The Black Sheep

by AutumnSkiesAreBlue

Sirius' world is in turmoil. He's being hounded by Voldemort and his followers determined that he will eventually join them. He's betrayed his closest friends in the worst way possible and now his parents think he's returning to them. No, he will not let them force their ideas onto him. Even after the beat him to within an inch of his life. - Willow Incident/Leaving Home Story.

6. Wands and Wounds

Chapter 6 – Wands and Wounds

Sirius' hand slipped off the doorframe as he passed it, causing him to stumble and then fall face first towards the concrete pavement.

Once again, instinct and magic saved him as he automatically transformed into Padfoot whose front paws stopped him mid fall. At least in this form, half of Sirius' legs could fully function. The only problem was, he didn't know where to make them take him.

~#~

Stumbling blindly down the road, Sirius tried to force his brain to function. He could hardly think beyond the pain, with every move he could feel his joints grinding together. His back legs were particularly painful. While he knew he had to get somewhere quick, he could not for the life of him think where he could go.

Curling up into a ball next to a collection of bins, Padfoot tried to think through his options. He knew he needed a hospital, but the healers would surely question his injuries and would probably contact his parents due to his age.

Before this summer, he would be most inclined to go to James' as his friend would not hesitate in getting him help and providing sanctuary. And if he couldn't get to James for any reason he would have gone to Remus' as his parents were incredibly accommodating to all of their son's friends. Somehow, Sirius didn't think they'd be so accommodating now.

Sirius thought desperately, he could no longer turn to his friends as he always thought he would be able to should this situation occur. He had betrayed them and in doing so had cut off his only remaining lifeline when he walked out on his family.

But not all of his family. The thought hit Sirius like a bolt of lightning. His uncle Alphard said he would be back in the country by last week. While Alphard was no healer, he cared about Sirius and privately believed the same things the young boy did.

Then a second though hit him as the world around him lit up once more: Alphard hadn't owled him to say that he was back even though he said he would. But he should have been back nearly a week ago and would surely have arrived home by now.

Sirius was desperate and Alphard was the only person he could think of going to. And he didn't live too far away which was always a benefit when one was in the state that Sirius was.

Stumbling back to his feet, Padfoot whined in agony as pain shot through his back legs and his torso almost failed to support his front legs. Staggering back the way he came, Sirius made his clumsy way to Vespan Road, Shepherd's Bush, drawing shallow, shuddery breaths and leaving droplets of blood in his wake.

~#~

The storm passed in the early hours of the morning, allowing a bright sunrise to force its way through the London smog.

It wasn't long after that the usual bustle of London began to start once more for the day with muggles leaving their homes and heading off to work in the City.

While the journey from Grimmauld Place to Vespan road was not a long one, only ten miles, Sirius had not made it all the way.

He was however only two roads away, slumped (as a human) against a set of iron railings and bleeding steadily onto the dark tarmac below. Thankfully muggles only ever saw what they wanted to see and no one wants to see a badly beaten, almost dead teenager when they're on their way to work. Perhaps they saw him as a middle aged drunk, a little worse for wear after a heavy night. But what is certain is that none paid any mind to Sirius, all leaving him at the side of the road until around ten past eight that same morning.

~#~

Moving carefully around his unpacked bags, Alphard Black stretched out his arms before unlocking his front door and stepping out into the bright morning.

He knew he should be resting, cross-continent apparition was incredibly tiring and potentially damaging to one's magic, but he had missed London while he was off on his travels. It had a certain charm to it, he thought. Many could not see past the smog and the cars bundling up and down the busy roads but Alphard loved the way the city sprung to life in the mornings and settled down to a steady hum in the evenings.

A brief walk could only do him good, Alphard reasoned, and so he stepped off his front porch and headed West.

The last thing he expected to find on his morning walk was his nephew, in a state of unconsciousness and collapsed at the side of the road.

