Harry was looking through the books when Talitha arrived back late in the afternoon. She stood smiling at him as he looked up from his book.
"Harry, I've just been to see Dumbledore. We've decided you must learn this Occlumency as soon as we can. It's more important now than ever. It should be a bit easier now you understand why and I never thought Professor Snape was the best one too teach you in the first place"
"And what if I don't want to?" Harry answered moodily. He had been sitting there for hours working himself up into a bad mood.
"What?"
"You and Dumbledore decided. What about me, why doesn't anyone ever ask me what I want?" Harry was getting angry now.
"Harry, we're only trying to do what we think is best for you. What would Sirius say if he heard you talking like this? He wanted you to learn this as well"
"I don't know what Sirius would say" yelled Harry "and I'll never know what he's got to say about anything will I?"
"Harry I know what you're going through is hard but…"
"You don't know anything about me and how I'm feeling" Harry shouted.
"I know enough about you to know that you're exactly like your father. Too arrogant and pig-headed to listen or take advice from anyone" Talitha yelled back.
"Don't talk about him like that. You don't know anything about me, Sirius or my dad"
"Hey…" a deep voice shouted from the door "What's going on? What's all the shouting about?" Remus asked calmly
"SHE…seems to think she knows what's best for me, thinks she knows Sirius and my dad better than I do"
"But I do Harry. I probably know Sirius and James better than anyone, maybe even better than they knew each other" Talitha said a bit more calmly now
"What?" Harry had also calmed down a bit
"Why don't we sit down and talk about this without shouting" suggested Lupin. "Tali, I think you're going to have to explain this one"
"Harry, I'm sorry I shouted" Talitha said "and I'm sorry if what I said about James upset you but it was true" Remus nodded in agreement.
"Harry, I know exactly how you are feeling because I lost my parents when I was young too." Talitha continued "I was seven when they died. I went to live with my aunt and uncle as well. So I do understand how you miss your parents and that you hate it that you don't know them at all. However, I was a bit more fortunate than you, my aunt and uncle were wonderful and kind to me. They treated me like their own daughter." Talitha sat down next to Harry "They were you're grandparents Harry, which means James was my cousin. We grew up together, James was only a year older than me."
"So you're a Potter?" Harry asked shocked at what he had just heard.
"Yes, I suppose I am, my mum was a Potter, you're grandfathers sister. So you see by growing up with James, I know that he was arrogant and pig-headed like I said. But I also know how he was brave, loyal and kind as well."
"What about Sirius? How do you know so much about him?"
"I can remember the first time I saw Sirius. He came to stay at you're grandparents house, the summer after James' first year at Hogwarts." Harry noticed tears in Talitha's eyes. She stood up and turned away from him "I'm sorry… Remus can you carry on" Remus nodded and put his arm around Talitha's shoulder to comfort her.
"Well, from her first day at Hogwarts, Talitha was a bit obsessed with Sirius," he grinned to try and lighten the atmosphere "weren't you Tali?" Talitha nodded half laughing and half crying "Only took her 2 years to convince him to go out with her though"
"We were going to get married, but before we did, your parents… well, you know… and Sirius ended up in Azkaban, so we never did and now we never will" Talitha was trying hard not to start crying again. She had to be strong for Harry's sake.
"Come on, I think we all could do with a drink" said Remus as he stood up. He went into the kitchen and came back with a bottle of Firewhiskey and 3 glasses. He poured out two large glasses and a much smaller one for Harry.
"To Sirius" he said holding up his glass "and James and Lily of course" and they all clunked their glasses together.
A few more glasses of Firewhiskey for Remus and Talitha and some Butterbeer for Harry and they were all laughing. Talitha and Remus were telling Harry some funny stories about when they were younger.
