Author's Note:

I didn't expect it to be this long at all, but it is and is definitely going to be WAY longer lol. I'm glad that you are enjoying my slow build up.

Reviews and Comments: To Sasha Starr: Who says that "64 Chapters and 296,000 words to get to Hogwarts. That I believe is a record. A long wait , but well worth it." — Thank You Sasha Starr — YOU ARE WELCOME! To E-Dett: Yes, Harry is finally there! Thank you! To Guest: Thank you! I love knowing you want more. To geekymom: Thank you! To Brianarius: Yes, Harry is more well adjusted, but yes, Snape is definitely still going to hate him lol. I don't think he will be less empathetic with Muggleborns because Sirius and Remus taught him better than that. Not to mention they have introduced him to a lot of Muggle things. To coloredwords: LOL, you want Sirius to cry when he hears that Harry has been sorted? He will be happy. Harry is definitely his son in all but blood. Thank you. To Lost: Thank you so much for saying this is your favourite Harry, Sirius, and Remus story. I like showing more of Tonks (we will see more of her soon) and Sirius will find someone as well. Don't give Sirius any offspring ever? Okay lol, no promises on that. Thank you. To Claire Fraser: Thank you for saying Sirius and Remus were freaking adorable with their send off. Malfoy and Blaise as possible friends, well… friend-ish. LOL. 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 SIXTY-FIVE:

The One Where Sirius Is Almost Bitten By A Panther…

And Totally Didn't Piss Himself!

Sirius stood in the living room with his hands in the pockets of his jeans and his tongue in his cheek. Marauder was sleeping in front of the fireplace and the silence of the house seemed oddly deafening. He glanced at the clock with a sigh, Harry was still on the school train.

He had been alone for less than an hour and he was already going a little stir crazy. How was he going to survive without Harry around the house? He smiled at Remus when he brought him a cup of a tea.

"You think I'm bonkers, don't you?"

Remus chuckled, handing the tea over to his friend before taking a seat on the chesterfield. "No. I miss him, too. It's oddly quiet, is it not?"

Sirius dragged his hand through his hair before he sat next to his friend, taking a small sip of his tea. "Almost too quiet. What the hell am I going to do around this place for four months?"

Remus smiled, sipping his own tea, his long fingers tapping along the edge of the cup. "That is the question, isn't it? I myself am now also gainfully unemployed with no pupil to teach."

Sirius smiled at him. "Moony, you know that I —"

"No," Remus interrupted. "You know very well that I am not going to allow you to support me, Padfoot. You gave me the opportunity to be a teacher to Harry and I loved every minute of it. It was my dream job and I loved teaching him, spending time with him, and just over all being with him. He's my son, too. But now he doesn't need me anymore, not in a teaching capacity anyway. He's at Hogwarts, where he will be learning magic from real professors."

"You are a real, professor," Sirius told him. "And I know you — you saved almost every Knut and Sickle you earned. You should be all right for a bit."

Remus nodded, sipping his tea again. "I will be, but I still need to find a new job. I can't just sit around idly and — I want to give you some of the money to invest and well, to do your magic there."

Sirius smiled. "Sure, I like to play the stock roulette wheel."

Remus smiled. He placed his tea on the coffee table and reached into his battered briefcase that still held the etched gold lettering, albeit now a bit faded, of Professor RJ Lupin, a gift from Sirius and James back in sixth year as a joke, but something that he had treasured for years. He pulled out the letter that he had stuck in there last night.

"I'm thinking about this in the meantime."

Sirius accepted the letter from his friend, putting his own tea down as well. He unfolded the parchment and skimmed his eyes over the words. "You're still communicating with Roberts?"

Remus shrugged. "No. I haven't spoken to him since I told you last, but he sent this to me last week."

"It says that there's a lecture on the history of the werewolf myth at the University of Paris," Sirius' eyes met Remus'. "It's a Muggle university."

