Chapter 4
1 year later...
Rosalie rubbed her stomach gently as she watched the little girl she loved as her own. She was often astounded by how much her life had changed in the past year. She and Sirius had grown even closer, and the depth of affection between them grew deeper. She smiled softly as she remembered when they had actually gotten together. It had been around 2 months after they had arrived on Black Isle. She had been reading a book in the parlour when Sirius came in. He had just put Harry and Cassie to bed and joined her on the couch, looking exhausted.
*Flashback*
''You look tired'' Rosalie commented as Sirius sat down.
''Its been a long day.'' he sighed heavily ''I swear he looks more and more like James every day.'' Rosalie observed him carefully, his features were pale and drawn, he didn't look like he'd slept in days, and his eyes were full of pain. She recognised the expression, he had worn it for months after Chrissie's death. ''You shouldn't blame yourself you know. It isn't your fault. None of it is. Lily and James wouldn't blame you for what happened and they wouldn't want you to wallow in misery.'' He just shook his head. ''I know they wouldn't blame me, but I blame myself. When I close my eyes all I can see is James lying there...broken.'' his voice was cracking and she could see his eyes glistening with tears. She shook her head sadly and pulled him into an embrace.
He lay his head on her chest and wrapped his arms around her waist as his body shook with the force of his sobs. He could remember with perfect clarity James' body lying at the bottom of the stairs, his eyes open and unseeing. He had felt so lost. It was like his wife's death all over again. He had had Cassie with him at the time, she had been screaming her lungs out and calling for Harry only moments before but had fallen silent at the sight of her favourite uncle prongs lying on the floor. He had cradled her to his chest protectively, thinking that it was so unfair to be so young and yet exposed to so much death. First her mother, now Lily and James. Life was so cruel. He had lost the closest thing to a family he had ever had that night, and had been left with a little girl who reminded him of everything he had lost. Oh the fates were cruel. He loved Cassie so much but her eyes! Though their colour matched his own the shape had been all Chrissie's. After James and Lily's death she had kept crying for her aunt Lily and uncle Prongs, and every time it had been like a blow to his heart. She had stopped calling for them after a few weeks and in a way that had hurt even more, because he knew it was her childish mind beginning to forget them, as she had forgotten her mother. And now he had Harry and though he loved his godson, looking at his little face which so much resembled his fathers was like a knife to his heart. And this was so wrong. It wasn't supposed to be him looking after Harry. It was supposed to be James and Lily. But they were gone, gone forever and it hurt. It hurt so much it was like a constant stomach ache. It was Chrissie's death all over again. So he clung to Rosalie and cried. He cried for James and for Lily. He cried for Harry who would never know either of his parents, and he cried for Cassie who would never remember how much her mother had loved her, and he cried for Chrissie who would never see their little girl grow up. And the whole time Rosalie held him, stroking his hair and whispering words of comfort in his ear.
Oh how it broke her heart to see him like this. To see him go through so much pain. He had lost so many that he had loved in such a short space of time and it was breaking him. She held him in her arms and gently ran her fingers through his hair trying desperately to comfort him. Several minutes later Sirius' cries began to slow and Rosalie sighed in relief at not having to watch the man she loved cry for those he had lost and know there was nothing she could do to help him. Oh she knew she loved him. She had tried to deny it, feeling as though she was betraying her cousins memory but she had eventually had to accept it. Living in close quarters with the man for the past two months had made it impossible to deny her feelings any longer. She wondered, not for the first time what on earth she had been thinking when she had offered to come with him to Black Isle. He would never return her feelings, it was ludicrous to think otherwise, but sometimes when he looked at her with those intense eyes of his, she allowed her self to fantasise that perhaps some small part of him did return her feelings. That was why it had been stupid to come with him, not only could she no longer deny her feelings, she was finding it harder and harder to hide them as well. She felt Sirius begin to pull away and she reluctantly lowered her arms allowing him to move away from her.
