**As one of my reviewers has already pointed out, there are some small
mistakes in this chapter, so if you've all ready read it, its pretty much
the same thing, I just couldn't leave it bad! What happened was I forgot
to save before uploading it, so most of my revisions didn't make it onto
fanfiction.net...my apologies, and thanks to Sirius Black for checking me
on the teacher thing, I had changed it so I was like, "What is he/she (I
don't really know what you are!) talking about?" Thanks for telling me
though, I never would have noticed that it hadn't been fixed!**
First, I'd like to say I'm sorry for taking so long to write this chapter...my goal was 2 a week during vacation, and it took me NINE days just to get this one out. New Years took a lot out of me...as well as a ski meet that I did VERY badly in...Please forgive me for taking so long, and I'll try very hard to get the next one out by Friday. Enough reviews and I may spit it out faster * hint, hint *
Lucretio-del-alba: You were at the beach!!! We got approximately 20 inches of snow the day you reviewed and you were at the beach?!?! That's insane to me, I can't even fathom the idea...Thanks for the review, hope you like what's going on and that you like Sorai, cuz I thought it was time for a little femininity in the Lupin Loft.
Squirrel Girl: Yeah, you should see New England now. We have mountains of snow after this last Nor' Easter, we can't see out of the front window of my house! It's insane to drive too cuz the bankings are so high you can't see what's coming around the corner! Sorai is not Sirius's girlfriend, you're about to see who she is though. I'm not much of a romance author, so that will probably, but not definitely, not be a part of this fic. Thanks for the review.
Carolyn: Don't you hate computers some times? Mine always manages to malfunction at the worst possible time...Thanks for the review, hope you like who Sorai is, it's kind of sad really, enjoy!
Juggling Stars: I'm glad you like my story so much, I really love writing it! It's so funny to hear about how you readers really get into my story...I do it with other stories as well, but mine just doesn't seem as great as some of the ones I read...Now, I'm really bad with this email update thing...I never remember! But when I do send them, I'll be sure to add your name, but don't expect one every time cuz I just forget or get kicked off the computer!
Tinuviel: I'm so glad that my story finally moved you! I wish you had reviewed sooner, I like to hear what all my regular reviewers say and how it all progresses, but I'm happy you finally decided to! Now, I disagree that my story is the best, that title in my opinion belongs to Fairy Tale's stories, The Last Marauder and The Final Battle, they go together, if you haven't read them you really should! Thanks though for saying that about my fic! And this is one of my best reviews of all time, I just read it and smiled, so thanks very very much! I will have Remus coming up soon, but he's going to be a little while, just when everyone forgets that he's in turmoil, I'm going to go after him...I don't want this story getting too predictable. Thanks again, I hope you enjoy this one as much as the rest!
A.Dee: Yeah, Sirius crying in the shower...I figured winning the trial couldn't be all happiness, not after what Sirius had heard and gone through...and thanks for the friend email, I didn't actually do it cuz I've gotten those a million times, but I do consider you and all my reviewers (except the one person who hated my story) my friends. Keep reviewing or I'll miss you!
Amy Potter 13: What kind of a review was that? Write more next time, please! But I am keeping it up...just for the record : )
Sirius Black: Yes, I freed Sirius...I just hope JKR decides to do the same...I pray she doesn't kill him off later on...I think I'd have to stop reading the series!
Kimmy: Lol...I'm glad you liked the outcome...but seriously...who wants to Sirius rot in jail? Anyway, I figured you lived in England, do you ever get snow at all? If not I'll ship you some of mine, we got 20 inches a couple of days ago, can't step outside without getting snowblinded and you can't see out the front window because of the snow mountains! It's awful! BTW, I do like that snitch, its really cute!
John: This next ones supposed to be a cliffhanger, but I really didn't write it so that it was overly suspenseful...hope you like it!
Katie: I loved the Christmas Wish...Hope you got my review, it seriously brought me near tears! LOL, I didn't really think you didn't like my story, I just sometimes can't figure out what you mean! It was meant to be a very sad chapter, as was this new one, so be prepared...I must bring back some humor, don't you think? And yeah...Harry Sirius and Remus...I hate when people leave him out, I figure he's going to be just as close to Harry as Sirius, so how can we forget him? And I knew my story was going to get better as I went on, the things I write always do...Same with essays, I'll have a really bad intro and conclusion, but the middle stuff is usually awesome...Sorai is a fun character to write about, I hope I'm developing her alright, it's so hard to create an oc, I never would have expected it...hope you enjoy!
Starlette (Maryanne): My Christmas was okay...just not the same as it usually is, so I it wasn't great...I don't want you to think I'm a scrooge! And I still blush about the Thanksgiving Blunder...To make matters worse I said Merry Christmas twice on New Years Eve... No lie! I'm such a ditz...I'm addicted to this fanfic stuff too, only I'm terrible embarrassed to have anyone I know find out...nobody, not even my family knows that I write this story, if they did they would pick on me beyond belief, they already do, knowing I read them...Anyway, I'm glad you liked the way I had Sirius's trial go, I agree about the instant freedom thing, it's no fun. I did my best to draw it out, but it was REALLY hard, I mean its so obvious he's innocent, especially under veritaserum...Okay, another dork moment for me, I got the name Sorai from this playstation game my sister got for Christmas, Kingdom Hearts. The main characters name is Sora, a guy, so I added an I and made her female...I don't want to give anything away, but I wanted the name to match Sirius...Keep reading and reviewing!
"Sirius!" the girl shrieked, then checked her self. "What are you doing?!" she whispered, pulling away from his embrace. "You're going to get caught. I heard you are on the run from the ministry...what the hell are you doing here in broad daylight?"
"Sorai, don't you read?! I had a trial today, I'm free, Sorai!"
"What? Sirius! That's amazing! Congratulations!" she shrieked again, pulling Sirius into another hug.
Harry looked highly confused, Remus still looked dumbstruck. Harry rolled up to Remus and pulled at his sleeve, breaking him from his reverie.
"What's going on?" Harry asked as he saw that both Sirius and the girl were still hugging, tears running over their faces.
Remus bent down slightly, grinning ear to ear. "That's Sirius's sister, we haven't seen her since before your parents died. We all thought she was dead as well."
"Wow," Harry said amazed, and went back to watching the two.
"What about you Sorai? What happened to you?" Sirius choked out.
"Lets go somewhere and talk," she replied, pulling out of the hug and squeezing his hand. "But first," she said grinning, and turned to Remus and wrapped him in a hug. "I missed you Rem."
"I missed you too Sorai," he replied, tears swimming in his eyes too.
"And Harry! I haven't seen you since you were just a baby! How are you?" she shrieked, bending down to give him a hug.
"Under the circumstances I'm fine...It's nice to--meet you," Harry replied.
"Yeah, I'm Sirius's big sister, only by a year though, so don't go thinking I'm an old hen!" Harry grinned, thinking she was just like Sirius. They had very similar features, jet black hair, only hers was quite long, the same gray eyes sparkled on her tan complexion, and her nose was shaped the same as Sirius's as well. She was quite pretty Harry thought.
Sirius cleared his throat and tried to dry his eyes, "We were just celebrating my freedom...will you join us, Sor?"
"How could I miss it?! Just let me go talk to my boss, I'll be right back."
Sirius watched her leave the small room and then turned with a huge grin. "I can't believe this Moony! I can't believe she's here! And she's been here for....who knows how long! I've missed her so much!"
"I'm as amazed as you are Padfoot, if I had known...I would have...she could have helped so much," Remus said, at a loss for words over the shock of seeing her. Remus had been an only child and Sorai had been as much of a big sister to him as she had been to Sirius.
After a moment of silence Harry looked around and grinned. Both of them looked as happy as Harry had ever seen them. Sirius looked happier than he had when the jury had reached their verdict and pronounced him free of all charges. Tears were swimming in their eyes and their cheeks were creased from their excessive smiling.
Sorai came striding back into the room. "My boss said I could spend an hour with you, on the clock, and everyone's food would be on the house," she said grinning, "Follow me." She led them into a private little room with a round table, and they all sat around it. "Lets order, then talk."
Everyone picked up their menus and hurriedly decided on an entrée. Nobody really wanted to eat, they just wanted to get talking. After everything had been ordered, Sirius's face became very stern, he looked at his sister and said, "What happened Sorai? Where have you been and why are you just popping up now?"
Sorai looked down at the table for a moment, collecting her thoughts. She looked up at Sirius then Remus, "What did you guys think happened to me?"
Sirius spoke first, "Two weeks before Lily and James died, you disappeared. Dumbledore told us that Voldemort had probably kidnapped you. No one thought it possible that you survived, as you were never seen or heard from again."
Sorai nodded and looked at Remus who continued where Sirius had left off, "We couldn't imagine what else could have happened to you Sorai. I mean, for Sirius, he only knew you were gone for two weeks. He had no way of finding out if you had been found or whatever else...but me, it's been fifteen years Sor, why didn't you let anyone know you were okay?"
