Another chapter, down! I thank you all for reviewing it keeps me motivated.
The reason for the lateness of this chapter was that fan fiction.net
wasn't working properly and I didn't want to put a new chapter up during
that time. Sorry about the delay. Enjoy!
Oh yah, I think I might have a Mary Sue in here so please alert me if this is the case, I think I got a little carried away with a pointless little plot bunny!
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Sirius set Harry down gently on the couch and approached the strange owl carefully. Before touching the letter it carried Sirius looked at the writing on the envelope. It was familiar, but he couldn't place it. Slowly he removed the letter from the owl and unfolded it. He read it out loud in a soft murmur, relief spreading over his face as he read.
Dear Sirius,
Remus showed us the letter you left him, and we believe you too. The poor boy, he seemed so lonely when we talked. I'm so sorry all this has happened to you. We wanted the best for you, and what you have now isn't the best. You should be out meeting women, not hiding from the ministry! We're so sorry all this has happened.
We want you to know that we think you're doing the right thing, though. At first your father was upset that you ran away from your problems, but Remus convinced him there was no other way. What you did was best for you and for Harry. We hope you both are well. I know you aren't the best with kids, never have been, but I bet you're doing a great job. A pointer, music will usually put any child to sleep. If he's crying and you need sleep, play him some soft music, it'll help, I guarantee it.
I hope this letter was helpful, son. Remember that we love you, and miss you greatly. We hope you can come back soon. We're getting old and would like to see you one more time before we die. I'm sure we'll see you again soon.
Love,
Mom and Dad
Sirius was overcome with relief and sadness as he read the letter. The last bit of the letter really hit him hard. He never thought about the length of time he'd be gone. The fact that he may never again see his parents, his relatives, Remus, deeply hurt him, and for the first time since he could remember he just broke down.
He had cried a bit over the past few days, but not like this. Sirius was crying with heart wrenching sobs. Tears were flowing rapidly down his face making large water marks on his shirt. He dropped the letter and crumbled to the floor where he cried into his lap. He cried and cried for a long time, until he could cry no more. He was left with nothing but a pit of sadness in the depths of his stomach. But at that moment, Sirius decided he would cry no more, at least not for himself. Until he could again return to England, Sirius vowed to never shed another tear for any reason.
He dried his face, picked up a book and started reading, trying to forget that anything else existed.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
"I swear! He's innocent! I know Sirius didn't do this!" Remus yelled.
"Remus, I want to believe you, I really do, but I know for a fact that Sirius was the secret keeper. James and Lily told me two hours before they did the spell that they were using Sirius. I told them I'd do it, but they refused. Do you really think they'd choose Peter Pettigrew over me?" Dumbledore said.
Remus had gone to Hogwarts the next afternoon to try to get Dumbledore on his side as well. He figured that if anyone could help there cause it was Dumbledore. However, it was much harder to convince him of Sirius's innocence than Remus ever dreamed.
"I don't know why they did it, but I know they did it. Sirius would never do that to them, never! I know him, and I know Peter. Peter would do this!"
"I'm sorry, Remus, I don't believe it. Sirius Black was the secret keeper. Of course he's going to tell you he wasn't so you'll believe him. He'll do the same to you Remus, you mark my words."
"He will not! Sirius Black is not a betrayer, he won't betray me and he didn't betray James and Lily. He has Harry, and Harry's safe. . .I hope."
"So if, Sirius wasn't the secret keeper, and that's a big if, why did he leave, and kidnap Harry no less?"
"Because he was scared. I imagine he still is. He knew people would assume he did it, and like you said, who's going to believe that he wasn't the secret keeper just because he said he wasn't? Peter left to you know? I haven't seen him since the day James and Lily died. He's scared too."
"Yes, well, he didn't kidnap Harry Potter as well, now did he?" Dumbledore said sardonically. Remus was losing more and more respect for his old headmaster as the minutes wore on.
"Sirius has legal custody over Harry, it wasn't kidnap. And it was a hell of a lot better idea than leaving him with his muggle relatives. Have you even met them?"
Dumbledore shook his head, no.
"Trust me, Harry wouldn't have done well there. They're the worst people I've ever met in my life, and with my. . .curse, I've met a lot of bad people. I can't believe you even thought of sending him there."
"With his relatives he'd be safe. With Sirius Black, he's not safe! Sirius Black is a murderer!"
