CHAPTER TWO
Argh! Sorry people about the wierd way this chapter turned out before.....Hope this is better!
Author note - This chapter is kind of like an in-between chapter to show what has been happening in the aftermath of the ÔBig Event;.
HAKUNA MATATA versus FOILED HUNTS
THREE YEARS LATER
ÒPaÕfoot! PaÕfoot! Look! Anudder one!Ó
A healthy, muscular, very tanned man looked up, his blue eyes crinkling in amusement as the small boy ran in on his short legs, dressed only in a pair of boardies, also heavily tanned, with his messy black hair falling into his brightly intelligent green eyes, clutching a scrunched up piece of paper in his fist, waving it about triumphantly.
Sirius plucked the paper out of his godsonÕs hand and unfolded it, revealing the front page of the equivilant of the Daily Prophet in the Caribbean. He scanned the front page, the headlines screaming;
NEW LEAD ON SIRIUS BLACK - MURDERER OF HARRY POTTER!
Harry looked up at Sirius with green eyes, blantantly confident in his knowledge, ÒThey Ôr soooo stupid, PaÕfoot, they still tÕink that you did it, ANÕ they thinÕ that they can find you!Ó
He still had trouble producing some of the words, or perhaps that was just plain laziness, but Sirius found his way of speaking rather cute. He reached forwards and ruffled up HarryÕs hair even more, making the young, four year old boy squirm in annoyance.
Although he didnÕt say it, the fact that HarryÕs words and attitude towards the whole thing was unyieldingly on SiriusÕs side, made SiriusÕs conscience rest much easier. The moment Harry had been old enough to understand the basics of what had happened to his parents, Sirius had sat him down and told him both sides of the story and that most of the Wizarding World considered him guilty.
He had sat in apprehension, watching the young boy looking unusually thoughtful for someone his age and had internally cursed himself, Harry was too young to find out about all of this -. He had been interrupted as Harry had looked up, looking unusually mature and perceptive and had pronunciated what had been and still was, his only properly spoken sentence. The words he had said were written on SiriusÕs heart forever.
ÒYou could never hurt Prongs or Mum, Padfoot, youÕre too strong.Ó
Sirius shook off his contemplative mood, and turned over to the scrapbook placed on the corner of desk that was crammed full. Sirius flipped through it, smiling at all the articles and pictures on him and Harry, and all the conspiracy theories about what had happened. He reached a blank page and stuck in the latest article.
Harry was shifting from foot to foot, looking bored, the heat seemingly not affecting him at all.
Before tracking down Peter, Sirus had gone to Gringotts, before anyone knew what had happened, and completely emptied the Black family vault. Charming it all into a bag, he had left, hunted down Peter, and made a beeline straight for the Caribbean.
He had found a small island, with a population of about forty, but with the most beautiful white sand and palm beaches and blue clear ocean surrounding it.
He had bought a small house on the beach front, with a kitchen, two bathrooms, a living room, an eating room and two bedrooms. The beach that their house was on only had the one house and so, the beach was basically theirs, with the village a few hundred metres inland, separated from them by a small tropical forest which Harry was continuosly exploring.
Sirius smirked slightly at Harry, ÒWell, if youÕre bored, it must be time for your lessons.Ó
Harry looked up with something akin to horror in his eyes, backing away frantically, his hands waving in front of him, ÒI neÕer said I was bor-ed!Ó He exclaimed, making a rapid retreat towards the door. Sirius got up and caught him withing two strides, lifting him up off the ground by the neck of his shirt, ÒOh, no, youÕre gonna stay here, donÕt you want to learn magic?Ó
Harry shook his head rapidly, his feet running on the air, ÒOh no.Ó He said calmly, ÒItÕs tha theoÕry that I donÕ like, why canÕt I learn REAL magic?Ó
Sirius whisked Harry back to the desk, ÒBecause weÕll get caught if you do.Ó
This wasnÕt exactly true, Sirius had wards of all kinds up to stop magic from escaping and gertting in, which included the signals, but it was a good threat to keep Harry from complaining too much.
