The Missing Parent

Sirius and Katie made their way up to the Shoreman's house.

'Is Mum home?' Katie asked. Her dad shook his head. Katie's happy expression dropped. 'She's at work isn't she?'

'She's very busy Katie…' her Dad started.

'So she couldn't come and see her daughter who she hasn't seen since Christmas? She was barely even there at Christmas break and it was a holiday!'

'I'm sorry Kate…' Katie stormed off into the house with her trunk following. Katie had a few tears formed in her eyes as she sat on her couch. Sirius walked slowly behind her. Katie patted the spot next to her.

'I'm sorry Sirius.' Katie told him. 'The visit has already started out badly.' Sirius gave her a hug.

'Don't worry 'bout it Kate.' Sirius smiled at her. Katie forced a smile back and then looked around.

'So this is my house.' Sirius got up and walked around. It looked almost like a muggle house that he saw in a magazine. There were signs that it was inhabited by magical people though. There was a container of floo powder sitting beside the fire place. Pictures were moving that were hanging on the walls.

'You have a brother?' Sirius asked as he looked at a picture. Katie nodded.

'He works at Gringotts.' Sirius looked closely at the picture and noticed that Katie and her brother seemed very close. He looked about four years older. Katie smiled at the picture of them, both of them on their brooms. A shelf of enchanted books sat by the fireplace. Sirius picked one up and the book sneezed as dust flew. Katie laughed at Sirius trying to swat the dust away.

'I don't know why we still have those books, we never read them. I guess we just like to hold on to things.' Sirius nodded, his family was the same way sometimes. Katie looked over at the book and then went quiet.

'Umm want to go see your room, your staying in my brother's.' Katie told him and then began to rush towards the stairs. Sirius was confused but agreed. Her brother's room was very neat with a bookshelf of old school books, a desk with quills and parchment and pictures of quidditch on the wall. An owl was perched by the windowsill.

'What's his name?'

'Owl'

'What's the owl's name?' Sirius asked confused. Katie laughed.

'His name is owl! Didn't you ever do that when you were a kid? Had a stuffed animal that was a bear and called him bear? Well that's what my brother did with our family owl.' Sirius smiled at owl who was cleaning his talons. 'The room's nothing special, I hope it's OK.' Katie told him glancing over at Sirius's face.

'It's great.' He told her and gave her a hug.

'I think I smell dinner.' Katie told him and they headed down for dinner where Katie hoped that Sirius would have a good time meeting his parents. She bolted down the steps two at a time with Sirius in tow.

'Barbeque!' Katie exclaimed.

'I hope you like hamburgers Sirius. We also have sausages.' Oliver told Sirius while flipping a hamburger on the barbeque.

'Both are great.'

'Great, we'll eat outside on the picnic table.' Oliver told them. 'Can you help set the table guys?' With a flick of a wand from Katie they heard clanging and then they watched the plates, cups and condiments go flying on to the table.

'Something's missing.' Katie thought out loud. 'Drinks!' Katie beckoned Sirius over in to the kitchen where they made lemonade.

'I always buy it in a carton.' Sirius told her.

'When you make it you can make it to perfection.' After adding the water and the sugar to the lemon juice they headed out to the picnic table where their meal sat. Sirius slid in next to Katie and across from Oliver. Oliver looked at his watch and then over at Katie.

'It's OK Dad.' She told him.

'She'll be here soon I promise.' Katie nodded.

'It isn't going to stop me from starting.' Oliver laughed and helped himself to a hamburger.

'So Sirius where do you live?'

'In London.' He said as he applied sauerkraut to his sausage.

'Great city' Oliver told him. Sirius nodded.

'Follow any football over there?'

'I don't have a particular team, I know of the sport and all which some people actually don't but I'm more of a quidditch follower.'

'Ah the same as Kate here.' Katie smiled.

'So how long have you guys known each other.'

'Well we've known each other for a couple years now but we're in different houses. I'm a Gryffindor myself and so we didn't know each other that well. We just really got to know each other this year actually.'

'Through classes?'

'Um' Sirius looked over at Katie who was looking down at her plate. 'The Christmas Ball actually. I asked her to the Christmas Ball' Sirius cleared his throat then ate a bite of sausage.

'Oh a ball? That sounds like fun.' Sirius started coughing. Katie handed a glass of lemonade to Sirius.

'and it was fun Dad.' Katie said smiling. She looked through the corner of her eye over to Sirius who was doing the same. She smiled and he nodded.

Just then a woman in black witch robes appeared in the corner of the yard. She had dark brown hair with strands of grey. Her hair was pulled into a severe ponytail and she had a straight face on. If she pulled her hair looser and put on a smile she would have greatly resembled Katie. With Katie's current straight face expression they almost looked identical.

'Sorry I'm late darling.' Mrs. Shoreman called out as she sat down beside her husband.

'Remember me?' Katie asked. 'Your daughter. I haven't seen you since the beginning of Janruary.'

'Of course I remember you Katie. How are you?'

'I was great.' Sirius looked over to see what Mrs. Shoreman's reaction was going to be.

'That's wonderful.' She replied not noting that Katie's comment was in the past tense.

'Mum?' Katie looked over at her. Her Mum looked up. 'Mum this is Sirius.'

'Hello Sirius. How are you?'

'I'm fine thanks.' Sirius told her.

'How was work?' Oliver asked.

'Long and busy. In fact I'm on call right now.'

'As am I, but I still made some time to see my daughter.' Oliver told her.

'I'm sorry but work was just so busy and I couldn't get out. I've made time for her now.' Sirius felt a tap on his left and looked over to see Katie disapparate.

'I'm just going to…' Sirius looked over at Oliver who nodded.

'Go ahead Sirius.'

'Dinner was great.' He said as he got up from the table and into the house. He found Katie in her room. She was lying face down in a pillow, her legs sprawled out on the bed, one hanging off.

'I'm sorry.' She said into the pillow, muffling her voice when she heard Sirius enter. She sat up and Sirius sat beside her. 'I don't want you to get a bad first impression of her. She works a lot you know? She never used to be like this. It was my Dad who used to work quite a bit, he's a healer at Mungo's and is on call so his work isn't very reliable. Mum used to stay at home. Take care of the kids you know?' Sirius nodded. 'But she got work I think it was nine years ago.'

'So she's not around a lot?' Sirius asked. Katie shook her head.

'No…She's not the greatest mother. But I love her.'