Hello again! Sorry for the hiatus, but it was the first time I had a summer job, and well... I haven't done much besides working ( and getting my first boyfriend, which wasn't planned at all, as you might think ) this summer.

Also, I know, and, more importantly, I knew when I posted the last chapters, that some people would complain about it, but well. What do you want me to say?

Because you don't see the importance of something at first doesn't mean it was just a 'stupid' filler or something.

Moreover, you have to understand this story is going to be huge. I have something like ten more chapters planned up, and we will only be after Christmas of 6th year, I think, by that point. And I always make a point to introduce some of the "plot seeds" a few chapters prior, so there is a reason for what I do. Last chapter, this chapter, and maybe one or two more chapters might seem to be at a low for you, but it's the calm before the storm, some rest for the characters, and the occasion to plant some plot seeds here and there.

Just consider we finished part 1, and are currently transitioning to part 2?

And, please, never write in a comment/review that a point of the story is "stupid", especially not if you don't say which point and don't present any argument. The author will just get angry, and possibly ignore you, even if there were other positive points in your message.
"I don't get it for now, we'll have to see" is much better.
Or even "I don't like that, BECAUSE"
But not "It's stupid" (about the story, not about the character's decisions or things like that, since some characters can actually be stupid)

Ah! Ranting is over!

Chapter 25: Parody of a paused tango

It was Harry's birthday.

And for once, Harry truly and completely enjoyed his birthday.

Not that his last birthdays had been so terrible. Alright, minus the one in second year. That year he had really thought everyone had just forgotten he existed, which had hurt, considering it had been the first time in his life he had had lasting friends. But his birthdays had gone exponentially better with each year since he had gone to Hogwarts.

1991's had seen his admission to the school, with Hagrid coming to tell him he was a wizard, and to curse Dudley with a pig tail, though no one was supposed to know about that. 1992's had been less great, as told before, because Dobby the house-elf had taken his letters. 1993's had seen him with his first birthday presents ever, Hedwig excepted. 1994's had been calm, with the Dursleys being terrified of his rabid-criminal-of-a-godfather-on-the-loose, their words, not his, but he hadn't seen it necessary to correct their assumptions. 1995's had been spent, not in the greatest house ever, true, but with both his friends and his godfather.

And this year, it seemed it would simply be the perfect birthday.

First of all, they were all present: himself, obviously, the Weasleys, Hermione, Sirius, Remus, the Tonks, and interestingly, Fleur Delacour too. Bill was lucky he could ignore his brothers better than anyone, because Fred and George were teasing him to death.

If only Remus didn't look like he was going to fall asleep anytime and never wake up, it'd be perfect, but the teenager was content enough that the werewolf had come, considering the date.

Second thing, they were at a pleasant place: the Burrow.

It might not be as classy or elegant or costly as Black Manor, but it was a bit more homely. With only Sirius and himself at the manor, and with the... blackness of the place, Harry sometimes felt a bit depressed. He had no idea how Sirius could bear the idea of living there all year round... Then again, it was a place of memories for his godfather, and Sirius seemed to like the quiet, from time to time.

Anyway, Harry only had great memories of the Burrow, and the place, if at first glance a bit derelict, was colored. Warm. Welcoming.

Third thing, if all his problems weren't solved, especially not the snake-faced one, some were, and that was more than he could say most years. Sirius was free, and everybody knew he had told the truth. It was more than he had hoped for at the beginning of the last school year.

Fourth thing, he was currently playing a quidditch game that was definitely becoming insane.

What could be better, to start a birthday party?

Nothing, obviously.

Remus and Arthur Weasley had helped pulling up the goals, in the same hidden field where Ron, Hermione, Ginny and Harry had played once, two years ago. Now, they were with Hermione, simply watching the younger ones play. Mrs Weasley and Andromeda Tonks were speaking quietly nearby, and Bellatrix Lestrange's ghost had gone around to keep an eye on the surroundings, apparently. Harry wasn't displeased that she had gone away, and he didn't doubt the feeling was mutual. They usually went out of their way to avoid each other at Black Manor. Even if everyone seemed to like her better now that death had taken away her insanity, she still wasn't their favorite person.

