A/N Hello, Hello, I'm back with another chapter of this little ditty of a story. Most of this chapter is a flashback, although a recent one from Sirius...I'm not too sure, however, I think hat this will be a prominent feature, so...any Sirius Haters out there, may as well turn back...cuz he's in it for the long haul!

Disclaimer: Not My Toy Box, Just playing, I'll put everything back I swear...(now...if it's all in one piece...that I can't really be sure of...)

Sirius looked up at the child's hospital bracelet and then looked down at his own shaved paw. It hadn't been too long since he too was in the 'hospital' of sorts, and he didn't envy the child in the slightest. He couldn't believe his luck in the fact that he managed to be dumped in Wallingford at all, it was a miracle that he had even made it off the bloody rock at all. As he shut his eyes, he allowed himself to remember just what happy coincidence had led him to be safe and sound here.

The island may have been inviable to all muggles, however, the massive struggling dog was anything but.

"Look, over there!" A loud voice called from the deck of a freighter ship on it's way back to Liverpool.

"What is it now Brian, we haven't all day." Came an exasperated sigh from the man's left.

"No, really Thomas, I swear, it's a dog."

The man called Thomas rolled his eyes and quirked a brow in disbelief at his plainly crazy friend.

"And what would a dog be doing nearly fifty miles out to sea?" He asked as though quizzing a two year old on the nature of crayons and walls.

"I haven't the foggiest, why don't you ask it when it gets here!" He shouted, now that the ship was bearing down on the bobbing dark object in the clear may sunlight.

"Good lord! There's a dog in the open ocean!" Thomas shouted in disbelief.

"Told you I wasn't mad." The man called Brian gloated happily.

Being the kindhearted crew that they were, they sent someone down...Brian couldn't be happier to rescue the sodden brute. He wrapped his arms around the near eighty pound beast and signaled to the others on deck to hoist him and the beast out of the frigid ocean.

Once the dog and the man were safely on deck they all realized that the poor animal had gone unconscious.

"Is he dead?" Thomas asked tentatively, looking at his massive still frame.

"No, I think he's just exhausted and very cold." He replied, lifting the sopping dog into his arms to take him to his quarters.

"Brian, your shift is in thirty minuets, I don't expect you late, even if you do insist on mothering this little mongrel."

Brian laughed at the gruff voice of his captain. "Yes sir, though I must say, this beast is anything but little."

Once in the small but comfortable cabin below, Brain lowered the still out cold dog to the floor. The wet fur was matted and dirty, and it clung around his emaciated frame.

"Poor old fella, you didn't get too much food in a while huh?" He said under his breath. He always felt badly to see mistreated animals, and this beast was clearly a case of neglect.

"He's probably a freight guard, who happened to get caught on a ship. Looks like he got very lost at some point." He said, having a rather strange habit of thinking out loud. The dog weighed at the most eighty pounds soaking wet, but judging from his huge frame he ought to have weighed twice that. Brian didn't know that much about dogs, but if he had to guess, he looked a lot like his neighbor's dog, a big black newfoundland named Sadie. He would probably say this dog was one of them too, or at least a good part of one.

Brian tried the best he could using rags that had lain about to make a soft bed for the animal, they would be on shore very shortly at any rate, so it wouldn't be all that long for the animal to have to stay in the hull. He still didn't want the creature to wander while he was away, so he fastened a rope around the dog's thick neck and tied him securely to the bed post.

"sorry fella, but I've gotta get up to work. If I'm late the boss will blame you." The kindhearted man chuckled softly and scratched the dog briefly on the head and left the room.

"What is Angela going to say when you bring that brute home with you?"

"She'll see what kind of shape the little fella is in and she'll fall to pieces over him." He said confidently, throwing out his chest.

"Sure she will." Thomas said throwing him a coil of rope. "You're going to give her the wrong idea you know." He said waggling his eyebrows.

Brian looked at him in confusion.

"You know what they say about dogs in a new marriage..." Thomas prompted almost teasingly.

"No, I don't..." Brian answered slowly, clearly not getting the picture.

By now some of the other crew had gotten into Thomas' lighthearted teasing.

"Yea, they say that the dog holds the place for something a little more meaningful, it signifies that you are ready to move on to the next level of your relationship." Jon said smartly, smirking at the younger man before him

"What next level? We're already married, we are all ready through the levels, we beat the game..." Brian said, clearly not understanding where they were taking all of this.

"Ah, but you have yet to, shall we say commiserate your marriage." Jon continued

"Oh stop teasing the poor boy, and get your work done."

