Author's Note:

I love writing this story and I'm having fun with it. Also, I'm trying to stay a minimum of two to three chapters ahead (usually more than five) of what I'm posting so that you guys are at least getting something — but I can't make any guarantees.

Reviews and Comments: To E-Dett: Althea is definitely interested, but she's stubborn as Sirius will see! I'm excited for Harry to get the puppy as well! To Ugly-Duckling123: Sirius ran into Kreacher and his mother's portrait. His Aunt Druella was at his trial. To coloredwords: Having such a despicable family is just awful. I'm so glad James introduced him to his parents so they could basically adopt and love him. Harry will definitely love the puppy (what boy wouldn't?). To DJDanger1: Thank you! The memories give me a chance to write some of my Marauder story idea without actually writing the Marauder story. I had some illusions of writing a massive Marauder/Jily story but I realized I really just want to do snippets. To The Go1den Snitch: You'll get the next chapters soon! Promise! To naruto: Thank you! Harry will get rid of his malnourishment soon, it takes time. No, I will not get rid of his scars. They are part of him and he will always have a few that won't fully disappear. Nor will I fix his eyesight. I love Harry wearing glasses (it's sexy) and I will not change that. To Caincrux: I'm sorry you feel the tag and summary is misleading… not really sure what you expected to be honest. To Claire Fraser: Thank you for thinking it's cute to introduce Althea's family first. Will Harry meet Althea's family? Well, that's jumping the gun a little lol. Especially since Sirius hasn't even convinced her to go on a date with him yet! No, Harry and Sirius will not be moving into Grimmauld Place. Thank you!

Thank you very much for reading and please, please review!

Your reviews give me life! They give me inspiration! And they make me want to keep writing for more than just myself! Thank you!

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN:

The One With the Puppy

The month of July kept Sirius and Remus busy trying to figure out how they wanted to celebrate Harry's sixth birthday. Sirius knew that he wanted to do something amazing. He was positive that Harry had never even had a birthday party before let alone had anyone celebrate his birthday. At least since Lily and James had thrown him his big first birthday bash which he obviously didn't remember. As the days got closer, Harry never even mentioned that he had a special day coming up, let alone had he asked for anything at all, which only confirmed Sirius' suspicions.

Sirius wanted to take him somewhere fun for the day and to spoil him rotten. Not to mention give him the puppy that he had picked out of Aphrodite's litter, a dark reddish golden retriever with soft brown eyes. He would be going to get the puppy while Remus took Harry back to his cottage with him so that Andromeda and Nymphadora could sneak into the house and decorate.

But they still had a few details to work out.

Sirius was considering those details as he leaned against his motorbike in tight black jeans, a white muscle shirt and his black leather jacket outside of St Mungo's with a double scoop of Seven Veils Gelato (which he learned is actually called Setteveli) in a cup in his hand just as Healer Althea Castellanos stepped outside for her lunch break.

He winked at her, grinning as he stepped into her path. "Castellanos."

Castellanos looked at him in surprise. "Black."

"Thought you might be looking for something sweet," he said as he handed her the gelato.

She made to protest, but then she sniffed suspiciously. "Is that Setteveli?"

"The chocolate gelato of your dreams, why yes it is," he stated as if genuinely surprised that he happened to be holding it.

She accepted the cup with a smile. "This is my favourite flavour."

Sirius grinned widely. "Apollo might have mentioned it."

Her eyebrow raised slightly as she licked the spoon. "When I said that I would introduce you to Apollo to help you pick out a puppy from the litter, I didn't mean for you to make friends with him."

Sirius shrugged. "We have a bit in common, not to mention a love of a good engine. He told me that you were stubborn."

She scooped another bite of gelato into her mouth and sighed happily as she swallowed. "I am. I'm also not interested, did he mention that to you as well?"

Sirius stepped closer to her, his hand gently brushing a tendril of her hair away from her face and her breath hitched causing him to smile slowly. "I'm not a healer, love, but the breathlessness, the increase in your pulse, and the way your eyes just brightened there. Babe, you are very much attracted to me."

"Attraction and interest are two very different things," she insisted, stepping away from him and taking a seat on a nearby bench.

"True," he said, moving to sit next to her. "But attraction is also the first sign of interest."

Castellanos merely stared at him. "Has anyone ever told you that you are a very annoying human being?"

"It's been mentioned once or twice," he said with a grin. "Usually they just go on about what a great kisser I am."

She snorted. "I rather doubt that."

