This story is based on characters and developed from some situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.
Chapter 5.
You Can't Be Sirius.
7th July. Day 10.
Dumbledore was sitting in his office at Hogwarts, waiting the arrival of the four people he had summoned to him the afternoon before. He had called them to him at that time to test them, to see if they would respond to his call still. When he had called them to his Office in the ministry, he had asked them to arrange to be available for a mission for the order today, one he was about to inform them of when they arrived. Each of them had all answered his summons, including the cousin of Black, which reassured Albus that he still attracted some loyalty from that family, although admittedly a disowned branch. Even so it was the final member of the order that he had decided he would summon, that he believed was the most important dig at Sirius reluctance to co-operate, with him. His decision to call the last remaining of his closest school friends had been rewarded, when that man had also answered the Headmasters' initial call.
He had met with them in his office at the Ministry yesterday, in the order in which they had arrived. He had hoped they would all arrive individually, but had been only slightly surprised that Remus had arrived at the same time as the two Aurors. Albus believed it was just coincidence that the three had done so, though if he thought about it Kingsley and the Tonks girl often worked together, so he might have expected it of them. He decided that instead of making them wait, he would see them together, after all it was only to ensure they would come for this briefing, this morning. They had just left a few minutes before the arrival of fourth member of the Order that he had called to him, to ensure they would be available. He was quite glad he had not arrived with the others, he knew his oldest friend would be unhappy to be called for this, but not the mission itself.
Dumbledore had known Alastor had quite recovered from his ordeal of the last school year, though until he had arrived Albus had not been sure his old friend had forgiven him for failing to rescue him earlier. His arrival in usual gruff mood had been reassuring, and saved him from applying a memory charm on him to regain his loyalty. For as long as Albus had known him, Alastor had always been a man who spoke his mind, who he could rely on without resorting to using his own skills to ensure it. They may not always agree, and he knew that if Alastor had known of all that he had done, that friendship would be strained. He strongly suspected that despite their friendship, or even perhaps because of it, then the old Auror would have had him arrested. There was no other man alive, from whom Albus would take the amount of argument as he did from Alastor, not even his brother, Aberforth, probably especially not from Aberforth, who he did not see eye to eye with often.
Alastor may have forgiven him sufficiently to answer his summons, a good sign as far as Albus was concerned, but that did not mean the man did not treat his request with a degree of suspicion. If he hadn't, then Albus would have suspected the man was ill or that it was once again an imposter. He gruffly agreed to return this morning with the others, though complained at being required to make the journey to the Ministry to receive instructions that could have been conveyed by other means and saved him the effort. He had left having called Albus a self-important idiot, though he had assured him he would arrive at Eleven to discover what the mission entailed.
It was almost that time now, the wards told him that Alastor had arrived and was making his way up to the office, closely followed at intervals by the others at varying speeds across the grounds. Kingsley had been the first to catch up with the slower moving Alastor, at the bottom of the steps to the castle door, while Tonks had caught up with Remus at about the same time halfway up the drive. The second pair started up the stairs as Alastor and Kingsley had reached the top, where after a moment they were caught by the others and all of them walked through the school together. He tracked them through the corridors until they reached the guardian at the bottom of the stairs, they gave the password and a few minutes later they all arrived at his door, and walked into the office.
"Right you bearded old fool." Alastor greeted gruffly. "We are here in answer to the call of your self-important benevolence, conjure some bloody chairs, and please grace us with the knowledge of what it is you require of us, oh great and wise one."
Albus shook his head ruefully at his old friends' antics, conjured the chairs, resisting the urge to make the one for Alastor smaller than the others, then waited for them to sit down, before he spoke.
"Thank you for answering my call yesterday, and for arriving so promptly today, I hope in the intervening period overnight, you have had chance to free up your day for this mission." The headmaster smiled, his eyes on full twinkle, finally something would go his way. "This is a very important mission for the Order and the future of the forthcoming battle against Voldemort and his Death eaters. As promised, I can now reveal what it is that I need you, as four of the senior members of the order, to do."
"Get on with it and stop flannelling, if we have to get this thing done, we don't have all day for you to preen Albus." Growled Alastor, his false eye fixed on Dumbledore for a moment, before it resumed rotating to watch the room.
Dumbledore ignored his friend, and the smirk of mirth that appeared on Tonks face, as she tried to smother her giggles, he continued. "I want the four of you to carry out the safe retrieval and delivery to Order care of Harry, from his relatives house. I cannot emphasise enough how important it is that he be brought into our protection, this evening, before others have a chance to get to him. Thanks to Arthur, I have arranged for the Dursleys to receive a letter that will ensure they will be out for most of the evening, so they won't be a problem for you to deal with. It is vital that we achieve this with minimum fuss, of course, and I know I do not need to emphasise the importance that Harry must feel that we are to be relied on by him."
"Is there a particular threat to his safety that you are aware of, which we should watch for?" Alastor asked, ignoring the flattery for the headmaster.
"No my friend, no more than is usual, so far as I know." Dumbledore replied. "However, as always, it is wise to take every precaution, and I believe we might all be in danger if we don't bring him safely into Molly's tender care at Headquarters."
Kingsley grinned, he knew this was a move meant to wrong foot Sirius, he suspected that Remus and Tonks had realised that too, but would play along for now. "With that in mind, perhaps it would be best if the four of us were to work out a strategy ourselves, and organise any help we might need if any." He said.
"Yes, that would be good, except please do not allow the identity of our friend be known too widely, not before he is safely at Headquarters at least. As for planning, I could offer a room here in the castle if you wish." Dumbledore answered, he didn't want too many knowing this plan ahead of time, there was too much chance that Black would hear of it before he was prepared for that contingency.