Brian had never been more pleased to hear the gruff commands of his captain.

"Oh, and Brian, they are implying that the dog means you want a kid." the captain added as he turned his back on the bewildered young man.

Barking mad, the whole lot of them, they just wanted to see me squirm. Brian thought to himself as he left to start his shift.

The very first thing that became apparent to the dog sitting on the floor was that he was no longer swimming. That in it of itself was a wonderful surprise for the creature. He slowly opened his eyes and looked around at his surroundings. If he were an ordinary dog, it would have been a strange sight indeed to see the animal craning his head to look intently at the paper on the ground. It almost looked comically enough like the dog was reading. Which incidentally enough was exactly what he was doing.

New York Times

Record breaking lows reported for the east coast of New England for the moth of May.

The dog didn't bother to read the rest of the article. He had read enough to know that it was a muggle publication. Breathing a sigh of relief he arched his back and leaned against his paws, stretching out the very tired muscles that had been swimming for god knows how long. Standing shakily to his feel he nearly collapsed immediately but managed to gain his footing. Taking a few shaky steps, he felt a very unfamiliar tug on his neck. He looked back and saw to his chagrin that he was tied with a length of thick rope to a bed.

Well, at least that proves that they think I'm a real dog, although to a muggle it isn't that much of a stretch. The soft rocking motion of the boat lulled the exhausted creature. For the first time in an indescribably long amount of time he fell into a slumber, not a fit.

Brian had begun to see land materializing before his eyes. No matter how many times he saw the something spring out of nothing, he would never cease to be amazed by it. After months of nothing but blue, here it was, green, well, black currently, but he knew that by the time he got there it would be green enough for anyone to see. He knew that they would be there in a few short hours at the speed they were going and so he went down to the cabins to pack up his belongings. Opening the door he had almost forgotten entirely about the large black dog but as soon as the door closed with a soft scraping notice against the warped frame the dog's eyes shot up. The man looked into them with wonder. He had never seen a dog have eyes like that. They were of the palest gray, with a small tint of blue to them. It wasn't just the color, because he had seen huskies with light eyes, it was the expression. He felt as though the dog was looking right through him, searching his innermost secrets and sizing him up for what he was really worth.

After a few tense moments Brian was having second thoughts on rescuing the animal to begin with, he had no idea if the beast was even tame. However, the dog simply dropped his gaze, and regally rose from the ground into a sitting position.

"You have got to be the strangest dog I have ever met." Brian mused, shaking his head.

The dog gave him a look that if Brian thought clearly indicated, "You have no idea."

Huh, didn't realize just how intelligent Newfoundlands were...Brian mused, and approached the large, still sopping wet beast.

"Well, once we get to shore there'll be a ton of work to do getting you to look remotely presentable to Angela." The man sighed, looking at the dog who was gazing appraisingly at him. Brian's shift had ended and it was only a few hours until they landed on shore, so he decided to take advantage of that time that he had to give the animal a proper scrub down. Grabbing his soap from out of the shower area, he made his way to the dog once more. Untying the knot, he began to walk away from the dog.

Sirius saw the soap in the man's hands, and almost rolled his eyes at him as he fumbled with the rope and began to lead him away. If James or Remus could see me now...Sirius Black walking on a leash! Well, the world really has gone mad. Sirius thought. Oh well, if I have to play the part, may as well play it well. With an audible sigh the dog rose to his feet and placidly walked after his savior.

Oh good lord, you think the guy could have used warm water, as if I haven't had enough frigid water to last a lifetime! Sirius thought ruefully as he felt the freezing water slosh over his back.

Brian was stunned. The dog, who looked as though he had never had any human contact in his life, was standing stock still letting him just give him a bath. He had never owned a dog, but he always thought that giving a dog was an extremely unpleasant affair. This dog seemed to rather like the attention. Brian washed the dog's matted fur, getting out all the mud that seemed to have permanently embedded itself in his fur. He combed him, and then toweled him as dry as he could.

Looking up at the whistle he heard, it meant that they were nearly at shore. Brian was more than glad that he didn't have to be the one on unloading duty, as that was what he had done when they had reached New York's harbor. Looking over at the bustling port coming into sharper focus by the second, he realized how good it was to be at home. He saw the dog's big black paws resting no the railing, and looking out at the swift approaching horizon. He thought that it seemed that the dog thought the very same way.

Brian shouldered his back and led the dog out behind him on the gangplank. It was a great feeling to have ground beneath his feet stay completely still. It was an utterly foreign feeling, but one that never felt so good.