As Sirius felt the tears slow and stop, he abruptly felt ashamed of his outburst. It wasn't fair for him to offload all this on her. She had already given up so much of her life to help him. She didn't need to deal with his feelings, and all the emotional baggage that came with them. He wasn't quite sure how he felt for her, or what she felt for him, but he knew his feelings weren't exactly platonic any more. And truthfully that scared him. He had dated many girls before but he had only ever been serious about one. Chrissie had been like another half of himself and it felt like a betrayal to love someone one else the way he had loved her. But when he was with Rose he felt whole again, happy and complete. As he pulled away from her, intent on leaving the room before he did something stupid, he looked into her eyes and saw the pained expression on her face. Her eyes, normally cool and emotionless were a raging sea of emotions. There was love and compassion but there was also pain. Sirius froze, inches away from her face, captured by the emotions in her eyes. And just for a moment he allowed himself to entertain the ridiculous notion that she might possibly return his feelings. He raised his hand slowly and cupped her cheek, smiling slightly as she leaned into his touch. The emotionless mask she usually wore fell completely and he saw her face shining with love. Slowly, so slowly he barely moved at all, he leaned forward and softly pressed his lips to hers. He was elated as he felt her kiss him back and slowly tangle her fingers in his hair as he gently pushed her backwards into the couch, his hands exploring the soft skin of her back.
Rosalie jumped as she was shocked out of her recollections by a loud crash. She turned away from Cassie to look out of the window. Sirius was playing with Harry on a toy broomstick. The house was surrounded by forest on three sides with the front of the house overlooking the beach. Sirius and Harry often spent hours playing out on the beach in the sand, racing each other on there brooms. The little boy loving nothing more than to watch his uncle Padfoot pull crazy stunts on his broom. Cassie sometimes joined them on the beach but preferred reading than playing on a broom. Rosalie wasn't exactly sure how the little girl knew how to read but she seemed to gain a great deal of enjoyment from it so she didn't worry. The girl in question was currently sitting in an armchair so large her feet barely reached the end of the chair. There was a large hardback book on her lap, she had rested it there because it was too heavy for her to hold it up on her own. It was a book on herbology and was filled with colourful pictures of plants and information on how to cultivate them and what they were used for.
Cassie was fascinated with plants and loved to read the books in the library that told her everything about them, there were other books in the library she liked to read as well, particularly manuals on potions but the plants fascinated her the most as many of the plants could be found in the greenhouses on the island. Her father and aunt Rose had told her that her mother loved potions and had always been brewing some obscure potion that they didn't understand. Cassie had been fascinated by these stories and had started reading all the books in the library, of course her father often said she was strange for sitting and reading when she could be playing outside but Cassie didn't care. She liked to read, books were far more interesting than broomsticks anyway.
Rosalie watched Cassie for a while longer before she returned to the kitchen to make lunch. The boys would be starving when they came back in, and Sirius was always fussing telling her she didn't eat enough. Rosalie once again rubbed her stomach, she was 6 months pregnant now and though the pregnancy had been a complete accident both she and Sirius had been happy at the thought of expanding there little family. The kids had also been exited at the idea of a baby and Cassie in particular liked to put her little hands on Rosalie's stomach as the babies gently kicked her. Harry being younger didn't quite understand the concept of a baby but she and Sirius both thought he would make a great brother. Harry was such a happy little boy, at almost three he was very boisterous and couldn't sit still but he could also be very sweet and patient and could sit silently in the library with Cassie as she read her books. Rosalie didn't know how anyone could possibly want to hurt such an innocent little boy and couldn't understand how Harry's aunt and uncle could have possibly treated him in such a cruel way. She would have a few choice words for Albus bloody Dumbledore if she ever saw the man again. How anyone could possibly leave a child with those people was completely beyond her. Shaking her head she pushed those thoughts away and began preparing the chicken salad she had decided to cook for lunch. Unbeknownst to Rosalie, Albus Dumbledore would also seriously regret leaving Harry with his vile relatives later that very same day.
It had started out as a perfectly ordinary day. Albus Dumbledore had eaten breakfast in the great hall, watching as the students rushed off to classes before returning to his office. He had been going over some papers for the next wizengamot meeting when suddenly a high pitched wailing noise came from one of his instruments. It was a silver object lying unobtrusively on his desk and as Albus stared at it in shock the object began wailing louder. He jumped to his feet and ran out of the office grabbing the silver instrument from his desk as he ran. He fled the school rushing down the path to the main gates, disapperating as soon as he was outside to number four Privet Drive, to find...nothing.