Remus nodded. "The professor giving the lecture is a wizard. Philippe Montgomery is a well-known historian and he worked for thirty-five years in the French Department of Magical Creatures. From what I understand, or from what Adrian says, this lecture outlines the history of the myth and mixes it with the facts. He said that Montgomery believes that he has made some new developments about werewolves. Adrian said that he knows I take the potion and he thought that I might like the opportunity to learn more about what it means to be a werewolf from an expert like Montgomery. I've only just begun to… I never wanted to know anything about being a werewolf other than what I already knew and recently I've realized that's a mistake and that I should take the time to learn everything I can. I've denied myself the chance to learn about a large part of myself, Padfoot, and… I need to know more. This is an opportunity to learn more from an expert."

"Is Montgomery a werewolf?"

"Maybe," Remus said, biting his bottom lip. "Or at least Adrian believes he is or evidently knows someone who is, which helps his knowledge. I might learn nothing to be honest, Sirius, but I thought that it was something that I want to do. I told you that lately I've been feeling off and I thought maybe it was the whole being in my thirties thing and all that, but I think it's more… I think I could learn more about what I am."

Sirius chaffed at that. "Who you are is what's important, Rem."

"You know what I mean," Remus said, waving him off.

"All right, let's go to Paris then."

Remus hesitated, "Sirius… I think I need to do this alone."

Sirius' eyebrow rose. "Need to?"

Remus sighed. "I just… there are things that I want to ask him," he began thinking of the idea of having a mate, of Nymphadora and what it meant to both of them, especially if he continued to push her away. "I want to talk to him about… what I'm going through or to even learn and well… it's not that I don't want you to know these things it's just that —"

Sirius held up his hand to silence his friend. "No, I get it, Rem." He smiled at him and reached for his cup of tea. "You go. You go figure out whatever it is that you need to figure out and when you come back you can tell me all about it. How long are you going to go for?"

"At least a week, but probably two or three realistically," he said, smiling gratefully at his friend. "He has five separate lectures lined up, but I'd like to try to speak with him personally if I can as well. Adrian and Maia will also be attending so I will be spending some time with them as well. They have the answers I seek, Sirius. I think it will be good for both of us to spend some time by ourselves, especially you without Harry around. Maybe you should actually get a job."

Sirius snorted in amusement. "Please."

Remus smirked at him. "Just because you don't need to financially work doesn't mean you shouldn't, Padfoot. I just meant that you need to figure out something to do to keep yourself occupied or you're going to go stir crazy around here. You can't just sit around hunting for bogeys."

Sirius nodded, fiddling with the silver hoop at the top of his earlobe. "Don't worry, Moony. I'll get myself sorted out. I've been toying around with an idea anyway and it has nothing to do with digging for bogeys."

"What idea?"

"Bikes."

"You're not getting another motorbike?"

Sirius grinned at his friend. "Actually I bought three over the last year — well, let me rephrase that, I purchased three huge heaping piles of junk actually, but I thought that I could restore them and sell them. Regular restore them, Moony, so don't give me that look. My bike is the only beauty that gets to have those special features and I'm not dumb enough to sell that. I just love working on them and I thought that it would keep me focused and give me something to do."

"I wondered when you were going to start working on those heaps and what you were doing with them. To be honest, I kind of assumed that you were using them for spare parts."

Sirius laughed. "That's fair, they are literal heaps of junk at the moment, but when I'm done with them, they're going to be glorious."

Remus grinned. "Good, I'm glad that you have something to keep you occupied for now. Learning to live without Harry is going to be quite the adjustment for both of us."

"He's probably having the best time on the train. And the feast later is going to be wonderful. I almost wish that I was going back."

"I know, I thought the same thing. Do you think that he'll be a Gryffindor?" Remus asked him. "I know that you want him to be, but honestly?"

Sirius shrugged. "Honestly, I don't know. He possesses qualities from each house, but I think if he wants to be a Gryffindor bad enough then that's where the hat will put him. And Minnie will be horrified if those Quidditch skills go to an opposing house, especially Slytherin."

Remus laughed. "God forbid."

"So, I've been meaning to ask you something since Harry's birthday," Sirius began, finishing his tea and placing the empty cup on the table.

Remus merely lifted an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"After Harry's birthday, Tonks came back here to hang with me for a bit."

"All right…"

"You kissed her."