"Ugh, I've had enough!" Remus said and leapt from his seat. He stormed out of Dumbledore's office and slammed the door. Quickly, he ran through the castle, out the door and off to Hogsmead where he apparated home. He wasn't sure if he could ever get Sirius and Harry back to England, back to safety without first finding a certain rat.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Monday morning Sirius got ready for his first day of work and waited patiently for Emily to arrive at his apartment. The problem was, she never came. He waited until the last possible moment and she still didn't come.
Sirius didn't know what to do. He had to work that day as he only had one hundred dollars left of his money. He couldn't afford to not have that job. So Sirius did the only thing he could think of. He went down the hall and knocked on the door that he assumed belonged to Emily and her family.
A girl around the age of five opened the door. Sirius knew he had the right house because like Emily the little girl had Lily's hair. "Hi," she said, half hiding behind the door.
"Hi," Sirius said in the sweetest voice he could muster over his stress. "Is your sister home?"
"Emily?"
Sirius nodded.
"She's hurt, she won't leave her room."
"Hurt? What do you mean hurt?"
"I don't know. . .she got hurt, she was crying."
"Can I see her please?"
"I'll go see!"
Sirius watched the girl run off and then stepped further into the apartment. It was just like his own, but smaller. Sirius noted that it didn't have a very homey feel to it. Maybe that was the source of the girls attitude problem.
"Some guy wants to see you Emily!" Sirius heard the little girl yell. But he heard no response. Hoping the kids parents weren't home, Sirius took it upon himself to try to get Emily out of her room.
He followed the path the little girl had taken and found her sitting in front of a closed door. He knocked firmly on the door and said, "Emily, it's Sirius. . ." he began, not knowing what else to say. "Er. . .why didn't you come over like you said you would?"
"Please go away," was the only response from behind the door.
"I would, but I really need you to watch Harry. . .from what I saw, you really enjoyed spending time with you, and he enjoyed it too. Do you not want to be his babysitter? Am I going to have to find someone else?"
He got no answer. Usually he wouldn't have done this, but he was desperate. Slowly he opened the door. What he saw surprised him greatly.
Emily was sitting on her bed, arms hugging her knees against her chest. Tears were streaming down her face. But that's not what surprised Sirius. As she looked up at him he saw a livid bruise over her eye, a cut on her chin and scraped up arms.
"What happened?!" He asked shocked.
She shook her head and looked away.
"Tell me," Sirius commanded gently, sitting next to her on the bed.
With eyes full of sorrow she looked at him and nodded her head. "I got beat up. . ."
"I see that, care to tell me how?"
"Well, it started off as. . .a cat fight, as they call them. I called this girl a bitch, and well, she didn't take it well. So she started trying to hit me, and I could have taken her, until her boyfriend came over too. . .her boyfriend's really popular, so he soon had everyone in the hallway on me too. . .needless to say. . .I didn't win," she laughed bitterly at this.
"Nobody stuck up for you. . .where were your friends?"
Sirius saw more tears form behind her eyes. "I-I don't really have any. . ." She then started sobbing. Sirius awkwardly put his arm around her and patted her back.
"Kids are jerks," he said knowingly. "They only do that to make themselves feel better."
"I don't think so. . .they just really don't like me."
"Well they should, you're a nice person, who I hope is still nice to me and will still watch my godson, so I can go to work where I need to be in five minutes," Sirius said with a grin.
She smiled through her tears and nodded her head. Sirius pulled her off the bed and led her to his own apartment.
"Okay, thank you so much. When I get back we're going to have a nice talk about you're little bullying situation, alright?"
She nodded and looked slightly embarrassed.
Sirius was about to leave when he thought of something. "Who's staying with your sister?"
"No one. . .my parents generally leave her home alone."
"She can't be more than five!"
"She's not she's four."
"Well she should have someone with her. . .why don't you bring her over here?"
She rolled her eyes and said, "Fine."
"Good, I'll see you in a couple of hours. I think I get out at eight."
"OK, bye."
Sirius left. When he got to the grocery store he was five minutes late. Sirius apologized to the boss and told him it would never happen again. The boss didn't look happy about it, but he was desperate and let it slide.
The day was Hell. Not only did he have to spend nearly six hours with Justin the annoying cashier, but he also had to learn American currency, how to work the register, and deal with the rudest people he had ever met in his life.
Justin told him he was supposed to ask every customer how they were, so he did, every time.
More times than Sirius could count, he was completely ignored, got a rude 'fine', or was told, "I need a pack of Marbs." Sirius was ready to scream at the next person who didn't say, "I'm fine and yourself," or something along those lines.
Needless to say by the end of the night he was ready to go home and crawl into bed. He knew he wouldn't be given that luxury, however.
