MusicalHermione: Thank you again! Without you I think I might have stopped
already.
Berlin was fantastic. It is such a beautiful city and it was good to relax a few days. Sorry this chapter took so long, anyway.
Disclaimer: All characters you recognise belong to the great J. K. Rowling.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
The next morning Ginny and Draco sat at their tables for breakfast. They had decided to meet in the Entrance Hall later, to walk to Hogsmeade together, since it was Saturday and they were allowed to town. It was a little unusual but both enjoyed each others company.
Except for that, Ginny was still furious about Ron for making such a fuss because of Draco and took every opportunity to annoy him. And Draco, well, since most people still hated him he didn't have much of a choice. Besides, he didn't have much of a reputation to loose for being friends with a Weasley. In fact, Draco was surprised at how much he liked Ginny. He didn't love her or something, but he still thought that Potter had to be rather dump not to take her.
The chatter in the Great Hall was interrupted by a hundred owls delivering mail. Both Ginny and Draco noticed that a large brown owl dropped a letter in front of Harry, who was sitting a little away from Ron and Hermione. He seemed a little surprised but as he enfolded the parchment his expression sobered and he glanced around as if checking if anybody was watching him. Draco and Ginny looked away immediately pretending not to have seen anything. Harry's eyes fell on Ron and Hermione who were engaged in an animated discussion of their plans for the day and didn't seem to have noticed anything. Harry quickly put the letter into his robe and rose from the table mumbling something to Rom and Hermione who nodded.
As he left, Draco and Ginny looked at each other and had the same thoughts: They would follow him. It was obvious that the letter contained something important. And it was also clear that it had something to do with the strange events at Hogwarts.
~*~*~
Harry wasn't sure if he should feel relieved or worried. Of course his godfather was at great risk for coming back, but Harry hadn't seen him in over a year and he wanted to talk to him about everything that had happened the past weeks. Sirius still wrote him but the letters had become fewer, since he worked against Voldemort. He was in foreign countries most of the time and of course he was still on the run.
Harry wondered what had happened with Ron and Hermione. Usually they panicked every time he didn't look totally happy, worried that he was about to die or something. Lately they had begun to pretty much ignore him. Of course, he knew that they were a couple and liked to have some time alone, but it was still odd that they didn't even take note of the letter he got from Sirius this morning. Neither did they ask why he wanted to go alone to Hogsmeade.
But of course the strangest thing was, that Sirius had actually asked him to come alone. Why was everybody secretive lately?
Sirius had told him in his letter that Professor Lupin was with him. They had rent a small cottage a little outside Hogmeade. They had decided to meet there.
As Harry walked down the main street he had a feeling that he was being watched. He looked around but couldn't see anything suspicious, so he shrugged it of and told himself that it was just nervousness.
When he finally arrived at the small cottage with the tiny front garden, he noticed immediately the huge black dog who started wiggling his tale at the sight of him. Harry laughed and winked at him.
'Hello, Snuffles!'
The dog opened the garden door and jumped at Harry knocking him off his feet and licking his face all over. At some point someone behind them cleared his throat. Snuffles looked up and released the boy beneath him, who sat up, panting from all the laughter, looking up at his former teacher. The last time he had seen Remus Lupin was in the beginning of his fifth year when the Order of the Phoenix had gathered the last time.
The man hadn't changed much, but he seemed a lot healthier, Harry noticed, and his smile was bright and happy.
'Hello, professor. Nice to see you again.'
'Hello Harry. Nice to see you, too. You have grown quite a bit, I see. How have you been?', he asked as he held out his hand to help Harry stand up.
'Just fine, thank you. And I take it, that Snuffles has been fine, too.' He grinned down at the dog and patted his head. Snuffles barked happily and tapped back through the garden door.
'Come on, Harry. Lets get inside. It's chilly out here.' With that Remus lead him into the house.
None of them noticed the two figures who were hidden behind a tree.
~*~*~
'Snuffles is a dog?! Are they joking?!' Draco had great difficulties to believe what he just witnessed. Ginny on the other hand seemed amused.
