October 31, 1985

"Hest, where's Harry's costume?" Sirius asked, coming down the stairs, completely sober for the first Halloween in years.

"What are you doing, Siri?" Hestia asked, exasperated.

"Getting ready to take Harry trick-or-treating," Sirius asked, as if it were obvious.

"What? Why?" Hestia asked, taken aback.

"It's time. Remus and I will take Neville, Marly, and Harry out. There is a gathering of Order members at the Leaky; you go hang with the adults. It's time for Remus and I to move on."

"Are you sure? Do I need to hide the Firewhiskey just in case?"

"Yes, now go on and let the boys play." He told her, helping her up from the chair. "Remember to floo home if you're drunk. Don't want that pretty skin to get splinched."

"Don't flirt, Siri. You know I won't fall for it." Hestia said, tossing her hair over her shoulder.

"He is a flirt, we both know that will never changed," Remus told her coming down the stairs with Harry in a baby Quidditch uniform.

"Who's my big Seeker?" Hestia cooed at Harry, causing him to smile.

"I am Hest. I'm going to play Quidditch. Just like you and Padfoot." He said with a nod.

"You know who else played Quidditch?" Hestia asked, fixing his cape.

"Who?" Harry asked excitedly.

"Your daddy," she smiled.

"He did?" Harry said his smile taking up his face. "Was a he a Seeker too?"

"No, but he would be happy if you played Quidditch at all." Sirius said, handing Harry his bag for candy.

"Did my mummy play too?" He asked as they walked through the door. The last thing Hestia heard was Remus and Sirius laughing hysterically.


When Hestia arrived home via floo that night, she was still thinking about the scene earlier. Sirius Black was getting to be a very responsible man. Hestia had seen more than her fair share of Sirius Black since moving into Potter Manor after realising that she spent more time here than in her own apartment.

She quietly walked up the steps to check on Harry. Opening the door slowly, she peaked her head in, and watched the messy black hair move on its pillow. She smiled to herself before closing the door.

"He needs a haircut. I'll do that tomorrow." A voice said from behind her.

She jumped, grasping at her heart. "You nearly scared me half to death. We should get a collar for you."

"Why? Want to collar me, pet?" Sirius did that little smirk that made Hestia feel things for him that were less unwanted than they should be.

"Well, then when you went outside, everyone would know to bring you back here." She cheeked back, stepping towards him.

"A collar is like a wedding ring, restraining." Sirius said, pulling on her hands. "Or for pulling me in a different direction than I wanted."

"Sirius Black is changing his spots?" She smirked, putting her hands on his shoulders.

"You've seen my animagus, I have no spots. I'm either all or nothing." He told her, brushing his fingers over her cheeks.

"At least for one night?" She inquired putting her lips to his.


Remus had Harry downstairs for breakfast before Sirius and Hestia stumbled down. Harry had woken him up early after having a nightmare, mumbling something incoherent about Hestia and Sirius and sleepovers. He didn't understand everything, but he knew that Harry was Prongs child and would explain it all.

Harry had the same little smirk on his face that Prongs used to get when Hestia and Sirius finally made it down, around the same time, Remus noted.

"Aunt Hest, I had a nightmare last night," Harry started, picking up one of the tarts Aida made for breakfast.

"Oh, Harry, why didn't you wake me up?" She asked, concerned.

"I tried, but I found you having a sleepover in Padfoot's room. Hest, does that make you a tart? Does it mean you'll be my new aunt?" Harry asked, all innocence.

Remus Lupin did his very best not to laugh, then he saw Hestia's face. Confusion, fear, and embarrassment were written all over her features. Then Harry made it better.

"Hest, where's my biscuit? I always get biscuits if I ask Siri's sleepover to be my new aunt," Harry reminded her of her own tradition. Remus collapsed, laughter shaking his body, tears pouring from his eyes.

"No, Harry, I am not a tart. You know that," Hestia said, rubbing her head.

"But all the other ones were? And my biscuit?" Harry only had one concern, really. Remus, however, was stuck laughing on the floor, enjoying his morning much too much.

"The other girls were tarts because they were not staying. I'm staying," Hestia explained.

"But you said…" Harry was confused about the situation.

"Harry, Prongslet, look at me, yeah? Hestia is staying here. For good," Sirius tried to explain.

"Prongslet, Hestia is different because Sirius is going to take her out during the daytime when people can see them together. That's the difference, see?" Remus said, handing Harry his biscuit.

"Did my mum and dad go out with each other in the daytime?" Harry asked.

"Yes, yes they did," Remus said.

"Okay," Harry said, eating his biscuit.

