Ok here it is chp 10 or 11 I 4get! Anyway this is a belated Christmas
present to my readers and an early New Years present! Have a wonderful New
Year!
Disclaimer: Own only the plot, my made up characters my plot lines, my made up situations such as Tutamen Unus etc!
Enjoy....
'Well lets clear up here and then we shall have a talk.' Dumbledore withdrew his wand from his robes and with a swish of his wand all the furniture was repaired, the glass fixed and the glass cleared.
As Dumbledore beckoned the others to follow him down the stairs, Fawkes took flight and disappeared. A smile crossed the old Wizard's face, as he knew exactly where he was off too.
There was a sound of rushing wings and roaring fire as suddenly in the middle of the lounge appeared a gold and crimson phoenix, Fawkes. Fawkes flew over to the sofa and came to a rest on the arm of it, watching over the boy who lay soundly sleeping.
They all arrived in the sitting room where they all took seats on the large sofas. Arabella looked unusually saddened,
'Sirius first of all I know you will be upset Harry didn't come to you but its not because he doest trust you because he does and he loves you more than anything. He was embarrassed and scared of your reaction, he thought you would do something rash, and I think that he felt more comfortable talking to me since I have known him his entire life and since I know the Dursley's.'
Sirius cracked a small smile and felt relief spread throughout his body. He thought that Harry hadn't come to him because he hadn't trusted him. Arabella smiled as she saw Sirius visibly relax, she knew he was just as worried as she was about Harry and like her would do anything for him. Dumbledore looked expectantly at Arabella and when Arabella met his gaze she didn't miss the look of sadness in his eyes.
'I knew the Dursley's never treated Harry as he should have been, I found out after he started Hogwarts that he had been sleeping in a cupboard and his aunt and uncle thought it was totally appropriate for him, he was treated like a slave made to do all the chores while their son plays games, he was never bought anything and all his clothes were cast offs. Then this summer..' Arabella took a deep shaky breath and saw the concerned looks on everyone's faces even Snape's,
'This summer his uncle beat him everyday since he got home, his aunt and cousin too. They blamed him for the uncle's business failures. Harry was sore from his injures at the Triwizard Tournament and it slowed him down and he was punished. He was locked in his room, only allowed out to do chores, even his windows had bars on them. He was beaten until he collapsed and then they still carried on. They are monsters. They are totally against magic, or anything 'abnormal' I remember Lily used to say that Petunia used to call her a freak.' Snape broke the silence,
'I remember Lily never much mentioned her sister or her husband but she did say that they were all very anti-magic, but I always imagined that once they had heard what Potter had done they would have treated him like a prince, I always presumed he was a spoilt brat, like Draco Malfoy.' Everyone in the room silently agreed with that statement. Dumbledore looked up,
'Arabella please tell me everything Harry said, its vital I know everything so the appropriate action can be taken.' Arabella told all that Harry had told her, the details of the beatings and the reasons and their treatment of him. After Arabella finally finished her account of what Harry had said, Dumbledore slowly raised his hand up and rubbed his forehead,
'I have failed Harry, I have failed James and Lily and I failed myself, I should have seen this before, he should never had stayed with the Dursley's, he should have gone to stay with you Arabella or myself. I am ashamed with myself, I cant even imagine how he has suffered, and how this has affected him.' Dumbledore drew a shaky breath and sighed heavily. Arabella walked over to Dumbledore and sat down beside him and took his hand,
'This is not your fault, its those horrid Dursley's and Harry will never go back to them. He doesn't blame anyone for it, I am just glad he came and told us so we can do something about it.' Sirius suddenly found his voice and spoke with such power and determination the others shuddered,
'I want them punished, punished for what they did to Harry, he did not deserve any of that, Harry has never hurt anybody, I just don't understand how they could do that to him, its just unbelievable. Its so unbelievable that they could hurt someone who did no wrong to them.' Sirius clenched and unclenched his fists, he quickly stood and headed for the door,
'Black where are you going?' questioned Snape, his voice spoke of some mild irritation but the news that had transpired that evening had washed some of his sarcasm away,
'I am going to make those monsters pay' with the comment Sirius turned towards the door and headed for the hall. Remus let the full extent of his friends words sink in then realising their meaning, leapt of the chair and hurried after his retreating form.
'Sirius no! Do you want to end up back in Azkaban?' Sirius paused momentarily then continued towards the front door. Remus grabbed him by the arm and turned him around,
'Listen Sirius, this is no time for your heroics or time for revenge. What would you do if you were sent back to Azkaban? What would Harry do? Its not just your life on the edge anymore its Harry's think of him, he needs you, you're the closest thing he has to a father. He will need you more than ever now, and think of us, think of me, Dumbledore, Arabella, even Snape.' Sirius halted and looked at the sorrow and pain in his friend's eyes. Raking a hand through his hair he sighed,
'What can I do Moony?' Snape suddenly barged past him and walked up the stairs but stopped half way up and addressed the two friend's,
'If you wanted to help you would I would guess go to your Godson and talk to him and maybe help the others around here and contact the Ministry so some proper action can be taken against those insufferable muggles.' Sirius stared with wide eyes as Snape's robes billowed out behind him as he headed up the stairs to his study.
