Harry grasped Sirius' hand with uncertainty as they walked down the wet cobblestone street in Hogsmede. Sirius' head was held high, ignoring the stares of people from shops that lined the road. They followed quickly behind a man with a top hat, his arms swinging as he walked briskly. He was pointing out the different shops along the way as they headed out of the downtown area, his wand sparking as he waved it. Sirius Black was unsure why Dumbledore had suggested this real estate agent; he seemed a bit odd.

A flash of a camera went off in Sirius' peripheral, pulling Harry's attention away. He tripped slightly on the cobblestone, gripping Sirius' hand harder as he stumbled to catch up. Sirius looked down at Harry concerned. "You okay, pup?"

"Yeah's'ust goin' fast," murmured Harry, righting himself and shaking his head. He squinted his eyes, trying to read the sign ahead of them that exclaimed For Sale!

"You seeing okay?" Sirius asked. Harry shrugged. I should probably take him to a doctor or something, thought Sirius, realizing that he hadn't in the two months that he had Harry. With my luck, he'll hide her beautiful eyes with glasses like James did.

The real estate agent - Ainsley Carter - began up the walk to a modest house with a white fence around it. How quaint, thought Sirius as Ainsley opened the door to the house.

"It's a nice place here, Mr. Black. Just a five minute walk, as you saw, to town."

"Mhm," murmured Sirius, scanning the house. This place creeps me out, he thought, shuddering. He didn't often get "bad vibes" from places, and he had never been a fan of divination. "No thanks," he said, stepping out of the front door again. He ignored the glance that he got from the real estate agent; he appeared to be confused by Sirius, but wasn't wanting to turn down a commission.

"There's ano'er house not too far away," Ainsley murmured, taking off down the street.

Sirius and Harry found themselves outside of a well built house that looked fairly new. "I like this!" squealed Harry, looking at the yard that seemed to stretch for miles. "I like this yard! Can we get a puppy?" Harry asked as Ainsley seemed to cheer up with the excitement. Harry had been unnaturally quiet for a young boy, and Ainsley had the feeling that Sirius wouldn't put an offer on a house unless Harry was thrilled as well.

Sirius chuckled, "Maybe, pup. Maybe." Behind the house, Hogwarts rose magnificently. I wouldn't mind looking at that view every day, thought Sirius, pleased with how well the castle could be seen. The forbidden forest lay between the house and Hogwarts, but did not cause concern for Sirius. The yard sat far enough forward from the forest that there would be no trouble.

Entering the house, Sirius was pleased. He dropped Harry's hand to let him explore. The house felt calm. The rooms were spacious and Sirius rather appreciated the yard with the fence. After surveying the property for several minutes, Sirius glanced at Ainsley. "This is it. We'll take it."

Harry, who hadn't strayed far, perked up. "Really, Sirius? We can have it?!" Sirius nodded, and the boy flung himself around Sirius' calf. Sirius patted Harry on the head as Ainsley spoke about the process and paperwork that would be involved. Sirius waved him off, letting him know that whatever it took. By the end of the conversation, Sirius was assured that he would have keys to his new home by the end of the following week. The family selling the house just wanted it off of their hands, and with Sirius willing to pay straight gold for it, they were even more eager to accept the offer and move on.

Sirius kneeled down and beckoned Harry. Harry jumped on Sirius' back, wrapping his thin legs around Sirius' waist and arms around Sirius' neck. Sirius stood slowly, explaining, "We have to go to Hogwarts to talk to Dumbledore." Harry laid his head against Sirius' back, not caring that it sounded like the most boring adventure ever.

"I wanna stay here," Harry murmured, longingly looking at the house that Sirius was walking away from.

"Soon, pup," promised Sirius. "We'll move in soon."

"And Remus?" Harry's voice was quiet as Sirius' feet hit the cobblestoned road.

"And Remus," confirmed Sirius. "You can probably say hi to him today, if he isn't teaching."

