Halloween Comfort

Summary: Halloween had arrived and Sirius gives Harry some comfort.

Halloween had arrived at Hogwarts, bringing with it a chilly wind and gloomy weather. The sky was overcast, looking like at any moment, it would start to rain. Tonight, the students would gather in the Great Hall for the Halloween feast. For the seventh years, they cherished this moment, as it would be their last. The first years looked forward to their first one, having heard from the other students of all the sweets that would be served. For Madam Pomfrey, the mediwitch, she was busy brewing enough stomach soothers to help with any student who came to her with a stomach ache.

Everyone was talking, very excitedly about the feast that night. Well, almost everyone. At the Gryffindor table, Harry sat in the middle of the table, surrounded by seventh years on one side and first years on the other. He sat at the table, not really talking and playing with his breakfast. Hermione handed Harry a muffin with a stern face that told him to eat that. The muffin, five minutes later, half-eaten was a pile of crumbs.

Harry wanted nothing more than for the day to end. As with every year on the day of the Halloween feast, afternoon classes were canceled. Of all the feasts at Hogwarts, the Halloween one was among the favorites. But for Harry, Halloween wasn't a day of All Hallows Eve and Death day parties. It was the day his parents had been murdered by Voldemort. He didn't know this until he looked up his parents in the library. It was during his second year when Hermione was looking for ways to find out who the Heir of Slytherin is.

It was confirmed when Sirius took him to their graves the summer before fourth year when he had moved in with Sirius.

"Are you alright, Harry?" Hermione asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Then, without another word, Harry got up from the table and gathered his stuff. "I'll see you in Charms."

Ron and Hermione watched as Harry left the Great Hall, only pausing to stop at the group of fourth years and whisper something to Ginny and kiss her cheek. Then he went out the doors.

As Harry walked to the Charms corridor, he thought of Halloweens past. His first year, Professor Quirrell had let a Mountain Troll in to distract everyone and disrupted the feast, the Mountain Troll then went to the girls' bathroom where Hermione was. Ron and Harry came to tell her and ended up saving her. That was the one good thing about Halloween. Harry, Ron, and Hermione became friends.

They now celebrated their friendship anniversary, as Hermione called it, with lunch at the Three Broomsticks, where they would argue over who would pay. Harry often won.

Then his second year was Sir Nicolas's Death Day party and the Chamber of Secrets opening. That was the start of a long year with things to come. Third year, was when Sirius had attacked the Fat Lady, trying to get into Gryffindor tower. To this day, she is still afraid of Sirius, even after his many, many, many apologies.

And last year, Harry wanted to put the whole of last year out of his mind. Last year, on Halloween, he was chosen to compete in the Tri-Wizard Tournament. The events of last year were still fresh in his mind. That was at least a distraction from what had happened on Halloween fourteen years ago.

He entered the classroom and got out the homework from the previous class. He then laid his head down, wishing that the day was over with already.

He never told Ron or Hermione about his discovery, only Remus and Sirius. It had come out when Harry told his godfather and Uncle Moony about his first three years of Hogwarts. Sirius had hugged Harry afterward and told him every story he could think of about James and Lily. Then Sirius moved on to Baby Harry stories and told how he was the apple of his parents' eyes and their greatest joy.

Sirius even told Harry that he was thrilled to be named his godfather and that he was the third person to hold him after he was born and of course, after his parents. Then Sirius told Harry that his love for him never changed, even though it had been at the time twelve years since he had seen his godfather. Sirius still remembers to this day, every time he came to Godric's Hollow, holding and playing with Harry brought a smile to his face, no matter what day he had.

Harry sat up when heard the other students enter the room. Neville passed him and sat in the seat behind him.

"Are you alright, Harry?" he asked quietly.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just didn't sleep much last night," Harry replied. He wished the day would hurry up and end.

