Chapter 5 – Houseguests
The familiar smell of dust and dampness greeted Harry's nostrils. As his eyes adjusted to the dim light, Harry saw the threadbare carpet and peeling wallpaper of the entryway.
"Let's head to the kitchen, Harry," Remus said quietly. "We'll leave your trunk here for now."
Harry nodded and set the trunk down. His legs seemed to be fighting against him as he followed Remus down the stairs that led to the kitchen. Harry stepped into the cavernous room and was surprised that there was a part of him that expected Sirius to be sitting at the long wooden table, leaning back in his chair, waiting to greet Harry. The thought was so fleeting, that if Harry hadn't felt so odd about it, he wouldn't have even acknowledged it. However, Sirius's absence had never before been so powerful to Harry. The empty space inside Harry that had once held Sirius ached.
Harry dragged himself over to the table and slumped into a chair. Remus placed a mug of butterbeer in front of Harry, and then settled into a chair on the opposite side of the table. Harry could feel Remus's eyes on him. Harry ignored him, hoping Remus would leave him alone and not ask any questions. They sat in silence as Remus took an occasional sip from his mug. Harry grew angry, feeling patronized by Remus's stare and silence. He looked at Remus and scowled.
Remus broke the silence. "I always feel strange when I walk in here." He paused for a moment and then continued, "I still think I'm going to see Sirius."
Harry's anger was quickly replaced by guilt, and then sadness. Harry scolded himself for getting angry with the one person who was missing Sirius as much as he was. Harry took a deep breath, trying to steady his voice. "I didn't realize it would be so hard. I wasn't prepared to be back here."
Remus nodded. "I don't think you ever can be prepared. Eventually," Remus continued sadly, "the strangeness will become normal."
Harry stared at Remus and wondered if that was how he felt when Harry's parents had been murdered. Harry found it hard to believe that it would ever feel normal not to have Sirius in his life.
Harry's thoughts were cut short when Mr. Weasley and Tonks walked into the kitchen. Tonks had returned her appearance to normal, or at least as normal as Tonks ever looked. She was wearing heavily patched jeans and a pink t-shirt that hung off one of her shoulders. She had decided on short, purple hair that stuck up in all directions. She walked over to Harry and put an arm around him. "It's good to have you here, Harry."
Tonks released Harry and turned to Remus and Mr. Weasley. "Shall we have some lunch?"
"I'm afraid I need to get back to the Burrow," Mr. Weasley said, smiling at Harry. "You wouldn't believe the fuss Ron and Ginny made when Ron received your letter, Harry. They insisted on coming with me, but of course Molly would have none of it," Mr. Weasley said, his eyes twinkling.
"How is everyone?" Harry asked eagerly. He had loved the Weasley family from the moment he met them. They had always made Harry feel as though he were part of the family.
"Everyone's fine. Molly's keeping busy with the Order and keeping the rest of us in line," Mr. Weasley said, smiling. "Charlie and Bill are still pulling double duty, with their jobs and work for the Order. Fred and George seem to be taking their joke shop to new levels. It's been very successful. I'm sure you'll be seeing them soon, Harry. They've also joined the Order."
Harry's mouth fell open. He could not imagine Mrs. Weasley allowing this, despite the fact that the twins were of age.
Mr. Weasley laughed at Harry's expression. "I think Molly got tired of arguing with them and realized that there was nothing she could do to stop them."
Harry smiled, knowing that it was very difficult to win an argument with either Mrs. Weasley or the twins.
"And how are Ron and Ginny?" Harry asked, even though he had seen them both only a week ago.
"They're good. They're worried sick about you, but they're fine," Mr. Weasley replied. "But I should be off so I can let everyone at home know you've arrived here safely. "Moody has already left to inform Dumbledore. I'll see you soon, Harry."
"'Bye, Mr. Weasley," Harry said, standing to shake his hand. Mr. Weasley grasped it warmly, nodded to Tonks and Remus, and then left the kitchen. Harry noted that Mr. Weasley had not mentioned anything about Percy, the Weasleys' third son. Obviously things had not been patched up since their fight last year.
"Well, how about that lunch?" Tonks asked, smiling. "I'm no Molly Weasley, but I think if you two get off your butts and help, we should be able to manage some sandwiches."
Remus and Harry grinned at each other. "Okay, Tonks," Remus said, rising from his chair. "As long as you let Harry or me deal with the cutlery. We don't want any injuries today."
Harry laughed. Tonks was extremely clumsy.
Tonks put her hands on her hips as if to retort, then shrugged. "Who am I kidding? You're right."
Harry smiled as he grabbed a stack of plates. Maybe being back here won't be so bad, after all.
Harry began setting the table as Remus and Tonks prepared the sandwiches. He listened to their light banter and smiled as they teased each other. Harry laughed out loud when Tonks summoned the loaf of bread, only to make it fly straight into the back of Remus's head.
