Author's Note: I am so sorry that this chapter has taken so long. I really wish I could say it was because I was off on some amazing adventure around the world or because I'm secretly a crime-fighting vigilante that's been extra busy lately, or something fun like that, but unfortunately I just had terrible writer's block. I literally had NOTHING in my head to write for weeks. It was miserable. I admire writers that can upload amazing chapters once a week or even once a day, but I just haven't been able to do that with this story, and I would rather take the time and write a quality chapter than upload something I'm not 100% happy with. I do appreciate all your patience and the sweet notes I get asking me when I will write another chapter! I promise I'm doing my best!

Another promise, this chapter is full of all kinds of angst, but I promise that the next chapter will be so, so fluffy! So stay tuned!

July 1, 1995

Sirius was nearly asleep sitting in their living room when Remus finally came back that evening. It had been a long, exhausting day, both mentally and physically, and he could almost hear his bed calling his name.

"Is Harry asleep?" Remus asked as he placed a few books on the end table.

"Yeah, he went to bed about a half hour ago," Sirius confirmed, rubbing his eyes. "I need to do the same soon."

Remus nodded as he transfigured their couch into a bed for himself again.

"You know you still have a bedroom here, right?" Sirius teased as he stood up from his place in their armchair.

Remus chuckled. "Yeah, but my room is all the way across the house. This way I just have to run up the stairs if Harry needs me."

Sirius smiled at his friend as he grabbed his shoulder. "I really appreciate you, Remus. And I apologize again for being an arse today."

"Just today?" Remus said teasingly, which only earned him a rude gesture from his friend, so he chuckled and continued. "Don't mention it. How did Harry feel after he woke up?"

"No fever," Sirius told him. "Thank Merlin. He was still a little hoarse, but otherwise I think he was ok. I did tell him that he is to take any potions you determine he needs in the morning without a word of argument."

Remus couldn't help but let out a small snort. "I'm sure that's likely."

Sirius's face darkened. "Well, I promised him a warm rear end if he does give you any problems, and he knows he's walking on thin ice right now."

"Harry never gives me any problems," Remus replied, giving his friend a smirk, which caused Sirius to roll his eyes and smile, exactly like Remus wanted. "Did he happen to say where he was going this afternoon?"

"The Burrow," Sirius answered, nodding. "Apparently Molly does her shopping on Wednesday mornings, so he figured he could sneak in there, but he didn't make it far off of our own property before he thought better of it."

"Good thought, just a little too late," Remus remarked as he fluffed his pillows. Then, he looked back at Sirius. "You know, tomorrow is Thursday. If Harry is feeling better, I'd be glad to get him out of the house for a while so you and Amelia can have some time together."

Sirius grimaced. "We'll see. I don't want him to overdo it."

Remus shrugged. "Then I can stay here with him while you two go out."

"I wouldn't leave him when he's sick," Sirius replied, shaking his head.

Remus figured that was fair, though he was starting to get the sense that Sirius was just making excuses. "Next Thursday then. You'll be back from your beach trip by then, correct?"

Now Sirius wouldn't meet his eyes, which meant he was definitely making excuses. "It'll have to wait. Harry's grounded."

Remus crossed his arms. "We decided a long time ago that Harry would never be grounded from spending time with me."

"Yes, but this is different," Sirius argued. "He's grounded to me this time, not the house."

"That's a very poor excuse, even by your standards," Remus retorted.

That remark only earned him a glare, but Remus was undeterred.

"When he's restricted to the house, he's allowed to leave with me. I see no reason he could not do the same thing when he's restricted to you, especially after a week and a trip to the beach."

Sirius just shook his head. "This is different."

"How?" Remus persisted.

"Because," Sirius started, biting his lip as he thought about what to say, "Harry ran away today because he saw me with Amelia."

Remus was dumbfounded. He blinked a few times as he watched Sirius before finally asking, "What?"

Sirius sighed and told Remus the whole story of why Harry had felt the need to take off on his broom that morning. Remus listened intently, but he interpreted the facts a bit differently.

"Wait, Harry didn't leave simply because he saw you with Amelia. He left because he was worried he didn't make you happy anymore. Am I understanding that correctly?"

"I don't think there's much of a difference," Sirius answered.

Remus crossed his arms. "Sirius, is it your intention to stay single until Harry moves out and has a family of his own?"

If looks could kill, Remus would have dropped dead from the scowl Sirius sent his way. "No, it's my intention to stay single until Harry is comfortable with me dating, Moony."

Most people would have withered under Sirius's fierce glare, but Remus was undeterred. "Oh I see, so you intend to make excuses for every date you could have until Harry walks up to you and says, 'Ok Dad, I'm ready for you to start dating now.'"

It showed significant growth in Sirius's self-control that he did not whip out his wand in that moment and hex the man that was supposed to be his best friend. "Which one of us is being the arse now?"

Remus threw up his hands in surrender. "You're right. That was uncalled for. But seriously Padfoot, you and Amelia are made for each other. At some point, I think you need to stop waiting for Harry to be comfortable with it and start giving him the opportunity to become comfortable with it, and I mean by telling him, not by him discovering it on his own."

Sirius let out a heavy sigh. "Perhaps you're right, but I just don't want to move too fast and have another day like today."

Remus nodded his understanding but didn't say anything. He began to pull the blanket back on his temporary bed while Sirius wished him a goodnight and made his ways to the stairs. Before walking up, Sirius paused on the bottom stair and looked back at Remus. "How about next Thursday?"

Remus looked back at him and smiled. "Next Thursday will be fine."

July 3, 1995

Sirius Black was in a good mood.

Thanks to Moony and Dreamless Sleep, he (and Harry) had now had three full nights of deep sleep, and his body was thanking him for it.

Of course, tonight they planned to reduce their dosage to begin weaning themselves off of it, but he was choosing not to think about that right now.

