Sighing, Paige ran a hand through her hair has she read the report she held with her other hand. She was brushing up on some of the Death Eaters that were tried but walked free at the end of the Fist War. Each of the files contained information ranging from personal facts such as the suspected Death Eaters family or girl friends to the reasons they were believed to be Death Eaters and the file ended with why and how they were finally arrested and why they were declared innocent at their trails. The proof that these men were Death Eaters was right in her hands, andhad beenin the hands of the Ministry. But, money from the Death Eater themselves or their family was also in the Ministry's hands which was a large factor in why they walked (no matter what bull was written in their file).
With another sigh, Paige placed a side the folder that held the report of Amycus Carrows and moved her hand to pick up Alecto Carrows', Amycus sister, folder which was next in the pile. Just as she opened the folder and saw Alecto's face looking up at her, Paige heard a pecking at her kitchen window. Looking out of the window from her seat at the kitchen table, Paige didn't recognize the owl she saw. Dropping Alectos folder and picking up her wand Paige moved closer to the window, then pointed her wand at it and watched as the window opened wide enough for the owl to fly in. Once inside the small apartment the owl landed on the table and stuck out it's leg for Paige to until the letter attached. Again, instead of using her hands, Paige pointed her wand to do the job. Free of it's burden the owl stretched it's wings and flew out of the still opened window.
Closing the window, Paige walked over the table and looked at the letter. It didn't have any writing on it, giving her no chance of identifying the sender by handwriting.
"Mmm," Paige said softly to her self as she flipped the letter over and looked at the wax seal. Deciding that reading it was the only way she could identify the letter, Paige gently tapped the wax seal with her wand and it promptly split and the letter unfolded. Her eyes widened a little as she saw whose handwriting she was reading. After reading the letter through two or three times and glancing at the clock, Paige went to get her cloak and Floo Powder wondering what could have happened for Sirius to send her this letter.
She's not coming, Sirius thought as he sat in the living room watching the embers of the fire slowly die. It was pointless to keep sitting there like he was, but he didn't want to give up hope just yet. With a sigh, Sirius stood from his spot on the couch facing the fire and walked to the kitchen; he might as well 'not give up hope' on a full stomach. Since the fire was dying, the living room and kitchen were pretty much in darkness. Sirius was therefore thankful that he had already spent much of his time in the kitchen making it easy for him to find his way. Opening up one of the cabinets where he believed he had found a bag of chips before, Sirius started shifting things around looking for the said chips. Suddenly the cabinet and kitchen was bathed in green flickering light. Turning around, Sirius saw that the fire grate was full of green flames singling an arrival via Floo Powder.
"What's going on?" Paige asked as soon as she stepped out of the fire and spotted Sirius.
"You came." Sirius stated looking at Paige, shocked to really see her there.
"What's going on?" Paige asked again, walking over to Sirius looking around the room as though expecting to see something amiss,like a dead body.
"I, um," Sirius began saying, finding himself wishing he had thought of what to say if she did come. "Well, Remus is on duty tonight and I needed to talk to someone."
"What's wrong with James that you couldn't talk to him?" Paige asked, thrown by Sirius response. This was the last thing she thought was coming.
"It's about Harry, and I don't think I should, or could, discuss this with James." Sirius said, lowering his voice as though James was in the room. "Come on, I don't want to talk out here in case he comes up." He said while subconsciously taking hold of Paige's hand has he walked past her to lead her upstairs to the study.
"What happened? Is he okay?" Paige asked worriedly, referring to both James and Harry when she said 'he'.
"Yeah, he's fine. It's me that has the problem." Sirius said. Deciding this was one of the times when Sirius was truly being serious, Paige bit her tongue to keep her scathing remark to herself.
Once they reached the study and Sirius had closed the door, Paige repeated her inquiry.
"Okay, well Harry and James are still having some problems," Sirius began sitting down in one of the chairs.
"That's understandable though," Paige added, sitting down next to Sirius.
"Yeah well, things were going good. Then things went kind of back to where they started. And I was just talking to Harry about it and…" Sirius trialed away and put his head in his hands, unsure if he could really say aloud what he was thinking. Knowing that Sirius was having a hard time with whatever he was trying to say, Paige gave him silence to sort his thoughts out.
"For over two years now, pretty much everything I've done has been based upon Harry, or with him in mind. I never, never wanted to be his father. But I came to the point of excepting that I was the closest thing he had to one. But, now I'm not. He has his father, his real father now. What am I going to be to him now?
"And James, is going to get to be there for Harry like I never could. Cause, once all the hype about James coming back dies down, he's going to be able to walk through Hogsmeade with Harry. Have normal conversations with him in normal places. I could never do that. I can't do that." Sirius fell into silence, waiting for Paige to give her thoughts on the matter.
"You're worried about being shut out by Harry and not getting to experience things with him that James will." Paige said slowly, summarizing up what Sirius had said for her own benefit. "Sirius, you make such a big impacted on peoples lives that it's impossible to shut you out."