When he walked through the door he smiled to himself. Emily's little sister was sprawled out on her back, sleeping on the floor. Harry was lying in the crevice of Emily's arm, who was also on the floor, leaning against the couch. Her head was tilted all the way back and she was snoring quite loudly.
He let them be for a little while and changed his clothes in his room. He then went out and picked up his godson. Harry woke when he did this, but didn't cry. He just smiled at Sirius and mumbled, "Seewees."
"Yeah, I'm here."
"Did you have fun tonight?" Harry just looked numbly at Sirius who then tickled him, making him giggle. Sirius bent his head and kissed Harry and then rocked him back and forth a bit in his arms. He was back to sleep in minutes. Sirius set him in his crib and sat down on his couch.
He tapped Emily's shoulder and then shook it. Slowly she woke up and looked into Sirius's face.
"Oh. . .sorry, I didn't mean to fall asleep," she said, trying to wipe the sleep out of her eyes.
"It's okay."
"How was work?" She asked and moved from the floor next to him on the couch.
Sirius groaned, "Terrible, absolutely terrible. I never knew people could be so rude."
"I did."
"I know. . .So about your-er-situation. . ."
She looked down at her lap.
"Tell me, again, what happened today."
"Okay. . .I was switching classes and this girl, Hillary, bumped into me and didn't apologize or anything. So I called her a bitch, under my breath, but she heard me. . .and she walked up to me and smacked me. . .so I smacked her back. No one does that to me."
"And then. . ."
She sighed, "And then her boyfriend came over and knocked me down. . .then his friends did the same, and soon everyone who could get near me was either pulling my hair or kicking me. . .you think my face looks bad? You should see my legs and back."
"I can't believe the whole school did that to you."
"They did. . .they're all a bunch of assholes."
"You must have provoked some of them though," Sirius said gently, not wanting to piss her off. It didn't work.
"I didn't do anything to them! I was just trying to get to class!"
"Calm down, calm down. . .I mean in the past. Did you treat them the way you treated me that day I met you?"
"Maybe. . .But I don't treat people like that unless they make me mad."
"What do they do to make you mad?"
She looked down, "I don't know."
"Yes you do know."
Sad eyes looked up at him, "They make me mad because. . .they don't. . .they don't include me. I moved here two years ago, and I was the new kid. No one likes the new kid, no one makes friends with the new kid. . .it's social suicide. So they never talked to me. . .and I got angry, and you see what that got me."
"That sucks."
"Gee, you think?"
"You need to lose that attitude. . .I think that accounts for half of your problems. People aren't going to want to talk to you if they think you're going to bite there heads off when they say one thing."
Again, she looked down.
"So tomorrow, you're going to go back to school, you're going to hold your head up high, and you're not going to say one rude thing. . .not one. Nobody's mean to someone who's nice."
"I don't think I can go a day without being rude to someone."
"Save it for after school then and you can be rude to me."
"I really don't think you understand what this is like."
"You're right, I don't. I had four of the best friends in the world when I was in school. James, Lily, Remus and Peter. Now two of them are dead, one should be, and like me the other's all alone. So right now, I do know what you're feeling like. Right now, I don't have any friends either. . .but it must be a lot harder to have that problem when you're growing up. That's when a lot of tough stuff happens."
"Yeah it does," she said softly.
"So, where are your parents?"
"My Dad's back in Boston, that's where we're from. My mom is always working. She works double shifts at the hospital, so the only time I see her really is on the weekends and when I'm up really late."
"I'm sorry to hear that."
"Yeah, well. . .that's life, right?"
Sirius nodded.
"Well, you should get home, get your homework done, get that little one to sleep. What's her name?"
"Sammy."
"Isn't that a boys name?"
"It's short for Samantha."
"Oh," Sirius said feeling rather stupid.
"Thanks, Sirius. . .I don't know if any of this will be helpful, but thanks for trying."
"Not a problem. Just, don't let it happen again, okay. I don't like seeing bruises."
She smiled and nodded. Then, she got up and woke Sammy. "C'mon, time to go home."
"I want to stay here, please, Em," she said groggily. Sirius smiled.
"No, we have to go home. You have to sleep in your bed or mom will worry."
"Okay," she mumbled and let her sister help her to her feet.
She opened the door and then jumped a mile.
"Where the hell have you been?!" Sirius heard coming from the hall. Emily backed into the apartment. The owner of the voice followed her and stood in the doorway, revealing a woman in her early forties. Her hair was a light shade of red which at the moment matched the color of her face. "I come home early to spend time with my girls and find the apartment empty! Empty! Do you have any idea how that made me feel?!"
