Chapter 5:

Sirius woke up with a groan, blinking a few times to clear the sleep from his head. His body ached a good bit more than he expected, but he supposed he was also twelve years older and half the weight he should probably be. As he opened his eyes, he found himself looking up at a graying white ceiling. Still groggy, he closed his eyes shut and was ready to return to the warm embrace of sleep once more. Then, reality hit him like the Hogwarts Express.

"Ariana!" He gasped as memories of last night flooded him. Breaking into Malfoy Manor. Finding her alive. Running away. Being chased. He glanced around the room, failing to detect her small frame nearby. This concerned the dog animagus and he shot up into a sitting position, but his shoulder was quick to protest. He let out a sharp hiss as he clutched the wounded appendage.

"You never were a very agreeable patient. You slept in until one o'clock as well." Sirius could practically hear the eye roll in Remus's voice as his friend came over. It appeared that he was lying on a couch in what he could only assume was the living room in... wherever they were. His old friend sat down beside him to inspect the damage, likely not for the first time judging by the bandages around said arm.

"Never had as much practice as you, eh Moony?" Remus elected to ignore the taunt as he focused on the injury by peeling away some of the bandages. It appeared to be the work of a severing charm and Sirius was lucky it didn't cut deeper. Moreover, he was lucky he didn't tear open the stitches from jumping up like that. Merlin, it was a miracle that they weren't dead from the stunt they pulled last night.

It honestly felt like one of the many adventures James and Sirius dove into during the earlier times of the first war. Take a perfectly well thought out plan, ditch it half way through, and run like hell out of whatever situation they had managed to get themselves in. Remus wouldn't have been surprised if he had another gray hair or two from the past twenty four hours.

They had spend all morning and afternoon reviewing with Dobby. While the house elf needed to return to Hogwarts - he was also terrified of Malfoy Manor to be quite frank - he was exceptionally brilliant in mapping out the entire mansion for the two wizards. He was even able to point out useful side doors and the maze of the gardens. There was also the issue of the wards of Malfoy Manor. Show up unannounced and the catterwheeling charm that wrapped around the grounds was sure to go off. It was Sirius who had pointed out that the charm did not detect animals and animagi, a discovery that certainly hadn't set Remus at ease.

The dog animagus elected to get through the enchantments and transform once he was safely inside the Manor, using Dobby's instructions to get down to the cellar to retrieve Ariana. Remus had remained doubtful that Sirius wouldn't try to murder Malfoy in his sleep, to which the escaped convict too happily acknowledged and pointed out that it was one of the many benefits of going. An argument had broken out with Sirius reluctantly agreeing that getting Ariana out of the Malfoy clutches was the first priority. Revenge would have to wait. Of course, the plan had all blown up in Remus's face, but that was the usual when working with marauders.

"I still can't believe you blew your cover so quickly," the werewolf chided, shaking his head in disappointment.

"How was I supposed to know that Narcissa was coming downstairs for water?" Sirius countered, "Not exactly the greatest of family reunions, not that ours ever were."

It had definitely caused a commotion to be sure. Despite not being much of a fighter, Narcissa had a damn good shield charm and decent reflexes. The noise had woken up Lucius which is where Sirius may have lost his temper. Much yelling and many spells had gone off on either side before Sirius was able to evade them for a brief moment. Using whatever time he had left, he managed to break into the cellar and find the reason for his appearance.

His daughter.

"Where is she? Is she hurt?" He asked, still looking about the room. Remus had yet to mention anything about her. Had she made it out alright? What if she had been splinched by the side along apparition?

"Once we left Malfoy Manor, I brought us here. It was my father's house from when I was a boy." the werewolf explained, eyeing the house with a small sense of nostalgia. "I had Dobby transport Buckbeak here as well. He's in the backyard."

"And Ariana?" Sirius was beginning to grow a little impatient now.