He was also fairly certain, given his son's demeanor the night before, that Harry had completely recovered from the illness he'd been fighting the past couple of days, so that meant they could leave the house, and he planned to spend most of the day packing and arranging a portkey to their beach house the following morning. He couldn't wait to spend some time by the sea just enjoying being with his son on whatever adventure they found themselves in.

Of course, before they left, he was going to have to take his son to see a healer so he could get his physical done before his quidditch lessons started, and he fully anticipated having to drag the boy kicking and screaming the whole time, but he was choosing not to think about that right now.

He'd also woken up to an owl from Amelia, her note asking him to have lunch with her this afternoon, and he couldn't help but smile every time he thought about her, especially since her note had been slightly more suggestive and flirty than was typical.

Of course, he still wasn't sure how Harry was going to react to that news. He had to make the decision between taking Harry with him while he had lunch with the Minister of Magic, meaning they would be a magnet for both the good and bad kind of attention, and leaving him with Remus, which probably wasn't going to make Harry particularly happy either.

But he was choosing not to think about that right now.

He was practically skipping when he joined Remus and Harry in the dining room for breakfast that morning. It was amazing what sleep could do for a person's mental health.

"Good morning, gentlemen," he said cheerily. "And how is everyone feeling this morning?"

Remus chuckled at his friend's cheerfulness. "We are fine. You must have slept well."

"I slept like a baby," Sirius confirmed as he poured himself a cup of coffee. "How was your night?" he asked his son.

Harry finished chewing his sausage and smiled. "Great. No nightmares at all, and I haven't coughed all morning either. I feel fine."

"And no fever this morning?" Sirius asked tentatively, darting his eyes back and forth between Harry and Remus.

"None at all," Remus confirmed for him. "I think we have a full recovery, Padfoot."

"Wonderful!" Sirius exclaimed. He had been a nervous wreck ever since Remus told him Harry was running a fever two days ago, and he was more than thrilled to see his son seemed to be completely over it. How parents survived seeing their children sick was beyond his comprehension. He felt like he deserved a medal for weathering that storm, and Harry had only had some type of minor bug. He couldn't imagine how Remus's mum and dad had dealt with their son's transformation-related injuries and illnesses month after month.

"So, since I'm completely better, you think I could go for a fly today?" Harry asked innocently. "I don't want to be out of practice when I start lessons with Brankovitch."

Remus snorted but hid his smirk behind his coffee cup while Sirius lifted an eyebrow at his sneaky son. "Nice try young man, but you know that fully recovered means fully on restriction now, so unless I decide to fly, and I can tell you now I have no desire to do so, you are remaining on the ground."

Harry's eyes widened at the implication of that statement. "Wait, I am still having my lessons with Brankovitch, right?"

Sirius hurried to nod. "Yes, you are. Starting next Friday." The private quidditch lessons were one of the few things this summer his son had actually gotten excited about, and he certainly wasn't going to take that away from him. "Speaking of, I do need to talk to you about something."

Harry paused mid-bite of his toast and lowered it back to his plate, his face full of worry. "What is it?"

Sirius took a deep breath. He was just about to speak when Dobby appeared with a plate of breakfast for him. He thanked the devoted elf and turned back to his son. "I think today would be a good day to go see Ted and have him do your physical."

Harry groaned. "Do we really have to?"

"If you want the lessons, you have to," Sirius told him pointedly, but the fretful look on Harry's face had him quickly softening his tone. "Ted's arranged a portkey for us directly to a private room, so we don't have to parade you through St. Mungo's, and I'll be with you the whole time."

Harry sighed. "Ok."

Sirius was pleased to hear his son capitulate so easily, even if it was very unlike Harry. He decided to focus on the good and not worry that maybe this meant the boy was planning to run away again.

Harry grabbed his now empty plate and stood up. "I'm going to go get dressed."

Sirius looked at his watch. "I'll give you ten minutes to get dressed and get your school books together, then meet me in my study."

Harry stopped and looked at him. "Meet you in the study?"

Sirius nodded. "Yeah, I have some things to work on this morning, so you'll have to stay in there with me."

Harry looked confused for another moment before realization dawned on him. "I really just have to sit in your study while you're working?"

"No, you have to work on your school work in my study while I work," Sirius replied casually.

Harry's shoulders fell as he realized his father fully meant for them to spend all of their time together. "The holiday just started. I have all summer to do my homework," he whined.

Sirius ignored the pouting and wiped his mouth. "You know, that's a good point. Maybe it would be better for you to begin catching up on the astronomy, history, and magical creatures work you missed. You do have your OWLs this year. You can get one of those books and read if you'd prefer."

Harry really should have known better than to whine. Now he had even more work to do. "Yes, sir," he grumped.

Sirius nodded towards the door and pointed to his watch. "Ten minutes."

Dejectedly, Harry walked out of the room as Sirius turned to Remus. "So, no problems last night or this morning?"

Remus shook his head. "I told you, Harry never gives me any problems."

"Spoken like a true godfather," Sirius said, shaking his head in amusement. He winked at Remus and then continued. "Maybe you could give some god-fatherly advice."

Remus raised his eyebrows. "Oh?"

Sirius took another bite before he elaborated. "Amelia sent me a letter this morning. She booked us a private room at the Leaky Cauldron for lunch. I think she wants to discuss some of the upcoming death eater trials, but she also added that she has the afternoon open." He wagged his eyebrows at his friend.

Remus rolled his eyes. "You can spare me the details. What do you need advice on?"

"Well, if I go, there's probably not going to be any details, as I would have to take Harry with me. I need your advice on how to talk to him about it, or if I should even go for that matter."

Remus crossed his arms and thought about it for a moment. "How about you get the best of both worlds? I'll take Harry for the afternoon, and you can enjoy your time with Amelia. I'm sure he'll be a little more open to the idea if he knows he's going to be having some fun too."

