First things first.
I DON'T OWN HARRY POTTER!
ALL RIGHTS BELONGS TO JK ROWLING!
Just something short and fluffy, which my real life best friend requested from me a few weeks ago.
Since I had some time to write this week and since I had to take my mind off of real life, I decided now was the best time to write it down.
Don't expect too much, for I wrote the whole thing down within a day or so and today I translated it.
It's meant as a one-shot, but knowing myself I would always add another chapter to this one day.
But since I am already working on a HP longfic, I let it stay here as a one-shot for NOW ;).
Warnings: Mention of child abuse! (non-sexual!) tickling!
I hope you like it and again sorry for grammer/spelling mistakes; english isn't my first language.
I had to translate this from german into english and I hope it isn't too bad.
And I would appreciate feedback in the form of a comment very much.
Please don't be shy and share your thoughts with me. I won't bite you.
Don't let the Muggles get you down
Harry was seething with rage when he threw open the door to his room and slammed it shut loudly afterwards. He flung himself on his sparse bed, pressed his face into the pillow and screamed his anger into the rough fabric.
The start of the summer vacation was never a happy event for Harry Potter, since he had to spend almost three months with his uncle, his aunt and his cousin and all three of them hated him.
Why did they hate him?
Because he was a wizard and therefore a freak in their eyes.
Harry had now successfully completed his third year at Hogwarts and after all the adventures of the past year he should have looked forward to many weeks of rest before the next term starts, but he couldn't do that in a house like this. As soon as they had picked him up from the train station, it had started: one bad word followed the next, because insults were on the agenda in the Dursley's house. And Harry was sick of it. SO sick!
It was just the first week of summer vacation and he was almost bursting with anger!
He would have loved to have taken his wand and hexed his relatives into the next millennium so that he could finally have some peace from them!
But unfortunately he also knew that he had no permission to do magic outside of school. Fortunately, the Dursleys didn't know about that. Before his uncle could have done anything to him earlier, Harry had drawn his wand and that was all it took to keep Uncle Vernon at bay. Petunia and Dudley also left him alone as far as possible. But his aunt still treated him like a house-elf.
But this year, Harry knew, a lot would change in this house.
It was the year in which he had met Sirius Black and even if he had thought at first that he had been the murderer of his parents, in the end everything was cleared up and Harry had won a godfather. Unfortunately, Sirius had to go into hiding until his guilt was proven and that was why they couldn't see each other.
But at least he always had something up his sleeve when the threats with the wand no longer helped against his uncle. Harry had told his relatives (rather threatened them) that he would set his godfather, who was a wanted mass murderer, on them if they dared to hurt him one more time, which had happened far too often in the past.
Since this threat, the Dursleys avoided him as much as possible, as they didn't dare to do anything to him and it was the first time in his life that Harry had something like his peace in this house.
Well, more or less.
Petunia still demanded that he took care of the food, kept the house clean, looked after the garden, do the laundry...
Harry wrinkled his nose just thinking about all of this and almost wished he would spend his summer vacation with Snape more than with the Dursleys.
Better to end up as a potion ingredient than to be treated like a house-elf and constantly be humiliated and insulted. And at least Snape wouldn't beat him…
He wasn't even able to do his homework here because the Dursleys had locked his school supplies in the cupboard under the stairs.
No matter how he twisted it, it was just hopeless and Harry was already preparing for another terrible summer.
He didn't know that this year everything would be different for him...
"Boy! Are you deaf?! The doorbell just rang! Move your butt and open the door!"
Harry growled softly to himself as Vernon's angry voice cut through the air like a sword and before he got into trouble, he got up and shuffled down the stairs.
"Hurry up!"
"Yes, Uncle Vernon..." Harry growled from behind clenched teeth and his gaze darkened when he remembered that Uncle Vernon had invited his cruel sister Marge this summer. It could only be her. His holidays just got better and better. He almost wished to meet a Basilisk on the doorstep or even Voldemort himself...
He opened the door listlessly...and raised an eyebrow questioningly when he saw no human standing on the doorstep, but a big black dog looking at him and wagging its tail.
Harry raised his eyebrows, looked around and looked for the dog's owner, but no one was there. When he looked at the dog again, he saw it in the animal's eyes, which twinkled with amusement and then, finally, the penny dropped and a big grin appeared on Harry's face.
Before he even got the chance to react to the angry voice of his uncle, who shouted over to him from the living room why he was taking so long and what the hell he was doing there at the door, the dog had already pounced on him and pushed him to the ground, where he started licking his face.
