A/N: Introducing: The longest chapter I've ever written!! (And I hope they'll keep getting longer. Review to encourage –wink –)
Some people were concerned about the fact that this will make Harry different. To them, I say; of course he'll be different, but not as much as you would think. Hopefully most of you have heard of the Nature vs. Nurture debate (is it genes or environment that establishes what a person will be like), and I am a firm believer in them having an equal role in determining a person's identity. Harry won't be some spoiled asshole, because he's not that kind of person. You will see the changes, but you will still be able to recognize good old Harry in there, trust me.
On another note, the way Sirius is treating Harry is sort of taken from how I treat my nephew, so no bad mouthing it :D. Of course, he will be softer than a father would normally be because a- he has to act as both parent genders, and b- I'm a woman and this is how I treat children haha. Anyway, enough rambling. Read on!
OOOoooOOO
A baby's screams pierced the air, causing Sirius to shoot awake. Was there a baby in his apartment? The child continued to scream as he gathered his bearings.
The Potters... Right.
He turned his head towards the screams. He had taken Harry.
He shook his black hair out of his eyes, and was not surprised when the straight locks fell right back into place.
Resigned to his fate, he went over to the makeshift crib and realized they would need a bigger place. Quite soon, in fact. He picked Harry up, which silenced him immediately.
The child looked up at him curiously, almost waiting for something.
"Harry honey... I don't know what to do with you. What do I do?"
As if in answer, a foul smell drifted up to his nose. "Right okay then, first things first."
As he changed his diaper, he stared at the black rats nest hair, and the green almond shaped eyes. Little Harry was perfect.
Suddenly a knock sounded at his door. He finished and picked Harry up, going to answer it. On the other side was Remus Lupin.
"God Rem," Sirius all but collapsed against him, with Harry in the middle. They pulled each other into a desperate hug as the last two Marauders. Harry seemed to be enjoying the affection.
Minutes later, Sirius sat at the table, attempting to get Harry to eat his applesauce, while reading the Daily Prophet Remus had brought over. Remus, on the other hand, was puttering around the kitchen with the shill of someone who knew it well. He seemed to be whipping together some form of lasagna, but no one could be sure.
Sirius looked up from the newspaper and said, "Hey Rem, listen to this. The Boy Who Lived. Harry Potter, son of James and Lily Potter, defeated he-who-must-not-be-named late last night. The struggle ended the lives of James and Lily, but this boy will forever be known as our saviour. Godfather Sirius Black has taken custody ... blah blah blah."
He turned to his friend. "Did you know about this? You-Know-Who's gone?! Because of – of, him?" He pointed at Harry, who promptly grabbed his finger and stuck it in his mouth, using it to teethe. Sirius grimaced. "Oh, you'll eat that, but not the applesauce."
"Anyway, can you believe that? He'll be adored. Everyone will know his name."
"Yes, I read the paper on the way over. It's part of the reason I came, to be honest. I think... WE think you should keep Harry out of the public eye."
Sirius raised an eyebrow, suspicious. "Who's 'we'?"
"Dumbledore and I. We talked about it last night, after you left. If you let him be around people who worship him, he won't grow up to be normal. He'll think he can do whatever he wants, whenever he wants. That's not the kind of person he should grow up to be. He should be a tribute to Lily and James. A good person."
Sirius threw his arms down in defeat. He rested his head in the space between his arms on the table. "I can't believe their gone."
Remus stopped what he had been doing in the kitchen. He was still, not knowing what he could possibly say. He settled for, "I know, but we have Harry to honour and love."
Sirius looked sombrely from his friend to his Godson. He tapped the latter's cheek to get his attention. "Hey. We are going to love and care for you so much, you what know what hit you, okay little guy? We'll make your Mum and Dad proud."
OOOoooOOO
"Harry James Potter! What in Merlin's name do you think you're doing!?" Sirius, who was more shocked than anything, yelled at his Godson who abruptly stopped finger painting.
The walls.
The four year old looked at him, wide eyed and innocent.
"Don't give me that look, your father and I invented that look!"
"I dint do nething?" Harry asked, innocent look still set to strong.
"But... I... Harry! I just saw you! You know you're not supposed to put things on the walls." Sirius huffed. Sometimes Harry could be difficult. He took his small hands and cast a scourgify spell on every surrounding surface.
"You know what? It's far past your bedtime anyway. Get into your pyjamas please."
Harry stood, swinging his arms and seemingly ignoring his guardian.
"I'm going to count to twenty. If you're not in you jammies by then, I'll have to put them on you myself." Hardly a threat, but Harry always liked doing things for himself. Sirius started counting down and watched as Harry continued to ignore him. He could predict what would happy.
At least once a week, Harry decided to be stubborn, a break from the easy-going child he normally was. This time just happened to be after Sirius had had a particularly long day.
"Two... One. Okay then, have it your way."
He turned, ready to leave the room and had just stepped out when Harry ran to the door and said, "No Pad, start counting again."