It was risky enough bringing the boy to the house in the first place, but he had no choice. Privet Drive was not as safe as he had led others to believe, and he had to have Harry where he could not discover too much about himself on his own. Reluctantly, he had ruled out Hogwarts as an alternative, though it was suitable as a very last resort. He had concluded that Headquarters was the only place he could bring him, where his control could be maintained on his behalf. "It is imperative that Harry's arrival be kept between us, as his magical guardian all these years I am concerned that sadly, with his reluctance to join the Order, Sirius cannot be trusted in this or even to have Harry's best interests at heart, despite his status as Harry's godfather."
Tonks eyebrows shot under her fringe, but it was Moody who spoke before anyone else could. "Turned you down again has he Albus, you never did like anyone saying no to you, did you? If anyone dares to, they instantly become your least favourite of the day, until they give in, or you need them for something else. I remember doing the same to you once, took days until you twinkled at me again." The retired Auror smirked, ignoring the offer of a room, which he knew was simply, so Albus could spy on their discussions, it would frustrate the Headmaster not to know.
"I am being serious Alastor." Albus replied in an overly patient tone, resigned to the fact his friend was going to tease him like no other would or could.
Moody's smile increased. "Really? I thought Sirius was living upstairs at Headquarters, but if you insist that you are being him, then we must accept that you are. That being so and following your wish that he not know, we shall go and plan elsewhere, rather than a room here where you might inadvertently overhear something you shouldn't. See you later Sirius my old friend, watch out for old Alby, he will not like you being in his chair or office without him, if he catches you." He stood and lead the others from the room leaving Dumbledore, for once speechless, and impersonating a goldfish for a moment, before he hit his head on the table. His actions generating an appreciative smirk from the sorting hat, chuckles from the watching portraits and obvious mirth from Fawkes.
On the other side of the door, Moody signalled that they be silent and follow him, he grinned knowing he had once again out witted his friend by playing to his pomposity. He continued walking, leading them out of the castle, into the grounds and down the drive. They walked silently through the gates and along the lane to the village of Hogsmeade. Continuing along the street, acknowledging any greetings they received from others, but otherwise still not speaking. Entering the Three Broomsticks, Moody asked Madam Rosemerta for a private room and some refreshment for them all.
It was only when they were settled into the room, that naturally he had personally checked and secured, that he turned to the other three and asked. "Right you lot, I could see your reactions, even if the bearded wonder missed them completely. He might be senile, but I ain't, you three know something neither he nor I do, so what in the name of Merlin is really going on?"
At Grimmauld place that morning, Sirius and Bella had settled down in their lounge after breakfast, when they were interrupted once again, this time by the sound of a siren alarm sounding.
"Not again!" Sirius growled, setting the cup of coffee that Kreacher had brought them, at eleven, back on the table. "I only set those alarm wards up after Molly came up yesterday evening. When will they learn to respect our property?"
The couple had received a few supplementary questions from the journalists, which they would reply too soon. However, their main activities were relaxing for the day in their sitting room, planning their strategy for the evening, when they expected that their Godson would be likely to arrive. They had not just decided what they would do that evening, to see if Harry would accept them, but also discussed ideas of what needed to be done over the next few days. It amused them that Dumbledore was arranging for Harry to be brought here, saving them the trouble, if all went to plan then soon there would be a re-emergence of another power in the Wizarding world. They both knew that would not suit the chief warlock, but after what they had found out they could not care less about that. It all depended on Harry though, how welcoming of them he would be, how willing to listen to them.
Even as they relaxed, keeping out of the way of most of the other occupants of the house, they looked back on the time since they had arrived. The couple had made the most of their first evening back together after Sirius had despatched Molly back to the lower floors last night, she had no idea he was not alone. They had eaten, Kreacher managing to fetch a plate of food for each of them without it being noticed by the members of the order downstairs. He had also kept them supplied with wine from the family cellars, which were hidden well enough that their house guests would not find the door to them. Remus and Tonks had visited briefly, but they had otherwise been little disturbed after answering the questions and sending the replies to the press. They had relaxed in each other's company, getting to know each other again, reacquainting themselves with each other after so long apart, rediscovering the depth of their love for each other. They were finding themselves again, before fully accepting their new roles, new responsibilities, as Lord and Lady Black, at least in their own minds. It had, in fact, been their first night as a married couple in this house, they had not lived here before as a couple. I had of course been Sirius childhood home and Bella had been a regular visitor and had spent the night here on occasion growing up, but they had not slept here together before. They had gone to bed in the Master suite of the house, like nervous newly-weds on the first night of their Honeymoon. They were quite aware this had been the room Sirius parents had occupied, though the mattress had been changed since then. The couple had taken a while to get to sleep, rediscovering their love physically, before they had fallen contentedly to sleep. Kreacher had insisted that they breakfasted together in bed that morning, providing a hearty meal on bed trays for them. Eventually they had risen and shared their morning ablutions in the private bathroom, before making their way to spend the day quietly in the sitting room, away from the other occupants. They had been enjoying the quiet after the fuss of the day before, when they had been disturbed once again by the alarm.
"The Order?" Bella whispered to him, reluctant for him to rise. "Or Molly again?"
"No, it's one or more of the other Weasleys." He sighed. "I keyed it to sound like that when they stray out of bounds after last night. It's a horn for anyone else, unless they are with a Weasley, and a hag shouting if it is Molly. No sound of course if a Black, or someone I keyed in comes up." He got up and walked towards the door before adding. "Young Ginny is the only Weasley keyed in to come up, without an alarm. Though it is tempting to let the twins up as well, I am not sure if they were involved in what went on with their sister yet though. Sorry I forget to tell you about her yet, what with everything going on yesterday. Tonks, Remus and I have had several chats with Ginny since they arrived. She is a good kid, has her head screwed on the right way. We discovered a number of charms, and she had been fed with a potion, to manipulate her, we broke the charms between us and taught her how to detect the potion in her food and drink which had been laced in any way. We got her an antidote to take and the effects of the potion have worn off. She is far more bothered about Harry, than she is about following Dumbledore. The poor girl went through hell in her first year, probably thanks to Albus to some extent at least, and has no illusions about him. That said, she knows better than to say anything about that near her mother. Besides all that, Kreacher has sensed something about her, and he trusts her." With that he left the room to investigate who had tripped the alarm.
