A/N: I'd offer some excuses for the wait, but you're not really interested.
Anyway. Enter Harry Potter and Sirius Black.
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Ginny dusted herself down and straightened up, trying to recover a little dignity from her rather clumsy entrance. She glanced swiftly round the kitchen she'd arrived in, trying to take in as much as she possibly could without making it too obvious. If there was one thing auror training did for you, it was make you paranoid; you started to instantly assess any room you were in for potential dangers, possible escape routes.
In the few seconds she took to glance around, she noticed that there were three doors and two large windows in the kitchen, so five potential points of entry. Her eyes came back to rest on the man in front of her who was lightly smiling as he watched her. Something told her that he was well aware of exactly what she was thinking and doing, and she flushed slightly at being so predictable but refused to feel abashed at being caught doing precisely what she was trained to do.
Steeling herself for any possible confrontation, she allowed her eyes to linger on Sirius Black as she looked at him properly for the first time. He wasn't an overly tall man, but something in his bearing made him seem a little taller than he was; something about the way he held himself projected composure and self-assurance. He was well-built but not bulky, and he had possibly the most handsome face Ginny had ever seen.
As in really, classically handsome. She was a little lost for words right then. According to her notes, Sirius Black was forty-three years old, but she wouldn't have put him a day past thirty. His hair was extremely dark - almost black - and without a hint of grey, and his face was unlined but for laughter creases around his eyes and mouth that only served to make him seem more appealing.
He was smiling at her as she looked him over, those piercing silvery eyes trained on her with a hint of amusement sparking in them. Recovering herself slightly and realising that she had yet to say a word, she stepped forward and offered him her hand.
'Sirius Black I presume? I'm Auror Weasley; and apparently you were expecting someone else.'
His eyebrows rose, and his smile creased further across his face at her words. 'Vance only told me he was sending an auror over, and I have to say the word conjures up a certain image that you don't exactly fit into. Forgive me, but you rather took me by surprise.'
'I see.' Ginny released his hand and nodded. 'Let me guess: you were expecting a six foot bloke with a shaven head and hams for hands?'
Sirius nodded his head slightly as he considered her words. 'Not far off, Auror Weasley, not far off at all. Do I get a first name? "Auror Weasley" is a mouthful, and I've never been much for formalities.'
She hesitated for just a second. 'It's Ginny.'
'Ginny.' He repeated, his lips curving up at the corners as he unleashed a full smile at her for the first time. 'It's nice. It suits you.'
'Thank you.' She answered quietly, her eyes beginning to dart around the room again. It really was far too big for one person she thought. She glanced back at the dark-haired man who was still watching her thoughtfully. 'Does Mr Potter live here alone Mr Black?'
'Sirius.' He corrected. 'And yes, he does.'
He took a moment to take in the quick flash of surprise that slid across her face, and decided to press the issue. 'You were under the impression that he was living with someone?'
'No.' Ginny responded slowly. 'No, all the information I have been given suggested he lived alone but this seems a rather large house for one person, and Mr Potter does not seem to be exactly forthcoming with details when it comes to his personal life, as I'm sure you're aware. I thought perhaps he chose not to divulge certain information.'
Sirius' lips twitched with amusement at her slightly caustic tone. Fiery temper under that cool façade, he'd put money on it. He'd always preferred the company of temperamental women. 'Well, he does like his space - doesn't do well with being cooped up - but he chose the house more for the location that anything else. And he can be a little tight-lipped, that's true, but I'm sure you can appreciate that is a natural side-effect of his life up to this point; and I have to say, I have always encouraged a certain reticence. For someone like Harry, it isn't exactly wise to give too much away.'
'I can understand that, but the Ministry needs good information if it is to offer him adequate protection; we don't want to overlook things.'
Sirius nodded as he pulled a chair out from under the table and gestured for her to sit; he slid into the chair opposite her and summoned two glasses and a jug of juice with two quick flicks of his wand. 'Well, he's supposedly upstairs resting, though I highly doubt he's actually abiding by medical advice up there. I can probably answer any questions you might have, Ginny, then I'll go and round him up so you can deliver your terms; or however you aurors express it.'