Back in the Great Hall, Ron and Hermione were finishing breakfast. They didn't talk, but both were concerned about Harry. When finished eating, they headed to Charms. Hermione was wracking her brain to figure out the sudden change in Harry's behavior. Nothing stood out to her.

"Maybe it's because there's been something going on, on Halloween for the last four years."

Hermione shrugged her shoulders and they were on their way to Charms. Ron headed to his chair beside Harry and Hermione was behind them, sitting with Neville.

"I was thinking we could…." Hermione was cut off when Ron asked Harry, "Are we going flying later?"

Harry shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know if I will."

After he said, Harry thought of the idea of flying with Ron after classes ended for the day. Flying was a way that Harry distressed. He was able to clear his head and think when he was in the air. He did a lot of flying over the summer and walking the grounds.

"Okay."

Harry laid his head down on the table, resting his head. When the bell rang, he sat up and got out his Charms book, some parchment, and quills and last week's homework.

As Professor Flitwick began to lecture, Harry began to think that it would be a long day.

OoOoOoOoOoOoO

Sirius had sat at the head table watching Harry play with his breakfast. He was about to get up and do something when Hermione handed Harry a muffin. Sirius watched Harry take a few bites off of it, and then suddenly it was nothing but a pile of crumbs.

He knew what was going on. He hated this day as well. The downside for Sirius was since it was a Tuesday, he and Remus didn't have any classes that day, but they did have some grading to do.

Over the summer, Dumbledore approached Remus and Sirius to teach Defense against the Dark Arts. Sirius had immediately agreed, since he had been teaching Astronomy last year, and had loved teaching, but he loved being close to Harry. The events of last year came to Sirius's mind, which made him grateful he was close by and be a source of support for his godson.

The summer itself was long, with Harry's nightmares, meetings at the Ministry with the new minister, Rufus Scrimgeour and the mind Healer that Dumbledore recommended. Harry had been released from the healer's care and handed him over to his primary care healer, Healer Morris. Sirius had his card if they needed him again.

"Sirius?"

Turning his head, he found Remus looking at him, concern evident on his face.

"I'm worried about Harry," Sirius whispered to the werewolf. Remus nodded his head slowly, turning his head back to the students and sipped his tea.

They both knew this day would be hard. It was still, even after all these years. Sirius, especially, since he was there that night.

Getting up from the table, Sirius walked out the door, outside towards the grounds. He knew he was being followed when he stepped off the last step. He walked along the same path he and James did many times during their time at Hogwarts.

Remus walked beside him, waiting for Sirius to say anything.

"I miss him," Sirius finally said. "I miss him, so much. Him and Lily."

Remus gazed out to the Black Lake, smiling a bit at the beautiful landscape in front of him.

"I miss him too." Placing a friendly arm around Sirius's shoulder, Remus continued. "I remember the nights we spent together in our dorm, talking until the late hours. James was the leader of our little group, even though he hated to admit it."

"I remember the night I ran away from home. He answered the door when I knocked and his mother came behind him. We stayed up that night and I told James everything that happened since our first year." At Remus's questioning look, Sirius explained, "Mum didn't stop at the Howler."

Remus chuckled. "Remember when James told us he was going to marry Lily?" he asked.

"Which time?" Sirius countered.

"The last time. When he proposed."

Sirius nodded. "I still remember the day he and Lily told us they were expecting Harry."

Remus smiled as the day came back to him. James was on cloud nine for weeks. Until Dumbledore lowered the boom and told James and Lily about the prophecy, and they went into hiding. That was when life started to get difficult.

Sirius and Remus were frequent visitors and had been there when Lily went into labor. Twenty hours later, Harry came into the world and into their lives.

Harry was James and Lily's pride and joy. Sirius fulfilled the role of godfather well and loved spending time with Harry. He was at the Potter's every chance he got. He didn't care if Harry gave him a wakeup call at five or six in the morning.

Then Halloween came, and life as they knew it changed. Sirius went to Azkaban, Harry went to Privet Drive and Remus had thrown himself into his work, only for him to lose his job a month later.