"She's here too." Remus answered finally, but he hesitated. His face took on an expression that implied he knew more than his friend and that he didn't quite like the information. "She threw a bit of a fit when we arrived. You see, you were unconscious and it's not like she would remember me from nearly thirteen years ago. She ... well she's holed herself up in the bedroom since we got here. I reckon she's probably quite shocked by the events of last night."

Sirius pondered this information for a moment. He had been so focused on getting her out of the Manor that he hadn't really stopped to consider the explanation to follow. She certainly hadn't remembered Remus, a fact that clearly bothered his friend no matter how hard he tried to hide behind reason. In fact, it was unlikely that she would remember him either and certainly not in the state he was currently in.

"Right," he spoke, only to fill in the unexpected silence that had fallen into the room. "Well, I suppose we should be off by tomorrow at the latest. The ministry is sure to be sending dementors all throughout England and we definitely don't need you being suspected of helping."

Remus nodded. The professor needed to get back to the castle himself. He had been away long enough as it was and had a sneaking suspicion that Snape would be doing something to drag his name through the dirt, what with the escape of Sirius. Not to mention, he still had duties to perform even after the finals. He pulled over a couple bags of supplies for his friend, including his father's old tent, some spare clothes for Sirius to wear, some food and a few spare potions. The latter nodded his thanks.

"Of course," the werewolf's eyes glanced back to the door of the bedroom with a little apprehension, "Just be careful with her, Padfoot. She's not the little baby that you remember and who knows what Mal... what kind of life she's been living for the past decade."

Sirius didn't respond, his attention directed to the bedroom as well. This certainly wasn't going to be an easy endeavor, but he would prevail. He owed Marlene at least that.

"We'll find a way to make it work." He said after a while. Then he turned to his friend with honest eyes. "Thank you Moony, for everything. I'll write you as soon as it's safe to. Watch over Harry for me."

The professor let out one of his rare genuine smiles, letting a small chuckle escape as Sirius pulled him into a bear hug. Who would have thought after all these years he'd still have another Marauder, another friend? The two parted ways, with Remus apparating on the spot.

Now Sirius was never the type to plan things. That much could be determined from last night. The job always fell onto Moony or occasionally Prongs. He was the doer, the action taker and, more often then not, the one who improvised when plans went awry. Break out of Azkaban to find Harry? Not one plan other than protect his godson. Escape from the dementors? Well that was thanks to the children. Even now, his greatest plans were find his daughter and escape the wrath of the dementors.

And yet, he had never pictured just what that would truly look like. As Sirius gazed at the bedroom door that he had subconsciously gotten closer to, it dawned on him that he had not been a father in a very long time. Ariana had also been just over a year old. Marlene had also been with him. She certainly wouldn't have been told the truth of his innocence. What if she didn't want him to be her father?

The thought chilled Sirius to the bone, but he didn't let it linger. He had to keep hope. He had thought that Harry would despise him for not being there for him after the deaths of James and Lily. Of course his godson had attacked him upon first seeing him, believing him to be a traitor to his parents. After everything had been explained however, Harry had surprisingly no hatred for him. Instead, the teenager wanted to live with him. The former prisoner smiled at the very idea.

Perhaps Ariana could find it in herself to forgive him too?

He stared at the door again, his feet refusing to take a step further. Maybe it was because he had believed her to be dead, like his Marlene. He had long since given up on a family, locked away the memories of his time with them. He couldn't afford for the dementors to steal them away. They were too precious. Those memories were now threatening to resurface at the mere prospect of seeing one of his girls, alive. He shook his head at his own hesitation.

Am I a bloody Gryffindor or not? He chided himself, feeling his own self frustration growing. Without another thought, Sirius did what he did best. He acted. He grabbed the door knob and pushed the door open.

Only to find that the room was empty.

The marauder tensed, scouring the room with his eyes. Not on the bed. Not at the desk. The windows were closed and Remus had been confident that she was in the bedroom.

"Ariana?" he called out, trying not to let growing fear inside him eat him alive. He had just gotten her back. He didn't have enough time.