Remus' eyes widened and the back of his neck flushed. "It was a moment of weakness, Siri, I assure you — it will not happen again."

Sirius rolled his eyes. "Git."

"Sirius, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to —"

Sirius held up a hand to silence his friend. "I'm not upset that you kissed her, Rem, I already told you that you two can do whatever the hell you want, it's not my business. I'm pissed because you kissed her and are now treating her like it was the biggest mistake of your life. She doesn't deserve that. I've watched you with her over the last month. You've only seen her three times and every time it was like you forgot how to be her friend. That saddens me."

Remus sighed, his fingers moving to his hair nervously. "I still want to be her friend, of course I do."

"Well, start acting like it. I'm not getting involved in whatever it is you two are tiptoeing around. You're being a stubborn git as per usual and I refuse to watch you blunder it even more. She's at the boot camp now and will be until the end of October. When she comes by next time, don't be such a bloody stuck up arse, that's all I ask."

Remus opened his mouth as if to protest and then promptly closed it.

"Good," Sirius said, simply. "Now, let's find something to eat as I'm starving and you can tell me what else you plan to do while you visit Paris."

~ ASC ~

The first week of classes flew by for Harry. He found each day to be more interesting than the next. His classes were cool and intriguing. Transfiguration especially because it was taught by Auntie Minnie, Professor McGonagall, he corrected. He had accidentally called her 'auntie' the first day of class and she had pursed her lips at him, giving him a stern look that made him squirm uncomfortably in his seat for a moment and then she had taken five points from Gryffindor House for not using proper respectful idioms.

Rooming with Neville and Ron was definitely the best thing that Harry could ask for. He was used to them and he immediately liked Seamus and Dean as well who were friendly. They stayed up late the first Friday night just talking and getting to know each other a bit.

Neville told them that he lived with his grandmother and about his love of plants. Ron explained how he had a huge family and how sad his little sister was to be left at home. Harry told them about living with Sirius and staying with his Uncle Remus how much he missed Marauder. Seamus told them how his mother was a witch and his dad a Muggle and how shocked his father had been to learn the truth. Dean admitted that his mum was a witch and an artist, but that he never knew his father. The talk had turned more light hearted as they joked about their classes and whatnot and overall just having fun as they got to know each other.

He was sitting at his desk in his dorm now with his parchment and ink out as he wrote his first letter home. He almost wasn't sure where to start.

Dear Uncle Sirius and Uncle Remus,

Gryffindor!

It's what the hat yelled out to the whole hall and I was very happy, but the hat did say that I was destined to do great things and that Slytherin would be a good place for me. But I begged the hat not to be put there and it chose Gryffindor instead. I couldn't be happier, especially because both Neville and Ron are in Gryffindor with me.

My other two dorm mates are Seamus Finnigan and Dean Thomas. They are both nice and seem like decent blokes. Seamus has two older sisters, Katie and Darcy. Darcy is a sixth year and in Hufflepuff and Katie left Hogwarts ages ago.

The train ride was fun. I ended up in a compartment with Neville and Ron and then Draco Malfoy and his friend Blaise Zabini. Draco is a bit of a prat, but Blaise was nice. Draco insulted Ron upon learning that he was a Weasley and both he and Blaise were placed in Slytherin House.

I don't know what to make of Malfoy to be honest.

There's this really annoying girl in our year who also got placed in Gryffindor. Her name is Hermione Granger and she's such a know-it-all! On the train ride she claimed that she had memorized all of our course books over the summer. She raises her hand non-stop in class, is constantly taking notes, and her nose is always stuck in a book. She keeps correcting all of the other students in class if they don't pick up on the concept immediately like she does. Neville said that she makes him feel stupid. I wish she'd leave us alone and just study by herself. I met her on the train first and when she heard my name she told me that I'm in all of these books that she read — I don't know how I feel about being in books about the dark arts and history of the twentieth century, either. In fact, it makes me feel a little uneasy. What do they say about me? Don't they need permission to write about me?

Having Auntie Minnie as a teacher is interesting. She's very strict especially when you accidentally call her 'auntie' instead of Professor. I lost five points!

