A/N: So another chapter another day! I'm keeping up with my chapter a day promise! And I'm quite gratified by the good reviews I've been getting. Thank you all very much. Nesley, YtheFrown2Day, JustbecauseIsaidso I'm glad you all like the story. Hopefully people continue to like it... If anyone has any random ideas let me know. I'm always interested to hear what other people think. :)

Chapter 14

"So what do you think of the relationship between Harry and Draco?"

Sirius and I were walking back to 12 Grimmauld Place, the sky dark. The mood was even rather comfortable, neither of us had started to argue with the other one since we had left the library. Frankly since the apologies back at the library we hadn't had any problems. In fact we were getting along rather well. I didn't really want that though, I didn't really want a comfortable silence with the man, hence the explosive question.

He didn't answer immediately, and I glanced at him to see if he had even heard me. From the frown on his face, and the contemplative look in his eyes, he had heard. It was just taking him a little while to formulate a response to the question.

"Well I think that they're cute together and well suited." I said into the silence, not waiting to hear what he thought. All right so I was trying to goad him a little. I wasn't really that comfortable with a quiet and well behaved Sirius Black.

"I have no right to have an opinion. It happened while I was dead. I don't know this Draco at all, I don't know what he did." The answer he gave was far too deep and logical for my liking. I sighed deeply, getting me an amused look from Sirius. "But what you really wanted to hear was that I'm disgusted my godson would associate at all with a Malfoy. I don't care at all that he's gay, it's just his choice of partner." He stopped and looked at me, his eyes piercing grey in the darkness. "That's somewhat true. But I also have seen enough to know that he makes Harry happy. So what else is really important?" He started to walk. The answer had shocked me enough to pause my own movement, and I had to run to catch up with Sirius' long strides.

"Do you want to know what I think?"

"Not especially, but I am confident that you're going to tell me either way." His lips tilted up slightly. His strides had slowed down though to match my own, I wasn't sure he was even aware that he was doing it.

I considered just keeping quiet then instead, but he was right. I did want to air my own opinions. I'm a teacher, I'm used to people listening to what I think.

"I think Harry saw a bit of you in Draco." I paused there, almost for dramatic effect since it did cause the tall man walking next to me to stop and give me a searching look. I knew he had no idea what I was talking about at all. The connection was missing from his mind. "Well you both ended up going against the morals and ideals of your whole family. You were both destined to be on the Dark Lord's side, but you were against it and stood up for what you both believed in. Not to mention you're both vain, egotistical, little bastards." I added in the last part to distract Sirius from the compliments I had been giving him, even if I hadn't intended to.

"The perfect Blacks." He smirked at me. "This time though you forgot too handsome for our own good."

I ignored that little jibe and continued to walk on. See if I tried to be nice to the man again.

"You have a point I suppose." The smirk was wider now. "Are you suggesting my godson had a thing for me?"

"You're impossible." I groaned, deciding that the man was trying to annoy me now. "Draco had it harder. You gave up your family, but you didn't even really like them. Draco worshiped his father, and loved his mother."

There was no response given to this, so we continued to walk down the street, people surrounding us going about their normal business. Muggles going to the store, returning home from work, out on the town. It amazed me, even after only being involved in the Wizarding world for a couple months, how people could live their lives in such ignorance. Ignorance is bliss I suppose.

"I didn't completely dislike my entire family." Sirius said into the quiet.

I stopped walking to turn and look at him again, my eyes searching his face. There was no indication though what he was thinking, his face closed off from any ready interpretations.

"Feel free to tell me to shut up. But what do you mean you didn't dislike them? They were all evil Voldemort supporters."

There was a slight twisting to his lips, bitter and unhappy.

"They were still my family. It's hard to forget that. Not that I didn't try, believe me." His head tilted back, eyes perusing the sky. I couldn't help but stare at him, once again struck by how beautiful he was, especially with moonlight shadowing his face. "I felt responsible for my brother. I cared about him. He just was lost to the rest of the family. Maybe it was my fault that he died. I should have stopped him..." His voice trailed off.

The air had gone decidedly chilly in the late August month, and certainly not from any natural weather patterns. I shivered, wrapping my arms around myself.

"I've seen your mother's painting. Anyone growing up with that would have issues." I tried to joke, but my teeth were chattering from the sudden cold.

Next to me Sirius' body had stilled, instantly coiled, ready to spring. His eyes had left the sky and were now instead looking around us. Noticing the muggles in the streets, the houses lining the street we were walking on, the dark alleys.

"Sirius...?" I whispered, his posture was starting to worry me. A quick hand motion from him though quieted me. His nose sniffed on the air, much like the canine he could be.

"There's something familiar nearby." His brows knit together so closely they were almost one, frustration plain across his face. "Damn it. My memory... I can't remember what this is."

His wariness, his frustration, the cold in the air... it all started to worry me, even scare me slightly. I didn't want to be out here anymore, so I quietly slipped my hand into Sirius'. The sudden warmth of skin on his, dropped his hackles. Instead he looked down at me in surprise, before apparently noticing the fear on my faces, because his lips smiled slightly.

"It's nothing. Don't worry. My mind has always been a bit forgetful." He squeezed his hand over mind, giving comfort with the small gesture before walking on with me beside him. The air had lost the sudden chill, reverting back instead to the last warmth of the summer night.