His now frantic mind was interrupted by the tiny sound of shuffling to his right, a sound so quiet that he only detected it with his canine hearing. His eyes lingered on the closet and he slowly reached out to the handle. A small gasp could be heard on the other side as he began to open the door and he immediate felt the door pull itself back to slam shut.

Sirius blink, a bit shocked but also a bit relieved. At least he knew where she was. He pulled on the door, but she pulled back just as hard on the other side. Both stubborn parties continued this a couple more times with no resolve. The dog animagus sighed in frustration.

"Ariana, would you please come out?" He tried, "I'm not here to hurt you. I...I just wanted to make sure you were alright."

Receiving no answer, Sirius frowned again before another idea popped into his head. He dashed off to the kitchen, grabbing a couple muffins from Remus's food stash. He made his way back to the master bedroom.

The dog animagus sat himself down beside the door, legs crossed with his food incentive like a dog waiting to sniff out a fox.

"I have some muffins out here." He commented, lifting on up to inspect for himself. "I figured you must be hungry. You don't have to come out, but you'll need to at least crack the door open."

He waited a couple more moments, hopeful that his luck might change, but he received no such response.

"Please," He tried again, feeling his heart begin to sink a little. He was just about to stand up when the door cracked open a little. Amidst the darkness of the closet, he found his own gray eyes staring skittishly back at him. It was enough to take his breath away. She was really here. His little Ariana. He was quick to grab a muffin and hand it to her, trying not to smile when she accepted it from him.

"I hope you like blueberry." He said. He figured casual conversation was better than silence. "I suspect Moony picked these up from Hogwarts. Never pegged him as a baker, but I wouldn't necessarily put it past him either."

The girl said nothing, simply nibbling on her muffin as she stared back at him through the crack in the door. He wanted so badly to kick the door away and hug her, but he was certain that would not win him any points when it came to her trust. Thus, he remained where he was and picked up a muffin himself. He made a mental note to start prepare an actual full sized meal later on, certain that they could both use it with how skinny they were.

"Who are you?" The marauder would've lied if he said he wasn't stunned by both the sound and her question. Her voice was soft and meek, like it was hesitant to make itself known. It took him a moment to realize how he should answer her question.

"My name is Sirius, Sirius Black." Recognition flashed in the girl's gray eyes, but she looked more cautious than afraid. "I take it you've heard of me then?"

The girl nodded and he sighed. Though he knew it was foolish to assume that she had never heard of his accusations, hope was a funny thing. It could persist even in the most unlikely of circumstances.

"It's a very long story, but I hope you can understand that the man people accuse me of being is not at all the man I am." He stated, trying to keep his voice calm and gentle with her. He received another cautious nod. A small silence filled the air between the two, but it seemed that both parties were simply lost in their own thoughts. Sirius was hesitant about pushing her too quickly to open up while Ariana was still unsure on her trust on her newfound guardian.

They stayed like that for a little longer, occasionally munching on a muffin or two. It wasn't an uncomfortable silence by any means and Sirius was grateful to the fact that she hadn't run out of the house screaming upon learning his name. Of course he longed for her to jump into his arms and accept him as her father once more, but Remus's nagging words about patience lingered in the back of his mind.

"Why did you save me?" Again, he was caught off guard as it was only the second time she had spoken to him. Again, he was forced to ponder how to answer the question. How much truth at once? He wasn't even positive if she knew she was his daughter. He settled for the most basic, yet genuine of them all as he gazed out to the nearby window.

"Because nobody deserves to live under the same roof as Malfoy." He tried not to sneer the name too harshly, "Much less the bloody cellar. You're worth more than that."

The creak of the door opening caught his ears and he turned to see Ariana creep out from her hiding place. It was the first time he had seen her properly in daylight. Dark brown hair fell beyond her shoulders, nearly as tangled and disheveled as his. She was dreadfully skinny with her pale cheekbones a little too sharp for his liking. It was shocking how much of her looks came from him, now that he thought about it. It took him a moment to search for Marlene in her face, but he found the resemblance in her long lashes and the subtle waves in her hair.

Then, she looked up at him with her big grays eyes and offered him a small shy smile.