My Name is Sirius Black Revised Edition

by kaydi

My name is Sirius Black and I am innocent. I must take up my pen and write my story, for if I don't, then there will be no one who knows the truth. And if no one knows the truth, then who will save Harry?

19. The Burning

Chapter 26: the Running and the Burning

            We were not greeted as usual by Mr. Wright that summer.  In fact no one came to pick us up and we were forced to walk eight miles from the train station to the house.  When we reached the house we were greeted by an unfamiliar woman who introduced herself as Mrs. Manson, the new housekeeper.  Sadly, we learned that Mr. and Mrs. Wright had been sacked the previous winter and that she and her husband would be running things now and they," didn't take mischief from our kind," were, I believe, her exact words.

            That summer, my grandfather was worse than usual.  From the moment I stepped through the door to the moment I left, he never stopped; there was a constant stream of berating and beatings. That summer was the second time I ran away.

            I had been home two weeks and I was attempting to do an essay for Binn's class, in Addi's room.  We were seated on her bed, talking quietly and doing our homework when we heard heavy footsteps on the stairs.

            Now Addi's bedroom is at the top of the stairs, my grandmothers was at the end of the hall and my grandfathers was off another hallway nearer to the front of the house.  To get to mine, you had to continue down the hallway, and then turn right onto a smaller passage.  Almost immediately to your left would be a rickety set of stairs. Up those stairs and my room was the third door on the left. No one but myself ever came up there, unless it was to shout at me more than usual.  But the hall in front of my sister's door was a commonly used one.  So we thought nothing of it until the door burst open. 

            My grandfather stood in the doorway, his face red and his eyes blazing. He looked oddly like an enraged bull and I felt the same panic being trapped in that room with him as I would be trapped in a field with said bull.

             He marched into the room and grabbed the collar of my shirt, dragging me off the bed, causing papers to fly everywhere. 

"What do you think you were doing?" he roared, shaking me. I could smell the alcohol on his breath.   I couldn't answer as he shook me again. My head felt like a sack, flopping around on my neck as his hard hands made bruises on my skin.

             My refusal to answer him only enraged him more and he threw me to the ground.  As I fell, my head struck one of the posts on Addi's bed and I heard an awful crack.  Things became fuzzy and dim and I could hardly focus as the room spun around me. 

            My grandfather seemed not to mind as he proceeded to scream at me, slap and kick me, telling me how I was such a wicked boy, hiding my books and learning magic in his house when he'd strictly forbidden it.

Then he grabbed Addi from where she was watching, horrified, and slapped her, yelling at her about how she'd helped me.  Then he grabbed me by my shirt and yanked me up to my feet.

I was surprised when he gingerly touched my hair, brushing back a black curl that had fallen into my eyes.  The blazing look of madness faded for only one second and it scared me more than anything he'd ever done before.  Then the hand drifted down my face down to my shoulder where he pushed hard.

I fell back to the ground and before I knew it, he was on top of me. Digging his knee into my stomach to ensure that I wouldn't move, he reached for something on the bed.

When he'd found what he wanted he grabbed it and pushed me down farther.  I saw for one fleeting instant a large frilly pillow before he placed it over my face and pushed me to the ground.

I couldn't breathe, I couldn't think, I simply knew that this was bad and I needed air! I kicked and struggled for all I could, but his knee was digging deep into my stomach, preventing me from much movement. I could dimly hear Addi screaming.

I kicked out, thrashing, trying desperately to just get free. I couldn't turn my head to the side and the fabric was too thick to let any air through.  I could feel my kicks and punches getting softer as I tried to keep moving.

 Finally, I dropped my arms to my side and lay still. I did not have the energy to move anymore. Everything seemed to dim.  I felt the pressure on my stomach and the pillow release and I felt more than heard the loud footsteps march down the hall. 

The pillow was snatched off my face instantly and I was looking up into Addi's worried face.  When she saw my eyes open, she pulled me into a hug, cutting off my air supply once again.

Then slowly, I got my feet and began gathering up my things. Addi caught my arm.

"No, Sirius.  Stay here tonight."  I nodded, mind still to fuzzy to put up much of a fight and I settled down on her bed. She crawled up next to me as we used to do so many times as children.  She pushed my bangs out of my face and she was still watching me as I drifted off to sleep.

I awoke to movement.  Addi was moving quietly around the room, gathering things up and putting them in a bag.  I glanced out the window and saw that the moon was still high in the sky.  It was just past full. I wondered about Remus and where he was that night.

She saw me looking at her.

"Hello." She whispered coming over to the bed. "How are you feeling?"

"Horrible headache, but fine."