'Well, it must be some code name for someone else, don't you think? But why is Professor Lupin here? Did he write that letter to Harry? Hey, Draco. . .I think they are closing the curtains at the windows! What are they doing in there?'
Without wasting any time she left their hiding place and tiptoed to the house. Draco followed her slowly.
'Maybe they have an affair or something. Didn't you notice how distracted Potter is all the time. Maybe that letter was a love letter.' He tried to keep the mirth out of his voice, but failed.
Ginny gave him a look and rolled her eyes. 'Very funny. . . Could you now please help me find a way to see what they are doing?'
Draco winked her to the door of the cottage and lay his head on the floor as if trying to peek through the slit under the door. He pulled out his wand and muttered a spell he had often used with his fellows when they had spied on the girls.
Ginny kneeled beside him and they could both see the hole living room now. Lupin just put a silencing charm on the room (that unfortunately also worked through Draco's spell), than looked down at the dog and said something.
The next moment the dog was replaced by a tall man. Ginny and Draco both let out a gasp as they realised that it was Sirius Black. Harry though didn't look surprised at all. He actually gave the escaped murderer a hug! Then the three of them sat down as Lupin conjured three cups of tea.
Draco and Ginny rose from the floor and quickly walked away from the house. They sat down behind a tree and stared at each other in disbelief.
'What is Black now doing here?! Has suddenly everybody gone crazy?' Draco let out a frustrated sigh.
'I have no idea, but I can't believe that Harry and Professor Lupin have anything to do with him. I mean he is dangerous!' Ginny was equally confused.
'And it is not just that. Black betrayed Potter's parents to Voldemort. Why should Potter now hug him?'
'He betrayed Harry's parents? How do you know?'
'My father once told me about it. Black and James Potter were best friends or something. Lupin was his friend, too.'
'Oh my god! They probably made Harry believe that they didn't do it! He is in danger! We should call the ministry!' Ginny got up but before she could move away Draco grabbed her arm and pulled her back down.
'Relax! We shouldn't do anything before we haven't sorted some things out, don't you think? I mean, Potter didn't exactly look frightened in there, did he? And if he really believes that Black is innocent, they won't just kill him. I say we wait for a while and see if he come out again. And then we can corner him and make him spill everything out, right?'
Ginny nodded and so they sat down in silence and waited.
~*~*~
Two hours later Harry and the big black dog came out of the cottage. The dog immediately sensed the foreign sent that lay behind the door. He sniffed around and suddenly started running. He stopped at a tree and barked. Harry raised an eyebrow at him and went to see what there was. Behind the tree sat Ginny Weasley and Draco Malfoy looking partly scared and partly embarrassed.
Harry stared down at them.
'What are you doing here?'
He already knew that the answer wouldn't please him. Snuffles nudged him and pointed at the house, telling him that it was better to get them into the house.
Harry told them to follow him and Draco and Ginny complied without hesitation, a little afraid of what might happen to them if they didn't. As they entered the house they glanced at each other and stood closer together not knowing what to say. Professor Lupin came down the stairs as he heard them and seemed surprised.
'Ginny, Mr. Malfoy, what are you doing here?' he asked as he came nearer.
'It seems that they spied. How much did you see?' Harry asked them with a somewhat stony glare, as if he had expected better of them, or at least of Ginny.
Ginny flinched a little but then she remembered what they had seen and felt her anger rise.
'I saw that dog transform into Sirius Black! Are you mad Harry?! He is a convicted murderer! And you Professor Lupin! How could you? What did you tell Harry? Damn it. I should have called the ministry right away!'
She stomped her foot on the floor and took a deep breath to calm down. It wasn't usual that she lost her temper but she was furious. And disappointed, because Harry hadn't told anybody. This wasn't just some secret. Black had killed people! And seeing Harry with him made him look like a criminal, too.
Draco put a hand on her shoulder and said: 'Hey, easy! Let's listen first before we start yelling, don't you think so, too, Potter?'
Harry, who had stared at Ginny, gave Draco a look that one could nearly call grateful. He nodded, then sighed. Remus beside him was totally calm, his expression curious. The dog who had stayed still beside them, suddenly made a move and came back into his human form. Both Ginny and Draco started a bit.