Sirius tapped his chin. "I guess that could work."

Remus nodded. "I'll take him to play tennis. He's been a ball of energy all morning. I thought for sure he was going to break something, the way he was barreling around here."

Sirius smirked over the rim of his coffee cup. "I thought you said he never gives you any problems."

Remus shook his head, returning the smirk. "Never."

Sirius chuckled. "Just make sure he doesn't overdo it. He is just getting over whatever was wrong."

"I'll take care of him. You enjoy your afternoon," Remus assured him.

Sirius leaned back in his chair, the left corner of his lips curving upward. "I plan to do just that."

….

Sirius glanced up at the clock before looking at his son, who was currently hanging upside down off the side of the sofa in his study and holding his history book above his head. He was sure the boy's mind was a million miles away, and if Sirius were to quiz him on what he'd been reading, he wouldn't be able to recall a single detail. Harry had been bouncing his legs and shifting his body every few minutes for the past hours, and honestly it was driving Sirius crazy. He was happy to see it was almost time to go.

"Our portkey leaves in ten minutes. Get to a stopping point and go put your things away please."

Harry slammed the book shut and tossed it aside before doing a flip off the couch. "I'm done."

"Learn anything?"

"Yeah, the Goblin Rebellions were bad," Harry said plainly as he gathered up the school work he had barely touched.

Sirius frowned as he pulled off his glasses. "Perhaps I should ask Professor Binns for the work you missed. 'The Goblin Rebellions were bad' isn't going to help you pass your OWLs."

Harry scowled at that, but he wasn't going to let his father see. He picked up his books and looked back at Sirius. "Can I run these up to my room?"

"Why don't you try banishing them to your room instead?" Sirius asked.

Harry raised an eyebrow. "I'm allowed?"

Harry knew that as long as he was within the wards of their home, the ministry couldn't really tell who was doing the magic. He also knew that Sirius didn't care if he did magic outside of school as long as he did it while supervised, but so far he had not done so, not much at least.

Sirius shrugged. "The ministry can't find out, and I'm right here, so why don't you try?"

Harry set down the pile of books he'd brought with him and pulled out his wand. He concentrated and pointed his wand at them, muttering the spell he'd seen Sirius do dozens of times. All four books disappeared just after his wand touched them.

"Well done," Sirius beamed, patting his back.

Harry blushed. "Thanks, but I probably should check to make sure they actually made it to my room."

Sirius smiled at him. "Good idea. Go check and put your shoes on. Then meet me in the living room. I have to talk to you about something before we go."

Harry eyed him suspiciously but was too anxious to see if his spell had worked to inquire further.

Sirius followed Harry up the stairs but went to his own room to check his hair and smooth his robes one last time. When he walked back down to their living room, Harry was already on the couch tying his shoes. "Did it work?"

Harry nodded. "Well, they were on my floor and not my desk, but they at least made it in the room. So, you don't care if I do magic outside of school?"

Sirius nodded absently, the nerves beginning to pool in his stomach. "Well, I don't mind, as long as you do it with supervision. Never without an adult. Understand?" he managed to say in an authoritative voice.

"Yes, sir."

"Good," Sirius replied shakily, though Harry didn't notice. He took a deep breath and rubbed his hands together nervously after checking his watch. He had four minutes to talk to Harry before the portkey activated. Why was he so anxious to simply tell Harry he was having lunch with Amelia? He and Amelia were friends, and she did have important things to discuss with him. Plus. he was a grown man. He could do this. He would just be truthful and then allow Harry to tell him how he was feeling.

That was it. He would just be honest.

"So, Remus has offered to take you to play tennis after your appointment, since you couldn't go yesterday."

Or not.

Harry blinked, confused for a moment. Sirius seemed nervous, but that wasn't anything he should be nervous about. If Harry hadn't been so anxious about the upcoming appointment himself, he would have probably questioned his father further, but as it stood he was too jittery himself to imagine his father could be upset about anything else. "Ok. Are you coming with us?"

If one is going to tell a lie, it helps to have a plan for questions. That way, you don't ramble on and on. Sirius didn't have a plan, so he rambled on and on. "Uh, no. I have some things I need to take care of. I've got to arrange our portkey for tomorrow and buy some things for our trip. I'll let you and Remus have some time together. Besides, you're going to be spending nearly every minute with me for the next two weeks, so…"

Fortunately for the dishonest father, Harry was too shaky to notice the nervous rambling. "Ok. When does the portkey activate?"

Sirius looked at his watch. "One minute."

….

To be fair, Sirius was nervous about the healer appointment, but for different reasons than his son. He knew that one day he and Harry would have to venture back out into the wizarding world and deal with the madness, but that day wasn't going to be today. He was happy that Ted had arranged a portkey directly to a room, but he still felt on edge that the wrong person could walk through their door at any time.

Sirius felt his nerves ease slightly upon seeing Ted already waiting for them as soon as they landed in the empty room. Now he just had to get his son through the appointment.

But while Sirius was feeling slightly more secure in their private room, Harry was silently falling apart. Not only did their room look exactly like the room Sirius had been in when he had been gravely injured earlier in the year, but the smell, sterile with a hint of artificial fragrances, brought flooding back all those memories. Before Harry knew it, he was sweating and beginning to hyperventilate.

Sirius had greeted Ted and shaken his hand before his brain registered that he was hearing Harry's breathing become shallow and quick, but once he realized what was happening he moved swiftly to his son's side. He grabbed Harry's hand and led him to sit on the bed. Ted listened to Harry's heart rate while Sirius rubbed his back and whispered words of encouragement to him.

"Harry, I want you to try to regulate your breathing. Breath in through your nose and out through your mouth," Ted instructed.

Harry looked desperately at Sirius. He'd woken up in a panic after nightmares before, but he hadn't experienced a full panic attack yet, and he didn't fully understand what was happening.