"Good." She helped me sit up. " Come on."  She whispered.

"Where are we going?"  I asked, keeping my voice low as she pulled open the door and led the way out into the silent hall. She said nothing, but took my hand as she slipped down the steps and down the hall, past Grandfather's study, past the kitchen, past the rooms where the servants slept, to the back door.

This she opened with a key she'd pulled from somewhere, and unlocked it. She pushed me outside and locked the door again behind her.

"Addi, what-"

"Think you can ride?" she asked. When I looked confused, she handed me a broom. My broom.  The broom my grandfather had locked in the garage along with my bike and my trunk.

"Where did you get that?"  I asked, grabbing it.  She smiled.

"You're my brother. You think nothing rubbed off?"  I grinned. "Feel up to a ride?"

"Where to?" I asked.

"The train station."  I watched her carefully.  Was my sweet little baby sister really plotting to run away? Apparently so, I thought as Addi folded her arms impatiently.  I nodded and mounted the broom.

"Get on." She slipped on behind me and wrapped her arms around my waist. "Hold on tight." I whispered and pushed off.

 A glorious feeling of freedom rushed through me as I soared up into the warm summer air. I longed to yell and scream for joy, but didn't for fear of waking up the household that was steadily growing smaller as we gained altitude.

 We made it to the train station much faster than we had before; the sun was just rising over the trees.  I put the broom down behind a shed, and we made our way carefully towards the train, waiting to take us to London.

"What do we do now?"  Addi asked as we sat down on a bench. "If someone sees us, they'll recognize us."  I nodded and frowned.  Then I had an idea.

I reached into my bag and drew out a pair of glasses, Dad's glasses. I slid them over her face and reaching again into the bag, I found a length of string.  I motioned for her to turn around and tied her hair up into a bun at the top of her head.  Then I grabbed a cap and set it atop her head. Luckily, she wasn't very curvy, still rather thin, like me, only I had a much more built up body, from Quiddich. Addi played football for her school, and was good, but she was still very thin.  With this disguise, she could almost, dim light permitting, pass for a boy.

"There. Just lower your voice a bit and this might just work." she grinned and adjusted the cap.

"And you?"

I thought fast. Well, there was one disguise that was sure to fool them all.  However, it was dangerous should someone see me.  But it was worth it if it meant we managed to get safely from here to London and to James.  I glanced around and assured myself that no one could see. Then I closed my eyes and waited for the second of pain as my bones shifted and changed shape, while fur sprouted everywhere.

When I opened my eyes, I was looking up at her, with my horrible dog vision.  But even with that, I could see her shocked face.  I wagged my tail and licked her hand and she simply stared in shook her head, unable to fully understand.                 

 Addi made her way to the ticket counter where she purchased one ticket to London.  The man behind the counter did not seem to recognize her, but eyed me suspiciously.

" What is that?"

"He's my dog.  Why?  Does he need a ticket too?"

"Is it going with you?" he asked, peering down at me. I gave him a growl and he jumped back.

"No, he came to kiss me goodbye. Of course, he's coming. And it's a he, not an it."  For all her credit, Addi was a brilliant actress.  He seemed embarrassed and mumbled a reply, handing her the ticket and pointing her to the platform.

             We climbed aboard the train and made our way to the last compartment, making positively sure we were alone. Then Addi collapsed onto the seat. I jumped up next to her and laid my head on her knee.  She glanced out the window and slowly stroked my head.

             I let the dog mind take over and I sat there, enjoying the feel of her hands caressing my head.  Addi sighed and my ears perked up.

            "I hope this works." She said to me. Of course, in dog form I could not answer her. She couldn't understand me the way James or Remus or Peter could.  But I did my best to reassure her and licked her hand. She smiled and began scratching behind the ears.

             The train whistle hurt my sensitive ears as it blew, announcing the departure.  Then slowly, the train began to move out of the station.  Just as we began to move, I heard a familiar voice on the platform.

            I looked up and Addi glanced out the window.  Grandfather was standing on the platform, shouting at a guard who was trying to explain something to him.  He was shaking his cane at him and speaking loudly.  But I couldn't make out his words over the roar of the train.  I barked at him and Addi giggled. Then we rounded a corner and were free.

            We slept most of the way. The ride was not that long but we hadn't gotten much sleep the previous night.  When we heard the voice announcing we were nearing London, I changed back and Addi pulled off the glasses and the cap and let her long hair tumble down. She muttered about how could she have forgotten a brush and I just laughed.

We decided to get off at Victoria Station.  That way, we could have gone anywhere and it would be almost impossible to trace us.

