Arashi: This is how the original author had it and going to keep it the same. Than you for this understanding. ^^ The words originally there: "I've been doing a bit of research and it has come to my attention that Sirius's mum wouldn't have died until Harry was 5 or 6 (there's a bit of a controversy if Harry was born in 1980 or 1981)… I'm kind of fixed with having Sirius take Grimmauld place as his home, so I'm going with it as I had it planned, which means that Sirius's mum would have died approx when he was going into Azkaban. Sorry if that upsets you guys, but, after all, this is AU." Still don't own Harry Potter or any of the characters of the series.

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Tom, the inkeeper, was the first to break the uncomfortable silence that had engulfed the place. He spoke as if to an old friend, and Sirius was grateful. The two had never really been close, of course, but he and James used to frequent the Leaky Cauldron and he supposed that Tom remembered him to be a good customer. "Sirius Black! Welcome back! I was wondering when you'd show up."

Sirius frowned at his last words. He wondered how many of the people here had been wondering that exact same thing. The place was overly crowded. Had some of them been frequenting her lately, hoping to catch a glimpse of him? He hoped not. Still, he noticed that nobody seemed to be an immediate danger to him- at least nobody had pulled their wands out.

With an uncomfortable sigh, he made his way to the front of the room and ordered himself a firewhisky. If he was going to be dealing with these kinds of uncomfortable silences for the rest of the day, he'd do better off with a drink in his stomach. Besides, he had to wait around to go into Diagon Alley for someone to let him in.

Usually Sirius would find a table to sit at. Then again, he wouldn't usually be alone. Up until now, he wouldn't bother to come into the Leaky Cauldron at all if he wasn't with James and Remus. Now, though… Things were different now. He took the firewhisky Tom handed him and sat at the counter. He nursed the drink in his hands as he nursed the wounds in his heart, and when he finally ventured a swig it burned going down. Three long years with nothing to drink but water had made his throat intolerable of much else, but at this point, he didn't care.

He wasn't sure how long he sat there, drinking. Eventually he noticed that conversations had started up again. It was a dull murmur in the back of his brain, one he didn't pay a lot of attention to. About the time when he finished his first drink and was about to begin another, he felt a light tap on his shoulder. He sighed, turning around, and found himself met with the sight of a tall, red haired man surrounded by seven red haired children.

"Arthur," he said, recognizing him dimly. He knew the man was a distant relative, but they had never been too close. Arthur wasn't even on the Black family tree; his grandmother had been blasted off for marrying Septimus Weasely in the first place. As such, Sirius's parents hadn't exactly taken him around Arthur as a kid. They met when they were in school, but had only barely known each other as their social groups were different.

"Molly's off visiting Muriel for the day, and I'm watching the children. Bill and Charlie both need school books," he said. Sirius wondered why the man was bothering to explain his actions for the day, but didn't question it. He just waited for Arthur to get to a point. "I figured you'd need someone to let you in to Diagon Alley."

Sirius smiled and got up from his chair, "Thanks, Arthur."

He followed the man into the alley in the back, noticing as he did that some of the younger red haired children were looking at him fearfully. It was amazing how much they had all changed since he'd gone. Molly had still been pregnant with the youngest one when he'd been taken. Now she was three years old, with large, expressive eyes, and long red hair. She was staring at him as though she'd never seen anyone quite like him before in her life. He tried to smile, but the look didn't come as easily to his face as it used to and she didn't seem to notice the effort.

"Dad?" the eldest of the Weasely boys, Bill, asked, interrupting Sirius's thoughts, "Can I go to Quality Quidditch Supplies while you take Charlie to get his wand? I swear I won't wander off!"

Arthur sighed. Bill was thirteen years old, and as such perfectly capable of looking after himself, but he had really been counting on having his help taking care of the younger kids. Keeping track of seven kids was a handful enough at the house with Molly around to help. Alone and in public, he was already waiting for disaster to happen. Take away his best babysitter and he was doomed. "I really need help taking care of your siblings today, Bill."

"I'll take a couple with me," Bill replied, as if it was the most obvious solution. He eyed his siblings up and down, as if determining which of them would be best behaved. "I'll take Ron with me. Ron and Ginny, if you like."

"If either of them get into trouble on your watch, your mother will have both of our hides," Arthur said tiredly, but it was clear that he was relenting.

"Aw, c'mon, Dad. They won't be a problem," Bill said, rolling his eyes. He turned to the youngest of his siblings. "If I take you away from the stuffy, boring wand shop and bring you to the cool Quidditch shop, you'll behave, won't you?"

The two children nodded eagerly, and with a sigh, Arthur gave in. Bill gave a whoop of delight and Sirius found himself laughing. Funny how nice it was just to see normal family reactions again. He had missed such things through the years. Arthur looked up, as though just remembering that Sirius was there, and he gave a sheepish grin before tapping the brick that opened the entrance to Diagon Alley. "Sorry if I held you up."

"Not at all," Sirius replied pleasantly. He paused before saying the other thing that was on his mind. "I just got custody of Harry. James's son, Harry. I plan on bringing him home some time next week. I have to say, though, that I'm a bit nervous about how he's going to adjust. It might help if he had some friends to play with. What would you say to bringing your boys over some time?"

Arthur smiled at the offer. He didn't have long to think, though, as his children seemed anxious to be off. Being tugged on one hand by the twins who wanted to see a display on dungbombs and on the other by Charlie who was excited to get his wand, he gave Sirius an apologetic look because he couldn't talk. "I'll discuss it with Molly and send you an owl."