Extending his stride slightly so as not to raise alarm, Alphard hurried over to the boy and crouched at his side. While Sirius had looked fairly horrific from a distance, up close the boy looked as though he'd been trampled by a horde of angry centaurs chasing an intruding ministry representative.

'Rennervate,' Alphard muttered, concealing his wand up his sleeve.

Sirius gasped into life, violently coughing up blood before his skin turned even whiter and his eyes rolled backwards and he sunk into unconsciousness once more.

'Shit.' Alphard was scared and he wasn't afraid to admit it. The young man in front of him looked on the point of death, especially if he factored in the haste with which unconsciousness took him so soon after being revived.

He looked around him briefly, glad to note that none of the muggles were paying him any attention, before casting a quick disillusionment charm and levitating his nephew back up the road and to the relative safety of Vespan road.

~#~

Alphard carefully laid Sirius on the bed in his second bedroom before sprinting back downstairs to his library.

While smaller than the one at Grimmauld Place, the library at Vespan Road was far more homely. The only books it contained were ones that were either useful to have in a household or relevant to his travels.

Thus, it was far easier for the owner to locate the small selection of healing books that he owned. Grabbing all of them and bounding back up the stairs, Alphard tripped slightly on one of his many unpacked bags.

Once back in the second bedroom, he spread the gathered books across the other side of the large bed and flicked through the nearest at hand for a standard diagnostic spell.

Alphard could feel the panic rising in him as his eyes flicked down the contents and his mind noticed the sheets turning red in the corners of his vision.

Running back round to the other side of the bed, Alphard drew his wand once more before raking his right hand over his face, with anguish in his eyes.

He'd never been any good at healing magic and he'd never really had cause to practice it. Now though, he would have to try for the crumpled and broken boy laying on his once pristine silk sheets.

'Quid enim mali est vibscum.' He had no idea what the spell was meant to do when it was cast but something was surely likely to happen. When he didn't feel the tingle of magic run through his favoured left hand he reasoned that he must have done something wrong.

He repeated the spell again, this time annunciating as clearly as his tutor had taught him. The sudden rush of information to his brain was crippling. He sunk to his knees as he painstakingly sought through the heap of information the spell had provided him. The louder the phrases were screamed in his mind the more urgent they were, the only problem was that his skull seemed to be full of screaming.

The one that stood out the most however, was 'blood loss.' The diagnostic charm had screamed those two words so loudly that Alphard jumped back to his feet.

Blood pounding in his own head, he ran back down the stairs. At least this he could do fairly soundly. While he was no good at healing charms, Alphard Black had always excelled at potions and a blood replenisher would only take two minutes to make.

He grabbed the largest cauldron he could find and hastily threw the ingredients into it before clambering up the stairs again. Here he had to stop to catch his breath as the full force of his fatigue hit him. He had been on the go for days almost non-stop and had used a great deal of magic in that time.

But he couldn't stop just now. Potions didn't require active magic and thus wouldn't drain him too much more.

Setting down the cauldron next to Sirius' bed, Alphard commenced the ritual of creating the blood replenisher. The process calmed him a little and allowed him to think more clearly of what he had to do.

He really ought to have taken Sirius straight to St. Mungo's but if the boy had come to him instead of returning to his parents then he must have had another argument with them. The healers at St. Mungo's would just firecall his parents and that could make matters worse. That and he didn't know who had done this to his nephew, his gut instinct told him it had to be dark wizards, probably these Death Eaters that had been running about recently.

No, Alphard reasoned. He would not take Sirius to the healers unless he couldn't revive the boy himself or his condition got worse. He gave himself 24 hours to do his best.

~#~

Three hours, four different potions and six spells later, Alphard collapsed back on the old chair he had dragged into the room earlier. He was utterly exhausted but when he repeated the diagnostic charm, there was no more screaming in his skull. Sirius was on the mend.

But there was one more thing Alphard wanted to do before he'd let himself rest.

Leaning forward in the chair, he retrieved his wand from the bedside table and said 'rennervate.'