'Since when did he become so knowledgeable and I thought he hated Harry?' said Remus in astonishment. Suddenly as quickly as he disappeared Snape appeared on the stairs again and seeing their questioningly glances he rolled his eyes and answered,
'I am neither deaf nor as many believe an evil heartless slime ball. I have not hidden my dislike for Potter and do not treat him like the hero, so many believe him to be. I however would never wish the treatment he has received upon anyone, and it seems as my illusion of Potter being treated as a spoilt brat at home was some what incorrect. I also realise that Potter is going to have a very rough and turbulent time in the foreseeable future. Also as Lily was one of my close friends I am going to make sure the fools who hurt her son pay.'
With that comment Snape stormed up the stairs back to his study. Sirius and Remus stood in confusion as the person they thought always had it in for Harry suddenly revealed the reasons for his hate towards him and even said he was going to help them male sure the Dursley's received the punishment they deserved. A soft and silently amused voice broke them out of their thoughts,
'It seems as if Serverus will help us, and go easy on Harry.' Said Dumbledore.
Arabella who was standing beside him smiled at the old wizard.
'Well it's very late and it's been a long day, I think we should all go to sleep.' Dumbledore turned towards Sirius,
'Sirius would you take Harry to his bedroom, I doubt it would be very comfortable to sleep on the sofa all night and I have a feeling Harry is going to need a lot of rest at the moment.'
Sirius nodded and they all made their way up to the lounge. Sirius opened the door and marvelled at the sight before him, Harry was fast asleep, floating slightly off the seat of the sofa with Fawkes guarding him from the armrest. Slowly as not to frighten the phoenix, Sirius made his way towards Harry's sleeping form. Sirius did not miss the look the phoenix gave him as he silently regarded him as he came nearer towards Harry. Sirius could see the burning fire in Fawkes' eyes and his feathers in this dim light did truly look on fire.
Sirius gently lifted Harry's light and small form, a frown gracing his face as he easily lifted Harry it was impossible to notice how small and light Harry was. He was abnormally light, probably from the Dursley's starving him he noted bitterly. Sirius slowly walked out of the room, unaware of Fawkes following him, keeping a watchful gaze over the sleeping form in his arms. Dumbledore, Arabella and Remus all followed Sirius as he easily climbed the stairs up to the fourth floor and walked in to Harry's bedroom.
Sirius gently laid Harry into his bed and tucked the covers around him. Fawkes flew into the room and rested on the windowsill. Sirius softly observed Harry sleeping peacefully and headed towards the door but was interrupted by a small soft voice,
'Night Sirius, I love you.' Whispered Harry. Sirius smiled back and as he was shutting the door spoke back,
'Love you too Harry.' Harry fell back into a deep and dreamless sleep.
The next morning Harry woke up to Sirius pulling back the curtains in his room. Harry squinted over to the bedside table to look for his glasses. Sirius saw this and walked over to Harry's table where he handed Harry his glasses. Sirius sat down on the end of the bed and smiled up at Harry,
'Morning Harry' Harry smiled back,
'Morning Sirius' Harry's gaze dropped and he shifted in his bed,
'Sirius did Arabella talk to you last night about what I told her?' Sirius' smile faded and he nodded,
'Harry I am so sorry, why didn't you tell me, or write to Dumbledore and tell him?' Harry frowned,
'I didn't want to bother Dumbledore, he is so busy now and I didn't want to worry you.' Sirius shook his head and sighed heavily,
'Oh Harry, you cant keep these things locked up all the time, if there is a problem or something bothering, we will always have the time for you.' Harry smiled back at Sirius,
'Harry promise me that if there is ever a problem you will go to someone, and never feel that you cant come to me because I will always have time for you. Even if there was a hippogriff charging at me I would manage to talk to you' Harry smiled brightly and relaxed. Sirius' face darkened,
'Harry we are contacting the Ministry today, the Dursley's have to be punished for what they did to you.' Sirius didn't miss the look of fear that flashed through Harry's eyes as the Dursley's were mentioned. Sirius moved up the bed and wrapped a reassuring arm around Harry's shoulders.
'Harry you cant let them win and get away with it. We are all here for you, you have to be strong.' Harry nodded and spoke weakly,
'I understand Sirius, I can't let them win, what will happen to them?' Sirius smiled wickedly,
'Well Snape spoke to the Ministry last night and they were shall we say a little angry! Anyway they are pulling all their files on the Dursley's and Bella's going to tell them all that you said, but you will need to see Madam Pomfrey so she can check your injuries and make sure they are healing correctly' Harry quickly interrupted Sirius,
'Snape knows oh no he is going to use this against me to make Potions worse than it already it is.' Suddenly a thought struck Harry,
'You know about my injuries but how, I never showed them anyone not even Arabella' Sirius shifted slightly,
'Harry you fell asleep against your bedroom wall and as I lifted you into bed your shift moved and we saw and no Snape actually wants to help and was very sorry that you had to go what you went through. He was under an illusion that you were being treated like some spoilt brat but the Dursley's and thought your fame had made you spoilt.' Harry smiled and thought that his fame had brought him nothing but trouble so far. Sirius continued,
'Well as to exactly what will happen, several of the members of The Order Of The Phoenix, are Aurors for the Ministry so some Aurors from the Ministry, and several from the Order are going to take the Dursley's into custody on the first Saturday when you back to school. The Order is very well known and its members are very well respected as it is known that only the purest and bravest of heart are chosen to be in it.' Sirius' speech was cut of when there was a knock heard on the door, and when it swung open Remus appeared.