"It's ok, Harry, just try to do what Ted asks," he soothed.

Harry shook his head, tears stinging his eyes. "What's…happening?" he croaked out between breaths.

"You're having a panic attack," Ted said in a no-nonsense voice. "But you're ok. Sirius and I are right here and we're going to get you through this."

Sirius reached over and took Harry's hand. He could tell Harry's breathing was beginning to slow, but not much. "Harry, can you count the windows in this room?"

Harry's chest heaved as he twisted his neck around to look. "Two," he said hoarsely.

"Very good," Ted told him. "Now look around and tell me what else you see."

Harry stared at him a moment, his face completely in anguish, before looking around. "There's a bed…and a chair…and a sink."

"What color is the chair?"

Harry was able to take a deep breath. "Blue."

"Very good," Ted repeated. "Now try to regulate your breathing some more. In through your nose, out through your mouth."

It took another minute, but Harry was able to calm himself down enough to breathe normally, though his heart rate was still elevated and he felt both hot and cold at the same time. Ted left, saying he was going to retrieve a glass of water for the boy, but Sirius knew it was so they could have a few moments alone to discuss what had just happened.

"Tell me how you're feeling now," Sirius said as he smoothed Harry's hair back.

Harry took another deep breath and looked at his father. "Ok, I guess. I just don't understand what happened."

Sirius pulled a chair over and sat so he was facing Harry. "You had a panic attack, Harry."

Harry's cheeks colored as he stared down at his hands. "I know, but why?"

Sirius took both of Harry's hands into his. "I don't know, Harry. People who have been through all you've been through sometimes have trouble dealing with it, and our body just reacts. It's nothing to be ashamed of, Harry. I've had them on and off ever since I got out of Azkaban."

Harry looked his father in the eyes as he was explaining, but he looked back down when he was done. No matter what Sirius said, it didn't feel normal or "nothing to be ashamed of," and Harry hated the feeling of being abnormal. Normalcy was all he had wanted for his entire life, and even with Voldemort dead, it didn't feel like he would ever find it.

Sirius tapped his hand to bring his son's attention back to him. "Can you tell me what you were feeling or thinking before it happened?"

Harry shrugged, but Sirius continued to look at him, so he felt forced to answer. "I was thinking about when you were in here. This room looks exactly like your room."

Sirius looked around. "It does, doesn't it?"

"Yeah," Harry agreed, perking up a bit. "And it smells like it too."

Sirius didn't remember what the room smelled like when he was stuck here. He remembered more the taste of the nasty potions they had him drink, the sound of healers shuffling in and out of his room and down the hallways, and, most of all, the constant worry he felt for Harry. But he understood Harry's perspective was different, and he figured that the things Harry brought up were what most likely triggered the panic attack. He ran a hand over his son's face and smiled at him.

"How are you feeling now?"

Harry sighed. "Well, not better, but not like I'm dying anymore either."

Sirius nodded. He understood that feeling completely. "Do you think you're ready to keep going?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah, the sooner we get this over with, the better."

Sirius stood and was just about to go find Ted when the Healer knocked and entered again with a bottle of water. He handed it to Harry, then looked between the father and son. "Are we ready to get started?"

Sirius looked at Harry, who took a sip of water before nodding. "Yeah, I'm ready."

Ted nodded reassuringly. He pulled a chair closer to Harry and began asking him a series of questions. Most of them were easy, such as his height and weight. A few of them were downright embarrassing, like when he asked Harry if he was sexually active. Harry had turned bright red even though he had never done more than kiss a girl. But then there were questions that were unbearably uncomfortable, and Harry could feel his chest tightening again as he did his best to answer them.

"Let's talk about some of your injuries. Madam Pomfrey sent me the reports from Hogwarts. You've been hurt quite a bit, including having all the bones regrown in your right arm." Ted was completely in healer mode as he spoke, showing very little emotion but very interested in Harry's answers.

Harry scowled. "Yeah, but that was because of that git Lockhart."

Ted smirked. He figured it would be a bit unprofessional to point out that Lockhart was paying for his sins on the fourth floor of St. Mungo's. "Well, can you tell me about some of the others?"

Harry shrugged. "I got bitten by a basilisk. That was probably the worst."

Sirius already hated where this conversation was headed and he cleared his throat softly as he shifted uncomfortably.

Ted gave Sirius a knowing smile before turning back to Harry. "I would actually rather hear about your injuries before you got to Hogwarts."

Harry stiffened. "What do you mean?"

Ted looked at Sirius, who immediately understood. Sirius took Harry's hand again. "I think Ted wants to know if you had any injuries while living with the Dursleys."

Harry shook his head. "Nothing serious."

Ted nodded, though he knew the boy was lying. He didn't want to make Harry uncomfortable. "Ok, well from Madam Pomfrey's reports, it looks like you had an ankle injury that didn't heal properly. Do you mind if I take a look at that?"

Harry looked desperately at Sirius, silently begging his father to rescue him from the shame and embarrassment of admitting his relatives had abused him. Sirius was torn between wanting Harry to receive the proper medical care and wanting him to be relaxed and comfortable. Finally, the protective father won out. "It's ok, Harry. Just let Ted have a look."

"I promise, Harry," Ted began, "There's nothing I will find that will keep you from playing quidditch. I just want to make sure everything is healed and growing correctly."

Harry stared at him for a long moment before finally sighing and leaning back on the bed. He shifted so his feet were closer to Ted, and the healer removed his right shoe and rolled his ankle around a few times.

"Any pain when I do that?"

Harry shook his head. "Honestly, it hasn't hurt in years."

Ted nodded before patting the ankle and giving the teenager a smile. "Good then. Why don't you stay there and I'll do a quick scan with my wand. Then we'll discuss the report, and you'll be all done."