But if things were going slowly for those who weren't in the game, it wasn't the case for the players.

They might not have been numerous enough for a real game, but some of them made it up with both enthousiasm and agressivity. Harry doubted they would play more than one game before going back to the house to eat the cake.

His own birthday cake. He almost couldn't believe it.

Almost, because Sirius was spoiling him since they had started living together.

Anyway, they had to change the rules of quidditch a bit, since they were only nine, and there was no snitch, but it was becoming more epic by the minute. They had decided on a forty minutes limit.

Team Weasley had Ron at the goals, the most stressed keeper in the history of quidditch, as always. Then, Fred and George, who had decided to close shop for the day, as beaters, obviously, and they were so synced it was frightening, as usual. Bill and Ginny were playing chasers, and both were great, though Bill insisted Charlie would have done better... But Charlie was away, working and recruiting foreign wizards, so he hadn't made it.

Team Potter-Black was dangerous in a whole other way. Ted Tonks had agreed to play keeper, since Remus was too tired to even stand on his broom; his game was alright, just enough that the others didn't have to constantly worry about the goals behind them. Harry and Nymphadora were playing chasers, and while it was a different experience for the boy, it was mostly something very dangerous with the metamorphmagus as a partner. Yes, she could stay on her broom. And yes, she was as clumsy as ever. Bill swore she had given him a heart attack when her broom had unexpectedly aimed at him at full speed. No harm done, because Tonks was an auror and knew how to stop something like that from happening on a mission, but still. And then, there was Sirius, who had taken the two spots of beaters for himself. And he was good enough to fill in, that was certain. Only, he was just as likely to give Harry a heart attack as Tonks, because if he wasn't clumsy, he was definitely dangerously insane.

The twins had a hard time against the young lord, and the three of them had started a true battle just between themselves in the middle of the game. Everyone eyed them suspiciously, never really looking away, even when they had to. They felt it was simply too dangerous to do so.

The thing was, one of Harry's gifts had been a quidditch set, minus the snitch, and Sirius had offered to open it earlier, since the Weasleys didn't have balls to play. It would have been a shame, considering they had the right amount of decent – and cheatingly-good too – brooms, and a special area for a game.

Harry started when a black form dived right in front of him, from just above him, and Sirius suddenly appeared, ready to gift another bludger to the twins anytime.

Harry snorted a bit, and went back into the game. It was hard enough keeping track of the three catastrophes and play at the same time as it was, so he'd rather not space out too much.

Even if this was proving to be the best birthday ever.

The game ended with an even number of points for each team, not surprisingly.

They were all sweating heavily, though Bill and Sirius managed to do that and still look cool somehow. Mrs Weasley sighed at them, and they all went, without even attempting negociations, to take a quick shower. It was better for everyone, and even if Ron looked like he might have had the idea of protesting, he didn't. He certainly wasn't feeling any more comfortable than Harry did, surely, in his soaked clothes.

A few minutes later, they were all sitting down outside. There wasn't enough place inside, but the Burrow's wards had been upgraded several times over the last two years, so it wouldn't be a problem. Mr and Mrs Weasley had taken out two large tables, green napkins, and chairs of various forms. No one commented, because there really was nothing to say. They weren't snobs.

Mrs Weasley came out of the house with a really big and really mouth-watering cake, which she put down right before Harry. The teenage wizard wasn't sure exactly what the cake was made with, but if he had to guess, he'd say it was at least pumpkin, apple, and liquorice-based. Wizards tended to use strange associations like that, when cooking, and so far he hadn't been able to complain.

Aside from that one time, with the leak cupcakes. And with Bertie Botts' beans, but for those it kind of was the point, for some to be simply disgusting while others were delicious.

"Here, Harry dear, do you want to cut the cake?"

