[a/n]Compliments of deadfeather SoHDD#16 "Even better if Harry had means to get away, portkey that worked? And left a pile of ash behind. Then decides to go with this. Hmm.. maybe Fawkes could transport him?."Iwonder how he could best dissapoint people in sharing his state? Or would that continue to stay in limbo if Sirius as his guardian has to put itin motion?"

Harry Does Different CDLX

Sirius Stops Suicide

"No matter what he might have said" Headmaster Dumbledore addressed the solemn assembly "or might have offended, Harry Potter lost his life in one of the most storied events in all Wizarddom. I, for one, will sorely miss him. We judges will announce standings tomorrow. Thank you for your attendance."

Abcij

Harry Potter was utterly shocked when, instead of whatever afterlife or simple oblivion, he flashed into existence again. He staggered, half fell over and was caught.

"Easy there kiddo." Said an urgent but kind voice "We'll have to figure out what to do. I know things got real bad, I can even understand being pushed to the edge."

With a few seconds to focus, Harry got his bearings and breathed "Sirius? Tha'bloody'ell?"

"What kind of Godfather would I be if I let you die?" the Azkaban escapee scolded "To give you a chance to get used to still breathing, I'll explain. That two-way mirror has a few tricks I didn't mention. Like I could listen in on all you were saying and doing this week. And, thanks to some goblin magic, and my blood, a portkey. I didn't know what the task was, just that at the touch of ANYTHING dangerous it'd pull you here to me."

More aware now, Harry looked around then asked "Right. Thanks, I think. Where is here?"

"Gringotts" replied Sirius "the room is secured against human magic. Even Dumbledore, so they assure me. I don't doubt their word, but you can't be totally positive about him. So? You had to get an egg from a horntail. I would like YOU to tell me what you did, and why."

The teen looked at his Godfather, for a solid minute, before bursting into tears. He hated himself for showing such weakness, even with only one witness. Through the next hour, with breaks for uncontrolled sobbing he told "I was actually HATED Sirius. And not just Malfoy and his lot of Slytherins, that didn't surprise me. Those foreigners! International cooperation? HAH! Bullshit! You think I'm a bad person for laughing when they all came in burnt?"

"Those boys and that French bitch have twice your education, Harry." Sirius wasn't the type to scold for some cursing, even if the cause wasn't sufficient "What about your friends?"

Harry shrugged and snorted "I had a few in Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw, not one was on my side. Ron completely stabbed me in the back. Neville was the only one in my dorm. Ginny, y'know, the girl who owes me her life? Hmpf! Said she believed me. Found me in a corner of the library."

"Not much of a Gryffindor, huh?" the older man commiserated.

Shrugging, Harry answered "Only Fred and George. They even pranked Ron a couple times. Nothing real major. Hermione was on my side, but wanted to see quote You boys find common ground unquote."

"Wonder how that loyalty stayed out of Hufflepuff." Commented Sirius with an attempt at humor "So?"

Knowing what his Godfather was asking, he rubbed his eyes and wiped at his nose then "I had nothing left to live for. Hundreds maybe thousands of people booing when I came out. I snapped. Seriously? How's a kid supposed to fight a dragon bigger than a house? I don't think I could've been more surprised when I turned up here."

"I've got thirteen years of absentee parenting to make up for." The escapee looked guilty "James and Lily are going to spend eternity making me pay."

Naturally thinking of others, Harry argued "I blame Pettigrew for that, not you. What do we do now, Sirius? You're wanted for a crime you didn't commit. If I show my face I'll goto Azkaban for Unforgivable use."

"Funny about that." It was the first genuine smile "That law is real specific. You only go if you hit a Human. But I take your point. Brain working again, huh? Well, since you're dead and I'm under a Kiss on sight we have plenty of time to decide. And really, no connections or obligations."

Abcij

The Sun was just beginning to redden over a well-to-do suburb of London when a pop briefly disrupted the Muggle environment. The man who appeared had only cosmetic changes that despite the amateurish technique he felt laughably confident in. For Merlin's sake! He had a pillow under his t-shirt! An easy stroll brought him to 85 Watson St. reliably informed the family was home, knocked.

"Yes?" a prematurely greying man said, opening the door easily.

The visitor said "Good evening. I hope this is after your supper. May I speak with Hermione? You and your wife are more than welcome. I bring Hogwarts related news." His introduction was deliberately made that way. It said 'magic' to anyone in the know, but meaningless to the uninformed.

A frown was the homeowner's initial reaction. He was not a happy father "Four years of half-answered questions and obvious gaping holes in our daughter's narrative and suddenly your school sends a representative? We are not impressed!"

"Before I'm done, you'll have less reason to be impressed, Mr. Granger." Promised the visitor "My connection to the school is only an alum."

