Harry Potter and the New Start
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Hey! I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed the last chapter. Now you all get to see what the new home for Sirius and Harry is! Responses at the bottom, where they will be for the rest of the story.
------------------------------------Godric's Hollow
Once Harry finished his dinner, Sirius just left the bowl where it was. There wasn't really a need to keep the place clean, considering how it was already partly demolished. "Okay, Harry, why don't we grab some stuff from your room?"
The stairs were shaky at best, something that Sirius hadn't noticed when he had raced up them to get to Lily and Harry. But they seemed to be remaining vertical, which was all Sirius could ask for.
Reaching Harry's old bedroom, Sirius couldn't help but allow his heart to clench for a second. Lily and James had put so much work into that room, for it to be perfect. They would have made such amazing parents. Hell, half the time Sirius wished they'd adopt him.
He grabbed a baby bag from the shelf and quickly started shoving some of Harry's toys and clothes into it. They would most likely have all they'd need at their new home, but it didn't hurt to go prepared. The playpen in the corner was still intact, so Sirius set Harry down and raced to the Potter's bedroom. He and James were pretty much the same size, so it wouldn't hurt to grab one of Prongs' old robes.
Once he was changed he stepped back into Harry's nursery. "Alright, Harry, isn't this an improvement? No more month old robes." He brightly talked to the baby.
Harry looked up at Sirius and held out a toy for him. Accepting the child's offer, Sirius plopped the stuffed black dog – a gift that Sirius had given Harry a little after he'd been born - into the bag of things they were talking with them. "Excellent idea, Emeralds." Sirius praised, using James's nickname for his son. A nickname that Sirius would make sure that Harry continued to answer to.
Once Sirius was sure that they'd gathered the necessities for Harry, should their new home be ill equipped for a baby, Sirius grabbed his godson and walked out the door. His earlier suspicion of the streets abandonment seemed right. Judging from the lack on noise that usually accompanied a street – night time or no – the guess was that the street had been abandoned, which meant that no one would care if he just apparated out of the street.
----------------------------------Prong's Place
"Well, at least I can see it." Sirius brightly informed Harry, pleased that there would be no setbacks in their plan. That was, unless the house elves went on strike, or worse, got in touch with Dumbledore. But luckily for him, all of the house elves would remember him as James's friend.
Sirius stepped inside the property and wasn't instantly whisked away to the other side. The castle itself looked just as big and gleaming as Sirius remembered it.
There were many secrets to the Potter Castle, as its name was originally. Each of the owners changed its name to suit their needs. Prong's Palace would be its name until something else came to mind.
But, while it was half the size of Hogwarts, it was an adjusting home. Like one big room of requirement, except once it changed itself the rooms would stay unless a reason came up for them to change again in the same timeframe. It changed to suit the needs of its owner. Many of the rooms stayed the same no matter the owner. Things such as the lounge – which happened to resemble the Gryffindor common room – , the library and the kitchens, along with many of the bedrooms all stayed the same.
Once the castle started to learn about its new masters it would change around to suit the needs. James's specifics might change into something else that Harry needed. According to James's father, when he inherited the castle it had been full of libraries, all organized by subject for his studious father. When James had gotten the castle, it had been full of auror records and items – some of which had stuck around for the next generation.
And in James's version the castle was stocked up on pranking/experimentation rooms and quidditch supplies. Along with a quidditch pitch in the grounds. As James had gotten older, some of the auror rooms that had been there when he first received the castle returned.
Sirius was now sorely hoping that there would be a nursery in the castle. He walked up to the door and opened it wide, Harry and the bag still clutched in each arm. His godson seemed quiet intrigued by what was happening. "Pa-fut?"
Grinning at his godson's way of making his name into a full on sentence – "What are we doing here?" – Sirius decided to just tell him, even if Harry wouldn't quite understand. "This is our new home, Harry."
But Harry's attention span didn't allow the little boy to digest these words, as a house elf had just apparated in front of them, "Mister Black! Yous's back! And Master Potter too!"