Sorai looked at the table again then looked up, "I was captured by Voldemort, exactly two weeks before Halloween, the day Lily and James died. He and a couple of his death eaters took me from my house that night...they took me to some cave, somewhere...I still don't know. He interrogated me there, under the imperious curse. He sent a couple cruciatus curses my way as well, when I began to fight the imperious. I thought I was going to die. I was there with him up to the night he went to kill Lily and James, and even a little after. I knew he was going after them...but there was nothing I could do...I was heavily guarded by death eaters at all times..." Tears were streaming down her face as she gave the report, reliving the worst event she ever experienced. "I'm so sorry Sir, Harry."
Sirius was crying as well. He felt his sister's pain like he felt his own. He tried to tell her that it wasn't her fault, but couldn't say a word. Harry did it for him, "I understand, it wasn't you fault at all. You're just lucky he didn't do the same to you."
Sorai nodded gratefully at Harry, "He would have, if you hadn't stopped him Harry he would have come back and killed me. He told me...he said he was going to wait until he killed everyone...everyone I ever loved before he got me. He always came back from a killing and told me the details of it all."
She started sobbing harder at this point, Sirius dragged his chair closer and put a comforting arm over her shoulder so she could continue. She stared meaningfully at Remus who still looked confused about why she had never presented herself to him. "Remus, you know how Melody died a week before James and Lily?"
Remus nodded sadly, understanding what she was about to say. Silent tears started streaming down his face as well. Sorai continued, "Before he left he told me exactly what he was going to do...I tried to talk him out of it...I tried to talk him out of all the killings, but it never worked of course. He told me he was going to torture her for a while, like he had with me...get whatever information he could out of her...and then kill her." She took in a deep breath, trying to get control of her sobbing. "He came back that night...and told me that everything had gone as planned. Remus, that's why I never told you I was okay...I couldn't face you...knowing what I knew, and not doing anything about it. I'm so sorry Rem...I'm so sorry."
Remus went over and wrapped Sorai in a tight hug. "It's okay Sor, it's okay...I understand...but I wish you hadn't done that. I could have used you so much. I lost everyone!"
"I know, I know, and I'm sorry...Remus I'm so, so sorry!"
"It's okay, you're here now, it's all okay."
They held each other for a few minutes before pulling apart.
Sirius still wanted to know the rest of what happened to his long lost sister. "What else happened Sorai?"
Sorai took a deep breath and continued. "Halloween night he left, saying that he'd be back once the Potters were dead...and that he would be after my brother and his last friend next. When he said last friend, I knew something was up, as both Remus and Peter were still alive. I knew the Potter's had a traitor, and I knew it had to be Peter...it couldn't have been Remus after what had just happened to Melody...Do you know how hard it is to know something so vital and not be able to tell a soul? That was the worst of my capture. I could handle the pain, and everything...but I couldn't handle knowing what I knew. Anyway...when Voldemort didn't come back that night...I didn't know what to think. I didn't know what had happened to the Potters, or you two...and none of the death eaters would tell me anything. Voldemort himself was the only one to talk to me during that time. Anyway, days passed without any sign of Voldemort ever returning. One by one the death eaters left, until I was left completely alone...about a week and a half after James and Lily had been killed. I left the cave they were holding me in and stayed at the first rundown muggle hotel I could. I found a daily prophet a couple of days later and found out everything I needed to know. Voldemort dead...James and Lily dead...Sirius in jail...but I was overjoyed to hear that Harry was still alive. I couldn't believe it. Harry, without you...I'd be dead, Sirius and Remus too...we'd all be dead, as well as countless others."
Harry grinned sheepishly at this, but didn't say a word.
"And Remus, I knew you were okay as well...I had to make sure that my second brother made it out okay. About a couple days after I was freed I went to your house...I saw you through a window crying on your couch. I wanted to go in there...so badly...to make you feel better, but I just couldn't do it, Rem. I'm so sorry."
Remus was crying again, remembering the pain he was in those first couple of weeks. He literally had no one left, he wished with all his heart that she had gone in when she saw him like that, but understood her reason's for staying away. He collected himself after a few moments and sat quietly in his seat. Harry also waited patiently for the mood to lighten. Sirius had stopped crying as well, and sat rubbing his sisters back, trying to calm her down. He whispered in her ear every now and then until finally the tears stopped falling. A half an hour of there time had already expired, and the food finally arrived.
They all dug into their food, in complete silence for about ten minutes. Sirius finally spoke up, "I only have twenty minutes left with you...let's catch up."
Sorai gave him a big smile, "Why don't you tell me how you managed to escape Azkaban?"
Sirius nodded, he had become proud of his escape since he talked to Harry during his third year. He told Sorai about everything up to the night in the whomping willow. He had decided that the rest was Harry's story to tell to whom he pleased.
Sorai however, wanted to know how Harry had come to stay with her brother and Remus, "So how does Harry come into this story?"
Sirius looked at Harry, who nodded. "I had to live with my Aunt and Uncle since my parents died. It was pretty awful there...they used to- abuse me. One night a couple weeks ago, it got really bad, Uncle Vernon kicked me and I suddenly couldn't move," he said, signaling his chair. "They left me alone that night, unable to move from the floor. Luckily, Sirius sent me an owl...I didn't have a pen so I scratched help into the parchment and sent it back. In no time Sirius was at the Dursley's. Remus and he took me away to live with them. It's been great."
Sorai grinned at him and then at the fatherly look on her brothers face. "I think Sirius needs him as much as he needs Sirius," she thought.
"How long have you been there?"
"Over a week...I kind of lost track of time,"
"It's been a very emotional week," Sirius said, grinning.
"Yes...what exactly happened today little brother?"
Sirius threw her a glare, then changed it to a smile. He went into detail about the trial and the jury, but conveniently left out the part about Remus, and what Fudge had said at the end.
Everyone was smiling at the end, no tears were in sight. With five minutes left, Sirius began asking his sister about her new life. She was apparently living in the apartments at the end of Diagon Ally.
Sirius shook his head when he heard this, "Sorai, that's not safe, after what happened to you before you need to stay in a safer place than that."
"Sirius, what do I have to worry about, Voldemort's gone, Harry here took care of that!"
Harry looked down, as Remus and Sirius's faces darkened.
"What?"
Sirius responded, "Sorai, Voldemort's back, he was resurrected a couple months ago...Harry was there."
Sorai gasped, "Back...how can he be back, Harry killed him."
"Harry killed his body, but Voldemort was barely human anymore...his spirit was never killed, it just waited thirteen years to present itself. And now he has a body again," Remus explained calmly.
"Sor, I can't let what happened to you happen again. You can't stay in that apartment. Come stay with us!"
"No, Sirius I couldn't impose, I'll be fine where I am, I'll take the necessary precautions."
"Do you know how hard it is to get the necessary precautions? We have Harry now, we know. You need to get a lot, and you can't do it alone...we already have everything you need, please come and stay with us?" Sirius begged.
Sorai sighed, "I'll think about it...give me your address and I'll give you mine. We must stay in touch now that we've found each other again!"
They exchanged the necessary information.
"I must get back to work now," Sorai said, hugging everyone.
"Bye Sorai, I love you," Sirius said.
"Love you too Sir."
"Bye Sor," Remus said.
"Bye, it was...umm...nice to meet you," Harry said shyly.
Sorai blew a kiss and then left the room.
"Wow," Sirius said, "I can't even believe that just happened."
"Me neither," Remus said exasperatedly.
"She seemed nice," Harry threw in.
The others just laughed at him.
Sirius and Remus stood up and Harry backed away from the table. They left the restaurant and went home. The whole way Sirius and Remus were reminiscing about what they used to do to Sorai, how they would terrorize her. It was evident to Harry that Sorai had been one of those topics that they would never talk about; a topic never forgotten, but ignored.
When they got home, they all went their separate ways. Remus went to his room to think, Sirius sat in the living room, clearly wanting to be alone, and Harry went up to his room, mainly to stay out of Sirius and Remus's hair. When he got there, he found an owl sitting on his bed, carrying a lovely red envelope. Harry stifled a laugh, knowing full well who it was from. He walked over, grabbed the envelope and ripped it open:
"Harry! How could you have helped with that! Do you know how worried I was about Ginny, it seemed like I was in that fireplace for hours and when I get home it's to find Ginny, not even home! And her room filled with filibusters! How could you do that?! So here's what happened, I walk out of the fireplace and see my parents and even Bill, who was home for a bit, sitting around with worried looks. They were all in on it HARRY! And you were too! Anyway, after that they tell me to go see Ginny, it may be the last chance I'll ever get. I was almost crying Harry! Do you KNOW how embarrassing that was for me?!?! And then I go to her room, open the door, and set off about a hundred fire works!" Harry then began to hear laughter in his friends voice. Harry had been rolling on the floor laughing the whole time. "It was a pretty good joke though, I have to admit...sorry about the howler Harry, you'll have to come visit soon! Bye!"
Harry burst into laughter again. Ron always acted before he thought.