Sirius grinned. "Guess I'll have to prove it to you." He leaned in and stopped half an inch from her slightly parted lips, letting his slow smile return. "Someone is interested to see if I'm right."

Castellanos jerked herself away from him, standing up. "I'm not actually. And I'm a very busy woman."

Sirius grinned widely at her. "Oh, I know. But I know you're off on Sunday and I thought maybe you'd like to come by for Harry's sixth birthday party?"

Castellanos looked at him in surprise. "You're inviting me over for your godson's birthday?"

"Well, yeah. It's a small gathering as Harry doesn't know very many people, but I thought as many people as he does know would be a good idea. So, what do you say, Castellanos? Are you woman enough to come to a kid's birthday party?"

She merely stared at him. He could see her weighing the options and when her eyes stubbornly went blank, he sighed. "Thanks for the gelato, Black. I'm afraid that I have plans on Sunday, but please tell Harry that I wish him a happy birthday."

Sirius ran his hand through his hair, smirking at her. "Scared to be alone with me, Castellanos? Worried I might actually be the best snog you'll ever have?"

"As I said, Black, I'm not interested," she insisted, her eyes flashing in annoyance. "I'm a very busy woman and I hardly have time to get into a relationship with a man who is single-handedly raising a child, who is also a patient of mine."

He merely licked his lips. "All right, babe, if you insist we can just have a few great shags."

Her mouth dropped open. "A few great shags?"

"Well, calm down now, love. I'm an excellent lover. One time just wouldn't do it for you. You'd be putty in my hands and you know it."

Castellanos merely shook her head and made to turn and go back to the hospital, smiling in amusement. Sirius took her hand and when she made no move to protest, he spun her around. She stared at him and he pulled her up against his body. When she still made no move to protest this, he swooped down and watched as her lips gently parted for his. He kissed them so softly that it was barely a whisper.

"Just wanted to give you something to think about, Castellanos."

He let go of her hand and was only a little surprised when her hands immediately fisted in his hair and she pulled his mouth down to hers. The kiss was hard and fantastic. He could taste the chocolate gelato on her sweet lips and when his tongue met hers, she made a delicious whimpering noise that made him smile.

When he pulled away, still tasting her on his lips, he smiled. "Castellanos, I'm impressed."

She merely shrugged. "If you're going to snog someone, Black, make it worth their while next time."

Then she headed back into St Mungo's and left Sirius grinning after her.

She was a little stubborn, he admitted, but he was hard-headed himself. And she was a pretty damn good kisser, he thought, grinning widely. He climbed onto his bike, whistling. She had definitely given him something else to think about.

He hoped that she thought about him for the rest of the day. He had a feeling he would definitely be thinking about that kiss. And her.

~ ASC ~

When he got back to the house, Remus and Harry were just finishing up their lesson for the day. Sirius had picked up Chinese food while he was in London and he carefully placed the takeaway on the kitchen table, moving to find plates as Harry hurried upstairs to wash up for dinner.

"Are you staying for food, Moony?"

Remus nodded, smiling at his friend. "If you wouldn't mind. That smells amazing."

Sirius grinned. "Right? I was flirting with Castellanos and saw the restaurant on my way back. I invited her over for the party."

Remus' eyebrow rose in surprise. "Is she coming?"

"Nah. She's got plans — or so she says."

"Do you even know what the word no means, Padfoot?"

Sirius grinned widely. "Sure, I do. It means try again later."

Remus laughed and helped his friend open up all of the containers of food. "You are a terrible influence. No means no, Padfoot. Leave her alone."

Sirius simply shrugged. "I will, when she actually tells me the word. The thing is, she's interested. We kissed."

Remus stared at his friend for a moment and then nodded. "Fair point."

"You're still taking Harry on Sunday morning?"

"Yes, Padfoot; don't worry."

Sirius shrugged, grinning widely. "Can't help it. I know it's only Friday, but I'm excited. I told Apollo that I'd be there by ten thirty to pick up the puppy. I bought all of the stuff for the dog today. I got him a collar, some toys, a dog bed, dog food, his own dishes. He should be set. Plus I got that toy broomstick I bought before I even brought Harry home. I have that wrapped too along with his other gifts. I know that he's going to be spoiled, but I can't help it! I don't want him to miss out on anymore than he already has."

Remus smiled at his friend. "I agree with you and if I had the money like you do, I'd be spoiling him too. I already bought him more than I had planned on as it is."

"He hasn't even mentioned it to me once that it's his birthday. I wonder if he even knows?"