"Well that's most interesting." Bella breathed intrigued, she decided it would be interesting to meet Ginny Weasley, but knew that may need to wait.
Sirius found Ron and Hermione trying doors in the corridor, along from the suite he now shared with Bella. "Can I help you two?" He asked as he approached them.
Both teens jumped in surprise, but Ron recovered first and defiantly replied. "I doubt it, we are just checking the rest of the available space in the house for my mum. She needs to see how much work has to be done to get these rooms ready for the use of the order. So, no need for you to get involved at all." The red head then tried the next door along.
Sirius blocked the way, so neither could progress further along the corridor. "Please remind your mother, once again, that the rooms on this level and above are out of bounds to the Order and those I do not invite up to them. As I reminded her once more last night, this is still my house, it belongs to me, not her or the Order which has simply rented certain rooms for its exclusive use on the ground and first floors. Not all of them, nor all of my house and so far as I am aware, your mother and family have not leased any of my house at all. I am entitled to privacy in my own home after all, not to mention the right to decide what use it is put to. I have informed your mother and various others who she has sent up here, as well as face to face at the table, of this several times since you arrived. Be a good boy when you go back down, and remind her of that."
"But Sirius, as Mrs. Weasley and Dumbledore say, it would be a real commitment to the cause, and it would just be so much easier for us if we could use these rooms too." Hermione pleaded. "It would mean some of us could have our own rooms and not have to share."
"Yeah, I mean, as things are, when Harry gets here I shall have to share with him, like I do at school. The summer is the only time I get any space to myself, except when I have to share with him when he visits. It really isn't fair that I am expected to do that, surely you can see that, especially with you having all this space to yourself up here, there is no way you can use it all." Ron added enthusiastically.
"Really, you can't see how I can use it all, so as far as you are concerned, you have to share, and I have too many rooms in my own house. Which of course, to you, means I should give them up for your mother to allocate as she wishes?" Sirius replied, his voice oozing sarcasm, which went unnoticed by Ron.
Hermione held her head in her hands as her companion perked up, believing he had done what his mother and Dumbledore had failed to do and convinced Sirius to hand over control of the house to the Order. "That's right!" He said brightly. "Glad you can finally see it makes sense, I told mum that you weren't a self-centred, greedy, unsuitable godfather, or a disgrace to the memory of James and Lily as she said. How about helping us check how much work there is to do up her, then?"
Hermione looked at Ron in complete disbelief, her mouth had fallen open in astonishment at the level his audacity. She knew Ron was often slow on the uptake of course, he had demonstrated that numerous times since she had known him, but this plumbed whole new depths of imbecility, even for him. She began to slowly back away from the situation, back towards the stairs, distancing herself from his foolishness, abandoning him to the consequences of his thoughtlessness.
Sirius blocked the red heads progress towards the next door again, holding the boys arm firmly he looked him straight in the eyes. "I find it hard to believe anyone is that foolish boy, despite what others said about you. There is no work to be done to get these rooms ready for you or the order, they are not for their use. Now go and tell your mother that if she wants her arrogant twerp of a youngest son to remain in one piece, she will cease her pointless efforts to take over my house. Yes you imbecile my house not hers, not Albus bloody Dumbledores and most certainly not the Orders. Now return downstairs where your mother has sufficient rooms in this for the Orders needs, as agreed with Dumbledore and ask her to drum some manners and common sense into your thick skull. Go on, now, before I show you just how James, Lily and I took revenge on idiots like you, who are clearly hard of understanding." He let go of the idiotic boys' arm.
The venom in his voice had pierced Ron's consciousness sufficiently to register in his underused cranial organ, recognising the danger he was in. He turned and stomped away muttering and swearing under his breath, leaving Hermione at the top to smile apologetically to Sirius, before descending the stairs more sedately after the red head. Sirius watched them go, smirked, then turned and returned to the suite and his wife. They had decided to continue to make the most of their time together, before the news would break, later that afternoon and the anticipated arrival of Harry.
Harry Potter, the boy not wanted by his relatives, mistrusted by the neighbours and never spoken to by them, was busy at the chores he had been given to do during the day that morning. These were just the latest of a long list of chores that had been assigned by his family to occupy him since he had returned from the school, which had been the first place he had called home. Each day of this hot summer he had toiled through his daily list of tasks, that had been added to the routine of cooking and washing up, all while his cousin was off somewhere with his gang. The residents of the street may not take the trouble to speak to him, but the neighbours certainly spoke about him, mostly trying to work out why he was such an enigma to them.
For years, they had listened to his Aunt bemoaning the boy's very existence, complaining that her sister had, had the temerity to be killed, leaving her to raise the delinquent, who, according to her, was taking after his parents. They knew she believed that the boy was naturally a criminal, and they had believed it too, for a number of years. They had even been motivated to form a neighbourhood watch to help keep an eye on him at first. Though the Dursleys had not wanted to participate, preferring to keep themselves to themselves, as they, or specifically Mr Dursley, had put it. The rest of the neighbours in the road had begun keeping watch on what went on in the area, discovering a number of goings-on in the apparently ordinary estate, that would keep the gossips happy. That was when the first questions about Petunia Dursley's stories about the boy and his behaviour, began to be raised by them, questions that encouraged the neighbours to watch the family more closely.