Harry turned to see Sirius and Remus come to his door, both grinning wildly. "So I guess Ron enjoyed his joke?" Sirius asked. Harry nodded through his laughter.
"Did you hear the whole thing?" Harry asked.
"Except the beginning," Sirius replied, shaking his head.
"Well Harry, Sirius, best be getting to bed. We have a very big day tomorrow," Remus said secretively.
"We do?" Harry said, confused. "What are we doing?"
"Just a little remodeling...I imagine you're sick of sharing a room with this bozo."
"Hey!" was Sirius's only reply, though he glared daggers at Remus.
Harry on the other hand looked amazed. "You mean-you're going to give me my own room? Just mine?"
Remus and Sirius both saw how the simple thought of his own room thrilled Harry, and they both smiled at him.
"Yeah, just yours. You can decorate it however you want, and even help decide the shape and size. We're doing it magically, so we can adjust it exactly to your liking."
"Rem, can we build a room for Sorai too? I'm going to get her out of Diagon Alley if it's the last thing I do, and we'll need the space..."
Remus grinned at Sirius, seeing that his overprotective brother side was kicking in. Remus hadn't seen that side of Sirius for a very long time, and was rather happy to see it return. "Sure, Padfoot, we can build her a room."
"Goodnight you two," he added before leaving the room.
"Night," Harry and Sirius both replied.
Harry turned to Sirius, "I never knew you had a sister, Sirius."
"I had two actually, and a little brother. They were both killed by Voldemort when my parents were. Sorai was the last of my family...I couldn't believe I had lost her. That's why I never talked about her, I couldn't stand thinking about what I had lost....But we found her, and I'm never going to let anything happen to her again. Just like you...and Moony. I'm always going to watch out for you three. You're my family now."
Harry could tell that Sirius was getting choked up. He rolled up to his godfather and gave him a hug. Sirius hugged back tightly, patting Harry's back. It was a short hug and they went their separate ways afterwards, getting ready for bed. Harry was ready first and he pulled himself onto his bed. Sirius had gone to the bathroom after Harry had brushed his teeth, and was in their for quite a while. Harry was starting to wonder where he was when he came through the doorway. His eyes were rimmed with redness, and it was obvious that he had been crying, but Harry didn't say anything. It was clear that Sirius didn't want to talk about what was bugging him, so Harry decided not to talk about it. Rather, he simply said, "Night Sirius."
"Night Harry," Sirius replied in a scratchy voice. He went over and gave Harry a hug before getting onto his cot and covering himself with his blanket. Harry lay for a while starring at the ceiling, thinking about how his life had changed so much for the better. He had two people who really cared about him, more freedom than he had ever dreamed of, and was fed more than he would ever need. Sirius, however, was lying awake thinking about something else, his real family. He thought back to the day they had all died, and relived the pain he had felt. After no time, he was shaking with silent sobs. Harry heard the cot creak and looked over to see Sirius sobbing.
He was uncertain what he should do in this situation. He was always the one being comforted, but was unsure of how to give it back to someone.
"Sirius..." he began. "Are you okay?"
He saw Sirius roll over to face Harry, then shake his head. He was trembling with his sobs. Sirius got up from his bed and sat down by Harry. He pulled him into a tight hug and buried his face in Harry's shoulder.
"What's the matter?" Harry asked after a few minutes more of Sirius's sobs.
Harry could tell Sirius was trying to collect himself to talk, but found it rather difficult to do. Harry just kept hugging him and rubbing his back comfortingly.
Sirius finally calmed down enough to talk. "I just miss them so much. Seeing Sorai again reminded me of all the shit that's happened over the years. It's just too much Harry. My real family dies and then my second family, your parents, they leave me too...I miss them all so much..."
"I know, I miss my parents too, and I don't even know them...I can't imagine what it must have been like for you."
"It was hard...but I made it through alright...it's just too much right now, you know?"
Harry nodded.
"So..." Harry began, curiosity getting the better of him, "How did they die?"
Sirius sat up, and wiped his eyes, he took a deep, shaky breath and began to talk, "I was in my seventh year at Hogwarts when it happened. Sorai had already graduated and was living on her own. My other brother and sister weren't old enough to attend Hogwarts yet, so they were at home with my parents. It was just before Christmas break too...I was supposed to be going home to visit that year, Christmas at school just wasn't as fun as it used to be...So the marauders and I were busy spending our last couple of weeks together the way we always did, pranking the Slytherin's beyond what even they deserved. We had just gotten back to the common room after out most successful Snape prank ever to find Sorai sitting in a chair crying. I asked what she was doing there, and she told me, our family had been killed by Voldemort. I just broke down after that. My family was everything to me...I loved those two little brats more than anything, I was like their second parents...I always looked out for them..." Sirius took another shaky breath. Tears were steaming down his face and his voice cracked though his sobs but he kept telling the story anyway. "Voldemort had also claimed the lives of many other students I knew...Remus's parents died right before we graduated and your grandparent's and uncle were killed when we were just in fourth year...My family took James in after that, we were his second family...we were like brothers. The loss of my family hurt him just as badly as it hurt me..." Sirius broke down into heavier sobs.
Harry hugged him tightly again. Voldemort had caused so much destruction when he was powerful the first time, Harry didn't even want to think about what he could do now.
Once Sirius had calmed down a little more, Harry asked another question, "Why did he do it?"
Sirius shrugged his shoulders and shook his head, "I don't really know...I think it's because we all had powerful families. Families who were already fighting the darkness he was trying to bring to the world...It was because our families were good."
Harry nodded sadly and continued to hug Sirius while he cried. Harry figured eventually Sirius would stop, but it was soon apparent that Sirius's wounds ran deep. There was a lot of sadness buried deep inside Sirius that he hadn't been able to get out until now. Seeing his sister had reopened those old wounds that Sirius had never had an opportunity to let heal.
After about 15 minutes of straight crying, Harry pulled away slightly. He didn't know what to do, so he did the only thing he could think of, "Do you want me to get Remus?"
Sirius stared at Harry for a minute, contemplating the idea. Remus had always been there to help him through the pain, and he knew how best to deal with Sirius when he was upset like this. Sirius nodded, and watched as Harry got out of bed, climbed into his chair, and left the room. He hunched over and began sobbing into his hands.
He didn't hear Remus enter, but soon felt his hand on his shoulder. He looked up to see Remus's kind eyes staring into his sad ones. "What's wrong Padfoot?"
Sirius shook his head, "Everything...Seeing Sorai...it brought back so much-so much pain. I can't handle it all Moony, I can't!"
Remus nodded sadly. "I know its hard Sirius, but you never had time to get over what happened. There was too much on your shoulders then. But now...now you can take the time to get over it Sirius...You need to get over it. It's good that you're letting it all out finally, you need to do that more often. You can't leave it bottled inside, or all your feelings are going to drive you insane...Do you understand me?"
Sirius nodded seriously, and tried stop crying by taking deep breaths. The result was him beginning to hyperventilate (This happens to me when I get really upset!). Remus looked panicked, "Sirius! Sirius! Stop breathing okay? Just calm down and don't breath deeply and make sure you let all of your breath out." Remus started rubbing Sirius's back as he tried to get control of his breathing. Soon he was breathing normally again, and his tears were slowing down.
"Are you going to be okay?" Remus asked kindly.
Sirius nodded then pulled Remus into a hug, whispering, "Thanks Rem."
"Anytime, now go to sleep Padfoot." Sirius stood up to go back to the cot. Remus put a hand up to stop him. "Harry's sleeping in my bed, I'm taking the couch...you can have your own bed back for the night."
Sirius just nodded his head and sat back down on the bed. All the covers had been pulled back so he laid down and Remus through them over him. "Night Sirius."
"Night Remus, thanks."
Remus then left the room. Sirius was still crying slightly, but he was finally able to shake his sad memories and go to sleep.
The next morning, Harry woke up in Remus's bed and couldn't remember what had happened. Then it all flooded back to him, all the pain Sirius had been in the night before, and how helpless Harry had felt with him.
Harry climbed into his wheelchair and went down the hall to Sirius's room. He peeked in to find that Sirius was sleeping peacefully in the bed Harry had been using. Harry grinned and then gasped as he felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked up quickly to see Remus looking down at him.
"Is he okay?" Harry asked.
"He was doing better when I left him, and it looks like he finally got to sleep. Lets not wake him though. After last night, he needs all the sleep he can get. Why don't you go take a bath and get dressed while I start breakfast?"
"Okay, but I need some clothes...I have to go in there...do you think I'll wake him up?"
Remus shook his head, "Remember, Sirius sleeps like the dead."
"I hope you're right."
Harry rolled into the room and went straight for the dresser. He pulled out some clothes for the day and then shut the drawer with a small bang. Sirius shot up straight in bed, wand ready to fire at Harry.
Harry gasped in fright. After the events of his last year at Hogwarts, he was scared to have any wand pointing at him like that, even held by Sirius.
When Sirius realized it was just Harry, he sighed, "Sorry Harry, reverting to my old ways...I used to be so paranoid...I guess I'm going back to that."
