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When Sirius arrived at his house, he immediately went up the stairs and into the child's room. Harry had fallen asleep in his arms during the trip, and the man thought it was better to allow him to sleep for a while, letting the shock of finding something of his mother sink in. Tucking Harry tightly in his bed, Sirius kissed his forehead lightly and left the room.
About an hour later the others had arrived through floo powder. Sirius, who had been getting worried, immediately stood up. "Where on earth have you been? It doesn't take that long to go to the Leaky Cauldron and use Floo powder!"
Mrs. Weasley put a calming hand on the man's shoulder. "We're sorry for having worried you, Sirius, but we still had to buy Harry's presents." Looking around the room she asked, "Where is he?"
"In his room, sleeping. I thought it would be better not to wake him when we arrived, he was so distraught."
The others nodded and put down the packages they had been carrying. Fred and George went to the kitchen and put the pizzas they had bought for lunch on the table, while their mother charmed the boxes to keep them warm. Remus, on the other hand, walked up to his room and put the doll on one of the shelves, he didn't want it to get damaged or lost, and knowing the twins, either possibility seemed too real, even if they had behaved so far.
During the rest of the morning, the kids entertained themselves playing some muggle games Hermione had brought along, since Sirius had forbidden them playing exploding Snap for fear they would wake Harry up. After a while, Mr Weasley joined them, very curious about how the game was played. Remus and Mrs Weasley were engaged in an animated talk about Hogwarts, while Sirius remained silent, lost in thoughts. Finally, half an hour before lunch, the man got up and slipped out of the living room and went up the stairs to Harry's room. The child was still asleep, but he was now clutching his Gryffindor lion, and Sirius could see trails of tears running down his checks. Silently, the man sat on the bed next to his godson and gently shook him awake.
"Harry? Come on, kiddo, you can't stay all day in bed."
The child blinked sleepily and looked up at him. Yawning, he sat up and looked around the room, trying to get his bearings back. Seeing he was back into his room he sighed and laid back down, he really wasn't in the mood to get up. Sirius on the other hand, knew it would not do Harry any good to stay up here on his own, so he picked him up, despite the boy's squirming.
"Harry, please, stop. What's wrong?"
"Leave me alone."
Sirius repressed a sigh and cradled the boy closer to his chest, restraining his movements. "No, Harry, I'm not going to leave you alone, specially not now."
Harry, seeing the man was too strong for him, gave up the fight and just curled up in a small ball, refusing to look up at his godfather. Sirius, seeing it wouldn't do them any good to go downstairs while Harry was like this, went to sit in one of the chairs and sat the boy on his lap.
"Harry, why are you acting like this? It's your birthday, you should be happy. That doll was a present from James to Lily, the first he gave her after they started going out, you should be happy to have found it, now you'll able to keep it with you like you do with the cloak."
Harry stayed very still, listening to the shooting voice of his godfather. He knew the man was right, but he really was not in the mood to celebrate. The doll had reminded him once more he didn't have parents to celebrate this day with him and he didn't see why he should be happy when they couldn't be anymore. Sirius, sensing his mood, lifted the small head of his godson so he could look him in the eye.
"Harry, they would have wanted you to be happy."
The small boy shrugged. "There's no one who cares if I'm happy or not."
Sirius grimaced, it was obvious Harry's mind was once again back with the Dursleys. "Child, down in the living room are several people who care about you and want to see you happy. I want to see you happy too, Harry, I don't like it when you're so sad."
The boy looked at him questioningly. "Really? You care?"
Hugging his godson tightly to his chest, Sirius nodded. "Of course I care, Harry. You are not longer with the Dursleys, remember? We all care about you."
After a while, Harry finally nodded into the man's shirt and put his small arms around his godfather's neck. "I'm glad you're here, Daddy."
Sirius smiled slightly and ruffled the boy's hair. "I'm glad you're here too, kid. Come on, everyone's probably waiting for us to have lunch."
Harry sprung out of Sirius's lap and smiled slightly up at him. "What do we have for lunch?"
"Pizza."