            The conductor looked surprised as we exited, my arm slung around Addi's shoulder and the both of us talking softly.  When we were out of site, we both broke into a run, sprinting downward to the underground and to Charing Cross, that would bring us closer to Diagon Alley.

             I found the Leaky Cauldron and entered, having first to point it out to Addi.  We waved to the barkeeper, Tom whose hair was beginning to turn gray and made our way into the alley.

            I found James's house quite easily. There is a street off Diagon Alley called Uplane Alley. It is much the opposite of Knockturn.  It is where the richer more powerful families lived.  James's was the first house.

The house was huge and old; reminding me of an old haunted house, which I suppose it, was, seeing as how their butler had been serving the Potters for close to six hundred years now.  It had spirals and turrets and large bay windows.  But it was always brightly lit and had a warm welcome feeling about it.  But perhaps that was Mrs. Potter.

I took a deep breath and knocked on the door.  Giles, their butler opened it.  He had once been a tall man and now floated a good two feet off the ground. He was dressed in his butler's outfit he'd died in; James said something about a heart attack because there were dirty knickers in the clean laundry.

"Oh, it's you, master Sirius." He said, knowing full well that he was in for a rough holiday if James and I were together. "We were not expecting you."

"I know. It's sort of a surprise visit.   Thought I'd pop by."   He nodded and let us in, closing the door behind us.

"Who is it, Giles?" Mrs. Potter called.

"Master Sirius and Miss Adhara, Madam."  He said stiffly.  Mrs. Potter hurried in the hall form wherever she had been.

"Sirius, Adhara! How are you? Is everything alright?"  She asked as she hugged us tightly and placed kisses on both our cheeks. "Come in, come in! Are you hungry? You must be. Giles, have Tinky prepare something for the children."  Tinky was their house elf, and made some of the best food I'd ever tasted.

 We were led to the kitchen and several plates of hot steaming meals appeared before us.   I attacked mine and ate quickly.  Addi was more careful and ate slower.  When we'd finished, Giles cleared the dishes and we made our way to the sitting room where Mrs. Potter questioned us.

"So what are you doing here?" I glanced at Addi.  What to say? I did not want to say that we had run away. To do so would only led to questions.

"Our grandfather is in London for a few days and let us do as we liked.  We decided to come visit James." I replied instead. Addi bit her lip, but said nothing. Mrs. Potter smiled gently.

"Well, of course you're always welcome here. You know that. " She smiled and reached out a hand to brush my cheek. I winced as her fingers touched an old bruise.  For an instant her face clouded over, but it was gone and only the sweet smile that I loved her for found its way onto her face.

"You know where James's room is. You can put your things there. Adhara, I'll show you the guest room closest to your brother. " And she set off.

I set my bag down in James's room."  James is with his father right now. But they should be back presently." She said, smiling. Then she led Addi to the room next door.  I took a deep breath and collapsed on James's bed.  We were free from Grandfather's anger, but for how long? 

I should have gone to the Lupins, I thought, or the Evans's, or the Whites.  I shouldn't have come here. He knows the Potters. He knows I'll come here. I groaned. You're a fool, Black, a bloody fool.

"Padfoot!"  James was on me before I knew he was there.  He pounced on me and we fell to the floor, rolling around and laughing.  It was a long few minutes before we had enough sense to let go and say hello.

Addi and my story were received by James and Mr. Potter that night at dinner.  No one said a word, but I had little doubt they didn't believe me. I got my proof late that night.

 I rolled over on the small cot Mrs. Potter had set out for me.  James was sleeping in his bed beside me, snoozing away.  Even the picture of all six Marauders on his bedside table were sleeping. I couldn't sleep and so wondered if a cup of hot tea might settle my nerves.  I made my way down to the kitchen, but stopped when I heard voices.  It was Mr. and Mrs. Potter. I wondered what they were doing up, but I moved on, not wanting to eavesdrop.  However, when I heard my name, I stopped.

"Harry, it is obvious!  Why can't you see it?"  Mrs. Potter asked. She seemed distressed about something.

"I see it, Mariah.  I see it.  How could I not?"

"Then why don't you do something about it?"  She asked.

"Like what?  What would you have me do?" Mr. Potter seemed angry about something.

"Get them out for there!  You know how much he hated Fiona.  You heard what Orion said.  He hates those children, Sirius the most!"  I peeked in and saw her pacing up and down the sitting room, looking frayed and worried.

"I know, I know." Mr. Potter sighed from his chair.

"Every time I see Sirius, he looks worse. Someday that man is going to kill him, I swear it!"  Mr. Potter shook his head.

"He will not touch Sirius.  I have spoken with him and he understands that if he does, I will know of it."

