Parallel Lives
by blackrhino
Chapter 2
This universe
Sirius followed Albus through the shadows around the Potter's house, just in case anyone was watching.
They stopped behind a bush and Albus passed Harry to Sirius. Sirius opened his mouth to ask the headmaster where they were going but Albus put his finger to his lips.
Albus brought out his wand and a golden galleon. He whispered portus and the coin glowed momentarily.
Sirius placed a finger on the coin and the portkey activated.
They were finally back in the safety of Hogwarts.
Sirius staggered into the main hall and slumped down on one of the benches. He sobbed loudly and held onto Harry tightly, as if any minute he would disappear.
Meanwhile, Albus cast his misty patronus with a message for all his staff members to wake up. A few minutes later, various professors raced down to the entrance hall.
"Albus, what's happened? What's wrong?" worriedly questioned Minerva. The others stayed quiet, fearful of the answer.
A stray tear slid down Albus' cheek. "The Potters. Lily and James are… Dead. Voldemort attacked them."
"Lily and… Oh God. No… Albus, it can't be true! But… Sirius! He betrayed them, I never thought…" ranted Minerva.
"I'm afraid Minerva, we were all wrong. Peter was the secret keeper, and therefore the traitor. Peter is the death eater who betrayed the Potters."
"What happened to Sirius and… Oh my… What about their son? Albus, what happened to Harry?"
"Sirius and Harry are… fine. Just a couple of minor injuries. Nothing Poppy can't fix."
"Where are they?" questioned one of the other teachers from the back.
Albus responded by pushing open the door to the hall.
Sirius was fast asleep, little Harry snuggled into his jumper.
"What are we going to do with them?" whispered Minerva.
"They'll stay here. I've got the perfect place for them to stay."
Little Harry whimpered in his sleep and Sirius unconsciously held onto the child tighter. Albus went over to the pair and placed a hand on Sirius' shoulder.
Sirius immediately jolted awake.
"Wha..? What's going on?" he blurted out.
"It ok Sirius. You're safe now, but I think we should be going to hospital wing. We need to get the two of you cleaned up."
Sirius glanced down at the boy in his arms and nodded. He staggered to his feet and wearily followed Albus on the familiar path to the infirmary.
They had only just passed the threshold of the hospital wing when Poppy Pomfrey raced out of her office. She acted very much like an angry mother bird, reliving Sirius of the sleeping Harry, directing Sirius to his own bed, grabbing numerous potions and casting various spells all while she berated Albus for not bringing Sirius and Harry to her sooner.
It was only a few days later that Poppy reluctantly let Sirius and Harry out of her care. She made sure all bones were fixed, bruises had faded and cuts were completely gone before she even considered it.
"Where are we going Professor?" asked Sirius as he followed the headmaster through the school.
"Somewhere the two of you can be safe." simply remarked Albus as the neared the Entrance Hall. "The Marauders thought they knew all there is to know about Hogwarts, all of its secrets. You were all wrong. You found many of the castle's secret passageways and a few of it's secret rooms, like the Room of Requirement. There is a lot more to Hogwarts than meets the eye. As Headmaster, Hogwarts lets me in on some of its secrets. No all, only some. Where I'm about to show you, is one such secret. The two of you will be free to live, free from harm and away from the eye of the media."
"Where? I suppose it's in Hogwarts."
"Not in Hogwarts, my dear boy. Outsideof it! Welcome Sirius, to Ravenclaw Manor!"
At that exact moment, the three rounded the side of the castle. The castle rose up the pinnacle of rock it was built on and the lake lay before them. And there, built half into the side of the cliff, was a massive, beautiful European styled manor house.
It was made of white stone and had French style windows. The black, tiled roofs joined seamlessly with the bare rockface. Flowerbeds littered the manicured lawn between the castle and the house. A white paved path wound towards the steps to the front door just like the natural course of a river. The back of the house opened up onto the lake, where a short jetty stretched into the water. Cupolas (1) reached into the sky and a lone owl swooped out of one. A flag rose from the top of the other, swaying gently in the breeze. The flag showed the Hogwarts crest.
"Wha… Since when… Albus?" stuttered Sirius.
"Ravenclaw Manor was built by Rowena herself. She brought together the best architecture from around Europe and put it into one house. She imbued it with magic to show the natural beauty of the world around her."
"It definitely worked. This place is beautiful! Now… Why are you showing this place to us?"
"Straight to the point as always. I propose that you and little Harry live here. Remus as well if he wants. Here, you will be safe. Harry can grow, play, practise and train. The ministry cannot trace any magic used here. Sirius, Voldemort is not dead. One day, he will return and will want to finish the job he started. I want Harry to have a normal childhood, but we also have to teach him and train him so that he survives the inevitable."
"I… I understand. One question though. How come I never, not once, saw this place? It's massive! I must have walked through it numerous times, and not even noticed!It must be under the Fidelius. Am I right?"
"Of a sort. I don't know what the charm is. You can only reveal the location of the manor if they are good of heart. The location cannot be forced out of a person. The only people who know about this place are the house elves, myself, Minerva, you and Harry. I hope Remus will join you soon. He can then use the forest every full moon."
"I'll ask him soon. I need to apologise as well, for thinking he was the traitor."
"Well, now that's sorted, care to step inside?"
A/N: It's been a while (and sorry this chapter is so short)! Don't throw stuff at me please! I've been busy doing stupidly boring and ,sometimes, extremely hard exams which are completely pointless if you ask me! But, I got an A in English, an A in Science and a B in Maths (I think). Yay! It's the holidays in a week and 3 days so I will be able to update when I like. Please review, they make me write faster!
blackrhino