Disclaimer: Still Ain't Mine, sorry.

A/N: Harry Potter, age SEVEN. Yes, Harry doesn't like the letter 'd', no I don't know why, I just think it's cute. They lisp 'cause they ain't got teeth.


"All right Hunter, Harry," Lily said, placing a small pouch in Harry's hands, "Remember, go straight to the sweet shop and stay there until an adult comes to get you. Who are the adults?"

"Pa'foot," Harry said with a grin, displaying his missing tooth.

"Moony," Hunter echoed with a matching grin.

"Papa," Harry said. Even at age seven, Harry refused to pronounce the letter 'd', it was an amusing habit he had, but one which Lily was beginning to correct, so that he'd go to Hogwarts and be normal.

"You," Hunter ended.

"Very good," Lily said. "Now, be safe boys."

"Yeth, mommy," the twins chorused and headed down the nearly empty street of Hogsmead.

"They'll be find," James said, hugging Lily, "Sirius is watching them."

"I know," Lily replied, "I just don't understand why Dumbledore had to do what he did. You cannot deny that life would have been easier if he had only kept his mouth shut."

"Yes," James said, "but he's learned that lesson, and he's learning it every time he tries to find us. Now come, my love, we have shopping to do ourselves. Let the boys have time in Honeydukes alone, it's a right of passage for all boys."

Lily watched the twins go into Honeydukes and nodded, "Lead the way, good sir," she said, falling into the speech of their favorite game easily.

HPHMHPHMHPHMHPHMHPHMHPHMHPHMHPHMHPHMHPHMHPHMHPHMHP

Harry let Hunter into Honeydukes, and both boys stopped and stared in awe. They'd come to the shop before, of course, but every time they came, they just had to stare in awe at the mounds of chocolate, and other sweets available. The two shared a look that was as plain to them as the 'twin' speak they still indulged in on occasion. "Hello, welcome to Honeydukes," Mr. Duke, the proprietor, said with a smile, "how are you two today?" Although he'd been overawed when the twins had first come to Honeydukes with their parents, now he'd come to the point where he looked after the two like they were two of his own grandchildren, and he was very careful to keep other patrons from harassing the two boys.

"Fine," Harry replied.

"Thank you," Hunter said.

"How can I help you two today?"

Hunter leaned up on his toes, "C'n we get choco froggieth? I'm collectin' cardth." He was the bolder twin, and Harry often let him speak for them both, it did, after all, cost him nothing to let Hunter say what he wanted to.

"You are? How many do you have?" Mr. Duke asked.

"Seben," Hunter replied, "same as m' age."

"Are you seven now?" Mr. Duke said, "Well, last time I saw you, you were still six."

Harry giggled, and Hunter nodded, "We turned theben yethterday."

"Did you now, well, I guess I'll have to give you a special treat." Mr. Duke reached into his pocket, which was always full of candy of some sort, and produced a pair of chocolate frogs, "How about these"

"Thank you!" The boys said in unison, reaching for them.

"Happy Birthday, Harry," Mr. Duke said, handing him the frog, "and happy birthday, Hunter."

The twins took the frogs and put them in each other's backpack, then turned back to Mr. Duke, "I wanna get thugar quillth," Hunter said, "for Mommy and Uncle Moony."

"An' I wanna get thoth ballth that make you go floaty," Harry said, "for Pa'foot an' Papa."

"All right," Mr. Duke stood, "Cherish, will you help one of the boys, and Mandy, you take the other."

"Yes, Mr. Duke," Cherish said.

"Yes Dad," Mandy echoed with a smile at the twins. "Hunter, why don't you come with me."

"And Harry, you can come with me," Cherish said.

"Yeth ma'am," the twins said in unison.

It was a good visit to the sweet shop, until right after the twins had put away their purchases and were going to sit down to wait for an adult to come get them. A couple of young witches came in and spotted the boys. One screamed and the other fainted, and the boys stared at them in horror. "Oh, Merlin!" The screamer said, awed, "You're Hunter Potter."

"Yeth," Hunter said, still staring at her. The twins had, on occasion, met people like this, and they didn't like them. Harry, once he got over the fright, thought they were stupid, and Hunter, well, Hunter just nodded. He didn't know what to think about these old people who just had to touch him.

"Mr. Honey, thir," Harry said, slipping around the counter, "we hi'e now, yeth?"