"Remember when we went to see that band at the Hogshead in Hogsmeade" Remus laughed "What were they called…the Evil Weasels or something"
"It was my last year at Hogwarts, me and Dung used James' invisibility cloak to sneak out to meet you lot" said Talitha
"You and Dung were at Hogwarts together"
"Yep" Talitha nodded "best friends since the first year. Seems an unlikely pairing I know"
"You're mum was out with us that night as well Harry" Remus told him
"Yeah, Lily and James fell out because James and Sirius had drunk too much Firewhiskey and were being idiots" laughed Talitha
"Well, we were all being idiots" Remus added "Lily said she was going home after about an hour but she wouldn't let James take her on his broom"
"Well I wouldn't have gone on his broom with him after he had drunk that much" Talitha added
"She ended up making Peter take her home and left us all there, so James ended up drinking even more and me and Sirius had to carry him back to Sirius' flat. Not that Sirius was in a much better state himself. James threw his guts up all over Sirius' bathroom. I left them both to it" Remus laughed.
"And then you had to try and help me and Dung sneak back to Hogwarts when I kept falling over and the invisibility cloak kept coming off" Talitha added, laughing "Maybe we shouldn't be telling Harry all this, he might get some bad ideas"
"Wasn't it that night when Dung got his life long ban from the Hogshead?" Remus asked "Can't for the life of me remember what he did though"
"James had a lot of grovelling to do the next day didn't he?" Talitha said.
They were all laughing now.
"So, did you know my mum well then?" asked Harry.
"Yeah quite well" Talitha answered "We were all in Gryffindor. Lily and James didn't get together till their last year but they were made for each other really, once James grew up and stopped being goofy" Talitha said as she stood up.
"Hang on a minute I'll show you something" she said as she left the room.
"So Harry, how are you feeling?" Remus asked him.
"A bit better now. At least I know you two can understand how I'm feeling"
"We do and any time you need to talk just say"
"Why didn't Talitha ever contact me before now?" Harry asked
"Well, I think she wrote to you a few times at the Dursleys but I wouldn't imagine they ever gave you the letters. Talitha and Sirius wanted to look after you when you're mum and dad died, after all they were you're godparents"
"Talitha's my godmother?"
"Yeah, but Dumbledore insisted that you were safest at the Dursleys, to start with at least. Then everything happened with Sirius and Wormtail and Sirius ended up in Azkaban as you know. Well, Talitha stood by him, said he was innocent but no-one believed her. A lot of people thought she was in on it as well. Dumbledore, although I don't think he thought she was, decided you'd be better of staying where you were. Also Talitha was out of the country a lot so it made it hard for her to contact you. After you started Hogwarts she wanted to get in touch but thought it would be better to wait until she could see you in person rather than just some random letter appearing out of no where. So then Sirius escaped, and Talitha decided to keep out of the country because she knew that the people trying to catch Sirius would assume she knew where he was."
"Why didn't Sirius ever say anything about her?" Harry asked.
"When you first met Sirius, he had no idea where Talitha was so he thought it best not to say anything. When he went on the run again he decided to find her. I told him that she was in Australia so that's where he went. When he eventually found her they decided not to say anything to you until she could come and meet you in person. She had to stay out there when he came back. She was in London a few times last year and she saw Sirius a few days before he died. It was never the right time to meet you though. She was helping out with stuff for the order and wasn't around much. She didn't want to just turn up and say 'Hi Harry, I'm your godmother, see you around in a few months time' She was planning to contact you properly this summer but then the Death Eaters escaped so she had to come and fetch you"
"So she and Sirius were…"
"They were mad about each other, Harry, completely and utterly. She's putting on a brave face in front of you but inside she's really hurting"
"What are you two talking about?" Talitha asked as she came back in the room.
"I was just about to tell Harry how you used to follow Sirius around Hogwarts" laughed Remus
"No I didn't" Talitha protested
"You did, every time I looked round, there you'd be staring at him all dreamy"
"Shut up" Talitha pushed Remus playfully. "Harry, here's some photos I thought you might like to see" Harry took hold of the pile she was holding and opened it up. Talitha pointed to the top one.