Startled by Harry's sudden loud laughter, it was not long before Uncle Vernon appeared on the scene. His face turned an unnatural color when he saw Harry and the dog and how he was half on top of him, licking the boy's face.
"What the hell is this lice-ridden mutt doing in my house?" Uncle Vernon thundered and Harry and the dog were so frightened by that, that they both stopped moving and could only look at him in shock.
"I hope you have a good explanation for this, boy! Otherwise I will make sure that you will be sorry!"
Harry shuddered at these words, because he knew what his uncle meant by that...
A deep growl pulled him out of his stupor and the dog, still standing on his chest, pulled back its lips and presented its long fangs to Uncle Vernon. His eyes literally glowed with hatred, the dark fur on his neck rose and his strong muscles tensed as he got ready for a jump.
Even Vernon seemed to notice that something was very wrong with this dog and that he was anything but normal. He slowly backed away from him, still glaring at Harry angrily, but he didn't seem to dare to do anything or even get near him while this dog was there.
Harry's lips curled up in a small grin when he noticed that his uncle was no longer a threat for him and he slowly stood up, one hand buried in the dog's black fur. But he only held him back half-heartedly and would let go of him any second if his uncle even dared to come closer and raise his hand against him.
"May I introduce you to my godfather?" he grinned and gleefully noticed how Vernon's face color changed from red to purple.
"Your godfather? This mutt? Are you serious?"
The young wizard's gaze changed and grew dark.
"I'm very serious and if you don't want me to let go of this "mutt" and he causes a massacre here, you better go now and leave me alone with him!"
Harry was shocked himself at the dark words that gushed out of his mouth, but he didn't care. He was just happy that Sirius was here and he wasn't going to let anyone spoil this moment. Especially not his hated uncle!
Vernon looked like he was going to explode any second, but as soon as his gaze fixed on the still growling dog, he reconsidered it three times. In the end he gave in and grumbled and still with a crimson head he disappeared into the living room. With Petunia and Dudley absent, he dared not even try to do anything about it.
Much to Harry's delight, because he grinned broadly again and let go of the dog's fur when he had calmed down.
"Let's go upstairs and then you can tell me what you're doing here."
A tail wag followed in response and the dog followed him up the stairs and then into his small, sparse room.
When the door closed behind them, the big dog immediately threw himself back on Harry, pushed him onto his bed and licked his face again.
"Hey! S-Sirius! Stop it! You're tickling me!" Harry complained giggling, as he tried to push the dog away from him.
He stopped briefly, looked down at the boy, who returned his gaze and his eyes began to twinkle.
"No, no, no, Sirius! Don't do it! Not here!"
The dog wagged its tail and it seemed like he was grinning at him teasingly. Harry tried to push him away, but he couldn't and a few seconds later his childlike laughter filled the small room again when the dog started another tickling attack and playfully licked his neck and ears and didn't even give him the slightest chance to cover his mouth with his hand, because Harry tried to muffle his laughter because he didn't want his uncle to stand in front of the door and shout at him for being too noisy.
If there was one thing the Dursleys hated more than having a wizard in the house, it was having a happy wizard in the house...
Fortunately, after a few moments, Sirius showed mercy and stopped. Still with that mischievous twinkle in his eyes, he looked at his godson and how he sat up, still giggling softly, and ran his fingers through his now messy hair. He glowered at his godfather playfully, which only made him grin and he jumped off the bed and only one moment later, Sirius Black was standing in front of Harry's bed as a human and looked at him with a smile and spread his arms invitingly.
It didn't take a word to show him how happy he was that he was here, because Harry jumped off the bed and straight into Sirius' open arms and hugged him tightly.
"Woa, take it easy, Harry. Not so stormy, " said the older wizard, laughing, as he put his arms around his godson and hugged him back.
Harry suppressed a sobbing noise and quickly wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes before lifting his head and looking at Sirius. The Animagus looked so much better than he did when they last met. Gone were the tattered old clothes from Azkaban. Instead, he wore a white dress shirt with a black vest over it and the whole thing was rounded off by a dark velvet jacket. Black pants and shoes made the whole thing perfect. His shoulder-length hair hung slightly straggly on his face and gave him a sly expression and he had elegantly trimmed his beard. He looked so much better and Harry was just overjoyed to see him again and to have him here with him. Immediately the boy pressed his face back into his chest and Sirius laughed softly as the boy almost pushed the air out of his lungs.