"It's okay, Sirius, sorry I scared you...I was just getting some clothes," Harry said, holding them up. Sirius nodded. "I'll be in the shower...Remus is making breakfast."
Harry then rolled out of the room as he saw Sirius lay back down with a sigh. "Poor Sirius," Harry thought for the millionth time since he had arrived at the Lupin Loft. "He never gets a moments peace." Little did Harry know that Sirius's peace was soon going to be disturbed even more.
Harry went to the bathroom and took a quick bath. He then got dressed, this time managing to get dressed completely by himself. He brushed his teeth then headed down the stairs where he met Remus and a very disheveled Sirius. They sat at the table and were served bacon and eggs with toast. They ate in near silence, tension was running high in the room. When they all finished eating Remus took the plates and turned to Sirius. "You need to go get cleaned up. Go upstairs, get ready and the we'll start on the rooms."
Sirius nodded and obeyed. Remus sighed after he left. "I haven't seen him this bad in a long time. We're going to have to be patient with him." Harry nodded his understanding.
Harry went into the living room and watched a little television while they waited for Sirius. He came down after about a half an hour looking much better, but nowhere near as cheerful as usual. He sat by Harry and watched old Scooby Doo cartoons with him. Watching it somehow managed to cheer him up a little and soon he was messing around with Harry like he would have days before.
First he leaned into Harry, causing him to fall over sideways on the couch. Harry sat back down and did the same to him. When he got back up he started tickling Harry, who laughed uncontrollably and flailed his arms, trying to make Sirius stop. Unlike the last time Sirius tickled Harry, Harry managed to kick his legs as well. When they both realized what Harry had done, they froze. Harry stopped laughing, but grinned like crazy, and Sirius grinned back before enveloping Harry in a hug. "I'm so proud of you Harry," he murmured.
"Thanks," Harry replied, hugging back. "Are you feeling better?" Harry asked tentatively.
Sirius nodded, "Thanks to you and Moony, I'm feeling much better....Lets say we go outside and have a little more fun with the squirrels before we start working on the rooms?"
Harry nodded. Sirius went to grab wands and shoes and returned quickly. He helped Harry with his shoes before they both headed for the back door. They sat where they had days before and waited for squirrels. They shot some curses at the squirrels, but neither of them were having such a good time.
"It's just not as fun without Ron," Harry said after the fifth squirrel pretended to be figure skating across the grass, doing figure eights and triple axles.
Sirius nodded his head in agreement. "You want to try walking again?"
Harry contemplated it for a moment then nodded his head. Sirius stood up and pulled Harry to his feet. Once Harry was standing, Sirius walked about ten feet away. "Walk to me, Harry, you can do it."
Harry took his first tentative step without so much as teetering. He took several more, all successfully. He was walking very slowly but reached Sirius quite easily.
"Great job Harry, now lets try what you couldn't do last time, see if you can turn around."
Harry nodded grimly. He set one foot sideways and tried to bring the other around to it. He swayed a little, but managed to keep his balance. Sirius came up to him and patted his back, all the while Harry was smiling brighter than he had in days.
"Okay, you up for a little walk around the yard?" Sirius said, pointing out the whole yard.
"Sure," Harry said, "I just hope my legs don't tire too quickly."
"If they do, I'll carry you back, no worries...lets go." Sirius walked at a very slow pace so Harry could keep up, and he stayed near by so he could catch Harry if his legs gave out, after all they hadn't been used in over a week. They walked for nearly ten minutes, and found themselves in a small wooded area. Harry tripped on a root and fell flat on his face.
"Harry, are you okay?" Sirius said, bending down to help Harry up.
"I'm fine...but what's this?" Harry said, leaning up on his elbows and dusting off the edge of what looked like a very old shoebox.
Sirius knelt down and pulled the box entirely out of they ground. "Oh my God...things just keep resurfacing these days," he murmured.
"What is it?" Harry asked.
"This is the marauder box. Summer after first year we all put stuff in it, and buried it. Our plan was to open it up again when we turned thirty, but that obviously never happened."
"So, this was Remus's house when he was a kid?"
Sirius nodded, "His parents left it to him when they died. Good thing Voldemort didn't blow it up like he did your house, or Remus would have been completely homeless when he graduated."
"What's in the box?" Harry asked.
"I don't remember...lets bring it to Moony and open it with him."
"Okay," Harry said, trying to get back to his feet. Sirius grabbed his hands and pulled him up.
"Think you can make it, Harry?" Sirius asked, looking at the weary expression on his godson's face.
"I'm going to try," Harry replied. Sirius grinned at his determination. Harry had already shocked Sirius at his progress, and he was still ready to do more. They headed back towards the house, Harry getting progressively slower. After five minutes or so, Harry fell down again. "I don't think I can make it Sirius," Harry said dejectedly from the ground.
Sirius knelt down to his level. "You've done awesome Harry, never did I think you would progress this quickly. We'll have to try the stairs soon. I think that chairs going to have to go, huh?"
Harry nodded. Sirius easily picked Harry up from the ground and noticed that Harry weighed significantly more than he had when he first arrived. It was amazing what a little love and food did for him. He still didn't weigh what he should, but it was clear that eventually he'd be normal again.
Sirius walked towards the house with Harry in his arms. When he reached the deck, he set Harry back down in a lounge chair and called for Remus. He then took a seat in a lounge chair himself. They waited and chatted for a while, until Remus came outside and asked what was up.
Sirius stood up and brought the box to his friend. Remus's face went from curious to shocked in a matter of seconds. "Is that what I think it is?"
Sirius nodded. "Harry...erm...fell on it. I thought we should open it with you."
Remus grinned and sat at the edge of Harry's chair. Sirius handed him the box and waited for him to open it, while holding his breath. Remus pulled off the cover and looked into the dingy box. The first thing he pulled out was a pink feather.
Sirius burst into laughter. "That's from when we turned Snape into a pink flamingo!"
Harry started laughing too. Remus just smiled. Next he pulled out an old photograph. It showed the four marauders jumping up and on the dormitory beds. Harry could easily figure out who each of them was, and even mistook his father for himself. "Man, I really do look just like my dad," he said. Sirius and Remus both nodded in agreement.
"It's amazing really," Sirius said. "What else is in there, Rem?"
Remus dug around some more and pulled out a battered wizards hat, and frowned, "Peter's old wizard hat."
Sirius put on a face of pure fury and muttered a spell. The hat was instantly in flames. Remus hurried to move on. "Remember this, Sirius?" Remus asked, holding up a gold ring with rubies in it.
"Yeah, we saved all our money that year to buy that...Gryffindor colors. We were going to buy one for each of us...I guess we forgot about that." Sirius said, sliding the ring onto his pinky.
Remus looked deeper in the box and gasped. "What is it?" Sirius asked, unsure of what would change Remus's mood so quickly.
Remus pulled out something white, "The tooth of the werewolf that bit me. That's something I was hoping to never see again."
Sirius nodded solemnly.
Remus then pulled out a piece of paper and read it aloud, "Where we should be when we read this again: Sirius-running a joke shop, Remus- father of many kids (With Melody), James-auror, Peter-wizard lawyer." Remus looked at the paper sadly.
"Well none of that happened," Sirius replied sadly, shaking his head."
Remus pulled out a few more photographs and then the final item, a long gold necklace with a pendant of the letters JP hanging on it. Harry looked sadly at the necklace, knowing instantly that it had belonged to his father.
"Wow," Sirius said. "I can't believe we forgot about all this."
"Me neither," Remus replied. He looked thoughtful for a moment, then said, "Harry why don't you keep the box?"
"Me?" Harry said startled.
"Yeah you," Sirius said, shoving Harry with his shoulder.
"But...I couldn't. Those are your memories, not mine."
"Call it inspiration. It will remind you of the way things used to be at Hogwarts, and you'll always have something of us," Sirius said, squeezing Harry's shoulder. Harry nodded, accepting the box.
"Thanks," Harry said quietly.
There was a short moment of silence, where everyone was thinking about their own thing. Harry took out his fathers old necklace and put it on, slipping it under his shirt. It wasn't something he wanted to flaunt, but he wanted to keep it close.
They were about to head inside when an owl flew right up to Sirius. He took the letter and read it aloud, "Sirius, There's been an attack on Diagon Alley, I'm holed up in my apartment right now. Voldemort's still out their Sirius, and I'm afraid he might come here next. I don't know what to do. Please come and help, I'm scared. I should have listened Sirius, I'm sorry. Love, Sorai."
"Shit!" Sirius yelled before running off into the house. Harry and Remus heard him yell, "Diagon Alley." Harry tried to get up, looking very worried. Remus pushed him back down onto his seat.
"There's nothing you can do Harry, Sirius will be fine. Don't worry, okay?" Remus said, not wanting Harry to freak out like he had when Sirius had been taken by the ministry. Harry nodded. Remus sighed in relief that he had convinced Harry, he just wished he could convince himself.
