"His education overall, or in the near future?" Sirius asked, rather amazed at his cousin's ability to know his thoughts.
On the other hand, perhaps it was no so out of the ordinary that she would know he'd wish to speak to her about Harry's schooling. The child had been with him for nearly three months, after all, and with Dora about to embark on her second year at Hogwarts, the topic of school might be at the forefront of her mind.
"Let's begin with the near future," Andromeda answered easily, smiling. "Have you begun to give Harry any schooling?"
Sirius nodded, feeling rather proud that he could do so without lying. "I've been teaching him to read and write. With a quill, of course. That's going rather more slowly than the reading bit. He knows his letters and can read short words."
"Excellent," Andromeda praised, and Ted nodded, looking...almost impressed?
It was hard to tell. He didn't know his facial expressions nearly as well as his favorite cousin.
"We never sent Dora to muggle school," she continued. "We believed the risk outweighed any benefits she might receive. You Know Who was still at the height of his power until almost four years ago, and I hated to let Dora leave my sight. Besides," she added, with a small shrug, "I didn't see the point in her being made to learn muggle subjects that have no relevance to our world, only to have her leave their world and whatever friends she'd made after primary school."
"I'm also not convinced that muggle school would be the best course of action for Harry, for those reasons," Sirius agreed. "He wouldn't be allowed to have friends over, which would raise very awkward questions. Besides," he added, contemplatively, "a muggle school curriculum would only briefly intersect with what a magical child needs to know."
Andromeda nodded. "It's what most wizarding families believe. Now, I gather that we prepared Dora by what muggles call 'homeschooling.' Especially when both parents are magical. Not necessarily pure blood, either," Andromeda noted. "There are various lines of study that parents can choose from, should they wish to use a standardized form of education, but I prefer Matilda Bagshot's books. Yes," she added, with a smile, "she wrote the Standard Book of Spells series that are in use at Hogwarts. It's one of the reasons I chose her materials."
"Er, what-what does she try to teach witches and wizards before school?" Sirius asked, faltering somewhat.
He remembered the days of his education before school. There had been a great deal of focus on the wizarding world. Rather, the wizarding world according to pure bloods. He'd been made to memorize the names and dates and achievements of any pure blood witch or wizard (usually, wizard) deemed noteworthy. Piano lessons, where a wrong note meant a Stinging hex that lasted well into the nighttime hours. Decorum classes for himself and Regalus, and from what he'd heard from Andromeda, "How To Be a Young Lady Of Good Breeding" classes for girls. Because Merlin forbid you should use the wrong fork or spoon, or your robes reveal your ankle.
At least, not after you turned twelve. Rules were a bit less rigid when you were still a child.
Andromeda laughed. "Rather similar skills to what children attain in primary school, but with a focus on our world. Math, reading and writing, basic Astronomy, some magical history as it pertains to Great Britain. It requires a parent or guardian to teach these materials, of course, but I have no doubt that you won't neglect that. Shall I show you Dora's old books? You can order fresh copies by owl post as you need them."
Sirius gave her a grateful smile. "I'd love that, Andy. Thank you. I expected to be rather lost after a bit, as I didn't want to revert to our childhood lessons."
"Not everything is dreadful about pure blood society," she contradicted, but mildly. "It's more the methods of instruction and blood superiority that I take issue with."
"Perhaps," Sirius relented, "but if Harry doesn't know what fork to use for some fancy dinner by the time he's ten, I won't consider it a character failure."
"Do you expect him to be invited to many?" Ted piped up, grinning.
Sirius made a face. "If I had my preference, I'd prefer not associating with those crowds, but he is the Boy Who Lived..."
"And it's only a matter of time before Cissy and Lucius come to call," Andromeda finished, rolling her eyes.
"Exactly. They have a son, now, don't they?" Sirius asked, frowning a bit.
Unlike Andromeda, he'd seen little need to keep in contact with Narcissa after leaving his family home. She hadn't been as sadistic as Bellatrix, but her views on the purity of blood were ingrained in her mind. Lucius Malfoy, as well, even if the rumor that certain members of the Malfoy family didn't object to the marriage of half bloods were to be believed.
Still, you couldn't entirely ignore the large announcements from the Daily Prophet announcing the marriages and births from pure blood families. The Prophet wasn't overtly pure blood partisan, but you knew that other such announcements would be in smaller print, and take up less space.
"Draco," Andromeda assented. "A few months older than Harry. I haven't met him, yet, but Cissy sent an owl a month ago. Seems that she's no longer cut ties with me. I expect, Sirius, that you'll hear from her as well," Andromeda cautioned.
He groaned, glad Harry wasn't there to hear it. There she was, acting superior to him once more.
And with a spoiled brat of a son Harry's age, too, if he knew Lucius and Narcissa.
"Just the sort of boy Harry needs to be spending time with," he grumbled.
"Have you met him?" Andromeda asked, mildly.
"Have you?" he returned.
His cousin shook her head. "Cissy and I began exchanging owls after the downfall of You Know Who, but I haven't met Draco. All the same," she added, her voice taking on a rather reprimanding tone, "you can hardly judge a child you haven't met."
Sirius sighed. He supposed he wasn't being entirely fair. Aside from the boy's name and age, he knew next to nothing about him. Still, he knew plenty about Lucius and Narcissa, and he would bet more than half the gold in his vault that they were raising Draco Malfoy to be a spoiled, pure blood elitist.
"Unless you plan to shelter Harry entirely from the world, he will meet people from such families as ours sooner or later," Andromeda added, a bit more mildly. She paused, glanced briefly at Ted, then continued. "When the time comes, do you expect Harry to go to Hogwarts?"