'Hey Harry, are you feeling better this morning?' Harry nodded and smiled warmly at his ex-professor. Harry was really feeling that he had somewhere where he belonged, with Sirius, Remus, Arabella, Hermoine, Ron, Dumbledore and even Snape was growing on him.
'Bella's having a mood swing!' Remus seeing Harry's confused face said,
'Well its lunch time and she thought we should have woken you up so you could have breakfast but Padfoot stopped her and now she thinks your going to die of starvation because you haven't eaten!' Harry laughed,
'I don't think I am likely to starve by missing one meal.' Sirius frowned slightly,
'Harry you need to eat your so thin.' Harry weakly smiled and was about to reply when a call was heard throughout the house,
'Sirius Black and Remus Lupin let Harry get changed so he can come for lunch.' It was Arabella. They all burst out laughing and Remus said,
'She is going to smother you to death with love and food Harry.' The voice echoed again,
'I heard that Lupin!' Sirius and Harry snorted while Remus blushed,
'Come on Padfoot lets go before she has our wands and bans us from pranks.' Sirius' face dropped but then he smiled wickedly,
'Well there is always the muggle way!' Remus laughed and pulled him out of the room, leaving Harry laughing at how Sirius never gives up when pranks are involved. Harry quickly got changed and headed down for lunch. After lunch Harry spoke to two members of the Ministry who were involved in the case with the Dursley's. As the conversation ended Dumbledore asked Harry if he could just speak to the Ministry members quickly so Harry got up and went to get his broom.
As Harry stepped out of the room, Dumbledore's face became etched with time and anger. He turned to the Ministry members,
'Several members of the Order would like to come and assist with the detainment of the Dursley's is that alright?' The wizard and witch looked slightly confused at Dumbledore's request,
'Why would the Order members like to come, is this just not a simple task of arresting a few muggles. The Order only assists us when there is Dark Magic involved or when one of their fellow members has been injured and a arrest is being made.?' asked the witch. Dumbledore simply said,
'Harry is very important to many people and has a role in the Order, many of the members are professors at Hogwarts and parents of his friends so would naturally want to help Harry.' The Witch again spoke up,
'But there is no need to burden them with this small incident, they have much more important things to do than go arrest some powerless muggles.' Dumbledore shot the Witch a look which clearly said he was not amused,
'Harry is important to ever Witch and Wizard, he is the Boy-Who-Lived, and the members from the Order who wish to aid the Ministry with the arrest specially requested it.' An older Wizard interrupted,
'If it is their wish then we have no problems with their presence.'
Dumbledore smiled softly, 'Lastly I would like to submit a joint adoption paper for the guardianship of Harry.' The wizard looked at Dumbledore closely,
'Why would you want guardianship and who would be the other people?'
Dumbledore looked at the wizard and his eyes showed determination and love,
'I have a personal interest in Harry, and the other guardians would be his godparents, Arabella Figg and Sirius Black.' A witch gasped at the mention of Sirius' name as still many people feared the cleared convict. The wizard nervously clasped his hands,
'Well I am not sure whether or not Black would be granted guardianship, I mean I know he has been cleared but the fear is still there and people just wouldn't trust him to look after the Boy-Who-Lived. Guardianship would be granted to you and could be to the other professors at Hogwarts if Harry is to stay there all year.' Dumbledore sighed,
'Well I would still like to file the papers for all three of us to be guardians, if Mr Potter wants Mr Black to be one of his guardians I don't see why that cant be arranged, since he is legally his godfather and is legally a free wizard.' Dumbledore stood and the light in his eyes clearly told the Ministry officials that the conversation was over.
Dumbledore stepped out of the dining room showed the officials to the front door ands saw them apparate back to the Ministry. As Dumbledore was about to step back into the house he saw Harry zooming around on his broom. He stood and watched Harry perform a Wronski Feint. As Harry plummeted to the ground, Albus could feel his breath catching, and as Harry pulled out the dive with his feet gently brushing the ground, he sighed relieved that he had made it. He remembered when James used to play and performed the exact same stunt, it always did and always would get his heart going.
That evening Sirius suggested that they roast marshmallows the muggle way, to this Snape flatly refused to participate in such a childish activity, so just sat and watched the flames. The fire however was totally magical, it was slightly warm to the touch but melted the marshmallows in an instant. The flames were the colours of the rainbow and glowed brightly and swayed like waves.
The next morning was the day Harry would be catching the Hogwarts Express.
'Come on Harry don't want to miss the train now do you!' said Arabella as she tried to wake up Harry. Harry opened one eye and saw the room filled with sunlight and instantly buried under his duvet. Arabella sighed and tugged at the duvet,
'Five more minutes please' mumbled Harry. Arabella smiled,
'No now come on sweetie, breakfast is almost ready and you didn't pack last night so you need to this morning.' Harry mumbled and crawled out of bed but when he came to the side of the bed he miss placed one of his legs and fell out of the bed and into a heap on the floor.
