets

Harry had never seen Sirius looking quite so happy, given that he's still being forced to hid away at number 12 Grimmauld Place, but then Harry's pretty sure he knows why…

Lots of people, when they reach Sirius's age tended to shy away from their birthdays, but not Sirius, he can't seem to get enough of celebrating, but Harry's almost certain that's down to just how many people are currently staying at his house.

Mr and Mrs Weasley and their son Bill have been there since Thursday, Mrs Weasley currently bustling around in the kitchen making dinner with Tonks – and judging by the sounds of things breaking she's probably not being of much help - where as Fred and George are still at work in their joke shop; Weasley's Wizard Weezes and Ron and Ginny are still at Hogwarts, all of whom will be arriving early Saturday morning with Hermione. Mad Eye Moody is around somewhere, but Harry isn't sure if he's actually staying the night, or just there to wish Sirius a happy birthday, though he'd be a day early if that was the case. Mundungus is staying with them over the weekend as well, much to Mrs Weasley's obvious annoyance.

Harry, having Godson privileges, was allowed to come a day early, getting out of all of his Friday lessons thanks to Dumbledore - who even let him use a port key to skip the long journey - and has spent most the day helping Mrs Weasley with the never ending task of cleaning up the house. When she rushed downstairs to make dinner however, Harry snuck off to see Sirius and found him in his mother's room with Buckbeak carefully avoiding being drafted into Mrs Weasley's House Busting Army.

He wasn't there long before the doorbell rang and Sirius's mother's wails reverberated up through the floors. A second later Sirius was on his feet and rushing down three flights of stairs, completely bypassing the portrait of his mother, and pulling open the doors.

Moody and Mundungus were forcing closed the curtains around the screaming Mrs Black when Harry made his way down the last flight of stairs and over heard Lupin wishing Sirius an early happy birthday.

"Hello Harry," Lupin said over Sirius's shoulder, who had pulled him into a hug and Harry smiled and nodded his hello. Sirius stood back rather abruptly, turning to Harry and beaming at him as he said, "Remus is staying with us for the weekend," he said, turning sharply to Lupin and adding, "And I won't take no for an answer."

Lupin laughed. "I guess I'm staying then."

Sirius only seemed to get happier after that, conversing loudly with the rest of the household over dinner, and Harry couldn't help feeling happier himself because of it.

Conversation at the table drifted to that of birthdays, and Sirius recounted tales of his years spent at Hogwarts with Remus and Harry's father James, eliciting raucous laughter from everyone – even Mrs Weasley - when she thought no one would notice that is, otherwise she just sat there shaking her head in disapproval. Harry wished Fred and George had been there; they'd have found it hilarious and probably would have been inspired…

The Marauders' ridiculous and often reckless sounding antics remained the topic of discussion right through dessert as well. And Lupin looked thoroughly embarrassed when Sirius wrapped an arm around his shoulders, and told everyone about his first birthday after becoming prefect at Hogwarts. Mrs Weasley didn't laugh at all that time, she tutted loudly before collecting up the dinner plates and bustled off to the kitchen. Tonks had barely pushed her chair back before Mrs Weasley said, "No, dear you stay here, I'll take care of the dishes."

Tonks smiled thinly as she sat back in her chair. "I really wish I wasn't such a cluts," she whispered in Harry's ear.

The night wore on to the sounds of laughter and yet more unbelievable stories, and before long people started wondering upstairs to bed, along with Harry - who had managed to stay up late due to the fact that Sirius was the only one with any authority to tell Harry when to go to bed, and him respectfully wishing to spend as much time with his Godson as possible, given that it was nearly his birthday. Eventually only Sirius, Lupin and Mr Weasley were left downstairs when Harry's eyelids were drooping too much to ignore and he conceded it was time he went to bed as well.

He'd barely reached his bedroom door when the urge to show Sirius his present early hit him, and he rushed inside to get it.

He passed Mr Weasley on the stairs, telling him he was just going to get a glass of water – the parcel concealed up the side of his jumper - and said goodnight to him again before hurrying downstairs.

By the sounds of things Sirius and Lupin had taken their drinks into the living room, but the conversation was much quieter than earlier, Harry thought that was out of consideration to those now sleeping, until a name floated his way; his own.

Harry couldn't help but eavesdrop now, and who could blame him; whispered conversations in the night had to be listened into, especially when they're about you… Tiredness having completely disappeared from his mind, Harry snuck over to the partially open door and lent towards the crack, hands resting quietly on the frame.

"Are you sure about this?" Lupin was saying and Harry could just make out the back of his tatty green robes through the gap.

"As sure as I can be, Remus," Sirius said, his hand falling down on Lupin's shoulder.

"But what if he doesn't understand?"

"Harry is a big boy, Remus, and he has a kind heart. I'm sure he'll be fine," Sirius said and Harry's 'kind heart' swelled with pride at his Godfather's praise, though his stomach fell about his knees as he considered what he's supposed to be 'fine' about.

"I know that, and I'm with you no matter what, Sirius, I just don't want anything to come between you and him, I certainly don't want it to be because of me."

"Harry likes you, Moony," Sirius said softly, both hands coming to rest Lupin's shoulders now. "He wishes you hadn't resigned from Hogwarts, you know."

Lupin nodded. "All that can change though. There's a lot to consider, a lot of reasons why telling him could go horribly wrong, and all of them because of me."

Sirius's arms slid around Lupin's back and Harry jerked away from the crack as his Godfather's face came into view.

Harry waited an anxious moment, straining to hear if he'd been discovered, but at Sirius's next words he relaxed and edged back towards the door.

"I know him, Remus, I know he'll-"

"But what if he doesn't?" Lupin insisted and Sirius sighed, pulling back from the hug to look his friend in the face again.

"Look, I'll tell him tomorrow, and if on the off chance I'm wrong - and when am I ever wrong, Remus - If I'm wrong, then I'll apologise to you, and… and I guess he'll never want to see me again, but that's not your fault."

Harry's stomach dropped to his feet now as he tried to make sense of their conversation.

"I hope you're right, Sirius," Lupin said, and after a moment of silence, there was movement inside the room that suggested they'd finished talking and were most probably headed for bed.

Harry hurried upstairs, remembering the present lodged up his jumper as it bumped against his side. He didn't think he could hand it over now though, not without giving away the fact that he'd been listening in to their conversation.

He ducked inside his room just as one of them reached the landing, his heart racing like he'd been chased by a dragon.

It was very hard dropping off to sleep after that, his mind going over every word Sirius and Lupin had said, trying to add in the words they hadn't, trying to make sense of them. After at least an hour spent thinking about it he still hadn't reached a conclusion that seemed reasonable, and Harry couldn't think of a single reason why he could ever be angry at Lupin, let alone never want to see Sirius again. But thankfully his body couldn't resist sleep any longer and he drifted off to dreams of whispered conversations…