That was the end of that, even after Sirius took Hestia out 'in daytime.'

April 1, 1986

"So I take it that you two still aren't married," Molly Weasley asked in disapproval. Sirius rolled his eyes, while Hestia tried to placate her.

"We've talked about it, yes, but it's only been a few months. We don't want to rush this. Besides, you didn't have an issue with us living together when Sirius was bringing all those tarts home," Hestia pointed out.

"That was completely different. You weren't the tart," Molly said seriously.

"Hest isn't a tart. Padfoot takes her out at daytime. That makes her better," Harry explained sagely, on his way through the kitchen.

"What did you just say, Harry, sweetie?" Molly asked.

"Sirius said if he takes her out in daytime, it's different. It makes her better than the other ones. Means I can't ask her biscuits questions in the morning," Harry said, eyes wide with innocence.

"Okay, that's enough. Siri, take Harry and go play in the garden, yeah?" Hestia said, handing Harry a biscuit and shooing the boys out.

"Yay! Come on, Pads! Let's go fly!" Harry said, dragging Sirius from the room.

"Hestia, what exactly is a 'biscuit question'?" Molly asked. That was the last thing Sirius heard before taking Harry outside.

Fred and George wanted to play Quidditch for their birthday. Bill and Charlie were away at Hogwarts, but there were still several children running around that could be used to form a team. It was the twins 7th birthday, so Kiddie Quidditch was the version they would be playing. The bludgers were made of foam, the quaffle was miniature, and the snitch shut off after an hour. It made play much easier on the young ones.

After restricting the snitch to a certain height and playing field, Sirius released it and started the game. Kiddie Quidditch was like watching paint dry, but it was a necessary evil. The twins were working in their Beater skills, Ron was playing a superb Keeper, and even little Ginny was giving Draco a run for his money in the Chaser department.

Harry, reigning king of accidental magic that he was, had managed to cancel out both the charm on his broom that restricted him to 3 feet and the one that restricted the snitch to four. He was 5 feet up before the broom stuttered and froze. Harry pitched forward and fell face first off this broom. Sirius ran to catch him, knowing he would be too late.

Harry's cries alerted him to his failure. Moony rushed out and stopped the other kids, leading them inside. Molly distracted them with cake and presents, while Moony, Sirius, and Hestia dealt with the situation.

"He's broken his arm," Hestia said, looking at his arm. "We have to get him to St. Mungo's."


"We've given him some pain draught," the nurse at St. Mungo's informed them. "You have two options going forward. You can have us heal him and he'll back to new in the morning. However, with young ones like this, we prefer to treat it the muggle way: 6 weeks in a cast. I know it was an accident, but it helps him learn there are consequences to his actions."

"You have to heal him right now!" Sirius shouted, not bearing the thought of Harry in pain.

"Now, Pads, let's think this through. We really should let him heal the long way on this one, and any other bits of accidental magic. He has to learn that he can't use his magic to make things dangerous for himself. I hate the idea of little Prongslet in pain, but think. He needs to do this the hard way. Learn now that his actions have consequences and maybe someday he won't be a terror for Minerva," Hestia said, soothing the irritated Sirius, knowing she was on thin ice.

"Pain is not a punishment. I will not do that to my godson," Sirius was adamant, reliving more unpleasant memories of his childhood.

"Sirius Black, you look at me. I am not, in any way, suggesting we use unforgivables or whatever other torture curse the Blacks were always so good at on him. It's very minor pain and actually more of a hindrance to other fun for six weeks, not pain as punishment. The worst is we have to modify bathtime," Hestia said, taking Sirius' face in her hands. Harry was still whimpering in the background, but Moony wasn't objecting, and if anyone knew about physical pain, it was Reums Lupin.

"Well, Moony, what do you think? We can't consult McGonagall, but I believe she would agree with Hest. So, since the four of us are team parenting this child, what do you think?" Sirius asked his oldest friend.

"Don't hate me, Pads, but it's three to one. Let him learn this lesson the hard way. Trust me when I say, it's very minimal pain. They'll give us mild pain potion and all Harry will know is that he isn't allowed to run, jump, fly, or climb for at least six weeks. A simple impervious charm will stop the bathtime issue, it'll be fine. Trust me, Pads, I won't put Prongslet in pain," Remus said tiredly, still recovering.

"Okay, let's do this the Muggle way," Sirius said, feeling like a bad parent.