"He knows," Remus said with a grimace. l "He let something slip, I think by accident - the other day when we were reading Alice in Wonderland. He said something about how Dudley had gotten invited to his friend's birthday and that he had been surprised because he didn't know that everyone had their own birthday. He had thought it was something unique to his cousin Dudley. Petunia told him that he was stupid and that everyone had a birthday. She told him when his was and then when his fifth birthday came around a few months later, they completely ignored it."

"Fucking tossers," Sirius muttered under his breath, his grey eyes darkening. "I want Harry to know how special his birthday is."

"He will. Andromeda's making the cake, right?" Remus confirmed.

Sirius nodded. "She is. It's going to be great." He looked up as they heard Harry coming back down the stairs. "Let's eat."

~ ASC ~

Remus took Harry to his cottage on Sunday morning under the pretence of baking biscuits. But he had found a book in his room when he had gotten home the night before, one his mother had given him, and he had wanted to share it. He showed Harry the warm leather cover of the first edition copy of Oliver Twist that his mother had given him for his sixteenth birthday. It was still one of his favourite books mostly because of the wonderful memories that he held in regards to reading it and having it read to him by his mother over the years.

Harry eagerly looked at it and he asked Remus to sit outside and read it to him. He still loved nothing more than stories and it pleased Remus that he enjoyed spending so much time with him. They were sitting under a big tree at the edge of the forest, Harry resting against Remus' arm as Remus read aloud to him.

The reading was interrupted when a beautiful silvery blue dog jumped towards them and Harry's eyes widened in wonder.

"It's so pretty, Uncle Moony! Look!" he exclaimed, standing up and pointing at the dog in amazement.

Remus smiled and closed the book, climbing to his feet. "It is, isn't it? That's a Patronus, Harry."

"What's that?"

"A spell," Remus informed him with a smile. "A very powerful charm. Each Patronus is unique to the wizard or witch who casts it. Patronuses can send messages to people; they amplify happiness, they can drive away the darkness, and they are a symbol of who you are — inside your soul. That dog belongs to Uncle Sirius."

"It does?"

"Doesn't it look like Uncle Padfoot?" Remus asked as the dog Patronus jumped around them.

Harry grinned, his eyes flashing in recognition. "It does! It is Uncle Padfoot!"

Remus smiled and held his hand out to Harry. "That's our cue to take you home, little Prongs."

"I can't stay with you all day," he whined as his bottom lip moved out into a tiny pout. "You said that we were going to bake biscuits!"

Remus smiled and ruffled Harry's hair, tugging the boy close for a hug. "We got caught up in the story and ran out of time. But I promise you that the next time you come over, we'll bake tons of biscuits. I'll even let you lick the batter."

Harry grinned widely. "Deal."

~ ASC ~

Sirius was practically bouncing in excitement. He had locked the new puppy up in the sunroom with a dish of water and some food, putting a silencing charm on the door so that Harry wouldn't hear the dog barking. His eyes had fallen on the chocolate cake with rainbow frosting that Andromeda had baked and brought over. In loopy red writing it said: Happy 6th Birthday, Harry!

He grinned widely at Ted when he came into the living room. "Do you think he'll like it?"

Ted smiled sympathetically, patting Sirius on the shoulder. He remembered being just as excited for his own daughter's first few birthdays. Sometimes it was harder on the parent, he thought. "Can't see why he wouldn't, Sirius. The place looks great."

Sirius grinned up at the decorations. His thirteen-year-old-cousin, Nymphadora, had helped him decorate, and the living room and kitchen were covered in red and gold balloons. Sirius figured that he might as well keep the Gryffindor spirit up for the party.

Nymphadora was sitting in the big armchair in the living room, her feet crossed at the ankles as she blew a giant pink bubble from her mouth, popping the gum loudly with satisfaction. Andromeda had let her pierce the top of her ear, he noticed. She had three earrings in each lobe and two hoops at the top of each ear. Her brown hair was to her waist and streaked with bright pink. She had it in a long braid down her left shoulder.

Sirius moved to sit on the edge of her seat. "Have I told you how great the place looks, Nymphadora?"

Nymphadora rolled her eyes. "Please don't call me by that atrocious name."

Sirius smirked. "Atrocious? Why Nymphadora, it is a long and beautiful name! Nymphadora Andromeda Mary-Ellen Tonks."

"My friends just call me Tonks. I'm trying to convince Mum to do so as well."