'Ahh' Harry yelled as his body made contact with the floor. Arabella chuckled, but when she saw that Harry was in pain, she quickly remembered about his injuries and hurried to him,
'Oh Harry are you ok?' Harry weakly smiled and pulled himself up,
'Yea just banged my back, nothing major. You go down I will meet you down in a few minutes.' Arabella put on a false smile as she knew Harry was in a great deal of pain and was just trying to cover it up. Arabella walked down to the breakfast room where Sirius greeted her,
'Where's Harry?' Arabella frowned,
'He feel out of bed and hurt his back.' Sirius raked his hand through his hair and sat down heavily in his chair,
'Do you think our surprise will cheer him up a bit?' Arabella smiled warmly at Sirius,
'I hope so, but he may be angry that we didn't tell him before, but he will love it once he gets used to it.' Sirius smiled back and they began to eat. A few minutes later they were joined by Snape, Remus and Dumbledore and a few minutes after them, Harry. Harry was sitting at the table with one leg underneath him, when Snape finally made a snide remark,
'Potter do you have to sit like that? Can't you sit normally or do you always have to do things 'your' way?' at his last remark Snape raised his eyebrows and smirked at Harry. Harry stared back at Snape,
'It's comfortable this way' Snape glared back at Harry,
'Potter being a prefect involves you setting an example to the other students and sitting on your legs is bad manners and very rude. Heaven knows how you became a prefect, but considering the bunch of idiots that are in Gryffindor fifth year I suppose you were the best candidate, couldn't have someone like Longbottom or Weasley.' Harry merely glared back at Snape and was going to use some very carefully chosen words when Dumbledore interrupted,
'On the conversation of prefects I seem to recall being puzzled that when yourself and Miss Granger received your prefect badges, Mr Weasley did not.' A small smile on his face as he saw the venomous scowl on Snape's face. Harry smiled broadly,
'Ron's a prefect too!' Dumbledore smiled back,
'Yes, it seems as if his badge got sent to the Burrow by mistake. Oh and Serverus I seem to recall you sitting on your legs constantly throughout classes and meal times.' Sirius and Remus snorted and smiled at Harry. Snape got up and walked out of the room. Dumbledore regarded his retreating figure,
'Poor Serverus, he should learn to have a little laugh once and a while, it takes years of you. Well Mr Potter I would suggest that you go pack quickly we don't want to be late and I am sure that if Serverus can he will try and deduct points even before term has started.' Harry smiled back at Dumbledore and began to eat again when he remembered something,
'Professor you know when you first arrived, you said about a surprise from Sirius, Remus and Arabella' Harry turned towards them,
'Well what is it?' Dumbledore chuckled at Harry's curiosity,
'Well you shall have to wait and see Mr Potter, you will find out soon.' Sirius, Remus and Arabella all sheepishly grinned back. Harry smiled back but thought that this was just yet another thing they were keeping from him, he then reminded himself that this was a surprise so was different. Harry left the table and went to get packed. Harry was in his room, putting the last few items of his school equipment into his trunk when he heard a knock at the door and Sirius appeared,
'Want help taking your trunk downstairs?' Harry quickly scanned the room to see if he had left anything then turned to Sirius,
'Yes please I don't think I could lift it' Sirius' face broke out into a wide grin,
'But I wont have to lift it either' Sirius saw Harry's questioning look and in response pulled out his wand and said,
'Wingardium Leviosa!' and Harry's trunk instant began to rise into the air and follow the commands from Sirius' wand,
'The wonders of Magic!' said Sirius in a mystical voice. Harry laughed, picked up Hedwig's cage and led the way down to the ground floor.
'Get a move on Potter, stop dawdling in the hall, I for one don't want to miss the train.' sneered Snape as he brushed past Harry and into the sitting room. Harry glared back and turned to Sirius,
'How are we getting to Kings Cross?' Sirius sighed and said,
'Floo Powder, the worst possible way of travelling if you ask me' Harry merely nodded his head but privately he disagreed and thought that if he never saw a portkey again it would be too soon. They made their way into the sitting room where the others were all waiting.
'Umm why are Arabella and Remus coming?' questioned Harry. A spark in Sirius' eyes ignited,
'Well you shall see very soon, don't want to ruin your surprise now.' Remus picked up a large gold box and opened it inside Harry could see a large supply of floo powder. Snape put his hand into the box and pulled out some powder and threw it into the flames, the flames turned emerald green and roared higher than ever. Snape stepped in and yelled,
'Platform 9 3/4 ' and instantly disappeared. Arabella stepped forward and followed him. Remus then stepped up but as he was about to go in he turned to Harry, 'Harry would you like me to take Hedwig for you, I know what the floo tunnels can be like when your not used to them and I have heard that you havnt had many good experiences with them.' Harry smiled appreciatively and handed over Hedwig's cage to him. Remus stepped into the fire and yelled,
'Platform 9 3/4' immediately Remus and Hedwig were swept away and were on their way to Platform 9 ¾. Sirius then stepped into the flames with Harry's trunk and followed Remus. Dumbledore then turned to Harry,
'Your turn Harry' Harry nodded and stepped forward into the flames and yelled clearly,
'Platform 9 3/4' Harry was whisked into the floo system and instantly felt a sickening feeling in his stomach as he began to spin around. Harry began to panic as the flames around him darkened and ripped at his body, a splitting sensation struck Harry in his scar and he immediately bent over to try and minimize the pain.
