Great Godfathers And Goodbyes
Chapter 24
Sunday, August 25
Harry was at home, alone again as Sirius had left for another Order meeting. Harry was using the time to get his nonverbal spells right, as he had made himself a promise that he would get the hang of it, at least before he left for Hogwarts.
His grandfather's duelling room was very useful as it had all sorts of books and practice dummies that repaired itself after a spell had hit it.
Harry had been practising for the better part of an hour and was almost confident he could do the basic defence spells non-verbally. They were a little weaker than his regular spells, but it was a good improvement to last time.
The nonverbal spells he had been practicing had effectively pushed the metal transfiguration lessons to the backburner. Thinking of brushing up on it again, he decided to read his now-favourite book, Elemental Transfiguration and Ways to Implement in Duelling.
Sirius had borrowed it from him earlier, so he went up to Sirius' room to get it. He pushed open the door to Sirius' bedroom and searched around for the book on the bedside table.
However, something else caught his eye.
It was a framed moving photograph; Harry picked it up to look at it closer. It was Sirius, obviously when he was younger and more handsome, sitting beside Harry's father. Sirius was unmistakeably holding a baby in his arms and gazing at it fondly. Harry realized that the laughing baby was himself when his father smiled and clapped a hand on Sirius' shoulder as he too looked at the baby. Harry snorted when he saw that his baby self was wearing a sleepsuit with the words: I HAVE THE WORLD'S GREATEST GODFATHER. No doubt Sirius must have gotten it for him.
Harry felt his eyes growing misty and quickly brushed away the wetness in his eyes. The happy grins on his father and godfather reflecting the happier times of the past made Harry yearn for his dead parents. He wished he could go and visit them at Godric's Hollow; now that he knew that's where he had lived before, he had such a great longing to look at the place that would have been his home, if not for that dreadful Halloween night.
He placed the picture back where it was. To think that Sirius had this picture on his bedside table made him really glad that his parents had chosen Sirius as his godfather.
That afternoon, Sirius came home with the news that he had notified Arthur Weasley and so he would look into the matter of Draco Malfoy soon. Harry was relieved that it seemed taken care of.
Harry waited until after lunch to break the other pressing matter to Sirius that had been on his mind for the whole day. He was very uncertain how to go about it, but decided to broach the subject sooner rather than later.
"Um… Sirius?"
"Hmm?"
"I – I was wondering if I could visit Godric's Hollow."
The silence would have been deafening, if not for the thumping Beatles' song playing in the background. Sirius had gone pale and Harry was momentarily angry with himself for not having thought about how it would affect Sirius. He had probably never visited their graves too, seeing as he had been in Azkaban all this while.
Sirius swallowed, his Adam's apple bobbing nervously. "Uh… you mean today?"
"No!" exclaimed Harry. He wasn't ready for that yet and clearly, Sirius wasn't too. "I mean, not today, but… some day soon… maybe during the holidays."
Sirius' fathomless grey eyes, which had never quite lost the haunted look from his time in Azkaban, were shadowed with sadness and he nodded resignedly. "Okay, Harry. I can't say I didn't expect this. How about during your Christmas holidays?"
Harry smiled a little. "Thanks."
Sirius tried to return the smile and failed.
oOo
Wednesday, August 28
"I've done it!" floated Harry's excited voice as he thundered down the stairs.
Sirius looked up from the paper, raising an eyebrow. "Done what?"
Harry pointed his wand at the book lying on the desk and thought of the spell non-verbally, 'Ferrum Duro'.
In the blink of an eye, the book turned to a block of solid iron. Sirius picked it up, looking at the heavy object with appreciation. "Well done, Harry!"
Harry grinned as he turned it back to its normal state. "Having gotten the transfiguration right, I can finally move on to conjuration, next."
"Maybe," said Sirius as he put down the now-normal book where it had been, "we can deal with that during the next holidays. Do you think we can test your non-verbal skills in a duel now?"
Harry's face was set and he nodded resolutely.
oOo
Harry and Sirius duelled entirely using non-verbal spells, hexes and jinxes flying from each of their wands as they ducked and dodged to avoid them.