It felt extremely awkward to just lie there while someone ran a wand up and down his body, but Sirius distracted Harry with a story of his father getting a medical exam while they were in school together and James continuously flirting with the cute, young healer at the time with no success. After what felt like hours, Ted was finished. He read over the parchment while Harry held his breath and waited for him to tell the results. Finally Ted cleared his throat and spoke.

"Well, overall Harry you're disgustingly healthy." He winked at Harry before he continued. "You're still a bit underweight, but if we get you started on some vitamins, that should improve. I would…"

"Wait, are those pill vitamins or potion vitamins?" Harry interrupted to ask.

Ted looked over his glasses at him. "We can do either one," he said with a shrug.

"Pills," Sirius and Harry both said together.

Ted chuckled and looked back at the parchment. "Pills it is. I would also recommend that at some point, maybe after the summer but before your quidditch season starts, we re-break your ankle and heal it properly."

"Uh, no," Harry said flatly. "We're not interested."

Sirius was biting his lip hard as he thought about the best way to respond. Ted sensed his discomfort and continued.

"You'd be asleep the whole time, Harry. You wouldn't feel a thing. And once the bones are corrected, you'd be good as new. You'd need to stay off your feet for two to three days at the most."

"No thank you," Harry answered, his head shaking vehemently. "I've had enough broken bones for one lifetime."

If they weren't in the one place that Harry certainly didn't need to be seen, Sirius would have likely sent him out of the room so he could talk to Ted privately. He placed a comforting hand on his son's arm and cleared his throat. "That's something we can discuss at a later time, correct?"

Ted nodded. "Absolutely. If Harry is not in any pain, then we're in no hurry. But the ankle is healed incorrectly, and it may cause him some discomfort as he grows, so it is something that will need to be discussed eventually."

Harry shook his head again, but Sirius gave him a look and spoke before the boy could protest. "Ok, we can discuss that in the future. For now, let's just get what he needs to start his quidditch training."

….

Whether it was because he was recovering from illness or because he was still upset from the healer appointment was unclear, but Remus wiped the floor with Harry that afternoon on the tennis court. Remus was generally the better player, but Harry was panting hard and sweating after only four games, so Remus decided he'd had enough and fulfilled his promise to Sirius to make sure the boy took it easy.

"Why don't you and I go to lunch? I'm quite hungry," Remus suggested as they packed their bags.

Harry nodded, wiping the sweat over his eyes. "Good idea. I'm starving."

"What are you in the mood for?" Remus asked as they began to walk out.

Harry scratched his head, wondering if he could talk his godfather into a venture into the Wizarding World. Sirius was pretty adamant they would not be going anywhere near it for a long while. If Harry thought he was famous before, it was nothing compared to the celebrity status he garnered as the Boy Who Lived Again, and Sirius wanted nothing to do with it for a long time.

It wasn't that Harry particularly wanted to deal with that notoriety, he just didn't believe it was as bad as his father would claim. And having been sick for the last few days, he really was craving a hearty meal now that he felt like eating. He decided it was worth a shot with his godfather.

"I know Sirius doesn't want me around wizards much, but do you think we could go to the Leaky Cauldron? I'd do anything for their cottage pie, and maybe we could get a private room." He tried his best to give his puppy dog eyes to his godfather.

Remus stopped and raised an eyebrow at him. "Do you really expect me to believe you want to go to the Leaky Cauldron for cottage pie and not to find out what your father and Amelia are up to?"

Had that been Harry's true motivation, he likely would have pretended he didn't know what Remus was talking about, and Remus would have seen right through his ruse because the boy could not lie to save his life. But as soon as his face morphed from a begging puppy to a confused teenager, Remus immediately knew it was genuine and he had just said way too much.

"What?" Harry asked.

Remus cursed Sirius under his breath as he struggled with how to respond to his godson, who was quickly going from confused to irate.

"Uhh…Sirius didn't…Sirius didn't mention he was having lunch with Amelia?" Remus sputtered.

"No, he didn't," Harry responded, his voice rising in volume. "He's having lunch with Amelia?!"

"Well…yes," Remus answered cautiously.

After a long pause, his chest heaving, Harry snapped. "He lied to me!" Now he was truly yelling and Remus noticed they had gotten the attention of a few muggles at the tennis club.

"Harry, try to calm down," Remus attempted, but Harry was completely losing control. He was hurt that Sirius had, just a few days prior, told him that he was the most important person in his father's life, and now Sirius had lied, obviously pushed Harry off on Remus, and snuck away to have lunch with Amelia. But not only was he hurt, he was also furious. He'd been punished multiple times in the past for lying to Sirius, and Sirius always made him feel absolutely awful about it, yet he lied directly to Harry this morning. He no longer felt tired or hungry. All he wanted to do now was find his father and scream at the man until his voice was completely gone.

"So, how long are you supposed to keep me distracted while he's off doing Merlin knows what with Amelia?"

Remus sighed. At least Harry wasn't yelling now, but the boy was obviously upset. "Harry, I've been offering to take you to play tennis since you came home from Hogwarts. Just because Sirius happens to be having lunch with Amelia on the same day we finally made it here doesn't mean that I simply brought you here to distract you…"

Harry scoffed. His next sentence was laced with expletives that he would normally never dare use around Remus and Remus normally wouldn't tolerate, but the gist of it was, "Let's go."

Remus was every bit as angry at Sirius as his godson was, but he knew his priority right now should be to get Harry to calm down. He ran a hand over his face before scurrying after the teenager stomping towards the locker room.

Rage was swirling in Harry, like a caged animal poised for escape, and tears were stinging his eyes, which made him even angrier. He wasn't going to cry over his father lying to him. He was going to make the man pay. He was so caught up in his own anger that he didn't notice the lights begin to flicker around him, but when he moved to push the locker room door open and instead the door splintered into pieces and collapsed with a loud crash, he froze in shock.