Sirius trekked his way to Hogwarts, Harry on his back. Harry was being remarkably quiet. It wasn't that Harry was ever too much or overbearing, but Sirius was having to learn patience for all the questions and blatant observations that Harry made. James would have been better at this, Sirius thought glumly as he approached the front doors to the school. He always wanted this life; I was never sure. Sirius loved Harry with his whole heart, but being a parent to someone else's kid - or his own - had never been a decision that he would have made.

Without asking, the doors to the school swung open and Sirius was immediately pelted in the face with a balloon that burst with water. Sputtering, he swung Harry to front side, protecting the back of Harry's head as he swiftly drew his wand. Another balloon catapulted towards him, and Sirius waved it off with his wand. He settled a little as he heard Peeeves' cackling cry. Peeves swung in to Sirius' view, and Harry pressed his face harder against Sirius' chest. He whimpered a little as Sirius clutched his god-son close and held his wand steady.

"What're you doin', Peeves?" Demanded Sirius, his eyes trained on the ghost that seemed to be bouncing off of the walls. Sirius stepped in to the entry, the large doors slamming behind him. He was surprised that there were no students in the hallway. Then again, Black, he thought, most students attend class, unlike what you and the rest of the marauders tended to do.

"I'm just giving you a bath!" Peeves' voice echoed as he continued to bounce off of the walls. He stopped long enough to peer at who he had hit. "Ah! If it isn't The Sirius Black!"

Sirius rolled his eyes at the poltergeist. "Can I help you? Or can I move on with my task?"

"Sirius Black, still have that temper I see!" Peeves clucked, swinging close to Harry and Sirius. Sirius held Harry closer, trying to protect him from any nonsense that Peeves might create.

"I never had a temper," Sirius said evenly, feeling himself anger. Harry whimpered, clutching on to Sirius tighter.

"Oooh," Peeves giggled, doing summersaults in the air. "I heard you murdered all those muggles!"

"Shut. Up. Peeves." Sirius demanded, brandishing his wand at Peeves. It sparked red, matching the anger that he felt.

"Or you'll do what?" Peeves' voice carried rather far, Sirius realized as Peeves swung and grabbed a handful of his hair before letting go quickly. Sirius rubbed the back of his head as the doors to the Great Hall swung open. Dumbledore exited the Great Hall, the doors closing gently behind him.

"Ahh, Sirius. Harry," Dumbledore greeted the two men. "Peeves," Dumbledore added, eying the poltergeist who was making faces at Dumbledore. "Thank you for greeting our guests." Sirius glared at Dumbledore, dropping his hand from the back of his head.

Peeves saluted Dumbledore and began singing a song - did he just say my name in that song? wondered Sirius - as he disappeared down another hallway. Before he could respond to Dumbledore, Snape slinked out of a corridor that lead to the dungeons. Sirius set Harry down, his hand still resting on Harry's shoulder. "I should have guessed that it was you that disturbed the quiet," sneered Snape.

"Ah, Snivellus. Can't make a love potion when you're distracted?"

Snape stepped closer to Harry and Sirius, his eyes darker than normal. "Shut up, Black. You and Potter should leave; you're not welcome here."

"Severus," Dumbledore said kindly. "I invited them to speak to me. They are always welcome here." Sirius resisted the urge to stick his tongue out at the fuming Snape. "How was house shopping, Harry?"

Harry's eyes brightened as he looked at Dumbledore. "We're buying a house there!" Harry exclaimed, waving his arms towards the front door of the school. "It has a big yard!"

"I see, my dear boy. Are you excited?"

"Yes, Sirius promised I could get a puppy-"

"-I did not, Harry. I said I would think about it," corrected Sirius.

Severus snorted from where he was standing. "Not good enough, mutt?" Sirius glowered at him; Harry didn't know about that secret, and he wasn't particularly keen on him finding out. "You're moving from the beloved Black Manor? What's wrong, mutt, ghosts scaring you?"

"It seems more of a house for a Death Eater," Sirius retorted. "Perhaps you'd be interested in buying it? Although, for your type, Azkaban is the better fit, I believe."

"Enough!" Severus bellowed, producing his wand from underneath his billowing wands. "I will not stand to be insulted like this by a perpetual child who is obviously brain damaged!"