I wanted to improve the atmosphere, since it was now charged with a dark feeling, foreboding of things to come. So for the rest of the trip back to the house I chattered on aimlessly. Talking about my job at the school, my parents, my friends, even bringing up the annoying Matt Caulder and his repeated attempts to get me in the sack. I didn't think Sirius was really paying attention though. Every so often I noticed his eyes flitting around the street, looking for something. But the air stayed warm so I wasn't worried.

"So I remind you of this Matt guy?"

I blinked at him, my mouth open about to say something about something that now I couldn't remember. Apparently he had been listening to me.

"You can." I said simply, having already decided that he didn't REALLY remind me of the slimy, pretentious blonde haired professor. "It's one thing I won't miss not going back to school right away, his repeated attempts to trick me into a date and other things. Always following me around..." We had finally arrived back at the grim faced 12 Grimmauld Place. The house certainly looked worse for wear, it could really do with a fresh coat of paint, maybe some flowers as well... But I wondered if the house would even let anyone do that. The paint would probably instantly crack, the flowers wilt and die. Strange as it sounded the house probably liked it's foreboding appearance. Houses can take on the mindset of their owners sometimes.

"It's definitely a good thing you can't go back." Sirius muttered, giving me a quick smile. I blinked a few times at him, trying to figure that little statement out, when the front door opened suddenly, Draco standing looking strangely imposing in the doorway.

Grey eyes moved down, a blonde brow rose in amusement. "It's either dogs or rabbits for you two isn't it?"

My brain didn't get that joke immediately, but suddenly I noticed where his eyes had gone. Straight to my hand which was still firmly in Sirius' larger one. Then I remembered his comments yesterday about us fighting like dogs, or going at it like rabbits. Instantly I pulled my hand away, scarlet suffusing my cheeks.

The grey eyes in front of me though lost their amusement in a matter of mere seconds, looking at us seriously.

"Get in here. We all need to talk. Now." He turned quickly and strode back into the hall, his robes flaring out around him. It was all quite theatrical, I might have laughed if he hadn't been tremendously serious at that moment.

Now quiet, the air serious, both of us entered the old house, following Draco in. He led us into the kitchen. Really it was the only place comfortable enough. Sitting at the worn table in the center of the room sat Harry. He was staring down at a paper in front of him, I could see where I sat the movements on the paper.

"Is that a Wizarding paper?" I asked, amazement in my voice. Imagine moving photographs? Now that would easily earn a muggle billions of dollars if they could come up with something like it.

The boy-who-lived looked up at me, causing a hiss from Sirius at my side. Harry's eyes were a dark green, fractured, worry and despair flowing out of them. His golden protector stood at his side, sheltering the boy beside him.

"It's the Daily Prophet. Come have a look." He waved us over, pushing the paper over to us across from him. I stared down at the picture on the front. People were running, looking frightened, a strange emblem in the sky over them. I didn't quite understand what the picture showed, but the headline was easy enough to get.

"Dark mark appears again. Terror returns?" I mused the headline out loud. Beside me Sirius had gone still at the sight of the mark above the terrified people. I suppose it was worse for the people who really understood what all this meant. For my part I was merely scared because of their reactions. "This never happened before?"

Dark locks shook as he shook his head. With each movement the scar appeared briefly on his forehead, reminding me once again who had caused that. I was amazed once more, it was really not the pleasant looking mark that the pictures on the book covers showed, or the makeup in the movies had presented. It was an angry, livid red mark, it marred his otherwise perfect face. No wonder he hid it with his bangs.

"I knew he had returned, my scar never had stopped hurting after I left school. Lucius's confirmation of a last horcrux merely proved my own nightmares. But no one else had known. Everyone had lived quite a happy last ten years. This..." He thrust his hand out angrily at the moving picture. "This is worse then before."

"Worse? But he's done the dark mark before. How is this time worse? Have people died?"

Draco took a newspaper off the kitchen counter and threw it down on top of the Daily Prophet. This one didn't have any moving papers, I recognized it as the Daily Mirror, a muggle paper. On the front a similar picture of the dark mark appeared. The headline read, 'Strange Fireworks released, Fire burns.'

"He did this in front of muggles?" There was an edge to Sirius' voice, one that matched the looks of the two younger men in front of me.

"Five people died in the fires, all muggles. He's skipped right over doing anything to the wizarding community, and has gone straight to the muggles. Not that they have any idea what's going on. They're too oblivious to think the fire was more than just that, too stupid to know what those 'fireworks' were." Draco sneered at me, but there was definite worry in his tone. "It's almost smart actually. He doesn't have to do anything to our community, since the attacks on the muggles work on both sides. The muggles will be scared, and the Wizards will be scared without him even toughing them."

Well this was certainly worse. Wizards knew what this meant, they knew how to prepare, even how to try and fight it. Muggles... well we on the other hand as Draco put it, are oblivious to this. Not that it's exactly our fault. The wizards do a good job of hiding. So I can't help but feel worried for my fellow muggles.

"Well that's that then." I said firmly. "We need to destroy that last horcrux."

"We?" Draco sounded amused. As if I could blame him, there really wasn't anything I could do to help. The look I gave him though was so completely unamused that for once he even kept quiet, but the grey eyes sparkled with the unreleased mockery.

"So you all know where this last horcrux is? That'll be easy then." Sirius had sat down now, and was listening to us all calmly.

We all turned to look at Sirius as he said this. My eyes certainly showed disbelief. He had been awake for a week longer then I, and apparently no one had even mentioned to him the reason for his resurrection. I whirled on Harry, my eyes burning.