"What the-"

"Accidental magic," Remus said quietly next to his ear. "Come on, let's get you out of here." He took Harry by the shoulders, moved quickly through the doorway to a spot with no muggle eyes, and apparated them both back to Harry's house.

Once their feet were firmly on the ground, Harry turned to Remus. "I didn't mean to…"

"I know. That's why it's called accidental magic. Don't worry, if any muggles saw, the ministry will take care of it," Remus explained. "The important thing is that you need to calm yourself down. Your emotions are way out of control."

That seems to be the story of my life right now, Harry thought to himself. "Will I be in trouble?" he asked worriedly. The ministry had let him off easy when he had blown up his Aunt Marge because of their belief a crazed maniac was after him. This time was quite different.

"No," Remus replied, shaking his head. "You'll likely get a letter from the ministry, but beyond that I wouldn't be too worried." He wanted to add, Plus, your dad is dating the Minister of Magic, so that should help you, but he wasn't going to bring up that fact right now. "Let's go inside. I'll make us some lunch, and then perhaps we can have a rational conversation."

Harry scowled. He would rather not go inside. He'd rather stay outside and fly…or run…or blow a few more things up, but Remus wasn't really giving him an option. He stomped into the house behind his godfather.

"I'm going to my room," Harry said irritably as they walked through the door.

"No, you are not," Remus replied. At Harry's incredulous face, he shook his head. "The last time you went to your room angry, you snuck out and tried to fly to the Burrow."

Harry rolled his eyes. "I won't do that again."

"All the same," Remus answered, "you can stay down here. We should talk anyway. Come on." He began to walk towards their kitchen, but looked back when he realized Harry wasn't following him. He noticed the boy looking longingly at the fireplace and could read his thoughts like a book. "Don't even think about taking that floo to the Leaky Cauldron, young man. You'll only get yourself into trouble. Don't make a stupid decision just because your father did." He winced at the last statement, knowing he shouldn't have said that in front of Harry, but he also didn't really feel like he could stop himself.

Harry tried to pretend like that wasn't exactly what he was thinking, but it was exactly what he was thinking, and he wasn't fooling anyone. Finally, dejectedly, he turned and followed Remus to the kitchen.

….

"Do you think all of them will be convicted?" Sirius asked Amelia as they discussed the upcoming death eater trials. Not every death eater present that night had been arrested, but many had, including Lucius Malfoy. Sirius knew Lucius was responsible for Harry's first encounter with a horcrux, and near death as a result, and he wanted to see the man pay this time around. He had already avoided Azkaban once. Sirius didn't want to see that happen again.

Amelia nodded, but not confidently. "Lucius is the one that worries me the most. He's poured a lot of money into his defense."

Sirius let out a low growl. "Do you think he could get off again?"

"Well, we did catch him there that night. We have a dozen witnesses," Amelia explained, "But money talks."

Sirius didn't like that answer. He gripped his fork so hard he could have likely bent it. Amelia sensed his unease and took his hand in hers.

"Trust me. We're going to do everything we can to put away as many death eaters as possible."

Sirius stared into her eyes a moment before eventually nodding. "I trust you to do your best. It's the whole system I'm a bit put out by."

"Well, it also helps that their maniacal leader is dead," she added before taking a drink. When she finished, she looked back at Sirius. "You're taking Harry to the beach tomorrow, right?"

Sirius nodded. "Yeah."

Amelia took a deep breath. "When you get back, it's probably a good idea for us to start prepping him to testify."

Sirius nearly choked on his food. "I don't know if he or I will ever be ready for that."

Amelia gave him a sad smile before persisting. She knew that was going to be his reaction, and she was prepared for it. "I understand, but he's the most important witness. He's the only one that was there the entire time."

Sirius sighed deeply. He knew she was right, he just hated it. Wasn't he looking forward to this lunch?

Little did he know his day was about to get exponentially worse.

A large barn owl swooped in and dropped a letter directly on top of his plate.

"What the hell?" he muttered as he flipped the letter over and read the address.

Sirius Black, parent of Harry Potter

The Leaky Cauldron

Room 3

London

"That's from the ministry," Amelia commented, immediately worried.

Sirius didn't respond as he opened the letter and Amelia moved to read over his shoulder.

Dear Mr. Black,

We have received intelligence that your son, Harry James Potter, performed the Reductor Curse in the presence of muggles at twelve thirty-six pm.

As you know, underage wizards are not permitted to perform spells outside school, and further spellwork on his part may lead to expulsion from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry (Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery, 1875, Paragraph C).

Ministry officials have resolved the situation, but please remind your son that any magical activity that risks notice by members of the non-magical community (muggles) is a serious offence under section 13 of the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy.

Enjoy your holidays! Yours sincerely,

Mafalda Hopkirk

Sirius cursed and stood up quickly, nearly knocking over Amelia as he did so. "The Reductor Curse? Why the hell would he need to blow something up?"

Amelia was equally confused. "If there was some sort of fight that took place, I think I would have been notified. Kingsley knows where I am."

That familiar and awful feeling of knowing his son was in trouble but not knowing where he was resurfaced in Sirius's stomach, making him want to throw up and lash out at the same time. Fortunately he had Amelia there to reason with him.

"Is Harry not at your home?" she asked, breaking Sirius's spiraling thoughts.

"No, Remus took him out," Sirius answered.

"Ok, where?"

"To a muggle tennis club."

"Can you apparate both of us there?" Amelia asked, not completely sure what tennis was. Before she even noticed Sirius's answer, he grabbed her arm and they both disappeared.

….

"Why are you acting like I did something wrong?" Harry asked as he crossed his arms and pouted at their table while Remus busied himself with lunch.

Remus grimaced. "My apologies. It was not my intention to do so. I'm very upset with Sirius as well. I just don't want you running off and being alone with your feelings. That has historically not been good for you, and all this anger you're harboring isn't going to end well if it all comes out as soon as your father gets here. So why don't you talk to me for a while first?"