'Slightly less aggressively than that.' She replied mildly and he shot her that grin again as he waved his hand in an impatient gesture for her to get on with it. She pulled her quill and parchment from the inside pocket of her cloak and scanned over her paperwork quickly before she looked up at him.
'I have most of the information I need already, I just need to clarify one or two details. For instance…exactly what protective enchantments are on the house?'
'Standard anti-apparition wards, protective rune stones at each compass point, muggle-repelling charms and a protego maxima. Oh, and it's under the fidelius.' He answered promptly, clasping his hands together as he rested them on the table in front of him. Ginny looked up sharply.
'Who's the secret keeper?'
'I am.' Sirius answered calmly. 'The page that Vance showed you with Harry's address on was written by me, and if you take a look at your files, you'll see that it is no longer there. We don't take chances with my godson Ginny.'
She pursed her lips as she looked at him, somewhat startled by the discovery of a surprisingly serious edge under his layers of charm and humour. She gave him an abrupt nod before scribbling a quick note on her parchment.
'Who can get into the house through the wards?' she asked, a frown furrowing her brow as she looked up again.
'Myself, Harry and an old family friend named Remus Lupin. Oh, and Dumbledore, though he almost never comes without invitation. Otherwise we never drop the wards, not for anyone.'
Ginny's quill worked over the paper quickly until her ears registered what she'd just heard and she jerked her head up, her eyebrows rising. 'I'm sorry, did you say Dumbledore?'
Sirius smiled widely, his eyes understanding. 'I did. I was referring to Aberforth Dumbledore. He's a good friend of ours, comes by every now and then. I tend to forget that people still automatically think of Albus; it's been a long time now.'
Ginny blew out the breath she hadn't even realised she'd been holding and returned to scribbling on her sheet of parchment. 'A wizard like Albus Dumbledore isn't easily forgotten, even when they're dead.'
Sirius looked at her curiously for a moment, but when it was obvious that no more was forthcoming he continued to speak.
'Other than us, everyone else must floo in, and generally we keep the floo closed and open it by appointment, and only to certain approved places; Harry doesn't exactly encourage visitors. If you're assigned here, we can have your home floo connected in; I'll get Vance to see to it, I have to drop in on him anyway. The Ministry floo you came through was connected just for the afternoon for you.'
'Okay.' She dropped her quill, rolled up her parchment and shoved them both back in her pocket. 'I'm going to tell you exactly what I said to Vance. I think Mr Potter is as safe as he can possibly be at home, though I will make an inspection of the house and grounds to see if anything catches my eye. I think if he's going to be at risk, it will be when he's out, whether he's on his way to the Quidditch ground, or at the Ministry for a Wizengamot meeting, or just going shopping.'
She paused for breath and leaned across the table towards Sirius, her eyes earnest. 'Unless he wants to become a complete recluse until we can track down and catch those threatening him - and frankly, that would be easier - my orders are to go with him pretty much everywhere and watch for potential threats. Is there anything else I need to know to be able to do that effectively?'
Sirius leaned back in his chair and folded his arms across his chest; his eyes sharp and thoughtful as they rested on her. She felt the urge to squirm under the scrutiny, but forced herself to remain still and to hold his eye contact. 'Harry.' He said after a moment's thought.
Ginny's eyebrows rose. 'Excuse me?'
'His name is Harry. He hates to be called Mr Potter; reminds him of everyone sucking up to him at the Wizengamot and at his games. And no, there's nothing else I can tell you that would help you with this.'
He rose from his seat and tucked his chair back under the table neatly. 'I think it's time you were introduced to him.'
He headed for the door furthest on the left and disappeared up a dim hallway, leaving the door open behind him and a rather confused Ginny sitting alone at the kitchen table.
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Harry Potter was stretched out on his bed, his hands folded behind his head as he stared at the ceiling. He was barefoot and bare-chested, his glasses hung crookedly on his face and his hair was messy even by his own, rather low, standards. His ribs ached and he hadn't had a decent night's sleep in four days thanks to the recurring headaches that were a residual side effect of his recent head injury, and it would be fair to say he wasn't in the best of moods.
There was a knock at his door, and Harry rolled his eyes, wondering why his godfather bothered to knock when he was going to come in whether Harry responded or not. Sure enough the door opened and Sirius entered the room, closing the door firmly behind him and coming to stand alongside the bed with his arms folded.