"But Harry, look at him.   Tomorrow, just look at him.  He has more bruises every time I see him.  I worry so much about them when they're there.  Why can't we do something?"

"And what if he's not doing anything? What is Sirius is falling off his broom or wrecking his bike?  What if Adhara is falling down the stairs?  Then what?"

"But you know they aren't!" Mrs. Potter returned.  I swallowed hard. "Neither Fiona or Orion wanted this.  What would they say today, Harry? If they knew their best friend was allowing this to happen to their only son?"  She glared at Mr. Potter.

 He sighed and raised his eyes. For one instant our eyes locked.   Then I broke his gaze and hurried back upstairs, jumping back into bed and closing my eyes, just as I heard footsteps on the stairs. The door opened, but I lay there unmoving. 

"Dad?"  James murmured, raising his head to look. "What's up?"

"Nothing, Jamie." He whispered, "Go back to sleep." James did as he was told, but I lay there, worrying until the sun rose over the rooftops.

            He said nothing the next morning and neither did I.  There was a tense silence in the air, which was broken only after James, and I got up.  James led me around Diagon Alley and we had a wonderful time, chasing each other and running into our other friends from time to time. We saw Remus when his mother stopped in for a visit. He stayed for a few days. Addi was thrilled.  She did not get to see him much, but even then I could see how much they truly cared for each other.

            About a week afterwards, both Remus and Peter were down for the day and we, having done almost everything there is to do in Diagon alley, including stealing a Gringotts cart and having loads of fun with it, decided to explore muggle London.  Addi declined our invitation to come, claiming that Mrs. Potter wanted to take her shopping. We rolled our eyes at the strangeness of females and set off.

Remus and Peter had hardly ever been there, and James was all for it. We walked around for a bit. Then we came to a small shop off of Covent Gardens. Piercing and tattoos, it said in the shop windows.  I grinned a bit, and pulled the door open.

"No! Sirius!" Remus called, but I was already inside.

The air was smoky and had the slight smell of ink.  A rather large man was seating in a chair. He glanced up at me. I saw he had a large number of various tattoos along with several earrings in both ears.

"Yeah?' he asked gruffly.

"What's the price for one earring?" I asked.

"Five pounds." He said. I reached in my pocket and pulled out my sparse muggle money. Handing him five pounds, I waited. He nodded and motioned to the chair. I sat.

"Right or left?" he asked.

"Right." I said.

"Good choice." He said and showed me a small selection of earrings to choose from. I picked a small one that looked as if it had a fang or a claw dangling from it. He nodded and motioned for me to sit back. Taking the earring, he picked up a small instrument and placed it against my ear. He pulled and it shot through my ear. It stung for a moment, but I didn't move.

Then I looked in the mirror. I liked it. The gold set off nicely against my black hair. Then my eyes strayed to the various tattoos. To my surprise, there was one of a large, shaggy, black dog. I smiled slyly.

"And how much for that?" I asked pointing. He shrugged.

"Another tenner." I nodded and pulled out my last ten and handed it to him.  And he set to work.

My hands shook a bit as he began and he glanced up at me.

"First time?" he asked. I nodded.

"Can you tell?" he laughed, a low rumbling sound and offered me his cigarette.

"Can't smoke while I do this anyway. Take a good long puff, it'll calm you down." I did as was told and inhaled the smoked. At the first few puffs I coughed, trying to sit still. But my lungs soon grew accustomed to the smoke.  I drew it into my mouth and sighed as the drug had its calming effect on me.

The man was obviously, for all his faults, good at his work, because when he'd finished, on my upper arm, just beneath my shoulder, was a very well drawn dog.  I grinned and thanked him, after trading a ten for a pack of cigarettes "Just in case" he said, then went back outside to see my friends. I let my hair fall so it covered my ear and pulled down my sleeve over my new tattoo. But I kept the cigarette in the corner of my mouth.  I couldn't wait to see how they'd react.

James and Peter were seated on the curb outside. Remus was across the street, trying to get a bottle of Coca Cola from an irritated vender with muggle money. I sat down beside James.

"Where'd you get those?" he asked, pointing to the case in my pocket. I nodded towards the store.

"Nice and calming." I said, blowing a smoke ring at him. He waved it away and grinned.

"So what are we doing?" he didn't look at me.

"Waiting for you." He said, lazily. I sighed and Remus finally managed to get the four drinks and cross the street. He handed me mine and raised his eyebrow.

"See anything you wanted?" I shrugged.

"A couple things."  Remus sat down on my left.

"Like what?" Peter asked, making a face. I shrugged and brushed my hair back as if it were hot.

"Sirius!" Remus shouted.  I looked at him, sipping my drink. I knew what he was seeing.