From the corner of his eye, Harry might have seen Sirius waggle his eyebrows at him for the nickname, but it might have been an illusion, too. The teenager decided to ignore his godfather, just in case.

"Of course, Mrs Weasley, but I..."

It wasn't that he didn't know how to, because he had had to do it for Dudley's many times, and under the strict watch of Aunt Petunia – least he got away with the cake, or worse, decided to trash it just to piss they off, since, you know, he was a delinquent.

He hadn't ever cut a birthday cake that was his own, before. Not like this, at least, with his friends with him and everything just going right.

But everything was simply happening as it was supposed to be, for now, and his friends were here. So he steeled his resolve, and took the cake. It was just a cake, after all. His cake. His birthday cake. And he wasn't going to let something like that deter him. Not today.

Molly had watched the boy's hesitation with surprise, but she didn't say anything, and she refrained from frowning. Whatever it was that had made him hesitate, it wasn't here anymore, and it was all that really mattered. Harry deserved a normal birthday, for once.

Everyone got a slice of cake, and indeed, they all agreed it was delicious. If Molly's cheeks were a bit pink after that, they all pretended not to have seen anything.

Then came the time for gifts.

Sirius stretched from his seat.

"Alright, boys, girls. I believe Harry might like to see the presents we got for him. He already saw one of mines, so it's someone else's turn."

Ron and Hermione shared a look for a moment, before standing up together and disappearing inside the Burrow without a word.

Sirius mock-whispered to Remus, who only rolled his eyes.

"I didn't say it was time to snog, did I?"

Molly might have given the young lord an evil eye, but it didn't last long enough for him to be certain of it, so he just shrugged it off. And, if the mother might not have wanted to hear that about her son and his female best friend, Fred and George were definitely sniggering stupidly behind their older brother. Who, by the way, had raised his eyebrows high, not having been around enough to know about this particular theory about Ron and Hermione's friendship.

Before anything else could be said, though, Harry's two best friends came back, each with a present in their arms. The wrapping was gold and brown for Hermione's, and purple and green for Ron, but they seemed to be from the same place. Also, given the size, Harry had a feeling they could be books...

There was a moment of silence. Then Hermione cleared her throat, and put her gift on the table, just in front of Harry.

"So, we were thinking about what we could get you, Ron was complaining because he couldn't come up with any idea, and then I realized you didn't get to read these at the Dursleys'..."

Ron handed him his own gift.

"Yeah, and her idea was actually great, you know, man. I hadn't even realized, but it's going to be super easy to get you gifts, now!"

Hermione gave the redhead a look that told him about what exactly she thought of him saying that out loud. Ginny looked up from her remnant of cake, that she had been toying with for the last ten minutes, and smirked at her brother knowingly. Ron blushed red under his freckles.

"...So, yeah. That's from us."

Harry thanked them, and started with Ron's, before opening Hermione's present.

It turned out to be books alright, just not the kind he had expected. Ron had gotten him two wizarding comics, which Harry found himself curious over. He had gotten glimpses of Ron's, but he hadn't actually ever read any, and he wondered how different it would be from normal comics. Hermione had taken him a simple fantasy novel, completely muggle, and he found it surprisingly thoughtful of her. The girl tended to read only classics or serious books, but it was just a story. The kind of story he had rarely gotten to read, because the Dursleys would only get him what was needed for school, or give him the books Dudley never read.

"That's great, guys, really. Thanks."

As always, Mrs Weasley had made him a jumper. It made Sirius laugh, but Harry glared at him mildly, and before he knew it, his godfather had forced the green jumper on him, just, not with the arms in the sleeves. Looking like a restrained green madman, Harry glared at Sirius once more.

Remus was the one to help him out with this one.

Once that struggle passed, the werewolf gave him a small gift in brown wrapping, telling him he was likely to need it for DADA next year. When Harry opened it, he only found an Ear-Splitting-Rages Journal, with the instructions on the back cover; when you feel like screaming at someone and can't, you simply start writing your anger, and it feels like you actually shouted at the one you are angry with.