Charms is fun and kind of chaotic and Professor Flitwick has to stand on his desk to see everyone. When he read my name off of the class roster, he squeaked with so much excitement that he toppled right over! In fact, most of the teachers seem to get this weird look in their eyes when they say my name. Professor Sprout, the Herbology teacher, gave me this huge smile and Professor Quirrell, the Defence Against the Dark Arts professor, got even more stuttered than usual and he stutters all of the time! Fred said that he apparently used to be the Muggle Studies professor when Bill was in fifth year, but he left to go study the dark arts in Albania and that this is his first year teaching the subject of Defence Against the Dark Arts. But he seems scared of his own shadow and he wears this turban on his head and it smells funny. George said he probably has it stuffed with garlic or something to keep him safe from vampires. Everything seems to terrify him.

As for Potions, the professor is interesting. He has this presence, that like Auntie Minnie, he can keep the attention of his class in seconds. He's not one to cross. But he seems to hate me more than anything. He claimed that I was the new celebrity and then spouted off a bunch of random questions and when I didn't know the answer he said that 'clearly fame isn't everything' — what does that even mean? Fred told me not to worry about it as I guess Professor Snape doesn't like anyone.

Ron, Neville, and I are going to visit Hagrid now for tea. I'll write again soon.

Love,

Harry

He folded up the letter and sealed it in an envelope before making his way down to the common room. Neville jumped up from the couch when he saw him.

"Hey, Harry!"

"Hey, Neville," he said with a grin. "I'm going to bring this up to Hedwig, want to come?"

Neville nodded, walking beside him as they made their way out of Gryffindor Tower and headed to the Owlery. "I feel like I'm never going to find my way around this place."

"I know, it's huge!" Harry told him, checking his school map to make sure that they were actually going in the right direction. "I think within a few weeks we'll have it all sorted out."

"Is that to Sirius?"

Harry nodded. "And Uncle Remus. Just telling him that we're all in Gryffindor together and about my first week. I told him that I'd write and I know that he's probably waiting for my letter." He glanced at Neville who was looking pensive. "I really miss him and Marauder and Uncle Remus."

Neville smiled sympathetically. "I miss home, too."

They made it upstairs and found Hedwig. Harry gave her some treats before giving her the letter and she nipped his finger affectionately before hurrying off.

"So, tea with Hagrid?"

Harry nodded. "Let's go find Ron."

~ ASC ~

Sirius was reading the morning paper when Hedwig flew in through the kitchen window. He practically jumped out of his chair to greet her, happily taking the envelope from her beak and ripping open the letter.

His grin was wide the entire time he read the letter.

A Gryffindor, he knew it!

He fist bumped the air, grinning widely. He was glad that Ron and Neville had been sorted with him. It sounded like the school year was off to a great start though the idea of Snape teaching him and already mocking him as being the new celebrity was not something that went over well with him.

He planned on saying as much when he saw him at the end of the month for Remus' potion. The stupid git was not going to be treating his son like shit, end of story.

He flicked his wand at the wireless and set up the album he wanted, smiling when he heard the familiar opening beat of Toto IV. He tapped his fingers to the beat as he cleaned up his breakfast, floating the wireless outside with him to the side of the cottage.

Sirius had spent the last three days expanding his work area and building an attachment on his shed to store his motorbike and the parts for them. He wanted to have plenty of room to stretch out and work on them as well as store them. But today he wanted to get started on the first bike.

Remus had left two days after Harry, sending word that he had arrived safely in Paris. Sirius had spent his free time starting to build a large workshop on the side of the house at the top of the drive so that he could work on his motorbikes when the weather turned colder.

Sirius had immediately wanted to get working on the motorbikes, but instead he had let himself get distracted and had found himself at a Muggle junkyard and had come home with a '54 Adler MB250. The other three: A 1929 Motosacoche M414, a 1975 Ducati 450 Scrambler, and a 1968 BMW R50/2 — were still waiting for him in junk heaps in the shed and he couldn't wait to dig into them all. He'd spent hours searching for parts to get him started and he decided to start on the Ducati that morning.