Sirius' eyelids blinked automatically before a wretched groan forced its way between his lips. Automatically he tried to sit up but a firm hand on his shoulder kept him where he was. His eyes turned wild, searching instinctively for the other man present. When finally his gaze settled on his uncle, Sirius' breathing began to calm and the adrenaline began to fade.

'Why do I hurt?' Sirius groaned as Alphard released his shoulder and slumped back into the chair.

'I was hoping you would tell me. I found you down the road, barely breathing.'

Sirius grimaced at the mental image. His mind steadily began to kick into gear and the events of the past night started to whirl behind his bleary eyes.

Clenching his eyes shut to try and clear the images, they didn't go completely but they at least faded to the background.

'So what happened Sirius? It looked as though you had been attacked.' Alphard's voice was full of concern yet tainted with exhaustion.

Sirius tried to shrug before pain roared through him and he couldn't contain the gasp. Regardless, he tried to smile at his uncle.

'Enough about me. What happened to you, you look like you walked back from wherever it was you were?'

Alphard didn't respond in words. The reprimanding glare sent towards his nephew spoke for him and made the boy flinch again as he realised he wouldn't be able to divert his uncle's attention.

'Errr, do I really have to talk about it?' Sirius replied unsteadily.

'Well, not really. But I would like to know who tried to tear by nephew in two.'

'I don't think you'd like the answer.'

'It wasn't your parents? My sister?' Alphard sounded aghast.

Sirius' eyes took on a pained look as he managed a short nod before his neck cramped up.

'Can you excuse me for a minute?' Alphard didn't wait for a reply as he shoved himself roughly out of his chair and stumbled towards the door. Sirius could hear the uncharacteristic thumping of footsteps and then the shutting of the bathroom door at the end of the hall.

For however hard he tried, Sirius couldn't keep his eyes open much longer. He hurt like he could never imagine, every time he moved pain flared up in another area of his body.

In the seconds before his eyelids closed altogether, Sirius tried hard not to dwell on the cause of his injuries.

Just as he was drifting off into a fitful but natural sleep, Alphard returned to his nephew's bedside, looking considerably greener than when he'd left. He glanced at the tall boy habiting his spare bed, noticing how much calmer his face looked when it wasn't wrought with pain. He cast a quick scourgify on the bed and sheets and conjured a blanket and laid it gently over his body before casting a charm that would alert him the moment Sirius stirred. He stumbled back across the hall and lowered himself onto his bed. He was asleep the second his head hit the pillow.

~#~

Sirius woke slowly, unsure as to what it was that caused him to stir. Blinking blearily at the ceiling above him, it took several seconds to ascertain exactly where he was. He knew he was not in his own bed; the mattress did not feel as though it was oft used and the soft glow peaking in through the window lit the room far more effectively than it did at Grimmauld Place.

Unfortunately the memories returned with a jolt as soon as Sirius tried to raise his head from the pillow. The movement sent a shooting pain through every muscle in his upper body. The pain was so intense that he suddenly felt nauseous and had to force himself to roll sideways so as not to mess the bedding with his bile. All too soon did Sirius remember the events leading up to his current residence.

Looking up from the mess on the floor, Sirius saw his uncle pause in the doorway and survey him with a pitying look. Embarrassment flooded the boy immediately. He had come here out of desperation and now felt as though he was abusing the kindness bestowed upon him by his favourite relative.

Before he could ponder further on his own feelings, he felt two firm hands on either shoulder gently ease him back onto the bed. Wrinkling his nose against the smell, Alphard cast a quick vanishing charm at the pool of vomit on the floor before sitting himself down on the chair next to his nephew.

'How do you feel?' He asked gently.

'Shit.' Sirius replied, screwing his eyes up against the pain.

While usually Alphard would admonish such language from his nephew in an attempt to be a good role model, this time he let it pass. 'You will have to be more specific I am afraid.'

Staring up at the ceiling, Sirius tried to work out just what it was that made him hurt.