Somehow, it made Harry doubt Slughorn would be the DADA professor. He didn't think he'd need that journal with Slughorn...

The others had a few little things for him, too. The Tonks had gotten Harry a few photos of compromising situations in which Sirius had ended up a long time ago, though the young lord simply snorted at the threat. Ginny had tried to make cookies herself, under her mother's watch. Bill had given him an old coin from Egypt he had found in his suitcase.

And at last, Sirius handed him a beautiful black feather that turned out to be a quill.

"House-of-Black stamped. One of the ravens at the manor willingly participated, and I charmed it not to get used too quickly. It should last the whole year if you're careful, kid."

Harry blinked at the quill, which was almost longer than his forearm.

"How big are the ravens at Black Manor, exactly?"

He didn't get an answer to that question, curiously. Only a smug look.

A smug look that somehow turned evil, and Harry gulped, already waiting for the prank or whatever it was that had his godfaher grinning like a loon.

It wasn't as terrible as he had feared, though.

"And your last present, Harry, are Prongs' antlers!"

The boy started as he felt something appear suddenly, heavy on his head. He reached immediately, and grabbed something... Something that felt like plastic.

He frowned, and pulled.

Right after that, he found himself staring dumbly at a christmas-like pair of antlers on a black head strap.

He looked behind him, somewhat relieved it hadn't been a jinx which he couldn't have removed before three hours without turning purple, but now wondering how the hell the antlers had gotten on his head if it hadn't been a spell.

Sure enough, Fred and George, wearing their own – and inversed – jumpers, grinned at him, hands behind their backs.

"I -"

"- didn't do anything."

"I'd say, if one of us is guilty of anything -"

"- it's definitely him -"

"- and not me."

Then, together:

"You believe me, don't you, Harry?"

The teenager felt his head spin a bit after that, until Fred... Forge... George... or was it Gred? – put a hand on his left shoulder.

"You'll have our present when you come to Diagon Alley, Harrikins. We owe -"

Gred glanced at his mother, knowing full well it would not be wise for him to divulge this particular piece of information right now, for Harry at least. Molly Weasley might have warmed up quite nicely to their project, since the twins had proved they could manage their job well enough, but they figured it'd be better if they kept quiet about Harry's involvement for the next decade or two. Just in case.

Forge ended his sentence for him, in a less slippery way.

"- We'd appreciate to offer you some of our greatest inventions."

The world stopped ringing at Harry's ears as he nodded, wide-eyed.

"Sure. No problem, Forge, Gred. I'll pass by."

The twins frowned at him, then at each other, before pinching each of his cheeks.

"You're sure you're alright, Harrikins?"

Harry blinked. The world was back to normal, and he wasn't seeing two and a half twins anymore. Two were right enough as they were, he found.

"Yeah, sorry. Thanks, Fred. I think I'm going to get something to drink."

And true to his word, Harry stood up and went for the kitchen, where he splattered his face with cold water.

Back at the tables, Sirius had watched his godson walk away a bit groggily, a small smile on his lips. He knew the twins could be confusing when they wanted, but he had a feeling it had more to do with it being Harry's first true birthday party ever – 1981's had been only adults, it didn't count.

He was going to do his damned best to save Harry's life, at the end of the story. Even if for now he was getting a bit desperate, because there simply weren't enough books on horcruxes for a study on living horcruxes to have been done. No matter what, it didn't mean he couldn't do his best to give the teenager the best life possible until the fateful hour.

For now, Sirius simply did his best not to see James above Harry, as he tended to automatically do. While the two were almost identical physically, their personalities weren't really the same. Sure, some things remained, like the courage, or even the foolhardiness, and Harry, despite being quite nice overall, still had the same tendency as James did for prejudices-upon-first-impression, though he didn't act on it most of the time, unlike his father. On other points, Harry was more like Lily. Humility, for example, and that surely because of his childhood that had been really, really different from his father's. Being angry at bullies. And being a bit less prone than James to break school rules, unless it was absolutely necessary.

Though, on that point, trouble seemed to search out for the teenager anyway.