"What?" James asked.

"He did it!" Remus said, pointing to my ear. James climbed around to see.

"Sirius! I can't believe you did it! What's Erin going to say?" I shrugged.

"I don't care."

"Why?" Peter asked. Again, I shrugged.

"I dunno. It sounded like fun." Remus and James shook their heads.

"Only you would do that for fun." James said. "My mom is gonna go off her rocker when she picks us up."

I grinned. "If she goes mad when she sees that, then she'll have a heart attack when I get hot."

"Oh god, he did something else." Remus moaned.

"What?" James asked.

"You really wanna know?"

"Not really." Peter said. Ignoring him, I rolled up my sleeve.

"Oh my god." Remus moaned.

"It looks like you." James said. Then he grinned at me. "Let me guess. It looked like fun?" I grinned.

Well, Mrs. Potter didn't have a heart attack, but she did vow never to let us leave Diagon Alley ever again.

  Erin came down for a day or two and we spent a wonderful evening together, just the two of us.  We went to see a cinema in muggle London and then we spent several hours watching the boats on the Thames.

I saw Erin off that night and made my way down Diagon Alley back to the Potters.  When Giles let me in, I heard low voices in the sitting room. I thought nothing of it and made my way upstairs.

"Sirius?"  I heard Mrs. Potter called. I paused and looked back. She was standing in the hall, looking worried or upset.

"Yeah?" I asked, wondering what could be up.

"There's someone here to see you, Sirius."  Something about her tone set off alarms in my brain.  My suspicions were confirmed when my grandfather stepped into the hall behind her, smiling triumphantly and smoking one of those dreadful cigars. I liked my cigarettes just fine, they only smelled like smoke. The cigars were thick and black and reeked of all the smells I will forever associate with that house and that man.

"Hello, my boy." He said, a hint of smugness in his voice. "Time to go home, don't you think?"  I swallowed hard.  All I wanted to do was run into Mrs. Potter's arms and beg her not to let him take me away, but I couldn't.  I only stood there, frozen from fear and shock.  He glanced at his watch.

"Run along and get your things. I have other appointments."  I nodded and began to slow descent up the stairs.  Once in James's room, I gathered my things.  I heard the door slam downstairs and Addi's voice soon drifted up to me.  It wasn't long before I heard her in the next room. I left, wishing I could talk to James before I left, but he was with Lily and that might take hours.  A note had to suffice, which I left on his desk.

Addi and I exchanged looks as we made our way down the stairs.  Grandfather was waiting impatiently and sighed as Mrs. Potter hugged us and kissed us both, not wanting to let go. She assured us we were welcome anytime and that she loved having us over to stay.

"Come stay for a week near the end of the holidays." She said. We assured her we would try, then made our way down Diagon Alley and out into muggle London, where we climbed into the long black car that was waiting for us.

            None one said a word during the two-hour drive. I gazed out the window, rolling it down and letting the cool summer breeze warm my face, trying to rid my mind of the foggy suffocating smoke from my grandfather's cigar, and trying to forget what awaited me when the car pulled to a stop.

 When it finally did, we were ordered out for the car and up to our rooms where we were locked in. I had a strange feeling and so hid the bag of things I held dear, my photographs, my wand, several trinkets and tricks I had under my mattress. Lucky for me I did because the next morning I was shaken awake by Addi.

"Sirius, you have to come down!  He says so."  Grumbling, I ignored her and rolled over. I slept for most of the day, only getting up when I knew I couldn't possibly sleep another second. I refused to come down to eat, or to see anyone, and so I remained in my room, pacing up and down, cursing myself for being so stupid as to let us get caught. Later that evening when the sun was just about to go down, I heard heavy footsteps on my stairs. I had been writing a letter to Erin and hurriedly finished, tying the letter to Ernie's leg and shooing him out the window just as the key turned in the lock. The door was open in an instant and I was staring at the triumphant face of my grandfather.  I swallowed hard. Any time he looked triumphant meant only bad things for me.  He beckoned to me with one hand, but I did not move. My feet seemed rooted to the ground.

            He glared and reached out to grab the front of my shirt. Since my bed separated the both of us, I was yanked over it and fell, face first, onto the hard stone floor.

             "Get on your feet!" my grandfather growled.  I did as I was told.  When I was standing, I could see Mr. Mason behind grandfather, seemingly waiting for something.  Grandfather seized the back of my shirt and dragged me down the stairs

"Get the trunk and bring it to my study. Leave everything inside."  He ordered. Mr. Mason nodded and I was forced down the steps, tripping over my own feet and he hurried me.  We reached the ground floor and I found myself released. Grandfather went to stand in front of the fire, which was blazing even though it was the middle of the summer. Grandmother was seated in an armchair, Addi on a stool beside her.  She was staring at the floor, rocking slowly back and forth. I took a step towards her.