Toto blared from the wireless before magically switching over to ACDC's Back in Black as he worked. The hot sun beat down on him and he tugged his shirt off, wiping sweat from his brow as the beat of the music kept him sane while he worked. He had the Ducati in pieces around him when his stomach grumbled and he made his way into the house to make himself a sandwich.

Sirius stepped out onto the front porch as he finished his sandwich, drinking back the beer that he had decided to have with it. The hot sun beating down on him felt good and he slid his hands in the back pocket of his jeans as he stood up.

With Remus gone and Harry at school, he was surprised to find himself a little lonely. He knew that Remus was interested in meeting with this Montgomery as much for himself as for something to do because he too missed having their boy around. But Sirius was alone in the cottage now and he wasn't too fond of it.

In fact, having the place empty made him feel hollow inside. His nightmares had returned almost every night (if he was being honest) and Marauder had taken to sleeping in his bed with him, something that Sirius was incredibly grateful for. The dog being there calmed him quite a bit when he woke drenched in sweat and trembling from the fear of being stuck back in Azkaban or worse, finding James and Lily dead.

He found himself wandering into Harry's bedroom, turning on the light and sitting on his bed, touching the marauder stuffed animals that his son had left behind. He transformed into Padfoot, finding comfort in being a dog. Sometimes he found himself blinking back tears that he couldn't quite explain. He had never really been alone before and it was a lot more adjustment for him than he had expected.

He missed his boy, his Prongslet.

He pushed the thoughts from his head, smiling as he remembered his son's first letter. Harry was having a great time at school already and nothing made him happier than to hear that.

He started to head back to work on the bike when the dog in him scented the feline a second before she pounced, but his wand was out in time and he quickly petrified her, watching in astonishment as a sleek black panther fell onto its side from his spell.

"What the hell —" he muttered, standing up with his wand out.

He lived in Devon, where the hell had a black panther even come from? His eyes raked the front yard, looking for a sign that would explain why the large black cat had pounced on him.

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO HER?" An angry voice demanded from his left.

Sirius spun around to see the furious stride of a tiny woman coming towards him.

"What did I do to her? A fucking panther just tried to pounce on me!"

"Take it off!" she demanded. "Undo it, NOW!"

Sirius rolled his eyes. He had no intention of doing so without a little reassurance that he wasn't about to become cat food.

"Is she going to attack me again? Because otherwise I'd rather not. I happen to like my bits just the way they are."

The woman glared at him through a pair of rainbow sunglasses, the large hat on her head hiding most of her from view, but he could feel the anger in her gaze as her ruby red lips seemed to pucker in rage.

"She won't hurt you unless I order her to so, take it off or I'll show you exactly what bits she can bite off and tear to pieces!"

Sirius snorted, but he did as she asked and quickly waved his wand as he muttered the counter curse. He had no intention of being bitten by the cat, nor by the angry small woman before him. The sleek panther jumped back to its feet quickly, growling menacingly in Sirius' direction.

"Looks real gentle. Who the fuck has a panther as a pet? Obviously you must be brainless as well as stupid."

"Excuse me?" she exclaimed, her hand on the panther's head. "She is my familiar I'm not brainless, you conceited knob!" She stroked the panther's head. "I'm so sorry, Lady G, did the bully hurt you?" she asked tenderly as the panther's head nuzzled her waist.

Sirius rolled his eyes and marched down his drive, sticking his wand in the back pocket of his jeans since he had left his shirt inside, stopping suddenly when the cat growled again, holding his hands up in surrender.

"Okay, look, I'm not going to hurt your damn cat or you. But she did just try to attack me first — and on my property, might I add!"

The woman pushed her sunglasses up her nose. She was in a jean cut off skirt, showcasing legs the colour of caramel decked out in brown four inch heeled cowboy boots. Her shirt was a paint flecked black tee shirt that was tied at the waist on the left side and her wrists were covered in jangly bracelets.

"She didn't. She was just getting a lay of the land and she smelt a human and bolted. It's not my fault that you're outside half naked and sweaty and she caught your scent!"

"First of all, it's hot out here and it's my own damn yard, if I want to be completely naked no one has any say in the matter. Second, did you just claim that I was 'smelly?'"

