Chapter Three
"Will you just drop it?" Harry hissed, feeling aggravation bubble up inside of him. "Why aren't you happy that Sirius is alive? Would you rather him dead, Remus?"
Remus scowled. "Of course I don't, Harry! I'm just not convinced."
"So what do you think he is, exactly?" Harry asked, somewhat sarcastically. "A Death Eater using a wand or a potion to change their appearance to make it look like they're really Sirius?"
"Perhaps," Remus considered. "You never know, Harry."
"He's lost his memory!" Harry exclaimed. "He doesn't know who we are, or who he is."
"Just be careful," Remus said softly. "Whether or not it is really Sirius, just be careful."
"I am," Harry replied, the chafe in his voice grow dim until it was just as calm and soft as Remus's voice. A yell from Sirius's room startled the two, and Harry acted quickly. He raced to the room, looking around. Everything was perfect.
"What's wrong?"
"I-I-" Sirius looked pale and surprised. "I-I'm going crazy!" Remus, who had come up behind Harry, glanced at the boy.
"What happened?" Harry asked, still feeling his heart pound in his chest.
"You won't believe me if I told you," Sirius said, sitting down on the bed, not trusting his legs.
"You'll never know unless you tell," Harry said, sitting down beside his godfather.
"Something happened to me," Sirius said slowly, almost unsurely. "I-I think I turned into a dog."
"A dog?" Harry repeated, casting Remus a 'I told you so' look. Sirius nodded.
"Go ahead, say I'm crazy." He paused, waiting to hear laughter from Remus and Harry. None.
"You're not crazy, though," Harry replied. "You did turn into a dog." Sirius looked taken aback, but he said nothing. He just kept quiet. "We'll explain everything after," Harry promised, glancing at Remus.
"There's more?" Sirius asked, remembering Harry's explanation the day before. Some things still weren't that clear to him, the only thing that he knew was that he had 'amnesia.'
"There's more," Harry confirmed. "A lot more."
"How much more?" Sirius asked cautiously. He looked back and forth at Harry and Remus, Harry who wasn't in any rush to reply, and Remus who was leaning against the doorframe. He, too, looked in no hurry to answer Sirius. "Please, take your time," Sirius said sarcastically.
Harry hesitated before answering. He could just imagine at that moment what would happen if he explained about everything—magic, Hogwarts…look how Sirius reacted when he accidentally turned into the dog.
"Sirius," Harry started. "If I tell you, will you promise not to overreact?"
"It depends," Sirius replied slowly. Harry chewed on the bottom of his lip, glancing up at Remus. Was it a bit too early to start explaining everything to Sirius? Too late now, Harry thought.
"Sirius, what would you say if I told you that you're magical?" Harry reluctantly asked, finding that was the only thing he could say.
"I'd say you're crazy," Sirius replied without any hesitation.
"Then tell me I'm crazy," Harry said. "Because I'm telling you that you're magical."
Sirius snorted in disbelief, but that expression quickly left his face as he saw Harry and Remus's serious faces. "You're serious, aren't you?"
"Dead serious," Harry responded, knowing this was no time for joking matters.
"So what?" Sirius asked. "I have magical powers?"
"In a way," Remus spoke up from the doorway.
"Can I turn people into ice?" Sirius said jokingly. "Speed up, slow down, stop time? Clairvoyance? Am I faster than a speeding bullet?" He paused to put a finger on his chin in mock think. "Am I your regular Superman?" Remus looked absolutely clueless.
"It's not like that," Harry said, ignoring Remus's questioning looks. "When I say magic I mean wands."
"Wands," Sirius repeated. "Bibbity-bobbity-boo wands?" If possible, Remus looked even more confused.
"In a way," Harry replied, remembering Remus's words. "Except not like that."
"My brain's going to explode," Sirius complained, closing his eyes and rubbing his temples.
"Why don't I let Remus explain some things to you about your Hogwarts days?" Harry suggested. "Maybe some of what he'll tell you will trigger your memory."
"Hogwarts?" Sirius repeated, looking as confused as Remus had.
"Just let Moony tell you."
"Moony?" Harry sighed, giving up. He got up from the bed and walked past Remus, stopping along the way.
"Can I talk to you for a second?" Harry asked, glancing at Sirius who looked like he was taking everything in.
"Sure," Remus agreed, following Harry out of earshot. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing," Harry replied. "Just a bit confused. Sirius doesn't know who he is or who any of us are—yet he knows who Superman is and what 'bibbity-bobbity-boo' means."
"Even I don't know who Superman is or what bibbity-bobbity-boo means," Remus said, he shot Harry a puzzled look. "What is that?"
Harry shook his head in a 'I'll-tell-you-later' way. "Just try talking to Sirius. Answer some of his questions if he has any, and tell him about Hogwarts. About you, James, Peter. The Marauders." Remus nodded his head in agreement.
"We'll have a talk with Dumbledore after. Maybe he knows what's going on with the whole 'Sirius-is-alive' thing," he said. But he didn't look convinced.
-
"He bumped into me," Harry continued. "Around, er, Coffee Café. He didn't know who I was, who he was, or where he was."
"Where is he now?" Dumbledore questioned.
"At home," Harry replied. "Probably sleeping. We explained everything to him, which is quite a lot to take in."
"Indeed," Dumbledore agreed.
"What do you think happened?" Remus cut in. "How is Sirius alive? I'm just not convinced."
"We know that already," Harry said in annoyance. "At least I do."
"Well," Dumbledore said slowly. "When Sirius fell through the veil, he must have landed somewhere around this 'Coffee Café' without any memory of anything."
"So, it's really Sirius?" Harry asked, trying to keep his excitement down low. He fought the urge to jump up and say, "Told you so!"
"It's possible," Dumbledore responded. "Harry, do you remember when you had amnesia?" Harry remembered Sirius telling him about that. Once.
"A bit," Harry admitted.
"Well, it wasn't too long before you started having flashbacks," Dumbledore explained. "If it really is Sirius, then he'll start having flashbacks about events. That'd be your proof if it really is him or not."
"So if Sirius starts having flashbacks about 'events,' that'd prove that it's really Sirius and not someone in disguise?" Harry asked, feeling a wave of relief wash over him. This was Sirius—he knew it.
"Precisely," Dumbledore replied. Harry nodded in reply. Harry knew it was Sirius; flashbacks or not.
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A/N: Thank you very much for the reviews.
Review Responses:
WolfbainKohaku: Thank you for the review! I actually don't mind slash, though. I sometimes like to read it. Well, anyway, thanks again!
dancegirlem24: Thank you, and all right. Hehe, very clever having the 'em' in both names!
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LittleCrazy1: Thank you! I love the reviews, keep 'em coming :-)
Jessica01: Well, keep reading. (I'm not going to say if it is him or not. Just keep reading.) :-)