"Stay where you are."  The stern voice ordered.  Rebellion rushed in me and I   took another step forward.

"I'm warning you."  Again the voice roared across the room. Addi looked up finally and quickly shook her head. I frowned, but stayed where I was.  The room was silent with only the crackling of the fire, which only helped escalate the tension. I glanced at my grandfather who gazed into the fire and then went to serve himself another drink.

Overhead I heard thunder rumble and saw the flash of lightning through the study window. I shivered, knowing it had been a stormy night the night my mother had been murdered.  I glanced at Addi and she looked worriedly at my grandfather. Soon Mr. Mason appeared, lugging my trunk behind him.  I was confused, what was going on? What could my grandfather possibly want with my trunk?  Wasn't he going to hit me?  I was prepared for that, I could handle that. I couldn't have been less prepared for what he had in mind.

"Open it." my grandfather ordered. He did so.  Inside were all my usual things, my books and ingredients, my robes and quills and parchment, and my broom.  My trusty old Comet Dad had bought me before my second year.  He reached inside and pulled it out.

"A broom?  Don't tell me you ride brooms as well."  Tentatively I nodded.

"It's for a game, Quiddich. I play on the house team."

"Well, you won't be needing that anymore." He replied with a sneer and in a second, had thrown my cherished broom onto the fire!

"No!"  I was across the room in a flash and reached into the fire, trying to save my broom, but strong hands pulled me back.  I struggled, fighting to save my broom. I couldn't just let it burn! But I could not escape the grip that held me.

"Throw the rest of it in." my grandfather ordered and Mr. Mason moved to do just that.

"NO!" I shouted, "You can't! Those are mine!  No!"  I fought harder and harder and he tossed my robes, books, quills and parchment onto the fire where they joined my broom, which was now only a burnt stick.  Suddenly I was dropped and I collapsed in front of the fire.  I knew it was hopeless to try and retrieve anything now, but that didn't stop me.  I snapped my hand in and managed to find one book. I grabbed it and held it close,  it was all I had.  I sat there, rocking slightly on my heels, staring into the fire, watching it consume the ashes of my precious belongings.

 No one said a word for a long time. I could not take my eyes from the fire, not even when I was yanked to my feet and Addi took my hand.  Surprisingly enough, my grandfather did not lay a hand on me that night, but the damage had already been done.  I was without supplies for the coming year, books, quills, parchment, supplies, broom, everything was gone. And with our meager account at Gringotts that was steadily growing smaller, there was little I could do. All I knew was I had to leave.  I had to get out for a few weeks.  When I had made my way back up to my room, I remembered the book I still help in my hands. It was my Transfiguration book, slightly charred, but intact.  I glanced at it, trying to keep the sobs down. It was all I had left now.  My books, robes, everything was gone.  My broom, he'd taken my broom. Now I couldn't fly, I couldn't soar, I couldn't play.  And that killed me.  Thank God he never found my bike.

That night, when the house was still, I crept down from my room to the phone in the hall. I dialed the first number I thought of. Lily.  She was the only one with a phone who could help me now. And luckily, I wouldn't have to use a fire, so she couldn't see my face.

The phone rang several times before a tired male voce answered, "Hullo?"

"Is Lily there? I need to speak with her."

"Who is this?  Do you know how late it is?" he sounded irritated. I hurried to explain.

"Yes, sir. I do know. And I'm sorry for disturbing you, but this couldn't wait.  I need to speak with Lily, please." 

"Alright." He sighed and I heard shuffling and mumbling. After a few moments Lily's half asleep voice answered me.

"'Lo?"

"Lily?" There was a pause.

"Sirius, what are you doing?  Do you have a clock? Do you even know what time it is?"  Next to me the hall clock chimed the hour.

"I know exactly what time it is, but this couldn't wait.  Lil, I need a favor." 

            "What?" she sighed. "What is so important that it couldn't wait till morning."

"Well, I was wondering," I hesitated, unsure of how to phrase my problem. I couldn't tell her the truth.  I decided on the best course of action, to lie.  "You see, we need a place to stay.  Can we come there? I don't meant to invite us, but it's an emergency."

"Of course, Sirius." She replied as if I were stupid, "You know you both are always welcome here.  But why call now?"

"Well, when I say stay with you, I mean can we come tomorrow." This time there was a longer pause.

"I suppose so. But why?" That was the thing with Lily. She didn't let up on something easily. I struggled for an answer.   When I didn't answer, Lily found an answer for herself.