That wasn't exactly what he wanted to hear, but Harry figured that Remus might have a point. "Fine."

"Tell me what you're feeling," Remus said as he began gathering carrots, onions, celery, and garlic.

"What are you doing?" Harry asked, ignoring the question.

Remus looked up at him as if the answer was obvious. "Making lunch. I thought you wanted cottage pie?"

At that, Harry couldn't help but smile. He really did have the best godfather. Well truthfully, he also had a pretty good father as well, most of the time, but he didn't care to think about that right now. "Thanks."

"So, how are you feeling?"

Harry sighed. "Pissed off."

Remus nodded. "That's understandable." He looked at Harry in anticipation, hoping the boy would elaborate.

Harry got the hint and kept talking. "I mean, last time I lied to him, I got in major trouble. Sirius hates lying, or says he does. I guess he only hates it when I lie."

Remus pulled out a skillet, a deep frown on his face. Sirius hated all lying, which made it even more bizarre and frustrating that he had chosen to lie today. Cautiously, he looked back at Harry and spoke slowly, choosing his words carefully. "I'm not defending Sirius's actions, but can I ask you a question?"

The sharp way Harry raised his eyebrow told Remus he should tread lightly.

"Can you think of any reason Sirius would feel he needed to lie?"

Harry fought the urge to yell at Remus and stomp out of the room. "Having a reason to lie doesn't make it ok," he retorted, his teeth gritted.

"No, it doesn't," Remus agreed. "But I'm just asking you to think about it." He cleared his throat softly. "Do you have a problem with Sirius dating Amelia?"

….

Sirius felt like a pendulum of emotions swinging back and forth between terrified and furious.

He had been terrified when they arrived at the tennis club.

Then, after Amelia spoke with a ministry Obliviator that explained they were there due to a door being blown up, he was furious. He knew from personal experience that the Reductor Curse was usually the result of teenage boys trying to do magic they shouldn't be doing, and he had just told Harry that morning he was not to do magic without an adult supervising him. And speaking of that, why wasn't the adult he had left Harry with actually supervising him, especially away from their home?

But then the Obliviator explained that he was part of the Accidental Magic Reversal Squad, which meant Harry hadn't intended to blow up anything, nor had he tried to do some other type of charm and failed. He had a burst of accidental magic, which then made Sirius extremely worried again knowing that was usually the result of extreme emotions.

Then, he was furious again that Remus had made no attempts to contact him about it yet.

Back and forth, a pendulum of emotion.

Amelia walked over to him. "I'll take care of the warning Harry got. He shouldn't risk being punished for accidental magic."

Sirius nodded. "Thanks. I'm going to go home and see what happened."

And so, that was where he went, completely unaware and unprepared for the firestorm that was waiting for him as soon as he stepped through the floo.

Harry heard the chime of the floo and immediately stood from their table and ran to the living room.

Relief washed over Sirius as he saw his son safe. "Harry, are you ok? I was worried sick…"

"Did you have a nice time?" Harry snarled, completely ignoring his father's question.

Sirius's forehead creased in confusion as Remus followed closely behind Harry. "What do you mean?"

"Don't act like you don't know what I'm talking about! I know you were out with Amelia!" Harry shouted.

Sirius looked at Remus, his eyes so wide it would have been comical if the situation weren't so serious. "YOU TOLD HIM?!"

Remus wanted to smack Sirius. He gave his best friend a look like he had grown an extra head. "YOU DIDN'T?" he shouted incredulously.

"I…I was going to," Sirius attempted to defend himself, but Harry was having none of that.

"When? When were you planning on telling me? Right before your wedding? YOU LIED TO ME!" Harry wanted to scream more, but tears were stinging his eyes again, so he turned away to hide his hurt.

The room was awkwardly silent for several seconds before Sirius dared to speak. "Harry, I…"

Harry shook his head. He didn't want to listen, didn't want to understand. His father had lied to him and hurt him deeply, but he couldn't let Sirius see it. He wanted to yell and make Sirius feel awful, but if he stayed here, he was going to start crying, and he just couldn't do that.

"I don't want to hear it. I don't fucking care what you have to say. I just want you to leave me alone." He stomped off to his room before either adult could say anything to stop him.

Sirius stood motionless as Harry stomped up the steps and slammed his door. His shoulders slumped and it was taking all of his energy not to collapse. He lifted his head and looked at Remus. "Can you please tell me what the hell happened?"

….

Harry sat on his bed with his arms crossed, tears streaming down his face against his will. He stared out his window at nothing in particular. He jumped a little as he heard a soft knock on his door, and he wiped his tears quickly before his father entered, carrying a plate of cottage pie. He walked over and sat it on Harry's nightstand.

"I don't want to talk to you," Harry said sharply, refusing to look at his father.

Sirius sat at Harry's desk and leaned his chair back. "That's ok. You can just listen," he said gently.

"I want you to leave me alone!" Harry tried again, practically growling now.

Sirius ran a hand through his hair. "Well, unfortunately I can't do that. Despite how much trouble I'm in myself, you're still on restriction, so if this is where you want to be, then I will have to be here with you. Also, Remus said you need to eat."

That comment at least caused Harry to look at Sirius, though it was a harsh glare.

Sirius sighed. "Ok, I'll talk, you can listen. Harry, I screwed up. I seem to be doing a lot of that lately, but today takes the cake I'm afraid. I shouldn't have lied to you, and you have every right to be angry with me."

Harry met his eyes again, but looked away quickly. He wasn't even close to ready to forgive his father yet, though it did help that Sirius freely admitted what he did wrong.

"I know you're angry and hurt, and you should be. I don't have any excuse for what I did, and I don't expect you to forgive me right away, but I want you to know how deeply sorry I am," Sirius continued.