Sirius Black was still recognisable, but now that they were near him, Ginny could see that he had changed. He wasn't so skinny anymore and his hair was short. What impressed her the most was his expression, though. He didn't look murderous. He looked . . . well, more civilised, even friendly. As they stared at him a small smile played at the corners of his mouth and Ginny thought that he must have been very handsome when he was young.
'A Weasley and a Malfoy, together! I didn't think I'd ever see that!' His voice was soft but a little hoarse and his eyes were twinkling. He was the only one who looked amused by the situation.
'I really think we should do some explaining, Sirius. It would be best if you sat down for this. It might take a while.' Lupin said, jerking his head in the direction of the sofa.
They sat down and Remus asked if anybody wanted tea. The others shook their heads, but Draco wanted some tea and something to eat, since he had been sitting in the cold for hours. Remus conjured everything and so they sat for a few minutes in silence watching Draco eat some biscuits and sip at his tea. Unlike Ginny he didn't seem to bother with discomfort. That was probably a remnant of his time as "something better".
After a while Harry spoke.
'Ok, first of all, both of you must swear to keep silent about this. Nobody must know.'
Draco looked up. 'And if we don't want to?', he said.
'Then we'll have to obliviate you.' Sirius said calmly. Draco looked at him for a moment, then nodded.
'Ok, I swear that I will tell nobody.' Ginny, who sat beside him, nodded, but said nothing.
Harry relaxed a bit. He knew that the easy start didn't mean that they would believe him. Ginny still didn't look at him.
'Umm, well, you should know that Sirius here is innocent.' At this both Ginny and Draco started to interrupt but were silenced be Remus, who held up a hand motioning them to wait until he was finished.
'Because Peter Pettigrew is alive . . . and it was him who killed all those people . . .and . . .'
This time though, Ginny interrupted anyway. 'Who is Peter Pettigrew? Harry, can't you speak a little clearer?' She looked as if she wanted to believe him, if only for the fact that he was Harry.
Harry sighed again, then shook his head. I can't do this. Can anyone of you tell them?' He addressed the two men in the armchairs at either side of his.
Remus nodded and started again. His voice was slow and calm and they let him talk. Only a few times someone added something or asked about details. When he was finished Ginny was feeling dizzy. So much information in such a short time was difficult to understand.
'So you are working for Dumbledore, now? Fighting against Voldemort?' Draco addressed Black. The man nodded.
'But I can't understand why they didn't realise that you hadn't done that. I mean, in that street, weren't there any signs of what really happened? Normally the ministry can easily recreate the situation and see if the things are right.' Ginny was confused. How could it be that the ministry of magic made such a terrible mistake?
Sirius eyes darkened. His expression became hard. His voice, though, was very quiet.
'They didn't wait this long. They spoke to the muggles that witnessed everything and they said that I was the one who killed all those people. The Crouch sent me right to Azkaban, without a trial. It didn't seem necessary to them to check if they had taken the right man.'
'I have another question. What have you got to do with Barnes?' Draco looked curious. Harry nodded in agreement.
'Yeah, Sirius. I also wanted to ask you about this. I told you about the pensieve, and there she mentioned you. Professor Barnes, I mean.'
'Helen. . .' He murmured. Suddenly his expression got distant. He seemed deep in thought as if remembering something long forgotten. When Harry cleared his throat he came back to reality.
'Helen was, well, you said she mentioned me?'
Harry replied: 'Yes, she asked where you were and Dumbledore said something about her wanting to see you, of course. So, How comes she knows about you?'
'She is a member of the Order. Dumbledore must have told her. I haven't seen her since. . . for sixteen years. We were together in school. She was in our year.'
'You mean, you were friends?' Harry asked. Ginny gave him a sideways look.
'No, not exactly friends. . . you can't really say that. . .' Sirius' voice trailed of and Remus let out a chuckle. Harry nodded.
'Yeah, I couldn't imagine you befriending a Slytherin, anyway. I mean, she gets along with Snape.'