It was hard for Sirius to believe that here they were fourteen years later and they were together again. It had taken twelve years, but they were together, the way James and Lily figured they would if something happened to them.

"You know, sometimes I look at Harry and I see James and then I'll look at him and I see Lily," Remus's voice brought Sirius back to the present. Thinking of his oldest friend said, Sirius agreed. Personality wise, Harry was a combination of James and Lily. Like James, Harry had a mischievous side and would pull an occasional prank. He wasn't arrogant like James could be, but he could be sarcastic like James could be.

He was also a heavy sleeper like James was. Sirius had carried Harry up to bed before and was surprised that Harry never once woke up. There was no question he got James's talent on a broom and on the Quidditch pitch. Sirius knew James would be proud of Harry making the team as a seeker in his first year.

Like Lily, Harry was sweet, kind, and generous. When Sirius would watch Harry work on homework or in class, he did the same things that Lily did. Harry would scratch his head like Lily did when she was concentrating hard on something. He would also brush the feather of his quill on his nose as Lily did.

When he was getting really serious in his school work, Harry would stick his tongue out on the right side of his mouth, as James did.

Sirius had pointed these things out to Harry and that ended with Sirius telling Harry all of his stories about James and himself.

Over the last year, Sirius learned that when Harry got sick, he tended to act a lot younger than what he was. Remus reminded Sirius that was like James.

"You know," Sirius began. "Even though we don't have Prongs, we should be grateful we have Prongslet."

Remus nodded. He looked up towards the sky and smiled. "Thank you, Prongs. I promise we'll take care of Harry. We'll make you proud."

With an arm around each other, Sirius and Remus walked back to the castle, realizing that it was now after lunch. They headed to the kitchen for some lunch and then back to their quarters where they would do some grading.

Sirius decided that once they were done, he would go find Harry and see how he was doing on this day, the anniversary of his parent's death.

OoOoOoOoOoOoO

"Harry, come on, we're going to be late for the feast," Hermione called from the common room, up to the boy's dorms. When the raven headed teen didn't show up, Ron and Hermione shared a look, before they headed up the stairs. Ron entered the dorm and found Harry, lying on his bed, his back to Ron.

"Harry? Are you alright?" Ron asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Harry murmured. "I'm not going to the feast. I'm going to go to Sirius's quarters and hang out with them.

"Okay, are you sure?" Hermione asked.

"I'm sure. I'm actually going to head there now. See you later." Without another word to his best friends, Harry left his dorm and then out the portrait hole. He headed down the corridors and down the stairs towards the Defense corridor. He slipped into Sirius and Remus's shared quarters and into his room.

He laid down on the bed and curled on his side, hugging a pillow. On his nightstand was a moving picture of his parents. Harry watched the scene replay, sighing. Not able to look at the picture anymore, Harry turned on his right side, facing the wall. He took a few shaky breaths before he lost the battle with his emotions he had been holding in all day.

Harry didn't know how long he laid there, his shoulders shaking with muffled sobs when he felt a hand on his back. His teary eyes looked up and found his godfather looking back at him, his own eyes looked red and puffy.

Without warning, Harry launched himself into Sirius's arms and began to sob in his shoulder.

"No one knows how much I hate this day," Harry said in a shaky voice. "They don't know how it affects me. While they celebrate the holiday and eat candy and treats, I grieve my parents."

Sirius hugged Harry little tighter, letting him release the buildup emotion.

"Come on," Sirius said after a while. Harry led Sirius led him off to somewhere Sirius wanted to go. He didn't question him when Sirius wrapped his jacket around his shoulders. They walked down to the gate where they could apparate, Harry pulled his arms in the sleeves of his jacket.

They disappeared with a pop and appeared in a village square.

"Where are we, Sirius?" Harry asked.

Sirius didn't answer but led Harry down a familiar path. It wasn't until they were at the kissing gate that Harry knew where they were.