The man studied the visitor then nodded and stepped back "Alright. But, we will be in the room every second. Count on it. And whom shall I say is here?"

"You've probably heard more than one story about me." The visitor entered, offering his wand "I was in the news quite a bit last year, but without sightings I'm sure not-so-much lately. Hermione might have referred to me as Padfoot or Snuffles. Sirius Black is the name, unconvicted felon is the profession." He made no move to retrieve the wand that clattered on the floor.

Mr. Granger bellowed "HERMIONE! IT'S FOR YOU!" while picking up the wand. He pointed it at the man, never mind it being useless to him. It was, at least, a stabbing weapon.

"Daddy? What's all the yell- -" the young witch had her wand in her hand, though out of sight. Her question broke off when she saw the visitor as she doubled over in laughter "Oh-hohoHO! Sirius Black, how good to see you. But who do you think you're fooling with that getup?"

He grinned and they briefly embraced "As my designer put it, about any wizard looking for the notorious criminal. Women take after the mother, generally, though I see you more take after your father."

"Charming." Quipped Mrs. Granger, a little sourly "Nevertheless, accurate. What brings a criminal to our door? Never mind hugging our daughter?"

The teen rolled her eyes, exasperated "Mum! I told you he's innocent!"

"Me for later." Said the wanted man, after they were seated "I would have been here even sooner, but I only yesterday saw coverage of Hermione's performance at that pathetic funeral Dumbledore held for Harry."

She flinched guiltily and replied "I said what I felt. Those stupid armbands everyone was wearing! They just pissed me off!"

"Young lady! Watch your tongue!" Mrs. Granger scolded.

Sirius sniggered "Well, that's where she gets it from. Anyway, there is a lot of background that we'll circle back to, but here's the important part. Hermione… Harry really did intend to kill himself with that dragon. He really was totally broken. What you saw was exactly what he decided HOWEVER, despite what you saw, Harry did NOT die in that dragon's fireball."

"I beg your pardon." Her tone was emotionless.

He nodded "I am entirely serious, no pun. That two-way mirror had a few tricks that let me do a few more of my godfatherly duties than a normal wanted wizard. Not unlike how Pettigrew tricked everyone …well, you've been a witch long enough to know what we see isn't always the truth."

"If he's alive, why didn't he come? Where is he? Why …well… err" the girl's brain actually shut down.

Mr. Granger looked angry "None of what I have heard is at all funny."

"Harry felt, and I agreed, that him suddenly appearing at the door would be too shocking." Sirius went on smoothly "After reading the account of your statement in the Prophet, he's quite eager to see you again."

She took that poorly "He didn't want to see me BEFORE then?"

"To be perfectly honest, Hermione, no." his tone was chilly "Name me one person, yourself included, who was absolutely on his side. And in his frame of mind, how do you suppose he took your mediation attempts with Ron?"

The Grangers nodded and Mr. Granger reached over and squeezed her knee "Even dentists study behavioral sciences for their degree, if only to understand being bit isn't deliberate. Your friend was suicidal. Probably nothing would have stopped that, but even something slightly argumentative could have hurried the attempt. I think we should endorse them meeting. But, here."

"Assuming that is what you want, dear." Added Mrs. Granger "I gather you are able to arrange that, Mr. Black?"

Smiling for the first time he replied "The beauty of magic, even though he's about 30 miles away under central London, getting here takes all of 10 seconds." He brought out a pocket-sized mirror and spoke into it "Harry? … Went well. Only thing, not unexpected, you need to come here."

"Yah!" the exclamation came in barely more than the promised time. And the sound of a person stumbling.

Hermione squealed "I know that voice! Harry!" And after a few minutes of confused muffled babbling, the adults were treated to a pair of smiling teens "Mum Dad! This is Harry. Who I thought was gone forever. But here he is. Alive! And whole! And Harry I never doubted you. Your saying you didn't enter that damned contest was enough for me. This past month has been terrible for me. Seeing you and Ronald fighting, then that monster just burning you up."

"Talking to Sirius, I got to get what I was feeling." Said Harry, he was looking happy "Almost no one with me. It was only when that Prophet came, especially how Skeeter twisted it."

She had both arms around his waist, but looked at the escapee "Explain, Sirius. Again, not that I'm complaining about the outcome." And she summed up much as he told Harry "You pulled a Pettigrew. But the only question is, are they going to make you compete?"

"Harry's dead." Sirius pointed out "A couple thousand witnesses saw it. We certainly don't owe them another show."

Hermione nodded into his shoulder "And I was worried the whole thing might be a setup anyway. That thought occurred a bit too late. The problem is EVERYONE knows his name, only less well known than maybe Merlin."