Cliffie :D
Until Next Time .....................
Disclaimer: Own only the plot, my made up characters my plot lines, my made up situations such as Tutamen Unus etc!
Enjoy....
'Well lets clear up here and then we shall have a talk.' Dumbledore withdrew his wand from his robes and with a swish of his wand all the furniture was repaired, the glass fixed and the glass cleared.
As Dumbledore beckoned the others to follow him down the stairs, Fawkes took flight and disappeared. A smile crossed the old Wizard's face, as he knew exactly where he was off too.
There was a sound of rushing wings and roaring fire as suddenly in the middle of the lounge appeared a gold and crimson phoenix, Fawkes. Fawkes flew over to the sofa and came to a rest on the arm of it, watching over the boy who lay soundly sleeping.
They all arrived in the sitting room where they all took seats on the large sofas. Arabella looked unusually saddened,
'Sirius first of all I know you will be upset Harry didn't come to you but its not because he doest trust you because he does and he loves you more than anything. He was embarrassed and scared of your reaction, he thought you would do something rash, and I think that he felt more comfortable talking to me since I have known him his entire life and since I know the Dursley's.'
Sirius cracked a small smile and felt relief spread throughout his body. He thought that Harry hadn't come to him because he hadn't trusted him. Arabella smiled as she saw Sirius visibly relax, she knew he was just as worried as she was about Harry and like her would do anything for him. Dumbledore looked expectantly at Arabella and when Arabella met his gaze she didn't miss the look of sadness in his eyes.
'I knew the Dursley's never treated Harry as he should have been, I found out after he started Hogwarts that he had been sleeping in a cupboard and his aunt and uncle thought it was totally appropriate for him, he was treated like a slave made to do all the chores while their son plays games, he was never bought anything and all his clothes were cast offs. Then this summer..' Arabella took a deep shaky breath and saw the concerned looks on everyone's faces even Snape's,
'This summer his uncle beat him everyday since he got home, his aunt and cousin too. They blamed him for the uncle's business failures. Harry was sore from his injures at the Triwizard Tournament and it slowed him down and he was punished. He was locked in his room, only allowed out to do chores, even his windows had bars on them. He was beaten until he collapsed and then they still carried on. They are monsters. They are totally against magic, or anything 'abnormal' I remember Lily used to say that Petunia used to call her a freak.' Snape broke the silence,
'I remember Lily never much mentioned her sister or her husband but she did say that they were all very anti-magic, but I always imagined that once they had heard what Potter had done they would have treated him like a prince, I always presumed he was a spoilt brat, like Draco Malfoy.' Everyone in the room silently agreed with that statement. Dumbledore looked up,
'Arabella please tell me everything Harry said, its vital I know everything so the appropriate action can be taken.' Arabella told all that Harry had told her, the details of the beatings and the reasons and their treatment of him. After Arabella finally finished her account of what Harry had said, Dumbledore slowly raised his hand up and rubbed his forehead,
'I have failed Harry, I have failed James and Lily and I failed myself, I should have seen this before, he should never had stayed with the Dursley's, he should have gone to stay with you Arabella or myself. I am ashamed with myself, I cant even imagine how he has suffered, and how this has affected him.' Dumbledore drew a shaky breath and sighed heavily. Arabella walked over to Dumbledore and sat down beside him and took his hand,
'This is not your fault, its those horrid Dursley's and Harry will never go back to them. He doesn't blame anyone for it, I am just glad he came and told us so we can do something about it.' Sirius suddenly found his voice and spoke with such power and determination the others shuddered,
'I want them punished, punished for what they did to Harry, he did not deserve any of that, Harry has never hurt anybody, I just don't understand how they could do that to him, its just unbelievable. Its so unbelievable that they could hurt someone who did no wrong to them.' Sirius clenched and unclenched his fists, he quickly stood and headed for the door,
'Black where are you going?' questioned Snape, his voice spoke of some mild irritation but the news that had transpired that evening had washed some of his sarcasm away,
'I am going to make those monsters pay' with the comment Sirius turned towards the door and headed for the hall. Remus let the full extent of his friends words sink in then realising their meaning, leapt of the chair and hurried after his retreating form.
'Sirius no! Do you want to end up back in Azkaban?' Sirius paused momentarily then continued towards the front door. Remus grabbed him by the arm and turned him around,
'Listen Sirius, this is no time for your heroics or time for revenge. What would you do if you were sent back to Azkaban? What would Harry do? Its not just your life on the edge anymore its Harry's think of him, he needs you, you're the closest thing he has to a father. He will need you more than ever now, and think of us, think of me, Dumbledore, Arabella, even Snape.' Sirius halted and looked at the sorrow and pain in his friend's eyes. Raking a hand through his hair he sighed,
'What can I do Moony?' Snape suddenly barged past him and walked up the stairs but stopped half way up and addressed the two friend's,
'If you wanted to help you would I would guess go to your Godson and talk to him and maybe help the others around here and contact the Ministry so some proper action can be taken against those insufferable muggles.' Sirius stared with wide eyes as Snape's robes billowed out behind him as he headed up the stairs to his study.