"Bit confusing though when there are two other Tonkses in the room," Sirius told her with a smile. "Let's stick with Dora for family occasions, okay? I promise that when your Mum isn't around, I'll call you by your surname."

Tonks grinned sheepishly. "Deal. By the way, Sirius, how old were you when you got your first tat?" she asked, standing up and grabbing his arm, turning it to check out the sleeve that was the full moon with he and his friends in their animal forms running below it. "They're all so gorgeous! I'd love to maybe get one some day. How many do you have?"

"I was sixteen," he told her, smirking. "Which is how old you have to be to get one without a guardian's permission, so don't hold your breath there, princess."

Tonks rolled her eyes. "I don't mean right now. Besides, I can give myself a tattoo whenever I want." She scrunched up her nose in concentration and on the entire left side of her face blue vines began to form, blooming into flowers as the tattoo continued down her neck. "See? But it's not the same. They don't have the same authenticity."

Sirius grinned. "Nice. I'm not big on face tats. I think they're tacky. If you're going to get a tattoo it should mean something to you; not just to get one to say that you have a tattoo, you know? Remember that, Tonks, my advice to you. And for the record, I have twelve tattoos. I'm thinking of getting another one."

Tonks' eyes widened. "That's brilliant! What do you want number thirteen to be?"

Sirius smiled at her for a moment. "Something to symbolize my life over the last few years, I think. But I haven't really decided yet."

The fireplace came to life and Sirius jumped to his feet, his grin so wide that it could crack his face. "Excellent!" Then his smile faded when McGonagall stepped out. "Oh, hi, Minnie."

"Don't look so disappointed, Sirius, I'll feel unwanted," she said, dusting herself off.

Sirius hugged her, kissing her cheek. "No, sorry, I'm just excited for Harry to get here." He took the gift from her with a smile and placed it on the coffee table. "I think you're the last to arrive."

Tonks smiled at McGonagall. "Hi, Professor, fancy seeing you here."

McGonagall nodded. "Miss Tonks."

Ted and Andromeda stepped out of the kitchen, both snacking on grapes. "Has Remus arrived yet?"

"No," Sirius said gloomily, plopping himself back down on the arm of the chair next to Tonks.

Andromeda laughed, rubbing her hands up Sirius' arm and kissing his cheek. "You'd think it was your birthday or something."

The fireplace lit up again and Sirius beamed as Remus stepped out, holding Harry in his arms. Harry looked around the living room as Remus put him down, his eyes drifting to all of the people before he simply ran to Sirius, his arms outstretched to be scooped up. Sirius picked him up, kissing his cheek, his rough stubble making him smile as it brushed his skin.

"Why are all these people here?" Harry whispered, his eyes wide.

"For you, Harry," Sirius said with a smile. "Happy Birthday!"

Harry's forehead wrinkled in confusion. "But it's not my birthday for three more days?"

Sirius kissed his cheek again. "This is your birthday party and we decided to do it a few days earlier! We have guests and food and birthday cake and presents." He pointed to the table towering with gifts. "Happy Birthday, Prongslet."

Harry's eyes widened in amazement as they slowly took in the room, the decorations, the people and then the presents. "For me?"

Sirius placed him back on his feet, his hand on his shoulder in reassurance. "All for you, Prongslet."

Tonks laughed, coming over to kneel down in front of him and tickling his stomach. "No one else is turning six years old, Harry!"

Harry, who had only met her two weeks ago when she had come to visit and play with him — had instantly fallen in love with her charm. She was always tripping over things and changing parts of her appearance into a pig or a rabbit or making her hair funny colours. He threw his arms around her neck, giggling as she tickled him.

"I'm gonna be six!"

"You sure are," Sirius said with a grin. "And we have quite a day planned for you, Prongslet!"

Tonks picked him up, carrying him over to the table full of gifts. "And look, everyone brought you a gift."

Harry's eyes widened again. "No one's ever given me a gift before."

Sirius' eyes darkened slightly, but he pushed his emotions back. He had known that already so hearing his godson say the words shouldn't bother him as much as they did. He watched Tonks lead Harry around the room to show him all of the decorations and the food.

Harry was grinning widely as he spoke to McGonagall, who handed him some of the cheese and crackers from the table.

"Is he happy? He looks happy," Sirius asked Remus who had come over to stand with him.

"He looks very happy, Sirius," Remus told him with a smile. "I think you did well here."

"I didn't want to invite too many people, I mean, I didn't want to overwhelm him, you know?"