Sirius had to suppress a fond smile. He loved the kid.
After he was in his pyjamas, Sirius tucked the blankets in around the little form, kissed him on the cheek, and said, "G'night my little puppy." Hearing the answering goodnight, he got up and went downstairs to continue his conversation with Remus, who had been waiting quite patiently for the bedtime routine to finish up.
No less than five minutes past before a cry of "Siri!" came from the top of the stairs. Sirius excused himself and rushed to where Harry was standing, teary eyed and clutching his blankie to himself. Sirius lowered himself to his knees, so as to appear less threatening.
"Yes sweetie? What's wrong?"
"Are you mad at me?" He sniffled and rubbed his eye with his fist.
"No, of course not. Why would I be mad?"
"Cause..." He sounded reluctant to remind him of the bad deed. "I painted the walls."
"Oh, Harry no. No harm done. Here, let's get you back to bed okay? I'm sure you're just overtired. Besides, won't Prongs get lonely in bed without you?" He said, referring to the stuffed moose (closest thing to a stag he could find at a muggle store) he had given him when he told Harry about his parents.
Harry smiled, dropping his sad expression remarkably fast for someone who was previously so upset.
"Oh yeah. G'night Siri!"
"Goodnight sweetie. Hopefully for good this time, yes?" Harry blushed and giggled, but went back to his room regardless.
Sirius hopped down the stairs and plopped back down in his seat.
"Everything okay?" Remus asked, ever the concerned pseudo parent.
Sirius smiled warmly. "Yeah, just wanted to make sure I wasn't mad. He was painting the walls earlier."
"Ah." Remus nodded teasingly, 'the terrible fours."
"Hey," Sirius said, mock reproachfully, "he's just spirited, like his old Godfather." Remus snorted his amusement. "Call it what you will, he'll land many a detention, I bet you."
Sirius looked affronted. "Course he will! Wouldn't raise him any differently." Moony sat still.
"Thank Merlin you both have me."
Sirius grinned wolfishly and ruffled his friend's hair. "I know. Now what do you say we ask Molly over and go for that dinner you owe me? I paid last time, if you'll remember."
Remus groaned. "How could I forget with you reminding me every other day? Now come on, I, unlike your boyfriend, will not wait forever."
Sirius blushed and mumbled something under his breath. Remus leaned closer. "Padfoot, that was too quiet even for my ears. Speak up."
"I said we broke up."
Remus sighed deeply and rolled his eyes. "Why does that not surprise me? How long were you with this one? A month? That's a bit of a record for you though, isn't it?"
"I was with him about that, yes. And shut up, it's not my fault. They all just end up being... annoying."
"Did this one meet Harry?" Remus asked, dreading the answer.
"No! Remus you know I never introduce them to Harry. He's probably too young to understand that they wouldn't stay forever and I would die if he started to miss one of them."
Merlin, Remus thought, it sounded as though they were speaking of prostitutes, not Sirius' ex-lovers. He'd had far too many, that was for sure.
"You know, perhaps it's time you started calming down. Harry's not going to fall asleep at eight pm forever. He'll realize you have boyfriends and want to meet them."
"Moony, it's not as though I party or anything. I'm just ... trying to enjoy my sexuality and it's not working out so far."
Remus snorted. "You put it so simply, but you've probably broken about twenty seven guy's hearts in your lifetime. Not to mention half a dozen girls who thought they had a chance with you. But I wasn't kidding. Harry will soon be old enough to understand. What are you going to tell him? I don't want him to be a player or anything, and think it's okay."
Sirius frowned. "Well thanks Remus. Nice to know how you feel."
Remus sighed again. "You know I don't mean it like that. It's just that... well you're not in the ideal romantic situation, are you? Tons of prospective relationships, but nothing ever gets anywhere."
"Yes thank you Remus, I'm very much aware of that. Now. Call Molly will you? I still want that supper." He left the room to get his coat. Effective way to end a conversation, Remus supposed.
Sighing, he stuck his head in the fire. "Molly," he said, putting on a falsely bright tone, "you wouldn't happen to be available to babysit, would you?"
OOOoooOOO
Remus laughed as Sirius chased a nearly six year old Harry around the kitchen, trying to catch him for his bath.
"Harry," Sirius started out trying to be reasonable. "You can't go anywhere looking like that. You've been outside all day. Mrs. Weasley won't even let you in the house if you don't bathe, and you don't want to miss your birthday party, do you?" Logic was something that was evidently lost on the five year old.
The chase continued, though this time with a strategy. Sirius angled so that Harry would run right into Remus while looking behind him to make sure his Godfather hadn't yet caught up. Remus grabbed him, lifting him to his chest and holding him sideways as Harry laughed, no longer trying to win.
"Come on kid. As much as I hate to admit it, Padfoot here is right. You look awful." He said, poking Harry's dirt covered nose and eliciting another laugh.
