Hippocampus by JJOAS
A Harry Potter story, all copyrights belong to J.K. Rowling. Time travel if you please. Starring Hermione Granger, Harry Potter, and Sirius Black.
Thank you all for those that reviewed and those that stuck by this story even though updating has taken forever.
A special thanks to nicole evans shay who helped me with the development of this chapter.
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Chapter Eleven: The Eye of The Storm I
Battle: verb – to fight or struggle tenaciously to achieve or resist something.
"So Minerva, what brings you here?" Sirius asked smiling blithely while they made their way towards the dining room.
"It is a bit of a surprise to see you here, Professor," Remus stated disarmingly when Minerva glanced back towards him.
"I was in need of a break from the headmaster. He has no right to dictate where I go and whom I should spend my time with" Minerva snorted, "I don't need a keeper."
Sirius chuckled, "I never really did figure the old codger to be such a control freak."
"Wonders never did cease you know," Remus stated shrugging as the threesome made their way towards the dining room to join the others.
Hermione looked up from her plate and gave a small smile as the trio of people came into the dining room.
Tonks and Petunia both exchanged startled looks at the sight of Minerva joining them. Petunia looked a little more lost than Tonks, however, as she had never seen other people from the Wizarding world other than her sisters and their friends, not including those that had ruined her life.
"It's nice to see you again Minerva", Hermione helped herself to some more peas making sure that Harry had an ample amount of crushed bananas and mashed potatoes.
"The sentiment is all the same", Minerva stated settling down into a chair beside Harry.
Remus chuckled and took his seat along with Sirius, "So how's the roast, Tonks?"
Tonks shook her head in disbelief at how casual they were being, "It's….fine. Remus?"
"Yes dear?" Remus gave her an encouraging smile as conversation started up again at the table.
Tonks stole a glance at Minerva, "I wasn't aware that…errr…certain people that are quite…ummm… determined to always say that Dumbledore's in the right were welcomed here?"
Remus nodded, "No and none of those people are present right now." Patting her hand affectionately he started savoring the roast beef and mashed potatoes on his plate.
Tonks shook her head and kept a wary eye on her old Transfiguration professor.
Minerva noticed how Tonks looked at her and she inwardly sighed as she recalled how Dumbledore "requested" for her to stay during this winter holiday stating that since she had no family of her own it would be better if she didn't leave.
She turned her thoughts away from her trouble with Dumbledore and tried to focus on what Sirius was saying.
Sirius noticed that Minerva was uneasy and it was understandable, but he still trusted her, "So as I was saying to Hermione earlier, since I am the last heir to the Black family the goblins have made it so I don't have to work for the rest of my life."
"Ahh. I see, and?" Minerva lifted a delicate brow.
Hermione rolled her eyes while she tried to feed Harry some of his mashed potatoes, "His problem is that he doesn't feel like a man when he's not doing something."
Sirius made a face at his wife, "That's only what she says, but I need to work. Sure there's money in the vault, but you never know. Having an income is a good thing."
Minerva nodded, "He does have a point."
Petunia nodded along following the conversation as she fed Dudley some mashed carrots and some apple juice, "I think having a job is a good thing. It makes people feel useful."
Hermione grinned, "Exactly. So I should be able to have a job too."
Sirius shot a glare at Hermione, "No."
"Just because I'm pregnant doesn't mean I can't do anything."
A worried frown made its way onto Minerva's face, "I don't believe it's safe for you right now, dear, and congratulations."
"Hummph. Thanks all the same."
Petunia shook her head an amused smile on her face. She knew that no matter what would happen, her baby sister would always be the most stubborn person on the planet.
"Well you know caring for Harry and yourself and keeping an eye on Dumbles isn't as easy as pie."
Tonks agreed and took another piece of roast beef, "Technically that is a job, Mione"
"Gah, all of you are teaming up on me. Fine, but just wait until this one is born."
Sirius's eyes lit up and he grinned, "I for one can't wait." Stealing a kiss from his wife he continued to ponder what he would do. Getting back into being an auror was a nonstarter not without some messy politics thrown in the mix.