Sirius shrugged. "It's so far off... I hate the idea of putting Harry under the authority of that fool, but I reckon I can teach him to steer clear of him. Certainly, Dumbledore's lost a great deal of respect since the trial..."
"A lot can happen in six years. People tend to forget about these things," Ted remarked, stroking his chin.
"Yes, and Merlin knows, he's shrewd enough to regain whatever influence he's lost by the time Harry turns eleven," Andromeda agreed, with a sigh.
"You think it would be better to teach him at home, then?" Sirius asked, looking from one to the other.
"Each option has definite advantages and pitfalls," Andromeda said, sympathetically. "Certainly, if he goes, you'll need to keep an eye on him. You still have those mirrors, don't you?"
"I do." Sirius grinned, thinking of all the times he and James had used them to chat. Mostly during separate detentions. Nearly been caught more than once. "Better than owls, they are."
"And they can't be intercepted," Ted put in. "Mind, Harry will need to keep an eye out."
Sirius nodded. He didn't want Harry to see everyone as an enemy...just Dumbledore. But, perhaps, he could enlist other teachers as allies, should it come to that.
"Good thing it will be six years before we need to make that decision," Sirius mused. "About whether to send him to Hogwarts, that is."
"It will go by in a flash." Andromeda placed a hand on his. "Why, it was only yesterday that Dora was learning to read."
"Slow learner, eh?" Sirius teased, earning a raised eyebrow in response.
And a chuckle from Ted.
Suddenly, there was a crash from above. Sirius flinched-Andromeda and Ted exchanged looks of exasperation.
"That Nymphadora," she muttered, rising to her feet with grace. "How she manages to be so clumsy, I'll never understand."
"It could have been Harry," Sirius offered, although he doubted it. "Shall I check on them?"
"You may as well. If I show up at her door and it's nothing, I'll hear all about how I'm embarrassing her for the rest of the day." Andromeda smiled. "Nearly thirteen, you know."
"Any idea what I should get her for her birthday?" Sirius queried.
Andromeda placed a hand on his shoulder. "Let's see to it that she lives that long," she teased.
Sirius walked up the stairs rather more quickly than was prudent, causing himself nearly to trip over the hem of his robes and barely restrain himself from swearing. When he approached the bedroom, he was relieved to see that neither child were physically injured, but there was a dark burn mark by the carpet, as well as an assortment of fallen cards. Had it not been for the look of terror on Harry's face, Sirius would have laughed.
Dora, for her part, looked rather sheepish. She glanced at Sirius, then back at Harry.
"Everything all right?" Sirius asked, keeping his tone light. "We heard a noise, and while your parents weren't concerned, I wanted to make sure you two weren't hurt."
As he spoke, he gestured to Harry, who walked towards him with the reluctance of someone expecting to be hit. When Sirius just hugged him and murmured that no one was in any trouble, Harry relaxed a bit in his arms.
"It was my fault. I wanted to teach Harry to play Exploding Snap, but I wasn't doing a very good job, so I suggested we make a house of cards," Dora explained. "I reckon I forgot that you had to charm them not to go off..."
Sirius nodded, keeping one arm around Harry, but allowing the boy to disentangle himself from the hug.
"That's an easy mistake to make," he agreed. He pointed at the burn mark with his wand, and the floor returned to normal.
Dora laughed. "Thanks. I don't know how to do those charms yet, and wasn't looking forward to showing Mum and Dad. Not that they'd be that surprised, or angry," she added, likely for Harry's benefit.
"It must have been some pile!" Sirius allowed himself a smile. "I don't expect I heard an explosion that loud in some time."
"Well, Uncle Sirius, you haven't been a kid in some time!" Dora retorted, with a wide grin.
Sirius shook his head, sadly. "I suppose not. Tell you what. Next time you play, I'll show you how to avoid those sorts of topples."
"I-it was my fault," Harry piped up, his voice cracking. "I put the card on that made the pile fall."
Sirius hugged him again. "It was your first time playing, puppy. It wasn't your fault."
"If anything, it was mine," Dora added, reaching down and hugging Harry. "Like Uncle Sirius said, you hadn't played before, so you couldn't have known."
It took a few more minutes, but Harry seemed back to his usual self when they returned downstairs. Dora let him play with one of her childhood teddy bears for the rest of the visit, a rather well loved one, by the look of it.
Andromeda and Ted entertained the two with stories about Dora, including ones that they started but stopped when Dora declared them to be too embarrassing.
Sirius knew them well, including when she and a neighbor witch had attempted to dig a hole near Andromeda's flower garden that would reach the other side of the world.
After a lunch of peanut butter sandwiches and more biscuits, Sirius could see Harry's eyes drooping, and knew it was time for his nap.
"We'd best be headed home, and I ought to check in on Remus," Sirius explained. "He was very sorry to miss the visit."
"We missed seeing him," Ted offered, and Andromeda nodded. "Do send our love."
"And some chocolate biscuits," Andromeda offered, her eyes smiling along with her face. "I'll pack a basket for all of you to take."
They exchanged final hugs, and Harry seemed to enjoy Andromeda's in particular. Then, Sirius picked up Harry and they traveled back to Grimmauld Place.
All in all, it had been an enjoyable first visit.
Author's note: still looking for ideas for future chapters, so if you have any, please post in a comment!
As always, I welcome constructive feedback. For anyone who is curious, simply pointing out a misspelling or minor mistake, without saying more, will result in your being blocked. Same with flamers. While I don't hold by the saying, "If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all" in fanfic, I do believe that solely negative and nitpicking words have no place in reviews or comments. Likewise, if you message me only to ask/demand that I update, without leaving any written comments for the fic, you will be ignored.
Having said all of this, most comments have been very kind and helpful, and I very much appreciate them! Readership is great, but those who interact with the story are those who make me want to keep writing, even during the dryer periods!