Also, Sirius tried to hide his concern, whenever Harry was around, and he was reminded of what might await the kid. Sirius tried to hide his anger, too, and for now Harry didn't know about his frequent visits to the anger room, where he cast every single dark spell he knew to release some anger when it became too much. After all, the Black lord couldn't allow himself to have bouts of accidental dark magic, no matter the pressure he was under.

It really wouldn't do.

As his thoughts went on and on, the animagus' smile disappeared gradually, and Remus noticed it despite his own problems. Harry had come back from the kitchen, but hadn't noticed anything yet, busy with his friends. The werewolf watched his own friend for a while, and understood what was happening when Sirius' gaze slipped from Harry to the twins, becoming colder at the same time, before the young lord looked up at the sky, and the weigth of the world seemed to crush his shoulders.

"Sirius, you're brooding."

"I'm not."

Remus snorted, and stood up. Tonks was almost immediately by his side, asking him if he needed help, but the werewolf only said he had to go to bed, after last night's full moon – it was going now, or falling asleep out here and then waking up even more sore.

Before going to say goodbye to the others, though, Remus looked critically at his friend for one last time.

"If you're not brooding, why did you look at the twins as you always do, when there are twins around? As if you deserved to be sucked into oblivion and never heard of again? You might have gotten used to them last summer, Sirius, but when you're brooding you can't hide it, you know that? It's just too much, even for you."

"Whatever you say, Moony. And I told you to go to the manor for full moons. The dogs are waiting for you, and I can lock up the doors, so there is truly no danger. I expect you next month."

The werewolf hesitated, but eventually nodded.

Ten minutes later, he was gone, and Tonks was staring longingly at the spot he had apparated from.

Sirius decided to stop brooding for a minute – which he had definitely not been doing anyway – just to ask the question he had been burning to ask for the last month.

"Is it just me, Nymphadora, or are you flirting with my best friend?"

The metamorphmagus blushed, and chose to ignore her stupid cousin.

"It's Tonks."

"Whatever you say, Nymphie."

"And what was he talking about, with the twins?"

Sirius slumped back onto his chair, dark look back on his face, and grumbled.

"Ask your mother, she knows. And actually, I'm pretty sure you know too, you just haven't realized it yet."

Not long after that, Arthur Weasley suddenly looked up from his book and frowned, as if he was hearing something they couldn't. The kids looked at him strangely, while the adults became more alert.

They knew that particular look. Someone was at the wards, and though they weren't attacking the property, they weren't allowed inside without invitation. It was the Weasley variation of the traditional wards most Houses used, and it hadn't been used by the family for a few years, but Arthur had taken it out again with Voldemort's return, one year ago.

Not every pureblooded family was as paranoid as the Blacks, or even the mostly slytherin-sorted Houses, but now, everyone had gotten back to extreme wardings and magical traps. The Ministry of Magic provided some protection, too, and most small families depended on it, but the old Houses had money, or at least secret spells which worked differently than most, and were more likely to hinder an attacker.

Not all wardings would stop Voldemort and his Death Eaters for long, and most would fall quickly if not supplied directly by a wizard, but it could at least delay the bastards. And those who could afford the protection were happy enough with just that.

But, for now, the wards only tingled at Arthur's mind, which meant they weren't under attack. The man stood up, ready to go and see who was here, and what for.

Before he could go very far, a green letter twirled around from the invisible gate to him, and Arthur snatched the thing from its inexistent wisk of wind before it could fall to the ground. He took a minute to read it, his eyebrows going up at some point, and then he glanced at Sirius, an amused smile cracking his face.

"Someone for you, 'Lord Black'. Apparently, she has something to tell you."

Sirius' mind immediately went to Eleanor, for some reason, but he took his time to get up and move to the gate. He could feel Dora's inquisitive stare on his back, and he had caught Harry's raised eyebrow, and he didn't want to feed them any other reason to tease him.

Not that there was anything for them to tease him about.

As he rounded the corner of the house, Sirius heard Arthur's voice once more.