Sirius looked around at her, and stared hard at her trying to see signs of lying in her face; they weren't there.
"I'm sure that Harry knows what you've done for him. And for those reasons, I can't see him ever shutting you out. And, yes James will have experiences that you wont with Harry. But, Sirius…to James, he has only recently lost Lily. He's not going to be up for dealing with a teenager all by himself. Add in the fact that you already know Harry better then he does, you're still going to play a large role in Harry's life." Paige said, reaching over and taking Sirius' hand while she spoke. This wasone ofthe fewmethods she knew to make sure Sirius was listening.
"Please don't think I'm not happy for them," Sirius said.
"Never crossed my mind."
"I want what's best for both of them," Sirius went on look down at his hand which was still being held by Paige.
"I know you do.
"It's just that I don't want to be pushed into the back round of Harry's life."
"I promise that you wont be." Paige said softly. Sirius took his eyes away from their intertwined hands and looked instead at Paige. She looked back at him. But before anything else could be said, or any other movements made, there was an interruption by the voice of Remus Lupin.
"Sirius, are you up there?"
At this interruption Paige released Sirius' hand and stood from her seat. Sirius followed her lead.
"I should get back. There's still some reports that need to be written up." Said Paige as Remus' foot steps up the stairs could be heard. Sirius just nodded, not able to say words that he wasn't even sure should be said. "Did I help any?" Paige questioned with genuine concern in her voice.
"Yeah. Thanks for coming." Sirius said, meaning what he said.
"No problem," Paige answered, already moving toward the door leaving Sirius standing in front of the desk.
Moments after she opened the door and exited Remus entered.
"Did I interrupt something?" Remus asked looking at Sirius.
"We can only guess." Sirius said running a hand through his hair.
Harry didn't forget what Sirius had told him, and he didn't forget that he needed to talk to James. But his schedule just wouldn't allow it. Classes were increasing their difficulties to prepare for O.W.L's and as a result teachers were increasing their homework assignments. Which is why Harry could be found sitting in the common room struggling with some potions homework instead of improving a weak father-son relationship.
"Hermione," Harry said weakly from behind his potions textbook. "Do you think you could tell me what this means in English?" He asked holding the textbook out to her opened to the potion he was supposed to be analyzing.
"No." Hermione said simple, not even looking up from her own work.
"That's a bit harsh." Ron said, since Harry was too shocked to speak for himself. Hermione's thoughts on Harry and Ron copying her work were well known, but she rarely declined explaining things to them.
"I have my own work to do, and Harry has someone else that he can ask for help." Hermione said; Harry thought he saw her lips twitch.
"Who the bloody hell are you thinking of? You can't think I get this rubbish." Ron said.
"Oh for heavens sake." Hermione said, finally putting her quill down and looking up at Harry. "You haven't been to see your dad yet. And I know that you've been busy and your worried about it being awkward," she hurried on when Harry opened his mouth to argue. "Asking for help with your homework will show him that you don't think he hates you, it will get you to see him while not falling behind with your work, and it will keep the situation from becoming awkward if you have a topic to fall back on."
Harry stared at her. She had put a lot of thought into this plan.
"Sounds like a good plan, mate." Ron said, nodding his head in approval.
"And what am I suppose to say? 'Snape is evil and I'm inapt at potions. Can you help me even though I thought you hated me?'" Harry asked his friends. Ron and Hermione looked at each and then back at Harry.
"Well, that would be a conversation starter, that would." Ron said.
Sirius was talking to him, but James wasn't listening. It had been two days since James had last spoken to Harry, and it was killing him. Sirius kept insisting that he had set Harry straight and that the teenager had been planning to seek his father out, and that Harry was merely busy. But James still worried that Harry continued to think James hated him. He was so wrapped up in his thought that he didn't even notice that Sirius had stopped talking as a result of the entrance of a certain teenager.
"Hey, Harry." Sirius said.
"Hey, Sirius." Harry answered, shifting his potions book from one arm to the other nervously when he took note that James made no noticed of his presence.
"Oi! James." Sirius said, snapping his fingers in James direction while standing up. Coming out of his daze, James looked around at Sirius who was walking away from him.
"What?" But James quickly found out what. Sirius walked over to Harry and placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder, and started to steer him over to the couch. Sitting up straight and running a hand through his hair, James greeted his son; hating that he felt uneasy.
"I was having some trouble with my potions homework and I thought that maybe…I mean I understand if your too busy, but I was wondering if you could help me?" Harry said to James as Sirius sat him down on the couch.
"Sure I'll help you." James said, getting up at once and moving to sit next to Harry. "What's the assignment?" James asked interestedly, praying that he would remember things from his potion making days.
"We have to analyze," Harry said, opening his textbook and flipping through the pages, "this potion." He added when he came to the correct page. "And I don't understand what it's saying at all."