"I brought you here, to visit their grave like we did for Mother's Day and Father's Day this year," Sirius explained.

Then in the blink of an eye, Harry was standing in front of his parent's grave. He sniffled and took a shaky breath.

As he looked at the grave, he was reminded of the loss and grief that he had suffered on this day. The emotions returned, this time, like an inferno. It threatened to overcome him

"Mum! Dad!" Harry's voice was quiet, but Sirius heard it and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. What started as a single tear on its own, because a cascade of tears that kept pouring from Harry's eyes.

"I miss you," Harry hiccupped. "I miss you much." Then suddenly, Harry shouted, "WHY DID YOU LEAVE ME?"

Sirius pulled Harry to him, hugging the sobbing teen tightly, offering comfort. He could feel Harry shaking with emotion and his shaky voice keep asking "why did you leave me?"

Then Harry pulled away from Sirius. "I wish they were here Sirius. I love you, but I need them to."

Sirius embraced Harry once more and whispered, "I wish they were here too kiddo. I miss them so much. Especially your Dad. If I screw up raising you…."

Harry cut Sirius off. "You've done a good job so far. You've been here for me on days like these. You've stood by me when times got hard, last year for example. You took care of me when I got sick, sitting by my bed, rubbing my back when I threw up, and nursing me back to health. Made sure I ate when I was supposed to and helped me when I needed it. Want me to go on Sirius?"

Sirius smiled and pulled Harry to him. "I needed to hear that Pup. Thanks."

They stood there, grieving together and hugging each other. Sirius remembered his best friend, who was his brother in everything but blood. He smiled for a second when he thought of the relationship between Harry and Ron. He also remembered Lily, who became a good friend after she and James started dating.

Harry grieved for the parents he doesn't remember. He only knows what they look like thanks to pictures and seeing them in the mirror of erised. He wished for many years that he would be rescued from his relatives. That wish came true last summer when he went to live with Sirius.

Standing there for another minute and then they made their way to the village square. They disappeared with a pop.

OoOoOoOoOoOoO

Harry laid in his bed, staring up at the ceiling. It was now November first, Angelina had scheduled Quidditch practice, Professor McGonagall's essay on Vanishing charms was due that day. For Herbology, they were to read about fanged geranium. With everything yesterday, Harry forgot. He would need to get Hermione to give him a review.

"Harry, are you up?"

Ron's voice brought Harry back to the present. He pushed the quilt back and got up, heading to the bathroom for a shower.

"Morning," he mumbled, heading into his usual stall. He stepped out five minutes later, a towel wrapped around his waist. He picked up his toothbrush and began to brush his teeth.

"Are you alright?" Ron inquired.

"I'm okay, just." Harry trailed off for a second. "Yesterday wasn't a good day."

Ron smiled sympathetically patting Harry on the shoulder as he left the bathroom. Dressed in clean boxers, Harry left the bathroom and began to get dressed for the day.

Heading down to breakfast, Harry asked Hermione if she could give him a review for Herbology. She handed him a copy of the notes she took on the fanged geranium.

"I was thinking we could meet in the library later?" Hermione looked from Ron to Harry.

"Quidditch practice," they replied at the same time, causing them to laugh.

Hermione sighed and turned to Harry. "Are you okay today?"

"Yeah," Harry replied, looking up at the head table where Sirius was sitting. They locked eyes for a second and smiled. "I'm okay."

Hermione and Ron shared a knowing look. They knew that Halloween was a hard Holiday for Harry, but had made a promise to be there when Harry needed them. They were happy that he had someone like Sirius, who he could share the grief with and not keep it bottled up.

Not for the first time, Harry was grateful to have Sirius in his life. Together they could get through what came their way. Together, they could give each other comfort, especially some Halloween comfort.

AN: I know it's sad, but I wanted to give Harry some comfort on the day that would be hard. It's not easy on the days of anniversaries of someone's passing. Happier times are head please so stay tuned.