"I'm so glad you're here..." he mumbled quietly and happily and he would have loved to never let go of his godfather, but he knew that they couldn't stand there like that forever and Harry reluctantly let go of him after a few more moments and sat back on his bed.
"But what are you doing here, Sirius?"
"Oh, I was around and thought I'd see how my godson is doing. I've heard various rumors about these muggles and how they treat you. So I thought I'll take a look at this myself."
Half of it was a lie, but Harry was careful not to say anything about it. Instead, he raised an eyebrow in question.
"I thought nobody should see you?"
Sirius grinned slightly as he sat down on the bed with Harry.
"Let's put it this way: I had a very...well, let's say interesting conversation with your headmaster."
"Dumbledore?"
"Exactly that one. I was able to clear up the matter from last school year with him. However, so far only the staff at Hogwarts knows that I am innocent and that Pettigrew is still alive and on the run. I told him everything that happened."
"How did he react?"
"Oh, Dumbledore wasn't pleased that I put you all in danger. That was never my intention either. But when I heard that Pettigrew was still alive and at Hogwarts, I didn't care about anything else. At that moment I was only thinking of myself. Harry, I'm terribly sorry for the dangers I put you and your friends in. You could have died that night when Lupin and the Dementors attacked us."
"But I'm still alive and so are you and that's what matters. But tell me what did Dumbledore do? Did he clean your name?"
"I'm afraid not even Dumbledore can do that. But he'll try and until that happens I have to move in the shadows and not be seen by any wizard or muggle, you see? Fortunately, hardly anyone knows that I am an Animagus and that's why I was able to visit you here without anyone knowing anything about it. But enough about me. How are you? Despite everything, do you have a nice summer vacation?"
Almost immediately Harry's gaze darkened and he quickly turned his face away from Sirius, not wanting him to see the pain in his gaze.
"It's okay I guess...oh, what am I saying? I am not doing well! The Dursleys treat me like dirt. As always. You just witnessed this a few minutes ago."
Sirius' eyes darkened as well and he put a finger under Harry's chin and gently turned his head back to look into his face.
"So the rumors I heard are true. Do they hit you? "
Harry gulped, considering telling Sirius a lie, but decided against it in the end.
"Sometimes. If I don't do what they say or when I do "strange" things. They hate magic and they let me know that every day."
"That's terrible! I've also heard rumors that they locked you up in the cupboard under the stairs. Is that also true?"
The boy just nodded his head sadly and turned his face away from him again, as he was embarrassed to talk about his childhood, which he had never actually had. He didn't know what it felt like to have a father and mother who loved him. He'd never had experienced love from the Dursleys and never would. Only when he came to Hogwarts did he learn what it felt like when people cared about his well-being and in Sirius Black he had found something like a father figure, although they hadn't known each other for long. But he felt it deep in his heart that there was a special connection between them that he definitely didn't want to lose.
"Those damn muggles!" Sirius hissed and Harry startled out of his daydream and looked at him in shock. The sheer hatred was to be seen on Sirius' face!
"Who do they think they are?! Tormenting an innocent child! I would love to go downstairs and show this...this walrus what an angry wizard is capable of!"
A small smile crept onto Harry's face and he unconsciously leaned against Sirius and closed his eyes as his godfather gently stroked his hair.
"In the end, you end up in Azkaban again and are really a murderer. You won't do any of us a favor with this. I can get along with them. Somehow…"
"You should tell someone anyway. Does Dumbledore know about this?"
The boy shook his head.
"No and I don't want him to know either."
"But why not? Harry, child abuse is a serious problem. You should definitely tell someone."
"It's okay. I can handle that."
His state showed the older wizard that he couldn't handle it, but he kept quiet. For Harry this topic seemed to be over anyways and Sirius gave up for now, as he could see how uncomfortable it was for his godson to talk about it. But he would certainly not let this subject rest. If Harry was doing badly here then Dumbledore had to know about it.
"Well, how good that you don't have to deal with it this summer."
Harry opened his eyes and looked up questioningly at Sirius, who was grinning down at him.
"What do you mean by that?"
The Animagus' eyes sparkled.
"I mean that the conversation with Dumbledore was not only about me, but also about you and I was able to persuade Dumbledore that you can spend the summer vacation with me. Of course with the necessary safety precautions so that nobody can find you. How does that sound to your ears?"
Harry was speechless. He didn't know what to say about it, couldn't believe what his ears were hearing and then, when the realization hit him, he threw himself into Sirius' arms so much that Sirius fell back laughing.