The next six weeks were some of the longest of Sirius' life, and he lived through a war. There were so many rules to the 'cast' thing they had encased Harry's arm in. During the first week, Harry was on mild pain potions to stop the worst of the pain. Starting about the third week, Harry's bone was regrowing and he complained of his arm itching. Instead of heeding the healer's advice to just used a heating charm on the cast to ease the itching, Sirius handed Harry a fork and told him to shove it down his cast and scratch. Fortunately for Harry's arm, Hestia caught them in seconds and alternated between yelling at Sirius for his stupidity and comforting a now injured Harry.

When Harry's arm started itching again the fourth week, he was in tears. So, Sirius did the best thing he could, the heating charm. After the fourth time that day Harry asked for it, Sirius handed him a crayon. He didn't hurt himself like he did with the fork, and he didn't have to do the stupid heating charm.

Week five found Harry trying to climb onto Sirius' racing broom.

"But mine's all locked up!" Harry shrieked. "It's not fair!"

"Yes it is fair, Harry. You know you can't have a broom until that cast comes off," Sirius told him, wishing Hestia wasn't out at the moment. He was ill equipped to handle disicpline.

"Ron said when Bill broke his arm last year, Mrs. Weasley just let them fix him right up! They love him more than you love me!" Harry tried guilting Sirius, knowing the effectiveness of the tactic in the past.

"Harry, that's not true and you know it," Sirius replied, begging anyone who would listen to send Hestia home that second. "You chose to make the broom go higher than you can handle. You can't use your accidental magic to break rules put in place for your safety. Do you understand?"

Harry's eye welled up. "You're supposed to be on my side! You're my friend! Padfoot and Prongs forever! Please just take me to be healed!" Harry tried again.

"No, Harry. You're not allowed to touch my broom and you know it. You'll have to go to your room. You know the rules," Sirius said. Harry didn't want to comply, so Sirius was forced to carry him, kicking and screaming, up the stairs. Finally, they got to Harry's room.

Sirius set Harry down and turned to leave. Harry chose that moment to strike. "You're not even my real dad. I wish he was here so I didn't have to deal with you!"


"Sirius, he's a child. Children are notoriously heartless. They say mean things to get you to react. He wanted his broom, but it's locked up. Next best choice is your broom. You caught him, and to mask his guilt, he reacted and shifted blame. You can't be angry at yourself or at him. This is what children do," Hestia said, trying to comfort her boyfriend.

"The worst part of this whole mess is that I understand. I understand all those lessons that Minnie tried so hard to teach us about our words. How much damage did we do to Sniv? It's humbling… And I had to have my four year old godson scream it at me," Sirius confided, not realizing that he was choosing Hestia over Remus as his confidant.

"Out of the mouths of babes and all," Hestia gave a slight chuckle.

"I'm so happy it's me he's screaming abuses at, though. Prongs doesn't have to ever have his kid be mad at him. I think I prefer it this way," Sirius told her lowly.

"You were forever trying to protect the lot of them weren't you?" Hestia asked.

"I really was. Even if I failed most of them, this feels like a way to pay Prongs back. Do my damnedest to make sure Harry never hates James and Lily," Sirius said, resolved and feeling much better about the day.

"Look at you, Sirius Black. You're getting all grown up," Hestia said, moving in for a kiss.

Two long, painful weeks of pouting and no fun later, it was time for Harry's cast to . The healer had healed the scratch marks from the fork, so they should have been good to go. When the cast came off, Harry's arm was covered in red, green, blue, and even purple lines.

"Sirius, what did you do?" Hestia turned on him.

"It itched, so Padfoot said to use the crayons. They don't stab like forks," Harry explained.

"Sirius Black, what am I going to do with you?" Hestia asked, causing Remus and Harry to chuckle a bit.

"Love me forever?" Sirius asked, only half joking.

"That could work," she replied, smiling and pecking him on the cheek. "Let's get Harry and Remus home."


It was weeks before anyone thought to inform Minerva of Harry's accident. She approved of Sirius' way of handling things. She did not, however, appreciate being left out of the loop.

Sirius felt a chill cross his spine before he saw her. When he did, he ran, hiding behind Remus.

"We're sorry! We didn't mean to leave you out!" Sirius said as way of greeting.

"You, Sirius, will inform me before you make these decisions in the future. At the very least, you will inform me before I get a letter from St. Mungo's informing me of the situation," Minerva scolded.

"Yes, ma'am! Whatever you want ma'am!" Sirius responded, still cowering behind a now frightened Remus.

"I'm having flashbacks to 5th year," Remus said, faintly.

"There is one thing I have to say, Minnie dear," Sirius said, getting his Gryffindor courage back.

"And what was that, Mr. Black?" Minerva said, raising an eyebrow.