"You see the problem." Harry squeezed her shoulder "But Orion Potter can register his godson, of whom he has custody …ahh Evan Jameson, or James Evanson, we haven't locked that down… There is no wizard school in Europe I could possibly goto."

Hermione gave her parents a hopeful look "I already walked out of Hogwarts. I can go with Harry …or James… or Evan."

"Overseas?" both Grangers looked worried.

To this Sirius gave a smile "Harry just got here in seconds. There are solutions. The Hogwarts Express takes a few hours from London to Scotland, but that's tradition. Dumbledore had Wizengamot meetings all the time, he didn't take the train. I HAVE to move, you wouldn't."

"Please Mum? Dad? Please!" begged Hermione "I promise I will tell you everything that is happening."

Mrs. Granger spoke for both "Possessed teachers? 50-foot snakes? Werewolves?"

"To be fair, the werewolf was to guard against the Azkaban escapee." Quipped Sirius, earning death-glares. Then went on with a grin "America, North or South. Even someplace as far away as Japan is only hours away." He abruptly stiffened and almost simultaneously the Granger doorbell rang *bingbong* "That should not be. No magical should be able to trace us, but there's one at the door. I cast a detection ward before I knocked."

Hermione took charge "I am the logical, indeed, the only one to answer. Harry and Sirius should hide in the basement."

"I've learned she often knows best." Commented Harry as his friend rushed out.

abcij

At the door was Professor McGonagall "Good evening Miss Granger, I hoped to discuss your situation in light of your precipitous departure. It was understandable given the high emotions of a funeral for your dear friend. I was hoping to discuss that with you."

"And my parents." Added Hermione "I have learned I should not have left them out of the loop concerning what they refer to as my misadventures. Although I believe they are restraining themselves from stronger language. We were just cleaning supper. I'll ask you to wait in the family room while I get them."

Keeping her face impassive Minerva followed "I would be pleased to speak with all of you."

Abcij

Hermione briefly reported to the hiding wizards "It's only Professor McGonagall, I think she's here to convince me to go back to Hogwarts. As if."

"Be careful with what you say and do." Sirius advised "Even with what you think. That animagus of hers carries over to human form."

Abcij

"Miss Granger, your parents and I were just getting acquainted." The Deputy Headmistress assumed control "I came here with a specific agenda, but if I can mention something first. There is a low-level security ward about the house. You are aware, Miss Granger, of the Reasonable Restriction Against Underage Wizardry?"

Mrs. Granger answered "A highly logical precaution. Completely understandable your government would want to regulate children's behavior. However, there is no difficulty here, as our daughter did not cast the spell."

"May I inquire as to who did?" asked Minerva.

Here, Mrs. Granger non-answered "An adult wizard of our acquaintance."

"I see." The visitor recognized the response for what it was, and even ignored the predictable giggle from a child witnessing such an event "Now, Miss Granger, I am here to tell you …and, of course, your parents… that except for an administrative discipline, no action is being contemplated regarding your outburst at Mr. Potter's memorial service. Personally, I think you made some telling points. For the record, we can call the last two weeks a leave of absence. Such is typically granted when a close family member passes. You are an excellent student, dare I say a favorite of several professors, so classwork is not an issue. However, we cannot bring back the dead and you must think of your future."

At that, Hermione took great offense "Yippee! Harry's gone! Let's everyone celebrate, I - -"

"Do not put words in my mouth, young lady." The visitor snapped back then "Mr. Potter, too, despite his penchant for trouble was an excellent student. And certainly of heroic mold. I will miss that boy as much as I have missed his father and mother for the last decade. Despite everything, you have a grand future. And this is certainly not something I usually say, but you may well be Head Girl in a couple years."

The girl shook her head "A year ago, I would have loved to hear that. After that tournament …it was just cruel… force a boy to participate in something for much older students. Your job is to protect us, and frankly, you failed. No Professor, what I said in the heat of the moment stands up to thoughtful analysis. Hogwarts has nothing for me. I will not be returning."

"That is your right." The old witch looked even older "Then I must point out the unpleasant reality that eventuates. You and your parents will be scanned for identities of anyone you have accidently or deliberately revealed the Wizarding World to. After which you will all be obliviated. You, Miss Granger, will have your powers bound. This is the fate of any who have not achieved a minimum three OWLs."

Hermione pulled her wand in a flash "Professor, I could likely pass a NEWT or two any time you want. But you are, at best, stretching the truth. Simple population analysis proves not even half the British magical population comes out of Hogwarts."

"I think, madam, you can go." Mr. Granger stood and addressed the visitor coldly "About all that's needed from you would be a transcript of our daughter's time in your school. A week is more than adequate to produce such. Any longer will incur legal action. Good evening."

A dramatic wave of her arms, followed by a pop announced the disappearance from the chair McGonagall had been sitting in.