Harry's face brightened at once. He took his godfather's hand and began to pull him towards the door. "Come on, Daddy, I'm hungry."
Sirius laughed while he allowed his small godson to pull him down the stairs and into the kitchen, where Mrs Weasley and Remus were already putting the pizzas on the plates.
Harry took his usual seat, with Sirius sitting next to him and Hermione at his other side. The meal went on cheerfully, everyone was happy to see Harry once again laughing happily and forgot about what had happened. Once everyone had eaten, Sirius lifted Harry up and brought him to the living room, where a large stack of presents was waiting. Once his godfather had lowered him on the ground, Harry rushed up to the presents and eyed them happily for a moment, while the others settled themselves around him on several chairs and couches.
The first present Harry unwrapped was from the twins, it was a set of muggle pranks they had come across in one of the stores they had visited after Harry and Sirius had left them. They confessed they had wanted to give Harry some magical pranks from their own creation, but hadn't wanted to risk their mother and Sirius's wrath. Harry laughed softly at this and his eyes gained a mischievous glance when George whispered in his ear that they would give him a few pranks when they were back in school. Harry shook his head and moved on the to next present. It was from Mr and Mrs Weasley. They had bought him a dark red cloak, when he got back to his own age, Remus or Sirius would just have to make it bigger. The kid thanked them profusely and wrapped the warm cloak around his shoulders, showing it off and making the others laugh. Next present was from Hermione and Ron, they had pulled their money together to buy him a small cat. Harry immediately became delighted with it and named him snowball, because it's fur was completely white. Harry didn't even see his godfather shake his head in amusement. Sirius was sure he would end up taking care of the small animal, at least till his godson was older again. From Sirius and Remus, Harry got some more toys and a promise they would give him some things they still had from his parents when he was old again. Harry looked sad for a moment, but at the sight of the large cake Mrs Weasley had just brought in, he pushed the words away and ran to the woman, with Ron and Hermione at his side.
It was late evening when the Weasleys and Hermione left together through floo powder. Hermione would be spending the rest of the summer with the Weasleys so she would be able to go see Harry if she wanted. Once they were gone, Sirius settled on the couch, with Harry snuggled against him. He could easily tell the kid was tired but he had refused to go to sleep, claiming it was his birthday. Remus and Sirius had relented, knowing he would fall asleep soon enough either way. They had been right. Barely fifteen minutes later, Sirius was trudging up the stairs with the sleeping form of his godson cradled against his chest.
After changing Harry into his pj's and putting him to bed, Sirius went to his own room. He still had some paperwork to do for Dumbledore, and with Harry there, he had been putting it off for long enough. At a quarter to twelve, he was startled out of his work by a shy knock on his door. Supposing it was Harry, since Remus wasn't that shy, he stood up quickly and opened the door. The young child was standing at the door, with his Gryffindor lion tightly clutched against his chest. Sirius could see the kid was trembling slightly and wouldn't meet his eyes. Kneeling in front of the boy, Sirius lifted his head gently and looked him straight in the eye. "What's wrong, Harry?"
The kid shifted nervously under his gaze. "I had a nightmare and I can't go back to sleep. Can I?"
Sirius smiled softly when the child didn't continue. Taking one of Harry's hands, he drew his godson into the room and moved to his bed. Lifting the covers up, he nodded to Harry. "Come on, Kiddo, hop in."
Smiling in relieve, Harry scrambled inside the bed and settled in. Sirius shot a glance to his unfinished work and decided it could wait a few more days. Changing into a pair of black pj's, he kept his eyes on Harry, who was watching him intently, as if trying to make sure he wouldn't disappear. Joining his godson into the large bed, the small kid immediately moved closer, and letting go of the stuffed animal for the first time since he had arrived, he clamped his small arms around Sirius's chest. The man wrapped an arm protectively around the child and watched as his godson drifted off to sleep. After he was sure Harry was sleeping soundly, Sirius put the lights out, and went to sleep himself, his arm never moving from the place around his godson.
To be continued...
A/N: Thanks for all reviews.