The dog walked happily being him, swinging his head in every direction as though he couldn't get enough of the sights.

Brian knew that Angela wouldn't be home until the next day. He clearly remembered his phone call the previous night She had been so upset that she would not have been able to meet him until the next day, she was out of the country just the week that he would be retuning.

"I'll tell them I can't go...Australia can wait, I haven't seen you in months!" She had whined into the phone.

Brain had smiled sadly. "No, you should go. It won't be that long, just a few more hours." He said regretfully. He could almost see her warm brown eyes soften and her face relax as she relented.

Sirius padded slowly behind the man. It was a miracle to see green grass and trees. He had no idea how long it had been since he had seen such wonderful things. He felt so tired and weak. His fur felt less itchy than it had in a long time though, and he felt warmer than he had in years as the soft shafts of sunlight reached his black coat. What started out as a desperate attempt at what he knew was in essence suicide, now had landed him on shore in the country that had all but forsaken him. He only had one thought in his mind, get back to Harry. He didn't remember collapsing on the pavement.

Slowly the lights began to come back into sharp focus.

Where am I? Sirius thought to himself. I smell so many different animals! He opened his eyes and saw shining steel bars in front of his face. The ground that he was lying on was also shiny steel. Oh shit, I've been taken to the pound! Sirius looked around the surroundings and slowly though his panicked mind he saw the shining medical instruments that he had never seen before and the other randomly placed objects and knew instantly where he was.

Worse, I've been taken to the muggle veterinarian. This could not have been any worse. To his horror he looked at his paw and saw a rather large needle sticking out of the fur. Following his eyes he noticed the plastic bag filled with an unknown fluid, dripping drop by drop into his flesh through the needle. He licked the sore bare skin where the the fur had been clipped off. Oh my god, they're killing me! I need to get out of here and fast! He thought, trying desperately to push his way out of the bars. It was a futile attempt. He tried to lift the latch, but that again was in vein.

This would be a whole lot easier if I had thumbs...He thought ruefully. Stopping, he noticed something that he wonderfully didn't notice! His ribs felt as they always had! He remembered slamming into the rocks of the island of Azkaban on his way out of the terrible place and hearing the sickening crack, knowing full well that had been his ribs, at least one of them. They felt better than he would have believed possible. Also the splitting headache he had had was all but gone, and his legs felt as though they were sturdier.

"Oh hello big fella! You're up! You gave your new master quite a turn." Came a sing-song voice from above Sirius's head. Sirius was confused momentarily before the events of the previous evening came crashing back to him in full, the muggle man who had taken him in on the ship... That must have been who she was referring to.

Sirius spent much of the day lunging in the cage, being taken out periodically to be checked on by the attendants. One thing that was wonderful about being a dog was that things that would not seem remotely palatable to a human were now perfectly delicious. He was so hungry.

He heard the sound of footsteps stutter outside his cage and looked up. It was the same lady that did the obnoxious baby talk earlier, what did she think, honestly, it wasn't as though she wasn't perfectly audible at normal mature tones...Oh well, that was what everyone did to animals, he supposed that animals really did like that kind of tone, however, he wasn't an animal.

I really aught to be paying attention to what she is saying, not how she was saying it. Sirius mentally rebuked himself.

"Well, your owner is here to take you home, isn't that nice? You'll be sleeping in a nice warm bed, not some icky cage tonight. Bet you'll like that." She said kindly as she opened the latch on his cage.

Lady, you have no idea! He thought dryly, it would have bee the first time I a very long time indeed.

It really won't be such a bad idea to stick around with the Brian character for a little while, that way I'll be able to get a bit of strength going up before I have to find Harry. Sirius reasoned with a sigh. Besides, the whole ministry is bound to be after my blood, and Remus will have told them all about my dog shape by now. Now that his strength was returning to him realized that it was going to be such a difficult wish that he knew he had to fulfill. James, I'll try, really, I'll do anything I can.

The woman unhooked his IV and held her finger on the vein for a minute or so. She then slipped a rope around his neck and led him from the back room. Walking down the bright and cheery hallway they stepped into a small exam room.

"Hello Buddy!" Brian said smiling. He patted the great black dog on the head. The vet came strolling into the room and shut the door with a soft click behind him.

"So, have you come up with a name for this big fella yet?" The vet asked cheerfully, not yet looking up from the chart.

Brian smiled. "Yes, I think I'll name him Lee. That's what the ship I was on was named.

Sirius nearly groaned out loud with the irony of that name. Of all the sick and twisted things fate could have named me it had to be Lee...Sirius Lee? Come on, what kind of stunt is that!