'Since when did he become so knowledgeable and I thought he hated Harry?' said Remus in astonishment. Suddenly as quickly as he disappeared Snape appeared on the stairs again and seeing their questioningly glances he rolled his eyes and answered,
'I am neither deaf nor as many believe an evil heartless slime ball. I have not hidden my dislike for Potter and do not treat him like the hero, so many believe him to be. I however would never wish the treatment he has received upon anyone, and it seems as my illusion of Potter being treated as a spoilt brat at home was some what incorrect. I also realise that Potter is going to have a very rough and turbulent time in the foreseeable future. Also as Lily was one of my close friends I am going to make sure the fools who hurt her son pay.'
With that comment Snape stormed up the stairs back to his study. Sirius and Remus stood in confusion as the person they thought always had it in for Harry suddenly revealed the reasons for his hate towards him and even said he was going to help them male sure the Dursley's received the punishment they deserved. A soft and silently amused voice broke them out of their thoughts,
'It seems as if Serverus will help us, and go easy on Harry.' Said Dumbledore.
Arabella who was standing beside him smiled at the old wizard.
'Well it's very late and it's been a long day, I think we should all go to sleep.' Dumbledore turned towards Sirius,
'Sirius would you take Harry to his bedroom, I doubt it would be very comfortable to sleep on the sofa all night and I have a feeling Harry is going to need a lot of rest at the moment.'
Sirius nodded and they all made their way up to the lounge. Sirius opened the door and marvelled at the sight before him, Harry was fast asleep, floating slightly off the seat of the sofa with Fawkes guarding him from the armrest. Slowly as not to frighten the phoenix, Sirius made his way towards Harry's sleeping form. Sirius did not miss the look the phoenix gave him as he silently regarded him as he came nearer towards Harry. Sirius could see the burning fire in Fawkes' eyes and his feathers in this dim light did truly look on fire.
Sirius gently lifted Harry's light and small form, a frown gracing his face as he easily lifted Harry it was impossible to notice how small and light Harry was. He was abnormally light, probably from the Dursley's starving him he noted bitterly. Sirius slowly walked out of the room, unaware of Fawkes following him, keeping a watchful gaze over the sleeping form in his arms. Dumbledore, Arabella and Remus all followed Sirius as he easily climbed the stairs up to the fourth floor and walked in to Harry's bedroom.
Sirius gently laid Harry into his bed and tucked the covers around him. Fawkes flew into the room and rested on the windowsill. Sirius softly observed Harry sleeping peacefully and headed towards the door but was interrupted by a small soft voice,
'Night Sirius, I love you.' Whispered Harry. Sirius smiled back and as he was shutting the door spoke back,
'Love you too Harry.' Harry fell back into a deep and dreamless sleep.
The next morning Harry woke up to Sirius pulling back the curtains in his room. Harry squinted over to the bedside table to look for his glasses. Sirius saw this and walked over to Harry's table where he handed Harry his glasses. Sirius sat down on the end of the bed and smiled up at Harry,
'Morning Harry' Harry smiled back,
'Morning Sirius' Harry's gaze dropped and he shifted in his bed,
'Sirius did Arabella talk to you last night about what I told her?' Sirius' smile faded and he nodded,
'Harry I am so sorry, why didn't you tell me, or write to Dumbledore and tell him?' Harry frowned,
'I didn't want to bother Dumbledore, he is so busy now and I didn't want to worry you.' Sirius shook his head and sighed heavily,
'Oh Harry, you cant keep these things locked up all the time, if there is a problem or something bothering, we will always have the time for you.' Harry smiled back at Sirius,
'Harry promise me that if there is ever a problem you will go to someone, and never feel that you cant come to me because I will always have time for you. Even if there was a hippogriff charging at me I would manage to talk to you' Harry smiled brightly and relaxed. Sirius' face darkened,
'Harry we are contacting the Ministry today, the Dursley's have to be punished for what they did to you.' Sirius didn't miss the look of fear that flashed through Harry's eyes as the Dursley's were mentioned. Sirius moved up the bed and wrapped a reassuring arm around Harry's shoulders.
'Harry you cant let them win and get away with it. We are all here for you, you have to be strong.' Harry nodded and spoke weakly,
'I understand Sirius, I can't let them win, what will happen to them?' Sirius smiled wickedly,
'Well Snape spoke to the Ministry last night and they were shall we say a little angry! Anyway they are pulling all their files on the Dursley's and Bella's going to tell them all that you said, but you will need to see Madam Pomfrey so she can check your injuries and make sure they are healing correctly' Harry quickly interrupted Sirius,
'Snape knows oh no he is going to use this against me to make Potions worse than it already it is.' Suddenly a thought struck Harry,
'You know about my injuries but how, I never showed them anyone not even Arabella' Sirius shifted slightly,
'Harry you fell asleep against your bedroom wall and as I lifted you into bed your shift moved and we saw and no Snape actually wants to help and was very sorry that you had to go what you went through. He was under an illusion that you were being treated like some spoilt brat but the Dursley's and thought your fame had made you spoilt.' Harry smiled and thought that his fame had brought him nothing but trouble so far. Sirius continued,
'Well as to exactly what will happen, several of the members of The Order Of The Phoenix, are Aurors for the Ministry so some Aurors from the Ministry, and several from the Order are going to take the Dursley's into custody on the first Saturday when you back to school. The Order is very well known and its members are very well respected as it is known that only the purest and bravest of heart are chosen to be in it.' Sirius' speech was cut of when there was a knock heard on the door, and when it swung open Remus appeared.