The keen observations of the residents soon showed that either Harry was better at concealing his criminal tendencies than they were at spotting them, or that the Dursley's had not been honest with them. It was soon apparent to them all, that the latter was the truth. Then with the members of the watch keeping an eye on more than the boy's activities, they confirmed to their own satisfaction that the description Petunia had used about Harry, was more appropriate to apply to Dudley and his gang. One neighbour had once approached Vernon about his son's behaviour, that family had soon moved away thanks to the reaction of the man and subsequent bullying tactics he employed. Vernon had ensured life for the family was made, quite impossible in the area, Dursley's influence, through his company ensuring local suppliers complied with his wishes regarding the man of that house's employers. It was clear that the Dursleys were more concerned with preserving their reputation, than the safety of those in the area. So the neighbours stopped trying to keep them informed in any way and left them to their own devices, but watched them even more closely, especially their son.
While the neighbours collectively simply tolerated the family, including Harry from then on. Their reports to the authorities on the overweight boy and his gangs activities also soon ceased, when they noticed the Dursley's simply took it out on the slight boy, rather than their own son who was the real perpetrator. It seemed that he was untouchable, even by the authorities, for some reason. The residents all breathed a sigh of relief during term-time for the last few years, when Dudley and his friends were away at school. The Potter boy was usually away all year, except in the summer as well, but they had to put up with the Dursley's darling "Duddykins." On each and every holiday, when his reign of vandalism and thuggery in the area resumed, almost the moment he arrived home. In fact the neighbours prepared themselves as thoroughly as they could to be ready to protect themselves and their property from the unruly group of boys in the days before the end of term. In fact, it was thanks to the actions of Dudley's Gang, that the Bursar at Smeltings notice a distinct lack of boys from the area being sent to that school, despite the number of old Boys in Little Whinging. The gang were not popular, even among their peers, but none dared stand up to them, for fear of reprisals should they be found by them on their own. The members of the gang had reached the age where they wanted to chase after the girls of the area, but their well known poor behaviour ensured the local Girls all avoided them like the plague.
All the neighbours were avoiding the family as much as possible, the Dursleys were seen somewhat as a joke for their public airs and graces, trying to set themselves up as above everyone else. All knew that the family was the source of many of the areas problems, and although they could not see him do anything wrong, they tarred Harry with the same brush. He was convicted by association, as unfair as that seemed to them all, but had any of them shown friendliness towards him, they ran the risk of gaining the Dursleys wrath, something none wanted to be bothered with.
Today, much to the dismay of many of the neighbours, Harry had been working in the front garden of number four for most of the day so far, despite the heat. Some had noticed that as often happened when he was toiling at the front of the house, he had not had anything to drink or eat since he had been sent out to begin his task. It was baking hot, the hottest summer for years, the ground was rock hard, grass was brown and even trees were suffering with the lack of rain. They were weeks into living with drought restrictions and a hose pipe ban. Although there had been some occasional light showers of rain, usually overnight, there had been no meaningful rain for three months over Surrey and the Southern Counties. They suspected the same for the rest of the country as well, but they had not noticed it reported on the news. The main noise in the street this lunchtime was the noise of the television blaring from inside number four, barely anyone was moving about. Harry was the only person outside in the street in the heat of the day, the other residents staying indoors, trying to keep cool, as they watched the strange boy at his toil from their windows. Each of them attempting to take advantage of any little breeze, that might blow through the open windows, though more in hope than expectation.
The lunchtime news had just finished, the theme tune blaring from the television in number four. The distinctive music sounding along the street, then fading out, just when the residents who were at their windows saw a familiar scarlet Royal Mail van arrive in the road. It slowed as it entered the road, clearly the driver was checking the numbers of the houses, so it could not be the usual postman, he knew the houses by heart. Besides the van was here much later than it normally would be, for any usual deliveries. As such it drew the attention of the bored residents of the street, who watched it drive along and pull up at the kerb, next to the pavement, near the boy toiling at his work. The postman leapt out and spoke briefly to Harry, whilst the neighbours watched on. Each of them curious that there was a delivery in the street so much later than the first and second posts of the day, later even than the usual separate parcels delivery, all of which had arrived well before lunch.
"Excuse me, I have a special delivery for a Vernon Dursley to be signed for." The postman said to Harry, his voice carrying over the street in the sudden silence as the voice of the weatherman was cut off along with the television.
A voice could be heard from inside the house, swearing and complaining about the continued heat in the building.
Harry nodded and let out a breath. "He's inside, I'll get him for you." He was glad of the brief break from trying to pull up dried weeds from the baked clay heavy soil.
"No problem." The postman smiled.
Harry knew that weeding the dead weeds, was a job he had been given for the sake of it. He heaved himself up and shuffled over the crisp dried grass of the lawn, and past the dead roses beneath the open window. "Uncle Vernon, there's a special delivery out here for you."
The sound of a grunted acknowledgement inside, was followed by the noise of a large mass beginning to move, then making its way to the door. The open window vibrating with each step, they could hear the tinkling of the ornaments jangling inside. Vernon appeared at the front door, red-faced and sweating dripping heavily from his hairline, the postman passed him the letter along with a pad and pen. Once Vernon had signed for the letter, he stood watching as the postman returned to his van and drove off, then turned to Harry. "Get back to work boy, don't forget to wash the car, use a bucket not the hose, I don't want a fine because you are too lazy to do the job the hard way. When you are done, put the used water on your Aunts favourite rose in the back."
"Yes Uncle Vernon." He sighed and returned to his labours, at least cleaning the car was more productive, he thought as he gathered the gardening tools together, and it was cooler in the garage.
Vernon harrumphed and went back inside, closing and locking the door. A few moments later Harry heard his Uncles voice bellow. "Petunia, pack our best clothes, where is Dudley? We need to be in London this evening, we've won a prize we must set off within an hour to get there if we are to avoid the rush hour. Boy get cleaned up out there, then inside and washed before you get in our way."