"That's James, Sirius, Remus and Peter on their last day at school" she explained. Harry looked at it closely. They looked almost the same as when he had seen them in Snape's memory, just a few years older. James and Sirius stood in the middle grinning at him. James' hair was less messy now than it had been in Snape's memory, had he stopped ruffling it on purpose? Sirius had a mischievous look in his eye. Remus stood next to Sirius also grinning. Peter was next to James looking at the other three.
"And this one's of your mum and dad on the same day" James and Lily were looking at each other like no one else in the world mattered. Harry picked up the next one, showing Sirius and Talitha. Sirius' arm was around Talitha's shoulder. Sirius was about fifteen or sixteen and it was summer so it must have been taken around the time of Snape's memory. That explained why in the memory while James was showing off to the girls Sirius didn't even notice them.
"Here's a good one" said Remus "that's Sirius holding you as a baby"
"That's such a sweet picture. It's one of my favourites" said Talitha "You were about six months old then Harry" Harry stared at the picture. Sirius looked so happy, who could have imagined what was going to happen 6 months after that picture was taken. Harry looked through the rest of the pictures, Talitha and Remus explaining each one as he did. They were mostly of them all from when they were at school up until his parents died.
"So" said Remus, when they got to the end of the photographs "Are you going to give the Occlumency another go then Harry?"
"Yeah, I suppose so. I'm sorry about earlier. I was just angry that I never get told or asked anything"
"Let's make a deal" Talitha suggested "In the future, you ask me anything you want to know and if I know the answer I'll tell you as long as it's not like an 'order' secret or anything
"Same goes for me" Remus added. Harry nodded in agreement
"Time for bed I think" said Talitha "We've got lots to do tomorrow, we'll start on the Occlumency then. Remus, Harry's stuffs still in the study can you take it up and show him his room?" Harry followed Remus and the now levitating trunk up the stairs and into one of the bedrooms.
"Harry, I've just been to see Dumbledore. We've decided you must learn this Occlumency as soon as we can. It's more important now than ever. It should be a bit easier now you understand why and I never thought Professor Snape was the best one too teach you in the first place"
"And what if I don't want to?" Harry answered moodily. He had been sitting there for hours working himself up into a bad mood.
"What?"
"You and Dumbledore decided. What about me, why doesn't anyone ever ask me what I want?" Harry was getting angry now.
"Harry, we're only trying to do what we think is best for you. What would Sirius say if he heard you talking like this? He wanted you to learn this as well"
"I don't know what Sirius would say" yelled Harry "and I'll never know what he's got to say about anything will I?"
"Harry I know what you're going through is hard but…"
"You don't know anything about me and how I'm feeling" Harry shouted.
"I know enough about you to know that you're exactly like your father. Too arrogant and pig-headed to listen or take advice from anyone" Talitha yelled back.
"Don't talk about him like that. You don't know anything about me, Sirius or my dad"
"Hey…" a deep voice shouted from the door "What's going on? What's all the shouting about?" Remus asked calmly
"SHE…seems to think she knows what's best for me, thinks she knows Sirius and my dad better than I do"
"But I do Harry. I probably know Sirius and James better than anyone, maybe even better than they knew each other" Talitha said a bit more calmly now
"What?" Harry had also calmed down a bit
"Why don't we sit down and talk about this without shouting" suggested Lupin. "Tali, I think you're going to have to explain this one"
"Harry, I'm sorry I shouted" Talitha said "and I'm sorry if what I said about James upset you but it was true" Remus nodded in agreement.
"Harry, I know exactly how you are feeling because I lost my parents when I was young too." Talitha continued "I was seven when they died. I went to live with my aunt and uncle as well. So I do understand how you miss your parents and that you hate it that you don't know them at all. However, I was a bit more fortunate than you, my aunt and uncle were wonderful and kind to me. They treated me like their own daughter." Talitha sat down next to Harry "They were you're grandparents Harry, which means James was my cousin. We grew up together, James was only a year older than me."