'Hey Harry, are you feeling better this morning?' Harry nodded and smiled warmly at his ex-professor. Harry was really feeling that he had somewhere where he belonged, with Sirius, Remus, Arabella, Hermoine, Ron, Dumbledore and even Snape was growing on him.
'Bella's having a mood swing!' Remus seeing Harry's confused face said,
'Well its lunch time and she thought we should have woken you up so you could have breakfast but Padfoot stopped her and now she thinks your going to die of starvation because you haven't eaten!' Harry laughed,
'I don't think I am likely to starve by missing one meal.' Sirius frowned slightly,
'Harry you need to eat your so thin.' Harry weakly smiled and was about to reply when a call was heard throughout the house,
'Sirius Black and Remus Lupin let Harry get changed so he can come for lunch.' It was Arabella. They all burst out laughing and Remus said,
'She is going to smother you to death with love and food Harry.' The voice echoed again,
'I heard that Lupin!' Sirius and Harry snorted while Remus blushed,
'Come on Padfoot lets go before she has our wands and bans us from pranks.' Sirius' face dropped but then he smiled wickedly,
'Well there is always the muggle way!' Remus laughed and pulled him out of the room, leaving Harry laughing at how Sirius never gives up when pranks are involved. Harry quickly got changed and headed down for lunch. After lunch Harry spoke to two members of the Ministry who were involved in the case with the Dursley's. As the conversation ended Dumbledore asked Harry if he could just speak to the Ministry members quickly so Harry got up and went to get his broom.
As Harry stepped out of the room, Dumbledore's face became etched with time and anger. He turned to the Ministry members,
'Several members of the Order would like to come and assist with the detainment of the Dursley's is that alright?' The wizard and witch looked slightly confused at Dumbledore's request,
'Why would the Order members like to come, is this just not a simple task of arresting a few muggles. The Order only assists us when there is Dark Magic involved or when one of their fellow members has been injured and a arrest is being made.?' asked the witch. Dumbledore simply said,
'Harry is very important to many people and has a role in the Order, many of the members are professors at Hogwarts and parents of his friends so would naturally want to help Harry.' The Witch again spoke up,
'But there is no need to burden them with this small incident, they have much more important things to do than go arrest some powerless muggles.' Dumbledore shot the Witch a look which clearly said he was not amused,
'Harry is important to ever Witch and Wizard, he is the Boy-Who-Lived, and the members from the Order who wish to aid the Ministry with the arrest specially requested it.' An older Wizard interrupted,
'If it is their wish then we have no problems with their presence.'
Dumbledore smiled softly, 'Lastly I would like to submit a joint adoption paper for the guardianship of Harry.' The wizard looked at Dumbledore closely,
'Why would you want guardianship and who would be the other people?'
Dumbledore looked at the wizard and his eyes showed determination and love,
'I have a personal interest in Harry, and the other guardians would be his godparents, Arabella Figg and Sirius Black.' A witch gasped at the mention of Sirius' name as still many people feared the cleared convict. The wizard nervously clasped his hands,
'Well I am not sure whether or not Black would be granted guardianship, I mean I know he has been cleared but the fear is still there and people just wouldn't trust him to look after the Boy-Who-Lived. Guardianship would be granted to you and could be to the other professors at Hogwarts if Harry is to stay there all year.' Dumbledore sighed,
'Well I would still like to file the papers for all three of us to be guardians, if Mr Potter wants Mr Black to be one of his guardians I don't see why that cant be arranged, since he is legally his godfather and is legally a free wizard.' Dumbledore stood and the light in his eyes clearly told the Ministry officials that the conversation was over.
Dumbledore stepped out of the dining room showed the officials to the front door ands saw them apparate back to the Ministry. As Dumbledore was about to step back into the house he saw Harry zooming around on his broom. He stood and watched Harry perform a Wronski Feint. As Harry plummeted to the ground, Albus could feel his breath catching, and as Harry pulled out the dive with his feet gently brushing the ground, he sighed relieved that he had made it. He remembered when James used to play and performed the exact same stunt, it always did and always would get his heart going.
That evening Sirius suggested that they roast marshmallows the muggle way, to this Snape flatly refused to participate in such a childish activity, so just sat and watched the flames. The fire however was totally magical, it was slightly warm to the touch but melted the marshmallows in an instant. The flames were the colours of the rainbow and glowed brightly and swayed like waves.
The next morning was the day Harry would be catching the Hogwarts Express.
'Come on Harry don't want to miss the train now do you!' said Arabella as she tried to wake up Harry. Harry opened one eye and saw the room filled with sunlight and instantly buried under his duvet. Arabella sighed and tugged at the duvet,
'Five more minutes please' mumbled Harry. Arabella smiled,
'No now come on sweetie, breakfast is almost ready and you didn't pack last night so you need to this morning.' Harry mumbled and crawled out of bed but when he came to the side of the bed he miss placed one of his legs and fell out of the bed and into a heap on the floor.