"Hello, Boo." Sirius greeted the house elf. She had always been one of his favorites, and in turn Boo had adored both he and James. It was good to start off with Boo, as she could explain it to the rest of the house elves. She was pretty much in charge of the house, and was the elf that they'd see the most. "We're back."
"It's good to see Mister Black and Master Harry. Where is Master Potter?" Boo asked, all the while looking behind Sirius at the open door as though James were right behind him.
Sirius put the bag down on the ground and kneeled down in front of the elf. He set Harry down on the ground next to him, the little boy merely watched the conversation with interest. "James, um...James and Lily were killed."
The house elves' eyes grew wider than they already were. Which was saying something. Tears threatened to overflow, but Boo held them back. "What happened, Mister Black?"
"Vol...um, sorry. You-Know-Who." Sirius explained. "Lily and James died trying to protect Harry. Okay, Boo, you may hear some things. But they're wrong. I'll tell you the truth, okay? I wasn't the secret keeper for them, I did not betray James and I am not the Dark Lord's right hand. It was Peter Pettigrew, who is still alive."
Boo nodded reverently, "Boo is believing Mister Black. Mister Black would never do anything to Master Potter!"
"Thanks for believing me." Sirius thanked her with a grin. "But no one else does. They thought that I betrayed Lily and James, and then when I went to confront Peter, he set me up. He's made it look like I killed him and thirteen muggles. But I didn't."
"What happened to Master Harry and Mister Black after?" Boo asked, following along to the story perfectly. She had served the Potters all through James's life, and she'd known Sirius since he was sixteen. Boo knew how close they were, and she knew that there was no way that Sirius had done what the people claimed.
Sighing, Sirius continued on with his tale, happy that Boo had believed him. "Dumbledore sent ...wait, do you know who Dumbledore is?"
"Boo is knowing Albus Dumbledore. He is a great wizard." Boo answered. She nodded wildly, her black hair flopping into her face.
Sirius nodded back, "Good. Okay, well Dumbledore thought that Harry would be safest with the Dursleys – Lily's sister."
"But Mister Black is Master Harry's godfather!" the elf cried out indigently. "Why did Albus Dumbledore not give Master Harry to Mister Black?"
In Sirius's mind he was agreeing right along with her. "Well, Boo, since I was thought to be the traitor, I was sent to Azkaban."
Before he could continue his story, Boo threw her arms around Sirius. She squeezed so hard that he was sure that he could hear his ribs creaking under the pressure. "Um...Boo...air."
Sheepishly, the elf backed off. "Boo is being sorry, Mister Black. How did Mister Black get out of Azkaban?"
"I, well, I escaped." Sirius answered just as sheepishly. He looked down at the ground as Boo's eyes again widened.
"Escaped?" She whispered in awe. "No wizard's ever escaped."
Smiling, "Well, no wizard but me." Sirius told her, trying to keep the pride from his voice. "Okay, so anyway, once I escaped I was hell bent on getting Harry. I know Lily's sister, Boo, she's awful. She hates magic, and she hated Lily."
"Mistress Lily was so kind! How could her sister hate her?" Boo cried out. She had only met Lily once or twice, but Lily had always been nice to her. According to Lily, Boo was the only girlfriend she had around Prong's Place. Sirius could still remember the sobs of joy and flattery that had come from Boo hours after that.
"I know. But either way, Petunia did hate her. And by extension, she hated Harry." Sirius said as his voice darkened. The image of his godson whimpering for food was still fresh in his mind. Sirius leaned down and kissed Harry's head. Sensing that Sirius needed it, Harry sent a wide smile up to his godfather and clutched his hand. "I went and watched at their house. She was spoiling her son. But she wasn't feeding Harry anything. He's thinner than he was a month ago."
Boo looked outraged at the injustice of it all. "That is evil, Mister Black!"
"Tell me about it." Sirius sighed. "Boo, I'm on the run. They find me, and I go back to Azkaban and Harry goes back to the Dursleys. Because now, I've technically kidnapped him out from under Dumbledore's nose. Is it all right if I raise Harry here? Where no one can find us."
Nodding her head, Boo made sure there was no room for arguments. "Yes, Mister Black. The elves and I will serve you and Master Harry. We is not going to tell anyone that you're here."