Soooooooo....Did ya like it? Please tell me, cuz I need to know. I hope I didn't make Sirius too much of a cry baby. I'm trying to show that he's having an emotional breakdown, hope it's working. Anyway, I will try very hard to get the next chapter out as soon as possible. Please Review...Everyone!
First, I'd like to say I'm sorry for taking so long to write this chapter...my goal was 2 a week during vacation, and it took me NINE days just to get this one out. New Years took a lot out of me...as well as a ski meet that I did VERY badly in...Please forgive me for taking so long, and I'll try very hard to get the next one out by Friday. Enough reviews and I may spit it out faster * hint, hint *
Lucretio-del-alba: You were at the beach!!! We got approximately 20 inches of snow the day you reviewed and you were at the beach?!?! That's insane to me, I can't even fathom the idea...Thanks for the review, hope you like what's going on and that you like Sorai, cuz I thought it was time for a little femininity in the Lupin Loft.
Squirrel Girl: Yeah, you should see New England now. We have mountains of snow after this last Nor' Easter, we can't see out of the front window of my house! It's insane to drive too cuz the bankings are so high you can't see what's coming around the corner! Sorai is not Sirius's girlfriend, you're about to see who she is though. I'm not much of a romance author, so that will probably, but not definitely, not be a part of this fic. Thanks for the review.
Carolyn: Don't you hate computers some times? Mine always manages to malfunction at the worst possible time...Thanks for the review, hope you like who Sorai is, it's kind of sad really, enjoy!
Juggling Stars: I'm glad you like my story so much, I really love writing it! It's so funny to hear about how you readers really get into my story...I do it with other stories as well, but mine just doesn't seem as great as some of the ones I read...Now, I'm really bad with this email update thing...I never remember! But when I do send them, I'll be sure to add your name, but don't expect one every time cuz I just forget or get kicked off the computer!
Tinuviel: I'm so glad that my story finally moved you! I wish you had reviewed sooner, I like to hear what all my regular reviewers say and how it all progresses, but I'm happy you finally decided to! Now, I disagree that my story is the best, that title in my opinion belongs to Fairy Tale's stories, The Last Marauder and The Final Battle, they go together, if you haven't read them you really should! Thanks though for saying that about my fic! And this is one of my best reviews of all time, I just read it and smiled, so thanks very very much! I will have Remus coming up soon, but he's going to be a little while, just when everyone forgets that he's in turmoil, I'm going to go after him...I don't want this story getting too predictable. Thanks again, I hope you enjoy this one as much as the rest!
A.Dee: Yeah, Sirius crying in the shower...I figured winning the trial couldn't be all happiness, not after what Sirius had heard and gone through...and thanks for the friend email, I didn't actually do it cuz I've gotten those a million times, but I do consider you and all my reviewers (except the one person who hated my story) my friends. Keep reviewing or I'll miss you!
Amy Potter 13: What kind of a review was that? Write more next time, please! But I am keeping it up...just for the record : )
Sirius Black: Yes, I freed Sirius...I just hope JKR decides to do the same...I pray she doesn't kill him off later on...I think I'd have to stop reading the series!
Kimmy: Lol...I'm glad you liked the outcome...but seriously...who wants to Sirius rot in jail? Anyway, I figured you lived in England, do you ever get snow at all? If not I'll ship you some of mine, we got 20 inches a couple of days ago, can't step outside without getting snowblinded and you can't see out the front window because of the snow mountains! It's awful! BTW, I do like that snitch, its really cute!
John: This next ones supposed to be a cliffhanger, but I really didn't write it so that it was overly suspenseful...hope you like it!
Katie: I loved the Christmas Wish...Hope you got my review, it seriously brought me near tears! LOL, I didn't really think you didn't like my story, I just sometimes can't figure out what you mean! It was meant to be a very sad chapter, as was this new one, so be prepared...I must bring back some humor, don't you think? And yeah...Harry Sirius and Remus...I hate when people leave him out, I figure he's going to be just as close to Harry as Sirius, so how can we forget him? And I knew my story was going to get better as I went on, the things I write always do...Same with essays, I'll have a really bad intro and conclusion, but the middle stuff is usually awesome...Sorai is a fun character to write about, I hope I'm developing her alright, it's so hard to create an oc, I never would have expected it...hope you enjoy!
Starlette (Maryanne): My Christmas was okay...just not the same as it usually is, so I it wasn't great...I don't want you to think I'm a scrooge! And I still blush about the Thanksgiving Blunder...To make matters worse I said Merry Christmas twice on New Years Eve... No lie! I'm such a ditz...I'm addicted to this fanfic stuff too, only I'm terrible embarrassed to have anyone I know find out...nobody, not even my family knows that I write this story, if they did they would pick on me beyond belief, they already do, knowing I read them...Anyway, I'm glad you liked the way I had Sirius's trial go, I agree about the instant freedom thing, it's no fun. I did my best to draw it out, but it was REALLY hard, I mean its so obvious he's innocent, especially under veritaserum...Okay, another dork moment for me, I got the name Sorai from this playstation game my sister got for Christmas, Kingdom Hearts. The main characters name is Sora, a guy, so I added an I and made her female...I don't want to give anything away, but I wanted the name to match Sirius...Keep reading and reviewing!
"Sirius!" the girl shrieked, then checked her self. "What are you doing?!" she whispered, pulling away from his embrace. "You're going to get caught. I heard you are on the run from the ministry...what the hell are you doing here in broad daylight?"
"Sorai, don't you read?! I had a trial today, I'm free, Sorai!"
"What? Sirius! That's amazing! Congratulations!" she shrieked again, pulling Sirius into another hug.
Harry looked highly confused, Remus still looked dumbstruck. Harry rolled up to Remus and pulled at his sleeve, breaking him from his reverie.
"What's going on?" Harry asked as he saw that both Sirius and the girl were still hugging, tears running over their faces.
Remus bent down slightly, grinning ear to ear. "That's Sirius's sister, we haven't seen her since before your parents died. We all thought she was dead as well."
"Wow," Harry said amazed, and went back to watching the two.
"What about you Sorai? What happened to you?" Sirius choked out.
"Lets go somewhere and talk," she replied, pulling out of the hug and squeezing his hand. "But first," she said grinning, and turned to Remus and wrapped him in a hug. "I missed you Rem."
"I missed you too Sorai," he replied, tears swimming in his eyes too.
"And Harry! I haven't seen you since you were just a baby! How are you?" she shrieked, bending down to give him a hug.
"Under the circumstances I'm fine...It's nice to--meet you," Harry replied.
"Yeah, I'm Sirius's big sister, only by a year though, so don't go thinking I'm an old hen!" Harry grinned, thinking she was just like Sirius. They had very similar features, jet black hair, only hers was quite long, the same gray eyes sparkled on her tan complexion, and her nose was shaped the same as Sirius's as well. She was quite pretty Harry thought.
Sirius cleared his throat and tried to dry his eyes, "We were just celebrating my freedom...will you join us, Sor?"
"How could I miss it?! Just let me go talk to my boss, I'll be right back."
Sirius watched her leave the small room and then turned with a huge grin. "I can't believe this Moony! I can't believe she's here! And she's been here for....who knows how long! I've missed her so much!"
"I'm as amazed as you are Padfoot, if I had known...I would have...she could have helped so much," Remus said, at a loss for words over the shock of seeing her. Remus had been an only child and Sorai had been as much of a big sister to him as she had been to Sirius.
After a moment of silence Harry looked around and grinned. Both of them looked as happy as Harry had ever seen them. Sirius looked happier than he had when the jury had reached their verdict and pronounced him free of all charges. Tears were swimming in their eyes and their cheeks were creased from their excessive smiling.
Sorai came striding back into the room. "My boss said I could spend an hour with you, on the clock, and everyone's food would be on the house," she said grinning, "Follow me." She led them into a private little room with a round table, and they all sat around it. "Lets order, then talk."
Everyone picked up their menus and hurriedly decided on an entrée. Nobody really wanted to eat, they just wanted to get talking. After everything had been ordered, Sirius's face became very stern, he looked at his sister and said, "What happened Sorai? Where have you been and why are you just popping up now?"
Sorai looked down at the table for a moment, collecting her thoughts. She looked up at Sirius then Remus, "What did you guys think happened to me?"
Sirius spoke first, "Two weeks before Lily and James died, you disappeared. Dumbledore told us that Voldemort had probably kidnapped you. No one thought it possible that you survived, as you were never seen or heard from again."
Sorai nodded and looked at Remus who continued where Sirius had left off, "We couldn't imagine what else could have happened to you Sorai. I mean, for Sirius, he only knew you were gone for two weeks. He had no way of finding out if you had been found or whatever else...but me, it's been fifteen years Sor, why didn't you let anyone know you were okay?"