'I can't feel anything below my right knee and everything above it feels like it's on fire. My chest hurts like I've got a troll sat on it and I can barely breathe. Oh, and I'm dizzy.' He also felt as though he needed to cough but didn't dare try it for fear of causing himself more pain.

Not liking the sound of Sirius' self-diagnosis, Alphard turned to the bedside table and collected two phials, one a pain reliever and the other a blood replenisher – the dizziness may be because of blood loss but either way, it wouldn't hurt the boy to have the potion.

Trying to feed Sirius the potions was much harder when he was conscious. Even the slightest movement sent excruciating pain arching through every inch of his body. When he had finally managed to swallow them both, they heard a gentle tapping on the bedroom window.

Alphard's head jerked up, he was not expecting post.

Recent events in the wizarding world had forced the older man to become far more cautious. His immediate thoughts were that this was either an owl from his sister and cousin demanding the return of their son, or a letter from the Dark Lord demanding an answer to his proposition. Neither boded well.

Flicking his wand to unlatch the window, Alphard shifted slightly expecting the bird to aim towards him. Instead it landed gently on the empty half of the bed and stuck its leg out expectantly at Sirius.

'It's a Hogwarts letter.' Sirius spoke and Alphard did not realise he was holding his breath until he released it. 'Can you get it for me? I can't reach.'

He nodded and moved around the bed so as not to lean over his nephew and cause him unnecessary pain. 'Do you want to read it or shall I read it to you?'

'Ah, well it's probably much the same as last years. You can read it.'

Sitting back down in the wooden chair, Alphard flipped open the envelope and pulled out the parchment within as the owl took flight once more.

'Dear Mr Black, we are writing to inform you that the school term will begin- and so forth with the usual nonsense- please find enclosed your O.W.L. results and the supply list for all available classes. Oh I forgot you get your results now. Are you sure you still want me to read it?'

Sirius just waved a hand at him to continue.

'Right so: O's in Transfiguration, Charms, Potions, Defence and Muggle Studies. E's in Care of Magical Creatures and Astronomy. A's in Herbology and History of Magic. Wow, that's really good Sirius, I am jealous, I only got two O's.'

Sirius tried to smile in reply but it just turned into a painful grimace.

'So what are you taking to N.E.W.T. then?' Alphard said with a proud smile plastered over his face.

'Uh, probably the ones I got O's in.'

'We will have to see when we can make it to Diagon Alley and get your books before the first.'

Looking up from the letter, Alphard just caught the pained look that passed through Sirius' eyes. Something told Alphard that this wasn't caused by any physical pain.

'What is it lad?' He asked gently.

'They- She broke my wand before I left.' Sirius replied, not making eye-contact.

'Nothing to worry about, we will get it all sorted.' Nothing seemed to be able to shake Alphard's good mood that arrived with Sirius' exam results.

'Nothing to worry about! Alphard if I've not got a wand then I'm not a wizard, I'm nothing.' The effort it took to expel these words seemed to have drained Sirius of what little energy had returned to him as he grimaced again and appeared to fold back into the mattress with pain.

'Don't you ever say things like that in my presence again Sirius. I thought you knew better than to spurt out our family's hideous notions of the world.' The power with which the man delivered these words forced Sirius out of his self-pitying world of pain long enough to look up at his uncle. 'And regardless of whether or not you have a wand, you are still a wizard.

'Besides, I told you we would get it sorted. When we go to Diagon Alley to get your books, we will stop by Ollivander's. But we will have to wait a while yet. You can hardly breathe, you're not yet up to the ordeal of choosing a new wand. When you're a little better I'll apparate us to the shop and then straight back. I don't want you out in public in your condition for too long. Certainly not in the current climate.' By the time he had finished, both Alphard and Sirius looked and felt much calmer.

"Current climate?" Sirius coughed. He knew what his uncle meant but he wanted to move the conversation on and away from his own feelings of guilt and failure.

'There are dark wizards about Sirius, and I don't trust them. They'd do what our darling relatives did to you all over again. They certainly wouldn't help us.' It seemed Alphard's happy mood had been well and truly extinguished.