"Hmm, well to analyze you have to know what it does, what are the side-effects and how to make it. With that information you can dub it a Dark potion or not a Dark potion." James said, taking the textbook and reading the potion information. "Good thing you're in your O.W.L year, cause if you weren't there would be no way I could help you. Here write this 'This potion can be considered a 'Dark Potion' because of it's side-effects,' then copy down the side-effects here and explain why the side-effects are a bad thing." James said pointing out what Harry should copy down.
Picking up his quill and parchment that he had brought with him, Harry wrote down what James had said.
"You weren't good at potions?" Harry asked.
"Well, to become an Auror you have to take potions N.E.W.Ts class, so I took it and passed." James said, watching Harry write and thinking of what else should be included. "But, I was never really all that great with potions. I could follow the instructions and make a pretty decent potion, but it ends there. Your mum on the other hand though, she could brew almost anything. Here, add this line in there after you copy all the side-effects."
"Which line?"
"This one, 'The Ministry carefully monitors it's use'. Every once in awhile the Ministry keeps tabs on things that need to be tabbed. But anyway, your mum was great in potions. And by the time I had to take N.E.W.Ts me and your mother had become friends and she was willing to help me. If it wasn't for her, I really don't think I would have pasted potions."
"Old Slugy didn't think you would either." Sirius said, who had been happily watching James talk and help Harry with his homework.
" 'Old Slugy'?" Harry repeated, pausing in his writing to look at his father and godfather.
"Horace Slughorn." James said to Harry. "He was the potions master when we were here. He liked to pick his favorites, your mum being one of them."
"Why was she one of his favorites?" Harry asked, returning to his essay.
"Because she was an amazing witch and one hell of a girl." James said, feeling a tug on his heart strings as he spoke about Lily. He looked at Harry from the corner of his eye, and could have been looking at himself. But when Harry looked up to ask a question, James was looking into Lily's eyes.
"Were you one of his favorites?" Harry asked interestedly.
"Yeah, though I must say I wasn't one of his favorite favorites. If that makes any sense." James said.
"Why not?"
"Well, the thing with Slughorn and his club, the "Slug Club", yeah I know. What a name right?" James asked when Harry let out a snort of laughter at the name of the club his parents had been apart of. "The whole point was for him to make connections between past members of the club and present members. He picks those with connections already and/or those who have loads of promise but just need a connection." James went on.
"And also those who he would want to say he had in his club." Sirius added in. "If he was still around Harry, I'd bet your broom stick you'd be a slug just because of your scar."
"Problem with me though," James went on, "was that I knew I had promise, and I knew that I had connections without him. My parents, your grandparents, were very well known and respected in the Ministry. I didn't need his help to get any where. Neither did anyone else in the club, except a few who were just rich or there because of a surname, but I was one of the few that knew it and told him so." James finished. Harry nodded.
"Okay, now what do I write?" Harry asked, having just finished writing what James had instructed him to write.
"State what the potion does, and how that can used wrongfully." James said, looking at Harry's essay.
"So did he kick you out of the club?" Harry asked as he brought his quill to parchment again.
"Nope," Sirius answered for James. "No matter how hard he tried to get kicked out."
"You wanted to get kicked out?" Asked Harry.
"Like I said, I didn't need him to get connections, so he tried to make connections for other people through me. I didn't like being used like that." James said.
"Where you in it Sirius?" Harry asked looking at his godfather.
"Nah, by the time I was old enough to become a member, everyone knew my feels about my family and their connections. And even though the Black Family was rich, I was pretty much cut off. I would have been a waste of space." Sirius said with a shrug, indifferent to not being wanted in the Slug Club.
"How long does this essay have to be, Harry?" James asked, looking at the length already written and wondering how much more was needed.
"A roll and a half of parchment." Harry said.
"Bloody hell. Just because old…just because Snape had no life when he was a student doesn't mean he has to make his students suffer too." James said running a hand through his hair.
"Snapes mission in life seems to be to make as many lives as miserable as he can." Harry said rereading what he had written so far.
"And I'm sure he tries his hardest with you," James muttered. "Yes, I must have a talk with Snape one of these days."
"I say just prank him. One of the old ones, you know. So he is left in no doubt of who did it." Sirius said.
"One of the old ones?" Harry repeated looking up at the two men.
"How much of the essay do you have written now Harry?" Sirius asked.
"A little over half a roll."
"Well, since your gonna be here for awhile, how about you hear some retellings of the good old days, eh?"
A.N- I can offer no reason for the lack of updates except for the fact that my life simple got surprisingly busy. I so, so deeply hope that you guys can understand that.
Thank you over and over again for the reviews and for reading my story. Over 500 reviews…Wow, thank you.
This time, I really will put some of my thoughts about this chapter in my profile.
Please, please tell me what you think about the whole Sirius, Paige interaction (what they discussed as well) and the Harry and James interaction. I feel like the latter fell slightly flat and I'm unsure how I feel about it. I love knowing what you guys are thinking and feeling, so let me know.
I think that's all…Review!Review!Review!
Till Next Time!