"It's your grandfather, isn't it? He went after you, didn't he? What did he do? Did he hit you? God, I'll kill him!"

"No!"  I fought off her anger, trying to calm her down, "No, he didn't hit me.  He didn't touch me.  But you are right, he is the reason."  I knew she was waiting for a response.  So I settled for the truth. "He took my things."

"What do you mean?"

"He took everything, my robes, my books, my broom," my voice cracked and I paused. "He took everything and threw it into the fire!"  I heard a gasp on her end.

"My god! Why?"  I shook my head.

"I was mouthing off and he said it would teach me."

"It's not your fault. Don't worry. We'll be there to pick you up bright and early."  I nodded, but before I could say another word, I felt a hand clamp down on my shoulder and spin me around.

Startled, I dropped the phone and gazed up at the red furious face of my grandfather.

" What do you think you were doing?" he roared.

"I was just-" Before I could finish, he slapped me, hard.  The blow sent me to the floor and I glared up at him.

"Don't you dare talk back to me! You were trying to run away again, weren't you, you ungrateful little urchin!" He sent a kick to my ribs that made me gasp with the pain.  He kicked out again and again, both times knocking the wind out of me. Then he seized my collar and proceeded to drag me up the stairs, pausing for a moment to hang up the phone.

As we moved up the stairs, I realized what that meant. It meant Lily had heard everything! I closed my eyes and prayed as I was dragged up the front flight up steps and thrown, none too gently, into my own room. I heard the lock clicked and I was left alone.

It was much later, when the sun arose that I heard a pounding below me.  It too me awhile to realize someone was knocking on the front door.  Unfortunately, I could hear no words, but as I peaked out my window, I saw a muggle car parked in front of the house.  I sat back and frowned.

It wasn't long until I heard footsteps on the stairs.  They were light, and it sounded like there was more than one of them.  They paused in front of my door and I cautiously got to me feet and slipped into my closet. I didn't want my grandfather to go after me again. 

The door creaked as it swung open and two sets of feet entered my room.  I was both shocked and relieved to hear Addi's voice call my name.

"Sirius?"  I stepped out from my hiding place.  Addi was standing there, a small bag over her shoulder, with Lily.  I took a deep breath.

"Is this Sirius's room?" Lily asked. They hadn't seen me yet.  Lily sounded both horrified and disgusted as she looked around my now empty room.

"Yeah, horrible, isn't it?" Addi replied. I frowned. It wasn't that bad, really.

"Hi."  Addi's gaze flitted over my face and I knew there had to be a bruise there. My sides ached, but I ignored the pain.

"Grandfather says get your things.  He's not pleased with you, Sirius."  Addi warned me.

"Is he ever?" I asked, reaching under the bed and pulling out my wand, pictures, and my book.  Addi offered me her bag and I dumped them inside.  Lily frowned deeply.

"My Dad is waiting downstairs.  Come on then." We made our way down the stairs, where I passed my grandmother who gave me a disgusted look.   I could hear shouting from downstairs. My grandfather was yelling about something.  As we came down the front stairs, I saw him standing in the hall, furiously waving his arms about and shouting at a tall older man with red hair, Lily's hair.  That must be her Dad, I thought. They stopped speaking as we came down.  My grandfather glared at the man but approached me and, grabbing my shirt, shoved me hard against the wall.

"What have I told you about brining your kind here?" he hissed. I glared back.

"They're not my kind. They're muggle's, like you."  He slammed me against the wall again.

"What did you call me?" He didn't bother to lower his voice this time.

"A muggle. It means non-magic. That's what you are, aren't you?"  I felt his hand clench as if he was just dying to wrap his hands around my neck and squeeze, but he dropped me. In a flash I had grabbed a hold of Addi and Lily and we were out the door and down the steps.  Mr. Evans came down after us and Lily introduced us. I gave him my best smile. He seemed to genuinely like me and expressed concern  over my grandfather's treatment.

"He shoves me around a bit, but nothing too bad." I told him. "He just doesn't like magic."

"Sounds a bit like Petunia." He said over his shoulder.  I must have looked confused because Lily turned around to grin at us.

"Petunia's my older sister. She's as muggle as you can get and hates magic. She hates me too."  Mr. Evans gave Lily a look and I had a feeling they'd had this conversation before.

"Now Lily, Petunia doesn't hate you. She just feels a bit, well, jealous, is all.  You go to school, you can do magic. Why, I'm jealous half the time!"  he grinned.