'Still sulking?' His voice was completely neutral, with no trace of either humour or condemnation.
'I'm not sulking, I'm brooding. There's a subtle but important difference.' Harry's eyes never left the slight crack in the ceiling that he had fixed them on.
Sirius sighed and turned his eyes heavenward. 'Agrippa have mercy, anyone would think you were still a teenager.'
'I'm allowed to be annoyed Sirius.' Harry's voice held an edge of temper now. 'I just want people to stop offering me unsolicited advice and trying to control everything I do. I've waited a damn long time to be in charge of my own life.'
Sirius sighed. He couldn't help but sympathise a little; after all, he'd spent his entire childhood trying to prevent his family from controlling every aspect of his life, but this was about keeping Harry safe, and that trumped all other concerns about personal freedom. He owed it to Prongs and Lily.
He focused his clear gaze back on Harry's face. 'Harry, all anyone is asking of you is to take some sensible precautions. That's not really a lot to ask is it? Indulge your godfather.'
'I don't mind sensible precautions.' Harry groused from his prone position. 'I take sensible precautions already. What I don't want is some hulking great humourless auror wandering around behind me all hours of the day and night, intruding into my privacy and generally being a nuisance!'
Sirius raised his eyes to the ceiling in apparent mock despair, but it was at least partially to hide the grin that spread across his face when he thought of the stroppy redhead - hulking great humourless auror indeed - downstairs. He wondered how much like his father Harry really was…
'Well,' he said finally, carefully schooling his expression back into a neutral one as he lowered his face so he could fix his eyes on the side of Harry's head. 'On that subject, your newly assigned auror is downstairs waiting to meet you.'
Harry's entire body stiffened. 'Well you can tell them to bugger off.'
'Nope.' Sirius made his way back over to the door and paused with his hand on the handle. 'Haven't you just been telling me that you want to handle your own life? Seems to me this would be a good place to start. Besides, you did fine telling all the others to bugger off all on your own.'
Harry scowled. 'Yeah, but now I'm sick of repeating myself.'
Sirius snorted. 'Welcome to adulthood. It stinks, but you're stuck with it.' He pulled open the door handle and stepped through, pausing briefly to poke his head back in. 'And no hitting.'
He was gone before Harry could respond.
He lay there for a few more moments, still unmoving and wondering if today's annoying bloke would just leave of his own accord if he left them down there long enough. His scowl deepened. That was never going to happen. He knew aurors, and once they were assigned you might as well have nailed them to the floor. He wouldn't leave until Harry made him; at least he could be confident in his ability to make them leave, since he'd managed to drive four away so far.
He sighed and rolled onto his left side to get slowly out of bed. He'd never admit it to Sirius, but he needn't worry about Harry hitting the bloke; his ribs were still extremely painful and were hampering his movements terribly. He was in no condition to fight, either physically or magically, and more importantly he was in no condition to fly either. That contributed to his bad mood more than anything else actually; being cooped up inside, unable to exercise was hell for someone as active as he was.
He reached for a shirt and his groping fingers found the pale blue one he'd started the day wearing before he'd flung himself back on the bed in a temper; he pulled it on, wincing at every pull on his sore ribs as he moved, but only bothered to button it most of the way up. He rolled the sleeves up to the elbows, then looked down at his bare feet. With a shrug, he decided that the situation didn't require shoes, and he made his way out of the bedroom door and down the landing to the staircase.
Every step jolted, and he found his bad temper increasing exponentially each time an arc of pain shot through either his ribs or head. Reaching the bottom of the staircase, he glanced both ways, trying to decide where the auror was likely to be waiting. Had Sirius said? He didn't think so.
After a moment's deliberation, he headed towards the kitchen, on the grounds that they would have had to come through the floo there and Sirius may or may not have led them through to the sitting room.
As he approached the kitchen , he noted that the door was open and he caught sight of a flash of navy blue auror robes on a figure sitting at the kitchen table. He paused for a second to straighten himself up, then he strode into the kitchen, fully prepared to argue the toss with yet another of Vance's human limpets.
What he was not prepared for, was for the limpet to be a her.
Or for her to look like that.