Remus chuckled again as Sirius gave his godson a strange look.
'No, I didn't mean that. I said we were not friends, because we were . . . together.', he finished, his expression apologetic.
Draco nearly choked on his tea. Ginny tried to hide a smile and Harry just stared at him, blushing furiously as he imagined his godfather and Professor Barnes doing, well, things. . .
By now Remus was laughing quite hard. 'Those were the same looks everybody else wore as the got together!', he gasped between fits of laughter. Sirius grinned at him and the fun loving careless boys they had once been showed up for a moment.
After the first shock Harry became very curious. He wanted to know more about those two, but at this moment the old muggle clock above the fireplace gave a sound telling them that it was five o'clock.
'Oh! So late already! You have to get back to the castle!' Remus was up immediately. Sirius rolled his eyes at him.
'Why such a hurry, Moony? They won't kill them if the come a little later.', he said.
'But people will worry and ask questions, and that could get uncomfortable. Besides they have to get back to Hogwarts before dark.', Remus answered.
The three students got up, looking a little disappointed. Sirius saw it a stood up, too.
'Now, you three, listen. I think I will stay here for a while. You can come by next time you get to town, then I will tell you some stories about your teacher.'
They nodded and Harry took a step forward to say goodbye to his godfather.
'Take care Sirius, will you? See you around, then, sometime.' Sirius smiled at him and ruffled his hair a bit.
'You take care, right? And send me an owl if anything happens. Or at least tell Dumbledore. Or Helen.' Again a smile brightened his features. Remus stood beside him and shook Harry's hand.
'Bye, Harry. Don't worry too much. Bye, Ginny. Bye, Draco. It's good to see that you have changed your mind about a few things.' Remus winked at him.
'Your secret is safe with us.' Ginny said as she shook both men's hands and earned friendly smiles.
Before the door opened, Sirius turned back into the huge black dog and escorted them until the other side of town, where he barked one more time and then their ways parted.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Umm, before I started this I wanted to write a SB/OC story. But then I combined it with other ideas and so now this comes out. Hope you like it. In later chapters we will find out more about Helen and Sirius.
Berlin was fantastic. It is such a beautiful city and it was good to relax a few days. Sorry this chapter took so long, anyway.
Disclaimer: All characters you recognise belong to the great J. K. Rowling.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
The next morning Ginny and Draco sat at their tables for breakfast. They had decided to meet in the Entrance Hall later, to walk to Hogsmeade together, since it was Saturday and they were allowed to town. It was a little unusual but both enjoyed each others company.
Except for that, Ginny was still furious about Ron for making such a fuss because of Draco and took every opportunity to annoy him. And Draco, well, since most people still hated him he didn't have much of a choice. Besides, he didn't have much of a reputation to loose for being friends with a Weasley. In fact, Draco was surprised at how much he liked Ginny. He didn't love her or something, but he still thought that Potter had to be rather dump not to take her.
The chatter in the Great Hall was interrupted by a hundred owls delivering mail. Both Ginny and Draco noticed that a large brown owl dropped a letter in front of Harry, who was sitting a little away from Ron and Hermione. He seemed a little surprised but as he enfolded the parchment his expression sobered and he glanced around as if checking if anybody was watching him. Draco and Ginny looked away immediately pretending not to have seen anything. Harry's eyes fell on Ron and Hermione who were engaged in an animated discussion of their plans for the day and didn't seem to have noticed anything. Harry quickly put the letter into his robe and rose from the table mumbling something to Rom and Hermione who nodded.
As he left, Draco and Ginny looked at each other and had the same thoughts: They would follow him. It was obvious that the letter contained something important. And it was also clear that it had something to do with the strange events at Hogwarts.
~*~*~
Harry wasn't sure if he should feel relieved or worried. Of course his godfather was at great risk for coming back, but Harry hadn't seen him in over a year and he wanted to talk to him about everything that had happened the past weeks. Sirius still wrote him but the letters had become fewer, since he worked against Voldemort. He was in foreign countries most of the time and of course he was still on the run.