Sirius turned his attention once more to the Veterinarian speaking to Brain.

"Now, Lee here has had a pretty rough life before you found him. He was extremely dehydrated, and malnourished to the point of which I am surprised he made it. He also shows very strong evidence of physical abuse in the form of three broken ribs, obviously someone kicked him good and hard. It would most likely be a good thing for him to build back the weight slowly and carefully. I would hate for him to become sick, I just don't think he could make it back from that kind of setback." He finished, signing the chart and passing it to a receptionist.

"He's a bit too weak right now, and I don't want to stress his system by giving him his vaccinations today. But be sure to make an appointment to see me in a few months to get Lee here his proper shots." Brian smiled and nodded that he would indeed take care of that and opened the plastic bag that was at his feet.

"Hey Lee, look what I got for you yesterday afternoon." He said in an excited voice.

Sirius looked with disinterest as he fastened a brown leather collar around his thick furry neck. Snapping a matching lead, he strode from the office to the parking lot outside. Brian helped the big dog into the back of the car where Sirius immediately laid down.

"You are almost too easy for a dog..." He muttered and shut the door.

Almost four hours later, they pulled to a stop and Sirius looked out the window.

And I have no clue where I am... He thought to himself with disgust. Oh well, I'll figure out how I'm going to get to harry eventually.

"Well, here we are Lee, in the wonderful village of Wallingford. Best place in all of Surrey." He said happily.

Sirius's eyes shot up in recognition. Surrey! He had made half his journey already without even realizing it! I knew sticking with this muggle was so going to pay off! Sirius thought, if he had a mouth that could, he'd be grinning ear to ear.

Sirius's sharp ears perked up at the sound of a door slamming on the front porch.

"Brian!" The voice squealed. Sirius moved quickly out of the way to avoid being trampled as the woman launched herself at the man standing with the leash.

After they had been reacquainted with one another in a fashion that made Sirius smirk, the woman seemed to notice the black dog for the first time.

"What is that?" She asked, almost accusingly at the man in front of her, her eyes never leaving the shaggy black dog.

"It's a dog." He answered waveringly

Wow, this guy is really bad at this sort of thing... Sirius mused to himself

"It's a really big dog!" The woman said slightly louder... "And what pray tell are you doing with this really big dog?" She said, her hands on hips by this point.

"Lee's not big..." Brian said meekly

Sirius cringed. Strike two...bud, you're batting a thousand.

"Lee is it, this beast has a name?" She said, he eyebrows reaching into her dark hair.

"Well...yea, I though it fit him." Brian answered.

Sirius decided it was time that he took matters into his own hands, before he was shipped off to the pound.

Noticing the rubber banded newspaper at the front of the drive he walked calmly to the end of the way, unnoticed by the softly arguing couple. Picking it up he dropped it softly at Angela's feet and promptly lay down without a sound.

The two stopped at once and merely looked at the dog in sheer amazement.

"See told you he was a good dog." Brain said triumphantly.

Sirius raised his eyebrows at this comment. This bloak really needed to learn some charm...

"Fine, you can keep him, but he goes to the bathroom on the good rugs, or chews up my shoes, it's your hide I'm after." She said threateningly.

Wow, who knew dog's lives were so nice, such low expectations, I think that even my mother would be able to agree that I could do that one.. Sirius thought wryly.

He made his way into the nice comfortable home. Listening to the couple talk quietly, about him no less.

"Why is he so skinny?" She asked, watching him as he made his way into the family room and lay on the rug in front of the sofa.

"You'll never believe this, but we found him about fifty miles out to sea..." Brain said earnestly.

"We have no idea how he got there either." He continued as he saw the dubious expression on her face.

"Our best guess was he was left for dead by the same people that kicked him in the ribs, he was probably found a stowaway on some ship, and they couldn't be bothered with him."

Sirius laughed at this version of the events. He liked their explanation much better. It was so easy to let others explain his life for him than it was to explain it himself. He wasn't even sure where it had all gone wrong to begin with, that was all such a huge disaster after another.

Sirius was quite content, lying on the softly bedded corner of the family room. Apparently, after hearing Brian's astonishingly inaccurate portrayal of why Sirius, no, Lee now...He corrected with a slight chuckle to himself, had been found in the middle of the ocean, Angela had seemed to feel quite badly for him and pulled out all the stops. She had rummaged around the upstairs closet to find all the spare blankets she could and made a cozy corner just for him. Sirius couldn't believe his luck. This was just the sort of thing he had imagined, sort of...