ÒAnd -Ó He added, Òwhen you do get to do magic, youÕll find it soooo much easier.Ó
With a small amount of grumbling the hyper toddler settled down, knowing that later on in the afternoon, Sirius would come with him for a swim.
~
Albus Dumbledore looked around at the gathered people. There was Arthur Weasley, with Molly back at home struggling with the five-year old twins, her four year old son and youngest child, Ginny. Mad-Eye Moody was there, his grizzled face cast into shadow by his hood, Arabella Figg, Remus Lupin, Nicolas Flamel, Minerva, Severus, and perhaps ten other individuals, including the head of Aurors, Patrick Ashtomn.
This man stood up first, his commanding presence, six feet tall with grizzled brown hair and an experienced face, getting everyoneÕs attention, his cool grey eyes swept the room before he swept his arms wide and dropped a stack of papers onto the table.
ÒNothing, nothing and nothing.Ó He announced. ÒBlack took Harry, got his money, killed fourteen people and disappeared. Nothing.Ó He repeated with finality, ÒThree years of our best experts on the case, along with everyone else, and what have we got to show for it? Nothing.Ó He snarled, face twisting with distaste, ÒWe trained Black too well.Ó He announced,and sat down.
The irony of it was not lost on anyone. Black had been on the list to be the next head of Aurors, his record was the best of anyoneÕs, he was brilliant, now he was gone, and he had taken Harry with him.
Dumbledore did not stand but his seat at the head of the old oaken table ensured attention as he said, ÒBut what is Black doing? It is not in his nature to lie low, and he has nothing to gain from doing so. Voldemort - Ò
Several people winced at DumbledoreÕs use of the name, but he continued as if nothing had occurred, ÒIs vanquished, probably never to return, and so we must assume that Black is insane, but if so, why is he hiding? It is contradictory and has no sense, so unless we can find a way to know what he is thinking, we can not hope to find him. Remus?Ó This last question was directed at a youngish man with greying hair, his grey eyes reflected years of weariness and as the man in question rose to his feet, a glimmer of something flashed in his eyes.
ÒSiri- Black, as I knew him... would not stay hidden unless he had good reason to, which means that he either hopes, knows that He-Wh- Voldemort, will be back or there is....something else that has kept him hiding.Ó He paused and looked around the room, ÒAnd I donÕt know what.Ó
~
Harry pushed the chair back from the desk with a loud screeching sound. He flipped his hair out of his face and stared up at Sirius with wide, pleading green eyes, ÒCan I go see Mali now? Pulleeeease?Ó He dragged out the last word, already on his way to the door, his head turned to look at Sirius ove rhis shoulder.
Sirius grinned and rose from his chair as well, following Harry out of the door and onto the wide, open veranda that opened onto the beach. He threw himself into the expansive hammock, folding his arms behind his head.
ÒI donÕt see why not, unless MaliÕs tired of you, I wouldnÕt blame her.Ó
Harry glared as he bounded off the proch and ran off, ÒBugÕer off, PaÕfoot.Ó He yelled.
Sirus sat up, sending the hammock rocking wildly, ÒDonÕt you dare use that word ever again, Leo!Ó
He sighed and fell back into the hammock, watching as Harry disappeared into the trees, not heeding his words at all, his short legs moving at top speed. He looked out at the ocean, the clear blue waves lapping gently across the beach, rolling off the ivory sand.
HeÕd always loved the Caribbean, and hadnÕt cared who knew.
~
Far away, a man suddenly awoke, sweating heavily, his eyes rolled across the room as he panted and threw his covers off.
ÒThe Caribbean, he is in the Caribbean.Ó
~*~~*~~*~
Phew, second chapter, very short chapters so far, but school is really taking itÕs toll.... Anyway, my first attempt at a cliffie, hmmm, what was this chapter like??? Please review! ItÕs not THAT hard....is it?
Aragorn821 - Thanks for the review! I love AU fics too, and this is my very first fic, so I just hope my plot bunnies stay under control!
bob-the-bear - Wow! Thanks, if my writing starts getting worse just flame me and IÕll get back on track :) I hate wormtail too, stupid rat...
Civenus - I will try as hard as I can to update regularly, thanks!
If I missed anyone out, sorry, and thanks, but IÕm in a hurry to get this chapter up!