"Yes Uncle Vernon!" Harry said and packed away the tools, disposed of the weeds, ran his head under the garden tap and walked into the house through the garage.
"Stop dawdling boy, go get cleaned up in the kitchen sink, you are going to Mrs. Figg for the night." Vernon told him.
Petunia shook her head. "He can't, Dear, she is not well, apparently. Her age or something I suppose, anyway there is no one else to keep an eye on him, he will have to stay here, there is no way he can come with us."
"What, oh damn and blast it, why is it never simple." He glared at Harry who was washing his hands. "Well you are right, he is certainly not going to be coming with us, that is certain. I suppose he is old enough to be left alone, but there is no way I trust the brat. Boy, we are going to London to receive an award I have won, they obviously recognise quality people, we shall set off the moment we are ready and Dudley is back. You will be locked in your room until we return, no funny business while we are gone, or you will know about it. Now go fetch your cousin, he will be with his friends somewhere, and be quick about it."
An hour later harry was locked in his sweltering hot room, laid on his bed, a jug of water he had managed to fetch on the dresser, listening as his relatives noisily boarded their car and drove off. He had found his cousin and friends in the nearby park, amusing themselves by carving their names and obscenities into the bench they were occupying, it had not taken long to find them. Dudley had known the message was serious, his parents would not have sent his cousin if it were not. He would have to go with his parents, but he also had to maintain his reputation with his friends, so he had, of course, joined them in baiting Harry. It was only when Harry had just shrugged and walked away that Dudley had judged he had underlined his position and went after him back to the house.
He had caught up with Harry as they turned into Privet Drive, wordlessly walking alongside his cousin, now they were a safe distance from his gang. He entered the house ahead of Harry, swinging the door back in the hope it would hit him in the face, it didn't. Harry was expecting it and had put his hand up to stop it before it had gained any momentum. Dudley scowled, at his failure, but made no comment, then went into the kitchen and sulkily put up with his parents fussing, his planned afternoon with his gang ruined.
Harry had managed to get a brief cool shower and fresh clothes while the Dursleys had dressed for their journey, Petunia packed their evening wear ready for the ceremony. Vernon had telephoned and booked a hotel at the expense of Grunnings, for the family to change and spend the night in after the ceremony had taken place. Harry had then been given a meagre meal of a salad that Dudley would not touch, a drink, and shoved into his room, the door locked as they had left. At least the window could open, and now the sun was on the front of the house, his room was slowly beginning to cool a little, even so it was still hot. Once the Dursleys had left, Harry lay on top of his bed, one of the books Dudley had never read in his hands. He read while contemplating the relief that he had an afternoon of relaxation, rather than chores outside, despite the heat in his room. For the first time since his return from school, he had time to relax this holiday, albeit imprisoned in his room, and he was going to make the most of it while he could. He would certainly rather be at the Burrow, or anywhere where he could fly his broom, but he was quite used to being grateful for small blessings while at Privet Drive.
This was a relatively large blessing, one he would take advantage of as much as he could. He yawned as he turned the page of the book, not that it was a dull story, he was really entranced by the story, and had spent several evenings so far reading it. The story of life in a past America told through the eyes of the children of a small towns Lawyer, had captured him, but he was tired from the late nights spent reading "To Kill a Mocking Bird." And from the early mornings the Dursleys demanded of him. Harry was tired, but was keen to discover if the outcome of the trial Atticus Finch was defending, would be as he hoped, or if it would end in the manner he feared it might. He stifled another yawn and continued to read, ignoring the heat of his room as best he could.
Narcissa Malfoy was at her wits end, though she could not and would never have shown it openly, even to her family. She was a woman without a real plan, just an idea, and she knew her family, her son was threatened. There could be no doubt about that, even before the damage caused by their house guest the other night, though that was merely the latest price for her husbands weak spine.
The last fourteen years had been very comfortable and prosperous for the Malfoy's, who, whilst they were an important part of the Wizarding community, were a relatively young family line, their title quite new compared with that of the Blacks. The Malfoys had gained the title a few centuries ago, so they were merely a noble family, for now. As a result of her marriage into the Malfoy family, they would be elevated higher when her son inherited the title. Then again even higher once he received the Black title, though that would effectively end the Malfoy peerage as the senior one took precedence.
The family had lost much of their fortune in the last rise of their house guest, but had managed to rebuild much of it since his fall and during the intervening relative peace. Certainly they had never been poor, at least not since the Malfoys had arrived in this country to take the place they had no hope of achieving in France at the time. However, her husband had, against his fathers wishes, given most of their fortune to fund the Dark Lord. Not all at once, but over the years, until that abomination had been stopped by Lily and James child, by which time most of the fortune built over the centuries had gone. Lucius was, of course, useless at rebuilding what they had lost, even his father had despaired at the ineffectual way his son had managed his money. After the elder Malfoy had died, probably on the orders of the Dark Lord when he had acted to try to prevent Lucius from giving more money to that cause.
Her husband had no idea how to rebuild his fortune, acted as if unaware of how little they actually had left after his Master had gone. He had bribed and lied his way out of trouble, throwing money at causes to buy his way into influential positions, having no clue where the money he spent had come from. It had been Narcissa's hard work, that made the Malfoy family rich again. She had managed to restrict her husbands access to the money as much as possible, investing all she could in companies she had links with, through the Alliance, as it had been, both here and abroad. The income had been sufficient for appearances' sake, at first, but her patience eventually paid off, and her investments began to grow quickly. Just a year ago, she reached the goal, and their income was back at a level equivalent to what it had been before the war.