Smiling brightly Sirius breathed an internal sigh of relief. "Thank you, Boo.
"You are most welcome, Master Black." Boo slid in the 'Master' slyly. It as a huge honor to have the elves that were bound to the Potters recognize him as Master. It meant that she was going to help them in any way she could. "I is going to tell the others what is going on. Unless there is something that you or Master Harry needs?"
Leaning down to his godson, Sirius asked. "What do you think, Harry? Do we need anything right now?"
Screwing up his face in concentration, Harry appeared to be giving it some deep thought. After a minute, he'd made his conclusion. "No-no. Pa-fut, story!"
Both Boo and Sirius laughed. "I think we're set, Boo."
The elf bowed to them both and started to hurry away. But just as Sirius was picking up Harry from the ground, she turned around. "Master Black, what will Boo tell the other elves the new house name is?"
Sirius had forgotten that the castle changed its name for each new master. He hadn't even thought of something to name it. He looked over at Harry, who was looking at him in fascination. The idea struck him and Sirius grinned.
"Emerald's Palace."
I hope you all liked this chapter. Please, if I've confused anyone then let me know in a review and I'll answer your questions.
Athenakitty- Well, you remember the book where Fred and George picked the locks? They said it was a skill worth learning for a prankster, I just figured that the Marauders had taken that to heart too. No real reason why he'd know, just that its what I wanted! LOL. As for your other questions, I can't tell! Nope, no way. Hehe.
Yana5- I think Harry's pretty cute too. Thanks for the review!
Kungzoune- I have permission for a happy dance? Well, trust me, it wouldn't be pretty. I'm glad my chapters are still liked. Thanks!
Luvguurl- I liked the ending too, I thought it would be cute. As for my cliffhangers, you'll see. I actually write here under a different name for a different genre, and you should see how many "You suck"s or "I hate you!"s I've gotten over time. Thanks for the review!
Mushroom – hunter – d- I hope the Potter Mansion got explained a bit better for you. As for Sirius's wand, you'll see, I've got a solution there. Should come up within a few chapters. :-)
Tessa- I'm hoping the direction this goes will continue to make you happy! I was actually quite pleased with how that feeding scene turned out, so I'm glad everyone seems to agree. As for your questions, yes Sirius gets a wand. And no, Harry doesn't go to Hogwarts. Though, I've set up the story so that I can continue it into school as a series or something. Ah, we'll see...
Padfootluver- Ahh, so that's what it meant! I get it now. Bring us more posts. Okay, that clears things up! Total greatness? I'm not sure about that, but thanks all the same! ;-)
I Hate Everything- Good to know that someone who hates everything wants more. LOL.
Hermoine21- Sirius's wand will be explained. As for money, make something up in your head? Okay? I might add a little paragraph explaining it in a later chapter, but for now its sorta low on my priorities list. I didn't even think of it until I read your review! LOL, you're more on top of it then I am. Thanks for the review.
Nytingale- Remus does turn up in this story. As for what he does and does not find out, you'll have to wait and see! But I can assure you of his presence. In fact, he turns up very soon. :-)
Stinky Stan- Yep, they're quite please, as I am. LOL. I like writing Sirius and Harry scenes. Thanks for the review!
Chocolatelove- Brilliant!? You're gonna make me blush! But I do agree completely about how Harry should have never gone to the Dursleys. Blood protection or no, that's cruelty! As for the long chapters...well...I'll try. I have an outline for the chapters of the story (keeps my focus, much easier for me!) so the only way to make them longer for now would be me embellishing a lot. I will try though. Thanks!
YoshimiWolfspaw- I'm glad you love it! I'm trying to keep a semi-regular update schedule, so no worries there. Thanks for reviewing.
Kimberly- Excellent job, hu? Thank you very much.
Takari4ever7- Reactions will be coming up very soon. Meaning next chapter or so. Thanks for your review!
Ciberloco- I know your pain, I was this close to putting down book five and never picking up a HP book again when I read that part. The reactions are coming soon! Thanks.
Moonmage- First, cool name, I like it. Good to know you like it! :-)