'Now, how do you feel about a little breakfast?' He said with a forced smile.

~#~

The next four days passed slowly, with Sirius getting steadily more restless being confined to bed rest. Twice a day Alphard performed the diagnostic charms and asked Sirius how he felt, and steadily, it appeared that he was on the mend.

Alphard did not leave his nephew's bedside, instead bringing his work into the room. It was this, and only this, that kept Sirius sane; he had never been known as one who could sit still.

Just because he wasn't jumping up and down in frustration did not mean that Sirius wasn't bored. He let out a great huff before carefully shifting himself on the bed. He could sit upright now but he was still in a great deal of pain.

'What are you doing now?' Sirius asked for perhaps the fifth time that morning.

'Writing.' Alphard replied, now entirely regretting his choice to keep his nephew company.

Sirius tilted his head to try and read the parchment, it was at this point that something else caught his eye.

'I didn't know you were left-handed. You've never been left-handed before.'

The older man laid down his quill and turned his chair to face the other. 'That, Sirius, is because only the low-born and the malformed are left-handed.'

Sirius huffed a quiet laugh, regretting it the instant he did and pain rocked through his torso. Alphard caught the wince cross his nephew's face and leant forward in his chair, desperate to do something more to help him.

But Alphard was no healer and he'd already done the best he could.

''M alright.' Sirius mumbled, though he was still breathing deeply. He sought quickly for another topic of conversation that would distract his uncle, 'You never did tell me where you disappeared off to for three months?'

Alphard raised his eyebrows, clearly not distracted in the least. 'I was in South America, Western Peru to be exact. The wizards there are fascinating. Far more integrated with the muggle world than we are. And far less judgemental. So now I'm writing to a man I met when I was over there, a couple of additions I thought of for his research.'

This it seemed, was a perfectly adequate topic to engage the pair of them for the rest of the day. Sirius seemed most interested in the Transfiguration research the Peruvian wizard was working on and Alphard more interested in explaining the culture, but they managed to distract each other suitably until it was time for dinner.

'Sometimes I think I really ought to invest in a house elf you know. Somebody to do the cooking for me. But then I remember the ones we had when I was young, nasty little things all of them. None quite as bad as Kreacher but I think my father was a bad influence on them. The mere memory is enough for me to endure my bad cooking.'

So it was over a rather lumpy and congealed bowl of pasta that Alphard suggested checking Sirius' injuries, namely his leg injuries. Thus, once the bowls of barely stomached dinner had been pushed aside, Alphard moved towards the bed that Sirius had not once vacated during his stay, and carefully manoeuvred his nephew towards the edge.

Sirius gently levered himself forward, aware that the other man was standing ready to catch him should he fall. It felt odd moving again, he hadn't moved so much in several days and the pain had caused him to cramp up. As his feet made contact with the floor, pain shot through every ligament he knew existed and some he was just learning about. It was painful yes, but it was not quite unendurable. Still, he could not hide the agony on his face.

'Sit back down Sirius, you are clearly not mended well enough for this yet.'

''M alright. 'S not so bad really.' Sirius grunted out through gritted teeth. Alphard returned his words with a dubious looked that the younger man could not see.

He had managed to shuffle forward several steps before finally letting out a breath. Unfortunately, he'd held it for so long that this caused his barely repaired ribs to shift uncomfortably. With a groan, he shuffled back to the bed and scarcely managed to prevent himself from just falling onto it.

When he was sat comfortably against the headrest again, he turned to his uncle and said: 'next time I complain about wanting to move, remind me of this.'

Alphard laughed, 'And there was me, thinking you were ready to fly for the Tornados.' Sirius chuckled. 'Maybe we'll give it another go before bed, see if the pain reliever potions help. Then maybe we can try Diagon Alley tomorrow?'

Sirius grinned. He'd be getting a new wand. Despite his uncle's words, Sirius did not feel like a wizard without one, and with everything that had happened recently he also felt unprotected.

'Yeah, that'd be good.'