The girl sitting at his kitchen table, poring over some parchments – and she was very definitely a girl, she had to be younger than him – was very petite and extremely pretty. She had long red hair that had been pulled back into a messy bun, a smattering of light freckles across her nose and cheeks, and when she looked up at the sound of his footsteps, he noticed she had dark brown eyes that reflected just a hint of gold under the bright kitchen lights.
Her face flickered with a very brief smile as she rose to greet him, before falling back into her usual professional visage. 'Harry Potter.'
He swallowed hard. 'Yes.'
She stretched out a hand as she stepped towards him. 'I'm Auror Weasley. Ginny Weasley.'
He took her offered hand and shook it very gently, trying hard to pay no attention to the surprising softness of her skin. He released her quickly and took one step back towards the door. He chose his next words carefully, wanting very much to avoid offending her but still wanting her to leave as quickly as possible.
'I know you've been assigned here Miss Weasley, and I'm sorry to have wasted your time, but I neither need nor want Ministry protection; so I suppose you can return to the auror office now.'
He folded his arms across his chest and waited for a response, more intrigued than he would have liked to admit to hear her reply. On the one hand it would be a relief for one of the unwanted aurors to just leave him alone without him having to tear a strip off first – and he really didn't want to have a blazing row with a woman; Sirius would have forty fits - but on the other, he found himself thinking that he would be vaguely disappointed if she was that easily dissuaded.
He saw a brief flicker of something like confusion cross her face, but it was gone so quickly he could almost convince himself that he had imagined it; it was replaced by an expression of unmistakable obstinacy. She drew herself up and set her shoulders; Harry suppressed a slight snort at the sight of the girl, who had to be four inches shorter than him at least, attempting to make her presence felt.
'I'm afraid I can't do that Mr Potter. I was assigned here by Head Auror Vance, and he is the only person with the authority to remove me from this placement. I understand that you are less than pleased with the fact that your employers have decided to insist upon your acceptance of Ministry protection, but that doesn't change the fact that I have been assigned to protect you, and I intend to do my job.'
Her chin rose defiantly as she finished her sentence, and he couldn't help but admire her spirit. Under different circumstances, he might even have truly appreciated it.
'Look Miss Weasley…' he sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose between thumb and forefinger. 'I appreciate your dedication to your job; really, it's very admirable. But I have no intention of having my life and activities curtailed by anyone, regardless of the opinions of my employers, and least of all by someone that I have never before laid eyes on. So again; thank you for your time, but your presence here is not necessary.'
Her eyebrows rose incredulously, and she returned to her chair at the kitchen table, leaning her elbows on the table top and resting her chin on her clasped hands as she looked directly at him without flinching. 'Unfortunately for you Mr Potter, that isn't your decision to make is it?'
He felt his temper rise, and he bit back the scathing retort that wanted to make its way out of his mouth. Sirius had raised him to treat women with the utmost respect, and he had no intention of lapsing now, no matter how difficult this red-headed harpy was being.
'I would say it is.' He spoke slowly and carefully, thinking about every word before he chose it. 'Since I am the one who is going to be required to submit to having a babysitter for the foreseeable future.'
Her eyes blazed, and he knew instantly that he had said the wrong thing. She pushed her chair back from the table and rose slowly to her feet, her hands hanging loosely at her side, her every movement careful and considered; her jaw clenched and he could see her hands fist in her robes as her temper rose and she fought to retain control of it. Harry felt a sudden flare of totally inappropriate attraction and quashed it quickly. Bloody Merlin, that was the last thing on his mind.
'I am not a babysitter.' Her words were quiet, almost dangerously so. 'How dare you say something so disrespectful? My colleagues and I risk our lives – some die - to protect others. How dare you stand there and belittle what we do?'
Harry felt his own, rather impressive, temper stirring still further at the allegation and he quickly stuffed his hands into his trouser pockets so she couldn't see his fingers curl up into fists that shook with his anger. Her comments may have infuriated him, but he didn't want to scare her.
Still, he was both angry and insulted. Who knew better than him the risks aurors took? How many had he watched die or be injured? More than Ginny Weasley he was sure; she was too young to have been involved in the war – hell, he ought to have been too young to be involved in the war - and couldn't have been all that long out of the Academy.