Free.
When Sirius arrived at his house, he immediately went up the stairs and into the child's room. Harry had fallen asleep in his arms during the trip, and the man thought it was better to allow him to sleep for a while, letting the shock of finding something of his mother sink in. Tucking Harry tightly in his bed, Sirius kissed his forehead lightly and left the room.
About an hour later the others had arrived through floo powder. Sirius, who had been getting worried, immediately stood up. "Where on earth have you been? It doesn't take that long to go to the Leaky Cauldron and use Floo powder!"
Mrs. Weasley put a calming hand on the man's shoulder. "We're sorry for having worried you, Sirius, but we still had to buy Harry's presents." Looking around the room she asked, "Where is he?"
"In his room, sleeping. I thought it would be better not to wake him when we arrived, he was so distraught."
The others nodded and put down the packages they had been carrying. Fred and George went to the kitchen and put the pizzas they had bought for lunch on the table, while their mother charmed the boxes to keep them warm. Remus, on the other hand, walked up to his room and put the doll on one of the shelves, he didn't want it to get damaged or lost, and knowing the twins, either possibility seemed too real, even if they had behaved so far.
During the rest of the morning, the kids entertained themselves playing some muggle games Hermione had brought along, since Sirius had forbidden them playing exploding Snap for fear they would wake Harry up. After a while, Mr Weasley joined them, very curious about how the game was played. Remus and Mrs Weasley were engaged in an animated talk about Hogwarts, while Sirius remained silent, lost in thoughts. Finally, half an hour before lunch, the man got up and slipped out of the living room and went up the stairs to Harry's room. The child was still asleep, but he was now clutching his Gryffindor lion, and Sirius could see trails of tears running down his checks. Silently, the man sat on the bed next to his godson and gently shook him awake.
"Harry? Come on, kiddo, you can't stay all day in bed."
The child blinked sleepily and looked up at him. Yawning, he sat up and looked around the room, trying to get his bearings back. Seeing he was back into his room he sighed and laid back down, he really wasn't in the mood to get up. Sirius on the other hand, knew it would not do Harry any good to stay up here on his own, so he picked him up, despite the boy's squirming.
"Harry, please, stop. What's wrong?"
"Leave me alone."
Sirius repressed a sigh and cradled the boy closer to his chest, restraining his movements. "No, Harry, I'm not going to leave you alone, specially not now."
Harry, seeing the man was too strong for him, gave up the fight and just curled up in a small ball, refusing to look up at his godfather. Sirius, seeing it wouldn't do them any good to go downstairs while Harry was like this, went to sit in one of the chairs and sat the boy on his lap.
"Harry, why are you acting like this? It's your birthday, you should be happy. That doll was a present from James to Lily, the first he gave her after they started going out, you should be happy to have found it, now you'll able to keep it with you like you do with the cloak."
Harry stayed very still, listening to the shooting voice of his godfather. He knew the man was right, but he really was not in the mood to celebrate. The doll had reminded him once more he didn't have parents to celebrate this day with him and he didn't see why he should be happy when they couldn't be anymore. Sirius, sensing his mood, lifted the small head of his godson so he could look him in the eye.
"Harry, they would have wanted you to be happy."
The small boy shrugged. "There's no one who cares if I'm happy or not."
Sirius grimaced, it was obvious Harry's mind was once again back with the Dursleys. "Child, down in the living room are several people who care about you and want to see you happy. I want to see you happy too, Harry, I don't like it when you're so sad."
The boy looked at him questioningly. "Really? You care?"
Hugging his godson tightly to his chest, Sirius nodded. "Of course I care, Harry. You are not longer with the Dursleys, remember? We all care about you."
After a while, Harry finally nodded into the man's shirt and put his small arms around his godfather's neck. "I'm glad you're here, Daddy."
Sirius smiled slightly and ruffled the boy's hair. "I'm glad you're here too, kid. Come on, everyone's probably waiting for us to have lunch."
Harry sprung out of Sirius's lap and smiled slightly up at him. "What do we have for lunch?"
"Pizza."