Now, somehow, the dark lord was back and resident in this house, with Lucius was once again bowing and scraping like the spineless worm she had found him to be, all bluster and words, but no action when challenged. Although she sympathised with a few of the values that the Dark Lord espoused, maintenance of traditions being the main one, she could not support his more extremist policies. Actually entering his service, having to bow and scrape to him, was something she would never volunteer to do. She could see no reason that it was in any way a good for her, her family or a way to show their superiority. Yet her husband had entered servitude to the maniac and had tried to raise their son, her son, to follow the same inexplicable path. As if she, a daughter of the house of Black, would allow that to happen. While her son might carry the Malfoy name, she had ensured he was raised a Black, with courage and confidence, rather than the self-important, spoiled arrogance his father had encouraged. He was a true Slytherin, hiding his true personality, but she had raised him to her own families traditions to be ready to become Lord Black, rather than Lord Malfoy. That she had done so was unspoken between them, and certainly hidden from her husband, who believed he had been raised a Malfoy.
Whilst Draco acted like his father in public, through the necessity of presenting that front amongst the offspring of his fathers friends, that was a front. One which he had to maintain in the absence of the Alliance and the lack of any sign it would be revived. His behaviour had been a necessity in society, at the very least until House Black rose again, once he had inherited the title, if not before, meaning the embers of the Alliance might begin to glow again at that time. In the meantime her husband played the political game, as he saw it, protecting those of his cohorts who had escaped justice.
Thanks to her teachings, Draco was actually far more of a Black, than the spoilt Malfoy his father believed him to be. Lucius had, predictably, thrown his lot in with the once beaten self-proclaimed, supposed heir of Slytherin, the moment he had been summoned. He had then had the nerve to commit their fortune to the cause of terrorising people into submission. That much she had expected the moment he had left that night, in answer to the summons a few weeks ago, on the day she knew that the Triwizard Tournament had ended. Had that been all he had done, then she would have simply set aside a reasonable amount that would have satisfied his Master, and hidden the rest away without telling her Husband. Regrettably, that hadn't been all that the idiot had done in his vain attempt to curry favour and gain power with his resurrected Overlord, it was the rest that mattered the most to her, to any mother.
The blonde slave of a regenerated freak had committed her son to the cause which he had sold his soul to. That was unforgivable, so far as she was concerned. He might want to volunteer to enslave himself, she could do nothing to prevent that, but how dare he volunteer her son as well. When, last night, Lucius had come into the room where she and Draco had been working to salvage as much of the rebuilt fortune as they could. He had proudly informed her son that he had promised him to his Master. He did not get the response he expected or wanted. To say that Lucius was disappointed with Draco's less than enthusiastic response to the news he was to become a slave, would be like saying a dragon might not be a good idea in a firework factory.
He had been furious with the boy, Narcissa had stepped in to prevent him from becoming violent towards her son. Reminding the fool that all it took was one word from her in the right place, and he would face real justice and lose everything. The spinless fool had sneered at first, then seethed as he backed down in the face of a mother who saw her child as threatened. Whilst she was thanking Merlin that she had, had the foresight to ensure her son had more about him than to meekly become canon fodder for a mad man. She also knew this was the point that she had dreaded they would reach, one day. Conflict between father and son was now inevitable, and she had no doubt that her husband would involve others faithful to the same cause, to try to ensure compliance. It had naturally meant her son revealing his true self to his father, who was stunned at the confident well-balanced young man who refused to be humiliated by entering servitude like his Father. Rather than the spoilt fop moulded after himself, he had believed his son to be. Lucius had almost acted rashly in response, but with the intervention of his wife, he had ordered his son to reconsider, and not to come to him again until he had changed his mind, then stalked into his rooms. They had barely seen him since, and certainly he had not spoken to either of them. Which was not an unfavourable situation as far as either mother or son were concerned, but they knew it was an untenable situation to maintain for more than a few days.
Narcissa knew that despite everything, it had taken a lot for Draco to stand up to his father as he had. She now needed to ensure he was safe from the pressure his father would exert on him, trying to ensure he would follow in his footsteps, once the man had stopped sulking about it. She had looked in on Draco this morning and was pleased to find him coolly getting on with his homework, he truly was more of a Black than he was a Malfoy. They had spoken briefly, exchanging morning pleasantries, and he had reassured her he would not capitulate to his fathers wishes, and both knew that meant they could not remain here in the manor, for much longer. He had also reiterated that he agreed with her belief, that no son of the house of Malfoy should demean themselves so far as to prostrate themselves before anyone. She had assured him that she would do what she could to ensure they would be safe, though at the moment she only had a vague idea how that might be achieved. Neither had any doubt that they would leave, rather than him take the mark, she would prefer that they didn't just run, but had a safe place they could go to.
She had left Draco in his room whilst she pondered her next move. She would save her son and the wealth she had created for her family. As things stood, her options were limited until she knew more about the content of that letter from the Ministry which had held some hope. Narcissa knew that appealing to Fudge would be counter-productive, he could be bought, Lucius had done so many times, but so far as she knew he was currently in denial about the return of the Dark Lord. He was more likely to hand her back to her husband. She decided to act on what she could do, in readiness for when she knew more about the new Lord Black, and if he would be approachable, she went to collect her son, they had work to do.
She and Draco had spent the rest of the morning at Gringotts, ensuring that as many of the remaining resources as they could, had been secured from his father into their own accounts. Not the ones Lucius knew about, but others she had set up as security for them both years before. They had lunched out, in a private room in the Leaky Cauldron, avoiding unnecessary contact with her husband or his associates. When they returned to the manor, Draco had ensured his belongings were either secure in trunks or ready to pack in a hurry, should that be required, he knew his mother was doing the same in her rooms. They dare not involve the manor house elves, they would not be able to lie if Lucius questioned them. He was Master of the house in name, the Elves answered to him, so it was a risk they need not take.