"Yes, but you don't call me a freak, now do you?" she returned. I sighed. I knew the feeling very well. Surprisingly, it took less than half an hour to reach Lily's, though it was in a very different setting from Black Manor. Their small stone house was nestled in the woods just a bit, away from the noise of the rest of the neighborhood.  There was a small garden, charming as English gardens are, and smelling of something sweet.  Mrs. Evan's stood outside to welcome us. She was blond with the same bright green eyes as Lily.  A bit on the plump side, but that only added to her appeal.  She gave Lily a tight hug as soon as she was out for the car. Then she pulled both Addi and me into a hug as well. I was a bit surprised. I hadn't even met this woman yet and she was hugging me like her own son.  When she let me go, she smiled down at me.

"Mr. Sirius Black.  After all this time, I finally get to meet you.  Whenever Lily comes home it's James this, Sirius that, why, you and your friends are all she talks about. Especially that James." She winked at me as Lily groaned.

"Mum!" 

"Oh dear, mustn't embarrass Lily now.  Perhaps I shouldn't say another word. " I grinned and turned to glance at Lily, reveling my bruised left cheek as I did so.  Mrs. Evans gasped and   turned my chin towards her to get a better look.
"My that is a nasty bruise. What happened?"

"Wrecked my bike." I told her, praying it would fool her. It seemed to work and she smiled and pulled me inside.

"Come on in, I have some ice you can put on it to stop the swelling,"  

I entered the Evans home and smiled. It had that wonderful feeling of normalcy I'd grown up under.   Mrs. Evans led me to the kitchen where she put several ice cubes in a rag then placed it on my cheek.

"Hold that there for a few minutes." It was icy cold, but when Lily and Addi entered in a few minutes, they were smiling and giggling and I felt safe once again.

Lily, Addi, and Erin's friendship was an odd thing. It was much like Addi and Remus's relationship.  Although she did not go to our school, Addi spent most of her vacation with my friends.   Several times, she had gone to Remus's without me.  She, Lily, and Erin seemed to be best of friends whenever they were together.  It would be as if they had never been apart.

I had asked her once or twice why she never went to her friends over the summer.

"I get to see them all year," she replied," I only get to see Lily, Erin, James and Remus, in the summer."

We sat around the table, while Mrs. Evans served us breakfast.  She was an excellent cook.  As good as magic food is, there is something about a home cooked meal that just makes it all worth it. She piled our plates with sausage, bacon, toast, and many other things. I ate as much as I could and was on my third plate when a tall bony blond with a frown on her face, entered the kitchen.   She gave Addi and I surprised looks as if she didn't know we were coming, which, I suppose, she didn't.

"Good morning, Petunia."  Mrs. Evans said. "You're just in time for breakfast."  The girl, Petunia, sat down across form me and glared at Lily when she said good morning.

"Sleep well?"

"Hardly.  I heard the phone ring late last night and then you insisted on talking to Mum and Dad for an hour.  It's a wonder I even got back to sleep."  I glanced at my food, feeling a bit embarrassed.   Now I was mentally hitting myself for panicking and calling Lily.  But I couldn't go back now.   It was the second time I had run away that summer.

Lily must have seen my face and guessed what I was thinking, because she put her arms around me and gave me a quick hug.

"Don't worry." She whispered, "I'm glad you called."  I smiled a bit weakly and she grinned back.

"Who are you then?" Petunia asked Addi who was sitting on her right. Addi frowned at her.

"Petunia, this is Adhara Black and her brother, Sirius Black.  They're here for a bit, so you'd better be nice." Lily warned her. " If Sirius here doesn't like you, he can make your life miserable."  I grinned evilly.

"Pleased to meet you, Miss Evans." I said, doing a mock bow at Petunia.  She decided to skip breakfast that morning.

After we'd eaten our fill, we were led up to the guest bedroom.  It was small, though nicely furnished.  It was colored in a pleasant  \soft blue, complete with curtains and  an open window.

"You and the boys will be sleeping in here.  Addi and Erin will be in my room." Lily said.

"Remus, James and Peter are coming?"  I asked, turning around to look at her. She nodded.

"I had sent the owl yesterday.   You just didn't get it in time.  I was actually going to invite you anyway for a week or two, but now that you're here, it saves us all a bit of trouble, doesn't it?" she said. I nodded.

            The rest of vacation passed quickly. James, Remus, Erin, and Peter did come as planned. They said nothing, but I noticed James giving me strange looks. I remember one night, walking out of my room and finding them all talking about me.

            As I listened to them worry, my fear grew. What if they knew about what was happening? What would happen then? I couldn't keep this up for long.

            But as usual, it faded with my bruises and when Mrs. Evans dropped us off at the train station, I had almost never been more ready to go home.