Harry's face brightened at once. He took his godfather's hand and began to pull him towards the door. "Come on, Daddy, I'm hungry."
Sirius laughed while he allowed his small godson to pull him down the stairs and into the kitchen, where Mrs Weasley and Remus were already putting the pizzas on the plates.
Harry took his usual seat, with Sirius sitting next to him and Hermione at his other side. The meal went on cheerfully, everyone was happy to see Harry once again laughing happily and forgot about what had happened. Once everyone had eaten, Sirius lifted Harry up and brought him to the living room, where a large stack of presents was waiting. Once his godfather had lowered him on the ground, Harry rushed up to the presents and eyed them happily for a moment, while the others settled themselves around him on several chairs and couches.
The first present Harry unwrapped was from the twins, it was a set of muggle pranks they had come across in one of the stores they had visited after Harry and Sirius had left them. They confessed they had wanted to give Harry some magical pranks from their own creation, but hadn't wanted to risk their mother and Sirius's wrath. Harry laughed softly at this and his eyes gained a mischievous glance when George whispered in his ear that they would give him a few pranks when they were back in school. Harry shook his head and moved on the to next present. It was from Mr and Mrs Weasley. They had bought him a dark red cloak, when he got back to his own age, Remus or Sirius would just have to make it bigger. The kid thanked them profusely and wrapped the warm cloak around his shoulders, showing it off and making the others laugh. Next present was from Hermione and Ron, they had pulled their money together to buy him a small cat. Harry immediately became delighted with it and named him snowball, because it's fur was completely white. Harry didn't even see his godfather shake his head in amusement. Sirius was sure he would end up taking care of the small animal, at least till his godson was older again. From Sirius and Remus, Harry got some more toys and a promise they would give him some things they still had from his parents when he was old again. Harry looked sad for a moment, but at the sight of the large cake Mrs Weasley had just brought in, he pushed the words away and ran to the woman, with Ron and Hermione at his side.
It was late evening when the Weasleys and Hermione left together through floo powder. Hermione would be spending the rest of the summer with the Weasleys so she would be able to go see Harry if she wanted. Once they were gone, Sirius settled on the couch, with Harry snuggled against him. He could easily tell the kid was tired but he had refused to go to sleep, claiming it was his birthday. Remus and Sirius had relented, knowing he would fall asleep soon enough either way. They had been right. Barely fifteen minutes later, Sirius was trudging up the stairs with the sleeping form of his godson cradled against his chest.
After changing Harry into his pj's and putting him to bed, Sirius went to his own room. He still had some paperwork to do for Dumbledore, and with Harry there, he had been putting it off for long enough. At a quarter to twelve, he was startled out of his work by a shy knock on his door. Supposing it was Harry, since Remus wasn't that shy, he stood up quickly and opened the door. The young child was standing at the door, with his Gryffindor lion tightly clutched against his chest. Sirius could see the kid was trembling slightly and wouldn't meet his eyes. Kneeling in front of the boy, Sirius lifted his head gently and looked him straight in the eye. "What's wrong, Harry?"
The kid shifted nervously under his gaze. "I had a nightmare and I can't go back to sleep. Can I?"
Sirius smiled softly when the child didn't continue. Taking one of Harry's hands, he drew his godson into the room and moved to his bed. Lifting the covers up, he nodded to Harry. "Come on, Kiddo, hop in."
Smiling in relieve, Harry scrambled inside the bed and settled in. Sirius shot a glance to his unfinished work and decided it could wait a few more days. Changing into a pair of black pj's, he kept his eyes on Harry, who was watching him intently, as if trying to make sure he wouldn't disappear. Joining his godson into the large bed, the small kid immediately moved closer, and letting go of the stuffed animal for the first time since he had arrived, he clamped his small arms around Sirius's chest. The man wrapped an arm protectively around the child and watched as his godson drifted off to sleep. After he was sure Harry was sleeping soundly, Sirius put the lights out, and went to sleep himself, his arm never moving from the place around his godson.
To be continued...
A/N: Thanks for all reviews.