Remus nodded. He agreed with Sirius' reasoning. Ted, Andromeda, Nymphadora, and McGonagall were more than enough. Sirius was right, it was better to keep it small with all of the people that Harry had already met and was comfortable enough with.

Since Nymphadora had finished her term at school, she had been stopping by once or twice a week to play with Harry. Harry always smiled when he saw her. She was always laughing and playing games. She had taught him how to play football, tripping over the ball in the process and making Harry laugh as she had landed flat on her face. Remus had run over to make sure that she was all right and she had blushed furiously, insisting that she was fine. He hadn't wanted to embarrass her, but he had been worried by how hard she had landed on the ground.

The next time that she had come over, she had brought chocolate brownies that Andromeda had made and she took Harry into the kitchen to show him how to make chocolate icing and together they had covered the brownies in the sweet icing, Harry grinning widely as Nymphadora had let him lick the spoon.

Harry loved it when she stopped by, his attention immediately leaving Remus' studies and going to the fun that he was going to have with Tonks as she affectionately insisted Harry call her. He was quite taken with her and he loved when she came over to play with him.

McGonagall had been by twice and once Harry had broken the ice about the litter box, she had laughed herself silly and entertained Harry by changing into her cat Animagus and letting him pet her, which she insisted was a one time thing - and only because he had asked so nicely. Remus thought that it was a miracle that Harry hadn't accidentally revealed that Sirius could turn into a dog at this point, but he often had a sneaking suspicion that McGonagall knew sometimes.

But he could never confirm it.

Andromeda and Ted were just the friendliest people and Sirius loved seeing Andy. Ted was funny and he had told Sirius that he was going to help him build a treehouse and fort in the backyard for he and Harry. Sirius was thrilled with the idea and he and Ted had already started putting their heads together over how to design it. It would be a fun surprise for Harry when it was done. But they were still working on how and when they were going to build it, not to mention the design of it.

They were a small group, but it was a good group and Remus thought that it was just the right amount of people for Harry's first real birthday party. And maybe by this time next year, Harry would have met kids his own age to invite. But for today, this was perfect.

His thoughts were interrupted as Sirius slapped his shoulder with a grin. "Think it's too early to start with gifts?"

Remus chuckled. "No, of course not. But leave the you-know-what for last."

Sirius nodded, grinning widely. Everyone had eaten by now and he was practically bouncing on the balls of his feet. Remus was positive that he was more excited than Harry and found it highly entertaining.

Sirius immediately whistled and Harry, who was learning how to play Exploding Snap, jumped when the deck exploded in Tonks' face and he started to giggle.

"Singed eyebrows really go with the look, Dora," Sirius said, winking at her.

She made a v with her fingers and then apologized when her mother glared at her. "Sorry, Mum."

Sirius laughed and rubbed his hands together. "Well, I think that it's time for the birthday boy to open up his presents. What do you think, Harry?"

Harry smiled, his eyes moving to the mountain of gifts on the table. "Okay."

Sirius grinned and gestured for Harry to take a seat on the couch next to Remus before he carefully handed his godson the first gift. "Read the cards aloud, Harry, so everyone knows who the gift is from."

Harry nodded nervously, his smile twitching in excitement. He had watched as Dudley had always gotten mountains upon mountains of presents, ripping open the paper in a reckless frenzy to find the surprise inside, but he had never been given the opportunity before. He found himself both excited and a little insecure.

He accepted the large box from Sirius and carefully opened the card. "Happy Birthday Harry, from Professor McGo-naa-gall, your Auntie Minnie." He smiled warmly at her as he struggled with her last name and she smiled back.

He carefully tugged on the paper, afraid to rush it. The box was almost as big as he was and Remus was helping him hold it as he unwrapped it. He pulled out a red leather ball. He smiled politely.

"Thank you, Auntie Minnie."

McGonagall smiled. "It's a Quaffle, Harry. I thought maybe that you can practice throwing and catching. Your father was an amazing Chaser and when you come to Hogwarts you can help Gryffindor win the Quidditch Cup; if you're in my house, of course."

Sirius laughed, picking up the Quaffle and tossing it up in the air before catching it. "Excellent! And don't worry, Minnie, I'm sure that he'll be a Gryffindor and I'm equally as sure that at least a trickle of James' Quidditch talent found its way into our boy here!"

Harry carefully put the Quaffle back in the box, noticing the book that was in there as well and picking it up. It was called Quidditch Through the Ages.

