Chapter 14
As he had known he would not as soon as Sirius had said he was going to come out with him that night, Remus had not found that full moon to be as bad as the months before had. In fact he had had quite a lot of fun and when he transformed back he was not half as battered and bruised as he had come accustom to be since he had lost his friends. All in all, he had had quite a good night, it had to be said.
The two of them had returned to the Shrieking Shack for the first time in years but it felt as if they had only been there yesterday. In a very weird way, the shack felt as if it had been a home to the marauders – or at the very least a club house for the four of them. But returning to it did not feel as if they were going into the past as they both now knew it was still very much a part of their present.
When they had been young it had been where they had plotted their best pranks and jokes – they had created a lot of good memories there and some days Remus thought that they still did out rank the bad.
Rolling over, he saw Sirius had been awake for what looked quite some time but he was also looking relaxed, chilled out and he had a grin on his face. He had thought when he had woken up he would be chopping at the bit to get back to Harry straight away but he had the look of a man who was in no hurry what's so ever.
A small smile played on his mouth as he looked up at the ceiling, arms up being his head.
"You ok, Padfoot?"
"I'm alright, sleepy – how are you?"
He was very good and it had been a long time since he had woken up so well. Of course, he was going to be tired and it was going to take him a few good days to get over it as it always did, but he did not feel as if he wanted to curl up and sleep for ever as he had done only too often.
The smile on his face told Sirius that.
"No need to say anything then Moony."
The two of them lay there for a while in silence. As they always had on the day after the full moon, the two of them woke with the sun rise and they both knew ten o'clock was still a very long way off - there was no point in getting up yet. If they went back to the flat to sort themselves out for the day yet, then they were going to be ready to go and get Harry far too early.
And so the two of them tried to relax a little after casting a warming spell to cast off the freeze and stayed there in what was soon the heated room¸ just relaxing, smiling and dozing in and out of peaceful slumbers.
()()()
When Harry woke, up it took him a minute to figure out why he was not in his room at home. He had forgotten all about the previous night until he had cast his eyes round the room. Yet once he figured out his surroundings, he was not stressed or worried.
Sev was going to be just outside. The two of them had had a good evening together, an experience he hoped the two of them were going to repeat.
But before he knew it, he knew he was going to be back with his godfather and they were going to be hopefully, sorting out things for the new house. He had told Severus all about it the night before. He did not think he had been so excited about something ever before. It was really going to be a new start for them.
They were going to move in to a new home and it was going to be just that. A home to him.
And he finally, firmly believed he was never going to have to leave it as long as he had his godfather there to look after him.
Sirius would not let anything bad happen to him, of that he was sure.
He heard Sev moving about outside and he smiled. He really hoped he was going to be allowed to come and stay again sometime soon.
Severus was a man who was as interesting as the place he lived and the more he was there, the more he found he wanted to be there. It seemed there was so much to learn at Hogwarts to him. He had heard there was a library upstairs and though Sirius was not a big reader, Sev and Remus were.
And he knew when he did get to an age where he could come and live at Hogwarts, he wanted nothing more in the world than to be able to do them all proud.
Getting out his bed, he walked into the living room and he rubbed the remaining sleep out of his eyes. He had slept very soundly.
"How are you today young man?" said Severus finding he had liked someone else being in his apartments in the morning. Solitude was, indeed, a cruel companion.
"I am good," said Harry as he took a spot on the sofa still in his pyjamas.
"Do you want to have some breakfast?" Harry nodded and he and Severus were quick to agree on a big breakfast.
Severus was usually a muesli man. He did not normally like to take a long lazy breakfast. He just found it a bit of a waste of time if he was honest.
But that day the thought of bacons and eggs appealed to him very much as it did to his young guest it seemed. He supposed he wanted it because he had a guest and someone to sit and devour it with.
"Do you have eggs and bacon a lot when you are at home with Sirius and Remus?" Severus asked, interesting to know about Harry's home life with his parents friends.
"Not so often – a lot of the time we just have cereal." He shrugged. "We only have it at the weekend."
He thought back to when he had been at his aunt and uncles he remembered how they had had it every day. He thought for that reason alone he would not like too. He did not ever want to be anything like the two of them, ever. But as a treat at the weekend – he did not see the harm in that.
The way he had lived when he was young now seemed unnatural to him. But he was never going to have to return to that.
"Why don't we have another game of snap while it cooks?"
Thank god for magic, thought Severus as he sat down once he had put there breakfast on.
()()()
A shower when they did get back to the flat was all it took for Sirius to get over full moon much to the envy of Remus who knew he was going to have to know take it way for a couple of days. The Animagus didn't know how easy he had it.
Sirius came out of his room in a pair of faded jeans and light green t-shirt, humming a little.
The happier Harry got the more so his godfather also became. He was truly beginning to enjoy life once more. It felt good to be free.
Remus remained on edge slightly though, he did not want Sirius to lull him in to a false sense of security. Even if he could put on a good front he was still fairly fresh for Azkaban as he had been reminded more than once.
But that was not the case that day. He seemed normal and happy.
"I am going to go in and put our offer on the house and then I am going to go get the little man," said Sirius as he put on his jacket as well as a scarf to keep out the cold.
The two of them did not want to lose the house and now they were going to go for it, it seemed to Sirius there was no point in delaying. They did not want to risk losing it – especially as Harry loved it as well.