~#~

Hence, the following morning found Sirius perched awkwardly on the end of his over-inhabited bed in a pair of resized borrowed robes. He found it was easier to stand today that it was previously. Most of the cramps had eased and the nagging ache from his relocated hip had mostly gone. There was no hiding the painful limp from his knee however and his ribs still burned with every breath.

Glancing in the mirror to make sure he looked respectable, Sirius saw for the first time just why his uncle winced every time he laid eyes upon him. The gash across his face was still pink and might not be fully faded in time for Hogwarts, he had large bags under his eyes and he looked gaunt. It was hard to hide the pain he had suffered and the emotional trauma he had endured for even longer; still the thoughts of his former friends never ceased to cross his mind. He had not raised the issue with Alphard again: he did not want to be judged for his cowardice in dealing with the issue. His uncle had suggested he explain himself to them, to try and find the words for why he did what he did – but that was the problem, Sirius had never been good with words and now was even worse than usual.

Sirius had not realised he was brooding until Alphard opened the door and said jokingly, 'I knew you were vain but I did not realise you were able to lose yourself in your own image.' He grinned.

The younger man turned, forcing a smile onto his face and trying to expel his darker thoughts.

'Are we ready to go then?' Sirius asked.

'If you are done staring into those deep grey eyes of yours, then yes.' Alphard winked as he moved aside to let a chuckling Sirius into the hallway beyond.

The stairs were a struggle but at least there was only a single floor to manoeuvre rather than the four of Grimmauld Place. Alphard descended first, prepared to catch his nephew should he knee give out or his breathing become too laboured. Eventually they made it to the small back garden of the property and they did so with relative ease and few sharp intakes of breath.

Apparating however, presented an entirely new challenge. It was the best form of travel available to them; flooing would churn even a healthy man's stomach but then there was landing to consider – Sirius' knee would not be able to take the sudden impact which would cause him to fall, potentially damaging his torso even further, flying would be excessively inappropriate and while they were close enough to walk, there was no way Sirius would make it.

Thus, they were left with apparating which still put far too much pressure on his ribs for comfort but the journey time was considerably shorter.

Sirius staggered the minute he felt his feel connect with the cobblestones of Diagon Alley.

Thankfully, Alphard had the foresight to apparate them to the nearest authorised spot to Ollivander's so Sirius would not have to walk far. You used to be able to apparate anywhere in the street but a spate of recent attacks had forced the Ministry to tighten security. Still, that didn't stop the pre-term shoppers or even those out for a casual stroll, the world would have to become much darker for these people to get more cautious.

'Right, now I think this will be quicker and easier for you if we split up. I have got your booklist and we can get your robes fitted at home. So you just need to get your wand which, obviously, you will have to get yourself.' Alphard said as the pair exited the small side alley and turned towards the ancient wand shop. 'How much are wands these days anyway?'

'Seven galleons, the same as they've always been. How old are you?' Sirius joked.

'Watch it.' Alphard said with a glimmer of laughter in his eyes. He knew his nephew was getting better when he started making jokes. 'It is just with the prices of everything else going up, you never know. Right, you go in there and I'll be as quick as I can in Flourish and Blotts. Please do not leave the shop until I am back, I still do not trust people around here.'

Alphard passed his nephew the gold and waited until he had entered the shop before turning back down the road and heading for the book shop. He tried hard to look calm but to any curious onlooker, his swift pace hinted at the tension within.

~#~

The bell above the door tinkled as he entered the dusty shop. He never thought that he'd ever need another wand after his first. But here he was, stood in the centre of the room as Ollivander's ladder snapped against the edge of the shelf marking the owner's entrance, dramatic but the same as it ever was.

'Ah, Mr Black. I did not think I'd see you back in here until you had children of your own. I thought that after your brother, there would be no one else of your line. Very well, who would I be serving then?'

'Er, me.' Sirius didn't know what to say and the frown that briefly crossed the older man's forehead easily highlighted his surprise.