"And tell her she can come in if she wishes!"

Sirius had absolutely no idea why the older wizard had said that. It wasn't as if Miss Rowle didn't have anything better to do than to spend her free time with him, was it?

Just as he had guessed, Eleanor was standing just outside the wards, still clad in her uniform.

Which was weird, as if she had left the Ministry in a hurry.

"Is it an official visit?"

The witch glanced quickly at her attire, and fiddled with her wand, stuck, as usual, in her chignon.

"Oh, that. Sorry. I didn't take the time to change back into normal clothing."

"Did something happen?"

What could have gotten her to leave the Ministry in a hurry, and to come to see him here, at the Weasleys? But even if she was still wearing her strict robe with the logo of the Office of Misinformation on it, she didn't seem hurt or even dirty, so nothing terrible had happened, surely?

But why was she here, then?

Speaking of, how had she known where to find him? It wasn't as if he had broadcasted his plans for Harry's birthday to the magical community of England...

"No, not really. I just thought I'd give you a head-up. The surprise might have been a bit unpleasant, otherwise, or at least unnerving. And well, they were certainly counting on it, so I decided I'd ruin their plans, at least a bit."

Eleanor tucked a stray strand of hair behind her left ear, and looked around one more time.

She didn't look worried, per se, maybe just anxious that whatever the suprise was, someone would come and see her warning him.

She wasn't exactly doing anything bad, but she'd rather the Ministry didn't know she had come here to warn Sirius Black and Harry Potter about the surprise.

No need to anger anyone, after all. And no need to make them suspicious of her, either.

"So... Well, Scrimgeour has planned to pass by here soon enough, ask for you two's cooperation, poster boy and supportive lord and everything. I heard him speak about it in a corridor. And knowing you, you might have ended up saying something abbrasive instead of being supportive. So I came over."

Sirius raised an eyebrow, amused.

"And why wouldn't I say something abbrasive, now that I'm warned?"

Eleanor shrugged, knowing full well that whatever Sirius would have done, it was just as likely to happen now that he knew as it'd have been otherwise. Still, she had to try if she wanted to hope.

"I don't expect you to become a diplomat over the course of twenty minutes, but you at least get the time to think about it. And if it doesn't end well, you won't be able to say you were taken by surprise."

"I could lie."

"You could. It wouldn't become the truth for all that."

Eleanor looked around one last time, and gave him a warm smile. She knew how much he cared for his godson, even if sometimes he had a hard time showing it, because he was too busy trying not to call the teen "James", or not to think about the possible fate waiting for the boy, or...

When they spoke freely, on a sunday afternoon, sitting under a tree at Black Manor, Harry was a frequent subject.

"And I didn't want them to crash Harry's party too much. I... I think I should go. I came as soon as my shift ended, so they shouldn't be long, I don't really want the Minister to see me here..."

"Mr Weasley said you could come in, if you want. I could do with your company, now that my best friend ran away."

It had come out, not against his will, but even before he could decide if he'd ask. Sirius wasn't sure he regretted the spontaneity.

Eleanor seemed to be surprised, for a moment, but eventually she came back to her senses, glancing over her shoulder one more time, as if realizing that the more she waited to make a decision, to give him an answer, the more likely she was to cross path with Scrimgeour.

Uncharacteristically, the witch bit her lower lip for a second, before nodding.

"Alright. But if you don't mind, I'd like to change clothes."

Sirius smiled, a soft and warm expression on his face that wasn't usually here.

"Come in. I'm sure Mrs Weasley will allow you to change upstairs."

Just as they walked away, the witch and the wizard tensed. Just a few feet behind them, at the gate, the air had shifted, announcing one apparition at least. They had felt it only because apparition travelers usually left a trademark, both when they left a place, and just before they materialized elsewhere. Most of the time, it was a small sound, but not always. Sirius cracked each time he apparated, and Eleanor went out with a soft "pop".

This person, however, sent a wave of cold air around.

