The first two months of school passed quickly. Sirius came to visit on the first full moon, and Harry proudly introduced him to Fred, George, and Ron. The wolfsbane potion was a success, so it wasn't necessary for Sirius to stay with Remus for the next full moon.
On Halloween, Harry was trying to decide how to handle the Charms lesson. Harry tried to stop Ron before he could insult Hermione after class.
"It's no wonder no one can stand her," Ron said.
"That's actually not true," Harry said making sure Hermione can hear. "I think she's brilliant. You're just frustrated because you had trouble with the charm. Hermioine was trying to help you, but you wanted her to struggle the way you did."
"Fine, take her side," Ron muttered.
"I'm not taking any side," Harry said. "I understand both sides of the situation. You didn't want Hermione to criticize how you did it, and she gets frustrated when the rest of the world isn't as smart as her."
Harry peeked at Hermione to see how she was taking this conversation. She appeared to be lost in thought, as though she was trying to figure out what she did wrong. The Halloween feast was a success with no troll appearance. Harry realized that he and Ron did not become close friends with Hermione like they were supposed to, but he hoped he at least diffused the tension.
November was cold and full of Quiddich practice. The first Quiddich game was a success with Gryffindor winning over Slytherin. Harry's broom wasn't hexed this time, as Voldermort and Quirrell were gone.
November passed and it was halfway through December when Harry had his next confrontation with Draco. Upon leaving the dungeons after Potions class, they saw Hagrid carrying a tree.
"Hi, Hagrid, want any help?" Ron asked, sticking his head through the branches.
"Nah, I'm all right, thanks, Ron."
"Would you mind moving out of the way?" came Malfoy's cold drawl from behind them.
"Sorry, Draco," Harry said. "Hagrid is just bringing the tree to the great hall. What are your plans for the holidays?"
"I'm going home," Draco said. "What about you?"
"I'll also be home," Harry said. "I live with Sirius Black now. Would you like to get together one day over the holidays?"
"Sure," Draco said. "I'll check with my parents and get back to you."
Harry was relieved that another argument was avoided.
Friday, December 21st was the full moon, so it wasn't until December 24th that Remus took Harry to Flourish and Blotts. This time, Harry wasn't looking at potions books or for the book he found on horcruxes. He enjoyed looking through books on a variety of topics, especially occlumency, quiddich, and hexes. When they returned to Black manor, the house was ready for Christmas. Sirius invited Remus to join them and went a little overboard with preparations.
Harry was delighted to get presents for the first time in ten years. Kreacher outdid himself in the kitchen with plenty of nagging from Sirius. Harry made sure to thank Kreacher for everything he served. In the afternoon, Harry stretched out on the couch with Quiddich through the Ages. Remus also pulled out a book.
"I didn't plan on spending Christmas with bookworms," Sirius said.
"Would you prefer to teach me some wizard games?" Harry asked.
After playing exploding snap and chess, they went out for a snowball fight. Harry was looking forward to the next day when the Weasleys would visit.
Lupin had arranged to bring the Weasleys over through the floo network. Mrs. Weasley was thrilled that her sons befriended Harry Potter, and while she didn't really know Sirius, she figured with a professor there, everything should be fine.
Fred and George were excited to find out that Professor Lupin was Moony. They had a fun day discussing pranks. Sirius and Remus talked about their best pranks when they were in Hogwarts, and Fred and George discussed some of their better pranks. Fred and George wanted to know how to make a map, but Sirius and Remus wouldn't tell them. Sirius encouraged them to take Harry and Ron with them when they're making mischief, but Harry turned down the idea.
"We need to teach you to have fun," Sirius said. "It's not good to take life so seriously."
"I had fun yesterday," Harry said. "Today was also fun, trying to picture the pranks."
"We need a prank war," Sirius said. "Adults against kids."
"The Weasleys need to be back in school by curfew," Harry reminded him. "And we're visiting the Malfoys tomorrow."
"Do you even like Malfoy?" Ron asked, surprised.
"I try to," Harry said, "But he makes it very difficult."
"So why do you try?" Ron wanted to know.
"Draco is the way he is because of how he was raised. He is doing what his parents want him to do. Even though I strongly detest his behaviors, I think it's important to teach him the right way to act before he becomes a death eater," Harry said.
"Isn't it hard to be nice to someone so horrible?" asked Ron.
"Of course," said Harry. "After every interaction with him, I go up to the room of requirement and beat up punching bags and tackling dummies."
"Where's that?" asked Fred.
"It's not on the map," George added.
"That's because it's unplottable," Harry explained. "I went up there with Sirius and Remus the first night."
"Isn't it easier to forget about him and just have fun?" asked Ron.
"Of course," Harry said. "But if a new dark wizard rises, I want to know that Draco's on the right side. The way he is now is perfect death eater material."
"You need to get back to being a kid," Sirius said. "Let's have a prank war over the summer."
"I don't know any pranks," Harry complained.
"You'll have Fred, George, and Ron on your side," Sirius assured him, "Against me and Moony."
"I can't wait!" George said.
"We need to start preparing," declared Fred.
"No pranks against me in school," Remus told them. "Save it for here during the summer. I'll have to check my calendar and discuss with your parents when it's a good time for you to come visit, but I don't think we should spend more than two weeks on it."
"I'm not sure about this," Harry said.
"It will be fun," Ron told him.
"If you insist," Harry reluctantly agreed. "But nothing that hurts anyone."
"We'll make up the rules when we're closer to the summer," Sirius told him. "Don't worry, nobody is getting hurt."
After Remus took Fred, George, and Ron back to school, Harry turned to Sirius and said, "Thank you. This is the first time I felt like a kid in a long time."
Sirius grinned.
"That's good," he said, "because I was trying so hard not to make you mad the last few days. This means I could finally get in a tickling hex."
The next thing Harry knew, he was rolling on the floor laughing, pleading with Sirius's smiling face to stop. When Sirius finally did stop, Harry playfully punched Sirius on the arm. That led to both of them wrestling on the floor. They finally stopped when Sirius picked Harry up and carried him to his bedroom.
"Now you are officially a kid again," Sirius said. "The next step is to make you into a junior marauder."
Harry was still smiling when he went to sleep.