"Well since I can't leave, since someone seems to think I've become a delicate porcelain doll…Sirius could you go out and get me some stomach soothers for pregnant women so I can sort of eat?"
Tonks nodded, "My mum said she lived off that stuff when she was pregnant with me"
"Oh! I believe that's sold in the shop at Diagon Alley….What was its name?" Minvera asked.
Tonks smiled her first real smile towards the professor, "Wizzabees Witches Needs."
Sirius pecked his wife's cheek, "Well why doesn't Tonks just go since she knows where it is?"
"Because you were complaining about finding something to do and about me staying here, remember?"
"Well fine."
Petunia gave out a happy sigh at the odd family before her. She thought that perhaps even though they were all magical she'd find some way to fit into this new niche that she found herself and Dudders in. As she ate a bit more of her chicken she pondered if she could do something with plants. She may not have had a magical bone in her body, but she did have a good green thumb.
Dinner went well and conversation lulled when the meal was done and everyone made their way to their beds, while Minerva bid her farewell and flooed back to the castle.
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The new day looked bright to Sirius as he made his way through Diagon Alley looking for that maternal store Tonks and Minerva had been talking about last night. He hadn't at all expected to see his cousin at Florean Fortescue when he had all about given up on finding that shop.
Narcissa saw Sirius and scowled at him when he met her eyes, "I see that Lord Black has finally made it out of the cave he's barricaded himself in."
Sirius tried not to sneer back at his cousin, "I see that being a Malfoy hasn't dampened your spirits any, or your lifestyle."
Narcissa was tempted to snort at his reply, "We are not hampered by this silly little recession, cousin. We haven't had any falling outs or deaths to bother us."
Sirius gave her a wary look refusing to take the bait and decided to throw her a curve ball, "My parent's deaths did not bother me when they told me and they don't bother me now."
Sneering Narcissa lowered her tone, "Our master isn't finished with your family Black especially with little Reggie's betrayal."
He felt his blood pressure rising and fought the urge to shake her, "I see…."
Narcissa delighted in the reddening of Sirius's face, "I see no one told the little Lord, eh? Well you shan't get another word from me." Sneering one last time Narcissa stalked past Sirius and out of the ice cream parlor ignoring the ice cream that she had bought for her son.
Sirius let out an angry sigh muttering, "What the hell has been going on. I swear the world seems just out to get me and my own….And dammit I still don't know where that blasted shop is." He shoved a spoon full of chocolate ice cream into his mouth and pondered what in the world he was supposed to do now.
Narcissa hurriedly made her way out of the ice cream parlor and towards the nearest floo she could think of. Making her way past the busy lunch time crowd that had come in she discreetly used the public floo and in a flurry of green flames she was gone.
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Lucious was drinking his dark earl grey tea and trying to figure out how to snatch the Longbottom boy when he heard his wife floo back from her errands.
Draco shrieked happily from his room where a house elf had been minding him while his father had been in his study. His mummy had said she would buy him ice cream and give him lots of hugs later if he was quiet and out of the way.
Narcissa quickly made her way towards her husband's study, giving her eager son a quick hug and planting a kiss on his head as she passed by his room.
Draco watched sadly as his mummy left him with his house elf again. It always seemed like his parents were always too busy to play with him. Sighing he took his house elf's hand.
The little elf frowned after her mistress, "Hizzy is sorry for young master's sadness."
"It's alright Hizzy. Let's go play dragon catcher," Draco forced a small smile onto his small chubby face. Hizzy nodded and they made their way back to his room.
The light from the windows streamed into the hallway, but the dark walls dampened the sunshine, but Narcissa didn't notice any of this as she continued hurrying down towards her destination.
Lucious waited at his office door his earl grey tea gone and replaced with a scotch; he didn't have an alcohol problem. Nope, just a problem with life that alcohol seemingly helped with. He was in denial, but it helped soothe his tempers at least slightly. When his wife finally made it to him he arched his perfectly sculpted eyebrow, "Narcissa?"
"Lucious. I think we should take this into your office," She stated not even bothering showing her normally submissive nature to her husband.