Argh! Sorry people about the wierd way this chapter turned out before.....Hope this is better!
Author note - This chapter is kind of like an in-between chapter to show what has been happening in the aftermath of the ÔBig Event;.
HAKUNA MATATA versus FOILED HUNTS
THREE YEARS LATER
ÒPaÕfoot! PaÕfoot! Look! Anudder one!Ó
A healthy, muscular, very tanned man looked up, his blue eyes crinkling in amusement as the small boy ran in on his short legs, dressed only in a pair of boardies, also heavily tanned, with his messy black hair falling into his brightly intelligent green eyes, clutching a scrunched up piece of paper in his fist, waving it about triumphantly.
Sirius plucked the paper out of his godsonÕs hand and unfolded it, revealing the front page of the equivilant of the Daily Prophet in the Caribbean. He scanned the front page, the headlines screaming;
NEW LEAD ON SIRIUS BLACK - MURDERER OF HARRY POTTER!
Harry looked up at Sirius with green eyes, blantantly confident in his knowledge, ÒThey Ôr soooo stupid, PaÕfoot, they still tÕink that you did it, ANÕ they thinÕ that they can find you!Ó
He still had trouble producing some of the words, or perhaps that was just plain laziness, but Sirius found his way of speaking rather cute. He reached forwards and ruffled up HarryÕs hair even more, making the young, four year old boy squirm in annoyance.
Although he didnÕt say it, the fact that HarryÕs words and attitude towards the whole thing was unyieldingly on SiriusÕs side, made SiriusÕs conscience rest much easier. The moment Harry had been old enough to understand the basics of what had happened to his parents, Sirius had sat him down and told him both sides of the story and that most of the Wizarding World considered him guilty.
He had sat in apprehension, watching the young boy looking unusually thoughtful for someone his age and had internally cursed himself, Harry was too young to find out about all of this -. He had been interrupted as Harry had looked up, looking unusually mature and perceptive and had pronunciated what had been and still was, his only properly spoken sentence. The words he had said were written on SiriusÕs heart forever.
ÒYou could never hurt Prongs or Mum, Padfoot, youÕre too strong.Ó
Sirius shook off his contemplative mood, and turned over to the scrapbook placed on the corner of desk that was crammed full. Sirius flipped through it, smiling at all the articles and pictures on him and Harry, and all the conspiracy theories about what had happened. He reached a blank page and stuck in the latest article.
Harry was shifting from foot to foot, looking bored, the heat seemingly not affecting him at all.
Before tracking down Peter, Sirus had gone to Gringotts, before anyone knew what had happened, and completely emptied the Black family vault. Charming it all into a bag, he had left, hunted down Peter, and made a beeline straight for the Caribbean.
He had found a small island, with a population of about forty, but with the most beautiful white sand and palm beaches and blue clear ocean surrounding it.
He had bought a small house on the beach front, with a kitchen, two bathrooms, a living room, an eating room and two bedrooms. The beach that their house was on only had the one house and so, the beach was basically theirs, with the village a few hundred metres inland, separated from them by a small tropical forest which Harry was continuosly exploring.
Sirius smirked slightly at Harry, ÒWell, if youÕre bored, it must be time for your lessons.Ó
Harry looked up with something akin to horror in his eyes, backing away frantically, his hands waving in front of him, ÒI neÕer said I was bor-ed!Ó He exclaimed, making a rapid retreat towards the door. Sirius got up and caught him withing two strides, lifting him up off the ground by the neck of his shirt, ÒOh, no, youÕre gonna stay here, donÕt you want to learn magic?Ó
Harry shook his head rapidly, his feet running on the air, ÒOh no.Ó He said calmly, ÒItÕs tha theoÕry that I donÕ like, why canÕt I learn REAL magic?Ó
Sirius whisked Harry back to the desk, ÒBecause weÕll get caught if you do.Ó
This wasnÕt exactly true, Sirius had wards of all kinds up to stop magic from escaping and gertting in, which included the signals, but it was a good threat to keep Harry from complaining too much.
ÒAnd -Ó He added, Òwhen you do get to do magic, youÕll find it soooo much easier.Ó
With a small amount of grumbling the hyper toddler settled down, knowing that later on in the afternoon, Sirius would come with him for a swim.