Harry wondered what had happened with Ron and Hermione. Usually they panicked every time he didn't look totally happy, worried that he was about to die or something. Lately they had begun to pretty much ignore him. Of course, he knew that they were a couple and liked to have some time alone, but it was still odd that they didn't even take note of the letter he got from Sirius this morning. Neither did they ask why he wanted to go alone to Hogsmeade.
But of course the strangest thing was, that Sirius had actually asked him to come alone. Why was everybody secretive lately?
Sirius had told him in his letter that Professor Lupin was with him. They had rent a small cottage a little outside Hogmeade. They had decided to meet there.
As Harry walked down the main street he had a feeling that he was being watched. He looked around but couldn't see anything suspicious, so he shrugged it of and told himself that it was just nervousness.
When he finally arrived at the small cottage with the tiny front garden, he noticed immediately the huge black dog who started wiggling his tale at the sight of him. Harry laughed and winked at him.
'Hello, Snuffles!'
The dog opened the garden door and jumped at Harry knocking him off his feet and licking his face all over. At some point someone behind them cleared his throat. Snuffles looked up and released the boy beneath him, who sat up, panting from all the laughter, looking up at his former teacher. The last time he had seen Remus Lupin was in the beginning of his fifth year when the Order of the Phoenix had gathered the last time.
The man hadn't changed much, but he seemed a lot healthier, Harry noticed, and his smile was bright and happy.
'Hello, professor. Nice to see you again.'
'Hello Harry. Nice to see you, too. You have grown quite a bit, I see. How have you been?', he asked as he held out his hand to help Harry stand up.
'Just fine, thank you. And I take it, that Snuffles has been fine, too.' He grinned down at the dog and patted his head. Snuffles barked happily and tapped back through the garden door.
'Come on, Harry. Lets get inside. It's chilly out here.' With that Remus lead him into the house.
None of them noticed the two figures who were hidden behind a tree.
~*~*~
'Snuffles is a dog?! Are they joking?!' Draco had great difficulties to believe what he just witnessed. Ginny on the other hand seemed amused.
'Well, it must be some code name for someone else, don't you think? But why is Professor Lupin here? Did he write that letter to Harry? Hey, Draco. . .I think they are closing the curtains at the windows! What are they doing in there?'
Without wasting any time she left their hiding place and tiptoed to the house. Draco followed her slowly.
'Maybe they have an affair or something. Didn't you notice how distracted Potter is all the time. Maybe that letter was a love letter.' He tried to keep the mirth out of his voice, but failed.
Ginny gave him a look and rolled her eyes. 'Very funny. . . Could you now please help me find a way to see what they are doing?'
Draco winked her to the door of the cottage and lay his head on the floor as if trying to peek through the slit under the door. He pulled out his wand and muttered a spell he had often used with his fellows when they had spied on the girls.
Ginny kneeled beside him and they could both see the hole living room now. Lupin just put a silencing charm on the room (that unfortunately also worked through Draco's spell), than looked down at the dog and said something.
The next moment the dog was replaced by a tall man. Ginny and Draco both let out a gasp as they realised that it was Sirius Black. Harry though didn't look surprised at all. He actually gave the escaped murderer a hug! Then the three of them sat down as Lupin conjured three cups of tea.
Draco and Ginny rose from the floor and quickly walked away from the house. They sat down behind a tree and stared at each other in disbelief.
'What is Black now doing here?! Has suddenly everybody gone crazy?' Draco let out a frustrated sigh.
'I have no idea, but I can't believe that Harry and Professor Lupin have anything to do with him. I mean he is dangerous!' Ginny was equally confused.
'And it is not just that. Black betrayed Potter's parents to Voldemort. Why should Potter now hug him?'
'He betrayed Harry's parents? How do you know?'
'My father once told me about it. Black and James Potter were best friends or something. Lupin was his friend, too.'
'Oh my god! They probably made Harry believe that they didn't do it! He is in danger! We should call the ministry!' Ginny got up but before she could move away Draco grabbed her arm and pulled her back down.
'Relax! We shouldn't do anything before we haven't sorted some things out, don't you think? I mean, Potter didn't exactly look frightened in there, did he? And if he really believes that Black is innocent, they won't just kill him. I say we wait for a while and see if he come out again. And then we can corner him and make him spill everything out, right?'