"Ah!" Remus yelped, rubbing the back of his head. "I suppose I should be thankful it wasn't the jar of pickles."
Tonks elbowed him in his ribs and said, "Watch yourself, wolfman. I'm not finished yet!"
Harry nearly dropped the plate he was holding. Wolfman? He waited for Remus to make some kind of remark, but apparently this wasn't the first time she had called him that.
"Is that a threat?" Remus asked, grinning.
"No. Just a warning," Tonks replied, winking playfully at Remus.
Harry watched Remus and Tonks with interest. He had rarely seen Remus so relaxed that watching him interact so casually with Tonks was a bit of a surprise. Harry had seen a hint of this a few times before. Harry had always seen a spark of mischief in Remus's eyes whenever he spoke of his times with Sirius and Harry's father. Harry was happy to see somebody else lighting a spark inside Remus.
Harry sat in his bedroom several hours later, staring at the dull, bleak wall. After lunch with Tonks and Remus, Harry had lugged his trunk up to the bedroom he and Ron had shared the previous year. The calm that had come over him was slowly seeping away. During lunch, Remus had asked Harry what he thought about redecorating the place. Harry hadn't really given the idea much thought. But the longer he sat in his bedroom, the more he could see Remus's point. Even without the thoughts of Sirius, the place was depressing. If he and Remus were going to make this place home, the tattered carpets and wallpaper had to go.
A sound from the other side of Harry's bedroom door broke him from his thoughts. It sounded like several elephants had been released into the hallway. Harry stood to go investigate, but was saved the trouble as his bedroom door swung open. Standing in the doorway, with faces flushed and wide grins, were Ron and Ginny.
"What are you two doing here?" Harry asked, his eyes wide with surprise.
"Good to see you too, Harry," Ginny said mockingly. She walked over, giving Harry a quick hug and then sat down on one of the twin beds in the room.
"You still haven't answered my question," Harry said, smiling.
"We wanted to come and give you a proper welcoming," Ron said, throwing himself down beside Ginny. "It took a little convincing, but we finally got Mum to let us come."
Ginny laughed, "A little convincing…that's one way of putting it."
"Why didn't she want you to come?" Harry asked, sitting down on the other bed, facing them.
"Oh, she went on and on about you needing time to get settled. Then she said we should wait to be invited," Ron explained, rolling his eyes.
"It is okay that we came, isn't it, Harry?" Ginny asked seriously.
"Of course," Harry said, with a smile. "I could definitely use the company."
Ron's and Ginny's faces brightened. Harry had surprised himself with his comment. He had been so withdrawn during their last days at Hogwarts that he often avoided them. However, spending nearly a week at Privet Drive, combined with the bleakness of Grimmauld Place, Harry welcomed the opportunity for companionship.
"How long are you staying?" Harry asked.
"We'll be leaving tonight," Ginny replied. "Once we convinced Mum to let us come, she decided to make a big welcome dinner for you. She's downstairs right now, and we're banned from the kitchen until she says otherwise."
"And we'd be wise to stay well away," Ron said smirking. "You don't want to be on the wrong end of one of her fits. She seems to get worse every day."
Despite Ron's attempt to joke about it, Harry sensed there was something else going on.
"Is everything okay?" Harry asked.
Ron shifted uncomfortably and began fiddling with the edge of the bed quilt.
"She's just really worried," Ginny said, looking at Harry apprehensively. "She was really upset about the thing at the Ministry," Ginny added quietly.
Harry knew the "thing" Ginny was referring to was the day that Harry and his friends had fought for their lives against the Death Eaters. Both Ron and Ginny had been injured during the fight. Harry swallowed hard. He felt completely responsible.
"I'm sorry," Harry mumbled, staring at the floor.
"What for?" Ginny asked.
"Well, it was my fault that all of you were there. If I hadn't fallen into Voldemort's trap, none of you would have been hurt."
"Harry, if you don't remember, you tried to go alone. You tried to stop us from going with you. It was our decision to go. Stop blaming yourself," Ginny scolded. "We would do it again in a heart beat."
Harry looked at her in surprise. He was so used to people tip-toeing around him that her bluntness shocked him.
"And there's no way we would ever let you have all the fun – sending Lucius Malfoy to Azkaban and all," Ron said smiling. Malfoy was one of the Death Eaters that had been captured in the Ministry.
Harry smiled. "I can't take credit for that. It was all Dumbledore."
"Oh, I wish I had seen that!" Ron said, rubbing his hands together gleefully. Ron had been in a different room at the time, having first been cursed by a Death Eater, and then incapacitated by the mysterious brains with tentacles. Harry glanced at Ron's arms and noticed several scars still showing where the brains had attacked him.
Ron followed Harry's gaze to his arms.
"They're looking much better, don't you think?" Ron asked.
"Sure," Harry nodded. However, no matter what anyone said, Harry would feel guilty for the injuries his friends sustained that day.