~
Albus Dumbledore looked around at the gathered people. There was Arthur Weasley, with Molly back at home struggling with the five-year old twins, her four year old son and youngest child, Ginny. Mad-Eye Moody was there, his grizzled face cast into shadow by his hood, Arabella Figg, Remus Lupin, Nicolas Flamel, Minerva, Severus, and perhaps ten other individuals, including the head of Aurors, Patrick Ashtomn.
This man stood up first, his commanding presence, six feet tall with grizzled brown hair and an experienced face, getting everyoneÕs attention, his cool grey eyes swept the room before he swept his arms wide and dropped a stack of papers onto the table.
ÒNothing, nothing and nothing.Ó He announced. ÒBlack took Harry, got his money, killed fourteen people and disappeared. Nothing.Ó He repeated with finality, ÒThree years of our best experts on the case, along with everyone else, and what have we got to show for it? Nothing.Ó He snarled, face twisting with distaste, ÒWe trained Black too well.Ó He announced,and sat down.
The irony of it was not lost on anyone. Black had been on the list to be the next head of Aurors, his record was the best of anyoneÕs, he was brilliant, now he was gone, and he had taken Harry with him.
Dumbledore did not stand but his seat at the head of the old oaken table ensured attention as he said, ÒBut what is Black doing? It is not in his nature to lie low, and he has nothing to gain from doing so. Voldemort - Ò
Several people winced at DumbledoreÕs use of the name, but he continued as if nothing had occurred, ÒIs vanquished, probably never to return, and so we must assume that Black is insane, but if so, why is he hiding? It is contradictory and has no sense, so unless we can find a way to know what he is thinking, we can not hope to find him. Remus?Ó This last question was directed at a youngish man with greying hair, his grey eyes reflected years of weariness and as the man in question rose to his feet, a glimmer of something flashed in his eyes.
ÒSiri- Black, as I knew him... would not stay hidden unless he had good reason to, which means that he either hopes, knows that He-Wh- Voldemort, will be back or there is....something else that has kept him hiding.Ó He paused and looked around the room, ÒAnd I donÕt know what.Ó
~
Harry pushed the chair back from the desk with a loud screeching sound. He flipped his hair out of his face and stared up at Sirius with wide, pleading green eyes, ÒCan I go see Mali now? Pulleeeease?Ó He dragged out the last word, already on his way to the door, his head turned to look at Sirius ove rhis shoulder.
Sirius grinned and rose from his chair as well, following Harry out of the door and onto the wide, open veranda that opened onto the beach. He threw himself into the expansive hammock, folding his arms behind his head.
ÒI donÕt see why not, unless MaliÕs tired of you, I wouldnÕt blame her.Ó
Harry glared as he bounded off the proch and ran off, ÒBugÕer off, PaÕfoot.Ó He yelled.
Sirus sat up, sending the hammock rocking wildly, ÒDonÕt you dare use that word ever again, Leo!Ó
He sighed and fell back into the hammock, watching as Harry disappeared into the trees, not heeding his words at all, his short legs moving at top speed. He looked out at the ocean, the clear blue waves lapping gently across the beach, rolling off the ivory sand.
HeÕd always loved the Caribbean, and hadnÕt cared who knew.
~
Far away, a man suddenly awoke, sweating heavily, his eyes rolled across the room as he panted and threw his covers off.
ÒThe Caribbean, he is in the Caribbean.Ó
~*~~*~~*~
Phew, second chapter, very short chapters so far, but school is really taking itÕs toll.... Anyway, my first attempt at a cliffie, hmmm, what was this chapter like??? Please review! ItÕs not THAT hard....is it?
Aragorn821 - Thanks for the review! I love AU fics too, and this is my very first fic, so I just hope my plot bunnies stay under control!
bob-the-bear - Wow! Thanks, if my writing starts getting worse just flame me and IÕll get back on track :) I hate wormtail too, stupid rat...
Civenus - I will try as hard as I can to update regularly, thanks!
If I missed anyone out, sorry, and thanks, but IÕm in a hurry to get this chapter up!