Ginny nodded and so they sat down in silence and waited.
~*~*~
Two hours later Harry and the big black dog came out of the cottage. The dog immediately sensed the foreign sent that lay behind the door. He sniffed around and suddenly started running. He stopped at a tree and barked. Harry raised an eyebrow at him and went to see what there was. Behind the tree sat Ginny Weasley and Draco Malfoy looking partly scared and partly embarrassed.
Harry stared down at them.
'What are you doing here?'
He already knew that the answer wouldn't please him. Snuffles nudged him and pointed at the house, telling him that it was better to get them into the house.
Harry told them to follow him and Draco and Ginny complied without hesitation, a little afraid of what might happen to them if they didn't. As they entered the house they glanced at each other and stood closer together not knowing what to say. Professor Lupin came down the stairs as he heard them and seemed surprised.
'Ginny, Mr. Malfoy, what are you doing here?' he asked as he came nearer.
'It seems that they spied. How much did you see?' Harry asked them with a somewhat stony glare, as if he had expected better of them, or at least of Ginny.
Ginny flinched a little but then she remembered what they had seen and felt her anger rise.
'I saw that dog transform into Sirius Black! Are you mad Harry?! He is a convicted murderer! And you Professor Lupin! How could you? What did you tell Harry? Damn it. I should have called the ministry right away!'
She stomped her foot on the floor and took a deep breath to calm down. It wasn't usual that she lost her temper but she was furious. And disappointed, because Harry hadn't told anybody. This wasn't just some secret. Black had killed people! And seeing Harry with him made him look like a criminal, too.
Draco put a hand on her shoulder and said: 'Hey, easy! Let's listen first before we start yelling, don't you think so, too, Potter?'
Harry, who had stared at Ginny, gave Draco a look that one could nearly call grateful. He nodded, then sighed. Remus beside him was totally calm, his expression curious. The dog who had stayed still beside them, suddenly made a move and came back into his human form. Both Ginny and Draco started a bit.
Sirius Black was still recognisable, but now that they were near him, Ginny could see that he had changed. He wasn't so skinny anymore and his hair was short. What impressed her the most was his expression, though. He didn't look murderous. He looked . . . well, more civilised, even friendly. As they stared at him a small smile played at the corners of his mouth and Ginny thought that he must have been very handsome when he was young.
'A Weasley and a Malfoy, together! I didn't think I'd ever see that!' His voice was soft but a little hoarse and his eyes were twinkling. He was the only one who looked amused by the situation.
'I really think we should do some explaining, Sirius. It would be best if you sat down for this. It might take a while.' Lupin said, jerking his head in the direction of the sofa.
They sat down and Remus asked if anybody wanted tea. The others shook their heads, but Draco wanted some tea and something to eat, since he had been sitting in the cold for hours. Remus conjured everything and so they sat for a few minutes in silence watching Draco eat some biscuits and sip at his tea. Unlike Ginny he didn't seem to bother with discomfort. That was probably a remnant of his time as "something better".
After a while Harry spoke.
'Ok, first of all, both of you must swear to keep silent about this. Nobody must know.'
Draco looked up. 'And if we don't want to?', he said.
'Then we'll have to obliviate you.' Sirius said calmly. Draco looked at him for a moment, then nodded.
'Ok, I swear that I will tell nobody.' Ginny, who sat beside him, nodded, but said nothing.
Harry relaxed a bit. He knew that the easy start didn't mean that they would believe him. Ginny still didn't look at him.
'Umm, well, you should know that Sirius here is innocent.' At this both Ginny and Draco started to interrupt but were silenced be Remus, who held up a hand motioning them to wait until he was finished.
'Because Peter Pettigrew is alive . . . and it was him who killed all those people . . .and . . .'
This time though, Ginny interrupted anyway. 'Who is Peter Pettigrew? Harry, can't you speak a little clearer?' She looked as if she wanted to believe him, if only for the fact that he was Harry.