It was to that scene that Dumbledore arrived in Potter Manor, equal parts horrified and amazed. That Harry was using magic at home didn't really surprise him for more than ten seconds. It was Sirius' doing after all.
But the way they duelled was enthralling to watch. Sirius was an expert duellist; of that Dumbledore had no doubt. Sirius, with his graceful movements combined with his aggressive fighting style, was a force to be reckoned with.
But it was Harry's skill that astounded him.
It was very clear Sirius had been teaching Harry, if the way Harry's movements somewhat mirrored Sirius' were any clue. There was a confidence in his gait and his quicksilver reflexes, that proved him to be the best on the Quidditch field, were put on clear display. It was amazing how much Sirius had taught Harry in such a short amount of time.
Still, Sirius had the upper hand with his knowledge and experience. A quick tripping jinx that Harry's non-verbal shield hadn't blocked in time and a non-verbal 'Incarcerous', ensured Sirius was the clear winner.
"That was very good, Harry," said Sirius as he helped Harry up and vanished the ropes binding him.
"I thought I could do better than that," said Harry, somewhat dejectedly.
"The last time we duelled, you didn't last ten seconds against me. How long have we been here? Ten minutes?"
Harry looked at his watch. "Twelve."
"Exactly! That is a massive improvement in my opinion," said Sirius encouragingly.
Dumbledore walked up to them and realising his presence, they turned to look at him. He was amused to note Harry hurriedly stowing away his wand as if afraid of being caught doing magic at home.
"Good morning to you both. That was a rather skillful display of non-verbal spells, Harry," said Dumbledore.
Harry flushed but smiled in relief. "Thanks, sir."
Dumbledore addressed Sirius, "I have something to talk to you in private, Sirius."
Sirius' eyes narrowed as he said to Harry, "Could you excuse us, Harry?"
Harry nodded and looked at them a moment longer before heading back to the house, frowning.
Sirius had folded his arms over his chest and was looking at him with the same haughty expression that seemed to be a by-product of Black genes. "Are you going to lecture me for allowing Harry to use magic at home? Because if you are–"
"I had no intention of doing that," interrupted Dumbledore. "I think it is necessary for Harry to learn to duel and who better to teach him than you?"
Sirius was stumped and abashed in equal measure and Dumbledore ploughed on. "Sirius, you wanted to know what happened to my arm? I can tell you now that it was the after-effect of a cursed object."
Immediately, Sirius looked horrified and angry. "What? Who tried to curse you?"
"Oh, it was not somebody's well-thought-out plan," said Dumbledore, placidly. "I… stumbled upon an artefact which caused it. Luckily, I could take the necessary measures in time to stop it. But, that is not what I came to tell you. I want you to accompany me to certain places that I might ask you to over the forthcoming months."
Dumbledore found himself assaulted with a barrage of questions. "What places? " asked Sirius. "Where will you be going? And why should I be the one to accompany you?"
"I am in search of an object – a very powerful and valuable one. I will tell you more about it in the forthcoming days. But it is proving to be difficult to search for them unaccompanied. Which is why I am requesting your help, Sirius."
Sirius was watching him with narrowed eyes. "As long as you will tell me more about it, I'm in."
"I will, I promise you. Please remember that this is very private and I do not wish to share it with anyone, even members of the Order. What I am about to tell you over the months is very sensitive information."
Sirius nodded. "You have my word."
oOo
Sunday, September 1
"You've got everything?"
"Yes," said Harry and nodded. As much as he loved Hogwarts, he had been dreading this day all last week. He hated that he was going to be away from Sirius just when he had finally gotten his godfather free. Sirius had been trying so hard to not show his displeasure, but Harry knew. How could he not when he felt just the same?
"If you've left anything, just write to me and I'll send it for you." They were standing by the doorway of Potter Manor, his home – the place that had given him so many happy memories, Harry thought that if he had to, he could produce the strongest Patronus in the world with them.
Harry nodded again and stood where he was unwilling to leave his home. Sirius was looking at him with an unreadable expression in his grey eyes.
"I'm going to miss you," said Sirius, a slight tremor in his voice betraying emotion.
Harry gulped, took two steps forward just as Sirius opened his arms to embrace him. Harry was going to miss Sirius too and it hurt so much that an ache was building up in his throat.