Before Mr. Duke could answer, people began streaming into the shop, drawn by the clarion call of 'Hunter Potter'. Harry wanted to rush to his twin, but the way was quickly blocked, and he wanted to hide. The noise and the coos scared him.

A wand went bang, and Harry, already scared, bolted, he ran through the half open door into the back room of the shop, and a second bang sent him running into the basement, pulling the door behind him.

Alone in the dimly lit basement, Harry sat, half crouching, on the stairs, unable to make the knob turn, and too terrified to even cry. Instead, he held tightly to his knees and shivered as he strained to hear what was going on and wishing, desperately, that Hunter was with him, because Hunter meant that everything was ok.

HPHMHPHMHPHMHPHMHPHMHPHMHPHMHPHMHPHMHPHMHPHMHPHMHP

The door to the basement didn't open for a very long time, long enough for Harry to have fallen asleep. When it did open, Mandy couldn't help her cry, "Dad! It's Harry!" She called before he could ask her what was wrong. "Oh, Harry, it's all right," she said, as Harry stirred, she hurried down the stairs and laid her hand on Harry's arm as he looked up, "Hello again, Harry."

"Where Hun'er?" Harry asked.

"Your mom took him home," Mandy said, "but your Uncle Sirius are still here, looking for you."

Harry sniffled, "I wanna go home!"

"Just as soon as they get here, ok?"

"Harry!" Sirius said, appearing in the doorway, "Thank Merlin, you're all right!"

Mandy moved so that Sirius could hug the seven year old, who burst into tears at the sight of him. "Pa'foo'!" Harry managed after a moment.

"I'm here, Harry," Sirius replied, he adjusted his arms and lifted Harry as he stood up. "You're safe now. I'm going to take you home."

"Wan' Papa," Harry said, "Wan' Mommy!"

"We're going to them, Harry," Sirius replied. He looked at Mandy, "Can I use your Floo?"

"Of course, just come back up stairs," Mandy said.

"Thank you," Sirius replied. He led the way up stairs with the still crying Harry in his arms. In the back of the shop was the fireplace, and quickly Sirius was on his way back to the Potter Manor. Waiting in the living room where Lily and James, looking terrified.

"Sirius!" James said, "Harry! Where was he? We were about to start contacting Aurors."

"In the Honeydukes basement," Sirius replied. "The door jammed and nobody noticed. I brought him straight here." He knelt to let Harry go, and the moment that the boy was standing, Lily had him in a tight hug, with James on his other side.

Sirius watched them with his throat tight, and, even as he saw the signs of perfect parents worried about one of their sons, he couldn't help but remember the conversation that had taken place in the candy shop.

***Flashback***

"I'll take Hunter and go home, James, you have to find Harry," Lily said.

"No, we can't let people know that Harry is missing," James said. "It'll be more ammunition for the next trick Dumbledore tries. If we just leave, and Sirius looks, then nobody will know."

"It will look worse if we don't look," Lily argued, "If you don't think Dumbledore will find out about this, then you live in a dream world Potter."

James turned, "Back me up, Sirius, if we just leave now; while Mr. Duke holds them off, nobody will ever know that Harry isn't here. With the 'Potters' gone, you can keep looking, he can't have gone far. If you can't find him in two hours, we'll call the Aurors."

Sirius stared at James, then at Lily, and wanted to groan, but he knew that the Marauders' Code had to be obeyed. "James is right," he said, quietly, "I'll look for Harry. Go home, don't worry. Padfoot will find him."

***Flashback***

Three hours later, and it was clear that no one had made a move to call the Aurors, and from the fact that Hunter had not yet come down, Lily and James had been arguing about it. Sirius watched them, feeling helpless, until he saw a pair of green eyes looking at him through sturdy black frames. Somehow, just looking in those eyes, Sirius knew that Harry knew just how much of an act his parents were putting on. "I have to go," Sirius said, "I have to get ready for my shift."

"Thanks again, Padfoot," James said, standing and catching Sirius's hand, "I knew you could find him."

Sirius smiled, "Have I ever let you down?" He let go and turned, casting Floo powder into the flames and heading for home. As he emerged into the flat he shared with Remus, Sirius sighed, Don't worry Cub, he thought, remembering those too-wise green eyes, everything's going to work out fine.