He was just dozing off to sleep, when he saw a very familiar face frozen on the telly. It was none other than himself!

"Do not, I repeat do not attempt to approach or apprehend Black on your own, call this number and alert the authorities at once, he is armed and extremely dangerous!" The announcer's voice carried through the room. Sirius sighed, there was nothing for it...he was surprised though, he must have really scared the wizarding community if they had alerted the muggles about his disappearance. He was more glad than ever that he had fallen in with the muggles, if he hadn't he wouldn't have known they knew anything about him. If he hadn't of seen that broadcast, he might have chanced a transformation just to stretch his human legs for the first time in nearly five years.

He closed his eyes and thought happily that he was able to think happily at all...

It hadn't taken long to adjust to his new life as the family dog, however, as the pain in his ribs began to fade, and his strength and weight began to return to him, the name Harry began to come forcibly to the front of his mind with increasing clarity. He needed to get to the child, it had been three, painfully long years, and he would not fail when he was so close.

It happened one Thursday when Brian and Angela left for work, he nudged the knob and trotted down the walk, looking back at the house once more. It had been his first stay with muggles, and he was very grateful for the help they had been. Now to cover my tracks...Sirius thought to himself as he looked down the deserted street. He dragged a paper bag into the alley besides the back garden. With a nervous glance over his shoulder he quickly turned into his real form and focused all his newly acquired strength. Where is my seventh year transfiguration notebook when I need it! Sirius thought to himself, trying to remember any scrap of information on wandless magic that he had studied in school, and then tested with James outside of class. Focusing all his attention, the bag became a perfect, albeit dead, replica of his animagus form. Buckling the collar that had, until quite recently rested around his neck, onto the neck of 'Lee', he levitated the decoy to the side of the street. Looking back, he quickly transformed to padfoot once more and bounded down the street.

Sirius hated the fact that he had to hurt the only people to care for him in a very long time, however, he wasn't going to let them burden his plans to find Harry, and if they thought him still alive and went searching for him, that could defiantly put a kink in his plans.

It was the next morning when he awoke from under a park bench to the sounds of children lauging and a woman calling them to slow down. He raised his head and suddenly caught wind of a very familiar smell. Thank god I'm a dog, that would be rather hard to explain to someone othewise, 'excuse me, you don't know me, but I know you, you see, you smell just the same as you did when you were just one year old...' Yeah Sirius, that would go over real well...he snorted to himself, the smell filling his nose once more. He couldn't believe it, it was Harry!

He shook his head slightly, that simply didn't make any sence, what was Harry doing walking down the sidewalk in Wallingford, a good half an hour away from where he was supposedly living...He scanned the group of children walking down the sidewalk, there was about ten of them, one woman wrangling them all. Looking down at the woman's left hand, she saw a child clinging to her. Sirius's heart stopped. Oh my god, it's James. He thought, as his throat closed painfully. He saw the child's knobby knees poking out from his shorts, and was forcibly reminded of Mr. Potter. Harold Potter was a great man. He was a better father than Sirius ever had, his heart beat painfully at the memory of his vacant gaze staring out at him from a casket as he supported a devastated James.

Sirius stood transfixed, he couldn't believe the child was here, of all places, he had done it, he had made it back to Harry...he had accomplished the impossible.

A sound brought Sirius from the memories of the past three months. Picking up his head, he looked to the bed where the child was fitfully sleeping. "Not Harry. Please Not Harry!" Sirius heard with his acute canine hearing. His eyes widened in surprise. What on earth was the child seeing behind those eyelids? Sirius grew worried as the child's voice grew harsh and cold. "Stand aside you silly girl! Avada Kedavra!" He mumbled into his pillow. Sirius's heart stopped. His breath came slowly, and ragged. He couldn't believe what he had just heard come out of James and Lily's son's mouth...the two most evil words...ever! The rest of the mutterings played in his thoughts. That was Lily, that was Lily's last words...she died for him...Sirius thought mournfully. He looked up at the child who rubbed his forehead, rolled over, and then remained quite still the rest of the night. If anyone thought the fact that the large black stood in silent contemplation the whole night, no one said a word.

Feed the muse...She's ravanous you know, and the little blusih-purpleish button/box thing that says review is like a nice big steak dinner! Thanks, hope you liked, and btw, the next update won't be another month and a half away...I just had a lot on my plate with school and all...College is tough, Pre-med's tougher...I mean really, why do they care how smart surgeons are anyways...all we have to do is cut people up...(I'm JUST KIDDING!) ;)