"So you're a Potter?" Harry asked shocked at what he had just heard.
"Yes, I suppose I am, my mum was a Potter, you're grandfathers sister. So you see by growing up with James, I know that he was arrogant and pig-headed like I said. But I also know how he was brave, loyal and kind as well."
"What about Sirius? How do you know so much about him?"
"I can remember the first time I saw Sirius. He came to stay at you're grandparents house, the summer after James' first year at Hogwarts." Harry noticed tears in Talitha's eyes. She stood up and turned away from him "I'm sorry… Remus can you carry on" Remus nodded and put his arm around Talitha's shoulder to comfort her.
"Well, from her first day at Hogwarts, Talitha was a bit obsessed with Sirius," he grinned to try and lighten the atmosphere "weren't you Tali?" Talitha nodded half laughing and half crying "Only took her 2 years to convince him to go out with her though"
"We were going to get married, but before we did, your parents… well, you know… and Sirius ended up in Azkaban, so we never did and now we never will" Talitha was trying hard not to start crying again. She had to be strong for Harry's sake.
"Come on, I think we all could do with a drink" said Remus as he stood up. He went into the kitchen and came back with a bottle of Firewhiskey and 3 glasses. He poured out two large glasses and a much smaller one for Harry.
"To Sirius" he said holding up his glass "and James and Lily of course" and they all clunked their glasses together.
A few more glasses of Firewhiskey for Remus and Talitha and some Butterbeer for Harry and they were all laughing. Talitha and Remus were telling Harry some funny stories about when they were younger.
"Remember when we went to see that band at the Hogshead in Hogsmeade" Remus laughed "What were they called…the Evil Weasels or something"
"It was my last year at Hogwarts, me and Dung used James' invisibility cloak to sneak out to meet you lot" said Talitha
"You and Dung were at Hogwarts together"
"Yep" Talitha nodded "best friends since the first year. Seems an unlikely pairing I know"
"You're mum was out with us that night as well Harry" Remus told him
"Yeah, Lily and James fell out because James and Sirius had drunk too much Firewhiskey and were being idiots" laughed Talitha
"Well, we were all being idiots" Remus added "Lily said she was going home after about an hour but she wouldn't let James take her on his broom"
"Well I wouldn't have gone on his broom with him after he had drunk that much" Talitha added
"She ended up making Peter take her home and left us all there, so James ended up drinking even more and me and Sirius had to carry him back to Sirius' flat. Not that Sirius was in a much better state himself. James threw his guts up all over Sirius' bathroom. I left them both to it" Remus laughed.
"And then you had to try and help me and Dung sneak back to Hogwarts when I kept falling over and the invisibility cloak kept coming off" Talitha added, laughing "Maybe we shouldn't be telling Harry all this, he might get some bad ideas"
"Wasn't it that night when Dung got his life long ban from the Hogshead?" Remus asked "Can't for the life of me remember what he did though"
"James had a lot of grovelling to do the next day didn't he?" Talitha said.
They were all laughing now.
"So, did you know my mum well then?" asked Harry.
"Yeah quite well" Talitha answered "We were all in Gryffindor. Lily and James didn't get together till their last year but they were made for each other really, once James grew up and stopped being goofy" Talitha said as she stood up.
"Hang on a minute I'll show you something" she said as she left the room.
"So Harry, how are you feeling?" Remus asked him.
"A bit better now. At least I know you two can understand how I'm feeling"
"We do and any time you need to talk just say"
"Why didn't Talitha ever contact me before now?" Harry asked
"Well, I think she wrote to you a few times at the Dursleys but I wouldn't imagine they ever gave you the letters. Talitha and Sirius wanted to look after you when you're mum and dad died, after all they were you're godparents"
"Talitha's my godmother?"