Sirius closed the door of the Burrow behind Eleanor, hoping that Scrimgeour hadn't gotten a good look at her. Because that wave of cold? It was definitely the new Minister for Magic.

Then he turned around to see the old lion mane of Rufus Scrimgeour, as well as the surprisingly tamed red mess of a Weasley. Then again, the Weasley hair never was as terrible as the Potter hair.

Back on the other side of the Burrow, Arthur froze.

Someone had opened the wards to a visitor, who wasn't Eleanor Rowle – whom he had already invited in – and he wasn't the one who'd allowed it. Only the adult Weasleys could do that without his consent, Bill and Molly were here with him, Charlie was still in Romania, which only left...

"Percy."

Molly's eyes zeroed on him, before jumping back to the Burrow's entrance, hidden behind the house, as if she could see through it, and soothe her mind with the sight of her wayward son.

Bill swatted his brother on the head when Ron said something unbecoming, but his stance was as tense as his other siblings'. They were mostly trying to ignore the traitor coming their way, except Ginny who was simply glaring a hole through the house, waiting for the ass to join them. She wasn't sure why he'd want to come, especially today, after all he had said and done the preceding year, but apparently he was here, and he wasn't alone...

The only "good" thing in this was that, even if Percy wasn't their favorite person, and even if he hadn't been brave enough to come around and ask for forgiveness, everyone here just knew he wouldn't let an enemy in. Not knowingly, if anything, and certainly not willingly. Even the twins admitted it, that if someone threatened their older brother's life to get to them, no matter what had transpired between them, Percy would never agree to help them. The former Head Boy might lack courage when it came to admitting he was wrong, but he didn't when it truly mattered.

The other Weasleys only hoped he would see that and stop ignoring them before such a time came. Meanwhile, they had mostly decided he was a bastard whose presence wasn't even worth acknowledging.

Remembering what Percy had written to Ron the year before, Harry moved slightly out of sight, just in case. He didn't trust himself not to start screaming if they ended up face to face.

Harry wasn't particularly known for his control over his temper.

He had no idea who Sirius had gone to see at the gate, but he sure hoped his godfather would be back soon, preferably before Percy arrived to them, and did whatever he had come for. Hopefully, it was apologizing.

Sirius, Percy and someone else, who turned out to be Rufus Scrimgeour, Minister for Magic himself, walked around the house and came into sight. Mr Weasley tensed a bit when he recognized his boss, firstly because Scrimgeour hadn't made it a habit to come to the Burrow and yet here he was, secondly because if the Minister was here, there were fewer chances that Percy was here to come back into the family.

It was more likely that Scrimgeour was using Percy as an excuse to come around just the day the famous Harry Potter wasn't at Black Manor, under heavy protections which the Black lord would not open, even for the Minister of Magic, without a good reason.

Scrimgeour saluted the Weasleys and the Tonks, but soon walked a bit away, saying he didn't want to impose while "Percy catches up with his family". Percy-catching-up-with-his-family couldn't look his own mother in the eyes, though. So in the end, Sirius ended up alone with the Minister.

The Black lord put on a polite, but guarded expression. He hadn't forgotten the encounter from before his trial, and he wasn't in the mood to get insulted. Despite his slight moodiness towards a bunch of various possible future catastrophes, he had even managed to appreciate Harry's birthday fully. He certainly hoped Scrimgeour wouldn't be the one to put an end to his good mood.

There was a moment of silence.

Then the Minister for Magic cleared his throat and forced himself to look the man before him in the eyes.

"I wished to apologize for my accusations of the other day."

Sirius blinked, surprised. He hadn't hoped for such a thing to happen. Though Scrimgeour had submitted a blank vote at his trial, which meant the man was at least reconsidering his views on the young lord, Sirius hadn't expected that much. And even if he had allowed himself to believe the Minister might end up believing him at some point, he would not have expected such straight-forward apologies.

Well.

He wasn't going to complain, was he?

"Apologies accepted. I don't resent you for doubting me, anyway. I just wasn't very pleased with being the only one to never have been offered a chance to prove myself."