"I am so sorry, Minerva. I didn't understand what you meant about rules before. I didn't understand what you meant about words, either. Now I do. Thank you for all those lessons that had nothing to do with Transfiguration," Sirius said, hugging the older woman.

"You're welcome, Sirius," She replied, returning the hug.

October 31, 1985

"Hestia! I cannot leave this house dressed like this!" Sirius shrieked from the stairs. `

"Oh, you'll be fine, Sirius. Really, it's Harry's favorite book. It was your idea to expose him to Muggle things after all," Hestia reminded him, shrugging an obnoxious fur coat over a slim fitting black dress.

"How about I wear the ridiculous collar and you reward me after Harry goes to bed?" Sirius said with a smirk, wrapping his arms around her waist.

"Eww! Why are you so weird, Padfoot?" Harry asked, coming down the stairs in a dalmation.

"Yeah, Padfoot, why are you so weird?" Remus asked, following Harry dressed as what seemed to be a black dog.

"Now, why couldn't I be the black dog? My name is literally 'black dog'!" Shouted Sirius, trying anything not to wear the spotted outfit.

"Your name is Sirius, silly. Why don't you want to wear the one like me, Padfoot? Did I do something bad?" Harry asked, pouting at his godfather.

"No! No, you didn't do anything bad. I'll dress up as the spotted dog, I promise!" Sirius said in an effort not to upset his godson.

"Well done, Padfoot. He didn't even get tears in before you caved," Remus rubbed his eyes.

"That's right, Harry, always remember that Padfoot is the fun one and Moony is the mean one," Sirius said, bouncing Harry about.

"Down, Padfoot! I'm not a baby anymore!" Harry said, laughing.

"You aren't, are you?" Sirius smiled, feeling guilty that he was sharing this moment with Harry and James and Lily weren't.

"Come on! Let's go trick-or-treating!" Harry cheered, rushing away.

February 22, 1986

"I want Moony!" Harry yelled, jumping on Sirius and Hestia's bed.

"Hey, Harry, why don't you take Hestia downstairs for biscuits?" Sirius asked, sending the two away. "I need to speak with Remus."

"No secrets!" Harry shouted, wanting to know what was going on.

"No secrets," Sirius sighed, rubbing his hands down his face. "Moony is sick. He will be back soon."

"No, NOW!" Harry cried.

"Harry James Potter, go to your room. You do not speak to an adult that way," Hestia said coming out of her room, pulling her hair into a bun.

"Moony!" He tried again.

"Now." She said in a firm voice. Harry huffed and stomped his way to his room and shut the door.

"One day he will figure it out," She smiled, giving him a quick peck on the lips. "Alice and I are going out for drinks. Let Harry out of his rooms in about five minutes and do not forget it's bath night."

"Yes dear," Sirius groaned.

It wasn't long after Hestia left that Sirius sent out the letters. He paced the kitchen in his socks, scratching his head and letting out a disgruntled moan every so often.

"There are two days until the full moon, is this matter of life and death?" Remus sighed, pulling a cup from the cupboard and pouring tea.

"Yes, it is. Why else would I owl you!" Sirius snapped.

"Is Harry going to turn into a beast that can't be controlled and spend the next week attempting to remember what happened and putting healing charms all over his body because being a half breed is frowned upon in our society and he can't go to a hospital?" He shrugged, taking sip of his drink.

"Speaking of your furry problem, Harry wants to see you before you leave again." Sirius said sitting down.

"What is this moral dilemma?" Remus asked, rolling his eyes.

"Not yet, we're waiting on-"

"Where is Harry?" Minnie bellowed. "Where is he? Is he alright? Did he fall off a broom again? I put the most important-"

"This isn't about Harry!" Sirius shouted. "It's about Hestia."

"What did you do to that sweet woman, you horrible man!" Minerva said, smacking him over the head.

"I'm a horrible man who wants to ask her to marry me. And I don't know how." He sighed, slamming his head to the table.


Kat: Say it say it! It's your turn to ask for reviews! No one seems to be listening to me! Except desireejones99, GinnyPotter6891, I.C.2014, and scrappy8. We adore you!

Gabs: Here's a comment idea: tell us if this should be separate stories for each of the books or if you want a 100+ chapter epic. Your pick, kids.

Kat: Yup, that's right. We need you to make the choice for us...mostly because our decision making skills suck.

Gabs: As always, we own nothing. Except Lord Fluffy, Destroyer of Worlds. But that's a story for another author note.

Kat: Hope you enjoyed the cliffhanger. See you Tuesday!

xoxo Gabs and Kat