The two brought Harry upstairs and Remus started drawing his bath water, while the other attempted to undress the boy. While it was difficult, it was infinitely easier than dressing him, so he didn't mind. Dunking him into the warm water, the men exited the room, leaving the door open and standing just down the hall in case Harry needed them. They typically gave him about ten minutes of play time before washing but time had to be cut short today as they were already late for his party.
Remus went in to wash his hair while Sirius got out his clothes for his birthday party. Somewhat dressed up but not terribly as they were all friends.
Remus was pondering Harry's odd behaviour as he rubbed the shampoo gently into his scalp. For whatever reason, he loved getting his hair washed, almost purring when he got it done, but he would not let anyone touch his hair otherwise. Many times, Remus had tried to fix his rat's nest of hair, only to have his hand batted away and be scowled at. This meant that while shampooing the child, Remus and Sirius had a secret agreement to work out any knots they could find. They were always surprised at the small number they found, considering what his hair looked like.
Harry finally clean and dry, he ran, towel around him, to his room. And promptly tripped over the towel, sending him flying to the ground. Thankfully for the sake of being even later than they currently were, he landed on his arms, which had been in front of him holding the towel.
Sirius sighed and picked him up from his place on the floor. "Harry, you really have to be more careful. Any more bruises and people will think I'm a bad guardian!"
Harry laughed, as if delighted by the news, but surprisingly, let himself be coerced into dressing.
"Okay now remember Harry. We are going for dinner and dessert, then you can run around for a bit, but you need to come home when it's time. Remmy has to work in the morning and he can't be out late, right?" Sirius gave him a sober look. Every time they visited the Weasley's, Harry never wanted to leave. He had developed quite a close relationship with Ronald and Ginerva, the two youngest.
"Yes Siri, I know." Harry said in exasperation. "Now can we go? We're late!" He said this impatiently, as though he hadn't run away from Sirius only minutes earlier, in an attempt to escape the bath leading to their departure.
As previously mentioned, logic often escaped Harry.
They flooed to the Weasley's, and nearly fell down at the loud and unexpected exclamation of, "Harry Birthday Harry!"
Harry squealed and jumped, shocked.
"Hiya Harry! We were just in the backyard playing 'Aurors and Robbers', you wanna come? Ron eager young voice came from the sea of red, and enticed Harry to the backyard.
With the children gone, the adults were free to speak and socialize as they wished, which meant that Sirius and Remus were immediately accosted by Molly Weasley, inquiring after Harry. Harry's health, Harry's sleeping habits, Harry's eating habits, and the list went on.
"Molly," Sirius interrupted. "We are perfectly capable of taking care of him; you don't need to worry about him. He's fine." He was a little annoyed that he was being questioned as a Godfather. He was excellent, as far as he was concerned. And if ever he needed help, Remus always knew the answer.
"I know, I know," Molly appeared flustered. "I don't mean any disrespect; I'm just saying it must be hard for you. Having to provide for yourself and a child at so young an age. And alone!"
Remus cut in. "He's not alone. I'm there as often as I'm not. I babysit whenever he needs to be somewhere –"
"And it's not like I have problems providing for us." Sirius cut in, referring to his inheritance. He was obviously a little more angry than he had previously thought. "We may be young, but we know what we're doing, thanks very much."
Molly now flushed in embarrassment and mumbled something along the lines of an apology. She turned and sauntered off, for once, properly told off by someone younger than herself.
Remus watched her leave with a tinge of guilt. "Maybe we shouldn't have been so rude..."
"Rude?! Us? You've got to be kidding Remus. No, she deserved everything I just told her and more. I wasn't rude, I was honest."
Remus nodded, conceding the point. She hadn't been the pinnacle of kindness herself, though it was only a momentary lapse. She was a very kind woman, if not a little overprotective of Harry. He was sort of a seventh son to her because he was over so often.
"Shall we go watch Harry? Get our minds off things?" Remus suggested, hoping very much Sirius would be open to the idea. He was in the mood to observe and stay quiet, something he hadn't had the chance to do in a very long time, always having to look after Harry.
"Yeah let's go. I'm a little tired myself." He said, shooting Remus a look that said he knew his underlying intentions of relaxing. And he was fine with them.
They stood together on the deck, watching the many red haired children, along with their own little Harry run around. They were leaning against the bricks of the house, so close that their shoulders would occasionally touch and brush the others.
"So," Remus asked clearing his throat, "how's the love life going? Haven't heard much lately."
"For a good reason. Not much has happened." Sirius ducked his head a little, black hair falling to cover his eyes from view.
"Oh," Remus swallowed, "I'm sorry to hear that."
OOOoooOOO
So okay, we've moved through five years of Harry's life. Next chapter should be him coming up to school age. Probably be about two or three more chapters before we get to the age I want him at, and the story can really start.
Also, sorry there's not much interaction with five/six year old Harry, I don't know much about that age so I didn't want to make him seem to old or too young... The internet is a surprisingly poor source of information on six year olds haha.