Sirius looked away and at the sky before him.

"But that is not the sole reason for your presence. Am I wrong?"

"No, you aren't. I need to speak with your godson, truth be told."

Sirius hummed a bit, thoughtful. Usually he wouldn't let the politician anywhere near Harry, not after the last year, and the unfair accusations the Ministry had constantly showered the teen with, but well. He was in a good mood, Scrimgeour was definitely not under an Imperius curse, the former auror wasn't the kind of man to try anything stupid, and Harry would have to deal with this at some point in time. Here and now had the advantage of Sirius being around, ready to do damage control if necessary. It could not be the case next time.

"I see. Don't expect him to be the Ministry's biggest fan, though. And unlike me, Harry doesn't like to look over an unpleasant past, even if it is towards a better future."

Scrimgeour raised an eyebrow at that.

"Because you do?"

Sirius smirked, knowing very well that once the Minister would have talked to Harry, it would be his turn again.

"I don't like to, either, but I'm willing to, if it's for the sake of something important enough. I may bitch about the past for a time, and I might be unpleasant to anyone who deserved it, but I can get over it. Harry... Well, he is young, for one."

The younger wizard's smirk melted a little, into something bitter.

"And he's a Potter. They are fierce and prideful, and need some time to soften after an insult, when us Blacks are able to compromise, sometimes to forgive, but never to forget. You can try, but I think you came here at least one year too early to get his help."

Scrimgeour said nothing about the other man's assumption that he had come asking for help, probably because he was right about it and both knew the other to know that. He seemed displeased at Sirius' prediction as to the outcome of his enterprise, of course, but once again, it was only the truth. It was unlikely for Harry to just forgive the Ministry like that. In a year or two, perhaps...

The Minister for Magic walked away and towards Harry, who was still doing his best keeping out of Percy's way. Sirius watched them for a time, but they went too far away at some point, and he simply gave up.

At that moment, Tonks crept up on her cousin to try and startle him. Sirius only grabbed her wrist and twisted around, his left ankle going for her own. Tonks, thanks to her auror reflexes, didn't fall to the ground, though they ended up in some parody of a paused tango.

Stupid until the end, Sirius waggled his eyebrows.

"You come here often, Pixie?"

The metamorphmagus' hair spiked up in pinkish mock-anger, while her facial features sharpened a bit more to accentuate the pixie-side of her... current looks.

"You'd flirt with your cousin's daughter?"

Sirius exaggerated his answer with a flourish, pulling her up to stand on her own feet again.

"Don't you flirt with my best friend?"

This time, Tonks only pouted a bit.

"I would, if he let me. But for some reason he decided nice werewolves didn't deserve to be loved, and that I deserved better than him."

"Right, I know this one pretty well. Did you know he has never dated anyone because of his fury little problem? Like, no one ever?"

"Uh. I suppose I'll have to take that into consideration..."

Sirius spotted the Minister for Magic coming back from his "walk" with Harry, and heading his way. Scrimgeour looked a bit miffed, and Harry had gone straight back to his friends. Meaning it hadn't gone well. Not that Sirius was surprised.

And he might have been civil to Scrimgeour, he also knew the man wasn't really interested in Harry's well-being or whatever; that he only wished to use his fame. And Sirius could understand that, because the Minister couldn't just assume that a prophecy he had only heard rumors about was going to happen, and that Harry Potter would soon be the savior of them all.

He could understand, yes. He still wouldn't have approved if Harry had accepted to be a poster boy.

So, even before Scrimgeour could ask anything of him too, Sirius gave him his answer.

"It wouldn't work, Minister. You are the Law, but I am the Necessity. Think about it, and you'll see it would never work, even if we agreed on a collaboration."

Both wizards stared at each other for a time, but eventually Scrimgeour nodded without another word. The Minister for Magic left after that, accompanied by Percy, and frowning, deep in thoughts.

Sirius' smile grew wider when Eleanor poked out of the Burrow, asking if Scrimgeour had left.