Sorai looked at the table again then looked up, "I was captured by Voldemort, exactly two weeks before Halloween, the day Lily and James died. He and a couple of his death eaters took me from my house that night...they took me to some cave, somewhere...I still don't know. He interrogated me there, under the imperious curse. He sent a couple cruciatus curses my way as well, when I began to fight the imperious. I thought I was going to die. I was there with him up to the night he went to kill Lily and James, and even a little after. I knew he was going after them...but there was nothing I could do...I was heavily guarded by death eaters at all times..." Tears were streaming down her face as she gave the report, reliving the worst event she ever experienced. "I'm so sorry Sir, Harry."
Sirius was crying as well. He felt his sister's pain like he felt his own. He tried to tell her that it wasn't her fault, but couldn't say a word. Harry did it for him, "I understand, it wasn't you fault at all. You're just lucky he didn't do the same to you."
Sorai nodded gratefully at Harry, "He would have, if you hadn't stopped him Harry he would have come back and killed me. He told me...he said he was going to wait until he killed everyone...everyone I ever loved before he got me. He always came back from a killing and told me the details of it all."
She started sobbing harder at this point, Sirius dragged his chair closer and put a comforting arm over her shoulder so she could continue. She stared meaningfully at Remus who still looked confused about why she had never presented herself to him. "Remus, you know how Melody died a week before James and Lily?"
Remus nodded sadly, understanding what she was about to say. Silent tears started streaming down his face as well. Sorai continued, "Before he left he told me exactly what he was going to do...I tried to talk him out of it...I tried to talk him out of all the killings, but it never worked of course. He told me he was going to torture her for a while, like he had with me...get whatever information he could out of her...and then kill her." She took in a deep breath, trying to get control of her sobbing. "He came back that night...and told me that everything had gone as planned. Remus, that's why I never told you I was okay...I couldn't face you...knowing what I knew, and not doing anything about it. I'm so sorry Rem...I'm so sorry."
Remus went over and wrapped Sorai in a tight hug. "It's okay Sor, it's okay...I understand...but I wish you hadn't done that. I could have used you so much. I lost everyone!"
"I know, I know, and I'm sorry...Remus I'm so, so sorry!"
"It's okay, you're here now, it's all okay."
They held each other for a few minutes before pulling apart.
Sirius still wanted to know the rest of what happened to his long lost sister. "What else happened Sorai?"
Sorai took a deep breath and continued. "Halloween night he left, saying that he'd be back once the Potters were dead...and that he would be after my brother and his last friend next. When he said last friend, I knew something was up, as both Remus and Peter were still alive. I knew the Potter's had a traitor, and I knew it had to be Peter...it couldn't have been Remus after what had just happened to Melody...Do you know how hard it is to know something so vital and not be able to tell a soul? That was the worst of my capture. I could handle the pain, and everything...but I couldn't handle knowing what I knew. Anyway...when Voldemort didn't come back that night...I didn't know what to think. I didn't know what had happened to the Potters, or you two...and none of the death eaters would tell me anything. Voldemort himself was the only one to talk to me during that time. Anyway, days passed without any sign of Voldemort ever returning. One by one the death eaters left, until I was left completely alone...about a week and a half after James and Lily had been killed. I left the cave they were holding me in and stayed at the first rundown muggle hotel I could. I found a daily prophet a couple of days later and found out everything I needed to know. Voldemort dead...James and Lily dead...Sirius in jail...but I was overjoyed to hear that Harry was still alive. I couldn't believe it. Harry, without you...I'd be dead, Sirius and Remus too...we'd all be dead, as well as countless others."
Harry grinned sheepishly at this, but didn't say a word.
"And Remus, I knew you were okay as well...I had to make sure that my second brother made it out okay. About a couple days after I was freed I went to your house...I saw you through a window crying on your couch. I wanted to go in there...so badly...to make you feel better, but I just couldn't do it, Rem. I'm so sorry."
Remus was crying again, remembering the pain he was in those first couple of weeks. He literally had no one left, he wished with all his heart that she had gone in when she saw him like that, but understood her reason's for staying away. He collected himself after a few moments and sat quietly in his seat. Harry also waited patiently for the mood to lighten. Sirius had stopped crying as well, and sat rubbing his sisters back, trying to calm her down. He whispered in her ear every now and then until finally the tears stopped falling. A half an hour of there time had already expired, and the food finally arrived.
They all dug into their food, in complete silence for about ten minutes. Sirius finally spoke up, "I only have twenty minutes left with you...let's catch up."
Sorai gave him a big smile, "Why don't you tell me how you managed to escape Azkaban?"
Sirius nodded, he had become proud of his escape since he talked to Harry during his third year. He told Sorai about everything up to the night in the whomping willow. He had decided that the rest was Harry's story to tell to whom he pleased.
Sorai however, wanted to know how Harry had come to stay with her brother and Remus, "So how does Harry come into this story?"
Sirius looked at Harry, who nodded. "I had to live with my Aunt and Uncle since my parents died. It was pretty awful there...they used to- abuse me. One night a couple weeks ago, it got really bad, Uncle Vernon kicked me and I suddenly couldn't move," he said, signaling his chair. "They left me alone that night, unable to move from the floor. Luckily, Sirius sent me an owl...I didn't have a pen so I scratched help into the parchment and sent it back. In no time Sirius was at the Dursley's. Remus and he took me away to live with them. It's been great."
Sorai grinned at him and then at the fatherly look on her brothers face. "I think Sirius needs him as much as he needs Sirius," she thought.
"How long have you been there?"
"Over a week...I kind of lost track of time,"
"It's been a very emotional week," Sirius said, grinning.
"Yes...what exactly happened today little brother?"
Sirius threw her a glare, then changed it to a smile. He went into detail about the trial and the jury, but conveniently left out the part about Remus, and what Fudge had said at the end.
Everyone was smiling at the end, no tears were in sight. With five minutes left, Sirius began asking his sister about her new life. She was apparently living in the apartments at the end of Diagon Ally.
Sirius shook his head when he heard this, "Sorai, that's not safe, after what happened to you before you need to stay in a safer place than that."
"Sirius, what do I have to worry about, Voldemort's gone, Harry here took care of that!"
Harry looked down, as Remus and Sirius's faces darkened.
"What?"
Sirius responded, "Sorai, Voldemort's back, he was resurrected a couple months ago...Harry was there."
Sorai gasped, "Back...how can he be back, Harry killed him."
"Harry killed his body, but Voldemort was barely human anymore...his spirit was never killed, it just waited thirteen years to present itself. And now he has a body again," Remus explained calmly.
"Sor, I can't let what happened to you happen again. You can't stay in that apartment. Come stay with us!"
"No, Sirius I couldn't impose, I'll be fine where I am, I'll take the necessary precautions."
"Do you know how hard it is to get the necessary precautions? We have Harry now, we know. You need to get a lot, and you can't do it alone...we already have everything you need, please come and stay with us?" Sirius begged.
Sorai sighed, "I'll think about it...give me your address and I'll give you mine. We must stay in touch now that we've found each other again!"
They exchanged the necessary information.
"I must get back to work now," Sorai said, hugging everyone.
"Bye Sorai, I love you," Sirius said.
"Love you too Sir."
"Bye Sor," Remus said.
"Bye, it was...umm...nice to meet you," Harry said shyly.
Sorai blew a kiss and then left the room.
"Wow," Sirius said, "I can't even believe that just happened."
"Me neither," Remus said exasperatedly.
"She seemed nice," Harry threw in.
The others just laughed at him.
Sirius and Remus stood up and Harry backed away from the table. They left the restaurant and went home. The whole way Sirius and Remus were reminiscing about what they used to do to Sorai, how they would terrorize her. It was evident to Harry that Sorai had been one of those topics that they would never talk about; a topic never forgotten, but ignored.
When they got home, they all went their separate ways. Remus went to his room to think, Sirius sat in the living room, clearly wanting to be alone, and Harry went up to his room, mainly to stay out of Sirius and Remus's hair. When he got there, he found an owl sitting on his bed, carrying a lovely red envelope. Harry stifled a laugh, knowing full well who it was from. He walked over, grabbed the envelope and ripped it open:
"Harry! How could you have helped with that! Do you know how worried I was about Ginny, it seemed like I was in that fireplace for hours and when I get home it's to find Ginny, not even home! And her room filled with filibusters! How could you do that?! So here's what happened, I walk out of the fireplace and see my parents and even Bill, who was home for a bit, sitting around with worried looks. They were all in on it HARRY! And you were too! Anyway, after that they tell me to go see Ginny, it may be the last chance I'll ever get. I was almost crying Harry! Do you KNOW how embarrassing that was for me?!?! And then I go to her room, open the door, and set off about a hundred fire works!" Harry then began to hear laughter in his friends voice. Harry had been rolling on the floor laughing the whole time. "It was a pretty good joke though, I have to admit...sorry about the howler Harry, you'll have to come visit soon! Bye!"
Harry burst into laughter again. Ron always acted before he thought.
Harry turned to see Sirius and Remus come to his door, both grinning wildly. "So I guess Ron enjoyed his joke?" Sirius asked. Harry nodded through his laughter.
"Did you hear the whole thing?" Harry asked.
"Except the beginning," Sirius replied, shaking his head.