'Oh dear, what happened to your wand – red oak and dragon heartstring, thirteen inches was it not?'

'It snapped, so I need another one.' The words were embarrassing to utter aloud. Everyone knew that it was a poor wizard that let his wand be damaged.

'Of course, of course. Accidents happen after all. Now let me just get you measured up, you will have grown since last you were in here.' Even Sirius could tell that the old man's cheer was forced and this did nothing to raise his mood.

After the tape measure had flitted over every inch of his body, most he thought completely irrelevant to his wand, Mr Ollivander scurried back behind the desk and began building a pile of potential wands.

Each time Sirius removed one from its box, various mishaps would occur before he'd even waved the damn thing. The last, cherry with a dragon heartstring core, sent fiery pain shooting up his arm and even left blisters in his palm.

Eventually however, the wand-maker returned with a dark wand that he declared to be made of a combination of red oak and phoenix feather, his entire body filled with warmth and the ache in his ribs seemed to lessen for a while.

'Ah, there we are. A perfect match, if I do say so myself.' Ollivander said, twisting himself around the small pile of discarded wands to shake Sirius' hand. 'I assume you're happy with it?'

'Yeah.' He replied softly, not taking his eyes off his new wand. It seemed to fit him better than his last one, he thought, though perhaps that was just the lasting feeling of the wand bonding process.

'Good, good. That'll be seven galleons then please. Would you be wanting to keep the box?'

Sirius shook his head as he passed over the required gold, tucking his new wand into his borrowed robes.

Ollivander disappeared behind the shelves as Sirius pushed open the door, only just remembering that his uncle had asked him to wait inside. Sirius didn't often do as he was told, but this time he felt he owed it to the man who brought him back to his home and fix him up.

Still, it was dreadfully boring waiting around on the front steps of the wand shop. Twice he had to move out of the way to let someone in. He was just thinking about wandering slightly further when he caught sight of Alphard, walking steadily up the road with several books clasped under his arm.

'All done? I came by earlier once I had got your books but you were still going so I went for a wander. You were not waiting long, were you?'

'No, it's fine. What are we doing now, heading back?' For however much he loved his uncle, Sirius really didn't want to go back yet, he just wanted to do something that wasn't sitting around all day.

'I thought maybe we could have lunch at the Ghouls' Nook, it is closer than the Leaky Cauldron and quite frankly, the food is better.'

Sirius was relieved. 'Sounds like a plan. Besides, I've not been there before.'

It turned out that the Ghouls' Nook was just as dingy as the pub at the entrance to the alley but it had the advantage of being far less busy with absolutely no through-traffic. And while the food at the other pub always had a rushed quality to it, the food in the 'Nook was rich and plentiful. And yet, the visit went far too quickly for Sirius' liking and he was soon grasping his uncle's shoulder as they span back to Vespan road.

~#~

The following three days passed smoothly enough. Sirius was now well enough to inhabit other rooms of the house but his knee still couldn't really handle the stairs.

Sitting in the living room the night before the first of September, Sirius found that he couldn't focus the Wireless programme he was supposed to be listening to. Instead his mind kept wandering to what he'd be doing tomorrow and who he'd have to face.

He'd tried not to think about it too much over the holidays and over the last week he'd been distracted by his injuries. But now it hit him full force all over again and it had him distracted.

This didn't go unnoticed either. Alphard had just finished washing the dinner pots in the kitchen when he returned to the front room. It didn't take him at all long to notice his nephew's attention was far from the international quidditch game between Gorodok Gargoyles and Haileybury Hammers on the wireless.

He sat down on the chair opposite and cleared his throat. 'What's wrong? You should be happy what with heading back to school tomorrow.'

Sirius sighed, 'yeah…'

'Do not tell me you are still worried about your friends? I thought you had sorted this by now.'

'I tried, but I'm not good with words.'

'You did perfectly well with me. Surely writing to your friends is no more difficult?'

'But it is though. I didn't realise I'd told you till I'd already done it.' Sirius tried his best to force the pained emotion out of his voice but his desperation was still obvious. His friends meant the world to him and he had ruined their friendship with just a handful of words.