Sirius nodded and watched as Arthur was dragged away by his children. He smiled to himself. The everyday encounter had done a great deal to improve his mood after his less than cheerful welcome into the Leaky Cauldron, and he made his way to Gringotts with a lighter step. He hoped that Molly wouldn't mind if her sons went on a play date with Harry. The Weasleys were a decent family, and having them befriend Harry would be a load off of his mind.

By the end of the day, Sirius was realizing how long it would really take him to get everything he needed. Maybe he would need to delay picking up Harry for a couple of weeks, he thought ponderously. He cast the thought aside, figuring that he'd discuss the matter with the Dursleys on the following morning. For now, he had a new wand, new robes, and basic supplies for his house. Perhaps he'd send Kreacher out to collect some more things for him tomorrow…

He couldn't wait to get to Remus's and get some grub, so he apparated to Grimmauld place for a quick shower and a change of clothes. Outside his childhood home, he paused. He hadn't been here since he was a teenager, and his memories from that point hadn't been pleasant ones. He wondered if the house was still as gloomy as it had been. Probably. It wasn't like Kreacher was apt to change it. He was too devout to Sirius's parents for that.

Taking a breath, he stepped inside. The place was a total wreck. It looked as though Kreacher hadn't bothered to clean up once since Sirius's mum had passed away. Dust covered the house from head to foot. Cobwebs decorated the ceiling. Sirius shuddered. He had been prepared for the house to be as dark and dismal as it had been in his childhood. He hadn't reckoned on it being worse. He wanted to talk to Kreacher, to scold him for allowing the house to go to ruins, but he was already running behind. Kreacher would have to wait.

After a quick shower and shave, Sirius put his new wand to use and gave himself a haircut. Now his black hair, which had hung past his elbows, was at a decent length. It wasn't too short, of course, but it was short enough that Sirius figured he wouldn't scare Harry when he went to see him in the morning. With that, Sirius apparated to Lupin's house.

Dinner was brilliant. Sirius hadn't had a decent meal in three years, for even after his release his meals had been on the go as he went from one hearing to another. He ate his steak with relish, listening as Remus told him of all that had transpired since he had been taken to Azkaban. Sirius had picked up some of the basics- his mother's death, for instance- from Ministry officials. Other news had yet to reach him, and he knew that he could have spent the whole night allowing Remus to catch him up. Certainly it felt good to just talk with his old friend.

Around midnight, though, Sirius knew he had to be getting home. He planned to see Harry tomorrow, and as Harry wouldn't remember the man from when he was a baby, Sirius wanted to make a good first impression. Lupin seemed to realize Sirius's thoughts, for he stopped talking and stood up. Sirius wasn't surprised. They had been friends for so long that it seemed natural for Lupin to be privy to Sirius's thoughts.

"It's been great talking to you, Moony," Sirius said. It seemed a shame to depart when they hadn't seen each other in so long, but he really did need to get home.

"Of course, Padfoot. Any time."

The next morning, Sirius was up at the crack of dawn. He hadn't slept well the night before, as his mattress seemed to be infested with all sorts of weird bugs. He would definitely be talking to Kreacher this afternoon. As it was, he charmed them away but couldn't bring himself to lie back down. Instead, he paced around the household, anxious to get going.

By nine o'clock, Sirius couldn't stand waiting any longer. He figured that the muggles had to be up at this point. If not, well, he'd get them up. He had waited for three years to see his godson, and it was killing him enough to know that he wouldn't bring the boy home today. That wouldn't be fair to anyone, he knew, so he would be giving Harry and the Dursleys some time to say goodbye. It didn't mean that he was going to put off seeing the boy, though.

He apparated to Surrey and walked to the respectable muggle neighborhood in which he knew that the Dursleys resided. He felt strange, dressed in prim and proper muggle clothes, walking down the neat and tidy muggle street. It was unnatural. He put up with it, though, having been warned by Dumbledore that the Dursleys wouldn't think kindly of him if he messed up their reputation in their muggle neighborhood.

Sirius paused outside the door to number four, Privet Drive. He was intending to take a breath, but then he heard shouting. He frowned and wondered if he should come back later. It probably wasn't a good idea for him to show up telling the Dursleys he'd be taking Harry away from them if they were already in a bad mood. When he heard the words, though, he was singing a different tune.

"-filthy rotten freak! Look at the awful job you did with the floor. You've been slacking off on your chores all week. I ought to tan your hide!"

"Sorry, Uncle Vernon… I didn't mean to."

The second voice had called the first man uncle. That could only be Harry. Sirius felt his blood begin to boil. There was no way in hell that he was going to let anyone talk to his godson like that! The door slammed open and he stepped in, wand raised as he made his way to the voices.

The site he was met with stopped him cold. Vernon, who he recognized from Lilly and James's wedding, was standing with his back to Sirius. His hand was clasped around the overly large grey shirt of a young boy, and was thus pinning him against the wall. Sirius's eyes were wide as saucers at the site, knowing that the young boy could only be Harry.

The boy was a filthy mass of dirt and grime. He was thin and sickly looking, his green eyes sunken, his hair matted to his head with grease. His skin was pale, as though he had never seen the light of day. The clothes he wore were three sizes too large for him and only served to make him look thinner as they draped over the bare bones of his body, and they had been clearly worn by the boy so much that by now they were mere rags. The thing that really sent Sirius over the edge, though, was that he seemed to be covered from head to foot in gashes and bruises.

"What in Merlin's name do you think you're doing!" he roared, his wand pointed menacingly at Vernon Dursley.

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Arashi: please read and review. ^^