Sirius let go of Harry and gently shoved him in Dumbledore's direction. "A duel with you always leaves you smarting," Sirius reminded Snape, "But I'm up for the challenge to put you back in your place."

Both men shot silent spells at each other, lights clashing in between the two of them. Quickly, however, Sirius found himself disarmed. Confused, he looked around to see Dumbledore holding on to both wands. "Enough," Dumbledore stated, using Snape's word for him. "I will not stand to see the two of you duel. You can either be respectful, or I will be asking you to leave."

Sirius had seldom seen Dumbledore interfere in anything, let alone raise his voice and get mad. Sirius shrugged and folded his arms across his chest. He was not going to apologize to the sallow skinned man standing across the hall from him. That would be beneath him, and it would be affording Snape a personal curtesy that he had never afforded the Marauders. Especially after you tried to get him eaten by Remus, thought Sirius.

A joyful sound was emitted by Harry and Sirius watched a flash of dark hair rush past him and Snape towards another man. Remus, Sirius thought. He watched as Remus crouched down and let Harry jump into his arms. Harry flung his arms around Remus' neck as Remus stood and held him close. "What's going on?" Remus asked the three men standing in the entrance hall, Harry clinging to him as if his life depended on it. I need to control my anger, if only for Harry, Sirius thought, smiling at Remus.

"You know, just discussing our past careers," Sirius said slyly.

"Sirius called that man... he said that he eats death!" Harry informed Remus, pulling his head from Remus' shoulder to peer at Snape. Snape's eyes - if possible - darkened as they narrowed.

Remus looked bothered by this. He rubbed Harry's back. "Well, whatever Sirius was talking about," Remus started, shooting Sirius a deathly glance, "doesn't seem very nice, huh? And we're trying to raise you to be nice to everyone." Harry nodded, his bright green orbs reflecting the light from the windows. "Besides, Harry, Sna- Severus was one of your mums best friends when they came to Hogwarts."

Harry looked absolutely gleeful. One of his favorite things in the world was to hear about his mom and dad. Sirius tried to tell him a different story at least once a week for a bedtime story, but he assumed that Harry could hear a new story a day and never grow tired of hearing about Lily and James. Snape's face looked strained at Remus' words. He clearly did not want to relive that relationship here in the entrance hall.

"Did you know my dad, too?" Harry asked Snape eagerly.

Sirius shot Severus a look that dared him to be rude to his god-son. Even with Dumbledore still holding on to the two men's wands, he wasn't afraid to use hand-to-hand combat if he needed to. This was Harry; he'd do anything for Harry. Anything.

"No," Snape replied curtly.

"Sirius and Remus say that I look like my dad, but I have mom's eyes," Harry told Snape, excited. Snape looked pained, and he shrugged.

"I would like my wand back, so I can finish the potion that I was working on," Snape said uncomfortably, looking at Dumbledore. Dumbledore offered the wand to him, loosely grasping it in his long fingers. Snape approached Dumbledore and took the wand quickly. Dumbledore placed a hand on Severus' shoulder and whispered something inaudible. Snape seemed to register what he was hearing, and nodded briefly before sweeping out of the entrance way.

"Perhaps this conversation we were going to have can wait for another day," suggested Dumbledore airily, holding Sirius' wand out to him. Sirius nodded as he took the wand, unsure of what could have changed in just moments.

Sirius took a deep breath. "Albus, I apologize..."

"You don't need to apologize to me, Sirius. But Severus is part of Hogwarts and I consider him to be a trusted confidant. You can either respect the decision that I've made to trust him, or you'll need to relinquish Harry to me so I can find a better suited parent for him." Sirius' chest stung with a pang of hurt, and Harry screeched a 'No!' that Remus immediately shushed. "Then I suggest, Sirius, that you work out whatever this is between the two of you. It'll be best for Harry that way," Dumbledore reminded Sirius in a frustrated tone before sweeping up the stairs that flanked the center of the room without another word.

Sirius glanced at Harry and Remus and merely mouthed, fuck.