"Mom, I was babysitting! I told you the other day that I was going to be babysitting for the new neighbor!"
"You little liar! You told me no such thing!"
"Yes I did, and you said, "That's great dear." Maybe if you want to know stuff you should listen once in a while!"
"Emily, you're coming home now!" she screeched, stomping her foot and pointing down the hall. Emily moved to walk past her, but her mother grabbed her by the chin.
"What the hell happened to you?! Did he do that to you?!" She shrieked pointing at Sirius.
"No, mom! This happened at school. He was at work all night, I was babysitting for him! Don't you listen?!"
"I don't want you spending time alone with a grown man! He's probably just like your father!"
Emily turned crimson and stepped back inside the apartment and slammed the door in her mother's face.
Sirius looked at her shocked. "Go sit down." She didn't move. "Now!" he said forcefully. She did. Sirius then opened the door and stepped outside.
"Okay, Miss, I think you need to calm down," Sirius began.
"Calm down? Calm down! My daughter is in there with bruises all over her. Do you know who used to do that to her?"
Sirius flinched not really wanting to know.
"Her father!" the woman screamed. "That's why we moved here, to Rhode Island, so that she wouldn't get hurt anymore!"
"Okay, I just talked to her about all this. I told her how to get along better with the kids at school. . .She's going to try. Please calm down."
"I can't calm down," she moaned and sat down against the wall.
She stayed there for a few minutes with her head in her hands and then looked up at Sirius. "I'm sorry I accused you of doing those things, I just.worry."
"It's understandable, but just to let you know, I'm not going to hurt your daughter in any way. I'm just a single guy trying to raise my godson."
"You're godson?"
"Yeah, his parents died about a week ago. It's still fresh in my mind. . .and his. The reason I picked your daughter to baby sit him is that she has the exact same hair as Harry's mother, Lily. It puts him at ease. It's like she's not really gone, understand?"
"Yes, and I'm terribly upset about my. . .outburst. The stress is just getting to me."
Sirius nodded. "If I let you back in do you promise not to verbally attack your daughter?"
She blushed and nodded.
"And your name is?"
"Oh, sorry. . .I'm Julie, Julie Dalton. . .for now. But I do intend to change that name."
Sirius nodded his head and said, "I'm Sirius Black."
"It's nice to meet you."
"And you."
Sirius opened the door revealing two crying girls. Emily was hugging her little sister and they were both sobbing. Julie started to as well when she walked inside.
"I'm sorry, baby," she cried sitting down and hugging both her daughters. Emily pulled roughly away and went to stand by Sirius, as though she wanted him to protect her.
Sirius put his hand on her shoulder and gently pushed her forward, whispering, "Talk to her." Emily gave him a hopeless look and walked back to the couch, sitting as far from her mother as was physically possible.
"I'm sorry, honey. I'm sorry I don't listen to you, I'm sorry I'm not around much, I'm sorry you've been hurt. . .I'm sorry I just lost my temper, but honey, you scared the hell out of me. I'm just so sorry, honey."
Sirius saw Emily's lip tremble and tears started running again. Julie moved closer to her daughter and wrapped her in a tight hug. Sirius smiled to himself when he saw that this time Emily wasn't breaking away. She was hugging back.
After they hugged Julie pulled back and dried her daughters tears. Emily smiled at her.
"Let's go, honey, I think we've intruded on Mr. Black enough for one night," she said grinning at Sirius.
"No problem," Sirius said. "Have a nice night." He walked to the door and opened it. Julie grabbed Sammy in her arms and walked out the door. Emily followed but stopped before walking out.
"Remember what I said," Sirius said. "I don't want to see another bruise on you tomorrow."
"Right," Emily said with a nervous smile. "I'll try."
"Good. See you later."
"Night," Emily said and then left the room.
Sirius closed the door behind her and then leaned against it, sighing heavily.
What a night. He was glad he had helped the family out a little, but it was too hectic for his liking.
Sirius went to bed that night more exhausted than he had ever been. The stress of his situation was overwhelming, and he really wasn't all that happy. He didn't know how long he could live like he was now, as a muggle, as a parent, as a cashier.
Three years later he was still going at it, but he still wasn't happy.
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So next chapter shows life three years later. I didn't want to make such a jump, but as one reviewer said, I shouldn't make this like the Real World. The action will be happening fairly soon and there will be some happy and some unhappy reunions.
BTW, Sirius will not be hooking up with Julie, Emily's mom. If it sounded like they would I'm sorry, but really, the way I figured it she's almost twenty years older than him, and I really don't want that.