Sirius finally pulled away and said hoarsely, "Let's get a move on. There's just thirty minutes left for the train."
oOo
Harry pushed his trunk forward along with Sirius, who had one arm on the trolley and one inside the pocket of his jeans, clutching his wand. They were strolling along King's Cross among the Muggles and Sirius was giving some 'well-meaning advice' to Harry, "— You're sixteen and if I'm not mistaken, girls are going to be throwing themselves at you. You remember what I told you last month right?"
Harry felt himself flushing at the reminder. During one of their many conversations when Sirius had pestered Harry about his love life, he had given an unwitting Harry 'the Talk' which was probably the most embarrassing two hours of his life.
"I can't look at a girl the same now, thanks to you," muttered Harry.
Sirius was grinning. "Sixth year is the best time of your school life! You don't have the stress of seventh year exams but you're still older than most and have time for delightful things to do, like with that charming Alicia on your birthday."
Harry rubbed his hand over his eyes. "You just had to see that, didn't you?"
"Who didn't see with all that shameless snogging? I was surprised Alicia's mum didn't come rampaging when she saw. Points to you for that sort of bravery, Harry. "
Harry pressed his lips to keep from commenting. As they reached the wall between platforms nine and ten, Harry gasped looking to the side. "Miss Evesham!"
Sirius's eyes widened comically as he whirled around so fast, that he nearly tripped when his foot caught on the trolley. Harry was roaring in laughter as he dashed forward into the wall, Sirius hot on Harry's heels.
"Who's talking about bravery now?" said Harry, amidst laughter.
Sirius smacked him up his head but Harry was still laughing. "You should have seen your face!"
"I'm getting you back for that," muttered Sirius, yet his eyes were dancing with amusement.
Harry snorted disbelievingly. "I'll be in Hogwarts. What could you possibly do?"
Sirius said nothing but the familiar mischievous smirk lit up his face at the challenge and Harry felt slightly unsettled. It was best to be on his guard from now.
Harry noticed that heads were turning as people already occupying the compartments pressed their faces on the windows to look at them.
"If this is how my entire school year is going to be…" trailed off Harry, exhaling a breath.
Sirius, who had been frowning at the sight, turned to Harry grinning. "Don't be ridiculous, they're all admiring me of course!"
That made Harry laugh. He spotted Hermione beckoning him over, standing with her parents at a platform where Mr. and Mrs. Weasley stood along with Ron and Ginny, who greeted them happily. Hermione and Ron left to find the Prefect's compartment and Ginny was exchanging last minute hugs and goodbyes with her parents when Sirius turned to him, a hand on Harry's shoulder. "Stay safe, Harry."
"I try," said Harry, almost exasperatedly.
Sirius continued with a rather serious expression. "I want you to have your invisibility cloak with you at all times. Even during class hours and breaks, alright?"
Harry nodded. He couldn't help but wonder why he was feeling slightly nauseous at that moment.
Sirius' expression suddenly cleared and he gave a cheerful smile that didn't seem entirely natural. "Alright, chin up there. It's just another school term."
When Harry continued to be solemn, Sirius dropped his smile. "I also wanted you to know, if you have anything sensitive to tell me, don't put it into a letter. Use that mirror."
The train whistled and Sirius looked up at the train, before looking back at Harry. Quickly, he pulled Harry into a one-armed hug, who held very tightly to Sirius in that brief moment, soaking up the feeling. They pulled away rather sooner than he would have liked and Sirius helped Harry load his trunk onto the train.
"Go on, then. Have a good term, Harry."
Sirius shut the door and Harry leaned out of the window to speak to him.
"Promise me you'll look after yourself, Sirius," said Harry, concerned. With nobody but Twitchet at their home, Harry was worried what the loneliness would do to Sirius.
"I promise."
Sirius looked at Harry with such fondness that he felt a jolt in his midriff, an unexplainable feeling. The train started to move and Harry raised a hand in farewell and Sirius gave a wistful smile. Harry was still looking out the window at Sirius' steadily diminishing figure, and then he was gone.
Harry stood there for a minute, unable to suppress the feeling of bereavement nestling in his heart. Never before had he felt resentment than at that moment for going back to Hogwarts.
oOo