Harry sighed again, then shook his head. I can't do this. Can anyone of you tell them?' He addressed the two men in the armchairs at either side of his.
Remus nodded and started again. His voice was slow and calm and they let him talk. Only a few times someone added something or asked about details. When he was finished Ginny was feeling dizzy. So much information in such a short time was difficult to understand.
'So you are working for Dumbledore, now? Fighting against Voldemort?' Draco addressed Black. The man nodded.
'But I can't understand why they didn't realise that you hadn't done that. I mean, in that street, weren't there any signs of what really happened? Normally the ministry can easily recreate the situation and see if the things are right.' Ginny was confused. How could it be that the ministry of magic made such a terrible mistake?
Sirius eyes darkened. His expression became hard. His voice, though, was very quiet.
'They didn't wait this long. They spoke to the muggles that witnessed everything and they said that I was the one who killed all those people. The Crouch sent me right to Azkaban, without a trial. It didn't seem necessary to them to check if they had taken the right man.'
'I have another question. What have you got to do with Barnes?' Draco looked curious. Harry nodded in agreement.
'Yeah, Sirius. I also wanted to ask you about this. I told you about the pensieve, and there she mentioned you. Professor Barnes, I mean.'
'Helen. . .' He murmured. Suddenly his expression got distant. He seemed deep in thought as if remembering something long forgotten. When Harry cleared his throat he came back to reality.
'Helen was, well, you said she mentioned me?'
Harry replied: 'Yes, she asked where you were and Dumbledore said something about her wanting to see you, of course. So, How comes she knows about you?'
'She is a member of the Order. Dumbledore must have told her. I haven't seen her since. . . for sixteen years. We were together in school. She was in our year.'
'You mean, you were friends?' Harry asked. Ginny gave him a sideways look.
'No, not exactly friends. . . you can't really say that. . .' Sirius' voice trailed of and Remus let out a chuckle. Harry nodded.
'Yeah, I couldn't imagine you befriending a Slytherin, anyway. I mean, she gets along with Snape.'
Remus chuckled again as Sirius gave his godson a strange look.
'No, I didn't mean that. I said we were not friends, because we were . . . together.', he finished, his expression apologetic.
Draco nearly choked on his tea. Ginny tried to hide a smile and Harry just stared at him, blushing furiously as he imagined his godfather and Professor Barnes doing, well, things. . .
By now Remus was laughing quite hard. 'Those were the same looks everybody else wore as the got together!', he gasped between fits of laughter. Sirius grinned at him and the fun loving careless boys they had once been showed up for a moment.
After the first shock Harry became very curious. He wanted to know more about those two, but at this moment the old muggle clock above the fireplace gave a sound telling them that it was five o'clock.
'Oh! So late already! You have to get back to the castle!' Remus was up immediately. Sirius rolled his eyes at him.
'Why such a hurry, Moony? They won't kill them if the come a little later.', he said.
'But people will worry and ask questions, and that could get uncomfortable. Besides they have to get back to Hogwarts before dark.', Remus answered.
The three students got up, looking a little disappointed. Sirius saw it a stood up, too.
'Now, you three, listen. I think I will stay here for a while. You can come by next time you get to town, then I will tell you some stories about your teacher.'
They nodded and Harry took a step forward to say goodbye to his godfather.
'Take care Sirius, will you? See you around, then, sometime.' Sirius smiled at him and ruffled his hair a bit.
'You take care, right? And send me an owl if anything happens. Or at least tell Dumbledore. Or Helen.' Again a smile brightened his features. Remus stood beside him and shook Harry's hand.
'Bye, Harry. Don't worry too much. Bye, Ginny. Bye, Draco. It's good to see that you have changed your mind about a few things.' Remus winked at him.
'Your secret is safe with us.' Ginny said as she shook both men's hands and earned friendly smiles.
Before the door opened, Sirius turned back into the huge black dog and escorted them until the other side of town, where he barked one more time and then their ways parted.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Umm, before I started this I wanted to write a SB/OC story. But then I combined it with other ideas and so now this comes out. Hope you like it. In later chapters we will find out more about Helen and Sirius.