"Well Harry, Sirius, best be getting to bed. We have a very big day tomorrow," Remus said secretively.
"We do?" Harry said, confused. "What are we doing?"
"Just a little remodeling...I imagine you're sick of sharing a room with this bozo."
"Hey!" was Sirius's only reply, though he glared daggers at Remus.
Harry on the other hand looked amazed. "You mean-you're going to give me my own room? Just mine?"
Remus and Sirius both saw how the simple thought of his own room thrilled Harry, and they both smiled at him.
"Yeah, just yours. You can decorate it however you want, and even help decide the shape and size. We're doing it magically, so we can adjust it exactly to your liking."
"Rem, can we build a room for Sorai too? I'm going to get her out of Diagon Alley if it's the last thing I do, and we'll need the space..."
Remus grinned at Sirius, seeing that his overprotective brother side was kicking in. Remus hadn't seen that side of Sirius for a very long time, and was rather happy to see it return. "Sure, Padfoot, we can build her a room."
"Goodnight you two," he added before leaving the room.
"Night," Harry and Sirius both replied.
Harry turned to Sirius, "I never knew you had a sister, Sirius."
"I had two actually, and a little brother. They were both killed by Voldemort when my parents were. Sorai was the last of my family...I couldn't believe I had lost her. That's why I never talked about her, I couldn't stand thinking about what I had lost....But we found her, and I'm never going to let anything happen to her again. Just like you...and Moony. I'm always going to watch out for you three. You're my family now."
Harry could tell that Sirius was getting choked up. He rolled up to his godfather and gave him a hug. Sirius hugged back tightly, patting Harry's back. It was a short hug and they went their separate ways afterwards, getting ready for bed. Harry was ready first and he pulled himself onto his bed. Sirius had gone to the bathroom after Harry had brushed his teeth, and was in their for quite a while. Harry was starting to wonder where he was when he came through the doorway. His eyes were rimmed with redness, and it was obvious that he had been crying, but Harry didn't say anything. It was clear that Sirius didn't want to talk about what was bugging him, so Harry decided not to talk about it. Rather, he simply said, "Night Sirius."
"Night Harry," Sirius replied in a scratchy voice. He went over and gave Harry a hug before getting onto his cot and covering himself with his blanket. Harry lay for a while starring at the ceiling, thinking about how his life had changed so much for the better. He had two people who really cared about him, more freedom than he had ever dreamed of, and was fed more than he would ever need. Sirius, however, was lying awake thinking about something else, his real family. He thought back to the day they had all died, and relived the pain he had felt. After no time, he was shaking with silent sobs. Harry heard the cot creak and looked over to see Sirius sobbing.
He was uncertain what he should do in this situation. He was always the one being comforted, but was unsure of how to give it back to someone.
"Sirius..." he began. "Are you okay?"
He saw Sirius roll over to face Harry, then shake his head. He was trembling with his sobs. Sirius got up from his bed and sat down by Harry. He pulled him into a tight hug and buried his face in Harry's shoulder.
"What's the matter?" Harry asked after a few minutes more of Sirius's sobs.
Harry could tell Sirius was trying to collect himself to talk, but found it rather difficult to do. Harry just kept hugging him and rubbing his back comfortingly.
Sirius finally calmed down enough to talk. "I just miss them so much. Seeing Sorai again reminded me of all the shit that's happened over the years. It's just too much Harry. My real family dies and then my second family, your parents, they leave me too...I miss them all so much..."
"I know, I miss my parents too, and I don't even know them...I can't imagine what it must have been like for you."
"It was hard...but I made it through alright...it's just too much right now, you know?"
Harry nodded.
"So..." Harry began, curiosity getting the better of him, "How did they die?"
Sirius sat up, and wiped his eyes, he took a deep, shaky breath and began to talk, "I was in my seventh year at Hogwarts when it happened. Sorai had already graduated and was living on her own. My other brother and sister weren't old enough to attend Hogwarts yet, so they were at home with my parents. It was just before Christmas break too...I was supposed to be going home to visit that year, Christmas at school just wasn't as fun as it used to be...So the marauders and I were busy spending our last couple of weeks together the way we always did, pranking the Slytherin's beyond what even they deserved. We had just gotten back to the common room after out most successful Snape prank ever to find Sorai sitting in a chair crying. I asked what she was doing there, and she told me, our family had been killed by Voldemort. I just broke down after that. My family was everything to me...I loved those two little brats more than anything, I was like their second parents...I always looked out for them..." Sirius took another shaky breath. Tears were steaming down his face and his voice cracked though his sobs but he kept telling the story anyway. "Voldemort had also claimed the lives of many other students I knew...Remus's parents died right before we graduated and your grandparent's and uncle were killed when we were just in fourth year...My family took James in after that, we were his second family...we were like brothers. The loss of my family hurt him just as badly as it hurt me..." Sirius broke down into heavier sobs.
Harry hugged him tightly again. Voldemort had caused so much destruction when he was powerful the first time, Harry didn't even want to think about what he could do now.
Once Sirius had calmed down a little more, Harry asked another question, "Why did he do it?"
Sirius shrugged his shoulders and shook his head, "I don't really know...I think it's because we all had powerful families. Families who were already fighting the darkness he was trying to bring to the world...It was because our families were good."
Harry nodded sadly and continued to hug Sirius while he cried. Harry figured eventually Sirius would stop, but it was soon apparent that Sirius's wounds ran deep. There was a lot of sadness buried deep inside Sirius that he hadn't been able to get out until now. Seeing his sister had reopened those old wounds that Sirius had never had an opportunity to let heal.
After about 15 minutes of straight crying, Harry pulled away slightly. He didn't know what to do, so he did the only thing he could think of, "Do you want me to get Remus?"
Sirius stared at Harry for a minute, contemplating the idea. Remus had always been there to help him through the pain, and he knew how best to deal with Sirius when he was upset like this. Sirius nodded, and watched as Harry got out of bed, climbed into his chair, and left the room. He hunched over and began sobbing into his hands.
He didn't hear Remus enter, but soon felt his hand on his shoulder. He looked up to see Remus's kind eyes staring into his sad ones. "What's wrong Padfoot?"
Sirius shook his head, "Everything...Seeing Sorai...it brought back so much-so much pain. I can't handle it all Moony, I can't!"
Remus nodded sadly. "I know its hard Sirius, but you never had time to get over what happened. There was too much on your shoulders then. But now...now you can take the time to get over it Sirius...You need to get over it. It's good that you're letting it all out finally, you need to do that more often. You can't leave it bottled inside, or all your feelings are going to drive you insane...Do you understand me?"
Sirius nodded seriously, and tried stop crying by taking deep breaths. The result was him beginning to hyperventilate (This happens to me when I get really upset!). Remus looked panicked, "Sirius! Sirius! Stop breathing okay? Just calm down and don't breath deeply and make sure you let all of your breath out." Remus started rubbing Sirius's back as he tried to get control of his breathing. Soon he was breathing normally again, and his tears were slowing down.
"Are you going to be okay?" Remus asked kindly.
Sirius nodded then pulled Remus into a hug, whispering, "Thanks Rem."
"Anytime, now go to sleep Padfoot." Sirius stood up to go back to the cot. Remus put a hand up to stop him. "Harry's sleeping in my bed, I'm taking the couch...you can have your own bed back for the night."
Sirius just nodded his head and sat back down on the bed. All the covers had been pulled back so he laid down and Remus through them over him. "Night Sirius."
"Night Remus, thanks."
Remus then left the room. Sirius was still crying slightly, but he was finally able to shake his sad memories and go to sleep.
The next morning, Harry woke up in Remus's bed and couldn't remember what had happened. Then it all flooded back to him, all the pain Sirius had been in the night before, and how helpless Harry had felt with him.
Harry climbed into his wheelchair and went down the hall to Sirius's room. He peeked in to find that Sirius was sleeping peacefully in the bed Harry had been using. Harry grinned and then gasped as he felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked up quickly to see Remus looking down at him.
"Is he okay?" Harry asked.
"He was doing better when I left him, and it looks like he finally got to sleep. Lets not wake him though. After last night, he needs all the sleep he can get. Why don't you go take a bath and get dressed while I start breakfast?"
"Okay, but I need some clothes...I have to go in there...do you think I'll wake him up?"
Remus shook his head, "Remember, Sirius sleeps like the dead."
"I hope you're right."
Harry rolled into the room and went straight for the dresser. He pulled out some clothes for the day and then shut the drawer with a small bang. Sirius shot up straight in bed, wand ready to fire at Harry.
Harry gasped in fright. After the events of his last year at Hogwarts, he was scared to have any wand pointing at him like that, even held by Sirius.
When Sirius realized it was just Harry, he sighed, "Sorry Harry, reverting to my old ways...I used to be so paranoid...I guess I'm going back to that."
"It's okay, Sirius, sorry I scared you...I was just getting some clothes," Harry said, holding them up. Sirius nodded. "I'll be in the shower...Remus is making breakfast."