This is graduation week at my school, so I have many events, so I don't know when the next chapter will be out. Should be ready in at least a week and a half. Depends on how many marching practices we have. . . : )
Oh yah, I think I might have a Mary Sue in here so please alert me if this is the case, I think I got a little carried away with a pointless little plot bunny!
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Sirius set Harry down gently on the couch and approached the strange owl carefully. Before touching the letter it carried Sirius looked at the writing on the envelope. It was familiar, but he couldn't place it. Slowly he removed the letter from the owl and unfolded it. He read it out loud in a soft murmur, relief spreading over his face as he read.
Dear Sirius,
Remus showed us the letter you left him, and we believe you too. The poor boy, he seemed so lonely when we talked. I'm so sorry all this has happened to you. We wanted the best for you, and what you have now isn't the best. You should be out meeting women, not hiding from the ministry! We're so sorry all this has happened.
We want you to know that we think you're doing the right thing, though. At first your father was upset that you ran away from your problems, but Remus convinced him there was no other way. What you did was best for you and for Harry. We hope you both are well. I know you aren't the best with kids, never have been, but I bet you're doing a great job. A pointer, music will usually put any child to sleep. If he's crying and you need sleep, play him some soft music, it'll help, I guarantee it.
I hope this letter was helpful, son. Remember that we love you, and miss you greatly. We hope you can come back soon. We're getting old and would like to see you one more time before we die. I'm sure we'll see you again soon.
Love,
Mom and Dad
Sirius was overcome with relief and sadness as he read the letter. The last bit of the letter really hit him hard. He never thought about the length of time he'd be gone. The fact that he may never again see his parents, his relatives, Remus, deeply hurt him, and for the first time since he could remember he just broke down.
He had cried a bit over the past few days, but not like this. Sirius was crying with heart wrenching sobs. Tears were flowing rapidly down his face making large water marks on his shirt. He dropped the letter and crumbled to the floor where he cried into his lap. He cried and cried for a long time, until he could cry no more. He was left with nothing but a pit of sadness in the depths of his stomach. But at that moment, Sirius decided he would cry no more, at least not for himself. Until he could again return to England, Sirius vowed to never shed another tear for any reason.
He dried his face, picked up a book and started reading, trying to forget that anything else existed.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
"I swear! He's innocent! I know Sirius didn't do this!" Remus yelled.
"Remus, I want to believe you, I really do, but I know for a fact that Sirius was the secret keeper. James and Lily told me two hours before they did the spell that they were using Sirius. I told them I'd do it, but they refused. Do you really think they'd choose Peter Pettigrew over me?" Dumbledore said.
Remus had gone to Hogwarts the next afternoon to try to get Dumbledore on his side as well. He figured that if anyone could help there cause it was Dumbledore. However, it was much harder to convince him of Sirius's innocence than Remus ever dreamed.
"I don't know why they did it, but I know they did it. Sirius would never do that to them, never! I know him, and I know Peter. Peter would do this!"
"I'm sorry, Remus, I don't believe it. Sirius Black was the secret keeper. Of course he's going to tell you he wasn't so you'll believe him. He'll do the same to you Remus, you mark my words."
"He will not! Sirius Black is not a betrayer, he won't betray me and he didn't betray James and Lily. He has Harry, and Harry's safe. . .I hope."
"So if, Sirius wasn't the secret keeper, and that's a big if, why did he leave, and kidnap Harry no less?"
"Because he was scared. I imagine he still is. He knew people would assume he did it, and like you said, who's going to believe that he wasn't the secret keeper just because he said he wasn't? Peter left to you know? I haven't seen him since the day James and Lily died. He's scared too."
"Yes, well, he didn't kidnap Harry Potter as well, now did he?" Dumbledore said sardonically. Remus was losing more and more respect for his old headmaster as the minutes wore on.
"Sirius has legal custody over Harry, it wasn't kidnap. And it was a hell of a lot better idea than leaving him with his muggle relatives. Have you even met them?"
Dumbledore shook his head, no.
"Trust me, Harry wouldn't have done well there. They're the worst people I've ever met in my life, and with my. . .curse, I've met a lot of bad people. I can't believe you even thought of sending him there."
"With his relatives he'd be safe. With Sirius Black, he's not safe! Sirius Black is a murderer!"
"Ugh, I've had enough!" Remus said and leapt from his seat. He stormed out of Dumbledore's office and slammed the door. Quickly, he ran through the castle, out the door and off to Hogsmead where he apparated home. He wasn't sure if he could ever get Sirius and Harry back to England, back to safety without first finding a certain rat.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Monday morning Sirius got ready for his first day of work and waited patiently for Emily to arrive at his apartment. The problem was, she never came. He waited until the last possible moment and she still didn't come.