'I was neither belittling nor disrespecting you or your colleagues.' He managed to keep his voice quiet, but his tone was hard and uncompromising and he noted a slight paling of her complexion, though he could not say if it was the result of fear, or simply an indication of a reduction in her temper. 'I understand what it means to be an auror far better than most, and probably better than you. You may not have seen the retaliation Voldemort visited upon the auror department, but I did. I cannot count how many aurors fought and died alongside me; I would never insult them. If anything, the Ministry is insulting both their memory and your talents by assigning aurors to such trivial duties as guarding one unimportant Quidditch player.'
Ginny's jaw set in a defiant expression, and she drew in a deep breath in an obvious attempt to prevent herself from voicing an opinion she'd regret later. Harry was almost disappointed; she evidently had a response, and he was rather intrigued to hear it, but she stifled her argument and spoke calmly, if in a rather prim, stilted tone. 'It appears we are rather misunderstanding each other, so perhaps this discussion is best continued at another time.'
Harry felt his fists begin to relax in his pockets as it became apparent that she was done with their argument, but his heart was still pounding at the implication that there would be 'another time' to continue their discussion; she obviously intended to carry on with her assignment. She was showing more spine in standing up to him than any of the older, more experienced aurors Vance had previously sent him, and he'd be damned if that didn't fascinate him just a little. He cocked his head to one side slightly and narrowed his eyes at her as he focused on listening to her as she continued to speak.
'My earlier point stands Mr Potter; it isn't up to you to decide what is trivial or not. I work for the Ministry and I go where they assign me; they have decided to assign me to you, whether either of us likes it or not. My job is to keep you alive, and that's for the good of everyone. Can you imagine the fallout if the public was aware that the Death Eaters had actually managed to injure you? Can you imagine the fear that would conjure? If they can get to you, how safe is anyone else? Now imagine how much worse all that would be if they actually succeeded in killing you .We don't want to return to those days when people looked for the Dark Mark above their house and kept their children away from school out of fear. Voldemort may be gone, but his supporters are as rabid as ever.'
She turned to the table and picked up her parchment and quill, tucking them back into the pockets of her cloak before turning back to face him. 'My assignment actually starts tomorrow, I just came by today to introduce myself. So I will be back at 8:30 tomorrow morning and we can discuss what's needed, and how we can avoid inconveniencing you.'
Harry hadn't moved; he stood rooted to the spot, his eyes fixed on her appraisingly. There was a definite hint of sarcasm in her words, and that piqued his interest. He couldn't deny the faint stirring of admiration her show of spirit had caused and he also couldn't help but appreciate the colour that the bout of temper had put in her cheeks. Her words had struck a chord too; hadn't he released those press statements purely to encourage peoplenot to be afraid? He knew she had a point; he was a visible figurehead of the anti-blood purity movement and as such any damage to him was a blow to the cause, but still. He didn't need protection, and accepting it would merely make him appear to be taking the threats more seriously than he was. The last thing he needed was to give the Death Eaters that kind of publicity.
So, no matter how earnest Miss Weasley was in her belief that she ought to be protecting him and keeping him safe for the greater good, he couldn't accept that. So she'd need slightly more provocation than the previous aurors to leave him alone; didn't matter, he'd work on it. The girl had to go. No matter how…interesting she was. He inclined his head to her as she stepped towards his fireplace, a faint smile playing on the corners of his lips.
'Goodbye Miss Weasley.'
She turned to look at him and her gaze narrowed suspiciously. '8:30.' She repeated. She stepped into the fireplace and faced him, her hand poised to drop the powder but held still in mid-air. 'And Mr Potter?' She waited for him to cock an eyebrow in acknowledgement before she continued. 'Don't even consider not letting me through the floo tomorrow; I'll just fetch Sirius to let me in and I suspect that would end with us both shouting at you .'
She let the powder fall and was gone in a burst of green flame. Harry let out a long slow breath. Well, that had been…different, to say the least.
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A/N: Thank you to everyone who's reviewed so far, reading them really does help keep me motivated. And every time my inbox pops up a notification that someone has followed or favourited I smile, so thanks for that too.
I'm making much slower progress on updating all my stories than normal at the moment, so apologies for that, but I should have more free time again from next week, so hopefully will be back to posting weekly updates.
Leave me a review and I'll love you forever x