Narcissa had just finished all she could for the time being, when a tapping noise began at the window. She looked up and saw a delivery owl at the window, bringing a copy of the evening Prophet to her. Having let it in, she paid the bird and glanced at the headline, it confirmed what the ministry letter to her had said. She read the letter again and then sat down to read the entire set of articles turning the pages to read the whole interview which was spread throughout the paper. Both her cousin and her sister were free, that was unexpected. The story of her sisters' captivity horrified her, the change in character of Bella had always seemed odd to her. She continued to read the paper, while memories she had long forgotten came to mind. She suddenly remembered the wedding between Bella and Sirius, she had attended though her husband did not. "I wonder if that Bridesmaid ever recovered." She muttered to herself.
Then she remembered, the day Lucius had come home and Obliviated her, her Husband had wiped some memories from her mind, telling her it was for her own good as he did it. He had known, the slimy sod had known what they were doing to her sister all along. She would never forgive him, but it steeled her resolve. Putting the paper down, she smiled. This was the information she had needed, she knew she could appeal to the new Lord Black. She had her answer, a way out for herself and her son, House Black had indeed regained its head and that head was a man she had always been able to turn to as they grew up. She would appeal to Sirius and Bella, she was certain that they would give sanctuary to her son and herself, take them both under the wing of the family, protect them. It was her only hope, when all was said and done. Taking parchment and Quill she quickly wrote a letter, her owl arrived from his perch just as she sealed it. "Take it quickly, they will reply, bring it only to me, no other." She instructed.
She watched the owl disappear into the summer sky, she hoped that she would have a reply in the morning, at the latest. All she could do was hope it would be the one she wanted, the one she needed. Once the Owl had gone, knowing she could do no more she turned, left the room and went to tell her son what she had done and prepare him for what they would need to do.
Harry was woken by a firm shake to his shoulder and a familiar voice. "Harry wake up."
He sat up sharply, the book falling onto the bed, his wand already in his hand, pointing at the face of the person leant over him. "Alright Remus, if that really is who you are, what was in your office at Hogwarts the first time I went there to see you?"
"Well done Cub!" The man grinned. "A Grindylow was in a tank in the corner, what form does your Patronus take?"
"Stag! What are you doing here Remus?" Harry grinned.
"Come to take you away from all this cub, that is if you wouldn't rather stay asleep of course."
"About time, we off to the Burrow or somewhere else?"
"Not the Burrow laddie." A voice came from the doorway, Harry reacted quickly and the voice exclaimed. "Oi give that back you little sod."
Reaching out and catching the wand as it flew to him. "Constant vigilance." Harry grinned, holding the wand out for Moody.
"Cheeky young pup, give that back." Alastor growled snatching back the proffered wand, his wand. "Bloody good reactions Potter."
"Ah yes Harry, you know Mad eye of course, although you have never met him properly before now." Remus grinned. "Behind him are, Tonks and Kingsley, collectively your escort to your place of residence, for the rest of the summer should you want it."
Tonks nodded happily and called. "Wotcher Harry."
Kingsley simply nodded.
"Stop messing about and let's get out of here, no need to dawdle." Moody ordered then stomped out of the room followed by a grinning Kingsley.
Tonks laughed, and her hair went from brown to shocking Pink. "Good one Harry, you know the only other person to have ever successfully summoned Moody's wand from his hand is Dumbledore, you just gained Mad Eyes respect. Though now, of course, it won't be easy to keep it, his expectations of you will be so much higher."
Harry grinned back, and changed his sweaty, slept in t shirt for a fresh one again, looking out of the window, he could see it was still daylight, he must have dosed off earlier while he was reading. He realised he still did not know the result of the trial of Tom Robinson, but he doubted it would be noticed if he took the book with him.
"Don't worry Harry, it's only about three hours since the Dursley's left, we arranged for them to be out so that we could come for you with minimum fuss. There is, of course, no award ceremony for them to attend this evening, but according to the letter they received they are due at the venue in a couple of hours. So they won't be back until long after you are settled in at our destination." Remus assured him. "Come on, let's get you packed, then we can send your luggage on ahead."
"I'll do it." Tonks said enthusiastically and waved her wand.
All of Harry's belongings flew into the air and circled round the room before landing in his trunk, he threw the book in on top of his things, just before the lid closed, Tonks looking pleased with herself as it did. There was a rumbling from above, which drew their attention as the ceiling began to bow down towards them. Tonks looked worried and leapt onto the bed next to Harry, pulling him closer to the wall, Remus stood back, pressing himself to the wall, just in time. A crack appeared in the ceiling and two more trunks slammed through, to land with a resounding thud next to his own on the floor, a cloud of plaster and dust spread in the air, they had barely missed the two wizards and one witch cowering in the room.
"Oops!" Tonks exclaimed as Kingsley and Moody thundered up the stairs and slammed into the room, wands out ready.
Remus stopped them. "It's all fine, Tonksey cast a tidying spell for Harry's belongings, that seems to have summoned two trunks, directly from the loft. They took the most direct route in, rather forcefully it has to be said." He indicated the rather large hole in the plaster above, giving a clear view into the roof space they had come from.
Kingsley laughed enthusiastically. "Good old Tonks, never a dull moment when on a mission with you." He laughed.
"Sod off Shack." Tonks' retorted, laughing. "Part of my purpose in life is to keep you on your toes."
"Language Tonksey." Moody grinned. "You have made a right mess of the place, haven't you?"
"Alastor, as you both know my name is Tonks, or is your new name Allypoos, Moody?" She teased back.
Moody grunted then turned and headed back down the stairs.
"Enough!" Remus laughed. "Don't worry I'll fix it and send the trunks on ahead of us. You alright Prongslet?"
Harry had hardly noticed what was going on, his eyes had not left the two trunks that had fallen through the ceiling, he barely nodded in response to his old teacher. Remus looked where Harry was staring, and gasped. One of the trunks had the faded initials L. E. Painted on the end, the other had the similarly worn initials J. P. Harry had realised these were his parents trunks, they had been in the loft all this time, he wondered if the Dursleys would ever have shown them to him. Why hadn't they so far? He shook himself and decided such questions no longer mattered, he had them now, though he had no clue where he could keep them.