Sirius didn't know what to do. He had to work that day as he only had one hundred dollars left of his money. He couldn't afford to not have that job. So Sirius did the only thing he could think of. He went down the hall and knocked on the door that he assumed belonged to Emily and her family.
A girl around the age of five opened the door. Sirius knew he had the right house because like Emily the little girl had Lily's hair. "Hi," she said, half hiding behind the door.
"Hi," Sirius said in the sweetest voice he could muster over his stress. "Is your sister home?"
"Emily?"
Sirius nodded.
"She's hurt, she won't leave her room."
"Hurt? What do you mean hurt?"
"I don't know. . .she got hurt, she was crying."
"Can I see her please?"
"I'll go see!"
Sirius watched the girl run off and then stepped further into the apartment. It was just like his own, but smaller. Sirius noted that it didn't have a very homey feel to it. Maybe that was the source of the girls attitude problem.
"Some guy wants to see you Emily!" Sirius heard the little girl yell. But he heard no response. Hoping the kids parents weren't home, Sirius took it upon himself to try to get Emily out of her room.
He followed the path the little girl had taken and found her sitting in front of a closed door. He knocked firmly on the door and said, "Emily, it's Sirius. . ." he began, not knowing what else to say. "Er. . .why didn't you come over like you said you would?"
"Please go away," was the only response from behind the door.
"I would, but I really need you to watch Harry. . .from what I saw, you really enjoyed spending time with you, and he enjoyed it too. Do you not want to be his babysitter? Am I going to have to find someone else?"
He got no answer. Usually he wouldn't have done this, but he was desperate. Slowly he opened the door. What he saw surprised him greatly.
Emily was sitting on her bed, arms hugging her knees against her chest. Tears were streaming down her face. But that's not what surprised Sirius. As she looked up at him he saw a livid bruise over her eye, a cut on her chin and scraped up arms.
"What happened?!" He asked shocked.
She shook her head and looked away.
"Tell me," Sirius commanded gently, sitting next to her on the bed.
With eyes full of sorrow she looked at him and nodded her head. "I got beat up. . ."
"I see that, care to tell me how?"
"Well, it started off as. . .a cat fight, as they call them. I called this girl a bitch, and well, she didn't take it well. So she started trying to hit me, and I could have taken her, until her boyfriend came over too. . .her boyfriend's really popular, so he soon had everyone in the hallway on me too. . .needless to say. . .I didn't win," she laughed bitterly at this.
"Nobody stuck up for you. . .where were your friends?"
Sirius saw more tears form behind her eyes. "I-I don't really have any. . ." She then started sobbing. Sirius awkwardly put his arm around her and patted her back.
"Kids are jerks," he said knowingly. "They only do that to make themselves feel better."
"I don't think so. . .they just really don't like me."
"Well they should, you're a nice person, who I hope is still nice to me and will still watch my godson, so I can go to work where I need to be in five minutes," Sirius said with a grin.
She smiled through her tears and nodded her head. Sirius pulled her off the bed and led her to his own apartment.
"Okay, thank you so much. When I get back we're going to have a nice talk about you're little bullying situation, alright?"
She nodded and looked slightly embarrassed.
Sirius was about to leave when he thought of something. "Who's staying with your sister?"
"No one. . .my parents generally leave her home alone."
"She can't be more than five!"
"She's not she's four."
"Well she should have someone with her. . .why don't you bring her over here?"
She rolled her eyes and said, "Fine."
"Good, I'll see you in a couple of hours. I think I get out at eight."
"OK, bye."
Sirius left. When he got to the grocery store he was five minutes late. Sirius apologized to the boss and told him it would never happen again. The boss didn't look happy about it, but he was desperate and let it slide.
The day was Hell. Not only did he have to spend nearly six hours with Justin the annoying cashier, but he also had to learn American currency, how to work the register, and deal with the rudest people he had ever met in his life.
Justin told him he was supposed to ask every customer how they were, so he did, every time.
More times than Sirius could count, he was completely ignored, got a rude 'fine', or was told, "I need a pack of Marbs." Sirius was ready to scream at the next person who didn't say, "I'm fine and yourself," or something along those lines.
Needless to say by the end of the night he was ready to go home and crawl into bed. He knew he wouldn't be given that luxury, however.
When he walked through the door he smiled to himself. Emily's little sister was sprawled out on her back, sleeping on the floor. Harry was lying in the crevice of Emily's arm, who was also on the floor, leaning against the couch. Her head was tilted all the way back and she was snoring quite loudly.