Harry fidgeted a little but still didn't speak.

"I also want you to know that Remus wasn't babysitting you or distracting you so that I could go out. He wanted to spend time with you, you know he always has, and I just happened to take advantage of that today. He had no idea I didn't tell you where I was going, so you shouldn't be upset with him." He paused to give Harry a chance to speak.

"I'm not upset with him," Harry said plainly, still not meeting his father's eyes and clearly implying the unspoken I'm only upset with you at the end.

"Well, good then," Sirius answered, silently pleading with his son to look at him. "So like I said, I screwed up, and I have no excuse, and I'm truly sorry. I'd do anything to make it up to you."

Silence.

Sirius hung his head. "Harry, please say something. Yell at me. Throw something at me. Hex me if you have to. Just please respond."

Harry finally looked at him. "Why did you lie to me?" he asked, finally allowing some of the hurt to come through in his voice.

Sirius would have definitely preferred a hex. He felt like a dagger had been sent right through his heart, but it was time to be honest now. "Because, I really like Amelia, Harry, and I was afraid of how you'd react. I never, ever want you to think that anyone is more important to me than you. I never want you to hurt or even feel uncomfortable. But I do like her, son, and I would like her to be a bigger part of our lives."

Harry softened slightly, but he was still angry, and now he found himself feeling conflicted. He did like Amelia, a lot, but he loved Sirius, and he hated the idea of anyone taking him away. Sirius was the first person that had ever made Harry his top priority, and Harry wasn't sure if it was selfish or not, but he liked that feeling and wanted it to continue. They both sat in silence for a while before Harry finally spoke. "I like her too," he admitted. "But…I don't know. I guess I just don't like the idea of sharing you." He looked down and his cheeks burned from that admission, but he too felt it was time for them both to be honest with each other.

Sirius took that as his cue to move beside Harry on the bed, and to his surprise and delight, Harry shifted just enough to give him room to sit, but not so far as to be moving further away from him. "I promise you Harry that I will always be there when you need me. You'll never have to share me with anyone, and if you feel like you do, then you can tell me. I will always be there for you."

Harry felt his hard shell melting away, though he still wasn't ready to fully forgive. He looked at Sirius with a slight smirk. "Well, she can have you this week. I'm still mad at you."

Though Sirius knew Harry was teasing, and that was a good sign, he still felt like he'd been punched in the gut. "Fair enough. Is there anything I can do to make it up to you?"

Harry studied him a moment, thinking it over. All the fight had left him, leaving him quite tired. Truthfully, all he wanted to do now was hug his father and talk to him, but that was because anytime he was hurt or upset, Sirius was the one person that could make it better. The fact that Sirius was the one to hurt him confused him, and he didn't really know the best way to handle it. He felt like he needed some way to clear his head.

"Can I fly for a little while?"

Sirius hesitated, but then an idea struck him, so he nodded. "You're not planning to run away again, are you?"

Harry rolled his eyes. "I swear I'm not. I just need some time in the air."

"Ok, how about an hour?"

Harry didn't really feel like it was fair that he was still being punished when Sirius had broken one of their most important rules that morning, but he didn't feel like arguing. "Fine."

….

Sirius ended up giving Harry nearly an hour and a half in the sky before he carried a tray of biscuits and a pitcher of pumpkin juice outside. Harry caught sight of his father and took that as his cue to land. He flew right up beside Sirius, and they both sat outside while they snacked.

"That felt like more than an hour," Harry commented as he sat down across from Sirius and grabbed a chocolate biscuit.

Sirius looked at his watch. "It was."

"Why did you let me stay up there?" Harry asked cautiously. As angry as he was at Sirius, he didn't want to go back to whatever version of Sirius he had at the beginning of the summer.

Sirius shrugged. "I had a lot on my mind. I think I have an idea."

Harry raised an eyebrow.

"I think you and I should come up with a list of rules, or maybe agreements, for me dating Amelia," Sirius suggested.

"Like what?"

"Well, like we both agree to always be honest with each other, even if we don't think the other person will take it well. I promise to always be honest with you and I promise to put you first, and you promise to tell me the second you start to feel like Amelia is taking your place. How does that sound?"

"But lying was already against the rules, and you still did it," Harry retorted.

Sirius hung his head. "I know, and I am truly sorry about that."

Harry chewed his biscuit for a moment before answering. "I forgive you," he finally said, and returned Sirius's smile when the man raised his head and beamed at his son. "But you're grounded."

Sirius's eyes grew wide with amusement. "Oh, am I?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah, two weeks. No dating."

Sirius chuckled. "I guess that's fair."

"And no motorcycle."

"Well, now you're just being cruel."

Harry laughed. "And when we go to the beach tomorrow, I get to pick every restaurant, and every activity, and we have to get ice cream from that shop downtown every night."

Sirius threw his head back in laughter. "I think that's how it typically goes anyway, right?"

Harry gave an innocent shrug. "As you like to say, if you do the crime, you have to do the time."

Sirius reached over and pulled his son into a hug, kissing his forehead. "I love you son, and I really am sorry."

Harry looked up at him. "I love you too, Dad."

Eventually, they broke their embrace and Sirius waved his hand, producing a piece of parchment and quill. "So, do you have any suggestions for our dating rules?"

Harry smirked. "I have some ideas."

….

Harry and Sirius's rules for dating:

No lying. Always be honest about where you're going, what you're doing, and how you're feeling.

Family time is the top priority. It's ok to say, "I don't want you to go out today/tonight. I want to spend time with you instead."

No snogging in front of each other.

For Sirius and Amelia, at least one out of every three dates must include Harry.

Number 3 doesn't apply if Harry doesn't want to go.

For Harry, no girls behind closed doors.

For Sirius, no girls behind closed doors when Harry is home.*

*Harry formally protests this rule on the grounds that it is "not fair" and "gross."