"I can see: it's good news for you, isn't it?"
Harry slid off Sirius and sat up grinning, as he beamed at him with joy.
"Are you serious? The whole summer?"
"The whole summer."
"And I don't have to go back to the Dursleys?"
"No."
"It's too good to be true...but...what's the catch?"
"Catch? There is none. Well, there are rules that you should stick to, but that shouldn't be a problem, right?"
"What if I should break one of them?"
Harry looked at him uncertainly and Sirius couldn't bear the slight hint of fear that he could see in the boy's green eyes and that bore witness to years of abuse from these bloody muggles.
"Well, the rules are actually very simple. There are three rules that you should better stick to. Rule number one: you always ask my permission when you want to leave the house. This is for your own safety. If you break this rule, you are grounded. In the old-school-muggle-style. The second rule: No pranks and if you still dare to play one on me... "
Sirius grinned broadly at him and the mischief began to twinkle in his eyes.
"Well, let's put it this way: Better not mess with the prank master himself. You would only regret that."
Harry grinned slightly as well and the fear disappeared from his eyes little by little.
"And what is the last rule?"
The twinkle in Sirius 'eyes grew stronger.
"Rule number three is also the most important rule: Better not be cheeky with me."
Harry swallowed nervously and the excited twinkle gave way to fear in his eyes again. The Dursleys also had this rule and if he dared to break it, he quickly found himself lying over Uncle Vernon's knees and having a very sore bum for the rest of the day...
"W-what if I should break this rule?" he asked with a slightly trembling voice and Sirius was almost heartbroken when he saw the fearful look on his godson's face again. Those damn muggles were going to pay for whatever they did to that boy!
He swallowed his anger and instead focused on his godson and grinned broadly at him.
"Well, If you break this rule, I'll do...THAT!"
His hands flew forward and Harry immediately fell back on the bed, squeaking as Sirius started tickling him again. Grinning, he leaned over his giggling godson and enjoyed the sight of a happy child. Small laugh lines had formed around Harry's tightly closed eyes and his mouth was twisted into a big grin. But still he tried not to laugh too loud. Still afraid this walrus of an uncle would come upstairs and then...well, what would he do then? Hitting a child just because said child enjoyed life?
Sirius gritted his teeth as he just imagined this and quickly concentrated on his godson again, grinning teasingly at him when Harry opened his eyes and looked at him.
"Not only do you look like James, you seem to be just as ticklish as him. Good, very good. So we can show this fat muggle down there what it's like to have a very happy child in this house," he teased the young wizard, who blushed at the words and tried to hide his face in his pillow with a giggle. At the same time he grabbed Sirius' hands and pushed them away from his body. But they kept coming back, attacking his sides, his belly, his ribs and trying to worm under his arms, which made Harry squeak loudly again and the boy bit his lower lip to hold back his loud laughter that threaten to come out of his throat at any second.
"You know what, little pup? I just came up with a fourth rule for you and this is now the most important of all."
He stopped the tickling briefly, but only so that Harry could look at him questioningly and take a short break.
"Rule number four: In my house you will have fun and laugh; otherwise there will be more of this!"
Before Harry could ask what he meant by "this", Sirius grabbed his wrists, pressed his hands next to his head on the old mattress and lowered his head.
Harry didn't quite understand what his godfather was up to until his lips pressed against the small patch of bare skin that peeked out from under his t-shirt. At the moment, when his lips and beard met his skin, he squealed loudly and when Sirius blew as hard as he could on his belly, Harry couldn't hold back his loud laughter anymore and at that moment he didn't care if Vernon heard him or not, because Sirius didn't stop, kept blowing one ticklish raspberry after raspberry until Harry had tears of laughter in his eyes.
But not once did he beg his godfather to stop. No. He just lay there, laughing and squeaking, twisting back and forth like a worm and letting it happen.
Briefly the older wizard stopped to take a deep breath himself and he looked down at his still laughing godson, who apparently didn't realize that the tickle attack had stopped. At least for the moment.
Sirius' broad grin turned into a gentle smile as he looked at the boy.
Harry looked so carefree and happy at that moment, but at the same time Sirius was almost heartbroken to think that the boy had probably never experienced such playful moments outside of Hogwarts and certainly not with a father figure in his life. There was certainly a lot to catch up on and Sirius grinned at the thought in full anticipation.
Oh yes, he would love to make himself available for this task and give Harry back what he had lost:
His childhood.