He let them be for a little while and changed his clothes in his room. He then went out and picked up his godson. Harry woke when he did this, but didn't cry. He just smiled at Sirius and mumbled, "Seewees."
"Yeah, I'm here."
"Did you have fun tonight?" Harry just looked numbly at Sirius who then tickled him, making him giggle. Sirius bent his head and kissed Harry and then rocked him back and forth a bit in his arms. He was back to sleep in minutes. Sirius set him in his crib and sat down on his couch.
He tapped Emily's shoulder and then shook it. Slowly she woke up and looked into Sirius's face.
"Oh. . .sorry, I didn't mean to fall asleep," she said, trying to wipe the sleep out of her eyes.
"It's okay."
"How was work?" She asked and moved from the floor next to him on the couch.
Sirius groaned, "Terrible, absolutely terrible. I never knew people could be so rude."
"I did."
"I know. . .So about your-er-situation. . ."
She looked down at her lap.
"Tell me, again, what happened today."
"Okay. . .I was switching classes and this girl, Hillary, bumped into me and didn't apologize or anything. So I called her a bitch, under my breath, but she heard me. . .and she walked up to me and smacked me. . .so I smacked her back. No one does that to me."
"And then. . ."
She sighed, "And then her boyfriend came over and knocked me down. . .then his friends did the same, and soon everyone who could get near me was either pulling my hair or kicking me. . .you think my face looks bad? You should see my legs and back."
"I can't believe the whole school did that to you."
"They did. . .they're all a bunch of assholes."
"You must have provoked some of them though," Sirius said gently, not wanting to piss her off. It didn't work.
"I didn't do anything to them! I was just trying to get to class!"
"Calm down, calm down. . .I mean in the past. Did you treat them the way you treated me that day I met you?"
"Maybe. . .But I don't treat people like that unless they make me mad."
"What do they do to make you mad?"
She looked down, "I don't know."
"Yes you do know."
Sad eyes looked up at him, "They make me mad because. . .they don't. . .they don't include me. I moved here two years ago, and I was the new kid. No one likes the new kid, no one makes friends with the new kid. . .it's social suicide. So they never talked to me. . .and I got angry, and you see what that got me."
"That sucks."
"Gee, you think?"
"You need to lose that attitude. . .I think that accounts for half of your problems. People aren't going to want to talk to you if they think you're going to bite there heads off when they say one thing."
Again, she looked down.
"So tomorrow, you're going to go back to school, you're going to hold your head up high, and you're not going to say one rude thing. . .not one. Nobody's mean to someone who's nice."
"I don't think I can go a day without being rude to someone."
"Save it for after school then and you can be rude to me."
"I really don't think you understand what this is like."
"You're right, I don't. I had four of the best friends in the world when I was in school. James, Lily, Remus and Peter. Now two of them are dead, one should be, and like me the other's all alone. So right now, I do know what you're feeling like. Right now, I don't have any friends either. . .but it must be a lot harder to have that problem when you're growing up. That's when a lot of tough stuff happens."
"Yeah it does," she said softly.
"So, where are your parents?"
"My Dad's back in Boston, that's where we're from. My mom is always working. She works double shifts at the hospital, so the only time I see her really is on the weekends and when I'm up really late."
"I'm sorry to hear that."
"Yeah, well. . .that's life, right?"
Sirius nodded.
"Well, you should get home, get your homework done, get that little one to sleep. What's her name?"
"Sammy."
"Isn't that a boys name?"
"It's short for Samantha."
"Oh," Sirius said feeling rather stupid.
"Thanks, Sirius. . .I don't know if any of this will be helpful, but thanks for trying."
"Not a problem. Just, don't let it happen again, okay. I don't like seeing bruises."
She smiled and nodded. Then, she got up and woke Sammy. "C'mon, time to go home."
"I want to stay here, please, Em," she said groggily. Sirius smiled.
"No, we have to go home. You have to sleep in your bed or mom will worry."
"Okay," she mumbled and let her sister help her to her feet.
She opened the door and then jumped a mile.
"Where the hell have you been?!" Sirius heard coming from the hall. Emily backed into the apartment. The owner of the voice followed her and stood in the doorway, revealing a woman in her early forties. Her hair was a light shade of red which at the moment matched the color of her face. "I come home early to spend time with my girls and find the apartment empty! Empty! Do you have any idea how that made me feel?!"
"Mom, I was babysitting! I told you the other day that I was going to be babysitting for the new neighbor!"
"You little liar! You told me no such thing!"