Slightly taken aback Luciuos did as his wife asked and they both took a seat next to one another on the couch nearby his fireplace, "What has gotten you so on edge, love?"
Her eyes softened a small smile wondered its way onto her face. His affection wasn't outward most often, but it did shine through when she needed it, "It seems our financial worries were right on key."
Lucious snorted and sipped the last of his scotch snapping his fingers. A house elf appeared with a silent pop and took the glass from him silently proceeding to disappear himself. He turned fully to his wife and gathered one hand into his, "We won't have to worry if we manage to get the boy."
"Yes, but I saw Sirius today."
"And?"
"It looked like he was investigating something. What if they're on to us?"
"Don't you have more of a claim to the boy anyway now that your aunt and uncle are dead along with Regulus? I had heard among the Ministry grapevine that Waluburga blasted him off the tree."
Narcissa shot her husband a pained look, "That may be true, dearest, but since Sirius came from the main line of Blacks whether or not he was blasted off of that damn tapestry matters not. He's still the heir with much more right than we do to the boy. Especially when Bellatrix, the twit, decided to kill the boy's parents, she's definitely a mark against us."
A sinister look crossed his face, "Well be that as it may we still have ways to get the child. We'll try illegal and legally. Besides I for one know that Sirius has secrets that the world would rather frown at, and we have the Lestrange fortune to fall back on as well."
With that the two Malfoys began to plot and scheme a way to gain the Longbottom fortune without any care to the boy himself or to their own son as the Christmas holiday approached.
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Twinkling tinkling lights were strung up and around the many rooftops and trees that had been set up around the neighborhood. In a certain house within this neighborhood, hidden away from the public's eyes and ears, Christmas had finally come. And along with it the blood adoption was finally completed. Harry had his new mother's dark evergreen eyes and his father's high cheek bones. He looked like the perfect little mix of both of his parents.
Crawling away from his aunt Tuney he shrieked and giggled madly as he and his cousin played tag with little play fairies that his uncle Moony had purchased for them. All the adults were busy setting up for a Yuletide barbecue that the Weasleys said they would help with. He stopped and sat up beside the couch waiting for his cousin to catch up, but once he did they began their fast crawling with a new vigor.
Petunia sighed and glared at the two little tots doing their best to run amuck during her turn to watch them. She loved both boys immensely, but at this moment she would rather have been tending to the grill, not that the men would let any of the "women folk" near it. Tonks had almost turned Sirius into a frog, which Petunia found to be an interesting thing to think of. Would a frog still like steak if it wasn't really a frog? It was something to ponder while she chased after her son and nephew.
She could distinctly hear her sister retching in the toilet again, with Tonks minding her this time. Petunia wondered what had sidetracked her brother-in-law from getting her that stomach soother.
"Harry, Dudders! Will you please stop crawling away from me?" Petunia huffed as the fairies had given up and now the boys were amusing themselves with crawling away from her.
An owl took her attention away from the two babies that seemed to be endlessly amused with her frustration. It pecked at the glass window of the living room seeing past the charm that hid them from prying eyes.
Quirking an eyebrow she hesitantly opened the window letting the little barn owl hop onto the window seat. He blinked up at her and presented her his leg, a letter firmly attached to it.
"Oh! It's post. Hmmm. I saw Mione give the owl something from here….hmm where is it?" Petunia looked for the owl treats that her sister had kept near the window seat. It was somewhere near the built in bookcase, but for the life of her she couldn't quite recall.
The owl rolled its eyes as the two babies made their way to the interesting owl. He shot a wary glance at the tots. Harry being a bit braver than his cousin sat on his knees and started petting the poor barn owl.
"Owe. Owwee Dud. Owee" Harry stated proudly patting the owl excessively.
Seeing that the owl wasn't biting them as he had initially thought Dudely followed suit and began to pet the owl earnestly, "Owee. Pwetty."
Petunia saw what the two babies were doing and she shot the owl an apologetic look, before she finally fished out an owl treat from an owl shaped ceramic on the book case, "Here you are." Plucking the parchment from his leg Petunia noticed that the note was addressed to her sister.