Number 4, privet drive was completely normal. There were no death eaters, no threats, nothing. It was a completely normal street. Children were playing in front gardens, with parents watching from windows with no sign of anything wrong and all Albus Dumbledore could do was stand in stunned silence as he watched something only he could see. The wards, the perfect blood wards that had been erected around the house once Petunia Dursley had taken in her orphaned nephew were completely disintegrating. He watched as the house glowed a faint gold before it returned to normal, as unwarded as it had been before they had taken Harry in. Several minutes later, having finally overcome his shock Dumbledore strode from the trees where he'd apparated to and walked to number 4. Completely oblivious to the stares he was receiving, so lost was he in his thoughts, he knocked lightly on the door.
Petunia Dursley was having a perfectly lovely day. She had woke up that morning, made breakfast, kissed her husband as he went off to work and proceeded to play with Dudley. She had been a bit tired as of late and was finding it harder to keep up her usually excellent housekeeping due to her largely expanding midsection but she didn't mind. In fact she was very exited for the rime when they would greet their new arrival. They had turned Dudley's second bedroom into a beautiful nursery for their baby girl who would be due in a little over two months. Petunia felt her life was perfect. There had been a few months after that dratted sister of hers had died and they had been dumped with that freak son of hers but the boy had disappeared a year ago and good riddance so far as she was concerned. What right did that boy have to disrupt her life with his freakishness. She had taken him in, grudgingly, and he had been nothing but a black mark on their perfect lives and she was glad he had gone. Now her life was perfect again. She had her husband, her son and soon she'd have her daughter. The perfect life that she had always deserved. She smiled to herself, only to have her musings interrupted by a knock on the door. She raised herself off the armchair, wary of her stomach and made her way slowly to the door, wondering who was calling. Opening the door slowly she felt her jaw hit the floor as she was greeted by the strangest sight she had ever seen on privet drive.
Managing to pick her jaw up off the floor, Petunia closed her mouth and tried to close the door, unwilling to even want to look at one of THEM. However the door was forced to remain open by the surprisingly strong arm of the old man currently standing on her doorstep. ''Please Mrs Dursley I really must speak with you, it is a matter of great importance. My name is Albus Dumbledore it was I that left your nephew on your doorstep 18 months ago and it is off great importance that I speak with you about him.'' Conceding defeat over the door she stopped trying to close it and proceeded to glare at him instead ''What do you want?'' she hissed unwilling to let him in the house lest he try and harm Dudley, she resigned herself to having this conversation on the doorstep.
Albus Dumbledore sighed figuring that at least the woman was willing to hear him out if unwilling to let him in. ''Mrs Dursley as I told you in the letter I left with Harry, accepting Harry into your home completed a very ancient magical blood protection that meant Harry was protected as long as he resided within your home, however my instruments indicate these wards are no longer in place yet there is no sign of Harry having been harmed. May I please see the boy so that I might determine how to rectify this situation.'' he looked at her, praying she would simply acquiesce to his request so he could make sure the boy was all right. However Petunia had no desire to let him anywhere near her family. She was however confused by the old man's statement. ''The boy isn't here.'' she said in clipped tones, not wanting to give out more information. She had assumed one of their kind had taken him, the fact that they hadn't worried her because they could then blame her and Vernon for failing to inform them that the boy was gone.
Dumbledore's eyebrows rose at what the woman had just said but he remained calm, ''Then may you tell me where I might find him?'' he asked in a polite tone. Dumbledore noticed Petunia looked distinctly uncomfortable and her eyes were avoiding his. He frowned slightly, confused by the woman's behaviour and decided to probe her mind, trying to see what it was she was hiding. His eyes widened and his frown deepened as he sifted through the woman's mind. Harry had been gone for a year, the blood wards having fallen because he had not returned. He could have screamed at the woman, her nephew had been missing for a year and she had said nothing! There would be no clues left as to who had taken him and the boy would be well hidden by now. It would be nigh impossible to find him now. He shook his head and turned away to leave, not even bothering to be polite he looked over his shoulder and said in a flat, cold tone ''I feel sorry for your children being raised by a woman like you. A woman so cold and callous she doesn't even care that her only sisters son could be lying dead in a ditch somewhere.'' and with that he strode away wanting nothing more than to wash the stench of that woman from his nose.