'Ahh' Harry yelled as his body made contact with the floor. Arabella chuckled, but when she saw that Harry was in pain, she quickly remembered about his injuries and hurried to him,
'Oh Harry are you ok?' Harry weakly smiled and pulled himself up,
'Yea just banged my back, nothing major. You go down I will meet you down in a few minutes.' Arabella put on a false smile as she knew Harry was in a great deal of pain and was just trying to cover it up. Arabella walked down to the breakfast room where Sirius greeted her,
'Where's Harry?' Arabella frowned,
'He feel out of bed and hurt his back.' Sirius raked his hand through his hair and sat down heavily in his chair,
'Do you think our surprise will cheer him up a bit?' Arabella smiled warmly at Sirius,
'I hope so, but he may be angry that we didn't tell him before, but he will love it once he gets used to it.' Sirius smiled back and they began to eat. A few minutes later they were joined by Snape, Remus and Dumbledore and a few minutes after them, Harry. Harry was sitting at the table with one leg underneath him, when Snape finally made a snide remark,
'Potter do you have to sit like that? Can't you sit normally or do you always have to do things 'your' way?' at his last remark Snape raised his eyebrows and smirked at Harry. Harry stared back at Snape,
'It's comfortable this way' Snape glared back at Harry,
'Potter being a prefect involves you setting an example to the other students and sitting on your legs is bad manners and very rude. Heaven knows how you became a prefect, but considering the bunch of idiots that are in Gryffindor fifth year I suppose you were the best candidate, couldn't have someone like Longbottom or Weasley.' Harry merely glared back at Snape and was going to use some very carefully chosen words when Dumbledore interrupted,
'On the conversation of prefects I seem to recall being puzzled that when yourself and Miss Granger received your prefect badges, Mr Weasley did not.' A small smile on his face as he saw the venomous scowl on Snape's face. Harry smiled broadly,
'Ron's a prefect too!' Dumbledore smiled back,
'Yes, it seems as if his badge got sent to the Burrow by mistake. Oh and Serverus I seem to recall you sitting on your legs constantly throughout classes and meal times.' Sirius and Remus snorted and smiled at Harry. Snape got up and walked out of the room. Dumbledore regarded his retreating figure,
'Poor Serverus, he should learn to have a little laugh once and a while, it takes years of you. Well Mr Potter I would suggest that you go pack quickly we don't want to be late and I am sure that if Serverus can he will try and deduct points even before term has started.' Harry smiled back at Dumbledore and began to eat again when he remembered something,
'Professor you know when you first arrived, you said about a surprise from Sirius, Remus and Arabella' Harry turned towards them,
'Well what is it?' Dumbledore chuckled at Harry's curiosity,
'Well you shall have to wait and see Mr Potter, you will find out soon.' Sirius, Remus and Arabella all sheepishly grinned back. Harry smiled back but thought that this was just yet another thing they were keeping from him, he then reminded himself that this was a surprise so was different. Harry left the table and went to get packed. Harry was in his room, putting the last few items of his school equipment into his trunk when he heard a knock at the door and Sirius appeared,
'Want help taking your trunk downstairs?' Harry quickly scanned the room to see if he had left anything then turned to Sirius,
'Yes please I don't think I could lift it' Sirius' face broke out into a wide grin,
'But I wont have to lift it either' Sirius saw Harry's questioning look and in response pulled out his wand and said,
'Wingardium Leviosa!' and Harry's trunk instant began to rise into the air and follow the commands from Sirius' wand,
'The wonders of Magic!' said Sirius in a mystical voice. Harry laughed, picked up Hedwig's cage and led the way down to the ground floor.
'Get a move on Potter, stop dawdling in the hall, I for one don't want to miss the train.' sneered Snape as he brushed past Harry and into the sitting room. Harry glared back and turned to Sirius,
'How are we getting to Kings Cross?' Sirius sighed and said,
'Floo Powder, the worst possible way of travelling if you ask me' Harry merely nodded his head but privately he disagreed and thought that if he never saw a portkey again it would be too soon. They made their way into the sitting room where the others were all waiting.
'Umm why are Arabella and Remus coming?' questioned Harry. A spark in Sirius' eyes ignited,
'Well you shall see very soon, don't want to ruin your surprise now.' Remus picked up a large gold box and opened it inside Harry could see a large supply of floo powder. Snape put his hand into the box and pulled out some powder and threw it into the flames, the flames turned emerald green and roared higher than ever. Snape stepped in and yelled,
'Platform 9 3/4 ' and instantly disappeared. Arabella stepped forward and followed him. Remus then stepped up but as he was about to go in he turned to Harry, 'Harry would you like me to take Hedwig for you, I know what the floo tunnels can be like when your not used to them and I have heard that you havnt had many good experiences with them.' Harry smiled appreciatively and handed over Hedwig's cage to him. Remus stepped into the fire and yelled,
'Platform 9 3/4' immediately Remus and Hedwig were swept away and were on their way to Platform 9 ¾. Sirius then stepped into the flames with Harry's trunk and followed Remus. Dumbledore then turned to Harry,
'Your turn Harry' Harry nodded and stepped forward into the flames and yelled clearly,
'Platform 9 3/4' Harry was whisked into the floo system and instantly felt a sickening feeling in his stomach as he began to spin around. Harry began to panic as the flames around him darkened and ripped at his body, a splitting sensation struck Harry in his scar and he immediately bent over to try and minimize the pain.
Cliffie :D
Until Next Time .....................