"Yeah, but Dumbledore insisted that you were safest at the Dursleys, to start with at least. Then everything happened with Sirius and Wormtail and Sirius ended up in Azkaban as you know. Well, Talitha stood by him, said he was innocent but no-one believed her. A lot of people thought she was in on it as well. Dumbledore, although I don't think he thought she was, decided you'd be better of staying where you were. Also Talitha was out of the country a lot so it made it hard for her to contact you. After you started Hogwarts she wanted to get in touch but thought it would be better to wait until she could see you in person rather than just some random letter appearing out of no where. So then Sirius escaped, and Talitha decided to keep out of the country because she knew that the people trying to catch Sirius would assume she knew where he was."
"Why didn't Sirius ever say anything about her?" Harry asked.
"When you first met Sirius, he had no idea where Talitha was so he thought it best not to say anything. When he went on the run again he decided to find her. I told him that she was in Australia so that's where he went. When he eventually found her they decided not to say anything to you until she could come and meet you in person. She had to stay out there when he came back. She was in London a few times last year and she saw Sirius a few days before he died. It was never the right time to meet you though. She was helping out with stuff for the order and wasn't around much. She didn't want to just turn up and say 'Hi Harry, I'm your godmother, see you around in a few months time' She was planning to contact you properly this summer but then the Death Eaters escaped so she had to come and fetch you"
"So she and Sirius were…"
"They were mad about each other, Harry, completely and utterly. She's putting on a brave face in front of you but inside she's really hurting"
"What are you two talking about?" Talitha asked as she came back in the room.
"I was just about to tell Harry how you used to follow Sirius around Hogwarts" laughed Remus
"No I didn't" Talitha protested
"You did, every time I looked round, there you'd be staring at him all dreamy"
"Shut up" Talitha pushed Remus playfully. "Harry, here's some photos I thought you might like to see" Harry took hold of the pile she was holding and opened it up. Talitha pointed to the top one.
"That's James, Sirius, Remus and Peter on their last day at school" she explained. Harry looked at it closely. They looked almost the same as when he had seen them in Snape's memory, just a few years older. James and Sirius stood in the middle grinning at him. James' hair was less messy now than it had been in Snape's memory, had he stopped ruffling it on purpose? Sirius had a mischievous look in his eye. Remus stood next to Sirius also grinning. Peter was next to James looking at the other three.
"And this one's of your mum and dad on the same day" James and Lily were looking at each other like no one else in the world mattered. Harry picked up the next one, showing Sirius and Talitha. Sirius' arm was around Talitha's shoulder. Sirius was about fifteen or sixteen and it was summer so it must have been taken around the time of Snape's memory. That explained why in the memory while James was showing off to the girls Sirius didn't even notice them.
"Here's a good one" said Remus "that's Sirius holding you as a baby"
"That's such a sweet picture. It's one of my favourites" said Talitha "You were about six months old then Harry" Harry stared at the picture. Sirius looked so happy, who could have imagined what was going to happen 6 months after that picture was taken. Harry looked through the rest of the pictures, Talitha and Remus explaining each one as he did. They were mostly of them all from when they were at school up until his parents died.
"So" said Remus, when they got to the end of the photographs "Are you going to give the Occlumency another go then Harry?"
"Yeah, I suppose so. I'm sorry about earlier. I was just angry that I never get told or asked anything"
"Let's make a deal" Talitha suggested "In the future, you ask me anything you want to know and if I know the answer I'll tell you as long as it's not like an 'order' secret or anything
"Same goes for me" Remus added. Harry nodded in agreement
"Time for bed I think" said Talitha "We've got lots to do tomorrow, we'll start on the Occlumency then. Remus, Harry's stuffs still in the study can you take it up and show him his room?" Harry followed Remus and the now levitating trunk up the stairs and into one of the bedrooms.