"Harry – " Ginny began, seeming to read Harry's mind.
"Is Buckbeak still here?" Ron interrupted, casting a warning glance at Ginny.
Harry, glad for the change in topic, smiled. "I think so. Why don't we go check?"
Ron and Harry jumped up and headed for the door. Ginny sighed and followed the boys out of the room, shaking her head.
Harry woke up the next morning to the sound of Hedwig rattling in her cage. She had spent the night outside hunting, and was just now settling in for some sleep.
Harry opened his eyes and tried to figure out why his room was so dark. After blinking his eyes several times, the memories of the previous day came back to him: the trip from Privet Drive, lunch with Tonks and Remus, an afternoon with Ron and Ginny, and a delicious meal with the Weasleys, Tonks, and Remus. It had been quite a good day.
With a new day stretched out before him, Harry wondered what it would bring. He knew he would spend the morning cleaning with Remus – they wanted to get started on making the place theirs. After cleaning, Dumbledore was expected in the early afternoon to begin Harry's Occlumency lessons. Harry's stomach tightened at the thought of this. Would it be as bad as it had been with Snape? Harry hoped not. His head had been feeling fine lately and he recalled how his head hurt after his lessons with Snape. At least I don't have to put up with Snape, Harry thought, a scowl darkening his face as he thought of his hated professor.
Harry got out of bed and dressed. After tossing several owl treats into Hedwig's cage, he went downstairs to the kitchen. Remus was sitting alone, reading the Daily Prophet.
"Morning, Harry!" Remus said happily.
"Morning," Harry replied, sitting down and helping himself to the pile of toast on the kitchen table. "Anything interesting?" Harry asked, nodding his head toward the paper in Remus's hand.
"Not really. Pretty much the same they've been saying for the past few weeks," Remus said, folding up the paper and setting it aside. "How was your sleep?"
"Good," Harry answered truthfully.
"Good, you'll have lots of energy for all the work this morning," Remus said. "Anywhere in particular that you would like to start?"
Harry shrugged. "Not really. I say we get rid of the most hideous stuff first."
Remus laughed. "You're going to have to be a little more specific than that."
They continued talking about everything that needed to be done, and soon the list became very long. Harry was slightly overwhelmed, realizing that he hadn't even been in every room in the house. There was enough work to be done to keep an army of people busy for a year. Harry wasn't sure how he and Remus would get it all done.
"We'll just tackle one thing at a time," Remus said. "There's no need to rush. And I'm sure that before we know it, we'll have some more bodies to put to work."
Harry raised his eyebrows. "We will?"
"If you have no objections, of course," Remus replied.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, yesterday afternoon I happened to mention our plans for redecorating to Molly. She was rather excited and offered to help. I thought it might be nice to invite the family to stay here for the rest of the summer. What do you think?"
Harry stared at Remus incredulously. "That would be brilliant!" Harry exclaimed.
"Of course, you could invite Hermione as well, if her parents agree," Remus continued.
Harry sat at the table, grinning. He had hoped to spend some time with his friends over the summer holidays, but he had never imagined this. Harry found it hard to believe that it was just two days ago that he had sat in his bedroom on Privet Drive, wallowing in self-pity and sadness. What he was feeling now was euphoria in comparison.
Just then, Tonks walked into the kitchen, yawning widely. She was wearing flannel pants, a faded t-shirt, and pink, fluffy slippers. Harry looked at her in surprise.
"Morning, Harry. I didn't expect to see you up so early," she said, ruffling his hair as she sat down beside him.
Harry grinned at her questioningly. "Morning, Tonks. I didn't expect to see you at all."
Tonks shot Remus a quick glance, and then said, "Oops. S'pose we forgot to tell you that I've been staying here since I got out of St. Mungo's. It was a lot more convenient for all my follow-up visits." Harry noticed Tonks's cheeks flush slightly. "And I suppose I've got used to the place," she said shrugging.
Harry looked over at Remus who was spinning his coffee cup in his hand. Harry thought Remus had a bit more colour in his cheeks too.
"Do you mind me staying here, Harry?" Tonks asked.
Harry returned his gaze to her. She was looking at him sheepishly, biting her lower lip. Harry turned to look at Remus again. He thought of their teasing in the kitchen yesterday and grinned at his godfather.
"I don't mind at all, Tonks," Harry said, still smiling at Remus, who was staring intently at his coffee cup. "Stay as long as you like."
"Thanks, Harry," Tonks said. "I really appreciate it."
Remus looked at Harry, a smile twitching at the corners of his mouth.
"Well, then, it looks like we're going to have a full house in no time," Remus said, winking at Harry.
Harry continued grinning. "When are the Weasleys coming?"
"I think the day after tomorrow," Remus replied. "Molly said they would need to get a few things done at the Burrow before they could come."
Harry nodded and helped himself to a couple more pieces of toast. Things were definitely looking up.