Remus nodded and he felt an excitement. As much as the flat had been home to him, it did not hold a lot of sentimental value for him. In fact it was full off bad memories. He had moved in to it when his life had been torn apart. ..
No, he was not going to be sorry to go.
"Offering the asking price?"
Sirius nodded. Andy had said that maybe they should go a little under but again, he did not really want to risk it. There was no point – he did not want to mess about. This was their family life they were planning – messing about was not an option.
After everything they had been through he did not think either of them were going to know object to a quiet life in the country.
It would be a good place to prepare Harry for Hogwarts outside of London.
Sirius did not take long in the estate agents. He went in to do what he had to and then he got out of there eager to get back to his godson. He gave the women behind the counter a few smileds – she was not so uneasy on the eye herself, and he did not think it could hurt when it came to speeding up the process.
While he had found he had missed him, neither had it been a bad thing to have some time out from worrying constantly about Harry.
But then they had always said a little time apart was going to do the lad good. It had too. But he still had not thought initially it was going to do him as much good as it had. He remembered when James and Lily had had Harry he had said to them he would take Harry when he needed a break. Now that he was Harry's main carer, he was sometimes going to need a break as well.
He had not thought of it like that before but now that he did it made a lot of sense.
Still, as he went into the castle he had a smile on his face. Freshly washed and clean shaven, he was more than ready to take over his parental duties once more.
He got to the flat about ten as he had said he was going to. He was not going to have Harry worry over where he was and he was not going to wind up Severus.
As long as everything had gone fine at their end, then he was beginning to think this would be quite a good, regular little arrangement. It had taken a while to find someone Harry was happy being left with. As long as he continued to be happy with Severus, then he could keep getting Remus through the full moon. As a result of him being there with him, he knew he was not half as roughed up as he had been when Moony was left on his own. Remus had but a few disguisable cuts and grazes this month. Sirius hoped Harry was not going to be half as worried over him as he was when he had got back before.
Severus opened the door to him.
"Sirius," he nodded as he let the man come into the flat. It was a huge improvement on the days when Severus had had to force himself to spit out Black.
"Severus," he nodded in return. The two of them knew this was no social call. It was not as if they were ever going to sit down together and have a coffee.
Nope it was just a civil hand over.
As soon as he had heard Sirius' voice, Harry came out in to the hall from where he had been sitting with colouring pencils and paper. He had a big smile on his face, but he did not think he felt relief. He could not sense any tension coming from the boy. No, if he knew him at all then he knew he had had a good time.
"Hey buddy," he said as Harry flung himself in his arms. Even if he had had a good time he had missed Sirius.
"Hey," he said as he put his arms around him and cuddled him.
As Severus looked at the two he could not help but think the two of them looked a lot more like a father and son than godfather and godson. It was only too clear Harry was extremely happy when he was with him. He did not think he could begrudge Harry that; not now.
It was then he begun he was beginning to accept what he never thought he could. That Sirius Black was doing the right thing.
XXX
Sirius had been right again when he had thought his godson was not going to be freaked out by the appearance of Remus Lupin.
So well disguised and so small were the marks on his skin, they that when the two of them sheepishly told Harry that they had had a play fight (not a lie – just an embellishment of the truth) he brought it and went off to his room, but not before asking when they were going to be able to move in to the new house.
If only it was that simple!
"With any luck, soon," Sirius said to him as Remus gave the lad a wink.
The two of them looked at one another once he had gone and they had the same thought. It was not as if they were able to do anything else, but when the two of them had taken Harry to see the house they had made a mistake. Neither of them wanted to see his disappointment if they did not get it.
Especially when he liked it so much.
"How long did they say we were going to have to wait?"
"They are going to – 'call' - us on the muggle tellyone thing around one-ish." He said to him.
"Telephone, Padfoot."
"That's what I said," Sirius nodded.
Remus gave a small smile but he was as nervous as Sirius was. As much as they were using his money to buy the house, it was going to belong to both of them. It would belong to all of them.
If they got it – but all they could do for that morning was wait.
XXX
It was then, that morning, a quiet nerve filled flat but it was of course for all of the right reasons.
As long as it worked out?
Which it surely had to because of all the bad luck which the lot of them had already had.
Harry drew pictures of the new house that morning with the dog he wanted on the law already and, as much as he tried to get his mind off of it, Sirius found he could not. He could only think of long lazy winter evenings there with his friends and snowy Christmases there with Harry.
He could not help but get excited even though he was trying to stop Harry becoming so.
There was not a lot to do but sit so that was what he and Remus did along with drinking silly amounts of tea. It seemed to take an age but at last – the phone rang. Harry looked up at the two of them in anticipation. It could only mean one thing.
That it had been decided whether there offer had been accepted or not.
Sirius and Remus both sat still – "Shall I?" asked the werewolf and his friend nodded. He did not think he would be able to talk just then anyway – he felt strangely sick all of sudden.
He knew it was not going to be the end of the world if they were not to get it but it did feel as if it was important to him that they did.
Seeing Sirius' nerves, Harry went over to him and plonked himself on his godfather who wrapped his arms around him.
Please... please... please...
"Hello... yes... oh really?... yes we can come in later, of course we can. Thank you very much... yeah, thank again – good bye."
Remus turned very slowly and he had a look of almost disbelief on his face.
The tension was peaking at then at last he nodded.
"We got the house."
The silence and the tension was utterly broken by shouts of joy on part of three males in the room. It did seem at last, lady luck was beginning to smile on them.
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