The woman flushed in response. "Lady G caught your scent, how you take that is up to you. But she doesn't hurt people. Go on, hold your hand out to her, let her lick you and see that you're safe. She won't hurt you unless she thinks that you mean her harm."

Sirius hesitated. He didn't know this woman and for all he knew she was telling him to willingly feed himself to her pet, but he found himself extending his hand and sighing when the panther looked at it carefully, sniffing it, and then gently licking his palm before nuzzling his hand with her head. He had to admit, the soft fur was appealing, almost satin like. He scratched her behind her ears and she purred in contentment.

"All right, I see your point. She's beautiful. What did you call her before, Lady G?"

"Her name is Lady Godiva," the woman declared, a smile tugging on those ruby red lips. "I've had her since she was just a cub. I rescued her from these atrocious Muggles who were hunting her and her pack in Kenya. Her parents were killed and she was the only cub that I could find. I kept her safe and she decided to stay with me."

"Why Godiva?"

"I'm sorry?"

Sirius smirked at her, his hands in his pockets. "Why Godiva?"

"Because I always admired her bravery; standing up for what she wanted and doing the only thing that she could do at the time to make her stand. No one would listen to her and she had no power and no ability to use weapons. She wasn't a witch with powers to sway them so, she set out on a horse, completely nude, and she got the attention she wanted. She made her mark. I found Lady Godiva in Kenya, hiding from the Muggles who had shot and killed her family, when I rescued her and confronted the Muggles, she jumped from my arms and stood in front of me, growling at them, almost daring them to fight her to get to me. I thought that she was making her stand, a cub with no power of her own, but she was trying. So, I named her Godiva."

Sirius smiled at her. He had to admit, the name fit. "I like it. Lady G, very regal."

The woman smiled. "Thanks." She continued to pet her cat, her gaze glancing back to the cottage behind him. "I bought the house next door. Lady G and I just moved in yesterday and we're still getting the lay of the land. I decided to go for a walk, see how far away my neighbours were. She got away from me and I apologize for that. I know that having a panther running full blast at you is not exactly something you expect to see in Devon."

"No harm," he told her, extending his hand. "But obviously lucky that I'm not a Muggle as they might have reacted slightly different upon seeing a panther in Devon. I'm Sirius, by the way."

"Zee," she said, shaking his offered hand with a smile. "And I'm glad to see that you're a wizard or the whole pet panther thing might have definitely warranted a different reaction."

He laughed and tucked his loose hair behind his ear. "It might have. Well, Zee, I have a Golden Retriever and a black German Shepherd that occasionally run around here so I'd appreciate it if you keep your eye out for them. I expect that they will both be looking around a little extra lately. We've recently been a bit lonely. Our boy just left for Hogwarts."

Zee smiled at him. "You have a son?"

Sirius nodded, his hands in his pockets again. "Harry, he's eleven. I miss him something fierce."

She smiled sympathetically. "I bet he's having a great time."

"Oh, I know he is, but still. I miss having him underfoot," he turned at the sound of Marauder barking from the house and smiled at her. "Do you want a drink or something?"

Zee smiled at him, her hat falling off when she bent to scratch her knee, and her long brown curls cascaded down her back, surprising Sirius. How on earth had she fit all of that hair under that hat? He wondered.

"Thanks, but I should head back. Lots of unpacking to do. It was nice to meet you. I'm sure that I'll see you around."

He nodded as she picked up her hat and placed it on her head again. "Yeah, you too."

She smiled warmly at him. "Thanks."

He watched her walk down the drive, her hips swinging, and he wondered what she had been doing in Kenya other than rescuing panther cubs. She was a tiny, curvy thing and hardly looked the type to be trekking around Kenya. The last thing he needed was some annoying woman and her pet panther living next door and causing problems. The Morrisons had kept to themselves which is what he had liked most about them.

He headed back around the house to let Marauder out and knelt back down on the ground next to the Ducati. A pet panther, honestly, he thought, switching the wireless on and shaking his head. Despite the fact that she was absolutely gorgeous, she was obviously a complete idiot and the last thing that Sirius needed was an idiot with a panther living next door.

Hopefully she turned out to be like the Morrisons and stayed in her own cottage and away from his.