"Yes I did, and you said, "That's great dear." Maybe if you want to know stuff you should listen once in a while!"
"Emily, you're coming home now!" she screeched, stomping her foot and pointing down the hall. Emily moved to walk past her, but her mother grabbed her by the chin.
"What the hell happened to you?! Did he do that to you?!" She shrieked pointing at Sirius.
"No, mom! This happened at school. He was at work all night, I was babysitting for him! Don't you listen?!"
"I don't want you spending time alone with a grown man! He's probably just like your father!"
Emily turned crimson and stepped back inside the apartment and slammed the door in her mother's face.
Sirius looked at her shocked. "Go sit down." She didn't move. "Now!" he said forcefully. She did. Sirius then opened the door and stepped outside.
"Okay, Miss, I think you need to calm down," Sirius began.
"Calm down? Calm down! My daughter is in there with bruises all over her. Do you know who used to do that to her?"
Sirius flinched not really wanting to know.
"Her father!" the woman screamed. "That's why we moved here, to Rhode Island, so that she wouldn't get hurt anymore!"
"Okay, I just talked to her about all this. I told her how to get along better with the kids at school. . .She's going to try. Please calm down."
"I can't calm down," she moaned and sat down against the wall.
She stayed there for a few minutes with her head in her hands and then looked up at Sirius. "I'm sorry I accused you of doing those things, I just.worry."
"It's understandable, but just to let you know, I'm not going to hurt your daughter in any way. I'm just a single guy trying to raise my godson."
"You're godson?"
"Yeah, his parents died about a week ago. It's still fresh in my mind. . .and his. The reason I picked your daughter to baby sit him is that she has the exact same hair as Harry's mother, Lily. It puts him at ease. It's like she's not really gone, understand?"
"Yes, and I'm terribly upset about my. . .outburst. The stress is just getting to me."
Sirius nodded. "If I let you back in do you promise not to verbally attack your daughter?"
She blushed and nodded.
"And your name is?"
"Oh, sorry. . .I'm Julie, Julie Dalton. . .for now. But I do intend to change that name."
Sirius nodded his head and said, "I'm Sirius Black."
"It's nice to meet you."
"And you."
Sirius opened the door revealing two crying girls. Emily was hugging her little sister and they were both sobbing. Julie started to as well when she walked inside.
"I'm sorry, baby," she cried sitting down and hugging both her daughters. Emily pulled roughly away and went to stand by Sirius, as though she wanted him to protect her.
Sirius put his hand on her shoulder and gently pushed her forward, whispering, "Talk to her." Emily gave him a hopeless look and walked back to the couch, sitting as far from her mother as was physically possible.
"I'm sorry, honey. I'm sorry I don't listen to you, I'm sorry I'm not around much, I'm sorry you've been hurt. . .I'm sorry I just lost my temper, but honey, you scared the hell out of me. I'm just so sorry, honey."
Sirius saw Emily's lip tremble and tears started running again. Julie moved closer to her daughter and wrapped her in a tight hug. Sirius smiled to himself when he saw that this time Emily wasn't breaking away. She was hugging back.
After they hugged Julie pulled back and dried her daughters tears. Emily smiled at her.
"Let's go, honey, I think we've intruded on Mr. Black enough for one night," she said grinning at Sirius.
"No problem," Sirius said. "Have a nice night." He walked to the door and opened it. Julie grabbed Sammy in her arms and walked out the door. Emily followed but stopped before walking out.
"Remember what I said," Sirius said. "I don't want to see another bruise on you tomorrow."
"Right," Emily said with a nervous smile. "I'll try."
"Good. See you later."
"Night," Emily said and then left the room.
Sirius closed the door behind her and then leaned against it, sighing heavily.
What a night. He was glad he had helped the family out a little, but it was too hectic for his liking.
Sirius went to bed that night more exhausted than he had ever been. The stress of his situation was overwhelming, and he really wasn't all that happy. He didn't know how long he could live like he was now, as a muggle, as a parent, as a cashier.
Three years later he was still going at it, but he still wasn't happy.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
So next chapter shows life three years later. I didn't want to make such a jump, but as one reviewer said, I shouldn't make this like the Real World. The action will be happening fairly soon and there will be some happy and some unhappy reunions.
BTW, Sirius will not be hooking up with Julie, Emily's mom. If it sounded like they would I'm sorry, but really, the way I figured it she's almost twenty years older than him, and I really don't want that.
This is graduation week at my school, so I have many events, so I don't know when the next chapter will be out. Should be ready in at least a week and a half. Depends on how many marching practices we have. . . : )