'It will be fine Sirius, you just have to tell them what happened from the beginning. You'll see.' He stretched out his legs before standing again. 'Anyway, I am heading up to bed. Make sure you actually sleep, you hear me? And I'll see you in the morning.' With that, he stood and left the room.

Sirius heard his footsteps echo away up the stairs before turning back to the game and trying once more to lose himself in it.

Sirius finally managed to doze off in the early hours of the morning, still sat in the chair in the living room.

~#~

He jolted awake with the sound of Alphard's feet on the steps at nine o'clock the following morning.

'Don't tell me you slept in the chair?' Alphard asked incredulously.

Sirius laughed sheepishly. 'Must have dozed off. What time are we leaving?'

'Oh, I was thinking we would get there early, avoid the rush and all that. Maybe leave about ten?'

'Sure, I didn't really fancy the idea of forcing my way through a load of parents anyway.'

And so, as they sat down to breakfast it was decided that they'd apparate again to avoid Sirius expending too much energy. He wasn't thrilled with the idea. True, he knew his ribs were still a bit dodgy and his knee forced him to limp awkwardly, but he didn't like the idea of changing his life over a few injuries. But still, he'd surrendered to the idea when he realised it meant he'd get a compartment to himself and he wouldn't have to face anybody he didn't want to.

Thus he found himself with an old rucksack over his shoulder (he needed something to take his new things in and his trunk ought to still be in his dormitory at Hogwarts) and limping through the barrier between platforms nine and ten at Kings Cross.

There was not a single person on the platform except for the conductor and the driver who were sitting on a bench next to the front of the great scarlet engine that dominated the platform.

At the sight of the two new arrivals, the conductor hastily stamped out his cigarette and drained the last of his coffee before standing importantly next to the drivers' door.

Alphard nodded in their direction before walking Sirius onto the train to find a suitable compartment. Obviously though, at this time of the morning all the carriages were empty.

Once he had found a compartment far enough from his friends' usual one, Sirius turned to his uncle, trying to work out how to say thank you for everything that had happened in the last week or so.

Fortunately, Alphard got there first. 'Don't mention it lad. You deserve some kindness in your life at the minute. Anyway, I have got you something.' He reached into a pocket of his robes and resized the small square object he retrieved.

Once it was back to its original size, Sirius saw immediately that it was a record. After it was passed over he read its title. His heart gave a small flutter, it was the latest album by Uriah Heep, a muggle band he'd been into since he'd first overheard one of their songs six years ago.

'You didn't have to get me anything.' Sirius said, still captivated by the album cover. His uncle had bought him a record player several years ago for his birthday and he treasured it more than even his broomstick.

'Call it an early birthday present. I picked it up when we were in Diagon Alley, did you know there is a muggle record shop next to the Leaky Cauldron?' Alphard was beaming. It was their shared interest in all things muggle that had drawn the two together in the first place and while the music wasn't really his favourite, Alphard knew that Sirius was enthralled with it.

'Anyway, I should really get going, I have a meeting with a Latvian witch at eleven-thirty and I have no idea where I am supposed to be going.' With a cheerful wave, he shut the compartment door, leaving Sirius to continue staring at his new album, too scared of breaking it to put it in his bag.

It wasn't long before the platform beyond the train window began to fill with excited children and teary parents. Sirius turned his back on the window, not wanting to see the emotions beyond. Propping his still injured knee up on the chair next to him, Sirius waited impatiently for the train to chug away from the platform and carry him away to the inevitable doom of people staring at his injuries and his former friends avoiding him at every available moment.

A/N: I would apologise profusely if I thought it'd update this story any quicker. Besides, you've heard enough of them by now. I'll only say that at times I wasn't really in the right headspace for rebuilding Sirius. But I will promise that this story will be finished, there's only going to be one, maybe two more chapters anyway but they will be finished. So I'm going to shut up now and start writing the next instalment.