"Just a little sport history for you, Harry. Remus told me that you like stories and I thought maybe that you'd like to read about some Quidditch stories," McGonagall told him with a smile.

Harry smiled back at her. "Thank you."

Sirius handed him a brightly coloured gift bag. "Next one."

It was from Tonks. She'd given him a bag of sweets, an even mixture of Muggle and magical desserts. She had also gotten him a tee shirt that said: Padfoot's Prongslet which made Sirius grin widely and applaud. Andromeda and Ted had gotten him some clothing for the fall, a few jumpers and some new jeans. Andromeda and Ted had also given him a chess set which Ted offered to teach him how to use. Harry was fascinated by the way the pieces moved around in the box. Remus' gift was small, but Harry loved it the moment his eyes had fallen on it.

Remus had given him a framed photo of Harry, Sirius, and Remus from the week before. Harry was sitting on Sirius' motorbike, sunglasses on and Remus and Sirius stood on either side of him. Along with the photo, there was three brand new books of stories for him and a necklace.

Seeing how fascinated Harry was by the dog tags that Sirius always wore, Remus had thought it was a good idea to get Harry his own. The silver tags read: Prongslet, 31st July 1980 and the second one: Harry James Potter, Marauder of the Next Generation. He thought it was something that Harry would grow to love when he was older as well.

Harry had hugged Remus tightly, thanking him for the gift.

Sirius' gift was last. Remus could see that he had definitely gone a little overboard, but being Sirius, he wasn't surprised. First he had bought a small leather jacket for Harry, eagerly grinning and telling everyone how they would match now when they rode the motorbike; second, a child's broomstick which flew only two feet off of the ground (Harry had immediately wanted to learn and spent almost ten minutes flying around the living room in glee until they convinced him to come back and sit to open more presents); third, three new Muggle board games; fourth, his own set of Gobstones; fifth, a toy lightsaber; and last but not least — the gift that he had hiding in the sunroom.

"Come here, Harry, I've got one more important present for you," Sirius told him, grinning widely.

Remus smiled as Harry left Tonks' arms, who he had been hugging when she was playing with his lightsaber and making noises as she slashed it through the air, and hurried towards Sirius. Sirius was practically bouncing in excitement at the prospect of showing his godson his new puppy.

"Harry," Sirius said, holding the boy's hands in his own as he led him into the kitchen. Everyone else was staying in the living room until they came out, so Sirius knelt down in front of Harry by the kitchen table.

Sirius was slowly trying to stop spending every night in his godson's bed. Harry was feeling more comfortable in his own room, but at least three, sometimes four nights a week, Sirius was awoken by his cries and Harry would beg for Padfoot. Sirius would transform into his dog form and sleep snuggled around the calm child. But it was no longer every night anymore and that was a good sign. He hoped that the new puppy would make it a permanent thing.

"You know how at night you like it when Padfoot cuddles with you?" At Harry's nod and smile, he grinned. "Well, I thought that maybe since you've been such a good boy that for your birthday I would get you your very own version of Padfoot."

Harry stared at him in confusion. "But I have you, Uncle Padfoot."

Sirius smiled. "You do. And you always will. But this is something for you. Go in the sunroom, Harry."

Harry turned towards the door, looking back as Sirius ushered him forward. He opened the door leading to the sunroom from the kitchen and the tiny puppy jumped in excitement, running towards Harry, jumping up and licking his face.

Harry's entire face lit up with joy. He fell to his knees, arms outstretched as the puppy showered him in love and kisses, yipping in excitement. Boy and dog wrestled happily, both yipping and giggling with happiness.

Sirius knelt on the floor next to them, scratching the puppy behind his ears, a huge grin on his face. "What are we going to call this puppy?"

Harry's eyes were wide and wet as he looked up at Sirius. "He's really for me, Uncle Siri?"

Sirius smiled happily at his godson, placing his hand on Harry's shoulder. "He's all yours. You'll have to feed him and play with him and take care of him. Can you do that do you think?"

Harry nodded eagerly, his hands still in the puppy's soft fur. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!"

Sirius grinned. "You are very welcome. I love you, Harry."

"I love you too, Uncle Siri," Harry said fiercely, throwing his arms around him and shocking Sirius. "I love my new home! And I love my new puppy!"

Sirius hugged him back tightly, blinking back tears. He hadn't realized how much he had wanted this little boy to love him back until the words had come out. He kissed him again, smiling warmly as he hugged the child tightly.

"Love you too, Prongslet."