Harry then rolled out of the room as he saw Sirius lay back down with a sigh. "Poor Sirius," Harry thought for the millionth time since he had arrived at the Lupin Loft. "He never gets a moments peace." Little did Harry know that Sirius's peace was soon going to be disturbed even more.
Harry went to the bathroom and took a quick bath. He then got dressed, this time managing to get dressed completely by himself. He brushed his teeth then headed down the stairs where he met Remus and a very disheveled Sirius. They sat at the table and were served bacon and eggs with toast. They ate in near silence, tension was running high in the room. When they all finished eating Remus took the plates and turned to Sirius. "You need to go get cleaned up. Go upstairs, get ready and the we'll start on the rooms."
Sirius nodded and obeyed. Remus sighed after he left. "I haven't seen him this bad in a long time. We're going to have to be patient with him." Harry nodded his understanding.
Harry went into the living room and watched a little television while they waited for Sirius. He came down after about a half an hour looking much better, but nowhere near as cheerful as usual. He sat by Harry and watched old Scooby Doo cartoons with him. Watching it somehow managed to cheer him up a little and soon he was messing around with Harry like he would have days before.
First he leaned into Harry, causing him to fall over sideways on the couch. Harry sat back down and did the same to him. When he got back up he started tickling Harry, who laughed uncontrollably and flailed his arms, trying to make Sirius stop. Unlike the last time Sirius tickled Harry, Harry managed to kick his legs as well. When they both realized what Harry had done, they froze. Harry stopped laughing, but grinned like crazy, and Sirius grinned back before enveloping Harry in a hug. "I'm so proud of you Harry," he murmured.
"Thanks," Harry replied, hugging back. "Are you feeling better?" Harry asked tentatively.
Sirius nodded, "Thanks to you and Moony, I'm feeling much better....Lets say we go outside and have a little more fun with the squirrels before we start working on the rooms?"
Harry nodded. Sirius went to grab wands and shoes and returned quickly. He helped Harry with his shoes before they both headed for the back door. They sat where they had days before and waited for squirrels. They shot some curses at the squirrels, but neither of them were having such a good time.
"It's just not as fun without Ron," Harry said after the fifth squirrel pretended to be figure skating across the grass, doing figure eights and triple axles.
Sirius nodded his head in agreement. "You want to try walking again?"
Harry contemplated it for a moment then nodded his head. Sirius stood up and pulled Harry to his feet. Once Harry was standing, Sirius walked about ten feet away. "Walk to me, Harry, you can do it."
Harry took his first tentative step without so much as teetering. He took several more, all successfully. He was walking very slowly but reached Sirius quite easily.
"Great job Harry, now lets try what you couldn't do last time, see if you can turn around."
Harry nodded grimly. He set one foot sideways and tried to bring the other around to it. He swayed a little, but managed to keep his balance. Sirius came up to him and patted his back, all the while Harry was smiling brighter than he had in days.
"Okay, you up for a little walk around the yard?" Sirius said, pointing out the whole yard.
"Sure," Harry said, "I just hope my legs don't tire too quickly."
"If they do, I'll carry you back, no worries...lets go." Sirius walked at a very slow pace so Harry could keep up, and he stayed near by so he could catch Harry if his legs gave out, after all they hadn't been used in over a week. They walked for nearly ten minutes, and found themselves in a small wooded area. Harry tripped on a root and fell flat on his face.
"Harry, are you okay?" Sirius said, bending down to help Harry up.
"I'm fine...but what's this?" Harry said, leaning up on his elbows and dusting off the edge of what looked like a very old shoebox.
Sirius knelt down and pulled the box entirely out of they ground. "Oh my God...things just keep resurfacing these days," he murmured.
"What is it?" Harry asked.
"This is the marauder box. Summer after first year we all put stuff in it, and buried it. Our plan was to open it up again when we turned thirty, but that obviously never happened."
"So, this was Remus's house when he was a kid?"
Sirius nodded, "His parents left it to him when they died. Good thing Voldemort didn't blow it up like he did your house, or Remus would have been completely homeless when he graduated."
"What's in the box?" Harry asked.
"I don't remember...lets bring it to Moony and open it with him."
"Okay," Harry said, trying to get back to his feet. Sirius grabbed his hands and pulled him up.
"Think you can make it, Harry?" Sirius asked, looking at the weary expression on his godson's face.
"I'm going to try," Harry replied. Sirius grinned at his determination. Harry had already shocked Sirius at his progress, and he was still ready to do more. They headed back towards the house, Harry getting progressively slower. After five minutes or so, Harry fell down again. "I don't think I can make it Sirius," Harry said dejectedly from the ground.
Sirius knelt down to his level. "You've done awesome Harry, never did I think you would progress this quickly. We'll have to try the stairs soon. I think that chairs going to have to go, huh?"
Harry nodded. Sirius easily picked Harry up from the ground and noticed that Harry weighed significantly more than he had when he first arrived. It was amazing what a little love and food did for him. He still didn't weigh what he should, but it was clear that eventually he'd be normal again.
Sirius walked towards the house with Harry in his arms. When he reached the deck, he set Harry back down in a lounge chair and called for Remus. He then took a seat in a lounge chair himself. They waited and chatted for a while, until Remus came outside and asked what was up.
Sirius stood up and brought the box to his friend. Remus's face went from curious to shocked in a matter of seconds. "Is that what I think it is?"
Sirius nodded. "Harry...erm...fell on it. I thought we should open it with you."
Remus grinned and sat at the edge of Harry's chair. Sirius handed him the box and waited for him to open it, while holding his breath. Remus pulled off the cover and looked into the dingy box. The first thing he pulled out was a pink feather.
Sirius burst into laughter. "That's from when we turned Snape into a pink flamingo!"
Harry started laughing too. Remus just smiled. Next he pulled out an old photograph. It showed the four marauders jumping up and on the dormitory beds. Harry could easily figure out who each of them was, and even mistook his father for himself. "Man, I really do look just like my dad," he said. Sirius and Remus both nodded in agreement.
"It's amazing really," Sirius said. "What else is in there, Rem?"
Remus dug around some more and pulled out a battered wizards hat, and frowned, "Peter's old wizard hat."
Sirius put on a face of pure fury and muttered a spell. The hat was instantly in flames. Remus hurried to move on. "Remember this, Sirius?" Remus asked, holding up a gold ring with rubies in it.
"Yeah, we saved all our money that year to buy that...Gryffindor colors. We were going to buy one for each of us...I guess we forgot about that." Sirius said, sliding the ring onto his pinky.
Remus looked deeper in the box and gasped. "What is it?" Sirius asked, unsure of what would change Remus's mood so quickly.
Remus pulled out something white, "The tooth of the werewolf that bit me. That's something I was hoping to never see again."
Sirius nodded solemnly.
Remus then pulled out a piece of paper and read it aloud, "Where we should be when we read this again: Sirius-running a joke shop, Remus- father of many kids (With Melody), James-auror, Peter-wizard lawyer." Remus looked at the paper sadly.
"Well none of that happened," Sirius replied sadly, shaking his head."
Remus pulled out a few more photographs and then the final item, a long gold necklace with a pendant of the letters JP hanging on it. Harry looked sadly at the necklace, knowing instantly that it had belonged to his father.
"Wow," Sirius said. "I can't believe we forgot about all this."
"Me neither," Remus replied. He looked thoughtful for a moment, then said, "Harry why don't you keep the box?"
"Me?" Harry said startled.
"Yeah you," Sirius said, shoving Harry with his shoulder.
"But...I couldn't. Those are your memories, not mine."
"Call it inspiration. It will remind you of the way things used to be at Hogwarts, and you'll always have something of us," Sirius said, squeezing Harry's shoulder. Harry nodded, accepting the box.
"Thanks," Harry said quietly.
There was a short moment of silence, where everyone was thinking about their own thing. Harry took out his fathers old necklace and put it on, slipping it under his shirt. It wasn't something he wanted to flaunt, but he wanted to keep it close.
They were about to head inside when an owl flew right up to Sirius. He took the letter and read it aloud, "Sirius, There's been an attack on Diagon Alley, I'm holed up in my apartment right now. Voldemort's still out their Sirius, and I'm afraid he might come here next. I don't know what to do. Please come and help, I'm scared. I should have listened Sirius, I'm sorry. Love, Sorai."
"Shit!" Sirius yelled before running off into the house. Harry and Remus heard him yell, "Diagon Alley." Harry tried to get up, looking very worried. Remus pushed him back down onto his seat.
"There's nothing you can do Harry, Sirius will be fine. Don't worry, okay?" Remus said, not wanting Harry to freak out like he had when Sirius had been taken by the ministry. Harry nodded. Remus sighed in relief that he had convinced Harry, he just wished he could convince himself.
Soooooooo....Did ya like it? Please tell me, cuz I need to know. I hope I didn't make Sirius too much of a cry baby. I'm trying to show that he's having an emotional breakdown, hope it's working. Anyway, I will try very hard to get the next chapter out as soon as possible. Please Review...Everyone!