Remus and Tonks both scanned the trunks to ensure they held nothing nefarious or at least too dangerous, considering both the late owners' propensity for pranks, Lilly had surprised all of them with just how much she enjoyed the Marauders spirit, she had even been given her own group name. They found some tracking charms on both of the trunks, with Dumbledores magical signature on them, which they removed, before they sent them on to their destination, it was no business of the headmaster that they were being moved.
"The house elf where we are going will ensure they are not tampered with, until you open them later Harry." Remus assured him.
Harry released Hedwig to fly herself to where ever they were going, he knew she would find him, then Tonks cleaned and shrank her cage, so he could pocket it for the journey.
Remus then repaired the room and cleaned it, by the time he had finished no one would be able to notice that any damage had occurred in the room at all.
Kingsley smiled. "Right, you all ready to go Harry?"
Harry nodded. "Always from this place."
Kingsley nodded his understanding. "I can believe that lad, noticed the pictures downstairs and what's under the stairs too. Don't understand people who do that to a kid, know what should happen to them though. Don't worry your secret is safe with us all, just know there are more of us here for you than perhaps you realise."
"Oi are we going or not." Moody shouted from downstairs.
" Alright Mad eye, I'm just briefing Harry." Remus shouted then turned back to Harry. "Right, time to go. Alastor and Kingsley will Apparate first, then you and I with Tonks bringing up the rear. We shall arrive outside the house we are heading for, its wards prevent us going straight in. When we get there we shall surround you, for your protection as we walk to it. Just so you know we shall be arriving in a mainly Muggle area, but a public one. So although we have taken every precaution for you, we can't say that it is completely safe until we get through the front door. The Weasleys are in residence there, as are a few others who are keen to see you, by the way Sirius was freed by the Wizangamot after Tonks and Kingsley were part of catching Pettigrew. Your Godfather has a few surprises for you, but according to some I shouldn't tell you that, so don't let on you know that to anyone when we get there. That said Ginny knows more than the others do, and can be trusted. There are a lot the others in the house who don't know yet about Sirius new situation. The press are not announcing it all until this evening, so best not say anything to anyone else, until Sirius has had chance to talk to you. Now, we had better get downstairs, before Moody gets really impatient, and we want to get there in time for some food in any case."
Not waiting for an acknowledgement, Remus, Tonks and Kingsley turned and went down to join the older wizard, Harry following, intrigued by what he had just been told, especially about Ginny. He had always felt drawn to her, even from their first meeting at Kings Cross and especially after her first year. Though something he couldn't explain usually put him off, whenever he had chance to spend time with her. He was happy for Sirius and couldn't wait to see him, and find out what had gone one, at last they could get to know each other, he hoped. As soon as they reached him, he and Kingsley turned on the spot and with a pop disappeared. "Right grasp my arm Harry and hold tight."
Harry gladly complied.
Arthur sat at the kitchen table in Grimmauld place reading the Evening Prophet, he had bought his copy on his way home from work in the Atrium, this was the first chance he had, had to read it. He smiled as he read the main story which was spread through several pages. "Good old Sirius, free at last." He muttered genuinely happy for the man, who he had always quite liked.
Unlike his wife, Arthur admired Sirius latest stance regarding the Order, and had tried to convince his wife that the man was well within his rights to restrict the groups use of his house. However, Molly's blind spot where Dumbledores infallibility was concerned ruled her choices. Arthur hoped that now he was free, the reinstated Lord Black would take young Harry under his wing. He believed that a strong, positive male influence such as that which Sirius could provide, would help the boy to build his confidence. He returned his attention to the paper, continuing to digest the series of articles it contained.
His face fell into a frown, as he completed the story, this was not going to sit well with Molly. She was so used to controlling a household, she would not like being in second place. What was worse, he probably had no way of staying out of the crossfire when she, inevitably, clashed with the reinstated lady of the house. This was going to be messy, even messier than her locking horns with Sirius. Molly was so territorial, not just with the house, but her children too, and she included Harry in that brood. He knew that Sirius being Harry's Guardian was going to be a problem for her, but for there to be another woman also in that place jointly, especially this particular woman was going to make it worse. Not only that but, for that same lady to appear on the scene and have more say over the house than her was adding to the recipe for disaster, where Molly was concerned. It would have been bad enough for it to be any other woman than her, but this was going to make things far more complicated and difficult for him. He needed Molly to understand the truth about Sirius wife before they met in the house, it was the only way to minimise the clash when it happened, as it inevitably would. He had barely seen Molly since he had got back from work, she had greeted him on her way elsewhere in the house and told him to help himself to a drink, but that was all so far. Arthur knew that he had to go and find her, and find her quickly.
He rose and walked up the stairs towards the door onto the hall, intending to speak to his wife and have her read the article. He had no idea if Lord and Lady Black were home already, but he suspected not. Molly kept close attention on the routes into the house, he doubted that they could have got into the house past them without notice. There was no doubt in his mind that the eruption from Molly would have continued until he could intervene, had the Blacks returned by now. So, with her lack of any comment he was fairly confident that she had not seen either of the owners of the house today. Arthur reached the hallway and heard the front door open, he paused, he needed time to convince his wife to be calm. If that was the new Lady Black returning home and Molly saw her before she saw the article, there would be trouble that he doubted he would be able to calm easily.
Authors Notes
Many thanks again for the reads, reviews, follows etc so far, your responses are much appreciated. I do respond to those I can through the messaging system on here, but that only works if you sign in to leave the review. I am grateful to those who leave a review anonymously as well, or where I cannot reply personally for whatever reason. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and look forward to reading any comments you leave.
Best wishes
Tom